"Park Jihyo, second year film making student. Best friends with Chaeyoung and Dahyun. Target one." Nayeon reads from the little cloud that she's summoned which is currently floating in her dorm.
"Minatozaki Sana. Second year theatre student. Best friends with Tzuyu." Jeongyeon rubs her chin as she eyes the cloud, "How are we going to go about this?"
"The smart way." Nayeon's eyes sparkle.
"Target one is approaching." Jeongyeon adjusts her backpack on her shoulder, brushing shoulders with her boss.
Nayeon looks around the corridor, confirming there aren't many people in sight.
"Target two is right around the corner." Jeongyeon tells her.
"Good." Nayeon puts her backpack down on the floor and hides behind a pillar as Sana and Jihyo walk toward each other.
"What are you doing Cupid 28?" Jeongyeon hisses as Nayeon pulls out a bow and takes aim. "If Head Superior knows, we'd be spending the rest of our eternity doing supervision in hell."
"Calm down." Nayeon silences her, pulling her along with her. "He's got too many cupids to care about, he won't know. Besides, don't you want to get out of this planet as quick as possible?"
Jeongyeon thinks about it for a second.
"Fine, but if we get caught you're taking the blame."
Nayeon moves the bow to a side and fixes Jeongyeon with a pointed glare. "No being in the whole universe, heaven above and hell below posses the power to catch Cupid 28."
A heavy weight falls on their shoulders. Something drags them by their collar and turns them around.
Nayeon lets out a loud scream, startled by the unexpected touch.
Jeongyeon screams because Nayeon's scream pierces her ears.
"What are you kids doing here?" A bald man asks them, hard frown lines permanently etched onto his shining forehead. "It's class hours. Don't let me catch you outside during class hours ever again, is that clear?"
They gulp thickly and scurry away from the scary old man.
"No being in the whole universe-" Jeongyeon begins with a grin as Nayeon sulks to class.
"Don't make me shoot that arrow into your arse." Nayeon warns.
Attempt three.
Nayeon's brow furrows as she leans forward slightly and points her arrow at Jihyo who's walking towards a coffee shop in the university campus.
There's a small line in the same coffee shop where Sana is waiting to get hers.
The timing is just perfect.
She is certain she won't miss this time.
"Are you sure about this?" Joengyeon asks narrowing her eyes at the Cupid. She wants to get out of earth too, but she is not entirely comfortable cheating their way out of their mission either. "Maybe we should try the human way."
Nayeon jerks her head in the direction of her assistant. "We'll never finish our mission in time if we followed these simple minded mortals."
She takes aim again.
Five steps. Four. Three.
Jihyo would join the line right behind Sana and then she'll have to shoot the arrows.
Two.
Nayeon focuses on her target.
One.
"What are you doing?" A girl with short blonde bob asks them looking at her outstretched arm.
Nayeon resists the urge to groan into her hands.
"Playing air guitar." She replies, mentally thanking the Higher One for making her bow and arrows invisible to human eyes.
"Why are you air guitaring at my friend, hiding behind a bush?" The short bob asks.
Nayeon scans her with her eyes.
Chaeyoung. Age 21. The golden tag that the Cupid has conjured reads.
"Who's your friend?" She cocks her head, batting her eyelashes, using her best innocent face.
This should work to take suspicion off her.
This face, this is the one that makes angels swoon, fellow Cupids fall in love.
And before her is just a mere human who stands a snowball's chance in hell to resist her immaculate face.
"Jihyo," The mortal hums, not looking the slightest bit convinced. "And you better stay away from her weirdo."
Attempt seven.
- fails because Nayeon gets chased by a bee around the campus.
Apparently her human form has some phobias.
Attempt twelve gets ruined by the bald headed principal who makes them scrub off chewing gum under the cafeteria tables for skipping classes.
Attempt twenty and Jeongyeon has had enough.
"It's been five days in earth time since we got here. We ought to think of a different plan Cupid 28."
Nayeon's shoulder sags frustratedly.
She doesn't understand how each of her perfect timing and perfect aim gets ruined.
She finds the reason why ten seconds later when a locker slams right into her face.
Her world turns into fuzz and blur, then into nothing but a void of gray.
When her eyes blink open again, her head is in someone's lap, their dainty fingers holding her arms gently, shaking her back into consciousness.
Her vision slowly comes to focus.
"Oh my god, I'm so sorry are you okay?" A hand waves above her.
Nayeon quickly gets off the person's lap, scrambling to her feet, veins throbbing in her neck.
"Angel." She greets the dark haired girl before her, gritting her teeth. "Where are your wings?"
"Eh?" The angel pretends to be baffled.
Jeongyeon grabs Nayeon's arms and hisses into her ear. "She's not an angel."
"Look at her enchanting face," Nayeon points at the girl with her eyes, "and then argue with me."
Jeongyeon contemplates it for a few seconds. Cupid 28 does have a point. The girl is too dazzling to be human. "What is an angel doing here?" She whispers back to Nayeon.
The angel clears her throat. "I can hear you both you know."
"She probably has a concussion." Jeongyeon explains sheepishly.
Nayeon frowns.
She can't believe Head Superior has drafted an angel from the Department of Angels who Part-time as Spies to keep tabs on her.
"We're leaving now angel." Nayeon tells the girl.
"Mina." The angel blushes, "My name is Mina."
"It's as if Head Superior doesn't trust me. Like he thinks I'd cheat or something." Nayeon whines all the way to the dorm. "Do I look like someone who'd cheat?"
Jeongyeon rolls her eyes.
Nayeon decides it's time to go about this whole thing the human way.
-not because it's already been seven days and all her seventy attempts have failed.
-not because Chaeyoung has found her again and threatened to report her to campus security.
-and definitely not because she now knows there's an angel monitoring her earthly activities.
- but only because she doesn't want to cheat, she wants to do the right thing.
Step 1: Make friends with Jihyo and Sana.
Step 2: Make them meet.
Step 3: Make them fall in love.
Nayeon rubs her hands together as she points excitedly at the board. "This is fairly simple and straightforward. You make friends with Jihyo and I make friends with Sana."
"No offense to your brilliant plan, but Chaeyoung is already on our arse, we have no classes in common with Jihyo or Sana, so how do you suggest we go about this?" Jeongyeon demands.
Nayeon's eyes gleam. "There are extracurricular activities for students. Jihyo is a part of the book club. You are going to join that. And I'm going to join the Arts Club Sana is a part of."
Joengyeon inclines her head towards her superior. "Cupid 28, can you draw?"
"Of course. I'm Cupid 28 and there's nothing I can't do." Nayeon gives her a confident grin. "Are you going to be okay?"
Jeongyeon shrugs.
Nayeon thinks her assistant is going to be terrible, but doesn't tell her that.
Nayeon blows out her cheeks. This is her chance. Sana is looking at her. She has the perfect opportunity to impress the girl and make friends with her.
She grabs the paint brush with confident hands.
"Class, now you'll draw a horse from your memory." The professor in charge of the club tells everyone. "I will give you a comprehensive guide to-"
Nayeon rolls her eyes and zones her out, inspecting her fingernails.
She's Cupid 28, she doesn't need a guide.
Sana's eyes meet her across the room.
Nayeon smiles widely at her.
Shame- an emotion Nayeon has never felt in her immortal life.
-not even when she was called the worst cupid, or when she screwed up most of her assignments.
"I asked you to draw a horse Miss. Im Nayeon." The professor narrows her eyes at the Cupid.
Nayeon hangs her head, as every pair of eyes in the room, not just Sana's, look at her.
She hears sound of laughter and giggles across the Arts club room.
"This, this is a cross between a rabid dog and a wannabe werewolf."
Joengyeon walks with a slight slump to her shoulders.
Nayeon feels better knowing she's not the only one who failed at her task.
"Where can I find a copy of Wuthering Heights?" Jeongyeon scratches her chin, wondering loudly.
"Why?" Nayeon stretches, losing the tension from her neck.
"Because Jihyo invited me over to her dorm to read the book with her."
Nayeon gapes.