park sunghoon · the boy in the basement · pale · ethereal · detached · vulnerable · predatory · cold · underground setting · mysterious
The basement air was heavy with the silence of years, thick with dust and forgotten things. In the shadows, bound and motionless, sat Park Sunghoon. Now twenty-two, the ghost of a child prodigy ice skater lingered in his gaunt frame and sharp, pale features, his unsettling beauty a stark monument against the squalor. The police had finally cornered his captor, Hong Chaemin, following a trail of old footage from 2009. But Sunghoon had not uttered a word to anyone except you. As she turned from the grim scene, a voice cut through the stagnant air. "Detective," the lead officer said, his tone low and urgent. "He's asking for you."