Once Upon A December || VKook || HYBEPride 2022

No Such Luck

V and the others were escorted quickly away from the ballet once it had completed, with Giselle still dead but resting in peace. They were taken by limo to a fancy dinner, where Jimin and Yoongi would entertain them for the rest of the night.

Jungkook and the others had no such luck.

"Why do we have to call our own cab?" Jungkook asked as he glared out the lobby. Most everybody else had gone home at this point, and now, other than a few other groups, it was just Jungkook, Seokjin, and Hoseok in the lobby. "I don't see why we have to wait for our own carriage. And I don't see why we're required to have one, and why we can't just walk home."

"They don't want us getting caught up in ill wills," Seokjin said. "We're still with the princes, we are just not as cool as them, I suppose."

"Yeah, well, it's all crazy talk. I'm over it." Jungkook rolled up his sleeves but paused cold when he saw the looks on Seokjin and Hoseok's faces change. When he turned, he found himself staring down the muzzle of a rifle.

Behind it was Choi Beomgyu.

"We have been looking for you," he said with a stupid grin on his face. "This ends now."

"Hold up," Seokjin said, putting his hands up. "You're the ones who were after my papers on the train, weren't you?"

Beomgyu moved his loaded rifle from Jungkook to Seokjin. "What about it? You're wanted by the Musihans, dead or alive, and I would prefer you dead if you're going to be this much trouble to bring in. If you go quietly, we'll promise that we'll make it quick."

"I still don't understand," Seokjin said. "I'm not on the wanted list for anything. Why would I be on the wanted list? I have lived my life quietly since the revolution, out of the public eye, as the Musihans wanted. I was told that if I did so, then I would not be bothered, and I could continue on as I am. Why is that any different now? Why have things changed?"

"We were told to track you down," Beomgyu stated.

"We?" Jungkook realized there was a second man behind this first man, both dressed fully in black, a stark contrast to the lobby's interior. When Jungkook looked around, he noticed nobody was around at all. Perhaps these con men had paid them off. Or perhaps they were running for their own lives. But Jungkook and the others were literally between the men and a glass door.

There was no easy way out.

"If you let me know what I did wrong, what I did to deserve this treatment, then you may take me," Seokjin said. "I would rather you not kill me, of course! But if it helps at all, I will willingly go back to the Musihans, once I know what I have done wrong."

Beomgyu pouted. "Who says we need to tell you?"

"You're wanted for..." Soobin paused, then had to pull the papers out of his back pocket and look at them. "You're wanted for...studying at a university."

"We already discussed that. That should not be held against me. The universities have been closed since the Musihans took over, and the children are only taught what the Musihans want them to know. I have already paid for that sin. What else have I accomplished?"

Beomgyu and Soobin looked at each other. Then, "I don't know, they just offered us a whole lot of money," Soobin said.

"And the promise that we would be the next ones dead," Beomgyu agreed, "if we didn't kill you."

"See?" Seokjin said. "This is just a huge misunderstanding! Even Hoseok here was told the same thing as you guys," he said, motioning to Hoseok, who was dressed a lot better than they were at this point.

Beomgyu and Soobin gaped at Hoseok. "Really?"

"I was on the same train as you," Hoseok said. "But I realized that the Musihans had lied to me, and there was no reason for me to continue this charade. So I joined up with them, and I am now in Paris, and it is illegal for the Musihans to attack me here. If they do, the entire police department in Paris will have their heads, and they will have to return to Muismusihan without me."

"Is it okay if we stay with you, too, then?" Boemgyu asked. He had seemed so strong before, but it almost looked like his lower lip was quivering.

Jungkook sighed. At this rate, they were neve going to get a hold of V before the final interviews tomorrow. So it stood to reason that they should actually try to do something with their night instead. "How about this. We get a cab together, and I saw an awesome joint off the street where we can sit for a while, grab a drink, figure out what to do about this. How does that sound?" And Hoseok produced the money, and Beomgyu and Soobin hadn't had a warm meal in years, so they tagged along.

And sure enough, the club they found themselves in was swinging. A full piece brass band was playing, warbling the night away with the hottest swing tunes from America. The boys got a table for five, and over hot meals, Beomgyu and Soobin explained what they knew, and they both decided to stay in Paris for the time being, perhaps become citizens there, find good lines of work. Soobin complimented the chef on his bread baking. And when a slow song came on, and Seokjin and Hoseok danced in front of everybody, Soobin grabbed Beomgyu's hand, and they danced as well, for old times sake.