Star Planet II - Zerobaseone Added Members

Chapter Thirty-Seven: In The Shadows

"I don't need it," I sighed as the boys tried to put another bodyguard on my detail. I already had Mourad as my protector, the guy was easily six feet five and as menacing as they could come. Hanbin looked annoyed with me. Ever since he had come home alone that night after Chuseok and felt scared, he was extra protective of me and it got annoying to be honest.

The packages had stopped after our company released a notice, treating legal repercussions and telling the public we had hidden cameras around our building and inside our corridor.

I felt oddly safe now, somehow very at ease with everything. Mourad went with me to the studio, practice room, and venues, which was really helpful.

"I think you should do it, Alli," Hanbin sighed. "Two sets of eyes are better than one."

Jiwoong interrupted him fiercely, "If she doesn't want it, she doesn't have to, Hanbin."

The guys gave each other a dark look from across the meeting room table. We all had gathered in the room where Hannah had announced our final debut line-up with Choonhae and Matthew.

Hindsight was fifty-fifty because later that night, I experienced the biggest scare of my life.

Each night when I arrived back at the penthouse, Mourad first did a full sweep. I stayed with Marcus, our security guy of the building, in the downstairs lobby. While Mourad would take the elevator up, check the hallway, and check the penthouse for intruders and bloody packages.

Then he would descend and get me so I could go up in peace.

So I did just that, around midnight, when once again I had been working later than the others, I got home, waited on Mourad's sweep, got his approval, and ascended the elevator. As soon as the doors opened, I felt it.

Something wasn't right.

Usually, the hallway was bathed in bright lights. Right now, it was dark and abandoned. I tried the manual light switch, but nothing worked.

My members were home, beside Hanbin, who was still in the studio with Hui. So they weren't far. I had to walk two hundred meters to our penthouse door, but that felt too far.

I couldn't describe why exactly. It was just a feeling.

When I glanced to my right, to the only other penthouse on our floor, everything was pitch-black and swirling with shadows. Did I see movement there?

The elevator slammed shut behind me, and I yelped.

I was now completely covered in darkness. I couldn't see a hand before my eyes. I quickly fumbled to find my phone, and with shaking fingers, I turned the light on.

Blue light covered a few feet in front of me, but beyond, the pending darkness remained.

I stood frozen in the darkness, my heart pounding like a wild drumbeat. The air was heavy with foreboding, and a chill ran down my spine, sending shivers through my body. My mind raced, trying to make sense of the eerie stillness surrounding me.

Before I could gather my thoughts, a voice, low and menacing, sliced through the darkness, chilling me to the core. "I warned you, Allison," the stalker sneered, his words dripping with malice. "You should have listened. Now, you'll pay the price."

A surge of adrenaline coursed through my veins, propelling me into action. I raised my trembling phone, its feeble light casting shadows on the walls. And there, in the dim glow, I caught a glimpse of the figure standing before me.

Their face obscured by a hood, the stalker wielded a knife with deadly proficiency. I could see the glint of the blade as he swatted it toward me, his intent clear—to hurt me.

Instinct kicked in, and I dodged his attack, narrowly escaping the knife's sharp edge. Panic and determination intertwined within me, fueling my resolve to survive this terrifying ordeal.

While living in Milan alone, I was once robbed late at night. That experience has always stayed with me. That intense fear. The uncertainty of someone's next moves. 

But just as I thought the situation couldn't grow any direr, Jiwoong, my pillar of support, burst into the hallway, his eyes wide with alarm. Without hesitation, he lunged forward, engaging in a fierce struggle with the stalker, their bodies colliding in a whirlwind of desperate movements.

I cried out, my voice drowned by the sounds of their altercation. Fear clenched my chest, tightening its grip with each passing second. I needed help, Jiwoong could get hurt! I needed Mourad.

And Hanbin. I wanted Hanbin to help us.

Moments later, as if summoned by my desperate plea, Hanbin arrived, his expression a mix of fury and concern. He took in the scene, his eyes darting between Jiwoong and the stalker, his fists clenched at his sides. His frantic eyes sought out mine. He was checking me quickly for injuries before turning his attention to the fight.

"Jiwoong! What the hell is going on?" Hanbin's voice cracked with frustration and hurt, his words biting at Jiwoong like a venomous snake. He was angry at Ji for not believing the intensity of the situation.

Jiwoong and the Saesang continued to fight, grunts filled the hallway, and I saw the knife coming dangerously close to Ji's pretty face. I could barely remain standing. My body was paralyzed by fear, trembling, and shaking from adrenaline.

Jiwoong's gaze met Hanbin's while in the middle of the fight, his own filled with a mix of remorse and defiance. "I thought... I thought you were overreacting," he admitted while ducking the stalker's knife, his voice laced with regret. "I didn't understand the gravity of the situation. I'm sorry, Hanbin."

Their words hung heavily in the air, a tangible tension enveloping the space between them. But there was no time for reconciliation, no opportunity to mend the cracks forming in their friendship.

The stalker, wounded but not defeated, seized the moment of distraction and lunged at me suddenly. Panic surged through me, but before the knife could find its mark, Hanbin stepped forward, his protective instincts roaring to life.

With a swift and powerful motion, Hanbin intercepted the stalker, his determination radiating from every fiber of his being. The two engaged in a fierce struggle, their bodies entwined in a desperate dance of survival.

I stood there, trembling and helpless, as Ji and Hanbin fought for my safety. Anguish and fear washed over me, tears blurring my vision. Finally, they managed to overcome the stalker. Jiwoong had him pinned to the floor.

Finally, I came to my senses, and in action, I dialed Mourad's number while Hanbin called the police.