𝙁𝙧𝙞𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚, 𝘛𝘰𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘸 𝘣𝘺 𝘛𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳

𝙭𝙭𝙭𝙫.

"That you will. But let me ask you again," The man paused, staring deep into the golden-brown eyes that seemed to see through reality itself. "Is this truly what you wanted?"

Soobin could only nod his head. Because he knew if he had answered through words, his answer would be different from what his mind tells him. His mind was screaming at him to use the Quill to himself while his heart was begging to save his friend. He felt conflicted. Torn. Scared. Guilty.

But there was this voice that kept on whispering in his ear. The voice he knows best.

He took a breath... And took a leap of faith.

"It's true. I wanted to be the perfect leader. But I didn't want to do it for myself. I want to do it for them. I wanted to be the best so I could lead them away from harm. I wanted them to be safe no matter what... Even if it cost me everything." He declared truthfully. "So I choose Yeonjun hyung. I choose to save him over my selfish desire." A sense of relief flooded over him as soon as the words slipped out of his mouth.

The dragon/man stared blankly for a moment in silence before an approving smile appeared on his lips.

"Well said, Archer." He said with satisfaction. Soobin smiled back faintly and closed his eyes, hiding his teary golden-brown irises. When he opened them again, he was back in the cave.

Looking around, he noticed Taehyun and Dawn at his side, still unconscious. Seeing their tear-stained faces, his hand reached up to his face and felt the wetness covering his cheeks. He quickly wiped them away with the palms of his hands and exhaled.

Whatever the Factual Dimension showed to the three of them, it clearly brought pain and grief out of them.

A futile sigh of relief escaped the Archer's lips when he saw Dawn stirred awake. As soon as their eyes met, both lips curved slightly, sending each other a silent comfort.

Dawn slowly stood up from her seat and walked over to him.

"You looked like a mess." She teased, making the tall male scoff playfully.

"So do you. You looked like a goblin." He responded, earning a light smack on the arm.

They laughed at each other before going silent once more.

They both just went through something horrible, forced to confront their past and hidden insecurities they have been carrying for years. They didn't know whether to laugh or cry anymore. Everything was such a blur.

Soobin glanced around at his surroundings and found nothing out of the ordinary. But somehow, it still feels different. Like someone had taken every bit of color and beauty out of everything.

But he also felt light. Like a heavy stone was lifted off his chest. He looked back at Dawn, who was looking forward. Her eyes seemed lost in her own world as she stared at nothing in particular.