"Why should we keep harping on North Korea?" asks Leeseung grumpily. "Clearly all it brings is trouble." He clicks his tongue and glances at his cell phone. The shipment tracker is a little late. Nothing strange with how bad the signal is in this place.
They're not even properly in North Korea, but on the border. A small space Junghwa has claimed for himself and whatever Namjoon might want. Jimin checks his nails every now and then. Namjoon put some very nice ones on him the last time he groomed him. They are a whitish, shiny metal. They almost look like porcelain and contrary to the usual, it has a lovely engraving.
An embellishment that is especially sexy when he scratches it on his chest or back.
"I have something to do tomorrow" Jimin informs giving a bored sigh, resting his jaw on his palm. "And I need to get to Seoul. If I stay here all night I won't be able to make it!" He drums his claws on his cheek and Junghwa turns half a torso towards him.
"Do what? Carry on with that useless child you're chasing." Leeseung raises an eyebrow Since when is Junghwa aware of what Jimin does or doesn't do?
"My little dog is in training. I'm helping him, that's all" Jimin shakes his hand, indifferent. "I know he's adorable, so much so that even you want to fuck him, but you can't... Not if you want to have any face." he teases discreetly.
A subtle threat to never try to spy on what he does again, to stay away from Jungkook. The scars on Junghwa's face is the least lethal or horrible thing he's ever done to anyone who's screwed him over.
Leeseung gives a snort. Some tension has just set in because of this. Jimin gets up and starts pacing back and forth, fiddling with a couple of knives, throwing them at the wall dividing this part of the border. He throws them with such force that they stick in the concrete with no problem. A couple of hours more are needed before the two waiting trucks arrive.
Junghwa is the one who approaches, while Leeseung's men are on the lookout for a signal from their boss. Junghwa handles the whole thing and in the absence of a call to Jimin, it is understood that everything went quite well. The exchange is made: tons and tons of the newest Altered DNA they have: Smoky Cat. For this, they must deliver an exact shipment of what Namjoon is desperate to find everywhere.
Unobtanium.
Jimin doesn't care what's so special about that rock. He doesn't care. He knows that's what they called something in a science fiction movie. Apparently, it's real and very important. It makes him sick to be near that thing, so he keeps a safe distance.
Keeping an eye on it to make sure it continues as it should. Leeseung stays close to it.
"I have a sort of... bad hunch" he comments quietly. Jimin shrugs his shoulders. "Don't you have a weird feeling about Junghwa?"
"He's weird and smells awful, so I never bother to think too much" he shrugs. "Why, you want me to kill him?" Leeseung shakes his head and Jimin laughs, squatting on the ground.
"No. I just have that concern and you should mention it to Namjoon."
"He has problems with Junghwa all the time. They get along very badly."
"More to the point, I'm more in favor of you mentioning it to him. Matthew, Wonho and Jihyo agree with me...it's better to take out what can't work." Jimin shrugs again. All that matters, is that Junghwa keeps doing his job.
If Namjoon orders him to, he'll kill him. Until then, let him keep doing his part.
┈ ⋞ 〈 ✷ 〉 ⋟ ┈
He watches the clock constantly. He will hardly be able to be at the proper time. Jimin wants to arrive at Jungkook's house at five o'clock, prepare something to eat and when he arrives at six thirty, a scene of devoted wife who waited for her husband after work can be made. It would be fun. Maybe Jungkook would laugh or complain. Either reaction, he loves it.
First he must give the information to Namjoon, have whatever he wants to ask him for the night and with that-
"The unobtanium overwhelms you so much, you didn't even notice."
Jimin puts a hand to his neck and catches his breath, desperate in the small space of the car. He leans back from the wall and feels desperately, tries to find to open the door, but it is impossible. Junghwa parks the car in an alley. Leeseung drove away long ago with the trucks. Jimin bangs his head against the window, choking. He doesn't understand why he feels so bad.
"Wh... what did you... what did you..." He gives a high-pitched, anguished whimper. "Wh-what did you do to me" he whimpers squeezing his face.
Junghwa pulls him out of the car to throw him into the back seat. Jimin squirms, turning to try to flee out the other door. Barely aware of the danger. His head is throbbing, his body is burning. So many things all at once, along with his heart beating so much slower. He sobs, everything starts to lose its brightness, his vision seems to shrink, like the dirty lens of a camera and...
And...
The world looks like before.
Jimin brings his hands to his face, giving a groan. He doesn't like this. It doesn't feel good. It's horrible. His head is working weird. Like it's broken. Jimin shrinks back into himself and Junghwa gives a mocking laugh, finding Jimin's state pathetic.
"Had I known you were so easy to neutralize, I would have done it a hell of a lot sooner."
Jimin paws at him and becomes more insistent, shrieking in hysterical desperation. He doesn't want me to touch him. He wants him to walk away. He loathes it Why won't he move away? No matter how much Jimin uses his claws, Junghwa puts up with it, all to keep teasing him, to keep hurting him. There's no other way to call this invasion of his space. That makes his head and chest ache.
"Don't touch me don't touch me don't touch me DON'T TOUCH ME DON'T TOUCH ME DON'T TOUCH ME...!"
Junghwa covers his mouth with a hand and presses himself on top of Jimin, whose eyes have lost luster and are not able to look him in the eyes, as if it is impossible. A kind of repellent. He keeps laughing at him and Jimin fails to close his legs.
"It only remains for me to figure out... how to neutralize that shitty character of yours... and everything will be perfect."
┈ ⋞ 〈 ✷ 〉 ⋟ ┈
His house seems to have received an earthquake, the funniest thing about it, is that same earthquake tried to fix everything. Jungkook advances with the gun in his hand. He must have been a thief or a stray Altered as usual. In his room, he finds what caused it: Jimin.
Jungkook approaches and puts his hands on his waist, judging him. "Why did you break everything? Unless you want to join me to replace it all the way to the kitchen, I don't think it's... Jimin?"
Jungkook notices him fixing his hair every so often, almost manic; his graceful, slow movements seem to have disappeared and Jimin doesn't see his face. Even when he notices Jungkook there. Jungkook only notices what's on the floor: the few items of jewelry he has and the ones Jimin must have had on when he arrived.
"Jimin? Yuujujuuuuu Jimin?" Jungkook snaps his fingers in front of him. "HEY!" he yells, thinking he's playing or something, Jimin paws at him and scratches him in the face by accident, knocking him backwards. Jungkook is left sitting on the ground and because of his stumble, he changed everything around.
Jimin arranges it without saying anything, arranges his hair and rubs his forehead. "It's... ugly... I don't like it, I don't like it" he stammers grumpily and hugs his bare legs. Jungkook hisses, sore. Fortunately, the scratch on his face is minimal.
Jimin's cell phone rings. It does so for a long time and he doesn't answer. On the contrary, he is stunned and throws the device further away, hating the sound. Jungkook decides to answer it, also annoyed by the sound.
"Where the fuck are you? You should be here. I told you to come Did you try the claws? What... Jimin?"
"He's... busy or something." reports Jungkook, peeking out to see Jimin, who notices the bullets that popped out of his pocket. They're shiny, he likes it.
"Ah, it's you... What's wrong with him, is he bleeding or something, does he have wounds?" Jungkook stammers, he doesn't look injured. Not seriously at least. More like he looks like he just came from having sex. "Why do you say he's busy, is he blowing you? I didn't think there was anyone who would silently put up with fellatio from him. With the slutty mouth he's got-"
"No! It's not like that...! What are you talking about?!"
"Reality. Don't play stupid, you know what I'm talking about" sneers Namjoon indiscreetly. "What's he doing then?"
"Sitting in a corner, playing with a bullet and some jewelry."
"Has he seen your face?"
"Not once. He was startled by the sound."
"Shit... In his back pocket there must be a kit with injections. Put one in his neck... unless you want to deal with him like that. I don't recommend it."
"I don't understand what you're talking about." grumbles Jungkook.
"Depending on how much time has passed, he's going to start to agonize. His heart beats too slow and his brain doesn't generate enough chemicals. If by an hour you don't inject him, you'll see a real problem... although that's your problem."
Namjoon hangs up and Jungkook has a brilliant idea. Jimin could be normal. It's just a matter of not giving him whatever Namjoon injects him with regularly. He manages to move him to the bed to remove that injection kit. There is only one, the others are empty and a small label warning when he used each one.
It only takes fifteen minutes for what Namjoon warned about to happen - Jimin starts crying and scratches himself.
"I don't like it... I don't like it" Jimin whimpers. "Everything looks dark... gloomy... it's not me... this is not me- I can't be me, I don't want to be me. I don't like it" sobs looking at the wall, dead center and tears streaming down his face. "I don't want to...it hurts so much...I-I don't like it. I don't want be this again- don't wanna be broken. I don't like it... I d-don't like it. "
Bites his lips did Jimin feels broken before? That's the reason to be an Altered? Jungkook tries to hug him, but again, Jimin refuses. "Jimin, It's me, it's okay-"
"Don't touch me I don't want you to touch me! I don't like it... I don't... I don't like it..."
The only reason Jungkook can see Jimin's face, is because of the lip piercing. Jungkook moves it on purpose, managing to get his attention and somehow, he wonders: Is this how he was before he changed? This obfuscated.
This dull...
Fortunately, Jimin doesn't have his strength, so it's easy for Jungkook to sit on him, line up the needle and plunge it into his neck. Jimin twitches and clings to him, whimpering that it burns and snuggling into him. Just like a wounded animal. Jungkook sways in place, letting it normalize.
Happy, because deep down, that Jimin is here means he finds it as a safe place within his utter need and ailment. Unable to go with Namjoon, to hide alone.
Jimin came all the way here.
With him.
And by that, to Jungkook, it means that he is just as important to Jimin, as the cat is to him.