the traffic was extra loud today when you left home, even though you had left two hours earlier than you normally did. all because you wanted to make it in time for an interview.

till now, you had been working at a pretty well-to-do company. only problem? the internal politics made it impossible for you to get a promotion there. not to mention the absolutely terrible job security. the only reason you had accepted the job there was because you had no prior job experience, which was precisely what the previous company had been looking for.

why was that the case? well of course, they needed employees who they could freely exploit, and what better option than complete newbies did they have?

which was why you had decided to finally leave the job after working there for a year and a half—provided you got the job today. since you had prepared well enough for the interview, you were pretty confident you would get the job.

reaching the building, you made a beeline for the reception. the lobby was pretty vast, so hopefully the extra facilities that the job provided would be a lot more than what your previous job provided. although you would only know that once you got to the interview room.

“excuse me,” you started, as you approached the receptionist. “i came here for an interview for–”

“take the stairs to the right. keep going till you reach the fifth floor. walk straight, then turn left. keep going till you see a water dispenser. then go right twice. you will know when you reach the designated room for your interview.” said the guy at the desk in a bored tone, interrupting you, even before you could tell exactly what you were here for.

you bit down on your tongue, only uttering a half hearted ‘thank you’ before doing what he said. his instructions had already started blurring out halfway as you climbed the stairs. still, you did your best to reach the place on time.

your brain worked on autopilot as you walked, blanking out at certain places. even then, you reached the room in just under fifteen minutes.

the interview went well enough, you think, since you felt satisfied with your own answers. as soon as you stepped out of the company, your phone rang. it was your miyoung, who was probably calling to know how the interview went. true to your prediction, she had called precisely for that reason.

“girl,” miyoung started. “you better be having some good news for me.”

you let out a small laugh, before replying. “of course i do. what do you take me for?”

she let out an exaggerated hum, before replying. “of course, of course. do you have time right now? for a coffee?”

you looked down at your watch. it was almost time to go to your current job, but since you were probably leaving it pretty soon, you didn’t care about missing a day. besides, you could always make up some excuse about some sort of sickness later on.

“yep, i’m free. for the entire day actually. we can go shopping too, if you’re up for that.”

“perfect! let’s meet up at xxxxx cafe, and then we can go to the mall near it too!”

“mhm, sounds like a plan.”

a small squeal tore out of miyoung, as she hugged you tightly. “babeee, it’s been so long since we last met upppp.” she whined into your ear.

your buried your head into her shoulder. you missed her dearly too, even though you didn’t show it much. “i know, right? i say we spend the entire day at the mall. to hell with our bank accounts.”

she broke the hug to shake you by your shoulders excitedly. “finally you’re speaking my language! to hell with our bank accounts!”

your smile was so wide it hurt your cheeks. you had forgotten the serotonin boost that you always seemed to get when you spent time with her. truly, it was an experience. “but i suppose we should go inside the cafe now. people are starting to give us weird looks.”

miyoung looked like she was about to argue, but you pushed her into the cafe before she could utter a word. the two of you quickly went to a table for two around the back, thanking the waiter when he handed you the menu.

“do you have anything other than coffee in mind right now?” you asked, flipping through the pages of the menu, not looking up from there.

she hummed. “oh yeah, definitely do.”

“what is it?”

“your interview. the details, specifically.”

you looked up, raising a brow at her to show exactly how unimpressed you were. “really?”

“mhm. really.”

you sighed, defeated. “precisely what details do you want to know? i mean, it was just like any other regular interview, just one that went pretty well.”

“hm.” miyoung looked dissatisfied at your answer. “seriously? nothing else? nothing worth mentioning? like a cute interviewer, or another candidate giving you ‘fuck me’ eyes?”

you deadpanned at her, before shrugging. “i suppose the receptionist was a bit weird? in the sense that he threw me off a little.”

miyoung leaned in close, her interest having peaked. “oh? why is that?”

“well… he didn’t even let me finish my sentence before giving me a bunch of instructions regarding where to go. as in a lot of directions, which were kind of hard to follow. but somehow, i miraculously made it to the interview on time. even when i blanked out most of the time.”

her brows furrowed. “did he give a lot of directions?”

“mhm. i remember going up the stairs to the fourth—or was it the fifth floor? but after that i can’t exactly remember.”

it was then that miyoung’s eyes lit up with a glimmer. the kind of glimmer that always appeared in her eyes right before she told you something that sounded completely ridiculous. something that would just seem like utter bullshit to anyone with a practical mind like yours. miyoung was pretty different from you in a lot of ways, but your differences were exactly what made the two of you so close.

“you know,” she started. “there is a theory regarding this. sort of.”

you raised a brow. “did you make it up?”

her cheeks flushed slightly. “i didn’t make it up. it was already existing—i simply added a bit of my own thoughts into it.”

“mhm. go on.”

the expression on her face was the only reason you always entertained her ‘theories’, which always seemed like bullshit to you. “apparently, certain journeys—and i don’t mean long, physical ones. i mean ones like going to the bathroom at night, or trying find a particular book in a library which you came to for the first time, finding the interview room in a company, etc., where your mind blanks out—even for a few seconds, or if your brain works on autopilot during these ‘journeys’, your conscious mind and subconscious mind gets divided.”

“while your consciousness is in the real world, your subconscious travels somewhere beyond reality—a place similar to those blank areas that developers leave in games. ones that they either forgot about, or are still under construction—for a project that they probably wouldn’t start on—at least not any time soon. so if we compare our life to a game, our consciousness remains in the main game, while our subconscious travels into the unfinished area. the backrooms, if you will.”

she stopped talking to drink from the glass of water placed in front of her. “some say that if such a phenomenon keeps occurring, there might be a time when we can experience exactly what our subconscious does—travelling into a place where time doesn’t work the same way it does in the real world. as in, while our mind blanks out only for a few seconds or minutes during these journeys, for our subconscious it might be longer. a lot longer.”

“people also say that during that period our consciousness may fight with our subconscious to take over again. along with the theory that we only blank out usually since our consciousness wins the fight against our subconscious. but when our subconsciousness wins instead? off to the backrooms we go.”

you had been listening to her patiently the entire time. you leaned forward on your palms, tilting your head. “alright. let’s say you’re correct. that this… theory is actually true. what even happens in the backrooms?”

miyoung shrugged. “no one knows. even if anyone does, i doubt they remember. another addition to the theory is that once our consciousness has won the fight, all traces of the ‘glitch’ in our ‘system’ would get erased.”

you raised a brow, impressed. you had to admit, the entire theory seemed pretty legit. impressive, even. “right. sounds cool. should we order now?”

all too accustomed to your thought process, miyoung didn’t exactly take your seemingly cold shoulder to heart. so you both ordered a drink each, an ice americano for you, and a match latte for her. after which you both did exactly what you said you would do. destroy your bank accounts at the mall.

the walls stretched on and on, a seemingly endless maze made of rotting bricks, overgrown weeds, and peeling, yellowed, wallpaper slapped over it all. the smell was nauseating, even when you covered your nose and mouth. your feet made these disgusting squelching noises as you walked, like walking on a carpet that was dripping wet. you wanted to get out, get the fuck away from this place—but no matter how far you walked, it all seemed to loop back into the same place, making you start from square one, all over, and over, again, and again…

you woke up with a jolt. a cold sweat had broken out on your forehead, your chest rising up and down heavily. that was the worst nightmare you ever had.

you slowly sat up. you looked around, seeing exactly what you expected to see. the moonlight filtering in through the curtains of the windows. in your room. that's right. you were in your room. completely safe and sound.

you relaxed—it was only then that you realised just how parched your throat felt. you tried to get a glass of water from your nightstand, but the glass was empty. right. you had forgotten to fill it up.

sighing, you got up, your feet automatically slipping into your slippers. you walked out of your room, into the hallway. you walked down the stairs, into the kitchen, mechanically turning on the light. your brain was on autopilot the entire time, filling up a glass with water.

once your thirst was quenched, you turned off the kitchen light, walking back to your room. on the way, you felt sleep trying to get a hold of you. you stifled a yawn, closing your eyes to do so. big mistake. a huge one even.

suddenly, you felt yourself slipping—on what, you had no idea. your head hit something, hard. your vision swam for a few seconds, before it went back to normal.

what. the. fuck?!

the place you were in was most certainly not your house. you stood up hastily, trying to make sense of your surroundings. with an increasing sense of dread, you realised you recognised the place.

of course you did. it was the exact same place from your nightmare.

but that couldn’t be the case. maybe you were dreaming again? maybe the fall knocked you out, and now you were dreaming…? that had to be the case, right?

but even with your rational mindset, you knew this wasn’t simply a dream. this—this place you were in—couldn’t be described as a ‘dream’. this place was as real as it could get.

but why? and most importantly, how? how was this happening? why on earth was it happening? everything in life has a meaning, a purpose—surely this place had one too?

maybe it did. and maybe, just maybe, that was the whole reason you were stuck here. even if it wasn’t permanent.

but could you really be sure? regarding whether your… rather unpleasant stay here was going to be permanent or not?

you had no idea how long you had been walking. the monochromatic yellow walls stretched on forever and ever, the smell of rot clinging to them everywhere. the flickering lights, and random noises were starting to fade into the background. you had no idea where you were supposed to go—or if there was somewhere you could go at all.

the dripping wet carpet was starting to get to you. the cold was starting to cause your teeth to chatter. but you kept walking, even when your legs were starting to cramp up.

you decided to change your pattern up slightly. till now you had been sticking to the left wall. so now, you were going to take random turns instead. maybe that would help? somehow?

but in the midst of your thoughts, you saw something that made you stop walking entirely. there was—a black mass?—or was it just a cluster of shadows–?

your breath hitched. the mass seemed to be still. desperate for something, anything, you threw all your rational thinking and survival instincts out of the window, and started walking towards the mass.

to your surprise, the shadow cluster seemed to move. you stopped again. the mass stopped too. realising what was going on, you started running—as fast as you possibly could, on a carpet that was dripping wet. the mass moved—or rather, shifted—with just as much speed.

you kept turning to whichever corners the mass went—something which you probably shouldn’t have been doing—before eventually you tripped and fell face first while turning another corner.

you groaned, the water from the dirty carpet seeping into your clothes. your feet hurt terribly, the adrenaline rush subsiding. with difficulty, you shifted, turning on your back. slowly sitting up, you looked down at your feet. shit.

they were swollen, a vibrant red starting to blossom on your left ankle. it had probably been cramping up for a while, but your adrenaline rush did not let you realise it.

with difficulty, you sat up. you looked around. the place looked exactly the same, as always, except…

was that… a door in the distance?

you squinted your eyes, not believing them. what if it was simply a mirage? a hallucination? like one might have in a desert, when they see an oasis after walking in the scorching heat for a long time?

but hope… hope is a dangerous thing. it keeps people from collapsing, from giving up, even when they have nothing left. so you hoped. hoped it wasn’t simply a trick of the light, or a hallucination. with some difficulty, you managed to haul yourself up, using the wall for support. you managed to limp towards the door, keeping your eyes on it the entire time, scared it might disappear if you looked away even for a second.

to your relief and utter happiness, it didn’t go away. you kept limping towards it, an ‘employees only’ sign hanging in front of it. you could care less about the sign, as long as the door wasn’t locked. you managed to finally reach the door. as you stood in front of it, you took a deep breath. you never believed in any kind of god, being an atheist from your childhood. but right now, you prayed that the door wasn’t locked.

you put your hand on the door knob, trying to turn it.

click.

it opened, total darkness greeting you. you gulped—but your throat was completely parched. again.

you pushed yourself inside, your hand using the wall for support. suddenly, you felt something on your fingertips. was that…?

you groped at the wall, finding a switch. you quickly flipped it, bright light immediately flooding the place. you had to squint to keep yourself from suddenly going blind. you closed the door behind you, your eyes slowly starting to adjust to the light. you looked around the room. it wasn’t huge by any means, just big enough. the walls were filled with food and bottles of water. you had never seen so many snacks anywhere, other than convenience stores.

your stomach suddenly rumbled. how long had it been since you last ate? when you woke up, it was probably around… three am? after which, you got stuck here, walking for… an hour at least? so it had been a good six-seven hours, if you combined it with the times you stopped to take some rest…

you looked around. there were a lot of ramen packets here. around one corner of the store, you saw three stoves. the ones that required no electricity. perfect.

you opened a packet of ramen, and a bottle of water. there were a few kitchen utensils as well in some cabinets in one corner. you made quick use of them, starting to boil water. the fire’s crackling provided you some comfort, as you used it to warm yourself up as well.

after a few minutes, you started cooking some ramen, using the chopsticks in the cabinets to aid you. you used your teeth to cut open the packet filled with sauce, pouring them in the ramen. the smell caused your stomach to growl again, as you impatiently stirred it.

once you deemed it edible enough, you used a discarded piece of cloth from near the sink, using it to take the pot off the stove. you got a bowl from one of the cabinets, pouring the ramen into it. the delicious smell caused your mouth to water, as you stared at the bowl hungrily. but you knew trying to eat it now would cause your mouth to burn.

nevertheless, you were hungry. extremely so. looking around, you saw packets of kimbap arranged on the wall among other snacks. you quickly got up, rushing over. taking it off the shelf, you quickly sat back down. tearing open the packet, you sunk your teeth into the delicious food, not even bothering to heat it up.

the taste of it flooded your taste buds, making you feel like you were on cloud nine. kimbap had never tasted this good before. perhaps feeling starved makes you appreciate even the most basic foods a lot more than you would normally.

within seconds, you had devoured the entire packet. were you a big back, or were you just starving? probably both. either way, you had never eaten anything with half as much joy as you were right now.

you looked down at your ramen. picking up the chopsticks, you started eating it, all while blowing on it excessively to cool it down. once again, the rich flavour flooded your taste buds, causing you to groan. ‘holy fuck’ you thought, ‘if all of the food here tastes this good, i don’t mind staying here for a while.’

you happily ate the rest of your ramen, tilting the bowl to drink up the soup at the end as well. you put the used utensils in the sink, washing your hands as well. you told yourself that you weren’t procrastinating, and that washing the dishes tomorrow was a logical decision on your behalf. right on que, you let out a yawn. your eyes threatened to shut, so you quickly went over to one corner of the room, where a makeshift bed was placed. you lied down on it, pulling a sheet over you since there wasn’t a blanket. you closed your eyes, and within seconds you were drifting off to sleep.

right before sleep fully consumed you, you hoped against hope that you being stuck in this place was simply another nightmare of yours. unfortunately for you, even you knew that it wasn’t the case.

when you woke up, you had no idea how long it had been. time wasn’t something you could estimate easily in this place. feeling your back starting to cramp up, you forced yourself to get up, stretching to try and freshen up.

there were a few toothbrushes and toothpastes in a cabinet above the sink, so you used one to brush your teeth. there was a toilet in a small corner of the room, covered by another door. you used it, noticing with disappointment that there was no way to shower there.

once you were completely done freshening up, you explored the room with more precision. there was no carpet in the room, instead replaced with a hardwood floor. but it was damp, so that was irritating. you found some chalk in a cabinet, which gave you the wonderful idea to explore the place. you took two pieces of chalk, before getting out of the room.

you marked the wall with a large ‘x’, doing the same to every wall. you kept to the left, hoping this way you wouldn’t get lost. the maze stretched on for miles, seemingly having no end. so you simply kept walking, not forgetting to keep marking the walls to your left.

the squelching noises from the carpet were annoying you, drilling into your head. nonetheless, you had to deal with it. so you kept walking.

the endless stretch of mono yellow walls was utterly ungratifying. every time you turned a corner, you hoped to see something—anything—different, but you got disappointed. the same mono yellow walls always greeted you, as if mocking you for getting stuck in the first place.

after around twenty minutes, you gave up. you let out a loud groan, covering your face in your palms. your back collided with a wall, as you slid down it, completely hopeless. you stared at the flickering light above you with teary eyes. were you really stuck here forever?

you buried your head in your hands, starting to softly cry into them, pouring out your frustration. why was life so terrible to you? right when you thought everything might finally work out in your favour too…

the job interview had gone so well, you met your best friend after such a long time, even going on a long needed and well deserved shopping date with her—all for what? to get lost in this—this weird place?

you sniffled quietly. as your breath calmed down again, you heard something in the distance. was that… ripples?

you trained your ears, hard. the unmistakable sound of small splashes sounded in the distance. you lifted your head out of your arms. you slowly got up, starting to walk in the direction of the sound.

after about five more turns, a brilliant sight greeted you. a huge stretch of water, that easily resembled a big pond, was in front of you. tentatively, you stepped closer. close enough for the water to lick your ankles.

it was cold, but not as cold as ice. it was bearable, but just enough. you trained your eyes properly. the water seemed to be safe. no creatures or anything in there. with a start, you realised you hadn’t seen any life form in this maze at all. but right now, that was the least of your worries.

you stripped off all your clothes, before jumping into the water. you had sort of underestimated exactly how cold it was, but it didn’t matter now. you needed a bath, desperately so.

you swam around, enjoying the water against your body. it felt refreshing, especially with how dirty you had been feeling before this. fuck, you could stay here forever. although you did wish you weren’t here alone. since being alone was one of your biggest fears.

sighing, you decided to get out of there before you caught a cold. getting out of the—pool? could it even be called that?—you stood awkwardly with your arms around your body, since you had nothing to dry yourself off. you looked around, frowning as you saw a towel on a steel bar on a wall. raising your brow, you went to it, using it to dry yourself off.

it was odd how it suddenly appeared, especially when you were pretty sure you hadn’t seen it before. but then again, you weren’t exactly the most observant person out there, so you might have simply missed it. yeah, that was probably the case.

even though a nagging feeling at the back of your mind told you that it might just not be the case.

you dried your hair as best as you could, since you didn’t want to wrap the towel around your head. you didn’t exactly trust this place—which was a little weird to think about, since you had eaten the food provided by this place earlier. so why hesitate when it comes to a towel?

either way, you got dressed again. being in your pajamas wasn’t a great feeling, but it was fine for now. since you didn’t exactly have the luxury of choosing better clothes for this grand occasion.

you were just about to leave the place, to continue back to your base—or whatever that magic room filled with snacks could be called, when you suddenly stopped. were those… footsteps?

you gulped, trying to listen carefully. the sound of someone walking over the wet carpet was unmistakable. which meant there was another person—or something else, alive—here. that should have made you feel better. relieved, even. so why did that only fill you with dread?

you slowly started to walk out of the place with the pool. training your ears to the sound of the footsteps, you started walking towards the source.

eventually, after turning three corners, you came face to face with a guy. even though you were looking for him, you still let out a startled scream, which in turn caused him to flinch. he took his hands out of his hoodie pockets and held them up in a surrendering motion.

“woah,” he replied, his eyes blown wide. “easy there. i’m not going to harm you.”

you gulped. you didn’t really know what to do. “how—how long have you been stuck here?”

he shrugged, his posture becoming relaxed again. his hands slipped back into his hoodie pockets. “no idea. it was around midnight on… the twentieth? when i randomly got stuck here? i was simply going on a walk in my neighbourhood and ran into a lamp post. i probably fainted then, because when i opened my eyes, i was here. from my understanding of time, it has been at least around twenty five days since. or at least with how time works here.”

your eyes widened at the information. twenty five days?! but the twentieth was the same day you got stuck. so how was he stuck here for so much longer?

but then again, you got stuck after midnight. so maybe that’s the reason he seemed to be here for much longer.

he tilted his head, looking at you curiously. “what about you? how long has it been for you?”

you shrugged. “i got stuck on the same day as you. only it was after midnight. i was on my way back to my room, when i suddenly slipped and fell. when i opened my eyes, i was here. it’s been a little less than a day for me, i suppose.”

he looked a little surprised at the information. “wow. time here does work differently.” he looked at you with renewed interest. he offered his hand to you for a handshake. “i’m jungwon, by the way.”

you shook his hand, giving him your name as well. he let out an appreciative ‘hm’. “pretty name for an even prettier girl. are you the one that drew those marks on the walls? i came here by following those.”

you nodded. “yeah… didn’t wanna get lost.”

“i get that. but why bother? the whole place is the same anyways.”

you shook your head. “the marked walls lead up to a room with lots of food, water, and even a place to sleep. there is a small bathroom-like area there too. and the place i just went to has a huge pool, along with a towel. i just took a bath there.”

he gave you a humourless smile. one that indicated he knew a lot more about this place than you did.

“have you heard of the backrooms?”

you frowned, the name sounding familiar to you. you recalled miyoung telling you something about it the other day. “i may have. why?”

“this place—or rather, this maze—is also called the backrooms. it’s not exactly real, but neither is it a figment of our imagination. it’s the line between reality and our imagination, existing only when our conscious mind is too weak to fight our subconscious. that’s when we get transported here. it’s not a common occurrence, and is said to have a chance of occurring only one in a billion times with any person. it is so uncommon, that two people experiencing it at the same time has almost zero chances of occurring. yet, here we are, somehow.”

you frowned. “i still don’t get what your point is.”

jungwon let out a small laugh. “this place doesn’t want to kill us. in fact, it will ensure that nothing ever happens to us. if we are starving, it will provide us with food. if we need water, it will provide us with water. if we need companionship, it will warp its passageways to ensure people stuck here at the same time, end up meeting each other.”

suddenly, it all made sense to you. why you found the room immediately after you were close to giving up on all hope. why you found the pool, immediately after you were frustrated beyond relief. why you saw a towel hanging, despite being sure that you didn’t see it before. or why you found jungwon just minutes after you wished you weren’t here alone. so what if—what if you wished for an escape route?

noticing your expression, he smiled. “the only thing this place won’t grant you is an escape. that is something you will have to find on your own.”

your shoulders, dropped in disappointment. he patted you on your head. “cheer up. we can go to this room of yours, and find a way to get out of this place after we eat something. i hope you don’t mind sharing the room with me.”

you shook your head. “of course not. i would rather not be alone here any longer. we just need to follow the markings on the wall to get to the room.”

you led the way, jungwon quietly following behind you. now that you had someone to accompany you, you didn’t seem to mind the noises from the dripping wet carpet as much. or even the lights that kept flickering occasionally.

the room, thankfully, had not magically vanished. there were a few changes that had occurred however, like how the makeshift bed was now significantly larger, having more than enough room for too. it also had two pillows now, along with a blanket. upon checking the bathroom, you realised there was now a shower there, along with a bucket and a mug. basically, the bathroom had been upgraded. the room itself was now significantly larger, the food and water supply having been increased magically.

you informed jungwon of these changes, to which he simply smirked. “told you. this place doesn’t want to hurt us. it’s simply enticing us to stay. preferably forever.”

his words sent a shiver down your spine. stay? in here? forever? that sounds like a fever dream. you had to admit, the whole thing was very unsettling. but who were you to complain, when you could have as much food as you liked, and sleep for however long you wanted—without having to worry about going to work?

right on que, hunger struck you again. jungwon seemed to feel the same, since he suggested eating something. you obviously agreed, already picking up some sausages, rice cakes, and banana milk. jungwon picked up sausages, bread, and some cheese. you watched as he made two sandwiches for himself, while you hungrily devoured your own food.

once again, the taste did not disappoint. it felt like heaven, the rice cakes reminding you of your mom. you mentally apologised to her for not appreciating her food enough.

once you both were done eating, you went to put the plates in the sink again, jungwon following right behind you. the dirty ones from the previous time had magically been washed, placed neatly beside the sink. you raised a brow at that, off-handedly mentioning it to jungwon. he once again smirked, giving his recurring dialogue about the place taking care of you and trying to entice you into staying.

you shrugged, went to the bed, and sat down on it, jungwon doing the same. you didn’t really feel tired, so you weren’t exactly looking forward to sleeping at the moment. you looked at jungwon, who was already looking at you. there was a strange glint in his eyes, one that you didn’t really understand.

“is there something on my face?”

the glint in his eyes was gone in an instant. “no—why do you ask?”

you shrugged. “you were staring at me, that’s why.”

“you were staring at me too.”

“that’s because i wanted to talk.”

jungwon dropped backwards with a plop, letting out a content sigh as his back touched the mattress. “what is there to talk about?”

you deadpanned at him. “literally anything and everything—what our lives were like before, how did we end up here, when will we be able to get out of this place—or if there is an exit at all–”

he cut you off with a sigh. “must we talk about such mundane things?”

you furrowed your brows. “yes? if we are the only living organisms in this—this place, we should get along well. and in order to do that, we should know more about each other.”

with a small groan, he got up again. his hair fell over his eyes, as he stared at you through his bangs with a tired look. “what exactly do you want to know?”

you thought for a while. “well—for starters, your age.”

“twenty one. twenty two next month. you?”

“twenty one as well. but i’ll be twenty two in around six months.”

“right. anymore questions?”

“do you have a job, or are you simply a uni student?”

he groaned, throwing his head back. “why do i need to answer so many questions?” he almost whined.

you gave him a stern look. “because,” you enunciated with extreme precision. “we must get to know each other more.”

he sighed. “i am both. i work as a lyricist and composer in my free time, while pursuing music as a subject.”

you nodded, impressed. “i’m working right now, to gain experience. after a year or two, i’ll decide whether i want to continue working or start pursuing a master’s degree.”

jungwon smirked lightly, rubbing his eyes. “don’t remember asking though.”

you rolled your eyes. “you are insufferable.”

“yea?” he asked, his voice raspy from drowsiness. “well—deal with it. you are stuck with me now. until we get out, that is.”

you scoffed lightly. “are you sleepy?”

he raised a brow at you sassily. “did you just realise that?”

you groaned at how annoying he was. “ugh—just—just go to sleep.”

he smirked again. “you realise we need to sleep next to each other, right?”

you scowled at him. “don’t make this weirder than it needs to be.”

he raised his hands in surrender. “oh of course not, your majesty. i was merely stating a fact. why would i ever dare make an already weird situation weird by stating the facts?”

you rolled your eyes, going to the side of the bed that was against the wall, laying down on it. jungwon made sure to comment regarding that too. “looking real comfy there.”

you ignored him, placing your arm over your eyes to block out the light. upon hearing some ruffling, you peeked through the gap slightly. you saw jungwon’s back turned towards you, taking off his hoodie, leaving him in just a black shirt. you quickly closed your eyes again, your cheeks suddenly feeling warm.

as if knowing you had just seen what you saw, a smirk appeared on jungwon’s face again, something you didn’t see. he turned off the light, lying down with his back to you. right before he closed his eyes, he turned slightly, whispering teasingly. “goodnight princess.”

your cheeks were warm for a very long time that night.

when you woke up, it was because of the bright light shining into your eyes. you squinted at the light, slowly sitting up. when your vision finally went back to normal, you looked around, realising the room had changed again.

it was a lot bigger now, with a wardrobe in one corner, a vanity table beside it. you saw jungwon admiring himself in the mirror. he looked at you through it, raising his brows at you. “good morning.”

you rubbed your eyes, trying to rub the remaining sleep out of them. “‘s not really morning.”

he shrugged, going right back to admiring himself. “you don’t know that.”

you shot back at him. “you don’t know the time either.”

“but i can guess it.”

“so can i.”

“what makes your guess better than mine?”

you faltered slightly. “it just—mine is more accurate, okay?”

jungwon turned to look at you. “but i have been here for far longer, so i have a better idea of the time than you do.”

you rolled your eyes, scoffing slightly. there was no point arguing with him. “right. whatever.”

he smirked, before walking over to you. he offered his hand to you. “c’mon sleeping beauty. let’s go exploring.”

you frowned, looking at his hand skeptically. “exploring?”

he nodded. “yep. exploring. finding a way to get out of this place. or do you want to stay here and rot for the rest of your life?”

you grumbled slightly, but took his hand. he hauled you up to your feet—not unceremoniously, as you thought he would, but in a gentle way. turns out he could be a gentleman if he wanted.

you took two pieces of chalk, while he took two more. the two of you set out, taking a different route this time. the marks you made were also different, making an ‘o’ on the walls instead of ‘x’. with jungwon by your side, you didn’t feel as afraid as you originally felt when you were alone.

the two of you tirelessly kept navigating through the maze, trying to find something—anything—different from the mono yellow walls. the flickering lights and a new addition of weird noises wasn’t any less disturbing.

at some point, you swore you heard muffled giggling of some kind. you stopped, your body completely rigid. you snapped your head towards jungwon, trying to see if he saw it as well. your eyes were blown wide, pupils shaking slightly from ear.

jungwon on the other hand, was calm. the complete opposite of what you were feeling. “don’t worry. there is nothing here that will harm us. not physically, at least.”

your eyes widened. “not physically?! what is that supposed to mean?”

he placed both hands on your shoulders to calm you down. “remember when i told you this place wants to entice you into staying by taking good care of you? well… when that doesn’t work, it tries to play with your sanity. so yeah, just don’t pay any mind to it. if you give any hint to it that it’s tactics are working, it will only up its game.”

you gulped harshly. what. the. fuck?! exactly what had you gotten yourself into?

jungwon tugged at your hand, pulling you to force you to keep walking. you let him continue to drag you, trying not to be affected by the disturbing sounds.

you truly tried. tried your very best. to ignore those random giggles, to ignore the whispers of your name—the enticing whispers of promises, promises for you to lead a life of utter luxury in here. all of it in exchange for you to let go.

let go of what? your sanity, of course. but that bit remained hidden. even if the implications were clear enough.

you remained tensed as jungwon gently guided you through the place, drawing the marks on the walls in your place. you tried your best to drown out the voices, but no matter how much you tried, they only became stronger. eventually your head started to ache, a sharp pain shooting through your temple.

you stopped in your tracks, holding your head in your hands. your eyes were screwed shut, the unbearable pain eating you up. jungwon looked at you with concern, and a light hint of panic. he called out your name with urgency. “are you okay? what happened?”

you let out a soft whimper of pain. “my head… it feels like it’s about to burst open and split into two.”

jungwon’s eyes widened, as he stared at you in shock. “...fuck.”

he quickly put one hand on your waist, another under your thighs, quickly picking you up bridal style. he ran, carrying you in his arms. the very first corner he turned led him to a door. he kicked it open with his foot, the inside smelling weird, like the smell inside a hospital.

the room technically was kind of a hospital. it had white walls, a bed, and glass cabinets filled with medicines. he quickly laid you down on the bed, hurrying to the cabinets to find pain meds. after a bit of searching, he finally found a bottle of them. he quickly popped it open, taking a pill out.

looking around, he found a water dispenser, with a stack of paper cups on top of it. he took one, pouring water into it. going back towards you, jungwon made you sit up, whispering soft words of encouragement, as he practically forced you to take the medicine.

with difficulty, you swallowed it all down. your head was still paining, but the pain had lulled down quite a bit. you let out a relieved sigh, looking at jungwon. “thank you. that helped a lot.”

he sighed out in relief as well. “that’s good.” he searched your face with his eyes, still looking worried. his hands were on his hips, adding to his almost comically worried face.

you reached out towards him, grasping his hand in yours. he looked at you, puzzled. “i’m fine, really. the pill helped a lot.”

he used his thumb to caress the back of your hand. “i would really hope so. can’t have something happening to my only companion here.”

you gave him a wry smile. “of course not.”

he continued to stare at you. the same strange glint in his eyes came back, the one you saw after you finished eating a meal with him.

his other hand came up to your face, brushing a strand of hair away from your face. mustering up courage, you asked him. “why do you stare at me like that?”

last time, the glint had gone away almost immediately. this time, the glint stayed. “like what?”

“like… i don’t know how to describe it. but it makes me feel like you are dissecting me from the inside.”

he raised a brow, his lips raising in a half smirk. “does that make you uncomfortable?” he murmured, his thumb lightly caressing your cheek.

the action sent shivers down your spine. “no…” you whispered, not trusting your voice.

he tilted his head. he was no longer caressing your face, but his hand remained in place. “no?”

your headache seemed to have vanished completely now. “no—not really.”

he smirked, before letting go of your hand. he patted your head, the glint finally leaving his eyes. “come on. let’s go. you look good enough now. and i’m hungry—i’m sure you are too.”

you blinked, as if coming out of a trance. “right. i actually am."

he was already at the door. “then what are you waiting for? come on.”

you got up, following him. you were only a step behind him, not even bothering to look at the markings on the walls, just following him blindly. you were quite distracted for some reason, not being able to focus on what was going on.

after a while, you suddenly bumped headfirst into jungwon’s back. you moved back, groaning. you rubbed your forehead, scowling at the back of his head. “why did you stop all of a sudden?”

he turned around, arms folded. “you weren’t paying attention to your surroundings.” he stated.

you frowned at him. “so?”

“so?”

“so what?”

he sighed, giving you a ‘really?’ look. he leaned down slightly, coming eye level to you. flicking your forehead lightly, he replied. “so you should pay attention to your surroundings. especially when you’re in the backrooms.”

you rolled your eyes. “but you’re already doing that for me.” you whined.

he stood up straight again, shaking his head. “what if i wasn’t there?”

“but that’s not the case.”

he sucked in a breath. “what if i took the wrong way?”

“you won’t.”

“how are you so sure?”

“the marks on the wall. they won’t let us get lost.”

he raised a brow, taking a step closer to you. then another. then another. till he was right in front of you. you blinked up at him, flustered. you took a step back, but he followed you. this continued till your back hit the wall.

he caged you against the wall with his arms. he leaned down, his breath brushing against your ear. 

“what if…” he murmured. “i decided to lead you the wrong way on purpose?”

you could feel a burning heat creeping up your neck, reaching the tip of your ears. “wh-why would you do that?”

“hmmmm…”

holy. fuck.

that was the sexiest sound you had ever heard in your entire life.

“maybe i want to take advantage of you? when you’re all alone in this place, lonely and vulnerable, with no means of protecting yourself? then what?”

oh, how you wanted him to do just that–

what the hell?

you swore on your life it was the goddamn hormones. not having felt anything even close to a man’s touch in so long had made you like this. yep. that was it.

“i… i would—run? this place would do anything to keep me safe from harm, yeah? it would help me escape.”

he leaned back with a smirk. that strange glint in his eyes was back. “this place might want you to stay, but don’t depend on it fully for your survival. it doesn’t necessarily care about you being ‘safe’, you know.”

you gulped. the proximity was doing things to you, making you feel things you absolutely shouldn’t be feeling. noticing your state, jungwon’s smirk widened, as he stepped back completely, his hands back in his pockets. “don’t be so unaware of your surroundings. at least not in the backrooms. it’s not really as safe as you think it is.”

you frowned at the last bit. but before you could ask more, he was already turning, following the marks on the walls. you followed him, but this time you kept an eye on the walls yourself too.

that night,—or what you assumed was night, judging by your tiredness—it was hard for you to fall asleep. you kept tossing and turning, your mind still buzzing. it was completely occupied with the thoughts of just one person—jungwon.

you couldn’t understand him, no matter how much you tried. you simply couldn’t. he was one of the most complex and unreadable people you had ever met. you simply couldn’t predict his next move. he was like a closed book, that just suddenly changed genres out of nowhere.

you had no idea what was it with him and that strange glint that appeared in his eyes randomly. what did it indicate? and why was it so inconsistent? just like the rest of his personality?

his words often contradicted themselves too. one moment he tells you the backrooms doesn’t want to kill you, but the next moment he says that it doesn’t care about your safety? what the hell was up with that?

right as you were about to turn again, you felt an arm drape over your waist. your breath hitched, eyes widening. before you had time to process what was going on, you felt jungwon pull you towards him. your back was now flush against his chest, his steady breathing brushing against your nape. you held your breath out of pure shock, your heart beating extremely fast.

“stop moving so much,” he murmured sleepily, voice raspy from sleep. “just stay still and try to fall asleep.”

sleep? in this situation? how could you ever do that?

still, you tried to relax, taking deep breaths. you closed your eyes, your breathing eventually stabilising—and before you knew it, you were knocked out, sleeping peacefully—while wrapped up in jungwon’s arms.

the next day, you didn’t really want to explore. the monotonous routine was not half as fruitful as before, since you didn’t exactly have any kind of inadequacies regarding resources here. you had food to eat, a pool to bath in and swim, proper bathroom facilities, and even a medical room in case of emergencies.

thus, jungwon set out on his own, taking two chalks with him. before leaving, he gave you a strange warning. 

“whatever happens, do not let it get to you. also, don’t try to go out on your own. not unless i’m back. if you decide to peek out due to any weird noises that you may hear, and see something unusual, immediately close the door. just wait till i’m back. okay?”

you frowned. you wanted to ask him further questions, but his expression made you hesitate. you reluctantly nodded, and wished him a safe journey, along with a safe return. he simply gave you a half smile, waving goodbye at you, before going outside the room, shutting the door.

the room was filled with silence as soon as he left. the kind of silence that rang in your ears, eventually becoming unbearable. you groaned softly, throwing your head back against the wall. why was it suddenly so boring and empty without jungwon? you didn’t even know him before the accidental meeting a few—days? or had it been longer?—ago. so how did you learn to not be alone this quick?

you shook your head, disappointed in yourself. seriously? you? feeling bored without the presence of a man? you could almost feel your teenage self curling her lips in disappointment at you.

suddenly, you remembered jungwon’s strange warning from before. what was he even talking about? weird noises? seeing something unusual? since when did this place host unusual anomalies?

just then, something clicked in your mind. the black mass you had seen in the first couple hours when you got stuck in this maze. following it blindly was the sole reason you found this wonderfully convenient room in the first place. but you hadn’t seen the mass after that. not even before you met jungwon, forget after. so why was he asking you to suddenly be wary of weird noises or other physical abnormalities?

it’s not like he hadn’t given you similar warnings before. because he did. more than once. but he never said anything about physical abnormalities before. was it because he thought you were safer with him around you?

the thought pissed you off. did he think you couldn’t take care of yourself? that he was somehow better than you?

you scoffed lightly to yourself. you had been doing just fine before he arrived, and made his rather annoying presence apparent in your daily life. what made him think you couldn’t survive without him?

gosh, he wasn’t even here, yet you were pissed at him. that basically summed up his annoying nature. affecting you negatively even without being present.

or did he simply have an effect on you? one that you were too proud to admit?

suddenly, a loud creaking sound came from outside the door. thinking jungwon was back, you frowned. how was he back so quickly?

a few seconds passed, but the door remained closed. no other sounds either. you tentatively called out to him. “jungwon?”

silence. again, not the normal kind. but the kind that filled your stomach with dread. cold, bone gripping, blood freezing, dread. what the hell was that sound, if not jungwon?

you gulped harshly. maybe it was nothing. just the—the backrooms testing you again. to see whether you were affected or not. the thought itself creeped you out.

a few minutes passed. just as you were about to relax, you heard another sound. the kind that your feet makes when you step on the dripping wet carpet that is there all over the maze. only, the sound was unusually loud, loud enough to reach into the room.

this… had to be jungwon, right?

right?

you slowly got up, going to the door. you hesitated, before mustering up the courage to open the door slowly. big mistake.

you expected to see jungwon. or nothing. the worst outcome you expected was the black mass again. but you were wrong. so, so wrong.

standing at the very end of the corridor, was a figure. its creepiness unmistakably clear as day. it was at least seven feet tall, body exactly like a skeleton’s, just… black instead of a grayish white. its head wasn’t a skull, but rather a weird ball shape, with hair all over. its eyes were two glowing orbs of light, teeth similar to a skeleton’s. they weren’t white, but instead a yellowish black. its stance was rigid, eyes glaring straight into your soul.

you stood staring at it, paralyzed. your hands shook in fear. what the hell was that thing?

a few more beats passed, before you finally came to your senses. you snapped into action, rushing the slam the door shut. at the very last second, you saw the figure suddenly take off in a run in your direction.

as soon as the door shut, a loud, unusual laugh rang in the room. it was the creepiest sound you had ever heard in your life. your breathing became erratic, as you stepped back. you dropped on the bed. getting up on it, you leaned on the wall, bringing your legs up to your chest.

just then, a series of voices started echoing around the room.

‘all of this, and more…’

‘isn’t this life amazing…?’

‘you don’t even want to leave, do you?’

‘isn’t life here so much easier?’

‘just stay here…’

‘you could have it all…’

‘just give in.’

‘let go of yourself…’

‘let go…’

‘let go.’

‘stop fucking fighting it.’

the voice started getting louder, more aggressive. you covered your ears with your palms, screwing your eyes shut, trying to drown the voices out. the voices started overlapping, the same creepy laughter from before joining in the mix.

you buried your head in your palms, rocking back and forth on the heels of your feet. sobs raked through your body, tears soaking up your t-shirt. just what had you gotten yourself into?

when you woke up, it was because of jungwon shaking you awake. you groggily opened your eyes, the action being difficult due to the dried tears making your lashes stick together. the back of your neck pained terribly, the awkward angle in which you fell asleep being the cause of your cramps.

jungwon looked extremely concerned at your state. he cupped your face with one hand, his eyes searching yours, brows furrowed with worry. he used his other hand to push your hair out of your face. “what happened? did you get hurt? did something hurt you? c’mon, talk to me–”

he faltered at your eyes filling up with a fresh batch of tears. before he could utter another word, you balanced yourself on the pads of your feet, going forward to hug him tightly.

you sobbed into his chest softly, relief washing over you at his arrival. he froze for just a second, before quickly hugging you back. he held you tightly in his arms, rubbing the back of your head and patting your back. he didn’t even have to say anything to comfort you. that was one of jungwon’s good qualities. the fact that he was exceptionally good at handling all sorts of situations.

once he decided you were calm enough, he broke the hug, sitting down, and making you sit down as well, properly. he rubbed the dried tears tracks off your face, brushing your hair back. it was only after that, that he gently asked you. “can you tell me what happened now?”

you gulped harshly, before narrating the incident—or rather, the series of incidents, to him. “i thought i heard you coming back, so i opened the door. instead of seeing you, i saw this—this weird figure. he was tall, menacingly so. his eyes were just two glowing orbs of white light. right before i closed the door, it suddenly decided to run towards me. after the door was closed, there was this creepy laugh, then those voices again. it was so scary…”

your voice broke at the end, eyes shaking with unshed tears. jungwon gently wiped them away. “this is why i told you not to open the door when i’m not there. don’t worry, i’m here now, aren’t i? i’ll keep you safe.”

his words only made you want to cry more. since when have people been this nice to you?

the two of you were hungry, opting to eat a delicious meal instead of continuing the depressive vibe. it was silent as you two ate today, with jungwon more than once turning his head to check up on you.

at night, the same voices plagued your mind again. you clutched your head in your hands, begging over and over in your mind for the voices to just shut the fuck up, but they didn’t take the hint—obviously.

quite like the last time, you felt jungwon’s arm draping over your waist. he pulled you flush to his chest. his voice was soft, but raspy, riddled with traces of drowsiness. “turn around.”

you slowly turned around, facing him. despite the dark, you felt him caress your cheek, before planting a gentle kiss on your forehead. the sudden kiss caused you to freeze, not even noticing as the voices had suddenly quietened down, heat rushing up to your cheeks again. jungwon pulled you even closer if possible, forcing you to hug him as you slept.

that night you slept soundly, away and immune to any more voices or other abnormalities, or from any other kind of disturbances.

in the morning, it was the bright light shining directly in your eyes that woke you up. it was annoying, but after yesterday? it felt like nothing really compared to the absolutely insane sight from yesterday.

what even was that—that thing? why was it there? and why did it only show up now, when you were completely alone and vulnerable?

and how did jungwon know about it? not to mention, he knew that the monster would show up only when you were alone.

how?

you couldn’t really dwell on it for much longer, since jungwon’s voice brought you out of your thoughts. “did you sleep well?”

you blinked off the residual sleep from your eyes, slowly getting up. you turned in his direction. he was leaning on the far corner of the room, eating what you assumed to be ramen, along with rice cakes on the side. he raised his brows at you. you let out a simple ‘hm’ to answer his question, before getting up, and walking to the bathroom to freshen up.

once you were done, you had a small breakfast, your mind preoccupied with the events from the previous day. deciding you had enough, you turned to jungwon, ready to confront him. you were done being clueless about everything.

“what was that—creature? the one i saw yesterday? and why did it only show up now?”

jungwon was startled by your questions—not necessarily from the answers that you demanded, but more so from your blunt tone. he sighed, straightening up, before replying.

“it’s just another way of the backrooms’ attempt at breaking you. it decided that yesterday was the time you were mentally worn out and vulnerable enough, so it decided to strike. breaking you down mentally, and then building you back up—if someone does that to you repeatedly, eventually you would become their slave—ready to do whatever they say with just a snap of their finger. don’t you agree?”

the way he said it all like it was nothing… it sent a shiver down your spine. he had this way with his words that always had the desired effect on you. it was frustrating. but also kind of hot–

focus.

you cleared your throat. “right. but how did you know about it?”

jungwon simply shrugged. “it tried the same thing on me. multiple times. didn’t work. so it gave up, eventually. you just need to not be affected, that’s it.”

easy for him to say. you may be a very practical woman, but even you were scared of certain things. ghosts, for one. and that… entity, could very well pass as one.

you let out a breath, which was more like a shudder. “and if i let it affect me?”

jungwon’s face changed. his eyes had that strange glint again. “then i’ll just have to try my best to keep you from going insane.”

your eyes widened at that. you gulped. going insane?

it wasn’t like you didn’t know about it being a possibility. because you did, very well in fact. but hearing it directly from him? that… that was what made the thought all the more terrifying.

jungwon’s expression relaxed again. he smiled softly, coming towards you, sitting beside you on the bed. “don’t worry,” he murmured softly. “i’ll protect you.”

you gulped, lips parting. you thought you saw his eyes flicker down, but you weren’t really sure. his hand came up, tucking a strand of hair behind your ear. was he being deliberately slow? you couldn’t really tell, when your own focus was on his face.

fuck, he was so close. had he ever been this close before? if you leaned in just slightly, just a little bit, maybe–

a loud sound broke you both out of your reverie. it sounded like something had short-circuited. you both looked at the door, then back at each other. the same thoughts were running through your minds. 

should we check it out?

the two of you cautiously got up, walking towards the door. jungwon looked back at you once, before finally opening the door. looking outside, you saw one of the lights outside was broken. it looked like someone had broken it purposely, a large chunk of the glass covering lying on the floor below. before either of you could comment, the strangest thing yet happened.

to both of your collective horrors, the broken glass pieces floated up by their own, before reattaching itself to the tube light. miraculously, the light flickered on again.

jungwon slammed the door shut again. the two of you stared at each other, barely concealed horror evident on both of your faces. 

what the hell was that?

jungwon grabbed you by your hand, forcefully pulling you away from the door. even when the two of you were seated on the bed again, he didn’t let go of your hand, instead rubbing circles on the back of your hand using his thumb.

“that’s the first time i have seen something like that too, believe me. but don’t let it get to you. or else the–”

you snapped. “the backrooms will think i’m weak and try the same tactics, is it? i know, jungwon. it’s only the hundredth time you have repeated the same thing.”

jungwon looked shocked at your sudden outburst, before his face hardened. the same glint in his eyes was back. his grip on your hand tightened. “i am trying to keep you safe. i care about you, can’t you see that much?”

you snatched your hand out of his grip, getting up from the bed. “i don’t need your care. i’m not a fucking child.”

jungwon followed, getting up as well. he grabbed your hand again. his actions were starting to piss you off. “you may not physically be a child, but you sure are as stubborn as one.”

you tried to snatch your hand out of his grip, but he only tightened it. he pulled you towards him, his other hand shooting out to grab your waist, pulling you flush against him. you furrowed your brows at his actions, trying to push his chest with your free hand.

jungwon scoffed at your incredibly weak and futile attempts. “why are you being so difficult? you clearly need me here with you—unless you want to go insane?”

you glared at him. “you’re not all that. i can take care of myself—i was taking care of myself, just fine too, before you showed up. why would i suddenly need your help?”

he glared right back at you. that strange glint in his eyes still hadn’t left. “because you aren’t nearly as strong as you think you are. why can’t you just let me take care of you? do you find it demeaning to need help once in a while? even when it can save your life?”

you scoffed at his audacity, brows raising at his blunt accusations. you tried to push him off again. “excuse me?”

he didn’t even budge. “i said what i said. you can’t even deny it, can you?”

your eyes just widened further in disbelief. mustering up as much contempt in your voice as you could, you spoke again. “i will let you know that you’re an absolute piece of sh–”

you were suddenly interrupted by his lips crashing down on yours harshly, silencing any further insults or protests that you might throw at him. his brows were furrowed, eyes screwed shut, as he kissed you aggressively, pouring out his frustrations into it.

oh.

oh.

he was kissing you. that’s… wow.

you hesitantly closed your eyes, returning the kiss. he stopped gripping your hand, grabbing your nape instead. his kisses turned hungrier now, but had the same aggressive edge. you fisted his shirt in both hands, returning his kisses with the same fervor.

jungwon started backing you up, until your back hit the wall. he had placed one hand behind your head to protect it from getting hit. he then used both hands to cup your face, practically devouring your mouth.

your hands went to his shoulders, feeling lightheaded from the way jungwon kissed you. one of his hands sneaked down to your waist, before slipping under your shirt, touching your bare skin. his cold hand contrasted with the warm temperature of your waist, which he caressed with his thumb. you let out a whimper into his mouth at the feeling, which immediately resulted in a groan from him.

his tongue slipped into your mouth, earning a surprised gasp from you, which he eagerly swallowed. his tongue licked every corner of your mouth it could reach, tracing it like he was trying to map out and remember everything. your knees felt weak—if it weren’t for jungwon holding you, you would have surely collapsed on the floor.

he finally took mercy on you, breaking the kiss. his forehead was attached to yours, as the two of you panted heavily, trying to catch your breaths. jungwon’s gaze kept flicking back to your lips, as if he wasn’t satisfied by quite literally taking your breath away.

when his gaze finally locked onto your eyes, you felt like your knees were about to give away again. his gaze was so strong, and that strange glint in his eyes seemed to have intensified tenfold. was he trying to make you go insane on purpose?

he brushed the hair out of your eyes, before speaking. “are you done being stubborn?”

you gulped. “you think kissing me will make me bend to your will?”

jungwon raised a brow challengingly. “you seemed quite into it.”

“i wasn’t.”

“the way you kissed me back says otherwise.”

“it was instinct.”

“so should i keep kissing you to tire you out? will that make you listen? or should i go ‘above and beyond’?”

above and beyond? the implication caused your breath to hitch. oh, how you wished he would do it anyways–

no. stop being horny, woman. control your hormones.

you got out of his grasp. “i would rather you don’t.”

you didn’t know if you were misreading him, but jungwon looked almost disappointed. but he didn’t push anymore. he stepped away, hands back in his hoodie pockets. “suit yourself. but please listen to me when i tell you something. i have been here for far longer than you have. if i tell you something, it obviously has a reason behind it.”

you reluctantly nodded. satisfied, he made his way to the door, putting two chalks in his pocket on the way. once he reached the door, he looked back at you. “do you want to come with me, or…?”

you shook your head. your lips were still tingling from the kiss, your face still flushed. it would only feel awkward for you if you went with him. you would probably wish he pinned you to the wall and kissed you like his life depends on it again, and wouldn’t be much help.

jungwon nodded, his eyes harbouring that same disappointed look. he quietly closed the door behind him, setting off on his own.

you sighed, lying down on the bed. you didn’t know what the point of looking around the place was. after all, the only time either of you discovered something interesting was when you were in great need of something, or at your wits’ end. it was frustrating—but it was how the place worked, apparently.

could you ever even get out of here? the thought seemed almost ridiculous now, your hope for it even bleaker. the place was starting to drain you, the monotonous nature of… everything, was tiring.

then there was jungwon, who thought you were some weak little bitch that couldn’t even take care of herself. did he really look down on you, or did he have some sort of superiority complex?

but that wasn’t even the most prominent question in your head. the most prominent question was: why did he kiss you?

most importantly, why did he pretend like it meant nothing to him? did he really kiss you for no reason at all?

ugh. men. they are all the same, no matter the situation. in your teenage years, miyoung always used to preach about all men being liars, and just terrible people in general. every time, you wholeheartedly agreed with her. so why the fuck was it different now? why did you kiss jungwon back?

stupid, stupid, stupid. you were so fucking stupid.

you had taken a bath and fallen asleep, by the time jungwon was back. he woke you up, urging you to eat something. you sat up groggily, rubbing the sleep out of your eyes. “did you find anything interesting?”

he shook his head, tearing open a packet of chips. “only a drink stand. had a glass of lemonade and some apple juice there. other than that? nothing.”

you nodded, getting off the bed. you grabbed a bottle of water, struggling to open it, since it was sealed. jungwon took it from you without a word, opening it for you. you thanked him, drinking the water.

you looked at the shelves. you had already tried a lot of combos, so the food didn’t really satisfy your taste buds as good as it did before. sighing, you grabbed some ramen. you crushed the packet in your hands. once you were satisfied, you opened the packet, and poured the sauce in it. closing it, you shook the packet, ensuring the sauce mixed well. you took a spoon and ate the raw concoction. didn’t exactly refresh your taste, but it was alright.

you pretended not to notice jungwon burning holes into the side of your head. you didn’t know what his deal was—and if he wanted something, he could man up and ask you himself.

you didn’t know why you were pissed at him, but it didn’t really matter. he seemed to think he was so much more capable of taking care of you than you could yourself. you didn’t have the energy to argue with him again. besides, you had greater matters to think about. how to get the fuck out of this place, for example.

once the two of you were done eating, you quietly lied down, facing the wall. the light turned off, before you felt the mattress dip behind you, indicating jungwon had lied down too.

a minute passed. then ten. then thirty. yet, sleep didn’t seem to come over you. why was that the case again?

you tossed and turned a bunch of times, frustrated. you didn’t really have anything to do, so sleeping was the only option. but you simply weren’t tired enough.

you groaned softly. your laziness was the cause of this. ugh, if only you left with jungwon when he went exploring.

you stared at the wall, not a trace of drowsiness in your brain. why were you always so unlucky? no wonder jungwon thought you were incapable of being left on your own.

suddenly, you felt the all too familiar hand draping over your waist, pulling you back. your back was pulled flush to jungwon’s chest. “can’t sleep again?” he murmured in your ear.

you let out a small sigh. “yeah…”

he let out a ‘hm’. his hand slipped under your shirt, thumb brushing over your bare skin. the simple gesture causing your breath to hitch. you forced yourself to relax, but the goosebumps on your skin were probably a dead giveaway that you were in fact, not fine.

eventually his hand started wandering. it slowly started inching up. you didn’t say anything at first, but as soon as it reached the underside of your boobs you caught his hand.

“jungwon…” you warned slowly. “what are you trying to do here?”

you could feel him smirk against your nape. “you’re so tense. i only want to help you relax.”

his implication was clear. despite having only known him for a few days, he had kind of become someone you could greatly rely on. even if you would never admit to him out loud. not to mention the two of you had needs, and seeing that you both were the only ones stuck in this place, it was only logical that you both helped each other get off, right?

you let go of his hand. he let out a victorious snicker, his hand finally reaching your tits. you let out a soft gasp as he squeezed one of them, before beginning to massage it. he flicked your hardened nipple, earning a small moan from you. he was definitely enjoying this as much as you did, if his rock hard boner digging into your ass was anything to go by.

while kneading your tits, jungwon bit your ear softly. you let out a soft shudder. “you know,” you spoke softly. “this won’t exactly help me fall asleep.”

he snickered again. “want more? all you need to do is ask, pretty girl.”

you were in no mood for his teasing tonight. “if you’re not even going to help me properly, why bother at all–” you tried pushing his hand off, but his grip tightened.

“i was only kidding, princess. you don’t have to do anything that you don’t want.”

you gulped, as his hand started travelling downwards. he pushed past your pants, cupping your panty covered pussy. he smirked as he felt how wet you already were. “no wonder you’re so desperate.”

your neck flushed with unwanted heat. but you kept quiet, your jaw clenched. jungwon traced his finger over your covered slit. instantly, more slick oozed out, wetting your underwear further.

without a warning, jungwon shoved his finger inside, uncaring of  the barrier. you let out a shocked gasp, which turned into a moan halfway. you felt him starting to pepper hot, open mouthed kisses on the side of your neck, the sensation causing more moans to come out of you.

turning impatient, jungwon pulled your pants down, your panties following almost immediately after. he teased your slit for a bit, sliding his finger up and down. he pinched your clit, eliciting a whimper, and a whine from you. finally taking mercy on you, he pushed his finger inside. you moaned loudly, the delicious feeling taking you over the moon. it had been so long since you had indulged in any sexual activities, even solo ones.

his long finger reached places you never could, dragging across your gummy walls. his pace was purposely slow, earning whines from you. didn’t he want to help you? why the fuck was he edging you then?

your pitiful whines were probably getting to him, since he added a second finger. the stretch felt amazing, prompting you to arch your back with a moan. his fingers moved with precision, dragging across your slick walls with purpose.

you felt him starting to suck on a specific spot under your ear, probably trying to mark you up with a hickey—or more, you couldn’t exactly tell yet.

you whimpered, more slick oozing out of you with each drag of his fingers, dripping past his hand, pooling down on the sheets. his teeth grazed the hickey he gave you. increasing the pace of his fingers, he finally found the perfect pace that he hoped would have you coming on his fingers in no time, if he played his cards right.

he licked the hickey under your ear, eliciting a moan of his name from you. the look in his eyes changed, even if you couldn’t see it. his pace increased just slightly, using his thumb to rub circles on your clit, occasionally pressing and rubbing the hardened nub.

the band in your stomach started to tighten, signalling your impending orgasm. you whined out his name. “i’m—fuck—so close–”

jungwon continued to rub your clit furiously, his hand not stopping its movements, even as his fingers started to cramp up. he curled his fingers in a ‘come here’ motion, dragging it through your walls with precision.

that did it for you. your walls clamped down on jungwon’s fingers, the band in your stomach finally snapping. your release oozed down his fingers, onto the sheets. he kept dragging his fingers through your walls shallowly, drawing out your pleasure.

as you came down from your high, he slowly pulled his fingers out of you, putting them in his mouth, licking them clean. oh, what he wouldn’t do to go down on you right now. but you probably were tired enough to fall asleep now.

true to his prediction, you were already starting to drift off, not having any energy to even thank him. jungwon took two tissues from the nightstand, which had magically appeared, using them to clean you off. throwing the tissues away, he dressed your lower half again, before throwing his arm around you, and cuddling you to sleep. it wasn’t the first time he had blue balls anyways. not with you around him.

when you woke up, it took you a few seconds, before last night’s—or what you hoped was night—events flooded your mind again. you felt heat creep up your neck, your pussy unintentionally clenching at the memory. you would be lying if you said it didn’t feel good, especially since this was the first time you had felt any sexual pleasure in a long while.

you got up, rubbing the sleep out of your eyes. you didn’t see jungwon in the room, so you assumed he had gone exploring again. you went to the bathroom to freshen up.

when you came out, you saw jungwon was back, frying some chicken nuggets on the stove. he had already fried quite a few, which were placed on a plate beside him.

“are these for me as well, or just for you?” you teased, knowing damn well no person would fry over ten nuggets just for themself.

“you could have one if you want, but i’d prefer if you left the rest alone.” he replied with a straight face.

you raised a brow at him. you reached down, picking one up to eat. “i’m not exactly sure if you’re joking or not.”

jungwon deadpanned at you, putting the last nugget down on the plate. “what do you think, genius?”

you shrugged, munching on the nuggets. “i think these are delicious.”

he smirked, picking up one himself. “you’re welcome, by the way.”

you rolled your eyes, but smiled nonetheless. the nuggets were seriously amazing, much better than when you cooked them yourself. but you weren’t going to give him the satisfaction of hearing it from yourself.

once you were done eating, you drank some water, before leaning back on your hands. you looked at jungwon. “are you going to go exploring again?”

he had just finished drinking some water himself. wiping off a drop of water from his chin, he shook his head. “don’t really feel like it.”

you nodded, understanding. thinking for a bit, a sudden idea struck you. “wanna go swimming?”

he furrowed his brows. “swimming? here?”

you nodded. “there’s a pool around here. i found it the day we met. i had just had a bath there before i ran into you.”

jungwon raised a brow. “you took a bath in a pool?”

your cheeks flushed. “the shower wasn’t here at that time, okay? it’s not my fault that i was desperate for a bath.”

he smirked. “calm down princess. i’m only teasing you. i don’t care what you do in this place, as long as it doesn’t compromise your safety—or your sanity.”

your cheeks flushed further at the nickname. “whatever.” you replied, albeit embarrassed.

his smirk widened slightly, before he got up, offering his hand to you. “let’s go take a swim, princess.”

you gave him a glare, knowing he was using it on purpose to fluster you. you took his hand regardless. the two of you took an extra pair of clothes—including underwear—with you, from the wardrobe that had magically appeared a few days ago, as you set out to go to the pool.

you both were quiet during the walk. the silence wasn’t overbearing or uncomfortable—but rather a comfortable silence, in which neither of you felt the need to go out of your ways to speak, in order to make the air ‘less awkward’. since, you know, it wasn’t awkward in the first place. or so you tried to convince yourself.

the pool hadn’t changed much, other than the addition of proper changing rooms, and showers. the lighting had become better too, which was good.

the two of you went into different changing rooms, stripping down to just your underwear, since neither of you had seen any swim wear in the wardrobe. you hung your old clothes, and the ones you were planning to change into, in the changing room.

the two of you came out of the rooms at the same time. jungwon immediately checked you out, not even bothering to be subtle. you on the other hand, felt shy, looking away. you looked at the pool, determined not to stare at him. you weren’t sure if you could handle it.

yet.

you went to the edge of the pool, sitting down, dipping your legs into the water. it felt cold against your skin . not ice cold, but just cold enough to feel pleasant. you swung your legs in the water, enjoying the feeling.

suddenly the sound of splashing water caused you to snap your head in that direction. jungwon had decided to straightaway dive into the water, unlike what you were doing. when he swam up, his entire hair was dripping wet, as was his torso. he shook his head aggressively to get some of the water out of his face, brushing his hair back with his hands.

you had been hungrily gawking at him the entire time, watching the way the water droplets cascaded down his torso. you felt like a pervert, but you couldn’t help yourself. he looked too delicious to not stare. so it wasn’t really your fault.

when he finally opened his eyes to look at you, you blinked, acting as if you hadn’t just been burning holes into his well-built torso. he was hot, okay?! you weren’t a pervert…

“are you not going to come in?” he asked, interrupting your thoughts. he had swum closer to you, looking at you inquisitively.

you blinked. “probably not. this is fun enough.”

he gave you a look, as if to say ‘really woman?’ “you realise it was your idea to go swimming?”

you bit your lip, feeling shy to go into the water in front of him. “yeah, but—this is fun too…”

jungwon gave a small groan. “oh come on! just get in the water.”

you shook your head. “nah, i’m fine.”

he sighed. “this won’t do…” he muttered.

suddenly, he started making his way towards you. he came right in front of you. “get in the water.”

you frowned. “i don’t want to. it’s kind of cold.” you lied.

he shook his head. “no excuses. i won’t hear it. get in before i make you.”

you scoffed in amusement. “nah, you can’t.”

he raised a brow challengingly, as if to say ‘oh, really?’. without a warning, he grabbed your waist, pulling you off the ledge. you let out a scream, your legs wrapping around his waist. the position was awkward, but you were too panicked to care.

jungwon stepped back a little, before unwrapping your legs from around him. he dropped you unceremoniously into the pool, causing you to almost go under the water. you managed to grab him to balance yourself at the last second, coughing up the little water that had managed to enter your system in the short time.

jungwon had been laughing at you the entire time. the audacity?! especially after being the reason you fell in the first in the water in the first place?

you scowled at him, before pushing him roughly. but he had been anticipating that, so he didn’t even budge. gosh, he pissed you off so much.

he grabbed your arms to stop any further attempts of you trying to drown him. not that you could, since he was physically much stronger than you and could overpower you easily if he wanted.

he still had a victorious smirk on his face, as he looked down at you. “alright, that’s enough.”

you glared at him in disbelief. “enough? i hardly believe so. you threw me into the water! and i wasn’t even bothering you!”

he shrugged. “hey, in my defense, you’re at a pool and you weren’t inside the water. that should be some kind of federal crime.”

you scoffed in disbelief, trying to shove him again, but in vain, since he had a tight grip on you. “don’t just try to spit nonsense to excuse your absolutely inexcusable actions! i could have drowned! drowned!”

he deadpanned at you. “it’s a five feet deep pool. you would have been fine.”

you sputtered. he had a point. but it was still rude to throw you in the water like that. out of pettiness, you kicked his shin.

his expression changed. “alright, that’s it.”

he suddenly walked you back to the edge of the pool forcefully, pinning you to it. “just because i’m being lenient with you, doesn’t mean you get to say or do whatever you want.”

you blinked aggressively, stunned at the sudden behavioral change. why did he randomly have a different personality? did he have some kind of personality disorder?

you glared at him. “it’s not my fault. you started this.”

jungwon raised a brow. “oh? so would you like me to end it too?”

you gulped, trying not to show how flustered you were. “what is that supposed to mean?”

the ghost of a smirk appeared on jungwon’s face. the same strange glint was back in his eyes. he leaned closer, right next to you ear, as he whispered. “you know, like something that happened last night?”

you furrowed your brows, before the implication of his words finally hit you like a truck. you gulped, your eyes wide. “i…”

his smirk was completely back now. “you what, baby?”

you gulped again. god, why was he so damn attractive?! you swore if he wasn’t this hot he wouldn’t ever get away with half the shit he did.

“cat got your tongue, pretty?”

holy. fuck. your face was definitely overheating at this point.

without thinking, you leaned your face upwards, kissing him. anything to shut him up at this point. or so you told yourself. he immediately kissed you back, with extra vigour. his hands went to your waist, pulling you flush to him. judging by how hard he was against your thigh, you guessed he probably wanted to do this for quite a while now.

your hands locked behind his nape, letting him kiss you like it was the last time he would ever see you. his hands began to wander, squeezing your ass. you let out a whine into his mouth, one which he gladly swallowed, pushing his tongue into your mouth. he kissed you so desperately, like the two of you didn’t need air. it was as if oxygen was the last thought on his mind, pulling you impossibly closer to him, devouring your mouth like it was the best meal he ever had.

you wished he would eat you out like that– i mean. who said that?

he lifted you up slightly, making you wrap your legs around his waist. you broke the kiss to take in some much needed air. jungwon tried to kiss you again, almost immediately, but your noise of protest knocked some sense into him.

the way he stared at you while you caught your breath had your pussy clenching out of anticipation. how could one look that hot? drops of water cascaded down from his hair, face, and chest, eventually falling and mixing with the pool water. you would have licked every single drop off him yourself, even if he didn’t ask, but you still had some dignity left in you.

he suddenly attacked your neck, too impatient for you to catch your breath. he sucked and bit on the soft skin, determined to leave enough marks to completely cover the entire expanse of your neck, and soon, your chest. he licked over the hickey from the previous night, biting on it. you whimpered at the sensation, tilting your head to give him more access. his hands travelled under your wet panties—wet because of two reasons, not one—and squeezed your bare ass cheeks. fuck, he was so obsessed with you, and you had absolutely no idea. especially not the extent of it.

he trailed a bunch of hickeys along your jaw, licking over each one. he went back to devouring your mouth. his cock was rock hard, begging for release. but he was too lost in you to care about that now. while it didn’t bother him, it definitely bothered you. it was pressing against your stomach, and all you could think of was his cock buried inside you till the hilt. so you did the logical thing that anyone in this situation would do. probably. or maybe not, you didn’t really care.

you broke the kiss. “jungwon?” you asked, your voice breathless from how intensely he had been kissing you.

“yeah?” he replied, his own voice slightly dazed.

“come out of the water.”

he blinked once. “okay.” he let go of you, setting you on top of the edge carefully, before getting out of the water and sitting beside you without any further questions.

you turned, turning towards him, watching as he did the same hurriedly. his eyes kept flickering back to your lips. you took a deep breath, before you dropped the question on him.

“can i suck you off?”

jungwon blinked. once. then twice, wondering if he heard you correctly. you raised your brows at him, trying to get him to answer you. he only blinked again. “huh?” he asked dumbly. was he broken? did you accidentally break him?

“i asked if i could suck you off.”

okay. he was officially broken. fuck, could you be anymore perfect? he continued to stare at you unblinkingly, fantasizing about the exact thing you asked him.

“i’m guessing that’s a no…” you started, tone disappointed.

“no no no no no–!” he quickly reached out towards your hand, eyes widening in panic. “you can, of course you can. i, uh—i was just surprised, that’s all. i wasn’t expecting you to be so direct about it.”

you scoffed in amusement, before getting in the water, standing in front of him. you signalled him to come to the very edge, which he immediately complied with, spreading his legs wide enough for you to clearly see the bulge that he wasn’t even trying to hide. your hands rested on his waistband. right as you were about to pull down his boxers, he stopped you, holding your wrist tightly.

“wait wait–! i… are you completely sure about this? i mean—you’re sure won’t regret it or anything–?”

you deadpanned at him. “i have fantasized about much dirtier things with you in mind. i’m absolutely positive i won’t regret this.”

he looked shocked at your honest confession. he obviously had fantasized about you a lot, but hearing you did the same? that only made his cock twitch in excitement. he let go of your hand. right on que, you promptly got rid of his boxers.

his cock slapped against his stomach, leaving a trail of pre cum behind. his bulbous tip was an angry red, the veins trailing his cock throbbing incessantly with need. you gulped, your mouth almost watering at the sight. you did the mistake of looking up at jungwon’s face. he had that strange glint in his eyes again, paired with a look on his face that made you feel utterly exposed under his gaze, even if you had your underwear on. you grabbed him at the base, slowly pumping him with both hands. jungwon groaned, throwing his head back, hands gripping the edge of the pool tightly. his cock throbbed harder in your hands, desperate to be inside your mouth already.

you bent down, tentatively licking the slit. you heard him spew a string of curses, more precum spilling out of his cock. you licked it all up, swirling your tongue around the tip. you could see his breathing grow heavier, his fingers twitching, desperately needing you to fully swallow his length. you licked a few stripes up from the base to his top, along the underside of his cock, over a vein, knowing it would drive him crazy. you were right, as he let out the most delicious moan of your name ever.

it encouraged you to finally wrap your lips around his tip, before taking in as much of him as you could without gagging, using your saliva and his precum to lube him up. the salty taste and musky smell didn’t stop you, only encouraging you to try and take him deeper, especially since it was him. fuck, you would even deep throat him if he asked, that’s how hot and irresistible he was.

but he didn’t really need to ask, not when you were readily trying to do just that, gagging slightly around him. he looked at you trying to take in more of him like you were some kind of goddess. could you be any more amazing? the way your tongue dragged across his veins made his eyes roll back every time, moan after moan of your name falling from his lips, like a prayer.

but why would he need to pray, when he had his own goddess down on her knees for him?

he tried, he really did, to stay as still as possible, but you were sucking him off a bit too good. believe him, he really couldn’t help it, when he bucked his hips into your mouth. not even when you gagged around him.

he muttered apologies, patting your head softly, pulling your hair into a makeshift ponytail to help you. the way you bobbed your head up and down, practically sucking the life out of him was leading him to be on cloud nine. after all this time of fantasizing about you, you willingly being on your knees for him was still a tad bit unbelievable for him.

so he told himself he was only going to do this just in case it was some too-good-to-be true dream of his, as he tightened his grip on your hair, and pushed your head fully down on his cock. he apologised to you profusely as you gagged and choked, his words contrasting with his actions, as he began to ram his hips into your mouth, again and again. his apologies soon turned into curses, as he approached his high. he didn’t even feel your nails digging into his thighs, too engrossed in his own pleasure. your mouth was just too good for him to stop.

his stomach contracted, as he finally reached his peak. ropes of warm cum erupted from his tip, shooting down your throat, as you struggled to swallow it all down. he kept going for a good thirty seconds, before finally pulling out of your mouth. you immediately sputtered, and coughed, your throat feeling completely abused. you felt jungwon’s gentle, and comforting touch brushing the hair out of your face. “are you alright? was i too harsh? did i hurt you?”

you shook your head, catching your breath. “no, not really—i’m alright, i promise.”

he let out a sigh of relief, helping you out of the water. he looked like he wanted to ask you something. you knew he was going to want to return the favour, but being inside the water for so long had left you freezing, so if you didn’t take a shower and put on some clothes like—right now, you would definitely come down with a fever.

“let’s go back now, it’s getting pretty late. we have been in the pool for far too long now.”

jungwon looked disappointed, but he nodded. you quickly went into the shower attached to the changing room where you had kept your clothes. you turned on the water, turning the knob to hot water. as soon as it hit your body, you instantly felt relaxed. midway through the shower, you heard the shower curtain being shoved back. you turned around, eyes wide, noticing jungwon standing at the door. you went to cover yourself out of instinct, which earned a disapproving frown from him.

he came inside, backing you up against the wall. “why are you trying to hide yourself from me? i already made you cum on my fingers last night. or do you need a reminder?”

your eyes widened at the blunt words. “i… it was just instinct. why—why are you here? aren’t you going to take a shower?”

you could swear he looked a little sad. “why didn’t you ask me to return the favour? do you not want me to touch you anymore?”

you were speechless. you had no idea it would affect him this much. “i—i do want you to touch me, just—not right now. we are going to catch a cold.”

god, those puppy eyes were going to be the death of you. since when was he so cute? “but i would take care of you in that case.”

you sighed. “jungwon, please. later, okay? i’m just a little worn out right now.”

his eyes flickered down. “not even for a little while?”

“not right now.”

he nodded, but it was obvious he wasn’t satisfied with the answer. he left the shower room, closing the shower curtain behind him. you finished taking a shower, changing into new clothes. for some reason, you had put on a cropped top. you swore it wasn’t cropped when you took out of the wardrobe, but… oh well. it would have to do.

it was unusually cold, when you went to sleep. jungwon hadn’t spoken to much either after you both came back from the pool. god forbid you suck off a guy and don’t let him return the favour in fear of catching a cold—apparently, they take it quite personally. you tossed, and turned again. why was it so difficult to fall asleep? you sighed, trying to will yourself into becoming tired, by counting backwards from hundred.

suddenly, a rather mischievous giggle echoed in the room. not the kind of ones that kids let out after being caught causing trouble, but the kind of giggle that filled you with dread, your blood running cold. why could you never catch a break?

‘missed me?’

certainly not. why the fuck would anyone miss some sort of—you didn’t even know what to call it. an entity? that somehow was one with this—this place?

‘awh, don’t be so harsh. i’m sure you had enough fun while i wasn’t here. why don’t you entertain me now?’

this twisted, demented thing’s form of entertainment was trying to make you lose your sanity. by instilling fear inside you. how could that be anyone’s entertainment? you certainly did not find the entire thing funny. that insane chuckle echoed in the room again, causing your hand to shake beside you. god, what had you gotten yourself into?

‘you’re funny. and truly the best entertainment i have ever had. why else do you think i made your living conditions so good?’

to make you give up on trying to escape, and suffer here forever, of course. why else?

‘mhm. you’re not completely wrong. now there, pretty little thing. won’t you let me have you? all you need to do is give in.’

fuckkkk no. never in a million years would you willingly bind yourself to this place. seriously, who did this thing think it was?

‘i can be anything you want, sweetheart. now, don’t make me mad. be a good girl, and give in.’

…

‘don’t be so stubborn. give in to me while i’m still being nice. or else i won’t be so nice anymore. you don’t want that, do you? just submit to me.’

…

‘i don’t think you quite understand the implication of my words. there is only so much patience i have. give in to me. you know you want to.’

when you kept up your silent act, the voice started to overlap, becoming multiple voices, echoing and screaming in your head. you clutched your head tightly, unable to bear the oncoming headache. it was terrible, the feeling similar to your head splitting into two. you let out a small whimper, tears slipping down your face. the voices were starting to become one shrill, extremely high pitched note, the sound worse than nails on a blackboard. at the rate at which it was going, you were close to becoming deaf.

all of a sudden, the voices stopped, just as you felt jungwon’s hands on top of yours, which were covering your head. you snapped your eyes open, blinking away the tears. you could hear his worried voice becoming louder, and louder, as you struggled to focus on it.

“...___? can you hear me? come on, say something!”

you took a few deep breaths, before finally managing to find your voice. “i can…”

you heard him give out a relieved sigh. your eyes were starting to adjust to the darkness, being able to make out his silhouette in the dark. “what’s going on? you were crying, and borderline screaming…”

your eyes watered again, as you spoke with difficulty. “th-the voices… they are back again. and—fuck. it was speaking to me directly…”

you heard him curse under his breath. “what was it saying?”

you tried not to cry, as the menacing voice rang in your head again. “it-it was telling me to give in. and that—that it wouldn’t be so nice if i kept resisting.”

jungwon gently took your hands away from your ears, before brushing the hair out of your face. he was hovering awkwardly over you, so he didn’t want to crush you by suddenly hugging you. although he would have definitely preferred that.

turns out, you really needed the hug, because the very next second, you hugged him tightly. he had to avoid falling on top of you from your sudden gesture, his position even more awkward now, one that would surely lead him to cramp up if he didn’t do something about it soon. he slowly lowered himself on top you, engulfing your body under his as best as he could. he could feel you holding back tears against his neck, a fear stray ones slipping out anyways.

“sweetheart,” he said softly. “do you want me to make you forget about the voices?”

you felt a sense of deja vu, choosing to ignore it for the moment, as you sniffled quietly. “how would you do that?”

“by occupying your pretty little head with something else, of course.”

you furrowed your brows. “what–”

but jungwon had already started to get into work, slipping downwards, hands gripping the waistband of your pants. you quickly caught one of his hands. “jungwon…” you warned slowly, similar to last time. you couldn’t see it, but that strange glint was back in his eyes. along with a pout on his lips that was cute enough to melt even the coldest of hearts. “oh, come on, princess. i just want to help you feel better. don’t you want to feel better? and forget those voices?”

you gulped. he was way too persuasive. he couldn’t get away with this every time! but just for now, maybe you could let him.

you slowly let go of his hand. “fine.”

you assumed that his victorious smirk was back on his face, although you couldn’t see it. he began pulling your pants down slowly, along with your panties. once they were fully off, he ran a finger over your folds, delighted to feel some arousal already present there. “i knew you wanted this, princess. your body can’t deny me.”

your face flushed. you wanted to retort that you two hadn’t even had proper sex yet, how could it possibly be reactive to him? but you kept quiet, knowing he wouldn’t like the answer. and that the result of that might not be of your liking.

you felt him lower himself, face level to your pussy. he blew on your folds, the cold air causing you to unintentionally clench. he gave an experimental lick on your folds, earning a surprised gasp from you. emboldened by your reaction, he started to lick at your arousal, causing more slick to drip out of you, all of which he was glad to drink up. your back arched slightly, a small whimper escaping you—a result of the sudden pleasure and relief you felt. you ran your fingers over his hair, slightly tugging at his locks. he groaned at the feeling, burying his face deeper into your folds. he spread your legs further, his blunt nails leaving moon-shaped indents on the soft plush of your thighs.

the way his nose bumped into your clit every time he tried to shove his face impossibly deeper into your cunt sent shockwaves of pleasure up your spine, eliciting the most delicious whines out of you. it only encouraged jungwon to try and push his tongue deeper inside you, drinking in your slick like it was the most divine thing he ever had the chance to taste, trying not to waste even the slightest bit.

he wrapped his arms around your thighs, pulling you closer to him, trying to shove his face even further into your impossibly wet pussy. your whimpers and whines were like music to his ears, the most beautiful melody he had ever heard. he finally detached his face from your cunt, breathing heavily. he stole a glance at your face, noticing your chest rising up and down heavily. a cocky smirk crept up his face, as he latched his lips around your clit this time.

a surprised gasp left your lips, as he started to harshly suck on it. jungwon could feel his own boxers getting stained with precum, his cock so hard it hurt. but he could care less about it at the moment, too pussy drunk to even bother thinking about it. he flicked your hardened bundle of nerves with his tongue, rubbing circles around it. he pushed your hand on his hair, encouraging you to pull on it. you compiled, tugging on his locks, eliciting groans out of him.

jungwon went back to trying to shove his face impossibly deep inside your dripping cunt, frustrated at being stopped by the length of his tongue. he brought one hand up to keep rubbing your swollen nub, your whimpers too good for him to stop. you could feel that familiar coil in your stomach tightening, causing you to try and warn jungwon of how close you were. “j—fuck—jungwon, i-i’m s’fucking close, fuck–”

he pinched your clit at your words, causing you to let out a whine in between your moans. your hand on his hair tightened, as you pulled on it, trying to push his face even further inside your pussy. it just felt so good—too good—better than anything any man has ever made you feel. as the coil in your stomach finally sprang free, jungwon hurried to drink everything down, afraid of missing even one tiny drop. your legs threatened to close around his head, but jungwon prevented that by holding them down, the veins on his arms bulging deliciously. he licked you clean, before latching his lips around your clit again.

your pulled his hair, trying to push him away from your sensitive pussy, starting to become oversensitive. jungwon reluctantly parted from your folds, the lower part of his face fully drenched in your cum. he wiped his face with the back of his hand, licking the excess juices off it. your taste was addictive, probably even better than drugs.

jungwon took tissues from the nightstand, wiping you clean, before helping your lower half dress again. he laid back beside you, his arms wrapping around you. he felt you turning in his grasp, a small smile creeping up on his face. he tightened his grasp around you, rubbing your back to help you fall asleep. he knew you could probably feel his rock-hard boner pressing into your thigh, but you were definitely too tired to help him out. and it wasn’t like he couldn’t wait. yes, he got impatient at times, but he could still wait. for a little while longer, at least.

when you woke up, it was because jungwon was planting hot, open-mouthed kisses on the expanse of your throat, trying to stir you awake. he was successful in doing so, obviously, as you groaned in irritation, trying to push his face away. he only grinned cheekily, grabbing your hand, pinning it to your side. 

“c’mon princess, wake up. how long do you plan on sleeping? it’s been almost ten hours already.”

you grumbled softly. “how would you know that…? it’s not like there is a way to know the time in here.”

jungwon only smirked, nuzzling his face in the crook of your neck again. he mumbled against your skin. “because i’m smart like that. besides, you have been asleep for far longer than i have. i would know, since i have been awake for a while now.”

you groaned, reluctantly trying to open your eyes. the bright light shining directly in your face was annoying you anyways. you gave him a death glare through your squinted eyes, scowling when he remained unaffected. you reluctantly got up, going to the bathroom to freshen up. maybe today you could actually explore the place more, and find clues to get the fuck out of this monotonous place.

once you were done, you came out of the bathroom, noticing jungwon waiting for you on the bed. he had ditched his usual hoodies and donned a black tank top instead, covered by a denim blue jacket. no matter what he wore, he always managed to look like the most gorgeous human being ever, as if he were some unreal being sculpted by greek gods. because surely, looking this good all the time wasn’t possible on a human level?

jungwon’s voice broke you out of your thoughts. “how long do you plan on checking me out? i mean… i know i’m handsome, but staring for that long can cause your eyes to strain.”

you scowled at him, wanting to wipe his smug smirk off his face. “i wasn’t staring.”

“you most definitely were.”

“i wasn’t–”

“you’re a terrible liar, anyone ever told you that?”

“shut up–”

“that’s not how you thank someone that ate you out last night–”

you threw a packet of ramen at him to shut him up, successfully interrupting him. he caught it, laughing at your flustered face. he didn’t say anything any further, only watching amusedly as you picked up rice cakes and ready made sushi off the shelves, microwaving them. he tilted his head, as you waited for them to be done. “do you want to go exploring today?”

you let out a non-committable hum, not looking at him. “i do. but i’m not really sure if i should. after all, it won’t be fruitful, given the nature of this place.”

jungwon let out a hum in response. “yeah, but still—if this place has an entrance, it should have an exit.”

you shrugged. you weren’t really hopeful of that possibility. so far, from what knowledge you had about the place, hope was a precarious thing here. if you hoped for anything other than leaving this place, you got it. but the moment you thought about leaving? the place tried its level best to make you lose your sanity. how was that fair? then again, how was anything in this place fair? matter of fact—even you being in this place wasn’t fair. at least not for you.

a ‘ding!’ from the microwave signified that your food was ready to be consumed. you took the rice cakes and sushi out of the microwave, placing them on a plate. right as you were about to eat one, you stopped. you looked at jungwon, your hand awkwardly hovering in front of your face. “do you want some?”

jungwon shook his head. “nope. i already ate. you go ahead.”

you nodded, leaning back against, a shelf. you felt awkward, at the prospect of eating when he wasn’t, but you were hungry. so you started eating the food, finishing it within minutes. when you looked at jungwon, he was already looking at you. that same strange glint was back in his eyes, along with an unreadable expression. the look on his face sent shivers down your spine. you cleared your throat. “why are you looking at me like that?”

he raised a brow, the ghost of a smirk on his face. “like what?”

“like—ugh, i don’t know how to say it.”

he leaned back on his elbows, his smirk now on full display. “just spit it out.”

you gulped. “like—uhm—like you’re… h-hungry…?”

you cringed at your wording, but you knew what you actually wanted to mean. and by the smug look on his face, he did too. “‘hungry’? is that what you’re going to call it?”

your face flushed. “yes.” you gritted out through clenched teeth, wanting to disappear into the floor. he let out a deep hum, which caused butterflies to erupt into your stomach. god, why did he have to be so hot?

he didn’t say anything else, so you went to the bathroom to wash your face. you splashed water on your face, looking at the mirror on top of the sink. you looked at yourself. did you always look this ugly, or did stress make you look like this? suddenly, a slight movement behind you caught your eye. you tensed up.

what. the. fuck. was that some sort of… shadow? at first you thought it was yours, the shape distorted because of the light’s angle. then, to your utmost horror, the shadow began to shift. even as you stayed utterly still. the shadow grew in size. it grew, and grew, till it was six feet long. it kept growing even after that, but you were too busy letting out a startled scream to care about how much taller it was gonna get.

jungwon burst in, his eyes wide and frantic as he caught you in his arms. “___, what–”

you grabbed his hoodie tightly, looking back at the place where the shadow was. it was gone. “th-the shadow—i swear it was just there, this—this huge shadow, that just kept growing, and growing, and—and–”

you couldn’t continue, voice breaking, as you choked on a sob. jungwon hugged you tightly, cooing softly in your ear. “shhh, it’s okay sweetheart. i’m here now.”

you felt a strong sense of deja vu. specifically at the part where he called you ‘sweetheart’. he definitely called you that before, but you felt like you heard it elsewhere too. you chose to ignore it for the moment, focusing on how soft, and warm his embrace felt. you let a few tears slip. why did the place enjoy torturing you so much? hadn’t you suffered enough? you weren’t even thinking of leaving this place, so why was it suddenly trying its tricks on you again?

you felt jungwon slowly stroking the back of your head to calm you down. his presence grounded you, helping you to focus on him, and not on the event that just occurred—if that occurred at all. what if you were just hallucinating? you didn’t really have faith in your own sanity anymore. what if nothing that’s happening around you is true? what if all of this is just—just some sort of weird nightmare? maybe none of this actually exists. nothing that’s happening around you at the moment, at least.

maybe the stress, and miyoung’s silly little story got to you, conjuring up this stupid place. hell, even jungwon might not be real. maybe he is just another figment of your imagination—a person you conjured up in your loneliness to help you not feel as lonely as you are. you were broken out of your stupid thoughts, as you felt jungwon break the hug. he cupped your face, looking at you with worried eyes. “are you feeling alright?”

good question. were you feeling alright? at all? 

of course not. who would feel alright in a place like this? a place where your sanity was being played with, every few hours? seriously, what was this place trying to achieve? you swear you weren’t bothered about being here anymore, so why was it still hellbent on trying to induce a cardiac arrest for you?

you didn’t voice out your thoughts to jungwon, of course. “i’m alright… just a little shaken, that’s all. it’s not often that you see some weird shadow suddenly growing in size behind you.”

you tried to make it seem like a lighthearted joke, but your voice shook at the end. jungwon caressed your cheek with his thumb comfortingly, eyes holding pity for you. he hugged you tightly again, arms wrapping around you in a gentle embrace. you tried not to break down, to tell yourself that you were stronger than this—that this place’s little party tricks weren’t enough to break you down.

but deep down? you knew it was only a matter of time. only a few more tricks, played at the right times, and even jungwon wouldn’t be able to do anything to save you from the inevitable. deciding it wasn’t worth bothering about the possible future, you sighed softly, pushing at jungwon’s chest, breaking the embrace. you stepped away from him. “i think we should rest today. instead of going exploring, i mean. it’s not really worth the hassle.”

jungwon didn’t say anything at first, simply looking at your face searchingly. as if not quite satisfied with what he saw, he replied in a slightly dissatisfied voice. “you’re not wrong, but… should we really give up so soon? i mean, that’s what this place wants–”

“then let it get what it wants. i don’t fucking care anymore. i had enough of this—its games. i don’t need any more terrifying encounters.” you interrupted him.

jungwon looked shocked at your outburst. he took a step back, blinking at you, as if trying to process what you just said. “you–” he sighed, not completing his own sentence. his eyes held this disappointed look that made you want to scream in frustration—or at least rip your hair out—or his, both would work. “i didn’t take you to be someone that gave up so easily.”

you tried to steady your voice, trying not to yell at him. “you just don’t get it—this place fucking hates me. how is it that i’m the only one that suffers here? you never experience anything that i have the unfortunate fate of experiencing! when have you ever heard terrifying voices telling you to just give up? when have you seen weird cre—entities in this place? or at least after you met me? why do they always come after me?! why am i the only one suffering here, when we are both stuck in the same place?”

your voice cracked at the end, tears starting to gather at your waterline again. “i’m tired, jungwon. so fucking tired. i don’t like this—any of this. i don’t like living like this. i don’t—fuck, i just want my life back. i can’t take this anymore…”

you buried your head in your palms, the waterworks starting again. only this time, they didn’t seem to stop any time soon. you felt jungwon’s warm embrace around you again, but you barely acknowledged it, too busy hiccuping through your sobs. you felt him caress your back with one hand, patting your head with the other. his gentleness with you only made you want to cry harder.

it was weird, now that you think about it. in your real lives, you both would be practically strangers—you were practically strangers in this weird place too. the only reason you both were so… close, was because this was the weirdest situation any living being could have possibly landed in. i mean… a whole another dimension? that’s kind of insane, now that you really thought about it. and you were roommates—sort of—in this place.

‘and they were roommates!’ wow. classic cliche romance book trope. who would have thought?

except there wasn’t any kind of romance between you both. not really. you certainly didn’t have any romantic feelings towards him. you were attracted to him, sure, but that’s it. he was hot, there’s no denying that.

and apparently really good at having sex too–

ahem. nope. this was no time to be thinking about such things. there’s much more important matters to focus on. like how good his embrace felt–

oh my god. were you ovulating? because if you weren’t… what the actual fuck is wrong with you?

you cleared your throat, parting from him again. god, you truly were dramatic. you wiped your eyes furiously, embarrassed over your antics. you looked at jungwon’s worried face, feeling your own face flush. “i’ll uhm—take a shower—to uh—clear my head.”

he nodded slowly, going out of the bathroom for obvious reasons. you never really acknowledged the slow changes that the place did to accommodate you anymore, since you had long since learnt the reason why it did so in the first place. but damn, the bathroom had really upgraded. there was even an exhaust fan here now, so that was great. good ventilation and all.

gosh. why were you even thinking about that? you were just rambling in your head about utter nonsense at this point—anything to keep your mind off the real problem at hand. shaking your head, you decided to focus on taking a nice, long, warm shower to refresh your mind.

you came out of the shower, while wiping your hair with a towel—oh, did you mention how a fresh change of clothes magically appeared in the bathroom, despite you not having taken any in there? no? well, they did appear. and the t-shirt was cropped. again.

for some reason, the entire wardrobe was only filled with cropped shirts and t-shirts for you. a few days ago—or what you hoped was a few days ago—you wore a shirt from jungwon’s side in the wardrobe. but even that magically shortened in the next few minutes. was the place into you or something? was that even possible? the thought was ridiculous, but it wasn’t entirely impossible, given this was a completely different dimension—probably—with weird things happening all the time, you had no way to know for sure.

you noticed jungwon sitting on the bed, staring at you with a strange expression, yet again. that same glint back in his eyes. god, you were starting to think he might be in love with you too. well… at least he and this weird place would have something in common then. you thought you saw the corner of his lip twitch, but you couldn’t be too sure. after all, there were many things that happened in this place—most of which you had no logical explanation for. so this too could have very well been your imagination.

you raised a brow at jungwon. “know anything we can possibly do today to keep ourselves busy? other than exploring this place mindlessly, i mean.”

he smirked. “i can definitely think of a bunch of activities we can do. together, that is.”

you rolled your eyes. at least you weren’t the only one that had something seriously wrong with them. “be serious for once.”

“i was being dead serious.”

“implying to have sex as an actual activity to pass the time is not called being serious–”

“i never said anything about sex–”

“you know damn well that it was exactly what you meant–”

“i don’t know, it seems to me that you want to fuck–”

“i do not–”

“you want me sooo bad–”

you threw your towel at him. why was he so annoying? this was the second time you threw something at him, in the past hour alone. seriously, if he wasn’t half as hot as he was…

jungwon put the towel on the nightstand, earning a displeased look from you. who puts a wet towel on the nightstand? were all men seriously hell bent on being as messy as possible? but you couldn’t be bothered to tell him off, not when he was impatiently patting on the spot beside him, beckoning you to sit beside him.

sighing, you complied. you turned towards him, watching as he did the same. “so…”

you raised your brows at him. “hm?”

he suddenly grabbed your hands, giving them a light squeeze. “tell me about the voices. and every weird thing you have seen in this place.”

you furrowed your brows. why was he suddenly curious about that? out of nowhere that too? “uhm… what exactly do you want to know?”

“everything. but maybe start with the anomalies or abnormalities that you saw.”

you racked your brain. “during the first few hours of arriving here, i saw this shadowy mass that only moved when i did. and at the same speed too. it was what caused me to find this room in the first place.”

he nodded carefully. “was the second time that day when i went alone to explore?”

you nodded. “i think so.”

he let out a thoughtful hum, his gaze no longer on you. he seemed to be thinking about something, although you had no idea what it was. “what about the voices? what do they say?”

you gulped. it was as if you could hear them all over again, even though you knew they weren’t there at the moment. “uhm… they just tell me to—well, ‘give up’, or to ‘stop fighting it’.”

he raised his brows, concern etched into his face. “that’s… wow.”

“i know.”

“that’s kind of fucked up honestly.”

“i know–”

“like, really fucked up–”

“i know.”

jungwon sighed. “it’s just… wow. i’m sorry for telling you—well, what i said in the bathroom before you took a shower. you’re a lot stronger than i give you credit for, really.”

his words made your face flush again. seriously, the way he could easily fluster you needed to be investigated. no one ever affected you this much before, not even your ex—who was your first love, and what you had hoped would be your last love. before he went and cheated on you, of course.

jungwon rubbed his thumbs on the back of your hands comfortingly, successfully breaking you out of your thoughts. “i’m here for you. you know that, right? whenever you feel bothered by literally anything, you can talk to me. i promise i’ll listen.”

you gulped. why was he so nice to you? “i… appreciate that, really.”

he smiled softly, continuing to caress the back of your hands comfortingly. “seriously, you’re so much stronger than i thought. this place and its entities will have to up its game if it wants to actually succeed in breaking you.”

you felt slightly put off by his words. you didn’t know why you felt that way, but it was just the way he said it. a feeling of dread began to settle in your chest again. what if the place did up its game? what if it actually succeeded in breaking you?

noticing the shift in your expression, jungwon squeezed your hands again. “don’t think of anything negative, yeah? i know hope seems bleak in this place, but trust me, i’ll get us out of here. one way or the other. so don’t worry your pretty little head too much, okay?”

you hesitantly nodded. he gave your hands another squeeze. “wanna go swimming? to take your mind off the silly stuff?”

your face flushed—for the hundredth time now—as you remembered what happened last time when you went swimming. of course jungwon noticed the change in your expression immediately. with a smirk, he spoke. “i mean, if you would like to recreate what happened at the pool last time, i’m all for it–”

“oh fuck off–”

you took your hands out of his grasp, getting off the bed, making your way to the door. you didn’t bother waiting for him, even as he nearly tripped trying to quickly scramble towards you. you yanked the door open, speed walking towards the pool area, not even paying much attention to the markings on the wall anymore. jungwon quickly caught up to you, huffing a bit from how fast you were walking. even he didn’t walk this quick, and his legs were much longer than yours.

you reached the pool area pretty soon, the place having somehow upgraded, yet again. the pool now had a little jacuzzi area, along with built in stairs to make the depth increase gradually towards the end. you couldn’t help but be impressed—you were seriously starting to think the place might be in love with you. honestly, you wouldn’t doubt it. it was definitely not often that this place had someone this gorgeous inhabiting it–

yeah, you really needed to stop thinking like that. what if the place decided to throw another entity at you to show you exactly how wrong you were? you glanced at jungwon, to see what he was doing. he seemed to be glaring in the direction of the jacuzzi, his brows furrowed. what on earth was he thinking about with that much concentration?

you couldn’t be bothered to figure that out, opting to go into one of the changing rooms instead. oh, did you mention that you forgot to bring any swimming attire? but that wasn’t a problem here, of course. there was a bikini in the exact changing room you went to, hanging on the hooks inside the room.

you raised a brow, taking it off the racks to examine it. it was a typical black coloured bikini, the pieces much too revealing for you. yep, this place definitely had a thing for you. you quickly changed into the bikini, admiring yourself in the mirror. holy shit. you looked hot. at least this place knew how to style you properly, so extra points for that.

you went out of the changing rooms, at the same time jungwon did. he was only wearing a pair of swimming shorts. you quickly looked away, determined not to be caught ogling. unlike someone, whose shameless stare was burning into you, as he unabashedly checked you out. well, that made him have something in common with this place. both of them had a thing for you.

you felt slightly smug at that, but then berated yourself mentally for having such shameless thoughts. must you provoke the place like that? did you want to lose your last bit of sanity?

running a hand through your hair—which you were sure would be ruined by the end of this swimming date, even if you tried your best to avoid it—you made your way towards the jacuzzi. the temperature was absolutely perfect against your hand, so naturally you went inside it. you sat on the side of the jacuzzi, the wonderfully warm temperature feeling like heaven against your skin.

oh my god, did you just call this a swimming date? oh hell no, this wasn’t a date. not a romantic one at least. this was a… hangout! yes! a friendly hangout between friends, that’s all!

friends? were you and jungwon friends? could you both be called that?

you supposed not. what were you guys anyways? strangers? acquaintances? acquaintances with benefits? you cringed at the thought. seriously, this was so unlike you. you have never engaged in any kind of sexual activities with anyone this soon after meeting them for the first time. unless it was strictly for hooking up. so why was it so different in jungwon’s case?

maybe it was because he was just too hot to not pounce on–

okay, you really needed to stop that. maybe you were ovulating, but you swore you’re never this shameless, even in your thoughts. so it definitely had to be the hormones. right…?

a sudden splash shook you out of your thoughts. you flinched, looking at the source. jungwon had apparently decided to not follow your footsteps, opting to jump into the deep end of the actual pool instead. he swam up the surface, throwing you a inviting smile. “don’t be boring and stay in the jacuzzi, come have some actual fun!”

you scowled at him. what did he mean by ‘actual’ fun? was he implying that being in a warm jacuzzi wasn’t fun? “for your kind information, this is much more comfortable and enjoyable than swimming around aimlessly in that cold water.”

he rolled his eyes at your stubbornness. “oh come on, the water isn’t that cold.”

“but cold nonetheless.”

“if you’re going to compare the pool’s temperature with the jacuzzi’s, then of course it’s going to be significantly colder–”

“which is why i prefer this one–”

jungwon groaned, before swimming in your direction. he climbed out of the pool, going inside the jacuzzi, splashing water everywhere in the process. “hey–!”

he ignored your protest, coming to sit right by your side. “that water isn’t even that hot. it’s lukewarm at best. not really the most relaxing jacuzzi. the pool is so much better.”

you rolled your eyes. “it’s still pretty relaxing. you should really do that. relax, i mean. you have too much energy.”

jungwon gave you an incredulous look. “which is why i should spend my energy by being active. unless you have other ways of making me relax…”

he trailed off suggestively, a smirk creeping up on his lips. you flushed at the implication.

“shut up. gosh, if you want to ‘spend your energy’, go ahead and do that. but let me relax in my own way.”

he gave you a look that said ‘seriously?’ but you ignored him, leaning further back into the side, throwing your head back and closing your eyes. when was the last time you felt this relaxed? not in a long time of course, not with work in the way. while you focused on relaxing, someone else couldn’t relax at all. seeing you look so unguarded, your head thrown back in bliss—all that in that gorgeous bikini? safe to say, jungwon was finding it really hard to try and control himself from popping a boner. something he was unsuccessful at.

unable to control his surges, he suddenly pushed himself off the side, opting to cage you with his body instead. you lifted your head in surprise, flinching at the sudden proximity. “jungwon…?”

but he wasn’t looking at you. he was looking at your lips. the strange glint in his eyes was back again. it wasn’t even a surprise anymore. but fuck, did you have any idea how hard it was for him to always control himself around you? anything and everything you did made him want to bury himself balls deep inside you, to make you his and only his.

fuck the real world. the real world didn’t deserve you. no one did. except him. this was destiny, for the two of you to be stuck here. because you belonged to him even if you didn’t know that yet. that’s alright, really. you would realise it soon enough.

and when you did? you wouldn’t be able to escape him. ever.

you gulped at jungwon’s intense gaze. this was the most intensity he had ever looked at you with. it made your stomach churn from the nerves—but it also made your core throb in anticipation. his hands slowly came up to cup your face, tilting it up ever so slightly towards his own. his ragged breathing mingled with your own nervous huffs. why did everything always seem so intense with him?

one of jungwon’s hands suddenly moved to your waist, gripping you so tightly you thought you’d bruise. his other hand moved to the back of your head, pulling you in desperately for a heated kiss. your hands automatically gripped onto his shoulders, as you responded to the kiss with vigour. he tugged at your hair, pulling you even closer to him. he kissed you with so much desperation that it made adrenaline rush through your chest, flowing to the tips of your fingers, causing them to tremble.

he suddenly let out a slight groan, licking your bottom lip desperately to try and get you to part your lips. you complied, causing him to immediately push his tongue in. you let out a soft whimper, one which he was all too glad to swallow. his hand on your waist moved downwards, squeezing your—bare?!—ass cheek. when did you bikini bottom become a fucking thong?! you let out a shocked gasp into his mouth, one which he ignored, muffling it with his desperate kisses. he grabbed both of your thighs, lifting you slightly, making you wrap your legs around his waist. you broke the kiss to gasp for air, his boner pressing insistently into your clothed cunt.

the pressure made you whine softly, causing jungwon’s eyes to darken even further with lust at the sound. he smashed his lips into yours again, purposely grinding into you now. shockwaves of pleasure shot into you at the friction over your clothed clit. his hands went back to your bare ass cheeks, squeezing and kneading them with his hands. you felt too exposed for some reason, barely able to focus on anything other than how his tongue felt against yours. your entire body was burning up with need, the sparks of pleasure that you felt from jungwon’s grinding not helping at all.

you whined into his mouth, your thong starting to slide out of place at his purposeful movements. you were starting to grow wet for entirely different reasons than the jacuzzi, lust starting to cloud your mind completely. fuck, you need him. so fucking bad.

you tried breaking the kiss, desperate for air. jungwon seemed to understand, but he seemed reluctant to part from you. still, he let you break the kiss—only to reattach his lips to the juncture of your throat, sucking hickeys into it to make up for the fading ones.

you groaned softly at the feeling, amidst your pants. you tried to get him to part from you—because if he didn’t fuck you immediately, you would probably faint.

were you being over-dramatic? probably. did you care? not really.

“jungwon,” you said, trying to get his attention. “please, just…”

he lifted his head to look at you. holy fuck, the look in his eyes alone was enough to intensify the throb in your core by tenfold. “what’s the matter princess?”

you gulped at the familiar nickname. “just… fuck me, please.”

jungwon was visibly surprised at that. yeah, he knew you were just as desperate as he was at the moment, but to hear you directly say those words? it was enough to make his cock twitch in his swimming shorts. a smug smirk made its way to his lips. he couldn’t skip the chance to tease you even in this situation. “mind repeating that for me, princess? didn’t quite catch it the first time.”

your skin flushed in embarrassment. you knew he was only saying that to tease you, but you couldn’t really bring yourself to care at the moment. “i said fuck me.”

he raised his brows, lips curling even more in amusement. “that’s very demanding of you now, isn’t it?”

you wanted to hit him, but the desire coursing through your veins only made you more desperate. “fuck me, please.”

he bit licked his lower lip, giving you a onceover. “you see, sweetheart?” he spoke, his voice low and husky. “all you had to do was ask. nicely.”

right on que, he suddenly ripped your thong off of you, earning a shocked gasp from you. he ignored it, immediately pushing two fingers inside you. your eyes widened in alarm. was he seriously planning on doing this while you both were inside a goddamn jacuzzi?!

you clenched around his fingers despite being alarmed at the fact. your nails dug into his shoulders, a whimper escaping you, as he desperately tried to scissor you open. he kissed you again, muffling your noises, as his fingers moved inside you. they dragged across your walls with purpose, his thumb rubbing quick circles around your clit.

you whined into his mouth, the familiar feeling of the band in your stomach tightening. why was your orgasm approaching so quickly? you had no time to question it, as the wonderful feeling was quickly ripped away from you, as jungwon pulled his fingers out of you. he was suddenly pulling his swimming shorts off, throwing them over the ground.

he lifted you slightly, lining himself up to your entrance. the way his tip rubbed against your clit caused you both to shiver from the pleasure. you wanted to warn him to be gentle, since you hadn’t really had any sexual encounters in a good while now—other than the ones with him, but you didn’t really have any time to do so. not when he was suddenly pushing himself inside you without so much as a warning.

both of you gasped at the feeling of him finally being inside you, your pussy clenching, and unclenching around his cock desperately to get used to him. he let you adjust for a bit, before pulling out slightly, then slamming all the way back inside, burying himself to the hilt. you let out a gasp mixed with a moan at the sudden sensation, a short feeling of bliss and relief spreading through you. you were impatient for him to start moving, as you clenched, and unclenched around him to mirror your patience, or lack thereof.

jungwon wasn’t doing so well himself either. finally being inside you made him feel the same amount of satisfaction as a kid crying for candy that finally got a candy—that too the best one available. he licked the corner of your lips, just to make you lose your mind even more. he couldn’t be the only one that was already close to busting a nut from finally being inside you.

he ripped your bikini top suddenly, immediately latching his lips to one of your hardened nipples. fuck, your tits might just be his favourite part of you. right after your wonderful cunt, of course. speaking of, both you and him were getting rather impatient for him to move. so he finally started moving, pulling almost all the way out, before thrusting right back in. you couldn’t control your moans even if you tried, his cock dragging across all the right spots, making you shiver.

you tugged at his hair with one hand, another one digging into his shoulder. you wrapped your legs even tighter around his waist, trying to pull him in deeper. you couldn’t even tell if your slick was making it easier for him to fuck you, or if the jacuzzi water was hindering him. but judging by the pace he had set, the water was no barrier for him.

you clenched around his cock, the pleasure that it elicited shooting through your spine. you whined, the added stimulation of him sucking on your tits feeling a bit too much, and not enough at the same time.

jungwon used one hand to hold you upright against him, as he pounded into you without abandon, the other playing with your free nipple. he pinched, rubbed, and flicked it, till it was raw and sore. then he switched, sucking on that one instead, his other hand torturing the other nipple now. he nipped the hardened bud lightly, earning a surprised yelp from you, in the middle of your moans.

his thrusts were now starting to make you see stars, his throbbing veins rubbing across your walls in the right ways. they stimulated you just right, your walls turning more, and more slimy, making them easier to glide through, despite the water. you clenched around him, a whine leaving you. you needed him deeper inside you, if that was even humanely possible. but something about jungwon always made you malfunction, so you supposed this was similar to that. he was already buried balls deep inside you, and you wanted him deeper? when that physically wasn’t possible?

if it was, you wouldn’t have been here right now. you would have been at the hospital instead.

but this was no time to care about all those trivial matters. not when jungwon was pounding into you ever so deliciously. yet, it wasn’t enough. something was missing.

right on que, jungwon stopped torturing your nipples, his lips smashing into yours again, tongue immediately pushing into your mouth. he used his hand to flick your sensitive bundle of nerves, before drawing circles around it, eliciting a loud whine from you. one which he gladly swallowed.

he pressed and rubbed your engorged clit, the shockwaves of pleasure shooting through you feeling way too good. the familiar feeling of the band in your stomach tightening again had you clenching around his cock. he kept pounding into you, his veins starting to protrude out of his cock, pulsing wildly with the effort of holding back his own orgasm. he wasn’t going to cum until you did—and he was only going to cum where you allowed it.

his thumb drew desperate circles around your clit, his movements becoming rougher and faster from his desperation. the band in your stomach finally snapped, jungwon swallowing your loud cries as you came around his cock. you clenched around him with a tightness that had him clenching his jaw with the immense control it took for him to not immediately bust a nut inside you.

he shallowly thrusted inside you, helping you come down from your high, all the while trying to hold back his orgasm. you panted against his lips. “wonnie–”

fuck. that nickname, combined with your whiny voice? if you didn’t give him the green light right this fucking second, he was going to creampie you anyways–

“cum inside me, please. want it so bad–”

yep, that was it. he thrust deep inside you one last time, sheathing himself inside, before finally letting himself go. long ropes of warm cum shot out into you, as he stayed inside you to ensure none of it seeped out.

you clenched and unclenched your pussy around him, trying to milk him for all he was worth. both you, and him hissed at the sensitivity, but neither of you did anything to stop it. the feeling was simply too good to stop.

finally, when his cock started to become soft, he pulled out of you, pouting when his cum seeped out of you as well. he lifted you out of the jacuzzi, setting you on its edge, watching the mix of both of your cums seeping into the water below.

your thighs felt sore, and were sure to form bruises later on. you bit your lip, the air suddenly feeling too cold. jungwon’s burning gaze on your sore, and used cunt suddenly making you feel even more exposed for some reason.

you cleared your throat, snapping his attention to your face instead. you gulped, your voice feeling hoarse. “uhm—my legs feel sore…”

a cocky smirk was making its way back to his lips, so you quickly spoke. “don’t say anything stupid! just carry me to the changing rooms…”

his smug expression didn’t change. “of course, your majesty.”

you rolled your eyes at the sarcastic title, ignoring how you both were still stark naked, as he got out of the jacuzzi and lifted you up in his arms. he carried you to one of the shower rooms, bridal style. he set you down inside. before you could thank him, he suddenly leaned down towards your face. his eyes flickered from your lips, back to your eyes.

“how does round two over here sound?”

you gave him an incredulous expression. you forcefully pushed him out, as he laughed at your red face. “don’t be an insufferable idiot–”

you slammed the door on his face, legs shaking slightly from your… previous activity. you shook your head, his brazenness feeling like something you would probably never get used to.

the way back to the room was uneventful, other than jungwon constantly teasing you about your shaky legs, and trying to coerce you into another fucking session. you only rolled your eyes and said no, since you were pretty sensitive down there at the moment.

he didn’t give up though, checking you out continuously, throwing passing comments about how he didn’t even get to ‘fuck you properly’ the first time, since it was inside the jacuzzi—how he wanted to do it properly now—all of which you ignored. you weren’t ready to go at it once more, not so soon at least. seriously, where did he get so much stamina from?

even while the two of you had a hearty meal, he constantly passed tiny comments about how he would much rather eat you instead—comments which got you all flustered, even if you denied it to his face. you would never admit it out loud, but he was definitely a good eater. in all ways.

the rest of the evening went on monotonously, with you trying to read a book that had randomly appeared on the nightstand, while jungwon occasionally bothered you. when he realised you were adamant on not giving in to his demands, he sulked—by laying down in your lap, and pouting. his efforts were unsuccessful in moving you, as you focused on the book. it had the cutest romance story ever, between an artist, and a barista.

when you reached the middle of the book, jungwon suddenly got off the bed, going towards the door. you lifted your head, calling out to him. “where are you going?”

he shrugged dismissively as he reached the door. “anywhere. been cooped up inside here for too long, don’t you think?”

you shook your head, beginning to read again. “whatever makes you happy, i suppose. just don’t get lost.”

jungwon rolled his eyes in just mild annoyance at your comment, even though you didn’t see it. he left the room, an eerie silence settling in.

a feeling of dread filled you up. whenever jungwon left you alone, disaster followed. you didn’t doubt for a second that this was going to be any different. still, you tried not to be too bothered, and focused on your book.

but your hands shook as you turned the page. ‘come on, focus.’ you told yourself. ‘maybe there won’t be any voices today! jungwon’s absence doesn’t necessarily have to mean the queuing of the place’s psychological torture on you–’

yeah, well. about that… apparently the place didn’t quite get the memo.

‘you two have been awfully close lately.’

of course it was there. right on time, too. at least it was friendly for the time being.

‘the two of you cozied up to each other very quickly. what do you think of that?’

you didn’t know why it was suddenly interested in your and jungwon’s relationship. a more appropriate label for it would be your sexual escapades. why did they matter anyways? was it jealous or something?

‘you really are naive, aren’t you? way too easy to fool.’

easy to fool? did this place even know what it was talking about? you? easy to fool? yeah, that’s right. hey, maybe the dinosaurs are still alive!

‘you know, you’re a lot more oblivious than you think you are. it would be much easier to just make you go insane, instead of coaxing you to give it up yourself. since you’re much too happy to go insane all by yourself.’

that was half right. you weren’t too bothered about being stuck here anymore. i mean… you had company. said company being very hot.

‘you really are such a dumb baby, aren’t you sweetheart?’

sweetheart? that strange sense of deja vu washed over you again. why did you always get this weird feeling in your chest whenever you heard the word? along with a feeling of immense dread? why?

‘so many questions, yet they all just have one answer.’

gosh, this thing was annoying. if there was just one answer to all of this, why didn’t it just give you that answer?

‘you wouldn’t have the questions in the first place, if you just gave in.’

like hell you would. you really liked and appreciated your sanity, thank you very much.

‘i really don’t like using the multiple voices tactic to torture you, you know. unfortunately, you have started to grow on me.’

you knew it. this place had a thing for you! oh, you couldn’t wait to tell jungwon–

‘but i will be forced to resort to it, if you don’t give in right now.’

okay, now you really couldn’t wait for jungwon to be back. why was he going exploring for no reason, anyways?

you didn’t really have any time to worry about it, when a piercing loud ringing rang through your ears. you clutched them tightly, screwing your eyes shut. the ringing kept growing louder, which you slowly started to realise was screaming. multiple voices, screaming over, and over.

you bit down on your bottom lip to stop yourself from breaking down, as you slowly curled in on yourself. you unintentionally rocked back and forth on the heels of your feet, trying desperately to drown the voices.

out of nowhere they stopped completely, leaving just a silence that felt more terrifying than the voices. you slowly lifted your head out of your arms, looking around the room. jungwon wasn’t back—there was no sign of him in the room at all. so why did the voices stop out of nowhere?

you didn’t really dwell on it much, opting to just be grateful that they stopped. you shakily got off the bed, going to the bathroom. you stood in front of the sink. looking at your face, you thought of your real life. was it really not worth fighting anymore? could you really never make it out of here?

you broke down, letting the tears slide down. to your utter horror, instead of transparent tears, what escapes your eyes was blood. streaks of blood. you covered your mouth in horror, trying not to scream. more tears left your eyes—but of course, it was only blood flowing out. you forced yourself to stay calm, quickly rinsing off your face as best as you could. you rinsed the sink too, trying your best to get rid of the evidence.

once you were completely sure that all the blood was gone, you rinsed your face once again, before finally getting out of the bathroom. outside, you saw jungwon sitting on the bed, waiting for you. he threw a curious look in your direction. “why is your shirt all wet?”

you looked down at yourself. it was indeed wet. you looked back at him. “i was really sleepy, so i washed my face. as it turns out, i’m a huge klutz.”

he seemed satisfied with that explanation. “i see. didn’t think of drinking some coffee?”

you shrugged. “didn’t come to my mind.”

he hummed. he motioned to the small table near the kitchen like area. he had set up a small dinner for the two of you. “come eat. no matter how sleepy you are, no one should go to bed on an empty stomach.”

you nodded, going to the table and sitting down beside it. it was a simple dinner, yet it tasted amazing. the food here always did. jungwon joined you almost immediately as you sat down, the two of you eating in peace. he seemed to notice your unusually quiet self today, but he didn’t question. at least not while you were eating.

once you were done, and had put the plates in the sink, he laid down on the bed, as you did beside him. he turned off the lights, as the two of you laid silently in the darkness. suddenly, he spoke. “did something unusual happen while i was out?”

you were startled. you quickly recovered, before replying. “no, nothing happened. why?”

he didn’t say anything at first. “you’re just… acting a little strange. you sure nothing happened? no voices, or anomalies, or anything of the sort?”

you shook your head, before realising he couldn’t see you. “really, nothing happened. i’m fine.”

he decided not to push further. “if you say so…”

you turned on your side. “goodnight jungwon.”

“goodnight…”

it wasn’t long before you fell asleep. jungwon on the other hand? he stayed awake. for a long, long time.

when you woke up the next day, jungwon was nowhere to be seen. the bright light was turned on, its direct glare in your eyes being the reason you were up in the first place. you slowly sat up on the bed, yawning, trying to rub the sleep out of your eyes.

as your vision adjusted, you realised there was a folded sheet of paper on the dining table. getting up, you went towards the table, picking up the paper. jungwon’s hastily scrawled writing met your eyes, ‘out for a bit. there’s food in the microwave, eat it when you’re up.’

you raised a brow. what were you, a married couple? you weren’t complaining of course, why would you? he simply lessened your work load. now you didn’t have to worry about breakfast.

you quickly went and freshened up, splashing large amounts of water in your face to properly wake yourself up. the food jungwon had prepared for you consisted of eggs and sausages, along with toast. it was delicious, like always. food in this place never disappointed your taste buds.

once you were done eating, you put the plates down in the sink. not once since you arrived here had you washed the dishes. jungwon never did it either, yet the plates always magically cleaned themselves whenever you both weren’t there to witness it.

you had nothing to do, so you decided to take a shower, since it would help you to take your mind off of things. even though there wasn’t really anything on your mind, other than the voices. somehow, the place wasn’t trying to torture you, despite jungwon’s absence. hopefully, it would remain the same until he came back.

you went inside the bathroom, remembering to take a change of clothes with you this time. the temperature of the water was fairly warm, enough to counter the cold dampness that always seemed to cling to this place. the dampness was definitely your least favourite thing about this place—right after the place’s attempts at trying to deport you into a psych ward.

you turned up the temperature of the water slightly, closing your eyes, and basking in the warmth. it helped you feel a lot calmer, the pitter patter of the water hitting the tiles being the only sound in your ears. it felt oddly relaxing, somehow much better than the showers you usually took at home.

you were so mesmerised at the feeling, that you didn’t even notice when the door to the bathroom opened. it wasn’t until you felt the familiar strong arms circling around your waist from the back, that your eyes snapped open, as you let out a startled gasp.

“jungwon, what–”

you could feel him pressing your back flush to his chest. you gulped, heat creeping up your neck, as you realised that he too, was stark naked. you didn’t have the chance to finish what you were saying, since jungwon had suddenly decided to bury his face into the crook of your neck, nuzzling against it.

“how come you’re showering without me?”

you blinked in disbelief. why did he say it like the two of you always showered together? when clearly, you both never did? besides, why would you shower with him? it’s not like the two of you were a couple.

almost as if jungwon could hear your thoughts, his hands around your waist tightened. “because that’s how it’s always been? why would we shower together anyways?”

by now, jungwon had started peppering hot, open mouthed kisses over the expanse of your neck—a telltale sign that he was up to no good. which led you to another realization. when did the shower even turn off? “i figured we would shower together from now on.”

again, you were confused. what exactly was he trying to do here? “i still don’t understand your point.”

he licked a spot on your neck. it was one of the innumerous hickeys he had left on your neck from… your previous activities. “because we fucked? multiple times, that too.”

you raised a brow, even though he couldn’t see it. “multiple times?”

he hummed against your neck. “yea.”

you held back a sigh. “technically, it was once. we only hooked up multiple times. but that still doesn’t mean we should be showering together.”

he let out an almost whine in your ear, and god, you’d be lying if you said it didn’t make you wet almost immediately. “but why not? showering together would help us to bond together, y’know?”

you scoffed slightly. “i highly doubt you’re here to bond with me.” you said, as you tried to pry off his arms around you. yes, he was hot, irresistibly so, but you that didn’t mean that the two of you always needed to fuck.

his arms only tightened around your waist, pulling you even harder against him. “oh, come onnn, don’t be like that sweetheart. why can’t you just give in this once?”

that same strange sense of deja vu washed over you. you had definitely heard something similar. very recently too. but not from him. but you didn’t really have time to worry about that at the moment, since you could feel jungwon’s hard cock rubbing deliciously against your lower back.

the feeling unintentionally made your clench around nothing, as you grew wetter, and wetter, with each passing second. seriously, why did he have to be so hot? it really made it hard to concentrate on anything other than him. which consequently made it harder to say no to him. but you were determined to stand your ground today.

you tried to lean away from his desperate attempts at trying to get you to agree. his hands had already started to wander, starting to massage your tits. “jungwon, i’m not in the mood–”

he grabbed your chin, turned your head to side, and pressed his lips to yours to silence your protest. his kisses were always so addictive, causing you to naturally melt into it. he manhandled your body to make you arch your back slightly, pushing your ass out, with your hands on the glass partition door. the tip of his cock rubbed deliciously on your wet folds, as he whispered in your ear.

“you can’t say no to me, sweetheart. i’d be very sad if you did.”

in a way, you knew you simply couldn’t say no to him. not with how you were suddenly feeling desperate to have him fill you up again. truthfully, the first time wasn’t enough, and you would be lying if you said you weren’t playing hard to get by denying him. but god, he was just so persuasive, it really was hard to say no to him.

so you didn’t say anything else, as he slowly pushed himself in, both of you moaning at the feeling—you from the delicious stretch, and him from the way your pussy gripped his cock so tightly. it felt like heaven—it was heaven, especially the way your slick was so abundant, giving him more than enough lube to slide in and out of you, without any sort of difficulty.

he pulled out almost all the way out, before slamming back in. he could never get used to how exquisite your pussy felt around him, the need to claim it over and over and over, always in his mind. how were you so perfect? you were such a perfect doll for him, letting him do what he pleased to you—even when you tried to deny him at first. he knew you could never say no to him. because you were his.

as long as you remained oblivious.

you were starting to get attached to this place. yeah, it wasn’t the nicest to you all the time, but you were willing to overlook it. were you already starting to go insane? probably.

on a serious note, it wasn’t the worst place to be stuck in. you didn’t need to worry about literally anything here, except the occasional voices. but even that didn’t affect you as much now. probably.

currently, you were eating dinner—or what you hoped was dinner, with jungwon. your legs were slightly sore from when you guys fucked earlier today, but it wasn’t too painful at the moment. the food was great, since it consisted mainly of sushi. well, only sushi. and you loved sushi.

you pretended to be oblivious to jungwon’s extremely obvious stare, that was burning into the side of your face. if he wanted to get a reaction out of you, he wasn’t going to get it. the least he could do was let you eat in peace. you already let him have his way with you in the shower, letting him fuck you thrice to satisfy his urges—and your own, although he doesn’t know that—so you weren’t willing to entertain him a fourth time today.

once you were done eating, you quickly washed up, and laid down on the bed. you stifled a moan, trying to blink the sleep away. you didn’t want to sleep just yet, since you were trying to read a book. keyword: trying.

jungwon joined you in the bed soon enough, a slight pout on his face at the sight of the book in your hand. he laid down beside you, draping his arm over your waist. “how come you’re reading a book again?”

you didn’t want to break your concentration, since you were almost near the end of the book, but you decided to just entertain him for a bit. “because i like it.”

“do you like the book more, or me?”

you frowned, turning your face towards him. he actually looked serious about the question, no trace of amusement on his face. “what kind of a question is that?”

“a genuine one. answer it.”

“hmmm… the book i suppose.”

he gave you an incredulous expression. “are you kidding me right now?”

you tried your level best to hold back your amusement. “of course not.”

he scoffed, his hand moving down to cup your covered pussy. your breath hitched, already feeling the heat pooling down in your lower stomach. it was as if your body had now conditioned itself to become aroused at the slightest sexual touch from him.

“jungwon…” you warned him in a low voice, to try and stop him. but you knew it was in vain.

“can the book fuck you as good as i do? or at all? hm?”

he started rubbing his palm on your clothed folds, as your panties started to grow damp. god, he knew exactly what he was doing.

“jungwon, don’t–”

“come on princess, keep the book down. we can do something far more interesting than your book will ever be.” his voice suddenly took on a more whiny tone, switching up tactics to make you change your mind.

“j-jungwon no, we already did multiple rounds earlier today, i’m still sore–” your voice broke slightly, the pressure he was applying over your covered clit sent shockwaves of pleasure up your spine. why was he so persuasive?

he whined into your ear, nuzzling his face into the crook of your neck. “come on princess, just give in, it’s not that hard…”

the same sense of deja vu washed over you. you felt like something was amiss, something that was right under your nose—but what was it?

you had no time to think about it, your thoughts cut off by your own shocked gasp, as your felt jungwon’s hand suddenly slip into your pants, dipping his finger into your soaked folds. it was as if a feeling of bliss came over you, mixed with a feeling of frustration. you needed more, but god, even that slight touch had you arching your back.

he smirked against your neck. “see? i knew you wanted this.”

he pushed his finger further in, your slick immediately coating his finger.. he pushed your pants down slightly with his other hand to make it easier for him to finger you, as he started to slowly thrust his fingers in and out of you.

your gummy walls welcomed him warmly, hugging around his fingers. his rough, dexterous digits hit all the ridges, making moan after moan spill out of your mouth in a delightful melody.

he added a second finger, curling them upwards, making you let out a broken whine. the book had long since fallen out of your grasp, as you tried to grab onto him instead. noticing your struggles, jungwon lifted himself up, pressing his lips against yours insistently. you grabbed onto his shoulders, desperately kissing him back, muffling your whines. your hips rutted into his hand, your slick spilling down his knuckles.

he fucked his fingers into you at a faster rate, pumping them in and out quickly. you felt that familiar feeling of the band in your stomach tightening, as your sounds became louder. you broke the kiss, throwing your head back to moan his name. a broken sob left you at the stimulation, his thumb now rubbing on your clit. you clenched around his fingers tightly, trying not to break into sobs from how good it all felt.

the band in your stomach finally broke free, your orgasm crashing down on you. you panted heavily as you came down from your high, as jungwon helped you ride out your high. once you had stopped coming, he took his fingers out of you, watching with dark eyes as your pussy clenched around nothing at the sudden emptiness. he licked your residual cum and slick off his hand, before pulling your pants down all the way.

you were oblivious to everything he was doing, still coming down from your high. you were starting to drift off into sleep, when suddenly, you flinched, at the sensation jungwon’s bare cock was rubbing over your very sensitive cunt.

your eyes widened. when did he even take off his clothes? you gulped, squirming. you were already feeling overstimulated, so there was no way you could handle his dick. which was exactly what you told him, but jungwon was in no mood to listen.

“did i not help you feel good, sweetheart? don’t you think i deserve a reward?” both of you let out a string of curses as he pushed inside you slowly. “just give in, princess, don’t think much of it.”

that’s when it struck you. why you kept feeling that same strange sense of deja vu whenever jungwon uttered certain words or sentences. it’s because you this place kept saying those same words to you. in that exact same tone. the only difference was the voice, jungwon’s being more clear and defined, while the bodiless one being more distorted.

but that couldn’t be it. you were overthinking it, were you not? how could jungwon ever do something like that? not when—fuck, you felt so full—not when he was the very reason you hadn’t yet lost all of your sanity.

you gasped, your eyes screwing shut, back arching from the pleasure. jungwon moved slowly on purpose, his cock dragging across your inner walls with precision. you clenched around him, the dragged out pleasure making you feel so fucking good, while not being enough.

you whined softly, grabbing onto his firm shoulders, digging your nails into the skin. jungwon didn’t even pay attention, the exquisite feeling of being buried inside you being all he could focus on. his own hands had a bruising grip on your hips, feeling moon-shaped indents into your flesh from his blunt nails. one of his hands travelled up, under your shirt. you weren’t wearing a bra—which was surprising, since you were certain you had forgotten to take it off before you laid down. but then again, the place worked in mysterious ways.

he pinched your nipple, kneading the flesh of your tits. he pushed your shirt all the way up, leaving your tits on full display for him. he lowered his head, plopping one of your nipples into his mouth. he rolled it around with his tongue, sucking on it. you whimpered, one of your hands coming up to tangle in his hair. you tugged at the roots slightly, more slick pouring out of you, most definitely staining the sheets. jungwon’s teeth grazed your nipple, before lightly biting it. not enough to hurt, but just enough to elicit another delicious moan out of you.

he finally stopped torturing your tits, moving to your mouth. he pushed his tongue inside, licking at your own. he swallowed all your whimpers and moans, both hands coming up to cradle your head. you lifted your legs up to wrap around his waist, impatient for some kind of stimulation, since he wasn’t moving at all. your walls clenched around him again, trying to get him to move. jungwon tried, but it wasn’t really an option with your legs wrapped so tightly around him.

he broke the kiss, before prying your legs open. he pressed your thighs to your chest, holding you open for him. the position felt… weird? for some reason? but you could care less when you were this horny and desperate.

jungwon, however, was not going to be easy on you anymore. you wanted him to move? oh, he would move alright. pulling out almost all the way, he slammed back in, setting a brutal pace. you could only hold onto the pillow, clinging onto it for dear life, as the headboard slammed into the wall repeatedly. your moans were choked out, with you mostly gasping for air. but you weren’t complaining. it was good. too good.

but good things never last. one of his hands came down, his thumb rubbing furious circles over your clit. you let out a desperate gasp, calling out for him to stop—but he was obviously not going to listen. “you wanted this baby. i’m just giving you what you wanted, isn’t that right?”

he flicked the hardened bundle of nerves, all the while pistoning into you at an animalistic pace. but you weren’t exactly complaining. it all felt good, so fucking good. the added stimulation had you feeling close to the edge in no time, something which he quickly understood. “that’s it, sweetheart.” he cooed. “just give in, yeah?”

your orgasm came crashing over you, like a tsunami. your eyes rolled back in your head, till only the whites were visible, a loud ringing apparent in your ears. your cunt clenched around him tightly, prompting him to thrust one last time inside you, burying himself to the hilt.

ropes of warm cum shot out into you, filling you up. he helped ride out both of your orgasms, thrusting shallowly inside you. once you came down from your high, you realised you had squirted. all over jungwon’s lower half. embarrassment caused your face and neck to flush, something which he luckily didn’t notice, since you were already quite flushed.

jungwon slowly pulled his softening cock out of you, a mixture of your cum spilling out and staining the sheets underneath. he took some tissues from the nightstand, using them to clean both you, and him up. he helped you put your clothes back on, while he put his on too. he wrapped his arm around your waist, cuddling you. you turned towards him, wrapping your own arm around him. his legs tangled with yours, pulling you even closer to him.

right before you drifted off to sleep, you had a sudden realisation. or rather, you remembered the same thing you had realised before. the voice, and jungwon’s voice, were so, so similar. you didn’t want to think much about it. i mean… it was ridiculous. how was it even possible? how could you even think such a thing? but still, the seed of doubt had been planted, so you had no option. so you did the obvious thing, and asked him about it.

“can i ask you something?”

he sleepily hummed, trying to pull you even closer to him. “about what?”

 “the voices…”

it was as if that woke him up. “what about them?”

you gulped, trying to fix the dryness in your throat. “they—uhm—the voices sound similar to your own…?”

jungwon let out a short laugh of disbelief. “sweetheart, what are you trying to say?”

“nothing just… i was curious, that’s all.”

jungwon’s hold on your waist tightened—or were you just imagining it? “you’re not making sense, princess. maybe you should just go to sleep, yeah?”

that sounded… oddly suspicious. “jungwon…”

“go to sleep, sweetheart.”

that word. that fucking word. you were sure of it now. it all finally made sense. why you seemed to be the only one suffering from the place’s wrath, why he was so unaffected to the absurdity of the place, everything. you tried to detach yourself from him. “you’re not telling me something–”

he held onto you tightly. “angel, you’re just sleepy–”

you finally succeeded in getting out of his grasp. “i’m not–!”

he pinned you down to the bed. “fine. you caught me. you weren’t supposed to figure it out this quickly.”

your breath hitched, heart rate spiking. your eyes had adjusted in the dark, allowing you to see everything clearly. there wasn’t a trace of amusement in jungwon’s eyes. oh my god, this was really happening.

he suddenly let out a chuckle. “hm? were you not expecting anything to happen when you finally realised something was wrong?”

you blinked aggressively. did he just… read your mind?!

he let out a small snicker. “so you understood something is wrong, but you didn’t realise the exact problem. that checks out.”

you were… very confused. and intrigued. and terrified for your life.

he cooed at you. “why are you scared, sweetheart? when have i ever threatened your life?”

holy fuck. he could read your mind.

jungwon’s eyes swept all over you. “you know, you’re really hot when you’re scared.”

you could feel him starting to grow hard against your thigh. nope. fuckkkkk no. absolutely not. not happening. nope.

“relax. i won’t do anything. if you cooperate.”

relax? in this situation? how could you possibly relax?

he lowered his head, pressing a kiss to your jaw. a move that usually had you melting, with heat pooling into your stomach. now? now it only made you recoil in fear.

you knew he didn’t like your reaction, from the way his jaw was clenched when he lifted his head. “stay still for the time being, and i’ll answer all your questions.”

you blinked. now that was a deal you were willing to take him up on. you cleared your throat. “tell me about this place. all about it. the truth, please.”

he tilted his head. “i didn’t lie about what it was the first time. all of it was the truth.”

you frowned. “that—that doesn’t explain how you’re connected to it.”

he smirked. “ah—that.”

your brows furrowed, trying to silently urge him to continue.

“i am the place. or well—my soul is connected to the place. so we’re one. i can manipulate and control—or at least try to—any living being that tumbles into this place, and the place itself, of course. it’s not very hard either. everyone is so… gullible. including you.”

goosebumps rose all over your skin. “i don’t—i don’t really get it.”

“of course you don’t. you just need to continue to let me take care of you, and everything will be fine again, yeah?”

you struggled in his grasp. “why did you get so close to me, huh? all for this? to try and tie me to this place too? make me suffer for eternity by tying me to this place—like you are? is this why you didn’t—couldn’t—answer my questions about your personal life? because you never had one in the first place?”

of course, he held you down with ease. “calm down sweetheart. you wouldn’t be able to escape even if you got out of this room. you see this? me as a person? i could easily morph into someone else if i wanted. but i chose this specific disguise since this was what you preferred most.”

your hands shook. “so all of this… it was all a trap. nothing was real in the first place. because this place isn’t even real.”

jungwon let out a humourless chuckle. “oh, you poor, poor thing. of course this place is real. just as real as real gets. i’m real too.”

you shook your head, feeling dizzy suddenly. “i don’t get—let me go.”

“you know i can’t do that, princess–”

“stop calling me that–!”

you started struggling against him again. the sudden burst of adrenaline helped you get out of his grasp, as you threw yourself off the bed. your legs were very sore, but you still did your best to run.  obviously jungwon had to comment on that. “you see, angel? even your body doesn’t want to leave this place—to leave me.”

you ignored him, wrenching the door open, running away in a random direction, ignoring the marks on the walls. the sudden light caused your vision to become hazy, but you didn’t care. you needed to get out of here. somehow or the other.

you could hear jungwon’s laugh echoing through the walls. it wasn’t the distorted voice as he normally used, but rather his clear, human voice. you ran even faster, trying your best to find an escape. even though you weren’t exactly hopeful, since nothing similar had ever happened before.

you ran and ran, jungwon’s echoing voice accompanying you. ‘you know, it’s fun to watch you run.’

fuck him. he really thought he was sooo funny.

‘yeah, fuck me. i would definitely like that.’

your cheeks burned at his words. what was wrong with him?

‘a lot. but watching you running around aimlessly is starting to become kind of boring.’

boring? boring was being in the same monotonous, monochrome yellow walled maze, with flickering lights, and a carpet that was damp all the fucking time, for an indefinite period of time. that was boring.

‘awww, aren’t you being a little mean? come back now, i’m starting to miss you.’

like hell you would go back. you didn’t even know which direction you came from. but right as you said that, you turned a corner, letting out a shocked scream. jungwon was… there, standing with a big smile on his face. he opened his arms, walking towards you. “andddd you’re back. come here, sweetheart. quit the search for an exit, you know it’s useless.”

you backed up a few steps, before turning around and making a run for it. but he quickly grabbed your arm, slamming your back into the wall. you winced at the pain, jungwon’s grip tight on your shoulders. his smile was gone, replaced by a smirk, which gave the impression that he was up to no good.

his eyes were dark, as swept all over you again. without a warning, he attached his lips to yours, kissing you aggressively. but you weren’t impressed. you tried to push him away, but his pinned your hands to the wall.

he pushed his tongue inside your mouth, and that was when you started panicking again. you bit jungwon’s tongue, making him push himself off of you with a loud yelp. he hissed in pain, staring at you in shock. “what the hell–?!”

you slammed your forehead into his, momentarily stunning him, as you tried to make a run for it again. but he knew you were already going to make an attempt at trying to escape, since—you know, he could read your mind…

he grabbed you by your hand, pulling you back, and turning you towards him. “you little bitch–”

you struggled in his grasp, trying to push him away. “get the fuck away from me–!”

he tried to pin you to the wall again, but you scratched his cheek, drawing blood. he was forced to let you go, letting out a shocked gasp. turns out, he wasn’t as immune to everything as he thought he was.

you suddenly noticed something beside him. the wall was… glitching? was that what you thought it was? to test your theory, you ran at jungwon again, aiming to scratch his face again. he blocked his face with his hands in self defense, leading you to scratch his arms instead. but it was enough—the glitch on the wall grew bigger.

jungwon noticed it too, as he quickly tried to grab onto you again. “princess, just listen to me–”

you kicked his shin—you were definitely aiming for a different place, but you were unfortunately shit at aiming—really hard, causing him to yelp in surprise. it didn’t cause him any actual pain, but it was enough. the glitch on the wall widened, so you took your chance.

you ran at the wall, ignoring jungwon’s desperate shouts, and attempts at trying to grab you. you threw yourself into the wall—or rather, the glitch—and suddenly everything went black.

—

you woke up with a gasp. you were… on the floor? had you fainted?

you slowly got off the floor. you were in the hallway in your home. you shrugged, going back to your room. you had never fainted before, so this was a new experience.

it was half past three in the morning. the devil’s hour. ooohhh, scary. you rolled your eyes at your own thoughts, before slipping inside the sheets again. you had a lot of explaining to do to your boss in the morning, as to why you hadn’t thought it to be worth the hassle to go to work last day.

in the morning, the streets were a lot more crowded than normal. you tried to catch a cab, but none were empty. sighing, you were forced to take the bus. which was very crowded.

you stood somewhere in the back, praying that you reached on time. but luck wasn’t on your side. midway, the engine broke down. everyone was made to get off. the worst part? no one was refunded.

you didn’t have the time to argue for your money, since you had exactly five minutes to get to work, and it was a fifteen minute walk. ten if you ran fast enough.

so you started running, as fast as you possibly could. on the way, you bumped into a guy. quite literally. you didn’t have time to do anything other than yell a half assed ‘sorry!’, before going back to sprinting in the direction of your office. as soon as you reached there, you quickly clocked in. once you sat down in your cubicle, a co-worker approached you. “mr. kim is looking for you.”

fuck. he wasn’t going to give you even two minutes to let you catch your breath? you held back a sigh, quickly nodding to her. you got up, adjusting your clothes, to try and look presentable. you walked over to your boss’s office. you gulped, before knocking. a sharp ‘come in!’ rang, prompting you to go inside. the sight inside was… not something you expected to see.

your boss, usually a very grumpy man, had a smile on his face. a huge one at that. there was a guy in front of his desk, his back turned to you. mr. kim seemed to have been talking to him, before his attention finally snapped towards you.

“ah, there you are, ___! i’m glad you’re here, there is someone i would like you to meet…”

the guy in front of his desk turned around. he was… wow. he looked ethereal, with the cutest dimples in his cheeks. “this is my nephew, jungwon, who finally decided to help me out in my company! he will be starting as an intern, and since you both are the same age, i want you to be in charge of him. what do you say?”

jungwon politely bowed to you. you bowed back. be in charge of this gorgeous human being? who looked like he was sculpted by the greek gods themselves? hell yeah.

“of course, sir. i’m willing to do my very best.”

mr. kim’s smile only widened. “great! if you could start from today, it would be great.”

you bowed, accepting his proposal. you walked out of his office, jungwon following closely behind you. if you noticed carefully, you would have realised that he was the same guy you bumped into earlier this morning. or that he had a bandaid on his cheek.

a subtle smirk crept up on jungwon’s face. he was going to have a lot of fun with you. guaranteed, he didn’t have the same abilities as he had in the other dimension, but at least he was still a convincing actor. and you were the most oblivious person to ever step foot on this planet.