Caught

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  Ch.9

Namjoon would tell you what was up with Jungkook soon. He texted you last night when he went to the warehouse with the gang. He didn't get Jungkook to talk, but he did agree with your suspicions. Apparently, he wasn't aware that something was up with Jungkook. None of the older members picked up on it. Yoongi, you don't know for sure. You always call all of them your friends, but Yoongi would hate it. Either way, Namjoon wasn't able to get Jungkook to confess anything. The youngest one was still a closed book to everyone else. He kept a lock on himself and when you think you know him, it turns out you were only reading the summary.

Jungkook was close with all the members. He even considered them family and the same could be said the other way around. They still had their on things going on which left you sleepless. First, you had to deal with math class before you could talk with their leader. There was nothing wrong with math class. You were excited to see your two friends, but you've been getting nervous to see Jungkook now. It feels like every day you see him, he looks worse. When you stepped into the classroom today, he was sitting in his seat with a smirk. His jacket was laying on his desk while he showed off his muscles in his t-shirt. Taehyung was staring in awe as you sat down behind them.

"Wow! That's not fair! It would take me forever to get muscles like that." Taehyung pouted.

"Well, I've always been athletic." Jungkook shrugged. "I don't do sports anymore, but I still work out. Let's arm wrestle!"

"Arm wrestle? That's all you want to do and we both know who's gonna win." Taehyung frowned as Jungkook placed his arm on his friend's desk. You silently stared as Taehyung continued to whine.

Jungkook's acne had gotten a little worse. It was mainly on his right cheek, but you've been noticing that his skin didn't glow like it used to. Instead, it almost appeared as a sickly yellow. What was going on with him? Jungkook slammed Taehyung's arm on the desk, winning before Taehyung had a chance to think. You stayed quiet, watching as the brunette cheered at his win. The silver haired only whined at his loss. You badly wanted to know what kind of information Namjoon had managed to get. It was really important to you to help Jungkook with whatever he was dealing with.

That's when he turned to you with no warning. He had caught your stare and you almost felt your heart stop. The habit of staring needed to stop. Jungkook's smile suddenly turned into bared teeth. He had many emotions run through his face and you could only catch embarrassment and rage. Taehyung wasn't paying attention to the two of you. He was oblivious to the amount of fear building up inside you. Jungkook glared at you with the same eyes he gave tough buyers. Why was he giving you that look of all people?

"Stop staring at me!" He banged his fist on his desk. "I know you're staring at my face! It's because of my acne, huh?"

"Jungkook...no, I—" You tried to speak, but he cut you off. Even if he didn't, you wouldn't have known the right things to say. What did he want to hear?

"It's normal! I'm just a teenager so back the f*ck off." Jungkook scoffed. Taehyung looked up from his desk with shock. You wanted to run out of the room. Where was Namjoon?

"Jeon Jungkook!" Taehyung scolded the brunette. You appreciated Taehyung's effort to defend you, but Jungkook wasn't even listening. It was hard to stay calm after getting yelled at like that. This wasn't the Jungkook you were excited to see every day. What the hell is going on? "You shouldn't treat (F/n) like that. What is going on with you?"

"Nothing." Jungkook groaned as you got up from your seat.

If you stepped out of class to catch your breath, then maybe you would feel better. And that's what you did. While they fought, you got up from your seat to escape. Opening the door, you closed it behind you. Mr. Pyo didn't say a word. He only glared at the three of you in the back for being loud. Letting out a heavy sigh, you felt a bit upset with yourself. Should you be helping Jungkook or trying not to feel hurt in the hallway? It made you close your eyes in frustration as all these thoughts ran through your mind. It's gonna be hard to continue math class with Jungkook sitting directly diagonal of you. He's probably still going to be angry and you don't know if you're going to stay calm the next time.

Hearing footsteps, you opened your eyes and became alert. Down the hall, you saw the purple haired male you wanted to see. He had his hands in his baggy jacket as he walked over to you. Hopefully you didn't look like you were close to crying. That's the last thing you needed. You can't help Jungkook or any of your friends if you're too sensitive. Namjoon stood in front of you, staring at your small form. He was the tallest member, but he wasn't intimidating at all. He had a friendly nature to him that could never disappear. It was one of the main reasons you trusted him in telling him about Jungkook. All the members must see this in Namjoon. He cares about his friends and he was a very admirable person, gangster or not.

"Namjoon? What are you doing here?" You asked in a low voice. If you spoke any louder, Mr. Pyo would come out to see who you were talking to.

"I was gonna pull you out of class, but you're conveniently in the hall." He grinned as you raised a brow. He was just going to take you out of class? That couldn't be allowed. There's no way Mr. Pyo would let that happen in a million years.

"Sure?" You just went with it. You weren't going to question anything. Namjoon came here to tell you all that you wanted to know.

"So about Jungkook," Namjoon started, "He's gotten a lot more defensive lately. He really doesn't speak to us on anything personal. I do know that it's probably not a family related problem. That's as much as I know, sorry."

"It's okay." You crossed your arms. When thinking about what might be wrong with Jungkook, you wanted to avoid the worst solutions as much as possible. "I'll come to the warehouse and—"

"No, you won't." Namjoon shook his head. "Normally, I'd let you come but I don't think it's such a good idea right now. Give Jungkook some space. I got this."

"But—"

"No 'but's."

The tall male ruffled your hair up as he told you to go back to class. Giving him a big pout, you told him to do the same. He just laughed as he walked away from you. His laugh left you with a smile from how uplifting it was. You watched as he walked backwards in the hall. He wouldn't turn around until you went in and you wouldn't go in until he turned the corner. Finally, the both of you had to go. When you went back in Mr. Pyo's classroom, he didn't care that were gone for about ten minutes. As long as you came back, he didn't have a problem with it. Jungkook didn't look at you as you sat down meanwhile Taehyung gave muttered an apology to you. It was fine though. You'll get to the bottom of the situation soon enough.

Class ended when the bell rang. Many students couldn't wait to get out of their classes, but you've never seen someone leave as fast as Jungkook. He already has his things packed up and went on his way before anyone else could. Taehyung tried calling out his name to get him to wait, but to no avail. The both of you gave each other small frowns. He got all his things and waited for you to get everything too. By the time you two were ready, Jimin was already waiting outside in the hallway. His smile grew as he saw the both of you come out. Then you noted the hint of confusion in his eyes. He was wondering where Jungkook could be. All of you were. He wasn't the same guy who was here earlier.

"Namjoon told me that Jungkook isn't dealing with family problems," You stated. "He clearly has something going on though."

"Ah, Namjoon hyung is such a good leader." Taehyung smiled. Jimin didn't hesitate to agree and you thought to yourself on how much you adored their respect to him. They would never address their adults with honorifics, but with Namjoon it was different. You felt the same. He was such a good guy. How did they all become criminals? Never mind. That's not what you should be stuck on right now.

"We'll look into it too. I thought he'd get over it, but it's becoming really concerning," Jimin revealed.

"Yeah. Jungkook blew up in math class. That's not really like him." Taehyung stared at you. "We'll find out at the warehouse tonight."

"Please do," You pleaded. "I won't come to give Jungkook some space. I'm sure he's more likely to admit his problems to you guys than to me."

"You got it, (F/n)." Taehyung gave you a thumbs up.

They helped you feel better about the situation. You automatically thanked them, but they said it was what had to be done. Jungkook was a friend to everyone in the group and to you. If something was wrong, then of course everyone would begin to worry about him. His friends were dependable like that and you hoped for one day that Jungkook would be able to trust you completely too. It was a good goal in your opinion. And with that, Jimin and you waved goodbye to Taehyung as he went to his next class. Physical education was not too much of a step up from math class. At least you had Jimin with you. He kept the mood happy and your mind off Jungkook.

Ms. Lee made sure to get attendance done before sending people off to change. Soon she blew her whistle to let you know she was done. Jimin and you parted ways as he walked with the guys towards their changing room. Stretching your arms, you made your way to the girl's changing room. The rest of the girls were ten feet away from you, staring and maybe even gossiping. It doesn't matter anymore. Jungkook was more important than whatever these girl's thought about you. It'll have to die eventually. You changed into the uniform faster than the rest of the girls who talked trash with their friends. As you stepped out of the locker room, you bumped into a small girl.

"Sorry," You did a quick bow. She didn't move or say a word. It made you look up at her curiously. At first, you wondered why she looked so familiar despite not knowing her name. Then it occurred to you that she was the one who saw you and Jungkook so close to each other. Your cheeks heated up as you stood straight again. Her hair was no longer in a small bun. It was short, barely grazing above her shoulders. The situation quickly grew awkward as she just stared at you with a simple look of disgust. That's great. "Sorry again." You squeezed past her to meet up with Jimin. That was weird. Maybe the rumor won't die as quick as you want it to. Oh well.



Jimin's P.O.V.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
As much as I liked walking with the rest of the first years to the warehouse, Seokjin drove us all there without question. I bet it had to do with Namjoon's plan. Jungkook has a pattern of leaving during the middle of lunch to go to the bathroom with a full water bottle. He always looks sick but insists he's fine. Not mention he gets angry if anyone says anything remotely about his physical appearance. Everyone was just concerned. Yoongi didn't show his feelings, but I could tell he was questioning our youngest member. Namjoon hyung told us that we'd all arrive at the warehouse after school. From there until night, we would learn what was wrong. Yoongi implied using force, but that was a last resort.

The car ride wasn't filled with laughter like it usually was. The eldest members stayed silent in the car while Taehyung and I sat in the bed of the truck with Jungkook. We gave each other worried frowns before glancing at the brunette again. He was looking away from us, deep in his own thoughts. We were going to figure out what's been causing him to behave like this soon enough. We're all here for him. (F/n) will be thankful for when we do. I just wondered what could be wrong. When I first met Jungkook, he was kind and introverted. An athlete who soon quit because he found it insipid. Once we joined the gang, I saw ourselves changing a bit.

A bump in the road made us all jump in the back. Jungkook was gritting his teeth, holding the side tightly. It was easy to see the veins in his arms pop out. There was a great disparity from the person he was in the beginning to who he is now. Seokjin drove off the rode into a narrow dirt street. We passed a lot of homeless people burning items for warmth as the air got cooler and the sun got lower. The day light was still out, but I knew we'd use it up to just get Jungkook to talk. The truck circled around the warehouse, entering the back entrance. Seokjin parked and we all jumped out.

"Anyone wanna play cards with me?" Yoongi held up a deck. Hoseok rushed over like an excited child. We were supposed to act natural until Namjoon gave us the go ahead to get it out of Jungkook.

I followed everyone in the warehouse, stepping on to the elevated stage inside. That's where the table was. Yoongi and Hoseok sat down to enjoy the game. Seokjin joined in too while I walked by Taehyung's side. Namjoon jumped off the stage meanwhile Jungkook went down the stairs to head over towards the green couch. Taehyung tugged on my sleeve, indirectly telling me to follow his actions. We didn't go to the green couch with Jungkook. We sat in front of the table on the edge of the stage, letting our feet dangle. My heart was beginning to pound. Why did I feel so nervous? I've never had to deal with this problem before.

"That's not fair!" Yoongi laughed as Seokjin got lucky. He was in a better mood. To speak quite candidly, I didn't think (F/n) would ever get to see this side of Yoongi. He was always happier anytime it was just us. It didn't look like he was going to change his thoughts on her for some reason.

"It's not my fault you suck at this game." Seokjin grinned.

"Why are you suddenly so lucky?" Hoseok furrowed his brows.

My eyes narrowed down on Namjoon who was speaking to Jungkook. Their conversation was sort of audible. Taehyung and I could hear our leader asking how Jungkook's day was. There was nothing strange about Namjoon checking up on us. Jungkook didn't bat an eye when he asked and gave him a one-word response. Okay he said. Namjoon was going to be as subtle and as calm as he could be. The plan was to see if Namjoon could get him to say anything first before getting all of us involved. We were all listening in even if it appeared as if our other hyungs were invested in their card game.

Namjoon talked to Jungkook as if there was nothing wrong. Jungkook was lying down on the couch, looking up at the ceiling and sometimes at Namjoon. Taehyung turned to me and pretended that we were talking. I saw Jungkook make eye contact with me and I immediately gave Taehyung a smile. Our fake conversation was along the lines of how our school day was. Anything to look like we weren't repeating the same words over and over again. When we thought we were clear, we watched the two talking again. Eventually, Namjoon let us know that we needed to get ready.

"So Jungkook, (F/n) has been worried about you," Namjoon mentioned. By this time, everyone was paying attention to the conversation. (F/n) was the code word to get us ready. Jungkook stopped looking at the sky to give a wide-eyed look at Namjoon.

"What?" Jungkook got up into a sitting position. "Why? Tell her to mind her own business!"

"Hey! She's worried about you. We're all worried." Namjoon raised his voice. "We want to know what's been going on with you."

"I'm fine." Jungkook grunted.

"No, you're not. You haven't been yourself." Namjoon drilled into Jungkook. "You keep going outside of the warehouse for some d*mn reason and you keep going to the bathroom during lunch."

"Because I have to go to the bathroom!" Jungkook yelled, getting up from his seat. He grabbed his water bottle sitting on the ground and sighed. "I'm going outside." Jungkook started walking out with a bitter expression. That's when our leader got up to look at us before following after the brunette.

"Not today." Namjoon grabbed Jungkook's wrist, pulling him back with all his might. Jungkook lost his balance and fell onto the floor. Taehyung jumped off the stage to stand on the ground and I heard Seokjin get up from his seat as well.

When Jungkook hit the concrete floor, his water bottle cap broke. The water spilt into a puddle as the maknae winced in pain. He rolled on the ground, letting something slip out of his jacket pocket. The warehouse became silent as we all watched a small pill bottle roll away. I didn't know what to think. Jungkook glanced at the bottle in shame as Namjoon walked over to it. He didn't bother to bend down and pick it up. He just stayed disappointed and disgusted. Taehyung's shoulder's sunk down and I heard a few deep sighs from the members behind me.

"What the hell is this!?" Namjoon shouted to see Jungkook flinch.

"Leave me alone!" Jungkook propped himself up with his elbows.

"Answer me," Namjoon spoke in a low, dark tone. It was threatening as he stepped closer. I could hear Hoseok telling everyone to get up and get ready.

"No. I don't have to." Jungkook swallowed hard. He looked away from everyone's eyes. Namjoon grabbed the bottle in one last attempt. He opened it to see the panic run through Jungkook's face. All the pills inside were dumped onto the ground. "That's my sh*t!" He screamed.

"I f*cking knew it." I heard Yoongi scoff. I turned to see him shaking his head. Hoseok's hands balled up into fists while Seokjin kept a stoic face.

"Whatever this is, I don't want you doing it anymore. I told you full d*mn well not to." Namjoon tossed the bottle in Jungkook's face. I slid off the stage at this point. The tension in the room was augmenting. Jungkook slowly faced Namjoon, making direct eye contact.

"You know what it f*cking is." Jungkook growled. Namjoon breathed heavily, not saying a word.

The pills were too hard to see from where I was, but there was no doubt in my mind that Namjoon knew the drug. Time almost stopped as the scene was unfolding right before my eyes. We were all silent. Suddenly, Jungkook started grabbing the pills one by one in one last desperate attempt. Namjoon grabbed the back of Jungkook's jacket as Yoongi told everyone to hold down Jungkook. There was no time to waste. We ran over to kick the pills away from the maknae. He screamed at us, his face turning red. The pills were pushed into dirt and crushed beneath our feet.

Yoongi pushed Jungkook on his back, letting Namjoon take a rest from handling the muscle in our group. Hoseok and Seokjin placed their knees on Jungkook's arms while Taehyung and I kept his legs down. His struggles for freedom were hard to control. Jungkook was beyond enraged. He hated the fact that we figured him out and had him down. Yoongi forced Jungkook to face Namjoon who was the only standing member. Now that I had seen the pills up close, I knew full well what Jungkook had been taking. I never knew I could feel so disappointed in someone. Out of all the problems I expected Jungkook to have, this wasn't one of them. What would (F/n) think? I hated to imagine her face when we told her.

"Jeon Jungkook." Namjoon spat in anger. "Why the f*ck are you doing steroids?"  

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