Note: Hey guys! So last update before diving into HELLWEEK or otherwise known as FINALS WEEK. Hope you enjoy! And please do comment! THANK YOU!

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“ There’s something inside me that pulls beneath the surface; consuming, confusing. This lack of self-control is never ending…”- Linkin Park

    Blood was the only thing to be seen. The bodies of men were scattered all around the ground, their bodies horribly mangled and dismembered. In the midst of the bloody sight stood a man, consumed with his desire to kill. It seemed the more blood that was split, the hunger he became for more. A smirk formed on his lips as he stared at the dead men before him. The sight of them dead gave him the utmost satisfaction but it was not enough to satiate the hunger to kill.

    He looked down at his pale hands and saw how they were coated and stained with the blood of those men. Even if he washed it all away, the blood will still remain. There was a time when he thought that killing was a bad thing but at the moment that was all he could think about. It started off with one person and from that it led to the next. It seemed with every life he took, a part of him died and now a heartless killer stood in his place. The monster inside of him had taken over, so much so that there was no humanity left inside of him. His soul was consumed by this darkness and so his heart.

    A growl rumbled deep within his chest and his eyes narrowed. He soon found himself in a dark alley way where he ran into a few other men...SM’s men. His claws sharpened as he sauntered toward them, his eyes gleaming with evil and hatred. The men pulled out their guns and attempted to shoot at him but he was much too fast. In the blink of an eye, he appeared in front of one of the men and grabbed him by his collar, lifting him off the ground. “Please! Have mercy!”

    The man chuckled darkly. “Mercy? Unfortunately for you, I’m not feeling very merciful today. Now die!”

    The other man was thrown in the wall where his skull shattered on impact, leaving him to bleed to death. The two other men stared at their comrade in shock and looked back at the dangerous man standing before them, eerily calm. He flashed a wicked grin and cracked his knuckles. “Now...who’s next?”

    The two men looked at each other and gulped. Death was inevitable and there was no escape from this monster.

---------------------------------

    Dara bit his lip and stared at the reports in deep concentration. It had been two months now since Jiyong disappeared. Ever since then the death toll of people had increased. However, majority of the people that had been brutally murdered were part of SM or had some connection to them. She couldn’t help but have a horrible, sickening feeling in stomach. Looking over the photographs of the crime scenes, all of the men were not killed under normal circumstances. In fact, they weren’t just killed; they were torn to pieces.

    The number of these deaths increased as the days went by and each time Dara grew more and more anxious about Jiyong. What was worse was that Jaejoong pushed even harder for answers and was completely hellbent on finding this killer and bringing them down. Eventually, everything would lead back to Jiyong, which meant he would be in great danger. “Il Woo ran an autopsy report on the bodies and it seems they were clean which means there weren’t poisoned at all. They died due to the wounds they inflicted.” Bom dropped a file on Dara’s desk.

    “I see. Did he happen to run a DNA test on the bodies? Did he identify any prints from our killer?”

    “No. Whoever this was, they knew exactly what they were doing and made sure not to leave any prints behind. But I can say that this person is not an ordinary human. They’re probably one of the monsters that we saw in the forest a while back.”

    “I already figured out that much. But that’s not what I’m worried about, Bom…” Dara sighed and ran her fingers through her hair.

    “I know, Dara. Believe I’ve been worried about him lately too. But I’m sure we’ll figure all of this out soon and the fast we solve this case, hopefully the faster we’ll find Jiyong. Top has been working really hard to find him.”

    “That’s good. I just have this horrible feeling inside of me. I feel like something bad happened to him. Especially with all the killings lately, I fear that he might somehow get himself involved.”

    “Hey, don’t worry. We’ll get him back. I promised you, remember?”

    “You’re right! I just have to stay positive. I know we’ll find him soon but I can’t help but have a horrible feeling about all of this.”

    “Don’t worry so much, Dara. Just relax and everything will fall into place. Let’s just focus on bringing down these bastards first.”Dara nodded in agreement. They still had a lot of work to do and Dara couldn’t afford to have any distractions.

Meanwhile, Il Woo had been standing by the door for the past five minutes listening to the girls’ conversation. His hands clenched into fists at the mention of Dara being associated with one of those “beasts”. He didn’t openly express how much it angered him but it didn’t stop him from feeling immense jealousy and anger inside. He glared at the two girls before walking down to his lab. Just as he reached his office his phone rang. “Hello?”

“Ah, Dr. Jung. Glad I could get ahold of you.”

“What do you want? And what the hell have you been doing lately? I thought you said you’d handle the problem?”

“We’re working on it. But our little...friend is very resilient. He isn’t the most easiest person on the planet to track.”

“Then you need to get off your and do something about it!”

The man on the other end of the phone chuckled. “Mr. Jung, may I remind you who is working for who? Do not forget who has the real power here. But do tell me, Jung, why is it that you’re so insistent on getting rid of our little ‘experiment’? Is there incentive behind it?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about…”

“Really? I can hear you breathing heavily through the phone. Your heart probably racing right now and you can’t seem to stop your hands from shaking, am I right?”

Il Woo looked down at his hand and frowned when it was indeed shaking. This guy was good but Il Woo wasn’t going to allow him to get to him. “Just find your monster and kill him. We can’t afford to waste any time.”

“You’re practically transparent, Jung. It’s so obvious you’re doing this for that girl. What was her name again? Sandara Park? She’s quite stunning, isn’t she?”

Il Woo gripped onto his phone. “Listen to me and listen well, she is off limits to you and your men, you got that? She isn’t the one you’re after! Your monster is! So focus on the task at hand and stop telling me bull !”

He hung up the phone and slammed it down on his desk. He sighed and massaged the bridge of his nose to calm himself down. His head snapped up when he head footsteps behind him. “Il Woo?” He turned around and saw it was Dara.

“Dara?”

“Bom, Jaejoong, and I are going to go investigate the crime scene and see what we can find. Meanwhile, can you check up on these other documents for me?” She handed him a large file.

“Sure.”

“Thanks.”

Dara smiled slightly and turned to leave. However, Il Woo grabbed her hand to stop her. She turned back and looked at him inquisitively. “Yes?”

“Just...be careful, ok? These things are dangerous. You don’t know what they’re capable of.”

“I know exactly what they’re capable of, Il Woo. We’ll be back in a couple of hours.”

Il Woo nodded and dropped her hand. She gave him a meaningful look before leaving his office. He leaned against his desk and pushed back his hair in frustration. Be safe, Dara...please be safe…

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    “So, how many people did our serial killer kill this time?” Jaejoong asked as he drove.

    “Looks like they wiped out a handful of SM’s men. Whoever this person is, they sure do enjoy ripping people apart.” Bom shook her head.

    Dara stared out the window and watched water droplets trickle down the glass. She still had a terrible feeling about this. She knew that they beasts were involved in these killings and because of that she feared Jiyong would end up getting mixed up with them.

    Soon, they arrived at the crime scene and stepped under the yellow police tape. There were still numerous bodies scattered all around the place. Some still intact while others...weren’t so lucky. Dara’s stomach sank as she stared at all of the bodies. She stepped carefully around the puddles of blood, completely horrified by the scene before her. She’d never seen so many dead bodies before. As cop, she was used to worse case scenarios when it came to homicides but this...this was something she would never forget.

    As she continued to walk through the maze of bodies, she saw something move in the distance. Her eyes widened and she quickly ran over to the body. “Bom! Jaejoong!” She waved them over.

    The two immediately went over to her. Dara kneeled down in front of the men. “Hello? Sir, can you hear me?”

    “H-help...me…”

    The man gasped out and his hand shot up to clutch Dara’s arm. She stared at the man in horror. A wave of anxiety hit her as she stared into the man’s eyes. “Sir, can you describe the person who did this?”

    “His eyes...they were…” The man began coughing and spit up blood. Dara quickly used her free hand to cover the wound in his neck with a piece of cloth. “His eyes...were as red as blood...his smile as wicked as the Devil…”

    “Red? His eyes were red?”

    Dara looked at Bom who just frowned. As far as they knew, the beasts they encountered before didn’t have red eyes. Jaejoong stared at the man and clenched his jaw. There was something unsettling about his stare. “Sir, what else can you tell me about him?” Jaejoong asked, his voice low.

    “O-our leader...he wanted us to capture the beast...but he’s gotten stronger...too dangerous.”

    The man coughed up more blood as his eyes began rolling back. He was beginning to lose consciousness. Dara had a really bad feeling about who the man was talking about but it...couldn’t be right? The person who did this...couldn’t be who she thought it was, right? There was no way. “I just have one more question…” Dara’s voice shook.

    “Wh-what?”

    “The person you were looking for...the one who did this...do you know what his name is?” The man nodded, his eyes slowly closing. “Can you tell me their name?”

    “His...name...is...J...uh…”

    The atmosphere felt heavier as the three of them stared down at the now dead man. They were so close to finding the answers but they lost their only lead. Dara bit her lip and stood up abruptly, pushing the man’s hand off of her. He said J...does that mean…? No...No, it couldn’t be...it’s not possible. Dara shut her eyes and shook her head. She didn’t want to believe it but a part of her, the cop part of her knew the truth. All the facts were right there in front of them. There was no denying it; Jiyong was the killer.

    After loading up some bodies into the vans to be taken to the precinct, Dara and Bom decided to break away from the scene. Bom could already tell Dara was just about ready to lose it and she needed to be away from here, away from everything. And so, she pulled her aside and drove off separately from Jaejoong. “So, you wanna tell me why you look like you’ve just seen a ghost?”

    Dara shuddered slightly. “I-it’s nothing. I was just thinking about what the man said. Do you...do you think that he…”

    “I know what you’re going to say. And, I don’t know, Dara. As much as I hate to say it, I think I know who the killer is and I know that’s why you’re all riled up.”

    “But...how---I mean, why...I just don’t get it!”

    “I don’t either. When Jiyong left that night, I saw something different in his eyes. Something inside him changed.”

    “This is all my fault. I shouldn’t have gone looking for him. I should’ve just let him be so he could sort things out. If I had given him space, this wouldn’t be happening right now. In fact, I never should’ve gone back to the warehouse in the first place! I’m so stupid!”

    “Hey! None of that bull ! Dara, you were only trying to protect him. Stop beating yourself up over this. It’s not your fault. None of this is really any of our faults. If anything, this is all because of SM. They’re the ones that changed him in the first place, remember? And they’re the reason he can’t have a normal life or be with you---”

    “Stop...we’re not talking about this. I know that SM is at fault but so am I. Jiyong tried to warn me to stay away and I should’ve listened to him. If I had, we wouldn’t be in this mess. He would still be safe at the warehouse and we wouldn’t be tracking down these vicious monsters.”

    Bom sighed and glanced over at Dara. “Do you honestly believe that? If you never went back to that warehouse you never would have met him. He would still be living in the shadows afraid of his own shadow. But you helped him, Dara. You were just trying to draw him back out into the light.”

    “Yea and look where that landed us. He’s been missing for three months and could potentially be our serial killer. It would’ve been best to leave him be.”

    “Maybe you’re right. Maybe you should’ve just let him waste away in the dark and let him think he was some kind of crazy, psycho monster thing. Then he would’ve just gone on with his life hating himself every second and every day of this life for being the way he is.”

    “What are you even trying to do, Bom?” Dara groaned.

    “I’m trying to make you see that this is not a mistake. You and Jiyong meeting was no accident. Sure, we’ve hit a few bumps in the road but so what? happens in life! But you get over it! But you know what you won’t get over?”

    “What?”

    “Living with knowing you could’ve done something but chose not to. Jiyong really cares about you, Dara and I know you care about him. I can see it in your eyes. You’re different around him. And besides, if you never met him again, you never would’ve been able to thank him for saving you.”

    “I-I guess so…”

    “Top said that you are the only person that was able to make Jiyong feel human again. You and you alone make him see the good in himself. Do you really want to throw that all away just because of this? You said so yourself that Jiyong isn’t a monster and he wouldn’t harm anyone without reason. And being that it’s SM that he’s attacking, I think that’s a pretty damn good reason to me.”

    Dara nodded. It was true. Jiyong was no monster...he just had the DNA of one. But he didn’t harm innocent people. SM was hunting him and he was probably just protecting himself. Even so, they way the man described him...it was like he was completely changed. It was like he changed into something else.

    The rest of the drive home was quiet until Bom finally dropped Dara off at her apartment. Bom had called Chief on the way there and explained everything. Luckily, he agreed to let Dara have the rest of the night off. “Take care, Dara. And think about what we talked about.”

    “I will. Thanks, Bom. Good night.”

    Dara smiled and waved before heading into her apartment. She took the elevator up to her unit and quickly went inside. She only took a couple steps inside before she noticed something odd. Her bedroom door was cracked open which she always closed before she left home and the heard the faint sound of the wind blowing her curtains.

    Dara reached into her back pocket for her gun and slowly walked toward the door. Slowly, she opened the door and stepped inside, pointing her gun in all directions in case someone decided to attack her but she relaxed when she found her room to be empty. As she walked over to her window to close it, she noticed the small drops of blood on the carpet. She kneeled down and frowned. Why was there blood on the ground? Did...Jiyong try to find her here? Was he hurt?

    Endless questions ran through her head but she shook them all off and decided to take a shower. She needed to just relax and have some time to herself. She was way too damn tense and needed a break from the world. So, she took her sweet time in the shadows, scrubbing extra hard to get the blood of the man off her arm. Walking amongst the dead made her feel dirty and squeamish.

    After she finished, she wrapped herself in a large white towel before picking out a blue camisole from her bathroom closet and a pair of underwear and shorts. She got dressed and stepped out of the bathroom, drying her hair with her towel. Her eyes immediately diverted to the window, gazing out into the stormy night. Thunder sounded loudly overhead, causing the building to shake slightly. And then the power went out, leaving Dara in pitch darkness. “Damn it…” She muttered under her breath.

    Dara threw her towel on the small chair in her room and went to retrieve some candles from the living room. She lit a couple and stuck them around her room before crawling into bed. Heaving a tired sigh, she stared up at ceiling for a moment before her eyes automatically diverted to the window. She could hear the rain tapping against the window and the see the lightning flash beneath the curtain.

    A minute passed before she finally kicked her blanket off of her and walked over to the window. She drew the curtains up and gazed out into the stormy night. Just as she was about to close it again, a bloody hand palmed the glass causing her the scream and jump back in fright. Dara clutched her chest before turning back to reach for her gun but as she turned to look back at the window, she gasped upon realizing who the hand belonged to. “J-Jiyong?!”

    Jiyong just stared at her through the glass, his eyes sad and vacant. Dara ran over to the window and immediately opened it for him. She scanned him from head to toe and saw how he was drenched in both rain and blood. “D-Dara…” His voice was barely a whisper.

    “Jiyong...you...what happened to you?”

    “I...wanted to...keep you...safe…”

    He stared at her through half-lidded eyes. Dara eyed him cautiously as he swayed back and forth. She grabbed ahold of him and noticed how hot he was. She reached a hand toward him and felt his cheeks. “I think you have a fever. You should rest for a while.”

    “I...I’m fi---”

    Dara’s eyes widened as he stumbled forward a bit before collapsing. Thankfully, she was able to prevent him from hitting his head on the ground. She laid his head in her lap and stared down at him, watching him sleep peacefully. Her forehead creased as she frowned at the traces of blood on his cheeks and in his hair. It didn’t match his appearance now...he looked so innocent sleeping in her lap.

    Carefully, she grabbed a small pillow from her bed and propped it under his head before slowly easing her way out from under him. Dara quietly tip toed to the bathroom to grab a bowl water and a towel. She came back and kneeled down beside him before lightly dabbing the damp towel on his forehead and cheeks. Cautiously, she began to wipe up all the blood on his face, in his hair, and on his neck and arms. Her heart stopped for a brief moment when she noticed that his nails had grown sharper to the point of almost looking claw-like. Yet, he wasn’t changed.

    Nevertheless, she cleaned his hands, in between his fingers, and under his nails, getting all traces of blood off of him. Seeing the blood on his hands, she knew that the truth was inevitable. He really did kill all those men. He was the one behind those killings the past three months. Even knowing the truth, Dara wasn’t afraid of him. She was more afraid FOR him. She was afraid that he might see himself as a monster and run away again and she didn’t want that. There was also the fact that Jaejoong was on the prowl for him and eventually everything would lead straight to him.

    Dara stiffened when Jiyong suddenly began to stir. His hand reached out to grab the her hand that was still wiping his face. He looked up at her, his eyes barely open. “I shouldn’t be here…” He muttered.

    “You are exactly where you’re supposed to be. Why did you run?”

    “To protect you...I...killed them…”

    “I know…” Dara said quietly.

    “Do you think I’m a monster now?”

    Dara felt as if her heart gained ten extra pounds just staring at his pain stricken face and his sad eyes. “I told you before…you are not a monster, Jiyong. Nothing you do or say will ever change that. Honestly, whether you’re human or some kind of animal hybrid thing, you are and always will be Kwon Jiyong to me. And Kwon Jiyong is a good man.”

    “Have I ever told you before…?”

    “What?”

    Jiyong let go of her hand and reached up to lightly brush his fingertips against her cheek. Dara’s heartbeat quickened at his touch. He smiled. “You, Sandara Park, are the most beautiful woman I have ever met.”

    Dara choked up a bit and couldn’t help but tear up at his words. In honesty, yes, there were men that have called her beautiful but the way Jiyong said and the way he looked at her, made her actually want to believe it. But still she shook her head. “I-I don’t think so…”

    “But I do. You’re so beautiful. So wonderful...I don’t deserve you…”

    “Ji---”

    Dara was about to say something but stopped herself when she saw that he had fallen asleep again and was snoring soundly before her. A slightly smile crept upon her lips as she pushed  his wet bangs out of his face. Her eyes trailed over his features and she felt her heart skip a beat. Jiyong was a handsome man and if he was able to go out in public without wearing a disguise, he’d definitely be quite the ladies man. Deep down, Dara was a bit thankful that he wasn’t open to public view.

    There was a soft hum and the lights came back on but Dara swiftly stood up to turn them back off. She looked at Jiyong’s sleeping figure once more before jumping into bed. “Good night, Kwon. Sleep tight.”

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    Sunlight streamed through the curtain, spilling into the room. Dara scrunched up her face and stretched before slowly sitting up in bed. She rubbed the sleep away and blinked a couple of times before looking around the room, still half-asleep. That’s when she suddenly remembered Jiyong. She crawled over to the edge of her bed and looked at the floor and was slightly disappointed when she found he wasn’t there.

    Sighing, she got out of bed and went to wash up. Just as she stepped out of the bathroom, she smelled the overwhelming aroma of pancakes and bacon. Her stomach rumbled at the delicious scent. She followed the scent outside to her kitchen and stopped dead in her tracks. Her jaw nearly dropped to the floor at the sight before. In front of her, was the man she’d found missing this when she woke up. Only this time, he wasn’t covered in blood. He was wearing a plain black long sleeve and jeans. But that wasn’t the most shocking part.

    Kwon Jiyong...THE Kwon Jiyong was wearing her bright pink apron and was busy cooking up a storm in her kitchen. Dara cupped and couldn’t help but giggle a little. Jiyong turned around abruptly and saw her standing there on the brink of insanity. “Oh, hi...I didn’t know you woke up.” Jiyong scratched the back of his head and blushed.

    “Who the hell are you and what have you done with Kwon Jiyong?”

    “Ha-Ha, very funny. I was going to surprise you with breakfast in bed but you just HAD to wake up and ruin it.”

    “I can always jump back into bed if you want…”

    Jiyong chuckled and shook his head. “Nevermind. Have a seat. Breakfast will be ready in a minute.”

    Dara just nodded and sat down at the dining table in her kitchen. She watched as he set a cup of coffee down in front of her before placing a plate down and shoveling a some scrambled eggs, followed by two strips of bacon and two chocolate chip pancakes. Dara’s mouth watered at the sight. But the royalty treatment didn’t stop there. He even took the liberty to cut up some fresh strawberries and oranges and placed them in a small dish on the side. “Eat up.” He said simply.

    She didn’t need to be told twice and dug in. With her cheeks stuffed with food, she stared at him questioningly as he sat down in the chair across from her with nothing on his plate but a few pieces of bacon and two strawberries. Jiyong laughed at her cute expression and reached over to wipe the corner of her lip with a napkin. Dara swallowed all of the food she stuffed in down and cleared before speaking. “That’s all you’re going to eat?”

    “Yes? I’m not that hungry.”

    Dara frowned and resumed her eating. However, she suddenly remembered the events that transpired last night, not to mention she had a million questions for him about where he was the past three months or why he left. “So...you left…”

    Jiyong hesitated for a minute before glancing at her slightly. He was hoping the nice breakfast would make her forget everything but he was wrong. “Yea...about that…”

    “What the hell were you thinking, Jiyong? SM could have captured you and Jaejoong could’ve possibly found you and exposed you to the entire world.”

    “I left in order to keep you safe. You’ll never be safe with me, Dara. As long as you’re associated with me in any way, you’ll always be put at risk and that’s something I can’t let happen anymore. You deserve to live a normal happy life.”

    Dara laughed sarcastically and scoffed. “Seriously? Jiyong, my life has NEVER been normal! From the day I was born, it was never normal! It sure as hell didn’t get any better after my mom was killed either! Ever since then, I’ve tried to live a normal life but I can’t! Do you know what my normal is?”

    “What?”

    “My normal is with you…” Jiyong’s eyes flickered to hers. “Whenever you’re around, I feel like I can be normal. You know, I can’t even feel normal around my family! I feel like a stranger to them now. You are the only person I feel like I CAN be normal around.”

    “It shouldn’t be that way, Dara. You deserve someone who IS normal. The only thing you’ll get out of hanging out with me is more danger. Do you want that?”

    “I’m a COP, Jiyong. My entire LIFE is revolved around danger. And I told you before, no matter what happens, you’ll always be Kwon Jiyong to me. That will never change. I don’t care if you’re fully human or even if you’re only half human...what matters to me is that you’re honest with me.”

    “I-I want to protect you, Dara…”

    Dara sighed. “If you want to protect me then don’t run away anymore. Haven’t you figured it out yet? SM WANTS to lure you away from me so that we’ll be easier targets for both of them. If you really want to protect me, then STAY. Don’t leave. Just stay…”

    “And what if something happens to you if I stay? What will happen then, Dara? Huh? You just don’t get it!”

    Jiyong pushed himself away from the table and stormed away. Dara groaned and followed after him. She grabbed his hand to stop him from leaving. He clenched his hands in fists and slowly turned around to face her. “I do get it, Jiyong. I know you’re afraid that something might happen to me but you have to understand that running away isn’t going to solve anything. In fact, it does nothing! All it does is give SM more of the opportunity to hurt us. You have this concern about me but did you ever stop to think about how I feel about all of this? I care about you, too! I don’t want anything to happen to you either. These past three months were HELL for me. I was going out of mind wondering where you were or if you were alright...there wasn’t a day that went by that I didn’t worry about you.”

    “Dara…”

    “If you want to protect me, then STAY. We’re stronger together, Jiyong. That’s the very reason why SM wants to tear us apart so badly. They know that’s true.”

    Jiyong closed his eyes and sighed. He knew that Dara was right. He was a lot stronger when she was around but only because he had this immense desire to protect her no matter what. SHE was his reason for fighting, the reason for living. And as much as he denied it, SHE was the reason he did feel human. Because that’s what he was when he was with her, despite his altered DNA. “I-I just don’t want anything to happen to you. Dara, if something happened to you...if I lose you...I-I will end up losing everything.”

    “How can you say things like that? I shouldn’t mean that much to you. We aren’t even together. We’re friends, Jiyong.”

    Jiyong felt a pang in his heart at the word “friend”. Curse that dreaded friend-zone! “Maybe so but what you still fail to understand is that you ARE my everything. You make me feel human inside even at my worst. You aren’t afraid of me and you’ve seen me rip people apart. If something happens to you, all of that will go away and I’ll end up losing myself. But that’s why I left...it’s because I don’t want anything to happen to you and because I can’t afford to be selfish with you. If I lose you, I lose my entire world.”

    Jiyong stepped closer to her and reached up to cup her cheek. Dara looked away and bit her lip. She’d never been in this position before. Never before did she have a guy that looked at her the way Jiyong did with such intensity and desire. It made her insides twist. A part of her wanted to reciprocate the feelings but she knew that now wasn’t the time with so much at stake. So, she pulled away and took a step back. “Look, we don’t have time to talk about things like this. We need to focus on one thing at a time. The most important thing now is to get Jaejoong off your tracks and clean up the mess you left behind.”

    “About that...I’m sorry…”

    “Yea, what exactly happened to you? One of the men that was still barely alive said that you’re eyes turned red and you...smiled when you killed them.”

    Jiyong looked away and furrowed his brows. “I...did?”

    “Do you not remember?”

    “No...I just remember seeing some men from SM and then the next thing I knew I was standing in a puddle of blood with bodies scattered around me. I don’t know what happened exactly...but I know I killed them.”

    “I think we should get you to Top. I think he might have a better idea of what’s going on. Maybe you just had another episode…”

    “I guess so...but...Ah…”

    Jiyong winced feeling pain in his jaw and hands. He looked at his hands and gasped when he saw that his claws had grown out. Dara noticed this too and looked up at face and spotted tiny fangs protruding from his mouth. “Wh-why is this happening?” Jiyong stared down at his hands.

    “We should really take you to Top…”

    “You’re probably right but...Ahh!”

    Jiyong collapsed onto his knees and clutched his stomach. Dara slowly kneeled down in front of him and gently touched his shoulder. His head snapped up and Dara gasped when she saw how his eyes flickered between gold and red. “...we need to get Top. NOW.”

    “Dara...get away...please...I can’t...AH!”

    Dara grimaced seeing his veins begin to show beneath his skin and how his ears became more pointy. He growled and pushed himself back into the wall, clutching his head. “Jiyong!” Dara was just about to run toward him but he glared at her and willing her to freeze.

    Dara tried to move but found that she could not. “Stay away! I...I can’t...I’m going to lose it…”

    “NO! Jiyong, just...just let me go! I’ll call Top and we’ll sort this, ok? Just hang on!”

    “Run...just RUN! RUN NOW!”

    “I’m not running! Not from you!”

    “RUN!”

    Jiyong snarled at her before turning into a blur and reappearing a few inches in front of her. Dara staggered back a bit but he gripped onto her shoulders and glared at her, his eyes a seeping blood red. “Y-your eyes…”

    He just growled in response and gripped onto her shoulders me, his claws piercing into her shoulders. Dara winced at the pain but instantly brushed it off. Thinking quickly, she kicked him off of her and ran to her room to grab her stun gun. Just as Jiyong was about to attack again, Dara shot him with the tranquilizer and he collapsed onto the ground.

    She panted and stumbled over to him, grabbing her phone out of her pocket. She dialed Top’s number and was thankful he picked up after the first two rings. “Hello?”

    “Top, it’s Dara.”

    “Oh, Dara! What’s wrong? Why are you panting?”

    “I-I found Jiyong. Well, actually he found me but long story short. Something’s wrong with him and you need to get over here right now.”

    “I’ll be over in fifteen. I’ll grab Bom on the way. Keep him sedated.”

    “Right.”

    Dara hung up the phone and stared back at Jiyong’s unconscious body. Worry masked her face as she looked at him. “Don’t worry, Jiyong. We’ll figure this out. We’ll make you better again.”

Dara looked at her slightly bleeding arms and went to the bathroom to bandage herself up. She didn’t need Jiyong flipping out over the fact that he hurt her. That was the last thing she needed. She just needed him safe. That’s all that mattered now.