Beastly Beauty ✓

15. The Vision

Jimin was no longer by my side. The others had disappeared, but the very thing I was trying to escape stood only an arm's length in front of me. Shock threw me into a frozen state and while I remained shackled by terror, my wide eyes took note of all that was before me.

I was still in the theatre. Still in the worn and tattered seat. The lights were still dim and flickering, their glow swaying on the walls. The space was still filled with an eerie emptiness that only abandonment could bring. The difference was the being who refused to leave me alone. 

His cloak was black as the deepest ink with length enough for the bottom to kiss the ground. Gold trimmed the edges of his sleeves, setting his leather gloves apart. I searched desperately for a face, even just one discernable feature, but the large hood of the cloak hung low enough to cover his eyes and what was left untouched by the hood was veiled instead by the darkest shadows. He was like night itself: mysterious, threatening, and elusive.

The chains of fear that kept me bound snapped apart as he stepped forward, reaching a hand out to me. As if being led by puppet strings, my arm lifted and my palm was placed in his, the leather cold against my skin. Wordlessly, he helped me stand. The dominant aura emanating from him made it feel like he towered above me, though in truth, his frame was not as large as I would've guessed.

I hadn't been able to summon my voice in the minute that had passed, but when he stayed quiet and tilted his head to the side like he anticipated something from me, words finally fell from my lips.

"What do you want from me? Why won't you leave me alone?" Though my voice wavered slightly, I did not sound nearly as frightened as I truly was. At my words, he released my hand, and I could sense his sights lock in on me despite not seeing his eyes.

"I hate being so close to you yet not being able to express my true feelings," he said in that distorted, unrecognizable voice. "I thought I would have to wait until later tonight to visit you, but you made it so easy by falling asleep." He chuckled ominously, "Lucky me."

I realized then that if the man before me was real, if he truly was the one who sent me the letters and he knew I fell asleep, it meant he had to be one of the five that were with me in the opera house. Hoseok and Seokjin had left so there was, presumably, no way for either of them to know that I fell asleep.

Only inches away from him still, I stood my ground. If this was a dream, he posed no real threat to me. I had to act despite my fear and take the chance to learn more. So I asked him, "Why don't you reveal yourself? If you truly care about me, why hide your identity?"

His body remained unmoving and time ticked by with the rapid beating of my heart. While all I could feel was the rise and fall of my own chest, it appeared as though he wasn't even breathing. Finally, he responded.

"There are... complications. Besides, I'm waiting until you are ready."

His answer did not sit well with me, but I'd known from the start that it likely wouldn't. I tried another question, "Who am I to you? You usually speak as if you know me."