So cold.

It's so dark.

My eyes feel so heavy.

I can't open them.

I feel numb.

What's going on?

Bare toes slowly curled against wet pavement, ankles twisting lightly against metal chains. Thin fingers twitched against a rough surface as fragile wrists squirmed weakly against metal chains that bonded her to wooden armrests. Her small body shivered as she was soaked, trails of water dripping from her skin. She groggily moved her head from side to side, feeling a heavy cloth material covering her head, tightly secured with a rope tied around her neck.

She opened her eyes, hazy realization of what was happening to her finally coming in. She was met with absolute darkness and her chest heaved with the will to breathe, but the cloth was preventing her from taking a proper breath and her anxiety was causing her to suffocate. She could feel her wet hair sticking to her face. Her body was wracking more violently, the metal binding her limbs rubbing harshly against her skin. She tried to scream but only slurred noises came out of her mouth.

She felt a burning sensation coming from her lungs and even though the situation called for panic she had to close her eyes and calm herself in order to actually provide oxygen to her burning lungs. After managing to breathe somewhat properly, she moved her wrists and ankles again, hissing at the pain she had caused when she struggled previously. Her brain felt like mush, so she couldn't think of how she could have ended up in her current situation. She stopped the mixture of thoughts rushing through her mind and decided to focus on her other senses, which weren't much to depend on since her sight wasn't dependable and all she could hear was dead silence with a couple of muffled echoes here and there.

Right when she was about to give up, she managed to make out the sound of a door she assumed was metal since she heard clanking, followed by slow footsteps. The footsteps sounded closer and closer, increasing the anxiety in her once again. The steps finally came to a stop, but she wasn't calm about the fact one bit as she could feel a presence in front of her once the footsteps ceased.

"Chaeyoung...my sweet Park Chaeyoung~" whispered a soft singsong voice.

Chaeyoung tried to identify the owner of the voice but her fear and mushed brain prevented her from identifying. Her shivering body tensed when she felt fingers tracing up her arms and she wished she had the strength to yell at her perpetrator to not touch her. The fingers soon left her arms and lowered down to rest on her exposed thighs. She felt disgusted and squirmed in a futile attempt to get the fingers to leave her. She felt like her clothing did little for her as they clung to her body, exposing every bit of curve she possessed. The fingers traced up ever so gently, finding their way to the dip of her waist and stalled there for a couple of painful seconds until they were removed. She inwardly sighed in relief but that was short-lived as the fingers returned once again, this time at her neck where she felt them nimbly untie the rope that held the cloth on her head.

"Shh, don't be so tense, my beauty. I'm going to remove this to see your beautiful face."

Chaeyoung closed her eyes tightly and held her breath, feeling the rope being removed and the cloth being pulled up from her head. She wanted to open her eyes but shut them tighter and bit her bottom lip when she felt dry hair brush against her cheek and breath against her ear.

"Don't be so afraid, Chaeyoung-ah~ It's just me, your lover~" the singsong tone was back and rang in her ears.

Her eyes snapped open and her mouth fell agape when she recognized the husky voice she had fallen so head-over-heels for in such short notice. He moved his head away and chuckled when he saw her wide-eyed gaze on him. She felt the blood drain from her body as she stared at the man before her.

"T-Taehyung..." she stammered, her voice finally finding the strength to vocalize.

Taehyung chuckled once again, his hand going to his back pocket and pulling out an intricately designed gold hand mirror. He stared at his reflection, ruffling his silver hair before lowering the mirror and giving Chaeyoung a menacing gaze that sent chills down her spine.

"It's Taehyung oppa, Chaeyoung~ You need to respect your elders, sweetie." He quickly emphasized and followed his statement with innocent eyes and a boxy smile.

Chaeyoung shook her head in disbelief, her wet hair slapping against her skin and making droplets of water to go all over the place. She just couldn't believe that the man before her, the sweet man she fell in love with, could do something like this. She tried hard to think of how all of this could have happened. Was it a consequence of falling for someone she didn't really know and trusting him completely over the course of a week? Her eyes burned and tears soon rolled down her cheeks, flashes of her mother coming to her mind suddenly. She remembered her mother warning her but she didn't care, oh how she regretted that now.

She never listened to her mother anyways, at least not since she used the money of her deceased father to buy a large home in Seoul for them to live in along with her stepfather who her mother had been cheating with since before her father had been bedridden. She hated the both of them but the move allowed her to meet Taehyung. She could still remember how amazing their meeting was and she would have swooned over it but never again after this circumstance.

Chaeyoung had just fought with her mother after telling her that her pig of a stepfather had installed yet another camera in her room. Her mother had told her that she was crazy and that her honey could do no such thing when he had a wife as pretty as her even despite the evidence. Chaeyoung snickered and insulted her mother, resulting in a strong slap to her face that led to Chaeyoung rushing out at midnight from her home.

Now she wandered the streets of her neighborhood that she had only just moved into a couple of days before. She sighed when she realized that her phone was not in her back pocket like usual and decided to just kick some stones as she wandered. She had no friends as she hadn't had the chance to talk to anyone yet and so her only escape from loneliness were the friends she had in her old neighborhood.

Her neighborhood was quite posh with walls surrounding the homes as a method of security. The neighborhood also had a private park that she had heard the elderly rave about but had never once visited so she was hoping to end up there at some point and check it out. As if some higher power heard her wishes, she ended up stopping right in front of the park entrance. Chaeyoung's lips twitched in a smile, her cheeks raising and causing her pain as her slapped cheek still burned.

She walked through the park entrance with a perk in her steps, gawking in awe at how beautifully lit everything was for the time of night. She breathed in the fresh air, just aimlessly walking around as she took in the beauty of the nature that had its own charm during the night. The neighborhood was so quiet that she felt like she wasn't in the noisy city of Seoul. She felt detached from the rest of society and she kind of liked it as it made her mind clear of any negativity that previously filled it.

She let out an excited gasp when a trail through trees led her to a pond that shimmered with the light of the full moon in the sky. She took a long look around until she noticed that she wasn't alone like she had previously thought. A blush crept onto her cheeks when she got a good look at the most beautiful thing in the park thus far. It was a guy that was crouched down, sadly gazing at his reflection on the water. Chaeyoung felt as if the guy was luring her in as she found herself unconsciously getting closer, making his handsome features more apparent.

"Wow..." she mumbled, making the guy to finally avert his eyes from his reflection to her with an intense gaze that made her shiver.

She was so flustered at the sudden eye contact that she stepped back, losing her balance. She let out a yelp as she felt herself fall towards the water but before she crashed into the pond she felt strong arms hold her tightly. After a few seconds, she resurfaced accompanied by the beautiful guy she had discovered. They made eye contact once again, a silence engulfing them until a chuckle turned laughter erupted from them both. Chaeyoung relished in the guy's smile as she had never seen such a pure smile before.

They got out of the water, laying down on the ground with their arms sprawled out, fingers almost touching with only a little more reach to go. Silence took over once again but as if they were thinking the same thing their heads turned to face each other at the same time. Smiles were exchanged as well as blushes and it was the most ridiculously cute meeting she could have ever wished for herself.

"Hey there. You're new. I've never seen you before." said a surprisingly deep voice that shook Chaeyoung immensely.

"I-I just moved here a few days ago. My name is Park Chaeyoung." she stated, the intensity of his stare making her look down in embarrassment.

"Cute." he mumbled. "My name is Kim Taehyung. I live in this neighborhood too. It seems we were fated to meet, Chaeyoung~"

Chaeyoung softly gasped when she felt him reach for her hand, fingers lacing once their hands found each other. She felt like her cheeks were on fire but she couldn't look away from him anymore. They stayed that way for so long, just enjoying each other's company until they had to part. However, promises of meeting often were exchanged and that was the start of Chaeyoung's one-week romance.

Chaeyoung laughed bitterly, turning to face Taehyung with a sad smile on her face. The memories of their love came crashing down and she was left with an empty feeling in her chest. She had felt physically numb before but now she was completely numb both inside and out.

"W-why are you doing this?" she questioned, her voice coming back to its normal tone now.

Taehyung placed his mirror back to where it was and got closer to her, fingers gently caressing her chin which made her flinch. He continued caressing her beautiful face, confusing Chaeyoung as she could see nothing but love at the moment. Maybe she was still too blinded to realize the truth behind his gentle touches and loving gazes.

"Don't misunderstand me, Chaeyoung. I'm not doing this from lack of love. I fell in love with you the moment we met in that park. You were the purest thing I could have ever met. A perfect fit to my impure lifestyle. However, you threatened my title. I live for the attention and you took that away from me. I couldn't stand it. I had to get rid of you to get the attention back on myself." Taehyung was burning his eyes into Chaeyoung's, planting light kisses to her jaw once he finished his vague explanation.

Chaeyoung was utterly confused to say the least and she cursed at herself mentally for allowing the kisses to affect her like they usually did. She thought she was a stronger individual than that but she was disappointed in her fluttering heart. She was supposed to feel numb like how she previously felt but he was melting her with the way he looked at her. However, his response still did little to make her comprehend so she quickly questioned him again.

"What do you mean exactly? I threatened your title? What title? How does this solve anything?" she could feel her voice getting higher pitched with each question she raised.

Taehyung sighed, moving away from her and ruffling his fluffy hair from the back. His previous loving gaze completely tossed away as it was replaced with dark eyes that showed nothing but rage.

"Let me explain then, Chaeyoung." He took a deep breath before finally talking again. "You were in my way to put it lightly. You took the spotlight from me when you entered our university. I used to be the most talked about person, daily showered with gifts and praises due to my handsome appearance. I knew you were a beauty and you only got prettier the more expressions showed on your face. People were now talking about you and I hated it. I was no longer the center as you gained more and more attention. I was practically forgotten and I couldn't have that. Even if I do love you."

Taehyung's voice became softer and he lowered his gaze, his mind whirling with memories of the past events that formed this decision. He had felt invisible and miserable. Soon the feeling of love he felt for the girl turned to jealously and he looked at her in rage when people weren't looking yet he looked at her with love when they were completely alone. It was a conflicting situation when it came to how he felt about her. He either really loved her or really loathed her and wanted her gone. He could still remember how suffocating it was to be ignored when she entered university.

Taehyung was giddy with excitement when Chaeyoung had texted him that she was on her way to the school. He had offered to bring her but she declined as she had wanted to go through the motions of a getting to the school alone. Just two days had passed since Taehyung met her at the park and his heart fluttered with joy when images of her bright smile and flushed cheeks came to his mind from that one night. They had spent the next day together at her home despite him wanting to take her out but he didn't mind as they had a good time and got to know each other better.

Taehyung looked around and smirked, feeling eyes all over him from both males and females as he waited for Chaeyoung to arrive. He reached to the back pocket of his pants, pulling out a gold hand mirror with beautiful details. He smiled when he saw his reflection, pride swelling his ego when he heard people comment on how beautiful he was. He loved the attention he always received. He had been the center of the university since before he even got accepted. Everyone admired his beauty and treated him like a king, which he enjoyed very much.

He looked at himself once more before putting his mirror away when a familiar voice called out to him. He gave her a bright smile, running to her and giving her a tight hug that lifted her from the ground. He took her hand and pulled her through the entrance, his ears immediately picking up shocked gasps and whispers as they walked hand in hand together. He thought he loved the attention they both attracted until that bubble burst when the compliments started to turn more in Chaeyoung's favor.

"Wow, she's so pretty!" "I know! She shines so much and even her hair and body are perfect!" "I'm so jealous of Taehyung to know someone that beautiful." "Seriously these two visuals together is too much!"

Taehyung tried to ignore it at first but the voices that whispered about Chaeyoung echoed in his head and made him tremble with rage. He felt his chest constrict to the point that he was heaving in order to breathe. Chaeyoung had stared at him in worry when she realized his state and attempted to help him but Taehyung was too out of it to notice. To others it would be normal to hear people compliment others but Taehyung was obsessed with the idea of others obsessing over him. He believed himself to be a God and was expected to be treated as one. One that was worshiped by all without the love being shared to others.

When he snapped out of it he had managed to act like nothing had happened and dropped Chaeyoung off while he hurriedly made his way to the restroom. He was holding his neck, almost doubling over from lack of oxygen to his lungs; he felt sick. He felt like the walls were closing in on him, consuming his very existence when he heard the echoes of people giggling and talking about Chaeyoung. He distorted their words to sound like they were insulting his very existence. People stared at him trip as he gasped for air but he saw it as glares and snarky smiles that were there to taunt him.

Once he had managed to make it to the restroom, he quickly entered a stall and threw up. He then moved to the sink where he splashed water on his face and looked up at his reflection.

"Disgusting."

"Pig."

"Monster."

He recalled some of the derogatory names he was once called by classmates when he was younger. He had been treated like an animal before, bullied to complete extremes. His past was what made him transform into the higher being he was now but as he looked at his reflection he couldn't see what he once saw.

He wanted to smash every mirror in existence to pieces and slash the shards all over his face. He felt disgusted with himself and he wasn't sure what to do with the new environment he was a part of or the foreign emotions in his system. He felt his being lose control and a darkness that once possessed him return. He had to do something to make everything return to normal. The nagging voice in his brain was coercing him and he wasn't fighting back; he had to get rid of her. Taehyung looked down and then raised his head to stare at his reflection once more, eyes dark and a sinister smile resting on his face.

"I love you so much, Chaeyoung, but I love the attention even more."

Chaeyoung was left speechless for a couple of minutes, just staring at him in silence. She really couldn't believe that all of this was happening for such a reason. She never had confidence in her appearance so sure it felt nice to be complimented but she never let it go to her head. Taehyung on the other hand was completely obsessed and he looked insane in her eyes. How can someone she cared about do something like this to her? Taehyung was just watching her reaction carefully, reaching his hand out to touch her face but she moved her head away from his touch in an instant.

"You are insane, Taehyung. Something isn't right with you and you need some mental help. How is what you stated a valid reason to do this to me, huh? Forgotten? Don't make me laugh, Taehyung! Everyone in the school thought of you as an idol and I could tell since that first day I entered school! I'm nothing compared to you!"

Chaeyoung felt exasperated so all her emotions were being yelled out loud and clear for him to listen to. Her eyes were watering, and soon more tears were trailing down her cheeks. Taehyung was conflicted as he stared at the vulnerable girl before him. His heart wanted to let her go and hug her so that all the sadness he caused could fade away. He wanted to help her but the dark voices in his brain were shouting at him those insults he hated so much from his past, so he covered his ears and screamed. Chaeyoung didn't let his meltdown affect her and kept yelling at him.

"I always thought that what we had was too good to be true! How can someone like me ever land a boyfriend like you? It would be impossible! Yet I considered myself blessed to have met you but I guess I wasn't so blessed after all! Please, let me go, Tae. We can forget that this ever happened. I promise that we will get through this together. I want to help you get over this. This is obviously due to some trauma from your past, that's why you are so obsessed! Please, just let me go and I'll help you!"

Chaeyoung begged but Taehyung was too busy listening to his inner demons to hear her cries. He was yelling for the voices in his head to stop but they were just getting louder. He just couldn't handle it anymore so he gave up, letting the voices take over him completely. He was just a puppet now, his heart no longer conflicting with the demands in his head. He was hunched over in corner and Chaeyoung held her breath, believing that he had finally realized his mistake but she could feel her heart stop when she heard a dark chuckle come from him. Taehyung looked animalistic when he raised his body and stared at Chaeyoung with a wild glint in his eyes. He was chuckling as he approached her, his feet dragging while he walked her way.

Chaeyoung shook her head furiously, calling out to him to snap out of it but those eyes didn't belong to the Taehyung she knew and loved anymore. This man before her was nothing short of a monster and she feared for her life. With each painstakingly slow step he took, her mind kept trying to recall the events that led her there since it was something she had forgotten about while everything unfolded. She closed her eyes tightly, wracking her brain until she finally recalled the final memory that led her there.

Chaeyoung sighed as she stared at her cellphone, hoping to get either a call or at least a text from Taehyung. She gave up after a few minutes, setting her phone on her bedside table and curling on her side. Taehyung had been acting strangely for the last couple of days, appearing like he was lost in his thoughts most of the time. She had questioned him about it but he always told her that everything was fine and not to worry. Chaeyoung didn't believe him but she decided against questioning him further in fear of causing an issue in their recently established relationship.

They had moved quite fast, both declaring their love for each other by the fourth day since they met and instantly establishing a relationship afterwards. As a new couple, Chaeyoung wanted to go out and act cute on dates with him but Taehyung always declined. He had stated that going out on public dates was overrated and that he preferred the time they spent alone best. Chaeyoung was confused at first but the way he looked at her made her melt into agreeing with his opinion so they would date in her home instead. Her mother met Taehyung but instantly stated that she didn't like him because something was off and warned her to be careful. Chaeyoung took the warning as her mother wanting to ruin her happiness once again so she paid no attention to her words.

Chaeyoung groaned, rolling around in bed to get rid of the anxiety she was feeling from Taehyung's lack of contact. She was so focused on rolling around that she failed to notice the sound of pebbles being tossed at her window. That was until a full-on rock smashed right through, causing her to scream and throw her body off the bed. After catching a bit of breath, she approached the rock, noticing a paper tied to it. With curiosity getting the best of her she snatched the paper quickly and read it contents.

Broke my phone so I couldn't communicate with you. I'm waiting for you so we can have ourselves a nice date by our fateful meeting spot, my lady. -Taehyung

Chaeyoung's lips instantly curled upwards into a smile and she carefully stepped over the broken glass shards to look out her window, noticing Taehyung giving her an enthusiastic wave. She ran out of her room with the note clutched in her left hand, not bothering to change her clothes nor get her phone. She took the opportunity that her parents weren't home and thanked the heavens that her home alarm wasn't working if not a mess would have been created due to the window breaking.

Once she was out she jumped into Taehyung's arms, both holding each other tightly. Taehyung had pulled her away and chuckled at her current outfit consisting of a loose white shirt and short pajama bottoms. Chaeyoung blushed when she saw Taehyung's smirk and was about to turn back to change but a sudden hand pulling her into a kiss stopped her. They stood there for a minute or two, forcibly having to stop their heated exchange in order to head to the park.

They walked through the trail of trees once at the park, quickly finding their beloved pond. Chaeyoung twirled in joy, giggling as she breathed in the familiar scents of the area. Taehyung came to her, grabbing her hand gently when she had stopped. Chaeyoung felt like her whole world froze when they gazed into each other's eyes, expressing emotions that were too much for words to explain.

"Chaeyoung-ah, you know that I love you very much, right?" Taehyung had started.

Chaeyoung just chuckled and nodded, waiting to see what exactly he was getting at. She watched as their hands separated and he reached into his back pocket to pull something out. She was curious so she tried to take a peek, thinking that he was going to give her a cute gift. Taehyung swiftly took the item in his hands and hid it, turning to look at Chaeyoung.

His eyes were dark and full of an unknown emotion that made her heart beat rapidly. His arm with an empty hand wrapped itself around her small waist, pulling her closer to his body. Chaeyoung yelped as their bodies pressed against each other and she could feel a burning gaze on her that she was feeling too shy to meet.

"Ever since I first met you I knew you were special, my sweet. My heart had never beat for another like it did for you and with that came a variety of other emotions."

They were stood next to the water, close enough to the edge to fall in at any misstep. Taehyung lowered his head, lips meeting Chaeyoung's neck as he showered it with kisses all the way up her jawline. She was feeling weak and his whispers were not helping.

"Not all the emotions were good, Chaeyoung. You took something from me and I couldn't think of anything other than this. Sleep tight, my angel~"

Before she could react to his shocking words, she felt his other arm snake its way around her neck and then a sharp pain that caused her to jerk out of his arms and enter the water. She tried to swim but everything around her had turned into a blur and the only thing she could see was a shadow coming her way before everything went black.

"I-I'm such an idiot...so that was how I got here and why I'm drenched from head to toe..." she mumbled as she opened her eyes.

"It's time to end this, Chaeyoung." Taehyung told her darkly, finally standing right in front of her.

Chaeyoung tried to scream for help but he just laughed manically at her silly actions. He pulled out the mirror he had kept in his back pocket. She watched in horror as he raised the mirror and smashed it against the chair, instantly closing her eyes. Taehyung crouched down and picked up a big shard from the ground, clenching onto the sharp object tightly which made his blood mix onto it. She flinched when she felt something sharp trace her face and she sobbed her heart out, begging him to stop.

"T-Taehyung, please! Please don't kill me!" she begged him.

"Kill you? No, oh no, baby! I would never kill you! I'm just going to make it so that no one other than me will want to pay attention to you. I'll make some modifications to your beautiful face for our happiness. Now shush, I'll make this as quick as possible." He had finished his words with a whisper.

Chaeyoung gasped, wide eyes capturing the moment Taehyung raised his arm and then dragged the piece of glass across her face, creating gashes all over. She hollered in pain, body convulsing with the will to free herself as the pain was intolerable. She could feel every opening of every cut he sliced through her flesh and by the time he was done she no longer moved. She was completely drained of energy, her body twitching as a remain of her struggling. Blood was rushing down her face but she was too out of it to notice. She hadn't even realized that Taehyung had a first aid kit with him and was trying to clean up the mess he had created.

"Don't worry, Chaeyoung. Even though you look like this now, I will always love you~" He planted a gentle kiss to her bloody lips, Chaeyoung completely unresponsive as her eyes rolled to the back of her head, making everything go black.