It is dark. Too dark that Jongin is more than sure no kind of light in this world could go through it. He is alone, he does not like the feeling. It makes him weak and makes him at the verge of breaking. Tears start welling up in his eyes, but Jongin fights not letting it running down his face. He tries to look around him, he can’t see anything. It makes him scared, terrified. Because he does not know what kind of creature in there, lurking in the darkness.

 

Despite his trembling body and shaking legs, he makes a step forward, a very small step. His eyes look straight to the front, but still, he feels like he is blind. He can’t see anything. Some part of Jongin wishes he can see something, the other’s not. He does not want to see what behind the darkness. He takes another step and continues walking. Very slowly, and his steps are full of caution. He does not know where is heading to, he doesn’t even know where he is right now. He wants to run away, but he doesn’t know where to go. Escape is totally not an option because he is not trapped. He is lost, he lost in the darkness. He hates it. He hates it so much that he wants to cry. Tears already threatening to fall.

 

Jongin is afraid of darkness.

 

Then, he hears something moving around him. A very fast movement almost likes animal. The sound it makes were terrifying because Jongin doesn’t know where it is. His heart is beating very fast against his ribcage. He can almost feel likes his heart is dropping. Jongin clenches tightly and his sweatpants, fingers shivering. He can hear the thing footsteps, and its’ coming closer to him. He can’t run, he can’t escape. Jongin starts to tremble, he took another step, hastily.

 

Jongin tried to move faster despite his no better than the blind condition. He walks as fast as he can, trying to go far away from whatever thing that is coming after him. Jongin tries to peek at his back while he is getting away, but he can’t see anything except for the sound that is coming more and more closer to him. The fear is eating him up because Jongin can feel that his moves are getting slower and weaker.

 

Then he sees it. A flash of shadow behind him. Jongin freezes. Beads of sweat are lining up his forehead. He tries to step forward but it seems like the thing is circling him, trapping him with nowhere to go. Jongin feels really scared, he wants to scream but no voice is coming out. He tries to stand still but he feels like his legs are giving up on him.

 

The thing is coming closer he can feel its presence behind him. Jongin hears its heavy breath and the fear grows stronger.

 

“J-Jongdae… Dad… Anyone…” Jongin cries. Tears are cascading down his face as he croaks out trying to call his brother and his dad.

 

“N-no get away from me,” Jongin trembles, he is shocked as he tries to run away when he sees a pair of red eyes, prying him from the front. Jongin doesn’t see the creature true form but he can only see the deadly eyes.

 

He can see the eyes are getting closer to him. He calls out for help but it’s all led to disappointment. He cries very hard as he can see the creature is coming very close to him.

 

Jongin screams when the thing jumps on him before everything goes black.

 

 

 

~

 

 

 

Jongdae shakes his younger brother body when the boy in his arms is thrashing around while crying, asking for help. He tries to wake Jongin up but it seems like the boy is having his nightmare, and Jongdae can tell it’s a very bad one seeing his brother like this.

 

Jongin opens his eyes at last while he is sweating very hard, almost like he’s been on running for miles. His pupils are big, full of fears and his body is shaking violently. Jongin turns his head and sees his brother is beside him, face full of concerned before he realizes that he is in his brother’s arms, Jongdae hands securely wraps around his body.

 

He cries again and buries his face in Jongdae’s neck. His whole body is shaking and tears uncontrollably running down his cheeks.

 

“Jongin, it’s okay I am here. Nothing is going to happen to you,” Jongdae says softly, trying to comfort his brother. His rubs soothing circle on Jongin’s back and brings his brother closer to him. Jongin shakes his head and snuggles closer to his brother.

 

“I-I’m scared… It’s coming after me,” Jongin’s voice is muffled by his sobs.

 

“It’s okay Jongin, whatever it is that bothers you it’s not here anymore. You don’t have to be afraid.”

 

Jongin still doesn’t let go of Jongdae’s body as he clutches tightly onto his brother’s body. Jongdae glances at the clock on Jongin’s study table, and it shows half past four in the morning. Jongdae sighed in relieve as it is still early that both of them can go back to sleep. They still have class in the morning.

 

“Jongin, go to sleep okay.”

 

“N-no don’t leave me a-alone.”

 

“No, I’m not going to leave you. I’ll sleep here with you okay.”

 

“O-okay,” Jongin says softly before he leans back, hands still on Jongdae’s as his brother tucks him back to sleep.

 

The boys slowly drifted back to sleep, with Jongdae’s hand’s still on his back, comforting him that he will never leave. Jongin sleeps, with his heart still wishing that the nightmares will never bother him again.

 

~

 

 

 

“He needs a dream catcher, dad. His nightmares are getting worse by each day,” Jongdae breaks out the thing that happened to his father. The image of the trembling body of his brother still playing on his mind.

 

Jongin has suffered from the nightmares that ruin his sleep and leave him in the sleepless night more than two weeks. Jongdae thought is it merely just casual nightmares at first but it seems like it’s not normal anymore. The nightmares are always the same, Jongin trapped in a total darkness with a red-eye creature come for him. The nightmares seem like it is birth from his brother’s worst fears since the boy had a phobia towards darkness.

 

“Dream catcher chooses its’ owner Jongdae, you know that,” Junmyeon speaks. In their world, everyone gets their own guardian of the dreams, the dream catcher. It chooses its owner, and the people won’t get their dream catcher until their time comes.

 

Both of them had tried before, bringing Jongin to the dream catcher master, but it seems like his guardian thinks Jongin does not worth any dream catcher yet because none of the dream catchers choose him. They went home with a heavy heart, tried to tell Jongin that it’s fine.

 

“It’s getting worse dad…”

 

Junmyeon sighs heavily.

 

“We’ll go this evening.”

 

 

 

~

 

 

 

That evening, three of them go to the dream catcher shop, located at the end of the street. Jongin clutches tightly at his brother shirt, as he walks very closely with his brother. He is scared, he came before, but the dream catcher does not want him. None of them choose him. He has left again with the nightmares haunting his night.

 

They arrive in front of the shop. It’s a very old-school type of shop with the huge wooden door with weird carving on it, stood out among the other. You can see the word ‘Dream catcher’ carved nicely in a very odd-looking font in the door. Unlike the other shop, this shop does not have the showcase glass where you can see the inside, it is all cover up so you can’t see what’s inside the shop.

 

Junmyeon steps forward and knocks on the door. He looks back and sees Jongdae still holding on his brother, and Jongin looks very uncomfortable. “It’s okay Jongin,” Junmyeon says in a soft tone, assuring his son that everything is okay. He smiles at his son before turns his head back when he hears footsteps from the other side.

 

The door cracks open, and it reveals a man, in his late 30s, is standing in front of the door. The man is wearing a white shirt with black pants, and a dirty blue apron on his shirt. His right hand is holding a dream catcher frame, the other is holding a carver. His eyes are trailing on the three people in front of him.

 

“Yes, can I help you?” the man says while he steps forward, He gives a questioning look to Junmyeon before he looks at the boys behind.

 

“I need to see Master Kim. My son needs his dream catcher,” Junmyeon says as his eyes the man in front of him. He never sees him before and is more than sure he never see him anywhere in the town.

 

Maybe this is the apprentice Master Kim has been talking about.

 

“My father is absent; he went to another town for business. Please come in,” the man says and opens the door wider for the family. Junmyeon motions to his sons to follow him while he trails slowly behind the man’s back.

 

The shop is big. It is spacious and has a very Victorian-era style plastered in it. There is a big red velvet lounge at the center of the shop. At the corner of the shop is the working station, where they made the dream catcher.

 

But the ones that catch Jongin’s eyes the most are the dream catchers. It’s beautiful, so beautiful. Some of them are hanging from the ceiling, the others are hanging on the wall and the rest are displayed in the glass cabinet. He leaves Jongdae’s side and goes wandering around the shop.

 

They look magical.

 

“My name is Kim Minseok, I am Mister Kim’s son,” the man introduces himself after he and Junmyeon sit on the lounge. He removes his apron and set it aside on the small wooden table and set his eyes back on Junmyeon.

 

“I am Kim Junmyeon. This is my eldest son, Jongdae, and that one is my youngest son, Jongin,” Junmyeon replies.

 

“How may I help you Mister Kim?”

 

“Call me Junmyeon please,” the father of the two says, He is feeling uncomfortable with how Minseok addresses him, it’s too formal and it sounds foreign in his ears.

 

“Well then, Junmyeon. How may I help you?”

 

“My son, he’s been having nightmares. At first, I thought it was normal because of the fact that everyone experiences that,” Junmyeon explains as he rubs his nape. “But it’s getting worse. The nightmares continue for more than two weeks, and it’s always the same one. He keeps getting the same nightmare every night.”

 

“We came here before, but your father says Jongin was not ready to get his dream catcher yet. None of them chooses him.”

 

“You know that the dream catcher chooses its owner?” Minseok says as he takes a look at Jongin, who is still immersed in the beauty of the dream catchers.

 

“I know. I am fully aware of that, but my son needs it. I can’t stand seeing him crying every night,” Junmyeon says. The man is half-pleading. He lowers his head.

 

Jongdae looks at his father pitifully before turning his gaze to Minseok. His eyes staring deep into the dream catcher’s maker eyes, pleading for help.

 

“Let’s see whether he is ready for his dream catcher.”

 

Minseok leaves his seat and went to his work station.

 

“Kim Jongin, please come here.”

 

Jongin is surprised when he hears someone calls him. He looks at his brother and cocked his eyebrow, asking who is calling him. Jongin gulps when Jongdae shows the direction to Minseok, asking him to go to that man.

 

Jongin slowly makes his way to Minseok, before he sits on the chair in front of the man. He looks at him. Minseok looks no older than his father, except he looks more manly and energetic compared to Junmyeon. The sleeves of the white shirt he is wearing were folded to his elbow. The man looks calm but intimidating at the same time.

 

 

“You’ve come here before right? You know how this works?”

 

“Yes,” Jongin nodded.

 

“Then let’s do this shall we?”

 

Minseok grabs Jongin right hand slowly and guides it to the glass bowl in front of him. The bowl is filled with a strange but beautiful blue liquid. Jongin knows that when he saw it before, the first time they came here for his dream catcher.

 

Suddenly, he tenses up. His hand is stiff, and Minseok feels the pressure that builds up in Jongin. The boy is shaking a little bit, and his pupils are dilating. Jongin is scared.

 

“What’s wrong Jongin?”

 

“W-what if…”

 

“What if what?”

 

“W-what if I d-don’t get my dream catcher? The nightmares will continue right? N-no one can help me…”

 

Minseok keeps quiet. He looks at the boy in front of him. Jongin lowers his head, unable to look at anyone. Minseok knows how he feels, he must feel really helpless, because Jongin did come before. The boy fears the rejection, the one when the dream catcher didn’t choose him. Minseok turns his head and looks at Junmyeon. The father looks back at him, with glints of hope in his eyes.

 

Minseok put his other hand on top of Jongin’s, and rub it softly. Jongin can feel the calloused hand of Minseok on his skin, and it somehow does calm him a bit. He looks up to Minseok and sees the little smile the man gives him before he slowly nods his head and relaxes his body.

 

Minseok who feels that Jongin has calm down a bit brings the boy’s hand that intertwines with his back onto the bowl. Minseok takes a small vial with a silver thick liquid in it and open the cap. Jongin looks nervous, he knows what is that. The silver liquid is the one who will show Jongin’s nightmares, and will determines whether he needs the dream catcher or not.

 

The older man takes a little brush on his table and dips it into the vial, letting the liquid absorbs into the brush. He takes it out, shakes it a little bit and brings it closer to Jongin. He quirks his eyebrow, as a sign asking whether Jongin is ready or not. Jongin looks hesitant at first, but then he grips on Minseok’s hand tightly, telling the man that he is ready.

 

Minseok brings the brush to Jongin forehead, and he draws a straight line there. Jongin flinches when the cold liquid touches his skin and starts to shift in his seat when it happens. The liquid glows a bright color, binding his eyes and swirls on his forehead before he can feel it moves, straight from his forehead, to his temple, down his cheek and to his collarbone. It creates a line of memories on Jongin’s body. The boy shivers, he can feel such as a piece of his memories being out from his brain and travels through his body.

 

Minseok observes the line, and Jongin’s line is so much different from the others. Other people lines are wriggly and sometimes they stop in the middle before continuing, but Jongin’s is straight and it travels through his body continuously. It only means one thing. The boy’s nightmare is the same one, and it haunts him repeatedly.

 

Jongin’s heart beats rapidly when the line reaches his arm and his wrist, before the movement becomes slower, and the line splits and moves to his fingers, it moves very slowly and it’s painful. Jongin grimaces as he feels burning sensation on his fingers and a painful jolt in his head. Jongin’s eyes dilate when the lines reach the end of his fingers, before the lines slowly turn into droplets, and drop down to the bowl filled with blue liquid.

 

It is happening.

 

The droplets swirl madly in the bowl, but it doesn’t mix with the blue liquid and create a beautiful pattern in the bowl.

 

But this part is the part that Jongin wished he doesn’t have to go through. The droplets stop swirling, and it’s slowly part, before the droplets sink completely in the blue liquid and its cause the blue liquid to splattered in the air before everything goes back to normal.

 

Jongin holds his breath.

 

The droplets reappear again, and it creates a beautiful shining hazy fog, before everything turns black and the pair of the red eyes are visible. Jongin is trembling, and he almost breaks the connection between his hand and Minseok’s. The man who notices Jongin, holds the boy’s hand even tighter.

 

Jongin knows that is his nightmare. It always like that. Pitch black and the only thing he can see is the pair of red eyes. It may look not that scary to others, but Jongin’s worst fear is darkness. Minseok looks at the boy in front of him, Jongin is trying to bring his attention somewhere else, refusing to look at his own nightmare. Although it’s all darkness, Minseok admits the vision in front of him sends chill through his spine.

 

This is where everything comes to the end, whether Jongin will gets his dream catcher or not. He doesn’t know what to feel, he really hopes he will get his dream catcher.

 

Nothing happen.

 

Jongin sighs, tears welling up his eyes.

 

Then it happens.

 

One of the dream catcher, a black dream catcher with silver-bluish decorations around it lights up. It is the dream catcher that Jongin holds earlier.

 

He cracks a relieved smile.

 

“You get it. Sweet dream Jongin.”

 

 

 

~

 

 

 

Jongin hangs up the dream catcher on his window, and he smiles when the cool breeze blows in his room and makes his dream catcher dances slowly.

 

He lies down. Still, he is afraid to fall asleep. Because deep inside, Jongin doesn’t really believe in dream catcher. He is desperate, that’s why he is hoping for it. He hears the tales about dream catchers, about how each of it has its own spirit, and the spirit will be the one who fights the nightmare. The luckiest among the others, can meet the spirit.

 

But he also hears the stories about how the dream catcher fails to fight the nightmares, and the person who has the nightmares will suffer even worst. Among them also suffer when their supposedly dream catcher, which is supposed to protect them from the nightmares, become the nightmares itself.

 

But the one who makes him unsettle and uncomfortable the most is when the spirit of the dream catcher, die when fighting the nightmares. One of his friends had gone through that, his dream catcher shattered, and the spirit dead. He had the chance to meet the dream catcher, and that hurt him more.

 

Jongin tries to shake the thought off his mind. As much as he doesn’t really believe in dream catcher, he doesn’t want his dream catcher to die. Not when they have a spiritual bond between each other. It damages him as well.

 

He slowly drifts to sleep, with hopes in his heart that his nightmares will go away.

 

He is there again. Pitch black. It is all the same. Jongin is scared, but somehow he doesn’t tremble. Nevertheless, he is still terrified, darkness is his ultimate weakness.

 

He tries to take a step forward, with a heavy heart because he still can’t see anything. But Jongin steps back, he hears the heavy breath of the creature, and the sound of its footsteps. He can feel the chills down his spine, his legs are trembling but still, he makes steps, trying to get as far as he can from whatever thing that is coming after him.

 

He can feel the creature’s presence, and fears build up in him. Jongin stumbles on his own steps and falls first. He tries to get up but freeze in his spot when he sees the red eyes. This is when Jongin feels helpless. He scrambles on the ground trying to find anything that can defend himself but everything comes to the dead end.

 

The creature is coming closer and Jongin can feels all the blood drains out of him. His vision turns blurry, and he sees the pair of red eyes are coming really close to him and Jongin can feel its heavy breath.

 

But the last thing Jongin sees before he completely unconscious is a pair of light brown orbs and heart-shaped lips, and silver feathers falling gracefully around him.

 

 

 

~

 

 

 

“Jongin, Jongin.”

 

Jongin stirs in his sleep as he opens his eyes only to find the ray of sunshine blinding his eyes. His shifts and rubs his eyes. Then he sees Jongdae, his brother completely dressed in his full uniform, and hands on his shoulders.

 

“What time is it?”

 

“Ten minutes past seven. Get up now Jongin, you’ll be late for school.”

 

Jongdae then leaves his room. Jongin still on his bed, smiles because for the first time in these past few weeks, he is able to get up without looking like a crazy dog just chased him. But he still can’t forget the brown eyes and heart-shaped lips he was in his dream yesterday. Jongin kicks his blanket off him and rushes into the bathroom with a happy heart.

 

He doesn’t notice the silver feather that falls off his bed and is taken away by the wind through his open window. The dreamcatcher dance, the silver beads shine.

 

 

 

~

 

 

 

“You look happy Jongin,” Sehun says while he sips the strawberry milk. The blond boy eyes his friend curiously. Jongin doesn’t always like this, especially for these past few weeks. His friend always shows up to school with a very exhausted face that looks like his soul is out from him and eye bag under his eyes.

 

Today, Jongin look… alive. Much different and Sehun is so happy for him. He looks dead before so this is good. He knows about Jongin’s nightmares problem, and he completely understands it. Sehun doesn’t have nightmares, not the one that requires dream catcher so he doesn’t know how it feels. He will get one eventually. Everyone will get it, soon or later.

 

“I don’t have nightmares yesterday, I mean I do dream of it but no, I won’t call it nightmares,” Jongin answers while he takes a spoonful of the chicken porridge, and puts it in his mouth. He savors the taste of the porridge, and the saltiness of the soup in his mouth before he swallows it whole.

 

“You’ve got your dream catcher.”

 

“I do.”

 

“Have you meet him?

 

“Meet who?”

 

“Don’t play dumb Jongin.”

 

“I am not. Who?”

 

Sehun huffs in annoyance before he pushes his food tray away and brings himself closer to his friend. “I am talking about your guardian angel.”

 

The brown eyes. The heart-shaped lips. The silver feathers.

 

“No,” Jongin answers and Sehun sighs. “But I do see a glimpse of whoever he is or whatever he is.”

 

“No way!”

 

“Yes, or at least I think so,” Jongin replies and rolls his eyes when Sehun makes the dramatic face when he brings his hand to cover his mouth.

 

For the rest of the day, it’s not the pitch black darkness or the red eyes that haunt Jongin, it’s the heart-shaped lips and the shining brown eyes.

 

 

 

~

 

 

Things had been going okay for him. His life is good. The nightmares are still there, they never left him but it’s not the same nightmares anymore. It’s not always the same pitch black darkness with the red eyes. It changes as the days passed. Sometimes Jongin dreams he was drowning, the other days he is falling from a high place.

 

But in the end, it’s always the same brown orbs, the heart-shaped lips and the silver feathers that chase away the nightmares. It’s been more than a year, Jongin still doesn’t see his guardian angel.

 

A part of him really hopes he can meet the spirit, the other part is not. He knows what happens when human has an emotional bond with spirit.

 

The result isn’t always good.

 

Jongin shakes off the thought. He gets up and changes shreds the white t-shirt and blue jeans and changes into a pair of comfy blue pajama. He turns off the light and instead turns on the small one located on the table near his bed. He looks at his dream catcher; the way it moves slowly along with the wind.

 

It’s another night, and Jongin can’t bring himself to fall asleep.

 

Who are you… or what are you? How do you look like? Are you female, or male? Do your eyes always shining brightly like I always see? The silver feathers, are they yours? Do I ever have any chance to see you, my dream catcher?

 

Jongin has heard the stories about how the spirits look like, and most of the times they look like human, except they have their own distinct features. Some of them have pointed ears, some are small, some are just the same size as human. But the rare one is the one who has wings.

 

The silver feathers fall gracefully around him.

 

Jongin looks at the dream catcher above his head. The dream catcher is not as fancy as the others, the ones with the colorful beads and feathers. The one that belongs to him is quite plain, but beautiful in its own way. The base is pitch black, the nest-like structure in the middle is made from the silver-painted wooden stick. While the others have colorful feathers hanging from it, Jongin’s only has white feathers that shine when the moonlight falls onto it.

 

Jongin turns and lies on his back, his mind drifts away to the land of dreams.

 

Not long after he falls asleep, Jongin stirs in his sleep. His face contorts in confusion instead of fear. Jongin fists the blanket that covers his body.

 

Then he opens his eyes wide. What he sees almost makes he falls off his bed.

 

 

 

~

 

 

 

Jongin freeze on his bed, his lips are trembling, trying to make a string of word but nothing comes out from his mouth. He tries to make a move but the stares from the window

 

In front of him, is a boy, not older than him but definitely smaller. The boy is clad in a pair of black shirt and pants, on his shirt there are thousands of white dots that resemble the star. His hair is silver with a glint of blue, and it shines brightly under the moonlight. The front of his hair fall over his eyes, and behind the hair strands, Jongin can see the pair of the shining brown orbs, except it is silver in the middle instead of black.

 

The silver feathers fall gracefully around him.

 

The wings. It’s the most beautiful things Jongin ever seen in his life. The silver wing appears from the boy’s back, almost magically. It doesn’t look like any of the fairy wings, this one looks like the angel’s wings. It flips beautifully, the glimmering silver on the wings blinds Jongin. The lips, the heart-shaped lips that have been haunting Jongin.

 

My dream catcher. You are so beautiful…

 

“Who are you…” Jongin asks hesitantly, and in a very low voice that it almost sounds like a whisper. His heart is beating very fast and Jongin tries very hard to steady its pace.

 

The boy tilts his head and looks back at Jongin. His brown orbs shining brightly as if all the lights in the world is in his eyes.

 

“Your dream catcher.”

 

Jongin holds his breath.

 

“My name is Kyungsoo.”

 

Jongin doesn’t say anything. He keeps staring.

 

“Why are you quiet? Are you scared?”

 

Jongin shakes his head.

 

“Then?”

 

“You… Are you the dream catcher? This dream catcher?” Jongin asks. His fingers point to the dream catcher that still hanging above the boy.

 

“Practically that is my home.”

 

“You live in there?”

 

“My spirit is bound between the silver string, and yes I live in there.”

 

“This dream catcher, this thing, it’s you?”

 

“How do you think this dream catcher works?”

 

Jongin is speechless.

 

“H-how does all these works?”

 

“You have nightmares, I enter your dreams and bind them. The nightmares turn into a black string and I weave them back to the silver string, before it is released and disappears through the wind,” Kyungsoo says. “And they will never return again.”

 

Jongin stares back at Kyungsoo, and sees the boy smiles at him.

 

Kyungsoo gives Jongin his heart-shaped smile.

 

The spirit smiles at his owner.

 

“All this while, it’s you?”

 

“It’s me.”

 

“It’s always you?”

 

“Always.”

 

Jongin can feel all the nervous he feels just now slowly fades away.

 

“I will always protect you Jongin, from all the nightmares in the world.”

 

Jongin feels his eyes getting heavy and he sees the silvery wings flatter, and Kyungsoo fades away.

 

He feels safe somehow before he returns to the dreamland.

 

The silver feathers fall gracefully around him.