MANIAC | SEOKSOO FF ✔️

PART 20

Jisoo's hands trembled as he poured hot water over the tea leaves, watching the steam swirl up from the cup. His mind felt as clouded and unsettled as the rising vapor.

The previous day's discovery lingered like a haunting presence, replaying in his mind with each passing second-the velvet-covered book that wasn't a book at all, but a carefully crafted box filled with photographs of him, stretching back to his teenage years.

His face in each photo, frozen in time, chronicled so intimately by a man he'd thought he met only six months ago.

His heart ached with confusion, betrayal, and fear, each emotion warring within him, leaving him with an unbearable tension in his chest.

Every smile Seokmin had ever given him now seemed layered with deception.

Every loving gesture was tainted by the knowledge that it was all built on a lie, an obsession masquerading as love.

Just as Jisoo reached to pick up his teacup, he felt a presence behind him. He froze, every muscle in his body tensing as familiar arms wrapped around his waist.

Seokmin's embrace, once so comforting, now felt suffocating, a cage he hadn't realized he'd been living in until it was too late. He tried to breathe evenly, his heart pounding against his ribs as Seokmin leaned in, resting his chin on Jisoo's shoulder.

"You thought I wouldn't know, Bluebell?" Seokmin's voice was soft, almost tender, but it carried an undercurrent that made Jisoo's blood run cold. "I know everything about you. I know how many breaths you take in a day..."

The whisper sent chills down his spine, its intimate threat wrapping around him like a snake, squeezing tighter with each word.

Jisoo's hands clenched around the counter, his knuckles turning white. He felt trapped, cornered in his own life, with no escape from the man who claimed to love him.

"Seokmin..." he began, his voice trembling as he struggled to keep it steady. "Why... why would you do this to me?"

Seokmin's hold tightened, and he turned Jisoo slowly, forcing him to face him. The look in Seokmin's eyes was unsettling, a dark intensity masked by the gentle smile he wore. "Why would I do what, Bluebell?" he asked, his tone feigning innocence. "All I've ever done is love you. Isn't that what you wanted?"

"This isn't love," Jisoo choked out, his voice cracking as anger and despair mingled within him. "You don't do this to someone you love. You don't... you don't watch them from the shadows, taking pictures of them, cataloging their every move. This... this is sick, Seokmin. This is obsession."

Seokmin's expression didn't falter; he only looked at Jisoo with a deep, unreadable calm. "You're wrong," he replied, his voice soft but unwavering. "Love is knowing someone better than they know themselves. Love is protecting them, even from a distance, when they're too blind to see what's best for them. Love... is what I feel for you, Bluebell. You just don't understand."

Jisoo shook his head, his eyes filling with tears he couldn't hold back any longer. "No... no, Seokmin. You don't understand. This... this is not what I want. This is not what I signed up for." He took a shaky step back, his gaze darting around the room, desperate for an escape. "I want to leave. I need to get out of here."

Seokmin's face hardened, a flash of something dangerous flickering in his eyes before he masked it with a serene smile. He stepped forward, closing the distance between them, his presence looming as he blocked Jisoo's path. "Leave?" he repeated, his voice low, mocking. "Do you really think you can just walk away from me, after everything I've done for you?"

"Everything you've done?" Jisoo's voice rose, a bitter laugh escaping him as the desperation turned into fury. "What, Seokmin? Spying on me? Following me since I was a teenager? Taking pieces of my life without me even knowing? How is that love, Seokmin? You don't own me!"

Seokmin's jaw tightened, his smile fading as he regarded Jisoo with an intensity that bordered on frightening. "You're wrong, Jisoo," he murmured, stepping closer, his voice barely more than a whisper. "I do own you. Every single part of you. I know things about you that no one else does. I've loved you longer than anyone else could. You belong with me, and you know it."

Jisoo felt his chest tighten, his breathing growing shallow as panic clawed at him. "No," he said, his voice barely more than a whisper, thick with despair. "This isn't what I want. This isn't... I don't even know who you are anymore."

A dark glint appeared in Seokmin's eyes, a predatory look that sent shivers down Jisoo's spine. "You'll understand in time, Bluebell," he said, his voice soft and deceptively tender. "You'll see that this is for the best. No one else can protect you the way I can. No one else can love you the way I do."

Jisoo swallowed hard, his hands shaking as he tried to keep himself from breaking down. He needed to get out, to escape this nightmare that had taken over his life. "Please, Seokmin," he whispered, his voice filled with a quiet desperation. "Let me go. I can't stay here. I can't... I can't do this."

For a brief moment, Seokmin's face softened, as if he were genuinely hurt by Jisoo's plea. But then his expression hardened, his eyes narrowing as he took hold of Jisoo's wrist, his grip firm and unyielding. "You're not leaving, Bluebell," he said, his voice cold and final. "I won't let you go."

Jisoo's heart sank, fear settling in his stomach like a heavy stone. He tried to pull his wrist free, but Seokmin's hold was too strong. "Let me go," he said, his voice shaking with anger and fear. "You can't keep me here, Seokmin. You don't have the right."

Seokmin's gaze darkened, his grip tightening painfully as he leaned in, his voice a low, menacing whisper. "You think I don't have the right?" he murmured, his tone filled with quiet fury. "Let me make something very clear, Bluebell. If you even think about leaving, I won't be the only one affected."

Jisoo's breath hitched as Seokmin's words sank in, the implication clear and chilling. "What... what are you saying?" he asked, his voice barely more than a whisper, his heart pounding with dread.

Seokmin smiled, a cold, calculating look in his eyes. "Think about your family," he said, his tone deceptively gentle. "Your mother... your brother. Do you really want to put them at risk, just because you can't accept my love?"

Jisoo felt his world shatter around him, the last remnants of hope crumbling into dust. He had never felt so helpless, so trapped. The threat hung over him like a dark cloud, filling him with a despair he couldn't escape. His family-his mother, his brother-they were all he had. And now, they were being used as weapons against him, held hostage by the man who claimed to love him.

"Please... don't hurt them," Jisoo whispered, his voice broken and defeated. He felt the fight drain out of him, leaving only a hollow emptiness in its place. "I'll stay... just don't hurt them."

Seokmin's smile returned, soft and triumphant as he reached up to cup Jisoo's face, his touch gentle but possessive. "That's all I wanted to hear," he murmured, his voice filled with satisfaction. "As long as you're with me, they'll be safe. And I'll take care of you, Bluebell. Just like I always have. Tenderly.. I will make sure you bloom in every season.. Even if I have to keep you in glass cubicle, where no butterflies can roam... I know what'sbest for you, Bluebell."

Jisoo nodded weakly, the weight of his surrender pressing down on him like a crushing burden. He couldn't look Seokmin in the eye, couldn't bear to see the man who had taken everything from him. All he could do was stand there, numb and broken, as Seokmin held him close, whispering empty reassurances in his ear.

In that moment, Jisoo felt like a ghost, a shadow of the person he had once been. He had thought he'd found love, but all he had found was a prison, a life he could never escape. And as Seokmin's arms tightened around him, he realized that he was truly alone, trapped in a nightmare with no way out.

The silence between them was suffocating, a stark contrast to the vibrant love Jisoo had once believed in. Now, every word, every touch from Seokmin felt like a chain, binding him tighter to a life he no longer wanted. And as he closed his eyes, a single tear slipped down his cheek, a silent farewell to the freedom he had lost forever.