REST // Namjin AU

P R O L O G U E

The cold of the night was nipping at the child's skin as he carried his younger brother on his back. He would almost believe that they were only two, if the warm in his right hand didn't remind him of his other responsibility. 

He smiled down at his seven-years-old brother, who was swinging their hands without a care in the world, and his older brother almost believed the lie for a second. But he was quickly brought down to earth when he heard the rumbling of his youngest brother's belly against his back.

"Joonie, m'cold, and m'hungry."

Small Taehyung rested his head tiredly on his brother's shoulder as he pouted.

"Quit it Tae, we're almost there!"

After scolding their baby brother, Yoongi looked up to the oldest, observing the worried look on his face. Worry that shouldn't be on a nine-years-old's mind in the first place. 

"Right Joonie?"

The said boy was quick to grin at him, trying to muster a hopeful expression. He separated their holding hands briefly to ruffle his hair.

After another thirty minutes of walking on the almost empty sidewalk, they finally saw an abandoned building, concrete walls ready to collapse any minute.

The brothers entered the place, only to see a group of homeless people  warming themselves before small fires, while others were sitting against the wall, bottles of alcohol in hand, looking like corpses.

Yoongi's hold on his brother's hand got tighter as they passed the sketchy looking people. Some of them looked at them like they were preys, but most of them had pity in their eyes, wondering how they ended up here.

The three kids settled in a corner of the room, Namjoon taking the backpack off Yoongi's shoulders, grabbing a blanket. He settled Taehyung on the floor, draping the soft item on him as Yoongi joined him. The oldest made sure that they were confortable enough, a sigh leaving his cold lips as he looked at his brothers helplessly.

They looked back at him with fear in their eyes.

"Don't worry, as soon as the sun come up, we'll find a nice restaurant where we can eat a wholeee cake, with lots of candies!" Their eyes light up with excitement.

"I want a lot of icing!-"

"And I want gummy bears, oh! oh! And gummy worms, please!"

The boy laughed at their statements as he ruffled their hairs. 

"Now, get some rest, we have a big day tomorrow."

Namjoon crawled underneath the blanket between the both of them, his brothers putting their heads on his shoulders. He passed his arms so that he could get them in his embrace, trying to shield them as much as he could. 

After some time, when he could sense that they were both fast asleep, he let silent tears escape from his eyes. That night, he wished he was an ordinary kid, his mother reading him and his brothers a bed time story before kissing the top of their heads.

Instead, he tried his best to keep his eyes open to look out for danger, forgetting all about childish thoughts.