The moon hung high and sharp over the forest, slicing through the trees with beams of silver light. Hyunjin moved silently between the shadows, the night air clinging to him like a second skin. He hated the smell of the city, the heat of crowded hallways. The forest was different. It was quiet, clean—except for the scent of blood that seemed to follow him everywhere he went.

He wasn’t hunting tonight. Not exactly. But he was restless.

Felix’s hands trembled slightly as he lit the cigarette. His parents’ voices still rang in his ears, harsh and loud, cutting through the walls of their house like they wanted to split him in half. He had gotten used to the yelling over the years, but sometimes it still made his chest feel tight.

He leaned against a tree, the glow of the cigarette tip burning like a tiny ember in the darkness. The smoke curled lazily in the air, and his mismatched eyes reflected the moonlight—one warm brown, the other that haunting red.

The forest was silent. Too silent.

He took another drag, his gaze drifting upward at the stars. “Figures,” he muttered to himself, smoke trailing from his lips. “The only time I feel alive is when I’m out here alone.”

A twig snapped.

Felix turned his head slightly, his red eye gleaming in the dark. “Who’s there?” he called out, his tone steady even though his heart thumped a little faster.

From the shadows, a tall figure stepped forward—pale skin glowing faintly under the moonlight, dark hair falling into piercing golden eyes.

Hyunjin.

“Smoking in the middle of the forest?” Hyunjin’s voice was low, sharp, like a knife dragged across silk. “You really don’t value your life, do you?”

Felix smirked, lifting the cigarette to his lips again. “Oh, look. The school’s favorite nightmare came out for a walk.”

Hyunjin’s gaze lingered on the burning cigarette, then moved up to Felix’s face. And then it stopped—on that eye. That strange, hypnotic red eye that didn’t look like it belonged to a human.

“Half-blood,” Hyunjin murmured, almost like a curse. “I knew there was something off about you.”

Felix tilted his head, a slow grin spreading. “Off? I prefer the word special.”

Hyunjin’s expression didn’t change, but his eyes flickered with something strange—something dark. He stepped closer, his boots crunching against the forest floor. “Do you enjoy looking at people like that?”

“Like what?” Felix asked.

“Like you’re reading their souls.” Hyunjin’s voice dropped lower, almost a whisper. “You’ve been staring at me for weeks, Felix. What do you see when you look at me?”

Felix’s grin faltered for the briefest second. Then he chuckled, leaning his shoulder against the tree with a lazy confidence. “A monster who’s lonelier than he’ll ever admit.”