Author's Note: Hey, everyone! So, I combined the stuff from the preview with the rest of the chapter. If you have alread read it and just want to read straight to the new part, then skip the section that's in purple. The only changes I made was some grammatical errors, so it shouldn't take away from the story if you do decide to skip it. I'm also thinking about adding one more chapter to this fic which means it won't be finished before the start of the new year as planned. Again, I am forever grateful for all the love and support that all of you have given this fic. ^^

(Side Note: I'm going off topic here, but I just want to say Rest in Peace to Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds. These two were incredible actresses and individuals who paved the way for so many things and will truly be missed.)

“Are you sure this is going to work?” Yerin asked, tone filled with doubt, as she held the hem of her shirt up to give Eunha better access to her wound.

After Yerin made her declaration of undergoing an attack on Virgo tonight, she was relieved when Eunha expressed her agreement of the decision. She was further pleased to find that her dear friend was able to formulate an antidote that could ease her pain. Though the antidote was not able to rid of the toxin entirely, Yerin was glad that she no longer had to keep taking those ‘painkillers’ which did bupkis for her health.

“It better,” Eunha replied, applying the honey-thick paste over the older girl’s open sore. “Otherwise, I just used up my entire supply of pixie dust for nothing.” She waited for the magical mixture to solidify like dried up glue, indicating that it was working. In a blink of an eye, the gooey, holographic concoction became one with Yerin’s skin. Eunha released a sigh of relief. “Good. It seems to be effective.”

Eunha removed her gloves, prompting Yerin to stare down at the side of her abdomen. The paste appeared to take the form of a second skin on her body. It wasn’t long until Yerin could feel the aches that caused discomfort on her organs begin to dissipate. She laid a gentle hand on her wound.

“It’s working,” Yerin breathed out, a gigantic smile on her face. “My powers are still obsolete. But, at least, I could move around without flinching from the sharp pangs.”

“Thankfully, you weren’t totally reliant on your powers even before the injury,” Eunha commented, placing her hands on her hips as she stared back at her work. “And, it’s a good thing you’re basically a pro in the realm of vampire self-defense techniques.”

Pulling down her white t-shirt, Yerin hopped off from the examination table and proceeded to do several high kicks and jabs. There wasn't even the tiniest bit of pain.

“Gomawo, Eunha-ya,” Yerin thanked her best friend as she enveloped the shorter girl with a hug.

“It’s no big deal,” Eunha, pretending to be blasé, shrugged it off. Upon releasing the hug, her heart ached when she saw Yerin’s cheerful smile. There was no doubt that Eunha intensified in rage after seeing those pictures of Sowon and Yuju in their most vulnerable state. But, even with Yerin no longer suffering from physical pain, there was still a chance that her dear friend might not make it out alive. “Remember that the effects should last up to twelve hours, so we must complete the mission quickly. The sooner we do, the sooner you get to repay me.” With a sly smile, she tucked a stray hair behind her ear.

“Repay you?” Yerin asked, eyes looking at the younger girl in confusion. She sat back up on the table.

“Yes, repay me,” Eunha simply repeated her sentiment before gracefully heaving herself up on the table to sit next to Yerin. She reached into her pocket to retrieve a folded piece of paper and began to open it. “Though I'm immensely glad that the mixture worked, it did require me to use a hefty amount of my supplies. Supplies that weren't easily obtained or cheap either. That’s why I want you to take a nice trip to the black market, so you could restock my inventory.”

“Eunha-ya, you know that I hate going to the black market,” Yerin replied, baffled at the girl’s request.

“Oh, come on,” Eunha urged her friend supportively, giving Yerin a playfully nudge with her elbow. “It's the least you can do for me after I created a miracle worker of an antidote.” She scooted closer to Yerin and began to read off the grocery list of supplies. “I just need two pints of werewolf saliva, a jar of pixie dust, a bag of Phoenix feathers, several locks of fur from a Yeti. Now, this one is important. Don't let the sellers try to scam you into buying Bigfoot fur, instead. I don't care what anyone says, Yetis and Bigfoots are two different types of species. Anyways…”

Knock. Knock.

Eunha paused at the sound of a knock at the laboratory’s door. The doorknob slowly turned and opened to reveal SinB on the other side.

“SinB-ah!” Yerin called out to her girlfriend with much enthusiasm. “Good news! Eunha’s antidote worked!” She excitedly hopped off the table to walk closer to the younger girl. “Look.” Yerin lifted up her shirt to show the glittery film that now protected her wound. She glanced at SinB with wide, hopeful eyes to see her reaction. A tight-lip smile was all that SinB offered. “Sure, I don't have my powers, but that doesn't make me powerless,” she reassured, letting go of her shirt. Feeling the tense vibes that SinB was sending, Yerin’s demeanor couldn't help but lose some of its splendor.

“Eunha-unnie,” SinB solemnly addressed the older girl who was blatantly staring at them, “is it okay if Yerin and I could speak in private?”

“I honestly don't see the use of it,” Eunha brashly admitted. “It's not like I don't know what you want to discuss about with Yerin.”

“Eunha-ya,” Yerin stopped the honest girl before the atmosphere grew even more fretful. “Please.”

“Fine,” Eunha huffed as she picked herself off the table in a stubborn fashion. “I'll go upstairs where I'm sure my presence will be appreciated.” With arms crossed, she glided past the pair and exited out of the room.

Yerin and SinB were left alone in the lab with its bright light fixtures hanging above them. Though Yerin was aware that something was bothering SinB, she couldn't help but take note of how utterly beautiful her girlfriend looked in her everyday attire with minimal, if no, makeup.

“How is Sowon-ssi, by the way?” Yerin broke the silence in the much too quiet space.

While Eunha patched Yerin up, SinB stayed in the living room, providing solace for her downhearted friend. SinB hated to see Sowon, who was typically lively and optimistic, become so depressed after learning that her privacy was taken away.

“Sowon-unnie is still a bit shaken, but she’s coping with it better than I would have,” SinB responded somberly, eyes looking anywhere but at Yerin. “She went upstairs to check up on Yuju.” SinB started to fidget with her hands nervously.

“Judging by how you’re avoiding any eye contact with me, I suppose you want to try to convince me not to fight tonight,” Yerin gesticulated before grabbing her blue and white varsity jacket on the table and putting it on.

“I may have stayed quiet in the living room,” SinB began, placing her hands behind her back as she switched from looking at the ground to staring at Yerin’s warm eyes, “but, inside my heart burst. Because I couldn’t stand the thought of you being hurt by Virgo again. Because I knew that you would do whatever it takes to stop Virgo even if that means sacrificing yourself. Because I don’t want to lose you after we just had our first date!” SinB stood there, aware that tears streamed down her face, but could care less about hiding them. “Yerin-ah,” SinB pleaded, voice wavering, “you don’t have to do this for me.”

Yerin stood silently in thought. She took a step closer, so that there was only a small gap of space between their bodies. Heat radiated from one another.

“I’m not doing this only for you, SinB-ah,” Yerin spoke, tone immersed with tenderness. “I’m doing this for Sowon-ssi, Yuju-ssi, Yoon Bora, my Oppa, and any other person out there who was victimized by Virgo. As a Sisters of the Night member, it is my job to protect anyone and everyone from supernatural beings who are trying to disrupt an already frightening world. Now, I’m not saying that I’m picking my job over you. But, during my first year as a vampire and before I became a full fledged Sister, I lived in panic. I had to continuously find ways to restrain my blood cravings, so I wouldn’t harm others. I hid in the shadows and went about the world like a nomad. I became severely depressed, even inflicting self-harm in a desperate attempt to feel the sweet release of death...I was scared. But, then the Sisters found me and because of them I was able to finally find a purpose to live, to breathe. And, as the years went by, I was able to find happiness. I was able to find you, SinB-ah.” Yerin placed her hand on the younger girl’s cheek, brushing the tears away. “I don’t know what the future holds. All I know is that I want you and I to be together. If that means having to kill Virgo tonight, despite being void of my powers, then I’ll do it.”

“No,” SinB said, earning a slight frown from Yerin. “We will do it. Together. I want to kill him. You want to kill him. Let’s get that bastard together.”

The older girl’s demeanor slowly lit up as she realized what SinB was alluding to. A small smile took shape on Yerin’s lips which blossomed into a beautiful eye smile. That eye smile which never failed to make SinB’s heart skip a beat. That eye smile which assured her that things were going to be okay. That eye smile which made her feel anxious yet calm all at the same time…

With all the passion in the world, SinB brought her arms around the older girl and kissed her deeply. In that blissful moment, it felt like time stood still.

Yerin was taken by surprise. But, as she felt SinB’s heavenly soft lips coaxing her to return the kiss, an unexpected heartbeat reverberated from her chest, sending her to overdrive. Yerin settled her hands along the curve of SinB’s hips, pressing their bodies even more closer than they already were. She picked up the younger girl and placed her on top of the examination table. Following suit, Yerin hovered over SinB as she proceeded to place soft, butterfly kisses on her neck, eliciting a melodious moan. Yerin paused to glance at SinB, only to find that there was a mischievous glint in her eyes. The next thing Yerin knew, she was flipped over so that the younger girl was now straddling her, completely in control. Another heartbeat. Another tell-tale sign that SinB was the only one who could drive her absolutely crazy.

Between kisses, SinB removed Yerin’s jacket, throwing it on the ground, followed by her own coat. She slid her hand underneath Yerin’s shirt and could feel goosebumps emerging on her girlfriend’s skin. Pleased, the corner of twitched into a smirk as her hands freely roamed around the toned body. Her smirk deepened when she heard, not a cry of pain, but a gentle, satisfying whimper escape from the older girl’s mouth.

Wanting to please her girlfriend even more, SinB removed a hand away from Yerin’s shirt and began playing with the zipper of the older girl’s black, skinny jeans. Truth be told, SinB has never went “all the way” with a past flame before. But, at that particular moment, she felt daring. The zipper was more than halfway down when suddenly…

“Omo!”

“SinB-ah?! Yerin-ssi?!”

“Umji-ya, cover your eyes!”

“Damn, I just sanitized that table.”

Like a teenage couple getting caught in the act by their parents, Yerin and SinB hurriedly scrambled off the table, grabbing their clothes off the ground along the way. Yerin adjusted her shirt while SinB pushed her disheveled hair away from her eyes. Both of their cheeks were flushed as they stood guiltily, trying to catch their breath.

“My, my, my, SinB-ssi,” Eunha sing-songed, highly amused. “When you said that you wanted privacy with Yerin-ah, I didn’t know that this little escapade was what you had in mind.”

“Yah, SinB!” Sowon’s motherly tone resurfaced to give the younger girl a scolding. “Are you forgetting that there’s children in our midst?” She motioned to Umji staring shyly at the ground and Yuju whose eyebrows knitted at the nonsensical remark. “Now, I have to explain to them about the birds and the bees. Heaven knows that the subject doesn’t get teached well enough in school!”

“Eunha-unnie! Sowon-ah! You guys are overreacting,” SinB tried to calm the group down before she dies of embarrassment. “And, besides this whole ordeal could have been avoided if someone just knocked instead of all of you barging in.”

“But, we did knocked,” Yuju attested.

“Several times,” Umji softly added, eyes too shy to look directly at the couple.

SinB’s face became even more red after hearing that factoid. Were she and Yerin really that concentrated on each other to be completely oblivious of any outside noise? It was confounding, yet kind of...sweet?

Yerin cleared and stood a bit taller, getting everyone’s attention. “As flustering it was for us and for all of you, I think it’s best if we could all be mature about this and move on. Now, what were you four going to tell SinB and me?”

“First of all, mianhae for the interruption,” Yuju apologized earnestly. “Sowon-unnie had her ear against the door to check for any sounds. But, all she heard was heavy breathing. We thought that something bad might have happened, so we decided to just open the door. And, boy, were we wrong in doing so.” Yuju grimaced at the thought of SinB and Yerin making out ferociously.

“But, like you suggested, Yerin-ssi, that’s all in the past,” Sowon quickly chimed in before the mood increased with awkwardness. “What we originally wanted to say was that Yuju and I are willing to help you guys out again.” SinB and Yerin’s eyes both went wide in pleasant surprise. “Eunha-ssi put some of that magical, pixie paste on my leg wound, so it’s feeling much better now.”

“And, I’m not going to let those pictures get the best of me,” Yuju said before reaching for Umji’s hand.

“Neither am I,” Sowon confidently attested, eyes shining brightly as she looked directly at Yerin.

“Kamsahamnida,” Yerin humbly thanked Yuju and Sowon before giving each a respectful, ninety degree bow. “Your consideration of this matter and for the Sisters of the Night is greatly appreciated and will be rewarded.”

“Aww, you don’t have to reward us,” Yuju said modestly.

“We’re just doing what any good person would do,” Sowon relayed her own self-effacing attitude. “But, if you still want to reward us in the end, I wouldn’t mind the answer key to my trigonometry final.” Yuju immediately swatted Sowon’s arm.

“I’ll see what I can do, Sowon-ssi,” Yerin replied with an amused smile. “Well, now that we’re all on the same page, I suppose it’s best we start getting the stakes and garlic ready. Any last remarks before we disperse?”

“I was going to wait to say this,” Eunha spoke up, eyes fluttering, “but since you insisted ever so graciously…Your zipper is down, Yerin-ah.”

The full moon’s white light gleamed luminously down on the group as they embarked on finding Virgo’s secret hiding spot. Thanks to Sowon’s efforts at coming up with a possible explanation of what the numbers on the business card meant, the six girls made their way to the area where Eunha and Yerin first found Umji. Walking in the same formation line-up from the night before, the six girls traipsed as quietly as the leaf-covered ground allowed them to.

“It’s been awhile since I’ve traveled back to this forest,” Umji, holding onto Yuju’s arm, confided to the girl she became accustomed to.

Yuju carefully removed her arm away from Umji’s grasp as she placed it around the shorter girl’s shoulders. During the time they spent together, Umji came clean and told Yuju that there was some truth in the things she said when they first met in JGM Entertainment.

On the night when she and her parents were attacked by a savage vampire, Umji’s parents told their daughter that they were going to move to Canada for her mother’s job. The thought of having to settle into a new country and leaving her friends in Korea behind did not settle well with Umji. After a slight argument, she stubbornly retreated into her tent, angry and irritated. In the middle of the night, she woke up to the bone-chilling screams of her parents as they were devoured by a vampire who lost all sense of control. Her poor mom and dad’s necks were mangled and covered with blood. Before Umji could run away, the savage vampire had already gotten to her, its fangs piercing into her flesh.

Umji is not sure if things would be different if she hadn't been so stubborn and just accepted the good news for her mom. Though the monstrous vampire may have attacked either way, at least Umji wouldn’t have to live with the guilt which consumed her heart, mind, and soul.

“Just try to think of all the good times you spent with your parents,” Yuju sympathetically whispered to the young girl.

A ghost of a smile appeared on Umji’s adorable face prompting Yuju to smile, as well. “I remember it took forever for my Appa to set up the tents,” Umji began to recollect. “He was the type to never use instruction manuals; he always believed he could fix anything based on pure intuition alone. My Umma and I were preparing to cook braised spicy chicken when he lost his confidence. In the end, we switched jobs. By the time my Umma and I were finished pitching the tents, my Appa had the food ready to serve.” She released a breath. “I miss them a lot.” Yuju hugged Umji tighter.

Walking behind them were Eunha and Sowon who couldn’t help but overhear the younger girl’s story. Sowon sniffed and tried to discreetly wipe a tear away from her eye. Eunha glanced at the sensitive giant and her lips shaped into a small smile. Just before Sowon returned her hand into the pocket of her coat, Eunha swiftly grabbed onto it, lacing their fingers together. The cool girl continued to stare straight ahead, appearing unfazed. But, Sowon knew that if the dignified vampire had a pulse, her heart would be racing as fast as her own.

Up in front, SinB had her hand tightly locked with Yerin’s. She formed a habit of tracing random shapes and patterns with her thumb on the older girl’s hand. Sometimes Yerin would return the small caresses back. It was a soothing exchange that helped ease their unyielding nervousness.

The two also occasionally looked briefly at one another without the other’s knowing. SinB was in awe at how the moonlight illuminated the older girl’s face, making her appear even more angelic. Yerin, on the other hand, cherished how the younger girl’s eyes twinkled brilliantly as the stars in the sky.

All six of them knew that they may be walking straight to their deaths. But, despite the dreary uncertainty, a feeling of peace and hope resonated within each one of them. And, it was all because they were holding onto the person they deeply cared for and would never let go.

Yerin raised her SinB-less hand and halted in her tracks upon seeing a large silhoutte up ahead. The rest paused diligently as they waited for their leader’s instructions.

“Eunha-ya. Umji-ya. Can the two of you decipher what that shadowy object is several yards away?” Yerin asked due to her inability of being able to see clearly in the dark.

“It appears to be a cabin, Unnie,” Umji quickly answered.

“A lonesome cabin in the woods? That’s not suspicious at all,” Eunha, tone filled with sarcasm, commented.

“Let’s take a closer look,” Yerin said a bit unconfidently. “But to be on the safe side, get your weapons ready.” She took out the stake that was kept hidden in the interior of her jacket.

Stealthily yet cautiously, the group of three vampires and three mortals moved nearer to where the small log cabin was stationed. It was difficult to believe Virgo would choose such a place to hide in. But, the words of Sowon rung in everyone’s mind when she explained her theory to the rest of the girls: Not everything is what it seems.

Creeping along the side of the cabin, Yerin noticed that there were no windows, not even at the entrance. Upon closer inspection of the front door, she realized there was a key pad above the handle.

“A key pad?” SinB, brows furrowed, questioned the conveniency of the cabin. “This is too good to be true.”

The thought resonated within each girl. It was as if everything they suspected was coming into actualization. The pieces were falling into place and it didn’t take much effort to figure it out. But, the lack of effort was what made the whole situation unsettling. Was this all part of Virgo’s ploy? Or, was he actually really that dense? Yerin hoped for the latter as she fished out the business card in her pocket and punched in the sequence of numbers.

A green light appeared, signaling the code was correct and causing each girl’s hearts to jump. Placing her hand on the door handle, Yerin proceeded to turn it slowly all the way before pushing the door with caution.

The yellow glow of a single lightbulb hanging from the ceiling spilled into the dark outside world, beckoning the group to enter. One by one, Yerin led the pack into the small capacity of the cabin. In fact, the cabin was so small that Sowon had to bend her knees slightly so that her head wouldn’t bump into the ceiling.

Once everyone got in, the door shut to a close making each members’ suspicions grow high. Yerin would have ordered Eunha and Umji to search the room, except the cabin was completely empty. And she would have also told everyone to stay close, but it would have been redundant since all six of them were crammed together as is. Yerin did not want to admit it, but she felt completely oblivious of how to properly assess their current situation.

“Yerin-ah, maybe Virgo just led us to a dead end,” Eunha spoke regretfully, causing the group to stir. “We should just leave and reconfigure a new plan.” Without waiting for her friend’s response, she shuffled to the door and turned the handle only to find it to be locked. “Ha! I can’t believe it,” she stated in disbelief, borderline hysterical. “We’re actually trapped inside this godforsaken cabin.”

Starting to grow a bit more hostile, Eunha began pounding on the door, frustrated that her vampire strength failed to knock it open. Meanwhile, chatter filled the empty room with SinB talking to a distressed Yerin, Yerin talking to a manic SinB, Sowon trying to calm down a frazzled Yuju, and Umji whispering sweet nothings to herself. The group was crumbling apart at the hands of cabin fever.

Suddenly, Eunha stopped hitting her fist on the door. The rest of the group wouldn’t have noticed if the short-haired girl hadn’t collapsed onto the floor soon afterwards.

Shocked, Sowon hurried to the mysteriously weary girl’s side. She went down on her knees to pick up the girl who she has recognized as not only beautiful beyond compare but also a genius. Just when the tall girl was about to wrap her arms around an unconscious Eunha, Sowon abruptly passed out, landing beside her.

The remaining girls were equal parts confused and horrified. Before anyone had the chance to utter a word or even a shriek, Yuju and Umji fainted at the same time, dropping to the floor with a loud, heavy thud.

Yerin stood there blankly, feeling as if she lost any ability to hear, to speak, to move. She couldn’t believe her eyes. Her mind couldn’t compute what was going on. It was like a nightmare merging with reality.

Finally, Yerin turned her head to look at SinB, hoping that if she did, all of this would turn out be some kind of horrible, terrible dream. But, SinB was no longer standing next to her. Instead, the young girl was lying on the floor completely knocked out. Yerin continued to stare at her girlfriend emotionlessly and noticed a dart was lodged into the side of SinB’s neck. That neck in which Yerin had the pleasure of covering with soft, tender kisses.

The older girl looked away, stony expression still intact. She felt a pinprick sensation hit the back of her neck. Without putting much of a fight, Yerin plummeted to the hard, wooden floor, losing all sense of feeling.

Cough, cough, cough. Eunha sputtered out a series of coughs as she tried to reclaim her bearings.

The short-haired girl knew she was lying on her back. From the dried, crunchy foliage and the continuous chirping of crickets, Eunha reasoned that she was outside in the woods. She turned her head slightly and noticed that her head was elevated on something. It felt warm and soft, yet firm; it was a pleasant contrast from the cold, solid ground. Forcing her heavy eyelids to open, she was met with the starry night sky. Slowly, she sat herself up before turning her head to see what exactly served as her pillow. Eyes went wide when Eunha realized that she was previously resting on Sowon’s stomach.

Blood rushed to her cheeks as she turned her head quickly forward. Upon doing so, though, the elegant girl felt a sharp, tinge of pain radiating from her neck. Brows furrowed, Eunha placed a hand on the spot only to be met with the feathery end of what she perceived to be a dart. In an instant, she extracted it and could sense her vampire healing powers closing the miniscule puncture. The dart was, perhaps, only two inches in length. Yet, it carried quite the punch. After a quick inspection, Eunha placed it in the pocket of her trench coat.

Standing up to examine her surroundings, Eunha could see Yuju and Umji’s bodies lying a couple of feet away from her and Sowon. The youngest vampire had her head nestled in the crook of Yuju’s arm. Eunha also noticed that all four of them were only a couple of yards away from the tiny cabin that was somehow able to drive them to the breaking point.

Her attention went back to her unconscious companions when she heard someone coughing as intensely and hoarsely as she had done earlier. It was Sowon who immediately sat up to cough to her heart’s content. Eunha rushed to the taller girl and settled to the ground before rubbing Sowon’s back. Sowon glanced to look at Eunha’s concerned, but still marvelous eyes and gave her a small, appreciative smile.

“Thanks,” Sowon tiredly said after getting whatever it was out of her system.

“No problem,” Eunha replied shortly. She really wanted to hug the tall girl in that moment, but stopped herself from doing so when her eyes landed on the small dart that was also protruding from Sowon’s neck. “Do me a favor and hold still for a second,” she ordered Sowon who looked at her questioningly. Unsure if the pretty human will react differently, Eunha removed the dart with care and caution like playing a game of Jenga. Once out, she held it between her thumb and forefinger for the tall girl to see.

“What the heck is that?!” Sowon, clearly scared, exclaimed as she placed a trembling hand on the side of her neck.

“I’d say it’s a tranquilizer,” Eunha calmly answered, examining the tiny dart that could get easily lost within the piles of leaves if dropped. “Must be the reason why I knocked out.”

“Must be the reason why all of us got knocked out,” Sowon further postulated when she noticed  Umji and Yuju’s comatose bodies laid not too far beside them.

“Help me remove the darts from them. Maybe it’ll help them wake up faster,” Eunha said, getting up on her feet to walk towards the pair. Sowon, a bit woozy from the effect of the tranquilizer, resorted to crawling on her knees for the time being.

Eunha brought the younger girl away from Yuju and supported her in her own arms. Brushing the strands of hair away, the short-haired Unnie meticulously extracted the dart from her neck, causing Umji to wake up and cough posthaste.

By her dear friend’s side, Sowon brought a hand beneath Yuju’s head, giving her better access to the dart wedged in the younger girl’s neck. Though extremely nervous, Sowon wore a determined look on her face as she slowly withdrew the dart out. Soon, Yuju erupted in her own reaction of harsh coughs.

“Eunha-unnie,” Umji spoke while rubbing her chest, lungs slightly sore from all the coughing, “you’re alive.” Her eyes were bright and bold as she looked at the older vampire who treated her with warm adoration, despite having an intimidating presence.

A gentle smile rose on Eunha’s lips. “It’s going to take more than a pesky dart to kill me, Umji-ya” she said with much tenderness before softly pinching the younger girl’s cheek.

“You alright, Yuju-ya?” Sowon asked once her friend’s coughing subsided.

The younger of the two brought Sowon into a hug as a response. On the verge of tears, Yuju managed to speak, “I thought I was going to lose you, Sowon-ah.”

“There, there, Yuju-ya,” Sowon tried to calm her friend down, giving her light, reassuring pats on the back. “You and I have both proven to be much tougher than tranquilizers.”

Yuju sniffed before letting go of the hug to look at Sowon’s smiling face. “Where’s SinB-ah and Yerin-ssi?”

Sowon instantly frowned and froze when she failed to realize that the Jerry to her Tom and Yerin the friendly vampire were not present. She faced forward, her heart thumping at the sight of the cabin. Hastily, the tall girl stood up and walked to the door with much urgency.

Although aware that the business card was not in her possession, Sowon still hurriedly punched the numbers she could recall. “2-2-9…,” Sowon mumbled to herself. “Hey, do you guys remember the rest of the passcode? Or, at least, what position the letter ‘R’ is in the English alphabet?”

“I remembered the passcode, Sowon-ah,” Yuju said, coming up behind her friend.

Pressing the rest of the sequence, Yuju and Sowon smiled simultaneously when the green light flashed. Sowon grabbed the handle, twisted it, and pushed. But, the door did not open. The two exchanged confused looks before Yuju typed in the same numbers she knew was indeed the correct order. Again, the green light glowed, signaling the unlocking of the door. Yuju took a chance and tried to open it, but was soon discouraged when she realized the door didn’t budge.

“Don’t bother, Yuju-ssi,” Eunha advised as she and Umji traipsed closer to the puzzled pair. “I’m afraid your efforts will be of no use.”

“What do you mean?” Yuju, sounding slightly angered, replied to the older girl. “SinB and Yerin-ssi might be in there. Our friend and your friend might be stuck in there, and you’re practically suggesting that we should just sit here useless and wait?!” Sowon placed a hand on Yuju’s shoulder to ease the tempered girl.

Eunha looked down, away from Yuju’s eyes which threatened to spew tears, and nodded. “There is a good chance that SinB-ssi and Yerin are in there,” Eunha spoke remorsefully. “And, though, I know we all want to tear this cabin to shreds, we simply cannot. It’s protected by magic. The whole passcode thing was probably that scum-of-the-earth Virgo’s way of getting our hopes up. We walked into a trap which led us to become separated from SinB-ssi and Yerin.” She glanced at Yuju and Sowon who looked like grief-stricken puppies. No one wanted to hear the rest of what was being said, but Eunha had to relay the dreadful truth. “Whatever happens next is up to them.”