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The Honmoon glitters above Rumi, the colors reflecting that of a rainbow, showing the way they all accepted their faults and fears, showing the beauty in everything they have done. The fans' cheers and roars are long behind her, all of them sneaking out to enjoy their hard work finally baying off.
Rumi smiles wide, her patterns glistening the same colors as the same reds, pinks, yellows, and purples above her. Her chest feels lighter than it has in years, from the acceptance of herself and the loved ones around her, knowing complete and without a doubt, that they love all of her, both the human and demon parts of herself.
The idol is free, free of her fear and worry of having to hide the purple on her skin, terrified beyond words of what would happen if anyone knew she was a half demon. Free from not getting the love she deserves and free not thinking she is enough to be herself.
The idol never has to worry about that again, from the tight and bone crushing hug she got from Mira and Zoey and the cries of Bobby, she knows she is loved.
After so long, Rumi is free.
She is not the only one, though.
The half demon feels him more than sees him, stopping right next to her side as he gently gasps her hand, squeezing it so tightly so thought it might break, the action making her laugh softly. She turns her head to see Jinu giving her an adoring smile, pride glowing on his face. He doesn’t even have to say it to know how proud he is of her, eyes tender with the emotion. Rumi has to will herself to not let herself cry again, doing that more than enough with Zoey and Mira.
“The patterns,” Jinu starts off with, voice barely hiding the awe in it. His smile begins to widen, happy to see the fangs poking out freely in the world. “They look good on you, Rumi.”
She chuckles, purple braid bouncing along with her. Rumi brings her free hand up, fingers tracing along the patterns, something she has not allowed herself to do since childhood. The colors shifted again, blues and greens sparkling from her touch, and she can’t help to think how beautiful they are, the thought not bringing her guilt anymore.
For the first time in her life, she can agree that the patterns do look good on her.
“They do,” Rumi answers with a smirk, heart swelling when she hears a chuckle leave his mouth, the sound not sounding broken or sad, but light. He rolls his eyes, but the brown of his irises never leaves her face, tracing the newly iridescent color down to her eyebrow. She could keep complimenting herself and saying how amazing she looks, but she knows she has to say what she needs to say next, knowing it’s everything Jinu has been waiting for. She brings her hand up to his cheek, thumb rubbing against the iridescent patterns as they glow the same blues and greens on her skin. The redeemed demon leans into her palm, giving her a feather light kiss. “And they look just as good on you as well.”
A quiet warmth blooms on Jinu’s face as he wraps his hand around her wrist, pressing another kiss before, his expression falters just a bit, knowing he is thinking about a past he doesn’t have to anymore.
“I never thought they would.”
Rumi chuckles, understanding exactly how he feels. For so long, she viewed her patterns as something that made her ugly and a mistake, a wrong that must be fixed when golden entered the sky, Though, now, she realized they were everything that made her beautiful and there was no reason to be ashamed of them anymore, as she was able to learn from Jinu and everyone around her in this moment.
The idol realizes her hand from Jinu’s grip, cradling his face in both of her hands. She deliberately places them on where the white patterns are, rubbing them with the same care he did with her on all their secret meetings (and dates), letting him know she sees the beauty in his patterns as he did with hers when his eyes first landed on the purple stripes on her shoulder. Rumi smiles with all her teeth, bright as the sun.
“And neither did I, but they show us that we are free,” Rumi chokes out at the end, half a sob and half a laugh. It’s a future she never thought was possible, but standing here right now with Jinu was a living proof of it. Their patterns glow, oranges and purples surrounding them. The demon brings their forehead together, tears appearing in the edges of their eyes, filled with love. “We are free, Jinu.”
Jinu lets out a wet chuckle, before pressing a long kiss to her forehead, pouring everything he could into it. They stay in the position for a minute, Rumi feeling as if the world blurred around her before he lets go, hands going to her waist as he pulls her closer. The carefree grin Jinu gives her is something Rumi wants to remember for the rest of her life, making her brain work into overdrive to do everything it possibly can to not forget this moment.
“I can’t believe your crazy plan worked.”
Rumi lets out a fake mock gasp, the demon cackling at her reaction. The carefree smile never disappears.
“It wasn’t crazy! I knew it would work! You just had to believe in me!”
“And I did,” Jinu tells her gently, brown eyes softening. “I guess the Honmoon really could save a guy like me.”
Rumi’s heart aches at the words, knowing how much shame and guilt ate the man so much inside, that he never could have thought redemption was possible for him. For so, with the memories and Gwi-ma’s words told him everything about him was worthless and he was a person that deserved to suffer. She knew he wasn’t and from him wanting to be free from the demon king, the idol believed there was a way to redeem himself and live a life without the shame weighing him down anymore. Their fight at the idol award showed Jinu and Rumi this, creating a future where they didn’t have to live the past and didn't have to tie themselves down anymore.
The Honmoon, the idol who can feel this in her core, knew this as well.
“It did and knew you had a chance to be free. You deserve this Jinu, we both deserve this,” Rumi responds to him quietly, voice full of determination. She continues to rub his newly iridescent patterns, watching them glow at every touch she makes. It makes her heart clench tighter, the adoration of it overwhelming her. “You have a chance to be better and live a life you want and I wouldn’t want anyone else by my side.”
A real smile breaks out on his face, the emotion of hope flickering back in his eyes, something he thought he could never experience or wish upon again. Everything she just told him is a truth she has been saying for a while and Rumi can see as clear as day that Jinu feels the same way. All Rumi has ever wanted was to be free, together.
“I guess I do,” Jinu whispers, saying it so quietly, it is as if he is telling her a secret. Brown meets each other again, the affection pooling in them. “I wouldn’t want to be free with anyone else.”
Rumi lets out another wet laugh, light an airy as she kisses the top of his nose, always loving the way the patterns crossed his face there. Her brown eyes sparkle like jewels in the sun, excited for what the future has in store for them.
“We’re free to be ourselves, Jinu. No more shame, no more Gwi-ma, and no more hiding the patterns on our skin. We are free to show them out in the open.”
At the mention of her last sentence, Jinu lights up like a firecrack, the emotion being so strong his entire body glows, the idol doing her best to hold back her laughter. He removes her hands from his face, cradling them gently as he rubs her wrist. The demon’s smile is wicked, the idol bracing herself for what infuriating statement he might say next.
“So, free to show them out in the open on a date?”
Oh, well, now that’s an idea Rumi can get behind.
“Yes, Jinu, free to show them out on the date.”
The demon’s eyes sparkle brighter, the image of it being so adorable to her.
“Show them at the boba tea place we went to on our first date. I would love to see what it would have been like if you were able to show your patterns there.”
Rumi huffs at that, remembering how much he teased her about how basic her boba tea order was. As revenge, she drank his tea, his cries of distress being music to her ears. There is a place that is far more suitable for the occasion, though.
“I want to go back to the aquarium again. We never got to finish the shark tanks!” Rumi demanded, already thinking about the next whale shark stuffed animal the demon would have to buy her.
Jinu chuckles as he kisses one of her wrists, a playful smirk growing on his lips.
“We can not go back there. My wallet can’t handle being broke again,” Jinu jokes, both of them knowing full well the way Rumi rolled him when she asked him to buy her the giant jellyfish stuffed animal at the store, something he did willingly.
The idol rolls her eyes, well aware she is going to get her way no matter what and how Jinu can not resist her.
“You wanted to buy that for me and insisted upon paying for the jellyfish!”
“I have to save money if I want to have a future that is affordable for both of us.”
“Jinu!” Rumi laughs loudly as she smacks her hand against his chest, the action playful. His laugh echoes along with her, it being deep and rich. The idol hoping there will be more days when she is able to hear a sound like that coming out of his mouth. A wide smile is plastered on his face, face tender.
“But, I would like a date, where we are able to show off our patterns,” Jinu tells her honestly, thumbs rubbing across her wrists. The awe the demon has for her radiates off of him. “It’s something I would love to do.”
Rumi has to will her tears away, feeling so happy so has no idea if anything could to this.
“Me too, Jinu,” the idol says softly, eyes lighting up with an idea. “What if we have a little picnic outside on my balcony? We bring whatever comfort foods we like and wear clothes we feel comfortable with showing our patterns off.”
Jinu’s smile is full of a mix of quiet affection and love, overjoyed he gets to experience more moments like this with Rumi, now with Gwi-ma being gone.
“It’s perfect, Rumi. It’s a date.”
”It’s a date,” Rumi repeats back to him, voice soft. It's everything she could have wanted from a date.
In an instant, his arms are around her, engulfing her in the tightest hug. A wet spot forms on her bare skin as he lets out the tears Jinu has been holding back so long, grateful beyond everything for what Rumi has done for him. Those same wet and salty tears flow freely on her face, not at all caring the way it will probably ruin his clothes. The hug could crush the both of them, but neither mind, so happy to be with each other and to know they get to be at each other’s side for the rest of their lives. With a choked out sob, Jinu is the first to speak, letting her know how much she means to him.
“Thank you, Rumi, for showing me what my life could be like.”
Another round of tears flow freely from her eyes as she cradles his face gently in her hands again. The half demon feels the same way, knowing none of this would be possible without Jinu being the one to support her and be on her side. Her smile is small but full of joy.
“And I can say the same to you, Jinu,” Rumi states to him, a wet sob of her own leaving her mouth. She means every word of it, giving her the chance to express how much Jinu means to her. “You showed me the way we can be free.”
With a turn of her head and his hand on her cheek, they kiss each other, as they bask in the glow of the new Honmoon above them. It’s a mix of their tears, laughter and joy all put into one and it’s a kiss Rumi can consider to be the best and favorite in her life.
Today starts the new day for the rest of their lives, free to be themselves.