It was lunch time when she experienced the now familiar flavour invade her taste buds, making her involuntarily cough. She sipped her water yet the coughing remained. Her lungs were crying out, the taste drowning her out and she scrunched her nose up, panting through her coughs.
Urgently, she stumbled out of the hall and outside, half running to the back of the school as her throat grew dry. Now reaching the corner, she had tears glistening in her eyes as she stumbled upon Donghyuck smoking.
"St-stop, please i-" she continued coughing violently. Donghyuck raised his head in alarm, running to her side and kneeling down beside her."Yuji? What's wrong? Hey, what happened?" He asked worriedly, rubbing her back as she stopped coughing and heaved for air to invade her lungs.
"What happened? Angel what's wrong?" He asked once more, grabbing the water bottle and unscrewing the cap, holding it up to her lips.
The cool water soothed her throat and she took a few seconds to stabilise herself."Please stop smoking." She managed to get out from her scratchy throat, to which Donghyuck frowned at, confused.
"What do you mean?"
"Stop it, you can't, it affects me too."
Yet again he was confused, not realising the full affects of the soulmate bond.
"But I don't do it in front of you-"
"You're not listening Hyuck, you're affecting me too." She exclaimed exasperated.
"But-"Frustrated, Yuji yanked the cigarette out of his fingers and hastily brought it up to her lips, inhaling before Donghyuck could pull it out of her mouth in alarm. However he stopped; the taste of the cigarette attacking his throat.
He allowed the cigarette to slip from his hands and he looked up at Yuji who chugged on the water.Speechless, Donghyuck's mouth fell slightly agape and he sat in shock, not knowing how much he had been affecting the girl in front of him.
"Yuji, I- I didn't know that-"
"I know Hyuck but I can't-"
"I'll stop, I'll really try this time." He stated, standing up and pulling the girl up gently to her feet.
She stood in front of him and watched as he took the packet of cigarettes out of his pocket and threw them in the trash, along with his lighter.Yuji watched in shock as he discarded the items and returned back to her. He stood in front of her and rested his thumbs on her cheeks, looking worriedly into her eyes.
"Are you okay?" He scanned her face. Yuji bit her lip and nodded, his eyes naturally falling to the movement.Sliding his thumb down her cheek, he pulled her bottom lip out of the grasp of her teeth, yet he only replaced it with his own lips.
Yuji gasped slightly in surprise but didn't reject the action, instead she melted into it, the pull of the bond deepening the action.They spent the rest of lunch together, behind the school; enjoying each others company. Donghyuck had Yuji placed on his lap, resting his chin on her shoulder as he looked at the daunting building in front of him, the building that was sectioned off and unavailable to all.
"Are you really going to quit?" She voiced, placing her hands over his that were wrapped around her waist. He hummed in response and lovingly place a small kiss on the back of her neck.
"I started smoking about a year ago." He started, tense.
Yuji, sensing this- turned slightly and sat on his lap sideways, allowing herself to see his face now.
She comfortingly squeezed his hand and he swallowed the lump growing in his throat."Two years ago right there," he weakly pointed to the building in front of them.
"My brother committed suicide."
Yuji looked down at Donghyuck in shock, not expecting that at all. Her heart broke and she could feel his own sadness intertwining with her heart.
"Hyuck you don't have to-"
"He was my twin actually, it's funny because you have a twin too; well I don't have one anymore but..." Donghyuck sighed and leaned his head against the wall, looking at the memories in front of him."He jumped off the roof and ever since then they blocked this part of the school off. You asked why I don't live with my parents." He started, looking down at his hands. Yuji comfortingly rubbed the back of his neck softly, her fingertips brushing past his skin.
"After Dongyul passed, my Mother couldn't cope so she found herself in denial, she won't believe he's gone and everytime she looked at me...it was just him. I reminded her of her dead son." She chuckled humourlessly.
"Dongyul was the perfect child, he was successful and confident, funny, attractive and had a lot of friends- everyone loved him basically- but then you had me.I was the complete opposite. It was basically the family's fuck up."
"No you're not." Yuji said, tilting his chin up to peer into his eyes.
"You're not a fuck up Lee Donghyuck, you're perfect, attractive, funny and everyone loves you-""No they don't-"
"I love you."