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Baek Saheon peeked out from behind a bush, eyes trained on the angel sitting below a tree in a clearing with a basket by his side.
The angel had set a picnic there, smoothing out a piece of fabric onto the grass and sitting at its center. He reached a hand into the basket and drew an apple from it. Then, bringing it to his mouth, he took a bite from it, the juicy crunch resonating through the clearing.
Baek Saheon's mouth watered. He was hungry, starving.
That was an apple from one of Heaven's gardens, one of the only foods angels can eat. It had been millennia since he last ate it. After Lucifer's rebellion, he had fallen along with his brethren that had sided with Lucifer, cast out of Heaven's pearly gates, and thrown into Hell, branded as traitors, outcasts, devils. Ever since then, he no longer had access to Heaven and with it, access to the garden too. As a result, he had been starving ever since, barely sustaining himself using the souls of humans — they barely filled him and always left him unsatisfied and craving for more, more, more.
As if on cue, his stomach growled.
He looked down at his stomach in betrayal, his hands immediately flying to it, trying to stifle the sound, though it had already happened. Then, his eyes snapped back to the angel, praying that he didn't notice the sound.
Thankfully, he didn't and was still chewing on his apple and going back in for another bite.
Baek Saheon scowled.
Just take a look at this guy, leisurely taking bites from the apple like he had all the time in the world, must be good. He didn't even take notice of his surroundings, didn't even hear Baek Saheon or notice his stare on him. Just how spoiled was he?
And he was greedy too. Baek Saheon had caught a glimpse of inside the basket when the angel was reaching in, catching sight of the large amount of apples in it. Who even needed that many apples?! What was he? A glutton??
His glower deepened.
He wanted it. He really wanted it. Even just a bite would do.
He had been starving for too long, unable to eat human food — he had tried, he really did, but none ever sat right in his stomach, and he never felt his hunger being satiated afterwards — and human souls weren't enough, and this angel, he swore, was taunting him with that basket full of said apples.
If only—
If only he could go up and snatch it away from him, to him who clearly deserved it more than him—
"Grapes-ah, so this was where you were~"
He ducked down into the bush. The branches scraped at his face, but that didn't matter. What mattered was not getting caught! Who knew what those angels would do to him if he were. And he knew full well that he was in no condition to fight off an angel, much less two.
The angel, apparently named Grapes — who named this guy?? That was such a shit name??? — looked up and smiled in the direction of the voice. "Hello, sunbae. Is there something you need?"
"Ah~ Don't say it like that!" The other angel landed before Grapes and whined. "You make it sound like I only look for you when you need something! What kind of senior do you think I am?"
"So is there anything you need?" Grapes repeated his question.
The other angel huffed and sulkily muttered while his feet dragged along the dirt in small kicks. "Jaekwan-ie was looking for you…"
Grapes nodded and stood up, patting the stray blades of grass off himself. "Alright then. Let's go."
"Eh?" The other angel pointed to himself, sounding surprised. "Me too?"
"Mhm." Grapes agreed. "We shouldn't keep Jaekwan-nim waiting."
Then, with a flap of his wings, Grapes was gone. The other angel, with their mouth agape, let out a small Eh? and flew off after him. And just like that, the meadow was suddenly empty, save for the basket of apples that was left behind.
With only him and the basket left, the hunger pangs grew stronger.
He wanted one, just one, even a bite was enough, and the apples were just sitting there, with no one to guard them, so free for the taking. The temptation grew stronger.
A small breeze shifted the leaves above the basket and a ray of sunlight slipped through, hitting the apples, making them look redder, juicier, more appetising, and Baek Saheon's resolve broke.
There were so many apples. Surely, the angel won't notice if one went missing, right?
Clinging to that logic, he finally crawled out from behind the bush and made his way toward the tree. His mouth watered more and more the closer he got to it. He barely stopped himself from drooling.
Reaching the basket, his hands were trembling as he reached in and grabbed hold of an apple. Suddenly, a thought gripped his head. One wasn't enough. What if he went hungry for a long time again? Shouldn't he… stock up while he could?
His hand shot out for more, depositing the apples against his chest, his other arm creating a small makeshift basket to hold them.
He kept grabbing more and more, until they were about to overflow and fall from his arms, when he realised that—
He had a perfectly good basket right in front of him. Why wasn't he using that?
He looked at the basket, stupefied, before quickly stuffing the apples back in and grabbing hold of the handle, prepared to fly off with it.
"Hey, what are you doing?"
They didn't fly far before Choi whirled around to grab him by the shoulders.
"Grapes-ah, you—" Choi cut off, looking at him with his mouth opening and closing.
He sighs and lets go of his shoulders, opting to drag a hand down his face.
"Ah really, did you—"
"I knew he was there." He quickly cut Choi off.
Choi's head snapped towards him. "You knew?"
"I did." He confirmed. After all, how could he not?
Kim Soleum had known that someone had been watching him ever since he had set his picnic down under a nice shady tree in the middle of the clearing on a good sunny day. He also knew that his little Peeping Tom wasn't a human, but a devil — the idiot wasn't very good at hiding where he was. Kim Soleum could see his horns peeping over the top of the bush and he wasn't being as silent as he thought.
He was supposed to kill him. It was his duty to. But the devil had seemed peaceful. The only disturbance he was causing was probably that uncomfortable stare he was directing at him. Though… Kim Soleum had to say, he was curious about that. Why was he staring so intently at him?
He wanted to know, yet he also knew, if he went up to the devil and asked, the devil would bolt away before the question could even be spoken. The history between angels and devils was pretty messy after all.
So Kim Soleum let him stay behind that bush and creepily watch him eat.
That was until Choi had shown up.
One look at his sunbae's face, and Kim Soleum knew that Choi knew his Peeping Tom was there, and worst of all, he thought that Kim Soleum didn't know that he was there — Kim Soleum really didn't know where this misunderstanding between him and his sunbaes had come about… He was a fully capable angel! Even though he was afraid of devils, there was a reason why he was named the top rookie of Heaven!
Yet, despite that, his sunbaes still saw him as someone who needed protecting. Kim Soleum both hated and loved it. The feeling of being coddled like a child unable to do anything wasn't something anyone would like when he knew full well how capable he was. Though he was a child, having been brought into existence only a year ago, he didn't need this kind of overprotection! But… the feeling of being loved and cherished to this extent… Kim Soleum sometimes found himself smiling unconsciously at their antics.
Still, he was fully capable of defending himself! Sure, he was injured from the last mission he was on, but that was what he was here for! To rest and recuperate in peace during his breaktime. There was no reason for him to deal with that devil right now, especially since he didn't seem all that hostile! Just… creepy.
He didn't understand why Choi had to intervene like this.
Choi had tried to guide him away under the guise of Ryu Jaekwan looking for him, which he was 80% sure he wasn't. Still, he agreed, not before dragging Choi along with him too, which brought them to where they were now.
Choi looked confused now. "Then why didn't you…"
"…" Kim Soleum hesitated, looking away before answering. "He wasn't doing anything harmful…"
A series of complicated emotions passed through Choi's face — Kim Soleum saw worry, anger, and defeat — before he sighed again, looking utterly exasperated. "Grapes-ah, you're too soft."
"…"
"Whatever, whatever." Choi laid a hand over the jakdu's handle. "I'll deal with him for you."
Kim Soleum surged forward, pressing Choi's hand down and preventing him from drawing the jakdu. "No! Really, it's fine, I can handle it."
To be honest, Kim Soleum wasn't stopping Choi from killing the devil out of goodwill. He just didn't want the trouble of filing paperwork during his break, and he did not want to see blood when he was supposed to be eating. He would lose all his appetite if he did. Just the thought of it was already making him nauseous.
"I can handle it, sunbae." He repeated, pressing his lips together. "I don't need to be babied…"
Choi stared at him, scanning his face for a full minute, before he flopped onto his back, lying down on air. "Do as you wish." He sulked. "No one listens to this sunbae anymore…"
Kim Soleum ignored Choi's dramatic antics. "If that's all, I'll go back now…"
Choi remained in the air, mumbling and rambling to himself, when he turned to leave, flying back where they came from, back to the tree.
He flew at a slow pace, and after flying for a while, he finally neared the tree. As he was descending, he noticed the devil was no longer where he was in the bush. He was about to chalk it up as the devil becoming bored and leaving when he spotted a familiar silhouette under the tree.
The devil had moved from the tree and was now rummaging through his basket, taking out apples, hugging them close to his chest.
Kim Soleum paused in the air.
Was this devil… stealing from him?
He watched as the devil's arms slowly filled up, each apple stacked on becoming a precarious act of balance.
He didn't particularly know what he was supposed to feel looking at the scene before him. On one hand, he felt bewildered that he was being stolen from, but on the other hand… he had to question, did the devil get hit on the head as a child? Was there not a perfectly good basket that he could've taken and ran off with and Kim Soleum wouldn't even have witnessed the crime? Wow… he sure lived an inefficient life…
As soon as he thought of that, the devil suddenly started shoving the apples back in the basket.
Now, Kim Soleum was even more bewildered. Wouldn't it be better to not use the basket by now? Why put the apples back when he had already wasted so much time taking them out? Seriously, how does one live so inefficiently?
Finally, when the last apple was inside the basket, the devil took hold of the basket's handle and spread his wings, about to fly off. This was when Kim Soleum decided to finally step in. Though he didn't want to deal with devils right now, this one wasn't so scary — if anything, he looked pathetic. Besides, he still hasn't finished eating his lunch too.
"Hey, what are you doing?"
The devil jolted and immediately spun around, pulling the basket into his chest. "What's it to you?! Mind your own business!"
Though the tone was aggressive, Kim Soleum could not find it in himself to be scared. The devil had wide eyes reminiscent of a deer caught in headlights and was hugging the basket so tightly as if it were a plush and he was seeking comfort from it. It was oddly cute. It made him want to tease him.
"Well, it's kind of hard to mind my own business when that's my basket you're holding." He gestured towards the basket. It only made the devil hug the basket tighter.
"Your basket? How do you know it's yours?! Your name isn't carved on it!"
Kim Soleum pointed a finger at the base of the basket. "Um… if you look at the bottom, my name is engraved onto it…"
The devil flushed bright red. "Well— I—"
Kim Soleum finally couldn't take it anymore and burst out laughing. If only more devils were like this, maybe then he wouldn't be so scared of them.
"What are you laughing at?!"
"You look so ridiculous, pfft—" Kim Soleum giggled.
The devil flushed an even brighter red, his mouth opening and closing like a fish on land as he tried to find the words to rebuke him. Finally, with teary eyes, he shoved the basket into Kim Soleum's arms. Kim Soleum, not expecting that, stumbled back a few steps while catching his grip on the basket.
"Have it back or whatever! It's useless anyway! It's just some stupid apples, who would even want them!"
Though the devil said that, he looked like he was trying not to cry and was looking at the basket with eyes that clearly said he wanted it badly. Kim Soleum really didn't understand why. As he had said, weren't these just some apples?
This—
This angel…!
He was really taking it too far!
Baek Saheon was fuming. His stomach was burning in tandem with his anger.
Did this angel really have to be so greedy?!
So many apples and he couldn't even share some with him…
Baek Saheon stared at the shiny red skin of the apples peeking out of the basket.
Fuck. He was really hungry. He wanted those apples so bad. His eyes stung, though he would deny ever being close to tears from this.
If only— If only he wasn't so weak and hungry… He wouldn't have even given the basket back. He would've snatched it brazenly from under the angel's nose and taunted him with it. Unfortunately, he was sure he was weaker than this angel right now, and he really did not want to get hurt, or even worse, die.
He gritted his teeth and forced himself to look away from the apples.
Grapes hummed as he adjusted the basket in his arms. He picked an apple out of the basket and examined it, the lilt of his hum turning what Baek Saheon guesses is satisfactory, before placing it back. He then shot him a quick look, smiled, and sat on the ground beneath the tree.
What was this guy doing now…
Baek Saheon watched him warily.
Grapes plucked out an apple from the basket and bit down on it. Juicy crunches filled the air once more. This time, they somehow sounded mocking.
The angel slowly chewed while staring at him. And as the apple disappeared into Grape's mouth bit by bit, Baek Saheon also felt himself slowly go insane.
Was this bastard taunting him?
"Hey." Grapes called out.
"What?" He replied through gritted teeth.
"Come here." Grapes patted the grass beside him.
…Was this a trap? Baek Saheon squinted at the grass, trying to see if there was a trap in it.
As if reading his mind, the angel continued. "What are you waiting for? It's not trapped."
But that was exactly what someone who trapped it would say.
Baek Saheon surveyed the grass a bit longer. It looked normal. There was nothing unusual about the grass there. So after a brief hesitation, he finally sat down next to Grapes, but his guard was still up.
"What's your name?" Grapes asked. This close, Baek Saheon could smell the sweet juices of the apple in his breath. His stomach clenched again.
"… Why do you want to know?" Baek Saheon carefully asked back.
"Why not?" Grapes replied, nonchalantly throwing away the core of the apple he had eaten to the ground as he did. "What's the harm in introducing ourselves?"
Baek Saheon pursed his lips.
The angel was right. There was no harm in introducing themselves. However, Baek Saheon really did not want angels to know his name, much less this suspicious one.
He opened his lips, about to give Grapes a fake name, but he was interrupted.
"And don't give me a fake name." The angel shot him a smile full of teeth. "I would know. Oh, I should start, shouldn't I? I'm Park Gyeonghwan."
…
Baek Saheon really… did not care about the angel's name, nor did he want to give his, but Baek Saheon could not tell if the angel was lying or not and who knew what the angel would do if he didn't.
Also, Park Gyeonghwan was a much better name than Grapes… That must've been a nickname… It was a rather cute nickname.
…
What was he thinking now…
This angel was not cute! Okay, maybe a little, but it wasn't enough to warrant him calling him cute in his head!
His head quickly filled with complicated thoughts about the angel.
"So, what's your name?" The angel asked again, his voice cutting through his thoughts and snapping him out of it.
He quickly swatted those thoughts out his head and replied. "…I'm Baek Saheon."
"Hmm… Baek Saheon…" The angel savoured his name.
Baek Saheon stayed silent, hoping that his name was enough to satiate whatever curiosity the angel had towards him and let him leave. His hope was very quickly shattered.
"So." The angel started, picking out another apple from the basket. "Why have you been watching me?"
"Huh—What—" Baek Saheon sputtered, not expecting that question. "I—I have not been watching you!"
"Mhm mhm, sure." The angel nodded sagely. "And there was no one hiding in the bush earlier watching me eat."
"…"
"What? Nothing to say?"
"…No."
"Well, I do."
The angel rolled the apple in his hands.
"I noticed you kept looking at the apples." Baek Saheon averted his gaze. He hadn't realised his gaze had subconsciously shifted to it. "Why is that?"
"It's nothing." Baek Saheon quickly said. "You're imagining things."
"Am I really?" The angel drawled. Then, he swung his arm out, bringing it to a stop right before his face, with the apple in his hand. "So you don't care about this at all?"
Baek Saheon gulped. The apple was so so close. His mouth was almost grazing the apple. The sweet scent permeated his nose and suddenly, all he could think about was having the apple right now.
He moved forward, mouth open, trying to take a bite out of the apple. But as his mouth closed, it closed around nothing. The angel had moved the apple away.
Baek Saheon frowned, opened his mouth, and tried again. And again, the angel moved it away.
Baek Saheon huffed and chased the apple once more. And once again, the apple was moved away.
This continued on — the apple being moved away, him moving forward to try to get a bite out of it, and it being moved away again, a little game of cat and mouse. And before he knew it, he had somehow crawled onto the angel's lap and the apple had moved to just before the angel's face, but all he could see was the apple before him and its rosy gleam. Finally, frustrated with the wild goose chase, he lunged forward, catching his teeth on the apple before it could move away, and took a bite out of it.
Flavour burst into his mouth. Golden nectar and refreshing sweetness and ambrosia. A taste that he had almost forgotten from how long it had been since he last had it. His eyes welled up, his mind overwhelmed by the feeling of his stomach finally getting proper food.
He quickly swallowed what he bit off with barely any chewing before going back for more. Like this, he ate out of the angel's hand like a savage, spilling juice and flesh onto both their suits as he practically shoved the apple down his throat.
When only the core was left, not wanting to waste any part of the apple, he went back to finish it. The apple was pulled away before he could and was flung to the side.
A strangled sound escaped his throat. "That— Why are you wasting food!"
"Why are you trying to eat that for? It's inedible."
"It's still food!"
The angle clicked his tongue. "Why are you so hungry anyway? Do you not get food down in Hell or something?"
"…"
Baek Saheon was momentarily struck speechless.
"What?"
"… Angels, fallen or not, can only eat foods from Heaven's gardens."
"Oh." The angel had the audacity to look shocked, like this wasn't fundamental knowledge taught to every angel. "I didn't know that…"
…There was no way.
Was there suddenly an education problem in Heaven? How could he not know that??? It was literally the third thing angels were taught, right after how to fly and walk.
A brief silence followed. Until the angel suddenly reached into the basket and pulled another apple out to his surprised gaze.
"Want another?"
"You know, you're a lot nicer than the other angels." Baek Saheon says while chewing on another apple, his thirteenth one.
"Is that so?" Kim Soleum replied, also chewing on an apple.
He didn't expect to somehow befriend this devil and have an impromptu picnic with him. Yet here he was, doing exactly that, and this devil had decided that he wasn't a threat somewhere around his third apple and started venting to him instead.
"Yeah. They usually chase after me whenever they see me, shouting about how—" He released a hand from the apple he was eating to make air quotes. "—evil needs to be purified. I haven't even done anything!"
"Must be tough…" Kim Soleum mumbled.
"And have you heard? Ah, what am I saying, you probably didn't." What did he mean by that… "So there's supposedly a new angel in Heaven, and do you know what they call him?"
Kim Soleum had a sinking feeling he knew who he was talking about.
Baek Saheon leaned in close, brushing shoulders with him, and whispered into his ear. "They call him the Destruction Rookie."
And his feeling was right. Kim Soleum felt himself die a little on the inside.
He hated this title. It was an embarrassing thing that he did not choose for himself.
After he had been trained and sent into a bit of a trial period to see which department he suited best, he had somehow managed to eliminate 5 devils within his first day. He wasn't even trying to hurt anyone too! In fact, he was more scared if anything. But a little accident happened, a small fall occurred, a blade was sent flying, and suddenly, he had killed them?
Kim Soleum still didn't know what happened that day, but after it, the title had made its way around Heaven. It also didn't help that every mission he was sent on was cleared in record time — by accident too! Eventually, he was thrown into Hyunmu Team 1 and the title stuck, no matter how hard he tried to erase it.
He so badly wanted to bury his face in the dirt and never see the light of day after hearing it come out of a devil. He didn't know his reputation had spread so far as to reach Hell already. What a disaster…
Not sensing his inner turmoil, Baek Saheon continued. "I heard how he can easily split someone in half. How terrifying… I was lucky to have met you instead of him."
No… You really weren't… Kim Soleum wanted to scream. The one you are looking for is right beside you!
"Mhm." Kim Soleum forced out instead, taking a large bite out of his apple to have an excuse to not reply.
"I also heard that he really hated devils. He killed what? 40 devils in just the past month!" Baek Saheon brought up the apple he was eating to his mouth only to realise that he had already eaten it to the core. He reached down to the basket to grab another, but it was empty. "Oh. Did we finish all the apples…?"
Whilst Kim Soleum was grateful for the change in topic, but… We, he says, like he didn't singlehandedly eat almost three-quarters of the apples Kim Soleum brought out…
Kim Soleum was about to say something about it, but one look at how Baek Saheon pouted at the basket, nudging at the rim of the basket, lightly shaking it like it would cause an apple to suddenly pop out, and the words he wanted to say died in his mouth, and he blurted out something else instead.
"Um, I… I can bring more tomorrow?"
At his words, Baek Saheon immediately perked up like a puppy hearing the sound of treats. "You promise?"
"Okay…?"
"You need to promise me." Baek Saheon insisted, holding out his pinky towards him.
It was a juvenile act. How was interlocking their pinkies going to make sure that he doesn't break it…
Still, he wrapped his pinky around his and hoped he won't regret this.
"I promise."