Hatching

Trapped

June 24th, 2017

They were a three-minute walk from the company. Dawa saw a swarm of news reporters and his legs started to feel like they were glued to the cement. All the flashes and cameras in his face made his head spin. People hiding behind their phones and cameras, he wanted to be somewhere quiet. Somewhere far, he wanted a view of the mountains with a warm cup of tea in his hands. He wanted to hold someone's hand. He wanted one of the members or all of them to hold him tight and tell him it would be okay. He wanted Yoongi's and Namjoon's overprotective shadow over him, glaring at those people in his face. He wanted Taehyung's and Jimin's silly banters, and Jungkook's baby eyes. He wished he could see Hobi's sunny smile that always resembled a heart. He wanted to feel Jin's sturdy and reliable nature. He had none of those. He was alone in a sea of faceless people.

They were asking for statements. For a word and sentence. "Why are you on hiatus?"

"Did you really kill your father?"

"What happened in that accident?" "Did you really blackmail your manager?"

"What will you do now?"

Do-Hwan was dragging Dawa. His legs felt like they were going to give out. His chest was starting to hurt. Breathing was starting to hurt. 'Just living is starting to hurt.' a voice in his head said though it sounded faint like it was speaking its last words.

When they arrived in the meeting room, his hands were shaking. He couldn't stop it from shaking. He hadn't been getting a wink of sleep. Every time he closed his eyes, an image of the signs with the words "murderer" in what resembled blood floated in his mind. He was mostly fine with being called a murderer. He knew he wasn't a murderer and his father also knew and told him to not blame himself in the letter. That was enough consolation. What caught him completely off guard was the blood. Or the ink that resembled blood, he was sure it was real blood. At the concert, whatever ink it was, it hadn't dried fully, and some got on his hands. The cloth that the word was written on smalled faintly of rusted metal. Recalling this specific moment made him sick to his stomach.

"Dawa, you don't look too good. We have set up a schedule for you. Come sit." Bang Si-Hyuk motioned for him to sit. Do-Hwan had gone off to get himself coffee and Dawa tea.

"I know you just got here so you can rest for the next 5 days. But on the 29th I think you should go to the countryside to clear your mind. I think Seoul will be too stressful for you at the moment." He explained. Dawa just nodded, unable to speak. He was greatly thankful because he had also wanted to go to the countryside.

"How long will I be there?"

"We got you a place for two months. We can always extend the time or shorten it depending on what happens. I also got you a therapist that will be staying with you there. Do-Hwan will also be there. The house has four bedrooms."

Dawa was relieved. He felt somewhat soothed by being somewhere secluded.

Do-Hwan entered and handed Dawa his tea. "Oh, did you tell him about the social media?"

"Oh right, thank you for reminding me Do-Hwan. I think it's best if you delete all the social media from your phone. Keep Whatsapp and message." Bang Si-Hyuk mentioned. "And while you're on hiatus, you're welcome to keep creating songs but you don't have to."

Dawa again just nodded.

"All you have to do is go to therapy and your therapist will tell you what you need to do every day and how much personal time you will have." Just then, Bang Si-Hyuk's phone started to ring. "I think that's all I have to say. Do-Hwan you have the keys to the house and the address right?"