It was the morning of his return to the field, and DaeSung was less than pleased to wake

to the obtrusive buzzing of his cell phone on the nightstand. He swung his arm over with a groan, squinting at the too-bright screen. The fogginess in his brain immediately disappeared upon seeing the sender.

    Michelle <3

    Good morning! I wanted to catch you before you disappear into the woods again! Text me when you get back!

    DaeSung’s fingers flew across his phone as he sent a quick promise to keep in touch. Once finished, DaeSung collapsed back into his pillows with a girlish squeal, kicking his feet in the air.

    “God, I don’t want to go back to work!” He grumbled as he dragged himself from his bed and into the shower. It took him several minutes to remind himself that he was part of a team that was making ground-breaking discoveries in werewolf behavioral research and that they were currently the only successful experiment in Variant-Human relations. Michelle was important, but unfortunately, he had a team that was relying on him. By the time he had finished his internal pep-talk, he was dressed, packed, refocused, and waiting for the car to take him back to the research area.

    The car arrived, and with a semi-heavy heart, Daesung climbed in. He sent Michelle a text letting her know he was on his way, resulting in a quick ‘Hwaiting!!’ in reply. He felt the corners of his mouth twitch upwards, suddenly feeling like he could take on the world.

    The lightheartedness remained as he watched the deep green of forest fly by the car window. After he’d arrived, he muttered a quiet ‘thank you’ to the driver and rushed to the bunker door. Pulling his employee card from his pocket, he swiped it at the sensor before tugging the heavy door open. Beyond the door, YoungBae turned with a smirk.

    “Hey... Playboy!” He exclaimed, before leaping at Daesung, rifling the older man’s hair with enthusiasm. DaeSung struggled to escape from YoungBae's hold. He finally managed to tear him off with a sharp jab to the gut, emerging unharmed but distinctly ruffled.

    “YoungBae, focus.” JiYong ordered from the camera room down below. “DaeSung, come here.” Immediately, the cheeriest of the team shrank, all signs of levity gone from his eyes. DaeSung curiously eyed the change in demeanor, raising an inquiring eyebrow. YoungBae sighed and climbed down the ladder, his displeasure echoing in every heavy footstep. DaeSung followed, and the two quickly joined the rest of the team.

    “Welcome back!” TOP walked over and tiredly slapped a hand on Daesung’s shoulder. DaeSung’s mirth evaporated due to the tension in the room.

    “Hey.” He replied quietly,and turned to JiYong. “What happened while I was gone?”

    “The President came.” The team leader replied.

    “When?” DaeSung questioned. “Why?” JiYong shrugged, equally perplexed, and ran a hand through his hair in exasperation.

    “Yesterday. He was angry that Jordan survived Chen’s attack.” JiYong sighed. “He seemed to think we had something to do with it.” DaeSung’s brow crinkled in confusion.

    “That happened nearly a month ago. Besides, we can’t interfere; it compromises the experiment. We said that in our reports.” Daesung pulled up a rolling chair and took a seat, index finger tapping his chin. TOP voiced his opinion from where he sat next to JiYong.

“I think he’s getting pressure from the board about the success of this trial. They’re probably really happy, but he used to always preach against variant-human agreements. He only wanted government funding to capture a pack. He might be getting nervous now that we’re actually getting somewhere.” Youngbae nodded in agreement, eyes narrowing in concentration.

“The fact it’s Jordan probably pisses him off more.” YoungBae glanced at his team leader. “I’ve always wondered why he agreed to werewolf behavioral research when he was always against variant-human treaties.” He snorted in derision. “Just shows how people can flip flop.” Jiyong shushed YoungBae sharply. Though he didn’t agree with the President’s politics, he - abiding with policy -  couldn’t condone outright insults towards their higher-ups.

    “What?” Youngbae snorted. “I’m just saying what we’re all thinking.” JiYong glared at his junior, but didn’t protest.

    “Back to business.” He began, his voice taking on its original professional tone. He whipped around and pointed a finger at Youngbae. “You. Your vacation week starts tomorrow.” Youngbae shot up from his seat.

    “What? Why this week?” YoungBae’s voice rose in pitch. Jiyong raised an eyebrow at the sudden display of diligence.

    “Do you not want your vacation week? I can give it to someone else.”

    “Aren’t you going to praise my golden work ethic?” Youngbae paused, waiting for a response that he did not receive. He sighed, “I want a vacation week, just not this week...” Youngbae trailed off, eyes downcast. DaeSung eyed his friend, wandering over to prod him with a questioning finger. Where did his lazy, constantly complaining coworker go?

    “What’s special about this week?” DaeSung questioned, eyes flicking rapidly in between his team members.

    “We want to move on to Stage 3. If the President is getting on our case now, his presence is only going to get heavier as we go. We don’t want any more interference. Might as well get an early start.” TOP bounced on the balls of his feet in excitement.

    “Are they ready?” Daesung wondered, “I mean, I’ve only been gone a week, How much did I miss?” Despite his questions, DaeSung did want to move on. Jordan and Chen’s interactions made him feel oddly fuzzy inside. It was comforting, seeing that a human could reduce a werewolf to a fluffy ball of cuddles. However, he couldn’t help but hesitate.

Jordan and Chen would be fine. It was Chen and other humans that was concerning. As if sensing his thoughts, JiYong sighed and sank down into a chair.

    “Chen trusts her.” He glanced at the camera monitors, “I’d even say he’s gotten attached.” The rest of the team nodded in affirmation. YoungBae’s face twitched in a barely-suppressed smile. “I think if there’s anyone who’d be able to humanize him, it’d be her.” He turned to Daesung. “What do you think?”

    DaeSung grinned with a shrug of his shoulders.

    “You’re the boss, JiYong. Whatever you say, I follow.” A fleeting smile crossed JiYong’s face, the first positive emotion he’d shown since that morning. He cracked his knuckles and stretched his neck from side to side.

    “Then let’s get started.”

    Jordan woke to the cold. She hissed as the chilly air nipped at her skin and reluctantly pulled herself from the embrace of an clingy werewolf. She sat up with a groan, wincing at the dryness on her tongue and her ever-worsening dental hygiene. Jordan shivered in her hoodie as she stood and stumbled over to their bags, pulling out a water bottle. She quickly rinsed and rubbed her index fingers against her teeth, wincing at the frigid water.

    Jordan cast a glance over her shoulder at the sleeping werewolf. Even though he was bare-chested, he didn’t seem the slightest bit cold. Jordan felt a burn of jealousy and annoyance. Jealousy, because he was so much better adapted to this environment. Embarrassed, because she would have died long ago without him. She was not used to having to rely on someone else, and definitely not on someone who could kill her in a heartbeat. With a sigh, Jordan wandered back over to the sleeping werewolf to shake him awake.

    “Chen.” The werewolf did not wake, only grabbing onto her arm and yanking her closer. Jordan’s eyes widened in surprise as she toppled onto his torso. “Chen!” She admonished, smacking his head in protest. Finally, he woke with a snort. “Get up!” Jordan prodded at his arm, trying to get him to relinquish his grip. Reluctantly, with an uncharacteristic frown, he did.

    Their morning was uneventful, with Jordan starting a fire to heat up leftovers from the night before. Chen kicked a hole through in the ice, rubbing his face and torso with the frosty water. Jordan glanced over as the water evaporated immediately in swirling fronds of steam. Chen caught her eye. Her face reddened, and she quickly looked back down at the fire. Jordan buried her face in her hands, chastising herself for acting like a hormonal teenager when she should be focusing on surviving.

    Chen seemed indifferent, however, as he returned from the water and accepted the food she offered him with a nod. Jordan refused to say anything; she refused to even look at him until she saw that he’d finished, and sprang to her feet.

    “Okay!” She reached her arms over her head in an exaggerated stretch. Jordan internally screeched at her less-than-subtle behavior while trying to keep her expression neutral. “Let’s get going.” Chen raised an eyebrow as she walked away, head tilting as she continued to mutter angrily at herself. But he lifted their bags and followed her nonetheless.

    Jordan’s focus sharpened as she trekked through the forest. She relaxed to the sound of her footsteps. She glanced over her shoulder to see if Chen was following; he was. Jordan paused, however, at his behavior. He was tense, eyebrows scrunched, eyes flitting around.

Jordan was sure his heightened senses were catching something she couldn’t. Birdsong had stopped ever since the colder weather had settled in, and most of the forest animals had either gone into hibernation or settled into their winter nests. The only disturbance at night was the occasional fall of branches when the ice became too heavy.

Chen was suddenly by her side, eyes nervously scanning the skies. He gripped her arm, leading her farther west, where the leaf cover was more dense.

“Chen?” Jordan questioned, digging her heels in the ground. The werewolf did not respond, only tugging more insistently on her arm. “Chen.” Jordan exclaimed. She didn’t resist anymore, trusting his instincts, but continued shouting his name until he turned towards her. “Chen, what is going on?” He kept tugging, but jabbed a finger to the sky, in the direction of the lake. He paused, eyes widening in panic.

They began running, though Jordan knew not from what. For several minutes, the only sound that permeated the air was their pounding footfalls and hurried breaths. The bags swung in Chen’s left hand as he pulled Jordan along, urging her to go faster.

The sound snuck into Jordan’s hearing range. At first it was only a slight buzzing, a sound that could have been a figment of her imagination. But as minutes passed, the unmistakeable sound of helicopter blades roared in the air, spurring the duo into further panic. Jordan, held up only by Chen’s grip, tried to keep up as she tripped over rocks and branches, but found herself slowing down.

Jordan yelped as Chen’s bicep slipped behind her knees, and he lifted her into his arms. He threw their bags to the side and sprinted ahead, oblivious to the branches that scratched at his face and the rocks that cut into his feet. Jordan had never seen Chen like this. Fear flickered in his eyes and panicked breaths ripped from his chest. Jordan could feel his heart thrumming out of fear as he tried to run out of the helicopter’s range.

Suddenly, the sound of something being fired echoed faintly through the trees. Chen ducked and set Jordan under a tree. He threw his body over her as a canister flew past their heads. It bounced off of a pine tree, snapping several branches and sending splinters in every direction. It hissed menacingly as blue mist began seeping out. Jordan immediately recognized it as the anaesthetic from the experiment room.

    They both knew there was no use running. The mist was traveling too fast for either of them to outrun it. Jordan found her face being yanked forward, Chen’s eyes staring intently into hers. Gently, he tugged the front of her hoodie up over her nose and mouth, lightly covering with his hands.

    Trying her best not to breathe, Jordan watched out of the corner of her eye as the mist creeped closer, unfurling over fallen branches and boulders. She mimed at Chen to cover his mouth, to which she received no response. Despite her warning, she still felt the pressure of Chen’s hand over the bottom half of her face. He only gazed determinedly at her, waiting for the oncoming tide. She held her breath and squeezed her eyes shut as a blue wave swept over them.

Her lungs began to burn. She had no choice but to inhale. The mist was heavy and metallic; Jordan could feel it settling into her lungs, robbing her of her senses. Her vision faded and hearing dulled. She grunted as Chen collapsed on top of her, his heavy weight pushing tainted air from her lungs. As she faded into blackness, the last thing Jordan registered was her own crippling fear of recapture and the sound of an incoming helicopter.

***

*emerges from behind a rock.

Haiiiii....... Sorry it's so long, last semester was rough...

BUT

It's summer now, meaning I have more time and therefore have more time to write!! I've started Chapter 12. It'll get more fluffy from here on out.

Thank you to shooka24 for beta'ing this chapter, and for helping me out of my decapitating writer's block. May you continue being fabulous, even though you passed out while we were editing XD

Special shoutouts to Byul96, ihavenolifelol (I love your username by the way), SingMeASongASong, and wildwhitewinter. Thank you so much for

upvoting, it means so much to me!

As always, feel free to leave a comment, they are my lifeblood, and I love reading them. See you next chapter!

(Pardon the chattiness, it's 1AM)