> please read the prologue (0), for content warnings.
Yul couldn't believe how well it went! He hadn't done anything strange or creepy and was able to sort out everything for the job, which he would be doing tomorrow – it was a little soon but, Yul wasn't going to turn down his first opportunity to make money, since he has no other ways anymore, but it was better that he didn't rely on his parents anymore, he didn't want anything to do with them. Plus, he didn't have anything better to do with his time, and when he had nothing to do, it was difficult for his mind to not end up wandering, and he couldn't just spend his time trying to sleep it off.
He'd pulled his hood back up, stuffing his hands into his pocket as he made his way home, he definitely deserved a smoke after holding it together like that.
He could hear the faint voices of people talking in front of him, but he paid it no attention, he didn't even look up, all he wanted to do was make sure he didn't end up talking to anyone.
His instincts to fight struck as soon as he felt somebody grab him, his hand balling into a fist, ready to push whoever it was away from him – until he looked down at the girl, and then the man she was with..had she just called him her boyfriend?
Being assumed as a man was nice for him, due to his facial features, most people assumed him to be a tomboy...it was a good feeling.
Yul evaluated what was going on for a second before deciding to go along with it, he knew firsthand how bad harassment could end up being, it would be nice if he could at least help, he didn't help strangers very much, he was ever so selfish, all of the time, but since you had pulled him in, he supposed he would do what he could.
...Damn, he was persistent, he didn't even give up after the girl grabbed him...he almost winced at how hard she was grabbing his arm...he thought she must be really scared....he remembered how he felt that time in school...he wasn't in a position to stand up for himself then, but he was now. It wasn't even about the girl for him.. it more felt like he was doing it for him in the past.
He only held the knife with him in the case anyone was to recognise him and bring any harm to him, and he knows that since he looks feminine, he is likely to be at the brunt of male harassment too...the latter was closer to the situation at hand, so, he was pretty lucky.
His eyes had darkened as he watched the man shrink back....oh, it felt good. He felt adrenaline.
After watching him walk away, he looked down at you for the first time, he hadn't even bothered to check who had grabbed him before deciding to step in, it wasn't as if he had any friends here, so he doubts checking who you were would've actually changed anything, and when he did. Fuck. He recognised you immediately.
You were that girl from before...in the photo he took.
You were grabbing onto him...so close to him.
He couldn't believe it; you had somehow found a way back to him...did this mean something? You had grabbed him, not somebody else...did that mean you thought he would be able to protect you? Did you think of him as more than a man than that scum?
Yul was getting too ahead of himself, he shook his head, he didn't know you, you were just some nice-looking girl he saw, and happened to bump into twice, there was no need for him to start thinking anything strange. You'd definitely just thank him and be on your way and never see him again. He wasn't even in the mindset to be interested in anyone again! He hadn't stopped thinking of Sian fully yet, and then on top of that he was completely unstable, he hadn't changed at all, despite trying his best.
He was stuck in a tangent in his head before you started to speak, he'd never heard your voice the first time but... he thought it was cute, you were apologising to him. It had been quite a while since he'd heard an apology from anybody, he didn't feel like he deserved one, even if you had cause him any bother, stopping someone from being possibly assaulted wasn't something he would've actively avoided.
You'd even invited him to your work so casually...you didn't even know who he was...so why were you doing that...had you really felt so bad about it? He was no better than that man for what he'd done in the past, he didn't deserve to be treated so kindly.
He was unsure what came over him when he offered to walk you home, why would you let some strange man that you didn't know do that? He remembers distantly in the past he specifically stated not to do so... to make it even worse he stumbled on his words in the worst way possible, and he said it so casually as well.
He seriously wanted to drop dead in that moment.
He had no problems with stalking in the past, it was rather normal to him, but he wasn't a stalker anymore, he didn't want you to go thinking he was one then somehow figuring out who he was! He needed to fix his mistake... you probably thought he was a weirdo now! He panicked internally, this was the one thing he didn't want to do, this is why he avoided people, he knew something like this would end up happening—
As soon as he scrambled out an apology for what he said, you.... Laughed?
You hadn't found fault in what he'd said, you weren't stepping away in fear.. he was surprised, really surprised.
His eyes were wide as he stared at your face, just listening to you.
You had a really warm laugh, it felt welcoming and soft.
He wasn't really even sure what you said afterwards, he hadn't fully been paying attention, he felt like he had been put into a trance, by a siren or something of the sorts, and before he could recognise it, you were already walking away from him, and all he could do was stare at your back, until he could no longer see you.
Yul didn't follow you; he was kind of tempted, only to make sure you made it home safe of course, he had no ulterior motives...but. He had something more important to take care of.
Yul walked down the path going the opposite direction to you, fast and quiet, he didn't want attention to be drawn to him..and he didn't want to get himself caught.
In complete silence, he caught up to that creep from before, but instead of making himself known, he just stayed following him, a few paces away, nobody else was out in the area, so it wasn't like someone would bring alert to him.
After a few minutes, Yul finally saw his opportunity, he smirked, watching the man turn to walk down a barely lit alleyway, away from the public eye, Yul increased the volume of his footfall, wanting his presence to be made aware of.
The creep turned around, his movements were rough, and he looked down at Yul, who was glaring up at him, his pupils dilated.
He stepped away; Yul stepped closer.
" Did you really think I'd let scum like you get away ,huh? " His voice was deeper than when he had first spoken, he was now trying to be scary, or pose as some kind of threat. It didn't seem to bother the guy though.
" I left your girl alone man, whaddya want from me? " He had a sour expression on his face, and was clearly hostile. Was he stupid? Yul had already heard him threaten that he wasn't done with you, he didn't want this man to bring harm to such a warm person...something in him couldn't allow that...Sian used to be warm. Then she turned cold. It was all that assholes fault.
This creep reminded Yul of him...his mouth twisted into a deranged smile; he couldn't control the raging emotions inside of him. Scum like this shouldn't even be allowed to live--- you didn't even like this man, he had the full right to do whatever he pleased!
" You were going to do something to her right? " Yul chuckled, pulling the taser out from his back pocket, and within seconds, the man was writhing on the floor. Yul walked over him, looking down at him with his legs on either side.
Hm? The man hadn't passed out, but he wasn't' moving very much..perhaps the voltage hadn't been raised high enough. Whatever...more fun for him at least.
" You fucking—" Yul kicked the man in the face, blood dripping out from him nose.
" Go on, finish what you were gonna say. " He glared at him, his voice taunting as he stayed stood over him, he wasn't going to purposefully get closer to this man than necessary, He couldn't explain why there was so much anger flooding through him, it felt like his blood was passing through his body in raging tidal waves and he couldn't stop it from overflowing.
He kicked the man again, this time his stomach, making him keel over, grabbing at the now bruised skin to protect it.
Yul could just keep beating the guy up..but he didn't want this stain on the earth any longer...all people like this shouldn't be given the gift of existing, Yul was a firm believer in that fact, he would just be doing everybody a favour by doing this..not just you.
If only he hadn't cared what she thought of him...he would've been able to kill that bastard before, but, at least he could take his anger out on this creep.
He put his taser away and slid the knife back out from the inside of his sleeve, grabbing the handle and spinning the knife around in his hand.
Yul's eyes quickly focused on how the mans throat tensed up as his mouth opened..he was about to scream..! Yul couldn't have himself being caught, he needed to do this and run.
Before he could think Yul's foot was smashed down onto his throat, restricting his flow of air, making sure he wasn't caught.
He put his weight down on him, hearing a gargled choke for air come from him, he moved his foot around a bit to torment him, crushing his windpipe.
" Don't think you'll get saved so quickly--- did any women ever get the chance to scream when you got your hands on them, freak? " Yul patronised him; he didn't know whether his accusations were actually on the point or not but, he didn't care, there was no way he just randomly woke up like this, Yul was justified! It was okay for him to do this.
" I'm going to kill you. " He stated, stepping away from the mans throat, hearing rushed intakes of air... Yul missed the feeling he got when he was in control of someone's life...such a dark, bloodied feeling...but it made him feel so good..! he could go insane! The thrill of it, it just made him so excited!
He had just taken a big step back from his progress, but he didn't even care. He wasn't getting far anyway...these feelings are okay once in a while, right? He can't just completely let himself be depraved of it.
His grin intensified, his eyes drilling holes into the man as he dropped to his knees on top of him, stabbing the knife in and out of him mercilessly.
He'd needed this...ever since that day..he needed this!
He laughed to himself, cruelly, as he drove the knife into the man's chest, blood splattering all over him, he didn't care, this wasn't his favourite outfit anyway, he could just incinerate it.
He didn't just stop there, he stabbed the man in the abdomen, multiple times, then in his throat, just to make sure he was definitely dead, and without thinking he scooped the mans eyes out, they were already closed, he had definitely died quickly with how many vitals Yul had stabbed, there weren't even any tears streaming down his face like a most people have when they feel pain.
It was a bit of a struggle pulling them out since they were pretty well connected, but he managed to do it anyway, he had probably seen so many nasty things with those eyes, even in death he didn't deserve to keep them.
Yul stood back up now, admiring the deceased body, that he'd just killed, he didn't even remember stabbing him that many times...but, he was scum. He deserved it.
Yul wiped the smudge of blood on his cheek on his sleeve, he was lucky he was wearing black, and that it had grown dark, so nobody would be out, and nobody would be checking down this alley anytime soon, he pulled his hood which had fallen down back up over his head to disguise himself and he walked back home, like nothing had even happened – he didn't feel bad at all for what he'd just done, he was just imagining the man was blonde, and that he had long hair, and it felt so good to finally get that out, better than any stupid therapy session he'd tried to go to.
His urges needed to be satisfied, and if he didn't have any love to obsess over, violence would certainly do the trick as well.
On your walk home, you'd called Iseul, she was very worried about you and insisted on keeping the call going even an hour after you'd arrived home, you'd locked the door, locked your windows, and made sure you kept a baseball bat next to your bed in case you needed to attack when you woke up – perhaps you were overly worried about the situation, but better safe than sorry!
You'd told your boss as well, and he'd sent you a few messages in concern.
Are you doing okay, did anything happen to you?
You can take the day off tomorrow if you're not feeling safe to go outside.
Would you like me to come over to your house?
You replied to him letting him know you were okay with coming in tomorrow, you were okay, and that he didn't need to waste his time coming over, he'd have to be up early the next day, so you didn't want to waste any of his time, when, you felt weirdly safe. Although he was often dry when he messaged you, he really did care for you, he got like this whenever you were sick as well – you were grateful that you had a boss that was so nice, even though you reassured him you were certain he would stay up worrying about it, that's just the kind of person he was, the kind of person anyone would be lucky to have in their life you thought.
Thinking of that creep, you couldn't believe that had really happened, you weren't one to draw attention to yourself, but you still managed to have a creep loitering after you.. what horrible people. You were so glad that you'd found a sweet guy to protect you...he did look sort of shaken up after what happened, he was staring at you, he must've been scared, you thought, you really did feel bad for the guy...Yul wasn't it? What a nice name.
You hoped he'd stop by your work so you could thank him properly, you were still terrified, so you couldn't properly show your gratitude in the moment..,which was understandable, but still! It didn't feel right, especially when he'd instilled such a safe feeling inside of you, talking to him had made you almost forgot what had just happened, he was soothing. You really wanted to see him again. He was pretty cute when he messed up his wordings and his face got all red. You snickered to yourself as you thought about that turn of events.
Returning home, all you really wanted to do was sleep, you were too stressed to stay up and watch a show you liked, you knew every sound you heard around you would make you paranoid, so the best thing you could do would be to try and sleep it off, you didn't think that man would end up following you home after he'd already walked so far in the opposite direction, and you were pretty sure your apartment had CCTV as well, you'd be alright..
You hugged one of the plushies on your bed close to your chest, pretending it was a real person as you managed to drift off to sleep.
Tomorrow would be another long day you supposed.
Upon your arrival at work today, you almost died of shock, Shin ran over and hugged you, when you came in, asking if you were sure you were in condition to work and patting you down to see if you were alright and if you had any injuries you hadn't told him about. – even if you did have some it wasn't necessarily his business, you thought.
" I'm telling you I'm okay! Seriously don't worry about it! " You tried to calm him down, he wasn't a very affectionate man, so it was kind of strange feeling his arms around you, his hair kind of tickled when it hit your skin, you were jealous of how much of it he had.
" As your boss, I should've been able to de-escalate the situation for you, next time something like this happens, I won't let it stand. " He pulled back from the hug, holding your shoulders tightly as he looked into your eyes, with his usual serious gaze.
You smiled. " Thanks for the concern, really. " You spoke quietly, gratitude seeping through, you did appreciate his kindness.
" You're my friend, obviously I'd be concerned. " He replied, still holding you by your shoulders, you lightly pushed him off, he really wasn't a touchy person, so it just felt strange. Even stranger he referred to you as a friend, he wasn't really one to point out such relationships either.. he really did turn soft when he was worried.
" Now, get back to the kitchen, I think I smell burning. " You found sincere moments grew awkward when you let them linger for too long, so you broke the mood with a joke, not wanting him to start telling you how he planned to protect you whilst you were trying to setup the bakery.
" Say anything more and I'll start thinking you're the boss. " He took the hint, jostling back with you.
Today was full of surprises it seems; he was never really a joker.
" Please call me if anyone bothers you today. " You nodded, and he went back to his work in the kitchen..something in there smelt really good today, you'd have to try and figure out what it was.
Then, Iseul rushed in, practically mirroring Shins movements with you...too many hugs today for your liking.
" Are you suuure you're still free tonight? I don't wanna push you past your limits if you don't feel safe going with me! I mean, I'd like, totally understand if you'd rather stay at home after such a traumatic night! " She spoke frantically, worry was evident in her words as she looked you up and down, like you were about to just drop dead infront of her.
" Why is everybody so worried..? I'm okay Ise, If you're still free then I'm still free. " You smiled at her, but, she her face hadn't changed.
" Seriously. " You added on in the most honest tone you could muster.
" Okay..but, if you ever feel uncomfortable at any point, we can go home! " She persisted and you nodded, with a sigh.
People showing so much care for you made you pretty uncomfortable if you were honest, you just kind of expected to go through your life without concerning anyone, and somehow you had managed to worm your way into their hearts without even trying, you had no idea how you did it.
She then proceeded to tell you about her own evening after you hung up the call and how she couldn't sleep because she was so worried she just had to see you and make sure you were actually fine – it was kind of endearing to watch her ramble about you, but, again you felt bad about invoking such things, like maybe her day would've been better if she didn't know you at all..people can be so stressful and confusing sometimes.
Afterwards she ran to the kitchen, and you could kind of overhear her talking to Shin, but you weren't sure what about, you couldn't hear them properly, with the most of your attention being about, well, doing your job.
Tuning people out of your head was something you often did growing up; it was an easy skill for you now. .
Standing behind the counter, of the now opened bakery, you tapped at the counter, waiting for customers to come in, and praying to yourself nothing bad would happen this time, you still wondered if that guy would be coming back..perhaps he'd just ignore your invite, you probably wouldn't go to some random girls work if she invited you there either, but it's not often you speak to unknown people to begin with.
Thankfully, halfway through your shift nothing bad had happened yet, you were on your lunch break, sitting in the lounge room with all the other employees, the shop temporarily shut.
You were eating some of the snacks you'd brought in your bag, eating actual food in front of people was something else you weren't a huge fan of, so you just stuck to small things which wouldn't take too long, you were quiet, and so was Iseul, who was sat next to you, until you heard a loud gasp from her, looking over, she shoved her phone in your face..at maximum brightness as well. Squinting, your eyes adjusted to the bright screen as you took in what she was showing you.
A dead body had been found this morning by a local jogger – in some random alley, apparently it had been brutal....could that have been you? Your eyes widened slightly, if you had been forced to go anywhere with him...was that what he planned to do to you? Was he still out there waiting for you? You may have been uncaring about many things but, that didn't mean you just wanted to die like this.
" Can you believe it? That's only like ten minutes away from here! That's suuper scary don't you think?? " Her voice was loud, and picked up the attention of your other co-workers.
" Yeah..I saw the victim was a guy, a big one as well, that's even worse...can you imagine how strong the person who killed him must've been? " a girl from the other side of the room gossiped back with her, and Iseul replied back, leaning forward, with interest.
Oh? Wait what if...? No, no, the man who saved you wasn't really defined as big you wouldn't think..but, if it was the creep then, you could possibly see him waiting and killing Yul since he couldn't have you...and your heart was racing..you didn't want to be the reason some sweet guy died! That would be on your conscience forever!
" They don't even know anything about the killer, other than they were wearing black! They aren't sure whether it's a guy or a girl... " ....that means it couldn't have been the creep. He wasn't wearing black....You were still concerned but, at least that meant your involvement was minimal.
The conversation continued, and you lost track of it, despite Iseul originally starting it with you, you weren't really a big fan of gossiping, so you just sunk down into your seat and pretended like you weren't there.
The conversation continued until Shin coughed, saying that maybe it wasn't an appropriate thing to talk about at the workplace, and so everyone and so you fell into silence.
At the end of your shift, you walked out of the doors with Iseuls arm draped around your shoulder.
" I'll come pick you up in two hours, so get ready! But if you change your mind about it at any point, tell me! I seriously won't be upset at you, I promise! "
She reassured you again, to which you told her you were definitely okay – it was good to go out once in a while, and since it would be your day off tomorrow, with it being a Sunday, it didn't matter if you slept in really late due to tiredness.
You made it home without a hitch, nothing bad had came your way this time, so you considered yourself lucky again, and now you needed to get out of work mode, and get into hanging out mode.
You kept the same outfit on, you weren't even sure where you'd be going, so you didn't see it fit to change, when your outfit was already cute enough, and you didn't want to go outside reeking of pizazz.
The time passed without you even realising it, you couldn't really recall what you'd been up to before hearing the ringing of your doorbell, and you walked over to answer it.
Your friend stood there, with her hair pinned up into two ponytails, it was a nice dark red, kind of like blood—a bit of a weird comparison, but you couldn't name many red things, and inside of the ponytails were braids, it was a pretty style on her..you'd kept yours down, because keeping it up just ends up being annoying, and it takes effort to actually style it, and you didn't really care about the gaze of other people enough to try and appear better to them.
She wore a one-piece black dress, with a leopard print jacket over it, she also wore heels to make herself taller, which she didn't even really need, she was already 5'6,
" You didn't even dress up! Ahh you're sooo borinnggg!" She complained, stomping her feet a little, like a child, you laughed dryly. " Well, you never said what we're doing...and, you know I don't like to dress up, unless it's alone in my room, to myself. " You replied, stepping out of your house and locking the door...you were pretty sure you locked the windows as well; you hoped you did.
Guilt was hard to ignore when it felt so present, you enjoyed spending time with her, and, it was nice that you had a work friend who actually wanted to hang out with you when the two of you were out of work, but, you were already thinking about coming back home and going to bed, that probably meant you were a bad friend...but you didn't mind.
" Didn't I? Weelll...You're really gonna stick out dressed like that..we're going to party girl! " She grabbed you by the hand and started to walk with you, and you walked slightly behind her, judging by her attire you'd be going to a bar or a club...ugh.
..Maybe ugh was a bit too judgmental, you hadn't actually been to one before, so you shouldn't act so snobbish about it, although you were pretty certain it wasn't your type of scene.
" Y'know, you always seem so lonely, I wanna make you some friends! Orrrr something more if you're lucky! " You grimaced as Iseul looked back at you laughed..you definitely weren't going to enjoy this night out...you could just hope it wouldn't be awful,
" I don't really need any of that though..I'm happy with how my life is now, lonely and
all. " , it seemed like she just couldn't understand that the quiet life was ideal for some people, like you.
" Your only friends are me and your boss! Come onnn try and socialise juuust once...for me? " You hated that she was talking to you like she was talking to a toddler, but you bit your lip and focused out, listening to the clacking of her heels on the floor as she dragged you by the hand, you noticed she now had some bright red fake nails on her, they were nice, they suited her personality, vibrant and in your face.
The music violated your ears as you closed in on where Iseul had taken you...great. A crowded club full of drunk people, just where you wanted to go after a long day of work.....you knew that Iseul frequented places like this, but she usually invited other friends, seeing her post about it on social media, you rarely posted yourself, but if you did it was because you saw a cute cat on the street or saw a pretty looking cloud or something stupid like that. This was the first time she'd invited you to with her.
You thought the two of you may have looked like a couple, with you gripping at her hand harder, you hadn't realised how nervous you were, gritting your teeth as you could hear her talking to some guy outside, and then the two of you walked inside, yet again you hadn't been paying well enough attention to what was going on, too busy trying to convince yourself that the time would pass quickly and that you wouldn't end up dying here...
" I'm gonna go grab us drinks! " Iseul turned to you, yelling at you over the music, and you covered your eyes, nodding, staying on the spot as your watched as your friend was able to weave in and out of the crowds with ease, as you stood motionless, not even moving to the music.
People bashed into you and stepped on your feet, and you just stood and stumbled and tried to get yourself out of the way of the people in the room with you, your eyes scanned the room as you looked for her, but, you had no idea where she was getting drinks from, or how long she'd take, so for now you were alone.
Clutching the strap of your bag tightly as a support helped give you something to focus on, it felt like your senses were being assaulted, there was a reason you didn't come here.
Five minutes had passed, and Iseul hadn't came back yet, you'd started to look around for her, mumbling quiet " Excuse Me"s to people as you sifted through them, and now you couldn't see where you'd came in from which made you even more stressed! Your palms were growing clammy, and you could feel every strand of your hair and hear every single breath you took – it was getting uncomfortable alright, but now you couldn't tell your friend you wanted to leave, since she'd seemingly disappeared somewhere.
The music seemed to grow louder the longer you were there, voices merged into each other as people were yelling across the club, all of them were dressed the same, you were really sticking out, this was the antithesis of a good time for you.
It felt as if the room was spinning around you, as the loud pop song felt like it was making the floors vibrate, or maybe they were vibrating? You weren't sure. At least you'd worn basic trainers so it was easier for you to walk around...your aim was to find a bathroom and go and text Iseul, but, the flashing lights around you made it impossible for you to see if there was a sign for the bathroom, and, walking in and out of people didn't seem like the best idea, especially when it felt like your chest was closing in on itself, you really wanted her to come back, it was becoming suffocating inside. The room just seemed to get smaller, and denser, it felt like everyone inside was purposefully intruding your personal space...you were pretty sure somebody just grabbed your arm, you yanked it away and kept looking, there was still no sign of her..
A couple more minutes passed and now you were getting anxious. What if something had happened to her and you were here panicking about yourself?
You had to try and look for her more...you walked around, eyes darting in every direction, compared to you, sure she stood out, but in a room full of people the exact same...it was too hard. You didn't like it.
You'd only came to this place because she told you to, and then she has the nerve to leave you on your own...how terrible...next time she asked you out you'd definitely tell her you were sick, as payback.
A headache was starting to come up, and you reached a hand up to hold your head, looking around, you swore everyone in the room was staring at you, they had to be, you were hyperventilating... you needed to get outside so badly, you were pushed and shoved around as you were trying to find anywhere that wasn't here to go and try to recollect yourself, hands were over you, or maybe you were imagining it... looking around again you finally found some form of security, there was a set of stairs, there had to be less people upstairs right?
Without a second thought you ran up the stairs, it really felt like you were about to pass out, you didn't feel right at all...had someone drugged you without you realising, even though you didn't drink anything yet since Iseul hadn't come back..what If there was a new way of drugging that you didn't know about! Anxiety filled you as you stumbled up the stairs, holding onto the handrail. There were a few people upstairs but far less, since the music was quieter and there was no atmosphere...you could presume everybody huddled up here were people like you who were dragged along by their friends.
Up here there was a lot of seating, where people could just sit and drink, and a restroom, as well as a large balcony. You figured that was your best shot, some fresh air was really needed, especially knowing you'd have to brave the downstairs area again in order to get out..unless you could jump off of the balcony! You weren't too fond of breaking your own legs though...so that was probably out of the question for you.
Shakily walking out onto the balcony, you took a seat on the floor, there weren't any seats out here...you guessed people just came to smoke and then leave.
You pulled your knees up to your chest, inhaling the best as your could as you tried to calm your hammering heartbeat down, you could hear it so loudly in your ears, you really wished you hadn't came. You could've been at home right now....This was the worst experience of your life...at least yesterday it was over quickly, it felt like you'd been here for hours upon hours.
Taking your phone out of your bag, you texted Iseul, asking where she was, if she was okay, and if she could meet you up on the balcony, you gave it a few minutes, and after getting no reply you called her, you were desperate to reach her.
You let the phone keep ringing, but she didn't pick up, meaning you had been left completely alone. You sent another text, telling her to call you as soon as she looked at her phone, you then put it away, just in case you ended up putting it down and then forgetting about it.
Had it started to rain..? You felt a wetness staining your knees. Looking upwards you saw no clouds in the sky, just a plethora of stars, so many that it made you feel lonelier, ah, you had been crying.
Yul was glad that he had so many repeats of the same black hoodie, or he'd be screwed, he'd fully cleaned the other one, and disposed of it, and he was wearing the exact same outfit again, although, he kind of regretted it...it was really hot in here with how many people there were, he was allowed to stand in areas blocked off to normal people though, so, bonus for him. His hood was down, and his hair was fully out, since he wouldn't be able to see properly if he didn't.
He'd taken quite a few photos by that point, and people were ignoring his presence there, he didn't like the type of women who wasted all their time in clubs though, so it's not like that bothered him at all.
His shutter clicked as he took a photo the moment the club lighting changed at the chorus of a new song, and it was a pretty sick picture, at least to him, he checked it out as he gazed into his camera. Everyone looked so good, this would definitely get the club a better reputation if they were showing pictures like this! He was glad he decided to take on the job, it seems maybe he did have an actual talent, who would've guessed, seeing the pathetic loser he was before.
Wait...was that? His eyes narrowed, bringing the camera closer to his face, zooming in on the picture as much as he could, he couldn't quite make out the facial features but..he was sure that was...you in the background. That same girl from yesterday..! Now he had two photos...with you in them. Lucky him.
He bit his lip after thinking that, that was a bit too creepy.
What were you even doing here? In that outfit as well...Had you came here by accident? He laughed to himself at the thought, he didn't let his questions linger before he continued to work, he wasn't getting paid to be a detective, afterall.
Looking through the camera roll, he was certain he had enough photos for the club owner to be happy with...he needed a break.
He knew there was no smoking inside of the club, but he figured there'd have to be somewhere outside he could go. He placed another hand on his camera to steady it, and to make sure that nobody smashed it up on accident doing a wild dance move, God. Everybody here looks insufferable. If he was trash, what must these people be?
Walking up the stairs, he saw a sign saying smoking was permitted there, and he quickly went towards it, this was so deserved after all of his hard work! Maybe if he'd started to work before, he'd have a better feeling when he smoked instead of a dull emptiness.
Upon first glance he didn't see that anybody was there, so he pulled out a cigarette, and then his lighter, leaning himself against the railing by his arms, looking up at the clear sky, it was a beautiful night outside, when you weren't stuck in a stupid, stuffy building surrounded by drunk people.
His purple hair was blowing in his face every now and then, he shook his head to move it back into place,
...Odd. He felt odd. Was somebody watching him? His gaze darkened, it was a good thing he had his taser on hand...what if it was the police? What if they'd somehow figured him out? His body tensed, he turned around a fraction in the direction he could feel the eyes from, using his peripheral to just check what sort of threat he'd have to be dealing with, acting like he wasn't actively looking would do him better, as it made him look less suspicious.
There was nobody in the direct corridor behind him... it was clear...his eyes were drawn down, where two wide eyes were staring up at him.
He jumped, almost dropping the cigarette as he realised you were there " Fucking hell-" he cursed, turning fully to face you, before he actually saw who you were... what a strange series of coincidences.. it really was you from before.
Wait were you...crying? He tilted his head, not wanting to get any closer to you, he'd only ever been close to one girl before and well...he didn't want to evade your boundaries. He thought you must still be upset about what happened yesterday...he would tell you what he did but, he didn't want to end up scaring you even more.
" Hey..." His voice was softer than before, he put his cigarette out and squished it beneath his foot, as he crouched down infront of you. " You're the girl from yesterday right? " He repeated your name, and you nodded with a sniffle. " Are you okay? Why're you out here alone? " He wanted to reach out and wipe your tears, but...you sort of looked good with teary eyes.
You hadn't replied, and he sat down on the floor with you now. He wasn't sure what compelled him to do it, he didn't know you, or anything about you, you weren't even his friend, you were just some girl he kept running into, who gave him a really warm feeling. You meant nothing to him. He shouldn't try to get any closer to you than necessary.
Perhaps he felt bad for never being able to comfort Sian when she needed it, so he was trying to makeup for it, he was just being selfish, and doing this for himself, He couldn't care for another person who isn't her. He knows he can't, that's just who he is. He wasn't just feeling drawn in by the way you were looking at him...that just had to be something else.
" My friend...dragged me here and then abandoned me..." You spoke meekly, and Yul looked over to you, he had a tired look on his face, it didn't look like he particularly wanted to be here either.
" I got overwhelmed so..I came up here...and now I can't bring myself to go back downstairs.." Your voice was more of a mumble now, but he had trained his hearing to be sharp, given what he'd done...he needed to make sure he was able to hear anything, so it wasn't an issue for him.
" So, you didn't want to be here? " He asked, and you shook your head, he wasn't sure how he managed to come outside and not see you for so long, he felt a little stupid.
You were clutching onto your legs, you really didn't look like you wanted to come up here. " Bad things keep happening to you, I guess. " He couldn't help but laugh in your face, he felt a little remorse after you looked away from him, but he couldn't think of anything more comforting to say, and he didn't want to somehow make things worse by saying something unhelpful.
" Maybe its you...bad things only seem to happen to me when I bump into you, Yul. Which is seeming to be a recurring issue lately.." You joked back with him, he hadn't expected you to do that...he was a little surprised. His name.. You had remembered his name... That was sweet of you. You seemed so nice, how had someone looked at you and decided to take you here.. were they trying to torture you or something?
" You should try avoiding me then. " He looked back up at the stars, not noticing that you'd stopped crying now, maybe if he did he would've made a comment about it.
" Not until you come to the bakery. I need to repay you for yesterday, you really did help me a lot.i—I was really grateful for that. I just didn't know how to word it, I'm not good at talking in general. " The tone you were speaking in was so soft and gentle, he couldn't remember the last time anybody had been so kind to him. Were you this nice to all strangers you met?
" You really want me to come that bad? Well, I'll see if I'm free sometime next week, don't start expecting anything out of me though. You don't even need to thank me for what I did, I'm sure anyone would have. " He wasn't sure why you wanted to see him so badly, he didn't want to end up getting closer to you, he couldn't get close to...others.
He had already thought of you a few times on his own, he didn't want to start being like that again.
" But, You were the one who did it. I want to show my gratitude. " You weren't giving up were you? He sighed, supposing one trip to see you wouldn't do anything too bad to him, he had already memorised the name of the place you'd told him to go to, for no particular reason of curse.
" Fine, Fine. I'll be there, I guess. " He decided that he'd been outside for long enough and so he stood up, but, he felt a sensation on his lower leg.
You had reached out to grab his leg, only with two fingers, pinching the fabric of his jeans. "...wait." He stood and waited, looking down at you.
" Sorry to keep asking you for things but...could you help me get out of here please? I really can't find my friend and I get too overwhelmed on my own—I mean it's okay if you don't want to I can just stay out here but-"
He cut you off, grabbing you by the arm and pulling you up to your feet.
" You just wanna go home right? I'll help you out. " His other hand returned to his camera as he held your wrist tightly...he had quite a grip.
He started to walk back inside, pulling you behind him, he figured this was the best way to make sure you weren't separated, he didn't stop to lookback at you, just focusing on remembering his way out, he didn't want you to have to stay there any longer when you looked so sad, especially given how nice you could be despite it.
His grip was bruising, he sometimes was unaware of his strength, yet you didn't complain or ask him to let up. He thought that your skin was soft, and nice to the touch, he'd appreciate it whilst it lasted, since he didn't plan on having to make contact with you again. He'd already grown too close to you in your short moment outside, he was kind of glad you were doing bad and weren't able to keep a longer conversation, it was better for him that your interactions remain short.
Getting downstairs he could feel you gripping his wrist back, your fingers digging into his skin, he really could tell you weren't comfortable here.
Guiding you through the crowd, he finally managed to get you outside, letting go of you once you were across the street from the club.
" Thank you so much again , Yul! I'm sorry for bringing so much burden onto you. " You apologised to him again..you sure did like to apologise. He wasn't really used to hearing such words, it was kind of a shock to him. He wasn't completely hating it, though.
" Really, it's nothing, all I did was walk you outside. "
" I think you did a little more than that for me, but, thank you. " Why did you sound so warm all of the time? He didn't deserve to be spoken to like that. " I'll be getting home now..I know the way don't worry! Thank you again. "
Yul didn't say a word in return as he watched you walk away again, this was exactly like yesterday. He still wasn't sure why you had been pushed to him twice but, this had probably just been a coincidence.
His purple eyes bore into you again, watching your figure get further away.
Making sure you got home safely wouldn't hurt...right?
