Chapter Text
Looking down on the city was a man, high above.
With the sprawling labyrinth of neon lights and endless motion, the city was like a living, breathing entity. Even in the darkest hours of the night, it pulsed with an insufferable energy. Different shades of lights were flashing through the windows of the buildings, and cars and their tail lights were creating a hypnotizing choreography. From his viewpoint, on top of one of the tallest buildings of the city center, Jeonghan could see everything - every flickering shop sign, every car lights, every shadow that moved in the alleyways. What were all of these people up to, so late at night? The city never slept - but Jeonghan knew that all of this ceaseless activity was just a facade, a way to quiet the desperation. He knew that all of those people were keeping the lights on and making themselves busy during the night only to push back the moment they would have to be alone with their thoughts, in the dark and quiet.
Jeonghan stood on the edge of the rooftop, his long dark coat flowing slightly in the night breeze. He took in the scene before him with an almost clinical detachment. Somehow this had become his domain, his territory: this city that thrived on hopes and dreams during the day, yet was haunted by the ghosts of despair when the night came. How much time did he spend watching over it, slaloming through its streets? A few hours? A few weeks? An eternity? He couldn’t say for sure - not that it really mattered anyway.
The wind whispered through his long black hair, carrying the distant sounds of the city. Jeonghan closed his eyes for a moment, letting the cool air wash over him. The hum of the electricity, the faint echo of voices, the soft rumble of engines, acting as a constant reminder of the millions of lives intertwined under him. But he knew better than anyone else how fragile they were, struggling to keep their balance, dangerously close to exhaustion. Hope during the day, despair at night, like a seesaw.
Jeonghan had become the silent guardian of the city. It was a role he had crafted for himself, a way to make sense of the chaotic world surrounding him. Those people were all in search of something - success, love, happiness. Yet, when the night came, they found themselves stuck and burdened by their own expectations. Jeonghan had taken upon himself to ease their burden.
He could hear them think from miles away, could see right through them, under their carefully crafted mask they wear during the day to hide away their insecurities. When night fell and those masks slipped away, Jeonghan was there, by their side, to guide them through the web of dreams, in search of relief. He had heard it all, the dreams of success crumbling into failure, seemingly-perfect relationships tainted with the color of doubts and regrets, long-lost love slipping through their fingers. Every time, he would focus on the strong feeling of despair coming from them, and follow it blindly until he found the person behind it, tossing and turning in their bed in a restless sleep. In those moments, somewhere between awake and asleep, when the line between reality and fantasy blurred, Jeonghan found his purpose. Instead of watching them twisting in pain, victim of their own mind, he would step in and guide them to a place of peace.
Tonight would be no different. He would follow his purpose blindly, and he would do it without question.
With a single, fluid motion, Jeonghan stepped off the edge of the rooftop into the night. He didn’t fall, but floated downward effortlessly, almost gracefully, like the city herself was bending to his will. He didn’t need to look for directions - he knew the city like the back of his hand, every alley, every hidden corner, every mind at work. As he walked on the pavement, Jeonghan allowed his senses to stretch out, in search of troubled emotions. It didn’t take long for him to find one, coming from a small, cramped studio apartment on the second floor of a building. He entered without a second thought, passing through the walls as if they weren’t there. The young woman was agitated in her sleep, her mind a chaotic swirl of anxiety and fear. He could feel the tension in the air, and felt that he could almost touch it, like static electricity. Jeonghan approached the bed in the dark room, walking, yet not making any noise. He could now perfectly distinguish the lines of worry on her face, and the way her body was coiled tight, as if she was ready to spring at any given moment.
The dream itself was chaotic - a mess of fragmented images and half-formed thoughts, with vivid colors. He couldn’t really determine what was the main thought behind it - a failed exam? a lost job? a broken relationship? The details didn’t matter; what mattered was the emotion, the raw, unfiltered pain that was crawling through her system like a poison.
Jeonghan kneeled down, his lips brushing against the dreamer’s ear. “Rest easy”, he whispered, his voice low and soothing. “I’ll take you to a place where all your wishes will come true. Do you want to go with me?”
The young woman nodded, still asleep, and Jeonghan put his hand on her forehead. The effect was immediate. Her body relaxed, tension slipping away, and her breathing became slow and regular. Jeonghan straightened up, satisfied. This was what he did - he took away the pain, the uncertainty, and guided people to the peace they so desperately craved.
He had completed his purpose, and yet, as he stood there in the darkness, watching the dreamer sleep peacefully, Jeonghan couldn’t shake the feeling that something was missing. He had done this countless times, and yet… there was a remaining sense of incompleteness, and he couldn’t quite decipher what it was. He turned away from the bed, his gaze drifting to the small window. The city stretched out before him, a vast blend of lights and shadows. It was beautiful, in its own way, but there was something cold and distant about it.
He left the apartment, moving through the walls and out onto the street. The city was still quiet, the only sounds coming from the distant traffic of the main road. He started to walk again, aimlessly - he knew he shouldn’t dwell on these thoughts. As far as he could remember, his purpose had always been stronger than any form of free will, pushing him towards his duty. But the more he tried to ignore it, the more persistent the rumbling in his head became, yet he couldn’t make sense of any of it.
Jeonghan shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. The night was still deep, this wasn’t the time. He had more work to do, more people to help.
He continued his walk, slipping into the dreams of the inhabitants. Each dream was different, a reflection of their most intense thoughts, fears and desires. Some were abstract, with shapes and colors filled with passionate feelings, while others were more realistic scenarios, with distinct people and situations. Jeonghan moved through them all with the same quiet determination, offering comfort where it was needed, releasing them from their crippling pain.
One dream caught his attention more than the others that night. It was the dream of a young man, his face pale, his eyes wide with fear as he stood at the edge of a cliff. Below him, a red ocean was roaring, its waves crashing against the rocks with fury. The man’s hands trembled as he looked down at the abyss, his breath coming short. Jeonghan watched for a moment, sensing the depth of the despair that weighed heavily on the poor soul. He was on the brink, both literally and figuratively, on the edge of a decision that could change his life. Jeonghan could feel the pressure on his shoulder like it was his own, the burden that manifested as a literal cliff, a point of no return.
He approached him slowly without a noise, until he was standing beside him, looking down the same dark red waters. He stood there, listening to his stuttering breath, before he came closer to his ear.
“It’s okay to be afraid”, he said softly, barely audible over the roar of the ocean. “But you don’t have to face this if you don’t want to.”
The man’s breath hitched as he became aware of him, his head turning slightly to take in his figure. Jeonghan stayed silent for a while, simply standing there in silent support. For a moment, he thought the dreamer might step forward, but he hesitated.
“You’re stronger than you think”, Jeonghan continued with a gentle voice. “You deserve better. I know somewhere way nicer than this. Do you want to go with me?”
The man’s gaze took in Jeonghan’s face, searching for something - reassurance, hope, anything. “Please…” he begged, almost inaudible. Jeonghan met his eyes, and with a small smile, he placed his hand on his forehead.
Slowly, the scenery around them started to shift - the dark waters below grew calmer, turning into a turquoise sea. The sky lightened into a soft, rosy hue as the clouds disappeared to let the first rays of dawn touch the horizon. Jeonghan could feel the fear melt away from the young man’s shoulder, the tension physically releasing. Before the man had a chance to say anything, Jeonghan was gone, stepping back into the night of the bedroom in which the dreamer was sleeping soundly. His face was already so different from the frightened one he saw before his eyes moments ago. He was reminded again of the strength of the purpose pushing him forward, walking through these dreams, guiding the lost and afraid. He went back into the dark street through the closed window.
As he walked and walked, Jeonghan found himself standing in front of a small convenience store. He knew this place well - it was a spot he often visited on his nightly ventures. He never actively looked for it, yet it was like his legs always ended up bringing him back to the same store.
He pushed open the door and stepped inside. The shop was filled with all sorts of on-the-go food, carefully arranged on the shelves. Jeonghan ignored them, his focus solely on the small refrigerator in one of the back corners. He opened the door and pulled out a lemonade box, the cold plastic slightly damp against his fingers. He didn’t feel thirsty nor hungry - ever, but the act of drinking the lemonade through the straw somehow brought him a sense of comfort.
Jeonghan leaned against the counter, sipping from the lemonade box as he stared out the window. The street outside was silent, red tail lights of cars flickering in the distance. As he drained the last drops, Jeonghan’s gaze was drawn to a poster taped on the window. It was a crudely drawn sketch of a man, tall and thin, with long dark hair, dressed in a black coat. The face was vague, almost featureless. The bottom of the poster read in bold letters:
HAVE YOU SEEN THIS MAN?
Jeonghan stared at the poster - he had seen it before, or at least something similar. The urban legend of ‘this man’ had started to spread through the city a little more each week, growing more elaborate with each retelling. People claimed to have seen this man in their dreams, a shadowy figure whispering to their ear. Jeonghan knew that he was the man in the poster, or at least was meant to be. But the image seemed wrong, twisted and distorted, like a patchwork of different retelling.
It shouldn’t bother him, but Jeonghan couldn’t help but feel a sense of unease. He crushed the empty lemonade box in his hand and tossed it into the trash before opening the door and stepping back into the night, where he belonged. As he watched over the city, Jeonghan frowned, his gaze narrowing as he scanned the street. He could feel the tension surrounding him, almost overwhelming. For the first time, he felt small before the extent of the despair of the city.
He turned away from the shop and began walking, his steps quick and purposeful. He needed to keep moving, to find more dreams, more people to help. It was the only way to keep the shadows at bay, to drown out his mind in his workload. It felt like it was endless - each day, more people were becoming restless in their sleep, and the relief he could bring them was only temporary.
He walked back into a dark alley, coat floating into the night breeze, the shadows swallowing his figure. But as he continued to walk, the unease wouldn’t dissipate. The city, usually so familiar and predictable, seemed different tonight - more aware, as if it was watching him in return. There was something more than the usual despair he was accustomed to. It was sharper, like a faint whisper out of earshot, calling his name. Jeonghan couldn’t remember ever feeling anything like this before. What was the city trying to tell him? What was he missing?
He could almost hear it, over the distant hum of the night life, like a low rumble vibrating through him. An echo, a memory, a warning. Something was coming, something that would shatter the fragile balance he had worked so hard to maintain.
Jeonghan took a deep breath, feeling the stubborn unease linger. He needed to keep moving, to drown his mind in the comforting rhythm of the night. With a final glance over his shoulder, he disappeared into the darkness, into the labyrinth of whispered promises of what was yet to come.