“Run”, the two men huffed as they dashed towards the narrow alley in the middle of the serene night. The fear of death made them become a runner.

 

They were just chilling on an empty street a moment ago and now they are hiding in a dark alley behind a dumpster, catching their breathe. Whatever it was they saw, they knew it was not from this world. No human will have eyes as big as a baseball and tall as a lamp-post with the long hands dragging along the ground as it walked.

 

One of them saw it first; walking towards them in a distant and in the blink of an eye, it was few meters away from them. They ran from the place without a second thought back to a convenience store they had passed before but it was closed by then. Their bodies trembled with fear as they thought of ways to escape the unknown being. It was following them slowly but steady.

 

They looked at each other, signaling if they have lost the creature. There was no sound of footstep nor any noise in the area. They smiled a little in victory of saving their own lives. They sat down with a thump on the ground to relax. One of them closed his eyes, placing his hands on his chest while restraining himself from crying. The other pat on his thigh telling him that it was okay.

 

He lifted up his head and breath, “Thank God, Joon. We are saved.”

 

“I am calling one of my friends from around here. We can go to his place for the night.” Joon dial his friend and the ring was on.

 

So, the other heaved a sigh and opened his eyes.

 

And the last thing he saw was the terrifying face glaring down on them.

 

“Hello? Joon? Joon? Are you there?” The blood-stained phone screen near the pool of blood brightened the dark corner with his friend frantically calling for him.

 

 

>>>

 

 

[Radio Pod-cast]

 

“We have the last question from your fans. ‘When do we get bless with a solo track?’ Moonbyul-ssi, can we expect a new song this season?”

 

“Right now, we are focusing on the group promo. So, it’s hard to say.” Moonbyul giggled, “Everyone is tied to something.”

 

After the podcast, Moonbyul thanked the members and without delaying further, she quickly hopped in to her van and made her way to the recording studio. She missed the angel who made her happy and a sense of guilt lingered around for not being able to stay by her side.

 

Moonbyul couldn’t be there by Solar’s side since she had been busy for the last few weeks. She was worried Solar might be drained of energy which could hinder her work. The previous night when Moonbyul was recording her part for their new song, Solar called her. The tired voice asking for Moonbyul to come over stirred up Moonbyul’s peace of mind. But the bitter night passed and Moonbyul still got no time to spare for Solar. She swears to herself that she would be there for Solar as soon as she was done with the radio station.

 

“Where is Yong-sun?”, Moonbyul asked as she charged in to the studio.

 

One of the staffs told her that Solar was in the artist room.

 

Inside the room, Moonbyul saw worn-out Solar resting on the sofa with her eyes closed. Moonbyul locked the door and slowly snuggled near Solar without waking her up. She then carefully moved Solar’s head to make it lay on her chest and caressed her hair softly. Moonbyul’s spiritual energy slipped steadily towards Solar. Moonbyul tugged the strand of hair falling on Solar’s face behind the ears.

 

“Byul-yi?”, Solar spoke with a sleepy voice.

 

“Yes. I am here. I am sorry I couldn’t come earlier.” Moonbyul apologized for leaving her alone too long. “But is something wrong? Yesterday, you sounded really bad.”

 

Solar still in the arms of Moonbyul, clench the other’s shirt and softly answered. “Have you watch today’s news?”

 

Moonbyul shook her head as she hardly had any time for anything. She could only hope it was not bad news.

 

The clench on the shirt gets tighter. “It happened again.”

 

“Where is it this time?”

 

“Here.”

 

Solar told Moonbyul what she saw in the news. The bloody scene in the narrow alley where parts of the bodies were scattered around like a wild animal had attacked them, while some parts were also missing too. Solar had believed that an eternal being must have gone rogue.

 

“Hey. You are overthinking it. Don’t worry.” Moonbyul was exhausted from working day and night and after sharing her energy with Solar, she was feeling drowsy and was tired to listen to Solar. But she didn’t want her to worry about someone who had nothing to do with them.

 

“No, Moonbyul. It doesn’t seem right. I think it could be a Hollow.” Solar looked up to meet Moonbyul’s eyes staring down on her. The intimate gaze made Solar to look away and pout. “Darling, you know they cannot survive in this human realm.”

 

“Unless it’s a Rus.” Solar added quietly.

 

Rus do appear in the human realm but it had never attacked human before. They would go after the trapped souls. In order for the Rus to attack human, they must be controlled first and once given the command, they would do whatever it was. But it was easier said than done. One must be very powerful to do so. Until now, the only being that can control Rus was the Satan himself. Another way to do so was to come together as a group and control them, which was not easy. A mistake could cost lost their lives in the hands of the Rus since they were in the human realm, a detriment to angels and devils.

 

“If a Rus is on the loose, I am sure the guardian angels might have reported it by now. You know the heavenly members are quick to solve such matters.” Moonbyul wanted to reassure Solar but as a former healing angel who have lost her powers, Solar feared that she might also be a target. To this Moonbyul flashed a smile and asked Solar if she want her to move in to her place. A smooth move from the devil.

If this could not make Solar happy and feel safe, nothing would. It was just like she wanted, which she initially could not bring the words to Moonbyul.

 

‘A happy ending for you and me.’