Eternal Love

Killer

Namjoon isn't particularly sure where he's seen this person before, he looks familiar, and yet his memory fails him.

"Namjoon is it? Thank you for your help, I'll be sure to come back again" the man smiles, and if he's not mistaken it's a mischievous smile.

🌙

He had opened the book store earlier than usual seeing as he had to leave early today and planned on telling Ye Rin to close shop early. He didn't like the idea of her closing yet she insisted that she was fine with it.

It was barely eight in the morning when the tell-tale sound of the shop bells hanging over the front doors chimed cheerily.

No one usually comes in this early and it makes him a tad bit curious as he glances over from his spot between two bookshelves where he was restocking the latest shipments of tacky vampire novels the teens these days go crazy for.

Striding through the doors is a man dressed in a velvet blue suit, his hair is slick back and combed neatly to the side where a few stray strands hang down over his exposed forehead.

He's wearing black sunglasses and there are two piercings each on both sides of his ears where small hoops dangle.

His plush lips are pulled into a confident smirk as he makes his way towards the front desk.

This man was clearly too rich to be standing in a measly bookstore that was covered in centuries-old dust and had paint peeling off the walls that ever so often chipped off of the ceiling and landed in a neat pile that had to be quickly swept away for fear of customers seeing it.

He really should get someone to repaint the place, Ye Rin was always reminding him to do it.

The man leans against the counter reaching over and taps the small golden bell that Namjoon always seems to forget to throw away knowing how much he hated the sound the thing made.

Snapping himself from his gawking state he hurries towards the desk, unbeknownst to him he clutches under his left arm a thick, black book that happens to be the latest edition of another dumb vampire series that he only tolerates in his shop due to the fact that it brought in lots of profit.

"Hello sir, welcome to the Flowers & Moonlight bookstore, how may I help you?" he puts on his best smile not quite understanding the discomfort he felt now that this man was gazing at him despite wearing sunglasses.

Who even wears sunglasses indoors?

The man whose name he has yet to find out merely looks down at the book, which he realizes too late is clutched under his arm and raises an eyebrow as he pulls down his glasses. There's a look of amusement in his eyes that he can't help but note are a captivating golden honey color.

Is this dude a foreigner?

"I'm actually new here in town"

His voice is rather soft despite his intimidating appearance.

"Ah is that so, then I hope you find our small town welcoming" he smiles.

The man eyes him for a minute too long before his smile returns and he's glancing around the shop.

"I'm looking for something rare, something unattainable. You see, it was taken from me and it can't be replaced" the man pulls off his glasses entirely as he leans closer towards Namjoon who's taken aback by the weird atmosphere.

"And what could that be sir?"

He swears he sees the man's eyes reflecting a different color as he stares into them, it's enough to send a shiver down his back.

"Love" is all he says pulling back as he leaned on one arm lazily.

"Love?" what the fuck?

The man is serious for all of two seconds before he bursts into laughter, the heavy air around them instantly dispersing.

He chuckles playfully as he leans in again, "Love, it's an old novel written by a famed sixteenth-century author, his name was Kim Tae Hyung. The book was a family heirloom, you see Tae Hyung had personally written it based on his own experience with a woman he fell madly in love with but could never have. The book was safe for years until one day it was lost, one could say it ran away" he chuckles at this, a sort of distant hollow sound that made him feel as though it was more than just a book to the other.

"I've been looking for it for a while now and I can feel it, I'm definitely close to finding it".

Namjoon is at a loss for words until there's a stifling silence engulfing them and the man before him who doesn't seem bothered by it at all merely smiles, a bit creepily if he may add.

"I can perhaps check our archives for you but I highly doubt I've ever seen a book like that enter this shop".

"I'm sure it's here, you'll find it" he smiles a bit too wide this time.

"Okay, then I guess you can come back next week by then I should have an answer for you" he tries to smiles.

"Namjoon is it? Thank you for your help! I'll see you next week" the man grins and if he's not mistaken it's a mischievous grin.

He doesn't realize he'd been holding his breath until the man exits the shop and the sound of the door closing causes him to exhale as he literally plops into his chair in relief.

What was up with that dude?

He's positive there's no book by that name in this entire town and it honestly felt like the guy was messing with him.

He never even got the man's name.

🌙

The day passes by in a blur and he has one hour left before he leaves for the day. Ye Rin is cashing out a customer and his encounter with the stranger from earlier is nearly forgotten.

He doesn't tell her about that, feeling that it wasn't important and if anything he'd send her home early next week so she wouldn't have to feel the weird atmosphere that man gave off.

It's when he's sweeping away old, curled-up paint from the shop corners for the second time this week, catching Ye Rin's eye as she smiles at him from the front desk, that he registers something that has him frozen in place.

He had never told that man his name.