Paenboi- Vkook

Caught in a lie

There is a rush, a big crowd assembled together in the middle of a huge stadium now beginning to seat themselves, people running from left to right- cameramen, crew members, support staff, everyone is busy doing the job they've been allotted and more.

To put it briefly, it's an organised mess akin to the functioning of a honeycomb, one that knows how to function well even without order. A systematic chaos.

And the Queen bee is none other than Kim Taehyung.

Kim Taehyung, the 25 year old star singer and k-pop idol with one of the longest standing successful careers in the Korean music industry.

Kim Taehyung, the enigma, the heart throb, the dream, who is real but also not.
Who is tangible but also not.
Who is lovable but also ... Not.

Said Kim Taehyung is in his vanity behind the stage right now, getting the last checks on his costume that he chose himself - a Versace two piece suit full with gold zari work, make up being patted under his eyes to cover the marks of countless sleepless nights.

His latest hit song reverbs in his ears through the speaker tucked in his ear. He can hear the roars of the crowd through it but it never jostles him, but only makes him more alive, free.

This is his liberation.

His hard work and endless toil has rewarded him with this tangible freedom- in the form of love and appreciation from his fans and Worldwide recognition. This is what he lives for, this is what makes him what he is.

The star, the show stopper, the one and only...

"Here we present, Kim Taehyung!!!!!!!"

The stage elevator pushes upwards and along goes the star, his eyes closed and back facing the frenzied crowd hollering out his welcome.

Taehyung grips the mic in his bejeweled hand and takes a long breath, feeling the thrum of music beat in his chest. He feels the dancers set the stage for him to go and rule over. That was his empire and this is his throne and court room. His rightful place to be.

The idol makes to turn and face the crowd, eyes dying to take in the sight of his tangible freedom and source of life for real when a sudden blackness covers his eyes instead.

He sees nothing after that, just a mute and endless darkness. Empty, terrifying darkness.

Where is the crowd who was waiting for him? Where are his fans? Why is their collective noise, once full of happiness and elation, suddenly fading away to nothingness?

What was happening?

Taehyung looks around for his staff members or friends but all he sees is eternal darkness. It feels like the expanse of the stadium was suddenly closing in on him, gradually reducing in size as if the vacuum left by the crowd had attracted the court's internal demise.

What happened to his kingdom?

The ground under his feet begins to shift, the neat marbled floors flip over and slowly get replaced with a layer of murk and gravel. Taehyung feels himself sinking in it.

A quagmire of dilemma begins to pull him inside slowly and steadily. It fills him with not only it's filth but also acidic thoughts of confusion, uncertainty, longing and lust. Lust... That makes him want to go deeper inside the quagmire than to try and get out. The more he tried to pull up, the more it sucked him in.

"I'll take good care of you, Mr. V." A whisper echoes from the depths of the filth, a voice so familiar yet so distant, almost as if Taehyung had known the owner in his past life not this one. Who was he?