We were in a haunted memory room.
The walls were screaming.
Yeonjun had just seen a memory he didn't remember making.
And I… was low-key about to pass out.
"Yeonjun," I gasped as the walls started shifting. "Why is the school locking us in?"
He didn't answer. His eyes were locked on the empty space where the memory had played.
"That vial," he muttered. "I've seen it before. In a dream. No… a nightmare."
Then the doors slammed shut.
1. Stuck With A Vampire In A Haunted Room (10/10 would recommend)
The air grew heavier, like something was breathing down our necks.
"Please tell me you have a vampire trick to get us out of here," I whispered.
Yeonjun smirked — but it didn't reach his eyes. "Only if we're willing to make another memory."
I blinked. "Okay. That sounds way flirtier than it should—"
The walls suddenly pulsed with images — our images.
Us in the courtyard.
That kiss under the moon.
The way he'd looked at me when I was crying in his arms.
"Why is the room showing... our memories?"
Yeonjun turned to face me fully. "Because the bond between us wasn't made. It was engineered."
2. The Lie We've Been Living
"What?" I whispered. "You think someone forced this bond on us?"
He nodded, grimly. "There are only two ways bonds like ours form — naturally, or through... blood rituals."
He turned away, pacing. "The memory showed a vial. If it's what I think it is, someone used my blood to create the illusion of a natural connection."
"And you think... that person was the Headmaster?"
"I think," he said, looking at me with eyes darker than I'd ever seen, "this school has been using both of us."
3. Flashbacks, Feelings, and the Freaking Truth
The walls dimmed. And then...
A memory shimmered between us.
Only this time — it was mine.
I saw myself, maybe 6 years old, sitting in a velvet room. A tall man knelt in front of me, holding a contract.
"You'll grow strong," the man said. "We'll pair you with one of our finest. A prince of night. He'll protect you."
I gasped. "No. That didn't happen. That's not—"
"It did," Yeonjun whispered. "They paired us before we even met. We were raised for this."
I stumbled back. "So none of it was real?"
He stepped forward. "No. That's not what I meant. I felt everything. I still do. That part's real."
And then — the lights flickered, and a voice hissed through the air:
"The bond will serve Nightshade's will. Whether you like it or not."
4. Fight or... Flirt?
Yeonjun's fangs glinted. "Screw that."
"Language, sir," I quipped. "We're still minors."
"You're not taking this seriously," he said, but the corner of his mouth twitched.
"Actually, I'm just too freaked out to panic. So I'm doing what I do best: badly timed sarcasm and weird eye contact."
He took a deep breath. "We'll find out who did this. And we'll end it."
"How?"
"First," he said, stepping dangerously close, "we need to get out of this room."
"And then?"
He leaned in. "Then I get to kiss the real you. On purpose this time."
Cue brain short-circuit.
5. Escape Plan: One Chaos Spell, Coming Right Up
Yeonjun pulled out a silver ring from his pocket. "This was hers. The girl I loved. It's the only thing she left me."
He closed his eyes and muttered a word in an ancient vampire tongue.
The walls began to tremble.
"You're casting magic?"
"It's forbidden," he said. "But so is bonding with a human. Might as well break all the rules."
And with that, the door exploded outward.
We stumbled into the hall — coughing, blinking, alive.
6. Not Alone Anymore
Once the dust settled, I leaned against the wall.
Yeonjun looked at me, worry in his eyes.
"You okay?"
"I'm still piecing together the fact that I've basically been raised like a lab rat with lipstick."
He touched my cheek. "You're more than what they made you."
"I know," I whispered. "Because I'm choosing this."
He raised an eyebrow. "Choosing what?"
"You," I said. "Not the fake bond. Not the plan. You."
And in that moment, he kissed me.
Not the stolen kind.
Not under magic.
A real, raw, no-strings kiss that left both of us breathless.