3.9 | KSJ

2.4K 296 767
                                    

  — "we canbeat this!"

Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.

— "we can
beat this!"

NOVEMBER 12:
KIM SEOKJIN

==

compared to the little-to-no light inside the warehouse, the lampposts make seokjin feel like he's squinting directly into the center of the sun. he winces as his eyes gradually get used to his surroundings, but when he sees the dark expanses of rolling hills stretching out from either side of him, the light seems to drop several levels. only when the wind rocks him so hard his shoe catches in the sandy dirt below him does he finally get back to his senses.

before taehyung had shouted for them to leave, seokjin had been exploring the warehouse with mrs. kim and jae on either side of him, their flashlights shaky in their weary hands. they hadn't found anything, but he remembers a specific shout from namjoon a number of aisles away that startled him to hell and back, cursing under his breath when a sheepish laugh resounded next.

"i hate to be the kind of person to ask," mrs. kim had started, glancing to jae, "but why were you so...okay...with going into here? aren't you..."

"scared?" jae finished, and mrs. kim nodded in response. "well, naturally, yes. but being a society member means doing daunting things like this, and i've been a member for decades at the very least. i've done these 'missions' for as long as my body has continued to allow."

seokjin smiled in admiration. that takes guts that the majority of people don't have.

"but abraxas..." mrs. kim paused, clearly unsure of herself. "taehyungie has been tormented by this...this thing for as long as i can remember and it's here now. isn't that a little startling? very startling? how can you just walk in her so bravely knowing what it's done to my—our—son?"

jae was quiet for a moment. "...it's true i'm intimidated by abraxas, extremely so. but i trust taehyung more. much more. and he told us he's found a way to beat this monster. so that's how i can walk in here so courageously—because if that boy, who's been through hell and back and fought some battles along the way, can tip his chin up and walk into here with a steely face and strong words, then i sure can too. and you can also, love. i know you've done it before."

that stuck with seokjin—not because of taehyung's courage, but because of an inkling he's had ever since the moment he woke up in that hospital bed.

yeah. something's off.

"ah, god," jeongguk appears next to seokjin, wiping dust off his jeans with a scowl. "i can kiss sleep tonight goodbye, i guess."

afflicted / btsWhere stories live. Discover now