“I already told you for the tenth time,” the slim, lanky boy on the doorway said, glancing down on the list he was holding. He crossed his arms over his chest and gave the man in front of him a stern look. “Your name’s not on the guest list.”

The other students in line outside Kang Minhyun’s house stopped on what they were doing to eavesdrop. It was the most popular girl in the university’s party, and everyone went there hoping that their names would show up on the invitation list. Only several people had access to the celebrant’s grandeur life of luxury and glamour. Eighteen-year-old Byun Baekhyun was one of them who wanted to be a part of her circle even for just the night. Beside him, his best friend Kyungsoo heaved a sigh.

“Can I talk to her?” The man tried sliding past the boy who seemed to be not older than sixteen, but was pushed back. “I’m his boyfriend!”

Kyungsoo almost coughed. “They already broke up yesterday, right? What’s he still doing here?”

Baekhyun shrugged. He couldn’t care less. All he needed right now was to get inside and drink a few shots. College gave him a number of problems right now and he wanted to at least have fun and enjoy. Spending five hours on his desk doing nothing but reading textbooks and researching for this and that proved to be such a strenuous activity.

The drama escalated when the man grabbed the terrified boy and lifted him up as if he was just lighter than air. His biceps bulged and his face was beet red with agitation. “Tell her, Dalton is looking for her.”

His best friend’s question was answered when Minhyun herself appeared behind the boy holding the guest list. “My brother said you’re not in the guest list. Isn’t that hard to understand? Leave, now. There are still people waiting behind you.”

“We’re history. You don’t get to tell me what to do anymore. I just want all the things I’ve given you back.”

“History? Big word. Because that’s what you’re going to be if you don’t leave. After all, I know a lot of things about you. Tiny, little, pinky-sized details.” Minhyun snickered. “Don’t you dare touch my brother and don’t you even dare show your face anymore. It’s sickening. Leave. There are still people waiting behind you.”

The man had no other choice but flee after giving Minhyun and her brother one last glare and one last growl. His face was flushed Baekhyun thought Dalton would explode any minute.

“Burn!” Kyungsoo cooed. “That was harsh. I should’ve taken a video of that. The title would be Mɪɴʜʏᴜɴ Sʟᴀʏs Pᴏsᴛ-Bʀᴇᴀᴋᴜᴘ Pᴀʀᴛʏ.” He turned to Baekhyun who fiddled with his phone to play Piano Tiles while still in line. “But, I didn’t get what she meant by tiny, little, pinky-sized details. Wait. Is she talking about his . . .?”

“His part down there, yeah. Maybe that’s why they broke up.” Baekhyun clicked a white tile and it was game over. Sighing, he shoved his phone back.

“What’s that sign on your shoulder?”

Baekhyun perked up in surprise before following the line of Kyungsoo’s gaze. He was staring at the faux-tattoo on his shoulder, a small letter d with a horizontal line at the center. It was weird drawing it, but he kept it there because it looked badass. “I made this yesterday. I don’t know. The symbol just flashed in my head.”

“What does it mean?”

“Does it look like I know?”

“Looks like an ancient alphabet to me.”

“Please,” Baekhyun said, raising a hand. “Can we not talk about history, science, anything that involves studying? We’re here to party and have fun. Fun and studying shouldn’t even be in the same sentence. Got it?”

“Okay, okay.” Kyungsoo put his hands on his waist, giving a sideways glance at Baekhyun. “But it does look like ancient alphabet, seriously.”

Baekhyun smacked a fist on Kyungsoo’s shoulder, ignoring him as he yelped in pain.

Inside, the house looked less like an actual home and more like a nightclub in New York City, with all the dry-ice smoke, glow in the dark drinks, and the heavy bass music pounding through the speakers. A splash of gold, green, red, and neon blue colored lights illuminated the dimly-lit room.

Apparently, Minhyun included everyone in the list, and docked his ex-boyfriend off. That could be considered a total double kill.

“Wow! Minhyun even hired a DJ for this!” Kyungsoo screamed but it only came out as a faint noise amidst the loud music that reverberated the entire place. He grabbed Baekhyun by the wrist and dragged him to the center.

Seconds later, they started dancing—if swaying their bodies and the occasional hands up in the air as if they had any drinks already could count—in a small space between a throng of boys grinding their hips against their ladies’ hips and a couple who in strawberries before making out. The club scene, or at least that was how the house looked like, was foreign to his sight. Behind them, a boy with a pointed beard, nose piercing, and a striking electric blue hair gave out free to whoever wanted a pack, his too small to fit shirt revealing an ample amount of skin. Kyungsoo took two glasses of mango juice and offered one to Baekhyun. As soon as the beverage hit his taste buds, he closed his eyes shut and gulped it down. The taste was a mix of mango and vodka. Not the best combination.

“If only I have the amount of money Minhyun has, I would host a party for just the two of us,” Kyungsoo suggested, and bumped onto one of the teenage boys making moves with the girls, earning him deadly daggers. “I’m sorry.”

Kyungsoo had always stuck out like a sore thumb, and this time it was worse. If only he followed Baekhyun’s advice of wearing contact lenses instead of glasses, replaced his Star Wars shirt with a band shirt, and burned his loose jeans for a tight and tattered black jeans, he’d look less of an awkward nerd and more of a kickass partygoer. Not like it surprised Baekhyun. Kyungsoo always managed to look geek in any given situation.

“That would be awesome,” Baekhyun said, although he was immersed in dancing like nobody’s watching rather than talking to his best friend. He might be the worst dancer conceived in this world, but damn, partying was cathartic! This was a totally different world from his book, research, and study-filled life, like transporting himself from a black-and-white photograph to a colored painting masterpiece.

When he lifted his head, however, he saw a familiar figure leaning against the back door leading to what seemed like a storage room. He slowed down his movements and stared longer, noticing the glint in his eyes. The man’s blue irises became red, and his pupils narrowed vertically. Dalton. And he looked more evil than he did earlier.

Baekhyun seized Kyungsoo’s arm and yanked him close. “Hey, how did Dalton get here?”

“Who?”

Baekhyun pointed near the door where Dalton was standing. “Dalton. He’s there.”

“Admittedly, I can’t see anything but I’m wearing my eyeglasses. My vision is crystal clear. I see no Dalton anywhere. Are you sure you’ve seen him?”

“I’m sure.” But when Baekhyun turned around, Dalton was nowhere to be found. “Now, he’s gone.” He knew what he saw. It was Dalton, and he was menacing, like a predator hunting for its prey, or waiting for it to come to him.

“You didn’t take any drugs, did you?”

Baekhyun rolled his eyes and didn’t give a reply. His mind still fleeted over the fact that he clearly saw Dalton there, his eyes full of wrath, and his lips had a slight curve. Maybe he was just imagining it. Or it wasn’t Dalton at all. Either way, it was hella creepy.

“I need to go to take a piss,” Baekhyun said, tapping Kyungsoo’s arm several times and headed for the washroom, unaware that someone was following behind him.

Zipping his pants back up, Baekhyun walked out of the cubicle and opened the tap and put his hands under the running water. The room smelled like someone sprayed orange-scented air freshener around. There was no one in here. The ACs provided him cold air despite the heat outside. His neck prickled with sweat.

He turned the tap off, and heard a slight scuffle made him alert of his surroundings. Silence, and then, after a minute, he was ready to leave. Baekhyun could feel the hair on his arms spike up. This day had been the most interesting time in his entire existence that he could not help but fear, especially when he saw Dalton minutes ago. He could still hear the blast of music from outside the room, but faint. Taking one last glance at the cubicles and the walls, he pulled out his phone to send Kyungsoo a text message, though he wasn’t exactly certain what to text.

Another thud startled him, dropping his phone in the process. Baekhyun wished he dragged Kyungsoo with him. At least, he would know that this was just a crazy prank. He bent down and picked up his phone, before hearing low but deep growl in one of the cubicles.

I wasn’t alone all this time?

“Hello? Is anyone there?”

The answer came—one he hardly expected. The door of the last cubicle slammed open, and Dalton appeared before him, his clothes ruffled and with small holes. His hair was usually styled, but now, it was a big mess. He could see the pulse of his veins inside his arms, as if they were going to erupt if he touched it. When Dalton turned to face Baekhyun, the latter knew he was in total peril. Anger etched his once handsome face as saliva drooled down the floor. The colors of his eyes were red and were swollen.

Dalton walked towards him, baring sharp teeth and razor-edged nails. Baekhyun crawled back until his back hit the wall. He had the chance to run, but Dalton was already towering above him.

“What the hell are you?”

Dalton swung his arms back, his claws gleaming against the headlights, before slashing Baekhyun’s arm.

Baekhyun screamed in agony as thick, crimson liquid oozed down his arm. He felt hot tears streamed down his eyes. He was helpless, and he knew his chance of survival was slim to none. What did I do to deserve this? he thought to himself. The blood droplets stained the white tiles of the floor. When he looked up, Baekhyun saw Dalton was ready to make another infliction. Bracing himself for the impact, he closed his eyes and prayed for his life. I’m sorry, mom, if I couldn’t get my degree and sorry for—

Dalton let out a blood-curdling scream, and Baekhyun opened his eyes to see a sharp, silver blade with a thin tube at the center glowing white as ice pierced through Dalton’s chest.

“What the—” Baekhyun trailed off as Dalton fell face first on the ground. He glanced up and saw a grey-haired man standing before him, his hoodie preventing Baekhyun to catch a glimpse of his face. “Who are you?”

“I should be the one asking you that. Who are you? And why can you see demons? Why can you see me?”

Baekhyun would have laughed if it weren’t for the pain on his arm. “Because I have eyes, and my vision is 20/20. Of course, I can see you.”

“We need to get you to the Labyrinth. Your wounds are deep.”

“What even in the world is the Labyrinth? Shouldn’t we go to the nearest hospital?” Baekhyun tried to get on his own two feet. The man in front of him was two to three inches taller than him. He wore a black ensemble—black sleeveless hoodie, black pants, black shoes, only his hair stood out because of its gray color. “And can you please explain what happened to Dalton?”

“First, we have to get you healed. There is poison running along your veins right now and if you don’t come with me, you’ll be dead meat in two hours.”

“Two hours!?” Chanyeol grabbed Baekhyun’s arm but the latter pulled away. “Why should I trust you? I don’t even know who you are.”

“I’m Chanyeol. And you’re Baekhyun. We’re done with the introductions.” Chanyeol tugged Baekhyun by the waist as strings of feathers curled from underneath them, wrapping the two of them around a white whirlwind. Baekhyun looked around frantically, but Chanyeol stared down at him and nodded.

That was when the effects of the poison showed up. He felt dizzy, not because of the wave that surrounded them. His eyes felt heavy, and slowly his environment became blurry. He heard Chanyeol calling out for his name. Then Baekhyun’s vision faded to black.

“Baekhyun!”

HEYO! Chapter 1 is here :)

Thank you so much for 22 subscribers and 2 upvotes! It means so much to me. It's off from a slow start but the next chapters will be more informative, I assure you that. <3

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