First Paradise : Guardians of Paradise

I can’t die.

I stared bewilderedly at my still form, at my bloodied body lying there in the middle of the road. My limbs were in odd angles, something that wouldn’t have been possible if I was still alive.

Alive. Was that it? Was I dead?

I watched as several passersby rushed to my side, calling out words I could no longer make out or make any sense of. My body was turning cold, the colour draining slowly out of my already pale skin. The cake that I had been carrying just moments ago was splattered against the road, white and chocolate cream dotting the surrounding area.

Mija’s cake.

I reached out with my trembling fingers to touch my dead body but before I could even lay one finger on it, I was whisked away in a deadly gale, dragging my spirit, or whatever I was called in this form away from the scene of the accident. I was into a blinding light and I tried my best to shield my eyes, squeezing them shut from the glare. My body felt like it was on fire, like somebody had hung me out to dry on a blazing summer’s afternoon. It was excruciating and extremely painful. The pain disappeared as soon as it came and I found myself blinking, the glare of the light gone. I scanned my surroundings—I was in a white room, four walls rose around me to infinity. There was nothing here, nothing but me.

I looked down at myself, no longer transparent and spirit-like. I looked quite normal. My clothes had changed, I was out of the bloody attire I was in when I was hit by the truck, replaced by a simple white dress that cut near my knees. There were no shoes.

I scanned the surroundings again, slumping onto the floor in defeat.

What now?

As if on cue, a striped sofa appeared at the other end of the white room. I watched as a simple wooden chair, a tall stool and a small lamp appeared next to it. Then slowly, they appeared. Seven men clad entirely in black with odd accessories to complete their outfit.

All seven of them were really good-looking, in a way that made them even more inhumane than they already were. Especially the one who sat on the sofa, occupying the middle position in their little group. He had a smoldering stare that was unnerving. I felt like I was being judged.

After what felt like eternity, he finally spoke.

“Welcome to Paradise.”

“What?” I stuttered.

The one with the bronze hair stood up and made his way over to me. He was wearing a long-sleeved turtleneck with a shoulder guard attached to it, held in place by two straps that extended out from the guard. I watched him come closer, noticing how young and feminine he looked. He held out one hand, smiling warmly at me. I smiled back, though a little more nervously that I would have wanted and accepted his hand as he hauled me back up onto my feet.

“Welcome to Paradise,” he repeated as he lead me over to the other six men. He had a high-pitched voice that complemented his feminine features perfectly. I was suddenly feeling very self-conscious.

The other six men got up to their feet as we got closer and I got a better look at them. On the left, the tallest one was also wearing a turtleneck (in fact, all of them were wearing turtlenecks) with a web of ringlets strung about the front of his shirt. His skin was fair, his baby-face making him look younger than he must be. The one who was on the floor had honey coloured hair that was styled upwards, exposing his forehead. His sleeves was his distinguishable feature, with one being a normal sleeve and the other just a ribbon of fabric snaking up his well-toned arm.

On the right were the two sleeveless turtlenecks. The one who had been on the chair had copper hair, he wore various thick chains and bracelets but it was his eagle-like features that made him stand out. The one that had been on the floor had a wild, almost feral look about him, was it the way his eyes were constantly darting around? He smiled suddenly, showing off his oversized teeth and gums. I grinned a little.

The one of the left of the man with the smoldering stare was looking at me with a glint of curiosity in his eyes. His hair was curled into small waves that fell across his forehead and his outfit was definitely the weirdest out of the bunch, a staggering amount of safety pins decorated his collar and the front of his shirt and also a portion of his left and right sleeves. He nudged Honey Hair and whispered something to him. Honey Hair didn’t seem quite pleased with whatever he said and sent him a stern look.

“Woohyun hyung’s at it again,” Bronze Hair next to me laughed, even his laugh sounded twinkly and sparkly.

“Woohyun?”

“That’s him, the one who just spoke to Sunggyu hyung,” he nodded his head towards Honey Hair. “And that’s Sungyeol hyung next to him. Hoya hyung, Dongwoo hyung. Myungsoo hyung is next to Woohyun hyung.”

Myungsoo. So that’s his name. I looked at him and he was still staring at me. He had the simplest outfit, the same black turtleneck, black pants and black shoes. He wore no accessories. His hair was styled in a spike that towards the front, accentuating his thin jawline and handsome features.

I looked away from him, still feeling unnerved from his gaze. Looking at Bronze Hair next to me, I realized that he hasn’t told me his name. I told him this and he laughed again, introducing himself as Sungjong.

“Welcome to Paradise,” Honey Hair, I mean Sunggyu greeted me when we finally made it over to them. He was smiling gently, his eyes a pair of perfect crescents.

“Yeah I got the idea,” I grinned at him. He looked a little taken-aback and shot a quick look at the others.

“Well yes, I’m Sunggyu.”

“And I’m-” The tallest one began but I cut his words short.

“Sungyeol right?” He looked a little flabbergasted, in a cute way. “And this is Dongwoo, Hoya, Woohyun and…” I turned to each one of them as I listed them out, when I got to him however, “Myungsoo.” I ended lamely.

“Well that . I wanted to give a really cool introduction, it’s been awhile since we were called out,” Sungyeol pouted.

“It’s Jongie’s fault, I saw him whispering to her earlier,” Woohyun pointed out.

“Well at least I wasn’t planning schemes to try to flirt with the client hyung,” Sungjong rolled his eyes dramatically, kind of like how a drama queen would. Or maybe a diva.

“Enough,” one word from Sunggyu and the rest of them quieted down, I could feel his authority in the air and assumed that he was the leader.

“Han Hyeri, I am sure you understand why you’re here,” Sunggyu stated simply. I nodded. “Then I am sure you know what come’s next,” he continued.

“Yeah that’s the thing, I’m not exactly ready to die yet,” I told him bluntly.

The others looked at me like I was insane. Except Myungsoo, he looked like he was about to fall asleep.

“What do you mean you’re not ready? You’re already here at Paradise. You’re already dead,” Hoya reminded me.

“Yeah, I’m not ready to die yet, so one of you is going to have to send me back,” I pressed on stubbornly.

“We can’t do that.”

“And why is that?”

“We don’t have those kind of powers.”

“Aren’t you guys God or something? Just send me back already.”

“Unfortunately, we’re not God. We are merely the Guardians of Paradise.”

“Okay then, take me to God because I need to have a word with him.”

They looked at me like I was insane. Even Myungsoo seemed to have woken up from his little stupor as he was eyeing me.

“She’s crazy. I like her.” Sungyeol piped up and grinned happily at me.