When my foot landed on the ground it was sharp at 8 o'clock in the morning. I stretched my back and arched a little to relax my body after a long ride here.
When I got out of the platform, the fresh morning breeze welcomed me and the bright sunlight assured me that I did not make a wrong decision by choosing this place as my project work for this semester's assignment.
I was very giddy and enthusiastic that I did not even pay any attention to the time while I was there. By the time, it kinda started raining, I became hungry and spotted a small ramen shop nearby for a shelter and food.
While eating I checked my phone for the first time. It was when a message popped up in my phone informing the train I was supposed to take to return will be 1 and a half hour late. Rather being tensed, I became excited knowing I will get more time to know this place and use as more raw informations as possible for my assignment.
Only if I knew what mysteriously menacing bizarre effect it will create for the rest of my life.
After finishing my meal, I started my journey to know the unknown. I gathered information related to the place, the water, the weather, the transportation, the farming system, their dialects and every other aspect related to my project from the indigenous people.
It took more time than I expected and the last thing I would have wanted was to miss the last train in this unknown place at this late night.
I checked before coming to this place that due to this place's undeveloped railway service there were only 2 trains per day which comes to this station.
However, I rushed to the platform before the informed time but to my surprise, the platform was empty without any announcements and most weirdly without any trace of passengers. There was only local people retuning to their houses after a long day of work.
I knew I couldn't be late since I reached at the same time they informed everyone the train will departure. But when I opened my phone, I couldn't believe my eyes after seeing the new message from that same railway department. There was another update from them telling "Dear passengers, for some technical reasons it would have been late as told but since the problem got solved in very short time, the train will leave the station in its usual time, we apologise for any inconvenience"
"Sorry, my foot-" I cursed a couple of times and could not think about anything else. Not to mention about this place's spooky environment. There was not a single stall of food in the platform I saw, when I reached here in the morning and on top that there was no trace of any human being close by.
Compared to the blissful and glorious morning the night was more of a dreadful, gloomy and lousy.
Nothing but to walk. After waiting for around 1 hour no train came. I knew it already but as a human can hope, I also kept on waiting. The cool night breeze tried to freshen me up and it did eventually. I gathered my things and despondently got up from my position where I sat to rest a bit.
I started walking slowly thinking of returning to any nearby cottage when I heard some noise, precisely it was footsteps coming right behind me. First, I thought it was normal but they were kinda changing the pace whenever I was changing.
I was getting scared, I was too scared to look back. My legs were getting stiffed, I couldn't walk faster as it seemed the footsteps were now right behind my ear. Before, I could start to run, one strong hand gripped my elbow tightly and yanked me backwards. I fell on the ground vulnerably, I got hurt in my back as it hit the stone hard ground. I looked up timidly when a male raspy voice addressed me "You slut, what are you doing here at this hour?"
An another man smirked and said "You want someone's attention so bad, huh? That you're wandering around here with this tiny skirt?"
The third person spitted his words like venom as it gave me the shivers of terror through my whole body "What if we fulfill your desire and you fulfil ours?"
I was shocked, scared... was wanting to punch them so hard right in their face but I was alone where they have multiple people.
One guy came and brushed his hand through my hair and pulled my hair back so hard, my skin burned in that sensation.
"Let me look at your pretty face" The guy made me look at him and that was when I kicked him in his balls and crawled under him and started running for my dear life.
The guy screamed in pain and the rest of them started running behind me. They were fast according to my speed but I gave my all to get away from them. "𝑰 𝒅𝒐𝒏'𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒅𝒊𝒆 𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒔𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒅𝒚𝒊𝒏𝒈. 𝑰 𝒘𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒏𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒘 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒐𝒖𝒄𝒉 𝒂 𝒃𝒊𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒚 𝒔𝒌𝒊𝒏".
"Catch her.. Catch her.. She shouldn't get away-"
Sweat was forming and I was sweating like hell in that cold weather. I was getting tired. There was only a straight platform, I couldn't take turn and hide. That was when I slipped off my leg on the wet platform and fell straight on my back. The ground was slippery as I fell on full pressure that I couldn't get up fast before they came from my back and caught me.
My brain wasn't working properly, it was becoming a haze, I was feeling dizzy by every second. If only I could have more power in my body or maybe if someone could come up and help me. I don't want to end up like this. My heart ached, tears were forming in my eyes while I started screaming "Somebody please help me.. p-please someone help mEeee-"
"Nobody will come, noone's gonna hear your scream, quit trying" the previous guy said sarcastically and was making his way toward me. I shut my eyes closed, tears flooding my cheeks with salty wetness, I wanted to disappear, I wanted to erase my existence then and there..
when a miracle happened.
As I heard a scream, I opened my eyes and looked up at the guy who was trying to touch me was now fell on his back in a few meters distance from me. His companions were bewildered but without caring much they were making their way to me with a hungry grin in their face when something happened again.
I saw someone with blonde hair, could be seen as someone with power and strength from afar who was shielding me and beating those bastards with inhuman strength. I was so shocked, I couldn't move from my place. I just watched his back until he finished confronting each of them and knocking every one of them down.
I couldn't blink the entire time, the guy came and spread his beautiful hand toward me, he helped me to stand up and tied a white cloth somewhat looked like his shirt's to my injured throbbing knee.
He was my savior. He saved my life. Before I could thank him he asked me in a deep and calm voice "Are you okay?"
I just hummed in response as I was too stunned to speak. He started walking ahead of me and without realising my footsteps started following him. Because of some untold reason he felt so warm and safe for me and most importantly the only person who wouldn't do any harm to me.
Without looking back he understood that I was following him but except asking why he questioned concernedly "Shouldn't you return to your home by now?"
I felt ashamed but I told him everything that has led to me in this vulnerable state. I felt like crying again remembering what hell I have been just saved from. Maybe a little silence could have ended up triggering me to cry again when he suddenly proposed "Do you want to go somewhere with me?"
"Okay" I replied almost unhesitatingly thinking what would happen if I just agree to go with him nevertheless. He did not say much instead gave me a pleasant yet sad smile. The first expression I got from him was nothing other than a deep unfulfilled sorrowness which was overlapping his gorgeous appearance.
Till today, I think agreeing with him was one of the best decisions of my life because what happened after that was nothing a normal living being could have ever witnessed or imagine in their lifetime.
Where the platform ends, there was a staring of a small forest in a 700m distance. But at night the whole place and specially the atmosphere has took an unexpectedly elegant turn. Inside the forest there was a stair ledding toward an unknown dimension.
"Do you trust me?" He asked after contemplating my reaction.
"Yes" I replied out of curiosity and with a bit of confusion.
We were walking there around a couple of minutes when he reached out his hand to remove one of the tree's branches in front of our faces. I had been here in the morning but beside this tall, thin mysterious figure what I was seeing just now wasn't the same what I saw in the morning.
Fantasy landscapes and wonderful sights could get embarrassed by this place's unearthly beauty. The first thing that hit me like a massage of aroma as I stepped forward was the sweet moist air of this heavenly place..
There was a huge excellent lake infront of my eyes, erasing all of the memories I have had of this place till now. The crescent moon-shaped lake was actually real that anyone could bound to believe this place was a part of some fairy tale's imaginary island.
The night sky was filled with millions of sparky twinkly starts that my 7 lifetime could have never counted the precise amount of it. The sky was brilliantly contrasting the blues and yellows as if it was thickly layered brushstrokes of Vincent van Gogh's The 'Starry Night' canvas painting.
I was so amazed by the beauty that I forgot to take a breath the entire time until he moved his long fingers like magic infront of my eyes and took me back into my senses.
"Is this real?" I gasped for air.
"Do you want me to disagree the sight your eyes are witnessing now?" Rather than answering my question his alternate question made me laugh.
"Shall we?" He gestured his hands like a charming prince as we both started walking beside the lake with my feet brushing against the silky, smooth green grass. The feeling of the grass in between my toes reminded me of my childhood where I used to spend a reasonable amount of time at the old forest near my grandparent's house.
I rested my eyelids and instantly, my ears could pick up the unnoticeable sounds of nature. The calming, repetitive sound of the falling water droplets from the previous rainfall through the leaves came together in gently, a hypnotic melody, casting a spell of serene tranquillity all over this mesmerising unknown place.
He was looking at me the entire time I had closed my eyes. The burning sensation of his dark gaze made me open my eyes when I got to notice his entire feature.
The way he looked, it was like all of this world's languages could quit from taking a participation in describing his celestial beauty. Words are not enough for this divine being.
His blonde hair was luminescencing the brightest grey in the presence of the full moon. He was calm, warm yet the opposite of livelihood. It felt like he was beyond the cycle of birth and death. Especially his eyes which seemed like carrying all the grief in this world, bright and glowing the honey brown of an ancient golden painting in some caves. He was living in his own timeline while getting the best out of it.
"How old are you?" I asked him while thinking of more reasonable and realistic questions.
"22" The word was followed by a sigh.
"You look pretty young than that" I tried to make him laugh but it did not instead we sat on the ground and eventually laid beside each other. The view from where we had laid was astonishing. The fireflies were everywhere most importantly it felt like assisting him at some point.
Our conversation felt like never ending. Both of us were persistent and wanted to know more about each other. He seemed pretty lone at first but as our conversation began he started to open up and feel ease with me.
"Your smile is so gentle" I complimented naturally in which he blushed red with his boxy smile. After that he became very quite for a moment.
We were just staring at the starts when he suddenly said "Thank you".
"Mm?"
"I said 'Thank you'!!" He repeated now in a grim tone.
"Yeah, I mean for what?" I kinda fake smiled, clearing the tension between us without understanding what just happened with him.
"Ahh nothing." He laughed and threw some flowers at me. The friendly connection we had grown in this one night was nothing like the friendships I've had till now.
I laughed instead of protesting. I loved being here, talking with him. It felt so nice being with him. I understood he was not sharing all of his emotions with me and I wanted to give him that space without asking for his reasons. This beautiful soul looked like bearing so much pain inside him. His face was full of mysterious yet the most comfortable place for anyone. He seemed like the most trustable person someone could be ever with.
"What's this?" I pointed at a red coller which was peeking out from his pocket.
"This is Yeontan's, my dog's" He replied still looking at the starry sky.
"Ohh really? He must be so cute but why are you carrying it with you?" I asked randomly but in answer he said nothing.
"When will you go tomorrow?" He asked after sometime, looking at me directly now. He shifted his position sidewise now as I also did the same.
"Probably whatever train comes, I'll take" I smiled but it faded after looking into his sad eyes. 𝑫𝒊𝒅 𝑰 𝒔𝒂𝒚 𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒘𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒈. 𝑰 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒚𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒇.
"Go safely and from now on don't take risks like that, okay? The world isn't the safest place always" He put his hand under his bread cheeks and got more comfortable than before in his position.
"Can I ask you, your name?" Whatever happened till now had really made me forget about asking his name when he knows mine.
"My name is Kim Taehyung" He replied with a small smile. He seemed so innocent and cute that I wanted to touch him but I controlled myself from doing that.
The unrealistic divine sight of nature, blissfully seraphic atmosphere, Taehyung being my savior and the guide of this unknown graceful world was making a serene view of some hypothetical collection of potentially diverse observable universes.
Fireflies were gathering around both of us when I said "Thank you so much for everything Taehyung, you're such a sweet soul".
I could have said more but it felt like all the day's tiredness was hitting me so hard all of a sudden making my eyelids heavy like bricks. I thought to ask him about where he lives and exchanging our numbers, things like that but out of exhaustion I decided to ask him tomorrow.
I couldn't able to open my eyes for so long but the last thing I remembered was his smiling warm face getting blurred and blurred until it was nothing than a black empty screen.
︵‿ヽ(￣﹃￣)ノ︵‿
A sound of whimper made me open my eyes. I opened my eyes slowly, trying to fix my eye sight with the bright light. I looked around to find out what was the source of that sound. I sat up after finding myself laying on the wooden bench. It was not so far from the sight.
My heart ached a little when I saw two couples probably married standing infront of a tomb. The woman was crying loudly. While her companion tried to make her comfortable by hugging her tightly so close to his chest. Though he was trying hard not to break into tears as it was so obvious just by seeing his red face probably for resisting his sobs. They whispered something to each other and after a while the woman kneeled down and took out something from her hand bag.
It was a plastic box contains something red in it. I got up from my place and slowly took some step towards them.
I didn't notice before but it was a cemetery. I was standing behind them the whole time while they were praying until the man turned and found me.
"Who are you, child?" His question made me brought back to senses.
I opened my mouth to answer when the middle aged lady turned around and mourned again "He was only 22".
Out of sympathy I asked them "Who?"
"Our son, dear. He was only 22 when he died"
"He never had any friends, he used to lock himself in his room until we brought our dog on his 18th birthday. His whole demeanour changed and we were nothing but a happy family until-" the lady took a deep breath and continued "-until the day he took yeontan out near the platform. Yeontan saw some butterflies and jumped on the railway track. Tae called his name many times but he couldn't get up on his own as the hight difference between the line and the platform was pretty high. A train was coming its full speed from the left. Tae couldn't care less and he jumped to save yeontan but could not save h-" she bursted into tears again when I felt the same urge to do so.
The man took his wallet out and showed me the picture of -
Of the boy I met last night.
I felt my head was getting heavy by every second that my legs couldn't balance my body's weight. If what I was thinking was true then...
"When did this happen?" I used every bit of my energy to ask when he answered "2 years ago".
After that everything got blurred for me. Even though I do remember the place had the same smooth and silky grass as last night but the view of this place was nothing like that night's. I don't know how I returned to my house but when I did, my mom hugged me so tightly and cried a lot thinking something might have bad happened to me.
It might have if only I couldn't get saved by a specific one.
I tried to make myself understand that whatever happened that day must have been a dream. Out of tiredness, I might have dreamt all sort of things but my sore knee and the real cotton cloth which was protecting my cut was like a strong slap of reality check for all of my non-trustable theories.
Even though I got scared at first but I have never forgotten the feeling he had made me felt in that entire night. There was nothing but the memories of that strange man for me to remember.
Today, on the same night after two years when it is raining, sitting beside my long window, there is only one thing I wished.
I remembered the movie which made me believe this -
"The cycle of collapse and rebirth continues. From the Big Bang 13.8 billion years ago, the elements which make up our bodies have reassembled again and again. They become stars, burn out, contract and shoot out into the universe, gathering in a vortex, it mixed together and later scatter apart. Someday, when this world comes to an end and the earth ceases to exist, perhaps we two will once again become a part of a massive vortex. Time will tell".
"Let's meet again, some day, Taehyung."