ΛFTERGLOW ☼๋࣭ ₖ.ₜₕ

『 6. only strangers 』

Hey, guys! thank you so much for being so patient for updates~~ 💜
this chapter may seem cliché, but don't worry, i have a reason for it and you will understand as it pans out!

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Word Count: 3,466

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⚠️Warnings⚠️ for those who may be triggered by: mentions of anxiety disorder/depiction of a panic attack, or of drugs and alcohol...
but they are brief and subtle!

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ˏˋ POV'ˎ
ʕ KTH ʔ
• ᴥ •

There was no time for me to process it. It seemed like a wispy blur of colors as the focal point of my fixation all evening had stood to her feet, feigned a yawn, and fatigued stretch of her arms. Mere moments ago she was alight with the glow of laughter, only for that joy to be ripped away by one glance down at her phone screen.

Within moments, Soleil had given the performance of a lifetime, earning hugs and disappointed goodbyes from the rest of the boys while my brain attempted to puzzle together an explanation. She was slipping away like sand through my fingers for what felt like the millionth time in less than a day.

This time made it the third occurrence of Soleil disappearing from my sight, once again proving my theory that she was a make-believe princess come to life that slipped out of her book pages and into mine... Only I don't recall a princess attempting to wander home alone at night with a slight buzz and a streak of sudden panic... Unless they excluded some not-so-kid-friendly details from Cinderella.

All of this swept up in a blur led me to now, bolting for the door as the remaining boys kept the girls occupied. They seemed worried for their friend, particularly the pink-headed one, though they relaxed and sat back down upon noticing my swift movements to chase Soleil.

Hair a mess, button-up askew, my feet carried me down the corridor with impending thuds from my footsteps at max speed upon finding the hallway empty. Reaching the corner, I felt defeated to find the elevator doors shut, and no Cinderella in a mini dress and sneakers in sight. As I caught my breath, my eyes flicked over to the door nestled in the far corner to my right that read Stairwell, and I surged forward to push through it.

I wasn't quite sure what I expected to find precisely, but I certainly was surprised to stumble upon Soleil doing little breathing exercises while her delicate hands gripped the railing tightly. Her knuckles began to pale from the force of her fingers, lips forming a small 'o' as she released the previous intake of air into her lungs.

I recognized the scene before me immediately and swiftly spun on my heel and trekked back to the hotel suite as quickly as my legs could handle. Ignoring the stares and questions sent my way upon reentering, I beelined for the kitchen down the hall and around the corner. I snatched up my backpack I had left hanging on one of the barstools earlier that day and emptied out any unnecessary contents before restocking it. Water bottle, some healthy protein bar junk that Jungkook probably bought, tissues... And a thought passed over my mind suddenly.

Zipping the bag shut, I stopped in my room of the suite to retrieve the sparkling diamond earring from my nightstand and slip it into the pocket of my slacks. My body worked so fast that I could barely recall the journey back to where I found Soleil in the midst of a panic attack.

Upon pushing the door open more audibly this time, the young woman's head of silky black waves popped up, eyes stretching wide open in shock. I didn't spend too much time staring at her face or movements in general as I jogged down the stairs to meet her so as to not insinuate I was judging or analyzing.