Soft rings of bells lingered down the road, yellow and red leaves floating down as people rushed about. A bright girl around her mid-twenties was sitting on a wooden bench, her soft brown eyes scanning the atmosphere around her. She let out a small sigh, fiddling with a popsicle in her hand before placing it in . There was a slight hesitation when she picked up one of the leaves, tracing the stem running down the middle and smiling as she took another deep breath of air.

                          She wasn’t quite accustomed to it yet: the feeling of being on Earth. There was supposed to be only one purpose of her presence on this unfamiliar land, but she couldn’t help but embrace all the little qualities that came with it. Perhaps that was why she was such a black sheep back in the Upper World; that, and the fact that she was half-blooded. Her connection to Earth was probably the reason she was sent on this mission in the first place. It was a simple mission, or so she believed because she had never been assigned to protect anyone from dying, nevertheless a mere human.

                          “Where is this girl?” She murmured to herself, taking another bite out of her popsicle before clumsily getting up from the bench.

                          A dark breeze seemed to swipe past her in that moment, wispy shades surrounding a figure stalking in the distance. She lifted her head slowly, following the familiar gloomy feeling only to see that it was just what she had expected: a grim reaper. She had many interactions with reapers in the Upper World because her own mother led a unit, but she certainly was unfamiliar with their presence on Earth.

                          “Fancy seeing you here, Eunji.” A slim girl wearing pitch black approached her, the lines of her dark aurora shadowing her outlines. Eunji recognized her immediately. She was the ace of the reapers despite her young age and also widely known for her stunning beauty.

                          “You also.” Eunji grinned awkwardly, then glanced back over to a small crowd of people that had exited the building she had been watching. “I would talk to you longer, but I have business to tend to.”

                          “Me too.” The reaper remarked curtly, then disappeared, leaving Eunji with her hand stuck uneasily at the back of her head. She recollected herself quite quickly, jogging over to the entrance and trying to calm herself down.

                          The sighting of a grim reaper could not be a good sign, especially when she was trying to help someone evade death. The girl she was looking for finally appeared at the front, small and frail as she tried to sort the files she had stacked in her arms. Eunji cleared casually, straightened out her coat, then approached her jauntily.

                          “Need help?”

                          “Er, thanks but I’ll be fine.” the girl answered, fidgeting with one of the papers that was dangerously dangling at the edge. Eunji pushed it back to the stack then gave a charming smile, her eyes disappearing into half-moon curves.

                          “Thanks.”

                          “You’re welcome…” Eunji ducked slightly to glance at her name tag, “... Park Chorong.”

                          There was an awkward silence for a second, but Eunji stepped back before it could simmer any longer. She could watch from afar. Her eyes glazed over to the street where the reaper was still hovering, looking straight into Chorong's eyes. Eunji held her breath for a second, biting down on her lip when Chorong suddenly stepped into the street.

                          A motorcycle came raging down, roaring as it raced toward the distracted girl. Eunji was there in less than a second, her arm securing Chorong's waist when she swung her back toward the sidewalk. The motorcycle whizzed past and Eunji safely steadied Chorong away from the road. There was a moment of silence as she took a deep breath, still startled by the near-death experience.

                          “I–I don’t know how to thank you.”

                          “It’s no big deal, I ju–” Eunji paused, suddenly feeling a tap behind her shoulder. She didn’t need to turn around to know exactly who it is. “It’s no big deal,” Eunji repeated and smiled warmly, letting Chorong give a small nod of approval.

                          “At least let me buy you a meal as a thanks?” Chorong stammered, now busy gathering the files that she had scattered on the ground.

                          Eunji placed the last pieces of paper back into Chorong's arms then slipped out a black pen from her pocket. “Here’s my number.” she said, messily jotting down the digits, “I’ve got somewhere I have to be today but I’d still love to talk.”

                          Chorong laughed nervously and watched as Eunji cooly walked back into the building, her watch twisting on her thin wrist. She could barely take her eyes off the mysterious girl who had now seated herself on one of the atrium couches.

                          “What the hell was that about, Eunji?” the reaper pressed, her sparkling eyes narrowing threateningly.

                          “Look, I get that you’re upset Naeun but this is just part of my mission.”

                          “Mission? What kind of mission requires you breaking the rules?”

                          “This one?” Eunji shrugged, then was about to leave the scene when three more grim reapers popped next to her. She groaned in defeat, crashing back into the couch and rolling her eyes excessively.

                          “Hey to you too.” the oldest spat, clearly displeased with Eunji’s response to their arrival. She was another familiar face and the badge clipped onto her shoulder was enough to tell anyone that she was the leader of the unit.

                          Upon the arrival of her superior, Naeun was already deeply satisfied and smirked as she strode over to them. “Eunji seems to think that she can suddenly just save human lives and interfere with reapers, Head Yoon.” Bomi glanced at Naeun nervously, then coughed as she straightened up her stance.

                          “Actually… She kind of has the permission to.” Bomi grinned