“Hyung? Hyung where are you?” Ilhoon walked around the rooftop, calling for his brother. “Hyung?!”

            “He’s gone, Ilhoon.”

            Ilhoon turned toward the door where Sungjae was watching.

            “All the Beast members are gone,” Peniel added, walking up the stairs to the roof entrance. “Sungjae and I were playing games with Yoseob, but when we saw the sunlight peeking in through the windows, he vanished.”

            Sungjae nodded, “Eunkwang-hyung says the other Beast members are gone too. Guess they weren’t kidding when they said daylight turns them into wall shadows.

            Ilhoon looked around the walls and floor but was unable to find the silhouette of his sibling, only his own shadow was visible. “There was still so much I wanted to talk to him about.”

            “But you can still talk to him later,” Sungjae smiled, “We decided to come back here every night!”

            “Or at least every night we can sneak out of our houses,” Peniel corrected. “But for now, we better get home before our parents get too worried.”

            Ilhoon smacked his forehead, “my parents! I never told them where I was going! I’m not allowed to be out at night after Jaesoon, I mean Junhyung, vanished.”

            “Then we better get you home pronto!” Sungjae grabbed Ilhoon’s wrist and pulled him to the door before turning to the roof. “Bye Junhyung-ssi, if you’re still here.” He and Peniel waved to the empty rooftop before dragging Ilhoon down the stairs.

            “Goodbye Hyung,” Ilhoon said softly, as he was pulled away.

            Ilhoon drowsily entered his apartment, careful not to make any loud noises. It was still five in the morning and his parents were, hopefully, still asleep. Jaesoon took off his shoes and tiptoed towards his bedroom, only to be stopped in the hallway by his elder sister.

            “And just where were you all night,” Jiyoon asked, arms crossed.

            “Out,” Ilhoon lazily answered.

            “Jung Ilhoon! I asked you a question! You’re not supposed to be out after dark if mom and dad don’t know where you are. When Jaesoon died-”

            “He’s not dead!” Ilhoon yelled.

            Jiyoon sighed. “I thought you had accepted that already, damn. But regardless, neither you nor I are allowed out after dark without mom or dad knowing where we are. I had to lie to mom and tell her you came home and went straight to bed so she wouldn’t have a panic attack.”

            “You did that for me?” Ilhoon asked.

            “Of course I did! Mom’s still upset about Jaesoon. I can’t let her think she’s gonna lose you too. So stop acting like Jaesoon, Ilhoon. You’re not him; you’re smart enough to know that the streets are dangerous, and you’re kind enough to know how much this family cares about you.”

            Ilhoon sighed. He felt bad for making his sister and parents worry. He took a deep breath and turned to Jiyoon. “I’m sorry.”

            “You, you’re what?!” Jiyoon looked surprised. Ever since Jaesoon disappeared, Ilhoon has lost his kindness. He acted like Jaesoon to try and be strong for his family, but it also made him cold. An apology was not something Ilhoon would often give.

            “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you worry.” Ilhoon continued, “I spent the night with Sungjae and Peniel. They need some help with something, I’m sorry I didn’t say anything.”

            “I-It’s alright,” Jiyoon stood, confused. “Just call next time.”

            Ilhoon nodded, walking toward the bathroom.

            Jiyoon sighed, a small smile appearing on her face. ‘Maybe Ilhoon’s finally getting back to his old self.’

            Ilhoon quickly took a shower and went to brush his teeth when something became obvious to him. He set down his toothbrush, spitting out the froth in his mouth and looked down at his right hand. “What the hell is this?!”

            Ilhoon stuck his hand under running water, then he furiously rubbed it with hand soap, but nothing could detach the mysterious mark that had formed on his hand.

            “Is this some kind of tattoo?” Ilhoon thought aloud. “Did I get drunk last night and get this without realizing? I can’t let mom or dad see this.”

            Ilhoon ran to his bedroom and quickly got dressed. He went through his brother’s old clothes he couldn’t bear to get rid of, and searched the bottom of the drawers until he found a pair of fingerless gloves. He didn’t know why his brother had them if he never wore them, but he was thankful nonetheless.

            Ilhoon picked up his school backpack and walked to the kitchen where his mother and Jiyoon were cooking.

            “You’re up awfully early, Ilhoon,” the siblings’ mother called as she saw Ilhoon sit at the breakfast table.

            “Uh, yeah,” Ilhoon played with his fingers, occasionally staring down at his gloved hand, as though the mysterious mark was rising to the surface.

            “You feeling alright, sweetie?" his mother asked as she walked over to Ilhoon and placed a hand on his forehead, “you’re sweating bullets.”

            “I am? I am,” Ilhoon commented, laughing awkwardly. “I just happen to be excited about the day. You know, I’m just hanging out with Sungjae and Peniel and our new friends.”

            “New friends?” His mother asked.

            “Y-yeah,” Ilhoon smiled, nervously, “Just a small group. They’re pretty cool; maybe I’ll have them over some time.”

            Ilhoon’s mother couldn’t help but smile and hug her little boy. “I’m so happy to hear you’re finally socializing more. And I’m more than happy to see you smile so brightly.”

            “T-Thanks mom,” Ilhoon grinned. He hadn’t realized his smile had vanished when Jaesoon did but now that he knew where his brother was and BtoB had formed, Ilhoon couldn’t help but let it a smile tug at his lips.

            Jiyoon, on the other hand, was a bit more skeptical. As much as she wanted to see Ilhoon acting as his old self, something bothered her, Jaesoon. Five years ago, Jaesoon suddenly became more cheerful after reporting he made some new friends, just before he disappeared. She was afraid history might be repeating itself and she might also lose her little brother. She turned to observe Ilhoon; she needed to learn whatever she could to make sure he won’t disappear.

            Ilhoon arrived at school, yawning when Sungjae ran up from behind.  

            “HYUNG!” Sungjae yelled, hugging Ilhoon from behind. Ilhoon shuddered by the skinship before lightly pushing Sungjae off.

            “Sungjae, you know I hate that stuff.”

            Sungjae nodded before yawning, “Peniel and I got into a lot of trouble when we got home. Mom and dad tried to call us like fifty times but no calls got through.” He yawned again, a light smile on his face. “It figures that the old school was a dead zone.”

            Peniel drowsily walked up behind his brother, his eyes had dark rings from lack of sleep, but he still gave his friend his signature goofy smile, “It could’ve been worse, Sungjae.”

            “Yeah, they could’ve seen our hands,” Sungjae chuckled.

            “Your hands?” Ilhoon raised his eyebrow, curiously.

            Both Sungjae and Peniel held out their hands, Sungjae his right and Peniel his left. Ilhoon’s eyes noticed as the two boys each had half of the marking that was embedded onto his own hand.

            “We think Yoseob drew it on us when we weren’t looking,” Peniel spoke, pulling his hand away, “the little deviant.”

            “I... I don’t think so,” Ilhoon commented, setting down the books in his hands. He slowly pulled off his right biker glove, revealing his own symbol.

            “You have it too?!” Sungjae asked, “but you weren’t anywhere near Yoseob all night.”

            Peniel sighed, “Maybe we should ask the Beast members about it this weekend.”

            Ilhoon nodded, “we’ll just have to keep it hidden from our parents until then.”

            The two brothers agreed with Ilhoon and headed off to their classroom. The BtoB members had agreed to meet for lunch and on Friday night, to go and spend time with the Beast boys, but for the moment, they had to get through the long day with little sleep under their belts.

            Class went on as usual; however Ilhoon could barely keep his eyes open. Part of him regretted staying up all night, but it was worth it to see his brother again. Time after time the boy managed to fall asleep at his desk, but somehow managed to wake up just before the teacher noticed. Sungjae and Peniel also had similar experiences, but unfortunately for them, they were caught a few times.

            Despite a number of scoldings by their teacher, the BtoB members made it to lunch. Eunkwang,