Your ears could not believe what you were hearing. For a moment you almost lunged at her for coming up with such a believable lie just to hide her sin, but the sincerity in her words as she was speaking out her emotions was enough to shake your world.

Every word she spoke was accompanied by a quiet tear; the proof of her vulnerability. Her story was none other than what many girls and women faced nowadays; domestic abuse.

"On September 13th, I took my last breath and unfortunately, my boyfriend was the reason," with a shaking voice, Jieun narrated her miserable life before death.

"We were young, we were happy, we loved each other, but as time passed, he changed. He... ruined himself, he was drunk every day. I don't know the reason behind his sudden addiction but he became a drunkard.

"He wasn't like this, he didn't even like alcohol but one day he came home with a bottle in his hand, his eyes were droopy and his breath stank. I asked for the reason behind his state and that was the beginning of my doom. He slapped and beat me till his heart contented."

By now she was a sobbing mess yet again. Jungkook was by her side, rubbing her back to console her.

You were stunned, you were a living statue right now as your ears refused to believe this horrendous act. Your eyes teared up and you were barely refraining from crying.

Jieun wiped her tears and continued, "It went like this for a few months, I stopped seeing him. he approached me a lot of times and would beg for forgiveness but I couldn't forgive him at some point. Tell me, would you forgive him?"

You shook your head with a frown on your face.

I would have dragged him to the police station and locked him up for a lifetime.

A bitter smile shadowed her face, "I did. I forgave him a lot of times, I forgave him every time he repented. I forgave him every single time, and I regret it now. I shouldn't have forgiven him the first time he hit me.

"September 13 was our anniversary. I hadn't seen him for a week because I was determined to break ties with him even if it hurt. Like always, he apologised but I ignored him. I wanted to break up with him so I went to his apartment, he opened the door and I was disappointed to see his drunken state. Somehow, I gathered courage and told him the reason for my visit... but he..."

She was shaking, her hand was trembling badly, her tears stained her cheeks, and her legs were wobbling as she could not stand anymore.

Watching her state, you slowly lifted your hand and held hers, taking her in your embrace.

You could not help it. No matter what or who she was, she needed comfort and you were not that heartless to not help her. 

A part of you pitied her. Judging by her looks, she seemed like a young girl who had a long life ahead but was not lucky enough to survive this cruel world. She did not deserve this or any other person.

Another part of you was in a rage. That monstrous man deserved to die and you cursed yourself for defending him. He should have died right there but he was lucky enough to survive. Not anymore though because you would do anything to either kill him or imprison him.

"He shouted at me and tried to lock me up in his room, but I pushed him away and ran for the door but before I could open it, I felt a sharp pain in my head. There was b-blood." Jieun pulled away and looked at her palm. "My blood. It was all over my hand when I touched the part he hit. I died of blood loss and when I woke up, I was here at this spot."

She pointed at the ground beneath her causing your breath to hitch. Your eyes widened, thinking of all the possibilities and looking up at her to confirm your suspicions. She nodded, replying to your inquiring gaze, "This is my grave. He buried me here."

All her words proved how cruel he was, how much of a monstrous man he was. He killed her and then buried her here without giving her a funeral. Your only resolution now was he deserved to die.

You stared at the spot, not knowing how to behave or what to say. This much information was already hard to digest but as you found her eyes, the guilt in your heart increased.

She was watching with such warm and gentle eyes like the sun blessing the earth with its light. She was not mad at you for accusing her wrongly and that was eating you alive.

You inhaled a deep breath, preparing yourself to apologise for your rudeness, "I'm sorry—"

You were cut off by her, "It's okay, Y/N. You didn't know and I would do the same if I were in your place." She placed a hand on your shoulder gently which was as soft as a feather. "I, too, wouldn't hold myself from hurting the person who hurt two innocent souls."

Her head bowed down in guilt of being the cause of the accident. How could one who had been wronged, become the reason for an innocent's death? This question haunted her again and again since yesterday.

You observed her expressions and knew what she was thinking because, after all, you went through the same phase in your life.

You knew the feeling of immense regret and sadness so well. Waking up to find out that your family was dead, was the worst feeling ever but the worst was that you were at fault. You distracted your father which resulted in that accident. It was all because of you.

Composing yourself, you managed to speak out words regardless of the lump forming in your throat, "I don't know if it will make you feel better, but I have gone through the same thing. I have been there where you are right now."

Jieun watched as you continued, "You know what my grandma used to say, she would say that it was all in fate, that they would have died one way or another. We can't do anything to stop death but what we can do is to relive their memories to keep them alive."

Jieun was surprised by your words, she did not expect you to say these mature words but it also revealed the fact that you must have gone through so much in your life.

Even though you masked your sadness and pain with your mature and strong facade, it was not hard for Jieun to see through it.

And she prayed that all of your sadness would whisk away from your life, immense happiness would take you in its warm embrace and love would fly its way to your heart.

_______

The next morning, you were as usual preparing breakfast, however the train of thoughts never left you since last night.

You learned the name of Jieun's boyfriend; Park Chul as you remembered her telling you. She filled you in with every piece of information about her boyfriend, even his whereabouts. And you did want to pay a visit to her boyfriend... with the police.

You had not realised how much time passed till it was way past midnight —Jungkook reminded you— and you had to say goodbye to Jieun.

She, of course, understood and let you go even though you could see the sadness in her eyes. You promised her that you would visit again and you also asked Jungkook to show her the way to your house so she could drop by whenever she wanted.

After returning home, you were occupied by your never-ending thoughts and they all revolved around Jieun. Park Chul had to be punished —the only solution for Jieun to be free from this world— and you were willing to help her.

You were the ticket to the afterlife for Jieun, but how would you help her? That question was hard to answer. You knew you needed some proof to imprison that monster but how? How would you find proof?

These unanswered questions did not leave you alone since the moment you left her. Although, you were determined to help, regardless of the current situation. 

You were thinking of bringing her here to your apartment; you could not leave her alone when she had no shelter and food. You were sure that you could manage and Jungkook would not have any problem too. 

Just then, a rustling sound reached your ears, "Leave my cabinet, Jeon." Jungkook flinched and immediately stopped his pullovers. He got down, glancing at you but you were still cooking without any bother. 

He hurriedly scurried towards your side and pouted."I was bored." He then glanced over at the cutting board. "Why are you cutting vegetables? Are we eating sandwiches?" From the moment he had been living with you, egg sandwiches or fried rice were the breakfast for both of you.

You shook your head as you answered, "I am making bulgogi." You glimpsed at his face which instantly lit up at the mention of meat.

You smiled to yourself and continued your work until a question stopped you, "But where did you get meat from? Isn't it expensive?"

"It is a secret." You winked and resumed cutting the vegetables. Jungkook did not seem satisfied but let go of the question for the sake of the good atmosphere.

You had saved some money for your college expenses in the future. However, you had to take some of it for today's breakfast. You had not cooked meat since the day he lived with you. Feeling guilty for not feeding him well, you had decided to cook meat.

"By the way, kookie, I was thinking of inviting Jieun to stay with us. What do you say?" His expression changed to that of shock with big wide eyes and his mouth in an 'o' shape.

You giggled at his adorable reaction, "What? Is it a bad idea?" Jungkook shook his head like a bunny and you were controlling yourself so hard from ruffling his soft hair and pinching his round cheeks.

"I am just surprised, that's all. And no, it's a very good idea." He gifted you with his pure bunny smile, his eyes crinkling and filled with joy. You could not help but smile back with the same intensity.

But his next sentence stilled your heart, "Remember what I said in our first meeting?" And how could you forget it; he was the first one who had said those words and the first one who meant them.

You looked up to him, finding his eyes already fixed on you and a soft smile dancing against his lips. And you watched how his lips moved, forming the words that were a sweet melody to your ears.

"You have a very beautiful heart."

_______

Completely dark room and no one in sight. All one could see was a blanket of darkness enveloping the room fully. It was so scary and creepy that even ghosts would think twice before entering.

But amid stillness, a sound resounded. The sound of footsteps echoed through the walls outside the room and finally stopped before the entrance. 

Just as the silhouette of a man was about to grab the handle of the door, the man next to him asked him in a hushed voice, "Do we have to go in there? Isn't there any other way?"

J-hope watched his friend expectantly but to his disappointment, the man shook his head. "No."

"If anything happens to me, it will be all on you, Suga," J-hope warned but Suga still opened the door and marched inside.

"Oh God, protect me." Praying, he also entered the deathly room. Deathly because it was rumoured that whoever went inside that room had never made it back. Not even the souls which seemed absurd but who knew what happened inside?

J-hope just came along when his companion had asked him to come, without knowing the destination but now he regretted not ever asking.

As they both were inside, nothing could be seen, so Suga lit up his hand and looked around to find shelves full of books. J-hope was surprised to see that and confusion soon took over his previous expression. "A library?"

Silver-haired reaper nodded, "A mini forbidden library. It is a sacred library filled with mythology." The black haired just got more confused which caused Suga to continue, "We are here to find the reason behind that girl's ability."

J-hope rolled his eyes, not surprised anymore that his friend was obsessed with those two teenagers, "What are you up to, Suga?"

Suga's cold eyes darkened and the aura around him became colder. J-hope unknowingly shivered and if there was any other person in his place, he would have run away. "I will find the reason and if what I am guessing is correct, then it will lead me to someone more powerful who will give me my answers."

The frown on the other reaper's face intensified, "Who?" He watched his friend strolling towards one of the shelves, his back facing J-hope.

A smirk made its presence known on the pale face as his fingers skidded over the books,

"The person who gave Y/N the power to see paranormal beings."

To be continued.

A/N

The new chapter is here, been a while since I wrote but I think I will be active for now till my exams. My exams are next month though so pray for me.

Stay safe and healthy 💜

Signing off,
Kim Luna

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