♟ Far away from nothingness ♟

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- Where did you go? -

Jungkook's POV

It's been two days since Taehyung and his friends vanished into the woods near the school. Two days since the last time I saw him. Everyday granted it's only been two, he's been a no show. I sighed for the millionth time today, yes I've been counting, grabbing my textbooks and shoving them inside my already disorganized backpack.

At the sound of the bell, I rose from my seat and headed for the door, stumbling out of the classroom and bumping into someone in the hallway. "Watch it, Jeon!" With a scoff, I pulled both straps of my backpack over my shoulders, walking shakily through the halls.

Ever since they disappeared, I've just been growing weaker and weaker. I'm losing sleep, my body seems to be rejecting the food I eat and I haven't had water since yesterday. I pushed my way outside, hopelessly scanning over the already rowdy crowd. No luck. Why would he be here?

With a heavy heart, I began my walk home, backpack slung over my back as I left school grounds. Yet, my legs didn't take me in the direction of my loft, instead I found myself heading directly for the forest. Again.

As I reached the treeline, I stepped in, glancing back to make sure I wasn't being followed this time around. The crunching of leaves beneath my feet was the only sound heard throughout the deadly silent forest, a breeze causing the branches to shake and dried out leaves to fall.

I walked deeper into the woods, checking over my shoulder every five seconds. What was I so scared to find? Someone following me? A dead body? Maybe the wolf? I shook my head, running a hand down my face, letting out yet another sigh.

I'm losing it.

A wave of dizziness took over, my body falling to my knees, my head spinning. I took a deep breath, sitting on the ground, removing my backpack from my straps. My body grew weak, my back falling against the cold ground. The lack of food in my system and dehydration was getting to me.

I stared up at the sky, clouds covering the sky on this gloomy Wednesday. The silence of the forest filled my ears, my heart beating louder than I expected it to. Or maybe it was just the deadly silence of the forest that made the thumps of my heart seem louder.

"Where did you go?" I whispered to myself, barely finding the strength within me to raise my hand into the air, my head spinning, pain flooding my mind. Great, another headache. I sat up as best as I could, bringing my knees to my chest, resting my head against them.

I must have dozed off because when I awoke, it was nightfall. My phone, which was in my pocket, showed the time as 7:39 p.m. It's been practically four hours since school was let out, so how long was I asleep? I looked around the forest, my mind fuzzy, and vision blurred.

Where was the exit?

A deep growl was heard from behind me, my body tensing up tightly. I glanced back, finding myself staring into those dark blue eyes. Two pairs of red eyes accompanied the wolf, more growls heard. The black wolf took the first few steps, turning towards the other wolves and growling once more.

Then the red-eyed wolves were gone, running in the opposite direction of where the wolf and I were. I gulped, my hands beginning to shake and a sudden rush of fear clouding my vision. The wolf took slow but precise steps, teeth bared angrily, dark blue eyes burning into mine.

Was it angry?

"Hi..." I squeaked out, knowing well enough that this was a lost cause. Like the wolf could understand me, please. As he neared, I felt myself grow smaller, my heart racing in my chest and palms growing sweaty. Another growl made me whimper, my eyes shut as the wolf towered over my sitting frame.

But what I expected to happen, didn't. Something hot and wet hit my cheek, my eyes snapping open to find him licking me. A smile cracked up on my face, eyes beaming with joy. He wasn't going to kill me! His licks didn't stop and I didn't mind, my head turning so I could look at the wolf better.

"How crazy is it that I actually missed you?" I murmured, carefully raising my hand up and gently placing it on the side of the wolf's body. There was a growl, a very calm and gentle one, then a thud as the wolf fell to the ground and rolled beside me.

His ears were up with his tongue out and panting. He was the spitting image of a dog, the resemblance remarkable. I giggled, sliding my hand over his chest and stomach, gently weaving my fingers through his dark fur. He was warm, especially on this cold fall night.

"You're really cute," I whispered, finding myself laying down beside this wolf, a feeling of calmness hitting me. Once again, I felt protected and safe, despite the fact that I was alone with a wild animal in the middle of the woods.

But who cares at this point?

The wolf whined a bit when my hand came to a stop, my eyes finding his. His dark blue eyes were something I could get lost in, and despite this being a wild animal, it felt like they were human. With a sigh, I laid beside the wolf, staring up at the sky, clouds seen over the leaves above us.

"I hope you don't mind me laying here, I've had a bad day." The wolf, obviously, didn't respond, but I couldn't help the smile that widened across my face when he slid closer to me. His face rested on my stomach, tail wrapping around my thigh.

His eyes seemed to ask the questions.

"My boyfriend's been gone for two days. He left and hasn't been back since." The wolf's ears perked up, head tilting a bit. "We had an argument before he and his friends fled, and now I'm regretting it. I miss him..." And just like that, the wolf's ears were back down on his head, a whine heard.

"He says he's my soulmate, do wolves have those?" A lick was what I received as a response, so I took that as a yes. "Well, I don't know why, but ever since he left, I've been feeling terrible. My body is refusing the food I eat and I can't drink water. I'm losing sleep."

"I don't know what's happening, but I'm not sure how much longer I can keep going like this," I admitted, talking more to myself than to the wolf. "I hate myself for initiating the argument. I should have let it go, just shrugged it off, and waited like a good boyfriend." Tears pooled at my eyes, my heart beginning to hurt.

"But no, I had to get mad. I had to fight about it, even when he told me not to worry about it. Maybe I should have listened..." I whispered the last part, feeling the tears sting at my eyes, threatening to fall. "Maybe if I listened, he'd still be here... now I'm scared I won't see him again..."

My tears fell without my permission, staining my cheeks on their journey down my face. I placed my arm above my eyes, trying to hide my face from whoever was watching me. There was only the wolf here, but I didn't care, I don't like to cry in front of anyone or anything.

There was silence again, the warmness that the wolf brought only adding to my sentimental feeling. My heart hurt, my tears never stopping. I missed Taehyung. Would he ever come back?

He will.

My eyes snapped open, arm removing from my face. I looked around, seeing no one around me. The wolf was beside me, head resting on my chest now, his tail still curled around my thigh. What was that voice? Where did it come from? Who read my mind?

"Did you hear that?" I asked, seeing the wolf stare up at me, his tongue licking along my chin. I furrowed my eyebrows, glancing around again. Where was the voice coming from? Was it all in my head? Was I truly losing it?

I laid my head down on the dirt again, wind breezing through the dead branches and leaves, shaking them and making them fall. My tears had stopped by now, only the redness of my eyes and the swollen feeling I felt was left to remind me. The wolf never moved away, just slowly inched closer to me.

Why did I enjoy the wolf's company? What was so special about this wolf?

"Would you protect me from the dangers of the world if you could?" The wolf growled, tail wrapping around my thigh tighter, my eyes meeting his. It seemed enough to answer my question, a small smile twitching onto my face.

Yes.

I closed my eyes, nuzzling closer to the wolf's warmth, sighing contently. It wasn't long before I heard more crunching of the leaves, the wolf's head removing itself from my chest. I opened my eyes, meeting two pairs of red eyes once more. The other wolves were back.

A growl left the black wolf's mouth, teeth bared again. His tail didn't remove itself from my thigh, the two dark grey wolves growling lowly and walking towards me. I flashed a smile, waving stupidly at them. Who was I kidding? These are wolves, not humans?

They did, however, lick my arm, laying beside me. They were to my left while the wolf was on my right, their heads resting beside my side while the black wolf's head was on my chest again. I wonder if these wolves react the same with every human, or just me?

Then again, when I was almost kidnapped, they killed them. So, maybe just me.

"I appreciate your company," I whispered, watching as they all opened their eyes and looked at me. "Can't say I've had much of it recently. Yoongi is out of town for family matters and Jin is sick. Hoseok hasn't been in town for almost a month now, well, maybe not, but he's been gone," I said, sighing once more.

"In all honesty, I don't care where Hoseok has wound himself up now. He's been nothing but an asshole to me recently and I don't want to deal with it. He's paying the bills, I know he is, and that's enough for me." The black wolf growled lowly, my eyes shutting as I felt myself calm down.

"My friends are such a mess. My life is a mess. For once, I would like to live somewhat normally. Play sports like a normal kid, have a loving family, do decent in school, not overly well but not failing either. I wish I could have a good boyfriend that loves me as much as I love him and friends who'll be there when I need them to be."

"Sadly, I have none of those." The black wolf's ears pressed against his head again, a frown forming on my face. "I take that back, I have one. The boyfriend. I know he cares about me as I care about him, but I just wish he could tell me what he was hiding. I would understand. I wouldn't judge. Is that what he's so scared of?"

I shut my eyes again, and once more I heard the voice.

There's more to it.

My eyes snapped open again. I looked around but found nothing. What was that? Was I really going crazy? I took deep breaths and calmed myself down, resting my head close to the black wolf, finding sleep soon to take over my body.

With these wolves, I felt calm and protected, something I know I shouldn't feel. Yet, I did. Instead of questioning why, I just let it happen, enjoying it for as long as I could. Right now, my life was okay. I was in the company of wolves that wanted friendship instead of food. Wolves that would protect me at all costs.

I felt protected.

Yet, why did I feel like that was soon to change?

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Maybe because it is soon to change, Jungkook. The secret will be revealed in two chapters. The next one will be very intense, ready?

I've been planning this event since I came up with the book idea. Let's get it.

I purple you 💜

~Pisanthrophobia.