The sun was setting with a brilliant orange glow visible over the sea of buildings that made up a certain city in Japan. It was early January, snow-covered streets were common along with the sound of sneezing. Sungkyu stood just outside the entrance to the subway station and was wondering where to go next. Dozens of people kept walking past him with their own destination clear in mind, but he was lost. 

 "Why'd you have to move here" he grumbled quietly.

He looked around and was half-hoping Woohyun might just rear his head somewhere over the countless people that were bustling like ants. He was rethinking his decision to be Woohyun's best man, "I shouldn't have said yes...". He brought out his phone and could clearly see the way to Woohyun's home pointed out on Google Maps, but he was unfamiliar with this city. "He said he'd be here, but he's not even answering.."

 Sungkyu, seeing people kept coming and going with him blocking their way, opted to take some steps in whatever direction his feet led him to (only leading him a couple of steps forward because his hesitancy). 

He took a deep sigh and put his phone back inside his pocket. Sungkyu turned around on a whim, and took a final look at the station he was about to leave, "It's too late to go back after 12 hours in an airplane," he mused with a subtle smile; he shook his head, "No, I can't go back now! I'll just have to find his home on my own." He tugged on his backpack's left arm strap, tensing it so it wouldn't fall off, and advanced a few steps, but then a hand pulled on his right sleeve.

 There was a gasp, followed by a female voice that asked "What happened?!"

Sungkyu was startled. For a brief second, Sungkyu was taken to the nights long ago when he with Woohyun by his side would take on the monstrous lifeforms, now dubbed Devilchildren. 7 years had passed since then.

He turned around and was met by a beautiful woman who had her eyes fixated on his (missing) right arm. She grasped the sleeve, a sympathetic frown was on her face.

"What happened to your arm, Sungkyu?!"

 The voice was familiar; Sungkyu had heard it before... years ago. Then he stared at the mole on her nose, and then at the one above her upper lip and the one below her bottom lip.

A cold zephyr blew across him, he shuddered and closed his narrow eyes. "It's cold!"

 The woman giggled at his reaction to the cold, prompting Sungkyu to look at her. He saw her gums poke through a smile and remembered who it was: 

 "Mina!"

 "Yeah!" she replied with a half-smile, her eyes still in the direction of his right sleeve, "You got in an accident? What happened Sungkyu?"

 Sungkyu scratched the back of his head and grinned at her: the way his eyes were nearly shut reminded Mina of the waxing moon.

 "Yeah...motorcycles, dangerous but beautiful, you know?"

He couldn't share his secrets. Sungkyu had lost his arm in the battle against the last fallen angel, an event that drew major attention on a global scale, although it was mostly covered up by the organization ECO. The battle was termed "Armageddon at Los Angeles".

 Mina held a solemn look. She felt deeply sorry for him. The worst thing she had encountered since they last met in high school was her retirement from the music industry because she was old (over 30) and no longer as popular. How can you compare that to losing an actual arm?

 "What are you doing here?" Sungkyu asked, trying to change the topic.

 "...I live here."

 Sungkyu nodded with a blank expression on his face, unsure of what to say next. He lifted up  his fingers and held them in front of his lips, pretending he was holding a cigarette, "Look," he said as he exhaled, letting out his breath as though it were smoke. Mina stared at the haze and slightly laughed.

 "Not funny?"

 Mina smiled, "Not really." Her attention kept shifting to Sungkyu's missing arm, she was trying to be polite and not to look, but her eyes just naturally went there without her noticing. seemed to tighten for her and the white of her eyes glistened more than usual; she kept wondering about the pain Sungkyu must've suffered.

Sungkyu took a deep sigh, he caught hint of her sadness, "It's okay," he said with a bright smile, "Don't worry about it!" he  patted his right shoulder, "It doesn't hurt or anything, plus I've gotten used to it!"

 Sungkyu let down his backpack, took off his jacket, and showed off his muscular left arm, "Lefty has gotten strong enough to make up for the missing one," he said with a slight laugh, hoping Mina would feel better.

Mina giggled. She pinched her thumb and finger together, "Can I?" she asked, wanting to squeeze Sungkyu's bicep.

 Sungkyu replied with a proud smile, "Sure! It's a 24 inch python, though! So be careful or it'll bite!"

 Mina was timid, but the bulge of muscle made her too curious: she took a step closer to him and squeezed his bicep shyly at first, with her face looking away; then, she held an impressed look on her face and gave it a tight grip. She backed away afterward and giggled.

 "It's nice, huh?"

 "Yeah!" her vision sank to the floor as she said, "Nayeon's a lucky girl to have a strong man by her side- I mean, you and her must've married long ago..."

 Sungkyu held an uneasy smile, he sighed and replied in a low tone, "She died- over 9 years ago, December 1st."

 Mina gasped and bowed in apology, "I'm so sorry- I didn't-" 

Sungkyu cut in and gestured with his hand that it was ok, "It's fine; it's impossible for you to have known. I mean, we did move to America- and, " he took another sigh, "Yeah, a lot," he thought about how he became an alcoholic and rubbed the back of his head, "A lot happened."

At hearing his respone, Mina felt remorseful, "I shouldn't have asked..." she told herself. 

She exchanged glances with Sungkyu and decided: grasping his hand, she asked, "Do you want to drink -" she checked herself, remembering his utmost disdain toward alcohol, the source being his father's alcoholism, "I mean eat, we could buy some food or something," an inherent urge to stick around him prompted her to say with much eagerness, hoping he would say yes, "or I could cook for you or something." 

Her eyes were at first beaming with radiance, but then she looked down and groaned thinking how she was shameless at wanting to be with him after just hearing of Nayeon's passing. Sungkyu interpreted her demeanor as something else entirely: he thought that she thought that he would refuse her invitation.

Sungkyu put his jacket on and slipped his arm into his backpack's strap, "Let's go!" he said with a reassuring voice.  

Mina was gnawing over her conscious, but the moment he said those words, she became like an excited 17 year old girl, she tilted her head and asked, "Huh? Go- where?" 

 "I mean, I can't say no to an old friend!"

 She exhaled a long breath, regaining her composure, and answered, "Yeah, sure! I don't live too far from here." 

 They started walking in the direction of her home, only several blocks away. The walk was quiet, Mina had her tongue in her cheek, slighlty irritated because she was at the verge of wanting to talk, yet choosing not to. She couldn't make up her mind whether to speak or not: she really wanted to know more about how he's been but she was afraid of crossing some boundaries.

 "Hey," Sungkyu said.

 Mina was caught off guard, she slipped and was about to fall but Sungkyu stepped in and caught her. 

 "I got ya," he said with a grin, holding in his laughter. "Don't worry."

Mina's breath was stolen by his close proximity, so she pulled herself away just a few feet; Sungkyu thought she was simply embarrassed.

Mina pulled her hair behind her ear and continued forward, "We're getting closer now."

 Sungkyu followed close by- behind her so she can take the lead.

 "Hey," he said with an inquisitive tone, "I heard you were an idol-"

 "Yeah, waz... not anymore though; I'm just a dance instructor now."

 Sungkyu moved to walk directly beside her, "Can I have an autograph?" he asked with a curious voice.

 She smiled, "It's not worth that much, " she replied with a bashful tone.

 "How much?"

 She paused and scratched her chin, "Around 10,000 yen?"

 "Whoah! Don't I get a discount?"

 "Nope."

 Mina was glad to know he held interest in her, hoping that maybe some thing would come off of it. She was now debating to ask him about his relationship with Nayeon before her passing. She just had to know more.

She caved in and boldly asked, without thinking "So- did you actually marry her?"

 Sungkyu was taken aback by the sudden question, "Yeah, she died two years after." 

Mina sensed a sorrowful tone in his reply, she clenched her small hand and regretted ever asking. She quietly clicked her tongue and called herself stupid. "You're starting up on the wrong foot," she told herself .

He wanted to change the topic, "But how about you? Any boyfriend? "

 "Huh?"

 Sungkyu looked at her with a blank face, "I mean, you're quite beautiful, so I'm just guessing," he halted, thinking he was being too forward, "I'm sorry, if I'm being dumb."

 The corners of gently rose, "No, it's okay- I mean I've been in relationships too, but nothing serious."

 Sungkyu had always been her first love. Although she had dated many  prominent men before (a doctor, baseball player, prowresu champion, and a famous actor) during her time in the limelight, no one, no one, was able to move her heart like Sungkyu did when they were in high school. 

 Sungkyu nodded. As they turned the corner, Mina pointed to her apartment complex. It was a rather large building that stood alone as the tallest building in the vicinity.

As they reached the door of her room, the second one on the right hand side of the hall, Mina told Sungkyu to wait a little with a cute smile. She didn't want Sungkyu to a get a wrong impression, so she felt compelled to tidy up her home some.

Sungkyu managed to rubberneck a little, just enough to glimpse at the various magazines, clothes and other miscellaneous objects haphazardly strewn across her living room floor and table.

 "I didn't see anything too messy," he told her as she told him to step in.

 She puffed her cheek and lightly knife-edge chopped his chest.

 Sungkyu stepped in and was greeted by a fairly regular living room.

 "Is something wrong?"

 "I just thought you'd have some posters of your idol days up or something..."

 "I get a bit embarrassed..."

 Sungkyu dropped his backpack down and sat against a wall with his legs crossed, "I'm sorry for just taking a seat, but I'm tired," he said while rubbing the back of his neck.

 "It's fine. Why don't you wait here while I go see what I can make for you."

 Sungkyu smiled and saw Mina scuttle away, in direction of her kitchen that was in the next room.  Sungkyu began to dig through his backpack, in search of a souvenir he had brought from a town in Europe. He wanted to gift Mina something as a token of appreciation. It was a small chocolate violin he bought as a gift with the intention of giving it to Woohyun, but he thought Mina might like it more. 

He couldn't find it, so he was forced to unpack some of his belongings. Among the first things he took out was the muffler that had adorned his neck as a hero years ago, the very muffler Nayeon gave him on their first Christmas. The muffler, while once white, was now a deep red color. It had turned red when Sungkyu used it to wrap a deep wound Woohyun had suffered. The blood that emerged from his wound is what turned the muffler red. Sungkyu held it up in his hand and stared at it fondly, leaning back against the wall.

All this time, Mina was scrambling to gather ingredients together to make a nice Western meal, wanting to impress Sungkyu. She threw two balls of Hamburg steak on the skillet and proceeded to cut up some vegies, then it came to her that Sungkyu might be thirsty. She quickly washed a glass cup and filled it to the brim with icy water, decorating it with a thin slice of lemon. She threw all the veggies in a separate skillet and stepped back, looking proudly at her cooking. Then she took the cup and went to Sungkyu.

 "That's not the muffler I gave you, is it?" Mina asked as she approached Sungkyu and handed the glass of water.

Sungkyu took a sip, "Thank you- how'd you know I was thirsty?" and afterward apologized, "I'm sorry, yours worn out long ago. This is the one I was gifted-"

Mina cut in and spoke with an apathetic air, she was secretly jealous, "By Nayeon, right? Yeah, I think I remember you having it on during our graduation ceremony as you two were holding hands."

Sungkyu began to smile warmly. "Yeah, you have a good memory."

"But I thought it was white? I guess I remembered wrong." 

Sungkyu sighed and held a plaintive look as he remembered wrapping Woohyun's wound with it.

 Mina noticed his quiet demeanor: she looked down, thinking she did something stupid again. 

 "I'm sorry if I keep bringing her up."

 "Nah, it's fine, don't worry about it, " said Sungkyu as he began folding the scarf. 

His fingers felt the edge of a small box between one of the folds, he smiled at this.

 "Here!" Sungkyu said with the small gift now in hand.

 Mina was curious, "For me?" she asked with her eyes on the small red box.

 "Yeah, it's a special chocolate I got from my trip to Europe yesterday."

 "You went to Europe?" 

 "Yeah, just a little trip there."

 Sungkyu was being discreet. In reality, he took it upon himself to personally investigate a case. He overheard a curious phone conversation between Steve Borden, head of ECO, and another agent. It was about the missing Ring Of Solomon, the ring that Jaejoong had used to seal the first six fallen angels. The ring is a powerful relic, described as being able to control and summon demons at will. It was said to have been spotted in the town of Tartini, a woman was wearing it.  He did not find it there, however.

Mina opened the box with a smile, "It's -" she took a good look at the chocolate, "melted." She smiled subtly as she put it in .

Sungkyu had stretched out his hand, wanting to stop her from eating it, "I'm sorry. I didn't think it would melt-"

 "It's fine. It was tasty."

Sungkyu felt compelled to make up for his blunder, he planned to gift one half of the couple ring he had bought for Woohyun and his fiancee to her, so he immediately rummaged through his backpack again. Mina simply stood and looked on, anxious however, at the thought of her food burning. She saw him still digging through his stuff, so after 3 minutes, she said, "I'll be right-"

 "Hold on! Another gift!" Sungkyu called out.

 Mina felt the itch to check on her food, but decided against it after turning back to look at his shining eyes.

 "Here," Sungkyu opened the box, holding it between his thighs as he pulled open the lid, "Put it on!" he said with an eager voice as he stretched out the ring, a simple silver band.

Mina was entranced by it, thinking, "Why would he give me a ring?"

 "It's a friendship ring! I'm really sorry about the melted chocolate, so take it."

 Mina finally grabbed hold of it and placed it on her finger, "Thank you."

 Sungkyu responded with his eyes nearly vanishing as he gave a warm smile.

Mina came and sat next to him, her curiosity beckoned her to ask, "I'm sorry to pry... but how hard was it- you know, when she-"

Sungkyu's vision drifted to the ceiling, "It was hell. I will never forget how the last time I saw her was in a coffin. I will never forget how her skin felt so cold when I kissed her the final time, colder than snow...a part of me was hoping that she'd miraculously revive, but I had to accept God's plans."

 Mina was quiet.

 "But, I'm okay now- I went through a lot after she died, went to places I never should've gone, but I'm fine now," he chuckled just slightly, "Woohyun's a big part of why I'm good now, that's why I was happy to be his best man-"

 Mina cut in, "Woohyun?! You mean the one that got in you in trouble in our last year at high school?"

 "That's the one!" Sungkyu held a strange expression before he realized, "I think the food's burning."

 Mina jumped to her feet, and surely enough, dinner was ruined.

 Her eyes were downcast, "I'm sorry," she looked up and winced an eye, "You okay with eating Instant Ramen?"

 "Yeah- I mean, if you'll make it, I'll eat."

 The two ate with the tv off, and Sungkyu elaborated on his friendship with Woohyun, euphemizing his heroics as "being something like a cop".

Jet-lag kicked in after he finished eating.

Mina spoke softly, "I...you can stay here for the night..."

 *snores*

 "You're asleep..."