POINT OF VIEW
CHOI HAEUN
FOR WHATEVER REASON, I'VE
had extremely rotten luck as of late.
Not only was the stranger—Taehyung—nothing like I'd imagined he'd be, but he was giving me extremely non-descriptive answers as to who, or rather, what, he was.
Or, more accurately, he was giving me no answers to any of the questions I had.
Did I forget to mention the fact that I hadn't even begun to think about how I was going to face Jimin after the weekend was over?
What I hadn't expected was that I would have to discard that worry altogether, because Taehyung was preventing me from leaving my apartment complex to go anywhere.
He stood at the front door, blocking my exit.
"Now that we've met," He said, "Or, rather, that you've met me, I can't allow you to go to the store. Or anywhere, for that matter."
With that, I was even more intrigued—but also confused. If I couldn't go anywhere or see anyone after meeting him, why show himself to me now?
At least that's what I'd assumed had happened. Had he really been the one to show himself to me?
Regardless, I was pissed. So crossing my arms, I huffed in frustration. "Look here Mr. Supernatural, I'm going to get some damn groceries, and that's that. I'm too busy throughout the week to get them any other time but the weekend. Do you want me to friggin' starve?"
Taehyung scoffed, saying, "You humans. The way you live is so inconvenient."
My jaw practically hit the floor as I gawked at him.
Inconvenient? Didn't he have to eat too?
What the hell is this guy? I thought.
Regardless, with whatever abilities he possesses, there's no way I'm getting past him and out that front door. But maybe there was a way I could still get something out of the day.
Maybe I could negotiate.
I cleared my throat and his head perked up a bit. Only somehow, he literally managed to move in an antagonistic way. I couldn't quite place it, but something about this guy seriously irked me.
"Look here, space boy," I started, to which his eyes rolled. It was oddly attractive in some way—but I immediately tried to discard that thought.
"I've gathered that you obviously don't want me blabbering about you to my friends." He nodded, so I continued, "So, in exchange for my loyalty, I would like some straight up answers. No jokes."
He refused immediately.
"What? No way, sweetness. That's not a good idea."
I was dumbfounded. He had to be kidding, right?
"I'm literally saying that I won't tell anyone about you! And, by the way, what would there be to tell? That you're some strange older guy I met when I was a kid, and you haven't aged a day? Yeah, I'm sure people'll believe that. I'm a real big threat to your secrecy." I spat sarcastically.
Taehyung sighed, leaning his back against the front door. "First of all, yes, you are a threat to my secrecy. Well, my existence is more accurate."
I squinted my eyes at him, placing my hands on my hips and shifting my weight where I stood. I didn't really understand what he meant, but listened regardless.
"And second," He continued, "What I am, who I am, and all of the other questions you have, the answers are too dangerous for you to know. So, I can't tell you the things you want to know."
There was no sign of teasing or antagonism. He was serious. Dead serious.
"Then why the hell can I see you now, after all this damn time? Did you just decide, "Hey, it's been a while! Might as well see what Haeun's up to"?" I asked in fury, feeling fed up.
He seemed a bit shaken by my question, yet he still said nothing. We stood silently for a moment, just staring at each other. I tried my best to figure out what he was thinking, and Taehyung, well, Taehyung was just exasperated.
In his eyes, those grey-ish, sparkling eyes, I saw his frustration. Frustration, some worry, and if I wasn't mistaken, a little fear, too. I was just so, so confused. How could it be dangerous to know what he is? Who he is? Sure, the fact that he hadn't seemed to age these past few years is a bit strange—ok, very strange—but nothing about him excerpted danger to me.
Something inside me told me to leave the questions be for now.
Suddenly, I didn't know what'd come over me, but I stepped forward, reaching out. I placed my hand on one of his crossed arms, squeezing gently.
"I really won't tell anyone." I said sincerely. "I just need to leave the house for a little bit, Taehyung. I can't put everything on pause, I have to keep moving—to keep living my life. This time, in exchange, I won't ask anymore questions... for the time being. Alright?"
He looked conflicted as he stared back down at me, but his expression eventually softened. Sighing, he stepped to the side, allowing me access to the front door. "Fine. But I'm coming with you." He announced, opening it for me.
"Um, okay," I answered unsurely, locking the apartment door with Taehyung now trailing close behind.
"What's with that suddenly appalled tone?" He asked sassily, now walking beside me as we trudged down the flight of stairs.
"Appalled tone? I was just surprised that you'd want to go to a grocery store," I corrected, feeling drained of energy with each passing moment with him.
Taehyung scoffed and said, "Please. It's not like I want to go. I have to keep an eye on you now."
Oh, how I wanted to punch him in the face then. I also wanted to ask why he had to "keep an eye on me." However, I'd just promised to keep the questions at bay.
"You realize this whole situation is super unfair, I presume." I said as we exited the building, making our way to the busy sidewalk.
He sighed deeply, his gaze sharp and kind of... calculating. It was almost as if he was monitoring my thoughts, my feelings—my emotions. I felt like he could see straight through me.
That scared me.
After a moment, he spoke again. "I want to answer your inquiries. I really do."
I could tell he was sincere, but that didn't ease the confusion and anxiety I had about this whole situation.
"I just don't understand why you can't."
"I know."
❘ ❙ ❚
By evening, I was still totally clueless regarding, well, everything having to do with Taehyung.
"So, what, you live here now? Don't you have a planet to return to or something?" I asked sarcastically as Taehyung sat beside me on the couch while I watched TV.
"I told you, I have to keep an eye on you now. Meaning at all times." He answered absentmindedly, looking lost in thought.
"I don't know that I have the money to feed two people." I said jokingly, keeping my eyes on the TV, not really registering his words.
"You won't have to worry about that." He said, adjusting his sitting position.
It suddenly occurred to me that Taehyung wasn't joking. He really intended on staying here. With me.
I stood up from the couch, facing him.
"Who do you think you are?" I asked furiously, grabbing the remote from the armrest and shutting the TV off. In response, Taehyung simply stared at me, bored. I was even angrier now.
"You show up out of nowhere, randomly appearing before me, not having changed a bit, acting like a total asshole, giving me nothing but unanswered questions and a hard time, and to top it all off, you declare that you're going to suddenly move in with me? And for what? The very least you could do for me is explain why the hell you're even here!"
"You helped me back then, when I was lost and alone, and for that I'll always be grateful. But right now, at this moment in time, I don't see how you're helping me—or potentially could help me—at all. Unless there's some way you—"
I stopped. I didn't realize it until I felt a tear fall onto my hand, but I was crying. I was losing it here in front of Taehyung, who sat quietly on the couch and listened to me, even when I was totally trashing him.
I felt humiliated for letting myself get this way again, nonetheless in front of him.
Taehyung waited a moment for me to catch my breath, then asked, "Unless there's some way I...?"
I cleared my throat, the lumps from crying slowly disappearing. "Never mind. It's impossible."
"You're talking to someone who doesn't look a day older than when you lost saw me. What is it that you truly want, Haeun?"
I took a deep breath, looked away and softly muttered, "My parents."
Taehyung waited a moment before quietly answering, "I thought as much."
"What?" I asked in surprise, snapping my head to look back at him. What could he have possibly meant by that? I had even more unanswered questions then.
Taehyung sighed, rubbing his forehead. He seemed to be conflicted, but began to speak anyway.
"Haeun, there's so much I can't say, but keeping what I know from you really is for your own good. It's just tha—"
"It's just what? You keep going on about how dangerous this information is, but the most dangerous thing yet to happen has been going to the grocery store with you. Just tell me what the hell you know about my parents!" I shouted, my arms flailing dramatically. He rose his hands in defense, showing that he understood. That he'd back off.
"Alright, alright," He murmured. "I'll tell you."
"When I met you that day, at the festival, that was the first time that I... well, the first time I'd met a heart as pure as yours. Now don't ask me how I can sense things like that, because the details are to extensive to get into at the moment. But regardless, I hadn't felt any kind of brightness in any another human, until you. I felt I had to pr... protect it," He mumbled that last sentence, almost sounding embarrassed.
"I don't mean this to sound creepy, but I watched over you, Haeun. I made sure that you were safe, that you were treated with love and kindness. That you were happy."
I was undeniably grateful, but inside me there was this overwhelming anger that boiled and I just couldn't control my outbursts. So what I said then was, "So then where were you when my parents were killed by that intoxicated bitch who hit them with her car!?" I asked bitterly.
Taehyung looked like he'd expected that reaction, and I felt horrible. "Haeun, you have to understand. I have many abilities, but they can not do anything against ordinary, earthly threats. My power is exclusively used against supernatural beings, such as the ones from my dimension and beyond."
I stood still for a long moment, processing Taehyung's words. Dimension? Powers? I felt my anger dissipate, and instead, it was replaced with curiosity.
I started, "I'm sorry for being so emotional. My parents are a... touchy subject. What did you mean by your dimen—"
BOOM.
Suddenly, the ground began to shake, and an explosion of some sort could be seen from outside on the other side of the sliding glass door in the kitchen. Quickly Taehyung got up from the couch, racing to slide open the door and get outside. I followed him instinctively, sliding the door behind me.
Hopping over the patio's railing, my feet roughly landed on the grass below as I ran to catch up with Taehyung. Behind my apartment complex and away from the strip mall, there's a few small hills, and on one of those hills there was now a large hole.
"Taehyung!" I called breathlessly, my pace slowing as I zeroed closer in on him.
"You need to get back inside now!" He shouted back, his back toward me.
"But what was that!?" I asked, only to hear the faint sound of something in the sky. I looked up into the sky behind me, and there what appeared to be some kind of star or asteroid was falling rapidly toward us.
"Taehyung!" I yelled, looking back to him. He was now turned toward me, looking in the same direction I had been looking. He began charging toward me, his gaze still in the sky.
"W-Wha—" I stammered as he suddenly grabbed my hand, pulling me with him.
Taehyung suddenly came to a halt, causing me to slam into his back. I rubbed my nose as I quietly hissed, my other hand still in his.
To my utter disbelief, Taehyung's unoccupied hand began to somehow glow. Little sparks of white began to float from his palm, and I could somehow feel the power and energy radiating from him. I could do nothing but stand dumbfounded—entranced—by what was happening.
Taehyung suddenly shot that hand into the night sky, the sparks suddenly blasting into the air and making contact with the unidentified object and exploding. The remnants dissipated into beautiful specks of what almost looked like mini streamers.
He let out a breath, head still turned toward the sky.
I couldn't hold it in.
"Taehyung... what are you?"
❘ ❙ ❚
i am so so sorry for the delay, and then a cliffhanger!! the next chapter is actually already finished, i just need to edit it hehe. what did you think of this chapter? let me know!!
taesace.