HIS PRINCESS | K.TH

Scarlet Line

TAEHYUNG

My hand slowly slips from hers.

Aeri is fast asleep. And I brush the tears still caught in her lashes, with a soft sigh. She had cried so heavily that she had almost been half-unconscious when her tears had finally dried.

I wished I could stay.

But I couldn't.

My father had found out about me and the Underground. He had come a step closer to finding out about Aeri, and she was someone I had to keep safe from him. With my life, if I had to.

He would kill her if he ever knew of her.

Especially if he realized that I loved her. He would use her to his advantage— completely wring her dry before killing her. That was just the kind of person he was.

I leave the room, keeping my footfalls quiet. The door shuts behind me, and I look up— searching for traces of Jungkook in the waiting hall.

Empty.

Maybe he had taken Miss Rin back.

I call him. But as each call rings into voicemail, my skin chills even colder.

Because Jungkook wouldn't ever miss calls like this, unless something had happened. He was always the one who was angry at both Jimin and I for not answering our calls.

Had my father already gotten to him?

I call Jimin.

And my hands are shaking, as the phone clicks.

"Tae—"

"Is Jungkook there?" I ask, cutting him off. When he answers with a curious no, I almost turn and slam my fist into the wall.

Fuck.

I'd expected my father to call the both of us in, together. But why hadn't I guessed that he already suspected the relationship I had with Jungkook?

Because I'm a damn idiot.

"Wait, why?" Jimin hisses, voice now frantic. "Don't tell me that...I thought he was in the hospital along with all you guys!"

"He's not here," I whisper sharply. "My father has him. He's going to kill Jungkook if I don't—"

A dark voice echoes in my mind.

He already might have.

"I need to go," I say, ending the call. And I break into a run, about to make a sharp turn when I crash into someone who had been listening in from around the corner.

There's a surprised cry. The voice is feminine.

"...Miss Rin," I breathe, as she scrambles back up to her feet. Her face is pale as snow. "I— did you hear..."

Just from the look in her eyes, I can tell she has.

"If your father kills Jungkook, I'm going to tear his head off and feed it to the pigeons." She gasps wildly, her fists taut by her sides. "Is he— he's dead? Jungkook..."