Chapter Text
The ride in the back of Jimin’s car was quiet and tense with Jimin watching you and Taehyung like a hawk, and Taehyung’s eyes flitting back and forth between you and Jimin. All you could do was bury your hands deep into your hoodie’s pocket and fidget nervously. The tension that was packed in the small car felt suffocating as you tried to even out your unsteady breathing while simultaneously struggling to control the panic building in your mind.
You cast a glance over at Taehyung, trying to silently ask him what he thought about the situation, ‘Do you think we’ll be okay? Do you have a plan? How do we get out of this mess?’
Taehyung’s look in return didn’t make you feel confident about your safety. You could tell in the clench of his jaw and the darkness in his eyes that he was about as blind as you were as to how this situation would turn out. Yet there was a hard look on his face that only slightly eased your mind; a look that told you he was prepared to do anything to get both of you out alive.
But that determination on his face was also something you didn’t want to see. You didn’t want anyone getting hurt on your behalf. It was bad enough that you got Taehyung caught up in this mess to begin with, but you knew you wouldn’t be able to live with yourself if he got hurt trying to protect you. ‘He hates Yoongi and my relationship with him, yet he’s out here risking his life for both of us,’ You thought to yourself, turning away from Taehyung’s intense gaze, ‘He’s truly a good man if I’ve ever met one.’
Your thoughts were interrupted by the car slowly rolling to a halt, and you breathed in sharply. You were about to come face to face with Jungkook without the guidance of Yoongi. While having Taehyung by your side was a small comfort, you knew you were more likely to get killed with him than you were with Yoongi.
Jimin got out of the car and opened the door closest to you, smiling coolly, “Ride’s over friends. Get out slowly, and don’t think about trying anything.” The fact that he didn’t even draw his gun showed you just how in control of the situation he was. It was certainly a power move on his part, and it was one you didn’t like one little bit.
You matched Jimin’s threatening gaze but did as you were told and slid out of the car at a snail’s pace. Once you were out of the car Jimin gestured for you to stand to the side and motioned for Taehyung to come out as well.
Taehyung did the same as you, never even blinking at the smaller man as he slowly got out of the car. The look in his eyes looked like he was about to snap at Jimin, likely in some plan he came up with to get you to try and run away. Whether his plan involved him making it out alive or not you didn’t know, but you weren’t about to take any chances. You scooted over beside Taehyung and laid your hand gently in the middle of his back while you simultaneously gave him a glare, ‘Don’t fuck this up, not yet…’ You urged your thoughts to hopefully get through to him.
You sighed with relief as you saw a little bit of the tension leave Taehyung. ‘Jesus, I feel like I’m juggling too many things at once,’ You thought to yourself as you and Taehyung silently stared at Jimin, waiting for his next command, ‘I have to watch my own ass, Yoongi’s, Taehyung’s, and now apparently Jimin’s, all just to make sure we make it out alive…’ Everything was stacking up on you, making your shoulders feel like they were holding the weight of the world.
Jimin grinned devilishly at both of you, “Now that wasn’t so hard, now was it?” He reached into the waistband of his pants and pulled out his pistol, cocking it slowly, “Be sure to keep up your good behavior.
You and Taehyung reluctantly followed the directions of Jimin and eventually ended up in front of some old abandoned warehouse. You hadn’t seen it before, so you were sure it wasn’t anywhere near the city. Looking to Taehyung for confirmation, you could tell this building was just as much of a mystery to him as it was to you. This building was “off the grid” in a sense since neither you nor Taehyung with your combined knowledge of the underground mafia works knew where you were; it was then you realized that no one would know where to look for you and Taehyung if you two were to disappear tonight.
‘Calm down, calm down,’ You thought to yourself as you tried to slow down your heart rate through sheer willpower, and failing, ‘You’ll get out of this. You have to.’
You certainly didn’t feel any better though when Jimin had you and Taehyung open the huge metal doors to the warehouse and close them behind you with a loud clunk. The sound of the metal ringing out almost felt like a death knell. You quite honestly felt like puking on the spot.
“Alright, walk all the way to the back,” Jimin commanded, casually using his gun to motion in the direction he wanted you two to move, “There will be a weird patch on the floor that I want you to push. Do anything other than that and you’re dead, understand?”
Neither you nor Taehyung said anything, but instead just kept walking until you reached the end of the warehouse just like he asked. You began looking around for this “weird patch” Jimin was talking about but stopped once you heard a scraping noise behind you. Taehyung had apparently found the spot Jimin was talking about, since he was now sliding what must have been a fake concrete slab over to the side, revealing a set of stairs that led underground.
‘Nothing like literally descending into Hell,’ You thought to yourself as Jimin motioned for you and Taehyung to go down the stairs. The air in the stairwell as you descended felt thick with the smell of mold and dirt, making it slightly harder for you to breathe. If there was little chance of anyone finding you before, there really was no hope now. Hardly anyone would think to look for a hidden passage in an old warehouse; it just seemed too cliché to consider a possibility, but here was Jungkook operating outside of everyone’s expectations. You realized a little too late that this was exactly what made Jungkook so dangerous.
The stairs seemed nearly endless, decrepit step after step deeper into the dimly lit passage. You, Taehyung, and Jimin had finally reached the bottom of the stairs after a few minutes, reaching an open room with harsh, flickering florescent lighting. You made a point to yourself to not look at the dark spots all around the room. What the stains were, you didn’t know, but you couldn’t help but think that they looked suspiciously like blood. There was also a thick iron door on the other side of the room, but your attention was soon drawn away from that door and brought to the man standing in the middle of the room.
“(Y/n), it’s so wonderful to see you again,” Jungkook greeted you cheerfully as he outstretched his arms to gesture about the room, “I know the place is a little rough, but what do you think? It’s a pretty convenient hiding hole, isn’t it?”
You frowned as you crossed your arms over your chest, “Yeah, your dungeon is just so lovely, Jungkook. Where’s Yoongi?”
His smile fell a little at your response, “Ah, don’t tell me you’ve gotten boring too,” he took a few steps closer to you before adding, “I’d really hate it if you stopped being interesting.”
“I just don’t take kindly to you threatening people I care about,” You replied coldly, “If this is all a part of your game, I’d rather it involve me and me alone. No one else has to get involved in this.”
Jungkook chuckled a little, “That wouldn’t be as fun though, (Y/n). How else would I get such wonderful reactions out of you? And besides, in catching Yoongi you also brought me another thorn in my side.” He turned his gaze away from you and smirked at Taehyung, “It certainly has been a while, hasn’t it?”
Taehyung’s face remained neutral, but you saw his hands twitch slightly, “Aside from that party, it’s been almost three years since we last met like this. You’re just as elusive as always, Jungkook, almost like a cockroach.”
The dark-haired man just laughed, “You’re so mean, Taehyung. What did I ever do to you to deserve this treatment?” Jungkook took a few steps closer so that he was now standing in front of Taehyung, grinning, “Wouldn’t have anything to do with your old partner, would it?”
Before you could react, Taehyung’s fist connected with Jungkook’s jaw, sending him stumbling back a few steps. You froze at the sudden outburst from Taehyung, and hardly had any time to recover from your shock before Jimin slid up behind Taehyung and punched him in the stomach, making the detective drop to his knees. Jimin held the barrel of his gun to Taehyung’s head, but loosened his grip on the trigger when Jungkook held up his hand to stop him.
Jungkook was laughing almost manically as he rubbed his jaw, “Ah, that’s still a sore subject for you, Detective? I’m sorry to bring it up, but it’s just so rare to get you off your game that I just had to do it,” Jungkook noticed your shocked and confused expression and added, “Oh, you didn’t know Taehyung and I have a long history, did you? That’s a story for another time though.”
Your mind was still reeling on what had just happened within the past five seconds. Past histories, Jungkook’s game, mentions of some old partner, Taehyung now being in a more compromised position than before, it was all piling up too fast. ‘If I don’t figure out how to get the upper hand soon, things could go from bad to worse,’ You thought to yourself as you watched Jungkook step away from Taehyung and inch closer to you.
“It seems like you’ve brought a bit of an unruly guest to my hideaway, (Y/n),” Jungkook hummed as he gestured over to Taehyung, who was still gasping for air from Jimin’s punch to the gut, “I don’t take too kindly to having these sorts of disturbances without my permission…”
You met his gaze, making sure not to waver or show any other signs of weakness, “I didn’t intend for Taehyung to come along with me the next time I was to see you. Maybe if you called ahead of time to arrange a meeting, you wouldn’t have unwanted guests.”
Jungkook smiled, but you saw a flash of anger in his eyes, “Can’t be too predictable now, otherwise you’d start to get some funny ideas,” He then turned his back to you and began to pace around the room, “I brought you here to talk to you a little more about this game that I have planned for you, and boy, is it going to be exciting from start to finish.”
You stiffened a little at his words, ‘If Jungkook says this is going to be exciting, I can only imagine how awful it’s going to be…’ No matter what his plans were though, you knew you had to follow them. You had agreed to play part in his game, and to try to break the agreement now would only be the final nail in your coffin, as well as Yoongi’s and Taehyung’s.
“But first, let me get rid of unwanted ears,” Jungkook made a gesture to Jimin, and the smaller man immediately grabbed a fistful of Taehyung’s hair and hoisted him up. He then forced him to walk all the way to the other side of the room, opened the solid metal door, and the two men disappeared. You worried about what was going to happen to Taehyung, but being alone with Jungkook, you wondered if you should be more worried for yourself.
Jungkook gave a small smile, obviously happy that the two of you were finally alone, “Now, let me tell you all about my plans for you.” He put his arm around your shoulder, shooting you a grin as he did so. Jungkook didn’t grip onto you tightly, but you knew that his arm being around you was some kind of low key threat.
You eyed him suspiciously as you spoke, “Are you actually going to tell me what this game is and what it’s about, or are you just going to give me vague answers?”
“I’m not like Mr. Detective over there,” He said as he pointed at the iron door, “I actually give direct answers when I’m asked.”
“Then tell me exactly what it is you want from me,” You huffed, “I know seeking out thrill and entertainment is your thing, but at this point you’re just being a little melodramatic.”
Jungkook laughed, but before you could blink he was pressing a knife to your throat, “While I do appreciate your sharp tongue, (Y/n), lets keep it to a minimum, shall we?” The cold, dead look in your eyes told you that this time he wasn’t playing around. You had overstepped your boundaries and needed to step back and keep quiet before you said the wrong thing.
At your silence, he smiled and relaxed the pressure on the blade, but still kept it near your throat, “Let’s get down to business then, (Y/n). As much fun as you are, I didn’t ask you to participate in my game for the hell of it. In fact, the night when I first met you I began to devise a plan.”
Jungkook removed the blade from your throat, to your relief, and began pacing around the room again, “You see, I could see that you had potential. At first, I was just going to try to recruit you as some low-level grunt within my syndicate, or maybe at least see if I got any information,” He fiddled with his knife before continuing, “But then, just to my luck, I saw that you worked for Min Yoongi, my biggest, most annoying rival. It was all too perfect really, with you being so close to the head of the Min Syndicate. I knew I had to play the field until I could get you to do whatever I wanted.”
“So you kidnapped Yoongi during our trade deal to have a bargaining chip,” You stated. You were just beginning to see that you and Yoongi had been pretty naïve in how you both approached your plan to take out Jungkook.
“Actually, capturing Yoongi was never in the initial plan, but it was a pretty sweet bonus,” Jungkook shrugged, “It didn’t matter whether we had him or not, I would have gotten you to do what I wanted regardless. It was just a matter of time.”
You crossed your arms over your chest, “You keep saying how you’re getting me to do what you want, but you haven’t actually said what you’ve wanted me to do.”
Jungkook smirked, “I’m getting to that, sweetheart. But first I must ask a question; how far are you willing to go to save Min Yoongi?”
The question took you off guard. How far were you willing to go to save him? At this point, you really didn’t know. ‘I care for Yoongi, but how much could I give up to save him? Would I really be able to do anything? I’m not sure if I could kill for him, and I’m sure whatever Jungkook will ask me to do is much worse than that…’ Jungkook was waiting expectantly for an answer. You didn’t have the time to debate on what your moral standing was, or how much of it you were willing to throw away. You needed to say whatever Jungkook wanted to hear.
“I’d do anything that I was capable of,” You replied, hoping that your wording would save you from having Jungkook demand the impossible.
“Anything you were capable of doing,” Jungkook hummed in response, and walked slowly around you in circles, “I think you just might be capable of a lot of things, (Y/n).”
“Probably less than you think, Jungkook,” You said, stiffening at his vulture like circling around you. Being in such a dangerous business, he had obviously learned the best tactics of intimidation.
He made a “tsk, tsk” sound at your response, “No, you’re more than capable. I know that you’re at least capable of trying to bring about my downfall,” Jungkook laughed at the look of shock on your face, “What, did you think I didn’t know about Yoongi’s plan to use you to get close to me? It’s a tired tactic of his, he’s used it so many times. You’d think after I had the fifth one killed he would have gotten a fucking clue.”
You couldn’t say you were all that surprised that Jungkook saw through your attempts to get close; after all, Yoongi had said so himself when he first mentioned the plan that Jungkook would probably see through your ruse. Even so, you felt that feigning surprise and making yourself look more naïve than you were might give you a slight edge somehow.
“Alright, so you got my back against a wall and my plans have been transparent all along. You’ve essentially got me beat. What is it that you’re wanting me to do?” You asked, trying your best to look calm and collected.
“It’s simple, really. I want you to do what you were trying to do to me; I want you to bring down the Min Syndicate from the inside.” Jungkook answered, a twisted smile slowly appearing on his face, “If you agree to this, I’ll let him go.”
“Why would you have me do that? I know he’s your competition, but wouldn’t it be quicker if you actively tried to take him down? I can’t imagine that it would be too difficult for you…” You asked him, yet you already knew what his answer was going to be.
Jungkook gave a devilish grin and replied, “It would be too easy that way. It would hurt him so much more if you were the one to bring him down. I want nothing more than to watch that man break into a million pieces.”
You were conflicted. Was it better to have Yoongi alive, but betray his trust, or have him die never having his faith in you broken? ‘It’s not like Yoongi shares my feelings anyway,’ You thought to yourself, ‘I’d rather have him alive and hate me for as long as I live than laying six feet underground.’
Just by the look on your face, Jungkook could already tell that you would agree to his terms. He looked smug as he let out a high-pitched whistle before saying, “Thank you for your cooperation, (Y/n). I’ll give you all the time you need to take down the Min Syndicate. In return, I’ll give you back Min Yoongi, and because I’m feeling so generous, I’ll give you back that shitty cop Taehyung as well. You better ensure that you do a good job though. You don’t want to see the consequences should you decide to turn on me.”
The metal door in the back swung open, revealing Jimin lugging around a bruised Taehyung and a bleeding, half dead looking Yoongi. You couldn’t help but gasp at their appearances. You had more or less expected Yoongi to be in bad shape considering how long Jungkook had held him, but in the short time Taehyung was in the back, you could tell he suffered a beating. You looked back at Jungkook with a look of pure hatred, ‘He’s got to pay for what he’s done to them…’
Jungkook playfully pouted at your face, “Don’t make that face, (Y/n), they’re still alive…. barely. I’ll show more generosity and drop you off within the city limits, but it’s up to you to get them to the Min Estate. Or the hospital, because Yoongi isn’t looking too good over there.” He chuckled before continuing, “It’s been a pleasure as always, (Y/n). Jimin, see these three off, and dump them at one of the usual locations.”
You found yourself unable to say anything as Jimin dragged the two boys over to you. You instinctively reached out to Yoongi and put his arm around your shoulder, helping Jimin support him and get him up the stairs and to the car. He was finally here next to you, but you couldn’t bear to look at him. You couldn’t bear to see what your mistakes had done to him and thinking about what you had just agreed to only made you feel worse.
‘I had to agree, I had to agree,’ You kept telling yourself as you helped Jimin load the two beaten boys in the car and blindfold them, as well as yourself. Agreeing to Jungkook’s deal was your only option yet again, but you couldn’t help but replay everything in your head and wonder if you could have done things differently. What if you hadn’t agreed? What if you had been stronger? What if you had been smarter? What if you had Yoongi at your side? What if you had never met Yoongi in the first place?
You were trapped inside an infinite amount of “what ifs” running through your head, but you knew nothing mattered but one thing. You had agreed to utterly betray Yoongi in order to save him. It seemed like the best decision at the time, but you hoped that you could live with yourself by the time it was all said and done.