Jazz for Two: The Silent Beat

Episode 12: Unchained Melody

Episode 12: "Unchained Melody"

The days after their encounter with the cursed music had passed in a haze, but neither Do Yoon nor Ju Ha could shake the feeling that something had fundamentally changed. The piano had remained silent in the corner of the room, but it was as though the music still reverberated in the walls, in their minds, in their souls.

The song had become an unshakable presence, haunting them even in the quiet moments between classes, in their rooms, in the late-night hours when everything should have been still.

Do Yoon had found himself waking up, eyes wide open, hearing the faintest whispers of the melody in his dreams. But it wasn't just the song. It was the feeling — the pressure, the weight of something inescapable, something that was becoming a part of who he was. The hum wasn't just in the building anymore. It was inside him.

Ju Ha, too, seemed distant in the days following their encounter. He had his own battles to fight with the haunting melody inside him. But now, there was something more: a tension that simmered between them. It wasn't just fear anymore. It wasn't just the curse. There was something else, an unspoken current that seemed to pull them closer, even as they tried to escape the curse that was consuming them.

They hadn't spoken of it yet, but it was impossible to ignore the way their bodies seemed to respond to each other, to the touch of a hand or the brush of a shoulder. The air between them had changed — thick with emotions neither of them could name.

The sun had set, and the campus was quiet. The usual buzz of student activity had given way to the stillness of the evening, the only sound being the faint rustling of trees in the wind.

Do Yoon and Ju Ha sat together in the music hall, the place where everything had started. The room was dimly lit, the shadows of the old instruments stretching long across the floor. It was always quieter at night, but tonight the silence felt suffocating, almost unbearable.

Do Yoon sat at the piano, his fingers hovering over the keys. The song was always there — in the air, in the vibrations, in the pulse of his own body. He wasn't sure when it had stopped being just a curse and started becoming a part of him.

He glanced up at Ju Ha, who was sitting across from him on a stool, his face drawn with weariness but also a determined calm. There was something different about him tonight. His eyes seemed darker, but they were also more focused, like he had made a decision.

"Hyung," Do Yoon spoke softly, his voice carrying the weight of everything unsaid. "Do you feel it?"

Ju Ha didn't answer right away. His gaze shifted briefly to the piano, where the soft hum of the song seemed to swell and fade in time with Do Yoon's heartbeat. "I feel it," he said quietly, his voice betraying the quiet tension that lay beneath his calm exterior. "I feel it inside me. But... we can't let it control us, Do Yoon."

Do Yoon stared at his hands, trembling as they hovered over the keys. "But what if it already has?" he whispered. "What if... we can't escape it?"

Ju Ha stood up, his expression serious but not without a touch of something more vulnerable. He moved closer, his presence calming in a way Do Yoon hadn't expected. "We don't know that for sure. There's still a way out. I know it."

Do Yoon looked up at him, but the words seemed to get caught in his throat. The fear was there, of course, but something else too. He could feel the pull of Ju Ha's proximity, the way his eyes lingered on him, like there was more beneath the surface. Something unspoken.

There was a long moment of silence. The kind of silence that only came when the weight of truth loomed over you, waiting for you to decide whether or not you were ready to confront it.

"Hyung," Do Yoon said again, his voice quieter this time. "I... I don't want this to tear us apart."

Ju Ha's eyes softened. He took a small step forward, closing the space between them. His hand brushed against Do Yoon's — a fleeting touch that sent a spark through Do Yoon's chest. He hadn't expected it, and yet it felt so natural, so right.

"Do Yoon," Ju Ha said softly, his voice tender, "we've already been through so much together. And we'll get through this too. I won't let it tear us apart. We'll fight it, together."

But as Ju Ha spoke, the hum of the song grew louder. It vibrated in the very air around them, shaking the floor beneath their feet. Do Yoon felt his pulse quicken, his hand now aching with the need to touch the piano keys. The song was calling to him, beckoning him to give in, to play.

He closed his eyes, trying to block it out, but it was impossible. The music was inside him. It was part of him now.

"Hyung, I can't stop it," Do Yoon whispered, his voice tight. "The music... it won't stop. It's like it's controlling me."

Ju Ha moved closer, kneeling beside him. His touch on Do Yoon's shoulder was light, but it was enough to anchor him. "You're not alone in this, Do Yoon. We'll find a way. We'll play it, but we won't let it take us."

Do Yoon turned toward him, his eyes searching Ju Ha's for something—something that made sense of all the chaos. He found it there, in the way Ju Ha looked at him: steady, resolute, yet filled with something softer, something that reached into Do Yoon's chest and made his heart skip.

"Ju Ha," Do Yoon breathed, "I don't want to lose you."

Ju Ha's expression softened, his thumb gently brushing the back of Do Yoon's hand. "You won't. Not as long as I'm here."

The words hung between them, fragile but strong, like a promise that was more than just words. And then, as if the universe had decided to speak for them, the hum of the song swelled one final time.

It was louder now, a pressing force that seemed to call them both to action. It was no longer just a sound. It was a force—one that sought to consume them both, body and soul. But together, they might have the strength to face it.

Do Yoon closed his eyes and placed his fingers on the piano keys. The song was there, a living entity beneath his hands, urging him to play, to continue the cycle. But with Ju Ha beside him, the pressure of the music felt less suffocating. They were together in this, and that gave Do Yoon the courage to begin.

Ju Ha's voice cut through the rising swell of music. "We'll break it, Do Yoon. Together."

And as the first note rang out, the room seemed to hold its breath.