Red Revenge ✓ tk

I've Got All These Demons

Content warning throughout the entire book: mentions of homophobia and homophobic slurs

It was a fact Jeon Jeongguk hated school with every fiber of his being. Because of his lack in interest in any subject and his distaste in trying to pick up any book, he failed the same year twice in a row.

Jeon Jeongguk was in his last year of highschool but had almost reached the age of twenty. Many students made fun of him for that. Twice, his classmates had graduated without him, and twice had he waited outside of the graduation party to stir trouble with the jocks who hated his guts.

Jeongguk didn't always win every fight he started but he sure didn't care about winning or losing. He loved the thrill of it. He loved seeing his component's pain, pain that he had caused.

Maybe that's why he had found himself in a nearby gym one day when he had just turned 16 years old. His mother had disappeared for days on row again and Jeongguk's knuckles had been bleeding from punching a hole in the thin plaster wall in their living room. With a wrapped up hand he had entered the gym, adamant on getting his energy out.

He had always loved pushing his body to the limit. He did it by fighting but also by working out until his arms or legs collapsed. It was a sweet kind of pain and he loved feeling it course through his veins.

When wandering around the gym he had been noticed by the gym owner's son, a broad shouldered guy with long legs and a lean body. He had brown curls that were kept unruly and dark almond eyes which had kept their gaze trained on the sixteen year old. "You look like you could use a hand."

Jeongguk had despised Kim Taehyung at first. He had been a handsome, youthful college student of the fine age of nineteen, already sporting bruises from the continuous boxing matches he did in weekends.

"Does it now?", Jeongguk had retorted. He had crossed his arms and had felt his knuckles throb with pain, the bandage sliding against his arm.

The handsome worker had raised an eyebrow and Jeongguk had felt oddly intimidated by the other's sharp stare.

He had absolutely hated it.

"It's your first time here, I can tell. What are you wanting to do here? I'd like to help." Taehyung had a name tag clipped to his shirt but Jeongguk has refused to look at it.

"Listen here fellow." Jeongguk had put up his best glare, the one he knew made all his classmates stay clear of him. "Leave me alone because you wouldn't want any trouble with me!"

Little had Jeongguk known that he was talking to the local boxing champion. Neither had he realized this person he had loathed from second one was going to become his boyfriend in the next year.

"You have quite some pent up anger inside of you, little one", the older male had retorted. His voice had no trace of malice nor any sharp edge, but it still triggered Jeongguk to become angry.

No one had called him little one, ever. The name was a clear sign of Taehyung looking down on him, he had figured, and in all his rage he had swung his right fist forward.

His fist had been met with a large hand and was clasped in the tight grip of the other male. "If you want to fight, I'd advice you to do so inside of the boxing ring."

Jeongguk had immediately agreed to this as he had tried to get his fist free out of the other's grip. Taehyung had released him with sigh and had led him towards the empty boxing ring where his life would change from that day forward.

Jeongguk had of course gotten his ass kicked that day. But against his own expectations, he had found an ounce of respect for Taehyung inside of him. That respect had only grown after weeks of going to the gym and getting trained by him.