the ocean | p a r t e i g h t
"WELCOME TO
THE MAGIC SHOP"
IT WAS LIKE WAKING UP FROM A DREAM. He didn't understand the feeling entirely, but it was similar to that of having been awoken from a deep slumber, such so where every thing around him felt fuzzy and blurry and surreal.
He lifted his heavy eye-lids open, only to be blinded by the bright light surrounding him. Once his eyes began to adjust, however, rationality started kicking in, mostly over one thought—Although he knew he should be aching all over, he wasn't.
In fact, he felt great, as if he were floating on air.
Seokjin could feel the sand underneath him shift. His eyebrows pulled together in confusion as he got up off his back, into a sitting position, and took in his surroundings.
A beach?
He wondered how he had gotten to a beach so quickly in the first place, when it hit him. "This is probably a dream," he said aloud, "Just another dream." A light chuckle escaping him.
Unlike before, this felt like an actual dream. All around him was a field of gold sand, giving off a dream-like feeling, and ahead of him, the sparkling water of the ocean unlike any other that exists in reality.
A warm feeling settled inside him, the kind of feeling as if he were home. Safe. A small smile crept onto his lips as grabbed a handful of sand and felt it slowly fall back down from his hand. Even the sand felt soft, just like it would in a dream.
A feeling of serenity washed over him. Even though he knew he should be worried about his whereabouts, he didn't feel the need to at the moment.
What he really wanted to do, though, was get a closer look at the water.
Seokjin got up, brushing the sand off his plain white shirt and pants; an outfit he never owned before, but didn't care to question. He walked to the water, walking along the shore. The wet sand felt cold underneath his bare feat, and as he continued to walk, he looked back to see the footprints he had made.
He could see his reflection in the blue waters, instead of the brown hair he owned before or the pink hair from his past, this time it was pure black. It was as if all signs of his past was erased, and the burdens on his shoulders evaporated. His smile widened as he continued walking, feeling pure bliss.
Seokjin stopped, facing the ocean as he peered out, the warm sun washing over him.
"Am I in heaven?"
Many scenarios ran through his mind, none of them concerning him in the least. He felt at peace, even if temporary, and that was all that mattered to him in the moment.
He walked back to the sand and sat down. It was soft, almost as if he were sitting on a warm cloud, but he could feel the grains of sand on the palm of his hand.
Pulling his knees close to his chest and wrapping his hands around them, Seokjin peered out and just stared at the horizon. In the moment of tranquility, he closed his eyes as he listened to the soft sound of the tide pull and drift away in the distance. Though it was subtle, the sound of the water splashing against the shore filled his ears. And he wasn't alarmed when he heard the sound of the laughter of his friends all around him.
He kept his eyes closed and imagined his six friends running around, throwing sand at one another.
He could imagine Hoseok and Taehyung building a childish sand castle, only to have it stomped on by Jimin and Jungkook, or Jungkook and Taehyung splashing water at one another as Jimin tries to shove Jungkook in the water and fails, falling in himself.
Namjoon would be off scurrying around, looking for shells and sometimes crabs and bring them to us to show off. Yoongi, he would just be sitting on the sand beside Seokjin, staring fondly at the others as they played.
That was the perfect image he had in mind as he closed his eyes and dreamed. That was the kind of feeling of family he'd feel whenever he was together with them.
He felt he could stay there forever, pushing aside all of his worries and questions. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad, he thought, if I stayed here forever.
Seokjin opened his eyes, peering out to the ocean. The water looked like shards crystals dancing together in the water, shimmering in the warm sun rays.
To be honest, he did imagine going back in time on multiple occasions, reliving the moment he would meet his friends again, all of which being unrealistic. He always imagined laughter and just fooling around. After all, that was how it was — no matter where they were, as long as they were together, they were happy.
Suddenly, the memories came flooding in; waking up in his room, seeing Taehyung, the talk with the principal, the trailer park, the bruise, Seokjin running away.
Seokjin closed his eyes shut and clutched the side of his head as the memories sent a piercing pain in his brain. The memories came flooding in, as his breathing became irregular.
Regaining composure, Seokjin pulled his knees closer. He wondered if he could ever have that back, if what had just happened was truly reality.
Then was what happened to him before it all, him losing everything and becoming the successor of his father's company, was that a dream? or was it him seeing his friends again?
One thing was for sure — neither felt like a dream.
Then if that's the case, "Which was real?" he voiced.
As if time itself had stopped when a gravelling voice came from behind him, carrying a mocking tone with every word. "And here I thought you were a smart one this time," the man sighed.
바다 | the ocean
Seokjin whipped his head around, his eyes widening at the sight. Behind him was a set of large doors, leading to a grand room.
At the end of the room stood a lone booth, and though at first glance he didn't notice, until someone from inside it spoke aloud. "Now, tell me, Mr. Kim Seokjin. Why can't the both of them be real?" The man spoke again, his deep, inhumane voice sending chills down Seokjin's spine.
Seokjin looked in front of him, but the ocean and sand were both gone. He was sitting alone, in the middle of what looked to be a dark hallway.
What the--
"Aren't you going to come in, Mr. Kim Seokjin? You're wasting both my time and yours with your unnecessary delay," The man spoke in almost a mocking manner. Seokjin felt his eyes grow wide at the side, but nonetheless headed the command.
Seokjin got up off the ground and made his way to the booth at the end of the hallway. As he walked, he began to take in the room. The colour blue almost felt as if it radiated off of the walls and floor, but not just any blue. It was a colour he had never seen before, or at least in the moment. There stood a large gate which looked to be made of rusty iron on the far left side.
Something told him not to ever cross that gate, so he diverted his eyes and continued walking to the dark booth at the end of the colourful hallway. Usually, the booth would have looked out of place, but for some reason it felt as if it fit right in.
Finally reaching the booth, Seokjin got a closer look at the man inside. He wore a large cloak covering most of his face, only his lips revealed. Something about the man and the entire room and situation for that matter gave Seokjin a feeling as if he were here before, a feeling of having been down the hallway and talking to this man before. It was an unfamiliar feeling and something he couldn't put his finger on.
"Well, well, well," The man taunted, "You're much calmer than the last time you were here."
Seokjin had questions he needed to be answered and felt as if he were going to freak out, wondering who this man was or where he was in the first place, but he kept his calm demeanour. "Who are you?"
"What?" The man laughed, "You don't remember me, even after the long interesting chat we had last time? I feel offended." He chuckled. It sounded as if he were challenging him, in a way where it seemed almost taunting.
"No matter, your memory does not matter. You can call me... Abraxas. Sounds dramatic enough." The man laughed.
He didn't care much for the man's oddly infuriating demeaning attitude, and the fact that he never remembered meeting him before now made things only worse, but he needed answers. "Ok, uh, Abraxas. Where am I?" It coming out much snarkier than he intended, no doubt giving the man an ice cold glare.
"Wow, I'm so surprised. I've never heard that one before." Sarcasm dripping from his voice.
There was something about the man in the cloak that instantly made Seokjin not want to trust him at all. Every word that's come out of the man's mouth brought a negative effect to him.
Seokjin slammed his fist on the table, a sudden anger bubbling inside of him, "Answer me, you hooded freak!" he yelled angrily.
The man hummed in a response, amusement laced in his tone, "Well, this place has many names, such as 'hells pit' or 'the nightmare realm', but I personally like to call it 'the land of dreams'. Sounds much less threatening, don't you think? Almost romantic." he chuckled.
"Of course this place has an official name, too... the Magic Shop. Cute, isn't it?" he sighed, making Seokjin think he was a psychopath or something. "'A place where you switch bad things with good ones', the company line. Of course, for a trade, that is." he spoke in monotone.
"W-why am I here?" he stuttered.
The man chuckled again. "Why, you want to be here, that's why. All my clients appear before that door, and when they do, I grant them a wish. Generous of me, isn't it?"
The man continued, "You appeared all that time ago because you wanted to go back, and I let you do just that. And now you're back again. So peculiar."
It was slowly becoming apparent as his words began sinking in. Still, something struck to him. "Then... what did I trade?" his voice sounded hollow, distant, as if it weren't his own, and that scared him.
Though the man's face was covered, Seokjin could see him smirk menacingly. "Well, for such a big wish, you had to trade something just as important." he paused.
Seokjin felt tingles as the hair on his neck stood up, a thousand possibilities running through his mind.
"But... I think I'll just keep it a secret for now. For mystery's sake."
Any other day, he would have taken anything along the lines as a joke or a prank, but something about this man's voice sounded too real to be fake.
No way this is real.
Seokjin went to pinch the skin on his forearm. When nothing happened, he went to his other arm and pinch twice as hard, making Seokjin hiss. Still, nothing.
This can't be real, can it?
"It's real, my boy. Whether you want it, or not." The man's voice deepened as it echoed all around, making the impact twice as nerve wracking.
Seokjin staggered back, his eyes widening in the realization.
"Didn't you want this? You wanted to see your friends again, didn't you?" he mused. "It's all up to you now, Mr. Kim Seokjin. You can either get back what you traded and have no memory of this experience whatsoever, or you can go back to them. It's your choice."
He knew the man before him was not good news, that there was a hefty price to all of this. But, he felt a conflict of interest. "If this is truly real, then..." Will I see them again?
With a million thoughts running through his mind at once, he did what he was best at; Seokjin turned on his heel and ran. He ran out the large door, never once looking back, back to the sand filled paradise. He needed to clear his head, he needed time to think.
When he stood tall in front of the shore, peering out on to the watery stretch before him.
Before, all he felt was regret. He had decided that if he ever went back, he would think of this moment as his true reality, and the future he'd lived in was nothing but a distant dream. Yes, that's how it'd be. But he couldn't — he knew this couldn't possibly be real. And although he knew that, every fibre of his body believed in this.
"Have you decided?" The man spoke from behind him.
And, maybe it was the way the sun was beginning to set, giving the water a warm hue of colour, but he had this warm feeling spreading in his chest. The best way to describe it would probably be hope.
It was quiet for a moment, nothing but the sound of the sea crashing against the sand filling the silent void. As if it were somehow laced within the sound of the ocean and the wind, Seokjin could hear the constant ticking of a clock in the background, always there but barely evident. Before long, he responded.
"Yes." Seokjin turned to the cloaked man standing behind him. "Take me back."
At this moment, the sound of the clock grew louder by every passing second. "Excellent choice, Mr. Kim Seokjin." The way the man smiled from underneath the hood made the hairs on the back of Seokjin's neck stand up.
"Welcome to the Magic Shop."
[ Is everything I know truly the sea, or is it a blue desert? ]
[ 내가다아는 거시 진정 바다인가, 아니면 푸른 사막인가. ]