iris . vkook

fifty four

쉰네

Taehyung's PoV;

Startled, I jumped at the sound of the door opening and then a sudden bang.

Picking up on the way that Yeontan, strangely, didn't begin to bark - instead whimpering - anxiety started to bubble in my stomach and nerves flowed through me like white-hot lava, my heart beginning to race and a thin sheen of sweat puddled on my forehead and clammed in my palms.

Was someone in my house?

Was Yeontan okay?

Fuck!

Grabbing the nearest thing to me that could be used as a weapon (an empty ceramic vase, which I patted myself on the back for choosing such a fantastic weapon), I made my way down the stairs.

Listening out for footsteps, my concern grew once the only ones I heard were Yeontan's frequent and panicked paws running along the wooden floor.

Yeontan suddenly ran up to me, shocking me as I felt pressure on my feet and if it wasn't for his fur tickling my bare legs, the vase probably would've been smashed onto him.

Thanking my lucky stars that I'd chosen not to wear pyjama bottoms to bed, avoiding harm to Yeontan (and possibly myself), I flicked on the light switch.

If someone had broken in, they would've already figured out that I was up thanks to my startled squeal after Yeontan had nipped my ankle.

I followed the panicked ball of fluff as he pattered down the hallway, his tiny legs causing his cascade to be extremely slow and tense.

I closed my eyes as I heard rough breathing. It was too much to look.

Why wasn't Yeontan bigger?

Why couldn't he defend me against this intruder?

Why did I have to be the adult?!

I thought I'd had enough of adulting when Yeontan had dropped a chewed, half-alive spider on my feet as some sort of gift that he must've thought I'd appreciate (I didn't), but this crossed the line.

I was just an art student. 

I wasn't prepared for this kinda shit.

I'd only just figured out how to remove paint stains from my clothes.

Still clutching the vase tightly within my sweat-sticky hands, I inhaled deeply once Yeontan's movement stopped and his whimpering began again.

I opened my eyes as the dog began to whine, softly barking as his small feet pushed against the slumped man, who you'd assume from his position that he'd be unconscious if you couldn't hear his ragged breathing.

A hoodie covered anything identifiable to my eyes. 

Frowning at Yeontan's weird behaviour, I placed the vase on the coffee table beside me as I crouched beside him.

"What's the matter, buddy?" I asked Yeontan, knowing that his anxious antics were unusual for him.

Yeontan didn't acknowledge my gentle stroke to behind his ears, which usually would calm him, evident by the way he continued to press his weight against the man's side.

With a few deep breaths, I pushed the man so he'd roll onto his back.

Great.

He wore a face mask, concealing up to the bridge of his nose. Wet hair matted down across his forehead, blocking his eyes.

Deciding not to touch his face, I brought my hands to where Yeontan repeatedly stomped against. Once I did so, his antics stopped and the dog sat, still whining softly.

Shaking off his weird behaviour, I moved my hands again and saw his behaviour change.

What the fuck is up with him?

Holding back the urge to roll my eyes, I instead unzipped the man's hoodie.

I wasn't sure what the liquid causing his shirt to stick to his front like a second skin was. I assumed it was rain, but the black shirt seemed almost maroon to my eyes.

Was it blood?

Gnawing on my lip, I chose to pull the mask from his face.

Familiar rose-pink lips with the black ring in his septum, vastly split at the corner and his jaw covered in black and blue bruising.

Stopping my eyes from welling up, I lightly brushed his hair, which was thankfully matted with rain rather than blood, out of the way to reveal closed eyes, his left eye slightly purple with a matching hue on his cheekbone and on the bridge of his nose.

Fucking hell, Gguk. What happened?

I then realised that Yeontan's whining was because he recognised his scent and he wasn't just being some dumbass dog (which he usually was).

Yeontan's consistent pawing at Jeongguk's side concerned me massively, and as much as I wanted to look at whatever got the dog frantic - I couldn't bring myself to do it.

Usually, when I couldn't do something and I was freaking out, Jeongguk would be right beside me and telling me confidence-boosting words, comforting me until I felt able enough to do whatever it was.

But the one time it was genuinely serious and not something as small as peeling a plaster off, Jeongguk was technically right beside me but not in the state to help me.

I debated phoning Jin or Namjoon, since they knew about science (I assumed they'd know about the human anatomy), but I couldn't as that would lead to them questioning me why Jeongguk was so beaten up and coated in blood. They didn't know about Jeongguk's job. 

Only Jimin and Yoongi did.

It wasn't really my place to tell them, but Jeongguk admitted that since he didn't tell me the truth in the beginning, it was fine as long as no one else found out.

And as lovely as Jin was, he'd try and care for Jeongguk despite my begging not to tell him that he knew. Namjoon was ever-so-slightly dim and he'd accidentally bring it up.

I was alone in this one.

It wasn't fair to wake everyone up just so they could reassure me that everything was fine (it clearly wasn't) as I lifted up a guy's shirt.

It was just me and Yeontan - which was more comforting than I thought.

He rested his paw against my hand, ears twitching and twaddling before bringing his body back to Jeongguk's side.

Reluctantly, my fingers reached the hem of Jeongguk's wet shirt and I began to peel it up.

What I saw wasn't the greatest. 

The ribs on his left side seemed disfigured and one of them appeared to be sticking out slightly, which wasn't a result of his weight (Jeongguk was extremely healthy and muscular), concerning me further.

I decided that it was best not to touch that and to possibly leave that to professional care.

It looked broken, but then so did my toe after I'd stubbed it and Jeongguk had told me to stay away from nursing, so I left my judgement in my head.

There was a massive slash on his stomach, which would appear to be the area where the shirt was mostly soaked.

The blood had stopped gushing, but little trickles made their way out as me and Yeontan stared helplessly.

Jeongguk shivered violently, though he'd either fallen unconscious or asleep (I couldn't tell), his skin pricking with goosebumps.

That was all it took for me to phone Taeyong, who told me that he'd be right down with Ten.