In The Flesh | Yoonmin

|12|

× Taehyung's bedroom ×

Rap plays. Taehyung and Hansol are drinking cider.
Taehyung is on his bed looking at his old HVF blue armband and a medal.

"I can’t decide which one to bring
to class tomorrow."

"Go with the medal.", says Hansol.

"You reckon?"

"You’re a war hero after all."

"Did you ever hesitate?", curiously asks Hansol.

"When?"

"On one of your missions."

Yes he did. Jimin is living proof of that.
But Taehyung composes himself. He's not going to admit weakness to Hansol. He has to keep up appearances.

"No. I'm not a coward."

"Didn’t say you were. They wouldn’t
give medals to cowards."

A knock on the door and then Jimin enters.

"Don’t you knock?"

"I did knock."

"Hello.", says Jimin noticing Hansol.

"Hansol, this is my brother."

"Hey.", says Hansol.

Jimin holds out a tub of his cover up mousse.

"What?", asks Taehyung.

"My spare cover up mousse. You can have it back."

"Why would I want...I don’t use your... stuff.", says Taehyung, very aware of Hansol's presence.

"I know you do, Tae."

"I don’t, Chim."

"I know you use it on your spots.
Better than any foundation you said."

"Get out.", says Taehyung

"?"

"Get out of my room, Chim!"

Jimin, bemused, exits the room.
A few moments.

"Your brother’s partially deceased.", stats Hansol.

"He’s medicated. Don’t tell the others will you?", answers Taehyung, ashamed.

Hansol is brimming with anger
but he keeps it all inside.

"He got taken to the treatment
centre in Norfolk?"

"Near the end of The Rising."

"Lucky you. Now you’ve got your
brother back. Forever."

"Yeah, lucky me.", says sarcastically Taehyung, joking.

"You are lucky, Tae.", says seriously Hansol.

"Yeah, I know I am."

× Jimin's bedroom ×

A grey miserable morning has broken in Roarton.
Jimin has slept in his contacts, he refreshes his dry eyes with a couple of squirts of Everafter eye lotion.
Jimin puts on his mousse. He takes the orange work bib from off the back of his chair.
Jimin puts on the orange work bib and looks at himself in the mirror. He looks like a fucking idiot.

× Hansol's house ×

Framed photographs of a middle-aged man adorn the walls/ mantelpiece of the depressingly sparse lounge.
We move along to the kitchen where Hansol is cooking breakfast.

× Hansol's house | mom's bedroom ×

A photo of the middle-aged man with a woman and a young boy (Hansol) sits pride of place on the bedside table. Also on the bed side table are a number of prescription pill boxes.
The telly is on.
Hansol enters with the cooked breakfast on a tray.
A woman (40s) lays upright in bed, blankly watching the television. She is quite obviously seriously depressed.

"Time for breakfast, mum.", quietly says Hansol.

His mom doesn’t respond.

"Mum. Your breakfast."

Hansol's mom continues to watch the TV. It’s like she’s staring into space.
Hansol gives up trying to engage his mother. He puts the tray down and goes over to the bedside table. He takes the framed picture of him, his mom and his dad, takes the photograph out of the frame and pockets it.

× WOODLAND MEADOW ×

An overgrown meadow in between the two woods.
PDS sufferers, including Lee and Zoe, in orange work bibs are constructing a new fence across the meadow.
Jimin is in the workforce, toiling away.
Namjoom is supervising. He holds a clipboard and over his
shoulder a cattle prod.
Yoongi appears from the woods. He walks towards Namjoon.

"Late.", says the 'supervisor'.

"Morning, commandant.", answers Yoongi.

"I’m not, uh, don’t call me that,
please."

"That to keep us in check?", asks Yoongi looking at the cattle prod.

"It’s in case of a rabid attack."

"Good luck with that.", chuckles Yoongi.

He walks past Namjoon and heads over to where Jimin is trying to get a post into the ground.

"Can I help?"

Jimin makes an ‘if you want’ expression. He’s got very mixed feelings about Yoongi.
Yoongi holds the post steady for Jimin. He looks at all the PDS sufferers fixing the fence.

"In ancient Egypt, the Pharaohs used to make the Israelites build their own slave quarters.", says Yoongi.

"What does that make you? Modern day Moses?", ironically says Jimin.

"I have been known to part the waters. Granted I was in a paddling pool at the time. But, you know, baby steps."

Yoongi gives Jimin a winning grin. Jimin is surprised Yoongi can make fun of himself. It warms him to him a bit more.
Jimin goes to put another fence post in the ground. His shirt sleeves roll down, exposing his self inflicted wrist wounds.
Yoongi clocks it. Jimin is embarrassed.

"Hey it’s alright, we’ve all got our scars."

In a show of solidarity Yoongi pulls up his sleeve and exposes track marks.

"What did you take?", asks Jimin

"The A to Z of the periodic table.", answers Yoongi, not boasting.

"Why so much?"

"At the time I thought ‘why the hell not?’"

Jimin looks at him. Yoongi has the urge to share, which is odd because it’s normally the other way around.

"Ever been so depressed it felt as if every nerve ending in your body was exposed, red and raw?"

Jimin looks at Yoongi. He nods. Yes, he’s been that depressed.

"If I took enough chemicals it would dampen down those feelings a bit."

"Why were you so depressed?", asks Jimin.

"Way I was wired, I suppose. Since
the day I could think I’d had this idea in my mind, this piercing notion that life was completely meaningless.", answers Yoongi, looking at the sky. "Me and everyone else were just treading water until our bodies gave out and we sank back into the darkness. When you feel like that twenty four seven you might as well get fucked up beyond belief, cause you don’t believe in anything in the first place."

"Do you still feel that way?"

"No. Not anymore."

Yoongi spots Jungkook enter from the woods and approach Namjoon. They talk.

"That MP lass told me to come up
here.", says Jungkook.

"Yeah, I’ve, uh, a doctor’s
appointment."

Namjoom gives clipboard to Jungkook. Keeps the cattle prod.

"You're to make sure they carry on
working and you're to guard against rabids.", says Namjoon.

"Can do that. They all here?"

"Yeah. Except one. Kim Seokjin.", says Namjoon.

"Where’s he?"