A Day In September - BTS Zombie au

25: Judgement Day

"How old are you?" He asked, voice sounding innocently curious. Mara was bewildered at the control he had over his voice.

She blinked, she doesn't really know.

"Nineteen...I think," she said, ending her thoughts with a mutter that lacked confidence. This amused Namjoon, the clicking of his pen halting before he resumed again.

"Ahh. Have you met Jungkook? He's also 19," Namjoon commented, throwing Mara off with his chiming voice.

Mara nodded, "He's...nice."

Namjoon hummed, "He's an idiot. But sure, we'll go with nice," he smirked. She didn't quite know how to react to the insult, so she gave a stifled chuckled.

"Nineteen," he began again, "I'm surprised you're out there all alone. By now, you could've been with other people, in a group besides this one."

Mara awkwardly shrugged, "I guess I just got used to being alone."

He hummed, "I see. I would've also guessed you'd be with your parents, or something like that," he shrugged nonchalantly. Mara held her breath,

"Where are they? Your parents?"

There was silence from the other end, a silence where Mara's face grew sullen, and she pursed her lips when feeling them slightly twitch. Namjoon soon realized he had touched on a sensitive topic, tilting his head curiously.

"What a shame," he clicked his tongue.

"They're somewhere out there," Mara rushed out, causing the leader's smirk to widen and his eyes to sparkle devilishly.

"That's what they all say," he smugly replied.

Mara felt herself deflate.

Hold it in.

Bite your tongue for now.

Don't defend yourself, as much as you want to.

Namjoon seemed to grow slightly impatient at the silence from Mara that ensued. It wasn't that she didn't have anything to say, it was that she had nothing nice to say. She didn't think she would have to struggle against an impossibly hard-shelled autocrat just days after waking up from a coma. Not that she was anticipating the royalty treatment. All she had hoped for was the bare minimum—respect. Unfortunately, she had been warned of the opposite and damn it was Jin right.

He warned me so it's my fault for taking it personally.

"I'm going to be straightforward here. I don't take kindly to strangers trying to integrate into my group," Namjoon asserted, voice suddenly growing darker yet his posture as relaxed and slow moving as ever. He clicked the pen hard, letting the button retract loudly.

Mara's displeased frown deepened as the air grew thick with tension.

"What is it that you want from us? Though it's very sweet that you and Jimin want to be around one another, I'd rather offer our supplies in exchange for your willing withdrawal,  if you must," Namjoon waved his hand with disinterest but with eyes as piercing as ever.

"I don't want anything but safety. That's all I ask for," Mara softly spoke, not wanting to anger Namjoon but also speaking in her defense. Jimin wasn't here to do it, and she wouldn't allow a stranger to completely walk all over her.

Behave, Mara.

Namjoon slowly shook his head, "That's a lot to ask for, in my opinion."