The Last Esper [BL]
Chapter 45: Instinct

Chapter 45: Instinct

Caelan, Rong Ye, and Jae walked silently along the riverbank, their clothes soaked and exhaustion etched on their faces. They had been searching for hours without success. There were no footprints, no sign of Rhys or Eun-woo. Nothing.

"They’re not here," Rong Ye said, stopping in his tracks. "They’re dead."

Jae raised his head, his eyes red with frustration.

"Don’t say that."

"What other explanation is there?" Rong Ye said, turning to him. "Rhys was injured, and Eun-woo... he couldn’t even control his powers. If the river didn’t sweep them away, something else did."

"I should have done something..." Jae replied. "I should have helped them."

Rong Ye gritted his teeth and glared at him angrily.

"And what were you going to do, Jae? If that useless Eun-woo couldn’t do anything, what makes you think you could have saved anyone?"

"Don’t talk about him like that!" Jae shouted, taking a step forward. "At least he tried!"

"What did he try? Jumping into the water with his eyes closed? Perfect! Very useful!"

"Be quiet!"

"Shut me up!"

"Enough!" Caelan’s voice cut through them like a lightning bolt. They both immediately fell silent. "I don’t think they’re dead."

Rong Ye glared at him, still frowning.

"So what? Did the forest fairies kidnap them?"

"I’m saying there’s no point in continuing to search for them," Caelan replied calmly. "If Rhys is still alive, he’ll know we’re not going to give up. He’ll know we’ll come looking for him... and he’ll also know where to go."

"So where are we supposed to go?" Rong Ye asked, arms crossed.

Caelan looked at him firmly.

"To the witch’s lair."

Jae frowned, confused.

"What’s that? Is it a metaphor or...?"

"No," Caelan said, shaking his head. "It’s a real place. A village hidden in the woods. Rhys told me about it. Years ago, he was badly wounded during an ambush on rebels. Milo found him and brought him to the village. That’s where Rhys recovered. It’s run by a woman they... well, call a ’witch.’"

"And why that nickname?" Rong Ye asked.

"Because she’s ruthless. So cruel that not even bandits dare approach her. No one messes with her. Her name alone is enough to keep anyone away."

Jae looked at him doubtfully.

"Have you ever been there?"

"No. But Rhys told me how to get there."

"What if they only trust Rhys?" Rong Ye objected. "What if they kick us out?"

Caelan shrugged.

"I know, it’s no guarantee of anything. But if there’s even the slightest chance that Rhys went there, or that he’s waiting for us to... then we have to try."

Silence fell over them again for a moment. Only the murmur of the river could be heard. Rong Ye looked down, not responding, but his jaw remained clenched.

"Okay," he finally said. "But if this goes wrong... It’s your responsibility."

Caelan nodded, his gaze fixed on the horizon.

"I know."

Without saying anything else, the three of them set off.

***

Eun-woo stood still for a few seconds. The pill bottle was still trembling slightly in his hand. The revelation of that building, the word written in crayon, the makeshift bed for a creature like Nebu... it all kept going around in his head, but he couldn’t stop now.

Rhys needed him.

He pressed his lips together, put the bottle in his pocket, and rummaged through the shelves. He found some clean bandages, still sealed in plastic wrap, and a small, dusty but sealed bottle of water. It wasn’t much, but it would suffice for now.

He returned to the room with hurried steps.

Rhys was still lying on the bed. His breathing was barely audible, and his forehead was covered in a thin layer of sweat. Eun-woo set his belongings down next to the bed and knelt beside him. Nebu floated over slowly, and seeing the boy’s worried expression, raised one of his tentacles as if offering help.

"Thank you," Eun-woo murmured.

With Nebu’s help, he gently pulled off Rhys’s sweatshirt, taking care not to disturb him. His hands trembled slightly as he unbuttoned the flannel shirt. He slid the shirt off, revealing his torso.

Eun-woo leaned over him and began carefully removing the bandage wrapped around his arm.

The gauze was soaked with dried blood. The wound wasn’t bleeding as much as before, but it was still raw and red. With Nebu’s help, he removed the stained cloth and cleaned what he could with water. Then he pressed one of the new bandages against the wound, securing it carefully. Rhys didn’t complain. He didn’t even move.

Eun-woo looked at him, his heart heavy.

He took the bottle of pills out of his pocket. He read the faded label again, hesitating for a moment. He didn’t know what it was exactly, but if he was lucky, it would at least bring down his fever.

He took a pill and held it between his fingers. He leaned over Rhys and whispered.

"Rhys... I need you to take this. Please..."

Rhys didn’t react. His lips were parted, dry with fever, but he didn’t swallow.

Eun-woo closed his eyes, took a breath, and held the pill for a few more seconds.

With trembling hands, he placed the pill in his mouth. He leaned toward Rhys carefully, bracing himself with one hand beside Rhys’s face. He watched him for a moment, so vulnerable, so oblivious to the world... and then he pressed his lips to Rhys’s.

It was a gentle, intimate touch. It wasn’t a kiss in the traditional sense. It held no desire, only urgency, care, and contained love in its purest and most desperate form.

With a gentle press of his lips, he passed the pill from his mouth to Rhys’s. Then he gently stroked Rhys’s throat with his fingers, encouraging him to swallow.

When Rhys did so, Eun-woo pulled away, holding his breath.

"Thank you..." he whispered with relief.

He got up and left the room to find a change of clothes. He found a clean change of clothes in one of the neighboring rooms: a gray T-shirt, somewhat tight, and some soft, old, but comfortable pants. He changed quickly, throwing the wet clothes in a corner.

Then he went back to the room and, without thinking twice, lay down next to Rhys on the bed.

He didn’t plan to sleep.

He just wanted to be near Rhys.

The blanket covered Rhys up to his chest, and his face, still pale, looked peaceful in the dim light filtering through the window.

The closeness allowed Eun-woo to feel the warmth emanating from Rhys’s body. His breathing was slow, almost imperceptible. And beneath his chest, Eun-woo could distinguish the subtle rhythm of his heart.

Afterward, for long minutes, he just lay there, staring at the damp-stained ceiling, the dust-covered desk, and the crooked pictures on the wall.

He wondered if that room had once belonged to someone like him. If the paintings depicted landscapes that had once been important to someone else.

Maybe his real parents had once lived within those walls.

Had he ever been there? As a baby?

Maybe if he explored a little further... if he checked other rooms, drawers, documents...

He turned to the side, about to sit up.

And then, he heard it.

A sigh.

Eun-woo stood still and looked down.

Rhys had moved his head. Just a little. His brows furrowed weakly, and his lips parted unconsciously.

"Rhys?" Eun-woo whispered, bolting upright. "Are you...?"

Rhys’s eyelids fluttered.

And then, slowly, they opened.

At first, his gaze was lost, clouded by pain and fever. He blinked once, then again, as if struggling to focus on the world around him. His chest heaved with shaky breathing, and his body tensed slightly beneath the covers.

Eun-woo immediately sat up.

"Rhys... you’re awake," he murmured with relief.

Rhys’s eyes finally met his, and something in his expression broke. Before Eun-woo could react, Rhys clumsily reached up and wrapped his arms around him, pulling him urgently against his body.

"I’m sorry," he whispered against his neck. "I’m sorry, Eun-woo. Forgive me... for what I did... for almost forcing you..."

Rhys’s voice was barely a broken whisper, repeated between gasps and stifled sobs.

"You shouldn’t move so much," Eun-woo said, carefully placing a hand on his chest. "The wound might open..."

But Rhys didn’t listen. He pressed himself even closer to him, holding on with all his remaining strength.

"I’m sorry... for trying to bond with you... for making you feel this way..."

Eun-woo closed his eyes.

"There’s nothing to forgive," he said gently, resting his forehead against Rhys’s. "I just need to know what happened."

Rhys swallowed hard. He still held on tightly, as if afraid Eun-woo would disappear if he let go.

"I don’t know for sure," he replied. "I just felt like... if I didn’t bond with you... I was going to die."

"What do you mean by that?" Eun-woo asked softly. "Why did you feel like you were going to die?"

Rhys closed his eyes for a moment, as if he needed the strength to continue speaking. His breathing was labored, and his body was still trembling against Eun-woo’s.

"I don’t know..." he whispered. "Everything was a blur. I felt a horrible fear, an anxiety I couldn’t control. Like something inside me was tearing itself apart, like... I was shutting down from the inside. And all I could think about was you. That if I could reach you, if I could stay by your side... if I could bond with you, everything would be okay."

He tightened his grip on Eun-woo’s back with his fingers.

"But I wasn’t thinking clearly. I didn’t mean to hurt you, Eun-woo. I never meant to. I swear. And yet... I ended up doing something horrible to you..."

Rhys sobbed, his face hidden against Eun-woo’s neck.

Eun-woo lifted a hand and gently ran it down the back of Rhys’s neck, pulling him slightly towards him. Then he leaned forward and kissed him.

It was a slow, gentle kiss, without urgency or desire. A gesture of comfort. Rhys trembled at first, still sobbing through his tears, but little by little his body began to relax. His shoulders eased their tension, and his breathing, though shallow, steadied.

Eun-woo stood there, his lips barely touching Rhys’s, until he felt him surrender to the contact. Then he carefully pulled away and looked into Rhys’s still-wet eyes.

He brushed his fingertips against Rhys’s cheek, as if trying to wipe away the pain etched into his skin.

"You’re supposed to be my Guide, aren’t you?" he murmured, trying to muster a smile. "You should be calming me down, not the other way around."

Rhys let out a chuckle through his tears. He closed his eyes, exhaling as if he could finally breathe.

Eun-woo said nothing more. He simply stayed by his side, quietly stroking his face until the trembling finally subsided.