Author's Notes: Welcome to a Mystic Messenger story that I've written. As it'll say in the prologue, this story takes place about 2 years after the True Ending and Secret Endings. The main love interest is Zen and will be closely following most of the events in his route! The main character is a bit of a combination of all of the available MCs in the game (minus unicorn MC because she's far too fab). Despite the fact that I've given her a name and already pre-designed her, she's supposed to be like your MC or something along those lines? It's hard to explain;; But hopefully you all are okay with an OC being the main character in this story. Again, this story focuses on only Zen, so I've pretty much shipped the others with OCs;;;; You'll see;;;;;;;;

Anyhow, with that please enjoy this story and feel free to leave any reviews that you may have for me!

Prologue – Opportunity

After the fiasco with mysterious organization Mint Eye, things turned out peaceful again. Seven and Yang Jae Eun had come back and ended up marrying a year later, Saeran staying with them. Eventually, even Saeran found love and moved out (though the twins still lived extremely close by each other). Yoosung ended up finding a girl at his school's LOLOL Club. Her name was Goo Sooyi and from the endless gushing that the college student did in the chat, she was feisty and cute. A few months after Seven's marriage, Jumin and Jaehee found love as well. Jumin found his heart in Nae Sena—a surprisingly down-to-earth daughter of the rich CEO of Cheritz Corp. The two ended up marrying a few months after meeting and he's never seen without her. And Kang Jaehee? Four months later, she found love and support over a cup of coffee. After meeting Choi Taeyeon, Jaehee found the courage to leave C&R International and open her own coffee shop with her girlfriend.

But for Hyun Ryu—Zen—he could only smile and pat his friends on the back (except Jumin) and support them. As all of the members of the RFA found their love, Zen slowly retreated into his work, focusing himself into his acting. Instead of love, he reached for stardom, trying to grab at the chance—any chance—to skyrocket himself into his job. However, chances were rare and they seemed to avoid the silver-haired.

He didn't mind though. He loved his job. As long as he was standing on stage, his happiness was unparalleled. As long as he could perform, it didn't matter what role he got. It didn't matter that he was the only one in the RFA who was single. It didn't matter that he was alone. After struggling to get to where he was now, Zen was just happy performing.

"Effort will never betray you" was a motto that he lived by, and he was sure that if he worked hard and fought through the struggles, nothing could stop him.

That was why, on a bright October morning, he found himself walking to the Seoul University of the Arts, a letter griped tightly in his hands and a grin plastered on his handsome face.

"Dear Zen," the letter started.

"We are pleased to inform you that we are interested in your performances and wish to ask for your talent in an upcoming production. The production, which is being sponsored by the generous Choi Jaehan of Pyramid Entertainment, has recommended you as a potential pick for the main character. The play has been written by Baek Chaewon—a professional playwright who has written several plays that I'm sure you've heard of. Some of these titles are "Underground", "Beyond the Border", and his recent and most famous title "Impressionism". He will be the producer of the play and is excited to work with someone as talented as you, Zen.

"If you have time, we do hope that you can meet the Mr. Chaewon before the audition. He is a professor at the prestigious Seoul University of the Arts (SUA) and is looking forward to meeting you. We have attached his schedule and office hours and have also included the best time to see him. His number is also attached in case you wish to contact him beforehand.

"We do hope that you consider this role and we look forward to meeting you or at least hearing your answer as soon as possible."

Chapter One – Falling

"I think I got a chance at a really big opportunity," Zen typed into the RFA chat. He smiled as he hit the send button. The chat buzzed and he smiled that the first one to congratulate him was his long-time fan and friend, Jaehee.

"That is absolutely wonderful to hear Zen. I hope that this role gets you big in the entertainment industry," she wrote.

Right after Jaehee's message, her girlfriend popped in as well, gushing," Aigoo, it's finally time for Zen to make it big! I'm really, really excited! Jaehee and I will definitely be there to watch it as many times as we can!"

Zen smiled widely, the compliments from the couple-fangirls brightening up his morning. "Of course," he wrote. "A handsome man like me can't be hidden away in the shadows for too long!" He clicked the keyboard and sent his favorite winky emoticon.

The actor stretched his arms up and looked around him. The day, it seemed, was rejoicing with him. It was a fairly chilly day but the sun beamed over Seoul, warming up the busy people who were walking out and about the streets. He was currently in the busy village area that operated near the SUA, students all around him. In this area, there were restaurants, cafes, book and school supply stores and more. The area itself was bright and alive, the sounds of young college students peppering the area.

Zen adjusted his dark cap and his black blazer, checking himself in the reflection of a store's window. Although he wasn't a huge star yet, he was still quite famous and he wanted to hide himself a little and enjoy the fresh October morning. He walked confidently down the street, a skip in his stride. Zen felt as if he was on top of the world. As he passed through the shopping area, Zen slowly walked onto a fairly crowded bridge that connected the previous shopping area to the very small residential area that stood right in front of the University.

There were a fair amount of people walking along the bridge with him, some chatting happily with their friends and others rushing towards the campus while carrying huge portfolios and bags. There were also a few who leaned against the bridge's railings, peering down into the deep river that ran underneath it. Because of the rain the day before, the river was full and sloshing along quite quickly.

A particular few people caught Zen's interest as he slowly reached the middle of the bridge. There were several girls that he saw looking at him and whispering. One of them was fairly cute and petite—a match to his preferences in a woman. Besides the girls that seemed to ogle at him as he passed, was a slightly dark-skinned girl that walked a little bit farther ahead of him. She seemed to walking leisurely, her short, dark curly hair fluttering in the wind. Zen wondered if her hair was natural and he found himself staring at a particular curl that stuck out sorely from the rest of this curly head. Way ahead of the girl, coming towards himself and the curly woman, was a group of rowdy guys tossing a basketball back and forth to each other. They laughed loudly, joking and shoving each other. Finally, near exact center of the bridge, there was a couple holding a small girl up to peer over the rail. She gushed excitedly about the water, exclaiming to her parents to raise her higher.

Zen watched this family closely, slightly envious of the small girl. He thought back on his own family and shuddered. With a sigh, he shook his past out of his mind and continued on, slowly approaching the family's area.

"Daddy, daddy! Higher! I wanna go higher!"

The kindly-looking father smiled at his daughter. The mother on the other hand urged her husband to get his phone to take a picture of their precious daughter. With a nod, he lifted his daughter up onto the rail, letting her sit up on it while the mother tightly held her daughter, waiting for their picture to be taken.

As the husband pulled his phone out, a loud yell resonated through the air and Zen watched as a quick, orange blur sipped passed the husband's head. The man spun around in time to dodge it, but his wife and daughter were not so fortunate. The object collided squarely with the wife's arm and she let out a surprised yelp. As she recoiled back however, the child in her arms fell backwards from the basketball bounding off her mother's arms and into the child's face.

And in a single move, the child plummeted into the river.

Zen stood shocked for a second but once he heard the woman's shriek he stuttered forward, only to be stopped quickly.

"Hold this!"

He felt something get shoved into his chest and he looked down to see a phone with headsets plugged into them. He blinked and looked up and saw a curly blur rush off in front of him. In an instant, she threw off her backpack and jacket onto the floor. She jumped up onto the railing and, without any hesitation, dived straight into the river.

As soon as he saw the girl jump, Zen rushed forward and looked over the rail. For a second, she didn't surface and he could see the small child fighting against the current and disappearing under the bridge.

Quickly, Zen grabbed the abandoned backpack and jacket and rushed off the bridge. He ran down the side of the river bank and saw in the distant water a figure swimming towards the distressed child. The child was crying out and splashing, but the curly haired woman easily scooped up the child into her left arm, holding the child tightly to her chest. With her free hand, she began to push against the current.

Zen stumbled down to the water and waved wildly for the woman's attention, shouting at her to come to this end of the bank. She seemed to have heard him, for she began to push swim forward towards the actor. Behind him, a crowd slowly catching up to him.

As soon as she got to land, the curly-haired woman lifted the child towards Zen. He quickly placed down the stuff he had in his arms and began to comfort the crying girl. He began to brush her messy black hair out of her wet face, cooing soothingly to the child.

Behind him, the parents stumbled towards Zen and the child. The mother jumped down to her daughter, cupping her flushed face.

"Are you alright? Did you get hurt? Are you okay," she sputtered. The father quickly peeled off his own jacket and wrapped his daughter around with it, kissing her head. He gently placed a hand on his wife's shoulder and then looked at Zen who had forgotten that he was still hold the child's hands.

"How can we ever thank you," the father began. "You saved our daughter, young man."

Zen gawked at them and then looked at the woman who had actually dove into the water to save the child. She had already pulled herself up and was brushing the access water off her body. Zen stammered," I—that wasn't me. It was her over there…"

The wife turned to Zen as he spoke and then clasped his hands as well, gushing praises and thanks.

"N-no, I didn't do anything…"

"Nonsense, my daughter is fine thanks to you!"

From behind him, there came a loud shriek. Zen whipped his head around and saw the group of girls pointing at him, their faces blushed bright pink.

"It's him! It's really Zen, the actor from the "Promiscuous Jalapeno Topping" musical!"

Suddenly, Zen became aware of himself and realized that while he ran down to catch up to the swimming pair, his hat had flown off somewhere. Immediately after the girls pointed him out, the crowd surrounded the family and Zen, people shoving themselves forward to get a picture of the actor.

Zen quickly stood up, releasing the child's hands. He tried to shoot down the praises of him saving the girl, all the while looking for that actual woman who took the leap in. To the side, he finally spotted her damp figure. She stood with her back towards the group and picked up her belongings from where Zen had dropped them.

"There! She's the one who saved-" As Zen tried to point the crowd out to the real savior, the father swung Zen around and shook him by the shoulders, commending the silver-haired for his help.

"No, please listen—over there, that woman…"

As Zen turned around he saw the figure already walking up the bank and to the sidewalk. He couldn't see her face, nor could he read her emotions through her body language.

Suddenly, Zen felt himself flare up. He didn't like the idea of stealing other people's credit. He especially didn't like the idea that people were surrounding him because of who he was and how he looked like and that it must've been him who saved the girl. He really, really didn't like being in this position at all and seeing the receding figure of the girl who had risked herself only to be brushed off made him really sour.

At once, Zen snapped at the people around him," If you really saw what happened, you would know that I didn't save her but another person did. She was the one who immediately jumped into the water and she's the one who deserves to be credited. Please stop saying that it was me. If you can excuse me, I'm going to take my leave."

The crowd quickly fell silent and Zen pushed past them, running in the direction that he had last seen the woman heading towards. Upon reaching the road, he quickly followed the wet trail down the street and into the back alleys of the neighborhood.

"I can't believe those people brushed her off like they did…" Zen thought to himself. "I can't believe that she didn't even say anything either!"

As he turned a corner, he finally saw the woman walking alone down the street. She clutched her backpack in her hand and hung her jacket onto the same arm. With her free hand, she was gently scrunching her bobbed hair, loosening her curls from the water.

Zen strode forward and reached her instantly, all while reaching up and placing a warm hand onto her shoulder. She jumped and spun around and looked Zen in the face as he also jumped back from her quick turn. Zen drank in the sight of her almost instantly.

Her bright eyes were small and spaced evenly apart, sitting below well-groomed eyebrows that seemed to follow the natural curve of her eyes. Her small button nose peaked above a pair of frowning lips, which were pale probably due to the cold air and her damp body. Her cupid's bow was curiously quite high while her lips themselves were round. Her curled brown hair was already beginning to fluff, the waves and coils gently framing her round, almost heart-shaped face. Zen counted two beauty marks on her, one right below the corner of her right eye and the other directly below the first but near her jaw. Her hair hovered right above a small set of shoulders which was covered by a tan, stripped shirt. Her black pants and boots clung tightly to her body, revealing a slightly larger frame. While girls in Korea were petite and probably weighed less than 120lbs, this woman stood powerfully and was at least 150lbs. Her curves were easy to spot under her wet clothes. He spotted goosebumps already prickling down her tanned skin.

She held a steady gaze, her eyes piercing through his red ones. As she furrowed her brow in confusion, Zen noted the gold and brown flecks that seemed to shimmer within her gray eyes. The look she gave him held an air of authority and strength. She kept her mouth closed in a thin, straight line only letting her eyes speak to Zen.

At first, Zen seemed at a lost; he didn't know what to say her. So instead of saying anything, he continued to take in her sight. They stood awkwardly in the middle of the street, both not saying a word to each other. After an unusually long minute, Zen broke the silence.

"Why didn't you say anything?"

She blinked and Zen could see her processing his question in her mind. She frowned deeper and then suddenly it seemed as if a lightbulb had lit up in her mind.

"If you're talking about saving the drowning kid, I thought you were handling it quite well."

Zen was a little surprised at the sound of her voice—it was a husky, a fruity-like sort of sound. It wasn't high pitched, nor was it grating on the ears. In fact, Zen felt his heart beat pick up just by the sound of it.

"I—uh, I was just there," Zen confessed. "You were the one who jumped in after her and yet you didn't get any credit for it."

She stared at him with an unknown emotion plastered over her face. Slowly, her frown perked up and she began to laugh. Her laugh first started from her shoulders, bobbing up and down, and then it cascaded all over her body. With her free arm, she draped it over her stomach, rocking back on her heels from the amusement. Her giggles, Zen noted, seemed to flutter in the air. It was a pure sound and one that Zen could compare to chiming bells—and he really liked that sound. As her laughter died down, she straightened up and gave a small smile to him.

"As long as I know that she was fine, I don't need any 'credit' for saving the girl. Besides…" She tapped her chin with her free hand, as if in thought. "I'm not much of a fan of being in the limelight. Seeing as you're that famous Zen, I thought you could better handle the situation than I could ever have."

Zen found himself blushing slightly from her compliment.

"And anyway," she continued. "I was cold and wanted to hurry and get changed."

"O-oh! I must be bothering you then…"

She cocked her head to the side and smiled a little wider," No, no. It was nice of you to check how I was feeling. Thank you for that."

Zen scratched the back of his neck out of embarrassment. He gave a handsome smile and quickly removed his black blazer, draping it over her shoulders.

"I don't know how much warmth that'll bring you, but take that and hurry home to change. I wouldn't want a beautiful lady getting sick because I stopped her."

She gently pulled at the blazer, looking down at it quietly. She glanced up back at him and chuckled," Well, thank you for that. But I don't think that it'd be right of me to take this."

Zen put a hand up to stop her from peeling off his clothing. He smiled back at her and the suggested," Well if you're uncomfortable with taking it, then you can always give it back…"

He pulled out a pen from his back pocket and took her hand in his. He quickly scribbled down his number and wrote his name right above.

"Here's my number so that you can contact me. We can meet-up and you can give it back to me then. Sound good?"

The curly-haired woman retracted her hand slowly, gazing at the number written on it. She gave a small sigh and looked back up at him and agreed," Alright then Zen. I guess it'll be a date for another day then."

She tugged his blazer closer to her body and adjusted herself. "Well, I guess I'll be leaving first then. Thank you for your jacket."

Zen nodded and gave a wave to her. She nodded back and turned, walking away with her things. After a few steps, she turned around and shouted to Zen," You should go back home. The one you're here to meet at SUA won't be there right now."

She spun around again and then disappeared behind a corner, leaving a confused Zen in her wake.

"How did she know that I'm meeting someone?"

Zen glanced at his phone's clock and his eyebrows shot up. He was already 30 minutes late to see Professor Baek! He spun back and started to run towards the university, when all of a sudden he stopped and thought about the mysterious girl and her instruction to meet the Professor another day. He chewed on his lip and wondered if what she had asserted would be correct. He didn't want to be late or not show up. He was scared that if he didn't meet the producer, he'd lose his chance at getting the role. But there was a feeling within him that made him question himself yet, believe in the girl's words.

Zen sighed and scratched his head. He didn't want to lose the role, so he pulled out his phone and decided to call the number on the letter that he had gotten. He put the speaker to his ear and listened to the tone of the phone attempting to connect. The actor glanced at the letter and right above the number he read "office phone".

In the end, the phone never got picked up and Zen leaned himself against a brick wall. If no one was picking up, that probably meant that the Professor was already gone. If anything, the Professor was busy, which meant that it was probably not a good idea to bother him. Zen pushed the hair in front of his eyes and pulled it backwards.

"I guess… I'll just go home…"

"Hello."

Zen glanced down at his phone and saw the unknown text message sitting on the front of his screen.

The man had already arrived at home and was casually lounging on his sofa, watching an old musical that he was a part of a few years back. When he wasn't working out and practicing, Zen found himself watching back his old performances, jotting mental notes of critiques of how his acting was. He would watch himself on the screen and think about the right or wrong gestures that he used. He would then apply this knowledge to his current project, attempting to further improve his acting.

But today, the video was just white noise. He wasn't paying attention to anything and was idly sipping on his beer. So when his phone gave a chime, it shook him out of his trance.

Zen unlocked his phone and clicked on the message. His long fingers tapped at the keyboard and he replied," Hello, who is this?"

He waited momentarily and then his phone buzzed in his hand.

"This is the 'beautiful lady' who jumped in the river earlier lol."

Zen blinked and suddenly caught himself smiling. He draped his free hand over his mouth and messaged her back.

"Ah, hello! How are you? Were you able to get home safely?"

"Yes, thanks for asking. I realized that it was rude of me not to give u my number."

"No, no you're fine." Zen sent a smiling emoji after. He continued," Are you feeling okay then?"

"Lol, as I said I'm fine. I just got all kinds of strange looks on the train while I was going home. Aigoo, they probably thought I was weird ;^("

Zen chuckled, replying," If you were worried about that, I would have escorted you back!"

"Lolol, no thanks. I'd have gotten even weirder looks"

"What does that mean :o"

"Lol, dw about that. Anyway…"

Zen waited as she typed her message out. He stood up and walked back to the kitchen, throwing away his empty can of beer. The phone buzzed in his hand and he quickly looked at the message.

"I've put ur blazer in the wash so that it's nice and clean, but I was wondering if u were free anytime this Thursday? I have some work to do tomorrow, but the next day I'll be going to the campus. Hopefully u took my advice and didn't waste ur time on campus. The person ur looking for will definitely b there on Thursday, so it'd b a perfect time for u to get ur blazer and to finish ur business."

Zen cocked an elegant brow up. Again, how did she know that he had any business at the university? How did she know that she was even meeting someone and how, he presumed, did she know who Zen was going to be meeting?

"Thursday is fine. Where should I meet you then?"

"Don't worry about that. Go to the campus at around 11AM and take care of ur business. I'll find u fairly ez."

"Oh, how do you know that?"

"An extremely handsome actor walking onto campus will probably illicit a crowd. I'll just follow the sheep and find u there lol"

Zen blinked and found himself a little flushed at her sudden compliment. He sent back a winky emoji following with a reply," Well you aren't wrong about that, princess~"

"Anyway, I'll treat u to some food for giving me ur jacket. Call it a date if u want to haha ;^)"

A… date?

Zen coughed and stared at the bold text that had come from this stranger. He had only met her for less than an hour, but here he was—feeling a little excited about Thursday. He put his hand over his heart and closed his eyes. He was probably like this because it had been so long since he had last gone on a date with anyone. Almost a decade actually.

These past years, he had busied himself with his work. He was practically married to it. The others in the RFA often teased him and told him all this, but they weren't wrong honestly. He could flirt with women, but in the end he didn't have the heart to fully pursue a full-fledged relationship. In the end, all he could think about his work.

He closed his eyes and nodded to himself. This was just another one of those situations. In the end, she would disappear and all he was left with was acting.

"Ooh, aren't you cute! I'll look forward to it then~" Zen hit send and watched as the message popped into the chat. He paused and waited for a reply, only to be disappointed that she had seemed to stop messaging back. As he looked at the top of the chat and at her number, he realized that he still hadn't gotten her name yet.

Slightly hoping that she would reply, Zen nervously asked," By the way, I still haven't gotten your name?"

He waited again for five minutes and then closed his phone. As he walked into the living room, a jolt shivered through his body. Why was he disappointed? He took a long look around his living room and shook his head. He was just getting hopeful about this, when in reality it was going to end the same way as his past few flings did. He would find a girl and believe that there was something more, but then once his work got him busy, she would leave. And in all honesty, Zen wouldn't lift a finger. His dreams were important to him and, although he loved seemed to love these past women, they never could accept him if they didn't accept his work.

Sighing, he pocketed it and then decided that he should go out and take a run.

"I need some air…"

The Thursday he went back to SUA, it was cloudy and cold. The forecast warned Zen of rain in the later the day and he didn't want to get caught up in any storm. So he dressed warmly and tied his long hair back as usual. He grabbed a large umbrella and took a final look at himself in the mirror that hung in the hallway.

He gave a handsome smile and then pulled out his phone, snapping a quick selfie. He looked at it in his photo library and nodded in satisfaction. Truly, God really did bless him with looks of an angel. Still on his phone, Zen exited his home and locked up.

He opened up the RFA chat and dropped his selfie in, adding," Time to get this new role! Wish me luck all~"

Zen paused and then quickly added," Except you, mr. trust fund kid."

With a nod, he was about to pocket his phone but he found his thumb tap onto the message app. At the top of his messages, was his and the mysterious woman's chat. She still hadn't replied and her name was still just her number. He stopped walking towards the station and wondered if it would be weird to send this girl his selfie? A lightbulb went off in his head and opened the chat, sending her the photo and a text.

"Hello, hello. This is what I'm wearing today, in case you're looking for me! I'm on my way to the campus right now."

Satisfied, he was about to pocket his phone when it vibrated in his hand.

"Suuure, u probably just wanted to send off ur selfie to people huh"

He cracked a smile and continued on his way, replying to her. "Ahh, you caught me ; ( I really liked my outfit today so I wanted to show it off~"

"Mm, ur not wrong. That jacket looks very nice on u."

"Right? I'm glad you can agree with me, sweet lady."

"Lol, calling me that is making me cringe"

Zen blinked and then smirked to himself," Then please tell me your name~ That way I can call out to you later~"

"Aigoo, you asked me that a couple of days ago huh…"

"Mhmm, so what should I call you?"

Zen waited for her response, but nothing was sent back. He frowned a little and wondered if she wasn't interested at all in him. As he finally reached the station and was about to hop on the train, his phone gave a buzz.

"Call me Mona."

"So cocky, lolol!"

"Lolol"

"Yoosung, Seven. Will you two please stop? Zen, that is a very nice picture of yourself."

"Aigoo, Mama Jaehee is defending Zen again : (!"

"Seven, next time you drop by the café, I'm going to burn your favorite sweets when you ask for them."

"NOOO!"

"So, uh, Zen! Did you already talk to this producer guy," asked Yoosung. Zen chuckled absently at the chat.

"I just got to the campus. I'm about to head into the professors building. *scared emoji*"

"Take deep breaths Zen. It'll calm you down if you get nervous."

"Or lemme fax you some Honey Buddha Chips! That'll help more than breathing exercises!"

"Sevennnn, send them to meeee…"

Zen smiled at the RFA chat. He was glad to have met such good people, albeit most of them were weird. He really liked to talk to them all and they were pretty much the only ones who he spoke to outside the people he would work with. But even then, after a production was over, Zen found himself not finding interest in any of them anymore. Often, he would politely ignore their friend requests and decline hangouts with them.

"Well, anyway I'll be off. Time to get this role!"

He silenced his phone and then pocketed it in his white jacket. Zen walked into the pristine structure that was labeled as the 'Theatre' building. As he approached the front desk, the woman behind the computer screen was already blushing brightly. He gave a gentle smile and stopped at the desk, leaning on the countertop.

"I'm here to see Professor Baek. Where should I go to see him, if you don't mind me asking?"

The girl pushed up her round glasses and adjusted her shirt, stammering," B-baek you say? Let me call the office to see if they're in…"

She picked up the receiver of the phone and dialed a few numbers on it. As she was waiting for the other line to pick up, she gave a nervous glance to Zen. He gave a shining smile and watched her turn beet red.

There was a noise on the other line and Zen could hear someone talking on the other end. The secretary spoke up quickly," Yes, there's someone here to see you… Ah, you already knew? Okay… So send him over then? Yes, of course… Of course."

She put down the phone and then gave him a weak smile.

"If you will, please go to room 122B. It'll be to your left and all the way down the hall."

"Thank you," Zen started but the secretary cut him off quickly.

"Also, they're asking you to deliver this to them." The secretary opened up the desk cabinet and pulled out a thick manila folder. Zen took it wordlessly and tucked it under his arm. With a smile he waved the pink-faced secretary goodbye and headed down the hall.

The building was fairly empty. He noticed as he passed down the hallways slowly, that there were a few classes in session at the moment. He would pass by a slightly ajar door and hear a person lecturing beyond it. From the inside of this building, Zen could see perfectly outside. Instead of solid walls, the first floor of the building was fashioned so that glass separated the inside of the structure from the outside environment. Outside, the weather was beginning to darken and the wind was picking up. It slapped around the browning trees and blew past unlucky students. The rain was definitely on its way.

Zen adjusted the folder in his hand right hand and his umbrella in the other, proceeding down the hall. He made a turn and found that the hall ended. At the opposite side of him, the door at the end of the hall had a plaque on it's dark brown exterior: 122B.

The actor adjusted his coat and rubbed his hand over his clothes a little, smoothing it out. Confidently, he strutted down the hall and stepped in front of the door.

"I'll definitely land this role! Professor Baek's works are amazing and have always been taken well by the public. If I can land this role, I'll be one step closer to becoming a more professional musical actor."

Nodding to himself, Zen rapped his hand on the door. He heard a shuffle behind it and a yawn.

"Hello? Professor Baek? I received a letter in the mail about a week ago about a potential role in your upcoming production. I was hoping to speak to you about it."

There was more noise coming from behind the door. He could hear someone's footsteps coming closer and closer to the door. There was a small click and the door opened very slightly. Before Zen could say anything, a familiar voice floated from behind the door.

"You sure took your sweet time coming here from the front, Zen."

Star struck, Zen froze at the voice and watched open-mouthed as the door pushed open. Standing in front of him with a smug look on her face, was none other than the girl who had dove after a drowning child.

"M-mona…?"

She smirked and crossed her arms. Zen looked at her and took notice of her outfit. Today she wore a bright yellow, almost mustard colored shirt. At her waste clung tight-fitting denim pants that were rolled up above her ankles, white socks peeking out from underneath black sneakers. She had her curly locks tied back and Zen noticed the multiple piercings on her ears. He jumped at her chuckle and directed his gaze back at her interesting eyes. There was a strange glow that seemed to surround her. Zen rubbed his eyes and did a double-take—and yes, the glow was still there.

"Do come in. I'm sorry for the mess. I'm just organizing some stuff at the moment."

Obediently, Zen stepped into the office. He heard the door click close behind him and watched Mona step by the taller. The office was fairly large, a window on the wall on the other side of Zen. A long white desk stood in front of him, with two black seats underneath. There was a long bookcase on the left side of Zen that was filled with books, photos, and boxes. More boxes were stacked in front of the bookcase. Inside them, there were several thick looking books and folders. Directly to the right side of Zen, a coat hanger stood with several different clothing items hanging loosely on its arms. The same backpack that he had picked up the other day was leaning half-open against the hanger. On the desk, Zen could see a half-eaten breakfast and melting iced coffee. There were a few papers spread across the desk along with a closed laptop.

"Sorry again. I'm fixing some stuff that I need to take back with me later," Mona sighed. She pulled back a chair for herself and sat comfortably on it. She looked at Zen and then nudged the leftover chair under the desk forward, pushing it closer to the actor.

"Please sit, I'm sure you have some questions."

Zen obliged and pulled the chair out. He set his umbrella down next to his feet and then placed the manila folder on top of the desk. The curly-haired thanked him and slide it closer to her. He looked at her hands and found himself drawn to the curves of her fingers, the lines of her knuckles, her clean fingernails and a strange line on the middle section of her middle finger—a tattoo?

"Before I begin, feel free to ask anything on your mind."

His head quickly moved up and he looked at Mona. Zen tightened his lips in a straight line. He had quite a few questions pop up immediately in his mind, but the first that slipped out of his mouth was," Are you Professor Baek?"

Mona chuckled again and sat all the way back into her chair. She confessed," No, I'm not."

"Then who are…?"

"My name is Baek Mona. Baek Chaewon is my uncle," she affirmed quickly.

"So why are you here and not Professor Baek?"

Mona blinked and then sighed in exasperation, rubbing her forehead. "I'm sorry, I keep forgetting that the news hasn't really been broadcasted to many people," she apologized. "Right now, Professor Baek is in the hospital."

"Eh? No way… Is he okay?"

Mona closed her eyes and crossed her arms, her face suddenly tired. She admitted," Right now, I'm not sure. He… got into an accident last week." She rubbed the back of her neck and looked down at the manila folder in front of her.

"As of now, he's been in and out of the ER. The doctor said he'll be fine but he won't be fit to lead a production."

"Then what about this role? What was the point of me coming here," Zen panicked. Suddenly it seemed like this opportunity was escaping him once again. "Is the production cancelled then? I didn't hear anything from anyone, so I assumed everything was okay…"

The other waved away Zen's questions.

"Although our original producer is hospitalized, I can assure you that the production hasn't been cancelled. Our sponsor, Pyramid Entertainment, has instructed that we continue with it."

"So who will direct it?"

The corners of Mona's lips twitched upward and she sat straight. "That's why I'm here."

Zen gawked at her," You?"

He didn't mean to sound shocked, but… he really was. She didn't look at all like someone who knew how to lead a production.

"You got a problem? My uncle… Professor Baek personally asked the CEO of Pyramid to leave it to me. I grew up with my uncle due to certain circumstances and I've watched him write and produce all of his productions," she testified. "Although theatre isn't exactly my expertise, I'm trusting many of those who are assisting with the production to help me when asked."

"Wait, what do you mean theatre isn't your 'expertise'? Professor Baek left this production in the hands of an amateur?"

The girl glared at Zen and he immediately snapped his mouth close.

"Oh shit," Zen reflected.

Mona crossed her arms again and this time retorted back," Indeed. I'm an 'amateur' as you said. Theatre is not my major here. However, I took it up as a minor for myself. So despite what you think, I do have some knowledge of what to do. Please don't underestimate me."

There was a dangerous flare bubbling up in her eyes and Zen quickly blurted an apology. But… He couldn't help but get interested in this face that she was making. It was another interesting expression, full of fire and storm. He couldn't help but feel an attraction to those eyes full of flare. Mona crossed her legs and let out an exasperated sigh.

"I know that this is some difficult news to swallow. Honestly I was hoping you wouldn't react like this." The silver-haired looked down into his lap and apologized again. He could feel the disappointment in her voice and it made him feel terrible. Who was he to judge her when, at one point in his life, he was in a similar position. A mere amateur, just starting. Relying on others to guide himself to become a proper actor.

"Even if my uncle hadn't asked the CEO to let me direct this production, I would have pushed forward with it. This screenplay Professor Baek wrote…" Mona's eyes pierced Zen's, a strange confidence burning within those gray irises. She continued," No one else can lead the production of this but me. It sounds like I'm boasting but this project…"

Mona put a hand on the manila folder. "It's important to Professor Baek… It's important to me."

Zen knit his hands together and looked down at the folder. The way her voice pulled at that last word made Zen feel a tug in his chest. Before he could say anything, Mona added, "Both Professor Baek and the CEO were really adamant that you play this role. They said it can't be anyone else but you."

She smiled a little at him," I guess that's something we have in common. It can't be anyone else who plays the main character but you and it can't be anyone else who directs this but me."

Zen couldn't help but flush again at her compliment. She seemed to have a power to easily sway his emotions—an extremely dangerous power. Everything word that escaped those heart-shaped lips seemed to send him forward or back.

"Zen—no, no… Hyun Ryu…"

At the sound of his actual name Zen looked at her with a wide-eyed expression. From behind Mona, Zen swore he could see a strange pastel glow emitting from her body. He felt as if those eyes—those strange, strange eyes—were hypnotizing him. He felt like he was being sucked closer and closer to this woman. He could hear his heart pumping; it sounded like how it beat when he was on a rollercoaster that was slowly climbing to the peak of the hill. He could feel his breath get caught in his lungs a little—and… and were those flowers blooming behind her? He felt like he was ensnared in something and this was the first time he had ever felt captured like this. No amount of experiences on stage and the past roles he had played ever prepared him for something like this. This feeling… This feeling that clutched at his heart…

"Please."

"Oh god."

"Ryu, please…"

"Oh my god."

"I need you."

"Oh… oh my g…"

"I really, really need you."