Taehyung leaned back into the seat of the couch as he cracked his knuckles, the sharp popping sounds of which sent a shiver down Jimin’s spine and made his toes curl on the polished wooden floor. The fiery-haired younger man began to clarify what exactly he meant when he talked about paranormal monsters, and Jimin couldn’t help but be captivated by the boy’s otherworldly explanation.

“You’ve heard other people talk about monsters before,” assumed Taehyung. Jimin nodded, and the smirking man continued. “But have you ever really stopped to think about whether or not there was actually some truth lurking behind the ways in which they let their imaginations run wild after hearing something go bump in the night?”

Jimin looked lost, so Taehyung tried phrasing his point a different way.

“Look, legends have to have some shred of truth, right?” he prodded. “There must be something to inspire the beings that inhabit our modern-day nightmares - even if we no longer believe in those things themselves in this day and age.”

“So you’re saying that centuries ago, everyone could see monsters?” Jimin clarified.

“I’m saying that back in the day, people were a lot more open to alternative explanations,” corrected Taehyung. “Maybe it really was a ghost in the attic that was making that scraping sound, or maybe an angry demon was responsible for the mysterious plague that wiped out half the livestock population in a village.”

Jimin nodded to indicate that he understood, so Taehyung elaborated a little more.

“Nowadays, people are quicker to dismiss things like that as nothing to worry about - or at the worst as natural, easily explainable, and normal phenomena.”

The lounging man waved his hands around wildly as he spoke, and Jimin could see that Taehyung was ecstatic about getting the opportunity to explain all of this to someone. He wondered how often the young man actually got to talk about his job without being ridiculed or mocked.

“But those sources behind the legends,” Taehyung laughed darkly, “they don’t exactly go away. That’s what I research.” He grinned proudly, and Jimin could see the excitement bubbling just below the surface of Taehyung’s cat-like eyes. “And that is where you come in. Some people, like you - called Sensors - they can see creatures that the rest of us simply can’t. Not only that; you can also lead other people, like me, right to these so-called monsters so that we can study them.”

✧✧✧

“I’m sorry; I’m still confused,” admitted Jimin.

“Look, Sensors have been around pretty much forever,” Taehyung explained. “There are some entities in this world that are - frankly - invisible to the vast majority of us, but that doesn’t mean that they aren’t really there. My goal is to collect evidence of these ‘monsters’ as most people would call them, so that I can prove that they actually exist. To do that, I have to hire Sensors to take me to the places where these things are hiding. And that, Jimin, is what I need your help to do.”

Jimin had to admit that the lesson he was being given was intriguing, but he still didn’t know if he actually believed any of it.

“If these things are invisible to normal people, then how do you expect to collect any evidence in the first place?” he pressed, believing that he had caught Taehyung in a loophole of the other man’s fantastical claims.

“I have my methods,” snickered Taehyung.

He pulled out a small, square mechanical device; something that had fit easily unnoticed in his back pocket. Half a dozen wires unfolded to stick out at all angles from the top of the box, and Taehyung pressed a button on the side that apparently made nothing happen. After a few seconds of silence, however, an ear-piercing scream vibrated against the walls of the small room, making Jimin cover his ears as Taehyung pushed another button, shutting off the horrible noise.

“Recording device,” he explained. “One of many that I brought with me for this particular mission. The rest are back at my hotel room, but I always carry one with me - just in case.” He put the device back in his pocket, and smiled widely as his eyes lit up. “That was a banshee scream, by the way. I’ve never seen one of course, but my last Sensor told me that they’re really somethin’ to look at. And not in a good way.”

✧✧✧

Jimin carefully uncovered his ears as he stood up from the couch, and Taehyung followed the older man with his gaze, a curious expression overtaking the soft features of the latter’s thin face.

“Look, Taehyung, I’m sorry you came all this way just to visit me, but I don’t think I’m going to be able to help you,” yawned Jimin.

He was starting to feel as tired as he had been before Taehyung had come barging into his kitchen, waking him up with the sheer force of his enthusiasm as well as his unexpected entrance. Jimin walked over to the front door, and Taehyung trailed behind him with a disappointed look on his face.

“This was all very… educational… and I think that what you do is really interesting; don’t get me wrong. It’s just that…” Jimin paused as he looked away from Taehyung’s sad eyes. “I really don’t think I’m one of these Sensors,” he sighed. “Maybe you’re telling the truth, and maybe there really are monsters or cryptids or whatever lurking around out there - but if there are then I’ve never seen any of them.”

“That’s impossible,” insisted Taehyung. “Namjoon’s database is centuries old - passed down through his family for generations. It follows all the major bloodlines of Sensors around the entire world. And he told me that you’re the direct descendant of one of the strongest, most capable families. You guys are practically famous for your monster seeing skills!”

Jimin shook his head. His parents had certainly never mentioned anything about monsters except to reassure him that the ones he thought were living under his bed as a child were all in his imagination. And even those apparitions had vanished as Jimin aged, eventually becoming nothing more than a distant, slightly disturbing memory.

“Come on,” pleaded Taehyung. “You have to help me with this project. You’re the only Sensor available for a hundred kilometers!”

“I told you I can’t help you,” Jimin replied curtly. “Now please leave so I can make myself some more tea and enjoy it in peace.”

“You’ve seriously never realized that you can see goddamn blood-curdling, spine-tingling, honest-to-goodness monsters before?!” yelled Taehyung. “Are you blind or just ing stupid?”

Jimin didn’t appreciate being insulted, and he told the taller man just as much, throwing in a few choice words about the latter’s own intelligence and lack of proper manners for good measure.

“You’ve never seen something out of the corner of your eye that made you pause and wonder what it could have been?” asked Taehyung desperately. “You’ve haven’t ever caught a glimpse of something that was so obviously out of the ordinary?”

Jimin thought back to the sleepless nights he had spent as a child, convinced that creatures with long, slithering tentacles were inhabiting his closet as he tried to shut out the sounds of their slimy skin rubbing against the doorknob. He scowled as he bit his tongue. Everyone had nightmares like that as a kid; it didn’t mean anything. Jimin knew that he wasn’t some kind of magical monster sensor, and he was positive that no one in his ‘bloodline’ had ever worked with a so-called cryptozoologist - or whatever other ridiculous title people like Taehyung wanted to give to themselves.

“I think you should go,” he spat as he swung open the door.

✧✧✧

Taehyung stepped halfway through before turning around and pulling something else out of the pocket where he kept his recording equipment. He pressed a card into Jimin’s hand, and the shorter man examined the colorful words printed in green.

KIM TAEHYUNG -- CRYPTOZOOLOGIST

MONSTER HUNTER OF YOUR DREAMS

The self-praising text covered two separate lines, and on the back of the card Jimin discovered a phone number and email address. He rolled his eyes as Taehyung finished scribbling something on another scrap of paper, which he shoved at Jimin with an unfriendly grimace.

“This is the address of the hotel I’m staying at,” he informed the equally displeased shorter man. “Contact me if you change your mind. I’ll be around for a few days - longer if I can find another Sensor who’s not such a giant jerk. Though that’s not likely, so I’d appreciate a call.”

“Don’t count on it,” Jimin scoffed.

Taehyung huffed before spinning around and stomping down the steps that led to the short walkway to the sidewalk. He turned around again when he was halfway to the street, and shouted back at Jimin with a slight hint of malice still lingering in his voice.

“Be careful, Jimin. Just because you don’t think you can see them doesn’t mean they aren’t still out there. You can’t just keep ignoring the shadows forever.”