Demon and the Mage (Jeongcheol)

Seungcheol

Something was wrong with Jeonghan. Ever since our conversation last night, he'd barely looked at me.

Maybe I shouldn't have told him about my mum or Doyoon. He hadn't signed up to deal with my meltdown. Something I'd said had clearly upset him.

I wasn't sure what had sent him running into the bathroom, but the cold, distant mask he wore when he'd exited made me want to pin him against the wall again until he admitted what was wrong.

But it wasn't my place to do that. He wasn't mine to demand anything from. Even though he'd comforted me while I'd broken down over Doyoon, reassured me I wasn't at fault, and reminded me exactly why love was worth it...he still wasn't mine.

And he never would be.

I'd seen many sides to Jeonghan over the past few days, but this silent icy man was the only one I didn't like. The scariest thing was that it didn't feel fake, the way his behaviour had at the start. This felt like he was donning a new skin and wearing it with pride. An armour I couldn't get past, no matter how much I tried. All my questions were met with clipped answers. My barbs with noncommittal responses. My teasing with silence.

Jeonghan wouldn't play with me. And I...didn't like it.

Other than outright holding him in place and refusing to let go until he told me what was wrong, I was at a complete loss for what to do.

My concern over Jeonghan's mood paled when we got back on the road and I searched once more for John's imprint.

"Dammit." I slammed on the brakes and pulled the car off the road, hitting the steering wheel with frustration. Rain hammered on the car with no let-up in sight.

"What's wrong?" I should've celebrated the fact that Jeonghan's voice finally had a drop of life in it, but I was too pissed off.

"He's moved," I said through gritted teeth.

Jeonghan cursed under his breath. "Can you find him?"

"Already on it," I murmured. My instincts were there but fainter than before, suggesting the distance between us had increased. It took me a few minutes, but sure enough, when I finally located his imprint, it was miles away.

"He's on an island in the Outer Hebrides," I said, pulling my phone from my pocket and opening Google maps. Jeonghan leaned over, wafts of cinnamon washing over me. How did he always smell like a Christmas drink? It made me want to nuzzle his neck and inhale until I was drunk on him.

"Here, this one." I zoomed in on the map. "Isle of Barra."

Jeonghan looked at the expanse of water laying between it and the mainland in dismay. "We'll have to get a ferry over."

"That's if they're even running today," I said, eyeing the torrential weather on the other side of the windscreen. Even at a standstill, the wind was buffeting the car, rocking us gently. "There's an alternative though."

"No," Jeonghan said sharply.

"You haven't even heard my suggestion yet."

"I don't need to. No, you're not leaving me to fly over there. We made a deal. I go with you."

"Fine," I huffed. Stubborn bastard. "In that case, I can fly us both over. We'd be there within minutes."

Jeonghan bit his lip, staring unseeing through the window as he considered my offer. What there was to consider was beyond me. Why stretch this out for another fuck knows how long when I could have him back at his brother's side almost instantly?

"No," Jeonghan said finally. "We both go, and we take the car. We don't know what state he'll be in when we get there. You might be unable to carry us both back if he's injured."