Vipers in the Lake | BTS Gang x Reader

4. The Math Tutor

You continued to shout Hoseok down, calling him a pervert and a creep and every name under the sun, as you battered him. It was impressive, really. You were getting a lot of good shots off considering you were one handed. The humiliation of the whole situation had made you feral. 

"Hey, hey!" Someone shouted from behind you. "What happened?" Jin ran into the room, Jungkook hot on his tail.

"He-!" You began, red-faced, as Jungkook snatched the destroyed pillow from your grasp. "He changed my clothes. When I was asleep! He's a pervert!" The three men stared at you, jaws hanging open. Jin looked as though he might cry. A strange, strangled sound bubbled up out of his throat. And then he dissolved into a fit of laughter.  "What's so funny?" You shouted, indignant. 

"He-he didn't change your clothes." Jin managed to say between laughs. "We had one of the medics do it. A female medic."

"They bandaged and splinted your wrist too." Jungkook added, grinning. "Hoseok isn't a pervert after all."

Great. Now the embarrassment was even worse. Cheeks flaming, you cleared your throat. "Um. Sorry, Hoseok." He only giggled in response, standing and brushing the feathers from his shirt. The men's laughter eventually settled down, and a strange tension enveloped the room. Unsaid words hung in the air. Why the hell were you here? Who were these guys? 

"Okay," Jin began, voice cutting through the awkward silence. "What's your name?"

"It's Y/n."  Jin nodded. 

"Are you hungry, Y/n?" As if on cue, as if summoned by the word 'hungry', your stomach let out an unholy growl, bringing a flush to your cheeks once more. You grinned sheepishly, lifting your shoulders. Jin laughed, placing a gentle hand on your shoulder.

"I'm sure you have lots of questions, Y/n. I do, too. But first, let's get some food in you."

—————————

The house was relatively simple. Nice, bright and quite big, but nothing like your grand home. Sitting at the kitchen table, you watched Jin flit around the kitchen, gathering ingredients and sautéing vegetables on the stove.

"Why am I here, Jin?" You plucked up the courage to ask the question that had been spiralling through your head since you awoke. He smiled gently over at you.

"I could ask you the same. Imagine this; me and the guys are on a raid, breaking into the base of one of Seoul's new up-and-coming gangs. Everything is going to plan. Taehyung and I have found the drug stash we came for, Jungkook has apprehended the boss. But then, whilst Hoseok is scouring the house for anyone left, he comes across you. Beaten, bruised, bound. Almost fainting from pain and shock. So really, Y/n. I could ask you the same." He looked pointedly in over to you before plating up his concoction. The question hung in the air. How much is safe to tell him?

"Those men..the gang you were talking about, I guess. They kidnapped me from my house in the middle of the night. I don't know how long ago. And I don't know what they were planning to do either." You cast your gaze down to the plate he set gently in front of you, avoiding his eyes so he couldn't see everything you hadn't said shining in them. Jin watched you, but said nothing. You began to slurp up the noodle dish, sighing at the delicious flavours. "You're a great cook." You said, grinning at him. He bowed his head in thanks.

"The medics said you were in a bad way. Cuts, burns, broken wrist. Those men were hurting you, weren't they?" You nodded, mouth full. Swallowing, you replied.

"Can I ask you some questions now?" Jin looked at you for a long moment, apprehension shining in his eyes. Slowly, he nodded. "What did you mean you guys were on a raid? Are you police officers?" Jin's lips pursed, as if trying not to smile.

"No. We aren't police officers." That didn't really answer your question, but the way he folded his hands together above the table told you he wasn't going to let much more on, so you continued.

"Why did you bring me here?"

"To help you."

"What are you going to do now?"

"I don't know, Y/n."

"Are you-"

Someone cleared their throat from the doorway. Jungkook stood there, looking expectedly at his hyung. 

"Excuse me." Jin smiled at you, standing from his chair and leaving with Jungkook. They closed the door behind them, but their whispering was pathetically ineffectual. 

"Feeding her, hyung? I know you like to look after people, but this is another level. We found her in that hideout."

"Jungkook, she was beaten to a pulp! I hardly think she's working for them."

"I don't mean that. I mean she's wrapped up in this somehow. She's involved. And don't forget, we still don't know who she is. Yoongi will be home soon, and I'm sure he can find out as soon as we give the word. But until then, stop babying her."

"Telling me what to do Kook? Where are your manners!?" A quiet slap, followed by a hiss. "Whatever. Go back to your video games." Footsteps stomped down the hall, and Jin re-entered the kitchen, a small smile gracing his plump lips. At the look on your face, he sighed.

"How much did you hear?"

"Um. Everything." 

Feeling awkward, you finished your meal in silence.

Jin's eyes peered into yours, searching. He knew there were things you weren't telling him, but he wasn't pressing. Why? And who is this 'Yoongi' guy? You wanted out of here, out of this situation, out of this place. You wanted to go home, to your french doors and your father's smile, to your mother's cooking and your log-

Your stomach twisted. The log was not the log anymore. Despite not seeing it since that night, you knew you would never find solace in it again. How could you? How could you ever peer into that lake, see yourself staring back, and not be frozen for the fear of seeing that man again? No, that luxury had been taken from you. It made you wonder; would you ever see your true self again?

You were pulled from your thoughts at the sound of the kitchen door opening once more.

"Hyung, I'm back." 

A blonde head of hair. A small grin. A brown leather satchel.

Everything changed, once again, as you came face-to-face with Sung-hoon.

————————————

He stared at you across the kitchen table. You stared back. You couldn't look anywhere else. The air shifted as Jin rose from his seat.

"Yoongi? Is everything ok-"

Sung-hoon ran at you, tearing you from your seat and pushing you up against the wall opposite. A split second passed, silver glinted, and then a sharp pocket-knife was pressed up against your throat. A single drop of blood fell down the blade.

"What the fuck are you doing here, Y/n?" Sung-hoon said, eyes darkening. 

"Yoongi! What are you doing?" Jin cut in, watching you from over Sung-Hoons' shoulder.

"Sung-hoon," you started quietly, hands grasping his where he held you by the throat. "Why is he calling you Yoongi?" Something changed in his eyes. Something clicked into place.

"Because that's my name." His grip loosened, but didn't relent completely. "I'll ask you again - what are you doing here?" You had never heard his voice like this before, so deep and calm and authoritative. Apparently, there was a hell of a lot about your only friend that you didn't know.  

"I-"

"We found her, Yoongi, tied up and beaten at the Choi house. Now, do you want to tell me why the hell you are acting like this?" 

"I'm acting like this, hyung," Sung-hoon - no, Yoongi - said mockingly, "because the girl sat in our kitchen is the daughter of the man you sent me to kill."

—————————