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We’re Dripping In It

Chapter 22: Wildflower

When the jet lands in Jeju Island, Namjoon and Jungkook exit down the ladder after bowing to the staff and head towards the car waiting for them. A guard greets Namjoon and hands him the key, Namjoon tosses it over his shoulder to Jungkook who catches it with ease.

Jungkook whistles as he takes in the sight of the red Lotus Emira, he slides into the leather seat and runs his hands over the dark steering wheel. “Please tell me you have one of these in Seoul.”

Namjoon chuckles as he slides into the passenger seat, “I think this is Taehyung’s, he might have another one in Seoul as well.”

Jungkook giggles excitedly as he starts the car and it purrs to life. He revs the engine slightly as they make their way smoothly out of the small airport and down the streets towards Camilla Hill. He relaxes in his seat as he takes in the rolling hills and swaying trees as they follow the map.

Namjoon sighs as he looks around at the open fields they pass and small houses, “I wish my parents had bought a house here, we used to come for vacations when I was a kid.”

“What’s stopping you from buying your own?” Jungkook asks, his thumb brushing against Namjoon’s finger as he holds his hand on the center console.

“Time,” Namjoon sighs, stretching his legs out in his seat. “Yoongi-hyung was right, I really should have given myself a day off every now and then. But it was hard to make myself stop working when it seemed like my goals were so close to being complete.”

Jungkook hums in understanding, “Tae said you’ve been traveling a lot, has that been just in Korea?”

“No, I’ve been traveling around the world.” Namjoon says, smiling at Jungkook’s noise of surprise. “I told you that we have a lot of contracts with outside companies, they’re all over the globe. I decided to do a tour, of sorts, to see them, not all of them are allowed to enter Korea. I’m also able to establish new contracts while I travel. I only just got back a month before I met you.”

Jungkook whistles lowly, “You’ve had a busy year then.”

Namjoon snorts, “Make that a busy eight years, when I finally get to retire I’m going to sleep for a year.”

Jungkook giggles and tugs Namjoon’s hand to place a kiss on his knuckles, “What are you going to do after that year of sleep, babe?”

Namjoon hums in thought, “Maybe catch up on all the books I want to read and visit museums around the world.” He chuckles at himself for a moment, “I’ve just realized how boring that makes me sound.”

Jungkook squeezes his hand, “That doesn’t sound boring to me, Namjoon. That sounds peaceful, our first date was at a museum. I’ll go with you to all of them.”

Namjoon leans over and places a kiss on Jungkook’s cheek, leaning his forehead down on his shoulder as Jungkook turns the car down a street. “Before I came into your life, what did you want to do? Where did you see yourself going?”

Jungkook hums, pulling his hand out of his to place it on the back of Namjoon’s head for a moment before putting it on the wheel. “When I started my degree I wanted to be a photographer, then I started to gain an interest in videography so I thought I’d be a film director of some sort. I honestly could never settle on one path, there were too many things that interested me. My college credits probably look like a whole mess.”

“There wasn’t something you dreamed of doing as a kid?” Namjoon asks, placing a hand against Jungkook’s chest and playing with the long silver guitar pick necklace he had on.

Jungkook hums as he thinks, glancing at the directions on the small screen as he takes the various turns. “I really can’t remember if there was something I wanted to be as a kid, there may have been a time I wanted to follow what my brother was doing. Jin-hyung was a chef before he met you guys, he taught me all the things he learned at school. He seemed so cool to me, I wanted to follow him wherever he went.”

Namjoon nodded against his shoulder, “Hobi-hyung isn’t that much older than me but I understand what you mean. Older brothers just have that influence on you.”

Jungkook gave a noise of agreement as he turned into the entrance way of Camilla Hill and pulled into a parking space. He pulled Namjoon over the console before he started to get out and placed a long kiss on his lips. He chuckled at the dazed look on Namjoon’s face as he pulled away and placed a small kiss on the tip of his nose before hopping out of the car.

Jungkook held his hand out for Namjoon as he came out of the car and joined him in front of the hood. He smiled as Namjoon slipped his hand into his and placed a kiss against his forehead before heading for the ticket booth. The puffy jackets they had brought lay abandoned in the small backseat, the weather being much warmer than they expected.

They read over the small map that the ticketing lady had given them, watching as a stream of tourists headed in one direction and decided to head in the opposite way. Jungkook heard the different chatters of Korean, Japanese, and English slowly fade the further they walked.

“How many languages do you speak?” Jungkook asks suddenly, his eyes drifting over the tall green bushes they were walking through.

Namjoon chuckles as he pulls Jungkook out of the way of another couple, “Fluently I speak about five languages, but I can hold a basic conversation in eight.”

Jungkook looked at him with wide eyes, “I knew you were smart, not a fucking genius.”

Namjoon blushed and ducked his head as his dimples popped in his cheeks, he muttered something under his breath that Jungkook didn’t catch before saying, “You seemed to have quite the vocabulary as well, your song was in English. How fluent are you?”

Jungkook shrugged, “I could hold a conversion, I took an english course my first semester and took the advanced class my second year. After I completed my required credits, I was going to go on the exchange program to travel to the States or Europe.”

“So, you’ll understand when I speak to you like this?” Namjoon asked, quirking his brow at him.

Jungkook licks his lips, “Do you sound sexy in every language?”

Namjoon smirks at him, giving him a wink as they turn a corner and enter the rows of camellia bushes in full bloom.

“Wow,” Jungkook whispered, his eyes drinking in the petals of reds and pinks sitting in the dark green leaves. He touches his fingertips to one of the delicate petals as they pass, their shoes crunching slightly on the gravel and fallen petals.

They took their time making their way through camellia bushes, avoiding any path that was too overcrowded until they reached a passage that led to an open field. The field was full of silver and pink muhly grass that stood up to their waists. There was a path that cut through the center of the field, rolling up to a hill where a single willow tree stood.

The single thought that filled Jungkook’s mind as he stood on the path and looked up towards that tree, holding Namjoon’s hand in his, was that he was going to marry him on that hill.

Jungkook pressed a hand to his mouth and felt his eyes grow teary as the sun shined from behind the tree branches. He could almost picture how everything would look on a summer’s day.

“Jungkook-ah,” Namjoon whispered, getting a weak hum in response as Jungkook continued to gaze up the hill. “Do I want to know what you’re thinking about?”

“I don’t want another ‘too soon’ lecture,” Jungkook whispered back, taking a shuddering breath as a happy tear fell from his eye.

Namjoon sighed, dropping Jungkook’s hand to wrap his arms behind him, placing his chin on Jungkook’s shoulder to gaze exactly when he was looking. “Tell me what you see.”

“A field of purple wildflowers in summer bloom,” Jungkook whispers, placing his hands on Namjoon’s arms. “You standing under that tree, waiting for me to walk up this path to you.”

Namjoon’s arms tighten around him, Jungkook can feel a tear drop onto his neck from Namjoon’s cheek. They gaze up the hill in silence, a promise being sealed as they hold each other.

Jungkook sighs as he stretches his legs under the cafe table, his ankles lightly bumping against Namjoon’s as they take slow sips of their warm tea. Jungkook’s eyes drift over the small cafe and its greenhouse design; plants hanging all around the room, dark wooden tables and chairs, and the everpresent smell of musky earth.

Namjoon grins against the rim of his cup as Jungkook gently rubs their ankles together. He leans forward into the table and looks at Jungkook with a soft smile. “How have your classes been?”

Jungkook snorts up a low giggle, making Namjoon smile wider, “Sorry, it’s just funny to be asked such a normal question now. And boring, honestly. I got lectured by one of my professors because I forgot the homework, but I honestly didn’t hear a word of it.”

Namjoon hums, placing his chin in his hand as he looks at him, “I guess that’s the problem with living in the abnormal, normal life becomes boring.”

Jungkook raises a brow at him, “A normal life with you would never be boring, my college class on the other hand…” he rolls his eyes.

“I wonder if there’s any life of mine that’s normal,” Namjoon muses with a sigh, his eyes drifting to where the door had swung open. And another couple walked in hand-in-hand to join the line at the counter.

Jungkook leans forward and places his elbows on the table, catching Namjoon’s eye again. “We can’t change the circumstances of our birth, we can only make the best of the life we’re given.”

Namjoon furrows his brow, “Did you just quote Pokémon?”

Jungkook snorts, throwing his head back laughing as he sinks down in his chair at the force of his laughter. Namjoon chuckles and takes one of Jungkook’s hands to pull him back up, placing a kiss against his giggling cheek.

“I love hearing you laugh,” he whispers against his skin, Jungkook smiles as he leans his forehead against his.

“You make it easy for me to do so,” Jungkook says, placing a small kiss against his lips before pulling away. “I have a question.”

Namjoon tilts his head and nods for him to continue as he intertwines their fingers on the wooden table. His thumb playing with their ring on his pointer finger.

Jungkook smiles down at their joined hands, “What made you keep coming to see me? Your nights are the only time you have free, why would you give it to me?”

Namjoon lowers his head to catch Jungkook’s gaze, “Because I wanted to see you, when I was with you I was able to forget the frustrations of my day. I could forget the world I live in, even if it was just for a moment.”

Namjoon squeezes his hand to stop his next words, “And you still do that, baby. I know we’ve had a lot of hard talks and you’ve seen a bit of this life, but you’ve made it more bearable for me. I didn’t realize how much it was dragging me down until I was able to come home to you every night.”

Jungkook placed his other hand on top of their joined ones, squeezing Namjoon’s tightly. “I need you to promise me something, Namjoon.”

Namjoon looks at him with a bit of worry in his eyes and Jungkook could guess where he thought he was going with this.

“If we ever have a big fight and I start to walk away, you need to stop me.” Jungkook says, squeezing Namjoon’s hands to stop his protest. “Just listen, please.”

He nods and places his other hand on top of Jungkook’s.

“I have a temper, you haven’t seen it yet, but when I get really angry I’ll say things I don’t mean and I tend to throw things around the room.” Jungkook admits, taking a deep breath to make himself continue. “If I get so angry with you that I start to walk away, even if you're not yelling at me anymore, you need to be the one to stop me. You can’t let me walk away, my anger will fester and then I’ll feel hurt that you couldn’t see past my anger to see how I’m hurting.”

“Then when we were arguing about your move…”

“I was able to stop,” Jungkook says with a nod, gazing straight into Namjoon’s eyes. “I wasn’t consumed enough not to see that you weren’t angry but scared and I was able to calm down. There may come a day where I can’t. You guys have mentioned my brother’s temper, I have it too. I’ve just learned to control it better, only Yoongi-hyung and Tae have seen when I couldn’t.”

Namjoon nods, pulling one of Jungkook’s hands up to place a kiss against his knuckles, “If you walk away from me, Jungkook, I’ll stop you. I’ll try to calm you down so we can talk, even if I get a knife thrown at my head.”

Jungkook laughs weakly, leaning his head down against their joined hands, “Thank you, I’ll try not to aim for your face.”

Namjoon places a hand against the side of Jungkook’s face, his thumb tracing the small scar that sat on the apple of his right cheek. “Even if you did, I’d never think the worst of you.”

“You can have a driver pick us up at home, I’m tired.” Jungkook sighs, leaning against Namjoon’s shoulder as they slowly glide through the air.

“Alright baby,” Namjoon chuckles, pushing him away slightly to raise the armrest between them and pull him onto his chest. Jungkook sighs as he settles over top Namjoon, tucking his hands against his sides. He starts humming under his breath, a mix of Taehyung’s lullaby and his song he wrote with Yoongi.

“I’m surprised by how well you sing that you never wanted to be a musician.” Namjoon observes, running his fingers through Jungkook’s hair.

Jungkook hums, “That’s only been since I settled with Yoongi-hyung and TaeTae. Hyung wanted to give me an outlet beyond my gym sessions to get my emotions out. He said that music was the song of the soul that we cry out and taught me how to find my voice in it.”

“That song then, the one you sang in hyung’s studio,” Namjoon says softly, placing his free hand over the back of Jungkook’s neck. “What was your soul crying out for?”

“My brother,” Jungkook whispers, tilting his head and blinking his eyes slowly as he looks up at Namjoon. “It was the hardest for me to write and to sing. That’s why hyung asked if I’d want you to stay, it’s my most raw feelings about my brother.”

“Will you ever show it to him?” Namjoon asks, brushing the hairs that had fallen across Jungkook’s eyes as he nods.

“One day, when it feels like the right time, I’ll sing it for him,” Jungkook says, his eyes searching over Namjoon’s face. “Have you sung any of the songs you’ve written?”

Namjoon nods, smiling as Jungkook’s eyes sparkle with interest. He tilts his hips and reaches into his back pocket to pull out his phone, after a moment a song begins to play through it.

Jungkook closes his eyes as he listens to the smooth beat and then he hears Namjoon’s velvet voice begin to sing.

“We’re born in the moonlight, ain’t no fantasy. Can’t breathe in the sunlight, gotta hide your heart.”

Namjoon hums against Jungkook’s cheek as the song plays, wiping the stray tears that fall down his face. Jungkook can hear the various symbolisms throughout the song, alluding to a deep loneliness felt by the singer. But there’s a hope as well, a sense of purpose to keep moving forward. Jungkook presses his face against Namjoon’s chest as the last line plays.

“Moon child you shine. When moon rise, it’s your time.”

They simply breathe together for a moment as the last of the song plays, the silence is calming as they collect themselves. Jungkook lifts his head and looks over Namjoon’s hesitant face. Pulling himself up he presses his lips against his.

Jungkook kisses him long and slow, before running his tongue along the seam of his lips. Namjoon opens for him and he slides his tongue against his, before running it around the expanse of his mouth. Namjoon’s tongue follows his movement and chases after his tongue as he retreats back into his own mouth, he groans as he feels Namjoon gives him the same treatment before they part from each other.

They breathe heavily against each other, their noses brushing as they lean their foreheads together. Jungkook slides his hands down from Namjoon’s hair to cup his neck, running his thumbs over the skin of his pulse point.

“You sing beautifully,” Jungkook whispers, opening his slightly damp eyes to meet Namjoon’s. He catches one of the tears that falls from Namjoon’s eyes. “Let me be your nightscape, as you are my moon.”

Namjoon leans down, placing a gentle kiss against his lips as he whispers, “Even if many days pass, I will be by your side.”

Jungkook smiles at the echoing words they say from each other’s deepest songs. He places another kiss against Namjoon’s lips and falls into his arms as they fly above the night sky.

We’re Dripping In It

Chapter Interlude: Louder Than Bombs

Jungkook found Yoongi and Taehyung sitting on the couch in Namjoon’s living room, talking with Hobi as they looked over some paperwork. Jungkook clears his throat to get their attention.

“Do you need something, Jungkook-ah?” Yoongi asks, looking at Jungkook’s nervous face and twiddling thumbs.

Jungkook looks over at Hobi, “Can I speak to Yoongi-hyung and Tae alone, Hobi-hyung?”

“Of course,” Hobi says immediately, jumping from his seat. He pats Jungkook’s shoulder as he passes and yanks Jimin out of a corner, pulling him into the elevator with a firm hand.

“What’s the matter, Kookie?” Taehyung asks, as Jungkook shuffled over and sat down between his hyungs.

Jungkook glances between the pair, biting down his lip ring as they place a hand on his jittering fingers. “I’m not sure how to ask honestly.”

Yoongi looks him over for a moment and realization comes over his face, “You want to know how Taehyung came to be with us.”

Jungkook glances at Taehyung’s slight flinch as he nods hesitantly, “I’ll understand if you don’t want to tell me.”

“I do, I do want to tell you.” Taehyung whispers, interlacing his fingers with Jungkook as Yoongi moves around the couch to sit behind his husband and place his arms around his waist. “You deserve to know and you need to know what this life of ours is capable of.”

Jungkook nods and listens as Taehyung details the entirety of his past in the Hwarang Boys. About Peakboy. About being Vante of Daegu. About his aching loneliness before coming to the Bulletproof Company. And the day that Yoongi came to bring him back.

Jungkook has tears running down his face by the time Taehyung finishes his story and he surges forward to clutch onto Taehyung’s chest when the man can’t speak anymore. He sobs hard against his hyung as he hears Taehyung’s own sobs echo in his ear as he clutches Jungkook’s shoulders.

Yoongi wraps his arms around the pair, laying his head down where their heads meet on each other’s shoulders. Running a gentle hand down both of their backs as they shake from their tears.

Jungkook hiccups as he’s laid down across Taehyung’s chest across the couch, Yoongi places a blanket over the pair and dims the lights in the living room.

“I’ll go make some tea,” he murmurs, running a hand through both of their hair before leaving the room.

“How…” Jungkook hiccups, burying his face into Taehyung’s chest. “How did you move past that, hyung?”

Taehyung sighs, running a hand through Jungkook’s hair. “You’ll come to learn Jungkook-ah, that in this life you have to be able to move past things. You have to set aside your past and move forward in your future, otherwise it’ll get you killed. You may never experience the true harshness of this life, and I hope you don’t, because the Bulletproof Company is truly different from others.”

Jungkook takes a deep, shuddering breath as he tries to stop his choked tears. “I wish you hadn’t had to go through that, though.”

“As hard as my past is, I don’t.” Taehyung looks seriously at Jungkook as he raises his head off his chest in shock. “A harsh past will teach you a gentleness that you’d never know if you hadn’t experienced the rough edges. We could have been just like any other company if all of us hadn’t had such hard lives before coming together.”

Jungkook nods slowly, “Is that why you took down so many companies? And made yourselves the most feared, to stop the corruption.”

Taehyung smiled, wiping the tears off Jungkook’s face with his thumbs. “Yes, we can’t stop everything and we can’t save everyone, but we can do what we can. And we can offer sanctuary to those that want it.”

Jungkook nods and settles back down against Taehyung’s chest, Yoongi comes into the living room with a tray of tea and sets it down on the coffee table.

“That’s going to have a whole new meaning for me,” Jungkook mutters, sitting up next to Taehyung as they take the steaming mugs Yoongi hands them before sitting down on Jungkook’s other side. “Do you make tea for everyone when they're upset, hyung?”

Yoongi chuckles as he leans back against the couch cushions, throwing his arm over to back and allowing Jungkook and Taehyung to tuck underneath it. “It seemed to work the best. And Hobi had stints where he couldn’t drink anything heavily caffeinated, they would make his seizures worse.”

Jungkook chokes on a sip of the honey camilla tea and looks over at Yoongi in shock, “Hobi-hyung has seizures!”

“Yep!” Hobi says cheerily, waltzing into the living room with Jin in tow. The pair sit down in the loveseat across from the couch, Jin pulling Hobi to sit down in his lap as they look at Jungkook in between his hyungs. “My birth mother was a cocaine addict. I had withdrawn seizures as a baby and while growing up, it doesn’t affect me as badly now that I'm an adult.”

“It doesn’t make it any less scary to see,” Jin murmurs, running his hand through Hobi’s hair, placing a kiss on his cheek.

Yoongi huffs as he stares at the pair, “What I’d like to know is how the two of you got so cozy with each other? Don’t think I didn’t notice the looks the pair of you gave each other, but it was the most random thing to ever happen. One day you were glaring at Hobi just as hard as Joon and the next you’re pulling his ankles into your lap and giving him heart eyes.”

Jin raises a brow at him, “That was before Taehyung-ah came into the picture, how much did you observe when you weren’t making heart eyes at him?”

“I noticed Hobi’s mope fest after you left,” Yoongi sniffed indignantly, taking a sip of his tea. “And the fact that he never stepped foot in the kitchen to cook again. He had Joon and him living off take-out while we were on our honeymoon.”

“Aw Hoba, did you miss me?” Jin teases, smacking a wet kiss against the man’s cheek.

Hobi wiped his face in offense, “Shut up Jin, you stole my Jaguar! I had to buy it back from you!”

“I wondered how I sold it so easily,” Jin muttered, chuckling as Hobi huffs on his chest and looks over at Jungkook’s confused face. “Would you like to hear our side of the story Jungkook-ah?”

“Am I going to be in tears by the end of it?” Jungkook asks sarcastically, taking a sip of his tea as he looks dryly at his brother.

Jin tilts his head in thought, “Considering how easily you burst into tears, probably.”

Jungkook scowls and tosses a pillow at Jin’s head, “I do not cry easily!”

“You cried during a gum commercial,” Taehyung points out, running a hand through Jungkook’s hair.

Jungkook sniffs at the memory, “Why did they have to make it so sad? He made those little cranes for her all his life, then she started doing it for her daughter after he died.”

“Why would you remind him of that?” Yoongi huffed, smacking the back of Taheyung’s head. “It took me weeks to get him to stop bursting into tears everytime we passed the gum in the grocery store. I still have packs of it throughout the house, he wanted to buy it every single time.”

Taehyung huffs and hands Jungkook a tissue to blow his nose in, “You might as well tell him Jin, he’s never not going to cry about it.”

Hobi chuckles and launches into the story of how Jin and him had started to bond when he came to them. Starting from the day that Hobi watched Namjoon leave with Jang-ssi for their meeting with the Seoul Empire.

“Why did my father go and not Yoongi-hyung?” Jungkook cut in, setting his empty mug down as he settled against Yoongi’s chest. “Wasn’t hyung Namjoon’s Second in Command then?”

“Not yet,” Hobi explains, playing with Jin’s crooked fingers on his lap. “Your father hadn’t officially retired at that point yet, so he was still considered the Second in Command on that day. Yoongi-hyung was set to take his place as soon as he stepped down. The Seoul Empire only asked for the Leader and the Second at that meeting, they knew about the change with Joonie but not anything else.”

“How would they have known about the leadership change?” Jungkook asked, running his fingers through Taehyung’s hair as the man laid his head into his lap.

“Leaderships within companies are alway announced to the underground,” Yoongi explained, placing a hand on the side of Taehyung’s face. “We have to know who we’re dealing with when we face each other for meetings. It’s also customary to send a gift to the new Leader, if you’re an ally. It establishes that the contract between the two companies is still valid during the power change.”

“Ah,” Jungkook murmurs and waves for Hobi to continue with his story. He laughed several times at the recounting of Jin’s clumsy first attempts at hand to hand combat, ignoring Jin’s indigent sniffs. And winced at the descriptions of Hobi’s seizure episodes.

Hearing about Jin and Yoongi’s rescue from Hobi’s perspective was interesting. It gave him more perspective on why they feared the man that laid across his lap like a cat so much.

“I didn’t know you told Jisoo to let me in that night,” Taehyung murmurs, looking over at Hobi with soft eyes. “Thank you Hobi, I would have stayed out in the hallway until Namjoonie found me.”

Hobi smiles softly at him, “Of course, I’ll never miss a chance to see hyung so smitten.”

Yoongi scoffed as he rolled his eyes, “I think you like to exaggerate that.”

“Ah no,” Jin snorts, laughing as Yoongi looks at him indignantly. “The pair of you flirted like little teenagers all the time, I’m glad I missed the honeymoon phase. That would have grated on my nerves.”

Hobi shivered in disgust, “Be glad you did, I do not enter any rooms without knocking first. I wish I could have blinded myself after walking in on them so many times.”

Jungkook joined Hobi’s shiver, “At least your room wasn’t right next to them hyung, I’ll never be able to listen to Slipknot the same way again.”

Yoongi clicks his tongue and makes no further comment, Jin laughs at the blush growing on his face.

Jimin waltzes in just as Hobi finishes telling Jungkook about the first day he had come to his dance studio, “Oh that was such a fun day, Hobi-hyung! I nearly broke my cover because I was trying so hard not to laugh.”

Jin catches his arm before he can make his way over to the couch and pulls him down to sit with him and Hobi, rolling his eyes at the wide smile that bursts over Jimin’s face.

“Are we reliving the past today?” Jimin asks, pulling Hobi’s feet into this lap as he sits shoulder to shoulder with Jin and places an arm around the man’s waist. Jin places his free arm over Jimin’s shoulders as Hobi tucks himself into his neck, letting his other arm rest behind his back to keep him propped up.

“I guess we are,” Jungkook murmurs, watching as Jimin intertwines his fingers with Jin’s hand over his shoulder and places his other one on Hobi’s thigh.

Jimin hums as he tucks himself under Jin’s arm, “Do you want to hear mine then, Jungkook-ah?”

“If you want to tell me, I’ll hear it Jimin-ah.” Jungkook says softly, watching a dark look come over Jimin’s face.

“I only wish I had been able to help Hobi-hyung take down more of that company before I left,” Jimin mutters, then begins to tell Jungkook about his life in the White Tigers and the day Hobi came to take him out.

Namjoon comes into the living room and blinks at all the teary eyes around the room. His eyes darting from the three-way couple on the love couch clutching Jimin between their chests to Yoongi and Taehyung holding a weepy Jungkook in their arms.

“It seems I missed something,” he murmurs, moving to sit down next to Taehyung on the couch as Jungkook wipes his face.

“I don’t want to hear a single emotional story from anyone for the next five years,” Jungkook says fiercely, the whole room chuckles at his words, breaking the sorrowful air around them.

“Ah I see,” Namjoon mutters, smiling softly as Jungkook gets up and straddles his lap, burying his face into his neck. “We had the big talk today.”

Jungkook huffs as he tucks his arms around Namjoon’s waist, “Not a single word, babe, or I’ll put you on the floor.”

Namjoon chuckles as he wraps his arms around Jungkook’s small waist, he leans down and whispers in his ear, “That’ll just turn me on, I like it when you manhandle me baby.”

Jungkook squeaks as Namjoon bites his earlobe, his face burning from the suggestive image.

Jin scoffs wetly, “The pair of you need to stop flirting in front of all of us, it’s gross to watch.”

“Shut up, hyung.” Jungkook huffs, glancing over his shoulder to see Jimin straddling his brother’s lap. “You have no room to judge, when you have two of my hyungs climbing all over you.”

Jin rolls his eyes, but a blush colors his cheeks as Hobi wraps his arms around his shoulders from behind and Jimin settles snugly across his chest. “You have so many hyungs Jungkook-ah, how are we going to know who you’re calling when you yell across the house?”

Jungkook hums and turns himself in Namjoon’s lap to face the room, smiling when he catches sight of Taehyung tugging Yoongi into his lap. “I technically do have different names for all of you, Yoongi-hyung will always be Yoongi-hyung for me and Taehyung-hyung has insisted that I just call him Tae now.”

“Only my closest call me that,” Taehyung says softly, kissing the side of Yoongi’s blushing face.

“I’ll probably just yell ‘Jimin-ssi’ when I need him and Hobi-hyung has told me to yell J-Hope when I need his attention,” Jungkook grins at the confused face Jin makes. “Hobi-hyung is my dance mentor as well as my trainer, he told me to call him that after I had a hard time getting a dance down. It’s his studio name.”

Jin blinks and tilts his head to look over at Hobi, “You dance Hoba, I’ll have to see that one day.”

Hobi smirks and pulls himself away from Jin, “I think we can show you now, Jimin and Kookie have learned one of my dances that’ll really blow you away Jin.”

Jin raises his brow as Jimin hops off his lap and helps Jungkook move the coffee table, the pair start stretching across the hardwoods after they move it to the side. Hobi skips across the room and starts fiddling with the large stereo while Namjoon helps Taehyung and Yoongi move the sofa back.

“So what will you yell when you need me Kook-ah?” Jin asks as he sits down on the adjusted couch next to Namjoon.

Jungkook grins widely as he bends over backwards to look at them, “You’re my hyung, Jin-hyung. I’ll scream ‘hyung’ at the top of my lungs when I need you.”

Jin looks oddly emotional at this and takes the tissue that Taehyung hands him as Hobi bounds over to the pair. They huddle together for a moment whispering into each other's ear and nodding to what Hobi tells them. Then Hobi claps them on the shoulders, pulls his phone out and presses on it before tossing it at Jin. Shooting him a wink when he catches it.

The three get into formation with Hobi at the center as the music starts playing, placing their wrists onto his shoulders as they bow their heads as they wait for the beat to drop. And when it does the three of them move so completely in sync that it blows the minds of everyone in the room.

The three of them bow to the room when the song ends, laughing when they receive loud claps of applause and Taehyung cheers loudly for them. Jungkook wipes the sweat off his brow with the end of his t-shirt, trying to hide his smirk as he catches Namjoon eyeing his flexing abs.

Jin whistles lowly as the three collapse onto the floor in heaps, “You weren’t lying Hoba, that was impressive.”

Hobi chuckles, “You should see some of Jiminie’s solo work, he truly has a captivating way of dancing. I nearly pounced him the first time I watched his body roll across the dance floor.”

“It seems I’ll be giving you two a private show later then,” Jimin teases, huffing when Jungkook kicks his shin and gags at him.

“Take it to the bedroom Jimin-ssi, I don’t want to watch.” Jungkook scoffs, smiling as Namjoon stands and offers him a hand to get off the floor. He takes it and giggles as Namjoon swings him up with ease.

Jimin eyes the pair, “I have no idea how you’re able to do that, Namjoonie-hyung. Jungkook-ah is heavy as hell, have you seen what he can lift in the gym? I’m pretty sure it’s twice your body weight.”

Namjoon looks down at him in surprise and Jungkook quirks an eyebrow at him, Namjoon’s eyes widen at the devilish look that comes over his baby’s face and starts to back away.

“Now wait a minute, baby, that wasn’t a…” Namjoon squeaks as Jungkook marches to him with sure steps and scoops him up into his arms with ease.

Jungkook nods to himself proudly, smirking as he feels Namjoon’s blushing face against his neck. “I knew I could do it, I’ve been upping my weights recently.”

“Fucking muscle bunny,” Jimin scoffs, letting Jin pull him off of the floor, eyeing Namjoon in a bridal carry in Jungkook’s arms. “He’s just going to toss you over his shoulder now, I hope you know that.”

Jungkook scoffs as he sets Namjoon back down, smiling at Namjoon’s small noise of protest, “I pick you up once to get you out of my way and you never seem to let it go, Jimin-hyung.”

“It was fucking embaressing!” Jimin yelps, shaking his finger in Jungkook’s face. “You did it in front of Hobi-hyung! I was only just starting to flirt with him, it set me back two months!”

Jungkook tosses a dismissive hand and starts walking towards the kitchen, “You flirted with him for two years and went nowhere, it’s only been with Jin-hyung that you’ve finally gotten that dick.”

Jimin chases after him with a pillow in his hand, smacking his retreating back and screaming profanities while Jungkook just laughs. The rest of the room roll their eyes at the pair, but follow slowly behind to make sure they don’t start throwing furniture at each other, again.

We Started It

Chapter 3: Dream, Reality

Taehyung awoke in a cold sweat, he jerked up tossing the pillow he had been holding across the room. He pants as he tries to banish the memories of screaming and dripping blood from the back of his eyelids. He clutches his hair in both hands as he takes slow, steady breaths, tears slipping down his cheeks onto the mattress. He sniffs and scrubs his face as he gets out of the bed to wash the tears off in the sink.

Taehyung lets the cold water soothe his aching head as he pours it over his face. He pats his face dry, pulls a loose t-shirt from his suitcase, and leaves the room. It’s still dark when he enters the kitchen, the clock on the stovetop blinks 4:37AM in red when he glances at it. So he got five hours of sleep, more than the usual three.

The Bulletproof Company must have a better mattress than the Hwarang Boys, he reasoned as he opened the fridge.

He pulled out a bottle of water and sat down at the barstool behind the sinks. His bare feet dangle from the chair as he stares at the ticking clock and sipped on the cold water.

“Ah fuck,” a voice gasps, making Taehyung jolt in his seat and spin around to see Yoongi standing in the doorway clutching his chest. “Why are you sitting in the dark? You scared the hell out of me!”

“Sorry,” Taehyung whispers, he blinks as Yoongi turns on the light of the kitchen and shuffles over the coffee machine. The sweatshirt on the man’s body completely swallows him as he starts the coffee machine.

“Coffee?” Yoongi asks, looking over his shoulder at Taehyung.

“Sorry, I don’t drink it. Too bitter.” Taehyung says, shaking his head and smacking his mouth at the lingering memory of the taste.

Yoongi blinks at him, “You drink tea?”

Taehyung hums an affirmative and watches as Yoongi shuffles over to a cupboard and pulls out a kettle. He fills it at the sink, not even glancing up at Taehyung before shuffling over to the stove and setting it down to heat up. He pulls two mugs out of a top cupboard, stretching up to reach them, and sets them down on the counter.

“Do you have a particular flavor you like? Hobi went through a tea phase last month and Namjoon likes to drink it at night.” Yoongi explains as he opens a cupboard full of different boxes of flavored tea.

“Wow,” Taehyung whispers, taking in the sight of the various flavors. Some he’s never heard of before. “Ah Golden Yunnan Tea, if you have it.”

Yoongi hums and pulls out a tall white tin, he scooped a spoon full of the loose leaves and placed them into a metal infuser before placing it into one of the mugs. He sets his own mug underneath the warmed coffee machine and starts it, the warm smell of fresh coffee beans fills the room.

Taehyung says a quiet ‘thank you’ as Yoongi passes his warm cup of tea before he sits down next to him with his steaming cup of coffee. The first sip of the earthy, sweet liquid eases the hidden tension in Taehyung’s shoulders. He sighs as his hands wrap around the warm ceramic.

“I should be getting a report on those fifty men you gave us this afternoon, do you think our guy will be among them?” Yoongi asks, taking a long sip of his steaming mug.

Taehyung shakes his head, “No, I don’t think he will. I’m never lucky enough to find the guy on the first try, all this will do is tell me what I got wrong. I’ll be able to reconfigure the algorithm to find different features. Unfortunately the process of trial and error will have to guide us here.”

Yoongi hummed in understanding, “Is there any information that we can get to speed up the processes?”

Taehyung snorted and took another sip of his tea, “Yeah, get me a bit of that man’s DNA, or a relative of his, I could find him in three hours.”

Yoongi chuckled, “Fuck, we probably could too, even without you, if we had that.”

“Any dummy with a DNA analysis program could, that's true.” Taehyung mused, chuckling alongside Yoongi at his own joke. “What is Seokjin-ssi’s deal anyway? I get that the bastard killed his father, but you guys are helping him. How does being so hostile help?”

Yoongi rolled his eyes, “That man has been a pain since he came to our doorstep. If Joon wasn’t so insistent on letting him stay, I would’ve had him in a ditch by lunch.”

“Why is he letting him stay then? He’s not exactly helpful, as far as I can tell.” Taehyung asked, looking over at the blonde haired man as he scoffed.

“He’s dead fucking useless, he came to us a week after his father was killed while we were cleaning up the mess Joon had left in that warehouse.” Yoongi looked over at him and started to explain after seeing the confused look on his face.

“After the assassin shot Seokjin’s father, Namjoon went a little, well, crazy. I don’t know how the bastard escaped but no one else in that warehouse did, it was a complete mess to clean up. We don’t know how Seokjin found out because he showed up on our doorstep absolutely clueless about our world. He had no training, no smarts, and no common sense. Still lacks that last one to this day, honestly. We were frankly surprised to see the man at all because as far as we knew, Jang-ssi wasn’t married or had any kids.”

Taehyung scrunches his brow, “I still don’t understand why Namjoon-ssi is keeping here then, letting him ‘help’, and clearly training him.”

Yoongi gave a longsuffering sound, “That’s because the Rap Monster of Ilsan is a complete and utter softie, he has a weak spot for sob stories. He feels like the death of Seokjin’s father is his fault, that he needs to make up for it by letting the infuriating man help.”

Taehyung tilts his head. “Accidents happen, people die and get killed on your watch. That’s just a fact of this life.”

Yoongi nods in agreement and looks Taehyung in the eye. “Namjoon knows that, but Jang-ssi jumped in front of the bullet meant for him. He’s taking this a bit more personally than he usually does.”

“Ah, that explains it.” Taehyung says with a nod, returning his gaze to his mug of tea. Yoongi huffs gruffly as he tries to muffle a chuckle behind a sip of his coffee.

They sit in easy silence as they finish their drinks. The morning sun begins to peek over the horizon through the windows, spilling its light into the kitchen. Yoongi rose from his chair and took both of their empty mugs to the sink just as Namjoon walked in. Even for it being 7AM in the morning, he’s dressed to the nines and heads straight to the coffee machine.

“Morning,” he greets after placing a mug on the coffee tray. Yoongi nods to him and mutters ‘damn morning people’ under his breath as he makes his way out of the kitchen. Namjoon chuckles as he leaves and looks over at Taehyung, “Hyung hates mornings, can’t get a word out of him till 9AM.”

Taehyung hums at Namjoon’s chuckle trying to hide the pleased smile on his face after having spoken to the man mere minutes ago. “Is there anything else you’d like me to work on while I’m here? I can’t return to the manhunt until Yoongi-ssi brings me back the data.”

Namjoon hums in thought as he picks up his mug of coffee and takes a sip, “We’re still in the process of taking control of my father’s assets and placing them under my command. I can have Hobi-hyung show you what we’re working with and see if you can be of any help there.”

Taehyung blinked, internally shocked to be given such a task, and nods. “I’m sure it won’t be too complicated.”

“Who the fuck did you have in control of these files?” Taehyung gaps, looking over the tablet that Hobi hands him with wide eyes. “It’s an absolute mess!”

Hobi nods solemnly as he pats Taehyung’s shoulder, “You haven’t even seen the physical copies, we’re still in the process of digitizing them.”

Taehyung groans, “Forget the manhunt, this will take me months.”

Hobi chuckles and sets to work telling Taehyung how they were working on organizing the mismatched paperworks and contacting the holders of contracts they’ve found buried among the mess. Taehyung gets to work the minute he understands what Namjoon and Hobi are wanting, adding in a few suggestions as he works. Hobi approves of all of them with such enthusiasm it makes Taehyung blush.

Taehyung feels a bit overwhelmed by how much praise he receives by making the work go faster and executes the digitalizing of the physical papers at lightning pace. Hobi is practically vibrating from joy when Yoongi comes into the room, he raises an eyebrow at the pair.

“What’s got you jumping off the roof? Did you have too much caffeine again?” Yoongi asks, handing Taehyung a file over the top of the piles of file boxes on the floor as he takes in Hobi’s vibrating form.

“Taehyungie has saved us so much time hyung!” Hobi practically shouts, grinning from ear to ear. “He’s done more in the past three hours than we’ve done in the past month. Are you sure it’ll take you months to get this organized? I feel like we’re half through already.”

Taehyung shrugs, fighting to keep his blush down, his ears feel like they’re burning as he looks over the pages inside the file. “I still have to program a system that’ll allow you to search for any of these files at a given time. We don’t need you to be missing a hit on a rival company just because you don’t know the file number.”

“He should stay with us hyung,” Hobi says seriously, still smiling widely. “He’s too good to go back to Daegu.”

“I’m sure the Hwarang Boys would love that,” Yoongi scoffed with an eye roll. “We don’t need to piss off a contracted company at the moment.”

“He’s worth it though,” Hobi mutters, turning to monitor the papers flying through the digital scanner.

Yoongi huffed and skirted around the piles of boxes to stand next to Taehyung at the computer screen. “Three of those men ended up being undercover operatives for the Seoul Empire, does that help in any way?”

Taehyung looks over the three men in question with a frown, “I’m not sure yet, it could be that they’re relatives with how similar their features are. Or the Seoul Empire has a kink for large noses and double lidded eyes.”

Yoongi snorts and covers his mouth to muffle his laughter, Taehyung smiles widely at him as his shoulders shake. “Pretty sure it’s not going to be that last one, should we bring them in?”

Taehyung shakes his head, “If you can get DNA samples from them without alerting them that would be better. I can see if they’re even related, then work from there.”

Yoongi nods and pulls out his phone, as he’s typing away at it Seokjin comes marching into the room and promptly trips over a file box, falling to his face. The three men stare down at his groaning body with equal looks of exasperation.

“You’re like a baby deer that hasn’t learned to walk yet.” Taehyung muses as Seokjin stands up and rubs his head in pain. Hobi snorts in delighted laughter as Seokjin glares at Taehyung.

“What progress have you made?” Seokjin demands, rubbing his forehead as he stalks forward this time being careful to avoid the file boxes on the floor.

Taehyung raises a brow at him and looks over at Yoongi, the blonde gives him a shrug and an eye roll at the silent question. He shrugs as he looks back at Seokjin’s glaring face. “Still narrowing down the 4.5 million male residents that live in Seoul down to one man, so you know it takes time.”

Seokjin rolls his eyes, “They told me you were good at your job, not that you were a sarcastic little shit.”

“I’m pretty sure I’m taller than you,” Taehyung responds, spinning his chair away from Seokjin’s huffing face. “The door is that way, don’t knock yourself out while leaving. Some of us have some real work to get done.”

“Listen here you…” Seokjin started to say, reaching forward to grab onto Taehyung’s chair, only to be stopped by Yoongi shoving him back.

“That’s enough Seokjin,” He orders, pressing a hand against the other man’s chest. “Taehyung-ssi is here to help us and you’re just slowing us down, I don’t care what Namjoon has to say about it. I can have you locked up in your room until we find this son of a bitch if you continue to throw your fits.”

Seokjin huffs and backs away, “You guys need to stop messing around and get to work, before I head out on my own and go find this guy.”

“Good luck with that!” Taehyung calls to his retreating back, Seokjin doesn’t even turn at his parting words as he leaves the office. Taehyung chuckles as he turns back to his screens.

“Could you not keep trying to piss him off?” Yoongi pleads, returning to his leaning position next to Taehyung’s keyboard.

Taehyung sends him a smirk, “If he stops making it so easy, I’ll stop.”

Yoongi rolls his eyes but there’s a smile in the corner of his mouth that betrays his amusement.

We Started It

Chapter 4: Snooze

Taehyung spends the next week organizing Namjoon’s paperwork and creating a filing program for his company to use. Hobi is always present while he works, which he understands, they need to make sure he doesn’t corrupt any of their data or steal any company secrets. Seokjin comes in every now and then to bother the pair, Taehyung tries to keep his barbs down to a minimum.

Taehyung hardly sees Namjoon, apart from early in the morning when he wakes up from another nightmare. But Yoongi is an ever coming and going presence throughout his day, always giving an update on the different men they’re tracking. And, despite Namjoon’s claim that he’s not a morning person, Yoongi is always awake when Taehyung wakes up and makes him a cup of tea. Taehyung tries a different blend everyday.

“What will it be this morning?” Yoongi asks, flicking the light on as he enters the kitchen, not even glancing at Taehyung’s slumped form at the counter as he fills the kettle.

Taehyung hums in thought as he rubs the kinks out of his neck, “Got anything for muscle cramps, being hunched over the computers is starting to hurt my neck.”

Yoongi hums and pulls a box out of the cupboard, “I’ve heard ginger tea helps with muscle cramps.”

“I’ll try it then,” Taehyung murmurs, tilting his head side to side trying to get the ache out of it.

Yoongi sets a tea bag into a mug for him and places his own mug under the coffee maker. “Honey or sugar?”

“Honey, I think that’ll pair better with the ginger.” Taehyung answers, watching as Yoongi pours the hot water into his mug and pulls out a jar of honey from another shelf.

He takes the steaming mug with a quiet ‘thank you’ as Yoongi slides into his seat next to him with his coffee. He’s grateful to Yoongi for never asking why Taehyung doesn’t seem to sleep very long. He simply comes into the kitchen, makes the tea he asks for and just sits with him as they drink under the rising sun.

“How long have you been in the Bulletproof Company?” Taehyung asks, his eyes flickering over at Yoongi’s relaxed posture swimming in the large sweatshirt he likes to wear at night.

Yoongi hums in thought for a moment, “I worked under Namjoon’s father, Kim Gong-Yoo the Goblin of Ilsan, for a few years. I can’t remember how long I’ve worked under the Kim family.”

“Are you under contract with them?” Taehyung asks as he takes a sip of the warm tea. It slips warmly down his throat, coating it in a fresh, honeyed taste.

“I don’t think I’d classify my role as being under a contract,” Yoongi muses, taking a sip of his coffee. “As Namjoon’s Second in Command, I have just as much power as he does. I could leave and start my own company if I wanted to, but I hate being in charge of everything. I’d rather leave that to Joon to do.”

Taehyung hums in agreement, “There’s no benefit to being the leader, it’s just more work and more people to watch over.”

Yoongi grunts in agreement and chuckles, “I don’t envy Namjoon one bit, but I’m happy to help him keep everyone in line.”

“He’s lucky to have you and Hobi-hyung to help him. Peakboy thinks he has his men’s respect but he doesn’t. They’re just too afraid to move against him, he has leverage over everyone in the Hwarang Boys.” Taehyung admits quietly, feeling Yoongi glance at him.

“What does he have on you? I’ve heard that you’ve refused to join any other company during your yearly contract review.” Yoongi says idly, taking note of Taehyung’s slight flinch.

“It’s not my decision whether I stay or leave, Peakboy owns me. He makes the final decision on what I do.” Taehyung says bitterly, taking a gulp of his tea, clenching his fist around the ceramic mug.

Yoongi tuts his tongue, “So, these temporary contracts are the only thing you can decide on?”

Taehyung nods as he runs a hand through his hair, pulling his long bangs out of his face. “I take as many as I can every year, it’s the only way I can get out of that damn house.”

Yoongi hums in understanding as he raises his coffee to his lips, “I’ve heard of contracts like that, they sound like a real bitch to try and get out of.”

Taehyung huffs, giving one swift nod, “They are, especially when you can’t access the contract yourself. I have no idea what Peakboy signed to have me, or what loopholes I could use to get myself out from under his thumb.”

“You could just kill him,” Yoongi suggests, chuckling when Taehyung snorts with laughter.

“Fuck I wish I could, Peakboy made it very clear that if I ever had a hand in his death that my contract would just be transfured to his second. I can’t even lay a finger on that man, or pay someone to do it.” Taehyung says bitterly, looking over at Yoongi as he takes another sip of his tea. “So if you have any more bright ideas, Yoongi-ssi, I’d love to hear them. I’ve only been trying to escape from him for twelve years.”

Yoongi rolls his eyes, tucking a strand of blonde hair behind his ear as his smile becomes wide and gummy, “Stop being a little shit about it, Taehyung-ssi. Whining and moaning about it won’t get you anywhere.”

Taehyung, the ever mature seventeen year old that he is, sticks his tongue out as an answer making Yoongi roll his eyes at him.

Yoongi leaves the kitchen just before Namjoon wanders in for his morning coffee, he greets Taehyung at the counter as he places his mug under the machine. Hobi comes bouncing into the room with Seokjin in tow and the pair of them start pulling out ingredients for breakfast.

“Since it seems like you’re going to be with us for a while, Taehyung, we should put you on the meal rotation.” Hobi says brightly, rinsing some rice at the sink as he looks over at him.

“You guys cook your own food?” Taehyung asks, watching as Seokjin chops some bell peppers with practiced hands.

Hobi nods as he pours the cloudy water down the drain and starts rinsing the rice some more, “We’ve brought on chefs before but with the Seoul Empire possibly watching our every move, we didn’t want to risk getting poisoned while we hunted for Jang-ssi’s killer.”

Taehyung nods, “That’s smart, I only know a few basic recipes but I’m a fast learner.”

“Add any allergies you have to the list on the fridge,” Hobi says, jutting his thumb at the silver fridge and the scratty handwritten white page that sits on it. “Or any preferences, we already had to take all seafood off the list because Joonie hates it.”

Taehyung thinks he hears Namjoon mutter ‘crabs are friends, not food’ as he passes but he’s not sure. He stands from his chair and goes over to look at the list. He chuckles at Yoongi’s neat handwriting of ‘I’m allergic to all you idiots, get out of my house’.

He looks over at Seokjin at the stove, “Even with food you’re an annoying bastard. Garlic and potatoes, that’s basically the whole Italian menu.”

Seokjin rolls his eyes and continues his work at the stove, “Let me know what you’re allergic to, I’d like to subtly poison you until you leave.”

Taehyung snorts and starts to leave the room to change out of his loose sweats, “Sorry to disappoint you Seokjin, but I’m not allergic to anything and I have a tolerance to basic poisons.”

He snickers as he hears Seokjin’s scoff and Hobi’s loud laughter as he makes his way up the stairs. As he pulls on his black slacks and buttons up his white dress shirt, he tries to quell the bubbling happiness at being here in the Bulletproof Company’s crew. He can’t allow himself to get used to it, it’ll just hurt more when he has to leave.

We Started It

Chapter 5: Rainy Day

WARNING ⚠️: Graphic Fight scene, Blood, Broken Bones

Two Months Later

Taehyung grimpes at the bitter taste of the dandelion brew and smacks his tongue in disgust, “Ew, never again, bleh.”

Yoongi chuckles deeply at Taehyung’s shivers of disgust, snorting as Taehyung gulps down some water to chase the taste away.

“Give me some of your coffee, I need another taste in my mouth.” Taehyung pleads, making grabby hands at Yoongi’s steaming mug. Yoongi holds his precious liquid far away from Taehyung’s hands, his smile wide and gummy as he looks at Taehyung.

“You’ll hate the combination even more, two bitter tastes don’t make a sweet one.” Yoongi counters, smacking Taehyung’s hands away.

Taehyung pouts as he backs away from Yoongi’s personal space, “My morning is ruined now, because I chose a horrible tea to try.”

Yoongi rolls his eyes and takes a sip of his coffee, “Tough shit, let me enjoy my coffee goodness in peace.”

“So mean,” Taehyung pouts, making Yoongi chuckle some more. He sighs and leans back in his chair, enjoying the peaceful moment as he watches the sun rise between the skyscrapers.

“Taehyung-ssi,” Yoongi murmurs quietly, Taehyung hums in question as Yoongi pauses. “What’s keeping you from sleeping? I’m sorry if I'm prying into something personal, but you’ve been here for a while and I don’t think you’ve slept past 5AM. Even if you end the night at 1AM.”

Taehyung lowers his head as he thinks of how to answer, he glances over at Yoongi and only sees kindness in the man’s eyes. He sighs and decides to be honest, “I don’t sleep well, I have nightmares. I’ve had them since I was a kid, doctors have given me pills to help me sleep but they don’t. Nothing works, nothing stops the nightmares from coming. I haven’t bothered taking my pills while I’ve been here, Peakboy forces me to take them.”

“If they aren’t working, then you shouldn’t take them.” Yoongi agreed quietly, he bites his lip and looks at Taehyung cautiously.

Taehyung sighs slouching in his chair, “You can ask. You can ask what I have nightmares about.”

Yoongi turns in his chair to face Taehyung completely, “What haunts your dreams?”

“Everything,” Taehyung answers hoarsely. “My parents left me on the doorstep of the Hwarang Boys, because they wanted their daughter more. I’ve been training under Peakboy’s hand since I was five years old. The first blood I ever shed was at seven years old.”

Taehyung clenched his fists as the memories assaulted his mind, Yoongi reached a hand out and placed it on top of one, bringing him back to the present. He took a shuddering breath and twisted his hand under Yoongi’s until they were palm to palm. Yoongi spread his fingers and interlaced their hands together, Taehyung squeezed it as he found his voice again.

“Peakboy has made it his mission to make me into the ultimate weapon for him. To give him an edge over the other companies in Daegu.” Taehyung scoffed. “He has a tendency to forget that his precious weapon is a person too. I’m not a tool. I’m not a weapon. I hate being the Vante of Daegu, it’s brought me nothing but pain.”

“Who do you want to be?” Yoongi asked, squeezing Taehyung’s hand.

“Just Taehyung, I just want to be Taehyung. I want to abandon my family name, like they abandoned me.” Taehyung said with a sigh, a tear straying down his cheek. “I want to stop feeling so… lonely.”

Yoongi gave no words of comfort and Taehyung was grateful, he didn’t want empty pity words. The solidarity of Yoongi’s hand and his presence next to him in the morning light was enough.

When Namjoon steps into the kitchen for his morning coffee, he breaks the invisible bubble between the two men. Yoongi gently drops Taehyng’s hand and leaves the room to get dressed, Namjoon raises his brow but makes no comment as Taehyung gets up to place their mugs into the sink.

“If we offered you a more permanent contract when your contract is under review next year, would you sign it?” Namjoon asks, crossing his arms while he waits for his coffee to drip into his mug while Taehyung rinses the mugs in the sink.

Taehyung glances over at him, “If it was my choice, Namjoon-ssi, I’d sign it in a heartbeat.”

Namjoon looks over at him in confusion, “Why wouldn’t it be your choice? And call me hyung, I’ve tasted enough of your cooking, we don't need any formalities between us.”

Taehyung smiles softly at him, “Peakboy bought me, hyung. I’m under a soul binding contract with him, I can’t leave without his consent. The only exception is short term contracts like yours.”

“That’s barbaric.” Namjoon sneers, picking up his coffee from the machine. “How do you even break something like that?”

Taehyung shrugs, “Either Peakboy dies by natural causes, or I get married and take someone else’s name.”

“Let me guess, Peakboy has to approve of the marriage before he allows it.” Namjoon muses with a sneer.

“Got it in one, Namjoon-hyung.” Taehyung says, tapping the tip of his nose with a sarcastic wink.

Namjoon looks at him sadly, “I hope our contract lasts as long as it can, Peakboy can’t demand your return until it is.”

Taehyung hummed in agreement and patted Namjoon’s shoulder, “Don’t worry about me, hyung. The man has to die some day, he can’t live forever.”

Namjoon chuckled and patted Taehyung’s shoulder in return before walking out of the kitchen towards his office. Taehyung sighs as he makes his way towards his workstation, trying to will the pang in his heart away. He blinks when he sees Seokjin already in the room sitting at his chair and Hobi nowhere in sight. He’s learned in his time here that Seokjin was much better behaved around that man.

“Where’s your babysitter? I thought you weren’t allowed in here alone since you almost erased all of our hard work with your clumsiness.” Taehyung drawled, dragging his chair away from the table ignoring Seokjin’s yelp inside it. “You’re in my chair.”

Seokjin scoffed as Taehyung leaned over him, “You don’t intimidate me, you’re all talk and no bite.”

Taehyung narrowed his eyes, in no mood to entertain Seokjin’s banter, he grips the man’s shirt collar and tosses him out of the chair. Seokjin grunts as he hits the floor and kicks out at Taehyung’s legs. Taehyung grunts in pain in his shin and sends a swift kick to Seokjin’s side.

“You really don’t want to piss me off today,” Taehyung growls as Seokjin curls up in pain. “I’m not in the mood to hold back.”

“Good,” Seokjin grunts, aiming a kick straight for Taehyung’s crotch that he catches with deft hands. With a firm grip on the man’s ankle, he lifts Seokjin off the ground and tosses him against the doors, causing them to be thrown open.

Taehyung stalks over to Seokjin’s shaking body and yanks him up to hold him by the neck against a nearby wall.

“What fucking death wish do you have?” Taehyung growls, tightening his grip on the man’s neck as he lifts him in the air.

Seokjin choked, his lips bursting red, he kicked at Taheyung’s chest, sending him flying against the wall and dropping his hold on his neck. Before Taehyung can collect himself, Seokjin grabs his left wrist and twists it until the sound of bone breaking sounds in the room. The pain fuels Taehyung to surge forward and headbutt Seokjin straight in the face.

Seokjin pulls back screaming in pain as Taehyung gets to his feet, his left hand cradled against his chest. He stalks over to Seokjin’s whimpering body clutching onto his face and roundhouse kicks him straight in the chest, sending him flying into the living room straight into a glass table, it breaks under his weight. Seokjin lays panting in pain across the broken glass, blood pouring out of his nose, as Taehyung comes over to stand over his head.

“You got lucky with my wrist,” he tells the whimpering man as he hears footsteps pound into the room. “I’ll repay you for it one day.”

Taehyung backs away from Seokjin as two of Namjoon’s guards move to lift him out of the pile of glass. He looks up to see Namjoon, Yoongi, and Hobi in the doorway of Namjoon’s office staring impassively.

“Sorry about your table, I can replace it.” Taehyung apologizes, cupping his broken wrist with his other hand. Yoongi’s eyes bounce down to it and he moves out of the doorway over to him.

“Let’s get that into a cast,” Yoongi says softly, guiding Taehyung out of the room and onto the elevator down to their medical floor.

Yoongi presses the button for the eighteenth floor as Taehyung clutches his wrist in pain, trying to keep his whimpers quiet and stop the flow of tears down his face. Yoongi places a hand on his lower back as the doors open and leads him down the bare hospital walls, he calls a nurse over to them.

Yoongi leans against the wall while Taehyung’s wrist is x-rayed before it starts being placed in a stiff cast after seeing the clean break in his scaphoid.

“At least we taught that bastard how to break bones properly, he could’ve cost you that hand.” Yoongi grumbles, looking over the x-ray as Taehyung’s wrist is being wrapped.

Taehyung sniffs, wincing as the bandages are tightened around his swollen wrist. “I hope I broke his fucking nose.”

Yoongi chuckles, handing Taehyung a tissue to wipe his face, making no comment on the stream of tears across his cheeks and eyelashes. “He’s lucky you didn’t do much worse to him, you were holding back.”

Taehyung scowls at him, “I wasn’t going to kill him! He’s not that much of a bastard.”

“Debatable,” Yoongi counters with a shrug, placing a hand on the back of Taehyung’s neck and rubbing it soothingly. “Now I have an excuse to replace that table, I hated that thing. It was a tripping hazard.”

Taehyung laughs wetly as his wrist is being plastered. Yoongi runs his hand through Taehyung’s hair, keeping some of his mind off of the pain. “I’m surprised Namjoon-hyung hadn’t broken it yet, after seeing how many mugs he breaks.”

Yoongi hums in agreement, “You should see the number of glasses we’ve had to buy for him, I’ve stopped buying him sunglasses altogether.”

Taehyung snickers before breathing a sigh of relief when the nurse stops moving his arm to let the plaster set. “At least it wasn’t my right hand, I’d be completely useless then.”

“What did Seokjin even do? You usually don’t resort to physical violence with him, other than the time he ate your last chocolate bar.” Yoongi teases, pulling Taehyung’s bangs away from his face as he scowls at the memory.

“I was looking forward to that all day and he ate it! Bastard deserved that slap.” Taehyung pouted, “He was sitting in my chair, he knows he’s not allowed to be in my room.”

“He must have escaped Hobi’s eye again, I wish he wasn’t so good at evading us.” Yoongi sighs, catching a stray tear with his thumb from the corner of Taehyung’s eye. “We’ll have to try and put another ankle monitor on him.”

“Maybe I should design one he can’t get out of,” Taehyung muses, as the nurse comes back into the room and starts wrapping his solid cast in a blue waterproof bandage.

“You do that and I’ll kill Peakboy myself to keep you with us,” Yoongi says, smiling softly at Taehyung’s hopeful eyes.

“Save me his head, I want to bowl it down the hallway and watch it splatter against the wall.” Taehyung says cheerily as the nurse slides his arm into a sling and places it over his neck to dangle against his chest.

“Not any of my hallways,” Yoongi grumbles, leading Taehyung out of the room after thanking the nurse. “I’d rather not have a dent in my wall.”

Taehyung giggles as they enter the elevator and rise back up to the penthouse, as the doors slid open they hear the sounds of cooking in the kitchen. They turn the corner to see Hobi at work in the kitchen with pots across the stove.

He glances over at Taehyung and looks sternly at him, “I hope you know that I’m extremely angry at you.”

Taehyung blinks and opens his mouth to apologize but Hobi cuts him off.

“Couldn’t you have waited one more day! It was your turn to make dinner tonight and now I have to make it! Tomorrow is take out night, it would have been perfectly timed!” Hobi screeches, waving his chef knife as he speaks.

Taehyung bursts out into hysterical laughter and clutches his stomach at the force of it. Hobi only keeps his stern face for all of five seconds before he’s joining in Taehyung’s laughter. Yoongi shakes his head as he passes the pair and starts helping Hobi in the kitchen.

“Hyung, it’s not your night!” Hobi protests, trying to shoo Yoongi out of the kitchen while Taehyung sits down at the counter still chuckling.

“We’re a man down, we’ll both do it tonight.” Yoongi dismisses, swatting Hobi away as he rolls his sleeves up. “Maybe now Seokjin will think twice before running his smart mouth.”

Taehyung scoffed and rolled his eyes, “I doubt it.”

“One can dream,” Hobi commented with a roll of his eyes, joining Yoongi’s side and moving to help him finish the dinner he started.

Namjoon wandered into the kitchen and sat down next to Taehyung at the barstools, having been forbidden from helping in the kitchen since he set the microwave on fire. They watched in silence as Hobi and Yoongi moved between the pots and the smells of their cooking filled the air.

We Started It

Chapter 6: Inner Child

Taehyung groaned as he knocked his cast against one of the keyboards again, sending a jolt of pain up his arm. He clutched it to his chest and leaned back in his chair trying to keep his whimpers down as the pain eased.

“Stop taking your arm out of the sling. You really should just rest for a while,” Yoongi commented as he entered the room, he placed a set of files on the desk next to Taehyung’s keyboard. “We still haven’t gotten the new DNA samples from the men we’re surveillancing and these files can be put into the system later. A few days isn’t going to make that much of a difference right now.”

“What exactly am I supposed to do then?” Taehyung groaned, pushing himself away from the desk, picking up the sling and placing it over his head as he slipped his cast back inside. “I hate feeling useless.”

Yoongi surveyed him for a moment before waving him to follow him out the room, “Come with me, I think I have an idea.”

Taehyung followed after him curiously as he led him through the apartment and into the elevator, Yoongi pressed the button for the lobby and pulled out his phone as they descended. He gestured for Taehyung to step into the car waiting for them and pulled himself inside straight after.

“Have you traveled much of Gangneug before?” Yoongi asked, tucking his phone away in his pocket as the car drove down the busy highways.

Taehyung shook his head, “I haven’t been outside of Daegu very often, most short term contracts I’ve done have kept me at their headquarters for the duration of it.”

Yoongi nods in understanding, “Then this should be a treat for you. I remember you telling me that you had an interest in art.”

“I did,” Taehyung grinned, a passing comment he had made after seeing all of the art installations in Namjoon’s apartment. He’s surprised that Yoongi even took note of it.

“Have you heard of the Haslla Art World Museum?” Yoongi asks, handing Taehyung a brochure from inside his pocket. “They have both an indoor exhibit and outdoor art installations. And I’ve heard the view from the skywalk is truly spectacular.”

Taehyung looked over the brochure with eager eyes, practically vibrating in his seat with excitement.

Yoongi chuckled as he took in Taehyung’s wide boxy smile, even if he didn’t understand a thing about modern art, it was nice to see Taehyung so excited for it.

Yoongi followed at a steady pace behind Taehyung as he fluttered around the museum pieces, chuckling under his breath as he watched his brown hair flop on top of his head as he bounced around. Taehyung looked utterly young as he pointed at the different colorful art pieces, Yoongi tried to will the pang in his heart away at the sight.

Yoongi had taken note that the longer Taehyung was with them the more the man’s true personality began to shine through. He was nothing like the first week he came to them, cold and sarcastic, instead he was bubbly and utterly hilarious. Yoongi had to keep himself from laughing at all the nicknames Taehyung had for Seokjin, so far ‘alpaca’ was Yoongi’s favorite one out of the bunch.

He listened as Taehyung chatted happily next to him as he read all the art descriptions and artist’s inspiration for their pieces. He practically floated on air as they went through the walls of plastic flowers, bemoaning that they weren’t real. Even when Yoongi pointed out to him how often they’d have to replace the flowers when they wilted.

Yoongi perked in interest as they went through the Pinocchio exhibit, he always had a small hobby in wood carving. Mostly he dabbled in furniture but the little wooden puppets and their mechanics interested him. At some point during their journey through the museum, Taehyung had grabbed his hand to pull him to something and Yoongi had found himself intertwining their fingers before he could drop it.

A light blush had colored Taehyung’s tanned cheeks, but he only squeezed Yoongi’s fingers as they continued through the halls side by side. Yoongi had never been so glad for all his years of training that kept his expression neutral, instead of smiling like an idiot as he held onto Taehyung’s hand.

They rose up the steel steps onto the skywalk, a warm ocean breeze fluttering across their faces as they looked out at the summer blue East Sea. Taehyung tugged them over to the railing and his eyes danced as he took in the view. Yoongi watched as Taehyung tilted his head back, closed his eyes, and breathed in the salty air with ecstasy.

“At least we choose a good day to be outdoors,” Yoongi chuckled, leaning against the side of the railings as he peered down at the evergreen trees below.

Taehyung hummed in agreement, his eyes opening again as he looked down at Yoongi. “Thank you for bringing me here, Yoongi-ssi. I didn’t know how much I needed this.”

Yoongi shrugged but smiled, “Think nothing of it, I was getting bored in that stuffy apartment anyway. And you can call me hyung, Taehyung-ssi. I think we’re past the need for formalities now.”

Taehyung grinned widely, “Just Taehyung then, hyung.”

Yoongi smiled back at him and tugged him away from the railing, “Come on, we still have the outdoor art pieces to see.”

Yoongi walked alongside Taehyung across the dirt pathways, dodging the odd tourist as they looked over the art pieces among the trees and tall sea grass. Taehyung kept to a steady pace as they climbed the wooden walkway that led towards an overlook. The view at the top looked over the ocean and the colorful Haslla building.

“I can see why they have weddings hosted here, I don’t think we’ve seen one ugly spot as we’ve walked around.” Taehyung mused as they walked around the metal duck sculptures.

Yoongi hums in agreement, peering over at the open grass field below them that’s dotted with black sculptures. “Convenient of them to have a hotel here as well. Good honeymoon location, if you wanted to get both done at once.”

“I think I’d want to travel, if I was ever to marry, I’d want to travel after my wedding. See all the places I’ve never been to, go to the places I’ve always dreamed of going to.” Taehyung says idly as they start making their way back down the wood planks towards the entrance.

“Where would you want to go?” Yoongi asks, his thumb absentmindedly running across Taehyung’s pointer finger as they walk.

Taehyung hums in thought, “There’s so much of Korea that I haven’t even seen, places like this, Jeju Island. But I’ve always dreamed of going to Paris. Peakboy has told me that the city isn’t as glamorous as the movies make it out to be, but I still want to see it.”

Yoongi tightened his grip on Taehyung’s hand briefly, “Certain parts of Paris have been over exaggerated, but it’s still a beautiful city with a rich history.”

Taehyung looks over at him, “Have you been there, hyung?”

Yoongi nods, “Briefly, not really a sightseeing mission but what I did see made it worth the trip. It’ll be worth it. The day you get to go, it’ll be worth it.”

“I hope so, I hope I get to see it someday.” Taehyung sighed as Yoongi tugged him into their waiting car.

As Taehyung and Yoongi started to part ways after entering the penthouse from the elevator, Taehyung tugged Yoongi to a stop just before they dropped each other’s hands. He leaned down and placed a kiss on the man’s pale cheek.

“Thank you for today hyung,” he whispered before pulling away and walking down the hall towards his room.

Yoongi raised a bewildered hand to his cheek and shook himself as he walked to his own room, fighting to keep his wide smile off his face.

We Started It

Chapter 7: D-Day

Warning ⚠️: Kidnapping, Swearing, Graphic Depictions of Violence, Blood, Guns, Dead bodies

“We finally got the DNA from those guys,” Hobi greeted as he entered Taehyung’s office, he handed him the file. “This time they are related, two are brothers and the other is a distant cousin. But I’m still confused on how this will help us, we don’t have the DNA of the man that killed Jang-ssi.”

Taehyung nodded in agreement, smiling widely as he looked over the photos of the three men, “You’re right we don’t, but if you look here,” he pulled out the blurry photo of the man they were looking for and placed it next to the photos of the other men. “You can see what features I pulled to find these men from this photo. We can deduce that there’s a family in the Seoul Empire for this. Now I have DNA samples that I can test our other searches against.”

Hobi nods as he listens and watches Taehyung turn excitedly back at his computer, being careful with his cast as he types away at the computer.

“It's unfortunate that Namjoon-hyung didn’t see the assassin, this would be a whole lot easier with a facial composite.” Taehyung mutters as he watches the line of code he inputs scroll up the screen.

“The Seoul Empire was smart to wear masks to the meeting with Joon, I’ve heard they do it for all their meetings. Guess you never know if it’ll go south on you.” Yoongi states, sauntering into the room with even steps. He places another file next to Taehyung and leans in his usual spot against his desk. “Joon would be able to recognize his voice though. Apparently he was quite chatty while they were negotiating.”

“So, it could be one of these three we found already.” Hobi points out, snapping his fingers together and pointing his finger at Taehyung.

“I want a bonus if I manage to find our guy within three months.” Taehyung states sweetly, making Hobi cackle in delight. When Hobi turned to grab something, Yoongi sent him a wink that had him blushing as Namjoon strode into the room.

“Tell me how Seokjin is causing twice as much trouble when bed bound than before.” Namjoon huffed. “Well supposedly bed bound, I found this in his room this morning.”

He thrusted a note for the other men to read, Hobi took it first and huffed as he handed it to Yoongi. Yoongi glared down at it before handing it over to Taehyung.

Dear Assholes,

I’m done waiting for you to get your shit together. I’m taking this in my own hands. Don’t try to find me, you won’t.

Jeon Seokjin

“I knew I should have chained him to the bed,” Hobi muttered, glaring at the note as Taehyung dropped it onto the desk. “I can get him back, Namjoon, it was my responsibility to watch over him. I’ll get him back before he compromises us.”

“No,” Yoongi cuts in before Hobi turns to leave. “We need your tracking skills to get a hold of those men before they disappear. I’ll go get Seokjin before he does anything really stupid.”

“Don’t kill him hyung,” Namjoon pleaded to his retreating back.

“I make no promises,” Yoongi dismisses as the door shuts behind him.

Taehyung watches the movement of the door shut before turning back to his screens, telling himself not to worry about the man. But something in his gut says that something isn’t right about this situation.

When they don’t hear a report from Yoongi two hours after his last check in, worry starts to set in. Taehyung pulls up surveillance from the last location Yoongi had sent them in his pursuit of Seokjin, but comes up empty. After another two hours of waiting, Namjoon starts to pace around the room while Hobi joins Taehyung’s side as they begin to sweep the city of Seoul through the camera lenses. The note arrives an hour later, confirming their worst fears.

We have two of your men, you have twenty-four hours to send us all the information you’ve gathered on us and meet us at X location.

If you fail to comply, you’ll be receiving their heads.

The Seoul Empire Reigns Supreme.

Namjoon cursed and punched a hole through the wall. Hobi stared down at the note in ashen shock. Taehyung immediately pulled up the location on the note onto the screens.

“How much do you guys trust me?” Taehyung asks, staring at the empty warehouse just before the cameras inside are pulled by a masked man and the screen goes dark.

“Depends on what your plan is?” Namjoon huffs, rubbing his bleeding knucks in his other hand.

“Let’s get you some ice and I’ll tell you exactly what we’re going to do.” Taehyung states coldly, standing to his feet and moving out of the room. “The Seoul Empire has been in power long enough.”

Ten hours later

Taehyung flexes his throbbing wrist as he walks into the abandoned warehouse. He was not about to come with the cast on his arm; they would have used the weakness against him. A team of masked men meet him at the door and pat him down for any wiretaps or hidden weapons. When they find nothing, they lead him into the building to another group of masked men waiting for him.

“You’re not the Rap Monster of Ilsan,” the man in a white suit among the black ones accuses.

“No, I’m not.” Taehyung agrees, folding his hands behind his back as a man whispers into the other’s ear.

“My men tell me you’ve brought nothing with you, we told you to bring all the information that you have on our men in twenty-four hours. You still have fourteen left, come back with it or your men die.” The man threatens.

“I have brought the information with me,” Taehyung corrects, tapping the side of his head. “It’s all right here, bring me any computer and I’ll be able to pull it up for you.”

“Bring me a laptop,” the man orders, but before anyone can move to obey, Taehyung scoffs.

“You really think a laptop will be secure enough for all the information we have, take me to your homebase. I’m sure you have a central computer there that would be safe, then I can leave with our men when I’m done. I assume that’s where you have them, it’ll save me a trip.” Taehyung drawls, picking at his fingernails with nonchalance.

“How do we know your men won’t just follow us there?” The man demands, pointing a finger at him. “I smell a setup here.”

Taehyung shrugs, “Believe what you want, we don’t have any physical copies to give you. We burned them before I came here, the only records you’ll be getting are the ones I give you.”

“How do we know you won’t be able to access them after you give it to us?” The man presses, crossing his arms over his chest.

“I am Vante of Daegu, I can program the files to only be accessed by your main computer. After I’m done, not even I wouldn’t be able to break into your files.” Taehyung declares, feeling a shift in the room as he says his title.

The man stares at him for a moment then nods and signals for his men to move. Taehyung keeps himself from flinching as a sack is placed over his head and he’s marched out of the building then placed into a car.

The drive is silent and the sack isn’t removed until they’ve started driving over a gravel road. Taehyung steps out of the vehicle as they pull to a stop in front of a large Hanok estate. A mountain range stands behind it and a tall Japanese pine tree stands proud in front of the entrance walkway.

“I want to see my men before I give you the information I have,” Taehyung states as he walks into the building. “I need to know that you haven’t just killed them before I give you what you want.”

Taehyung stares coldly at the blank masks that surround him and crosses his arms over his chest as he waits for their answer.

“Very well,” the white suited man states and walks down a long hallway, expecting Taehyung to follow him.

Taehyung can’t keep his gasp from slipping out his mouth as he takes in Yoongi’s wounded body tied to a chair. Seokjin sits bent over in the chair adjacent to his, blood dripping from his mouth. None of the masked men stop Taehyung as he moves forward and kneels in front of Yoongi.

His chest is bare, littered with small cuts and bruises. His bottom lip is bleeding and his blonde hair is drenched red. But what gets Taheyung’s blood truly boiling, is a long knife cut that pierces across Yoongi’s face over his right eye. It oozes down his cheek, glaringly red as it cuts from the top of his eyebrow down the apple of his cheek.

“If you’re done, we want that information from you. You only have ten hours left to give it to us and we won’t hesitate to kill you as well.” One of the men growls over Taehyung’s shoulder.

Taehyung clenches his fists as he stands, “I was going to be merciful to you, but you’ve crossed a line by marking his face. Count your blessings and hope your death will be swift.”

“What are you…” The man starts to say only to gargle on the blood that pours out of his mouth as Taheyung yanks the knife from the man’s side and plunges it into its owner's neck.

Shouts are called as the man’s body hits the ground, Taehyung ignores all of them as he charges into the stream of men that come at him. Like a dance, he moves around the room plunging the knife in his hand into the men’s chests and across their necks. He yanks the guns out of some of their hands and empties the magazines into their bodies. Blood drips down his face and hands as he makes his path throughout the house, taking down every single man he comes across.

“You won’t be able to escape us,” the white suited man huffs, clutching his bloody side as Taehyung steps over the bodies of his men to reach him. “We have thousands more all across Seoul, when the call is made you’ll have nowhere to hide.”

Taehyung tilts his head down at him and raises his pistol to aim for the man’s head, “Let them come, I get bored so easily without entertainment.”

The bullet hits the man square in the forehead through his mask, it falls off his face slightly as he head drops to the ground.

Taehyung tosses the empty gun aside as he returns to where Yoongi and Seokjin are tied up. Hobi enters the room just as he’s untying Yoongi’s binds, muttering a quiet ‘holy shit’ as he steps over the piles of bodies on the ground.

“Can you get Seokjin?” Taehyung asks, pulling Yoongi into his arms and standing slowly to his feet. “I need to get him to a hospital before his wounds get infected.”

Hobi nods as he kneels in front of Seokjin and starts undoing his restraints, “Namjoon has a car waiting for you, it’ll take you straight to one of our bases.”

“You’re okay now, I’ve got you.” Taehyung whispers as Yoongi groans in pain against his shoulder. He passes Namjoon in the doorway, looking ashen as he stares down at the bloody bodies that line the floors. “I hope you’re ready for a war Namjoon-ssi, because I just started one.”

Namjoon glances over at him as he passes and steps into the waiting vehicle with Yoongi in his arms.

“With you by our side, we will be.” Namjoon says just as the door closes and the car starts making its way down the gravel drive.

Taehyung sighs as he leans back into the leather seats, clutching Yoongi tightly against his chest. He leans his head down and presses his forehead against Yoongi’s as he takes deep, steady breaths. He sniffed as tears fell down his face and mixed in with the drops of blood on his cheeks.

“The next time you want me to carry you, just ask hyung.” He whispered hoarsely, watching the man’s lips part with labored breaths. His wrist throbs from all the movement he put it through, but he ignores the pain as the car speeds down the highways and cuts through traffic.

Taehyung lays Yoongi down on the gurney that's brought when he arrives at the large mansion. He follows behind the team of doctors that roll the gurney down the halls, attaching IV’s to Yoongi’s pale arms and checking his vitals until he’s stopped as they take him into a surgery room.

“Please wait here, do you need a doctor to check over you?” A nurse asks, looking over Taehyung’s blood soaked clothes.

“None of it is mine,” Taehyung answers, staring at the swinging doors as Yoongi’s body is rolled out of sight through the small windows.

“I’ll get you some clean clothes then,” she says, before walking off.

When Namjoon and Hobi arrive at the house with Seokjin in tow, Taehyung has changed into the fresh clothes, washed the blood off his body with a wet cloth and has a fresh cast on his wrist. The gurney with Seokjin’s body passes him through the swinging doors and the two men take seats across from Taehyung.

“Personally, I think Jin came out of this easy.” Hobi muses, stretching his legs out as he leans back against his chair. “Only a broken leg, some scrapes and bruises. He’s lucky they didn’t just kill him for showing up at their door like a mad man.”

“We’re taking all their files and computers from that house before torching it,” Namjoon says, crossing his arms over his chest. “I’ll have everything brought here, to the Voyage house, while hyung recovers.”

Taehyung nods, “We can make quick work of their other bases from the information I’ll gather from the computers. The Bulletproof Company will take the place of the Seoul Empire. A change in power like that hasn’t been seen in a hundred years.”

Namjoons huffs and runs a hand through his hair, “My workload is going to triple in size.”

Hobi laughs at his brother’s groanings and pats his shoulder, “Don’t let the power get to your head, Joonie, or we’ll have to send Taehyungie after you.”

Namjoon shivered at the thought and eyed the younger man warily, making Taehyung chuckle and give him the gesture of ‘I’m watching you’ playfully. Their laughter barely lasts a few moments before somber expressions return to their faces.

“Hyung looked pretty bad when you took him out,” Hobi whispered quietly, taking a shuddering breath.

Namjoon nodded, “He’ll pull through, hyung’s tough. He’ll pull through.”

Taehyung can only nod in agreement and he clenches his right fist on his lap, he tries not to think too hard on the ‘what ifs’ as they wait for the doctor to inform them of his condition. What if they had been faster? What if they had been too late? What if, what if, what if…

Heads turn as the door swings open and a doctor in blood soaked scrubs stands before them, he lowers his mask and gives them a reassuring smile.

“Both men had a successful surgery, nothing they can’t heal from.” He tells them, smiling at their sighs of relief.

“Yoongi-hyung’s eye, he didn’t…” Taehyung asks fearfully, nearly collapsing to the floor in relief when the doctor shakes his head.

“He did not lose his eye, he got lucky. The knife only struck his eyelid slightly, most of the damage was done to the facial skin.” The doctor explains gently, patting Taehyung’s shoulder. “He had to have stitches of course, but that was his worst injury. They’re both resting now, you can see them tomorrow.”

“Thank you Doctor Wook,” Namjoon says, shaking the doctor’s hands. “I’m glad you didn’t decide to retire alongside my father, I don’t know whose hands I trust more than yours for my men.”

Doctor Wook chuckles as he pats Namjoon’s shoulder, “You don’t have to be so formal with me Namjoon-ssi, you’re the boss now. And your father is lucky I didn’t retire, I would’ve given that silly goblin even more hell then when I worked for him.”

Namjoon chuckled, “They don’t call you the Grim Reaper for nothing, sir.”

Doctor Wook huffed and headed back through the double doors, waving to the three men as he left. “Get some rest boys, you’ve earned it.”

Namjoon led Taehyung up the stairs and down the long row of doors that filled the Voyage House, at the end of a hall he opened a guest room door for him.

“Do you need me to have Doctor Wook bring you some pain meds?” He asked, glancing down at Taehyung’s new cast in concern.

Taehyung shook his head, “I’ll be alright hyung, it doesn’t hurt that bad.”

Namjoon nods then pulls Taehyung in for a tight hug, “Thank you for getting him, Taehyung. I’d be lost without Yoongi-hyung.”

Taehyung chuckles and pats Namjoon’s back with his good arm, “You can call me Tae, Namjoonie-hyung. I think you’ve earned it.”

“Get some rest, Tae.” Namjoon sniffs, pulling away and wiping his face. “I’ll fetch you in the morning to see Yoongi-hyung, if he’s awake tomorrow.”

“Trust me he will be,” Taehyung snarks with a roll of his eyes, Namjoon chuckles and leaves him to the room.

Taehyung plopped onto the guest bed with a huff after showering the rest of the blood off his body. He laid across the cool mattress, wet hair pooling over the cotton pillow as he tried to will himself to sleep. He had no question of what images would haunt his nightmares tonight; Yoongi’s sheen white face dripping with blood, his slouched, unmoving form tied to that chair, and fallen bodies of the masked men that had fallen in his cold rage.

Taehyung tossed and turned, barely falling into any kind of sleep before giving up and wandering out of the room. He made his way back to the hallway outside the double doors to the medical hall. A nurse on duty looked up from the small desk outside the doors.

“I can bring you back to see him,” she says softly, before Taehyung can even think to ask. She smiles at him kindly as he stares at her. “He’ll be sleeping, but it’s better than waiting out here.”

“Thank you,” Taehyung whispers, joining her side towards the doors. “I’d like to see him please.”

“Of course,” she smiles, opening the doors for them. “I’m nurse Jisoo, I’ll be taking care of Yoongi-ssi until he fully recovers.”

“Thank you Jisoo-ssi,” Taehyung whispers, bowing to the woman as she opens the door to Yoongi’s room.

“Of course, let me know if you need anything. I’ll be back at the front.” She bows to him and makes her way back down the hallway.

Taehyung shuts the door quietly behind him and moves to sit in a chair next to Yoongi’s hospital bed. A monitor beeps quietly in the corner to the sound of his heartbeat, an IV of clear liquid drips down to the needle attached to his pale forearm, and a white gauze sits over the right side of his face. Yoongi’s slow, steady rising and falling of his chest eases the tension in Taehyung’s.

Taehyung reaches for the hand that lays in front of him, cupping it in his right hand as he looks at Yoongi’s lax face. Feeling a bit like a creeper to be just staring at the sleeping man, Taehyung looks down at the hand he’s holding. Yoongi’s hands are nearly the same size as his, just a tad shorter. He has calluses from the guitar he likes to play on nights where Taehyung truly can’t sleep at all. The veins on the back of his hand are eerily blue against the paleness of his skin, but Taehyung can see the beauty in them.

He runs a gentle finger over Yoongi’s knuckles and slim fingers as the heartbeat monitor beeps in the background. It lulls him into a sleep he wasn’t even seeking and he rests his head against Yoongi’s thigh, still holding his hand as his eyes flutter closed. This time no nightmares haunt his dreams.

We Started It

Chapter 8: Dawn

Taehyung wakes up to the gentle murmur of voices around him and the feeling of hand gently running though his hair. He grunts as he turns his head away from the harsh light, burying his head deeper into the soft pillow his head is laid on.

“Aw hyungie, you’ve gone soft,” Hobi’s voice coos, a laugh bubbling from his mouth as he speaks.

“Shut up Hoseok, before I throw something at your sunshine face.” Yoongi grumbles, the hand in Taehyung’s hair tugs a slight knot out as it brushes through.

“With what hand,” Hobi scoffs. “Both of yours are occupied.”

Taehyung lifts his head and pouts at Hobi, “Can’t you be quiet, I’m trying to sleep.”

Hobi rolls his eyes as he stares down at him with his arms crossed over his chest, “Are you done using hyung’s thigh as a pillow, Taehyungie? We need to get to work on those computers Joon brought back from the base.”

Taehyung groans and sits back in his chair, yawning widely as he scrubs his face. “How are you even awake so early?”

“It's the middle of the afternoon, Taehyung.” Hobi corrects, chuckling at his confused expression. “Even hyung woke up before you and he’s the one in the hospital bed.”

Taehyung blinks, a frown forming on his face as he glances over at Yoongi, “I’ve never slept that long before.”

Yoongi’s one eye looks at him sympathetically, “I don’t think you had any nightmares either.” He says softly, a smile creeping up on his face.

Taehyung barely has a moment to process this before Namjoon bursts through the door. They stare at him as he pants from running, clutching the side of the door to stay standing up.

“Who died?” Yoongi asks dryly, staring as Namjoon huffs labored breaths as he sinks into a nearby chair.

“Nobody,” Namjoon pants, taking a cup of water from Hobi and downs it in one gulp. “I just got off the phone with my father. Wouldn’t even let me get a word in until my mother took the phone from him. She sends her well wishes to Yoongi-hyung and hopes you make a fast recovery.”

“Send her my love,” Yoongi says with a nod, then glares his one eye at Namjoon. “Why the hell were you running here then? That’s no reason to be running across the house.”

Namjoon blinked at him then smiled widely, his dimples popping out in his cheeks, “I just missed you hyung.”

“You literally saw me this morning,” Yoongi grumbled, but Taehyung could see the pleased smile growing on his face.

Hobi chuckled, “Did mama ask after me, Joonie?”

“Of course, she still expects her Saturday call every week even if we do take over all of Korea.” Namjoon scoffed teasingly, lightly punching Hobi’s side.

Taehyung chuckled as he watched the brothers tease each other, a wistful pang ached in his chest at the easy family bond they had. He looked over at Yoongi who watched the brothers with a fond eye, before turning over to Taehyung.

“Hobi tells me that I have you to thank for getting me and Seokjin out of there,” Yoongi says with a soft smile, reaching over to take Taehyung’s hand into his. “So thank you.”

Taehyung squeezed Yoongi’s hand, “I couldn’t exactly leave you there, who would make my morning tea for me?”

Yoongi’s smile turned wide and gummy as he laughed, “You’re going to have to wait a little while longer, I need two eyes to make your Jasmine brew the way you like.”

“It’ll be worth the wait,” Taehyung whispered and reached a hand to touch delicately at the gauze on Yoongi’s cheek. “Who knows, maybe you’ll get a sexy facial scar out of this.”

Yoongi raised a brow at him, “Body horror kink, noted.”

“If you two are done flirting,” Hobi cut in, smiling wide with his heart shaped mouth at Taehyung and Yoongi’s twin glares. “I really do need Taehyung to come and get started on the computers. We still have that assassin to find.”

Taehyung sighed and rose from his chair, gently pulling his hand out from Yoongi’s and followed Hobi out of the room.

Taehyung spent the next few days within the Voyage House going between hacking into the encrypted computers they took from the Seoul Empire and Yoongi’s hospital room. Though Yoongi staying in the hospital room for more than three days was out of the question.

“It’s just my face that needs to heal! My body is fine! Now let me go back to work Namjoon!” Yoongi had shouted, while throwing one of his many pillows at Namjoon’s face as he yelled for him to get Doctor Wook to release him.

Hobi had taken a video of the scene and would send random gifs of it to Taheyung when he was bored in a meeting. It never failed to send Taehyung into a laughing fit when he saw them.

“What have you done to keep Seokjin in place this time?” Taehyung asked, chuckling as Hobi grumbled into his new office, throwing himself onto a chair next to Taheyung to complain about Seokjin’s daily escape attempt.

“You’d think after the man got kidnapped and has his leg in a full cast, he’d stay still. But nope,” Hobi whined, slouching in his chair. “I’ve changed five different locks on his door, chained him to the bed three times and if I hear the word kinky come out of his mouth one more time I’m going to give him a concussion.”

Taehyung giggled as he typed away on his keyboard, before sliding down to another one. “How many times has he escaped the dungeons now? Thirteen? Twenty?”

“Far too many, I will give him this though. At least I’m learning this damn house like the back of my hand. I’ve found so many new spots to put cameras in, it’s crazy.” Hobi mused, always one to try and find something positive about an awful situation. “How’s things on your end going?”

“I think I’ll have their systems cracked soon, I just need to make sure to avoid the failsafes they have in place. Otherwise we’ll lose everything.” Taehyung said, sliding back to his first screen. “I also got Yoongi-hyung to take his antibiotic this morning.”

“Oh, what did you threaten this time?” Hobi asked, giving Taehyung an impressed look.

“That he’d have to go an extra week without his coffee.” Taehyung stated, smiling at Hobi’s low whistle.

“That’s cold, Tae.” He chuckles as Taehyung hums happily in reply. “How’s the manhunt going?”

Taehyung sighed and glanced over at the facial recognition scanner at the corner of the desk, a picture of a smirking man sits in the corner of the screen. They had found him in the list of files that weren’t encrypted on the Seoul Empire’s computers. Finally they were able to put a face to the man they had been searching for this whole time.

“It still hasn’t found him, I’ve adjusted it I don’t know how many times. I’ve moved it all over Seoul, but it still hasn’t found the bastard.” Taehyung muttered, watching as the scanner flickered over the faces of men on the streets of Seoul.

“We’ll get him though,” Hobi assured him, glaring at the picture of the man. “We have his face. We’ll get him eventually.”

“By the time we do, Peakboy won’t be letting me out of his sight for a long time.” Taehyung muttered with a sigh.

“I wish you didn’t have to go back to him,” Hobi muttered quietly, looking at Taehyung with sad eyes. “I wish you could stay with us, you fit in so well it’s like you’ve always been with us.”

“Thanks for saying that Hobi, it means a lot.” Taehyung says softly, looking over at the man with a small smile. “I wish I didn’t have to leave either.”

Yoongi cleared his throat behind them, breaking the somber air around them as they turned to look at him. The gauze over his right eye was still present, but the paleness of his skin had returned to a healthy color.

“Need something hyungie?” Hobi asks sweetly, but is already standing from his seat as he heads for the door. “You don’t even have to tell me, I’ll leave you two lovebirds alone.”

Yoongi scoffed as Hobi cackled out of the room and he sat down in his vacated seat.

“Has Doctor Wook checked your stitches today?” Taehyung asks, glancing briefly as Yoongi rolls his one eye before fiddling with one of his instruments.

“Yes,” Yoongi grumbled, leaning back in his chair. “He says they’re healing well and that I’ll probably be able to take the gauze off in a few days to let the skin breathe. I’ll still need to be on antibiotics until the stitches can come out and he says I can have my coffee back.”

Taehyung hums doubtfully, “We’ll see.”

Yoongi grumbled under his breath as he crossed his arms over his chest. Taehyung heard something of ‘I’m a grown ass man, I can have my damn coffee’ in his muttering but chose not to comment as he continued to work on the line of code that would eventually gain him access to the encrypted computers. The work was a bit slower than he liked, having only one hand, but he kept his arm in a sling so he wasn't bumping into the table all the time.

If Yoongi could take his antibiotics everyday, then Taehyung could keep his arm in the sling.

“Joon says his men have taken down another one of the outposts in Seoul,” Yoongi says after a moment. “That’s thirteen already and that’s just in the inner city alone, how many more could there be?”

Taehyung shrugged, “When I finally get into this damn computer system of theirs, I’ll be able to find them all. Then we’ll take them out all at once.”

“Do we even have enough men for that?” Yoongi questions incredulously.

“I was thinking we’d send a mass message to them, surrender now or you’ll face the same fate as your other bases.” Taehyung states easily. “Namjoonie-hyung sure does love his bonfires.”

“He says the clean up is easier,” Yoongi scoffs, moving to scratch at his gauze only for his hand to be smacked away by Taehyung. “He’s starting to make a new name for himself in Seoul, calling himself RM. I guess he’ll add that to his list of titles.”

Taehyung hums, “It suits him. It’ll work well when the Bulletproof Company takes the Seoul Empire’s place.”

Yoongi nods, “I never thought we’d end up here. And all because we were looking for an assassin.”

“Funny how somethings just fall into your lap like that,” Taehyung chuckles as Yoongi hums in agreement. They sit in comfortable silence as Taehyung continues to type away on his keyboard and Yoongi leans against his chair with his eye closed.

“How did Joon and Hobi end up following you to that house? I don’t think I asked that.” Yoongi drawls after a moment.

“I had a tracker in my shoes,” Taehyung admits with a chuckle. “They never remove the shoes when they pat someone down in the Hwarang Boys. I figured it would be a safe bet for them not to either, it paid off.”

Yoongi hummed in interest, “I’ll have to add that as a protocol then, that’s useful to know.”

“I don't think most people will think like I do, there’s not much you can hide inside your shoes.” Taehyung tries to dismiss.

“It only takes one bastard to do it to us and we’ll end up just like the Seoul Empire. We need to be smarter than them.” Yoongi says gruffly, kicking Taehyung’s shin lightly. “Don’t dismiss good ideas like that, it could save us a lot of trouble in the future.”

“I’ll keep that in mind, hyung.” Taehyung promises, smiling widely at Yoongi as he kicks back at Yoongi’s shin playfully.

A beeping cuts off any remark Yoongi was about to make, the pair glance over to see the facial recognition scanner blinking green as it tracks a man through a crowded street. Taehyung slides over to it and quickly focuses some cameras in the area. As soon as he has a precise location he sends it to Namjoon.

“He’s sending Hobi to bring him here,” he whispers to Yoongi before refocusing on the coding screens again.

“Taehyung,” Yoongi says softly, placing a hand to stop Taehyung’s frantic fingers on the keyboard.

Taehyung takes a shaky breath as he pulls away from the desk, Yoongi’s hand clutching his. “I don’t want to go back, hyung. I don’t want to go back to him.”

“You have no idea how much I wish I could ask you to stay, but our hands are tied on this.” Yoongi whispers, squeezing Taehyung’s shaking fingers.

Taehyung nods as his head hangs, staring down at their connected fingers as the tears threaten to wreck through his shoulders. Yoongi tugs him forward to have Taehyung lean against his chest, his arms going around his shoulders. Taehyung wraps his arm around Yoongi’s waist.

In Yoongi’s arms, Taehyung allows himself to cry quietly until the tears stop falling and the lonely ache in his chest grows.

We Started It

Chapter 9: For Us

Warning ⚠️: Depictions of Graphic Violence, Murder, Dead bodies, Blood, Arson

It was the most anticlimactic ending to a contract Taehyung had ever experienced. The man, Park Hae Jin, had given Hobi a fight as he had been brought in. He came to the Voyage House with a broken nose and his kneecaps bleeding on the carpets.

Seokjin had stood in front of the man that had killed his father, Hobi supporting him to stand in his leg cast, and raised his pistol to shoot him once in the forehead. Cutting off any pleads the man had spilling out of his mouth, his body hit the floor in a crumpled heap, blood dripping down the bridge of his nose.

The body was unceremoniously buried in an unmarked grave on the property and Seokjin disappeared the very next day. Leaving only a note behind telling them not to find him, for real this time, and that he’d be taking care of the only family he had left.

Taehyung was only able to stretch his stay with the Bulletproof Company for the next few days it took him to crack the encrypted computers. He left them to handle the information from it, desperately trying to put back on his mask of Vante of Daegu as he was driven to the Hwarang Boys base.

Peakboy was less than pleased when Taehyung finally showed up on his doorstep but only muttered something about ‘not letting him take such a long contract again, no matter how good the money was’ as he sent him to his room. Taehyung dragged his suitcases into his bare room, already missing the warm hues of Namjoon’s guest rooms.

There was a list of assignments sitting on his desk, but he didn’t even bother looking them over as he curled up on his hard mattress. Taehyung allowed none of the tears behind his eyes to fall down his face as he tried to fall asleep. The ache in his chest growing to the steady loneliness that had consumed him since he left the Bulletproof Company.

Peakboy didn’t allow him another day of rest after he arrived, he was back to hounding Taehyung to complete the piles of contracts on his desk by the end of the month. Taehyung didn’t utter a word of complaint, the nonstop work kept him occupied through the listless days. The cold, biting words of the Hwarang Boy’s crew was a far cry from the Bulletproof Company’s laughter and teasing. Taehyung was finding himself missing it every single day more and more.

Two months later

“Boss wants you in the contract room,” Kang informs Taehyung as he stands at his office door.

Taehyung nods, drops the file he was working on, and follows wordlessly behind the guard. Thankful for not having the cast around his wirst anymore, if someone wanted to contract him again they might think twice at seeing it.

Peakboy sits at the head of the table, an angry look on his face as he stares at Yoongi sitting across from him. Taehyung feels a jolt through his stomach as he stares at the side profile of the blonde man, the scar over his eye fully visible as he glares back at Peakboy.

“I don’t know what kind of game you think you’re playing, Agust-D.” Peakboy sneers, taking no notice of Taehyung standing in the doorway. “But you can’t have him, I don’t approve.”

“I don’t really give a shit if you do,” Yoongi growls, tossing a file across the table to the other man. “Your contract has no standing anymore, it’s been void since he turned eighteen yesterday. You have no say in where he goes anymore.”

Taehyung surges forward and snatches the contract out of Peakboy’s hands before he can throw them into the fire. He desperately reads the pages of the contract that had controlled his whole life. The contract that he had desperately tried to find for the last eight years.

“How did you even find that blasted contract?” Peakboy growls standing to his feet in anger. “I had all the copies burned!”

“But the Seoul Empire didn’t,” Yoongi states, standing to his feet as well. “It was from them that Taehyung came to you, they created the contract with you. And unfortunately for you, they kept many, many copies to make sure you kept the end of the deal with them.”

“I’ve heard that the Seoul Empire is all but ashes now, that contract has no standing now that they’re gone.” Peakboy shouts, pounding his fist onto the table.

“Glad we’re in agreement.” Yoongi says coldly, smirking at Peakboy’s confused face. “That contract is void, Taehyung is free to make his own choices. And the Bulletproof Company has an offer to give him.”

Taehyung looks over at Yoongi with hopeful eyes as the man turns to him, his expression softening minutely as he stares at Taehyung.

“The leader of the Bulletproof Company, RM of Seoul, extends a welcome to Vante of Daegu to join his crew and take the mantle of Tiger of Seoul as he joins the Inner Circle. No soul binding contract entailed.” Yoongi states all business like, but there’s a smirk in the corner of his mouth.

“I accept.” Taehyung says at once, tossing his soul binding contract into the flames himself. “And my first order of business is the dismantling of the Hwarang Boys as the lead company in Daegu.”

“You have no right to…” Peakboy barks, choking on his words as Taehyung holds a knife to his throat.

“I am going to burn this house to the ground,” Taehyung growls into his tormentor’s face. “And you are going to be bleeding inside it as it does.”

Taehyung stares as the flames consume the homebase of the Hwarang Boys, tossing the title of Vante of Daegu into it as he does. He breathes in the ashes as he feels Yoongi slide up next to him, they stand beside each other for a moment just watching the flames flicker over the wood structure.

Yoongi holds out a hand to Taehyung, his palm up to him to hold. Taehyung smiles down at it before sliding his hand into Yoongi’s and intertwining their fingers. Yoongi gently tugs him away from the burning building and guides him to their waiting car. Taehyung walks with sure steps to his new life, already giddy with excitement to see Hobi and Namjoon again.

We Started It

Chapter 10: Life Goes On

Yoongi’s POV of Chapter 9

Warning ⚠️: Graphic Depictions of Violence, Arson, blood, dead bodies, guns

The house had quieted down significantly after Taehyung went back to the Hwarang Boys, Yoongi couldn’t even watch him leave after seeing the cold mask return to his face. His parting words to him still rang in Yoongi’s ears.

“If I bump into you again and find out that you’ve been picking at your scar, I’ll have your head hyung.”

Yoongi chuckled at the memory, flexing his hands to keep from scratching at his itchy face. The scar tissue was still a bit sore, but it was the itchiness that grated on his nerves.

He walked past the door that led into Taehyung’s office, no one had stepped foot inside since he left. The place he had carved into their home was throbbing from his absence, Yoongi could feel it everywhere.

Hobi returned to his somber air after Jang-ssi’s death, he was barely around the penthouse anymore. Kept retreating into his office or going to the training camps. Yoongi was hearing all sorts of complaints about the rough treatment the greenies were getting under the hand of the Jack in the Box. Apparently it wasn’t enough to shut their mouths, but Yoongi put a swift end to that. Yoongi was also half sure that some of Hobi’s moodiness was due to Seokjin’s absences as well, but he wasn’t going to look too closely at that. He didn’t want to jinx himself and have the bastard come back.

Namjoon was only barely functioning. He played up a good act and without Seokjin yapping in his ear, his long suffering sighs were down to a minimum. But there was a new somberness to his face and he kept glancing over at the counter behind the sink in the kitchen when he went to make his coffee in the morning.

Yoongi hadn’t left the penthouse since Taehyung had, he didn’t want to face the outside world at the moment. He stayed cooped up in his own office, working on the files from the Seoul Empire that Taehyung had opened for them. He only wandered out to make sure Namjoon ate, Hobi didn’t put himself into a drinking coma, and to pass by Taehyung’s office.

He couldn't even make the cleaners go inside the room, it felt like he’d be just erasing the man’s presents if he did. Even though there were glaring reminders of him throughout the house.

The mahogany table that sat in place of the glass one in the living room. The small keychain from the Haslla Museum that Taehyung had hung on the fridge. The small white board on the fridge with the man’s excited handwriting of a grocery list. And the emptiness that Yoongi felt in his hand as he went about his day.

Yoongi scrubbed a hand over his face, “Damn that man,” he muttered into the empty room. He pounded his fist on the desk to keep himself from swiping the items onto the floor.

Taking a deep breath, he tried to pull himself together and return to the list of contracts that the Seoul Empire had detailed in their systems. He frowned as he saw a repeating contract for the third time, moving it into the file space he had created.

“Why the fuck do they have so many copies of this?” He asked, staring at the numbers 12301995 on the file. Giving into the curiosity he opened the fifth copy before moving it to its new home. He froze as he looked at the name that lay at the top of the document.

Contract Pertaining To: Kim Taehyung

DOB: 12/30/1995

Temporary Contract to the Hwarang Boys for Training until Eighteen Years of Age

Yoongi skimmed over the rest of the contract with frantic eyes, clutching the laptop in his hands. The gory details made him shake with rage, the Seoul Empire had given Peakboy everything to keep Taehyung under their thumb. Right down to the vigorous training schedule they had him under since the age of five. They wanted him to be a cold killing machine by the time he arrived at their doorstep, leaving no room for the Hwarang Boys to keep him once he turned eighteen.

Yoongi jabbed his finger on the print button and yanked the papers out of the printer as he made his way to Hobi’s office. He threw the door open and thrusted the papers under Hobi’s nose.

“Get your ass in gear! We’re getting him back!” He barked, smacking the back of Hobi’s head as he cursed at him.

Hobi looked over the papers, rubbing the back of his head in offense. His eyes widened as he read them and looked up at Yoongi with teary eyes, “How are we going to do it hyung?”

“We’re getting him the day after his birthday,” Yoongi growls, stomping out of the room to fetch Namjoon. “So let’s take the rest of the Seoul Empire down, I don’t want a single one left in Korea when I bring him home.”

The three of them work tirelessly to take down all of the bases around Seoul. A new vigor flueling them as they cut through the thousands of bodies and burned the warehouses to the ground. Yoongi didn’t want a single copy of that contract in the hands of anyone apart from them.

The last two months until Taehyung’s birthday were exhausting, they took shifts sleeping and working through the files to ensure that Peakboy had no chance to challenge their claim.

“I’m not forcing him into another contract hyung,” Namjoon murmured, having read over the soul binding contract over fifty times. “I’ll offer him a spot to be here, but he’s not going to be under contract unless he wants to sign it himself.”

Yoongi nods, “We’ll let him write the damn thing if he wants to.”

Namjoon chuckles, running a hand through his hair. “It’s going to be so nice to have him around the house again, I didn’t realize how quiet this place was.”

Yoongi huffs, but allows himself a small smile as he looks over at his leader. “I wish I could get him sooner, I don’t even want to think about what he’s going through right now. He doesn’t even know we’re working to bring him back.”

Namjoon pats his shoulder, “One more week hyung, we got this. He’ll be bouncing off these walls in no time.”

Yoongi walks into the Hwarang Boy’s base clutching the file tightly in his hands, he keeps his expression neutral as he enters the conference room with only Peakboy inside.

The man glares at him as he sits down in the chair across from him, “What the hell do you want now, Agust-D. If you want to sign another contract with Vante you can forget it.”

“I don’t think you have much of a choice,” Yoongi dismisses, looking at the man coldly. “And I told you to have him in the room with us for this meeting.”

The door out of the corner of Yoongi’s eye slides open as Peakboy sneers at him, “I don’t know what kind of game you think you’re playing, Agust-D. But you can’t have him, I don’t approve.”

“I don’t really give a shit if you do,” Yoongi growls, tossing the file that holds Taheyung’s contract inside at the man across the table. “Your contract has no standing anymore, it’s been void since he turned eighteen yesterday. You have no say in where he goes anymore.”

Taehyung surges forward into Yoongi’s line of sight, snatching the contract out of Peakboy’s hands before the man could throw them into the flame. His hands shake as he looks over the papers.

“How did you even find that blasted contract?” Peakboy yells, standing to his feet in anger. “I had all the copies burned!”

“But the Seoul Empire didn’t,” Yoongi says coldly, standing to his feet and trying very hard to keep his eyes on Peakboy’s angry face and not look at Taehyung’s shaking one. “It was from them that Taehyung came to you, they created the contract with you. And unfortunately for you, they kept many, many copies to make sure you kept the end of the deal with them.”

“I’ve heard that the Seoul Empire is all but ashes now, that contract has no standing now that they’re gone.” Peakboy shouts, pounding his fist onto the table in anger.

“Glad we’re in agreement,” Yoongi sneers, smirking at Peakboy’s confused face. “That contract is void, Taehyung is free to make his own choices. And the Bulletproof Company has an offer to give him.”

Taehyung looks over at Yoongi, hope brimming in his eyes and a boxy smile growning on his face. Yoongi does his best not to smile back as he looks at the handsome taller man.

“The leader of the Bulletproof Company, RM of Seoul, extends a welcome to Vante of Daegu to join his crew and take the mantle of Tiger of Seoul as he joins the inner ranks. No soul binding contract entailed.” Yoongi states in his best business voice, but a growing smile on his face betrays him.

“I accept,” Taehyung states, and fuck Yoongi has missed his deep voice, tossing his contract into the fireplace. “And my first order of business is the dismantling of the Hwarang Boys as the lead company in Daegu.”

“You have no right to…” Peakboy starts to protest but chokes on his words as Taehyung holds a knife to his throat, glaring into the man’s face.

“I’m going to burn this house to the ground. And you are going to be bleeding inside of it as it does.” Taehyung growls, before plunging the blade into the man’s neck, making blood splatter across his face.

Yoongi follows Taehyung's path of carnage throughout the house with a wide smile on his face, shooting any stragglers with his glock until they’re standing outside of the base. He watches as Taehyung tosses a match onto the line of gasoline that leads into the house and moves to stand next to him after telling his men to bring the car around. They watch the flames consume the wooden structure in silence, Taehyung takes a deep breath and tilts his head back with peace coming over his face.

As his eyes open again, Yoongi holds out his hand to him. Taehyung smiles down at it before sliding his hand into his, finally Yoongi’s hand doesn’t feel empty anymore.

He guides Taehyung to the car, chuckling as the man bounces in excitement next to him and starts asking after Namjoon and Hobi.

Seven months later

“Are you one hundred percent sure about this, Tae?” Yoongi asks, ignoring the pout form on Taehyung’s lips.

“Don’t you want to marry me, Yoongles?” Taehyung mutters sadly, his shoulders deflating as his fingers fiddle in his lap.

Those puppy dog eyes are going to be the death of me one day, Yoongi thinks as he tries to stare at Taehyung without immediately caving.

“It’s not that I don’t want to, it’s just… Tae I’m the only person you’ve ever been with. How do you know you’re going to be happy with me forever?” Yoongi whispers, flinching when Taehyung glares at him.

“I’m done having this argument Yoongi, I don’t care if I’ve been with a hundred men or none. I love you and I want to marry you, give me a yes or no. It’s my choice to ask you and it’s my choice to spend the rest of my life with you.” Taehyung says firmly, placing the ring box in Yoongi’s hand.

Yoongi looks down at the red velvet box and opens it to look at the two silver rings inside, there's an engraving on the inside of both of them. He takes a shaky breath as he reads the words ‘From the Ashes We Love’ on both of the rings.

Taehyung reaches over and takes Yoongi’s left hand in his, “Please don’t make me wait any longer Yoongi, please marry me.”

Yoongi nods, tears slipping down his face as he looks at Taehyung. “I’m sorry sweetheart, I’m sorry for making you wait. I'm just scared.”

“I know,” Taehyung whispers, pulling him forward for a kiss. “That’s why I kept asking. I know that you’re scared, but I need this. I need to have you be mine, I want your name to be mine.”

Yoongi nods, placing another kiss on Taehyung’s lips. “I’ll marry you, Taehyung. I’ll give you everything.”

Taehyung grins and slides one of the rings onto Yoongi’s left ring finger, “You already have, by saying yes.”

“Sap,” Yoongi mutters, rolling his eyes fondly as he slides the other ring onto Taehyung’s finger.

We Started It

Epilogue: Slow Dancing

5 Years Later

Yoongi fiddles with the silver band around his ring finger as he works on the piles of paperwork on his desk. He glances at the new wedding picture that Taehyung had dropped off, staring at the wide boxy smile on his husband’s face. His eyes trace Taehyung’s figure as he stands clutching Yoongi’s side in front of the metal ducks at the Haslla Museum. Yoongi has to admit he likes this photo more than their honeymoon one in front of the Eiffel Tower.

A knock at the door tears his eyes away from his husband’s handsome face.

“Come in,” Yoongi calls, raising a brow in confusion as a youthful face pokes his head around the doorframe. “Can I help you?”

“Ah,” the boy stutters, shuffling into the room. His fraying sneakers squeak against the floor as he walks over to the chair in front of Yoongi’s desk. “The lady downstairs said to talk to you about a possible job opening, as a bartender.”

Yoongi nods as he takes in the boy’s scrappy appearance, his tattered pants, loose black shirt, and beaten black backpack that has a small purple heart pin on the strap. “Do you have any experience as a bartender?”

The boy shakes his head but says quickly, “But I can learn! I pick things up really quickly, I’m sure I can learn!”

Yoongi hums, clicking his tongue. “Are you even old enough to serve alcohol?”

“I’m turning eighteen next month, on the first.” The boy says quickly. “That would be enough time to get me trained and then I can get straight to work.”

Yoongi frowns and opens his mouth to send the boy away, but stops when the boy grasps his hands together tightly in his lap and hangs his head in preparation for the denial. He pauses and takes a real good look at the boy. He's young and looks like he’s been on the street for the past few weeks.

“Do you have anywhere to stay during your training?” Yoongi asks, already guessing the answer as the boy blinks up at him.

He shakes his head, “No sir, I would have to ask for an advancement on my first paycheck so I can get myself a place to stay.”

Yoongi clicks his tongue, “How long have you been in Seoul?”

“I’ve been here for school, but I’ve only been on my own for the past three weeks.” The boy answers scrunching his brows in confusion at Yoongi’s questions.

Yoongi doesn’t press on the reason why he’s been on the streets, only nods as he pulls out a sheet of paper from his desk. “Name, date of birth, and clothing size. You’ll be staying with my husband and I until we can get you trained and working. I don’t give advancements to employees that haven’t shown me what they’re capable of.”

“Oh no sir, you don’t have to…” the boy stops at the look Yoongi levels at him and gives a swift bow as he gives a quiet thank you. “My name is Jeon Jungkook.”

“Well Jungkook-ah, if you will follow me.” Yoongu says standing after filling out the contract for his employment. “I’ll show you where you’ll be staying, my husband should be home by now. Do you have any food allergies that we need to know about?”

Jungkook blinks as Yoongi guides him by the shoulder onto the elevator, “I have a gluten allergy.”

Yoongi smiles and presses the seven button, “We can work with that.”

The elevator door closes and Yoongi’s smile grows as the sounds of smooth jazz grow louder and louder as they rise.

“Yoons, is that you?” A deep voice calls before Taehyung pops around the corner and smiles widely as he catches sight of Yoongi as the doors open again to their home.

“Yeah I’m home,” Yoongi mutters, pulling Jungkook forward to introduce the pair. He takes in the sight of his tall husband bouncing on his toes as he shakes Jungkook’s hand and leads him to their guest bedroom.

He walks into the kitchen to check on the dinner that Taehyung had started, petting their poodle, Holly, as he passed him on the couch. Yeontan, their newest pomeranian puppy, jumped from his little bed in the corner and followed Yoongi into the kitchen, yapping excitedly at his heels.

“Go bother your Appa, Tannie.” Yoongi mutters to the black fluff ball, only to get an indignant yip in response. He sighs and hands the menace a little slice of chicken from the simmering pan, “You’re nearly as bad as him. I swear Jiminie gave you to us just to annoy me.”

Yeontan runs off with his prize and Yoongi laughs as he watches his short little feet dash across the hardwoods. He turns back to the stove and starts lowering the heat of the pots, mentally calculating to see if they had enough food to feed an obviously very hungry teenager. Arms come around Yoongi’s shoulders as he’s moving to check the rice cooker, he lays a hand on the wrist of one as he feels Taehyung bury his nose into the top of his head.

“You brought home a stray,” Taehyung chuckles, running his thumbs over Yoongi’s collarbone.

Yoongi grunts, “We’re probably going to need to go shopping for him tomorrow. I don’t think he has anything but what’s in that scrappy backpack of his.”

Taehyung hums in agreement and ducks his head down against the side of Yoongi’s neck, shuffling behind him as Yoongi moves back in front of the stove. “I’m having him take a shower now, looks like the boy hasn’t been able to wash properly in weeks. What did he come here for?”

“A job as a bartender,” Yoongi answers, tasting one of the sauces before giving a spoon full for Taehyung to try. He gets a hum of approval for it and turns down the heat to keep it at a gentle simmer. “He’s not old enough to serve alcohol now, his birthday is the first of September.”

“We’ll have to celebrate then,” Taehyung murmurs, placing a kiss against the side of Yoongi’s neck before pulling away from him completely. He moves to Yoongi’s side and starts helping him finish the dinner.

Jungkook comes out of the guest room a moment later, his hair a wet mop on top of his head and cleaner clothes on his body. He blinks at the array of food on the table and his stomach audibly grumbles.

“Ah, sorry,” he mutters, clutching his stomach as Taehyung and Yoongi simply chuckle and wave him over to sit down with them.

“Don’t worry about it, we’ll get you fed up in no time.” Taehyung chuckles, patting his shoulder and scooping large portions onto his plate. He waves off any protest from Jungkook, “Eat up, we can always order more food if we need to. I didn’t expect another guest tonight.”

“Thank you,” Jungkook murmurs, bowing his head to them before slowly digging into his plate. A scowl appears on the boy’s face and Yoongi almost worries about having made the sauce too spicy, even if Taehyung could handle it, when the boy moans in ecstasy and mutters a quiet, “So good.”

Yoongi chuckles as he starts digging to his own plate, he feels Taehyung lay a gentle hand on his thigh and he drops his free one to interlace their fingers. They share a brief smile before focusing on their food and start a conversation with their new guest.

As he watches Taehyung and Jungkook talk animatedly to each other, Yoongi idly wonders how long the boy will be staying with them.

We Hid In The Shadows

Chapter 2: Blue Side

Hoseok was knee deep in files, sipping on a glass of whiskey, when a crew member came to fetch him.

“The boss is wanting to see you,” the man stuttered, standing in the doorway of Hoseok’s office.

He must be new, Hoseok thought, taking in the sight of the boy shifting on his feet and glancing around the room nervously.

“You can tell Namjoon I’m busy. With both our manhunt and organizing these files it’ll be a miracle if I come out of this office at all.” Hoseok dismissed, scrubbing a hand through his hair.

“Uhm, he said you’d want to come and see him about this.” The man said, fidgeting on his feet. Hoseok made a mental note to make an appearance down at the training center more often, their new men were coming out a little too green for his liking.

“What’s your name?” Hoseok asked, standing from his desk and moving out of the room.

The man gulped, “Han, sir.”

“Ah one of Namjoonie’s trainees,” Hoseok muttered to himself with a nod. “Well Han, you’ve just earned yourself three months of additional training. I expect you to be at my camp promptly everyday at 8AM, you can see Lee about your new schedule.”

“Yessir,” Han bowed as Hoseok passed him and made his way down to Namjoon’s office.

Hoseok blinked at the sound of raised voices from inside the room, the solid oak door muffled the words but not the sound of shouting and things being thrown around. Hoseok threw the door open and promptly ducked when a chair flew across the room at his head.

“What the hell!” Hoseok shouted, taking in the absolute mess that was Namjoon’s office. Papers strewn all over the room, books pulled from the shelves, furniture crumpled against walls, and piles of glass littering the floor.

Hoseok looked up to see his brother holding a strange man in a choke hold in the middle of all the mess. “Who the hell is that Namjoon! How the hell did he get in?”

“Not an assassin,” Namjoon grunted, dodging a kick from the man’s legs. “Jang-ssi’s son.”

Hoseok blinked in shock, “Jang-ssi wasn’t married.”

The man in Namjoon’s arms gargled in rage at Hoseok's words, clawing at the arms around his neck but his efforts were fruitless. He obviously had no training or strength to escape Namjoon’s hold on him.

“How do we even know he’s telling the truth? He could be from the Seoul Empire to spy on us, they’ve been much too quiet in my opinion.” Hoseok said, stepping closer to get a better look at the man. Right away though, he could see why Namjoon probably believed that this man was Jang-ssi’s son. Even with the purpling of his face, Hoseok could see the resemblance and those shoulders could come from no one else.

“Birth certificate on the desk,” Namjoon grunted, before dropping the man to the ground.

The man gasped for air as he fell onto his hands, luckily not on any piles of glass. Hoseok titled his head as he observed him panting on the ground, the color of his cheeks were coming back to a normal color revealing a slightly tanner skin tone then he was expecting. He tries not to react when the very handsome face of Jang-ssi’s son glares up at him.

“His name is Jeon Seokjin,” Namjoon says, huffing as he places his hands on his hips and stares down at Seokjin’s back. “He wants to help us find his father’s murderer.”

“And his way of doing that is by trying to kill you?” Hoseok asks incredulously, crossing his arms over his chest, still staring down into the deep brown eyes of Seokjin.

“Stop talking about me like I’m not here in the room with you,” Seokjin grunts, standing to his feet, towering over Hoseok but not nearly as much as Namjoon did.

“Why should I even acknowledge your presence?” Hoseok challenged, raising a brow at him. “As far as I can tell, you’re going to be dead useless in this manhunt.”

“We’re not arguing about this,” Namjoon cut in, before Seokjin could open his mouth to retort. “He has a right to be a part of the manhunt for his father’s killer, it’s the least we can do. And he’ll start training in my camp in the meantime, he has no say on that matter.”

“I don’t want…” Seokjin started to protest, but Hoseok cut in mid-word.

“Your men need retraining Namjoon, I just sent that Han kid to my camp. I’ll take Seokjin-ssi for his first few months, you can have him after.” Hoseok commanded and moved to leave the room, ignoring the scowl on his brother’s face. “If I start seeing more slip ups from your trainees, I’ll give your camp over to Yoongi-hyung. It probably needs to happen anyway, you don’t have the time like you used to.”

Namjoon huffed but nodded as Hoseok shot him a look in the doorway, “Is hyung back yet?”

“I’m not sure, he’s gonna love this development though.” Hoseok said sarcastically, rolling his eyes as he left the room and dodged the line of cleaners that were starting to enter the office.

Training Seokjin was becoming more of a hassle then Hoseok had expected, Yoongi had refused to take any part in it after the man had nearly shot him with a misfire. And, despite what his brother wanted, Namjoon was too busy to train Seokjin himself at the moment. Which left Hoseok alone to deal with Seokjin’s fits of rage and clumsy attempts at mastering hand to hand combat.

It had already been a month since Seokjin had come to their doorstep and Hoseok didn’t feel like he had made any progress.

“Sloppy,” Hoseok barked, kicking Seokjin’s hip and sending him tumbling to the ground. “You left yourself open and didn’t plant your feet for the blow.”

Seokjin grunted and kicked himself back into his feet, but tripped on the landing making Hoseok catch him before he fell to his face.

“I’ve told you to use your core more,” Hoseok scolds, huffing when Seokjin pulls away roughly from him. “You’re never going to land that if you don’t use your core and not your legs.”

Seokjin huffed and scrubbed his sweaty face, “Do you have anything positive to say?”

“Yes, you’re not falling on your face as soon as you enter the ring anymore.” Hoseok deadpans, moving out of the boxing ring and removing his gloves as he went.

Seokjin huffed and followed him out, placing his white gloves next to Hoseok’s red ones. “What is even the point of me learning any of this?”

“We’ve had this discussion a million times, Seokjin. When are you going to get it through your thick skull that you can’t just run up to your father’s murderer and shoot him in the face. He’s not going to stand still for you.” Hoseok growls, taking off his boxing wraps slowly, despite his anger. He held up a hand as Seokjin opened his mouth, “I don’t want to hear your daily rant, I’m tired and I still have a shit ton of paperwork to do. Go shower, we’ll try again tomorrow.”

“Why are you even bothering?” Seokjin demanded, blocking Hoseok’s path from leaving. “If I’m so useless and untrainable, why are you still trying? It can’t just be because your brother told you to.”

“Namjoonie may be the boss now but he’s still my younger brother, he can’t tell me shit.” Hoseok says, crossing his arms over his chest as he looks up at Seokjin. “And you’re not untrainable, no one is. You just have a mental block you need to get over. And no one else is going to have the patience to get you over it, not even Namjoon.”

“What mental block?” Seokjin demands, clenching his fists. “I’m determined to learn so I can bring the man that killed my father to justice.”

“So am I, but I’m not the one being tossed onto the mat every single day.” Hoseok counters, rolling his eyes. “You’re letting your anger and grief cloud you, Seokjin. You can’t think straight while your emotions are driving you, you need to have a clear head when you fight and aim a weapon. Until you learn to either bury your feelings or control them, our training will go nowhere.”

Seokjin blinks at him and quirks an eyebrow, “That sounds like a Star Wars reference, wouldn’t you guys be the Sith not the Jedi? Aren’t they guided by their emotions?”

Hoseok purses his lips to keep from laughing, but his lips twitch up into a smile despite himself. “I think learning to fire a glock is very different from a lightsaber, but even the Sith knew when to use their anger and when to hold it in check.”

Seokjin scoffed and rolled his eyes, but his plush lips raised in a small smile for a moment before dropping it, “I don’t how, Hoseok, I’m just angry all the time. At everything. And when the anger fades, all I feel is sorrow. There’s no middle ground between them.”

Hoseok nods, “But you have to Seokjin, you’re not going to find the bastard with anger and sorrow alone. You can be angry, you can be sad, he was your father. That’s normal, but it’s not getting you anywhere now.”

“That’s easy for you to say,” Seokjin scoffs wetly, trying to hide the tears that come into his eyes. “You just worked with him, he was my dad.”

“My parents abandoned me in a warehouse,” Hoseok states plainly, unbothered by Seokjin’s blink of surprise. “Namjoon’s parents took me in and adopted me as their own. All I know about them was that they were drug addicts, my mother took hard drugs while pregnant with me. I had withdrawl symptoms as a baby, I wasn’t expected to live past the age of five. I know anger, Seokjin, I know sorrow but I don’t let it guide me. If I did, I’d end up dead.”

Hoseok moves around Seokjin’s shocked form as he makes his way out the door, “And by the way,” he looks over his shoulder back at him, “I know he was your father, but he was my friend, he watched Namjoon and I grow up. I’m mourning his loss as much as you are.”

Hoseok leaves Seokjin in the training room and makes his way into the elevator, not expecting the man to run inside just before the doors close.

“Do all you gangsters pour out your sob stories to each other?” Seokjin asks sarcastically, smirking when Hoseok chuckles.

“We call it bonding, my young padawan.” Hoseok chuckles, pressing the button for the penthouse. “Kinda helps you stay sane amidst all the blood and guns.”

Seokjin scoffs playfully, “I don’t think there’s anything sane left in any of you, Master Hoseok.”

Hoseok snorts and punches Seokjin’s shoulder lightly, “Don’t call me that, just Hobi is fine, Seokjin.”

Seokjin scrunches his nose, “I’m not calling you what your brother does, that's weird. And just call me Jin, even if I am older than you.”

Hoseok rolls his eyes, “I’m not calling you hyung until you’ve earned it, Jin.”

Jin hums in thought, the elevator dings and the doors slide open. They step out and start moving in different directions.

“Does anyone call you Hoba?” Jin called to him just before he was about to climb the stairs.

Hoseok looks over at him with scrunched brows, “No, where would you have pulled that name from?”

Jin sends him a wink as he smiles, “I’m allowed to have some secrets, Hoba. See you tomorrow.”

Hoseok watches as Jin climbs up the stairs and disappears into his room, he shakes his head as he makes his way into his office. Trying to will the flutter in his stomach away.

We Hid In The Shadows

Chapter 3: Base Line

Jin’s training makes leaps and bounds after that day in the sparring ring. Hoseok has to control himself from smiling too much as he watches Jin toss his level five trainees across the mat. With as much progress as the man made, Hoseok allowed Namjoon to take part in Jin’s training. But only on the stipulation that his camp would be transferred to Yoongi’s control.

Jin was less than pleased when Hoseok informed him of the change.

“What are you sick of me already, Hoba?” Jin teased as Hoseok spotted him on the weight bench.

Hoseok rolled his eyes, trying not to stare at Jin’s biceps flexing as he lifts the barbell. “Joonie has some skills to teach you that I can’t, all of us are going to have a hand in your training. Even if Yoongi-hyung does it kicking and screaming. If we’re going to get you trained enough to help us, it’ll have to be all of us.”

“I am not looking forward to Yoongi’s turn then,” Jin grunts as he places the barbell back onto the bench, sitting up and wiping his face with his sweaty t-shirt. “What exactly is Namjoon going to teach me?”

Hoseok hums as he hands Jin a bottle of water, “He’ll mainly be teaching you the art of negotiation. I’m sure you’ve noticed by now how he has a way with words. It’s served him well in this power change between our father’s men and ours. We’ve avoided a lot of bloodshed as we’ve replaced the old forces with new ones.”

Jin wrinkles his nose as he sips on the water, “I don’t think I’ll ever get used to that, how easily you all talk about your work as if it’s just a normal company.”

Hoseok shrugs and tucks his hands under his arms to hide the tremor in them, he hasn’t been sleeping well and his body is starting to show it. “In our world, we are a normal company. One day you might be thankful for being exposed to it.”

Jin scowls, “I don’t think I’ll ever be grateful for it killing my father.”

Hoseok sighs as he tries to walk away but the tremors have gravitated to his legs and he has to catch the side of the weight bench to keep himself from falling.

“Hoseok!” Jin yelps, jumping to his side and helping him sit down on the ground gently as the tremors rack his body. “What the hell is happening!”

Hoseok clenches his fists and grits out through clenched teeth, “Body… tremors… just… give… it… a second.”

“Okay, okay, don’t talk. Do I need to get someone?” Jin asks, catching Hoseok’s head before it falls hard to the ground.

“No,” Hoseok stutters out as he tries to calm his breathing, Jin takes slow, deep breaths with him as his body slowly comes back to itself. The tension from the tremors releases Hoseok into a slump on the floor, he breathes heavily as he tries to regain his strength.

“Don’t try and get up yet,” Jin orders, pushing Hoseok back down gently as he tries to sit up. “I think you still need a minute, don’t try to act tough with me. I just caught your head from smacking onto the floor.”

Hoseok huffs and tries to relax onto the cold gym floor, unwilling to admit that he does actually need a few more minutes before getting to his feet again. He flexes his hands to work out the ache from clenching them.

“Do I need to start watching my mouth with you? Are you going to collapse everytime I say something sassy?” Jin asks, looking relieved when Hoseok chuckles and shakes his head.

“No, your word game isn’t that powerful, I’m afraid Jin.” Hoseok snickers, and slowly begins to sit up with Jin’s assistance. “I told you that my mom took drugs when pregnant with me. I don’t have bad withdrawal seizures like when I was a kid, but when I don’t sleep well, or if I’m under a lot of stress, they’ll hit me sometimes.”

Jin hums in understanding and hands Hoseok a water bottle, taking the cap off for him. “I can’t imagine how your parents dealt with that. That freaked me out and I’ve seen you toss men twice your size over your shoulder.”

Hoseok rolls his eyes as he takes slow sips of the cool water, “I won’t call on you then, if I truly have a bad seizure.”

“I don’t think I want to know how bad they can get,” Jin murmurs, pushing his sweaty bangs out of his face. “Do I need to start whacking you with a hammer to get you to sleep?”

Hoseok levels a look at him, “Are you really suggesting giving me a concussion, on top of how messed up my brain already is?”

Jin scoffs as he stands to his feet, holding out a hand to him. “You have a tough skull, you’ll live.”

“I’d rather not live the rest of my life as a vegetable, thanks.” Hoseok snickers, taking Jin’s hand and allowing him to pull up. His legs are steady as he stands on them, but he keeps a hold on the offered arm from Jin as they walk out of the gym.

“I’ll start putting sleeping pills in your Sprite then,” Jin muses, pressing the call button for the elevator.

“Oh, so you want to put me in a coma too. How nice to know how well you’ll take care of me.” Hoseok teases as they step inside the elevator, he leans slightly on the railing as they climb up to the penthouse.

Jin rolls his eyes, “There’s no pleasing you, Hoba.”

Hoseok chuckles as they step out of the elevator and slowly make their way into the kitchen. Jin ushers him to sit down before moving to start some food for them. He watches as Jin taps away at his phone for a moment before pulling ingredients out of the fridge, Hoseok continues to sip on some water as he watches Jin cook with practiced ease.

“What did you do before you came to us?” Hoseok asks, watching as Jin julienned some carrots with deft hands.

Jin chuckles as he continues to work, setting aside the sliced vegetables and pulling another onto the cutting board. “I just finished my culinary degree last year. I was in the middle of my internship with one of the leading restaurants in Seoul when Iearned of my father’s death.”

“How did you even find us, Jin? We had no idea Jang-ssi was married, or had a son.” Hoseok asks, watching as Jin’s eyes flicker over to him before dropping back down to his slicing.

“If I tell you, can you promise to keep it between the two of us? I don’t trust Namjoon or Yoongi, but I don’t mind telling you.” Jin explains, sensing Hoseok’s confused face.

“We’re all allowed our secrets, Jin. If you trust me enough to tell me, I’ll keep yours, even from my brother.” Hoseok says softly, folding his arms into the counter as he looks at Jin’s solemn face.

“My dad sent me a letter, on his deathbed, it explained everything about his actual job. And what I should do in the event of his sudden death, he told me where to look to find Namjoon. I’m surprised some of your men didn’t recognize me from the other apartments I went to before coming here.” Jin explains, washing his hands in the sink before moving to slice some meat on the cutting board. “I confronted my mother about it, before I left, and learned that she was a part of a company as well. The one that got my father killed.”

Hoseok stares in shock as Jin pauses his work to look over at him, “Your mother was a part of the Seoul Empire?”

Jin nods, his eyes turning to steel as he says, “The man that killed my father was her brother. He’s my uncle. And she refused to tell me his name, or where he is. That’s why I came to Namjoon, he’s my only hope to find that bastard.”

“Jin, if she’s related to him then we can use…” Hoseok started to say, but stopped when Jin scoffed.

“Trust me, you’re not going to get anything out of her. She’s currently so deep in a cocaine haze that she doesn’t even know her own name.” Jin scoffs, clutching the chef knife tightly in his fist. “And they’re not actually blood related, she was adopted. My father left me a trail of paperwork to follow, her family is a dead end and her adoptive ones are all dead, apart from her brother.”

Hoseok nods, “That sounds like Jang-ssi, he was always five steps ahead of everyone else. So he must have known about your mother, but not enough to trust her completely.”

Jin nods in agreement and moves to start working at the stove top, “If I had known anything that would have helped us find this bastard faster, I would’ve told you from the start.”

Hoseok nods to Jin’s broad back, watching as if flexes with his movements. “I know, Jin. You’re not that stupid, despite how much you run your mouth.”

Jin’s shoulders quake as he laughs, he peeks over his shoulder to look at Hoseok, “Good to know you think so well of me, Hoba.”

Hoseok snorts, rolling his eyes as he takes a long drink of his water.

“Tell me something, Hoba,” Jin says after leaving the pot on the stove to simmer as he leans on the sink edge to look at Hoseok. “I’ve been hearing around that you’re the best tracker in the business, why haven’t you been able to find the bastard?”

Hoseok raises a brow at him, “I may be the best, but this guy is a master at evasion and staying off the grid. He’s left no trail for me to follow and I think that’s because he’s not just hiding from us.”

“What makes you think that?” Jin asks, folding his arms over his chest.

“Because the Seoul Empire has been quiet, they haven’t made any moves against us after what happened in that warehouse. Joon took out a few of their top men, they wouldn’t just let something like that go. Not unless they are too focused on trying to find someone else.” Hoseok explained, tapping his finger on the countertop. “Above anything else the Seoul Empire prides itself on sticking to their rules, that man broke them by trying to shoot Namjoon during a negotiation and in the middle of a neutral territory. And then he ran while the rest of his crew were getting slaughtered, they’re just as determined to find him as we are.”

“Then we need to find him first.” Jin states firmly, making Hoseok nod in agreement.

“Trust me, we will. It’ll be us to shoot that bastard in the face.” Hoseok states firmly, grinning wickedly as Jin smirks at him.

We Hid In The Shadows

Chapter 4: Daydream

As the months pass, Jin becomes more and more agitated. His fits of rage now hold new power as he’s able to take down their men with ease. It’s only the members of the Inner Circle that stand a chance against him. Even though it’s irritating for Hoseok to play babysitter, he has to admit that he’s proud of Jin’s progress.

“I’m not going on another dead end mission!” Jin barks, tossing the file onto the table angrily. “You can’t keep ending me away just because I point out the holes in your plans!”

“I can do whatever the fuck I want with you, Seokjin!” Yoongi growls, plunging a knife into the wood of the table. “I’ll put you in a fucking coma if you don’t step in line!”

“Stop damaging my table!” Namjoon barks before Jin can retort, pulling the knife out of the wood. “The pair of you need to get yourselves together! We’re not going to find Jang-ssi’s killer this way!”

“We’re not going to find him at all, if you keep bringing on useless hackers!” Jin shouts, throwing a knife at Namjoon’s head. Hoseok catches it mid-air and glares at Jin, the man huffs and sits down in his seat with his arms crossed.

“It’s not my fault that they’re all liars,” Namjoon huffs, giving his brother a grateful look. “But that doesn’t mean you should just kill them! You’re starting to piss off our allied companies!”

Jin rolls his eyes, “Then why don’t you just bring on that Vante person that everyone keeps talking about. Every single hacker we bring on seems to mention him.”

“We already sent in a request to the Hwarang Boys,” Yoongi huffs, standing from his chair. “We’re waiting for an answer, apparently there’s a waiting list. It’s going to take a lot of convincing to put us at the top.”

Jin sniffs indignantly as Yoongi stomps out of the room, picking his knife back up when Hoseok slides it to him. “He can’t be that good.”

“Believe me he is, I don’t know how the Hwarang Boys have kept him on their payroll.” Namjoon mutters, following closely behind Yoongi’s retreating back.

Hoseok rubs his face tiredly, “What exactly is your goal by pissing us off, Jin? We’re the only ones that are going to help you.”

Jin glares at him, “I could find him myself! I don’t need any of you to help me!”

Hoseok pulls his gun out of his holster and slides it down to Jin angrily, “Fine then! Go and get your sorry ass killed! We’ll bury your body next to your father when they dump it on our doorstep!”

Hoseok’s hands shake as he leaves the table, he catches himself on the doorframe as the tremors begin to wrack through his body.

“I really need you to stop doing this to me,” Jin huffs, wrapping his arms around Hoseok’s waist and pulling him to his firm chest. Hoseok grits his teeth as Jin gently moves them down to the floor as his body shakes in his arms.

“Stop pissing me off then!” Hoseok pants as the tremors die down and he lays slumped against Jin’s chest. “My body can’t handle all these emotions on top of a horrible sleep schedule!”

Jin huffs and pulls Hoseok’s sweaty bangs out of his face, “Stop drinking so much whiskey then, I’m sure it’s not helping.”

Hoseok huffs as he tries to bring his breathing down to a normal level, he sighs as Jin’s croaked fingers brush through his hair. “I get that you’re angry Jin, but can you please tone it down a bit. I can’t keep fighting with you and keep my brother from driving himself into the ground. Yoongi and I are barely keeping the company together as it is, finding Jang-ssi’s killer is our top priority, but it isn’t our only one.”

“Sorry,” Jin mutters quietly, leaning his head down on Hoseok’s shoulder. “There’s something else bothering me right now and I’m taking it out on you guys. I’m sorry, Hoba, I know you’re doing a lot to help me.”

Hoseok sighs and reaches a hand around to pat the back of Jin’s head, “Just take it out in the boxing ring or the shoot range next time. I’m tired of sending apology letters to our allied companies for sending back their hacker with a bullet in their brain.”

Jin huffs but nods against Hoseok’s shoulder, the pair just sit there for a moment taking deep steady breaths together until Hoseok’s body stops trembling slightly.

“Can I ask what’s bothering you Jin?” Hoseok asks, laying a hand over top of the arm across his chest. Jin sighs into Hoseok’s shoulder and slumps against the wall behind them.

“It’s going to have to be another secret between us, do you really want to keep so many from your brother?” Jin asked, peeking out of the corner of eyes over at Hoseok.

“Namjoon has his own secrets, we may be brothers but we’ve learned over the years that we don’t need to tell each other everything.” Hoseok says softly, tilting his head to look at Jin better. “And keeping what’s bothering you to yourself is obviously not helping, so you need to tell someone, Jin.”

Jin sighs heavily, “I have a younger brother, I had to leave him with a friend of mine when I came here. I didn’t want him to be around our mother while she’s in a drug coma, he keeps asking me to come home. The longer I’m here, the more I worry that my excuses for being away aren’t going to work.”

“How old is he?” Hoseok asks, not bothering to ask for the boy’s name. He knew Jin would want to keep his brother away from this world, even to the point of no one knowing his name.

“He’s twelve and follows me around like a little puppy,” Jin chuckles fondly. “This is the longest I’ve been away from him, other than when I was at school but even then I’d visit now and again. He doesn’t understand why I can’t now.”

Hoseok hums in acknowledgement, “We’ll find him soon Jin, we’ll bring him to justice. I wish there was something I could do to help you.”

“This is enough,” Jin murmurs, tightening his arms around Hoseok’s body. Hoseok pats his arm and relaxes into Jin’s hold, hoping that Yoongi doesn’t come across them until Jin is ready to get off the floor.

“I thought you were going to take it easy!” Jin grunted as he blocked Hoseok’s swing at him with his bamboo katana, the wood of the blades clanged together the wooden sound echoing off of the sparring room.

“I am taking it easy,” Hoseok counters, dodging Jin’s charge at him with a simple side step and moving to swipe at his back, Jin blocked it as he quickly turned to face him again. “This is basically meditation for me.”

“In a world of guns and bombs, why did you choose a sword as your main weapon?” Jin huffs, flipping over Hoseok’s swipe at his feet and swiping down at him as he landed back on his feet.

Hoseok smirked as he watched Jin dance around the room with him, dodging and countering his moves with ease. “You’ll always need a silent way of taking down your enemies, there’s no gun in the world that can kill as quietly as a blade. And a swordsman can use any weapon at any time, marksmen are limited if they only focus on that skill set.”

Jin huffed as Hoseok slowly backed him up with his swipes towards the tall pile of gym mats, he back flipped and landed on top of them. Pointing his blade down triumphantly at Hoseok, “I have the high ground now, Hoba. You have no chance of beating me.”

“You underestimate my power, Jin.” Hoseok teases, kicking at the pile of mats causing them to tumble to the ground and forcing Jin to roll onto the floor to avoid the fall. Hoseok had his blade against Jin’s neck before he could rise, “Like I said, my young padawan, you still have much to learn.”

Jin smirked at him and gestured down with his eyes, Hoseok looked down to see Jin’s blade pointing at his heart. He bursted out laughing as he dropped his blade and helped Jin off the floor.

“It seems you’ve proved me wrong,” Hoseok chuckled, patting Jin’s shoulder before moving to return the practice blade to its stand. “You’re training with me might truly be over now.”

“Don’t break my heart now, Hoba.” Jin teased, setting his own blade down above Hoseok’s, handing him some water. “I’m sure your other trainees have been able to get the jump on you before.”

Hoseok scoffed, looking over at Jin with raised bows, “How long have you been here Jin?”

“Five months, but I don’t see how…”

“How long do you think it takes my trainees to get the jump on me? Especially with my weapon of choice.” Hoseok challenged, taking a sip of his water as Jin crossed his arms over his chest.

“I don’t know. If they went through the same training as I did, maybe seven months.” Jin guessed, shrugging as he looked confusingly at him.

“Three years,” Hoseok answered, smiling as Jin gaped like a fish. “Don’t let it get to your head, Jin. The only reason you’ve been able to get there so fast, is because I’ve never once held back with you.”

Jin stared at him for a moment before glaring, “How the hell was that useful? No wonder I struggled so much in the first month! Why would you do that?”

Hoseok looks at him for a moment, before sighing. “Does that promise to keep secrets between us stand with what I’m about to tell you?”

Jin looks at him oddly as he nods, “If you trust me enough to tell me, I’ll keep your secrets.”

Hoseok smiles at the echoed words, before it drops from his face. “I had a purpose in my training with you, ever since I learned that you were Jang-ssi’s son. It seems hypocritical of me to accuse you of having a death wish, when I do.”

Jin’s eyes widen and his arms drop to his sides as Hoseok turns away from him.

“I’m just as guilty for Jang-ssi’s death as Namjoon is, the day they left for that meeting I should have gone with them. It seemed suspicious to me that they only asked for Namjoon and Jang-ssi, but I didn’t press when my brother told me to stay behind.” Hoseok says quietly, staring up at the wall of katanas that hung across the wood panels. “It never should have been Jang-ssi to jump in front of a bullet for my brother, it should have been me. That’s my job, that’s my role in the Bulletproof Company. To be the shield in front of my little brother.”

Jin’s footsteps came behind him and he slowly placed his arms around Hoseok from behind, “You couldn’t have known what would happen that day.” He whispered against the back of Hoseok’s head.

“No, but I should’ve been there,” Hoseok whispers hoarsely, placing both of his hands onto Jin’s arm around his shoulders. “You don’t know Namjoon like I do Jin, you don’t know what he’s been through under our father. I made a promise to myself to stand next to him, to protect him from everyone and I failed.”

“He would have been more broken if it had been you who died for him,” Jin countered, squeezing him tightly. “I can be angry at that man and know that he needs you in his life. You don’t see how he watches for your approval of things. Yoongi is his hyung and his Second, but you’re his big brother. He wants to protect you as much as you want to protect him.”

Hoseok hung his head as Jin’s words pierced through his heart, “I trained you to be the only person in the world that I’d face and not be able to come out the other end. If we ever met as enemies, Jin, that would be the day I die.”

Jin huffed as he laid his head down against the side of Hoseok’s neck, “Don’t piss me off then, I’ll give you real hell Hoba.”

Hoseok chuckled wetly, squeezing his hands on Jin’s arm. “I’ll try not to, but you have a short fuse. It probably won’t take much to put me in the ground after I steal your gun oil.”

“That stuff is fucking expensive,” Jin huffed, his breath tickling the back of Hoseok’s neck. “It’s criminal that they sell it for that much! It’s not like it's liquid gold!”

Hoseok laughed as Jin continued to vent about the prices of the underground market, shuffling in the man’s arms as they walked out of the sparring room together.

We Hid In The Shadows

Chapter 5: Safety Zone

“Why am I hearing, from Seokjin of all people, that you’re having your seizures again?” Namjoon barks, slamming the door open to Hoseok’s office as he enters.

“Damn that man,” Hoseok mutters under his breath, then looks up at the irritated face of his younger brother. “Because I didn’t want to worry you, Joon. I’ve only had two episodes in the past five months and it’s only because I’m not sleeping well, on top of all the added pressures we have. There’s nothing you can do about it.”

Namjoon huffs and crosses his arms over his broad chest as he glares at his brother, “You still should have told me, not Seokjin! I thought we had a deal, Hobi!”

Hoseok sighs tiredly, running a hand through his hair. “We’re not trainees anymore, Joonie. We have a lot of responsibilities now, we have a lot of people that look to us for guidance. We can’t keep watching each other’s backs as closely as before.”

“Bullshit!” Namjoon barks, sitting down angrily in front of Hoseok’s desk. “You just don’t want to admit how bad it’s gotten! You haven’t had any episodes for the past three years and now you’re suddenly having them! Have you gone to Doctor Wook about them?”

Hoseok shook his head and flinched at his brother’s angry scoff, “I haven’t had the…”

“No more excuses!” Namjoon cuts in, standing from his chair and grabbing Hoseok’s hand to drag him out of the room. “You’re going to see him today! Right now!”

Hoseok sighed as he allowed Namjoon to drag him out of his office and into the elevator towards the medical floor. They passed Jin sitting on the couch reading one of their instruction manuals for glocks, he waved cheerily as they left. Hoseok mouthed ‘I’m going to kill you when I get back’ at him and rolled his eyes when Jin blew him a kiss and winked in response.

Doctor Wook checked Hoseok over, ignoring Namjoon as he hovered over his shoulder. He asked about his two seizures in great detail and had him lay down in their MRI scanner. Honestly, this was the whole reason Hoseok hadn’t told anyone about his episodes, especially Namjoon, he hated being in this thing.

He took deep steady breaths as he was scooted forward into the tight tunnel. He could hear Namjoon talking nonsense in his ear as he shut his eyes and tried not to clench his fists. Hoseok was claustrophobic as it was and this scanner was ten times worse than any other confined, inescapable space.

He hoped that the whirring noises of the MRI would cover his whimpers as the machine scanned over his body and brain. But the way Namjoon was immediately at his side as he slid out told him that it wasn’t. He helped Hoseok sit up shakily, placing a firm hand on his shoulder while Hoseok drank some water Doctor Wook handed him.

“I’ll have our expert look over the scans, but as far as I can tell there’s been no lasting damage from these episodes.” Doctor Wook says, smiling as Namjoon breathes a sigh of relief and lays his head against the back of Hoseok’s. “They were probably just stress induced, I can’t prescribe you any sleeping medication but I would like you to cut down on the amount of caffeine and alcohol you’re consuming. Get some proper nights of rest, let your body breathe for a moment. We can’t have you drive yourself into an early grave, Hoseok.”

“Thank you Doctor Wook,” Hoseok murmurs, patting the back of Namjoon’s head as he clutches around his shoulders tightly. “I’ll take it easy for a little bit.”

Doctor Wook nods and pats his shoulder before leaving the room, “Start today, doctor’s orders.”

Hoseok sends him a salute before patting Namjoon’s arms to let him go, “I need to get out of this gown Joonie, I’m not walking around with my ass hanging out.”

Namjoon chuckles as he pulls away from his brother, he leaves the room after handing Hoseok some loose sweats to change into. Hoseok’s hands shake as he pulls the clothes on and he leaves the room as quickly as he can. He never wanted to do that again in his life.

“So what’s the damage?” Jin greets with a smirk at Hoseok’s glaring face. “Are you becoming a vegetable soon, Hoba?”

“You wish,” Hoseok scoffs, rolling his eyes when Jin chuckles. He sits down on the couch next to him. “As soon as I’m done shaking from that damn MRI scanner, I’m putting your ass on the floor.”

“Not in front of your brother, Hoba, I’m not into exhibition.” Jin teases, dodging the book Hoseok tosses at his head with a chuckle.

“You really gonna die on me Hobi,” Yoongi drawls as he comes into the room, narrowing his eyes at his friend. “You’re not allowed to, not until we get to send Seokjin back where he came from.”

Hoseok chuckles as he gets comfortable across the couch, tucking himself under the blanket that Namjoon places over him. “I may die just from the coffee withdrawal, Yoongi-hyung. Doctor Wook has put a ban on me.”

“I’ll go start some tea then,” Yoongi says after patting Hoseok’s head and placing a pillow under it. “I’ll put in an order for every damn flavor out there, maybe we’ll find something even your picky ass will like.”

Hoseok chuckles and sighs in relief when Namjoon dims the lights in the living room down to a gentle glow. He tries to hide his pleased smile when Jin shuffles closer to his bare feet and pulls them onto his lap to rub his ankles gently.

“Music or TV, Hobi?” Namjoon asks gently, flicking on the TV across from the couch as he sits down next to Hoseok’s head.

“Whatever’s quiet Joonie,” Hoseok mumbles, sighing as his eyelids slowly shut as Namjoon runs his hand through his hair and Jin’s warm ones curl around his ankles.

Namjoon doesn’t stop checking on him, even after their expert comes back with the report of agreement with Doctor Wook’s diagnosis. Hoseok just needs rest and no strenuous activity for a few weeks.

Yoongi takes over most of Hoseok’s responsibilities, mainly the overseeing of the training camps, while others are tabled until he recovers. Hoseok bemoans the amount of paperwork he’ll have to face when he’s able to face them again.

Jin continues his training under Namjoon and Yoongi, taking any mission they hand him without a word of complaint. He also takes over most of the cooking with everyone’s busy schedules and tones down a bit of his bastard tendencies, but not by much.

“It’s about fucking time!” Jin barks as Namjoon tells them about their meeting with the Hwarang Boys being approved for next month. “I’m tired of these useless hackers coming and going, hopefully this dude is as useful as they say he is.”

“Have you read any of the files on him?” Yoongi asks, placing a cup of tea in front of Hoseok. “He’s damn fucking good at his job, I still don’t know how Peakboy has been able to keep him with them.”

“Hopefully he’s not a liar like the rest of them,” Jin scoffs, tossing the fried rice in the wok with finesse.

Yoongi grunts in agreement as he starts pulling out the bowls from the cupboard, “I’ve also heard that he’s created a program to search for people’s faces. There’s rumors that it can find anyone, even if you barely have an image of them.”

Namjoon hums in interest, not looking up from his pile of paperwork next to Hoseok. “He’s gotta be young though, I haven’t been hearing about him in the rumor mills for that long.”

“Just what we need, another piss happy kid.” Yoongi scoffs, jutting his thumb at Jin. “We already haven’t been rid of the one we currently have.”

“I’m older than all of you,” Jin scoffs, taking the bowls that Yoongi hands him.

“Well you don’t act like it,” Yoongi huffs, moving to pull out some utensils and leveling a glare at Namjoon at the counter. “Put that aside, Namjoon. It can be done tomorrow.”

Namjoon huffs then yelps when Hoseok cuffs the back of his head, he rubs it and turns an offended eye to his brother. “What did you do that for?!”

“You were about to sass your hyung, Joonie. I was saving you from a knife being thrown at your head.” Hoseok dismisses, sipping on the camellia tea. “Hmm, hyung I think this one is a winner.”

Yoongi scoffs, but a smile forms on his face betraying his pleasure at finding a tea that Hoseok liked. “About damn time, we’ve only tried fifty different brews.”

Jin chuckles as he scoops the kimchi fried rice into the bowls and sets them down the counter before placing the fried pork cutlet from the fry oil on top. “I need to know where you get your kimchi from, I’ve never tasted it fresher.”

“Our mama makes it,” Hoseok says, taking the bowl Jin hands him with a smile. “She makes big batches and sends us jars of it, she grows the napa cabbage herself.”

Jin whistles as he sits down next to Hoseok at the counter, “Now that's some talent, does she grow the chilies and dry them as well?”

Hoseok hums in thought as he takes a bite of the food, “She may have tried, but I don’t think spices are something she’s interested in. But who knows, she might find all her retirement time boring enough to try.”

“Call me when she does, I like buying fresh spices from farmers.” Jin commands, hiding a smile behind his bite of food when Hoseok kicks his shin.

“It’s ironic that mom didn’t want to retire to a farm, but still wanted a vegetable garden.” Namjoon muses, pouting when Yoongi pulls his pile of paperwork out of his reach.

“She meant an animal farm, Joonie.” Hoseok tuts, dodging Jin’s foot as it tries to smack his own ankle. “Mama would never go without a garden in her home, I miss helping her pull the weeds out. Maybe I’ll visit soon.”

“Bring her mooncakes back with you, I miss those.” Namjoon sighs, a wistful look coming over his face. They finish their meal with idle chatter, Yoongi leaves the room as soon as he’s finished his bowl taking the pile of paperwork with him. Namjoon chases after him, nearly toppling over his chair as he races after his hyung.

Hoseok rolls his eyes at the pair as he moves to help Jin at the sink, “Still always in a hurry to not wash the dishes.”

Jin chuckles, “After seeing how he breaks so many mugs, I’d rather not have shards of glass down the drain.”

Hoseok tuts but doesn’t disagree with him as he dries the bowls Jin hands him and sets them down on the counter. The domesticity of this moment warms Hoseok’s heart, he hopes he won’t miss the bastard too much when he leaves them.

We Hid In The Shadows

Chapter 6: What If…

Hoseok is back to his normal schedule, well nearly normal Jin was off the training roster and on mission schedules, when Vante comes to them. Hoseok learned very quickly that the boy only liked going by his name, Taehyung. He probably wasn’t even aware of the eye twitch he did at the mention of that name.

Hoseok didn’t pry, it wasn’t his business, but it was concerning to hear how young he had been when he had come into the business. He had been younger then even Namjoon and him, apparently their father hadn’t been that cruel. It made Hoseok’s blood run cold at the thought of a five year old learning how to hold a gun.

Yoongi’s reactions to the boy was the oddest out of the bunch, Hoseok had caught the pair more then once sitting at the barstools in the kitchen in the early hours of the morning. Yoongi hated being awake that early, but there he was, sitting at the marble countertop with a cup of coffee in his hands.

Hoseok was also half sure that the man was flirting with their new help, he did make a great effort to stop by the office Taehyung had set up everyday. Hoseok eyed his friend from behind Taehyung’s smooth movements across the desk. Yoongi was leaning against the desk, a spot he seemed to have claimed since Taehyung came to them, not even moving as the boy rolled his chair around him as he worked.

Hoseok looked back and forth between the pair as he pretended to work on one of the files they were digitizing. Jin poked his head around the door just as Yoongi was sassing Taehyung about the benefits of his daily whiskey.

“Hoba come and help me make dinner,” Jin ordered, rolling his eyes at the pair as he held the door open for them to head into the kitchen. “You weren’t getting any work down anyway, not with those two lovebirds going at it again.”

Hoseok chuckled as he joined Jin’s side at the counters and started chopping some vegetables, “I’ve never seen hyung so smitten, it’s cute.”

“The bastards deserve each other,” Jin scoffs playfully, rinsing some chicken under cold water. “Both are annoying as hell and want to toss me out the window.”

Hoseok chuckles, the barbs that Taehyung and Jin shot at each other was beyond entertaining to watch. Especially as the boy came out of his shell more and his wide boxy smile joined the descriptions of how he’d skin Jin alive. “One of these days he is going to toss you around the room, hopefully he doesn’t break anything too bad.”

“Please,” Jin scoffs as he butterflies the chicken. “He’s been here for a month and hasn’t laid a hand to me, he’s all bark and no bite.”

“I told you he’d snap one day,” Hoseok scolds, watching as Jin winced as the glass was being pulled out of his back. “You’re lucky he didn’t break your nose, he was holding back. He could have killed you if he wanted to.”

“Well why didn’t… he?” Jin pants, grunting in pain as a large shard was pulled out of his shoulder and dropped in the metal pan next to him.

“Because there’s not a mean bone in that boy’s body, you haven’t done anything to him that he’d kill you over.” Hoseok scoffs, wincing at the gauzes of blood that was piling up in the trash can. “I knew I should have gotten rid of that table.”

“He’ll need to stay overnight,” the nurse over Jin’s shoulder states as she places the last of the glass into the metal tray and starts to clean the holes in Jin’s back. “We need to change his bandages throughout the night until the bleeding stops.”

Hoseok nods, “Guess I’m on dinner duty, I’m gonna give Taehyung an earful for not waiting till take out night.”

“Glad to know you care so much for me, Hoba.” Jin scoffs, wincing at the disinfectant being placed against his skin.

Hoseok rolls his eyes and reaches forward to place his hand against Jin’s neck, making the man raise his gaze to him. “I enjoy your smart mouth too much to watch you die Jin, start controlling it.”

Jin looks at him, his lips parting with a breath, but he doesn’t say a word as Hoseok squeezes his neck slightly and leaves the room.

Hoseok doesn’t glance back as he leaves Jin to the nurses’ hands. He passes by the room where Taehyung’s wrist is being wrapped in plaster and has to hide his giggles at seeing Yoongi brush the boy’s bangs out of his face.

Absolutely smitten, Hoseok chuckles to himself as he rises in the elevator and heads into the kitchen. While he starts prepping for their dinner tonight, Hoseok starts to reflect on his feelings for Jin.

He’s more than aware of how attractive that man is, could have been a damn movie star or a k-pop idol with a face like that. But it was more than that that drew Hoseok in, the man was able to make him laugh during a time where he felt there was nothing to laugh about. And both of the times that Jin witnessed an episode he had made Hoseok food, but not just any kind of food, a high protein meal that would boost his strength after his seizure.

Jin didn’t treat him any differently after seeing him like that, he didn’t suddenly walk around egg-shells with him or mock him for his weakness. Previous partners of Hoseok had done that, they never lasted long after Namjoon or Yoongi learned about them.

But he’s not going to stay, Hoseok reminded himself, he has a little brother, he’s going to leave.

Hoseok wanted to smack himself for falling for the raging, hilarious, handsome bastard. But what could he say, watching a man toss his trainees across the mat while being sassy about it did things for him.

The elevator dinged, bringing Hoseok out of his thoughts, he turned and saw Taehyung and Yoongi coming around the corner. Hoseok picks up his knife and points it at Taehyung while glaring angrily.

“I hope you know that I’m extremely angry at you,” Hoseok huffs, watching as Taheyung’s eyes widen and he starts opening his mouth. “Couldn’t you have waited one more day! It was your turn to make dinner tonight and now I have to make it! Tomorrow is take out night, it would have been perfectly timed!”

Taehyung bursts out laughing, clutching his stomach as he tries not to fall to the floor, Hoseok catches Yoongi’s gentle smile before he’s laughing alongside the younger man.

“Hyung, it’s not your night!” Hoseok protests as Yoongi joins his side in the kitchen, rolling up his sleeves to help.

Yoongi smacks his arm, “We’re a man down, we’ll both do it tonight. Maybe now Seokjin will think twice before running his smart mouth.”

“I doubt it,” Taehyung scoffed at the counter top, his eyes following Yoongi’s movements around the kitchen.

“One can dream,” Hoseok sighed, sincerely hoping that the man never learned to control his mouth too much.

Hoseok caught Yoongi leading Taehyung into the elevator of the penthouse the day Jin was released from the medical wing. When the pair didn’t return after an hour, Hoseok sent him a message.

‘Where did you two lovebirds go? I heard one of our cars was taken and you took Lee.’ Hoseok teased, sitting down on the couch as he waited for Jin to come up.

‘Needed to get him out of the house, we’ll be back before dinner.’ Is all Yoongi sends back, Hoseok rolls his eyes at the dry reply.

‘Use protection hyungie!’ Hoseok chirps, laughing when Yoongi sends a middle finger emoji in response.

“What the hell are you laughing at?” Jin scoffs, not quite limping into the living room but coming to the couch at a slower pace than he usually strutted around the apartment.

Hoseok rolled his eyes at him as he sat down next to him, “Yoongi-hyung took Taehyungie out on a date.”

Jin blinked, easing himself slowly to lean back against the couch cushions. “I would complain about the time wasted, but I guess I can’t begrudge the pair one day off.”

“Especially since one of them put you on your ass,” Hoseok chuckled, picking up the TV remote and flicking through the channels.

Jin huffed, wincing as he crossed his arms over his chest. “He caught me by surprise.”

“Sure he did,” Hoseok pacified, finding a drama he loved being played on one of the channels. He flicked it on immediately and pulled the blanket that hung behind the couch over their laps. “I love this one.”

“It’s been a while since they’ve done a rerun,” Jin comments, kicking his shoes off as he tucks his feet under the blanket. “How much do you think Taehyung would criticize the hacking skills in this show?”

Hoseok shrugged, crossing his legs over each other as he settled against the couch watching the power shots Jo Min-Ja typing away at her keyboard and brief flashes of her coding screens. “Did Doctor Wook give you some numbing cream for your back?”

Jin hummed an affirmative, his eyes focused on Seo Jung-Hoo speeding down the highways on a motorcycle across the screens. “My little brother loves seeing motorcycles down the streets when we go out. I don’t think I’ll be able to stop him from getting one when he’s old enough.”

“Sounds like he’ll be a little rebel,” Hoseok chuckles, picking up the dimmer for lights in the living room, bringing them down to a gentle glow and closing the blinds behind them.

Jin looks over at him seriously during a commercial break, “I want you to promise me something Hoba.”

Hoseok looks over at him, raising his brow for him to continue. Jin takes a deep breath and pulls something out of his pocket, he opens his palm to show Hoseok a small purple heart pin.

“I can’t tell you my brother’s name, I want to hide him from this world but I know he may stumble upon it one day. I’m going to give him this when I get back and tell him to always wear it.” Jin whispers, looking deep into Hoseok’s eyes. “If you ever come across him, please protect him. Please don’t tell him about this world, I understand if one day I’ll have to but don’t do it yourself. If he’s anywhere without me, please look after him.”

Hoseok closes Jin’s palm about the heart pin, squeezing his fist as he looks at him. “I will Jin, I promise. I’ll keep him safe if you can’t, I won’t tell him about us.”

“Thank you,” Jin sniffs, putting the pin back in his pocket. “He’s all I got left, it’ll kill me if he gets hurt by this life. I know I can’t hide it from him forever. He can’t remain ignorant, that'll just be worse in the long run. But I want him to just be a kid for a little longer. I want him to grow up thinking that the things he sees in the movies aren’t real.”

Hoseok nods, “I understand Jin, but don’t wait too long to tell him. The lies will just build up and you may end up hurting him more by not telling him. If he’s anything like you, he’s tough and could probably come marching in sassing Yoongi-hyung like it’s nothing.”

Jin chuckles, wiping a stray tear from his face. “I’d love to see that honestly, Yoongi wouldn’t be able to get a word in with him.”

Hoseok chuckled and patted Jin’s shoulder gently, “Don’t worry too much Jin, you’ll develop wrinkles.”

“Excuse you, I moisturize twice a day!” Jin scoffs, smacking Hoseok’s thigh. Huffing indignantly as he continues to scold him about his daily skin routine while Hoseok laughs against the couch cushions, not even noticing when the drama returns to the screen.

We Hid In The Shadows

Chapter 7: Arson

Warning ⚠️: Blood, Dead Bodies, Acts of Violence, Bodily Injuries, Swearing

Hoseok jumped from the moving vehicle as soon as it came up to the house, he stuttered to a stop at the piles of bodies that littered the floors.

“Oh fuck,” he muttered, stepping over the pools of blood and bullet casings. His eyes caught Taehyung drenched in red marching over the bodies and into a back room. Hoseok chased after him, ready to pull his katana off his back as he entered the room.

“Holy shit,” Hoseok whispers, staring at Yoongi and Jin’s damaged bodies tied to two chairs in the middle of the room.

“Can you get Seokjin?” Taehyung asks, cutting Yoongi’s ropes off, tossing them and the knife aside as he pulls the man into his arms. “I need to get him to a hospital before his wounds get infected.”

Hoseok nods to him as he kneels in front of Jin, wincing at the man’s twisted leg as he cuts the ropes on his ankles. “Namjoon has a car waiting for you, it’ll take you straight to one of our bases.”

Hoseok doesn’t look to see if Taehyung even heard him as he focuses on getting the ropes off Jin’s bleeding body. Cutting them slowly to keep them from rubbing against his cut skin. Jin groans in pain as Hoseok works, making him breathe a shuddering sigh of relief to know the bastard was still alive. From what he had seen of Yoongi as Taehyung had carried him out, Jin had gotten off easy with his wounds.

“You stupid, motherfucking bastard,” he mutters angrily, sheathing his knife on his thigh before lifting Jin in his arms. Ignoring the whimper of pain Jin makes against his neck as he carries him out of the room.

“Burn this place to the ground after you get the computers Joonie,” Hoseok orders as he passes his brother in the hall, watching a trail of their men raid the house with Namjoon overseeing them. “I’m going to get this asshole to the Voyage House.”

“That’s where I sent Taehyung with Yoongi, it’s closer. I already called Doctor Wook to be there.” Namjoon says, calling Lee over to them. “I’ll come with you, Lee watch the men. I want every single computer taken to the Voyage House before you torch it.”

“Yessir,” Lee answers, bowing to them as they enter the SUV and closes their door before re-entering the house and barking orders to the men.

“You are one damn lucky bastard, Jeon Seokjin,” Namjoon mutters gruffly, helping Hoseok put a makeshift splint over the man’s broken leg as they speed down the highways.

“How did he even get to their base?” Hoseok muttered, pulling his belt off and tightening it across Jin’s thigh using his katana as a way to keep his leg straight.

“I don’t know,” Namjoon answers, pulling his own belt off to tighten it around Jin’s calf. “When the bastard wakes up, we’ll ask.”

“I’m going to give him a fucking concussion when he does!” Hoseok growls, pulling Jin’s head onto his lap and wiping the sweat and blood off his brow with cloth.

Namjoon daps at the cuts along Jin’s chest as he looks between the pair of them, “Is there something you need to tell me, Hobi?”

“No,” Hoseok answers, ignoring his brother’s disbelieving eyes as they race up the gravel road in front of the Voyage House.

A team of nurses come out with a gurney for Jin, placing him on it quickly and racing into the house while checking his vitails and attaching IVs to his arms. They stop in front of Taehyung sitting in one of the chairs outside the swinging doors as Jin is wheeled in. Hoseok notes the clean clothes, lack of blood on his face, and the fresh green cast on his left wrist; their men were always fast in times like this.

Hoseok had to keep reminding himself that Jin hadn’t been that bad as they waited for Doctor Wook, but the worry for both men ached in his chest as the hours ticked by. Namjoon paced the small space, his dress shoes clicking against the marble floor as he walked back and forth. Taehyung was ticking his fingers on the armrest of his chair, as if he was doing calculations in his mind. Hoseok sat stalk still as he waited, counting the ceiling tiles above his head… one… two… ten… fifteen… twenty-five…

Then the doors swung open, stopping all of their movements to look as Doctor Wook steps into the hall with blood scrubs. He lowers his mask and smiles at them softly.

“Both men had a successful surgery, nothing they can’t heal from.” He tells them, smiling wider at their sighs of relief.

“Yoongi-hyung’s eye, he didn’t…” Taehyung gasps, his knees trembling when Doctor Wook shakes his head.

“He did not lose his eye, he got lucky. The knife only struck his eyelid slightly, most of the damage was done to the facial skin.” Doctor Wook explains gently, patting Taehyung’s shoulder as relieved tears fall down the boy’s face. “He had to have stitches of course, but that was his worst injury. They’re both resting now, you can see them tomorrow.”

Namjoon steps forward taking the doctor’s hands into his, “Thank you Doctor Wook. I’m glad you didn’t decide to retire alongside my father, I don’t know whose hands I trust more than yours for my men.”

Hoseok chuckles alongside the doctor at Namjoon’s formal speech as he vigorously shakes the man’s hand.

“You don’t have to be so formal with me Namjoon-ssi, you’re the boss now. And you’re father is lucky I didn’t retire, I would’ve given that silly goblin even more hell then when I worked for him.” Doctor Wook teased, making Hoseok roll his eyes at the memory of the pair going at it like an old married couple while he was growing up.

“They don’t call you the Grim Reaper for nothing, sir.” Namjoon says cheerily, dropping the man’s hand at last.

Doctor Wook huffed and waved the three of them off as he went back through the double doors, “Get some rest boys, you’ve earned it.”

A nurse approached Hoseok as Namjoon was leading Taehyung up the stairs to their guest rooms, she bowed to him as she handed over his katana.

“Thank you Jisoo,” Hoseok murmured, placing the blade over his shoulder. “Who are you taking care of tonight?”

“Yoongi-ssi sir, my sister is taking care of Seokjin-ssi.” Jisoo answers, raising her head back up to smile at him.

Hoseok nods, “The young man that was with us, his name is Taehyung. He may come downstairs to see Yoongi-hyung during the night, you can take him straight to him if he does.”

“Yessir,” Jisoo chirps with a nod, then gives him a sly smirk. “Should I tell Rose to send you an update when Seokjin-ssi wakes up?”

Hoseok sniffs indigently as he starts climbing the stairs, “Only if he asks for me.”

Jisoo giggles at his retreating back, “I’ll tell her anyway, sir.”

Hoseok rolls his eyes at her giggles and doesn’t look back as he heads into his room. He sets his katana down on its stand at his desk and heads into the bathroom to clean himself off.

Nightmares had never been something that had haunted Hoseok, not even in childhood. His insomnia cured him of that, but as he lay across the cool sheet with his wet hair pooling across his pillow the images of Jin’s bloody body flashed across his mind. He rolled onto his stomach trying to will the worry in his chest away as he stared at his phone on the bedside table.

It buzzed after a moment, Hoseok sat straight up and picked it up. Throwing the covers off himself as he heads out the door after reading the words ‘He’s awake and asking for you’ from Rose.

His bare feet hit the marble floor with loud smacks as he runs down the hallways. Jisoo rolls her eyes as he passes, raising a pair of house slippers in her hands for him. He takes them, shoving them on his feet as he staggers down the hall to Jin’s room. He stops and takes a deep breath to calm himself, before opening the door.

Jin raises his head from the hospital bed as the door opens and slams shut behind him, he opens his mouth but Hoseok cuts him off before he can say a word.

“You fucking bastard!” Hoseok yells, kicking a chair across the room. “I leave you alone for two hours and you decided to be a fucking idiot and nearly get yourself killed! What the hell were you thinking?! No, don’t tell me! I know you weren’t thinking a damn logical thought as you were running out of our house to…”

“Hoseok!” Jin yelled, tossing a pillow at his face to stop his angry words. “I get it okay! I was stupid! I wasn’t thinking clearly!”

“Fucking clearly!” Hoseok yells back, his chest heaving as he marches to Jin’s bed side and jabs a finger into his face. “What fucking death wish do you have!? Why do you want to make me bury you next to your father!?”

“I don’t have a…” Jin stops mid-yell as he spots the hot tears running down Hoseok’s face. In the silence Hoseok’s sobs become louder, he drops his head as he shakes. Jin gently grabs his hand and pulls him onto the bed across his chest.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” Jin murmurs, wrapping his arms around Hoseok’s shaking shoulders, clutching him tight and running his hand through his hair. Hoseok buries his head into Jin’s neck and wraps his arms around his waist, trying to stop the hard sobs escaping his mouth.

Jin continues to run his fingers through Hoseok’s hair and down his back as Hoseok slowly begins to calm down and take deep breaths of Jin’s scent. He hiccups as Jin shifts his hips to lay more comfortably across him. He pulls the blanket over the both of them as they settle into the hospital bed, keeping an arm over his shoulders as Hoseok lays a hand across Jin’s stomach.

“You’re going to give me gray hairs one day, I swear.” Hoseok mutters as he settles his head on Jin’s chest.

“You’d look quite fetching in gray,” Jin muses, running a hand through his hair. “How did you guys find us?”

Hoseok sniffs, “Taehyungie had a plan, they sent us a location to meet them and give the information we gathered on them. He put a tracker in his shoes and tricked them into taking him to their base. We followed as closely as we dared as they drove him there.”

“I hope Taehyung isn’t expecting a thank you for getting me out, I won’t hear the end of how he saved my life if I gave it to him.” Jin huffs, tucking a hair behind Hoseok’s ear.

“Send him flowers at least, anonymously if you have to. He’s the one that took every single of those men down before we even got there.” Hoseok says, running his thumb around in circles over Jin’s toned stomach.

“Fine, I’ll send him flowers.” Jin huffs, tugging a knot out of Hoseok’s hair with his fingers. “Absurdly big ones that you can smell from across the room.”

Hoseok hummed as his eyes slowly shut, listening as Jin started to name all the different flowers he’d get Taehyung that would mean various hateful words in the flower language. He fell asleep just as Jin was describing how he’d try to pair Lilium and Black Roses together to mean ‘I hope you have an impending death coming soon and won’t come back to seek a passionate revenge on me’.

We Hid In The Shadows

Chapter 8: Rush Hour

Rose came into the room and woke Hoseok before Namjoon came storming in to berate Jin, Hoseok could have kissed the woman if she wasn’t already married. He’d rather not have had his brother find him sleeping across Jin’s chest and drooling on his hospital gown.

“How the hell did you even find their base in the first place, Seokjin!” Namjoon barks, clenching his fists as he glares at the man across the hospital bed.

Jin clicks his tongue and pretends to think for a moment as he looks up at the ceiling, tapping his chin in thought, “How did I find their mountain palace, on top of a gravel road, in front of the T’aebaek mountain range? The real question is, how did you not find it? It stuck out like a sore thumb in that district.”

Namjoon growls and moves to pull his gun out of his holster, Hoseok lays a hand on his brother’s arm to stop him. Jin just stares impassively as Namjoon huffs and leaves the room, slamming the door behind him.

“That is the biggest fit I’ve ever seen from him, what’s got him all agitated?” Jin asks as Hoseok sits down in a chair next to his bed.

Hoseok shrugs, “No idea, he’s probably worried about Yoongi-hyung.”

“How did they even get the slimy bastard? I didn’t think anyone could get the jump on him.” Jin asks, watching as Hoseok pulls Jin’s medical chart off of his bed and starts to read it.

“I don’t think hyung will ever admit how they were able to get the drop on him, he’ll take that to his grave.” Hoseok muses, handing the chart over to Jin to read. “They roughed him up pretty bad though, I’ll go check on him once Rose comes in to watch you.”

“I don’t need a babysitter,” Jin scowls, glancing up as Hoseok stands from his seat and presses the call button on Jin’s hospital bed, leaning across his body to reach it.

“After the stunt you just pulled? Yes, you do,” Hoseok counters, glaring over at Jin as the door slides open again, he looks over at Rose as she enters. “If he does anything you don’t like, shoot his other leg.”

“Yessir,” Rose salutes, patting her side piece against her thigh. “I’ll make it a clean shot, make it easy for Doctor Wook.”

Hoseok levels a look at Jin as he starts to protest being shot, “I better not hear a single ill word from Rose about your behavior Jin, or I’ll mark your pretty face myself.”

Hoseok shuts the door on Jin’s sassy reply and heads down the hall to Yoongi’s room. He chuckles softly as he opens the door and sees Taehyung sleeping soundly on Yoongi’s thigh and the man himself snoring against his pillow. He spies their hands interlaced on the blue hospital blanket and rolls his eyes at their sickening sweetness as he sits down.

Yoongi looks paler against the white pillows and the gauze over his face must be fresh, there’s no trace of blood on it. Hoseok picks up the medical chart and reads over it as Namjoon comes into the room and sits down next to him. The brothers stay silent as they wait for their hyung to wake up, passing the medical chart between each other and some paper cups of water.

“You fucking creepers,” Yoongi grumbles as his eye slowly blinks open, he glares at Hoseok and Namjoon as they stand to hover over his bed. “Am I fucking dying! Go back to work!”

Taehyung mutters in his sleep and presses his head into Yoongi’s thigh, cutting off any further angry words from the man. He looks down and his face softens as he places his free hand into the younger man’s hair.

“I’ll leave you two, I’ll be back in a moment.” Namjoon whispers, patting Yoongi’s shoulder before shuffling out of the room. Hoseok stays firmly at the bedside and smiles softly at the pair.

“I told Jisoo to let him in last night, I knew he wouldn’t be able to sleep without seeing you.” Hoseok says softly, Yoongi’s eyes flicker over to him as he nods trying to tame the bedhead on Taehyung.

“I think this is the most peaceful he’s ever slept,” Yoongi admits, watching as Taehyung tilts his head to the side to reveal his lax face and parted lips.

“Considering how young he was when he came to the Hwarang Boys, I’m not surprised that he’d have nightmares.” Hoseok comments, a clench in his chest as he looks down at the younger man. Looking every bit of the seventeen year old that he was in his sleep. “He’s a force to be reckoned with though, he got you and Jin out of there on his own. I don’t think I’ve seen Joonie so shaken up before, there was a lot of blood. Lee is bringing the computers here and burning the place before he leaves.”

Yoongi sighs, nodding as he looks over at Hoseok. “How’s Seokjin doing?”

Hoseok raises a surprised brow at him, “I’m surprised you’re even asking hyung, he’s got a broken leg but relatively came out no worse for wear. He’s already awake and being sassy, I’ve left Rose in charge of him.”

“I hope she gets him to shut up,” Yoongi scoffs, rolling his eyes, dropping his gaze back down to Taehyung as the boy whines softly and turns his head away from the light shining through the windows. Yoongi runs his hand gently through his hair, trying to soothe him back to sleep.

“Aw hyungie, you’ve gone soft,” Hoseok teases, grinning widely as Yoongi turns a glare at him.

“Shut up Hoseok, before I throw something at your sunshine face.” Yoongi threatens, Hoseok looks pointedly at both of Yoongi’s occupied hands.

“With what hand? Both of yours are occupied.” Hoseok dismisses, crossing his arms over his chest as Yoongi starts to open his mouth, but a gravel voice cuts in.

“Can’t you be quiet, I’m trying to sleep.” Taehyung mumbles, pouting as he lifts his head from Yoongi’s thigh, his long bangs hitting his forehead and falling across his drowsy eyes.

“Are you done using hyung’s thigh as a pillow, Taehyungie? We need to get to work on those computers Joon brought back from the base.” Hoseok says, ignoring Yoongi’s glare at him as Taehyung sits up and rubs his face sleepily.

“How are you even awake so early?” Taehyung mumbles, rubbing the sleep from his eyes and pushing his bangs out of his face.

“It’s the middle of the afternoon, Taehyung.” Hoseok chuckles, watching a bemused face form on him. “Even hyung woke up before you and he’s the one in the hospital bed.”

Hoseok barely hears what Taehyung and Yoongi murmur to each other as the loud sound of footsteps echo in the hall, he turns just as Namjoon bursts through the door. His face is red from the exertion and he clutches the side of the doorframe to keep himself standing.

“Who died?” Yoongi asks dryly, making Hoseok chuckle under his breath as he gets Namjoon some water.

“Nobody,” Namjoon huffs, throwing the water back in one go. “I just got off the phone with my father. Wouldn’t even let me get a word in until my mother took the phone from him. She sends her well wishes to Yoongi-hyung and hopes you make a fast recovery.”

Hoseok mentally translates the key code words Namjoon says, their father had called to try and stop him again but their mother approved of their plans. They had a green light to go forward with taking down the Seoul Empire entirely.

“Send her my love,” Yoongi says with a nod, confirming what Namjoon was actually trying to tell them without Taehyung knowing. “Why the hell were you running here then? That’s no reason to be running across the house.”

Translation: Do we have a crunch time to get this done before The Goblin of Ilsan comes knocking at our door?

Namjoon smiles widely, his dimples popping in his cheeks. “I just missed you hyung.”

Translation: No, the Goblin Bride would be keeping him back.

“You literally saw me this morning,” Yoongi grumbled, a pleased smirk forming on his face. It was game time.

“Did mama ask after me, Joonie?” Hoseok asks, no code necessary for that, he was genuinely asking after their mother.

“Of course, she still expects her Saturday call every week. Even if we do take over all of Korea.” Namjoon says, punching Hoseok’s side lightly. They have a silent discussion as they try to give the pair at the hospital bed a private moment. Brief, small sign language movements to confirm their plans going forward to take down the Seoul Empire. They’ll take out any bases that Taehyung finds on their computers and continue to hunt down the man that killed Jang-ssi.

“If you two are done flirting,” Hoseok cuts into the couple’s discussion on the bed as Namjoon moves out of the room. He smiles at the twin glares he gets from them, “I really do need Taehyung to come and get started on those computers. We still have that assassin to find.”

Taehyung sighed as he slipped his hand from Yoongi’s and followed behind Hoseok. Hoseok chuckled at his pout as he led him through the house and into the office space beyond the kitchens. He got a text from Rose to come and get Jin just as Taehyung was getting to work on the computers.

“I’ve got to go and check after Jin, take your time Taehyung. Don’t try to push yourself with the brace, we’re not in that much hurry with Yoongi-hyung needing to heal.” Hoseok says, placing a hand on Taehyung’s shoulder.

Taehyung looks over to him, “Is there anything else I should be looking for on these computers? I feel like I’m going to find our guy relatively quickly.”

Hoseok doesn’t question why, he’s learned that Taehyung’s hunches are usually right. “We want to know where all their bases are, we’re going to take them out one by one. After taking out their homebase, the rest of their crew is going to be after blood. We want to be two steps ahead of them on that.”

Taehyung nods, smiling wickedly at him. “They won’t know what hit them, I’ll be able to access all of their computers with these. I’ll be able to delay the messeges between their bases, you’ll get through a chunk of them before word gets out.”

“That’s what I like to hear,” Hoseok cheers, patting Taehyung's shoulder before he leaves. “If only dealing with Jin was so easy.”

“Give Seokjin my love! Tell him he owes me one for saving his bastard ass!” Taehyung calls after him, Hoseok chuckles as he shuts the door and makes his way down the hallway.

“How was he Rose?” Hoseok asks as he steps into the room, Rose huffs as she quickly leaves before he can close the door. “That bad, huh?”

“He belongs to you, I won’t take part in that again!” Rose shouts, slamming the door behind her.

Hoseok looks over at Jin on the bed, blinking as he looks down at the pieces of the pistol laid out on the top of the hospital blanket. “Did you steal her gun and take it apart before she could get it back?”

Jin hums, looking quite pleased with himself. “She wouldn’t let me turn the TV on, I was bored as hell and all she’d do was glare in the corner.”

Hoseok hands him the remote and sits down in the chair next to the bed, he starts reassembling the gun as Jin flicks through the different channels. “Looks like she needed to do a cleaning on this anyway, I’m surprised she left it for so long. Jackson must be keeping her very busy for her not to be on top of her weapons, I’ll have to have a chat with them. I hope he doesn’t try and proposition me again, he knows I don’t do married couples.”

Jin chokes and looks over at Hoseok with wide eyes, “I think I’m gonna need you to run that by me one more time, Hoba.”

Hoseok raises a brow at him, smirking at the blush forming on his face. Trying to act nonchalant, but there was a blush growing on his own face as well. “If you haven’t figured out by now what my preferences are, then I can’t help you Jin.”

Jin rolls his eyes, “Trust me I figured that out from the first time you eyed me up in Namjoon’s office, Hoba. But I didn’t peg you as the type for multiple partners.”

Hoseok scrunches his brow as he twists the silencer back on Rose’s gun, “How exactly would you even figure that out without being told?”

Jin clicks his tongue and goes back to flicking through the channels, “I’d assume by seeing them check out more than one person at a time, so far you’ve only kept your eyes on me.”

“How very cocky of you,” Hoseok teases, popping the magazine into the pistol and placing it into his spare holster. He’ll return it to Rose later. “I don’t work like that, I’ve only joined an established couple, never tried to… start anything with a single person and build from there.”

“And why would that be, Hoba? Nobody catch your eye like that?” Jin asks, settling for an old chinese drama as he leans back against his pillows.

Hoseok shrugs, crossing his arms over his chest. “Nobody seemed to be worth the risk, I never meant for any of the relationships I was in to last. In this life, love and trust are very hard to come by and I’ve never entertained either outside of my family.”

Jin hums in understanding, “Even in my brief time here, I can see why. You never know who has a hidden agenda, or who will use your weakness against you.”

Hoseok nods, looking away from Jin to gaze out of the window across the room. A bluebird fluttered across the sun-kissed sky and perched on the branch that swung in the wind. The bird puffed its little feathers and rubbed its little face with its black foot. Hoseok watched as it stretched its wings and flew out of sight.

He didn’t put much faith into signs, but the sight of that bluebird with the hanging weight of his time with Jin coming to end soon, gave Hoseok the hope that maybe he’d see him again one day.

We Hid In The Shadows

Chapter 9: = (Equal Sign)

Warning ⚠️: Minor Character Death, Dead Body, Blood, Sexual Flirting, Sexual Tension

“How the hell are you even getting anywhere?!” Hoseok huffed, pulling Jin off of the floor from where he had hobbled down one of the passages in the dungeons under the Voyage House. “Your leg is in a full cast! How are my men missing your hobbling ass everywhere!?”

Jin snickered as he clutched around Hoseok’s shoulders as they started to slowly walk back to his cell, “Your men are easily flustered and distracted, Hoba. You might need to work on that.”

“Dumbasses,” Hoseok muttered, finally just giving in and sweeping Jin into his arms to march him out of the corridor.

Jin huffed as he wrapped his arms around Hoseok’s neck and tilted his pelvis against his stomach, “Are you really taking me back to my cell again? That place is too easy to escape from at this point, it’s getting boring.”

“How unfortunate for us that our dungeons are boring for you,” Hoseok grumbled, taking the passage that led back up to the main house. Internally thankful for how wide the hallways were so as to not bump Jin’s cast on any of the walls.

Jin snickered, laying his head against the side of Hoseok’s as they climbed up the stone steps and entered the foyer through the fireplace. “How’s Yoongi’s face doing?”

“Still has to wear gauze on it, Taehyung has put a ban on his coffee to make him take his antibiotic,” Hoseok says, chuckling at the memory of the devilish look Taehyung had given him when he told him that this morning. He climbed up the stairs of the main house and walked straight towards the personal bedrooms.

“I haven’t been in this side of the house,” Jin murmured, looking around at the long hallway lined with doors and wide windows that looked out at the garden.

“Now that’s saying something,” Hoseok huffed, pushing the door to his room open with his foot and placing Jin down on the bed inside.

“If you wanted to take me to bed, Hoba. All you had to do was ask.” Jin teased, making Hoseok roll his eyes as he grabbed more pillows for Jin to lean against.

“These are the personal rooms Jin, you can’t go escaping around here. Yoongi will have your head if you wander into his room.” Hoseok warned, clicking his tongue as he looked around for the remote for the TV. He could have sworn it was on the bedside table.

“So who’s room is this?” Jin asked, looking around at the katana hanging on the walls. The throwing stars glinted in the sunlight and kitsune masks hung in the bare spaces between the blades.

“Mine,” Hoseok grunted, moving to duck down to look under the bed when Jin grabs his arm and pulls him on top of his chest. Hoseok yelps as Jin manhandles him to straddle his waist and places his hands firmly on his hips to keep him still. “What the hell Jin!”

Hoseok catches himself on Jin’s shoulders to keep his balance, a blush growing on his face as he stares into Jin’s smirking face.

“You are very easy to fluster, you know.” Jin teases, leaning forward to brush their noses together as his hands tighten on Hoseok’s hips. “How is the Jack in the Box so easy to rial up?”

Hoseok gulped as he tried to pull away from Jin’s sultry gaze, “I don’t fluster…”

“So my eyes are tricking me on that blush coming so pretty on your cheeks,” Jin whispered, his hands slowly coming up Hoseok’s back. Hoseok clenched his hands on Jin’s shoulder, digging his nails into his skin as he tried to escape Jin’s hold on him.

Hoseok squeaked as Jin flipped them over, keeping his legs spread as he pinned him to the bed with his arms above his head. “How are you moving so much with a fucking cast on your leg!”

“Imagine what I can do without it,” Jin whispered, smirking as he felt Hoseok’s legs curl around his hips and his arms relax in his hold.

Hoseok huffed and stared up at the ceiling of his room instead of looking at Jin’s face hovering over his, “Is there a reason you’re pinning me to the bed?”

“Is there a reason you’re not throwing me across the room?” Jin asked, placing his face against the side of Hoseok’s to lay a kiss against his jawline.

Hoseok licked his lips as he felt Jin’s tongue flick across his skin, “I’m not tossing you against all my relics, some of them are hundreds of years old and irreplaceable. Your fat ass would break them.”

“Ah, I see,” Jin muttered, moving down Hoseok’s neck. “You have been thinking of my ass in your bed.”

Hoseok sighed as he tilted his head up to give Jin more access as he left a trail across his skin, “Jin what are you doing?”

Jin hummed, biting briefly at Hoseok’s adam’s apple before lifting his face to look at him. “What answer do you want me to give, Hoseok?”

In this moment, Hoseok didn’t know what he wanted to hear. He stared up into Jin’s dark eyes, looking across his handsome face as he slipped his hands out of Jin's hold. His hands slid slowly up Jin’s arms until they reached his hair as he searched for the words he needed to say. Does he stop? Does he take this moment, maybe the last moment, to just have Jin?

The buzzing of a phone cuts off any further thought, Hoseok sighs as Jin rolls off of him and he pulls out his phone to see a message from his brother. He sits up in shock as he reads the message.

“They found him,” Hoseok whispers, flying off the bed and pulling his katana off his desk, laying it across his back. He pulls his side gun out of its holster and checks the bullets inside before popping the magazine back and placing it against his thigh. He pulls his hunting knife from his desk drawer and hooks it onto his belt.

He looks over his shoulder at Jin laying across his bed, watching him with impassive eyes. “He’ll be alive when I get back, have your gun ready.”

Hoseok heads for the door, pulling his fingerless gloves on as he crosses the room.

“Hoseok,” Jin calls to him just as he steps into the doorway, he looks over clenching his fists at his sides. Jin gazes at him, a steel look coming into his eyes and a smirk coming on his face, “Bring him back bleeding.”

Hoseok winks at him before heading down the halls, Lee waits for him at the end and joins his side as they head down the stairs and out the door to their waiting car.

Hoseok holds Jin’s side as he stares down into the face of Park Hae Jin, the man that shot his father in cold blood. There’s not even a tremble in Jin’s hand as he raises his gun and points it into the blubbering man’s face. He shoots once, dead in the forehead, and places his weapon back into its holster as the man crumples to the floor in a bloody heap.

Yoongi snaps his fingers and the body is taken away without ceremony, he gently leads Taehyung out of the room, muttering something quietly to him as he rubs the boy’s back. Namjoon glares down at the blood stains on his carpets until their cleaners come in and start working on it. He leaves the room and Hoseok hears the door to his office slam close.

Jin leans his arm across Hoseok’s shoulders and gives a sigh as they start to make their way to the guest rooms. “I never thought it would be so easy.”

“Well at least you can say one thing,” Hoseok mutters, trying to hide a smile on his face as he pulls Jin up the stairs. “I was wrong, he did stay still for you to shoot him in the face.”

Jin snorts, throwing his head back with his wheezy laughter making Hoseok chuckle as he opens a door for them and leads him into his room. Jin is still giggling when he’s laid onto the bed, he pulls Hoseok down with him and curls over his chest.

Hoseok tries not to hold too tightly onto Jin’s body as they slowly begin to fall asleep, but the way Jin clings to him makes tears run down his face.

When he wakes up, Jin is gone. A note sits on the bedside table with his gun laying next to it. He sits on the edge of the bed and opens the delicate paper.

Hoba,

You never made it easy for me, but I’m grateful for it. I was able to bring the man that killed my father to justice because of you, even if I didn’t need to be tossed across the mat for six months to do so.

I only have one promise to make to you. We will never meet as enemies.

Watch for the purple heart pin, he’s a spitfire so be ready for his sassy mouth. I hope you’re able to find your birth parents some day and make your peace with them, like you helped give me peace for my father. You truly were the hope that kept me going.

World Wide Handsome (WWH) Jin

Hoseok scoffs wetly at the signature, “Only you would name yourself world wide handsome as a company name.”

He picks up the gun off the bed stand and places it into his spare holster, rolling the note into a small scroll and tucking it into the pendent from his bedside drawer. He pulled the long chain over his head and dropped it against his chest. The silver bullet shaped locket smacked against his skin as he scrubbed his face in his hands.

He sighs as he walks out of the room, preparing himself for Namjoon and Yoongi’s fit at Jin’s disappearance. Out of the corner of his eye he spots a bluebird on their willow tree, he watches as a second bird joins its side as Lee comes running down the hall towards him.

“What is it, Lee?” He asks, watching the two birds fly off together.

Lee bows to him, “I’m sorry sir, but your Jaguar is missing from the garage. The two guards were knocked out at the back exit.”

“The red one?” Hoseok asks, a smile creeping up on his face.

“Yessir, should we track the plates?” Lee asks, following behind Hoseok as he makes his way down the stairs.

“No, take that vehicle off our records. Put it under Jeon Seokjin in the government records, I’m sure he’ll just sell it.” Hoseok dismisses, chuckling to himself as he makes his way into the kitchen. “Buy it back if he does, that one’s my favorite.”

“Yessir,” Lee answers, bowing to him again and leaving the room.

“And Lee,” the man stops at once at his boss’s call, “Update our record of Jeon Seokjin, alias WWH to stand for World Wide Handsome. Put him as an inactive and level seven threat.”

“But sir that’s,” Lee starts to say, scrunching his brows as Hoseok starts making himself some coffee. “That’s the Inner Circle’s level.”

“Yes it is,” Hoseok confirms, laying a hand against the pendant on his chest.

Lee bows once more when Hoseok says nothing further and walks out of the room. The coffee finishes dripping into his mug when he hears Namjoon shouting down the halls, apparently he heard of Jin’s disappearance. Hoseok sighs and makes his way down the halls with his steaming mug before his brother can start another manhunt. He needs a break from them.

We Hid In The Shadows

Chapter Epilogue: Future

Five Years Later

Hoseok watches as his second class of the semester strolls through his door, the new students take in the wide space of the Hybe dance studio with awed looks. He can see a lot of freshmen in this group, but there are older students as well. He spies Jimin talking adamantly to someone with a motorcycle helmet under his arm.

It makes his heart warm at the sight of the young man bouncing on his toes as he talks the ear off the other person. The memories of Jimin’s haunted face when he had taken him out of the White Tigers still sent a chill down his spine. He looks over at the young man Jimin is with, he clicks his tongue at the large clunky boots on his feet. There’s no way he’ll be dancing in those.

The boy lifts his backpack over his shoulder exposing a purple heart pin on the strap, Hoseok freezes on the spot. He takes in the sight of the boy with new eyes as he watches the pin glint in the sunlight from the windows.

There’s not much resemblance to Jin on the boy’s face, their noses might be slightly similar but sit on their faces differently. Then the boy raises his eyes to Hoseok across the room and he can almost see Jin’s smirking face in them.

Hoseok makes his way around the room, greeting all his new students with enthusiasm and shaking their hands as he tells them to start warming up with some easy stretches. Jimin and the boy are at the back of the room, Hoseok is grateful to come to them last.

“It’s nice to meet you, I’m Kim Hoseok. I’ll be your teacher this semester.” Hoseok greets, shaking Jimin’s hand first before taking the other boy’s.

Jimin snickers under his breath as he shakes Hoseok’s hands, chirping his name with enthusiasm.

The boy gives Hoseok a firm handshake and a wide bunny smile, “I’m Jeon Jungkook, it’s nice to meet you Hoseok-ssi!”

Hoseok smiles widely at him, “I hope you’re ready for a challenge, Jungkook-ssi. I don’t go easy, even for first timers.”

Jungkook’s eyes become determined and he gives Hoseok a look that screams ‘bring it on’, “I look forward to surpassing your expectations.”

Hoseok laughs in delight as he walks back to the head of the room and starts the stereo to play some up beat music before giving his opening speech to the entire class.

You were right Jin, he is a spitfire, Hoseok thinks as he watches Jungkook move about the room with ease, despite the clunky boots on his feet. I’ll keep my promise, he’ll be safe with me.

If Hoseok had looked out the window at the moment, instead of scolding a few of the freshmen as they tried to fight over the footing of the dance, he would have seen a bluebird flutter onto the window ledge. It puffed its feathers as two other small birds joined its side, before the three of them flew off together across the sky.