😈   Revenge is best served sweet   😈

It had been weeks, months.

Months since Taehyung's beautiful, bright little brother had really left his bedroom.

Months since he had smiled, had friends over.

Months since there had been any light in his eyes.

Jeong Gyu just walked around the house like a ghost, his previously rosy cheeked face pale, his previously shiny dark hair flat on his head, pacing the space between his room, the kitchen, the bathroom and the living room in his stained pyjamas and scruffy slippers.

Not really living, just existing.

Taehyung had tried everything.

He had prepared his favourite foods, picked out his favourite films... he had tried to talk to him, just be quiet with him, shout at him, cry at him... during one of his weakest moments he had even tried to bribe him... but there was nothing that would shake Jeong Gyu out of his dark apathy.

It positively broke Taehyung's heart because Jeong Gyu had always been the brighter, the louder, the happier of the two of them. If Taehyung were to describe himself as a whirlwind, Jeong Gyu would be a tornado in comparison. His essence had always burned so bright that there were times when Taehyung actually felt a little invisible next to him.

Now, his essence was a bare flicker in the darkness surrounding him.

Although Taehyung may have found himself a little unnoticeable next to Jeong Gyu's bright exuberance, he never felt put out by it. He had adored Jeong Gyu since the very day their mother had brought him home from the hospital and he'd wrapped his tiny chubby fingers around Taehyung's pinky and wouldn't let go.

From that day on, there was nothing on this Earth that would ever stop Taehyung from looking after his little brother.

Since their father had died shortly after Jeong Gyu was born, the boys grew up with their mother in their tightly knit family of three.

Jeong Gyu and Taehyung had always been close, not least of all because Taehyung often had to look after his little brother during their mother's unpredictable and recurring bouts of illness.

He had made many a lunchbox and ironed many a shirt at an age when most children didn't even know where the iron was kept in the house let alone how to prepare or pack lunchboxes.

Taehyung never complained, he was never bitter. He was proud to look after his precious little brother because he always thought actions spoke louder than words -this was why Taehyung always interpreted his housekeeping or lunch box making as pure expressions of love and was thus content to do them without complaint.

Taehyung showed his love for his brother by looking after him.

Jeong Gyu had only just turned 16 when their mother passed away after a long period of illness.

This was when Taehyung's role changed from Jeong Gyu's caregiver to his legal guardian which was a responsibility Taehyung took very seriously and would carry on doing so even after Jeong Gyu would turn 19 years old and become a legal adult under South Korean law.

After their mother's passing, Taehyung gave Jeong Gyu time to grieve while he kept himself busy making sure that the bills were paid, the food was on the table and the wardrobes were full of clean clothes, without once thinking about his own grief.

Taehyung didn't have time for his own grief because he had more important things to worry about, most important being the wellbeing of his little brother.

Taehyung allowed Jeong Gyu perhaps too much freedom, shouldering perhaps too much of the responsibility for himself, but it was all Taehyung knew how to do.

Taehyung had already said it long ago, he would do anything to make sure his brother was safe and it would always remain a priority, even over Taehyung's own needs.

The change in Jeong Gyu's character had been sudden, as if triggered by a specific event.

In a very short space of time, everything about him slowed down until he became almost still.

He no longer got up early in the morning -which had always been his custom as long as Taehyung could remember- but stagnated in his slowness, sometimes sleeping until late in the afternoon, or as late as Taehyung allowed him to before literally kicking him out of bed.

His lethargy cost him his job and he didn't bother looking for another one.

Gradually the slowness morphed into darkness until there was nothing but suffocating silence left in Jeong Gyu and his existence shrunk to be wholly contained inside the four walls of their house.

It got to the point that Jeong Gyu neglected even his most basic self-care routines without pressure from Taehyung. He ate irregularly and only when prompted and would only wash himself or change his clothes when Taehyung complained about the smell.

Taehyung was fiercely worried and frustrated to distraction and wanted to fix it.

He wanted it more than anything.

Taehyung wanted his brother back.

During his many, mostly one-sided, discussions -which Jeong Gyu of course labelled as "interrogations"- Taehyung had tried asking Jeong Gyu what was wrong, if there was something that had happened to him, given the sudden change in his person.

His questions were met with the same apathy every time he tried. The same apathy that had permeated the whole of Jeong Gyu and was closing in on Taehyung -he could feel the cold fingers of darkness creep up toward him and he would sink into it just the same, if he weren't able to keep to his responsibilities and help his beloved little brother.

If Jeong Gyu couldn't rely on Taehyung then who could he rely on?

Taehyung felt that the longer he waited for the matter to resolve itself, the worse things were getting and he was no longer able to sit and wait. He was, after all, a man of action and he felt he had already waited too long.

Since Jeong Gyu was of no help, in his desperation, Taehyung contacted the only friend of Jeong Gyu's he knew in order to shed light on the situation.

It felt so utterly wrong to go behind Jeong Gyu's back like this and Taehyung worried that it would come and bite him in the ass when he found out, but he had gotten to the point now that he didn't really care as long as he could do something about it, as long as he could fix it. He would deal with the hurt and lost pride after the fact.

Jimin was surprised to hear from Taehyung. Because Jeong Gyu hadn't been in touch for so long, just hearing Taehyung's voice had Jimin panicking.

"Is everything OK?" He asked, concern clear in his gentle, melodic voice. "Is Jeong Gyu alright?"

"Well, I called because... because he isn't, Jimin. Not at all."

Taehyung asked to meet Jimin to talk about it in person.

When they met over a coffee, Jimin told Taehyung that Jeong Gyu had started avoiding him since he started frequenting Desire, the infamous BDSM club downtown.

"We started going there together, had a real fun time too, but as soon as he met this guy, he ditched me like a pair of old boots and stopped inviting me to go with him." He scrunched up his nose cutely, chewing his gum loudly with his mouth open, making Taehyung shudder involuntarily. "I think he was a bit possessive and got easily jealous so he didn't want me around 'cause I was a threat to him, you know!?"

Jimin blew a pink bubble with his gum and played with the wisps of pink hair at the nape of his neck, fluttering his eye lashes at Taehyung to such extent that he was starting to feel a bit violated.

"Who's the guy?" Taehyung asked, trying to stay as neutral as possible, not wanting to give any ideas to the pink hued, pouty lipped man-eater sitting across the table from him.

"Jeon JungKook. He's really well known, a big shot in the scene." Jimin said dreamily. "Fuck, he's so hot, I'd totally do anything he asked me..." Going by the way Jimin's eyes rolled to the back of his head in orgasmic bliss, his teeth denting the thick flesh of his lower lip, Taehyung had no doubts about that.

Finding out from Jimin that Jeong Gyu's life consisted entirely of people and places Taehyung had no idea about stabbed him deep in the heart.

He didn't know when they had drifted so far apart that he knew so little about him. The shock of the revelations made Taehyung feel a little breathless, in a bad way, the sudden slice of anxiety within him squishing his ribs too hard to breathe properly, every breath just a tad too shallow to get enough air. With every puff he felt the panic rise.

Taehyung blamed himself for working too hard, for being too busy, for... doing everything too much to not recognise that there was something wrong.

The accusing voices were loud in Taehyung head, he could hardly hear for all the shouting inside him. He should have known, if he'd known, maybe he would have been able to prevent all this.

He was like the worst big brother in the world, he concluded.

Regret tasted bitter on his tongue, tears burning his eyelids.

Taking big breaths, Taehyung tried to focus on what was relevant. His panic wasn't relevant, nor was his shock or his upset or his self-blame, the important part was to find out what happened, who caused it and how to fix it.

Taehyung focused all his energies... and realised something.

"But why did he go there in the first place!?" he asked, suddenly realising that there was no logical reason why his brother would be going to a BDSM club.

"I'm not quite sure how or when he'd come to the conclusion but he'd known for quite some time that the reason why he wasn't finding any pleasure in vanilla relationships was because he was an extreme submissive."

"Vanilla? Submissive?" Taehyung's eyebrows furrowed.

"Yes, traditional sex, you know, your bog standard, boring old sex: vanilla.."

"What does all this have to do with the club?"

"Well Jeong Gyu went there to find a Dom."

"He what?"

"OMG Taehyung have you been living under a rock, how can you not know about this shit? Dom -as in he wanted someone to dominate him. The last I heard he was hanging out with Jeon JungKook. I think he subbed for him.... And then I think something happened. I don't know what, but I'm pretty sure it was because of this JungKook guy." He pulled the bit of gum, pinching it between his fingers and stretching it in a long pink string out from between his perfectly proportioned, small, white teeth.

Taehyung saw red. The ever-present protector within him screamed like a banshee.

"How dare he do this to Jeong Gyu?!?" Taehyung stood up, his chair clanking loudly, voice echoing around the café. A sudden hush spread around the tables when perplexed faces turned to look at Taehyung to see what the commotion was all about.

"Calm down, Tae. Sit. Please." Jimin pleaded with his gentle eyes swimming with genuine concern. "You don't even know for sure what happened. Whatever's wrong with Jeong Gyu could be totally unrelated to JungKook.... Don't do anything stupid until you know for sure it's him, Taehyung. Please, I'd hate to see you in trouble. What would Jeong Gyu do if he didn't have you....?" Jimin pleaded, using the only thing that he knew would work to get Taehyung to calm down.

"Okay okay, I'm okay." He sat back down, sliding his palms down his front in an effort to calm down but it did nothing. He could feel his blood thump in his ears from the rage coursing through him.

"D'you know, I have to go home and speak to Jeong Gyu about this... thank you so much for telling me Jimin, I can't help him if I don't know what's wrong..." Taehyung squeezed Jimin's hand and practically flew out of the café.

This time, when Taehyung approached Jeong Gyu with information regarding Jeon JungKook and asked if he was the reason for Jeong Gyu's upset, his reaction was strong and immediate enough for Taehyung to tell, definitively, that his suspicions had been correct.

JungKook was the culprit.

"What did he do to you, Jeong Gyu!? Tell me!" Taehyung shook the cold shoulder he was being given.

"I'm going to kill Jimin, he had no right to tell you!" was the only thing Jeong Gyu mumbled towards the wall, accusing his best friend of betraying his trust.

"Jeong Gyu, please, I beg you. Don't be upset with Jimin, I practically forced him to tell me. You should have told me... You don't have to tell me what happened, I trust you, I'm not angry at you. I just need to know if it was Jeon JungKook that was at fault, did he cause this!?"

Taehyung tried to contain the fury in his voice, tried to stay calm for fear of upsetting Jeong Gyu further, but his protective instinct had been fully unleashed and it was difficult to rein it back in.

Taehyung hadn't expected to hear an answer but when it came it was short and quiet:

"Yes."

The single, broken word somehow encompassed so much grief, upset, anger, a whole plethora of distressing emotions that Taehyung felt it inside as a sharp stab, his eyes burning with indignant tears.

Taehyung's heart was right there broken with Jeong Gyu's, suddenly so badly tainted with bitterness and anger.

How could anyone do this to his precious little brother?

In his inability to do anything about the spiralling doom of Jeong Gyu was driving Taehyung up the wall.

Every day that went by, the presence of the hunched, deflated figure that seemed hardly alive, barely existing, burnt at the back of Taehyung's throat like the bitter bile that threatened to spew every time he thought of this.... excuse of a man taking advantage of his little brother -he was barely 19 for heaven's sake!

Taehyung felt impotent with rage. Every day he'd wake up thinking perhaps today would be the day that Jeong Gyu would be able to climb out of his hole and start living again and when that day never seemed to come, Taehyung felt his sanity slip a little.

He needed to do something about it.

Even though he knew that it wouldn't fix what was wrong with Jeong Gyu and that that the likelihood of success was low, Taehyung needed revenge. He needed it like the air he breathed.

Since he had spoken with Jimin, Taehyung had done his research discreetly and now knew where he could find the offender.

Jeon JungKook.

Damned Jeon JungKook.

The notorious Dom in the BDSM scene who had tempted and lured his little brother onto the path of darkness.

Taehyung would never forgive him. Ever.

He would burn in the fires of hell rather than forgive him.

Jeon JungKook would be broken and on his knees, begging for mercy because Taehyung was going to break his heart, just the way he had broken Jeong Gyu's heart... into little pieces, like tiny shards of glass cutting sharply in his chest, his heart crumbling in Taehyung's hands until there was nothing left of it.

And that was a promise.

When Taehyung's revenge was complete, maybe then he could sleep at night.

*

While Taehyung was getting ready, dressing with care, even putting some smoky eye-makeup on for extra lure, he reminded himself that he used to be a major heart throb in high school and could have had his free pick of anyone he liked -gay or not. So he just needed to remember that and emulate the confidence he didn't feel he quite possessed anymore.

After he had adjusted the silver curls into a perfect cascade over his brow, he fiddled with the long, sparkly earrings and dangly bracelets and decided on a sweet scent of vanilla as his choice of weapon for the evening.

Despite his sinister plans, Taehyung couldn't help but to giggle when he made the connection between his scent and his current BDSM experience level -he was as vanilla as they came.

Taehyung's mind was still reeling from all the research he had done on the scene so as to not seem completely naïve about it but considering the variety of BDSM practices out there, the task had seemed neigh insurmountable.

Some of the stuff had been pretty shocking -Taehyung couldn't believe half of the stuff people were made to do and when he thought of his little brother and how he would have been similarly subjected to humiliation and pain against his own wishes, made him so angry.

He could hardly see for the rage boiling inside him.

Taehyung took a moment to gather his wits about while standing outside the club.

This was it. Time to find Jeon JungKook and charm his pants off.

Walking through the doorway into the darkness, Taehyung could feel every pulse of a bass on his skin as cool shivers. His final thoughts, that he decided to leave outside before he entered, were to wonder if he'd be up for this. His answer came in the form of a reminder: a hopeless Jeong Gyu already asleep at dinner time, huddling against his wall in his bedroom.

Taehyung couldn't really see past his rage, he couldn't really see how futile, irrelevant, ridiculous and badly thought-out his plan was. He couldn't see that there might be pitfalls or sacrifices that needed to be made to even get close to where he wanted to be.

He hadn't really considered his own heart. At all.

The flashing lights in the darkness comforted Taehyung, the loud music enveloping his body like an embrace.

Because Taehyung had never been to a sex club, he hadn't known what to expect.

He had worried he'd walk into to some obscene sex acts being performed on the stage and was comforted by the fact that the sights upon entering were not really that different from an ordinary night club.

The writhing bodies on the dance floor were so similar to your average, mainstream club that it took a moment for Taehyung to register that they were, in fact, dressed very differently.

Although some people were dressed in normal clothes, a large proportion of people weren't.

There was a lot of leather, latex, studs, belts, straps and collars. Taehyung was shocked to even see women with exposed breasts, some men only wearing little leather hotpants and collars with leads attached to them -the women holding the leads. There was a woman strapped onto the centre post of the dance floor and Taehyung caught a sight of several hands travelling over her body, her gagged and blindfolded face looking up to the heavens as if thanking the lord.

Comparing himself to practically everyone in the club, Taehyung suddenly realised that his choice of clothing was completely inappropriate and that he stood out like a sore thumb.

The soft, slightly fluffy, white jumper hugged his figure closely and it was short enough that lifting his arms would show his soft tummy. The length was to leave a good view of his shapely bottom hidden (not so well) under a very tight, ripped pair of stonewashed jeans that were so worn they were practically white.

Not really knowing how to incorporate his style into the scene, he had opted for a thin, black fabric choker around his slender neck.

His silvery hair was almost as fluffy as his jumper, surrounding his face like a halo which lit up when the lights hit it.

It completely escaped Taehyung's notice how impossibly angelic and innocent he looked amongst the sea of writhing leather.

Looking down from his position on the higher balcony level, the very second JungKook's eyes landed on the white, ethereal figure weaving through the crowd below, he felt his stomach somersault. It was an unfamiliar but highly coveted feeling that JungKook had not felt in a long time.

For a while, Taehyung walked around the club in confident strides, looking for the man he was here to destroy. He tried to calm down and even practiced a smile, feeling it all stiff and plasticky on his face.

He needed a drink. Yes, just one, to help him calm down and relax a little.

While Taehyung was waiting at the bar, he took a moment to recall the picture he had found on Jeong Gyu's phone that he was sure was JungKook. He had felt bad about snooping around but figured once justice had been served, Jeong Gyu would be too happy to be angry at him.

The unexpected wave of something bright travelled through Taehyung the second he saw the man he was looking for.

The large, dark eyes that seemed so clearly defined even from this distance were shadowed by messy black hair. It might have been harder to recognise him without his substantial undercut which showed off his impressive selection of ear jewellery. The most distinguishing feature, however, was the tattoo sleeve - the whole of his right arm and back of his hand was covered in wonderful inky art.

Standing on the balcony over-looking the whole club, leaning casually against the railing, all lit up by a light behind him, he looked like an omnipotent ruler over his servants... and he was clearly looking directly at Taehyung.

For no reason whatsoever, Taehyung felt heat rise to his cheeks at the intensity of his gaze.

Even though the man was practically miles away, Taehyung could feel the aura of his authority in his guts. It practically crawled up his spine and made the hairs at the back of his neck stand on end.

Forcing himself to finally pull his eyes away from the dark gaze, it had only just occurred to him how very amateurish it was of him to not have a proper, well-thought-out plan. He hadn't actually gotten past the "come here, find him, seduce him". Realising his stupidity, Taehyung gave himself a harsh mental kick while he decided to take a moment to think about it further.

While he waited at the bar to be served, he literally felt eyes on him, hungry eyes -all around him. He gulped, suddenly feeling like a vulnerable prey amongst wolves.

He had heard that BDSM clubs were really warm and welcoming places but right this moment in time he felt nothing but uncomfortable.

Avoiding all eye contact with everyone, he stood at the bar nursing the drink he had finally managed to get, trying to decide on his next move, when a man -a giant of a man several feet taller than Taehyung- appeared out of nowhere next to him.

"Well hello there, sweets. What's a pretty boy like you doing in a place like this?" he had to lean down for Taehyung to hear him and his face was too close, his unpleasant cologne and body odour overwhelming Taehyung's sensitive nose.

"Just meeting some friends." Taehyung said, quite dismissively, hoping the guy would get the hint.

"Well while you're waiting, how about I buy you a drink, darling?" his shovel of a hand reached for Taehyung's curls. Taehyung did not appreciate such an invasion of body space without his consent and practically hissed at the man:

"Keep your paws off me, mate. I have a drink so I don't need one thank you. Please don't call me darling either." Taehyung spat the words out firmly, with much more confidence than he felt. The man could snap him like a twig between just two of his fingers by the looks of him.

What the giant didn't know was that despite his angelic looks, Taehyung had never been known for his calm, placid demeanour, quite the opposite in fact. He was not afraid to give as good as he got and then some, in fact, you would not want to see him angry.

"Alright, alright. Don't get your panties in a knot now, doll, nothing to worry about, I'm just a friendly guy." He smiled but Taehyung felt there was something extremely predatory about it because the smile didn't touch his eyes. Dread weighed heavy in his stomach.

"That's great, can you go and be friendly somewhere else please, I'm looking for someone and you're blocking my view." He couldn't help the tone, Taehyung got lippy when he was nervous or annoyed -a very unhelpful remnant of adolescence he never grew out of despite his best efforts.

Confrontation was really not the way to start in a club he had never been in, with a scene he was not accustomed to. He had no idea what kind of people hung out in places like these, all he knew was that he didn't belong and things never ended well for the outsiders.

"Excuse me?" He man suddenly grew several inches in his outrage and Taehyung swallowed, fully realising his mistake yet refusing to regret it.

"I'm sorry, that was rude." He said, not even trying to sound genuine. Taehyung hated assholes. "I'm anxious to find my friends, excuse me." Taehyung tried to keep up his fed-up cool face while internally panicking and made a move to leave.

Suddenly, a log of an arm pushed against the bar, effectively barricading him in between the ogre and the bar.

"Did no one ever teach you how to be polite, sweetcakes? That's not how you talk to people." His voice sounded ominous. Taehyung actually wondered if something bad could happen in a club amongst the sea of bodies and hoped more than anything that the answer was no.

The man leaned over, making Taehyung lean back against the bar, his back bending in an effort to try and get away from the foul breath spilling out of the man.

Fed up with being treated like this, Taehyung kicked the guy in the shin and in just a second, the giant of a man doubled over in pain, howling. The bigger they are, the harder they fall, Taehyung thought.

"Didn't anyone ever tell you to stop harassing people who clearly don't want to be harassed? Ass." Taehyung's words cut sharp like a knife.

Taehyung felt like throwing his drink on the man's face but then decided that would be one step too far, he wasn't that over-dramatic.

Making a quick escape, Taehyung headed upstairs to find his mark.

He had no idea what he was going to do or how to get his attention but he was determined to try with renewed urgency. This was not going to be a wasted trip. He was going to get Jeon JungKook's attention, whatever it took.

The stairs were wide and lit with rows of lights along each step. They curved gently until they reached the back of the balcony. Taehyung rushed up two steps at a time, worried that the giant would follow him.

There was a smaller, quieter bar with some comfortable seats dotted around small tables. This felt like a more privileged area and Taehyung wondered if he should even be here.

He decided he could always feign ignorance if he was told off. He had no problem bending the rules a little if it helped him get where he needed to be.

Taehyung was in luck.

JungKook was sitting, alone, around a table that happened to be the sole table with seats left.

Feigning confidence he didn't really have and without a plan as such, other than an attempt to try and seduce the man and break his heart, he spoke.

"Hi, there!" a cute smile. "D'you mind if I sit here?" Fluttering eyelashes.

As soon as the dark eyes that seemed to pierce through Taehyung's soul found him, he couldn't look away. He felt his stomach fall and fall.

"I don't know. Are you going to kick me too?" There was a teasing glint in his eyes and a wobble on his lips from trying not to laugh.

"I don't know. Are you planning on touching me without my consent?" Taehyung talked back in already familiar vein.

"Hmmm..." with a lifting eyebrow, his eyes scanned Taehyung up and down with obvious appreciation that made Taehyung feel breathless because he felt naked under it. Intense heat rose to his cheeks and he told himself it was just because he was wearing a warm (it wasn't really) jumper in a hot club and nothing more.

".... No, not without consent." he said, somehow implying that he was going to be touching Taehyung and it would be with his consent. Taehyung could not help but to be impressed with the confidence oozing out of the dark figure. His heart raced.

Hardly able to breathe for the tightness in his throat, Taehyung smiled his most dazzling smile and sat down, saying:

"Good, then we're in agreement."