Mafia | Renhyuck

Part 28: Answers

The sun was starting to rise over the tops of the trees bordering the lawn, slowing blending the fading dark blue with light shades of red, orange, and yellow. The wind chill tousled Donghyuck's hair. He knew it was one of those days where the morning air would force him to tug a sweatshirt on but in a couple of hours, it would warm so he would change into a t-shirt.

Donghyuck pulled the quilt tighter around himself as he sat on the edge of the small deck outside, the dewy grass just barely tickling the bottom of his feet.

He was tired. His eyes burned with exhaustion and quite possibly from the irritation of constantly rubbing the tears falling out of his eyes. He would kill for some coffee. Or mouthwash. Or the energy to do any basic task and take care of himself without any of the members prompting him to.

Donghyuck hadn't slept, had barely eaten, and had barely moved from his spot outside since Renjun had been taken four days ago.

"I love you Sunshine."

Donghyuck felt tears well back into his eyes and he pulled the quilt tighter around his tired body as if to make up for the emptiness he felt with Renjun's absence. He brought his legs up from their position dangling over the edge of the deck and tucked them into his chest. He wrapped his arms around his legs and tugged the blanket over his head, tucking his chin into between his chest and knees.

He couldn't sleep. He couldn't. He felt so utterly guilty and worthless the first night he tried to sleep after everyone had come back hysterical from the mission. Of course, Donghyuck himself had been the most hysterical. I mean, how do you process the fact that one of the most important people in your life gets taken right after telling you he loved you? Donghyuck didn't even have the chance to respond, although he wasn't exactly sure what he would have said.

After hours on end of everyone running all over the house for any source of information about possible hideouts for them to take Renjun to, or just trying to find any trace of Renjun, they had found nothing. As the fifth hour of hopelessness closed in, the despair sinking into Donghyuck's bones, Sicheng forced Donghyuck out of the rooms where members were spread out with sheets and computers in front of them and forced him to go to bed.

But as soon as Donghyuck threw the blanket over his body he couldn't stay there any longer than a second. His mind was filled with Renjun. Was he okay? Where had they taken him? Was this because of Donghyuck? I mean, the whole operation was to find out if they were targeting Donghyuck, but what if it was true? Then that would be Donghyuck's fault.

So he walked out of his room and into the room across from his, tugging the blanket covering Renjun's bed and making his way out to the deck. Where he remained for most of the four days.

Donghyuck inhaled the smell incasing Renjun's quilt, a faint wood aroma mostly overpowered by a strong ashy charcoal smell. Donghyuck had spent one night sitting on Renjun's bed watching him write down in a journal. He guessed that his smell of pencil shavings and charcoal crayon dust, the two stencils being used to either write or make small illustrations in the margins. It was Donghyuck's most favored smell in the entire world. Maybe because it reminded him of Renjun, the one person who he missed with all of his being right now.

Donghyuck heard a faint creak from behind him on the deck and a couple of seconds later, he felt a hand softly touch his back. Donghyuck tugged the quilt off from over his head and looked behind him to see Taeil standing there with a small smile on his face. Donghyuck passively watched as Taeil moved to sit next to him.

"Hey kiddo, how are you holding up?" Taeil's soft-spoken voice seemed to flow out over the wide-open yard and Donghyuck couldn't help but wish the tranquil aura hadn't been disrupted by talking.