Flower

CHAPTER 40

Taehyung curled into himself on the bed, burying his face in his knees. Everything hurt. There were bruises all over his body, it had been hell to remove the dried blood from his skin. His mark, or whatever was left of it, burned, his wolf in agonizing pain over the broken bond. It was partly the reason why Taehyung chose to come home rather than go to Eunwoo. The alpha must have been feeling the tear too. 

He hated the silence around him, the pitying looks that everyone gave him, from his parents to the servants in the house. His mind was void of thoughts, unable to accept that he was finally safe, the man who had defiled him now dead. A part of him was relieved, knowing that Seokjin did not have to go through the same thing, knowing that he had been saved from the same fate as his. 

He couldn't help but flinch as his father broke the train of thoughts, scooting away from him, ashamed, scared of what he had to say. When Taehyung finally had the courage to look up, he saw tears in his eyes. "I'm sorry Taetae", he whispered, gentle hands coming up to cradle his face, thumb rubbing the falling tears away. It had Taehyung shaking his head, scooting and patting the empty space beside him, gesturing his brother to take a seat. "Don't blame yourself hyung. You couldn't have done anything even if you wanted to" he mumbled, letting the alpha wrap him into a hug, laying head on his chest. 

Namjoon stayed quiet, unsure of how to respond. His eyes went to Taehyung's neck, eyes widening, hastily pulling away. "Your neck" he breathed, the omega tearfully reaching up and caressing the burnt mark, now fading away. 

It all made sense now. What Seokjin was saying earlier. Namjoon had merely attributed it to Taehyung having more bruises compared to him but the one thing he had dreaded the most had happened. "Does eomma know?" he rasped, as if voice was stuck in his throat, sour scent rippling in the air. 

Taehyung looked at him, peering through his wet lashes, "She has an idea. I haven't told her yet" he mumbled, gaze on hands on his lap, playing with his fingers.

"Is he dead?". Taehyung bit his lip, nodding in response, "Hoseok killed him". He waited for Namjoon to give a disapproving look to him, maybe ask him more about the alpha but he only nodded, the conflict clearly visible in the red pupils as he was pulled into a tight hug. 

"I'm sorry" Namjoon brokenly repeated over and over again, unsure, unable to formulate other words that might show what he felt like. Even as Taehyung shook his head in denial, it felt wrong, knowing that his brother had been put out there and he hadn't been the one who had saved him.

"The medic is coming soon hyung. You should ask Seokjin hyung to come here. He has a lot of injuries too and I want to know if- if he" Taehyung bit his lips, frustrated with how to phrase the question. "He's untouched, it that's what you mean to ask" his brother responded, understanding his dilemma. As much as Taehyung hated where he was at the moment, he felt relieved that all of his actions had not been for nothing, and that his hyung was safe. 

"Why did you do it?" Namjoon asked quietly, breath ghosting over his cheeks, voice cracking as he spoke. "I didn't- couldn't bear what would happen if Seokjin hyung was marked by that man. You both love each other so much, I know you do and it would have broken me had something happened to hyung that might have separated you forever. So I did the first thing that came to mind" Taehyung said, voicing his inner thoughts. 

"You- don't tell eomma about this please" he pleaded, orange eyes looking up to meet the teary ones. Namjoon nodded, furiously wiping at the tears threatening to spill, knowing that Taehyung will ignore his pain and focus on him instead. "You both remind me of how Hoseok and I were before and I couldn't bear to see your heart broken like mine did" Taehyung mumbled, ignoring the pained, guilt-ridden gaze of his brother, making sure that he understood that there would be no further discussion on the topic.