Eunjoo and Sunggyu leaned over the drawing table as they reviewed the blueprints of the Circus Destiny floor. They were in Eunjoo’s living room area of her hotel room. Eunjoo would nervously glance at Sunggyu every now and then, while he seriously studied every inch of the page.

“If you can, add more space for the animals in the backroom,” he suggested. “It’s always good to give the animals as much space as possible,” he added, his voice trailing off at the end to disguise his bitterness. However, Eunjoo took no notice of this, and began sketching over the floor plans.

“But, doesn’t this leave too little space for the animals’ walkway onto the stage?” she asked.

“The stage is a level up, right? Just make a trap door and lift the animals onto the stage.”

“That’s a little risky, though. The animals are still wild—”

“—They’ll be fine,” Sunggyu said. He stood up straight again and looked at the circus plans from afar. It reminded him of the days before the summer season, when Sunggyu would make the stage plans with his dad. You’ll need to know this to be the next ringleader, he had told his son, unless you want Dongwoo to take over after I leave. Sunggyu’s father said that with a stern face, but it was always followed by a smile—a smile unlike any other. It was warm, inviting, loving…

Eunjoo suddenly brought Sunggyu in for a side hug, and ruffled his hair a bit. “Thank you so, so much, Sunggyu! These plans are great. I’ll show them to Soyoung tomorrow,” she said.

“Soyoung?”

“My boss. She’s… she’s from the 운명 group, and is the one in charge of overseeing the circus plans,” Eunjoo explained. She rolled up the blueprints and dropped them in a case.

“So… is that all?” Sunggyu awkwardly asked, looking around the room.

“Well…” Eunjoo didn’t know what to say. What did he want? Compensation? Credit? She glanced over at her open bedroom door. Certainly a kind stranger like him wouldn’t be thinking about that, would he?

Sunggyu’s eyes followed her gaze, and suddenly their eyes met. “No, no—I’m not thinking about that,” he assured her, taking a step back. Eunjoo smiled and laughed at the embarrassing situation. Sunggyu continued, “I was thinking that, maybe, I could go see Soyoung with you? I would love to continue working on this project.”

“That’s a great idea! In fact, I was looking for someone…” Eunjoo hesitated to continue, “You might be a little offended by my offer, but I was looking for an assistant. But I definitely won’t order you around and I obviously value your input a lot! And the pay is really good.”

“That… actually sounds like a good deal,” Sunggyu agreed. Eunjoo lifted up her arms for a hug, but Sunggyu stuck his hand out for a handshake. She quickly caught on and went for a handshake, but then Sunggyu brought her in for a hug.

“Could you meet me in the lobby tomorrow at 9:00 am for the meeting with Soyoung? I guess it’d be your first day,” Eunjoo said.

“I’ll definitely be there,” Sunggyu promised. She walked him out the door and they both said good-night, but Sunggyu had something on his mind. “I have a question.”

“Ask away,” Eunjoo replied, leaning on her door frame.

“You are my nuna, right?”

A smile immediately spread across Eunjoo’s face and she playfully slapped Sunggyu’s arm. “I bet you say that to all the girls you work with. I want to fire you already. Don’t even show up tomorrow!”

Sunggyu held onto Eunjoo’s wrist when she tried slapping him again, and protested, “No! I’m serious. I was born in ’89. When were you born?”

Eunjoo fought against Sunggyu’s hold, but he would not let go. “I’m a few years older than you, okay? Now goodnight—” When he let go of her wrist, Eunjoo fell back, but Sunggyu swiftly reached out to hold her up. He ended up backed against the door, with Eunjoo pressed against him. She quickly regained her balance and stepped back, but Sunggyu remained on her door, staring at her, breathlessly.

“Good night…” Eunjoo mumbled, pushing him into the hallway.

Sunggyu barely let out a, “Nuna,” before she closed the door on him. Eunjoo turned her back on the door and put her hand to her chest. Her heart was beating fast—but now that she thought about it, my heart’s been beating fast all night. From the moment I heard his voice…

On the other side of the door, Sunggyu continued to stare at Eunjoo’s door. She’s different.

His phone rang, but he didn’t bother to pick up.

-

Sunggyu, Hyemin, and Sungjong made their way back to the hotel feeling hopeful, as Sunggyu told them about his new job inside the circus.

“It’s like… For the first time, today was different,” Sunggyu said. His eyes were brighter than they had been for days, because of the new job, of course, but also because of something more.

“Things are finally turning around for us,” Hyemin said. Sunggyu nodded in agreement and opened the door to their empty hotel room.

“Where are Woohyun and Dongwoo?” Sungjong asked.

“Probably in the next room,” Hyemin said. She opened the door that connected their room with Myungsoo and Sungyeol’s, but only found two of their friends.

“Where are Woohyun and Dongwoo?”

Sungyeol shrugged. “Getting food?”

“Dongwoo called me, but he didn’t answer when I called back,” Sunggyu said.

“Woohyun’s phone is off,” Hyemin said, hanging up her own phone after reaching voice mail.

“That’s weird. His phone is never off…” Sungeol said. A chilling feeling came over Hyemin, and for a second her mind flashed back to the night it all began. The rest of them became more suspicious, as well.

Myungsoo stepped out of the shower, and Sungjong repeated his question, again. “Where are Woohyun and Dongwoo?”

“I saw them walk into that club a while ago,” Myungsoo calmly replied.

Hyemin tightly gripped onto his arms. “How long ago?”

“An hour, two hours ago… why?”

Hyemin wasted no time. She rushed out the door again, but Sunggyu caught onto her sleeve and stopped her.

“Hyemin, you’re over—”

“Something’s wrong,” she replied, shaking her head. Sunggyu could see the worry in her eyes, and trusted her instinct. They rushed out of the hotel and then ran into the club, frantically searching for their friends.

“I’ll check the bathroom,” Sunggyu said, splitting up with Hyemin, who walked to the bar.

“Have you seen two guys in here, one with really thick lips that stick out a lot and—”

“—You’re looking for someone with thick lips?” a man interrupted, grabbing Hyemin by her arm. His dark eyes glazed over her and he whistled before trying bringing her closer to him.

“Excuse me, but I’m not here for that,” Hyemin said, standing her ground against the man.

The man his lips and brushed his hands through his bleached blonde hair. “Thick lips—”

Hyemin slapped him across the face, but the man simply chuckled. He forced Hyemin closer to him and whispered in her ear, “I’ll make you want me.” He held her face close to his, and despite her fighting and yelling, he would not let go, nor would anyone intervene. “The name’s Daniel. Remember th—”

Daniel suddenly dropped Hyemin on the floor and his face was flush red. Hyemin looked up to see Sunggyu pull a surprised Daniel off of his barstool to punch him again, and again, and again. Daniel had enough sense to punch back, though, and a fight soon broke out. Sunggyu kneed Daniel in the gut and kicked him onto the ground easily. Sunggyu was about to kick the bastard again when he felt bodyguards suddenly pulling him away.

“You bastard!” Sunggyu screamed, kicking Daniel’s feet. Daniel sat up on the ground and wiped his bloody lip spitefully.

The bodyguards threw Sunggyu out of the club, directly onto the street.

“Second fight today,” the bouncer said, shaking his head.

Sunggyu looked up at the bouncer and asked, “Second?”

“The first was way worse. It was two-on-two, and they chased each other all through the club. There were broken bottles, assaulted bystanders—they even knocked out the chef.”

“How did it end? Where are they now?”

The bouncer took a closer look at Sunggyu. “You’re not from around here, are you?” Sunggyu chose not to reply, so the bouncer assumed the fact and continued, “It was a typical gang beating. The Gi Company kids won. But this time, they didn’t leave the bodies. Not sure why.”

“The bodies—were they two young guys, also not from around here? One with big lips and the other with a sharp nose?”

“I guess… if I remember correctly,” the bouncer replied.

Sunggyu stared blankly at the street, taking in everything the bouncer had just told him. . . . ! Those gangsters really remembered the other guys. They even took Woohyun and Dongwoo. But—Hyemin! Sunggyu stood up and walked around the street, and it didn’t take him long to find her.

Hyemin was curled up in a ball, leaning against a street lamp. Sunggyu lightly tapped her on the shoulder first, and when she saw him, she let go of her knees and stood up next to him.

“Are… you okay?” she asked, feeling Sunggyu’s face and neck for any wounds.

“I’m fine,” he answered, holding onto her hands. He held them between the two of them, and stared into her teary eyes. “But are you?”

Hyemin’s eyes began overflowing with water, and tears started coming down. She sniffed and tried to keep her tears from coming, but they just came out faster and faster. Sunggyu hugged her tight and patted her head, letting her cry on his shoulder.

“You’re safe now. I’m here for you.”