YOURA

"Wake up, angel."

My eyes move heavily. I slit them open just a little bit, enough to see Yoongi's amused face inches from mine.

For the first time, I hadn't dreamt.

"I didn't...dream about you." I say, mumbling dazedly. "Is it because— because..."

"Yes, it's because I'm real."

He lifts me up, and I notice Jungkook carrying an unconscious Taehyung out of the door.

I rub my eyes.

"I'm hungry."

But then I realize I'm being rude. This wasn't even my house— it was someone else's!

I shake my head. "N-Never mind."

"Come here."

He gets me things to eat, and I've already nibbles halfway through a sandwich when I pipe up.

"I'll get a job, pay for this sandwich."

He stops staring at me.

"Jungkook and I know each other, Youra." He says, making me stop chewing. "You don't need to worry."

"How do you—"

"You don't need to worry." He repeats, voice firmer. With a soft sigh, he reaches up and parts my hair over my shoulder.

I quiet down.

I'm about to take another bite when the air suddenly freezes. I instantly look up, to see Yoongi's dark eyes burning.

He grips my wrist so hard I almost jerk forward.

"What is this?"

I whimper when he pulls the sleeve away.

My scars come exposed, faded red lines against the snowy skin. I swallow at how scary he looks, and tears sting at my eyes.

It hurts.

"D-Don't hold it s-so hard."

"No. Talk to me what in the hell you did to yourself." He hisses, voice sharper than I'd ever heard him. "What is this."

It hurts.

I fling his grip away. "I s-said stop h-holding it so hard! It hurts m-more if you do that!"

Yoongi gives me a harsh look.

Then he corners me into the wall, easily towering over my short figure. His voice is flatter, icier.

"You cut yourself."

"Answer me."

My voice is so tiny it's almost a little squeak.

"A-And why do you care?"

His gaze flashes. "What?"

"I said why do you care!" I say louder, crying now. My cheeks are red, but I don't care. "I was so sad back then, but you'd make me so confused. You'd make me think you h-h-hated me."

I sob.

"I just t-thought I was alone, okay? I thought I was really alone. And it hurt so much— it hurt so bad, I needed to do something. Anything."

I can't stop shaking even when the ice falls away from him, and he pulls my body into his.

I can't stop crying, even if I try to.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be." He whispers, voice softer. "It's my fault. Hush, baby. Don't cry."

I bite down on my lip, nodding.

"I don't want you hurting yourself ever again." He says, breathing more faster. "If you need to, use me. I don't mind. You can cut me whenever you want to cut y—"

I pull away in horror.

He's serious.

It terrifies me to see his expression, not even a hint of joking. He really means that? Does he really think—

"Y-You."

He stops when he hears my voice tremble.

"Don't say that ever again."

"Youra...."

"I'm not kidding." I say, louder this time. "I swear I will throw you off a dream cliff if you s-say something like that ever again. Understand?"

His eyes warm.

"I understand."

__________________________

"Youra, Taehyung."

"Do you guys want some ice cream?"

My face instantly goes bright. Taehyung's head bursts into a series of sharp nods, a wide smile splitting his boxy lips.

"Yes, yes, yes!"

Jungkook hands me a credit card, saying that Taehyung was too clumsy and that he might lose it. Of course Taehyung didn't take that well at all, either.

"What? Kookie!" He pouts, gasping. "I'm a responsible student!"

Happily, I'm about to run through the front door when Taehyung suddenly pulls me back. He has a secretive smile on his face.

"They're tryin' to distract us."

"What?"

"Come here," He says, voice hushed as he pulls me behind the corner. Then he opens the front door, letting it slam back shut to create noise.

And then he puts a finger to his lips with a twinkle in his large almond eyes.

"Jungkookie always distracts me with ice cream." He whispers softly. "Whenever he doesn't want me to know about something."

And my eyes go wide.

"Are they gone?"

Taehyung gives me a playful look, and I quietly settle down next to him. We're both curled up, hidden behind the corridor.

"Yeah. They left."

Jungkook's voice, I think.

Then it suddenly turns sharp.

"Hyung. I don't care what you say. I'm
not leaving Taehyung— not anymore. Not after all this time."

"You're being selfish."

Yoongi. What was he—

"When they turn eighteen," He says, hissing lowly. "We always lose them. We always do. You need to get it through your head that you're a curse to Taehyung."

"And I'm a curse to Youra."

I'm scared.

What are they saying? I don't understand— I don't understand any of it.

Taehyung suddenly curls into me, reaching frantically for my hand. The expression on his face matches mine.

Jungkook's voice is broken.

"It'll kill him if I leave him. I can't do that to him. Not Taehyung. Not to him."

Yoongi stays silent.

My heart is racing against my chest. What did the silence mean? What did the silence mean?

"We stayed with them last time."

"They both died, Jungkook."

My mind goes blank. Taehyung just looks lost— as lost as I do. We were the smartest in our school, yet we couldn't understand.

When we turn eighteen.

My eighteenth birthday was in a week.

My hand starts to shake uncontrollably, and I hush Taehyung— who's starting to cry into my shoulder.

And I understand why.

I remembered him telling me excitedly about his upcoming birthday. It was also in a week— the same day as mine.

"We need to leave them to save them."

_________________________

We'd managed to fake our coming in.

"Oh, Tae." Jungkook says when we appear from the hallway, both of us struggling to hide our expressions. "Did you have a good ice cr—"

Taehyung silently sits next to him, clinging to his arm.

Yoongi looks at me confusedly. He'd noticed the depressed looks.

"Did you two have an argument?"

We overheard you.

But I can't let him know, so I nod firmly and point at Taehyung.

"He—He made me d-drop the ice cream on the floor!"

He sniffles.

And he catches on.

"I-It was an accident...."

Yoongi wraps an arm around my shoulders. "It'll be fine. I'll buy you another, alright? I promise."

We always lose them.

Was this not my first life? I didn't understand— I was too stupid to understand. What was going on?

Taehyung suddenly starts crying.

Jungkook looks down in shock. He quickly rubs his back, expression confused.

"Tae, don't cry. It's just an ice cream."

When his cries get harder, Jungkook quickly lifts him into his arms and hurries inside his room. Watching Taehyung cry is making me tear up too.

Yoongi seems worried.

"What—What happened?" He whispers, wiping the tears away from my lashes. "Are you alright?"

No.

"Y-Yeah." I sniffle, scrubbing at my cheeks. "Seeing people cry just makes me cry too."

His slanted eyes soften.

"You're such a child."

Then he takes me into his arms, pressing a light kiss on the top of my head. Usually that would make me so happy— he almost never did that.

But now.

But now everything was different.