Hollywood, California, USA
Rowan gently kicked at the unconscious body near his feet. Not a breath or moan escaped her blanched frame. After a few seconds of staring, he decided she most likely wasn't going to move again. And that was unfortunate, because he hadn't planned on killing her so easily.
He'd only cut her once underneath the collarbone. Sure, the wound was pretty deep, but he'd seen other humans find the strength to crawl on all fours away from him. At least drag their bodies a few inches towards an escape. She didn't fight back. Barely even landed a hit on him.
Then again, he was slightly disappointed and not. Humans were so fragile, and after that uneventful scuffle she didn't even have a pure heart. At least she was pretty.
Smacking lips sounded from behind Rowan. He turned to find Vanity gaping at the dead girl. "Oh my god, is that Tae Yi-Jin?"
Rowan shrugged. "It was."
"Asshole. You should have at least let me get an autograph first." She rolled her eyes, leaning on the red velvet wall of the Chinese Theater. When she hiked her leg up to put her heeled feet on the wallpaper, he blinked at the amount of thigh that greeted him.
"This isn't an underground club, Vanity."
She gave him the middle finger, playfully running a manicured hand over her bare skin. "It isn't church either."
"And you wonder why you're still single." Rowan fished a handkerchief from the breast pocket of his suit and wiped his hands. The blood was having a hard time coming off. "What do you want from me?"
"Remind me to kill you, please." She lifted off the wall and let her full lips pout. "I'm tired of traveling, Rowan. We never stay in one place and you haven't come any closer to finding the right person. We're wasting time acting like tourists."
Tourists didn't murder up and coming celebrities with a more-than-impressive security entourage, but he let the jab slide. "The type of human I need is extremely rare. It's like searching for a lamb in a herd of sheep. This planet is surprisingly large for such an old, dusty rock and I won't miss a country because you want to pretend to be a normal girl in Seoul."
Her upturned, feline eyes narrowed, one long, golden leg stomping out in refutation. "This isn't about me. Every time you guess wrong on who has a pure heart, the other side has more time to act."
"They wouldn't act even if they wanted to. I trained them better than that. The end is coming and it's a matter of time before they bow and surrender." He waved her concerns off with a flippant hand, detecting clicking shutters of flashing cameras and excited chatter filtering into the theater downstairs. The movie was going to begin soon, and the audience would wonder about their leading sweetheart most likely in the next few minutes. He tucked the handkerchief back into its place until it was no longer visible. "Spare me the rest of the lecture , Van. Whenever you give me this speech its because you miss one of your lovers."
"I can barely count the ones that are still alive on one hand. Take us home, Row." She must have heard the crowd moving the party into the lobby too, because she lowered her voice like she could be found--like she could actually be caught.
Rowan began connecting the dots as he considered Vanity's recent behavior. She'd been sassier than usual, touchier--literally and figuratively. It was easy to piss her off and a lot of mortals suffered because of it. For her to rampage like this... "Wait, I know. Someone's made you jealous."
She twirled a strand of dark red hair around her slender finger. "Don't make fun of me. What's mine is mine. We should probably go somewhere else," she scrunched her nose at the dead actress, "before someone finds us."
So paranoid. Rowan rolled his eyes. "Whoever finds us dies next. Just spit your problem out already."
"The irkans tell me some human girl keeps going to KSJ at night."
Rowan wished it was Vanity on the floor before him rather than Tae Yi-Jin. "One of your little boyfriends is moving on? You found me for that?"
"She has no business there! And she probably feels entitled to that place because there's no one to keep her in line."
He held up a hand for her to be silenced. "I'm not going to argue with you. Send soldiers after her if it kills you inside this much. My army is your army."
She clasped her hands together beneath her chin. "I knew you'd understand."
"I don't care. Tell them to kill one of those damn angels too while they're at it."
He didn't hear Vanity disappear, but felt it as one would feel a draft passing by their face. While his right hand general busied herself with such stupid things, he would continue his quest elsewhere. He was still missing the right human and Tae Yi-Jin was as dead as her acting career.
Who in their right mind would try to turn Hwarang into a movie? It was fine as a show.
:::
Seoul, South Korea
A tight blend of carnations, peonies, and roses rested in a glass vase on the only available shelf space in Amelia's hospital suite. In the pale sunlight, the vivacious reds and pinks wound together to appear more like a heart of flowers than an average bouquet. A very stunning combination of flora if Grey had a say in it. After all, she chose them.
They collected morning light while she held Amelia's good hand and watched TV. Her friend's skin was warm and inviting, and at times she fought the urge to curl up and sleep right next to her. She barely managed to shut her eyes last night in the new bedroom. The design of it was so her, and yet none of it felt like hers. She was a stranger in her new home.
A news alert interrupted the episode of Hwarang she had just been glued to. Grey grabbed the remote with her free hand and turned up the volume as the news anchor appeared on screen.
"As of this morning, young actress Tae Yi-Jin was found dead in Hollywood's Chinese Theater. While she is a South Korean actress, North American officials are reviewing the case and working closely with Seoul's Police Department to help figure out the facts of the case. A memorial is being held sometime later today. More details on the location and time will arrive soon."
No way. Grey looked at Amelia--and caught herself. She couldn't wake her friend up to share the news. Tae Yi-Jin was Amelia's favorite actress, and to have her pass away while her biggest fan wasn't able to know was tough luck. Grey contemplated how to tell her when she woke up.
"Isn't she in that new movie coming out?"
Grey startled, dropping Amelia's hand and almost breaking her neck to peek at the threshold. Taehyung blinked twice, one hand bent at the elbow and lazily pointing to the screen. His dark hair was ruffled from the outside wind, his blue eyes reflecting that plummeting temperature.
"Yeah," Grey relaxed, gripping onto Amelia once again trying to catch her breath. She didn't even hear his approach. "Looks like she was murdered."
He huffed air from his cheeks, making them inflate momentarily. "I really wanted to see that movie."
"The movie is out. She's just dead." She thought the sentence over as soon as she said it. Try to be more morbid than that, Grey.
Taehyung lifted a paper bag in his other hand. The smell of fish and rice circulated the hospital suite. Her stomach growled instantly, and in an attempt to cover the sound she coughed. The angel raised his eyebrows.
"You didn't eat breakfast this morning. Seems like you need it."
Her mouth watered as he placed the bag at her feet. When he backed away, she caught another whiff of the rain scent on him. "You really brought that for me?"
"No, I brought it for everyone not named Grey. Eat up."
She giggled, tearing through the bag and groaning when she ripped the top off the container. At first bite, the salmon melted on her tongue and the rice warmed her mouth, perfectly seasoned. That taste was all she needed. Forkful after forkful, she shoveled the breakfast down and when she was running out of rice at last, she used her silverware to scrape it off the ends of her plate.
She wiped at the corners of her lips with the napkin, deciding to turn the TV down when another drama came on. Dropping the container back into the paper bag, she sank into the new episode.
The bag crinkled by her side. She jumped again when she found Taehyung at her side, folding the package back up. His deep chuckle would probably echo in her dreams tonight. "If you're this easy to occupy then this won't be bad."
Grey shrugged. "What can I say, I like to eat."
"Me too. It's when I feel happiest." He discarded the bag in the trash can.
"Thank you," she said.
"No problem." He settled into a seat behind her, disappearing into the background. She really wanted to catch this show, but she didn't want him to feel so isolated. So, she draped an arm over the back of her chair and turned to him. He fearlessly locked eyes with her.
"Are you watching me today?"
He shook his head. "It's not my turn yet."
So did that mean he was just here?
"Who's turn is it?"
"If we do a good job, you'll never know. We decided to take different shifts so it will rotate between members at different times or sometimes on different days. We don't want you to feel stalked by us too."
She nodded, unsure of what to think about his visit. The confusion must have been evident on her face because he awkwardly crossed one leg over the other and stared at the bouquet rather than her. His husky voice was low as he muttered, "I stopped by just to talk. The others seem to know you better than I do."
Wow. What did she do to deserve this? She brushed a stray curl behind her ear, trying to not seem so... obvious.
"Um, my cat really loved the starflakes you recommended. Do you like animals?" An average conversation starter at best, but it was better than staring at him the entire time; though, she could do that too.
His face lit up a tad. "I love them. Sometimes I like being around them more than I do people."
"Maybe you can meet my cat! I haven't seen her since I moved in, but she'll find where I am."
"I'll meet your cat. It should get along with the one we have at home."
Grey raised an eyebrow, excited at the thought of Luca actually rolling around with another kitten. She could see it now, her white paws pinning down a new friend and then that new friend switching spots with her. The image was more than cute, but when she became a bit more realistic, she drew another idea: Luca sitting on her plush bed lecturing the poor animal to death.
"Mine is a bit boring." Talks a lot. Too much, really. Good for passive-aggressive burns and making heads explode.
He kindly smiled. "Ours is a pain in the butt, so it should be a perfect match."
"I probably should have brought her bed and all her stuff. Come to think of it, I should have brought my stuff. I can't start work tomorrow like this," she lifted her arms to show off the fuzzy sweater she wore last night. His eyes widened as though a lightbulb went off in his head.
"I almost forgot," he fished through the pockets of his long coat and pulled out two objects. Leaving one of them in his lap, he extended his palm to show her a silver ring with a clear diamond, a round and beaming shimmering teardrop surrounded by smaller crystals. A wedding ring. A freaking wedding ring.
"I need you to take this."
Taken aback, Grey leaned away from the back of the seat, away from the gorgeous trinket.
"Me? Take that?"
He held it between two fingers and beckoned for her hand with his free one. But they'd just met. She hadn't even been in the house for half a day. And she was very sure something was wrong with this picture.
She opened her mouth to protest, not surprised with herself at all when nothing came out. After a mental struggle, she finally thought of a legitimate reason to decline, but he took the hand that she draped over the chair and drew it towards him. His touch was diligent, purposeful. She unintentionally huffed as her chest pressed against the seat.
The ring slid onto her finger like it'd been there for years. Blotches of sapphire blue spread from the center of the diamond until the entire gem turned a rich shade. She gasped at the new color, at how the band itself practically glittered a whitish silver.
"It's beautiful," she breathed. "And it changed colors!"
"It's yours now," he smiled at it, tilting her hand from side to side to watch it sparkle. "It's an aura ring. This will absorb most of the pure heart aura you give off. You won't be detected as easily around the street."
Taehyung continued, "It also keeps track of you. The gem changes with the way you feel, and the band changes with how pure your heart is."
She flexed her fingers and relaxed, just then realizing that he still held her hand. She didn't pull away, but prayed that he couldn't hear her heart beating out of her ears. The sapphire swirled and drained in the center, revealing a dark red with overtones of purple. Not quite a ruby, but more like a garnet or shaded magenta.
"What does that mean?"
He smirked, not bothering to let her go. "Passion."
She yanked her hand away, putting it in her lap. "Passion? What's that supposed to mean?"
"It can be anger, it can be feelings of adoration, lust. Anything that gets your blood rushing."
"I'm sorry if that made you uncomfortable, I don't want you to think--,"
He chuckled. "It's our secret."
What she would give to switch places with Amelia. In the back of her head, her best friend's ghostly laughter ripped her dignity to shreds.
"You have something else for me," she gestured towards his lap. Bemused, he picked up a thin black card and twirled it between his fingers. When it glinted in the sunlight, her mouth went dry.
"This is your new debit card. Jin made you an account at our bank so that he can pay you for work." He handed her the sleek, black card. She turned it over in her hands. In gold lettering, the logo read: KIM SEOKJIN INDUSTRIES.
"We should get to the mall now. We have a lot to do."
"Seriously?" The card was heavier than it should have been in her palm. Then again, it wasn't like she had ever held this much money at once in her life. She didn't need to know the exact amount to understand that she was worth as much as this piece of well-made plastic.
"We need to fill your closet and I have good style so I can help."
He did have exceptional style...
Grey got up from her seat and he pushed it next to the door. Before leaving, she kissed Amelia on the forehead. He signaled for her to lead the way out of the hospital. As they trekked through the parking lot, Taehyung pressed the car alarm button on his keys. A four-door black Jeep Wrangler unlocked a few feet away. He opened her door and helped her climb in. The smell of pine hit her instantly.
He slipped on a pair of black sunglasses and glanced at her while he peeled away. "Do you like Gucci?"
She hid her ring, knowing it was turning shades way deeper than pink. "Yeah."
He tongued the inside of his cheek, grinning to himself.
:::
She had never been to this mall. Midday sunlight, amber and warm, seeped from skylight ceilings onto polished tile floors turning the entire three levels of the shopping center gold. Potted palm trees lined the storefronts, and where kiosks typically camped out in the center of the walkway, there were pits of flowers and sprouting waterfalls.
Taehyung matched her pace, sunglasses pushed onto the top of of his head. She didn't bother to sneak glances at the brand names. Instead, she twirled left and right to drink them all in. Not only their names, but the implications of their price tags.
Louis Vuitton, Balenciaga, Chanel...
Sweet, sweet perfume floated from that store in particular, the French exterior and wide glass windows displaying the light pink, black, and white ensembles hanging on racks. A few women lingered in different areas, but there was never a clusterâand that helped her notice something elseâthere weren't a lot of people. Some swept up and down the walkways, some lounged by the fountains or the Godiva chocolate store, but she and him were basically alone.
Humming her own tune, she went back to observing stores and suddenly forgot how to walk as a black and white photo taller than Taehyung flirtatiously smirked at her. Her hand shakily raised, one finger pointing to the abnormally large face of Park Jimin. Clad in a heavy black coat and leaning against an expensive looking gate, his dark eyes were haunted and yet full of... lust? Grey covered her mouth, somehow feeling like he was undressing her in the middle of the mall. To make it worse, the ring rippled with pink. She decided to gawk without covering her mouth instead.
"Oh, yeah. He's a model," Taehyung said, smiling a tad at his friend. "He always does so good with photos."
She noticed the designer logo by his head. Prada.
Good. God.
"You're drooling, Grey." Taehyung's exotic voice sure brought her out of it. She blinked at him, at the man in the picture, at her escort again. He softly nudged her to keep walking with his shoulder, and she obeyed with cheeks that were still on fire. "He is very handsome. I always tell him he's so gifted."
Gifted wasn't the only word for it.
Still, she noticed Taehyung thinking deeply as he held his head down and became quiet. Whatever he was mulling over, it seemed heavyâand random. Had her loss of basic motor skills at the sight of Jimin done something to him? It was a far-fetched idea and she was flattering herself by even thinking he cared. He was an immortal, an angel, her occasional bodyguard and friend on first-name basis. There was nothing there.
Still, she said, "Taehyung, you're very handsome too."
He blinked once, the confession breaking his brooding spell. "Thank you, Grey."
The pair went up an escalator and turned into the first store on the second floor.
Gucci.
Hoseok browsed through bags, looking up as they neared him. She smiled instantly, his presence making her forget about irkans, wedding rings, and impossibilities; really just making her think about him.
He ruffled her curls with a hand, heart-shaped smile so infectious that it hurt. "Who's ready to do some shopping?"
:::
(A/N) Cute reader,
Next release: 6/17 (June 17th)
So before I was about to post an hour ago, a huge thunder and lightning storm came out of nowhere and knocked my school's power and wifi out. Lol. I love lightning, but it's just so disrespectful. Like must you be so rude?
Also, no. I have not had the opportunity to watch the actual Hwarang or any kdramas for that matter. Not sure if I should or not, and I'd need a good show to start with. I've got plenty of time this summer, so give me some good recommendations!
(EDIT 6/16/20 - ITAEWON CLASS IS MY ULT KDRAMA PERIOD, IDC, THANKS.)
With love,
M