Archive of Our Own ^beta

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PLEASE I WANNA ADOPT HIM OML!

Protect him at all costs

He shouldn't be exposed to foul languagee!! HE'S TOO PRECIOUS FOR THAT

He's my babyy

He's done his job well enough, then.

Scrolling through comments about him on social media is a conflicting activity. It's something he's come to realize after these endless years of singing, dancing, performing, acting, and lying.

On one hand, the fans baby him, adoring his innocent persona, making for good publicity. It's almost rewarding, watching these sheep think that they have some sort of idol-fan bond with him, that he needs them to 'protect him from the big, adult world'. He keeps their manager satisfied with his performance—the performance being every single interaction he has with people.

On the other hand, it's quite frankly exhausting, keeping up this act.

"You know the drill,"

"Smile like you mean it, it's not hard."

"Your reputation is important—you better act like it."

"Just do as I say,"

Their head manager, Mr. Yoon, always reminds him when they do interviews, or variety shows, or whatever. He really doesn't know how long he can keep this up—it's been years. There is a disconnect between his persona and his authentic self, a rift so large that he doesn't think they will ever connect anymore.

At first, it was easy. He was fifteen when he debuted with his group. They gave him the stage name, Bambino, to match his youthful appearance. It was sort of uncomfortable, but he was willing to accept it. After all, the fame would be the reward, right?

He sucked it up and went along with his Mr. Yoon's instructions, puffing his cheeks and acting shy and sweet, innocent. Like somebody that needed to be sheltered.

The fans loved him, babied him, and the attention was nice, he supposed. His family was proud of him, at least.

He grew older, though. With his group members, he would swear like a sailor when the managers were gone. More often than not, he was the one who watched out for his groupmates, taking care of them.

He matured, developing his own opinionated views on everything. He grew to hate the K-pop industry. It's restricting, disorienting, fake, and exploitative.

He grew to hate their managers, especially Mr. Yoon. It's like having a helicopter parent, but worse.

No drinking, no dating, no driving, no swearing, no resting bitch face, all under the guise of protection.

Stop frowning, be happier.

Don't wear that, it makes you look too mature.

Don't eat that.

Just give the fans what they want.

This is for your sake, okay?

Not to mention the suffering his friends need to go through. They have it worse than he does. He can feel his diminishing self-control every time the old man forces Abi to go through another fast, or yells at Romeo for getting fan backlash for talking to a barista who just so happened to be a girl, or scolds Miseo for smiling—Oh, Miseo's supposed to be aloof and mysterious. Ugh, fuck this.

If he weren't at risk of getting fired and cancelled, he would've punched the daylights out of that old man years ago, but no, he just has to be compliant and innocent like a little kid.

He wishes he could protect his friends more, that he could shield them from everything.

He may have his opinions, but he has no autonomy to do jack shit about it. They get paid for this. Their families—mothers and fathers, and siblings—rely on them for this.

And although he himself felt older, his persona on stage stayed the same, still having a child-like demeanor.

When he was twenty, he slipped, accidentally swearing during a fan meet. He was about to sign a fan's poster when he dropped his pen. The girl gasped in horror and made a whole deal out of it. Within hours, the clip was everywhere, dissected in slow motion—his muttered curse, the way his face flickered before snapping back into character.

NO MY BABY CAN'T SWEAR OMG

Is he growing up :((

"Bambino?? Swearing?" was on everybody's social media feed for days. Some fans sobbed about his feigned innocence, while others laughed it off. Some dug up old clips, insisting that he has faked immaturity for years.

Mr. Yoon scolded him relentlessly, telling him to never let this happen again. Perhaps if he cried like a baby, the manager would let it slide.

He's a twenty-two year old man with thoughts and opinions. Living like this feels wrong. Everything feels wrong—feels forced.

And with endless lies comes shame.

Shame coats his body—for the lies and the way his movements betray him with every forced action.

For the birthdays that pass while the way he performs remains stagnant.

For knowing that his friends inevitably suffer while he is forced to watch, tangled in marionette strings.

Shame

Shame

He hates his fans. He hates that he hates his fans.

After all, he's the one who has deceived them. He's the demon here.

He feels shame. He feels ashamed about everything that he's become, ashamed that he can't do anything significant to protect the people that matter most in his life.

His fists tighten, nails forming crescents into his palms. The shame curdles, twists—until all that’s left is rage, hot and molten.

He needs someone to burn.

---

 

Abi is reading a magazine on another idol group, like Mr. Yoon requested he'd do. They need to be more like them, apparently. He stops suddenly, "Hey Bino, can I see the choreo again? Forgot the last part."

"Yeah, sure—I kinda forgot too." He says in his natural monotone voice, eyes tired from an entire day spent at a fan event. After that, he got an earful from Mr. Yoon for not looking enthusiastic enough.

He grabs the iPad and sits beside Abi to rewatch the choreography.

Miseo, bright-eyed with his hair tied half-up, scoots over to join. They're about halfway through when they hear familiar muffled yelling from the next room.

Abi and Miseo wince in sympathy for Romeo, while Bino directs a steel gaze to the door, eyes filled with tired anger directed at their manager. It's the kind of anger built up and hidden away over the course of years. It's the kind of anger that spills over after a tiring day—like today... but he cannot lose control of his emotions here.

Calm down. Just be soft-spoken and innocent like he expects you to be. Don't lose control.

He looks back at the video, just like Abi and Miseo. Though they all know they aren't paying attention, instead listening to the muffled shouts of Mr. Yoon.

The shouts get closer and closer until Bino actually turns the iPad off in concern for Romeo and a low flame of rage for the old man.

The door bursts open, with their stubby old manager storming in with a dejected Romeo following behind. Bino's groupmate is holding his left arm, which is covered in bandages.

"I cannot believe you let a fan do that!" The old man shrieks, eyes bulging out of his head. He shuts his eyes, holding the bridge of his nose when he says, "Do you have any idea how much trouble this has caused me?!"

Probably little to no trouble at all, Bino thinks.

An obsessive fan got touchy and scratched him during the event today. So what if a video of it went viral? The fan is getting backlash, not Romeo.

"The fans are angry that the girl, you know—was able to touch you!"

"Shouldn't you be worried about Romeo, and not the fans?" Bino questions lowly, his heart filled with indescribable hatred, fury about to boil over. The warm hand Abi places on his shoulder does little to quell it.

"Excuse me?..." Mr. Yoon replies, turning away from Romeo—who's looking at him in concerned shock—to glare at Bino.

Bino’s fingers dig into his palms, nails leaving crescent marks. His voice is low, dangerous. "You heard me."

The man's bug-like eyes bulge out again in offense. The room is silent, and he whispers in silent outrage, "Do not question me, Bambino. You've always been the rebellious type. I've turned a blind eye—but I will not have you go this far."

"The fuck you mean by rebellious, huh? Less innocent? Less quiet? More like a normal grown adult?!" He responds quickly, voice rising at his last word. Abi's hand on his shoulder tightens, and Bino grabs it, shoving it off to walk towards the man who has been their tormentor for years.

"First of all, I am looking out for you—for all of you!" The old man yells, looking around at the entire group. He takes a step towards Bambino, getting in his face and pressing a pointed index finger at his chest, " You think it's easy—maintaining your reputations? Do you know how hard I work?!"

No matter how close the old man gets or how loud his voice is, Bino doesn't flinch.

"Second of all, Bambino. Acting 'innocent' is part of your role!" He jams his finger into Bino's chest at every word.

"No! It's not my job, IT IS MY LIFE AT THIS POINT!" Bino snaps, screaming towards the end. At the first word, everybody in the room jolted at the sheer ferocity of his volume. Even Mr. Yoon stumbles back.

The others don't speak at all. He doesn't wait for them to.

"For years, I have played into this—this character. Do you know how HUMILIATING it feels to act like this when you're twenty-two?!"

He's breathing heavily, staring holes into the man's eyes, "Also, you treat us—you treat them—" he gestures to his friends, "—like shit. I am so tired of trying and failing to keep them safe from people like you!"

The old man stares at him, standing in what may be shock or disgust. Bino doesn't care about the consequences anymore. "It's like we're puppets to you! Do you even care about what this does to us?!"

It's quiet, save for his breathing. The old man is looking directly at him, eyes glinting with predatory malice. He smiles at him.

Bino's ears are ringing, and he can't pay attention to anyone besides the monster of a man in front of him, "You're a disgusting, emotionally immature, rage-inducing control freak WHO DOESN'T GIVE A FUCK ABOUT US—"

A white, hot pain erupts from his cheek. Soon, he's falling to the ground. The old man's cane is made of wood, an innocent tool turned into a weapon. His vision goes dark for about a second, and he feels warm hands pulling him away from the man.

He's still angry, his rage is still boiling. He looks up at the man with nothing but disgust and disdain.

For years, Bino has been compliant, following his every word. He only defied him in small ways, like talking behind his back to the others or helping them in secret. Never to his face. Today, he has been pushed to the edge.

"You say you're an adult. Well, look who's throwing the tantrum here." He says before turning on his heel and walking out the door.

A rope snaps.

A window shatters.

A piano string snaps mid-performance.

Something inside him finally breaks.

Bino screams bloody insults in his direction, cursing his name. He can't even comprehend the words coming out of his mouth; they are pouring out like spewing, boiling water from pure resentment. His yells are explosive and chaotic as he lunges at him, as if he were a rabid animal, yet held back by his struggling groupmates.

At some point, his voice breaks as he spews out his final insults, as if he were finishing the end of a childish outburst. He's breathing heavily, fists clenched, and eyes still glaring at the door.

"Bino." He hears Abi whisper, his words reaching him through the hot fury that has taken over his mind. "He's gone."

The hands holding him back relax once his muscles eventually release.

"He's gone," Miseo repeats. It sounds less like a reassurance and more like a realization.

Romeo has left and come back with ice covered in a towel. He starts pressing it against Bino's cheek.

Abi is turning Netflix on so they can continue watching their favorite show.

---

 

"You won't escape this life."

What?

"You'll never protect your friends."

Who are you?

"You lie to the world and contribute to the exploitative culture of your industry."

Stop.

"Can you imagine your friends' disappointment—"

Stop.

"—When your career falls in ruins—"

Shut up.

"—And if it doesn't, you'll keep lying to yourself—"

No.

"—until you lose your identity like your friends will too—"

"You're shameful."

"Shame"

"Shame"

"Shame"

...

What do you want?

"I can help you feel better,"

You can?

Bino looks in the mirror. A blue mark appears—almost like a crack—on his arm.

How shameful.

Bambino is his name. That's what Mr. Yoon, the head manager of their group, told him when he first joined THURSDAY. He needs to identify with that name, to be called that name, to get used to it, because this is going to be his life.

He is fifteen and naive, yet has the deepest singing voice in their group. He is the youngest out of all of them, and naturally, at the bottom of their group's social hierarchy; the youngest brother, the runt of the litter, the last one to start eating at the dinner table, the maknae.

Mr. Yoon takes advantage of this, telling him to act like it, to puff his cheeks and wear younger outfits, to act cuter and less like the spitfire he really is. They even have his hair dyed a lighter brown color. Bino's young, not stupid; this is a tactic to increase appeal to fans.

"So, Bambino," the host starts, making eye contact with him. "Do you always dress this cute?"

Oh, Jesus.

"Of course," Bino chuckles, fidgeting with his long sleeves not because he's nervous, but for extra charm. "I hate to admit, but... my closet is full of this type of fashion."

He puts a hand on his cheek for emphasis. He can already hear people typing in the comments.

It's a little exhausting and humiliating to act like a child every time he interacts with the public, but fine, he'll do whatever task is needed to be successful.

At first, the other members coddle him like a baby, handing him candy and covering his ears when Romeo says a "bad word". They're all joking, obviously, but a month passes and his explosive personality has scared them off, especially after he bit Romeo's arm; he screamed like a girl.

That's around the same time he realizes just how tiring this life is. From the moment they wake up to when they go to bed, every second is planned out by the managers. Everything in their lives—every detail—is tracked and recorded in some Google Spreadsheet that Bino doesn't even have access to. He doesn't complain; none of them do because this is what they got themselves into.

From the moment Bino auditioned to become a trainee at eleven, he had an idea of the grueling tasks ahead—he just had no idea his future head manager would be such an ass. Mr. Yoon is a controlling and stupid lunatic, but he's oh so old and wise and Bino must respect his elders.

Nevertheless, Bino is obedient—all of them are obedient, following his instructions. Every expectation they have to meet has a reason behind it, after all. Their group, THURSDAY, is meticulously planned out by Mr. Yoon. Four members, four different ways to enhance their limelight. When combined, their fame increases exponentially.

For Abi, Mr. Yoon aims to maximize his sex appeal. Abi's diet is the strictest. His weight is monitored day and night, and he has to go to the gym every day at seven in the morning before dance practice. Their behavior trainer teaches him how to act more seductive, while his closet is full of clothes that are way too tight to be comfortable. The buttons break every now and then, but Bino knows that's Mr. Yoon's goal; the fans go crazy.

On the other hand, Romeo's role is more focused on connecting to the fans. He gives them the illusion that they have some sort of personal connection, talking to them on livestreams in his bedroom (livestreams that are pre-planned by the managers) and giving girls roses (that are given to Romeo by the managers beforehand). Out of the THURSDAY members, he gets the most self-insert fanfictions. Bino reads them aloud at dinner to annoy him.

"He looked at me with those honey orbs and pushed me against the wall, saying,
Y/N, I think I love you" He barely gets to finish before he bursts into screeching laughter, fist banging onto the dinner table. He hears Abi struggling to keep it together with food in his mouth, while Romeo is red as a tomato, looking mortified.

Miseo is choking on his water. How did he manage to drink water right before the joke? That's some luck.

Speaking of Miseo, he is expected to be the opposite of Romeo: to be unobtainable. He must remain quiet and stoic to the public; he must remain a mystery. It drives their curiosity until they are so obsessed that there are articles and fan forums dedicated to figuring out Miseo's favorite food or something else stupid. Sometimes, Bino is afraid that Miseo will attract crazy fan stalkers to follow them home.

Then there's Bino. He'd say that he has it the easiest out of all of them, yet he has the shortest temper—the others call him a chihuahua. There are days when he thinks about shredding Mr. Yoon into pieces. However, he can't afford to lose this opportunity of fame and money, so he reigns it in and stays in line.

Plus, even if he can't lose his temper to Mr. Yoon's face, he can find other ways to be defiant behind the old man's back.

---

 

Bino hears Abi's stomach growling for the third time that morning, and his eyes flit to the taller man, whose newly bleached hair blinds Bino's eyes.

He looks him up and down, and Abi looks miserable; his eyes are tired, and his arms cross over his stomach, probably because of the hunger pangs. The managers instructed him to take a three-day fast to lower his body fat percentage.

It's been a little over a year since THURSDAY was created—Bino is sixteen—and this is the first time Abi has been required to fast for so long. It's the second day, and he looks like he's going to faint if he goes to rehearsal today. Bino wishes that he'd just go behind their backs and eat something from the fridge. It's not like it's hard to hide a snack or two from the managers.

Bino tries not to let Abi's tired look bother him that day. It isn't until they're all reviewing some lyrics that Bino loses it.

It's eight pm, and they just finished four long hours of rehearsals. They're all tired, yet they still need to review some lyrics before they eat dinner—well, before three of them eat dinner.

Abi hasn't said a single word since they started; he's just staring into space. Bino calls his name two, three times and gets nothing. Miseo waves a hand in his face.

Abi leans on the counter, as if about to fall over.

"That's it." Bino says. He heads to the fridge, pissed off as he snatches an apple from the fridge shelf. Abi is two years older than Bino, yet too scared to defy the managers. If anyone's the baby, it's him.

Just eat behind their backs, or I don't know, tell them you need food to function?!

(But then again, Bino wouldn't dare speak up against them.)

This is the shit that happens when stupid managers have people who sing and dance for a living go on a three-day fast.

Bino places the apple on the counter in front of Abi. "Eat."

Abi stares, looking like a deer in headlights.

"Huh?"

Fucking hell.

"Eat the apple."

The oldest member of THURSDAY blinks at him, doe-eyed. Romeo has him sit down on a stool because he looks like death itself. Romeo takes the apple and places it into Abi's hand. "Bino's right."

"But I'm on a fast," The starving dolt of a man says.

Bino actually has to take a breath before he responds to that. "No one's gonna know, Abi."

"Regardless, you need it, pretty boy." Romeo continues, giving him a head pat. Despite his jovial attitude, Bino knows the black-haired man is one hundred percent serious as he continues, "You were about to faint earlier."

Bino gets distracted by Miseo chopping the apple into slices.

Abi frowns, "But Mr. Yoon—"

"Shh..." Bino says, putting an index finger to Abi's mouth in a shushing motion. He grabs the plate of apple slices Miseo just prepared and picks up a slice. "How will he know?"

Abi gawks at him, then at the apple slice in his hand, then at him.

Amused, Bino inches his hand holding the slice closer to Abi's mouth. The man freezes, looking confused and concerned, yet he opens his mouth anyway and takes a bite out of the slice.

His bite is so slow that Bino can hear each breaking fiber in the apple slice. Abi does not break eye contact with him as he begins to chew.

Bino hears Miseo taking a sip of water.

"Good boy," Romeo says jokingly.

Bino lets out a sound akin to an eagle as he starts wheezing, attempting to cover his mouth.

Miseo chokes on his water. Again. He always manages to drink water before the joke. How unlucky.

Abi is still chewing his apple slice in silence.

That was the first time the four of them defied their managers' orders, even if it was behind their backs. And that defiance was sparked by Bino himself.

He continues to light that little flame of defiance, sparking hope in their hearts. And although they wouldn't do anything drastic, like insult Mr. Yoon to his face, that refusal to let themselves be fully consumed is something.

After all, it really is the little things that keep them sane in this kind of job. For example, Bino talks shit about Mr. Yoon (and the team of managers he leads) all the time, making stupid jokes about his cane, his weird beard and his tendency to hack up the spit at the back of his throat—loudly—every time they see him. Bino's shit talk manages to make all of them laugh, and he counts that as a win.

Another thing that keeps them sane! Every month or so, Mr. Yoon and the other managers have a team outing, leaving the members of THURSDAY alone. Since they aren't monitoring them like vultures preying on carcasses on those days, Bino convinces Miseo to help him prepare a home-cooked meal for the four of them. God knows the other two can't cook to save themselves.

When they sit down to eat, they hide Abi's phone so he doesn't track the amount of calories in the meal.

The managers never find out about the little acts of rebellion they do; they're too sneaky to get caught. At the end of the day, being sneaky is an important aspect of being an idol.

They have to protect their privacy...

---

 

Bino adjusts his shades. It's not like it's sunny, but he needs it for the sake of privacy. The same notion goes for his headband—which pulls back his bangs—and his hood. He is unrecognizable.

He and Romeo are at a convenience store, buying food. Normally, that would've been impossible, since their diets are monitored.

But! after three long years of hard work, they finally get to have a hiatus.

A three-month hiatus.

It's almost unbelievable; the managers have left them alone.

So far, the four of them have been going to the bath house every week, and holy shit is it amazing. They also reserved a private room at a Korean Barbeque restaurant—Abi kept burning the food, so Miseo took over, while Bino scrolled through the most recent, cringey Romeo boyfriend POVs on TikTok.

He snickered at Romeo's red face and angered complaints until he himself took his phone out and read age-regression fanfiction of Bino on Wattpad out loud. Abi was dying of laughter, and Miseo was choking on his drink—how does Miseo always manage to drink something at the wrong time and end up choking from laughter?

In conclusion, hiatuses are a godsend.

Right now, Romeo and Bino are picking out food at the convenience store because the four of them are too lazy to go out and eat at a restaurant fully dressed in disguises. Bino nabs some gimbap and instant ramyeon (the spiciest one because spicy is better), along with some orange juice for Miseo.

Somehow, out of all drinks on this god forsaken planet, Miseo has chosen orange juice as his favorite drink. Bino had a friend a long time ago back in his trainee days—she also liked orange juice. How do people pick that as their favorite drink?

Speaking of that friend, a certain instant ramyeon package catches his eye. Her name is capitalized in bold letters, and Bino scoffs in amusement at the cartoon version of her. Glad to see she's doing well in her group.

"Oh my god, Romeo?" He hears a woman's voice whisper frantically. Bino snaps to attention, locking onto Romeo's location to ensure his safety, then flicking his eyes to whoever the voice came from.

A giddy-looking woman, a couple of aisles away from Romeo, is gawking.

Bino feels a headache coming. The little flame of defiance in his heart sparks up, coming alive.

The woman advances towards Romeo, but Bino ignores her. He knows the older THURSDAY member can handle this one. She's just going to ask for a photo or a signature and then leave. They've done this a million times.

"Romeo?"

At first, the man flinches, then swivels around to face her, greeting, "Why, hello."

Bino has a bad feeling. Usually, a fan will scream at just his greeting because Romeo has mastered the art of evoking that sort of reaction. This woman, however, doesn't act like a normal fan. Her smile slowly gets wider, eyes getting bigger.

Bino shrugs it off. She's just giddy.

The woman grabs Romeo's hand, who staggers back a little in shock. "Romeo, it's—it's me."

The gimbap package Bino's holding collapses under the pressure of his hand. What the hell is that woman doing?

"We met four months ago! It's me, Minji." The crazed woman rambles, hands visibly tightening around Romeo's wrists. Bino starts marching towards them, and the woman keeps going. "You—you gave me a rose and winked at me! I just knew we'd meet again!"

Her face inches closer to Romeo as he leans away in shock and disgust. Bino sees her hands crawling up his forearms. Romeo tries to nudge her away. "You mean at the fan signing event four months ago?!"

"Yes, silly!"

The whole situation is so absurd, the cashier is trying to tell the maniac to lay off.

Bino finally gets in between them, pushing her off Romeo. "Don't touch him."

"Bambino!"

The fire in his heart is burning.

The woman, confused, starts trying to bargain, but Bino ignores her. He gets all the convenience store items he and Romeo picked and puts them in his bag. Time is of the essence, and they need to lose this fan quickly.

The cashier looks at Bino in both sympathy and confusion, while he's shuffling around in his bag while keeping the fan away from Romeo with his other hand.

Bino gets out a fifty-thousand won bill and hands it to him, sighing, "Please keep the change."

He snatches Romeo's arm and leads them out of the convenience store, bowing slightly to the cashier out of respect before they're out the door with the woman close behind.

"Okay, yeah, let's run." Romeo finally says.

"Wow, good idea."

"Shut up."

---

 

A few weeks after Bino's nineteenth birthday, THURSDAY is invited to ISAC: The Idol Star Athletics Championships. The successful TV program has K-pop idols compete in various sports.

They are invited every year, but the managers always send Abi alone to participate because he is always guaranteed to crush the other idols.

This year, the managers have picked Bino and Miseo instead...to compete in archery.

Miseo is good at archery; Bino, on the other hand, is terrible.

The managers sure made a strategic decision. If Miseo aces the archery competition—which he will—it will cement his position in the media as a mystifying and stoic prince or something. Bino is going to make a fool of himself, and the fans will think it's cute and endearing because Bambino is the baby of the group.

Bino can't even lie, those managers were cunning and intelligent in choosing them to participate this year.

Now, here he is, missing the target by a mile, while the crowd goes "awww". Bino plays into the act, holding his cheeks adorably in fake frustration.

He sits down away from the public eye at a private lounge once it's over, sipping some ice water from a glass. Watching the TV screen, he sees Miseo shoot and hit the targets perfectly.

"Nugget?"

Bino freezes at the nickname. A thousand memories rush through his head at once as his head whips around. "Moose?"

Zoey stands a few feet away, flanked by the two other members of HUNTR/X. She takes a tentative step forward, then lunges at him. His arms open to hug his old friend.

"I can't believe it's been so long!" She exclaims as she pulls back, then her face switches to frustration as she grabs him by the collar. "YOU'RE NOT RESPONDING TO MY REELS!"

Bino mimics her quick mood swing into anger, replying, "Yeah? Well, YOU SEND TOO MANY!"

The two other HUNTR/X girls—Rumi and Mira, if he remembers correctly—watch from a small distance away. Bino hears one of them comment, "They really match each other's energies."

Bino can't argue with that statement, but their matching personalities clashed with each other the first time they met.

They were both eleven, enrolled in the same summer program for K-pop idol trainees. It was the first day when they got into some stupid argument that he can't remember. Bino called her a "moose" because of her space buns. Zoey, some little America-raised kid, scrambled to insult him back, calling him a "nugget".

It looked like they hated each other, having diss battles every couple of days during lunch. In reality, though, they loved the banter and grew close as friends.

They'd come back for the training program every summer—Zoey flying in from America—and they'd stick together like glue whenever they could. It was always difficult to find time to spend with her since girls and boys were often separated in the program.

"Oh! I gotta introduce you guys!" Zoey grabs his arm and pulls him towards Rumi and Mira.

"Mira and Rumi, this is Bino! Bino, this is Mira and Rumi."

They bow to each other in an awkward greeting.

"Nice to meet you, Zoey always talks about you whenever THURSDAY is mentioned," Rumi says respectfully.

Bino smiles politely when he responds, "All good things, I hope but don't expect."

"Yeah, no, I diss you behind your back." Zoey jokes; Bino rolls his eyes and shoves her gently.

He sees the taller one—Mira—smirking deviously, "She has a fat crush on your friend."

Bino raises a brow as Zoey smacks the back of Mira's head, but doesn't deny her accusation.

"Nugget, introduce me to that guy!" Zoey whisper shouts to him, pointing to the TV screen where Miseo is still shooting targets perfectly. Looking concentrated, Miseo ties his hair back into a half-up. Zoey sighs, "Ugh, he's just my type!"

Bino feels a spark of rebellion in his chest.

He suppresses it. It's too dangerous in this case.

"Nuh-uh. No dating policy!" Bino whisper shouts back. Zoey, pouting, protests while Mira attempts to hit her back, "So? Idols always do it in secret!"

That's the problem. THURSDAY members couldn't do that in secret if they wanted to.

"Moose, our managers check our phones every night."

The three members of HUNTR/X freeze as they stare at him, confused. Zoey furrows her brows, "What do you mean they check your phones?"

"We're not allowed to have passwords." Bino continues. He hears one of them gasp in horror. He grumbles, "The managers look through them to make sure we stay in line."

They gape at him in concern. Bino feels the embers of defiance come back; he likes shit-talking the managers. He's never complained about them to people outside THURSDAY, though. He wonders if the girls' managers are just as controlling and strict.

"I can barely respond to your reels because they don't want me talking too much to you."

"WHAT?!"

"—Okay, that's an invasion of privacy—"

"—What kind of manager—"

Turns out their managers aren't as strict. HUNTR/X's head manager, Ms. Baek, makes them follow a strict diet and schedule and all, but she doesn't go so far as to invade their privacy like Mr. Yoon would.

Plus, the girls actually like some of their managers, unlike THURSDAY. One of their newer managers, Bobby, sneaks them their favorite snacks when Ms. Baek isn't looking.

Bino feels a pang of jealousy from hearing that. He also feels that the flame of rebellion re-ignites.

"You know, I can still introduce you to Miseo. No one has to know."

---

 

No matter how little it burned, there is always a certain fire blazing on in his heart.

A fire to drive his defiance.

His anger towards those controlling, vile managers.

His protectiveness over his friends.

His explosive personality that contrasts with everything his on-stage persona stands for.

These are all fueled by the fire, yet the flame was always small, burning just enough to keep them going, to keep them from fully giving into the life of compliancy and performance.

One day, that candle grows into an inferno—a forest fire. Bino is unable to stop the words of hate directed towards Mr. Yoon. He stands up to the old man to his face.

Bino takes a hit, and his flame dwindles.

And then a voice starts speaking to him in his head.

"I can help you feel better," the voice says. His soothing words are inviting, tempting. For years, Bino has silently fought against fully complying with expectations while keeping his friends from falling too, but the moment his flame dared to burn brighter, he was struck down.

It's hopeless.

Bino is tired of fighting. Why should he defy if there is no point?

"My name is Gwi-ma. Let me save you,"

Bino lets Gwi-ma take him.

When he traces the blue cracks on his skin, he realizes there is no more fire.

Miseo is washing the dishes. He finds that doing house chores is a peaceful way to gather his thoughts, but in no way are his thoughts peaceful at the moment.

He puts a headband on, finding relief in a clearer view that isn't blocked by his hair in any way. His bangs are getting so ridiculously long, it's annoying. He's scheduled for a haircut in a week before their world tour, though.

A week has passed since Bino snapped at Mr. Yoon. Miseo recalls that the nasty bruise on Bino's cheek has faded a little.

Miseo also notices that Bino has been acting...out of character. It doesn't take a detective to realize that for the past week, there has been a gaping hole in their little family dynamic.

There are no more daily shit talk sessions about their managers, or little snacks being snuck in, or the strange yet motivating aura of rebellion in the room. Miseo didn't realize the weight of these activities until Bino stopped inciting them.

What's weirder is that Bino's performance in public as THURSDAY's resident maknae has gotten better. Bino has always hated the role Mr. Yoon gave him.

Of course, this can be boiled down to the fact that Mr. Yoon intimidated Bino so badly that he's acting perfectly. Romeo and Abi talked to him about it, and that's what they think. It's plausible; Mr. Yoon had gotten physical, after all.

But.

Miseo doesn't believe it. Not in the slightest.

Something is off here.

He's quieter, more compliant, waiting for the others to tell him what to do like—like he doesn't have any autonomy. Throughout the years they've been a team, Bino has always been fiery and rebellious; well, as rebellious as an idol could be... He'd always follow Mr. Yoon's orders only to the bare minimum on purpose just to piss him off. He'd talk shit, sneak around.

Seeing Bino like this is unnatural.

Unnerving.

Sure, what happened last week was hard. Mr. Yoon was especially a jackass, but the Bino that Miseo knows wouldn't let that stop him from...well, being the way he is.

It sure hasn't stopped him in the past six and a half years that Mr. Yoon has been a prick to them.

Plus, their seven-year contract is about to end in seven months, anyway. Why would Bino start kissing Mr. Yoon's feet now?

His behavior sort of reminds Miseo of himself when he was younger. He followed whatever his parents told him to do without question, as that's what he was taught—to never question them, to never question authority.

So, when his parents told him to become a trainee, that's what he did. When his parents told him to sign that seven-year contract at sixteen, that's what he did. He carried that mindset with him when he first joined THURSDAY.

Then, he met Bino, and his strict mindset started to crack.

Though he has to admit that during the first year, he was scared of the youngest member of their group.

Miseo was the quietest out of the four of them, and Bino was the loudest. Miseo was obedient, but Bino was always sneaking around and trying to find loopholes in Mr. Yoon's rules.

At the time, Miseo believed in the rules, trusting that people like Mr. Yoon knew what they were doing.

The more time he spent with Bino and the others—the more they suffered, the more he realized the injustice of it all and that authority figures weren't always right.

And Bino was the one who disregarded the rules most of the time, even if it was behind Mr. Yoon's back. It sort of inspired Miseo in a way. It gave him hope that they'd be able to feel a little bit of freedom.

In their first year, when they starved Abi for a few days and Bino had enough. He made Abi eat an apple. Romeo and Miseo joined in. The others didn't say anything, but Miseo knew they were surprised at his willingness to help at the cost of going behind the backs of authority.

That was the first time he defied Mr. Yoon. He and the others did it again and again, trying to find happiness in the lives they lived.

Miseo frowns, scrubbing grease off another pan. He thinks of how Bino is acting now, his personality ice-cold compared to the spitfire he was before.

He finishes washing the last plate before he heads to the fridge looking for some orange juice, opening a secret fridge compartment Bino installed to hide snacks they would sneak into the compound. If it weren't for Bino, Miseo would've had to resort to drinking his favorite drink only every few months due to their strict diets. God, he would've jumped off a bridge if that were true.

He opens the bottle and takes a sip.

Orange juice.

His fingers tap against the bottle in thought. It's been a few months since he's seen Zoey in person. Although they call nearly every night, Miseo can't help but yearn to be with her.

Their relationship is yet another thing he owes to Bino.

Their three-year anniversary is in a month, but they're not going to be able to meet in person for it. HUNTR/X is on tour for the next two months.

It's crazy to think they've won the International Idol Awards for two years in a row, but he isn't really surprised given Zoey's song-writing skills.

And Rumi and Mira, he supposes.

It really has been a while since Bino and Miseo have seen them.

He thinks back to the day he met her three years ago at ISAC. He'd just won the archery competition when Bino grabbed his arm and dragged him to one of the private lounges. Then, he saw Zoey.

Rumi and Mira were there too, but he only paid attention to her, the way she looked at him. Her eyes were full of admiration, yet it wasn't the kind an idol would receive from a fan. It was the kind that screamed of genuine curiosity and admiration.

At the time, HUNTR/X was a new group, yet they blew up the internet a month into their careers. Nobody expected any less from a group built by Celine herself. Miseo hadn't paid much attention to the group until then.

And he didn't know what to do in that moment, so he stammered out an introduction. It was frankly embarrassing. To the public, he was a figure who always kept a calm and composed demeanor.

But she said, "You're so cute!" and he was done for.

His face burned so red, she offered him a bottle of orange juice as an apology while Bino and Rumi struggled, trying not to laugh. Mira was just glaring at him.

What a coincidence that was. Orange juice was his favorite drink.

And that was the start of...something.

But to be honest, right after that interaction, he thought he'd never speak to her again. He was almost content with that since he was so obedient to every little rule Mr. Yoon enforced, which included a dating ban. They tracked their phones and online activity, too.

Little did Miseo know at the time, Bino found a loophole for him. One evening, Bino came to his bedroom with a letter. From her.

Somehow, Bobby—one of HUNTR/X's rookie managers at the time—hacked into one of THURSDAY's managers' devices, obtained a spreadsheet of their schedule, and tracked down Bino just to give him the letter to give to Miseo.

What?

"I know, he's fucking AMAZING!" Bino yelled at him in disbelief.

Miseo remembers how fast his heart was beating when he held the letter, sealed with an orange-juice sticker. He was so curious about her, and infatuated at the same time. Yet, he was unsure.

What if Mr. Yoon found out?

What if the public found out?

What if—

"Do you want this?" Bino asked him straightforwardly.

Miseo stared at him, jaw slightly open. He blinked, then stammered out, "Yes."

Bino smirked at him. It was the type of smile that gave off an air of determination (a smile Miseo hasn't seen in a while). Bino had a plan. His plans always worked, whether it was stealing financial documents from Mr. Yoon or sneaking ten thousand calories worth of food into the building and up to their floor.

"If you want to, then just try." Bino said to him, sitting down on Miseo's bed and falling backwards onto his back. He stared up at the ceiling for a moment, then glanced at Miseo. "I'll make sure you don't get caught—maybe, it'll be exciting!"

"Yeah, and if I get caught?" Miseo challenged, combing his annoying hair back with a hand. He places down the letter that he wants to open so desperately.

"Then it would've probably been worth it." Bino responded seriously.

Miseo remembers his heart stuttering in that very moment, hearing those words. He wasn't able to come up with a response to that.

"Liking someone like that is a part of life." He continued, sitting up in Miseo's bed. "We deserve to live too."

His words were pushing his desire even further. Perhaps it was stupid, using so much brain power on a girl he met a few days ago, but how could he forget how she stared at him with true adoration and interest?

Bino stood up and walked to Miseo's desk, where he was sitting. He grabbed the armrest, spinning the chair so Miseo—who yelps in surprise—could face him directly. "Zoey wants this, you want this, and the only thing stopping you is a stinky old man and a toxic fanbase that I know how to sneak around."

The younger man grabbed the letter Miseo left on the desk and shoved it into his chest. Miseo scrambled to catch the precious letter. "Maybe it might be time for a little excitement in your life other than the fans that try to stalk you. Plus, if it doesn't work out, it doesn't work out. That's life, too."

"Okay, I get it." Miseo relented, clutching the letter and blushing when he caught a whiff of vanilla perfume—she scented the letter?!

"Oh, and you better try your hardest if you really want her, 'cause she's gonna try her hardest," Bino added, walking towards the door to leave. Miseo heard him mutter, "God knows she's a people-pleaser."

Miseo finishes washing the last dish, sighing with an air of nostalgia. Back then, Miseo was so nervous about falling for Zoey. Now, he's been in a committed relationship for nearly three years, and neither Mr. Yoon nor the public even knows.

After exchanging letters through Bobby and Bino for a month like a medieval couple, they finally met in person again at the International Idol Awards...in HUNTR/X's private backstage room...alone.

It was a mix of nervous blushing and tension, but within a few minutes, they were having a good conversation.

That was also when he had his first kiss. It was awkward compared to what they have now, but Miseo wouldn't have had it any other way.

That day, she told him that HUNTR/X would be going on hiatus after the Idol Awards, and that she would be going back to America. Miseo's heart dropped in that moment, until she pulled out a brand new phone from behind her back.

"Here, I got this for you!"

"What?"

That was when Miseo remembered that the HUNTR/X members and Celine actually own HUNTR/X, unlike other groups that are owned by entertainment companies. That meant they were filthy rich.

THURSDAY, on the other hand, is owned by ZYE Entertainment. Miseo and the others are also filthy rich, but nowhere as close as Zoey, Mira, and Rumi.

Plus, it's not like they have the freedom to spend it without being watched.

Miseo tried to refuse the phone, but Zoey kept insisting with those eyes of hers. "How else are we supposed to communicate?"

He relented eventually.

And that day, HUNTR/X won the International Idol Awards for the first time. THURSDAY and the other groups didn't stand a chance.

When he told Bino about the phone, he was ecstatic. He could hide the phone from Mr. Yoon and the other managers.

Eventually, Bino pushed him to tell Romeo and Abi about it, and they were supportive. Almost too supportive. Abi was so worried Mr. Yoon would find out that he came up with a list of backup plans in case somebody caught them. Romeo just teased him a lot.

Though it was difficult to go long periods of time without seeing each other in person, they managed to get through it. Whenever THURSDAY had a hiatus, Bobby would sneak Miseo into HUNTR/X's building so he could see her.

Sometimes, Bino would come with him.

During their hiatuses, they would be there often enough to make friends with Rumi and Mira.

Miseo dries his hands with a towel. He's forever thankful to Bino for really pushing him to connect with Zoey, but he's concerned about how he's been acting.

He freezes when he hears the door open, followed by the clicking sound of Mr. Yoon's wooden cane. Like always, the old man hacks up the phlegm at the back of his throat. With a rasp, he yells out, "Miseo!"

"Sir?" He responds on instinct, facing the head manager.

Mr. Yoon sits down at the counter. He looks irritated. "That Bino. He's..."

He clears his throat as if just thinking about his words disgusts him. "He's performing well. Numbers are going up."

Miseo stands awkwardly. He replies in a monotone, "That's nice to hear, sir."

"I'm glad he understands that the final stretch of THURSDAY is important. The seven years are almost up." Mr. Yoon continues. Miseo feels a 'but' coming.

"But the rest of you are lacking."

There it is.

"You, Abi, and Romeo. I expect you guys to push it far for the last seven months. Some changes will be made, just to increase the final impact you will all have with your final tours."

Even though they're already trying their hardest, Miseo doesn't fight.

For the next month, they've been put on a different diet. Their rehearsals have tripled in intensity.

Everybody is tired.

During rehearsals and other idol activities, Miseo watches Bino perform aegyo almost too well, making those stupid finger hearts. When the THURSDAY members are alone, Bino is quiet.

There is no fire anymore.

He's like a puppet with its strings cut, a ragdoll.

Miseo, Romeo, and Abi have tried to talk to him on multiple occasions, only to be met with dull answers.

Miseo even talks to Zoey, asking for help.

Nothing is working, and it's impacting the rest of them. Miseo watches as they fall apart.

One night, Miseo walks down the hallway to grab some water, and he hears Abi throwing up his dinner. He bangs on the door, worried.

"I'm fine! Just...went a little over today." Abi's voice replies. By 'over', Miseo knows he means over the calorie count. He's relapsing. This hasn't happened in a year.

"Abi..."

"No, it's okay—it's just for today."

Miseo tries his best to help him—to fix this, but he can't do this without Bino, because Bino isn't even himself anymore.

Eventually, THURSDAY starts their world tour, starting in Seoul, where they're checked into a five-star hotel. As usual, they're staying in a four-bedroom suite, but that's the least important thing on his mind right now.

It's eight in the evening. Bino and Abi have already retreated to their rooms while Romeo and Miseo lounge in the suite's living room, watching the news.

Romeo sits down beside him, utterly sinking into the cushions. They're all tired from a full day of rehearsing. Tomorrow is the first concert of their world tour.

"What are you doing after our contract is over?" Romeo starts, keeping his eyes on the TV screen.

"I never really put much thought into it, but now it's getting closer..." Miseo sighs. "I'll be able to see Zoey more, but...I can't really imagine a life without the three of you."

"Aww...You sap." Romeo replies, looking at him and punching his shoulder lightly. Miseo swats his arm away.

"What about you? Ever gonna get a girlfriend, settle down?" Miseo asks, lowering the volume of the TV. Over the years, he's always noticed that Romeo ironically never talks about love when it comes to himself, but Miseo is curious, anyway.

Romeo grimaces. "Well,"

There's a silence for a second or two. He looks away, as if contemplating, and Miseo waits for him patiently.

A few more seconds pass. Miseo can feel the heavy tension of Romeo's incomplete answer. He turns off the TV, the news reporter's voice shutting off. He looks at his friend in worry, who's usually never this nervous.

Miseo is feeling rather awkward. "I mean, it's okay if you—"

"I like men."

Oh.

That makes a lot of sense.

"Nice. So, you think you're gonna settle down with a guy after this is over or—"

"Miseo, I like men. That's not okay." Romeo cuts him off again, looking away from him, but Miseo can see his upset expression. He feels his heart break a little.

"What do you mean? There are a few idols out there that are openly queer; it'll be difficult, but it will be okay." He reassures him, scooting a little closer to his friend.

Romeo pinches the bridge of his nose. "You know how they market me—you know,"

He does a few motions with his hands, "Good with women."

Miseo puts a hand on his shoulder and sighs. "It's gonna be fine."

"Many fans are obsessive, Miseo." Romeo insists. "How would they react?"

It's true that much of Romeo's fanbase gets pissed even when women so much as touch him. Some would feel 'betrayed' if they found out. Miseo shakes his head in denial. "It's not like you have to go public, and if you do, people will get over it. Many will welcome it."

Romeo takes a tentative look at him and smiles slightly. He sighs, leaning back into the couch. "I won't think about publicity right now."

Miseo exhales a slight laugh. "How long have you known, anyway?"

His friend shrugs, responding, "Since last year. Before that, I always tried to convince myself that I was straight."

In all honesty, Miseo had suspicions about Romeo's orientation ever since they all really became closer as a team—or well, a family. It isn't that Miseo sensed any romantic feelings from Romeo towards any of them, not at all. It was more of an inkling than anything that he didn't view women in that way.

Miseo thinks back to the way Romeo would gag and shudder at the dinner table when they talked about how girls tried to flirt with him at the most recent fan meet.

Perhaps it was more than an inkling.

"I'm happy you told me. Do you think you'll tell the others?"

"Oh, yeah—for sure." He replies, but goes silent. He looks up, as if contemplating, then glances at Miseo again. "I just wanna wait for Bino to...how do I put this?—go back to normal, you know?"

"Yeah, I know."

"—Until then, it's just not the right time, right?" Romeo rambles, expressive with his hands and everything.

Miseo feels his phone (his secret one) vibrate and checks it. A message from Zoey.

"Is that a handwritten letter from your wife, good sir?" Romeo asks mockingly, a joke that has been abused multiple times ever since Zoey and he exchanged letters back then.

Miseo gives him a middle finger, not tearing his eyes from the phone to open the message.

It's a photo of her drinking a glass of orange juice and staring straight into the camera like some maniac. Then, there's a second photo of the array of food she's eating—waffles, fruits, bacon, and more. Rumi smiles across the table while Mira gives an offensive gesture.

Miseo can't contain his smile, nor can he contain his jealousy. He wants to eat what they're having. Zoey is still typing out messages.

"HAVING BREAKFAST"

"IT'S GONNA BE A WEEK-LONG BREAK 'TILL THE NEXT SHOW THANK GOD AAAAAHDFWKDN"

"YOU'RE GONNA CRUSH IT TMR"

He responds to every message while he feels Romeo's tired and unimpressed gaze.

He saves the photos too.

He and Zoey message for about ten minutes before she apparently gets her phone taken by Mira. When Miseo turns off his phone and looks at his friend, Romeo is already seconds from falling asleep.

"I wanna marry her someday."

The words are out of his mouth before he can process them.

Romeo looks at him like he just said the sky is blue. "Yeah, you do."

Miseo stands up from the couch and stretches, hearing a couple of cracks. They should sleep soon; they have a big day ahead tomorrow.

He's about to walk to his room when something catches his eye, something shiny and out of place. There's something off about that adapter plugged into the wall, next to the TV.

He stops in his tracks, staring at it.

"Miseo?" Romeo nudges, confused.

Miseo feels his heart drop as he studies the adapter from a distance away.

Please be nothing, please be nothing, please be nothing, please be nothing, please be nothing.

He walks towards it slowly with Romeo trailing behind.

Many around the world are aware that South Korea was at the forefront of digital crimes, including spy cameras. An invasion of privacy. More often than not, women and children were victims of these crimes.

It was a global outrage.

Miseo reaches his hand towards the adaptor.

There was a point where it was all everybody talked about. Up to seventy thousand protested in Gwanghwamun Square. From motels to schools, people weren't safe.

But over time, these digital crimes decreased as the government took action.

He takes out the adaptor, which had been facing the couch where Miseo and Romeo were sitting merely moments before.

Security heightened. Hotel rooms even get scanned for these cameras by idol agencies as a policy before idols settle in.

Which begs the question,

How did a hidden camera get into their hotel room?

Miseo stares at it in horror. There, in the middle of the adaptor, lies the tell-tale reflective surface of a camera.

These cameras have audio.

Oh, god.

"Miseo...That's..." Romeo speaks. His voice is shaky, on the verge of a panic attack.

"Call the police."

The demon world has always existed, and her father has been its king for over half a millennium.

One may make the assumption that being that old and musty would mean he has acquired a mountain of descendants, but no, Yoon-rai is his only child.

She has been existing for about five hundred years now. Of those five hundred, she's been free to do whatever she wants in Father's kingdom for...well, five hundred years. Compared to the other demons, Yoon-rai is the most free of them all. Everybody else suffers the weight of her father's power, the weight of shame.

What did she decide to do with her freedom?

She decided to serve her father anyway because she cares deeply about him. Her father never really gave her orders to do—he didn't have the heart to treat her like a soldier—so she takes it upon herself to serve him. She goes to the human world in a human form and steals souls to share with Father.

The only souls she doesn't give him are the souls of the rogue demons.

He doesn't like eating those.

In a way, she can understand, but she still eats them anyway, slicing their bodies and taking their flames. The power they provided is always weaker than human souls. She can always feel the literal taste of shame on her tongue when she eats them, as if they are the embodiment of shame itself.

She'd figured it out a few decades into her existence when she saw a demon going insane, turning into a rogue. It shook and spasmed as it turned into discombobulated, twisted limbs, with bones splitting and forming new limbs and organs.

Rogues were what demons turned into after...perhaps centuries of feeling nothing but shame, she decided.

Yoon-rai conquered many humans, taking their souls slowly. She is one of the most accomplished demons for that reason. Many lower demons look up to her, except for that Jinu fellow, but nobody cares about him.

There's only so much he can do with a pretty voice that he wasn't even born with—Father gave that voice to him, after all.

Usually, she stays in the human world for months or years at a time, taking what it has to offer. She always makes a new appearance each time she goes—it's always fun to experiment with the different lives she can live. She enjoys prolonging the process of taking souls—the way she can mess with those humans. She has the freedom to enjoy these jobs, so why wouldn't she?

One thing she really enjoys is starting cults and spewing bullshit to them for a decade in the form of a human. Then the cult reaches a few thousand people, and she doesn't even have to take their souls by force; they just give themselves to her.

Or sometimes, she'll take the form of a really attractive human and seduce a few people, taking their souls as well.

One may ask why she would make things so complicated when she can just take them by force. Well, she has the privilege to enjoy the process. Being able to break these humans down until they give their souls for her and father to eat is the most satisfying thing a demon can hope to experience.

But one day, she discovers the internet.

It connects people from all over the world, spreading music and culture. Globalization is on the rise from the clicks of buttons and screens.

It's amazing...yet it's also terrible.

The previous generations of demon hunters did good in strengthening the honmoon, but they weren't exactly influential enough to seal the honmoon golden; their names travelled by word of mouth and paper advertisements. The rise of the internet may give the future hunters the opportunity to become famous enough to potentially strengthen the honmoon exponentially.

And so that's what they do, but they never turn the honmoon golden.

Yet, the Sunlight Sisters are still forces to be reckoned with.

Yoon-rai infiltrates them with a few different human forms.

She breaks the Sunlight Sisters apart not with brute force, but with emotional and mental strategies. She wants to have fun tearing them apart.

The first Sunlight Sister, Amber, already has issues. All Yoon-rai has to do is find a way to make her life focus on these issues.

Eventually, she's found dead on her own bed, having overdosed.

As for the other two, she takes on the form of a demon male. Truthfully, her new form is just a male version of herself. Her long purple hair and doe, demon eyes remain intact, yet she has a sharper jawline. She sort of looks like a clone of her father before he took on the form of flames.

The second Sunlight Sister, Celine, absolutely despises demons, so she despises Yoon-rai.

Yoon-rai seduces the third Sunlight Sister, Mi-yeong, and causes tension between the remaining two. Strangely, Celine warms up to her anyway, as if they could be friends. Yoon-rai plays along.

She acts as Mi-yeong's lover for a year, then leaves her after a passionate night. She leaves an irremovable, cursed talisman on her, ensuring her death once the child is born.

Before that, Yoon-rai had thought about a way to eliminate Celine, but decided that this would be enough to make her life miserable. She's left to witness her best friend's death, hating Yoon-rai—hating demons, yet is forced to raise a demon child.

Perhaps another hunter group will show up eventually, but Yoon-rai returns to the demon world for now, with her father extremely satisfied with the weakened honmoon.

For years, Yoon-rai continues working, fighting off the rogues when she can, taking human souls in fun and creative ways. She was having so much fun, she almost started another cult in the human world.

Fifteen years have passed since Yoon-rai tore the Sunlight Sisters apart. Fifteen years, the demons have feasted on an abundance of souls. Father consumes thousands.

Yoon-rai stands on a mountain, looking over the vast and dark expanse of the demon world.

"It's not going to last..." A Jeoseung saja says with his soothing voice, eyes hidden under his hat. Jinu. His tiger lies beside where he's sitting, with the bird resting on the tiger's head.

Yoon-rai turns her head and looks at him.

"Yeah, I know." Yoon-rai agrees. The honmoon will stay weak for a few more years before it chooses its next hunters, unless Celine chooses to train successors.

Jinu cleans his bipa while they sit in silence.

Over the centuries that Yoon-rai has been aware of his existence, she's found him rather pathetic, but that's to be expected from a human-turned-demon. There are still bits and pieces of his humanity left that make him hesitate to take souls from the human world. Father realized that often the case with demons who were originally human. They were always too weak—that's why he stopped making those deals with humans centuries ago.

Jinu is the last of them.

"When hunters rise again, they'll be stronger than ever." He states.

He isn't wrong, Yoon-rai acknowledges. Music will become more easily accessible in the next few decades. The next hunters will be even more famous than the Sunlight Sisters.

"I'll think of a plan." She responds, fidgeting with her sharp nails.

"What if I told you that I already have one?" Jinu adds, finally looking up at her.

"Oh? But you go out of your way to avoid killing humans. Why would you help?"

All she gets is silence from Jinu until he sighs, looking away. "I'll ask Gwi-ma for something in return."

Yoon-rai starts chuckling because, of course, Jinu would. "Ah, how could I forget—you're a selfish prick!"

Jinu stares at her with shame in his eyes as Yoon-rai keeps laughing.

Her glee dies down, and she says in a wheeze, "What's your plan?"

---

 

"A demon...boy band?"

"Yes." Jinu answers.

Yoon-rai wants to laugh, but she seriously considers Jinu's idea first.

After the Sunlight Sisters were destroyed, K-pop has continued to become increasingly popular. Music is more accessible, just like Yoon-rai predicted. It's highly likely that the next hunters will be a K-pop group, and they will have millions of fans. They would have a great chance of turning the honmoon golden.

If a demon group is created, it's possible to steal their fans and weaken the honmoon. They wouldn't even have to take souls by force—in fact, by having millions of obsessed fans, those humans might just give their souls on a silver platter.

This means that they could—maybe—harvest thousands or even millions of souls in a short period of time, something they have never achieved before. Father would be so ecstatic.

"How can I help you?" She finally speaks.

Jinu raises his eyebrows, clearly surprised at how quickly she agreed with his idea. "Uh, I—Well, my main concern is that I don't know any demons that know how to sing and dance."

Yoon-rai nods, crossing her arms.

"—not to mention they need to know how to act human...and they have to look the part." Jinu adds.

Since father hasn't turned a human into a demon in about four centuries, it's going to be difficult to find demons that fit all of those expectations. Yoon-rai doesn't even think she'll be able to find one.

Theoretically, she could place talismans to bless them with the abilities to sing and dance, but that's going to be too difficult. She can barely make a protection talisman, let alone something as complex as that.

Yoon-rai blinks.

She suddenly has an idea.

If she can't find a demon to do it, then she can find humans to fit the roles, but Father hasn't transformed a human into a demon in centuries. 'Waste of energy,' he always said, using Jinu as an example. The only reason Father favors him is for his voice—that well, Father gave to him.

One thing Father failed at was having patience when it came to turning humans into demons. Father never took the time to properly understand how to influence their feeble minds—how to destroy them from the inside. Father always offered demon deals willy-nilly and then expected them to be devoted soldiers the first day they were turned into demons.

Well, that usually never worked out well for Father. Just look at Jinu.

Breaking them down until they are nothing but shells of themselves is key.

It's fun too.

Yoon-rai stops and thinks for a second. How long would it take to find the right humans, and how many years would it take to slowly crack them open?

"Give me about a decade and I'll get you some guys." Yoon-rai decides, tying her purple hair into a ponytail. A decade should be long enough, and she'll get to enjoy the human world the whole time, too.

"A decade?" Jinu exhales with furrowed brows.

"Yes. Give me a decade to gather...four demons that can sing, dance, and act like idols perfectly" Yoon-rai tells him, staring hard. "Meanwhile, you focus on learning about the K-pop industry. Prepare the songs while I get your guys; go to the surface and learn everything you need to learn."

Jinu tries to speak, but Yoon-rai puts a hand up and cuts him off again, "We also need to wait for the right time to strike. K-pop has only started becoming more mainstream worldwide. Surely, you can wait another decade..."

Jinu blinks at her incredulously, "And how are you going to gather the perfect demons for the job? Are you going to train them for the next ten years, is that it?"

Yoon-rai smiles deviously at him. "I'll make them myself..."

Well, technically, she'll have to get Father to make deals with them, but that's a matter for later.

---

 

The first thing Yoon-rai focuses on when she steps into the human world is building an identity. She takes on the form of a rotten, old man with throat issues who needs a wooden cane to walk properly. It's a new experience, and quite frankly, she loves it. Other humans give her way more respect in this form.

Yoon-rai forges documents, IDs, and fake resumes. She leaves impressions on people, making connections to as many in the industry as possible.

Perhaps stealing someone's identity would've been easier, but it would've been riskier.

She's able to befriend a board member of ZYE Entertainment, a company that started many successful K-pop groups.

And so, she lands a job in that company. She only took on her new identity a year ago. In that year, she also learned much about the K-pop industry.

Children complete idol training programs, and then they may have the chance to debut in a group under an entertainment company. Idols go through extreme training and practice to look and sound perfect. They meticulously build personas that captivate fans, making them obsessed.

Now she stands as the lead manager of the upcoming idol project, THURSDAY, which will debut in a year. This group will consist of four boys...four boys she will choose with great care, for she will spend seven years wearing them down—tearing them apart. These boys will one day be the key to prosperity in the demon world, and so she can't fail this first step.

Yoon-rai structures a plan for THURSDAY, how their roles will be carefully presented.

The first member is all about appealing to the sexual gaze. The second connects with the fans—especially the women—fueling romantic desires. The third draws curiosity and obsession by being far from reach, a mystery. The fourth, an innocent charmer, enchanting fans with a precious demeanor.

It's safe to say that this will not only make them successful, but will pressure them until they break—she will make sure of it.

Once she pushes them to the brink, they will succumb to their own shame, and the deals will be made. By the time Jinu launches his plans, they will be nothing but the embodiment of personas they were forced to endure, the perfect idols.

Yoon-rai finds many candidates in a single week, and she reads all their files. She finds the four boys she was looking for. She chooses them based on appearances—yes—but also on their potential to cave under the years of torment she plans to inflict.

She considered many things when she chose them. During the interviews, the first thing Yoon-rai looked out for was how much the parents cared for the candidate. A caring family is often a person's salvation from shame, so Yoon-rai makes a point to find candidates whose families are negligent. There were fifty candidates, and about twenty of them had guardians who fit into that category.

Out of the twenty, Yoon-rai hand-picked the four that fit the roles she had in mind.

A month later, the boys sign the contract, as well as their guardians, since they are still all under legal age. The parents only skimmed through the contract, without a care in the world, and only interested in how they would profit.

The boys move into a shared apartment, and training begins immediately. Their debut begins in six months.

Yoon-rai rules over them with an iron fist, making sure that they know what sort of manager 'Mr. Yoon' will be for the next seven years.

She makes sure that the first boy, Abi, knows that he has quite grueling expectations he must meet, specifically physical expectations. He must be the epitome of a desirable body, having a v-taper physique, a body fat percentage of less than ten percent, all that crap.

Yoon-rai knows that Abi is a people pleaser, having graduated at the top of his class. When she interviewed him, he was the most respectful young man she's met in a long time, bowing at every chance he got and smiling politely. He was raised as a child model and actor, then eventually underwent idol training and has grown to be a very fine young man. However, there was one thing that stood out from his records when Yoon-rai was first searching for candidates.

It seems that the modelling company that Abi worked for had an employee who was later arrested for child molestation and grooming, with Abi being one of the victims. Yoon-rai doesn't know the severity of what Abi experienced, but an insecurity is an insecurity. This will help bring out his shame. He seems to be the emotionally weakest out of the four THURSDAY members, and Yoon-rai hypothesizes that he will be the first to give in to Gwi-ma.

The next boy is Romeo. Yoon-rai thinks that out of the four of them, Romeo fits his delegated role the most. During the interview, he was about as charming as an actual prince. If it weren't for Yoon-rai's disguise as a dusty old man, she would've pounced on him.

However, Yoon-rai analyzed him carefully, looking deep into his soul. Romeo is a good actor, and she senses that he feels a lot of pressure to act this way. Soon enough, his new life will increase that pressure without remorse. His obligation to the fans will surely chip at his sanity over time; out of all of them, he'll have to interact with them the most.

The third, Miseo, caught Yoon-rai's attention because he was quite shy during the interview. He seemed like the type of person to really value his personal space and privacy—which was perfect, really. Yoon-rai will try her best to fuel stalker behavior in his fans, setting up online fan forums and releasing photos of him to the public.

Then, there's Bambino.

Oh, Yoon-rai is gonna have fun with this one.

He's the complete opposite of his role. During the interview, he was polite enough, but what got Yoon-rai to like him was that he had multiple incidents on his school record. He's gotten into a few fights and has been known to question some teachers.

So during the first few weeks of THURSDAY's training, Yoon-rai watches him. There aren't any fights or outbursts from the boy, and Yoon-rai suspects that it's because he knows that this is a job that needs to be taken seriously.

However, Yoon-rai sees the little eye-rolls he does when he thinks people aren't looking. Within a month, she can tell that Bambino hates his role and the lifestyle he's expected to endure. They haven't even debuted yet.

Yet, Bambino still puts up an innocent front, acting the part when he talks to 'Mr. Yoon' and the other managers. His hatred and anger may be small now, but they will surely grow as 'Mr. Yoon' will put more expectations on him, make him exhausted, torment him. That fire will grow large enough and he will crack, then Yoon-rai will snuff him out.

---

 

So, Yoon-rai's original plan was to work her way up from the bottom to the top, focusing on the weakest member of the group—Abi, then working on the others. She wants to save Bambino for last; his downfall will be the most satisfying of them all.

Over the years, he pushes them to the edge, yet something is keeping them from fully cracking open, or losing hope completely. She doesn't know what it is.

For Abi, Yoon-rai constantly puts him through harsh diet cycles and workout schedules. She makes sure Abi places high importance on his body, telling him that his physique is his main attraction—not the singing or dancing or anything.

"Your body is all that you're good for." 'Mr. Yoon' constantly lets him know, with Abi's past experiences in mind. Yoon-rai is aware that the boy's experience at that modelling company haunts him. It must be very conflicting to have nightmares of being groomed and assaulted as a child, and then be told constantly that people will only love him for his body.

By all means, Abi should've already shattered in maybe two to three years, but no, he strangely hasn't stopped fighting that shame.

Yoon-rai has also paid attention to the other three, slowly increasing the pressure throughout the years. She makes their rehearsals longer, gives them more fan events. There are even a few times when 'Mr. Yoon' hits them with the cane when disappointed.

'Mr. Yoon' fills up Romeo's schedule with fan meets and livestreams, ensuring that he is socially exhausted as much as possible.

Yoon-rai anonymously starts fan forums for Miseo, while constantly giving paparazzi Miseo's current location. Every few months, Miseo reports a stalking incident.

Bambino has less and less freedom over the years, having a different identity being forced upon him. 'Mr. Yoon' criticizes his every move for 'not being in character enough'. Other than that, Yoon-rai goes easy on him with the intention of saving him for last.

By the fifth year, they're all weaker, walls crumbling, and life draining. So why is it that so far, none of them have caved in at all?

Yoon-rai reflects. Okay, she hasn't exactly been taking this seriously—she's been having a lot of fun lately, in the human world. She has a few years left, so she needs to reel it in. What is keeping them together? Why haven't they caved in yet?

For a few months, she observes them more carefully than usual.

And so, she notices a couple of things, little things.

During game shows, when Romeo is getting overwhelmed, Abi places a hand on his shoulder. Or when Abi is about to faint during rehearsals, Bambino places a cold towel on his head and forces him to drink water. Or when 'Mr. Yoon' scolds Miseo, the others refuse to leave them alone.

They have grown closer, almost like brothers. They banter with each other, argue with each other, laugh with each other despite how miserable their lives are.

It's these little things that keep them from succumbing to shame. Small things, yet they make all the difference.

Yoon-rai dives deeper, searching in her memories for the full story of how their relationship has grown. She makes charts and graphs, a timeline of the past five years. She marks their behavioral changes towards each other, trying to view the full picture.

It isn't until she reviews Bambino's behavior again that she realizes.

Oh.

Bambino's behavior hasn't exactly changed much in the past five years. He still subtly glares at 'Mr. Yoon' with a hidden fury. If anything, Bambino has gotten better at sneaking around and rebelling against him; Yoon-rai knows about the secret excursions to get snacks—she knows how much Bambino talks shit about 'Mr. Yoon'.

Yoon-rai massages her temples, looking at the ceiling in both frustration and glee.

Bambino has kept his fiery spirit, and that is what fuels THURSDAY's hope.

All this time, Yoon-rai let her pride get in the way, wanting to 'save Bambino for last' when in reality, she should have gone for him first. Instead of trying to destroy the weakest link—Abi—she should've done so to the strongest link, letting the others crumble once the foundation has collapsed.

Yoon-rai turns the pressure up to the maximum for Bambino for the next year. She starts locking doors in their apartment, so there are no more secret excursions in the middle of the night. She starts replacing his wardrobe with more 'softer' clothes that Bambino definitely hates. 'Mr. Yoon' yells at him more, overwhelming him whenever his performance is less than perfect.

Though what gets Bambino to really crack is when he treats the others horribly. So, Abi is put on another impossible diet to gain more muscle than he already has, Romeo is constantly doing work with the fans, and Miseo encounters a suspicious amount of paparazzi in that year.

Bambino reaches his peak once 'Mr. Yoon' gives Romeo a loud scolding, being a little physically violent to him. Bambino's anger boils over, and Yoon-rai takes that chance to shatter him.

And she does.

She gives the signal to Father to make the deal—the first deal he has made with a human in over four centuries. She promises him that it will actually be worth it.

Bambino has withdrawn himself, has become a shell of himself, lost hope. There is nothing more satisfying to Yoon-rai than seeing this unfold. Now, the rest of the group no longer has its fuel.

Yoon-rai continues her relentless attack on the remaining three, maintaining the stream of pressure and torment.

The first to follow Bambino is Abi, unsurprisingly.

THURSDAY's world tour is starting soon. Yoon-rai knows exactly how to break the remaining two.

Yoon-rai double-checks that her luggage is complete before they depart for the hotel. She sees the hidden camera secured innocently in one of the pockets.

Miseo's biggest secret is about to be exposed to the world—of course, Yoon-rai knows about Zoey.

As for Romeo, she isn't quite sure, but she is confident that he won't last long as the remaining member. Natural selection.

This is the final push.

Then, she can go home.

7:49 PM

The first thing he feels is dirt on his skin—it's a dry type of soil that must've been deprived of moisture because it crumbles when his body shifts. He stares into a black sky without any stars...Should the sky have stars? He doesn't know. He doesn't remember.

The air is so foggy, it's almost eerie...like a horror movie.

Wait, what even is a horror movie? Why do those words belong in his vocabulary?

Why is he here?

Who is he?

He lies there on the hard ground for a minute, just thinking to himself and questioning his existence. He's a demon, he realizes, but he's not sure how he knows—he just does. He frowns, having an inkling that that's how it's going to be for many other things that he knows.

His eyes catch a glimmer of light, and he realizes that it isn't totally dark here. There's a faint light. It's pink and crackles every once in a while, like a fire...but it isn't warm at all. In fact, it's freezing cold.

He embraces himself to try and keep warm, but it's like he doesn't have any body heat.

"Awake, I see." A voice rings. It's feminine, with a slight crackle. It's a mature tone, but soothing at the same time. Gravel on honey.

Is she his creator? A goddess, perhaps?

He sits up, hands pressing against dry, dead soil that cracks under his pressure. He asks, "Did you create me?"

Getting to his feet, he can finally see her in full view. The pink, cold fire comes from her open palm, illuminating their surroundings.

The woman has long purple hair, half up in a neat bun, held in place with shiny, gold pins. Her bright, golden eyes shine with maturity, yet they're slightly...off-putting. She's also as tall as he is, he realizes when she stares at him at eye level.

Intricate patterns decorate her traditional-looking garments, some variation of a men's hanbok. Despite her clothing looking rather masculine, it suits her perfectly.

Woah! She looks like a fantasy video game character—wait. Again, with the weird vocabulary? He feels like he knows what it means, but at the same time, it feels like having that knowledge goes against his very nature.

"I'm Yoon-rai, and I did create you." She responds with a hint of a smile, graceful—absolutely beautiful.

Beauty.

That's an important word. Why it's important, he doesn't quite recall.

She turns around and starts walking away. "Follow me."

And so he does.

They walk downhill for a few minutes, through the thick fog. Visibility isn't very great, he realizes; Yoon-rai's pink fire is almost comforting.

Almost.

Everywhere they go, it's cold and dark. They're surrounded by a forest of dark trees that seem dead without their leaves. He thinks they're going down a mountain or a hill, perhaps—It's not as if he can see past fifty meters, or so, because of this thick fog.

"You've been created to serve Gwi-ma for a specific mission." Yoon-rai starts, confidence in her every step, while he follows close behind. "Gwi-ma is my father, the demon king."

He was created for the purpose of a mission?

"Well...my father doesn't know about the exact details of the plan, yet. Jinu insisted he wanted to wait for the right time to present the idea." She speaks mostly to herself, but he pays close attention.

Who's Jinu?

"I'll tell you about the mission another day, once all of you arrive. It'll save me the time."

All of us?

There are more? Is he the first one?

They eventually reach a dark lake at the bottom of the mountain, which he can actually sort of see now. The lake is still, empty, devoid of life. It's almost black, like an endless abyss, but it reflects perfectly.

He has a sudden urge to see his reflection.

Yoon-rai seems to know exactly what he's thinking. "Go ahead."

Instinctively, he marches over to see his reflection as if it's in his nature—like he needs to see himself.

He stares at his appearance from the serene water, searching, evaluating. His face is perfectly symmetrical, with captivating double-lidded, golden eyes and thick eyebrows that arch just right. His nose is long and slim, cheekbones high and sharp, as if he were sculpted out of marble by an artist.

His pink hair accentuates his features perfectly, swooping in all the right directions.

He roams his hand over his forearms, biceps, triceps, shoulders, chest—even his clavicle, inspecting how nicely the collarbone dips.

He feels his hard muscles with the little divots and valleys placed exactly where they should be.

He flexes his lats, feeling the left muscle with his right hand, pressing to confirm that it's firm enough. The hand travels to his flexed core muscles, grazing over their perfect shapes.

Dark marks also decorate his body—demon marks, painted all over his body, branching out like tree roots on his skin.

He stares at his body for what feels like hours, focusing on every little detail—every curve and corner.

Beautiful.

Perfect.

That's what he is—that's all he is...and he will be perfect forever.

He has to be.

"Done staring at yourself?" Yoon-rai asks. At first, she sounds mocking, but he sees her genuinely excited expression that suggests otherwise. "Here, some clothes."

She takes some black garments out of a satchel and throws them into his hands.

He was so busy staring at himself, he didn't feel ashamed of being naked in the first place. He takes the clothes with gratitude, anyway. He smiles at her, "Thank you."

"I'm gonna give you a name." She says, shifting her gaze to her sharp nails while he puts on his clothes.

"I would be honored, Yoon-rai."

She leans against a dead tree in silence, looking up as if contemplating. She smirks, as if suddenly having a splendid idea. "What about Abby?"

He can see on her face that she's struggling to keep laughter in. He's going to ignore that. He doesn't get the joke.

"Specifically spelled A-B-B-Y." She adds, trying to calm her laughter.

"...Sure?" He responds, genuinely confused. He doesn't understand why she would pick that spelling, explicitly.

He supposes it doesn't really bother him much. The name can grow on him.

Abby.

That's his name now, he supposes?

Somewhere in the distance, he hears a few dead trees rustling faintly—the sound of snapping wood. His head snaps to the sound, curious.

Could it be another demon?

On the other hand, he sees Yoon-rai composing herself into a steady stance. Naturally, he instinctively does the same, more wary than curious now.

A chaotic growl reaches his ears from the source of the sound. It sounds primal, with a chorus of vibrations that shake his core, but it isn't a uniform sound. In fact, it's far from it—frequencies of different noises, all at once.

Noises of different things, animals, people, all meshed together like a horrid symphony.

It's a terrifying sound.

Abby feels his insides go colder as the sounds get louder and louder. He can just about see the shape of the thing through the fog.

If he thought the noises it made were scary, its visuals multiply just how spine-chilling it is.

It's pitch black as the night with glowing pink veins stretching throughout its body. The pink veins pump every second—it's graphic, mortifying during each pulse.

Its limbs. Oh, goodness gracious. It's a mess of mangled limbs and body parts. There are multiple golden eyes placed almost randomly, blinking and looking straight at them. A mouth here, and an ear there. If it weren't for the bright pink veins spread out on its surface, he wouldn't be able to see those individual body parts because its skin is so black, it's as if it's absorbing all wavelengths of light.

It towers over him, twice his height.

Abby doesn't register it until a second later, but the thing leaps towards him; his heart drops to his stomach.

Before he's torn apart by the creature, chains yank it's body back, seemingly materialized out of nowhere.

The monster lets out a cacophony of unharmonized screeches occurring all at once.

He sees Yoon-rai's right hand flexing, somehow telepathically manipulating the chains to keep the beast in place. The metal tightens around it, with a pink glowing aura, similar to the flame she had in her palm moments before.

"This is what we call a rogue demon, Abby." Yoon-rai tells him, glancing at him with an excited gleam. "A mindless life form in the demon world."

With a hint of a smile, she walks calmly towards the monster while Abby stumbles backwards to get away.

Her hand reaches for the monster's skin, and there's a faint glow where they meet.

"What the—" Abby instinctively says, but the rest of his sentence is cut off by the squelching noise as her hand pushes past the monster's skin, breaking it open...

The monster screams.

Feeling slightly nauseous, Abby peeks at its insides through the crack Yoon-rai has made. It's glowing on the inside, bright pink rays of light peaking through the broken skin.

Yoon-rai's hand goes further until she's elbow-deep into the monster, causing Abby to grimace.

Yoon-rai's eyes widen slightly, but she's smiling. "Found you."

She retracts her arm from the monster in one swift motion. In her hand is a small, glowing, bright blue matter of some kind. It looks delicate and beautiful.

The monster starts disintegrating underneath Yoon-rai's chains, its cries being dimmed into a low, pitiful hum. Abby barely pays attention to it. He's fully focused on the light in Yoon-rai's hand.

"This is its soul." She whispers with a grin, bringing it closer. "Souls are where we get energy."

Abby nods, entranced by the fickle thing.

Yoon-rai uses her other hand to take a piece of the soul and inhale it into her body. The blue glow emanates through her body like a pulse for a few seconds.

She ate it, just like that.

She lifts her hand with the remaining piece and holds it to his face. "Eat."

He does.

He feels a small burst of nourishing energy, travelling throughout his frame. The power he feels from it isn't physical; it's a different kind of strength.

Could this be the energy source of Yoon-rai's...powers? Or demonic magic?

"This is tiny compared to a human soul." Yoon-rai explains.

He stares at her, still reeling from the wave of new energy he just experienced. "This is tiny?"

"Rogues only have a few wisps of their souls left." She tells him. "They used to be demons, like us, but have gone insane over the course of centuries. Now, they're—well, like that."

Abby suddenly feels sick to his stomach. Whatever he just ate was the soul of an entity that was once a spirit, or a demon, like him.

Yoon-rai seems to notice his unsettled face. "Don't feel bad. We demons need some source of energy. It's natural."

Her words do little to calm him, but he tries to swallow his worry down. She's right, after all—energy needs to come from somewhere.

"As I was saying, human souls are a lot more nourishing. My father, the king, consumes most of the human souls we get, though." She continues, dusting her clothes off. "Everyone else relies on rogues and sometimes, the king's leftovers."

He blinks at her.

"Plus, we have to fight off the rogues, anyway—they keep killing actual demons, and it can take months for them to regenerate." She adds, stretching her limbs. "At least that's how I remember it. It's been a while since I've been back."

Seems like the rogues are a total pain in the ass for demons, yet a blessing at the same time if it keeps them fed.

Yoon-rai starts walking closer towards him. "Listen, I've got more things to do to...help the others get here."

Right. There are others she...created?

Like him.

"I'm going to leave you with your new boss." She says, before grabbing his arm.

An energy surges through them both, and they are transported somewhere else in a burst of pink smoke.

New boss?...

He opens his eyes to a new location, no longer surrounded by the forest and the lake. Instead, he's on an empty hill, dead grass here and there.

Yoon-rai is no longer by his side, but a dark-haired man stands a few feet away from him, accompanied by a tiger and a crow.

Is that crow wearing a hat?

"Hello, Jinu, here."

Abby stands there in silence, still reeling at the fact that he was just left here with some...guy.

This is awkward.

---

8:20 PM

Romeo hears static in his ears, his head feeling stuffed with cotton. His body is suddenly rejecting the air, like he's forgotten how to breathe.

He feels exposed, vulnerable to the world. Years of denying his own identity, years of acting, and once he finally feels confident enough to think that—maybe—he can accept himself, the world slaps him in the face.

He just revealed his deepest, darkest secret to whoever was behind that camera. Besides his closest friends, nobody was supposed to know. If this gets out to the public—if they know that he's been deceiving them this whole time, they will eat him alive.

"Call the police."

He barely hears Miseo's words, but they register completely. He scrambles for his phone at record speed, taking it out of his pocket. He swiftly dials '112', watching how his fingers tremble when hovering over the screen.

He waits impatiently with the phone in his hands, shifting his weight from one leg to the other. No signal.

He redials.

"How do you turn this thing off?!" Miseo exclaims, a tremble in his voice.

Romeo starts feeling frustrated with his useless phone, shoving it back in his pocket and marching to his troubled friend.

"Fuck, give that thing here!" Romeo exhales, sounding harsher than he means to, but he can't help it—he can't calm down, he feels as if his whole life is at stake here. He takes the innocent-looking gadget from his friend's shaking hands. "Contact the police where there's signal."

Miseo walks swiftly with his phone in hand, and Romeo inspects the damned thing, looking for some sort of off-switch. Oh god, what if there are more in this hotel suite? In the bathrooms or the bedrooms—he feels bile creeping up his throat.

They should leave this suite immediately, Romeo decides. He needs to wake up Bino and Abi.

He hears the sound of a rattling doorknob and his head turns so fast to the entrance door, he nearly gets whiplash.

Miseo is rattling the doorknob with a phone in his other hand. "What the hell?"

Whatever Miseo does, the door doesn't open. Romeo puts the 'adaptor' on the table and tries his hand at opening the door, feeling a bit of adrenaline from the whole situation. It won't budge. "Shit."

They're now stuck in a hotel suite on the sixtieth floor that potentially has more hidden cameras. Wow, maybe the whole world is against him at the moment.

"There's no signal or wi-fi at all."

"What do you mean—you were literally texting her a few minutes ago—" Romeo spits back at Miseo without thinking.

"I know! And I don't know what's happening now, it—it just disappeared, I'm sorry!" His friend rambles, voice disheartened and wobbly.

Romeo backs down once he catches a glimpse of Miseo's eyes, shiny with unshed tears. Romeo yelled in a panic. They need to calm down—he needs to calm down, or else things are just gonna get worse.

He glances at the hidden camera that he left on the desk, suddenly reminded that there's a probability that he, as a person, will be a public scandal by morning. Right now, though, he needs to shove those worries aside and focus on what he can do right now.

He puts a wobbly hand on Miseo's shoulder, who's starting to hyperventilate. For a minute or two, they stay there by the door, hearing nothing but each other's breathing. Romeo feels Miseo slowly take deeper breaths.

Romeo takes his hand off the albino's shoulder and exhales a sigh. If he's not gonna lie, he still feels that panic and worry creeping up on him. "Don't apologize—I'm sorry I yelled."

"It's okay..." Miseo says.

"There might be more cameras. We need to wake the others." Romeo whispers as quietly as possible. "I'll get them." He says as he picks up the hidden camera, "And I'll take care of this. You call the hotel staff through the telephone."

Romeo points to the provided telephone. "If it doesn't work, who knows? Maybe Abi could break the door down."

Miseo gives a small smile at his attempted humor and nods.

They part, with Romeo marching to his room to take care of this goddamn camera. He puts it on the hotel's white duvet and folds its sheets over the camera in an attempt to minimize whatever sound it picks up. He shoves a couple of extra pillows on top just for good measure.

He leaves the room and closes the door shut, marching towards Bino's room down the suite's hallway. He keeps an eye open for any unusual-looking objects—maybe he can find another camera.

When he reaches Bino's room, something feels off. He knocks on the door. No answer.

He tries to open the door. Locked. What now?

"Bino!" He calls, shaking the doorknob and knocking on the surface. "Open the door, man! Are you kidding—this is an emergency!"

That guy cannot be sleeping right now. It's only twenty past eight. He pauses.

Right, Bino's been...like that, lately. Quiet, lifeless, listening to every word Mr. Yoon says with submissive compliancy, absolutely unlike his actual personality. Bino hated listening to Mr. Yoon.

In the past, Bino broke curfew often to do something idiotic, then get away with it, like stealing food from Mr. Yoon's office. Either that, or he stayed up arguing with Romeo over something stupid—it was all banter really; they bonded that way.

This Bino sleeps early every night, never falls for Romeo's rage bait, and keeps quiet all the time. Sounds like a complete wuss compared to who he used to be just a month prior.

Romeo finally bangs louder on the door, yelling, "Bino—you cannot be serious, right now!"

He groans frustratedly and turns away to go to Abi's door instead. He's seriously considering asking him to break a door down—and not the entrance door. Somebody needs to wake Bino up.

"Abi!" Romeo calls, knocking on the door. "It's an emergency!"

No answer.

Okay, what is happening?

"I'm coming in," Romeo warns before opening the door, expecting to see Abi sleeping soundly on the hotel bed. He finds nobody on the bed. "Abi?"

The room is completely empty, he realizes as he searches around with slight worry. Remain calm, Romeo. Maybe Abi's in the bathroom.

The door to the bathroom is wide open, and clearly, nobody is in there.

Romeo starts to panic. "Abi?!"

A million thoughts of worry run through his head, yet at the same time, he can't think of any possible explanation as to how this has happened. Romeo saw Abi go to his room to sleep, not even thirty minutes ago.

"Abi!" He yells, hoping that maybe his friend is just somewhere around the corner—that Romeo is just blind as hell.

He runs out of the room to check the hallways again, then to Miseo's room, then to his own room. He double-checks the living room, calling out for Abi.

He has to be somewhere in this suite, unless he jumped off the damn building.

"Romeo, the telephone isn't working." He hears Miseo say quietly, sounding utterly done.

Romeo feels his eye twitch. The world really is against them right now...or is all of this intentional? Did somebody break into their suite? Is somebody messing with them right now?

"Alright, very funny!" He yells out in frustration or insanity, or maybe both. He looks around in apprehension. "Pranks over!"

He vaguely registers the sound of Miseo attempting to open the door again and again. He gives up with an angered groan, massaging his temples in annoyance.

Romeo storms around the hotel suite two, three times—knocking on Bino's door, calling for Abi, looking for more hidden cameras.

Eventually, the adrenaline wears off and he's tired, frustrated, and scared—in fact, he's terrified. He collapses on the couch with Miseo, leaning forward to rest his head in his hands, feeling a headache coming. For all he knows, maybe his name is plastered on every idol gossip forum or show right now.

What the hell is he supposed to do?

He's spent years keeping this away, playing this role. They're going to hate him—Mr. Yoon is going to be absolutely enraged.

Who knows what he'll do?

"Romeo, at this point, Abi's probably in Bino's room." Miseo whispers.

"Why would he be in there?"

"I don't know," Miseo replies in a monotone. He stands up, taking out his hair tie and letting his white locks fall. "but I'm going to sleep."

"—What, how can you sleep in this situation?! No, because sure, this is the perfect time to be sleeping." Romeo sarcastically exclaims, sort of hurt that this doesn't seem serious to his friend. Their reputations, his life—it feels like—is on the line, here.

Miseo swivels around to face him. "It's...it's not that this doesn't scare me, because it does. You saw me earlier."

Romeo looks away at the thought of his friend's panic attack an hour prior.

"I know this is scarier for you than it is for me, but we've been on a rampage for the past hour, and nothing has changed." Miseo continues, fidgeting with his sleeve. "We need to rest."

"But..."

"They'll have to pick us up in the morning to go to the concert venue." Miseo tells him in a whisper. "We aren't going to be stuck here forever. Right now, we need to sleep and worry about it tomorrow."

Romeo is feeling sleepy.

"Everything is going to be okay."

Right. Abi probably is in Bino's room for whatever reason, and tomorrow, their manager team will realize something's wrong. Then, somebody will check on them and find that they're locked in here. The hotel staff will unlock the door, and they can tell them about the hidden camera, then the police will take care of it.

Yeah, it's gonna be fine.

They'll be fine—it's not like anything bad is actually gonna happen. He's overthinking; their lives will totally carry on the next day.

Totally.

Miseo starts walking towards his room.

"Wait." The words come out of his mouth faster than he can think. Miseo turns back to face him again.

"Could we...just sleep in the living room?" Romeo asks, sort of embarrassed. He fails to meet the other's gaze. He attempts to play it off, "I mean—what if the hotel staff realized something was wrong? We should both be here to open the door as soon as possible."

That was a bullshit excuse, and he knows it.

I'm scared, he fails to say.

Miseo exhales with a smile. "Okay."

They give each other ample room on the spacious couch of the suite. They're far from each other, on opposite ends, yet they take comfort in each other's presence. Everything is silent, save for the sound of the rushing air-conditioner and their breathing.

Within the first ten minutes, Romeo can tell the other has fallen asleep from the sound of his soft snoring. If it had been any other of their 'rule-breaking' sleepovers, he would've laughed about it with Bino and Abi.

This time, however, he finds solace in it. This solace, however, isn't enough to ease his racing thoughts as he tries to fall asleep.

He tosses and turns, constantly thinking about his public image, Mr. Yoon, and his fans. Maybe, his parents will call him for the first time in a long time, just to scold him about his failed reputation and how it's brought down their social credit, too. He can just picture it now.

He's totally exhausted, but his mind keeps running. He tosses and turns on the couch, gets a sip of water, uses the restroom, rinse and repeat. His body wants to sleep, so terribly, but it feels like his brain is on survival-mode, constantly on guard.

It's eleven pm. He's wide awake on the couch when the television screen suddenly turns on, its bright lights blinding him. He squints his eyes at the screen, but it's glitched with all sorts of colors, sound snapping in and out. He hears Miseo shift from the other side of the couch.

Wait, how did it even turn on? Is it broken?

Romeo slowly sits up as the screen's display slowly starts becoming clearer. The audio becomes coherent enough—he hears a professional voice, speaking without emotion, sounding like a news anchor.

He rubs his eyes to adjust. Wait, that is a news anchor, he realizes as the screen finally becomes clear.

Why is his face on the news?

"—THURSDAY footage released from an unknown source showing—"

No.

"—Miseo and Romeo's conversation—"

No...

"—Miseo has been involved in a potentially long-term relationship with a woman named Zoey, who fans have speculated to be HUNTR/X's Zoey. However, this is only the first THURSDAY scandal, tonight. Romeo, on the other hand—"

He stares at the screen, unable to move or look away.

"—has come out as homosexual—"

It's over for him.

"Shit." He swears, barely noticing the sound of Miseo waking up. Romeo can hear his heartbeat in his ears, "Ah, shit."

"—fans have expressed their disapproval, claiming that they have been, quote on quote, betrayed—"

"Oh," Miseo says from beside him, voice crackly from just waking up. He sits upright, staring at the screen just like Romeo.

Everything's totally gonna be fine! What an idiot Romeo was for thinking that.

He doesn't even question how the television turned on in the first place. That's now the least of his worries. So, when the screen changes channels out of nowhere, he doesn't feel surprised.

He's quite thankful, really, because the next channel surely isn't covering the same topic.

"—the latest scandal involving THURSDAY members—"

Wow! Wrong again.

Okay, where's the remote? He doesn't want to listen to this anymore, and Miseo probably doesn't want to either.

The remote is nowhere to be found.

But that's impossible, Romeo mentally reasons with himself. He remembers the remote being right there on the table before they turned off the lights.

The screen shifts to a group of young civilian women in public, near a bar. One is being interviewed. "—He likes men, fine—pop off, king. Yet out of the four members of THURSDAY, he has always flirted or talked about women in a romantic light, you know? Tell me how that makes sense."

Another one of the girls pitches in. "The fact that he just played his fans like that. Seriously, what the heck?—why would he lie?"

No, no. He didn't mean to lie. It was what he was ordered to do.

"They don't know anything," Miseo argued, walking up to the TV and attempting to turn it off manually.

Romeo doesn't listen to his friend. He's only focused on what they have to say.

The channel changes it again, and the topic is still about him—the THURSDAY scandal. "Some fans have decided to resell their concert tickets last minute. ZYE Entertainment has yet to come up with a statement."

Mr. Yoon.

Shit. Oh, he's so dead.

This is the type of shit Mr. Yoon would lock him in a room for. Or maybe, he'll have to release a statement denying everything—which he has no problem doing, but Mr. Yoon is definitely going to fill up his schedule with more fan meets and staged livestreams to try to reconnect with fans. Oh god, is he going to have to do this all while the world tour is happening? Most likely.

Social exhaustion.

Physical exhaustion.

Fans either yelling at him in anger or trying to grab a piece of him.

Sleepless nights.

The channel changes again. They're still talking about him. Why is everybody talking about him—oh right, because his personal life belongs to the public.

"—never expected him to be such a liar—"

No.

"—what a fraud—"

He can't listen to this anymore. Why hasn't Miseo turned it off yet?

"—The betrayal is real—"

He needs to leave. Then, one comment really hits him.

"I just don't want children to listen to their music anymore—what if my kid ends up...you know?"

This whole time, Romeo has been focusing on the backlash regarding his lies. He realizes, again, that those lies were necessary to cover up the truth because the truth is ugly. Nobody likes the truth, and it's his responsibility to please people—to give them what they want.

He locks himself in the bathroom, ignoring Miseo's words of concern. He leans forward on the sink, looking at his reflection.

His eye bags are messy, with his dark hair all over the place. There are tears in his eyes that he hasn't noticed until now.

His identity is wrong. All wrong. Whatever divine power created him clearly made a miscalculation.

But he can still fix this, can't he? He can give a statement, reconnect with the fans—he'll do anything!

"But it won't change you." A voice whispers in his ear.

Perhaps he's going insane, but the voice is right.

He will stay stuck forever, giving his entire decorated life to this industry, to the fans—to people he doesn't even know. He will give his life, painted over with pretty colors to hide the distasteful colors of his true self.

He wishes that the lies were the truth.

"Is that what you want?"

"More than anything."

---

11:25 PM

Miseo worriedly calls after his friend when he locks himself in the bathroom. Images of Romeo's mortified expression flash through his mind, and he stares at the bathroom door with guilt for not being much help at all.

He swears under his breath, turning around and glaring at the television screen with frustration. How did it turn on, anyway? And where was the remote?

Miseo walks away from the locked bathroom door, deciding to give Romeo some probably much-needed space.

Slumping back down on the couch, he stares at the bright television screen where they announce the latest K-pop scandal to the world, of which they are the subjects. However, the criticism is much harsher on Romeo.

The past—maybe, three to four hours have been hell. It's as if they're living in a simulation, and whoever has the controls keeps making this night worse for whatever reason.

He's currently in a panic, and he knows Zoey might be, too. Though both of their anxiety surely can't compare to that of Romeo's. He puts his aching head in his hands, trying to come up with a solution—or something that could help their situation in any little way.

Perhaps, he should try opening the front door again or contacting somebody. The television is showcasing channels, after all. So, the signal should be working.

He stays sitting on the couch for a minute. He should wait for Romeo to come out of the bathroom and calm down before he takes action. He needs to be there for his friend first.

He fidgets with the hair tie around his wrist and decides to tie his hair half-up, like he usually does. After all, it'll be difficult to properly comfort Romeo if Miseo's busy getting agitated by his own hair attacking his eyes.

His ears pick up more comments about the 'scandal'; he has half the mind to throw the television out of the window. He tried to press the manual power button to turn it off, but it wouldn't work. He even tried unplugging it—it's absolutely ridiculous.

One of the fans currently being interviewed on the screen starts laughing about the whole predicament.

Miseo's eyes darken. He starts walking towards the sickening screen of the television, but before he can punch its lights out like a maniac, it just turns off.

What.

He blinks.

Yes, the screen is dark. It just turned off, on its own, but maybe he shouldn't be surprised anymore. Supernatural television screens are at the bottom of his priority list, at the moment.

But his eyes feel a lot better at the lack of a glaring screen, he realizes, as he stands in front of the inanimate object that had previously caused him so much anger.

He rubs his eyes, grateful for a bit of peace. The room is currently pitch dark without the television light; there isn't even any light slipping through the gaps of the bathroom door. Romeo's in there, maybe trying to unwind in the comfort of the dark, too.

Maybe a little light wouldn't hurt.

He's about to open the curtains to let some of the city lights in, but it registers that it may not be a good idea. Goodness knows that Romeo doesn't need the view of a city that's talking about him, right now.

He opts to turn on one of the hotel lamps instead, basking in its soft light.

He hears the click of the doorknob.

Romeo's cooled off, already? That was quick.

In a split second, he realizes that the sound is coming not from the bathroom, but from the front door adjacent to it.

His eyes open wide with hope. Has somebody realized that something was wrong with their hotel suite?

The door creaks open, and from the living room, Miseo sees the rays of light from the hotel's hallway cracking through the open door. Victory has never tasted this sweet.

"What did you do?"

The words make his throat freeze up, but his heart skips a beat at her voice.

The door fully opens, revealing the love of his life standing at the doorway, dressed in the dazzling outfit she wore at her most recent concert...which was all the way in America. So, how is she here?

Nevertheless, he feels ecstatic to see her in person after months of long-distance, yet at the same time, his heart drops to his stomach at her tone and facial expression.

She looks absolutely livid.

Beautiful, but livid. In fact, he thinks that this is the angriest she's ever been at him. She doesn't even look like herself.

Miseo finally gathers his thoughts, and shame pools in his heart. Zoey must be under a bit of fire right now, too. People are speculating that the 'Zoey' he was talking about in the footage is HUNTR/X's Zoey.

"Zo..." He tries, stumbling towards her, frantically, because the guilt he feels at the moment isn't as powerful as his yearning for her. "I've missed you."

Right as his hands reach for her, they're slapped away. "Don't."

His eyes water slightly at her actions and words. He's had a rough night, having been through the most stressful events. He's been turned into a shipwreck of emotions.

Every second that his gaze meets her rage-filled eyes, his soul is plunged deeper into cold water.

"Zo, please let me explain—"

"—Why?" She cuts him off, crossing her arms, less in an angry manner but almost protectively. "Why would you expose us, like that?"

"Zoey, I didn't mean to—I didn't even know we were being recorded, it was a hidden camera."

"That doesn't change anything." She replies, unable to look him in the eyes, and that just breaks his heart further. "It still affected me—affected HUNTR/X. Celine and Ms. Baek are infuriated with me."

Miseo stares at her, a rapid heartbeat in his ears. There's nothing he can say, but he manages to say, "I'm sorry."

"Sorry doesn't change anything, either." She says.

If Miseo was telling the truth, it seems unlikely for her to confront him like this. Usually, when Zoey is upset, she's like a quiet, dark raincloud. Then, Miseo asks her what's wrong, and they talk it out. She's never been this confrontational, but she's never been this angry, either.

Perhaps, the situation is so terrible that it's forced her out of her comfort zone. He really messed up.

He finds that he's unable to look her in the eyes, staring at the dimly lit floor instead.

"Do you have any idea of how much..."

Her words turn to mush in his ears, head pounding with regret and shame.

All of a sudden, he feels fourteen years old, being yelled at by his parents without being able to speak back to them. Being subjugated to spend all his efforts into training to become the perfect idol—practicing every day not with passion, but with a need to fit into a mold that was carved out just for him.

He was aware that these contracts don't last seven years, but rather a lifetime. There's no escaping. His life would never be the same, and he'd never be truly happy.

He found that being with the people he loved most—Zoey, Bino, Abi, Romeo—made his life more bearable. In those days, he felt like he deserved to be happy, despite the life he ended up living.

In a sea of darkness, these people ended up as little lighthouses in his life that fueled his happiness. And after a while, he was finally convinced that maybe everybody deserves a chance to be happy, including somebody like him.

"I think it's time to end this."

And he's brought back to reality so quickly, it gives him whiplash. He blinks, and those tears finally fall. He feels his eyes widen. "What?"

Zoey had been yelling for the last five minutes, and those words were what snapped him back.

"Zoey..." He whispers, but whatever he can say is probably futile. "Think about this..."

"I wanna marry her—that's what you said on video, right?" She snaps back. "How delusional are you?"

He wasn't being delusional; he was being serious. He wants to spend the rest of his life with her. "I'm not—"

"—Yes, you are, okay?!" She argues, looking frustrated. "Did you ever stop to think about how it would actually work?"

His hands reach out to grab her shoulders. "Zo, we'll just think of a plan like we always do."

After all, they never got caught during the entire three years they've been together.

His hands touch her shoulders for a second. They don't feel quite right—Zoey's shoulders are a bit more toned than this—firmer, but it doesn't matter. He can't focus on that right now.

Zoey shoves him back with so much force, his hip hits the corner of a table. He stabilizes himself in shock, grabbing the table's edge behind him.

"We shouldn't have been together in the first place." She mutters, but it's loud enough for him to hear.

It feels like he can't breathe.

"It was a lost cause from the beginning." She continues, slowly walking towards him until she's a centimeter away, staring hard at him.

Miseo tries to breathe, frozen like a deer in headlights at the sight of her hard gaze. He's so badly fixated, it's like he's hallucinating what seems to be a golden glint in her eyes. He must be going insane, but he's desperate enough to say something in a last-ditch effort.

"I wanted..."

Her disgusted stare doesn't falter, but neither does he.

"to marry you."

His hands grip the edge of the table tightly.

"And maybe start a garden, grow an orange tree."

"People like us..." She starts, indifferent to his words. "don't get to live like that."

Miseo's tears keep falling.

When he first got Zoey's handwritten letter, he was unsure if he wanted to start something with her. He was scared because relationships like that weren't something he was allowed to pursue. He remembers Bino's words.

We deserve to live, too.

Zoey's unfeeling expression is blurry to him through the tears. He musters up the voice to shakily sound out, "We deserve to live, too."

He's leaning against the table so much, that the lamp's wiring is threatening to unplug itself from the wall.

"We were never meant to."

The lamp's light suddenly goes dark, electricity cut off.

He can no longer see her face.

---

11:50 PM

He's aware that the door to his hotel bedroom has been locked for hours.

The past few weeks have been blurry, but if he was being honest, it's been peaceful—it's like his body is on autopilot, every day. He's just breezing through everything without much fight, following whatever Mr. Yoon tells him, keeping quiet most of the time.

But the marks have gotten worse, growing ever so slowly.

Bino stares at his bare self through a foggy reflection of a bathroom mirror. Glowing, pink cracks on his skin, all over his body. It's on the verge of reaching his jaw, and soon, the marks will adorn his face.

Is it a bad thing, though? He's been asking himself that question, and he always tells himself that it isn't, even though there's a part of him that knows those marks are wrong—that he feels wrong.

He hates to admit that he feels conflicted. On one hand, he's never felt this much serenity before. He feels floaty, all the time, like he's high on something. On the other hand, he thinks hard about how sad his friends have been looking at him lately.

He thinks about how he feels a small fighting spark in his soul when he sees them suffer. An incentive to fight.

Not a flame.

But a spark that never fully ignites.

It fizzles out, soon enough, but it's something.

He's been staring at the mirror for hours, just trying to find that spark again, but he just can't.

He looks down at his hands tinged with those pink marks and feels the heavy presence of Gwi-ma in his mind.

"I'll acknowledge that your soul is strong." The demon voices, a tingle in Bino's ear. "But I know you."

Gwi-ma does know Bino.

Bino doesn't know what to think of him. Is he Bino's savior or defeat? The lines bleed into each other.

"Why don't you go talk to your friends?"

Although sluggish, he straightens at the mention of them. He has a bad feeling about Gwi-ma's tone of voice—the 'rocks sinking in your stomach' kind of feeling.

He puts on some nightwear and finally leaves the bathroom.

It's nearly midnight.

They have a show tomorrow, but he isn't asleep. He couldn't fall asleep at all, but he's been needing less and less sleep, anyway.

The others must be knocked out, by now, he thinks as he steps into the suite hallway.

Abi's door is open.

Bino's brows furrow, ever so slightly. He peers into the crack of the door, looking for the other.

The bed is empty, and the bathroom door is also wide open.

He walks out and checks the other rooms.

Miseo's room, empty.

Romeo's room, empty, but there's a suspicious pile of blankets and pillows in one area of the bed.

Bino digs through the pile, with a muted sense of worry. His hand touches something smooth and hard; he takes what seems to be an electronic adaptor out of the pile.

He doesn't waste his time with the object and moves on.

Where are they?

Suddenly, that spark is back—the worry, the need to protect them.

Where are they?

He storms into the living room, uncaring about the pitch darkness. He simply turns on the main light switch, illuminating the entire area.

Zoey sits on the couch, leaning back with a smug grin. Her expression is so unlike her that he has to do a double-take.

"What—"

Her eyes twinkle with a golden light, and her body shifts into a taller, purple-haired woman in a burst of smoke. "Looking for someone?"

What the fuck is happening? She just—that's not Moose.

His sense of danger is heightened. "What are you? What did you do to them?"

She must be another demon, like Gwi-ma. Is she here to make a deal like he did?

She stands up and grins at him with sharp teeth. "They've been turned by Gwi-ma. Fully transformed, unlike you, but you will be."

Her shoes clack against the floor, and she stands tall, looking down on Bino. He glares at her.

"What do you mean? Where are they, then?"

She smiles at him with malice. "You know, it's been weeks and the marks haven't fully consumed you yet."

She's right.

It's almost been a month since he made the deal. He was so tired of fighting that he accepted Gwi-ma without a second thought. The marks slowly grew, but he had welcomed them. After all, he was at peace, his will to fight taken away. He didn't have any complaints about what it implied once the marks complete him—once they reach his face.

He stands, frozen, as her sharp nails dig into his shoulder and she bends to speak into his ear. "The others' marks consumed them, immediately."

All of a sudden, he's against what the demon marks imply. Were they eaten? Forced to devote themselves to Gwi-ma?

"No..." He hears himself mutter.

"Something else was keeping your soul from fully breaking—it's like you were in a state of limbo."

The pink smoke returns in a puff, and the hand on his shoulder feels different. The grip feels lighter, and the hand feels a little wrinkled. His eyes widen.

It can't be.

"Maybe I got you to crack—maybe I snuffed out your flame." He says, with that tell-tale raspy throat of Mr. Yoon. "But it seems the matchstick was still there."

He backs away from Bino, who looks back at the old man in horror.

"Perhaps your true downfall isn't the conflict you feel about yourself ."

Where are they?

"It's being unable to keep them safe."

He hears the click-clack of Mr. Yoon's cane as he walks around him. The wooden cane hits the back of his knees, and he falls, but he doesn't resist. He doesn't even look at the man.

"For years, you were able to. To some extent." Bino hears him say. "You were like a fire that fueled them—the foundation of their sanity, their happiness, their safety."

Bino stares at his hands, feeling nothing but shame. The marks crawl, slow and unforgiving, up his jaw, cupping his cheek.

"And well, you let your guard down, and they were taken."

It's all his fault.

They're gone.

"You know what's hilarious?" Mr. Yoon—or rather—the demon asks rhetorically. "I originally wanted to save you for last, but then ended up having to break you first so that the others could fall like dominoes."

The demon's hand tilts his chin upwards, forcing Bino to look it in the eye.

"It worked out for me, in the end. You were still saved for last."

The marks finally reach his face.

12:00 AM

Well, finally.

Yoon-rai stretches.

All four are accounted for.

She's just going to dump this all on Jinu, and take off for the next couple of years or so. She seriously needs a vacation.