𝑯𝒆𝒍𝒍 𝑰𝒔 𝑶𝒖𝒓𝒔 ✓

Chapter 8

THE boy's eyes fluttered open slowly, revealing the dim light that met with his senses and made his eye muscles twitch and flutter shut. Throbbing pain shot through his head and he let out a faint, inaudible groan, reaching up with one weak hand to clutch his forehead.

"W-Where...?" He barely stuttered out, his voice coming out croaky and weak as well. He twisted his head —just a little —to glance around the medium-sized dark room. He realized he was lying on a full-sized bed with white, lace bed sheets underneath his fragile body. He had a small, standard pillow beneath his head, and one nightstand beside his bed. A small wardrobe and a small, worn-out armchair in the corner, and beside it was a tall, wooden mirror that had a view of the bed he was on.

"W-Where am I-I?"

That was not his room.

That was not his house.

His house, the one he shared with his wife, was much bigger and more luxurious than that.

Where was he?

He gathered his energy and sat up straight, taking a long look at the room around him, then at his own reflection in the mirror.

He was wearing a faded, baby blue t-shirt that seemed too wide for him, as it had dropped over his shoulder and exposed his milky white skin, along with a pair of wide, black pants that exposed a little bit of his skinny ankle. His long, black hair reached just a few inches above his shoulders, and a few, purple bruises popped up around random parts of his body. His neck, his shoulders, his thighs, and he could feel one formed on his stomach, just above his navel.

"W-Where is M-Mal..?"

He took small steps away from the bed, slowly getting up to search the room.

And that was when he heard the doorknob twisting open.

His head bolted up at the sound of the door creaking open, making him jump a step back.

"Good morning, slut!" A voice harshly spoke. He gulped and took a small step away from the owner, who was a tall, muscular man in his mid-thirties. "The director wants to see you, so get properly dressed and follow me right now."

Hyunjin paused for a few moments, staring at the man in pure fear.

"W-Where am I?" He asked in a small voice, taking another step back from the man.

The man rolled his eyes, then turned around, ready to leave the room.

"Get ready, slut!" He yelled. "And stop asking questions!"

He twisted his head around to take a long, disgusted look at the younger boy. "Or else."

The boy gulped once again, a shiver running down his spine. Then eventually nodded in hesitation.

After hearing the door closing shut, he turned to the small wardrobe in the room and quietly approached it. He reached for the smooth, golden handle and pulled, opening the door with one swift move.

He took a glimpse inside the wooden closet, and his eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

There were only two pieces of clothing. He reached for one of them and pulled it out, deciding to take a look at it.

It was a long, blue bathroom robe.

Surely the man didn't mean for him to wear that, did he?

He grabbed the other piece of clothing, noticing that it was practically the same material as the other one. And to his dismay, it was another bathroom robe, different colour this time.