Chapter Text
Bangtan were considered to be carrier pigeons in the mafia world. A group of 7 young men that made a great name in the industry by delivering drugs to buyers while being truth to their word. Fast and silent, those are qualities that are immensely appreciated from both sellers and users, because it was a tricky business after all. One call or message to the police and the next moment you will be staying in a cute hotel called prison for the rest of your life. And that was the best outcome. More than often people would just randomly disappear and found a week later at the bottom of a lake or ditched in the forest at night without their kidneys. Yes it was a tricky business...
But that didn't stop Yoongi a couple years ago when he desperately needed money. Almost all his life he had lived in an orphanage but when he turned 16 he wanted to leave. Build a life on his own, get independent but most importantly: make his own decisions. He always had troubles following orders from the orphanage 'parents', because who were they to tell him what he should do or don't? His parents had died when he was 2, and the rest of his family where nowhere to be found. So he ended up in this place that some kids called 'home', but Yoongi called it nothing more than a 'rat hole'. The name was maybe a little bit exaggerated, but it was closer to a rat hole than a home in that matter. The old building was held together with a few thin walls that contained different stains and holes that had developed over the years and let's not look at the ceiling... The place was covered in mold because the roof was broken at some places after a big storm 3 years ago but nobody had bothered to fix it.
The roof wasn't the only thing that nobody bothered to fix. The orphanage was situated in a poor neighborhood in Seoul where everyone was living in poverty. The people who owned the place weren't the best people and they didn't choose to run the orphanage to help the kids. No, they did it because of the money they got from the government. But this wasn't the only orphanage they possessed; they had 10 more houses so that meant that they were basically never 'home'. And when they were home, they would always be angry at the kids for the mess and the poor state of the house, not considering that most kids weren't even old enough to look after themselves. So the oldest kids were practically acting as adults and housekeepers at the same time, but still, it was never enough.
So Yoongi had a lot of reasons to get out of the orphanage when he was old enough to go outside and find a job to make some money. At first he had tried some 'child' jobs like working in a grocery store, but he didn't had those jobs for too long because he couldn't stop himself from stealing food. His heart broke every time he saw the state of his younger roommates, who he considered to be his brothers, and the grocery story just had so many food. He thought that nobody would notice any difference if they were missing one apple, but unfortunately he was always caught. So Yoongi wasn't welcome anymore in most stores because word spread quickly and soon he wasn't able to get a job anymore. A legal job.
One night Yoongi had been fed up with himself after being fired for the tenth time this year and decided to walk across the dark streets in his neighborhood until he had calmed down enough to go back to the rat hole. He knew he was being followed, but for once he didn't care. Why would he even bother? He considered himself to be an adult, but his identity still said he was a kid. A kid that was bound to an orphanage where no future was seen. He wasn't educated, he didn't have any family, he had nothing. He only had his brothers, not blood-bound, but kids that grew up with him almost his entire life and went through the same shit as he had. But Yoongi was convinced that his brothers wouldn't mind if something would happen to him. It was almost normal to them. In the orphanage a lot of children disappeared one day and never came back. They were reported missing and sometimes found, but never alive. So they had taught themselves not get too attached to each other because it would only lead to heartbreak, but somehow he and 6 roommates had formed a close bond despite of that...
"Hey kid, you look lost?" a deep voice was heard from behind and Yoongi stopped moving when he felt a large hand on his shoulder. The boy didn't dare to turn around to look at the strange man, but he didn't need to when the men was suddenly standing in front of him. "Where are you parents? It's pretty late to walk around on your own. You can't be older than 12 years old"
"I'm 16" Yoongi growled under his breath. Normally a kid his age would be terrified if a strange big man was standing in front of him in the darkness that surrounded him, but Yoongi had nothing to lose, so why would he be afraid? "And my parents are none of your business!"
"Ah you're a feisty one, I like you already. I'm Joshua, what's your name?"
"I don't care who you are. I was on my way to my...." Yoongi swallowed "-home-"
"Home? Really? You call that orphanage your home?" the man snorted and then smirked when he noticed the change in Yoongi's face when he realized that the man had been following him a long time. "So no parents, a shitty place called -home-, no money by the looks of your clothes"
"What do you want?" Yoongi asked, his voice was starting to betray him when it trembled slightly
"Oh boy, I think I should be the one to ask you that question. What is it that you want? Do you want freedom? Getting a proper meal with meat for once? Or maybe some nice girls when you're older? It could all be yours"
Yoongi didn't know what to say or do anymore. This man had clearly followed him for some time and somehow he knew exactly what his life looked like. But yes, he wanted freedom, he wanted to eat a something nice instead of sharing cup noodles with his siblings. The girls could wait, but getting some new clothes sounded like heaven right now. Oh and shoes! Yes shoes without holes!
"I can help you, you know. All you have to do is help me"
"How?" Yoongi blurted out. Deep down he knew that everything about this situation was wrong, but what if this man could give him what he wanted? It felt like this was the only option he got. He was sure that he would never get a normal job anytime soon again after his last stunt, and every day he stayed longer in the orphanage was one too many. He needed a way out, and it felt too surreal that this man showed up out of nowhere.
"Can you ride a bike?" the man asked and continued when Yoongi nodded eagerly. "I need you to deliver a meal tomorrow evening"
"A meal" the boy asked confused
"Yeah a meal. I own a restaurant and I could use someone to deliver the meal at someone's home. I will pay you more than you did in that crappy shop. Here, take it. I can tell you're hungry. Get some food, think about it and if you're up to it, meet me at his place tomorrow at 6pm" the stranger gave him a folded piece of money and a card that showed the logo of a restaurant along with an address. Yoongi had stared at the card a little too long because when he lifted his head again, the man was already gone.
The boy looked around him to see where the man had gone, but it was too dark and too quiet. Yoongi then looked at the folded piece of money in his hand and slowly started to unfold it. His mouth fell open when he noticed what it was.
50.000 won
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As expected, Yoongi couldn't say no to the job. 50.000 won! A man gave him 50.000 won without doing anything in return! What would he give if he did something for him? And the job sounded easy. Deliver a meal, that's it. How hard can it be?
It turned out it wasn't hard. At all. He got to the restaurant, he was given a bike that showed the logo of the restaurant along with a carrier where he could place the neatly prepared meal that the chef had made. It confused Yoongi somehow. He had expected so much worse, and it sounded too good to be true. But why complain? Especially when the man gave him 100.000 won to deliver the meal. 100.000 won?????? Was he mental? Or just really really rich, like very rich.
So after his first deliver Yoongi went back to the restaurant the next day and he was excited when the man got him another delivery. It was a slightly smaller delivery, but still 80.000 won. At then the list went on and on, and soon the boy had enough money to buy the newest iPhone if he wanted to. But the large amount of money was also making him a bit lost. He didn't know where to start...
With his first money he had bought meat and vegetables to cook a nice meal for his brothers. The only boy who was older than him, Seokjin, was suspicious from the beginning and started asking question where he got the money. He didn't lie about his job; he was working as a delivery guy for a restaurant, but he did lie about the amount of money he got everyday. Because how in earth could he ever explain that he was given more than 80.000 won to deliver a meal that cost around 20.000 won? He didn't understand it as well, but he also didn't dare to ask his boss about it.
So Yoongi decided to spend his money slowly so it wouldn't get suspicious. At first he bought some new socks for him and his brothers. It was a small but very much appreciated gift and his heart warmed seeing the smiles on their faces. So the next week he bought new underwear, but it was harder to buy new sweaters or pants. Socks and underwear were doable with his made-up child loan, but how could he explain that he bought hoodies and jackets that cost a lot more? But then Yoongi came up with the idea that his boss and some colleagues had children themselves that had outgrown their clothes, and that he could have them since they knew he was living in an orphanage.
With his new excuse he could easily buy a lot of new clothes without raising any suspicions. Seokjin was the one who could use new clothes the most. Since being the oldest and almost fully grown as an adult, meant that he didn't fit a lot of clothes that were presented in the orphanage. Most clothes were child sizes, so the youngest members, aka Jimin, Taehyung and Jungkook had the most clothes to choose from since they were the smallest of the 7. The 94-liners, called Namjoon and Hoseok, could still fit a lot of clothes, but both were nearing the final growth spurt and soon they would have the same problem that he and Seokjin have.
So Yoongi had bought the oldest brother and the 94's some new sweaters and sweatpants, but when he noticed the little pouts of the maknae line he couldn't help but to buy them something as well. And within a couple of months they were eating 3 meals a day while wearing clothes without holes, and for once it seemed like they had a chance to get a good life after all.
Yoongi needed a few more months before he could start searching for a house, but it turned to be quite complicated. As much as Yoongi wanted to become an independent young adult with his own free will, he could never turn his back on his brothers. They were the only family he had and the couple of months he discovered how much he loved them. He had always been so frustrated by his life and the disappoint of losing job after job that he had failed to miss their love and comfort over the past couple of years. But his current job allowed him to be more around them and spend more time with them. And he even had money to do fun stuff as well. For the first time in their lives they had gone to a movie theater, because it had been Hoseok's birthday. For Taehyung's birthday they had bought subway tickets to explore the city where they had been living all their lives. And when their youngest brother had turned 13 they had gone to a karaoke room.
Life was becoming great and enjoyable, but Yoongi knew his luck would run out at some point. And it felt like he had hit that point after working for the restaurant for almost a year. During one of his deliveries, a heavy storm had passed by and his bike had slipped a couple of times because of it. The nicely prepared meal however had spilled some over the edges and it had made the carrier dirty. So the boy decided to bike towards the orphanage first to clean the mess before going to his destination. But when he was cleaning the packed meal, a piece of the wrapping came off and he noticed that it wasn't just a meal he was delivery.
Between some cheap looking mac 'n cheese was a small plastic bag filled with white powder and other bag filled with colourful pills. And Yoongi was old and smart enough that he knew that it wasn't powder sugar and candy pills. No, this was drugs. He had been delivering drugs this whole time!!!!
"Shit shit shit" Yoongi started to mumble nervously and pace around in the small kitchen. He was so lost in his thoughts that he failed to notice that Seokjin had entered.
"Yoongi what is that? How did you get that?' the older one asked anxiously. Yoongi stopped mumbling immediately and his eyes widened when he noticed that Seokjin had a full view of the meal with the drugs in the middle.
"It's not what it seems. It's - it's not mine, I swear!" Yoongi rattled, but then Seokjin stopped him by raising his hand. "I know it's not yours. I know you don't do drugs. But Yoongi, it this your job? You lied to us for an entire year?! Do you know how fucking stupid you are?!!" the oldest started to lose it as well as he started to understand the severity of the situation.
"I didn't know! I promise hyung, I didn't know! I just found out, I didn't know I swear!!"
"Shit" Seokjin cursed and dragged his hands over his face and started to pace the kitchen like Yoongi had done moments before "This is so wrong Yoongi! You know what they do to people like you if they find out?!!! THEY KILL PEOPLE FOR THIS"
"I know! I didn't know!!!" Yoongi yelled again. The boy was starting to hyperventilate and at the same time grabbing his hair hard, so Seokjin stepped in and got a hold on his hands.
"Stop that" he said before staring at the meal with drugs "We will figure it out. We always figure something out"
Yoongi nodded his head, but failed to say something when a big lump was stuck in his throat. He watched the older one with big eyes and for once he felt like a proper younger sibling in his life.
"You need to deliver them Yoongi"
"What?!"
"You need to act like nothing has happened. They don't know you know about the drugs, and that's for the best. We don't know what they will do if they find out"
Yoongi looked horrified at the meal as well and for the first time in his life he felt like throwing up seeing mac 'n cheese. It was one of his favourite dishes, but he already couldn't stand the smell anymore. His life had finally found some meaning and purpose again, but it had disappeared underneath his feet within a couple of seconds. It felt like he was back where it all started, but then much worse. Now his life was at danger, and if he wasn't careful his brothers as well.
"Yoongi, I know this is hard, but you can't let them know. The second they get suspicious, they will come after you" Seokjin said and then squeezed the younger one's hand "We will figure something out in the meantime. I promise"
Yoongi swallowed nervously because he knew that his older brother was telling the truth. They didn't have another choice. One thing was sure in the drug industry: once you get in, you never get out. So the shorter boy nodded and started to wrap the meal back to its origin state before he gathered enough courage to get on his bike and act like he didn't knew he was delivering mac 'n cheese with an extra twist.