SOLDIER // VKOOK

Chapter 25

*

Jung kook knew everything was collapsing both literally and figuratively. He heard gunshots that he clearly remembered very well on each mission he carried out. He still remembers the adrenaline rushing through his whole system as he never felt more alive when he went in for a kill. But seeing the almost lifeless friend that was so close to death did not bring anything life to his dead heart. All he could feel was a burning sensation in his throat and chest.

"You got to stay with me here." Jung kook grabbed loosely at a gun and shot a few more men going towards them. He braced himself for impact as a grenade rolled to his side. Jung kook kicked it away, but the blast was still strong enough to push the two away. The wind was knock out of his lungs and Jung kook hits his back.

"Taehyung!" Jung kook shouted, he got up, his voice turned raspy as he tumbled towards his friend, he could only see the struggling of someone trying to get a grip on the edge of the ship. Jung kook rushed towards Taehyung went to grab his arm, his fingers wrap around the arm of his friend. He cocked up his boot on a leverage and tried to pull up, but his arm was not doing its job properly. The brunette was swinging dangerously, his legs shaking dangerously. Taehyung's hand was beginning to slip from Jung kook's grip. The enhanced soldier was starting to panic, grabbing relentlessly onto Taehyung's arm. He could not stand to see his friend falling to his death once again.

"Please, Taehyung. Hold on. I can pull you up." Jung kook said slowly, gritting his teeth. But he knew it was a complete lie. He did not have the capacity to pull his friend up. He knew that he was too weak to do so. He was always too weak. Too weak to kill, too weak to kill someone he was assigned to when the most vulnerable.

"Jung kook." Taehyung started off. The man gulped and looked at Taehyung, the wind ripping through his warm vest and hair. His breathing was growing very heavy as he heard Taehyung croak out the weak words that was as loud as gunshots and bomb blasts. "Let me go. Save yourself." Jung kook leaned in closer, straining all his arm muscles just to save his friend.

"No, I would not even think about that." Jung kook huffed. "Don't say that!"

"Save yourself. Please. I... deserve this. I made you fall. It's my turn." Taehyung said. Jung kook lets go momentarily, his eyes blurry and wet for a few seconds. His heart was already racing to infinity and beyond, Taehyung words were hurting him so much. "We all were waiting for this. Retribution is something no one can escape. I have been waiting for this for so long ... is just that..." Taehyung slipped from the edge, his knuckles turned white. "Finish your mission." That line. The last mission he was assigned to before turning against the other side. He never finished it, it was that one mission that triggered a series of events that caused everyone's world came crashing down.

"No! Stop it!" Jung kook shouted. "You are not allowed to speak like that!" He leaned forward, poking almost half of his body out to rescue his friend. Reaching out for Taehyung's hand slowly, they were so close but the soldier pushed himself away from Jung kook, causing himself to fall down into the tall buildings below. The soldier screamed and jumped out too, trying to save his friend, throwing out his arms and trying to get to Taehyung. The clouds whizzed past his face left a bitter taste in his mouth. The wind was causing his eyes to water, Jung kook was no unable to distinguish between tears and watering in his eyes. However, despite acting quite fast, his was still a second to slow. He could not reach out for Taehyung. The wind pushed him upward and it brought Taehyung down with the rubble and metal falling. Everything in his body felt numb and painless, there were bullets shot through his stomach, blood spluttering out as he turned and pulled out two smaller guns from his pocket and shooting at the men who were not jumping off the falling ship. He fired without aim, but still able to get the target.

He turned back and noticed Taehyung's figure blending into the rubbles, becoming smaller and smaller as time ticked by. He tried to blink away the tears that welled up in his eyes. He tried to force himself into the air, driving himself closer to Taehyung. He was so close, he forced himself to grab for the limp hand but he was centimeters short. He could touch Taehyung's finger tips, but Jung kook could not grab for him. He was at a state of panic, reeling over the edge and shouting to force himself forward and grab for his friend.

"Grab my hand!" Jung kook cried out. "Please Taehyung!" But before he could do more, something struck his head and darkness was racing towards him like a fiery devil.

*

Taehyung.

Taehyung.

Taehyung!

Jung kook shot up, the white being annoying and jarring for his eyes. He saw that now he resided in a hospital. The air was still and cold, Jung kook looked around, his breathing ragged and his hands shaking on his lap. He spotted Jimin and Seokjin at his side, dozing off on each others' shoulders. The soldier looked down on himself, his metal fingers were scratched and dented, but was still usable, plastic tubes and needles were inserted into his body. Only then the pain was starting to caught up to him, attacking his torso and leg first, then his mind.

He saw the vision of Taehyung falling down and disappearing into the buildings below him. Jung kook heard something slip, as if Jung kook not catching Taehyung was like a sound. He opened his eyes and saw the shield placed in front of him. The matl digging into his leg and the metal had a glint on it. Jung kook looked and saw Hoseok, who shook his head his eyes carrying sadness and tears.

"How... no..." Jung kook started off. "He can't be...dead."

"We cannot find him. The ship was down, along with the whole project but..." Hoseok stopped before he could damage Jung kook's weak morale any further.

"I could have saved him." Jung kook choked out. "I could have if I tried hard enough, if I was fast enough!"

"No, we all can't. Don't turn into the man that Taehyung had become." Hoseok warned. "He tried to save you, but failed. He was lingering at that fact for 70 years. Don't let that affect you."

"What do you mean? Forget about him? He was someone I cared about, he helped me to get something I have lost." Jung kook argued. " You just want me to forget someone so close to me as if he doesn't even exist?!"

"I did not say that! I was just trying to tell you that you should not dwell on Taehyung's death was so long that the guilt consumes you as a whole. Your mind will be destroyed, you will fall into depression, blaming yourself for his death even though it is out of your power to help and save him!" Hoseok yelled back.

That woke Seokjin and Jimin. The two stopped Jung kook and Hoseok from arguing. Jung kook tried to put his point across, but Hoseok always beat him to it shouting out something about how Taehyung was a great man but never knew how to control his emotions. Jung kook was already crying his heart out, having lost someone that claimed to have a deeper relationship than what they had in the present.

"He claimed to have lost me once, and that meant I've lost him too. And now... I have lost him because of my own mistake!"

"Jung kook... You have to calm down." Jimin whispered, steadying Jung kook. His voice was also quite heavy and raspy. He had a damaged shoulder but was fine either way. "We never found him, we don't have proof that he actually died. You two only accomplished the mission." Jimin's gave a squeeze on Jung kook's shoulder, dropping a subtle hint to stop arguing and leave the situation be.

"What about his shield...? Someone has to take it." Jung kook asked.

Seokjin looked at Jung kook and smiled, taking the shield and giving it to the enhanced soldier.

"It is your choice now."