Jungkook swung back and forth on the swing. The old squeaky swing. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. His hands reached for the sky as he went up.

He didn't know what he was reaching for. There was no sky. No color. It was all black around the swing. No detail, no clouds, no grass, all black. Just him and the two seater swing.

The other swing would go back and forth lightly, like a gust of wind was pushing it, but there was no breeze. No wind as you went up and down. Nothing built up except the brunette's adrenaline.

His feet kicked aimlessly at the ground as he passed it. He went up, his legs flying out. Back down, they went back under him. Up, out. Down, under.

The swing groaned as he moved up and down. The bar supporting the swings heaved up and down as his weight moved around. The little wood seat crackled slightly, but only as a noise rather than actually cracking. His rear end rose off the seat as it went up and fell as the swing did the same.

He hadn't ridden a swing in years. Not since he was younger. It didn't feel the same as when he did it when he was younger. Right now, he felt free. Like a kid again. Like none of what happened happened. That he was still young and had never gone through any of that. It felt good.

The swing next to him groaned and the chains squeaked as it began to move up and down like his. It slowly began to catch speed going up and down at the same pace as him.

Jungkook turned his head to look at the swing. A twelve year old boy sat on it. Jungkook's eyes widened. He tried to stop swinging, but he couldn't, his legs kept up with the beat. Up, out. Down, under. The boy looked at him and smiled.

"Wonwoo.." Jungkook murmured softly, his eyes unable to leave the boy's face.

"Hi, Kookster!" The boy, Wonwoo, said happily.

"Wonnie.." Jungkook said, his gaze dropping guiltily to his lap.

"Are you okay, Kookster? Did something happen?" Wonwoo was confused.

"I-I did something really bad to you."

"No, you didn't." Before Jungkook could say anything, the boy said, "Look at you, you've gotten so old! You don't look like my little brother anymore. You're so grown up."

Jungkook laughed, "I'm just eighteen, Hyung."

"Yeah, but I'm twelve! That's six years older than me. Wait, one, two, three.. Yeah! Six years!"

"You would've been twenty this year."

"Huh, I would have been, you're right." Wonwoo sat quietly for a moment, Jungkook being too nervous to say anything more, "Now, how's life been? What have you been up to?"

"Well, I've been working three jobs-"

"Three? That's more than Mom and Dad combined."

"Yeah, I've been living on my own since I turned eighteen a couple months ago and it hasn't been too easy."

"Don't Mom and Dad help out?"

"I don't want to burden them." Jungkook lied.

"At least say they're fun jobs."

"Yeah, I work at a laundromat, an ice cream store, and a bookshop."

"That's fun?"

"Fun as it gets."

"Where do you live?"

"I used to live in an apartment on the east side of town but it recently flooded so I'm hunting for a new place."

"That doesn't sound good if it easily flooded."

"It wasn't. There were holes everywhere and stains from who knows what on the floor and walls and I'm positive my upstairs neighbor was running a drug ring."

"Well, maybe that flooding was the push you needed to pursue new opportunities. You know, maybe because of it, you'll find a better place to live, have relationships, maybe even get a new job?"

"Maybe." Jungkook had never looked at it in that light.

"Okay, tell me about your friends. Good ones, right?"

"Well, I made two friends recently."

Wonwoo let out an interested sound as his smile grew wider.

"Their names are Namjoon and Yoongi. Namjoon is three years older than me and he has pink hair. It's really faded down since we first met, but it's still pink. He's really cool and he cares about me and Yoongi a lot. Yoongi is twenty-four-"

"So he's really your Hyung."

Jungkook hummed, "He's really kind and it doesn't seem like he's older."

"How'd you meet?"

"Namjoon owns the café that Yoongi works at and I go to for drinks. They decided to hang out with me one day and that was that." Jungkook smiled warmly.

"Good friends?"

"Good friends."

Wonwoo smiled happily, "Do you have any other friends?"

Jungkook shook his head, "Haven't really been able to make any."

"What about Taehyung then?"

"I-I'm sorry?"

"You have a friend, Taehyung."

"I- We aren't friends anymore. I haven't seen him in years."

"That's sad." Wonwoo looked sad. "What happened?"

"He thought I lied to him."

"Why would he think that?"

"Because I told him I did."

"Did you?"

"No."

"What really happened?"

"It doesn't matter, I don't want to worry you. I've done too much to you already."

"No you haven't, Jungkook."

"But I have." The, technically, older argued.

"Please, Jungkook."

"I'm sorry."

"Are you okay?"

Jungkook didn't answer.

"What the hell has been happening since I've been gone?"

"Nothing."

"What's happened, Jeon Jungkook?"

"Nothing, hyung!"

"It's not nothing. Will you please stop that and tell me?"

Jungkook looked at his lap, "Mom and Dad have changed."

"What do you mean?"

"They're not nice anymore." Jungkook's grip tightened on the swing handles, "They're.. They're different."

"But they still love us. Love you. Right?"

"I-I don't think so. At least, not me."

"What? How could they not?"

"But, they hurt me, Hyung."

"They what?"

"They hurt me."

"Why?"

"Because I killed you."

"You didn't, Jungkook, you didn't."

"But I did, hyung!" Jungkook closed his eyes tight, "If I hadn't run out in the road you would still be here with me. It should've been me. Why couldn't I have died, hyung? You had more going for you. Unlike me who's nothing but a worthless nobody who screws everything up. Why'd you have to go and do what you did?"

"Because you are just as important as me." Jungkook looked at his brother, still swinging faithfully, "I saw a future for you, Jungkook, and it was so bright. I didn't want you to die over a silly mistake and lose that. You are amazing and I couldn't be more proud of you."

"But, but, hyung-"

"No buts. I died so you could live and that's all I want. I want you to be able to move on and live a happy life. Please do that for me. Please be happy for me."

"But I can't, I should've died instead of you."

"No, Jungkook! I chose to die for you. I wanted my happy, funny, outgoing brother to live. I didn't want you to die."

"But he died with you, hyung!"

"No, he's still inside you. I know he is. He's there when you're with Yoongi and Namjoon. He's not gone, he's been there, never left."

Jungkook looked at his lap, "I miss you, hyung."

"I miss you, too, Kookster." Wonwoo looked up into the pitch black, "It's almost time for me to go."

"What? But we haven't had much time together."

"Don't worry, I'm always with you." Wonwoo bit his lip, "Just promise me one thing."

Jungkook looked at him as if to say, 'what is it'.

"Promise me you'll be happy with Namjoon and Yoongi. Promise me that you'll tell them everything that you feel you can. Please, Kookster, promise me that you won't ever wind up like this again."

"Like what?"

Wonwoo looked at him.

Jungkook looked at his arms and noticed some bruising and a scar or two.

"Wha-" Jungkook's sentence was cut off by a groan of pain, he wrapped his arms around his rib area.

"Promise me, Jungkook-Ah."

His left eye blurred and swelled until he was unable to see out of it. His nose began to pulse with pain and his head pounded.

"H-Hyungie.."

"Promise me! Please, Jungkook, promise me."

"I promise, hyungie!"

Jungkook's eyes burst open. It was bright. Brighter than the dark around the swing set. A soft beeping rang around his ears. His chest hurt, but not as bad as before. Something was wrapped tightly around his nose and certain other places. There were two bags attached to his arm. Jungkook let out a little groan as he tried to move.

This place was all too familiar. The stained ceiling tiles, the fluorescent lighting, the calm color palette, the machines, he was in a hospital. He moved his hands lightly, his right hand gliding across the sheet he was under towards his ribs while the other one seem to be held down. His left hand's fingers moved around, his hand was being held by one, no, two hands. His eyes drifted over to the owners of the hands. A sleeping Namjoon and Yoongi were sitting in the blue-green chairs, leaning on each other as soft snores left their mouths. The pain in his chest was killing him. He could feel tears welling in his eyes as he looked at his two friends.

They had spent their whole night here with him. All because he couldn't defend himself or do something about what was going on. Because he couldn't tell the truth. If he had just done things differently, they wouldn't be here with them. If he hadn't allowed them to get close, he would've been able to die and join Wonwoo. He would have been able to pay for what he did to his hyung. He would have died cold and alone and that's exactly what a murderer deserves.

He tried to think like what Wonwoo told him to, but he couldn't. He knew the older wanted him to live without thinking this was his fault, that it was his choice for him to live, but there were so many other voices telling him otherwise.

They wouldn't shut up about how he didn't deserve to have people sitting by his bedside, how he really didn't deserve to be in this hospital at all for what he'd done. He should still be on the pavement outside his home, writhing in agony. He knew the pain in his chest would've been much worse if he hadn't been brought here, but maybe he deserved that.

He'd put his friends through too much. They had to deal with his body when he was out cold, they had to put off whatever plans they had set up for the rest of the night to drive him to the hospital, and they decided to stay with him. He was just a big burden that they were sure to be disgusted by after this. Who would want to stay friends with a monster of a mess like him? No one that's who. They'd be crazy if they stayed. They'd hate him because his parents abused him and he lied about it straight to their faces. They'd leave him just like Taehyung did because Jungkook is nothing but a liar. Everyone knows that.

It was on that horrible day when he was fifteen that Jeon Jungkook became a liar. No one in his high school wanted to be his friend because Taehyung told everyone. Everyone knew about how he lied about being abused to 'gain attention'.

He was called sick, a monster, disgusting. He was even told by some people that they wished his brother really did die or that his parents really did hit him because he deserved it. And he did. He deserved every single word and punch. He deserved to be hated.

Months in, his parents learned about his little police visit. His Dad screamed at him while his Mom seemed to pale and lose the ability to talk. She seemed scared. She must've been scared of what would happen if the opportunity arose again and this time, he didn't protect them.

She must've said something about it because the next day, Jungkook was forced to announce that he was dropping out of high school. They didn't want him to ever be able to say a word about anything like this and they did a pretty good job up until now.

Namjoon and Yoongi were the only two who knew and believed that it was really going on. Everyone else just viewed it as another one of Jungkook's lies. Another one of his sick and horrid lies that were angled to get him friends and that attention that he so desperately needed rather than the help and support he yearned for.

He was disgusting and he knew that. He didn't want to be, but he was and there was no changing that. No, not ever. He could never be anything but disgusting. A sicko. A worthless little piece of shit that only has the ability to lie and will never be worth more. He lied to save his own skin and he did that at the cost of his friends. He lied to the only people he ever trusted and even if they forgave him, what's stopping him from lying all over again?

"Jungkook..?"

Word Count: 2226

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I'm beginning to think that I should write a story with no dialogue. I'm much better at that. I suck at dialogue, not gonna lie. It'd have to be somewhat depressing, but would you guys like to see that happen?
Also, on the topic of input, please feel free to give your input. I love to see what you have to say, whether it's how I can improve or what you'd like to see in the future, I'd love to hear it.
Thank you for being a supportive audience and reading, and I'll see you next week!