Kris was devastated. After numerous times of trying to reach her, interrogating her circle of friends, not to mention her parents as well—which meant that he let his pride down—he gave up. She was out of reach, out of the league. Turned out, she sealed the mouths of whoever she thought Kris might ask. How clever, he scoffed at the thought.

Hence, here he was. Drowned in the place where the deafening music blasts, loud thuds of bottles being placed down on the tables by drunkards and some silly, shameless provoking women, flirting and seducing any men in the radars.

Believe it or not, it had been God knows how long since he last hunted for prey. Since the missing presence of his girlfriend, he'd been surprisingly well-behaved. He mostly came home straight from the office and spent the night alone in his familiar four walls. Kris had been living his days in the dark. Though, you could call it an irony since he usually lived in the night partying until dawn. He was astounded at first at the sight of his reflection.

Hideous. Horrid. Horrible.

Dark, horrifying circles, disheveled curly hair, beard, and mustache hid his pretty face. He once nearly got dragged out of his condo's lobby due to the securities not recognizing him. And instead of throwing tantrums and going mad like he usually would, he just stilled. He stilled despite the ruckus his pitiful face made. 

It was two in the morning when he called his driver, wasted, needing two strong arms draping around him. Nobody knew why he did this, all of this. His stubbornness repudiated that Eunji might be the cause.

Either it was his stupid brain imagining something almost impossible or it was the reality, Kris squinted his eyes toward the scene in the pavements. He was now in the car, leaning his head onto the tinted window when he spotted a young woman in long black trousers with a matching hoodie walking to a nearby supermarket. It seemed surreal, he slapped himself twice. Then she was gone, disappeared in racks of snacks. He believed it was all bull. Just his dumb imagination. Why would he think of his ex-girlfriend, wouldn't he?

He would.

Unconsciously, he'd find himself staring at their dusty, full of spiderwebs picture. Unintentionally, he'd listen to ballad songs while reminiscing the moments he shared with her. Unwittingly, he had isolated himself these past months. Away from women, away from danger. Only now he went out. The urge to escape from reality became overwhelming that the only thing left to do was being under the influence, what else? He didn't want to be superman, nor batman, nor spiderman. No, he didn't need all that power; strong, able to fly, so on. Just the power to control his own heart was enough.

He staggered with the help of his driver to the condo. The humongous place felt empty, emotionally and physically. Kris couldn't sleep. He kept on rolling from side to side, definitely would get a terrible hangover the next day. He crouched on his bed. When soldiers crouch to defend themselves from physical attacks, he protects himself from this unknown foreign feeling, towering over him.

He his phone and put music on shuffle. There, he stayed still facing the ceiling. Ears perked, listening attentively to the lyrics of the song.

She is leaving

And I can't do anything

Love is leaving

Like a fool, I'm blankly standing here

I'm looking at her, getting farther away

She becomes a small dot and disappears

Will this go away after time passes?

I remember the old times

I remember you

If you If you

If it's not too late

Can't we get back together?

If you If you

If you're struggling like I am

Can't we make things a little easier?

I should've treated you better when I had you

A single tear escaped from his right eye, leaving traces in his temples, and made its way to the pillow. With his hand, he ran it to his eye, feeling the dampness while wondering why the is wrong. Then his hand unsteadily moved to his left chest and pressed it down slowly. He could feel his heart palpitating. Not only that, Kris felt the familiar tingle that had been haunting him for a while.

Despair.

All of a sudden, without warning, more tears made their way out.

"."

He snapped his alarm off after snoozing it multiple times. It was eight in the morning when he briskly washed his face and brushed his teeth before going to the walk-in closet. For today’s office look would be the newest Saint Laurent suit and a Celine white T-shirt. Covering his toned legs were black trousers from the suit’s brand matched with a pair of whole cut shoes designed especially for him by his personal designer. Not to forget the highly expensive Omega Speedmaster on his left wrist, perfect for a conglomerate like him.

He sat on the back of a Mercedes-Benz S600, eyes scanning down his phone for work. The car came to a halt at a traffic light prompting him to look up and observe the surroundings.

He glanced at a woman who seemed to scold her child unendingly, walking across the street. Followed by a hunched grey-haired man, ambling with his hand gripping onto a newspaper and a boy skipping while drinking smoothie presumably from a smoothie stand nearby.

He suddenly remembered that he skipped breakfast when his stomach grumbled. He didn't even take a shower. Had he not spent fifteen minutes only to stare at their pre-wedding picture above the bed and recalling some unwanted—or so he thought—recollections, he wouldn’t be rushing and be late to work. As stubborn as a mule, Kris didn’t think it was fondness, just a mere image that flashed into his mind.

It was lunch break and Kris still hadn't finished his papers so after thinking wisely, he decided to stay and skip lunch. But the plan was altered when a guy who resembled him but older called. They went to a five-star Japanese restaurant and booked a private room which only meant one thing—his dad wanted to talk about something private, something unrelated to work.

"I'm not young anymore, Kris. I need a grandchild soon,” Daniel Wu started.

The younger one placed the chopsticks on the table and heaved, ”Please dad, don't start again."

Irked, Daniel looked at his only son in the eye. ”No, you listen to me,” his voice sounded stern. "Just what the heck happened between you and Eunji?” He paused for a moment, wiping the corner of his mouth with a tissue.  “She said she felt bad for hindering your freedom. I don't understand, what does she mean?”

"I don't know," Kris shrugged, picking up the chopsticks back.

"Stop that crap, son." Agitation got into him, "You shouldn't have let her go. She was a gem for us."

The blamed son scoffed mentally, his ears heated up due to endless critiques. ”Oh please dad, you only want her company, right?" Kris laughed mockingly.

"No, it wasn't like that."

This time the scoff came out inv