Requested by @Krotan
warning: descriptions of injury, violence, blood
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Jimin's heart caught in his throat. Someone was following him. In the pitch dark of night, he had no way to defend himself either.
In his pocket, he had cash that he had gotten from the ATM. He had been planning on getting a new book from the bookstore down the street. They only accepted cash.
That probably wouldn't be the fate of those bills, now that he was in this situation.
Hurried footsteps came closer and closer to him. Jimin froze. He knew he should keep moving, keep trying to flee, but panic prevented him from doing anything.
And by the time he figured out what to do, it was far too late.
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Jimin still wasn't home. Hoseok sighed, looking at his roommate's empty bed. His eyes were closing already. Jimin wouldn't come home faster if he stayed awake. Jimin also was the world-champion at never checking his phone, so texting or calling wouldn't work either.
With a sigh, Hoseok turned out the lights. He curled up in his bed and went to sleep.
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Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Jimin could only swear.
"Money, do you have money?"
Somebody grabbed him and pressed him against a building wall. Jimin gasped and choked. He couldn't breathe. His lungs seized up and flooded with pain.
"I need money, give me money," the person holding him said. "I know you have some."
Their voice was low.
"Ye-yes, money, yes," Jimin choked. He twisted out of the person's grip, his chest and neck throbbing. He reached into his pocket and took the bills out. He didn't have time to feel sorry for himself. The person grabbed the bills. Jimin thought he saw dollar bills shining in their eyes.
His hand was grabbed. Jimin didn't have time to make a run for it.
"Please let me go," he begged. "Please don't hurt me, I'm begging you..."
The person didn't say a single word. They only kept breathing heavily. Jimin felt like he was the verge of tears. Their grip on his wrist was so strong.
They pulled something out of their pocket. It glinted in the streetlight. Sharp, pointy, shiny... Jimin's heart stalled. Oh no, oh no, that was a blade. Oh no. Run. Go. No.
Jimin tried to yank his hand free. He pulled and twisted himself around so he could get out, but the person had an iron grip on him. Jimin couldn't move his hand even an inch. Panic overflowed his mind. His heart was thumping at what felt like two hundred miles per hour. He tried to run, he tried to flee, but he couldn't move at all. And soon enough, it was too late. He watched in slow motion as the person stabbed him in the chest. Jimin let out a scream and toppled over. The blade was ripped out of him.
They fled right after.
Jimin was gasping. The pain started making him dizzy. He couldn't breathe. He was going to die here. His money was gone. He was going to die. His shirt was wet with blood. Oh no, that was a lot of blood. Jimin screamed again. His voice was weakening. So this is what his fate was, dying alone in a back lane.
His phone! He could call for help! He felt around his pocket. Jimin slid his hand down his left one and pulled his phone out. He tapped emergency call in a panic.
The call beeped. The pain worsened. Jimin gritted his teeth. This was his only option.
"Hello, emergency, how may I help you?"
Jimin coughed. He tried to think quickly.
"I was stabbed. I don't know exactly where I am, but it's somewhere near the new mall-" he gasped- "Please save me, I'm going to die here." He gasped again after he finished his sentence. He was so damn tired. He couldn't talk anymore.
"What kind of place are you in? Can you describe it for me?"
"Back... la-"
"Back lane, okay, thank you. Don't worry... an emergency services team has been dispatched for you. Don't you worry. Stay calm. I'm here. Can you tell me your name?"
"Jimin."
"Okay, Jimin, just stay calm. Help is coming... Jimin? Jimin, can you say something?... Jimin? Jimin are you there?"
The phone was in front of him. Jimin didn't have the energy to reply anymore. He closed his eyes. Sleeping sounded so nice. It felt so nice as well.
He drifted off.
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Jimin was seen a mere fifteen minutes later. The ambulance rushed over to him. He was turned onto his side so his wound would be visible. One paramedic wrapped a bandage around his chest so there wouldn't be so much bleeding. The bleeding had slowed down a lot, but blood was still coming out.
Jimin had passed out a while ago. His blood pressure was checked. It was severely low. He had already lost a good deal of blood. With a clip, his oxygen saturation was checked. 87%. The clip stayed on his finger. There was no dilly-dallying now. Jimin was lifted onto a stretcher. His legs dangled off the end until he was adjusted properly. A mask was put onto his face. An IV was made into his arm. Fluids, fluids, they needed fluids... said fluids was hooked up. Jimin's oxygen saturation had dropped one percent.
The stretcher was lifted into the ambulance. Jimin was safe for the time being.
The ambulance sped off to the hospital. Jimin's vital signs were monitored the entire time. His blood pressure kept going down and his pulse was too fast.
Nobody said anything. They held their breath and kept doing their job.
"Does anybody know what happened to him?" somebody asked in a low voice.
"No, not a clue."
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"Hello, I was told that you were Mr. Park's emergency contact. Is that correct?"
Hoseok frowned into the phone. It was four in the morning. Yes, he probably was Jimin's emergency contact, but how exactly was that important now? He bit back his own thoughts, however, when he saw that Jimin's bed was still unoccupied and he still wasn't home. Hoseok gulped. Something had gone wrong. Oh no.
"Yes, why?"
"There's been an incident," the receptionist drawled. "Your friend was found stabbed in an alleyway. He managed to call for help and get to the hospital. He's currently undergoing emergency surgery."
Hoseok was too stunned to talk for a moment. Jimin? Stabbed? He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. He was half-asleep before, but he definitely was wide awake now.
"How-how did this happen?"
"No clue yet. We have let the police know, but as for the time being, nobody knows exactly what happened."
"Oh, okay," Hoseok said. He went through the worst scenarios in his mind. Poor Jimin. He probably was so scared. Oh, Hoseok should've warned him against coming home at night. "When can I visit? Or can I-"
"You can come at eight in the morning to make sure that he's okay, if you want. He won't be awake at that time, but he will be out of surgery."
"Okay." Hoseok nodded, even though she couldn't see him. "I just... thank you, thank you for letting me know."
"No problem."
Hoseok hung up the phone and sat heavily down on his bed. This isn't happening, he told himself. This is all a bad dream. No matter the case, there was no way that he could sleep now. Worries and thoughts about Jimin snaked through his mind, preventing him from thinking, remembering, or feeling.
The only thing he could feel was guilt.
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Seven-thirty in the morning. Hoseok was in the living room ready to go. He had explained the situation in the group chat, but none of the others were awake yet. He would've loved to stay and explain it to them in person, but he had to go.
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Hoseok was allowed to go up to a door and look at Jimin through a glass window. He wasn't allowed to go in and sit by his side yet. In case of infection, the nurse explained.
As much as Hoseok could see, which wasn't much, Jimin looked very different. His skin was pale and there was a mask over his face. His hair was messy. There seemed to be a few Band-Aids on his face. But the thing that attracted most of Hoseok's attention was Jimin's chest. The stitches were dark and bold. Hoseok grimaced looking at them. It looked like it hurt. Thankfully, Jimin's eyes were shut. He had been unconscious for a while, and he would continue to be until the afternoon.
The only thing Hoseok wondered about was, why? How and why did this thing happen?
What had Jimin been doing anyway?
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Hoseok groaned, checking his phone. Of course Taehyung had to call. He wasn't sure if he could even formulate his thoughts properly, let alone talk to someone.
When he picked up, Taehyung's voice flitted through like he was a panicked chicken.
"What happened? What did your message mean?"
"Jimin... he, something happened to him. Someone stabbed him and he's in the hospital now."
"What? Why?"
"Taehyung, I don't know," Hoseok snapped. "I have no clue why or how anything happened."
"Oh." Taehyung went quiet for a moment, before speaking again. His voice was softer and tamer now. "Did you see him?"
"Kind of."
"Huh?"
"Saw him through a window, they're not letting me in."
"Oh." Thankfully Taehyung didn't question anything this time. "Do you want me to come?"
"It's fine. He isn't even awake yet, so it's really no use."
"Oh." Taehyung sighed. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine."
"I'm coming then."
"What-" Hoseok couldn't finish his argument before Taehyung cut the call. He sighed heavily before coming to his senses. The smell of disinfectant wafted into his nose. This whole place was too sanitized. Oh, he just wanted Jimin to be alright.
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The room was wobbly when Jimin first opened his eyes. He blinked a few times and his vision settled. Details slowly came into view - the numbers on the clock, the wrinkles on the sheet draped on top of him, the faded paint on the walls, etc. Jimin sighed. He tried to swallow, and was attacked with a stinging in his throat.
He looked down and suddenly, it all came back to him. The alley, the money, the stabbing... yes, he remembered it all, though he felt that it wasn't real. Jimin sighed. The mask on his face felt uncomfortable. He decided to let himself drift off again.
"Oh yeah, you're awake?"
Jimin jerked. A nurse quickly hurried to his side. He watched as she slid the mask off. A glass of water was sitting on the table next to him. Jimin sipped it carefully when it was handed to him.
"Your friend is here to see you, do you want them to come in?"
Friend? Jimin hoped it was one of the members. He nodded.
"Okay, I'll get him to come in."
Jimin closed his eyes again. He was so tired. A moment later, he heard someone sit down next to his bed. Jimin was about to open his eyes to see who it was, but the person spoke first.
"Oh Jimin, thank God that you're alright. I was so worried."
Jimin couldn't help the small smile that spread across his face. Hoseok was here. He was finally safe.
He couldn't talk due to the stinging in his throat, but Hoseok probably didn't need to hear anything from him. He knew what had happened, and didn't ask any questions. When Jimin opened his eyes to peek at him, he could tell that the restraints of worry had finally begun to lift off of Hoseok's features.
Hoseok was alright too.
Jimin dozed off again. He wasn't awake when Taehyung arrived. The painkillers were strong and he was too tired.
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Over the course of the next few weeks, Jimin's pain levels fluctuated. It hurt to breathe, it hurt to talk, it hurt to do everything. The stitches rubbed against his shirt and felt weird.
But it gradually got better. He got stronger. His lungs healed so he wasn't short of breath or worn out. Jimin didn't know exactly how long it took for him to fully get back to normal - the days melted into each other - but it wasn't a fast process.
The police did try looking for the attacker, but they never did find them. Jimin's money had vanished along with them. He was inclined to be sad at the beginning, and sometimes he still was, but mostly, he was just glad that he was alive.
That had been a close call.
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requests are closed!
get well soon jimin!
2113 words