CHAPTER — THE MONSTER YOU SEE
[Jayjay's POV]
It was the middle of the night when I heard it.
A scream.
Sharp. Broken. Desperate.
My eyes flew open, my heart immediately racing.
For a second, I thought it was a nightmare.
But then—
"Please…! Stop—!"
Another cry.
Real.
I sat up quickly, my hands gripping the bedsheets.
What… was that?
I got out of bed slowly, my feet cold against the floor. The house was dark, silent—too silent for something like that to exist inside it.
But the screams didn't stop.
They echoed faintly through the hallway.
Calling me.
I swallowed hard.
And followed.
---
Each step felt heavier than the last.
The deeper I went into the hallway, the louder it became. My heart pounded so hard it hurt.
Turn back, a voice in my head whispered.
But I didn't.
I couldn't.
Not when someone was begging like that.
I stopped in front of a door.
The screams were coming from inside.
My hand trembled as I reached for the handle.
And slowly—
I pushed it open.
---
I wish I hadn't.
The sight in front of me made my breath hitch violently.
A man.
Tied to a chair.
Bruised.
Bleeding.
Barely conscious.
His head snapped up the moment he saw me, eyes wide with desperation.
"Help me…" he croaked. "Please…"
My heart shattered instantly.
"Oh my God—"
I rushed toward him without thinking, my hands shaking as I tried to untie the ropes.
"Don't worry, I'll help you… you'll be okay…"
"Th-thank you…" he whispered, his voice breaking.
The ropes loosened.
His body slumped forward as soon as he was free.
"We—we have to get you out—"
The door slammed open.
My entire body froze.
I didn't have to turn around.
I felt him.
Keifer.
And the silence that followed was worse than the screams.
---
"What… did you do?"
His voice was low.
Dangerously low.
I turned slowly, my heart racing.
"I—he was—he needed help—"
Before I could finish—
He grabbed my wrist.
Hard.
I gasped in pain. "Keifer—!"
His grip tightened, sharp and unrelenting.
"H-have you lost your mind?" he snapped, dragging me out of the room.
"It hurts—please—let go—!"
But he didn't.
He pulled me into his room and shut the door with force.
I stumbled slightly, trying to free my wrist.
"Keifer, you're hurting me—"
"Do you have any idea what you just did?" he shouted.
I flinched.
Tears filled my eyes instantly.
"He was dying!" I cried. "I couldn't just leave him like that!"
"You don't interfere in things you don't understand!"
"Then what is this?!" I yelled back, my voice shaking. "Torturing people?!"
His eyes darkened.
"This is my world."
I shook my head, tears spilling over.
"No… this is cruelty."
Silence.
Heavy.
Deadly.
I looked at him, my chest rising and falling rapidly.
"You're a villain."
The moment the words left my mouth—
I knew.
I shouldn't have said that.
---
His expression changed.
Completely.
Cold turned into something darker.
Something dangerous.
"Is that what you think?" he asked quietly.
I stepped back slightly.
"Keifer…"
"Fine."
Before I could react—
He grabbed my wrist again and dragged me out.
"No—wait—!"
Back to that room.
Back to that man.
"No, Keifer please—!"
He shoved me slightly forward, forcing me to stand there.
"Since you want to interfere…" he said coldly, rolling up his sleeves.
"Watch."
My heart dropped.
"No…"
He turned to the man—
And hit him.
The sound echoed.
Loud.
Brutal.
"Stop!" I cried, rushing forward slightly. "Please don't—!"
Another hit.
The man screamed.
"Please…! I'll tell you everything—!"
"I don't need everything," Keifer said coldly. "I need the truth."
"Keifer stop, please!" I sobbed. "You're going to kill him!"
But he didn't listen.
Didn't even look at me.
Another hit.
And another.
Each one louder than the last.
Each one breaking something inside me.
"Please stop—!" I begged, my voice cracking. "Please, I'm begging you!"
But he didn't stop.
---
And then—
It hit me.
A memory.
A sound.
A scream.
"Jay… run…"
My breath caught.
No.
Not this.
Not again.
---
FLASHBACK
Darkness.
Cold hands.
Rough voices.
I was shaking.
"Please… don't hurt us…"
Beside me—
Him.
Liam
My best friend.
My first everything.
"Stay behind me," he whispered, his voice trembling but firm.
"No… no, Liam—"
A knife.
Shining.
Coming toward me.
I froze.
I couldn't move.
"Jay!"
And then—
Pain.
But not mine.
His.
He stepped in front of me.
The blade—
Went into him.
"LIAM!" I screamed, falling to my knees as he collapsed.
Blood.
So much blood.
"Stay with me… please, stay with me…" I cried, holding him.
He smiled weakly.
"I'm… glad it was me…"
"No! Don't say that—please—!"
"Jay…"
His hand slipped from mine.
"Wake up… please… wake up…"
But he didn't.
He never did.
---
BACK TO PRESENT
"Stop—!!"
I screamed.
Loud.
Broken.
Desperate.
My entire body was shaking.
"Stop, please—!!"
Everything blurred.
The man.
The blood.
Keifer—
It all mixed together.
I couldn't breathe.
"I said STOP!"
Silence.
Sudden.
Heavy.
The hits stopped.
---
I looked up.
Keifer was staring at me.
Not cold.
Not angry.
Something else.
Something I couldn't understand.
My vision blurred completely now, tears falling uncontrollably.
"I can't…" I whispered. "I can't do this…"
My legs gave out.
The last thing I saw—
Was him.
Before everything went dark.
---
Keifer's POV
She collapsed.
Right in front of me.
"Jay—!"
I caught her before she hit the ground, my heart pounding harder than it ever had.
Her face was pale.
Too pale.
"Hey—hey, wake up—" I said, my voice tighter than usual.
No response.
Damn it.
"Call the doctor. Now." I snapped to one of my men.
I lifted her into my arms without another thought and carried her out of that room.
Out of that mess.
Into mine.
---
Minutes felt like hours.
She lay on the bed, unmoving.
And I—
I couldn't stop looking at her.
That expression.
That fear.
That scream—
It wasn't just fear.
It was something deeper.
Something broken.
---
"The doctor is here."
I stepped back slightly as the doctor examined her.
"What happened?" he asked.
"…She fainted."
He gave me a look but didn't push.
After a few minutes, he straightened.
"She's under severe stress," he said. "And it seems like something triggered a past traumatic memory."
My jaw tightened.
"Trauma?"
He nodded. "Yes. Whatever she saw… it reminded her of something painful."
My chest felt… off.
Heavy.
Uncomfortable.
"She needs rest. And no more exposure to… things like this."
I didn't respond.
I couldn't.
Because I knew.
This—
Was my fault.
After the doctor left, the room fell silent again.
I sat beside her.
Watching her.
Her face was calmer now… but her brows were still slightly furrowed, like even in unconsciousness, she couldn't escape it.
I exhaled slowly.
Annoyed.
At myself.
Why did I bring her there?
Why did I make her watch?
I ran a hand through my hair.
"…Idiot."
A part of me expected her to be strong.
To handle it.
But I forgot—
She wasn't from this world.
Not really.
---
My gaze softened slightly as I looked at her.
That scream…
It stayed with me.
"I can't do this…"
Her voice echoed in my head.
Something tightened in my chest.
Unfamiliar.
Unwanted.
…Real.
I leaned back slightly, still watching her.
And that's when it hit me.
A quiet realization.
Unwelcome.
But undeniable.
A part of me—
Didn't like seeing her like that.
A part of me—
Didn't want her to get hurt.
A part of me…
Liked her.
I looked away immediately, my expression hardening again.
"No," I muttered under my breath.
That's not possible.
This is just an arrangement
Nothing else
Right ?
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