The morning after the USB incident felt fake.

Ha, well not really.

Taehyun hadn’t slept. His curtains were shut. His lights stayed off. And the glow from his monitor, now unplugged lingered in his mind. The video wouldn’t stop replaying in his head. 02:43. That scene. Gross. Everything was tainted. Even the air in his apartment felt different.  Still, somehow, he found himself shoving on a hoodie and jeans like nothing was wrong. Because skipping class wouldn’t help. It’d only give сглазить (sglazit) more space to fuck with him. And he refused to look scared. If this freak wanted a reaction, he wasn’t gonna get it. Or so Taehyun told himself. His hands were still shaking when he locked the door behind him.

The campus felt… off. Man no.. stop overthinking!  The sky was clear. Kids were on the lawn laughing. The cafe line stretched around the building. And here he was. First period passed quick. Then the next. He barely noticed people talking to him. The only thing he could register was the occasional buzzing from his phone. God.. But he never checked it. Couldn’t after last time. Then came third period. The only class he actually cared about, actually the only class he really felt comfortable in. But today, that would be a mistake “Alright, everyone,” the professor’s voice rang through the room as she set her bag on the desk. “Today, you’ll be working in pairs. But instead of picking your usual friends, I’ll be assigning them randomly!! New connections, right?” She smiled.  A wave of groans followed. Taehyun slumped in his seat. He wanted to pair with Jiwoo, a friend in the class, at least that way, they could get the work done fast and leave early. But no, of course not. She started listing names.

“Minji and Nina. Hani and Hyunmin. Jiwoo and Luke…”

Fuck, already gone! He zoned out as the names continued, only tuning back in when she finally said

“…And lastly, Yoon Taehyun and Jang Seojun. That’s it! If you haven’t moved yet, go meet your partner! Today’s assignment is mostly discussion based. Use the time to get to know them.”

Taehyun blinked. Who? He glanced around, trying to pick out anyone looking his way. The name didn’t ring any bells. Jang Seojun…? Then a tap. A gentle, deliberate tap on his shoulder. He turned and froze. Some guy stood behind him, maybe his age. His posture was crooked in a casual way, like someone who hadn’t stood up straight in years and didn’t plan to start now. Dark, fluffy hair hung slightly over his eyes. There were bandaids on his fingers. A cut on his cheek. His skin was pale and smooth, like eerily perfect, photoshopped smooth. Not a single flaw.

But his eyes…

Those eyes... Pitch black. Almost entirely, but with a shine. A flicker?? Hmm, weird. But still man! They weren’t just dark. They were… empty but full. Meh, why the hell does Taehyun care how some guys eyes look like, pfft. 

The guy grinned, sliding into the chair next to him. “Well, Taehyun. Guess we’re partners”

Taehyun blinked, then nodded slowly. “Uh… right.

“I know.” The grin deepened. What? He studied the guy again. There was something off. Something familiar. But his brain wasn’t connecting the dots. Not until Seojun tilted his head just slightly “Why’re you looking at me like that? Recognize me?”

Taehyun’s breath hitched.

No..!!??

No fucking way??!

The voice. The eyes...? That fucking spark. Just for a split second but he saw it. That same flash from the reflection in the window. From that messages. From the goddamn USB footage!

It was him..

That… was сглазить (sglazit)?

His whole body went cold.

“Oh,” Seojun said casually, letting his fingers trail across the table surface, “did you figured it out already? Cause, pfft, you seem pretty shocked!”

Taehyun didn’t speak. He couldn’t. The words, where eh... stuck? His mind was on fire. What the fuck was he supposed to do? Stand up and run? Scream? No one here knew. And Seojun just kept smiling like he didn’t just stalk him or something.. 

“Oh, don’t look so scared,” Seojun teased, voice honey slick. “I’m your partner, remember? We’re supposed to be learning about each other.”

The professor passed by their row, glancing down at them. “Everything alright, you two?”

Taehyun jolted upright. “Yeah. All good..”

She nodded and kept walking.

Seojun snickered under his breath. “You’re a terrible liar.”

“What do you want?”

“Mm… too soon.” Seojun tapped the side of his head like he was thinking. “Let’s just say I missed you. Thought it’d be fun to say hi.”

“You stalked me.”

“Don’t be dramatic.”

“You broke into my apartment.”

“I left you a gift. Thought you’d like it.” His voice dipped, suddenly lower. “You did, didn’t you?”

Taehyun looked away, face burning with shame. “You’re fucking insane.”

“That’s fair.” Seojun leaned closer. “But you’re interesting. You’re smart. Way smarter than those lame hacker. You actually got in. Tho it was only.. For like, two seconds hah. But you did.” Taehyun froze. So he was the failed hack from high school.. That red room user he tried to shut down. His heart dropped.

“You’re… vortex..???” he whispered.

(the username Seojun went by before)

Seojun’s smile didn’t falter. “Ding ding. Though I go by сглазить(sklazit) now. New me, new alias.”

“Why me? Why are you even doing this though?”

Seojun shrugged. “Payback. Man why else? Weirdo”

No way this moron is calling him a weirdo.

Taehyun stood up, almost knocking the chair back, but Seojun grabbed his wrist.

“Sit down, Taehyun” he said, soft but razor-sharp. “We’re not done yet.”

“You’ve been watching me..!”

"Meh, kinda. Though you wont imagine how hard it was to find your information, but eventually I did”

“You could’ve said something.”

“Where’s the fun in that?” Seojun tilted his head. “Besides, it’s better when I get to watch you so shocked”

Taehyun yanked his hand away.

He didn’t care if anyone looked. He needed to breathe. But Seojun just laughed again and leaned back like they were in a cafe or some study session.

“Oh, right,” he said, pulling out a pen, “I guess we’re supposed to fill out this worksheet thing. Wanna lie about our hobbies?”

Taehyun stared at him. God, those fucking eyes.. The second he looked at them again, he felt it. That same feeling from the night before. His reflection, the cold air, the stickiness of fear crawling down his spine. He looked away. He had to get out of here at least figure out who this guy really was. Or how to stop him.  But for now, all he could do… was nothing actually

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-Author

sigh