이 포스팅은 쿠팡 파트너스 활동의 일환으로, 이에 따른 일정액의 수수료를 제공받습니다.
Chapter 193: The Depths of Trap
Sleepless through the deep night, Min-jun found himself staring into the darkness that Trap had woven around his heart. He realized something crucial: the moment Trap had begun its insidious work was when he’d stood before the Destar Entertainment building and read its name. That was when his dreams still felt within reach, before the darkness seeped in. Yet he couldn’t remember how long ago that had been. Time seemed to have lost all meaning, swallowed by Trap’s grip. The silence of night pressed against him, while Seoul’s neon lights filtered through his apartment window.
At 3:15 AM, Min-jun returned to his apartment. His heart still lay buried in shadow, and he could feel Trap’s cold fingers wrapped around it. He opened the door, his pulse quickening. His hands trembled in his pockets as he tried to empty his mind of the darkness. The apartment smelled stale, and the cold laminate floor bit through his shoes. He looked around, searching for some way to break free, but the weight remained.
By 4:30 AM, Min-jun was back on the streets. He thought the hum of passing buses and the murmur of people might pull him from the abyss. His heart raced as he wandered through the city. Neon signs flashed across his vision while car horns and conversation filled his ears. Yet Trap held firm.
At 6:00 AM, he stepped into a café. Warm air embraced his face, and the rich aroma of coffee mixed with fresh orange juice. A kind barista welcomed him, and for a moment, the brightness of the café’s lights seemed to push back the shadows. He sat down, holding a cup, but his hands still trembled.
“Can I really succeed in this place?” he whispered to himself.
By 7:30 AM, Min-jun had left the café and wandered the streets again. The city was coming alive, but he remained trapped in his own private darkness.
At 9:00 AM, he stood before the Destar Entertainment building once more. Something flickered in his chest—a faint warmth—as he read the name. This building held his dreams. He pushed through the entrance, and warm air welcomed him inside. The scent of fresh coffee filled the lobby, and people moved around him with purpose. Yet even here, surrounded by possibility, Trap’s shadow clung to him.
“How can I escape this trap and be free?” he asked aloud, his voice lost in the ambient noise of the building.
He looked at the building’s name again, at the traditional Korean patterns on the walls. A breeze brushed his face as if urging him forward.
“I will succeed here,” Min-jun declared, his voice steadier now. “I have to.”
His heart still raced. His hands still clenched in his pockets. But as he stood in that lobby, surrounded by the warmth of the building and the possibility it represented, something shifted. The darkness didn’t vanish—it never would, not completely. But for the first time in hours, Min-jun felt a glimmer of resolve pushing back against it.
Trap had its hooks in him. But perhaps, he thought, he didn’t have to let it pull him under.