And we Bid Farewell to the Last of our Youth

VIII

The sounds coming from outside the window are what kept Jeongguk alive. The quiet pitter patter of the rain against the car windows reminded him of the time he spent curled up in their company van, Sejin, one of the boy's favorite managers had been driving, a slight crease on his face. Jeongguk was wrapped in three different blankets, snuggled up next to Yoongi, whose had he hadn't let go of since the event full morning, and Taehyung, who squeezed into his side, arms wrapped around him protectively. He remembers Seokjin, hugging a sleeping Jimin, who was leaning on Hoseok, while Namjoon sat up front, quietly recalling what Jeongguk has told him about the abuse, Sejin paling further, cursing under his breath. Though a the mood that car ride to the hospital was a bit morbid, Jeongguk remembered the warmth that surrounded him, and he felt comforted. Even when he's in despair, his hyungs have never let him down, left him alone, and they most definitely never left him cold. Even with his arms tied (again), the thought of his hyungs kept Jeongguk feeling brave, less scared, and the tears that were welled up in his eyes never fell. He promised himself they wouldn't fall, not until the very end, when he was safely wrapped in Seokjin's arms, a cup of hit chocolate placed in front of him in his iron man pajamas that yes, he wore every night. One of the two men up front moved, turning to face the younger in the back of the car. "Hyung look at him, he's so cute, trapped there. Why don't we take a picture, I'm sure his own hyungs would love to see how he's doing." The other rolled his eyes. "We can once we get there. He has to at least have some form of a scratch on his face."

Jeongguk kept quiet, glaring darkly at the man sitting in the passenger's seat. "Maybe we should give him a bit more than a scratch," he said. "I think he's feeling a little brave." Jeongguk never faltered in his glare, and, for once, all the anger came out and replaced the fear as he stared at the bloody knife the man was holding. He couldn't wait for his hyungs to help him. He had to do it himself, for Jimin, for Hoseok, who he hoped was okay, he hadn't seen him since he and Jimin had lost him.

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"The two suspects are reportedly part of a rather dangerous gang based in Busan, but their main focus on targets has shifted to Seoul. Min Soo was apart of this gang, and his target was you." Yoongi's eyes widened, and the nausea in his stomach grew. He was being escorted to the hospital to see the other members and Jimin, god Jimin, last time Yoongi saw him he was covered in red and Yoongi didn't know what to think, what to do, and the most that he did do was go with police to devise a plan, one that had him feeling sick, scared, and had anxiety crawling under his skin. "BigHit was not a large company, and back then, Bangtan Sonyeondan was a small group. Small enough to cover up the disappearance of a member who was involved in underground rapping."  Yoongi nodded, knowing exactly where this was going. The black market is very inconspicuous, and human trafficking was no secret business.

    There have been incidents before, just trainees or rookie groups, people who were worth more and not popular enough for a gang to be pursued. It happened a lot underground, of course it happened in the idol business as well. Still, Yoongi couldn't shake the thought of Jeongguk all alone, surrounded by those men, doing god knows what to him. Sure their maknae wasn't a baby anymore, he had grown to be the strongest of them, muscles bigger than they'd ever imagined, but he was still their youngest, a kind hearted, sweet maknae, who would defend them without a doubt, but struggled to defend himself. And now he was being held hostage by a whole gang? Yoongi wasn't just scared any more, he was terrified.

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The steady beep of the machines forced Jimin to open his eyes. The first feeling that returned wasn't the pain, but the weight on his left hand. He turned his head, and found a sleeping Taehyung, in what Jimin's sense as the most awkward position he'd ever seen, undoubtedly uncomfortable as the younger latched onto his hand and strained his neck the opposite direction, attempting to fit the whole of his body to curl up on the small chair. Despite himself, Jimin let out a bubbly laugh at the sight, then winced, instantly regretting it once he felt the sharp pain in his side. Taehyung shot up and was at his side in an instant. That was when Jimin noticed the three policemen in the room by the four other members. Yoongi caught his gaze and walked towards the hospital bed. "Gukkie isn't here, he's been-god all of this is my fault, I can't-" "Hyung, what happened," Jimin said carefully, scared of the answer. He looked at his hyungs, and saw, saw Hoseok's pacing, Namjoon's serious look that only the leader could have, Seokjin's tear tracks, Taehyung's deadly stare at the wall behind Jimin, and Yoongi's crease of concern and tearful eyes. "Your friend has been taken by two suspects who were believed to have been accomplices to Min Soo. They left behind a note, asking only for Yoongi-ssi over here to come alone to get him back, but we can't let that happen. We are here to help devise a plan, and Yoongi-ssi wanted to be near you, as you were still unconscious." Namjoon stepped forward. "Hoseok, Jin and Taehyung are going to stay with you, Yoongi and I are going to get Jeongguk back," then his gaze softened and he put his hand on Jimin's shoulder. "I'm glad you're awake, there was a couple moments when we thought we'd lost you, Chim, I don't know what we would've done if you didn't make it." Namjoon's voice cracked, and he hugged Jimin tightly, Yoongi joining, and the two were escorted out by police. Though he was nervous, Namjoon was even more determined. He couldn't lose his youngest dongsaeng, he won't let that happen.