A familiar melody of the iPhone ringing resonated inside the silent living room along with the soft noises of cars passing by and murmurs of the busy city.
The guy with messy blonde hair stirred in his sleep and crooked his eyebrows at the annoying noise of his phone buzzing inside the pocket of his slacks. Jungkook forced open his eyes, immediately regretting as the morning sunlight directly made contact with his vision coming through the transparent walls of his living room.
He moved his body, hissing when his palm came in contact with the sharp tips of the broken glasses of the alcohol bottles and that's when everything clashed down at Jungkook as he slowly began to remember what happened last night.
But before he could think further about it, the irritating ringing of his phone seized his attention back. Jungkook cussed silently when the sharp headache from the alcohol finally hits him. He slowly raised his upper portion from the laying position and sit on the messy floor. The blonde then pulls out his phone from the pocket of his slacks, 'Assistant Wang' was hovering over the screen along with the red and green circle as the phone kept buzzing in his grip.
Jungkook swiped the green button while pressing a palm over his throbbing forehead. He cleared his throat and hold the phone close to his ear. "What is it?" He responded, voice groggy and raspy from both the alcohol effect and also because of the ear-deafening screams he let out last night.
"Mr. Jeon." Jungkook frowned when he detected the pure concern and panic lingering in his assistant's tone even through the speaker. He also noticed the urgency and slight shivers in his vocal cords. "What's the matter?" Jungkook asked. His eyebrows crooked together in confusion.
"I think you should check the morning news, sir. Today's breaking news." A grimace and deep disarray washed over Jungkook's face when Jackson hung up the phone right after telling him to check the news.
Without any further ado, Jungkook crawled toward the long couch since he spend the entire night sleeping right next to it. The blonde grabs the remote from there and turns on the smart television.
And the first thing that he came across after turning on the TV was something he never expected or even imagined to witness, not even in his ominous nightmares.
Jungkook's lips slowly parted open as he began to take shallow breaths while his body was completely frozen beside the couch. He could feel thin sweat slowly producing from his body hair follicle and his eyes deliberately extended their size as he watched the news.
The only thing he could hear and see is the feminine voice of the lady news anchor and the bold headline flashing at the edge of the screen. "Kim Taehyung, the CEO of Kim Innovation and the second son of politician Kim Do-Yun is reported to get into a crucial accident. According to the investigation team, his car fell into the river due to a heavy crash. Divers are sent underwater for further investigation. Please stay with us for more updates."
Jungkook felt his whole world flipped upside down because he could actually feel his surroundings spinning around him as he listen to the lady speak before the scene changed to the accident spot and now the screen was showing a reporter showing the recent updates of the accident spot with a helicopter over Han river. There was a huge crowd of people gathered at the bridge. A crane vessel parked right under the said bridge, probably to get out the disfigured car from underwater.
Meanwhile, none of the scenes made sense to Jungkook. He felt like he was trapped in a nightmare. Because he refused to believe whatever is happening in front of his very eyes right now is actually true.
🥀
Jungkook harshly kicks on the brake paddle and the car stopped with an annoying screeching sound. He hastily got off the car and didn't even bother to shut off the car door as he slowly started to make his way toward the crowd. He was still in his previous attire. Dirty slacks and the un-ironed white button-up isn't even tucked inside his trouser.
Jungkook carefully takes in the view before his eyes. The accident spot was secured with those familiar yellow tapes that say 'crime scene' in big bold letters. The traffic cones surround a certain area, marking a border so that any outsider who is not involved with the rescue team or the investigators, the police, and the family members of the victim can get the hint where to stand and not cross the line.
Jungkook pushed himself past those civilians and headed directly to the yellow tapes. He holds the thin material in his grip and pushes them up to make way for him. Two police officers immediately arrived to stop him since they did not recognize him and thought he was a random person or reporter who wants to break in.
"Sir, stay outside the line. Don't try to break in." The police officer warned as he tried to shove Jungkook away from the accident scene but the blonde didn't even budge. His eyes were lifeless as if he was zoning out but in reality, he was staring at the broken railing of the bridge that was probably induced when Taehyung's car fell into the river. His eyes swelled with tears but no emotions were flashing through his face. The police officer kept trying to push him away but Jungkook acted like he didn't even realize someone is getting physical with him so that he can't cross the line.
"Let him in," The officer stopped and turn around when he heard a voice directed at him. It was Jin who gave the permission. The officer pursed his lips and let go of Jungkook, standing aside so that the blonde can saunter further inside the accident spot.
Jungkook slowly made his way toward the broken railing but before he could get closer to the spot, Jin stopped him. "Don't go there. It's risky." Jin uttered, shoving both of his hands inside his slack pockets as he too didn't let his eyes avert from the broken railing, a spot that reminds him that this is from where his brother's car fell into the river last night and is still inside the river.
The morning breeze slowly blew his hair, revealing his forehead. His eyes were as empty as Jungkook's, his face lacking any emotions but at the same time there was a mixture of anger and pain prominent there. A sentiment that shows grief and someone's loss. His brother.
The blonde finally avert his gaze from the railing and turns his head to peer at Seokjin. "Where's—Where's Taehyung?" Jungkook asked which produced a dry, humorless chuckle from Jin.
Jin too averts his eyes from that certain spot and looks at Jungkook with a blank stare. "Inside the car, that is still underwater." He responded, even though he didn't mean it but the way he responded to Jungkook's question, came out a little aggressive and harsh. I mean, he is angry. He is angry and sporadic over his brother's loss.
Jungkook crooked his brows in a deep frown, he was close to breaking down. He is a pinch close to kneeling over the rough road and scream in agony but a part of him doesn't want to believe it. A part of him is telling him that Taehyung is okay and that he will see him again. Healthy and alive.
Jungkook avert his eyes from Jin and looks around until his eyes fell on a familiar figure, Taehyung's dad. He doesn't know why but as soon as his eyes fell on the old man, he hastily saunters towards him but before he could ask anything, a man approached them, causing him to halt on his spot.
"Mr. Kim," The man spoke, standing face to face with the said man but not forgetting to remain a respective distance between them. Mr. Kim sighed, his gray hair blowing with the soft breeze as he avert his gaze from the river and looks at the man, silently telling him to continue, "We've sent divers and they have reported that they found the car." The man explained, hesitant eyes looking up at the politician but professionalism was still prominent through his tone.
Mr. Kim didn't utter a word. Instead, he nodded. His eyes were murky, as murky as the weather today, and his expression holds a heavy grimace. A look of denial but acceptance at the same time. He just lost his son, according to him, and at this moment, he doesn't know how to react to any of this but he managed to remain strong.
One thing Jungkook noticed was that both Seokjin and Mr. Kim were trying extremely hard to hold a tough look. As if, they already mentally broke down, and have gone through misery, loss, anger, and frustration in a short time and now it's time for acceptance. As if they already accepted Taehyung's death even though they haven't yet seen the said man's body.
They are acting like 'It is, what it is.'
"But there's bad news." Jungkook snapped his head toward the man and looks up at him with wide eyes after hearing the recent statement. Mr. Kim scrutinizes back at the man again and tilted his head. "Bad news? What bad news do you have for me? That my son is no more?" Jungkook curled his fingers into a fist as a sharp pang hits him right into his heart at the mere mention of Taehyung's possible death. He parted his lips to take shallow breaths again as his gaze trailed down toward the ground.
"I wish it was as simple as that. Now don't get me wrong, Mr. Kim. No one wishes for your son's death, but the case has taken a turn into a more complicated one." The man proclaimed, grabbing both Jungkook and Mr. Kim's profound attention.
"What do you mean?" Mr. Kim asked, Jungkook glanced at him for a second before returning his gaze to the investigator again because he has the same question floating at the back of his mind. His curious eyes expanded slightly as they peer at the man with confusion.
"We have found the car but we are unable to find Kim Taehyung's body." Jungkook's eyes narrowed into a deep frown when the man declared the unexpected piece of information. A thin layer of sweat yet again coating over his skin. He glances at Mr. Kim who was as confused and shocked as him before returning his gaze toward the investigator again.
"What do you mean you can't find him? If you found his car how can you not find him?! Where can he possibly go?" Jungkook suddenly yelled out from their side and proceeds to take a few more steps to approach them. The two fellow turns their head at the question and looks at the frustrated man only dressed up in a plain white button-up and a pair of slacks even in the freezing cold.
"That's our question too. We can only answer your question after we get the car outside of the river and send it to the forensic team. 'Till then, we are doing our best to search for the body." The investigator assured politely but frowned when Jungkook snapped at him.
"Don't call him 'a body' if you don't even know his whereabouts. How can you just assume that he's dead?!" The blonde head conflicted while slightly glaring at the man while Mr. Kim shook his head and looks away with a sigh.
"We are not assuming, sir. We are speaking from the possibility. The car had a big crash with a truck, then it fell into the river plus the water is freezing cold. Do you still think he is alive?" The investigator asked while tilting his head to the side. Jungkook gritted his teeth as both anger and anguish crawled under his skin. His eyes prickled with unshed tears once again.
"If I don't see his body, then yes, he is still alive," Jungkook responded in a breathy tone, on the verge of crying. Confidence is apparent even in his shaky tone. The investigator sighed but he decided against arguing any further since it was useless and also because if the man before him wants to believe Taehyung is alive, then who is he to even debate about this topic? After all, his death is not confirmed yet. No one has seen his body yet.
So he turned around and proceed to make his way toward the accident scene to investigate further about the case.
Jungkook also spun around on his hills with tear-filled eyes. He placed both of his hands over his hips and hung his head low. He squeezed his eyes shut as the tears finally slowly started to slide down his cheeks. His cheeks and nose turned into a rosy hue. Jungkook sniffled and bites down on his bottom lip as the strong urge to hit something washed over his body. He started to stroll back and forth, turning from right to left or sometimes pulling on his blonde strands.
If he could, he would've turned back time and wouldn't push Taehyung away. If he knew Taehyung is going to get into a severe accident like this, he wouldn't let him leave even though he was mad.
Jungkook never meant it when he pushed Taehyung away. He never meant it when he said those crucial words to the older lad. He didn't mean any of it. It was all because of his anger issues. Now that he thinks about it, he did overreact a bit. When Taehyung said the kiss didn't mean anything, he should've calmed down and talked it out with the older. Maybe give Taehyung a warning and then gently push him away if he needed space or time? Maybe he could've even told Taehyung to work for it, to gain his trust again if the kiss really didn't mean anything.
But he refused to listen to the whole story and even physically hurt the older. He also went a little overboard with his choice of words, telling the older one he doesn't care if Taehyung lives when the said guy was already going through a lot.
It was his bad temper speaking at that time.
Ever since Jungkook revealed the whole situation to the public and the press in that birthday live telecast, Taehyung's life turned into an absolute living hell. The reporters were already after his neck and Taehyung was sure they wouldn't leave him alone anytime soon until the matter becomes old news and the civilian doesn't show any interest in it. But in the meantime, dealing with a huge amount of press while running the second most successful company in Korea plus dealing with his own mental health was already a toll on him. He didn't even have the opportunity to run away, go on vacation, and soothe his mind after the betrayal he faced from his own brother.
So maybe that's why death came to him as an option to escape all these chaos?
Maybe that's why Taehyung let go of the steering wheel? Because he knows the next day he has to deal with the press anyway and there won't be Jungkook to keep him sane. He has to get back into the same usual days with the company, the work and, the responsibilities. A life he never choose but was compelled to take anyway because he didn't want to disappoint his father.
He was never the type to deal with huge responsibilities and crowds of people. He just wanted peace and his camera. He never wanted the life he was living. He only chooses it because of Jimin and his father.
No matter what he does or what people do to him, in the end, it's always him who has to deal with the worst, the evil.
Jungkook slowly raised his head when he heard a car nearing the accident scene. He sniffled with a frown and wiped his tears. A beautiful lady came out of the car while bawling her eyes out. Jungkook instantly knew it was Taehyung's mom since he saw the lady before, and even had a small chat. Hoseok and Yoongi were also there to accompany her, trying to console her. Jungkook felt a whoosh of air passing by him and when he turned his head, he realized it was Seokjin who immediately ran to his mom when he realized her presence.
The broad shoulder guy wrapped his lanky arms around his mom's figure as the lady broke down in his hold, placing her head over Seokjin's chest, she proceeds to release her grief for her deceased son. Hoseok and Yoongi remained beside the lamenting mother.
Jungkook's heart aches when Mrs. Kim's screams of agony echo inside his ears but what makes his heart break into tiny pieces is the reason behind her affliction, the name she is chanting again and again. Taehyung.
On top of that, the atmosphere around here was gloomy, a scary kind of, and heavy with resentment.
Suddenly Jungkook heard some rushed chatter and a few men screaming out commands. He immediately spun around and jogged towards the good side of the railing. "What is happening?" Jungkook asked the previous investigator. The said guy averts his gaze from the vessel that is swimming right under the bridge and looks at Jungkook.
"The car is about to come out from the water." He responded and returned his gaze toward the vessel again. Jungkook also followed the man's gaze and looks down from the bridge, coming across the view of the crane vessel. The wings of the cranes were slowly moving upward but the car was still underwater.
"Take me there," Jungkook demanded as he peers at the investigator with a hard gaze.
The man raised a brow and tilted his head to the side questionably. "Take you where?" He asked.
"To the vessel," Jungkook replied shortly.
The man shut his eyes and let out a heavy sigh before gazing down at Jungkook again, "What's the point? The car is empty. Kim Taehyung is not there—"
"I don't care!" Jungkook suddenly yelled out, grabbing everyone's attention, even Mrs. Kim's who was crying at that moment. "You can't deny my order because I am attorney Jeon Jungkook and I will be handling this case from now on!" Jungkook announced loud and clear with his full glory while glaring at the investigator who was stunned for a second before he let out another sigh of frustration.
"Alright. Follow me." The man gave up and proceeds to walk away from the bridge, Jungkook following him behind.
After getting into a fairly two-minute ride on a speed boat, Jungkook was now standing over the crane vessel, waiting for the cranes to pull out the dismantled car from under the water with the help of those extremely robust and stagnant ropes hooked to the car underwater.
By the time, Mr. Kim and Mrs. Kim along with Hoseok, Yoongi, and Seokjin too joined them over the crane vessel. Jungkook heard a feminine cry of pain coming from right behind him when the car was finally pulled out from under the water. The remaining water from the car flows down like a small waterfall as it hangs in the air with the help of the cranes that are pulling it higher and higher.
Jungkook blinked his eyes, the tears glistening with the reflection of the daylight even though the sun hardly can be seen. His clothes waved with the freezing breeze of the river wandering around his dainty frame. The car was badly dismantled. The front view of the car was completely smashed by the force of the crash, and the windshield was completely shattered as well, of course.
But what pushed Jungkook to the edge was that the car was empty. Not like he wished to see Taehyung's deceased body hanging from the car. But not seeing him, at all, was even more thrilling and agonizing. Especially after seeing the car in such bad condition, fear encompassed both Jungkook's mind and heart causing him to suffocate with a slight hint of dizziness lingering inside his skull.
And the next thing Jungkook knew, he was slowly kneeling over the metallic floor of the vessel, letting out screams as thick tears slide down his eyes and mixed with the dirt of the ground while the Kim family stands behind him.
He, for the first time, broke down after hearing the news of Taehyung's accident and his possible death.
🥀
"Mr. Jeon, please try to control your emotions. You can't show your anger to the court." Jackson reminds his boss who was, of course, furious as he proceeds to stomp his way toward the courtroom. It was finally the day, the day he is going to face the truck driver who hit Taehyung's car and ran off. The Kim family is of course present in the courtroom since they also want the person who took their son's life away to end up behind bars.
And as promised, Jungkook is handling the case after declaring it to Mr. Kim and the man didn't have the gut to oppose it. There isn't any reason to, after all.
Jackson sighed when Jungkook didn't respond to his words and backed away when the judge enter the courtroom, everyone stands up and bowed to the old man to show their gratitude. "Please start the trial." The judge announced after sitting in his respective position, everyone following after him and taking their sit as well.
Jungkook took a deep breath and clenched his jaw before coming out from behind the table and standing in the middle of the court. "First, I'd like to ask for your honor's permission to bring the culprit here and stand behind the podium." Jungkook declared, head held high with confidence like as usual when he battles a case in the court but the only difference was his signature cocky smirk was replaced with nothing but his chapped sealed lips and alluring gaze replaced with rage, a fire in his eyes that ignites the prominent glint of revenge.
"Permission consented." As soon as the judge declared it, two police officers dragged the truck driver inside the court and made him stand behind the podium. Jungkook gritted his teeth when his eyes fell over the man. Jackson, who was sitting behind the table in his assistant spot, eyed Jungkook worriedly. Worried because he fears Jungkook can commit something stupid again because of his hot head.
And it was right, Jungkook indeed wanted to surge forward and grab the man by his collar and throw a few punches at him even though it was not going to bring back his Taehyung to him, but he wanted to take his frustration, anger, agony, and pain on that person. So badly.
"Mr. Jeon," Jackson whispered warned from his seat that is right behind Jungkook. The said guy took a deep breath and shut his eyes close, trying to calm himself down. It took everything in him to not hustle forward and commit a murder right then and there. Jungkook opened his eyes after reminding himself that he should focus on the case. The most effective way to teach someone a lesson is revenge after all and revenge is often taken by effort and mind games, not getting physical.
He turned around and saunter towards Jackson while expending an arm which his assistant understood and handed him the file of evidence. Jungkook took it and walks back to the podium, handing the file of evidence to the court reporter.
"Your honor, the file of evidence I just submitted to you says clearly that this man standing behind the podium right now was inside the truck and he's the same person who hit my client Kim Taehyung's car and ran off" Jungkook started, even though he wasn't even a tad bit comfortable with the way he said 'my client' he had to utter it for the sake of the professionalism of the court manners.
"There is even a pen drive with the CCTV footage of that night where he. . ." Jungkook trailed off as he pointed his index finger towards the man behind the podium, eyes narrowing at the same time as he glares at him before continuing through his gritted teeth, "Hit my client's car and ran off."
The court reporter immediately plugged the pen drive into his laptop and the footage of the CCTV camera flashed through the projector. Mrs. Kim, who was sitting there on one of the benches between her husband and her eldest son, gripped the fabric of her dress and looks away when the footage of Taehyung's car getting hit by the truck to a force the back of the car directly made contact with the railing and it falls over the river.
Jungkook gulped, thin sweat was yet again coating his skin as his heart sink to his stomach, a huge lump formed inside his throat but he tried his best to not let any tears interrupt his vision as he managed to put up a tough demeanor while watching the clip.
"Alright." Jungkook's voice sliced through the deafening silence. "So as you can see, It's clear as water that this man right here hit my client's car and ran off without any care. Hit and run. He probably took the life of the most prestigious CEO around the chest of Korea. We have not confirmed his death since it's been two days and still, his body was not found. I'd like to hear what my honor has to say about this." It was difficult, it was extremely difficult for Jungkook to utter those words about his lover, declaring his lover's death even though he himself doesn't believe that Taehyung is no more. Just for the sake of the case and court rules.
"Does the opponent team has anything to say?" The judge asked causing Jungkook's opponent to stand up and stand side by side with the blonde head.
The man saunter forward and also submitted a file to the court reporter who passed it to the judge to investigate. "Your honor, in this file you can clearly see there are several cases of Kim Taehyung getting into accidents and it's all because of his own fault. Because he was drunk—"
"Objection your honor!" Jungkook immediately interrupted his opponent, clenching his hands into two fists to calm himself down and not throw a fucking punch at the opponent attorney as well.
When the judge accepted his objection, Jungkook proceeds to speak, "First I'd like to request my dear colleague to do his research correctly or watch his choice of words because the 'several' cases of my client getting into drunk accidents are completely false. It happened only one time that too no one was harmed." Jungkook declared, he didn't even spare a look at his opponent as he kept his gaze fixed on the judge instead. Because he fears if he looks at the man beside him, he might lose his cool.
"I can take serious actions for wrongly accusing my client." Jungkook then added, turning his head slightly to glare at his opponent for a second before looking away again.
"If that's the case, I'd like to ask my client's perspective too, Your honor. What he saw before the crash." The opponent requested, which was granted by the judge once again.
"You may inquire him." The judge announced.
The man saunters closer to the man standing behind the podium and looks up. "So, Dongseok-sshi, what do you think? Who's mainly responsible for the crash?" The man asked his client, a hand placed over the wooden podium.
"He did look pretty drunk because I was honking several times but he wasn't listening. I thought he was going to take a side turn but he didn't and everything happened so fast, I wasn't able to get a grip on what just happened." The driver explained his point of view. The other attorney nodded and looks up at the judge.
"Your honor, If you flip the next page there is a picture attached. A picture of an alcohol bottle smashed on the road was spotted only a few meters at a distance from the accident spot. It's possible he got drunk there for whatever reason, took his frustration away by throwing the alcohol bottle, and then started driving." The man accused, smirking slightly while the judge examine the picture closely.
Jungkook fumed with anger as the man was explaining his side of the evidence to the judge as if it was going to stop the driver from getting punished just the way he deserved. All Jungkook want is to throw the man behind the bars for the rest of his life.
"It's not only my fault, your honor. Kim Taehyung was drunk too—" The truck driver tries to defend himself but Jungkook already had enough.
"DRUNK OR NOT YOU HAVE FUCKING EYES!" Jungkook suddenly yelled at the top of his lung taking everyone aback inside the court. Jackson stiffen on his spot and watched the situation in front of him with worried eyes. The blonde's chest heaves up and down after he yelled out the words while glaring at the guy behind the podium.
"Mr. Jeon, first of all, control your emotions because if you mix personal sentiment with work I have to replace you and hand this case to someone else, and second, mind your language, please." The judge warned, causing Jungkook to avert his gaze from the man and look up at the judge.
"I apologize," He stated blandly even though he definitely didn't mean the apology.
And the trial resumes.