'Have you seen my journal?'
Jimin - internally stewing and thrumming his fingers on the dashboard - gradually turned his head to stare at the insouciant man behind the wheel. 'What journal?'
'My journal.' Jin's face crumpled as if his boss had just asked the silliest question on the planet. 'You know, the one with all the notes in it?'
Jimin ground his teeth together, amazed at his calm disposition considering their present status quo. 'What notes?'
'For fuc- The notes on the vortex and your whirlwind of adventures,' Jin tutted as he nonchalantly smiled at a passing couple walking their Pomeranian. 'I updated it a few days ago with the findings on the star. I put my life into that book, and now it's gone walkabout.'
Dumping his skull against the headrest, Jimin released a drawn out sigh.
Right now, he didn't give a flying fuck about Jin's journal, only the woman riding in the SUV further along the road.
I love you, too. Just a whole lot of simply.
The corners of Jimin's mouth twitched, his eyes glued to the roof of their Santa Fe as the traffic slowed at a pedestrian crossing.
He'd known for as long as he could remember that he was in love with the spirited lady, and yesterday, the confession had slipped from his mouth as natural as a bee collecting pollen.
Yunhee's reciprocation had left Jimin walking on air and thinking about the future they could one day share. But he was no fool; their fervent escapade in the garden was a distraction, for they had a rocky reality to conquer before they could even think about starting a life together.
Today, Tae was taking his "girlfriend" out on another trip to Dream Bean, but Jimin had a really bad feeling that he'd been unable to shake since the party of four had left the mansion.
'They're moving,' Jin muttered as Tae cruised through the green light several cars ahead. 'He should take the next-'
'Left,' Jimin croaked, keeping his gaze trained on their indicator. 'Dream Bean is on Dasan-ro, so he'll need to make a left after-' Jimin fired forward in his seat, his eyes bulging like a toad when Tae glided into the outer lane and turned right instead. 'What the hell is he doing?'
'Bloody hell!' Jin thundered, smacking the gas pedal while spinning the steering wheel with the heel of his palm. Their car swerved out of the queue, shaving past the line of traffic until they skidded sharply around the corner to give chase. 'Do you see them?'
With his heart lodged in his throat, Jimin's eyes darted from Kia to Daewoo to every Hyundai under the sun, examining the unending flow of vehicles on the street that ran parallel with a vast green park.
'Stop, stop, stop!' he yelled frantically as they raced past a Santa Fe reversing into a bay.
Jin bumped the kerb as Jimin hastily unbuckled his seat belt and eyed them through the wing mirror. Tae and Yunhee were fifty metres behind, parked next to a wide set of steps that dwindled up into a mass of tall trees.
'What the hell?' Jin rumbled, wedging his broad shoulders between the two front seats to watch through the rear window. 'That's an entrance to Namsan Park.'
Jimin's fingers whitened on the door handle when Tae exited the Santa Fe. 'I swear to God. If he takes her in there-'
'Wait!' Jin barked, gripping his bicep when he impulsively threw the door open. 'Hoseok could be here. If we're seen, this whole thing is over.'
'I don't care,' he spat while brutally shaking him off, 'if Hoseok doesn't murder him, I will.'
Jimin's gaze remained glued to their SUV as he hopped onto the sidewalk, his fingers clutching the Raptor beneath his leather jacket when Tae ignored his approaching presence and helped Yunhee climb out.
The second her Chuck Taylors touched the tarmac, their eyes met across the distance, but when she showed him her palm and subtly shook her head, Jimin stalled.
Was he overreacting?
'Oi!' Jin hissed from where he hung halfway out of their vehicle. 'Get back in the car. She's fine.'
No, she was anything but.
Yunhee may have signalled for him to back off, but her face was still riddled with uncertainty. Tae had surprised her as much as them with his unexpected change of plan, and now he was fiddling with her scarf, securing it tighter around her neck and fixing her beanie as if he gave a doting damn.
The bastard was going to walk her right into Namsan Park and out of their line of sight.
The red mist began to descend when Tae took Yunhee's hand and led her to the base of the steps, but it exploded into a continuum of scarlet indignation when she glanced back and mutely pleaded for him to follow before they disappeared into the thick woodland.
'Seokjin.' Jimin's tone was subdued, yet clear enough for his right-hand man to understand as he scrambled out of the car. 'Time to move.'
*
'Hey!' Yunhee peeked up at the towering trees as she was lugged up the steep steps. 'Where are we going? We're supposed to be getting coffee!'
'We are getting coffee,' Tae argued, pointing to a refreshment stall on the grit path as they neared the top. 'See?'
'But this is Namsan Park! It's not part of the plan,' Yunhee protested. Bringing her here on a whim without prior discussion had evidently thrown Jimin out of sorts. The man looked ready to rip Tae's head off a few minutes ago. 'You know you're in trouble, right? Jimin-'
'Jimin can kiss my perfectly peachy arse,' Tae retorted with a box-grin. Yunhee stifled a laugh, correcting her wonky hat as he tugged her to the coffee stand and sifted out his wallet. 'You want the usual?'
'S-sure,' she nodded while apprehensively checking the vicinity.
Dream Bean was accessible to the public, but the interior was tiny with only one doorway that was easy to monitor. This place was wide open, offering a range of entrances and exits and an abundant number of nooks and crannies for people to hide.
They were sitting ducks, but perhaps this would be the day that Hoseok made a mistake and Jimin and Jin could tail him back to Taehyung-
'Helloooo?' Tae teased, waving a cup of Americano in front of her eyes as her phone vibrated.
Yunhee shook herself out of her troubled reverie, blindly taking the hot drink while fumbling to read the new text message.
I got you covered, Little Legs.
Thank God.
'Relax, Little Legs,' Tae snickered as Yunhee's head whipped from side to side in search of Jimin. 'Just because you can't see him, doesn't mean he can't see you.'
Yunhee shoved her phone away, blushing pink when Tae hooked his index finger beneath her chin and turned her face to meet his. 'D-don't call me that.'
'Fine.' Tae sent her a crooked smile, bending his knees to stoop to her height. 'How about we get into character then?'
He was so close she could feel his hot breath fanning her cheeks. Worse yet, the hushed whispers floated around them like water hyacinths on a pond, making it increasingly difficult for her to focus on anything but the fiery brown eyes inches from her own.
'Don't worry,' Tae murmured as he leaned in a portion more, 'I'm not going to kiss you yet.'
Yet?
Before Yunhee could even think of an appropriate response, Tae swung his forearm around her shoulders and ushered her along the trail. His hold was uneasily tight, and all she could envision was Jimin charging out from behind a tree to drown him in the nearest fishpond.
'Ahh,' Tae sighed dramatically, lifting his Roman nose to the skies to breathe in the fresh air, 'I love this time of year.'
'You always did prefer the colder months,' Yunhee reminisced in an attempt to minimise the tension. 'You whine like a baby if it's anything above ten degrees.'
'I despise feeling sweaty.' Tae cut her a sideways glance, audaciously licking his lips as he haphazardly kicked a stone across the gravel. 'You know my skin gets itchy with too many clothes on.'
Yunhee eyeballed the mischievous man while disapprovingly shaking her head. 'Are you flirting with me again?'
Tae pouted sullenly. 'Isn't that what people do on dates?'
There was little room for argument; the man had a point, and so Yunhee reigned in her emotions for appearance's sake, sticking by Tae's side when he diverted left to join the popular Namsan Mountain Trail.
They were heading deeper into the park, the wide footpath and fortress wall sweeping up the forested hill all the way to the iconic tower. Jimin would not be too far behind, Yunhee was sure, but he would be foaming at the mouth trying to keep his eye on them while Jin calmly sought to appease him.
Joggers, parents with strollers and shrieking kids, barking dogs bounding across grassy areas and rocks. A spirited Tae, swinging their linked fingers and asking more questions than he'd ever done during their eleven month relationship while she sweated from the gruelling ascent.
'How much...how much further are we...are we going?' Yunhee wheezed.
'Why?' Tae sniggered as he finished his coffee and tossed it into a trash can. 'You want me to carry you?'
'Not a...not a...chance in hell.'
Waving him off, Yunhee stumbled to the nearest bench, slumping onto it like a sack of potatoes as Tae folded his arms and regarded her from above. 'Hmm. We really do need to work on that stamina of yours.'
'We?' Yunhee panted breathlessly as she launched her empty cup into the bin. 'Yeah, let me worry about that. You just focus on bettering yourself. BTS is a good place to start. I can send you a few YouTube links when we get back.'
'Whatever you say, Armiya.' Tae flopped onto the wooden slats, draping an arm across the back of the seat as Yunhee covertly glimpsed left and right.
It was a picturesque setting, and had she not been stressing about the gravity of their present situation, she would have kicked back and admired the landscape a whole lot more.
'Interesting choice of bench, Hahm,' Tae said as he closed his eyes and tilted his face to catch the glorious rays. 'Didn't think we'd ever end up back here.'
Swallowing a lump of dread, Yunhee double-checked her surroundings, a swarm of bygone memories flooding her when she realised where they were seated.
The dense foliage they'd traversed through had cleared, the hillside now exposed and offering a panoramic view of the city behind a row of cherries that had yet to blossom.
This was where she and Tae had made their promise.
Yunhee's shoulders bowed in awkward embarrassment. Of all benches in this colossal park, why the frick had she collapsed onto this one?
No it couldn't be a coincidence. Tae had led her up the Namsan Mountain Trail knowing that her legs would buckle after thirty minutes of hiking.
This was his doing.
Crossing her arms with an almighty huff, Yunhee glared at the heedless man basking in the sunlight until his brows dipped and he squinted at her through one eye.
'What the hell is that look?' Tae chuckled bemusedly as she continued to scowl at him.
'Why did you bring me here?'
'Hmm.' Vapourised breath swirled around Tae's head as he mirrored her folded arms and shifted to face her. 'Because it's a nice place to bring a lady on a date. What's the big deal?'
'What's the big deal?' Yunhee's voice rose an octave. 'This place holds a lot of memories. Memories that are in the past, Tae. I said that I would support you, but this is overstepping. I don't know what's going on in that head of yours after our discussion, but I told you that I'm not the answer to your prob-'
'You're reading far too much into this,' Tae defended airily. 'This park is enormous with hundreds of places to rest. Besides, you sat on our bench first, not me.'
Yunhee's cheeks flamed red at his noticeable attempt at reverse psychology. 'Don't gaslight me. You dragged me up here unwillingly-'
'Unwillingly?' Tae laughed and swiped his jutting chin. 'You could have called it a day and left with Jimin at any point. In fact, it's not too late. Why don't you give him a call right now?'
'I warned you not to gas-'
'Fine, I brought you here on purpose,' Tae admitted with a lazy smile as he swept a strand of hair from her forehead. 'I figured a special place would work better for our façade. We're supposedly rebuilding our relationship again, right?'
Yunhee wanted to smack his nomadic hand away, but she was conscious that Hoseok was skulking in a bush and ready to check in with his boss.
With a heavy sigh, she enveloped Tae's fingers instead, crushing them next to her face with a sweet smile. 'As soon as this is over, you're dead-'
'Do you think Hoseok will tittle-tattle to Taehyung if I kiss you?' Tae crooned as his palm crept around her neck.
'D-don't push your luck,' Yunhee strained, recognising the lustful glint in her ex's pupils as he stared at her lips. 'Jimin will kill you before Taehyung does.'
With a blasé shrug, Tae tickled the baby hairs on her nape while slanting his mouth towards hers.
'Let him try.'
No, no, no, this isn't happening, Yunhee thought, torn between the devil and the deep blue sea.
Or perhaps it was The Dark Energy and a deep red sea of desire because the relentless whispers were once again weakening her defences and compelling her to actually kiss him.
Don't worry, precious. I promise to go easy and fuck you slowly tonight.
'What?' A surge of outrage awoke Yunhee from her moment of madness, her eyes flying open as she slapped her hands against his chest. 'What did you just say to me?'
'Huh?' Tae reared away, his wholly bemused irises exploring hers. 'I didn't say anything.'
'Yes, you did,' the repulsed woman rebelled. 'You just... How could you...? Do you think that sort of thing is funny?'
'I swear to God, Hahm, I didn't say anyth-' Tae's perplexed smile plummeted when his attention diverted to something over her left shoulder. If his stiffened posture didn't give her the chills, then his hard as stone features did as he cautiously pulled her up off the bench. 'We need to go.'
'Why?' she whispered as Tae - intently focused on whomever he'd spotted - shielded her body and backed them down the hill. 'Do you see Hoseok? Where...where is...?'
Yunhee couldn't finish her sentence, not when her vision was distorting and swimming in and out of focus.
'Shit, what the...what the hell is...happening?'
Yunhee violently shook her head, clawing the back of Tae's jacket to stop herself from keeling over as the chilly park air thawed and daylight morphed into a candlelit chamber.
Billowing curtains. A spicy cologne.
Nude skin wearing only a ruby necklace that shimmered beside the flickering flames.
She was back in Taehyung's room, the crimson dress discarded next to the bed as the incessant man linked their fingers and hovered over her with a satisfied smirk.
Yunhee tried desperately to crawl out from the nightmare, but when he eased inside her, a surge of pleasure coursed through her and ignited a fire that was not supposed to exist.
Gaze riveted to Taehyung's, she hooked an ankle around his hip, arching her back when he began to fuck her.
'I told you I'd go easy, precious.'
Heat. Passion. A blurred boundary between love and hate.
Yunhee was lost in a frenzy of erroneous desire, and no matter how much she mentally battled to push him away, her shuddering body reacted otherwise, shamefully responding to Taehyung's touch until she was moaning for more and plunging into a cavern of licentious oblivion.
'Tae!' Someone tore past her, snatching Yunhee out of The Dark Energy's spell and hurling her right back into the present 'Get her out of here!'
Still clinging to the back of Tae's jacket, Yunhee's watery eyes adjusted to the bright sunlight just in time to catch Jimin sprinting up the path like a force of nature, while a fleeing Jung Hoseok made a hasty retreat in the opposite direction.
'For fuck's sake!' Jin shouted, speeding past the couple to join the tail end of the relay. 'Jimin, stop!'
'What are they doing?' Yunhee cried in horror at the unfolding spectacle.
'Don't even think about it!' Tae barked, catching her elbow before she staggered after the running men.
'Wait!' Yunhee protested as he began to tow her away. 'We can't leave-'
'Yes, we can,' Tae enforced. 'I'm taking you back to the car.'
Mind unfurling into chaos, Yunhee was hauled back down the winding path, but all she could picture was Jin getting shot or Jimin getting arrested for murder. Jimin getting stabbed and Jin carrying him out of the park with bloodstained hands.
Yunhee blanched, tripping on a tree root and stumbling from Tae's resolute grip. Tearing off her beanie and scarf, she rested her hands on her knees and fought the ripple of dizzying unconsciousness threatening to claim her.
'Yunhee,' Tae urged, his fingers tenderly rubbing up and down her spine, 'we need to-'
'Don't fucking touch me!' she snapped, squeezing her eyes shut as the sensual scenario of her and Taehyung tortuously replayed in her head.
This was bad. Really bad. It had been more than a few chaste kisses this time. She was beneath the man. In his bed. Enjoying it while he pleasured her.
Don't worry, precious. I promise to go easy and fuck you slowly tonight.
Yunhee understood now. It wasn't Tae that had spoken those crude words up on the park bench. It was The Dark Energy, hinting at the sinful night to come.
The vision had to be a premonition.
A premonition of a future she wanted no part of.
*
Usually, when Park Jimin vanished behind a slammed door, it was a wordless plea for Yunhee to come after him. She would be with him soon, but for the time being, she remained stationary in the hushed foyer, listening to the string of winces from her friends as Jin exhaled and clucked his tongue.
'At least he didn't swing for me this time,' Tae muttered as he pressed his shoulder blades into the wall with a spectacular eye roll.
'There's time yet,' Jungkook said before addressing an extremely windswept and dirt-covered Jin. 'I take it that things didn't go well?'
'Obviously not,' Suga scowled.
'What happened?' Hobi screeched.
'Your friend here decided to send us on a wild goose chase through Namsan Park,' Jin ranted as he thumbed at the silently fermenting Tae. 'Hoseok was way ahead of us, of course, resulting in Jimin and I chasing his scrawny arse halfway up the mountain before he vaulted over the fortress wall and retreated into the trees.'
'Um,' Suga pouted while scratching the back of his head, 'weren't you supposed to tail him back to Taehyung?'
'Beats me. Why don't you take it up with the boss?' Jin mocked before strolling into Yunhee's view. Tucking her chin, he forced her to look at him and not the black and white tiles encircling her feet. 'Are you alright, trouble?'
With a questionable nod, the fatigued woman wrapped her palm around Jin's fingers, giving them a gentle pinch as she recalled the events of their swift departure.
Miraculously, Tae had managed to calm Yunhee enough to get her down to the car without further incident, although it was a wonder she didn't lamp him every time he put his hands on her.
It was not his fault that The Dark Energy goaded her with grotesque prophecies. It was not him on top of her in that four-poster bed. It was his corrupt doppelgänger from another realm.
Tae, however, had purposefully sat on that bench and tried to kiss her. And for that, she would not forgive him so easily.
The car ride to the mansion was filled with brooding silence, not a syllable spoken until they walked through the door to a barrage of questions from Hobi, Jungkook and Suga.
Yunhee and Tae found themselves at a loss for words, unable to provide an update until Jimin and his comrade returned. But that too had gone down the pan because as soon as they did, the mob boss brushed past the awaiting group with a thunderous temperament and disappeared inside his study.
Yunhee wasn't sure if Jimin's fierce ignorance was a blessing in disguise, or a foreboding warning of the drama to come.
It was only three o'clock.
'Where's Joon, by the way?' Jin asked upon realising he wasn't present.
'In the library on the phone,' Hobi replied. 'I think something urgent came up while you were out.'
'Really?' Jin frowned as he glanced at the closed door to their left. 'Did he say what it was about?'
'No,' Suga deadpanned while swivelling to face his best friend. 'My turn. Any sign of Taehyung on your adventures?'
'No,' Tae grumbled portentously as he shoved off the wall and made a steady beeline for Jin, 'but maybe he'd have shown his face if you hadn't gotten so close-'
'What did you expect?' Jin sneered. 'For Jimin and I to stand idly by while Hoseok knocked you out and carted Yunhee away-'
'You were too close,' Tae repeated. 'You were too close on all three occasions, and now Jimin has blown our cover.'
'Right,' Jin rasped, his face a terrifying shade of purple as he balled his fists, 'along with your opportunity to kiss his girlfriend. Too bad you won't get another chance, ey?'
Scraping past Tae with a ferocious knock to his shoulder, Jin stomped to the library, awarding the remaining crew with a theatrical door slam equal to Jimin's earlier performance.
'Wow, things just got a whole lotta awkward at Park Manor,' Suga snorted while itching his nose. 'Way to go, Tae.'
'Namsan Park?' Hobi jumped in. 'What were you thinking?'
'I was thinking that no one takes a woman out on a date to the same place three times in a row,' Tae argued. 'We had to make it as believable as possible, right?'
'Not without discussing things with Jimin first,' Jungkook wailed. 'There's no way he'd have agreed to you guys kissing!'
'We didn't kiss!' Tae and Yunhee yelled, their eyes briefly meeting before the woman averted hers. With a lengthy sigh, the man in the firing line finally did the decent thing and came to her defence. 'It was me. I tried to kiss her. Yunhee wanted no part of it-'
'Of course, it was you,' Hobi glowered. 'You're still pining for her-'
'Hark!' Tae chortled while Yunhee groaned and massaged her temples.
After a none too thrilling afternoon and three failed attempts at scoping out Taehyung, she was fucking done.
Turning on her heel, she left the scene, her timely departure bringing an abrupt end to her friends' unruly argument. The four men could call after her until they were blue in the face, but there was only one man capable of bringing her peace right now.
Yunhee found him by the balcony doors after slipping quietly into his study, his black locks poking between the fingers gripping his scalp as he stared into the gardens.
'I'm sorry for acting rash and ruining our plan,' Jimin whispered as she wrapped her arms around him and rested her cheek on his bowed spine. 'I'm sorry for not checking you were alright the second I walked through the door. I couldn't stop, darling. If I had, I'd have...let's just say I haven't gotten my gun off in a while.'
'It's okay,' Yunhee chuckled against his shirt. 'I might not always know what's going on in that head of yours, but in this case, I'm with you. Tae was-'
'There's a reason I don't like him, and today, he proved me right.'
Jimin turned in her embrace, cupping her freckled cheeks with a grieved expression.
'He tried to kiss you knowing damn well you weren't in a position to turn him down. What sort of a man does that? You left him because he hurt you, then you bravely offered to help him despite what he did, but you have to ask yourself: is he really worth saving?'
'Maybe...' Yunhee choked, trying desperately to withhold a painful sob, 'maybe you're right.'
Tae had set aside his differences to help them bring Taehyung down. Without him, Hobi would still be trapped in that cargo container, perhaps dead by now. His heroic actions did not excuse his flippant behaviour over the past week, though.
It made her wonder if every sweet and understanding word he'd spoken since their breakup had been a lie. Did Tae still long to love her rather than himself? Was he capable of change, or was he a lost cause?
Let go of him, Yunhee. He's not your problem anymore, she told herself as Jimin laid his chin atop her head.
'No more dates,' he finalised, 'this bullshit is over. I'll speak to Tae in the morning. I think it's time he left.'
Yunhee bobbed her head in accord, knowing she couldn't argue with him. She didn't want to argue with him. She'd never felt so relieved about something being called off in her entire life.
'I had another vision,' she blurted after what felt like an eternity of holding her disturbed feelings inside. 'Things got a little...heated this time.'
Jimin swore like a trooper, his fingers squeezing Yunhee's blouse as he fused his lips against her scalp. 'This is so messed up. If it's not your pest of an ex trying to kiss you, it's his psychotic doppelgänger hounding your mi-'
The door flew inwards on its hinges, startling Jimin and Yunhee apart as a deathly pale Namjoon rushed into the study with a flustered Kim Seokjin in his wake.
'Sorry to interrupt, boss, but we have a serious fucking problem.'
***
Let the madness commence ;-D
28th March 2022