What Lies Beneath ✅

Peal 19

[Dongju]

"Come on!" a man hollered.

I looked around then found myself being shoved into the center. I looked around and felt their eyes on me. What were they expecting from me?

"Now, who'll be this lovely lad's dance partner?" another man said from the stage behind me.

They expected me to dance. Horror overcame me as I couldn't dance. According to Minjun, I had two left feet.

"And there's the selected partner." the man said while pointing to the crowd.

I heard protesting then watched as someone was pushed into the center. My mouth went agape at who it was. Now I really didn't want to dance. The crowd started to cheer us on to dance. I backed away every time he approached me.

"Do you...not like dancing?" he asked softly.

"It's not that I don't...I just can't." I answered quietly.

He suddenly took my hands and music started to play. It was lively and upbeat, a beat that you'd want to move your hips to. Geonhak somehow made me look decent as he led. He turned me around then held me by my waist. I silently looked at him then felt something in my heart stir. The way the glow of the fire behind us illuminated his face in the night made him seem...attractive. I couldn't take my eyes off of him. The music came to an end and so did our movements. I quietly stared at Geonhak who held my gaze. The sound of cheering and clapping filled my ears, but all I could focus on was Geonhak.

We walked away from the crowd and decided to look for information after wasting a bit of time.

"You dance pretty well, Geonhak..." I mumbled, unable to find my usual voice.

"It's nothing really. I'm no dancer." he said as we approached a home.

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I knocked on the door and waited for someone to answer. I couldn't get the image of Geonhak out of my mind, no matter how many times I pushed it away. I looked at Geonhak who seemed to be looking elsewhere. The door finally opened and a guy who looked around our age stepped out.

"Sorry to bother you, but we just have a question." I said.

"What can I do you for?" he replied.

"Did a mohaw land around here or fly by?" I asked.

"It did both actually." he said as he tapped his chin. "It landed by the old pit hole then left about an hour later."

I looked at Geonhak who gave a nod in response.

"I had gotten curious and went to check it out. And I found him." he said then pointed to the person sitting in a chair with a blank expression.

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"Wow, is that so?" the man said as he handed us cups of water.

I nodded then looked at him pitifully.

"Mr. Lee, it's me, Dongju." I said then held my hand out to him.

He silently looked at me with the same blank expression. It hurt a bit to see him like this. He wasn't the cunning and lively headmaster I knew.

"Lee Seoho...that's me." he mumbled as he took my hand.

It was good to see that he wasn't mute and could hear just as fine. The real problem was finding out what happened to him.

"Seoho, do you know Dallulel?" I asked in hopes of jogging his memory.

"Yes. I was a student there...then headmaster..." he said before trailing off and clutching his head.

I rushed to his side and applied pressure on the necessary spots. He relaxed then quietly thanked me.

"You really think on your feet, Ju. I'm impressed." Geonhak said while smiling.

I looked away as I couldn't control the smile on my face.

"I hope you don't mind, but we'd like to take him off your hands." I heard Geonhak say.

"I don't mind. It's better if he's with people he knows." the man said.

Geonhak stood up from his seat then instantly fell over. The three of us rushed to his side to assess the situation.

"He's breathing, but not moving..." the man said while checking his pulse.

Seoho and I exhaled in relief at the news. I gently shook Geonhak, hoping he'd wake up soon. We soon backed away as his body had started to becone enveloped in a dark purple matter. I gathered up my courage and tried to slap him awake. It wasn't working. I tried calling his name, but the dark matter continued to envelop his body.

"Geonhak, please...I can't lose you again..." I said as my voice cracked.

I quietly sobbed as I held him close. It hurt each and every time I remembered seeing and realizing Geonhak had been taken away from me. I called out his name through my tears, but still yielded no results.

"Move." I heard Seoho say in a commanding voice.

I lied Geonhak down then watched as Seoho kneeled beside him. Soon a dark matter enveloped him as well. I couldn't understand what was going on. Seoho gently placed his hand on Geonhak's head and the darkness had dispersed, revealing an unconscious Geonhak.

"What did you do...?" I asked half scared, half intrigued.

"I put him in a deep sleep where dreams can't reach him." Seoho said as he stared at Geonhak.

"He was dreaming...?" I asked as I knelt beside Geonhak once more.

"Yeah. Something is going to happen, and he's going to need someone by his side then." he said before standing up.

I looked up at Seoho who's face was full of concern. Was there something about Geonhak none of us knew about? I quietly watched his sleeping figure while feeling uneasy.