SCARRED | TK

Chapter Nine

I told you guys that this book is the most complex book I've written and I wasn't lying (obticeō is a child next to this thing)

I know it might be confusing but please pay attention to every detail. The following chapter will have more explanations.

***

"Why'd you spend your time leading the chorus
When the war was just waiting before us?
As if you didn't know
You ignored all the darkest of warnings
Found our end in the silence of morning
It fell beneath the cold."

The metal door which he was so accustomed to suddenly opened, making his body flinch in the slightest way under the covers at the sound of its screeching edges. However, Jeongguk did not raise his head, for he already knew he would not be greeted by that radiant smile or those bright eyes he had started to like. He had come to recognize his heartbeat, it's slow rhythm, and the person behind that door was not him.

The boy cuddled deeper under his warm blanket in an attempt to hide himself from the man who was looking at him curiously, his eyes not filled with warmth, like Taehyung's, but with pure malice. He wasn't Seokjin, but an unknown man who had been visiting him in the last few days. He could see it in their eyes, their viciousness. They all looked at him like he was someone they should fear, like he was just a tool for them to wield.

Jeongguk despised them all. He hated them all and his blood burned in his veins each time he saw their eyes.

He hated them all, he knew that, but he couldn't find it in himself to hate Taehyung—the one who had been nice to him. He had brought him pencils, food, and had made him laugh. Among all those monsters, Taehyung was the only one who seemed to own a heart.

He was worthy of salvation, something in Jeongguk's mind whispered.

Jeongguk did not understand what that man was doing in his room or what his purpose was because the man never talked. He always carried some kind of device in his hand that made sounds, sounds so loud and disturbing that Jeongguk started trembling every time the man appeared ahead of him.

The boy had also noticed that for several days, perhaps weeks, his blood had not been collected, and suddenly his meals were filled with dishes he had not tasted before. It was almost like they were starting to treat him better, like an actual human being instead of an experiment.

Still, Jeongguk couldn't help but wonder why was Taehyung no longer coming to meet him? It's been days since the last time he had seen the doctor, days since that stranger had started coming into his room instead, hurting his mind without him even knowing it.

Those sounds, those sounds made his thoughts go wild and his head felt like it was exploding from the inside whenever he heard them. They brought out thoughts and memories Jeongguk didn't even know he owned.

Despite the newer and better treatment, the pills were still there, on his tray, and a doctor was always by his side to make sure that he actually took them. Jeongguk didn't want to take them because, deep inside, he was aware that those pills were the ones putting a barrier between his mind and the other thoughts he sometimes had, but he had no choice.

He took them because refusing to do so would've led to violence and Jeongguk was pretty sure he had no more unscarred space left on his body, no space left for them to cut into.

***

Taehyung let the documents fall to the ground, not caring for a moment that someone might step on them or that everyone in the room was staring at him with wide eyes, their lips held tightly into a straight line as they waited for him to speak—guilt could be seen in their eyes. Taehyung himself was staring at the man ahead of him, wondering how the hell did he even have the courage to look him in the eye after everything he's done.