𝓐𝓷𝓰𝓮𝓵 𝓸𝓯 𝓓𝓮𝓪𝓽𝓱

ⓒⓗⓐⓟⓣⓔⓡ ⓞⓝⓔ

The night's cold air bit at his cheeks and tore at his throat, but he kept on running. The fire burning inside his lungs gave him that extra edge, that extra pain that he loved to feel. It had to be tonight, he could not take it anymore. The thought always at the back of his mind, mocking him, challenging him to do it. He could not ignore the voices anymore, they practically dictated his every move. Sometimes he could ignore them, if he wanted it hard enough.

Tonight was not one of those times. He let go, he accepted the voice's suggestions, or should he say, commands. He had to do it. He had to kill. The thought of it only made his thoughts run wild, the adrenaline coursed even faster through his veins. It was not as if he did not like killing; he loved it. Some days he would think about what it would be like to be normal, not to want to slowly cut someone up as they scream in pain and fear... but that did not seem very exciting to him.

He abruptly stopped when he noticed a figure sitting on the ground in one of his favorite hunting alleys. This alley clearly meant bad business; it was in one of the worst neighborhoods of the city, right in the center of gang wars and drug dealing businesses. Yet he always found a victim here, and they were always too easy to lure in, either drunk or high off their mind. He was almost sick of it, of how easy the hunt had become. It was one of the most thrilling parts of it, luring your prey in and then staring into their eyes when they finally realized what was going to happen. That look was all it took for him. A mixture of fear, pain, regret, and all the other emotions Taehyung had felt throughout his life. They needed to feel the same thing he did in the past, or else none of this would matter.

He approached the victim, a smell of strong liquor thick in the air. Too easy, again, he told himself. The person was a male, well built, seemed to be taller than himself. He would have been a tough fight if he had been sober. The man seemed to had been in a brawl; his cheek scratched up, a black eye starting to form on his right eye, his knuckles bruised and bloody, a cut lip... Taehyung bent down and took the stranger's face delicately in his hand, tilting his face towards him. The man's eyes slowly opened and looked straight into Taehyung's eyes. In them he saw an innocence, but a broken one. His big brown eyes seemed terribly sad and reminded the hunter of his own. The stranger even smiled slightly, but it quickly faded as he grunted, trying to move his left leg. He can't walk, too... This isn't even fair... Taehyung thought. His other hand was still firmly holding his trusty kill knife inside his oversized hoodie's sleeve... but it was hesitant.

"Ki..." the man whispered.

Taehyung moved closer.

"Kill me" he groaned, his hot breath tickling Taehyung's frozen ear.

Taehyung stopped and looked at the man. He could not believe what he heard. Taehyung stood up and pinched the bridge of his nose. This had never happened before. No one ever asked him to kill them. They always begged him not to. He paced back and forth between the alley's walls, shooting looks at the man who was sitting still, looking almost peaceful. What was he supposed to do? The voices started scrambling up inside his head, shouting things over each other, making his head pulse and feel like it was about to explode.

"Shut up! All of you! Shut the fuck up" Taehyung yelled, staring at the ground.

The stranger's eyes shot open and he looked at Taehyung, frowning, wondering who this man was talking to.

"Who the fuck are you ta─" the man started.
"You too! Shut the fuck up!" Taehyung spit, pointing at him with his knife.

The man smirked and even chuckled at the sight of the knife.

"You're... my angel of death... you came to... free me..." he managed to say between grunts and deep breaths.

Him? An angel? He dropped his knife and grabbed the stranger's neck, anger filling ever part of his body.

"What the fuck did you say?" Taehyung asked, his voice cracking.

The man smiled.

"You're... my angel" he repeated.

The man drifted off and Taehyung stayed there, his fingers still around the other's throat, completely confused and even... scared. He had no clue what to do. He was completely oblivious to the decision he was supposed to take. His routine was clear, and now it had been completely shattered. He grabbed his head between his hands and tried to listen to the voices. Maybe they would know what to do... but they were silent. He was left to himself. He looked at the man one last time, picked up his knife and stood up.

The wind he felt from his balcony did not feel as cold as earlier. He felt warm, the image of the man's face burned in his memory.

Taehyung's apartment was surprisingly clean. In fact, clean was an understatement. He was very meticulous about his cleaning habits, considering his main hobby was to kill people and get away with it. Every inch of it was spotless, no matter the activities that happened in it. He was glad he had found this studio; it was in a quiet, unsuspecting part of the city on top of an old abandoned store. Almost perfect for a serial killer.

That night had been disappointing. His adrenaline was slowly fading away, his need to kill disappearing as the opportunity had not presented itself. Yes it did... but you let him go... a voice whispered. He ignored it and scrolled through his phone's contacts. He would have to find another type of entertainment for the night.

His doorbell rang and he rose from his couch to greet his guest. She was dressed as she always was, black form-fitting clothes and her usual black boots. He found comfort in the melody the heels made when they hit the hardwood floor. She stepped closer to him, closing the door behind her, following the routine he had set out for their meetings. She undressed herself as he watched, the familiar sight of her body warming his own up. When she was completely naked, he grabbed her and pulled her close to him, in an unusual embrace.

"Tae?" she asked, confused at him not following the usual routine.

He brushed his face against hers, delicately trailing kisses along her jaw and her forehead. He grabbed a handful of hair and tugged lightly towards the back, exposing her neck to him. His tongue trailed from her earlobe to her collarbone, the sweet and bitter taste of her perfume sticking to the tip of it. He then pulled her head back and made her look into his eyes.

"Tonight is different," he said sharply, before kissing her with a fiery passion he had not felt in years, the look in that man's eye haunting his every thought.