「Stalker Unknown || Saeyoung Choi x Reader」

「four」

"You sound so hot when you talk like a cop," you cooed. Certainly not the most appropriate time to make such a comment, but it was the only thing you could say to make this whole situation more normal. There weren't too many girls your age receiving terrifying messages from a mysterious stalker and you wanted to pretend, just for a moment, that everything was normal for you as well.

"I'll remember to bring the handcuffs next time," he teased, causing you to giggle. The joking around was short-lived, though. "Now that the stalker is confirmed to be a male, I've been freely able to hunt for possible suspects, one of them being that childhood friend of yours-"

"Hye?" you inquired in a soft tone filled with dread.

"Yes. Don't worry; as much as I want to rule him as the stalker and get this whole thing over with, I looked further into it and the more I searched, the less I seemed to find. No criminal history, no possible motive, nothing."

He sighed and sat back in his chair, rubbing his temples as he did so. Whoever this person was, he sure did know how to cover up his tracks and make this search a hell of a lot harder for Saeyoung. No matter what, he wasn't going to give up, even if it killed him in the process.

"So... Does this mean it's safe for me to head over to his place later? I don't want to disturb you from your work, but I don't want to be by myself either."

"Yeah, it should be fine. Just be careful, babe, okay? Text me every hour and inform me if he shows any signs of suspicious behavior."

"Yes, yes. I'll be careful," you drawled, rolling your eyes at his protectiveness despite your secret love for it.

"I love you, [name]."

"I love you too, Saeyoung."

* * *

You finally managed to get a few hours of sleep after getting off the phone with Saeyoung. It wasn't many hours, but it was still something. When you woke up, you couldn't stand to be in your apartment any longer. It was supposed to be your safe place, but all you felt was fear.

At around one in the afternoon, you took the thirty-minute drive to Hye's apartment. Giving him a warning ahead of time had completely slipped your mind and all you could do was hope he'd be home. You rang the doorbell and waited several seconds to see if he would open the door, your feet subconsciously shifting back and forth in nervousness.

Right before you were about to turn around and head back to your own apartment, he opened the door. A smile appeared on his face the moment he noticed it was you.

"[name]!" he exclaimed. "I wasn't expecting a visit from you."

"Hey, Hye. Sorry for coming over so suddenly - I know I should've called and everything-"

He chuckled. "No need to apologize. Come on in!"

You felt the burden of anxiety weighing on your shoulders suddenly disappear after stepping inside the apartment. Just being in the presence of another person that you trusted was enough to make you feel so much lighter. You sat down on the couch with him and released a contented sigh.

"So what brings you here? It's quite a way from your own apartment."

"Oh, I, uh..." you stammered. You didn't want to flat out tell him about the stalker issue. It was already bad enough that Saeyoung got involved; you didn't want Hye getting dragged in it as well. "I got a rodent problem in my apartment. They're working on fixing it now, but I can't stay there for a moment. My boyfriend's working and I didn't want to bother him, so I was kind of hoping you'd be free to entertain me."

"Of course," he chuckled. "You know you're always welcome here. In fact, if the boyfriend is going to be busy all day, you can spend the night on the couch if you'd like. I don't want you to have no place to go to."

"No, it's fine! I couldn't ask that of you." It was true. After showing up to his home out of the blue, you would feel absolutely awful staying overnight at his place. You were already being rude as it is.

"You're not asking, though. I'm offering," he chuckled.

"A...Alright then. Thank you."

"No need to thank me, [name]. Just being a good friend. Just so you know, though, I've already made plans to go visit my grandmother at the hospital tomorrow. I'll be leaving early."

"That's fine! I hope she gets better."

"Yeah, me too," he sighed. "Depressing topics aside, I just bought some new horror movies. Care to binge them with me?"

You couldn't help but smile. That offer was perhaps the best thing you've heard since this whole situation started. Even if it was just for a few hours, this would be a normal night for you.

"I'd love to."