¡trigger warning! (sleep paralysis)

***

minho's fingers itched, twitching to grab onto something -- anything -- but he stayed still and firm on top of his bed, willing himself to remain motionless.

the cool air from the only window inside his room dawned on the surface of his skin, making goosebumps erupt all over. an icy chill settled upon his back and raced down his spine.

minho clenched his eyelids shut, and darkness filled every corner of his mind. he wrapped his arms around his form, hoping that the blankets around him would protect him from the bitter cold.

a sudden streak of lightning struck the outside of his room, illuminating the window, and when the first few rounds of thunder took place, minho's body started to shake.

his hands trembled as he fisted them over his chest, nails digging into his flesh as lightning struck again. the earthy smell of pounding rain invaded his nostrils, and minho tried his hardest to settle his excrutiatingly loud heartbeat.

thunder roared once more, and minho let out a scared whimper in response. his hands sprung up from his chest and settled over his ears, trying to block out all the unpleasant sounds. he'd always hated it whenever there was a thunderstorm like this one.

"minho..."

minho's eyes snapped open at the piercing whisper, darting every-which way to figure out where that terrifyingly familiar voice came from.

a hard lump formed in his throat when his gaze fell on an indistinguishable shadow that seeped through the opening his window provided. his eyes widened in terror, body paralyzed in fear as the shadow grew bigger, materializing into something more sinister, more human-like.

"minho, you've been bad..."

minho couldn't speak, and as the shadow drew closer and closer to his bed, his entire body trembled, but yet he couldn't move.

"don't try to leave me, minho. you can't." a deep, full voice vibrated off the walls of minho's room as feathery light touches that felt so cold dusted over his arms, stroking over his cheekbones and stopping just beneath his bottom lip. "you need me, minho. and i love you."

"j-jisung -- " minho slurred, unable to form an actual sentence as the shadow brought him closer and held him within its deathly cool embrace.

for some reason, tears started forming within minho's eyes, dripping down his cheeks a few seconds later.

"awh, don't cry minho. a pretty face like yours doesn't deserve to cry." cold touches shifted underneath his eyes to wipe off the tears, and minho just couldn't move way.

his heartbeat rang so loud in his ears that it was the only thing he could hear, and his lungs felt like they were burning out. it felt impossible to breathe, and his chest rose and fell uncontrollably as something unimaginably cool lightly ghosted over his lips, kissing them.

a fear so great consumed minho right then. his body convulsed and his head throbbed with so much pain and anxiety. he felt like he was drowning into an endless void full of nothing.

"you can never leave me, minho. we're going to be together forever..."

minho wanted to reach out and escape, but he was being weighed down, sinking lower and lower into the well of disasterous emotions that kept him captive.

i can't...

i can't breathe...

i can't breathe!

minho inhaled a large breath as he sat up on his bed, his body drenched with sweat and his chest heaving in a mismatched rhythm.

his eyes frantically searched his room for any signs of the shadow or something that indicated that what he'd just experienced was real, but his room looked the same as it normally did. it was still raining as well.

even though minho knew that this was nothing more than a shitty nightmare, he struggled to push himself off his bed and look for his phone. as soon as his feet descended on the freezing floor, his knees buckled and he landed on the ground.

the headache came back again, and he groaned at the harsh pain that invaded all his senses.

my phone, my phone, where is my phone?! minho hurriedly thought, crawling around his room because his legs wouldn't allow him to stand up.

his heart was still beating rapidly, and the walls felt like they were closing in. he found it hard to swallow, like his throat was suddenly encased in an iron grip, and dark dots started forming at the edges of his vision.

"where is my phone?!" minho screamed to himself, sobs racking through his lips when he didn't see any sigh of his phone anywhere. the room felt too dark, and he couldn't even stand up to turn on the switch. "m-my phone..."

hot tears ran down his face as he continued to aimlessly search for the one thing that could get him out of this mess, because he felt alone, felt like he was in danger.

a dim light flashed at the corner of his eyes, which alerted his attention, and suddenly his arms reached out to grab the phone that had been somehow positioned beneath his bed.

it was a missed call from seungmin.

with shaking fingers, minho unlocked his phone and dialed back his friend's number, pressing it to his right ear. tears of happiness left his eyes when the call went through, and his vision grew hazy when he heard the familiar timbre of his friend's voice.

"minho, are you okay? i was worried about you, ever since it started to rain, so that's why i decided to call you -- minho? minho, are you alright?"

minho hugged his knees as he continued to bawl, burying his face into his palms.

"minho, are you -- are you crying?"

minho couldn't answer. he just continued to sob, pathetic as always.

"minho, i'm coming over right now, you hear me? don't do anything stupid, okay? i'm heading over."

minho didn't reply. he just felt tired. so, so tired of everything.

***

a/n: thoughts so far?