"You’re safe with us,” Jiwoo said, as she led the way, and Hyunjin could already smell another vampire. “We can provide you shelter and blood.”

“Thank you so much.”

“Oh, no need to thank us! Me and Lip were also brought there by other vampires when we were turned. They didn’t hesitate in helping us.”

“And where are you taking me?”

“We’re like a group that seeks new, young vampires. We’re going back to our place.”

Hyunjin gulped. She couldn’t believe it. Not only the plan had worked, but she was being directly brought to her goal. And now she had to improvise, because the plan was only laid out thus far.

But Jinsol believed her. Heejin as well, probably. She couldn’t let them and herself down.

“Lip,” Jiwoo called, and a beat later, a girl landed right next to them, coming from the branches above. “This is Hyunjin.”

“Call me Jungeun,” she told Hyunjin, and she only nodded in response.

The eyes of this girl, Jungeun, shone bright red, the most common color of vampire eyes. The contrast between the girls was obvious, even at a first sight. While Jiwoo had her hair caught in a ponytail with bangs that ended just above her big, kind eyes, Jungeun had her hair down, and her expression and eyes were serious. Not a hint of a smile or relief that Jiwoo brought Hyunjin along.

“Let’s get back.” Jungeun went on ahead.

Jiwoo gave Hyunjin a smile and they followed Jungeun, wherever it may be.

It was a half an hour walk from where they were. The roads they took started becoming more and more empty, as they drifted away from the center of the city. Hyunjin could see, in a close distance, a small complex of buildings, at the end of that secluded road.

“We’re almost there!” Jiwoo said.

As they approached the entrance, guarded by two men, vampires as well, Jiwoo and Jungeun reached for their pockets and took out what seemed like an ID card. The men frowned at them after eyeing Hyunjin.

“Who’s that?” one of the guys asked. “A newbie?”

“Yes!” Jiwoo answered. “I found her in the woods, she was running from a slayer while hunting. I believe she’s very young.”

His jaw visibly clenched, and the other man shook his head. Jungeun kept her face expressionless.

“Take her inside, Jiwoo. Jungeun, go and report the situation.”

Jungeun nodded, and stormed away. Jiwoo gave Hyunjin another smile, and she followed her to the nearest building.

“Since it’s late, there’s no one around,” Jiwoo said, as they stepped inside the building. Hyunjin wasn't sure what those buildings had been before, but it seemed like an old, abandoned school.

Jiwoo guided her through the corridors, until she opened a door and urged Hyunjin to go inside.

“Wait just a second!” Jiwoo said, before closing the door.

Hyunjin was left alone, in the white room with a table at the center, a chair on each side, and a couple cupboards at the furthest wall. She took a deep breath and had an urge to text Jinsol, but she had no idea how long Jiwoo would take, so she didn’t risk it.

A minute later and Jiwoo was back. She stepped inside and extended a bottle at Hyunjin.

“You’re hungry, right? Here, drink.”

Red liquid filled the bottle, and yes, Hyunjin was supposed to be hungry.

But...

“Is that human blood?” she asked.

“Yes. Oh, do you feed on animals too?”

“Too? Do you?”

Jiwoo gasped and took her hands to . “I-I mean, we’re not supposed to, but I prefer to do it when I can. Though it’s also important to feed on human blood, or else we are not entirely satisfied and we can still go on blood lust, you know. So, go ahead!”

What bull was that? That was a huge lie!

That was real human blood. Hyunjin could never drink that. But she had no excuse not to. It was part of the plan, she had to maintain her character. She was a hungry vampire that could not find something to hunt and ended up being attacked. After all, she had pretended she’d tried to attack Heejin, so she had to do her best to keep her story consistent.

Hyunjin’s hand trembled as she reached for the bottle. She stared at it, feeling sick on her stomach, as if she had just eaten human food.

There was no turning back now. She tried to think of something, pray for a miracle to happen so she didn’t have to drink it. But Jiwoo was in front of her, staring at her, waiting for her to drink it. If she didn’t, they would have a reason to suspect.

She had come this far. She couldn’t afford to ruin things when they had barely started.

With a shaking hand, she opened the bottle, and the smell invading her nose was even stronger than Heejin’s blood from earlier. Her eyes rolled up, her mind fogged, and her legs gave up, sending her body down to the chair nearby.

“Hyunjin! Are you okay?” Jiwoo rushed to her, kneeling in front of her.

“Y-Yes. I’m sorry, I’m still not quite used to... the smell,” Hyunjin said, feeling her fangs prickling on her lip already.

“I get you. You’re very young, aren’t you? When were you turned?”

“Two weeks ago,” Hyunjin blurted without thinking.

“Oh, you’re a baby! Don’t worry, we’ll take care of you.” Jiwoo gave her another smile, her fangs showing as well.

Hyunjin nodded, and her eyes focused on the bottle in her hand again. She apologized to her Goddess and brought it to her lips, closing her eyes.

As soon as the blood filled and she took the first gulp, Hyunjin felt like a newborn vampire. Even though she knew it was human blood, and her conscience fought to make her sick to the point of throwing up, her body refused to stop drinking... and enjoying it. Her eyebrows drew together, at the new and delicious taste she had never felt before.

The bottle emptied in seconds, and as she finished, it felt as if she came down to her senses.

And she had just drank human blood.

“Feeling better?” Jiwoo asked.

No. “Much better. Thank you.” Hyunjin forced a small smile at her, giving the now empty bottle back at her.

She felt... repulsive. The same sickness from before was still there, bothering her stomach, but she couldn’t throw up even if she wanted to. It was what her body wanted and liked, after all.

There was a knock on the door before it opened. Jiwoo stood up. “Lip!”

“He’s here, let’s go,” Jungeun said.

“Oh, right. I’ll see you later, or tomorrow, Hyunjin!” Jiwoo waved at her.

Hyunjin nodded with another fake smile, and as they left, a man entered the room. He was tall and very handsome, and wore a white button up shirt and a leather jacket - something Hyunjin loved to wear.

“Hi, Hyunjin,” he said, sitting down in the opposite chair.

“Hi.”

“I’m Park Jinyoung. I’ve been here for a long time, and I'm responsible for the new vampires that need our help. I’m happy Jiwoo found you. I’ve heard you were being attacked by a slayer?”

“Yes, if that’s what you call it. I was hunting, and she seemed to be hiking by herself. I first saw her from behind, but when she turned around, I saw her weapons. Then I tried to fight back so I could run. I managed to throw her off guard and then I felt another vampire’s scent, so I ran to it until I found Jiwoo.”

“Well done. You didn’t consider actually taking on the slayer?”

“No. I’ve been a vampire for only two weeks, I’m not strong and can’t really fight. I’m still getting used to my strength and my senses. I would probably get killed if I tried to fight her.”

“I see. Well, here’s the perfect place for you, then. We give shelter to new vampires, as well as blood, and we also teach them all there is to know about us. If you desire to be able to control your new, empowered senses and physical strength, you’re in luck. You’re in the right place.”

Hyunjin bowed her head for a couple seconds. “I would be very thankful.”

Jinyoung waved a hand. “Oh, it’s nothing. Every vampire in here was brought here just like you were. The same goes for Jiwoo and Jungeun.”

“That’s very kind of you and everyone here, doing this for us.”

“It’s the least we can do. After all, we never asked to be like this, am I right?” He smiled at her.

Hyunjin’s fists balled at her lap, but she managed to answer with a fake smile. “Yes.”

“Do you need to stay here for the night, or do you have a place to go?” he asked.

“I do, yes.”

“Then, since it’s late and you already fed, you can go back home. Be back tomorrow after dusk so we can show you around better.”

“I’ll be here.” Hyunjin stood up and bowed.

“Before you go, can I just ask you how you got those scars? They caught my attention from the moment I saw you.”

“Oh, this wasn’t the first time I was attacked,” she blurted. “A few days after I turned, I got attacked by someone carrying similar weapons and I got these scars before I managed to run. That’s why I knew I had to run this time too, and couldn’t afford to fight.” There was pause, as if Jinyoung was expecting her to say something else. “But I'm not sure why those weapons scarred me. Right after I woke up transformed, I scraped my arm on a tree branch but the wound healed instantly, like... magic.”

Hyunjin hoped this was convincing enough.

“We are weak to silver,” Jinyoung said, and Hyunjin wowed. “Their weapons are made of silver. They can kill us, but you were lucky then, that you got away with a couple scars. It hurt, didn’t it?”

“It did.” Hyunjin remembered well.

“Don’t worry. You’ll be safe with us. Tomorrow we’ll explain everything about vampires and the danger slayers pose to us.”

“I’ll be here. I want to learn how to defend myself.”

“I’m pretty sure you’ll be capable of that in no time.” Jinyoung stood up. “I’ll take you outside.”

Hyunjin did the same, and he opened the door for her, resting a hand on her back as she stepped outside. They walked in silence, everything that happened in the past hour going through Hyunjin's mind.

“Arrive safely, and I’ll see you tomorrow.” He extended his hand at her.

She shook it and gave him a quick bow. “Thank you for your help.”

He nodded with a smile and she turned, telling her legs to walk normally, instead of sprinting like she wanted so bad to do.

When she was at a safe distance, past the road that lead to the buildings, she grabbed her phone.

[Hyunjin] 
Meet me at my house asap.

She sent to both Jinsol and Heejin, and now she ran, not fast as she wished she could, but the fastest her legs could take her home.

The second she opened the door, a body jumped to her, hugging her close with arms circling around her arms.

“Hyunjin!” Jinsol squeezed her body. “It was not like I wasn’t expecting the plan to work, but I was so worried.”

Hyunjin let her body relax in her embrace, hugging her back and ignoring how dramatic Jinsol was. “What were you worried for? It’s me we’re talking about.”

Jinsol pushed her away. “Did you find anything?”

Everything swirled around Hyunjin’s head. “Let’s sit.”

She took off her jacket and hung it, and as she walked towards the couch, she finally noticed Heejin there as well, sitting, staring at her, and Diana laying on her lap.

“Good job back there,” Heejin said, as Hyunjin sat on her armchair, and Jinsol next to Heejin.

“You too.” Hyunjin took a look at Heejin’s face, noticing how there was a bandage on her forehead, by the roots of her hair, where she hit her head earlier. The bleeding seemed to have stopped some time ago.

“Spill, woman!” Jinsol hit Hyunjin’s leg.

“Calm the down, I need a second to organize my head.” Hyunjin rested her elbow on the armrest and massaged her temples.

She didn’t even know where to start.

“I met a vampire called Jiwoo. When I told her I was hunting alone and was attacked, she called another vampire, Jungeun, and told her to fall back.”

Jinsol gasped. “Fall back? It has to be some sort of mission.”

“Yes. Jiwoo said that she found a vampire, so Jungeun could stop whatever they were doing and go back. Jungeun said that she didn’t want to be in trouble for not doing her job, and Jiwoo said that she hated to do whatever they were doing, and ended up taking me instead.”

“She hated it? Then why was she doing it?” Heejin asked.

“I don’t know. But I think they really were about to turn someone. For Jiwoo to tell her to cancel the mission because she had found a vampire, what else would the mission be?”

“But why? Why are they turning people?” Jinsol sighed.

“I don’t know, but I will find out. Then, they took me to their hideout. It looked like an old, abandoned school. There were two vampires guarding the main road, and they had to show ID cards. Jungeun went to report the situation, and Jiwoo took me inside to--” Hyunjin halted, remembering what came next.

“Yes?” Jinsol asked.

“To show me around. She took me to an empty room and kept me company until a guy appeared, and she left me with him. His name was Jinyoung, I think he was an older, probably with a higher rank or whatever in the group. He explained that they take new vampires there, and give them shelter and blood, and that I could learn how to sharpen my senses and strength there.”

There was silence, only looks exchanged.

“They... take new vampires to give them shelter and blood? But... aren’t they turning people into vampires?” Heejin asked, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “And wait, blood? Does that mean...”

“I don’t get it. It doesn’t make any sense,” Jinsol interrupted Heejin, much for Hyunjin’s relief.

“I know. I did my best at being a new, inexperienced vampire. I pretended I didn’t even know that silver can kill us when he asked me how I got my scars. He said that tomorrow, when I go back, he would tell me all about the slayers and .” Hyunjin crossed her arms with a scoff. “I bet I could be the one teaching him a thing or two.”

“Are you going back tomorrow?” Heejin asked.

“Of course. I need to keep my character so they don’t suspect me and I can get the info I need.”

“Yes, do that. Be the vampire they want you to be.”

“And remember, don’t let your pride get in the way,” Heejin added, a clear tease.

But Hyunjin didn’t bother to answer, when she inhaled and a scent reached her nose. It was faint, but it was there. She breathed a couple more times, trying to remain calm, and make sure it was the same scent.

“Hyunjin?” Jinsol rested a hand on her knee.

“I’ll be right back.” Hyunjin stood up and walked to the front door. She stepped outside and took out her phone, pointing it to the sky above, taking a few pics of the night sky, all while she took slow and deep breaths.

And now she was sure.

She came back inside and sat, phone still in hand, and questioning looks on her.

“Just went to take a few pics of the stars. Beautiful night this is, eh?” Hyunjin said, at the same time she wrote on her phone and pressed the send button.

Jinsol’s phone rang, and she read the message.

“Really, Hyunjin? Suddenly you remembered to go snap pictures of the sky in the middle of this serious conversation?” Heejin asked, frowning at her. “I know you have a weird obsession with the universe and all, but-”

Jinsol nudged her, dropping her own phone to her lap. Heejin’s frown only increased on her forehead as she read the message from Hyunjin.

Don’t react to this. I’ve been followed. Jungeun is outside, probably spying on me. There’s a possibility she’s hearing what we’re saying, that’s why I sent a message instead. Act normally as if you didn’t know.

Jinsol barely nodded, but Heejin was about to open when Jinsol squeezed her leg.

“The pics are so pretty!” Jinsol said, stealing her phone back from Heejin’s hand.

“And it’s not a weird obsession.” Hyunjin crossed her arms. “I love the moon, alright? She’s very important to me. It’s a shame I can barely see her tonight.”

“I can see. You even have it tattooed on your neck.”

“Yes, thank you for noticing it.”

“And isn’t it super pretty?” Jinsol asked, as to finish their silly argument. “As we were saying, yes, you go back together and keep up with what you have to do.”

Hyunjin nodded. “I’ll do my best, and then report to you when I come back."

“Alright, I guess we are done for tonight. Good job, the both of you. I’m proud of you.” Jinsol patted their legs.

Hyunjin looked at Heejin, and she was already staring at her. The images of Heejin’s terrified face popped up in Hyunjin’s mind, hurting more than she wanted them to.

“I’ll be going, then.” Heejin scratched behind Diana’s ears and grabbed her to set her aside on the couch, so she could get up.

“Will you accept a ride this time?” Jinsol asked.

“No, it’s okay, thank you. Tell me when you have news.”

“Will do,” Hyunjin said.

“Arrive safely!” Jinsol waved goodbye.

“Have a good night.”

“You too.” The words flew from Hyunjin’s lips.

Heejin gave her a small smile before heading out.

“You gonna stay?” Hyunjin asked.

“Can’t I?” Jinsol leaned back on the couch, resting her hand on Diana’s back.

Hyunjin didn’t answer, and focused on Jungeun’s scent instead. It was still there.

She wasn’t going to attack Heejin, was she? She didn’t see her back at the woods earlier, she didn’t know who she was. There was no way for her to know she was a slayer.

“I know how you found Jiwoo. I asked Heejin what happened when I saw the wound on her head. She told me how you jumped so she wouldn’t fall down the hill.”

Hyunjin eyed Jinsol. “Did she also tell you how scared she was when my teeth grew because I smelled her blood?”

“She did.”

Selene came from the kitchen and meowed at Hyunjin before jumping to her lap.

“I told her it was normal to be afraid, that I had been as well when that vampire attacked me, and you were there to help me. I couldn’t possibly know that you weren’t just trying to fight him to steal his prey. But I guaranteed her that you would never attack her, no matter the situation.”

Hyunjin kept her eyes down on Selene, rubbing under her chin, like she loved the most.

“Doesn’t matter,” Hyunjin said.

“Don’t lie to yourself. I know how much you want her to trust you.”

“I really don’t care.”

“Stop being so stubborn, Hyunjin, and just admit it.”

“There’s nothing to admit.”

“You were hurt when she told you to stay back.”

Hyunjin sighed. “What if I was?”

“Why would you be then, if not because you want her to trust you?”

“Because it ing when people are afraid of you when you did and would not do anything to hurt them.”

“Just give her time.”

“Whatever.” Hyunjin shrugged.

Yes, it hurt. But Hyunjin didn’t care. Heejin was a slayer that would never trust a vampire, anyway.

“Jungeun’s gone,” Hyunjin blurted. “I can’t feel her scent anymore.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.” Hyunjin felt her heart shot up. “She... she didn’t go after Heejin, did she?”

“Text her.”

“,” Hyunjin swore under her breath, reaching for her phone.

[Hyunjin] 
Jungeun’s gone. There’s a chance she’s following you. Just follow your way and don’t look for her. But be careful. And stay safe.

“What are you planning on doing? If they’re already suspecting you, and if they find out Heejin is a slayer, they won’t trust you.”

“But they don’t know that I know I was followed, right?”

Jinsol blinked. “Yes, I guess. I don’t think they would expect a new vampire’s sense of smell to be as good as yours, either.”

“That’s why I told you to act normally. Like this, they think they’re ahead of me, knowing that I’m up to something. I can just lie, and they’ll believe it, because they don’t expect me to know. And then, I’ll act when they least expect.”

“Okay, that can work. But you don’t have a plan yet, do you?”

“No. I’ll just go tomorrow and I’ll think along the way. You said you trusted me.”

“And I do.” Jinsol smiled.

Hyunjin’s phone rang. She rushed to grab it, almost dropping it to the ground.

[Heejin] 
Okay.

“See, she does too,” Jinsol said, peeking at her phone.

Ignoring the remark, Hyunjin wrote back.

[Hyunjin] 
Tell me when you arrive.

“You’re that worried about her? Even if Jungeun attacked her, she’s a slayer after all. She knows how to fight.”

“I know she does. But I still want to make sure she makes it back without any incident.”

Jinsol smiled. “Just say you’re worried about her.”

“I’m really not. I just would hate to be responsible for getting anyone at all hurt.”

Of course she wouldn’t admit it to Jinsol.

“I don’t understand how Jungeun followed me. I didn’t feel her scent at all when I was coming back. Are her senses that accurate that she could track me?”

“Maybe. Hey, how’s Yeojin?”

“Managing. Haseul is helping her a lot. At least she has someone to go through it all with her.”

“Yeah, I’m glad.”

Silence reigned over for a while, as if they were just waiting for Heejin to answer. And at last, Hyunjin's phone rang.

“I’m back, nothing weird happened,” Hyunjin read, sighing after.

“Great! Now we have no idea if Jungeun actually followed her or not.”

“If she did follow her to the slayers' headquarters, now she knows I’m working with a slayer.”

“She doesn’t know that you’re working with her. She can just be a friend that doesn’t even know you’re a vampire.”

“Now I’m sure she was listening to us. If she tracked me here without me sensing her, she must have her senses super empowered.”

“Whatever she knows, everything will be okay.” Jinsol rested a hand on hers.

“Yes. My gun, Heejin gave it back to you, right?”

“It’s upstairs in your room.”

“Okay, good.” A question wanted to get out from Hyunjin’s lips, so she just let it slip. “Did you take care of Heejin’s bruise? How was it?”

Of course Jinsol would smirk and chuckle first. “Yes, I did. It wasn’t that bad, I don’t think she was in pain or anything. You jumped to save her again, after all.”

Hyunjin clicked her tongue. Yep, she should have remained silent.

—

Hyunjin approached the two guards at the entrance, the same from the day before.

“You’re the newbie from yesterday, right?” one of them asked.

“Yes. Jinyoung told me to come back today.”

“Come with me then.”

She followed him, not to the same building that Jiwoo had taken her to the day before, but the biggest, probably the main one, just a little further ahead.

“Wait a second,” he told her as they stepped inside.

Hyunjin nodded and took a look around the entrance. She was now sure it had been, in times, a school. The lockers were still there, even though old and empty, and there was a corridor to the right and to the left, and the classic, boring white walls and floor.

A couple minutes after, the guard was back with Jinyoung.

“Thank you, you can go back to your post,” Jinyoung told him, and after bowing, he left. "Hello, Hyunjin.”

“Hello.” Hyunjin bowed at him, since she was supposed to show some respect.

“Thank you for coming today. Care to follow me? I want to show you around.”

“Of course.”

“This is the main building, where I have my office, where we store our blood, and where the lessons take place. You know, about what I told you yesterday. All about us, vampires, our world, and the slayers,” he said, walking towards the entrance door. “In that building, is where we train our new vampires. Let’s take a look?”

Hyunjin didn’t answer, and followed him. Probably what had been the sports building, they stepped inside, and past the entrance, Hyunjin was met with a wide, tall space, what was once the sports’ field. Her eyes widened at the vampires there, training – fighting each other.

“They’re getting better.” Jinyoung smiled proudly as he watched them fighting.

“Why are they getting trained?”

Jinyoung turned around and Hyunjin kept following him, stepping outside that building.

“You said yesterday you were attacked by a slayer, and you were afraid to fight her because you were probably going to get killed, right?”

“Yes.”

“We don’t want that to happen. We don’t want to die at the slayers’ hands. But in order to survive, we need to fight, right? That’s why we provide training here. So we can survive.”

“To fight the slayers?”

“To defend ourselves from them.”

He lead the way to another building, in the opposite side of the campus. “What do you know about slayers?”

“Not much,” Hyunjin said, playing the character she had to be. “I just know they hunt and... kill us.”

“Exactly.” They now stepped inside that building. “And isn’t that unfair? When we are just trying to live this ungrateful life that we never asked for, and we still are hunted and killed?”

Hyunjin’s fists balled at her sides. It wasn’t a lie.

But then, why were they turning people into vampires, when they really never asked for that?

“It is.”

“They are evil. They don’t care about how you live your life, or if you have a family. They hunt vampires like animals, not hesitating for a second before burying a silver blade in their hearts and reducing them to dust.”

“D-Dust?” Hyunjin asked, trying to focus on her task, and not let herself be controlled by anger.

“That’s what happens to us when we are killed. As you know, silver hurts us. That’s why you got those scars, right? But if your heart is pierced by silver, your body disintegrates. Don’t ask me why, we still don’t know the reason for that. There are still many things we don’t know about ourselves.”

There wasn’t an answer she could find for this, and it would even made sense if she was so struck, she could only remain silent, as she kept following him through the corridors of that building. He turned and went up the stairs, and she was tempted to ask where were they going now, but she just kept walking after him.

“The slayers think they’re doing God’s work, freeing the world from this evil that we are. You could have been killed, the night you got those scars.”

Again, the images from that night flashed on her mind. It angered her that all he was saying was the truth, but once again, she couldn’t understand what was going on. What he said and what they were doing didn’t match.

“That’s why, when we can,” he said, as he stopped by a closed door. He reached for the handle and twisted it, stepping inside first. Hyunjin couldn’t see past his tall figure, so she followed him inside. “We fight back.”

Hyunjin’s heart shot so hard on her chest, she was sure Jinyoung heard it. Cell bars divided the white room, and behind them...

How was Hyunjin supposed to follow the plan, the weak, dumb vampire she was supposed to be, when Heejin was behind those bars, with her eyes widened at her?

Heejin shook her head just enough for Hyunjin to get the message, but she didn’t care. She turned to Jinyoung, but he was faster in grabbing her wrists with an abnormal strength, even for a vampire.

“I could never imagine a vampire siding with a slayer,” he said, a weird disappointment in his voice. “You really seemed to agree with everything I was saying just now, though. What are your intentions, really?”

“Let her go,” Hyunjin spat, trying to move her arms, but he wouldn’t even budge.

Jinyoung laughed. “I’m afraid I can’t.”

It all happened in a second. With that strength that Hyunjin had never experienced when fighting anyone, he twirled her around, and with a hit on her neck, she felt her consciousness fade, hearing Heejin screaming for her name before her body hit the floor.

---

A/N: ... well :)

Look forward to the next chapter, it contains one of my fav scenes from the whole story AND I CAN'T WAIT FOR Y'ALL TO READ IT

ALSO THAT'S JINYOUNG FROM GOT7!!! NOT JYP LMAO