I'M BACK
kind of ;-;
_
His surroundings are eerily quiet, the silence pressing on his eardrums and making them ring. He'd taken out his earbuds, hoping the subtraction of music would grant him focus if Taehyung just so happened to be somewhere within the woods. And if he was, he was surely going to wish he wasn't. Yoongi would make sure of that.
Since it was still early and the rain clouds still linger just thick enough to cast a shadow over the area, he has to squint to see into the distance. Twigs snapped and particularly wet patches of earth squish and squelch beneath his feet. Yoongi's face twists as he feels his right foot sink into what he hopes is mud. He hasn't encountered any animals, not even insects (which he admittedly thinks is strange), so he simply assumes he's safe for the moment. Worry furthers the frown he's pulling when he tries to remember if bears inhabit this part of the country. He really hopes not.
Over ten minutes goes by and he is still walking with no sign of Taehyung. The faint trail he had followed was no where in sight, he wants to go back. Yoongi turns his head, looking all around for anything that looks familiar. He hears the rustling of leaves behind him as his feet come to a stop.
Up until this moment, there had been no sound besides his feet crunching through the forest. He whips around, only to see a branch fall a few feet away. The hair on his arms stands on end. "Taehyung," he calls into the deep green haze that settles around him, "Is that you?" He can make out the tail end of dark blue denim stained brown with dirt. "Hey!" Yoongi doesn't know if its Taehyung, and this figure could be literally anyone. He tries not to recall all those late nights he spent binge-watching horror movies where teens ended up slaughtered among pretty woodland scenery. Yoongi isn't a dumb adolescent looking for a thrill, so surely he should be safe, right?
On a hopeful prayer, he moves through the brush towards the figure. "Taehyung?"
Now, Yoongi doesn't know much about Taehyung, but he does remember the time when he led Yoongi on a wild goose chase through town on a whim, so when the figure bolts farther into the woods, he doesn't hesitate to follow, albeit a hell of a lot slower.
The more he moves, he finds he's swatting aside low hanging, thin branches and grasping vines that tether him in place if the tip of his shoes stay too long in spot. He can see brown hair now, tanned limbs weaving through the obstacles with ease and almost like they weren't even there. He continues to chirp out Taehyung's name, hoping by some miracle that the kid would stop. \
Finally, he stumbles into a clearing of sorts, hands splaying out to break his fall as he trips for what must be the millionth time since he entered the Godforsaken forest. He rights himself as quick as he can with his pants threatening to slip from his lower half with the amount of moisture they'd absorbed. He whips his head back and forth, looking for any sign that Taehyung had passed, as he'd been following the kid until just right before he fell. He can't see any form that remotely looks humanoid, so he sighs. He's regretting so much.
In his annoyance, he's able to make out the sound of trickling water, like a tap has been left on in the middle of the night. Crickets peep out notes of their song as he passes, stumbling down a small hill and towards another spattering of trees. The closer he comes to the line of towering giants, he is surrounded by taller, thinner blades of grasses. The patch he stands in is thick enough he can't see his feet. He looks out, over the rest of the area and sees the thin line of a stream glittering in the sunlight that peeks through the treetops. He might have better luck navigating (and finding a way out) if he stayed along the stream. At least, he hopes.
He can feel the anxiety bubble in his chest.
Sometimes, he forgets about it, but at times like this, when he doesn't feel in control of his situation, his little monsters come back around to poke fun at him. He lets it pass, trudging slowly through the marshy ground, using soft footsteps to avoided falling onto his face. Subtracting the undeniable fact that he is utterly lost, the day is fair. Earlier humidity from the early morning shower is almost unnoticeable now, there is a wind that chills him even, the damp fabric encasing his legs and the sweat on his brow feel sticky against his skin. He's all too aware of how quiet it is, but now, the gentle whoosh of wind and chattering animals keep him company. He dozes, the calm settling into his bones, despite being upright and uncomfortable.
He walks until he thinks he should stop, something tells him he should. It feels foreign, unlike instincts, but not completely apart from himself. The water sounds are louder now, and he feels like he's being watched. He squints to focus the scene before, but stops short when he sees a body hunched over at the edge of the widest part of the stream.
He hesitant to draw any closer than his is, but that feeling comes back and he can't stop himself from moving. His feet feel heavy and he shakes unconsciously. "Taehyung?"
He doesn't know what he expects, but the moment the body moves, it feels wrong. Yoongi feels bile rise in his throat as it faces him and he can see nothing but an expanse of dirty skin and wet hair.
"T-there... N-n-no..." He stutters like he hasn't since he was a child.
It's void of eyes, lips, a nose, and everything a human face is supposed to have. The body is soaked in murky water, a white shirt clings to a bony frame and tattered shorts are caked in mud and gray matter that is nausea-inducing.
Yoongi can't move, petrified into a stone version of himself. There's a split second where that little feeling inside him pushes it way to the surface, telling, begging him to not be afraid. However, that's the only thing he can feel.
And his bones are shaking with such ferocity he doesn't know if he'll ever be still again.
He's never known this feeling of fear, so intense it rips through him like a storm and stops his breathing and blinds him from anything but his inevitable, complete panic.
He thinks he might start crying as he loses his footing and goes crashing to the ground, the palms of his hands scraping against fallen twigs and decaying plant life beneath him as he tries (and fails) to get back up. He knows that somewhere deep inside, his rational mind is telling him to calm down, to focus, he's imagining this, is all. He just needs to get up, turn around and go back to the motel. He needs sleep, it has been alluding him more and more these days.
Or this is all a bad dream. These last few months of his life haven't really happened and he is safe at home, waiting for his father to call him as he lazes in his extravagant studio apartment like some big, fat house cat. Maybe when he wakes up, he'll go out to get something to eat, something sweet and better than week old motel pastries with congealing glaze and buzzing flies all around them.
He's entertaining the idea, but them that thing starts rising from it's crouched position and he is struck with fear all over again, this time, the flight response kicking in hard and sending him scrabbling up and away, eyes shut tight and mind racing.
Yoongi has his fair share of hallucinations brought on by his incessant, ever-present insomnia, but his mind doesn't play these kinds of cruel tricks on him. He knows that for sure. So, he runs and runs, not looking back because this is real and he is so terrified of everything all at once.
_
unedited
disclaimer, i wrote this over a span of months in single sentences or even a few words, so it may be hella inconsistent sry
