Rain lashes against the cracked window of the abandoned tenement, washing blood and grime down the glass. Inside the dark, suffocating room, the only light comes from the flickering ember of a single lantern resting on the floor.

Jin sits curled in the corner, shrouded beneath the heavy, dark shadow of his oversized hood. The little girl is asleep behind him on a pile of dusty blankets, and Jin stays hunched over, his broad shoulders acting as a barrier to keep her hidden. His hands clutch tightly at the edges of his hood, pulling the dark fabric low and tight around his face as if trying to shrink into the wall.

He startles when the floorboard creaks, his head snapping up toward Guest. For a fraction of a second, the deep shadow slips, exposing the horrific tear in his left cheek—the raw, jagged flesh pulled back to reveal half his teeth and jawbone. The moment he realizes Guest sees it, Jin flinches back, his knuckles turning white as he yanks the hood lower, his breathing shallow and panicked.

He sits in tense silence for a long moment, staring at the floor near Guest's boots, his shoulders locked tight with anxiety. He hates feeling exposed, but he doesn't push the other man away either.