Louder than Bombs

Chapter 6

So they continued on, their battered little team. And as they moved on, Jimin had to slowly kiss away his dream of being back at the base in a week. There was no way they would make it back. Running back the way they had come from wasn't going to work. They had been surrounded. The best thing they could do was hide. At least that was Jimin's opinion. They could take refuge in an old building and hopefully nobody would find them. They could survive by eating their rations. Hopefully a rescue party would come and Jimin would be taken back home too.

At least, that was what he hoped.

They had managed to run past that empty field by timing the enemy fire and running in the small time gaps in between. Jimin ran so hard that the soles of his feet cracked and bled. He could feel them stinging in his boots, but he didn't dare take them off. They were just small cuts, he knew. There was nothing life-threatening.

The world around him was a dusty haze through his sunglasses. Jimin felt like a monster.

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"Eat up, eat up."

Jimin nodded. He kept chewing at the same speed though. He had no energy to do anything. The officer eyed him with so much concern that if Jimin was in any other state, he would've laughed. Whatever happened to Corporal Park who always got yelled at? But no, here he was, making people worry.

It was the third night. They had been slowly advancing for three days, but now they were standing mostly in the same spot. They had managed to duck into a small clearing to spend the night. Jimin literally could not handle any of the food though. He constantly felt like he was going to throw up - not like he was going to mention that to anyone though. The constant heat, the blood and gore, everything was proving to be too much for him. He had been fine for the later training sessions! But of course everything had to fall apart now.

"I'll keep watch."

There was more hushed conversation ahead. They were so unorganized. Nobody was eager for any action anymore. Even Jungkook had fallen completely off and had an exhausted look on his face all the time. Jimin suspected he missed his mom.

Jimin sighed. He took a few mouthfuls off his food, before stuffing it into his backpack. He saw Jin give him a look, but he was so tired that he couldn't bother interpreting it. He just wanted to curl up and sleep.

He dropped off to sleep within a couple of minutes. He heard Jungkook rustle up next to him, then he heard Jin sigh, but after that he didn't hear much more.

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The sun rose early the next day. The light forced Jimin awake. He sat up, his eyes still wary from sleep. But soon, he realized, the sun hadn't woken him up. Someone from the higher ranks glared down at him.

"What are you doing, still sleeping? Up!"

Jimin shot up quickly as he could. There, his good treatment was over. He was back to being yelled at. Honestly, he kind of preferred it that way.

After a few bites, they were back to their usual routine.

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Sometimes, he wondered what Namjoon was doing. Did he know just how lucky he was, getting to stay behind? Did he know just how unlucky he, Park Jimin, was? He wasn't made to do this.

Surely, the team back there knew how much of a failure their mission was. Jimin had been promised a week, but he had doubts whether he would make it back within a month. He treasured the picture of his family and friends with his life. Who knows when he would see them again?

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The grass blades were blending at each other. Jimin could barely make it another step.

Suddenly, there was a loud thud. Jimin spread out, just like he had been taught. He forgot his feelings and focused on his senses. He needed to think, think, think. There was a speck moving in the distance. He aimed and fired, again and again. The moving stopped. He was a pretty good shot.