"Morning!" Yoongi said as he stepped inside the shed. He dropped his backpack to the floor. "Sleep well?"

Namjoon glared, unable to reply behind the tape.

Yoongi walked over to the firepit, which had burned out during the night, and started stacking firewood back into it. He struck a match and tossed it onto the pile, igniting a small, warm blaze.

He sighed, holding his hands over it. "It must've gotten pretty chilly here last night after the fire died. I don't have unlimited kindling, so for your own sake I hope you've come to a decision about helping me."

Namjoon watched as Yoongi walked over, and stayed as still as he could when Yoongi ripped off the tape.

It had gotten pretty cold last night, and that just made Namjoon hate Yoongi even more.

"You going to keep me here until I'm frostbitten and starving to push me to say yes in helping you?" Namjoon raised an eyebrow.

"It doesn't have to come to that. Say yes and I'll cut you free now." Yoongi shrugged. "You can stay in my basement while we work together. There's heat and food and a bed. Plus, you'll be helping track down a killer. Consider it your community service."

"And what if it really was just a car accident?" Namjoon asked.

"It's not." Yoongi said, his voice going softer. "I have this feeling that won't go away. I just know it wasn't an accident." He looked away, glancing at the wall that was covered in newspaper clippings and pictures.

He looked back to Namjoon. "But if it turns out we can't catch the killer, I'll still let you go. You're just helping me, I'm not asking for a lifetime of servitude."

"How about I just say no?" Namjoon cocked his head. "You gunna kill me?"

Yoongi snorted, walking back to his backpack to pull out a water bottle. "I'm not like you. The only time I would ever kill someone is when we find my parent's murderer."

He walked back, taking a few sips of the water before holding out the bottle to Namjoon.

The student leaned back with a glare. "You won't just let me go if I say no."

"No, I'll turn you in to the police." Yoongi said. "Either way, I get one killer off the streets."

"I thought you said you didn't care if I killed." Namjoon said dryly.

"I don't. I would just be turning you in for my own safety." He chuckled. "It's obvious you want to kill me."

Namjoon didn't deny it.

"How long would this take?" He sighed, stretching out as much as he could in the uncomfortable chair. "You already made me miss a day of school."

"A day of school is all you have to miss." Yoongi said. "I'll untie you and we'll work together. You'll just live with me so we can work on this. I won't stop you from going to class. I know you won't tell anyone about all this, because you'll be exposing yourself."

"And how are you going to stop me from killing you as soon as I'm free?" Namjoon laughed. "We both know I can overpower you."

"Of course I know that, I'm not an idiot." Yoongi walked back to the fire. "You're school smart, but I'm street smart. I recorded our talk last night and made copies. I placed them in separate envelopes, ready to be shipped right to the police station, the local news, the school and your poor old mother. I gave them all to my friend, and if I don't tell him to not ship them all out by a certain day and time, he'll make sure everyone gets a copy."

Namjoon glared. "I didn't confess anything, they can't arrest me on just that."

"No, but all that damning evidence pointing to you, the fact we're partners for a school project so recently, and the fact that once you're in the public eye you never get fully out of it will make it hard for you to kill freely ever again. Even if the court finds you innocent, the court of public opinion sure won't. The school might even expel you. They have a prestigious reputation, you know. Your life would be over, unless I tell my friend not to mail out those envelopes. And since you don't know who my friend is or where the envelopes are..." Yoongi shrugged, letting the full weight of Namjoon's predicament settle into the student's mind.

"You're bluffing." Namjoon narrowed his eyes. "You never recorded anything."

"Am I?" Yoongi walked slowly around the tied up boy. "Didn't I?"

Namjoon didn't know- he didn't know Yoongi.

The boy had always been in the background, keeping to himself. Namjoon never got to learn who he was. And with that unknown texter asking Namjoon to spy on Yoongi...Namjoon figured the quiet boy wasn't just some normal, basic kid.

He couldn't risk it- his life would be over if those tapes got out. Yoongi was right, even if the court didn't find him guilty, all those true crime blogs and shows and podcasts would. For years to come, Namjoon would always be under suspicion, and he wouldn't be able to kill again.

A part of him thought Yoongi was lying, but a bigger part didn't want to bet on it.

"Fine." He spat, glaring pure fury at the small student. "I'll help you."

Yoongi laughed. "Somehow, I knew you would."

He pulled out a switch blade and sliced through the ropes pinning Namjoon to the chair.

Namjoon stood up, stretching fully with a groan of satisfaction.

Yoongi held out his hand. "So. Partner."

Namjoon eyed him, knowing he could beat this little shit into a pulp and bury him in the woods, even with Yoongi holding that blade.

But if Yoongi was telling the truth about those tapes, Namjoon was fucked.

So he glared and grabbed Yoongi's warm hand.

Yoongi smiled at the cold hand grabbing his own and shook them once.

"Partner."