Pandora Unleashed ✔️

Aftermath

* ⚠️ trigger warnings: mentions of abuse, assaults (sexual and physical), and panic attacks.

Heavy pants, merciless overflowing tears, and with a heart that felt like it was about to shatter into a million sharp pieces, you pressed the button to your floor on the elevator.

Almost home.

You kept replaying the moments you shared with Jungkook. Everything; from the day he'd piqued your interest when he moved in to merely a few moments ago. Every conversation, every day spent together, every experience - the good, the bad, and the ugly - all present in your mind from the moment you had gotten in your car and drove home.

Fumbling with your bag to retrieve your keys as the elevator doors opened, you began to whimper at the thought that that was it; the last conversation you would share, the last time you'd see each other, and it shook your entire core.

Breathe, in and out.

The feeling was something you couldn't quite describe. A brutal pain; one so devastating and crippling that you believed you would never find the strength to recover from.

You shouldn't be feeling this hopeless. Jungkook wasn't someone who you'd been with for years yet - despite the drift, regardless of your separation - there was always a part of you that hoped, somewhere in the back of your mind, that you would find each other again.

But after tonight, your entire body ached at the thought of your relationship reaching its expiration date. It felt final. It was over between you.
There was no hope, no love, nothing. Your relationship with Jungkook had evaporated and you could feel every fiber of your being shaking at the thought.

He didn't even look back when you called after him. You sobbed hard at the last pained look on his face. He was hurting you. Yes, but not really, Jungkook would never, not intentionally. You were the one who was destroying the only good thing you had.

With your keys in your hand, you attempted to unlock the door to the apartment but your unsteady grip and blurred vision made you sink deeper into a defeated state, cursing at yourself for not even being able to open a damn door.
The sudden sound of a squeak made you gasp as you turned to gaze out at the empty hallway.

Straightening your posture, you stared out in bewilderment, thinking perhaps one of your neighbors had taken the stairs. Cautiously, you walked toward the door that led to the staircase but no one was there. You stopped in your tracks as a sudden trembling thought pierced through you. No one was there.

It wasn't the first time this feeling arose. It had been there since you first received the letter. But things were moving fast and it became something dormant instead. In all honesty, the feeling had been there since the day you left Namjoon, however, it was letting its presence known...again. As though someone was watching you in silence and from afar, you had this overwhelming need to be on high alert. You rushed back to your door, in a state of panic, getting yourself inside as your breathing grew irregular.

Safe. Breathe, in and out.

Resting your head against the wooden door as soon as you assured all the locks were locked properly before remembering as a second wave of a panic attack occurred - breathe, in and out - that Namjoon was very much still out there.

➰

Loud grunts from a woman and the encouraging words of the instructor made you present in the moment. You had stupidly allowed your heart to revisit the fond memories you shared with Jungkook.