Chapter Text
“...huh–?”
Mira blinked a few times, eyes scanning the room.
“....whatever.”
She shook her head, turning back to her phone. She could’ve sworn she saw something move, but it was probably the result of being up at four in the morning. A muffled sigh escaped her lips as she rested her chin on her knees. Her eyelids drooped as she swiped through Instagram, being careful not to like any of the posts she was stalking.
When a pen on her desk fell to the floor unprompted, her gaze snapped to the floor, not even six feet away.
She stared, body from her fingertips to her toes, completely still.
Then, a light draft came through her room, forming goosebumps on her skill. Her window was locked. She didn’t even have to check.
Instinctively, she threw her phone across the mattress and quickly summoned her gok-do.
She was now sitting on the furthest corner of her bed away from the pen, weapon blocking her entire body in a defensive position. Demons were already a hassle, and now they were finding a way into her room? Come on…
But, something bothered her. Not like she wasn’t already, but not annoyed. She was confused. Almost nervous.
Celine told them many times before that demons will not always show themselves immediately. Be it a disguise or some temporary illusion, some liked to take their time before attacking. You could tell a demon was nearby from the chill in the air, the goosebumps forming on your skin, the unease in your stomach, there were plenty of signs.
But Mira felt none of those at the moment. Only.. she felt,, wrong. Like she was slightly sick from its presence. And that wasn’t normal.
The feeling made her push back against the corner even more, wishing the demon would just,,, go away.
…And, soon enough, the feeling faded.
She furrowed her brows, not even considering letting down her guard. Her eyes gazed around the room, then onto the pen on the floor. There was a small sticky note right beside it.
Mira stayed put for another minute, making sure the presence was truly gone. Then, she leaned forward, quickly crawling across the bed to reach for the note and snatch it off the floor, still paranoid.
As her eyes adjusted to the writing on the paper, she was even more confused. And... more uneasy.
“ You’re very pretty. ♥ ”
The next morning, the room felt as normal as ever.
Mira crawled out from under the covers, groggy from her three hours of rest. Luckily, they didn’t have much planned for the week, so there was more than enough time for her to catch up on sleep. It wasn’t crazy to say they were on an unofficial hiatus.
They were still doing small fan-meets and such, but since their last tour, they had plenty of time to kick back and relax. Some fans already suspected a hiatus announcement was coming, and since discussing it with Bobby, he was fine with them doing so.
She rubbed her eyes, slipping out of her room and making a beeline for the kitchen. As expected, two equally sleepy girls were already there.
“Isn’t this an off-brand cereal??” Zoey whined, squinting at the cereal box in her hand. “Since when do we buy fake Frosted Flakes—??”
Rumi sighed, scrolling through her phone while shoving a spoonful of said cereal into her mouth. “The boxes look the same to me,” she chewed.
The redhead greeted them with a yawn. Both girls responded with a unified “Morning Mira!”
“Looks like you didn’t get much sleep either,” Zoey smiled.
Mira nodded, taking the box of cereal from the maknae. “Yyyeah… last night was weird.”
“Tell me about it,” Rumi rolled her eyes. “I couldn’t sleep for the life of me,, I even went to bed early! I think I’m too nervous about the hiatus.”
“C’mon,,, we need this, Rumi! Think about the couch!!”
Mira paused, box of cereal in hand.
That note.
‘You’re very pretty,’ with a doodle of a heart by it. The gravity of the message hadn’t really hit her until now; Some demon wrote her a cheesy love note?? She didn’t even know they could write…
The other two idols must’ve taken notice of her confusion, as their own conversation died down to look at Mira.
“…Sorry, I’m fine.”
There was no way she could tell them about the note. Knowing Rumi, she’d freak out about demons sneaking into the penthouse. As for Zoey, she’d be a little more than curious about her ‘secret admirer.’
But shouldn’t she be worried, too? A demon getting into her room and probably staring her down should’ve been alarming enough. Celine called priestesses to the penthouse often to prevent exactly that. Although… Mira never really believed that worked, anyway.
If nothing else, though, the note should’ve scared her. And it did, but it equally intrigued her.
Before the girls could press further, an exasperated sigh escaped Rumi. “…Fuck,,” she squinted at her phone. “..I totally forgot, I booked a room at the dance studio for eight.”
“Dance practice on hiatus???” Zoey slumped onto the counter.
“We aren't officially on hiatus yet!!”
Mira looked down at her phone. The time read seven-thirty-three.
“I didn’t even get my cereal…,,” Mira whined, sliding the box in her hand over to the rest of the cereals.
“We’ll grab something on the way back,” Rumi reassured, standing up and already making her way toward her room. “Be ready in fifteen!”
Rumi disappeared down the hall, Zoey following soon after. Mira stayed at the kitchen counter, staring blankly at the empty bowl in front of her.
Hiatus or no hiatus, she was bored.
Idol life took years to adjust to. And for a while, she truly believed she got the hang of it. She’d accepted that between hunting demons and performing for millions that things would get tiring. But she never expected them to become mundane.
And to be fair, she didn’t want to sit around and do nothing all day for a couple months, either. She just wasn’t ,, happy.
Maybe she needed a vacation, a different change of scenery, different things to do,, she just needed something different.
Mira set the bowl aside and grabbed her phone from the counter, making her way towards her room to find some clothes. As she left the kitchen, she paused to think about last night.
She glanced around the seemingly empty hallway, as if she was expecting.. whatever it was to come back. Mira wasn’t one to be paranoid, but that weird message really startled her. She wasn’t scared, per se, but just,,, confused? Surprised?
Then again, this was different. So, maybe it wasn’t something to worry about too much. Besides, she wasn’t afraid of this thing,, she could kill this demon easily. Mira smiled to herself as confidence spread through her body.
What’s the worst that could happen?
“I’m done hiding, now I’m shining, like I’m born to be…”
Mira swiftly moved in tandem with Rumi and Zoey, arms and legs shifting to the beat of Golden. The choreography was second nature at this point, the only reason they were practicing was to keep themselves busy, honestly.
“We’re going up, up, up, it’s our—”
The redhead placed her foot down, likely at a wrong angle, because she quickly slipped and fell to her knees right after the chorus hit. Rumi blinked, surprised by the error.
Zoey stared for a moment, before leaving position and helping Mira up as the song kept playing. “Hehe,, watch your step, silly!”
“Shit, sorry,” Mira laughed with her, which earned a smile from Rumi.
The leader stretched her arms, fumbling with her braid in the process. “We can spare a break,” she sighed. “Let’s head out in like,, ten minutes? Five minutes to break and we’ll run it again.”
Mira and Zoey nodded, immediately slumping to the floor, while Rumi moved to turn off the speakers. The maknae swiped her phone from her pocket, scrolling on Instagram. Mira decided to do the same.
Not long after, Zoey squealed while grinning at her phone. Mira glanced over to see what she was looking at.
“Look,,” Zoey gushed, turning the phone screen to Mira. “Isn’t he cuteee??!”
On the screen was an Instagram reel of another K-Pop group; a boy band that’s been around for a couple years. Specifically, it was of their group leader, Daesung.
Mira squinted before shrugging. “Eh,, he’s fine.”
“Just fine—?” Zoey scoffed. “You’re being so modest!”
“I’m serious—! He’s nothing special,” She shook her head. Maybe she was being a little nonchalant. Daesung was cute. And the few times their groups interacted, he was pretty kind. But,, what was the point of admitting that? Nothing more than fangirling could come from it.
Rumi hopped up, reaching to turn the speakers back on. “Okay! Let’s get started!”
The other two girls nodded as they stood to their feet, moving to their positions. Rumi inhaled and whispered, “three, two, one, and—”
Soon enough, they ran through the song twice. Their muscles were burning as they packed up their things, Rumi already standing by the door.
As Mira and Zoey walked up to her, she grinned. “Coffee?”
“Please,,” Mira sighed. “I still haven’t had breakfast.”
Zoey and Rumi laughed as they left the studio, the air almost immediately feeling cooler. “I think it’d count as lunch by now,,” Zoey snorted. “It’s almost one.”
Mira whined as the other two lightly chuckled at her complaints, before the conversation faded into whatever came to mind. Once they left the studio, they headed for the coffee shop a couple blocks down. They ran into a small group of fans, but luckily they didn’t stick around for too long after they signed some random items they had.
The three got their drinks and headed back out, with Zoey getting some over-the-top caramel frappe, Mira getting a vanilla cold brew, and Rumi getting a matcha. Of course, not without Zoey and Mira jokingly calling her a performative male.
They all decided on taking a small detour from the penthouse. It was a pretty nice day outside, so no harm in going for a walk. They went back and forth about silly things, mainly different K-Pop groups they’d been looking at, since Rumi mentioned wanting to collaborate with one. Unfortunately, they were all pretty picky about partnerships.
“Oh, oh!!” Zoey tried to get the other two’s attention. “Y’know the one label,, uh… Gybe–? They’re debuting a new boy-band this week!”
Mira shook her head. “Does that label only do boy groups or something? When was the last time they debuted a girl group?” Gybe was the same company Daesung’s group was under.
“To be fair, two of their other boy groups disbanded last year. I’m not surprised they want some replacements…” Rumi shrugged, sipping her matcha.
“Actually,,” Zoey paused, face close to her phone. “Okay, they’re debuting with the help of Gybe, but 4chan says they’re self-managed and produced.”
Rumi’s brows raised. “That’s,, different? I don’t think I’ve seen a group like that in ages…”
Mira tilted her head, swishing the drink in her cup back and forth. “Who’s in the group, anyway?”
“Thaaat’s the thing,,” Zoey sighed. “Either they’re fresh out of high-school or suuuuper niche. I can’t find any leaks or anything! I don’t even know where they got trained…”
“Creepy,” Rumi muttered, earning a laugh from both of the girls.
Mira scoffed. “At least they’re not nepo babies—? …No offence, Rumi.”
Zoey covered her mouth, trying to silence her giggles. Rumi rolled her eyes, not actually bothered. “Whaaatever…..”
The conversation continued between the girls, but Mira quieted down. She smiled and nodded when necessary, but her mind was completely elsewhere.
She found herself thinking of Daesung. Mira hated to admit it, but one of the aspects she missed the most about pre-idol life was dating.
She didn’t have many real relationships back then, and when she did, they definitely didn’t end well. But, that practically flew out the window after joining Huntr/x. Of course, between fighting demons and entertaining fans, she’d never have time for someone anyway. Plus, scandals were no joke. It was basically impossible to have a relationship now.
But,, if she dated another idol, with a good enough reputation, it could bring more good-press than bad. And,, Daesung was pretty popular.
Mira shook her head. She wasn’t even crazy about him, anyway. The only reason she thought about this was because she was lonely, and of course, bored.
By the time she came out of her thoughts, the girls were already nearing the penthouse.
Not long after they arrived home, Mira nearly collapsed onto her bed. By some miracle, she didn’t spill her half-empty coffee as she did, and she quickly set it onto her side table before she could. Her hands soon dropped to either side of her body as she stared at her bedroom ceiling, eyes lidded and threatening to close.
Taking a nap would only mess up her sleep schedule more, so she desperately tried to combat her inevitable slumber by sitting up in her bed. Her gaze peered around the room, searching for something to keep her awake.
She looked at her vanity, but knew she was too tired to even pick up a makeup brush. Maybe she could clean her room—she enjoyed it sometimes—but the chore seemed like the worst thing on earth right now.
As her eyes shifted to her desk, the first thing that caught them was the sticky note.
Her entire body stiffened at the remembrance of the night before, immediately sending chills down her spine. She should’ve just tossed the damn thing,, but she must’ve forgotten about it before finally deciding to sleep.
Mira watched it, as if it’d move again, and if she looked away, she’d miss it. It wasn’t like it was haunted,, but she dreaded the idea of touching it. Which wasn’t unreasonable, given there could be some weird demon magic attached to it.
But, if that were the case, wouldn’t it be dumb to leave it out in the open. Her mind rattled at the different possibilities and their outcomes, so much so that it gave her a headache. She eventually lost her nerve, deciding to suck it up and get out of bed, quickly grabbing the note and tossing it in the trashcan nearby.
It fell to the bottom of the can comically slow, long enough for Mira to read what was written on it again. Not that she’d forgotten, but it became more absurd the longer she thought about it.
Mira stood there, longer than she meant to, staring down at the paper. The message was so simple, it almost felt like a joke. Just four words and a heart, written in neat handwriting like it had been left by some high schooler with a crush.
Her gaze narrowed.
Compliments like that always bothered her.
She turned her head away from the trashcan, trying to shake away the memory before it could creep into her brain.
She was much younger—probably fifteen—as her mother hastily fixed her coat, insisting she’d look silly if she didn’t zip it up, given how cold it was. They were probably going out to run errands while her father was still at work.
Mira remembered making some offhand comment about a boy in her class calling her pretty at school that day. It was rare for her to hear from someone other than her friends, so she carefully brought it up, curious as to what her mom would say.
Her mother didn’t look up at her. “Boys only say that when they want something,” she replied. “Don’t be silly.”
The words hit Mira harder than she expected. She’d rolled her eyes at the time, muttering something about how she wasn’t silly, but the comment stuck with her longer than she liked to admit.
Was it wrong of her to think her mother would’ve at least agreed with the boy's sentiment? Did she always have to be so harsh with her words, no matter the situation—?
Or, was she just honest?
Someone said something nice because they wanted something in return—attention, validation, a reaction, something. Because why would they go out of their way to say it otherwise?
She blinked, the memory leaving as quickly as it came. Her attention dropped back to the trashcan again, still able to read the words on the note inside.
A demon leaving compliments on her desk was ridiculous for hundreds of reasons, but somehow that one sentence bothered her more than the fact one had been inside their penthouse in the first place.
She shook her head and sighed, climbing back onto the comfort of her bed. Suddenly, a nap didn’t sound so bad. She had plenty of time to fix her sleep schedule.
Mira’s body curled into a ball against the many blankets and floppy pillows that enveloped her bed, nearly drowning in the cotton. Her hands instinctively reached out for the closest stuffed animal, choosing a humanoid-turtle-plushie Zoey got her for Christmas last year.
She exhaled shakily against the toy, wrapping her arms around it earnestly. “Yeah,, real convincing…” she whispered, body relaxing as her brain shut off.
By the time she woke up, the clock on her nightstand read eight-oh-two.
She turned on her side to look out the window—the sky already dark and filled with faint stars, hidden by the egregious amount of lights from the city below—before flipping again and burying her face into a pillow.
Today was pretty easy, actually. And so was the rest of the week. Usually, Mira would be happy about it, but all it did was give her more time to think.
The girl reluctantly sat up in her bed, picking up her phone as she did so. Her eyes scanned over the wall of notifications on her screen, mostly from Instagram. She would’ve set it back down, if one of them didn't catch her attention.
@cheondaesung💫 liked your post.
Mira’s eyes widened, surprised by the text. It wasn't necessarily unusual to get likes from other idols—especially Daesung, since he was pretty active on his socials—but something about it felt strange. Maybe it’s because she was thinking about him earlier.
Her gaze shifted back to the window beside her bed, peering at the view of Seoul. It was only a Wednesday, so it was unlikely for many people to be out this late.
She decided that the best way to not think about this, or that silly note, was to keep herself busy.
Quickly, she moved to the edge of the bed, snatching a hair tie from her nightstand, before messily pulling her red locks into a ponytail. Then, she stood up and grabbed a dark-blue hoodie from her floor and slipped it on, throwing the hood over her head.
“This should be an alright disguise,” she muttered to herself.
All she wanted was a short walk around the area that’d take her mind off things. She grabbed her keys and phone, before leaving the room.
“Hey—oh,, where are you headed?” Zoey asked from the couch, watching one of her documentaries about turtles.
Mira shrugged as she quickly passed her friend and walked over to the door to the elevator. “Need some fresh air.”
Zoey nodded and said her goodbyes as Mira got on the elevator, waving as the doors closed in front of her.
The streets were quiet, contrasting with the lively signs and lights above them. The moon was visible in the sky, leaving the summer night glistening and the air crisp. Mira pulled her sleeves over her hands, hoping to earn some warmth from them.
Mira loved walks—they gave her a sense of peace,, and normalcy. Walking through the area without any real pressure to look a certain way or act out a persona,, it was a nice breath of fresh air.
She laughed to herself, keeping a good pace on the sidewalk. The further she walked, the darker the streets became. It didn’t bother her, she actually loved nighttime. It was quieter, easier on the eyes, the sky was always so pretty… the only complaint was how cold it was. Wasn’t it still summer??
She shook her head, before goosebumps formed on her neck. She shuddered, slowing down her pace.
Once she felt that familiar unease prickling in her stomach, she froze in her tracks.
Mira practically held her breath, standing completely still on the sidewalk. It was as prevalent as it was last night.
Was this demon stalking her?? Her eyes quickly darted around, but they caught onto nothing. She didn’t dare turn around.
Mira pressed her lips together, not taking out her weapon yet. If she tricked the demon into thinking she was oblivious, she could catch it off guard.
The girl continued to walk, her body stiff. She was extremely alert now, but that feeling in her stomach threw her for a loop. She almost felt like throwing up.
As she walked, she gently whispered to herself. “We are hunters,, voices strong … slaying demons with our song,” she repeated the mantra like a prayer, one that would hopefully, like some miracle, send the demon following her back to where it came from.
“We are hunters, voices strong,, slaying… wh—”
The sound of pavement crumbling behind her set her off. Mira quickly summoned her gok-do and whipped around, holding it steadily. Her eyes darted around, but she saw no demon.
Just a boy.
She could barely make out his appearance in the darkness—but she could tell he was definitely a person. In which case, she was totally fucked. If someone saw her like this and recognized her… she should probably start running before they took a picture.
However, the person didn’t seem surprised. He didn’t hold a phone, and he didn’t look confused, just … there. Mira knew it was a person, but that feeling in her stomach was stronger than ever. What was happening—???
She squinted, trying to see more of his face. The boy took a step closer, waving as he did so.
Once she could make out the rest of him, her breath hitched (shamefully).
He looked to be about her age, with a slim face and fluffy pink hair that fell to his shoulders. He had broad shoulders and dewy, tan skin. His outfit looked like it was curated specifically to fit him, the pale-yellow contrasting nicely with his hair color. His lips formed a smile that made her stomach flip.
The boy seemed to watch her as intently as she did him, eyes never leaving hers.
As he stepped closer, Mira’s pulse spiked. Was he—?
“...Hi.” He spoke. His voice was surprisingly gentle, but it held a light playfulness to it. Like he was trying not to laugh as he said it.
However, after he spoke, his eyes lit up with a golden shade of yellow.
Demon.
Mira’s instincts kicked in, and she immediately advanced forward, swinging her gok-do towards him.
The boy jolted back, a surprised noise leaving his lips. She continuously swung at him, the weight of the gok-do doing most of the work for her.
Strong wisps of air echoed through the area as she grunted, while he laughed out loud, clearly taken aback. His voice shook as he tried to dodge her. “Woah–HEY–! Easy—!!” He exclaimed, just barely missing her attacks.
His pleas did nothing to halt Mira, adrenaline coursing through her veins. This wasn’t a demon she’d ever fought before. Who knows what he could be capable of.
“Hold still, demon–!” She shouted, turning on her heel and driving her foot forward into a sharp kick.
Her gym shoe slammed into his stomach, sending him into a nearby wall. He fell back against it with a dull thud, putting his hands up in surrender.
“Ouch,, jeez, do you always greet people like thi—WOAHWOAHWOAH!!!” He gulped, putting his hands up in surrender. “P–Put that thing down—!”
Mira held the weapon up to his neck, hands shaky. Her breathing was erratic, shoulders quickly falling up and down. The demon only offered her a worried smile, likely trying to suck up to her.
“...Who are you—?” Was the only thing that left Mira’s mouth as she tried to catch her breath. Was this the demon that left the note?
The man tilted his head, smile growing wider. “Only if you promise not to kill me?”
“Nice try,” she quipped, her gaze narrowed as she barely pressed the blade into his throat. He quickly retracted his statement, arms flailing around in distress.
“Okay—! Okay,,” he gulped, clearing his throat before he continued. “I didn't want any trouble ,, I just happened to see you, and I wanted to say hi.”
“You came to my room last night.” She said, equally a statement and a question. “And you left the note.”
“Yeah, guilty,” he nodded, folding under barely any pressure. “I’d never tell a lie, though.”
Mira’s heart raced. So it was him. This strange, humanoid, weirdly handsome demon had been stalking her for the last day. Yep, just a random Wednesday.
The admission made her want to kill him there, but she never received an answer to her question.
“I asked who you were,” she said firmly. Her hands tightened on the gok-do, ready to swing as soon as he provided an answer.
He must’ve noticed this, as his gaze dropped to her hands. “Well ,,, you tell me first.”
Mira blinked. “You know who I am.”
“Do not.”
“You do.”
“Do not.”
“You do.”
The obnoxious back and forth distracted Mira just enough. As her grip loosened ever so slightly, the boy ducked under the blade and disappeared in a cloud of pink smoke.
By the time the air cleared, Mira stood there, gok-do now resting against the wall, completely dumbfounded as she whispered to herself,
“...What the hell was that—?”