The rainy season... our senior year of high school.
The scent of damp earth permeating the air.
The rhythm of raindrops striking the rusted tin roof of the old gymnasium. It remains the most vivid, agonizing memory buried in my heart. It never faded. Not for a single second.
"Yurin! Over here!"
A tall boy in a slightly untucked high school uniform waved from the wooden bleachers. His sharp features bore a wide, eye-crinkling smile. A smile brighter than the sun on an overcast day.
The smile of an eighteen-year-old 'Ren'.
Ren back then was not a cold-blooded monster. He was a playful boy. The star captain of the basketball team adored by every girl in school. And the sole best friend of an invisible nobody like me.
"Took you long enough. I've been waiting forever," Ren grumbled. But he immediately shifted on the bleachers, making room for me.
"Sorry... The teacher let us out late. And it's pouring." I mumbled, sitting beside him.
Our shoulders brushed. That fleeting contact made my heart race so violently I feared he would hear it.
We frequently hid from the rain in the old gym after school. Our secret sanctuary.
Sharing a pair of earphones. Listening to the slow love songs trending at the time.
"Do you think... if I confess to Amy, the sophomore star, I'll get rejected?" Ren asked suddenly.
I stared at the rain lashing against the window. My heart lurched. Like a needle piercing my chest. A sharp ache spread through my veins. I had harbored feelings for Ren for a long time. But I never dared to speak. The word 'friend' shackled my tongue.
"Y-You should try. You're handsome. Anyone would like you." I forced a smile. Even though my soul screamed, 'Don't like anyone else.'
Ren turned to me. His deep, pitch-black eyes stared directly into mine, searching for a hidden truth. He chuckled softly and flicked my forehead.
Flick! "Ouch! That hurts, Ren!" I rubbed my forehead.
"Idiot..." Ren smirked. He leaned in until our noses nearly touched. "I don't like her. I was just testing you."
"Huh?" My eyes widened. I wasn't sure if I heard him correctly.
"I already have someone I like." His voice dropped to a whisper. His sharp gaze
lowered to my lips. "And he is... right here."
The world stopped spinning. The torrential rain outside morphed into the background score of a bittersweet romance.
Ren leaned closer. Our lips were inches apart. Our warm breaths mingled, scorching my cheeks. This would be our second kiss, following the first accidental one. A sweet memory was about to be forged.
Rumble... The metal door across the gym slid open, shattering the moment!
We jolted. We sprang apart in panic.
"Who's there?" Ren shouted.
No response. Only a looming silhouette slipping past the back door, disappearing into the dark equipment storage zone.
"Probably the janitor. Or a stray cat."
Ren stood, dusting his pants to mask the awkwardness. "I'll go check. I left my basketball in the storage room anyway. Then we can head home."
"Wait here. I'll be right back."
"Yeah... Hurry. The rain is letting up." I nodded. I watched his broad back jog away, vanishing into the shadows of the back gym.
Ten minutes passed.
Ren didn't return. The fading rain surged back with a vengeance. Thunder cracked the sky.
Crash! Lightning illuminated the old gym, doubling the eerie atmosphere.
Dread pooled in my stomach. A dark premonition warned me something was wrong. I stood up to follow him.
The corridor to the storage room was pitch black. A broken fluorescent bulb flickered. Buzz... Click... The suffocating stench of mold and dust mingled with the damp rain.
"Ren?"
I called out softly. My voice echoed down the hollow hall. No answer. Only a faint rustling sound echoing from the room at the end.
I approached. The old wooden door was slightly ajar. My heart hammered in terror. My hands turned to ice. I pressed my face to the gap and peered inside.
Crash! Lightning flashed through the small window.
In that fraction of a second, my world collapsed. The sight would haunt me until my dying day.
Ren lay face down on an old gymnastics mat. His white uniform shirt was shredded, exposing his bare back. The silhouette of a man straddled him.
The man wore a pitch-black hoodie. His face was entirely obscured. I only saw a tall, muscular build. His hands brutally pinned both of Ren's arms behind his back.
"Mmph!! Let go! Ghk!"
Ren's muffled screams leaked out, stifled by a hand clamped over his mouth. He thrashed for his life. His legs kicked violently against the floor. But he couldn't overpower the man.
The attacker leaned down and whispered into Ren's ear. I couldn't hear the words. But Ren shuddered violently. He stopped thrashing. As if paralyzed by the most terrifying threat imaginable.
Clink... Clink... The metallic rattle of a belt buckle pierced the silence. The attacker was unbuckling his belt. He was going to ruin my best friend's life!
Help! Ren is being attacked! My brain screamed at me to charge in. To shout for a teacher, the janitor, anyone!
But my legs refused to move. Terror consumed my heart, turning me to stone. I stood trembling at the door. Tears streamed down my face in sheer panic.
I was scared. Afraid that if I intervened, I would be killed. Afraid I would become the next victim.
"Hic... Yurin... help..."
Ren's faint, broken plea leaked out. Shaking with absolute terror.
He turned his head toward the door. His tear-filled, terrified eyes stared directly through the gap.
He saw me! He knew I was there!
That gaze begged for his life. Begged for salvation from his only best friend.
In that second, cowardice swallowed my soul whole. I stepped back. I shook my head, weeping. I'm sorry, Ren... I'm sorry. I am a coward. I turned and ran.
I sprinted through the dark corridor. I charged into the raging storm, fleeing that hell. Leaving my best friend alone with a faceless demon. Leaving him to endure the most brutal fate of his life. While I turned my back on him.
I arrived home soaked to the bone, my mind completely shattered. Shivering. Weeping uncontrollably. Mumbling endless apologies. But God played a cruel second joke. Denying me any chance to make it right.
"Yurin! Pack your things! We have to run!"
My parents frantically loaded our belongings into an old pickup truck in the rain. The house was being repossessed. Loan sharks were hunting my father down.
"No... Mom... Ren... I have to help Ren." I mumbled like a madman, refusing to get in the truck.
"There is no time! They are here!"
My mother dragged me into the cab. She locked the doors. The truck sped out of the neighborhood, slicing through the storm. I pressed my face against the rear window. I stared through the rain. The school building and the old gym stood in the distance. Shrinking. Fading. Swallowed by the curtain of rain.
I abandoned him. I left him on the day he needed me most. Never knowing who assaulted him. Only knowing it was my fault for lacking courage. And that exact sin returned to claim its debt today.
Gasp!
I jolted awake on the expansive bed in the penthouse. Drenched in sweat. Tears soaked my pillow. The same nightmare. The same guilt devouring my heart on repeat. The thunder still echoed in my ears.
Clink! The metal chain rattled against my ankle, dragging me back to a brutal reality. I looked down at the silver chain binding my left leg.
Ren... the best friend who became a victim that day. He had now grown into the monster, locking me away to vent his vengeance.
He must truly despise me for abandoning him. Everything he did to me now. The ruthlessness. The absolute dominance. The captivity. It was the punishment for a traitor. And I deserved to pay this price.
Creak... The security door unlatched. Ren walked in. His face was a mask of cold apathy. Completely devoid of emotion.
He carried a tray of steaming breakfast. He placed it on the nightstand and sat beside me on the bed. His expensive cologne entirely masked the scent of the past.
His large hand reached out, gently brushing the sweat-dampened hair from my forehead.
The touch was freezing. Laced with lethal danger.
"Awake?" he asked flatly, staring deep into my swollen eyes. "Nightmare? You're soaked."
I nodded slowly. I lowered my head, unable to meet his gaze even in my dreams.
"Good." Ren smirked. "Dream often. Memorize that fear."
He forced my chin up, commanding me to look into his pitch-black eyes.
"Because the reality you will face with me from now on..."
"...will be far more terrifying than any dream."