{the answer}

The gloom of the winter air crept into them like the damp into bare timber. It seeped into their pores, travelling into their hearts which beat more morosely. Even the faint sound of a birds song from outside the lab came to them as if from a deep well, rather then travelling down from the high trees. 

"Taehyung." Jungkook spoke grimly, walking side by side with the dejected male. The squad had decided to remain with Hoseok whilst Taehyung and Jungkook went in search for the files they so desperately needed. Jungkook could still hear the pained cries of Hoseok replaying over and over in his head like a broken record, and he couldn't help but let his lower lip tremble. 

With a blank and mindless stare, Taehyung turned to face Jungkook. "Mmm?" he hummed, short on words as he tried to soak up everything that had just happened. Daisy was gone, and it seemed whilst others cried out in pain both Jungkook and Taehyung were in too much denial to mourn. 

Biting down on his lower lip, Jungkook's eyes were covered by his tousled brunette bangs as he diverted his gaze to the floor. "It... it wasn't your fault." he muttered, a small sniff sounding from the younger as he brought his forearm across his face. Although Taehyung couldn't see the male's eyes, he could tell Jungkook was wiping away his stray tears. 

Drawing his eyes away from the brunette, Taehyung's gaze fell to the ceiling as they walked down the hallway, combat boots landing heavily against the polished concrete floor as they neared his father's office. He remembered how once his father told him regrets were like 'moral residue.' Like something hard to remove got stuck on your shoe when you did something you felt was wrong. Taehyung didn't understand his father's words until he felt he did something wrong himself, now the residue seemed impossible to remove, like an indelible stain. 

Guilty. 

That was how Taehyung felt at the very moment Daisy was thrown to the floor. He wished for a time traveler, so he could go back and rectify his 'mistake'. But he couldn't. Impossible. He had to live with it. 

As remorse etched at his heart, guilt gnawed like a worm at the core of an apple. Without even noticing, a tear trickled down his cheek. Why did Daisy take so much pride in this? Just because he was smarter and more well off in the apocalypse, doesn't mean that her life was any less valuable. Why was Daisy's life any less important?

It wasn't anything he could bare thinking about any longer so instead, he drew his mind out of the past and back into the present moment. They had a mission right now, a mission to find the files that would confirm as to whether or not Taehyung's hunch about Jungkook's immunity was correct. 

And he prayed to god that he wouldn't be correct. 

Bringing his gaze back down from the ceiling, Taehyung narrowed his eyes on the door coming into view. Although he'd only walked this corridor once before, he could easily recognise it as the office of his father's belongings. Letting out a sad sigh, Taehyung shuffled to a stop in front of the door, "This is it." he spoke dejectedly. 

Jungkook couldn't help but frown at how distant Taehyung now seemed. After the ordeal, it felt as if Taehyung had shrunk back into his shell and put up his defensive wall once again. Like he had gone straight back to square one. 

Shaking off his thoughts, Jungkook focused back on the task raising his arm as he placed a steady hand against the metal door handle. With teary red eyes, Jungkook collected himself as he swung open the door to the office and stepped inside. 

The office was painted grey. On the white desk sat an old desktop computer, a notebook laying open and a stack of papers sitting under a paperweight. There was a swivel chair toppled over in the centre of the office, a dusty bookshelf bursting with knowledge and last but defiantly not least, a filing cabinet. 

"Looks the same as always." Taehyung commented as he pushed past Jungkook into his fathers office, hand brushing absentmindedly against the desk before he fixed up his fathers chair from the floor. Taehyung couldn't help but let a soft smile creep its way to his lips when his gaze fell upon an old family picture placed neatly in a frame against the desk. "He was always such a sucker for us you know? His family." Taehyung began to speak, and Jungkook saw Taehyung begin to shine again. "He would completely overwork himself during the week, just so he could come home for at least one night and have dinner with me."

Jungkook smiled, "Sounds like he was a nice guy." 

Taehyung nod as he stared at the picture, the image of a little boy in his father's arms. "He was." he muttered before turning away from his fathers desk. 

Letting out a tired sigh, Taehyung placed his hands against his hips, "Lets get to work." he spoke, forcing himself to stop reminiscing about any events of the past any longer. He just had to force his mind into the present, and the future. "Kook, you search the draws and i'll go through the filing cabinet."

The messy haired brunette nod before turning to the desk in front of him. He slid open the draws with ease raising a brow when a stack of scribbled notes were inside, "Hey Tae?"

Taehyung paused as he was about to reach for the filing cabinet, "Yeah?"

"What are we searching for exactly?" 

For a split second, Taehyung froze up, "Um... just let me know if you come across any manila folders."

Jungkook gave a small thumbs up before turning his head back to the draw. Come to think of it, Taehyung had never been very expressive on what his father's notes might actually contain, or how Jungkook could be immune. 

"Shit!" Taehyung cursed under his breath as he kicked the side of the filing cabinet, startling Jungkook, "It's dead locked, there's no way I can break that open." he huffed, shoving his hands into the pockets of his lab coat in defeat. 

Jungkook rolled his eyes as he gave a small chuckle, "Why do you think I'm here?" he smirked, sliding his hand to his belt as he slipped out his handgun. "Just hang on a sec." he sounded, aiming his weapon before pulling down on the trigger. With a loud bang the bullet left the chamber, piercing through the lock and allowing for Taehyung to open the filing cabinet. 

"Woah, never thought of that." he commented, giving a whistle as he slid open the draw revealing hundreds of folders. Taehyung began to scan through the countless files standing tall in the metal draws, whilst Jungkook continued to search through each of the draws located underneath the desk. 

The searching continued for quite some time, fingers running along papers as Jungkook examined every scribble and every note in search for anything useful. He had managed to find a few formulas here and there, but nothing groundbreaking like Taehyung was in search for. Sweeping his messy hair from his eyes, Jungkook was at a loss. 

"Fuck..." Taehyung cursed, clicking his tongue in annoyance as his finger glided over a single manila folder. "I was hoping this file didn't exist." he spoke, breath caught in his throat as he lifted the file from the cabinet, sliding the draw shut with his hip as he took it into his hands. 

"That what didn't exist, Taehyung?" Jungkook spoke, voice more stern and expression heavier than ever as he turned towards the scientist. There was no heat in his voice, but Taehyung could tell Jungkook was starting to get fed up with not knowing anything. So before he knew it, Taehyung began to feel the truth surface. 

"Jungkook, you said you lived with your parents, right?" Taehyung asked, file name held out of view from Jungkook. 

The brunette nod, "Yeah, but not my actual parents, I was adopted at birth." he explained causing Taehyung's expression to soften. "I haven't heard anything from them. I heard they were from the area, but no one knew exactly where my mother or father were, so I guess I just gave up looking for them." he shrugged. 

Taehyung flinched for a split second before his gaze fell to the file clasped in between his hands. There was a glimmer of remorse in his eyes, a moment of hesitation before he removed the file from his chest and extended it to Jungkook. "You deserve to know the truth." he spoke grimly. 

Jungkook's fingers brushed along Taehyung's skin as he took the file from his hands. Sucking in a deep breath Jungkook could already feel the extreme weight of importance the folder was carrying, he didn't know why it felt so important until his chocolate brown orbs fell over the cursive writing, bold against the cover. 

"Mae-lee Jeon."

He could feel his breath leaving him as his fingers trailed over the black ink, then sucking in another breath of air he flipped the folder open. Jungkook's sorrowful expression wasn't hidden well when his eyes widened, lips parting as his gaze rested over a single image slipped into the front page. Flawless skin, silky shoulder length black hair and a smile that radiated warmth Jungkook found himself melting into the woman in the image. As if it were the instinct of a child, Jungkook could immediately tell... that this was his mother. 

He smiled, a loving smile, "She's pretty." he spoke, a small chuckle escaping his lips at the realisation that he finally found a part of his family. 

Taehyung smiled, "I guess that's where you got your good looks from."

Rolling his eyes at Taehyung's comment, Jungkook flipped over another page. "age 23, gender female... contaminant number six of stage one cordyceps." his words trailed off into nothing but a bare whisper as his heart sank into the pit of his stomach. He now knew what Taehyung was getting at. "vaccine trial no. 5, additional notes; it's been one week and the individual is showing signs of improvement," he read, eyes scanning over the file as he read onto the next set of notes, "vaccine backfiring subject turning... subject d-dead?" 

As if that line wasn't heartbreaking enough, Jungkook could almost feel his heart split in two with the final line, "additional notes... subject pregnant." he breathed, choking on the last word as his eyes became glossed over with a layer of fresh tears. He tilted his head to the ceiling, eyes boring into the white as he took in a deep breath, suppressing his emotions before wiping at his eyes. 

Taehyung's lips twisted as he leant against the side of the wall, "20 years ago, she became infected during the first breakout." he began to explain, letting out a sigh, "She was pregnant with you during the trails for the vaccine. She was given something... I'm not sure what, but the drug managed to alter your immune system in one way or another. Your body adjusted to the virus, it didn't necessarily kill it. Which explains why your mother was the only patient that showed signs of improvement, my guess was your altered immune system kept her alive until she gave birth." he spoke sadly as he ran a hand stressfully through his hair. 

Jungkook was rooted in place as he tried to come to terms with what Taehyung was explaining. There was a long pause, a moment of realisation for the scientist before he spoke up once again, "You were exposed to the cordyceps before you were even born- no... you actually had it!" he exclaimed, "Whatever drug they gave you simply acted as a blocker to keep the cordyceps at bay." he spoke, biting down on his lip as he locked eyes with the male before him, 

"Jungkook, you aren't immune..." Taehyung sighed,  

"you carry the dormant virus yourself."

{BOOK 2 Commences}