Beastly Beauty ✓

36. The Reunion

36 | THE REUNION

Taehyung's irises were as chilling as ever, his face still carved of stone.

"I was waiting for the right time to tell you. You didn't know enough about yourself before, but today... I could sense that you finally unleashed your power, which means you've learned enough about who you are, at the very least."

I was still whirling from what he showed us. What does it mean? Is he really like me? Can he be trusted?

"Why are you here?" Jungkook asked from a step ahead of me. "You showed up right when Jangmi got here. You gave her that necklace. None of it is a coincidence, so what are you here for?"

"I'm here to help." Taehyung was still calm, to-the-point, and it felt so fitting. If he really was a Descendant of the moon, perhaps it had a part to play in that cold presence of his.

"We need more. Who are you? How did you ever know to come here to help me in the first place?" I asked.

A deep inhale before he answered, peering through his black curls. "They were assigned to follow Hoseok's steps for years, just to keep an eye on him. They had to watch for any incidents and make sure he wasn't using his power against anyone."

"Who is they?" I couldn't see Jungkook's face, but he sounded nervous as he asked what I was also wondering.

Taehyung's eyes flickered between both of us. "Yoongi and Namjoon."

"They're part of this too?" I breathed. To protect me? How?

"Look, I don't want to spend too much time or the others will come to check on us. All you need to know right now is that we're part of a group that...monitors Bul-Gae and protects Descendents. Yoongi and Namjoon were assigned to Hoseok after he first started attending here." He paused, our eyes connecting. "Then you decided to enroll, and I was sent as an extra hand when they realized you'd probably come into contact with him again. They were afraid you'd trigger him to start using his abilities."

No mention of anyone but Hoseok. Does he even know that there's a second Bul-Gae?

"So, what? You're here to protect her from Hoseok?" Jungkook questioned, disbelief mixing into his words.

"Yes."

"But that's not—"

"Jungkook." I moved forward to catch his elbow. If he didn't know about the Hood, I wanted to keep it that way. At least until we decided on what to believe. Jungkook glanced at me, but I latched my attention to Taehyung. "You're a Descendant of the moon, right?" His power wasn't like mine. Similar, somehow, but...

He nodded, and that straight face cracked just enough for a single shard of amusement to fall through. "Yin and Yang. Opposite but the same."

If there hadn't been a significant rip in all my suspicions, all my guesses of who the Hood might've been, perhaps I would've found it amusing—maybe even comforting—to know that there was someone else like me. Someone who might understand the force in me that continued pulsing and quivering its way forth.

"We should go before the others come," I said. Jungkook looked at me strangely, but stayed silent.

Taehyung replied, "We still have a lot to talk about. Will you meet with us tomorrow?"

I had already found Jungkook's hand and began pulling him with me. "That's fine. Text me when and where." But before we made it out the door, a glimpse of my own reflection in the mirror sent my gut tightening in knots.

Aside from the frown that showcased my buzzing, frantic thoughts, there was an exhaustion in my eyes like I'd never seen. It was subtle, but the energy that normally lit my face was gone.