Seulgi knew she should be cold as she stood outside, her breath misting in the frigid air.  It was early morning in winter, the sky a hazy golden purple as the sun broke slowly above the horizon. She stuffed her hands into her black wool coat, the lining of her pockets absentmindedly.  It was strange that no matter how long she had been alive for, the sunrises still always looked the same. Even now waiting in front of a sleek office building in the financial district of Seoul.

“You’re waiting out here already?”

She turned and saw Byulyi waving at her, a cigarette in hand.  Her dark hair was pulled back in a low pony tail that contrasted with the long-sleeved white button-down she was wearing.

“They’ll be coming in less than ten minutes.  It’s better to be early than late.”

Byulyi chuckled as she placed the cigarette in , cupping a hand over the end as she flicked her lighter a few times.  She inhaled with a tiny moan, mouth curled in a wry grin.

“Your time in Japan seems to have changed you.  So prompt now.”

Seulgi blushed as she clenched her hands a few times in her pockets, recalling her personal vacation for the past few years. 

“It was necessary.”

Byulyi shrugged as she blew smoke in Seulgi’s face, trying to make the other girl’s eyes water. 

“I never said it was a bad thing.  The work that we do isn’t exactly easy.”

Seulgi nodded once as she ducked her head, looking at her boots. 

“Will we… will we be greeted by the Lord of South Korea?”

Byulyi hummed as she flicked a bit of ash from her cigarette.

“Still thinking about her, are we?”

Seulgi glanced up and Byulyi’s eyes glowed gold for a second.  She resisted the urge to duck her head as the other woman continued to give her that hard contemplative look.

“Yes, she will be there.  Lord Bae of South Korea will be coming as well as Governor Kim of Seoul.”

Seulgi tried to duck her head again but Byulyi suddenly was grabbing her by the collar, gaze glowing golden.

“Kang Seulgi, if you can’t handle seeing her again you shouldn’t have volunteered for this.”

“I told you I was ready and I am.”

Byulyi mouth curled a little and her teeth were very sharp.

“Joohyun is not someone to be trifled with.  If you can’t put the past behind you for this preliminary summit meeting then-”

“I said I was ready!”  This time it was Seulgi’s turn to flash her teeth, a growl nearly ripping from in frustration.

They looked at each other for a long moment and the weight of what happened years ago felt heavy in the silence between them.

“I took a risk hiring you to work for the Hunter’s Association, Seulgi. You’re the only vampire in our ranks.”

“I know, Unnie.”

“If your connection with Governor Bae becomes an issue for this round of negotiations, I’ll have to seriously reevaluate what you’re doing here.”

Seulgi nodded, meeting Byulyi’s stern gaze.  With a sigh Byulyi dropped her hand and spat her cigarette from .

“You haven’t gotten rid of that awful habit, Chairman Moon?”

Seulgi quickly turned around and felt like someone had thrown cold water at her. While she had been talking to Byulyi, she hadn’t noticed an expensive looking foreign car had pulled up.  Governor Kim was grinning at the two of them as the driver opened her door for her, tossing her freshly dyed rose gold hair over her shoulder.

“Your kind makes me too stressed out to not have some sort of vice, Governor Kim.”

“We’ve known each other long enough for you to call me Yongsun.”

Seulgi watched as Byulyi said nothing as she began to hunt in her pockets for another cigarette.  The action made Governor Kim’s mouth pull down slightly into a flat line.

“Thank you for agreeing to meet with us despite your busy schedule, Governor Kim.”

The governor’s attention flicked away from Byulyi to Seulgi.

“Ah of course, Seulgi-yah.  Although it’s a shame I can’t see you as often as I used to.”

Seulgi felt her face flush as she met Governor Kim’s suggestive smile.  She was always so good at politics and suggestions.  That was probably how she had murdered her way to such a high position as Governor of Seoul.  Much like what Joohyun had done.

As if someone had read Seulgi’s mind, another car door opened and closed. 

She had a single moment to compose herself, hands balling tightly into fists as she braced her shoulders for the blow of seeing Joohyun again after years. But honestly no amount of mental preparation could prevent what felt like a physical punch to the gut.

Joohyun unsurprisingly looked the same as the last time she saw her.  Her long black hair was slightly curled at the ends over a professional long black coat.  Someone walking past her on the street would probably think she was the heiress of a company or a CEO with the confident way she carried herself like all eyes should be on her.  Joohyun had always known her worth even when others had not.

She suddenly felt a hand on her back and was startled from her revelry. 

“I would appreciate if you wouldn’t try to dazzle my bodyguard over here, Lord Bae.”

“I did no such thing.”

At the sound of Joohyun’s voice, Seulgi’s knees practically buckled.  The slight quiver made the other woman’s eyes dart over toward her and she could barely contain her tremble.  Joohyun’s eyes were still large and warm, threatening to swallow Seulgi whole.   

“Well, since you’re both here I suppose we can get started with our meeting upstairs.”  Byulyi exhaled a hot breath of sweet smelling smoke with a grimace before squishing her cigarette under her foot with emphasis. 

“Of course, Chairman Moon.”

Byulyi turned toward the front door and Seulgi stiffly maintained her position, waiting for Joohyun and Governor Kim to go ahead.  She didn’t think though of what that would feel like as Joohyun walked closer and closer until they were the closest they had been in years.

When Joohyun was in front of her, for a split second as she passed by, Seulgi’s hand twitched as if trying to feebly hold her in place for a moment longer.  As the other woman walked by without sparing a second glance, Seulgi’s breath whooshed out of her in a shuddering exhale.  Staring at her slight back, Seulgi wondered to herself if this is how it would always be.  Joohyun striding forward and Seulgi doomed to always watch her from behind painfully in the dark.

Rewind.

Seulgi sharpened a pencil, ignoring her bangs slipping into her eyes.  Her sketch book was wedged between her legs as she sat next to the window, trying to draw the rainy nightscape outside. 

Suddenly a gentle hand brushed away the errant hairs, lingering along Seulgi’s jaw.  Instead of startling, she leaned a little into the touch with a smile.

“Unnie, I didn’t hear you come in.”

“You were too busy working,” Joohyun murmured quietly, still standing close with her hand against the warmth of Seulgi’s jaw.  She looked up at the other woman and smiled.  There always seemed to be some sort of melancholy hanging in Joohyun’s eyes, making her gaze heavy with too many emotions to name.

Seulgi made eye contact and whatever dark lingering thoughts seemed to dissipate as she saw a tentative smile curl Joohyun’s lips.

“How was your work at the laundromat?”

“Good.  Mrs. Song says that my ironing is the most exceptional she has ever seen.”

“Well, Unnie, haven’t you been practicing for hundreds of years?”

“The clothes iron wasn’t even patented until the late 1800s, Seulgi-yah.  So not nearly that long.”

Joking about Joohyun being a vampire seemed like an impossibility in the beginning of their friendship.  When Joohyun had saved her after Seulgi had been nearly mugged while walking home late one night, she had expected to never see the other girl again.  But once every few weeks Joohyun would slip back into Seulgi’s apartment like a street cat.  Sometimes Seulgi would wonder where the other girl would come and go from.  She only knew three things about her.  Joohyun was a vampire.  Joohyun worked at a laundromat.  Joohyun’s birthday was in spring.  But despite the lack of information about the other girl, Seulgi was just grateful that Joohyun still continued to visit her.

“A penny for your thoughts?” Joohyun asked as she brushed a gentle thumb along the curve of Seulgi’s jaw.

Seulgi just giggled as she put her sketchbook aside and stood from her window seat.  Joohyun watched curiously as the other girl reached forward and helped to undo the uniform tie around her collar.

“What are you doing?”

“You always have such a hard time undoing this.  I just thought I’d help you.”

 “I’ve been alive for so long, you don’t think I can-”

But Seulgi already had the ribbon in her fingers, too quick to listen to Joohyun’s protest. 

“Sometimes I don’t believe you when say you’re a vampire, Unnie.”

“Oh?”

Joohyun was looking at Seulgi a little strangely but a small smile still curled .

“You just aren’t very scary.”

The words made Joohyun’s smile widen.

“You aren’t afraid of me?”

“Of course not, Unnie!”

Joohyun bit her lip and were Seulgi’s eyes playing tricks on her or was the other woman blushing?

“Humans should be afraid of vampires, Seulgi-yah.  It’s the natural order of things.”

Seulgi had just giggled, thinking it was teasing as she gestured for Joohyun to sit next to her on the window seat.  She should have listened to what Joohyun had really been trying to say.  It hadn’t been teasing.  But a warning. 

Forward.

“You’re a masochist,” Yongsun said conversationally as she continued to play her game on her cell phone.

“I’m a what?” Joohyun asked irritably as she pulled her gaze from the tinted window to look at the woman next to her.

“You insisted on going to that meeting even though you knew Seulgi would be there.”

“It’s important to maintain a good relationship with the Hunter’s Association, Yongsun-ah.  They help capture and terminate those of us who cannot follow the rules.”

Yongsun made a thoughtful noise as she lost the level she was playing, forced to look up.

“Even though we’ve been in conflicts before, Joohyun-ah, I’m not talking to you like you’re a rival.  I’m not after your spot as Lord of South Korea.  What I’m saying is not criticism to you.”

“Then?” Joohyun prompted quietly, eyes dropping to her hands that were clenched tightly in her lap.    

“You couldn’t even focus on what was happening during the meeting with Chairman Moon.  I know you are more than capable of doing your job.  I just worry about what will happen in the future now that Seulgi is working for the Hunter’s Association.”

“Seulgi is no longer my concern.  She hasn’t been since she left.”  Joohyun tried to ignore how the words felt like a stab to her chest.

“Just because she left doesn’t mean she isn’t our concern.  You were first and foremost her sire and she works for an organization whose ultimate goal is to eradicate vampires, our truce and alliance with them not-withstanding.”

Joohyun sighed tiredly.

“Your point?”

“I’ve done a lot to amass the power I have.  I wouldn’t want to be given the Lordship of South Korea because you made a fatal mistake.”

“Is that a threat?”

“No.  A concerned observation from an old friend.”

Joohyun couldn’t help her chuckle as she looked at Yongsun.

“Sometimes I wonder if I shouldn’t have let Seulgi go.”

“Joohyun-ah…”

“But then I saw her today and honestly I’m just grateful that she’s still alive.  Instead of-”  Joohyun closed , letting out a pained whimper at a memory that was still fresh in her mind.

“I know.  I remember.”

Joohyun nodded once, trying to straighten her posture like that would get rid of the lump in . 

“It’s lonely, being at the top.  Isn’t it, Yongsun-ah?”

The other girl made a noncommittal sound as she shifted to look back at her phone.

“You say that after all emotional manipulation and backstabbing you did, Joohyun-ah?”

And Joohyun could only give a sharp smile in reply.

Rewind.

Joohyun held the struggling man’s head below water, watching emotionlessly as he flailed his arms and legs.  He was straining to breathe but she just wouldn’t let him.

Across from her, the Lord of South Korea sat drinking from a wine glass like nothing was amiss.

Finally, when she thought he had enough, Joohyun yanked the man from the dirty porecelein tub.  The cavernous room of the warehouse was suddenly filled with his wheezing coughs as his weak human lungs tried desperately to fill with air.

“His Lordship asked you a question, Mr. Cho.  I suggest you answer it.”

She glanced up and saw His Lordship gazing intently at the scene in front of him, his interest peaked once more.  Silently she dragged the man in front of His Lordship, shoving Mr. Cho to his knees.

“I warned you that I have dogs that hunt rabbits such as yourself, Mr. Cho.  Are you surprised that with the severity of the situation I sent my most fierce dog to hunt you down?”

Mr. Cho continued to gag, trying to control his labored breaths into coherent words.  Joohyun merely bowed her head waiting for her next order.  She tried not to think about Seulgi most likely waiting for her at the apartment wondering what they were making Joohyun do at the laundromat that day.

“Again I ask you, Mr. Cho. Who have you been selling our supplies of blood to? I cannot be a true overseer of South Korea if I do not know who has been trifling with the sustenance that feeds those I am meant to protect.  My contacts with President Park say that it is not affiliated with the government so I am forced to believe it is coming from your end.”

Joohyun remembered what exactly she had to do to get that particular information from those men.  She had nearly missed the blood stain that had covered the front of her shirt on her way to see Seulgi.

“P-please… I don’t know anything.  I wasn’t even there when those shipments were allegedly sold!”

“Allegedly? You say that as if it isn’t the truth.”

Joohyun grabbed the man harshly by the shoulders, waiting for her command.

“Joohyun-ah, you’ve been such a good girl this whole while.  I think you deserve a treat.”

“Thank you, Your Lordship.”

“Please! Please spare my life! I have a family! The Korean War hasn’t even been over for ten years! What will my wife do without me?”

Joohyun ignored him as she kneeled on the dirty floor of the warehouse.  She tore off the collar of his shirt, leaving his neck exposed. 

“Let this be a lesson to any who think it is appropriate to double cross a vampire.  If you cannot give the service we need then you are nothing more than food to us.”  His Lordship’s voice echoed to the group of cowering men behind Joohyun, watching with horrified whimpers.  They were human associates that were an unfortunate necessity to the preservation of vampires in South Korea.

Joohyun gave them a fierce glance, knowing how her eyes must be glowing a terrifying blood red in the dim lighting.

“Eat your fill, Joohyun.  You’ve worked hard.”

She held her tongue ignoring the hatred that could threaten to spill from her eyes at the condescending words.  She felt like some common thug getting her cut of the profit after a successful heist. 

But as she looked down at the pathetic Mr. Cho who was still begging for his life she remembered that this life was all she could have as a vampire.  Wanting anything else but the blood and violence of this existence was impossible. 

As Joohyun opened , exposing her sharp fangs, she thought of Seulgi smiling and sketching under her desk lamp.  It felt stupid to hesitate but there was a moment of weakness where she paused before biting the squirming Mr. Cho.  Would Seulgi approve of this, she thought dimly through the haze of bloodlust.

Joohyun growled a little as she bit, filling with sweet blood and the sound of a terrified heart pumping deliciously in her ears. 

It didn’t matter what Seulgi thought, she decided.  Because Seulgi would never know.

Forward.

Seulgi sat in her apartment, casually sipping on her mug of blood as she tapped a pencil against her laptop.  She had a word document open with the schedule for the official summit meeting of all the leadership from both the Hunter’s Association and Vampire Council in South Korea.  Suddenly she wished that she could have her old eyesight back where she struggled to see anything that was printed in front of her.  That way the words she was reading could just blur into inexistence in front of her.

If her body had deteriorated with her actual age then she would be struggling to read the open word document.  The thought made her jaw clench.

“Meeting: Her Lordship of South Korea Bae Joohyun, Governor of Seoul Kim Yongsun, Chairman Moon Byulyi, and President Jung. Security Personnel: Kang Seulgi.”

Seulgi sighed a little and took another sip from her mug. 

No matter how hard she had tried to avoid the other girl, it seemed like they were going to have to meet again.  Seulgi wondered if this time it wouldn’t end with her feeling like her heart had been torn from her chest and Joohyun covered in blood.