Hi Carats! How are you all? I hope that you've been well. I'm really excited to get into this chapter and you'll see why. I won't spoil anything or say much more so please just enjoy.

Jihoon frowns when he sees the text left by Seungcheol. "Hey, hey," Seokmin says, patting his brother in the shoulder, "Staring at it won't change it. It's not like he didn't want to come. He's busy."

"I know," Jihoon says, "I just sort of got my hopes up."

"I'm sure he'll make it up to you," Chan says as he throws his bag over his shoulder. Jihoon sighs and clicks his phone to make it fall asleep. He places it on the countertop and shakes his head, "I doubt it. I don't think he likes me as much as you two seem to believe."

"Are you kidding me? He loves you!" Seokmin exclaims, rubbing his nose against Jihoon's hair, "You're amazing!" Jihoon pushes his brother away from him, finding his actions over the top. "Shouldn't you be packing?" Jihoon asks, "You're making Channie do all the work."

"Yeah!" Chan exclaims, "I'm your younger brother, not your slave!"

Seokmin pouts, "I just wanted to spend more time with Jihoonie hyung. It sucks that we have to go back so soon. I really wanted to see you perform tonight."

"Agreed," Chan says, tossing Seokmin's empty bag to him. Seokmin catches it and begrudgingly heads to go pack up the rest of his stuff. "Promise to come to my next gig then," Jihoon says, "And stay for longer than a week. Come during your week long break from school."

"Definitely," Chan says with a grin. Jihoon walks over to his younger brother and ruffles his hair, which for once Chan does not whine about. "Tell Chanyeol hyung to record you when you perform," Seokmin calls out, "I wanna hear the new song you wrote."

"I will," Jihoon says, "Don't expect much though."

"Are you kidding? Your songs are the best," Seokmin says, coming out of the room with a now filled bag.

"Did you even fold your clothes or did you just shove it inside?" Chan asks, staring at the bulging bag over Seokmin's shoulder. Seokmin looks down at it and shrugs, "They're all in there. Does it really matter?"

"You two didn't forget anything, did you?" Jihoon asks.

"I don't think so," Chan answers, "But, if we did, it would give you an excuse to come see us back home." Jihoon's nose wrinkles at his words. He doesn't go back home often for a reason. His parents always have a bucket full of their opinions and craziness ready to dump over him the second he walks through the door. "Or I could just send it to you," Jihoon says.

"Eomma and appa miss you," Seokmin sighs, "Even if they don't say it when you do come back..."

"Yeah, I know," Jihoon murmurs, "I may drop by soon...I do sort of miss home."

"We'll, hopefully, see you soon then," Chan says, "You better keep in touch."

"Yeah, yeah," Jihoon says, "I always do."

"Still, now that you have Seungcheol's number I bet you will be texting him all day and forgetting about us," Seokmin says.

Jihoon chuckles, "I could never forget about you two. You're my favorite people in the world. I love you guys..."

"We love you too," Chan says.

"I feel like this is a perfect time for a group hug!" Seokmin exclaims.

"No," Jihoon states, "Last time we did a group hug, it went on for a good thirty minutes and you missed your train. I will not have eomma yelling at me for making you two late again."

"Fine, fine," Seokmin says.

"Good, now go throw your stuff in the trunk," Jihoon says, "I'll drop you two off in a couple minutes."

≫ ──── ≪•◦ ❈ ◦•≫ ──── ≪

"That was great, Jihoon!" Chanyeol exclaims as the young man walks off the stage with his guitar in hand. His cheer is accompanied by the claps and words of praise from the others within the small pub. Jihoon grins as he walks over to his friend, who stands behind the bar, "Thanks."

"I should make you a regular," Chanyeol says, "After your last performance a couple weeks ago, people were asking me when you would be back. What do you think?"

"I don't know..." Jihoon murmurs, leaning his guitar against the floor. Chanyeol bends down and grabs the case from the floor. He lifts it over the bar table and places it down so that Jihoon can put his instrument inside. "I would pay you, of course," Chanyeol says, "Plus, it would increase your chances of being discovered." Jihoon hums as he shuts the lid of his guitar case and buckles it up. He considers Chanyeol's offer for a moment, wondering if he should accept. He's always wanted a constant gig, but for some reason he's hesitating. He has no idea why. This place is owned by Chanyeol. One of his old friends from school. He trusts him, but he feels uneasy in this place. It could be the fact that it's a pub, but it's not like he's one to be choosy. He's a struggling singer. He should be lucky to even get a chance to sing in front of a crowd at all. "I'll think about it," Jihoon says, "Thanks for tonight."

"No, thank you," Chanyeol says, "Do you want a drink before you go?"

Jihoon shakes his head, "You know I can't handle alcohol well. I'll just get going. I'll talk to you later. Have a good night, Chanyeol hyung."

"You too," Chanyeol says. Jihoon flashes his friend a smile before taking his guitar and heading towards the door. He sidesteps as a group of friends enter the pub with wide smiles on their faces. He takes a deep breath as the cold air from outside hits his face while he walks out the door. It's late. There aren't many people around and the streetlights are on. Jihoon parked a little bit down the sidewalk and he slowly made his way towards his car. He thinks back to his performance and smiles a little, happy with the crowd's reaction to his song. He had worked hard on it and it really did feel like it had paid off. He was still a bit upset that Seungcheol couldn't have made it. He feels like he really would have liked the performance. After all, he is Jihoon's first fan. Jihoon smiles, thinking about Seungcheol and wondering what he could be doing now. He can imagine the man sitting at a desk, piles of paperwork around him. His hands running through his dark black hair and glasses sitting on the tip of his nose. His jacket hanging on his seat and his button-down sleeves rolled up to show off his nicely shaped upper arms. "Great, now I'm fantasizing about him," Jihoon mutters, trying to snap himself out of his little fantasy, "Seokmin and Chan would have a field day if they found out about this." He shakes his head again, clearing the vivid image that he crafted of Seungcheol from his mind. He continues to walk until he comes to a stop in front of his car. He digs into his pocket for his keys and takes it out. He's about to unlock it when he is distracted by the sound of...growling? Jihoon glances to the left where there's a dark alley and what looks like a shadowy figure standing there. He frowns when the figure starts to breathe heavily and starts to move forward in a weird way. Jihoon rubs at his eyes, trying to determine if he's just seeing things or not. When he moves his hand away, the figure has stepped out from the alley and the streetlight illuminates his body. Jihoon shivers when he sees the man's appearance. There's blood trailing down the side of his cheek and his head is drooping weirdly. His skin is this weird pasty tone that Jihoon thinks is due to the street lamps. The man's fingers are bent and contorted in a way that makes him look like he's about to strangle someone. His mouth is open and Jihoon can't help but think his teeth look a bit off. He breathes in a labored way and staggers forward. "Hey, are you okay?" Jihoon asks, concerned for the man that looks as if he could collapse dead at any moment. The man doesn't answer him. Jihoon frowns and opens his mouth to say something, but before he can the man comes at him at a speed that isn't possible for a human. Jihoon yelps as the man's hand clenches around his throat. Jihoon coughs as he grabs his neck, trying to get the man to lessen his grip. The man lifts Jihoon into the air and slams him into his car. Jihoon groans and his arms fall limp at his sides, pain blossoming on his back. The man lets go of Jihoon's neck and the human falls limp to the ground. He wheezes as he takes in deep gulps of air. He tries to regain his footing, but before he can the man grabs his arm and yanks him into the alley. Jihoon whimpers as the man pins him to the brick wall. He struggles in his hold, but can't seem to get the man to budge at all. The man is a lot stronger than he looks. Jihoon feels like a doll being manhandled. Jihoon can't do anything as the man forces his head to the side. He lets out a shaky breath as the man lowers his face towards his neck with a wide mouth. Jihoon's eyes widen as he catches a glimpse of the sharp teeth the man has and his heart plummets. The man snaps at his neck and Jihoon lets out a blood curdling scream as pain and fear fill his entire body.

It has begun. I hope you are all ready for this rollercoaster of a story. It is going to be crazy. I hope that this chapter was enjoyable and has leaked your interest of what's to come! If you could, please comment, vote, follow me, add this story to your library, and check out my Kpop one-shots! Until next time, bye bye!

P.S. Okay....pre-release in April. Comeback in May and a world tour! I'm so excited!!!!