The Seven Wonders of My Life (BTS) ✔

Chapter 13

I was scared.

Terror couldn't even begin to describe what I felt at that moment.

Which second I regretted most was hard to point out among all the foolish things I'd done in the past. Whether it was the time I'd decided to rebel against J-hope's warning not to return to the castle, or even the day Taehyung and I had our little escapade in the enchanted forest. Or even if it was all the way back when I'd first dared to set foot on its borders. But no matter how much I regretted, there was no escaping the fact that everything had led to this. I'd met the devil himself.

"Tell him he won't be seeing me three weeks or ten years from now," I said as I stood up with my fists clenched by my sides.

"You're a notch too feisty for a girl in your position." The large man approached me and pulled me towards him by the collar of my dress until I could feel his breath on my forehead. "Be a good one and don't be a pain in the arse."

I tried to ignore the tightness around my throat as I felt the front of my dress snap thread by thread and the ribbon come undone in his fist. The wise approach was to avoid his fury and go along with them until they let me go. But I was never known to be wise and the way his eyes slid downwards and his lips curled into a dirty smirk were enough for me to let go of the last shred of control I'd held on to.

"Trash like you should burn in hell!" I screamed into his face and a jerk of my knee aimed between his legs had him howling in pain with hands covering his crotch. But even though I'd put all that was left of my strength in that blow, he'd recovered sooner than I'd expected and launched a flying fist towards my jaw. The punch was enough to send me back to my knees, coughing out blood as I watched him aim another blow, this time with his foot, towards me.

But then we all heard it. A sound so deep and terrifying the leaves fell from their branches and crows fled away from their hideouts within the trees. It was the unmistakable growl of a canine. A large one.

"Damn it, Ralph. Let's go!" The old man exclaimed in alarm and smacked the bigger one on the head.

The familiar crunch of leaves signaled that the creature was getting closer to where we were. Arms clutched around my middle where I was punched, I brought myself to a sitting position. Though I never expected either man to help me escape the monster's claws, when both men threw me one last glance before hopping on their horses that had been tied aside, the realization hit; I was dead meat. I tried to bite it my fear and stand back up, but my trembling body couldn't seem to leave the ground.

"Help!" I called out, hoping--praying--that there was someone in the woods who can hear me.

I was in a part of the woods I had never seen before. The trees were bleak and dark. Their trunks were ashy brown and their branches almost bare. The few leaves that I could see were an eerie shade of olive green. The only source of life I'd glimpsed in the area were the menacing crows hovering above as if waiting for their next prey. And of course, the furious creature that was now approaching me.

I could hear its haggard breathing as it grew closer and with every rustle, I felt my heart jump into my throat. With my eyes fixated towards the direction of the sound, my hands reached out around me feeling the grass for anything I could use as a weapon. My fingers fell on a long, hard wooden branch and like a life rope, I snatched it towards me. But instead of using it for defense, I went for the other strategy. Escape.

Leaning my weight over the wooden stick, I pulled myself to my feet and ran. My steps were clumsy and distorted, but I ran nonetheless. Pointed edges of branches around me grazed my cheeks as I brushed past them and thick roots that curled all around the ground beneath my feet had me tripping every other second. But no matter how I fast I ran, the rustle of footsteps never ceased and the chase continued until my lungs started burning and gasping for rest. But my heart only leaped faster at each step I heard despite my lungs and legs' protests. However, there was a limit to how much I could try and, eventually, a thorny bush clung to the fabric of my dress as I passed it, and pulled me back until I fell to the ground below. Gasping for breath, I yanked at the dress stuck in the pointy thorns' grip. The sharp needles pricked my fingers every time I tried to undo the hem of my dress and the shiver running through my whole body made it even worse. Nonetheless, I didn't let up and instead, I scanned my surroundings for the approaching animal, the wooden stick aimed out in defense.