Aurora - You are my light (Ateez x reader)

FORTYTHREE

San lay shirtless in his bed, propped up by a stack of pillows that kept him in an upright position. Bangchan sat casually on the edge of the bed, chatting with him, while Seungmin lounged on the other side in a deep red armchair, engrossed in a thick book as if it were the most thrilling page-turner of the century.

The room was as spacious as mine, but somehow it seemed gloomier. The curtains were almost fully drawn, and only a sliver of light filtered through, just enough to catch the tiny dust particles dancing in the air.

San almost looked like he had regained his old strength. Almost. If it weren't for the dark circles under his eyes, the fresh scar on his chest, and the burn marks on his arm, you might have thought he was back to full health. He wasn't bandaged anymore—Bangchan or Seungmin must have removed the stitches, and everything seemed to be healing well. Better than at my last check-up. His body, without the demon parasite, was probably recovering faster.

As soon as the door clicked shut behind Wooyoung, the trio turned to face us in unison.

"Ah, there you are," Bangchan said, standing to meet us halfway. "San's stable and more or less back to normal. We've monitored him all night, nothing unusual. Looks like we managed to defeat the demon before it could embed its dark magic in him," he informed me.

I exhaled, relieved—finally, some good news. But then Bangchan's face turned serious. "However, we suspect that San may have lost his magical abilities, or at least can't access them at the moment." 

Wooyoung next to me nodded dejectedly. "I just told Aurora about it," he informed Bangchan. The latter nodded in understanding.

"San's told me quite a bit," Bangchan continued, now addressing me again. "The reason we think you might be able to help is because of the connection you and San had while dreamwalking."

"An involuntary connection," I corrected him, shooting San a sharp look over Bangchan's shoulder. San lowered his head guiltily.

Bangchan sighed, as if he were the only one in the room holding it all together. "Anyway, you were the last person he connected with before the demon took over."

"Not just before," Wooyoung interjected, "even during. He came to her in his dreams while the demon had control." The memory of the demon in San's form sent a chill down my spine.

San and Bangchan both looked surprised, and even Seungmin closed his book and gave me a curious look. He seemed young, but there was an air of confidence about him. With his black hair and casual outfit—an old black shirt and dark baggy jeans—he looked almost indifferent, but his eyes sparkled with interest.

"Is that true?" San asked hesitantly, searching my eyes. I nodded silently.

"That's good, actually, very good," Bangchan murmured.

Seungmin nodded. "It could be a sign that your connection remained intact, even through the demonic magic, and San unconsciously tapped into it. That could make things easier." He crossed his legs lazily in the big red chair, leaning back.

"We're hoping you can help him regain his magical abilities." Bangchan looked at me expectantly.

"Don't expect me to jump for joy, but I'll see what I can do," I replied dryly, brushing past Bangchan to sit on the edge of the bed next to San.

"Hey," I mumbled, inspecting his wound. "How are you feeling?" I barely glanced at his eyes before focusing back on his chest.

"Other than the whole 'no magic' thing? Fantastic, thanks for asking." San wrinkled his nose.

"Save the sarcasm for later if you want my help." My fingers grazed the skin around his wound to check how well the scar was healing. He hissed sharply, reflexively grabbing my wrist to stop me. "What do you think you're doing?" he muttered.