Chapter Text
Kim Taehyung, marine biology major and lover of girl group songs, was having a day like any other day.
His phone was balanced precariously between his shoulder and his cheek, while he flipped through his text book with one hand and stirred the food he was cooking with the other.
“I think i’m ready for you to meet him, TaeTae,” Jimin said through the phone. His voice sounded far away and dreamy. “We’ve been talking for a few weeks now, and I invited him over for dinner tomorrow. Can you join us?”
Taehyung and Jimin had been best friends since high school. It all started with Taehyung moving to Busan during his second year and not having anyone around to talk to. Jimin had been the first person to actually approach him, and now the two didn’t go a single day without at least calling each other.
“I don’t know, Jiminie. Don’t you think things might be going too fast?” Taehyung asked hesitantly. The phone suddenly slipped from his shoulders and he quickly caught it, letting go of his textbook in the process. The heavy book landed loud and dramatic, making Taehyung flinch. “You only met this guy last month.”
Jimin sighed and Taehyung could clearly picture the pout on his best friend’s face.
“That’s more than enough time.”
“But--”
“Don’t worry, you’ll understand when you meet him. He’s a really great guy.”
Taehyung’s shoulders slumped in defeat, and he nodded even though Jimin couldn’t see him.
“Ok… but if I get a weird vibe from him I’m not letting him anywhere near you!”
Jimin’s giggles traveled through the phone and tickled Taehyung’s ear.
“Alright, alright. Deal.”
“Good.” Taehyung swiped up his textbook and turned off the heat on the stove. He had succeeded at reading the chapter he was going to be tested on this week, making dinner, and keeping up to date with Jimin. He was the king of multitasking.
“Oh and before I forget, what’s this guy’s name anyway?”
There was a fondness in Jimin’s voice when he softly answered,
“Min Yoongi.”
~#~
The traffic getting to Jimin’s place wasn’t so bad.
Taehyung left home ten minutes early, just in case he would be bumper to bumper with annoying drivers. The roads were always congested on the way to Jimin’s apartment, but it seemed like the universe was working in his favor that evening. He got to Jimin’s place a lot earlier than expected, and even had enough time to fix his uncombed hair in the car before getting out.
It wasn’t that Taehyung was trying to impress anyone, he never was, it was just that he could tell how much this dinner meant to Jimin. It had been a long time since he heard his friend sound so genuinely happy about a potential boyfriend.
When Taehyung reached the front door he only gave a few taps before opening it himself. He and Jimin were way past the formalities of ringing doorbells and waiting for someone to open the door. They’ve seen each other butt naked for crying out loud.
It took a while for Jimin to get used to Taehyung’s habit of sharing showers.
“TaeTae, you’re here!” Jimin bellowed, sounding like a kid on christmas morning.
Taehyung kicked off his shoes at the door and opened his arms for the hug he saw coming from a mile away. The two of them almost broke out into a wrestling match with how tightly they were holding on to each other, but they decided to act civil when another person approached from the living room.
Jimin released Taehyung and stepped to the side so that the blonde could see the person better.
“Taehyung-ah, this is Yoongi hyung. Yoongi hyung, this is Taehyung-ah.” Jimin announced.
Taehyung took in the shorter male’s silver hair and pale complexion. His wild mind started to think of all of the reasons why Yoongi’s hair might be that color. Was he trying to hide gray hairs? Was he secretly really old? Why does he stand like a grandpa?
A gruff voice interrupted his thoughts.
“Nice to meet you.”
Taehyung blinked, and then squinted down at the small man.
“Hm… Nice to meet you too.”
Jimin nervously glanced back and forth between the two, before awkwardly clearing his throat and loudly clapping his hands together. “Well, since we have the greetings out of the way, let’s eat!” He grabbed Yoongi’s hand and started to drag him towards the dining table.
Taehyung watched them go with a curious tilt of his head.
Yoongi looked almost surprised, and slightly irritated, to see Taehyung there. It made the blonde wonder if Jimin had failed to tell Yoongi that he would be showing up. It honestly wouldn’t surprise Taehyung if that were the case. His best friend had a bad habit of making plans and just expecting everyone to go along with them.
The dinner was delicious and made up for the stiff atmosphere. It was easy for Taehyung and Jimin to fall into a steady flow of conversation, but Taehyung still felt like he couldn’t talk as freely in front of Yoongi. He appreciated all of Jimin’s attempts to get them to converse with each other though.
“Did you two know that you’re both from Daegu?” the brunette blurted, while shoving loads of pasta into his mouth.
The blank look in Yoongi’s eyes only slightly shifted. “Is that so…”
“Yeah,” Jimin went on, swallowing down his mouthful. “I’m surprised you didn’t notice it sooner. TaeTae is really bad at dropping his accent.”
Taehyung flushed red before kicking Jimin beneath the table. He’d been insecure about his accent since high school. People used to always make fun of him and mock every little thing he said, especially since he was from the countryside of Daegu, raised by his farmer grandparents.
Jimin kicked him back with a gentle laugh. “It’s ok, he’s from Daegu too. There’s nothing to be embarrassed about.”
Taehyung decided to hide his embarrassment by shoving more food into his mouth.
The dinner continued with a few sentences from Yoongi and a lot of excited chatter from Jimin. The more time passed, the more Taehyung couldn’t understand what his friend saw in the grumpy man to begin with. He was so different compared to them. Taehyung and Jimin were lively and friendly. He had kind of always assumed that Jimin would find someone with that same liveliness. Jimin needed someone who could keep up with him, right?
But Yoongi wasn’t like that at all.
Sure, he wiped tomato sauce from the side of Jimin’s mouth and offered to help wash the dishes.
Sure, he locked ankles with Jimin beneath the table (they probably thought Taehyung didn’t notice) and sent each other knowing glances and blushy smiles.
But there was something about him that just seemed… off to Taehyung.
And Taehyung never doubted his gut feelings.
“Well, it was fun while it lasted but I have to go now, Jiminie,” Taehyung announced after a dessert consisting of cake and icecream. “I have a big test coming up tomorrow. The algae isn’t going to identify itself.”
Jimin just gave him a weird look (he never understood Taehyung’s marine biology lingo) and pinched Taehyung’s tummy instead of waving goodbye like a normal human being.
“Alright, talk to you later. Hey, Yoongi hyung, Taehyung-ah is leaving!”
There was a noncommittal grunt from the living room, and Taehyung rolled his eyes.
It seemed like Yoongi was too busy picking out a movie to watch to say goodbye to the lanky tan kid who liked to study fish for a living.
“He says bye,” Jimin sheepishly supplied.
“Sure he does.”
“I’ll call you later, ok?” Jimin walked Taehyung to the door and dropped his voice down to a whisper. “After he leaves, of course. We need to dissect this night from start to finish. I mean, he stayed through the whole thing, so that’s gotta mean he likes me, right?”
Taehyung stared at Jimin for a moment. Of course he was worried at first, like any best friend would be, but seeing Jimin this happy made him feel bad for acting so cold towards Yoongi.
“I’m sure he’s already in love with you, Jiminie,” Taehyung cooed, grabbing at the older boy’s cheeks and squishing them while grinning.
Jimin swatted Taehyung’s hands and huffed, but he was smiling.
“Oh, whatever,” he grumbled with a blush on his face. “Get home safely.”
“Will do, Mom.”
Jimin finally kicked Taehyung out the doorway, and childishly stuck his tongue out at him before slamming the door shut.
Taehyung walked down to his car, feeling a little bit lighter than before. Sure, Yoongi was different compared to the people Taehyung and Jimin were used to befriending, but maybe that was exactly what the brunette needed.
Smiling to himself, Taehyung started on his way home. His fingers tapped along the steering wheel as the radio played in the background. It was a new song that had been growing on him lately, and he actually found himself mouthing the words by heart.
He was jamming out to the second verse when a sudden thought came to him.
Did I pick up my phone?
As soon as he reached a red light, Taehyung started patting himself down and digging in the seat of his car for his cell phone. He always accidently left it places, and usually he wouldn’t care if he left it by Jimin’s house for a night or two. But Jimin said he was going to call him later, so Taehyung was going to have to go back and get it. He was relieved that he hadn’t driven far yet.
Taehyung pulled into Jimin’s parking lot again, and got out of the car with a sigh. He was always teased for being absent minded, never paying attention to the real world going on around him.
He hummed the song from the radio while walking up the short flight of stairs leading to Jimin’s floor. The dimly lit hallway guided him straight to the familiar door, but his feet hesitated when he noticed that something wasn’t right.
Taehyung frowned at the sight of Jimin’s door being cracked open, light from the living room spilling out into the hall. Slowly, and quietly, Taehyung took a few steps forward and tried to hear any noise from inside. If Jimin and Yoongi were watching a movie, Taehyung should have been able to hear it, but the hallway was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
Holding his breath, Taehyung wrapped a hand around the doorknob and carefully pushed the door all the way open.
His eyes widened at the sight of Yoongi standing in the middle of the mess that was Jimin’s living room, back faced to him.
A piece of broken glass crunched beneath Taehyung’s feet..
Yoongi’s head snapped towards him in an instant, gaze hard and unreadable.
“What are you doing here?” he demanded.
Taehyung squinted his eyes in disbelief. Yoongi seriously had the nerve to ask him such a question? How could he just stand there in the middle of Jimin’s trashed apartment, and ask a question like that so nonchalantly?
“What am I doing here?” Taehyung shot back. “What are you doing here?! I’m Jimin’s best friend! I have every right to be here!”
Yoongi turned back around, like he didn’t care to hear what the younger was saying at all.
The action only pissed Taehyung off further.
“Hey, i’m talking to you! What happened in here?! Where’s Jiminie?!”
Yoongi started poking around through the debris with his foot. He was acting like Taehyung wasn’t even there, and the younger felt his panic grow.
The gray haired man had seemed sketchy from the very beginning, and instead of going with his gut instinct and warning Jimin, Taehyung had left his best friend alone with this… this… psychopath! What if he killed Jimin? What if he killed him and then robbed him of all his stuff? Which would perfectly explain the trashed apartment.
Taehyung shivered.
Did that mean he was next on this man’s hit-list?
Yoongi stood up from where he’d been inspecting the knick on the coffee table, and turned to address Taehyung once again.
“I’d suggest you get out of here while you still can.” His eyes were cold and his face was impassive. Gone was the warmth Taehyung had seen directed towards Jimin just an hour ago. Had that all been an act?
“N-No!” Taehyung protested, scared but determined. “I’m not leaving until you tell me what happened to Jiminie!”
Yoongi sighed, as if this conversation was bothersome small talk.
“Jimin’s been kidnapped.”
Taehyung stumbled backwards, his legs going weak as he processed Yoongi’s words.
“W-What? But… how? W-When?”
Yoongi kicked a few loose papers and broken glass out of his way as he walked towards Taehyung. His hands were resting comfortably in the front pocket of his black jeans, like he didn’t just tell someone heartbreaking news. He was the perfect picture of calm and serene.
Taehyung hated him for it.
“Just now,” Yoongi informed. “I try to do something nice, I leave for one second to go throw Jimin’s garbage in the dumpsters, and that kid goes and gets himself kidnapped. My job just got unnecessarily harder.”
Taehyung is beyond confused now.
Kidnapped? Job? What on earth was Yoongi telling him?
“What do you mean by job?” Taehyung asked, voice strained with worry. “And why would someone go through all this trouble, trashing the whole place, just to kidnap Jiminie?”
“Well--”
Taehyung let out a shocked shout when a bullet suddenly whistled past his right ear, striking the door behind him. He crouched down, hands over his ears out of pure instinct.
For the first time since meeting Yoongi, the older man's face gained a little bit of emotion. A pinch formed between his brows as he cursed lowly and leaned down to grab Taehyung’s arm.
Taehyung didn’t want to move though. He was afraid whoever was shooting at him wouldn't miss next time.
“Come on, idiot! We need to find cover!” Yoongi yelled at him.
Taehyung frantically shook his head. “No! If I move they’ll--”
Yoongi’s fingers dug into his arm and Taehyung winced. He opened his eyes, that had been squeezed shut, only to come face to face with a stony expression.
“If you don’t move right fucking now you’re going to die. So I suggest you stop talking and come with me.”
The younger’s mouth immediately snapped shut, but a squeak escaped his throat when not only one, but a shower of bullets pelted the door. The wood chipped and flew in all different directions, turning the surface into mulch.
Taehyung let Yoongi drag him out of harm’s way, without protesting this time. They tumbled into the kitchen and stayed safely hidden behind the counter. The sound of gunshots was like a constant thrum in their ears, and it didn’t look like there was going to be a cease fire any time soon.
The blonde wondered where the police were in such a situation.
He looked to Yoongi and nearly fainted at the sight of the man pulling out a gun from behind him, like it was his car keys or something.
“What the hell is that?!”
Yoongi looked at him like he just asked the world’s dumbest question.
“A gun,” Yoongi answered simply.
Taehyung blinked twice. “You had a gun on you this whole time? Wait… during dinner too?!”
Yoongi rolled his eyes and got up on one knee. He placed a hand on the counter and slowly tried to peek over the edge. The bullets appeared to be coming from one direction only, so if he aimed right he could probably do some damage before his own bullets run out.
“Who are you… really?” Taehyung suddenly asked.
Yoongi glanced down at him, and Taehyung knew the older man could see the pure terror on his face.
“That’s not important right now.”
Taehyung started to splutter out a protest because, “yes, that really is important right now, you crazy bastard. You’re holding a fucking gun”, but Yoongi sprung into action before Taehyung could get a single word out.
Gun shots are extremely loud.
Taehyung never realized the magnitude of the sound whenever he watched movies or tv shows, but the gun shots Yoongi released from his small black gun were enough to rattle his brain and cause him to curl up with his hands on his ears again.
“Stop it! Stop shooting!” Taehyung yelled over the noise. “Just wait for the police!”
Yoongi ignored him, and Taehyung didn’t know why he thought he would do otherwise. Just when Taehyung thought the man was out of bullets, Yoongi rolled up the leg of his pants and pulled out a clip from seemingly nowhere.
Where the fuck did Jimin meet this guy?
There was a pause in the enemy’s firing and Yoongi took the moment to direct his attention at Taehyung again. He started spewing orders about running to the fire escape in Jimin’s bedroom before the shooters could finish reloading, but all Taehyung could do was stare at him with shaky, tearful eyes.
“Snap out of it, idiot!” Yoongi barked, causing Taehyung to flinch. “If you don’t want to end up like the front door, listen to every word I tell you!”
Things weren’t supposed to be this way.
Taehyung was supposed to just grab his phone from Jimin’s couch, head back home and maybe do a little bit more studying for his big test. He was supposed to ace said test the next day and continue to go about his life, eventually becoming one of the greatest marine biologists to ever come out of South Korea.
Not… whatever this was. Not guns and kidnappers, and Yoongi’s deceptively soft face yelling at him to move or die.
Taehyung darted for Jimin’s bedroom door, heart nearly jumping out of his throat when a few shots sailed over his head, but he made it and turned around to see that Yoongi had too.
Jimin’s room had a window which lead out to a fire escape that seemed to be facing away from where the attacker’s shots were coming from. They still crouched low to the floor, just to be careful, and Taehyung stayed out of the way while Yoongi pushed the window open and peered over the edge to assess the rusty fire escape.
It was as Yoongi was leaning forward, that Taehyung noticed the side of his black shirt had a wet spot on it.
Taehyung looked closer and gasped.
“You’re bleeding!”
Yoongi glanced down at the wound and shrugged. “Superficial. Probably got grazed by one of the bullets.”
Taehyung stared at the man like he had three heads and a tail. Seriously, who was this guy?
“The fire escape doesn’t look to be in the best condition, so we need to move fast. I’ll--” a new barrage of gunshots directed at the living room cut Yoongi off, alerting the two to the seriousness of the situation. “I’ll go first to make sure it’s safe. Follow close behind me.”
Taehyung nodded. Some of his initial fight had seeped out of him once he knew guns were involved. He still wanted answers about Jimin, but he’d get those later. At that moment, he just needed to worry about surviving.
Yoongi climbed over the windowsill, looking completely unbothered by the cut in his side. Taehyung watched him stealthily maneuver along the rickety fire escape, and quickly followed after him when he didn’t see any signs of bullets.
The fire escape groaned under their combined weight, but the two of them managed to get down and off of it in record time.
Not even stopping to give instructions, Yoongi started sprinting down the alleyway they were in. He was going towards the parking lot and Taehyung followed him. He honestly didn’t know what else he was supposed to do.
There was a black, nondescript car parked a little bit away from the rest of the cars in the lot. Taehyung could tell that was Yoongi’s destination, but they were stopped when a bullet struck the ground right in front of Yoongi’s foot.
Yoongi jumped backwards, nearly crashing into Taehyung. He turned to grab the younger’s wrist and start pulling him along the way to the car. They ran in a zigzag pattern and occasionally ducked behind parked vehicles for cover. Although it took a little longer to reach the car, at least it made it harder for the shooter to lock on to them.
Taehyung immediately jumped into the backseat, since it was the closest door, and Yoongi dived for the driver’s seat. Shots flew through the air as the car reversed out of the spot and peeled out of the parking lot at top speed.
Jimin and Taehyung used to always joke about wanting to live in the Fast and Furious world. It was their favorite movie, afterall. But now that Taehyung was actually experiencing the high speeds and breakneck turns, he wanted to throw up.
“Slow down! We’re going to crash!” He cried, hand clutching his stomach in an attempt to keep the dinner they just ate down.
“If we slow down, we die!”
Taehyung wondered if Yoongi new anything other than death.
After driving up and down side roads, back streets and highways, taking numerous u-turns and running a few red lights, Yoongi finally started to stick to a single direction and speed limit.
“I think i’m going to be sick,” Taehyung moaned.
“Roll down the window if you plan on throwing up.”
Taehyung glared at Yoongi through the rearview mirror, but like usual, Yoongi didn’t acknowledge him.
“Where are we going?”
Yoongi kept quiet.
Taehyung curled his hands into fists. “I’ve got a really important test tomorrow, so i’d appreciate it if you told me when I can go home.”
Yoongi’s gaze finally met his through the mirror. “More important than your life?”
There he went again. Preaching life and death.
“Please take me home,” Taehyung tried, but Yoongi started to shake his head before he even finished the sentence.
“Can’t do that.”
“And why not?!”
Yoongi gritted his teeth.
“Because,” he spat. “Your face has been seen by those people who were shooting at us. If I take you home, they’re going to come after you.”
Taehyung wanted to scream, kick and throw a temper tantrum, but he couldn’t, so he slumped in his seat with a dejected frown. Tears started to prick at his eyes, but he didn’t dare let them fall. He refused to give Yoongi the satisfaction of seeing him cry.
His car, his apartment, his phone, his pet turtle… Taehyung’s whole life was growing farther and farther away the more Yoongi’s tires ate up the asphalt beneath them. He was being driven to some unknown place by a man he barely knew, and all he could do was sit in the backseat and let it happen.
Taehyung made a promise to himself...
...to never doubt his gut instincts ever again.