Jeongguk changed after that day. And not for the better.

He distanced himself from everyone, he stopped going to uni, and he didn't answer to his friends' calls. He stated to Hyekyo and Joongki to leave him the hell alone every time they tried to talk to him. He only went out to buy cigarettes and beers from a small store that was close to his house, and thankfully for him, the boy who was working there didn't have a problem with him being a minor.

Although he said he would fire Taehyung, he hadn't gotten in touch with him either in the past week. The month was coming to an end, and Taehyung would send the bill to Hyekyo soon. He would of course pay him the money he owed him until then, and he knew he should fire him before October would end.

🥀

It was early in the afternoon when the four boys appeared outside of Jeongguk's house for the fifth time that week. And every time, Hyekyo lied that Jeongguk wasn't home, just as the younger had told her to do.

"Oh, boys. Jeongguk's not here."

"Then where is he?" asked Yoongi.

"I don't know."

"This is ridiculous. He can't be out every time we come here," Jimin said, exasperated.

"I don't know what to say, boys."

Dohyun observed her strained face for a stretch and then walked past her with long-legged strides, heading towards Jeongguk's room, deaf to her protest.

He found the room empty to his dismay and retreated, but his eyes landed on the French doors that were slightly open. He edged his way there and pulled the curtain to the side. He peeped outside and located the boy sitting in the corner of the balcony with his legs outstretched, a beer in his hand, and a cigarette between his fingers.

"This is what you've been doing?"

Jeongguk jolted in his seat at his unexpected appearance. "What are you doing here? I told Hyekyo—"

"To say that you're not home? Yeah, we figured." Dohyun heaved a velvety sigh as he perched next to him. "We knew she was lying at some point."

Jeongguk averted his gaze and took a long drag of his cigarette, keeping the smoke in his lungs for a moment and then vacating them with a deep exhale.

"I thought we were friends, Jeongguk." Sorrow crept into his eyes as they scanned his icy expression. But just a simple glimpse was enough to distinguish the change in him.

"What's the point? I'll go to jail, anyway, and everything we lived together will be forgotten."

"Don't say that. Whatever happens, our friendship won't be forgotten. I won't let that happen, and I know the others won't let that happen either."

The other three boys emerged from behind, ready to scold him, but once they sensed the heavy atmosphere, they sat down without uttering a word about that. "You wanna go for a walk or something?" Seokjin suggested.

"Not really." He drew in a final puff of his cigarette and ground out the stub into the ashtray. He reached for his beer and chugged it down.

"Why did you disappear?" Jimin blurted the question that wandered in his head for a while now.

"Because. Why not?"

"We were worried, Kook. You even stopped coming to uni," Yoongi said, his tone low, bitter.

"I'm not planning on coming again."

"What? You're not serious." Dohyun cast him a staggered look.

"Why don't you get that there's no point anymore?" Jeongguk growled, startling them. "I will go to jail, anyway."

"Taehyung won't let you go to jail," Seokjin reassured.

Jeongguk's eyes flitted to him, a scowl bursting onto his face at the mention of his name. "You forget the fact that I can't pay him for another month, let alone for the actual trial."

"Taehyung is a nice person. He'll understand if you talk to him about it, and he'll find a solution," said Seokjin. "He is worried about you, you know."

"Why would he be worried?"

"Because I told him you disappeared."

"Since when do you hang out with Taehyung, anyway?"

"I hang out with his friends more because Taehyung is busy, but I got to know him, and he's an angel, okay? I'm sure he'll help you."

"I don't want his help. He can just fuck off or something."

"What did he even do to you?" Jimin asked, tentative.

"He's so pissed off because he didn't fall for his tricks, right Jeongguk?" Seokjin scoffed, raising a scornful brow at him.

Jeongguk curled his lips inwards in his attempt to constrict his urge to snap at him and released a throaty sigh instead. "Just leave. All of you."

"And there he goes again," Seokjin muttered in disbelief, and without waiting for the others, he pushed himself to his feet and took off in a blaze of exasperation. He couldn't stand watching the younger lie even to himself and not confronting whatever he was feeling.

"We're all worried, Kook. Don't push us away," Jimin uttered as he stood up too.

"Take some time but don't disappear for long. We'll miss you," Dohyun added.

"Even if you want to forget about us, we'll always remember you," Yoongi spoke at last, and the three boys trudged away, leaving Jeongguk with a bittersweet feeling roaring in his chest.

He didn't want to forget them. He wanted to leave before they could forget him first.

🥀

Taehyung had finished with two of his cases by now, and he was waiting for Jeongguk's and his other client's trial date to be announced. Only one case to deal with remained, so he often had free time. That was why he was once again at his friends' house, drinking, bantering, and enjoying their company.

"You seem angry," Namjoon said as he studied Seokjin's bizarre demeanor. He was mute and unsmiling — two characteristics that didn't match with him at all.

"Jeongguk pissed me off." He recalled the events that took place before he went to their house and couldn't help but sigh.

When the specific name was mentioned, Taehyung's body went rigid and his eyes sparked in interest, but he tried to conceal it with a structured expression. "Oh, you talked to him?"

"Oh, don't act like you're not dying to know how he is!" Seokjin sneered.

"Fine! I'm dying to know how he is. Now tell me," he shamelessly admitted.

Taehyung found himself often thinking about the younger throughout the week, and especially because they didn't have any kind of contact. And not only thinking about how he was, but even daydreaming about him.

He was mortified. He knew it was wrong. He didn't want it to keep happening. But he couldn't control it either. Countless times he wanted to call him. Countless times he wanted to meet him, but he always suppressed any shameful need he had.

And it was shameful. Jeongguk was a minor and his client. He shouldn't be thinking about him in any way, but he was now thinking about him in every lewd way there was. The idea of breaking out of his boundaries was tantalizing, and it became even fiercer after what Jeongguk told him. But on the other hand, the idea of breaking his own policy, which was that any kind of sexual relationship with clients was forbidden, wasn't that pleasant to him.

"He's not doing that well," Seokjin said with a tight-lipped smile. "He said he's not going back to uni."

"Oh, that's bad," Namjoon commented.

"Wait, why?" Taehyung's face distorted in worry blended with turmoil.

"He thinks he'll end up in jail and he was like what's the point and shit. He wants to push us away and deal with it alone."

"You can't let him do that." Taehyung moved to the edge of his seat, his agitation only waxing.

"What can we do? He doesn't want to listen."

"Make him listen!" His attention shifted to his phone that beeped, indicating a new message.

Jeongguk: You're fired.

His eyes stared in big circles at the unforeseen text, his mouth dropping open in stark shock.

"Tae, what's wrong?" asked Hoseok.

"He—He fired me."

"Jeongguk?" Namjoon noticed the lawyer nodding at his question.

Taehyung showed them his message, and everyone seemed just as confused as him. "Did he say anything about firing me too?"

"No, he didn't." Seokjin's chest seared with regret for lying to him right away, but he didn't have another choice for the time being.

Taehyung sighed, dejected, and texted him back.

Taehyung: Wait, let's talk about it. Can we meet?

He received no response to his text, nor to his call, something Seokjin knew would happen. "If he wanted to talk, he would have called you. He doesn't want to talk."

"I don't care. He can't just do whatever he wants. I'm not having it," he snarled as he snatched his jacket and burst out of his seat.

"It's not a good idea, Taehyung," Seokjin warned in a gentle tone since he was sure he was ready to go find him.

Dismissing his warning and the others' calls of his name, he slammed the door closed and surged to his car, not wasting a second to start the engine upon getting inside.

He tinkered with his hair as he trod towards the door and evened out his burgundy shirt and jacket in a sudden wish to look as presentable as possible to him. He waited once he rang the doorbell, and a woman appeared at the other end soon enough.

"Um, hello?"

It took him a moment to realize that Jeongguk's mother hadn't met him yet. "I'm so sorry! I'm Kim Taehyung, your son's lawyer." He presented a bright smile to her, which faltered as she seemed more baffled at his words.

"I don't understand, why are you here?"

"Oh, I just need to talk to—" His eyes traveled behind her and caught a glimpse of the younger, leading him to fall silent.

Hyekyo twisted her head around and glanced at her son too. "Why is he here? I told you—"

"Shut up," Jeongguk spat out as he advanced with furious strides.

Before Taehyung could even utter a word, he was pushed back by a callous hand on his chest and heard the booming bang of the door closing afterwards. What surprised him was that Jeongguk closed the door after he stepped out with him.

"What the fuck are you doing here?"

"You can't just tell me I'm fired and then disappear!" Taehyung snapped back. He had enough of his shitty behavior.

"I don't owe you any explanation." Jeongguk crossed his arms over his chest, his expression stiff and somber.

"You owe me at least that much, you shithead. Go take a shower and change, you stink of alcohol and smoke. I'll wait in the car." He shoved his shoulder with full force and stepped away, but a grasp on his hand immobilized him.

"Why would I do that? I'm not going anywhere."

"You are. We need to talk."

"Then talk here."

"Let's go at least to a warm place, okay? I'm not gonna freeze because of you. If you don't want to leave, let's go inside your house."

"No," Jeongguk retorted as he whisked his gaze away. "I'll be back in a while."

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I will publish another chapter today! I like spoiling you hehe🤭💜