𝐌𝐚𝐝𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 & 𝐌𝐚𝐲𝐡𝐞𝐦 || 𝐉𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐨𝐥 (𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐈𝐈)

1.1 - Jeonghan

Tears flow endlessly down my cheeks, cooling as they kiss the night air. They create a river through my makeup, clinging to my skin as they race toward the edge of my chin. My jaw grinds, and the tears wobble back and forth before plummeting toward my wrist.

I can feel the splash as each drop rolls down my palm and the handle of the knife clutched in my grip. My fingers squeeze tightly, and I watch as my tears mix with blood as they slide down the blade, soaking into the bloody wound against the man in front of me.

The slasher.

My lover.

My enemy.

Blood seeps between the blade and my palm, and I choke out a sob as it sinks in a little deeper.

My masked man chokes, letting out a groan as he curls over slightly.

"Please," he wheezes.

Screams ensue around us, and all I can hear is, "Police, police, police."

He looks up at me, his brow furrowed, dark, sharp shadows cutting down his face, becoming pale as every drop of blood flows from his body.

"You have to let me go, or there won't be a tomorrow for us."

My heart leaps in my chest, and I let out a hiccup as more tears fall.

I never want to see you again.

I blink.

I can't live without you.

"Please, Jeonghan," he pleads, his voice a pained groan that rips from his chest.

I can hear the blood squish between my fingers, and on a gasp, I pull the knife free, my fingers coated in warm, thick blood. A sob rips from my chest as the knife drops from my fingers, falling to the rocky sand beneath me.

His breaths are labored as he hunches forward, his hand pressed firmly against his wound. He looks as if he's barely able to stand, so much pain ripping through his body his eyes are slits, his lips cracked and bleeding, a sheen of red covering them.

He's going to die.

Panic rolls through me, and I can't find the words to explain. Pain, regret, anger, betrayal... it all runs through my blood at a rapid pace and I can't find it in me to let out anything besides a tortured whimper.

He looks up at me, his eyes blank, though I can see the emotion that's deep inside, all the way at the bottom, buried beneath all the death.

Love.

So much love.

He steps up to me, and I can feel the blood on his shirt smear across my costume. His body falls into me, and I can barely hold him up as his lips press against mine. The taste of his blood is powerful against my lips. His free hand lifts, and he buries it into my hair, his fingers curling around the strands as he pulls my head to the side.

Dragging his fingers up my head, his fingers swirl through the messy strands of my hair.

"You can hide from the world, Jeonghan, but you'll never be able to hide from me," he whispers, his fingers sliding over my chin. "We're the same. Your madness is the same as mine. Don't hide, because I'll be back, and we'll create the most beautiful mayhem."

My chest shakes as I inhale, confused at his words, at the cryptic message that spills from his lips in the face of death. Nothing makes sense, though he's the only thing I can focus on. The pain is too great, as if I have my own knife plunged into my gut.