ᴛʜᴇ ᴇssᴇɴᴛɪᴀʟ ʙᴏᴛᴀɴɪsᴛ ɢᴜɪᴅᴇ ᴛᴏ ᴊᴜɴɢʟᴇ sᴜʀᴠɪᴠᴀʟ│ᴛᴋ [complete]

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Jungkook was sitting on a large stump, legs crossed and eyes wide open in delightful expectation. The sight broke Taehyung's heart as he plopped down next to him. "I'm not going to teach you anything today."

"Why not?"

Jungkook did not even try to hide his disappointment, so Taehyung promptly changed his mind. "Fine. Maybe I'll tell you about — family."

"Family?"

Pulling out his sketchbook, Taehyung drew two adults, one of them holding a child in their arms. "Family. They share blood, but also love."

"Love?"

The day's lesson was turning philosophical. How could Taehyung explain the concept of something he himself had only experienced briefly before losing his parents to the 1918 influenza pandemic that claimed millions worldwide?

With a sigh, the put the sketchbook down and focused on the handsome profile in front of him. Jungkook's eager face truly was a sight to behold. "I believe love has something to do with the heart, you see? Right here," he added, hand resting on his rib cage, where he guessed his cardiac organ was located. He could sense it pulse under his fingers.

Jungkook mimicked his action. "Here?"

"Yes. Listen carefully. You can hear it thump."

A smile blossomed on his lips. "I hear it!"

"Very good." Taehyung couldn't help but chuckle, feeling extremely lucky to be able to assist Jungkook on his path to discovering the riches of the human experience. "Whenever you're close to me, my heart beats faster than normal," he added quietly.

"Can I?" Jungkook was asking permission to listen in on the pulsations of his heart and who was Taehyung to deny him. He guided his hand on his torso — without thinking how the physical contact would affect his already escalating heart rate — and watched as the boy's eyes widened at the palpitations.

"Why?"

"I'm not sure why. But I believe it is because of — love. And family."

"Are you family?"

The question reminded Taehyung of the whole point of his lesson and, sensing the urgency, he turned to face the dark jungle. "Your family, Jungkook. The apes who raised you. You must go and protect them!"

"I protect you."

This conversation was becoming dangerous for Taehyung's heart which hammered loudly within his chest. He almost choked on his next words. "That you do — very well in fact — but right now, they need you more. The hunters, they're coming—"

A twig snapped behind them.

Jungkook was on his feet in no time, scanning the area for any threat. "Tae, come."

The faint tremble in his voice should have been enough of a clue for Taehyung to grasp the imminent peril. But he somehow failed to act on it. "I'll just slow you down."

That's when he heard an amused laughter. "Are we interrupting something?"

Jungkook jumped in front of Taehyung, growling at the three men presently pointing their weapons at them. Yep, Taehyung was definitely going to die from a heart attack by the end of the day. But before that, he had to save Jungkook. "Please," he begged, "he's harmless."

"We know," they snickered, circling the boys to prevent any escape attempt. "Hand him over now, gently or you might get hurt. It'd be a real shame to have to smack that sweet face of yours."

"Why? He's no enemy. Just let him go."

"No can do. I bet we could sell him for a pretty penny. He'd look right at home behind the bars of a circus cage." They laughed at their tasteless joke and it made Taehyung's blood boil.

"Don't you dare touch him!"

"Why not? Is he yours?"

"He's a free man!"

"He's a freak, that's what he is! And if you're not going to help us catch him, then I guess we don't need you around."

Taehyung somehow managed to avoid the first blow. From the corner of his eye, he saw Jungkook pounce on one of their assailants, muscles tense and limbs outstretched. But upon hearing the gunshot, his heart, which had been pounding erratically, stopped.

And his world went dark.

—

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