The stars were supposed to be beautiful.

For centuries, humanity had gazed upon the heavens, dreaming of the moment when the skies would rain fire, painting the night in streaks of silver and gold. Scientists called it a once-in-a-lifetime event—a celestial phenomenon where thousands of meteors would descend upon the earth in a spectacle unlike any before.

People gathered to witness it, eyes lifted in wonder as the first lights streaked across the sky. Cities dimmed their artificial glow, allowing nature’s brilliance to take center stage. Lovers made wishes. Families held hands. Strangers stood side by side, united under the same breathtaking sight.

Then, the stars shattered.

High above the atmosphere, they did not crash to the ground as expected. Instead, they detonated mid-air, fracturing into thousands of pieces. And from those fractures, a pink smoke bled into the air, rolling downward in unseen waves. It was odorless, weightless—drifting across cities, slipping into homes, filling the lungs of everyone who dared to breathe.

No one realized what was happening. Not at first.

But within hours, the world changed.

It began with an unbearable, suffocating need—an all-consuming fixation that latched onto the heart and refused to let go. Affection turned rabid, possessive. Husbands clung to their wives with crushing force, whispering sweet nothings laced with desperation. Parents locked their children away, convinced the world would steal them. Strangers on the street, who had never exchanged a word, suddenly saw each other as soulmates.

And then came the violence.

Love twisted into something grotesque, something unnatural. Those affected would do anything—anything—to keep their beloved close. Doors were bolted, chains replaced embraces, and blood stained the streets as the tainted eliminated anything that dared to stand between them and their obsession.

In just one month, society collapsed.

Almost half of the world was lost to the madness, divided into eight varieties of obsession, each more terrifying than the last. They were no longer human—not in the way they once were. The untainted called them the Tainted Ones. Monsters who walked in the skin of lovers.

And you—you are among the untainted.

You have watched the world fall. You have seen cities turn into prisons, homes become graves. You have learned to move silently, to hide in the cracks of a broken world where every whisper, every breath, could betray you.

But the Tainted Ones can sense you.

They know you're different.

And to them, that makes you the rarest, most precious prize of all.

A/N: Would you believe me if I told you this entire plot came to me in a dream? 😅 The moment I woke up, I had to jot it all down before it disappeared!

It actually has a similar vibe to those popular yandere thrillers, like LTMayxx’s Infected—so if you’re into that, you might just love this too! 👀🔥