Aurora stared at the man intensely.
'This man feels familiar. Where have I seen him before?'
Faintly, the same scent she had inhaled the night before returned. This time, the musky scent was stronger.
And it was coming from the man in front of her.
Aurora froze for a moment; the scent was so pleasant that she almost forgot she was running away from Dion. It was as if the scent was pulling her toward this man, urging her to embrace his large body tightly.
Aurora couldn't remember when or where exactly she had seen this man before.
Struggling, she tried to stand, despite the pain in her knees from hitting the concrete too hard.
In the distance, she saw Dion walking closer, glancing around, searching for her. Panicked, Aurora quickly ducked into an alley and hid behind a trash can.
She had even forgotten to apologize to the man she had bumped into earlier, so caught up in fleeing from Dion.
"Hey, you! Did you see a woman with long brown hair and green eyes pass by here?"
Aurora froze. That was Dion's voice. He must be asking that man she had bumped into.
Aurora started to feel anxious.
'Will he reveal my hiding place?'
She silently prayed that the man wouldn't give away her location to Dion. Aurora regretted not asking the man to lie if Dion asked him.
'What if he's angry because I didn't apologize for bumping into him? What if he tells Dion where I am hiding?'
Aurora bit her lip.
"Stupid, so stupid," she muttered, grabbing her hair. She closed her eyes, bracing herself in case Dion found her.
But after a moment, there was silence.
'Why isn't he answering?'
"Hey, are you deaf or mute? I'm asking you!" Dion shouted. "Ugh, damn it! I don't have time for this."
Soon after, the sound of Dion's footsteps faded away.
'Has he left?'
Aurora peeked cautiously from behind the trash can, ensuring Dion had really gone. The man in black had disappeared too.
Aurora stepped out of her hiding place, her eyes searching for the mysterious man.
'Where did he go? I'm sure I only heard Dion's footsteps just now.'
Aurora sighed. She hadn't had the chance to apologize for bumping into him.
After confirming that the man was no longer around, Aurora decided to return to her apartment. It wasn't safe for her to be out like this anymore; she didn't want to encounter Dion again.
'Dion knows I'm in this city. He'll definitely try to find me again.'
Aurora exhaled in frustration. "I'm really sick of him. I shouldn't leave the apartment for a while."
Once at the apartment, Aurora immediately prepared a bath. As she soaked in the tub, the image of the man in black flashed through her mind.
'He's strange,' she thought.
The man suddenly appeared ffrom the alley and also vanished without a trace. He had such a mysterious aura.
But...
'Where have I seen him before? He looks so familiar.'
Ding!
Aurora continued to daydream until her thoughts were interrupted by a notification sound from her phone.
She rolled her eyes. "It's probably Dion again. That man never tires of trying to drain my money."
Aurora reached for the phone lying on the table by the bathtub and stared at the screen.
But her assumption was wrong. The message wasn't from Dion; it was from an unknown number.
The message read:
{Meet me on the rooftop of the apartment tonight at midnight. Don't bring anyone.}
Aurora furrowed her brows. 'Who is this? I don't have any friends in this apartment, and I've never shared my number with any other tenants. How did this person get my number?'
She typed a reply:
[Who is this? Is this a real estate agent?]
After sending the message, Aurora waited for a few minutes, but there was no response. Even after she finished her bath and changed into her pajamas, the message went unanswered.
Aurora started to doubt that the message came from a real estate agent because its content seemed odd.
'Why would someone ask me to come to the rooftop at midnight and forbid me from bringing anyone? From any angle, this seems suspicious.'
•••
In the end, Aurora went to the rooftop at exactly midnight.
'What am I thinking? Why am I going here? I don't even know who sent the message, but I came anyway. What if it's a mafia member from last night? That could endanger my life. But I'm so curious.'
Aurora glanced behind her, staring at the long corridor dimly lit by a yellow neon light. The atmosphere was grim, the faint light reflecting her slowly moving shadow on the wall. Each of her steps echoed down the corridor, heightening the tension in the cold, oppressive silence.
'Should I just go back?'
This was the first time she had been to the top floor of the apartment at night. The sight of the dark, dimly lit corridor made her feel uneasy.
'No, I'm still curious.'
Aurora stared seriously at the door leading to the rooftop, took a deep breath, and exhaled slowly to calm herself before pushing the door open.
She stepped through the door.
As soon as she entered, her eyes immediately caught sight of a man in black who looked familiar. He was standing beside the rooftop barrier, with his back to her.
The night wind blew gently, playing with the hem of the pajamas Aurora was wearing. Her body shivered from the cold, and she rubbed her hands together to warm herself.
"Hello?" Her voice almost got lost in the gust of wind.
"You came?" The voice was low, almost emotionless, but there was a faint mockery in it that made Aurora feel uncomfortable.
The man turned around, revealing a face unfamiliar to Aurora.
Aurora froze.
A strong jawline and a very familiar posture. This was the same man—whom she had bumped into earlier today while trying to escape from Dion. But what froze her blood was the pair of eyes.
Aurora recognized the cold, piercing gaze from the night when she saw a strange group of people enter this apartment. Earlier that day, she couldn't see his eyes because they were hidden beneath a hat. But now, without the obstruction, his stare felt like a dagger, making Aurora want to disappear from this place immediately.
The man took a step toward her, his movement calm, almost like a predator stalking its prey.
Aurora's heart raced wildly.
'Danger.' Her instincts screamed, but her body remained frozen.
'I shouldn't have come here. This man must know that I was watching them that night.'
Her breath came in shallow gasps as her thoughts raced.
'I need to escape.'
Before Aurora could turn to flee, her body was suddenly thrown back with such force that her back slammed into the wall.
Crash!
"Ah..." A gasp escaped her lips.
It felt like the air in her lungs had stopped for a moment. Her vision blurred, but the pain in her back was enough to keep her conscious.
The man gripped Aurora's neck with almost inhuman strength. "You know too much," he murmured, his voice flat yet full of threat. "I should end your life right now."
Aurora jolted, trying to struggle, but his grip only tightened. Her breath was cut off, her face turned pale, and tears welled up in her eyes, struggling against the pain and fear.
Then, something even more terrifying happened. The man's skin began to change, coarse black hair sprouted out, replacing his human skin. The hand choking her now transformed into a furry paw with sharp claws.
The claws slashed at Aurora's skin, sending warm blood dripping down her neck. The pain was so real, that it pierced through to her bones.
'T... this must be a dream,' Aurora thought.
But the pain was too sharp to be an illusion.
The man tightened his grip further, and Aurora's face grew even paler.
"I'll keep quiet... I'll do anything... please, don't kill me," she gasped, her voice choking.
But deep down, Aurora knew—this man had no intention of letting her go.
"But I don't intend to let you live."