Emerald-notes - Bangtan's ARMY - Tumblr Blog

I was too stressed and mindlessly scribbled "I can't do this anymore!" in the back of my notebook.

And look, what my little 9 year old sister wrote back!!!

I'm not joking when I say she's one of the reasons why I still keep going on...😭🩷

Being a burden is such a weird, oldfashioned concept. How are sick/disabled people a burden to their families ? Isn't it so normal to need help, isn't that what you sign up for when deciding to have a child? That you will be their caretaker? That you will provide for them? Disabled people have the right to be properly cared for and loved every day of their lives and if you can't provide that literally don't have kids. Needing help is ok, being dependant on others is ok, not being able to work is ok, being sick is ok, being disabled is ok. You are not a burden. If anything, a family that doesn't provide what they have available is a burden for YOU.

Really love that Arthur is the Once and Future King because we imortalize him. We keep bringing him back through our stories. 

Noona! Please! Help! - Part 3

Fandom: BTS Characters: Younger Brothers BTS and Elder Sister Narrator Genre: A Little Dramatic and A Little Comedic Word Count: 1.1K Words Warning: Angsty (It’s me), mention of child abuse, self doubt, did I mention angst? Note: It’s a siblings AU story of BTS with the narrator as their elder sister. I tried to write something different from what I usually write about. I had fun making this. Hope it makes you feel good too. Happy Reading Everyone :)

Summary: Her little brothers can’t attend to a single task without her help. Be it a dance competition or asking out a girl for a date, they always seem to be finding everything too hard to go through without her by their side. ‘Our lucky charm’; that’s what they like to call her. But what if she turns out to be a misfortune in different situations in one single day?

Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - More to come

Who Will Pay the Rent?

9:24 a.m. 1st September, 2015

“Just a few more minutes left.” Yoongi sighs heavily, “you could have easily saved the bother to come here, today.”

“What happened?” I ask, taking the empty seat beside him. “I thought you said that we’re winning today. What’s up with that long face?”

“It seemed like that at the first half.” Yoongi nods towards the field, “as you can see, the tables took a 180 degree turn.”

Honestly, I don’t understand a thing about basketball. It is better to just take Yoongi’s words as they are. I ask him the important question now, “how much do you owe them?”

Yoongi intentionally avoids eye contact and keeps looking at the match without a reply. I notice that he is sweating like crazy. I understand now that it is not just about the game.

“Don’t tell me you have to sell a kidney to pay them.” I jokingly say to which he doesn’t budge. I grow agitated. “Yoongi! C’mon, tell me what it is?”

He sighs and says, “It’s just worth my rent, that’s all.”

“Your rent?” I ask, “like for the month?”

Yoongi nods and stays silent. We both remain silent for the rest of the game. I wish I could offer to help him. It is most likely that he will not accept anything directly from me. I, on the other hand, am not in a place to help him either.

My phone vibrates in my pocket and I quickly take a look at Jimin’s message saying he’s going inside the exam hall right now. I write a small “good luck” reply and put my phone back inside the pocket.

Yoongi starts to stand up from his seat, “Let’s get out of here! It’s not like anything can change in the last few minutes.”

I nod and follow him out of the stadium. He asks me if I want something to eat to which I shake my head.

“Noona!” Yoongi says, “Stop worrying about me. It’s not like I’m going bankrupt or something. It’s just some stupid amount of money, that’s all.”

“So,” I start hesitantly, “who will pay the rent?”

“I’ll manage that somehow, Noona. I always do.”

Yoongi’s the one among us who’s the most desperate to make a lot of money. That’s why he goes into these betting games and all. I once heard from Jin that he had found Yoongi starving himself because he lost all his money on some games and Jin had helped him that one time even though Yoongi refused to be helped. I don’t really approve of his ways but who am I to stop him? I did not raise him. I don’t even understand his ways of thinking.

I still feel like I should advise him to stop this nonsense and try something else. Something permanent. He is a genius and I know he will be able to figure something out if he wants. But I also feel like today is not the time to lecture him on life. Not when he’s already so stressed about it.

I decide to head to my next destination. I am not going to leave Yoongi in this state. So, I ask him, “If you don’t have to be anywhere, will you come with me?”

“I can manage some time. Where will you take me, Noona?”

“We’re going to meet Jimin.”

Jimin’s exam will be finished at around 11 a.m. So, Yoongi and I wait for him outside the hall where there seems to be a huge crowd of the guardians of the other students. I mentally pray that Jimin will be able to outsmart them on his test today.

“I never understand Jimin’s appeal for education.” Yoongi says.

“I think it’s the same one as yours.” I offer an explanation, “Come to think of it. At the end of the day you both want to win at life. By elevating your status. Either with education or with money.”

“You know what, Noona?”

“What?”

“I hate it so much that you’re always right!” There is a faint line of smile on his face as he says the last sentence.

“Yoongi” I suddenly feel an urge to talk to him seriously. Yoongi barely talks about his real issues.

“Noona?”

“I’m asking this because I’m really worried about you, okay?”

Yoongi frowns, “I think I know what you’re going to say. I’m sorry for making you feel that way. I really am. I’m sorry, Noona!”

“Oh no, dear!” I quickly add, “You don’t have to apologize. I understand that you’re going through tough times.”

“Noona!” Yoongi looks at a distance as he speaks, “Do you remember ma’s face? Like, not the one as we see in her pictures. The face of her when she was sick. That face she had before she could finally rest after years of pain she went through.”

I don’t know why Yoongi is suddenly bringing this topic. Is he really missing ma all of a sudden or just trying to change the topic? Yoongi glances at me for a second and I can see his eyes glistening.

“If only I had the money, I would have taken a bus from school to come to see you.” Yoongi sniffs, “he wouldn’t let me go no matter how much I begged him to. Said it was a ‘waste of good money seeing some sick people’. I don’t think I can ever move on from the fact that I never saw ma and pa again after I left that house.”

“Yoongi!” I can barely make myself audible.

Yoongi never talked about the times he spent with our uncle who took him in when ma fell sick. Yoongi was only four at that time and he was the only one who never came to visit us occasionally during the five years when ma and pa were still alive. When I used to ask pa about it, he would always say that Yoongi was too busy with his school. I only got to see him first at their funeral. Only after Yoongi left uncle’s place for good when he was finally eighteen, we started meeting almost regularly.

“I’m sorry, Noona, I turned up this way.” Yoongi looks at me, his eyes bloodshot, “I didn’t really have an opportunity to be any better than this. Of course, I won’t use this as an excuse. I’m all grown up now and I’m trying to be more responsible. I swear, Noona, you will be proud of me like all the rest of our brothers one day. I will make that happen.”

“But I am proud of you!” I say, “I am proud of how strong you are. I am proud that after all those shits you went through, you still grew up to be such a kind and sweet soul.”

“Thank you, Noona! But you don’t really have to cheer me up.” Yoongi shrugs his shoulders, “I know me.”

“And I know you too.” I slowly move towards him and pull him into a hug, “I see you, Yoongi. I see you!” I slowly pat him on his back as I can sense him fighting the urge to hug me back.

< Previous || Next >

My Masterlist

Tag List:   @sophiatcha,   @lalavione1309,   @jwirecs,   @missmayaarmy,   @sarai-ibn-la-ahad,   @ayalies,   @karougirl123,   @juju-227592,   @coffeepurpleu,   @dreamerwasfound,   @wetfeline,   @phthao2406, @hoshi-is-ult-bbg, @bestloverstan,   @quixoticbittersweet,   @jwirecs-main,   @singukieee,   @l3aecon,   @bangtandoll20,   @gabcats5,   @latina-girl-18,   @kyuupidwrites  

Might do it for my sake...🥹

a long, canon compliant marauders fic where year 1-3 (or 2) are in remus’ perspective (from the beginning of their friendship until the other three boys find out he’s a werewolf), year 4-5 are in sirius’ perspective (running away from his family, the prank), year 6-7 are in james’ (the aftermath of the prank, how he matured, his relationship with regulus and then lily)

and finally the war years, in peter’s perspective, where it’s finally explored the reason behind his betrayal, the peak of a change that had started years before but that we (and the other boys) didn’t notice.

Then why am I crying?

... and I will wait for you! {trans cr. @/haruharu_w_bts}

Gotta be productive

I've been lagging behind my updates regarding the posts on tumblr. I decided to stay active and give as much as I can during my semester break. Here are some stuffs I'm planning to work on.

Finish Noona! Please! Help! series

Write a review of Indigo, album by RM

Work on the new fic of Tae inspired by the 8 special photo folio

Write an original romance story for The Avonlea Story Club

Hope this time I'll actually do them...

Singularity

Fandom: BTS

Pairing: Namjoon × Reader

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“Shit!” I huffed out as I had to climb the stairs up to the third floor and my poor lungs wouldn’t want to cooperate as always, “I forgot my water bottle at home again.”

“You can have mine, no problem!” a boy handed me his half filled plastic bottle.

I usually follow one rule while drinking water from other people’s bottles. I ask them if they touch their lips to the bottles opening while drinking and usually refuse to drink from the same bottle if they do.

That day, however, I didn’t have the mind to do that as I straight up uncapped the bottle to finish the whole thing in one go. When I looked up to say ‘thanks’ and ‘sorry’, he was already gone. As it was almost time for the next class, I supposed he hurried to get to his. I remembered the boy’s name to be Namjoon.

Namjoon was a boy I would often see in between classes. Sometimes we would nod, ask when the next class was or simply smile at each other. And then, we’d go our separate ways. I knew him just like that. I didn’t remember ever having a full conversation with him.

I didn’t see him again after that day. But I heard some rumors about him around the campus not long after. He was accused of saying something that sparked controversy. Since I didn’t know him in person I never expressed my opinion on the matter. But I had a lingering wish to meet him again, to return his empty plastic bottle that I still carry in my bag.

That wish came true when I finally saw him again.

He was having lunch at an empty table at the corner of the cafeteria. There was no one around so I walked up to him right away.

“I’m so sorry I could not return your bottle that day!” I had told him.

“What bottle?” He looked at me with genuine confusion.

I took out the said bottle from my bag to put on the table. Namjoon let out a chuckle at its sight. “You wanted to return this?”

“I know, it might not be a huge deal to you. But I literally can’t sleep in peace until I return what I borrow from someone else. Be it a pen or book or whatever.” I explained myself clearly to which Namjoon nodded and took the empty bottle off the table.

“I’ll take it back then.” He said, “Hope it gives you some peace.”

He shook his head slightly and laughed. For some reason, I felt overwhelmed seeing him laugh like that. His eyes completely vanished behind the wrinkles as he laughed. He looked so unreal. I couldn’t make up my mind why I was feeling that way at such a small act of someone I barely knew. But I had a feeling that it was a moment I would never witness again. I felt the need to capture it in a picture so that I could look at it whenever I wanted to.

However, I didn't take his picture that day. Instead I stood there for a while, enjoying the moment as it was. He didn’t invite me to sit next to him. I wished he did.

The next time I heard about Namjoon was from a group of friends talking about college in general. I wasn't minding their gossip until I heard them speak about him.

"Good grades aren't everything, you see!" One of them said, "you need to have a better character to not be kicked out of school like that."

I was shocked to find what happened to Namjoon regarding those rumors. As much as I wanted to interrupt their conversation, I couldn't bring myself to do so. Yet my heart couldn't believe a word of the dirty talks I heard around. Even though I wasn't a friend of his, neither was I an acquaintance, in my heart, I still pictured him as the smiling boy who had helped me at the time I needed it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~}{~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Note: Inspired by a dream...

My Masterlist

The Astronaut, single by Jin

Note: It’s been a long time and here I am, still stuck in ‘The Astronaut’. Gonna share some personal opinion on this and I swear, I’ll shut up.

Rating - 10/10

“A life, a sparkle in your eyes, Heaven coming through, And I love you.”

Where do I even start? I feel like no matter how much I rant, my love for this song can never be expressed in words. The lyrics, the music and the mv, all of these have their own charms. I just absolutely love it.

Let’s start with its lyrics. I love the references of the cosmos used in this song. If Jin was an asteroid drifting all alone, Army was his heaven, a safe place. When Jin is in darkness, Army shines upon him like the Milky way. “You became my universe” is enough to prove how Jin dedicates his life for us and how we have become everything for him. We all know from the previous solo works of Jin that he is someone who constantly doubts himself and it is the love of the Army that brings him back from despair.

Isn’t it amazing how Jin, and all the BTS members in general, show how grateful they are to us? I am also grateful to them for making us feel loved. This song directly touches the heart. It is, in fact, the best kind of love letter one can ever wish for. It is a song that feels too personal. I feel like it was meant for me, as an individual. That’s one of the best achievements of this masterpiece.

The music video is so cute. Jin, representing an alien crashing on earth, who apparently doesn’t have any emotions. The little girl of his neighborhood plays with him often and he unconsciously grows empathy within himself. On the day his spaceship is finally leaving to go back to space, Jin realizes that it is the earth that is his true home and comes back.

Here are a lot of indications. For a start, the little girl represents Armys. If Jin was someone without dreams, the Armys made him want to dream. Just like the little girl helped him with the development of emotions. Again, though unconsciously, when the alien Jin decided to leave for good, he left his helmet with the girl so that she doesn’t hurt herself riding the bike alone without him around. As our Jin was leaving to join the military, he had left his precious song and along with it, a lot of content for the Armys to enjoy in his absence. Even the morse code for ARMY was literally tattooed on his neck in the mv. Just like the alien Jin realizing that the girl was his true home and coming back to her at the end, our Jin also promises us his coming back after serving his time in the military. Hence, I love the music video so much and I keep coming back to it time after time.

I will forever be grateful to Coldplay for accepting Jin’s request and making this song a reality. They are the sweetest souls ever. It shows how a real artist can recognize and appreciate another great artist. I love the bond between Jin and them, especially with Chris. It makes me immensely proud how far Jin has come. While he considered Coldplay as his idol in his youth, he is now collaborating with them side by side. Both of their styles of music are evident in this track. As if two beautiful melodies came together to become a better version of themselves.

I can’t talk about the Astronaut without bringing up the concert in Argentina. Here’s another reason for me to be grateful to Coldplay. They really understood the significance of this song for the Armys as a goodbye gift from Jin and that’s why they decided to have him at their personal concert. I could see the admiration in their eyes when Jin was performing. I also enjoyed the part where Chris opened his arms for Jin to run and embrace him while he sweetly kissed him on the cheek. This interaction was everything. When, both Chris and Jin were singing together to my favorite part and they couldn’t help but laugh in between, we could see Jin’s sparkling eyes so clearly. It shows how overwhelmed he was with emotion. I won’t lie about crying to that part myself.

Finally, the “I love you” part deserves its own paragraph. Would you think that it wasn’t intentional of Jin to finish his last live performance for the Armys by saying that he loves us? I think not. Jin is a genius and an absolute sweetheart for that. The reactions of the Armys at the concert was genuine. They looked so happy and sad at the same time. And I love you too, my Jinnie.

I am fully absorbed in this piece of art. It has become a part of me and I am totally obsessed with it now. I thank you, Jin, for making me feel this way. This work of yours is going to live in my heart rent free for the rest of my life.

The Other Side - Part 2

Fandom: BTS Pairing: Park Jimin x OC (Amelia) Genre: Fluff/Angst Word Count: 1.7k Words Warning: Drinking, foul language, mention of kiss, this chapter doesn’t deal with any major triggering issues. Note: (18+) Additional chapters contain heavy angst and sensitive topics. If you can’t handle problematic issues, I advise you to not read any further.

Summary: When Amelia and her bestie have an encounter with the duo (JiKook), they seem to develop a love and hate kinda relationship...

Part 1 - Part 2 - More to Come

Are we doing business? Or do you hate me? - Danger by BTS

“Do you want a drink?” I asked.

“I would rather have another ice cream.” Tara replied.

I rolled my eyes, “Do you even eat anything other than that?”

Tara was my best friend since grade two. We had our ups and downs, but were never separated permanently until Tara decided to live in the city to attend college. But whenever she came back to town we would hangout like we were kids again. This time, she came to visit the seasonal festival and I was determined to have the best night of my life.

I paid for the snacks and added to the stall keeper, “We’ll have ice cream and Cheetos too.”

“Two bottles of beer, please.” I heard someone beside me. We both looked at each other at once and I wished I didn’t have.

“Hey! Crybaby! How are you? Oh, hi there, Tara! Didn’t know you were in town too. So, you girls were having a little get together or something?”

Yes! It was no other than Jeon Jungkook. Just looking at him made me want to punch his face. I put on a fake smile over my gritted teeth and spoke rather mockingly, “How are you, big teeth?”

Jungkook chuckled and replied, “The bunny’s doing great. Thank you.”

“And so are the Barbies.” Tara snapped before pulling me away.

“Hey! Wait for me.” Jungkook called. We saw him taking his beers and paying hurriedly before sprinting towards our direction.

“Is he serious, right now?” Tara whispered to me in annoyance.

Jungkook whined, “C’mon! We met after a long time. And you didn’t even talk to me at Tae’s party. ‘Cause you were too busy drooling over Jimin.”

“Excuse me!” I asked, offended. Jungkook was really testing my patience.

“Who the hell is Jimin?” Tara asked, unaware.

“I’m Jimin.” Suddenly someone spoke beside us.

I looked at him in disbelief. My immediate thought was that he was perhaps stalking me. But then, I remembered that Jimin was a really good friend of Jungkook. So, it wasn’t unusual that he came to his friend’s town to attend a festival.

“Amelia!” He turned to me with a faint smirk on his face, “We meet again.”

“So, you’ve been talking about me with Jungkook?” I inquired Jimin as soon as we were left alone. Tara went to the bathroom and Jungkook was taking an important phone call.

“To be honest,” Jimin chuckled, “you’re the only thing I’ve been talking about these past few days.”

Jimin really knew how to flatter because I could tell that my face went red. But it wasn't time to give in to his seduction, especially when I was supposed to be angry at him.

"So, you guys are really having some fun talking behind my back, huh?" I retorted.

"You are indeed fun to talk about, I won't lie, but…"

I didn’t let him continue whatever he was going to say next. "Listen, I'm not interested in wasting time with you. I don't know why you'd approached me that night. I don't know what Jungkook has been telling you and whatever you're telling him in return. All I know and want you to be clear about is that I’m done encountering you. If you still don't let go, you'll have to deal with Taehyung."

Jimin laughed at my speech which only added fuel to my anger. "Well, one thing is true, then.”

“And what’s that?”

“You complain a lot to your brother, like a cry-baby."

Had it been Jungkook, he would have earned a slap across his face by now. I breathed out through my mouth to avoid doing something stupid. But someone spoke loudly beside me, "who the hell do you think you are, speaking like that to my best friend in front of me?"

"Oh, I'm sorry…" Jimin was yet again cut off.

This time, Tara angrily started to rant, "our night's already ruined. Thanks to your asshole friend. Now don't get me started on you. Don't even think you have any chance with my girl just because you're…"

"Tara," I immediately interrupted, "let's get going. It's no good fighting with them. We should know better since our previous arguments with the other asshole."

"Yeah, whatever!" Tara turned along with me.

"I'm staying in town for a few days." Jimin yelled behind us as we were walking away from him. "Don't hope to never see me again. 'Coz who knows! You might."

I grunted in frustration while  Tara asked, "want me to go back and kick him in the balls?"

"Why do all the good looking guys have to be assholes?" Tara sighed one day.

I raised my eyebrows, "which assholes are you referring to?"

"Whom do you think?"

"Umm…" I thought for a while, "I know for once, Jimin is attractive and also, turned out to be an asshole like his friend. Who else do you mean?"

"I mean," Tara replied, "his friend that you just mentioned."

If Tara had said that she was pregnant, I would have been less surprised.

"What the hell, dude!" I couldn't mask my disgust, "How can you find Jungkook attractive? I knew your taste in men was trash but him?"

"Oh, thank you very much." Tara argued, "Mind you, I didn't say he was attractive. I only said 'good-looking'. And I believe I added that he was an asshole. So, he doesn’t really fall under the men of my taste. By the way, aren't you the one attracted to assholes? As far as I know, it wasn't me who made out with one of them."

I was flustered by her reply. "Hey, that was… a mistake. I was… I was drunk." I stuttered.

Tara started to laugh. I couldn't believe she was bullying me for kissing Jimin. Maybe, I shouldn't have confided in her everything. Especially the part where I said I actually enjoyed making out with him.

"You're mean!"

I stood up and walked out of my room to the living room only to find that Taehyung was having a blast with his friends. And the friends in question are none other than my life long enemy, Jungkook and my most recent crush, Jimin.

Turns out Jimin was a sneaky bitch. Somehow he managed to manipulate Taehyung into thinking that it was his friendship that Jimin was after all along and he had nothing to do with me. He also added that there was a girl in his city that he was seeing. Taehyung didn’t seem to have any problem with being friends with him since he didn’t pose an immediate threat of becoming someone closer to me. Now, my brother was having the time of his life chatting with the two people I couldn’t even bear to talk with.

Both me and Tara listened to all the bullshit for a while and then decided it was time to leave. “We’re going out!” I said to my brother, “Want me to get you something?”

“Nope!” His reply was short.

“Well, enjoy, I guess!” I muttered under my breath and headed out with Tara.

“Wait!” Jimin ran out of the house behind us.

Tara moved in between and asked, “What do you want?”

“I wanna talk with Amelia!” Jimin replied casually.

“Why?” Tara pressed further, “Isn’t it Tae whom you’re after?”

Jimin looked irritated, “Can you please give us some space for a moment?”

“What do you need a space for? I thought you had a girlfriend. Why? Aren’t you loyal?” Tara kept on going.

“Are you just going to enjoy this?” Jimin looked at me helplessly.

I simply shrugged my shoulders in reply. Jungkook came to his rescue. “Hey, Tara! Wanna know what the whole college is talking about?”

Tara’s face went red, “Jeon Jungkook, I swear I’m going to kill you if you did anything funny!” And she stormed away inside the house along with a smirking Jungkook.

“Hey…” Jimin started but I cut him in between.

“Is there anything important that you wanna say? If not, please go bother someone else.”

“You didn’t even let me start!” he pouted.

I frowned at his words, “Your pretense of being a cutie ain’t gonna help you now.”

Jimin turned serious and asked, “What’s up with you? I can’t seem to read you right. One minute you’re so into me, the next minute you won’t even look at me? Is Tae the matter?”

“Nope!” I answered truthfully, “It’s you! You’re the matter.”

“Will you at least tell me what I did wrong since the last time we met?” Jimin asked gently.

I thought for a while before saying, “Why do you even care? I’m only an inside joke between the two of you.”

Jimin started nodding his head as if he just realized something very basic, “So, Jungkook’s the matter, huh?”

“No!” I denied.

“Oh, dear!” Jimin laughed, “Do you realize how long it had been since you were in school? Seriously? Are you still holding a grudge over those silly fights you had with him? Are you still that petty?”

I huffed in annoyance, “Go on. Tell me more about what else he had told you about me.”

“Nothing but all the good times that he had with you.” Jimin said with a smile.

“Huh?”

“Amelia!” Jimin shook me by the shoulders, “Jungkook always talked about you and Tara as if you were his only friends in high school. Yeah, he mentioned the fights and all. But at the end of the day, he still considers you his friends. The time when I confessed to him about you, the only thing he said was that I was diving in for some adventure. And it wasn’t even said in a bad way. He really ships us with all his might.”

I kept blinking at him in disbelief. Surely, Jungkook wouldn’t talk all nice about us let alone calling us his friends. What is Jimin trying to do here?

At that time, Tara came out yelling at Jungkook behind her, “Grow up, rabbit faced!” 

“After you, bitch!” A boiling red Jungkook yelled back at her.

Tara took my hand and pulled me away from the house. “Just ignore him. He’s a bit upset, you know!”

“What did you say for him to act like that?” I asked.

“Nothing much!” Tara shrugged, “Just reminded him how desperate he was.”

“Desperate for what?”

In reply, Tara just let out a laugh.

< Previous || Next > (Coming Soon)

My Masterlist

BARBIEPOSTERS +HYYH (insp.)

Why my heart hurts???

"all the solo work is just a journey to get back home safely" — kim namjoon bangtan first solo tracks of ch. 2 + favorite lines

My Guardian Angel - Part 3 (Final)

Fandom: BTS Paring: Min Yoongi x Female Reader Genre: Angst Warning: Age gap, mc being a brat, traumatic past, mention of abusive household, a little depressing, I’m sorry it ended this way. Word Count: 2k Words Note: Since the reader is only 15 years old, I reduced Yoongi’s age to be 22. Please keep the age gap in mind before diving in to read. I must say there is nothing explicit in here.

Summary: When things are bound to fall apart, You find out how powerless you are to the destiny...

Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 [Complete]

*************************************************

I was beyond angry. Yoongi just informed me that today was the last day in town for me till next month. He was going to be working on the weekends as well with only a day off per month. That meant, no more coming to the town for grocery shopping.

"But I won't forget to buy you a present, kitten. Also you can buy more than one thing when you're coming to the store yourself once a month."

"I don't want your stupid gifts." I angrily said, "I want you. At least, on a weekend."

"Kitten," Yoongi sighed, unable to deal with my raging state, "I'm sorry. You see, it's not something that I can control."

"Fine." I yelled, "get out of my sight. I'm not going home with you."

"Kitten…" He tried to speak but was interrupted by a lady.

"Is everything alright, dear?" The question was directed toward me.

"Yeah, everything's fine. We're just having a discussion. Thank you." Yoongi dismissed her concerns which seemed to be irritating her somehow.

"Are you sure you're alright?" She asked me again. When I nodded my head the lady further asked, "Who is he? Do you know him?"

"Excuse me!" Yoongi said, "I don't see why you need to know that."

The lady still asked me without bothering to look at him, "is he threatening you?"

"What?" was Yoongi's reply.

I shook my head. Then, the lady turned to Yoongi and said, "Sir, I'm very concerned about this child. Please state your relationship to her."

"That's none of your business." Yoongi answered bitterly. He grabbed my wrist and walked straight to our car.

"Sir…" the lady called from behind but we simply speeded our walk and got in the car.

I wanted to apologize for reacting like that in the store earlier and for gaining unwanted attention. Somehow I couldn't manage to do it as I felt a growing lump on my throat.

Yoongi, on the other hand, looked disturbed. I wasn't sure if it was because of the lady or myself.

In the evening, I sat on the bed while Shelby lay beside me. She stayed too quiet as if she understood the dull atmosphere of the house. I ran my hand through her. She moved closer to me and relaxed in a more comfortable position.

Yoongi was cooking outside. I dared not to go to him at the moment. I felt that something wrong was going to happen and I dreaded its arrival. I tried to plan the best way I could apologize to lift his mood. After all, it was my fault that the day went to ruin.

Then I heard a car being pulled up outside. I froze.

Could it be…

I peeked through the window and got a glance of a police car. “Why are the police here?” I thought to myself. Unconsciously I started biting my nails.

I could sense that Yoongi was talking to them outside. A dull ache was twisting within my stomach.

After a few minutes, Yoongi came inside, his face unreadable. He spoke quietly, “Kitten, you need to come out for a moment. Here’s an officer to meet you. Please talk to him nicely.”

I nodded slowly and, almost in daze, walked outside. The man in a police uniform greeted me. He asked me to sit down. After we’re both seated at the patio, the officer asked Yoongi to leave us alone.

“No!” I immediately opposed it. “He’ll stay.”

Yoongi said, “I won’t interrupt, sir. I’ll just stay beside her so that she doesn’t feel too nervous about this whole situation.”

The officer nodded and turned to me. He said that he had to ask me some questions and I was required to answer them honestly. I needed not to be  scared. When I approved, he proceeded to ask me where I came from, who was my guardian, what happened that made me run away from home, how I met Yoongi, how long had I been living with him, if I considered him to be a dangerous man etc.

I answered him truthfully. I told him how abusive of a man my step father was. I told him all the evil things he had done to me. I told him how my life was a living hell before I met Yoongi.

Every now and then, whenever I faltered in between, Yoongi would softly squeeze my hand. It was hard for me to bring up the nasty past. But I had to do it. I had to convince the police that it was my own decision that I ran away and still my own that I stayed with him.

Finally, the police said that I could go. Yoongi took me inside and whispered to me, “you did bravely, kitten.”

Then, he went out to have a last chat with the police. I waited patiently and prayed that the man would leave us soon.

The man, to my horror, did not leave us soon. In fact they were talking for so long that my anxiety got the best of me and I had to eavesdrop from inside the door.

Luckily, they were talking loudly enough for me to hear them. Unluckily, it sounded as if they were arguing over something.

Yoongi's voice was deadly, something I never heard before, "you heard everything!"

"I know, I know," the officer spoke in a frustrated manner, "But what you're asking is against the law. I can even arrest you right now for keeping her for so long without any legal rights over her."

"Will you?" It wasn't even a question. Yoongi said it as if he knew the police won't do that.

"Yoongi," the man spoke softly, "I know you very well. I know what you've been through. I also know from how you're treating her that you truly care for her. I still ask you to give it a rational thought. She doesn't belong here."

"What do you mean by here?" Yoongi argues further, "she clearly loves this place."

"She might love the place. I only meant she doesn't belong with you. She deserves a family."

Yoongi looked him dead in the eye and said, "I'm not letting her go back to that monster, you hear me!"

At this point, I was really getting scared. I didn't know if it was because of the idea that I might have to go back to my stepfather or about the fact that Yoongi was so mad, which was really unlikely of him.

"I assure you. She's never going to see him again. We're gonna call the social service. They'll arrange a nice Foster home for her."

"Oh, shut up!" Yoongi retorted, "I know how those Foster systems work. She might never be adopted. Especially at this age."

"At least, she'll have a chance for a real family. This is only for her own good."

"I don't trust anyone."

"You know you're only saying that because you don't want to lose her, right?"

Something about this confrontation with the police made Yoongi go silent. He didn't reply. It neither looked like he's going to argue any longer.

After the brief moment of silence, it almost took my utmost willpower to stay put at my place and not run straight to them begging Yoongi to say something in my favor, the police finally spoke.

"I'll give you tonight to say a proper goodbye. But I'm coming back tomorrow, along with the social service. I hope you won't resist, then. Otherwise, you're gonna be in trouble, I tell you."

The man finally left without waiting for a reply.

"I heard everything." I said after waiting for a minute for Yoongi to settle in bed. When he looked like he wasn't going to say anything back, I proceeded further. "I'm sorry I made a scene at the shop. I know it's all my fault. Oppa, please, don’t stay mad at me."

Yoongi finally looked back at me and said, "rules are rules. I don't have any control over this situation. They're gonna be here tomorrow and you'll have to go."

"Oppa!" I yelled at him. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. He was giving up on me. He wasn't fighting to keep me anymore.

On the verge of tears, I asked, "Are you punishing me for what I did earlier?"

"No!" Yoongi stood up from the bed and came towards me, "You know, I'll never punish you for anything."

"Then, why are you doing this to me?"

"It's for your own good, kitten. Out there, you can at least dream for a new home. A new family. Here, you have nothing to even dream about."

"But you are my home."

I took a step forward and rested my head on his chest. "You're the best thing that I can ever wish for. You are my only family."

Yoongi slowly shook his head. He pushed me away by holding me by the shoulders. He made me look into his eyes and spoke very politely.

"It wasn't me who saved you but the other way around. You showed me everything that my life was lacking. Thanks to you, I felt like I truly lived. No, kitten. I can't be so selfish to keep you in this boring life of mine and take advantage of you like that. You deserve a chance in life. Unlike mine, you have a whole future ahead of you."

I couldn't understand what was going on. How suddenly everything changed in Yoongi. How willingly he was pushing me away.

"But I don't want to go."

"You're too young to understand that."

As I opened my mouth to argue further, Yoongi shook his head to shut me up. He said, "please, kitten, I want you to do better than this. I'm tired. I'm going out for a drink. Sleep tight till tomorrow."

Then, he went out with a bottle of whisky in his hand. I wasn't allowed to leave my room when he drank out on the patio. So, like always, I stayed inside. I stayed and cried. I cried on my pillow throughout the night till sleep took over my messy mind.

The next morning, we didn't talk much. We were just busy packing my bag. At one point, Yoongi came up to me with his guitar and said, "Since you love it so much, I want you to keep it."

I didn't say that the reason I loved the guitar so much was because he played it. I loved the fact that he played the guitar for me whenever I asked him to.

I decided to leave behind the little fox plushie. So Yoongi could have something to look at whenever he thought of me.

When I saw the car approaching from far away, I felt like I would break down anytime and cry. Surprisingly that didn't happen.

I scratched behind Shelby's ear and gave her the last piece of treat. I hugged Yoongi for the last time too. After that, without a fight I climbed inside the car.

As we were driving away, I thought I would take a good look for the last time at the place I called my first home. The place looked hauntingly empty. I looked at the familiar window, the front patio, our jeep, trying to take in as much as I could. 

My eyes finally stopped at Yoongi. His head was bending towards his feet so that I couldn't make out his face. I noticed that his shoulders were shaking.

I didn't need to try. Tears automatically flowed through my cheeks. All this time I had been at my worst, Yoongi was always there beside me, offering the warmth that I just needed. And the one time of him being vulnerable, I couldn't be there beside him, offering the same warmth that he had given me.

Special 8 Photo-folio Masterlist

My Personal Masterlist

Tag List: @idkjustlovingbts,  @lisabyers,  @a-sweetdreamywoman,  @yoongsexual,  @tatakaee,  @borareadsfic,  @sailorjoonies,  @futuresoffantasies, 

Feel free to let me know if you want to be added or removed from the tag list...

This monologue was everything...🩷

“It’s literally impossible to be a woman.

You are so beautiful, and so smart, and it kills me that you don't think you're good enough. Like, we have to always be extraordinary, but somehow, we're always doing it wrong?

You have to be thin, but not too thin, and you can never say you wanna be thin. You have to say you wanna be healthy, but also, you have to BE THIN.

You have to have money, but you can't ask for money because that's crass.

You have to be a boss, but you can't be mean.

You have to lead, but you can't squash other people's ideas.

You're supposed to love being a mother, but don't talk about your kids all the damn time.

You have to be a career woman, but also, always be looking out for other people.

You have to answer for men's bad behavior, which is INSANE, but if you point that out, you're accused of complaining!

You're supposed to stay pretty for men, but not so pretty that you tempt them too much or that you threaten other women because you're supposed to be a part of the sisterhood, but ALWAYS STAND OUT and ALWAYS BE GRATEFUL. But never forget that the system is rigged, so find a way to acknowledge that but ALSO, always be grateful!

You have to never get old. Never be rude. Never show off. Never be selfish. Never fall down. Never fail. Never show fear. Never get OUT OF LINE. It's too hard! It's too contradictory, and nobody gives you a medal or says 'thank you!' And it turns out, in fact, that not only are you doing everything wrong, but also, everything is your fault.

I'm just so tired of watching myself, and every single other woman tie herself into knots, so that people will like us.

And if all of that, is also true for a doll just representing a woman, then I don't even know." -Gloria the barbie movie

this is it. this is exactly it oh my god.

Haha! Jokes on me...

Did I really think I'd be free after mid?

I’m Back...

I am attending my last exam tomorrow. Soon, I’ll be posting regularly again. At least, I hope so…

These are what you’re gonna get before long:

The last part of ‘My Guardian Angel’

Fast updates on the series ‘Noona! Please! Help!’

Slow updates on the series ‘The Other Side’

Personal review on Jin’s single ‘The Astronaut’

Short drabbles, if I have the time and mood

The only sensible character in the whole play...

“While I only hated my husband, I could bear to see him—but since I have despised him, he’s too offensive.”

(Mrs. Fainall, The Way of the World)

Restoration Series

I’m Back...

I am attending my last exam tomorrow. Soon, I’ll be posting regularly again. At least, I hope so...

These are what you’re gonna get before long:

The last part of ‘My Guardian Angel’

Fast updates on the series ‘Noona! Please! Help!’

Slow updates on the series ‘The Other Side’

Personal review on Jin’s single ‘The Astronaut’

Short drabbles, if I have the time and mood

I'm coming back

Seven days a week...

Break me off another time...

+

There is no shame in changing jobs or careers if your job is causing trauma or stress. You have not wasted the education or work experience that you have accumulated. You will always have that no matter what you choose to do with the rest of your life.

That's 💯 % correct...

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue is lowkey Dorian Gray fanfiction which is basically Doctor Faustus fanfiction which is basically Goethe's Faust fanfiction which is basically Paradise Lost meta which is in fact Bible fanfiction

The Other Side - Part 1

Fandom: BTS Pairing: Park Jimin x OC (Amelia) Genre: Fluff/Angst Word Count: 1.6k Words Warning: Slight drinking, making out, nothing much explicit in this chapter. Note: (18+) Additional chapters contain heavy angst and sensitive topics. If you can’t handle problematic issues, I advise you to not read any further.

Summary: Despite her brother Taehyung’s disapproval of dating one of his friends, Amelia can’t keep herself away from the charming guy she met at his birthday...

Part 1 - Part 2 - More to come

“For you, I will be new every day ‘Cause it’s boring to have the same thing, right?” - Filter by Jimin

My brother Taehyung’s birthday was the worst day of the year for me. Don’t get me wrong. I loved Taehyung more than anybody in this world. For that exact reason, I could never refuse his request for a birthday party in our house.

I was the kind who hated parties and Taehyung, on the other hand, liked them very much. Furthermore, my presence in that party was a must for Taehyung to actually enjoy it. So, I would always end up being a weirdo trying to communicate with his friends whom I met once a year. Since Taehyung loved making a lot of friends, every year, I would meet some new people too.

Today the party seemed to be going for an eternity. The loud music was unbearable after a few hours. I was done making small talks with most of his friends. I needed some break as I felt my social battery was running out. I needed to find Taehyung.

I groaned in frustration searching for my brother in the crowd. I decided I was old enough to leave his annoying party any time I wanted to. After all, it was my house too. I could go anywhere I wanted. So, I headed for the rooftop.

Surprisingly, there was another person present whom I didn’t notice at first. I yelped in surprise when he cleared his throat to gain my attention.

“I’m sorry.” He said, “I didn’t mean to startle you.”

A blonde guy wearing sunglasses, even though it was night, approached me. I realized that I had never met this person before. Thinking he was a new friend of Taehyung, I tried to talk nicely. But, to be honest, I could do with some alone time instead.

“It’s okay!” I said, “I don’t think I know you.”

“I’m Park Jimin.” He said, “I’m Jungkook’s friend from college. I believe you’re Taehyung’s sister, Amelia, right?” I nodded. But my mind was occupied with the thought that he was Jungkook’s friend.

If I had an enemy, it would be Jeon Jungkook. Jungkook and I went to school together. But we never got along. There was a history of endless fights and arguments between us. Some of them ended up with me crying out in frustration and Jungkook getting some serious talk from my overprotective brother. Nonetheless, they were still close friends.

Jimin suddenly chuckled, “I’ve heard quite a lot about you.”

I tried to smile. If he had known me through Jungkook, chances are, he didn’t know anything good.

A few cups of drinks were making my mind blurry. I started to find the stranger really attractive. I wasn’t even listening to what he had been saying. But his voice was pleasant to my ears. My mind was full of thoughts that seemed too wrong.

“Hello!” Jimin snapped his fingers in front of my eyes and I came back to reality. He wetted his lips before saying, “You haven’t been listening, have you?”

I shook my head honestly. He laughed as if he found it adorable. He took off the glasses and stared directly into my eyes.

Oh God! If looks could kill...

“I think you’re a little too intoxicated to ignore my charm.” he said. Without realizing I nodded in affirmation, making him laugh even more.

Oh God! His eye smile...

Then, he suddenly stopped. His stare was quite serious this time. He wasn’t fooling around anymore. I could feel the tension rising in the air. It seemed like there was an invisible string pulling me closer to this guy. I leaned a bit closer to him. But he didn’t move.

He half whispered, “Are you sure about this?” I nodded again.

Then, he leaned in to kiss me. It was a soft one at first, but gained momentum as soon as he got my approval. During our heated making out session, my mind had gone off to a completely different world. There was nothing I could think of other than him.

But soon Jimin let go of my lips and pulled back. A soft whimper left my mouth. Jimin just chuckled in return and shook his head.

“I don’t want you to regret anything once you’re sober.” He said.

I opened my mouth to say something but decided against it. It was already awkward enough. I didn’t want to embarrass myself further by saying something which would prove how desperate I was to have him.

Taehyung and I were only a year apart and he was the oldest. Our father was never in the picture and our mother died the year I graduated high school. Both of us ended up not going to college. Money was not a problem. We were pretty well off as mother had left us with a big house and a huge backyard of a flower garden. I worked on them and sold them in our personal flower shop which was quite famous in town. Taehyung, on the other hand, did whatever he was comfortable with at the moment.

Taehyung had lots of friends. But I only had him. And he was aware of it. But he didn’t mind. Even though he had many friends, both male and female, he would always forbid me to get a little too close to any of his male friends. I never complained either. Because, most of them were like Jungkook, whom I absolutely despised.

But I felt different this time. This Jimin guy was really messing with my mind. Ever since the night, I couldn’t shake his thoughts away. I felt a little guilty for keeping such a secret from my brother, to whom I had always confided everything.

“This is never going to happen again.” I would tell myself. But little did I know how wrong I had been.

Apparently, Jimin shared a mutual feeling and there was nothing that could stop him from coming back to me. So, coming back to me he did. But at the worst moment possible.

Ding Dong

Taehyung forbade me to get up from the dining table as we were having supper at the time. It was unusual for us to have a visitor so late. So, Taehyung went to check it himself.

“Is Amelia home?” I heard a not so unknown voice spoke and my heart skipped a bit. I knew that Taehyung was as shocked as me because he didn’t say a word in reply.

The stranger continued, “I’m Jimin. I hope you remembered me from the party. I came here with Jungkook.”

It turned out that Jimin had some important business in town. But unfortunately he was too late to catch the evening train. He hadn’t brought his car. Furthermore, he was not in the habit of riding a cab late at night. He tried calling Jungkook but he was out of town. He also informed Taehyung that he had an opportunity to become my friend during his birthday party. So, it seemed like he had no other choice but to ask us to let him stay at our place.

Taehyung didn’t seem to be believing any of his words. But he agreed to let him stay for the night. Only at one condition; Jimin was to share the bed with him. It is necessary to include that we had two spare bedrooms for guests.

I had never felt so uncomfortable while having dinner at my own house before. Jimin looked like he was having the best moment of his life; enjoying the food and appreciating it often. I nodded in between but tried not to say anything and let Taehyung join the conversation. Jimin was acting differently, almost in a child-like manner. I tried to avoid eye contact with either of them as Taehyung kept eyeing us suspiciously throughout the whole dinner.

After a while of chatting about nothing, we were all off to bed. But my brain had no intention of letting me sleep. Instead, it was replaying the night of my brother’s birthday. I wondered if this was the same flirty Jimin I had encountered some weeks ago.

Hours later, I walked out of my bedroom in frustration. Instantly, I was grabbed by my shoulders and I yelped in surprise.

“Ssh!” Jimin let go and whispered, “It’s only me!” I nodded in recognition. He looked at me carefully and a wide grin spread on his face.

“What?” I asked, surprised at his unusual behavior.

“Thank God!” He said with relief, “You didn’t forget about me.”

I laughed at him, “What made you think I might forget you?”

Jimin frowned at my taunting, “Why? You were hella drunk that night. I bet you can’t recall what we did.”

I blushed really hard this time. Of course, I remembered what we did. But I was in no mood to discuss that embarrassing event. Jimin had definitely seen me blushing. His cute face suddenly turned mischievous.

“Can you recall it or should I help?” he smirked. Now, this was the Jimin I was talking about.

Before I could shut him up with a slap on the head, I heard movements ahead of me. Both of us froze. Our eyes grew larger at once.

“Fuck!” Jimin whispered, “Your spy brother is awake.”

I ran straight to my bedroom and shut the door quickly. My heart was beating up to my throat. I could hear a conversation outside which made me smile like an idiot.

A deep voice asked, “Oy! What are you doing there?”

A cute one replied, “I think I might have forgotten the way to the bathroom.”

A moment of silence before a really angry tone spoke, “If you’re trying to make an excuse, Park Jimin, go for a better one next time.”

Next >

My Masterlist

Finally, the whole story...

“Why did I fight with Jimin-hyung? We were trainees. I personally don’t think my puberty years had hit me yet, I was really young at the time. Jimin-hyung, as the second youngest, was putting a lot of effort into watching his behavior. Was it during practice? Or was it just because of the way I spoke? I honestly don’t even remember how I used to talk. But it got to a point where even angelic Hobi-hyung would get angry at my way of speaking. My way of speaking on a normal basis wasn’t bad. I’m the type that gets a little riled up, so the guys warned me many times because of that. That’s probably why Jimin-hyung called me out separately, to talk about it. I felt very… So, I knew what I did wrong. I instinctively knew, because of how I was acting. But, because I also have my pride, I felt like there were parts that I was right about. As I was talking to Jimin-hyung, I got angry. I got angry and Jimin-hyung got angry.”

Jack In The Box, album by J-Hope

Notes: It’s time to express some of my thoughts regarding every member’s solo albums and singles. I’ve been putting it off for months. Let’s do it without further delay, starting with the first member to have released his solo album.

1. Intro: 9/10

“It flapped its delicate wings as it danced around Pandora, lightly brushing against her shoulder.”

Basically it’s the story of Pandora in Greek Mythology and the origin of hope in the mortal world. If you haven’t heard it yet, this post is a sign for you to look it up (also check out Ted Ed’s video ‘The myth of Pandora’s box’ for more details). The narration of the story (J-Hope’s intro) is smooth and short. It sounds pleasing to the ears. And it is definitely a unique idea for his album’s intro. I believe what Hoseok’s been trying to tell is that what he is to the Armys is what hope is to all the people on earth.

2. Pandora’s Box: 10/10

“J to the Hope, Jung to the Huimang, Jack in the box”

Only Hoseok can make a fine connection between a myth, a toy and his whole personality and also make total sense. It’s probably my first time listening to a song that is a retelling of a myth. And Hoseok did an amazing job here. The lyrics made my jaw drop, like literally. I said it once and I’ll say it a hundred times, BTS is one of the few artists who knows what poetry truly is. And this song is one of the many living proofs.

3. More: 8.5/10

“My work makes me breathe. So I want more”

The first released song with the music video shook me a great deal like it did to many Armys I’m sure. The sunshine of the group in such a grim-emo kinda look was absolutely out of the blue. Nevertheless, this vibe suits him right. Comparing their passion for making art with an awful addiction is a thing BTS did in their early works too. I can see that theme portrayed from Hoseok’s perspective so well.

4. Stop: 6.5/10

“The only belief that rules over me, ‘There are no bad people in the world’”

The struggle of freeing yourself of the innate nature of being judgmental is portrayed in this masterpiece. Shoutout to Hoseok for speaking about the truth of today's world and people’s values and ethics while still keeping an open mind, making sure not to judge anyone harshly. The lyrics definitely deserve praise. But personally I think it is not a song that I can listen to more than once.

5. = (Equal Sign): 7/10

“Same, the breaths we breathe. Same, the dreams we dream of”

Yes! Sing it, J-hope. Who’s going to give us hope at times of despair if it isn’t you? The change is indeed soon to begin. We’re all in this together. Let’s make a better world without prejudice and hate. BTS, as well as us, the Armys; we believe in ‘Love’.

6. Music Box: Reflection: 10/10

This one is actually brilliant. At first I played it on repeat many times a day. I even set it as my alarm ringtone and it is still there. I know, we shouldn’t be doing that because it makes us hate the music afterwards. But I still couldn’t grow to dislike it. This music has a whole aesthetic to it that makes me imagine myself in a music video everytime I play it.

7. What If...: 8.5/10

“What if I have nothing?”

This one shows what Hoseok has been trying to portray through the whole album pretty directly. You can see him questioning his own personality. Is he really all sunshine and rainbows inside out? I mean, is that even possible for a human? You can hear his passion pouring out in the voice. Chef’s kiss to the bravery of finally speaking out; louder for the people on the back.

8. Safety Zone: 8/10

“In my 20’s, I’m living an endless life”

It hurts when you look up a song and you find the lyrics so sad. The life of an idol is never really easy. People need to keep in mind that these idols are humans too. Give them some break for God’s sake. They talk about their struggles through their songs and yet we fail to see it. I really hope Hoseok finds peace and happiness that he deserves.

9. Future: 6.5/10

“Walking in the future, a step of hope”

The fact that Hoseok worries about his future too shows how much he is like us. After all, at the end of the day, we’re all human. Let’s keep our courage and step forward.

10. Arson: 10/10

“Do I put out the fire or burn even brighter?”

Just think about the poetic effect of the last line of the last song. Even though I liked most of the songs from this album, Arson takes the trophy. The music, the lyrics, the mv, everything is just fine as fine can be. J-Hope never disappoints us with his unique ideas. I’m in love…

Notes: The album is a masterpiece and it deserves all the attention it got and more. Apart from the fact that the music and the beats are all kinda dope, we need to focus on its lyricism too. This album feels like a cry for help. We need to acknowledge Hoseok's struggle as an idol and try to sympathize. Let's try to become the best version of ourselves as fans and let our idols live a normal life while supporting them unconditionally.

Death Before Water And Life After It

'The Avonlea Story Club'

Story no. #02 Inspired by prompt: “There was a legend about the well in the garden.” Time Duration: 1 May, 2023 - 31 May, 2023

Word Count: 2.6K Words Warning: horror elements, mention of illness, injuries, deaths etc.

Summary: Spending the summer vacation with an ill grandma in a remote village turns mysterious...

I attempted to write down a rare experience I got to have while I visited my late grandma’s village. The story I am about to tell is no ordinary tale. It is, in many ways, unbelievable too. So, I would rather let my readers decide upon believing it.

It was the summer of 2017. My grandma was diagnosed with a deadly disease and the doctors feared that she wouldn’t make it till the next year.  I had a long vacation of two months from school. I didn’t have any plans either. At that moment, my only desire was to visit my grandma for the last time on her deathbed, even though it was said that she couldn’t recognize anyone.

It was the very first time I sat foot in that remote village. I had expected a lot from it since it was located far away from the city. But in reality, nothing about the village appealed to me. It was just an ordinary village with ordinary people.

My grandma didn’t come to greet me. When I went to meet her, she didn’t even bother to look at me. I could tell by looking in her eyes that she was in pain. But as always, my sweet grandma didn’t want to burden anyone with it. I spent three days in the house without getting out for once. Within these three days, I had constantly sat beside grandma and talked to her in hope that she might recognize her youngest granddaughter at some point. But that didn’t happen.

Finally, it was the fourth day when I got bored of playing offline games on my phone. Since the network connection wasn’t the best at that place, I decided to take a look at my surrounding areas. Like I had mentioned before, the village had nothing interesting to enjoy. There was no place for sightseeing.

After some minutes of aimlessly walking around I came to a stop near what looked like a ruin of an old garden. I spent a minute or two looking at its broken gate. Then I finally went in. Once again, I was disappointed after finding nothing but a bunch of wild plants growing all around the place.

There was an old well at the far corner. I felt like I should go and check it before I left the place for good. As I walked towards it I felt uncomfortable and strange. I remembered I was all alone in an abandoned garden with no house that could be seen or people that could be heard.

Yet I couldn’t turn back without a close view of the well. It was as abandoned as the garden itself. Vines and roots grew all around it. The huge stones had cracks. When I peeked inside I was shocked to see water that hadn’t dried out yet. I could see my reflection perfectly in the black water inside.

I was about to go away when I heard someone behind me. There was a little boy sitting on the ground, his back leaning against the well. 

How come I didn't notice him in the first place?

He wasn’t wearing much clothes than necessary, I guessed it was because of the hot weather. He was dirty from his head to toe. I went closer to check on him. I found out that he was humming a tune while scratching his ankles.

“Hey!” I called him, “What are you doing here, all alone?”

He quitted humming at my intrusion and glanced at me for a moment. Then he looked down on his ankles and started to scratch them again. I felt an urge to stop him from doing that. His feet looked swollen and red.

Instead I asked, “Where are your parents?”

“They died… long ago,” he answered in a low voice.

“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that!” I went closer to sit in front of him, “Do you live nearby?” There were no houses in sight that could suggest his home. But I still looked around for any sign of life.

In reply, the boy looked at the well behind him for a moment. Then, he looked at me and asked, “Are you a foreigner?”

“No. I came from the city.” I replied.

“So, you are a foreigner!” he stated. This time with a thrill in his eyes. So, I nodded my head in defeat. Maybe he considered everyone apart from the villagers a foreigner.

“You shouldn’t do that.” I said, indicating his merciless scratching.

“It’s okay!” he smiled at me, “It doesn’t hurt anymore.”

I studied his face for a while. Even though it was dirty, I could tell that the boy was really beautiful. He had big doe eyes with long eyelashes. His small mouth looked really cute when he smiled. Also, he had the kind of smile that makes others do the same at its sight.

So, I automatically smiled back at him.

“C’mon!” I stood up, “I’m going now. You shouldn’t be here all alone. This place is giving me the creeps.”

“You’re going away already?” the boy asked. The smile on his face was gone. His big eyes were filling up with tears all of a sudden.

“Aww, don’t cry.” I said, giving him my hand, “I'm not leaving you. I’ll take you to your home.”

“I can’t go.” he shook his head.

“Why?” I asked, rather astonished at the bold reply coming from an otherwise soft spoken little boy.

The boy retreated to his previous position. He continued humming the tune and scratched his ankles as well. I tried convincing him to come with me for some time. He started to completely ignore me.

I checked my watch. It was past lunch time. I knew grandfather was probably really angry by now because he doesn’t like delaying meal times. So, I told the boy to go home early and not to come to the place again. I had to leave him alone by the well.

I had almost forgotten all about it. But another meeting reminded me of my encounter with the little boy by the well.

I laid awake in my bed. The little boy sat at the furthest corner from me. I stared at him for some time, watching him scratch his ankles and humming the familiar tune.

When our eyes met, he let himself smile. "You're awake!" He stated.

"What are you doing here?" I asked him.

"I came because you didn't come to see me again." He replied.

"Did you wait for me?" I asked.

The boy nodded.

"Where?"

"Why? By the well in the garden!"

"Didn't I tell you not to go there alone?"

The boy laughed at me, "But I live there, silly."

I didn't understand him. Suddenly I remembered I was sleeping and I hadn't really woken up.

How could I tell that I was dreaming?

"Oh no! You're gonna wake up now, aren't you?" The boy pouted his lips.

"How do you…" I couldn't finish my question. I was already awake. And as I checked, the boy was gone too.

I couldn't make myself go back to sleep again. It was already dawn. So, I walked around the house. I heard my grandma calling me from within her room as I walked past it. My eyes grew larger.

She remembered me!

"Oh, granny. My lovely, granny." I sprinted inside her room and hugged her.

"When did you come, my love?" She asked, a sweet smile on her lips.

"Almost a week ago."

We talked for some time. Grandma said that she felt a lot better and was so happy to see me. She wondered why mother didn't come. I said she was very busy with her work. I lied because I didn't want to worry her about mother's health. And I knew she wasn't the type to get hurt when someone couldn't manage their time. It is a cruel world, after all.

At some point, grandma was reminiscing about the old times. Long ago when she was young and not yet married. She used to live here, in this village, at that time. She talked as if her memory of her childhood was just a few days back. I felt like she had forgotten me at some stage and mistook me for her best friend of childhood instead as she talked.

At one point, I asked her about the old garden. I asked if it was in use at her times. She looked at me with dreadful eyes, "don't speak of it. Don't you know, it's a forbidden place to walk in?"

"Why is it forbidden, Grandma?" I asked curiously.

"Oh, dear!" She suddenly started to laugh, "I keep forgetting that it's you." and placed a kiss on my forehead.

"Grandma," I called, "Please, tell me about the garden. I wanna know."

"It was a long time ago. Even before I was born. There was a legend about the well in the garden." grandma spoke dreamily.

"What legend?"

"At the time when the first gypsies came to settle down in the land, it was a barren one. No river. No rain. Nothing. Nobody knows why the river gypsies chose to live in such a land after years of floating in water. But they struggled against this land. It wasn't habitable for life at all. They decided they'll excavate a well. After months of labor they did it too. But it was only a matter of days  before the water dried out after the well was built."

"Why?" I asked as grandma stopped to take a breath.

Grandma nodded, "it was a cursed place. Everyone in the village had dreams about the well afterwards. An unknown entity would visit them in their dreams and ask them to negotiate with it. The negotiation was a human life in exchange for water.

"People were scared. They forbade everyone to go near the well. They decided to leave the place for good. Some of them even ran away from home in fear. But the nightmares didn't stop. The entity was hungry for human life. Finally, it got what it wanted.

"A little boy of a lonely mother wandered off to the well one day. When he returned home at sunset, both of his legs were found being chained. The mother walked along the long chains only to find that it led inside the very well her people had built. The more they pulled the chains, the more it grew in length, coming out of the dried well. No blacksmith could damage the chain, not even a little scratch could be made on it.

"The villagers started to see a different version of their same old nightmare. The entity now asked them the life of that little boy only. Then, started the gossip.

"The boy was an illegitimate child. His mother was not a very welcomed person in the community. They lived almost a separated life. Maybe the entity chose wisely. Maybe they should abide by its rule. Maybe the boy could be sacrificed for the sake of all.

"But the mother was a mad woman. She wouldn’t give up on her only gem. She would rather her son lived with the chains around his legs forever. The child cried. He cried all day and night. He said that his legs itched. And as he scratched them again and again, the skin had peeled off and left him wounded.

"'Mama, it hurts.' The boy pleaded with his mother to get rid of his shackles. But nothing could be done for his aid. The villagers, at one point, stopped even trying. The herbal remedy his mother gave him was useless.

"'Let me go, then.' The boy pleaded again. His mother denied.

"Finally, the boy decided for himself. When his mother would be asleep, he would go to the well again. He would ask the well what it wanted from him. And so he did. Nobody heard of the little boy anymore. Someone said that the boy had jumped off to the well himself. But nobody knew because there wasn't a body to be found.

"Since that day, there hasn't been any scarcity of water from the well. The well never dried off after. A beautiful garden grew around the land. No-one had any more nightmares. The gypsies finally overcame another adversary that was the most challenging in their community life. They lived happily ever after."

Grandma finished her story and looked at me with a smile.

"But Grandma," I spoke, "this isn't the type of story that ends with 'happily ever after'."

"Why not?" grandma asked, "the villagers, in fact, did live happily."

"What about the boy? And his mother?"

"Now," grandma stated, "they weren't the hero of my story, were they?"

"You've got a point," I said, "But don't you think that the boy could be the most tragic hero if it was said from his perspective?"

"He could be." Grandma thought for a moment, "Why don't you rewrite it in your own words then? Maybe you can do him some justice."

Before I left grandma for breakfast, I asked her one last question, "since everything is resolved, why did you say that it was a forbidden garden in the beginning?"

"Because, darling!" She looked at me as if it was so obvious, "the little boy can still be seen roaming around it."

I went to the garden that day. It was obvious what grandma told me was just a legend. And a legend can be a lie. Or at least partially. Maybe there was an incident of a boy's drowning. Maybe the nightmares originated from the collective superstitious belief of the gypsies. Or maybe, just maybe, there was an entity involved.

Whatever happened a long time ago, I could never know them for sure. I could only assume the story from my perspective and my beliefs in particular superstitions. But I didn't feel like I could rest till I saw that little boy again and demanded some kind of explanation. It might sound a little crazy to the readers but my mind couldn't make out any reasonable explanation of the boy's peculiar behavior at the moment.

I waited from morning till noon. But he didn't come. I didn’t know that some terrible news awaited me at home other than the fear that grandfather might be mad at me for missing another lunch.

Grandma was no more. My sweet, lovely grandma. The grandma who had talked with me just this dawn. I was told that the servant found her dead when he went to serve her breakfast. I almost didn’t believe it. But I accepted at last as we all do eventually.

I stayed till the funeral was over. Then I immediately packed everything to leave the place. I didn’t think I could stay at the house without feeling my grandma's presence.

But before I left, I had to solve something within myself. I had to see the boy again. I went to the garden for the last time. And as expected he was already waiting for me.

"Why didn't you tell me everything beforehand?" I questioned him, "Didn't you want me to know?"

"You know because I showed you." The same old smile on his face.

"But why me, of all people?"

He walked towards me and placed his cold hands on mine. It was the only time he had really touched me. He said hopefully, "You'll let them know, won't you? They'll finally know."

"Know what?" I asked, a little confused.

"The truth!"

I didn't understand him wholly that day. After years it somehow dawned on me. The little boy wanted the world to know. Not just the legend of the well in the garden. But the little life it took that made it possible.

Author's note: The story is inspired by a folktale my grandma had long ago told me that originated from her hometown. It was about how a pond was excavated and a child's life was offered for it to contain water. There are many versions of this story. The story is really memorable to me and honestly, I still get chills whenever I think about it. I made some changes to the plot to match the given prompt. I don't know if I could do it any justice. But I'm glad I made an effort to preserve one of the less known folktales of my country.

P.S. The country is Bangladesh…