Their sweet monster

19

Enjoy :-)

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We were all huddled in a circle, and I had this overwhelming feeling of being watched—not by one or two, but by many people. It was so frightening, and the bigger problem was that I couldn't even look up because, of course, it was terrifying.

My legs started aching, so I shifted a little, but I lost my balance as someone shifted too. I would have fallen if someone hadn't caught me from behind, helping me sit down comfortably on the ground. The warmth of their chest pressed against my back.

"You okay, noona?" Hyun-su's voice whispered in my ear. Startled, I tried to look behind, but my head was held in place by Eun-yu, who made me face her.

"Eyes on me, unnie," she said. I was confused—what was happening? What was wrong with them? I could feel the others staring at me too, but Eun-yu wouldn't let me turn my head.

"Don't be scared. We'll protect you," Jae-heon suddenly said. Protect me? From what? What is wrong with them? Eun-hyeok was silent, sitting next to Eun-yu, but I could feel his gaze on me. I didn't understand any of this.

Eun-hyeok was called by the leader, and the two stood there, talking. It was night, and I had a feeling Eun-hyeok and the others, who weren't with us earlier, had some kind of plan.

Suddenly, a man was killed by a gunshot, and another was kicked by Yi-kyung, who ran as others started chasing her. Eun-hyeok grabbed the leader from behind while the rest fought off the goons with whatever they could find.

Eun-yu dragged me into a corner, making me sit down before running off to hit a man with a bat. I wasn't going to just sit there, so I ran over to a man who was about to shoot Mr. Ahn, pushing him away. I smashed his hand with my shoe, and the gun fell from his grasp.

I was behind a corner, holding the gun. I saw the leader kick Eun-hyeok to the ground, pressing his leg against Eun-hyeok's chest. Slowly, I crept up behind the leader, pressing the gun to his head.

"Release him!" I demanded. He removed his leg, and Eun-hyeok stood up. The other goons stopped what they were doing, and the survivors took their guns. I cringed when I saw a man writhing in pain, his hand cut off, and Jae-heon standing nearby with his katana, blood dripping from it.

I forced myself to look away from the katana and met Jae-heon's proud smile directed at me. Just then, Ui-myeong entered the room, clicking his tongue at the mess. The leader, gaining confidence from somewhere, snatched the gun from my hand and aimed it at me.

Suddenly, blood splattered onto me—it wasn't mine.

Blood gushed from the hole in his chest, and behind him stood Ui-myeong, holding a beating heart in his hand. He tossed it aside with a disinterested look, turning to me with a smile. It was terrifying.

Blood stained his face, and thick liquid dripped from his hands, which had morphed into monstrous dark limbs. As they returned to normal, the blood remained.

"Do not be scared. He's dead now," Ui-myeong said, as though oblivious to the fact that everyone was terrified of him. Eun-hyeok asked why he had done that, considering they were on the same side. But his question seemed distant because the monster's eyes were still on me. It was unsettling; they hadn't wavered since the moment he killed the leader.

He suddenly laughed. "How can a wolf and a rabbit be on the same side? Let's survive together, hmm?"

Survive together? He thought we would want to survive with him after witnessing that? Looking at the others, I could tell none of them would agree.