The Grotesque Slice of Life
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Jiyong walked through the streets with his hoodie up, trying to hide from the person he suspected could chase him down at any moment. He knew he was in danger, but his sister was safe, and that was all that mattered. All he wanted was to look for help. He needed to look for help. If not, his death would be certain. He was afraid of what that woman could do to him. After all the time he spent admiring the one and only Kang Eunha, he finally realized how scary she was. What a disturbing monster she was in person. Her beauty wasn't as strong and prominent as her grotesque personality was.

Right when he turned the corner, he stopped in his tracks, almost bumping into a familiar face in front. He looked at the woman and immediately felt shivers down his spine. Her cold eyes and her disturbing smirk made him realize he was trapped. A million thoughts ran through his head, but they all had to do with his certain death. He took a step backward, but crashed into a hard chest. The moment he turned around, he saw a man wearing a hoodie as he covered his face.

"Where are you going, Jiyong?" the woman asked as she chuckled. Jiyong looked down and sighed, knowing he couldn't do anything. He was trapped and with no escape. When he was finally about to say something, everything went black, and he fell to the concrete floor.

+

The next day after work, Jimin drove everywhere and anywhere. He took himself to a familiar route, and once he arrived, he parked the car and looked out the window. He got out but hesitated to walk to the door, unsure what to do. Reaching into his pocket, he grabbed a cigarette and lit it up as he walked back and forth around his car. He didn't want to trouble Ara with his current situation, as it was already bothering him. Hana, Eunha, his company. It was driving him sick to his stomach. He didn't want to pressure her with an answer to his confession, either. All he wanted was to see her.

Through the window, Ara saw him from her room. As soon as she heard a car at the front entrance, she knew it had to be him. Well, either Jimin or Jungkook, since he'd usually visit Minji to play video games. However, this time, it was Jimin, and she was right.

Finally, he stopped pacing and turned to face the house again. He took one last blow on the cigarette and discarded it before he turned to his car. He sat back inside as Ara sighed and closed her curtains. In just a few seconds, he was gone. A new destination awaited him. One that he could actually manage.

Once he arrived, he got out of his car and gave his keys to the valet. He walked inside the building and smiled at the lady at the front desk. She had seen him there multiple times before and knew who he was very well. He walked over to the elevator and pressed the button that went to the penthouse of the building. When he walked out, he walked to a specific door and knocked on it. Once the door opened, Jimin stood face-to-face with Dongwoo.

"Jimin?" Dongwoo asked, confused to see him there. He made space for Jimin to walk inside as he closed the door behind him. Both men walked over to the long red couch in the middle of the living room and sat down. "Do you want some coffee or something to drink? I think I have no more coffee left. My wife is at work right now, so I'm the one who needs to buy groceries. I keep forgetting whenever she's not here."

Dongwoo smiled as he spoke, but Jimin shook his head. He was only there for a specific reason.

"Everything is getting resolved, Dongwoo," he said. "Come back to work. I need you with me. You've always been with me. You're the only one I trust."

Dongwoo stayed silent. He stood up and walked to the kitchen to serve himself a drink. Jimin sighed as he looked down, knowing that asking him to return would be impossible. Dongwoo never turned back on his decisions. He was not willing to return just with a simple begging. He would have to convince himself.

"The other day at work, I was attacked by my own co-workers," Dongwoo said. "What hurt the most about it was thinking you'd be as mad as they were with me. I didn't want you to think that. I can't return, Jimin. My dignity was taken away from me. I have worked with you and your father for years, and my integrity was never questioned until now. Trust me, I don't know what changed. I don't know how it happened. I just—I need a break."

Once he finished serving himself the drink, he grabbed it and walked over to Jimin. He sat down in front of him as Jimin looked up.

"You've always been a son to me, Jimin," Dongwoo said. "Even you know that very well. You're the son I never had. But I can't return. It's not safe for me anymore. I also value my life."

Jimin, as much as it hurt him, agreed. He didn't want Dongwoo to continue suffering like he did before. It was brutal, and he blamed himself for it. If Dongwoo thought it was too much to handle, Jimin couldn't even imagine the details of what had happened to him.

"As for the co-workers, I won't take any legal action," Dongwoo continued. "I know it can hurt the company if this comes out, and you know I love the corporation with all my heart, so I won't. I won't even mention their names because I know you'll take action for me. So please, let's leave this here."

Jimin knew he couldn't argue with him. Even if he hired an attorney for him, Dongwoo wouldn't accept it. He was like that. Hard-headed and weak. He would give up on personal issues unless they hurt someone else. Then he'd fight. However, if it hurt him, it wasn't a big deal. It didn't matter. It wasn't worth fighting for. Jimin knew he couldn't go against his words, so he just accepted them as they were.

After the meeting with Dongwoo, Jimin got in his car and drove to his sister's house. It was time to stop avoiding someone he cared for and loved so much. Someone he had not seen in days and never even cared to check up on. He did care about her, but he had to put his feelings aside, at least for a moment. More important things were at hand.

As he parked the car, he received a call from Baekhyun, so he answered it immediately.

"Yoon Hana left her resignation letter in my office," Jimin said before Baekhyun could speak. "I sent you the video. What do we do now?"

"I'm going to request a search warrant now. I'll let you know when everything is ready. Hopefully, we can get something from it."

"The patient that talked to Yoongi—we need to keep him safe. His testimony could help so much, but I'm afraid Eunha might discover we have him here. I'm afraid that she will find out about him. What if she does something to him, knowing that he saw everything? I haven't seen her in days. I don't know what she's doing."

"Yoongi said he will be given a new identity and somewhere else to stay. He thought of it all already, so don't worry. Eunha won't lay a finger on him."

After the call, Jimin walked to the front steps of Minji's house and knocked on the door. Minji welcomed him and revealed a figure sitting on the couch behind her.

"Ey, Jimin," Jungkook said as he stood up and walked to him. "Visiting your lovely sister—at last?"

"Hah, no," Minji said, as she chuckled and pointed toward Ara's room. She knew Jimin was there to talk to Ara and not her. He had done that multiple times, but she understood. Minji knew he cared for her because she was his sister, but he was pursuing someone, and she was happy for him. At least he wasn't pursuing a monster any longer.

"Technically, I just visited you, Minji," Jimin said with a smirk. "I'm stepping foot in your house, after all."

Minji rolled her eyes as Jungkook chuckled. Jimin made his way inside, and Minji closed the door after him. Jungkook walked back towards the couch with her while Jimin looked at the television, confused.

"We're playing Overwatch," Minji said as she sat down. "Jungkook thinks I lost my video game abilities, so I have to show him he's the rusty one here."

"Right. Video games," Jimin said as he chuckled. "Jungkook, don't you have a company to manage? Minji, don't you have any photoshoots today?"

"No!" both yelled in unison. Minji nudged Jungkook on the shoulder, and both laughed at their synched response. Jimin shook his head as Minji turned to face him.

"What are you waiting for? Go to her room!"

Jungkook looked at her confused but then turned to Jimin immediately and asked, "Wait a minute. 'Her room'? Can someone explain that? Are you and Ara a thing now? Wasn't she your maid?"

Jimin ignored the question and walked to Ara's room while Minji explained the situation to Jungkook. Once Jimin was at the door, he hesitated, but finally knocked on it slightly. The door opened, and Ara stood there, unbothered by his presence. It had been a while, and she wasn't in the mood to talk to him, but she wanted a break from studying for her finals. She made way for him to walk inside and closed the door after he did so.

"Do you—"

Before Jimin could say another word, Ara interrupted him and said, "My dad was murdered. I believe it now. I couldn't even think about it as true, but I believe it now."

Jimin stayed silent. Ara finally could admit to herself that there was more than just a mere possibility. Even if it hurt her to think that he would have been alive if it weren't for some homicidal maniac who took his life away from him. Jimin just smiled, knowing it took her some time to admit it because it hurt her so much. He knew that at least she ended up accepting it because she saw a possibility—a slight chance of it being the truth.

"I'm glad you came to terms with yourself," he said. "We could use your help with the investigation, but only if you agree. I don't want to bother you with this. I told you I wouldn't ask anymore. To be honest, I came here because I wanted to ask you about the other night."

Ara knew exactly what he was referring to. The night he confessed his feelings before Yoongi, the savior, interrupted with the news of the leak. Ara never had the chance to respond to him, and at the moment, she couldn't think of anything to say. She walked closer to him and looked directly into his eyes. He looked at hers, but then looked to the side as he went to sit down on the bed.

He remembered the conversation that he had with Minji the other day. Another man's name had slipped out of her mouth. He didn't remember the name, but he knew Minji didn't like meeting other men. The only one she talked to other than him was Jungkook because they had a bond, but she hated men. He thought the slip-up had to have been a man that Ara knew. A man that she was perhaps seeing. Jimin knew it could be a possibility, even though he didn't want it to be. Ara was free to talk to whomever she wanted, and he knew that.

"Don't do that to me," he said in annoyance. "If you're stuck, then tell me. If you don't know what to do, then tell me. I don't want you to confuse my heart like that. I know you're talking to someone else. Minji accidentally mentioned a guy last time we talked, but I don't remember his name. Still, I already confessed, so I can't do anything about it—and even if I knew about him, I would have told you my feelings, regardless. I couldn't wait to confess because I want you to be mine, and I will try my hardest for that to happen. You know how I feel, but if you like him and want to be with him, then tell me. I promise I'll leave."

"I need time," Ara replied. "He disappeared more than a week ago. I can't find him, and it worries me. He doesn't respond to my messages or my calls. I'm scared and worried. The other day, I asked about him at the front desk of the SNU main office, and they said they couldn't tell me about another student, so I don't know what to do. I haven't even seen him on campus. I've even tried to look for him. Jimin, I don't want to hurt you while I think of another man and his whereabouts. It's just not fair to you. He was a good friend to me, and now he just disappeared."

Jimin felt upset with those words, but he understood. That was what he wanted to hear. The reason he drove there in the first place. He wanted to know the truth, and now that he heard it, he was reassured of the situation. Ara was indeed stuck between him and another man. Both of them were trying to pursue her at the same time, and it all confused her. She couldn't just pick between them both. It felt like she was going back and forth. Her feelings were coming and going.

"Wait a minute, he disappeared?" Jimin asked, and Ara nodded. He didn't know why he suddenly cared about a strange man he had never met, but his gut feeling was telling him something. Even if that man was trying to pursue the woman he wanted to be with, he knew something was wrong. He felt it. He pulled out his phone and dialed Yoongi's number.

"What's his name?" he asked.

"Jang Jiyong, he goes to SNU with me. He's twenty-six," Ara replied, knowing already who he was calling. If Yoongi could help find him, then that was all that mattered. Ara needed answers.

When Yoongi picked up the phone, Jimin immediately said, "Jang Jiyong, he's been missing for more than a week now. He's twenty-six and goes to SNU. Can you find out where he is?"

"He also has a sister," Ara blurted out as she bit on her nails. Jimin nodded and repeated the same phrase to Yoongi.

"J-Jang Jiyong?" Yoongi asked. "Why are you looking for him? Do you personally know him?"

Jimin looked at Ara, who was looking at him nervously. He could tell the missing man meant a lot to her. He couldn't even believe he was helping her find another man, but he couldn't see her like that, so stressed about someone she cared for. It felt hypocritical, but he had to help. He just wanted to take some worry off her, at least for a while. While he was caring for her, she was caring for another.

"No reason," Jimin answered, facing Ara. "Just—try to find out where he's at. It's very important."

Suddenly, the call went quiet. Yoongi didn't know how to say it. Coincidentally, he had just received news about a young man in his twenties named Jang Jiyong.

"Jimin, this morning, a young man in his twenties was found dead in an alley. He was identified as Jang Jiyong. I was told he was a student."

Jimin's body froze. He couldn't say anything, and it worried Ara. She got closer to him to hear what Yoongi was saying, but Jimin stood up and walked towards the door.

"Thanks, Yoongi," he said. "I'll call you later."

He hung up and sighed as he was about to do something he would regret for the rest of his life. He turned to Ara, looking directly into her worried but gorgeous eyes. The eyes he was terrified of seeing cry a single tear. He didn't want to be the one to break the news to her. He didn't want to see her devastated reaction. All he wanted was to see her smile, but he never managed to make that happen.

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