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As far as stubbornness went, Lee Hongbin was pretty far up there.
One had to be to lead the kind of life he did. He may have grown up with his grandmother, his only known relative, and then later in a monastery most unlike others, but it was through his own choices and determination that he passed the exams to become first a Monk of the Third Order, then of the Second, and, finally, after sweat and tears and actual blood, of the First.
Monks of the First Order were amongst the best guardians in the world. His grandmother had been one in her younger days when the magic in her veins had flowed freely. None had been more proud of him the night he had passed his last exam than her, which was saying a lot considering his own pride at his achievements.
Few people were able to pass through the needle’s eye to become a Monk of the First Order. Not only did one have to be from a specific bloodline blessed by the goddess Siliae, which counted a one-digit percentage of the world’s population; one also had to be one of the rarer humans capable of harnessing her power and commanding it without combusting or causing a catastrophe. The magic within him was volatile, a thrumming beast trapped in his human vessel, but through meditation and sheer force of will he had learned how to coax it forth and make it do his bidding.
That aside, one had to be sharp-witted, quick on their feet, proficient in a good variety of weapons and at least one type of martial arts, and, last but not least, patient. Hongbin was not particularly patient, but he was good at hiding the fact.
Until that fateful assignment that changed everything, he had been guarding some high profile people for various reasons; one memorable actress had spurned a demon and needed protection from its ensuing wrath. That had been a chaotic and exhausting couple of months.
Then he was asked to protect some guy named Cha Hakyeon.
At a glance, the guy was nothing special. Incredibly handsome, certainly, but he was not a president or a prince or a celebrity or even an influencer. Sure, he had a small following on social media, mostly due to the shop he ran selling handmade candles, but that was it. He was just a guy.
Oh, but what kind of just a guy had demons lurking in the shadows waiting for him to slip up? Or, rather, waiting for Hongbin to slip up, because Hakyeon sure as hell didn’t know anything about what followed him around like creepy, monstrous dogs hungry for a bone – namely Hakyeon’s bones (or whatever they wanted from him; Hongbin wasn’t in the habit of interrogating his targets as he killed them).
It quickly became apparent that protecting Cha Hakyeon should be a five-man job. The first week had barely passed before Hongbin sent a request for help directly to the monastery, exhausted and irritable and prone to make mistakes. Blessed blood and magic and all that shit aside, he was no superhuman when it came down to it. He needed sleep and food and bathroom breaks like any other, but by the goddess, the monsters trailing Hakyeon made it near impossible to pee in peace, not to mention get a restful sleep.
Hongbin had hoped to be provided with maybe a Third Monk to split their work hours half-half. He had expected a reply stating they understood his plight, but was unfortunately not able to help him at the time being.
What he got was another First Monk, a Third, a trainee, and a – demon?
“What the fuck.”
The demon – Han Sanghyuk – held up his hands placatingly and shrugged, the familiar smell of demon – sulphur and rot – curiously muted. Perhaps concealed with perfume, maybe even magic. “I’m friendly.” The smirk on his face, however, suggested otherwise. Hongbin’s magic thrummed in answer.
“He’s right,” Trainee offered, probably sensing where Hongbin’s thoughts were going. His name was Lee Jaehwan, if Hongbin’s memory served him right. The other First was Jung Taekwoon, and the Third was Kim Wonshik. “Practically harmless.”
“I wouldn’t go that far,” drawled Sanghyuk as he subtly stepped further away from Hongbin.
“Do yourself a favour and shut up,” said Taekwoon, surprisingly softly for such a sharp face – and a First. Hongbin squinted. Was Taekwoon truly in possession of all the required skills to be a First? He sure as hell didn’t look like it. If anything, the silver-haired Wonshik, silently observing them all, seemed more like a First than anyone else present (except Hongbin, of course).
Sanghyuk flipped Taekwoon off, but acquiesced, which was unexpected behaviour from a demon. They usually put up more of a fight when being ordered around, not that Hongbin had encountered many semi-civilised demons in his lifetime. Most tended to be monstrous and prone to troublemaking. Granted, Sanghyuk seemed to fit the bill well enough on that last bit.
Wonshik was the first to raise the question of Hakyeon. “Where is our charge?”
“Sleeping,” said Hongbin, because they had, of course, arrived in the early hours of the night. His nerves were frazzled, which could also be a reason for the way his magic was acting up inside him. Well, aside from the whole friendly demon thing. Despite his line of work, he did not appreciate being dragged from sleep and forced into alertness at the sight of four unfamiliar men. Not that they had physically dragged him; he had awakened when he had sensed the thick magic in the air, which was a typical sign of a portal.
He had already cast a silencing spell, along with a concealment, so they wouldn’t wake Hakyeon.
“So, why is he such a magnet for demons?” Jaehwan asked.
“No clue,” said Hongbin. “He’s just a guy, really, no more special than any random person you might pick out in the supermarket.”
Taekwoon hummed thoughtfully. “Interesting.”
Hongbin snorted. “Exhausting, more like. He’s more trouble than he’s worth.”
Wonshik suddenly tilted his head, squinting around and looking mildly confused. “Where’s Sanghyuk?”
“What,” Hongbin said, spinning around. He went back inside the house, where the smell of demon was significantly sharper. His heart skipped a beat as he set off towards Hakyeon’s bedroom. If Sanghyuk had touched a hair on his head –
He threw the door open, the stench of sulphur and rot practically assaulting his sensitive nose, but Hakyeon was sleeping peacefully in his bed while Sanghyuk crouched at the tell-tale remains of another demon; a small pile of sulphur in a powder-like substance and some kind of dark sap (demon blood) seeping into the carpeted floor. Sanghyuk looked up at his entrance, noted his harried expression with a smile spreading on his face, and gestured towards the demon remains with a nod.
“That demon was not friendly.”
Hongbin, as the prime guardian, took on the most shifts and was usually the one sticking closest to Hakyeon. The rest had time off or stayed nearby, either slaying enemies or on standby for when Hongbin might need backup or a break.
Cha Hakyeon, the bane of Hongbin’s existence. Sun-kissed skin from being outside all the time, naturally graceful, and with a warm, beautiful smile on his face at all times. He would babysit his nephew every now and then and help elderly people with their bags and crossing the streets.
Whether due to the candles he made or his perfume, he always smelled of the most exquisite fragrances, sometimes citric and sometimes floral. He also talked and talked and talked, a sweet honey-like voice that never got annoying (Sanghyuk liked to say otherwise, but Hongbin was getting better at acting like he didn’t exist).
Hakyeon was too bright and pure and deserved to know nothing about the evil lurking in the shadows, so Hongbin, despite the long hours and exhaustion, would do his damned best to ensure Hakyeon never found out.
He thought about shedding the magic that hid him from Hakyeon’s eyes thousands of times, but always thought better of it.
For Hakyeon to remain ignorant of the realities of the world, he would have to remain ignorant of Hongbin, as well.
Bummer.
Then Hakyeon went to Pai, Thailand for a holiday.
Hell on Earth was Bangkok (according to whatever demon rumours Sanghyuk had caught wind of) whereas Pai was a tiny town, yet it was still swimming with demons. Hongbin was immensely glad of their five-man team: The Hakyeon Protection Squad, Jaehwan and Wonshik liked to joke. Whatever caused hellspawn to gravitate towards Hakyeon had all five of them exhausted by the end of their first day in Pai.
Hakyeon, of course, had taken a bath in a natural hot spring, chilled at a cosy café with an amazing view of the mountains, and eaten food at a hidden gem of a family-owned restaurant tucked into a tiny corner. Hongbin envied him for his ignorance sometimes.
The second day passed by in much the same way the first had and ended near dawn because a bunch of demons had attempted an ambush – not on Hakyeon, but on them. (Back in South Korea, the demons had quickly realised getting to Hakyeon meant getting through five monks first, so they had always attacked in droves. Perhaps that knowledge had reached Thailand somehow).
Jaehwan and Taekwoon were wounded in the fight badly enough to warrant bed rest, so Hongbin made the executive decision to have them recuperate on the third day, which roused Taekwoon’s sense of duty and his ire at being ordered to stay put, though he was eventually brought to heel by Sanghyuk.
(Hongbin, Jaehwan, and Wonshik had a secret betting pool as to the real nature of the two’s relationship. Thus far, neither Sanghyuk nor Taekwoon had given away anything substantial, but Hongbin swore they were fucking, maybe even making love.)
Thankfully, Jaehwan was easier to deal with, although he had had a couple of complaints before settling down.
So they were down to a trio, but on the third day, Hongbin hoped they had managed to slay enough demons to scare off any others for a while. The day, indeed, passed mostly peacefully, Sanghyuk and Wonshik able to deal with any trouble while Hongbin stuck close to Hakyeon.
Until Hakyeon nearly died to a fucking bus like a normal person. It was only when Hakyeon blinked up at him, looking straight at him and not past him, that Hongbin realised he had acted on instinct and pulled Hakyeon to safety. And hadn’t immediately let go of his hand, which meant Hakyeon could see past the concealment.
“Ah,” said Hongbin. Ever eloquent. He cleared his throat and released Hakyeon’s hand after dropping the concealment, drawing back until he was no longer encroaching on Hakyeon’s personal space. “Sorry.”
Hakyeon cocked his head, eyeing Hongbin inquisitively. “Sorry? I believe you just saved me from being flattened by a bus.” Hongbin cringed at the picture that painted, but Hakyeon continued undeterred, “Thank you.” That warm smile Hongbin had so often watched from afar was now directed straight at him. Had the air gotten thinner?
“You’re welcome,” he said numbly. Damn, that smile was even better when it was meant for him.
“Can I offer you something in thanks?” Hakyeon asked. “A drink? Dinner?”
“Oh, no,” Hongbin said quickly. “I’m sorry, but I’m, uh, actually at work. I need to get back to it.” Which was a fact he would never regret more than this very moment.
“I see,” Hakyeon said, eyeing him again. “Another time, perhaps.”
“Sure,” Hongbin said, and watched as Hakyeon offered him another smile and continued on his way.
Well, fuck.
“Hongbin has a crush on Candle Boy,” Sanghyuk sing-songed that night, once Hakyeon was safely in bed.
“You shut up,” Hongbin said.
“What happened?” Taekwoon asked, wholly ignoring Hongbin’s objections. Hongbin would make him stay back tomorrow as well out of sheer spite.
“Hasn’t he had a crush on Hakyeon for ages?” murmured Jaehwan, though only Hongbin visibly reacted to it and gave him the stink eye.
“He forgot to conceal himself and saved Hakyeon from oncoming traffic,” Sanghyuk explained gleefully. “He was even asked on a date as a thank you, but he declined –”
“It was not a date!” Hongbin squawked.
“It definitely was,” Wonshik butted in.
“Humans don’t tend to offer strangers dinner, saviours or not,” Sanghyuk said.
“You’re a demon. You are far from an expert on human behaviour,” Hongbin snarked.
“I am older than I look,” Sanghyuk said sagely, smirking. “I pay attention.”
Hongbin lunged past Wonshik to seize Jaehwan’s flask of holy water, intent on shutting Sanghyuk up one way or another, but Sanghyuk had already fled the room by the time Hongbin turned around, armed and ready.
“Hongbinnie has a crush,” Jaehwan said, copying the sing-songy voice Sanghyuk had used only a few minutes ago. “So cute!”
Hongbin realised he was going to regret having asked the monastery for help.
(Not really: It was much easier to protect Hakyeon with the others. But it was going to suck now that they knew he maybe had a thing for Hakyeon.)
They were also the worst wingmen he had ever had. (The only ones, really, but he was certain he would rather have any others but them.)
Jaehwan more than once tried to trip him directly into Hongbin’s path; Sanghyuk messed with his concealment magic whenever he was within sight of Hakyeon; and Wonshik even went as far as to try and push Hakyeon straight into Hongbin’s arms, something that Hongbin only dodged due to the many years of honing his reflexes.
Taekwoon was, mercifully, still on bed rest on Hongbin’s orders, though Hongbin wasn’t actually sure if he would have joined in on the shenanigans or remained on the sidelines with a sly little smile on his face.
On the fifth day, Hakyeon travelled to Chiang Mai, and so, naturally, the Hakyeon Protection Squad followed.
Chiang Mai was, surprisingly, less infested with demons than Pai had been, though that was not to say they didn’t have their work cut out for them. Demons seemed to be really quite fond of Thailand.
It was also in Chiang Mai that Hongbin had his second official encounter with Hakyeon, after Wonshik, with a little bit of help from Taekwoon (traitor), actually pulled off one of his schemes to shove Hongbin into Hakyeon. It was fortunately during a crowded festival, but Hongbin was still mortified.
Hakyeon lowered his water gun, but not his arm that had instinctively grabbed Hongbin around the shoulder so he wouldn’t fall flat on his face.
Once again, Hongbin shed the concealment entirely to not make Hakyeon appear like a lunatic in the middle of the street.
“Uh,” Hongbin said, “some asshole shoved me. Sorry.”
Hakyeon huffed out a laugh. “I see. It’s a wild crowd. Did you change your mind?”
“What?”
“My thank you for saving my life a few days ago,” Hakyeon said easily. Hongbin inwardly cringed – Hakyeon remembered. Of course he remembered. What mustn’t he be thinking of Hongbin? Appearing – like this – in a whole other city. That was dangerously close to stalker territory.
(He was stalking Hakyeon, but it was in a non-creepy way. It was for his protection! That had to count for something.)
“So?” Hakyeon prompted. Hongbin swallowed dryly. “A drink?”
“Okay.” The others could deal with guarding him themselves; after all, they were the ones to blame for the current situation. Hongbin also deeply regretted not accepting it last time; rejecting him a second time would make him an asshole. He would also be likely to drown himself.
“Great!” Hakyeon beamed. Hongbin did not allow himself to think of the lack of warmth from Hakyeon’s arm as he removed it to instead lead Hongbin somewhere away from the festivities.
They ended up with a drink at a café and sticky mango rice for a snack.
“I have wanted to talk to you for a while,” Hakyeon said halfway through his Thai tea, after they had discussed the lovely weather and the crazy traffic, “but you are notoriously difficult to get a hold of.”
Had he been looking for Hongbin since that episode in Pai? “Sorry?” Hongbin said.
“Oh, don’t worry,” said Hakyeon cheerfully. “I know your work keeps you busy. Thank you for that, by the way.”
“You’re welcome.” Hongbin paused. “My… work?”
Hakyeon innocently batted his eyelashes at him. “The demon slaying.”
Hongbin choked on his drink. What. Hakyeon leaned over to pat his back as he coughed. “What,” he managed, “do you mean, demon slaying?”
“You’re the one assigned to slay the demons after me, aren’t you?” Hakyeon said easily. “I suspected it in Pai, but you being here is too much of a coincidence. I don’t believe in coincidences.”
“How do you know?” Hongbin demanded. His throat still felt a bit raw, but at least he was done coughing.
“Ah, that.” Hakyeon pulled a medallion on a chain out from under his shirt. How Hongbin had never noticed it before, he didn’t know. He stared enough at Hakyeon as it was. “I have been keeping this for a friend, but it apparently is like a magnet for demons. The monk originally assigned to me was no longer fit to protect me once this was in my possession, so he told me they would assign someone new.” He smiled at Hongbin. “That would be you.”
All this time… Fuck, he was going to have words with the monastery after this shit was done. It was an unspoken rule to not interfere with the life of one’s charge, but apparently Hakyeon’s previous protector had dismissed that entirely. Or maybe Hakyeon had caught onto the fact that something was amiss. He seemed smarter than the usual sort Hongbin dealt with.
Which begged the question, “So, wait, do you see them? The demons?”
Hakyeon frowned thoughtfully. “Not usually? I’ve seen only a few, and only since I got this medallion.”
“How did we not know?” Hongbin said, astonished. “Seeing a demon for the first time usually causes screaming or some other extreme reaction.”
“The ones I saw were visible for just a few seconds. The first time, I thought I was seeing things, and the other times I was rendered speechless, but managed to move on without causing a scene.” No kidding. “I knew I was in good hands.” He squinted. “''We’?”
“There are four others assigned to your protection,” Hongbin said, impatiently waving the question away. “Who even are you? Why do you have that medallion, and how is all this not more – life-altering? You’re so –” he struggled for the right word, “– chill.”
Hakyeon shrugged. “As I said, I know I’m in good hands.”
Had their situation been reversed, Hongbin wasn’t convinced he would have been as chill as Hakyeon upon learning about the dark side of the world. He had learned about demons at the early age of four, and he had been terrified (children who were scared of the monster under their bed had no idea how easy they had it, unless that monster was a demon). It had gotten easier over time, but that had taken years. Hakyeon had owned the medallion for four months.
Hongbin blew out a breath and sank into the chair. “Unbelievable.”
Hakyeon just smiled blithely at him.
“The medallion,” Hongbin said. “How long are you keeping it for your friend?”
“Oh, just today,” said Hakyeon. “I’m actually in Thailand to meet with him, but I decided to make a holiday out of it.”
Oh. “I see,” said Hongbin. “So once you no longer possess it, things will go back to normal, basically.” Which meant Hongbin would be reassigned. He was much too high-ranked to be protecting someone a Third could take care of.
The same seemed to occur to Hakyeon, who cocked his head thoughtfully. “I guess? Minseok might even be reassigned to me.” He pursed his lips. “I do not suppose you could stay?”
Warmth spread in Hongbin’s chest. “I’m not sure. My particular set of skills means I usually get assigned to people who need special protection, like you with the medallion.”
Hakyeon harrumphed. “Maybe I will just keep the medallion.”
“Oh, no, don’t,” Hongbin said quickly. “I’d rather you be safe without me than in danger with me.”
Hakyeon actually pouted. “But I just managed to get you out of hiding. How am I supposed to ask you on a date if you disappear again?”
Hongbin very nearly choked again. “Date?”
“Of course.” Hakyeon gestured at the table between them with a flourish of his hand. “This was a spur-of-the-moment idea. For a date, we’d be doing something else. We also wouldn’t be discussing demons, preferably.”
Hongbin had never been any good at dating, not to mention dating while on the job was difficult to say the least.
But dating Hakyeon? Oh, he wanted to. However –
“You just met me.”
Hakyeon waved that away. “You’re kind, you protect people, and you are handsome. I would say that’s a good basis for a date, wouldn’t you? Besides, a date is for getting to know someone. I’m not asking you to jump straight into a relationship with me.”
“You are a very straightforward person,” was what Hongbin eventually said. He had been watching Hakyeon for so many months, and he knew Hakyeon was nowhere near being shy, but this was still more forward than Hongbin had ever expected.
Not that he had really expected anything. He hadn’t even thought they would ever officially meet, and now, here they were.
“So?” Hakyeon prompted, drawing out the sound.
Hongbin wet his lips, feeling nervous all of a sudden. “I – yeah, we can try. I don’t know how things will change with the medallion out of the picture, but… We’ll see.” Perhaps he could even make a few demands. As a First, he had some sway.
Hongbin was surprised he didn’t melt right then and there from the sheer brilliance of Hakyeon’s smile. “Great!” Hakyeon said.
Hakyeon met with his Thai friend in the early evening. Of course, the demons went in for a last attempt. Hongbin didn’t even know if they knew they were drawn to a medallion or thought Hakyeon was just a delicious target.
The two of them chatted animatedly while Hongbin and his team battled the demons. Hongbin stayed closest to Hakyeon (and, by proxy, his friend) to ensure no demon got close to him. He took a few hits, but none serious enough to warrant more than a quick glance. Then a demon managed to get past Jaehwan’s holy water and Taekwoon’s swords while Hongbin was distracted by three demons at once, but he slayed one just in time to see it snatch at Hakyeon’s arm.
Hakyeon inhaled sharply, but before the demon could do anything more damaging, Hongbin had cut down the two demons on him and thrown himself bodily into the one encroaching on Hakyeon personal space. They tumbled to the side, away from Hakyeon, who held his arm protectively to his chest and looked around with a somewhat wide-eyed look while his friend frantically asked what happened.
The momentary distraction cost Hongbin though. The demon slashed at him, its claws tearing into his shoulder. He bit back a cry of pain and killed it with a blast of magic that vaporised it (a bit dramatic, maybe, but after it had the gall to touch Hakyeon, it damn right deserved it). He looked at his shoulder and grimaced at the nasty lacerations the demon had left behind, deep enough to bleed profusely, though he couldn’t tell if the demon had slashed an artery. He would be fine, but it hurt like a bitch.
“Hongbin! You all right?” Wonshik shouted.
“Fine,” Hongbin called back, getting to his feet with a wince. Shit. The wound was going to be tough to fight with, but there was little he could do about it right now except rip a piece of cloth from his shirt for a quick make-shift bandage to try and staunch the bleeding. A quick look at Hakyeon confirmed he was all right and back to talking with his friend, though his body language suggested he was slightly on edge; alert. Hakyeon would have surely figured out what that touch had been.
Hongbin returned to the fight, the wound burning whenever he stretched it. He tried to stick to magic as much as possible to spare it, but it was precision work half of the time, not to mention incredibly taxing over long durations. Taekwoon noticed and stayed close, which Hongbin was grateful for.
At last, the demons had been defeated. Sanghyuk was grinning like a madman, having torn apart most of them (they had learned to not question his allegiances; clearly he had something against his peers and took great joy in killing them). He was also the one who had sustained the least amount of injuries, whereas Hongbin was the worst off. The bleeding had slowed down somewhat, but he was feeling a bit lightheaded. He needed some healing salve and rest.
Hakyeon was looking around, however, having sent his friend, now in possession of the medallion, ahead. Hongbin wondered why he was still here, but then Hakyeon squinted and called out in a near whisper, “Hongbin?”
Right. He knew there had been demons around, and where there were demons, Hongbin was.
Hongbin dropped the silencing spell along with the concealment and said, “Here.” Hakyeon’s eyes widened dramatically once they had zeroed in on him.
“Hongbin!”
“I’m fine,” he said, even as Hakyeon swiftly crossed the distance between them. He held out his hand as though to touch Hongbin’s shoulder, but refrained and instead bit his lower lip.
“It doesn’t look fine,” he said. “You need immediate medical attention.”
“I just need some salve,” Hongbin insisted.
“But you have gone pale!”
“I am a little lightheaded,” Hongbin acquiesced, “but I won’t bleed out.”
“He’ll be okay,” said Wonshik, dropping his own concealment. He came up to them while the others became visible one by one, his hand already holding a small jar of salve.
“Oh,” said Hakyeon, looking between them all. “You are the others.”
“The Hakyeon Protection Squad, at your service,” Sanghyuk purred.
Hongbin scowled at him. “Ignore that one,” he said to Hakyeon. “He’s a demon, but he’s on our side.”
Hakyeon was frowning. “A demon can be on your side? I thought all demons were bad.”
“We are,” said Sanghyuk and grinned, “but I am bad in the name of good.”
“You really will be better off for ignoring Sanghyuk,” Jaehwan said, ignoring Sanghyuk’s indignant squawk. “He likes to run his mouth, but we know to not listen.”
“Huh,” said Hakyeon, his gaze coming back to rest on Hongbin. Wonshik had screwed the lid off the jar and started applying the salve onto Hongbin’s wounds. Hongbin hissed upon the first touch, but gritted his teeth to soldier through the rest of it. “Will a hospital not be better?”
“This is magic,” Wonshik said. “Well, a salve with magical properties. It significantly speeds up the healing process.”
Taekwoon had grabbed an actual bandage from their travel-friendly first-aid kit and handed it over to Wonshik once he was done with the salve. Hongbin, while Wonshik was busy, introduced the rest of the squad to Hakyeon.
“Although this will probably be the last time you see us,” Taekwoon said. “With the medallion gone, things should return to normal now.”
“Not for Hongbin,” said Jaehwan, leering at him. Hongbin narrowed his eyes. “When is the date?”
The date, as it was, ended up being on the last day before they left Thailand (once Hongbin had had some time to rest and heal). Hakyeon took him on a sightseeing trip followed by a delicious lunch at a lovely little café. Conversation was easy, as if they had been friends forever, and though Hongbin thought he had known Hakyeon pretty well from watching him all these months, he found there were still new things to discover, such as the softness of his mouth when he kissed him at the Ping riverside. Not on the mouth, neither on the cheek. He kissed him on the corner of his lips, near his dimple, and Hongbin’s system short circuited.
Hakyeon laughed at the stunned look on Hongbin’s face; he laughed louder when Hongbin shook himself out of it to frown at him for having the audacity to laugh.
“Cute,” Hakyeon said, and Hongbin felt himself blushing, which was mortifying. “Thank you for today. I enjoyed myself.”
Hongbin stared straight ahead, hoping the calm breeze would cool down his face. “We should go on another when we get back home,” he said, aiming for calm and collected and probably missing by several miles. “I had fun, too.”
Hakyeon reached for his hand, and Hongbin let him take it, entangling their fingers.
“Deal.”