Because We Met (J-Hope)

Twenty

I asked Jimin about it. He sighed. "I should tell you the truth," he started, "I do traffic people but not in the way you think. We take people who are refugees who have nothing, people who volunteer to go certain places, certain druggies, and people nobody will miss. We only sell people if they're okay with it and they get sold to who they want to be sold to. Prostitution is where most people go but not without care. It's not as bad as you would imagine," he explained. I was silent. I had gotten in with drugs but I wasn't sure about human trafficking. "I can show you," Jimin spoke up after a while. "How?" "I have some people coming in tomorrow morning. About...three girls and they're going to go through the process. I'll take you with me," he suggested. I wanted to say no but I couldn't.

Jimin woke me up at eight and we got dressed. He drove to a place just off the highway. A guy got out of a car, Jimin handed him a lot of money, and three girls were brought to him. They looked young. "20, 17, and 15. Prime ages," the guy said. Jimin nodded. The girls had their hands bound and tape on their mouths. I helped them into the car and we left. Jimin drove to a bar that was squeezed in an alley. He told me to go in and tell the bartender that Jimin sent me and the door needs to be unlocked. So I did. Jimin led the girls to the basement. He took off the tape and undid their hands. He sent two to a room with bodyguards and took one into a room with just us.

"You didn't volunteer so why are you here?" He asked her. She looked around in fear. "Are you on something?" "No. God, no," she blurted. "You don't look like a prostitute. How old are you?" Jimin leaned back in his chair. "Seventeen." "Did you run away?" She nodded frantically. He continued to ask questions, when he finished he brought in the next girl and did the same. Finally he brought in the fifteen year old. I felt bad for her. "I heard you ran away from an abusive mother. Do you need money?" She nodded. "Do you want to live comfortably or do you want to make money?" He asked. "What's the difference?" The girl questioned. She didn't seem as frightened as the others. "Well, you can live in a house with someone for a long time or you can earn money and stay relatively close. You will continue to see me on occasion if you choose the second one," Jimin explained to her. He wasn't being clear on what he meant. "I...I want to live in a house," she answered. "You can't change your answer, okay? Your sisters chose the other option so you won't see them anymore but you can say goodbye." The girl started crying. "Now, stop crying and let me explain. You're going to wear what we tell you and people will want to buy you," immediate fear showed on her face, "but you will choose who you want and you will go with them. After that you will never see me again and you'll see how well life works for you."

After dealing with the girls, Jimin said he would bring me the next day to see what happens next. "It isn't bad, I promise," he said. My feelings towards Jimin had started to change.

[I also do not promote trafficking! It is just for this part of the story. Please be aware that there is sensitive material in the next two or three chapters.]