Note: I was going to wait until March 31st/April 1st, but I have been way too busy to stockpile chapters and have only gotten two done so far. So, I decided to post the first chapter now. I might do uploads once a week since I have been getting busier. I hope you enjoy the first chapter! If there are any mistakes, please let me know. The chapter is over 4k words (I have to split it here), and I've gone through it a few times, but I could have missed something.

“Ah!” 

Ambiguous sounds filled the dull-lighted, almost empty office. The sounds had a source—a certain area in the office seemed louder than anywhere else. Even though the air conditioner circulated through the office without stopping, it did nothing to cool down the heat building up around someone’s cubicle/desk. Nails scraped against a wooden desk, a chair rolled further away, files hit the ground without care, the sound of skin slapping together built up, and a body hitting the floor pulled it together. 

“Can you handle more, Lil’Vine?” A rough voice sounded.  Fingers gripped a face, as eyes scanned the moving body. The eyes took in the tears, sweat, drool, and the thrusting that did not let the body rest. “I will only ask one more time. Can you take more?” The voice asked again, gripping the face harder until a bruise was left over. 

The gripped face lips opened in a silent sob, gasping at the pain in the front and the pleasure in the back. They could barely think, let alone take a resting breath. But, they had to answer. 

“Yes.” 

“Good answer.” The voice smirked before holding the face’s mouth open and filling it. 

The face could only think: how did I get here?

· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·

Twelve Hours Earlier

Blood was everywhere. It covered the walls, the furniture, and the family photos—it even pooled the floors, turning them into a river of blood. And in the middle, the source of it all, was the bodies of Kim Doyun’s parents. His breathing became erratic, tears flowing down his face as he fell to his knees. He didn’t care about the blood seeping into his pajamas, crawling towards them as he touched his parents with trembling hands. “Mom…Dad?” He called with uncertainty and doubt. His voice vibrated with grief and his streaming tears. His parents did not make a sound, nor wake from his call and touch. 

There was no saving them. 

A shadow moved from the corner, stepping into the moonlight, stopping behind a sobbing Doyun. The person squatted behind Doyun and covered his eyes with blood-soaked hands. “You should have stayed sleeping.” The person spoke with zero emotion. There was nothing, almost like a robot speaking. 

“H-Hyung.” Doyun could barely breathe. Kim Daeshim repeated, “You should have stayed sleeping.” 

Before Doyun could even think, a burning pain coursed through his veins, causing him to pass out with a silent scream. 

Thud! 

A body hit the ground, bringing down the blanket that lay tangled between the legs. Doyun groaned, rubbing the back of his head as he slowly stood up, pulling the blanket from between his legs, and setting it back on the bed. He ran his hand through his hair. The same dream again. For the past ten years, he had been having the same recurring nightmare—the day his older brother murdered their parents. It was also the same day that his brother disappeared after knocking him out. Doyun woke up again at the hospital. From there, he tried hard to forget about what happened. But no matter how much he looks away from the memory, they always find a way back into his dreams. 

He shook his head, pushing away his thoughts as he grabbed his phone to check the time. 

9:35 a.m. 

Doyun sighed, “Is it already too late to go back to bed?” He didn’t have to be at work until noon, but he knew he was already too wide awake even to attempt sleeping again. Doyun could only grab his clothes for today and leave his room to shower and get ready. Once he was finished, it was a little after ten as he came jogging down the stairs, “Hyung!” He cheerfully called. 

A knife quickly flew past his cheek, not getting a chance to slice it as a wall of vines covered the area. The knife could only find its destination in the wall behind him. “Doyunie, how many times have I told you not to call me hyung? You know that word makes my hand itch.” A person came from the kitchen, holding a plate in their hand. The person was Doyun’s close friend and roommate, Sa Changmin. 

Doyun scratches his cheek with a sheepish expression, “I forgot.” Turning back, Doyun pulled the knife off the wall, almost wanting to sigh. There was another hole added to the wall. If these weren’t apartments for awakeners only, he and Changmin would have been kicked out long ago. He handed the knife back to Changmin. 

“How many holes have to be filled into the wall before you can remember?” Changmin really couldn’t stand being called ‘hyung.’ It always brought him back to his ex-boyfriend—it was far from a good thing. His ex used to call him hyung each time, right before traumatizing him. It amazes him how someone could turn a word that is a part of everyone’s everyday vocabulary/use into a nightmare. 

Doyun shrugged, “It is not like I will end up hurt. But, it would be great if you stopped using knives.” He honestly couldn’t get hurt. His vine defense is impenetrable; not even multiple S-classes can break it. He was the ultimate defense. Sadly, it only works for him. He cannot protect anyone or put them behind his vine defense; it only works for him. Doyun was like a useless shield, only perfect for display. 

Changmin scoffed and didn’t even try to argue anymore. Doyun would never learn. “I guess you don’t want the two autograph posters I got: one of Im Jin-Sang and the other of Choi Yongsun.” 

Doyun, biting off Changmin’s food, jumped with excitement. “Really?! You'd better give me those posters, or I will throw your underwear off the balcony.” 

“Are you a child?” 

“The posters, please.” 

Changmin rolled his eyes. He walked to the front door, where he left the posters, and grabbed them. Returning to the table, he handed them over to Doyun. Quickly grabbing them, Doyun unraveled the posters to view them. Jin-Sang sat in a dark room, covered in fire as he gazed at the camera with a straight face, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, and straightening his cuff sleeve. On the other hand, Yongsun was in a cemetery, lying on the ground with one hand covering his eyes while the other one scrunches his shirt, causing skin and hints of his abs to peek through. 

Doyun’s eyes glistened. And when he saw the signatures at the right corner of the posters, he felt that if it were his time, he would let it happen—no need to fight when he got everything he could have ever wanted. “I’m in love.” He dreamily sighed. 

Changmin rolled his eyes. “You do know it is never going to happen, right? Those two are married and very much in love. Although I don’t know what Captain Jin-Sang sees in Vice Captain Yongsun.” 

Gasping, Doyun clutches his imaginary pearls, “How can you say that? They are perfect for each other and perfect in general. Plus, I know it will never happen, but let me dream.” 

Before Changmin could even respond, Doyun’s phone started ringing. Doyun neatly set aside the posters and answered his phone. “Hello.” 

“Manager Doyun, we have a situation here.” Sirens and many voices sounded in the background as his coworker, Yeong Hana, spoke. 

“Is it bad?” Doyun asked. The last time he had to rush into work was two weeks ago, because Hwa Dong-Min, a.k.a the ‘dog’ of the Serpent Guild, went a little crazy and destroyed a public area. He had to lie and say that there were awakeners in the area, abusing their skills. In reality, someone took off Dong-Min’s muzzle, which caused him to lose it. 

“The Hunter Association,” Hana answered. It was all Doyun needed to hear before internally cursing. He hated dealing with the Hunter Association. They were like cockroaches that only knew how to fuck with people’s days. 

“I will be there.” He hung up the phone. 

“What is it?” Changmin asked, finishing off the food that Doyun had half eaten. 

“The Hunter Association. Don’t check the news, I will go deal with everything.” Doyun grabbed his jacket and name tag hanging on a lanyard. “See you soon.” He waved to Changmin while walking out. 

“Don’t forget to eat today!” Changmin yelled as he left. 

When Doyun arrived at the Hunter Association building, the first things he saw were the reporters, more so vultures to him, the Divisions blocking off a certain spot in front of the building, and civilians taking pictures of a suspicious pile of ashes. He counted down to ten before stepping out of the car. Once he stepped out, and the reporters saw him, they came running towards him. 

“Mr. Kim, we have information that the ashes on the ground are from a hunter who recently joined the serpent Guild, Bak Young. Is this true?” 

“Mr. Kim, when Bak Young stopped in front of the building, he yelled out, ‘I didn’t want to do this,' before catching on fire and burning to death. We know that Im Jin-Sang is a fire user. Is he connected to this?” 

“Mr. Kim, this is the sixth time this year that something has happened between the Hunter Association and the Serpent Guild. Is there something brewing between the two organizations?” 

“Hello, we do not have information at this time. Plus, wait for us to send out a statement later on, answering all your questions.” Doyun quickly bowed before weaving through the reporters and entering the building (after flashing his name tag to one of the Divisions outside the door). When he entered, he spotted Hana waiting for him. 

“What happened?” He asked her. 

She had a tablet in her hand, typing on it, “Bak Young spontaneously caught on fire in front of the building. The Hunter Association is not happy because he ‘used’ to be one of their own. President Song wants answers from Captain Im. I think he is trying to find ways to regulate him and is getting desperate, like usual.” Hana whispers the last part because the building has eyes and ears. 

“Nothing new then.” Doyun sighed. It hadn’t been the first time President Song had snuck his people into the Guild, and it most likely won’t be his last. The people were pretty much pawns in President Song’s plan to have hunters back in his control, such a shrewd old man. 

“Mr. Kim and Ms. Yeong, could you two follow me to President Song’s office?” A suited person came, interrupting their conversation. Hana and Doyun followed the suited man into the elevator as he put a key inside and hit the button to the top floor. The whole ride and walk to the office lay in silence—no one said a word the whole way through. When they stopped at President Song’s door, the suited person knocked on the door and then stood to the side. 

“Come in.” A deep, raspy voice sounded.