Cherub|Vminkook

3

The buzz of refrigerators and fluorescent lighting was almost nauseating. A constant dull noise, no change in pitch or tone, droning in his ears until the end of his miserable shift.

"Hey Park!"

Jimin looked up from the counter to face his manager.

"Take these boxes out back will ya." He kicked a stack of cardboard boxes before retreating into his office.

Jimin bent, picked up the empty Ramen boxes, and kicked open the squeaky back door. The alleyway behind their convenience store was less than pleasant. Leaky pipes from rain gutters, overflowing dumpsters, mystery smells, and even an occasional homeless person plagued the streets. Which meant Jimin limited his time there as much as possible. He took the knife from his belt and began to break down the boxes, slicing through the tape and tossing them into the nearly full dumpster.

"Fucking listen to me when I'm talking to you!"

Jimin nearly dropped the knife when the loud voice echoed in the alley and reached his ears. They sounded angry, extremely so, but Jimin still had boxes to collapse. Despite his nerves beginning to tighten the muscles of his stomach.

"Fucking stop! You fucking faggot listen to me!"

At that bitter word Jimin dropped the box and turned towards the noise. He wasn't surprised to see a group of boys from the local school, still clad in their uniforms, what he was surprised to see was a certain familiar face. Hunched over and shaking, trying his best to ignore the onslaught of abuse flying from the mouths of the boys. The boy that had been yelling, the one Jimin deemed was the leader, jogged up to the familiar face only to push him into the wall. And to Jimin's dismay the boy didn't even put up a fight, simply ducked his head and shrunk.

"Jungkook," Jimin sighed to himself when he caught a glimpse of said boy's beat up face.

The group of boys circled Jungkook, trapping him like a rabbit in a cage. Chaotic yelling ensued, a jumble of angry voices and hurtful words, until one boy appeared to throw the first punch. Like a trigger firing a gun the boys bursted into violence, throwing punches and finally kicks when Jungkook seemed to drop to his knees. It was horrific, disgusting in a way that made Jimin sick to his stomach. Especially when he somewhat knew the kid, knew he was close, so close to the edge and ready to jump once again.

"Hey!" Jimin charged at the group and instantly they all stopped, stood up straight, and faced him. All of them except Jungkook, who was lying on the ground, scarily still. He twirled the knife between his fingers and glared at the suddenly calm teens. "It would be a shame if your school found out about this wouldn't it?"

"Please sir we will never trespass back here again," one of the boy's sputtered out.

Jimin was appalled at how they could believe their only wrongdoing was trespassing. Not the fact that they were beating a kid to death. "I never want to see you kids again understand? And if I do I'm calling the cops."

The boys all nodded before taking off towards the main road, with a trail of laughter following their footfalls. Jimin made sure they were gone before dropping to his knees near the barely conscious boy. The scene was upsetting, too much for Jimin, and his body began to tremble. What he was able to see of the boy was bloody and bruised, and he couldn't even imagine how bad the rest of his body looked. He reached out and brushed the sticky, dark hair away from Jungkook's forehead to reveal his swollen and hazy eyes. Blinking slow and staring up at him with tears clinging to the lashes.

"Hey kid." Jimin swiped his thumb across the boy's forehead but he gave no reaction. "We gotta stop meeting when you're in pain huh?"

Jungkook scrunched his eyes closed and whimpered as he attempted to roll over onto his back.

"Wait-wait don't move," Jimin warned but hesitated to touch the kid. "You could be seriously hurt Jungkook."

"Go-" Jungkook forced himself to sit against the wall, dragging his body up until it couldn't move anymore-"go away."

Jimin wasn't bothered by his words, he understood that the situation was less than pleasant, probably even embarrassing for the kid, but he wasn't about to leave him alone. "You need to go to the hospital."

"No...no I don't," Jungkook groaned.

"Yes." Jimin stood and held out his hand. "Yes you do."

The boy's glassy eyes narrowed at his hand and he wiped away the streak of blood leaking from his mouth, smearing the red liquid across his chin. He stumbled to his feet, hands dragging along the brick wall behind him to find purchase. As he leaned against the wall Jimin was given the chance to actually study the kid, take in the details of his face, body, everything. There was no denying he was thin, fragile looking, even delicate. Slightly round in the face with wide eyes. Nearly childlike yet covered in blood, bruises, and cuts. A stark contrast that was horrible yet perfect at the same time.

"Leave me alone." Jungkook spit blood to the floor and inhaled a shaky breath. "Please just leave me alone."

Jimin fell silent, staring into the kid's bloodshot eyes. It wasn't his place to pry and force the kid to seek medical attention. He barely knew Jungkook, heck he wasn't even sure about his name or even age, but a part of him felt connected to the kid. He had seen him at his weakest point, teetering on the edge between life and death. They had talked him back down to earth, held him through a panic attack and brought him back to their home. Which was something so intimate that Jimin just couldn't help but feel a bond with this stranger.

"Can we at least go back to my apartment so I can clean up your injuries? Please?" Jimin asked, quiet and gentle, as if he was talking the kid down once again.

The question, the softness of his words, seemed to knock the wind from Jungkook and he crumbled. Collapsed to the ground in a heap of sobs and labored breaths. Jimin crouched down next to the kid and pulled him into his side. Wrapping his body around the scarily skinny boy, smoothing circles on his back and over the ridge of his spine.

"Shh..come on." Jimin pulled the trembling boy up to his feet and led him to the back door of the convenience store. He pushed open the door, using his foot to stop it from swinging shut. "Manager-nim!"

"What?!"

Jimin glanced at the kid tucked beneath his arm, still trembling as violent sobs continued to fall from his lips. "I have to go home! It's an emergency!"