* * *

The touch of his fingertips on her skin tickled and she couldn't suppress the giggle that bubbled in her stomach. To smother it, she buried her face deeper into his fluffy pillow. The fingers stopped at her spine and rested there for a moment before they got replaced by warm lips. A pleasant tingle ran through her at the sensation.

"You smell different."

She had never told him how much she loved his voice. It was deep and alluring, decadent and sweet like expensive chocolate, and she wanted to save it up, keep it all to herself, so she could listen to it for the rest of her life.

"Mh. New shampoo." The words almost lost their meaning on their way from her brain to her lips. It was hard to concentrate when he was that close. The soft hum that answered reverberated through her and she sighed in bliss when he peppered her shoulders with even more kisses.

Long fingers caressed , the silver rings adorning them cool on her skin. "Turn around?"

"Why?" She didn't want to, she had just made herself comfortable on the soft mattress, his silky blanket hiding her lower half.

"I want to see your beautiful face."

She froze for a second before she rolled onto her back, almost throwing him off the bed in the process. "How can you say something so cheesy with a straight face?!"

His lips twitched into a grin at her accusing stare; he knew better than anyone that she hated overly romantic lines with a burning passion. "Years of practice." He raised his voice dramatically and although she wanted to hide, she also wanted to hug him for being a dork. "Han Jiho. Your breathtaking sight makes me want to write poems and sing ballads."

She slapped his arm and tried in vain not to blush at the bright smile directed at her. "Ew, please don't. You're such a sap, Yifan, seriously. Nobody would believe me if I told them."

"Only for you, my queen." With an exaggerated wink, he pulled her against his bare chest while she pretended to shudder in disgust.

* * *

When Eunhee opened her eyes, she was greeted by the worried faces of Xiumin and Lay. Her limbs felt incredibly heavy under the warm blanket and it took her a moment to recollect what had happened.

Her gaze immediately flitted to the darkest corner of her room when the unpleasant memories returned. She groaned quietly at the movement; the headache was still hammering in her temple. To her relief, she could feel Suho hiding in its corner although its menacing aura seemed somewhat subdued in comparison to before - it was a welcome change.

"We overpowered it when you collapsed. Your talismans held it in place but only barely." Concern was carving deep lines into Lay's skin; his face looked even more haggard than before.

Xiumin next to him nodded, eyes filled with sadness. "That was a pretty close call, Eunhee. If we hadn't been here..." Playing with the seam of her pillow, he trailed off and Lay patted his thigh.

Eunhee wanted to cheer them up but she couldn't think of anything positive to say. If they hadn't been there, she wouldn't have used her ability in the first place - but she wouldn't risk a fight by voicing her thoughts. Instead, she smiled weakly. "Thanks, guys."

"We're spending the night," Lay stated in his no-nonsense tone and Eunhee immediately opened to protest: They couldn't; he needed to eat and they both had returned from their assignments only hours before. They needed to rest just as much as she did.

Xiumin, observant as always, cut her off. "No."

"I didn't even say anything," she muttered with a glare.

"No need, we know you well enough." Xiumin gently took her hand, his cold fingers warmer than usual. He always made an effort when it came to her and she appreciated it every time. "Don't worry about us."

"Look me in the eye and tell me you're not tired." She stared them both down while they avoided her gaze.

Oh boy.

"At least lie down. Please? I'm not gonna let you sit around the whole night just so you can keep an eye on Suho."

They shared a look but Eunhee could already smell her victory. Normally they wouldn't give in so easily – at least not Lay – but dealing with Suho in their already weakened state seemed to have completely exhausted them. She lifted the blanket and wiggled her brows.

As always, Xiumin was the first to cave. Shaking his head at her antics, he climbed over her body to lay down close to the wall, careful to stay on the blanket. She took his cold hand with a winning grin. Lay's body was cool when he joined her under the blanket and wrapped an arm around her - hissing quietly when Xiumin slapped his fingers. "How's she supposed to sleep like that?"

The room got plunged into darkness when Lay pointedly turned off the bedside lamp. "You're just jealous."

Xiumin didn't answer but Eunhee felt his hand tighten around hers. With a low sigh, she closed her eyes, trying to ignore the waves of pain her headache brought her.

It was nice to not have to worry about Suho for once, surrounded by the people she trusted most. Right now their auras were calm and soothing – a welcome change to Suho's hateful one - although she could still feel danger lurking beneath the deceptively peaceful surface.

Slowly she drifted off, colours and shapes engulfing her, until an unexpected touch at her unoccupied hand ripped her out of her hazy dreams rather abruptly.

"Sorry."

Even without seeing his face, Eunhee could make out the strain in Lay's slightly hoarse voice. Unlike before, his aura was in a disarray, his desire overpowering his forced composure. It was probably hard for him to lie next to her in the dark when all his senses went into overdrive. She didn't blame him, he was completely famished after all. It would hurt and it would probably make her headache even worse but Lay was definitely worth it. "Go on. But don't take too much; I need to go to work tomorrow."

"Are you sure that's a good idea? You fainted earlier." Xiumin sounded sceptical and Lay remained motionless, waiting for her answer.

Offering herself to him, Eunhee curled a bit closer into his side. She wanted him to feel better. After all, it was her fault that he stayed in her flat instead of going out and getting his fill as he should. But she also knew that he was a worrywart and would rather starve than deliberately hurt her more than necessary. "Should be okay. Hurry up, I'm tired."

"Slap me if I go overboard."

She laughed quietly when his fingers once again ghosted over her arm, the touch almost non-existent. As if a slap from a Human would be able to stop him. "I trust your famous self-control. Besides, Xiumin is here to save me from the big, bad monster, right?"

Lay made an amused sound, his aura spiking in twisted ways, and Eunhee shuddered when cool breath hit her wrist. Regardless how often they did it, she couldn't help but feel a spark of fear. If something went wrong, she would almost certainly die. Xiumin squeezed her hand to comfort her, his fingers rubbing soothing circles into her palm.

Through the darkness, she could make out their eyes: a dim, whitish glow to her right and the reflection of the remaining light in deep scarlet irises to her left. Biting her lip, Eunhee braced herself for the pain of sharp teeth tearing into flesh.

Suho stirred in its corner when the smell of blood saturated the air.

"So you brought a Human home this time?" Eunhee grimaced at the pain in her arm while she tried to spread butter on her toast until Xiumin grew tired of watching her struggle and snatched the bread away. She sent him a reproachful stare but his focus was solely directed at the task at hand.

Lay was observing them from the other end of the table - keeping his distance like he always did after he had fed from her - and Eunhee wasn't quite sure whether his contrite expression was because of her wounds or because of the new addition to their unit. Probably a mixture of both. At least he looked healthier compared to last night but the shadows still hadn't left his face completely.

"Yeah, well. I wouldn't quite call him Human anymore." He ran a hand through his hair, his eyes wandering back to the bandages peeking out from the hoodie Eunhee had thrown on earlier until she hid her arm under the table.

Did she get something wrong? She glanced once again at Xiumin but he still ignored her for the sake of preparing the perfect slice of toast. "What do you mean?"

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