bodyguard ; kth

31 ; best friends

BEEP BEEP

"jimin, i know who sent the letters."

"oh, really? who?"

"aera's older sister, jiae. she got killed last week at my father's house."

"woah...i never expected that. that must have been hard. how's aera holding up?"

"we haven't talked in a while but i know she's really upset. i want to help her but i don't know how to."

"tae, i've known you for a long time and you're smart. i know you'll find a way to help her, you always do."

"thanks, jimin. anyway, we still need to find the killer."

"we're working on it. i'll keep you updated."

"cool, talk to you later."

BEEP BEEP

my feet felt heavy as i walked around the house.

the hallways were so quiet, no one in sight. after everything that happened to jiae, no one knew what to do. everyone spent their days sleeping around, not knowing what to do.

jiae's death affected everyone's lives in more ways than one.

i didn't really know how severe the situation was around here until yesterday when aera was bawling in front of me. i never really got emotional when people died, it was a part of life that i just got used to. the only time i felt remorse over someone was my mum.

jiae's passing made me think. what if things happened differently that night? what would've happened if i didn't leave jiae alone? would that lead to her being safe now?

i continued being lost in thought as i roamed the halls, not particular heading to a specific place. i didn't even realise that i was standing in front of jiae's old practice room. this was the place where we first bonded, felt like it was years ago.

gripping onto the door handle, i opened the door slowly and entered. i looked around the place, the big mirror, the lockers and the newly washed towels folded nicely in the corner. it was exactly the same as she left it. i nearly jumped out of my skin when i heard something behind me.

i whizzed around, my eyes landing on two figures on the ground. i was completely taken back.

there, lying on the floor, was aera sleeping soundly.

but that wasn't even the weirdest part. it was the fact that she was hugging jiae's old dog in her sleep.

aera...sleeping with mochi.

that was something i never thought i would see. aera was always terrified of dogs, always running away in fear whenever mochi got an inch close to her.

now, it was different. mochi was jiae's everything. it represented jiae as a person. aera had nothing left, other than kitae, to hold on to that reminded her of her sister. it was hard for the dog too, poor thing just lost its owner. mochi and aera both had to come together in the end, they both needed to fix the hole in their hearts created by jiae's death.

seeing the sight in front of me made the whole situation more upsetting. it seemed worse now that i couldn't protect jiae. aera loved her sister with all her heart, even though it was received. jiae had many bad traits, i knew...but she was still a big part of this journey i've had.

and i couldn't be more grateful.

suddenly, the door of the studio swung open. i glanced to see junsoo, wearing a huge smile on his face. i furrowed my eyebrows, looking at him confused.

"taehyung! where's aera?" he asked quickly, looking like he was in a hurry for something. i pointed to the ground where aera was sleeping.

junsoo raised an eyebrow, asking, "um...what's happening here? anyway, we have big news! i need everyone in the kitchen, get aera there now!" after saying that, he leaves abruptly. i didn't know what was so important but it wasn't like i cared much anyway.

i turned to aera and picked her up with ease. she rested her head on my shoulder as i carried her bridal style. as i walked out of the dance room, i felt something trailing behind me. i turned my head back to see mochi walking near my feet, as if he was following aera.

i smiled. guess aera has a new best friend.