Garnet | KTH

26. Living Hell

Unedited :P

Taehyung's POV

After what happened with the vision, I noticed something was off with Juliana. She was acting strangely.

No bitter or sarcastic replies up her sleeve, and she wasn't talkative. I would watch from afar with concerned eyes, as Juliana seemed to crumble inwardly. Her eyes were numb and she moved from task to task in silence — no words spoken.

I couldn't help but think... did she see something? Was the vision was more than what she simply told?

I rolled over in my bed, desperately trying to shut my thoughts off. I was usually heavy sleeper, much like Jungkook. We'd sleep like rocks, unaware of everything going on around us to the point the others even struggled to awaken us. But right now, I couldn't even close my eyes without them shooting open and Juliana would pop into my head.

I grumbled and buried my face into my pillow.

That's when a soft sound weaved its way through my slumber and made my eyes flutter open. Once my eyes fully opened, I listened attentively for any further noises.

I'm definitely hallucinating.

Yet I still heard the whines, and sobs.

Eyebrows furrowed, I threw my covers back and stood, searching for the direction of the sound. Panicked, I hugged my arms tight to my chest, in attempts to calm my racing heart as I slowly stepped out of my room.

I entered the small hallway that connected all of our rooms, listening to the sounds that grew louder and more painful. That's when my head jerked in the direction of the soft bang, where Juliana's room was.

Shit.

The worst ran through my brain — humans kidnapping her, Gems finding our hiding spot or anyone who wanted Juliana dead. I moved swiftly through the hallway, opening the door to her room and peeking in.

But there was nothing.

It was just her, alone. Yet she was crying, her body writhing, as sweat beaded across her forehead. Whines of pain escaped her mouth as her hands balled into fists. Her sobs grew more pained and her body gasped for breath.

I moved toward her, but my hesitant steps indicated that I was afraid. I didn't know what to do or how to comfort her through her pain. I was never any good at these things, because I never seemed to be right with how I did them.

But seeing the pure pain laced in her features, I forgot all about that fear almost instantly. Juliana may have been blunt and cold at times, but she never treated me based on who I was supposed to be... the person everyone else saw.

The replacement of the Order, the royalty, the celebrity — she saw right through the façade.

She saw the person I was; my opinions, thoughts, and how I did things. It may have been wrong to my father, to society, to Onavale, but it was me. If I could remember one thing Juliana taught me for the past month, it was to be yourself and to ignore judgements and rules.

For she was the best at all those things. She never wavered under the prejudice, always remaining strong i  hard times. I never realized how much respect she deserved until now, looking at her struggle.

I licked my lips nervously and reached to take her balled fist into my hand, rubbing it soothingly. "Annie?" I whispered, trying anything that would calm her.

That's when she gasped, her eyes flashing open to look at the ceiling, staring at it in pure shock. Her face paled as tears streamed down her cheeks, and her hand slowly loosened.