Black Cat //Ateez

Epilogue

After they got ready, the four of them, plus Byeol, made their way to the river. Hongjoong made sure to pack some new clothes, since he knew that the youngers would probably want to swim.

The sun above them was shining bright, but the youngers didn't seem to notice. They were extremely happy that they were going somewhere all together, that it didn't bother them.

In contrast with their brother, Hongjoong wanted to find some shade immediately. Even though he loved this weather, and he would rather stay in the sun, he wanted somewhere cooler.

Seonghwa didn't seem to have a problem, despite his dark outfit. He was smiling and having fun with the two smaller boys, leaving Hongjoong to try and stay under the trees, to keep cold.

The road to the river was pretty quick, and once San and Jongho got a glimpse of it, they immediately dashed there.

"San! Jongho! Be careful!" Hongjoong yelled, almost running towards them. But a hand grabbed his wrist, stopping his movement.

"Leave the kids alone. They're right here, they won't go anywhere"

I" just don't want them to get hurt"

"Trust me, no one's getting hurt on my watch" He said softly, and kissed Hongjoong on the lips, now that the two youngers weren't looking their way.

Hongjoong blushed immediately, trying to cover his face.

"Don't do that" He whined, and kept walking, creating some distance between him and the witch.

"But why? You're so cute when you blush" He chuckled, making the distance smaller, now walking side by side.

Hongjoong scoffed and didn't pay much attention to him, making his way closer to the river. The youngers had already taken their clothes of, getting carefully inside the water.

Jongho went inside first, making sure that the water temperature was right. He gently caught San by his waist, and placed him close to his body.

"Are you alright Sanie? Is the water too cold?"

"No Jongie, its fine. Thank you" He said, placing his small hands around his neck. He didn't dare stay away from his brother.

"Joongie, Mr Hwa, will you come inside?" San yelled, seeing the two sitting on the grass.

"No sweetheart, we'll just watch from here. Maybe later" Hongjoong replied, smiling sweetly at his brother. He had no intention of going inside the river, he preferred to just watch his brothers from afar, making sure that they were safe.

Seonghwa was moving his head between the three of them, Byeol now sitting on his lap, enjoying the pets it was receiving. It let soft meowls every now and then, its tail swaying back and forth.

"What are you thinking?" He suddenly asked Hongjoong, seeing that he was stuck watching his brothers play inside the water.

"Nothing actually. Not at the moment at least" He shook his head, and turned momentarily to look at Seonghwa before he averted his hade again.

"Are you at least happy?"

"What type of question is that Seonghwa? Of course I'm happy. You made me the happiest person" Hongjoong said, and dropped his head on the witch's shoulder.

Seonghwa laughed. For a lot of different reasons, but first and foremost because of Hongjoong.

"You know Hongjoong, I didn't make you happy. You were already happy. You just needed a small push towards that direction. I didn't 'make' you happy, like you said, I helped you to find your happiness which was a little too deep buried"