reef knot

nine

  "Where are we?" I feel a sense of helplessness wash over me as I glance around the foreign area.

  "Look up at the sky," Yoongi softly instructs, and I do as he says. "The spoon-shaped constellation is the Big Dipper," he informs me. "the star above it is the North Star. Can you see it?"

  My gaze flits across the night sky, before landing on the ladle-like formation, like Yoongi described. Right above it, a star shines big and bright, just like a diamond embedded in the sand. "I found it!" I exclaim delightedly, starting to drag Yoongi towards that direction.

  "When I was young," my bodyguard begins to tell me a story, "the sky was dark in Daegu, but the stars were big and bright. Grandma taught me how to find the North Star." At that thought, a small smile forms on Yoongi's face. "She said her home was in the North."

  Suddenly, I feel a weight being lifted off my shoulders, and I look down to see Yoongi sliding towards the ground, slipping through my grasp. "Yoongi!" I exclaim, crouching down to his height. "Yah!" I shout, gripping his shoulders as I start to shake him back and forth. "Now is not a good time to fall asleep!"

  The boy is now fully unconscious, his eyes closed and his forehead drenched with cold sweat. Blood continues to ooze from his two injuries, and his jacket is now fully soaked with the red substance. 

  "No, no, no," I choke back a sob. Scrambling to my feet, I grab both of Yoongi's hands, starting to pull him towards the direction of the North. "Min Yoongi, I swear to god," I curse under my breath, "I'll fire you if you don't get up!" I groan as I attempt to move him, "I'll never talk to you again!"

  He barely budges - instead, I end up falling onto my butt, as if I've just lost a tug-of-war, with Yoongi's arm as the rope.

  "Yah," I choke back a sob, tears escaping my eyes as I crawl towards my unconscious bodyguard. "Min Yoongi, get up." I place a hand on his cheek, slapping him gently, as if that would garner his attention.

  Suddenly, the image of Mom lying on the living room floor with a knife impaling her gut comes to mind.

  Jiyoung-ah, she had called me, I love you.

  "Mommy," I whimper, biting my lip to prevent any additional tears from falling.

  No, my teeth suddenly clench together, I can't let him end up like Mom did. 

  I wipe away my tears with the back of my hands, before rising to my feet and walking to the spot behind Yoongi's head. Bending down, I hoist his body up into a sitting position, tucking my hands underneath his armpits, before proceeding to drag him across the forest floor.

  Miraculously, I manage to move him this time. 

  "We'll get out of here soon okay?" I reassure him, although I know he can't hear me.

  We go about twenty feet, before the rustle of leaves behind us alert me of someone incoming. 

  Namjoon's men caught up.

  Widening my eyes, I gently drop Yoongi onto the floor, before picking up a rock from the ground, my only defense under situations like these. 

  Hastily placing myself in front of Yoongi, I prepare myself for the incoming ambush. 

  To my surprise, I don't recognize the man who emerges from the other side of the shrubbery. His triangular face and brown hair doesn't belong to any of Namjoon's sidekicks from before, and his suit definitely creates contrast between the unkempt clothes belonging to Namjoon's men.