35 | THE ICE

Hoseok didn't move, and what I said did nothing to ease the distress that coated every part of him, from the stillness of his body to the devastation in his voice.

"I'm sorry," he said just loud enough for us to hear.

Jungkook spoke up when I failed to do so, a bite in his words. "I'm taking her back. Don't come to see her until you have a handle on all of this."

I could feel Hoseok's eyes on mine, though it was hard to see that far in the dark. I didn't think I wanted to see clearly anyway. Not after what happened. It would be too much to find even more of that anger he hosted toward himself.

Jungkook carried me out of the woods and back to my dorm, where I only fell asleep due to the weakness in my body.

It took another week for Hoseok to agree to meet with me, and only so long as Jungkook was there too. I didn't blame him for distancing himself after what happened, but I hated not knowing how he was doing or where we stood in his eyes.

But when we finally met, all we did was work on completing the choreography for my project. Then he left before I could get the chance to talk to him properly about everything.

I couldn't imagine how difficult it was for him to come to terms with almost losing control a second time. I did my best to accept that he needed space, that he was battling with guilt, but anger still brewed somewhere deep within me. Maybe not quite at him, but at the darkness that continued to force a wedge between us. I was furious, actually, the more I realized that he had compromised everything he worked so hard to prevent just because he felt cornered by our enemy.

Hoseok failed to text back even when I tried telling him that I'd had no nightmares since our last encounter with The Hood. After another week of not seeing him, I decided he had to be the one to come to me. As difficult as it was, I needed to keep moving.

Following classes one afternoon, I had an early dinner with Jungkook and Jimin. We grabbed sandwiches at one of the campus stores before sitting at a stone table beneath the shade of a tree.

Jimin had gotten the okay to start walking again, his skin fully healed. He was told to take it easy with dancing, especially since he was experiencing tingling with some of his nerves, but he was ecstatic to be on his feet again regardless.

"I wouldn't say she likes me," Jimin grumbled as he bit into his food.

Jungkook scoffed. "You're blind when it comes to women, buddy."

"She's the one you're partnered with in contemporary, right?" I asked.

He nodded, and I smiled at the pink dusting his cheeks.

"Ask her to the masquerade," Jungkook suggested between mouthfuls.

My stomach dropped at the mention of the event. We hadn't talked about it with everything going on lately, but I was dreading the fast-approaching night. I remembered The Hood's words the last time I'd seen him. Remembered the invisible smirk that had weaved into his tone.

"Not yet."

He was waiting—for what, I wasn't sure, but I felt this overpowering fear that his deadline would land on the evening of the masquerade.

"You okay?" Jimin questioned after noticing my silence.

I tried to smooth my expression as I offered a nod, but they both knew me too well, their eyes narrowing in sync.

"Come on, Red. If you have something on your mind, you can share it with us."

With a sigh, I said, "I know, I know. Things have just felt... off lately."

Jimin brought a hand to my shoulder. "Do you want to explain?"

I took a moment to gather my thoughts, ensuring we were out of earshot from other students. "My nightmares have stopped. I haven't seen him for over a month now, and I'm just feeling uneasy. Like he's waiting. Like the worst is coming soon."

"We won't let anything happen to you," Jimin said.

I shook my head. "I know you guys would do anything to keep me safe, but what if that still won't stop him? As much as we've seen him do, I still think he's hiding even more power than we know."

"Hoseok said the same thing to me after what happened at the theatre," Jungkook said quietly, "that it felt like he was holding back in his attack because he knew how weak Hoseok was."

"He's stronger and can do more than we think. I don't see how we could possibly stop him other than outsmarting him, and how are we supposed to do that when he seems to have access to my mind?"

Jungkook bit his lip and locked eyes with me. "We can't outsmart him. We have to use a power that's stronger than his."

I scowled, but Jimin beat me to the same reply.

"But Hoseok hasn't used his power in years. Even if he's been training for weeks, there's no way he'd be stronger."

"Not Hoseok," Jungkook said with his eyes still on mine, "Jangmi."

That deep, foreign energy stirred beneath my skin, kicking my heart into a sprint.

"I don't— it's not even part of me. I don't have any control over it," I whispered rather frantically. "And there's no way it'd be stronger than him in the first place."

Jimin had been caught up on that part of my life too, though he struggled to make sense of it as much as me.

"Even if it was enough, you can't seriously be willing to let Jangmi face him. One thing goes wrong and she'd—"

"We'd all stay with her to help. We won't let her out of sight. But before anything like that could happen, we'd help her train first. Learn to actually use it." He paused as he spotted the terror on my face. "Look, I know it's scary, but that power... it was given to you for a reason. It's meant to fight against what he is. He can't keep waiting forever, but maybe he's been biding his time because he hasn't been able to figure out how to get to you without being burned. If you bring that ability out and learn how to strengthen it, there's no way he'd ever be able to touch you. You could stop him for good."

Jimin squeezed my shoulder, and I glanced at him, finding the scowl he wore. "I don't like it."

Neither did I. But it was the only option. I couldn't stand idle while Hoseok lost his soul in order to protect me.

"Hoseok has to help me, doesn't he?" I asked Jungkook.

He nodded. "He's the only one who would have a real idea of how to teach you."

"Then convince him to see me."

Jungkook took a deep breath, then his mouth opened to answer but shut it when his eyes jumped to something behind me.

"Haven't seen you guys in a while."

Seokjin.

I turned in my spot to watch him, Yoongi, Namjoon, and Taehyung walk up to us.

"Finally out of that wheelchair?" Namjoon asked as his gaze set on Jimin.

Jimin gave a bitter smile. "Took long enough."

"Glad to see you doing better," Yoongi commented.

"You guys want to sit?" Jungkook offered, and I had to stop myself from swinging around to look at him. Casually, I turned back and was ready to send him a questioning look, but he made a point of avoiding my eyes.

"Actually," Taehyung started in that baritone, "I need help completing my showcase submission. I was hoping to get a few critiques and then have one of you record it for me."

It was pretty outgoing coming from him, but it reminded me that I needed to do the same.

"Fine with me." Yoongi shrugged.

"Yeah, I'm down," Jin said.

Namjoon put his hands in his pockets, then our gazes linked. "We could help you out too, if you need it."

As long as we were in a group, I wasn't too opposed. It might've been one of the last times I could take note of any clues, which was probably Jungkook's reasoning in inviting them to sit with us in the first place.

"Yeah, that'd be great. The due date's in a couple days so it's perfect."

The others looked to Jungkook and Jimin, awaiting their replies.

"Where she goes, I go," Jimin said jokingly. I hoped I was the only one to sense the hesitancy buried there.

Jungkook tossed the paper left from our sandwiches into the trash beside him before standing. "Where to, then?"

Taehyung decided on one of the older dance studios, like the one our contemporary class had relocated to after the fire damaged the other building. It was the perfect backdrop for recording the routine, with its dark hardwood floors and wood beams across the ceiling.

As we walked to our destination, I lagged a little ways behind everyone, caught up in thoughts of Hoseok, that night in the woods, the masquerade...

"Hey," came Jin's soft voice. He had slowed his pace to match mine, and I glanced into his eyes briefly. Something about them seemed different—not as desperate as they once were.

"What's up?" I asked, secretly thankful that he was distracting me.

He trained his gaze on the ground. "You just looked a bit lonely back here. How have you been?"

I struggled to formulate a reply. "I've been... preoccupied. But I'm trying to get more focused again." I want to get back to who I was before those stupid letters started showing up.

Jin glanced at me knowingly, and I was reminded of how well he knew me despite our estranged relationship. He could still pick up on my cues just like Jimin and Jungkook.

"You know, you haven't seemed all that excited about dancing lately. I mean, even back when you first got here, it seemed like it wasn't at the front of your mind anymore."

Was he that observant of me?

"You're right. But I want to be."

"You're going to have to be if you want to stand a chance at winning that spot in the showcase. Passion is everything in the arts. You'll be twice as good if you can connect to it again," he said, growing milder in tone, "Get back to that girl I knew in high school who traveled somewhere else when she danced."

I found it hard to look at his face then, his words hitting too deep even without meaning to. I watched the men ahead of us instead. "I'll try to do that." A pause, and then, "How have you been?"

"Ah," he let out a light, awkward chuckle. "I'm pretty good, actually. I started going to therapy and it's been helping a lot."

Surprised didn't come close to what I felt. In all the time I'd known him, he'd always scoffed at the idea of seeing any sort of counselor for mental health. It was huge for him.

"That's... really great, Jin. What made you decide to start?"

"You did," he replied as he scratched the back of his neck. "I didn't realize how... how much I wasn't okay until you showed up and I started acting out. And I saw the way you looked at me as if I was someone you barely knew. It made me want to do better. To be better. And I knew that started with asking for help."

Even though it was unexpected, the way he spoke was finally, finally recognizable as the Seokjin I used to know. But still some small, untrusting part of me remained conflicted.

It must've shown on my face as both Jimin and Namjoon happened to glance back, and the latter slowed to let us catch up to him.

"Everything good here?" Namjoon asked lightly, but I could hear the seriousness behind the question. He clearly remembered the multiple times Jin had made me uncomfortable.

"We're good," I answered with a reassuring smile. "Just chatting."

He eyed Jin a moment longer but said nothing more.

As the three of us picked up the pace and fell back in line with the others, I couldn't help but feel uneasy about both of them. As much as I hoped Jin was genuine, it felt like he walked with me in the hopes of mentioning his therapy from the start—like he needed to prove to me he was trying, getting better. And Namjoon seemed kind for checking on me, but I wondered if he was that protective of all his friends.

We arrived at the studio before I could linger on the questions too long. Taehyung showed us his dance first by running through it loosely, and a few of us gave some pointers for little things—altered positions, variations in timing, but nothing big. Then he really danced the routine, and my jaw almost dropped.

He was incredible. Far more talented than anyone had ever hinted. When he moved it was as if he swept some calming hypnosis over all who watched.

Nothing could ever compare to Hoseok's dance, but it didn't have to. Taehyung's style was so different that they'd be impossible to put side by side for even a moment.

As he fell into his final pose and the music faded, his dark eyes seized mine across the room and held them there. Hard. Perceptive. Unrelenting.

Chills pricked my spine.

"Got it," Jin announced as he stopped recording. We were all standing by the mirror so that the video wouldn't catch us in the reflection.

"One take?" Taehyung asked as he straightened, releasing me from his stare.

"One take. It was perfect."

I couldn't disagree, and as much as I'd fallen in love with my own choreography, I knew Taehyung had as much of a shot at winning as I did.

"Guess it's the rose's turn," Yoongi said as he moved to the speaker, using his phone to find the track he and Namjoon made for me.

Jungkook had started walking to the center of the floor but stopped abruptly.

"What did you just call her?"

Yoongi stopped tapping to glance up at him. He raised a challenging eyebrow but didn't reply.

Jungkook stared him down for only a second before chuckling, that usual playfulness tinting every feature. "Only I can use nicknames for her. She hates them unless they come from me. Right, Red?"

I rolled my eyes, making my face impassive. What was that about?

"You're an idiot," I said.

As I stepped up to him and we intertwined our hands between our chests, his eyes twinkled and his mouth formed a smirk. "Better be nice to your dance partner. He's responsible for lifting you, after all."

After a faint scoff, the music started to play.

"If you even pretend you might drop me, you're dead," I whispered. He laughed under his breath and then we went through our routine. I felt the males' heavy stares on us as we moved, but focusing on Jungkook lightened the weight.

"That choreo is awesome," Jimin praised when we finished.

"It captures your theme well," Namjoon said.

"Any suggestions?" I asked, noticing that Taehyung and Yoongi were extra quiet.

"I think it was great," Jin said from the floor, his legs crossed with his back against the mirror. "The only thing that I think could be better is your expressions. Both of you. You're telling a story, so you want the audience to see you two almost as characters. Your faces should reflect the emotion involved in the story."

I agreed completely. I'd been trying to do just that since we first started on the project, but it was tough when there was always someone else watching. I struggled to immerse myself into that role even when the story was my own.

Standing chest-to-chest again, Jungkook leaned forward and whispered in my ear, "Just think about us. Let yourself feel what we've been through. Forget everything else."

I swallowed and nodded, squeezing his hands.

"Record it this time," Jungkook said to Jin.

Then the music filled the space, and I imagined the song as something physical, something that floated through the air and wrapped around the two of us like a barrier of ribbons, swirling and swirling as it blocked out everything around us.

And finally, I felt it. Our past, our memories, the threat of darkness that entangled our future and ripped it from grasp. I was connected to it, living it again with him.

I spun apart from Jungkook—the day I lost him—closing my eyes as the pain of it all tugged on my brows, my lips. He came in front of me and reached out, but I folded in on myself and escaped his hold. My breath halted when I caught sight of his face, mirroring the suffering, the desperation I knew he felt for so long.

But after all the failed attempts at reuniting, all the almosts and not quites the dance called for, he caught me in his arms and I clung tighter to him than ever before. A small whimper left me, drowned out by the swelling emotion of the music, but I was sure Jungkook heard as he held me even closer and guided us through the next moves.

When the song slowed and began to fade, our barrier fell away just as we held the final position. Jungkook had one hand on the small of my back, the other behind my neck to support me as he leaned forward and I leaned back, spine arching to match the shape of his body. My legs altered between his, with one calf hooked around his own.

The music ended, but we held, held until our breaths calmed and our hearts lessened their aches. Jungkook's eyes darted between mine, and what I felt from them wasn't an anger or a longing as it used to be, but instead a bittersweet acceptance.

I let out a breath as he slowly brought me back to my feet, one hand remaining at my neck while the other came up to brush my cheek—a tear that had slipped by unnoticed.

"Don't cry, Red, or I may never be able to dance with you again."

The words were a gentle caress, but he managed to infuse that playfulness again to hide just how much he truly meant it.

I smiled. "I wasn't crying. I've just got allergies."

He laughed as we parted, and then I became all too aware of our audience. I brushed my hair from my face, trying to fight against the blood rushing to my cheeks.

"Well, you got that down," Taehyung broke the quiet, though he still sounded cold somehow.

"Jangmi, that was... I loved it," Jimin said, and I could see how excited he was for me.

"Thank you," I said, feeling more and more satisfied. Choosing to dance something so personal was the right choice, after all.

A glance at the others told me they felt similarly. Yoongi leaned against the wall, observant and intrigued. Namjoon was at the mirror beside Jin, and his head was tilted slightly like he was impressed and still contemplating what he saw. Jin was staring between the two of us in surprise, and I was sure he was questioning when Jungkook and I had become so close.

Yoongi disconnected his phone from the stereo. "Good advice, Jin."

"Acting is a valuable skill," Seokjin replied.

But it hadn't been acting in any way, and I hoped that would be what made it powerful enough to touch the audience, even if they would never know exactly what it meant to me—to us.

After reviewing the videos, both Taehyung and I were happy with the results and agreed that we were done.

As the others began leaving the room, Taehyung called Jungkook and me back, letting the others know that we'd catch up with them. The door closed as they left.

He stood at the center of the floor, hands in the pockets of his loose-fitting white pants.

"What is it?" Jungkook asked, but Taheyung's eyes were piercing mine.

"You trust him."

It wasn't phrased as a question, but I knew he was asking. I frowned, but answered, "Yes."

He stared. I didn't like it. My heart started to pound, recalling the night he'd warned me about Hoseok, the night he told me to wear the necklace. The night I'd been chased by The Hood.

Jungkook discreetly wrapped his hand around mine.

Taehyung's gaze snapped to Jungkook. "And you care about her."

Where is he going with this? It was a mistake dancing in front of them, showing them our connection.

"I do," Jungkook stated.

"Would you do anything to protect her?"

The question left us both quiet, panic seeping in. Jungkook squeezed my hand.

"Why are you asking this?"

Taehyung's eyes were stone-cold. "Just tell me. Are you willing to do anything to keep her safe?"

"Yes," he said without hesitation.

"Good. Then I have something to show you."

And before either of us could think or move, Taehyung splayed his palms out in front of him, and from nothing came a pale blue, almost silver glow dashing through his veins and across his skin until there was an orb of blue light in each palm. They pulsed and skittered in his hold, and white mist surrounded them. Then they dissipated to nothing as quickly as they came, and a thin layer of... of ice melted to water on his forearms.

I was barely breathing as Taehyung watched my reaction. Jungkook, on the other hand, let go of me and stepped forward.

"You're... you're a Descendant."

• • •

A/N: Cat's out of the bag. A few of you guessed this!! I'm curious, though, how many of you didn't think of it?

Any new clues you think you picked up on? Any growing, lessening, or resurfacing suspicions? The big reveal is pretty near, so get your theories in order ;)

I hope you enjoyed this chapter! We'll get to see a lot more of Hoseok in the next one!

Before I go, I wanted to show y'all this awesome edit by @Maveea! No, it's not meant to be a hint, it's just for aesthetic purposes, so don't read into it too much:

Beautiful, right?

As a little side note, I'm going to be posting another update to Ravenous and Hearts of Dusk soon! Both are additional introductory updates to prepare for the first chapters. It would mean a lot if you go to check them out! 💜

Thank you for reading. I appreciate you. Keep taking care of yourselves!

Your deviously-plotting-author,

Kat :)

May 29, 2021

Yes, I got the year right this time 😤