"Let me out!" Taehyung's desperate yells to be released had been resonating throughout the place for over two hours now.
Sighing, the angel pinched the bridge of his nose. "You know I can't do that, Taehyung," he said from the other side of the door.
For the past few hours, the hunter had been nothing but quiet and calm, then all of a sudden, he started demanding Jungkook to release him, spilling vile oaths and curses along the way.
The angel's forbearance from taking action was alarmingly close to breaking, having in mind he'd been coerced into listening the hunter's angry tantrums without a stop. Moreover, Hoseok wasn't here to ease the irksome situation, which made it ten times worse.
With his arms crossed over his chest and back leaning against the wooden surface of the door, Jungkook strained his ears in an attempt to hear what was going inside. Taehyung had become awfully silent, not a single exhale or shifting could be registered from the room.
Silence.
Then the loud thud of a body colliding with the ground and rattling sound of metal handcuffs followed.
Jungkook's eyes bulged out of their holes and with the speed of the light he banged inside the bedroom, stilling at the sight of Taehyung crouching next to the bed, still wrapped in cuffs but stubbornly trying to free himself.
"Hey, don't do that," the angel spoke in a gentle tone, sauntering forward to help him. "You'll hurt yourself if– "
"Don't come near me." Taehyung interrupted austerely, blue eyes a stormy sea and velvety deep voice colder than the arctic snows.
The severity of these words washed over Jungkook like white-hot lava, burning him, scalding him, until his body felt as though it were on fire.
Restraining himself from coming any closer, the angel balled his hands in fists by his sides, showing remarkable moderation. He waited for the hunter to gather the sufficient strength before speaking again, patient in his stance and mannerism.
"Do you really think I'm going to believe this bunkum?" Taehyung spat the words like they were meant to be nothing, but to Jungkook they were knives with sharp edges, piercing through his already too fragile heart. "That we're some lovers from a made-up fairytale and I'd died in my first life?"
Tension engirdled the volatile ambience, causing the air to get thicker and squeeze at their throats until every little syllable came out as a shallow whisper.
"I'm not lying to you, Taehyung," the angel's tone was imploring and so were his ineffable black eyes, sedated and subdued despite how hurt he felt at this moment of wrangling. "Everything written in this diary is true."
"Lies!" Taehyung continued to shake his head, refusing to believe the purportedly mendacious confrontations. "You're lying to me!"
"No, I'm not!" Jungkook finally snapped, tired of detaining his own raging with frustrated emotions. All this time spent in futile hopes of meeting a person who, at the very last end, denied the smallest possibility of ever knowing him. "What do I get from lying to you?"
"I don't know!" Taehyung slammed his palm against the mattress, chains clattering and tiny dust mites coming off the fluffy sheets.
"This is ridiculous!" Jungkook exclaimed, an infuriated scoff making its way past his lips. He propped himself down on the linoleum floor next to the blonde, resting his back against the side rail of the bed.
Both of them remained quiet in their positions as the irascible argument from a few seconds ago started to melt into a more bearable atmosphere. Neither Jungkook nor Taehyung looked at the other, instead preferring to stare at the stale blue paint on the walls.
The angel's blood was boiling with fury, cheeks red like tomato sauce and raven hair just as messy as a bird nest. He hadn't remembered Taehyung being so persistent and grumpy in the previous lifetime. The blonde had always been a kind soul – composed and peaceful like a light breeze in a scorching summer day.
This Taehyung, the one sulking right next to him, was a whole another story. If he were a mere mortal whose life didn't hold any particularness of value to him, the ravenette would have burnt him alive by now. Because Jungkook might appear as sweet and caring, but that didn't change the fact he was a dark angel with powers beyond any other creature.
"I want to use the bathroom," Taehyung spoke after a while, breaking the awkward silence that loomed over their heads.
Raising a brow, the angel craned his neck to gaze at him. "Are you for real now?"
The hunter's eyes rolled on their own volition. "I'm a human with needs and necessities. Or have you forgotten?" He said rather brashly.
Jungkook was internally grateful to every angel or spiritual force out there for keeping him sane because with Taehyung in his hair the pits of fiery Hell sounded more appealing.
"Get up," he muttered through tightly gritted teeth, raising on his feet, and wiping off the dust on his trousers.
Taehyung was quick to obey, staggering a little to maintain balance, probably due to fact he hadn't left the bed for approximately a day. Jungkook's powers were enough to cure him from the wendigo's bite, but that didn't mean his recovery would be that fast and smooth. As always, humans' biology was much more different than theirs.
"Are you going to remove these?" Taehyung jutted his chin out to the cuffs that connected him to the bedpost.
"Do I really have to?" The angel asked ironically, seemingly not minding the expectant look the latter was sending his way.
With a simple wave of his hand the metal cuffs cracked open and fell to the ground. Taehyung massaged the reddened spot around his wrists, an expression of pure relief was written all over his visage, most likely because he was no longer imprisoned to the bed.
"Come on," Jungkook asserted, sparing the hunter a momentous glance before heading for the door.
"Where are my daggers?" The hunter inquired upon noticing he hadn't wielded any weapons in himself. His holster was gone along with the garter around his thigh, leaving him completely exposed to the angel's mercy.
"Away from you," was Jungkook's curt answer.
Rolling his eyes, the hunter continued to stride behind him, subtly throwing a glance at every curious thing that caught his attention. The corridor was long and narrowed without any windows to lighten it. Old paintings were hanging on the stagnant walls, grimy and neglected over the years. If the hunter were to stumble upon a place similar to this one here, he wouldn't think twice before classifying it abandoned.
"Is that your house?" Taehyung found himself asking, gaping at the small chandeliers which dangled from the ceiling.
The angel bit the inside of his cheek, ostensibly bothered by the question. "Something like that," he said hesitantly.
Taehyung's bubble of curiosity spiked up at that, but he chose not to question it any further. When they finally reached what appeared to be the bathroom, Jungkook stepped aside to let Taehyung walk in, meanwhile keeping his eyes on him like an eagle lest he tried to escape.
"Don't try anything stupid." He gave him a warning, lids narrowing to crescents.
"I'm aimless," the hunter pointed out, arms spreading to clarify his state of vulnerability. "What can I possibly do? Spin down the toilet?" The tone he used was positively sarcastic, successfully getting on Jungkook's nerves.
"Very smart. Is that everything your witty brain could come up with?" The angel reached for the handle and pushed the door open, motioning for Taehyung to go.
The hunter regarded him with an annoyed glare, getting inside and shutting the door in Jungkook's face. The angel could only roll his eyes at Taehyung's childish behavior, seriously doubting the idea of ever creating a pact with the damn kitsune.
As the time passed – with Jungkook still standing by the door and waiting for Taehyung to be done – the door opened and from there exited the blonde.
"You done?" The angel scanned him from head to toes, denuded of any shame.
"Yeah," Taehyung answered a bit too quickly, fidgeting with his hands behind his back, obviously attempting to hide something from Jungkook.
The angel raised a brow at that, not at all that convinced by the blunt lie. "Show me your hands." He insisted, taking a bold step forward, invading the hunter's personal space without actually meaning to.
Taehyung's plump lips pursed in a thin line, jaw clenching and shoulders convulsing. He was reluctant in his gait, giving the impression of someone caught in an act. "Why?" he feigned his befuddled state.
"Taehyung," Jungkook gave him another warning, cornering the hunter against the wall. Despite the reduced lightening of the corridor, he could still make out some of Taehyung's features. Like the mole under his nose, his sublime lashes, cherry-red lips which seemed to invite him to trace his thumb over them. "I'm not going to repeat myself. Show me your hands." He repeated in a sterner tone.
The hunter let out a breathless chuckle at the demand, slowly bringing his hand up and, much to Jungkook's surprise, fanning it over his mouth. The angel stilled as the featherlike touch of Taehyung's fingertips lingered against his skin, right below his bottom lip.
"You know..." he started, whispered it like there was someone else that could hear them. Taehyung's voice was tantalizing, tempting Jungkook to soften his boundaries for him and give in the pleasant lure of carefully pronounced syllables. "I've always wondered how ignorant you must be to trust a hunter."
Before Jungkook could proceed any of his words, Taehyung had shoved something in his mouth. The taste of sour berry itched on his tongue, making the angel's throat burn horribly.
"Chew," the hunter ordered, tone no longer sweet and seductive but harsh and dangerous.
Just now Jungkook noticed the small knife in Taehyung's hands, the one pressed under his slackened jaw. Scrunching his eyebrows together, the angel forced himself to swallow down the herb.
Once the hunter was satisfied with the results, he let go of Jungkook, though he didn't put the knife down.
"W-what did you give me?" The angel was out of breath, perspiring heavily, black and white dots appearing in front of his vision, blinding him.
"Wolf's bane." Taehyung answered calmly, almost nonchalant. "Lethal for werewolves but poisonous for others."
Jungkook felt like laughing, as if the blonde were telling him about the funniest joke in the world, but it came out as a chocked snarl.
"It'll take you more efforts to kill me, you know?" The image of Taehyung's face was starting to get blurrier and soon Jungkook found himself unable to maintain balance, knees crumbling underneath his weight.
"I'm not trying to kill you." The angel observed as Taehyung got closer, lifting his chin up with the edge of the knife. "I'm saving enough time for my escape." A wicked grin was etched to his face, superficial and jaunty.
Then the world turned black for Jungkook.
♧sorry for the long delay of uptades! I hope you enjoyed the chap.♧