"We become the monsters we're most afraid of."
---
"Jimin," she breathed out. "You're allowed to touch me."
His plump lips slightly parted as a gasp escaped him. "I-" he exhaled, his fingertips slightly grazing her cheek.
"I'm someone else tonight...
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His face slack and indifferent, Yoongi strolled down to stand next to the gloating Jiah.
Lightning came, ripping the utter blackness of the night sky in two.
Aera felt as if she had been stabbed in the back. The betrayal was physically painful, like a cold hard blade pressing against her skin. But could this really be considered a betrayal? Had Yoongi ever pledged her loyalty to her? No. A single act of kindness and a couple of sweet nothings didn't mean he'd had a change of heart. Deep inside he was still the same dishonest and deceitful person he had always been.
"I bet this is, ah, - how would the youngsters nowadays put it? - really shitty." Jiah's high-pitched cackle rent the air, penetrating Aera's ears.
"Why?" Aera simply asked, her tormented gaze locked onto Yoongi's. Almost blending with the night in his usual all-black attire, he did not flinch or remove his eyes away from her. Her heart shifted at the sight of his merciless stare.
"Because why not!" Jiah exclaimed, clapping her hands enthusiastically. "I knew seeing your old lover here would make you vulnerable. To be honest, your reaction is actually better than what I anticipated, even though I expected tears, but oh well." She shrugged nonchalantly. "I guess you're just too good at being a fucking disappointment."
Aera desperately searched Yoongi's face for any kind of sign of his true intentions. Her heart raced. There was nothing in his eyes, only bare coldness. He wouldn't be her savior after all.
Jiah swayed past the statuesque Yoongi, taking a seat back on the bench and crossing her legs in front of her.
"If you'd allow me, Aera – and you really have no chance here but to do it – let me give you a friendly advice. Being good will get you nowhere. Look at you – you're the same gullible and trusting fragile woman like your mother was. And where did that get the both of you?" Jiah spread her arms wide, gesturing to her surroundings. "Your grave, quite literally." She snorted in the form of a laugh, impressed by her terrible joke.
"You think you're so virtuous, always looking for the good in people," Jiah went on, tucking a scarlet red strand behind her ear. "But to refuse to play dirty in a corrupt world is not heroic. It's dumb." She grinned widely. "Yoongi knows that. Don't you, Yoongi?"
"Yes." Yoongi grumbled in a monotonous voice.
"I just thought of a way we could make this even more fun," Jiah enthused, pushing herself off of the bench and waltzing towards the black-haired man, draping one arm over his shoulders. Her thin fingers caressed his chin as her mouth whispered close to his ear. "Tell me, Yoongi. Have you ever had any intention of helping Aera?"
"No." came his short reply.
"Have you ever truly loved Aera?"
A brief pause followed as his cold raw stare stayed fixated on the girl.
