There's a knock on the door that rouses Jungkook from his slumber on the bathroom floor. His eyes peel open and he blinks furiously to get rid of the sleepy haze that fogs up his vision. He twists his head to find Jimin peacefully sleep, arms supporting his head on the edge of the bathtub. His skin glistens and Jungkook can't resist the urge to lean forward and press a kiss to his forehead.
There's another knock, louder this time that demands his attention. He pushes himself off the bathroom floor, quickly splashes cool water over his face and quietly, without waking Jimin up, he heads out of the bathroom, shutting it close behind him.
"I'm coming," he announces out loud when there's a knock for the third time and gosh, whoever is behind his door is one impatient ass, he can tell.
He twists the door handle and the lock clicks open. The door swings inwards and behind it stands Derek, with a man Jungkook hasn't seen before. Jungkook's heart thumps against his chest and an uneasy feeling washes over him.
What was the scientist doing at his house this early in goddamn morning?
"Ol' pal! It's so good to see you," cries the stout man and steps up to embrace Jungkook, who remains still, puzzled and uncomfortable.
"It's good to see you too," comes more like a question than a reply but the scientist appears unbothered.
"I'll have a cup of tea and my colleague here will have some coffee," he says as he invites himself inside and gets comfortable on Jungkook's couch. Derek's partner follows and takes a seat beside the stout man, his silence causing uneasiness to crawl over Jungkook's skin.
"Okay, um. Alright."
He slips behind the counter and pours water into a pot before setting it on the stove.
"What brings you here?" Jungkook finds the courage in him to ask. Though something tells him he may already know the answer to it.
"Did you see the news, Jungkook?"
Just as predicted, Jungkook thinks.
"Which new specifically?"
Derek's smile widens, "the mermaid."
Jungkook prays his expression gives nothing away as he tries to be nonchalant in his response, "I did. It was all over the news."
"The fishermen claim that it was the most glorious being they have ever seen," says Derek.
Jungkook only hums but doesn't look up, pretending to be focused on the coffee brewing in the pot.
"Imagine Jungkook, a creature thought to be mythological this entire time suddenly turns out to be real. A discovery so huge that who knows, with thorough research and experimentation, could prove to be beneficial to mankind."
Jungkook's chest aches and he rubs it unconsciously, raising his eyes to meet Derek's.
"Who knows what their skin or their scales possess? How do they breathe underwater? How fast can they go and what can they possibly do? What if the cure to certain chronic diseases lies in that creature?"
Jungkook says nothing but he can feel the initial phases of anger at the scientist's creep up his veins. Jimin was not a lab rat and Jungkook wouldn't have that happen.
"So I made a request to the local authorities and asked them permission to 'borrow' the mermaid for as long as the experiment takes, explaining the benefits of such a research."
Jungkook's blood runs cold and he turns the knob before pouring the tea into a cup. Conceal it, he tells himself. Don't let him know it bothers you.
Derek's smile gradually begins to fade.
"But we got some rather shocking news at the museum, you know?"
Jungkook's fingers feel frozen and he forces them to move. He forces his breathing to stay steady.
"The mermaid disappeared overnight."
Jungkook lets out a breath as calmly as he possibly can, "tragic."
"Very, isn't it? It's a real pity but I am not known to give up this easily."
Jungkook swallows hard, brows furrowing.
"So tell me Jungkook. Where is the mermaid?"
Jungkook's gaze snaps up to Derek's.
"I don't know what you are talking about," Jungkook denies, playing dumb.
Derek smirks, "of course, you would say that. Unfortunately, the CCTV footage I viewed says otherwise."
Jungkook feels his heart sink and his jaw clenches, in anger or desperation, he isn't sure.
"How do you know that's me?"
"You lost your cap when the water burst out of the aquarium. A second's mistake was enough for us to know exactly who took the mermaid."
Jungkook breathes out.
"So be it. Even if I know where the merman is, there is no way in fucking hell that I will allow you to experiment over him," he grits out and walks towards the stout man till his nose is inches away from the other's.
Derek laughs, "what's the matter with you? A little mermaid has clouded your judgement. We're scientists. This is what we do. This discovery is huge and I will not let this flame die out, Jungkook. So tell me, where is the mermaid?"
"Like hell I will," Jungkook snaps, eyes blazing with anger, "get out of my house."
"Alright," Derek sighs, "we'll leave."
A pause and there's a hint of a smirk on his lips.
"But only with the mermaid."
Alarm bells ring aloud in Jungkook's head and his mind snaps to the colleague who accompanied Derek. Before he can take a step back or even react to Derek's words, something hard and heavy collides with the back of his head and he swears he sees stars. He drops to the floor with a pained cry, clutching his head.
He feels like he's underwater, muffled voices talking over him. The world is a blur as pain radiates through his skull. He blinks furiously to make sense of everything but there are blobs of multiple colours around him that don't clear.
"Jungkook," a familiar voice screams out and it reaches his ears.
Jimin.
He sees the mermaid being carried away by hefty men. A few seconds of eye contact. He sees Jimin stretching his arm out towards him, eyes reflecting the fear Jungkook feels. The younger's vision blurs again, pulling him back underwater.
"Jimin," he whispers before he gives in to the darkness.
——
7 June, 2023
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𝐀𝐃𝐃𝐈𝐂𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 • ᴊɪᴋᴏᴏᴋ
Fanfiction"Addiction is a family disease." Jungkook's life is taken over by his addiction to substances and Jimin tries to fix the cracks on their ship single-handedly; tries to keep them afloat. Bound by the chains of addiction, Jungkook is blind to the havo...
