Tae pov
I knew I was starving. I could feel it, my body getting weaker, my ribs and cheekbones were becoming more prominent. It had been about five days since I ran away. I needed to eat, or else I'd end up dead in the middle of the road. I wasn't sure where i was going, just walking. Cars would pass every now and again, some of them slowed down but sped up when they saw the look on my face and blood on my knuckles.
Another car pulled up, a pickup with a couple in it. The woman smiled at me as she rolled her window down. The man looked me over before leaning over her.
"Where you headed to, kid?" He gave me another once over, taking in the dirt caked clothes and hair, probably looking to see if i was hiding a weapon.
"I'm going to the nearest town. I need food, and a place to stay." The woman smiled again, and whispered something to the man.
"Hop into the bed then! I'm Eunha and this is Jiwoo, we'll give you a ride into town." Eunha said.
I thanked them both and did as told. I shoved one of the many strawbags under my legs and pulled my hoodie over my head, then my T-shirt and put my hoodie back on. To prevent infections in my wounds, I ripped my T-shirt to make bandaids and wrapped them around my knees and hands, watching the blood soak through the white fabric. I sighed, leaning against the car.
I had no idea how far away I was from Bangs house or how far away the town was. I hadn't had many breaks over the past days which turned out to have been a bad idea. I was exhausted.
Running away had also been a bad idea, but it had seemed like the only right thing to do in the moment I heard Jungkooks thoughts
'I was wrong about him, wasn't I'
I felt the sting in my chest. The way Jungkook had held my wrist. So tight, like I he didn't want it to be real. Like he didn't want the impression he had of me to be fake. Would he have reacted different if he knew Yoongi started it?
I shook my head and looked up at the starlit sky. A lot had changed in the past month, but the one thing that seemed to repeat, was the humiliation.
I signed and closed my eyes, drifting off to sleep.
--
"Wake up, kid," Eunha's faint voice spoke. My eyes fluttered open, meeting a pair of dark brown eyes, lined with a rim of black eyeliner. "We're here,"
I nodded. "Thank you," I smiled, slowly getting up. I bit down on my lip in pain as I bended my knee, but continued to moe. Jiwoo placed a hand on my chest, making me look up.
"Let's get you to a hospital. You won't last long if you don't get those wounds looked at," He spoke, pushing me down sotfly. I looked at my legs and shook my head.
"It's fine. I'll get myself a fist aid kit and get it cleaned up," I said. "You've already done so much for me,"
"Are you sure you can take care of yourself?" Jiwoo asked. I nodded, smiling at him. He looked down at Eunha, expecting some kind of protest, but she just shrug her shoulders. He sighed and nodded himself. "Okay. Here's 10,000 won. Use them wisely and take care,"
With a bit of help, I got out of the car without falling. The couple got back into the car and started the engine. I limped up to the window and thanked them one last time, before watching them drive away.
I looked at the bloody pieces on fabric around my knuckles, and sighed deeply. Why had I been so stupid and ran away? I had no idea what time it was or where I was. Pushing the thoughts away, I began limping down the sidewalk, supporting myself with the buildings beside me. I saw a sign that said 'Mr. Choi's convenience store' in blue neon lights across the street. I felt a rush of relief run through my body as I passed the road.
The bell above the door chime over me when I entered the store. I had never been so happy to see food in my life. I pulled out my wallet from my back pocket and looked at what I had. The 10,000 won from Jiwoo and Eunha, 3 crumbled won and some coins that was left of what I had stolen from my dad a few months ago and a broken cigarette. It wasn't a lot, but it was enough for some bread and water, a bottle of vodka, and a fresh pack of cigarettes.
I quickly picked up my items, finding the cheapest I could, then walked up to the cashier. She scanned the items.
"It'll be 13,698 won, sir," She said, smiling at me. I noticed she had one bright green eye and a dark brown one. I handed her the money I had, watching closely as she counted them. "You're missing 500 won,"
"I don't have that," I said, emptying my wallet in front of her. She shrug and pushed the money back on my half on the counter.
"You should probably have checked that before going in here,"
I nodded. "I'm sorry," I apologized. "Can't you just take the vodka away?"
"Oh my god, you're so difficult!" She whined.
"I'm a paying costumer too, so calm down," I snapped, getting annoying with her. She gasped and pressed the screen again.
"6,417 won," She muttered. I counted the money and handed them to her. She put them into the cash register. I grabbed my things and left, slamming the door behind me.
I found alley a few blocks away from the store where I decided to sit down. It had a little dilapidated canopy over a door which was boarded up, but it was gonna have to do for the day. I opened the bottle of water and took a large chug, enjoying the feeling of the cold liquid run through my body. I had no idea it could feel think amazing to drink something. Taking a bite of the bread, I began to think about the boy back home again.
I pictured them sitting around the breakfast table happy and jolly, making silly jokes about me and how useless I was. I could almost hear Jimin and Yoongi's voices saying all the mean things they used to say to me. Suddenly remembering what happened the night before, I sighed and leaned back against the container I sat in front of. Jungkook's words repeated in my head again.
"I hope you're all happy now that I'm gone," I whispered.
Finishing the bread, I opened the pack of cigarettes, feeling the usual craving. I looked in my pocket for a lighter or a match, but found nothing. I groaned and stuffed the cigarette back into the pack.
"It's hopeless," I whispered, looking into my hands. "I'm never gonna survive on my own,"
"Yah, Jackson! I found him!"
I looked up to see a group of guys around my age run towards me. I quickly got up and started looking for an escape, but it was for no use. The alley was a dead end. Instead, I prepared myself for whatever was gonna happen.
Suddenly, my head was knocked into the brick wall in front of me. The taste of blood met my tongue before everything went black.
--
My eyes fluttered open. It was hard to see where I was since the room was almost pitch black, the only source of lift came from the door which stood agap.
I tried moving my arms and legs, but something was keeping me from it.
"You must have been weak. You were out for a few days," Someone said.
"There's no use in moving around, Taehyung, it won't get you very far," The person in the room spoke. "You're currently paralyzed from the neck and down, but we can change that. As long as you decide to cooperate. If not, you're gonna end up very hurt and we don't want that now do we? So I recommend you pick the former,"
"How do you-" I didn't get to finish my sentence before I was cut of.
"Know your name? I know everything about you and your little group of idiots. I know you're 20 years old and from Daegu I know you had a little dog called Soonshim, a real cutie, I gotta admit. I know you're one of Bangs guys. I know you beat your own father to death. I know chose not to speak because you were afraid the other wouldn't like you, by the way, how'd that go? I also know that you're clairvoyant. but your powers don't work in the dark. I know everything, Taehyung" The guy spoke again. "Listen up, we just wanna ask you some questions,"
"What questions?" I muttered trying to find out where the voice came from. Whoever was in here with me, kept moving around.
The door sprung open revealing the silhouette of two other boys. They entered the room, disappearing in the dark as well.
"We have three simple questions for you. If you don't answer them, we'll have to hurt you, which would be a shame cause you're such a pretty boy," A new voice said, running his hand over my cheek in a caressing manner. I tried to move my head, but without luck.
"First. Where is your base?" The first guy asked.
"Our base?" I asked. "What base?"
Someone signed "Where do you stay?" A third person asked annoyed. I noticed a little green dot in the dark that kept disapearing like a blinking eye.
"I'm not sure, Bang never told us. It's near the country side. I'm pretty sure there's a river near by, but of what I remember, his house is the only about one in miles distance," I replied. "I'm sorry if that isn't the biggest help, but we aren't allowed to go outside unless we have to smoke,"
"It's good," The first person said. "Besides the point, If you aren't allowed to leave, then what are you doing so far away from home?"
My heart sank by the memory. "We had a fight. Me and one of the other guys, Yoongi, had a bit of a disagreement, which resulted in a fist fight. One of the guys, who I thought I got along with, someone I thought was my friend, thought something that really hurt me so I left,"
"Aw, he's a softy, how surprising," The second one said sarcastically. His voice was raspy and deep. "Is your friend the guy you like, what was his name again, Jackson?"
"Jungkook, but leave him out of this, Mark," Jackson said.
Someone groaned. "Can we go on with this?" The green dot came closer to me. I could feel his breath on my face. "What is your mission?"
"How should I know?" I asked, instantly feeling someone punch me. I bit my lip to keep from flinching.
"Bam! Either you calm down or you leave," Jackson exclaimed. "I apologize for his behavior, we're still working on it. Hope it doesn't hurt to bad,"
"Last question. Do you know who we are?" Mark asked.
"No, but I have an idea that this won't be the last time we meet," I replied. I felt a tickling rush through my body and knew they had released me from the paralyzation.
"Get up. We'll get you home," Jackson said.
I did as he told me to and stood up from the bed. I felt one of them grab my arm and pull me along. They opened the door, the bright light blinding me.
"Mark, let go of him," A blonde guy in front of us said, who I supposed was Jackson. I looked at the guy beside me. He was an inch or two shorter than me and had dark brown hair. He had a slim face with plushy lips and a long neck. He didn't look Korean, so he would be hard to forget.
He slowly let go of my arm, smiling sweetly at me. I smiled back weakly.
Opening the car door, I was pushed in and the bag was pulled over my head again. The car sped up to an undoubtedly illegal speed .
"Sorry, but we have to do it this way. GD doesn't like uninvited guests," Mark said, placing a han don my thigh. "Although I wouldn't mind you coming over unannounced,"
"Don't flirt with the hostage," Jackson said.
A/N: Rewritten and better than the original. hope you like the update, although you had to wait a little longer. Also, thank you for reading our book. It means a lot!