Black Silk ✘ Minsung

Chapter 4

  Changbin returned to his room after his task was over just to find Jisung soundly sleeping on the floor, covered by the piles of paper and an opened pen still loosely in his grasp. The angel could not help himself but smile at the sight. He admired how hard working the younger was, considering how most angels here did not bother studying for the exam because they found it ridiculous — and Changbin did, too. His head couldn't perceive why they had to revise and learn all of these things when they were dead after all. The angel got often into arguments during his early days as an angel but that lead to him finding out lots of things he wishes he did not have to discover. 

  Squatting down, he carefully removed the papers from the boy's body before proceeding to pick him up and put him on his bed. He sat on his own afterwards, staring at the latter for a minute. He always felt sorry for him because he passed away very young and did not have the opportunity to live his life to the fullest and explore different things. Changbin acknowledges that he was also very young when he breathed his last breath but he was already in college when it happened but Jisung still had one last year of high school left.

  He sadly smiles and lies down, staring at the ceiling for the rest of the night.

  When Jisung woke up a few hours later, his roommate was not in bed anymore which was usually typical of him but not today, since all the "students" got permission to be absent from their duty. Why? Jisung was not sure but since he's expected to be in an assembly hall that is located in the centre of the building along with other people that have yet to pass the exams so maybe all the angels and devils are going to be there as moral support (how funny) for the newcomers. Changbin, however, did not mention something like that to him but then again, he rarely mentions anything. He got himself dressed in leather white attire that was meant to be worn whenever the angels had to interact with the commissioners — whether of the holy commission or of the loathsome (as the angels LOVE to call it) one but today was their first time meeting them. Changbin had the same attire as him, so he connected the dots and realized all angels presumably had the same ones and the devils also had similar ones with one another.

  Once he got dressed, the doors swung open, revealing Changbin in the exact clothing making them both chuckle as they looked at each other. Changbin cracked a small smile towards the younger before coming over and ruffling his hair, which left Jisung completely speechless. "You look nice, Han."

  "Are you sick?" Jisung asked and Changbin gave him an offended look before laughing and slapping the younger's arm slightly.

  "I was just trying to be nice!"

  Jisung laughed, shoving Changbin's shoulder lightly. "Really? Or were you just attempting to get me to compliment you as well?"

  Changbin raised his eyebrows before breaking into yet another smile, clearly showing he was in a very good mood. Jisung rolled his eyes with a satisfied grin on his face upon hearing the angel's reply about how Jisung knows him very well. He felt nice, though, with Changbin around.

  "I will be around, so don't worry... Ah, yes!" He exclaimed as he turned around and went towards his drawer, looking for something. "I actually came here to give you something."

  The younger's eyes perked up as he heard a mention of a gift. He smiled widely, watching Changbin pull a black necklace out of the drawer. He came over to Jisung and showed him the necklace. It was a trinity knot with small wings. He smiled upon seeing that but gave his roommate a confused look as to why was he giving him this. Changbin grabbed his shoulders, turned him around and put the necklace on him.

  "This is like a scene from a movie," he remarked and Jisung laughed since it indeed looked like when a mother of the protagonist puts a family inheritance on her, while both of them are looking into the mirror and the mother is slowly caressing the daughter's hair while whispering words of pride into the girl's ear. Is he my mother?  "This is triquetra. It has many meanings in different cultures but in the Norse one, it apparently means spiritual life that has no beginning or end. Kinda fitting, right? I am giving you this because it brought me so much luck during my exam. I took it off before it began and put it around my wrist under my sleeve and it somehow soothed me down. So I was thinking it might help you as well."