||Koi No Yokan|| Park Seonghwa

||Chapter 26||

After one week of being bedridden and in a state of constant abdominal pain, Hongjoong was able to stand on his own two feet. The sensation of touching the ground again was unsettling at first: he would've fallen if it weren't for Jongho who promptly offered his hands for him to balance himself.

"You're doing great...now try taking a step," Jongho requested.

Hongjoong however stayed put, his legs trembling.
"My head's spinning" he groaned.

"I told you to sit up first" the other scolded him, now grabbing his forearms to prevent him from falling on the bed.

Seeing him in such a state had pained Jongho more than he cared to admit. Ever since he had seen Hyacinth again in the Underworld, thoughts of him subsided every time he was alone.

Not that he had ever stopped thinking about him, of course: but this time it was different.

Before seeing him again in the Elysium, the main emotion he felt while thinking of him was tranquility; knowing that he had stopped suffering, that he was happy on the other side although he missed him terribly.

Now, every time he thought about him he wanted nothing but to bring him back. He would've pleaded Zeus, Hades, anyone to have Hyacinth back. However, he knew that was not possible.

That was probably why he had been so adamant about taking care of Hongjoong even after he had extracted the poison from his body, monitoring his progress every day and encouraging him little by little, until he was able to stand up again: he thought that maybe, if he managed to nurse his friend back to health, Hyacinth would've seen it from the other side, and he would've been proud of him.

"Here, I got you something"

Jongho let go of his right hand to reach in his pocket: moments later, he dangled a silver chain before Hongjoong's eyes.

"I charmed it with Artemis's help" he explained "But I need to see if it works"

Hongjoong took the chain and allowed it to pass around his head, then rest around his neck. Immediately he felt stronger: his weakened legs were not trembling anymore, even his head stopped spinning as he had never been ill before.

"Can you stand now?"

"Yes...yes!" Hongjoong exclaimed, "How..?"

"When I visited you the first time, the poison hadn't completely spread yet. I took a sample of the un-poisoned blood just in case, and now it's basically powering the chain and giving you energy until it becomes exhausted...Think of it as some sort of charger"

"This is a work of genius" Hongjoong exclaimed "I can't find the words to express how grateful I am"

"Maybe I can speak to you"

A voice rumbled inside the cave. The gods turned around: a black silhouette was standing at the entrance, almost absorbing every kind of light that came across it.

"Mother" Hongjoong breathed, as Jongho was quick to bow down in a sign of respect.

"Arise, divine Apollo" the woman spoke, walking towards them.

She eyed her son up and down, then did something completely unusual of her: she smiled, opened her arms in a silent invitation for Hongjoong to seek safety in her embrace. He gladly accepted, the need for consolation overcoming all the other feelings he kept inside.

"I am glad to see that you are completely healed, my son" she murmured, running a hand through his hair.

"It's all thanks to Apollo"