‘Here’s your latte,’ the purple-grape haired barista said as he placed a cup of hot vanilla latte in front of you, dimples forming on his cheeks as he smiled warmly at you.

                You returned his smile, lifting the cup for a sip. ‘Thanks Namjoon, it’s delicious as always,’ you complimented your friend, and he chuckled. This barista, who was actually the owner of the café too, had been friends with you for a few years already, thanks to your cousin being his girlfriend. He was the reason why you became a regular at this small café in the middle of the hustle and bustle of the city. It was near to the apartment you shared with your cousin, making it convenient for you to grab your daily coffees or just to hang out while doing your works.

                ‘Mihee’s not coming today?’ He asked just before you could start typing your report again. They had been dating for many years already, but it was still a wonder to you how sweet they were towards each other. You could not help but smile at the hint of blush creeping on his cheeks. Mihee’s work schedule as a teacher was a lot busier than yours, so she rarely came to the café, unlike you. On the busy weekends like today, you’d hear Namjoon asking the same question to you.

                You gave him a shrug. ‘I’m not sure. She said she’ll come if her class ends early. We─’

                Before you could end your words, the bell chimed and the front door was pushed open, your cousin walking in with all the snow caught in her hair. She wiped her glasses, sending a smile to both you and Namjoon. She hurried to your table, slipping into the seat in front of you, but not before planting a soft kiss on her boyfriend’s cheek. ‘Sorry for being late. I had some errands to run. Baby, can you get me a hot lemon tea?’

                Namjoon ran his fingers into his girlfriend’s hair, dusting off the snow before skipping back into the kitchen for her drink. Again, you couldn’t help but smile at the cuteness radiating from both of them. Both of them had the nerdy and smart looks, not even you had expected them to get all mushy when it comes to love. Ah, love. You didn’t realise that you let out a soft sigh, wondering when you yourself will get to experience being loved by someone.

                ‘What’s with the long face?’ Mihee asked, unravelling the blue scarf from around her neck. She placed it on the table before taking your coffee, placing her hands around the cup, possibly an attempt to warm her hands. You were the type to always bring a pair of gloves everywhere, so you could never understand why Mihee never bring one around. Before you could reply her, Namjoon came back with another cup of hot drink, slipping in into the seat next to your cousin.

                You just shook your head, sending her a don’t-ask-anything smile, but she was always so persistent.

                ‘I’m your cousin, your sister. Family. You know you can always talk to me about anything,’ she said gently, offering back your cup of coffee. When it comes to giving pep talks, Mihee would be the best. And normally, you’d pour out everything to her, but not this time. Talking to her about how you longed to be in the warm arms of someone felt rather awkward, especially now with Namjoon in the picture. You shook your head again, telling her that you were fine, Namjoon stealing a sip on the tea beside her. She tried to get another word at you, but her boyfriend must have sensed your uneasiness, so he pulled her attention away from you by asking her about her work progress.

                Feeling grateful towards Namjoon’s help, you turned your gaze to the outside of the café, staring at the scenery displayed in front of your eyes. Spring had returned several days ago, but it had snowed lightly today, showing that winter was still reluctant to leave. You wished the weather would get warmer soon, the cold just made you feel lonelier. You released a tiny sigh, which was unfortunately heard by your cousin’s sharp ears, but before she could say a word about it, your saviours finally came to your aid. A group of boys and a girl burst loudly into the café, heading straight to your table.

                ‘Hey, guys!’ Hoseok announced, sneaking into the seat next to you. Before you could swipe him off, he pulled you into a tight hug. That’s the case with Jung Hoseok; the man hugs whoever he wanted. You still wondered how his girlfriend coped with it; if you were her, you wouldn’t want your man to be hugging all the girls that he knew. He released you before turning to his girlfriend who was there too, grinning at her. She just rolled her eyes, giving a warm smile with a small ‘sorry’ to you and sat next to Hoseok.

                Tagging along Hoseok and his girlfriend were Min Yoongi, Kim Seokjin and someone you didn’t expect to come at all: Kim Taehyung. The boys all took a seat, except for the latter. Taehyung seemed a little confused as to where to sit since all the seats on the table were occupied, but Seokjin came to his rescue. Like always. Seokjin pulled a seat from the next table, placing it next to him and patted it, motioning for Taehyung to sit. The latter complied silently, pulling the hoodie covering himself lower, possibly uncomfortable when everyone stared at him.

                ‘Make yourself comfortable, Tae,’ Namjoon broke the silence, and immediately everyone slowly pulled away their attention from the silent man in the hoodie. Your weekends were always like this, a small group of men and women just sipping coffees or teas, sharing new adventures or stressful events. Normally Yoongi’s girlfriend would be here too, but not this time as she was on a work trip. You befriended the boys from college, and along the way, their girlfriends joined too. You were glad that this bizarre friendship stayed even until you all went different pathways for work. 

                But Kim Taehyung. That man was something else. He did go to the same college, but he was rarely even around. And only recently did he start tagging along Seokjin, who was a cousin of his. He never said anything while everyone chatted away, unless an important question was asked to him. For the few times that he was around, you couldn’t help but notice the small things about him. He always wore oversized or baggy clothes, and always wore a hoodie, as if he didn’t want anyone to recognise him. Thinking about it, you had never actually seen his face properly.

                ‘Are we really going next week?’ Namjoon started, and several excited nods were followed. You and your friends had planned to go camping in the woods when spring came—of course it would have been better in summer, but Yoongi insisted for some unexplainable reason. Now that the date that had been set was nearing, you started to think that this was a bad idea. Winter was not really over, and you felt like something bad was going to happen. Well, firstly, who even camps out in the cold?

                ‘Yup, no change of plans. You guys all can go, right?’ Yoongi asked, stealing your drink before dunking it all in one go. You frowned, reaching out to hit him on his head for finishing your drink without your permission, but stopped when you noticed that Taehyung was staring at you.

                Feeling suddenly uncomfortable, you turned away and cleared your throat. ‘Guys, don’t you think we should camp out later? It’s still cold─ look, it’s even snowing today. Maybe on summer?’

                ‘We won’t be around in summer,’ Hoseok said with an apologetic grin, and you remembered that he and his girlfriend had planned to travel around Europe for the whole summer.

                ‘What about a bit later? Next month?’

                ‘I’m going to China next month,’ Mihee piped on and you knew you’re losing in this. ‘Next week’s the only time Namjoon can leave the café, and I heard that Seokjin’s going somewhere too in a few more weeks, right?’ She listed other reasons why it had to be next week, and Seokjin nodded with a small smile, making you groan softly.

                ‘And you can see the fireflies too,’ Yoongi added casually, and suddenly you’re suspicious whether the fireflies that he kept mentioning ever since the plan first came out, was the actual reason he insisted for the date.

                ‘Can I not go then?’ You murmured, and you jumped when Mihee kicked you under the table. You glared at her. ‘Ow! What was that for?’

                ‘Everyone should be there, including you, young miss. It’s just camping,’ your cousin said in a bossy sister way. Namjoon and Hoseok only chuckled, while Yoongi snorted. ‘Who knows when will be the next time we all can go out and have fun like we used to?’

                ‘But it’s going to be cold,’ you whined aloud. It’s not like you hated the idea of camping─ heck, your family with Mihee’s do it all the time. It’s just that you really don’t like to go out when it’s cold. Why do your friends think it’s a good idea to go camping at this time of the year?

                ‘Such a baby. Why are you so scared of the cold?’ Yoongi provoked and this time you threw up your arms in exasperation.

                ‘I’m not scared of the cold! I just─’

                ‘Can I come along?’ Taehyung’s sudden words made everyone went silent. For a moment, he seemed to regret he ever opened his mouth when everyone stared at him. He never joined any of the road trips you had with the others, he never seemed interested before.

                No one was quite sure about how to react to this, and before Taehyung could possibly change his mind, Seokjin broke with a grin. ‘Of course, Tae. You’re definitely welcomed to join,’ he said with so much excitement that it made you wonder if Taehyung had never done anything big in his life. He probably sat still in his room all the time doing nothing.

                Taehyung nodded somewhat shyly. Just as you thought no one would force you to still go—you’re so going to run back to your hometown around that time so they couldn’t drag you there—Taehyung suddenly turned to you.

                ‘You should go too.’

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

                ‘Where’s Namjoon?’ Those were the first words that came out from Seokjin the moment he arrived in front of you and Mihee’s apartment. He got off from the driver’s seat to help unload your bag packs into the back of his pickup truck, all the while humming to an unknown song. It’s always nice to be with Seokjin as the mood was always warm when he was around.

                ‘He said he’ll go by himself, said there’s a few things he need to deal with at the café,’ Mihee said before turning at you with a sweet smile. You knew what she wanted and before you could stop her, she had already run around the truck toward the front passenger’s seat, and announcing loudly: ‘I’m getting the front seat!’

                Seokjin chuckled, before ruffling your hair cheekily. ‘It’s okay, I’ll let you have the front seat the next time, when we go home. Now, just get in the back seat, we’re to be late.’

                You rolled your eyes at him, knowing full well that it was still earlier than planned. Hoseok’s probably still snoring right now. When you opened the back seat’s door, you were slightly surprised to see Taehyung sitting inside, staring back at you. He did not put on his hood, revealing a nest of blonde hair sticking everywhere. He looked so cute and vulnerable that you could not stop staring. Suddenly, he turned away and pulled on the hood, covering himself up again. You could not help but feel slightly disappointed about it.

                When you had safely climbed into the back seat and close the door, Seokjin immediately swerved into the driveway, heading to the place where you thought you would be camping out. He the radio, and Mihee started singing to it, making the atmosphere felt almost nostalgic. Seokjin joined in no time, his sweet voice filling the air. As the two continued to sing their hearts out, you turned to the man next to you, who was awkwardly sitting straight up, looking very uncomfortable. You wondered if he was really not used to being around people or noises.

                ‘Hey, you’re good?’ You whispered, tilting your head at him. He did not seem to hear you as he did not give any reaction, and just when you wanted to repeat the question, he nodded. You smiled a little, leaning closer to him. He was acting just like a shy little boy who was asked a question by an adult for the first time.  ‘Then why do you look so tense?’

                He remained silent again, but this time you waited. You saw his fingers twitching, as if he was holding himself back from spilling something. ‘It’s because…’

                ‘Hmm?’ You offered, when he left his words hanging.

                He lifted his gaze towards you so suddenly that it made you flinch, and for a split second, you saw a flash of red in his eyes. But when you stared into his eyes, they were just dark brown orbs, and they were very dark. For a moment, you were just caught in his gaze, and something stirred inside you as you were finally able to look at his face properly. His deep coloured eyes were a contrast to his pale skin and lips. The way he stared into your eyes knocked the breath out of you, and you suddenly felt helpless. Breathless, suffocated. You felt like he had you in his grasp just by the stare itself.

                ‘Eh? Seokjin, where are we going?’ Mihee’s voice broke the moment, and you turned around to look outside, watching the road. True enough, this road was unfamiliar. You were supposed to exit the freeway just a while ago, but Seokjin seemed unfazed by this matter. Mihee’s frown deepened. ‘Are you sure you didn’t go the wrong way? We’ve been there several times already.’

                Instead of panicking, Seokjin only smiled at your cousin. ‘Guess I should have announced earlier. We had a last minute change of plans, so instead of camping at the place we usually did, Taehyung offered us his summer home.’

                ‘Summer home?’ You asked aloud, turning towards Taehyung. But the man was no longer looking at you, his attention preoccupied with the moving scenery outside the truck. Again, the disappointed feeling seeped into you, making you weirded out about yourself. Mentally scolding yourself for the unwanted emotions, you turned back towards the front, staring at the road. ‘Why would we go to Taehyung’s summer home though?’

                Seokjin seemed to be taking the time of his life to answer, the suspicious smile on his face making you irritated. He always did this, because according to him, it made things become more suspense if one doesn’t answer the question right away. If he was not the one driving, you swore you would have strangled him there and then. ‘Oh come on, just answer the question, Seokjin!’

                The man only chuckled, but this time he finally complied with your request. ‘It’s because a certain someone is scared of the cold.’

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

                ‘Whoa, it’s huge!’ You exclaimed excitedly the moment Seokjin’s truck came to a halt in front of a large cottage in the middle of the woods, looking majestic and unreal. Without waiting for the others, you jumped out, staring in awe at the house in front of you. You did not expect Taehyung’s summer home to be this huge.

                You took a step forward to go closer when you felt someone tug on your arm, preventing you to go. You ly to see Taehyung holding the sleeve of your sweater, an unreadable expression on his face. ‘Don’t go there yet.’

                With just those words, he released his grasp from you and walked towards the cottage, unlocking the door before slamming it close behind him. What the hell? He invited you all here and he was not even going to invite you guys in? Why was he so weird? You wanted to follow him into the house, but the sound of a car stopped you from doing so. You turned, just in time to see the others arrived in Hoseok’s red jeep. Yoongi was the first to get out from the jeep, followed by his girlfriend and Namjoon. The latter immediately approached Seokjin’s truck, of course, to look for Mihee.

                ‘It’s been a long time since the first time I came here.’ Seokjin’s voice came from next to you, making you turn to face him. ‘It hasn’t changed a bit,’ he said with a small smile, turning towards you. He seemed to expect an answer from you, because he just stared at you with that smile.

                ‘Um… I’m glad?’ You tried, and he seemed satisfied enough. Before he could walk away, you tugged on the jacket that he was wearing. He looked at you questioningly, and you returned it with a pout. ‘Seokjin, did Taehyung really suggest we come here because of me? Why would he do that?’ You didn’t know why, but the thought that Kim Taehyung actually thought about you made butterflies go wild inside your tummy. You never really had a proper conversation with the man, so why would he do this? And how did the others agree to it in just a short notice?

‘Well, if you’re asking for why, only he has the answer. But yes, he was persistent that we come here instead of the usual camping place,’ Seokjin answered with a smile. Ruffling your hair, he walked away to get the bags out of his truck, leaving you to deal with your hair again. Sometimes Seokjin could be a bit weird and almost too-fatherly, but you liked his warm smiles the most. He was always smiling, ever since the first day he was introduced to you and Mihee by his best friend, Namjoon. Until now, you were not sure about his job, but you knew that he was older than all of you.

                You were walking to the back of the truck to get your bags when you accidentally caught the hushed words from Namjoon, who was apparently standing on the other side of the truck. ‘Are you sure it’s okay to be here now? I mean, isn’t it the time─’

                ‘At least it’ll be safer here. You know I can’t leave him alone, can I?’ It was Seokjin.

                ‘I know but─’

                ‘Nothing’s going to happen, Namjoon. I can promise you that. I’ll make sure he won’t be around any of us when it happens.’ Seokjin cut off Namjoon’s words and before you could eavesdrop more, a hand patted your shoulder, making you jump in surprise.

                ‘What are you doing?' You turned to find Yoongi’s girlfriend peering at you curiously, and scared of being caught eavesdropping, you immediately pulled her away, towards where the others were busy getting stuffs out from Hoseok’s jeep. As you walked away, you turned to see if Seokjin and Namjoon noticed anything, but they seemed to still be caught in the conversation.

                What were they talking about, being so secretive? Him? Him who?

               What’s going to happen?

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

                Even though Taehyung’s summer home was available to be used, the boys—or more like a certain Min Yoongi—insisted to camp out instead, thus setting up two large tents out in the wide grassy backyard of the cottage, one for the boys and one for the girls. It was late in the evening, while everyone was busy placing their things inside the tents when Hoseok suddenly suggested to go explore the woods a little. There was a stream running several yards behind the cottage, and according to Seokjin, if you followed the stream, you would find a small beautiful waterfall rather deep in the woods. He said he had been there with Taehyung several times when they were younger. Ever since Hoseok heard about it, he would not sit down still.

                ‘You’re not coming along?’ Mihee asked when she stepped out of the tent, staring at you who did not seem to make any attempt to move at all. Instead, you just sat at the opening of the tent, staring absentmindedly at the sky. A soft gush of wind blew into the tent, making you shiver. There’s no way you’re going out into the woods in this cold.

                ‘Can I pass?’ You said sheepishly, tugging your sweater tighter against your body. When Mihee frowned at you, possibly to start another everyone-needs-to-join-this-because-we’re-friends lecture, you let out a sigh. ‘It’s cold. You know I hate it. I’ve already come along; can you at least let me pass this? If it’s less cold tomorrow, I’ll join everything you guys do, I promise.’

                The frown immediately disappeared from her face, but it was replaced with a worried look instead. ‘We can’t leave you alone here though?’

                ‘Oh, you’re not coming along?’ Seokjin seemed to suddenly come out of nowhere, surprising both you and Mihee. When you nodded, instead of being worried just like your cousin, his face lit up. He pointed to the other tent, and that was when you noticed a figure all bundled up and lying down inside it. ‘Taehyung’s not feeling very well, so he’s not going too. Can you keep an eye on him for a while? I’m worried to leave him alone, but the others may get lost if I don’t tag along. The woods here are a bit confusing…’

                You stared at the man’s back, and you didn’t know why, but he seemed so lonely. So you nodded, sending Seokjin and Mihee with the others off with a wave. When all of them disappeared from your view, you slowly neared the boys’ tent to have a look at Taehyung. He did not seem to be sleeping, so you cleared your throat to get his attention. ‘Is there anything you need? Water? Something to eat? Or… are you cold? I should get the blankets from Seokjin’s truck…’

                ‘I don’t need anything, just leave me alone.’ His voice was so cold that you felt as if someone just threw a bucket of ice cold water at you. Your face reddened, partly because you felt embarrassed, and partly because you felt angered by how he responded to you when all you wanted was to be nice. Fine. If he wanted to be alone, then that’s just what he would get. But before you could stomp away, you noticed something. He was shaking. His whole body was shaking horribly.

                You immediately crouched down to touch his temple, and even as he managed to swat your hand away, you had felt it. His whole body was burning. There was no way you would leave him alone like this. ‘You’re burning. That’s it, don’t move. I’ll go get the blankets from Seokjin’s truck and some warm water─’

                ‘Don’t bother,’ he said coldly, but this time you did not let him fool you. You could clearly hear how he struggled to even say those two words. Why was he refusing your help so adamantly?

                Before you could even counter back his reply, he pushed his way past you and slipped his shoes on. Judging from the direction he headed then, it seemed that he was going back into the cottage, but it didn’t take him more than five steps before he suddenly collapsed on the ground, his face scrunched in pain.

                ‘Taehyung!’ You exclaimed, rushing to his side. He was sweating all over, and his face had gone a lot paler than this morning when you first saw him. If he had been unwell since the morning, why did he decide to come here? The way he was clutching on his chest made you worry if he was having trouble to breathe. You reached out to help steady him, but right before you could touch him, he pushed you away. The strength of his push was enough to send you flat on your back. Too stunned by the suddenness and also the amount of strength that he had, you just stared as he struggled to stand again.

                ‘Don’t touch me,’ he spat, and you couldn’t help the pain the seared through your heart at the words. Those two brown orbs that you had always been so curious of, they were dripping with hatred as he glared at you. He turned and walked away, leaving you alone on the ground, never once turning back as he returned to the cottage through the back door, slamming it close behind him.

                Instead of feeling angry at him for treating you this way, why were you feeling sad?

                Don’t touch me.

                How could he say that?

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

                ‘Cheers!’ The eight of you cheered on, bumping the marshmallows on the end of the sticks excitedly as you let them heat against the large campfire that the boys prepared earlier. Before getting your marshmallow burnt, you pulled it away from the fire, and took a large bite. The hotness made you shriek for a moment, but the sweetness that followed made you grin childishly.

                ‘Careful not to get yourself burnt,’ Seokjin advised, and everyone replied simultaneously with a ‘yes dad!’, making him laugh.  

                The night was rather bright, the moon full and shining bright. It had been a great day, even though you spent almost two hours just lying on the ground after Taehyung pushed you off, only getting up when the others returned. You acted like nothing happened, and when Seokjin asked the whereabouts of the blonde man, you just shrugged before running towards the others. Seokjin didn’t bother you after that, because Taehyung returned from the cottage, acting like nothing happened too. Jerk. But somehow you were relieved that he looked slightly better.

               Didn’t mean you were okay that he was sitting on the opposite of you now though. He just sat there staring at the fire, not even cheering with the others a while ago. If he was not keen to join anything at all, why did he even want to come along and even bothered to offer his summer home?

                ‘Let’s start the rap battle!’ Hoseok suddenly yelled, lifting his arms to high five his girlfriend, before kick starting his rap verse. This was normal too; Hoseok, Yoongi and Namjoon would occasionally have a rap battle between themselves, and at random times Seokjin would join too (though he rarely ever did since he was not as good as the other three). You and the other girls would be in charge of cheering the boys, because once the battles started, no one’s backing off.

                As the boys were fired up in the moment, from the corner of your eyes, you saw Seokjin get up. He walked towards where Taehyung was sitting before leaning down to whisper something in the latter’s ear. You could not read the emotions changing on his face, was it anger… or fear? After the whispers, Taehyung got up too and walked away back to the cottage. None of the others seemed to be bothered by this; they were too excited when Namjoon started to cuss in his raps. Seokjin suddenly turned his face to you, and you immediately looked down, feeling as if you were caught doing something wrong.

                ‘You seem distracted,’ Seokjin said softly, sitting down next to you. He crossed his legs and tilted his face at you, his lips curled in amusement. You tilted your head too, repeating his action before shaking your head, giving him your best I-am-innocent look. He chuckled at that, reaching out to ruffle your hair. ‘It’s okay, you can tell me. The others are not listening anyway.’

                True. When you turned to look at your friends, it was obvious that they were in their own world. You watch in a slight envy when you noticed that all of them were happily in a relationship. Seokjin didn’t seem to mind this though, but you always felt lonely even when you were around with them. Turning back towards Seokjin, you pulled your legs against your chest. ‘Nah, I’m good.’

                When you kept insisting that you were fine, he let out a sigh. ‘Did Taehyung do something to you?’

                ‘No,’ you answered, a little too fast to be in favour of you.

                ‘What did he do?’ Seokjin had an I-know-this-would-happen look on his face, and you wondered if you should tell him the truth or continue to pretend that nothing had happen. He seemed genuinely concerned, but you can’t help but to pick the second choice─ Taehyung was his cousin anyway. You wouldn’t want any of your friends to talk behind Mihee this way too.

                ‘Nothing, really,’ you said with the best cheerful voice that you could muster. Before Seokjin could say anything more, you pushed yourself to your feet, patting his shoulder. ‘I’m fine. I think I just need some sleep.’

                ‘Guys, I’m going to sleep first, okay? Sorry,’ you announced to your friends, and before any questions were to be thrown at you, you ran into the tent, zipping the opening close as quickly as you could. It was quiet for a moment, before you heard Seokjin telling them something, and they returned to whatever they were doing before.

                Now, sleep.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

                You woke up with a start, your hands clutched to your chest. It took several minutes for you to notice that the other girls were sleeping soundly next to you. The quietness of the night slowly calmed you down, and it didn’t take long for you to breathe normally again. You were not sure what had woken you up, was it a bad dream? But you could not recall anything at all. Deciding that it was probably not worth to be remembered, you tried to resume your sleep, only ending up staring into nothingness. Your body simply refused to go back to sleep.

                With a sigh, you got up silently and ped the tent’s opening. Maybe a little bit of the night air would make you sleepy. The night was bright, so you could clearly see the boys’ tent as you got out, slipping into your shoes. They didn’t even bother to close the tent, and you couldn’t help but laugh softly at their sleeping position. Seokjin seemed content in his sleep, a fluffy eye mask on his face. But Hoseok somehow got himself tangled up in between Yoongi and Namjoon. How on earth could Yoongi sleep with Hoseok’s thigh on his face? You shake your head in amusement, ready to return to your tent.

                Hold up.

                Someone’s missing. You walked to the boys’ tent to ensure that you didn’t make a mistake. But of course, even as you quietly leaned in inside the tent, there were only the four of them. Where the hell did Kim Taehyung go in the middle of the night? Didn’t he return from the cottage a while ago after the talk with Seokjin? He couldn’t possibly be sleeping alone in the cottage, was he?

                A soft rustling noise suddenly caught your attention, and you whipped your head towards the source of the sound, only to find yourself staring at the cottage. For a moment, as you continued to stare, nothing seemed to be moving. You stepped away from the camping area to get a closer look of the summer house, and that was when you saw a figure standing under the large tree beside it. You had to squint, even though it was a bright night, you could barely make out his blonde hair. Taehyung.

                ‘Tae─’ you wanted to call him out, but his figure suddenly walked away from the tree, away from the house, away from everything. Where the hell was he going, entering the woods in the middle of the freaking night? Even if he was used to this place, it was still absurd for him to go alone. You contemplated whether to wake up any of the boys, but you know it would take a while to wake them; you’d probably lose sight of Taehyung by then.

                So you did something you would never have done in any normal days, you followed his track. Going alone into the woods sounded dangerous for a woman like you, but Taehyung was definitely hiding something, and you wanted to know. You needed to know.

                It was a good thing that the moon was bright tonight, or you probably would have lost your way amongst the trees. You made sure not to follow the man too close, careful not to make much noise, not wanting to let him catch you. Something told you that he was hiding something big. You were determined to know what he was keeping, but you slowly started to regret following him. He seemed to be walking aimlessly, and it was getting darker here too, as the trees were getting closer with each other. If this continued, you would probably get lost in here for real.

                And suddenly it seemed that luck was not on your side. You lost sight of him. Your eyes widened, and you could feel the panic rising inside you. , this is the worst idea. You halted your steps, searching everywhere for any signs of him, but he was nowhere. The surrounding became eerily silent too, making the hairs on the back of your neck stand involuntarily. You tried to take deep breaths to calm yourself down, but your heart refused to cooperate, making your gaze slightly blurry. Your legs suddenly gave in, making you feel more helpless. Please don’t faint. Please don’t faint, idiot.

                ‘Ahh,’ a soft whimper coming from one of the bushes near you caught your attention, and you paled. It was followed by the sounds of some slurping noises, and you found yourself starting to shake. Could it be that a wild animal was hidden between the bushes?

                Despite the fear running through you, something urged you to crawl forward, to take a peek at what was in the bush. You reached out to push away the leaves and twigs, and was met by a surprise. It was Taehyung. You instantly felt relieved—you didn’t lose him after all. But he had his back on you, and was crouching on top of something, his hands seemingly moving at an alarm speed. What was he doing?

                You crawled closer to have a better look, and you were shocked to see that the man was actually sitting on a deer. A dead, bloody deer. ‘Taehyung? What the fu─’

                The face that turned to you was not the face of a human’s. Blood was covering his whole face, dripping the sides of his lips and down his chin. His eyes glowed a deep shade of red and they stared daggers into you, making you horrified. He was eating the deer. Raw. This was not Taehyung, this was a monster. Not thinking anything and scared of your own life, you pushed yourself up and ran away as fast as you could. You didn’t care if you don’t know the way back; you just needed to get away. He didn’t seem to be following you, for you didn’t hear any sounds behind you.

                You couldn’t help the tears running down your face, and because of the immense fear, you couldn’t focus on where you were stepping. You took a wrong step, tripping yourself over the root of a tree protruding from the earth, making you take a huge fall. Panicking, you tried to get up, scrambling clumsily against the tree and scratching your leg in the process. You winced at the pain coursing through the leg, realising in horror that you had sprained your ankle. A long cut was visible on your shin, blood seeping down your leg.

                A scream erupted from your throat when a hand suddenly pulled your leg down, making you fall down onto your back with a loud thump. Kim Taehyung—no, the monster, was now hovering on top of you, holding up your wounded leg and sniffing the blood. ‘No, please! Let me go!’ You screamed, struggling to pull yourself away from him, but he didn’t budge. The struggles only gave you more pain.

                He leaned his face closer to your wound, and out of nowhere, he suddenly on the blood. You screamed and tried to push him away, but it seemed to anger him. He tugged your body down harshly, forcing his hand against your throat. You tried to pry his hand away and even tried to kick him off of you but to no avail, his strength was too much for you. He took in a deep breath, as if inhaling your scent, and when he opened his eyes, they seemed to become darker. A smirk came to his lips, and you noticed the long fangs, still dripping with the deer’s blood.

                You released a loud gasp when he suddenly caught both of your hands, pinning them above your head, and his legs locked your own, preventing you to make any movements. Will he kill you too? When he leaned down against your neck, you burst into silent tears. The damp hotness that came to your skin as he your neck sent shivers down your body, and you whimpered softly. ‘Are you going to kill me?’

                ‘Shh,’ was his only reply before you felt his grip on your hands tighten, and a set of fangs sinking into your skin. You screamed aloud, your back shot off the ground as you struggled to release yourself, the pain unbearable. It was like he was ripping your head off your body, yet there was nothing you could do as he the blood out of you. The sound of him slurping against your bleeding throat was deafening.

                ‘No, please…’ you begged, slowly losing consciousness. It was too painful.

                You were dying.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

                ‘She’s going to die if we leave her!’

                ‘But it’s dangerous─’

                ‘It’s the only choice we have! There’s no other way─’

                ‘He could kill her! We don’t know if he was capable of holding himself back anymore!’

                ‘Then do you suggest we let her die?’

                ‘Namjoon, please. This is not the time…’

                All the yells were making your head dizzy. What were they screaming about? You were trying to get some sleep here; couldn’t they go scream somewhere else? When the yells continued, you let out a groan, trying to roll away. But someone was holding you securely.

                Your eyes slowly fluttered open, and when you finally saw the night sky, the pain on your neck came rushing again, making you scream into tears.

                ‘Namjoon! She’s awake!’ It was Mihee. Apparently, she had your head on her lap, and she was a crying mess. Her hands were pressed against your neck, and you realised painfully that she was preventing more blood from flowing out of you. So it was all real. It was not a dream. You were really attacked.

                You had lost all your voice from the previous screams, so you could only cry as you gripped your cousin tightly, unable to hold in the pain. With a lot of effort, you turned to your side, and saw Namjoon and Seokjin still in an argument. Behind them, you could barely see the blonde man. He was tied down on a tree, and when his eyes met yours, he immediately looked away. They were no longer red. And why did he look so sad?

                ‘We should let him try,’ Namjoon was saying, his voice sounding like a blur.

                The world started to become dark again, and when you thought that it would be bliss if you lost consciousness again, a sharp pain shoot across your heart, making you scream again. Your body curled involuntarily as you tried to bear the pain now coursing through your whole being; it felt like your whole body was being stabbed and burned at the same. ‘Mihee─ god─ it hurts… please make it stop.’

                Mihee pulled you into her arms, trying to make you stay still, but it was too painful. ‘Please, Seokjin! I don’t want her to die, she can’t die like this!’

                No longer able to keep your eyes open, you felt a pair of arms lifting you up, and as your body convulsed, you felt your back making contact with the ground again. The rustling sounds came next, before another pair of warm hands gently pulled you into his arms. ‘Please, make the pain stop…’ you whimpered softly, barely even making out the words.

                Then you felt it. Warmth against your neck, against the painful wound.

                And then it was all darkness.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

                Please forgive me.

                You woke up again with flashes of the fragments of what had happened to you before you out. The sight of a large ceiling fan made you frown. You could only remember the sight of the night sky, and the sinister looking trees in the dark, shone only by the moonlight. Somebody had brought you in here. It took an effort to even make a small movement, but after a while you managed to sit up on the bed. You found yourself staring around a very large room, all the furniture looking very grand. There seemed to be elegant intricate designs carved on all the wooden surfaces. The windows on one side of the room were very large, reaching the tops of the high ceiling and you wondered how bright this room would be if the curtains were not closed. Even the bed you were sitting on now was too big.

                ‘Uhh,’ you groaned softly at the ache around your neck. When your hand reached to touch your neck, it made contact with what felt like a bandage. You looked down and noticed that you were wearing a non-familiar white shirt, no longer the bloodied sweater from that night. You winced as the memories returned, now vividly playing in your head. How did you survive that? And… was it really Kim Taehyung who had attacked you?

                All the questions swirling inside your head was making you dizzy, so you decided to leave the bed. You were much curious about exploring the grand room, but it was getting creepier to stay alone in an unknown room. You need to find the others. You only managed to open the door an inch, before Mihee’s voice came through. She sounded impatient and rather… desperate.

                ‘She had been unconscious for three days! And you’re still telling me to leave her here?’ Your cousin was saying, her voice breaking. She was crying. ‘She should be examined by a doctor!’

                ‘Mihee please, we’ve agreed to wait, didn’t we?’ Namjoon sounded calm; though you were quite sure he was questioning it too. Were they talking about you?

                ‘How much longer do we have to wait? I can’t just sit here and look at my own cousin dying in front of my eyes! She’s the only sister that I have!’

                ‘Then how should we explain to the doctors about how she got the injury?’ Seokjin’s voice sounded cold and flat. You were surprised by the way he sounded. Seokjin had always been a man of warmth and cheerfulness, never had he sounded so… distant. What made him change?

                Only muffled sobs came from Mihee, and Namjoon was probably hugging her to calm her down. You wanted to make an appearance then, but stopped when you heard Seokjin’s next words.

                ‘I’m sorry that we’re not giving her the help she probably needs, but I don’t think sending her to the hospital would change anything. I've treated her wound with extra care, she'll be up and about soon. Look, I’m doing this for Taehyung’s sake; I’m not going to endanger his life by exposing him to the world. He needs to be protected.’

                ‘Then, endangering my cousin’s life is right? She's not worth to be protected?’ Mihee snapped, before her cries were muffled again.

                ‘Of course not! What are you saying? I care for her too; she’s already like my own little sister!’ Seokjin retorted, and you hated how broken he sounded. A moment of silence passed before he voiced out again. ‘Taehyung would never attack a human just like that. He loathed having to drink blood from our kind, so this shouldn’t have happened. It’s either he was clouded by his inner instinct, or it could be…’

                There was only silence.

                Feeling restless by the sudden revelation that Taehyung drinks blood, you wanted to know more. You wanted to know why he attacked you, if he didn’t drink human blood just as Seokjin had claimed. Why you? Was it just because you were there, or was it really because it was you? The way he treated you differently than others made you believed that there was more to these than known.

                ‘Or it could be what?’ You demanded as you pushed your way out of the room, limping slightly towards them, ignoring the ache on your ankle.

                Mihee jumped out from Namjoon’s arms and rushed to pull you into an embrace, crying on your shoulder. ‘Oh god I’m so glad you woke up,’ she cried, and you could not help but feel guilty for making her this worried. You wrapped your arms around her waist, squeezing her gently to calm her down. 'I couldn't bear the thought of losing you.'

                When Mihee was finally calmed down, you pulled yourself out from her grasp, but you let her hold your hands. She seemed to still be needing reassurance that you were actually real and alive. Taking a deep breath, you faced Kim Seokjin again. ‘I want answers, Seokjin. I don’t know what the hell Taehyung is, and why the hell he accidentally almost murdered me. Or if he did intend to actually kill me. What is he? Why me? Why?’

                This time, there was no hesitance in his answer. Seokjin’s answer was loud and clear.

                ‘Because you’re Taehyung’s soulmate.’

A/N: I know I'm a such a troll for making this into more than one part OTL I'm so sorry, it's just that the story somehow ended getting way deeper than I planned. And sorry it took a long time to post this, I'm multi-tasking so much nowadays, there's a lot to do even though I'm already done with college. I'll be working dilligently on the next part(s) of Red Rush from now on. Yes, there's a possibility Red Rush will have more than 2 chapters, so please do look forward to it. What do you think of Taehyung's character, by the way? He's still a bit mysterious, but I'd love to hear your thoughts about him!

P.S: Does "Hoseok being a hugger" and "Namjoon working in a cafe" sound familiar? Think about it!