The day flew by, my mind bound in a haze of questions and fears. Jimin's parting words had left me unnerved. I'd never seen him so grave before, and the amount of seriousness he directed toward the note had me reevaluating the matter.

"Be sure to lock your door."

Was he simply trying to prevent another letter from being left in my dorm, or was he worried that something more sinister would happen? My chest tightened at all the different scenarios that flashed through my head. What if whoever this person was had more in their plans than sending a note to mess with me?

The possibility had already crossed my mind, but I'd been in denial. Though nuanced, there had been no actual threat made, so I'd done my best to brush it off as a prank. But Jimin reminded me that it could, in fact, be something much worse. If I received another letter, I would have to talk to the student safety services and see what they could do for me.

After getting through my final class of the day, I found myself too afraid to enter my dorm alone. Pulling out my phone, I sent Jimin a text.

Are you busy?

Just got out of class, why?

I'm scared to be in my room alone.

I watched the dots appear and disappear several times, signifying that he wasn't sure what to say. Finally, he replied.

I'll meet you there. Give me 10 mins.

Okay.

I settled myself down on a couch in the common area, just a few feet away from my hall. Pulling out my notebook, I decided to pass the time by sketching. Only five minutes in, a deep voice pulled me from my zoned-out state.

"Excuse me."

Glancing up, I found a young man looking at me expectantly. He had a mess of silken midnight curls that fell just above his almond eyes. A strong nose, wide lips with a deep cupid's bow, and a square jaw made for a masculine face.

"Yes?" I closed my notebook as I gave him my full attention.

"Is this the guys' dorm?" he asked, staring.

"Uh, no. Actually, this is the girls' dorm," I replied, feeling my heartbeats rise. It was already the first day of classes. Wouldn't he have moved in and known where the dorms were by now? His question didn't sit well with me, and I got the feeling he knew exactly where he was.

"Hmm," he hummed, slipping his hands into the pockets of his coat. His mouth opened to say something more, but the sound of approaching footsteps interrupted him.

"Jangmi, there you are." Jimin walked into the room, relieved when he spotted me. He came closer, stopping a few feet in front of the black-haired man, his gaze shifting between the two of us apprehensively. "Who are you?"

"I was just leaving," the unnamed male announced, turning on his heel and walking off.

Jimin turned to me. "Who was that?"

"I don't know," I answered, hating how on edge I felt. The anxiety must've weighed on my expression as Jimin swiftly came to sit beside me, throwing an arm over my shoulders.

"Hey, you don't have to worry, alright? I'm here now. We'll go to your dorm together and see how things are, and if you still feel scared then we can request for you to change your room." He spoke softly, using his free hand to grab mine. "I won't let anything happen to you."

Letting out a breath I hadn't realized I was holding, I leaned into his chest and encircled his waist with my arms.

"You know me, I don't get scared easily. But something about this... I just have this awful feeling in my gut," I whispered. The distraction of the first day of classes was finally wearing off, setting free the fear that wanted so badly to gnaw at my insides and wear me down.

Jimin's hold on me tightened. "I won't let anything happen to you," he repeated.

I believed him.

After collecting myself, I let Jimin lead me back to my room. He paused at the door, listening carefully for any noise. Met with silence, he took the key from my hand and unlocked the knob, twisting it open before he slowly walked inside, keeping me behind him. I peered over his shoulder, eyes scanning the room nervously.

Once we checked every corner, the two of us sighed in relief, shoulders relaxing. Taking a deep breath, I went over to my nightstand to ensure that there was no new letter awaiting me. Finding only the one from the other night, I picked it up and handed it to Jimin.

He silently absorbed the words, keeping his face expertly neutral despite his emotions—something we'd learned in our years of dance. As performers, we had to control which expressions molded our features. Whether it was genuine or not, our faces needed to match the story we were trying to tell. Jimin was attempting to convince me of a story that was untrue; that he wasn't worried, that I had nothing to be scared of.

"Well?" I met his eyes, waiting for him to speak his thoughts aloud.

"I think someone's just messing with you. You don't have anything to worry about, alright? If it happens again, just come to me and we'll reassess."

I knew him too well to fall for it but decided that I would let it go for the time being. He clearly didn't want me to get worked up about it, so I would try to keep myself calm and hope that there would be no further developments.

After checking my room one last time, Jimin instructed me to change into some different clothes. Before I could even take a step, he was at my closet, rummaging through everything until he found something worthy by his standards. Two articles of clothing were abruptly tossed in my direction. As I'd mastered the art of changing swiftly and with minimal skin showing—another skill acquired from years of quick costume changes—I easily switched outfits while Jimin fixed a few hangers and closed the closet. By the time he turned around, I was just buttoning my jeans.

"Good, now let's go." Jimin moved toward the door, but I stopped him.

"Go where? We still have a couple hours before we're supposed to meet Jungkook."

"We'll grab dinner first. Come on." He ushered me out of the room, pointedly locking the door behind us.

Jimin took me to a smaller eating spot where only a few other students were. It was a diner of sorts, though nothing like the typical laid-back atmosphere I would have found in my hometown. Like the rest of the university, the space was high-class, with a stony air about it.

We ordered our food and sat at a table, then Jimin began a lighthearted conversation, pulling my mind away from the mystery of the letter. Eating, talking, and laughing, the time breezed by and before we knew it, only ten minutes remained until Jungkook would be waiting for us.

"So where is Gisaeng Hall anyway?" I asked as Jimin grabbed my hand and led me down the main path between many towering buildings. The sky had long faded to black, but dim orange light from lamp posts illuminated the sidewalk beneath our feet.

"It's in the Gisaeng building," he answered, to which I frowned.

"Thank you. That was incredibly helpful," I drawled. "Jimin, I'm not familiar with every building on campus."

"It's the oldest place here. It used to be a historical opera house. It was abandoned, but they bought the property to start building the university here. They designed the entire campus based on it. That's why all the architecture has Gothic elements to it," Jimin explained. "The original opera house was falling apart and they never really restored it, so they just expanded and built around it. They have the stage blocked off, but the rest of the building is used for upperclassmen dorms."

I didn't bother questioning why we were meeting at a student housing spot. It was obvious that the plan was to sneak into the abandoned stage area.

Jimin continued leasing me toward the very back of the campus. The silence of the night brought with it an eeriness that invaded my chest and constricted my throat. I hoped that going out would distract me and make me feel better, but something in the chilled air denied granting me such a wish.

It was only when we finally came upon our destination that my mind was temporarily freed of the fog, gaze lifting to take in the grandiose building before us. Deep slate in color, with towering, pointed columns, sweeping arches, and curved windows. Enchanting and menacing all at once, I felt haunted by its dark beauty.

Jimin glanced at me briefly, the corner of his mouth lifting as he saw my stunned countenance. Without a word, his palm slid into mine, our fingers lacing together as he pulled me along. I barely had time to appreciate the heavy door as we passed through it, then my eyes were wildly trying to drink more in, overwhelmed by the magnificent interior.

Streams of light twinkled past the white crystals of the chandelier that hung from the tall ceiling, saturating the room in a yellow hue. The walls of the space were decorated with large mirrors and framed paintings of dancers and singers. In front of us was a grand staircase that led to a second floor, the steps carpeted in a deep scarlet. Intricate, swirling patterns adorned the gold railings on either side. From what I could see, the second story split off to the right and left, leading into two different hallways. Likely where most of the dorm rooms were to be found.

"Good, you're here."

My head snapped to the right, spotting Jungkook sitting on one of the plush red couches near the end of the room. He stood, wasting no time in approaching us. His eyes were cat-like as he walked closer, carefully observing me, then Jimin, then our interwoven hands.

"Are the rest inside already?" Jimin asked, either oblivious or purposely ignoring Jungkook's stare.

"Yes. I wasn't sure if you two were coming together or not, so I was waiting out here in case she needed my help," Jungkook answered, his gaze never leaving Jimin's.

"Well, are we going or not?" I blurted, desperate to break the odd tension.

Both men finally looked at me, faint smiles on their lips.

Jungkook glanced around, his eyes checking every corner of the large room. When he saw that the coast was clear, he turned back to us and gave a nod.

"Follow us, move fast, and don't make a sound."

Then the two of them were climbing the staircase with me right on their heels. The beats of my heart grew stronger as I focused on staying quiet. Their behavior was strange, but for some reason I didn't question it. A tinge of adrenaline began pumping through my veins. The simple act of sneaking into a place we weren't supposed to go was enough to alert the obedient piece of me, but it was also awakening a new side, a foreign side that was alive with excitement.

I followed the two closely as they turned to the left, walking down the hallway with light steps. We passed a multitude of doors, all of which were numbered similarly to my own dorm. We turned a corner and continued walking, and soon enough we'd reached the back end of the building. There was a door smaller than the rest, low enough that we had to duck. Jungkook pulled the door open and let us go before him.

Jimin found my hand again. "Almost there."

Then we were stepping forward, heads still lowered, and as soon as Jungkook had enough room to enter the space with us, he shut the door, throwing us into darkness.

Turning the flashlight from his phone on, Jimin kept me in tow as the three of us walked through the tunnel-like space. Everything opened up in a short distance. The floor stretched forward in front of us, no longer surrounded by a wall but instead by a railing. Jimin stepped onto the long ledge and as he raised his flashlight to make more details known, I realized that we were up in the fly loft of the theatre, the area high above the stage where the curtains were suspended.

Looking down, a faint orange lit up a small portion of the stage, making it somewhat visible. My adrenaline spiked at the height we were from the ground.

"How are we supposed to get down there?" I asked nervously.

"Right here." Jimin ducked through the railing, getting on the other side of it. Then he started lowering, and I realized there was a ladder attached to the narrow deck we stood on.

I made a move to follow him, but Jungkook quickly grabbed my shoulder. "One at a time. This place is old and we don't want to risk putting more weight than it can hold."

At his words, I stopped, watching Jimin as he continued his descent.

"Do you want to go next or should I?" Jungkook questioned after Jimin made it to the bottom. I stepped out of his way.

"You first."

With a soft chuckle he brushed past me, smoothly mirroring Jimin's movements until he too was on the stage. I copied, a slight tremble in my hands as I stepped over the railing and stood on the other side, nothing to keep me from falling besides my own grip. Searching with my foot, I finally found the first step of the ladder, then with white knuckles, I scaled down the old piece of metal.

I breathed out in relief as my feet met solid ground. Turning to face the two, I nearly jumped at the sight before me.

Four more males stood at a distance behind Jungkook and Jimin.

"Uh... Hi," I said awkwardly, feeling more nervous under their gazes than I'd ever felt under the hundreds of eyes from a full audience.

Jimin saved me, coming up and wrapping an arm around my shoulders. "Guys, this is Jangmi, the one I've told you about."

Jungkook glanced at the other four, as interested in their reactions as I was. All of them stared at me with interest, though each of them had different undertones buried within their expressions.

"I'm Namjoon." The tallest greeted me first, his voice thick and husky. He had silvery lilac hair styled up to show off his forehead, with full lips and high cheekbones. His eyes held intelligence and intuition, and his stare seemed to say that he was eager to learn more about me.

"I'm Yoongi," the shortest said, speaking in a low and gravelly tone. His hair was fluffed with waves, a merlot color that matched mine. His skin was milky and porcelain, making his soft red lips stand out. Those dark irises were drinking me in, observing every detail with careful precision.

"I'm Taehyung," said the man who I quickly realized was the same one I'd seen in the dorms earlier that day. Shiny black curls still veiled his eyes as they had before, but I was close enough then to get a better look. In his gaze I found curiosity and a certain determination—of what, I had no idea.

Then the next man stepped forward, and my heart drummed wildly as a certain spark ignited in his eyes. His face was as handsome, as mature as I remembered it. Soft locks of black hair pulled back to show off more of his face. Thick eyebrows framed the same eyes that had stared into mine so lovingly in the past. And those lips, those devilish lips that had taken mine captive so many times before.

"Jin." His name escaped my mouth before he had a chance to speak.

And as I took a second look at each of them, I realized, suddenly, that I might've been staring right into the eyes of the man who'd written the note.

• • •

A/N: Okay, let me just say that the Black Swan MV dropped and I was SO EXCITED because the entire aesthetic matched what I had in mind for this book so perfectly. If you want to better picture this chapter, basically just watch the MV again and you'll have a good idea of what I see in my head.
I hope you all enjoyed this one! I know it was a lot of description, but I wanted to paint a decent picture for you.
What are your first impressions on the new characters? Any gut feelings yet on who might be the writer? Let me know!
Love you all,
-Hoseokiiss