#rainworks

[kjhmyg]

rough edges pt. 16 (m)

pairing: jungkook | reader genre: college!au, badboy!jk word count: 16k warnings: mentions of death, drugs, executions, drinking, unprotected sex, anxiety. 

a/n: we’re at the beginning of the end! thank you for waiting <3

1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 6.5 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10 / 11 / 12 / 13 / 14 / 15 / part 16 / masterlist

RE asks tag / pinterest board

The atmosphere in the office is tense as it has ever been. Long shifts, overtime eating hours off everyone’s rest. The entire bullpen smells of coffee, the one thing everyone has been surviving on. Seokjin pours himself another serving, this time into a large tumbler. 

“Guess what I got?” Junsuh enters the break room, tapping Seokjin’s shoulder with a folder of papers in hand.

Seokjin takes a sip of the steaming drink, then smacks his lips together. “More bad news?” 

“Why so glum?” Jun watches him shrug it off. “I know things have been hard lately but maybe this will cheer you up; my informant just confirmed that Barome and Kim are planning to leave the country.” 

“How is this supposed to cheer me up?” 

“Come on Jin,” He knows how drained everyone is, including himself, “Now we know what their next move is. We can get ahead of them. But, we’re still working on getting all the details. Have you had contact with your agent?”

“Yes, earlier.” Seokjin nods, “Operations are going strong. But there’s a lot of unrest over the recent arrests. The two gangs do not trust each other at all.” 

“Good.” Jun nods, thinking. “They’re snitching on each other thinking it’ll get them off the hook. Kim and Barome really fumbled the bag on this one. Joining forces was the worst thing they ever did.” 

“And the best thing for us.” Seokjin finally smiles.

“I heard you got some new evidence too?” 

“Yeah, a ledger with a hell of a lot of contacts in it. It’ll take time to decipher though, they used some kind of code.” Seokjin says. “The team’s still working on it.” 

“Great.” He checks his watch, then removes the tumbler from Seokjin’s grip just as he’s about to take a sip.  “Go get some sleep. You need to be well-rested, we’re gonna be moving in on them any time now.”

“That’s exactly why I can’t get any sleep.” 

“You won’t be any help if you’re exhausted. Go get some hours in.” He says. “I’ll help you do whatever’s on your list tonight.” 

Seokjin hesitates. It feels like gravity is tugging on his eyelids as he struggles to keep them open. “I have to update the task force. They need blueprints of our possible locations to mark their positions.” 

“No problem. I’ll get it to them.” 

“Alright then,” Seokjin brings Jun over to his desk, handing over the relevant materials. Reality starts to sink in then, watching as Jun goes through them. “This is really about to go down, huh?”

Jun looks up, a similar look of excitement on his face. “Right? It hits me at random times too. We’ve invested so much time and energy into this. I can’t wait to finally end it all.”

“I just hope nothing…or no one, stands in our way…”

𝄖

You feel weighed down, your entire body resisting the urge to move. Your eyelids droop back down every time you try to open your eyes. Turning to your back, you realise you can’t move your arms much, nor can you pull them apart. You force your eyes open and everything’s blurry at first. It’s dark, so you can’t really tell where you are yet. But it’s stuffy and oddly quiet.

You can hear talking a little further away, and you groan, making any kind of sound in an attempt to ask for help. Footsteps make their way towards you. A minute later you feel a presence right by your side. 

“Where am I?” You ask the blurry figure.

“Don’t worry, you’re safe.”

That voice. It’s so familiar. If your head didn’t feel so fuzzy maybe you could place it. You feel shifting of some kind; whatever you’re lying on sinks slightly as they take a seat. You blink, over and over till your vision comes back. And that’s when your heart sinks. 

“Hongjun?” Your eyes dart from his face down to your taped wrist and ankles. “What the fuck?”

“Shh,” he hushes, “don’t hurt yourself.” 

You look at him, disgusted. “What did you do? Where am I? Where’s Jimin?” 

“Who?” He scrunches his face. “Anyway, sorry you couldn’t make the train.”

The train. The station. It starts to come back to you. You were waiting for Jungkook at the station when Jimin left for the restroom. Then minutes later, a man comes up to you and tells you something’s happened to Jimin. Not thinking much of it, you get up to follow him and the next thing you know, you feel something poking against your side.

“What’s going on?” You ask softly, and he pokes the barrel into your flesh. 

“You make a scene, and I’ll start shooting.” He says. “Be quiet and follow me.”

He’d led you to a van, all the way at the end of the parking lot where there were fewer cars and people. You remember being pushed into the back of the vehicle, roughly handled by a pair of hands, then your memory goes blank. 

“What do you want from me?” You ask, looking around. 

You make it out to be an abandoned multi-storey car park. It’s dark and run-down, mould covering the walls, and no cars: the only ones you see belong to Hongjun and his men. 

“I know you’re the snitch. And unfortunately I have to do what’s right and turn you in.” He says, as if it pains him to do it. 

You try to free your wrists. “It’s not me!” 

Hongjun chuckles. “You can stop pretending, seriously.” 

“I’m not pretending, you idiot.” You try to push yourself up into a seating position. “Why would I sabotage my own boyfriend?” 

“I don’t know, maybe you made a deal with the police.” He shrugs. “Heck, maybe even he’s in on it.”

“Leave him alone.” 

“Funny,” he snickers, looking at his members as they share a laugh, “he said the same thing when he came looking for you!” 

“Jungkook? Where is he?” 

“Yeahhhhh about that…” Hongjun clears his throat and presses his lips into a thin line. “He was erratic, super unstable. So we had to…stop him.” 

“What does that mean?” You ask, looking at the three of them. Hongjun’s mock sadness is annoying you and you can only think of the worst. “What did you do to him?” 

He stands to leave, ignoring your question. Then he points towards a small table by the end of your mattress. You now realise you’re resting on a makeshift bed; a thin mattress on top of an old, steel foldable table. 

“You have water and some food. Eat up. Don’t want you dying before your execution.” He says before walking away.

Execution? 

“And listen up,” he meets you at eye level, “if you even think about escaping…I know where you live, and I have people standing by, awaiting orders. So unless you want anything to happen to your roommate…you get what I’m trying to say right?”

He walks away even before you can react. Pressing your back against the wall, you take some time to process that this isn’t just a dream. You run your wrists over your pockets but they’re empty. They’ve taken all your things. 

Your head hits the wall with a thump. You can hear them, but can’t see them. The wall you rest on turns into a sharp corner to the left, and that’s where you think they’ve set up base. Across from you, against one of the pillars, rests what looks like stacks of packages. 

Oh. You realise what they are. Drugs. Tons of them, stacked up against each other. There’s a small square table next to the drugs, and on it you see a laptop screen opened up to an excel sheet. But you also notice your stuff. Your watch, your phone. If only you could get to it…

𝄖

Namjoon watches as the nurse wraps a gauze around Jungkook’s thigh, keeping the bandage in place. Jungkook lies motionless on the bed, staring at the ceiling in despair while pressing an ice pack to his head. 

“Please don’t put too much pressure on your leg.” The nurse advises. “You’re all set now. Don’t forget to collect your medication.” 

When he doesn’t respond, the nurse looks at Namjoon who apologises on behalf and thanks him. Even after he leaves, Jungkook doesn’t budge. 

“If you’re just gonna lay here all night, you might as well have gotten shot in the head.” Namjoon says, eliciting a threatening look from Jungkook. “You’re lucky the bullet only grazed your thigh.”

“Still hurts like hell.” He lifts his head to look at the wound. A large gash over the back to the side of his thigh, flesh ripped open by the bullet grazing past, now stitched and covered.

“I’m sure getting knocked on the head didn’t help either.” There was a metal pipe next to Jungkook when Namjoon found him. 

The aching of his head makes him dizzy. He pushes himself up and groans at the throbbing pain in his thigh. 

“He took her.” Jungkook says. “They had her all tied up. She was unconscious.” 

“We’ll find her.” 

“How do you know that?!” 

His voice blasts through the room. Namjoon doesn’t tell him to calm down, fully understanding the state of anxiety he’s in. When Jungkook hadn’t returned his calls, Namjoon tracked his phone, and found Jungkook lying on the cold floor of the abandoned warehouse. He only regained consciousness halfway to the hospital. 

“I’ll make sure that we get her back.” Namjoon says. 

“Can you go now? Go look for her.” It’s the first time Namjoon has heard him speak to him in this way. The tenderness in his voice, begging for him to go and save you. 

Namjoon looks at his leg. “I can’t just leave you here. Let me send you home first.” 

Jungkook doesn’t respond. As Namjoon holds on to his arm, he looks at his leg, then wills himself to push off the bed and onto his feet, wincing from the pain. All he can think about is you. If anything were to happen to you, he wouldn’t be able to forgive himself. 

Jungkook sits quietly on a bench outside while Namjoon collects his medication and settles the bill. He checks his phone and tries to call your number. It cuts off. He scrolls through his contacts, looking for someone, anyone he could try to ask for help from. Then he stops when he comes across Hoseok’s name, finger hovering over it. 

“What the fuck happened?” 

Suga appears in front of him, eyeing the injury. Jungkook hadn’t even realised when he showed up. He looks up with a blank stare. “I got shot.” 

Namjoon comes out of the doors just then, a bag full of medication in hand. “By who?” Suga looks at Namjoon but he looks back at Jungkook. 

“Taeho.” 

Anger was visible on Suga’s face. It twists to disgust, then back to normal as he tries to remain calm. “What is their fucking problem? What did you do?”

Namjoon holds him back. “He’ll explain along the way. Now let’s just go get him home.” 

“Fine.” Suga says, turning to leave. “Let’s go before the police come and ask questions.” 

It’s 3AM when they finally leave the hospital. Jungkook walks slowly, favouring his left leg to balance the weakness on his right side. He stubbornly refuses to use crutches, so Namjoon holds on to him instead while Suga carries the crutches. Jungkook lifts his leg to get into the car. 

Suga glances at the two of them. It’s silent. He’s the only one without the full story of what happened. He wants to ask, but something tells him he’s not going to like it. He quietly asks Namjoon to drop him off somewhere near the apartment. 

“I’m gonna settle something.” He says, then looks back at Jungkook. “Go home and get some rest.”

“I’m not going home.” Jungkook says and Suga looks at him weird.

“Where could you possibly be going in this state?” He asks. 

“I need to go look for Y/N.” 

Suga’s face scrunches up in confusion. “What?” 

“You can’t go. Not like this.” Namjoon looks at him from the rear view mirror. “I’ll send you home, then I’ll go look for her.”

“No! I have to go!” Jungkook yells, tearing up. “This is all my fault! She needs me…”

Suga goes back and forth between them. “Will someone tell me what’s going on? I feel like I missed a chapter.” 

It gets quiet again. Jungkook finally speaks up, “Hongjun’s got her.” He sighs, controlling his breathing. He can practically hear the questions running through Suga’s mind. “He wants to get back at me. He came down last week and…some things were said. We got into a fight and I may have taken it too far. He’s using her to get back at me…”

“Are you sure he took her?” 

“I saw it with my own eyes. She was there at the warehouse.” Jungkook shakes his head. “I was going after them. That’s when they shot me. I was trying to save her…”

Suga can’t decide if he’s more in disbelief over this situation or the fact that even after all this time trying to keep the two of you apart, you’re still somehow causing him trouble. He looks at Namjoon who tries to avoid his eyes. Then he brushes it off, “Let’s just go back to the apartment first. I’ll update Kim on your status. There’s a lot going on and Kim and Barome are⎼”

“I don’t give a fuck about any of that!” Jungkook screams. 

Suga exhales, trying not to let Jungkook get to him. “Fine, then let’s go and check Hongjun’s bases together and get her back.” Suga suggests, “Or, we can go straight to the Captain and tell him what Hongjun’s done. We don’t have to tell him who Y/N is. Plus once he finds out they shot you, I’m sure he won’t even care about her.” 

“We can’t do that.” Namjoon says. 

Jungkook wills himself to look Suga in the eyes. “Hongjun wants to blame the leaks on Y/N. He thinks she’s working as an informant.” 

“Oh.” He says. 

Jungkook can feel Namjoon’s eyes glaring at him from the mirror. He’d left that part out initially. But it now makes sense to Namjoon; the fight, the kidnapping. Hongjun was reckless but even he wouldn’t go after you if there was no reason to. 

This makes it tricky. Involving the bosses now would only benefit Hongjun in the end. The only way they can save you is to settle it themselves. 

“I need to go find my friends.” Jungkook suddenly says to Namjoon.  

Namjoon thinks it’s a bad idea, but he goes along with Jungkook’s request. Suga sits quietly, not having much to say but a lot to think about. He decides to be dropped off at the club instead, without saying goodbye to Jungkook as he leaves.

Jungkook doesn’t care much, occupied on his phone. He had texted Jimin, telling him he’d be coming over. So when the car pulls over in front of your building, he sees all three of them waiting by the front. They watch as Jungkook opens the door, fully expecting you to appear behind. But they’re left disappointed with the empty seat behind him. 

“What happened?” Hana asks, eyeing his injury. Namjoon supports him out of the car. 

“Hana I’m sorry.” Jungkook’s head hangs low.  

“You couldn’t find her?” Jimin helps him up on the other side.

Jungkook sighs. “I found her. But I couldn’t get to her. There’s this guy…he’s the one behind it.”

“Where is she now?” Hoseok asks, stepping closer. Hana grabs hold of his sleeve, making sure he doesn’t get too close. 

His presence doesn’t bother Jungkook, not right now at least. Not when all he can think about is you. “They got away. I tried to save her but…” He looks down at his leg. 

“Oh Jungkook…” Hana sighs, biting her lip at the redness spreading under the gauze. 

“At least you know who it is.” Jimin says, “Let’s go make a report.” 

“They’ll ask a lot of questions.” Namjoon says, and Jungkook nods timidly. “We can’t afford that.”

“Then what do you suggest we do?” Hoseok says, “Wait until something bad happens to her?” 

“I’ll fix it.” 

“You can barely walk.” 

“I said I’ll fix it!” Jungkook yells, then catches himself, holding up his palm to apologise for raising his voice. “She’s still alive. I can still find her.” 

“She’s still alive? Are you implying she might not be soon?” Hoseok fumes. The rest exchange worried looks. “Was it Hongjun?” Hoseok asks, ignoring the warning from Hana, signalling him to stop. 

Jungkook looks at him for the first time. “How did you…how do you know about⎼” 

“Hongjun and Y/N started contacting each other a while ago. He wanted you out of the group.” Hoseok says, “And so did she. We all warned her against it, but she was dead set on working with him because of you.” 

“Wait,” Jungkook shakes his head, “they what?” 

Jimin leaves Jungkook’s side and pushes Hoseok back with a hand to his chest, muttering for him to cut it out. Hana goes up to Jungkook. “It was Hongjun, he manipulated her.” 

“But I didn’t even know…” Jungkook furrows his brows, pressing his thumb and index finger across his forehead, suddenly feeling a migraine coming on. “So they were talking to each other?” 

“It was her choice.” 

“I can’t believe it…” Jungkook groans when his leg starts to ache, bending over a little. “Why would she do this…”

“Because she loved you that much.” Hoseok says, bitterness in his voice. This time Jimin forces him away, back to the apartment. He does so but only because he can’t stand to listen to Jungkook anymore.

As he leaves them, Jungkook drops to his knees, groaning through clenched teeth at the pain in his leg. Tears start streaming down his face at the same time. “I’m so sorry. This is all my fault…” His words start to slur. 

Hana kneels before him, bringing his head to rest on her shoulder in a hug. “Jungkook, don’t be like this. She did it for you, it was all on her own accord. It’s not your fault.” 

“But, I⎼” 

Jungkook’s head gets heavy on her shoulder, body weight slowly dropping entirely onto her. Namjoon and Jimin rush to help. “Are you okay? Jungkook?” Jimin pats the side of his face but there’s no response. 

Namjoon shifts him so that he’s lying on his arm instead. He checks Jungkook’s eyes, breathing and pulse. “His pulse is weak. He’s exhausted.” 

Namjoon stops Jimin from calling the ambulance. Jungkook would be upset having to wake up in the hospital again. With Hana’s permission, they bring him back to the apartment and let him rest on your bed. 

“It’s fine, let him rest here for tonight.” Hana says, holding onto Jungkook’s hands which have gone cold. She covers him with your blanket and makes a silent prayer by the side of the bed before leaving him to rest. 

𝄖

The club just saw its last customer. Bouncers go on their rounds, checking for strays while the cleaners get the work, and the bartenders get wiping. While everyone gets ready to leave, Suga enters, bumping into Bella just as she comes down the steps, bags in hand. 

“Hey you.” She says, “A bit late to the shift.” 

He huffs out a tiny laugh. “Bye.” 

“Wait, no cheeky remark? No insults?” She follows him into the pantry, “Something’s up. Spill.” 

“Hasn’t your best friend updated you yet?” 

“Who?” 

“Jungkook got shot.” 

“What?!” She all but shouts. Suga stares at her, like she should know better. He nods for her to shut the door. 

“He’s fine.” He says before she can ask. “Huge gash on his thigh though.” 

Bella takes a seat, relieved that it wasn’t anything too serious. “What happened?” 

Suga chuckles, finding the whole thing amusing. She smacks him on the leg and he scowls. “It’s Y/N. I have no idea how it happened, but Hongjun kidnapped her.” 

Bella’s heart skips a beat. Hongjun got to you. She knew Hongjun would try to come for either Jungkook or you. But Jungkook can handle himself. Knowing that Hongjun chose to go after you instead makes her sick to her stomach. You must be so afraid. 

“Jungkook tried to save her but Taeho shot him. Y/N’s still with Hongjun.” 

“We have to do something!” Bella urges, placing her hands on his arm. “Can’t you call for backup? We can all go and save her!”

He shakes his head. “Things are too complicated.”

“Complicated?” She scoffs. “She’s in a lot of danger, she needs our help. I know you don’t like her much but she’s just an innocent person that’s been dragged into our world. Jungkook can’t do it alone. They need us.” 

“How sure are you that she’s innocent?” Suga asks her. “Did you know Hongjun thinks she’s been giving the police information about us?”

Bella gulps. She pretends as if she hadn’t known. “That’s ridiculous.”

“Is it?”

“And so what if she isn’t all that innocent? You’re telling me you’re just going to sit back and watch Hongjun hurt her? So it’s only okay because you’re afraid she’s gonna sell you out?”

“I never said it was okay⎼”

“You’re just a coward.” 

“Enough. I⎼”

“You’re just like Hongjun.”

“Bella!” Suga raises his voice, brows furrowing at her. She goes quiet. “If you would shut up for a second…I was about to tell you I’ve already called in favours and have people out there looking for Hongjun.” 

She softens the look she’s giving him. 

“He hasn’t gone back to any of his bases as of yet. He knows we’d look for him there.” Suga says. “But there has to be someone who knows where he is. And I’ll find out where that is.” 

Bella looks down, feeling guilty over her little outburst. “Sorry.” 

“Whatever.” He brushes off her apology. “I’m only doing this for Jungkook.”

𝄖

It’s noon when Jungkook finally comes to. His head is heavy and his stomach burns. But being in your bed keeps him calm, the smell of your sheets, traces of you everywhere, the photo of the two of you on your bedside table. He gets up slowly, only managing to get onto his elbows before groaning in pain. 

Hana comes in a while later, having heard the commotion. “How are you feeling?” She asks, placing a hand on his forehead. 

“I’m fine.” Jungkook says and she rolls her eyes. “What time is it?” 

“It’s noon.” 

“What?” He shoots up, “I have to go. I have to go get her.” 

Hana stops him. “No, stop. Namjoon’s handling it. We decided to make a police report.” 

“Oh my god…” He lies on your pillow, rubbing his eyes with his palms. “She’s probably really scared right now. She probably thinks I abandoned her and allowed this to happen.” 

“Do you really think she would think that?” 

“Was she and Hongjun really contacting each other?” He sits up, completely ignoring her question. 

Hana makes herself comfortable on your bed. “She thought it was one way to help you. She knew Hongjun was only thinking of himself, but she figured despite that, she’d get to save you.” 

Jungkook shakes his head, sighing. “She should’ve known better. I’ve warned her about Hongjun.” 

“You’re not the only one.” Hana nods. “Namjoon did too. So did I. But she wanted so badly to do something.” 

“Wait Namjoon knew about this? That idiot. He should’ve told me.” 

“He told her off when he found out. And she felt really bad about it, so she decided to end things with him.” Hana continues, “But Hongjun was persistent. I don’t think he liked it when she backed out so suddenly. The last time I believe…he sent her a video of you…”

“What video?”

“You were at a party of some sort…celebrating?”

“No.” 

“And there was a guy on the floor…”

“No no no no no…” Jungkook mumbles, dropping his head into his hands. “No! Does she know about that? Holy shit. Holy shit.”

Hana gives him a minute, watching quietly as he absorbs this information. At one point he covers his eyes with his palm and when he pulls away, she sees the glistening of his pupils. 

“How did she react?” He asks quietly, voice trembling. 

“She was shocked. We were shocked.” He drops his head. “But she never believed that you would intentionally hurt anyone. She never lost faith in you.” 

Jungkook thinks back to the night you had seen him hurt Hongjun. Now it makes sense. You were so affected by it. And it’s because he had confirmed what you were denying the entire time. That he was capable of ending someone’s life. 

“…I really fucked up huh?” He says after a while. 

“Yeah,” she says and they laugh. 

Jungkook’s laugh dies down and he starts to move, though his leg makes it difficult. “I have to try and find her.” 

“You know, you’re just as stubborn as she is. I can see why you like each other.” 

The doorbell rings just then and Hana goes to get it. Meanwhile, Jungkook tries to get himself out of bed. He finds his phone on the bedside table, and a bunch of texts had come in from Suga from a few hours ago. He opens the chat to see links which opens up the map app on his phone. 

Namjoon comes in, carrying some food and Jungkook immediately shoves the screen in his face. 

“What’s this?”

“Hi to you too.” Namjoon says, squinting at the screen. 

“What are all these locations?”  

“Suga narrowed down the locations Hongjun might be at.” Namjoon explains. “He worked to get info all night. Called in a bunch of favours.” 

“He did?”

He nods. “Right now we've got men scouting those places and seeing if they spot Hongjun or his men in the area.” 

“Why would he do that?”

“Who?” 

“Suga. He really did all that? He tried to find her?” 

Namjoon shrugs. “I guess he really cares for you.” 

“And how?” Jungkook looks at the chat. “There are so many locations. You’re telling me people willingly gave up this info?”

“You’re surprised?” Namjoon raises a brow. “Hongjun has a lot of enemies. Even the people in his own district don’t get along with him. Most of them are glad he’s gone so they don’t have to deal with him anymore.”

Jungkook sighs out in relief, smiling for the first time since yesterday. “Okay so we should go, we have a lot of ground to cover.” 

He stands, only to clench his jaw to keep himself from screaming in pain. Namjoon pulls him back down. “Will you slow down? At this rate, you’re never gonna heal.” 

“We’re wasting time!” Jungkook reasons. “We know where he is, we can go get her right now!”

“These are the places he might be, and I already told you, Suga’s got people on it. Once we can confirm his location, we’ll make our move.”

“What if it’s too late?”

“He won’t do anything to her.” Namjoon says. “He needs her alive.”

𝄖

It wasn’t as easy as Suga thought it would be initially. Most of the other locations turned up empty. He waits at a nearby coffee shop, sitting by the window, dressed down so he wouldn’t attract too much attention. He pulls his cap down further when he notices a familiar figure across the street. 

An acquaintance standing right outside the shop, smoking by a street lamp, turns to him and nods. He had tipped Suga off after having noticed Hongjun in the area a few hours ago. A day has passed since you were taken, and since he found the possible locations. Jungkook is still at unrest.

Suga nods to his acquaintance and gets moving, placing some cash on the table before leaving. The man walks a safe distance away, careful not to alert Taeho of his presence. He manages to get far enough to know where Hongjun might be. 

He relays the information to Suga, who then meets him halfway back. 

“He was headed north. Small neighbourhood up there.” He says. “My guess is that they’re hiding out in one of the old buildings. That town was vacated for an upgrade years ago, but nothing ever came out of it. Pretty much abandoned. Perfect location for them.”

“Thanks.” Suga says, slipping him some cash. “Drop by for drinks anytime. On the house.” 

“I’ll hold you to that.” 

“I know.” He mutters. “Actually, I’m hoping you could just keep looking out for a while? I gotta go back and I don’t wanna risk losing him.” 

The man shrugs. “As long as I get paid.” 

“Here.” 

He unfolds a stack of cash from his pocket, counts the bills and hands it to his acquaintance. “You’re the man.” He shoves it into the inner pocket of his jacket and walks off.

Suga checks his phone. He’s running late; the captain had called him in today. 

𝄖

It’s unusual for the captain to ask anyone to come over to his place. Their normal meetings usually happen in the office or over coffee. Suga rings the doorbell and a familiar, large man greets him, holding the door open for him to enter. Suga walks into the large two-storey apartment feeling small. He stands awkwardly in the middle of the place, waiting. 

“You’re late.” The captain says, coming down the stairs. 

“I was busy.” He says, “I’m here now.” 

The captain sounds annoyed but his face doesn’t show it. He looks distracted. “What happened to your partner? He got shot?” 

Suga walks over to the couch where the captain gestures to him to take a seat. “How’d you know about that?” 

“What? You thought you could keep it from me?” He scoffs. “I called him earlier.” 

“Oh. He’s fine though.” 

“You should’ve reported it in.” He says and Suga stays quiet. In his defence, he was going to, until he found out about how you were tied to it. 

“Didn’t think it was necessary. He’ll be back on his feet soon.” 

The captain looks at Suga as if he should know better. “It’s still protocol. You of all people should know that.” 

“Alright. Sorry.” 

“Who was it? A cop?” 

“No, just a random fight that escalated.” Suga says, hoping Jungkook hadn’t told him anything else over the phone. It’s unlikely that he would. “You know him, he doesn’t know how to back down from a challenge.” 

“Why would he let it get that far?” He narrows his brows. “Are you sure that’s what happened? You’re not keeping things from me, are you?” 

Suga shakes his head. Captain doesn’t seem to believe him at first, keeping his eyes locked on him as if it would break him the longer he does it. But then he eases up, and Suga almost lets out a breath in relief. He then reaches over the coffee table for a bottle of whiskey and two glasses. He pours himself and Suga a drink. 

“Better not be. I don’t need anyone else giving me trouble.” He hands Suga the drink. “You guys are some of the few I still trust.” 

“Still?” Suga watches him take a sip then down the entire glass. 

The captain sighs, eyes glazing over for a few seconds. “There’s a lot of noise out there and in our organisation. It’s hard to tell who’s on our side and who isn’t. But we’ve known each other for years, and if there’s anything I know, it’s that I can always count on the two of you.” 

Suga smiles. From the way the captain speaks, Suga knows things are bad. “Of course you can.” He says, “We’re a team.” 

The captain nods. “You need to stick together to matter what.” 

His words are laced with warning. “Why?” Suga eyes him curiously. “What’s going on?” 

“Code red.” He says. “We’re going into lockdown.” 

Suga’s lips part. A lockdown works to reduce the chances of them getting caught. It would mean ceasing contact between members for months, cutting down public appearances. They had been on lockdown once, years ago, when the police were right on Kim’s tail. He managed to escape after eight months of no activity. 

“You want us to go dark? When?” 

“As soon as possible. Clear any remaining orders and tell you clients you won’t be supplying for the time being. Then disappear. You still have access to your safe house?” 

“Yeah but, didn’t Kim say a while ago that we didn’t have anything to be worried about? Plus, if all of us go dark, what will happen to our operations? Like the club…” 

“Ops will go on for the rest.” 

“Wait, what are you saying?” Suga tries to wrap his head around it. It was different during the first lockdown, their organisation wasn't as big as it is now. They didn’t have as many members back then. “So we’ll go underground and everyone else won’t even know why? Will they be warned?” 

Suga thinks back to the conversation he had with Jungkook, where he predicted the bosses would do something like this, prioritising their own safety. Everyone else, are pawns in their eyes.  

“No, don’t say anything.” The captain notices Suga’s hesitation. Something he finds unusual, knowing Suga isn’t the type to question their orders. “Business has to go on. Just…without us. We need to remove ourselves from the spotlight. Plus, your staff aren’t wanted men, we are. They’ll get off easy, we need to save ourselves.” 

“And these are Kim’s orders?” 

He nods. “Actually, Kim’s already underground. Barome too. They made some arrangements. Don’t bother trying to find them. Once I settle everyone else, I’ll go dark too. You won’t find me then.” 

“Can I at least tell my staff? We personally selected these people, I know they won’t⎼”

“You still don’t get it, do you?” The captain gets annoyed. “Everyone who knows is a risk. Unless you want someone to put a bullet through their heads, I suggest you leave them out of this.” 

Suga jaw clenches. He nods. 

The captain tilts his head, watching him. “You worried?” 

“Aren’t you?” 

He takes a deep breath. “It’ll be fine. We’ve done it before. And just so you know, Kim specifically chose those he wanted to go into lockdown. He doesn’t want to lose his best.”

But what does that make everyone else? The question plagues Suga’s mind for a while until he questions why he cares, when he never did before. He would never have thought twice about following Kim’s orders previously. He blames it on Jungkook.

“I’ll get the other two updated then.” Suga says quietly and the captain nods. He stops before pushing himself off the couch. “By the way, have you heard from Hongjun?”

“That son of a bitch has been calling me non-stop.” Captain says, shaking his head. “Sent them all to voicemail. Do you know how much shit he’s put me through? Not only has he been MIA, apparently, Kyun tells me he hasn’t been fulfilling his clients’ orders and ghosted them more than once. I’ve been trying to sort things out with them just so they won’t turn on us.”

“Why’d he do that?”

“Fuck knows why he does anything.” Captain sighs. “I mean I know he’s been ghosting Kyun, ignoring calls. But I didn’t think he was jeopardising our ops like this. And his clients are the worst, dirtiest bastards out of all our clients. They’d turn on us in a heartbeat.” 

Suga nods, but the Captain isn’t done. 

“Still, Kim wants him on lockdown too.” He sighs. “He’s a liability.” 

“He’s always been a liability. It’s amazing he’s lasted this long.” 

The Captain gives him a look and Suga shrugs. “Actually, could you tell him about the lockdown? I don’t want to speak to him right now, I have a lot to do.” 

“Why me?” Suga frowns. “I have to get my affairs in order too.” 

“Because I say so.” The Captain raises a brow. “Tell him to return the drugs to HQ if he’s not going to supply them to his clients. I’ve already settled it with them anyway. He’s got to find new clients cause they’re not gonna work with him anymore. But first things first, go underground, the sooner the better. Last I heard, he abandoned his last hideout. So you’ve got to go find him yourself, I’m sure you have the resources for that. And tell him not to call me. Not to call Kim. Not unless he wants his head on a chopping board.” 

“Oh, is that all?” 

“Shut up.” Captain rolls his eyes at him as he gets up to leave. “Before you leave, there is one more thing…”

Suga hopes it isn’t another errand he has to add to his list. “I need your team at the port tonight. Midnight.”

𝄖

“Listen up.” Seokjin calls out to the team. The screens at the front of the room, with faces of those off-site, perk up. “We’ve got confirmation of Kim and Barome’s escape. They’ll be leaving the country soon.”

“Their main mode of trafficking is via entering cargo ships, so we predict they’ll be leaving the same way.” Jun says. “Coast guards have been informed and they’ve doubled up patrol on the docks and waters.”

“The problem is, both Kim and Barome have gone off the grid.” Seokjin says. “Our intel wasn’t able to get all the details of their exit before they went underground. Right now, all we can do is wait for any movement. We have eyes on all their active locations.” 

Seokjin points to the map, where they’ve indicated with thumbtacks the different clubs, bases, the headquarters as well as any establishments working with Kim and Barome. 

“As soon as they’re spotted, we’ll be informed.” 

“Are we just focusing on the docks? What if they don’t leave on cargo?” One of the team members asks. 

“We haven’t ruled out that possibility.” Jun confirms. “We’ve alerted the airports and the customs as well as train and bus stations. Although, the probability of them moving via train or bus is low. Kim is too paranoid, he won’t go alone. And moving in packs on public transport would attract too much attention. Something he’ll avoid. They generally will stick to what they know.” Seokjin says. 

“They’ll move at night. Less cars, traffic. It’s dark out at the docks at night, easier for them to get away.” 

A beeping sound comes from one of the laptops. Right at the back, one of their tech analysts frowns at her screen. Seokjin moves behind them and takes a look. “What’s going on?” 

“They’ve started moving money out of their banks.” She says. 

“Do we know where?” 

“Several offshore accounts. Even if I could narrow it down, we’d have to request access from these foreign banks to get any information from their database.”

“Alright, keep tracking. We’ll get the necessary paperwork. We need to know where their money’s going. It’s all evidence.”

“If they’re moving their money,” another agent starts, “it means they’re preparing to leave.” 

Jun and Seokjin share a look. “We did predict they might before the end of the week.” Jun says.

“That means we only have about four days. So, we need to strike before they can. The first sign of them, and we take that chance.” Seokjin looks at his assistant. “Any updates from the ground?”

“Yes, good news. Kim was spotted earlier entering his Captain’s apartment building.”

“Perfect.” Seokjin turns to the board and the many locations they’ve pinned on it. “These locations here, marked with red, are our priority; their headquarters, warehouses, Kim’s known gambling den, his main club and Barome’s base. We’ll be deploying our teams to each of these locations.” 

Jun turns to the leader of the tactical teams. “Update your task force. Make sure they know who the targets are; arresting the lower level members could be useful, but we need Kim and Barome. They’re our top priority.”

“Yes sir.” He nods through the screen. 

“And as soon as we’ve gotten them into custody, it’ll be easier for us to get their lower ranking members,” Seokjin says, “that’s when we’ll move in on them.” 

𝄖

“I can’t believe you let him stay here.” Hoseok paces in the tiny kitchen. Hana watches him as she sits on the high stool, resting her arm on the kitchen island separating the space from the living area. “After all he’s done. He’s not even out there looking for Y/N.”

“He’s hurt.” Hana says and Hoseok shakes his head. 

“So? Probably karma for what he let happen to her.” 

“Hey, you’re forgetting that she chose to get involved. It’s her fault too.” 

“I can’t believe you’re here blaming her,” he looks at her in disgust.

“I’m not blaming her, I’m just saying you shouldn’t be blaming him for everything. Which seems to be the only thing you know how to do.” She retorts. “Your sour attitude isn’t helping anyone.” 

“Neither is staying home while she’s out there somewhere, in danger! Why won’t you let me help her?”

Hana huffs. “We already filed a missing person’s report, plus Jungkook’s friends are working on it.”

“What are his friends going to do about it?” Hoseok rolls his eyes, slamming a fist on the island. He turns away embarrassed when Hana doesn’t react, staring back at him with angry eyes. She already knows how emotional he can get when he’s stressed. 

The door of your room creaks open and Jungkook walks out slowly. Having heard everything from inside, he looks at Hoseok from across the room. “We have a better chance of finding him than the police do.”

“Yeah right,” Hoseok scoffs, eyeing the bandage around his leg, “can you even trust them? How do you know they’re not in on it either? We don’t even know why Hongjun took her.”

Jungkook waits, head hanging low for a while, “I know why.” 

“Was it because of your relationship?” Hana asks.

“I thought so too at first.” Jungkook admits. “But a week before he kidnapped her, he said he was suspicious of her.” 

“Suspicious how?” Hoseok perks up. 

“He said he thinks she might be working with the police. And giving them info…about us. I thought it was weird that he’d say that since he doesn’t even know her. But now I know they were talking all this while…” 

The room goes quiet. Hoseok feels his heart sink and Hana turns to him slowly, gauging his reaction. Jungkook goes back and forth between the two. It’s as if they were communicating through looks. “What’s going on? Why do you look like that?” 

Hana shakes her head and manages a smile. “Nothing. We’re just worried.” 

“Do you know something about this?” Jungkook directs his question to Hoseok. “Is there something else I don’t know about her?”

Hoseok shakes his head. Though Jungkook is doubtful, he lets it go. 

“I’ll be off then.” He says, looking at Hana. “Thanks for letting me crash here.”

“Are you sure you should be moving around? Your leg’s still…”

“I’m fine.” He nods. 

She hops off the stool and walks him to the door. Jungkook gives her a hug before leaving, whispering in her ear, “I’ll get her back. I promise.” 

“I know.” 

𝄖

The last person Suga saw was ten minutes ago. The road gradually gets emptier and so does his surroundings. He makes his way on foot towards the abandoned parking lot. It’s dark and creepy. He takes a deep breath before stepping inside. The elevator no longer works, so he takes the stairs up. 

He stops at every level, checking to see if anyone is there. Finally, as he reaches the fourth floor, he hears something. It sounded to him like laughing and clapping, the sounds of an audience on a tv show. Followed by people talking. 

Walking further, he finally spots the camp Hongjun had set up. It’s right at the end of the lot. The only cars there are theirs, and it seems like they’ve been living out of it. The boot of the car is open, filled with food and clothes. 

Nearby, there’s a single tent and foldable chairs before it. Junho rests comfortably on one of them, watching a show from his laptop, placed on a small stool in front of him. He laughs at something he sees on screen. 

“Well,” Suga says loudly, scaring Junho off his chair, “you’ve surely made yourselves at home.” 

“What the hell!” Junho scrambles to his feet, calling for the others. Taeho appears from inside the tent, eyes going wide. 

Taeho immediately goes into defence mode. “What are you doing here?!” 

Hongjun emerges out of the back seat of the car, having awakened from the yelling. Rubbing his eyes, he blinks several times, surprised to see that he isn’t just imagining Suga being there. “How nice of you to drop by.” He says casually. 

“Unfortunately, we’re not accepting any visitors at the moment.” Taeho pulls out a shotgun. “Leave.”

Unfazed, Suga looks at Hongjun. He tells Taeho to stand down and gestures for them to step aside. 

“I’m here on Captain’s orders.” 

Hongjun’s interest is piqued. After having his calls rejected, he considered giving up. But if the Captain had sent someone for him, it could be a good thing after all. “Really? What’s up?” 

“First of all, you fucked up and he doesn’t want to talk to you.” Hongjun rolls his eyes. Suga continues, “Secondly, we’re going into lockdown.”

Hongjun huffs as if he doesn’t believe him. But Suga’s not one to lie about something like that. “When?” 

“Starting now.” Suga shrugs, walking further into Hongjun’s camp. “Why the hell are you here anyway?” 

“We needed a change of scenery.” 

“Right…” He’s not impressed. They were living like they got kicked out of their house. Their camp sits right in front of a wall, which then turns into a corner where Suga notices the table with open suitcases on them. “Are you selling those? If you’re not, you have to return them to HQ. Captain’s orders. Since you ghosted your clients, they were all over the Captain, he covered for your ass.”

“Whatever.” Hongjun groans. 

“Hey, Captain’s words, not mine.” 

“Fine.” He rolls his eyes behind Suga’s back. “Give me time to clear them.”

“You don’t have time,” Suga says, “It’s better if you send them back. In the event you get caught, you don’t get caught with a suitcase of drugs.” 

“Is it really that bad already?” 

Suga nods in response, eyes scanning the place for something else. 

Hongjun mutters to himself, “I knew it. I knew she’s behind this.” 

“Hm?” Suga caught part of it. “Who?” 

“No one.” He shakes his head. “Okay, I’ll return the drugs tomorrow. Thanks for coming by to⎼ hey!” 

Suga walks ahead. The area facing their drug stash is blocked by the wall from where he’s standing. But something else is there. He follows his gut and as he comes nearer, he finds a makeshift bed right around the corner, against the other side of the wall, right across the drugs. 

Your eyes meet. “What the hell is this?” He asks without tearing away from you. 

They’ve tied you to the bed frame and taped over your mouth. Your wide eyes look at him in despair. It hurts to try to move your lips so you make unintelligible noises, hoping he would save you. 

“Listen,” Hongjun comes to his side. “I’m doing this for us. She’s dangerous.” 

Suga looks back at you, struggling to free yourself. “Her? Dangerous?” 

Hongjun tries to pull him aside, hanging an arm over his neck. “She’s the one selling us out. Think about it, things weren’t this bad until she showed up.” 

Suga doesn’t deny it. After all, he was the first to notice how differently Jungkook had been when you started to date. 

“We can’t let her get away with this. I was going to hand her over to Kim.” He whispers, as if you can’t hear him. “I mean look…it’s all her fault we’re going into lockdown.”

Shoving his hand off, Suga steps closer to you. “So you’re a spy huh?” 

You shake your head aggressively, tears welling up in your eyes. Why won’t he help you? 

“I knew you’d get it.” Hongjun places a hand on his shoulder and shakes it. Suga pushes him away again. 

“It doesn’t matter anyway. Kim and Barome have gone off the grid, you won’t find them unless they want you to.” Suga says and Hongjun’s mouth twitches. 

Hongjun brings both hands to the back of his head and tilts his head up, groaning in frustration. “What about the Captain?”

“He’s busy. And pissed at you, remember?”

“Fuck.” He spits out, “I’ll just kill her myself then.” 

Suga looks at him. “Just keep her with you. For now at least. Once Kim’s out of hiding, you can carry on with your plan.” 

Hongjun claps his hands together and moves for a high-five but Suga ignores him. He puts his hand down. “I’ve always liked you better than your partner. Sorry about him by the way…he wasn’t thinking straight that night. We had to teach him a lesson.”

Suga stares him dead in the eye. “So you shot him?” 

He chuckles nervously, shrugging. “At least he’s still alive?” 

“Get things settled.” Suga says. “Tell them to start packing.” 

“You got it, partner.” Hongjun winks, then goes off to brief the other two. 

Meanwhile, you look at Suga through your blurry vision. You can’t believe Suga would sell you out. Even if he did despise you, allowing Hongjun to hand you over to their boss is not what you expect him to be okay with.

The wall separates you two from the rest. He comes closer, not saying a word. Next thing you know, his fingers wrap around your wrists. 

𝄖

[Tuesday, 7:45PM]

[Alpha Team]: We have eyes on Kim.

[Seokjin]: Don’t let him out of your sight. 

[Alpha Team]: Roger that. 

𝄖

[10:13PM]

Suga returns to the apartment where Namjoon and Jungkook are waiting for him. He’d briefly explained the situation to Namjoon who went to get Jungkook from your place. “Everyone good? How’s your leg?” 

“Better.” Jungkook says, standing and walking a few steps to prove his point. 

“Good.” Suga smiles at him, then looks at Namjoon. “Did you follow my instructions? Sure you weren’t followed?”

Namjoon nods, “Yes, and I made sure we went two rounds around the block just in case, like you said.”

“What’s happening?” Jungkook asks as Suga pulls out a drink from the fridge. 

“You were right.” Suga says, taking a big gulp. “The police are closing in on us. Kim’s gone underground and we’re about to do the same.” 

“Oh,” is all Jungkook can manage. “What about the club?” 

Suga shakes his head and Jungkook heaves out a sigh. “They’ll manage. But it’s too risky for us to stay here, even if we keep our heads down.” 

“Do you think they know about this place?” RM stands by the window, peeking out the blinds. 

“If they’ve been watching us, then yes.” Suga says, starting to gather his belongings. 

“So are we leaving now?” Namjoon watches him. “Like, just drop everything and go?” 

“Yup.” Suga says, “I think we should leave the city for a bit. Maybe out of state. Kim’s leaving the country, but I don’t think we need to go that far.” 

Jungkook stands with his hands on his hips. “Why can’t we just go to the safe house?”

“We can.” Suga agrees. “But wouldn’t you rather get as far away as possible? We can go anywhere we want. Come back in a few months when things have cooled down.” 

“I’m not going.” The other two look at Jungkook. “I can’t…Y/N…”

“Forget about her right now, we⎼” 

“No!” Creases form between his brows. “I can’t do that to her. I need to save her.” 

“You can’t do anything for her if you’re in jail.” 

Jungkook presses his palms to the sides of his head, then throws his hands up. “Fuck it! I don’t care! I’m not going to leave my girlfriend, and I’m not going to leave our staff to fend for themselves. I told you this would happen, that Kim would find a way to escape and leave others to take the fall for him. I don’t want to be a part of this anymore. I’m done.” 

“Listen⎼”

“No. You can go with him if you want.” Jungkook stands, grabbing his jacket and heading for the door. “But I’m staying and I’m going to look for Y/N. Then whatever happens, happens.” 

“Jungkook. Shut. Up.” Suga grits his teeth. “I’ve already found her. She’s fine.” 

Jungkook stares at him wide-eyed, shoulders relaxing. “You⎼ you found her?” 

Suga nods, and Jungkook’s face is washed with relief. He lunges forward and Suga finds himself wrapped in his arms. It feels odd, so he gently pats Jungkook on his back. “She’s alright. Well…not really but⎼”

“Where is she? Did you get her somewhere safe?” Namjoon asks. 

Suga looks away. “No…she’s still with Hongjun.”

The two of them share a confused look. “You just left her there? And you didn’t do anything?”

“God…couldn’t you have⎼ nevermind just tell me where they are,” Jungkook gets ready to leave again, “I’ll go get her myself.” 

“He’ll kill you if you step foot anywhere near her.” Suga looks at Jungkook who turns his back to the door. “He’s escalating, and I think he might be on drugs. He was acting a little strange. He got you shot the last time, if you stand in his way again, you won’t make it out.” 

“I can’t just leave her there. It’s my fault she’s in trouble.” Jungkook says. “He might kill her.” 

“Jungkook, this is not about you. He’s already made up his mind that she’s been snitching on us, and he wants to make her pay. He’s not going to kill her. Because he wants to hand her over to Kim.”

Jungkook’s throat goes dry. “We can’t let that happen.”

“We won’t.” Namjoon says. “What’s the plan?”

“Hongjun doesn’t have many options. Kim’s gone underground and he’s in deep shit with the bosses.” Suga says, resting his arms on his knees on the couch. “He’s going to settle his current stash, then go dark.”

Jungkook still isn’t convinced. “He’s not someone who follows instructions well.”

“He has no choice. I made that clear earlier.” Suga says. 

“Captain wants to meet up tonight right? What if he shows up? With her…” 

“He doesn’t even know about the meeting.” Suga says. “Besides, I’ve got eyes on him. And I’ll get notified if they move Y/N.” 

“How?” 

Suga pulls his sleeve up, showing his bare wrist. “I gave her my watch. I can trace it.” 

Namjoon grins. “You’re a genius.” 

“Now, we’ll have to figure out when we’re gonna move in on them. We’ll observe their pattern for a couple of days and once the timing is right, we’ll get her out of there. After that,” Suga pauses and the other two listen attentively, “After that we need to go underground ourselves. Straight to the safe house first before we leave. We can’t take any chances. Staying out for the next couple of days is risky enough as it is.” 

Namjoon agrees while Jungkook looks at Suga in awe. A hint of nostalgia hits Jungkook as he watches Suga go on about the plan; it reminds him of how Suga had looked after him when they were little. 

“What?” Suga asks when he notices the staring. 

Jungkook blinks at him. “Why are you doing this?”

“Doing what?” 

“Putting yourself at risk for her.”

“Not for her you idiot,” he rolls his eyes, “for you.”

𝄖

[11:45PM]

[Alpha Team]: Kim is on the move.

[Alpha Team]: Two black SUVs headed north. Team Alpha is on standby.

[Jun Suh]: Roger that. 

“They’re heading towards the port,” Seokjin says, “I knew it.” 

“And that’s also where one of their large warehouses are at.” Jun adds. 

Seokjin turns to the officer next to him. “I want Alpha to stay with Kim. Don’t lose sight of him.”  

“Noted.” An officer nods, relaying the information over the radio. 

“We need to do this tonight.” Seokjin turns to Jun. “He might be gone by tomorrow. Now’s our only chance.” 

Jun looks Seokjin dead in the eyes. “I’m ready to go when you are.” 

“Send us Alpha Team’s location and inform them we’re moving in tonight.” Seokjin says as the both of them pull bulletproof vests over their heads and strap them on. He takes one last breath and looks at his team, awaiting orders from him. “Alright everyone, let’s get moving.” 

𝄖

[00:45AM]

“It’s definitely tonight right?” RM asks after almost an hour of waiting. They remain inside the warehouse, careful about being spotted. The workers there carry on in their presence, hundreds of them packing white powder and pills into smaller packets. 

Jungkook walks from one end of the room and back, getting used to the aching in his leg. It’s stopped bleeding and the pain is manageable with medication. “We shouldn’t stay here too long,” Jungkook says.

“Yeah.” Suga sighs, fidgeting. “If they’re not here in five minutes, we’ll go.” 

The doors of the entrance open and Captain finally appears, smiling as he spots them. He slows down as he approaches Jungkook, eyes dropping to his thigh. “Glad you’re back on your feet already.” 

“Me too.” Jungkook nods. 

The Captain then gestures for them to follow him. He leads them outside, where the air is cooler and the sounds of crashing waves can be heard. They rely on the few street lamps in the area and around the building to get by in the dark. 

They carry on walking till they’re a distance away from the building, following the path by the edge of the water. They can see the waves crashing against the side of the port, and in the distance, just the darkness of open water. They walk past two other warehouses until they reach a group of men.

One of them stands by the edge, looking out into the distance. His guards stand around him. 

“Hello everyone,” he says cheerfully, despite being a wanted man.

𝄖

[1:00AM]

[Seokjin]: Status update?

[Alpha Team]: Target spotted. 

[Alpha Team]: Alpha Team in position, ready to go on your mark. 

𝄖

“Sir,” Suga squints, making sure he isn’t just seeing things, “we weren’t expecting to see you.”

“That’s the point.” Kim says, chuckling. “I’m sure you’ve been briefed on our situation.”

They nod. 

“I don’t have much time, but I’d like a word with the two of you.” He gestures towards Jungkook and Suga. 

Respectfully, RM and the captain move away to give them some privacy. Kim walks ahead while the other two follow behind. Walking with his hands behind his back, he’s focused on the ground in deep thought. “I heard you got into some trouble.” 

Suga looks at Jungkook. “Oh, yeah. It’s getting better though.” Jungkook says. 

“Was it one of ours?” 

Jungkook swallows the lump in his throat. “It was…one of Hongjun’s guys.” 

Kim pauses. “That boy is nothing but trouble. I should’ve gotten rid of him a long time ago. We lost good clients over the last week because of his irresponsibility. Then suddenly he reappears, asking to see me⎼ ah well, that’s not what I wanted to talk about tonight.” 

The two give each other an uneasy look. What if Hongjun had already gotten to the bosses? Did Kim already know about you? If he does, they’re in grave danger right now. And so are you. 

“I wanted to say goodbye before I leave,” Kim finally stops walking. His bodyguards keep in step, two in front and two behind. Jungkook let out a breath of relief but Kim didn't seem to notice. “I think I might have to stay away much, much longer this time. The people coming after me aren’t going to stop till I’m gone.” 

“Don’t worry boss, we’ll be here till you get back.” Jungkook says and Kim turns, finally facing them. 

“I’m counting on it.” His eyes are different from before, more serious now. “There’s not a lot of people I trust, you know that. And with how things have turned out, I don’t know who I can trust anymore. But I know I can always count on the two of you.” 

“Of course you can.” Suga says and Kim nods.

“As you may or may not have heard, we did some internal checks after the police kept intercepting our imported goods.” He continues, “Nothing specific came up, but we realised that the only way they would have known where and when to intercept, was if they had access to our database. Which means, it’s an inside job.”

“But that means it could be anyone.” Jungkook says. “Well, any senior member.” 

“We only have thirty of us. Everyone else joined after.” Suga says, referring to their original group of men. When they first started, they had a total of fifteen men including themselves, working under Kim. It slowly grew, and once they had enough people, Kim began expanding and promoted the original fifteen to senior members, allowing them to take on their own teams and districts. 

“Barome’s men were ruled out, we don’t share our data with them anyways.” Kim fixes his suit. “I didn’t tell Barome of course. He’d use this to put the blame on us.” 

“We still don��t know who it is though, right?”  

“No. I decided to focus on getting away safely.” He looks at them. “That’s why I didn’t let just anyone know about the lockdown. Only the ones I trust.”

“You can trust us.” Kim smiles at Suga, extending his hand. Then he pulls him in for a hug. 

Jungkook watches them have their moment, then is next to accept a hug. Kim messes up his hair. “Sometimes I forget how little you used to be. Now we’re at eye level.” 

They laugh, and Jungkook wishes his heart didn’t hurt as much as it does, being reminded of how much Kim is a part of his life. “Don’t get all sappy now.” Jungkook teases.

“You know…” There’s a flush of playfulness on his face. His cheeks rise as he smiles, like he just thought of something. “Maybe you should⎼”

He stops talking when a loud noise interrupts the silence out there. “What was that?” Jungkook asks. It came from the warehouse. They look around cautiously and the guards move in to create a barrier around Kim. There was shouting and screaming. The guards whip out their guns the second more shots are heard. 

Kim’s guards take the lead, guiding them away from the direction they came from. Away from the port, and past the docks, they enter an area which houses shipping containers. With the way they were stacked, the containers tower over them, allowing them to blend into the shadows. They stay rooted in the middle of the maze. 

“What’s going on?” Kim looks to his guard, who presses against his in-ear. 

Even before he could respond, they knew what was happening. They were under attack. Kim coming out of hiding would have triggered it. 

“Federal agents are here,” his guard says, confirming their fears.

“Damn it.” Kim spits out. 

“We need to get you out of here. I’ve called for backup, they’re on the way.” 

Kim had prepared for this with an escape car on standby just five minutes away. They flinch when several more loud bangs go off, nearer this time. Trouble seemed to be closing in. In a hurry, they move further into the maze, trying to get to the end where the car is to meet them. “We can’t stay here.” Suga says to Jungkook who doesn’t budge. 

“But we can’t just leave the others,” Jungkook looks in the other direction, “what about RM?”

“Leave them,” Kim says, “you know the drill. Come with me. The car will pick us up out back." 

"No." Jungkook looks at him with disgust which surprises even himself. Kim looks on as he collects himself, backing down and avoiding eye contact. Jungkook clears his throat. “You can go, I’m staying.” 

"The hell you are." Kim says, sternly this time. "Especially not with that."

He nods to Jungkook's injury. At this point, Kim’s guards are tugging him away, "Sir, the car's almost here. We need to go now." 

Jungkook stays rooted. Kim looks at Suga, putting him on the spot. But he was risking his life here. Kim pulls his hand away from his guard and straightens himself up. "Well alright then. I presume you’ll find your own way out of here."

They rush off, walking into the dark. Once they’re out of sight, Suga grabs onto Jungkook’s sleeve. “We have to go too. Please.” 

“It’s just not right!” Jungkook hisses. 

“Keep your voice down.” Suga whispers, “We⎼”

Suga stops, pressing a finger to Jungkook’s lips when he hears something. It’s quiet, the ruckus of the warehouse happening in the distance, but then he picks up on the voices and static noise of a radio nearby. His eyes widen and he gently pushes Jungkook and himself against the crate. His hand positions itself on the gun on his waist. 

“This way.” A voice says softly. It sounds like they’re on the other side of the container. They seem to be moving in Kim’s direction, but the two of them know they wouldn’t be spared if any one of the agents looks over the side and spots them there. 

Suga gently removes his hand from Jungkook. Kim headed east, so Suga gestured for them to move south. He gets his gun out and together with Jungkook they go down the row of containers, away from the police. 

Once they’re a good distance away, Suga tells Jungkook to go without him. “Keep going till you see a fence. Climb over and run, get as far away as you can.” He whispers. 

Jungkook moves quickly and quietly, passing by container after container. It’s a long way down and he’s careful of his surroundings. He reaches the end of the row and sees the fence, just as Suga said. On the other side, there’s a narrow road and a cluster of buildings across. He could go through the alleys and eventually find a way out to the main road without running into any of the police. 

But then he hears a loud bang. And another. And another.

“No.” He shuts his eyes, willing himself to pull it together. But his feet stuck to the ground, head toying with the thought of Suga lying dead somewhere back there. 

Jungkook takes a deep breath. Then runs back in the direction he came from, going faster than before. 

As he reaches the area they were standing at earlier, he slows down and listens closely. It’s quiet now, until he hears the low sound of someone groaning, asking for help. He follows the sound. It leads him in the direction Kim set off to earlier.

He keeps going till he finds something. Even in the dark, he can make out the bodies on the cold ground. He freezes, taking in the scene before him. Flashlights roll on the ground, illuminating the pools of blood surrounding the bodies. Then some distance away, he hears a commotion. 

“Suga?” He breathes out, squinting.  

Suga’s face twists in confusion. His guard is still up, still in a defensive stance when he turns. He lowers his gun when he realises who it is. “What the hell are you still doing here? I told you to go.” 

“I heard the gunshots…I didn’t want to leave you.” Jungkook’s voice trails off when he looks over Suga’s shoulder, right where he was kneeling before. Kim’s on the ground, head supported by one of his guards, while another places pressure on his abdomen.

“He’s shot, we need to get him out.” Suga says going back to Kim’s side, assuring him that everything will be okay.

“The car is here.” His guard says and the rest of them help him up, supporting him on both sides as he limps.

“Let’s go,” Suga's voice is strained when Jungkook slows down after a couple of steps, “do you want to get shot too? Their backup will be here soon!” 

Jungkook hears him, but he can’t take his eyes off the men lying in their own blood. There were five of them; four no longer moving, one of them being one of the members of Kim’s security, while the last man continues to struggle in pain. “Did you shoot them?” Jungkook asks. 

“They were shooting at us.” Suga says. 

“They’re dead.”

“Exactly. Move on.” 

“Move on?” Jungkook turns to him with tearful eyes. “You just killed four people⎼”

Suga lets out a low guttural sound in frustration. “Will you shut the fuck up⎼”

“Over here!” 

Suga’s eyes widened, spotting flashes of light behind Jungkook. He’s fast to catch Jungkook’s wrist, making a run for it. They turn the corner and sprint down the row, disappearing round a right turn further down. They have no idea where they are, risking getting lost and ending up running into the people after them. Neither of them look back, moving as fast as their feet could go. It’s too dark to be sure of where they’re headed but Suga follows his gut.

They slow down only when the coast is clear. But Suga keeps Jungkook moving. Staying in place would only increase their chances of getting caught. They keep going till one of them catches sight of the fence. They run straight for it, reaching the end of the sectioned area. Running along the length of the fence, they head for the familiar group of men huddled in a spot, car on the other side of the fence.

“There!” Jungkook says, pushing Suga into that direction.

Kim was being carried into an SUV with the help of his men. They had made a cut in the fence, to get to the other side. The guards spot them once Kim had been safely strapped in and gesture for them to hurry. One of the men holds the fence open for them while they get through. 

In the last few moments as they try to get across, the police manage to catch up with them. The guard starts shooting which prompts the police to return fire. 

“Get in! Get in!”

Suga and Jungkook scramble into the vehicle, barely getting in before the last guard shoves himself behind them. He shuts the door close as he climbs in, narrowly avoiding the bullets coming at them. Bullets continue to hit the car, ricocheting off the side of the armoured vehicle. 

The driver steps on the gas and speeds away. Jungkook looks out the back window; the police had gone through the hole in the fence and got onto the road to get a better shot. The shooting only stops when they get too far away, disappearing from the area. 

“How you holding up sir?” Suga asks.

That’s when Jungkook's eyes land on Kim in the backseat, eyes closed, breathing heavily. They’d removed his suit jacket and rolled up his sleeves. One of his men continues to put pressure on the wound. 

“We need to take him to the hospital.” Jungkook says. 

“No hospitals.” Kim says weakly. “Just bring me to HQ.” 

“I can’t do that sir.” The driver says and all heads turn to him. “HQ is down too. The place is surrounded. We’re compromised.” 

The car goes silent. 

𝄖

“Damn it!” Seokjin removes his gear and throws it to the ground. Jun catches up with him. “How the hell did he get away? We almost had him!”

Around them, employees are being taken into custody outside the warehouse. Most of them complied while others attempted to escape. Medics were on scene giving medical care to those wounded while crime scene investigators tape up the surrounding area.

Seokjin’s outburst turns a couple of heads and Jun cuts him off, grabbing his vest to stop him from storming away. “This is just a setback. We’ve put out an alert to be on the lookout for him.” 

Seokjin groans, resting his back on one of the cars. “How did he escape?”

“They had an exit out back.” 

“We were supposed to cover all exits.” Seokjin says in despair. 

Jun sighs. “It’s not the team’s fault. The road was supposedly closed off.” 

“Great, now Kim's gone and there’s nothing we can do about it.” 

“Hey, what’s wrong with you?” Jun tilts his head, slapping Seokjin on the arm. “Why are you giving up so easily? We’re going to get him if it’s the last thing we do. They confirmed that he was shot, he’s not going to be able to leave without getting help first.” 

An agent comes up to the both of them, “Sir, the other raids were successful. We have most of them in custody, including Kim’s lieutenant. Crime scene also recorded millions worth of drugs now in our possession.” 

Jun gives Seokjin a reassuring look, “See? The mission wasn’t a total fail.”

Seokjin presses his lips together and thanks the agent. “Fine.” He says to Jun. 

“We still did good tonight.” 

“Maybe.” Seokjin nods, pulling himself together with a deep breath. “I’m not stopping till we get him and Barome. Let’s go back to the office and regroup.”

𝄖

A low grumble sounds from your middle. You curl up on the mattress, hoping to ease the pain a little. You’d gotten a bit of sleep before the hunger pangs woke you. In the previous nights, only one member of Hongjun’s team would be up, with the radio on, keeping guard. But tonight, the lights are on and you hear their voices on the other side of the wall. You’re curious, but you can barely concentrate on anything when you’re about to pass out. 

You wish you could just make a run for it right now. But then you remember Hongjun’s threat. And what Suga said. 

“Don’t do anything stupid. We’ll come and get you.” He whispered as he wrapped his watch around your wrist before redoing the tape around it.

Your stomach growls again. Pushing yourself up on the mattress, you bang on the steel of the structure you’re on to get their attention. Junho comes along with a sunken look on his face and undos the tape over your mouth.

“What do you want?” Junho asks like you’re burdening him. 

“I’m hungry. Can I have something to eat?” 

“Now’s not really a good time.” He mumbles, more to himself, then goes to get you something anyways. Disappearing behind the corner, he comes back with a plate of leftovers; garlic bread, a quarter portion of fish and a couple spoonfuls of mashed potatoes.

Your mouth waters at the sight. Without wasting any time, you grab the bread and take a huge bite out of it. He watches you in disgust for a moment then turns to return to the others. 

“What’s going on?” You ask, mid-chew.

He turns back to you, and looks at you, wondering how you had the audacity to ask him that. “I’m sure you already know.” 

You continue to eat. “About what?”  

“They got to us. Federal agents just raided our headquarters…but don’t act like you didn’t know they were going to.” 

You stopped chewing in surprise. Of course, you did know. You just didn’t know it would be tonight. “You mean…” 

“You know exactly what he means.” Hongjun struts in, having heard part of your conversation. He stares at you with venom in his eyes. “This is all your fault.” 

“I haven’t done anything,” you say, “I’ve been here the whole time. How is this my fault?” 

“If you hadn’t mouthed off to them, we wouldn’t be having this problem!” He yells and you flinch when he raises his hand. “Now HQ is gone…and we don’t have word on Kim yet…” 

He looks so discouraged, you might even feel bad. But then you remember the state you’re in and those feelings disappear. You go back to your food quietly when Hongjun gets distracted by something Taeho says over the phone, probably fishing for updates. 

“Junho, you continue packing.” He says. “We have to locate Kim. He needs to know about her.” 

“Is that really important right now?” Junho tries to reason with him. Surely you would be the last thing Kim cares about. “We don’t even know if he’s⎼”

“He’s fine!” Hongjun clenches his teeth and fumes. “Nothing’s happened to him. Nothing can happen…not until I prove myself to him.” 

You chew slowly, wondering where Jungkook is tonight. You hope he’s alright. 

𝄖

In their desperation, they end up back at the club. After making a call in the car, Suga was relieved to know the club had been spared. And since they can’t confirm the safety of any of Kim’s other bases, they decided to bring him here and phoned his doctor. 

“Once the doc fixes me up, I’m out of here.” He says softly as they carry him upstairs, into a VIP room. 

The guards settle him in while Jungkook and Suga make sure the place is guarded, informing the bouncers not to let anyone suspicious in. Kim’s guards station themselves around the club and Suga activates his eyes and ears on the street to be on the lookout. 

Jungkook pulls Suga aside when they’re done. “This is a bad idea.” 

“What do you suggest we do then? We can’t leave him.” 

“If the police find out he’s here, we’re getting dragged along with him.” Jungkook checks his surroundings. Two guards stand by the stairs leading down to the first floor. The other rooms remain occupied and every now and then some of their girls walk past. “If they know about Kim’s bases, I’m willing to bet they know about us and this place.” 

“He’ll be gone once the doctor gives him the ok.” Suga says. “Will you stop freaking out over this? The police have their hands full right now. It’ll be some time before they come for us.” 

“How can I not freak out?” Jungkook says. “HQ is gone…we almost got caught…I thought you were dead when I heard those gunshots.” 

Suga looks at him funny. “Is that why you came back?”

Jungkook looks at his feet. “Yeah.” 

Suga shoves his head. “Stupid. Should’ve left when I gave you the chance.” 

They laugh quietly. “I didn’t want that to be the last time I see you.”

Suga processes what Jungkook means. If things had turned out differently, it would’ve been him lying in a pool of his own blood. Suga hates thinking about it. 

“It doesn’t matter now,” he says softly, “I’m fine.”

Jungkook looks at the door of the VIP room. “Hopefully Kim will be too.” 

“Don’t worry, he will be.” Suga says. “And once he’s all checked out, he’ll leave. And so will we.”

Jungkook nods in agreement, then pauses, eyes widening. “Wait, what? No. No no. I’m not leaving. Remember, you said we’d go and get⎼”

“Yes, god, I haven’t forgotten.” Suga shakes his head at the younger boy whose shoulder slumps in relief. How could he forget? He checks the location of his watch. It hasn’t changed for now. “She’s still there. They haven’t gone anywhere.” 

“But they might.” Jungkook says. “Once Hongjun hears about the raid and Kim’s condition, he’s gonna try and look for him. I should go get her now.” 

“Woah woah woah,” Suga holds him back, knowing that things wouldn’t turn out well if he goes without backup. And they can’t both leave Kim without raising suspicions. “You need to chill. They haven’t left their hideout because they probably don’t even know what happened tonight. And Y/N is safe for it. Right now, we need to settle him.”

Jungkook doesn’t agree. But Suga is not going to let him go. 

“Come on,” he says softly, ruffling Jungkook’s hair, “let’s go check on Kim.”

The doctor arrives soon after and is rushed up to where Kim is. He gets to work, examining the wound and doing a minor surgery to try and remove the bullet. The boys watch only from a distance while making sure the doctor has everything he needs. After the procedure ends, he spends another ten minutes checking on Kim’s vitals. Then he asks to speak to the boys in private. 

“I’m going to be honest, it doesn’t look too good.” He says. 

Jungkook feels his stomach drop. “What do you mean? What’s wrong?”

The doctor presses his lips together. “Firstly, the bullet punctured his stomach. I decided not to remove it, otherwise he’d lose too much blood at once, and since you don’t have any on standby here for a transfusion…”

“Okay, so what does that mean for him?” Suga asks. 

“I’ve managed to stop the bleeding but it’s only temporary and it won’t help much unless we have the proper equipment and resources to get the bullet out. That’s…not the only thing.” The doctor pushes his glasses up. “His heart’s not doing so well. His blood pressure is through the roof, even his regular meds aren’t bringing it back down. Whatever happened tonight must’ve triggered this. The shock of it all has made his condition a lot worse. That’s what’s making him so weak…”

“So what now?” 

“He needs rest. Lots of it. Anything intense might set his heart off again and he could go into cardiac arrest. And with the internal injury…”

Jungkook excuses himself from the conversation, hearing Suga ask the doctor a few more questions as he walks back into the room. He looks at the sight of Kim on the couch, just lying there. He can’t describe what he’s feeling, he doesn’t understand it. He shouldn’t care about these people anymore, but why does it feel like loss all over again?

𝄖

“Where’s Kim?”

Kyun stares blankly at the agent in front of him. His wrists are in handcuffs, bound to the table in chains. “I don’t know.  

“You’re his lieutenant, surely you’d know where he would go at a time like this?” 

“At a time like what?” Kyun asks. “Supper?”

“Tell me about your relationship with him.” The agent changes the direction of the conversation. 

But it doesn’t work on Kyun. He smiles like a man who has nothing to lose. “He could be anywhere.”

Behind the two-way mirror, Seokjin and Junsuh watch him carefully. They were hopeful when they learned Kyun was amongst those in custody. But he’s proving to be as difficult as they come. It’s evident they’re not going to get much out of him. 

“This guy’s got prior drug charges, assault charges. He’s been in juvie and in and out of prison twice.” Jun shakes his head. “He’s not going to talk.” 

“None of the other men are talking either.” Seokjin stands with his arms folded, still watching Kyun through the glass. “He’s got no family, no one he needs to protect other than Kim. And the only way he can do that is to keep his mouth shut.” 

Jun sighs. “What about your undercover?” 

“His line’s dead. He was supposed to be at the port…not sure what happened.” 

“You think he turned on us?” 

“No I don’t think so.” Seokjin looks at Jun, who shrugs. “He confirmed Kim’s location before we moved in.”

They stop talking and continue to listen to the interrogation. The warehouse workers were too low down the food chain to know anything of considerable importance regarding Kim. So Kyun is their best lead. The detective asks all the right questions, but Kyun is experienced enough to know how to dismiss them without giving anything away. 

“Let me try something.” Seokjin finally gets up, deciding to take matters into his own hands. Jun watches him leave the room and appear on the other side, switching places with the detective. 

From the moment he steps inside, Kyun studies him. The way he dresses, his mannerisms. “So you’re the guy in charge.” He says.

“Something like that.” Seokjin replies, smiling. “I’m here to offer you a deal.”

“No thanks.” Kyun replies immediately, already looking uninterested. 

“How long have you been working for Kim again?” 

“Longer than you’ve been a cop probably.” 

Seokjin chuckles. “That’s true. Which means you’ve probably made a lot of enemies along the way, huh? And judging from the reports the last time you were in jail, you had a hard time there.” 

Kyun’s confidence falters slightly.  

“Once we charge you for your crimes, you’re gonna end up back in there with those same people. Probably new enemies you’ve made along the way too.” Kyun finally looks like he cares about what Seokjin has to say. “Unless, you decide to take up our offer - we’ll put you in protective custody, away from those men. In exchange, we’d like information on Kim and Barome.” 

It’s an offer worth thinking over. But Kyun’s ego was just as high as the stakes. “I don’t need a babysitter. Thanks anyway.” 

“Are you sure? It’s a good deal.” 

“I’ll be fine.” 

“Why do you care so much about him? He doesn’t seem to care about you.” Seokjin says. Behind the mirror, Jun isn’t sure if this is part of his play, or if his emotions have gotten the better of him. 

“You don’t know a damn thing about us.” Kyun says. 

“We’ve been watching you for years.” 

“That doesn’t mean anything.”

“You’ve worked with him for a long time. Yet he didn’t think to offer you a seat on his way out of here?” 

Kyun chuckles, leaning back in his chair. “That’s not how it works.” 

“Really?” Seokjin asks, “Enlighten me then.” 

Kyun shakes his head, genuinely tickled by Seokjin’s naivety. “Kim doesn’t owe us a free ride out. He does what he needs to do, goes where he needs to go, while we do our jobs. We don’t share information so information doesn’t get out. So no, I don’t know where he is or where he’s going.” 

“Oh.” Seokjin nods, pursing his lips. “So…Kim wouldn’t say, arrange for his men to go along with him to somewhere safe?” 

Kyun shrugs. 

“Interesting.” Seokjin pretends to think. “Then why was Kim meeting up with your Captain and some of your dealers the same night he was scheduled to leave the country?” 

“We have meetings all the time.” He says, unimpressed. 

“Right.” Seokjin nods slowly. He reaches for one of the files neatly stacked on the side of the table. Flipping through it, he then pulls out a couple of surveillance photos of Jungkook, Suga and RM, placing them on the table in front of him. “Do you know them?” 

“Maybe.” He says eyeing the photos. 

“They were positively identified as the men who were with Kim last night. In fact, they got in the car with him as Kim escaped. Our intel tells us that Kim was planning for them to leave the country with him. Now, what makes them so special? And what makes you…not?” 

Seokjin eyes him down. His fist is clenched and he tries so hard not to give in, because that’s exactly what Seokjin wants.

“I get it. They’re useful, his best dealers. Meanwhile all you do is his dirty work and pick up after him⎼”

“I don’t care.” 

“Seems like you do.” 

“Stop acting like you know me!” Kyun bangs the table with his fist, rattling the chains bound to his cuffs. The guard steps in and holds him down by the shoulders. Seokjin waves him off once Kyun backs down. 

Hurting his ego is one way to get to him. Kyun knows he’s playing into Seokjin’s plan, but even he couldn’t fake not knowing about Jungkook, Suga and RM meeting up with his boss last night. 

“Looks like we have a bit of an anger problem.” Seokjin says and Kyun rolls his eyes. “I’m sure you’re angry at a lot of people. How did you feel about joining forces with Barome?” 

He doesn’t say anything. 

“You mad at him? After all, your gang was doing just fine. So Kim had no proper reason to bring Barome on board, other than greed of course.” Seokjin says. “And then of course that’s when things started to get messy, didn’t they?” 

“What are you saying?” Kyun asks, eyeing him.

“I’m saying, his men have never held back when it comes to selling out yours.” He huffs, the information unsurprising. “And it seems unfair that we don’t have any leads on him.”

Something awakens in Kyun. His eyes are no longer empty.

“I know you won’t betray Kim…but your loyalty does not, and shouldn’t in my opinion, apply to Barome.” 

Kyun answers with his eyes that stare deep into Seokjin’s. He wants to but something still holds him back. Seokjin knows it might take some time for him to come to terms with it himself. 

Then a knock comes from the door. Jun opens it slightly, just enough to fit his shoulder through. “Your man just went online.” He says.

Seokjin nods, then turns back to Kyun. “Give it some thought. I’ll be back.”

𝄖

Kim had slept for a short while before waking up again. He tries to get up, but his body wouldn’t have it. They tell him to stay on his back instead and he obliges, not having the energy to fight. “Must be the sedatives…I’m not usually this useless.” He says, grumbling. “You know before the cops came earlier…I was going to ask the two of you…”

He coughs, and Suga offers him some water which he declines. 

“I was going to ask if you wanted to come with me.” He looks at the two of them. “I knew that I wouldn’t be coming back here again. They’ve gotten too close this time and I’d never see the light of day if they ever get to me. So I wanted to start over somewhere new. And I wanted the two of you with me.” 

“Why?” Jungkook asks. 

“Well, I have to admit I do have a soft spot for the two of you.” He chuckles, bringing a smile to Jungkook and Suga’s faces. “Don’t tell the others.” 

“Of course not sir.” They chuckle. 

“Any updates on the ground?” He asks weakly. 

“Nothing much.” Suga says, “Spoke to some of our men who got away, Kyun’s in custody and so are the workers.” 

“I’m not too worried about the workers, they don’t know anything.” He says. “And Kyun can take care of himself. But if I don’t leave soon, they’re gonna come barging in through your doors.” 

“You shouldn’t be stressing out over this,” Jungkook says, “remember what the doctor said? You need to rest.” 

They’re interrupted by knocking on the door. Evan opens it and peeks through a tiny gap before opening it. “Sorry to interrupt but we have visitors.” 

“Visitors?” Suga straightens up. The guards were specifically instructed not to let anyone in without asking. But none of Suga’s lookouts had alerted him, so it should be people they know. “Stay here.” He tells Jungkook. 

Kim laughs quietly, then coughs again. “He’s always looking out for you isn’t he?”

“Always.” Jungkook nods, rolling his eyes. 

“I love that about you two. Make sure you do the same for him. He’s the closest thing you have to a family.”

Jungkook’s chest starts hurting again. He manages a small smile. 

Outside, Suga heads down to the first floor. He stops in his tracks as soon as he reaches the office door, eyes going wide. “You’re alive!” He says in relief. 

The captain and RM turn to him, both smiling and relieved to be alive as well. They stand there, drenched from head to toe, drying themselves off with towels. “We jumped into the water when we realised what was happening.” RM says. 

“I’m glad to see you guys made it too.” The Captain says. “Would’ve called but our phones got ruined when we jumped in. I’ll need a burner phone.”

“We have a couple you can use.” Suga fidgets in his spot, trying to find the right moment to tell him. “Captain…”

“What?” The captain stops, watching him closely. “Did we lose someone?” 

“One of the guards, yes.” Suga nods. “But Kim…he was hit.” 

“What?” He steps forward. “Where is he now?” 

“Resting upstairs.” He says, “The doctor couldn’t remove the bullet, we didn’t have the right equipment and he was losing a lot of blood, so he only temporarily stopped the bleeding.”

“Then bring him back to HQ, we’ve got supplies there that the doctor can use to⎼”

“HQ’s down…” Suga says and the captain’s face drops. “We lost a lot of our sites tonight. So there wasn’t much of a choice. We didn’t know where else we could go, plus we needed to get off the streets.” 

The captain clears his throat. The news of HQ clearly caught him off guard. 

“The doctor said Kim shouldn’t move around so much. Said his heart won’t be able to take another shoot-out.” 

“Okay.” Captain says, hands on his hips. He’s distracted now with the question of how they’re going to get out of here if Kim isn’t ready to. “I’m gonna dry myself off. Meet you upstairs in ten.” 

RM and Suga head upstairs, where Jungkook is relieved to see his friend. He gives him a quick hug and a pat on the back. 

As soon as the captain was ready, he went to see Kim. The others leave the room at his request, closing the door behind them. They head over to an empty room down the hallway, and RM sighs when his butt melts into the couch.

“He doesn’t look too good.” RM comments. 

Jungkook shakes his head. “He’s not. His heart’s gonna give out if he’s not careful.” 

“Hopefully he’ll be fine by tomorrow.” Suga says, “You know he’ll want to leave by then. And we have to as well. We can’t go back to the apartment. We have to leave straight from here.” 

The other two listen quietly.

“We’ll go get Y/N of course,” Suga says, earning a smile from Jungkook, “then we have to go. We can’t afford any more hiccups.”

“What are we gonna do about Hongjun?” Jungkook asks, “He’s not gonna give her up so easily.”

“I’ll kill him if I have to.” 

“Suga…”

“Do you want her safe or not?” Suga asks, and Jungkook nods, visibly upset. “Don’t worry. You won’t be the one to pull the trigger. I’ll do it.” 

Jungkook frowns, looking away. He despises Hongjun with a passion, but he doesn’t want Suga to have to kill for him. 

“Have we heard from the other teams?” RM changes the subject.

“Most of them have gone into hiding after they got the news.” Suga says. “They’re on their own until they hear from us.” 

“I wonder what happened to Barome.” Jungkook then asks. 

Suga shrugs. “He and Kim worked out an escape plan together. But I guess he dipped once he heard about the raid. Who knows where he is now.” 

𝄖

The sun is almost up; the bar is closed and workers start to leave. Jungkook knocks on one of the doors, opening it only an inch of the way. Inside, Bella’s packing up after her shift. Her eyes light up in his presence. 

He closes the door behind him and she immediately goes in for a hug. “I’m so glad you’re safe.” 

“Me too.” He says, smiling. 

Bella can see through him. Other than being sleep-deprived, something else is occupying his mind.

“What’s wrong?” 

“Nothing,” he shakes his head, “I just wanted to ask if you’ve heard from Barome?” 

“Not since he went underground.” She says. 

“What about the girls? Did he give you any instructions?” 

“No.” She frowns. “They’re still at the apartment Barome set up for them.”

Jungkook sighs. “Okay. I just wanted to find out if you had any info on him. He was supposed to leave with Kim but now that Kim’s hurt and plans have changed…we wanted to know what he’s gonna do.” 

“Well I wouldn’t put it past him to leave without Kim.” Bella says. “It’s just business to them. I doubt Kim’s condition matters to him at all.” 

“That sucks.” Jungkook mutters, exhaling loudly.  

She can see how exhausted he is. Bella leads him by the hand to the couch. She sits and pats her lap. When he doesn’t budge, she tugs him down and forces him to lie on the couch, resting his head on her lap. Despite resisting at first, Jungkook slowly relaxes, letting out a relieved sigh this time. Bella strokes the side of his face. 

“How’d you manage with your leg like that?” Bella asks, noticing the way he favours his left leg. 

“It’s fine I’m on antibiotics…and some other stuff for the pain.” He mumbles. 

Bella raises a brow. “Other stuff?” 

Jungkook presses his lips together. “Just a little bit…it really helps.”

“You know you shouldn’t⎼”

“I know I know,” he whines, closing his eyes, “I’ll stop once it’s better. And honestly, I couldn’t even feel anything last night. It all happened so fast. All the adrenaline must’ve blocked out the pain.” 

Bella doesn’t say anything else. She runs her hand through his hair and presses down on some spots. 

“Y/N used to give me head rubs like this…" He says. 

“For free? I usually charge for this." She says and he chuckles. 

“I miss her.” He says. “We were supposed to go get her in a couple of days but things are so complicated now. Suga found her, did he tell you that? But he won’t let me go after her yet.”

“That hasn’t stopped you before, has it?” Bella asks, fixing his hair. “You have time right now, you could go and get her.” 

“It’s too dangerous to go alone.” Jungkook says. “Besides, Suga wants me here…he said he’ll come with me once Kim is gone…this is all my fault.” 

“It’s not your fault.” 

“It kinda is.” Jungkook turns and looks up at the ceiling. “I just hope I can get to her in time.” 

“In time?” 

Jungkook shuts his eyes. Bella presses her hand over his forehead. It’s as if she could feel the chaos going on in his mind. Then after a while, he opens his eyes again and looks at her. She smiles. 

“We have to leave soon.” He says and the corners of her mouth drop. 

“Oh…” She gulps. “Is this a goodbye then?” 

“They’re gonna come look for us here.” Jungkook ignores her question. “So we can’t stay for long. Neither can you. You settled everything right? Like I told you to? You have somewhere to go?”

She nods.

Jungkook sits up and holds her hands in his. “Bella, do you trust me?”

“Of course I do.” She looks at him with worry and confusion. 

“With every cell in your body?”

“I trust you with my whole life.” 

“I need your help.” Jungkook exhales, and his grip on her tightens. “I need you to listen very carefully to what I’m about to tell you.”

.

.

.

taglist:

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#jungkook x you #jungkook fic #networkbangtan #jungkook x reader #jungkook scenarios #my fic #rainworks #im so nervous!!!!!

[ridetherain]

Courage At the Front Part 1/2

Hi. I have Zelda fanfic for reading. It's been mostly finished for like, a year? I had a lot of fun with it and I learned a lot about WWII warfare. Thanks to the hubby for pretending his expertise in pre-industrial arms and armor also includes early 20th century tanks.

Summary: Zelda is a mechanic and Link is a tank operator in Hyrule's WWII equivalent. And our two heros get trapped together behind enemy lines.

Warnings: This is a WWII fic. It has crude language, descriptions of frontline warfare and it's aftermath, slight gore and major character injury. And gallows humor, cause they're soldiers in war and they gotta live through it somehow.

Part 1 | Part 2 | AO3

Part 1

Zelda

"I want to do something real!"

Zelda was screaming at her father over the phone. She was breaking every one of her rules. No using royal privilege; how else was she going to get access to a phone? No subverting the chain of command; well, she had gone directly to the King. That might have skipped a few rungs on the ladder. Act like any other enlisted man; and screaming at the King is unlikely to be the standard operating procedure. Zero for three.

"I've been trained to fix anything! I was best in my class! Jeeps for the brass are not a priority. I should be with the troops and I should be serving my country in the best way that I can. Isn't that why I'm here?"

All the wind had blown out of Zelda's sails by the end of her argument. She was getting nowhere with the King. He wasn't going to lift his order to keep her safe and he certainly wasn't going to send her to the frontlines himself. She'd trained to fix the heavy infantry tanks that were stationed all over the eastern front. She was the best. No one was faster or understood more intuitively what needed to be done. But, instead, she was fixing jeeps that the Generals treated like pleasure vehicles. They'd come in with no gas and tell her it was broken or they'd need their goddamn wipers replaced. It was insulting.

"Nevermind, father. I'm going to get back to work."

She hung up and went back to her command. Which was a small motor pool with a squad of mechanics. Technically she was due a larger command, but no mechanic this far from the fighting should have her rank. The boys didn't really need her there at all, truth be told. General Impa was a micromanager and their shop ran like a civilian auto repair anyway.

Link

Link huddled into his small corner of home in the trench. He'd cleaned it up nice so there was a small divot dug into the wall so rain wouldn't ruin his small collection of keepsakes. Right now he had a little journal to write in, some playing cards, and a letter from some school kid who informed him "Mr. Owlen says I have to tell you that you're brave" which was charming enough to keep. He'd smoothed the ground beneath his feet so that he had comfortable dirt to sleep on and his trusty rifle settled over his shoulder digging into yet another dug-in divot in the wall. All-in-all he'd dressed it up to be the nicest spot in the line.

His squad had been stationed here for two weeks so far with very little else to do. At some point they would probably jump up and storm the enemy, but he tried not to think about that. He was too young to die. He tried to keep some dirt on his face at any moment. He wasn't technically old enough to enlist and anything that kept people from really looking at his face was a plus. It was easier before. He was the loader on a medium tank with only four other men for company. But then the gunner got his points and was sent home leaving the rest of them a man down. He'd gotten orders an hour ago to report to the depot to be assigned to a new crew in the morning. Until then, he'd be hunkered down here in this cesspit trying to get some shuteye and stock up on "supplies" that weren't part of the standard kit. Dirty pictures, booze, and hopefully some real food.

Zelda

"Lieutenant! Call for you, ma'am!"

"Thank you, Private."

Zelda took up the office phone and snapped out a greeting. She was losing another man. Pretty soon she was going to be running this place alone. Apparently heavy fire was anticipated and they needed another mechanic on hand familiar with the newest combat vehicles. She took up her roster to see who had the best qualifications for the job. If they were calling up someone from here it would be a rough job. She ran her finger down the list and stopped at a name. Could she do that? There was an obvious implicit order, but it wasn't actually said. She had free reign to send whoever she chose. Who could stop her decision? They were leaving soon.

She scribbled out the order, updated the roster list, filled out the daily report, and marked the next in command. She would leave immediately. Her duffle was already supplied for departure and she grabbed a go-kit with essential tools. The truck was already nearly loaded up with supplies and her driver was climbing in.

"Ready?" She called to the back when she was settled.

"Ready!" the loaders confirmed.

"Move out!"

The driver pulled out of the compound and they were on their way to the front. He glanced at her, but clearly eyed her epaulettes before deciding to keep his mouth shut.

Link

Link settled into his position in the turret. They were buttoned up and already getting ready for a fight.

"Load up, gimme seven five!" The new commander Burlon called from his spot above him in the radio seat. Link slithered down to the floor and started pulling up the armored cover and pulled out the smooth munitions. Burlon was calling out directions to Dalt to position the gun. The ammo was loaded and the gun was ready in seconds.

"Up!"

Burlon called out the fire and Link pulled up the next load. He was fast and being small made it easier for him to get into all the little hideaways where any spare air was filled with ammo. The place stank up quickly with the sweat of five men in tight quarters. It was hot as ever and beads of sweat ran freely down his back. Only his hands were kept dry with any spec of spare cloth to be found. He couldn't afford to drop something. One store empty, Link closed it up and moved to the next in an awkward spot beneath his gunner's butt.

"Move your ass, Dalt. I can't get in."

Not quite a well oiled machine just yet, this new crew.

"Fuck you. I gotta aim."

"Quiet. All of you," The commander was looking through his scope, "HEAT! Take us back!"

Burlon's frantic calls on the radio blurred into the background. Anti-tank guns. Link scrambled to lock away all the mortars. Easiest way to kill a crew was to blow them up with their own gun. The tank rocked roughly in the retreat and Link banged his jaw against the bottom of his seat. He let out a slew of curses and braced against the top cage.

"Back in your seat, soldier!" Burlon ordered.

Still cursing, Link threw himself into his seat and threw a hand up to check his face. It came away bloody.

"Incoming!" As one, the team bent and braced for impact.

Zelda

"Okay team, the enemy is retreating. We need to get out and salvage what we can. Level one and two damaged vehicles will be handled by the first division. Level three damage is us. We'll work from near to far."

Zelda nodded to her partner and began running to her assigned vehicle. A Farore Mk IV about a mile away that's likely still in good enough condition to at least drive. The field was a mess of tracks and mud and empty casings. Burn marks scorched across huge stretches of land where shells exploded. Zelda tried not to see the remains left behind. The wounded and dead were attended already, but sometimes things were left behind. A half burned boot was stuck in the mud and Zelda pretended it's because the soldier decided to take off his shoe. She knew these soldiers were fighting for their homes and their families, but it felt like they were fighting for her as the Princess. She would face the cost when she wasn't working. When she had time to process.

She stopped with her partner, a big Private who could do some of the heavy lifting, when they reached a potential salvage.

"What do you think, ma'am?" He circled and shook his head.

"I don't think so, let's keep going. We can't drive with the track looking like this." It was mangled. "Avoid that next one, it's still smoking."

"It should be alright, let's look real quick. See? The smoke is coming from the front. Probably just overheated." Zelda wavered and the Private took his chance.

"It'll take less than a minute to check and then we can move on."

Zelda sighed and gave a nod. He was older and more experienced for all the rank difference. They crept to the tank and began an exterior inspection. Smoke was lightly billowing from the front so Zelda moved around to the back to ensure that whatever was smoking wasn't coming out another side.

Everything looked fine in the back except another pair of boots under the chasis. This time, the boots still had feet in them.

"Hey! Wounded!"

Zelda pulled on the boots and a soldier slid free with a squelch. She yanked his shirt out of the way and thrust her hand to his throat for a pulse. It was strong and steady. The Private was working the portable radio frantically.

"Lieutenant! Incoming troops! We have to find shelter!"

"What?!"

"I'm going in!"

"What?! NO! It might not be-"

An explosion cut her off. The opened hatch let in a rush of oxygen and ignited the dying fire within the tank body. Zelda threw herself over the unconscious man. She held on for dear life and clamped her eyes shut. Her ears rang and her head blurred, the heavy armored vehicle rocked ominously in her direction. The enemy was coming. She never learned her partner’s name. The man below her would die if she didn't recover quickly enough. What next? She could hear them coming. A dull rumble turning to a roar. Men shouting.

She shoved the wounded man back under the chassis where she had found him and squirmed into the mud beside him. She prayed to all the goddesses that they would take the smoking remains of this tank as reason to pass it by. Prayed that it wouldn't continue to explode above her. Prayed the man next to her didn't die while she laid in a grave next to him. Just in case, she kept her hand on his throat to feel his pulse throb in a steady, comforting rhythm.

Link

His head ached. A terrible ringing grayed out his vision. His body was hot and cold and hot and cold. His throat was full of smoke and death and weight. And damp. A wet, hot, muddy hand was pressed against his throat. He breathed in quickly then was cut off from shouting when the dirty hand shot up to his mouth.

"Shh!" He couldn't see the shusher, "They'll hear you."

It was a woman's voice. Link tried to take stock of the situation, but there wasn't much to go on. He was lying in a drying puddle of mud under what was likely his tank with a woman. If it weren't for the mud it might have been on purpose. And if his head didn't feel like it had been split open by a hatchet.

"What happened?" His words were slurred.

She didn't answer immediately.  "We were overtaken."

Enemy territory. Okay. There was a process for this. Hide. Get somewhere safe. Take stock. Gather supplies. Make your way back. Don't get caught.

"Did you work on this hunk of garbage, Sargent?"

"Yes, ma'am. Loader in the hole."

"Okay. Then here's what we're going to do. The M4A2 at two o'clock looks in alright condition from here. We'll take shelter inside until we can come up with a better plan or until we can get it running and make a break for it."

"That's a Zora tank. I've never-"

"Me, either. Can you walk? You hit your head, I think."

"I think so. It's not far."

He really wasn't sure. The woman, a Lieutenant, seemed to have a plan which is a sight better than he had so he would just have to make it. The mud squelched and slurped noisily with every extracted limb. A cool breeze nearly froze him to the bone after so long in the damp. The Lieutenant steadied him with one hand and kept a grip on a metal box with the other. He thanked the Goddesses when he realized it was a mechanic's toolbox. She carefully picked her way through the supplies they had strapped to the back of the vehicle and grabbed the med kit and a small bag of foodstuffs. Link grabbed his personal pack and slung it over his shoulder with his rifle.

They set out across the field with furtive glances in the direction their camp used to be back when it wasn't completely deserted. The ground was rough and packed hard from the heavy machinery driving over the ground. A faint smell of dead hung suffocating in the air and kept Link light-headed the entire journey. He hung his head to the ground and followed the woman blindly into danger. They stuck together from one safe cover to the next. She stepped carefully around any unknown piece of metal on the ground and avoided bloodstained dirt like it was contagious. She was basically unarmed and unfamiliar with a battlefield and squeamish on top of it all.

"You green?" he asked.

"No" was the clipped reply. He reached out to her anyway and pulled her up short.

"Listen, Lieutenant Bospho-" He squinted at her name patch. "Bosphor--... Lt. Bosso. Listen Bosso, I've been active for a while and I'm the one with a rifle. I'll take point."

She looked very upset. Either she wanted to lead the way because of her greater rank or she disagreed with his butchering of her name. It's not his fault her name didn't fit with standard sized lettering. He let his grip on her sleeve tighten and pulled her behind him before striding forward carefully and tugging gently at her sleeve in a silent command to follow. She didn't think of an objection before they were moving, but Link heard her mouth click shut. It hardly mattered, superior officer or not she was a mechanic and likely didn't carry anything more than a pistol if she had any weapon at all. He was trained and was at least used to the leftovers in a field. His hands were already bloodied.

Their pace picked up with him in the lead. He marched confidently through the mud, avoiding bloodstains for his delicate companion, and arrived at the Lanayru tank shortly. He circled the machine once to look for smoke. The turret hatch was open so there was unlikely to be anything smoldering inside. Lt. Bosso hauled herself up to the top and flashed a torch into the hole. As it happened, she did carry a pistol, and was comfortable enough with it to wield it alongside the torch.

"No one's home. Let's get in and rest for a bit. I wonder if they've got a decent map in here."

Link pulled himself up and slid in after her. She shuffled her way into the driver seat and he slid neatly into the gunner's . This thing had elbow room. Maybe he should have lied about his age and his home province. This would have been nice. It gave him the room to eye the Lieutenant's shapely behind from several excellent angles while she found her seat. He was still considering his luck when she finally put her butt down in a chair.

"So, Sargent Forrester. Let's figure out what's next."

Zelda 

Sargent Forrester was rude and brash but kindly enough. His stumbling over her name was fairly rude and Zelda wasn't sure how he didn't recognize it. His behavior bordered on insubordination, but she was grateful that one of them knew what to do at least. She could plan all she wanted, but none of this was like boot camp and certainly unlike anything she had seen in her year of service. She ignored him as best she could when they got in the Lanayru M4A2 and immersed herself in the parts she could see from the driver's seat. The most obvious problem was a misaligned periscope, but there was likely something more wrong with it or it wouldn't have been abandoned like this.

She opened her baggage to see what they had to work with. Extra rations would have been nice, but instead there were perishable goods that had the faint smell of smoke wafting out of the first bag. Probably three or four meals worth for each of them. A field medical kit with little more than trauma bandages and some morphine. If things got that bad they were dead for sure. Her kit was undamaged but was designed to repair Hylian machines. The small kit from under the co-driver's seat would be more useful. Her own pack had some rations and a similar first aid kit supplemented with alcohol.

"What's in your bag, Forrester?" she asked. Maybe he had something of use.

He settled further into the gunner seat and closed his eyes.

"Standard pack. Rifle. Canteen. First Aid. Shovel. Ammo. Pistol. Rations. Blanket. Cigarettes. Ma'am."

Technically not insubordinate. The lists soothed her frazzled nerves. When in doubt, make a list. When the air smells of death and sweat and burning rubber, make a list. When you've seen bloody spots on the ground where your subjects lay dying, make a list. When you're locked in a tank with a stranger with a gun, make a list.

To be fair to Sgt. Forrester, he seemed trustworthy. He was rude and gruff, but followed her where she wanted to go and was clever enough to inspect the machine before he just climbed in like her dead partner. She just left his body there. She didn't even look to see if there was anything she could salvage for his family. Self-recrimination ate her from mind to heart.

"Are you alright?" Sgt. Forrester had come up to her from behind without her noticing. His eyes were soft and concerned and scanned her head to toe. He seemed to be assessing her physical and mental condition with one efficient glance. He didn't seem satisfied with the results when he was done. His hand hovered over her shoulder for a moment before retracting back to his knee. "Is this your first time out? There's no shame in snapping your cap looking at all this. I wouldn't judge you for crying even, the Goddess knows I've wanted to more than once."

Zelda didn't want to feel better. She wanted to curl up and wallow in self-pity. But he was kind and she couldn't help but be comforted by his words. She gave him a wan smile and gave herself a little shake.

"I'm fine. Thank you," she said a little more prim than she had planned, "This is my first day out, but I've been in the service for almost a year. I didn't expect... Well I thought it would be different. I've never been to the front before."

"Little more than the front, I reckon. We seem to have wandered past the front and into the back again. This hunk of metal gonna get us back? I've never been in a tube so roomy. We could..." he glanced at her and changed what he was going to say, "We could throw a party in here."

"Yes, well. There's definitely a few things that need fixing. We'll be here overnight at least. Might need to look for some replacement parts. I'll know more when I open her up." Zelda replied. She thought for a moment then thrust her hand in his direction. "I'm Zelda. What's your name?" She wasn't going to miss another name.

"Link, ma'am."

They shook. Link's hand was warm.

Link 

Zelda was a surprisingly good mechanic. She pulled apart the busted periscope and spilled metal innards across the ground like the first slice into a pot pie. It didn't seem like a complicated piece of equipment until he saw all the pieces dumped unceremoniously on the floor of the otherwise pristine cabin. She poked at one of the mirrors with a wrench she pulled from her bag until she was satisfied. Link thought it looked exactly the same as when she started poking at it, but she's the expert.

She bent over nicely to see the track the periscope swivelled on to view side to side. Since her back was turned, Link let his eyes wander over the view she provided. So it was a surprise when a loud clang echoed through the still cabin. It rang like a bell for a moment before Zelda reeled back and whacked the track again with a hammer that had appeared in her hand while he was distracted.

"What are you doing?!" Link asked incredulously, "You're gonna break it!"

She ignored him and reeled back where he caught her hand before she could thrust forward and hit the track again.

"Hey!" She screeched, "Let go! It's almost fixed!"

She yanked against his hold and he tightened his grip.

"You can't do that! What if it breaks? We need that periscope so I can see while I drive this thing back."

She stopped flailing against him for a moment and he suddenly noticed their position. He was holding her arm over her head and had pulled her by the waist to press her back flush against him. There was very little space between them and it was completely inappropriate, but if he loosened his grip she might hit the hull with her hammer again. Or him. Either way, he kept his grip tight and imagined she didn't feel soft and plump and warm. She didn't seem to be having the same problem.

"You drive?! I'll be driving."

"You? I know how to drive these things. You're just a mechanic. You'll be on the radio."

"No, I'll be driving. No one is going to be on the radio. You will be sitting in the back and manning the gun. I can't shoot that thing and there's no way we're getting back without alerting the enemy. When we've crossed the lines then I'll man the radio."

Right. That made sense. He released her body and immediately used his hand to push the hair out of his face. He needed to find out how to fire this thing quickly. She used his lapse to throw her whole body forward and hit the periscope track one more time with all her body weight. She inspected her hack-job and seemed satisfied with the level of damage inflicted. The periscope was reassembled in minutes and she gave him a smug look when it swivelled from side to side smoothly. Minx.

"How do you boys sleep in this heat? I know sometimes you're in here for days. It's suffocating." She asked while sitting down delicately in the drivers seat. It was strangely feminine compared to the way she trudged around while working. She clasped her hands and draped her legs elegantly to the side as if they were sitting in a nice restaurant instead of huddled in a tank beyond the front.

He shook himself. "We don't. I usually sleep on the ground outside. But, we'll have to keep buttoned and tough it out in here. "

Link tried to seem nonchalant as he unbuttoned the first few buttons on his uniform and removed his boots. Every movement felt unrefined compared to her effortless presence. It was going to be a long, hot, uncomfortable night. The width of the cabin wasn't wide enough to lay completely flat, but it was close. He couldn't remember a time that he wished he was shorter. Zelda wasn't faring much better. She was a little taller than him and seemed reluctant to sleep sitting against the wall as he was preparing to do. He mostly didn't watch as she pulled off her shirt to reveal a white undershirt and remarkably toned arms. Link suppressed a smile when she bundled it into a cushion for her distracting bottom. Zelda's shoulder brushed his before he realised that the only place for her to sit was squished next to him, jammed into the console and with her feet pressed against the small step on the other side into the turret. She was soft and warm against his side. He pulled his bandana off his head and offered it to her. Anything to keep her soft hair from brushing him all night long and shifting his dreams to images of her.

Part 2

#rainworks #loz #legend of zelda #zelink #zelda

[radio-aula-mundi]

[svenerd]

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[goodnessofmischief]

senses // loki

pairing: loki x apprentice!reader (gender neutral)  genre: fluff, f2l (i guess), slow burn.  1.9k words.

a/n: felt inspired after reading Fǫruneyti by @foruneyti​​ whose work i admire so much <3 

Dark skies loom over the palace, its corridors dark and empty save for royal guards stationed by individual royal chambers and the occasional guards making their rounds. While it’s not forbidden for you to be roaming the palace this time of night, it certainly would attract unwanted attention and arouse suspicions. You carefully avoid getting spotted, swiftly moving across the corridors, past the throne hall, down a spiral staircase and aim right for the large doors of which behind them house your indoor training grounds. 

The only light source in the large room comes from the night light that emits from the four enormous windows to the left. Your eyes take a few seconds to get used to the dark and scan the area for a while before landing on the very thing that led you to make the journey all the way down. Your notebook lies on one of the windowsills, illuminated by the light. You sigh out in relief. 

“There you are.” 

Perhaps your excitement was premature because as soon as you move to grab it, the book dissolves into shining green light. You huff out a laugh, “Idiot.” 

“Is that any way to address your prince?” 

You turn to face him, clad in his usual soft, black and green leather. The last you had seen him was three days ago during your training with Frigga, which he usually attends even if all he does is sit on the concrete steps by the wall, reading a book, until he was sent to tend to an urgent matter in a different city. 

“My apologies, Prince Loki.” You lower your head slightly in a bow, eyes full of jest, “When did you return?” 

“Earlier.” He takes steps closer and the night light only does favours to his already beautiful complexion. “I thought I sensed your magic here so I sought out the source. Turns out it was only a book.” 

The item materialises in his hand. He moves it back when you reach out and sends you a knowing look. 

“The first thing you do after your return is to look for me? I’m honoured.” You smile. “Did you miss me that much?” 

Stepping closer for another attempt to snatch the book away, you come face to face with him as he makes it disappear once again. “And if my answer is yes?” Your faces only inches apart, his green eyes bore into yours and you take in a breath but it sounded more like a soft gasp. 

Clearing your throat, you divert your gaze to the ground, ignoring the rapid beating of your heart and take a few steps back. Loki is always teasing you, he probably didn’t mean that anyway. “Loki⎼ Prince Loki, may I have my book back please?” 

“Have you ever heard the phrase, finders keepers?” 

“Please?” You muster up the cutest pout to the best of your abilities. 

Loki tries to fight the way his eyes wish to remain glued to your lips but it’s a futile attempt. His own press together in a tight smile and he holds out his hand with the book in it. You study him for a few moments before deciding it isn’t a trick this time. But of course you should have known it wouldn’t be that easy. It disappears just as the tips of your fingers brush against it, your hand lands atop his, he takes the chance and wraps his fingers around yours. Within a fraction of a second, your surroundings change. 

You now stand on a balcony at the end of a familiar hallway, stairs leading down to the garden on your left and before you, a magnificent view overlooking the sleeping city of Asgard. A favourite spot of yours, where you spend many late afternoons watching the sun go down, and many of those times with Loki right beside you. 

“Lovely view this time of night, don’t you think?” From the corner of your eye, you notice his eyes don’t leave you as he says that yet he looks away when you turn to him. “So calm and peaceful.” 

“My my,” you giggle, the sound like heaven to his ears, “feeling sentimental tonight, are we? What a rare occasion.” 

“You dare mock your prince?” 

“I am not.” you hold your head up, noting the lack of seriousness in his tone this time, “I am only stating facts, your highness.” 

He mirrors your smile with something akin to fondness in his eyes, but it disappears almost immediately and he averts his gaze down then back at the view. It makes your heart twist with hope but you remind yourself that you would only be setting yourself up for disappointment. 

After a period of comfortable silence, you lean toward him and whisper as if not to disturb his moment of peace, “Loki? Can I have my book back now?” 

He copies your movement, moving in unbelievably close, lips hovering just over your ear and your shoulder lifts up slightly when his breath tickles your skin, “No.” 

“Loki.” You manage to keep your voice steady and stern yet it only makes him chuckle. A pair of guards walk by, pausing for a moment to acknowledge the prince while you turn away to hide your burning face. 

Would they speak of this to others? What would people say if word gets round of you and the prince being up at such a timing, in close proximity, enjoying what one considers a rather romantic view? You wait till they turn the corner of the garden and their backs are out of view before turning back to him. “I’m starting to think you’re only doing this to keep me here. You don’t have to resort to such things to spend time with me, you know.” 

“Are you saying you are willing to entertain me whenever I wish?” 

“No,” you drag out the word and speak slowly as if you’re explaining something to a child. “I will spend time with you and keep you company if you ask nicely.” 

He nods as he listens and a satisfied smile plays on his lips. “You know I will hold you to that.” 

“I know.” You smile, “I mean it.”

“Very well then. I’ll return what’s yours.” 

“Wait, really?”

The surprise is evident on your face. You were sure he wouldn’t back down so quickly. “But only on the condition that I may have a look at its contents. Just to be sure it really is yours.” 

Of course. He holds up the book with a mischievous grin and shrugs. 

He knows for a fact that it’s yours. You’re never without it. It holds all the notes you’ve taken down after every lesson with Frigga. Loki often looks on as you write, complaining about how redundant writing is when you can just memorise from practice and that you’re wasting time. Yet he stays with you till you’re done. 

The other half of the book however, is full of sketches; sceneries, flowers, random palace people...and of Loki. 

You shift uncomfortably at the thought of him seeing your drawings of him. You had set a protection charm over the book so no one other than you, unless you allow it, would be able to see its contents. Mainly so no one else would have access to your notes on magic, but the many sketches you have of the prince isn’t something you’d like others to get their hands on either.

“Well?” He steps closer still flashing a grin. 

“Alright.” You say, albeit timidly. A look of slight surprise graces his features and with a flick of your wrist, the charm goes undone temporarily.

You watch closely as he flips from page to page, a playful smirk still playing on his lips until he reaches the halfway mark and the pages appear blank. His brows furrow in confusion and sharp eyes find you again while a finger traces the page from top to bottom. “You’re hiding these pages from me. You’re getting better at controlling your magic.” 

“Her Majesty is my mentor after all.” You say proudly, the anxiety slowly dissipating. “Isn’t she why you’re as powerful as you are?” 

The book snaps shut and you teleport it into your hands, celebrating internally when it works. It would’ve been embarrassing had it not; teleporting isn’t your strong suit, not yet at least. “It’s late,” you say as you shove it safely into your satchel, but when you look up he’s gone. “Loki?”

“You’re right.” His voice whispers in your ear and you yelp, spinning on your feet to find him smirking behind you. Why do you always fall for that? "It's late. You shouldn't be walking around the palace at this time on your own." 

"If there was anywhere I could be walking around on my own it would be in this palace." 

He hums in agreement. "Why don't we take a shortcut?" 

He offers his palms out to you. You haven’t mastered teleporting yourself yet, only managing to do so over a small distance, so you place your hands in his, fingers very gently holding on to yours. The next moment you're standing outside the doors to your chambers in the apprentice wing. His eyes never tear away from yours.

"Thank you Loki." 

"You are most welcome." He stands and looks around expectantly, and when you question his motives, he looks at the large doors behind you. "Aren't you going to invite me in?" 

You let out a hearty laugh, he waits patiently for you to be done, thoroughly amused himself at how you found that funny. "You wish."

“I thought you said you were willing to spend time with me?”

“Yes,” you look at him unbelievably, “but not now.”

“Well I demand you to.” 

“Well I respectfully reject it.” You hold back a laugh from escaping when the corners of his mouth drops into a frown. “Sorry to break it to you but sometimes in life you don’t get everything you wish for.” 

"Oh but you see, if I truly wish for something," his eyes dart to your lips, "it will be mine sooner or later." 

You shove him playfully on the chest but only to hide the embarrassment. He lowers his head in a smirk, taking a few steps back then looks up at you with his usual look of disinterest. 

“Goodnight.” 

“Goodnight Loki.” 

And he disappears. Pushing through the doors and making your way straight to the bed, you lie on your back and place your hands on both sides of your cheeks, feeling it burn. Then you roll on your front, reaching for the notebook and flipping to the second half where it gets messier, full of lead marks and more importantly doodles and drawings of Loki. Those only you can see. You sigh in relief. 

“Wait⎼” Something is amiss. You get on your knees, close the book to take a deep breath and open it up again. Your most recent drawing of him is gone; one you had worked on this afternoon from memory alone, a portrait of his piercing eyes, raven locks and signature smirk. You were sure you’re on the exact page it was drawn on. But it’s empty. Your heart beats a mile a minute. To be extra sure, you check the other pages in a hurry, carelessly flipping through without caring if the pages get folded.

It couldn’t be the charm, as it should work only on others. Everything should appear before you. Turning to the page it’s supposed to be on again, you blink once, twice then squint as something starts to appear, but it isn’t your drawing as you had hoped. 

A little sloppy. Good effort though. I’m keeping it.  

Your eyes widen, lips part and insides start to twist. 

“Loki!” 

#loki #loki fanfic #loki fluff #loki x reader #loki x you #loki laufeyson #loki drabble #loki x oc #loki oneshots #loki odison x reader #loki odinson #loki x original character #loki fanfiction #loki slow burn #rainworks #tom hiddleston loki #tom hiddleston

[juncdecotecote]

音飲み屋店主として本来モータウンやベイシーを先に観るべきだと思いますが時間的都合でテネットに行ってしまいした。 #音楽バー #世田谷通り沿い #レコードバー #西太子堂駅 #juncdecotecote #musicbar #三軒茶屋バー #ノンアルコールカクテル #世田谷線 #若林駅 #susosaiz #rainworks (Junc de Cote Cote) https://www.instagram.com/p/CFjrgDTj9V-/?igshid=1mgir6i4x57z4

#音楽バー #世田谷通り沿い #レコードバー #西太子堂駅 #juncdecotecote #musicbar #三軒茶屋バー #ノンアルコールカクテル #世田谷線 #若林駅 #susosaiz #rainworks

[justjenus]

Happy Friday! Join my journey become an art patron and support local art! DM For cash app info ! New materials for new project! Mural in progress so please turn on notifications as I document my 1st invisible mural!! #ItsGeniusJustJenus #covidart #art #streetart #rainworks (at Raleigh, North Carolina) https://www.instagram.com/p/CD4it_pht77/?igshid=106rrjonnd3j2

#itsgeniusjustjenus #covidart #art #streetart #rainworks

[proudtoberainy]

Hey Seattle: we installed 6 new #rainworks around the city yesterday, including this one. We dare you to explore in the rain and find them!

#seattle #rainworks #spiderman #kiss #rain art #rain activated art #rain #rainy day #rainy kiss #kiss in the rain #street art #spider-man #mj #mary jane #iconic #iconic movie scenes #seattle wa #WA #urban art #rain works

[yingmanhon]

偶爾下走到IFC Rooftop Garden, 心想之前的作品一定消失得無影無蹤了。 坦然，在我心裡，早就消失了。 . 載滿了水樽，衝上去。 心想：「如果你係到，就好了！」 . 噗通通通！ 野野野！巧kai sim呀！仲係到呀！野野野～ . 這陣子忙得不可開交，沒有時間好好創作， 不只是沒有時間， 更是心裡忙得沒有空間思考生活及懷疑人生～ 有些想法，想到腦時卻沒有好好地實踐。 . 今晚看到這件創作，提醒了自己： 「喂！起身喇！英文瀚！知唔知自己做緊乜呀！」 . 希望四月份能騰出多些空間， 讓藝術衝擊一下腦袋吧！ . 加油呀！ush ush ush! 英文瀚！ 共勉之。 . #travisying #handlettering #art #ifcmall #rainworks #life #upanddown #lifequotes #hk #hkig #hkiger https://www.instagram.com/travis_ying/p/BvTgORWAW5t/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1p9ol0ar429b9

#travisying #handlettering #art #ifcmall #rainworks #life #upanddown #lifequotes #hk #hkig #hkiger

[kjhmyg]

rough edges pt. 15 (m)

pairing: jungkook | reader genre: college!au, badboy!jk word count: 10k a/n: we’re almost reaching the end guyssss :(

1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 6.5 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10 / 11 / 12 / 13 / 14 / part 15 / masterlist

RE asks tag / pinterest board

“How are you doing?” 

Clothes lie haphazardly on the floor, items separated into essentials and non-essentials on your bed. With a smile, you answer much too eagerly. You might as well have told him the truth. “I’m doing great!” 

Over the phone, your dad sighs, as if he could see the state you’re in. Then again, he could always tell. “I had one of those feelings. You know, those I got whenever you’re up to something.” 

“Well…maybe I am.” You laugh and so does he, almost as if he has no choice but to go along with whatever it is. “But I don’t feel like getting into it right now.” 

He hums, “You know I’ll always support you. But I do have my limits. And that includes your health and safety, those come first.”

“Of course,” you bite your lip to stop the secrets from spilling out. You feel bad for keeping him in the dark, and worse making promises you don’t know if you can keep. “I promise I’ll take care of myself.”

“You better. And I expect a call every week.”

“Alright alright, geez.” 

The call ends shortly after, with your dad not forgetting to remind you to eat on time and to pay your bills. As soon as you hang up, you look at Hana, who has been sitting by your desk the entire time. “My dad says hi.” 

“Hi.” She says with a stoic face. “I think you forgot to tell him that you’re leaving the state and possibly the country with your boyfriend.”  

You give her a look as you stuff a bunch of your rolled up clothes into a duffel bag. “Okay I can tell you’re not very excited about my trip.”

“Stop saying trip, you’re literally leaving to help Jungkook escape.” She says, “You know who does that? Criminals.”

You don’t get upset, having heard this about a hundred times in the last few days. “Technically,” you arrange your items neatly next to the stack of clothes, “he hasn’t been prosecuted. So we’re not doing anything wrong. We’re just two people going on a trip.” 

“I can’t believe you.” Hana shakes her head, tired of your neverending excuses. “And have you spoken to Hoseok?” 

You send her a smile. 

“Is that a yes or a no?” 

Another smile.

“So no then.” 

“It’s just not the right time.” 

Hana goes over to you, “When is it ever going to be? When you’re already halfway across the Earth?” 

She’s right. But it’s too difficult to tell him about your decision; you’ve thought about calling him several times, but you never end up doing so. The events of that night are still clear in your mind. You’re sure it’s the same, or maybe worse for him. 

Hoseok had made it pretty clear he’s not going to support Jungkook any longer. That didn’t bother you too much. What concerned you more was wondering if he would end up telling Seokjin about what you did; how you breached confidentiality and told Jungkook about the investigation. 

It wouldn’t matter to Seokjin if Jungkook believed you or not, you still went against your word and betrayed his trust. But knowing Hoseok, he wouldn’t do anything to get you in trouble. “Okay,” you say in resignation, “I’ll tell him we need to talk.”

The bell rings and the both of you look out the door. “That must be Jimin.” Hana says. 

She gets the door and not a minute later does he appear at your doorstep, looking around. “Guess you were serious.”  

You smile, and welcome him with a hug. He’s tried to keep himself away from the drama, but after Hoseok came home fuming that night and started thrashing things about in his room, he didn’t have a choice. 

“How’s he doing?” He’s been your eyes on Hoseok since then. 

“Not bad, but not good.” Jimin keeps his eyes on you, studying your face, then brings his hand up to your cheek. “Are you sure about this? What makes you think he’s going to show up?” 

“I can’t be sure if he will,” you admit. What you don’t admit is knowing there’s a higher chance Jungkook might leave you hanging. “But I’ll be there if he does.” 

“You’re crazy…” He says, going around your bed and settling down on the chair. Hana joins in, making a dip on the edge of your bed. “You’re gonna have to tell Hoseok yourself, cause I don’t wanna be the one to break it to him. You should’ve seen him that night, I’ve never seen him so angry.” 

“I did see him.” You groan, still feeling bad that Hoseok had to go through all that because of you. “He and Jungkook almost got into it. I literally thought he was going to die.” 

“What exactly happened anyway?” Jimin asks, “He wouldn’t say. The only thing he told me was that Jungkook’s a lost cause…not like that though, there was more cursing involved when he said it.” 

You shift your bag to the floor, pressing your lips together. The whole thing is a little embarrassing. “Hoseok kind of…called Jungkook out for putting me in harm’s way. Then admitted he has a thing for me which then set Jungkook off.” 

“He what?” Jimin looks at Hana and she nods in understanding. She too, had the same reaction when you told her. “Why would he do that? That’s so stupid. And what are we, teenagers? Fighting over a girl like this…” 

Hana agrees, “Plus she’s already dating Jungkook, so there was really no need to say his feelings out loud.” 

“Exactly.” 

“Guys, please…” You stop them, “It happened in the heat of the moment, okay? I’m not defending Hoseok, I’m just saying maybe it was too much for him. Jungkook almost caused us to crash, we almost got hurt, and on top of that Jungkook started yelling at him….it was a lot to process.” 

“Damn.” Jimin scratches the back of his head. “And after all that, you’re still choosing Jungkook.” 

You give him a look of exasperation. “You wouldn’t understand.” 

“Yeah. And neither would Hoseok.” 

“Don’t worry, I’ll tell him myself.” 

“Great, ‘cause he’s on his way up.” Jimin says casually and both Hana and you snap your heads in his direction. “What?” 

“He’s on his way up? Here?” Hana asks.

“Now?” You look at Hana in panic. 

Jimin gets up as well, trying to read the room. “Why? What happened? What are we panicking about?” 

“Jimin!” Hana yells. “Why didn’t you tell us Hoseok was coming with you?” 

“I don’t know what I’m gonna say yet!” You take a deep breath, suddenly feeling warm. You start to plan your approach; it has to be direct. Hoseok wouldn’t appreciate you beating around the bush anymore. 

The doorbell rings once again and you gasp. Hana grabs Jimin and shoves him out. “You stall, tell him we’ll be right out!” 

Jimin barely gets a word in and the door shuts in his face. He grumbles across the room and opens the door, then goes to lie on the couch without even looking at Hoseok. Hoseok stands there, furrowing his brows when he doesn’t see you. He steps inside carefully, kicking his shoes off and closing the door. 

“Aren’t the girls home?” He speaks to Jimin, though he can only see Jimin’s feet hanging over the edge of the couch from where he’s standing. 

“Yeah, they’re inside pani⎼ getting ready.” He bites his tongue when he almost slips up. 

“Getting ready for what?” He asks, taking a seat. 

“I don’t know. Stuff.” 

Hoseok shrugs and patiently waits, tapping his fingers on the sides of the couch. He hears the rustling going on inside, then looks at Jimin again who seems not to care. Before he says anything, your door opens and he stands to greet you. With Hana behind you, you go up to him as casually as you’re able, and give him a small hug. He seems to have needed that, holding on a little longer before letting go. 

“How are you doing?” He asks. 

“I’m good,” you nod, then glance at Hana, “do you mind if we go outside for a bit? There’s something I need to tell you.” 

He hesitates, probably sensing he wouldn’t like what you’re going to say. “Sure.” 

𝄖

“I still can’t believe you did all that.” Bella sits across from Jungkook in her living room. He rests his arms over his thighs, head hanging low. “What’s gotten into you?” 

Jungkook’s kept silent since the moment he stepped in, knowing he could only come to Bella for this. Thankfully, other than the security involved, Bella hadn’t told anyone else what happened. He wipes his eyes. “He was out of line. Did you hear what he said?” 

“I did. But you shouldn’t have done that.” She tilts her head to try and level with his. “Do you know what he could do to you? He’s going to destroy you.” 

“Maybe I deserve it.”

“But Y/N doesn’t.” 

His eyes finally meet hers, lifting his head up at the mention of your name. He hasn’t forgotten; Hongjun had accused you of being a snitch that night. And he’s willing to bet that man has something up his sleeve, he wouldn’t sit back and do nothing about it.  

“You should go with her,” Bella continues, despite the reluctance he shows, “she’s right, maybe you should get away for a while. And it’s not like you’re forcing her to go with you…” 

“But you see, I can’t go.” He lowers his head again. “I don’t have it in me…to leave you behind. All of you.” 

“Then we all go.” 

Jungkook clenches his jaw, looking at her. “Seriously? That’s an even worse idea.” 

“But do you believe her? Whatever she told you?” She says it so quietly, as if it would be over if anyone heard them. Then she chuckles. “I’m afraid to even say it out loud.” 

He manages a small smile. “I don’t know what to believe.” He trusts Bella enough to tell her what you had told him. 

“I don’t think she would lie about something like that.” Bella sighs. “I know she’s not agreeable with what we do, but lying would only get her so far.” 

“Then how would she know about their movements? These things are classified Bella,” Jungkook shakes his head, “Shit. Maybe Hongjun is right.”

Bella goes quiet and he knows she’s starting to entertain that thought as well. 

“I think…” Bella treads carefully. “Even if she was working for them, it wouldn’t have been with any malicious intent towards us…This is Y/N we’re talking about. And look, she even disclosed such crucial information to you. It should count for something. She’s protecting you.”  

“You must really like her to defend her like this.” Jungkook laughs quietly. 

“I do. If all this is true then maybe I was wrong to think she was⎼” Bella stops herself. She couldn’t tell Jungkook about catching you doing business with Hongjun. Luckily for her, Jungkook wasn’t paying much attention. She places a hand on Jungkook’s knee, “Think of it this way, you’ve been looking for a way out. She’s giving one to you. You get to be free, and you get to be with the love of your life.” 

He smiles. “I guess.”

“Also, isn’t this what we’ve been saying would happen all along? We all knew Kim’s decision to work with Barome would end up with the cops getting involved.” 

Jungkook goes silent. 

“So? Are you going?” 

Bella seems more excited for him to leave than he is. Not surprising, after all, since she had proposed a similar idea a while back. “I’ll think about it.” Her shoulders drop in disappointment. “I really will think about it.” 

“Don’t leave without saying goodbye, okay?” 

“But then who will take care of you?”

“Hey, I’ve been doing fine all this while.” She punches his arm playfully, but softens at the thought of him thinking about her still. “Don’t worry, I’ll get my things sorted and ready to go at the first sign of danger as well.” 

He gives her a hug, sparing her a kiss to her hair which surprises her. “I think you should stay home in the meantime. I’ll tell them you need time off.” 

Bella appreciates the thought but shakes her head. “I can’t. Barome wants me around, and booked me for the whole month.” 

Jungkook cocks a brow. “He did? I didn’t know he’d be coming down anytime soon. I heard he’s super busy.” 

A troubled look stretches across her face. “Don’t tell anyone. But he wants me to train their new girls. I don’t want to, but I didn’t have a choice.” 

“Hey hey,” Jungkook hushes her, taking her into his arms again, “I get it. It’s Barome after all.”

“I don’t like it…” she says, looking down, ashamed to be a part of it. 

“It’s not your fault,” Jungkook reassures her, and she nods weakly, almost breaking down into tears, “it’s best not to go against Barome…for your own safety. Speaking of, why don’t you bring them down to the club. It’s better to keep close to us, just in case.” 

“But what if the police come for us there?” She says, eyes wide and teary. “We’d be caught red-handed.” 

“Don’t say that.” Jungkook holds both her hands in his. “We’ll be there to protect you.”

“Okay.” Bella says softly, nodding.

Jungkook sighs, wiping the stray tear flowing down her cheek, half-smiling. “See? How do you expect me to leave like this?” 

She pulls herself together, wiping away the tears and showing off her usual, winning smile. “No. Don’t worry about me. I’m fine. That was a temporary breakdown.” 

“Just stick with us. I promise you’ll be okay.” 

Bella looks like she’s about to say something else, until her son comes crawling into the room. As if disturbed by his mother’s emotions, he too wears a grumpy look on his face. As he stops to sit by their legs, he lifts his arms, reaching for a carry. But before Bella does, Jungkook’s already lifting him up. 

Jihoon’s confused at first, looking at Bella, then back at Jungkook. But then decides it’s good enough for him, settling nicely on Jungkook’s shoulder, tiny arms around his neck. 

“You’ve gotten better.” She says quietly. 

Jungkook looks almost embarrassed. “I watched some videos online, on how to carry a baby.” 

Bella covers her mouth with her hand, stopping herself from laughing but also finding it endearing at the thought of it. “Well you’re doing great.” 

𝄖

“Oh I love these!” You gush over the candy you just bought at the store, Hoseok following behind. He’s been awfully quiet on the walk, while you try to act normal. “My dad used to hide these from me cause I’d finish them all in one sitting.” 

“Will you stop stalling?” Hoseok stops in his tracks and you turn to look at him. 

He looks worn out, done. You look at him with guilt, having taken him round the block just to soften him up. But it seems to have backfired. “I’m not stalling…I just wanted some candy.” 

“We both know that’s not why you brought me out here.” He says, stepping closer. 

You abandon the candy, safely storing it in your pocket, but gripping on tight as if it could give you the strength to get this over with. Together, you settle on a bench by the side of the road. Hoseok keeps his focus on the sights before him; the cars, the people. Meanwhile, you struggle to let the words out of your mouth. 

“I’m leaving. With him.” You finally manage to say. 

His face scrunches slightly. “Where?” 

“I don’t know yet.” 

An air of awkwardness fills the gap between you. “I guess I can’t say I didn’t see this coming. I knew you’d still stand by him despite everything.” 

“It’s not a bad thing, you know.” 

“But is it a good thing?” He finally looks at you, visibly upset. “Shouldn’t he face the consequences of his actions? Why are you helping him to escape as if moving on would erase all the things he’s done?”

“It’s a long story. But even if I do get into it, I doubt you’d get it.” You sigh, placing a hand over his. “I know he crossed a line last week, he knows it too. I’m sorry for everything. But he’s not a bad person, he’s been through a lot and he’s really trying to change. All I’m doing is giving him the chance to. Deep down, I know you agree with me, that he’s better than this. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have come to me, asking to try and help him. Recent events have changed your perception, and I don’t fault you for that.” 

He shakes his head, as if tuning out what you’re saying. 

“Besides, the things that are happening right now are beyond his control. It’s mostly the people at the top of their organisation that are at fault. It’s not fair for him to pay for their crimes.” 

“Okay and what about everyone else there then? Are you gonna invite them to go with you?” 

You sulk a little, annoyed with the way he speaks to you. “I wish I could…”

“I don’t know.” 

“I’m not asking you to go,” you say, “I’m asking for you to understand why I have to leave. I love him.” 

His jaw tenses up at that moment. The truth is that he understands, of course he does. He’d try his best to save a person he loves too. But the tainted image of Jungkook in his mind, sitting in the driver seat of his black Mercedes, almost causing him to crash, gets Hoseok’s heart racing. “Jungkook doesn’t deserve you. He doesn’t deserve your love.” 

“And who the hell are you to decide that?” You snap, anger washing over you. It’s hard enough to sit here and be honest, even though you’re not obliged to tell him anything, without him being mean towards Jungkook. “You think even if I ended things with Jungkook, I’d come running to you? Fall in love with you instead?” 

“I never said that.” He huffs out in frustration, knees bouncing anxiously. 

Finding it hard to look at you, he turns away, keeping his eyes focused on anything else. He wishes he never admitted his feelings for you; now that it’s out in the open, he finds it harder to control his emotions. 

“I’m not going to change my mind.” You say. “You’re just going to have to deal with it.” 

When you move to go, you feel his fingers around yours. “Wait,” he sighs heavily, “I shouldn’t have said that. I’m sorry.” 

You don’t say anything, but sit back down when he tugs on your hand. Despite his words, you know he still believes his earlier statement. Right now, he resents Jungkook; nothing you can do about that. And you can live with it only because you know nothing is about to change on your end. 

“Look, I really appreciate all that you’ve done for me.” You say while looking down at your lap. “You’re a good person and I know you wish things could be different but this is how it has to be. If I’m being honest, it doesn’t feel too great having to leave…but I want to. So the least you could do is show me some support. I could use it.” 

He seems to process the words in his mind. Then a tiny nod, agreeing. 

You gradually break into a smile, and he mirrors you. “Shall we go back now? I could use some help packing.” 

“Okay.” He says quietly, and you drag him up. He moves slowly, hesitantly at first, but slowly warms up to you again as you talk about your dilemma on what to bring with you. 

 𝄖

Back at the Headquarters, Bella walks into a room where, in her presence, talking dies down into soft murmurs and eventually it’s silent. She looks around at the faces staring back at her. All women. By the looks of it, none were older than twenty-three. And thankfully, none looked younger than eighteen. Or maybe she’s just trying to make herself feel better by thinking that. 

“Hello.” She says, fingers fidgeting in front of her. “I’m Bella.” 

The girls erupt in a series of uncoordinated hellos, and afterwards it goes quiet again. The room isn’t big. It’s a small office redecorated with couches on two sides and a table on one side. Food spread across the table and she knows it’s only to soften up the girls. In reality, they probably haven’t had a proper meal in months. 

She flinches when the door opens behind her, and Barome walks in, together with Suga and two other men. “Ah hello ladies.” He says and they greet him back, much livelier than before. They probably already know who he is. 

Suga stands on one side of Bella while Barome the other. 

“This is Bella,” Barome starts, “you’ll be spending a lot of time with her in the next few months. Now, most of you are new at this, so take this time to learn as much as you can from her. She’s the best in the business.” 

As he says it, he snakes an arm around her waist and holds her close, pressing her side against his. Being used to this, Bella isn’t phased. On her other side, Suga looks on, clenching his jaw as he watches how Barome’s fingers practically dig into Bella. 

“You’ll be working down at our club.” Suga says, breaking Barome out of his daze. 

“You’ll be transported there in the evening, and transported back to your dorms once work is done.” One of the men with Barome says. He wears a suit, glasses and holds a briefcase. He checks his phone, “Speaking of, the van is here. Let’s get going everyone.” 

“Great.” Barome claps his hands together, being the first to leave, as the other man, his personal assistant, holds the door open. 

“What are we waiting for girls? Move move move.” The guy with glasses says. And with that, the girls stand behind one another, walking in two rows out of the room. 

Once they’re out, leaving only Bella and Suga, she lets out a huge sigh. Suga catches her when it seems like she’s about to fall over, hand on her elbow. “All good?” 

“Yeah.” She says, breathless. 

Suga holds her up straight and she lifts her head, looking at him with surprise. “Come on. You can do this.” 

“Are you…giving me words of support?” She asks, and Suga sighs, shaking his head. “Who are you, and what have you done with Suga?” 

“Shut up.” He says, and it brings a small smile to her face. 

“I’m just nervous.” She admits when he lets her go. But she slips her hand into his and squeezes it. “Look at all those girls. They’re so far away from home.” 

“I know. But at least they’ll have you looking out for them.” He says. “Besides, wasn’t this your idea? To train them down at the club?”

“It was actually Jungkook’s.” She says. “He says I should stay close by. Just in case. Otherwise, I’d have to spend a lot of time at other clubs and I don’t know anyone there…” 

He nods in agreement. “Okay. Good call then.” 

Bella lowers her head, and looks at Suga with doe eyes. “You’re worried about me?” She purses her lips. 

“Gross.” He says with a stoic face, and Bella drops her act, rolling her eyes at him. A small smile makes its way to his face and he turns to leave, gesturing for her to follow behind. “Come on.” 

Back at the club, Bella got to work, convincing Barome he didn’t need to stay to supervise. Of course, he listened. If there was anyone who Barome would listen to, it’s Bella. As he leaves, so do the other two men. The girls were evidently more comfortable with them gone, which is what Bella wanted. 

Jungkook stands by the stairs and watches the girls carefully, most of them avoiding his gaze. Suga walks behind them and eyes the younger one. “You’re scaring them.” Suga says, going to his side. 

“I’m just observing.” Jungkook says quietly and leans in, “How sure are we that they didn’t send a spy amongst those girls?” 

Suga purses his lips. “I didn’t think of that.” 

“Of course you didn’t.” With a roll of his eyes, Jungkook shakes his head. “You were too busy staring at Bella’s ass.” 

Suga’s head snaps so fast, narrowing his brows. “I was not!” 

“Okay bro, whatever.” Jungkook pushes past him, heads towards the room Bella went into. She barely notices his entrance before getting pulled to the side. “Does anyone look suspicious?”

“What?” Bella whispers, looking around. The girls have finally learned to relax around her. “What do you mean, suspicious?”

“Does it look like anyone was sent here to spy on us?” 

She looks taken aback. “No. Should I be worried?”

Jungkook relaxes. “I’m just making sure.” 

“What reason would they have to spy on us?” She asks. 

“Hongjun, maybe.” He says and Bella understands. “I don’t know if he’s gone to the bosses about what happened. About what he suspects.” 

She shares his concern now. But none of these girls look like they’re here to spy on them; they look like they’re scared to even breathe the same air as everyone else. 

“What’s going on?” Suga comes in between, separating them. He looks back and forth at either of them, waiting for an explanation. “What? You guys keeping secrets from me?” 

Jungkook and Bella share a look. Neither would budge and Suga knows it. 

“What do you guys know that I don’t?” 

Jungkook shrugs, deciding it’s the best time to leave. With a pat to Suga’s shoulder, he sees himself out. Suga, in fact, has been out of the loop. He doesn’t even know what happened between Hongjun and Jungkook that night. Jungkook had warned the security team not to talk to anyone about it. Suga looks at Bella expectantly. 

“What?” She says, mildly annoyed. 

“You’re definitely hiding something from me.” He squints. “I can see it in your eyes.” 

“You can spend all night looking into my eyes if you want,” she tilts her head, smiling, “maybe you’ll find out what it is.”

His jaw shifts. Bella always knows how to get under his skin, in a good way. He gives her a once over, then one last glare before leaving. 

𝄖

The hallways at the Headquarters have become much more crowded than they used to be. Most of them are new faces, which means they’re Barome’s men. It doesn’t bother RM much, since he doesn’t spend much time there anway, only having to come down today to help Kyun move his things. But Kyun seems extra irritable. 

“Everything okay?” RM asks, placing a stack of boxes on the couch in Kyun’s new office, one he recently moved into. 

“No.” Kyun huffs, “Everything’s a mess…Will you close the door?”

He’s weary of the men walking by, those he doesn’t recognise. “You don’t trust them too, huh?”

He gives a brief sharp look to RM, pressing his lips thin. “Let’s keep that between us. Now, will you tell me where the hell Hongjun is?” 

RM frowns. “How would I know?” 

“Haven’t you heard anything?” He asks, leaning back in his chair. RM shakes his head in response, disappointing his boss. “I haven’t been able to get a hold of him.” 

“I don’t know where he is.” RM shrugs. “You think something happened? Something serious?” 

“Not sure, but he’s supposed to check in with his earnings this week.” It doesn’t sit right with Kyun. But at the same time, Hongjun’s behaviour has always been unpredictable. “Are you sure you don’t know where he is? What about Ace?”

“What about him?” 

“Aren’t they always fighting about something?” He says, “Did something happen? Is that why he’s missing?”

RM purses his lips in a downward smile. “Haven’t heard anything actually.” 

It was a lie of course. He knew something was up the moment he stepped into the club the next night. He’d overheard the bouncers talking while on their smoke break. They were tight lipped at first, but nothing a little cash wouldn’t solve. 

He doesn’t have all the details, but enough to know roughly what happened. Hongjun was carried into a spare room and only fifteen minutes later did he come to his senses. Bella was there, offering him bottled water and had seemingly tried to talk about what happened. But as soon as he got on his feet, he left in a hurry. 

“Let’s go look for him then.” Kyun gets his keys and wallet from the table. 

“What, now?” RM asks and Kyun scoffs at the silly question. “I mean, I could go look for him. Why don’t you settle into your office?” 

“Is there a reason you don’t want me to go?” He eyes RM, resting his palms on the table. 

There’s no reason why Hongjun wouldn’t tell Kyun about it, unless there was more to the story. And until RM finds out what it is, he wasn’t going to risk it. 

“Do you really want to go out there and look for him around town?” RM tries a different approach. “Is this really about Hongjun, or is there something else bothering you?” He looks to the door where though closed, you could hear the commotion outside, where people incessantly walk by. 

“Don’t turn this into something kid.” He says, but his face tells a different story, suddenly taking a seat and leaning far back in his chair. RM sighs internally when his plan works. “It’s not that I don’t like all of this….” 

He stops himself, finding it difficult to continue. 

“Actually I do hate this.” He ends up confessing, voice almost a whisper.

It doesn’t surprise RM. “You’re not the only one. Many of our men don’t think this merger is a good idea.” 

Kyun raises his chin, “Including you?” 

“Honestly, I’m just in this for the money. I don’t care. But it doesn’t matter what I or anyone else thinks, does it?” 

“You better watch what you say,” Kyun says in a low voice, as if someone were listening in, “it could get you in trouble.” 

RM stays silent after that and Kyun looks at the mess of his table, then turns his attention away when his phone chimes. The air shifts uncomfortably. It’s warm and the smell of the until today vacant room lingers. There’s still lots of shuffling outside. And Kyun’s face drops. 

“What?” RM asks when he hangs up. 

“Captain just sent a message. He says a group of our men just got caught.” Kyun looks at his phone. “He wants their site cleared of any evidence.”

RM didn’t think it meant they would have to do it until Kyun gets up, ready to leave and gives him an expectant look. “What⎼ you mean we⎼ us?”

“Yeah. I need backup.” He says simply.

“Don’t we have men for this?” 

Kyun sighs, going towards one of the corners and searching for a particular box. He finds it and starts to pull something out. “We do…but they want to keep this quiet. We don’t need everyone panicking. Captain asked me to go. But since you’re here, you can come with.” 

“Perfect.” RM says quietly, out of resignation. 

“You’ll need this.” Kyun had pulled out a black hard case. Thick, heavy, but not as big as a suitcase. He opens it and carefully lifts the item out, handing it to RM. 

RM looks at the gun. He takes it after a moment of contemplation. “Hopefully not.” 

He follows behind as Kyun leads the way. But he stopped just before leaving the room. “Whatever we just spoke about…it never happened.”

RM nods in understanding. “I don’t even know what you’re talking about.”

Kyun hides a smile. “Call your team, send them the location. But don’t tell them anything else.” 

𝄖

An hour later, RM is sitting in Kyun’s car, a block away from the building the arrested team had used as their base. They wait for both Suga and Jungkook to appear and they do minutes later, entering the back seat. 

“We need to clear any evidence that would link back to us.” Kyun says, without waiting for them to get settled. “They got busted during an exchange at a club about forty-five minutes away from here. Now, we don’t know if they’ve alerted the cops to this location yet, so I don’t know if we’re going to be bumping into anyone.” 

“We didn’t see any sign of the police along the way.” Suga says, looking out the window. The car’s parked in an alley, two buildings on either side. 

“But how do we know they’re not hiding out here somewhere?” Jungkook asks, eyeing Kyun’s gun on the dashboard. 

“We don’t.” He says simply. He then nods towards RM in the passenger seat. “You go up first. Once you give us the clear, we’ll follow.” 

RM’s given a key before exiting the car. The building’s tall and though it looks old and worn out on the outside, it’s quite refined on the inside. The walls don’t have cracks in them, there’s no mould growing on the ceilings, no terrible stench in the air and the elevators actually work. Wouldn’t be such a bad place to set up base, as compared to the club or Suga’s apartment. 

They have the penthouse here, twelve floors up. Taking the elevator up would be risky if the police were already there. RM can feel the gun strapped under his belt and he sighs, preparing himself for anything he might come across.

Back in the car, it’s quiet. Mostly in anticipation of RM’s signal. 

“Either of you know of Hongjun’s whereabouts?” Kyun asks, looking at them through the rear-view mirror. 

“Nope.” Suga says and Jungkook shakes his head in response.

“Let me know if you hear anything.” He says. “Haven’t been able to get a hold of him and the others. Hope they haven’t gotten arrested too…would be a big problem…”

“I’m sure he’s out there somewhere, causing trouble as he always is.” Jungkook sounds nonchalant enough for Kyun not to suspect anything. On the inside, he’s tense, thinking about what Hongjun might be up to if he’s not picking up Kyun’s calls. Suga notices this, and Jungkook notices his stare but brushes it off.  

“Okay, all clear.” Kyun says, reading off his phone. 

Suga leaves the car first, together with Jungkook. They take the elevator up only halfway, then take the stairs up the rest of the way, joining RM right outside the apartment door. He unlocks the door and pushes it open gently. He walks in quietly and takes a look around. Kyun joins the other two outside as he does. They only enter once RM comes back out. “No one’s here.”  

“Okay, you stand guard, just in case.” Kyun says to RM then turns to the other two, passing them pairs of gloves. “Grab anything that could lead the police back to us. Like the ledger. It has all our important accounts, can’t let that fall into the wrong hands.” 

They get to searching, spreading out into the rooms. Suga looks in the living area while Kyun and Jungkook move into the rooms, working fast. There might not be anyone here now, but it doesn’t mean they have all the time in the world. 

The place is pretty well-kept. Not dirty, just messy. Clothes everywhere, beds unmade. Lots of random papers, money and receipts everywhere. Which made it a little tricky having to check everything just to make sure it’s nothing important.  

Jungkook checks under the pillows, bed, in their closet, underneath clothes, in the toilet, but he doesn’t find what he’s looking for. So far he’s found a phone and some suspicious receipts, but it’s the ledger he wants. He can hear Kyun and Suga talking, having found some items they think are worth keeping. 

While searching a table by the window, Suga peeks through the blinds, looking down at the street. “Hey,” he calls out to the others, “I think we might have company.” 

Kyun comes out to where Suga is, taking a look for himself. There’s a car parked below, men standing by it while reading off a clipboard. They’re not in uniform, so they could be detectives, perhaps waiting for the rest of their team. 

A minute later, a van pops up, this time with a couple more men with briefcases and gloves on. 

“Elevator’s moving. It’s going down, we have three minutes before they reach us.” RM adds, “We gotta go. Now.” 

“Okay boys. We can’t leave as a group. It’s too distracting. We move out and split. There’s a back exit on the ground floor. Quickly let’s go.” Kyun says, without waiting for the rest. He’s the first to leave, rushing past RM and taking the stairs down. 

Suga glances into the room to see Jungkook still inside, stashing a notebook into the belt of his pants. He assumes it’s the ledger. “Found something.” 

“Hurry up! We gotta go!” He gestures for Jungkook to get a move on.

They speed out the door, and head for the stairs, only to find the door locked. Jungkook tries to knock it down, shoving shoulder first into it, but it wouldn’t budge. “Damn it!” 

“What the fuck.” Suga peeks through the frosted window on the door. “Did Kyun just lock us up here?” 

“It must have an automatic lock safety function.” RM says, already shoving the guys back in the direction of the apartment. “Get in quick.” 

He shuts the door and they run to one of the rooms which has a window facing an alley. Suga locks the door to the room, just as Jungkook’s about to push up the window. That’s when they hear the front door unlocking. They look at each other, silent and panicking, afraid to even make another move. With a finger to his lips, RM nods at Jungkook, signalling him to the window. The fire escape is their only way. 

Slowly, Jungkook slides the window up and hooks one leg over the ledge. That was the easy part. As Jungkook and the other two soon realise, the fire escape was not maintained at all. It’s rusty and rattles with every step Jungkook takes, even as he tries to be as gentle as possible, moving at a horrifyingly steady pace. 

Suga and RM move out on the fire escape together, but it proves difficult. “This thing’s gonna fall apart if the three of us are on it.” Suga whispers to RM. 

It’s creaking horribly as it is with only Jungkook on it, already reaching the bottom with speedy steps. “Then you go first, quick.” 

RM slides the window down and moves to the side, hiding out of view. Suga doesn’t waste any time, taking two steps at once, hoping the metal wouldn’t give way under him. By the time Jungkook’s reached the bottom, Suga’s made it three quarters of the way down. It helps that he’s light on his feet. 

Peeking inside, RM can see the handle of the door shaking. They’re trying to get in. He has to go now or he’ll never make it. Five steps down, and he hears the door being kicked open. Crap. He thinks. 

He looks down and gestures to Jungkook and Suga who’s just reached the bottom, to go. They wait instead, even though they’re not supposed to. Kyun had clearly told them to split. One person getting caught is better than three. 

RM tries his best to make the way down without making too much noise. But it’s as if the stairs were worn out from Jungkook and Suga’s attempt, that it starts to fall apart slowly. The creaking is loud and a small part from the lower end breaks off, dropping to the ground with a loud clanging sound. 

The noise catches the attention of the cops inside. RM can hear the window sliding open. Fuck. 

A head pops out, looking down. His eyes go wide in surprise as he sees RM looking back at him. “Hey!” He yells and immediately, RM runs down as fast as he can. The detective jumps out the window, causing the metal to bounce and RM slips as he loses his balance, gripping onto the railings. 

“Shit. Go go go!” Suga shoves Jungkook further into the alley, in the opposite direction of the open street where they were sure to be caught. The two of them jump over the wall and manage to escape to the other side. 

RM is chased down the stairs and as he sees the other two managing to successfully escape, he lets out a sigh of relief and slows down, allowing himself to get caught. Hands behind his back, the officer puts him in handcuffs before going back up to the apartment, grabbing him by the collar. 

𝄖

It’s early in the morning when Namjoon finally gets released from questioning. Jungkook waits nearby the station until he sees his friend coming out. “Hey.” He calls out and Namjoon nods his way. “Rough night, huh?” 

“Better than most.” He says and they laugh it off. 

Suga’s waiting in the car, engine still running. “So what happened? Did they give you a hard time?” 

“At first, yeah.” He says, leaning against the headrest, letting his eyes close. “But they weren’t able to charge me for anything. After all, they found me outside, not inside the apartment. There’s nothing to tie me back to the other men anyways.” 

“That’s good.” Jungkook says. “Sorry we couldn’t save you.” 

“Don’t worry about it.” He yawns in the back seat as Suga starts to drive. “Better me than you guys.”

After a while, they hear some light snoring coming from him. Jungkook sits uneasy in the passenger seat. “Can’t believe Kyun didn’t even call to check on us.” 

“Hey, it’s protocol not to make contact just in case the police are tracking us.” Suga says.

“Okay but he just ran off without us.” Jungkook grunts. 

“Whatever, it’s always been this way. No idea why you’re surprised.” 

“I’m not surprised, just annoyed.” 

“By the way,” Suga entertains a thought, “I’ve been meaning to ask, are you sure you don’t know what’s going on with Hongjun?” 

Jungkook turns to him. “I don’t. Why?” 

“I mean there’s always something going on with you guys.” He says, “Did something happen? That’s why he's MIA right now?” 

“Don’t be ridiculous.” Jungkook's defence only makes Suga believe the opposite is true. “What could I possibly have done to him?”

Suga keeps his eyes on the road. Back at the headquarters, Kyun is sipping coffee at his desk, as if the day before hadn’t even happened. Jungkook rolls his eyes at his indifference. 

“You didn’t tell them anything, did you?” He asks RM. 

“Nope.” He shrugs. “They couldn’t pin anything on me. No records. No motive. I didn’t have any evidence on me either. Just the gun.” 

“Awesome.” Kyun rubs his hands together. They can’t tell if it’s the coffee or the excitement of escaping the police that’s got him all excited. “Now, can I get whatever ya’ll got from the apartment?”

Suga and Jungkook pull out a drawstring bag and unload it on the desk. They had collated their items while waiting for RM. Some pieces of paper with important names on it, packets of drugs, burner phones with important contacts. Suga looks at the items, then at Jungkook, waiting for him to pull out the notebook he saw Jungkook grab. “Didn’t you find the ledger?” 

Jungkook rubs the back of his neck, a guilty grin on his face. “Oh yeah that…I think I dropped it while we were escaping…probably climbing over that wall.” 

“Are you serious?”

“The ledger? You’ve gotta be fucking kidding me,” Kyun says.

“Well sorry, I was running for my life.” Jungkook says. “If they had caught me with that ledger, I would be in big trouble.”

“Relax everyone, they probably won’t even be able to decipher what’s in it.” RM says, trying to ease the tension. 

Kyun’s frustration lasts only minutes. After which he’s pre-occupied in updating the Captain on the items they managed to retrieve, dismissing the three men. 

“Can you believe him?” Jungkook looks at the other two. “He was the first to run off and he wants to get mad at me?” 

“You did lose the ledger dude.” Suga says and Jungkook rolls his eyes. 

“It’s not like I did it on purpose.” Jungkook grumbles. “Plus, we got other stuff that was equally as important. And did we hear a thank you? No.”

RM groans as they leave the building. “What are you guys even complaining about? I’m the one that had to spend the night behind bars.” 

“He’s right.” Jungkook looks at Suga.

“Thanks.” Suga says to RM. It’s the most sincere he’s ever seen Suga. “I know you stayed back so that they’d be preoccupied with you to run after us.”

He puts out a fist and it takes a moment before RM returns the fist bump. 

“No problem. We’re a team.” RM says and Suga feels oddly at ease for the first time in a long time. “Anyway, I need a shower. And a long nap. See you guys later.” 

Jungkook catches the way Suga looks at RM as he walks off, getting into the car. “You’re finally starting to like him.”

Suga’s frown is back. Eyebrows scrunched. “Will you fuck off?”

“No.” Jungkook shoves him and he stumbles a little. 

“Whatever.” He mumbles as he starts walking towards the parked vehicles. 

“He took the car,” Jungkook says playfully, “so I guess you’re stuck with me.” 

“Just shut up and give me a ride.” 

Jungkook smiles, handing over a spare helmet to Suga, one which you used to use. On the way back to Suga’s apartment, Jungkook rides past the train station and thinks about you. You would be waiting for him two days from now, and he still hasn’t made up his mind. 

“You’re awfully quiet now. What’s up?” Suga says as the bike comes to a stop outside their building.  

“I have a bad feeling.”

“About Namjoon?”

“No.” Jungkook bites his bottom lip. “About…the future.”

“Huh?” Suga’s confused. He walks past Jungkook towards the entrance, unsure if he wants to pull on this thread. He’s positive Jungkook has something to do with Hongjun’s disappearance and he wonders if this has anything to do with it. 

Jungkook waits till they’re back in the apartment, kicking the door close behind him. He then grabs hold of Suga, pulling him by the arm to whisper. “Someone gave me a tip.” 

“What kinda tip?” He asks quietly, observing Jungkook carefully. 

Jungkook’s mind scrambles to find a believable story. He can’t say it came from you. “That the police are onto us. It’s serious. This recent arrest? It’s just the start.” 

“Who’d you hear this from?” 

He gulps. “Our men on the streets.”

“Which one?” 

Damn. “The homeless guy. Remember? The one that comes and sleeps outside the club sometimes.” 

Suga searches his eyes and Jungkook feels himself getting warmer. Sweatier. “Okay…but I wouldn’t say he’s the most reliable guy.”

“Still,” Jungkook presses on, “he told me they’d start moving in on our people soon. And they did.” 

“Why didn’t you tell anyone then?” 

“You know I don’t trust anyone anymore.” Jungkook says and Suga nods. He finally lets go of Suga’s arm and heads towards the rooms. “I’m just telling you so we can be prepared. You saw how Kyun didn’t want us to tell anyone else about the arrests. It means they know something’s up and they’re trying to hide it.” 

“If you think about it,” Suga moves towards the couch, “wouldn’t telling everyone else just cause unnecessary panic? Look, you’re lowkey panicking right now.”

“Yeah exactly. If people knew they were in danger, they’d take steps to protect themselves. The bosses don’t want that, they want us to go on as per normal. Why do you think that is?” Suga doesn’t respond, gesturing for him to go on. “It’s because we’re only pawns in this game. Just like how RM stayed back to help us escape, that’s what our existence is to Kim, to Barome. We’re here risking our lives while they probably already have an elaborate escape plan.” 

Suga heaves out a sigh and Jungkook leaves him with his thoughts. This is one of the rare times Suga hadn’t interrupted him to say he’s wrong. Maybe he’s starting to see it himself. Jungkook hopes this means he and Suga are finally on the same page. 

𝄖

Hana gives you the longest hug. She teared up several times on the way to the station. Hoseok, on the other hand, is trying really hard to be there for you. Even though he doesn’t want you to go. He offered to drive you to the station, but as soon as you arrive, he feels regret washing over him. 

“Hey,” you say, tapping his arm when you see his eyes glaze over. Hana and Jimin fuss over your luggage behind you. “Thanks for the ride.” 

“Don’t mention it.” He says, keeping his emotions in check. “I’m gonna miss you.” 

“I’ll miss you too.” You say, going in for a hug. 

He waits for a beat before wrapping his arms around you. You know the last few days have been hard for him, but you appreciate how he’s managed not to let his feelings for you get the better of him. 

“You’ll be okay.” You say after the hug. He looks confused. “Your feelings, it’ll pass.”

He breaks into a chuckle. “Don’t worry about me.” 

You smile, giving him a fist bump. “Alright guys, you don’t have to stay. Jungkook will probably be here soon.” 

“And I’ll stay with her in the meantime.” Jimin says, nodding to Hana and Hoseok. 

It takes some convincing before they finally agree to leave. Jimin walks with you to the platform, taking a seat on a bench right next to the ticket office. You came in high hopes, but your smile slowly disappears as you take a look around. All the faces around you, yet none being the one you’re here for. 

“Not looking so good huh?” Jimin says honestly. He slaps a hand on your back. 

“Shut up, he’ll be here.” You say that but even you don’t entirely believe it. You start to get antsy, legs shaking, fingers fidgeting with the zip of your duffel bag on your lap. Checking your phone again, you sigh when there’s no notification. “He should be here.” 

“Where will you go if he doesn’t show up?” He lifts his back off the bench and leans his elbows on his knees, looking at you. “I know you said you won’t stay.” 

“I guess I’ll…”

“What?”

“I’ll leave on my own.” You say that and huff out a laugh, fully aware you wouldn’t survive in an unfamiliar place, especially not when you haven’t had enough time to prepare. “Actually I’ll just…go back home. And stay there for a while.”  

Jimin giggles, appreciating how honest you are. “I guess I’ll know where to find you then.” 

“But I hope he shows…” You say softly, looking at the big, heavy bag in front of you. 

Jimin rubs a hand over your back. “There’s still time. Don’t worry.” 

You nod, though there’s only fifteen minutes left till boarding, then another fifteen before the train departs. 

𝄖

Jungkook slips through traffic on his bike. The digital clock on his dashboard tells him he has ten minutes left till boarding. As soon as he arrives, it’s five minutes, and he looks around for you. He finally spots you, sitting with Jimin, who just got up to go somewhere. 

He stands behind a pillar, hiding from view, back to the concrete. He still hasn’t figured out what he’s going to do. His heart is heavy, watching you sitting there by yourself, packed and ready. He just wants to go over there and hug you. Tell you to stop this. That he’ll figure it out and make things work. He’s supposed to protect you. 

He looks at the texts you sent him last night. 

[11:40PM] You: the train will leave at 6.30 tomorrow. [11:40PM] You: don’t be late okay? 

[11:43PM] Jungkook: can we still talk about this?

[11:45PM] You: this is the only way [11:45PM] You: if you really love me, you’ll show up

[11:50PM] Jungkook: baby… [11:50PM] Jungkook: i love you

[11:52PM] You: then come and find me tomorrow. [11:52PM] You: i love you most <3  

⎼

[5:45PM] You: i’m here [5:46PM] You: come find me by the ticket station. [6:10PM] You: :(  

He showed up, but without any luggage. He had come to stop you from leaving. 

He turns around, peeking over the pillar. But this time he doesn’t see you at your seat. You’re gone. Jungkook looks around, searching for you among the busy crowd. Now that the train has started to board, it gets messy and loud. Have you boarded without him? 

He sees Jimin coming from the direction of the toilets, equally as confused to see you gone. What’s more, your bag is left on the bench. 

Something’s amiss. Jungkook dials your number. It rings for a while, then cuts off. He tries again, and this time it doesn’t even ring. 

He goes over to Jimin, who’s surprised to see him, immediately rushing in for a hug. “You came!” 

“Where is she? She was here a minute ago.” Jungkook asks, skipping the niceties. 

“I don’t know, I left for the toilet and came back and she’s gone⎼ wait⎼” Jimin cokcs his head to the side. “You mean to say you’ve been here the whole time, spying on her?” 

“I⎼” He breathes out. “I couldn't make up my mind. I feel bad⎼”

“You should, she was really hoping you’d show up.” 

“Okay so where is she?” 

“I don’t know!” Jimin looks around. 

“Do you think she boarded?” Jungkook scans the window of the cabins they stand in front of.

Jimin shakes his head. “But then why would she leave her bag?” 

“I’ll check inside,” Jungkook says, “you check the platform.” 

Jungkook enters the train, speeding past the cabins in search of any sign of you. He calls out your name but is only met with annoyed stares instead. He starts to get frustrated when he comes up empty, hoping Jimin had somehow found you but instead, Jimin returns to their original spot with an equally frustrated look. 

Jimin attempts to call you but the line doesn’t ring. “It’s off.” He says, a second after putting the phone to his ear. “I don’t get it. What happened?” 

“And why would she leave without her stuff?” Jungkook looks at him. “Call Hana.” 

“No.” He insists, “That’s crazy, it’ll only make her worry.” 

“So she left her bag…and her phone is off…”

“Do you think someone took her?” 

“But who would⎼” Jungkook stops short of finishing his sentence. It’s a thought he doesn’t want to entertain, but the first one that came to mind. Could it be that Hongjun⎼

“What? Do you know anyone who could’ve done this?” Jimin asks. 

Jungkook shakes his head but avoids Jimin’s eyes. “No. I don’t know.” 

“Ugh.” Jimin runs a hand through his hair. “I’m gonna go ask security and see if they can access the surveillance footage.” 

Jungkook starts to panic, mind racing with a million different ways this could go horribly. His phone goes off and he answers it without even looking at the caller ID. Suga’s on the other line. 

“Where are you?” His tone is off. Suga’s speaking softly, as if he doesn’t want to be heard. 

“Nowhere. What’s wrong?” 

There’s some shuffling going on and it sounds as if Suga’s moving from a busy room to a quieter one. Jungkook presses the phone to his ear, trying to ignore the sounds around him. “Another team’s down. This time it’s Barome’s men.” 

“Oh. So…what, do we have orders or?” 

“No but,” Suga pauses, “Barome’s pissed. Really pissed. You should get here now.” 

“I can’t. I’m busy.” 

“Doing what?” 

“Call you back later.” 

Jungkook rushes over to where Jimin is, trying to negotiate with them with your luggage on the floor next to him. He grabs the bag and Jimin, “Forget them, they’re useless.” 

“Okay,” Jimin says, trying to keep up with his fast steps, “so you have a better idea?” 

“I…may know who took her.” Jungkook says. It’s hard to ignore the way Jimin’s eyes widen. “But it’s just a hunch.” 

“So what should we do now?” 

“Leave it to me.” Jungkook digs into his pocket and pulls out some money, stuffing it into Jimin’s palm. “You go home and take her stuff with you.” 

“You do realise that Hana and Hoseok are not going to take this well?” Jimin asks, worrying for him. It’s not going to be easy for him either. 

Jungkook fights back tears. “It doesn't matter right now. I have to go look for her.”  

𝄖

Jungkook ran several red lights, almost crashed into cars and even slipped off his bike once. But he keeps going. He doesn’t know where you are but Hongjun is definitely the first suspect. He has multiple missed calls, all from Suga. He could see it light up on the phone mount every time Suga calls, but he couldn’t stop to answer. Nor did he want to right now. 

Instead, he texts Namjoon. But there’s no reply. 

So he decides to go in alone. There's an abandoned warehouse nearby which he knows is under Hongjun’s district. He managed to reach there in half the time. Seeing a couple of cars parked around the area, he knows he’ll find Hongjun there. 

He opens up one of the compartments of his bike and pulls out a handgun. He doesn’t like to have one on hand, but this time he thinks he might need it. 

Jungkook bangs on the door. A large guy opens the door only a fraction of the way, eyeing him down. “You have business here?” 

“I’m sure Hongjun’s expecting me.” Jungkook says with a fake smile on his face. 

 “Okay. Wait here.” 

After a minute, Jungkook’s impatience makes him shove his way inside, getting into a small struggle with the bouncer. It isn’t until a familiar voice calls out his name that the other guy stops, pushing Jungkook off himself. 

“Hey buddy.” Hongjun says, appearing out of nowhere. He has a casual smile on his face. 

Getting off the ground, Jungkook charges towards him, but stops in his tracks when his men appear behind him, aiming guns in his direction. Hongjun tilts his head and tuts at Jungkook, just to taunt him even more. “Where is she?” 

“Who?”

Junho and Taeho move behind Jungkook, placing a stool and forcing him to take a seat, guns still aimed at his head. They search his pockets, removing the handgun he’d brought with him. “You know who.” Jungkook says, gritting his teeth. 

“I don’t.” Hongjun pulls up a stool for himself and positions himself in front of Jungkook. 

“Where is Y/N?” 

“Ohhhhh,” he chuckles, “your not-girlfriend. Oh yeah she’s just taking a nap, don’t worry.” 

Jungkook lunges forward again but then feels a barrel of the gun against the back of his head. “One more time, and I’m pulling the trigger.” 

“Hey now, let’s calm down everyone.” Hongjun says, gesturing to his men to back down, as if he’s not the mastermind of all this. The facade he’s putting on is only adding on to the fire burning inside Jungkook. “I’m just trying to have a civil discussion with my old pal here.”

Jungkook sits back down, and pulls himself together. “The one you want is me. Let her go.” 

He laughs. “What could I possibly want with you?” 

“When I…hurt you that night. I suppose this is payback.” Jungkook says. “But it’s between you and me. Why go after her?” 

“Wow, you are so self-obsessed I swear.” Hongjun raises his brows. “Weren’t you paying attention to what I was saying? She’s acting as an informant for the police. She’s dangerous. She’s going to bring our entire operation down.” 

“No! You’ve got it all wrong, she’s not⎼”

Hongjun snaps his fingers and Junho takes that as a cue, walking off towards the darkness behind Hongjun. “Now now,” he says, “don’t need to try and defend your little girlfriend.” 

Jungkook’s eyes widen and his heart races when he sees you. They carry you in. Your eyes closed, body limp, wrists taped together. He tries to stand but they keep him down. 

“See? I told you she’s fine.” 

“What are you going to do to her?” Jungkook asks softly.  

“What we always do to traitors.” He says as if it’s the most obvious thing ever. Hongjun stands, going over to you, tucking a stray hair behind your ear. Jungkook seethes. It’s painful trying to keep himself in place. “Let Kim deal with it.” 

Jungkook yells out in frustration. He grabs the barrel against his head, pushing it upwards before kicking Taeho’s ribs. Jungkook runs to grab the gun, but Taeho’s quicker, scrambling towards it and swooping it up before Jungkook can. 

Jungkook turns back to Hongjun but he’s already going in the opposite direction, his men carrying your body with them. He makes a run for it, charging after Hongjun. “Come back here, you idiot!” 

Hongjun turns only slightly, smirks and continues walking. 

A loud bang goes off and Jungkook falls to the ground, yelling in pain. Taeho had shot him. He clutches his affected leg, still trying to get up. You’re right there. If only he could get to you. 

“Y/N!”

And then everything goes black.  

.

.

.

taglist:

@simp4tae @alpharyth @sarangtaurus @hobistruly @bubbless-world @drumsofheaven​ @kookxin @fan-ati--c–c @sojurmaine @kookiiieee @jenryu @somewhereinthestarss @taehyungiev13 @hobi-hobii @unicornbabylover @lilyflowerguk @adorablekoo @hobicomeholla29 @jjkyy @che-er-ful @giadalin @vminwildin @jiimiinsii @uskookie @sevgidgn @thenewjefferson @vampgguk @jksbbyfacebunny @finethepine @thehappygrungelife @callmejimmeo @storms-and-stars-blog @ladiesalute @rikaxyu @jjk1iscoming @hyyhpt2 @xworldwidecutieguyx @cherryblossom73 @shatzkrinslinzki @kazthebrekkerofinej @shydestinyyouth @callmejimmeo @parksugarbaby @claricedelune @jbbunny @kittygangbngtn @ohitssummer @bunnyeogguk @xtrataerrestrial @vmmnkooksgyu @shydestinyyouth @chaoticbisous @jeonninja @investedreader @b4ngtnies @athenakyle @shatzkrinslinzki 

#jungkook fic #jungkook x you #jungkook x reader #kwritersworldnet #networkbangtan #jungkook scenarios #my fic #rainworks

[ridetherain]

Courage at the Front Part 2/2

Second part of my WWII Zelda fic!

Part 1 | Part 2 | AO3

Zelda

Zelda woke stiff and uncomfortably warm. Sweat had dripped down her back leaving a damp spot where shirt met waistband. She had slumped down overnight from her place against the wall to a crumpled position on the floor. Her head was pillowed gently in Link's lap with his hand resting heavily on her shoulder. He was still asleep above her and she took the opportunity to really look at the soldier. With his uniform in disarray and missing his helmet, Zelda found herself really seeing him for the first time. He was young, probably twenty or so. His features were delicate and feminine. Not quite what you expect from a tank man - though his slim build was likely an asset. He had long lashes and pouty lips and soft blond hair that wasn't regulation length. He was the prettiest man she'd ever seen. 

"If you keep staring like I'm an animal in a zoo, I'm going to charge you five rupees."

White stars erupted in Zelda's vision when she startled and thrust her head out of Link's lap. The tight quarters ensured that her violent movement bashed her head into the nearest steel wall. She groaned in pain and humiliation before setting her head right back where it started. Link gave her an awkward pat on the head which only made the shame worse.

"Come on, Lieutenant. Let's see what's out there today." He said bracingly.

They awkwardly disentangled their limbs and Zelda spent a moment adjusting her clothing and Link's bandana back into something resembling respectable. It was obvious that she had spent the night on the floor with a man.

Link had immediately began peering out the repaired periscope and nodded to himself in satisfaction. He cautiously opened the hatch just enough to allow his head to pass and gave a full circle survey of the landscape.

"Seems quiet, ma'am. We should be able to step out for a bit safely. Inspect the exterior and try to get this thing going."

"Ok, the gas gauge is nearly empty so we'll need a refill before we head out."

Link nodded again and grabbed his rifle before pulling himself out the hatch. Zelda heard a few scuffling noises before "Clear!"

She pulled out after Link and began sifting through the supplies strapped to the M4A2. No extra fuel.

"Damn Zora. Can't they keep supplies on hand? Sargent, any ideas?"

She glanced at Link who was gazing at a tank about a half kilometer away. Dammit. He was probably right that it was the only option.

"Ok, I see it, Sargent. You go for that one and I'll head to the one in the east. One of us will probably get lucky and find something. Meet back here in twenty minutes."

They both took one last look around for the enemy before heading out. Zelda breathed a small sigh of relief that her direction was slightly less trampled and there were fewer red stains on the ground. She was still careful with unfamiliar bits of shrapnel though. Her heart pounded with every cracked branch and every shuffle of leaves under her feet. It was terrifyingly silent without her small noises. Her target was getting steadily bigger as she crept closer and closer.

Link

The gas was easy to find on the decimated hunk of garbage that remained of the Lanayru machine. He was halfway through cutting the jugs loose when he realised he had a bit of a problem. The problem was the voices of at least two men that Link could hear speaking on the other side of the tank. Enemy.

He held his breath and tried to cut through the mesh as silently as possible. They didn't know he was there based on the level of noise they were making. They seemed comfortable. Secure. Arguing in dull voices about bananas. His knife dragged through the netting another time and the jug slipped just a little. Just a tiny scrape. The voices stopped. Muffled footsteps began to creep closer. Link shoved his knife through another hunk of netting. The tension from the weight of the jug caused the breakage to snap. A boot scuffed. Link gripped the handle of his knife with one hand and the jug with the other and took a breath in preparation.

He ripped the jug free of the netting and swiped his knife to the side where a Yiga soldier jumped out at him. Knives swung between them and Link barely managed to drop the gas in time to catch a fist heading for his balls. It was too late to also catch the knife that slid forward and cut deeply into the back of his forearm. He cursed loudly into the man’s face and shoved him backwards onto the dropped jug. It clunked on the ground and Link used the obstruction to twist the soldier sideways so he was pinned against the fraying netting and supplies. A quick bit of footwork took the man to the ground and knocked his head with a sickening crunch. One down. One to-

Link froze. The unmistakable feeling of a muzzle pressed against his back. 

“Drop weapon.” 

Link immediately dropped his knife. His rifle was slung over his shoulder still and he carefully spread his hands to the side and shrugged until it slipped down his arm and bloodied on the hilt of the knife still sticking out of his skin. It felt like he lit his arm on fire. The knife had hit bone. The enemy pressed harder into his back for a tense moment while Link shook in pain before stepping back a tiny amount to grab at the rifle. 

It only took that space of a moment for Link to turn and bash the man’s face with the butt of his dangling rifle. A gunshot rang out in the still air. Link screamed in pain as the knife ripped from his arm. He didn’t stop though, and bashed again and again until the man was down and would never come up again. He wasn’t shot. He was pretty sure. He patted himself down with his good arm and confirmed there wasn’t extra blood coming from anywhere. 

Eager to get out of there, he slung his rifle over his back again. Picked up the gas and took off running back to as much safety as can be found behind enemy lines.

Zelda

Zelda began running back to their tank when she heard shouting coming from the direction Link went. When a gunshot rang out she hit the dirt and crawled the last distance to the tank. She cowered behind the treads for a moment fumbling with her pistol and squinted at the figure running full tilt towards her. Slowly the shape formed into a man carrying a box. It must be Link with the gas. He was struggling awkwardly with the canister, but she wasn’t about to run out and help while someone was firing at them. She averted her firearm and watched carefully for movement behind Link. He seemed to have won whatever fight he was in.

It felt like ages before Link was close enough to see. He was bleeding freely and slowing down. 

“All clear!” He shouted.

That was all it took for her to burst into action, running to him and grabbing the tank of gas off him. It was full and very heavy, maybe 20 liters which wouldn’t last, but should be enough.

“You’re wounded.” She was afraid of what that could mean. She didn’t know much about medicine. 

“Yes,” He grit out between clenched teeth. “The bastard jabbed his knife in my arm. It fell out. Don’t worry about it.”

She squinted at him for a moment, but turned to climb up the side of the machine to put her paltry offering into the fuel line. She kept an eye on Link as he shed his rifle and shirt to get at his arm. It didn’t look good, but that could have been all the blood. He poured out a measure of water onto the wound and it was looking a bit better. Thank god it was the back of his arm instead of the fleshy underside. It was deep though, and wide. 

Zelda tossed the empty jug to the side and climbed a little higher to grab the med kit she had hooked at the hatch. A bit of alcohol would clean it out and a pressure bandage would be as much as they could do for now. Luckily, the Zora had a bit of gauze she could use to help clean him off too. 

She offered him the bottle of alcohol, but Link just stretched his arm out to her and silently looked the other way. Zelda sighed, unstoppered the bottle and unceremoniously dumped a healthy measure onto the gash. Link grunted, but otherwise kept still and silent. She let the sting dissipate for a moment then swiped at the blood with the gauze. That got him to gasp and whip his head around at her.

“You could have warned me!” He bit out the words.

She shrugged and kept pouring and wiping until the wound and surrounding arm looked clean enough. The bandage was quickly shook out and pressed on carefully. She tried to be a little gentler with the ties and checked in on his face a few more times. He was a little pale, but seemed otherwise fine. 

“Come on, let’s get back in this hunk of metal and head home.” Zelda picked up his rifle and pulled it over her shoulder while he gathered his shirt and gloves. Now that he wasn’t in danger of bleeding out, she was able to look at the rest of him. He looked pretty good. Really good. Strong, too. 

She looked away before she noticed anything else and helped him climb up to the hatch.

“Put your shirt back on, Sargent.”

Link

"I think we're far enough."

Zelda slowed to a stop and Link gave a sigh and ducked back into the tank from where he was looking through the hatch.

"I don't recognize where we are, but we're on the edge of a copse with a decent sized field and a little creek. Should be enough landmarks to find us. Want to try the radio?" He asked.

Zelda nodded and motioned for him to swap places with her. He followed her direction and slid into the seat for the co-driver. His neck was aching after an hour of constantly surveying the horizon and tensing at every movement and glint of sun. His arm pulsed in pain in time with his heartbeat. Zelda fared better as the driver, but still seemed hesitant to start up the radio.

"Don't worry," He said, "We're about five kilometers from the last enemy troop we saw. We're definitely safe now."

She nodded absently at him and flipped the radio switch. It crackled to life and she silently waited for a moment listening to the static. She turned the tuner channel from the Zora setting to the one marked Hylian ally and let the static play for another minute. Finally, a voice came through reporting a supply convoy. Zelda met his eyes and they both released sighs together.

"Break, break," Zelda said, "Hotel Four-Zed, Hotel Four-Zed this is," she referenced the serial next to the radio, "Golf Tango One-Two."

The radio fell silent, and then...

"Proceed Golf Tango One-Two, this is Hotel Four-Zed." The crackled voice was the best thing Link had ever heard. They were going to live. He didn't really believe it until this moment.

"Hotel Four-Zed, this is Golf Tango One-Two. Code yellow, little bird returns. Unknown location. Traveled roughly 8 kilometers west from last known location. Over."

"Golf Tango One-Two, this is Hotel Four-Zed. Roger that. Stand by. Over."

Link waited quietly for an explanation of what Zelda had just done. What was "little bird”, what did that mean? She was a mechanic which wasn't exactly important enough to merit a code name. Something wasn't adding up. He did his best to let his displeasure known without directly questioning her. It was unlikely she would be intimidated by his glare, but it was worth a shot.

"Little Bird?" He repeated.

"Yes," She said crisply, "That's me."

The radio crackled to life again. A different voice was on the line this time.

"Golf Tango One-Two, this is Hotel Four-Zed. Come in, over."

"Hotel Four-Zed, this is Golf Tango One-Two," Zelda said into the machine, "Go ahead Urbosa, over."

The voice sounded furious, "Little Bird you stay where you are. I say again, stay where you are. Your location is confirmed. What is your status?"

"I'm fine, Urbosa. I'm not on my own. We're safe for now, but we've got wounded."

"Don't move an inch. We'll be at your location within four hours. Over and out."

Okay, he had four hours to get to the bottom of this. Zelda set down the radio and began pulling her uniform back into place where she had loosened it.

"Come on, Sargent. Let's get out of this heat."

He reluctantly followed her out and found himself breathing fresh air and taking in some sunlight.

"It'll be dark by the time they get here, ma'am. We should find something to eat while we can still see."

"What? No, they'll be here in less than ten minutes."

Link startled and said, somewhat stupidly, "But she said four hours?"

Zelda just waved him off and drank from his canteen. Ten minutes. She must be from intelligence and have actual information to pass on. He's been wandering around enemy territory with a spy. No way was he going to question her. She'd probably have it all twisted around in minutes and would be questioning him. Or she'd been doing it this whole time and he's accidentally spilled his guts. What had he told her? He couldn't remember.

They waited in a tense silence until suddenly eight people melted out of the shadows in the trees to surround them. All of their weapons pointed directly at Link. His frightened yelp was the only sound of the whole experience.

"Oh, stand down." Zelda said, annoyed. Guns were instantly moved to not technically be pointed at him, but still close enough that Link didn't put his hands back down from where he had them raised. Zelda must be a really important spy.

Zelda was about to speak again when the sound of a chopper overhead caused the commandos to shuffle closer and point their guns even more menacingly at places very close to where Link stood. It landed perfectly on the little stretch of open land available and an enormously tall and beautiful woman stepped out like a movie star. Every movement was sensual. Link glanced to the side to see Zelda's reaction and was surprised to see her looking rather penitent.

"What the hell were you thinking!?" The beautiful woman shouted at Zelda as soon as she was in earshot, "Nevermind. Get in the helicopter immediately. We are returning you to the rear where you belong."

The woman didn't touch Zelda, but made it clear she expected compliance. Zelda grabbed Link's good arm and dragged him behind her.

"What? No, he can return with the Ops. Do you have any idea how worried I've been? You disobeyed orders, left your command, terrified me, and I won't even get into what this has done to your father."

Despite the beautiful woman's words, Zelda didn't let him go and Link was dragged aboard the chopper. Beautiful woman gave him an annoyed look and he returned a bewildered one. He rattled his name and serial number off. Hopefully that would be enough to keep her from tossing him to the squad of people with guns pointed not-at-him. 

They sat stiffly in the helicopter during the fifteen minute ride. Link tried not to look at the beautiful woman, the beautiful woman alternated looking disappointed at Zelda and suspicious of him, and Zelda watched the countryside go by. They didn't speak.

Finally the chopper landed and the beautiful woman reached over and pulled him back from Zelda.

"You leave last. Let her get to the ground before you step out."

It was an odd order, but Link wasn't about to get in the way of orders surrounding a high-level spy.

The beautiful woman opened the door and stepped out.

"I'm sorry." Zelda whispered to him before following the beautiful woman.

He gave it a beat before making his way to the door and looking out. He froze before he could step out because not four feet away from the edge of the helicopter blades was the King.

Zelda

Father was waiting for her when they landed. Zelda wasn't sure if she was surprised or not. Since she was missing for a time it probably made sense that he was here. It would look horrible if he was already in the country and wasn't there to greet his daughter on her return from being MIA. Zelda stepped in front of him and gave the best curtsy she could in her grubby mechanic uniform and Link's bandana. She was not looking the part of Princess at all.

Behind her, Zelda heard a gasp and knew that Link had finally put it together. Or at least realized that he was in way over his head. The suspicion around the codename had raised some questions, no doubt. But lots of people had codenames in the grand scheme of a war. Fewer had a King waiting for their return.

Zelda waited until she could hear Link's footsteps shuffling as close as he dared before...

"Father," And Link gasped again. "I want this Sargent to be awarded a medal for bravery. I owe him my life."

Link's training held and he was silent by Zelda's side. She couldn't quite see him from this angle, but she was sure that he was just over her left shoulder.

"Hmm," The King said, "Personal service to the crown merits more than a simple military award. Urbosa. Have my daughter and this man discharged immediately. The Princess will return to the palace and begin working again. The man can come at a later date for his investiture."

With that, he turned and left for the car awaiting him.

Zelda let out a breath and looked at Urbosa to see if she was going to start yelling. She wasn't. Papers were already in front of her face. No doubt they were discharge papers that she had already prepared. She tended to be one step ahead of everyone else.

"Your... Highness?" Link spoke quietly, "What... just happened?"

He looked completely bewildered. It was fun to see him so off balance after his calm and focus during their tumultuous escape. He was still a little pale from his injury.

"Oh, Link. We are going to be seeing more of each other, I think. You're no longer in the army. Or you won't be in a minute. You're to come to the Palace soon and get Knighted. I imagine you'll be getting a few titles actually, my father will want to make a point. No doubt you'll be weighed down by medals and then made my personal knight attendant or something equally archaic."

"...Knight?"

"Oh yes, there's no way you're getting out of this without a knighthood."

He was silent for a few minutes, absorbing. "So you’re… the princess?"

Zelda laughed.

#rainworks #legend of zelda #zelda #link #loz

[emwinters]

This is so amazing! Wish I knew how he painted this: Regrann from @dinotomic - Water ART! Wait for it! =D I love the reveal of this video how the water slowly flows showing a piece by piece of this image ( i painted this one on a slightly downhill concrete ) =D Its obviously aqua man ( and Jason Momoa was just a perfect cast for the role ) Since he is aqua man it kinda makes seance that the water is revealing him =D I also tried to challenge my self and tried to push the details on this piece compared to the other ones i have done so far =D I finished this one at 02:00( past midnight) last night because once i start these i cant really stop until its done since it evaporates so fast . It also challenges me to paint a lot faster than normally =D What do you guys think ? =D I also had 50 students with me today where i was explaining how are things done and showed them everything =D Thank you very much for sending me your supplies @proudtoberainy so that i can test them out =D #Rainworks ( their web page is : rain.works : if anyone is interested in checking it out =D

#rainworks

[k00275686]

Rainworks (Invisible Ink):

Rainworks reminded me of invisible ink so I researched a method that was similar to rainworks.

I used a white pencil to write song lyrics about rain on white paper. Then I painted over them with blue watercolour.

Overall, making my own "rainworks" was a fun learning experience. However, I have now realised that I could have used more colours. I only used blue because that is the colour associated with water.

The two songs I used were:

Here Comes The Rain Again by Eurythmics (1983)

Rain by SWV (1997)

[concretewheels]

. rainwork, linework & things with wheels The White Lotus Gallery / Eugene, OR 07June - 13 July 2019 . A few photos from the show in Eugene (gallery photos by Jen Huang/White Lotus Gallery). Many thanks to Hue-Ping & Jennifer. Such a pleasure to work with them both. . #whitelotusgallery #rainwork #linework #thingswithwheels #painting #sculpture #rainpainting #rainpaintings #burntgrassdrawing #drawinginmaple #sitespecificwork #farmboat #eugene #oregon #pnw https://www.instagram.com/p/ByknA-FlvGR/?igshid=1s7fqdb4dlbvw

#whitelotusgallery #rainwork #linework #thingswithwheels #painting #sculpture #rainpainting #rainpaintings #burntgrassdrawing #drawinginmaple #sitespecificwork #farmboat #eugene #oregon #pnw

[legendinmyhead]

That’s part of the reason a lot of times I prefer my IG to FB, I have absolutely nothing political or social that appears in my feed there! But it seems the #freddymercury #rainworks was popular this year! Along with the #lotus , #coffee and #wings #murals (and my silly #poetry #book , that one still makes me giggle) (at Ashland, Ohio) https://www.instagram.com/p/Br-UIF0hlKQ/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=z6wweufj07qz

#freddymercury #rainworks #lotus #coffee #wings #murals #poetry #book

[justjenus]

Happy Friday! New materials for new project! Mural in progress so please turn on notifications as I document my 1st invisible mural!! #ItsGeniusJustJenus #covidart #art #streetart #rainworks (at Raleigh, North Carolina) https://www.instagram.com/p/CD4iLumhHy3/?igshid=18ugdccvhnpeg

#itsgeniusjustjenus #covidart #art #streetart #rainworks