The dorm was too quiet.
For hours, the crowd's screams had filled their ears, drowning everything else out. Now, silence pressed heavy, broken only by the hum of the refrigerator and the occasional drip of water in the sink.
Kai was sprawled across the couch with his arm over his eyes, earbuds blasting some chaotic playlist. EO sat curled in a blanket at his feet, scrolling his phone without really reading the words.
Min stood by the window, looking out at the city lights. His reflection hovered faint in the glass, pale and uncertain.
And Jiwon?
He sat at the dining table with Zayn. A single lamp lit them both in yellow haze, their half-empty water bottles lined like failed attempts at calm.
Zayn leaned forward, elbows on the table. He studied Jiwon's face like it held the truth he'd been chasing since they were kids. "You're too quiet."
Jiwon met his gaze, unflinching. "You wanted me to be honest."
Zayn's jaw tightened. "So be honest. What the hell was that tonight?"
For a long moment, Jiwon didn't answer. His fingers traced the condensation on his bottle. The weight of the blade at his side lingered like phantom heat.
Finally, he looked up.
"It wasn't random," Jiwon said. His voice was low, careful. "That thing came for us. Not the crowd. Not the staff. Us."
Zayn's eyes narrowed. "And you knew it would."
Jiwon didn't confirm it. But he didn't deny it either.
Silence stretched between them, taut as wire.
And then, with a faint exhale, Jiwon shifted. His words softened, but his gaze sharpened, locked only on Zayn.
"I met him again."
Zayn's breath stilled. "Him."
Jiwon nodded once. "Yul."
The name hung heavy in the room, like a confession.
Zayn's chair creaked as he leaned back, trying to process. His hands curled into fists against his thighs. "And you—" He stopped himself, searching Jiwon's face. "What did you do?"
For just a second, Jiwon's mask slipped. The memory of Yul's touch, his mouth, the impossible softness hidden beneath centuries of violence—it flickered across his expression before he shoved it back down.
Zayn saw it anyway. He always did.
"You let him close," Zayn said quietly. Not a question. A truth.
Jiwon didn't move. Didn't speak.
But his silence was the loudest answer of all.
Across the room, Kai groaned and rolled over, muttering something incoherent in his sleep. EO's phone buzzed. Min kept staring out the window.
The others didn't know. Not yet.
But Zayn did.
And as his eyes locked on Jiwon's, something shifted. Not betrayal. Not quite fear.
Something heavier.
Because for the first time, Zayn realized that Jiwon wasn't just fighting demons.
He was falling for one.