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violence, mentions of blood, gunshot wound, murder, mentions of trafficking/smuggling, minor character deaths, we meet seokjin & his mate, some brief medical stuff, mentions of grief, smut in next chapter 🤪
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The blood loss from your gunshot wound slowed you down. You felt weak and tired from running all morning and night. The pain on your shoulder was almost too painful to bear, but you couldn't stop. As a wolf, your body temperature always ran hot, but this was different. You were sweating profusely, and you were shivering. It didn't help that it was also raining heavily. You had to shift back into your human form to try and clean the wound, but the bullet was still lodged in your shoulder, and the injury kept bleeding.
It felt like the forest was spinning, but you knew it was because of the gunshot. You were sure it was infected, and the pain was getting worse. After taking a sip of water, you shifted into your wolf, but even that was difficult for you. You didn't even make it to three steps before you dropped to the ground, chest heaving and whining in pain.
"Hey! Are you alright?" A voice called from behind you. You tried getting up, terrified of the stranger, but you collapsed again. Did the guards follow you after all? All you could do was raise your head, and even that was difficult to accomplish. Your eyes landed on the man standing near a tree, his dark silhouette almost blending in with the night until he moved forward, the light from the moon shining on his features. "I promise I won't hurt you. I just want to help." He raised his arms, revealing to you he had no weapons, and then kneeled so you wouldn't feel threatened.
"Can I come closer?" At first, you growled, which amused him. Watching you on the ground injured with hardly any strength left in you and your small size growling at him—he found it endearing. But then you whined, letting him know it was safe to get closer. The man slowly moved towards you, taking in everything about you. It was nighttime, but the clearing where you lay had no trees covering the light of the moon, and he could see the beautiful color of your coat—a reddish-brown—covered mostly in mud and your blood. Your icy-grey omega eyes landed on his dark brown ones, and the man felt like the wind got knocked out of him. If you weren't so out of it, you would've felt it too. Instead, you felt peace. Finally, after everything, you felt safe.
The last thing you heard before drifting off and involuntarily shifting into your human form was the worried voice of the stranger, "You don't have to worry about anything ever again. I'll keep you safe from now on."
"So, you mean to tell me that on top of not noticing one of your employees going rogue, you also damaged my Omega?" Ha-Joon grabbed the scientist by the collar of his white coat, enraged with the incompetent man. "She could be dead for all we know, you fucking moron!"
"Sir, I—I assure you the Omega lives. We didn't s—shoot to kill; we only did so to neutralize her. I'm sure my guards will find her somewhere near our facilities passed out on the ground." The older man was visibly shaking, giving Ha-Joon some sense of gratification.
Ha-Joon let out a deep chuckle, "The same guards that let my wolf escape in the first place? You must think me an idiot if you expect me to trust them after your huge fuck up. If I don't kill you right where you're standing, it's because I still need you," the man then signaled to his bodyguards, to which they all raised their weapons and began shooting at the scientist's men. Dr. Go dropped down on the floor and covered his ears, cowering from the onslaught of bullets killing his men.
Dr. Go was a trembling, a blubbering mess and trying to crawl away, but Ha-Joon grabbed him by his coat and pulled him up. "This is what happens when I'm not satisfied with the results I expected. I suggest you go ahead and employ more capable people to work for you, Dr. Go, or I'm afraid we'll be back here again." All the scientist could do was nod in understanding, "Good, now prepare two female Betas for me, without charge, of course."
"Y—yes, Sir. I'll have them ready for you right away."
"Are you not going to ask what I need them for, Dr?"
"No, Sir." The scientist couldn't look at Ha-Joon in his eyes.
"Good. You're learning quickly," Hi-Joon chuckled, harshly patting the man's back.
You felt drowsy when you opened your eyes, hissing at the brightness in the room. Confusion took over you as you sat up and glanced around the large room, taking in the equally large windows. The room was slightly converted into a medical room. You raised your arm to look at the IV attached to your arm and then glanced down at your body, clean and changed into new comfortable clothes. Your wound was bandaged, and although you still felt some discomfort, it hurt less. Where were you? How did you get there?
"Great! You're finally awake," you growled, startled by the man standing near the door holding a tray filled with food. But when your eyes met his, your heart rate picked up a little. You felt this pull and a need to be near him, which automatically made your walls go up. "Relax, little wolf. I'm here to bring you sustenance. You've been asleep for three days, and you're still weak. You wouldn't be able to take me down if you tried." The man winked at you and chuckled at the way you scowled at him.
"Where—" you coughed, throat dry and scratchy from how long you've been asleep.
"Here, drink some water." When he figured you wouldn't take the drink from his hand, he placed it on the table next to you and then took a seat at the end of the bed, making sure to give you ample space. "You're at my home. I found you injured and weak near my property, and I couldn't leave you out there like that."
"What do you want?" You suddenly questioned, grabbing the cup of water and taking a drink. You kept your eyes on him, studying him and every move he made.
"What do you mean?"
"Everyone wants something—nothing is free in life. So, what do you want from me?" You sat up straighter, bracing for his answer.
His eyes softened, "I don't want anything. I only want you to get better," the man smiled warmly at you. He had a pretty smile, you noticed. "My name is Jungkook, by the way. Should I call anyone for you, a family member, a friend—"
"No. I don't have anyone. It's just me."
"Who hurt you? My friend had to remove a bullet from your shoulder; the wound was also infected, so he had to administer some antibiotics. Are you in any pain? I can call him and ask to give you more pain medication." Jungkook was rambling now, and it made him feel weird. He never rambled.
"I'm fine," you whispered, and if it wasn't for his enhanced hearing, he might've missed it. "Did the facility send you to heal me and then send me back?"
"Facility?" It seemed to you like he didn't know what you were talking about, and at the same time, you wondered if it was all an act. You knew the people in that place were capable of anything. You witnessed it with your own eyes that horrible night. But, every time you glanced back at the man's eyes, something inside of you told you to trust him. And so, going against your mind, you went with your heart instead and told Jungkook everything.
You explained how you were injured and who did it. You told him everything from how you got to the research facility to how Elena gave up her life to save you, and then you choked on a sob.
Jungkook cautiously moved closer to you, feeling the need to soothe you, but you didn't fully trust him yet. You hid your face behind your hands, feeling embarrassed about crying in front of a stranger, "Hey, it's okay, you're still grieving. And by how you described Elena to me, she was like your mother." You nodded your response.
You sighed deeply, sniffling and trying to regain composure, "My name is YN."
Jungkook flashed you that pretty smile of his again, "Nice to meet you, YN." He smiled at you when all he wanted was to go after those who hurt you so badly, and he wanted to hurt them back a hundred times worse.
Even with all the murderous thoughts going through his mind, Jungkook was still calm around you, and that to him was even weirder. He was usually impulsive, impatient, and his temper was often uncontrollable. Was this what having a mate was like? He hadn't even told you that information yet because he wasn't sure if you would believe him. After everything you've been through, he didn't want you to think he was trying to take advantage of you. He needed you to feel safe and wanted to earn your trust.
Jungkook noticed you shifting uncomfortably in bed, avoiding eye contact with him. "Are you okay?"
"Um, yeah. I just want to wash up a little, maybe, but I have something there." Jungkook followed your line of vision and then realized what you meant. "Oh, yes. Since you were asleep for a while, the nurse had to insert a urinary catheter, but I can call her in right now; just give me a minute."
God, you were so embarrassed. You wondered if he noticed just how mortified you felt, but he quickly fished out the phone out of his pockets and called someone.
"Hey, so I need you to—" Jungkook turned away from you and whispered into the phone, "Are you seriously fucking right now?" He asked as he listened to his friends labored breathing. He loudly sighed at whatever answer the person gave him over the phone as you bit your lip to try and suppress your laughter. "Anyway, make sure to bring Sun-hee over with you. YN might feel more comfortable if she took it out for her. Yeah, that's her name. Okay, see you soon."
Jungkook sheepishly looked at you, "Sorry about that. They should be here in a couple of minutes."
"Oh, that's fast!"
"Yeah, they live on the property. I'll give you a tour of the place when you're feeling better. If you don't have anywhere else to go, I want you to know that you can stay here for as long as you like. Of course, it's up to you."
"I'll have to think about it, but thank you. I'm very grateful," you smiled at him, and Jungkook felt his heart swell at the sight of such a pretty one. You stared at each other for who knew how long until a knock at the door startled you both.
Jungkook opened the door, and in came a tall man wearing a white coat with a stethoscope around his neck. He was very handsome with very dark features. A woman dressed in dark green scrubs stood beside him, and she was just as beautiful as the man was. They both smiled warmly at you and then back at Jungkook.
"So, this is your ma—"
"Seokjin," Jungkook interrupted the man, giving him a warning look, "This is YN. YN, these are my friends, Dr. Kim Seokjin and his mate, Nurse Oh Sun-hee."
They slowly approached you, making sure you were comfortable with them being near you. Seokjin stilled when he heard your low growl, warning him not to take one more step. Sun-hee stared at you, bewildered at the sudden change in your behavior.
"Seokjin, take your coat off," Jungkook suggested.
"Why—"
"Just humor me, will you?" The doctor did as his friend suggested and proceeded to take off the coat and handed it over to his mate.
Jungkook kneeled beside you near the bed, "Is that better, little wolf?" You nodded, thanking him with a smile. You loved that he called you that, and you loved his scent. You didn't know why you felt the sudden urge to climb on his lap and wrap yourself around him, but you quickly shot that thought down. What was going on with you?
"I'm so confused right now," Seokjin whispered to Sun-hee.
Standing up, Jungkook glanced back at his friend, "I'll explain everything to you later. Right now, I need you to check her wound and for Sun-hee to take out the catheter. She wants a bath, and she might need help with that."
"Of course, I can help her with anything she needs right after she eats her food. Don't worry, Jungkook; she'll be okay."
"Is it alright if I come closer to take a look at how you're healing?" Seokjin asked.
You nodded, "Sorry about growling at you."
"Eh, I'm used to it by now. Jungkook gets very growly whenever he got injured on the job," he chuckled.
"Jin," Jungkook warned, but you giggled anyway at their interaction.
After Seokjin checked your wound and told you that you were healing beautifully, you ate all of your food and finally could take a bath after getting the catheter removed. Sun-hee was patient and sweet with you. She didn't ask personal questions, and you were thankful for that. You weren't ready to talk about what happened with anyone else yet. You wanted to trust these people so badly, and although something inside kept telling you that you could, you still felt on high alert because it was too good to be true and good things never last.
You were curious about Sun-hee and Seokjin. They were the first mated pair you'd ever met. Elena once told you that not every wolf finds their true mate, and the few that do are extremely lucky. For a while, you always wondered if you'd be one of the lucky ones but growing up locked up in a place where you were experimented on quickly squashed that dream. What if he was already mated to someone else, or worse yet, what if he didn't want you?
Sun-hee seemed to notice your hesitation as she helped put on the arm sling for you, "You can ask me anything you want, you know?"
"I—Are you and Seokjin true mates? Not that it matters, I'm just curious about how it all works."
She happily nodded, "We are! I started working at a hospital in the city when he walked into the room I was in with a patient one day," she chuckled at the memory. "We forgot the patient was there until he coughed and asked if we were okay."
"But, how did you two know you were true mates?"
"No one ever explained it to you?" The nurse inquired, and you shook your head no. "Well, I felt this instant sense of safety and trust when I looked at him. And his scent, his scent smelled amazing. My heart was going crazy too. I didn't even know him, but all I wanted was to be near him, surrounded by him. Can you believe I even forgot how to breathe?" Sun-hee laughed softly and shook her head.
You thought back to the night Jungkook found you in the forest, how calm you felt in his presence despite him being a stranger. The way your pulse quickened as he moved closer to you and your nose caught his scent. No. It had to be a coincidence. Maybe you were so out of it, so tired and desperate for help, and that's the reason you felt these things.
"YN, are you okay?" Sun-he placed her hand on your shoulder. "Have you experienced what I just explained to you?"
"I—I might've, but I can't be sure." You dropped your gaze, feeling a little embarrassed by the way she was looking at you.
"Look, I know you just met me and that you don't trust me yet, but I still want you to know that you can confide in me, and I can help you with whatever you need whenever you feel comfortable. I'm not sure what you've gone through, but I promise you that you're safe now. This place is your home if you need one, and Jungkook will do anything for you." Sun-he widened her eyes, quickly realizing her mistake.
"Why would Jungkook do anything for me? He just met me, and I'm nobody to him."
"I—you'll have to talk to him. I'm sorry, I spoke too much." The nurse grabbed her things and slightly bowed her head before exiting the bedroom, leaving you with more unanswered questions.
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