When A Ghoul Falls In Love

The glasses of the windows shatter. Crack forms on the concrete floor. One by one, the lights are snuffed out. Eli is certainly not in the mood of talking.

Nell helps Baek Joon Woo get up and drags him out of the room. 

"What is going on?" Baek Joon Woo asks her with difficulty. She doesn't reply. There is no time. Behind her, she can hear Eli stalking them, ready for a bloodbath. He has gone mad.

The receptionist is missing. She can't see anyone else. It's like everyone from this world has disappeared except for them. Nell mutters, "We need to run." 

She doesn't know where they can go. At the moment, getting as far as possible is the only option. When Eli calms down, he will probably understand. Right now, she must save Baek Joon Woo.

Nell opens the car door and pushes Baek Joon Woo into the driver's seat. "Go away."

"Nell." He turns his head toward her. "Come with me."

"Go to Nabi." She reminds him, "She is alone. Don't you think that it's strange that there is no one here? You should go to her."

Most probably, Nabi is also gone. Nell doesn't know what to think anymore. She wants Baek Joon Woo to leave. If she leaves with him, she has a feeling that it will make things worse. 

"Nabi." Baek Joon Woo sucks in the cold air. "She is alone at home."

He hasn't understood what is going wrong. It's best this way. For now. She pats Baek Joon Woo's back. "Go."

"Come with me." He holds her wrist. "Nabi is waiting for you."

"I need to stop that guy," She says to him. When he gives her a puzzled look, she smiles at him. "Baek Joon Woo, I will explain everything later. Trust me, okay? He isn't a bad guy. He is throwing a tantrum."

"A tantrum?" Baek Joon Woo whispers. "You are choosing him."

Nell knows that Baek Joon Woo is probably the most understanding guy in the universe. He will understand if she tells him that she doesn't love him. But that truth is not exactly the truth for him. He thinks that she is still his wife. She says to him, "I will explain everything later."

With a loud crash, the hotel begins to collapse. Nell shouts at Baek Joon Woo, "Go. You have to find Nabi."

To her relief, Baek Joon Woo starts the car and accelerates it away from the spot. She turns toward the collapsing building, surrounded by the clouds of dust. A dark shadow is heading in her direction.

Will she die? Nell doesn't think so. She won't die anytime soon. Not until she has her revenge on Aiden and everyone else who have wronged her. She hasn't planned a good and quick death for Aiden. 

What will she do after her revenge? She still isn't planning to die by then. After spending ten years thinking about death, she is sick of it. Death had his chance, and it didn't take her away. Then, she is going to live for herself and the man she loves. Eli Sanguine. Her ghoul. Her person. 

Just like her, Eli has a complicated past. A child? It's fine. She can accept anyone that comes with him, although she isn't quite accepting toward the mother of the child. She is already jealous of the woman who had him in her arms once. So, she understands how Eli must feel about it.

Fearlessly, she takes long strides toward Eli. He has stopped in the dust. Perhaps, he has expected her to run away with Baek Joon Woo. It's true that she is angry and upset about what happened to Baek Joon Woo. But she is a selfish woman, and Eli needs her more than anyone else at the moment.

His golden eyes are burning with silent rage. He has pinched his lips so hard that his lips are nearly white. Shadows have emerged from his feet, spreading out like darkness wanting to swallow everything. Nell steps into the darkness. For an instant, her feet turn cold. But the feeling disappears in the next instant. She stops in front of him and looks up at his face. "Are you done?"

"I hate you," He says to her.

"Fine." She rolls her eyes. "My bad. I got mad at you. I should not have given attention to Baek Joon Woo in front of your insecure arse."

"..."

"After all, he was my past lover. He i.m.p.r.e.g.n.a.t.ed me once, and we lost the child. Then, some evil being bought him here and made him forget about what truly happened. He lived a false life with an illusion of our unborn child and me. Although I sent him to look for Nabi, I know that he wouldn't find her. Still, I shouldn't pity him. I ruined his life, but I shouldn't feel anything for him. Not even sympathy -- or gratitude for sacrificing his life to save me."

Eli knits his brows together.

"I should also ignore the fact that you have a child with another woman." Nell continues, "The woman is very real, and the child is also real. When I go back to the real world, I will meet them. I have to live with them because a child deserves to be with his father. I am very jealous of the woman because she had your child. I might never be able to have your child. Tell me then… what should I feel? Should I start chaos? Should I try to find a way out of this place and kill the mother of your child because I am f.u.c.k.i.n.g jealous of her?"

Eli stares hard at her. "You have a soft side for him."

"You don't?" Nell c.o.c.ks her head. "Sure, you killed that woman after you found out that she wasn't real. But you know that they exist. There is basically no difference between you and Eli who is on the other side. I don't know how you are here, but my guess is that everything will be fine after you come with me. There can't be two of you exist at the same time at same place."

"I am his core," He informs her. "I do not know how I got separated from him."

"Alright." Nell runs her fingers through her hair in frustration. What is a core? She has no idea. It has to be something important because Eli looks pissed about it. The shadows have disappeared. She questions him, "Does he know that his core is here?"

"I don't think," Eli exhales. "I am curious how he is alive without me." 

Nell blinks her eyes. Alive without a core? "Will he die if he doesn't have his core?"

"Will you live without a heart?" Eli raises his brow. "Or without lungs?"

She guesses that a core is an important body part. Nell takes his hands. "We should put you back in him soon."

"Did I say that I want to be in him?" He jerks her hands off him. "If he can live without me, he doesn't need me. I will live as myself."

"..." This is not good. Nell doesn't know how to deal with two Eli. One is clingy and annoying. Other has some serious issues. 

"You will be with me." He c.a.r.e.s.ses her cheek. "Not him."

"But both of you are the same." She scowls at him. "I don't want two Eli to fight over me."

"I don't want to share you with anyone else," He mutters darkly. "If both of us are the same, why can't you even hold my hand without hesitation?"

Nell has never expected to face this dilemma. She is certain that she can't deal with two Eli. One is more than enough for her to handle. If two of them starts fighting, she will definitely run away. "I won't hesitate if you go back to his body."

"For you, it is simple." His hand slips down to her neck. He bends down his head as he curls his fingers around her throat. "Then, how about you go into me? I am a ghoul. If we merge, we can always be together."

This is not going well now. Nell opens her mouth to pacify him, "Eli, I --"

His fingers tighten around her throat before she can utter a word. Nell grabs his wrist, struggling as she gasps for air. Her feet leave the ground. Her vision turns dark. Nell wonders if she is going to die now. 

"Let her go!"

A familiar scream sends an electric jolt in her heart. She opens her eyes slightly. Baek Joon Woo is running toward her with a bat in his hand.