[ Compassion ]

Still driving really fast, Jungkook was above the speed limit on his way home. It has been way too long since he drove that fast. Really long actually. But he had missed it, in a way. Though, if he drove fast, it was because the black haired had a bullet in his shoulder, and that, though he had two tourniquets, he felt blood dripping on his sweater. And even more because his hostage was probably alone at his apartment, maybe dead, maybe gone, and those three options were literally catastrophic to Jungkook. This thought made his swear.

His hands were gripping the leather wheel tight, his knuckles became white. Too white. The engine was roaring loud, Jungkook was only two minutes away from his home now. Through this country road, in the dark night of December, his Audi R8 rolled on the road. At any moment a wild animal would jump from the neighboring fields, they wouldn't have any issue other than death, if they were to be percussed by Jungook. Luckily, it wasn't the case. But the black haired didn't slow down. Even when he arrived in the small agglomeration where he lived. It was certain that people could hear him from their houses. 

But the young man didn't care. Quite fastly, he arrived near his building. He thought he would go crazy when he noticed the lights in his apartment were off, like, dead.  He quickly grabbed his sport bag, put on his hoodie and left his car. He locked his Audi in a quick gesture, before almost running towards the building's entrance, though he felt an immense pain in his shoulder. He opened the double door, climbing up the stairs, thinking about how slow the lift was. Once in front of his apartment's door, the silence inside was only angering him even more.

« Fuck. Fuck it ! » He mumbled, opening his door.

He shut it loudly, everything was quiet. No television. No lights on, nowhere. No Hoseok, no Taehyung. Jungkook only noticed a small yellow note on the living room's table, he walked towards it before taking it in his blood-stained fingers. Some blood was dripping on the floor, as he hurried to read the note. ❝ Kook, I'm so sorry but you're really late now. I really need to go home to configure the servers against any external attack and to protect your identity. And you have to receive your new files. Taehyung wants to watch the television, he told me you don't tie him up anymore. I trust him. See you Kook. ❞

« No ! No fuck ! » He screamed, when he saw the window was open and that the hazel haired probably escaped.

A vase was thrown on the floor, making a loud noise in the room. He then threw his own bag on the floor, as his damaged fingers pulled at his dark hair. 

« Why !? What is this fucking night !? » He was angry. 

Pissed off by the situation, Jungkook started talking alone. He even started looking in all the rooms in the apartment to check if Taehyung wasn't here. He checked the bathroom, his hostage's room which was empty, he even checked his secret room full of weapons, in case, but nothing. The hazel haired wasn't here. 

« Jk ? » A voice mumbled, in the corridor behind him. 

The black haired was so irritated and on his guards that he did not take the time to contain himself or even try to recognize the voice. He quickly turned around, and his left hand, the arm which was not injured, wrapped around the person's throat. Jungkook had not turn the lights on when he arrived. It was dark in the corridor. The person who had come out of nowhere, was pinned on the ground by the killer. They did not try to retaliate. Only his warm breath, was hitting Jungkook's face. 

« Where the fuck were you !? » The assassin scolded the teacher.

He had recognized the teacher's silhouette, even in the dark. His lynx eyes were very sharp. He felt the hazel haired move under him, his hands grabbing the younger's powerful wrists.

« I... Was sleeping. » He mumbled, scared to see Jungkook angry. 

« Where !? »

« Hoseok told me to sleep in your room... Because he had installed a surveillance system to see what I was doing while I was alone... »

Upon hearing those words, Jungkook relaxed. His eyebrows weren't contorted anymore, he calmed his breathing and anger. Taehyung's voice sounded so fragile when he said that, so fragile that he almost calmed him right away. His hand left the teacher's throat, Jungkook stood up more serene and went to turn the light of the corridor on. Taehyung sat up, dizzy from what just happened. But his eyes widened when he saw the black haired had a pretty deep cut on his cheek, along with a dark red liquid dripping from his sweater.

« O-Oh ? You're bleeding ? What's happening ? »

Jungkook bit his tongue. In no way he wanted to talk.

« Nothing serious. Go back to sleep. »

He wanted to bend to grab Taehyung's arm, but when he moved his right arm, an horrible pain ran through his body. He frowned because of his injury, but blood was still dripping from his sweater, maybe even more. And it had been at least twenty or thirty minutes since he took the bullet. He lost, and was still losing blood, he had to hurry and clean it. Jungkook saw Taehyung's shocked gaze at his blood lost, but he acted as nothing. 

He helped his hostage stand up before pressing his palm against the small of his back. The teacher turned around, to make him understand that he didn't get why he gave himself the right to do that. Jungkook was impassive. His hand still on his back, he pushed Taehyung towards his own bedroom, before noticing that his bed was indeed messy, proof that Taehyung was in it. He turned the light on, and turned the corridor light off at the same time. The hazel haired had not moved an inch and, Jungkook had still his hands on his lower back, the teacher was wearing a thin black sweater which belonged to the killer.

« I don't want to sleep. » The university teacher mumbled.

Jungkook sighed, he didn't want to get angry again. He had his dose of anger for the night. He pressed his fingers against the hazel haired's back, which made him visibly tense.

« Listen, tonight, I'm really not in the mood so go to sleep. » His voice was exhausted.

« No, you're not ok. You're bleeding and you want to hide it from me so that means you're trying to hide something serious. Taehyung retaliated, turning to face the black haired. I won't be able to sleep, tell me what's happening. »

The assassin's hand had traveled from Taehyung's back to his hip when he had turned. To keep a certain physical distance with the teacher, Jungkook brought his hand in his pocket. His eyes darkened.

« Taehyung. His voice was harsher. Go to sleep, it's an order. »

« No, stop trying to hide everything from me ! Look, you're bleeding everywhere and you're acting as nothing. You get back and you break everything, screaming that tonight is fucking shit, stop treating me like a child ! »

Taehyung let out, seeing that the younger of them both was denying everything.

« You were awake ? » Jungkook simply mumbled.

« You woke me up. » Taehyung almost mocked him.

Once again, the teacher's eyes fell on the blood dripping from the killer. His heart was aching for him. Though he wasn't supposed to feel empathy towards his tormentor, Taehyung felt that here, right now, Jungkook was hurting but kept his mask on, the one where he pretend to be a man who has control over any situation. He felt it. He could see the pain in the black haired's eyes.

« Don't mind me. I'll join you after. »

Taehyung frowned, anger was building up inside him. His lips were tight, and he crossed his arms against his chest.

« I said no. What's wrong ? » He repeated, his voice harsher than usual.

« For god's sake Taehyung, stop trying to know.  Damn, go to sleep it's not that complicated ! »

The hazel haired boy didn't take the killer's words seriously. He just snickered. Maybe it was for the need of danger, but he wanted to surprise Jungkook. Quickly, he tried to lift his sweater up to see what he was hiding. But the younger was quicker, even with a bullet through his shoulder. He stopped the teacher's hands before they could even touch his sweater. His eyes became darker. Jungkook didn't really like the gesture. 

« Why the hell did you try to do ? » He mumbled, his voice was dark.

The older tried to get away from his grip, his wrists moved as he kept his severe expression.

« You just have to show me. »

« Damn, why are you so stubborn !? » Jungkook exclaimed, irritated. 

When Taehyung tried to riposte, he noticed drops of blood falling on the floor. He felt shivers rushing down his spine at this sight. The black haired's hands were still holding him still, he couldn't move them. He looked back at Jungkook, before speaking more softly.

« Because you're hurt, you act as nothing's wrong, but you don't seem to understand that I won't sleep until you show me what happened to you. That's as simple as that. »

Surprised by Taehyung's serious tone and words, Jungkook lifted his eyebrows.

« Why are you pretending to worry about me ? I know that you don't give a damn about what's wrong with me, you're just trying to gain my trust and compassion, so it'll be easier for you to kill me when you'll have the chance to. » Jungkook said back, in a strangely softer tone.

Taehyung didn't move. The killer's words had no effect on him.

« I'm not pretending, believe me. He mumbled. You come home upset, late and you're bleeding. There's something wrong and you're being annoying not showing me. »

« But why would you wanna see ? Taehyung, you hate me. You shouldn't pay attention to what happens to me. Jungkook snickered. The opposite actually, you should enjoy seeing me so weak, vulnerable, bleeding, it would almost be an opportunity for you to see me dead. »

The ambience between them wasn't good. It was snide and mocking, as Taehyung tried to make him believe in his sincerity for once.

« Even with a broken arm or a broken leg, you'd still be stronger than me physically. Your theory about me wanting to kill you is wrong. So show me, I'm getting impatient. » Taehyung sighed, turning the light of Jungkook's bedroom off.

By doing that, he wanted to make him understand that he wasn't going to sleep. And that the black haired would know better to show him what was wrong. The fact that he had turned the light off, drowned them in darkness again. There wasn't any source of light, only a thin external glow which came from the living room's window. It was because of it that they could see each other in the dark. Jungkook detailled the stubborn hazel haired boy, a sigh leaving his lips. He was giving in.

« You're too much of a weakling to see that. » He mocked, but not with a mean tone.

« I'm starting to believe that you're the one who's scared to show me. » Taehyung said on purpose, to provok him.

« You think so ? Let's find out then. » The black haired immediately said.

He dragged the hazel boy by his wrist to the bathroom. Once they got here, he turned the light on. Taehyung was standing by the door, and with no warning he saw Jungkook taking his sweater off. He was wearing a bulletproof vest which he took off. And the teacher recognized his golden skin, proof that Jungkook wasn't wearing anything else. 

Taehyung didn't know where to watch first. The three big scars covering almost entirely Jungkook's back ? As if someone had stabbed him in the back, before dragging the knife down to cut him with no mercy. Anyone could see the agressivity in those white scars, very visible and big. Or, Taehyung should focus on the enormous blood traces on his right side and his right arm. He also noticed a tattoo in the middle of his back, not really big, very light. It was a flame, only one. And another drawing, passing through those embers. A big saber. The hazel haired could only see his back at the moment. He understood by the sight, that Jungkook was someone athletic.

He could see it even more when he discovered the black haired's chest. Jungkook had turned around to face him. His face showed no emotion. The young man was handsome, Taehyung couldn't deny it. In more than thirty days of captivity, the teacher never had the opportunity to see Jungkook chest naked, or even his back. He never saw him undress. It was the first time. And he was lost between being amazed, or pained by the sight. His chest was well built. The black haired had no problem with taking care of himself. But once again, another big scar marked his skin, on his right hip. And another one on his left pectoral. It was the only two scars on his chest. He had no tattoos on this part either. 

Finally, Taehyung noticed the injury that was hurting Jungkook. His shoulder was bloody. Different shades of red colored his skin, blood streams escaped from his gaping wound. There was dried blood, fresh blood, and two tourniquets made too quickly. Taehyung didn't know what to do at first. He looked up to stare in Jungkook's eyes, biting his lip. He didn't know why but the teacher wanted to help the killer. Seeing him that way caused him pain. Like Jungkook didn't deserve that. 

« So ? Still determined to face the thing ? » Jungkook snickered.

« Yes. Give me a first aid kit and something to clean the wound, I'll help you. »

Taehyung didn't reply what Jungkook expected him to. For once, the hazel boy had surprised him. 

______________________

Chapter 9 ! ♥

♕