...Five years ago...

“I want to work for you.”

Minseok, resting languidly on his plush leather chair in his lavish office, cocked a brow at Jungkook. “What makes you think I need you? I have more than enough men.”

“Well, we have something in common. And the same goal.”

“Which is?”

“We both hate Kim Woosung. And we want to destroy him.”

Minseok instigated another round of mute, thorough scrutiny, his sharp characteristics growing more rigid. The intensity of his gaze seemed to dissect every aspect of Jungkook’s demeanor, searching for hidden truths. The room was steeped in silence, every tick of the clock on the wall marking the tautness between them.

Finally, Minseok’s lips parted, breaking the heavy quietness. “Sit.” His voice, though commanding, projected a subtle hint of interest, an undercurrent of curiosity that clashed with his stern facade.

Jungkook moved to comply, perching on the chair in front of his desk. For so many years, he had thought of Minseok as his rival — enemy, even — as he had heard Taehyung’s father refer to him so many times with disdain and caution. And now he was about to work for him.

“So tell me,” Minseok said, his words cutting through Jungkook’s reverie like a knife, pulling him out of his winding thoughts. “Why do you hate him?”

“You really don’t know?” Jungkook asked, his voice carrying a taunting edge. “I’m Jeon Jaesuk’s son.”

Minseok’s expression remained inscrutable, though a flicker of something — maybe melancholy or even sadness — passed through his eyes. The brief lapse revealed a depth of emotion Jungkook hadn’t expected.

“You know he killed him,” Minseok said quietly with a ray of resignation and bitterness. “And since you’re here, you also know I’ve been doing business with him.”

“I know he had been traveling to England lately. So yes, the first person that came to my mind was you.” Jungkook leaned against the desk with an arm, his eyes boring into Minseok’s. The fierceness in his stare was undeniable, a tangle of sternness, curiosity, and a desperate need for answers. “That’s why he killed my father, right? Because he had been doing business with you behind his back.”

Minseok sighed, the sound heavy with unspoken history and suffocating injustice. “It’s... a bit more complicated than that.”

“Then make it simple,” Jungkook demanded, his voice steady despite the mayhem within him. “I need to understand why my father is dead. I need to know the truth.”

Minseok’s eyes, though momentarily softened, hardened again with a steely resolve. He slanted forward, resting his elbows on the polished desk. “Well, my answers aren’t for free. You have to earn them.”

Jungkook’s frustration simmered just below the surface, but he masked it with a determined stare. “How?”

“By showing me your skills,” Minseok replied, his tone challenging and unwavering. “Do you have what it takes to work for me? I have to see that first.”

Jungkook’s eyes narrowed to slits, his expression growing harsh as he analyzed Minseok in a moment’s silence. An incredulous gleam wigwagged in his investigative gaze, betraying the whirlwind of speculations and thoughts that churned in his head. “Were you really friends with my father? Or all this was a plan to break his cooperation with Kim?”

Minseok’s demeanor remained composed, but there was a hint of something in his eyes — a fleeting glimpse of weariness. He reclined in his chair as he considered his words carefully before responding. “If it were a plan, why would I accept to see you, Jungkook? I was expecting you. And if you hadn’t come to me, I would have come to you.”

“Why?” Jungkook pressed, his gaze locked onto Minseok’s, searching for any shred of deception.

“I told you. My answers aren’t for free. The only thing you need to know right now is that I was truly friends with Jaesuk. You don’t have to believe me, of course. But I’m the only one who has the answers you’re looking for. And I’ll give them to you when you prove your worth.”

Jungkook took a moment to absorb his words. The revelation that Minseok had anticipated their meeting added another overlay of intricacy to the situation. Maybe the relationship between Minseok and his father was deeper than a mere alliance. “I came here to work, as I said. So I’m ready to do anything.”

“Alright, then.” Minseok nodded, a glint of approval in his eyes. He pulled out his phone and swiftly made a call. “Call team one to my office.”

They waited in tense silence for a few minutes before a sharp knock echoed through the room.

“Come in,” Minseok called out. Three figures entered dressed in black, each exuding a sense of confidence. “These guys will tell you everything you need to know to start working for me.”

“I’m Jungkook.”

“Yoongi,” one of the men said, nodding in acknowledgment.

“Namjoon,” another added with a steep nod.

“And I’m the hyung of our group, Seokjin,” the third man introduced himself, a faint smile playing on his lips.

“Take him to the gun room,” Minseok said.

“I already know how to handle guns.”

“Then show them your skills. You have to rise to their level.”

“Let’s go,” Seokjin said.

Jungkook followed the three men out of Minseok’s office. Anticipation and determination pulsed through him, enmeshing with a knot of apprehension in the pit of his stomach.

If Minseok truly held the answers he sought about his father’s death, Jungkook was willing to do whatever it took to uncover them. Even if his heart was shredded in a million pieces by his separation from the love of his life.

. . .

An insufferable oppression had settled over Jungkook’s existence since the moment he woke up, like anchors that dragged him down. His despondency was an abyss, sucking him into its depths with every passing moment.

The once vibrant hues of life now appeared dimmed, as if viewed through a veil of sorrow that refused to lift. Tasks that once brought joy now felt like burdens, and even the simplest of activities needed laborious efforts in this relentless struggle against his own emotions. Every smile he forced felt hollow, every attempt to shake off the heaviness futile. It was as though a shadow had draped itself over his soul, casting a blackness that even the brightest sunlight couldn’t penetrate.

Every road he turned onto seemed to have Taehyung’s face engraved on it, haunting him as he navigated towards his meeting with a client. Memories of their shared moments surged through his mind like relentless waves, each one crashing against the border of his sanity, threatening to demolish it. Images of laughter and adoration intertwined with harrowing secrets and heartache, forming a tumultuous sea of emotions that Jungkook couldn’t tame.

Even during his meeting in a deluxe office, where the filthy rich businessman requested protection for an upcoming event, Jungkook found his mind unrelentingly stuck on Taehyung and all the hurtful things he had hurled at him yesterday at the park. Each word spoken by the businessman about security protocols and risk assessments resounded faintly in Jungkook’s ears, overshadowed by the louder buzz of Taehyung’s words.

His thoughts circled back like a broken record, replaying every wrenching encounter he had with Taehyung since the moment he returned. The heartbreak of his forced betrayal bore down on him, even in the middle of discussing safety measures. Jungkook struggled to maintain his professional demeanor, his focus slipping as happy memories clashed with the acute reality of their shattered relationship.

As the meeting concluded and he exchanged polite farewells, Jungkook felt an emptiness fall over him, a gut-twisting remembrance of the gap that now separated him from the love of his life.

He returned home with the same oppressive mass that had shadowed him throughout the morning, lingering like a persistent storm cloud refusing to dissipate. He changed into casual clothes and slumped onto the couch, flipping through channels on the television without registering what was playing.

“Hey, love.” Sung Ryung’s warm voice interrupted the haze as she emerged from the kitchen.

“Hey, mom,” Jungkook responded softly, managing a small smile despite the weight on his shoulders.

Sung Ryung joined him on the couch, observing the dark veil of sullenness clinging to his face. “What’s wrong?”

Jungkook hesitated, unsure where to begin unraveling the tangle of his thoughts. “Taehyung.”

Sung Ryung needed no further explanation — just the mention of Taehyung’s name was enough to understand the source of her son’s distress. She smiled sadly, her expression softening with empathy. “Is he being harsh with you?

“Yeah. I know I deserve it. But it still hurts.”

“But it wasn’t your fault. You didn’t want to leave him either.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Jungkook whispered, turbid eyes brimmed with sadness staring at the coffee table. “I left him. I broke him. I destroyed everything we lived. And I don’t think... I can fix it.”

Sung Ryung reached out to squeeze his shoulder in a gesture of comfort. “You have to tell him the truth first.”

“I know.” Jungkook patted her hand, that was still clutching his shoulder, and rose to his feet. “I’ll go bring Jiyu home from school today.”

“Now? She still has about two hours of classes.”

“I’ll go for a walk first.”

“Okay,” Sung Ryung smiled. “Bye, Jungkookie.”

“Bye.”

🥀

Taehyung stood in front of the railings of the school in Jiyu’s neighborhood, his gaze wandering over the empty yard bathed in the warm sunlight. The laughter of children playing had faded as classes resumed, leaving the space eerily still.

Memories flooded his mind, memories of days spent in this neighborhood, in this school, when he and Jungkook were kids themselves. Moments of laughter and promises exchanged under the shade of a tree nearby or on the bench outside of the school.

They were sharing everything even before becoming boyfriends, their bond growing stronger with every day that passed. Taehyung remembered how Jungkook’s eyes would twinkle with excitement whenever they planned their next mischief, whether it was sneaking into the school’s empty gymnasium or simply lying on the grass, gazing at the clouds with the side of their heads gently united.

Taehyung’s hands, wrapped around thick fuzzy gloves, gripped the metal railing, his heart ponderous with melancholy. He remembered how Jungkook often kissed his cheek for no reason, the thrill and nervousness snarling up in his chest as they sauntered towards Jungkook’s house after school. How he had held his hand or curled an arm around his waist, keeping Taehyung close to him.

The breeze stirred Taehyung’s hair gently, wafting the scent of spring, even though it was still February. He closed his eyes, letting the tranquility of the scene wash over him, though the sullenness clasping his heart didn’t abate. He could still see Jungkook’s smile, hear his laughter echoing in the corridors, feel the warmth of his presence beside him. But those days were gone, replaced by an aching void that nothing could fill.

As he stood there, sunken in his thoughts, the sound of a bell ringing brought him back to the present. He squared his droopy shoulders as students began to trickle out, their voices filling the air with a burst of energy. The quiet, melancholic atmosphere of the empty yard suddenly switched to a lively buzz, the quick footsteps and excited chatter reverberating through the school grounds.

Taehyung scanned the crowd, craning his neck and tilting from side to side, searching for Jiyu’s familiar face. His eyes darted from one student to another, the anticipation in his chest building. The dejection embellishing his traits melted away, flowering into a warm smile as he found her walking through an outer hallway with a boy.

He waited until she reached the yard and threw his arms in the air, waving at her. His smile stretched into a beam once she noticed him, and he admired the way she hurried closer, her steps fast and light.

“Taehyungie oppa!” Jiyu screeched as she cupped his hands that were holding the railings. Her energy was contagious, a flash of sunshine in the gloomy day.

“Hey, baby girl,” Taehyung greeted warmly as he looked down at her.

“What are you doing here?”

“I came to see you, of course. And maybe meet this Hyunwoo if you want to introduce him to me,” Taehyung said, his tone teasing but gentle.

The smile on Jiyu’s face became bashful real quick, and she nodded seconds later. She glanced back and spotted Hyunwoo standing a few meters away, gazing at her with a mix of shyness and anticipation. She signed him to approach, and the boy did with rushed steps. “This is Hyunwoo,” Jiyu said, then turned to the boy. “And this is Taehyungie oppa I told you about.”

“Hello, Hyunwoo-yah.”

The said boy held his hands together and bowed, smiling. “Hello.”

“I came to ask you to take good care of my little Jiyu at school because I can’t be here to protect her. Can you do that for me?”

Hyunwoo’s eyes widened with seriousness, and he nodded vigorously. “Of course! I won’t let anyone hurt her.”

Taehyung’s eyes crinkled with the broad smile that burst onto his face, his eyes glimmering with softness. “You’re the best, Hyunwoo-yah. Thank you. Go play now.”

“Will you come to my house today since you’re here, please?” Jiyu asked, her gaze pleading as she held onto his hand.

“Hmm, I guess I have time. Of course I’ll come.”

“Yay! We’ll go play, oppa. I’ll see you later.” Jiyu reached out to Hyunwoo, interlocking their hands out of habit.

Taehyung’s gaze dropped on their united hands, and his smile grew even brighter. “Okay.”

As Taehyung shifted, wanting to sit on the bench, Jiyu’s eyes swelled at the sight of Jungkook standing behind him, a little further away from them. The realization that she was holding Hyunwoo’s hand bristled her heartbeat, and she wrenched it away as if it burned. “Oppa...” she whispered, her voice trembling with a twinge of shock and fear.

Taehyung’s face wrinkled in deep furrows at Jiyu’s murmur, and he glanced above his shoulder. From creased, his brows shot up in two high curves of surprise as he watched Jungkook approach them.

“I saw and heard everything, Jeon Jiyu,” Jungkook said, a stern undertone coating his voice. His usually warm eyes were now hard and unyielding, drilling into her with a twinkle of disapproval. “What did I tell you?”

Jiyu dug her chin into her chest as instant tears blurred her vision, making it hard to see anything but the glittering outlines of the railings. Her small hands clenched into tight fists at her sides, nails digging into her palms as she tried to hold back the sobs that threatened to escape. “I—I’m sorry, oppa.”

Ignoring the pang in his heart at her scared reaction, Jungkook nailed the boy beside her with a hard stare. “So you’re Hyunwoo.”

The said boy bowed immediately, clutching his hands tighter. “Su Hyunwoo. I promise I haven’t kissed your sister, Mr. Jeon. Don’t be mad at her.”

“But you hold her hand.”

“Only—Only when we walk together sometimes,” Hyunwoo said, his voice barely above a whisper.

A heavy sigh emitted from Jungkook as he detected the first tears rain down Jiyu’s pouty face. His strict expression mellowed, and his heart clenched harder at the sight of her distress. He slid his hands between the railings and smoothed his thumbs over her cheeks, collecting the wetness gently. “Don’t cry, baby girl. I’m not mad at you. He seems... okay, I guess,” he said, giving Hyunwoo a once-over. “So you can hold his hand if you want.”

“Really?” Jiyu asked, her wet eyes widening with a shred of hope. Her bottom lip quivered slightly, the promise of tears still lingering.

“Yes.”

“Thank you, oppa!” Jiyu beamed, the gloom burning off her face as a radiant smile took its place. She looked at Hyunwoo with renewed enthusiasm, her previous fear and uncertainty melting away.

“Thank you, Mr. Jeon,” Hyunwoo uttered, bowing deeply once more.

“Go now. I’ll wait for you to take you home.”

“Yay, I’ll go home with my two oppas!” Jiyu clapped her hands together in utter excitement. She bounced on her toes as she relished the thought of being with her two favorite people in the world together again. “Bye!”

“Bye, love,” Taehyung said, waving at her with a smile.

Jungkook spectated as the two kids skipped away, and a mild frown sprawled over his forehead. “What did she mean?”

Taehyung dragged his head down, his shoulders slumping as he neared the bench and sat down with a sigh. “I promised I’d come over to your house after school.”

Jungkook stood unmoving, his gaze still fixed vacantly on the schoolyard. “For her. Right?” he asked, though it sounded more like a statement.

Taehyung could sense the bitterness in his muted voice, but strove to disregard it. “Yes. For her.” His eyes hovered on his back as a thick sort of tension settled between them like falling snow, cold and heavy. He couldn’t stand it. “Can you not be so strict? You made her cry again. They just have an innocent crush. What’s the big deal?”

“I told you,” Jungkook said lowly, a sharp frostiness vibrating beneath his inflection, “it’s my family’s issue.”

There they were. Those damn words again. They poured like deadly shards over Taehyung’s heart, scraping it achingly, making it bleed a little more than it already was. Despite the anguish that flowed through his bloodstream like acid, a forced harshness fell over his traits.

“Maybe I’m not your family anymore, but I’m still her family. I’m her oppa too. I love her, and she loves me. You can’t keep me away from her just because we broke up,” Taehyung said, his voice quivering just slightly with a mix of pain and determination. The words came out sharper than he intended, but the underlying truth couldn’t be sweetened. His love for Jiyu was unwavering, and he wouldn’t let their wrenching past stand in the way of being there for her.

Smoldering rage tightened like a knot around Jungkook’s form, threaded with a notion of bitter sadness. “I don’t want to keep you away from her. I want to be your family again too. And you don’t let me.”

Taehyung breathed a subdued noise of disdain, a sharp exhale that cut through the air. “What kind of man leaves his family without an explanation?”

“I know, okay?” Jungkook said, spinning around to finally force himself to look at Taehyung. His eyes were pleading, filled with regret, his previous rage fizzling into melancholy so easily. “I know I screwed up. Can you let me make it right?”

Taehyung’s head curved forward, his shoulders sinking with the movement. He felt Jungkook’s words press down on him, but his suffering was still too much, too raw to even think about forgiving him. “This can’t be fixed.”

“You don’t want it to be fixed,” Jungkook accused, the frustration in his voice rising.

Taehyung swallowed hard, his dismal eyes staring at the ground in a haze. Memories of their fractured past engulfed him, each one a reminder of the pain he had endured. “I can’t.”

“You can if you want to,” Jungkook insisted, stepping closer, the urgency in his tone evident.

“And you could have stayed if you wanted to, then.”

Jungkook rolled his head in exasperation — an exasperation born from his inability to explain himself fully, to reveal the whole truth right then and there. The secrets he had deep-laid within smothered him, scalded his chest like boiling water spilled over tender skin.

He knew Taehyung deserved answers, deserved to understand the reasons behind his actions. Yet every attempt to articulate his thoughts felt inadequate, the words catching in his throat like shards of glass. How could he convey the bruising chaos, the conflicting emotions that tore at his heart without telling him the truth? He couldn’t.

Jungkook’s fingers dug into his palm as he wrestled to contain his roiling emotions. “Jiyu still has about one hour. Go home,” he said firmly, though the weariness that leaked through the crevices of his tone hinted at deeper fatigue.

“I’ll wait for her.”

“Can I wait with you, then? Or you really can’t stand sitting next to me?” Jungkook asked.

Taehyung gripped the edge of the bench, his jaw muscles tightening at the derisive undertone he perceived in Jungkook’s words. Sudden spikes of dolorous fury ignited a fire in his eyes, though it was tempered by the glistening layer of dampness that veiled them. “Stop being ironic. Do you even know why I can’t stand it, Jungkook?”

“Because you hate me?”

“Because it hurts so much I can’t breathe,” Taehyung spat out with a broken gasp, the sheen sparkling in his pain-filled eyes deepening. “I don’t know anything. I don’t know why you left, why you shut me off your life, why you didn’t call me even once. Why you didn’t say a word when I had called you. Why you can’t explain everything now and instead have to wait. Do you have any idea how it feels to have so many unanswered questions? From the person you loved, from the person you grew up with, from the person you were ready to marry?”

Waves of harrowing agony toppled over Jungkook as his eyes stung with suffocating tears. His throat closed off with the intensity of his wretchedness, a tidal wave of unfairness crashing against the barriers of his composure.

Close to him, Taehyung sat in silence, his own mayhem visible in the tense line of his shoulders and the distant gaze fixed on the ground. The space between them felt insurmountable, a vast extent swirling with shattered dreams. He wanted to reach out, soothe Taehyung, erase the hurt etched on his face, brush away the shiny tears dripping down his cheeks. Yet, he felt paralyzed by the oppression of his own regrets.

Jungkook closed his eyes, willing himself to find the strength to speak, offer some semblance of comfort through their shared sorrow. But the words stuck in his throat, choked by the pain and guilt that gripped him. He couldn’t tell him anything. He couldn’t explain himself yet.

As he stood in silence, the minutes stretched, each second laden with forbidden words craving to be vocalized. The air around them felt stifling, too burdened with the deep wounds that scarred their hearts. And through the torturous turbulence, Jungkook couldn’t help but wonder if they would ever find their way back to each other — if the love they once shared could withstand Jungkook’s forced betrayal and his broken promises.

Jungkook felt his strength drain away, leaving him with a limp body, head hanging over sunken shoulders. His anguish morphed into a numbness that enveloped him like a ponderous blanket, penetrating deep into his bones.

“I’m sorry,” Jungkook whispered, the unsteadiness of his voice highlighting his concession. “You’re right. You can be mad. You should be mad. I hurt you and I’m still doing it because I can’t give you the answers you want yet. I just want you to know it wasn’t an easy decision for me either. That I was in misery as well without you, and I still am. And that I never stopped loving you. Even if I left. Even if I hurt you. I promise to everything I have that I never stopped loving you. Just tell me you believe this. Tell me you believe me when I say I love you.”

The words spilled from Jungkook like a plea from his very soul. He looked at Taehyung with eyes brimming with unshed tears, his vulnerability laid bare in the desperation of his confession.

Taehyung wiped the next trickle of tears from his cheeks with the sleeve of his coat, his expression a mixture of despondency and resignation. “What if I believe it? What if I don’t? What difference does it make?”

“If you believe it, it means there’s a chance we can fix this. It means deep down you want to fix this too, even if you’re still mad at me. Even if you hate me. You’ll give me just a tiny glimmer of hope if you tell me you believe this. So please. Please tell me you believe this.”

Jungkook’s plea hung in the air, loaded with their shared pain and the fragile hope of making up. It pooled on Taehyung’s chest in an intolerable mass that made it feel as if it would collapse at any second. He struggled with his conflicting, wrenching feelings within him, knowing he couldn’t give Jungkook even a glimpse of hope. The lie tasted disgustingly bitter on his tongue before he even vocalized it. “Well, I don’t believe it.”

“You—” The instant speedup of Jungkook’s pulse in absolute dread stole his words. He gulped, round eyes overwhelmed in tears gaping at his lowered head. “You don’t believe it?”

“No. I can’t believe it.”

“You just don’t want to, right?”

“Yes, whatever,” Taehyung snapped, frustration seeping through his tone. “I can’t and I don’t want to and I won’t. So stop talking to me about it if you don’t want to tell me the whole truth.”

“It’s not that I don’t want to, Taehyung—”

“Whatever!” Taehyung’s voice spewed from his lungs in a rowdy growl, his features crumpling with imposed fury. “I don’t care, okay? Say it however you want. The point is, you’re choosing not to tell me everything right now. Like you chose to leave and throw away everything we had. I want to move on from this. So shut up about it if you’re not planning on telling me the truth.”

The tension between them bristled with screaming pain. Each word spoken was a cruel hint of what had been lost and the incapability of fixing it.

Drowned in the stormy ocean of his despair, Jungkook slouched off without another word, tears now streaming freely down his haggard face. Taehyung’s disbelief of his love and rejection weighed heavily upon him, adding to the overwhelming sense of loss and heartache that engulfed him like crashing waves.

He sat at the small park nearby, the greenery around him fading into a blur as he wrestled with bruising thoughts that squashed his heart. Tears poured down his cheeks, tracing shimmering paths over the lines of his face.

Hearing that Taehyung didn’t believe he loved him... It felt like his heart was being trampled anew, as if someone had taken the already ruined organ and ground it into the dirt. How could Taehyung think he didn’t love him? The thought gnawed at Jungkook’s soul, a relentless ache that pierced deeper with each minute that passed.

All the memories that bound them together tightly now seemed like fragile threads unstringing before his eyes. But through the confusion and agony, one thing remained clear. Jungkook loved Taehyung with every fiber of his being.

And the thought of Taehyung doubting that love tormented him, leaving him feeling ravaged and exposed.

───⭒───༺🖤༻───⭒───

What do you think about this book so far? Do you find Taehyung's behavior too much?

This chapter has another part, and I'll publish it in a bit because it's shorter than the others. So double update again! I only have one chapter to write, and I'm rereading the whole book for a smooth ending. Can't wait to share more chapters with you💜