The dirt crunches softly underneath his feet as Heejun walks down alongside an old rickety fence used to keep property lines in order. This part of town is abandoned for reasons he doesn’t know or care about, but he’s already become quite fond of it. He passes by a large sycamore tree, branches and leaves askew in every which way, a tree taller than Heejun has ever seen before. There’s more along the way, but Heejun stops at the very first one, admiring it for a brief second before quickly scampering across the dirt path to a derelict house.

He had called Jihun stupid – and that was just from speculation – but Heejun knows he’s much more foolish now. It’s well into the afternoon, the sun high and intimidating during these hours and Heejun feels mostly safe. The house looks just as when they had found it – and just as when they had left it. He’s hesitant when he strolls along to the backyard, looking for the key they had left underneath the back porch (someone else of course had left it there first before Heejun and Jihun had found this place) and it’s there that he sees something less than comforting.

There’s a piece of paper – a note, folded and tucked into the crack in between the door and Heejun freezes. That definitely wasn’t there when they left.

What is it? A ward? Some kind of charm? If he pulls it out will the place explode? There really isn’t any other way for him to find out unless he does pull it out but–

It’s so obviously placed. It has to be there for him.

He takes a step forward, the floorboard creaking loudly and making him feel more unsettled. A soft gust of wind blows by, the leaves of a nearby tree whistling and he takes in a deep breath. He quickly pulls the folded piece of paper out, closing his eyes in fear of some sort of trap going off, but– nothing. Heejun slowly opens his eyes, shifting around to see if anything has happened.

He glances down at the note, unfolding it carefully as he reads its contents. In very neat and small handwriting is the simple line:

I’m still waiting.

-

It starts slowly, almost hazy when Seungjun opens his eyes. He’s laying in Hyeyeon’s lap and he knows it’s her by her scent. She’s always smelled faintly of earth no matter where she is. Her touch is soft as fingers tangle in his hair; so saccharine and familiar. His chest tightens.

She smiles down at him, warm and comforting and he misses her. His hand moves without instruction, coming up to cup her cheek and she’s warm and soft and every bit as lovely as always. The moonlight is gentle as it curtains around them, encased in the garden that Hyeyeon cares for.

This is a dream. A memory. But Seungjun is still lost in her eyes, still captured by her smile and her voice and her touch and her scent. He misses her so much.

“Where are you?” He mouths but the words don’t come out. It begins to fade like that, with her still smiling at him, with her growing further and further out of reach but Seungjun doesn’t even bring a hand forth to reach out– he can’t. She fades completely into darkness and Seungjun wakes up alone.

It was short– too short, but he hasn’t had that dream in years. He hasn’t had any dreams for quite some time. He quickly rubs at his eyes, blood smearing across his face. Was he– had he been crying? He lets out a frustrated sigh. What a way to wake up. He takes no time in cleaning himself up, dressing in his usual attire of darkly colored dress shirts and slacks. His hair is swept back and the wound on his wrist has completely healed by now. He looks as if nothing has changed in the last hundred years.

Everyone is in their usual spots tonight as well. Dahye and Haeryung lounge about in the living room, jeweled satin dresses that drape across the marble floor, hair curled and lips painted rouge. Inseong sits across them, neatly dressed to mirror Seungjun, a book in his lap as he pays them no mind. Yuji is missing – in her room most likely – but Seungjun knows she too is dressed in grandeur. They spend their time like this, cooped up in their underground house of riches, letting the time pass them in blinks.

There isn’t a need to go out and hunt anymore either, not since the use of Feeders had been introduced. They come to you, offer their necks up in return for money, power, promises. Seungjun hasn’t had to kill since his turning.

“Good morning,” Dahye greets when he takes the open seat beside Inseong, ultimately disturbing their little bubble. “You’re up late.”

It’s an observation, not her criticizing him– she doesn’t do that afterall. He nods in response to her, a wide yawn escaping him. If he’s feeling this sluggish then it means he’ll need to feed soon. The last time he called for a Feeder was over two weeks ago (longer than what he’s used to) and after what happened just the night before, he’s in need of blood.

“Do you want me to call for you?” She asks, suddenly standing up and Seungjun shakes his head. Why is she so concerned with him?

“No, it’s fine, thank you. I’ll do it in a bit.”

“Not going out tonight?” Inseong asks out of nowhere, not taking one look up from his book. Oh. Right. Seungjun had forgotten Inseong was with him last night. The events that had transpired seem like they happened years ago, far off into the distance. His memory is slightly hazy, either from the growing hunger of needing to feed or the fury he felt at seeing his human being cornered by someone other than him. It was grating, of course, but Seungjun thinks he could have handled things much much worse.

He ignores Inseong, instead turning back to Dahye. “On second thought, could you call someone to come over?”

Without another word, Dahye is gone in a flash and he’s left alone with Inseong and Haeryung. Now, for as long as he can remember, he and Haeryung have never been quite on good terms. He isn’t on good terms with any of those who diligently follow Yuji, but something about him seems to keep Haeryung very guarded. She soon gets up to leave, not exactly following after Dahye, but clearly not staying so close to both Inseong and Seungjun alone. She’s vanished quicker than Seungjun has to register that she was ever there before.

Well, now that those two are gone–

“I have to start feeding him regularly now,” he says, turning to Inseong. “But I can’t go tonight. Or tomorrow.”

Inseong sighs. “What do you want me to do about it?”

“Help me.”

“No.”

“Why not?”

“Why should I?”

“It’ll give you a chance to meet with the other human.”

Inseong flinches. “What makes you think I want to meet with the other human?”

“You’re enamoured with him, aren’t you?”

Seungjun can see something snap from within Inseong and the other vampire shuts his book. “I’m not you.”

“My memory of it is foggy, but I’m pretty sure you left us. You went to talk to him, didn’t you?”

“It was brief. It was a warning.”

Clearly, Seungjun can see he is testing Inseong’s patience by pressing him on the matter. If he wants Inseong to run him favors he’s going to have to drop this line of questioning. “Come by my room after I feed, I’m going to need your help.”

-

He could have refused. It would have been easy to refuse him just as he’s done so many times in the past. But, Seungjun is right– Inseong does want to see the other human. Not in the way Seungjun had suggested before– no, Inseong is beyond such feeble emotions.

There’s fate playing into all this and Inseong has seen firsthand just what will happen.

-

“Did you just get back?”

. Jihun is awake now and Heejun had really been hoping the other would still be sleeping by the time he got back. It’s barely after sunset and the stars are just now visible, Heejun didn’t think he would be out this late. Jihun is still groggy with sleep, he must have just gotten up if he’s in the state between lucid and drowsy.

“I was out for like five minutes Hun,” he lies with ease. “You working tonight?”

Jihun just groans, falling back down on his futon, eyes still open. “Yeah.”

“Are you alright to?”

“I feel really great actually.”

He doesn’t say anymore, doesn’t talk about what happened the night before or why his cheeks look fuller than they have in months. It’s scary– Heejun finds everything to be way scarier than he did before. There’s definitely something unnatural with all of this. He can’t find the proper way to express this fear, to show and tell Jihun that something is different with his best friend.

Jihun quickly props himself up, yawning rather loudly before getting up to get ready for work. It’s weird, Heejun thinks. They used to spend every minute together, but now the only time they talk is during the small interval between Jihun waking and leaving for work. It isn’t like they have to be together all the time, and technically they still are – they’re still together. There’s a sinking feeling in his stomach and the note in his coat pocket feels like it’s weighing him down.

They talk about a few mundane things before Jihun is gone and Heejun feels like the air around him is a lot thicker now. He can’t worry Jihun with these ridiculous thoughts now, not when he knows the other is going through something much worse.

He pulls the note out of his pocket, unfolding it to read again.

I’m still waiting.

What does that mean? He spent the entire bus ride home trying to figure out what exactly those words were supposed to mean. Who’s waiting? And what are they waiting for? This is a real pain in the neck, he thinks. If those vampire s left this for Jihun then that’s all the more reason for Heejun to keep this a secret from him. What do they want with him? Why are they doing this to them?

He’s decided. He’s going to protect Jihun this time.

-

The Feeder is a young boy, slim and bright eyed, he is nothing but willing when Seungjun’s fangs puncture the sensitive skin of his neck, blood flowing smoothly down his throat. Seungjun feeds rather quickly, letting the boy take a few minutes to rest before sending him off. He’s always prefered feeding off of boys rather than girls, though lately he can’t help but picture his human in their place. Of course, he knows he can never feed from Jihun, he knows that Jihun’s blood is now his.

It’s barely a minute after the Feeder has left that Inseong arrives unannounced, simply slipping his way into Seungjun’s room. He’s long ago stopped being bothered by it.

“What do you need from me?”

Ah. Right to the point. “I prepared these blood bags here. Don’t worry, I did it before the Feeder came so as to not be wasteful towards a meal.” Seungjun picks one up, tossing it to Inseong who catches it with ease. “Bring him that. And another tomorrow.”

“That’s it?” Inseong asks, brow quirking up. “I’d of thought you’d make me go do something life threatening.”

“Ha ha. When have I ever put you in a life threatening situation?”

“All the time.”

“Then you should be used to it.”

Inseong frowns. Seungjun grins.

“Why can’t you go?”

He pauses, unsure if Inseong wants an honest answer or not. For all the jokes and bantering, there aren’t many times when either of them asks a serious question.

“I need to rest tonight,” he answers truthfully, not looking over at Inseong. “Then tomorrow I must go see the witch again.”

The other vampire is deathly still in every sense of the word, it’s almost comical if Seungjun weren’t mirroring him. “You’ve struck a deal with the witch, haven’t you?”

“It’s to find the hunter, nothing else.”

“Seungjun, you promised–” he says almost desperately, facade quickly breaking apart. It’s rare to ever see Inseong anything but stony and apathetic. “You promised you’d stay away from magic after what happened with–”

He’s biting his own tongue, stopping himself from finishing his sentence, but Seungjun knows what he wants to say. After what happened with Hyeyeon.

“Relax. It’s just one spell that will help us locate the hunter.” There isn’t anything else to explain, he’s just using any means necessary to make sure that his life, along with his human’s, will be ensured safe from a dangerous threat.

“It’s more than that and you know it,” Inseong says, his brow dipped low. There’s something else worrying him, but Seungjun doesn’t have the faintest hint as to what. He squeezes the bag of blood in his hand, turning away from Seungjun, “I’ll go tonight and tomorrow.”

And like that, Inseong is gone in a second, no arguments or pleading– he’s gone.

-

It was strange at first, how much nothing seemed to be bothering Jihun anymore, but now it feels almost numb– as if he’s always felt this way. He gets through the first few hours of work almost effortlessly, having become used to handling the packages and feeling relief now that Youjin was back at work. Everyone else was also busily occupied, no one had even noticed when Jihun slipped out for a break.

The night air feels lovely on his skin, the stars hanging above his head. He felt strangely at place here, as if he no longer belonged under the sun. However, the peace breaks almost too quickly. An unsettling feeling beginning to make its way into his stomach as he feels a presence loom over him. What could it be? Another vampire? So soon? Why was Jihun’s luck constantly wearing thin.

He quickly glances around, praying he won’t be caught unaware when a gentle hand brushes his shoulder. His heart is about to jump out of his chest before he realizes it’s Youjin standing before him.

“What are you so spooked for?” He laughs, and it’s a very warm and very human laugh.

“Well– You startled me,” Jihun says as an excuse. “Are you taking a break too?”

“Yeah. It’s a boring night after all.”

“I think it’s kind of nice, actually,” he admits.

“I meant the work,” Youjin laughs again. Jihun feels embarrassed enough to bury himself deep into the earth. “But, you’re right. It is nice out tonight.”

They sit in silence like that for a while, admiring the night and Jihun can tell that he’s been gone far longer than his allowed ten minutes, but he just can’t seem to move from his spot. Youjin is tall and firm, his face is sharp and detailed and Jihun feels safe beside him despite the cold nipping at his cheeks. There’s something about the other that is reassuring and welcoming– not in the same way that the vampire part of Seungjun seems inviting to Jihun. Youjin is the opposite of everything Jihun has come to know and he finds it strange. Maybe, if he had lived a different life and still somehow run into Youjin, maybe the two could become friends.

But it’s about distance. Jihun can’t get any closer. He can’t pretend to be normal like Youjin.

He’s startled once again when Youjin pulls out his wrist, checking the time. “We should go back in,” he says, a bright and wide smile on his face.

Jihun follows silently, feeling dumb and somehow lost.

There already is a distance between he and Youjin.

-

He’s only a few miles behind, watching closely to see when the human will leave his workplace. He was interrupted before, the chance slipping away when another had appeared just as Inseong was going to approach the human. His timing was off, but even stranger still was the lack of presence the other human gave despite standing right in plain view. It was as if he didn’t properly exist–

Inseong quickly shakes the thought away. His job is to deliver blood to Seungjun’s human, that’s all that matters right now. If there was more then he would have seen it and he hasn’t seen anything that contradicts what he was told.

The night is still, clear and bright with not even a single cloud above his head. There are creatures in the night that strive from the moonlight and though Inseong’s always liked the moon, he isn’t one of those creatures in particular. He has to hurry, the sun will rise soon and Inseong can’t wait any longer. He stretches his neck into the night air, breathing in deeply and recalling the scent of the feisty small human. He’ll have to hurry to track him, Seungjun wasn’t exactly forthcoming with information. It’ll be easier to confront a human who is alone as well.

It only takes him minutes to find the small human, their new dwelling is miniscule and almost as abandoned as their old one. Inseong doesn’t understand what the appeal is, but he can figure that it must be suitable for hiding. The thought makes him laugh to himself. They’re trying to hide and yet they’re so easy to find. He drops to what he assumes is their floor, feet landing without a sound on the tiny window pane sticking out, the human’s scent getting stronger and stronger and he can hear the soft beat of a familiar heart.

His hand is in the air, knuckles ready to rap at the window when he hears another sound. The sound of a music box playing. It’s soft and slow, a romantically sad tune that Inseong has heard many times play from the other side of a wall. Time stills for a moment– the sound of the music box, the scent of a human who treasures it, and a monster who waits for him just outside. Inseong blinks and everything begins to flow forward again. He quickly taps against the window.

Immediately the music stops and he hears cursing before the curtain is angrily drawn back, the small human glaring at him. Inseong looks at him placidly.

“What do you want?” He yells through the glass and Inseong can’t help but roll his eyes. He gestures for the human to open the window.

Hesitantly, the human does as he’s told and quickly he repeats his question, this time with a sharper tone. Inseong is honestly quite impressed with how much this human pretends to huff up big. He clears his throat, leaning forward just as the human takes a step back. “I’m here on an errand.”

“Jihun’s not here,” he says defensively. Inseong’s surprised he’s telling the truth, though even if it wasn’t true, he’d probably say the same thing.

“I know,” Inseong says. “I was running out of time so I came here instead.”

“How long have you known where we were?”

“Not long,” he answers. It’s partially true, Inseong at least wasn’t completely sure on where they lived. “I just came to drop something off quickly.”

“Drop what? You’re not allowed to drop anything here.” His tone is so incredulous and Inseong rolls his eyes again. Why must everything be a fight with this one?

“It’s for the daywalker. He’ll die without it,” he says with a bored look, baiting the other. “But, I guess you don’t care either way and neither do I.”

The human pauses, eyes shifting from Inseong to the window pane. What’s he looking at? “What is it?”

Inseong simply blinks at him before grinning. “Blood. He has to feed regularly and I’ve been sent to deliver the meal.” Without much warning, Inseong tosses the blood bag full of Seungjun’s blood right through the tiny window. It crosses the threshold of their home easily and the small human looks both startled and disgusted.

He looks torn in the next moment, unsure if he should touch the blood bag or punch Inseong through the open window. It makes the vampire grin even more.

“How did– Why the–”

“Why are you so mystified?” Inseong teases from his spot on the windowsill, a finger tracing the outline of the glass.

“This ward–” he starts, eyeing a peculiar mark carved into the wood. “It’s useless.”

Inseong follows his gaze and as soon as he sees the supposed ward his eyes widen immediately. “Who drew this?”

The change in his tone has the human surprised and he takes a further step back from instinct. Inseong’s inside feels like they’re being churned from the sight. “Answer me,” he says, tone harsher. “Who drew this sigil?!”

He can see it instantly in the human’s eyes– he’s not going to answer. Inseong stares at him hard, his own eyes turning a deep red as he begins to glamour the human into answering him. “Who drew this sigil,” he asks once more, the command strong in his voice.

The human is useless against the glamour and right away the answer pours from his mouth. “Jihun drew the sigil.”

“Do you know what this is?” Inseong asks, and once more on cue the human answers.

“No.”

This doesn’t make sense, Inseong thinks to himself. He breaks the glamour immediately and the human falls to his knees before regaining his conscience.

He’s furious and fuming and screaming. “Did you just glamour me!? Who the do you think you are!?”

Inseong closes his eyes and takes a moment to inhale air he doesn’t need. He opens them again when the small human calls him an asshat. He straightens out his back, his aura thickening and the human falters despite Inseong not being to stand at his full height. Surprisingly enough, the human still has an impressive scowl on his face. He really isn’t going to back down one bit.

“Invite me in,” says Inseong, his voice back to being placid.

The human looks at him as if Inseong is a babbling idot. “What? Why in the world would I do that?”

“I have to see if this sigil is anywhere else in the apartment,” he answers simply.

“I’m not letting you in, you nut case.”

“Invite me,” Inseong says once more.

“Why don’t you just glamour me into inviting you in?” He spits and the anger is hot on his voice. He must really not have liked getting glamoured.

“I just wanted an answer earlier,” he says, his own voice getting hot. “I’m not forceful.”

“It was against my will! It was every bit as forceful as physically throwing me onto a rooftop in the middle of the night.”

“I need to come in,” he quickly says, eyes scanning what little of the apartment he can see from the window. “If this mark is what I think it is then that daywalker isn’t who Seungjun thinks he is.”

The human blinks at Inseong, clearly confused and wanting answers. Nothing is going to get solved like this and Inseong is wearing thin on time. “Let me in this once and I won’t return,” he offers as a last resort.

“How about no,” the human stubbornly says and Inseong can feel a vein in his forehead throb.

“Why are you so infuriating?!”

“Why are you?!”

Inseong inhales sharply. “Invite me in.”

He stands firmly against Inseong, arms folded like a child. “No,” he huffs defiantly and clenches his fist. “This is the last safe place that Jihun and I have against you vampires.”

It’s comical that the human thinks this small apartment complex is anywhere close to safe, but he can only manage to roll his eyes. “I don’t think you understand the situation you’re in.”

“With the sun rising soon, I don’t think you understand your situation.”

He’s right, there’s very little time for Inseong to return home and he can already feel the softest pinch of sleep pulling at the back of his head. It’s frustrating and bothersome, but Inseong has to retreat for tonight, his grip on the windowsill loosening as he gives one last glare to the human before vanishing off into the night. He hates to admit it, but he’s lost this one.

-

Heejun is a fuming mess when Jihun returns home at dawn. There’s angrily crunched up sheets of paper thrown about along with other pieces of trash and Jihun has to hold back from bursting into laughter at Heejun’s infantile scowl.

“I take it you were up all night?” He asks, shuffling into the small room.

“The vampire came back,” Heejun says, grinding his teeth. “He left you that.” Jihun’s eyes drop down to a bag of…is that blood? He can feel the inside of his mouth suddenly water and the thought alone is sickening, but his instincts go into overdrive.

“Seungjun brought that?”

The use of his name seems to throw Heejun off, who stirs from his spot on the floor to pick up the bag of blood and angrily throw it at Jihun. By some miracle he manages to catch the bag, but is stunned nonetheless from Heejun’s tantrum.

“It was the other blood er. Dropped that off and said some more cryptic stuff.” Jihun doesn’t get a word in before Heejun shuffles under his futon sheets and curses under his breath. “I’m going to sleep.”

There’s a lingering feeling of disappointment that Jihun quickly ignores as he eyes the still warm bag of blood in his hand. He can tell something is wrong with Heejun, that the other is more temperamental than ever, but the sudden hunger has him scurrying off to the bathroom, locking the door behind him.

The blood is thick and just as good as he remembers, though there’s something off about it that he can’t seem to put his finger on. He finishes it all too quickly and has to stop himself from thinking too hard on it for fear of becoming too disgusted with himself that he retches everything back out. The reality hits him slowly from there on out. He’s changed. It’s a dumb thought, of course he’s changed, but it’s just now sinking it. He’s no longer the person he was just earlier this year.

The distance begins to grow.