#eposerta

❝ i don’t want to be without you. ❞ for marcus and this is what happens when you're difficult @eposerta // memes // always accepting

BREATH  COMES  IN  RAGGED  BURSTS   —dragging  painfully  up  his  throat  as  though  it  has  to  claw  its  way  out,   like  it  takes  every  ounce  of  energy  just  to  keep  the  air  flowing  through  his  lungs.  something  about  her  words  hurts  worse  than  the  burning  pain  that  radiates  through  him  and  marcus  wants  to  fold  ren  into  his  arms  and  remind  her  over  and  over  again  that  they’re  going  to  be  okay,  that  they’re  going  to  make  it.   

well,  at  least  one  of  them  will,   and  she’s  the  only  one  that  matters  now.

          ❝  i  don’t  want  to  be  without  you,  either.  ❞    it’s  barely  a  whisper,  strained  with  effort  and  saturated  in  pain.   he  can  only  hope  his  eyes  might  convey  all  the  words  of  adoration  he  never  had  time  to  speak.  but  then,  even  if  they’d  had  a  hundred  years  together,  it  wouldn’t  have  been  enough.  

a  trembling  hand  reaches  for  her,  fingers  spasming  as  he  tries  to  press  them  to  her  skin.  it’s  agony   —   this  effort  —   and  yet  a  soft  smile  finds  its  way  to  his  lips  as  he  barely  grazes  her  cheek.   ❝  you  can  do  this,  ren   —   you’re  so  much  stronger  than  you  know.  ❞    voice  quavering  with  emotion,  he  presses  on,  determined.  because  she  is  strong,  kinder  than  he  ever  deserved,  too  good  for  the  people  of  this  place,   of  this  world.   the  short  laugh  he  lets  out  is  wet  with  emotion  and  something  else  telling  the  end  of  his  waking  moments,  but  somehow  he  finds  her  hand  and  squeezes  it  tightly.    

          ❝  you  know   —  ❞    shallow  breaths  carry  marcus  through,   because  he  cannot  leave  her  until  she  knows  how  much  she’s  changed  his  life  —  changed  him   —   for  the  better.   ❝  —  i  don’t  think  i  even  realized  i  was  living  in  the  dark,  ❞    another  quick  squeeze  and  a  cough  takes  over. (  he  does  his  best  to  ignore  the  way  it  leaves  his  other  hand  stained  red  ) ❝  and  then  you  smiled  at  me,  and  it  was  like  the  sun  shined  for  the  first  time.  ❞    and  that’s  what  he  focuses  on   —   not  the  sorrow  in  her  eyes  or  the  plea  in  her  voice,   not  the  way  the  pain  turns  numb,  or  the  air  around  him  turns  cold   —   just  the  brightest  light  in  his  life,  and  the  warmth  that  comforts  him  as  his  eyes  lose  focus  and  his  hand  falls  away  from  hers.

A  FROWN  ,  THOUGH  BRIEF  ,  threads  upon  her  lips  at  his  words  .  all  i  ever  do  is  run .  this  is  a  future  that  she  feared  for  herself  .  a  life  that  may  have  some  form  of  immortality  to  it  ,  but  to  be  on  the  run  ,  changing  cities  every  time  someone  gets  a  glimpse  of  what  she  is  –  what  she  can  do ?  fear  strikes  briefly  in  that  moment  ,  it’s  paralyzing  ,  though  only  lasts  long  enough  for  renata  to  take  a  breath  .

❛      i  uh  ….      ❜    fingers  turn  over  a  leaf  of  the  lone  rose  in  her  hand  .  blooming  beautifully  ,  it’s  scent  is  far  stronger  than  any  other  florist  in  the  area  –  though  nobody  dares  question  why  ,  ‘  i  don’t  have  a  lot  of  experience  in  the  *running*  department  ,  had  to  do  it  ,  and  i  ended  up  hiding  in  the  same  place  i  was  supposed  to  be  running  *from*  ,  but  i  do  know  that  being  lost  isn’t  so  bad  .  ‘  a  quiet  hum  falls  from  her  lips  ,  and  she  looks  towards  hayan  with  a  slight  smile  .    ❛    we’re  all  a  little  lost  ,  aren’t  we ?     ❜

all  of  them  ,  guided  by  things  they  can’t  control  ,  a  universe  either  out  to  kill  them  or  willing  to  keep  them  alive  .  it’s  a  toss  of  the  dice  ,  and  renata  knows  that  she’s  been lucky  to  have  made  it  this  far  considering  all  of  her  shortcomings  in  the  nephilim  department  .  still  ,  something  settles  upon  her  skin  that  she’s  come  to  recognize  as  trouble  ,  a  looming  shadow  cast  over  her  frequent  visitor  that  she  knows  wouldn’t  put  her  mind  at  ease  .

❛    i  don’t  really  have  any suggestions  ,  but  …  i  can  offer  you  a  helping  hand  ,  if  there’s  ,  you  know  –  anything  i  can  do  .  i’d  be  more  help  if  i  knew  what  you  were  thinking  of  running from  ,  too  .   ❜

As fleeting as it was, Hayan detected a hint of fear mingled with the strong scent of roses as Renata pondered his words. It was one of very few emotions he could identify by smell, though he could never determine the reasons behind it. It puzzled him all the more that she would feel fear over something not to do with her. Could it be empathy? Was it even possible for a human to already care that much when they'd known each other so briefly?

He stayed quiet as she continued on, realizing that she had run unsuccessfully from something much like he had. So she could relate. That was why she listened so intently & perhaps that was why he felt the urge to lay his problems bare whenever he came to her shop. A listening ear was something he craved more than anything, despite the fact that the abundance of prying eyes & ears was exactly his current problem.

"I wish I could tell you, but... it's not safe. You would not be able to help me." He let go of his necklace to pull on his hair; a weak attempt to quiet the warnings in his head. Don’t tell her anything, it will only make matters worse. But his chest ached far too much from having to contain his secret & somehow his heart always won these arguments. Perhaps a bit- just a little bit- of clarification wouldn't do any harm. Perhaps there really is a way she can help.

Hayan gave an exasperated sigh & stood to face her. Closing the space between them, he lowered his voice. "I can't tell you very much, but bad people want to kill me because I have something they want. That's why I have to move, even though I'm happy here: I have to protect my mom. They know what neighborhood we live in. Soon, they may know our address."

It occurred to him as he looked into Renata's eyes that he could have phrased such terrifying news more gently than he had. At least, he reassured himself, it was vague enough that she wouldn't likely suspect him as a gumiho. A criminal, perhaps. Some kind of thief or spy would be a reasonable assumption. Or maybe just a lunatic.

          ❝  you’ve  been  pacing  the  halls  all  night  long.  ❞ --- @eposerta // memes

OPENING  HIS  MOUTH  TO  ARGUE,   lips  find  themselves  pressed  together  moments  later,   no  words  available  to  pass  through  them  that  she  wouldn’t  see  right  through  anyway.   he  had  been  pacing  all  night   —   just  close  enough  to  keep  a  measured  eye  on  her,   far  enough  to  not  interrupt  the  festivities. marcus  had  been  told  in  no  uncertain  terms  that  this  whole  night  was  for  her,   that  he  was  to  be  the  watchful  eye,   to  protect,    not  to  interfere   (  it  was  his  job  after  all,   and  she  was  his  charge  ).   

his  job  had  become  nearly  impossible  the  moment  he’d  seen  her,   and  the  entire  world  had  been  tilted  on  its  axis  ever  since. 

         ❝  i’m  just   —  ❞    looking  around  as  if  to  find  an  excuse  to  hand  over.   a  ridiculous  notion  considering  he  already  knows  every  inch  of  the  halls,   the  ballroom,   the  alcoves   —   for  security’s  sake,  of  course  (  he  also  knows  every  exit,   for  other  reasons  ).  no  answer  can  be  found  in  the  finery  all  around  them,  and  he  turns  back  to  renata  with  a  pained  smile.    ❝  it  was  getting  a  little  overwhelming  in  there,   you  know  ?  ❞   in  there,   out  here,   the  whole  thing  is  overwhelming  and  foolish  and  he’s  got  no  clue  how  to  pull  any  of  it  off  when  she’s  standing  there  looking  at  him  like  that  and  all  he  wants  to  do  is   —   

no,   he’s  not  going  to  go  there,   not  now,  not  even  in  his  mind.   he’s  already  mentally  cursing  niko  for  reading  everything  so  plainly  in  one  conversation  that  had  taken  him  far  too  long  to  realize  himself.   

forcing  the  smile  to  mellow  into  something  more  natural  and  less  on - the - verge - of - fleeing,   marcus  gestures  behind  ren  to  the  ballroom  still  bustling  with  activity,   brows  raised.     ❝  you’re   supposed  to  be  in  there  you  know,   i’m  not  sure  if  you  noticed  but    —   ❞   amusement  coats  the  words,   like  this  is  some  inside  joke  the  two  of  them  share,  while  he  simultaneously  looks  almost  apologetic.   ❝  —   but  this  is  your  party.  ❞

HE'S  ON  A  MISSION   ——    a  scouting  mission,  a  researching  mission,  possibly  a  scavenging  mission.   what  it's  not  supposed  to  be  is  a  rescue  mission.   but  he'd  been  tracking  these  raiders  for  a  while  now   because  they'd  clearly  been  tracking  something  else    —    if  the  excitement  rolling  through  the  group  is  any  indication  ).  

marcus  hadn't  realized  what  it  was  that  had  them  all  buzzing     ——     until  now,  hadn't  been  willing  to  draw  attention  to  himself  until  he  could  get  closer,  quietly.  but  now  he's  even  more  confused   —   it's  just  some  girl,   and  she  looks  scared  as  hell.

                                               ❝  this  doesn't  look  like  a  fair  fight,  now,  does  it  ?  ❞     it's  meant  to  sound  a  little  smug,  but  with  the  power  armor  altering  his  voice,  it  still  comes  out  menacing.  that's  okay,  they  should  be  afraid,  he  could  blow  the  whole  group  to  dust  with  one  blast     —     he  just  wants  to  get  them  away  from  the  girl  first.    ❝  why  don't  you  guys  come  on  over  here  and  we  can  have  a  little  talk  about  your  piss-poor  manners  ? ❞  // @eposerta

send 🖤 and my character will answer about yours.

"okay, i think vi's finally settled down, i gave her my ipad — i know, i know — so she can watch stuff while we study." harper offers ren a bright, albeit tired, smile, running a hand through his hair. he hates being an ipad parent, but they're in dire need of uninterrupted study time, and no one was able to watch her, so they're making do with the resources available.

the chances of this being a terrible idea were a little too high for woong's liking, but -- well. cheolsu was right. sitting around doing nothing with his "gifts" was a waste, especially if it meant he could find another way to make some money on the side. woong cleared his throat, shifting in his spot. "so, uh... what are we talking about, exactly? a haunting? possession? poltergeists, vengeful spirits, anything of that sort?"