Eunha left that night. Right after Yerin carried SinB back to the maknae’s room, explaining briefly to Yewon about SinB’s condition, the vampire rushed back to the kitchen to find no one except for a note on the counter. It seemed that the petite girl had planned everything for a long time without anyone noticing it. She even prepared for the worst case. Written in the note, she instructed that if something bad happened where she was gone, there was an emergency box in her room they could use to escape the situation. Sighing heavily, Yerin brushed her bang over her head in distress.

Throwing herself onto the couch, she lay down onto the fluffy surface, staring at the ceiling. She felt so useless. She was supposed to be the big sister, the leader. The one who would protect her friends and beloved. But yet she was unable to keep her promise 600 years ago. She expected to have the second chance to prove herself but yet, she failed again. Her heart throbbed painfully. She envied her cousin. Being the former heir of the Jung clan, Yerin was used to shoulder many expectations and responsibilities from other relatives. She was educated to become a great leader like her father. On the other hand, Eunha had never shown any interest in the role. She was a laid-back person. Carefree and mischievous to enjoy her life to the fullest. She used to be so reckless that other relatives in their clan did not pay any attention to her. But the petite girl did not care.

Yet, the raven-haired girl accepted the responsibilities which were not meant for her willingly. She even finished Yerin’s job better than anyone else. When Yerin was supposed to be the one who SinB could lean on, Eunha took her place, giving all the needs and wants that the pink-haired girl desired. Even when she had returned, Yerin felt nothing but an excess of the girls’ lives. To speak frankly, Eunha should be the heir, the real leader of the Jung clan, the real sister of SinB, not Yerin. The only privilege she had was to be born as the heir’s daughter. Besides that, Eunha was better than Yerin in everything else.

Another frustrating sigh, her pride was completely damaged. She tried to make herself useful, to contribute more to their problems. However, because of her ego, and her cluttered feelings, her presence was still fuzzy. Witnessing how special bond the Eunbi duo shared together, Yerin comprehended that she would never come in between those two. Jealous? Of course. But more than that, she felt liable if something happened to Eunha. She could stop the girl, or even offer her help. But she wasn’t committed to her words, letting the girl go without even trying harder to make the petite girl change her mind. She blamed herself for being an unreliable sister. Eunha was so precious to SinB and yet she could not even be able to do such a trivial thing like stopping the girl from killing herself. Yerin definitely did not know how to face SinB afterward. Especially how to inform the girl that her beloved soulmate was heading toward her own grave for SinB’s sake.

Raising her hands up, she slapped herself hard on the cheeks, giving a wake-up call to herself. She needed to stop moping. She needed to toughen up more. For everyone. For Eunha. And especially for SinB. Eunha entrusted her 600-year duty to Yerin. The raven-haired girl had faith in her. She needed to start acting like a real sister. To live on with the expectations that people had been giving to her.

However, she had one problem. She was clueless. Everything she knew was anything Eunha and others told her. She had no contact, no source to do her own investigation, unlike Eunha. She only had her new allies to rely on, whom definitely could not compete with Eunha’s knowledge. Letting out a melancholy sigh, her eyelids felt the weight on themselves. Gradually, Yerin allowed herself to be consumed by the sleepiness on the couch.

******************************

Time does not wait for anyone. Soon, it had been already 5 days since Eunha left. Sojung and Yuna were informed about the psychologist’s absence by their colleagues. The detectives were concerned about the petite girl’s well-being since she left without saying any words. Even when Yerin told them everything she knew about Eunha’s plan, they could not stop worrying since they had not heard any news about the missing girl. However, the one who was panicking the most was no other than the pink-haired doctor.

After waking up from her anemia, the first thing she heard was that Eunha had gone. Although Yerin had left out a few important details about how Eunha risked her life for SinB, the young doctor could tell it by herself. After all, she knew the older girls too well. Both Eunha and Yerin. Yerin was a bad liar while Eunha was a hopeless idiot. Cursing quietly, SinB locked herself in her room and never went out unless it was meal time since that day. The pink-haired girl never smiled or even engaged in a normal conversation. No matter how many times Yerin and Yewon tried to cheer her up. She went back to her old self, the shy and isolated girl when they first met.

The detectives visited the mansion more often, bringing news and information that they had during their investigation. However, none of them told them about Eunha’s current location. Sojung and Yuna suggested an idea to infiltrate the Kim’s Corporation. But then, they denied since they did not have a search warrant. When Yewon and Yuna did a background research on the corporation, they found no holes or crimes. Either the corporation was clean, which was impossible for such a big company, or they had some powerful supports behind their back.

Since the mastermind had gone missing, the girls were lost and idle. The detectives partially moved into the mansion since they had been staying over to watch over the depressed doctor. Furthermore, they wanted to have more time to make a plan for what to do next. Because of that, they needed more supplies to feed five people. Therefore, Yewon and Yuna volunteered to run the errand.

After buying the grocery, the girls dropped by a cafe in the Gangnam district to hang out. They finished their errand sooner than expected. And with a little spare time, the girls wanted to spend more time to know each other more. When they were alone in the mansion, all they talked about was computers, technology, and other IT related topics. They got along better than they thought, ignoring the fact that they shared the same connection with a certain hybrid girl, so they decided to get closer as friends.

Choosing a seat next to the huge glass window of the cafe, Yewon mindlessly stared at the people passing by on the snowy street. Her mood had been down since SinB was in the depressed state. Stalking the pink-haired girl for many years, the raven-haired doctor knew that it was a normal reaction of hers whenever it was about Eunha. It was not the first time two of them got separated. They had been chased by the Organization for so long, that there were a few times both of them had to spread in different directions to distract the enemy. During those time, SinB was a real iceberg. She let no one get close to her, completely isolating herself from the rest of the world. Her invisible walls around her heart were only broken down when the two Eunbi reunited.

Before Eunha left, Yewon got a chance to ask SinB about her power. It seemed that not only connected by lifespan, whoever drank her blood would be connected to SinB by pain. It could be a physical or mental pain. But either way, it was a one-sided effect. Which mean, SinB felt the same pain that Eunha, Yewon, and Yuna suffered, but not vice versa. It was one of the weaknesses of her power. Analyzing from that and the strong bond between the Eunbi duo, Yewon understood why SinB was acting like that.

Letting out a sigh, the young doctor almost jumped off her seat when she suddenly felt a hot object touching her cheek. She turned her head to her side, only to meet with the red-haired girl holding two cups of hot americano smiling at her. The taller girl placed one cup in front of the doctor before taking the opposite seat.

“You seem to have lots of thoughts in your mind. Penny for one of yours?”

“I’m pretty sure that they are worth more than a penny, Yuna-unnie.” Yewon returned a smile then took a sip of her coffee. “I’m just thinking about SinB. Her condition is getting worse. Last night I checked on her, she was hugging herself, groaning in discomfort. And I’m not even sure who was actually in pain, her or Eunha-unnie.”

Yuna stared at her cup silently. Of course, she knew about what the pink-haired girl was suffering from her power. That was why despite being a detective, the red-haired girl worked extra hard to prevent herself from getting hurt. When Sojung and Yerin interrogated the younger girls to spill the secret, both of them immediately accelerate their search for Eunha since they could not bear with seeing SinB suffering anymore, especially Yerin. However, the petite girl always made a step ahead of them. She left no traces of hers. Even the note she left behind for Yerin had nothing but one single word, “SinB”. Yewon and Yuna could not track down the girl via her phone signal or any electrical devices. Not even her credit and debit cards. Her bank account was closed and all of her saving had been transferred to Yerin. Not to mention that the detectives found Eunha’s resign letter being sent by email to the head manager just two days after her departure. As if she had planned everything a long time ago, without any of them notice.

Looking blankly at the strangers outside, the pink rosy lips curved up into a bitter smile on the milky baby face. “Sometimes, I feel like I’m just one of millions of strangers that SinB walked by every day. She means a lot to me. She’s my savior. The only reason why I’m still alive and able to have some coffee time with you. And yet I can’t do anything for her. I should repay my debt for her but instead, I become just another burden added to her miserable life.”

Sensing the hint of pain in the dark orbs, the red-haired girl placed her hand on top of the small shaking hand. The heat from the hot cup was not enough to warm up the blue hand. Giving it a gentle grip, Yuna grabbed the attention of the younger girl. Then, she smiled sympathetically.

“If you’re a stranger than I am nothing more than a useless stone on a street to SinB. She didn’t choose to give her blood. She didn’t know about my existence after hundreds of years. She had no reason to call me a friend or comrade if it wasn’t because of Eunha-ssi. I did nothing for both of them, unlike you who always stayed by her side, giving support from the darkness.”

The red-haired girl rubbed her thumb slowly on the smooth skin. Her smile never faded away on the face of a beauty, causing Yewon to stare at it unconsciously. “To be honest, Eunha was the one who saved me from my vagrant life, but SinB was the one who gave me a purpose to live on. Both of them had given us more than they could imagine when they weren’t supposed to do so. We have no relation to them. But they still open their arms to us. Frankly speaking, I don’t even know how I can be useful in their plan. However, I’ll never give up. I’ll keep fighting along their sides, lending everything I have to repay their kindness.”

Reaching out her other free hand toward the younger girl’s face, cupping the soft chubby cheek into her palm. The soft mochi immediately heated up by the sudden contact.

“Don’t you feel the same thing, Yewon-ah?”

The young doctor was definitely flustered. She was not even sure it was because of embarrassment or something else. But she could not stop her heart from jumping off her chest. And the heat on her face kept increasing over time. Coughing softly to clear out the awkwardness, the raven-haired girl returned a thankful smile to the grinning red-haired girl, who found the reaction amusing.

“It sounds really strange when it’s coming from you, unnie.”

“I don’t know what kind of impression you have about me but I’ll take that as a compliment anyway.”

Retracting both of her hands, Yuna went back to her drink, shifting her gaze back to the street. She suddenly remembered her partner, her fellow buddy whom she treated like a real sister. Comparing to Yuna and Yewon, Sojung literally had nothing to do with their business. The senior detective could simply choose to stay out of this and lived on a peaceful life. But no, she chose the opposite. And now she had to struggle to come up with a plan while babysitting the depressed girl along with Yerin in the mansion. Yuna felt sorry for her friend but it was her own decision. She had no right to say anything about it.

When both girls were dozed off in their all thoughts, a group of schoolgirls on the street approached their seat from the other side of the window. Normally, the girls would just pass by like other people on the street, minding their own business. However, one of the girls stopped in front of Yewon and Yuna’s table, fixing her hair calmly. The other girls soon joined her, as if the people in the cafe did not exist. Both Yewon and Yuna was startled by the action. Their eyes went from the schoolgirls to each other. Soon, they broke into laughter, realizing that the window must be a one-way mirror. The lights inside the cafe shop were bright enough for the girls to notice that they were people looking at them. However, they honestly did not see Yewon and Yuna, confirming that it was a real one-way mirror.

Then, something hit the sense out of the red-haired mind. Her laughter quickly faded away as she dashed her gaze around the cafe. They were in a cafe in the middle of the Gangnam district, one of the busiest areas in Seoul. And yet there were only two of them present in the place. All of the others tables were empty, even the staff was nowhere to be found. Yuna’s face tensed up, slapping herself mentally. She should have noticed it sooner. The one-way mirror window. The reaction of the staff when she ordered their drink. The empty cafe. Everything was suspicious.

“Yewon...”

Yuna quietly called out for the younger girl, who had been on guard since the moment the red-haired girl changed her facial expression. The young doctor also just realized the heavy atmosphere as she observed the cautious gaze of the older girl.

Soon later, both of them were struck by a sudden attack.

Sighing heavily, Yerin flopped down on the couch next to Sojung, who was concentrating on her laptop’s screen, searching through a list of clarified profiles in her HQ. The detective was hoping to find any clues that the smart psychologist left behind. But she was getting nowhere as Eunha had erased every information about herself as if there had not been a psychologist named Park Sooyeon working in Seoul Police’s HQ. Sighing heavily, the purple-haired girl accepted the mug of hot chocolate given by Yerin with a small ‘thank you’ before continuing with her research.

Sitting next to her, Yerin let herself wander off in her own train of thoughts. She had no idea what to do. Although Eunha told her about what she was going to do, it was obvious that her cousin did not want them to find her after all. And since that time, SinB had not left her room for once. No matter how many times she tried to convince the girl, SinB would just give her silence treatment. Even though she did not show it to anyone, but Yerin was clearly jealous. Jealous of how close the relationship between the Eunbi duo. Jealous of how she could not replace Eunha inside SinB’s heart. She was furious with herself. Being too useless that she wasted 600 years doing nothing when she was supposed to be a good sister to the pink-haired girl.

She was completely lost. What should she do now? Who should she be?

As Yerin was dozing off, a sudden scream shocked both of the girls. Sojung choked on her drink, coughing violently to clean the hot liquid from her larynx. On the other hand, Yerin jumped off her seat abruptly.

“It’s SinB.”

She exclaimed and immediately ran upstairs, toward the pink-haired girl’s room, not even waiting for the other girl who was still trying to calm herself down from her own coughing. The raven-haired vampire stood in front of the door of the room, giving it a few knocks while calling the girl’s name. However, replying to her was just some painful groans. Excuse herself, she pushed the door open, only to find SinB curling up on her bed, groaning in discomfort. Yerin rushed to the girl’s side, pulling SinB into her arms while checking if the younger girl hurt herself anywhere.

“SinB, what’s wrong?”

The pink-haired girl opened her teary eyes, staring at the concerning golden orbs.

“Yerin-unnie...”

“I’m here for you, Bi. Tell me what’s happening to you.”

“It hurts, unnie... My belly...”

Yerin quickly lifted up SinB’s shirt. The girl’s abdomen looked completely fine. However, the furrowed face of SinB told her another story. The pink-haired girl was seriously in pain. But it was not a physical pain.

While Yerin tried to ease the pain for SinB by hugging the young girl in her arms, caressing her back gently and pouring comforting words into her ear, the door was sent flying once again. This time, a giraffe rushed in with a terrified look on her face.

“Yerin! They got her! The Organization took Yewon!”

Author's note: Hello everyone. My apology for the late update. I was moving to another country because of my job and my study so it took a while for me to finally settle down and have time to write. Thank you for your patience. From now on, I'll only update once every Wednesday due to my busy schedule. Thank you once again for everything. I love you all <3