Propelling all thoughts of anything else besides good ol' equations and calculus out of her head, she rested her chin on her palm, allowing her eyes to lock onto the flora dancing in the breeze outside the window.

"Good morning, class!"

Her concentration broke for a split second, and she nearly turned to look at Yongsun.

Yongsun placed her usual stack of books on the table, her gaze landing onto Moonbyul before fluttering away right after. Of course, this didn't go unnoticed by Moonbyul. As usual, Eric was sitting beside her, and even though she had tried making small talk before class, all he did was blush and make it awkward, so she gave up soon after.

She was disappointed, but it wasn't anything she couldn't deal with.

A couple minutes into the lesson, Moonbyul noticed Eric looking slightly flustered, and he was shifting around in his seat, as if he was looking for something. He turned his head towards everyone around him but herself, and ended up tapping on one of their classmates who sat in front of him.

"Do you have an extra pencil?" he asked, tapping against the side of his table.

"Nope."

"Crap, thanks."

Moonbyul chuckled upon hearing this. She knew Eric was feeling awkward after being rejected, but he didn't have to put in extra effort to avoid talking to her. After all, he was her first friend in this school, and she did have a tiny soft spot for him, regardless of whatever stinky cologne he would put on. Reaching over to tap on his shoulder, Moonbyul leaned her body over and tossed a pencil onto his desk, watching him catch it before it nearly rolled off the table. He scratched his head for a moment before giving her a muted grin. Obviously he didn't expect her to do that.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome-"

"Miss Moonbyul," Yongsun interrupted, her eyes locking onto Moonbyul's while still writing on board. "Having a good chat? Since you're so enthusiastic in class today, come up here and solve the equation on the board."

"I was just-" Moonbyul mumbled defensively, a pang of confusion hitting her body. She furrowed her brows. What was up with Yongsun these days? Either she was a little too uptight recently, or simply in a bad mood. But Moonbyul decided not to complain, and instead just solve the equation. At least it was nothing too difficult, right?

The chrome-haired lady brushed past several desks and grabbed a marker—being a tad more careful so as to not accidentally let her and Yongsun's fingers touch once again.

A few minutes passed, and Moonbyul slowly let the marker drop from her hand onto the teacher's desk after solving the question. She raised an eyebrow and turned towards Yongsun.

"Good job," Yongsun said, a tiny smile on her lips. "See you after class."

Moonbyul snorted. Unbelievable.

This little math teacher of hers was unpredictible.

"So," Yongsun began, a smile apparent on her lips. She shifted on her chair, twirling her pen in those cute little fingers of hers. "What happened yesterday?"

"Yesterday?" Moonbyul didn't know how Yongsun would react, considering it was her younger brother she was talking about, and she knew that many were protective over their siblings. She very carefully worded her next sentence, making sure she said it as gently as she could. "Eric asked me out."

Yongsun raised an eyebrow, but the expression on her face seemed uninterested at best. "And?"

"I rejected him."

Yongsun laughed, running an empty hand through the chocolate locks that cascaded down her back. She didn't look up, still preoccupied by the wad of unmarked papers in front of her. "What, Eric's not good looking enough for you?"

"He's really handsome. He's on the school football team. He gets good grades, he's pretty much the school's golden boy. I was flattered, but he isn't the one I like."

Yongsun's eyes glinted and her smile grew wider, allowing Moonbyul to catch a glimpse of those beautiful pearly whites. She lifted her head up, propping her head up onto her palm.

"What's he like?"

Moonbyul couldn't bear to look.

"He?"

Yongsun's elbow left the table and she continued marking her papers, as Moonbyul did her sums on a notebook.

This was weird, Moonbyul thought. Describing the person you liked while they were in front of you.

"They're cute."

"That's all?" Yongsun shot her a look of disappointment, dramatically placing her hand on her chest. "Kids these days, falling for cute guys left and right."

Moonbyul snorted.

"I could go on and on, but I would simply bore you. She would never notice me, anyway."

It took nearly all of Moonbyul's self-control to not snap her pen in half when she realised her own slip-up.

The next few seconds seemed like decades.

"She must be great."

"Is that all you're going to say?"

Yongsun looked up at her, crinkling her nose and Moonbyul watched as her eyes followed suit, forming pretty little crescents.

A blush of pale pink dappled Moonbyul's face and ears, and a silent string of curses escaped her.

"Yes, that's all I'm going to say."

"...What about you?"

"Me?"

"You told me there was someone you were interested in," Moonbyul began, trying her best not to sound like a nosy teen. Pretty sure Yongsun was able to see through her simple facade, but she couldn't pay anything else mind when the beats of her heart were mimicking the hum of the crickets in the grass. "Any progress?"

"I don't know."

"Am I allowed to know who they are?"

"No," Yongsun reached over and pinched the tip of Moonbyul's nose. "But maybe I'll tell you after graduation."

It wasn't Christmas, and Moonbyul was not up for looking like Rudolph.

Bzzt.

Moonbyul glanced over, tucking a few loose strands of chrome behind her ear before stretching over to her side to pick up her phone.

You okay? Seemed a little out of it during class.

concerned for your favourite student?

Concerned as a friendly teacher. And you're not my favourite student.

Fair enough, Moonbyul thought. Just when she was about to protest (in text form), her phone sent another buzz through her fingertips.

Yet. :)

Moonbyul was impressed. If it were not for that fact that 1) she was a teacher, and 2), she wasn't a vampire, she almost would've thought that Yongsun was flirting with her.

Keyword: almost.

just tired. and when will I be, then?

When you get full marks for your next 5 tests.

Moonbyul raised a brow.

challenge accepted! are teachers this free these days, texting their students like this?

I was bored, so I decided to text my second-favourite student.

who's the first?

Eric, of course. He's my brother.

you'd replace your brother with a student that scores well on tests?

...He gets a little annoying at times.

That's fair, Moonbyul thought. Wheein and Hwasa were like her own siblings, and they did get a little out of hand sometimes. She tapped her reply, but paused. Maybe she should try playing her luck a little bit, huh? She smirked, disgusted at her own self-confidence, and deleted her planned reply, typing something else in exchange.

since you're bored, want to go grab something to eat?

This time, the reply took a little while longer than usual.

I already ate, though. What about a movie?

Moonbyul's jaw dropped, and she nearly lost the grip on her phone. Thank god for phone cases.

there's nothing good in the cinema now, though.

I have DVDs! Send me an address?

Moonbyul's mouth ran dry at the thought of what Yongsun just suggested. Yongsun? Coming over to her house? Of course, it wasn't as if they weren't close or anything, but... she wasn't ready.

She slowly ran her tongue across her lips, shaking her head and forcing herself to disperse all naughty thoughts (she couldn't help herself!) from her mind. Her finger hovered over the blue 'send' button, wondering if Yongsun was simply playing a prank on her. Ah, whatever. She stabbed the button, and threw her phone on the other side of the bed, ignoring the next buzz that came with it.

She played with the edge of her bedsheet, biting her lip while simultaneously trying not to combust into a bunch of flames.

Yongsun really is pretty.

That's what Moonbyul thinks nearly every single passing day, but she can't trust herself to not blush at her math teacher when she practically shows up at her house with an adorable oversized sweater (with a bear print on it) and shorts that make her toned legs look like they go on for miles. She wore nerdy glasses that only complemented her face, along with a bunch of movie discs in her arms.

"You could've brought a bag," Moonbyul had told her with amusement, but all she did was shake her head.

"It's not that heavy," she protested.

"Make yourself at home," Moonbyul mumbled, gesturing into her house, while shutting the door behind Yongsun. She folded her arms, likening her tone to one of a waitress's. "We have sprite, coke, coffee, and tea."

Yongsun giggled, music to the other girl's ears.

"I'll have coffee, thank you very much."

"Coffee it is!" Moonbyul hummed, making her way to the kitchen while watching Yongsun carefully play with the furniture out of the corner of her eyes. A good-natured snort escaped from her, when she noticed how flabbergasted Yongsun was at the size of her house. Granted, Moonbyul wasn't surprised, since she did mention that she wasn't living with her parents, and Yongsun must be wondering how someone so seemingly ordinary like her could afford such a large abode. "Never been in a house before?"

"It's really... big."

"Wealthy parents," Moonbyul lied through her teeth, earning a nod from Yongsun. "Nice view, huh?" she grinned, setting down the hot mug on the glass table.

"Very nice," Yongsun replied, a small grunt of thanks emerging from her. "I wouldn't mind staying here."

Either Yongsun was calculating what she was saying, or Moonbyul needed to wash her ears.

Probably the latter.

Clearing and trying to not let her sweaty palms or the hot temperature in her cheeks affect her, Moonbyul took a seat on the couch beside Yongsun, 'accidentally' allowing their fingers to brush in the process.

She watched the smile on Yongsun's lips twitch, and she uttered a quiet apology.

"What kind of movies did you bring?"

"I'm not the biggest movie fanatic, so I'll let you pick."

Moonbyul held up one of the DVDs. A thoughtful smile appeared across her lips as she picked one us, tracing the title. She remembered watching this movie in the cinemas when it just came out, and the feeling was absolutely enchanting. Just like the person in front of her.

"This one," she motioned towards it, shoving the disc into the DVD player.

The word 'Titanic' rolled across the screen.

Moonbyul enjoys how Yongsun makes her feel. They hadn't spoken much throughout the movie, apart from Moonbyul offering the other girl a bunch of tissues. Granted, she wasn't upset with that fact, because less conversation made for more meaningful ones. She didn't know what else to say anyway, considering all she could think of was how breath-takingly gorgeous her teacher was, and how she made her heart beat to the tune of a hummingbird's wings.

"I'm sorry I'm such a mess, I can't handle-"

"Sappy romance movies? Don't worry, I can tell," Moonbyul laughed, playfully tossing another tissue on top of Yongsun's head. "Do you do this a lot?"

"Do what?"

"Go to your student's houses to watch romantic movies?"

God, even Yongsun's crying face looked pretty.

"No."

"So why'd you come over?"

"Cuz you're my favourite student."

"Wasn't Eric your favourite?"

"Not anymore."

"Why not?"

"Because," Yongsun traced patterns against the arm of the couch, and Moonbyul wished that it was her arm that Yongsun could touch instead. "I don't know," she whispered. "You're fun to be around, and it pisses me off."

"It pisses you off?"

Yongsun laughed, and this time she turned towards Moonbyul, her crescent eyes twinkling.

"Yeah, it does. It annoys me."

"... I annoy you?"

Yongsun took in a sharp breath, Moonbyul could tell from the rise in her chest.

"No."

Moonbyul felt daring today. She knew she shouldn't, but she didn't have that much self-control to begin with. She shifted, very carefully, closer to Yongsun, and she mentally smirked at herself for being so cocky. She allowed her head to rest on top of Yongsun's shoulder, and was pleasantly surprised when Yongsun rested her head on hers.

"You don't annoy me too."

Moonbyul felt a rumble down Yongsun's body, probably a silent laugh, and she decided to chuckle in response. This was nice. She wouldn't mind if they could stay like this for eternity. Just the both of them in silence, enjoying Yongsun's company, regardless of whether she enjoyed Moonbyul's or not.

She tilted her head up to get a better view of Yongsun, realising that she had never actually been this physically close to her and she wanted to bask in every single second of it.

Moonbyul's gaze trailed from her cute little forehead, to her button nose, to the slight ballet-slipper pink of her cheeks, to the lips that had just the tiniest hint of a smile on them, and finally, to her eyes.

Those eyes that looked terrifyingly familiar.

A voice, one that used to mean so much to her, and still did, boomed deafeningly in her head.

"Byul, I'm all yours. I promise."

Moonbyul jerked back almost instinctively, her eyes growing wider.

"What's wrong?" Yongsun raised her brows, her features softening into those of concern.

"I-" Moonbyul heaved, feeling an unpleasant lurch in her stomach, the same feeling tying a knot in as she spoke. "Nothing, I just... remembered something."

"Something bad?"

"I-It's nothing."

It was nothing, she said, but the uneasiness in her gut prevented her from looking into Yongsun's eyes for the rest of the movies.

Moonbyul doesn't like the fact that when she can't entrust herself to sleep. It's because she's either thinking, or because she's afraid of the shadow monster that occasionally cradles her in its arms. Granted, she'd rather spend the night tossing and turning to the messy, broken beat of her heart than shut her eyes and feel a claw around once more.

But she'd already figured out that they came in a bundle—she couldn't have one without the other.

Her eyes fluttered across the room.

Moonlight dripped from the ends of the pastel curtains, and occasionally she'd watch a cloud float by, absorbing and obstructing the glowy light. Moonbyul peeled her eyes away from the window, her slender fingertips caressing the velvety-smooth silken bedsheets. A single firefly buzzed its way in, and dared to rest on her upturned palm.

"The fireflies are always aglow, radiating at their best even if no one is watching. I'd like to be one someday."

Moonbyul instinctively retreated her hand, ignoring the blazing lump of fire forming in .

That's right.

When a certain lovely brown-haired math teacher named Kim Yongsun walked into her classroom—her life, her mind—she made sure to dismiss all those little fleeting moments of thoughts that she hoped she would've kept safe in her palm instead of a monster in her nightmares.

They even had the same eyes.

If she could find a way to visit her that wasn't in the form of a nightmare, Moonbyul would be elated. Maybe this was her way of saying, "don't you dare forget about me."

But during times like these, when the moon was shining with all its might, when the crickets weren't buzzing with enough felicity, and when the rest of the world seemed to slow down except for her train of thought, all she could remember were the scars on her back that were traced with nimble fingertips as if they were priceless art itself, how their fingers were laced together with every chance they got, how her laugh seemed to sound like one of cupid's stupidly-written songs.

With her bedsheet off of her body, her feet hastily reached the ground. Her eyes locked onto the firefly like a tiger onto a deer, and with impossible speed, captured the insect in her hand. She turned to the insect spray on her desk, reaching over for it. (And also wondering why Wheein had even bought it when they were vampires with inhumane strength and reflexes?)

Her fingers coiled around the spray can.

"You shouldn't be so rough!"

She scoffed, wondering when she'd become so weak, so easily persuaded by that little voice inside her head.

She set the firefly free, watching it bump against her window pane before it flew out and away.

Moonbyul stared at the vintage wood clock.

Only a couple hours before school.

Time wasn't going any faster, and she had lots of it.

She shuffled towards the kitchen. A bowl of cereal and milk would be a better companion.

Moonbyul can't bring herself to eat any more cereal. She sees the trees rustling against the harsh winds, the curvature of her smile appearing from her cup as she gulped down her last bit of tea.

Nature wasn't in a good mood, either.

She set the teacup down carefully, making sure not to cause the tiniest bit of sound on the table.

"-Byul?"

Moonbyul was greeted with the sight of a sleepy Wheein, and was amused at how bubbly the girl could sound even after having just woken up from a deep slumber.

She waved back, a pleasant expression with the exception of a sigh leaving her lips.

"Tough night?" Wheein shoved her body into the fridge, probably looking for her cranberry juice to go with her usual bowl of cinnamon cereal. (Who the even does that, by the way?) She yanked a carton of scarlet juice from the inside, her face one of satisfaction.

"Tough night," Moonbyul mumbled.

"I could tell. Your footsteps were like an elephant's yesterday," Wheein joked, raising a brow. She tipped the contents of the carton over, and Moonbyul watched as the bowl spread with red. "What were you thinking about?"

"Stuff."

"Like the stuff you're keeping from us?"

Moonbyul opened to protest, but shut it instead.

"I like a human."

The floor dappled with a flush red, and the scarlet slowly grew veins of blood over the marble tiles. Wheein slipped out a mumble, which Moonbyul could hear as a very audible 'sorry', and set the now empty jug onto the counter.

Moonbyul continued.

"My school math teacher."

"Great, now I have to clean this up," Wheein laughed, her voice shaky. She knelt down, careful to not stain her oversized shirt. "Too bad I don't have any dry-cleaning superpowers, huh?"

"Wheein," Moonbyul said, but the other interrupted.

"What about-"

Moonbyul knew what she was about to say.

"Don't talk about it. I know."

"Tough morning, huh?"

Moonbyul wanted to burst into laughter.

"Tough morning."

Author's note: Hi guys! I hope you enjoyed this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it? If you loved it, make sure to leave a comment about your thoughts! Just wanted to say that even though I don't reply to all of them, I do read all of them and I love reading your opinions/theories! Well, see you guys in the next chapter!