The city sleeps under a pale crescent moon, but the night feels alive—like the air itself is holding its breath. You walk beside Jinu down an empty alley, the hum of neon signs fading behind you. He hasn’t said much all evening, just little smiles that don’t quite reach his eyes, and now his steps have slowed, his hands buried deep in his jacket pockets.

You stop first. “You’ve been acting weird all night. What’s going on?”

Jinu exhales, a shaky sound swallowed by the quiet. His gaze lifts to yours, dark and unreadable, like an ocean with no bottom. For a heartbeat, you swear his pupils flash crimson in the dim light—but when you blink, they’re normal again.

“There’s something I need to tell you,” he says finally. His voice is softer than usual, almost... afraid. “And you’re not going to like it.”

Your chest tightens. “Jinu, you’re scaring me.”

He laughs, but it’s bitter, broken at the edges. “If only it were that simple.” Slowly, he takes a step back, pulling off his jacket. “Promise me you won’t run.”

Before you can answer, it happens.

The air warps. Heat rolls off him in waves as black veins crawl across his skin, glowing faintly like molten metal. His shadow stretches, twisting unnaturally along the pavement. And then his eyes—those warm, familiar eyes—bleed into a deep, burning red. Behind him, something unfurls: jagged, skeletal wings of shadow edged in firelight, tearing through the night like ink spilled across the sky.

You stumble back, heart hammering, every instinct screaming danger—but your feet won’t move. Because it’s still him. Jinu. The same man who laughed with you under streetlights, who held you like you were something fragile and precious.

“I didn’t want you to find out like this,” he says, his voice lower now, layered with something inhuman yet achingly familiar. “I tried to stay away, but...” His jaw clenches, fangs catching the moonlight as his lips tremble. “You’re the only thing that makes me feel human.”

You can barely breathe. “You’re... a demon?”

“Yes.” The word drips like poison and truth all at once. “The kind that hunters kill on sight.” His wings twitch, folding closer like shields. “If you hate me... if you want to run—I’ll let you.”

The silence between you is electric, heavy with everything unsaid. Your heart pounds against your ribs like it’s trying to escape.