𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 | 𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗲𝘇

𝟘𝟛

Saying that Yunho is a saint is a understatement.

As a guardian angel, his job is important to the balance of heaven. He guides pure human souls to a life in heaven, but he can't physically interfere with their lives.

He's had many souls who strayed off the path of holiness. But he makes up for his losses with success.

His advisor has praised him countless times for his efforts, and he gleams with pride whenever he goes out and gets recognized.

But moments like these, that happen behind closed doors, are what no one sees.

No one sees when Yunho pulls the feathers out of his wings from stress.

No one sees when Yunho can barley function on his own on the days where he feels the pressure of his job on his shoulders.

No one sees his struggle, just the success.

No matter how many soul he saves, no matter how much praise he gets, he always goes to bed wondering why he feels so empty. He has many friends, a beautiful afterlife in heaven, yet he feels so cold inside.

So dead.

•••

"I don't know, Jinsoo!"

Yunho sighs and rubs his temple, as he can feel a headache forming.

His most recent human he's been assigned to watch, as Yunho hates to say, is a lost cause.

He's a middle aged man, with three kids, all with different woman. He also has a alcohol problem. His advisor must think he's a god, for she was the one who gave him this assignment.

His human is currently screaming over the phone with one of his mistresses, and as Yunho sits in the corner of his room, he can't help but want to give up. But he's not a quitter, so he'll continue through until he's completely sure this man is doomed to hell.

Once he hangs up the phone, he goes to grab a bottle of alcohol, and downs it in no time. He passes out not shortly after.

Yunho groans and rubs his head, his headache only getting worst. He glances over at the clock, and once he sees that it's almost night, he begins to gather his things to leave. Mortals can't see angels or their belongings from heaven, so Yunho has found it beneficial to bring his journal and things of the sort to occupy him on trips like this.

Suddenly, a chill is sent down his spine, and he gets an uneasy feeling. His instincts scream at him to hide, and he does. Yunho frantically looks around, and he curses as he remembers his human lives in a run down studio apartment with no closet.He falls to the ground quickly and crawls underneath the cheap, dusty bed, trying to control his breathing the entire time. Yunho can't even process what's going on until he hears a window open, and a pair of black boots appear in front of the bed he's currently hiding under. Yunho soon realizes what this means.

A demon.

***

"And what do we have here?"

The sight that is laid before Seonghwa is almost too perfect, too easy to believe.

A human, on the express train to hell. Mortals fall too easy into temptation and addiction, and the lifestyle that this man is in right now, makes Seonghwa's job extremely simple.

And state of sleep that's he's in is just perfect for a nightmare.

Seonghwa's role as a drude is important to the balance of hell. Him and his fellow night demons begin their duties when mortals fall to sleep. Mortals die in many different ways, and sometimes it by their own hands. It's a drude's job to keep that balance in check.

Seonghwa makes his way to the sleeping mortal, and he reaches out a hand to touch his forehead. Soon, his mind is filled with this mans memories, and Seonghwa decides to switch a few things around in his dream.

Suddenly, the mortals dreams are full of his worst fears, spiders, clowns, the dark, normal human fears. Seonghwa even conjures up a vision of one of his children dying.

But of course, nothing in your dreams is always the truth.

Seonghwa grins as the humans eyes open, bloodshot and pupils wide. Sleep paralysis. Seonghwa takes a deep breathe, and a sound only demons and this mortal can hear, escapes his body. His face morphs into an awful entity, and the mortal underneath him still can't move. But Seonghwa feeds off his fear, and it's delightful.

Once he's had enough, his face morphs back, and he steps away from the bed. He fixes his hair, and brushes off his clothing, and exits the room like he's never been there.

He later finds out that the man he traumatized took his own life not even two days later.

A job well done.