rae☆

“You seriously think that?” you ask Hwangpil while taking another sip of red wine. “If I’m able to just kill that kid, think about how powerful I’d be.” he says while lighting another cigarette. You smile and bite your lip out of nervousness. You’re fairly new to this whole evil spirit thing, as you have only consumed three souls; whereas Hwangpil has consumed over 10. 

But, there’s a secret he doesn’t know about you. 

He keeps you around as his own personal sacrifice, since to him, you’re weak. You lean back on your chair and sigh. Hwangpil cocks his eyebrow at you, but you already know what he’s thinking; you don’t need to ask. You never expected to be a so-called “evil spirit”, but here you are sitting beside the strongest, most evil man you’ve ever encountered. 

Though you hate Hwangpil, you also love him. You constantly try to please him, but he is never satisfied. To his knowledge, you’ve only consumed three souls; he doesn’t know the full truth about you. To him, you are a beginner and nothing but a rookie, but there’s much more to that story. 

Hwangpil stands up, bringing your hand to his lips, placing a kiss. You smile before he quickly shuts you down. “Get to bed. Long day tomorrow.” and before you know it, he’s gone.

*next night*

You and Hwangpil walk into the crowded junkyard. You lean against an old car and look up to the night sky. You laugh and feel butterflies grow in your stomach. “This is my first fight with Hwangpil. I’ll be able to show him that I’m more than just his toy.” you think silently. After about 15 minutes pass, you sigh impatiently as you wait for the counters to sense Hwangpil’s territory. 

Just before you start to stretch, you see headlights blaring at you and Hwangpil. Hwangpil covers his eyes with his arm, squinting; while you stare directly at the car ahead. You smile at him and you two run separate ways, making sure the counters have to split up to find you two. 

You run into the maze of abandoned cars and wait, but you can’t see or hear anything. You look around cautiously, anticipating one of the counters to sneak up on you. With your back turned, you leave an open spot for vulnerability. As soon as you turn around, you are met with a strong hit to the face. You cover your face and wipe the blood off, looking up and seeing a short girl with dark curly hair. You smirk as you stand up in an attempt to land a punch on her, but she trips you and you fall on your back. You moan in annoyance, “Ahh, you’re that annoying bitch aren’t you?” you say sitting up. You swing your arm and hit her in the leg with full force. She falls as you get up to run away. While running, you feel a force stopping you in your tracks. You look around and see a man. “It’s him.” you think to yourself. 

You break away from his force and run towards him. You leap and miss your hit on him. He lands a punch right on your nose and blood runs down your face once again. You shriek out in pain. “You fucking bitch!” you yell out. The man smirks, “Actually, my name is Somun.” he says calmly. His calmness angers you even more. He lands another forceful punch on your abdomen and you stumble backwards. “He’s stronger than I thought.” you say under your breath. You look up and your eyes widen as he stands there, inching closer towards you. Somun stands there, not doing anything. You lock eye contact with him and his eyes widen. “You’re not… an evil spirit?” he says with a sharp inhale

You don’t have time for small talk. You muster up the strength to punch him, but he stops you with just one of his hands.

You hear footsteps running up behind you and flinch, covering yourself with your arms, crouching down. “Stop.” Somun says. The footsteps stop and you overhear a female voice, “Somun! What are you doing? Summon her!” she yells. Tears form in your eyes. Now that you’re in actual combat, you come to the realization that you’re not fit for this life. 

A force picks you up from the throat and drags you across the busy yard. You open your eyes and are met with Hwangpil. He furrows his eyebrows at you as tears continue to stream down your bloody face. “I’m sorry.” you say through a choked voice. You look around through blurry vision and see all the counters staring at you two. You sniff once more, until Hwangpil throws you 50 feet across, making you crash into a car. Your back crashes against the metal as you fall onto the cold dirt. You wipe the tears from your face, standing up again. 

You hate the counters.

But you “hate” Hwangpil even more. 

He has been manipulating and using you as his toy for the past few months. You sit and think about the outcome, if you just consumed one more soul you could please him. Whilst standing up, you hold your abdomen from Somun’s punch. You let out a scream and run towards Somun, successfully landing a punch. Hwangpil smiles at you and you can’t help but feel proud of yourself. This feeling quickly changes when Somun wipes a tiny amount of blood of his lip turning towards you, “Is that all you’ve got?” Your eyes widen in fear and determination. You punch Somun in the abdomen with little force that you can muster up. Somun spits out blood and you laugh. But you remember the part you promised to play. You step back in realization. Hwangpil then grabs your throat once more, lifting you off the ground. You struggle for air as he looks at you with a face of disappointment. “You poor thing. I really thought you could be of use to me.” he says with a low tone. His fingers tighten around your neck and you shut your eyes, accepting your fate. Just then, you fall back onto the ground, gasping for air. You look up and see that Somun now has Hwangpil in his grasp. You scoot back in fear, until you feel a soft touch against your head, and you drift into a coma. 

*next morning*

You wake up to the smell of pork broth infiltrating your room. You think to yourself, “Is Hwangpil making breakfast?...” but as soon as you open your eyes, you realize you are not in your room. You shoot up, looking around the room in confusion. You walk to the mirror and gasp. You’re in comfortable pajamas and all of your wounds are healed from last night. You hear the sound of a small crowd laughing and talking just outside your door. Your heart warms at this nostalgic feeling. Just before you’re allowed to smile, your neck twitches and you grow with anger. You hate that you are always fighting this constant battle. Hwangpil’s manipulation has really taken a toll on you, as just a few months ago you were celebrating your birthday with your closest friends and family. That was the last time you felt genuine happiness and peace. You continue to fight with yourself between your feelings. But eventually, curiosity gets the best of you. 

You crack open the bedroom door, making eye contact with the same woman you saw last night. You gasp and turn around to run back into the bedroom, but you're caught in your tracks when someone catches you by the collar of your shirt. You attempt to fight back but the person isn’t budging. “Ok, I give up.” you sigh out. The pressure from your shirt releases and you turn around to confront the force. You are met with a tall, semi middle aged man with curly hair. You look at him and say nothing, furrowing your eyebrows with hate. He laughs right in your face. Your expression changes from hate to confusion. You speak up, “why aren’t you hurting me?” “You’re not an evil spirit.” he says. You say nothing and look at the floor. He clears his throat, “Come eat.” 

You shoot the man a dirty look and walk over to the table where everyone is sitting. Once you look around, you realize that you had just slept at your enemies hideout. Your eyes widen and squint in anger, then soften again in seconds. The counters continue to stare at you, till an older woman gestures for you to take a seat; a steaming bowl of soup and an empty chair waiting for you. 

You stare around awkwardly, while the group stares back. You gulp, “Why am I here?” you say in a flat, monotone voice. “You’re not evil.” the young boy that you had punched last night speaks up. You dart your eyes at him and snarl. “Yes, I am.” you say confidently. The table falls silent once again. The older woman leans over and rubs your back. In the matter of 3 seconds, you go to slap her hand off of you, but something stops you; your conscience. You make eye contact with her and she gives a reassuring smile. “Don’t be afraid, we are here to help you.” You finally relax your stiff shoulders and slouch over, bringing your hands to your face to avoid the overwhelming emotions running through your body. 

After you compose yourself, you remove your hands while clearing your throat; readying yourself to dump everything on the counters. 

“Hwangpil. He found me while I was outside walking home after celebrating my birthday. He saw that my guard was down, and to him, I was his perfect victim.” you speak up. “These past 3 months have been a living hell. He had forced me to watch him kill and consume my best friend's soul. I felt like I couldn’t breathe. He laughed right in my face and I saw his body contort in a way that I didn’t think was humanly possible.” You pause your sentence and look up, the counters are staring at you with both empathy and hatred. Not hatred for you, but for Hwangpil. “Continue.” the young man speaks up. You nod and continue. 

“After that, he continued to manipulate me and overtime, his words got to me. Everyday I fight with myself, battling the internal war between good V.S. evil. I want to be good. I really do. But something about pleasing Hwangpil excites me so much.” you say as you squirm in your seat.

 The counter's empathy then turns to confusion. You twitch your neck and start laughing. The counters all stand up, backing up out of fear. You stand up, laughing even harder. “Did you really think I was serious?!” you say. You clutch your stomach in pain from laughing so hard. “Go ahead! Open your territory Somun!” you say pointing to the ground, mocking his ability. Somun opens the territory, and immediately, the young girl's neck twitches. “Someone has step foot.” You burst into laughter once more. “You still don’t get it, do you? I didn’t expect you all to be this gullible!” They all stare at you once more. “Here, I’ll spell it out for you since you all are too dumb to understand… I am a so-called “Level 3”, or whatever you wanna call us. My power you ask? Hiding all the souls I’ve consumed! Meaning, you won’t be able to sense me. No matter how hard you try.” you say with a cocky smile. 

Somun and the young girl jump at you, fists full of power. You land a kick on his stomach and grab the girl’s hand, looking at her in the eyes. “What was your name again? Jana? Dana?” you say laughing. You land a strong punch on her, causing her nose to bleed. “Doesn’t feel good does it?” Once you see Somun getting up, you can feel the anger piercing the atmosphere. You smile and wave at him, “Bye!” you say. As soon as he pounces onto you, the counters look around searching for you. You’re nowhere to be found.

*clink* 

Your wine glass taps Hwangpils, as you two laugh together about your interaction with the counters. They don’t know that you and Hwangpil have been teammates for 11 months. “Their faces were hilarious! And they totally thought you were gonna kill me! And you know what? That Somun kid is pretty cute.” you say laughing. Hwangpil smiles, “You did a good job playing your weak girl role the other night. When I was holding you, I almost believed you.” he says. “What else?” you ask teasingly. “Yes, I read your mind when I was choking you, even your inner monologue was perfect. You almost had me fooled.” You smile at his compliment and tilt your head down, blushing. Hwangpil grabs your chin and tilts your face so that you two are eye to eye. “But don’t let that get to your head.” he says with a wink, slowly leaving the couch where you two are sitting. 

*timeskip: 1 week*

You wait inside the empty abandoned mall, waiting for the counters to show up. “I hate waiting” you say while pacing, fixing your leather gloves. Finally, you sense him. “Ahh! Somun! Long time no see my love!” you say waving, purposely trying to anger him. He runs up to you, wasting no time. He hits you straight in the face, causing blood to stream down your face. You smile as you wipe it off nonchalantly. “Is that all you’ve got?” you say, mocking him from your fight last week. He runs back up to you and you kick him in the stomach. He smiles, grabs your leg, and slams you onto the ground. You moan in pain and quickly try to stand, but Somun overpowers you, straddling you. He begins to repeatedly punch your face, until there is a pool of blood around you. You grab both of his hands, squeezing his fists. He winces in pain as you smile, blood covering your teeth. “Where’s the rest of your team, darling? Or did Hwangpil take care of them already?” Somun screams, loud enough to bust both of your eardrums. You slide across the floor from the waves of his voice. You put your finger up to your ear, feeling blood leaking out. You’re drenched in blood, but you won’t let this fight end this early. You reach out your hand, pulling Somun to you. You knee him in the abdomen. As he bends over in pain, you knee his head. He stumbles backwards as you continue to slap him around, not allowing him to land a single hit on you.

You stop for a moment to catch your breath, panting from the intense fight. You look over and see Somun laying on the ground. Your eyes widen in excitement, thinking you have actually killed him. You walk over slowly, kicking his head once more to ensure he’s out. He shows no reaction. You smile and bend over, preparing to consume the strongest power you have ever encountered. Just as you open your mouth, you are flung across the floor. You crash into an abandoned store's entrance, hitting your back against the hard wall. You groan in pain, but before you can process what happened, you are flung back towards Somun. In what felt like 1 second, you are met with his grasp around your throat. You feel his fingers tighten. You flail your body in an attempt to fight back, but each passing moment you are getting more and more lightheaded. As soon as your eyes begin to roll backward, the grasp is let go from your throat. You stumble onto the ground, looking at Somun. He straddles you once again, landing punch after punch. You don’t try to fight back, you are exhausted at this point. Somun goes to land his final blow, but you stop his fist, speaking up through gurgled blood. “I hate you.” Somun lets out a cocky smile, “I hate you even more.”  As he delivers his final punch, he completely knocks you out unconscious. 

Somun stares at you with immense hate and anger. He takes your hand in his and places it upon your chest; summoning you. 

*next morning*

You wake up, rubbing your eyes and yawning. You walk to your bathroom with fuzzy eyes, but you are met with a wall. You bump into the wall, stumbling back. You rub your eyes once more, scanning your surroundings. Once again, you’re not at home. You get a feeling of familiarity. You take a deep breath, trying to remember, but the smell of pork broth hits you. You still don’t quite understand, as everything is both physically and mentally blurry. You walk to a mirror, gasping at all of the cuts and bruises over your body. You whine and throw your head back, frustrated from confusion. You exit the bedroom expecting an empty room, but there sit 4 faces that you have seen somewhere before. You stare at the group and immediately yell in anger. “Who are you and where the hell am I?!” The group laughs, “Seems she hasn’t calmed down yet.” a middle aged man speaks up. You furrow your eyebrows, stomping towards the man. “Hey! Listen! You can’t kidnap me and expect me not to a-” just then a voice interrupts you. “Y/N, sit down.” a young boy says. “And how the hell do you know my name?!” you yell, rubbing your forehead in immense frustration. “Just sit down.” he repeats.  

You sit down, staring at the group. “Y/N, do you remember anything?” the boy speaks up. You reply with silence. He cocks his eyebrow at you, awaiting your response. “I remember being punched. I don’t know if it was last night or last month.” you speak up. “Do you know my name?” he asks. “No. But I have a feeling I have met you all before. Especially you.” you say pointing to the younger girl. She smiles and looks down. “Yes, we have met before. I’m the one you called a bitch.” Your eyes widen. You don’t remember any of this, but this topic sounds familiar. “We’ll explain.” she says. 

The counters explain everything, a long list of information that you can barely process. “Okay so let me get this straight. A man named Hwangpil is an ‘evil spirit’ and he killed people and made me consume their souls, then we were teammates. Then I met you all and we got into a fight. I told you all my power, and then I fought Somun and he summoned me. So I was an evil spirit? Am I getting this all right?” the group nods. “Pretty much.” they all say in sync. “I’m sorry to have put you all through this much trouble. I don’t remember much. But the Hwangpil guy sounds really familiar.” you pause. “Thank you.” 

“Hey, just because you’re all nice now doesn’t mean we forgive you.” Motak speaks up. Your eyes dart down. “I understand.” 

*time skip: 10 months*

It’s been 10 months since you saw the counters last, but for some reason, Somun won’t leave your mind recently. Maybe because winter is approaching and this is around the time the whole thing went down. Your life has returned to normal, and you feel at peace again. You lay down, preparing to sleep. You look out your window admiring the beautiful city lights of Jungjin. While staring at the city, you see beams of light radiating from the busy street below. You look at the people walking below; but they seem to not notice the lights. You can almost feel the luminescence calling your name. You throw on a jacket, and run out your door. You step outside, seeing the bright lights leading you towards a location. You run, following the light. While running, you bump shoulders with someone. You turn around quickly to apologize, but see the familiar face of Motak. “Y/N. We need your help.” You stare at him in confusion, knowing you haven’t had anything to do with the counters in months. “Why me?” you ask. “Do you see the lights?” he asks. You pout your lips, “These lights?” you say pointing to the beam between you and Motak. His eyes widen and he grabs your wrist in a hurry, forcing you to follow him. “Motak! What is going on?” you yell, out of breath. “Somun.” he says. You sigh, not feeling any less confused. Motak stops and looks at you. “Hwangpil. He’s back.” your eyes widen. The name rings in your ears, it sounds so familiar, but not in a good way. 

You reach the end of the lights, seeing the silhouette of him. You stumble back, all of your memories from the fight coming back. Blood is scattered on the ground of the same junkyard you were once in. You fall back, Motak catching you. You look over and see Somun lying on the ground, while Hana is in combat with Hwangpil. Memories infiltrate your mind as you see Somun coughing up blood. “He needs your help.” Motak whispers to you. “What can I do? I don’t have any powers!” you reply. “You said you see the lights right?” he says. You nod in reply to his question, “Then you can do anything.” You gulp in nervousness, but you are determined to save the life of the boy who once saved yours. You sprint towards Hwangpil, but before you can do anything, you check on Somun. He’s barely conscious, blood and tears falling from his face. “Somun, you’ll be okay. You saved me. This time, I’ll save you.” you say kneeling over him. While standing up he grabs your wrist, “Don’t.” he says weakly. You look at him while tears form in your eyes. There is no way you’re going to let him, or any of the other counters die. 

“Well, this is unexpected! My dear Y/N, how I’ve missed you! You’re all innocent now. What happened to my determined teammate who worked so hard to satisfy me?” Hwangpil says in a degrading tone. You rip your wrist away from Somun’s grasp, standing in front of him to guard his body. Hwangpil laughs, “You’re weaker than ever now. What are you going to do to me, honey?” he asks. The lights from earlier rise once more and you feel adrenaline rushing throughout your whole body. Before you can react to Hwangpils words, you are sprinting towards him. You land a punch under his jaw, sending his head flying back. You are running on pure energy. You land punch after punch, making Hwangpil stumble backwards. Just then a pole hits the back of his head. You stop your punching and look besides you. There stands a bloody Hana, holding a 4 foot steel pole in her hands. You two smile at each other and continue kicking and punching Hwangpil until he is completely knocked out. 

Before you know it, you are straddling him, placing his hand under yours. “Y/N! You’re not a counter. It won’t w-” Hana yells before Somun quietly shushes her. You yell and the lights around you grow. You can’t even comprehend what you’re doing until a bright glow rises from Hwangpils chest. He yells out, then collapses. You slouch down, rolling onto the ground. The counters stare at you in shock. “She just…” Motak stutters. Somun smiles and lays his head back. “He’s really gone..” Hana speaks up. 

You sit up, dusting your hands like nothing happened. You look up and see the counters still staring at you in disbelief. “How did you do that?…” Hana speaks up. “Do what?” you reply. She says nothing and just points to Hwangpils body next to you. Your eyes widen and you scoot back. You cover your mouth in shock and stutter out random sounds. “It doesn’t matter. I’ll call the cops.” Motak says, pulling out his phone. You nod and slowly stand up, motioning to Hana to help you move Somun to the car. 

“I’m sorry for calling you an annoying bitch Hana. You’re pretty cool.” you speak up shyly. You expected her to roll her eyes or just ignore you. Instead she grabs your hand and smiles. “That was so cheesy, but it’s okay. We’re friends now.” she says. Your stomach does flips over your once enemy calling you her friend. “Hey hey hey, we are not friends!” Somun whines while sitting up from the passenger seat. “Somun, she just saved your life.” Motak spits out. Somun begins to speak again until Motak pushes him back against the seat, making Somun wince in pain. You and Hana laugh. You move your gaze towards the window, beginning to drift into the sleep you were preparing for before you had to go and save someone’s life. 

*next morning* 

“Boom! I hit him right in the jaw! Then Hana came in and knocked him out with a pole. I don’t even know where she got that thing!” you blurt out, explaining last night's activities to Ms.Chu. She laughs and takes another bite of food, which she had prepared for you all. You sigh, “Thank you all again for letting me stay here and treating me to breakfast. But I should be going. I hope we cross paths again.” Just as you begin to stand, a sleepy Somun emerges from his bedroom. He yawns, scratching his messy hair. You laugh at him, never seeing him like this before. “Goodmorn-'' he says, interrupting himself, “What is she doing here.” you laugh, “Good Morning to you too.” you say. “Somun don’t be so rude to the girl who saved your life.” Ms.Chu speaks up with a mouth full of food. You laugh once more, preparing to leave. Somun looks at you and cocks his head towards his room. You look at him confused “Come.” he says through a raspy voice. The counters look at each other with a look of mischief on their faces. You hesitate, but follow Somun to his room. 

“What’s up?” you ask him. “Y/N, I wanna talk to you about something.” he says, motioning you to take a seat on his bed. You sit down on his bed and stare at him. “I still hate you.” he says. You turn your head in confusion. “...but thank you.” “For what?” you ask teasingly. Somun clenches his jaw, then releases it. “Thank you for helping me.” he says stubbornly. You let out a breathy laugh, “You’re welcome, Somun.” Silence follows until you decide to speak up once more. “About those glowing lights, what are they?” you ask. “You don’t remember? You mocked me, asking me to open my territory back when you were still a spirit.” You say nothing. “Anyway, I opened them, hoping you could see them.”

“I saw them, and something told me to follow them. On the way, I ran into Motak. He told me that you needed help. I don’t know what happened but your territory helped me.” Somuns eyes widen and he grabs your hand, looking at your palm. On your index finger, there is one small little black dot. He looks at it with confusion, until you pull your hand back. “I thought you hated me? Why are you holding my hand?” you ask. Somun takes a sharp breath, “Hey don’t get any ideas, I was just checking something.” A moment of silence passes until Somun asks for your phone. You hand him your phone and he types in his number. “What is this?” you ask, staring at the screen. “What does it look like? Text me if you need anything.” You look at Somun full of confusion. ‘First he hates me and now he’s giving me his number. What is this guy's problem?’ you think to yourself. You shove your phone into your back pocket and grab your jacket, exiting his room. You say your goodbyes to the counters and walk on the cold streets of Jungjin, back to your apartment.

While walking back to your apartment, the beams of light rise from the streets once again. You look at them and whine out loud, turning around to make your way back to the counters hideout. After about 15 minutes of walking you storm in, “Somun! Stop opening your territory! I thought you asked me to text you if I need something!” The counters sit at the table looking at you confused. You widen your eyes, staring at Somun waiting for a response. “I didn’t open anything…” he says. You run your fingers through your hair, “Who else could’ve done that then? I saw them!” you say angrily. “I was just about to get home too!” you yell out. Somun stands up, “Maybe I wanted to see you!” he yells out. The room falls silent. “...What?” you say. Somun clears his throat, “Maybe I wanted to see if you could still see the lights!” he says through an obvious lie. You roll your eyes, “Okay well I can see them. Stop bothering me!” you reply. You turn around and walk out the door, rolling your eyes again. ‘Why does he want to see me now? He’s so weird’ you think to yourself. 

You arrive home and plop on your bed, feeling exhausted. You start to think about your interaction with Somun. You saved his life, he says you two aren’t friends, proceeds to give you his phone number, then opens his territory for you to see. You sigh, getting up to take a shower. You look in the mirror and notice the ends of your hair curling up. You brush it off to stress and sweating. You hop in the shower, ignoring everything, trying to clear your mind. 

In your robe, you go to grab your hair brush. Bringing the brush to your head, you notice the black dot on your index finger. You stare at it closely, thinking that it was a freckle. You remember back to sitting in the car with Hana, she had the same dots; except they were on all of her fingers. You remember Somun grabbing your hand that morning, he also had the dots on the tips of his fingers. You’re even more confused now. You brush it off once more as a coincidence, and continue brushing your hair. Your hair goes back to its natural state and you smile, until a small curl pops up, curling just above your forehead. You furrow your eyebrows, brushing the curl, only for it to coil back up. You’ve never seen a curl like this on yourself before. You continuously brush it, but each time, it bounces back. You sigh out once more, accepting the curl. You proceed to dress yourself in comfortable loungewear, needing to relax for a day after last night. 

After about 2 hours of relaxing, you find yourself staring at the curl that’s now resting on your forehead. You pull it down, watching it bounce back into shape. Now that you think about it, this cannot be a coincidence. The counters all have curly hair, and you have confirmed that two of them have the same dots that you have on your index finger. Maybe they’re siblings? No that can’t be. You stand up from the vanity staring back at you, throwing on a pair of sweatpants and making your way to the counters 'hideout’. Once you step outside, you have completely forgotten how to get there despite leaving 3 hours ago. You pout, knowing the only person who can help you get there is Somun. You pull your phone out of your pocket, hovering your thumb over his name. You text him, “It’s Y/N. Open your territory please :)” You shut your phone off expecting at least a 10 minute wait. In a blink, the familiar lights are shining. You smirk, shoving your phone back into your pocket and walking to the hideout. 

Once you reach the hideout, you walk in, only to see the normal meeting spot empty. You scan the room looking for Somun. You walk in further, finding a sweaty Somun in the boxing ring, throwing invisible punches. You stare and admire for a while, your face growing pink. You’ve never realized how attractive Somun is until now. The past times you’ve seen him you were trying to kill each other or thinking about killing each other. Somun turns around, flicking the sweat off of his forehead. “What’s up.” he says nonchalantly. “Can we talk?... Please?” you ask. Somun smirks and lets out a breathy life, sitting on the edge of the boxing ring. “You’re being awfully nice. Do you need me to do something for you?” You roll your eyes playfully, “Yes, well not really, but yes.” Somun stares at you. You point to the curl hanging in front of your eyes. “What?” Somun asks. “What is this!” you ask. “A curl?” Once again, you roll your eyes. “and what about this?” you say while holding your finger out to him. Somun stares at it with no emotion, until he starts putting two and two together. Under his breath he mummers out, “Is she turning into a counter?” You stare at Somun while he looks at your finger. A full minute has passed at this point. “So?” you ask. “I think you’re turning into a counter.” he says. You tilt your head in confusion, how is this even possible? “I thought I had to get into some type of fatal accident to even be granted the opportunity to become one.” Somun says nothing, he stares at your eyes and pulls the curl down, watching it coil back into it’s shape. You grab the curl with your hand, “What are you doing?!” you yell. “I wanted to see if it was real.” You breathe out, “Somun, you’re no help.” you say. “Did you want me to help?” he asks. “Of course I did! I came here for a reason.” He stares at you, then slips out of the boxing ring, taking a drink of water. Your face flushes pink once again. “Come sit. Let’s have our talk.” 

You both sit at the table, waiting for each other to speak up. “Y/N, I want to be honest with you.” he says in a tone, different from his usual tone. This tone sounds more genuine, compared to the monotone and raspy voice he usually talks to you in. You raise your eyebrows, signaling him to continue. He sighs, dropping his shoulders down to relax. “I’m sorry,” he says. ‘Where is this coming from?’ you think to yourself.

“I’m sorry that I’m so rude to you. I’m sorry that I wasn’t able to fight Hwangpil; I’m sorry that I had to rely on you. I’m sorry for all of the trouble that I’ve put you through. I hate you, because I envy you. No one would be brave enough to face their once enemy, but you did it with ease. I’m sorry, I really am.” he says. 

You take a moment to process what he has said. You really don’t remember much from being an evil spirit, so this whole situation is quite confusing. Before you respond, you feel a sharp pain in your temple. You yell out, laying your head on the table. A few seconds pass, but you sit up and look at the Somun with tears forming in your eyes. Somun looks at you confused. “Somun… I almost killed you.” you speak up. “Our fight. I remember everything now. I tricked you all into caring for me, I hurt you and Hana, I almost killed you.” you say, now sobbing. Somun stays silent. “If anything, I should be sorry to you. I apologize, Somun.” you say bowing your head. While you feel tears of guilt streaming down your face, you feel a hand cup your face, wiping your tears. You look up, Somun is staring at you with pain painted on his face. You sniff, embracing his touch. “I’m sorry too.” he says through a choked voice. 

You pull his hand away, sitting back in your chair, wiping your tears. “When you hurt us, that wasn’t you. It was the spirit inside of you, but it’s gone now. You’re safe now” he speaks up. Those are the words you needed to hear. ‘I’m safe I’m safe I’m safe’ replays in your head. You smile through your tears. “Most importantly, you’re safe with us.” he says once more. You look at his glistening eyes and nod, “Thank you, Somun. Thank you for everything.” He smiles, and grabs your hand. “You don’t hate me anymore do you?” he asks. You laugh, “I never hated you.” you confess. He shares a laugh with you, “Good.” He sighs out, “Well since you’re part counter, let’s train some.” You nod, accepting the challenge. 

*2 hours later*

Hana, Motak, and Ms.Chu all walk in, all tipsy from bar hopping on their day off. They walk in and see you and Somun laying down in the middle of the boxing ring, completely passed out. Motak laughs, walking over to the ring. “Looks like these two are friends now. Just last night Somun was going off about how they weren’t friends.” “You know what that means when Somun says he doesn’t have interest in someone.” Ms.Chu speaks up. “It means he likes her.” Hana says in a monotone voice. The thing is, they don’t know that you woke up 5 minutes ago, you are just too exhausted to move. You fake sleep for another 3 minutes, until you hear the lights switch off, feeling a blanket drape over you and Somun. 

You wake up in the morning, sitting up from the uncomfortable sleep you had. You rub your blurry eyes, until you notice Somun’s arm laying across your lap. Your eyes widen and your face grows pink. You go to move his arm in a rush, but right before you grab him, you stop. You stare at his arm, relaxing yourself. You decide to slowly move his arm off of you, slipping out of the ring. 

Making your way to your unofficial room, you bump into Ms.Chu. “Ah! I’m sorry, I’m just getting ready to leave. I have a lot to do today.” you say in a hurry. She looks at you with confusion, watching you grab your things and rush out of the door. 

You make your way back to your apartment, hoping that today you can relax with no problems. 

You change into clean clothes and open your laptop, wanting to catch up with friends. You haven’t spoken with your friends recently, let alone see them. You and your friend Suyeon decide to meet up at a local cafe to catch up. You apply some light makeup but while looking in the mirror, you notice the stubborn curl is still there. You run into your bathroom, attempting to style it to fit your natural hair, but each time, it bounces back. You sigh in annoyance, pinning it with a barrette. You walk out the apartment door, heading to the cafe. 

30 minutes pass by at the cafe, laughing and catching up with your old friend. You are having an amazing time until a familiar face walks in. of course, it’s Somun. You decide to ignore him and focus on you and your friend. You just want one day of peace. This feeling didn’t last long. Somun walks up to you two, smiling. “Are you stalking me or something?” he asks jokingly. “Weren’t we the first ones here?” you ask. He nods his head, “Fair.” “I’ll catch up with you later.” you reply. Somun gives you a look of what seemed to be puppy eyes for just a quick second, then his eyes return to normal. You stare at him while he walks away, turning to your friend like nothing happened. 

“Bye! Text me when you get home!” leaving your friend, walking in opposite directions. You turn the corner of the building and bump into someone. Before you can look, you start apologizing. You look up and see Somun, again. “Somun! Are you sure you’re not stalking me?” you yell in a teasing manner. He laughs, “Just wanted to make sure you’re safe.” You roll your eyes, but secretly, butterflies are growing inside of your stomach. “Ms.Chu is making lunch, do you want to join us?” he asks. “I just left, and I kind of wanted a day to myself. But thank you for the offer.” you reply. He shoots you his intentional-unintentional puppy eyes, his silent way of saying please. “Okay, I’ll go today, but tomorrow you better leave me alone.” Somun’s eyes soften and he smiles. He starts walking and you follow behind him. 

You two have been walking for 30 minutes, despite the hideout being 10 minutes away. You notice that you’ve been walking in the opposite direction. “Somun, are we almost there?” you ask, interrupting your conversation. “5 more minutes.” “‘till we’re there?” “5 more minutes of being with you.” he says. You stop in your tracks, and stare at him. Your face immediately turns red. Somun seems to notice this as he laughs and turns his neck at you. “Is that a problem?” he asks. You shake your head no, biting back your smile. You continue to walk alongside Somun until you reach the place you’ve become familiar with. You two walk in, smiling and laughing together. You two sit at the table, not even acknowledging the counters in the room. While you two continue your conversation, Motak comes and slaps Somun on the back of the head. “Hello to you too!” he yells out. You and Somun laugh, ignoring the room once again. 

Motak walks over to Ms.Chu. “Jesus, they’re acting like they’re in love or something. They hated each other the other night. But they have one sleepover and now they’re lovers.” Motak says in a whisper to Ms.Chu. She rolls her eyes at him and hits his arm. “Leave them alone, just be glad they’re not fighting anymore.” They look over at you two, watching you and Somun stare into each other's eyes, deep in conversation, laughing and flirting. Motak fake gags. Ms.Chu grabs the pot of stew and sits it right in the middle of you two, halting your conversation. “Okay okay okay, let’s eat! Y/N, go get Hana.” she says to you. You nod your head and go look for Hana, but while looking for her, you overhear Motak and Ms.Chu nagging Somun with questions. 

“Didn’t you two hate each other the other day?” “Why were you two cuddling last night?” “Did you guys go on a date?” “You might as well abandon us for her!” “You can’t fall in love this quick!” 

You laugh, overhearing their questions. You continue walking down the hall to find Hana. “Hana, lunch is ready if you’re ready to eat.” you tell her. She pauses her workout and stands up, walking with you back to the table. Hana sits next to Somun, like she normally does. But before you sit, Somun is staring at her like she has a death wish. She looks at you and back to Somun, nodding her head in realization, scooting to sit next to Ms.Chu. You laugh awkwardly and sit next to Somun. 

You all talk and indulge in conversation for hours, getting to know each other. During this, you had told them about the obnoxious curl and the single dot on your finger. They had no answer, but they explained Yung to you, and how summoning works. You feel grateful that they decided to share this information with you. You look at the time, realizing it’s 9pm. Time flew by while you were eating and hanging out with everyone. You stand up, announcing that it’s time for you to go. The counters nod, but Hana and Somun are shooting each other a look. Hana then shoots up, “Why don’t you stay here?” she says, shooting an obvious wink at the other counters. “She’s right! It’s getting late!” Ms.Chu says. By now, you can see right through them; but they are all horrible liars. Motak fake yawns, getting up from the table walking into your ‘unofficial’ room. “Motak! That’s my room!” you yell. He pretends not to hear you and slams the door shut. You look back at the table, seeing that everyone has left except Somun. He looks at you before you shut him down. “No! I am not sleeping in the boxing ring again!” you yell out. Somun laughs, “I wasn’t going to suggest that,” he says. You shoot him a confused look. 

You are now laying in his bed, only a pillow dividing you two. You lay there with your eyes wide open, being able to hear your own heartbeat in the silence. With Somun laying beside you, you think back to all of the interactions you two have had together. First you were enemies, then you didn’t speak for months, and now you’re laying in the same bed as him with nothing but a pillow separating your bodies from touching. Somun groans, rolling over to face you. Throwing the pillow across the room, wrapping his arm around your waist. Your eyes widen, while you stare at his closed eyes. His touch instantly calmed you. You embrace his touch once more, admiring his face while he sleeps beside you. You feel a smile growing onto your face, now hearing your heartbeat 10x clearer. You hesitantly cup his face, “Goodnight, Somun.” you whisper, while closing your eyes.

 As soon as you begin to drift into sleep, you feel Somun move around again. You try to ignore it, but his constant rustling around is not allowing you to sleep. You sit up, whining, “Somun, why do you keep moving around?” you ask. “I can’t sleep.” You ask in a panic, “Have you been awake this whole time?” “Yes” he replies. You fall back onto the soft pillow, covering your face from embarrassment. “So you heard what I said?” you ask through your hands. “I can’t hear you when you're covering your face.” he says teasingly. You sit up again, now facing him. The only thing illuminating his face are the city lights. “You heard me say goodnight? and you felt me cupping your face? you also purposely threw the pillow! this is not fair!-“ You are cut off mid sentence, but instead of being interrupted, you are silenced by Somun crashing his lips onto yours. You close your eyes, embracing the moment. Somun pulls away, his face a shade of light pink. “Now you can relax. Go to sleep.” he says nonchalantly. You stare at him in shock. “Did you just….” you trail off. “Kiss you? yes, do you want me to do it again?” he asks. Before you can answer, Somuns hand is on your waist, bringing his lips slowly to yours once again. 

You pull away, still not processing what just happened. “Now seriously, go to sleep! You’ll be tired tomorrow.” he says while laying back down. You follow his action laying down beside him, this time with no border between you two. You hesitate, but you slowly move his arm to caress your waist; falling asleep together under the city lights. 

*time skip*

It’s been 6 months since you joined the counters, and 7 months since you and Somun started officially dating. You have moved in with the counters now since you’re here everyday, and also, your landlord increased your rent. You train hard everyday so that the counters will finally allow you to fight one day. Over the past 6 months, you have found 5 new curls and 2 new dots on your fingers; one on your pinky and one of your ring finger. You have learned to summon territories as well, it takes 3 nosebleeds and an inhaler though. The counters have always been by your side, helping and guiding you. 

You are so glad to have been accepted into such a wonderful space, and have a wonderful boyfriend. You don’t know where you would be if you never found them. 

Though being evil was the worst time of your life, you feel a sense of thankfulness. You would have never been where you are now. You wouldn’t be dating Somun, you wouldn’t be helping Hana with her hair and makeup, you wouldn’t be training with Motak, and you wouldn’t be helping Ms.Chu prepare dinner each night. 

“Game Cleared.” the loud speaker yells. You look around and see your once friends from the beach lying lifeless on the cold tile. A dark crimson red covering the once white floors.

You exhale, stumbling back and sliding down a wall, covering your face from the loud sobs coming from you. 

It’s quiet. Oddly quiet. Just moments ago there was yelling, screaming, arguing, crying, laughter, and every other human emotion. 

Kicking your foot on the ground, you yell out “Fuck, fuck, fuck!” through your sobs. 

You peek up from your beaten hands and see Kuina just a few feet away; sitting in the same position as you are. Her sobs combined with yours are enough to make anyone go insane. The echo from the empty arena on top of the cold wind outside; you wouldn’t wish your current position on your worst enemy. 

In an attempt to stand up, your legs give up and you fall onto the ground again. You crawl towards Kuina, hugging her tightly. You rub her back, through a quiet sob you ask, “Kuina.. Are you alright?” Silence falls as she digs her face deeper into your shoulder, clinging onto your shirt. “We lost Chishiya.” she sobs out. 

You pull away for a moment and she looks at you with teary doe eyes. “Y/N, we lost him!” she yells out. 

“What do you mean… lost him?..” you ask through broken speech. “I don’t know where he went.” she whispers.  “I heard a gunshot and he pushed me and told me to run. It’s been hours and I haven’t seen him, but Kuina; he’s smarter than that.” you say in an attempt to reassure her.

You know Chishiya well enough to know he won’t die that easily, especially without saying a final goodbye. “Kuina, look at me.” you say shaking her shoulders. “He’ll be okay; we didn’t lose him.” you reassure her. She nods her head as you help her up, making your way out of the game. 

---

3 days have passed without a single sighting of Chishiya. These past few days have been nothing but pure torture. “Did he really die?” you think to yourself, staring at the ceiling. 

You look at the red braided bracelet on your wrist. Tears form in your eyes, thinking back to the day where Chishiya gave you his bracelet just in case things went wrong. 

You hug your pillow, now sobbing uncontrollably. You pray silently, “Please Chishiya, please give me a sign that you’re okay.”  you close your eyes in an attempt to sleep this burning pain off. 

As you begin to drift, you move your arm to hug your pillow more comfortably; that is until you feel a piece of folded paper below your arm. You sit up, turning your lamp on, unfolding the paper. 

Y/N, I’m sorry to have left you worried. I am okay, I promise. Give me 2 more days and I will be able to see you again. Meet me on the roof on Wednesday at 6pm. I have to stay hidden for just a bit longer. I promise we will meet again and I will explain.

Love, 

      Chishi 

You cover your mouth, your tears falling onto the poorly written letter. You whisper out, “Thank you Chishiya.” 

–--

In the morning, you knock on Kuinas door to check up on her. 

“Kuina, you alright?” you ask through the door, but are met with no reply. You knock again, “Kuina?” as another dreadful silence follows. You creak open the door to see her staring out her window at the bright sunrise. “Kuina?...” “Y/N. He’s gone.” she says. “Huh? How do you know that for sure?” “Niragi told me.” 

You scoff, “You really believe that jerk?” She looks at you, “Niragi is a horrible person, I know that; but I don’t believe he would lie about his death.” she speaks out. You sigh and hand her the folded note with tears staining the thin paper. “Read this.” 

She takes the paper from your hands and reads the note. She stares at it in disbelief and gives in back to you, showing no reaction. “See, he’s okay.” you say. “The person who killed him probably wrote that. There’s no way he would just leave that!”

You love Kuina, but she’s taking his unconfirmed death really rough. You sigh, “I’ll see you later” exiting her room, not being able to deal with both your emotions and hers. 

–--

You sit down for breakfast alone today. Usually you eat meals with Ann, Arisu, and Usagi; but you can’t bother to talk to anyone. You lean forward to bite your onigiri, until a warm embrace holds you from behind. You turn around and see Ann. “Ann! You’re okay!” you say enthusiastically. She laughs “Of course I am, I’m glad to see you’re okay. How is Chishiya?” she asks, oblivious to your situation. 

“Honestly, I’m not sure. The last time I saw him was mid-game yesterday, but I haven't seen him since. At first I thought he definitely died, but he wouldn’t let himself die that easily.” 

Ann nods her head and rubs your shoulder. ‘I’m sure he’s fine, he likes to run off sometimes. And you're right, he wouldn’t even allow himself to die.” Ann’s reassurance helps you feel better. “Now don’t sit here and eat alone, come join us.” You smile and grab your tray, making your way to your usual table. 

–--

Wednesday at 5:34pm 

You pace nervously in your room trying to pass time. Tonight is the night you can finally see Chishiya.  Thousands of possibilities run through your mind. 

What if he’s not up there? What if Kuina was right? What if someone kills me while I’m up there? Is he really alive? 

You stare at the note analyzing it further. You pick it apart piece for piece, and there’s no sign that the note was forged. His handwriting, the way he speaks, and even calling himself Chishi. You and Kuina are the only ones who call him Chishi, only in private since he gets embarrassed by it. 

You sigh and look at the clock reading 5:50pm. You take a deep breath and look around your room, grabbing a small knife just in case. You hide it in your back pocket and make your way towards your door, readying yourself to see Chishiya. 

As you finally reach the roof, you stare at your watch, counting down until the hands hit 6pm. Your clock beeps and you raise your head, scanning the roof for him. There is no sign of him and you slightly panic knowing that Chishiya is usually never late. You tap your foot and keep looking around for any sign of him. 

Your watch reads 6:15 and you sigh. "This is stupid, maybe he really is dead.”’ you say to yourself as you watch the dark ocean waves below, clashing on the rocks. You hold your head in your hands, your reality finally hitting you. Before your tears start to build you hear a familiar voice behind you. 

“Y/N.” the voice says. You turn around slowly and see him, his white hoodie illuminating in the dark night. 

You waste no time bolting towards him. “Chishiya!” you yell out pulling him towards you. You two hold each other in the embrace as your sobs start. “Chishi… I thought you died, don’t you ever scare me like that again!” You pull him tighter, digging your face into his shoulder. “I’m sorry,”  You feel a cold drop roll down your back along with a sniffle. “but I’m okay. Don’t worry, I’m here.” he says, running his soft hand down your hair and along your neck.

You pull away staring at his dark eyes. You smile and place a kiss on his lips. 

You and Chishiya have always been friends and have never expressed any kind of romantic feelings for each other. But you have loved him ever since you came to the beach. His deep voice that sounds like honey, his long soft hair, his dark brown eyes; you fell in love instantly, I mean, who wouldn’t? 

You pull away and stare at him awkwardly. “Uhm-” he says while clearing his throat. You look down, “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have done that.” He lets out a breathy laugh, grabbing your chin to raise your head. He looks deep into your eyes, moving forward to reciprocate your action. You wrap your arms around his neck while his hand is resting in the arch of your back. He deepens the kiss, pushing you against the nearby wall. 

He pulls away and you two stare at each other with flushed faces. The only noise present being the sounds of the waves. “Don’t be sorry, I’ve been dying to kiss you.” he says. You smile and ask him changing the topic, “Speaking of dying, where have you been? Kuina and I have been worried sick!” 

Totally avoiding your question he asks, “How is Kuina? Is she okay?” You sigh giving him the honest answer. “She’s not doing too well. I showed her the note, but she didn’t believe it.” 

He laughs quietly, “I’ll be sure to check on her. I’m surprised you believed it, I thought you were smarter than that.” You roll your eyes and pull the knife out of your pocket, making him take a few steps back. “I was questioning it, but I didn’t want to take the bigger risk of not seeing you again.” you say. He smiles. “Okay, so explain what happened to you, and tell me where the hell you’ve been!” you say playfully punching his arm. He guides you over to the ledge of the roof, overlooking the empty ocean. 

“During the last game, Niragi went to shoot you. He knows how much you mean to me so he went for you instead of me, and that’s when I pushed you. As you ran, I also ran since he had a weapon and I didn’t; so running was my safest option. I stayed hidden for the duration of the game, but even after the game cleared I could see him wandering the halls looking for me. So it was safer for me to hide until he left and honestly, I was frightened that he would come for me in this house, so I hid with Aguni. He was hesitant at first, thinking I was up to something but I explained myself and he agreed.”  

“How did you know I was alive?” you ask through tears.

“Aguni kept me updated. He told me that both you and Kuina were safe. I’m assuming you read my note, Aguni also left it while you were out of your room.” he explains. 

“Why are you wandering around now? Aren’t you afraid that Niragi will kill you here?” 

“Y/N sweetheart, I’m smarter than that. You know that.” he says with the cocky smirk that you love. 

You nod your head, “Well, I’m glad you’re okay.” you say. He caresses your hand, rubbing his thumb on the back side of your palm. “Let’s get to bed, it’s getting late.” 

– --

For safe measure, you two sleep in Kuina’s room for the night. She agreed to stay in your room while you and Chishiya stayed in her room. You turn off the lamp, laying back on the soft pillow resting your eyes. 

30 minutes pass and you cannot sleep due to stress and adrenaline pumping through your body. You open your eyes and look at Chishiya laying next to you. Your face rises with a pink hue as you ask him if he is still awake. “Yes.” he says through a raspy whisper. You take a deep breath, “Chishiya, can we..” you ask. He rolls around to face you. “Cuddle? Sure.” he says, finishing your sentence. 

Not wasting any time, you are laying on Chishiyas chest hearing his fast heartbeat. “Y/N,” he whispers. “Hm?” you reply. 

“I love you.” he says. 

You raise your head, staring at him through the darkness. “What?” you ask, being caught off guard from his sudden confession. “I said I love you.” he repeats. You sigh out in disbelief and lay your head back on his chest. 

You close your eyes, embracing the warmth emitting from his body. A shy smile creeps onto your face as you whisper out, 

*BEEP BEEP BEEP* The sound of your blaring alarm wakes you up from your deep slumber. You tiredly roll over and hit the obnoxiously loud alarm. You look at the time with blurry eyes and roll around to go back to sleep until you realize; you’re late.. again. You shoot up out of your comfortable warm bed and rush to the bathroom. You quickly brush your teeth, not even bothering with your hair. You throw on the first pair of clothes you find on the floor and grab your backpack and run out the door. 

You’re 20 years old living in Jungjin, South Korea as a full time university student; so being on time is pretty important. You rush to your 9AM class, but you’re 3 minutes late. You close your eyes and take a deep breath to calm yourself before entering your class. Professor HaJoon has never been the lenient type. Always yelling at you and your classmates about the dumbest things. You dread this class. You open your eyes, ready to be confronted by your strict professor, except you are met with a sign hanging on the door. “CLASS CANCELED.” You whine and say out loud, “It’s 2023, don’t people communicate through email nowadays?” You hang your head low while standing in your spot. You hear someone next to you let out a breathy laugh. You snap your head and see a girl with curly hair standing next to you. She has cuts on her hands and a healing scar just above her right eyebrow. “Did I scare you?” the mysterious woman asks you. You stare at her for a second then nod ‘no’ quickly, without saying a word. She laughs, “I’m Do Ha-na. Nice to meet you.” You smile and introduce yourself. “I’m Y/N. Nice to meet you too, Ha-na.” She bows and walks away with both hands in her pockets. “Ahh, she’s cool.” you think to yourself. 

Now that class is canceled, you finally have a day to yourself since you don’t have any other classes today. You let out a sigh of relief and head towards the elevator. *DING* the large silver doors open and you are about to step inside. Suddenly, a hand grabs your arm and pulls you back. You let out a scream, but it is quickly silenced when a hand is placed over your mouth. You try your best to fight the attacker, but he is far too strong. You kick and scream, but he’s not budging. Suddenly, after what felt like hours of fighting back, the heavy weight of the man disappears. You gasp for air and run into the elevator, pressing the buttons in a hurry to get away. You look up out of fear. But there stands the same woman from earlier. Your eyes widen, “Ha-na?” you ask quietly. She smirks and walks towards you. You back up out of fear. She brings a hand to your head, and now you are sitting in your bed again, not remembering anything after Ha-na placed her touch on you. 

—----------------------------------------------

“Goodmorning, Y/N! Ah, afternoon.. Are you feeling any better?” Eun-Jeong says to you. Choi EunJeong has been your best friend since 2nd grade. You two are inseparable. Despite her intimidating appearance, she is the kindest and most loving person you have ever met. You nod and Eunjeong hugs you and gives you a friendly kiss on the forehead. You smile and playfully push her off. “Are you hungry? I’ve been craving noodles recently.” she says to you with a smile and genuine eyes. “I could definitely go for some noodles.” you say in a raspy voice. She cheers and you two begin getting ready for brunch.

While walking the streets of Jungjin, you find a corner shop called “Eonni’s noodles”. You step inside and are greeted by an older woman. “Welcome in!” she says with an energizing tone. You and Eunjeong smile and make your way to a table. While you sit down, you make eye contact with a man. He has black curly hair, dark brown eyes, and a soft smile. You stare at him like a deer in headlights. He does the same back. Eunjeong looks over her shoulder and sees the man. She waves her hand in your face with furrowed eyebrows. You snap your attention back to your friend. “Y/N.. are you okay?” Your face slowly rises into a light pink. Your friend laughs and whispers. “He’s cute, don’t you think?” You look back over at him and he is still staring at you, until a middle aged man comes up and hits the boy's head with a rolled up newspaper. “Ah! Mo-tak!” the boy yells. “He is cute.” you reply through slight laughter. The older woman then comes to your table and introduces herself. “Sorry about the wait! I’m Chu Mae-ok. What can I get for you two?”

As you and Eunjeong finish slurping your noodles, you both sit back and process the delicious meal you just had. In the corner of your eye, you see the middle aged man pushing the young man out of the curtains. He comes stumbling out and fixes his clothes. He clears his throat and walks up to the table. “Hi.” he says. You and Eunjeong look at each other and you reply. “Hi.” The boy breaks eye contact for a second then takes your bowls without asking and scurries back behind the curtain. You and your friend shoot each other another look. “We didn’t even pay..” Eunjeong whispers. 10 minutes pass by with no one coming out from the curtains. You smack 25,000 won on the table and you two make your way out of the restaurant. 

While walking back to your dormitory, you get a call from your father. “I’m on the way.” you say with a shaky voice. She looks at you with concern. “I have to go.” you say. Nothing more nothing less. Your best friend has always been the understanding type. She nods and gives you a hug. You turn to leave your friend and begin jogging towards your childhood home which is just a few blocks away. As you’re running in a panic, you forgot to look before you crossed the street. All you remember is headlights and a loud horn blaring at you. 

—----------------------------------------------

White. White is all you see. You sit up from your lying position and are met with a young woman. “Where am I?” you say in a panic. The woman doesn’t answer you. “Am I dead?...” you yell. The woman scoffs in a playful tone. “Not exactly. You are in a coma. Right now, you are residing in Yung. A place between heaven and earth.” she explains. You smack both sides of your face and rub your eyes, hoping this is some sort of dream. You open your eyes and once again, you are met with the woman. She holds out her hand. You hesitate at first, but then take the woman's hand. She helps you up and motions for you to walk with her. Suddenly the white scene turns into an empty field. “I’m Ha-neul. Take a walk with me Y/N.” You don’t even question how she knows your name. You look around the field in confusion, slowly following behind Haneul. 

After a while of walking, she presents an option to you. “You can sign the contract and become a counter, or you will stay in your coma.” You look down, feeling defeated between the two difficult choices. The silence is louder than loud. The only voice you hear is your conscience. After a few seconds pass, which feels like hours, you blurt, “I’ll become a counter.” 

You shake Haneul’s hand and start to notice your hair curling up. You look at your hair with shock while Haneul laughs. “All counters have curly hair.” you look up at her and let out an awkward, nervous laugh. She smiles and leans in for a hug. 

-----------------—-----------------------------

Standing in the center of a noodle shop, staring at your feet, a loud voice announces “This is Y/N! Your new team member!” Chairman Choi says with excitement. You nod while keeping your head down from embarrassment. “God, this red jumpsuit is atrocious.” you think to yourself. You stay silent, zoning out at this point. The chairman gives you a hard slap on your back, making you jump and look up. Immediately you know where you are. Eonni’s noodles. After realizing everyone is wearing the same bright red jumpsuit, you lock eyes with the same young man you saw that day you went out to eat with Eunjeong. You stare at each other with wide eyes. “Do you two know each other?” Mae-ok says in a shocked stutter. You and the man say nothing. Chairman Choi breaks the loud and thick silence by introducing everyone. “This is Mae-ok, you can call her Miss Chu.” She smiles and bows. “This is Ga Mo-tak.” you recognise him. He’s the guy who hit the young boy on the head when he was staring at you. A smile appears on his face and he waves with one hand. “This is Do H-” “We met.” she says in a monotone voice. Your eyes widen once again. “Hana?” you say. She smirks and bows. “So it seems you know everyone already.” the chairman says laughing. “And this is our So-Mun.” “Finally. The handsome boy has a name afterall.” you think to yourself. You both smile at each other and then quickly look away. You bow and introduce yourself. “Hello everyone. I’m Y/N.” Everyone smiles, but the one who shines the brightest is Somun. “Let’s eat! Shall we?” Miss Chu says hurrying to the kitchen. 

Hours pass by of you and the other counters talking over noodles and soju. It’s a lot easier for you to open up when you’re intoxicated. After everyone has finally finished up their beer and noodles, Motak speaks up, “Okay, I’m gonna head to bed.” with a painfully obvious wink. The chairman and Miss Chu stand up quickly. She looks at her fake watch “Wow! Would you look at the time? You know, when you’re old you have to sleep earlier!” she says through a forced laugh, while pushing Chairman Choi out of the shop. Hana smirks and gets up without saying anything. Somun shoots them all a death stare before they can all go to their rooms. This leaves you and him alone. 

------------------—---next morning-----------------------

A loud yawn from Motak startles you awake. “Goodmorn-“ he says. Suddenly it’s silent again, nothing but the birds chirping and cars passing by on the busy street. You raise your head from the wooden table that you apparently fell asleep on and see Somun sleeping across from you. Your heart races. “Did we stay up that late last night that we couldn’t even walk to our beds?” you thought silently. You turn around and see Motak and Miss Chu standing there staring at you with their mouths open. Your eyes widen and you quickly turn around to avoid the embarrassment. Hana comes up and flicks Somun on the head. “Goodmorning, you two.” Somun looks behind his shoulder and looks at Hana in confusion. “You two?” he asks in a tired voice. She cocks her head towards you. Somun turns and is met with you, right across the table from him. He slams his head back down on the table, pretending to still be asleep, which obviously didn’t work. You laugh at his cuteness and get up to go shower. While walking away, you hear the counters footsteps scurry to the table, asking Somun a million questions. 

After your shower, you get dressed and make your way to the restaurant lobby. There sits a very scary and determined Somun. Last night, he was so cute and cheerful. But now, he looks… almost dangerous. You look around the room and see everyone zipping up their jumpsuits. Somun stands up and starts yelling, “As a way to welcome our new teammate, we are training today!” you almost laugh seeing how serious he looks but the tone in his voice is so unserious. You all get ready and make your way to the training garage. 

 It’s your first day on the job and you also don’t know your power yet. On top of that, you still have to attend school while being a counter. You walk behind the rest of the group, feeling nervous about your first day of training. Miss Chu seems to notice this and she slows down to walk at your pace, rubbing your right shoulder. “Y/N, we were all nervous when we first started. It’s okay to feel scared or even worried.” she says to reassure you. “It’s normal if you’re not the best on day one. As long as you continue to train and practice, you can do anything.” You smile and thank her for her kind and encouraging words. 

Once you all reach the training garage. Motak looks at the wall then looks at you, “You see those handprints?” he says, raising an eyebrow at you. You nod, “That blue one at the top, the one you can barely see? That’s Somuns.” You look at the hand print in shock. There’s no way anyone could reach that far up… it’s not humanly possible you think to yourself. You gulp and gather up the courage to test yourself on your first day as a counter. You look at your hands and see 5 black dots. You can feel your adrenaline pumping through your body. You’re gonna do this, and show them that they won’t regret having you as a part of their team. Motak covers your right hand in a dark purple paint. Motak, Hana, Somun and Miss Chu all watch from the sidelines as you prepare for your jump. You take a few steps back, and boom, you’re running towards the wall. You let out a loud scream and jump with all of your might. You feel like you’re flying. You have never jumped this high in your whole life, is this even possible? You land on the ground softly, and before you can even look to see how far up you made it, everyone is cheering for you. You look confused as your confidence was low, thinking you’d get maybe 5 feet off the ground if you were lucky. You tilt your head up, blocking the sun with your hand, to see your handprint just a few inches below Somuns. You stand there in awe, taking in what just happened. Everyone comes up to you and starts hugging you; Somun being the first to hug you. As soon as he touched you, you felt a spark. Not a romantic kind of spark, more like a jolt of energy. You have butterflies in your stomach and a bright smile on your face while the rest of the team joins in on the hug. 

-----——- time skip: 5 months -------——— 

You and Somun have gotten really close recently. You two do everything together. And sometimes, you two repeat the cycle of having a little too much to drink while getting lost in conversation and crashing on the wooden table. While being with Somun and the team so often, you learn that they never stop training and never let their guard down. Through all of this training for the past 5 months, you have discovered your counter power. Psychokinesis and speed. Sure, you’re not as good as Somun, but you’re a lot better than Motak. Hana and Somun were the ones who really helped you discover your talent. At first, you constantly strained yourself. Nose bleed after nose bleed. But after a while, you started to get the hang of things. You have your limits as everyone does. You still have loads of training to do, but none of this would be possible without your new family. 

 As you and Hana are cleaning up for the night, her neck twitches. You’ve been a part of the team long enough to know what this means. An evil spirit has step foot. She lets everyone know, and you all drop what you’re doing. You all run into the car, Mo tak being the driver.  “What level is it?” you ask. “Level three.” she replies. You have a moment of internal panic as you have only encountered level 1 and level 2 spirits. Somun notices that you’re feeling scared and nervous. He shyly intertwined his fingers with yours and gives you that reassuring smile that always makes you feel better. You take a deep breath and smile. What Somun doesn’t know is that he makes you 10x more nervous. His soft hand interlocked with yours gives you a sense of relief, but the dozens of butterflies dancing in your stomach say otherwise. He looks at you, “You can do this. We’ll all be by your side.” he says. You stare into his eyes, then accidentally take a glance at his lips. He seems to notice this and he lets out a light laugh and throws his head back. You have had many moments like this with him, but something about tonight is different. Maybe it’s the adrenaline rushing through your veins, or maybe it’s the fact that you’ve fallen hard for Somun. You mirror his behavior and lay your head back and try to muster up the confidence for this mission. Somun softly squeezes your hand and you reply to his action in the same manner. You stay like this until you arrive at the Jungjin Metro Station, where the level three evil spirit is. 

You all step out of the car, making your way to the ground floor of the station. There lay a woman and a child. You and Miss Chu make your way to the pair to make sure they are safe. Somun, Hana, and Motak split up to look for the spirit while you and Miss Chu take care of the pair. While carrying the mother and child, you walk up the stairs and see a man standing there. He is emitting such strong energy. An aura you have never felt in your life. You press your earpiece, “Found him.” you say. You and Miss Chu nod, knowing what to do in this situation. You run towards the spirit, attempting to lay a punch on him while Miss Chu runs out and brings the pair to safety. 

You miss your punch, as well as your balance. The spirit kicks you in the stomach, making you tumble down 2 flights of stairs. You grunt in pain and look up to see the spirit walking towards you. You didn’t know it was possible to be this strong. You are scared, and just want to lie there, but you were taught to never give up. You muster up the strength to sit up and push him away with the motion of your hand. He didn’t budge. Your eyes widen in fear as you try one more time to push him away with your psychokinetic possessed hand. This time, he flies back, but only by 2 feet. The spirit reaches out his hand and drags you. Your throat is now in the hands of a level 3 spirit. You are struggling for air, you are completely helpless as the spirit is holding you up in the air. You hang there, trying to fight him off for what felt like hours. You are about to die. You cough up blood and tears run down your face. The grip on your throat grows tighter and you close your eyes, letting out through a cracked voice “I’m sorry.” Suddenly, you can breathe. You collapse to the ground, gasping for air. You look up and see Miss Chu with a steel bar in her hand. She rushes to you to heal your throat. Just then, the spirit stands up to laugh while winding up his hand to punch the back of Miss Chu's head. You pull Miss Chu into your shoulder in an attempt to shield her from the hit. Just then, you hear footsteps. Is there another spirit? You think to yourself. You look up and in the speed of light, the spirit is hit by a force so powerful, it scares you. You and Miss Chu gasp, you look to your left, and through blurry tears, you see Somuns silhouette. Motak and Hana follow behind him. “Sorry to keep you waiting” Somun says in a cocky, but determined tone. You smile and try to speak, but your voice is completely gone. You look at Miss Chu and she hovers her hands above your throat, not having enough time to heal your stomach. You stand up and thank her. Now that your team is here, you can show your full potential with confidence. 

With speed being your strongest suit, you pounce at the spirit and land a direct kick on the side of his head. You go to strike a punch, but the spirit grabs your leg, penetrating it with a sharp butterfly knife. You scream in pain and collapse to the ground, blood pooling around your leg. Just in time, Hana quickly slides across the ground and grabs your head so it doesn’t hit the hard concrete. On the other hand, Somun is admitting such a strong and powerful energy. He drags the spirit to him, stepping on his chest. The spirit pushes Somun away with a motion of his hand. He stands up, beginning to limp away in an attempt to flee. You and Somun are the only ones who are able to stop him with psychokinesis. Somun is quick to stand back on his feet, but not quick enough; the spirit is getting away.

You notice this, and let out a loud yell, reaching out your hand. You will stop this spirit today, no matter what it takes. The spirit stops in his tracks. Your nose starts to bleed, but Motak strikes the spirit with the same metal bar. You sigh out, Hana catching you in her arms. The spirit falls to the floor. Before he can begin to laugh, Somun strikes punch after punch on the spirit. It’s bloody. You’ve seen a handful of bloody scenes, but there was so much more this time around. Somun pants, face bloody and eyebrows furrowed. You hate to admit this, but when he’s this serious and determined, you only fall harder for him. Somun gets off on top of the spirit, motioning his hand for Motak to summon it. The spirit lets out a loud scream and then collapses. You slump down, still in Hanas arms, wiping the blood from your nose. You smirk, feeling proud that you’ve defeated your first level three spirit, alongside your team. 

—------------- next morning —-------------

You wake up the next morning at around 10AM and grunt in pain, slowly sitting up while holding your stomach to look at your leg. “Feeling better?” Somun asks. You flinch and dart your eyes to him. There he is sitting next to you, holding an open book. You don’t even ask how he got in your room, you are just happy he’s there by your side. His hair is messy from not being brushed, and he’s still in his pajamas. You nod in response to his question and look curiously over at what he’s reading. “It’s called ‘The Melody of a Bird Whistle’.” He’s reading your favorite book. “I remember you saying that you enjoy when someone reads to you, and that it relaxes you. So I thought I would read a story to you to help you feel better.” he says shyly. Your heart melts at his sweetness. “Now that you mention it, the wound on my leg is closed. Was this your doing?” you ask. Somun laughs, “That’s Miss Chu’s doing.” You let out a silent ‘Ohh’ and laugh. While laughing, you grab your stomach and wince in pain. Somun places his hand on top of your free hand in a hurry, “Are you okay? You shouldn’t be laughing too much” he says. Your face lights up with a shade of red. “Yes, I’m okay. Thank you Somun. I can ask Miss Chu to heal my stomach.” After you assure him that you are okay, you expect him to move his hand away from yours out of relief, but instead he keeps in there, looking into your eyes. You look at him with a slight turn of your neck and furrowed eyebrows. “What?” you ask him. Somun looks away shyly. “You…” you tilt your head further “You look beautiful.” Your heart skips a beat at his words. This is so odd coming from him. Somun has always been kind towards you, but you’ve never seen him this sentimental or even affectionate. Maybe seeing you last night worried him. You are always worrying about him since he’s the strongest on the team. You smile, but before you can say anything, Somun slightly leans in while looking at your lips. You take a moment, but you lean in as well. The atmosphere is thick, but you feel so comfortable and safe with him by your side. “This is it! He’s going to kiss me!” you think silently. Just after you close your eyes, the door bursts open.

 “Goodmorning, sleepy heads!” Chairman Choi walks in interrupting your moment. You two pull away, before your lips can even touch. Choi yells and slams the door. He’s apologizing outside of the door. Miss Chu and Motak rush out, thinking something serious has happened. You hear the muffled voices of the adults outside the door. “They-They we’re about to kiss!” the Chairman yells out. Miss Chu and Motak yell in unison. “WHAT?” you can hear them scurrying around in a panic. You and Somun stare blankly at each other, then let out a silent laugh. You two take a moment to collect yourselves. He then helps you out of bed to have Miss Chu heal your stomach. Stepping out, Miss Chu starts apologizing over and over again. “Ah! I’m so sorry Y/N! I totally forgot about your stomach, I’ll-” you cut her off. “It’s okay Miss Chu. Thank you for everything.” Miss Chu smiles, then places her hands over your stomach. You whine as you can feel the bones in your ribcage mending back together. About 20 seconds pass by and you are back to normal. “Thank you Miss Chu! What would I do without you?” you say through a smile. She then gives you a hug and pats your head, “Let’s eat breakfast now that you’re awake!” 

Chairman Choi sits the final plate on the table and then takes a seat. The air is insanely thick. Hana is out this morning on a 10 mile run, so this leaves you, Somun and the adults. You all eat in silence, contradictory to the loud and energetic meals you all normally have. “Kids.” Motak speaks up after about 15 minutes of silence. You and Somun both look up from your bowls. Even though you two are both 20 years old, to Motak, you two are babies. You for sure thought you were gonna be in trouble. “You two go out and spend the day together. If any spirits come, we will take care of them.” he says. You won’t reject this offer. Usually Motak is very serious about everyone being at the noodle shop, ready to fight whenever. You and Somun nod slowly, in slight confusion, but stand up to walk to your rooms to begin getting ready for your first official date. 

You walk inside and immediately head to your vanity desk. While picking up your brushes you realize that Somun has never seen you with makeup, let alone any of the counters. You turn on your favorite song and begin your makeup. “Perfect!” you say while applying the last swipe of lip gloss. You smile at yourself in the mirror and play with your hair to make sure you have no flyaways. You want to impress him, and make sure you two have a good night. You give yourself one final smile in the mirror and head towards your closet. It’s early spring, so you choose to wear a black skirt, a black and white striped sweater, and knee high boots. It’ll keep you warm but not too warm. You walk over and spray your favorite perfume and throw on some minimal jewelry to compliment the outfit. You take one final glance in the mirror. You haven’t felt beautiful ever since you started this job. Usually you are all cut up and worn out. But today, you finally have the chance to treat and care for yourself. You take a deep breath in, and as soon as you exhale there’s a knock on your door. You didn’t feel nervous until you heard the knock. You take one more breath and reach for the handle. You open it up and see Somun standing, waiting for you. You two stare at each other then smile. Miss Chu and Motak are not-so-secretly watching behind the kitchen curtains. “You look nice.” you speak up. Somun smiles and throws his head down. “You look beautiful.” he says to you with glistening eyes. “Way to one up me!” you say jokingly. He laughs and motions for you to follow him. “Motak and Miss Chu, we see you staring at us!” you yell across the lobby. They quickly shut the curtains, pretending like nothing happened. “Okay okay, we’ll see you later!” Somun shouts. “Have fun and be safe!” Miss Chu says through the curtains. You and Somun nod and make your way out onto the busy streets of Jungjin. 

----------—-----------------------------------

You and Somun find yourself walking around a modern art museum, admiring the art. You recommended this, knowing how much he loves to draw. After walking and talking for hours at the art gallery, listening to Somun explain every painting in immense detail, you are starting to feel tired. You have the idea to go to a cafe and sit down for a bit over coffee. He nods in agreement and you walk to the nearest coffee shop you see. 

Time flies by when you’re with Somun. The 3 hours at the art gallery and the 3 hours you’ve spent talking with each other has felt like 5 minutes. You notice the sun starting to set. “Somun, should we head home? It’s starting to get late.” you suggest. “I have one more place I want to go.” You nod your head and follow him out of the cafe doors. 

“Where are we going? We’ve been walking for 30 minutes, and these shoes are really uncomfortable” you whine. Somun laughs, “Don’t worry, we are almost there. Cover your eyes.” You are confused, “Why do I have to cover my eyes? It’s already dark out.” you complain. “Shh, just trust me.” Somun says putting both of his hands over your eyes. You sigh and continue walking for about another 2 minutes until Somun stops. “We’re here.” he whispers. You feel hesitant to open your eyes, you have no clue where you could be. He notices this. “Don’t worry, Y/N. Just open your eyes.” 

You open your eyes and are met with the beautiful shining skyline of Jungjin. You gasp and turn towards Somun smiling. You turn your attention back towards the city, admiring its beauty. Somun is admiring you and how happy you look. He suddenly grabs your hand and leads you to the top of a rock. Where did this sudden confidence come from? You ask yourself. But hey, you won’t complain. You two sit down on the ledge of the rock, admiring your hometown. You have never seen something this beautiful before. Tears start to fill your eyes. “Thank you, Somun.” you say turning to him. Somun smiles, looking into your eyes. You two lock eye contact, and you both start to gravitate towards each other. Somun cups your cheek with his hand and presses his lips against yours. You cup his hand with your own and kiss him back. He pulls away and looks into your eyes. “Y/N, I need to talk to you about something.” he says in a raspy whisper. You tilt your head replying, “What is it?” Somun looks away at the city for a few seconds and back at you, grabbing your hands in his. “I like you… a lot.” he says. Your heart skips a beat and you look at him with wide eyes. You quickly grab his face and lean in, smashing your lips against his. His hand is under your ear as you two share this passionate experience. You pull away this time, “Somun. I’ve liked you since day 1. When me and Eunjeong came into the shop. I was head over heels for you at first glance.” you confess. Somun blushes and tilts his head back. “I did too. Motak and Hana wouldn’t stop teasing me for the rest of the day.” he says. You laugh and playfully hit his shoulder. “I like you so much.” he confesses again. He kisses your forehead, then stands up, reaching out his hand. You accept his hand and you two begin walking home, fingers intertwined. 

---—————- next morning —------———-

You wake up the next morning with Somun cuddled against you. You turn your head and admire him. You smile and place a soft kiss on his lips before getting up to head to the kitchen. When you open the door, Miss Chu, Motak and Hana all come falling in. You stare at them laying by your feet. “Woah! How did we end up here?” Motak asks in an attempt to save themselves from their stalker-ish tendencies. You are surprised to see Hana there as well. “Good Morning guys.” you say in a flat voice. “Ah, Ah! Good Morning!” Miss Chu says while getting to her feet. “We didn’t hear you come in last night, we just wanted to check up and make sure you and Somun were okay!” You laugh and roll your eyes. “Yes Miss Chu, the date went well.” you say. She looks at you awkwardly as they all scurry away. You laugh as you follow them into the kitchen for breakfast. Miss Chu has prepared Gyeran bap, one of your favorite dishes. You all sit down and begin eating when you all hear a door creak open. There stands Somun with squinted eyes and messy hair. You can’t help but laugh at his cuteness. But you look around and notice everyone also staring at him. You furrow your eyebrows in confusion until you glance at him one more time. Red lipstick is smeared all over his face. Motak and Hana bust out laughing and you cover your face out of embarrassment. “I guess the date did go well!” Motak exclaims while giving Miss Chu a high five. Somun tilts his head then turns to the mirror beside him. His eyes widen and his face immediately turns red. He runs back into your room and slams the door. Through laughter, Motak raises your hand and yells, “Congrats to our new couple!” you shove your face into the table to avoid the embarrassment once again. 

Somun walks out again, lip stick free, “Are you guys bothering my girlfriend?” he asks. You two didn’t have the official “boyfriend and girlfriend” talk but it’s pretty obvious what you two are after last night's confession. The table swoons “Ooooo” and you keep your face hidden. Somun walks up to you and places a kiss on the hands that are covering your red face. “Yes everyone, the date went well. Y/N is my girlfriend.” he speaks up. You love Somuns confidence, but at times like this, you hate it. You eventually remove your hands from your face and look at everyone. You expected them to be laughing in your face saying things like “You’re dating THAT?” but instead you find them smiling and supporting you two. “You guys are cute.” Hana speaks up. Hana is not the type to express emotion, so when she does, you know that it’s genuine. Motak pats Somuns back with a little too much force and laughs. You stand up and motion for Somun to take a seat. He sits down and you walk to the kitchen to get him some breakfast. You sit the bowl down on the table and rub his shoulder and kiss him on the cheek, in hopes of embarrassing him. “Here you go, my love.” you say. The table swoons again and Somun whines out in embarrassment. You laugh and sit down, joining everyone for breakfast.

You feel safe and supported when with your team. You are beyond lucky to have met such wonderful people. But, you are particularly grateful to have met Somun, your boyfriend. They welcomed you in with open arms and stuck to their word to protect you. They have saved your life countless times, but you wouldn’t trade the world for it. You save others and this is what makes you happy. But you’re glad that you have a loving and supporting family beside you. 

You and the counters scramble around the noodle shop preparing to welcome your new teammate. While Somun and Hana bicker about whether or not the decorations are centered, you help Ms.Chu and Motak set the table. 

You feel your phone vibrate and check the notification, “Guys! He’s one minute away!” Everyone drops what they’re doing and you all stand in front of the door, wanting to make a good impression on your new teammate. Somun notices that you’re feeling nervous, so he calms you down with a quick kiss and a smile. The counters are so desensitized to you and Somuns PDA at this point, so they continue shuffling around and straightening their clothes. 

The chairman walks in with your new teammate. He is tall with curly hair, but the most eye-catching part about him was the pore strip sitting on his nose. 

“This is your new teammate!” the chairman exclaims happily. You all bow and smile at him. He bows, “I’m Jeokbeong! It’s an honor to be a part of your team!” he says through a stutter. You all smile awkwardly, introducing yourselves. 

You bow again, introducing yourself. “I’m Y/N, it’s nice to meet you Jeokbeong!” you say through a smile. Jeokbeong stares at you and Hana with his mouth open. The chairman laughs trying to shift the awkward energy until Jeokbeong exclaims that you two are beautiful. 

You and Hana laugh and thank him. Somun has never been the jealous type, so he pays no attention to this; he knows you are beautiful. 

Once everyone has introduced themselves, Ms.Chu motions for everyone to take a seat at the table to begin eating. You sit down first, waiting for Somun to sit next to you like he usually does, but the person who sits next to you tonight is not Somun. 

Jeokbeong sits right next to you and stares at you with a smile. You awkwardly smile and move over a bit since he was too close for comfort. Somun sits across from you, not paying mind to Jeokbeong once again. 

Secretly, you wish Somun was more possessive. You want to sit with him, but he’s too worried about the food in front of him to say something. So you allow Jeokbeong to stare at you while you all eat. 

With the 4 hours of talking and drinking, it’s safe to say everyone is pretty drunk. Jeokbeongs attention has been off and on between you and Hana, so you just assume he wants a new friend. 

He has made a few moves on you, and you have noticed Somuns patience running low. Jeokbeong has played with your hair, tried to feed you, and continuously complimented you the whole time he’s been here. 

You thought Jeokbeong was just being friendly, until he puts his arm around you, using the fake yawn method. You jump and go to punch his arm off, but before you make contact with him, he’s already laying on the floor wincing in pain.

You look at him with wide eyes, covering your mouth in shock. “Jeokbeong! I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to hit you that hard!” you say through panicked laughter, finding his situation funny. 

He sits up and stares at Somun. You turn to Somun, but he is sitting there eating like nothing happened. “It was him!” Jeokbeong yells, pointing his finger at Somun. Somun looks up from his bowl, trying to act innocent. You laugh, hitting his arm from across the table. “You didn’t have to try and kill him babe! I thought we agreed not to use our powers on each other.” you yell through laughter. Jeokbeong stops his whining immediately and stands up. “Babe?” he asks with an exaggerated rising tone. 

Hana laughs, pointing at you and Somun. “They’re dating” she explains to Jeokbeong. He continues his whining, crawling on his knees to hug you. Before he can touch you, he freezes. Somun is staring at him like Jeokbeong is asking to be flung again. 

“Do you want to die this time?” Somun asks in a serious tone. Even his seriousness scared you. A childish “Oooo” comes from Motak while he sits back enjoying the tension. 

Jeokbeong frantically shakes his head no and apologizes to Somun. “I’m sorry I didn’t know!” You all laugh, as all of this is happening while you’re all intoxicated. 

“Somun, I didn’t even know you could use your powers while drunk!” Ms.Chu speaks up. Somun chuckles softly and continues eating. 

Jeokbeong stands up and hesitantly sits next to you again, this time with a 14 inch distance between you two. Somun shoots him a playful wink, clicking his tongue. 

After about an hour and a half of everyone laughing and talking, it’s time for everyone to head to bed. Ms.Chu stands up, signaling for everyone to go to their rooms. While Jeokbeong stands up, she grabs him by his collar. “If you’re going to be a part of this team, you help me do the dishes.” Jeokbeong whines, watching everyone walk off to their rooms. 

“Goodnight Jeokbeong!” you say through a drunk slur; Somun closing the door behind you two. 

You sit down on the bed sighing. “So... what do you think of him?” you ask Somun. “I think... I don’t like him.” he responds while changing into pajamas. You laugh, knowing exactly why he feels this way. 

“Somun! You were so happy this afternoon. Plus Jeokbeong is drunk, I’m sure he’ll forget about it tomorrow.” you explain to Somun. 

This seems to irk him as he walks up to you. 

He grabs your face and places a kiss upon your lips. He pulls away staring into your eyes. “You’re mine, okay? You better hope he forgets tomorrow!” he whines. You laugh at his cuteness, nodding your head. 

“and if he doesn’t forget. I’ll kill him!” he says through a pout. You continue laughing, standing up to hug Somun. “Don’t worry,” you say reassuring him. “If he doesn’t, I can ask Hana to erase his memories.” 

“Hey, weren’t you the one saying we shouldn’t use each other's powers on each other?” he asks. “I’ll allow it this time” you say. 

Somun smiles, giving you another kiss. He grabs your hand dragging you to bed. He exhales, “Okay okay, let’s forget all about this,” You nod in agreement. “Goodnight, I love you.” he says. 

You wake up from your deep sleep and look out the window. It’s a bright day. The sun is out, the sky is a vibrant blue and birds are singing. You reach for your phone to remind your friend, Hana, about your day at the aquarium together. 

“Hana! Today is the aquarium! Are you getting ready?” 

No answer after 10 minutes. You jump in the shower assuming she hasn’t woken up yet. After your shower you check your phone once more and see her notification. 

“Y/N. I’m really sorry but I woke up this morning with a pounding headache. I don’t think I’ll be able to make it.” 

You sigh at the lit-up screen and set your phone down. You check your tickets to see if they’re refundable. They’re not. You spent $35 each on these tickets, you’re just not not gonna go. You throw on some light makeup and an outfit to match the weather. The aquarium is about a 45-minute bus ride away. So you grab your purse and head out the door, without Hana by your side. 

You reach the bus stop, you look up and see the bus doors hissing open and you stand to go find a seat. You step up the steep stairs and find that the bus is packed. You find the closest open seat you can. You sit down and throw your head back, looking out the window, preparing to put in your headphones. Just then, you feel a weight sit beside you and hear a man's voice yelling in a whisper shout. 

“Are you canceling on me? I’m already on the bus!” silence follows “Alright, I understand. I hope you feel better.” the voice says. You think to yourself, "wow is everyone getting sick and avoiding the aquarium today?" You notice an obvious annoyment in the man's loud sigh. You turn to him, in an attempt to start small talk over your similar situation. “Friend cancel?” you speak up. The man jerks his neck towards you and nods with his eyes looking down. “Me too. She said she had a headache this morning.” His eyes look up and widen, “My friend said the exact same thing! Maybe there’s a virus going around.” You laugh, “I was just thinking that.”

The 45 minute bus ride passes and you arrive at the aquarium. You step off the bus, and the man steps off behind you. “Well, it was nice to meet you! Uh..” He giggles, “Somun. You can call me Mun.” he says. You smile, “Mun... I’m Y/N. I hope you have a good time while you're here! These tickets weren’t cheap.” you say. Somun lets out an awkward laugh and looks at the ground, “Well uhm… since both of our friends canceled. I was wondering if you maybe… wanted to go together?” he says shyly. Your face grows pink and you pause for a moment. You eventually nod with a smile. Somun smiles and motions for you two to walk to the entrance. 

After about 2 hours of walking around the huge aquarium; you two reach his favorite exhibit, the jellyfish. While walking beside you, he points at the glowing jellyfish. You must admit, they are beautiful. He smiles at them and you two walk side by side admiring them. As you walk, you feel a brush against your hand. It took you by surprise and you look down and see his hand brushing yours. Your face grows pink once again. You return the action to him, hoping he takes the hint. He stops in his tracks, and looks at you with his hand out. You look at his open hand and slowly intertwine your fingers with his. You smile while thinking to yourself “Thank you Hana for getting a sudden headache.” curling in your lips on excitement.

As the trip comes to an end, you are at the main attraction. Outside, there is a extravegant garden and waterfall, along with a 75 foot tall cherry blossom tree. You and Somun walk hand in hand to the tree and admire the spring decorations placed upon the exhibit. You stare at the trees' beauty in awe with glistening eyes. You turn to Somun and smile and sigh. “Thank you Mun. Maybe our friends canceling on us was supposed to happen.” you say through a laugh. He smiles and nods in agreement. You two lock eye contact while standing under the large tree. He lets go of your grasp and moves his hand to your face, closing his eyes. You reciprocate his action and close your eyes, leaning in. Your lips clash, sharing a soft, passionate kiss. The wind blows, making the petals fall atop you. You pull away for a moment to smile, but before you get the chance, Somun pulls you back to him. 

You two pull away and laugh. Somun grabs your hand and guides you back towards the entrance of the garden. 

You and Somun get off at your stop and exchange numbers. You smile at him, and hug him goodbye. You wave him goodbye and start to walk away. About 30 seconds into your walk you hear footsteps running behind you. You turn around and suddenly feel Somun’s arms wrapped around you, clashing his lips with yours. You pull away and laugh. “I just wanted to kiss you again.” Somun says. You roll your eyes playfully and smack his chest. “Goodnight Somun.” you say. He laughs, “Goodnight, Y/N.” You smile and make your way back to your apartment. 

You enter the apartment and take off your makeup while slipping into comfortable pajamas. You plop onto your bed, reaching your phone to text Hana. 

“Hana.. Thank you for having a headache. I just had the best first date.”

You and the counters sit at the kitchen table awaiting Hana to bring DoHwi home for you all to meet. He knows nothing about you all being counters, including Hana. 

You and Somun help Ms.Chu set the table while Motak keeps teasing Hana about her long lost lover. “He’s not my boyfriend! He’s just an old friend from school!” she says in defense. “If he was just a ‘friend’, why are you bringing him home to meet your family?” he questions. Hana stays silent and rolls her eyes, punching Motak in the arm. “Stop teasing me and go help them set the table.” she says while walking to her room. 

Motak rubs his bicep, staring at Hana in disbelief. “What has gotten into her…” he whines. “Maybe if you didn’t tease her for 3 hours straight she would be acting differently.” you speak up. “Hey, I was just asking questions!” he says. “Yeah, annoying and personal questions.” Somun says. Motak sighs out, “Wow.. is everyone anti-Motak today?” he cries out. You all laugh as you set the final dishes on the table. 

–

“Guys, this is DoHwi. We went to the same school a few years ago.” she says as if you all don’t know every detail about him already. “and this is Ms.Chu, Somun, Motak and Y/N.” 

DoHwi bows and everyone says their greetings. He joins you all at the table, sitting next to Hana. Before the conversation can start again, you are already whipping out 3 bottles of Soju. You offer Dohwi some, but he declines. “Thank you, but I don’t drink.” he says politely. Somun and Ms.Chu pressure him into “just a sip”, and that one sip eventually turns into 15 sips.

You all are at the table drunkenly laughing and getting to know DoHwi. You start feeling a slight headache coming on so you naturally lay your head on Somuns shoulder. Somun pays no attention to this as this is the norm, but everytime this happens, a light shade of pink creeps onto his cheeks. 

The whole night the attention has been on DoHwi and Hana, so he decides to shift the topic of conversation onto you and Somun. 

“So how long have you been with Somun, Y/N?” he asks. You pick your head up from Somuns shoulder with wide eyes. “Together? With him? Oh my god no.” you say through a stutter. Somun lets out a breathy laugh in agreement, “Yeah, no way I’d ever date her.” 

The table falls silent after the mini panic. Somun clears his throat, breaking the loud and thick silence. “Yeah guys! You two are so cute together! Are you sure there’s nothing going on?” Motak says while leaning back in his chair, crossing his arms. 

An angry pout grows onto your face. Through slurred words you mutter, “I am not dating Somun! We. Are. Just. Friends!” After raising your voice, the headache comes back faster than ever, and you faint onto Somuns lap. 

Somun stares at you while you whine, “Ugh.. Somunie, my head hurts so bad. I think too much I drank.” you say rubbing your head. Somun awkwardly laughs and looks back at the table staring at him with half smiles. “I think you meant to say you drank too much.” he laughs. His face grows into a bright red as he tries to pull you off of him. You whine out as you slowly move your head off his lap. 

DoHwi tilts his head with a smile. “Just friends?” 

“Yessss.” you say, exaggerating your words. You shouldn’t have taken that last shot. Now you are entirely too drunk and can barely think straight. Thankfully, Somun didn’t drink as much as you. 

“We are just close friends. There’s nothing going on between us.” he says as a final statement as a way to change the topic; but knowing how much the counters love to tease, that’s not happening. 

You say under your breath, “Pfft..nothing going on.” you mock. Somuns eyes widen. “Okay! I think it’s Y/N’s bedtime!” he says avoiding the immense embarrassment. Somun goes to grab you shoulder but you shove him off. “I’m fine here.” you say. Somun sighs in slight frustration but lets you have your way, as he always does. 

45 minutes have passed and the conversation has finally made its way onto a different topic. 

“So… Are you and Hana dating?” Somun asks DoHwi. He laughs, “No, we are just friends.” Ms.Chu and Motak sigh, “Why can’t young people just admit they like each other.” Motak speaks up. 

Hana and DoHwi turn red, as well as you and Somun. Ms.Chu and Motak laugh, successfully embarrassing you all. 

You stand up, barely keeping your balance. “Fine! If no one will, I will.” you say. Everyone looks at you in confusion as you turn your attention to Somun, grabbing his face with both hands. “Somunie.. I like you.” you mutter out. Time freezes as you just confessed your feelings to Somun. The table falls silent as everyone is staring at you and Somun. You throw your arms up, “There, are you guys happy now?” you pout, sitting back down. 

Motak stands up and starts clapping. “I knew it! There was definitely something going on!” Somun gives Motak the death stare, but everyone is too drunk to notice. “So, how long has this been going on?” Ms.Chu asks. 

Somun sighs out in defeat, knowing there’s no way he can get himself out of this situation. “Alright look, I didn’t know she liked me! Like we said earlier, there’s nothing going on!” 

“Do you like her back at least?” DoHwi asks. You whine and wrap your arm around Somuns bicep, “Yeah Somun, do you like me too?” you ask, teasing him, secretly wanting to know if your feelings are going to be reciprocated. Somun sighs and sits in silence for a while, until he speaks up. “Yes Y/N. I like you too.” he says, patting your head. 

The table cheers at the sudden confessions. Hana raises her glass in a toast. “To our new couple!” she says as the others clink their glasses. 

–

You wake up at 3am in Somuns bed. Looking around in a slight daze, you find him asleep on the floor with nothing but a thin blanket and a stuffed animal. You step carefully out of bed, sitting on the floor next to him. You play with his hair as he sleeps. “You know Somun, I meant what I said earlier.” you pause “I really do like you. Like really really like you.” you say through a smile. You play with his hair for a little longer before getting up to go back to bed. A hand grabs your arm and pulls you back. “I like you too.” he says through a raspy voice. You smile and grab his hand, rubbing your thumb along the back side of his hand. 

You stand up and grab a thicker blanket off the bed, laying it atop him. You lean over and place a small kiss upon his forehead. “I’m glad you feel the same. I’ve liked you ever since I joined the team.” 

Somun lets out a tired moan in response. You laugh, knowing he is way too tired for conversation right now. 

You place another kiss, this time upon his lips. Somuns face turns red, despite him practically being asleep. You smile.

You and the counters scramble around the noodle shop preparing to welcome your new teammate. While Somun and Hana bicker about whether or not the decorations are centered, you help Ms.Chu and Motak set the table. 

You feel your phone vibrate and check the notification, “Guys! He’s one minute away!” Everyone drops what they’re doing and you all stand in front of the door, wanting to make a good impression on your new teammate. Somun notices that you’re feeling nervous, so he calms you down with a quick kiss and a smile. The counters are so desensitized to you and Somuns PDA at this point, so they continue shuffling around and straightening their clothes. 

The chairman walks in with your new teammate. He is tall with curly hair, but the most eye-catching part about him was the pore strip sitting on his nose. 

“This is your new teammate!” the chairman exclaims happily. You all bow and smile at him. He bows, “I’m Jeokbeong! It’s an honor to be a part of your team!” he says through a stutter. You all smile awkwardly, introducing yourselves. 

You bow again, introducing yourself. “I’m Y/N, it’s nice to meet you Jeokbeong!” you say through a smile. Jeokbeong stares at you and Hana with his mouth open. The chairman laughs trying to shift the awkward energy until Jeokbeong exclaims that you two are beautiful. 

You and Hana laugh and thank him. Somun has never been the jealous type, so he pays no attention to this; he knows you are beautiful. 

Once everyone has introduced themselves, Ms.Chu motions for everyone to take a seat at the table to begin eating. You sit down first, waiting for Somun to sit next to you like he usually does, but the person who sits next to you tonight is not Somun. 

Jeokbeong sits right next to you and stares at you with a smile. You awkwardly smile and move over a bit since he was too close for comfort. Somun sits across from you, not paying mind to Jeokbeong once again. 

Secretly, you wish Somun was more possessive. You want to sit with him, but he’s too worried about the food in front of him to say something. So you allow Jeokbeong to stare at you while you all eat. 

With the 4 hours of talking and drinking, it’s safe to say everyone is pretty drunk. Jeokbeongs attention has been off and on between you and Hana, so you just assume he wants a new friend. 

He has made a few moves on you, and you have noticed Somuns patience running low. Jeokbeong has played with your hair, tried to feed you, and continuously complimented you the whole time he’s been here. 

You thought Jeokbeong was just being friendly, until he puts his arm around you, using the fake yawn method. You jump and go to punch his arm off, but before you make contact with him, he’s already laying on the floor wincing in pain.

You look at him with wide eyes, covering your mouth in shock. “Jeokbeong! I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to hit you that hard!” you say through panicked laughter, finding his situation funny. 

He sits up and stares at Somun. You turn to Somun, but he is sitting there eating like nothing happened. “It was him!” Jeokbeong yells, pointing his finger at Somun. Somun looks up from his bowl, trying to act innocent. You laugh, hitting his arm from across the table. “You didn’t have to try and kill him babe! I thought we agreed not to use our powers on each other.” you yell through laughter. Jeokbeong stops his whining immediately and stands up. “Babe?” he asks with an exaggerated rising tone. 

Hana laughs, pointing at you and Somun. “They’re dating” she explains to Jeokbeong. He continues his whining, crawling on his knees to hug you. Before he can touch you, he freezes. Somun is staring at him like Jeokbeong is asking to be flung again. 

“Do you want to die this time?” Somun asks in a serious tone. Even his seriousness scared you. A childish “Oooo” comes from Motak while he sits back enjoying the tension. 

Jeokbeong frantically shakes his head no and apologizes to Somun. “I’m sorry I didn’t know!” You all laugh, as all of this is happening while you’re all intoxicated. 

“Somun, I didn’t even know you could use your powers while drunk!” Ms.Chu speaks up. Somun chuckles softly and continues eating. 

Jeokbeong stands up and hesitantly sits next to you again, this time with a 14 inch distance between you two. Somun shoots him a playful wink, clicking his tongue. 

After about an hour and a half of everyone laughing and talking, it’s time for everyone to head to bed. Ms.Chu stands up, signaling for everyone to go to their rooms. While Jeokbeong stands up, she grabs him by his collar. “If you’re going to be a part of this team, you help me do the dishes.” Jeokbeong whines, watching everyone walk off to their rooms. 

“Goodnight Jeokbeong!” you say through a drunk slur; Somun closing the door behind you two. 

You sit down on the bed sighing. “So... what do you think of him?” you ask Somun. “I think... I don’t like him.” he responds while changing into pajamas. You laugh, knowing exactly why he feels this way. 

“Somun! You were so happy this afternoon. Plus Jeokbeong is drunk, I’m sure he’ll forget about it tomorrow.” you explain to Somun. 

This seems to irk him as he walks up to you. 

He grabs your face and places a kiss upon your lips. He pulls away staring into your eyes. “You’re mine, okay? You better hope he forgets tomorrow!” he whines. You laugh at his cuteness, nodding your head. 

“and if he doesn’t forget. I’ll kill him!” he says through a pout. You continue laughing, standing up to hug Somun. “Don’t worry,” you say reassuring him. “If he doesn’t, I can ask Hana to erase his memories.” 

“Hey, weren’t you the one saying we shouldn’t use each other's powers on each other?” he asks. “I’ll allow it this time” you say. 

Somun smiles, giving you another kiss. He grabs your hand dragging you to bed. He exhales, “Okay okay, let’s forget all about this,” You nod in agreement. “Goodnight, I love you.” he says. 

“You seriously think that?” you ask Hwangpil while taking another sip of red wine. “If I’m able to just kill that kid, think about how powerful I’d be.” he says while lighting another cigarette. You smile and bite your lip out of nervousness. You’re fairly new to this whole evil spirit thing, as you have only consumed three souls; whereas Hwangpil has consumed over 10. 

But, there’s a secret he doesn’t know about you. 

He keeps you around as his own personal sacrifice, since to him, you’re weak. You lean back on your chair and sigh. Hwangpil cocks his eyebrow at you, but you already know what he’s thinking; you don’t need to ask. You never expected to be a so-called “evil spirit”, but here you are sitting beside the strongest, most evil man you’ve ever encountered. 

Though you hate Hwangpil, you also love him. You constantly try to please him, but he is never satisfied. To his knowledge, you’ve only consumed three souls; he doesn’t know the full truth about you. To him, you are a beginner and nothing but a rookie, but there’s much more to that story. 

Hwangpil stands up, bringing your hand to his lips, placing a kiss. You smile before he quickly shuts you down. “Get to bed. Long day tomorrow.” and before you know it, he’s gone.

*next night*

You and Hwangpil walk into the crowded junkyard. You lean against an old car and look up to the night sky. You laugh and feel butterflies grow in your stomach. “This is my first fight with Hwangpil. I’ll be able to show him that I’m more than just his toy.” you think silently. After about 15 minutes pass, you sigh impatiently as you wait for the counters to sense Hwangpil’s territory. 

Just before you start to stretch, you see headlights blaring at you and Hwangpil. Hwangpil covers his eyes with his arm, squinting; while you stare directly at the car ahead. You smile at him and you two run separate ways, making sure the counters have to split up to find you two. 

You run into the maze of abandoned cars and wait, but you can’t see or hear anything. You look around cautiously, anticipating one of the counters to sneak up on you. With your back turned, you leave an open spot for vulnerability. As soon as you turn around, you are met with a strong hit to the face. You cover your face and wipe the blood off, looking up and seeing a short girl with dark curly hair. You smirk as you stand up in an attempt to land a punch on her, but she trips you and you fall on your back. You moan in annoyance, “Ahh, you’re that annoying bitch aren’t you?” you say sitting up. You swing your arm and hit her in the leg with full force. She falls as you get up to run away. While running, you feel a force stopping you in your tracks. You look around and see a man. “It’s him.” you think to yourself. 

You break away from his force and run towards him. You leap and miss your hit on him. He lands a punch right on your nose and blood runs down your face once again. You shriek out in pain. “You fucking bitch!” you yell out. The man smirks, “Actually, my name is Somun.” he says calmly. His calmness angers you even more. He lands another forceful punch on your abdomen and you stumble backwards. “He’s stronger than I thought.” you say under your breath. You look up and your eyes widen as he stands there, inching closer towards you. Somun stands there, not doing anything. You lock eye contact with him and his eyes widen. “You’re not… an evil spirit?” he says with a sharp inhale

You don’t have time for small talk. You muster up the strength to punch him, but he stops you with just one of his hands.

You hear footsteps running up behind you and flinch, covering yourself with your arms, crouching down. “Stop.” Somun says. The footsteps stop and you overhear a female voice, “Somun! What are you doing? Summon her!” she yells. Tears form in your eyes. Now that you’re in actual combat, you come to the realization that you’re not fit for this life. 

A force picks you up from the throat and drags you across the busy yard. You open your eyes and are met with Hwangpil. He furrows his eyebrows at you as tears continue to stream down your bloody face. “I’m sorry.” you say through a choked voice. You look around through blurry vision and see all the counters staring at you two. You sniff once more, until Hwangpil throws you 50 feet across, making you crash into a car. Your back crashes against the metal as you fall onto the cold dirt. You wipe the tears from your face, standing up again. 

You hate the counters.

But you “hate” Hwangpil even more. 

He has been manipulating and using you as his toy for the past few months. You sit and think about the outcome, if you just consumed one more soul you could please him. Whilst standing up, you hold your abdomen from Somun’s punch. You let out a scream and run towards Somun, successfully landing a punch. Hwangpil smiles at you and you can’t help but feel proud of yourself. This feeling quickly changes when Somun wipes a tiny amount of blood of his lip turning towards you, “Is that all you’ve got?” Your eyes widen in fear and determination. You punch Somun in the abdomen with little force that you can muster up. Somun spits out blood and you laugh. But you remember the part you promised to play. You step back in realization. Hwangpil then grabs your throat once more, lifting you off the ground. You struggle for air as he looks at you with a face of disappointment. “You poor thing. I really thought you could be of use to me.” he says with a low tone. His fingers tighten around your neck and you shut your eyes, accepting your fate. Just then, you fall back onto the ground, gasping for air. You look up and see that Somun now has Hwangpil in his grasp. You scoot back in fear, until you feel a soft touch against your head, and you drift into a coma. 

*next morning*

You wake up to the smell of pork broth infiltrating your room. You think to yourself, “Is Hwangpil making breakfast?...” but as soon as you open your eyes, you realize you are not in your room. You shoot up, looking around the room in confusion. You walk to the mirror and gasp. You’re in comfortable pajamas and all of your wounds are healed from last night. You hear the sound of a small crowd laughing and talking just outside your door. Your heart warms at this nostalgic feeling. Just before you’re allowed to smile, your neck twitches and you grow with anger. You hate that you are always fighting this constant battle. Hwangpil’s manipulation has really taken a toll on you, as just a few months ago you were celebrating your birthday with your closest friends and family. That was the last time you felt genuine happiness and peace. You continue to fight with yourself between your feelings. But eventually, curiosity gets the best of you. 

You crack open the bedroom door, making eye contact with the same woman you saw last night. You gasp and turn around to run back into the bedroom, but you're caught in your tracks when someone catches you by the collar of your shirt. You attempt to fight back but the person isn’t budging. “Ok, I give up.” you sigh out. The pressure from your shirt releases and you turn around to confront the force. You are met with a tall, semi middle aged man with curly hair. You look at him and say nothing, furrowing your eyebrows with hate. He laughs right in your face. Your expression changes from hate to confusion. You speak up, “why aren’t you hurting me?” “You’re not an evil spirit.” he says. You say nothing and look at the floor. He clears his throat, “Come eat.” 

You shoot the man a dirty look and walk over to the table where everyone is sitting. Once you look around, you realize that you had just slept at your enemies hideout. Your eyes widen and squint in anger, then soften again in seconds. The counters continue to stare at you, till an older woman gestures for you to take a seat; a steaming bowl of soup and an empty chair waiting for you. 

You stare around awkwardly, while the group stares back. You gulp, “Why am I here?” you say in a flat, monotone voice. “You’re not evil.” the young boy that you had punched last night speaks up. You dart your eyes at him and snarl. “Yes, I am.” you say confidently. The table falls silent once again. The older woman leans over and rubs your back. In the matter of 3 seconds, you go to slap her hand off of you, but something stops you; your conscience. You make eye contact with her and she gives a reassuring smile. “Don’t be afraid, we are here to help you.” You finally relax your stiff shoulders and slouch over, bringing your hands to your face to avoid the overwhelming emotions running through your body. 

After you compose yourself, you remove your hands while clearing your throat; readying yourself to dump everything on the counters. 

“Hwangpil. He found me while I was outside walking home after celebrating my birthday. He saw that my guard was down, and to him, I was his perfect victim.” you speak up. “These past 3 months have been a living hell. He had forced me to watch him kill and consume my best friend's soul. I felt like I couldn’t breathe. He laughed right in my face and I saw his body contort in a way that I didn’t think was humanly possible.” You pause your sentence and look up, the counters are staring at you with both empathy and hatred. Not hatred for you, but for Hwangpil. “Continue.” the young man speaks up. You nod and continue. 

“After that, he continued to manipulate me and overtime, his words got to me. Everyday I fight with myself, battling the internal war between good V.S. evil. I want to be good. I really do. But something about pleasing Hwangpil excites me so much.” you say as you squirm in your seat.

 The counter's empathy then turns to confusion. You twitch your neck and start laughing. The counters all stand up, backing up out of fear. You stand up, laughing even harder. “Did you really think I was serious?!” you say. You clutch your stomach in pain from laughing so hard. “Go ahead! Open your territory Somun!” you say pointing to the ground, mocking his ability. Somun opens the territory, and immediately, the young girl's neck twitches. “Someone has step foot.” You burst into laughter once more. “You still don’t get it, do you? I didn’t expect you all to be this gullible!” They all stare at you once more. “Here, I’ll spell it out for you since you all are too dumb to understand… I am a so-called “Level 3”, or whatever you wanna call us. My power you ask? Hiding all the souls I’ve consumed! Meaning, you won’t be able to sense me. No matter how hard you try.” you say with a cocky smile. 

Somun and the young girl jump at you, fists full of power. You land a kick on his stomach and grab the girl’s hand, looking at her in the eyes. “What was your name again? Jana? Dana?” you say laughing. You land a strong punch on her, causing her nose to bleed. “Doesn’t feel good does it?” Once you see Somun getting up, you can feel the anger piercing the atmosphere. You smile and wave at him, “Bye!” you say. As soon as he pounces onto you, the counters look around searching for you. You’re nowhere to be found.

*clink* 

Your wine glass taps Hwangpils, as you two laugh together about your interaction with the counters. They don’t know that you and Hwangpil have been teammates for 11 months. “Their faces were hilarious! And they totally thought you were gonna kill me! And you know what? That Somun kid is pretty cute.” you say laughing. Hwangpil smiles, “You did a good job playing your weak girl role the other night. When I was holding you, I almost believed you.” he says. “What else?” you ask teasingly. “Yes, I read your mind when I was choking you, even your inner monologue was perfect. You almost had me fooled.” You smile at his compliment and tilt your head down, blushing. Hwangpil grabs your chin and tilts your face so that you two are eye to eye. “But don’t let that get to your head.” he says with a wink, slowly leaving the couch where you two are sitting. 

*timeskip: 1 week*

You wait inside the empty abandoned mall, waiting for the counters to show up. “I hate waiting” you say while pacing, fixing your leather gloves. Finally, you sense him. “Ahh! Somun! Long time no see my love!” you say waving, purposely trying to anger him. He runs up to you, wasting no time. He hits you straight in the face, causing blood to stream down your face. You smile as you wipe it off nonchalantly. “Is that all you’ve got?” you say, mocking him from your fight last week. He runs back up to you and you kick him in the stomach. He smiles, grabs your leg, and slams you onto the ground. You moan in pain and quickly try to stand, but Somun overpowers you, straddling you. He begins to repeatedly punch your face, until there is a pool of blood around you. You grab both of his hands, squeezing his fists. He winces in pain as you smile, blood covering your teeth. “Where’s the rest of your team, darling? Or did Hwangpil take care of them already?” Somun screams, loud enough to bust both of your eardrums. You slide across the floor from the waves of his voice. You put your finger up to your ear, feeling blood leaking out. You’re drenched in blood, but you won’t let this fight end this early. You reach out your hand, pulling Somun to you. You knee him in the abdomen. As he bends over in pain, you knee his head. He stumbles backwards as you continue to slap him around, not allowing him to land a single hit on you.

You stop for a moment to catch your breath, panting from the intense fight. You look over and see Somun laying on the ground. Your eyes widen in excitement, thinking you have actually killed him. You walk over slowly, kicking his head once more to ensure he’s out. He shows no reaction. You smile and bend over, preparing to consume the strongest power you have ever encountered. Just as you open your mouth, you are flung across the floor. You crash into an abandoned store's entrance, hitting your back against the hard wall. You groan in pain, but before you can process what happened, you are flung back towards Somun. In what felt like 1 second, you are met with his grasp around your throat. You feel his fingers tighten. You flail your body in an attempt to fight back, but each passing moment you are getting more and more lightheaded. As soon as your eyes begin to roll backward, the grasp is let go from your throat. You stumble onto the ground, looking at Somun. He straddles you once again, landing punch after punch. You don’t try to fight back, you are exhausted at this point. Somun goes to land his final blow, but you stop his fist, speaking up through gurgled blood. “I hate you.” Somun lets out a cocky smile, “I hate you even more.”  As he delivers his final punch, he completely knocks you out unconscious. 

Somun stares at you with immense hate and anger. He takes your hand in his and places it upon your chest; summoning you. 

*next morning*

You wake up, rubbing your eyes and yawning. You walk to your bathroom with fuzzy eyes, but you are met with a wall. You bump into the wall, stumbling back. You rub your eyes once more, scanning your surroundings. Once again, you’re not at home. You get a feeling of familiarity. You take a deep breath, trying to remember, but the smell of pork broth hits you. You still don’t quite understand, as everything is both physically and mentally blurry. You walk to a mirror, gasping at all of the cuts and bruises over your body. You whine and throw your head back, frustrated from confusion. You exit the bedroom expecting an empty room, but there sit 4 faces that you have seen somewhere before. You stare at the group and immediately yell in anger. “Who are you and where the hell am I?!” The group laughs, “Seems she hasn’t calmed down yet.” a middle aged man speaks up. You furrow your eyebrows, stomping towards the man. “Hey! Listen! You can’t kidnap me and expect me not to a-” just then a voice interrupts you. “Y/N, sit down.” a young boy says. “And how the hell do you know my name?!” you yell, rubbing your forehead in immense frustration. “Just sit down.” he repeats.  

You sit down, staring at the group. “Y/N, do you remember anything?” the boy speaks up. You reply with silence. He cocks his eyebrow at you, awaiting your response. “I remember being punched. I don’t know if it was last night or last month.” you speak up. “Do you know my name?” he asks. “No. But I have a feeling I have met you all before. Especially you.” you say pointing to the younger girl. She smiles and looks down. “Yes, we have met before. I’m the one you called a bitch.” Your eyes widen. You don’t remember any of this, but this topic sounds familiar. “We’ll explain.” she says. 

The counters explain everything, a long list of information that you can barely process. “Okay so let me get this straight. A man named Hwangpil is an ‘evil spirit’ and he killed people and made me consume their souls, then we were teammates. Then I met you all and we got into a fight. I told you all my power, and then I fought Somun and he summoned me. So I was an evil spirit? Am I getting this all right?” the group nods. “Pretty much.” they all say in sync. “I’m sorry to have put you all through this much trouble. I don’t remember much. But the Hwangpil guy sounds really familiar.” you pause. “Thank you.” 

“Hey, just because you’re all nice now doesn’t mean we forgive you.” Motak speaks up. Your eyes dart down. “I understand.” 

*time skip: 10 months*

It’s been 10 months since you saw the counters last, but for some reason, Somun won’t leave your mind recently. Maybe because winter is approaching and this is around the time the whole thing went down. Your life has returned to normal, and you feel at peace again. You lay down, preparing to sleep. You look out your window admiring the beautiful city lights of Jungjin. While staring at the city, you see beams of light radiating from the busy street below. You look at the people walking below; but they seem to not notice the lights. You can almost feel the luminescence calling your name. You throw on a jacket, and run out your door. You step outside, seeing the bright lights leading you towards a location. You run, following the light. While running, you bump shoulders with someone. You turn around quickly to apologize, but see the familiar face of Motak. “Y/N. We need your help.” You stare at him in confusion, knowing you haven’t had anything to do with the counters in months. “Why me?” you ask. “Do you see the lights?” he asks. You pout your lips, “These lights?” you say pointing to the beam between you and Motak. His eyes widen and he grabs your wrist in a hurry, forcing you to follow him. “Motak! What is going on?” you yell, out of breath. “Somun.” he says. You sigh, not feeling any less confused. Motak stops and looks at you. “Hwangpil. He’s back.” your eyes widen. The name rings in your ears, it sounds so familiar, but not in a good way. 

You reach the end of the lights, seeing the silhouette of him. You stumble back, all of your memories from the fight coming back. Blood is scattered on the ground of the same junkyard you were once in. You fall back, Motak catching you. You look over and see Somun lying on the ground, while Hana is in combat with Hwangpil. Memories infiltrate your mind as you see Somun coughing up blood. “He needs your help.” Motak whispers to you. “What can I do? I don’t have any powers!” you reply. “You said you see the lights right?” he says. You nod in reply to his question, “Then you can do anything.” You gulp in nervousness, but you are determined to save the life of the boy who once saved yours. You sprint towards Hwangpil, but before you can do anything, you check on Somun. He’s barely conscious, blood and tears falling from his face. “Somun, you’ll be okay. You saved me. This time, I’ll save you.” you say kneeling over him. While standing up he grabs your wrist, “Don’t.” he says weakly. You look at him while tears form in your eyes. There is no way you’re going to let him, or any of the other counters die. 

“Well, this is unexpected! My dear Y/N, how I’ve missed you! You’re all innocent now. What happened to my determined teammate who worked so hard to satisfy me?” Hwangpil says in a degrading tone. You rip your wrist away from Somun’s grasp, standing in front of him to guard his body. Hwangpil laughs, “You’re weaker than ever now. What are you going to do to me, honey?” he asks. The lights from earlier rise once more and you feel adrenaline rushing throughout your whole body. Before you can react to Hwangpils words, you are sprinting towards him. You land a punch under his jaw, sending his head flying back. You are running on pure energy. You land punch after punch, making Hwangpil stumble backwards. Just then a pole hits the back of his head. You stop your punching and look besides you. There stands a bloody Hana, holding a 4 foot steel pole in her hands. You two smile at each other and continue kicking and punching Hwangpil until he is completely knocked out. 

Before you know it, you are straddling him, placing his hand under yours. “Y/N! You’re not a counter. It won’t w-” Hana yells before Somun quietly shushes her. You yell and the lights around you grow. You can’t even comprehend what you’re doing until a bright glow rises from Hwangpils chest. He yells out, then collapses. You slouch down, rolling onto the ground. The counters stare at you in shock. “She just…” Motak stutters. Somun smiles and lays his head back. “He’s really gone..” Hana speaks up. 

You sit up, dusting your hands like nothing happened. You look up and see the counters still staring at you in disbelief. “How did you do that?…” Hana speaks up. “Do what?” you reply. She says nothing and just points to Hwangpils body next to you. Your eyes widen and you scoot back. You cover your mouth in shock and stutter out random sounds. “It doesn’t matter. I’ll call the cops.” Motak says, pulling out his phone. You nod and slowly stand up, motioning to Hana to help you move Somun to the car. 

“I’m sorry for calling you an annoying bitch Hana. You’re pretty cool.” you speak up shyly. You expected her to roll her eyes or just ignore you. Instead she grabs your hand and smiles. “That was so cheesy, but it’s okay. We’re friends now.” she says. Your stomach does flips over your once enemy calling you her friend. “Hey hey hey, we are not friends!” Somun whines while sitting up from the passenger seat. “Somun, she just saved your life.” Motak spits out. Somun begins to speak again until Motak pushes him back against the seat, making Somun wince in pain. You and Hana laugh. You move your gaze towards the window, beginning to drift into the sleep you were preparing for before you had to go and save someone’s life. 

*next morning* 

“Boom! I hit him right in the jaw! Then Hana came in and knocked him out with a pole. I don’t even know where she got that thing!” you blurt out, explaining last night's activities to Ms.Chu. She laughs and takes another bite of food, which she had prepared for you all. You sigh, “Thank you all again for letting me stay here and treating me to breakfast. But I should be going. I hope we cross paths again.” Just as you begin to stand, a sleepy Somun emerges from his bedroom. He yawns, scratching his messy hair. You laugh at him, never seeing him like this before. “Goodmorn-'' he says, interrupting himself, “What is she doing here.” you laugh, “Good Morning to you too.” you say. “Somun don’t be so rude to the girl who saved your life.” Ms.Chu speaks up with a mouth full of food. You laugh once more, preparing to leave. Somun looks at you and cocks his head towards his room. You look at him confused “Come.” he says through a raspy voice. The counters look at each other with a look of mischief on their faces. You hesitate, but follow Somun to his room. 

“What’s up?” you ask him. “Y/N, I wanna talk to you about something.” he says, motioning you to take a seat on his bed. You sit down on his bed and stare at him. “I still hate you.” he says. You turn your head in confusion. “...but thank you.” “For what?” you ask teasingly. Somun clenches his jaw, then releases it. “Thank you for helping me.” he says stubbornly. You let out a breathy laugh, “You’re welcome, Somun.” Silence follows until you decide to speak up once more. “About those glowing lights, what are they?” you ask. “You don’t remember? You mocked me, asking me to open my territory back when you were still a spirit.” You say nothing. “Anyway, I opened them, hoping you could see them.”

“I saw them, and something told me to follow them. On the way, I ran into Motak. He told me that you needed help. I don’t know what happened but your territory helped me.” Somuns eyes widen and he grabs your hand, looking at your palm. On your index finger, there is one small little black dot. He looks at it with confusion, until you pull your hand back. “I thought you hated me? Why are you holding my hand?” you ask. Somun takes a sharp breath, “Hey don’t get any ideas, I was just checking something.” A moment of silence passes until Somun asks for your phone. You hand him your phone and he types in his number. “What is this?” you ask, staring at the screen. “What does it look like? Text me if you need anything.” You look at Somun full of confusion. ‘First he hates me and now he’s giving me his number. What is this guy's problem?’ you think to yourself. You shove your phone into your back pocket and grab your jacket, exiting his room. You say your goodbyes to the counters and walk on the cold streets of Jungjin, back to your apartment.

While walking back to your apartment, the beams of light rise from the streets once again. You look at them and whine out loud, turning around to make your way back to the counters hideout. After about 15 minutes of walking you storm in, “Somun! Stop opening your territory! I thought you asked me to text you if I need something!” The counters sit at the table looking at you confused. You widen your eyes, staring at Somun waiting for a response. “I didn’t open anything…” he says. You run your fingers through your hair, “Who else could’ve done that then? I saw them!” you say angrily. “I was just about to get home too!” you yell out. Somun stands up, “Maybe I wanted to see you!” he yells out. The room falls silent. “...What?” you say. Somun clears his throat, “Maybe I wanted to see if you could still see the lights!” he says through an obvious lie. You roll your eyes, “Okay well I can see them. Stop bothering me!” you reply. You turn around and walk out the door, rolling your eyes again. ‘Why does he want to see me now? He’s so weird’ you think to yourself. 

You arrive home and plop on your bed, feeling exhausted. You start to think about your interaction with Somun. You saved his life, he says you two aren’t friends, proceeds to give you his phone number, then opens his territory for you to see. You sigh, getting up to take a shower. You look in the mirror and notice the ends of your hair curling up. You brush it off to stress and sweating. You hop in the shower, ignoring everything, trying to clear your mind. 

In your robe, you go to grab your hair brush. Bringing the brush to your head, you notice the black dot on your index finger. You stare at it closely, thinking that it was a freckle. You remember back to sitting in the car with Hana, she had the same dots; except they were on all of her fingers. You remember Somun grabbing your hand that morning, he also had the dots on the tips of his fingers. You’re even more confused now. You brush it off once more as a coincidence, and continue brushing your hair. Your hair goes back to its natural state and you smile, until a small curl pops up, curling just above your forehead. You furrow your eyebrows, brushing the curl, only for it to coil back up. You’ve never seen a curl like this on yourself before. You continuously brush it, but each time, it bounces back. You sigh out once more, accepting the curl. You proceed to dress yourself in comfortable loungewear, needing to relax for a day after last night. 

After about 2 hours of relaxing, you find yourself staring at the curl that’s now resting on your forehead. You pull it down, watching it bounce back into shape. Now that you think about it, this cannot be a coincidence. The counters all have curly hair, and you have confirmed that two of them have the same dots that you have on your index finger. Maybe they’re siblings? No that can’t be. You stand up from the vanity staring back at you, throwing on a pair of sweatpants and making your way to the counters 'hideout’. Once you step outside, you have completely forgotten how to get there despite leaving 3 hours ago. You pout, knowing the only person who can help you get there is Somun. You pull your phone out of your pocket, hovering your thumb over his name. You text him, “It’s Y/N. Open your territory please :)” You shut your phone off expecting at least a 10 minute wait. In a blink, the familiar lights are shining. You smirk, shoving your phone back into your pocket and walking to the hideout. 

Once you reach the hideout, you walk in, only to see the normal meeting spot empty. You scan the room looking for Somun. You walk in further, finding a sweaty Somun in the boxing ring, throwing invisible punches. You stare and admire for a while, your face growing pink. You’ve never realized how attractive Somun is until now. The past times you’ve seen him you were trying to kill each other or thinking about killing each other. Somun turns around, flicking the sweat off of his forehead. “What’s up.” he says nonchalantly. “Can we talk?... Please?” you ask. Somun smirks and lets out a breathy life, sitting on the edge of the boxing ring. “You’re being awfully nice. Do you need me to do something for you?” You roll your eyes playfully, “Yes, well not really, but yes.” Somun stares at you. You point to the curl hanging in front of your eyes. “What?” Somun asks. “What is this!” you ask. “A curl?” Once again, you roll your eyes. “and what about this?” you say while holding your finger out to him. Somun stares at it with no emotion, until he starts putting two and two together. Under his breath he mummers out, “Is she turning into a counter?” You stare at Somun while he looks at your finger. A full minute has passed at this point. “So?” you ask. “I think you’re turning into a counter.” he says. You tilt your head in confusion, how is this even possible? “I thought I had to get into some type of fatal accident to even be granted the opportunity to become one.” Somun says nothing, he stares at your eyes and pulls the curl down, watching it coil back into it’s shape. You grab the curl with your hand, “What are you doing?!” you yell. “I wanted to see if it was real.” You breathe out, “Somun, you’re no help.” you say. “Did you want me to help?” he asks. “Of course I did! I came here for a reason.” He stares at you, then slips out of the boxing ring, taking a drink of water. Your face flushes pink once again. “Come sit. Let’s have our talk.” 

You both sit at the table, waiting for each other to speak up. “Y/N, I want to be honest with you.” he says in a tone, different from his usual tone. This tone sounds more genuine, compared to the monotone and raspy voice he usually talks to you in. You raise your eyebrows, signaling him to continue. He sighs, dropping his shoulders down to relax. “I’m sorry,” he says. ‘Where is this coming from?’ you think to yourself.

“I’m sorry that I’m so rude to you. I’m sorry that I wasn’t able to fight Hwangpil; I’m sorry that I had to rely on you. I’m sorry for all of the trouble that I’ve put you through. I hate you, because I envy you. No one would be brave enough to face their once enemy, but you did it with ease. I’m sorry, I really am.” he says. 

You take a moment to process what he has said. You really don’t remember much from being an evil spirit, so this whole situation is quite confusing. Before you respond, you feel a sharp pain in your temple. You yell out, laying your head on the table. A few seconds pass, but you sit up and look at the Somun with tears forming in your eyes. Somun looks at you confused. “Somun… I almost killed you.” you speak up. “Our fight. I remember everything now. I tricked you all into caring for me, I hurt you and Hana, I almost killed you.” you say, now sobbing. Somun stays silent. “If anything, I should be sorry to you. I apologize, Somun.” you say bowing your head. While you feel tears of guilt streaming down your face, you feel a hand cup your face, wiping your tears. You look up, Somun is staring at you with pain painted on his face. You sniff, embracing his touch. “I’m sorry too.” he says through a choked voice. 

You pull his hand away, sitting back in your chair, wiping your tears. “When you hurt us, that wasn’t you. It was the spirit inside of you, but it’s gone now. You’re safe now” he speaks up. Those are the words you needed to hear. ‘I’m safe I’m safe I’m safe’ replays in your head. You smile through your tears. “Most importantly, you’re safe with us.” he says once more. You look at his glistening eyes and nod, “Thank you, Somun. Thank you for everything.” He smiles, and grabs your hand. “You don’t hate me anymore do you?” he asks. You laugh, “I never hated you.” you confess. He shares a laugh with you, “Good.” He sighs out, “Well since you’re part counter, let’s train some.” You nod, accepting the challenge. 

*2 hours later*

Hana, Motak, and Ms.Chu all walk in, all tipsy from bar hopping on their day off. They walk in and see you and Somun laying down in the middle of the boxing ring, completely passed out. Motak laughs, walking over to the ring. “Looks like these two are friends now. Just last night Somun was going off about how they weren’t friends.” “You know what that means when Somun says he doesn’t have interest in someone.” Ms.Chu speaks up. “It means he likes her.” Hana says in a monotone voice. The thing is, they don’t know that you woke up 5 minutes ago, you are just too exhausted to move. You fake sleep for another 3 minutes, until you hear the lights switch off, feeling a blanket drape over you and Somun. 

You wake up in the morning, sitting up from the uncomfortable sleep you had. You rub your blurry eyes, until you notice Somun’s arm laying across your lap. Your eyes widen and your face grows pink. You go to move his arm in a rush, but right before you grab him, you stop. You stare at his arm, relaxing yourself. You decide to slowly move his arm off of you, slipping out of the ring. 

Making your way to your unofficial room, you bump into Ms.Chu. “Ah! I’m sorry, I’m just getting ready to leave. I have a lot to do today.” you say in a hurry. She looks at you with confusion, watching you grab your things and rush out of the door. 

You make your way back to your apartment, hoping that today you can relax with no problems. 

You change into clean clothes and open your laptop, wanting to catch up with friends. You haven’t spoken with your friends recently, let alone see them. You and your friend Suyeon decide to meet up at a local cafe to catch up. You apply some light makeup but while looking in the mirror, you notice the stubborn curl is still there. You run into your bathroom, attempting to style it to fit your natural hair, but each time, it bounces back. You sigh in annoyance, pinning it with a barrette. You walk out the apartment door, heading to the cafe. 

30 minutes pass by at the cafe, laughing and catching up with your old friend. You are having an amazing time until a familiar face walks in. of course, it’s Somun. You decide to ignore him and focus on you and your friend. You just want one day of peace. This feeling didn’t last long. Somun walks up to you two, smiling. “Are you stalking me or something?” he asks jokingly. “Weren’t we the first ones here?” you ask. He nods his head, “Fair.” “I’ll catch up with you later.” you reply. Somun gives you a look of what seemed to be puppy eyes for just a quick second, then his eyes return to normal. You stare at him while he walks away, turning to your friend like nothing happened. 

“Bye! Text me when you get home!” leaving your friend, walking in opposite directions. You turn the corner of the building and bump into someone. Before you can look, you start apologizing. You look up and see Somun, again. “Somun! Are you sure you’re not stalking me?” you yell in a teasing manner. He laughs, “Just wanted to make sure you’re safe.” You roll your eyes, but secretly, butterflies are growing inside of your stomach. “Ms.Chu is making lunch, do you want to join us?” he asks. “I just left, and I kind of wanted a day to myself. But thank you for the offer.” you reply. He shoots you his intentional-unintentional puppy eyes, his silent way of saying please. “Okay, I’ll go today, but tomorrow you better leave me alone.” Somun’s eyes soften and he smiles. He starts walking and you follow behind him. 

You two have been walking for 30 minutes, despite the hideout being 10 minutes away. You notice that you’ve been walking in the opposite direction. “Somun, are we almost there?” you ask, interrupting your conversation. “5 more minutes.” “‘till we’re there?” “5 more minutes of being with you.” he says. You stop in your tracks, and stare at him. Your face immediately turns red. Somun seems to notice this as he laughs and turns his neck at you. “Is that a problem?” he asks. You shake your head no, biting back your smile. You continue to walk alongside Somun until you reach the place you’ve become familiar with. You two walk in, smiling and laughing together. You two sit at the table, not even acknowledging the counters in the room. While you two continue your conversation, Motak comes and slaps Somun on the back of the head. “Hello to you too!” he yells out. You and Somun laugh, ignoring the room once again. 

Motak walks over to Ms.Chu. “Jesus, they’re acting like they’re in love or something. They hated each other the other night. But they have one sleepover and now they’re lovers.” Motak says in a whisper to Ms.Chu. She rolls her eyes at him and hits his arm. “Leave them alone, just be glad they’re not fighting anymore.” They look over at you two, watching you and Somun stare into each other's eyes, deep in conversation, laughing and flirting. Motak fake gags. Ms.Chu grabs the pot of stew and sits it right in the middle of you two, halting your conversation. “Okay okay okay, let’s eat! Y/N, go get Hana.” she says to you. You nod your head and go look for Hana, but while looking for her, you overhear Motak and Ms.Chu nagging Somun with questions. 

“Didn’t you two hate each other the other day?” “Why were you two cuddling last night?” “Did you guys go on a date?” “You might as well abandon us for her!” “You can’t fall in love this quick!” 

You laugh, overhearing their questions. You continue walking down the hall to find Hana. “Hana, lunch is ready if you’re ready to eat.” you tell her. She pauses her workout and stands up, walking with you back to the table. Hana sits next to Somun, like she normally does. But before you sit, Somun is staring at her like she has a death wish. She looks at you and back to Somun, nodding her head in realization, scooting to sit next to Ms.Chu. You laugh awkwardly and sit next to Somun. 

You all talk and indulge in conversation for hours, getting to know each other. During this, you had told them about the obnoxious curl and the single dot on your finger. They had no answer, but they explained Yung to you, and how summoning works. You feel grateful that they decided to share this information with you. You look at the time, realizing it’s 9pm. Time flew by while you were eating and hanging out with everyone. You stand up, announcing that it’s time for you to go. The counters nod, but Hana and Somun are shooting each other a look. Hana then shoots up, “Why don’t you stay here?” she says, shooting an obvious wink at the other counters. “She’s right! It’s getting late!” Ms.Chu says. By now, you can see right through them; but they are all horrible liars. Motak fake yawns, getting up from the table walking into your ‘unofficial’ room. “Motak! That’s my room!” you yell. He pretends not to hear you and slams the door shut. You look back at the table, seeing that everyone has left except Somun. He looks at you before you shut him down. “No! I am not sleeping in the boxing ring again!” you yell out. Somun laughs, “I wasn’t going to suggest that,” he says. You shoot him a confused look. 

You are now laying in his bed, only a pillow dividing you two. You lay there with your eyes wide open, being able to hear your own heartbeat in the silence. With Somun laying beside you, you think back to all of the interactions you two have had together. First you were enemies, then you didn’t speak for months, and now you’re laying in the same bed as him with nothing but a pillow separating your bodies from touching. Somun groans, rolling over to face you. Throwing the pillow across the room, wrapping his arm around your waist. Your eyes widen, while you stare at his closed eyes. His touch instantly calmed you. You embrace his touch once more, admiring his face while he sleeps beside you. You feel a smile growing onto your face, now hearing your heartbeat 10x clearer. You hesitantly cup his face, “Goodnight, Somun.” you whisper, while closing your eyes.

 As soon as you begin to drift into sleep, you feel Somun move around again. You try to ignore it, but his constant rustling around is not allowing you to sleep. You sit up, whining, “Somun, why do you keep moving around?” you ask. “I can’t sleep.” You ask in a panic, “Have you been awake this whole time?” “Yes” he replies. You fall back onto the soft pillow, covering your face from embarrassment. “So you heard what I said?” you ask through your hands. “I can’t hear you when you're covering your face.” he says teasingly. You sit up again, now facing him. The only thing illuminating his face are the city lights. “You heard me say goodnight? and you felt me cupping your face? you also purposely threw the pillow! this is not fair!-“ You are cut off mid sentence, but instead of being interrupted, you are silenced by Somun crashing his lips onto yours. You close your eyes, embracing the moment. Somun pulls away, his face a shade of light pink. “Now you can relax. Go to sleep.” he says nonchalantly. You stare at him in shock. “Did you just….” you trail off. “Kiss you? yes, do you want me to do it again?” he asks. Before you can answer, Somuns hand is on your waist, bringing his lips slowly to yours once again. 

You pull away, still not processing what just happened. “Now seriously, go to sleep! You’ll be tired tomorrow.” he says while laying back down. You follow his action laying down beside him, this time with no border between you two. You hesitate, but you slowly move his arm to caress your waist; falling asleep together under the city lights. 

*time skip*

It’s been 6 months since you joined the counters, and 7 months since you and Somun started officially dating. You have moved in with the counters now since you’re here everyday, and also, your landlord increased your rent. You train hard everyday so that the counters will finally allow you to fight one day. Over the past 6 months, you have found 5 new curls and 2 new dots on your fingers; one on your pinky and one of your ring finger. You have learned to summon territories as well, it takes 3 nosebleeds and an inhaler though. The counters have always been by your side, helping and guiding you. 

You are so glad to have been accepted into such a wonderful space, and have a wonderful boyfriend. You don’t know where you would be if you never found them. 

Though being evil was the worst time of your life, you feel a sense of thankfulness. You would have never been where you are now. You wouldn’t be dating Somun, you wouldn’t be helping Hana with her hair and makeup, you wouldn’t be training with Motak, and you wouldn’t be helping Ms.Chu prepare dinner each night. 

Death doesn’t discriminate between sinners or saints.

As you lay there on the ground with the smell of cinder filling your nose and the heat of the scorching fire warming your skin, your mind brings you back to the means you had to go through to live another day in Borderland. You’ve lied, beaten, betrayed, and killed to survive. You hadn’t expected the ten of hearts game to appear just as you leave Chishiya. You also hadn’t expected the massacre of the Beach through a witch hunt. Everything about this is unexpected, just like everything that has happened so far in this world you didn’t ask to be in.

Niragi missed anything vital or permanently life-altering, you know that much given your medical background. He missed the femoral artery, you were pretty sure about it. Well, not that he was aiming for it when he started his reckless free-shooting. You were one of the bodies thrown off to the ground and was shot in the leg. 

Arisu and Usagi scream for you as you hit the ground with a thud, your arms stopping your head from the impact. With a groan, you lie your head on the ground in defeat. 

Usagi starts moving instead of checking on you, maneuvering and avoiding the distraught running bodies and bullets. 

You didn’t feel it at first, and then it started to hurt like a bitch that you wanted to die right there and then. How do you survive this? You immediately start thinking. The bleeding has to be stopped, for sure. How deep is the wound? That’s the first thing you have to check. But why can’t you move? You’re so tired. 

You turn your head to your left, Usagi has jumped on Niragi’s back, distracting him from his shooting rampage. Arisu comes to her aid, trying to take the gun from Niragi. In return, he gets repeatedly hit in the back by the gunned man in the process. 

Arisu couldn’t do it. He had too much injury and was weakened by the constant beating. 

Niragi was able to overpower him and kick him to the floor. He spins with his strength, sending Usagi’s body away from his back and flying to the floor with a loud impact. 

“Usagi!” you scream, despair not hidden in your voice. 

You attempt to sit up, adrenaline rush filling your senses to be able to save your friends. This was game over for you. You have no one to go back to in the real world. Chishiya is safe, you’re sure of it. Kuina is still here so he might be here too. He had to get the last card of the deck, of course. But he’ll be fine. 

With a shot leg, you won’t be able to get far anyway. 

Arisu quickly crawls in front of Usagi in a useless attempt to protect her from Niragi as he aims his gun at the both of them. They’re both weak and tired, there was no escaping from Niragi as they were his sole target. 

“You…” Niragi mutters. “I’ll kill all of you!” 

Your body was moving before you even knew it. As if you hadn’t had your thigh injured, you sprint over as a head start and jump to where the perverted asshole is. Your heart raced faster than your feet did as you shouted with all your might, raising your uninjured leg as you flew in the air. You succeed in getting Niragi’s attention as he looks up at you with wide eyes. Unlike Usagi, you don't jump to his back, instead your foot slams into his head, sending him flying across the floor. 

This attack had you rolling on the ground and then on your stomach when you land. Coughs sputter out of your mouth as the burning building’s smoke begins to affect your lungs. 

Arisu and Usagi could only look at you with stunned wide opened eyes and raised brows as you landed a few feet away from them.

“Run!” You scream at them with tight fists as you attempt to get back up again. It seems the adrenaline rush was no longer there to help you as you struggle to support yourself again. 

Niragi was getting up again. This makes you furrow your brows and groan, tears forming in your eyes in frustration as you slam your fists on the ground. There was no time. If the two try to run away in their bad state, they’ll be shot dead by Niragi. 

You’re fucked. 

Why can’t this motherfucker just die? you grimaced.

You drag your body with whatever strength you have, barely sitting up as you stare down at the man who had just gotten up to his feet with difficulty and a hand on his bleeding head. 

Just as Niragi raises his weapon, like a raging bull, Aguni rushes in and attacks him, pushing himself and Niragi into the spreading fire deeper inside the building. You could no longer see their bodies but shots were heard. 

“Three minutes remaining,” the game reminded the players.

As your body collapses on the floor in relief, all the people of the Beach rush to carry Momoka’s body to the Fire of Judgement. 

Arisu and Usagi try to help you stand but you wave them off when they successfully make you sit. “No. No. Clear the game first.” You laughed in between coughs. “I need to catch a breath.” 

Usagi tries to argue with you but you glare at her. “I’ll be out as soon as the phone dings,” you assure them.

“Can you walk?” Arisu asks as he looks at your leg.

You nod and roll your eyes. “I was a med student, Arisu. I can handle it.” 

The pair looked at each other as if communicating with their eyes and then they nod, lifting each and limping out of the building to head over to the Fire of Judgement. You watch their retreating figures, relieved that the two are safe. 

You look back down at your wounded thigh and laugh. You were probably overreacting a bit. It seems that your presumptions were correct. It didn’t hit anything bad and the bullet did enter you but exited you as well. But you do have to stop the bleeding as soon as possible. 

Great, now you’re going to have ugly scars on your thigh. So it’s bye-bye bikinis? 

You scoff and take off the white cover-up you had over yourself, leaving you in the two-piece black bikini you’ve been wearing since you arrived at the beach. You began to wrap it around your thigh skillfully just as you were taught. Blood began to seep through the cloth and you knew that soon enough, you have to replace it with a real bandage and sew the open wound.

The phone for the game dinged and you sigh in relief. They were able to burn Momoka’s body, after all. 

Definitely not with ease, you were able to push yourself back up. If it wasn’t for your determination to keep your promise to Usagi and Arisu, you would’ve just laid there for a little longer.

So much for Utopia, you thought.

As you were about to exit the building, your feet stopped on their own accord when something crossed your mind, making the corner of your lips turn up into a smirk. 

You sat on the small round marble table with your legs dangling and fingers playing with the ten of hearts card. Flames are eating up the building around you but you know you don’t have to be around here any longer. As if on cue, you see the familiar white jacket from your peripheral, bringing a sad smile to your face. 

“I saved it for you, Chishiya.”

There was no greeting needed. You turn your head to your right and give him a happier, faker smile. His eyes stray down to your injured thigh for a second but back to your face in no time. He approaches you with no caution and no clue of emotion on his face.

You don’t doubt he saw the whole ordeal back there. He probably saw you and your friends struggle as he sat back and watched the scene unfold like a movie. He watched you almost die. It was so like him, quiet and scheming as he does whatever is best for him. 

Now, he was here to steal the last remaining card too. 

“It’s no longer Shuntarou, huh?” 

He doesn’t receive any answer from you but he knows the answer why. You were still mad at him. How could you not? He practically sent your comrades to their deathbeds if it wasn’t for the unexpected game venue. 

“To be honest, I don’t think it’s even important if we collect all the cards,” you confessed as you stare at the single card in your hand, flipping to its front and back. You finally turn your whole body to face him, stretching your arm to offer the card to him. “But here, just so you have it all.” 

He raises a brow, staring at you with a smirk. Goddamn, is he attractive. It’s so unfair. 

His mouth opens, about to say something but another person walks in. He realizes this when your eyes stray from his and shift to the tall woman in a blue swimsuit. You smile at her, uncaring of the interruption. 

“You two are quite persistent, aren’t you?” Kuina asks with a smirk. Chishiya turns to look at her for a second before facing you again. 

She nods over to your still wrapped-up thigh. “That was cool–what you did to Niragi. Where did you learn that?”

“It was just luck,” you tell her, earning a scoff from the man in front of you. 

He takes the card from your hand. “Don’t believe her. She’s a spades player and was an athlete.” 

Among other things, sports were one of the few things you had to give up on when you were forced to pursue medicine. But you never told Chishiya that you would still make time to compete in underground fights. It was the only way you could keep doing it with your parents not knowing. So yes, you were a retired mixed martial arts athlete that eventually became skilled in street fights. 

Chishiya knew, of course. You would disappear and not bother him for weeks, healing any injuries that you incurred during the fights. Most of the time, you’ll be gone for a week. Until, there was one time in particular when you had not bothered him for almost two weeks and even canceled the date you were so excited to be on. Curiosity got the best of him, leading him to your apartment where he found you tending to your wounds alone. It was when you finally told him what you have been doing. 

“So this is what you have been up to.” 

Chishiya was leaning against the doorway with an unamused face, holding a flier of the underground fight in his hand.

You had been applying ointment on your wounds. The fight was worse than usual and your opponent decided to destroy your face. Of course, you won because you were so pissed off that you were going to have to cancel a date with Chishiya so he wouldn’t notice the black eye and your wounded nose. 

You drop the cotton bud with wide eyes and a gasp, scrambling to hide your face in your hands. 

It was kind of funny—you in your underwear, exposing all the healing bruises all over your body and face. Chishiya doesn’t react seeing you almost naked. It was like the nonchalant man doesn’t see you as a woman. 

You lower your hands from your eyes so you could see him but still enough to cover your face from the eyes down. “Are you going to tell dad?” you ask like a kid being caught shattering a vase. 

He sighs, walking over to your bed and sitting down with his hands inside his jacket’s pocket. “What would I gain from that?” It was rhetorical. You know he’ll gain nothing from saying anything. Instead, you know he’d rather keep his mouth shut and use it against you. 

In front of the mirror, you watch his reflection fixate on your body’s bruises. Suddenly feeling a bit insecure, you purse your bruised lips and head over to your closet to grab a silk robe to wrap around your half-naked self. 

“Why are you here, Shuntarou?” you ask with folded arms.

He shrugs and looks away from you. “‘Was curious.”

Silence filled your room, only the ticking of your wall clock being heard. You sigh. “I won’t stop doing it,” you tell him firmly. 

“I know,” he responds as if he expected you to say that. “But tell me, how long do you plan to keep on doing this?” He raises the flier in his hand again as if mocking you with it. 

You understand. You used to fight in arenas with media, judges, journalists, and opponents who are trained the same way as you. Underground fighting—it was different. It’s illegal, messier, and deadlier. Often, there are no rules. It’s quite literally beat your opponent to death or be beaten to death. Sometimes, weapons are even snuck in and nobody cares if it’s against the rules. 

It was dangerous for you but more dangerous for your family name. 

But you couldn’t help it, the rush it gives you—it made you feel alive more than championships ever did. 

To hide the bruises from your father, you would over-accessorize and constantly shop for new clothes. During the day, you were the rich and elegant daughter he wanted. But at night, you were a fighter under a different name and a mask.

When you don’t answer, Chishiya dismisses the question and looks over the medicine you got for yourself on your vanity table. “There’s better ointment than that.” 

You roll your eyes. Of course, he has to be smarter about that. “It’s the only brand the nearest drugstore had.” 

Then you grin, a thought coming into your mind. “Maybe you can help me apply it?” 

“No,” he stands up from your bed. “I’m leaving.” 

But he didn’t and he spent the night treating your wounds like a doctor should.

“Well, I have to go back to my friends,” you brought yourself to your feet, a hand hovering over your injured thigh. Kuina reached over to help you but you rejected her attempt with a smile. There’s a struggle but you were able to walk away from them even with the pain. 

You would kill for crutches right now. 

“Wait!” Kuina stops you. You turn around, confused as she approaches you. She removes the sword sheath from her shoulder and hands it over to you. You quickly recognize this as The Last Boss’, the militant always around Niragi, sword. “You can use this to steady yourself.”

You smile and take it from her. “Thank you,” you accept it with genuine gratitude, looking over to Chishiya who was watching the exchange quietly on the side.

“I’ll see you around, Kuina.” 

Arisu, Usagi, and you found a place to stay along with the others from the Beach. There, you tended to your wounds and recovered. There were no games. Those whose visas were about to expire tried to go to previous game venues but nothing happened.

It’s as if Borderlands completely stopped.

Some assume that the games are over since all the numbered cards were completed but you know that’s hardly the case. This is the silence before the storm—a grace period if you will. 

“Where’s Usagi?” you ask Arisu when you wake up and the pretty climber was nowhere to be found. He was looking better and his injuries were mostly healed.

“She went and looked for supplies with the others,” he answered with a yawn. 

Even if the three of you only spent a few days at the Beach, everyone began to miss the luxury of hotel beds, warm breakfast, hot showers, and electricity. Following the ten of hearts game, the survivors camped together. Eventually, it began to be suffocating as the same people reminded them of the Witch Hunt massacre. Most militants were eaten by their guilt and left, while those who had their comrades killed by militants still felt disgusted by them and chose to separate from the group. Wounds heal but they can’t be rushed. 

The three of you stayed with Ann and Tatta, hopping from one place to another for a few nights. 

Last night, you stayed at a small house with two bedrooms which were occupied by the girls and boys each. It didn’t have much supply hence why Usagi must’ve gone with Tatta and Ann. 

You were pretty much useless because of your injury and one of your three companions always had to stay with you even if you try to assure them you’ll be fine. It was mostly Arisu who was being overprotective. You had a hunch that it was mostly because it was a leg injury. It must’ve hit close to home, you think. 

Nevertheless, you were thankful for their care. Plus, it was a good thing that the games have somehow stopped for a while because you surely wouldn’t have survived with a leg you could barely walk on. The bullet missed your muscle or any artery, what it hit was mostly fat. 

You raised your leg on the coffee table while you sat on the couch. You could walk better now and maybe even run. You haven’t pushed it though, opting to do exercises that would help you recover faster. You were a spades player, after all. It wouldn’t do you any good when the games finally start.

“It’s a good thing you were in med school,” Arisu points to your leg. You gave him a wide grin, taking in the compliment.

“What a shame it was so boring,” you say. 

Arisu smiles, handing you the cup of instant ramen. You thanked him quietly and began to eat. He sits down beside you and eats his cup too. For a minute, the only thing that could be heard in the living room was the sound of your slurps and chewing. 

“So,” Arisu started, “I’m sorry about Chishiya.” 

You shrug, trying not to show how the C-word affects you. “I’m sorry too. Y’know, because he basically tried to kill you and Usagi. I know that you mostly trusted him because of my feelings for him.” 

“That’s what I’m sorry for,” he explains, “I didn’t think he’d betray you too. I thought he really cared for you. Especially when he said those things about you.” 

His words make you pause from your meal, looking at the shaggy-haired boy in curiosity and confusion. “What things?” you ask and begin to chew again, this time slowly, waiting for your friend’s answer. 

“He told me we shouldn’t include you in our plans because…” He set down his cup on his lap and chewed away the fullness of his mouth before continuing. “Because he doesn’t want you in any danger. He said ‘I’m sure you understand. If you were in my place, you wouldn’t want the only person you like in this life to be in any danger.’” 

Your breath catches in your throat. You know it wasn’t real. But to hear that Chishiya Shuntarou said those words about you even if they were lies? You wish you would’ve heard it yourself. In fact, you would give an arm and a leg for him to say that to you.

Arisu sighed, slumping his back on the couch. “He said it was still my choice if I’ll ask you and it was just his simple request. I was an idiot. I didn’t know he was doing it because he knows you’ll figure out his real plans if you knew our plan.” 

You stayed silent for a few seconds and then replied in a low voice. “You’re not an idiot.” A frown paints on your face. “He’s a manipulative motherfucker, that’s what he is.” 

“What made you like him so much, then?” Arisu lets his curiosity free with the question.

His question was valid. It’s no doubt that the asshole was attractive and cool. These are traits he had in common with millions of men in the world so why Chishiya of all people? Is it because you had no option? But you do. In fact, you hated the idea of your parents saying you’ll marry one of their friends’ sons. 

But heck, do your parents know you. They’re clever, you’ll admit. They really got you where they wanted you. 

“I’m sorry, I’m late!” 

The door opens with a loud thud, revealing you with your hands on your knees, in your messily worn high school uniform, and catching your breath from the running. You came from morning training for the Karate team but lost track of time. All your classmates had their eyes on you, some snickering and laughing at you. 

“Miss L/N, that’s the third time this month,” your teacher deadpans while still writing on the board. 

“I know, sir! I’ll try my very very very best not to do it again this month, sir!” You shout, grinning from ear to ear as you stand up straight with your left arm on your sides and your other hand in a salute. Your teacher sighs, muttering “this month” and shaking his head, making the class laugh. 

“Just get back to your seat, L/N,” he replies in defeat. 

“Yes, sir!” you agree and set down your salute back into a military stance. Your class laughs once again and you laugh along with them. You head to your seat at the back of the class, a few of your classmates giving you a high-five greeting as you pass by them. 

Your steps halt when you notice you finally have a seatmate. He had mid-length blonde hair, half of it tied up with a few strands on the sides of his face. He wasn’t even looking at you, focusing on the writing on the blackboard instead. The stranger intrigued you so you raise a brow and look at your side where your nearest classmate sat. 

“The new student,” he whispers. “His name is Chishiya Shuntarou.” 

You smirk, thanking your classmate and heading over to your designated seat. You set down your backpack on the floor and sat down, facing the new student who was still not acknowledging you with his stare. 

“Hi. I’m Y/N L/N,” you introduce yourself and hold out your hand. “Let’s be friends, yeah?”

The stranger stops writing his notes and finally looks at you straight in the face and then back to your hand. 

He just ignores you and continues writing his notes again. 

You stare at him dumbfounded with your held-out hand, frozen and in disbelief. ‘What an asshole,’ you think. You shrug anyway and retract your hand, sitting properly to face the board. 

“Chishiya, right?” you start a conversation even if you sense that he won’t bother answering. “Why would you transfer in the middle of the semester?” You were bringing out your notebook when a thought passed by you.

Then it clicks. “Chishiya, that sounds familiar.” You say to yourself particularly when you flip open the pages of your notebook to a blank page. 

“Idiot.” It was him mumbling but you hear it all too well.

Your mouth drops at his voice and it finally hits you. It was him. Chishiya Shuntarou, son of most of your hospitals’ directors. You see him during events your parents drag you to ever since you were children. He was always reserved and quiet but you always admired him, even harboring a little crush on him. You’ve been so deep into your sports for years that you actually forgot what your life was like before you found something that really excited you. 

A smile unconsciously spreads on your face in recalling the memory. 

“Shuntarou,” you pause. “He grounds me down.”

Do you think Chishiya was a good person? Definitely not. You weren’t perfect, either. People are neither good nor bad. There’s no such simple person as that. Chishiya is a troubled person. He’s struggling with how to connect with himself and others. This is something you find in common with him. 

When you are in trouble, Chishiya always finds a way to be there for you in his own way. You used to think that he cares about you and you liked to think that way still. But for now, you two have different priorities. You are at war. 

And no one comes out the same person they were before the battle started.

“You sure about this, Y/N?” 

Usagi was asking you for the nth time. You nod. “I’m all healed,” you reply. That was partly true. You’re sure you can run now but there’s still a limit to what you can do specifically in terms of fighting. But you were stubborn enough not to leave Arisu and Usagi to investigate the Minami-Aoyama station alone.

The three of you traced the steps of Asahi and Momoka from the video that Arisu found on the phone she left behind. You walked in the dark train tracks just like they did until you found a door. 

It was opened so Arisu cautiously heads in while the two of you trail behind him, ready for any attack to come but there was nothing. You continued to walk the empty hallway, searching for the place in the video.

Arisu halts his step and you realize you were here. The three of you entered the dark room, Arisu pointing his flashlights around it. 

The lively room filled with monitors and people cheering in the video was now a dark lifeless room with multiple dead people slumped over monitors and evidence of being shot by a laser. They seemed to be players in Borderland too but unlike you, they were well-groomed and well-fed. 

“Holy shit,” you mumbled.

“You actually found this place.”

A voice startles the three of you and Arisu immediately points the flashlight in the direction of the voice. From another entrance of the room, Chishiya and Kuina strut in. You put on your guard. Why was he here? Are they one of the dealers? It’s unlikely the case but why?

“As expected from someone I have high hopes for,” the blonde continued.

“We meet again,” Kuina speaks. 

Usagi doesn’t hide the disgust in her tone and countenance. “It’s you,” she says with furrowed brows, no doubt still mad over the pair’s betrayal. Kuina looks away in slight guilt, looking over at Chishiya.

You follow her gaze and notice he no longer wears the jacket you gave him. Instead, he wore a blue and white gradient cardigan over his shirt. You feel a tad of disappointment in your heart at the thought that he has thrown it away or lost it. 

“Thanks to you, I have all the numbered playing cards with me.” He held up the deck of cards as he says it, a condescending smirk painted on his face. He truly is a despicable human being. 

Arisu glares at him and flatly asks, “How did you find this place?”

Chishiya brings out a small folded piece of paper and unfolds it to show you its contents. “It took me a while to realize that this is actually the route map of a subway station.” From afar, the drawing really did look like random scribbles. It’s a good thing that the man is observant. You don’t know where he got it but Arisu may have had a clue as you see the expression on his face. They have both participated in a game, after all.

“What happens when we collect all the cards?” He saunters closer to you with his hands in his pockets. “I thought I’d find the answer if I come here.” His eyes explore the room. “But there’s only one thing I discovered.”

“They’re not game masters,” Arisu cuts him off, finishing his sentence. 

“Right,” Chishiya agrees. “Judging from the fact that they were all killed after our victory. They’re humans like us and on top of that, there’s someone above them.” 

You scoff. “What? Like a God?” 

“Just who could they be?” Usagi asks no one in particular as she looks at Chishiya.

“Who knows? They might be aliens,” he pauses and shifts his eyes to you with a smug and mocking face, “or as your friend said, even God himself.” It was the first time he acknowledged you in the room. You raise a brow, slightly offended. His bitter tone doesn’t pass by you and the fact that he called you ‘your friend’ instead of your name, vexed you.

Not that you planned to give him a reaction but if you did, you wouldn’t be given the chance because the lights of the room turned on, followed by the wall of multiple television and computer screens circling the room accompanied by heightened ceremonial music. 

The screens reveal a familiar face—the executive specializing in the hearts game, Mira, sitting on a chair in a black gown. A vicious smile is plastered on her face. It sets an eerie feeling in your heart. What kind of fucked up shit is happening here?

“Congratulations to all players,” her voice sent chills down your spine. “With the exception of the face card games, all of you have cleared all thus far and emerged as victors by sacrificing numerous lives.” 

Her head tilts to the side, feigning innocence and wonder. “I wonder how many of your comrades have died?” 

She stands up, raising an arm. “Try to remember those that were shot dead with a gun.” She walks around as the screen shows recorded videos of the games. “That girl that you burned alive, those struck with the lasers, those that drowned, those whose heads were blown off, those comrades of yours.” You feel Arisu flinch beside you at the mention of the last sentence. 

“The despair you’ve felt so far and those dying moments that you can never forget.” 

One particular screen catches your eye but not because of a man’s head being blown off. It was because standing near that man was a familiar shaggy-haired boy. Your gaze flits to the man’s face beside you and you see the flash of horror in his eyes as the screams of people from the games fill your ears. 

“I’m extremely touched!” Mira exclaims. “All of you players, we would like to give you a present.” Her movements were odd as if she was really excited about this. One thing’s for sure, whatever’s Mira’s role is in this world, she isn’t being forced to do it. 

“Are you returning us to the original world?” Kuina thinks out loud. You purse your lips, doubting that that’s the case. 

Mira gasps, eyes widening as her body shakes in excitement. “There will be new games!” She exclaims happily like the words don’t mean death and destruction on a whole new level. “Let’s play games together. You’ll fight for face cards.” 

“Wow,” you react with a flat tone. “She’s fucked in the head.”

There’s disbelief in Kuina’s voice when she asks, “New games?” 

“I don’t dislike the idea,” Chishiya says, the smirk not being wiped off his face. Your fists clench at his words. You don’t understand him. How could he like these games? Death, betrayal, being played around like lab rats—were those entertaining to him? You always thought Chishiya was a little bit different than most and he was just doing his most to survive but is this a side to him that you’ve blinded yourself to? 

“We’ve still got many more wonderful games prepared for all of you, so look forward to it!” Mira ends her ridiculous speech. 

“This woman…” Usagi finally speaks.”Is she the game master?” 

“I’d rather see an alien appear on the screen.” Kuina thinks out loud. 

“The next stage will commence tomorrow at noon,” the camera zooms in on Mira’s face. “Let’s have some fun together!” 

“So we have to fight again,” Usagi says, feeling defeated.

“Yes,” Arisu replies. “But something is different... we’re finally seeing our target.” He says with his eyes focused on Mira, glaring and determined. 

“You’re mad again,” Chishiya states the obvious in the dark of the room you’ve entered.

You slam yourself on the nearest display bed, looking around the furniture store you’ve sheltered in from the King of Spades. By not answering Chishiya, you clearly agree with his suspicion. Of course, you were pissed off. If he ran with urgency as a normal person does, maybe you would’ve been able to jump inside that car with your friends. 

“It’s not like we would’ve fit. I’m sure you’ll find them again,” he assures you, unconvincingly with a bitter tone in his voice.

He looks at the sky through the glass window of the store. “The blimp is gone,” he observes out loud. “We can rest here if you want and then we can go.” 

“If his whole Arena is Tokyo, then that means we have no choice but to join the other games,” you think out loud. There are 12 face cards, meaning there’d be 11 games out there and one game where a single overpowered man aims to shoot down every player out here. Even if you were a spades player, your combat skills, no matter how great, are no match with his unending ammo. You can’t exactly kick or punch those bullets away. 

“That’s the point,” he replies flatly. 

You glare at him, scoffing and lying down on the bed fully with your head resting on your arm. “You should get me food,” you tell him and ignore his sarcastic remark. You don’t really expect him to comply, you were just doing it to get on his nerves like usual. 

“Do it yourself,” he says with a sigh. 

“As you can see, I’m injured…” You point to your thigh wound that was still wrapped and can be seen clearly from the ends of your gym shorts. Obviously, that was a lie and you can move freely now. “And hungry.” 

He scoffs, sitting on the mattress next to you. Deafening silence began to fill the room and you almost forget that Chishiya is in the same room as you. His presence begins to make you uncomfortable, not because you hated him but because you don’t like him seeing you vulnerable. So, you turn to your side with your back facing him. 

The king of spades, he just destroyed everyone out there. These next games, they’re much crueler than the numbered ones. You barely made it out alive and now you have to participate in harder games? And when they’re all over, who’s to say that you could actually go back?

Do you even want to go back?

If you were to die here, it wouldn’t be much loss to the real world, anyway. Things haven’t changed despite the circumstances—your priority was still to get Chishiya out of here if he can. You’re sure you will see Usagi and Arisu again. They’ll be fine. They even got Kuina, Ann, and Tatta by their side. Maybe you were separated from them so you can protect Chishiya somehow. 

You don’t doubt that he’d want to join the diamond games. In fact, maybe he’s even excited about it. If it came down to you joining him in one, you’ll try your best to help him win. But if you two somehow find yourself in a game where he will need your strength, you’d be glad to be there with him. 

The thing is, you know you would sacrifice yourself for him but the question is, would he willingly sacrifice you to win?

As you drown in your thoughts, your body shuts down to sleep, suddenly exhausted from all the running. 

The dress you wore flowed freely, the ends dragging on the floor. Even if you find yourself more at home with gym clothes, dressing up did excite you too. It just wasn’t as convenient as gym clothes where you can move freely. 

Tonight, you were ecstatic as the lavender gown you had a famous designer made sculpted your upper body perfectly as you fit it the night before the dance. Giggling, you think back to the blonde’s acceptance of your invitation to the school event. 

“So, Shuntarou, have you asked someone to the dance yet? or maybe been asked by someone?” you ask as you sat beside him in the classroom during break time.

“If you wouldn’t glare at any girl that would approach me, maybe someone would’ve.” He replies in a monotone voice as he eats his cookies. It was his favorite brand. 

“I do not glare,” you reply, glaring. “And if you want to go with someone, just tell me who and I’ll help you.” 

He raises a brow, finally looking at you but with full judgment. He knows you’re bluffing. “At least try.” 

You lose your facade. “Ok, then. Will you go with me to the dance?”

“I don’t really have a choice, do I?” he replies, dull as always.

You skip around your room, heart fluttering at the thought of slow dancing with the nonchalant blonde boy. You imagine the jealous stares of the girls who have a crush on him. You couldn’t help it. You were in high school and in love. 

Afraid to accidentally damage the dress in any way, you remove it and keep it in a safe place. Tomorrow, you’ll have a team to help you get ready. Then, Chishiya will fetch you and you will go to the dance together. 

In your excitement, you forgot to drink water or even eat dinner. You were only reminded when you feel your throat get parched. With that realization, you head to the kitchen to get something to eat. 

As you were munching on some leftover pasta you found, you hear your father’s voice in the living room. Since when was he home? You become more cautious of your actions, careful not to make any noise as you eat. It’s better to not encounter him at all.

“Ah, he’s taking her to some school dance? That’s good.” School dance? What is he talking about? 

Due to curiosity, you leave your food and tiptoe closer to eavesdrop on the conversation. It seems that he’s on the phone. 

“She’s still a kid, wasting her time on stupid matters. It’s good that Shuntarou is already thinking about a future in medicine.” Shuntarou? You now realize that he’s talking to Shuntarou’s dad and with the tone of his voice at the mention of ‘her,’ it’s safe to assume that he’s talking about you. Your father hated the numerous extracurriculars you were doing, especially those of sports. He always believed they were a waste of time and that if you wanted to do extracurriculars, you should’ve just joined the student council. 

“They’ve been getting along well, I’ve heard. As soon as Shuntarou finishes his residency and gains a little experience, we can have them married,” your father speaks to his phone. 

You froze at hearing the word ‘married.’ What did he mean by that? Could it be… Chishiya and you were being arranged to be married? And then it hit you. It’s all planned. The reason why Chishiya was transferred to your school in the middle of the semester after some unknown reason is because of your father. He was transferred there for you. 

Your father says more to his friend on the phone. It was all about you and Chishiya and some for the hospital. From what you’ve gathered, it was so Chishiya can inherit the position of chairman. 

You can practically hear your heart shatter as it sinks to the ground. At such a young age, your father doesn’t believe in you. It’s always been like this. He just believed from the get-go that you didn’t have it in you to win. You weren’t gifted like him. 

Chishiya is the child he wants, not you. 

“Tell Chishiya to keep up the good work. I’ll give him a reward for taking my daughter to the dance.”

And it seems that Chishiya knows all about it too. 

Your eyes fluttered open, lids feeling a bit heavy because of the unexpected sleep. As you sat up, your throat immediately felt parched from thirst. You really needed water. 

Looking around, you find no sign of your companion. You felt a funny feeling in your stomach, wondering where he had gone. Has he already gone and joined a game? It seemed like something he would do here in Borderland, leave you in the middle of nowhere alone and unguarded. 

You were about to stand up to actually look for the blonde man when you noticed something new on the display side table of the bed you slept on. It was unopened canned food and a bottle of water. There was no note or anything but it could only be from the blonde-haired guy himself. Has he really gone out alone and looted food for you?

You decide to quench your thirst first before dealing with him, grabbing the plastic bottle in a swift motion and opening the cap hastily before drinking in chugs. 

“Slow down.” 

As if on cue, Chishiya enters the furniture shop, now in the white jacket you gave him. Where did he hide that? Did he go back to where he left it when you were asleep?

You brought the bottle from your lips, staring at him like a puzzle. “Where did you go?” 

“Outside,” he answers flatly. You glare at him. “Just say thank you for the food and water.”

You don’t answer right away, watching silently as the man sits down again on the bed next to you, laying down some things he probably found around. It’s weird how it oddly felt domestic. If you were to disregard the numerous pieces of furniture around you, you could imagine yourself in a place in the real world where you two have your own home, happily married, and are in possession of what you two always wanted. 

You shake off the thought. Not only is that impossible in Borderland, but it’s also impossible in the real world. 

You open the canned food. It was mixed fruits. After you thanked him softly, you began to eat quietly, chewing slowly as he said to.

“Have you eaten?” you ask as he stares at you. He gives you a nod before taking his eyes off you and back to his tinkering. 

“Are you joining a game soon?” you attempt a conversation again. 

“I think we have to,” he answers.

He was right. “Yeah.” You bit your lip, afraid to ask what’s been lingering in your mind. “Do… do you want to join a game together?” 

He stills, “no.” 

“Why not? I’m strong. I can protect you,” you point at the sword you laid on the ground. 

“That’s not enough,” Chishiya answers in a heartbeat. 

“Would you rather I die alone?” It was a tough question. Not for him but for you. If you were going to be asked, you’d rather have your last moments with him. 

He audibly tsks, standing up from the bed and putting his hands in his pockets. He walks away from you and the conversation. Disappointment creeps into your skin. You knew he wouldn’t care about your sentiments. 

His hand stays on the door, not opening it yet. “Tomorrow,” he speaks, not even turning around to look at you. “We’ll join a game together.”

It sent a chill down your spine. You didn’t know what his motives are. Did he decide to go on a game with you because of what you asked… or did it give him an idea to finally end you?

It’s a good thing that the next stage shows you what game you will be entering through the blimps. The game you enter varies on one’s strengths and risks. You know that you wouldn’t willingly enter a Hearts game with the people you care about and you would try to enter a game you specialize in. 

“No heart games,” Chishiya tells you. 

You’ve found yourself inside a small home to spend the night in. It was safer than the furniture store with glass windows. You thought it’d be nice to decide on what game to choose.

You felt the mattress dip beside you, indicating Chishiya sat down. 

The house was small and cozy. It was a one-bedroom and looked like it belonged to a couple simply because it had everything by pair. What made you stay though, is that Chishiya has found their secret stash of food that was hidden inside the bedroom and under the floors of the closet.

The supply could last you maybe about a week.

You turn your head to Chishiya. It was already night time and you only had a candlelight lamp lighting up the room. He has taken off his jacket, leaving him in his shirt and pants. 

It was not the first time you’d shared a bed. When your families would go on trips together, they’d make you share a room. If you didn’t know about your father’s plans, you would find it odd how they were too willing for you two to get along that they were putting their young adult child inside a bedroom with a guy her age. 

During those trips, you would fall asleep on his bed while telling him stories. At first, Chishiya would leave you be and sleep on your bed. Until one night, when it became too frequent, he just slept beside you. And then the rest was history. 

As he lies down beside you, you hear his gentle breathing, see the rise and fall of his chest, and the way he inhales and exhales. It seemed that he was in deep thought. Could it be that he was worried about the games too?

“How about a Diamonds game?” you suggest. You think that you were pretty smart and you could handle it more with him by your side.

Chishiya doesn’t answer, looking like he’s in deep thought. 

“Kuina and the others probably joined a Clubs game.” you continue. “Maybe we should join one too.”

The thought brings you back to your comrades. It’s possible that they joined a game together—a Clubs game is the safest bet if they all want to live. Maybe it’s what you and Chishiya can do too. 

“We’ll join the Queen of Clubs. It’s the nearest clubs game.” The man beside you finally speaks, his voice a little tired. 

You agree, nodding lightly. You spun to your side with your back facing him as he lay on his back, staring up at the ceiling. 

“Goodnight, Chishiya,” you mumble, still not being able to call him by his first name. He doesn’t answer but you hear him subtly hum in response. 

The sun was setting when you and Chishiya reach the arena. 

After a bit of walking, your mouth drops as you realize that the Queen of Clubs blimp is hovering over a high school building. Specifically, the prestigious high school you and Chishiya attended. 

“How fitting,” Chishiya reacts with a bored tone.

Sometimes, you feel like the games are catered to the players. Like they know all your life stories. This high school being the game arena, is it to your advantage or disadvantage? Whatever it is, you have no choice but to find out. This is your first game in the second stage, and it’s a Clubs game. If the two of you work with other players well, the chance of survival is high. 

That should be the mindset for the numbered games but right now, you weren’t sure because these are face card games. If the numbered games were difficult as it is, you should be terrified and ready for the face cards. 

“I can go in alone,” you suddenly say, afraid to go in there together with him. 

“You’re kidding,” he scoffs and walks closer to the entrance. “After all that talk about dying alone?” 

The anxiety that was creeping into your skin would put you at a disadvantage. You know that Chishiya could handle himself but you couldn’t help but be worried for him. Sighing, you shake off the worry and decide to push through with joining the game with him.

You enter the arena first and look back. Chishiya stares at you for a few seconds, as if contemplating or memorizing your face. And then he follows you inside. What was that?

The other players were gathered in front of the building, right on the grass field. There were about six people there already. Chishiya followed you inside but didn’t walk beside you or near you. It was probably to not make people assume you know each other. On top of a table were metal cuffs that had a screen, looking like a smartwatch. From the looks of it, it seems that it was the same material as the collars they make you wear in the other games only this time, they were bracelets.

1 PER PERSON

There were two left when Chishiya and you took yours. You clasp it around your non-dominant hand’s wrist and watch as the game confirms your registration. Looking around, you found the other players looking at you. It made you feel a bit insecure but you’ve been in enough games to know that you shouldn’t let them get to you. It should be the other way around. 

Another hand reaches for a phone on the table and you look up at her. She looks a bit like a high schooler, wearing a skirt from a uniform and a white tank top. She had a bow and arrow on her back. 

Her stare turns into a glare and you frown. It was she who broke eye contact first and stepped away from the table. As she turns around, it was hard not to notice that she was missing a foot, replaced with some kind of metal. She looks interesting to you. 

REGISTRATION HAS CLOSED. THE GAME WILL NOW COMMENCE. 

The familiar AI voice of a woman is heard through the campus speakers.

Chishiya crosses his arms, waiting for something to happen next. You look up at the screen that was stationed there. As if on cue, the screen lights up, flashing some kind of silhouette of a woman’s head with a crown. 

DIFFICULTY

Queen of Clubs

GAME

Prom Queen

Rules:

Each classroom has votes for players to collect or challenges for players to complete. 

The players must collect enough points to enter the gym, where the Queen of Clubs will give them one last challenge. 

The votes are transferable to another player but physical assault and force transfer of votes to another player is not allowed. 

If the player does not complete the challenge in the room, the room takes their votes. 

No weapons allowed inside the building.

CLEAR CONDITION

The players must have more votes than the Queen of Clubs and complete her last challenge.

GAME OVER

Players do not gather enough votes to dethrone the Queen of Clubs.

Players do not complete the last challenge. 

TIME LIMIT

02:00:00 HRS

You scoff and remove the Katana from your shoulder, putting it on the table. The other players began to gather around it, putting their weapons with yours. 

GAME START

You look around at the other players. You give them a nod. 

“Alright. Let’s meet by the gym doors after we collect all points,” a man who has glasses said. He wore stripe shirts and was fairly tall. He seemed smart and gave the impression of a leader. It doesn’t look like he’s physically fit, though. 

The other players do not waste time, scurrying into the building with determination and a little bit of fear. You stayed behind for a few seconds, looking at Chishiya. He stares back at you with no expression on his face and heads into the building.

There was the girl who had a bow and arrow, still looking at you. You give her a nod. It didn’t look like she could be trusted but this is a Clubs game, after all. You have to work together to survive. She doesn’t give you the same attitude as earlier. Instead, she approaches you, giving you a nod back. 

“Akane Heiya,” she introduces herself to you.

“Y/N L/N,” you reply with your name. 

The two of you enter the building together, cautious of the darkness that plagues it. You pick up the small flashlight from your belt bag. You can hear the scrambling of the foot of the other players, no doubt racing to get to the classrooms faster.  “The rules didn’t say how much we need, so maybe we can go and check the gym and see if there’s a clue?” you ask her. 

“I’ll go check,” she tells you.

“You sure?” you ask her, wanting to know if she doesn’t need a companion. 

She nods. “One of us should help collect votes.” 

As soon as you nod, she was already on her way to look for the gym. You decide to head to the nearest classroom without a player in it already. 

You stand before a classroom door that has a red light on it. You assume that if the votes in this classroom haven’t been collected, its red light is still on. 

It wasn’t dark inside the classroom, the sun has almost set all the way but there was still a bit of light seeping through the windows of the room. As you step in, the door shuts behind you. You panic for a bit, checking the door knob if it still works. You groan when you realize that you’re shut in. 

The lights of the classroom turned on and a tv screen that was in the middle of the chalkboard flashes a question. 

In printing, it’s the color black. In chemistry, it’s potassium. In baseball, it’s a strikeout. Which letter is it?

It was an easy question but there were about maybe forty classrooms in this school. There are nine players. If your hunch was right, there should be a difficulty level or random variation of the difficulty of the challenges on each floor, there are eight classrooms. You were on the first floor. 

“K,” you answer confidently. 

The room speakers gave out a ‘ding’ sound and some kind of button on the teacher’s desk lights up a green color and you walk towards it. You hesitantly press it and your wrists light up with a green color. 

+ 50 votes

You hear the lock of the door click open and you step out. You look up at the light on the door and see that the previous red light has been shut off. 

Walking down the hallway, some girl who looked like she was in her thirties, wearing office attire approaches you. “How many votes did you get?” she asks, pointing at her wrist. 

“50,” you reply. 

Another man completes his room and hears what you were talking about, approaching you two.  “It was hidden in one of the lockers at the back. I got 50 too.” 

You nod at them. “It seems that this floor is just full of 50 votes per room.”

Not wasting any more time, you and the others who have completed your rooms head to the second floor. Chishiya was already on the second floor, stepping outside one of the rooms. You approach him. “How many votes in this one?” you ask. 

He shows his wrist, flashing the number on his band. 75. Just as you thought.

“So the floors are kind of the levels, huh?” The man in the striped shirt asks you. You nod. 

“There isn’t a goal of votes by the gym.” 

All of you turn your heads to the source of the voice. Heiya stood there, her chest heaving from the running. You don’t doubt that she was tired—the gym was a bit of a walk from the classrooms. You probably should’ve told her that.

“That must mean we should clear all the rooms.” A woman with a crossbody bag spoke up, joining all of you. 

“Then let’s do that,” the man in the striped shirt speaks again. 

You and the other players moved as quick as you can. You learned that when you don’t succeed with their mini games inside the classrooms, you’re lasered down and another player has to go to that classroom to finish the task.

In the end, it was six of you who lasted. 

The first floor has eight rooms opened with 50 votes each. The second has eight rooms and 75 votes each. The third floor has three rooms with 100 votes each. The fourth floor has two rooms with 150 votes each. Lastly, the fifth floor had one room with 400 votes. 

Together, you accumulated 2000 votes. However, it was separated from your wrists. When you reached the gym, whenever you tried, it would show ‘error’ on the electronic lock. 

It had to be 2000 on one wrist.

“That means… only one of us gets to go inside?” A girl with a headband says, her eyes looking scared. 

You furrow your brows, thinking. “The game said we only need to dethrone her with more votes. Only one needs to do her challenge and then the game should clear.”

“Right,” a man in a plain white shirt replies. “This is a Clubs game. That should be the case.” 

“Okay, so who will go?” The woman in office attire asks, her voice trembling a bit.

Each one of you stares at each other, feeling each other out like teenagers afraid of a graded recitation in class. You don’t blame them, you don’t know what exactly the challenge would ask of you. 

“I’ll go,” Heiya rolls her eyes impatiently, holding out her wrist as she waits for the other players to move. 

“No. Most of the rooms’ challenges are about intellect. It should be me,” stripe shirt complained. Now you know what irks you about this man, he was controlling and stupidly wants to be seen as somewhat of a main character. 

Heiya glares at him. “So what? You think you’re the smartest in the room?” She bites, raising her brows. You try your best not to laugh at her accusation and lightly strike your elbows to her side, telling her to tone it down.

“That’s not what I meant,” the man replies, offended and furrowing his brows.

“The challenge wouldn’t be about intelligence,” For the first time in the game, Chishiya finally speaks, making all the other players’ heads turn to him. 

He shows everyone a piece of paper in his hands. 

The Ivy Award 2020 — Yamada Asaki

No way, could it be?

“After the rooms were cleared per floor, the lights turned on but kept flickering. It made up a morse code. The first floor is I, the second floor is V, and the third floor is Y.” He makes his way near the circle, showing everyone the paper that turned out to be a certificate. “And then I found this on the fourth floor, confirming the morse code.”

“What is this supposed to be?” The man in stripe asks, a bit irritated. 

Chishiya stares at him, giving him all his focus with dark eyes. “In the classrooms of the fifth floor, there were shelves containing the awards of this awardee. The Ivy Award was a special award this high school gave to those who excelled in all athletics in the school while maintaining top grades.” 

Chishiya pauses, now shifting his eyes to yours. You look away and avoid his gaze. “There are only two people who received that award in this school.” 

“Yamada Asaki,” he looks down at the paper in his hand. “And Y/N L/N.” His gaze goes back to you, communicating a million words in one simple stare.

You froze at the mention of your name. Heiya, in her tall stature, looks down at you. “You?” she asks in disbelief and a smirk. 

You glare at Chishiya, not understanding why he dropped your name and history out of nowhere. Then you look at Heiya who was waiting for your response.

“That’s true,” you admit, looking down at your feet. 

“In fact, she was the first awardee—the reason why the award was made in the first place.” Chishiya gives you a smirk. 

You still remember when you were awarded that day. The school made the award for you for the sole reason that universities around the world were contacting them to take you in as their athlete on full scholarship. They were scrambling for your hand in college.

Your father rejected all of them. He used all his power to stop you from going.

Up till now, the award was a topic you don’t like talking about. It was hard for you to remember how much you were controlled and manipulated into staying in Japan. 

“The person you’ll be facing,” He puts his eyes back on the man in the striped shirt. “Is a master of all sports and martial arts. Do you think you could handle that?” 

The man in the striped shirt couldn’t answer. 

Just like that, the other players began giving you their votes. You stand there quietly as they hover their cuffs on yours. This would mean… everyone’s life here is depending on you. 

Chishiya took the last turn in giving you his votes. He grabs your limp wrist with his right hand and hovers his cuff on yours. Your eyes are shaking in anxiety as you’re still staring at the floor. You've fought wildly when only your life is in your hands. That’s because you know that you have nothing to lose. You’ll gladly die if it’s your time to die. But right now, you have to live for these people.

“What?” he whispers. 

You finally look up into his eyes, meeting his deep stare. 

The other players watch as Chishiya leans in, whispering something in your ear. This causes you to freeze, looking up at him with awe. 

He spins you around, making you face the door. His hands are still on your shoulder when he leans in. 

He whispers in your ear again, sending shivers down your spine. For some reason, it sounded genuine. He wasn’t trying to manipulate you into going. He was motivating you, maybe even pleading. 

You turn your head to look at him, his face inches away from yours. From here, his eyes burned with something you don’t understand. There was a slight crease on his forehead that relaxed when you gave him a smile.

“Wait for me, will you, Shuntarou?” 

It was the first time you saw Chishiya smile in Borderland—and actually smile and not smirk in a condescending manner.

“You can do it,” Akane nods at you, her arms crossed. You look at her, smirking. You’ve only known the girl for an hour but you already like her. 

The other players began motivating you and you gave them all a glance before hovering your cuff on the lock of the door.

The lock dings and the door unlocks by itself. You twist the knob open, revealing the darkness of the room. 

You give one last glance to Chishiya whose eyes never left yours. You walk inside, your eyes never leaving his. He has long abandoned the smile on his face, replacing it with his famous poker face. His eyes, however, stayed expressive as if telling you’ll be fine in his own way.

The night should’ve been everything you dreamed about. 

Chishiya fetched you, wearing his suit and tie that matched your dress. The hotel venue that the school rented turned out to be designed beautifully. Everything was perfect.

If it weren’t for what you learned last night.

You acted like everything is fine, dancing with your friends as Chishiya sat on the side. To get him to come, he made a deal that he wouldn’t dance until the last. You agreed, only wanting to dance the last slow dance with him. 

Chishiya must’ve already realized something is wrong because you haven’t looked at him for more than five seconds all night. It was weird. You really wanted to be here with him yet you can’t even ask him what he thought about the food. You know that it wasn’t his fault. You were the one who approached him first and began pursuing him. He wasn’t exactly actively trying to manipulate you as your father wanted. 

But he knew. He knew what your parents wanted. 

And you, you were left in the dark again. 

The doors of the gym shut with a loud thud, leaving you in blinding darkness. 

“I hoped you would come,” it was a girl’s voice from the end of the room. 

The lights turn on and you squint your eyes as the sudden change blinds you for a second. When your eyes adjust to the brightness, you see a girl not older than a high school kid. She was wearing a black bodysuit and a crown, sitting on what looks to be like a throne on the stage. 

“You’re Yamada Asaki?” you ask, raising a brow. 

“and you’re Y/N L/N,” she replies, a smirk plastered on her face.

She stands from her throne, crossing her arms as she walks down the stage. “You know, when I heard that you’re here, I had this game designed just for you.” 

“Designed?” your eyes never leave her as you frown. These games are designed by people? 

You were curious but she ignores your question. “I wanted to see what’s so great about you.” The bitter tone of her voice doesn’t pass by you. It was clear that this girl doesn’t like you.

“Do you…” Her voice was deadly like it could cut like a sharp knife. Her eyes were focused on you like a target. “Do you know how miserable you made me feel?”

“Obviously not,” you replied with sarcasm, not giving into her sentiments. It would be better not to waste time, you only had 10 minutes left to clear the game. 

The girl audibly scoffs so you continue. “I don’t know the reason nor do I care. Tell me the challenge and we can get this over with.” 

Asaki’s gaze burn through yours as she removes the crown on her head and throws it on the ground. “The crown is worth 50 votes,” she says, eyes not leaving yours and showing you the cuff on her wrist, 2020 votes, the year she won her award. “You get it if you beat me in a fight.” She puts herself into a stance, getting ready to fight. 

“Fine,” you answer, throwing your belt bag across the floor and cracking a few bones of your knuckles. “Are there any rules?” 

It’s all bullshit. You know there are no rules in a fight for your life. This is a fight. But still, you ask. It wouldn’t hurt to know if there are. 

You read her stance. She’s good, guarded and ready. From her built, it’s clear that she’s experienced. She must be an athlete from her younger years like you. It’s a no brainer, if she’s a receiver of the Ivy Award, then she has been trained like you. 

“Rules? There are no rules. No stopping until one of us dies.” Her arrogance was something you take note of. It seems that her confidence is one of her biggest traits. For now, you need to see what she can do. 

She attacks first, swinging a fist at your face. You block it and attack with a fist, to which she follows up with a guarding technique of her arms. You move away but she follows that technique with a kick. You dodge her foot by crouching, all while staring at her with burning eyes.

Kickboxing. 

It’s the closest to modern-day MMA. From what you saw, this girl is a striker. 

You launch forward, heading for her middle. It was fast but she was able to raise her knee which you avoid. Good. She’s good. But what about her footwork? 

Pivoting your front foot, you shot your rear leg out and aim at her middle again. She quickly steps away, leaving your foot hitting nothing but the air. Great. Her footwork is good too. You jump back to your feet, raising your fists and moving away from her in a quick motion. 

“Taekwondo?” She smirks, her eyes giving you a condescending look as if she’s about to laugh. “It was your favorite, wasn’t it?”

How did she know that? This girl… just who was she and what have you done for her to know you like this?

“So you’ve studied me?” you ask with a smirk, feigning your curiosity.

“Day and night,” she replies. “I watched all your tournaments,” she jabs, you avoid. “Your championships,” she kicks, you block. “Your training,” she swings, you move away. “All because they wanted me to be like you!” She lunges forward and you let her, she grasps the back of your head and gives you a knee strike, hitting you right in the stomach.

You free yourself from her hold, stumbling and landing a few steps from her when she lets go. She laughs like a maniac. 

“You’ve become rusty,” she spats. 

“Come on,” you raise your fists into a stance once again. “I haven’t even started,” you say and give her a grin. 

Her forehead creases as she furrowed her brows, eyes blazing. So her favorite’s kickboxing. You know what to do. Her footwork’s great, her kicks and punches are strong too, it would be dangerous if she attacks you like she did last time. Front kicks are one of their best attacks. 

You attack diagonally, catching her off guard. You throw a punch and it lands straight to her face. A kickboxers’ weakness is defending an attack coming diagonally. You have to get close to her. 

You attempt to throw punches hastily, making her dodge away again and again until you corner her to a wall. She takes this as a chance to hold the back of your neck again with both hands, catching you in a Thai Clinch. Just like before, you know she’d throw you a knee strike. 

Before she could raise her knee, you put both her arms in your hold tightly, preventing her to move. Using your elbow, you give her a strike to her jaw with the single intent to create the worst damage possible. Your jab connected with a crack and you know you broke her jaw. Once the move made her lose focus, you repeatedly take a jab at her, one punch after another. 

Blood sputters out of her mouth and she spits as you move away again. You were pretty sure you saw a tooth fall out. 

“Forfeit,” you order and her bloodshot eyes gave nothing to you but hatred. You match her threatening gaze. “Before I kill you.” 

“Are you kidding?” There’s blood in the corners of her mouth from your punches yet she stands strong. 

“Seven years,” she looks up to the ceiling, tears lining up her eyes. “For seven fucking years, I was told that I should be like you.” You’ve known since she greeted you that there’s something that lies here deeper. But who cares? So she’s been forced to work hard for the award, how is that your fault?

“And you failed,” you bluntly state, eyes devoid of emotion. 

Her eyes widened in disbelief of your words. She scoffs, tears threatening to spill as she glares at you with resentment. “Failed? I won your award. I did it all!”  

An ill feeling fills your stomach as she bares herself. She had become too emotional. One thing you learned about fighting is that your opponent doesn’t care. A real opponent goes straight for the kill. This… is nothing but a sparring session. 

“So? After that, what did you do?” you ask, titling your head. 

You rush forward, spinning around and straightening your legs to kick her head mid-air. Asaki was pulled of her feet violently and thrown across the floor. She slides along the gym floor, halting just a few inches away from the wall. 

“Stand up and tell me,” you instruct her as you land. You wait for her to recover, her forehead bleeding from the impact of your kick. 

Rage colored Asaki’s vision red as she uses her arms to push herself back up. “I…” It was a weak attempt, she couldn’t even sputter out the words. Her chest heaves up and down as she stands to her feet, for a moment, you thought she was gonna puke but she recovers. “I died.”

She snarled and rushes towards you and you await her attack, ready to counter it. Mid-air she raises her fist and you raise your hand, catching her burning fists in yours. However, she uses this misdirect to knee the wound of your thigh. You grunt, taking in the pain and trying not to let it falter you. 

“You haven’t…” you grit through your teeth and use your free hand in attempt to smash it to her face. Asaki manages to block this, locking your arm and jabbing your stomach repeatedly. Using her strong hold from locking you, you jump and use both of your free legs to kick a blow to her stomach, sending you both flying away from each other and hitting the floor. 

You don’t waste any time, jumping to your feet and launching yourself to her body on the ground. You put her in a chokehold, jabbing at her face repeatedly as you sit on her stomach.  “Dying? That’s your reason?” You say to her ear. She spins, making you land on her back. You lock her with your legs, grabbing her hair to raise her head. “Give me something better.” 

You free her from your hold, jumping away from her range. 

When she fully stands up, you throw a kick as the same time as her. Her left leg hits your outer right thigh and you hit her inner right thigh. She staggers because of this and you use the opportunity to jab three heavy hits to her head. Right. Left. Right. Her head has been hit enough for it to be fatal and she falls to her back. 

Cleverly, she uses her legs and feet to block your attacks. You push through, using your body weight to receive the attacks from her legs. She locks you in with her legs on either side of your torso. You let her. If you try to escape, she’ll just lock your head. 

In the underground, you’ve fought men and women of different weights. It was often that you were underestimated because of your height and weight. So, you let them think you were weak. But what they don’t know is you got them right where you wanted them—close enough for you to kill.

You use both your hands to block hers, smashing her wrists on the floor. Then, you smash your head against hers. That doesn’t stop you. You use your elbows once again, landing one blow after another. You don’t stop even after you see her face covered in blood. 

When her hands lay limp with no force, you take a hand off and use this to grip her neck. 

She struggles to breathe from your hold but you don’t let her. If you were inside a stage, a referee would’ve stopped you by now. But that’s not the case for you. Not for a long time. 

“Where did you go last night?” 

Chishiya asks as soon as you sit down beside him in the room. You ignore him, pretending you don’t hear him because of your earphones. He’s talking about the last dance. When he wasn’t looking, you slipped away from the venue and escaped. You left your bag with him and he only noticed when he couldn’t find you in the crowd anymore. You couldn’t help it, you were overwhelmed by your father and Chishiya. Not only is he controlling your career but he’s controlling your relationships too? 

You took a cab ride away from the hotel, still wearing your gown. You told the driver to just drive around and he did. In the ride, you spot a neon signage. It was a club you always see. It had an interesting name; Sarutahiko.

You’ve seen cars come and go there. What you’ve noticed is they all seemed to be very wealthy. You asked for the car to stop by near and without thinking, you made your way into the club, clutching a wealthy man’s arm and pretending to be his date. 

That night, instead of being in Chishiya’s arms for the last dance, you won your first fight in the underground. The beloved dress you had made for thousands of dollars, they were ripped and worn when you came home, dirt and scratches running along your skin. 

It was the first time you felt it—the euphoria.

When you fought with no rules and no holding back, nothing mattered. You weren’t the beloved athlete that has a bright future ahead of her as an heir of the L/N family. You were just Y/N, or as the underground calls you, 極真 王女 (Kyokushin Ojo; trans: Ultimate Truth Princess; “Kyokushin” is a type of Karate)

Like a princess, you entered the arena in your sparkling gown and destroyed your opponent in five minutes. It was then and there that you decided, you will no longer fight your father’s opposition to your sports. This will be your life and your death. 

A life with Chishiya, it’ll be a privilege. You like him… and with his and your father’s deal, you’ll be able to live your other life in peace. Fine, you’ll play the part of the pretty spoiled princess. 

Chishiya doesn’t press further but from your lack of luster in your eyes, he understood that something died inside you that day. From then on, you dropped all your sports and didn’t fight your father’s refusal to all the universities that wanted to scout you even if they offered medical studies in exchange for your athletic participation.

If there was one thing you regret, it was you and Chishiya never had your last dance. 

You feel it again. The euphoria running through your veins. Don’t stop. Don’t stop. Even if you hear the taps, don’t stop. 

Asaki gasps for air, her face reddening as her wide eyes scream for help. You don’t notice this, darkened eyes not even showing mercy or any emotion. You’ve been completely shut off and in auto pilot as you throw one punch and another.

Why should you? Your father never stopped. 

“N-no!” 

Asaki pushes you off with all her strength, sending off her body. You’re quickly on your feet again, ready to attack as your opponent catches her breath. Asaki sprang of her hands, throwing herself in to a spin that showed off a gymnast’ skill. Like a whirling tornado, she was too fast for you to block or counter-attack. 

She doesn’t kick your head and instead kicks your side. You were thrown across the floor, skiddling and tumbling. A groan escapes your lips at the pain that shot through your ribs, adding to the pain of your thigh.. Yeah, your ribs are definitely cracked. 

“You said you’ll protect me,” Chishiya whispers in a low voice, you were sure only you could hear it. You did say it back there in the furniture shop.

He spins you around, making you face the door. His hands are still on your shoulder when he leans in. 

“Protect me,” he whispers in your ear, sending shivers down your spine. For some reason, it sounded genuine. He wasn’t trying to manipulate you into going. He was motivating you, maybe even pleading. 

I’m sorry, Asaki. 

You sprang to your feet, ignoring the screaming pain of your ribs. You face your opponent once again, the same distance from when you started. But this time, something was different. In your opponent’s hands, was a butterfly knife. 

She was smirking at you like she finally got you. She’s an idiot. 

“Fine,” you huff, giving her an equally sinister grin. “You studied all my moves in high school.” You put yourself in a fighting stance again. “I’ll give it to you. You’re a great fighter. You know all the moves, techniques, and all that shit.” 

“You did all that research about me… yet you didn’t ask why I stopped?” You don’t even glance once at her weapon again. “Pathetic.” 

She lunges with a scream, swinging the knife at you. 

You stepped in, closing the gap between you and Asaki, dodging her weapon and striking her upper and lower arm. As your strike clashes with hers, the force makes her arm holding the weapon go limp. You grab her arm, twisting it until her hand is pointed towards the ceiling. 

With Asaki’s chest unprotected, you pivot and strike her with your elbow and then your foot to her leg. She loses balance and you use this to take the weapon from her hand. 

In a swift motion, you swing the weapon, slashing her across the face. Crimson red drips from her already blooded cheek, adding to the wound on her forehead. She puts a hand to her face, finally executing fright for the first time in the fight.

And then you understand.

The career she wanted instead of the Ivy Award—it was beauty. 

Instead of the Ivy Award, she wanted to be prom queen. Life wasn’t for her but she was thrusted into it too. It was so simple and yet you were blinded by the game to notice. You understood. A slash to the face was hard to cover especially if it scars. You were very careful about your face when you fought in the underground. 

You feel bad but who were you to be a saint? 

You strike a blow to her stomach with your foot, sending her staggering a few steps back. Her focus is still on the wound on her face. She has completely dropped her guard and looked like a simple high school girl who was attacked out of nowhere. 

“You were right,” you say as you throw the knife away. “Taekwondo was my favorite. I still use ITF from time to time.” 

She was not even guarded yet you continue. One straight powerful jab to the center of her chest. She accepts the attack but doesn’t fall down, eyes widened and coughing at the force of the attack. 

“The reason why I stopped competing… was because I found something better.”

Asaki backs away, feeling an unexplained fright. She knows something has shifted as you stride towards her with blazing eyes. Even your walk seemed powerful, exerting an aura of strength and power. 

Kyokushin Karate… is the strongest martial art in the world.

Its sole goal is defeating its opponent. Different from Taekwondo at its very core, it’s focused on real fights. There’s no protective gear, just pure hand-to-hand combat. 

Those who practice Kyokushin as a martial art, they’re unfamiliar with attacks aimed at the head. But not you. The only reason attacks aimed at the head are banned in Kyokushin Karate is because…

There were too many casualties. 

You send a straight punch to Asaki’s face, her head receiving the full force impact of your fist. 

You swing your right arm, hitting her across the jaw. Asaki tries to kick your side as a counter attack but you dodge. 

If your right arm’s not enough, use your left.

You swing your left arm this time, hitting her cheek and you actually feel her teeth through your fist. Even as you hit her, Asaki uses her hand to slap you across the cheek. You’re thrown off, so you spin and kicked off your legs.

If your left arm isn't enough, use your legs. 

The heel of your feet strikes the junction of her neck and shoulder, sending her kneeling on the floor with a loud thud. 

You tackle her down like you did before, with your legs on either side of her torso, she could only watch as you repeat your move from before.

And if your legs don’t cut it, use your head. 

You smash your head with hers with a loud thud and she goes into shock, eyes wide open as she could no longer move. Her body stills underneath you as she stares up at nothingness. 

The spirit of Kyokushin Karate… is a person’s strong will that is never broken.

2 MINUTES LEFT

“That’s…” Her eyes remained unmoving. “Karate.”

Tired, you stand up as she still lays still on the ground, broken bones and wounded face. 

“You’ve done well,” you mumble but you’re sure she can hear. You wipe the blood on her face but it does nothing but spread it. You see her face clearly even with the blood. She was pretty with an innocent face now that she’s put down her guard and hatred.  “You can rest now, beautiful.” 

And finally, the tears spill out of her eyes and she cries. She cries and cries until they turn into sobs. She cried like the kid that she is, hungry for love—hungry for someone to listen to her. It was all too familiar. You know the feeling all too well. 

Walking away from her cries, you pick up the plastic piece of crown. It was silver and had pink stones all around it. 

Limping to the stage, you make your way to the prop throne. You sit down on it and groan at the feeling of resting your beat up body.

1 MINUTE

You place the crown on your head and place your bloodied fists on either sides of the arm rests. The cuff on your wrists flash with a sound and a green light.

+ 50 votes

It was followed by a ding and the girl’s automated voice.

CONGRATULATIONS

GAME CLEAR

And then you see it, the laser coming down from the sky and onto Asaki’s skull. 

Stepping out of the gym, you find the other players waiting for you silently. They seemed to be looking up at something so you follow their gaze. 

There was a camera. All that happened back there, they saw it.

You stood there in silence, waiting for something to happen next. Their gaze falls on you with your burnt knuckles and the plastic crown on your head. These people, they looked at you with fright in their eyes. It was a familiar look—the audience’s disbelief when you don’t hold yourself back. 

“Great job,” Heiya was the first one to approach you with a smirk, putting a hand on your shoulder. It was her and Chishiya who didn’t look scared of you.

You smile, giving her a nod. 

Just like that, the other players began giving you their thanks. Out of nine people, six of you survived. They all thanked you, the girl in the headband even hugging you. 

All six of you walk out of the game, looking up as the Queen of Clubs’ blimp self-destructs with explosion. Beside you, Chishiya is also looking up, smirking. He was properly beautiful. 

Arisu asked you what made you like this man so much and you told him it was because Chishiya grounds you. You never really knew how to explain it until now. 

When you were fighting in the underground, it was brutal. It was your way of feeling pain–to feel alive. If you didn’t have Chishiya in your life, you would’ve stayed in the underground forever. But Shuntaro, he gives you a reason to come back to your life. 

So you can annoy him. 

You were back in the apartment with Chishiya after you searched for some medical supplies for your injury. As always, he was silent. 

“You can shower if you want,” Chishiya breaks the silence, pulling you off your thoughts while you sat on the couch. You nod and leave him alone in the living room. 

After you shower, you wore a plain white shirt  and some lounge shorts you found in one of the drawers. When you step out of the room, Chishiya still wore the clothes he had outside but he stood over portable stove, stirring what smelled to be like instant noodles. 

He sees you and carries the pot over to the table. The table is already set. 

You never thought you’d see the day, Domestic Chishiya. A malewife. You place a hand over your mouth, preventing the smile on your face from forming. Instead, your face contorts into a funny face, earning a glare from Chishiya. 

“Are you just going to stand there or eat?” He deadpans. 

You bite your lips, shutting yourself up and made your way to the table. “Thank you for the food,” you said, sincerely. He scoffs, sitting across from you.

The two of you ate quietly, you slurp the ramen noodles like its your last meal. It wouldn’t be so bad. Instant Ramen by Chishiya. You giggle in your head, a smile spreading on your face. 

When you finish your food, you opted to wash the dishes while Chishiya showers. Looking around, the apartment, you found something really cool—a record player. You inspect it and it looks like it’s the kind that doesn’t need electricity. Your heart swells with excitement, searching for vinyls around the place. You found a box inside the room filled with it and you clap to yourself happily.

“No way,” you react when you turn a knob and found it actually works. 

“What’s that?” Chishiya walks in the living room, his jacket long abandoned and wearing a shirt and lounge shorts. Did he match what you were wearing? 

“It’s the only thing he has,” he defends himself even when you haven’t said anything.

You pause, thinking if you should say anything but you ignore it, remembering your brilliant discovery. “Look! It’s a record player!” 

He sighs. “You’ll only attract others with the sound.” 

Your face fell. “Then I’ll beat them up.” You ignore his protests, going over to him and grabbing his hand to pull him over to the record player. He follows you limply, bored and annoyed as always. 

You’re not very familiar with the vinyls so you just grab one with a familiar name, Nat King Cole. You placed it on the record player, figuring out how it plays. It began playing but it was too fast. You look up at Chishiya with wide eyes, wondering what you did wrong. He sighs, reaching over to some tiny lever on the turntable and pushing it to number 33. 

“It’s the wrong speed,” he tells you.

The song began playing at a normal speed and you grin widely. 

It was a slow love song and an idea pops into your mind. 

“You know, something popped into my mind back there,” you face your friend, placing a hand on his shoulder. He stills but doesn’t remove your hand. 

When I fall in love, it will be forever Or I’ll never fall in love

“We never got to finish our last dance back in high school,” you say with a smirk. “And you promised.” 

Surprisingly, Chishiya doesn’t argue. So, you place your other hand around his neck, connecting it with your other hand. You pull him closer, his face inches away from yours. From here, you can see his face clearly. His eyelashes that flutter as he blinks, the creases of his forehead when he scrunches his brows slightly, his lips that were ever so slightly parted. He stays quiet, eyes on your face as if memorizing it like what you were doing to his. 

You brought down your hands to place his on your waist and again, he surprisingly doesn’t remove them. You place your hands back to where they belong, pulling him in again. You started to sway with the music, willing Chishiya to do the same. 

“I’m sorry.” The words come out of his mouth like air. If you weren’t close enough, you wouldn’t have heard it. Heat rushes to your face as your eyes widen. Did you really just hear Chishiya apologize to you?

Your shock melts into a tightlipped smile. “You’re just going to have to make it up to me by loving me forever.” It was a reference to the song that was playing. 

He scoffs at your cheesy words. “Don’t be ridiculous.” 

Love. It’s a privilege. You know that you two aren’t children made by love. It’s the reason why you two find it so hard to believe that love exists. Chishiya no doubt finds it harder to believe. He doesn’t understand the sentiment–the romance. 

“Fine. Tell me,” he mumbled. You stare back at him, unsure of what he means. His eyes were steady, focused on you and begging in his own way. It takes years of experience to notice the subtle changes of emotion his face makes and your heart swells at the slight tremble of his lips. “Tell me what to do instead.” 

Your brows slightly furrow, cheeks reddening and eyes glossy. When he’s not showcasing his intelligence and mischief, Chishiya is a man of few words. As your eyes are locked on each other, you bare yourself open into nothingness. Nothing mattered, not the games, not even the meaning of life. It was neither warm nor cold. Looking into Chishiya’s eyes was like looking into a mirror you cannot escape and yet you’d like to drown in them. 

“Worship me,” you proposed in a commanding manner, finding confidence in yourself and what you feel for him.

“Worship?” he asks with a confused and amused tone in his voice. 

“Love is overrated. Worship me instead.” 

And he smirks, pulling your waist closer. His lips touch yours and your world exploded. There weren’t fireworks, no sparks… it’s just felt like summer day. A bright sky, lighting up the road as the breeze hits your skin. His hand is heavy on your waist, your body fully aware of all of him. Your mouth melted into his, everything else is forgotten. The tip of your tongue brushes his and he parts his lips, welcoming you in. You cling unto him, longing more of him. 

And the moment I can feel that You feel that way too Is when I fall in love with you

The first person you saw after the first game at the Beach was Usagi. You ran to her as soon as you saw her by the pool.

“Have you seen Arisu?” She asks you as soon as you let go. You shake your head in worry, your head immediately looking around and searching the crowd for the familiar shaggy mop of hair. 

“There!” She exclaims and you both push through the crowd to get to him. He sees both of you approaching and screams your names in delight.  

“Arisu!” You grin as you approach him. You immediately wrap your arms around him. He pats your back.

“You’re both alive.” He lets out a sigh of relief. You nod and let him go.

He and Usagi stare at each other with shy smiles, making you roll your eyes. You stood in between them awkwardly.

“Please just hug it out. I’m practically begging at this point. I wish the game just killed me if I knew I will have to see this shit.” You cross your arms and walk away from both of them while both of them follow you, no doubt still shyly smiling at each other while talking.

You sat on one of the pool chairs and Usagi sat on the edge of your seat. Arisu sat on the other chair beside yours. 

“Ann was trying to test me,” Arisu says as he sat down on the edge of the beach chair, talking about the game he was in.

“When in Rome, do as the Romans do,” Usagi replies while you nod in agreement. 

A girl in a blue patterned two-piece swimsuit enters your space and sits beside Arisu. She was tall, pale, and pretty and with some kind of stick in her mouth. The three of you follow her with your gazes.

“Your girlfriend?” She asks and nods at Usagi. She was talking to Arisu.

“What?” Arisu reacts, clearly caught off-guard.

You roll your eyes again but watch the exchange with a grin.

“You’re wrong,” Usagi denies. 

“You clearly like each other. Why not date?” Kuina shrugs and then continues. “You’re never gonna know when you’re going to die.” 

Whatever Arisu, Usagi, and the new girl were talking about, you tune it all out with your thoughts.

It was harsh but true. People always say, if the world was ending, they’d live to the fullest. In Borderlands, every day is your last day. You think back to Chishiya. If he was here, how would he treat you? Pain struck your chest at the thought. 

Will he ever look at you the way Arisu looks at Usagi? All this time, you’ve been hanging on to your life hoping you’ll return to him. But is it worth it? Will he even like it when you come back? 

“What about you?” 

The girl looks at you with expectant eyes.

“What was that? Sorry, I zoned out.” 

“You got someone to go back to the original world? I’m Kuina, by the way.” She gives you a sweet smile.

You nod, thinking of the nonchalant platinum blonde. “Yeah. I think so.” 

She was about to ask more when a loud voice halts the entire celebration.

“Hey, stop playing that tacky music!”

Armed men enter the area. You recognize some of them as the men who tied you up when the three of you were caught spying on The Beach. Everyone stops partying upon their arrival, you even see some holding their breath. 

“It’s the militants,” Kuina explains to the three of us. “If you want to live a peaceful life at the Beach, avoid getting involved with them.” 

She begins to explain who the militants are and what they do. The muscular man named Aguni is their leader. They’re who are in power on the Beach along with Hatter and his devotees. A conflict could happen between the two groups at any time. You don’t doubt it. Such two different powers will clash inevitably.

Aguni and his militants stop by the four of you. He was looking at Arisu who avoided his gaze.

“What happened to your friend?” The question was for Arisu again. You raise a brow. You’re beginning to notice a lot of people knowing Arisu. He must’ve been in a game with the man back when he was with his friends.

Arisu stayed silent, a glimpse of his defeated self, lying on the ground passing by you. 

“I see. He died.” Aguni states the obvious. “What a shame only the small fish survived.” 

You frown at the clear insult to your friend.

“Do you know each other?” Kuina whispered to Arisu.

Aguni then flits his dark gaze to Usagi and then to you. You suddenly felt naked in your black two-piece swimsuit. But it’s not like you to cower. So you look back at him with the same dark but angry gaze. 

“You,” he points at the arrogant-looking man with the gun over his shoulder. “Bring those women over.” 

The man quickly moves to his feet, about to grab Usagi first. Arisu stands up in a heartbeat, shouting his protest.

“Stop it. Don’t get involved!” Kuina holds his arm as he stands up. 

Usagi stays planted in her seat and you stand up, fists in anger and on your sides. 

“Our boss said he wants a taste of both of you.” He says with an ugly smirk on his face. With you being closer, you could see the multiple piercings on his face. You feel nothing but disgust for this man.

The man grabs Usagi’s arm again and both Arisu and you stop him. 

“Stop it,” Arisu repeats, standing in front of you and Usagi.

“What? Had to have two chicks to yourself? Don’t you know sharing is caring?” He asks Arisu and then asks Aguni. “What should we do about this guy?” 

“Break his legs so that he’ll die in the next game.” 

Your eyes widen at the words of the militants’ leader. You quickly felt fear for your friends. God, is this really gonna happen to the three of you? 

The pierced man orders the militants to bring the both of you to Aguni while he grabs Arisu.

The tattooed man with a sword approaches you and grabs you by the arm. 

“Fucking let me go.” You struggle against his hold, tugging your arm from his digging grasp. 

Arisu escapes the pierced man’s hold and is about to head back to the both of you when the militants block his way. He can’t do anything. You can’t do anything. You were outnumbered and no one will save you. 

You stare down the bald tattooed man, not letting him see your fear. 

You look around, desperate for an opening or an idea to save the three of you. The people only look at the situation closely. 

There was only one name in your mind. Chishiya. You have to get out of here for Chishiya. You have to make it out alive somehow. 

“Is this a fight?”

The crowd made a way and came in the Beach’s number one, Hatter. 

“Back off Hatter, this doesn’t concern you,” Aguni spoke up. 

“I can’t do that. As Number One, I’m obliged to maintain order at the Beach.” He says dramatically, looking afar. Then he looks at the militants once again. “Can you let off the newcomers in my account, Aguni?” 

All of the residents of the Beach watch as the tension between the two leaders rises. It was Hatter who first breaks the stare down and looks at the pierced man.

“Niragi?” He directs the question to him. So his name is Niragi, you thought. It’s best to avoid him. He reeks of danger and you are seldom wrong about your intuition. 

Niragi looks away. “I only take orders from my boss.”

Hatter clearly takes offense at the man’s answer and looks at Aguni again with dark eyes. “Then let me ask your boss.”

He stares down at Aguni again, faces inches away from each other. “Who’s your boss, Aguni?”

Aguni doesn’t look at Hatter, staring ahead in anger. Then he turns to face Hatter. Everyone waits for the tough-looking man’s answer.

“It’s you, right?” 

Hatter seemed pleased with his answer and whispered something to him. Aguni then makes his way out of the scene. You successfully tug your arm out of the militant’s grasp, glaring at him and moving away. 

“All executive members are to gather in the meeting room!” Hatter announces to everyone. 

The militants rush out of the scene and Hatter watches as they walk away.

“Arisu, you’re coming too.” He orders without looking at him, still eyeing the gunned men who have their backs turned to him. “I heard your potential from Ann. Follow me.”

Arisu looks at Usagi and then at you. You nod at him, assuring silently that the two of you will be okay. 

“I’ll be back,” Arisu promises to Usagi who was still sitting down. 

Your male friend follows Hatter and Usagi trails behind him in worry but stops after a few steps. You follow her and place a hand on her shoulder, staring at the back of your friend who was to be in a meeting with the executives. 

“Usagi. He’ll be fine.” You tell her in comfort, mostly telling it to yourself too. 

You turn back at Kuina, about to ask her if she knows where they’re going. 

But what you saw froze you in your place, dropping your hand from Usagi’s shoulder. 

You felt your heart drop to your stomach. That white jacket. That platinum blonde. Those cat-like eyes. Your eyes must be deceiving you. It can’t be. 

“Shuntarou.” You sang as you entered the Doctors’ lounge room. 

He was alone and it was so quiet you can hear a pin drop so you don’t miss how he audibly sighs. You giggle, well aware of the fact that you annoy the shit out of him. You sit across from him. He was reading some patient information with three books stacked on the coffee table in front of him. 

As usual, he doesn’t even express his negative welcome with words. 

“I bought you something,” you wave the paper bag in front of his face in excitement. 

It didn’t surprise him. You always do this. Whenever you were out shopping, you had to buy him one thing. It was an unspoken rule you set for yourself. And it could be anything—no price range, no rules. One time, you bought him a plant. It died in three weeks. So, you set another rule for yourself, only inanimate objects as gifts.

You set the paper bag down and take out the box inside it. You know he won’t bother opening it in front of you so you open it yourself. 

As you take off the lid, you excitedly say, “Tada!” 

His eyes flit to the content of the box for a second and then to you before going back to his patient’s papers. He never says thank you for any of your gifts but you don’t really mind. He didn’t ask for them anyway. But you know when he likes the gifts. It’s how you know more about him. He’ll never tell you what he likes or dislikes so it was up to you to figure it out. 

“It’s nice, isn’t it? Can you wear this when we go on our date?” You press him as you take out the white jacket from the box. 

It wasn’t a date. But he doesn’t deny it so that was enough for you. 

Before he answers (but you doubt he would), the door of the lounge opens and walks in Nakamura Hina. She was your senior in med school and a great doctor. She’s also one of Chishiya’s co-workers. 

She’s nice and she never showed you anything bad but you sense that she doesn’t like you. You didn’t mind. There was a pretty long line and you don’t plan on opening the doors to any of them. 

“Y/N, you’re here,” she states the obvious and gives you a tight strained smile. Her eyes flit over to Chishiya. 

“Chishiya, Mr. Yamamoto wants you in his office to talk about the patient.” 

Without saying a word, he was already on his feet, not even sparing you a glance and following Nakamura out the door. You stand up too.

“I’ll head out too! Remember what I said, okay?” 

He doesn’t even acknowledge you and kept on walking. Hina was looking at you with pity in her eyes. You’ve grown accustomed to it. That was your reputation anyway–the rich girl always hanging around Chishiya Shuntarou. 

When they were out of the door, you slump back down your seat and groan. 

Before leaving, you fixed your gift back in the paper bag and set it down next to his things. 

You hope he’ll wear it, at least. 

It’s Chishiya. Your Chishiya was beside Kuina. 

He was staring ahead of you so you purposefully blocked his sight, forcing yourself to be in his sight. It was so you to force your way into his life.

If he looks at you, then it’s real. He’s real.

His gaze drops on your face but as soon as his eyes meet yours, Usagi speaks.

“Y/N? What’s wrong?” 

This made you look at her. “It’s—,” you look back at him but find yourself gazing at a crowd with no Chishiya or Kuina in sight.

He’s here in Borderlands. 

Scared to be alone in such a dangerous place, Usagi and you slept in her room. You lie on your backs and side by side on her bed. Inches away from each other, you could practically feel Usagi’s anxiety reeking off and unto you. 

“Do you think Arisu’s fine right now?” Usagi finally thinks out loud.

You sigh. “He can handle himself.” You pause and think about the man you considered your friend. “He’s smart, isn’t he?” 

You feel her genuinely smile beside you. “It’s definitely one of his strengths.” 

“So you like smart guys too?” You tease her. “I get it,” you add, thinking about a certain genius doctor you know. 

“Too? What does that mean? Your type is smart guys?” She gets excited and faces you on her side, leaning her chin on her palm and putting her upper weight on her elbow.

You purse your lips. “I’m not telling you.”

She shakes you and whines. “Come on. Tell me.”

You grin and lean on your elbow too, now facing each other like two teenage girls in a sleepover. Doing this felt like ages ago. You used to gush over Chishiya to your girlfriends who clearly felt annoyed and tired of it. But right now, Usagi was waiting and is so excited for you to tell her all about the guy you liked. It reminded you of how life used to be so simple. Now, romance was a luxury no one can afford in Borderlands. 

“He’s a doctor.” You start. “We’ve known each other since we were kids. Our parents were coworkers and friends.” 

“I was in med school too. We were both there together. It’s kind of an unspoken thing that we’re arranged to be married. I hated studying medicine. So I didn’t really pursue it after college.” You pause, thinking about much easier times. “Chishiya, though, he’s good at everything. He’s smart and he’s so cool. He isn’t like anyone I've ever met.”

“So it’s him? The person you’re going back to after Borderlands?” Usagi asks, sweetly and in awe.

You gave her a sad smile. “That was the plan.” 

Her brow furrowed and formed into a frown. “What do you mean?” 

You lie back down, looking up at the ceiling with tears in your eyes. It’s a good thing the lights were off. “I saw him tonight. He’s here.” 

“He’s here?” She doesn’t hide the shock in her tone and you nod. “Why didn’t you go to him?” 

“It’s weird.” You admit. “I’m kinda scared.”

It’s true. You were scared. At first, you were shocked but then you were scared. Chishiya were in the same deadly games you’ve been in. Needless to say, they were traumatic and insane. You don’t doubt that he won all those games but still, you were scared. One wrong move is all it takes sometimes. He could die any day here in Borderlands instead of him waiting for you in the real Tokyo. And would he care about you here? Without the threat of your parents knowing their daughter’s every move?

“You’re scared of your boyfriend?” She huffs, trying to lighten the mood.

“That’s the thing. He’s not my boyfriend,” you answer with a sad voice. “I was just this girl who chased him around. I didn’t mean a thing to him. I’m scared that he won’t care about me here.” 

Usagi places a hand on top of mine. 

“I’m sure he will. You’re hard not to care about, Y/N.” 

You slept that night with a heavy heart. You’ve come a long way in the games. You sacrificed, killed, and bled just so you can come back to a life that was not even worth living for a man that was fighting for his life in the games as well. 

It scares you a lot because as much as you do not care about what happens to you, you know that you’ll die for him. You realize that your feelings for him run that deep. You love him that much. 

That very night, you realize that your goal in Borderland has changed.

It wasn’t to go back to Chishiya. It was to make sure that he gets out of here alive. Even if meant your damnation, you’ll gladly take it. 

The next morning, Arisu, Usagi, and you went around the Beach to gather information. There wasn’t much. You learned that there weren't any games beyond Tokyo and it wasn’t accessible at all. Whoever leaves Tokyo or the country, a laser shoots them from the sky. 

The three of you assume that the only real way to get out of here was to play the games. 

“I’ll go to the annex basement,” Usagi says as the three of you walk outside the building. “I’ll go get some food supplies and any weapons that we can use.” 

“I’ll go with you,” you tell her. She nods at me. “I’m going to look for someone I know.”

You spun and nodded at Arisu. “I’ll look for some more information if I can, in case we need it.” 

The two of you separated from Arisu and did what you told him you will. You didn’t find Chishiya. You didn’t think it wise to ask the residents of the Beach about his whereabouts because it wouldn’t be wise for them to know about your association with him. None of these people can be trusted.

When the three of you met up once again, Usagi began to tell Arisu that the Beach had gathered quite a large number of firearms and it was guarded. 

“As long as they have those firearms, Hatter is dangerous,” Usagi worried.

You nod. “The militants too. They overpower us.” 

Arisu stops walking, thinking deeply. Usagi asks him what’s wrong but he walks again and looks out the window. 

Out there, the residents of the Beach we’re partying like there’s no tomorrow. 

“The Beach,” Arisu starts. “A utopia built upon charisma. However, maybe that’s just our imagination. A utopia doesn’t exist in this world.” 

Usagi and you look at each other, confused at your friend’s mumbling.

“Usagi. Y/N. I’d like to talk to you about something.” 

He stares at the two of you deeply in the eye, waiting for your answer intently. 

You let out a loud huff. “Why? What’s got you serious all of a sudden?”

You were mad. You found Chishiya on the rooftop with Kuina. How dare him tell Arisu to specifically leave you out of his plan? 

“Y/N?” The tall woman was the first one to see you approaching with heavy breaths and clenched fists. 

“Why would you tell Arisu to leave me out of the plan? What if something happens to the four of you? What am I supposed to do?” You protest in anger. 

“Kuina.” 

He only says her name but Kuina understands him. She gives him a nod and taps you on your shoulder before heading inside and out of the rooftop. 

“I want to help. I want to leave here too,” you plead with him and take his hand. He pulls it away from your grasp and your heart doesn’t miss to ache because of that action. 

“What is so valuable about your life outside Borderlands, anyway?” 

“What?” 

“You spend all day swiping Daddy’s credit card and drinking with your fake plastic friends. And when you’re bored of them, you come to the hospital to annoy me.” 

“Why are you saying this?” Tears well up in your eyes. It’s not that he was lying. All he said was true. You know that you do, in fact, annoy him. You don’t forget the evident irritation on his face whenever he sees you approaching before Borderlands. 

You couldn’t help it. Even if the life you had before was dull, there was something about him that pulled you in. You know that he never liked you despite the association of your parents to his. But to hear it tonight, right when you’ve only asked him if you could be a part of his plans—that you want to help him leave The Beach and out of Borderlands.

“Just go back to your room, Y/L/N.” 

Stupid. Worthless. Annoying. That’s what he thinks you are. You’re too stupid to be in his oh-so-great plans to leave The Beach. You’re worthless in his and your own life. Most of it all, you were nothing but a nuisance to him. He doesn’t even think of you as a friend. He just thinks of you as someone whom his parents thrusted to. 

You agree it’d be better if you weren’t sent to this world with him. But you were. 

“I’m serious. You’ll mess up my plan,’ he even adds. 

“Why would I do that? What about the games I played? Do you not think I’ve won them with my hard work?” 

He makes a tsk sound, staring ahead. It was chillier on the rooftop than expected and your long-sleeved shirt wasn’t enough to shield you from the cold. But you endure it for him and for this argument. 

“No. You’ve won games on your own.”

“Then why?” You plead. “Why do you think I’m incapable?” 

“I don’t think you’re incapable.” 

“Probably not. But you think I’m nothing but a burden to you.”

“You are.” Typical. Unfiltered and cruel truth comes out of his mouth.

“Then you should just let me die in the games I will be in. That way, you’re free of me forever. You’d be able to come back to our life, Chishiya. I know it. I just want to help you. Because I—, even if I’m not your friend, you are mine.” You rarely call him by his last name. The only other times were when it was necessary so you don’t doubt that he felt the coldness in your voice when you uttered his name. 

‘Because I love you’, you almost let out. 

You don’t wait for his answer and turn around, leaving him alone on the rooftop with his uncaring face and his hand inside the pocket of his white jacket. 

While his other hand, the one you held in yours, twitches against the cold breeze of the night. 

As Shuntaro’s childhood friend, his unfiltered words were nothing but old news to you. Every time he’d push you away and tell you mean things in disguise of cold harsh truth, you won’t deny that you feel a pang of pain in your heart for a millisecond. But, as aforementioned, with the years you’ve known the nonchalant cat-man, you’ve learned to tug that feeling away as soon as possible. 

Right now though, you find yourself exhausted dealing with him. 

Now, your feet have carried you to Arisu’s doorstep instead of yours. Despite knowing Chishiya before Borderlands, you weren’t brought here with him. You had your first games alone. That’s when you found Usagi and then eventually, a distraught and defeated Arisu lying on the street. 

You spent most of your time in Borderlands with him and Asugi. The three of you joined The Beach together. Who would’ve thought you’d find your long-time crush and friend here as one of the executives?

But before knowing he was here, all your thoughts consisted of the guilt of survival. After all the games you were in, why have you survived? You didn’t deserve it. You don’t consider yourself a good person. You were high on privilege and you basked in it. Your life was pointless with no real hardship.

You’ve confided in Arisu when these thoughts occur. It wasn’t because he was good at comforting you. It was because he understood. He told you he lived a similar life before Borderlands. You picked each other up when he lost Karube and Chotta. 

You knocked on his door while hugging yourself in one arm. Your head was all scrambled and there was an aching pain in your heart because of Chishiya.

“Y/N?” 

Arisu opens the door to you with tears streaming down your face. His hair was shaggier than usual and he could barely open his eyes. You felt a bit guilty for waking him up so late at night.

“What happened?”

And then you spilled everything to him—the talk with Chishiya and the way you felt about the blonde. You told him how you felt cast aside on the plan to steal the cards.

In the dark of Arisu’s room and on his bed, you tore open your heart in front of him. Your friend sat quietly on the side, listening while rubbing your back in comfort. 

It’s ironic how Arisu felt more like a friend than someone you knew for more than a decade. To Chishiya, you were nothing but a burden. Just someone who his parents wanted him to be associated with. His father is a great doctor and a good friend of your father, the owner of multiple hospitals all over Japan. 

And you, you were studying medicine as well but you never particularly felt attached to it. It felt like something you had to do. You were supposed to inherit all of it anyway. 

You don’t consider yourself intelligent but you had good grades up to high school. It was during college that you started to drift away. 

Little do you know, your parents didn’t think you were capable of handling all your businesses from the start. That’s why they chose Chishiya. He was put in the same classes as you from high school up to med school. It was never spoken of but both of you know—Chishiya was being put beside you to marry you and have him take over the company. Chishiya Shuntaro, the genius child. 

It was what your parents wanted. It was what his parents wanted. It was what you learned to want. It was what he never wanted.

No, he did want your father’s position. He was always drawn to power and control. And he will get it. But you were the weight that had to come with it. It hurts but it’s the truth. 

You clung to him for a long while. But a person can only take so much. Maybe he finally had enough. Without your parents in Borderland, he was free of your childish antics. If you die out here, you know that your parents will still take him in. In fact, maybe they’d be glad that they’ve gotten rid of you. It was nothing but a formality after all—just to say that the next owner is still of your father’s blood. 

Despite all that, you love him. You love all of him. You love him even if he looks bored to death when he’s with you. You love him even if he straight up refuses to teach you the lessons you have a hard time on, only to give you his notes right after and even quiz you on them. You love him so much that you accepted being treated like you were worthless and nothing but a pretty display of a daughter by your father so you can have him. If Chishiya wanted to be selfish, then so can you. If he has your position as chairman, then you’ll have him. It’s only fair. He can be happy with his power and miserable with you and you can be happy with him and miserable with your life. 

Chishiya is a complicated person. You know that deep inside, he has learned to care for you. Even for a little bit. Well, that’s what you try to believe.

“I’m sorry for waking you up.” You say to Arisu when you are done venting. 

Arisu smiles and sighs. 

“Our plan, Y/N. It’s dangerous and I understand him.”

You sniffed and paused. “You think I’m incapable too?”

His eyes widened and he shook his head violently. “No. No. That’s not what I meant.” You chuckled at his troubled facial expressions. 

“I meant that if I cared about someone, I wouldn’t want them in danger.” He explains himself. 

You went quiet after those words. Was it possible? Was it possible that Chishiya was ignoring and pushing you away in Borderlands because he… cared? 

You don’t want to hope… but god do you want to. 

“He hasn’t seen you in those games. You are more than capable, Y/N. I know it. But I know that if I had the option, I won’t risk putting my friend in danger.” 

You nod, taking in his words with understanding. You want to believe that Arisu was right. You want to trust Chishiya. But could you? Do you really know the man behind the rose-colored glasses you wear when you see him? 

“Okay,” you sigh. 

That night, you stayed with Arisu in his room after arguing with Arisu to let you sleep on the couch instead of his bed. You only didn’t want to risk seeing Chishiya if you went back to yours, especially when his room was a couple of doors down from yours. And you were too tired that you just wanted to crash. 

As you stare at the ceiling of the room and feel the digging of your shoulder blades and hips on the couch, you think about the person you and Chishiya were before Borderlands. It hasn’t been long but you’ve already found yourself comfortable with sleeping anywhere, not bathing for days, and hardly eating anything at all. You hadn’t faced any of these hardships. 

Arisu was already awake when knocking on his door woke you up from your slumber on his couch. You stirred yourself awake and stood up from the couch. 

“Kuina,” you hear him say as he opens the door. 

You rise to your feet and head to the door. Kuina’s stare lingers at your recently woken-up form but waves at you and greets you anyway. You wave back.

Kuina whispers something to Arisu and he nods then looks back at you. “Y/N. You can follow Kuina after you’ve fixed yourself, okay?” 

You hate this. You felt like a child being taken care of. 

Kuina guides you outside the building after being holed up inside your room for the day. It seemed like the plan was a success and you were just waiting for the others.

You tap your foot repeatedly to aid your nerves. Kuina stood beside you quietly, chewing on her stick. 

“It’s really hard not to have a smoke right now,” she sighs and talks to no one in particular. 

“What’s taking them so long?” you couldn’t help but ask. 

As if on cue, Chishiya walks out of the building with his hands in his pockets. You frown when there was no one who followed him next, no sign of the shaggy-haired boy and the athletic girl you’ve grown to love.

“I guess it’s time to say goodbye to this too.” Chishiya removes the band from his wrist indicating his ranking among the executives. 

You follow him with your gaze but look behind him from time to time. 

“Where’s Arisu? Usagi?” You ask him, worry evident in your tone. 

Chishiya stares at you, looking at you with those unfeeling and unemotional eyes. You stare back at them, trying to decipher what he means. And then it hits you.

“No,” you breathe out. 

You look at the girl beside you who hung her head low, not being able to look at you.

“Kuina?” Your voice weakened. 

Your heart sunk to your stomach. Anger filled your senses and for the very first time ever, you felt hatred for the man in front of you. 

“You sacrificed them?!” 

He looks away. “It was the only way.” 

“They’re my friends,” you complain with a heavy heart. “Arisu is my friend.” 

“I feel really bad for them, Chishiya,” Kuina adds. 

His gaze flits back to you. “Oh, is that why you ran to your friend’s room for the night after our argument?” 

How did he know that? But why does he care?

“Yes. Because unlike you, he gives a shit about me.” You answer with spite. “How could you do this to him? To me? Is this why you didn’t include me in the plans? Because you know I’ll stop you?” 

Chishiya doesn’t answer for a while. Silence fills the void between the two of you. Kuina stays silent by your side, watching the scene unfold with her eyes. 

“Then go.”

His words held no emotion as he stared at you deadly.

“I betrayed them so we can go out. The three of us. But if you want to go, then go. Help them. I don’t care.” 

You look at him and then back to the building. Arisu and Usagi were probably being held by the militants right now. You’ll be outnumbered and caught. But what were you going to do? Go with Chishiya and leave them to die? You thought about the awful things they would’ve done to the three of you if it wasn’t for Hatter stopping them and you felt sick to your stomach. This was not the game. You aren’t supposed to kill and betray unless you were forced to in a game. 

Arisu and Usagi are your friends. Chishiya is your friend. You’ve never had real friends before, at least no one really felt like they were. Arisu and Usagi were the first people who made you feel like they were happy to be your friend. 

You can’t leave your friends. 

“You have the cards, right?” You ask him.

He smirks. “Of course, I do.” 

He says it with confidence like he has the ticket to the way out of Borderlands. With this, he was so sure that you’d have to come out with him. So you can go out. That was what he believed you wanted—that you wanted to go back to your life before. 

But he was wrong. 

“Then you’ll be fine.” 

His eyes widened for a second before they turned to something different. They weren’t as dark or lifeless as they usually are. Instead, you could almost see a hint of surprise and maybe even hurt spread across his eyes. 

You jump to him and wrap your arms around the man. How many times have you hugged him? You could probably count it with your hands. So you take it in, close your eyes, and try to engrave the feeling in your brain.

“Take care of my parents and the hospitals, yeah?” You whisper in his ear and hold on for five more seconds before completely letting him go.

“Kuina, look out for him, please?” You ask the tall girl but don’t wait for her answer.

Chishiya still stares at you, unspeaking. You look at him one more time and give him a sad smile with tears in your eyes before turning around. You’re afraid that if you look back again, you’ll run to his arms once more and cry about how much you love him.

He doesn’t care if you do. It’s better for you to leave him.

He has the cards now which means he’ll be fine. He can get out of here. If there was someone who can, it was him. 

He has no purpose for you anymore and you’ll only be a burden. 

With that, you run back inside the building. 

You and the blonde sat side by side, huddled behind a dented car Usagi and Arisu had dragged you towards. You tried your best to shift a little so you can face him better, bringing your other arm to press against his blood-soaked torso. He spared a small grunt, the only thing telling you that he was in as much—if not, more—pain as you are. His warm hand covered yours, the two of you trying to put pressure on his wound.

"___," he exhaled slowly. "Promise me."

You hummed in response, whispering, "Okay."

Chishiya let out a low chuckle, "I haven't said what for yet."

"You don't need to," you turned your head up, eyes meeting his. "I'll do anything for you."

He gave you a small smile—the type void of his usual snark. In a way, he seemed almost sad, fearful. "I know. Sometimes I wish you wouldn't."

The blood pool underneath you grew. You didn't know which blood was whose, and you'd rather not find out. 

"Promise me you'll remember," he quietly murmured. If you weren't paying attention you would have most likely missed it underneath the boom of fireworks, suddenly appearing the way they did when you first came into this wretched place. The familiar robotic voice greeted all surviving players with a congratulatory message, one you drowned out in favor of focusing on the only person that mattered: Chishiya.

"I promise. We'll find each other again."

Unbeknownst to you, your eyebrows knit together in worry upon seeing his paler complexion. The blush in his cheeks and the color from his lips have drained out, blooming on the cement instead. A dull spark in his deep brown irises fought to stay alive. You wanted to kiss him so bad.

You would've done anything to feel his lips against yours again, or his fingers in between your hair. Even inches from death, he looked so beautiful, but you were scared that the slightest touch would rip him away from you.

"That's all I need," Chishiya gave your hand a small squeeze, the light of fireworks reflecting off his cat-like eyes.

The disembodied voice in the background asked one last question, one you both knew the answer to. In a blink of an eye, everything melted away.

Disoriented, you found yourself back in Shibuya, waiting for your date outside a coffee shop. You blinked twice, as if waking up from a dream, the only thing grounding you being the buzz of the hundreds of people coming and going. From the corner of your eye, you saw the flash of platinum blonde hair—and felt the impact of the meteor immediately after.

   .❀。• *₊°。 ❀°。

The first thing you woke up to was systematic beeping.

Your body hurt all over, especially your dominant arm. With a glance, you realized that it hung in a cast. With enough effort and pain tolerance, you could still wiggle your fingers. 

Something was missing.

Your thoughts were interrupted by a nurse walking into your room, her small gasp catching your attention. She quickly scampered off to most likely find a doctor, but you couldn't have cared less. Your mind was stuck on somewhere—someone?—else. There's something important you had to do, but you didn't know what.

You needed to meet someone.

It would be days later when this thought would flash across your head. 

That's right. There was someone you had to see.

You've healed enough to roam around the hospital now, but you still couldn't be discharged because they had to monitor the fracture in your lower arm. The way the bones have splintered could've only been caused by a gunshot wound, which stumped the doctors because how on earth could you have been shot during the impact? 

Subconsciously, your walk has led you to a patient lounge area. Looking around, you saw a girl with chin length-hair laughing across a boy with long, shaggy hair, a small bandage stuck across his cheek. Other patients were scattered among the tables, some watching TV, others silently reading by themselves. That's when you locked eyes.

At the furthermost corner, a man sat with a set chessboard and an open pack of crackers. A flash of recognition sparked across your mind, and a part of you knew he felt it too. 

You promised something. Promised what? To whom?

Without breaking eye contact, you walked towards the bookshelves his table was placed next to. He raised an eyebrow, light blonde strands of hair framing his sharp eyes. You gulped, second-guessing yourself.

You promised.

Half-heartedly browsing the shelf, you picked a book out, halting when you heard the blonde clear his throat. 

"Your supposed to sign the logbook before borrowing," he nodded towards a bookstand, which was set beside a large window overlooking the hospital's garden. 

"Ah, thank you," you replied meekly. 

It was only when you were in front of the logbook that you realized: shit, you couldn't write. 

Struggling, it took you an embarrassing amount of time to properly hold the pen. You could feel him watching you, smirking at your helplessness. Weirdly enough, you didn't feel offended or annoyed. Instead, warmth nestled within your chest.

I promise I'll find you.

You had barely scrawled three letters when you felt his presence closer to you. You looked over to your side, slowly taking him in.

His hair was tied into a small ponytail, a few loose strands poking out. His eyes looked less cold upfront, specks of sunlight entrapped in the rich brown. He felt like home, like hot chocolate after a long day or the rediscovery of a childhood toy.

"I thought you needed help," his lips curled slightly, a boyish grin adorning his features.

You chuckled lightly, "Thank you. My name is—"

And before you even finished, he had written your entire name—as if he knew it by heart, as if it was an oath he'd held onto dearly. 

You tore your eyes from the paper, meeting his intense gaze again. He gingerly raised his hand, his heart yearning to reach out to you. He didn't know why but it all felt right when he first saw you. Everything was in its place.

You held his hand in midair, bringing it over to your cheek.

You've done this lifetimes before.

"Chishiya," his name left your mouth like a whisper—a wish scattered upon the heavens to come true.

"You were late to our date," you teased him.