Vampire Brothers

Chapter 23

"Coups-ah..." Jeonghan said, looking at S.Coups.

"Care to explain what we just saw?" Joshua asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

S.Coups's eyes widened in surprise. "You saw?"

Jeonghan and Joshua simply stared at him in silence.

S.Coups sighed, "Come with me." He led them into his reading room. Once inside, he sat down, with Jeonghan and Joshua taking seats across from him.

Jeonghan started, "What was that, Coups-ah?"

"It's exactly what you saw," he replied shortly.

"Are you playing with her?" Joshua asked, his tone serious.

S.Coups glared back, "I'm not toying with her. I'm dead serious."

"But you hate her! We all know that," Joshua snapped.

"Maybe you don't know everything about me," S.Coups answered calmly.

"Cut to the chase, Coups-ah. What are you planning to do with her?" Jeonghan pressed. "You may be a pureblood, but I won't forgive you if you hurt her."

"I'm not going to hurt her. I just want to claim her."

"Claim her?" Joshua frowned.

S.Coups closed his eyes briefly, wrestling with his thoughts before deciding to speak.

"You two are my friends. As the eldest in the mansion, we've always shared everything. But this time, I want this to stay between us. I don't want to hear about it outside this room. Can I count on you?" S.Coups asked.

Jeonghan nodded, while Joshua remained silent, his expression skeptical.

"Haneul... She's my mate," S.Coups announced.

"What?!" Joshua shot up from his seat in disbelief. "That can't be... it shouldn't... it's impossible..."

"Why? Because she's human?" S.Coups asked, but neither of them answered. "When... how long have you known?" Joshua asked.

"Since the day we found her in that burned-down village," S.Coups admitted.

"You've kept this secret for 17 years?" Jeonghan stared at him in shock.

S.Coups looked at him, "I can't just go to her and bite her because she's my mate. You know what happens if a pureblood like me bites her."

"She'll turn into a vampire," Joshua responded.

"And I don't want that. She should stay human if that's what she wants," S.Coups added.

"But what about now? We all know she's a vampire," Jeonghan pointed out. "What if she became a vampire because another pureblood bit her before?" S.Coups suggested.

"She's been under our watch 24/7, Coups. There's no mark on her, and I've never sensed her returning home with any injuries," Joshua argued.

S.Coups fell silent.

"Coups-ah, you need to tell her. We're not werewolves, but I know it's painful for you not to be with her, especially when she's right here," Jeonghan said gently.

S.Coups sighed, "My love life can wait. We need to figure out her life first." He rubbed his forehead in frustration. "Have you found anything?" Joshua asked.

S.Coups shook his head. "It's difficult. Without knowing her great-grandfamily, relatives, or even her powers, we're at a dead end."

Joshua sighed. "Maybe we should stop. I don't know about you, but I'm comfortable with how things are now. I'm relieved she knows about us. As long as no one from the vampire world is after us, we're fine," he said.

Jeonghan nodded. "He has a point."

S.Coups sighed, "Alright then, let's put this matter aside and live our lives as we did before." Jeonghan and Joshua nodded in agreement.

A week had passed since Joshua and Jeonghan learned S.Coups's secret. Everything seemed normal in the mansion, except for Haneul. She kept having strange dreams and nightmares, often waking up during the day and struggling to sleep after sunrise. The boys took turns staying with her, but she would wake up drenched in sweat, her heart racing.

As the sun rose again, DK left Haneul's room and went downstairs to get some water. On his way to the kitchen, he ran into Seungkwan, who looked exhausted in the living room.

DK approached him, "Hey, you okay?"

Seungkwan nodded, "I'm just worried about Haneul. She's been sleeping less these past few days, and I don't know why."

"I wonder what she's dreaming about. She woke up crying last night and couldn't sleep until sunset. She looks more like a corpse now," DK said, sitting next to Seungkwan.

"Is there anything we can do for her?" Seungkwan asked.

"I'm afraid not," DK sighed. "Can't we ask Wonwoo hyung to look into her dreams?" Seungkwan suggested.

DK's eyes widened in realization. "Yah!" he slapped Seungkwan's thigh. "That's it! Wonwoo hyung! We should ask him if he can help with her bad dreams."

Seungkwan yawned, "Maybe later, hyung. Everyone's sleeping right now.""You're right. You should sleep too," DK said, getting up and heading to the kitchen.

The grandfather clock struck twelve in the afternoon. Haneul got out of bed, sweating and panting heavily. *I need someone... anyone...* Tears streamed down her cheeks. *Anyone will do...* She walked out of her room, the house silent as everyone was asleep. She made her way to the room next to hers and entered without knocking. From the doorway, she saw a sleeping figure.

"O-Oppa..." she whispered through her sobs, but the figure didn't stir. Haneul walked over to the bed, crawled onto it, and snuggled into his arms.

Woozi stirred awake, hearing the faint sobs and feeling movement on his bed. He opened his eyes to see Haneul snuggled against his chest.

"H-Haneul..." he said, surprised.

Haneul looked up, her eyes filled with tears. "Haneul, what's wrong?" Woozi propped himself up on one elbow, looking at her in concern.

"I saw faces... so many faces. I'm scared!" she cried.

Woozi wrapped his arms around her. "Shhh, I'm here with you, Haneul. Calm down," he soothed, gently patting her back. Her sobbing grew more intense.

"Go to sleep, Haneul. Don't worry, I'll stay with you," Woozi comforted her. She clutched his shirt as she continued to cry, and Woozi watched her with concern as she tried to fall asleep.