Bounty || j.jk + k.th

XII

Taehyung tilted his head to the side, confused. That was more than empty words, wasn't it? There was more Yoongi was trying to say - Taehyung was sure he'd picked up on the tail end of reassurance buried deeply in the cryptic nature of the older man's words. 

He raised a brow. "Is that supposed to be a joke?" 

Yoongi's gaze turned soft, his shoulders slumping as he rest his head against the tree trunk, eyes falling closed. "No." He said quietly and far too tenderly. 

"Though it is ironic." 

Taehyung jumped again, nearly pitching to the ground below a second time as he swiveled back towards the window he'd climbed out of. 

Hoseok was leaning out of the frame, dawning a simple white tee-shirt and sweats, a far cry from his usual high-quality, chic fashion that Taehyung had grown used to. The man's hair was mussed and one of his cheeks were imprinted with marks from his pillow, but his eyes were bright and wild, glancing over Taehyung mischievously. 

Hoseok crawled out the window, moving behind Taehyung to plop himself next to Yoongi as he immediately gathered the elder's feet into his lap and massaged at his ankles. 

"How is it ironic?" Taehyung asked breathlessly. He seriously thought he would have a heart attack if one more person came out that window-

"Because look at it this way, Taehyung" Namjoon's voice rang out as he descended onto the branch above the trio, Jin hot on his heels. 

Taehyung jumped a third time, as he yelled over Yoongi and Hoseok's amused laughter. "Stop doing that!" 

Namjoon continued, nonplussed, as he and Jin shimmied down the trunk and shoved Yoongi over to make room, "You're going out on a limb for us. You're willingly entering another gang just to help us find our missing kid and take down your own father. That's no easy feat." 

"The least we can do is be here for you. Support you, give you a place to fall back on, anything really." 

This time, Taehyung screamed loudly at the whispered voice right next to him. He bounded away as he felt hair tickling the side of his neck and nearly shoved the new arrival off the branch before he registered the fluffy head of bright orange hair. 

The shit-eating grin Jimin wore made Taehyung cross his arms as he pouted sulkily. "I'm putting bells on all of you." He grumbled lowly, glaring at Jimin when the elder laughed joyously. The others joined in easily and Taehyung found himself chuckling along despite the embarrassment creeping up his neck. 

"But seriously, Taehyung" Jin said as he recovered first from their fit of laughter. The others were quick to follow suit, looking patiently at their eldest. "It's your last night here with us before you go into Junseo's mafia and we just wanted to make sure you knew we were with you. That even though we've only known each other for a few weeks, we care about you, and well-" Jin trailed off as he glanced at Namjoon, the gesture accompanied by the rustle of leaves above them. 

"We'd like to offer you a home here, Taehyung. If you want it, of course" The leader finished, eyes shining with pure sincerity as he reached out to lay a warm palm on Taehyung's shoulder. 

"Yep!" Hoseok chirped. "One that's free of bars, locks, and the sorrowing scent of death." 

Jimin jerked, shooting a sharp glare to Hoseok before worryingly glancing at Taehyung. The younger male, however, was far too caught up in what Namjoon had just said to notice anything else as he blinked owlishly at the blond. Jimin exhaled, scooting forward to wrap Taehyung up in a hug. 

"Y-you're serious?" Taehyung stuttered, not sure if he was hearing correctly. The blue-haired male wasn't sure what to think. Jimin had said he could be free two weeks ago but he was sure when they were done with him they'd simply send him on his way. Taehyung never could have imagined they'd actually want to make him apart of their family.