| Antidote | Poison 2nd Book |

ℂ𝕙𝕒𝕡𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝟙𝟞

[Warning: suicidal elements]

[A/N: this will be a bit longer than usual, sorry! 2,965 words 😬]

Curiosity and concern raced within Hongjoong's mind, small taps from his feet as he paced in front of the door to Seonghwa's office. Hongjoong couldn't hear a thing since the whole room was soundproof, specifically for privacy purposes when he would hold meetings.

His husband was so quick to leave him without saying a word more, and he had been locked inside the office for a while now. The shock in his face and the eerie words that came from Seonghwa's lips kept replaying over and over in his head: "That's because he died 10 years ago..."

Is it possible his brother is really alive? Why did he never mention a brother to me? Or any siblings for that matter? If he died, how could he possibly be alive after all this time? Hongjoong had a million questions running through his head all at once, bringing his thumb to his lips and chewing lightly on the tip.

Hongjoong couldn't stand the suspense anymore, he needed to know what was going on.

Stepping to the door, he gently knocked upon the wood with a single knuckle, pressing his lips to the crack of the door so he could be heard. "Seonghwa? What's going on? Unlock the door, please..."

There was a long period of silence, then he could hear the door being unlocked. The handle twisted before the door opened, revealing the taller male, who looked as if he had seen a ghost. Seonghwa's face was riddled with every emotion that existed, Hongjoong couldn't tell if he was going to cry or go into a fit of rage.

"Hwa..?" Hongjoong reached out a hand to touch Seonghwa's face, but he was quick to turn his face away. Hongjoong just closed his hand and allowed it to drop back to his side, he knew when to stop pushing Seonghwa.

Sometimes.

"Will you please tell me what's going on? There are so many questions that I need answers to."

"There's a lot we need to talk about... And you're not going to like any of it." Seonghwa stepped off to the side to let him in, which was rather strange. 

Since Hongjoong moved back in with Seonghwa, he was never allowed into his office under any circumstances, so the fact that Seonghwa was calling him into his office meant that the whole situation was graver than he had anticipated.

Hongjoong slowly stepped into the room, shoving his hands deep into the pockets of his sweatpants. He had never seen the inside of this room, and even though he was invited in, every part of him screamed that he wasn't supposed to be there.

The black-haired male grabbed ahold of Hongjoong's hand, pulling him over to the black leather chase in the corner of the room and sitting him down upon the cushion.

Seonghwa squatted before the smaller male and gripped his knees softly. "As you know, my mother died when I was very young, my father wasn't the most loving man. The only person I could confide in and the only person that TRULY took care of me was my older brother, Yohan. When I was thirteen years old, he went missing, no trace of where he went, nothing, and my father acted as if it wasn't a big deal. Yohan was my whole life as a child, I looked up to him, he was everything I wanted to be, and when he vanished I felt so lost. He had been missing for two months before a body washed up in the river outside of town, supposedly confirmed to be my brother, and it completely destroyed my whole world. All this time I thought he was dead, but..." He suddenly fell silent, his dark gaze falling to the floor.

Hongjoong swallowed dryly, placing his hands on top of Seonghwa's. "But?"

"I need you to understand why I'm bringing this next thing up... You need to know this, okay? Just bear with me."