By 1890 there were two distinct, if small, Chinese communities living in east London. Chinese from Shanghai settled around Pennyfields, Amoy Place, and Ming Street and those from Guangzhou Canton and Northern and southern China living around Gill Street and Limehouse Causeway. There was much prejudice against the East End Chinese community largely due to exaggerated reports of gambling and opium dens. This may have been true of some, but for the majority of Chinese people, life consisted of hard work in the London Docklands, struggling to save for a passage for the return voyage to the Far East.
One Chinese man from Shanghai whose dreams were to settle down in London and live a free life smuggled a friend along thus helping him see his dream with his own eyes.
Lee Dongwook was the young korean man studying in China when his roommate decided they should take the opportunity.
Now, walking down the street with an attitude that londoners found suspicious, Dongwook was dressed in new clothes, looking nothing like a man brought on a ship of slaves. It looked like he was there because he found a way to change his life.
From afar, anyone could see the optimism and admiration in his form. His eyes were sparkling every time he'd take a brief look at the people passing him or the buildings. Life in London was magical for him.
Looking at him now, those same eyes were moving from side to side while reading a book in English. He didn’t change much –if not at all- in looks which she couldn’t say about other vampires she turned, for example Liu Wei or Minwoo.
Yerin looked down at her hands, remembering the taste of his blood. Vampire blood is usually sweeter than a human's and acts as a drug on other vampires but for her, it was the only substance that could both empower and keep her under control.
It only happened a few hours ago when she lost consciousness for a moment and needed his help to calm down. Afterwards they were forced to accept a short trip to Busan from which they were supposed to return all honey and butterflies. The brunette vampire sighed heavily and looked out the window, trying her hardest to keep her heartbeats normal.
When Yerin entered the hotel room, it finally struck her that in her whole existence she has never truly explored the world around her. She kept close to home and didn't even think of visiting Busan for example.
With a happy sigh, she placed her backpack aside and sat on the bed. The sheets were freshly changed and it made her feel good for some reason. It felt like her life was beginning again, fresh and clean.
With those thoughts, Yerin leaned on her back and closed her eyes, smiling happily to herself.
It was only a few minutes later when she felt the bed shift and another person sat next to her. Yerin opened only one eye and smiled widely, happy that he couldn’t see her.
"Why are you smiling?" He asked nonchalantly.
"How do you know I'm smiling?" She retorted cutely.
"Are you thinking about something unnecessary?" He joked.
"Why would I? Are you?" She asked, the smile spreading unconsciously.
"Maybe," He admitted.
There was a short pause in which Dongwook couldn’t help but anticipate her next move.
"Do you have anything planned for tonight?" Yerin changed the subject, making him chuckle softly.
"No, but I can think of something." He answered coyly making her roll around so she could muffle her laughter in the covers.
"How can you say that so easily?"
"What did you think I meant?" He teased her, "Something dirty?"
She suddenly rose and hovered over his face, surprising him.
"You're being very adventurous, Lee Dongwook ssi." She taunted him knowing he will respond.
"You're too close, Yerin ssi."
Hearing that, she leaned even closer and smirked, her eyes sparkling with the same glint as before when life was simpler.
"What will you do about it?" She whispered.
Dongwook was not able to look away and he didn’t even try. Her face was inches from his and she looked ready to take responsibility for those years they spent far from each other. But somehow it didn't feel right so instead of giving in to her, he grabbed a pillow and hit her head.
"What was that for?" She asked moving aside.
"You're being too coy." He answered laughing at her messy hair. "What about sleeping arrangements?"
"You go sleep on the couch, that's a taken."
"Because I am a man?" He asked raising an eyebrow.
"Because I am a woman. Besides, if we sleep on the same bed things may happen."
Dongwook tilted his head to the side, interested where that was leading in her mind.
"Things?"
She nodded, "I move in my sleep and may touch you or kick you in places that I shouldn't touch or kick."
"You do remember we have passed that point already." He added, a grin spreading on his face, "You remember right?"
"Of course I do now shut up!" She whined grabbing a pillow and hitting him with it.
"We were back in London right? It was my 6th month as a vampire? You showed me your mark and then-" He stopped when she hit him again, "You were wearing only a white silk gown and then I caressed your back and-" He chuckled when she hit him again and again not wanting to hear him say it. In the end he caught her hands and pinned her down, his eyes staring into hers.
"Don't look at me with those eyes," She whispered, the distance between them lessening a bit.
"Why not?" It looked like his eyes were even more intense than before.
There was no amusement on Yerin's face as she remembered the way his eyes seemed to contain so much life when she saw him for the first time on the street. Her heart skipped a beat back then and it did so now. His eyes were different, darker and emptier but the way he was looking at her made her shiver.
"Nothing changed. You still treasure life as much as you did when you were human." She mumbled, her eyes softening as she felt every grain of resistance leave her body.
Dongwook's bemusement seemed to shift slowly into feelings he had buried deep within. He leaned on his elbows, forcing them even closer. He pulled a strand of hair behind her ear before he caressed her cheek softly. That innocent touch opened up memories that she avoided thinking about, making her heartbeats quicken to the point the whole country could hear.
Next day, bright and early woke up Ji Soo hoping he'd get a weekend of good news. There was no work, no Dongwook and no responsibilities to take care of. It was the beginning of a nice day and he was going to call some friends and enjoy it.
Unfortunately, by lunch he was still at home in pajamas with nothing to do and no plan for the day. In the end, he decided he should feel more adventurous and wander the city by himself.
Seoul was a wide city with a lot of people rummaging its streets yet the first place Ji Soo found in front of was Blue- the bar where he found Dongwook's happiness, or chance at it at least.
"Ah, what am I doing? It's not even afternoon. Forget it. Get a grip, Ji Soo." He mumbled to himself as he slapped his head lightly.
The next places he went to were more of a way to get his mind off stuff. Visiting his father's hospital took longer than he expected and he even met some former co workers for dinner. It was peaceful and fun until he found himself in front of the same bar a few hours later.
"You know this bar?" Ji Soo asked his best friend, Joohyuk.
"A friend recommended it to me but I didn't get the chance to check it out. Let's enter,"
Ji Soo was skeptical in meeting those people again. He never imagined they could be so elegant, all of them, and so keen to mess with others' lives.
The person at the bar was Seojoon. He smiled welcomingly at Ji Soo and prepared two glasses, literally forcing the two to their assigned seats.
"Have you been here before?" Joohyuk asked seeing how the bartender was so eager to serve them.
"A few times."
"For business purposes," Seojoon added vaguely.
"Oh, is that so? Did he finally find a woman that can rival his selfishness?" Joohyuk asked jokingly but Ji Soo almost spilled his drink on the bartender.
"I'm not so sure about selfishness but I'm sure she is stubborn enough and could easily boss him around." Seojoon commented, making Joohyuk laugh.
"How is she? Is she here?" The younger man asked looking around.
"If she was here I wouldn't be able to speak about her." Seojoon whispered, also taking a swift glance at the front door. He couldn't hear her anywhere close so with a mischievous glint in his eyes he turned to the two humans. "Jiwon is not like the women you met before. She can surprise you in many ways and she can give you the thrill of your life, but that will cost you."
Ji Soo scoffed rolling his eyes.
"What can that cost me? Another few days working here?"
"Ah right about that. Liu Wei has gone through the schedule with us and it would be perfect if you could come and work Friday and Saturday afternoon." Seojoon remembered.
"Won't that be in your favor? You'll get to see this girl more often."
"Jiwon doesn't work here." Seojoon interfered, "She doesn't really do anything."
"Is she the heiress of some conglomerate?"
Seojoon tilted his head to the side with a poker face until he started to laugh so hard that he teared up.
"Not a chance. Who would work for someone like her? No, no. She's as normal as we are."
Joohyuk raised an eyebrow confused what that meant.
"Don't you know about Ji Soo's family? His father owns a hospital."
Ji Soo hushed his friend, not wanting more people to know and word to spread but Seojoon actually looked thoughtful.
"I work in the morgue so that doesn't really matter." The older human mumbled, playing with his drink before gulping it down.
"It does," Seojoon mumbled glancing down at his hands. He raised his eyes and caught glimpse of Minwoo from the side, thinking about the same thing as he was.
On the other side, in Busan, the day begun with bad weather. It was so cold that Dongwook prepared tea twice to get warmer while Yerin didn't even leave the bed.
"We should go out at some point." Yerin started when she saw Dongwook enter the bedroom with a cup of tea for her.
"And go where? It's colder than in Seoul."
"Let's enjoy our time away from them. Besides, Ji Soo is supposed to pay for everything."
"I'm not sure that whatever we decide to do is included." Dongwook answered, chuckling at the way her hair was sticking in every place.
"It will be."
The first place the two stopped to was a shopping center. Being a woman above anything else, Yerin went first to look at jewelries. Her tastes were exactly the same as when she was living in England, the same feminine types of earrings, rings, necklaces and bracelets. Her eyes brightened when she saw a watch, one that had Swarovski diamonds around the pendulum and a light colored leather belt. The same model was for men only the belt was a darker shade of the same color.
"Should we buy them under his name or not?" She wandered out loud rubbing her chin thoughtfully.
"He'd hate you for using his card." Dongwook mumbled his eyes staring at the watch.
Yerin bit her lip and agreed with herself that she shouldn't go on a rampage just because she had the chance.
"Of course, he wouldn't get angry if you could introduce Jiwon to him, in a proper manner."
"There's no proper manner with Jiwon." She answered before a sly smile appeared on her face.
"So she said she will send me his bank account and we can easily pay with the phone." Yerin informed her partner in crime with a content grin. Her phone buzzed right after and that grin changed into a full blown smile. "Let's go."
She didn't buy the watch but she did buy a necklace that she knew would come in handy later on. From there on it didn't look like Yerin and Dongwook remembered they were forced there. They took it as it was and decided to have fun.
First place was a gaming place where they literally tried every single game. Dongwook was good at playing basket but so was she. Actually, she was really good at shooting and ride games but it seemed she wasn't even trying on the rest.
From there, they went to bowling. Yerin had the pose covered but the ball would always go sideline just before hitting something. She tried two more times and Dongwook laughed in the back.
"Time's up, let's go!" He shouted but she didn't budge.
"Another one!"
She lost.
"Another one! I think I'm getting a hold of how it works."
But she lost again.
"One more time, I swear. Just one more game." She reasoned with him, her eyes wide as if her life was depending on winning once.
But she didn't and even the staff was getting annoyed with her. Dongwook turned to them and sighed.
"I'm really sorry. I apologize for her lack of adulthood." He bowed before he turned to her.
"Wait!"
He literally dragged her from there. Luckily his grip around her waist was strong enough or else she would have escaped with how much she was squirming.
"There is a serious problem!" She moaned once he let her go.
"You are really troublesome. The only problem is your stubbornness!" He complained right back, making her cross her arms in front of her chest and pout like a child.
"You're no fun." She mumbled, walking forward just so she wouldn't have to hear his annoying comments.
While they were walking towards the other side of the shopping center, Dongwook noticed a photo booth from the corner of his eye. He quickened his pace and when they were right about to pass the booth, he pushed her inside harshly before following inside.
"What is this?" She asked annoyed, mostly because she actually hit her arm when she fell against the metal.
"Shut up and look ahead." He kind of ordered- definitely sounded bossy.
She scoffed not yet ready to be ordered around by a man she saved from death. But a bright light surprised her and she turned towards the way it came from.
"Aww, does powerful Yerin not know how a picture is taken in this century?" He leaned in and mocked her aware she'll get annoyed by it.
"I do know. I've been around for long enough, you asshole." She grumbled right before another click.
"Yerin, look at me."
She turned to him surprisingly fast and he couldn't help but feel happy.
"Smile," He said looking down at her with those same eyes as before.
She felt her heart skip a beat and looked down quickly, avoiding his gaze. Even so, he wrapped an arm around her and pulled her closer. Surprised, Yerin raised her eyes and met a sight that made her whole body numb.
They took a few more pictures before they got out. She rushed towards the food court but Dongwook waited for their first photo collage. His whole face brightened at the sight of their pictures together and for the first time in a while, he was content being both alive and dead.
ns 18.68.41.179da2
