Help Needed /~/ Taekook

Chapter Twenty-Six

Hanbin stared at Minsun with wide eyes as the man talked to Jungkook on the phone. Predicting what the six-year-old wanted to do, Minsun held his index finger over his lips to tell Hanbin to stay silent. His little heart practically leapt out of his chest when he heard the man say Jungkook's name. He wanted so badly to just scream but he knew better than to do that so he stayed mum just as Minsun ordered.

Minsun smiled with something said from the other line before speaking.

"You have three hours to give me five million dollars, the location will be sent to you."

With that, he hung up and pressed the phone screen down on the bed. He turned and faced Hanbin, clapping and rubbing his hands together between his knees as his eyebrows creased together. He sat in deep thought for a while, looking in Hanbin's direction but not directly at him.

Hanbin eyed his phone, heart still loudly and almost painfully thumping against his ribcage. His daddy had just been on the phone. Could he have said something and gotten help? Maybe not...he had called 911 and no one came to help him as the officer from his school had promised.

Maybe no one really was going to help him.

That only made his heart beat faster and his breathing speed up. He pulled his legs up to his chest and pressed his back against the wall as he stared blankly at the phone with wide eyes.

The realization that he was possibly stuck with Minsun forever was suddenly crashing onto him like several waves. It was like when he went to the beach with Jimin and Namjoon and Minjae. Minjae had dragged him and Chanwoo to the water without any of the adults knowing. Then Chanwoo fell because his legs were too fat and short to keep up with Minjae and the waves kept going over Chanwoo's head so Hanbin had to drag Chanwoo onto his big unicorn floaty which was only made for one person but they could both fit on it.

Except for this time the waves were going over Hanbin's head and Hanbin didn't have anyone to save him and there were no big unicorn floaties and there was no Jimin or Namjoon or Chanwoo or Minjae. It was just him and Minsun and the small box-like phone that he always kept in his pocket and the empty 4-wheel suitcase in the corner of the shady, gross hotel room.

Hanbin tried to shake the idea of waves going over his head. The idea of even touching water now sending panic and chills through his body and making him grimace. He's been forced into a bath twice already and neither of them was good experiences. The idea of even dipping his toes in the amount of water Jungkook bathed Chanwoo in made Hanbin shudder as unstoppable flashbacks of Minsun holding him down until he stopped fighting forced their way into his mind.

That would keep happening, wouldn't it? If he had to stay with Minsun, that would keep happening. He wouldn't go back to school. He wouldn't get to read to Chanwoo anymore, he wouldn't get to be dragged around by Minjae, he wouldn't get to see Yunah. He'd be stuck wandering around with Minsun — being forced to take baths, tied against painful wires in cars, ridiculed for accidents, and mocked for stuff he couldn't help like his speech. Would Minsun ever feed him?

"Well get up."

Hanbin didn't realize Minsun had been talking until the man clapped his hands. He looked up at the angry man with panicked eyes, arms still wrapped around his trembling knees.

Minsun scoffed and advanced towards him. Hanbin released a strangled sound as he leapt up, almost falling off the bed to keep from being touched. He landed awkwardly on his ankle since he was so far back on the bed. He stared up at Minsun who just rolled his eyes and grabbed his arm before dragging him towards the corner of the hotel room where the suitcase sat.

"I-I— no! I-I d-do-don't w-want to!" Hanbin cried, pushing at Minsun's arm. He knew exactly what Minsun wanted him to do and he hated it. He started crying. God, he was tired of crying.