The night warm wind blew against my body and raised the hem of my black leather coat behind me. I breathed in the air and hoped that the oxygen would raise my awareness at least a little bit. I felt sleepy walking around this late at night, or maybe this early in the morning? The sun wasn´t up yet but the midnight was long behind and the last drunkards were already on their way home.

“Wake up, Donghae. You´ve got work to do!” I cheered myself and continued walking through the dark and empty streets.

Clad in all black, raven hair and even darker eyes. Even if had on normal jeans and a shirt, people still sometimes looked at me weirdly. And they had the reason to, although they didn´t know it. I was a Grim Reaper, man who was carrying death around. I could freely make myself invisible to the human eye and could walk through the walls as I wished. I had a great power that one should fear but I wasn´t allowed to misuse it. And not like I wanted to anyway.

I finally arrived to my destination, Gangnam Police Station. I disappeared from everyone´s sight and walked inside the white lit building. I entered the first room with the desk and two sleeping policemen. I didn´t need to be invisible to infiltrate the place, did I? What a let-down, I thought. I continued strolling through the building as I arrived to one office with about three desks and only one, and surprisingly awake, policeman. He was doing the paperwork and keeping an eye on the cell in front of him. Not like it was needed since both inhabitants of the cell were drunkards and sleeping there their hangover. One would have to pay a big mandate tomorrow and call for his mother, he looks young. The other won´t. The other was my person.

I quietly walked into the cage like space and looked down at the sleeping figure lying next to my black shoes. It was a man in his sixties that smelled of alcohol. He once again drowned his whole salary in the booze as his family was uselessly waiting for him to return from work. I knew everything about the man, I had his file on my table. But I didn´t come to judge him, I came to collect his soul.

“Officer! There´s a man!” Suddenly somebody called.

Startled I looked next to me and found there the youngster sitting on the ground and pointing to me with his long arm. His cheeks and nose were red, just like his hazy eyes but he was awake and probably conscious. Or maybe wasn´t because it looked like he could see me.

“Shut up Lee Hyukjae, he´s sleeping!” The annoyed officer yelled back at the lanky man behind the bars and continued writing his reports.

The Hyukjae guy pouted and with a big frown looked up at me. I almost lost my breath because he was watching me for sure. He wasn´t supposed to see nor hear me, it was strange. His brown hair was all ruffled and on the side wet from whatever drink he showered himself with. His clothes didn´t look any better, jacket crumpled and jeans dirty. Yet he somehow felt different from the usual drunkards you meet at the station.

“He´s not sleeping!” Hyukjae yelled again already feeling grumpy.

He didn´t receive any answer from the officer this time and that made him even more irritated. He folded his arms on his chest and tsk´ed. I bowed to him lightly to apologise that he was right now the only one that could see me and Hyukjae nodded at me. I´ve never had this kind of weird ´conversation´ with anyone before but it felt like the brunette didn´t see any problem in that. He eased his arms but continued watching me with his hazy eyes.

I sighed and decided to ignore him and do my job instead. About thirty seconds passed when the unmoving body under me slightly jerked and the old man breathed out for the last time. He died, his organism finally collapsed after so many years of being tried by the strong liquor and depressing life. This was the moment I came here for and waited for the soul to raise from the body.

“Is he dead?” Hyukjae whispered, making sure the policeman didn´t hear him. I nodded. “You killed him?” The brunette´s eyes widened and he clasped his hands over his mouth. I shook my head and Hyukjae relaxed again.

The man´s ghost sat up and then stood up to face me. He looked down on his own body and his face turned sad. He was filled with regret and sadness. He raised his arm and looked at his transparent hand. Then he looked at Hyukjae, who politely bowed to him. This is the weirdest farewell I´ve ever given to anyone. I even wondered, if it was dignified enough.

“I came here to take away your soul,” I started and the man finally looked at me with his watery eyes. “I didn´t come to judge nor destroy you. I´m here to send you over to the other world.”

During my learned speech the man´s ghost slowly started dispersing, emitting a blue light. I smiled slightly because blue meant heaven and even with all the sins the drunkard was carrying, his soul was pure. As he was almost gone, I spoke for the last time: “May your soul rest in peace.”

“Wow, you´re a Shinigami, aren´t you?” Hyukjae exclaimed in whisper. His eyes were wide and instead of fear they carried only interest and curiosity.

“Sashin, yeah,” I used the Korean term because I saw no reason for being called like a damn manga character. Yeah, it´s the official term for the Reapers in Japan but I´m one hundred percent sure that this kid got it from comics.

“Do you like apples?” He asked me and I rolled my eyes. See? I told you.

“No,” I answered and angrily fumed at him. Hyukjae looked at me sadly which angered me even more. I´ll get back at you, ignorant kid. I smirked and raised my hand. Hyukjae watched in awe as my scythe materialised only to fall perfectly into my palm. I grabbed the huge but light metal object and with a grin I learn from the Devil himself, slid with it against the bars. The sound was loud and irritating and hangover Hyukjae covered his ears.

“Yah! Lee Hyukjae!” The officer came running and the lanky man cursed at me.

I only laughed and together with the scythe walked out of the cell as if I was only air. In the meantime the policeman got inside to probably punish the insolent brat. Quickly he found it strange that the ruckus didn´t wake the old man sleeping in the corner and went to check. The man was dead. But I stopped once again in the doorway when I heard Hyukjae speak up.

“See? I told you he wasn´t sleeping!” He accused the officer that started immediately apologising.  Nice one, Hyukjae. Like that you might not need to pay the mandate tomorrow. With a smile on my lips and left the station

.................. ............. ......... ........ ..... ... ..

Two days later I was walking around Gangnam once again. It was a bright day and I didn´t feel sleepy at all. In my usual black clothes I was strolling down the main street with my hands in my pockets. The sun wasn´t shining that strongly but it didn´t look like it would rain either. I was humming a quiet melody and enjoying the day.

“Hey!” I overheard somebody scream but I didn´t turn my head. Yes, I was visible right now but there wasn´t anybody that would look for me. At least not by yelling around in the busy street in Gangnam. But I was wrong.

“Are you deaf, Shinigami?” I got hit into my head and blinked a few times before I recognised the man next to me as Lee Hyukjae, the drunkard from the police station. I guess he must have really seen me that day and must have been conscious too to be able to recognise me on the street like that. I was amazed.

“Don´t call me like that,” I retorted and continued walking, ignoring him completely.

“What do you want me to call you then? Do you have a name?” Hyukjae didn´t let me shoo him away and followed next to me.

“Nothing, don´t call me at all,” I told him and felt how my great mood kept sinking into the depths of Hyukjae´s annoying cheerfulness.

“If you don´t tell me, I´ll keep calling you ´Shinigami´ or ´Yah´. What do you think?” Hyukjae smirked and stuck his tongue at me. Childish as always.

“Lee Donghae,” I muttered after calculating how much more irritated the latter could get until I reach my destination.

“Where are you going, Donghae?” Hyukjae asked me right away with a pleasant smile on his lips.

“Work,” I said simply and wondered since when I did started answering him seriously.

“Can I come with you?” The brown haired ball of enthusiasm begged and tugged onto my sleeve. I wasn´t used to being touched and quickly pulled my arm away from his needy fingers. I threw him the scariest look i owned and Hyukjae stopped walking with a startle. I curiously halted too to glance at him.

“Please,” Hyukjae pleaded softly and bit his lip.

It was the first time I had the chance to look at him properly. Lee Hyukjae was either taller slightly than me or had high insoles in his shoes, both options at once were possible too. His body was slim but his long arms and legs looked sturdy. Seeing him properly in the daylight, I realised that he wasn´t a kid. Hyukjae might just as well be as old as me. But he has popular dyed brown hairstyle and stylish clothes so he looks younger. His skin is white, lips plump and eyes expressive but all in all, I can´t tell anything about him. He´s unreadable.

“Fine but don´t do anything that could bring troubles,” I warned him so vaguely that I myself wasn´t sure what he wasn´t supposed to do.

“No worries, I´ll be good,” Hyukjae said with his cheerful smile back on and rushed to catch my sleeve again. I didn´t have the strength to shove him away anymore. Hyukjae was just this exhausting.

We continued walking for about ten more minutes with Hyukjae skipping by my side happily. I made myself invisible but Hyukjae didn´t react in any way and kept holding my sleeve. It was strange that he didn´t notice and it was honestly freaking me out. But I got my satisfaction by watching people look at Hyukjae weirdly. He was holding his hand up and talking to himself.

“Here we go,” I announced and stopped in front of a building. I revealed myself again because I started feeling a little bad for the clueless man next to me.

“I can´t see anyone dying, though,” Hyukjae muttered looking around himself.

“One more minute,” I said and looked at my wristwatch. Hyukjae came closer to me that our heads were almost touching and I could feel his breath on my nose. I glanced at him and he was only looking at my watch. I´ve never been this comfortably close to a living human being, it was fascinating. “Three,” I said and Hyukjae looked into my eyes. “Two. One.”

At that moment a body hit the pavement in front of us with so much force that the blood splattered on our clothes. Hyukjae screamed and almost fell on the ground from shock, if I didn´t grab his arm. I pulled him back up on his wobbly legs and forced him to lean against me. I grabbed the back of his head, his brown hair, and averted him away from the scene.

“I warned you,” I whispered into his ear.

Hyukjae finally woke up from the shock and pushed himself away from my body to take deep breath. He ensured me that he was fine, even though I didn´t ask, and turned slowly around. His eyes fell upon the body of a young girl in school uniform. She has been bullied for four years straight by her previous friends and today felt like it was enough already. She committed suicide by jumping from the roof of the building in front of us. Her spirit was shining white. She was still innocent.

“I came here to take away your soul,” I spoke up once I had the attention of the female ghost on me. Her young empty eyes kept shifting between me and Hyukjae as if she couldn´t decide on whom she wanted to rest her stare. “I didn´t come to judge nor destroy you. I´m here to send you over to the other world.” I finished and although it was me speaking, her eyes ended up on Hyukjae.

“You may rest in peace,” the brunette next to me finished for me to my surprise. He even remembered that?! Who is this guy? He´s even bigger freak than me. “Bye bye!” Hyukjae added with a smile full of his white teeth and pink gums. The girl smiled back and vanished into the thin air. All that was left was her bloody and broken shell under our legs.

A crowd started gathering around the body and I decided that it was the best time to get Hyukjae out of the scene. I could quickly disappear but Hyukjae, with the blood on his pants, could end up in the interrogation room. I was sure he wouldn´t want to return to the station again after only two days. Also I wondered in what state he was. After all he just witnessed a horrible death.

“I have one more job this evening, do you want me to send you home?” I asked him only now noticing that it was me this time holding him under his arm. I let go and cleared my throat.

“Can I come along?” Hyukjae asked quietly looking down at his feet as we walked through the park. He wants to come again? What is this morbid fascination by death? What the hell is this wacko? Maybe he´s sick, he doesn´t look alright.

“You shouldn´t. You´re not even supposed to see me to begin with,” I said seriously and hoped he would understand that what he was doing wasn´t normal.

“Why? I want to see you, though,” Hyukjae argued and I began thinking that maybe he wasn´t actually interested in the souls but in me.

“I´m a Grim Reaper, Hyukjae,” I announced because he might have forgotten. “My job is to navigate souls to the other world, aren´t you appalled?” I asked incredulously.

“Well, you made it sound like it was just simply your job. It´s not like you´re a murderer or something, right?” He stopped walking and hopefully glanced at me. He might not be a kid but he sounds immature. Yes, being a Reaper is my job but it´s a serious job. Like the people that work in cemeteries and funeral services, I wasn´t supposed to bring along cheery friends.

“I´m different from humans,” I told him and hoped that it would be enough for him to doubt me finally.

“How different?” Hyukjae asked instead and with both of his hands clasped my black sleeve. He looked like a small child, even if he was taller than me. Maybe the haircut or the big eyes made him seem really innocent, as if he had never encountered death before meeting me.

“I have lots of power, I can become invisible, carry around a big metal scythe and I´ve met with the Devil many times already. He bought me a drink some years ago!” I tried to think of stuff that a human like Hyukjae could fear. But the latter´s thoughts were as wayward as ever.

“Years ago? Do you age, Donghae? How old are you?” He asked me curiously.

“October 1986,” I answered dejectedly. It was no use in scaring him. Hyukjae was interested in different things and nothing I would say could probably chase him away at the moment. And I started to fear that after hearing that I grow older just like anyone else walking around this park, I might not be able to get rid of him for the rest of my pitiful life. Hyukjae just seemed to be the type.

“Wow! You´re actually younger than me!” He exclaimed excited and laughed into my face.

“You´re joking!” I accused him losing all my calm and dignity in the end. This little fox was just simply driving me crazy. I was considering pulling out my scythe on him.

“Nope!” Hyukjae smiled and let go of my sleeve only to clasp my hand in his. I glanced down on our hands startled but then he pulled and I found myself following him.

“Where are we going?” I only managed to ask, too flabbergasted to be able to resist this pushy unreadable man.

“Lunch, so we don´t go to the evening job hungry,” Hyukjae said as if nothing and I stupidly nodded. “What do you like to eat, Donghae?”

“Seafood?” I went with the flow and now naturally walked by his side. Hyukjae made a face, he said he disliked seafood but he could always bring me to the restaurant but order something without fish.

But on one he didn´t agree, to let go of my hand.

Hello! I will tell you right away, where I got the inspiration (and no, it´s not Death Note), this time it´s Jigoku Shoujo but as always I only used the motive, the rest of the storyline is mine. I guess you now undertand why I wrote that there would be some dead bodies. I don´t know, why I wrote something about death again but I´m not that dark, I swear! :) Anyway, thank you for reading and have a bright day - PandaHero