STRAY // JJK x HYBRID (bunny)✔️ Re-Writing

CHAPTER 38

BO-YOUNG

The jetty nearest to the large house is quite banged up. The wooden planks have gaps, and moss and rot are slowly crawling up the legs holding up the dock. It seems unstable, to say the least.

The closer we get to land, the more I notice the state the large house is in. Jungkook wasn't kidding when he implied that it was abandoned. The walls are full of gaps, the wooden boards splitting at some points. The white paint on the outside is slowly chipping off.

"What happened to this place?" I ask as Jungkook rows the boat to the sandy shore. The trees are larger, and the forest seems much denser than the one around Jungkook's.

"Well, after the Yoon family moved away, this place was bought by an elderly man. He was a widow, I think. I rarely saw him come out of the place. Every month, he'd row out on his old wooden boat and buy a ton of groceries. After he died, no one wanted to buy the house. Since then, it's been empty," Jungkook explains. "Not many people want to live in a secluded house like this. I doubt it'll ever be bought. It'll just rot and fall apart, slowly but surely."

"Well, repairing it when it's this far from the town would be very difficult, so I don't blame people for not wanting it," I agree. "Is it safe, though?"

"Quite. It's not got any asbestos yet, nor are the supports weak enough to crumble," Jungkook tells me.

He picks up speed, rowing the boat onto the sand. The boat tips and Jungkook jumps out, splashing some water onto himself accidentally. He offers his hand to me, hoisting me out of the boat and onto the sandy shore.

"Here, you carry this," Jungkook says as he hands me the quilt. He picks up the bag of snacks and begins walking, holding it in his right hand. I walk on his left, holding the quilt over my shoulder. We make our way up the small hill. I don't know when Jungkook changed his shoes back to the sneakers, but he did.

As we near the top of the hill, Jungkook takes me by the hand and begins to walk faster. He's beaming, swiftly making his way along the side of the house towards the front.

"The last time I've come here was when I was 20. I've never brought anyone else here," he says as he leads me to the grand front doors.

The door is an eggshell white color, with small salmon-colored accents. Some of the paint has chipped off, but not as badly as on the outer walls of the house. The door creaks loudly as Jungkook swings it open.

"The door's not locked?" I ask, surprised that getting in was so easy.

Jungkook shakes his head. "No, not anymore. After it was empty for a year, I broke the lock," he tells me, walking into the living room of the old house.

It's quite dark and drab inside. Not much light is shining through the windows due to the thick curtains blocking out the sun. The small gaps in the walls are the only light source.

The living room and the dining room seem to be connected. There are large couches covered in thin white plastic tarps. Over them, there is an extravagant glass lamp in the style of a chandelier. Through the large arch leading to the dining room, I can see a long wooden table. It's a lighter wood than what was used in Jungkook's house. Cabinets line the end of the room, the kitchen area situated right under it.

"Come on, let's go up," Jungkook suggests, giving me a reassuring and warm smile as he takes my hand once more, leading me up a set of stairs. I hadn't noticed before that there were stairs since they were so far off to the side.

There is more light on the second floor. The walls are more parted, letting in the golden light of the sun. More peculiarly, there is nothing up here. Not a single piece of furniture can be seen here. The floorboards, though more stable than the walls, are still slightly split at some points. Specks of dust float around, making the room look like the scene of a nostalgic flashback.

Jungkook steps closer to me, looking down at me with a smile before taking the quilt off of my shoulder. He sets it down on the ground. He sits cross-legged on the quilt, taking out a couple of the items from the bag.

"Come sit," he invites, taking out a packet of crisps and some strawberries. I sit down in front of him.

"That's an odd combination," I point out. He stops for a moment, digging up the camera from his pocket and pointing it at me again, taking another picture. "That's seriously creepy," I laugh.

"I just thought you looked pretty. The dust and the lighting make for an amazing picture," he tells me, looking at me fondly as he waits for the picture to process. I cover my cheeks with my hands.

"So cruel," I mumble dramatically. Jungkook just laughs.

"It's not cruel," he defends. I shrug, picking out one of the strawberries and eating it. I hear Jungkook mutter something, but it's hard to tell what he said.

"So, you brought me to an abandoned house on the other side of a lake to have a picnic?" I ask, ignoring the fact that this would be the perfect place to murder someone.

"Yeah, I thought it'd be fun. I also do have something I have to talk with you about, but it can wait. Let's eat," he tells me, pulling out a few store-made sandwiches.

"Okay," I say wearily, taking one of the sandwiches offered.