Jazz for Two: The Silent Beat

Episode 2: The Unheard Beat

Episode 2: "The Unheard Beat"

The cold air hung heavily around Do Yoon, a chill that seemed to seep into his very bones. His feet remained glued to the floor, heart racing, chest tight as he stood in the middle of the old music hall. The soft creaking of the building echoed around him, and the whispers he had heard earlier seemed to linger, pulsing in the shadows like an unheard beat.

His eyes darted to the darkened corner where Ju Ha had disappeared moments ago. The silence was deafening now, almost oppressive. The only sound that dared to fill the void was the pounding of his own heartbeat, which seemed to reverberate inside his ears.

"Hyung," he whispered under his breath, his voice trembling. "Where are you?"

The guitar that had once filled the space with its haunting melody was now quiet, its strings motionless. The atmosphere felt different, darker — as if the building itself had come alive, its walls listening, waiting for something to happen. Do Yoon's breath quickened, and for a brief moment, he debated leaving. He had an overwhelming urge to turn and run, to put the building behind him and never look back.

But something held him there.

It wasn't just curiosity. It wasn't the music — although the way Ju Ha played had a strange pull, something deeper than just notes strung together. No, it was the sense of something wrong, something just beyond his comprehension.

With every second that ticked by, his gut twisted with unease. The shadows in the corners of the room seemed to stretch, as if reaching for him, urging him forward.

He took a deep breath, steadying himself, and took a cautious step toward the narrow door Ju Ha had vanished through. The cold draft that had snuck in from the hallway now wrapped itself around him, and he couldn't shake the sensation of being watched.

Ju Ha hadn't wanted him to follow. He had told him to stay.

But Do Yoon couldn't stay. He couldn't ignore the quiet desperation in Ju Ha's eyes, the strange look he had given him before disappearing into the shadows. Something was wrong.

As he approached the door, it creaked open once more, this time from the inside. The faintest trace of light spilled into the room, and Do Yoon hesitated before stepping through.

The hallway beyond the door was even darker. The air felt heavier here, thick with the scent of dust and decay. The walls, once white, were now stained with age, and the floorboards groaned beneath his weight as he moved further into the building.

"Hyung?" Do Yoon's voice cracked, echoing down the corridor. His breath came in shallow gasps, but he forced himself to keep walking, though every instinct screamed for him to turn back. "Ju Ha, where are you?"

The hallway twisted, leading him deeper into the heart of the building. He passed long-forgotten rooms, their doors cracked open just enough to glimpse the remnants of old furniture, dusty music stands, and faded sheet music left behind. The silence was overwhelming here, the kind of silence that made his skin crawl, as if the building itself was holding its breath.

Then, he saw it.

At the far end of the hall, Ju Ha stood, his back to him. He was motionless, staring at something in the shadows. The guitar was slung across his back, but he made no move to take it out. It was the same stillness Do Yoon had witnessed earlier, but this time, it was more pronounced. Ju Ha seemed completely unaware of his presence.

"Hyung?" Do Yoon called again, stepping closer. His voice trembled with a mix of fear and confusion. "What's going on?"

Ju Ha didn't answer. His head tilted slightly, as if listening to something beyond Do Yoon's reach. The longer Do Yoon stood there, the more he began to feel the suffocating weight of the silence. The building seemed to hum with an energy he couldn't explain, like the very air around him was charged with something ancient, something that shouldn't be here.

Before Do Yoon could take another step, the room seemed to shift. The shadows at the far end of the hallway deepened, growing more pronounced, and the floorboards beneath their feet creaked loudly — louder than they should have.

A sharp clink of metal scraping against metal filled the air.

Do Yoon froze. The sound was unmistakable: something was moving in the darkness. Something alive.

Then, the air grew impossibly cold. A frost formed at the edges of his vision, creeping across the floor like tendrils, and a sudden wave of nausea washed over him. The whispers returned, louder this time, echoing through the room like an ancient chant. The voices seemed to come from all around them, from the walls, from the floor, from within the very bones of the building itself.

"Help me..."

The voice was clearer now, not just a whisper, but a desperate plea.

Do Yoon stumbled back, his feet scrambling for purchase. His heart was pounding in his chest, his breath coming out in uneven gasps. But he couldn't look away. He couldn't bring himself to turn and run, no matter how much his body screamed at him to flee.

"Hyung... Ju Ha!" Do Yoon's voice broke. This wasn't the same Ju Ha he had met. This wasn't the same confident, composed person. There was something otherworldly about him now, something wrong.

Ju Ha's head snapped around, his eyes wild. The light in them had changed, something distant and unnatural gleaming behind his gaze.

"We have to leave," Ju Ha whispered urgently, his voice barely audible over the rising hum of the whispers. He stepped toward Do Yoon, his hands reaching out as if to pull him back. "You... you shouldn't have come. I shouldn't have come..."

Before Do Yoon could ask him what he meant, the door at the end of the hall burst open. A sudden rush of cold air filled the space, and for a split second, Do Yoon saw a flash of something dark in the doorway — something that was too quick for him to comprehend.

"Hyung, what was that?" Do Yoon asked, his voice barely more than a whisper.

But Ju Ha didn't answer. He was already moving, pulling Do Yoon by the wrist toward the exit, away from the darkened hall. His grip was surprisingly strong, his pace frantic. The once calm and reserved Ju Ha was now different — his eyes were wide with fear, his expression strained.

As they made their way back to the main part of the building, Do Yoon's heart still raced in his chest, but now a different feeling gnawed at him — a sense that the truth was slipping through his fingers. Ju Ha knew something, something that had to do with the dead body they had found in the music hall, something that was deeply connected to the dark force that seemed to haunt the place.

The whispers didn't stop, though. They followed them, growing louder and louder until Do Yoon could hardly hear anything else.

"I didn't want you to get involved."

Ju Ha's voice cut through the rising cacophony, and for the first time since entering the old hall, Do Yoon saw the weight of fear in his eyes — genuine fear.

"What are you talking about, hyung? What's going on? What is this place?" Do Yoon asked, his voice urgent.

Ju Ha stopped in his tracks, his breath ragged. "This place... it's not just a building. It's a trap, Do Yoon. The dead... they never leave."

Before Do Yoon could respond, a loud crash echoed from behind them, a distant sound that seemed to shake the very walls of the building.

The shadows in the hallway began to shift again.