What Happened to Somi?

Chapter 02

Taehyung's first reaction to the proclamation of Somi missing was to rush to the bathroom and throw up every single thing he ate that morning.

Acid settled in the base of his stomach, and he couldn't push it away or ignore it. The memories were like tiny needles. He could still sniff the mix of nicotine and menthol. He could still see her smile, the lovely gums, and her near crescent eyes. He could still see the bruise and the tremble of her hands.

He could still hear his subconscious telling him not to leave her alone. He should have listened. His members would have killed him, and a lot of people would have asked questions, but he would have ensured she got home safe and he would know where she was. If he had listened, she wouldn't be missing.

The last thing she gave him was a grateful smile, and he could hear the last words she shared to him clearly. "Thank you."

It only made him feel worse.

He got off the floor, flushed, and then brushed with record speed. He rushed out of the bathroom and grabbed his phone, which he left lying on the table. He went straight to her contact, holding onto the hope that it was one twisted joke. He hadn't heard anything since that night but he had been hoping someone heard from her in her agency.

'The number you are calling...'

He cut the call and tried again until he knew there was no way it was going to go through. The bombarding of texts began almost immediately and his fingers flew above his screen, his hands trembling as he sent text after text, just wanting to hear from her. Just wanting to know where was.

The texts sent. They didn't deliver. They weren't read.

That was when the panic began to creep in and Taehyung called the first person that came to his head. Hye-Jin was crying. He could tell.

"Please tell me you know where she is, Taehyung." Her voice broke over the line. "Please tell me you know something. You were the last person she spoke to and –"

He ended the call and the panic mixed with raw fear. It held him like a vice and squeezed. The knock on his door startled him. A second later, a familiar voice reached his ears.

"Taehyung-ah." It was one of Bangtan's managers. "It's hyung. I'm with the police. They said they want to talk to you and we refused to let them do it alone. It's just routine process, Taehyung-ah, please open the door."

He was spiralling into a full blown panic attack and he knew it would take the manager a minute or two to know something was wrong. He couldn't breathe and black spots began to appear in his line of sight.

"Taehyung?" Another knock before the doorbell rang. "Taehyung-ah!"

Nicotine and menthol. A gummy smile. A shrug. A cigarette. A heavy bruise hidden with makeup. Her resigned expression. Her longing for sleep. Her being overworked. Her breathy laugh.

A bad feeling in his gut that he should have listened to.

The door of the apartment went open and the last thing he saw was his manager running towards him, the police right behind. And in that split second when the darkness welcomed him, Taehyung recalled one little detail.

A bruise round her wrist and little blood on one of the nails, all on the hand that brought the cigarette to her lips.