NEVER NOT • H.RENJUN

05

| chapter five |
if i kissed you..
« i wanna be alone, alone with
you does that make sense? »

Hyewon didn't expect his words. But she wasn't shocked, she was more amused and pleased that she was stuck in his mind just like he was in hers.

The Demon moved her face closer to his, he stiffened in his place but his eyes never left hers. He anticipated her next move.

"If I kissed you, would you kiss me back?" She muttered, her breath fanned his skin sending chills down his spine.

Renjun remained silent.

"Is your silence a yes or a no?" She tilted her head to the side inching closer, her top lip barely grazed his cheek. She cursed her temptation but she couldn't help it. His lips were like magnets, always attracting hers.

"I've never kissed anyone before." He confided, absentmindedly.

Hyewon let out a genuine chuckle at that. Renjun admired her, a proud smile on his face. He had made a heartless demon laugh aloud.

Caught up in the profound moment, he carefully pushed a strand of her dark hair behind her ear. The seemingly tender action caused Hyewon to jerk away instinctively.

"I'm sorry," Renjun quickly apologized upon her reaction. And made a mental note to never do that again.

"It's fine." Hyewon shrugged away the feeling of deja vu she got. She replaced her former uneasy expression with her usual apathetic tight-lipped smirk. "That was cute, I just- I'm not used to it."

"Oh." He didn't know what to say. Of course, she wasn't used to such endearing actions, she was a demon that raged with anger from the injustices of her past life.

He didn't know anything about her and she didn't know anything about him, and yet, he felt an unusual attraction to her. Something he'd never felt before. And a part of him hoped that he could make this life of her's even just a tiny bit better than her previous one.

"You should get out of here before your Angel friend comes to find you," she told him, but Renjun had no intention of leaving. He opened the book in his hand again and pretended to read through the pages. Hyewon let him be, grabbing a book from the shelf and leaning on the bookshelf as well.

Both of them were immersed in their books. The library was quiet as expected, the only interruption being the occasional chatter between the two as they shared details about their books. Renjun read the classic Romeo & Juliet, while Hyewon read Of Mice And Men. Both were great books with tragic endings.

The serenity didn't last long though as Renjun's name was called.

He shot his head up from the book as he recognized Jeno's voice and so did Hyewon. "I told you," she whispered teasingly. Renjun placed the book back into its place and sent a quick smile her way before rushing off.

Hyewon wasn't keen on reading or being quiet for a long duration but it seemed to be easy when he was around. Time ticked slow, and her problems seemed to flee her mind during the short amount of time she spent alone with him.

Making sure that the two Angels had left, she discreetly made her way to the rooftop where she knew her Demon friends were going to be as they always skipped every period that wasn't a break. She pushed open the door instantly feeling the chill breeze.

"Where were you?" Yoon asked as she took a seat beside the two of them

"Reading," she answered simply.

Yoon and Hani were used to Hyewon's mysterious nature. Even though they knew each other for most of their lives as demons, Hyewon had spoken little to nothing about herself. They didn't push her to speak though as they had a rough life before reincarnation as well and concluded that she wasn't comfortable speaking about herself yet.

In a classroom, Renjun was being interrogated and scolded by Jeno.

"You were with her, weren't you?"
"What is going on in your head?"

"I wasn't, I was reading," Renjun lied to him, again. He wasn't stupid and he certainly knew what he was getting into. But even though it was wrong, being around her just felt so right.

"And now you're lying. You know that's a sin, what have you become? You don't even know her, Renjun," Jeno nagged.

"I'm not lying. I went to the library and I read a book," Renjun told him, "You want details? I was reading Romeo & Juliet and I skipped to the end because I was too impatient. Do you want to know the ending? I'll tell you, Romeo kills himself for Juliet, because he knew he'd rather die than live a life without her. And when Juliet found out, her love for him led her to do the same. They gave it all up for love."

Jeno remained silent. He knew Renjun wasn't simply reciting the ending of a tragic book but the ending of a tragic life that he had ahead of himself.

if renjun doesn't want hyewon's kisses, i'll gladly take them in his stead 💁