Hidden Patterns | Kpop Demon Hunters x Reader

[ 21 ] cornered

True to their word, Romance and Mystery arrive in the human world, slipping through the veil between realms as if stepping from one room into another. The air here always feels different from the demon realm—lighter, thinner, tinged with scents they can't quite describe but immediately recognize as distinctly human. Warm pavement baked under midday sun, faint traces of exhaust, even the scent of someone's cooking carried on a gentle breeze.

They don't really need to search for you. Thanks to past experiences, they already know where to go. There's no room for doubt or ambiguity, and so, they once again find themselves standing in front of your apartment building.

Still, neither of them can step forward without a moment's pause.

Romance visibly shudders when the memory returns. The forcefulness of your blows, the way you moved with casual, natural precision, and the humiliating ease with which you cut him down. He tries to laugh it off, but his voice comes out sounding rather strained.

Things will be different this time, though.

...probably.

Mystery is every bit as tense as well. His expression is unreadable beneath the curtain of hair that hides his eyes, but his shoulders twitch just slightly, a suppressed recoil at the recollection of his own near-death. He remembers all too clearly the weight of your aura pressing down on him like a blade against the back of his neck. It was impressive, without a doubt, but more than anything else, immensely intimidating.

Regardless, the two make their way forward, step after step, until they're far too close to consider backing out.

And of course, since when did demons ever use the front door?

They move without saying anything, and it's practically inevitable that they end up on your balcony again. It doesn't matter that this is technically trespassing; it's simply the way they operate. The balcony is where they last entered, and so the balcony is where they'll enter again.

At least this time, there's no lingerie strewn about to greet them. Romance still hasn't quite recovered from that particular detail of their previous visit. His relief is visible in the sag of his shoulders as he glances around. It looks like you figured out the bra and panty barrier wasn't exactly doing its job.

They linger there for a while, trying to decide the best course of action. A moment passes in silence before Romance leans in and knocks lightly on the sliding glass door. The sound is almost comical in the way it echoes, dull and low. The whole thing just looks silly to begin with, admittedly. Here they are, hanging out on your balcony, despite the beating you gave them last time.

Anyway, they wait for you to come greet them. They wait, and they wait, and they wait.

Even now, oddly enough, they're still waiting.

The memory flickers between them again: you snapping awake in the dead of night when they last came for you, eyes immediately locking onto them even though they didn't make a single sound. No creak of the floorboards betrayed them, no scrape of fabric, no breath too loud. And yet you sensed them nevertheless. You felt them, based on the rhythm of their souls. Romance remembers how quickly you identified him as a demon, your eyes narrowing with instant recognition.

Now, though, there's no response.

Which is strange.

By all accounts, you should have felt their presence. They're standing right outside. If you were here, they'd have no chance of avoiding your detection.

Romance scratches the back of his head with a sheepish grin that doesn't reach his eyes. "Should we go inside and look for her?"

Mystery immediately scrunches up his nose. "What? No. Then she'll really kick our asses. We can't break and enter again. That just wouldn't be right."