It was a bright and sunny afternoon. A Tuesday in the middle of spring, where the flowers were all in bloom and the tree's sported bright green leaves. Families played at parks, the birds sung till sunsets, and most people were out living their lives and enjoying their days.
But not Taehyung. No, of course not,- that would be too simple. Instead, he spent his afternoon sat on the floor of a bank, his arms tied behind his back. Surround by the thirty-odd-something other people huddled on the floor beside him. Law enforcement barricading every exit, a young man standing in front of him, a radio in one hand and pistol in the other,- it was your typical Hostage situation.
Well,- almost, -your typical hostage situation.
The young man, a nameless face with wavy brown hair and a broad chest with an otherwise rather slim build, stood a few feet in front of Taehyung, between him and the front entrance. He tapped his foot impatiently, all their phones collected in a potato sack that had a dollar sign drawn on the front of the beige material. The robber listened to a voice coming from the radio that had been thrown into him. The lead detective and Negotiator took turns speaking to him, and he looked a bit stressed.
",-so just tell us what you want, and let the hostages go." A voice spoke over the scratchy radio speaker, "The better you comply, the less likely you are to serve a long prison sentence."
The man bites his lip, releasing a deep breath.
"You promise?" He asks, crossing one arm over his chest.
There's a pause in the static before another voice, higher than the last one, cuts in unsurely, ",-... Yes?"
He drops the radio to his side, now biting on his nails. Deep in thought, Taehyung wonders if the man might let them go, but instead, he's caught off guard when the man spins around to face him. His eyes cut to either side of Tae, seeing to it that the people next to him can't hear him that well, he leans in a bit.
"Okay,- listen,-," his voice is soft and melodic, warm and similar to the concept of honey and silk, and it cut though Taehyung's bones, "-,this is my first time to rob a bank? And I'm not really sure how to go about all of this, but what do you think I should get? Like it has to be good right?"
Tae blinks. Recalling any knowledge from every movie he'd ever seen that involved a situation such as this one.
"Uh,-" he looked outside, the police squad all looking in anxiously. "I could go for some pizza?" He responds. "For like, one hostage?"
The robber blinked, just kind of staring at Taehyung for a moment. For that moment, Taehyung wondered if he was, you know,-about to get shot for saying such a thing while he was in a hostage situation,- but that never came. The hand that the radio was in twitched for a second, threatening to move up to the criminal's mouth, before he crouched down.
"Okay, look," he whispered, looking at the other hostages suspiciously. "Because you helped me out, I'll share with you, deal? But! But.- but,- but...!,- you have to promise you won't let the other guys know. I don't wanna hurt their feelings when they find out they can't get any."
Taehyung just blinks again, not quite sure if this is actually happening.
"Uh, okay?"
The robber maneuvers the radio to rest in his lap. "Pinky promise?" he offered.
He coughs, "My uh,-" behind his back, he tugs at the restraints binding his wrists together, shaking his head to push some hair out of his face, "Hands, you know,- hostage, and all."
"Oh, shit dude, you don't need those," the robber shook his head again, now also maneuvering his gun into his lap as he motioned for Taehyung to move. "I just saw that in a movie once,- I'm sorry. I really have no clue what I'm doing."
Taehyung really couldn't agree more. This was definitely a kid, seeing as he totally just agreed to let someone out in trade for a pizza. Taehyung almost felt bad for him, in a way. He seemed almost as scared as everyone else in the room, if not more nervous.
"No dude, It's alright." he hums, the others all staring at them again as Tae turns a bit, allowing the other boy to loosen the knot of the rope. His wrists slipped out smoothly, indents lefts on red and irritated skin. "Oh c'mon, that's gonna bruise."
"I'm sorry," the robber muttered, picking back up the radio. "I've never tied knots before, I had to google it,- hey dude, okay, I'll give you...,- Hellen?" he had clearly pressed the button on the radio to communicate with the negotiator, but now he pointed at an older woman staring at him in almost fear. "You're Hellen, right?" She nodded. "Yeah,- I'll give you Hellen if you get me a half supreme garlic crust and half triple cheese stuffed crust pizza from Pizza Hut."
Another long pause.
"...-You're making us go to fucking Pizza Hut?" The first voice asks, exasperated. ",-shit, we should just let him shoot Hellen." he adds, forgetting to take his thumb off the button that lets them hear him.
Taehyung coughs again, "Hey,- uh,-"
"Jungkook." The other introduces himself, smiling softly.
"Right, Jungkook,- I'm also craving some cherry coke? Do they have that?"
"And Cherry Coke," Jungkook adds into the machine quickly, now opting for sitting criss cross on the floor in front of Taehyung. Really, Taehyung wondered if this was a child or not. "Oh! ,-and like,- a ton of wings. I've got a lot of people to feed, dude."
"If we're feeding everyone I think that's worth like, at least two or three people." Tae hums, Jungkook nodding in agreement.
"For the wings I'll also give you,- shit wait," Jungkook set down the radio for a moment, looking off to the side. "Seokie?" he almost sounded like he was smiling.
Taehyung followed his line of sight, landing on a young man with red hair and a ball cap on. He looked bored, or maybe tired.
He blinked.
"I swear to Christ," the man said. "If you're Jungkook under that mask who decided to rob a goddammed bank after Yoongi explicitly told you not to, I will not hesitate to fucking murder you."
"You are Hoseok!" Jungkook cheered, pulling down the mask that covered the bottom half of his face and,- shit. Taehyung didn't expect that. A felon wasn't supposed to be hot.
"Hey, dude! Didn't expect to see you here!"
Hoseok sighed in what Taehyung could only assume was disappointment. "I,-... fucking hell, Jungkook. You need to go to therapy."
This robbery kept getting stranger and stranger, the radio cutting in once more.
"You want,- lunch?" the second voice asks, "For your.... Hostage victims?"
Jungkook looked back to it for a moment, almost confused that it was talking to him. Then it seemed to settle in that, hey, this is a hostage situation, and he scrambles to pick it up and answer back. "Uh, yeah. I don't want anyone to get hungry, that would just be mean, right?"
"I don't think you're supposed to feed us." Taehyung chirps, ninety eight percent sure he was being helpful, "I think we're bargaining chips?"
"Should I ask for chips?" Jungkook tilted his head, almost like a dog and fuck, Taehyung shouldn't find anything this kid was doing to be attractive or cute. But his eyes were big, and he looked so effortlessly lost. Taehyung just tried to tell himself that he felt sympathy, and not that he felt like patting this kid's head and telling him everything would be okay. "What if someone has an allergy? I don't wanna hurt anybody. I tried doing this on Sunday, but that didn't work out."
The red haired man blinks.
"You mean when the banks were closed?"
"I mean, there is church and no one goes out on Sundays, he was doing pretty well." He takes up for the other male, "I mean, no one ever robs a bank perfectly first try."
"Nobody should rob a bank," Hoseok deadpans. "Jungkook is just a dumbass."
"Well aren't you just a grump." Tae frowns, pulling away.
"Hello?"
Jungkook clicked the button again. "What was the question? I forgot."
"Oh my fuck,- what are we getting?"
"Oh! Right!" Jungkook snapped. "You get me my pizza and my wings, also the cherry Coke, and you get Hellen and... Hoseok. Hoseok's been mean, he needs to get out."
"Hell, okay,- we'll send in the negotiator unarmed in twenty minutes. We expect two live hostages in return." the radio cracks silent.
"Fucking Tuesdays, man."
~
When the pizza arrived, Taehyung and Jungkook were patiently waiting by the front desk. The robber had Hoseok and Hellen by the front doors, his gun on the ground next to him. Rambling on and on about pizza toppings.
"-,Because I would have asked for peperoni,-" Jungkook hummed, tracing small designs on the counter. ",-but you seem to be more like a supreme kind of guy, you know? But I got the cheese just in case,- because like, nobody dislikes cheese pizza, they just prefer other things over cheese pizza, you know?"
"Uh,-" they snap their heads over to where the Negotiator stood in the middle of the entryway, a box of pizza with a bag stacked on top, "-,hi, My names, uh, Jimin? And I'm the negotiator for your hostage situation."
Taehyung blinks, a smile spreading over his face. "Hey Jimin!" he greets. Wondering how he didn't notice this sooner, he turns to Jungkook "We grew up together,-" he looked back at his friend, "How are you? Look at me,- I'm a hostage! Can you believe it?"
"Jimin?" Jungkook crinkled his brows, turning to look at the negotiator. "Holy shit,- Jimin! Hey dude! It's been awhile!"
Jimin looked like he was about to lose it.
"Jungkook," the negotiator deadpanned. "You really fucking did it. You know, I should have considered that it was you. You,- fuck, Kook, this makes things so much easier. You need to let these people go,-"
"Nuh uh!" Jungkook shook his head. "I just got everyone lunch, we are having a nice meal together first at least."
"No," Jimin shot back. "I got everyone lunch. You are holding people captive."
"Well, Jungkook's the one with the gun Jimin,- and he can't let them go, that isn't how hostage situations work,- this is why I wonder what Yoongi sees in you." Tae sighs, moving to grab the pizza. "You don't even know how to rob a bank, god."
"And you do?" Jimin scoffed, setting the pizza down on the counter. "Hellen, Hoseok- oh, hey Hobi, yeah. Come on. You two are coming with me, give us the story as to how the fuck this kid managed to get you people to be hostages."
"I mean, I'd say I'm doing pretty good." He opens the box and grabs a piece of supreme, "I got pizza and I'm not even the one with the gun."
Jungkook laughed, taking one for himself. "Then you'd be the bank robber."
"Or just a hostage with a gun." he intervenes, Hellen and Hoseok being untied and pushed outside. Jimin sent Taehyung a worried look.
"You sure you're okay?" Jimin's voice was barely above a whisper. "I know he wouldn't try to hurt you... but this is still a big deal, Tae."
"I'm eating pizza with a hot bank robber at one on a Tuesday afternoon, like it's not ideal, but It could be worse." he shrugged, not really wanting to over complicate the situation like everyone else was. "Don't you have like, work or Yoongi's dick to suck, or whatever it is you do?"
"My job is to get you and everyone else in here out without dying, Taehyung," Jimin glared at Jungkook then. "Because we both know you'd be dumb enough to kill someone, Jungkook. It would be best to hand everyone and yourself over now."
"I never made anyone stay," Jungkook hummed. "They offered their wrists to me, dude. I didn't even have to pull my gun. I have no clue whats going on."
Jimin sighed. "You're going to prison, Jungkook. One way or another."
This made the others face fall.
"Jimin, you made him sad!" Taehyung said. His new friend chewing his bottom lip again, hands trembling. "I think it's best that you leave us alone, now, bully."
"Yeah!" Jungkook agreed, his face growing a bit red, brows knitting. "No bullies allowed in the party zone!"
"This is a crime zone!" Jimin cried. Taehyung frowning, looking around at the other captives.
"If they leave and it's just us two, then it's a date, a party, and a hostage situation!"
"Yea!"
"He might kill me!" Taehyung cheers.
"Not on purpose!" Jungkook cheers back. Jimin sighs.
"He'll kill himself at this rate."
The other hostages all seemed bored now, and the officers outside seemed closer.
"Uh,- not if your friends do it first." Taehyung points outside, "You are trying to distract him, that's so mean!"
"Fine! Okay! I'll leave the party zone," Jimin motioned at the officers as he turned on his heel. "Back up! Prized cargo in the vault, back it up, come on,-" and he slammed the door shut to the bank, leaving the group in there alone again.
"Uh, hey, guys?" Jungkook hummed. "You can like, untie yourselves. I got you all wings."
A man in the back stands up, waving his arms about. "We can't!"
"Hey,- wait, I don't think you're supposed to do that," Jungkook pointed, face now filled with alarm as he shot up from his seat. "Please, sit, you're making me anxious! I'll untie one of you, and then you can all like,... help each other out?"
"What the fuck is happening!" The standing guy yells, and Taehyung snorts.
"Damn, dude,- it's almost like you've never been a fucking hostage before. Sit down!"
"For me, at least?" Jungkook bargained, eyes going all round and puppy-like. "It's stressing me out,- and you're being really hostile. Please?"
"No seriously, what the fuck!" someone in the back yells, all the hostages nodding in agreement and beginning to fill the room with hushed conversations. Jungkook still seemed to be shaking from what Jimin had said earlier, so, like anyone would do, Tae grabs him by the hand and clicks his gun off safety, pulling the trigger and firing it up at the ceiling with a loud bang.
The room falls silent, "Can you please be nice! He got you food!" Taehyung frowns, untying the person closest to him.
Immediately, the radio sounded.
"There was a gunshot,- what happened in there?"
"T-Taehyung shot the gun at the ceiling," he heard Jungkook say as the civilians began untying each other. "Nobody is hurt, but they're all being really mean..."
"Jesus fuck, Jungkook, are you about to have a mental breakdown right now?"
"No," Taehyung looked back over his shoulder to Jungkook. The robber was sitting on the counter with his knees against his chest, radio in one hand, pizza in the other. "But I might cry. I'm really scared, Chim."
"Shit, dude, think about the people who probably just thought that somebody got shot."
"I'm sorry!" Jungkook groaned into the radio. "It's not like I even knew how to turn the safety off!"
The gun lay discarded on the desk now. Jimin's voice switched back to the original speakers.
"I think you should let them go, Mr. Jeon. You don't seem stable in this situation."
The wings are being passed around, and Taehyung takes his original seat back, crossing his legs again. Watching his new friend's internal conflict unfold. Why was this boy trying to rob a bank in the first place?
"I'm not talking to you anymore," Jungkook's face furrowed up, and he promptly put the radio behind the counter and bit down on his pizza. "Not stable," he scoffed through his mouthful. "I'm totally under control. They say that like there's something wrong with me."
"You are robbing a bank in a backstreet boys t-shirt." The women next to Tae said, taking her share of food.
"Yeah,-" Someone a few people down hummed around their food, "-.And you've been using one of your hostages to help you for like, half an hour now."
"I'm overwhelmed, but there's nothing wrong with me, don't be mean," Jungkook glared. "I just wanted to pay my bills, guys. I didn't wanna be homeless... at least now I'll get free housing in jail."
Now the hostage frowns, the robber making himself smaller.
"Do you want a hug?" Tae asks, aware that Jungkook hadn't even gotten the money. He hadn't been smart, but sometimes people aren't the brightest and cause harm when they don't mean to. Wanting a roof over your head seemed like a valid reason if any, "You seem like you need a hug."
"No, I'm okay," Jungkook mutters, setting his pizza down so that he can instead wrap his arms around his knees. "Maybe. I don't know,... I wanna go home."
Tae crawls over, sitting on the wall beneath where the other boy sat. He hums, messing with the bruised indentions on his wrists.
"I don't think you'll be able to, Jungkook. I think you'll have to go to jail...,"
"But I never even told you guys to stay...," Jungkook sniffled. "I don't know what I'm doing,-... I just wanna go home."
"You bounded our wrists in restraints and threatened us at gunpoint," he said softly, smiling up at him, "We all make mistakes, but you're going to have to live with the consequences, Kookie."
He had a nickname for a felon.
"I could kill myself?" Jungkook offered, the look in his eyes almost making it look like it was a genuine option on his list. "Or flee the country,- change my name, my appearance,- everything."
"Or... you can get some money from negotiation? Pay your rent, and like, serve some time?" he offers. It would be kind of rude for Jungkook to take up these people's time for no reason. The man sprawls out on the floor. "You're too pretty to change your appearance." Tae adds, rather bluntly.
"But I'm too pretty for jail, too, Tae!"
He shrugs, "You could get like, cool tattoos?"
"No, needles scare me," Jungkook groaned, laying down across the counter. "This is stupid. Tae, will you help me flee the country?"
"No, no, I don't know how to do that." he pauses, ",-and I don't think I can..,-" he looks out across the room, ",-Maybe you should let them go? I can stay with you until we decide what to do."
"But what if they decide to kill me?" Jungkook's voice was small, timid. "What if,- What if they storm in here after everyone else leaves and almost kill you, too? What if they do kill us?"
"I don't think Jimin will let them kill us,..." he frowns, "Also, I don't think they'll kill you unless you kill me, because they are trying to make you not kill us? So, don't kill me?"
"I don't plan on it. I'd kill myself way before I'd kill you. You're the only person who's been nice to me for awhile."
"Well, you had a gun." he frowns, "And then you got me pizza. Seems like a good foundation for an amazing friendship to me."
"My friends aren't really that nice to me," Jungkook says absently, hand tracing patterns onto his pants leg. "Jimin's always kinda mean,- never misses a beat to call me dumb. Yoongi thinks I'm too dependent. Hoseok also thinks I'm dumb,- I don't like it that much."
"I think they're all mad at you for, like, robbing a bank. If I had any friends I think they'd be upset too." he looks up to the others eyes, "Why'd you think this was a good idea anyways? You don't seem like you enjoy it."
"They're always like that," Jungkook sighed. "But I don't,- I just really needed money. My parents haven't supported me since I came out, and I'm not gonna burden my friends, I'm working as much as I can with my schedule and the law, and I can't afford my apartment anymore. I already have a roommate, too. It felt like my only option was to resort to, well, crime. What other option did I have?"
"Prosutuion? A third roommate? Sugar daddy,-" Taehyung pauses, "The point is, it's unfair, but you're here now Kookie. I think you're gonna go to jail either way. The more you run the longer you're gonna be there."
"I'm already sharing a room, I can't get another roommate," Jungkook sighed. "I'm scared, Tae."
"Alright. Hello? Jungkook, we need to know what to do to get them out." The walki talkie speaks, Jimin sounding exhausted.
"Here," Taehyung tugged him down, "I think you need a hug, no matter what you say. My hugs are magical."
Jungkook nodded silently, sliding to the floor pressing his head into Taehyung's chest. Honestly, Taehyung did feel bad. This was a kid, a scared young boy who made a royal mistake. From the start, he didn't seem to know what was happening, what he was doing. From the beginning, this kid was filled with regret. It was sad, of course, but still,- technically his fault.
"Jungkook," Jimin tries.
"Let'em go, and we can figure out what to do on our own." He hums, "Don't let them know I'm choosing to stay though."
Taehyung pulls him closer, giving him the best hug he can muster.
"If I go to jail, you'll visit me?"
"You want your trigger happy, incredibly attractive and humorous, self-help hostage to visit you in prison?" Tae gawks, "I- I'm honored, Mr. Robber sir. We haven't even known each other for two hours! Quite literally, I trust you with my life. I kinda have to, but still."
"I wouldn't kill you," Jungkook whispered. "I wouldn't kill anyone. Ever. But yea...,- I'll let them go."
The other man lifts the walkie-talkie back to his lips, pulling off of Taehyung's chest. The Hostages, who had been watching them as if they were in some drama, began lining up at the doors.
Some of them holding withdrawals, others slipping bank cards into their pockets. The man who had stood up previously handed them their phones back, some mumbling about bank statements.
Which just made him think,-
"Wait, why the fuck am I at the bank anyways?" Tae blurts. Furrowing his brows, sure that he hadn't shown up in the hopes of finding a cute broke potential-fugitive of the law. "Did it have something to do with taxes?"
"Did it?"
"I don't think I do my taxes,... I don't have a job so,- like,- do I even pay taxes in the first place?" He frowns. He didn't need a new card, He hadn't been wanting to make a withdrawal...,
He gasps.
"The teller lady gives out cotton candy dumdums. For free."
Jungkook stilled in his hold, looking up with a look of confusion. "Just letting you know, I'm the guy who basically accidentally robbed a bank, and I'm taken aback by that one."
"I've known you since we were two and I'm taken aback by that one." Jimin's says, a pout visible in his words.
"It's the simple pleasantries." Tae frowns, grumbling under his breath. "No 'thank you for getting the hostages out Tae.' or 'wow, thanks for reducing my prison sentence future-husband' okay, right, I see how it it is."
"Hes emotionally unstable to the point of deciding that robbing a bank was rational. If he didn't hate me, I could have done the same thing. You're not so special."
You know, it isn't everyday that one can sit back and reflect on life whilst being held hostage in a Chase bank at two on a Tuesday evening. In fact, Taehyung is almost definitely sure that he's one of the only people who have ever found themselves in this situation.
Sat on the floor against a tellers counter with bruised wrist from past restraints, the man who tied them on,- and cut them off,- almost sitting in his lap. And something tells him that it's not exactly common for negotiator that was meant to be attempting to save his life, to instead be arguing with him via his imprisoners walkie talkie.
And he can't say that it's all that normal, in retrospect none of this was, that he found the aforementioned imprisoner to be immensely attractive.
However, he undeniably did, just as much as he found his ass to be nearly numb and his phone battery on zero percent. Because this was just his luck, to be missing a pretty day and a dum-dum and instead be colsolidating the hot, emotionally stunted, soon-to-be felon that had no idea what he'd done.
"I'm to old for this." He grunts, ",-and you're so mean all of a sudden. Like damn, I'm the hostage here."
"And you think that I'm not stressed out about that?" He heard Jimin sigh, Jungkook sniffed lightly as he pushed himself away from Taehyung. "For the love of God, Jungkook, just-"
"God, I'm letting them out, okay?" Jungkook sounded near aggravated, almost the same way that a teenager in a 2006 Disney movie would get mad at their parents. Jungkook just moved to the door, the hostages looking at him in something that could only reflect sympathy. Door's been unlocked, Taehyung heard him say, just as light started to pour into the bank. One by one, they began to flow out of the room. There were some that even gave him pats on the back as they walked out.
Taehyung assumed that Jungkook could see Jimin from the door, because as the last few trickled out, Jungkook called- "Im keeping Taehyung for a minute!"
"Jungkook that isn't-" Jungkook cuts Jimin off, tossing the device across the room before relocking the doors.
It was just them now, absolutely nothing could go wrong here.
Except for the fact that Jungkook immediately slid to the floor with a whine, cupping his face in his hands. "Now I'm gonna have to do that again, Tae. I don't like looking at Jimin, he makes me feel degraded."
"He's like four feet tall and smells like strawberries," Tae sinks down too, staring up at the ceiling. "Hey Jungkook?"
"Yes?"
"Why did you try and rob a bank?"
He heard Jungkook sigh, felt his head rest against his thigh. Taehyung could really just feel the exhaustion radiating from him, some of the stress, some of the fear. "I couldn't pay for everything." the robber says. "I wasn't doing it for wealth, I was doing it so I could at least have a meal a day. I have my roommate, sure, but I'm not here to burden him by asking him to pay my half of the rent for a while, or even asking him to pay for groceries. I should be able to carry my own..., and I don't know what went through my head to get me to this point, but I guess to me, robbing a bank or going to jail is better than burdening other people with my problems."
There was a long pause. A sad silence.
"You're gonna have to go to jail, Jungkookie." The other brunette sighs. "I'm sorry, you don't belong there."
"You live and you die," Jungkook sighs. "I guess sometimes you die before you can live, and you live until you die."
"You don't know what that means, do you?"
"Nope, but it sounded smart, right? Please tell me I'm impressing you, I'm trying really hard here."
Laughter bubbles up out of his throat, his hands moving to card through the others hair. Jungkook was endearing, and all jokes aside, just Taehyung's type.
"You're trying to impress me?" He asks. Neither of them notice the large amount of cars gathering in the front. Even more people surrounding the bank than before.
"I mean, yeah," Jungkook mutters. "Yoongi told me to be more direct with people to get my point across. Am I not being that direct? I don't know. You're just really nice... and pretty... and you have cool socks."
He laughs again.
"Wine and dine me after your court trial? Taehyung snorts. "We need to figure out what your plan is, bub."
"Go to jail, I guess."
Outside, swat teams step closer to the windows.
"So we sit here until you're ready?"
"Well, now that there's only two of us and not everyone else, they're probably going to break in any moment now," Jungkook sighed. "My mom is going to be so upset, more than normal. Like, she already hates me, but damn, when she sees me on the news she'll absolutely legally disown me."
Taehyung look up at the mention of someone busting in, shocked to see triple the amount of people compared to what had been there in the beginning. His stomach falls.
"Jungkook,- Shit." he scrambles back, "Shit."
Jungkook immediately sat up, hands straight up with him. "I don't have a gun! I promise!" he announced, flinching back when all the guns were on him now. "Please, you're making me nervous, we can handle this civilly...,"
"They can't fucking hear you," Taehyung hissed, annoyed by his own stupidity, ",-I might have forgotten something kinda really important."
"Oh right," Jungkook glanced over. "What's up?"
He glances back to the taller, "Um,-," he bites at his lip, nervous he has only made his worse for the other, "I'm the prince of Korea." Taehyung laughs awkwardly.
"Hm. Sweet. Does that mean you can bail me out of jail?"
He blinks, "I don't know!" I just know that it means that you have a government level crime on your hands! My dads gonna fucking kill me!" Tae whines.
"Oh so im a capital felon. Sweet, that'll add a few years," Jungkook laughed, leaning his head back against the wall. "That'll look great on job applications."
"I forgot!" he cries.
The cops take another step closer.
"Lets run away to Jamaica." The prince adds. Jimin close enough to make eye contact with him, to which Tae's sad glance turns to an angry glare.
"Mm... too hot," Jungkook shrugs, giving Taehyung a small smile, one that was almost a bit heartbreaking to look at. One that didn't quite reach his eyes. "Sorry about it, you know, the whole hostage thing."
They stare at each other for a while, the radio echoing Jimin's voice across the room, the cops moving closer every second. Taehyung's eyes fall to Jungkook's lips, to his shaky hands.
"I won't leave you, okay? I'll visit, a-and I'll try and get you out, and then we can be friends! A-and have sleepovers and go on dates in the park, okay? You're gonna be alright, you're too kind to not be okay."
"You've known me for a good three hours," Jungkook laughs sadly. "You'll get over it, I'm sure. Mr. Prince of Korea, Your Grace. Besides, I should have known you were too good in every capacity, you know?"
"I leech the country's money, and I'll leech onto you too." he deadpans.
"I have no money, obviously. Dude, I just tried to rob a bank and failed, there's not much to leech off of.
"Stop being sad," Taehyung pokes his cheek, over and over again until the younger cracks a tiny smile, "You're too cute to be so sad."
"And you're too awesome to not go get a good, nice, socially mature and aware rich guy who isn't stunted mentally."
"Bro, it's twenty twenty one, my mom worked at a Denny's for seventeen years." The cops are right outside now. Jungkook was visibly struggling to breathe, and Taehyung in his rushed panic to calm him down kisses his cheek. "It'll be fine, kookie. I mean, I literally came here for free candy, it isn't like I'm some pristine god-like guy."
"But you seem like you deserve a pristine god-like guy," Jungkook pouts at him, literally pouts. Through the verge of tears, past the calling of law enforcement, he still pouted as if Taehyung was the biggest matter in the situation. "Not a prison junkie. I don't wanna get tattoos on my face, Tae. I don't wanna- I'm really scared of needles, Tae."
"You have tattoos on your hand?" he frowns, "C'mere,-" he opens his arms again. "One more hug and then we go, it'll be alright."
Jungkook wasted no time in throwing himself into Taehyung, pressing his face into the crook of Taehyung's neck, arms bone-crushingly tight around Taehyung. "You-" he sniffled, voice muffled. "And me,- if I get bail, I'll get you a Dum Dum."
Outside, the swat team bust open the door, small faces of shock visible when the notice that one side was still unlocked. Taehyung instinctively pulls JK as close to him as he can.
Todays been a weird ass Tuesday.
"And cuddles?" The prince asks, Jungkook nodding weakly into his chest. Police scream at them to come out with their hands up.
"You ready?"
"No, but I guess I'll deal with it anyways."
The robber pulls back, kissing his cheek gently as Tae had done to his, before finally standing up.
The last Taehyung saw of him was his arms being violently tugged behind his back and cuffed, Jimin already aiding Taehyung out of the building.
~
Seoul, Korea
Court House
2:56- Two weeks later
"I would like to call Park Jimin to the stand."
"I would like to call Kim Namjoon to the stand."
"-Jung Hoseok to the stand."
"Min Yoongi."
"Hellen Swartz"
"I would like to call Kim Taehyung to the stand."
"How many witness's do you have!" some yells, Jungkook's lawyer seizing them up as the boy shake in his seat.
He shouldn't have done it, otherwise he wouldn't have to be here. Scared, uncomfortable, dressed to the nines and nearly choking due to how tight Namjoon had tied his tie this morning,- but at least he got to meet Taehyung.
Taehyung, who he thought he'd seen the last of when he was thrown in the back of a police cruiser and hauled off to a holding cell almost three weeks ago,- who walked past him from his seat behind him, looking as stunning as he had been back in the bank. His clothes were much less casual than they had been that day, however, his suit looking as if it had been threaded from pure gold as he took his seat in the witness stand.
"Prince Kim," Jungkook's lawyer said, standing from his seat. Jungkook flinched away from him. Jungkook didn't like his lawyer. He was pushy, and very mean when it came to delivering directions on how to answer questions or avoid them. But then the prosecutor was mean too and made Jungkook answer the questions he was told to avoid. The entire court thing was scary, and Jungkook didn't like it. He didn't like the titles, and he especially didn't like being reminded of Taehyung's status. It just made the crime seem even worse.
"You were the person in most contact with my client during the incident, were you not?"
Taehyung's face is set much more serious than what it had been last time, his jaw tense and his shoulders held high. Jungkook remembers taking note of the mans nearly perfect posture.
"I was," he nods, his voice deeper than what Jungkook remembers it being as his supposed-friend takes on a shockingly mature attitude.
"From the first signs of a robbery until the very last moments, no?"
"Until he was roughly manhandled by the police and all\ officer ignored my order?" He nearly snaps, face still stoic, "Yes, I was."
That was only a little hot. Jungkook only blushed a little- a little. It wasn't like he looked down to his feet to hide it, either.
"How violent would you say my client was?" The attorney continued his stroll to the stand, tilting his head. "Pointing the gun at anyone...? Firing it...? Yelling...?"
"The only person to point and fire a gun was me,-" the crowd gasps as if this were a TV show, Taehyung crossing his legs as he goes to pick at his nails. ",-And that was at the ceiling. Mr. Jeon was afraid of the weapon,- which, if I am correct, was purchased legally and is only missing one bullet-, the one that I fired."
"It doesn't matter if he fired it! He used it to threaten innocent people!" the prosecutor snipes, Taehyung turning his nose up at him in the most subtle way.
"Sit down." The Prince orders, and the other lawyer lowers reluctantly in his seat. Tae looks to him with hooded eyes, "I just used my voice to threaten an innocent person, sir, and I've yet to see the crime that I've committed."
Chatter spreads throughout the court, the judge knocking his gavel against the counter twice, calling for order. The room's attention falling back to the witness stand.
The defendant nodded slowly at Taehyung's words. "So you would say that there is, in no way, that the surveillance video was tampered with? That everything foretelling my client's innocence was true? That, for some inexplicable reason, everyone just seemed to... consent? Was that the word? To Jeon's pleas?"
"I mean, the reasons pretty clear," Taehyung sits back up correctly in his seat, "Look at him, he's the cutest little thing about to start crying in his seat." The court room all coos, Jungkook blushes, his manhood feeling slightly come at. "Not to mention, the back door was unlocked, the guy two down from me never got restrained, and Mr. Jeon asked for our consent before tying us up."
The prosecutor blanches, Yoongi boo's from the jury stand.
Jungkook just stared, almost astonished. Wasn't Yoongi his friend? Wasn't he supposed to be supportive?
The attorney hummed, tilted his head. "So you'd almost say,- it was barely even illegal? Seeing as you all just did everything with your own free will without fear of consequence?"
"This is boring." Taehyung deadpans. Jungkook snorts, the prosecutor sends him a glare. "Yes, I suppose. Can it be somebody else's turn now?"
The defendant smiled lightly, glancing at the judge. "No further questions. The prosecutor may use their time."
At this, the skinny and pale man that stood in the defense of the bank rises from his seat, pulling at his coat as he took center stage. He began speaking, but a body falls into the seat next to him that Jungkook is almost one hundred percent sure is not the same old man that had been there before.
"When can I go home~," a familiar voice whines, a head of curly brown hair falling onto Jungkook's shoulder. "I hate being all serious, Kookie."
"Wha-" Jungkook pulls back almost instantly, not even realizing whats going on, not even fully comprehending the presence. "Tae?" He whispers, drinking in the aura, the overwhelming feeling he had felt in his chest the first time he had met Taehyung. It almost felt like he couldn't breathe.
Jungkook wasn't one to say he believed in love at first sight or anything quite like that; nothing ever really that serious. He would admit, though, he did find it to happen that he would get infatuated at times. The same thing happened with Namjoon. As soon as he met the hyung, he immediately knew that Namjoon would just be one of his people. He found himself wanting to know anything and everything about him, found himself gluing himself to his friend by the hip. Jungkook reminded Namjoon (despite the fact that he was taken by a rather daring and scarily beautiful detective) that he was by far one of the most beautiful people that he had ever met, and that if it weren't for a multitude of factors, he would totally let Namjoon rail him in public, but it wasn't like it was anything really more than that. Jungkook found Namjoon as a great hyung, but not more than that. Those boundaries were set early on. But Taehyung... Jungkook just felt different with Taehyung than he did with Namjoon, or Yoongi. Taehyung took all the breath from Jungkook's chest only to replace it with ease. Jungkook wanted to know anything and everything about Taehyung, but he wanted to know it so that he could give him everything he could, be anything he wanted. It was a different kind of obsession... It was one that made him feel all light and airy.
"I Would like to Call Kim Seokjin to the stand as my first Witness."
"Ugh, why,-" Taehyung absently pulls Jungkook back in reach of his head, resting back on his shoulder, "You haven't done anything."
"I tried to rob a bank, for one-"
"I don't even know what you expect to ask me when it seems that half the jury has already sold their hearts off to the defendant," Jin sighed. "Or what you expect to ask me. I'm just the detective, there's nothing I can tell you that the witnesses haven't already said. I'm not a doctor, and I wasn't in the bank. I'm a middle man. Talk to a negotiator, honestly."
"He already did." Taehyung whines, burying his head into Jungkook's neck, "I'm gonna fall asleep, you didn't even actually rob the bank."
"If what Mr. Jeon did was in no way a crime, why was it that you, as head detective, were placed on the case and remained there until the client was arrested." The prosecutor asks. Taehyung huffs.
"Because it's not like we knew what was going on inside the bank," Jin sighed, seeing almost as bored as Taehyung. "Dude, get with the program. Everyone in there were consenting adults who stayed for wings and could have left at any moment. The most threatening thing he did was politely asking someone to sit down because they were getting hostile."
"Okay," Jungkook hums. He wanted to hug Taehyung, almost as a thank you for all he had tried to do for Jungkook in the entire process of everything, but he could feel the eyes on him. All of them. The eyes of the girls and law students in the courtroom, the beading eyes from home watchers through the lenses of cameras. He had become a country's sensation, and he didn't want to give Taehyung a bad reputation. "Good night, then."
"Don't sound so excited to see me," Taehyung wraps his arms around Jungkook's middle beneath the table, ",-scoot down, too tall." he mutters. Jungkook takes note of the two guards stood to his left and Jimin standing protectively over Tae on his right.
"I-,"
"I'm sorry, but there are no witness's left to call." The judge announces, "I call for the jury to be released to decide their verdict."
"But,-"
"Alright, I hear no objections!" he hits his gavel against the counter once more. "Jury dismissed!"
"And now I guess I wait..." Jungkook sighed, sinking down into his seat, closing his eyes and just breathing. He expected it to be the normal breath that just refills the lungs but doesn't really do much else than that, but instead, he breathed in the scent of Taehyung. He breathed in the smell of grove strawberries, rich vanilla, expensive cologne. He breathed expecting to just inhale, but instead he got a bone-warming calmness, one that made his knees feel like jelly and his eyelids feel like they could stay closed until the end of time.
"Smell nice," he muttered without really thinking too much of it. "Comforting...,"
"Yea?" Tae mumers back, "You stopped shaking." he paused, "You smell distinctively manly, m'like it."
"I owe you a Dum Dum," Jungkook recalls, moving his hands so that he could pick at his nails. "But I spent all of my security deposit on a new suit."
"You can get them for free at the bank." The prince laughs, people moving around them, some leaving the room during the short recess, others trying to get a good look at the rarely seen prince.
"I think banks may be a trigger for me now, not going to lie," Jungkook shudders, wincing a little when his cuticle tore. "I'm still sorry I did that to you... I didn't know you were... you know... the prince of korea."
"Neither did I." He argues, "-also, worse comes to worse you can be my sugar baby."
"I don't wanna take your money," Jungkook peeled his eyes open to look at his hand... pick off the skin. He knew Namjoon would be upset with him for it because that's bodily mutilation, Kook. Of course Jungkook disagreed because it's just pampering myself, what do you mean? Only to get a if any nail tech saw your hands they'd send you the other way. "What's your favorite milkshake flavor? Oh- and what's your go-to order at Wendy's?"
"You also didn't want to rob a ban-," he cuts himself off with a yawn, "-bank. Chocolate,- and baconator."
"Hm," Jungkook hums, storing the information away with Taehyung's pizza order. "I like strawberry. And I don't like Wendy's. Tastes bland."
"Then why ask?"
"I just wanted to know," Jungkook pulls back on his skin until it comes off. "If you had one day left to live, what would you do?"
"Don't know, probably like, cry and play mario kart. Make you stop picking at your nails. You're gonna start bleeding."
"Oh, that's fine," Jungkook immediately sits up at the mention of blood, reaching down to pull his shoe off, then sitting back up with little bandaids in his hand. "Joon always made me carry around bandaids because he said I fall too much. These are my Pokemon ones." he put them back, but didn't bother with the shoe. "If I had one day left, I think I'd drive to the coast... watch a sunset, maybe."
"Hm, that sounds nice." Taehyung pulls one hand into his own, "It's three o'clock on a wednesday, why are you thinking about dying and wendy's?"
"And milkshakes."
"Yea, and milk-"
The gavel knocks loudly once more, the room stilling. Taehyung the only person who doesn't sit up straight and turn his attention to the jury as they re-enter.
"Oh god," Jungkook felt his own posture shoot up straight, his palms get sweaty, the panic settle into his body as he struggled to get his shoe back on. This was really going to be it. The jury was going to use him as some example as to what happens when someone gets involved with the price and Jungkook was going to go to jail for the rest of his life. This was it, the ringing had already started to take over his ear drums, his chest feeling tight again. His hands itched up already covering up his ears in an effort to stop the ringing, focus a little bit.
"I'm scared," he whispered to himself as he closed his eyes. "They won't let me have Charizard bandaids in prison- or Cars bandaids. I'll have to use the boring adult bandaids."
A gentle kiss is placed on the back of his hand, Taehyung now also sitting up and correcting himself as cameras pan back over to them. His face goes back stoic, but his hand stays intertwined with Jungkooks.
The room goes silent, the judge calls for a verdict.
"Due to an almost unanimous decision, save for one vote, the victim has been declared not-guilty for all accused charges, and should be released with only five hours of community service as a warning." A women speaks, Yoongi frowning.
Jungkook felt himself light up at that a bit. "Sweet!" he announced with a smile, turning to look at Taehyung. "I needed hours for my application, too- oh-" he immediately cowered down at Taehyung's stoic look, going back to just staring right ahead. "Sorry. Can I go home now?"
One more bang of the gavel, the hearing is called to a close. Without a response, Taehyung is pulling Jungkook up from his seat at a record pace, and Jimin and the other two guards are escorting them out of the building. A mob of reporters chasing after them.
"Sorry, bub," Tae mutters as they push through the crowd in attempts to reach the door, "I say we out-run the press and go get ice-cream, but you can go home if you want."
"He's been talking about you for the last two week." Jimin intervenes, the shorter man walking behind them, his suit nearly as expensive as Taehyung's. A head pieces connected to his ear, "It would break his heart if you said no."
"Jimin!" Tae whined. A blush coating his tan cheeks.
"I don't have any money, but I'll sit in with you," Jungkook whispers, moving his hands to shield his face from the press. He didn't need anymore pictures taken.
"I'm paying." The man says, and suddenly their outside, the guards helping them make their way towards a rather fancy looking black car. "When you're with me, I pay."
"Are you calling me poor?"
"Yes."
"That is righteous, but the truth hurts sometimes."
The two of them, as well as Jimin, are made to climb inside the nice car. The interior smelling of new leather and clean fabric, Taehyung crossing his legs in in seat closest to the window. It matched the man,- fine leather with sharp features and a perfect posture.
"So,- now that you're not going to prison,-" Taehyung looks at him with a large smile, very clearly ogling Jungkook. His eyes moving from his hair down to his arms and hinds, back up to his chest, jaw, lips, eyes. "You gonna keep flirting with me?"
"I mean, you're getting me ice cream, you're basically the love of my life now."
Taehyung giggles again, the door opens again and this time it's Yoongi, the man crawling to the back to sit next to his boyfriend.
"Hey, baby-" Jungkook heard Jimin's soft voice barely above a whisper. "Everything go okay...?"
Jungkook started to tune out of their conversation then, deciding to instead look at Taehyung look out the window. In the back of his mind, he wondered if Taehyung liked those kinds of names, because Jungkook liked those names. Jungkook liked being called baby, and sweetheart, and love. Maybe Taehyung liked it too.
"Do you like pet names?" Jungkook humed lightly, looking forward out the front windshield as he started to pick at his nails instead of reaching to hold Taehyung's hand. Anything to keep himself occupied.
"I do!" Taehyung smiles, looking away from the moving street. His hand reaching for Jungkook's, "Stop picking at your nails~ your hands are so pretty, Koo."
Jungkook was going to refute, but he didn't want to. He let himself be lead away, instead just enjoying the feeling of someone else's hand on his. "Thank you," he said meekly, looking down. "I like them to- the names, that is, not my hands. I mean, my hands are okay, I never really thought about it."
"Stop picking at them." Tae chides once again, "They're just as handsome as the rest of you, darling, leave them be? For me?"
He had to bite his bottom lip to keep from smiling. "Okay," he muttered, a little jitter of excitement jolting through him. "I'll try- Namjoon used to take me to get manicures, but now neither of us have the money for that."
"Well,- you see,...-"
"Just because you wont take taehyung's money doesn't mean Namjoon won't." Yoongi cuts in, Jimin basically in his lap, "You guys are basically rich."
"But can we go get manicures?" Tae frowns At him, eyes wide and begging.
Jungkook couldn't find it in himself to say no, and when he let out his meek little okay and watched that smile spread across Taehyung's face, he realized that maybe robbing that bank (read: trying to rob that bank) was the best decision he had ever made.
-
I'm not editing this. I haven't read it in months. I got half way in and wanted to scream out of pure frustration with the creative hell fire that is Tae's and My minds- and I am tired. I hope this was worth whatever time you just wasted 💕✨ - Zepp {05|25|21}
hey i actually reread this last night and holy shit this has so many plot holes and errors but like whatever. this was just a short fic me and zepp did to fill the time and to help us get back into the dynamic of writing. obviously, it has some kinks to work out, but im just happy we finished something since the swing of school came back full throttle on us lol. now that summer has officially started, though, i really hope that we can finish a lot of the great ideas we had in the past and maybe even think of some new ones! i'm looking forward to making more content this summer, and maybe even finding the willpower to bring that energy into the next semester! thank you for bearing through this, and seriously, pinky promise, will try to get SOMETHING finished by the end of june (HOEPFULLY). but yeah this was trash i promise its not normally like this lol - tae {05|26|21}