Chapter 14: Something Followed Us Back

The moment Jungkook crashed through the glowing rift, he felt the shift.

It wasn’t just the return to reality—the dim light of their practice room, the familiar scent of wooden floors and worn-out microphones. It was something else.

Something wrong.

He hit the floor hard, his palms scraping against the cool surface as he gasped for breath. The others landed behind him, their chests rising and falling with the same frantic exhaustion.

For a second, no one spoke.

Then Jimin broke the silence. “Tell me we left them behind.”

Namjoon ran a shaky hand through his hair. “The rift closed.” He turned to Hana. “Right?”

Hana swallowed, staring at the now-empty air where the portal had been. “It should have.”

Should have.

Jungkook’s fingers dug into the floor. That wasn’t an answer.

Yoongi sat up, his face pale. “Did you hear what they said?”

No one needed reminding.

"The door is open."

The words clung to Jungkook’s mind like a shadow, whispering in the back of his thoughts. He knew they had escaped the Archive. He knew they had returned.

So why did the room feel so suffocating?

Jin pushed himself upright. “We need to check—”

The lights flickered.

The room plunged into darkness for half a second, then blinked back to life.

A cold silence followed.

Jungkook’s stomach dropped.

Taehyung’s voice was hushed. “Did anyone else feel that?”

The air was heavier. The room, just moments ago filled with their ragged breaths, now felt too still.

Then they heard it.

A whisper.

Not from the Archive.

Not from their memories.

From here.

Jungkook’s blood turned ice cold. He turned his head, heart hammering.

In the mirror across the room, something moved.

A shadow.

No—a figure.

It stood just beyond the glass’s surface, its form indistinct but watching. It wasn’t a reflection. It wasn’t one of them.

It was something else.

Jimin’s breath hitched. “Oh my God.”

The whisper came again. This time, they all heard it.

"You brought us home."

Jungkook’s body locked up. His instincts screamed run, but his feet refused to move. His own reflection seemed distorted—too slow, too delayed. The shadow in the mirror tilted its head.

Hana reacted first. She yanked a silver charm from her pocket, tossing it toward the mirror. The moment it hit the surface, the lights exploded.

Glass shattered.

The room was swallowed by darkness.

A second passed—then two.

When the backup lights flickered on, the shadow was gone.

Only their broken reflections remained, staring back at them from the shards scattered across the floor.

Yoongi’s voice was hoarse. “Tell me that didn’t just happen.”

No one spoke.

Because deep down, they already knew.

The song had been erased for a reason.

And now—

Something from the other side was here with them.