(I Won't Sleep) 'Till You're Safe Inside

1

Taehyung woke up to bright sunlight shining through his grimy, conveniently placed window.His heart was racing; he had had a nightmare.
In the dream, he had been in the car with his mom, talking about nothing, really. She had turned off the main road and was driving up hills and through fields for some reason, but Tae didn't question. He had looked ahead when his mom fell silent, and he saw a cliff approaching. Taehyung had yelled out in terror as his mother drove off the cliff face and into the water. Tae had looked over to see his mother's bleach blonde hair floating upwards, glasses slipping off. The last words he heard before he woke up were said in his mom's voice. "I've decided to commit suicide."
Taehyung shook his head. It just seemed so... Real. But it couldn't be. Both of his mom and stepdad hated him. When Taehyung was little, he would dream about what his real dad had been like. He imagined an amazing, humble person who would do anything for his family. After some research, though, he discovered his dad was a rapist and Taehyung was a mistake. Taehyung walked out of his bedroom and into the filthy living area. He tried to keep the house as clean as possible, but it was a difficult task when both of his parents were druggies that didn't give a flying wet lasagna noodle about him or anyone else. Tae trudged to the kitchen, the smell of a variety of recreational drugs heavy in the air. He sighed at the lack of food in the pantry and the surplus of bills on the counter that needed payed. Taehyung, resigned, picked up the house phone and called his only friend, Jimin, who picked up the phone almost immediately.
"Hey, Tae. What's wrong?" Jimin asked after answering.
"Nothing. Can I come over for a little bit, though?" Tae asked quietly.
"Sure thing! See you in a little bit!" Jimin's cheery voice said before the receiver clicked.
Taehyung put the phone down and slipped on a big sweater and worn-down shoes, walking out the door soon after. It's not that Tae wasn't grateful. Things could actually be a lot worse. At least he wasn't a crack baby. At least he had a roof over his head. At least he wasn't forced into anything. Things could be better, but also a lot worse off. Yes, Kim Taehyung was grateful. Lost in his own thoughts, Tae din't hear the two men approaching until he was pressed painfully against a brick wall and whimpering to be let go. "Hey pretty thing, cute face! Mind if we slip under here..." The first man said, as he began to remove Taehyung's sweater. Tae fought and managed to twist out of the grip of the second man, who was pinning his arms, and lurched away from them. Tae heard his sweater rip, but he couldn't care less in that moment. He ran until he felt his lungs would explode, all the way to Jimin's house. Taehyung burst through the door and Jimin looked up from the couch. He smiled, but it faded once he realized the state his friend was in. "Woah, Tae, what happened?" Jimin asked worriedly. Taehyung sat down next to him. "T-two me-en..." Jimin's eyes widened. "Oh my gosh, Tae, I'm so sorry! Did they manage to do anything to you?" Tae shook his head no and Jimin let out a relieved "Thank God," and they hugged each other. Suddenly, a door opened in the hallway and out walked a boy with brown hair and dark brown doe eyes. "Oh, hi, is this that Taehyung you keep talking about, Jimin?" the boy asked, smiling at the innocent looking boy in front of him. "Yeah, he's a really nice person. Tae, this is my stepbrother, Jungkook." Taehyung waved and pulled his best smile. The boy named Jungkook sat down rather close to Tae and put his arm around him. Taehyung froze up for a moment, but then relaxed at the gentle skinship he had lacked for so long. Jimin smiled a little sadly at Tae's desperation for human contact, and Jungkook's smirk faded to a shocked expression, then a soft smile when Tae leaned back into the embrace. "Jungkook, can I talk to you for a minute, please?" Jimin said sweetly. "Sure." Jungkook withdrew his arm from around Tae and followed Jimin into the hall. "Kookie, I've seen some of the people you hang out with, and what you do to random boys. Tae's my best friend, and if you lay one finger on him, I will personally kill you and dig your grave myself," Jimin said sternly. "Give me one good reason," Jungkook frowned at the smaller, but older boy. "I'll do better than that. One, listen to your hyung. Two, Tae's a very emotional person. He's the purest person I know, he's a virgin, he's the farthest from a bad boy you could possibly get, and he's an innocent bean. He wants to find that special person he'll marry, and if you play with his heart even a little bit, he'll be heartbroken, and you'll be dead," Jimin said almost coldly. "But-" "-Jeon Jungkook, he almost got raped on the way here!" Jimin whisper-yelled at him. "Okay, okay. Fine." Jungkook said, putting his hands in front of him, as the short boy turned surprisingly scary when he was angry. Like a short version of satan. They walked back into the living room, where Tae was sitting on the couch, knees to his chest, arms wrapped around himself. "Tae-tae!" Jimin screeched, jumping onto the couch and hugging the shivering boy with sweater paws. Taehyung hugged back, obviously comfortable with Jimin. I tried not to coo at how adorable Taehyung was. "How long?" Jimin asked randomly, pulling back to look at Tae. "T-two days," Taehyung replied, suddenly finding the floor very interesting. "Tae, how many times do I have to tell you?" "I know I know, if I need food, call you. But I don't wanna be a bother!" Tae said. "Wait, what? You haven't eaten in TWO DAYS?!" I asked loudly. Taehyung cringed at the loud noise. "You idiot, shut up!" Jimin hissed at me. "Sorry, sorry. But why?" Tae hesitated, but spoke. "M-my parents are never home. They're always out partying and doing drugs. I'm not good at much, and we don't have much money. But... I-I'm grateful. Jungkook just sat there, mouth open. Tae was so innocent and he didn't deserve this, but he was still grateful. How, was beyond Jungkook. "Well, I'm gonna make food for everyone, Tae, make yourself at home, I think you should stay here for a little while." Jimin said, smiling. "No no no, it's o-" "-No, you're staying here for a little while," Jimin interrupted. Fine, but at least let me get clothes from my house." Tae said. "Whatever, Jungkook, go with him." "No, I don't wanna be a bother!" Tae protested. "Lawdy lawd child, fine. If you're not back in an hour, I'm coming right over there." Jimin said, exasperated. Jimin then beckoned for Jungkook once again. "I want you to follow him," Jimin whispered to Jungkook. "Why?" Jungkook asked. He was in a difficult mood. "Because I'm not trying to have my best friend get raped for real, you freaking moronl!" Jimin said angrily. "Geez, fine!" Jungkook said in surrender. The two boys heard the door open and shut again, and Jungkook followed soon after. "