Jeongguk

Jeongguk was dreaming again. Dreaming of that boy. In all his dreams he hunted him, sometimes through what he presumed was the boy's world, but mostly in his own Kingdom. He always caught him. In the good dreams, he strangled him and watched as the life drained out of his bright blue eyes. I'm his nightmares, he kissed him.

In these dreams, the boy didn’t fight him. He welcomed Jeongguk into his arms because in these dreams he knew that he would be caught. In these dreams, the boy was innocent, nonchalant. He let Jeongguk catch him as if there was no other place he would rather be than in his arms. He embraced Jeongguk, softly laughing as he gingerly combed his fingers through his raven hair. Jeongguk found peace in the boy’s embrace. He felt that maybe if he held on for another second all the chaos and hurt would wash away.

Those nightmares haunted him. They drilled into his mind and made him hate himself almost as much as he hated the boy. They made him hate himself for ever thinking that everything could be gone so easily. He hated that he ever could dream such a thing about someone who has caused so much pain to his people.

Tonight was another nightmare.

He chased the boy with fury, his legs ached and he seemed to be getting nowhere. Until the boy stopped. He turned around and smiled. Jeongguk ran closer until they were face to face. The boy was wearing a silk blue shirt and black pants. It wasn’t until now that he realized the blue-eyed boy had tears in his eyes. A whimper passed his lips. He embraced Jeongguk, his frail arms tightly grasped onto the latter’s shirt. His tears turned into sobs. Jungkook let the boy hug him. He wanted to hold on, but he couldn't.

“Please...stop…” Jeongguk managed. He wanted to say so much more, he wanted to tell him that he was destroying the kingdom, but consciousness slowly took over.

Taehyung

It’s too loud. Everything is too much. Someone's screaming, why are people screaming? He hears thunder, lighting, is someone crying? There's too much wind, too much commotion, it’s all too much he can’t take it. And yet, through all of the turbulence, he hears a voice, it’s quiet, but he hears it clear as day. “Please...stop…”

He jolted waked. His breathing was heavy and his hands were shaking.

“stop...stop...stop...” he whispered repeatedly. He was trying to make sense of the dream, but it was like trying to solve a puzzle with the same pieces. He needed to get to Namjoon.

Taehyung swept away his covers and showered quickly, distant from what he was doing because his mind seemed like it was a universe away. He got dressed, put on a jacket, and was out the door.

He took a deep breath. It was dawn and his neighborhood was eerily quiet. The run-down houses no longer housed yells and arguments. Taehyung thought that the world should be more like this.

He quickly shuffled down the street, not looking back. He kept walking until he reached a familiar library. He took a deep breath and knocked. To his surprise, Namjoon answered right away. His hair was untamed and his dark circles here prominent. He was clearly not getting enough sleep. Taehyung hated to think that someone was sacrificing their sleep for him.

“So...why are you here?” Namjoon’s hoarse voice pierced through his thoughts.

It was at this moment that Taehyung realized how utterly stupid he was going to sound. Nevertheless, he tried his best explaining his alarming nightmare.

“...there were so many people. They were all yelling or begging, I’m not sure...then there was noise, there was so much noise. It was as if everything crashed together. It was as if I heard every sound of agony at once. Then I heard a voice. It was unusual because the noise was still there, but I could hear the voice. It was telling me to stop. A boy was telling me to stop… Namjoon, I don’t understand, what did I do? I just don’t understand.”

Taehyung’s head was in his hands, tears threatening to spill. He was trembling, and his breathing was uneven.

Namjoon hesitantly put a hand on his shoulder, in hopes of comforting him, but it just made him cry harder. “Taehyung, calm down, it’s just a dream, you didn’t do anything.”

Taehyung looked up at him, eyes glossy and wide as he shook his head, “no….no… you don’t understand! Why don’t you understand?” He choked out in between sobs, “It’s not like that. It was real I swear. It was like a memory. I felt like I was there. I felt like I was experiencing all that pain. Trust me, Namjoon, pleasetrust me. It was more than a nightmare.”

Namjoon hesitantly studied Taehyung. “Okay,” he said cautiously. “Let’s figure this out then.”