Whoever said the applause that rings into your ears after a piano performance makes your heart beat faster was right. It's especially true if you live alone and play the piano during one of those insomniac nights.
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When you live alone, you imagine those things could happen, you have several plans made in your head with hiding spots and all the objects you could use as a weapon. But it all vanishes when it actually happens. Because it's not about the things you know could happen, it's about the fact you never know when.
The clapping doesn't stop. It only grows in volume, resonating in a spacious room. The stranger wants his presence to be known. He eagerly waits for the pianist's eyes to meet his, but Jungkook looks at the ground. He avoids the stranger, chanting that he's dreaming, wholeheartedly hoping that he is.
A throaty chuckle.
That is what he earns from an unknown person.
"I'm not going to hurt you," he hints, the raspy tone lacing through every corner of the house, resonating back instantly.
This is not good. This is what everyone says.
"W-why are you in my house?" Jungkook asks, his voice trembling. "If you want money, you have the wrong guy. I don't have any." He is ready to fall on his knees if that's what the other person wants but yet another chuckle indicates that it's not the case.
"Money is definitely not what I'm after. In my world, it doesn't hold any value."
Jungkook wants to escape. Despite the fact that he might or might not survive till the morning, he doesn't try. Something is keeping him from moving no matter how much his heart asks him to pour cold water over his head or burn his fingers. Anything - just to make him run.
He is frozen. Completely still.
"But let me rephrase that. Why are you in my house?" The stranger asks. His wide-eye glare goes unnoticed by Jungkook.
And it hit him.
He is the one who is at fault and maybe - just maybe - if he asks for mercy, the man will let him go. It's all just a big misunderstanding and they both could laugh it off.
The only problem is that Jungkook is not a talker. In fact, he rarely talks. He always thought words were overrated and now it is backfiring him. He can't lace his words in a beautiful manner so the other would be convinced. He only talks through music and that is an inconvenience at the moment.
"S-sorry. I d-didn't know. " Jungkook took a deep breath. The following silence indicates the owner wants more explanation. But he can't do it. He can't speak even if his life depended on it. "I-I will leave first thing in the morning," Jungkook manages to form a sentence. Someone would say it's easy, but not for him. It took him all his strength to say something that actually made sense.
Yoongi keeps eyeing him. It is unbelievable how someone could be as artistic and soulful but couldn't manage to speak. If anything, Yoongi would have guessed the latter was a talented poet as well.
Seeing the skinny form almost trembling makes Yoongi grin. The boy is scared. For a reason, probably. It isn't a usual Monday after all.
"You know, you are talented. Why are you wasting your time in my mansion?" Yoongi's legs swiftly move him towards the sofa that is covered with a plastic bag. The male sits down nevertheless.
At that moment Jungkook wore the sweat the same way a hero wears rain. He knows something is off. He knows he can't show fear. But that is the only emotion that is lingering in his system.
"How would you know?" he asks after gulping. The piano has no sound and he is hoping to get the usual answer along the - I know you are good, I don't have to hear it - lines.
"Oh, I could hear it clearly," Yoongi smirked.
Or maybe not.
This is not what was expected. The male, no matter how much he tried, couldn't deny the fact that his heart could jump out of his mouth or the fact that his lungs stopped working a minute ago. His legs asked for permission to propel them out of this mansion but it got denied instantly.
"You were here every night, playing the piano and ruining my sleep," Yoongi crosses his legs and rests his elbow on the sofa's arm. "I always listened, you just never noticed."
But now Jungkook listens. Every single syllable is reaching his mind, hoping to not hear anything that would alarm him.
"I tried to tell you to let me go but you never listened. And when I felt like it's my lucky day and you finally moved on, you're back."
It is true. Jungkook always stayed in the mansion overnight. Not that he planned to do it. He always devoted time to the silenced piano, hearing the sounds only he could hear. It was addicting to him so he ended up staying late. He never realized how fast time flew by once his mind was in sync with his heart. It only happened here. The piano was saving him from himself.
"Who are you?" Jungkook asks. He isn't sure if he wants to know the answer but he is sure that the place is his safe spot. If he dies here, so be it.
"A ghost," Yoongi says. It sounded like a statement. Like he's talking about the weather forecast for the upcoming week.
Jungkook is scared. Not because of the fact he just got to know but the fact that he takes it like it's normal. He is scared of himself. This place is the one that changes him and surprises him to the point where he can't recognize himself.
"Don't be scared of me. If I haven't killed you already, I'm not going to start now," he emphasizes. It takes him a while to see changes in Jungkook's behavior. The pianist opens his fists and he finally holds eye contact with Yoongi. The male in front of him looks just like him. He always thought ghosts would be see-through if they existed but here he sees a living human in front of him.
"Why you're not leaving?" Yoongi's voice comes out gentle. Something neither of them expected but it makes Jungkook want to let his guard down. At least a bit.
'Seeing an old piano is like invading artists soul. Finding all it's deepest secrets and sorrows. It's where he poured his emotions to. There is nothing more special than the artist's and his musical instrument's bond. They hold each other. They rely on each other. It's like they are one. They think the same. They feel the same. It's always been there with him, never leaving its side. When you look at it, you can almost hear every note flowing through you. Every emotion they felt is running through you like you are one. I got mesmerized by its story. I want it to tell me more. I want to be immersed in its stories. I want to feel what the owner felt,' that's what Jungkook wanted to say, but instead, he goes with something like:
"The piano. It feels like they want to tell me something. I know it's weird but I'm drawn to them."
Little did he know, Yoongi could hear his thoughts. Yoongi was used to scare everyone away because they were looking for the wrong things. They were looking for fortune. They valued a rock while throwing away real diamonds. But now Yoongi felt like he found a fortune himself. He has found a person who is here to find himself. That's when the owner was ready to let him in.
