Yoongi, Namjoon, and Seokjin recounted the events that happened in detail once they returned to the hideout, despite that they already told them everything from the phone.

Jungkook expected to feel sad and ruined without his business, but the wavelets of relief that undulated across his insides were a pleasant surprise. He wouldn’t deal with scumbags anymore — he would be a normal businessman when he would clear his name, and he would have Taehyung by his side. The love of his life.

Jungkook and Taehyung receded to their room and perched on the bed, cuddling up to each other. Jungkook petted his cheek with tender knuckles, his lips fixed on an affection smile. “You’re spoiling me by sleeping over so often. How am I supposed to sleep again without you, hmm?”

“Is this an invitation to move in together once you clear your name?”

“It depends.”

“On what?” Taehyung questioned with raised brows.

“If you want to or not.”

Taehyung’s mouth trembled with the chuckle that dripped from him. “I think it’s a bit too soon to move in together. Officially, at least. But I can sleep over at your house often. You have a house, right?”

Jungkook snorted. “Yes, I have a house. Although it’s not that big since I live alone. If you don’t like it, I can buy another one. Or even build one just for you and me.”

Taehyung pursed his lips in playful disapproval. “You’re so rich it gets on my nerves a bit.”

Honeyed chuckles rippled across the room from both, and Jungkook peppered a row of little kisses on his mouth. “Other men in your place would be dying to marry me because I’m this rich. I’m so glad you’re not one of them. I can’t woo you with my wealth. You don’t care about my money at all, do you?”

“Yeah. As long as I have enough money to live, I’m okay. I don’t want a fancy life. I just want you.”

“And I want you.” Jungkook erased the small gap between them, kissing him sweetly.

“I have neglected my store with everything, though,” Taehyung uttered bitterly. “Poor Seo Hyang is managing everything on his own. I feel bad.”

“You gave him an enormous bonus, angel, and he just wants to repay your kindness. Don’t feel bad.”

Taehyung hummed, stealing another peck. “You’re right. I just want our store to succeed so I can help him too. But I’ll focus on that after... well, after you get your freedom back. For now, I’m all yours.”

Feigned affront burst onto Jungkook’s face. “So when I’m free, you won’t be all mine?”

A chain of dulcet giggles emitted from Taehyung as he tilted his head back. He embraced his cheek and smashed their lips together in a long kiss. “I’ll always be all yours, and you know it.”

“Yeah, I do. And I’ll always be all yours too.”

Just as they were about to unite their mouths in another loving kiss, a raucous bang resounded throughout the house that had them jolting. Equally startled, they gazed at each other with a sparkle of alarm in their eyes.

“What was that?” Taehyung spluttered, his speedy pulse nearly dizzying him.

Jungkook jerked up and jumped off the bed. “Lock the door.”

“What? Jungkook—” Taehyung piped down once the other stormed out of the room.

Jungkook crept through the hallway, vigilant eyes locked ahead. He stayed close to the wall and strove to be as silent as possible so he could pick up on any sound.

“Kook.”

He twisted his head back at Yoongi’s whispering call and breathed out his relief when he detected the gun in his hand. He, unfortunately, couldn’t carry one since he didn’t want to scare Taehyung off.

“What happened?” Yoongi asked.

“I don’t know. I think someone knocked down the door.”

As a sonorous, distant groan reached their senses along with the noise of fighting, two black-dressed men leaped into their sight and charged at them at once.

Jungkook lurched to the side to dodge the flying punch the stranger threw at him, and a rampant anxiety sliced through his gut when he ran past him instead of fighting him. The realization that he wasn’t the target hit him like a bolt of thunder, and he was sprinting behind him before he could even order his legs to move.

He grasped his hair just as the intruder reached for the door handle of his room and yanked hard enough to toss him onto the floor. He mounted him and delivered a head-reeling punch to his face as he ringed his neck with his other hand.

The more the stranger flailed to release himself, the harder Jungkook beat him, throwing blow after blow until blood spurted from his nose and mouth. He slowed down as he perceived his disoriented state and gripped his shirt with both hands to pull him closer. “Hyun Joon finally made his move, huh?”

His attention darted to a growling sound of exhaustion that buzzed to his right, and he took in the sight of Yoongi dumping the other’s now limp body onto the floor.

“I’ll go check on the others,” Yoongi panted out and scurried away. He found Namjoon and Seokjin still fighting with the other two intruders and slid his gun out, then leveled it at them. “Get the fuck away before I kill you!”

His rumbling voice ceased their struggle. Labored breaths echoed in the living room as the two strangers lifted their hands in the air, ducking their heads.

“Seokjin hyung, are you okay?” Yoongi asked, casting glances at his hyung, who was cradling his throbbing cheek.

“Yeah. It was just a punch. I’m so rusty.”

Namjoon folded his quaky fingers into a fist and could barely constrain himself from attacking the fucker who dared to hurt his baby.

“Zip ties.”

Namjoon headed off to his room right away and returned just seconds later with a plastic bag.

“Give me two and go to Jungkook.”

He fished two zip ties and passed them to Yoongi before scurrying towards the hallway. He caught Jungkook on his knees holding one intruder by his shirt and convulsing him. “Kook. Let’s tie them up.” He grabbed a zip tie and kneeled to fasten it on the semi-unconscious man on the floor, then tossed the bag to Jungkook.

Jungkook forcefully tied his hands as well and slammed him against the floor. He wiped the blood from his twitching hands on his short sweatpants and knocked on the door. “Tae. It’s okay now. You’re safe.”

Taehyung unlocked the door instantly and made a step to get outside, but Jungkook held him back with two gentle hands on his shoulders.

“Stay in the room. Hmm? Please.”

Taehyung strained his neck to peek past his figure and gasped at the sight of the two beaten men. “What—What happened?”

“Hyun Joon sent them. That was our plan, angel. All that’s left now is to find out where he’s hiding. Please don’t come out until I say so.”

“Just be careful.” Taehyung caressed the side of his face and pressed a kiss to his lips before he retreated.

Jungkook offered him a close-lip smile and shut the door. A deep breath exploded out of him as his head hung, his heart stumbling over its rhythm. His plan almost got Taehyung in danger, and if something had happened to him, he would never forgive himself.

He composed himself and turned to the man sitting on the floor with blood trickling down his face. He wrenched him off his seat and hauled him to the living room, with Namjoon doing the same to the other intruder.

They flung them onto the couch next to the other two, and Jungkook whiffled as he plodded down onto the coffee table behind him. “Where is Hyun Joon hiding?”

A hush followed his question. The two men Jungkook and Yoongi fought seemed too disoriented to talk, and the other two just held their heads down.

“I’ll ask nicely one more time. Where is he?” His already fragile patience cracked at the silence he received again. “Are you really willing to die because of him? Because of a scumbag who framed his own son?”

As the two seemed to regain fractions of their strength and lucidity, the other two shared a hesitant glimpse, and the one to Jungkook’s right gulped. “He’s right,” he whispered. “He doesn’t deserve our loyalty. And he won’t—”

“Shut up!” the man Jungkook fought growled, then hissed at the pain surrounding his face. “That man gave you a job and a place to stay. So shut up.”

The corner of Jungkook’s mouth curled into a smirk. “Yoon.” He extended his arm towards him and unfolded his palm. Soon, a pocket knife was placed in it, and he arose to near the guy to his right, who was on the brink of tears from his terror. “You get it more than these fuckers,” he said as he seized his hair and pulled, forcing his head to tilt back. “I really don’t want to kill you. But you have to tell me where he is to stay alive.”

The poor man shook, choked whimpers escaping him unwittingly. Jungkook brought the knife to his neck. “Last chance.” He stared into his horror-filled eyes, smirking, as the silence stretched. “Okay then.” He swung the knife back, but the guy Yoongi fought released a cry that immobilized him.

“Wait, wait! He’s hiding in a trailer in Daegu.”

Jungkook released his grip and pocketed the knife as his expression melted back into suppressed anxiety. “I’ll keep you tied for obvious reasons. But I’ll send someone to help you when we arrive in Daegu.”

“How can we trust you? You were about to kill my dongsaeng!”

“I’m not like my father. I don’t want blood in my hands. And you just followed his orders. You did nothing wrong.”

The guy to Jungkook’s right dared to meet his eyes. “T-Thank you.”

“Guys. I don’t want to take Taehyung with us, but... I’m so fucking anxious at the thought of dropping him off at his house. Can you promise me you’ll protect him no matter what when I deal with Hyun Joon?”

“Of course, Kook,” Namjoon said. “He’ll be safe with us.”

“Thank you. I’ll go get him.” Jungkook hurried towards the room and knocked on the door once. “Tae. You can come out now.”

Taehyung flung the door open and crushed him into his hug. “Are you okay?”

“Of course, angel. Hyun Joon is in Daegu, so we have to leave now. I want you to come with us. My hyungs will keep you safe.”

“I’m too scared to be away from you, anyway.”

Jungkook squeezed him once more and withdrew. He held his cheeks in two secure palms as he peered at him. “I got you, baby. Always.”

. . .

The ride to Daegu was long, and the late hour only made them feel more exhausted. Seokjin took Yoongi’s place in driving halfway through their trip to the location Hyun Joon’s man gave them.

Taehyung was falling in and out of sleep as he was caged in his baby’s arms, and Jungkook smiled like an idiot at the adorable spectacle of his drowsy expression. His existence helped him forget what was about to happen, but he was reminded of it as Seokjin parked the car.

“Yoon. Give me your gun,” he whispered, not wanting to wake Taehyung up.

“I’m coming with you.”

“You don’t have—”

“I said I’m coming with you.”

“Fine, whatever. Let’s go then.”

Taehyung sensed his human pillow shift and winced as he clutched it harder. “Kookie.”

“We’re here, baby. You can sleep, though, okay?”

Taehyung’s eyes split open, and he straightened his posture in instant alarm. Jungkook’s embrace was so palliative and warm he fell asleep without realizing it, despite the situation. “Be careful. Please.”

“Don’t worry.” Jungkook planted a soothing kiss on his forehead and stepped out of the car.

The trailer was located in a secluded area with greenery surrounding it. They followed the narrow path and were led to an open space, similar to a parking lot. They took cover behind a thick tree trunk and peeped at the trailer.

“Are you recording?”

Jungkook swiftly unlocked his phone to make sure he was indeed recording, even though he had already checked thrice. “Yes.”

Knowing Hyun Joon only had his right hand with him, they advanced brashly with Jungkook in the lead. Jungkook drove his foot into the door, but it didn’t budge. “Jeon Hyun Joon!” He continued banging at the door in his efforts to knock it down. As he prepared himself for another smashing bash, the door swung open, and the man he craved to see finally appeared.

“How the fuck—”

Jungkook lunged at him on impulse. He managed to throw a punch right at his face before Ma Won wrenched him away.

Yoongi leaped inside as well and grasped Ma Won’s shirt as he shoved the barrel of his gun against the back of his head. “Let’s go outside. They have things to talk about.” With a single tug, he yanked him outside. He smacked the butt of the gun into his face and deployed his dizzy state to tie his hands with a zip tie.

Hyun Joon regarded his son in a poised stance to dodge his attacks. “You destroyed my business.”

“You destroyed my life,” Jungkook gritted out. “And all this for what? To make me kill Kang Soo? What were you so afraid of? That he would steal your fucking title?”

“I was so fucking sick of him! How many times did he attack our family, huh? Yes, I wanted to protect my title. But also to get rid of him to protect us.”

“Bullshit. You only cared about your title. We attacked his business countless times too. Other fuckers attacked us too. But only Kang Soo was a real threat to you. That’s why you wanted to make me kill him. Why the hell did you send us to Jeju Island?”

Hyun Joon released a defeated exhalation. “I wanted you out of Seoul to kill everyone involved. And I had to help you hide because you couldn’t get caught by the police before killing Kang Soo.”

Jungkook’s jaw clenched, and his mouth puckered in disgust. “You’re such a fucking monster. How could you do this to me?”

“What do you want, Jungkook?” he bellowed.

“My life back! I’ll take you to the police, and you’ll tell them fucking everything.”

A blaze of deranged chuckles spewed from Hyun Joon’s throat. “No way.”

“I’ll make you, then.”

In a swift move, Jungkook smashed his fist into his face before Hyun Joon could even react. Their brief talk distracted him enough for Jungkook to find the right moment to strike. And he didn’t stop, not even for a second.

He delivered crushing punch after crushing punch until Hyun Joon’s strength abandoned him, causing him to fall in a heap. Only then Jungkook paused his attack and viewed his feeble frame, panting so harshly his lungs burned.

He dropped to his knees and pulled a zip tie out of his pocket. He pressed his chest against the floor and crossed his arms behind his back to secure the zip tie. “It’s fucking over. Don’t even think about lying to the police. Mi Sung will testify against you.”

Hyun Joon scoffed weakly, another trickle of blood leaking out of his mouth. “Mi Sung won’t admit his relation to drugs. He’s a fucking surgeon.”

Jungkook towed him to his feet. “Don’t worry. I’ll make sure he loses everything for what he did. Just like you.” He pushed him outside, sending him right into Yoongi’s hold. “Let’s lock him in the trunk.”

Yoongi slipped his gun back into its holster. He held Hyun Joon’s forearm as Jungkook gripped him from his other side, and they guided him to the car.

“It’s not too late to rethink this,” Hyun Joon murmured.

“You deprived me of my life for five months. And you will give it back to me no matter what.”

Once they squeezed him into the trunk, they returned to their seats. Taehyung clasped the younger right away, as he didn’t espy any traces of pain. “You’re okay...”

Jungkook smiled softly as he circled his waist with an arm. “Of course, baby. Let’s finish this.”

“Should I go to the police station here or in Seoul?” Seokjin asked.

“In Seoul. I want the detectives who are in charge of this case.”

With a nod, Seokjin drove away, and they returned to Seoul with a much lighter heart.

Hyun Joon’s struggle intensified after a couple of hours, but Yoongi jabbing the barrel of his gun into his side, threatening him, and then punching him, shut him up for the rest of the ride.

 
Seokjin soon parked outside of the station, and Jungkook got out of the car. He opened the trunk and lugged Hyun Joon out. He used his entire strength to restrain him as Hyun Joon’s unrelenting squirming hindered his task of hauling him to the entrance.

He noticed the guard outside instantly made a call, and in a few seconds, the officers working the night shift slammed out of the building with guns sighted towards him.

Jungkook, holding Hyun Joon with both hands to immobilize him, stared at them with a vivid glint of determination. “I’m Jeon Jungkook. And this is my father, Jeon Hyun Joon, who killed that thirteen-year-old girl and framed me for the murder.”

“Call the detectives from violent crimes unit one,” an officer said to his partner, then approached the two. “Put your hands in the air.”

“He’ll run if I do that,” Jungkook groaned, still forcefully keeping him still. “Take him first.”

“I’m innocent!” Hyun Joon roared, and he suddenly twirled around, pounding his shoulder against Jungkook’s face. He only managed to run for a second before the booming noise of a gunfire glaciated him.

“That was a warning shot. The next will be real.” After a moment’s stillness, the officer signaled his partner to handcuff him, then he aimed his gun at Jungkook. “Put your hands in the air.”

Jungkook, instead of following instructions, extended his arms in front of him as an invitation to handcuff him, ignoring any fraction of pain. “I’ll cooperate with you and help you with everything you want.”

The officer locked the handcuffs on his wrists and ushered him into the building.

“Guys, why—why did they take him?” Taehyung asked frantically, on the verge of bursting out of the car and sprinting to him.

“They have to interrogate him, Tae,” Seokjin said. “He was wanted for five months. I’m sure he’ll get released once he explains everything.”

“How about we go to the hotel down the street to get some sleep? I’m wasted,” Yoongi said.

“Yes. There’s nothing we can do now, anyway.” Namjoon nodded.

The four men went to the hotel to rest, as Jungkook spent a rough night of intense questioning as soon as the detectives in charge of his case arrived.

He narrated every event in detail, even about Mi Sung, and he informed them of the recording file he had on his phone that contained his last conversation with his father when they fought. It was enough evidence for now to believe him, and Jungkook had to wait to cross-examine everything with Hyun Joon.

The said man denied all accusations and was overly aggressive during his interrogation. Even when they played the recording file of his confession, he hastened to say it was fabricated. With Jungkook as a witness and the recording file, they had enough to keep him locked up until they would find more evidence.

They also issued another arrest warrant for Kim Mi Sung after Jungkook’s additional information, but they had to wait to get approved.

The sun had sneaked out of its hiding place and burned brightly when Jungkook trudged out of the police station. Since they had no evidence against him, they released him with the conditions of staying in Seoul and coming back in case they needed to talk to him again.

His bloodshot eyes were sunken into their sockets by the lack of sleep, and every inch of his body ached from sitting for so many hours. He was so exhausted he didn’t perceive his hyungs, Taehyung, and his mother waiting for him in a mire of anxiousness.

Everyone arose at the sight of him and rushed to near him. “Jungkookie,” Han Min uttered and enfolded him in her hug.

Jungkook expelled a puff of air at her bone-crushing grip and smiled mildly as he curled his arms around her. “Mom. I missed you so much.”

Han Min cracked a smile through her tears and sniffled as she drew back to cradle his cheeks. “Me too.” She squeezed him into her embrace again. “What happened, Jungkookie? The guys said some things, but... they can’t be true, right?”

Jungkook brushed the next fast-slowing outburst of tears that poured down his mother’s cheeks with two gentle thumbs. “Guys, Taehyung. Give us a minute.” He held her by her waist and led her to the stairs behind him to sit. “It is true. Hyun Joon... He was behind everything. He framed me, mom.”

Han Min clutched her shirt as her form convulsed by the suppressed sobs that spurted out of her mouth. The agony Hyun Joon’s sickening actions inflicted on her was so torturous she couldn’t bear it. Hyun Joon — the love of her life — made the past five months of her son’s life a living hell. And her brain refused to believe it. To believe he was capable of destroying their life without a second thought because of his greed.

Jungkook caged her in his arms and let her cry her heart out. He asked Yoongi to call So Yeon — her best friend — to take care of her, since he was barely able to stay awake anymore.

For the ten minutes So Yeon took to get there, Jungkook rubbed pacifying caresses over her back, even though her tears had diminished by now. “I’ll come visit you later, okay?”

Han Min nodded and held onto Jungkook to rise to her feet.

“Please take care of her,” Jungkook said to So Yeon as he delicately led his mother into her grip.

“Don’t worry. Get some rest.”

As the two women shuffled away, his hyungs and Taehyung edged closer to Jungkook. Yoongi set a hand on his shoulder, giving him a little smile. “You did well, Jungkookie. Where should I drive you to?”

“I don’t have the keys to my house with me.”

“How about... you come to my apartment?” Taehyung voiced out hesitantly. “It’s just twenty minutes away.”

A loving smile crawled over Jungkook’s haggard features as he ringed his body with two weakened arms. “I’ll fall asleep as soon as I sit down again. But yeah. Take me to your apartment, baby.”

Taehyung drew a light kiss on his neck and guided him to the car. As Jungkook said, he fell asleep just seconds after leaning against Taehyung.

 
They helped him get to Taehyung’s apartment since Jungkook couldn’t open his eyes anymore, and Taehyung thanked them before hurrying back to the room.

He snuggled up to his sleeping Kookie, and he allotted a few minutes to just marvel at him. Jungkook would wake up to a new life. He would be free of everything. He wouldn’t have to hide anymore. And Taehyung couldn’t wait to start his new life with his baby.

───⭒───༺🎭༻───⭒───

Two chapters left⏳