"Your office looks scarily normal."

"What did you expect, a golden gate and Saint Peter as its keeper? We don't exactly have the funds for that."

Seonghwa sat down his bag next to the chair Yeosang had offered him while the man rounded his table. His jacket found its place over the backrest before he sat down and nervously rubbed his knees and thighs.

"No, not that... Honestly, I have no idea. Hongjoong also blends in well, so I don't know what I was thinking."

Yeosang chuckled wryly before he planted his behind on his seat and pulled a thick folder from one of the cabinets on his side of the table. As usual, his black suit clung to his form as if it had been moulded for his body shape. His nimble fingers flicked through the orderly register at the side until he got to the letter H.

"Our intern will bring us some coffee and tea later; I hope you can exercise patience until then. Now, tell me what your problem with Hongjoong was." With his carved features smooth like the surface of a lake, Yeosang stared at Seonghwa. No apparent emotion crossed his face, and his eerie calmness had Seonghwa fidget even more. He began to sway back and forth to shake himself out of the judgemental trap that Yeosang's eyes set out for him. After a quick glance through the room to avoid that penetrating stare, he spoke up.

"We were talking about a grasshopper in the garden, and he told me one of them ruled his world."

Yeosang nodded gravely. So, as ridiculous as it sounded, it had been the truth. Seonghwa would ask no more.

"Then Wooyoung mentioned something about their maltreatment in our world to which he got angry. I placed my hand over his chest, here," Seonghwa showed him where to which Yeosang slowly nodded once more. "He grabbed my wrist, so I grabbed his wrist, and suddenly he asked me not to grab him, and his mood dropped." Glum, Seonghwa lowered his hands to his lap again. "Did I do something wrong?"

Yeosang sighed before he scanned the page in front of him. It was full of what looked like medical statements to Seonghwa.

"Hmm, let me see... Ah. Severe fear of peanut butter, also known as Arachibutyrophobia, not allergic to nuts - that is good - stabbed to death by a chicken with a knife- wait."

With an embarrassed smile, Yeosang turned the page.

"Sorry, wrong name. I was still at Honggu. Now, what do we have here?" He scanned the page in silence for a minute before a thoughtful hum came from his lips. Before Seonghwa could stretch his neck and try to catch a peek, he abruptly closed the folder. The sudden bang startled Seonghwa, but Yeosang made up for it with a reassuring smile as he folded his hands on the folder as if he had to keep it closed physically.

"I mentioned before that we have certain rules not only the demons need to abide by, but also the humans, right? For example, you giving him a place to sleep and such, right?"

Seonghwa approved of that quietly. He had memorised those lines in the contract to ensure that Hongjoong would never feel mistreated in the tight surroundings he was stuck in. If Seonghwa imagined himself in the demon's shoes, he would be terrified.

"Now, it was not always like this. And Hongjoong is an old being. In his life of service, there have been a few... instances where our laws could not provide him with the best conditions. Our juridical department is still fairly young. The power dynamics between summoner and summoned can quickly lead to an imbalance between the two parties."

Not saying a word, Seonghwa just listened to him. He didn't want to jump to conclusions before the truth was clear.

"His data says that he is afraid of basements and chains. Given the accidental character Wooyoung's summoning had and your first reaction to him, I think we can both guess what happened. Humans feared him before, and they did not treat him well."

Swallowing, Seonghwa tried to fend off the fresh wave of guilt that seized his chest. Grabbing Hongjoong like that had been such a horrible thing to do. Hongjoong playing it off was even worse. His discomfort should be respected.

"They... They didn't hurt him, right?" Seonghwa had to sit on his hands to keep them from trembling. When the intern came in with their drinks, no silence had ever felt that tense to Seonghwa. The air was heavy with implications. He continued only when the lady had disappeared again.

"Do we have any way of knowing?"

Yeosang sighed and sorted the pens in his pen holder with no apparent order.

"All demons are required to report on their tasks in the human world and do physical checkups once they return to their home to ensure their health. Depending on how bad they are, they get more days off. We've had friends taken off the job entirely before because they feared humans too much to return to this world. Since it has been a while, I can't possibly show you any data on his health matters, but since he returned here, I think he overcame whatever might have happened. I could call the headquarters for you, though, if it helps you sleep at night."

"Yes, please do that," Seonghwa pleaded meekly. His mind was already stuttering with its ideas to make it up to Hongjoong. He would need anything but eggs that Hongjoong could enjoy that he could gift to him subtly and without the demon realising that Seonghwa now knew his darkest secrets.

Yeosang leaned back in his chair in practised nonchalance as he rose the telephone to his ear. Still, his foot bounced nervously, and he nibbled on his fingernails. An anxious case.

"Hi, yes, this is Kang Yeosang from district 8. I'm calling because of Kim Hongjoong. Could you get me his file? I need his mental health status."

Yeosang tapped his fingers on the table and sometimes sent distorted smiles in Seonghwa's direction that were probably mostly meant to help himself.

"Hm. Okay, yeah. I see, yeah. Damn, seven inches? Yeah, I'll relay that. Now that you say it? Probably lasagna, man. Haha, yeah. Blow a kiss, goldfish. See you later on Facebook, you nerd. Bye, bye."

The weirdest one-sided conversation that Seonghwa had ever listened to later, Yeosang set the phone down gravely. His face was not too dark, so a spark of hope ignited in Seonghwa's chest.

"It's not as bad as you may think. No particular harm came upon him during that time, but he was locked up in a dark place that was supposed to mean security for him for a while. The case stated that they kept him there for two weeks before allowing him to leave and fulfil his very simple quest. He could go home right after and took some time off."

Seonghwa had no idea how that information corresponded with what Yeosang had just said on the phone, but he took it. Some tension lifted off him.

"Alright, so no basements, no chains. I'll take better care of what I'm doing." Resolut, he clasped his hands together. Maybe Hongjoong would enjoy a new game to play with Wooyoung? Seonghwa could gift it to both of them as reparations, and Hongjoong probably wouldn't get suspicious.

"How is the contract coming along from your perspective? Is he making any trouble that you are just too nice to share?" Yeosang leaned back in his chair comfortably to play with his veiny hands. At his casual demeanour, Seonghwa also relaxed.

"He takes good care of Wooyoung. His pranks sometimes get my white shirts washed with red socks, but that is fine. I can't really say he is making trouble."

Chuckling, Yeosang reached into his drawer. He produced a tablet that he promptly started to type on. On his home screen, Seonghwa spotted a dozen games from Candy Crush Saga all to Slayaway Camp. Apparently, even angels could get bored if their daily hours of demon sitting were not interesting enough.

"That's good news. He was never considered a troublemaker in our books, too, so I'm glad he is still the same. Since you treat him well, he probably has no reason to complain, either. See, it would be great if you sometimes checked in on him. The higher-ups are curious how your case around Woo and his prolonged stay will go, so they would like to hear updates about him sometimes. If you give me your e-mail address, I can forward them to you, and you can work through them whenever you please."

Yeosang turned the tablet in Seonghwa's direction. As he typed in his data with careful fingers on the foreign device, Yeosang hummed under his breath. It was the same song about penguins with ponytails that Wooyoung adored so much.

Once done, Seonghwa handed the device back. Yeosang tapped away some more before he shut it off again.

"Anything else? You adjusted well, and Hongjoong also seems fine whenever I see him. Do you have any questions now that you know what you are dealing with, though?" Without breaking eye-contact, Yeosang slurped on his coffee. Then, he made a face since it was too bitter for him.

"Yeah, actually... Is it painful for him to keep his wings hidden? Or uncomfortable?"

"Uncomfortable is more like it. Imagine you had to hold one arm behind your back constantly; it feels like that. Hongjoong told me that he sometimes takes walks in the forest where he can rest his wings and horns a bit before he returns."

So that explained his sporadic trips. Seonghwa wondered if it would be any good if he allowed the man to keep his wings out in the house. Would he knock things over? Or was the risk of the neighbours seeing too high?

"It would be nice if you sometimes could take him on outings to places where he can fly or at least spread his wings for a while. No doubt, he will like it." Yeosang himself glanced longingly at the window behind him. His dreamy sigh was unfathomable to Seonghwa.

"That sounds like a good idea, yeah. I might do that." Seonghwa smiled awkwardly. Then, he fumbled for his jacket.

"I think I will leave you alone, then. Thanks a lot for your time today, and I will remember to call if I ever need anything again."

Yeosang waved at him lazily.

"Please do so and tell Wooyoung I said hi."

Once he had pulled on his jacket, Seonghwa nodded. After a last goodbye, he made his way home.

Wooyoung was still in kindergarten, for now, so Seonghwa returned with a game he had gotten for the two boys and a carton of eggs for Hongjoong. Nonchalant as ever, Hongjoong sat in the living room watching a show about rice harvest when Seonghwa greeted him. As usual, his smile was patient and carried a hint of mischief.

"Hey, mortal. There was a visitor earlier, but I sent her away. Said she was Wooyoung's mom. I reminded her that Wooyoung has no mom."

Curious, Seonghwa dropped down on the couch next to him. When he set the game on the coffee table, Hongjoong's eyes lit up in interest. He began to unpack right away.

"Ah, that was my ex-wife, then. What did she want?" Didn't she want to leave already? Something must have come up.

"This. And she told me to remind you of your date with Yunho?" Hongjoong looked just as confused as Seonghwa when he handed over a letter. The envelope was pretty and decorated with golden and red swirls. A present for Wooyoung's upcoming birthday?

Seonghwa opened the letter, and his breath got stuck in his throat. The underlined cursive text that read 'Wedding Invitation' jumped at him like an angry raccoon in the depths of night. Careful, he retrieved the card and skimmed it. His eyes burnt with emotion when he read the names on the card. She was inviting him and Wooyoung to her wedding. The groom's name was foreign - American, Seonghwa would guess - and he had never heard it before. Why did she never mention it?

The invitation had come with a note. The neatly folded paper was part of the envelope, too.

Dear Seonghwa,

I'm sorry that you had to learn of this so suddenly. I wanted to tell you, but I couldn't face you. Now, shamefully writing, I hope for your understanding.
My marriage to Dean is out of business purposes. We decided to join hands for no other reason than strict work. However, his family is supposed to believe otherwise. We are playing pretend as a couple, and his parents wanted me to invite you. Believe me; I would have spared you of this pain if I could.
Please bring a date. They distrust me still, and knowing that you moved on will resolve some tension.
Let's talk about this soon. Sorry again to pull you into this.

Kiss Wooyoung for me.

Aeri

The note was a mess of information that translated into her upset with it, but Seonghwa understood anyway. He also would have trouble telling her if it were him in this situation. At the same time, relieved that she was able to move on, the sweet pain of past feelings and lost chances still pulled at his chest.

Of course, he would do his best to help her. He could ask Yunho about it right this weekend.

"She's marrying again?"

Hongjoong peeked over Seonghwa's shoulder. A frown marred his features.

"Will you be fine?"

"Yeah." Seonghwa put the card back into the envelope and stuffed the note into his pocket. "Just gotta pretend as if Yunho were my fiance and weird him out with that. We'll be fine." Sighing, he rose again to write Yunho a message asking him to meet. This was not the topic he had wanted for their date.

Before he left the room, he glanced at Hongjoong again.

"I brought more eggs for you, by the way. They are in the kitchen."

Hongjoong's smile was bright and eased Seonghwa's mind as he marched off.