|| In The Arms Of Fate ||

Seo-rin's POV

I stirred awake, the morning light streaming through the curtains. My gaze wandered to the couch, and there he was—Jungkook, sleeping soundly. His face, so peaceful in slumber, contrasted starkly with the storm that seemed to rage within him while awake.

The memory of last night rushed back, his harsh words, the way he treated me, and then… the bandage on my foot. My eyes fell to my bandaged toes, perfectly wrapped with care. He had done this. Despite his cold exterior, he had tended to me.

Tears pricked my eyes as I stood and walked over to him. Kneeling beside the couch, I leaned forward, bringing my face level with his. His breathing was even, his lips slightly parted in sleep. How could someone look so serene yet be such a whirlwind of chaos?

“Why are you like this, Jungkook?” I whispered, my voice trembling. “What in the world did I do to deserve this? It was my brother, not me. And Sia…” My throat tightened. “I feel her loss too, even though I never knew her. After hearing about her, after understanding who she was, I do feel it. You don’t have to carry all this pain alone.”

I paused, wiping away a tear that threatened to fall. “Why can’t you give me a chance? Just once. I promise I’ll try. I’ll try to mend the scars my brother caused. I’ll try to heal you, Jungkook.” My voice broke, and I stopped myself, shaking my head.

I stood up, brushing the tears away with the back of my hand. “Sia will guide me,” I muttered under my breath. “She must have done something to help him when he felt like this. I just need to find it.”

Determined, I left the room, the faint sound of Jungkook’s steady breathing lingering in my ears. Memories of his confession about Sia swirled in my mind. How did she respond to him? What did she say to soothe him, to bring him back from the edge? There had to be something she left behind.

I ran to the basement studio, hoping to find answers. But the moment I stepped inside, my heart sank. The room was empty. Not a single portrait, not even a trace of her presence.

“Where is everything?” I whispered, my voice echoing in the empty space. “Jungkook, what did you do?”

Panic set in as I began searching every room, every corner of the mansion. Desperation clawed at me when I found nothing—no journals, no paintings, no remnants of Sia. Finally, a thought struck me. The office. It was the only place I hadn’t searched yet.

I hurried to the office, throwing open the door. My eyes darted around, scanning every surface, every shelf. I began opening drawers one by one, my hands trembling with urgency. Then, I found it. A drawer with a digital lock.

“What could the code be?” I murmured, trying every combination I could think of. Nothing worked. Frustrated, I looked around, my eyes landing on the bookshelf behind the desk. It was filled with thick, leather-bound books. Maybe there was something hidden there.

Climbing onto a stool, I reached for the upper shelves, my fingers brushing against the spines of the books. My heart raced when I spotted a small, weathered journal tucked between two larger volumes. I grabbed it, my excitement blinding me to my precarious position.

The stool wobbled, and before I could steady myself, I fell to the floor with a thud. Pain shot through my arm, but I didn’t care. Clutching the journal to my chest, I felt a strange sense of hope. This wasn’t the journal I had been searching for, but it was something.

Author’s POV

As Seo-rin sat on the floor, cradling the journal, a shadow moved silently in the room. She didn’t know she wasn’t alone.

To be continued...

-vyé