Lots had changed since Jungkook woke up in that hospital bed those short six days ago. His friends knew of his home situation, he was now living with Yoongi, he had multiple injuries in various places, the eyes and hands of his previous place of residence had stopped showing up (a curious end of a strange occurrence if you were to ask him) and was now noticing how their friendships had changed.

It was odd how they had all become very different people from the people nearly a week ago. Sides of them that had never shown an appearance had now become centerstage main protagonists and the other had simply become a stage frightened side character who tries it's hardest to stand up on stage and not vomit. It was like they all thought they had successfully maintained their leading role only to have the audience deem another as the star. 

Jungkook could see it in Yoongi who was always trying to play it cool in front of him and others, but was busy biting his nails when he thought no one was watching. It was obvious that things weren't the way they were before, what was the point in trying to avoid it? The only thing that was going to do was make things worse. Hadn't they noticed? They were breaking apart and turning their heads away from the subject out of fear. That had to be it.

Jungkook had to admit that he too was trying to avoid the cracks that were slowly breaking onto the surface. He was scared. Scared of what his hyungs would think of him once they heard what horrible things his past had contained. He knew he was a horrible person, purely out of being raised by horrible people, but he didn't want them knowing that, which was one of the many cracks in their relationship.

He wished they didn't have to know, he hated talking about it. Everything that had happened made him feel like he was weak. Like he wasn't strong enough to stand up for himself and do something about what was happening to him, like he continued to be afflicted with pain and words without an assailant, like how he found himself refusing to move forwards and do just one thing different than when he was with his parents. He didn't want the two people he admired and showed his best to witness his weakness. He didn't want to be weak to them. He wanted to be strong and someone they could always depend on rather than the one they always coddled and nit picked their subjects with. He didn't want to be pitied like when he was younger or with Taehyung. He didn't want to be a burdenful creature that always has to have their arm outstretched across ones shoulder for support. Being weak and showing it would only lead to people leaving him, he'd been taught that one too many times for him to have it happen again.

Especially with these two. He didn't want to talk about his past and have all of these stupid weaknesses come up and loom over him, but he knew he had to. He had to get his friends back and happy, and sharing what was on their minds was the only way to make that happen. He wondered if they knew that too. Maybe when Yoongi was sitting there tapping his pen against his desk, he was thinking about all of what was troubling him and saying to himself that he'll tell them eventually. Maybe Namjoon did that too and that was why he was avoiding them. Maybe whenever he saw his two friends, he saw Jungkook's unconscious body, beaten and bruised, and Yoongi crying over him. Maybe he saw all his fears and worries and simply was too scared to face them.

It had crossed his mind before Yoongi and Namjoon had picked him up, how easy it could've been to simply never see them again and not worry about all that was hanging over him now, but in the end, he found himself here, living in Yoongi's house and waiting for his car to pull up in front of the bookstore and pick him up. He hoped Namjoon would come to the same conclusion eventually. He hoped he would see that the two cared for him and would help him with whatever was causing him grief. He hoped he would see that avoidance only fueled a monster that would never let his stress leave him.

After this visit today, according to Yoongi, everything would be fixed. They'd have Namjoon back and their friendship would be restored. He made it sound so easy but the brunette knew it wasn't. These things never were. He'd say the same thing to himself before he left for school and would, for the one hundred and fifty seventh time, try and speak to Taehyung. Did just one wave or a hello ever solve any problems? No, but it was as close as Jungkook wanted to get to the truth. He was sure it would happen this time too. He would say in the bus ride to himself that he'd be honest and open with them and then when the time came, he'd wave and mumble a hello that made no progress and sideswiped by a mile what his mouth actually wanted to communicate. 

He'd try his best though. To gain the truth from the others and make them see that it was the glue that would replace the bandaid they tried to place over a giant crack. He'd try and show himself that he too was avoiding what needed to be addressed and had his own monster that was only growing by the second. He would try, and he hoped to see that for once, he'd make an impact.

Jungkook glanced through the bookstore windows towards the road, hoping to see Yoongi's car pull up only to see the oil stained pavement. He sighed and resumed slouching slightly in the stool he had pulled up to the counter. The shop didn't get many customers and it was a mystery to Jungkook as to why the place remained open. It was a slightly sunny day, a few clouds coming in and hovering over the sun every now and then. It was still chilly outside, it being near the end of fall and all.

The bookstore gave out that old musty book smell that libraries had and probably had the same amount of years on them. The brunette had to admit that for the most part, he'd only checked someone out at least four times a week. He didn't know how many the person who took over his shift had, but it had to be around the same, maybe more considering he took over for the night and that's when all the creeps skulk around the area trying to find a place to hide unsuspiciously from enemy gangs or drug dealers. The person who took over the next shift was always late so Jungkook had never gotten the chance to meet him on his way out the door, but the boss seemed to love him regardless of his tardiness. While the boss didn't come in everyday, much like Namjoon and the café, he made an effort to get say at least one word to the employees when he could. And that one word turns into two, than three, than four thousand five hundred and sixty three. Jungkook knows more about his boss's backside then he would like to.

The shelves of the store looked like that old seventies paneling, the kind with the dark brown wood and dark, nearly black, little wood lines going throughout it. The shelves themselves, inside the wood book case, were a tan metal that was leaned back slightly so the books wouldn't fly off, his boss had seen Ghostbusters, the original, and had gotten one too many nightmares.

The bell above the door chimed and Jungkook turned his head and smiled at the person entering and said, "Welcome to 24/7 Books! How may I- Hyung!" Jungkook's smile got bigger as he noticed it was Yoongi who had entered the store.

"Hey, Kook. You ready to go?"

Jungkook looked up at the clock, just now noticing that it was three minutes past his shift being over before turning his attention to the cash register, "Yeah, hold on. Let me lock up."

"Lock up? Isn't this place open 24/7?" Yoongi asked, looking at the neon sign in the window that had '24/7!' lit up on it.

"Yeah, but my co-worker never shows up on time and I want to make sure I don't get blamed for the cash disappearing after my shift."

"Fair enough." Yoongi said as he started heading to the door, Jungkook following behind.

Yoongi's little red car was parked by the curb of the shop just a little too close to the car in front of it. Jungkook didn't know why Yoongi picked on Namjoon for being a bad driver, it should be the other way around. The mint haired walked around the car and towards the driver's seat where he sat down and started the car. Jungkook sat down in the passenger seat and closed the door while Yoongi began backing up and out of the spot. Jungkook hadn't been in Yoongi's car but once or twice. It had been early in the morning when Jungkook needed to go to work and Yoongi to school and no one was really awake enough to notice their surroundings.

The car was slightly dinged up, mostly because it was parked near a college campus for a few hours at a time, but other than that, it was nice car, well, one of the nicest Jungkook had been in. The seats weren't cloth like Namjoon's, but a tan faux-leather that was slightly worn down. It was a cozy space that wasn't roomy but it wasn't tight either. Jungkook liked riding in this car, especially with Yoongi.

"So, Namjoon's isn't too far from here, maybe ten, fifteen minutes?"

Jungkook nodded softly, "What do you think is going on?"

"I don't know. I really don't know."

"I hope it's nothing big."

"So do I." Yoongi readjusted his hands on the steering wheel, "It's kind of weird not having Namjoon around."

"I know. I keep expecting to hear him say something in our conversation."

"Or hear his laugh after we make jokes."

"Do you remember that time in the street with the dog?" Jungkook smiled.

Yoongi laughed, "Oh my God, yes. That poor dog."

"'Hey, that hotdog isn't yours!'"

"'Why are you chasing my dog?!'"

The two broke out into laughter.

"Oh, or that time in the café where the teens confused the crap out of him."

"IQ 148 my ass." Jungkook grinned.

"Exactly!"

"Have you ever noticed that he breaks everything?"

"Yes!" Yoongi chuckled, "Seokjin has chewed him out so much over that."

"I swear, I think he broke my coffee mug one time when we were eating lunch together."

"Makes sense, I wouldn't doubt that he was the person who broke that shelf on my bookshelf."

"That would explain so much. He seemed so uneasy and eager to leave that one time we met up at your apartment to go out a couple weeks ago."

"You're right! He was! That giant. He's going to have to pay for that."

The car fell silent after a few more seconds of laughing. The only thing to be heard was the wheels running against the pavement and hitting slight bumps or dips every now and then and the sound of the radio playing very, very quietly in the background. It made Jungkook think about things. How things could be, would be, would've been, and could've been. Just a lot of things. Jungkook wasn't one to speak his mind, that usually got him in more trouble than good, but just this once, he found himself opening his mouth and saying what his mind, and maybe heart, was screaming to say.

"Do you remember that night at the fair?"

"Of course I do. It wasn't that long ago."

"I had a great time."

"I'm glad you did. I had a great time, too."

"Do you think Namjoon had a great time?"

"I'm sure he did. He wouldn't shut up about it in the car."

"Thank you for winning that bunny for me."

"Of course, Kook, that's what friends are for."

"You know, that was the best day of my life."

Yoongi looked over at him somewhat confused, "What do you mean?"

"I got to be with you, and well.. Nevermind."

"No, please continue."

"It's nothing, don't worry."

Yoongi looked at him and then back at the road, "We're nearly there."

"That's good, I can't wait to see Namjoon. It feels like it's been ages." Jungkook said stretching a bit in his seat.

"Are your ribs hurting you?"

"Kind of, it's really not all that bad, hyung. I promise."

"Are you sure? You know you can tell me if anything is bothering you, right?"

"Yes, hyung, we had this conversation yesterday."

"I know, I just can't help but to worry about you."

"You sound like my eomma before.. Ah! Is that Namjoon's apartment building?"

Yoongi looked over at him before turning his attention back to the building and responding, "Yes, I believe he's on the tenth floor.."

"I've never been here before, have you?"

"Maybe, I can't remember, but I've seen what the area is like. It's pretty expensive."

"Namjoon doesn't seem like the type to want to live in an expensive place."

"I heard that he lived here when he was in college before Got Jams? opened. Honestly, it's a wonder that he was able to afford being here."

"Maybe he had someone living with him?"

"Could be. I haven't heard about a roommate though and Seokjin won't tell me anything." Yoongi said as he turned into the parking garage, "God, 45,000₩ for over two hours of parking. This is the pricey place, Kook."

"We can split the price, Hyung. You did drive me here."

"Thanks, that'll help out my poor wallet." Yoongi said as he grabbed the ticket from the machine and placed it in one of the car's cupholders.

"Do you have the apartment number?" Jungkook asked as Yoongi pulled into a spot on the third layer of the parking deck.

"Yeah, I got it from Seokjin. He seemed pretty happy that we were coming to visit Joon."

Jungkook hummed and unbuckled his seatbelt.

Yoongi rounded the car and led Jungkook towards an elevator, "C'mon, JK, follow me. I'm 99.9% sure that I know where I'm going."

Jungkook sighed, "Alright, hyung." This was going to be an adventure.

Word Count: 2467

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I'm too tired to say anything but this is my favorite chapter I've ever written.
One last thing, I'm thinking of releasing my new fic Wednesday. Might do it, might not. Please keep an eye out for it :)
Thank you for reading and I'll see you all next week.