𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫. | BTS |

chapter 96 ~ 𝒆𝒏𝒗𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒋𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒐𝒖𝒔𝒚

       "Five years?" I mumbled.

       "Yumin?"

       "Even so, I'm going to try as hard as I can to get him behind bars for as long as possible. You've gone through too much for us to lose this case now. Stay strong and until Thursday, stay positive alright? Call me if anything happens and I'll do the same."

      Beep.

      Looking up, I caught Yoongi's gaze as he peered down at me with wonder-filled eyes. Everyone around us was staring, Seokjin still nibbling mindlessly on his food but his gaze never wavering from the head of the table. 

      Yoongi leaned a little closer and shoved both hands in his front pockets. "What'd he say?"

       "Next Thursday. At eleven. We have to be down there at eleven. That's when it's happening."

       "What's happening?" Namjoon inquired.

       "Min Yura's court hearing." Knees popped, posture stooped, the brunet placed his hands on my knee as he crouched but a few inches from the floor. He looked me dead in the eye and I could feel the panic begin to set in as a cool feeling seeped through my ribs. "Yumin, don't do that, alright? Don't look at me like that. You're gonna be fine. It's just this one and then we're done. One and done!" He squeezed my thigh reassuringly but all I could think about was having to face my ex in a neutral setting, one where I couldn't lash out when needed. God, how I wanted to tear through his skin and leave never-fading scars, just as he had done to me.

      "I- I'll be fine." I pushed Yoongi's hands away from me and allowed him to stand to his full height. "The sooner the better."

       The kitchen remained quiet for a while. Eventually, Taehyung wandered down with Yeontan in tow, too sleepy to bother refilling the Pomeranian's bowl. He slipped bits of his food under the table to feed the pup despite Hoseok's complaining that it'll spoil him. The brunet didn't seem to care as he picked up a full slice of bacon and dropped it obviously onto the hardwood floor.  I continued to eat with the rest, chiming in on mid-day conversation here and there, but my head really intended to be elsewhere.

       The sooner the better. The sooner I had to see Yura again face to face, in the same fucking room, but in the end, everything would be better. I wouldn't have to constantly look over my shoulder in fear of seeing his wicked smile from across the store. No more tugging at my partner's sleeves in public settings every time another man walked by and I swore under my breath that it was him. His apartment would be cleared out; leased to a new family. The needles would be thrown away, the dishes cleaned and stacked, and most of all, Yura would finally get the help he needed. We both needed help.

      "Thanks for the food, precious," a voice whispered in my ear. 

      Glancing up, I offered Taehyung a nod as he and Namjoon walked together to the sink to wash their dishes. The oldest rested his head atop the brunet's shoulder, and to my surprise, was offered a kiss atop his head. A smile tugged at my lips despite my shadowed thoughts as I realized that, once Yura was finally gone, I had everything I ever wanted to return home to.

_

      Namjoon was beginning to feel bad now that he had seen Yumin in much friendlier lighting. Not only had she made him and the rest of the house breakfast without being asked, but after hearing everything Jungkook had been through while they were gone, he found that there was an unspoken defensive side to her that nothing could break. She had their lives in the center of her palm and wasn't about to let them tumble out.