stockholm syndrome; k.th

[one]

the note

It was one of those rare nights where the whole city of Seoul slept soundly.

The streets were silent and the lights in all the apartment windows were either dimmed down or completely off. The bars were near empty and the shop owners had all gone home to their families. The night air tasted of asphalt kisses and thick, breathy fog that showed signs of a coming storm.

Only two souls roamed the streets, where they were soon bound to meet.

One was a young art student who attended a nearby university; her name was (Y/f/n) and she saw only the beauty in the world.

The other went by the name of Kim Taehyung; a broken boy with pitch black eyes that swallowed you whole. All his life, he had only seen the cruelties and pain that swept the earth like a plague.

xox

Despite the fact that it was quite late, (Y/n) had been craving a hot bowl of ramen and nothing could stop her from buying some. So she gathered her things and set out to the convenience store that was just a few blocks down from her apartment complex as it was probably the only place still open at this time of night.

Little did she know, this midnight snack would be the start of many things yet to come.

Meanwhile, Kim Taehyung meandered down the empty streets of the city aimlessly. He was bored and alone and he craved for something interesting. Something to entertain him. Something to distract him from the hollow space in his rib cage where his heart was supposed to be. He was just so tired of feeling so alone in this dark and miserable world of sins and secrets.

Finally, he plopped down on the curb outside of a convenience store, it's neon lights blinking incessantly from the windows as he watched the few customers inside. After a few minutes, he was still bored. Taehyung shifted his sight to the left and his eyes met with the figure of a girl, probably only a year or two younger than him.

She was beautiful.

Her skin was fair and unblemished, as if chiseled from a white marble stone by the hands of a god. Her amber brown eyes shone like sunlight through a bottle of whisky, shaded by her thick, curling, beautiful eyelashes. Her legs, long and slender moved with the agility of a leopard as she approached the store, typing away on her phone as she walked. Tousled (h/c) hair framed her face like tendrils of billowing smoke.

She was absolutely breathtaking. Taehyung was sure she was an angel, but then again, heaven is a long, long way from here.

Never before had he believed in love at first sight or soul mates, or really even acknowledged that love existed. He believed those type of things were only real in fairy tales and dreams. But as he layed his eyes on her ethereal figure, for the first time he felt as if there was a point to all this madness, to all this chaos and pain, to all the times he felt like giving up but deciding to stick around a little longer.

For the first time he believed in love and goodness. His worries melted away.

All with just one glance.

And for the first time in his life he had seen true, untampered beauty with his own eyes. Something Taehyung thought was fictitious.

The girl put her phone in her pocket and opened the door to the convenience store. Taehyung stood from the curb, pulling his hood over his head and watching silently through the glass window at a safe distance as she picked up a few microwaveable cups of ramen noodle soup. He watched as her lips moved in a mesmerizing way when she spoke to the cashier, causing a small spark of jealousy to run up his spine as he thought about how he couldn't hear her voice, yet the lowlife man at the counter could.

Taehyung sighed in admiration.

She was gone just as quickly as she had appeared, leaving the small store and heading down the same street she came from. He observes her figure as she walks away before scampering off after her, far enough behind that she wouldn't detect being followed.

She didn't live far from the store at all, unfortunately though, she lived far from Taehyung, whose home was on the complete opposite side of Seoul. He didn't care though, as he followed her home he was already devising plans to see her again.

He had this . . . Instinctual urge persay, that he needed to protect her and keep her safe from the wickedness of the world. That he needed her beside him in order for life to go on. He felt it was his duty to shield her from everything and everyone, and keep her love close to his heart.

He must protect her with his life.

He has to have her, no matter the cost. He was certain that she was all he ever needed; all he ever wanted.

And Kim Taehyung always gets what he wants.

Taehyung looks up at the tall building the girl stops in front of, glancing at the sign. Richensia Apartment Complex, it read. He should have stopped following when he saw that she had reached her home, but curiousity got the best of him and he wanted to know which apartment number she lived in and on what floor.  He wanted to know everything he could about her. So when she entered the building Taehyung waiting about thirty seconds before going after her, following her up the stairs in silence and to her door.

Floor three, apartment twenty-four.

Taehyung smiled to himself as he leaned against the wall outside her door to catch his breath. He couldn't remember the last time he wore a genuine smile, one not faked or being used to manipulate someone. One where he wasn't smirking misheviously. Or snickering at something ridiculous.

But now he was smiling, only he didn't quite know why.

He was just . . . Happy.

At least, that's what he thought it was. Taehyung had felt many emotions throughout his  twenty two years of life; blood boiling anger, soul wrenching sadness, freedom, emptiness, boredom, heart breaking loneliness, humiliation, numbing fear. But never really had he felt happiness, and never love either.

Quickly, Taehyung sifted through the contents of his black bag and pulled out a post-it note and a pen, hurriedly scribbling a message and sticking it to her door.

you are beautiful
-k.th

Then he skittered back down the steps and out the apartment complex where he knew he didn't belong, peeking back behind him to glance at the girl's lovely figure on the balcony, puffs of steam hitting her face from her bowl of instant noodles. Then he practically pranced all the way home, his mind invaded with happy thoughts, a nice contrast from the usual dark and overwhelming ones that consumed his entire being.

4/2/18