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“ are you sure?!?!?” I whisper yell, pressing the phone hard against my earlobe.

“ it's all over the news already ” Jin's voice resonates into my ears, to which I don't know how to react? Relieved? Happy or gloomy or should I just stay neutral? No, not absolutely neutral, I can't be freaking nonchalant after all this, but nevertheless, I'll have to be collected. He's on a run from authorities and this doesn't sound right at the first place. I'll have to get him before the cops do.

“ there's something really important, and I need your help ” I request.

“ what's it? ”

“ I'm messaging you a car number plate, just let me know who is the owner ”

“ sure ”

“ thanks, I'll get back to you later ” saying that, I hang up the call. It's been a pretty while already that I haven't been under the watch of my dad's bodyguards and spies, could it be one of em? But I cannot take the risk, I need to get out of the situation, as early as possible.

Noting down the numbers in my head with a vague glance, I quickly messaged the license number to Seok Jin, and then switching to Taehyung's number, I send another message, reading;

Sorry, I'm stuck with other work, will meet you later, somewhere else.
-Lisa

I then trot towards the road, ignoring my parked car. I know I'm being a little obvious. But I cannot take the risk, I'll anyway get to know who's behind the black tinted glass of the JL car; an ostentatious and probably expensive model, not something a mediocre family can afford. Just who are you? I'm still dubious about the fact that dad will provide the spies or hawks such an expensive piece just to keep an eye on me. It's not something he's used to. It's someone else.

I wave my hand for cabs passing by, or should I just book an Uber? I glance at the suspicious car once again. Is someone really inside or am I just making a whole fuss out of nothing at all?

Wait wait wait. What if it's Jungkook?

Damn, if it's him then I already sent the car's number plate to Jin. No no no. Calm down. It isn't him, it can't be. I mean why would he follow me? Makes no sense. But what if it's him?

Am I putting him behind bars again?

A grey taxi stops in front of me, and without giving much thought, I open the door and hop on. I choose to escape, no matter what's it.

“ Santara Villa, block number 77 ”

The car speeds up and I just stare the parking lot in the rear view mirror. I didn't even have guts enough to go check who was there? No, I did the right move, it could have been utterly absurd, especially when I'm doing the informal investigation all by myself. 

My cheek wets with the streams bulging out of my eyes very involuntarily. The argument was so unhealthy. It was borne with the need to seek love, applies for both of us. I quickly wipe up my tears with my hand, and then I suddenly recall something––the handkerchief? The stars printed handkerchief Rosie was using––it looked the exactly like the one that I lost that night––the one they recovered as evidences against me, in Jimin's room.

The hell? Did she really frame me into this? I feel a sharp boring pain over my interior of head, and a flash of light. A part of memory comes back, in where I feel Jungkook's hand over my bare skin, over my thighs––i don't know if I can trust my broken flashbacks but this is what leading me to conclude, that it's Jungkook who fucked me, and Taehyung? Either he took advantage of me when Jungkook perhaps left me or he's pretending to be with me, to hide something.

The suspicion now resides over Taehyung. He's a freaking prime suspect for a reason. But is Chaeyoung involved in this game too? Did she help him? There's huge possibilities, coz Tae agreed after denying twice to meet me, just after Rosie agreed. This cannot be a coincidence. I'm very close to conspirators, I guess. Perhaps Taehyung feared that Chaeyoung might spill the truth to me, and if she does, both of em will be in jail. And if he thinks––Rosie can be threatening for the secret––then she can be in danger too. No no. I should just try to call her and see if she's safe. Wait but––

“ where are you taking me?!!?!! Stop the car ” I yell, when I see the car turn towards the left instead of right. Damn. Shit's about to go down. “ I said stop the car, or I'm calling the cops !! ”

Instead of listening to what I'm saying, the driver, whose head is still covered in a black cap, speeds the car up abruptly, that causes my head to jolt against the back seat. I quickly take out my phone from my purse, and––

“ Don't call the cops, baby doll ”

A familiar deep and husky voice pervades the air, and a bolt of happiness strikes inside me.

Jeon fucking Jungkook.

“ Jungkook?”

“ you missed me, right? ” he asks playfully, removing his cap and exposing his fluffy hair. I ignore his teasing, coz I'm rather occupied in my own thoughts popping up like pop corns at the climax of heat.

“ how'd you free yourself?” I ask, leaning forward and clasping my hands on either side of my knee caps.

“ shouldn't you be asking how am I? Or did I get hurt or something, baby? ” his voice lacks emotions, which makes me feel at the edge. With an exasperated sign, he says in the most casual way possible, “ I had to shoot two officers ”

Wtf?

Calm down. It's a joke?

“ a-and where're you taking-g me ?” instead of trying my best to keep all the quivering emotions caged inside, they come out in form of stuttering words and i hate it. I hate it when my fear is clearly written all over my face or verbally, instead of the efforts.

“ somewhere safe ”

He states before the surroundings turn silent, not awkward but pin drop silent which makes my stomach twist knots in nervousness. I stare out of the window, and realize we're going in a highway––away from the city lights, through the dense forest. And the clouds accumulate darkening into shades of grey, and there's this loud growl of the thunder storm waiting for us. Although it's just 5 pm, but due to the absence of the sun, it feels like seven in the evening already.

“ you didn't shoot anyone, right? ” I question, and bite my lips, “ listen, it's no more a joke, I hate such severe ones ”

“ of course I was kidding, I'll answer all your questions once we're at a safer place ” I heave a sign of relief internally, and tries my best to keep myself together at a place where I don't know whom to trust and whom not to. Everything seems too doubtful, and deceitful. I'm losing conscience of judging the right and wrong, and most of it is lost when I'm around him, very unfortunately. I wonder if it's one of his subterfuge––to make me trust him.

“ do you trust me? ” he asks, and I can feel his crystal eyes on me through the mirror. And without letting another second pass by, I mumble, “ I do ”

There's strangely no hesitation in my voice, which doesn't feel alright. I can feel his smirk against his lips, even though I can't see it. His usual behavior. There's a thousand of questions that I want to ask him and there's frankly no store for anymore patience. But still, I do not ask, coz I like it––the silence which speaks better than words sometimes.

“ give me your phone ” he says, and I just look at his back questioningly. “ trust me. It's for us ” Do I look dumb? I mean why would I hand him my phone, I show reluctance with the silence. “ Listen. I didn't kill Jimin ”

“ I didn't ask you ”

“ but I know you need answers ”

“ not like this ”

“ gosh. Is the unnecessary attitude of girls important at troughs? ” He says, tapping on the steering wheel, seemingly annoyed. “ I'm trying to be nice ”

“ you want me to listen to your half baked sentences when you don't even have my answers. And about attitude, you should at yourself first. ” I spit venom, declaring another argument that I wanted to have with him for a long while. “ and guess what? I was glad to see you alive for a second. Whom am i caring for? A killer ?”

“ I get it, it's just sexual frustration, babe ” he says and there's surely this smug smile dancing on his face. I cough dryly, not sounding too pleasant. At the times like this, he's trying to come up with jokes, just wow. Such a hoe.

“ not for you Jungkook ”

He doesn't replies, which make me a lowkey disappointed because he has always words reserve for, especially for retorts and arguments, and the sarcastic ones too. Although I've known him for hardly few weeks, and whatever we talked, it was all about that one night and I never really got the chance to dig in deeper into his personal life, or true self. All the focused on, was the whole bigass plan, and never on the details. “ I'm sorry ” he whispers, out of the blue, which takes me aback. What's up with him? “ for causing so much trouble. I need your help to solve it ”

Yeah, right. I wish I was a big help. But I have and had nothing more than wealth, no power at all, not even over myself. Thanks to my manipulative dad.

“ who do you think is involved ? ” I ask.

“ not sure ”

“ I think Rosé and Taehyung are involved in it ” I mutter, with uncertainty. “ not sure, but they look suspicious ”

“ stop assuming things, Lis, you're again going in the wrong direction. Seok Jin is involved with Namjoon in pushing you in the wrong way ”

“ how do you know that Jin helped me wi. . .? ” I trail off, seemingly confused at the amount of things he know. Did he––by any chance––hire spies against me? How calculative his actions can be?

“ not something, you should be concerned with ” he says monotonously, then after a silence of two seconds catches up again. “ I'll explain you everything, but please switch off your phone first, we're being tracked down. Do you want me to get caught again? ”

Of course. I don't. I wish you're innocent.

“ Alright ”

I open my eyes to see rain pouring down the window panes of the car, where I'm leaning over and nothing is visible outside due to darkness, except translucency of the dripping water, and the car's engine is off, too. I cock up my head and note that Jungkook is missing from the car. My heart beats pick up a pace racing to beat the storm outside, and there's no voice except the pitter-pattering of the heavy downpour. I don't exactly remember how I drifted off to sleep, but I did when I started sulking at the corner. And where's Jungkook? It's scary as fuck.

Then there's this sudden knock at the pane even before I compartmentalize my thoughts, and I can see silhouette of a man with an umbrella. Very gingerly, I slid down the window pane, partly expecting it to be Jungkook.

“ hey! You're up? ” here he is.

“ I guess I am not ” I mumble sarcastically.

“ there's a motel, and due to heavy rain we cannot drive any further so I've booked a room for us ” He says against the rain noise. It was still quite audible but still I repeat, highlighting the most obvious thing.

“ a room for us? ”

“ C'mon there's no other place we can go. And it was important to fill up our names as Mr and Mrs Lee, we cannot afford to leave trailings behind.”

I understand, he probably threw a bundle of notes on the receptionist to get this room with no ID cards. I wonder how did he arrange it all?

He opens the door with the keys, and I scrutinize around to see a mini-parking lot with few other cars seemingly old and of perhaps 1980's filling the space, and in front of us stood the small motel with yellow tube-lights and looks corrupted with mud and dirt only, and no human existence. “ the motel's cool ” I say with the most sarcastic tone I can mutter.

“ better than jail at least ” he says, and pulls me closer, pressing his hands against my arms to bring me closer to the umbrella shelter, or more like close to him. Oh gosh, this guy.

In few minutes he directly takes to me our room, passing through the counter where a lean guy in his early twenties was staring at us. The room number 33 is it, with a single couple bed, white sheets and blankets, with a local wooden cupboard at the corner and a  night stand, and nothing more. And walls painted white which turned greyish and wilting yellowish with time. But thankfully there's a bathroom attached to this room. Jungkook closes the door behind me, and the locking sound makes my ears perk up.

“ I'm going to take a shower ”  he says and takes out a towel from the black bag-pack kept over the bed, who's probably his property. I just shake my head, still watching around the corner, but my eyes shoot up when he without being bothered with my presence casually takes off his black T-shirt from atop, off his torso without any hesitation at all, which exposes his toned packs beneath. I just clear my throat. “ there's one more towel inside, and clothes too. Pick any of those ” he says throwing his bag towards my direction, meanwhile I'm still busy checking him out.

“ thanks ”

“ you shouldn't be, remember, you're being kidnapped ” he teases, with a lurking smirk, and his eyes grow dark, mentioning it. I feel eerily intimidated. No no. I came with my will. “ still, you should be the happiest woman on Earth, coz you're enjoying seeing my sexy body on display ”

“ you think that's make me feel excited? ” I say with grimace, pretending to be pretty not much affected, although I am. Very much. He laughs lightly to my answer, ruffling his hair.

“ If I were at your place I'd be thinking––oh my god he's so hot, I'm not going anywhere leaving this sexy dude alone ”

He just legit spoke my mind.

“ that's enough” I speak with the most natural expression of disbelief.

This is gonna be a long night.

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A/N : sorry for the mess. I wanted to add more scenes but the chapter is already 2400+ words. Kindly ignore the typos (if any), and so sorry for late updates. I'm very busy, and it's really hard to take out time for writing from my schedule.

DOP : 20th June 2019

Comments are much appreciated!!

Love,
Lizzy