As with anything in life, things come to an end. Kyungsoo shouldn’t have expected to maintain the status quo with his somewhat peaceful afterlife.

It’s the day Kyungsoo would first try to guide a soul. He’s nervous, unsurprisingly. He had only watched Baekhyun do this. And he isn’t sure what kind of death he would be facing.

Jongdae had been, true to his nature, an angel. Kyungsoo would never say it, but Jongdae didn’t need him to. He had been calming the boy inconspicuously in his own little ways. Baekhyun had also been the same as always, cold and unconcerned.

Kyungsoo looks at the angel beside him and the reaper in front of them. It’s weird, but he can see them both together. They bickered, mostly due to Baekhyun’s petty demands. And they never agreed on the emotional aspect of anything. But they were always on the same page regarding what they must do. Their causes may be different, but their action always coincided.

He doesn’t know if an angel and a reaper can be together. Or even if they had the freedom for such emotions, but it wasn’t an unpleasant thought.

The trio are standing in a park. That’s unsettling. Kyungsoo looks around, trying to find something out of place. Baekhyun looks a little confused too.

Baekhyun explained to him how the first soul would always be a private affair. ‘It’s easier for the trainees to get used to guiding them if there are no distractions for the soul’ Baekhyun told him.
So, why did they materialize in a park full of people?

He turns to Baekhyun, about to ask him when a small girl runs through him. She’s about 7 years old and literally passed through his body. The blue dress she has caught his eyes. Blue is his favorite color.

The next few seconds seem to pass in slow motion.

Boom!

The loud sound brings out a knee jerk reaction in Kyungsoo. He opens his eyes to find the surroundings all in pieces. Red everywhere. Pieces of everything flying everywhere.

A little blue shoe lying on the ground is what caught Kyungsoo’s attention in all the mess. The shoe should have been accompanied by a blue dress. And he does find the blue dress girl.

Her dress, a pristine blue is now tainted with fiery red. Shocked, he slowly walks towards the girl’s body. Her little fingers stop moving as he watches and something in his heart drops.

All the blood around him, all the bodies, they don’t register in his brain. It’s like something is pulling him towards the child. And when he reaches, just in time for her spirit to wake up, he finds a scroll in his hand.

Park Je Ni, 7 years old, Cause of death: Bomb Explosion

The little girl’s spirit is now looking around, searching for her mother. Kyungsoo notices hundreds of other reapers suddenly. They don’t look like they were prepared. Odd.

Baekhyun’s hand on his shoulder brings him back to his duty. He swallows, approaching the girl.

“Je-Ni,” he calls, making the girl turn to him. “Your mother will come by later. Why don’t you go with me first? I promise I’ll bring her by later.”

Je-Ni looks conflicted, pulling on her now clean blue dress.

Baekhyun nudges him. “A child’s drink would be anything they wish for. They also don’t need to choose. They need to forget.”

Baekhyun doesn’t look very affected. Not like Jongdae or he are. Jongdae sheds a few tears, but soon starts to help the other reapers. Figures, Jongdae might feel sadder than both Baekhyun and himself, but he’s also the first to get over the deaths. Maybe he views death in an entirely different way.

Kyungsoo puts on a smile as he turns back to the girl. “How about this? What drink do you like the most?”

Je-Ni gives him a suspicious look before answering. “Chocolate milk!”

Kyungsoo imagines a chocolate drink in his hand, just like Baekhyun did before and true to his knowledge, a glass appears with chocolate milk. He hands it to the child.

Beaming, the girl takes the drink without questions and drinks it. Within a few seconds, the soul turns shining white and disappears.

Sitting idly on the couch feels restless. Kyungsoo hopes Baekhyun and Jongdae come back from reporting soon.

He thinks back to the conversation he had with Jongdae. He had asked the angel how he could be so nonchalant about death sometimes and so emotional other times.

Jongdae smiled and hugged him. “I always feel sad for every death. I also feel happy for every death. I feel sad, because a life has ended. Everything they had worked towards, every second they spent struggling, had all come to an end. And I feel happy because they are free of that life. They are free of the sorrows and can start anew.”

Kyungsoo kind of understands. He was sad when he was watching the people die. But he didn’t feel sad that they died. Maybe that’s what this is. After all, he chose to die too. And he’s not sad about it.

Kyungsoo gets up and walks to the back of the couch he’s on. Slowly, he slides down to sit on the floor, back resting against the couch. He had always liked to sit on the floor when he’s anxious or restless.

A few minutes go by with him just thinking as he closes his eyes. He suddenly hears the sound of the door opening. Glad someone is finally back, he prepares to get up but Jongdae’s voice stops him.

“How is it possible that this happened on his first mission? You know it’s unheard of, Baekhyun!”

Baekhyun’s voice, a little louder and in the living room now, follows. “Well why ask me? You can’t be that clueless! Or did your ‘Sunbae’ not tell you that it’s the work of one of your kind?”

“What do you mean?”

“Oh, don’t be such a naïve little angel. It might not be confirmed but I’m almost positive about who’s behind this little scheme. And you have your predecessor to blame for it.”

Kyungsoo stands up from his little spot, surprising both the angel and the reaper.

“Kyu-Kyungsoo! What are you doing there?” Jongdae asks, looking guilty and worried.

Ignoring him, Kyungsoo stares at them both. “What's going on? So, I was right to think it’s weird? It was supposed to be a single soul?”