genre: mystery + thriller + angst + fluff (?).
word count: 9.02k (pray for my fingers)
date: various dates; july 1995 -- march 2019.
status: unedited; there is a large amount of mistakes, please excuse them.

sypnosis: in which a fan takes his obsession with his idol too far.

warnings: this chapter involves themes of child neglect, divorce, substance abuse, stalking, character death, obsessive behavior and kidnapping. if you feel as if you are not comfortable reading this chapter, then that is completely understandable. we can meet in a future chapter, but for the time being, click off and go take care of yourself. ♡︎

author's note: okay, before we start, the way that things are placed and phrased within this chapter are completely inspired by the forensic youtubers eleanor neale and anna solves. and, if you are choosing to read on then make sure to sit down for this chapter, because it is going to be one hell of a ride.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

     AS UNFORTUNATE AS IT IS, it's not uncommon in the K-pop world to witness fans overstepping their bounderies, such as becoming possessive of their idols, developing unhealthy obsessions with them, and some even attempting to influence their personal lives. today, I'll tell you about a perfect example of one of these circumstances: a story about a K-pop fanboy who almost committed the ultimate crime because of his love for his idol.

Let's dive in!

I need to take you back to July 1995, Lee Dowon's birth month and year, in order for this story to make sense. Lee Dowon was born on July 3rd, 1995, in the town of Icheon, South Korea, to South Korean parents Lee Yejun and Lee Hyunwoo.

Dowon was the target of cruel jokes and taunts from his peers for a brief period of his life, but he overcame this and was able to adjust to his circumstances. He had a typical childhood, as a straight A student with a wide range of interests that included arts and crafts, as well as playing the guitar! To put it mildly, he was a gifted child with a promising future.

When he turned ten, however, his life was flipped upside down when his parents, Yejun and Hyunwoo, decided to divorce after several months of being at odds with each other. Dowon was affected particularly hard by this separation, as he would now have to live with his mother indefinitely, while his father would be granted visitation privileges, as the court ordered after Yejun opted to fight for sole custody of Dowon.

Everything was going well until Yejun's mother, who had been alone for two years, chose to remarry. Choi Sanghoon, her new husband, completely controlled her life, and Yejun, blinded by love, failed to notice this. She even began to disregard her son's needs, putting her love life ahead of Dowon.

Dowon asked the court to live with his father after a period of being sick and tired of his mother's neglect, and this was allowed. However, living with his father did not go as smoothly as he had hoped, since Hyunwoo had turned to alcohol and drank practically every day in a desperate attempt to fill the emptiness in his soul left by his divorce from Yejun.

He put up with it and had to throw away his father's empty beer bottles on many occasions. After seeing what Dowon had to go through, his aunt, Lee Siwoo, decided to formally adopt him after paying him a visit and feeling pity for him. He then relocated to Seoul, South Korea, to live with her in her apartment. He began to thrive in his new environment after enrolling at a new school and making new acquaintances. For the first time in a long time, things were beginning to look up for him.

After his aunt, Siwoo, died of mysterious causes, things began to spiral down for him again after a period of time. As you might expect, this saddened Dowon, and he eventually lost interest in his studies, just as he was finishing his senior year of high school. He began to feel alone, as if everything and everyone was conspiring against him.

However, he soon discovered the world of K-pop, and it seemed as if all of his difficulties had vanished! When listening to the genre, he was transported to another universe, one where he was no longer Lee Dowon but someone else, someone whose life was not as harsh as his.

Dowon grew enamored with the genre and began listening to it on a daily basis, with Wonder Girls and Shinee being among his favorite musicians. He was devastated after one of his ult groups, Wonder Girls, disbanded in early 2017, after months of being a major Wonderful. A few months later, after surfing through the net for a while, he came across a song by BlackPink, a rookie group that had just debuted a few months prior and was steadily rising to prominence with their girl crush theme.

Soon enough, he was enthralled by them, and their choreography, catchy songs, and aesthetically pleasing music videos blew him away. Dowon joined the millions of people who call themselves Blinks around the world as one of their fans. He was fascinated by all of the members, but he was particularly drawn to one member; Alyssa Castillo. He felt he could relate to her in a number of ways, some of which were significant and others of which were insignificant, such as the fact that they both had to go to the large city with their aunts at some point in their life and that they shared a zodiac sign.

Dowon started supporting the group and continued to do so even after Alyssa's departure and solo debut. He also supported Alyssa by purchasing all of her solo albums and merchandise, attending her concerts and fan meets, and doing his best to keep up with her, even on days when he had work. It's safe to say that a significant portion of his earnings from his job as a cashier at a store went towards Alyssa.

He chose to send Alyssa a piece of fan mail one day in which he detailed in vivid description his love for her, how much adoration he has for her, and how much he hopes to marry her someday. Alyssa, unsure of how to answer, sent back photos of herself and autographed them, putting adorable doodles of smiley faces and hearts all over the blank areas of the photos, and writing in a marker on the back of them:

Thank you for all the support! I'm glad to know that I am able to bring a positive change into your life. As an artist, I consider myself truly blessed to have a fan like you. Stay happy and safe.

All the love in the world,
Alyssa Castillo.

As rare as it is for artists to respond to fan letters, she used to do so in early 2018. Because Alyssa's fandom, Universes, was small at the time, she didn't feel swamped by the amount of mail she received, and she felt obligated to write back to her fans because it was the least she could do to show her thanks for all the support Universes had shown her. However, because of this one innocent expression of gratitude that resulted in catastrophe, Alyssa no longer accepts fan mail or presents.

Dowon, as you might expect, was overjoyed when he received Alyssa's reply to his letter. When Alyssa responded, she was attempting to show him that she was uninterested in his proposal and only saw him as a fan, which is why she used the words "a fan like you." Dowon, on the other hand, misinterpreted the letter and began to believe that she shared his sentiments about marriage when, in fact, she was simply trying to let him down gradually.

Dowon's obsession with Alyssa grew even more after he misunderstood the letter, believing that they were life partners and that they were meant to be, and that it would only be a matter of time before Alyssa takes notice of him, realises they are a perfect match, and they marry and have children. Pretty delusory, right?

Anyways, Dowon attended Alyssa's every event, each time hoping that she would somehow, magically, fall in love with him after seeing his face among the sea of people in her concert crowds. He even had to get two additional jobs just to be able to maintain his obsession with Alyssa.

As a result, Dowon continued to support Alyssa, following her around everywhere in the hopes that she would notice him. When Taehyung and Alyssa's relationship was exposed by Dispatch a few months later, in October 2018, numerous emotions washed through his body as he read the article: anger, sadness, but mostly betrayal. He felt as if she had betrayed him, as if she had cheated on him behind his back, as if she had shattered their some-what special bond.

As a result, Dowon devised a strategy to separate Taehyung and Alyssa. He'd give her several warning signs, such as sending her signals that she should leave him, and if she disregarded them, he'd make her pay, but he wished it wouldn't come to that.

He then proceeded to carry out the first phase of his plan, beginning by obtaining Alyssa's phone number from another saeseng, but at a cost, and a very large one at that. Dowon began sending her text messages from a burner phone, which were initially slightly threatening, but became fatal as the days progressed.

Obviously, Alyssa was disturbed when she received these texts, but she initially assumed it was just a bored adolescent playing a sick prank on her, so she blocked the number. However, this was ineffective, as several other hidden numbers began sending her text messages, all of which said the same thing before continuing to torment her:

UNKOWN NUMBER: Soon, you will be mine.

When she realised her efforts had been in vain, Alyssa decided to change her phone number, but as she would soon discover, this did not work out as well. Dowon found that she had a new phone number, acquired it, and then began sending her threatening text messages once more, leading Alyssa down yet another rabbit hole of confusion.

He then revealed the second phase of his plan after noticing that Alyssa was becoming fearful and that his plan was starting to take shape. He began by trailing her every move, doing his best to follow her around during her daily activities, which required him to quit one of his three jobs, which he didn't mind because he had never liked it to begin with. He saw exactly who she was meeting with and what she was doing with them during the time he was watching her, one of whom was Taehyung. He became enraged when he realised that text messages were not working, so in a fit of rage, he threw a brick into Alyssa's kitchen window with a note attached one night while she was watching a movie with her boyfriend.

When she heard the peircing sound of glass breaking, Alyssa withdrew herself from Taehyung's grip as they cuddled and dashed to the kitchen, where she found the window next to the sink smashed into tiny pieces of glass, with a brown brick with a note attached to it using a string laying in the center of the shards.

Alyssa walked begrudgingly towards the scene, her heart rate quickening as she picked up the brick and untied the note from the string, her hands shaking. Taehyung approached her as she unfolded the note, remaining silent as a result of his shock. Alyssa bit her lip as she read the note, her eyes squinting in confusion as she tried to figure out what the cryptic message meant and who had sent it.

Taehyung furrowed his brows as he saw the look of disbelief on her face and began to wonder what could have been in that letter. "Can you tell me what's written in there, Lyss?" He cautiously inquired, placing his hand on her shoulder and reading over the korean words on the paper, which appeared to be written in a sticky, vivid red substance:

Break up with him, or else...

Alyssa raised her eyes, frantically scanning her kitchen for any signs that the person who had left the letter had done anything else. As she began to reflect on everything that had happened in the previous week, tears welled up in her eyes. When Taehyung saw this, he looked at her sympathetically, puzzled as to why she was crying. He gently pulled her to his chest with his hand on her waist, raking her hair in an attempt to comfort her as he whispered, "What's the matter, Lyss? You know you can always talk to me, right? It's okay to cry, and just know that no matter what happens, I'll always be here for you."

As a result, Alyssa confessed at that precise moment. She confessed that she had been receiving peculier text messages. She confessed that she had been feeling unsafe in her own home for the past few weeks. She confessed about how terrified she was when she had to go outside. She confessed to feeling as if she was being watched at all times. She confessed that she had been seeing the same familiar male face over and over. She confessed that she had begun watching YouTube videos in the event that she was attacked. She confessed that she had wished to tell him about the situation, but had decided against it because she didn't want to worry him.

She confessed everything.

When Taehyung heard this, he was stunned and stayed silent, holding her close to his chest and letting her cry. Following that, after much deliberation, they agreed to call the cops as quickly as possible to avoid interfering with the broken glass particles on her kitchen floor, which had now turned into the scene of a crime.

They then called the police, who eventually arrived at Alyssa's apartment after two hours. When they police arrived, the pair swiftly informed him on the problem before leading him to her kitchen's smashed window.

She then handed him her smartphone, which she had been using, so he could check over the text messages she had been receiving. The police officer then calmly explained to Alyssa and Taehyung that the text messages were received from a burner phone, which meant they couldn't be tracked. Second, he stated that the brick, broken shards, and letter will be taken in as evidence for the police to utilize as a starting point for their investigation, but not before taking photographs of the area.

After following the right protocol, the officer advised Alyssa to notify the police if there were any other developments in the case, such as receiving another text message. Following that, he was on his way.

After the police officer had left, Taehyung and Alyssa came to the conclusion that, for the time being, while the police investigated her possible stalker, Alyssa should move out of her current apartment and into a new one, which would be in a completely different area, and that this new address would only be given to her close friends and family.

As a result, Alyssa made arrangements to move into an apartment in Busan, South Korea, very early the next morning, and she would move in later that day. Following that, Taehyung, who had stayed the night at her flat, began to assist her in packing all of her stuff into cardboard boxes, which took a long time but was eventually completed. Alyssa then called her landlord to inform him that she was moving out of the flat, and a moving truck arrived to collect her belongings. She then drove to her apartment, following the truck in her automobile.

Alyssa unloaded her belongings when it got at her apartment, and as strange as it may sound, she felt right at home. She settled into her new home, and in the two weeks that followed, Alyssa began to believe that moving out was genuinely successful because nothing peculiar had transpired, and everything had returned to normal for the first time in a long time. But, boy, was she mistaken.

Dowon had been laying low for that time period, unknown to Alyssa, waiting for the right moment to make his next move. He was well aware that she had relocated; he had overheard Taehyung and Alyssa's plan while still lurking in the bushes, waiting for the proper moment to flee in order to avoid drawing attention to himself. Dowon then proceeded to execute the next step of his plan after two weeks had gone since the window incident.

One evening, as Alyssa was blow-drying her hair after soaking in a warm bubble bath in an attempt to unwind after a long day at work, she heard her phone vibrate on her bed, indicating that she had one new notification. Her hand reached for her phone as she turned off the dryer. She turned it on once she had it in her hands, her head whirling as she read the single new text message from her notification bar:

UNKOWN NUMBER: Thought you could get rid of me? I'm here to stay, like it or not. Just know that I'm always watching you, Alyssa.

Alyssa quickly opened her phone, her hand clicking the text message to reveal the sender's phone number, but she was unable to do so since the number was hidden, meaning that the sender had used a burner phone. Her head shot up, her eyes scouring the room before settling on her bedroom window, which had been draped shut. She observed a silhouette that appeared to be a masculine figure, but it immediately vanished, perhaps noticing she was staring at it.

She felt sweat droplets on her brow and raised her hand to wipe them away. She gulped, a lump in her throat forming as her eyes filled with tears. At that moment, she realised her stalker had returned, and no matter what she could have done, including going to the police, would have been ineffective because she was trapped.

Dowon went back to his flat after that, glad that everything had gone according to plan. Alyssa would have to abandon Taehyung and fall in love with him, in his opinion.

He then carried out the final element of his plan, which he completed the following day. He then went to Alyssa's apartment complex in the early hours of the morning and made a deal with the security guard, offering him a large sum of money, 5,000 won to be exact, if he would let him into her apartment, which the guard eventually agreed to do after being heavily pressured and pondering about just how much that money could help him out of his financial circumstances.

After ultimately agreeing, the guard told him to wait until around 8 a.m., which was when Alyssa normally departed for work. Dowon obliged and sat in his car in the parking lot, waiting for the appointed hour. As a result, when the clock hit 8:30 a.m., Alyssa exited her apartment, clutching her handbag and phone as she hurriedly walked to her car, entirely forgetting to lock her apartment because she was late for work.

Wanting to be polite, she waved at the guard and smiled as she rushed to her car, utterly naive to the fact that he was planning to assist her stalker in gaining access into her apartment. The guard returned the wave, smiling as he watched Alyssa get into her car and drive out of the parking lot and into the main road, trying not to appear suspicious despite his own internal panic.

When the guard saw her car pull away, he motioned with his hand for Dowon, who had been sitting in his car, smoking a cigarette as he scrolled through Alyssa's Instagram account, pretending to be at the flat complex to visit a friend or family member, but in reality, he was observing everything from the comfort of his car, even admiring Alyssa as she walked to hers, thinking she looked prettier than ever.

Dowon exited his car after seeing the guard's hand signal, closing the door with one hand while using the other to carry a duffle bag full with the things he'll need to carry out the next stage of his plan. He strolled over to the building, a rush of adrenaline coursing through his veins as he imagined the outcome of what he was going to do if all went well.

Eventually, he met up with the guard, and the two of them made their way to Alyssa's apartment. When the pair arrived, the guard opened the door, revealing to Dowon that Alyssa had left her apartment unlocked in her rush to get to work. He then instructed Dowon to hurry up and finish what he needed to finish, and said that he would keep an eye on the door to ensure that no one entered while he was inside.

Dowon walked inside, taking a deep breath as he closed the door behind him, muttering a short 'thank you' to the guard for his assistance. He whirled around, not believing his eyes that he was at the Alyssa Castillo's apartment. He wandered about the living room, still struggling to comprehend the reality that he was in the same room where his idol ate, slept, and mostly lived her life.

Dowon took note of the objects on Alyssa's coffee table: a half-eaten breakfast donut remaining in its container, and coffee that had been completed but not carried to the sink, indicating that Alyssa had been in a hurry to work, something we already know about. He then removed the donut from the platter, took a little mouthful, and placed it back on the plate.

After that, he rearranged her couch cushions since he wasn't happy with how Alyssa had placed them. Her cushions came in a variety of colors, and she preferred to organise them according to the rainbow's colors; however, Dowon did not like this and instead arranged them by size, believing that this would better suit her flat.

Dowon shook his head, reminding himself that he only had so much time in there and that he needed to get things done. He groaned, the gravity of what he was going to do finally settling on him, and he began to question if it was all worth it, and if he should simply turn around and abandon his plan entirely. But, he convinced himself that it was essential because he had got this far. He'd spent a fortune to get this far in his business, and the last thing he could afford to do now was give up.

He made his way to her bedroom, already knowing where it was thanks to months of stalking her. He walked into her bedroom and immediately noticed her unmade and messy bed, as well as her pillows strewn across the room, one of which was just at his feet. Dowon picked up the pillow, squeezing it and feeling its softness as he brought it to his nose, sniffing it, and noticing that it smelled like lavender, which was the type of shampoo that Alyssa used; he knew this because he once followed her to the grocery store, posing as another shopper while stalking her.

He then tossed the pillow on the floor and walked over to the dresser, where he noticed a giant brown plush animal with a large purple ribbon around its neck. He took it and scrutinized it before hurling it to the ground and stepping on it in a fit of wrath as he realised the bear was Tete, commonly known as the bear that Taehyung gave her. After taking his rage out on it, he reminded himself of why he was there in the first place: to bug Alyssa's apartment.

Dowon hurriedly opened his duffle bag, removing the tiny microphones that looked like bugs. He continued to scatter them across Alyssa's room, placing two under her nightstand and one on her dresser. He performed the same action in other rooms of the house, including the kitchen, bathroom, living room, and even her balcony! He was interested in listening in on all of her discussions.

Dowon was about to leave after being satisfied that he had placed adequate bugs in her apartment, feeling excited that he would be listening in on her conversations, when it occurred to him that he should atleast take one of Alyssa's belongings as a keepsake to remember that precious moment, the moment when he had stepped into his idol's apartment for the first time.

Since as a result, he dropped the duffle bag and hurried to her closet, opening the double doors and finding a broad choice of clothing and shoes from various companies, as Alyssa preferred to experiment with numerous styles rather than adhere to just one. He scanned the wardrobe for several outfits before settling on a black t-shirt with a grey sunflower design and black and white long-sleeves, which he chose because he had seen her wear it several times in her Instagram pictures, suggesting that it must've been her favorite shirt because she wore it so often.

After making his decision, Dowon slipped Alyssa's t-shirt into his duffle bag and took one more look at her bedroom, savouring her scent one last time before leaving her apartment. Once outside, he noticed the security guy, who appeared to be on high alert. Dowon opened his duffle bag and handed him a brown envelope containing the promised sum of money. He extended his hand to the guard, who extended his as well, and they exchanged a quick handshake.

"It was a pleasure doing business with you," Dowon said after they exchanged handshakes and he walked to his car. The guard could only nod in answer, his stomach churning with remorse as he considered what he had just done. He examined the envelope before turning to face Dowon, who was exiting the parking lot and heading toward the main road.

Sure, I mean, he now had 5,000 won in his account, which would alleviate the most of his financial problems, such as his debt. But he began to question whether it was truly worth it. Was 5,000 won really worth betraying Alyssa, the lady who had always been so nice to him despite their disparities in socioeconomic status? He could only hope it was. . .

Later that day, around 7 p.m., a fatigued Alyssa entered her apartment, yawning as she flicked on the light in her living room. The sleepiness that had previously engulfed her body dissipated as she observed that her living room appeared to have been disrupted, as if someone had entered her flat after she had left and made themselves at home.

She hurried over to her sofa, dropping her handbag on the floor after noting how her couch cushions were arranged in order by size, whereas she had always arranged them by color. Alyssa massaged her temples, trying to recall if she had, in fact, sorted her pillows in size order, but had done it sub-consciously.

She inhaled deeply, telling herself to relax and that she probably did re-arrange her pillows the night before, but couldn't recall doing so because she was tired and was doing so without her knowledge; Alyssa preferred to believe this to believing that a complete stranger had somehow gained access to her apartment, which sent shivers down her spine just thinking about it.

After calming down, Alyssa entered her kitchen, turned on the light, and walked over to the sink, where she poured herself a glass of water, which she immediately drank. She then proceeded to her living room, picking up her handbag, which she had dropped on her way in when she was taken aback by the state of her living room.

She then proceeded to her bedroom, glad that she would finally be able to remove her high heels, have a warm shower, and then get some rest after a long day at work. Alyssa entered her bedroom, turned on the lamp, and gaped in surprise at the state of her room. Yeah, she remembered leaving her bed unmade and her pillows scattered around the room in her haste to get to work in the morning, but those two elements were the only things in her room that had an explanation for why they were out of order.

However, while studying her room, Alyssa discovered that Tete, the bear that Taehyung had won for her at a fair, was now laying on the ground instead of his customary spot on her dresser, and that a piece of white stuffing protruded from his neck beneath his purple ribbon. She stepped over to the doll, picked it up, and inspected it closely, trying to remember if she had accidentally knocked it down while getting ready for work and forgot to pick it up and put it back?

No, Alyssa convinced herself. She reasoned that there was absolutely no way she could have knocked Tete down and then have not put him back on the dresser. The reason for this is because she holds Tete in high regard and would never leave him on the floor. She raised her head, taking her gaze away from the doll, to discover that her wardrobe had a few clothing articles sticking out of it, appearing as if it had been rummaged through.

She wrinkled her brows, mystified yet again, this time as to how her wardrobe had ended up in such a state, especially because she hadn't gone near that section of her closet on that particular day. Because Alyssa was a very organized person, she usually packed her clothes in separate rows, such as work, casual, work out, and so on, and since she had been searching through the work section on that specific morning, there was no way she could have messed up her wardrobe.

Alyssa felt a shiver run down her spine at that particular moment, finally realising and accepting that someone, most likely the same person who had been stalking her, had been inside her house, had invaded her personal space, had entered the place that was meant to be the safest for her.

In shock, she dropped Tete to the ground, causing the stuffing that was sticking out to stick out even more. Alyssa felt a stinging sensation in her throat, hot tears welling up in her eyes as she backed away, almost tripping on one of the pillows which had been scattered across her room.

She inhaled deeply, feeling trapped as she slowly walked backwards exiting her room, and once she was in the hall, she turned around, and then ran towards the direction of her living room and once there, she hastily reached for the landline, her shaking hands quickly dialing the one phone number that she knew by heart: Taehyung's. 

And, naturally, Taehyung answered on the first ring when he saw the familiar phone number of Alyssa's landline flash across his iPhone screen. Of course, he had anticipated that she was calling him for something trivial, so hearing a distraught Alyssa tell him about her concerns that her house had been broken into between a series of sniffles caught him completely off guard.

And, as expected, Taehyung was alarmed when he heard this and went over to her apartment, thinking that his presence and comfort would help to ease her nerves. As she explained her worries to him, he quickly engulfed her in a massive hug, sitting on her bed as he raked his fingers through her hair and whispered words of consolation in her ear, secretly praying that it would calm her down. This, to his surprise, proved to be effective, as she gradually relaxed and stopped crying.

"Thank you so much, Taehyung. Just, thank you." Alyssa sniffled, feeling better than she had before as she wiped away the few tears that remained in her eyes.

Taehyung's brow quirked, his face painted with a puzzled expression. "Wait, what are you thanking me for?" He inquired, unsure if there was something he was overlooking.

She lifted her head from his chest and raised her eyes to face him squarely in the eyes. "I mean, over the last few months, you've always managed to come here and make me feel better after one of these bizarre incidents occur, and I've never heard you complain, not once. Taehyung, you have no idea how much I appreciate it. Thank you a lot," She finished by exhaling deeply as she entwined his hand with hers and locked her gaze on him.

To tell you the truth, Alyssa felt bad about phoning Taehyung everytime something like this happened because she felt like she was bothering him or being a nuisance to him, but he was the only person she could confide in because her family members were undoubtedly going to attempt to persuade her to stop being an idol and return to the United States so they could ensure her safety if she told them about the stalking she had been experiencing, and as dangerous as being an idol was, Alyssa still adored it with her entire heart because she truly had a passion for it. And she didn't want to tell her two best friends, Kat and Wyatt, since she knew they'd start fussing over her, which was the last thing she needed because they already had problems of their own, which she didn't want to add to.

If it had been up to her, Taehyung would still be unaware of the situation, but because he had been there when her stalker threw a brick through her window, she felt compelled to inform him. But his knowing had benefited her because she now had someone to confide in, whereas at first, when the situation began to unfold, she had to keep everything to herself and it drove her insane, but she tried her hardest to hide it, which is why she was extremely grateful for Taehyung's willingness to simply sit and just listen to her.

He grinned and grabbed her hand, bringing her body closer to his and bridging whatever gaps that had arisen between them. "It's not a problem, Lyss."

The couple then embraced each other tightly, completely oblivious to the fact that their every word was being listened to. . .

Dowon, on the other hand, was using the device that came with the bugs to try to hear what was being said in Alyssa's apartment, but he was having no luck because he could only hear a male and a female voice conversing, but not a single word being uttered due to the buzzing on the device. For the past hour or so, he had been trying to listen to the dialogue, mentally scolding himself for buying the bugging equipment on sale at some dodgy website. He obviously recognized Alyssa's voice, and he had been trying to figure out who the male voice belonged to. He had a strong suspicion it was Taehyung's, but he had been trying to persuade himself differently, afraid of what he would do if he discovered Alyssa was still with Taehyung and not listening to him.

And, by the way, he hated---no, he despised it when people disobeyed his instructions.

Dowon became restless quickly, and he considered simply removing his earbuds and calling it a night, then trying again the next day because he couldn't hear anything and thought it was pointless. But, just as he was about to do so, his hand slammed into the listening device in rage, clearing the line and allowing him to hear Alyssa's following comments loud and clear, confirming his fears.

"Thank you again, Tae, for everything. I love you," Alyssa said to Taehyung, which Dowon overheard.

For Dowon, this was the last straw. He snatched up the listening gadget and hurled it against the wall, shattering it into shards. He was upset because he had been trying to win Alyssa's heart for months and now had enough. Dowon stood in his bedroom, his fists clenched and his teeth grinding together as just one statement flashed through his mind: If I can't have her, then no one can.

At that moment, he then decided that he would complete the last and final phase lf his plan, even though he truly wished that it wouldn't have had to come to that point, but Alyssa had pushed him to go that far, and now, she had to be taught a lesson. . . 

So, the next day, after a night of meticulously planning his movements for the following day, Dowon sat in his car from the early hours of the morning, even observing Alyssa drive out of the parking lot and into the main road, and sat there in his car until the late hours of the evening, patiently smoking a cigarette while waiting for Alyssa's return.

As dusk approached, he began to put plans in motion. When he saw Alyssa's BMW drive into the parking lot and park in her normal spot, which happened to be directly next to where Dowon's car had been parked, he knew it was her. Dowon then double-checked that he had everything he needed because he only had one chance, and he couldn't afford to blow it. Once he was certain, he looked at her automobile and heard Alyssa's car engine switch off, then he sat in his vehicle, waiting for her to exit her car so he could make his move.

Dowon began gazing at his wrist watch after a minute or two of waiting in his car, wondering what had taken her so long just to come out of her motor car. When he peeked out his window, he noticed that her BMW's interior lights were turned on, and Alyssa was seated in the driver's seat, smiling, on the phone with someone. When Dowon saw this, he sighed and sank into his driver's seat, contemplating how long it would take her to finish the phone call.

After what seemed like an eternity to Dowon, Alyssa finally hung up the phone, and he observed the interior lights in her car turn off, he moved into position. She exited her car while humming to herself BTS' Spring day, and as she turned around to close her car door and lock her BMW, she felt a hand cover her mouth and something that felt like the sharp blade of a knife held to her neck.

"If you dare to make a sound, I will not hesitate to use this blade to sever your neck. You won't get hurt if you just do as I say," Dowon spoke quietly into her ear, watching her nod her head in agreement as her eyes widened in terror.

"Drop whatever you have in your hands on the ground and raise them up," he said, knowing full well that she wasn't armed. Dowon's eyes scoured the empty parking lot thereafter, making sure no one was around to see what he was about to do next, and the security guard who should've been on duty that night was nowhere to be found, so he went on with his plan.

He then told her to get into the backseat of his car, and once she was inside, he got into his car as well, but not before cracking open Alyssa's handbag and stealing her wallet, which contained all of her paper cash. Once inside, he made absolute sure that the doors were set to child-lock so she couldn't try to flee.

As you can obviously imagine, Alyssa was terrified at this point, but she was doing her best to remain calm and collected since she knew that if she didn't do everything Dowon asked, her chances of survival were going to be slim. As the car rolled out of the parking lot and onto the main road, Alyssa remained on high alert as the Dowon drove her to wherever he was taking her her, searching out the window for any landmarks that would help her figure out where they were heading.

Believe it or not, Alyssa attempted to strike up a conversation with him during the vehicle ride, attempting to find out where he was going her and why he was doing all of this. Dowon, on the other hand, offered evasive answers to her questions and spent the bulk of the car ride concentrating on the road ahead of him, knowing that if he had spoken to her, he would have said something he shouldn't have said.

Alyssa was mentally panicking, but she acted unconcerned on the outside, as if she didn't care. She knew she'd have to think quickly and smartly if she wanted to get out of this situation alive. So, in her thoughts, she devised a strategy to follow Dowon's instructions so that she might gain his trust and, maybe, he would unwittingly give her the opportunity to run away. She secretly hoped that she would make it out of this scenario in one peice as she took deep breaths and gazed out the window.

Dowon ultimately drove into an abandoned yard in the middle of the woods, which had no fence and a single, small cottage-style house with a rectangular window in the front, after what seemed like the longest vehicle ride ever to Alyssa. He then parked the car and, holding the knife to Alyssa's neck, dragged her out and walked her to the cottage, warning her not to try anything because he would have sliced her head off if she did.

Of course, Alyssa obliged, and he led her to the cottage, one hand holding the knife to her throat and the other holding the bag with the necessary supplies. Then, once there, he opened the door with a key that he had retrieved from beneath a nearby rock. When he opened the door of the cottage, turned on the light, and forced Alyssa inside, she was astonished by what she saw.

She was greeted by the overpowering aroma of ramen noodles, which was the only food he ate because, as you can imagine, he didn't have time to prepare proper meals due to his obsession with Alyssa taking up so much of his time, and she also noticed that pictures of her face were all over his walls, and on the couch, she spotted her t-shirt which Dowon had stolen from her apartment the day before! She shivered when her eyes met with a calendar in the corner of the wall---it was her schedule, detailing her daily activities and where she would be!

Her sightseeing was stopped short, however, when Dowon shoved her inside so hard that she fell to the ground, her face landing first. He then shut the door and walked into the cottage himself. He then forced Alyssa to stand up and brought her to his couch, where he drew a rope from his supply bag and tied her to it so she couldn't run away.

However, Dowon was unaware that he didn't tie the rope tightly enough, and Alyssa had felt a few loose sections that she might have used to try to escape while he wasn't looking, and there was no way in hell that Alyssa would've told him about this because it was one of her only chances at survival. It was simply a matter of finding the appropriate time to flee, a period when he was vulnerable and unattentive, now that she understood how she was going to get away. All she could do was hope that this time arrived before he seriously injured her, because if the first thing he did to her was aggressively push her, she was seriously doomed.

Believe it or not, this moment came very soon, because Dowon, foolishly, chose to take a quick nap because he was far too fatigued from not getting enough sleep in the previous twenty-four hours due to him working on his plan action for the entire night before, and also having to wake up at the crack of dawn the next morning just to drive to Alyssa's apartment complex. He fell asleep under the mistaken impression that he had tied Alyssa up so tightly that she wouldn't have been able to get away, but he was wrong, very wrong.

Alyssa had her chance to flee now that he had fallen deep asleep. If we're being honest, she was becoming fearful and doubting the success of her plan at this point because Dowon was sleeping right next to her, which meant he could've woken up at any moment, and when she first entered the house, Alyssa had noticed that the door made a loud creaking sound when someone opened or closed it, which meant it would've made a noise when she walked out, and as previously stated, Dowon was sleeping on the rug next to her.

What if Dowon had awoken just as she was untying herself, or what if he had awoken just as she was on her way out the door, so near to freedom? She shuddered as she pondered about the possible price she'd have to pay if she'd been discovered trying to escape. Alyssa, however, quickly realized that this was a risk she had to take; after all, that moment could have been her last and only shot at survival.

Alyssa slowly untied herself after making her decision, using the sections of the rope that Dowon had left loose and being very cautious not to make a single sound. She had finally found her way out after a few minutes of frustration dealing with the rope and twisting and turning it! But Alyssa had known better than to begin rejoicing too soon, for she now had to deal with the creaking door, and she had to do so swiftly before Dowon awoke, found her out of the rope, and connected the dots.

So Alyssa remained there for a few moments, figuring out how she could have gotten out of this door without waking Dowon up. She eventually came up with a solution; she determined that she would have to run as fast as she could and dash out the door, hoping that by the time Dowon heard the loud creak and awoke, she would be well gone.

She took a deep breath and shifted into sprint position, hoping that her daring would not backfire. Alyssa stood up and ran right past the door, which did, indeed, make a loud creaking sound, and she didn't stop there; she continued running, and running, and she didn't look back until she realized she was on the main road, and as if luck had been on her side for the second time that day, she was fortunate in that she was able to notice a car which had been on it's way towards her---right in the middle of this isolated location!

She stood by the side of the road, waving frantically in the hopes that the driver of this car would pull over and ask what was wrong. Sure enough, the car pulled over, and inside was an elderly lady who was more than willing to take Alyssa to the nearest police station once she explained her sitaution. In fact, the old lady informed Alyssa on the way there that she had seen her face before but couldn't recall where, and when they had arrived, it finally clicked that she was the Alyssa Castillo, and she was pleasently suprised.

And after she arrived at the police station, Alyssa had the difficult task of persuading the officers on duty that she had genuinely been the victim of a kidnapping and not a childish prank. Because everything transpired in the middle of the night, at about 10 p.m., the police officers were doubtful when Alyssa first arrived at the station and recounted what had happened, and they grudgingly agreed to let her accompany them back to Dowon's cottage. She knew she had to get them there as quickly as she could, before Dowon awoke, realized she was gone, and fled.

However, Dowon ultimately woke up from his nap, roughly half an hour after Alyssa had made her very heroic escape, indicating that the creak of the door wasn't the cause of his waking up because he had been in a deep sleep, as Alyssa and the cops would soon discover. Dowon awoke, scanning his surroundings and noticing a long thread of rope on his couch, but Alyssa was nowhere to be found, and her shoes were gone, as well as his front door being wide open. He was baffled at first, but it suddenly dawned on him: Alyssa had escaped, which meant she had most likely gone to the police and was on her way back with them.

He realized he needed to get out of there quickly before Alyssa returned with the cops and he was jailed. So, in his panic, he gathered all of his valuables, including cash, an additional change of clothing, and even a few snacks, and drove out in his car, taking a different route to the main road to avoid running into Alyssa and the cops.

When Alyssa and the cops arrived, they discovered Dowon had vanished and that the majority of his things were missing, indicating that he had fled after realizing Alyssa was no longer there. So, Dowon was now on the run, and he needed to be apprehended as quickly as possible, since if he managed to kidnap and stalk someone, who knows what else he was capable of?

And, while Alyssa was still in Dowon's cottage with the cops, she was able to prove that she had been taken against her will by Dowon and that he was a stalker, because the inside of his cottage was extremely incriminating, as we all know, there was the rope that he had tied Alyssa with sitting on the couch alongside her stolen t-shirt, and in his bedroom there was the listening equipment that he used to listen to the bugs that he had planted in her apartment, and the final nail in the coffin was when his walls were covered in a schedule indicating where Alyssa would be, and his bedroom walls were covered in a step-by-step plan on a whiteboard of everything he had made Alyssa experience for the preceding few months!

So, the cops had plenty of evidence to connect Dowon to the crime; the only problem now was finding him. The police officers quickly went to work, conducting a nationwide search for him, putting up wanted posters of him all across the country in the hopes that someone would see him and notify the cops, and even offering a reward to the person who handed Dowon in. Dowon's face would have been etched in your mind if you had lived in Korea at the time because there were fliers of him all throughout the country.

As you might expect for someone of Alyssa's celebrity and status, this case practically blew up all over social media, with millions of people, particularly Universes, putting pressure on the South Korean police service to find Dowon, which worked because they began speeding up their investigation, and then they notified neighboring countries to be on the lookout for him in case he had fled the country. The police even set up a hotline where people could ring in with information about Dowon's whereabouts, and they received several leads, which they followed no matter how ridiculous they sounded, but all of them led to dead ends.

It was around this time that what had happened finally registered in Alyssa's mind, and she began to have flashbacks. She began to drown herself in work, and when she wasn't working, she would isolate herself to cope with what had happened. After being medically assessed, it was discovered that Alyssa suffered from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), a condition that affects persons who have been exposed to traumatic situations. There are different varieties of PTSD, and Alyssa's was Uncomplicated PTSD, which occurs when a single traumatic incident occurs rather than recurrent or recurring occurrences of the same trauma.

Dowon had been on the run for three months, and he had been doing his best to stay under the radar by not staying in one place for too long, staying in inexpensive hotels, and generally living a simple lifestyle. This, however, came to a stop when he realized he was running out of money and was beginning to feel trapped. After three months on the run, Lee Dowon went to the nearest police station and surrendered, the weight of his acts becoming too much for him to bear. He didn't even try to defend himself in court, pleading guilty to all of his charges and receiving a sentence of a minimum of nine years in prison. Oh, and do you recall Dowon bribing the guard earlier in the story? Due of his guilt, he also turned himself in and was sentenced to three years in prison.

Dowon went on to create a novel while in prison about how parasocial relationships can have terrible effects, as he experienced. The book was originally published in Korean and was named 'Confessions of a Fanboy,' and it became a success! It sold millions of copies around the world and was later translated into three other languages: English, Madarin, and Japanese. Dowon offered Alyssa all of the royalties as the book was a success, but she refused.

Following Dowon's arrest and imprisonment, Alyssa has spoken out to the public about how badly the event affected her at first, but has since indicated that she has tried not to let it define her, but rather to make her stronger. She's also gained the guts to get the care she needs to deal with her PTSD, and she's begun to educate others about the condition. She's also stated in interviews that she was extremely fortunate to have her loved ones at her side during this time, who were patient with her and provided her with unconditional support and love.

Also, according to insiders, Dowon sent Alyssa an apologetic letter, but it is unknown whether she has accepted it or even opened it.

This story exemplifies how a seemingly harmless K-Pop infatuation may devolve into something genuinely wicked and sinister. It is our responsibility as fans to provide our idols with support, but we must always be aware of our limits.

author's note,
first and foremost, i'd like to credit agentofbarnes for inspiring certain sections of this chapter, and also give a very special thanks to arydierh for being my beta reader! i appreciate the both of you so, so much.

honestly speaking; i poured my blood, sweat, and tears into this chapter. i have never put as much energy into writing a chapter as i have done with this one. i hope it paid off, and you guys actually enjoyed reading this messy rollercoaster ride of a chapter! i would absolutely love to know your opinons, and the parts which you felt scared at the most.

and, here is a website which has helped me gain a better understanding of PTSD, i hope you will too, learn a thing or two about this very common, but also very misunderstood disorder:
https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/ptsd/what-is-ptsd.