Blue Collar Cuffin' - Jikook

Will Forever BE That Bitch

"Okay-" Jimin said as he swallowed, shuffling the green edged deck of cards in his hands as he settled into the wooden booth. The taller of the two twins, a boy head who cocked to the side and looked oddly like a wild bird with the movement, watched the cards slip in and out of Jimin's fingers with beady eyes. He flanked Jimin's right side while Jieun sat in front of him across the table. She nodded towards the other twin, a girl with identical green eyes, who sat between us on the side of the table that faced the wall.

Jimin stopped shuffling the cards, sweat trickling down the back of his neck. He bit the inside of his cheek, trying his best to not let his nerves show. But, by the flick of Jieun's eyes and the slight uptilt to her blood red lips, Jimin guessed he wasn't hiding it well.

The silence grew as Jimin continued to slide the cards between his hands. The darkly lit interior of the bar coated Jieun's strange silver hair in shadow and her eyes were as grey as the cigar smoke around them. She looked small, against the dark wood backing of the booth, it towered over her, and her size made her sharp features look almost child-like.

She drilled her clear nails on the table, something that caught the twins eyes.

"The game's called Riding The Bus." Jiimin explained. It was a drinking game, one that Taehyung and himself had played often enough in Busan that Jimin felt comfortable with it. He'd thought long and hard about what game to throw Jieun's way, which one would give him the best advantage, but ultimately decided that whatever advantage he'd find Jieun would most likely sniff out a better one and so he opted for luck instead - it was usually on his side with this particular game. "We'll both have two rounds with three chances each."

Jimin placed four cards on the table face down. "The dealer asks you about four cards and you need to guess accordingly each time or you lose the round. The first card, you guess the color, black or red. The next card, if the number is higher or lower than the first. The third, if the card is inside or outside the first two numbers drawn. Lastly, the suit."

Jimin shifted, trying to wipe the sweat from his palms as he handed the deck over to the male twin who Jieun referred to as Elis and gave him a nod.

"We do two rounds, both with three chances each. You have to guess each card right consecutively. Normally, you'd take a shot if you were wrong, but that's not what we're here to do." Jimin said, leaning back in his chair as he eyes the acid blue shots on the table. He tried to cool his features into an expression of indifference, of boredom, but inside he felt as if the walls were closing in around him and the cigar smoke might as well be water drowning his lungs. Jieun smiled like a wolf as a strand of her moonlight colored hair slipped out of place in front of her pale ear. She stopped drilling her nails on the table and leaned forward.

"You do understand, Jimin," Jieun purred, her voice soft and seductive causing Jimin to thank God for the table between them, "that when you lose, because you will lose, it won't be Jungkook I hurt if you don't hold up your end of the bargain."

"Is that a threat, Jieun?"

"It's a promise."

Jimin swallowed, his hands shaking at his sides, but leaned forward anyway. Maybe he could reach out, find another way, a better way to convince her to let go of Jungkook. Maybe she'd listen to reason. Maybe. He furrowed his brows, Jieun was so small, so small besides the twins, beside himself.

"I genuinely am sorry," Jimin said, meaning it despite everything. His blond bangs hit his cheek as he held her gaze. Jieun only blinked. "For what happened to you, for what happened with your mom. But Jungkook was just a kid too-"

"You know," Jieun growled, cold rage pooled into her sharp features. She sneered and whatever humanity Jimin had hoped might live underneath her cold armor had vanished. "If you don't shove that pity back up your ass, I might have to do it for you. Then again, it might be more fun to get your two dogs to do it for me. Both lovesick enough that I don't think they'd mind getting so close."

Jimin blinked. Jieun held his stare. After a long moment, she leaned back, smirking, though the smugness didn't meet her eyes.

"Wait - two?" Jimin asked after a long moment, his brows furrowed in confusion. Jieun's smirk grew slightly and it was only tell that she knew something he didn't.

"Let's get on with our game, Jiminie, before I get bored and call Kook to come entertain me instead."

Jimin looked over to the male twin who Jieun had called Elis. He didn't smile, but amusement flickered in those beady eyes.

"Deal." Jimin said, the word strong and short. Elis looked to Jieun who leaned back in the booth, her finger twirling that loose strand of silver hair, and nodded at him. Elis no more than shrugged before he laid out two rows of four cards, all face down. One row from Jieun, one for Jimin.

"Black or red?" Elis asked, a brow lifted. Jieun smiled as her finger slowly trailed down the back of her first card.

"Let's play one round, one chance and sweeten the pot."

Jimin blinked, "w-what? Why?" His heart pounded in his chest, at least with two rounds, three chances each, he'd have luck on his side, a chance to see how Jieun plays. When he'd partied at Busan before moving to Seoul with Taehyung, he'd had a knack for card games, especially ones like these, became almost legendary for it, but that was only after he got a feel for the deck, a feel for the pattern. "You have just as much to lose as I do, Jieun, if I win."

Jieun's smile was like a carved bone.

Jimin eyed her as Jieun turned to Elis and said "Red" to which he flipped the card and a red ace of hearts was turned over. "Because I want you to ensure something."

"I'm playing for Jungkook's freedom, his full freedom. What could you possible throw in to sweeten the pot for me?"

"Love's a risk, Jimin." Jieun said. "A friend told me that recently. I quite like the sentiment. So risk it. All of it. When I win, you tell Jungkook that no one can ever love him, that you've been trying but after he told you of me, you were repulsed. Repulsed of his past and his pain. Tell him that he's a monster. That he's broken and no one will ever want to spend a single moment trying to love damaged goods. When I win, you don't just break his heart, Jimin, you shatter it. "

Jimin stared at her, furrowing his brows. Her fists were taught and her cheeks had become wet, but Jieun didn't bother to wipe away the tears that had pooled from her grey eyes. She was shaking and Jimin didn't know what to do to comfort her - if there was anything he even could do. She probably refused to acknowledge the tears were there in the first place.

"Is that how you feel?" Jimin asked slowly, thinking over her words. Monster. Unloveable. Damaged good. "How you think of yourself?"

Jimin's voice was soft and, well, it was kind; Jieun blinked back her surprise. Then, she whipped her head towards Elis who pointed at Jimin to indicate he still hadn't guessed his first card. Jimin swallowed, but looked at Jieun from the corner of his eyes to take in her tense muscles and the shaking of her arms. He couldn't stare long because looking into the raw grief and fury that now blazed in her eyes was like watching wood be consumed by large heaps of flame, the fire too large, too raging, for the wood to stand a chance against it.

"If I win, Jieun," Jimin said carefully, "If we do one round and I win, Jungkook gets his freedom, but I want you to look for some of your own. Get help, Jieun, try and let go off all this...hatred. You...you've done monstrous things but you're not - you're not a monster. You're not past healing. I believe that; I want you to too."

Jimin didn't wait for her to respond before he nodded at Elis. "Black," he said, his voice sounding crisp even to his own ears. No one breathed as Elis flipped the card over: it was, indeed, black.

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A/N: How are you lovely people today???
I am very ahhagsididiuw because I just want BE to 'be' out. Comfort album WINGS 2.0 let's gooooo

- Violette