Highness (Jeongcheol)

Seungcheol

Seungcheol set his weights back on the rack with a grunt, removing his headphones and pausing the medical podcast he was listening to. Jeonghan had taken one look at his phone and his choice of workout entertainment and had declared him "the most boring human in the world," but there hadn't been any real bite to the comment. Especially considering how he'd stayed in the garage and ogled Seungcheol shamelessly for the first half hour of his workout.

The heated look in the vampire's eyes had almost been enough to make Seungcheol stop lifting weights and opt for an entirely different method of raising his heart rate... But he really needed the endorphin rush of some proper exercise. The swirl of anxiety in his stomach had been building ever since Jeonghan's confessions about his past. Jeonghan's ex...

The thought of someone out there wanting to hurt Jeonghan.

Fuck.

What Seungcheol really needed was a run—something long and grueling to leave him wrung out and exhausted—but Jeonghan didn't want him leaving the house. It was clear Seungcheol wasn't the only one feeling anxious.

They'd been holed up at Joshua's for the past few days—Seungcheol had been given a rare full weekend off, and Jeonghan had convinced him to call out sick today. But playing hooky from work wasn't helping his nerves at all, and he definitely couldn't keep it up without running into trouble. He wasn't sure what they were going to do the next night, when he was scheduled to work again.

Ugh. He really needed a fucking run.

He was just considering another set when the doorbell rang. Seungcheol quickly wiped the excess sweat off his forehead with his towel, exiting the garage back to the main house and heading toward the front door.

He was intercepted by a blond blur.

Jeonghan was at the front door before Seungcheol's eyes could even adjust. The vampire glanced back over his shoulder at Seungcheol with a frown. "Go into the kitchen."

Seungcheol laughed in disbelief at Jeonghan's paranoia. "It's just our takeout," he argued.

"The kitchen, Highness." Jeonghan narrowed his pale eyes in warning.

Seungcheol sighed but complied anyway. It was weird. Seungcheol had always been tall and strong, even more so after he'd started using exercise to deal with his anxiety. So he'd never had a partner act protective over him before. The weirdest part was how nice it felt. Seungcheol was so used to people expecting him to take charge, to take care of things. He thought he'd found satisfaction in being considered strong and capable. But here was this little brat of a vampire treating Seungcheol like he was something precious. Something breakable.

Seungcheol hadn't felt cared for like this since his dad had died.

He was finishing chugging a glass of water when Jeonghan entered the kitchen, hands laden with Styrofoam takeout containers. Truly a ridiculous amount of food, considering one of them didn't even need to eat. But Seungcheol had learned Jeonghan loved excess in all things, even unnecessary human food.

He realized he was staring when Jeonghan eyed him warily.

"What are you making moon eyes at me for, Highness?"

Seungcheol grinned innocently from his spot at the kitchen table. "No reason."

"Hm." Jeonghan set the food on the table, passing by Seungcheol to grab silverware from the drawer.

Though it was subtle, Seungcheol didn't miss the way Jeonghan leaned in and inhaled deeply as he went by. Seungcheol protested immediately. "Don't. I've been working up a sweat. I must smell vile."