I leaned by my side against the wall, trying to keep my breath steady. Yo Seob hovered over me, the flickering flame in his hands making shadows dance across his face.

Unlike the rich people at the surface, we Darkcity dwellers haven’t the ability to afford the steady white lights. Not that we haven’t tried stealing them. They just don’t work down here, because there’s no ‘electricity’ or something of the sort.

I never minded, though. I liked the flames. They were the same colour as Yo Seob’s odd hair. The reason he was given his name, in fact. Because of his hair, which was the same colour as the light of fire.

“You ready?” His voice was lowered, hushed.

I pressed my lips together and nodded, grim. Yo Seob bent down and stuffed a wad of dirty cloth into my mouth. Then he held both of my hands in one of his own and kissed them gently. His eyes beckoned for me to be strong.

He let go of my hands and stood up, cocking his head towards one of the urchins. A petite boy, unnaturally small for his age, scrambled forward and held the oil lamp in both hands.

“You know what you have to do.” Yoseob told the boy. The boy nodded in reply and came to stand beside me. Even though I was sitting down, he was the same height as me.

Yo Seob went behind me. I felt his big hands on my head.

 “Okay.” He took in a shaky breath. “One…two-“

I felt the tip of the needle, no longer sharp, but blunted by years of use, plunge into my scalp. I bit down hard on the wad of cloth. Tears strung at my eyes.

The needle wove its way in and out of my scalp as Yo Seob worked deftly and silently. The lamplight by the side of my head wavered dangerously at one point, and another boy stepped forward to take the boy’s place. This one was older, and much taller than the previous one. He had to kneel beside me to keep the light at the height of my head.

I felt Yo Seob give a final tug as he bit off the end of the thread.

“Okay. All done.”

I sighed in relief and slumped against the grimy wall, spitting out the cloth. 

“Thank you, Dong Min.” The lamplight wavered as Yo Seob took the oil lamp from the boy. “You too, Bae!”

He sat down in front of me and set the lamplight to the side. His expression was light, but I could see that he was making an effort to keep his worry hidden. It was obvious in the way the corners of his eyes crinkled, in the way his mouth sagged slightly, in the light of his eyes.

He raised a hand to my face and brushed away my tears. He was probably smearing my blood over my face as well, but I didn’t mind. I liked the feeling of his skin against mine.

“I’m okay.” I tried to smile, but I guess it didn’t work out that well. The space between Yo Seob’s eyebrows narrowed.

I sighed and dropped the attempt, closing my eyes instead.

“Oppa, I’m tired.”

Yo Seob’s hand left my face.

“Arasseo, just wait a while, okay?”

I opened my eyes to see him walking towards the pile at a corner, which comprised all our belongings. He picked up a pile of rags and walked over. I stood up to help him.

“Hey you, what do you think you’re doing, sit down!”

“But oppa-“ I started to whine, but he cut me off relentlessly.

“I said no. Now sit down.”

Even if he hadn’t said so, I would’ve had no choice. A wave of dizziness struck me, and I swooped towards the wall. Yo Seob tutted.

“See, I told you so.”

I sat down and leaned against the wall while I watched him lay out the blankets. My heart suddenly started beating fast.

I gulped, my throat dry.

“Yah, Seob ah.”

“Hmm?” He continued setting up the blankets.

“Why do you always take care of me?”

He stopped what he was doing to look at me. I lowered my eyes.

After a few moments, he heaved a sigh.

“Oh, thank goodness. For a moment I thought you were going to ask me about my obsession with the Sky Captain’s uniform again.” I glanced up. A sheepish smile was on his face, his right hand scratching his head absentmindedly.

He focused his eyes on me and dropped his arm, suddenly serious. “Isn’t it obvious, though? You’re like a little sister to me. Of course I have to look out for you!”

He flashed me a warm smile. Even in the dimness of Darkcity, he was so radiant, so beautiful. My heart twinged painfully in my chest, but I tried to mirror his expression.

“Yes. Sister. Of course.”

He frowned.

“Are you okay? Is your wound hurting you again? Don’t worry. I’m almost done with this.” He returned to the blankets and started batting at them with renewed furiosity.

I sighed to myself and closed my eyes. No, oppa, it isn’t that…

I must have dozed off. A while later, I was awaken by two hands lifting me gently by my arms. I opened my eyes and gazed up into Yo Seob’s face.

“Mian, did I wake you up?” His face was kind as always.

I rubbed my eyes and let him help me towards the blankets. I lay down on my side, facing the wall. The cloth rumpled as Yo Seob sat down on the blankets beside me. He kissed me lightly on the forehead before lying down, his back pressed close to mine. The heat from his back radiated into my body and up my face, and I was grateful that I was turned away from him.

“Goodnight, Byeol.”

“Goodnight, Seob.”

“Oh, I almost forgot.” He suddenly got up again.

I turned to see what he was doing. He dug around in his pockets, looking for something. His face lit up as he found whatever he was looking for.

He pulled out a glowing white string from his pocket. The pearls I had stolen earlier.

I sat up. A bit too quickly. My vision swirled, but I shook that away.

“How did that end up with you?”

A mischievous expression entered his face.

“I stole them from you when you bumped into me earlier. And you didn’t even notice that I had taken them.” He tutted and shook his head sarcastically. “What a lousy thief you make. To think that the king is actually so desparate to capture you…”

I punched his arm and he grimaced, gripping it with the other hand as if he were in great pain.

“Shut up.” I reached up and pulled the pearls from his grip. “I’ll be taking these.”

I laid back down and clutched the pearls close to my chest, closing my eyes. Yo Seob snorted.

A while later, he laid back down beside me. But this time, the front of his body was pressed against my back, and he wrapped his arm around my waist.

“Good night, Byeol.” He murmured into my ear.