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𝙴𝚞𝚗𝚠𝚘𝚘 𝚒𝚜 𝚊𝚠𝚊𝚢 | 𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝙾𝚗𝚎

| 𝘈, (𝘴𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵) 𝘍 | 𝖢𝗁𝖺𝗍𝖿𝗂𝖼, 𝖧𝗂𝗀𝗁 𝗌𝖼𝗁𝗈𝗈𝗅 / 𝖢𝗈𝗅𝗅𝖾𝗀𝖾 𝖠𝖴, 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗂𝗌 𝗋𝖾𝖺𝗅𝗅𝗒 𝗃𝗎𝗌𝗍 𝖺 𝗌𝗍𝗈𝗋𝗒 𝖿𝗎𝗅𝗅 𝗈𝖿 𝖺𝗇𝗀𝗌𝗍

| 𝘔𝘪𝘯𝘪 𝘚𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 |  

↳   𝘗𝘢𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 - 𝖤𝗎𝗇𝗐𝗈𝗈 𝗑 𝖱𝖾𝖺𝖽𝖾𝗋

↳ 𝘚𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘺 - 𝘓𝘰𝘨 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘮.

𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘢𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘤𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘻𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘧𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘣𝘺 𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘵𝘦𝘹𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘳, 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥, 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘧𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘱𝘪𝘤, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘣𝘪𝘰. 𝘊𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘬 𝘰𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘣𝘪𝘰𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘧𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘱𝘪𝘤𝘴, 𝘵𝘰𝘰.  

𝘐𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘺 2000𝘴, 𝘧𝘭𝘪𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯 𝘈𝘐𝘔 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘤𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘩.

𝘌𝘶𝘯𝘸𝘰𝘰 𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘠/𝘕'𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴. 𝘏𝘦'𝘴 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘩.

𝘐𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘺 2000𝘴, 𝘧𝘭𝘪𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯 𝘈𝘐𝘔 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘵 𝘤𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘩.

𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴. 𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘠/𝘕 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩   𝘌𝘶𝘯𝘸𝘰𝘰, 𝘣𝘰𝘵𝘩 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘳𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘪𝘨𝘩 𝘴𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘭. 𝘏𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘰𝘧𝘧 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘨𝘦, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘌𝘶𝘯𝘸𝘰𝘰 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘴, 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩.

𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘠/𝘕'𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘢𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘰 𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘯 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦. 𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘠/𝘕 𝘢𝘯𝘥  𝘌𝘶𝘯𝘸𝘰𝘰 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘰𝘧𝘧 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘷𝘦-𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘫𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘨𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧-𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺?

(𝘾𝙖𝙣 𝙗𝙚 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙗𝙮 𝙞𝙩𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙛)

𝘞𝘒 - 600

𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘷 | 𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘵

𝘚𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘔𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵 | 𝘔𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘔𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵

˗ˏˋ ꒰ 𝗟𝗼𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 ꒱ ˎˊ˗

███ 𝟮𝟬%

████ 𝟰𝟬%

█████ 𝟲𝟬%

██████ 𝟴𝟬%

███████ 𝟭𝟬𝟬%

𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘁𝗲!

𝙎𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙚𝙣𝙣𝙖𝙢𝙚 - 𝙔/𝙉𝘿𝙖𝙯𝙚

𝙁𝙞𝙧𝙨𝙩 𝙣𝙖𝙢𝙚 - 𝙔/𝙉

-

𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙀𝙪𝙣𝙬𝙤𝙤 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙨𝙞𝙜𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙞𝙣

Y/NDaze:

Dongmin! Hey

ChaEunwoo:

Hi! And I told you to call me Eunwoo

Y/NDaze:

Trying to get used to it lol

ChaEunwoo:

That's okay

Though the most important thing is that we're seniors! 

So what's up?

Y/NDaze:

Nothing much

What are you up to?

ChaEunwoo:

Nothing, just listening to some music :)

Do you like Coldplay?

Y/NDaze:

Yeah, totally!

Their last album was really good

ChaEunwoo:

It really was!

I'm so glad you like them, they're my favorite

Their lyrics are in my info

Oh! By the way

Are you going to Rocky's party tonight?

Y/NDaze is typing. . .

Y/NDaze:

Maybe, I haven't decided

ChaEunwoo:

You should go! It'd be no fun without you

It's crazy that we're already having end of school parties

Y/NDaze:

Yeah, it really is crazy

The time flew by this year, and college is close by

ChaEunwoo:

I know!

I'm excited to be done with this school if being honest

between you and me

Remember Minhae from our math class?

Y/NDaze:

Yeah, why?

ChaEunwoo:

She won't stop messaging me right now

Y/NDaze:

What is she saying?

ChaEunwoo:

That she wants to talk or something?

I'm not really playing attention. . .

ChaEunwoo is typing. . .

ChaEunwoo is deleting. . .

ChaEunwoo is typing. . .

ChaEunwoo:

Just one more month to graduate

Why does it feel like we're so old?

Y/NDaze:

Haha, I guess it is kind of weird

Did you pick a school yet?

ChaEunwoo:

Eh, I didn't get accepted to my reach

school, so I'm just going to one of the others

But that's okay! Anything's better than high school

Where are you going?

Y/NDaze:

Oh, I got accepted to an art school!

Not sure what type of art, but I've been really 

interested in animation lately

I'm sure I'll figure it out when I get there

ChaEunwoo:

That's awesome! 

You've always been really talented

I'm sure whatever you end up, you'll be great

ChaEunwoo is typing. . .

ChaEunwoo is deleting. . .

ChaEunwoo is typing. . .

ChaEunwoo:

Hey. . .

Even though we're going to different schools,

do you promise you'll be there for me?

-

Y/N looked at the message with wide eyes. Her heartbeat was going faster than normal. She placed her hand on her chest to try and calm it down while thinking of what to say. Her bottom lip unconsciously tucked under her teeth and her hands went on top of the keyboard.

-

Y/NDaze:

Absolutely!

Nothing could ever keep me from talking to you

You're one of my best friends

ChaEunwoo:

And you're one of mine too!

You always will be Y/N :)

Oh wow, it's getting late!

I hope JinJin gets here soon so we can head

to the party

Y/NDaze:

Oh. . .leaving so soon?

ChaEunwoo:

Yeah, as soon as JinJin gets here

Then we're both heading to Rocky's party

If you're coming too, you should probably

leave soon

Will I see you there?

Y/NDaze is typing. . .

Y/NDaze:

Yeah, I will

ChaEunwoo:

Awesome!

I'm going to go get ready and wait

for JinJin

Hopefully Minhae stops messaging me once

I put up my away message :p

See you soon!

Y/NDaze:

See ya

ChaEunwoo is away

𝖠/𝖭: 𝖳𝖺𝗄𝖾 𝗆𝗒 𝗎𝗌𝖾𝗋𝗇𝖺𝗆𝖾 𝖻𝖾𝖼𝖺𝗎𝗌𝖾 𝖨'𝗆 𝗇𝗈𝗍 𝖼𝗋𝖾𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗏𝖾

I DID A THING!

First time editing a photo just so I can match my profile aesthetic xD

~Photo not mine, edits for blue aesthetic is my doing~

ＢＴＳ  Ｍａｓｔｅｒｌｉｓｔ

𝘏𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘰, 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘰~

𝘐’𝘮 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘴𝘰 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘨𝘰. . .𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘢 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘵. 

𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘤𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘮𝘺 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳. 

𝘙𝘦𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘴 - 𝘖𝘱𝘦𝘯  

𝘈 - 𝘈𝘯𝘨𝘴𝘵  

𝘍 - 𝘍𝘭𝘶𝘧𝘧

𝘋 - 𝘋𝘳𝘢𝘣𝘣𝘭𝘦

Ｋｉｍ  Ｓｅｏｋｊｉｎ

𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖡𝗈𝗈𝗀𝗂𝖾 𝖬𝖺𝗇  | 𝘈, (𝘴𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵) F | 𝘔𝘪𝘯𝘪 𝘚𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 | 𝘛𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘳, 𝘏𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘳, 𝘎𝘰𝘳𝘦 |  (𝙎𝙤𝙤𝙣)

"𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘺𝘦𝘳, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘰𝘰𝘨𝘪𝘦 𝘔𝘢𝘯. 𝘐𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘩𝘪𝘮, 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘪𝘯! 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵'𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘺 𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘐𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘥𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘩𝘪𝘮, 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘦, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘸𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘣𝘢𝘥 𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘪𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯?"  

𝘠/𝘕, 𝘢 𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘥𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦, 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘯 𝘢 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘷𝘢𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘣𝘺 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘰𝘴𝘴.  

𝘈𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘠/𝘕 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘶𝘴𝘣𝘢𝘯𝘥, 𝘚𝘦𝘰𝘬𝘫𝘪𝘯, 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘯 𝘢 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘢𝘵 𝘢 𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘭𝘦, 𝘏𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘢 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘢 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘧𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯.  

𝘈𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘶𝘴𝘣𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘵𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘰𝘧, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘰𝘰𝘨𝘪𝘦 𝘔𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘯   𝘩𝘦𝘳  𝘸𝘢𝘬𝘦, 𝘮𝘶𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘳.  

𝘈𝘴 𝘠/𝘕 𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘣𝘴𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘰𝘯’𝘴 𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩, 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘰𝘰𝘨𝘪𝘦 𝘔𝘢𝘯, 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘶𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘯𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘰𝘧 “𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵.”

Ｍｉｎ  Ｙｏｏｎｇｉ

𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖧𝖺𝗇𝗀𝖾𝖽 𝖬𝖺𝗇  | 𝘈 | 𝘔𝘪𝘯𝘪 𝘚𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 | 𝘛𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘳, 𝖬𝗎𝗋𝖽𝖾𝗋, 𝖡𝗅𝗈𝗈𝖽 |  (𝙎𝙤𝙤𝙣)

"𝘠𝘰𝘶'𝘳𝘦 𝘢 𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘯 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥. 𝘚𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘥𝘢𝘺, 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘣𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘴."  

𝘠/𝘕 𝘓/𝘕, 𝘢 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘨 𝘨𝘪𝘳𝘭 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘢 𝘵𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘯𝘰𝘸. 𝘈𝘴 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮, 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘣𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩   𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘣𝘶𝘥𝘥𝘺, 𝘢 𝘮𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘥 𝘗𝘰𝘱.

𝘈𝘭𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘰𝘰𝘯, 𝘗𝘰𝘱 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘠/𝘕 𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘦.

𝘠/𝘕 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘨𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘧𝘶𝘳𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥.  

𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘵𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘦 𝘩𝘪𝘥𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯?

Ｊｕｎｇ  Ｈｏｓｅｏｋ

𝘕𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘦𝘵…

Ｋｉｍ  Ｎａｍｊｏｏｎ

𝘕𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘦𝘵…

Ｐａｒｋ  Ｊｉｍｉｎ

𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖲𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖬𝖺𝗇 | 𝖥𝗍. 𝖪𝗎𝗎 𝗑 𝖱𝖾𝖺𝖽𝖾𝗋 | 𝘈, (𝘴𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵) F | 𝘔𝘪𝘯𝘪 𝘚𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 | 𝖬𝗒𝗌𝗍𝖾𝗋𝗒, 𝖥𝖺𝗇𝗍𝖺𝗌𝗒  (𝘾𝙪𝙧𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙒𝙄𝙋)

“𝘚𝘩𝘩…   𝘒𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘦𝘵…  𝘋𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘴𝘢𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨.  𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘺 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵.  𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵’𝘴 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘢 𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨…  𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘵.  𝘏𝘦𝘩𝘦.  𝘑𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘬𝘪𝘥𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨.  𝘈𝘭𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯…  𝘚𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶’𝘳𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘴𝘭𝘦𝘦𝘱𝘺 𝘺𝘦𝘵, 𝘩𝘮?  𝘐𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘦, 𝘐’𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢 𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺.  𝘐𝘵’𝘴 𝘴𝘰 𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘮𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘪𝘵.  𝘐𝘵’𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘔𝘢𝘯…”  

𝘠/𝘕 𝘓/𝘕, 𝘢 𝘨𝘪𝘳𝘭 𝘴𝘶𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘐𝘯𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘯𝘪𝘢. 𝘜𝘯𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘭𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘹𝘩𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘥,   𝘠/𝘕   𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘦𝘭𝘴𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘧𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘴𝘭𝘦𝘦𝘱.  

𝘈𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘮𝘱𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸𝘴, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘦 𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦.  

𝘞𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘩𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘴𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯?

Ｋｉｍ  Ｔａｅｈｙｕｎｇ

𝘕𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘦𝘵…

Ｊｅｏｎ  Ｊｕｎｇｋｏｏｋ

𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘔𝘢𝘯 | 𝘈, (𝘴𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵) F | 𝘔𝘪𝘯𝘪 𝘚𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 | 𝘛𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘳, 𝘏𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘳, 𝘚𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘎𝘰𝘳𝘦 |

↳ 𝘚𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘺 - 𝘠/𝘕 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘢𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘥𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦. 𝘐𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘪𝘥𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘨𝘨𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘭 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘠/𝘕 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘥𝘥 𝘰𝘤𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘴𝘬 𝘢 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘢𝘯𝘵.  

𝘏𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳, 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦.  

𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘯, 𝘠/𝘕 𝘴𝘦𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘧𝘧 𝘪𝘯 𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘩 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘪𝘮, 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴.

(𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘧 "𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘔𝘢𝘯" 𝘚𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴)

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𝖢𝗈𝗌𝗆𝗂𝖼 𝖲𝗍𝖺𝗋  |𝖥, 𝖠 | 𝖣𝗋𝖺𝖻𝖻𝗅𝖾 𝖲𝖾𝗋𝗂𝖾𝗌 | 𝖠𝖼𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇, 𝖡𝗅𝗈𝗈𝖽, 𝖢𝗎𝗍𝖾𝗇𝖾𝗌𝗌 𝖮𝗏𝖾𝗋𝗅𝗈𝖺𝖽, 𝖲𝗎𝗉𝖾𝗋𝗁𝖾𝗋𝗈 𝖠𝖴, 𝖬𝖺𝗋𝗏𝖾𝗅 𝖠𝖴 |

↳ 𝘚𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘺 - 𝖠𝗌 𝗆𝗎𝖼𝗁 𝖺𝗌 𝖨 𝗅𝗈𝗏𝖾 𝗌𝖾𝖾𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖻𝗈𝗒𝗌 𝖻𝖾𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗌𝗎𝗉𝖾𝗋𝗁𝖾𝗋𝗈, 𝖨 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗇𝗄 𝗂𝗍’𝗌 𝗍𝗂𝗆𝖾 𝗍𝗈 𝖼𝗁𝖺𝗇𝗀𝖾 𝗂𝗍 𝗎𝗉 𝖺 𝖻𝗂𝗍. 𝖣𝗈𝗇’𝗍 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝖺𝗀𝗋𝖾𝖾? 

 𝖸/𝖭 𝖫/𝖭 𝗂𝗌 𝖺 16 𝗒𝖾𝖺𝗋 𝗈𝗅𝖽 𝗀𝗂𝗋𝗅 𝗍𝗋𝗒𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗈 𝗀𝖾𝗍 𝗍𝗁𝗋𝗈𝗎𝗀𝗁 𝗁𝖾𝗋 𝗌𝗈𝗉𝗁𝗈𝗆𝗈𝗋𝖾 𝗒𝖾𝖺𝗋 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗇𝗈𝗍 𝗀𝖾𝗍 𝖼𝖺𝗎𝗀𝗁𝗍 𝗀𝗂𝗏𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗀𝗈𝗈𝗀𝗅𝗒 𝖾𝗒𝖾𝗌 𝗍𝗈 𝗁𝖾𝗋 𝗒𝖾𝖺𝗋𝗌 𝗅𝗈𝗇𝗀 𝖼𝗋𝗎𝗌𝗁, 𝖩𝗎𝗇𝗀𝗄𝗈𝗈𝗄. 𝖶𝖾𝗅𝗅, 𝗇𝗈𝗍 𝗀𝖾𝗍 𝖼𝖺𝗎𝗀𝗁𝗍 𝖻𝗒 𝖺𝗇𝗒𝗈𝗇𝖾 𝖾𝗅𝗌𝖾 𝖻𝗎𝗍 𝗁𝖾𝗋 𝖻𝖾𝗌𝗍 𝖿𝗋𝗂𝖾𝗇𝖽 𝖪𝗎𝗎 𝖦𝖺𝗋𝖽𝖾𝗇 𝗐𝗁𝗈 𝗌𝗁𝖾 𝗁𝖺𝗌 𝗄𝗇𝗈𝗐𝗇 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗒𝖾𝖺𝗋𝗌.   

𝖲𝗁𝖾 𝗁𝖺𝗌 𝗀𝗈𝗍𝗍𝖾𝗇 𝗍𝗁𝗋𝗈𝗎𝗀𝗁 𝗁𝖾𝗋 𝖿𝗂𝗋𝗌𝗍 𝗌𝖾𝗆𝖾𝗌𝗍𝖾𝗋 𝖾𝖺𝗌𝗂𝗅𝗒, 𝗎𝗇𝗍𝗂𝗅 𝗌𝗁𝖾 𝗐𝖾𝗇𝗍 𝗈𝗇 𝖺 𝖿𝗂𝖾𝗅𝖽 𝗍𝗋𝗂𝗉.   

𝖳𝗁𝖾𝗋𝖾, 𝖺 𝗌𝗉𝗂𝖽𝖾𝗋 𝖻𝗋𝗈𝗄𝖾 𝖿𝗋𝖾𝖾 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖼𝗁𝖺𝗇𝗀𝖾𝖽 𝗁𝖾𝗋 𝗅𝗂𝖿𝖾.

𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝙲𝚛𝚘𝚘𝚔𝚎𝚍 𝙼𝚊𝚗 | 𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚃𝚠𝚘

| 𝘈, (𝘴𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵) 𝘍 | 𝘛𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘳, 𝘏𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘳, 𝘚𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘎𝘰𝘳𝘦

| 𝘔𝘪𝘯𝘪 𝘚𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 |  

↳   𝘗𝘢𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 - 𝘑𝘦𝘰𝘯 𝘑𝘶𝘯𝘨𝘬𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘹 𝘙𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳

↳ 𝘚𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘺 - 𝘠/𝘕 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘢𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘥𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦. 𝘐𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘪𝘥𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘨𝘨𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘭 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘠/𝘕 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘥𝘥 𝘰𝘤𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘴𝘬 𝘢 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘢𝘯𝘵.  

𝘏𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳, 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦.  

𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘯, 𝘠/𝘕 𝘴𝘦𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘧𝘧 𝘪𝘯 𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘩 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘪𝘮, 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴.

(𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘧 "𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘔𝘢𝘯" 𝘚𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴)

𝘛𝘢𝘨𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵 - 𝘖𝘱𝘦𝘯 (𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘴𝘬)  

𝘞𝘒 - 11.3k  

𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘷 | 𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘵

𝘚𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘔𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵 | 𝘔𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘔𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵

But the Crooked Man was sad

And once he had a thought

Why should he be crooked

When others, they were not?

"Man, this place was far," Y/N lightly whined to herself, getting out of her car. "That took almost an entire day." she grabbed her backpack and bag, feeling the familiar weight. There were multiple stops, making sure she got more supplies for her first aid kit this time and drinking many energy drinks, and one stop at a fast food place. Y/N looked up at the building in awe. "So this is the place. . .looks like this school was abandoned." she looked around for any sign of life. "No one around. Though I guess they'd be inside anyway. Let's see if I can even enter." Y/N walked to the sign in front of the door.

-

"Julius Stone Law School Set for Demolition - No Entry"

-

"Hey, this is the school from the leaflet," Y/N commented, remembering what she had read from her apartment. "Then maybe he is here after all." Y/N entered the school easily. Well, I guess there's no reason to have the entrance locked. She shrugged to herself in thought, looking around in the darkness. It wasn't that dark—she could see everything, so it was doable. 

She tried to go through the door ahead of her, but it was locked. Her hope for this building to all be unlocked was crushed. Just like the hotel, she will need to find keys. Puzzles will most likely be a thing, too, if this is going to be the hotel all over again. Accepting that she'll need to find a key for this later, she went to her right down the hallway, passing by two restrooms and messing with the door of the Janitor's room. It was unlocked. Maybe the doors won't be locked in here. That was something to hope for, at least. Y/N looked around the room and noticed a scrap of paper on a counter next to one of the two closets in the corner. 

-

"Deep fissures in the wall behind the easter bookshelves in the basement storehouse. Repairs needed."

-

Well, that's good to know. Y/N looked to her right and saw a notebook under the window showing how dark it was. At the front, it was a book to show a list of the faculty. 

-

"Criminal Law: John Keith Civil Law: Andrew Robinson International Law: Cyndi Peterson Criminology: Franz Moore Philosophy of Law: Leftie Lewis Legal History: Ray Twain Comparative Jurisprudence: Euge McGuire Doctor: Stacie Lizzie"

-

Y/N felt her headache form from all the knowledge of the names. Maybe it'd be best if she took the book to remember the names. It wouldn't hurt, would it? Then again, maybe she didn't need the knowledge of these names. And if she did, it would be easy to come back and remind herself. Y/N walked out of the room and tried to go into the infirmary, which was the last door on this side of the wing. It was also locked. 

She walked down to the other wing of the building and went into the other wing. Y/N entered the first door and realized the whole wing was a classroom. The desk closest to her had a nameplate, Stacie Lizzie, with a key next to it. And it was for the infirmary. The doctor. Maybe it was a good thing she did read the faculty book. And she should probably grab it. And looking around, she noticed a piece of paper hanging on a whiteboard. 

-

"Notice About Keys. Room managers for the month. Don't lose the keys. Parlor: Stacie Lizzie - Reference Room: Ray Twain Lecture Halls: John Keith - Computer Room: Franz Moore Lecture Room: Cyndi Peterson - Storehouse: Euge McGuire

-

The other desks didn't look to have anything important, so she left the classroom to go back to the other wing. Unlocking the door, everything seemed normal. Y/N hummed, looking through the two beds and the desk. She looked at the bookshelf of medical references, but nothing seemed to yell out to her. She checked the top drawers, but there was nothing. But in the bottom right drawer, she found a parlor key. 

These were all the doors she could go through, and there was nothing else. . .so she needed to go upstairs. Y/N walked the set of stairs to reach the second floor and jumped at the sight of a shadow running off. She ran fully up the stairs and down the hallway where the shadow went. "Was there someone there?" she questioned out loud. "I couldn't really see them in the dark. . ." It wasn't dark for her to need her lighter, but she could probably mistake something like that for her head messing with her. 

She followed into the hallway, but there was no figure or shadow of a figure. It could've been her imagination. Y/N shrugged, telling herself it was, and messed with the first door closest to her—seeing the nameplate "Leftie Lewis" before entering. If she remembered, he was on the faculty list for philosophy. Y/N looked around, but there was nothing but a box of tools that caught her eye. In the box of tools, she grabbed all the tools she could fit in her backpack: a screwdriver, crowbar, and hammer. 

This side of the floor didn't have anything to help her out besides the tools. And all the doors were locked until she reached the end of the other hallway to unlock the parlor. And behold, nothing captured her eye. Well, there was some type of thing on this desk. "I guess it's wire art or something," she answered her own question. "Not sure what it's supposed to. . .be, though." she looked at the name on the desk. "Apparently, it was made by Ray Twain. Wasn't he the lecturer for Legal History?"

Y/N sighed that she didn't find anything. But that would probably be best to give her less time to explore and more to find an answer. 

On the next floor, she found Ray Twain's room first on the right. Y/N noticed some sort of diary on the table in this office. It was already opened when she went closer to it as if it was opened to a specific spot for her to read. 

-

". . .Indeed, law too, needs a numeric representation. After all, basic things such as on or off, zero or one can represent much more complex numbers.

Using the smallest elements to produce new things is a way of thinking I hold in high esteem. Though perhaps it's more the artistic notion that captivates me more than the mathematics. . ."

-

She scratched her head, being fortunate that she didn't go into law school. She probably would fail the first week. Y/N left the book and turned around to a glass bookshelf, opening it to look through the books. It was more things that might hurt her brain if she continued. "Why does this law school have math books? Boy, I'm terrible at math. . ." After skimming through five books, she noticed a page in the sixth book—something about binary numbers being made up of binary digits. 

Y/N gasped and realized she saw something that might be a clue to what was on his desk downstairs. It wasn't art. It was a clue. Yeah, she's definitely keeping this book straight in her backpack. Looking around some more, she saw a locked safety box with a passcode next to a desk with a turned-off computer. Was it possible that the code is something with the binary number in the other room? It was too much of a coincidence for it not to be. And it wouldn't hurt to try. 

It didn't take long for her to go down to the office and read through the binary numbers to find the passcode, so it really didn't hurt to try. 

2515

And there was a key to the reference room inside the box. 

The next room to the other room was Franz Moore's room. And behold, another diary was on the desk with a box needing a passcode. Y/N didn't want to find a code, but if it had a key, she would need it or a place to go next. She opened the diary and kept going through it until it was the last few pages of the diary. 

-

"I lost the note with my security box passcode... So I couldn't get into the computer room, and the headmaster got angry at me. This is the worst.

I thought I had it when I was  writing for a seminar in the reference room... Maybe I left it in a book somehow? I should go look.

If I used my ID as a password like Andrew does, then I wouldn't forget, but that's risky. Of course, if you just use a random number, then you have my problem..."

-

"Uh. . .so this helped me with nothing," Y/N sighed, closing the diary. "And I doubt a passcode for the box is in here." it was a lost cause in this room, looking through every bookshelf and drawer and desk for a key for something different, but nothing, having her leave the room and go to the other wing after one last search of the place. 

Going into the next room, Cyndi Peterson, it was way bigger than the other. Two sets of bookshelves in each corner far end. More bookshelves across the right wall and another in the corner on the left wall. Y/N went out of the room to check the nameplate next to the doors to see if this was her office or a mini library. When seeing the name for a double check, Y/N let out a whistle of shock. "Someone likes to read," she murmured, returning to the room. 

She went to the table in the middle to see an open book, another diary. And the last pages of the diary for the remaining pages being blank. 

-

"Michel's dissertation made it into an academic journal! I'm so happy for him! I knew when he joined my class he'd be a prodigy!

I also realized he and I have the same birthday! I used my birthday as a security code, so I feel like maybe I should change it...

-

Y/N went through the journal again to try and find a birthday, but she didn't find anything. That is kind of surprising—nothing of a complaint about teaching on her birthday or being given any birthday wishes. It was more of a work diary than a personal diary, with barely anything of praises or complaints as the last pages. 

Well, she tried. 

Going out into the other wing of this floor, Y/N saw the door for Andrew was locked with a passcode. This was the one who had his ID as a passcode. Would it be considered dumb of this lecturer to have his ID as a passcode? If he lost his passcode and a student found it, they could easily enter and get answers for anything. 

The next room was John Keith's. Very spacious with four bookshelves at the far end left corner. Two desks, one in the middle and another against the left wall. There really wasn't anything. Full storage boxes surrounding a lock box with a passcode. "Was he trying to pack?" Y/N asked herself. They weren't even taped down. It looked as if John attempted to pack before the school shut down and said, "Fuck it," when he missed the due time to get it out. 

However, if Y/N could get in easily without a key, they could've returned for their stuff. 

Ah, well, it's none of her business. And luckily, there was a key to this room on the desk against the wall. Unlike the other rooms with huge diaries, there was a small notebook on the middle table. 

-

"...Times are changing. Our existing laws cannot serve us anymore. We must surpass the 'father' of our law to find the true answer..."

-

"Should I be worried about this?" Y/N asked herself, going through the writing multiple for any hints of a clue for this passcode. "The father. . ." she tried to think of the "father" of the law, but nothing came to mind. She had never once studied anything similar to this, so she would have to look around for who the "father" was. 

Other than that, this was the last floor for her to look around so she could go back downstairs to look for clues of these passcodes she stumbled upon. And she has a key to the reference room from one of the storage boxes. If she remembered correctly, the reference room was on the second floor. One floor down. Y/N closed the door behind her and walked toward the staircase. 

Not even stepping down, a pair of hands were placed on her back and pushed down the flight of stairs. Y/N yelled and slid across the floor when landing, whimpering in pain. A light fit left her while bringing herself up to her forearms to look at the staircase to see a male with orange hair and brown eyes. He wore a light blue T-Shirt under a white jacket, dark jeans, and plain tennis shoes. What's with tonight and meeting good-looking people? Despite his good looks, he had a harsh glare across his face, looking very defensive. "Who'd you be?" he asked coldly. "What are you doing in this school, you shady punk?"

"Shady?" Y/N repeated in shock, getting up slowly to her feet—stumbling a bit but nothing bad. There was no feeling of a sprain or a twisted ankle. "I'm just looking for someone!" 

The male was still defensive. "Gimme a name, or I'm calling the police on you,"

"Y/N L/N!" Y/N spoke her name, raising her hands as a surrender. "I'm looking for a guy who I think was here. I'm not a robber or anything."

"You sure?" The male asked, looking her up and down. "As if a robber would say they were one? And you have blood on you. You could also be a killer." 

Y/N looked down at her clothes to notice the blood stains, wine stains, and slightly burnt parts of the fabrics. She couldn't really avoid the blood and flames if she could. It was a guaranteed thing from stabbing the monster multiple times and setting it on fire while covered in wine. "W-What do you want, a permit?" she fought back, looking up at the male. "Now, you tell me who you are if you're going to ask me!" 

He looked at her a little longer. "I'm H," he introduced himself. "I graduated from this school, so I came to bring back some memories."

"H?" Y/N repeated, giving "H" a look. "That's your name? Not actually the oddest one I've heard, but—"

"It's a nickname, dummy!" H cut her off, adding an insult. "You think I'd tell some shady girl my real name?" Y/N clinched her fists in annoyance. What a little brat! she growled in her mind. "But I guess you ain't stolen anything yet. I'm just wandering around, so don't mind me. Cya."

H walked all the way down the stairs and went down to the first floor, not giving Y/N a second glance. "What the hell's his problem," Y/N huffed out. "Didn't even apologize. . .he pisses me off." 

She sighed, telling herself to calm down. H wasn't worth it. They both had a bad first impression of each other, and she couldn't change that. Plus, she'll try not to bump into him much. If this is like the hotel, she won't see H much like she hasn't seen Taehyung much until the monster's attack.

Y/N walked in place a few times to shake off the pain and walked to the left wing of the building to unlock the reference room. And apparently, they call a library a reference room. Understandable, she thinks. In the first row on the left were bookcases on criminology, international law, legal history, and so on. Looking at the themes of the bookshelves, Y/N saw a book on the fair table in this corner of the reference room. 

So much reading on this trip. Y/N will probably not read for a while when she heads home. 

-

"They say that people despise those who think similarly to them or who are in similar circumstances.

But humans are curious in that they can hide any outward appearance of goodwill or hatred. Though they are two-faced deep down, they can make that idea seem unthinkable.

You may despise someone much like you,

but you may in your heart have affection for them.

The improbable is not impossible."

-

The book was closed, making Y/N think about what she had read. "I never understood this philosophy stuff," she admits to herself, even if she didn't need to. "Wouldn't you just dislike people you don't like?"

Y/N stayed there in deep thought but shook her head to get herself out of it. She went through the bookcases and to the desk. There was a checkout book, but there was no hidden key. Nothing on the board hanging besides announcements of new arrivals and top likes. She shuffled to the hanging picture of a man staring off with a description on the bottom.

-

"George Wythe (1726 - 1806) A signatory of the Declaration of Independence. He is sometimes called the father of American law for teaching the first classes in jurisprudence."

-

"Father of the American law, huh?" Y/N read, thinking of the notebook she read in John Keith's room. Was this the father mentioned in the notebook? Y/N knew this had to be a hint about the storage box in his room. Maybe the years could be a code. She pushed on the frame to try to see if it moved. It was securely attached to the wall, but there was a slight movement on the bottom left. Y/N grabbed the left side of the frame and pulled, but the screw kept it in place. 

She did have a screwdriver from the toolbox. Taking off her backpack, she dug out the screwdriver and loosened the screw a little more so she could pull the frame a little more to look behind it. 

1647

Y/N pushed the frame back against the wall to try and put it back and placed the screwdriver back in her backpack. It was slung back over her shoulders, leaving when there was nothing left for her to find. 

There were no crossing paths with H yet as she made her way to John Keith's room. Y/N tried to unlock the door, forgetting it was unlocked already. She shook her head tiredly and entered the room, the key now in her hoodie pocket. Unlocking the passcode with ease, there was a key to the lecture hallway. "Isn't that the locked door across the entrance?" she asked herself, trying to remember the doors. It would make sense as the rooms she's been entering or seeing were offices, computer rooms, or reference rooms. There was only one classroom that took the whole right wing on the first floor. 

Putting the lecture hallway key in her crossbody bag, Y/N made her way to the door. She grabbed the handle and pulled it toward her, but a force pushed the door into her making her trip backward. Fortunately, she caught herself when her back hit the desk to not fall. But, unfortunately, a same sneer of a growl entered the air. Her breath hitched, and she looked up to see the monster in the doorway, hand on the door to keep it open wide. "H-How. . ," she whispered to herself, slowly moving to the other side of the desk to keep space. "I. . .I set you on fire—I thought I killed you!" The cling against the desk made her hand go into her pocket to feel the key. 

Well, she knew what to do. 

Clicking the top of her mouth, she used her other hand to grab the notebook. Dammit. . .think about it later. She told herself. It was time to escape. The monster was closing in on her while she was in thought, and she raised the notebook to chuck it into the monster's crooked head. Blindsighting it, Y/N ran around the desk and monster and was outside the room. She closed it, leaning against it with her weight, and inserted the key in the lock. The monster was pounding on the door, making it hard for her to lock the door. 

But fiddling with the key to finally lock the door, Y/N took steps back, hitting the wall, as the monster kept pounding on the ground with loud yells. 

Her hand went up to her ear with a winced look at the loudness. It was way louder than in the hotel. "Surely that'll keep it in," she breathed out, calming her racing heart with deep breaths. One last deep breath calmed it, but she still breathed slightly heavily. "This is way too bizarre. I mean, I. . ." she dropped her arm to her side and leaned against the wall. "And the hotel's hours away, isn't it? Could it really be. . .following me?" her hands raised palm up before rising higher to clench her hair. "Why? How?" Y/N had memories of the hotel running through. "Then again, it did attack Taehyung. So it can't be my imagination. It exists. . .monster that it is." she let go of her and looked down the path that she'd be going down. "H. . .if that monster's here, I have to warn H. Tell him he's gotta get out of here."

Well, if she passes by him. Y/N probably won't bump into H unless he bumps into her. 

As much as she wanted to go looking for him, Y/N needed to do what she needed. And this place is huge so they could miss each other easily. So she could only hope they bump into each other. Y/N looked at the door one last time, still getting pounded on by the monster, and walked to the staircase. 

Down to the first floor, Y/N unlocked the lecture hallway and went through. Stepping one foot in, she heard applause. She paused at the sound but walked forward to see three doors, and the sound was coming from the far-right room. Y/N walked to the lecture room and went in to see H watching something on the wall with a turned-on projector hanging on the ceiling.

Speak of the devil. 

Friends, faculty, and staff. I thank you for coming today. Today is, for us, the best day of our lives. Because today, we leave the nest of our school and begin our climb to adulthood. 

People applauded, but the camera stayed. Y/N walked up quietly, not wanting to disturb H, and watched it with him.

Those who passed the bar exam, those who didn't, those becoming clerks or notaries or teachers. . .all of us will be graduating from this school. And we owe a big debt to it. Though even if they managed to graduate, some of us may need to put a little more time into their studies. . .

Laughter in the background.

But these graduates have one thing in common. They're filled with hope for their future. They're ready to challenge what lies ahead. A toast to our dreams! To our yet-unsure futures! And may we have God's grace!

More applauds. And before the person on camera went on to call students for their degrees, H turned off the projector without looking. Y/N slowly walked up to him and tried to find his face. "H," she called out. But he kept looking at the blank wall. "How did you get into this lecture room? Wasn't the hallway locked?"

H looked at her with a slight turn of the head, humming in confusion. "You forget I'm a graduate here?" he asked. "I know all the secret ways, dummy. 

Point taken. "Well. . .what were you listening to? A tape?" she asked, clearing her throat and not wanting to admit he was right.

"Yeah," H nodded, looking back at the wall. "From my graduation day. Man, has it really been three years?" a small smile lay across his face. "I was getting nostalgic for the place. . .and even abandoned; it really hasn't changed. It's just like it was when I was taking classes. Studying was wearing me out. . .so I came here for a breather. It's nice to have places full of memories like this."

"You graduated, but you're still studying?" Y/N furrowed her brows together. 

"Hey, lay off it," H glared at her, finally facing her fully. "Yeah, I couldn't pass the bar exam. . .so I'm cramming at home now. Next up's gonna be my sixth attempt. There were lots of great guys in my class. Most of 'em passed it in one shot." his eyes faltered to the ground. "Being a lawyer's been my dream since I was a kid. So I was so happy when I got accepted here. Felt I was one step closer to making it come true. The work was rough, and I just barely managed to graduate. . .I think it's my kind, helpful professors that did it." H paused, looking at the white wall with determination in his eyes. "I'll pass next time for sure. I mean, it's my sixth time. . .any more, and I'll be way behind my classmates." 

Y/N licked her lips, telling herself to warn him. "Well, it's good to be motivated, but it's dangerous here," the words went out after pushing herself. "You should get out of here soon." 

H turned to her, looking at her as if she was going crazy. "Dangerous?"

"It's sort of hard to explain," Y/N moved her hands around as if it'd explain better. "There's kind of a. . .monster here. It'll attack you if it finds you."

That didn't help her; H only looked at her a little longer. "I thought you were just some weird old woman wandering an abandoned school, but damn, you really are nuts," he remarked. "Seriosuly, a monster? Even little girls don't believe that stuff! You're being a total doofus." 

Her fingers rolled into a ball again with a clench. "Do you enjoy making fun of people?" she fumed, voice wavering slightly. "And I don't think I'm much older than—"

"Don't try and debate with me, alright?" He spoke over her, testing her. "I'm a talented soon-to-be lawyer! You'd be no match for me!"

It was hopeless. "Do what you want," she surrenders, straightening her hands out. Y/N had to take a breath to calm herself down. "But don't say I didn't warn you."

"Yeah, I will do that, thanks," he responded snarkily. "Like I need a shady punk like you telling me what to do around my alma mater." H bumped his shoulders against hers and left the room. 

"Hey Jane," Y/N called to her best friend. "I. . .I got in."

Jane's eyes widened in shock and happiness. "Wha?! Really?!" she smiled brightly, grabbing Y/N's arm. "You got in? To flight school?!" Y/N nodded with slight tears of happiness peeking through. "That's crazy, Y/N! I can't even do a handstand! You can really do it if you try, man!" 

"Thanks," Y/N chuckled, almost sobbing. "But it doesn't make me a pilot yet. Still have to pass the exam."

"Man, dude! You totally will be!" Jane assured with hope. "And make sure to gimme a ride! I'd love to fly above a city sometime."

"Jane," Y/N called her friend's name, grabbing her arm with both hands to try and get her back. "I'm not going to fly passenger planes! It's not that kind of school!"

Jane used her free hand to cover Y/N's mouth. "Don't sweat the details," she shushed. "I'm glad for you! You did good. Hey, I'll take you to lunch today!"

Y/N stared at the blank wall, getting back to now. "Back then, I wasn't really thinking," she remembered aloud. "I was just going wherever I wanted. Maybe H is like that, too."  she realized what she was doing and lightly slapped the temple of her head. "Stop thinking about the past—" 

Hyping herself up, she looked around the room for anything. It was a standard room, but something caught her eye on a small pinboard. A ripped piece of newspaper was pinned in front of everything. The topic of the week. . .and there was a picture of a male. Michel Statham. His birthday was June 19th, twenty-years-old, and he lived in Marvel Hill—birthday!

This was the student who shared the same birthday as Cyndi! 

After checking out the lecture hallway, she'll be going to Cyndi's room straight away. Y/N nodded to herself after repeating the birthday over and over till it was tattooed on and left the lecture room. The doors in the middle were painted over, and the doors on the far left were locked. Heading upstairs, Y/N stopped in motion when seeing a scrap of a notebook page lying in the middle of the hallway. She slowly walked up to it and knelt down. "The rule matches the other pages," she uttered. "So he was here. . ."

-

"Many hopes were fulfilled here. Many youths were blessed. But I didn't receive that blessing.

What's the problem with me?  Who refused to pick me and left me in the dust? I loathe those meaningless days."

-

Y/N stood up, reading the paper again. "He had a leaflet for this school," she remembered. "It was in the desk. . .felt like it was important. Was he trying to be a lawyer like H was?" she frowned, putting the paper in her crossbody bag. "I guess this would imply he didn't become one." zipping the bag close, she attempted to open the left doors. Painted over. But she was able to go through the right door. 

Nothing there. 

So she made her way to Cyndi's room and unlocked the safety box after having to think a few seconds about what the birthday was despite repeating it a million times in her head when reading it. 

A key to the lecture rooms.

Her lips blew a raspberry, and she walked out of the room. "What a waste of time," she grumbled, jogging down the steps. "Why couldn't this key be with the key to the lecture hallway?" She kept complaining about it, but she knew it wouldn't fix anything. She grumbled under her breath until it went away the second she unlocked the door to the left. It was the only locked door in the lecture hallway. It was the same as the other lecture room, but a piece of paper was on the blackboard. 

-

"Seminar at 9/21 in the Auditorium 'Crime Among the Impoverished and Its Prevention'

Ivan Abelitsev's 'Criminal Behavior: A Psychological Approach' will be referenced, so be sure to read it before coming!                    -Franz Moor, Professor of Criminology"

-

She shrugged, thinking it was nothing, before looking around some more. Y/N jumped slightly when hearing something fall to her right, turning to see a scrap of notebook paper under a board with a calendar and small announcements. Was it there before? That was strange. She slowly walked to the notebook paper and picked it up. "Same as the others," she said, furrowed eyebrows when looking back and forth at the board and paper. "Did it actually fall, or am I just crazy? Too much of a coincidence to fall the moment I stopped reading the announcement." 

-

"I knew there was something I lacked. But I didn't want to admit it. My ambitious youthfulness wouldn't let me.

I wanted someone to say it. I wanted to be woken up. . . To be told I'm a have-not."

-

"Something you lacked. . .a have-not," she reread the words that came to her the most. Her fingers lightly touched the page, moving it through. "It's true. . .there are haves and have-nots. People whose dreams can come true, and—" She was cut off by her head ringing, hands instinctually going up to her temples. A-Again?! she whimpered in pain, pushing into her head more to try and get it away. Fortunately, it only lasted a few seconds, making her slowly let go and sigh in relief. "Finally, it—" something didn't feel right, making a cold shiver go down her spine. But it wasn't feeling that caused the shiver. It was a breath. 

Y/N really didn't want to turn around. . .but she did. And the monster was standing inches away from her, sending an attack, a hand gripping around her neck and tightening more, causing her to bring her hands up and wrap around its wrist.

"D-Damn. . .monster!" she was trying to pull its hand away. "Why. . .are you. . .chasing. . .me?" Her vision was getting hazy, and she was trying to keep one eye open. But the monster was squeezing tightly. 

And she fell. Vision blackened when she fell forward—faceplanting the ground. Y/N groaned, coughing to get oxygen back. Her mouth was open, and saliva was dripping down. She coughed some more, feeling like she was going to hurl. Back moving like a cat in an attempt to puke out a hairball. 

But nothing was coming out. 

I'm. . .I'm alive? Y/N raised her head up and looked around the monster. The monster's gone. . .I thought it would kill me. . .but it left? She cursed in her mind, staggering up to her feet. "My neck," she moaned, attempting to touch her beck. But she recoiled her hand when a bare touch stung. "I feel so. . .sluggish." she shook her head to keep herself up. "I haven't really slept since yesterday. . .I should try and rest somewhere."

The steps were slow, but she kept herself going to the infirmary room. The doors had taken a lot of her energy, needing to pull with her whole body or push her side into the door of the infirmary. But she had gotten into the bed, molding against the mattress and pillow. "I'll take a little nap," she whispered, more for herself. "Pushing myself wouldn't be a good idea." the bed or pillow wasn't comfortable, but it was all she had. 

It wasn't hard going into dreamland. 

"Mom?! Are you. . .crying again? Sorry, I can't do a thing. . .I can't even console you."

Y/N opened her eyes, blinking a few times to get the blurriness away from her vision. Yeah. . .mom always cried in the living room. She responded to the dream in her mind. After I'd gone to bed at night. . .that was when I was a kid, though. She rolled to her back and pushed herself up into a sitting position, raking her fingers through her hair. Well. . .I'm feeling better now. Should get going again.

Thinking through what she had done before the attack of the monster, she remembered the paper on the blackboard. A book on Criminal Behavior was mentioned, so that might have to be where she needs to go next. Y/N stayed a few seconds on the bed before getting out and walking to the reference room. She already knew where the books on criminology were. She just needs to look through the books for the one reference book. Her finger went across the spines of the books a couple of times before seeing the title.

She took out the book and opened it from the beginning. It was hard to understand any of it, but she was flipping page by page till there was a flop of multiple pages at once, making her stop—going back to the pages to see a slip of paper, causing the pages to fall from under her thumb. 

9981

No doubt this was for the security box in Franz's room. 

Y/N put the book back into the bookcase, keeping the slip of paper in her hand, and walked out to the room on the top floor. Fortunately, her prediction was correct, and it opened without a problem. She raised the top and saw a key to the computer room. Great, she is almost done getting all the doors unlocked. 

The key stayed in her hand when she made her way down the stairs and to the doors of the computer room. Unlocking it, she noticed two rows of six computers with a walkway in the middle. None of them were turned on, even if she tried to. In the far left corner, there was a black laptop. Y/N tried to turn it on, but it had no power. Was there really nothing in here? The last thing she could check was the trashcan in the opposite corner. She fished through crumbled papers reading each carefully, and stopped at a familiar name. Andrew Robinson. The lecturer with the ID as a passcode. And luckily, the ID number was under his name. It should be the room next door, too.

This room wasn't useless after all. 

A hum of satisfaction left her lips, and she stood up. Y/N placed the key back in her bag with the paper, staring at the essay example while walking to the door. 

Ahem. . .Friends, faculty, and staff, I thank you for coming today.

The room had somehow gotten darker than it already was. Y/N turned around in fear, seeing the laptop turned on and changing different colors crazily. Why was it playing a familiar voice in her past?

We're glad to have a sunny graduation to start off the rest of our lives. The future may be uncertain for some, but the persistence we learned here will make us resolute!

A round of applause for my fellow graduates!

Y/N slowly took a step forward when hearing the applause, wondering what was going on. The laptop had no power—she couldn't turn it on!

However, as valedictorian, there's something I can't help but lament. . .

It's about Y/N L/N.

She was highly skilled, kind to us all, and admired by pupils and teachers alike.

We all expected she would be proudly stand with us this morning to graduate.

But our hopes were dashed. . .

By none other than the woman herself!

Hiding behind an innocent face, she's been fooling all her pupils and professors!

Let me ask you all this. Should she be forgiven?  Can she escape punishment for betraying her friends and mentors?

The crowd booed at the question. "No," she whispered, unconsciously moving her hand slowly to unzip her backpack with little space. "Stop."

I didn't think so.

She should forever be punished for what she has done to grant her selfish dreams!

Walls around here dripped red, inking down to the floor and rising up to the computers. Y/N spun around fast, trying to get away from the color, but now she was covered in red. Her free hand went up to her head, almost falling to her knees. Bones were shaking inside her, not wanting to hear this anymore. "Please. . .stop."

You're the lowest of low. . . Your dreams will never come true.

What are you even good for?

. . .Go off and die somewhere!

Coward!

The yells and applause were getting louder, not leaving her head, and the word "DIE!" surrounded the room. Even closing her eyes wouldn't get rid of it. 

"Stop. . ," Groaning in frustration, she ran to the computer, and the hammer in her hand swung into the screen of the laptop as a baseball bat. "I said stop!" her shoulders were rising and falling with her breaths. "No! I'm. . .I'm not a coward!" liquid welling up in her eyes and dripping down. "I. . .I just."

Her head came back to what was around her, and she realized the hammer in her hands. Y/N looked around her to see the room back to normal. Her hands shakily pulled the hammer off the laptop and dropped it into her backpack, zipping it up with slight trouble. Now she was only staring at the screen. "I heard a scream. . .that was you?" H's voice appeared, but she didn't flinch. "Geez, you made me freak." the door closed, and footsteps walked closer to her. "What's the big idea, huh? Did something happen?"

"Forget about it," Y/N shook her head, not thinking it was worth telling him what happened. He already thought she was crazy for the monster thing. "Sorry to startle you. . .it's nothing." 

"H-Hey, dude. . .you okay?" H stuttered for a split second, walking up to her. "You're super pale." 

"I'm just kind of tired," Y/N said honestly, raising her hands to her face to try and rub the tiredness away. "I came a long way. . .and I haven't slept. Leave me alone. I can't be bothered to talk." her voice was muffled through her hands. 

The silence made her feel a bit better. "Have this," H offered, but Y/N didn't remove her hands. "I already had a little, but it's an energy drink. Drink up."

Y/N removed her hands to see H holding out a drink. "Seriously?" she looked at the drink and up at H. "I don't need this. . .I told you, leave me be."

"Drink it!" H exclaimed, holding the drink closer to her. "Geez. You really look like you need food and drink! And I'm being nice, so at least accept it, will ya?"

She sighed, taking the drink after consideration. "Alright, thanks," She now looked at the drink in her hand. "But what's all this from the guy who was calling me a shady punk?"

"Mostly 'cause you look like crap," H answered with no hesitation, getting a look from Y/N. "Come on. It's not like I'm heartless. I mean, I am trying to be a lawyer. Besides, maybe it's fate! Tell you what, I won't call you shady anymore. Now cheer up. You could be my client once I'm a lawyer!"

A small chuckle left Y/N. "That's a quick turnaround," she commented. "I'm grateful, at any rate." Y/N opened the cap and took a sip, feeling better. A thought entered her head. "Say, have you seen anyone else around? Particularly a man about my age?"

H watched her take another drink before answering, "Nope, nobody. He's who you're looking for?"

"Yeah," Y/N nodded, removing the rim from her lips. "Though I don't really know how he looks. . .tell me if you see him, okay?"

"You got it," H promised. "Doubt anybody'd be around here, though." his eyes showed a reminder to himself. "Oh, but can I ask something too?" Y/N nodded again, taking another swig of the drink. "Professor Andrew, he always helped me out—his room's on the third floor. But it's got a number lock, so I can't get in. I was thinking the professor might still have some lecture notes for me around something. . .but, yeah, tell me if you get it open, okay?" 

That's doable. "Alright, got it," she agreed. She was going there next, anyway. 

"I'll wander around some more, then," H informed. "You look like hell, so don't push yourself."

"Yeah, well. . .you be careful too," Y/N pointed at him with the now empty bottle. "If you see any monsters, get away!"

H rolled his eyes. "Not this again," he waved her off. "Yeah, yeah, sure. I've got a knife to defend myself anyhow. Cya." 

And gone he was. Y/N looked at the door and down at the empty bottle in her hand. "Maybe he's not as bad as I thought," she smiled lightly, walking to the other corner and tossing the bottle in the trash can. 

Y/N went to the top floor and punched the ID into the passcode. Looking around, there was nothing but a diary on the desk against the wall next to the bookcase. Well, even if there was nothing, she still had this door open for H to come in when he needed to. 

-

"Finally done with the finals! I'm glad everyone got their appropriate grades. Of course, there's that lone H. . .

I teach him so much, but he doesn't even get the basics. He's lagging behind everyone else.  And yet he's so intent on being a lawyer. . . 

That nickname 'H' stands for 'Hope.' Apparently, it was given to him for having such an impossible dream. . . But if you ask me, it's for hopelessness.

I hate how he fawns over me, too. I practically have to act nice to him, and he always comes for lessons after school. . . I wish I'd never let him in my class."

-

Y/N stared at the diary. Especially at the word "Hopelessness." A frown stretched across her lips. "This is about H?" she asked the obvious. "It's awful that he'd say this about a student. Though maybe H really is that bad." her hand placed on the page. "If H saw this. . .it'd be a big shock for him. He said he respected his professor and always tried so hard. . ." and the page was ripped off. "There. . .wouldn't want H coming in and finding this."

She walked out of the room and placed the paper in her bag when walking down the hallway, stopping at the sound of another footstep with her. Looking up, she froze at the sight of the monster walking down the hallway. Its back was facing her. That monster's still wandering around. . .is it looking for me since it couldn't kill me? She thought, watching it enter a room. 

Her feet quickly ran down the stairs to the first floor to avoid the monster. Y/N leaned against the wall next to the staircase. She had unlocked every room she could. So the only place she hadn't checked was the basement. It wasn't as if she didn't notice it. She never had a reason to go down there. But now she has a reason. And going down the stairs, the air felt different than the rest of the building.

The door to the right was unlocked, but she couldn't help but have a bad feeling about this the moment her hand wrapped around the doorknob. She prepped herself up and opened the door for whatever she'd seen. 

And there laid H in the middle of the room, and there was heavy fog. "H!" she ran into the room and knelt next to him. "Hey, H! What's wrong?!" she tried to shake him. "Get up!" 

H tried to get up. "My. . .head," he groaned, falling back to the ground. "Feel like. . .crap."

"Now that you mention it," she brought her hand to her mouth, covering a forced cough, looking around the room. "It's a little hard to breathe—what's going on here?!"

"It's. . .gas," H hacked out. Y/N felt stupid asking this question the moment he answered. "The floor's. . .leaking gas.  ..you gotta. . .get out."

"As if I'm leaving without you," Y/N reached out to H, helping him up to his feet. "Get up; lean on my shoulder." H leaned his whole weight onto her, making her grunt. She dragged him to the door, trying to open it. But when it was cracked open, it got pushed shut. Y/N tried to open it, but it was locked. A chuckle on the other side made her grit her teeth. "It's here?! Not gonna let us go?!" she let out a heavy cough. "This gas is pouring in. . .I have to be quick." she set H down on the wall. 

She looked around, trying to find anything to get them out. The breaker was no use, and the security box wouldn't open. What was this room even? A storage room? Very spacious for a storage room. Another cough left her body when she tried to push boxes to the side. In the corner of the room were random items, only an iron pipe that seemed to be deemed the only thing useful right now. There really wasn't anything to get them out the door, even if she tried to hit the iron pipe into the door. Y/N was pulling everything off the wall to try and see if she could do anything. 

And she pulled the third closet away from the wall and saw a crack in the wall. Y/N raised the iron pipe and pounded it into the wall five times before it broke apart enough for both her and H. She dropped the iron pipe and ran to H. Y/N pulled her shirt over her nose before she grabbed him and helped him up to his feet. "Come on," she uttered, getting him through the hole. The gas had leaked into the other room, another reference room, maybe. Y/N thought about going through the door, but the monster was most likely roaming around. That's a death wish. 

So the answer is the elevator. It would go to the reference room on the second floor, the only elevator she noticed in the school. Y/N placed H against the wall and tried to open it with her hands. But it wouldn't budge. She took off her backpack and rummaged through, taking the crowbar and inserting it between the doors. Y/N began to pull hard until she opened the elevator enough for the two. A tough fit, but enough. The crowbar was left on the ground as Y/N picked up her backpack and grabbed H. 

Inside the elevator, it showed no power. But boxes were stacked up to guide her eyes to a door in the ceiling. An emergency escape. "H, you're going to have to help me," she coughed out, helping him up the stacks of boxes. Her hands went around his foot and pulled him up, staggering too much, and pushed up from her chest when he was having trouble getting himself up. Y/N shook her arms and jumped up, hanging for a few seconds, and pulled herself to the ceiling. 

And her next challenge was climbing the ladder with an almost passed-out H. She got herself up to her feet and pulled H up drowsily. "We're almost there," she spoke hopefully, trying to keep a cough down. "Can you climb up?" H let out a groan but nodded nonetheless. "Climb first, I'll be. . .underneath." she brought H to the ladder, seeing him miss the ladder a few times before grabbing it. Y/N waited a split second before getting on the ladder, hovering behind him. She ignored her body and head against his lower back, keeping him from falling back. Maybe a bit dangerous, but this is how it is. 

Fortunately, the elevator opened from the inside when Y/N reached over H's shoulder. Very dangerous to do, two people in the same spot on the ladder, but it was at the back of her mind. She had H get to the floor first, and she climbed out on her hands and knees. Her shirt was dragged off her face, panting and gasping for the somewhat fresh air; moving back to sit between her calves. "We. . .managed to e-escape," she declared to herself, sighing in relief between deep pants. Her attention went to H. "Hey, H! Are you okay?" she crawled to him and shook him, but he wasn't moving. Breathing but not moving. "I'll get you to the infirmary. . .hang in there." 

Y/N dragged a rolling chair from the desk next to H, who lay in the bed. "Are you sure you're okay?" she asked, looking over him again. "You don't want to go to a hospital? What if you got poisoned?"

"I'm fine," H let out a breathless laugh but groaned while placing a hand on his head. "Head hurts like hell, and I feel gross, but I'll get better." he let his arm fall on the bed and moved it under the blanket before looking over at Y/N. "Thanks, man. I'd be screwed without you around. . .I owe you my life!" H turned his head back flat on the pillow when grimacing in pain. "There's water storage in the basement, and I once heard about it leaking gas. . .only just remembered that now. It was after I graduated, so I dunno for sure, but I think there was a dispute over the property. So the school moved, and this got abandoned."

So that's why the school is abandoned. "I see," Y/N looked out the window to see the dark sky. "But you really shouldn't have come if you knew it was dangerous."

H looked at Y/N and away with a blush. "Sh-Shut up," he weakly said. "I just sort of forgot, okay?" His chest raised highly and lowered back down. "Man, to think all this'd happen when I just came here to relax. . .shoulda just stayed at home studying."

"It's good to get a breather, sure," Y/N nods to his idea of being here. "Just not in abandoned ruins, okay?" she paused a little before going on. "That's really something something, though. You're still studying three whole years after you graduated?"

"Well, I always wanted to be a lawyer. . .ever since I was a kid," H murmured his small story, turning to have his back facing Y/N. "No matter what, I will be a lawyer! So I kept studying, and I still do. . .and there's no changing my mind!" he moved slightly as if thinking to turn but stayed facing away. "You're awesome yourself. . .climbing the elevator with my weight on you? You're buffer than you look."

"I. . .never thought to be that strong," Y/N softly said. "But I did go to flight school."

"Serious?" H quickly turned to face her, pain covering his face, but he ignored it. "That's awesome! Really can't judge a book by its cover. . ."

Y/N shook her head, not wanting to talk about it anymore. "But anyway," she was on her way to change the subject quickly. "It's all kinds of dangerous here. . .and I'm not looking after you anymore."

H chuckled. "I know, I know," he said. "Well, it was nostalgic and refreshing while it lasted. I'll just rest here a little and go."

"You do that," Y/N nodded at him, getting up from her seat. "I'll be going."

She waved him goodbye and went to the door. "Hey! Wait a sec," H called out, making Y/N turn to see him getting out of bed. "You dropped something!" He walked to the paper and picked it up. "Here, you—" his eyes went to the paper and began to read. "Wait, what? This looks like Professor Andrew's writing. Why'd you have this?" Y/N tried to reach out to him and tell him not to read it. H turned around to keep her from grabbing the paper if she tried to. "Hope? It's for. . .hopelessness?" his body still faced away from Y/N. "Hey. . .what's this about? How. . .why did the professor. . .this is. . .how he really felt?" Y/N stayed in her spot, but she heard the crumble of paper. "But you. . .supported me. You said I'd be a lawyer someday. . .that's what you told me!" she slowly walked up to him, hands raised out. But H turned around, tears down his cheek, and ran out of the room. 

"That guy," Y/N breathed out through her nose. "He's in no condition—and that monster is bound to find him." 

That's when she knew she had to go after him. 

Y/N ran through the first floor in an attempt to find H, but he wasn't there. She ran through the lecture halls and tried to see him in the two lecture rooms on the first floor, but he wasn't there. On the second floor, he was in the auditorium. Relief dreaded through, and she jogged up to H, whose back was facing her. "H. . .thank goodness," she let out, about to reach and touch his shoulder. 

"I always knew," H spoke softly, making Y/N freeze in her movement and bring her arm down. "At least that I wasn't a genius or anything. . ." he turned to face Y/N, tears still going down from his eyes, but his facial features were blank. "But why didn't they just say it? I respected Professor Andrew. 'Cause he always supported me." his emotions were slowly flooding in. "Sure, I'm kind of dumb. I've been teased constantly for it. I failed the damn test five times! I'm a failure!" Y/N looked down at his hands, which were turning into fists. "But aren't I free to hope?! I've always dreamt of being a lawyer! That's why I still study so hard. . ." his head lowered, turning away from Y/N, but his nails still dug further into his palms. "Why did it have to be like this/ Was everything I did. . .for nothing? I don't know what to do anymore."

"But that's life, isn't it?" Y/N responded to him with a question, not stopping or thinking about what she was saying. 

"What?" H turned back around, looking at Y/N with a glare.

"Just looking at you kind of irritates me," Y/N admits, more to herself than to H. But she was already going down this road of her words. Might as well push it. "Maybe it reminds me too much of myself." her eyes sent a similar glare, but softer. "You need to wake up. Aren't there enough hopeless idealists in the world as it is?"

"You shut the hell up!" H cried out. "Yeah, I'm stupid, but I'll keep studying!" 

"Everyone's lacking in something or another," Y/N pushed more. "In your case, it was intelligence." she didn't think about it when reading the notebook, but she knew it reminded her too much of her past. 

"You. . .goddamn," he grits his teeth. "You want a piece of me?!"

"In my case," a hand raised to one of Y/N's E/C eyes. "It was my eyes." H stopped and looked at Y/N in confusion about her words. "Ever since I was a kid, I wanted to be a pilot. I studied hard and made it to flight school. But. . .I was colorblind." she removed her hand and stared at it. "Strange, isn't it? Just a few colors you can't see, and suddenly you have no right to fly. . ." her hand dropped, looking at H. "It seems obvious to me now. But. . .back then, I just couldn't accept it. So I. . .I faked my vision results to get into the school. I spent three years playing innocent. Even managed to be an honors student. But. . .I was found out. On the day of the pilot exam, no less. That day, I was reduced from an honors student to a filthy traitor. I dropped out, and. . .now I'm just a nobody clerk. I don't mind if you still want to be a lawyer. But I just want to say something. Don't trap yourself by narrowing the road."

"Ain't it rough?" H asked, voice going in and out. "Wasn't it. . .your childhood dream?"

"It certainly was hard," Y/N confirmed. "It still is. But looking at you. . .I realized it's not much, but I make my own money. I got a boyfriend—" she hopes, at least. "—I drink with my buddy on weekends. . .and I enjoy my life for what it is. I didn't want to recognize I'd been set back. But I can't deny where I am now. Nor all the work I put in back then."

"Are you happy with what you have now?" H asked more, looking more curious each second. 

Y/N thought about the question and ended up nodding. "Yes, though I didn't quite notice it," she said after thinking more about his question. "My life is how I choose it to be. So I shouldn't regret it. How about you?"

H kept staring at her and around the room as if he was in his head. However, he turned away from her to keep her from seeing his emotions. "I won't give up," he declared. "Becuase. . .because it's always been my dream. . .to be a lawyer."

"I see. . ," 

"I'll. . .I'll," H tried to find his words, letting out a sigh. "Just one more time. I'll try the bar exam." he still wouldn't look at her, as if he was more talking to himself. "But if I fail, that's it! I made up my mind! I'll give up for good then, but it won't mean those three years were a waste." he finally looked at Y/N. "Right, Y/N?"

"Is there any point in staying here?" she answered with a question instead. "Let's go. I'll take you home if you want."

"Yeah, thanks," H walked up to her, finally ready to go home. Y/N gave him a crooked smile, him smiling back at her with ease, and Y/N turned around to walk toward the door. But she stopped with one step, seeing the door open and a familiar figure. "Y/N? What's up?" he looked around her, and he as well froze. "W. . .what? H-Hey, Y/N!" 

"H, get out of the school," Y/N instructed, keeping her eyes on the monster. "I'll keep him away, got it?" she brought her arm behind her to unzip her backpack. "He's chased me. . .who knows how many miles. It's me this monster is after. I'll take care of it."

"A-Alright,"

Y/N finally gripped whatever it was in her backpack and pulled it to. The hammer. "You just won't die, will you," she spoke up for the monster to hear. "I'll finish you off this time!" the monster roared back at her and ran at them. Y/N raised the hammer like a bat and swung it into the monster's arm. "Go, H! Now!" 

H stared at Y/N a little longer and ran out. 

Outside the school, H walked back and forth for so many minutes, worried about who will come out. from the two. "Y/N," he uttered into his hand, stopping and looking at the door. "You're so damn slow. . .Are you sure you're alright?" he grumbled to himself, trying to make a decision in his head. "Dammit." he made up his mind. "Hang on, Y/N! I'll save you!" He started a jog to the door, but it swung open with Y/N coming out with blood staining her face lightly and staining more on her clothes. H stumbled back at the image. "S-Startled me, dude!" he gave her a glare and stepped back for space. "You okay? Did you finish that thing off?" 

"Yeah, I hope I did. . .I kept using the hammer till it stopped moving," Y/N briefly described what had happened. "Probably shouldn't have dropped it, though. I don't want to go back in there. I don't think it's done for yet. . .I feel like it'll come back."

"What do you mean again?"

"Didn't I tell you already?" Y/N raised a brow, using a bloody hand to push a piece of hair out of her eyes. "It followed me all the way from a distant hotel. . .I don't think this is over yet."

H blinked a few times. "I-I don't get it, dude," he admits. "But, er, you going somewhere now?"

"I'd like to, but I don't have a destination," Y/N shrugged. "The guy I'm looking for wasn't here, so I don't know where he could be. . ." her adventure just might be over. 

"Hey, hold on," H dug into the pocket of his white jacket. "I actually found this earlier!" he brought out a folded piece of paper, bringing it out to Y/N. "Any help?" Y/N grabbed it and unfolded it to see an address. "I found it in the basement." she looked back up at H after reading it three times. "The paper looks pretty new, so. . .thought you just dropped it."

"Place of regret," Y/N read for the fourth time, looking back down at the paper. "And an address?" And now at H again. "Do you know what kind of place this is?"

"No clue," H shook his head. "But I think it's pretty far from here. It'd take about a day to drive." this handwriting looks the same as the scraps in her bag and the other pieces of papers of addresses she's gotten before. "I think I'll check this out." she gave him a slight bow of her head. "So long." 

Y/N walked around him and to her car. "H-Hold on!" H called out, running to her before she got to her vehicle. "You said you're looking for. . .who, exactly? Ain't it dangerous driving around this late? Why you wanna meet him?"

"To be honest, I'm not sure myself," Y/N folded the paper and pushed it into her hoodie pocket. "Though. . .I have sort of an excuse. My point is it doesn't matter why I want to meet him. It's just. . .right now; it feels like I have to. I have to go." she turned her head to H. "Is your house far? I'll take you there."

"Don't worry about it," he waved her off. "I can handle myself fine."

"Okay," Y/N tried to wave him goodbye this time. "Be careful, then." 

And she walked around her car to grasp the handle. "Hoseok!" H called out, running to her again. Y/N looked at him in confusion. "My name. It's. . .Hoseok. I trust you now. . .so you know my name." 

"Well, thanks for trusting me," Y/N gave him another crooked smile. "Nice to meet you, Hoseok." 

Hoseok gave her a tight smile. "If. . .we meet again," he went on before Y/N could pull the handle. "You wanna. . .have a drink or something?" 

"Of course," she accepted the offer without a thought. "I look forward to it. "

-

Scene 2

"Julius Stone Law School - H -”

End

𝙴𝚞𝚗𝚠𝚘𝚘 𝚒𝚜 𝚊𝚠𝚊𝚢 | 𝙴𝚙𝚒𝚕𝚘𝚐𝚞𝚎

| 𝘈, (𝘴𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵) 𝘍 | 𝖢𝗁𝖺𝗍𝖿𝗂𝖼, 𝖧𝗂𝗀𝗁 𝗌𝖼𝗁𝗈𝗈𝗅 / 𝖢𝗈𝗅𝗅𝖾𝗀𝖾 𝖠𝖴, 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗂𝗌 𝗋𝖾𝖺𝗅𝗅𝗒 𝗃𝗎𝗌𝗍 𝖺 𝗌𝗍𝗈𝗋𝗒 𝖿𝗎𝗅𝗅 𝗈𝖿 𝖺𝗇𝗀𝗌𝗍

| 𝘔𝘪𝘯𝘪 𝘚𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 |  

↳   𝘗𝘢𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 - 𝖤𝗎𝗇𝗐𝗈𝗈 𝗑 𝖱𝖾𝖺𝖽𝖾𝗋

↳ 𝘚𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘺 - 𝘓𝘰𝘨 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘮.

𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘢𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘤𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘻𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘧𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘣𝘺 𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘵𝘦𝘹𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘳, 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥, 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘧𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘱𝘪𝘤, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘣𝘪𝘰. 𝘊𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘬 𝘰𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘣𝘪𝘰𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘧𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘱𝘪𝘤𝘴, 𝘵𝘰𝘰.  

𝘐𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘺 2000𝘴, 𝘧𝘭𝘪𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯 𝘈𝘐𝘔 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘤𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘩.

𝘌𝘶𝘯𝘸𝘰𝘰 𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘠/𝘕'𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴. 𝘏𝘦'𝘴 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘩.

𝘐𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘺 2000𝘴, 𝘧𝘭𝘪𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯 𝘈𝘐𝘔 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘵 𝘤𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘩.

𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴. 𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘠/𝘕 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩   𝘌𝘶𝘯𝘸𝘰𝘰, 𝘣𝘰𝘵𝘩 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘳𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘪𝘨𝘩 𝘴𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘭. 𝘏𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘰𝘧𝘧 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘨𝘦, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘌𝘶𝘯𝘸𝘰𝘰 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘴, 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩.

𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘠/𝘕'𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘢𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘰 𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘯 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦. 𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘠/𝘕 𝘢𝘯𝘥  𝘌𝘶𝘯𝘸𝘰𝘰 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘰𝘧𝘧 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘷𝘦-𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘫𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘨𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧-𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺?

(𝘾𝙖𝙣 𝙗𝙚 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙗𝙮 𝙞𝙩𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙛)

𝘞𝘒 - 400

𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘷 | 𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘵

𝘚𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘔𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵 | 𝘔𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘔𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵

˗ˏˋ ꒰ 𝗟𝗼𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 ꒱ ˎˊ˗

███ 𝟮𝟬%

████ 𝟰𝟬%

█████ 𝟲𝟬%

██████ 𝟴𝟬%

███████ 𝟭𝟬𝟬%

𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘁𝗲!

𝙎𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙚𝙣𝙣𝙖𝙢𝙚 - 𝙔/𝙉𝘿𝙖𝙯𝙚

𝙁𝙞𝙧𝙨𝙩 𝙣𝙖𝙢𝙚 - 𝙔/𝙉

-

𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙀𝙪𝙣𝙬𝙤𝙤 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙨𝙞𝙜𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙞𝙣

Y/NDaze:

Howdy

ChaEunwoo:

Hey Y/N

Y/NDaze:

What's up?

ChaEunwoo: 

Not much

How are you?

Y/NDaze:

Things could be better

ChaEunwoo:

Oh, I'm sorry to hear that

Y/NDaze:

How've you been?

ChaEunwoo:

Everything's been really good

Y/NDaze:

So what's new in your life?

ChaEunwoo:

Not a whole lot really

Just finishing up college

Oh, I don't know if you knew

Me and Minhae got back together

Y/NDaze:

Oh, good for you

ChaEunwoo:

Thanks

How's your friend Myungjun doing?

Y/NDaze:

Well

He started dating Mary, so now I barely see him

ChaEunwoo:

Oh, I'm sorry

Y/NDaze:

Yeah, well, it's whatever I guess

ChaEunwoo:

Well, college is almost over anyways

Y/NDaze:

Can you believe we're almost adults?

ChaEunwoo:

Nope

It definitely doesn't feel like it's been four years

Y/NDaze:

We had some good times in college

ChaEunwoo:

Yeah, kind of

I'd rather not think about the past though

Y/NDaze:

Oh, sure

ChaEunwoo:

I'm just tired of reliving memories

Y/NDaze:

So do you have plans for graduation?

ChaEunwoo:

Oh no, not really

I know my family's coming up and stuff

Y/NDaze:

Are you going to move back home?

ChaEunwoo:

Not immediately

I have this lease until August

Can we talk about things :Y/NDaze

Can we talk abo| :Y/NDaze

Can we| :Y/NDaze

Y/NDaze:

Do anything fun recently?

ChaEunwoo:

Not really, I've just been working

Can I see you this sum| :Y/NDaze

Can I see you| :Y/NDaze

Can I| :Y/NDaze

Y/NDaze:

Are you doing homework?

ChaEunwoo:

Yeah, just some stuff due tomorrow

Do you ever miss things between you| :Y/NDaze

Do you ever miss thing| :Y/NDaze

Do you ever| :Y/NDaze

Y/NDaze

How are classes?

ChaEunwoo:

They're good

Same old same old

Do you miss me| :Y/NDaze

Do you| :Y/NDaze

Do| :Y/NDaze

Y/NDaze:

Gone to any concerts lately?

ChaEunwoo:

Not really

I'm busy with school

Will we| :Y/NDaze

Y/NDaze:

What any good movies lately?

ChaEunwoo:

No, not really

Is this it| :Y/NDaze

Y/NDaze:

How's the weather been there?

ChaEunwoo:

It's been alright

Y/NDaze is typing. . .

Y/NDaze is deleting. . .

Y/NDaze is typing. . .

Y/NDaze:

Okay

I think I'm going to go

Goodbye, Dongmin

ChaEunwoo:

I though I said you can—

Y/NDaze is away

𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝙲𝚛𝚘𝚘𝚔𝚎𝚍 𝙼𝚊𝚗 | 𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝙾𝚗𝚎

| 𝘈, (𝘴𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵) 𝘍 | 𝘛𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘳, 𝘏𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘳, 𝘚𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘎𝘰𝘳𝘦

| 𝘔𝘪𝘯𝘪 𝘚𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 |  

↳   𝘗𝘢𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 - 𝘑𝘦𝘰𝘯 𝘑𝘶𝘯𝘨𝘬𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘹 𝘙𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳,  𝘚𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘒𝘪𝘮 𝘛𝘢𝘦𝘩𝘺𝘶𝘯𝘨 𝘹 𝘙𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳  

↳ 𝘚𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘺 - 𝘠/𝘕 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘢𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘥𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦. 𝘐𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘪𝘥𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘨𝘨𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘭 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘠/𝘕 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘥𝘥 𝘰𝘤𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘴𝘬 𝘢 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘢𝘯𝘵.  

𝘏𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳, 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦.  

𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘯, 𝘠/𝘕 𝘴𝘦𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘧𝘧 𝘪𝘯 𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘩 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘪𝘮, 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴.

(𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘧 "𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘔𝘢𝘯" 𝘚𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴)

𝘛𝘢𝘨𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵 - 𝘖𝘱𝘦𝘯 (𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘴𝘬)

𝘞𝘒 - 10.8k

𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘷 | 𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘵

𝘚𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘔𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵 | 𝘔𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘔𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵

He bought a Crooked Cat

Which caught a Crooked Mouse

And they all lived Happily

In a Crooked House

The drive to the place was way too long when going through with it. Y/N had to make many stops so she wouldn't fall asleep. Well, she wouldn't sleep even if she wanted to. She took a deep breath to prepare for whatever she was going to go through and exited her truck. "Wow, it's so dark out," Y/N huffed out a chuckle. It felt as if the sky was way darker than when she moved into her apartment. the piece of paper and back up at the hotel, Y/N nodded to herself. "This is the place. . .no doubt." she placed the paper back into her bag and looked at the large doors of the place. "Huge place. . .looks like a hotel. Would he be here?" There was a board next to the door, and she leaned back to read it. 

Hotel Ruhenheim

Giving you a serene stay.

Y/N pushed the large doors, and the first thing she saw was a reception area. It was abandoned, but it didn't look abandoned. Though when she went around the reception desk to open the door, it was locked. Y/N tried to open the other door on the right, there was wiring that she couldn't get rid of. She blew a slight raspberry, looking at the "Staff Room" sign next to the door. ," she muttered, moving away from the reception desk. 

Y/N walked into the left hallway with a line of doors, lightly shaking the handles to see if any of them would open. The fourth door was the first door to open, and she looked around when slowly walking in. Her eyes caught a piece of paper on a dresser, having her automatically move toward it. Y/N chuckled to see a childish drawing of nine tables with a crown over the top right desk. 

-

"* Treasure hunt *

Dear     Mom          Dad"

-

A drawing in the bottom right of a little girl that was labeled "Me" above with an arrow pointing at the little girl. "Treasure hunt, huh," Y/N licked her lips. "I guess some kid staying here drew this. " she let out another chuckle with a shrug. "Sure, I'll look for your treasure." Y/N folded the paper and placed it in her bag before looking around the room for anything. But there was nothing. She exited the room, closing it behind her, and tried to open the remaining doors. The last door at the end was a metal blue door that was locked with a passcode, making her hum in confusion why a door was locked with a passcode. It was labeled "STAFF ONLY," so maybe that was why. But a passcode?

Y/N walked up the stairs after leaving the hallway. Two main doors. The one on the left had the label "Rec Room," and the one on the right was labeled "Cafeteria". this room looked like the drawing. And if the top right table in the drawing had a crown. . .then. . . "The far right," Y/N guessed, walking fast to the far right table at the end of the room and looking around. She got on her knees, raised the cloth, and noticed a key. Not just a regular key, but a gold key. And a piece of paper lay beside it. 

"You found the treasure! Congrats!"

She smiled and placed the paper in her bag. Maybe it wasn't something she needed to ensure her that she wasn't crazy when she told Jane about this trip.

Y/N left the cafeteria while looking at the key. She went into the nearest hallway, seeing a bigger pair of doors than the other doors. Walking down, she saw the "bar" label beside the door. Y/N attempted to unlock the door. "Wait. . .how did a kid get a key to one of the locked rooms?" She couldn't help, but question when pausing at the point of removing the key when understanding this key wasn't going to fit . "Maybe I am crazy." 

A quick attempt to unlock all the doors, but nothing. Y/N went across the building to the hallway further down. No doors would open until the third showed movements. It was way different than the first hotel room. far right corner, a table the same size as the ones in the cafeteria in the middle with six seats surrounding, and a candlelight. A desk against the left wall. There is a cabinet in the far left corner with a big mirror dresser beside it And there was a scrap of paper on top. 

-

"It was our special place. She loved the pretty room with its big mirror. She would wonder what to wear for dinner.

But now it's just me. I thought it might help to come here, but it didn't. There's only emptiness."

-

Y/N frowned, feeling as if this was talking about her. As if it talked about the memories of her and Jeongguk. They didn't have a special place. But her special place was  him , cliché or not. to get out of her head, looking back down at the paper. Something caught her eye.  The rule on this page. . .it matches the one from my room.  Y/N dug into her bag for the paper from her apartment.  I wonder if he's still here . She chuckled with no humor.  So he got dumped. . .the note at home also mentioned that. And "our special place. . ." he came here with her.  , wondering where he could be. 

She placed both pieces of paper back in her bag and made her way to the door. Y/N jumped at the sound of glass cracking, turning quickly to see the mirror broken. And she isn't going to deal with that. 

So she walked out of the room, not looking back. There is no way she is going to investigate that. She isn't that much of an idiot. . .kind of. Ignoring the fact that she is going out on a whim for a person she only was around her age. 

Y/N closed the door behind her and continued down the row of doors, none of them open. Many of them were painted over, so she couldn't use the key. The last door was the same design as the pair of doors of the "bar," and it was labeled "Library." An attempt with the key and the doors were successfully unlocked.  

A tiny fist bumped into the air, and Y/N entered the library, briefly looking at the note to pass by. 

"Due to employee incompetence and lost keys, the library is temporarily closed. We apologize for the inconvenience."

"Well, a somewhat reason for these locked doors," Y/N spoke with her lips barely separating. Then again, she still needs an explanation for these painted doorknobs. When she entered, a table to her left already had a key lying on. top. It was attached to a label to show it went to room 108. 

Well, at least she knows where to go. 

The only hallway she hasn't gone as the hallway to the left was rooms 101 to 106. But she didn't leave just yet. A book on another table lay lonely as if it wanted to be read. her to walk to the table and then leave for room 108. Her fingers stroke the hardcover of the book, reading the title. "Cry of the Unseen."

-

"Do you consider yourself kind? You don't get to decide that. It's decided in the unconscious.

Even if you believe you are cold-hearted, you may be warm and emotional inside. . . .And  they  will sniff it out.

They will be lured by your unconscious kindness, and they will drag you away."

-

Maybe being called to it was not worth it. It was some kind of occult book. Y/N blew a raspberry, "I bet Jane would love this. She's way into this stuff for her age." She looked around the library for more . No other books have caught her attention. But that seemed to be enough for when she heard footsteps running down the hallway on the other side of the door. Her eyes jerked in the direction of the doors, questioning her sanity if she had heard that. or not. Could it be the previous tenant? 

Y/N ran out of the library but saw nothing down the hallway. 

She frowned but continued her way through the hallway in hopes of seeing a male around her age. And another set of running feet made her slightly pause in her steps. "Is someone there?" her voice echoed through the building, but no response. 

She hoped she wasn't going insane. Her adventure had just started. 

Y/N exhaled deeply through her nose and continued her way to go back downstairs and into the hallway to the right, going straight to the second door to unlock it. The room was small, like the first room, and she looked around the room . But there was nothing. Y/N's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. She looked through the cabinets and the closet, but nothing—went as far as looking at the tables and under the beds and deeply looked through the bathroom, but nothing. Could there be something on top? That's a smart move. Good thing she thought about that. Her mind went straight to the chair and dragged it to the cabinet. There was nothing on top, but she saw a wire cutter on top of the closet. /N had to drag the chair in front of the closet to grab it, but she had it. 

A wire cutter. . .

Oh! There was wire around the staff room behind the reception desk. 

Y/N walked out of the room with the wire cutter in her hands. It wasn't a key, but she was still able to get into a room that might get her closer to the former tenant. 

Entering the main room of the hotel, notes from a piano were echoing out. Was it the former tenant? Y/N smiled big and ran up the stairs. Okay, there wasn't a piano in the library or the cafeteria. bar is locked along with that staff-only metal door. That would only mean the Recording Room. Y/N opened the door and ran in. "Who's there!"

Her yell may have been a little too much, as a male yelped and turned around at her voice. "I'm sorry," he quickly apologized, his deep voice bouncing off the walls. "II just came in and. . .and the piano looked nice."

Y/N realized her mistake, seeing that her yelling may have seemed like she was a staff. "Wait, wait," she held her hands out to the man, walking up to him. "I'm not a staff for the hotel or anything—sorry I yelled at you." 

The man kept a distance from Y/N. A suspicious stare stayed in his eyes. "Who are you, then?" he asked. 

"I'm Y/N," she introduced herself with a hand on her chest. "I'm sort of. . .looking for a guy. What about you?"

He didn't answer for a few seconds. "I'm Taehyung," he finally introduced himself. Y/N will not lie. This Taehyung guy looked very handsome. Very tall, brown eyes, very fluffy black hair. a cream sweatshirt tucked into black pants and a long brown coat. Taehyung looked. . .soft. 

And she wondered why someone beside her would be here. The hotel is abandoned, no? "Taehyung, then," Y/N bowed her head lightly. "What brings you here? It could be dangerous, you know." It may seem a bit strange for a girl to say that to a guy, but anything could be dangerous for anyone. 

"I stayed at this hotel once," Taehyung stated to her. "But I forgot something important, so I came back to get it."

"I see," Y/N hummed, fiddling with her fingers. "Did you find it?" 

A sad look on Taehyung's face when he shook his head. "No, I'm still looking," he answered. "It's just this little box decorated with rubies. . .but I'm not leaving until I find it."

"Right," Y/N removed one hand from the other to cover her mouth as she coughed lightly. "Well, again, sorry shouting. I'll probably be here for a while longer, so I could help you find it."

"Oh, that'd be great," Taehyung showed a small smile that looked a bit like a box. "Please help." 

What if his smile was the box? Y/N almost spoke that out loud but reminded herself not to creep the guy. "Just do me a favor, too, though," she requested. "If you see a man. . .about my age, would you tell me?"

Taehyung gave her a weird look but nodded nonetheless. "I'll be going, then," he moved his body from the piano. "Uh. . .Y/N, you be careful too."

He walked around her and left the room. Y/N breathed out, which turned into a light chuckle of disbelief. "What am I doing yelling at people," she scolded herself lightly, placing her hand on her forehead. "I feel like the shady one here." she shook her head and tried to prep herself up. 

She walked out of the room and looked around to see where Taehyung might be. But he was nowhere to be seen. Did he get to a room so quickly? Either way, it wasn't her business. 

Y/N quickly went down the stairs to head to the door with the wire. After a few tries of messing up, the wire was fortunately cut to let her in. And, well, it looked like a standard staff room. thing is the door next to a bookcase had a missing doorknob. 

A small red book was laid on the table in the middle of the room, so that could be another odd thing. But there was a key on top. it was information on how the bathroom door in room 106 needed fixing. Y/N looked back at the door with no knob, and that concluded that her next place to go was the room. 

Before she left, she looked at the board hanging next to the door. She wanted to explore more of the room before she went to 106. It wasn't much information for her to know. The only thing that stayed in her head was the main note pinned at the front. 

-

"Four chapters of the book have mysteriously gone missing. Should you find the pages, please report to the owner."

-

Y/N nodded to herself to keep the information in her head, but she flinched with a light jump at the sound of crying on the other side of the door. "Is someone in there?!" Her eyes widened, and she placed her ear against it to make sure she heard it right. And she was. She looked to see the label "Owner's Room," which made her wonder if this was the owner. "Uh. . .don't worry! I'll find some way to open the door and get you out!" 

She ran out of the staff with the key to 106 in hand. Running down the left hallway, she unlocked the door to room 106. If it were mentioned as a door repair, hopefully, it would be useful. Fortunately, it was when she opened the door to the bathroom that she saw a doorknob on the ground in front of a door to, most likely, the bath. What luck this is, as it looked like the same kind as the other door without a knob. Y/N ran back to the staff room and didn't take her time to enter the knob into the door. 

Entering, the crying had stopped. And it looked like a normal office. Y/N wanted to call out, but there was no one. And she could see about everything. Investigating everything, she saw another board. 

-

"Book of the Month: The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde"

-

"Congratulations, but what about the—" In the corner of her eye, she noticed a loose tile on the floor next to the trash can. "Owner." she stalked up to it and placed one foot on top. Nothing happened when she placed her weight on the tile. Y/N stomped on the tile, and she let out a small scream when hearing metal flying. Holding herself as a reaction, she took a deep breath of relief to discover that the metal door against the far wall had opened. "Just some mechanism in the floor." 

Speaking the statement out loud, she felt calm again and went down the ladder.  So dark. She complained her head and felt for the lighter in her bag. Lighting it up, she saw as much as she could and moved it around for her surrounding. Boxes, cabinets of unused items, drums of gasoline, random chairs. Definitely a storage room Going around, she heard a groan. Turning, she saw a figure of a man against the wall. Was this the owner? "Hey, are you okay?!" she asked, tilting her head. " but the figure only ground. "Wh. . .what? Are you. . .okay?" she brought her lighter towards the figure, and she felt the color in her cheeks leave. Bones were cracking at movement, and Y/N realized there was blood covering this man. But that wasn't what made her feel sick. This man had a long neck that was crooked, his head was hanging, his black hair was falling, and his eyes were cut out and blacked out. It was as if he hung himself and came back to life. 

He was like. . .a Crooked Man. 

Y/N gulped down the vomit that was trying to come up. She let out a yell when Crooked Man took a step toward her. "S-Stay back!" she warned. "Don't come near me." 't listen. He took another step and blasted into a full run. Y/N ran off, becoming the chase. She climbed up the ladder, but her right ankle was grabbed. "Let go!" she pleaded, tears forming, shaking him off. "Let go!" she kept shaking her leg and trying to get Crooked Man away, kicking his limp and bumpy neck. Y/N was shaking and kicking wildly, and the monster cried out when she finally kicked him away. didn't look back and kept climbing up. 

Finally out, Y/N closed the door and leaned on it. A few seconds later, there was a pounding that made Y/N's body bounce from the impact, but it slowly died down. She panted and shook in fear  . . . .all crooked. Was he even a human?  She immediately registered the figure as a male, but from what she saw, this figure was most likely an "it" after the incident.  Everything is proving that I'm going crazy. . .that thing. . .it couldn't've been real.  She groaned and rubbed the temple of her head  .

Taehyung.

At the thought of the new acquaintance she had made, Y/N stood up and walked out of the room. "I. . .should at least check what he's up to," she muttered to herself. know that he's okay. "Hopefully, he found what he came for." Even if this were just her imagination. . .it'd be best if he left soon. 

Y/N kept telling herself it was in her head, but she couldn't get rid of the filling of its rough skin on her ankle despite it being covered by her jeans. It was as if its touch melted through her jeans and came in contact with her skin. 

She looked around the first floor, but there was no sign of Taehyung. It was clawing at her stomach that the monster had found Taehyung.   No  , no, no .

Going up the stairs, Taehyung wasn't in the recording room or the cafeteria. So that left it with the two upstairs hallways. Y/N ruffled her hair to keep herself sane, but she stumbled with the hotel shaking and a screech following after Y/N ran into the left hallway and went into the hotel room she was in near the beginning, pausing at sight .  Taehyung  was at the large window, and the ground caved around him, and the floor left out was about to break with his weight. "Taehyung!" she called out, running around the table in the middle to him. "What happened?!"

"II went to the window, and the floor gave away," Taehyung stuttered out, trying to stay still as stone. "What. . .what should I do?"

Y/N gulped, knowing the possibility of the risk. But it was the only option. "Taehyung, jump over," she tried to speak calmly, opening her arms out. "It's dangerous over there."

Taehyung shook his head, trying to keep his feet from slipping off. "N-No, I can't," he was too scared to jump. "I'm slipping!" he was moving too much despite trying to stay still as a stone. "And I can't possibly jump that far! A gap this big—"

"This is no time for pessimism!" Y/N cuts him off in urgency, shaking her hands. "It's going to crumble soon! Hurry, I'll catch you." Her arms were out, and Taehyung didn't have to be told for a third time. He jumped into Y/N's arms, having the two fall back. Y/N cushioned Taehyung's impact as her head and upper back hit the table behind her. She moaned slightly in pain after grunting. "Way too close. . .that was—are you okay, Taehyung? Hurt?" she had to cut herself off when reminding herself that it wasn't just her. But he didn't say anything. "Taehyung?"

"Scared," his deep voice came out, slightly breaking. "I was. . .scared." he held onto Y/N, slowly cuddling into her. "No more. . .I don't like the dark." he was slowly going into stutters, not able to create words with his shoulders shaking and warm tears forming and dropping onto Y/N's turtleneck when he brought his face into the crook of her neck. 

Y/N hesitated but raised a hand to lay across Taehyung's fluffy locks. "It's okay, Taehyung," she murmured. "I'm sorry, I know you were scared. . .but it's fine now. Please don't cry. "

That must've gotten Taehyung to realize their position, and he removed himself from her. The two were now sitting across from each other on the floor. "Sorry," he apologized. 

"It's alright," Y/N assured with a light chuckle. "I'm glad you're not hurt." she rolled her shoulders back to get the pain away. But while doing so, she remembered something. "Did you find what you were looking for?"

"No, not yet," Taehyung answered. "It wasn't in the room we stayed in." her brought his hands up to his face and let out a slight groan. "I wonder where it could be. . ."

Her eyes lingered on him a little bit. "It must be important if you came all by yourself," she commented. "You could always just give up on it. It's not entirely safe here."

"I can't give up on it!" Taehyung yelled, making Y/N flinch slightly. "I have to find it."

Maybe it wasn't the best thing to say. And Y/N didn't know if she should mention what had happened earlier. "What exactly is it?" But if what she saw wasn't her imagination, still trying to tell herself it was, then maybe Taehyung shouldn't be here. "Sorry to ask, but I've been wondering. . .was it a present, or?"

Taehyung stared at Y/N for a little longer but looked away. "It's a present from my girlfriend," he muttered. "It's the most important thing to me, after my own life. . ."

"I see," Y/N gave Taehyung a look of sympathy. "Sorry if I was rude. I'll keep looking for it too."

He didn't say anything in response, but he did look back at her. "You're looking for someone, right?" he asked. "I haven't met anyone yet, but. . . can you tell me more about them?"

"Er, well. . ," Y/N grimaced lightly when he mentioned it. "I don't know that much either. Just that he's a man about my age."

"Huh?" Taehyung blinked a few times. "You know that little about the person you're looking for?" Y/N gave him a  crooked  smile, not knowing what to do as he now knew the only details. "You' re a strange girl, Y/N."

"I'm not," Y/N weakly defended herself, but he had a point. "There are just some things I want to ask, and I don't know how he looks because, um—"

"Strange, but very kind," Taehyung cut her off with a warm smile. "I would've been hurt badly if you weren't here. I'm grateful to you for saving me." he stood up from his spot, holding his hand out to Y/N. It took her a moment to realize what he was doing, and she grabbed it. The two stayed in their spots until Taehyung let go of her. "I should get going. Take care, Y/ N." he nodded at her and walked off. "I'll see you!"

And he was gone. 

Y/N didn't like how this had happened a bit after what she had gone through in the basement. And that's where she had gone first. Opening the door and into the owner's room. And like that, she felt fear. "The basement door's open," she whispered to herself, slowly walking around. Y/N looked down, but it was dark. Every fiber in her body was telling her not to go down. But she still went down. Her curiosity was too much to ignore. Her lighter was quickly fished out so she could look around for the monster. 

There was no monster. 

Only a key was in its place. 

She left after there was nothing, and she closed the door. Hopefully, there will be nothing else for her to go back to. Looking down at the item in her hand. It was a bronze key labeled "bar." Y/N calmed herself down before leaving and heading up to the bar. 

The key fit the lock, and she entered the room. Not much to expect from a bar. Tables with abandoned drinks of beer. And one table had a book. The closer she got to it, it looked to be more of a journal. The handwriting was sloppy, and it looked as if whoever wrote this was rambling on. 

And Y/N read the last page. 

-

"A toast to our owner, who left his employees and fled into the night! We'll drink all the beer we've got— hell, it's the only good thing here!

Being out of a job's no good, but at least we don't have to see his mug anymore! We were SO sick of that egghead always trying  to flaunt his intelligence!

Installing weird stuff for the basement door, having a number lock on the food storage. . . All his silly crap made the place impossible to run!

Plus, the passcode was this thing with a book which he changed up every month! What the hell do you do if you forget?! Maybe it 's good for him, but sure as hell, not us!

Ah, whatever! Once we're done with the booze, we're out of here! A toast to our bright futures!"

-

Y/N leaned on the table with a bite of her lip. "Passcode," she was beginning to think of the doors. "The door is at the far end of the first floor, right? A passcode on food is pretty absurd. " she pushed herself off the table and looked around more. Still, there was nothing off. Every bottle was empty besides these two giant wine bottles that were full but opened up. Very. . .Brandy. It has a lot of alcohol in it "I might catch on fire if I drank both." She did have her lighter, after all.

But that made her think. 

There was a thought in her head.  The passcode was related to a book the owner changes every month.  And that made her think of the books she had thought of when in the staff room and owner's room before going down to the basement.  The Strange Case, wasn't it?  Y/N made her way to the other side and went into the library. Her fingers gleamed across the spines of the books in a hurry to find that one book. She slowed down when in the "S" titles. And she found it. Pulling the book out, she had to think about what would be the passcode. The chapters? Y/N remembered reading how four chapters were ripped out of a book and reporting it to the owner. this book? Skipping through, she noticed missing chapters, as the board had mentioned it. 

3, 6, 7, 9 

Okay, that has to be the code. If this is the same book both journal and board had mentioned, then this has to be the passcode. Y/N nodded to herself and put the book back. hallway. But she froze at the sound of a growl. Her eyes stayed staring ahead, and she gulped in fear. No, no, no. It can't be. It was her imagination. It had to be her imagination. 't real. 

But it was. 

The same figure walked into her vision, showing itself at the door of the hallway. "The monster. . .did it really—" Y/N cut herself off as it had its upside-down smile widen at the sight of her. She gulped and took a step back. As far into the hallway, she was next to the room she had saved Taehyung and the library behind her. It slowly stalked up to her.  It 's coming this way.  ran into the room, and the first thing in sight was the candle, and she grabbed it. Even if she closed the door behind her, it was opened up seconds after. Running around the table, she tripped on the leg of a chair, almost falling into the hole. 

Y/N looked at the hole, wondering what would've happened if she had fallen. What would've happened if it fell through? The monster was coming up to her. It reached out for her, and Y/N slammed the candle into the monster's side. Not much impact, but it did stumble to give her time to raise her arms, slam them both into its side, and push it into the hole. 

The yell echoed in the hole, and Y/N dropped the candle for her fingers to rake through her locks. "What is that monster?" her breath was staggering when everything was pouring into her mind. "What. . .what I saw earlier." she brought herself up to her feet, telling herself to calm down. "To think that thing actually exists." Y/N turned to look at the hole. "But still. . .there's no way it's coming back from that fall. And the room under here's locked tight." she realized the best opportunity she had with Taehyung. She groaned to herself. "I should warn Taehyung when I see him. I knew it would be dangerous for him."

It wasn't time to scold herself and hit her forehead. She had to get to the food storage. Y/N walked out of the room and down the hallway. It was hard to get the image of the monster out of her head in the light. Somehow, it was more creepy in light than in the dark. Push it to the side. . .push it to the side. After another deep breath, Y/N was already in front of the metal door. Her eyes blinked a few times to realize where she was. 

3, 6, 7, 9

The door unlocked, and Y/N entered. Well, it looked like a food pantry—nothing interesting in this room besides a knife on the countertop in the corner with a sink. Something shunned in her eyes, and she looked in the area to notice something was on top of the boxes. Y/N turned to see a ladder next to the door. She probably wouldn't've been noticed if she didn't swoop around. She brought the ladder to the stack of boxes and climbed up. It was a key, and it was for room 209. 

Another room to unlock. 

"How many rooms do I have to unlock?" Y/N asked herself with no humor, going down the ladder. Her way to the room was normal. No growls or yells. And the room was normal when entering it. paper near the two beds. No, it wasn't paper when Y/N walked up to it and kneeled down. "Was this a photo?" she picked up the burnt pieces but couldn't figure out what the photo was. But there was something under the pieces—a scrap from a notebook. 

-

"I don't need her memory anymore. Because I know she won't come back.

I have to erase everything, good and bad. And all the memories inside of me, too."

-

A ringing in her head began to play, and Y/N dropped the scrap and burnt pieces of the photo to bring them up to the temples of her head. She was shaking in pain, trying to get rid of it. A few seconds and it began to ease up. But tiredness was taking over. "Sheesh, I'm exhausted," Y/N spoke, getting to her feet after picking up the scrap and burnt pieces. "So he burnt this photo to mend his broken heart , huh." she chuckled at the fact that this previous tenant could do this. "I know I couldn't do that. I'll never forget. . .never." the memories of her and Jungkook taking so many pictures played through her mind. "According to Jane. . .that makes me a pansy." 

The sound of a door creaking made Y/N turn around and see Taehyung at the door. "Oh, there you are, Y/N!" he smiled with a greeting, walking up to her. 

Y/N smiled back lightly. "Did you find the box?" she asked. 

"No, I can't find it," Taehyung's smile lightly turned sad. "There are a lot of rooms I can't get into, so it might be in one of those." he stayed silent, taking in the details of Y/N's face. And his smile fell with concern. "What's wrong, Y/N? You look kind of pale." 

"Oh, it's nothing," Y/N tilted the pieces of photo and scrap of paper, so Taehyung didn't notice. "But Taehyung, you should really leave soon." she took a deep breath. "You may not believe me , but. . .there's some kind of bizarre monster around. I found it in the basement." it was a reminder to herself, and the feeling of the monster's hand on her ankle came back. "I was attacked by it earlier. You 'd definitely be in danger too. . .so I think you should go."

Silence endures them both. It was hard to figure out what expression was on Taehyung's face. "Look, I don't like the dark, scary places either," he spoke, making Y/N flinch. "But there's no need to tease me like that. I'm not a kid afraid of the Boogie Man, okay?"

He didn't believe her. 

"Sorry," she apologized. "But I'm not trying to tease you! I'm telling the truth!" 

Taehyung let out a laugh before Y/N could ramble on about how she was not lying. "Don't worry, I'm not mad," he assured. "You don't seem like a dishonest guy, so I'd like to believe you, but. . . .a monster?" he placed a hand on her shoulder. "Maybe you mistook something in the dark? You could be susceptible to seeing things when you wander around in the dark like this."

"I'd like to think you're right," she admits. "All right, if you insist." Even if she admitted it, she pushed his hand off her shoulder. "But be careful, okay?"

"I know," Taehyung smiled at her. "Well, I'll go looking elsewhere." he waved her goodbye. 

Y/N waited a little longer to follow Taehyung out. She put the pieces of the photo and scrap of paper into her cross-body bag. While she went down the hallway, a crash made her stop in her mid-step and look at the doors of the bar. Did Taehyung stop by the bar and drop something off? Y/N walked into the bar, but Taehyung wasn't there. There was writing on the far end when she looked around for what caused the crash. went down on her knees to lean down to read the smears. 

Was this here before? Y/N didn't even want to know if this was written in blood from how red this was. 

-

Leave me           alone Please leave     me alone Come to me  I'm waiting        for you

-

Sounds pretty inconsistent.  Y/N commented in her head.  Taehyung couldn't have written that. . .so who could've?  As if her thoughts were a cue, a growl made Y/N jump to her feet and turn around at the sight of the monster opening the doors with its arms widened out. "W-Why?" She stuttered out with a whine. "I dropped you down a pit!"

Y/N slowly walked to the table on her left, grabbing the wine bottle for protection. It walked up to her. They stared at each other, wondering what would be the first action. moved to the side for it to run forward. It almost ran into a chair, but it turned again for her. The hand reached out for her and grabbed her arm. Y/N slammed the bottle on the monster's arm to bring it to the ground.

But its grasp on her brought her down with it. The monster was on the bottom, and her on top. Y/N was trying her best to get off the monster, but it kept its grasp. An attempt to bring her down as its mouth was wide open. Sharp teeth were shown, blood staining nipping into its mouth. She had attempted to dragged her arms away, but it was dragging her close to its face. It was covered with the wine, drenching her as well in the process . Y/N got a bit on her, but with her straddling the monster and being pulled with her body against it, she might as well of be the one to have gotten hit. 

Her right arm was favored for being closer to its mouth. Which meant it let go of her left arm so it could have both hands on her right arm. Y/N grunted, trying to pull her arm back and her free, holding his to let go. Come on, think!  She was telling herself, but it was hard to think. Covered in wine with flammable alcohol—

The wine. 

She did have a lighter in her bag. But it was a possibility that the fire could trail onto her as she was drenched in the wine. What choice did she have? Y/N licked her lips and let go of the arm. The struggle became harder when she let go and dug her free hand into her bag. Her arm was brought closer and close to the mouth of the monster. With the advantage, the monster brought its sharp teeth into her arm. Y/N yelled in pain but tried to focus on fishing for the lighter. It was like the monster was chewing on her arm as if it was food. She had to turn down all her instincts to remove her arm right at the point of feeling the lighter in her hand. 

Y/N grabbed the lighter and ignited the light. It was breathed onto the monster, and the fire began to roar loudly. Roaming to every bit of the monster. And her arm was let go for the monster to yell in pain. It pushed Y/N off of it before getting to its feet and running out with cries of pain. The fire had extended to Y/N, but she was able to pat it down. A breath of relief left her, but the pain in her arm wasn't being nice. She looked at her arm to see holes in the sleeve of the hoodie. Well, that's unfortunate. "I should be glad that he ran away," she told herself as a reminder, getting up from the ground. "What the hell is that thing. . .why is it changing me?" so many questions were going through her head that she didn't know what was real. "How did it survive before?" that was a good question. She locked it in the basement. It somehow got out. She pushed it down a hole into the first floor of locks, and it still somehow got out. "I might need something to defend myself. . .even just a knife could help. Was there one of those around?" thinking deeply, she now remembered. There was a fruit knife in the kitchen. 

Her mind wasn't around the bite as she went straight to the kitchen. And there it was. She told herself to take it and that it was just for self-defense. Her life felt a bit safer now that she had a weapon. Y/N placed the fruit knife in her hoodie pocket and left the kitchen. A smell of something iron hit her nose, and she looked to her left. "Blood?" there was a trail of blood ahead, a path out of the hallway . "This. . .wasn't here earlier." 

Did something happen to Taehyung? 

With that thought in mind, Y/N began to worry about the other person in this hotel. She followed the trail of blood to the right hallway of the hotel and saw it leading into a room. Wasn't it locked before? it unlocked now? Y/N opened the door to see Taehyung's back facing her. He was sitting on a bed and looking at his arm. Was he hurt? Did he get hurt when the monster ran away? She jogged up to Taehyung, and with the sound of her feet, she got Taehyung's attention. "Taehyung, what are you doing here?" she looked right at the arm he was looking at before she came in. "Your arm's bleeding. . .so it was your blood. Were you hurt?"

Taehyung was quiet. He was looking as if he was piecing together what to say in his mind. "My arm caught on something," he finally said. "It's not that big of a deal. Don't worry about it."

"It's bleeding a lot, though," Y/N commented, trying to push more into it. "And you've been resting here, right? What if you get anemia?"

"I'm just a little tired," Taehyung avoided the questions. Y/N easily caught it, but he probably didn't want to talk about it. "I've been walking around a lot. Really, don't worry .” and she’ll respect that. 

Still, he was bleeding. Y/N did have something in her bag. "Give me your hand, Taehyung," she gently instructed. Getting down on one knee, Y/N took off her bag and backpack. She dug through her backpack for the first-aid kit she had stored at home. It was unfortunate she had to use it. There was no plan for her to get hurt and chased by a strange monster covered in blood and inhumanly sharp teeth that used to bite on her arm . But here she is, in that scenario. 

Y/N looked through her kit to see the low supply of bandages—and her lucky handkerchief. Well, it could be used for her arm. If she were to use the bandage, there wouldn't be any left for her wound. handkerchief wouldn't be much useful. . .but she didn't want to be selfish. "Here, I have a bit of bandage left—"

"That's okay. You can use the handkerchief," Taehyung spoke over her, looking at the first-aid kit. 

Y/N wanted to argue lightly that he may need it more, but he did insist. Also. . .why was her handkerchief there? Maybe it really was a lucky handkerchief. but loud for Taehyung to hear. Y/N grabbed Taehyung's hand and cleaned his wrist before wrapping the handkerchief around. An easy fix as he had already taken off his coat, and his sleeve was rolled up. "Doesn't hurt?" 

"It's fine," Taehyung attempted a smile. "Thank you. You're so kind, Y/N." 

Again, Y/N had noticed it. Maybe she should comment on it. "You. . .don't seem so well," she let out after thinking. "Did something happen?"

"It's nothing," Taehyung tried another attempt at a smile. "I've just been so silly."

"Silly?"

"It's silly that I'm wandering this dark place all alone, falling in holes, cutting my arm, all to find some measly box," he let out. Y/N widened her eyes for a second before letting go of his hand. 

"Measly?" Y/N repeated again. "But it's important, right? A memento from your girlfriend?"

He looked at his wrapped arm before looking into Y/N's eyes. "Well, she's my ex, to be exact," he corrected. Y/N let out a sound of slight shock. "She left me quite a while ago. . .but while we were dating, this hotel was our special place. That was when I lost the box. . .I've been worried abotu it ever since, but I only just worked up the courage to come look. forget everything about her. . .but it was no good. Coming here just brought back all these memories."

"Why did you break up?" Y/N asked. It may've been a sensitive question. . .but she was curious. 

"I don't know," Taehyung shrugged. "Maybe that's why I won't give up. She said she appreciated my kindness, but when we broke up, she said it was 'all I had.' And she was exactly right , so I couldn't reply. . ." his arm dropped to the bed, eyes turning into a sad emotion. So melancholy. "I really am a wimp. No wonder she'd break up with me. Even I'd hate a guy like me." he looked back up at Y/N and cleared his throat at the realization of her being there. "Sorry, I know I'm just annoying you. I'll rest her a while longer. I'm a little dizzy." he made a third attempt at a smile, and, fortunately, the ends of his lips twitched up the slightest bit. "Thanks for your help, Y/N. Oh, and here. "he reached his good hand into his coat and brought something in front of Y/N. "I found this. I'm not sure where it goes, though."

"Thanks," Y/N wasn't able to say anything. She felt like she was in Taehyung's shoes when he spoke the short story of how he and his girlfriend broke up. "Uh, don't strain yourself, okay?" 

"Be careful," Taehyung called out, watching her clean up the first aid kit. "It's dark. And make sure to wrap up your arm." 

Y/N looked at Taehyung and at her arm. She guessed it was noticeable that she was hurt with these bite marks on her hoodie. "Thanks, I will," she nodded at him. "I'll look for your treasure, too " 

She stood up and paused when hearing Taehyung let out a slight chuckle. "You sure are nice, Y/N," he complimented again. "You might be growing on me." Y/N's cheeks had a light red brushing against it. 

A forced chuckle came out of her, not knowing how to react. "I. . .don't know if such a wonderful guy would suit a loser like me, sorry," she denied the compliment. Taehyung wasn't able to say anything as Y/N ran out of the room. Her heart was racing, and she leaned against the door. But it didn't last for long as the memories were flooding in. 

-

"Why are you always like this?"

Kuu looked up from the table and at her fiancé. "Like. . .like what?"

"You're always such a yes-woman. Just go with the flow," he continued on. "Do you even have a personality." he let out a sigh and sat across from Y/N, leaning into his hand. 

"I. . .don't mean to," she spoke quietly, trying to read his facial features. "I mean, I try to think for myself. "

"I don't see it that way," he spoke honestly, still not looking into Y/N's eyes. As if he was hiding from her. "You're not kind. You're just indecisive. You'd treat anyone else the same way, right? That's why I can't trust you."

Her heart was breaking more and more at every word he spoke. "Look, please, just listen," she was ready to get down on her knees and beg. "I'm always thinking of you, I promise. Please. If I 'm a pain, then I'm sorry." her hands went together and intertwined. 

His head jerked up, finally looking into Y/N's eyes. Hand towards her as if motioning to her body. "There you go again," he almost raised his voice but kept it balanced. "Thinking you can just apologize and everything will be fine. You don't understand a word I'm saying."

"Then what should I do?" Y/N asked. "You just don't trust me, is that it?!"

They kept eye contact, but he let go first by hanging his head. "Maybe it's hopeless for us," he whispered. "I hate for it to end this way. . .but I think we would both be worse off staying together any longer." he stood up and went for the front door. Why did the front door have to be right there? "Thanks for everything, Y/N." his hand was on the doorknob, and he opened it without hesitation. "Goodbye " 

Y/N got up from her seat and ran for him. "W-Wait! We can talk this out!" she begged, but he closed the door before she could chase after him. A sob left her, and she fell to her knees. "Jeongguk!" 

-

"Kindness is all you have," Y/N repeated Taehyung's words, staying leaning against the door. "Taehyung and I are the same like that. Timidly refusing to forget. The moment I realized he didn't love me, I felt like I was nothing but worthless. . .I wonder if Taehyung felt that way, too?" she let out a sigh and looked at the key in her hand. "I think this key goes to the door by the receptionist desk. . .the only locked door I can remember." 

Y/N walked out of the hallway and placed the first aid kit on the desk. She rolled up her two sleeves to see the bite. It somehow didn't hurt anymore. It did when he ran away. the memory with Jeongguk made her forget about it. It just stung now. Y/N cleaned the bite marks and blood and wrapped the bandage around it.  Note to self, get more supplies.  she mentally noted, closing the kit and putting it in her backpack. 

Once she had everything and her backpack on, Y/N walked around the desk and insert the key into the doorknob. It was to the back of the hotel. The night sky and gentle wind were something she needed. the fresh air and let out a light smile. 

Such fresh air. 

Y/N closed the door behind her and walked to the fountain in the middle with benches around it. Something shining caught her eye when walking around the fountain. Her eyes blinked a few times before realizing it was a brown box in the clear water. "A box?" she questioned. However, it didn't take long to put two to two together. "Maybe this is the one Taehyung lost." she shivered lightly when her hands entered the cold water. Inspecting it, Y/N noticed the details. "It has to be. It's decorated with rubies. Did someone throw it away or what?" 

It didn't matter. She had Taehyung's box.

She ran into the hotel and ran fast to the hotel room, but Taehyung wasn't there. "Did Taehyung leave already? But he's wounded," she spoke her question out loud, putting the box into her backpack with a quick slide off one shoulder. And that's when she heard the same yell as before. "Taehyung?!" Running out, she looked through every door that was open, and she finally got into the recording room to see the monster stalking up to Taehyung. "

Taehyung was slowly walking backward till his body hit the wall. "No. . ," he was shaking in fear. "Stay away!"

Y/N ran around the monster and stayed in front of Taehyung. "Stop right there!" she held her arm out to the monster. "Back off, monster!" 

"Y/N?" Taehyung looked at Y/N in surprise. 

The monster only had its smile and grew in response. "Damnit," Y/N cursed under her breath, her hand moving slowly into her hoodie pocket. "Taehyung, get out of the hotel." Taehyung tried to call out to her, but Y/N talked over him. "I said run away—I'll take care of this." She brought out the fruit knife. "Hey, monster!" she pointed to the monster with the fruit knife. t know what the hell you are, but don't you lay a finger on Taehyung!"

Taehyung gulped and ran around the two with an easy exit from the room. It wasn't surprising that the monster didn't leave to chase Taehyung. It was after Y/N, for some odd reason. Y/N took a deep breath and tried to swing at the monster, but it dodged. She swung her bad arm behind her to hit it away with a kick. It hissed out at her, trying to grab her.  Keep him away.  told herself mentally, backing into the couch when the monster tried to swing at her. Y/N looked back at the table and grabbed a flowerpot with fake flowers, and threw it into the monster.

She watched the monster run into the piano, the pieces of the flowerpot sticking into its body. It went after her again, but she went towards it as well. The fruit knife stuck into the monster's shoulder, having it yell at her. She pushed her body against the monster, ripping the knife out of its shoulder. And she kicked it into the piano, ran after it, and raised the knife high. Slamming it down into the back of the monster, hearing the loud cries of pain. 

Y/N didn't want to give it any chance of getting away from her. 

It was swinging back to elbow her off. But she brought the blade with her to stab more into him. And again and again. She kept him from struggling and getting him down to the ground. Y/N straddled the monster's back, trying her best to stay on, and stabbed again. Going and going until the blade of the fruit knife broke apart. It wasn't as if she was doing it so many times. She really only thrust the fruit knife a few times. 

That is probably what a psychopath would say. 

But the monster wasn't moving. Y/N raised her arms lightly to make sure she wasn't moving them. She stayed still for a few minutes before getting off the monster. Y/N didn't want her eyes to leave the monster. If it escaped locked rooms, she was scared it would come back. So did the thought of her killing this thing. But she'd rather do that than have it come back and terrorize her and Taehyung.

Taehyung. 

He was probably worried. Y/N walked backward till she hit the doorknob. It still wasn't moving. Maybe that was a sign. She got out of the room and ran down the stairs—bursting through the front doors. too rough as she stumbled down the steps. Luckily, she caught her balance. "Y/N!" Taehyung's voice called out. "Y/N, are you okay?!" 

Y/N huffed out a breath, catching it from the run. "Yeah, I don't think it'll chase us anymore," she assured, turning around to look at Taehyung. He was on top of the staircase. N wondered if she hit him with the doors when passing through. "I'm fine. . .I'm not hurt." she gave him a tired smile. "But never mind me, are you okay?"

"I'm fine. I'm not hurt," Taehyung responded quietly. "But. . ."

After a few moments, Taehyung fell to the steps. His eyes were leaking out tears, raising one hand to try and wipe them away. "Taehyung! What's wrong—are you not feeling well?!"

"Why. . .why did this happen?" he whispered. "Why did I have to go through this? Why did that monster attack me?" he was digging himself into his arms. want to forget her. I just wanted to have my memory of her, at least!" Taehyung's body was shaking with the sobs passing through. "Is it because I'm such a wimp? Is that why this happened? Can I. . .can I not even love her?!" his head was shaking. "No, I hate it. Someone. . .somebody, help!" 

"Taehyung," Y/N weakly called out to him. Memories flooding of them that had only happened tonight. She wanted to tell him not to cry, but was that something he needed to hear? "What's wrong with being a wimp?" this would have to be a start. That had caught Taehyung's attention, his head moving up from his hands. "You may feel like a sissy for not being able to forget him, but. . .is that such a bad thing?" her chest rose and fell deeply. "You know, I was dumped a few months ago, too. . .I was sure we were going to get married."

"You. . .too?"

Y/N gave him a  crooked  smile. "I was rejected," she told him before looking down at her hands. "Even now, it still pains me. I don't think I can truly forget it. I've. . .always hated how I was such a coward. I'm a terrible excuse for a woman, especially in romance." her fingers fiddled with each other. "I couldn't even be happy when my best friend got married. And it made me hate myself more and more." Y/N looked back at Taehyung. "But looking at you, I've come to think. . .maybe it's not bad to keep thinking of someone? In fact, maybe it's a wonderful thing. I decided. . .I wouldn't give up, either. And it's thanks to you, Taehyung. Thank you."

"Y/N. . ," Taehyung called out her name. 

She walked up to him, grabbing the box out of her bag. "This is your treasure, right?" she asked, relieved to see that it was not damaged midst of her fight with the battle. 'd be a shame to throw it away." she placed it in Taehyung's hands when he held them out. "Take good care of it, okay? I'm sure the one you love will understand. And I know I'll always support you."

He brought the box close to his chest and hugged it dearly. "Thank you, Y/N," he bowed his head to her. "I. . .I'll try a little harder. I hope things go well with you too " Taehyung moved the box around, and his eyes turned to confusion. "Hey, Y/N. Did the box come with a key?"

"A key?" Y/N repeated in confusion with him. "No, I didn't see one."

"Strange. The box needs a key to open, so. . .though I didn't lock it,"

"A key. . ," she repeated to herself again. An idea hit her head. "Wait, hold on." she dug into her bag for the key she found in the crack in her room. "Maybe this brass key. . .” she then laughed at herself from the stupidity. “Nah, of course not—”

"Yes, that's the one!" Taehyung exclaimed with glee, grabbing the key from Y/N's hand. "Where did you find it?"

Y/N was shocked, not knowing how to form words. "Wha—r-really?" she looked at the key and the box and repeated before telling herself to answer Taehyung's question. "Er, I picked it up. . .around here." it was best to lie. 

A key from my house opens Taehyung's box. . .so the former tenant's involved with the box? What does that mean?

"I wonder why it's locked," Taehyung hummed. "Let's open it!" he inserted the key into the lock, and he raised the lid. "Oh? There's a piece of paper."

That caught Y/N's attention really fast. "That's—Taehyung, can I look at that?" she asked quickly. Taehyung nodded and handed it to her. Y/N grabbed the other scraps of paper to compare. . .it matches with the notebook pages. . .which means he. . .”

"I don't get it, but I guess the guy you're looking for put this paper in here?" Taehyung guessed, making Y/N look up at Taehyung. 

She looked back down at the papers. "Yeah," she agreed. "He wasn't here. . .so I'll check there next."

"Okay," Taehyung hesitated in his word. "Be careful." 

Y/N nodded at him, placing the papers in her bag beside the one from the box while walking toward her car. She heard footsteps behind her. As if he was staying near her to be safe. "I'll escape you home, Taehyung," she turned around, seeing him flinch. "It's dark out, after all."

He stared at her for a few seconds before clearing his throat. "I'll be all right," he assured. Somehow his voice had gotten a bit deeper and more confident. "Thanks, though, Y/N." he looked behind her and took a breath. "Well. . ." Y/N chuckled lightly and moved out of the way for Taehyung. He walked down the path but stopped. N was about to call out to him, but he turned and walked up to her. Taehyung gently cupped Y/N's face and placed his lips on her cheek. "I'm really thankful, Y/N." he separated for their faces to be close. "Let's see each other again sometime!" 

"Oh. . .uh, sure!" Y/N agreed, giving him another  crooked  smile. He waved her goodbye and walked away. "That. . .surprised me." Y/N let out a chuckle, blushing madly. " But he seems happier now. That's good. I feel a little more relaxed myself." she looked down at the paper to read it off. "Lingering Scent of Dreams. . .and is this an address? Maybe that's where he is now. " she licked her lips, deciding if it was worth it or not. . .but it was an obvious answer. "I'll go check it out. I've come this far. . ."

Until I find him. . .I'll go anywhere.

-

Scene 1

Hotel Ruhenheim - Taehyung -

end