paranoia | jikook

hurt

before the sun rose, before public transport started operating, and before jimin woke up, jungkook was already out in the streets with his huge bagpack.

he had woken up at around 3am and decided to make a run for it. he did contemplate about calling the police, but this was his best friend for god's sake and jungkook would never give up on jimin even if he turned into someone he didn't recognize. the younger one just wanted some time to think things through, and that definitely wasn't going to happen in the house with jimin acting all creepy.

the freezing morning air bit harshly into jungkook's exposed skin, causing him to twitch and shiver uncontrollably. his thin cardigan didn't do much to keep him warm and he silently cursed himself for not bringing a coat in his haste. a few early-risers were jogging down the streets with earphones plugged in their ears and visible puffs of air escaping through their lips. 

jungkook spent the entire day roaming around seoul to collect his thoughts. before he knew it, evening arrived. he was downing the last of his hot chocolate at a cafe when the vibration of his phone caught his attention. 

"taehyung?" he answered.

"hey, where are you? i forgot to bring my house key with me and no one is answering the door."

jungkook frowned. "wait, aren't you supposed to be at your parents' for a week?" 

"i am, but i left something important at our place. if i don't retrieve it by today, i'll be dead meat. it's for my younger sister and i need it urgently." taehyung replied. 

zipping up his bagpack, jungkook balanced the phone in between his ear and his shoulder. "meet me at the convenience store that we always go to. i'll explain more to you later but it's just not safe to stay there —"

a familiar melody sounded, alerting jungkook that the door was open. 

"oh, jungkook? jimin just opened the door. everything's fine now, don't worry!" 

jungkook was, by then, a bundle of nerves. in an attempt to get taehyung not to hang up the call, he kept tripping over his own words.

"n-no. oh no. listen, you need to get out of there now."

as jungkook pushed his way past customers that were entering the cafe, he noticed the eerie silence on the other end. "taehyung?" he asked, his voice barely audible.

"... jungkook? i'll call you back later." then, he heard taehyung ask with a much fainter voice. "jimin, what are you doing with that knife?"

a sharp pang was felt in jungkook's chest. beads of cold sweat started to form on his forehead as he gradually broke into a run towards their apartment. his hold on the phone tightened. "no, fuck. taehyung don't you dare hang up on me, you—"

the line went dead. 

three can keep a secret if two of them are dead.