Being the gentleman he was, Sungkyu made sure to pull the chair out for Mina, "Ladies first!"

 "Thanks," Mina said as she sat. She neatly tucked her hair behind her ear and asked Sungkyu what he would like to eat.

 "Oh, I'll have what you're having," he said in a mild voice as he sat.

As Mina searched through the menu, Sungkyu had his chin resting on his palm. He was deep in thought. 

 After dating Mina for over a year, Sungkyu bought an engagement ring and was planning to propose today (April, 23, 2027), the day in which Mina's movie premiered. He was nervous, and kept asking himself whether he was jumping the gun too quickly. Every time he affirmed his decision to propose, the thought of the girl that resembled Nayeon popped into his mind. The sightings of the girl had become more and more frequent, and surely enough, his vision always led him to search for her whenever he saw her, as though it was Nayeon herself that was in front of him and not some lookalike. What bugged him most was how the girl always vanished right when he tried to take a second look, as though she was a ghost. This "seeking" for the girl is what instilled doubt within Sungkyu; it made him question his desire to propose because he felt his heart was lukewarm when it came to Mina. He loved her for sure, but he felt something was lacking.

 "I have to!" Sungkyu told himself.

 "Sungkyu, is something wrong?" Mina questioned as she stretched out to touch his hand.

 He moved his hand away, "No, I'm fine! Just distracted!" he said the last words with a forced laugh.

 "Did you think my movie was good?"

 "I loved it! You could ask me another 100 times, and I'll respond the same!"

 She was coy, "can you tell me why it was so good?"

 "Because you were in it."

 Five minutes later, their dinner was served and they began to eat. Sungkyu played around with the ring in his pocket. He kept asking himself when the correct time to propose would be. His mind suddenly took him back to the time he proposed to Nayeon, which in turn caused him to wistfully sigh.

 "Are you fine Sungkyu?"

 "Yeah, uhmmm, just that I now realize I've come a long way since..."

 No more words were needed for Mina to grasp the situation.

She took hold of Sungkyu's hand and rubbed his knuckles, "I promise I'll make you happier. Just be with me, and you'll see."

 Sungkyu felt guilty, thinking Mina was too good for him. He could only reply with a simple, "thank you."

 At this point Mina excused herself to reapply her lipstick in the restroom, anticipating a kiss at the night's end.

 "You better think about it twice," she said with a bright smile, half serious with her following words, "before you look at anyone but me!"

Sungkyu nodded and took out the ring to stare at as soon as she left. He kept fiddling with it and told himself, "I'll do it as soon as she comes back!" But his hand had gotten clammy from the nervousness, so much so that the ring flew out of his hand and rolled onto the carpeted floor of the restaurant.

Sungkyu was frantic as he threw himself on the floor to look for it. Everyone around stared at him, but he was completely oblivious to this, only the thought of retrieving the ring filtered his mind.

His head bopped with another's as he crawled to get the ring that had rolled under an empty table.

 "It's okay," a female voice said. 

 He had his eyes closed and was rubbing his forehead, "I'm sorry!"

 "Here you go!" the girl said as the ring was stretched out by her.

 "Thanks!" Sungkyu replied as he slowly opened his eyes.

His spirit left him when he saw the girl place the ring in his open palm.

 "Nayeon!" 

 The girl got up and headed for the exit. Sungkyu was stuck in a standstill, his eyes were incessantly blinking, questioning what was going on.

 "I have to follow her!"

 Sungkyu got up and ran after her, but once he reached the outside he saw the streets empty.

His eyes searched in all directions with a ruthlessness like no other.

Then he ran his hand through his hair as he castigated himself, "Sungkyu! You fool! What about Mina?! Are you going to hurt her?! Think for once!"

He  knew he had to return to Mina but he lingered for a second, secretly hoping the girl might pass by. Although he hated to accept it, he was disappointed to have not gotten a second look at the girl. He clicked his tongue and kicked at the air before returning to his table with these sluggish steps. He was keeping his head hung low between his shoulders as he returned, asking himself why that girl had to appear. "Everything was fine until she appeared," he thought to himself. Then as he rose his head, his eyes met with Mina's who stared, if it were, into his soul.

 "What happened?" she asked as he took his seat, "what were you doing outside?"

 "Oh! I saw an old friend!" he said with a quivering lip.

 "Woohyun? I thought he was taking care of their baby?"

 "No, not him. Just someone I hadn't seen in a while," he said with plaintive tone.

 "Do I know him?" 

 "It was a she, but let's forget about her," he instinctly swallowed his spit, "let's just finish our dinner."

 Mina was puzzled, unsure of what to make of Sungkyu's vague replies. There was a sliver of doubt she held toward him, thinking he ran off after Nayeon's lookalike. But she tossed this doubt aside, not wanting to ruin the night.

 "Did you like the food here?" 

 Sungkyu was playing with the ring, "huh?"

 "The food?" Mina saw the ring sparkle in his hand, "what's that?" she asked with a smile.

 Sungkyu quickly put the ring away, "It's nothing! don't worry about it..."

They finished their meal without much talking. They exchanged glances every so often but, Sungkyu refused to propose today. The thought of that girl kept bugging him, he was conflicted over his grand curiosity. "It's just a lookalike, not her!" he told himself, "I know that! Why does it take so long for my heart to catch up with my mind?"

They were now at their apartment. Mina stared intently at Sungkyu before she opened her door.

 "Want to come in?" she asked with a delicate tone.

 Sungkyu scratched the back of his head, "ok."

 Mina led him inside and told him to wait for some tea. While waiting, Sungkyu contemplated whether to confess his unfaithfulness or not. Because he felt even wanting to stare at the girl constituted  just that

As Mina bent to pour the tea, all he could do was look at her. She was beautiful. His breath was taken away when she neatly tucked the hair that dangled in front of her behind her ear.

 "I'm sorry."

 Mina looked at him, "huh?"  

 Sungkyu bit his lip before he explained himself.

 "You're horrible!"

 Sungkyu's face was scrunched up in anger over himself, "I know. I'm sorry."

 "You promised!"

 "I know I did! That's why I'm sorry. I know my faults!"

 "Leave!" Mina exclaimed as she wiped away the tears that flowed without ceasing.

Sungkyu went to his own room across the hall from hers and engaged in some soul searching. After much time, he finally fell asleep.

Around 3 am he woke up to a bed filled with sweat. Next, he rubbed the back of his neck and was startled to feel that the texture of his skin had changed. He rushed to the bathroom window and observed his change. His body was black and his eyes were crimson.

After 8 long years he finally transformed again.  "What for?! I thought the angels were sealed!"

 He heard a knock at his door. "Please don't be Mina!"

 "Sungkyu? It's me- can we talk?"

 Sungkyu was unsure what to do.

 "Sungkyu? Please? Let me in!" Mina said as she twisted the knob.

 His heart began to leap out of his chest when the door slowly began to open. He had forgotten to lock it. 

He rushed to shove the door shut, "I'm sorry! Not now!"

 Mina leaned against the door and slid down until she was sitting on the floor. "He must hate me," she thought.

 "Let's talk tomorrow, yeah?"

 She started to quietly sob, "I'm sorry! I know I can't take her place! I'm sorry for ever saying I'll make you happier- that was wrong of me. I know I'll never take her place, but please! I'm sorry..." she said between whimpers.

 "It's not that!" Sungkyu groaned, frustrated over the tide of events.

 "Just let me in?"

 Sungkyu stepped back without noticing and the door opened. Mina fell backwards.

When she opened her eyes, she was startled by the sight of Sungkyu. But she didn't scream. She knew it was him.

 Sungkyu quickly shut the door, "I can't explain, but-"

 "I still love you."

 "What?!"

 "You're still Sungkyu inside, right?"

 "Yeah..."

 Mina approached him and then hugged him. She lay her head on his chest and repeated, "I love you."

 The two sat and Sungkyu shared his secrets with her, talking until just before sunrise, at which point he headed for his room in anticipation of what comes next (his changing back into a human, although ).

Sungkyu returned to the living room and saw Mina asleep.

Later that morning, he called Woohyun.

 "It's not fair, Woohyun! I was planning to propose to Mina but this happens! and what's worst is that there's this one girl that looks exactly like Nayeon, and I hate it! I feel as if I'm being pulled in two different directions whenever that girl pops out."

Woohyun took a deep sigh, the noises of a baby crying could be heard in the background.

 "That's no lookalike...that's actually her."

 "What?!" 

 "Or rather, that's an empty husk that's carrying her heart."

 "What are you talking about?!"

 "Sungkyu, you better sit down and I'll explain."

 He took his advice and sat on the sofa, next to Mina who was still sleeping. Woohyun explained everything and then Sungkyu abrubtly hung up.

 "So it's all my fault, huh?" Sungkyu ran his hand through his hair maniacally. He was unsure whether to laugh in disbelief or cry his heart out. 

The sight of Mina sleeping soundly brought him some peace, though.

 At this moment, an intense, blinding flash of light filled the sky, this was followed by a booming, thunderous explosion. Sungkyu went by the window and pulled the curtain, "What was that?!" he asked with much worry as he saw the sky become full with a thick black smoke. He gripped the curtain and bit his lip once he saw the buildings near the area of the incident begin to incinerate as a result of falling fiery debris.

 Mina was jostled awake by the noise, "Sungkyu!"

 "Here I am!"

 His phone began to ring, Mina answered after recognizing Woohyun's number.

 "What is it?" Sungkyu asked.

 Mina the t.v. and said, "he said to watch the news!"

 "Did something crash?"

 Mina replied with a groan, "an airplane exploded mid-flight."

 Sungkyu sighed, "too many things are happening all of a sudden..."

 He couldn't hold it in any longer, Sungkyu threw himself on Mina and cried profusely. Mina was taken aback, but he was like a child in her  bosom. She gently his hair and patted his back, "I'm here for you," she said with a small whisper.

 Sungkyu backed himself away and maintained his distance for a minute or two as he regained his composure.

 "I'm sorry, I just," he said as cleared his voice.

 "You don't have to be sorry..."

Woohyun called again and told the two to go to his apartment, because he needed to see Sungkyu urgently.

Though there was much panic outside because of the sudden tragedy, with rescuers and the wailing of ambulances flooding the vicinity, both Mina and Sungkyu were relatively calm: they felt they had to be strong for each other. Mina whipped up a quick meal for the two to eat and the two afterwards prepared to meet Woohyun at his home.

Mina tightly gripped Sungkyu's arm as they headed out, it was unnerving to be near the site of the accident. The thick clouds of smoke were visible from the street they were walking down.

 "I don't think the trains are working," Mina said. "Why do we have to meet Woohyun? I don't think it's safe to have left home..."

 Sungkyu smiled as he looked at her, "Just trust me," he told her with a comforting tone, "oh, hold on- my phone's ringing," he let go of Mina's arm and answered it. He talked for a brief moment before telling Mina, "looks like you were right, trains are down in this area; Woohyun said to wait for him in front of our apartment complex, so it seems we have to go back and wait for him there."

 "That's fine, but... You don't think it's dangerous to be moving a lot outside? Could it have been a terrorist attack or something?"

Sungkyu knew, after thinking about it, that it was no mere attack- it was Nayeon.

The two waited for around 40 minutes before Woohyun finally picked the two up. Inside his home, the two were greeted by Joy who was cooing the baby to sleep.

 "Sooyoung, stay here with Mina while I go talk with Sungkyu."

 Sooyoung nodded and told Mina to turn the t.v. on if she liked, but to leave the volume low for the baby's sake.

Sungkyu and Woohyun were scarcely leaving the room before they were halted by Mina who exclaimed, "Look!"

 The baby began to cry at the sudden yell. Mina apologized profusely, yet she insisted for them all to look at the news.

 Sungkyu clenched his fist as he stared at the image flashing on the screen before him. The headline read Monster Behind Plane Crash? and a 15 second clip was repeated over and over again: the plane was flying as usual, but in a split second, the silhouette of a human-like creature with bat features (giant wings and ears) appeared and tore off the turbine before slamming it into the body of the plane.

 "It's a demon," Woohyun said under his breath.

 Mina looked at him with dubious eyes, "what?"

 Sungkyu pulled on Woohyun's shoulder and gestured with his head for the two to have their talk in the next room. Woohyun nodded and they sat on the bed to share their worries.

 "It's like I said," Woohyun said with his eyes staring into the corner of the room, "It's only going to get worse."

 "You sure it's her?"

 "You told me you saw someone that looks exactly like her, right? and that you actually bumped heads with this person, right?"

 "Yeah, but now that I remember, I think I first saw her years ago when we were still fighting the Devilchildren..."

Woohyun rubbed his chin and spoke with a timid voice, "let's leave it up to Borden and the rest."

 Sungkyu nodded his head in disagreement, "that's not going to do. I'm sure they're on it already, but I have to do something. I have to."

 "No you don't. Both of us retired, remember?" Woohyun felt the anxiety begin to creep up, "we can't Sungkyu."

 "Why not?"

Woohyun's eyes were fierce as he was full of determination to steer clear of danger, "We have families now. It's not the same as it was years ago. If you die, you'll have more than just me mourning for you-"

 "Mina..." Sungkyu said with a sigh.

 "Don't you love her?" Woohyun asked as he stared at Sungkyu with a distraught face.

At that instance another loud explosion was heard in the distance. Mina burst into the room and hastened the two of them to watch the news.

 "It's another one of those creatures- are they really demons?"

All of them had their attention glued to the monitor as they witnessed a hideous man resembling a spider spit out its web at the top a building and then with a great tug, a great portion of the building was taken down, leaving a cloud of dust and smoke to cover the area.

 "They're like the kaijin from the superhero shows..." Mina remarked.

Sungkyu got off the couch with the intention of heading out, but Mina clung to his sleeve. "Where are you going?" she asked with a curious and anxious tone.

 Sungkyu smiled, "uhmmm, some...I'm sorry-"

 Sooyoung cut in as she sensed an ugly tension growing, "We have coffee if you want," she said as she rocked her baby some.

 Sungkyu turned to face Woohyun, but he spoke with an opportunistic approach, "Yeah, Sungkyu, we have everything you need here. We should all stay inside where it's safe. Let's leave stuff like this to the army... "

Sungkyu felt his heart pound harder and harder, and the length of his breaths shorten, but Mina had her gaze steady at him. He relented and served himself a cup of coffee. He then excused himself, "I'll be at Woohyun's room."

 He sat on the bed and stared at his dark reflection that the coffee produced, "I'm at the same spot I was back then... I can't let her go, it's all my fault." He chugged the coffee down (it was tepid) and laid back on the bed. "I have to go," he told himself.