Prince of Shells

10. Cursed Gold

San's story had left Seonghwa shaken up.

They had returned to their usual daily life after San had calmed down again. San had gone off to scale the riggings and take care of the sails, leaving nothing behind but the pain in Seonghwa's heart for hearing what had happened to him. So Seonghwa had searched for something to distract himself with. And he found it in the sickbay with his captain and Wooyoung.

As a friend, it was not exactly Seonghwa's duty to get between Wooyoung and San. It was their problem to sort out and if they agreed on keeping their complicated relationship as it was then it was not his business to interfere.

However, as their quartermaster, it was Seonghwa's job to take care of the crew. And if the crew struggled because of their fight then Seonghwa would have to give Wooyoung a piece of his mind. While he could never truly understand how San's trauma affected him, he would not allow Wooyoung to trigger him willingly any longer. He had been a royal guard, the hell was he complaining about?

So when Seonghwa stormed into the sickbay with his stomach in knots and eyes blazing, he did not expect to run right into Mingi who was positioned at the door. An awkward stumble followed, both of them grabbing at each other's arms in what had to look like a weird dance.

When Seonghwa finally stood upright again, he straightened his clothes, looking over to the bed where Wooyoung was seated. The dark-haired man himself watched Seonghwa with amused eyes but Yunho and Hongjoong at his sides did not even take notice of him. They were focused on Wooyoung's hand.

"Uh, can I have a word with Wooyoung maybe?" Seonghwa asked quietly into the room, turning to Mingi. The tall man gave a long sigh, then he stepped forward to lay his hands on Hongjoong's and Yunho's shoulders respectively.

"Come on, give him a break. There's nothing we can do right now." His deep timbre seemed to spark some reaction within Yunho as the man lifted his gaze towards the fellow pirate immediately. Finally, he also seemed to take notice of Seonghwa. They exchanged a glance, then Yunho nodded downtrodden.

"Aye, alright. I'll get aft to it later an' try to clear up me 'ead fer now. Captain-"

Hongjoong still stood there with his arms crossed and eyes dark as a cloud. He looked mightily unsatisfied with the whole situation and Seonghwa was careful not to trigger his fury at this moment. The situation seemed dire, the air heavy with tension and suppressed words.

Wooyoung spoke up then, timidly directing the attention to him.

"It be fine. Ye can go do yer duties fer now. Contact Yongguk an' stuff..." He was looking at the captain only as he said it. His fingers had nervously grabbed the sheets underneath him, holding them like a lifeline. It seemed as if Hongjoong was in one of his moods today.

Everybody seemed to nervously hold their breaths for a moment. When Hongjoong then nodded with a curt nod, Mingi noticeably relaxed next to Seonghwa.

Without another word the captain turned, making his way out. He met Seonghwa's eyes on the way and his pinched expression softened just a bit, then he was gone. Yunho followed with a pat on Seonghwa's shoulder while Mingi was even nice enough to say bye to Wooyoung.

Seonghwa's shoulders dropped when they had left and he went over to the desk opposite the bed relieved. He sat down on the desk casually, kicking his legs as he looked at Wooyoung. Seeing the situation so heavy had cooled down his anger like a candle blown out by the wind but he was still willing to talk. Wooyoung leaned back, watching Seonghwa.

"How are you?"

A humourless chuckle sounded, making Seonghwa lift his brow disapprovingly. He had asked nicely.