"They were together last night, weren't they?" The blonde man sighed, muttering under his breath.

The tall woman nodded exasperatedly, tapping her foot against the wooden floor. "I know Yuna likes her, but she didn't want to tell me."

The blonde man groaned, watching as the woman took a seat in the chair opposite from him, who was too, showing the same levels of anxiety. Habitually, his eyes scanned over his office room. The bookshelves on the left, the plants at the corners, the big couch placed neatly in the middle and the file cabinets behind him. Looking at other things had always managed to make him clear his mind. He his lips, pondering deeply. He tipped his head to the side, short fingers combing his hair.

"Their scents will be mixed now, they will be targeted." The man whined slightly, gripping his hair tighter. Clearly, the normally therapeutic habit of his wasn't working.

Another deep sigh escaped his full lips, his eyes darting downwards towards his lap, now trying to focus on the creases his pants made when he sat. The woman shut her eyes, waiting for an order. She was trying to think of solutions herself too, but she knew she couldn't trust herself to be reasonable and objective enough. All her solutions would only benefit one.

The man suddenly snapped his head up, eyes brightly looking at the woman. She sluggishly raised her eyes to look at the man. His lips were in a lopsided smile. An unknown feeling was rising in the woman, knowing whatever he had thought of wasn't going to be good. 

"Bring Kyu, let her watch over them."

The woman pushed her chair backwards at the request, her eyes big, stunned. "Kyu?! Will she agree to this?"

He chuckled, nodding his head with confidence, his fluffy hair flowing and his arms folded at his chest. "I'm sure she will. She's desperate to be needed by her people again... I'll give her something in return."

He paused, biting his lips excitedly, his cheeks rising at his smartness. "Plus... she's been around a lot of humans. She'd know the technology they use, how to stop them."

The man raised his gaze to meet the woman's. "And, she learnt martial arts, she's strong enough. To protect them."

The woman rolled her eyes, silently persuaded by his words. She pulled out her phone, tapping on it a couple of times before lifting it to her right ear. Her tone firm and serious, she commanded the person on the other end of the line. "Find Kyu, bring her to the Mount. Now."

With a "Yes, Ma'am," from the other end of the line, she ended the call. Her eyes darted towards the blonde man as she dropped her phone back into her leather purse. "So, what do we do while we wait?"

"We test." He simply said, leaning his head against the headrest on his chair as his eyes shut. The woman waited, knowing he had more to say. "Test if they would come if their scents mixed more."

She wanted to deny, to refute and stop him before anything else would happen. But, curiosity took over. She too, wanted to know if it was safe for them to continue being together.

"The two - I'll try and get one to help," The man said, springing from the chair and landing on his feet. His footsteps hurriedly making their way over to one person.

***

"Eunbi!"

Said girl stopped in her tracks, turning around. It was after school, and Eunbi was in the middle of the hallway, heading towards her locker to stash her books. A shorter girl came running along, stopping beside Eunbi. She held onto her knees as she tried to catch her breath, hair falling forward and covering her face. Eunbi raised her brow, watching as the girl lifted her head. She smiled a cute smile which made her cheekbones rise.

"Yewon?"

Yewon slowly stood straight, the last few pants leaving her lips. She brushed a few hair strands off her face, her face lighting up. "Let's study together!"

Eunbi furrowed her brows in confusion before cracking into a smile. "You could have texted me if you wanted to study, idiot. Why did you run?"

She raised her fingers, gently flicking the shorter's forehead. Yewon frowned, her palm rubbing at the spot that stung.

"I missed you, was that wrong?" Yewon grumbled, her cheeks sticking out as she cutely pouted. Eunbi poked her cheeks gently, her fingers catching Yewon's hand and rubbing the flicked spot for her.

Yewon leaned into her touch, her lips spreading into a smile, looking like a pleased kitten. The two of them shared a close bond, having been partners-in-crime when they were with Sojung, so their affection for each other was mutual. With a last tap on Yewon's cheek, Eunbi pulled her hand away. "So, where are we going?"

"Your mom's café. Sojung's busy with a new project, she won't be able to join us."

Eunbi gleamed, glad to meet her mother again. She gripped her books tightly to her chest.

The two of them made their way to the café. The wind blowing, causing their hair strands to flow in all directions. This made both of them giggle as they watched their hair strands covering their faces. They turned a corner, finally reaching at their destination. Eunbi supported her books using one arm, the other pushing the door handle. Business was as usual today, there were a few customers on the side, and Eunbi could also recognise some students from their school studying too. Her eyes immediately spotted her tired mother behind the counter, bent over making drinks. She placed her books on the table nearest to her, gesturing for Yewon to take a seat. Afterwards, walking towards her mother, and as per her normal greeting, going behind her and hugging her. Her mother was visibly shocked at this, almost spilling the tea she was pouring.

"Yah, Hwang Eunbi, stop surprising me," Taeyeon gently smacked one of her daughter's arms wrapped tightly around her waist. She placed the teacup down, turning around and pulling her daughter in a warm embrace. She gingerly held Eunbi's face, caressing her cheeks. Eunbi stared at her mother, noticing the dark eye circles and the eye bags. Maybe there were more customers today?

"Sojung called and said you'd come here and study with Yewon, so I prepared some things for you." Her mother said as she pulled away from her daughter, moving to the counter and grabbing a tray with two plates of cake - red velvet and Belgian chocolate - and two large cups of bubble tea. Eunbi smiled gratefully, helping her mother carry the tray towards Yewon, who had already began flipping through her textbooks and writing notes. Taeyeon trailed behind her, her slippers dragging along the wooden floor. Yewon diverted her attention away from her books, watching as Eunbi placed the tray on the table. She smiled sheepishly at Taeyeo