Last Breath - Prologue
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It was a cold night. Jonghyun couldn't feel that, he just knew it because the people crowding the sidewalks around him were wearing thick coats and breathing smoke. He wore a thick coat as well, standing still amongst them, and looking like nothing extraordinary. He gave a long sigh though, and watched the empty, unchanging air in front of him with a frown. Whether or not he looked the same as a human, or even felt the same as a human, he was irreversibly a vampire - even if he was a freak among his own kind.
A laugh caught his attention, and he glanced to his right and smiled. Key was talking on the phone as he walked towards him. Key didn't look quite as ordinary as he himself did either. He wore a coat himself, though it was thinner and stark white against the night. Jonghyun recognized it as one of his favorites - one of few articles he wasn't willing to bloody up, even. It wasn't his outfit that made him look abnormal though - it was simply his flawless skin and color-streaked hair, perfectly shaped lips and--
"I'll talk to you later," Key said to whoever was on the phone, "Yes~ thank you~." and with that, he hung up. Jonghyun was disappointed when the light of Key's face disappeared in a flash, and he regarded Jonghyun coldly. "Well? You wanted to meet me?"
"How's the hunt for hunters going?" Jonghyun asked as he looked at Key. He hadn't intended to pry into Key's ongoing mission, but the thin line of a scar that ran passed the corner of Key's eye was a reminder of the reason this was the first time they'd seen each other in a month or so. Well, one of the reasons, anyway...
Jonghyun had let the hunter who made that scar escape, and Key had found his "he surprised me" story unforgivably hard to believe. Besides that, there was a vampire set to ruin their lives by the name of Jessica, who'd decided to let The Council in on Jonghyun's secret - that being, that he was the only vampire ever to clearly remember his human life. When he'd been asked about it, Jonghyun didn't have the courage to deny the truth to the all-powerful vampires that Key so respected, and Key wasn't pleased about that. After all, it had been Key's dream for a long time to become a member of The Council - but now he was the freak-sire with the freak-childe...
Key raised a well-trimmed eyebrow at him, "Slowly. Why? Hoping to sabotage me so you can save the precious little brat?"
"You know I wouldn't.." Jonghyun said with a serious frown, and he crossed his arms over his chest. "It was just conversation."
"Then what do you want?" Key asked.
"Kiss me and I'll tell you." Jonghyun said, grinning brightly. It was a grin that slowly faded as Key rolled his eyes and turned away, beginning to walk off. "Hold on, hold on.." he stepped out, taking Key's arm. "You know they're seriously thinking about opening up my head and poking on my brain?"
"My childe the science project." Key said, shrugging and looking back to him. "So?"
"I'm scared."
"How manly."
"Hey, just because you've lived through torture.." Jonghyun pouted, dropping his hand from Key's arm. "I don't think The Council likes me. They probably want me dead."
Key stiffened a bit, "Why don't you think they like you?"
"Heechul called me an abomination. Heechul did. Heechul liked me after I became a vampire."
"You hate Heechul." Key muttered.
"Yeah, but he didn't know that." Jonghyun said, shoving a hand in one of his pockets. "Doesn't matter. I just wanted to give you this."
Key watched as Jonghyun pulled a small box from his pocket. It was wrapped in gleaming gold paper, and he was sure Key already knew what it was for. He held out his palm for it, and said, "Our anniversary."
Jonghyun dropped the box into Key's hand, "Yep~. It's a week off, but since you've been so busy.."
"You shouldn't bother." Key said, "You know I just take whatever I want anyway. And I didn't get anything for you."
"How about that kiss?" Jonghyun kissed the air in front of him, then gave a grin.
"Since when were you so sentimental?" Key asked, rolling his eyes.
"Is wanting a kiss sentimental?" Jonghyun looked defensive now, "Hey, do you know how long it's been since I've had sex? You're really the only friend I've got, seriously."
"We're not friends, Jonghyun." Key said in a long sigh, "We never have been. If you're horny, just go find some human."
Jonghyun wasn't watching carefully enough to catch the pity on Key's face. He shook his head and jerked the box from Key's hand, saying, "Fine, I'll keep this."
Key pried Jonghyun's hand open, taking the box right back for himself. "I'll take it." he said, and quickly leaned forward to peck Jonghyun on the cheek. As Jonghyun stood pouting, he lifted a hand in a wave, said "Ciao~", and walked away.
Everything seemed awfully noisy to Jonghyun after that. He stood there irritated, and deeply inhaled, waiting a long moment before he finally exhaled again. This time, the air in front of him filled with white smoke, and he blinked at it. Then he followed it's true source to a girl that stared up at him wide eyed, at his side. "Kim Jonghyun? Is that you?"
Jonghyun looked at her, his own eyes going wide. He recognized her all too easily, being that she was his own cousin.
She was going to speak again when he grabbed her, slamming her body against the window of the electronics store behind him. Her sharp gasp as he ripped his fangs into the skin of her neck wasn't enough to inform any passerby of what he was doing, even as - like a warning - a news report in the TV playing behind them displayed the subtitle, "Suspicious murders in Seoul: the work of vampires?"
He dropped her empty body against the building, feeling warm and refreshed, and walked satisfied down the sidewalk - breathing deeply just to watch the cold air change white in front of him.
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