╸𝔚𝔬𝔯𝔰𝔱 ℑ𝔪𝔭𝔯𝔢𝔰𝔰𝔦𝔬𝔫 ╸

╸╸╸╸╸╸╸╸╸╸╸╸╸╸╸

ℜ𝔢𝔫𝔧𝔲𝔫'𝔰 𝔭𝔬𝔳

╸╸╸╸╸╸╸╸╸╸╸╸╸╸╸

"The night that I was attacked, I was leaving from a friend's house when it dragged me into a dark alley. It all happened so fast, but it just bit me and then ran away"

Donghyuck explained, showing me the bite marks on his neck.

"I did return home, thinking that I could get help. But in the end, I ran away. Then one day I changed into that cat and then I couldn't change back, until today. And I have all of you to thank for that~"

He smiled, finishing up his story.

"In celebration of Donghyuck's accomplishment, I'll make everyone something to eat~"

Mark cheered, and we all followed him to the kitchen.

I noticed that Jaemin and Jeno were sitting a good distance away from Donghyuck, watching him closely when he wasn't looking at them.

"While we wait, I'll tell you my story of when I was attacked. Jaemin, Jeno, and I had just left the theater when it dragged me to an abandoned building. It injured me when I tried fighting back, and even though it bit me, Jaemin and Jeno both saved me. Jeno killed the zompire, and Jaemin sucked out the infection that it implanted in me"

I showed him the scars from my bite marks as I finished my story.

"I see... Do you remember what the zompire looked like by any chance??"

"Let's see... It looked like a man around their middle ages, it had a big scar over their left eye, and it had long sharp nails. Oh, and I think it had on a ripped up collared plaid shirt"

"That sounds like the exact same one that attacked me!"

"I get it. It must've attacked you first, then chose Renjun-hyung to be its next victim before I killed it"

Jeno explained.

"That makes sense. So the reason why Renjun-hyung didn't end up like me is because of Jaemin right? But why wasn't he affected??"

"That's easy to explain. Vampires like myself aren't affected by the virus that zompires implant into other people, so I was able to suck out the infection no problem"

"That's so cool! You both did an amazing job killing the zompire and saving Renjun-hyung~"

"What's with the enthusiasm??? I'd expect you to be upset that we couldn't save you too, since you were attacked by the same zompire"

Jeno questioned with a frown on his face.

"To be honest, I'm not upset with you guys in the slightest. Even though we were attacked by the same one, you guys still didn't know me or anything about the zompire's existence. But I know that if you did then you would've stopped to save me~"

Donghyuck smiled brightly at the two.

Even though it's clear that neither of them like Donghyuck right now, they both appeared to be flattered by his words. When they looked away from him, I could still tell that they were trying to hide the smiles on their faces.

"Hey guys, the food is ready~"

Mark cheerfully alerted us and served everyone before sitting down to eat with us.

-

After we all ate together, we all got cleaned up and Mark was kind enough to lend Donghyuck some of his clothes until further notice.

Donghyuck insisted that he would sleep on the couch, and told us not to worry about him since we still don't know him that well.

I felt a bit bad for him, but there's nowhere else for him to sleep and sleeping on the floor wasn't an option.

While the others retreated to their rooms, I reassured him that he could stay as long as he wanted and made sure that he was nice and comfortable before leaving him to rest.

I made sure to comfort Jeno and Jaemin and bid them goodnight first before finally joining Mark to head to bed.

-

Hours Later
Around Midnight

-

I suddenly woke up in the middle of the night after hearing a strange noise.

While I was getting out of bed, Mark ended up waking up too.

"..What's wrong Jun? It's almost midnight"

"I'm gonna go check on Donghyuck. I hear something going on downstairs"

"Right. I'll stay up until you come back, just in case"

Mark informed me, and I left to investigate the commotion.

Once I got downstairs, I realized that the couch was empty, and Donghyuck was nowhere to be found. But after hearing the noise again, I noticed that the bathroom door was closed and the light was on from the other side.

I stood still until I heard the noise again, confirming that it was definitely coming from the bathroom. The sound continuously got louder the closer I got to the bathroom, and it seems to be someone banging against the door.

It can't be Jaemin or Jeno. Their door is still closed, so it must be Donghyuck.

"Donghyuck??"

The moment I called his name, the banging suddenly stopped, and the only noises left were the sounds of a silent groaning.

It's definitely Donghyuck, but he sounds like he's in pain.

"...Donghyuck, are you alright??"

I became more concerned for him when the only response I got were the same groans and a louder bang against the door.

I tried opening the door, but he's locked himself inside. 

Wait, now I get what's happening. But despite how scary this is, I can't let my fear of what happened last year keep me from helping him.

"Donghyuck, I'm coming in"

I got the key to the bathroom that was set aside nearby, and I slowly unlocked the door from my end.

I cautiously opened the door, a found Donghyuck standing over the sink with his back facing me.

But even though he seems to be trying to hide it, he's tightly holding onto the counter and he's shaking and breathing hard.

"Donghyuck, please look at me"

I calmly spoke to him, pleading him to turn around.

It took him a few seconds, but he finally turned his head around slowly.

But now his once brown eye had changed to green, and looked almost similar to Jaemin's vampiric eyes.

But even though it looks like he's struggling to stay in control, he still hasn't tried to attack me. And he looks really scared..

"Oh no Hyuck..."

"H-Help..."