Chapter Text
Yoongi is insane.
He must be.
“You cannot be serious.” Jimin tells him, arms crossed over his chest in total disbelief. “Something is wrong with you if you think you can just walk up to the government and throw their words into their face and make it out alive.”
Yoongi looks at him like he knows Jimin is right. They’re in Yoongi’s office right now, the morning light illuminating the whole room. It feels weird to see the sun, actual sunlight. Jimin had found it strange to wake up and to see the sky devoid of smoke and clouds after so long. Maybe it was a good omen, he had thought. But now, after what Yoongi just told him, there’s no way any of this is good.
Taehyung, Jeongguk, Seungwan and Sooyoung are here as well, called by Yoongi to attend this meeting of some sort. Jeongguk, Seungwan and Sooyoung are all listening silently, while Taehyung is reading the files that Yoongi showed them. The proof that the government is the one who introduced the virus and killed thousands of people. Jimin hasn’t read it, nor does he want to. If he does, it’ll mean that his father did die to save a country that tried to kill him. And succeeded.
“If I am going to leave, I have to do this.” Yoongi retorts. A known argument that he’s already told Jimin but this time, he sounds more assured, more confident.
“You should do it.” Taehyung says, dropping the file on Yoongi’s desk.
Jimin turns to him. “What the fuck, Taehyung.” Has he gone insane too?
Taehyung turns to him and points to the file. “Have you read this? This is incriminating evidence against the government. They deserve to have it thrown in their face. The world has to know.”
“But..” Jimin starts but his sentence is never completed. But he could die , is what his brain screams, but it remains inside of him. He looks at Yoongi, tries to convey his feelings to him, to his soulmate.
Yoongi only smiles at him, sadly. Defeated. “I have to, Jimin-ah.”
“No, you don’t.” Jimin retorts. “This was never what you were meant to do. You don’t have to do this, any of this!”
“Hyung.” Jeongguk speaks up. “The government is having an assembly in two days. All the executives will be here. The press, the lawyers, the medical staff..”
Jimin freezes, his eyes focused on Yoongi. He looks pensive, like he’s calculating all the possibilities, and Jimin wants to rip something. “Yoongi, please.” He’s begging at this point, but he has to.
Yoongi can’t do this.
“Okay.” Yoongi nods, mostly to himself. “In two days, we’ll expose them.” He speaks with a tone Jimin has never heard before. “In two days, they’re gonna have to come clean to the world and everyone will see what they’ve done.”
Jimin’s heart breaks in his chest.
Yoongi looks so determined, looking at all of them with a confident fire in his eyes, and Jimin has never seen him like this. Not even a year ago when Yoongi left him. Not even when Jimin pleaded for him to see things through. As the rest of them all start to form a plan, Jimin watches in silence, wondering how much pleading he’d have to do for Yoongi to stop this?
Yoongi searches for his eyes in the midst of it all, while the younger ones are talking and Jimin holds his gaze for about ten seconds before he has to look away. He stands on his good leg and limps his way out of the office. His leg doesn’t hurt as much and he can walk semi-properly though he still needs rest. But he has to leave this space. He can’t listen to them talking about what feels like a suicide mission.
He’s on the edge of the roof when Yoongi finds him. He’s been sitting there for what feels like hours but it probably hasn’t been this long. The sky has turned a dark shade of grey above him, like a cursed curtain claiming the fated doom over everyone. Jimin isn’t looking at anything in particular, just the vast spread of land in front of him, his legs dangling in the void. Jimin feels Yoongi coming behind him and doesn’t move. He doesn’t have to turn around to know it’s him, he knows it’s him in his bones. He can’t think of a world where he doesn’t recognise him by the clench his heart goes through every time they’re near.
Yoongi sits on the edge next to him, and stays silent. Jimin has so many things he wants to say that he doesn't know where to start.
“There’s a boat leaving for Tokyo in two days.” Yoongi speaks up first. “You could take it with the boys and leave.”
What. On. Earth.
Jimin turns to him like he’s gone crazy. In a heartbeat, he swings his legs back on the good side of the roof and walks away.
“Jimin!” Yoongi calls for him but he doesn’t stop. “Jimin, wait!” Yoongi doesn’t have a bad leg so he catches up to Jimin pretty quickly. He grabs Jimin’s elbow, prompting him to stop and turn around.
“How many times?” Jimin asks, voice raised and it feels like he’s screaming. He never screams, hates it when people do. He’s not one for conflict but something tells him if he wants to be with Yoongi, he has to accept that conflict is a part of it. “How many times do I have to see you leave before it stops hurting?”
Yoongi’s face grows sad. “Jimin, I am not.. I am not leaving.” He says, his hand still around Jimin’s elbow but the grip has loosened slightly. “You can catch this boat and I can join you later.” Yoongi lets his hand fall to find Jimin’s palm and squeezes it. It’s a simple touch but it’s charged with so many emotions. “I am not leaving you.”
“But you did. You left me a year ago, then you came back in the middle of the night and then you left again. And you came back. And you left me again in an empty bed and the next time I see you, you’re beating someone to death for me, and I.. Hyung, I can’t take a boat and leave for another city not knowing if we’re actually going to see each other again.”
“We will.” Yoongi’s hands come to cradle his face and Jimin feels himself melting under the gentle touch. Yoongi looks at him with eyes full of belief and conviction, like he knows they will. Like he’s seen their future and it’s beautiful and bright and everything they could hope for. “I promise you, this is the last thing I have to do. After that, we will be together and we’ll be happy. Okay?” Jimin nods without even thinking about it. “Can you see it? Us in Tokyo, walking freely in the fresh air. Having food whenever we want, walking in parks again. You could go to school again, do something with your life. We’re going to be so happy, Jimin-ah.”
“Happy..” Jimin whispers. He leans in and Yoongi meets him halfway, pressing his forehead against Jimin’s. They haven’t kissed, not even now that they know they’re soulmates. Jimin likes to think they’ll kiss when they’re free from this city. A kiss they’ll share to seal their new beginning. Happy. When was the last time he was happy? “We’re going to be so happy when we have everything.”
“We are.” Yoongi smiles in front of him. “Think about it, how happy we’ll be when we have everything.” Yoongi moves and drops a short kiss to Jimin’s forehead. And then he’s looking straight at Jimin, brown drowning in brown. “I just need to do this one thing first, alright? And I need you to be away for it because if something happens and they come for you, I will never forgive myself.”
Oh. Oh . Right. Jimin understands a little better.
“I can’t lose you, Jimin-ah.” Yoongi whispers. “Not you.”
Jimin could echo the sentiment. “Then you won’t,” is what he says instead of what he truly wants to. For a second, he wants to keep it in, but then he realizes. This is Yoongi. This is his soulmate. There’s nothing he can’t keep from him after all. “I am sorry for blaming you to leave. I forget sometimes you were left too.”
Yoongi’s jaw clenches slightly and Jimin raises his hand to feel it. It’s tense and sharp and Jimin suddenly remembers that Yoongi has killed people. Blood has stained his hands and his face and he has felt life leaving someone’s body under his own fists. But the skin is soft under his fingertips, an echo of his true soul, and Jimin wants to forget about it all.
“Once we’re away from here, we won’t have to apologize for anything anymore.” Yoongi tells him. “Everything will be alright, I promise.”
Jimin’s eyes fall to the inside of his wrist. The two dark circles are still there, still here to prove that this is real, that this is their life. This is their fate. Only one mark for two things. One mark for two outcomes. Jimin wonders if this mark, this sole circle for them, was a clue all this time. Or just an ominous omen. What had Yoongi said once? The good die young. But they’re not dead, so they must be better than he thinks they are. They will have a life, a new one, brighter, full of greater things.
The two days pass far too quickly in Jimin’s opinion. He tries to be mindful, to listen and care, but the information is all too much and he stays silent most of the time. By the time the two days are gone, Jimin knows the plan inside and out. But that doesn’t mean he’s not over.
The compound is awfully quiet, when he gets down to eat something. Though he doubts he’ll be able to stomach anything. A few people are seated at the tables but they’re barely moving, as if they’ve already given up on anything positive since Yoongi announced his departure. The announcement was met with a silence Jimin still hasn’t fathomed to this day. He wonders if they’re happy, or relieved that Yoongi will be gone soon. Would you miss someone who has done very bad at ensuring your safety? Jimin isn’t sure he wants to know.
He spots Taehyung at a table, spooning some food. Jimin joins him. His leg feels better today so he’s barely limping, and he’ll admit it feels good to walk more properly. Yoongi has made sure to take care of him for the days he’s been at the compound, feeding him and changing the bandages over his legs whenever he can. It feels strange, being the one being taken care of. He’s spent most of his time with Yoongi, so when he sits down next to Taehyung, it feels a little strange too.
“Hey.” He says as he sits down. Taehyung raises his head and gives him a warm smile. “Where’s your other half?”
“Jeongguk is still asleep upstairs. He’s been nervous about travelling by boat so he hasn’t been sleeping well lately. And he’s worried about Yoongi so..” Taehyung trails off, eyes cast downwards. Jimin looks away too, not knowing what to say. He’d lie if he said he’s not nervous too.
The plan is simple. Jimin has heard it enough times to know that it is simple but then again, there’s always that fear. He won’t be there. The boat leaves half an hour before the governments and all of the other executives will meet, so by the time Yoongi confronts them, he’ll be long gone. It’s all Jimin has been thinking about since he woke up this morning. He’s run every scenario where things could go wrong in his head, and he’s having a hard time letting go of them, but he has to.
“He’ll be fine.” Jimin says. He’s not sure who he’s trying to reassure here. “The plan will work. We’ll go to Tokyo, meet your cousin, Yoongi hyung will confront the government and join us and we’ll all be safe.”
Think about how happy we’ll be when we have everything .
“Can’t wait to have nice food, again.” Taehyung sighs, trying to sound cheerful. He turns to Jimin with a small smile. “Shall we get sushi for our first night there?”
Jimin can’t help his own smile growing at the thought of that. “I’d love that.”
Taehyung’s hand finds Jimin’s shoulder and gives it a gentle squeeze. Jimin has missed him so much. “We’re going to be actual teenagers, Jimin-ah. We’re going to live, truly.”
Jimin nods, still with a smile. “Yeah, we will.” And he believes it. They will get to live their lives as teenagers, a life ahead of them, without having to worry about diseases and viruses and a murderous government. They will be alive and happy.
“You’re ready?”
Jimin turns to find Yoongi approaching him, a smile on his face. Jimin narrows his eyes at him. “You look awfully cheerful for someone who’s going to confront a bunch of high class people.”
“It’s the anti-capitalist in me.” Yoongi says as he reaches him, a hand immediately settling on Jimin’s back. A comforting gesture. Jimin isn’t certain who it’s really meant for. Yoongi nods at the bag Jimin was packing. “You got everything?”
Jimin nods. “I am sad that I can’t go back to the hospital and get my things but I am starting to think maybe it’s better this way. I don’t want to keep the old clothes in this new chapter of our lives. Plus, they might tell me to throw them away when we reach Tokyo, so.” He shrugs, trying to sound nonchalant but he does feel sad. Some of his old clothes belonged to his father. But well. Maybe it’s time for him to let go of them.
Yoongi’s hand crawls upwards and finds itself at Jimin’s nape, gently running through the small hairs there. “You’re doing very well. And you’re right, they probably will give you new clothes to avoid contamination once you reach Tokyo.”
Jimin nods. “You got your own bag packed?” Yoongi is meant to catch the next boat coming for supply, which will only come in next week. A lifetime away.
Yoongi nods. “Yeah. Once they’ve elected a new leader here, I will be on my way to you.”
Jimin finds himself blushing at those words. He sighs, looking away slightly. “You’re not scared the government might keep you here?”
Yoongi shakes his head. “Nothing will keep me away from you anymore.” He says this with a smile, and Jimin finds a certain safety in the words. “I’ll come back to you before you even know I am gone.”
Jimin scoffs. “That’s impossible.” He lets a moment pass, lets himself feel afraid to ask and then remembers who he’s in front of him. “You’re really not scared?”
Again, Yoongi shakes his head. “No, because I know you’ll be safe. That’s all that matters to me. I..” Yoongi trails off, eyes falling down and Jimin tilts his head, waiting for him to continue. “I’ve lost a lot of people. People left, others died, but you.. I always found my way back to you somehow, and I know that whatever happens we’ll find our way back to each other. Always.”
Jimin’s heart swells in his chest at the sound of the words. Turning slightly so he can face Yoongi better, he grabs the older’s wrist, the one where two circles sit. Jimin looks at them, the circles. One black for him, one white for Seokjin. Seokjin had left Yoongi and broke their bond. Jimin isn’t about to let another circle on Yoongi’s skin turn to white. He traces the circle meant for him with his index, feeling Yoongi’s eyes on him.
“We’re soulmates, hyung. Even if we tried, we couldn’t be apart from each other. Not for long anyway.” Jimin says with a smile.
Yoongi hums in answer. With his other hand still around Jimin’s nape, he pulls the younger closer until their foreheads touch. Jimin closes his eyes, breathing him in. It’s almost funny to him, how this is the closest they’ve been somehow, the closest they’ll ever go, but how he can still feel everything regardless.
“I am so glad it’s you.” Yoongi whispers and Jimin feels the words in his own mouth. Yoongi pulls his wrist from Jimin’s grip and intertwines their fingers. “I hope I can give you better odds than what we were promised.”
Jimin knows what he’s talking about. He knows how much Yoongi loathes the fact that there’s only one mark for them. One mark that represents two things, two fates. One doomed, one lucky. Jimin wants to believe they can escape it, that they can build a brighter future together.
“We will be happy, hyung.” Jimin says. “I promise you, we will be.”
Yoongi’s thumb runs over the back of his hand. Slowly, he pulls away and brings his lips to Jimin’s forehead for yet another chaste kiss. With his eyes closed, Jimin thinks their promise is sealed.
The shipping dock is quite busy and by the looks of it, everyone wants to leave as quickly as possible. Jimin can see how fleeting everyone’s gaze is, how eye contact barely lasts a minute. He walks behind Taehyung and Yoongi, next to Jeongguk, while Seungwan and Sooyoung close their march. They’re silent and not interacting with anyone. Seungwan said the boat that will take them to Tokyo was a large fishing boat. Jimin would have preferred something smaller which would draw less attention but this was the only boat that would take them. They reach it way too quickly in Jimin’s mind and he watches as Taehyung and Seungwan speak to the fisherman on the dock. He’s unloading when they arrive, and there are loads of empty crates already. Jimin thinks about the last time he was here, on those same docks. He had almost died in a car accident; if he tried hard enough, he could still feel the smoke in his lungs. But he doesn’t, he shakes his head and chooses to focus on the present.
Seungwan bows to the fisherman and so does Taehyung, before the two turn around to them. “He has to finish unloading the crates before he leaves again.” Seungwan starts. “He has a few more crates so he won’t take long. He will take the three of you straight to Tokyo.” She gestures at Jimin, Taehyung and Jeongguk.
“He also said that we might have to give Namjoon’s name once we get there to prove that I indeed have family there. And there should be a two weeks quarantine in a government facility once we reach Tokyo.” Taehyung adds.
“That doesn’t seem too bad.” Jeongguk says, pulling his own bag closer to himself.
Jimin nods. As long as they’re safe, he’ll go through anything.
“He also said he can come back in a week’s time, like he had said originally. So you should be with them soon, oppa.” Seungwan continues, glancing at Yoongi.
Yoongi hums. “Okay.” He looks around quickly. There are people everywhere and Jimin notices that some of them have been looking in their direction since they’ve stopped. “The girls and I should head to the Assembly. We’re attracting too much attention here.”
“Already?” Jimin asks hurriedly. He had hoped he’d have a few more moments. A few more moments before they’re separated.
Yoongi’s fingers immediately reach for him, and Jimin feels a little less like he’s drifting. “Hey, I’ll be with you soon. Okay?” Yoongi whispers softly.
Jimin nods to the best of his capacity, but he knows it looks strained. He doesn’t want Yoongi to leave, a sudden rush of fear taking over him. He stands frozen as he watches the girls hug Jeongguk and Taehyung. Sooyoung even hugs him, though he barely feels it. “Don’t worry. We’ll make sure he gets out of there alive.”
Jimin doesn’t know what to say. He wants to argue that they’re too young, that they’re barely sixteen, that all of them are too young to be caught up in this. When Yoongi grabs his hand again, pulling a little, his brain circles back to where he is, what’s going to happen.
“Hey there.” Yoongi says, searching for his eyes. “You left for a minute.” Of course, he knows. Who else knows him better? If something happens to him.. god..
“Promise me you’ll be in Tokyo in a week’s time.” Jimin requests urgently.
Yoongi’s eyes grow soft. “Jimin-ah..”
“I don’t care how ridiculous I sound.” Jimin replies. “You have to promise me that you will be in Tokyo in a week. Promise me, hyung. You have to promise me.”
Yoongi nods immediately. “I promise. I will be in Tokyo and I will find you again.” His free hand comes to gently stroke Jimin’s cheek. “We’re soulmates, right? There’s no world where I won’t find you.”
Somehow, this doesn’t help. “You promise?”
Yoongi looks at him, his eyes searching Jimin’s, before he nods confidently. “I promise you with all of me.”
Jimin has to believe him. He has to.
“You have to be safe too, okay?” Yoongi asks of him. “Be careful on your way there. And do make sure to monitor your leg and how it feels.”
“We’ll take care of him, hyung.” Jeongguk says from behind them.
Yoongi hums at him but his eyes are still on Jimin. The younger wants to stay something, something he’s felt for a long time now, probably since he met a younger Yoongi, trying to get bandages from the hospital’s stock. It’s funny to think that he’s only known Yoongi for a year and half but he’s felt so many things, so many emotions that it feels like they’ve already lived a lifetime. They’re only seventeen and nineteen though. They have so much left to live.
“Hyung..” Jimin whispers, the words on the tip of his tongue.
“I know.” Yoongi immediately answers, and if Jimin didn’t know better, he’d think there are tears in Yoongi’s eyes. “I know.” He says again, lower, voice trembling. “And I-..”
“I know.” Jimin says quickly. Because he does. He knows. They don’t have to say it now. They’ll see each other soon and will be able to say it to one another then. This is only goodbye.
Yoongi nods, and only then does his eyes leave Jimin. He looks behind the younger, probably at Taehyung and Jeongguk. “You two take care as well.” Jimin finds it odd how weird the words sound. How definite Yoongi seems about them. They’ll see each other in a few weeks after all.
“We will, hyung.” Taehyung says and he sounds confident in this too. “Don’t worry about us.”
Yoongi nods again, but he’s nibbling on his bottom lip and it’s just too strange.
“Oppa, we should go now if we want to have a head start.” Sooyoung says. She’s been looking around as they all said goodbye, and she’s grown more agitated with every minute.
Yoongi sighs. He steps away from Jimin, and it’s the furthest Jimin has ever felt from him. “Alright then.” He looks at the three young boys, lingering a little bit on all of them. “Have a safe trip.”
Then he turns around and the girls follow him after bowing at the boys. Jimin stands frozen, unable to say anything. His heart feels like it’s been thrown to the ground and being stomped on. He watches Yoongi’s retreating figure, until it’s out of sight and Jimin feels a choke coming in his throat once the older disappears from view. It feels like all the air has been taken out of his lungs, and he’ll never breathe again. His wrist burn and itch and Jimin is afraid to look down at it. Scared to see white when he should see black. He feels Taehyung’s hand on his shoulder.
“Come on, Jimin-ah. Let’s get on the boat.” Taehyung shakes him a little, but Jimin’s body is stiff and rigid, firmly planted in the ground.
It takes a few pulls to get Jimin to move but eventually he does. The fisherman isn’t done yet, but the number of crates on the dock has increased. Jimin and the boys help him and it takes them a while but soon enough the crates are all unloaded and the fisherman takes them to the trucks who will take them away to the city. Doing something has helped Jimin forget about Yoongi for a while but now that his hands were empty and idle again, his brain circles right back to thoughts of the older.
His soulmate.
The fisherman has told them they should get on the boat now, because they will leave as soon as he’s back but Jimin is terrified. Jeongguk and Taehyung are getting onto the footbridge but Jimin remains on the dock. He can feel Taehyung turning to him, once he realizes Jimin isn’t following them.
“Jimin-ah?” Taehyung calls him.
Jimin wishes his eyes weren’t full of tears when he looks up at Taehyung. He opens his mouth, ready to speak but nothing comes out. This heavy feeling in his chest is taking over and it feels like his lungs are collapsing on themselves, crushing his heart at the same time. His wrist aches with longing, his soulmate marks itching like a burn.
“It’s okay, Jimin-ah.” Taehyung tells him. He sounds closer now, and Jimin realizes he’s crossed the distance between them. “You can go to him.”
Jimin looks up at him and there are tears in Taehyung's eyes. They must not be so different from his own. “I am sorry.”
“It’s okay.” Taehyung says, whispering. His hand comes to Jimin’s neck. “I’ll wait for you to get there so we can get sushi okay?” He jokes, voice choked with sadness.
Jimin nods, unable to form the words he wants to say.
“I’ll be back with him.” Jimin manages to say.
“Okay. Just be careful, alright?”
Jimin nods. He’d like to hug Taehyung, feels his best friend's warmth against him one last time before they have to part but if he does, he’ll never leave. And he has to go now, because Yoongi might be in danger and if Jimin isn’t there to save him, then who will?
------------
“You should have told them, Oppa.” Sooyoung says. Yoongi sighs, she’s always been the one to tell him how things were without cutting to the chase. She reminds him of Jimin in that way.
“He had to leave.” Yoongi speaks up. He’s driving the car carefully, the roads grilling with officers at every corner. “I couldn’t have done it without him here.”
“And when you don’t show up in Tokyo, what do you think he’s going to think?” Seungwan retorts.
Yoongi sighs. He turns the car into an empty alley and stops a few meters down. He shuts his eyes but as soon as he does, all he sees is Jimin’s face as they said goodbye. Eyes full of tears, jaw clenched with unsaid words. God, Yoongi should have told him. He should have told Jimin the real plan. But how could he? How could he tell the person he loves the most on this earth that this may have been the last time they saw each other?
He couldn’t even tell it to himself.
He opens his eyes and looks at Seungwan through the rear view mirror. “Hand me the file.”
Seungwan lets out a silent sigh but gives him the file regardless. Yoongi takes it and then gestures for them to follow him outside. “Let’s go.”
The government hall is a grand building. Modern and seemingly made entirely out of glass, Yoongi stares at it. It looks a lot more grim than he remembers but then again, he hasn’t been here in over a year. The stairs leading up to it are long and elevate the building in a way that almost makes it look like it’s floating. Above the ground, above the earth, above the people. Yoongi remembers the air of superiority people would get whenever he’d be walking the halls. How did he ever think he could become a lawyer? He could have never been a person working there. Not in this system. He had wanted to, but he had been blinded by delusions and family traditions.
Gosh. What would his father say if he were still alive?
Yoongi hasn’t thought about him in a while. His father used to work here after all. A renowned defense lawyer. What Yoongi had hoped he would be one day. Now, look at him. If his father were here, he’d be so disappointed.
There’s already a crowd of press stationed at the bottom of the stairs. Yoongi observes them, trying to see if he recognizes anyone but back then, when he was still training to be a lawyer, he wasn’t in much contact with the press so he doesn’t see one familiar faces. He does spot one reporter gesturing at the camera man next to them to point the camera at Yoongi and the girls.
“Oppa..” Sooyoung warns.
“Let them.” Yoongi says. “Let them know we’re here. Let them know the reckoning is coming.”
He doesn’t move from his spot. And the cameraman remains on them for a few more moments before he moves back to the entrance of the building, probably realizing the trio will not do anything, and waits for the exit of the executives. Yoongi is holding his breath as they wait too. They’ll come out at any point, he should get closer if he doesn’t want to miss his chance.
“Remember the plan?” He asks the girls. They both nod at his sides and he nods once. “I’ll see you when it’s all over then.”
He starts marching towards the building, not waiting for their responses. He can’t dwell on it any longer than he already has. He has to do this now. Yoongi crosses the street quickly, moving to the side of the crowd of reporters. The file is secured in his hand, but still he’s shaking slightly. This is it. This is what he should have done years ago.
When the large doors of the entrance of the building swing open and make way for a group of government executives, the sea of journalists don’t waste a second to swarm towards them. Yoongi takes a deep breath before he takes a step forward and starts walking up the stairs. He stops at the back of the crowd, craning his neck to see who’s actually there. It doesn’t take him long to find out. He'd recognize that voice anywhere.
“Our government is working really hard on finding a cure.” The voice of Prosecutor Lee, Yoongi’s former boss, is booming even from where Yoongi is standing. “My colleagues and I have been informed this morning that tests are in the process of being performed and we shall be looking at results soon.”
“Is that so, Prosecutor?” Yoongi calls out, making sure his voice reaches the front.
Journalists and all the camera men shift their attention to him. Some of them even move and soon enough a clear path has been made and Prosecutor Lee, along with a few colleagues at his side, is also staring at Yoongi. The recognition is clear on his face and then, there’s that smirk.
That annoying smirk.
“Yoongi-ssi. I see you’ve risen from the dead.” Prosecutor Lee says, his voice loud and steady. “What lies have you come to bear today?”
“Not lies. Just the truth you’ve been trying to bury for years.” Yoongi retorts. He holds up the file in his hands. “Do you remember this, Prosecutor?”
“Prosecutor Lee, how are you connected to this man?” A reporter asks, directing their mic to the prosecutor.
“Min Yoongi-ssi here is only a disgruntled former trainee of mine who now thinks they can spread lies about-”
“It’s not lies!” Yoongi retorts loudly. He takes a few steps forward, climbing the stairs. He turns to some reporters. “I have proof that the government itself has instigated the introduction of the virus into the population!”
“Min Yoongi!” Prosecutor Lee yells, calling him out but Yoongi doesn’t stop.
“In this file, you will see that there are records of the government introduced the virus themselves, and at a date prior to any knowledge!” Yoongi continues, showing the file in his hand to the whole crowd. “And our dear Prosecutor Lee was in on it all along!”
All the reporters turn to the prosecutor, already firing up questions after questions. Yoongi raises a challenging eyebrow at him. He’s never seen Prosecutor Lee look so uncomfortable.
“Prosecutor Lee!” A reporter calls. “Are these allegations false?
“Were you aware of what this man is saying?” Another asks.
“How did this man get this information in the first place?”
The questions are being shot like bullets and Yoongi could grin from how proud he is. Prosecutor Lee is staring at him with fire in his eyes. If they were alone, Yoongi isn’t sure he wouldn’t be strangled right now. But he’s not.
“Should I tell them about the vaccines and how your little party is profiting off of it while thousands of people died or do you want to do the honors, Prosecutor?” Yoongi asks.
Immediately, the reporters feed on this and start with a new load of questions. Gosh, Yoongi wishes Jimin were here. The younger had been so scared for him but so far, everything is great. He takes a few more steps upwards, looking right into his former boss’s eyes. “You remember what you told me? Now I see that truth hurts indeed. ”
Prosecutor Lee holds his gaze defiantly. “Why are you doing this? Why now?”
On each side of them, reporters are watching this duel of stares in silence. He must love this, Yoongi thinks. For a man who loves making a spectacle out of everything, this must be wonderful for him.
“I am tired of watching your secrets kill innocent people.”
Prosecutor Lee snickers. It feels as if time stands still and every second feels longer, stretching out in front of him. An ominous silence has fallen over the threshold of the building, waiting for the needle to drop.
Professor Lee’s smirk falls and he sighs. “Your father had wanted so much for you. How sad that it has to end like this.”
Yoongi frowns, his own heart stopping. He’s about to ask why when he feels it. Then it’s the screams and roaring motion of everyone around him scattering like ants. Then he hears it .
Jimin’s voice.
At first, he thinks he’s hallucinating. The pain in his shoulder stings and when he pulls his collar down a little he sees a bloody wound, and judging by how violent the hit in his back was, he assumes it’s a bullet wound.
Fuck .
“Hyung!”
Yoongi looks up, turning his head to find out where the voice is. This can’t be Jimin. It can’t be. Jimin is on a boat, sailing away to Tokyo, safe and sound.
Yoongi hears another gunshot and this time, he ducks down at the sound of it. Fuck, he has to get out of here.
"Hyung!" The voice is closer. Has he gone mad? Maybe the second bullet went straight to his head and now he’s hallucinating about being reunited with Jimin. Maybe..
He tries to move up the stairs as best as he can. The crowd of journalists has somehow dissipated but now workers from inside the building are being rushed out. When Yoongi looks around, he sees Prosecutor Lee being pulled away, into safety, and Yoongi wants to run after him, wants to pull him back by the back of his neck. He wants justice. He wants Prosecutor Lee to pay.
“Hyung!”
Yoongi hears him before he sees him and if this is a dream, or a mirage, then it’s very convincing. Jimin’s face comes to him, appearing in front of him in a frantic frenzy, hands grabbing him. It’s real, because Jimin’s hands keep touching him and Yoongi hisses in pain when he touches his shoulders. He’s gaping in disbelief, not understanding how, why, what.
Jimin is here.
Another gunshot is heard and Yoongi curses. “We have to get out of here!” He says.
“No fucking shit.” Jimin retorts. He’s looking around too, looking for an exit.
Yoongi has so many questions. He stands up a little straighter but his shoulder feels like it’s about to fall off. Jimin turns back to him when he hears the pained curse Yoongi lets out.
“Shit, we need to do something about this.” Jimin says. “We need to find something to apply pressure on it.”
“I’ll be fine.” Yoongi replies but he already feels the effects of blood loss. Another gunshot rings through the air and this time, Yoongi feels it near him. At first he thinks he’s been hit again, but then he looks at Jimin and his heart stops beating altogether.
Jimin looks down at his side, hands covering an immediate wound. His shirt is stained with blood and he’s gasping in pain. “Hyung?” Jimin pulls out his hand and there’s blood where there should be nothing but love and Yoongi hates himself a little more.
“ Fuck .” Is all Yoongi can say. He looks around, trying desperately to find something, someone that could help, but he now sees that officers and security agents are coming towards Jimin and him. With guns in their hands. “Fuck fuck fuck.”
Jimin looks behind him as well and echoes Yoongi’s earlier statement. “Yeah, okay, we need to go.” Jimin grabs Yoongi’s hand on his good side and starts walking down the stairs. For someone with a wounded leg and a bullet stuck in their side, he’s surely walking pretty fast. Still, Yoongi follows him. He would follow Jimin anywhere. It’s a wonder he’s even here. Yoongi wants to ask how, what happened that made Jimin come back, but somehow, he already knows. He was supposed to be safe on his way to Tokyo, nowhere near here. Gosh, Jimin.
They’ve barely gone down a handful of steps that they are blocked by another big group of officers, also with guns in their hands. Jimin and Yoongi both stop and start heading to the side, but there are officers there too. He doesn’t need to look back to see that they’re stuck from that side too. Yoongi’s jaw clenches in defeat. Jimin grips Yoongi’s hand tighter and Yoongi wants to apologize for bringing him into this. Jimin is hurt, and most likely will be taken into custody, and it’s all Yoongi’s fault.
One officer at the front speaks up. “Raise your hands above your heads, and come forward quietly.”
Yoongi takes a deep breath. “We don’t want any trouble.”
“Then just come quietly, boy.” The officer says and something in Yoongi irks the same way it would irk every time Seojoon would belittle him. Boy. He’s not a boy . He’s the leader of the fucking rebellion, he’s killed people too, he has blood on his hands and he won’t be afraid to spill some more if he has to. How dare they call him boy ? Is that all he is to them? A boy ? Another teenager with nothing to say?
“I want an audience with Prosecutor Lee.” Yoongi demands. “I want him to properly answer the proof I brought with me today.”
Some officers share a look but the officer who’s been speaking to them remains still. “Okay. We’ll give you an audience. Just come towards us without any sudden movements.”
“Another thing.” Yoongi says, because he’s not going down without a fight. He knows how this is going to end but he has to secure one last thing first. The only thing that really matters to him right now. “Jimin here gets to leave freely. He has no parts in this.”
Yoongi feels Jimin turn to him suddenly. “What? Hyung, no!” Yoongi doesn’t reply, nor looks at him. Jimin’s safety is all that matters right now.
The officer nods. “Okay, kid.” Kid . “Just come down and we’ll talk about this.”
Yoongi swallows his pride and tuning out Jimin’s protests, he starts walking down the steps. They’re still holding hands and Jimin is pulling on Yoongi’s, trying to get him to listen, to see reason but no. He can’t.
“Hyung, no, no, you can’t do this. Hyung, this isn’t right, this isn’t how- hyung, look at me! Listen to me! I am not leaving without you! Hyung!"
It’s the way Jimin pleads to him that’s heartbreaking and when they reach the bottom of the stairs, officers are already grabbing at them from each side. Yoongi feels Jimin’s hand slip from his, feels how Jimin’s fingers try to hold on, but Yoongi opens his palm and lets him go.
This was never meant to work after all.
Yoongi thinks about it as he’s pulled away by the officers. Their fate has been written for them all along after all. One sole mark on their wrist for a romantic soulmate and a nemesis soulmate.
One soul that you’re going to love forever.
One soul that you’ll never be able to connect with.
Maybe that’s how it ends.
Yoongi gets pulled away from Jimin, turned around and he can’t see Jimin anymore though he hears him. Jimin’s voice has always been lovely, and there was a time where Jimin’s voice was what lulled Yoongi to sleep. How many nights did he spend listening to Jimin telling him stories? How many nights has he dreamed of hearing Jimin's voice after he left? He didn’t realize how lucky he was before.
Yoongi is trying to stay strong, but his eyes are stinging with unshed tears. He shouldn’t cry in front of the officers, not when he has to remain strong, but. Jimin.
He tries one look back - one small look, he tells himself-, and it is. It’s a small look, just one glance over his shoulder so he can remember Jimin by something. Just one last look. But then he sees Jimin being manhandled violently by the officers, the younger being almost pulled off from the ground. Jimin is turned towards Yoongi, with two officers on each side of him pulling the younger back as best as they can. Yoongi suddenly remembers that moment at the docks, a week ago, when he saw that doctor touching an unconscious Jimin, and anger flares up inside of him again. Jimin is putting up a good fight, Yoongi has to admit, and that’s probably what’s worse about this. Yoongi has given up on fighting, willingly letting himself be taken away, but Jimin is fighting with all of his might.
“Wait.” Yoongi lets out, but none of the officers stop walking. “Wait, I need to-” He tries to turn around but this time, an officer stops him by pulling him forward. Yoongi winces in pain as he is being shoved harshly, the pain in his shoulder doubling. Jimin’s cries are still echoing, wrapping themselves around Yoongi’s heart.
He knows he shouldn’t, he’s only making this more complicated for them. He bends in order to get past the guards, avoiding their grips and runs towards Jimin. Seeing this, Jimin yells for him, and maybe given a nudge of strength, his soulmate manages to escape the grips of the officers too. Both running to each other, Yoongi tells himself that it doesn’t matter how this ends, if he gets pulled away into custody and given a life sentence. As long as he can hold Jimin one last time.
He hears the gunshots before he feels them.
He falls to the ground in one motion, his legs giving way under him and hates that he sees Jimin falling the second after he does. His left hip feels paralyzed and numb while also burning and warm. His side hurts as he falls down, the concrete feels cold under him. Jimin is down, lying motionless, blood spilling from his neck. No, no, no. Not Jimin, not him, please no. Yoongi tries to get to him, holding out his hand to Jimin. They’re close but still too far away.
“Jimin.. Jimin-ah..” Yoongi chokes out, his chest heavy with pain. Jimin doesn’t move, his body still and bloody. Yoongi feels the tears on his cheeks as he drags his body towards the younger. “Jimin-ah, please..”
Another gunshot and Yoongi falls completely to the ground, a great pain spreading from his chest. His cheek hit the cold ground, but he knows he doesn’t have much time. Through tears, he can see Jimin. His beautiful face, stained by blood and Yoongi has never hated himself more than in this moment. He did this. He killed the one person in this world that he loved more than anything, more than himself.
They should have had more time. They should have had better.
That’s all he thinks about before everything fades to black.