Park Soomi

The room was submerged in a sea of darkness, masquerading as a body of placid waters void of any life or movement. But if you ventured deeper, beyond the surface, there was nothing still nor calming about it.

I was drowning in that ocean, shivering from the cold, trembling from the fear. But I couldn't scream or let out even a squeak. Something pressed against my lips, sealing off the questioning and frantic thoughts.

And there were distant shouts, perhaps muffled in the ocean's depths. I needed to know what was happening, to understand those words.

To silence it.

I struggled to move towards the chaos, only now realizing I was being held back, unable to move as I freely wished. I squirmed, and I kicked, and I finally broke away, swimming towards the surface.

Running into the blinding light.

It was only then that the commotion ceased, and the screams dissipated, yet I wasn't at ease. Instead, my mind drew a blank, a frightening stillness.

Because all I could see was that image of a bloody hand, with that crimson liquid cascading down the shards of a forest green bottle.

I woke up with an unknown object blanketing my face. Feeling groggy, I clumsily grabbed the item with uncoordinated hands, quickly realizing it was my journal. It soon came rushing back to me: the hours spent agonizing over the contents of its pages.

No matter how much I tried, I couldn't stay away, especially not after recent discoveries. It felt like it was in arm's reach, the memories of that night, the events that followed the shattered bottle, and yet any attempts at grasping it proved futile. But I kept gravitating towards these dreams, now with unsubstantiated suspicions that they arose from my repressed subconscious.

"Soomi, are you up?" Jimin's voice came from outside the room. My attention quickly shifted to the door as I responded to him. Soon after, he cracked open the door. "Have you seen my navy hoodie? The one I like?"

"Ugh, this is why I tell you not to leave things lying around the living room. I think I probably washed it with the other laundry."

"Gotcha. Thanks!"

"Why are you packing so last minute anyway?" I groaned in annoyance, knowing he wouldn't respond anyway. But now that I was left alone, the silence beckoned my true worries to crawl out.

Jimin was actually leaving, to some foreign place with no protection from the monstrous dangers lurking in the shadows.

But I can't prove that those monsters exist, that the dangers remain.

My ears perked up, hearing someone's presence at the front door. I bounced out of bed, making quick strides towards the door, knowing exactly who I'd find behind it.

"Tell me you found something. I'm not crazy, right? Jimin shouldn't be off on his own right now?" The words spewed out as I answered the door.

"You're not crazy," Yoongi responded, and an unusually dissonant mix of relief and dread consumed me. But the intensity of that feeling was short-lived. "But, I didn't find anything of note."

"That impossible." My dumbfounded voice began grasping at straws. "This all has to mean something! The man killed someone because of my dad. But you're saying he's not involved in any of this? That he doesn't know anything about Jimin's brother."

"That's the strange part: that I didn't find anything. The visit, all the digging I've done on the guy, it all seems too...perfect. There were no red flags, and that in itself strikes me as one."

"So let's tell Jimin that. Tell him to stay!"

"And then what? Mention that we're looking into his brother despite him telling him not to?" Yoongi's words shut me right up, and he met my disappointment with a sigh. "I'm sorry I couldn't do more, but maybe it's a good thing that I couldn't find anything."

"That doesn't make me feel any better."

"But I did bring you something, just in case you'd say that." Yoongi pulled something out of his pocket, and I watched with intrigue. That intrigue quickly turned to confusion as I examined the bracelets in his hand. "Hoseok hooked me up with them when I stopped by HQ. I got it for Jimin...and one for you too."

"What is it?"

"The charm." Yoongi kneads his finger around the metal. "It has a tracker in it. That way I'll know where you guys are if there's ever an emergency."

I didn't have a chance to respond when Jimin entered the room, a suitcase in one hand and a bag over his shoulder.

"Hey, Yoongi! You're here right on time. I was just about to leave," he greeted with a carefree grin. I quickly and discreetly snatched the charm bracelets from Yoongi's hand before Jimin looked back towards us.

"Hey, Jimin," Yoongi greeted with a slight nod and wave. "Have a safe trip."

Jimin embraced me as he said his last goodbyes, but most of his words entered one ear and out the other as I contemplated making use of the bracelets. My deliberations were cut short as I realized Jimin was moving to leave.

"Wait, Jimin—"

"You can't be trying to convince me to stay when I'm seconds out the door." Jimin interrupted with a light smile.

"No, it's not that." It's exactly that. "I just wanted to give you something before you go." I pulled the bracelets from behind my back, dangling one in each hand.

"Matching bracelets. I know, it's a bit silly, but I thought they looked nice. At least wear it while you're overseas?" I felt Jimin's hesitation, or maybe I imagined it. I worried he would question my intentions, as I was never particularly into cheesy things like matching accessories or clothing. But that concern disappeared as he took the bracelet from my hand.

"Of course," he said with a smile. "Keep her safe for me, will you, Yoongi?"

Yoongi gave him a firm nod.

But who will keep you safe?

It was the last thing Jimin said before he left.

"I lied." The words escaped Yoongi's lips not seconds after Jimin's departure. The speed at which he revealed these words made it seem as though they were eating away at him, but his calm voice remained a stark contrast.

No more secrets.

"Minjun told me something before I left, something about finding Siwoo. It was an address."

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go then."

Yoongi placed his palm in front of me, marking a pause in my eagerness. "The only reason I'm letting you come is 'cause another agent had scouted the area recently and nothing seemed out of the ordinary. You have to stay near me at all times, okay?"

"I wouldn't want to be anywhere else," I spoke in a joking tone.

But I knew that there was only truth and sincerity in those words.

━ ⋆⋅✯⋅⋆ ━

I gradually slowed the car to a stop as we neared a tiny, abandoned house. We were practically in the middle of nowhere, away from any other signs of human life. All that surrounded us was a vast, empty dirt road and shrubs of wilting foliage.

"So, any ideas on what we're looking for?" I asked Yoongi while stepping out of the vehicle.

"Anything to do with Jimin's brother. All Minjun gave me was this place."

"It would be a lot faster if we split up. Cover more ground," I insisted, determined to find something.

"No, stay next to me. The place isn't too big anyway. We'll search the whole place soon enough."

I silently grumbled to myself but made no attempt to refute. Instead, I followed Yoongi closely as he carefully twisted the knob of the front door. It wasn't locked, and the door easily swung open to welcome us into the house, ready for us to discover all of its secrets.

I scanned the room with its run-down walls and cluttered furniture. It looked like a relatively cozy home underneath all the dust and debris. And I prayed we'd uncover something of use amongst the mess as well.

We started at a dingy bookshelf, and I wordlessly followed along in Yoongi's footsteps, rummaging through its content quickly yet with care. I didn't know exactly what I was looking for, nor what he was. But I continued nonetheless, making quick judgment calls of what constituted as important information.

This is what Yoongi does for a living, huh?

Neither of us spoke a word as our search continued. I found myself slowly deviating away from Yoongi's side, but I never ventured too far or out of sight. Nothing, in particular, stood out amongst all the wreckage, but I managed to slowly build a larger picture from little pieces here and there.

This was Siwoo's home, most likely after the death of his mother. Yet, it didn't seem like he stayed here for long. He left an almost nonexistent trace, while the other inhabitants of the house left a permanent mark. As I scanned a stack of papers thrown over the coffee table in disarray, a photo caught my eye. It was quite blurry, but it illustrated the image of a little boy. His features were very poorly defined in the picture, but I snapped a photo of it on my phone nonetheless.

Maybe this is him.

"I think that's everything in this room," Yoongi said with a sigh. "Let's check out the rest of the place?"

I gave him a nod, and we performed our search once again. And then we repeated the cycle for another room. And then another.

And each new room delivered nothing particularly special. I leaned against the wall and let my body go limp, feeling the discouragement slowly draining away my energy. I lazily watched Yoongi, his determined face, and nimble hands. As my eyes lost focus, my gaze began to wander and fixate on other things.

The lighting in the room. I hadn't been consciously thinking about it, but the shift in this particular room finally registered in my mind. The rest of the house stood in darkness, but there was a dim shimmer of light in here.

My eyes followed the ray of light, noticing clouds of dust particles floating in the stream before resting on a tiny window framed at the top of a slim door. All the other windows in the house were covered by blinds or planked shut, but this one remained visible.

I curiously looked through the smudged glass, discovering a huge backyard enclosed by a tall, wooden fence. A rusted swing set and slide stood at the back corner of the space.

I found myself drawn to the outside, stepping into the opening to get a better look at the entire play area. Everything seemed worn down from heavy use, yet the build-up of dirt hinted that it hadn't been used in years. The place seemed to hold cherished childhood memories, yet the cold air and dreary atmosphere were both chilling and haunting.

A huge oak tree towered menacingly over everything, casting a large puddle of shadows. I walked towards it, wondrously looking up at the magnificent branches and ornate leaves. I lifted my hand to lightly graze the bark when I caught sight of an engraving scratched in. My fingers lightly traced the letters.

K.S.W

"Soomi! Jesus, I told you to stay close to me," Yoongi shouted towards me.

"It's fine, Yoongi. This place is completely closed up. What could possibly happen out here?" I turned away from the tree, ready to head back to him. But, as I started moving, my foot got caught on a protruding tree root, stopping me in my tracks and sending me plummeting to the ground. My hands instinctively whipped around to soften the blow, my fingers now covered in a thin layer of dirt.

"Are you okay?" Yoongi was soon by my side, extending a helping hand to lift me from the ground.

But I remained frozen in place, staring down at the mundane floor of dirt and patches of dead grass. Shivers danced up my arm as my fingers brushed against an unexpectedly cool texture, like the feeling of stone.

"Hey, what's wrong?" he asked. Without even a mumble in response, I wiped the dirt off to the side, revealing its buried secrets. My eyes didn't leave the ground as I stood up, and the two of us stayed silent like this for a while.

"I guess we found what we were looking for," Yoongi finally muttered. "It's a good thing we kept this from Jimin."

I didn't know what to say. A whirlwind of different emotions possessed my body as I stared down at the decrepit slab of stone.

Here lies Kim Siwoo.
Loving son and friend.

——
{a/n}
Ahh still managed to get this out by Saturday (at least my time hahah) I'm so sorry for such a long wait :( I'm taking a pretty heavy course load this semester so I've been a bit busy. Thank you to those sticking around, and you can always check my profile to keep updated on the next chapter!