Everything was spinning wildly around me as I remained bleeding on the jagged ground. Just as I thought it was my end, someone lifted me up gently with his strong arms. I couldn't focus on the person, so I rested motionlessly in his embrace. He carried me across a vast field and up an elevated tower before resting me on a velvet chaise lounge. He forced a bit of water into my dry mouth... and just like magic... I shot up into a sitting position... all the soreness subsided, so I was left baffled by the sudden recovery of my wounded body.
I glanced at my arms and legs in confusion- only to find the healed bruises when I felt a tender touch brushing against my cheeks. I looked up to find... Seokjin smiling weakly at me. I blinked at him in utter silence... I was lost and dazed. Why is he here? What's going on? I immediately forced his hand off my cheeks before getting up onto my feet but lost my balance and stumbled. I fell into Seokjin's arms- except it wasn't Seokjin anymore. It was Hoseok. Where did he go???
H-how? Am I dreaming? Is this a dream? But it didn't matter, Hoseok's presence relieved my terrified soul, so I pulled him into a crushing hug when someone yanked me away from Hoseok. I turned to find Seokjin glaring at me as he stood between me and Hoseok. I hastily shoved him away and tried to reach for Hoseok again, but Seokjin immediately tugged me away from Hoseok. I was furious with Seokjin's reaction, so I pushed him hard- accidentally sending him tumbling onto the floor.
That's when I noticed the black mist seeping out of Seokjin's back. No. NO! I backed away from Seokjin in panic when he got up and sprinted towards me as if to pounce at me, so I dodged him and rolled to the side. I wanted to tell him to stay away, or else he'll get hurt, but my empty throat remained muted. He tried to reach out for me again, but I backed away from him in fear, pleading him to stay away from me for his own safety. He didn't get my message, proceeded to seize me, and caught me by my arm as I tried to escape him. I thrashed in fear and roughly smacked his arms to keep him away from me. His face twisted in horror when he stumbled backward and fell off the wide-open window.
I gasped in terror and bolted toward him with my arms extended out, but it was too late. I collapsed against the window seal with my eyes wide open in tears as I watched Seokjin plunge into the dark pit below me. I screamed in anguish when he disappeared into the darkness. It's all my fault! What's wrong with me?! I desperately gripped the window when Hoseok hauled me away from the wide opening. WAKE UP! WAKE UP! THIS ISN'T REAL! I repeatedly struck my own head with my hands in the hope of ending the terrifying nightmare.
Hoseok pulled me into a tight hug as I sobbed in distress. Nevertheless, I hastily thrust him away in fear because I didn't want to hurt him too. Yet again, I was too late. The black haze was expanding around Hoseok as I backed away from him. God, please leave him alone! I bit on my trembling lips and stared at Hoseok when he slowly pointed his finger at me with a dead expression plastered on his face. What? I looked at him in confusion. He pointed at me and started to laugh uncontrollably.
I let out a painful howler when I felt a stinging stab in my stomach. I shakily looked down to find... blood streaming down my body with a knife sticking out of my flesh. I dropped to the floor in shock as I stared at the knife in terror. Did he just... s-stab me? Or did I stab myself? Am I going to die? I hovered my hands over the knife handle in pain as the warm tears slid down my cheeks-
BANG! BANG! An earsplitting noise went off, causing me to flinch in fright. I gripped my ears and looked up to find Hoseok clutching his chest tightly as he stood frozen with a blank look on his face. What happened? To my horror, murky red blood began to stain across his white shirt. He suddenly fell to his knees, and half a second later, he dropped face-first onto the floor into his own pool of blood. I was shaking like a lost puppy, and as much as I wanted to run for my life- I was completely paralyzed. WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON?
I snapped my head to the side to find Taehyung standing beside me with his arm raised... he was holding a gun... directed at Hoseok's corpse. Taehyung slowly turns his head to stare at me with his emotionless expression, making me tremble violently upon the presence of his evil-infested energy. His eyes... it was pitch black... as if he was possessed. I pressed my back into the wall and hugged my knees in tears... feeling extremely frightened of him. I begged him not to hurt me as tears rushed down my cheeks and lowered my head to shut out the vicious visions in my head. I'm going insane. I'M GOING INSANE! WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON? PLEASE STOP THIS! Someone, please wake me up!
I flinched at Taehyung's cold touch as he knelt beside me. I looked at him with my burning eyes, quivering in fear, but somehow the darkness within him was gone. I pursed my lips in confusion when I found him smiling at me as if nothing had happened. He gently wrapped his hand around my wrist, leading me down the tower, and we walked down the slope. I didn't dare look at him and followed his lead in utter silence. I thought I was safe until we arrived at a little stream when Taehyung suddenly collapsed. There was no black mist around him, but Taehyung was thrashing in pain in the little stream. Why is he in pain?
I jumped in fright when I felt a firm grip around my wrist, so I turned to find... Namjoon?! Huh? He darted a restless expression and tugged me forward, but I refused to budge. I turned to look at Taehyung, who was twisting and turning in pain on the damp ground. Namjoon shook his head anxiously and pulled me with him, but I resisted him and tried to escape his grasp. I can't leave Taehyung suffering like that!
Namjoon suddenly encircled his arms around my body to stop me from resisting him when Taehyung violently twitched on the ground, making my jaw drop in horror. I sucked in my breath when Taehyung's eyes suddenly glowed red for a split second. W-what? What was that? He stared at me as if he wanted to say something as he fought to gain control of his inner evil. I angrily thrust Namjoon away and rushed toward Taehyung. I whimpered in fear when he viciously snarled at me... threatening me to stay away from him. What's wrong with him??!
I hesitated before his body and watched Taehyung thrash in pain... his eyes gleaming red every now and then. I shrieked in shock when he suddenly grabbed onto my arm. I glanced down to find- NOT FINGERS BUT CLAWS DIGGING INTO THE FLESH OF MY ARMS. WHAT THE HELL?! I turned to look at Taehyung in fright, but his eyes were glowing red. Black veins were bulging along his arms and neck. His gleaming red eyes burned fiercely into mine as I stared at him in tears. Is he going to attack me? What's going on?- Why is h-he-
Taehyung's devilish eyes suddenly disappeared- replaced by his normal pupils again. I searched his pained eyes in confusion as he desperately stared at me.
Taehyung let out a low growl and pushed me away from him before collapsing back into the little stream with his fist clenched. I watched him in bewilderment as his eyes glowed red again. He suddenly snapped towards me with his devious eyes, ready to pounce... but he jerked in distress to resist the urge to hurt me. He defied the monster within him in extreme despair- turning to look at me with his apologetic eyes. I pursed my lips when I realized he was begging me to stay away from him.
Namjoon pulled me onto my feet while I unblinkingly stared at Taehyung's teary eyes. He's in pain, and I couldn't help him. Just before Namjoon dragged me away... a single droplet of tears streamed down Taehyung's cheek while he watched me leave. He let out an agonizing howl behind us... making my skin crawl at the inhumane tone of his scream.
Kim Namjoon led me far away from Taehyung. I'm numb. The only person I had left was Namjoon, and I'm not even sure he'll last by my side. Namjoon showed me an hourglass and it was glowing dimly... lightly pushing it into my hands. Does he want me to keep it? He squeezed my shoulder and turned away from me. I started to panic. Where is he going?
I ran after him, but he pushed me away and pointed to the far end of the woods. I clenched onto his arm tightly... refusing to let him go, but he quickly yanked his arm away from my grasp and signaled me to leave him. My chest started to ache in pain. Why is he doing this to me? WHY? I was about to reach out for him again when I noticed the black mist spreading over him. My heart sank at the sight of the darkness's presence. No, no, not him too.
Before I could say anything, Namjoon's eyes suddenly bulged open in pain when a long slender black claw plunged through him from the back. His warm blood spattered all over me as I froze in fright. Namjoon's face twisted in pain when he turned to strike the creature in the eyes. The beast howled and ruthlessly swung Namjoon against a tree. I stared at the beast in shock, unable to move, but glanced down when the hourglass began to illuminate brightly. Why is it glowing???
I stared at it in confusion when the monster with bright red eyes released a powerful roar, startling me. Shakily, I took a step back with tears in my eyes. The beast was about to leap at me when Namjoon caught its legs, causing it to slam onto the ground. I turned to look at Namjoon's horrified expression. He was weakly smiling at me as the monster angrily turned to him. I bit my lips, turned away, and ran through the thick woods as fast as my legs could carry me. Away from Namjoon. Just like he wants me to. I was growing weaker the farther I fled. I wanted to stop, but I was too frightened to slow down my pace. Everyone around me is gone! Am I cursed?
I gasped after collapsing onto the muddy ground when I felt my surroundings shaking as if the ground was going to split apart. Everything around me twisted and turned as if the earth turned upside down. I tried to get up- but couldn't and tumbled onto the ground again. I shielded the bright hourglass in my arms to protect it from shattering from the external force. I bit my lips and curled into a ball on the dirt as I felt everything crumbling around me.
It felt like an eternity of waiting when I finally opened my eyes to squint at the scorching heat. Cautiously, I got up in confusion and glanced around to find... nothing but a vast desert wilderness around me. How did I get here? I turned to find the hourglass, half buried in the sand next to me and inside it... was a withered rose. What the...? How did the rose get in there? I slowly picked it up to examine the petals falling off its stem when I noticed an old building in the distance. I stood up with my eyes trained on the odd shelter and limped towards it in difficulty. My head was aching, and my eyes were out of focus... yet I refused to give in and dragged myself forward... approaching the old building.
I halted when I noticed a hooded figure standing in front of the building as if he were waiting for my arrival. The person was clothed in a long black cloak. I paused to stare at the pale face under the hood. His face became more and more familiar the closer I got to him- it was... Jungkook. JUNGKOOK! He stood staring at me with a blank expression from beneath his hood. I wanted to rush towards him, but he turned around and vanished into the building. I wanted to scream for him, but I couldn't, so I chased after him with the flower glass gripped tightly in my hand. Why is he walking away?!
The blazing heat subsided as I entered the shade of the ancient building. I turned to look at Jungkook. He strolled towards... more hooded figures... but they were all wearing masks. What's this? I accidentally released the glass box in my arm. It fell into the sand, startling me, so I quickly bent down to lift it up- but just before I picked it up... the flower in the glass... slowly evaporated into thin air. Wae-wae?! What's going on?! Why is it gone?! I froze with my eyes trained on the empty glass. Slowly, I turned to look at Jungkook, but instead, he was standing with the other hooded figures with bizarre masks on. I don't understand. What's the meaning of this?
I straightened my back and gulped at the eerie figures standing by each other's side. I mustered up the courage to approach them and took a step forward... but that's when I felt the intense pain in my head and chest. The pain was so bad it stiffened my body. I dropped into the sea of sand and internally screamed while clenching my head and chest in distress. It felt as if my eyes were going to pop out of its sockets- and my chest was going to burst into flames as I thrashed on the ground to resist the pain. I choked and gripped my chest when my lungs suddenly stopped pumping air... I can't breathe! I jerked on the ground and turned to look at the figures for help, but they remained in their position.
I desperately extended my arm for their help... yet the hooded figures refused to budge.... they stood staring at me quietly through the mysterious masks. And before I fully closed my eyes- a giant block of the ceiling collapsed on the hooded figures. THUD. The force was so powerful it sent me flying into the pillar of the building. I crashed into it and fell hard onto the ground... struggling to breathe... I turned over and averted my eyes to the shattered empty glasses... sitting in the sand before my eyes. Slowly... everything grew dim, and I lost consciousness to the darkness.
I was... gone.
"NO! I yelped, bolting up shakily in the brightly lit room to gasp for air. I quickly felt my cheeks and arms. Frantically glancing around the empty medical room, then let out a heavy sigh in relief when I realized I was no longer trapped in the nightmare. I'm awake. I'm finally awake.
"That was a weird... dream. What is it??" I whispered, trying to recall the dream, but somehow, I couldn't remember anything. What. It was clear as daylight- How the hell did I forget it so quickly? I frowned at my hands and thought hard to recall the dream, but I couldn't remember anything. Why do I feel so restless?
"Sora!" Taehyung snapped, startling me when I turned to find Taehyung staring at me worriedly. He was sitting next to my bed.
"When- When did you get here?" I questioned in shock. He wasn't here when I woke up.
"What do you mean? I was here the whole time when you suddenly threw a tantrum- claiming you had a scary dream," Taehyung stared at me with his eyes wide open and his mouth hanging open.
"Oh..." I whispered, turning to look at the wall blankly. Was it a dream? Or was I hallucinating? How did I not see him when I woke up? No matter how hard I tried to dismiss the nightmare... I couldn't. The thought of it made me shiver in fear.