Flashback
"Sorry kid. Your parents are gone", the policeman said and ruffled through little Jimin's hair. "But I guess you'll be swimming in money for the rest of your life, so you wouldn't care anyways."
Jimin looked at the man with big eyes. He didn't understand, neither did he realize that his parents were actually dead. It couldn't be.
"You're lying", Jimin mumbled.
"Nope. They died in a car crash", the other man lied.
"Come on, he'll find out some day anyways, so why not just tell him they went bankrupt and then killed themselves", the policeman whispered loudly on purpose.
Jimin covered his ears and ran for it. He didn't like to hear people talking badly about his parents like that.
"Hey kid, wait!", one of them shouted, but Jimin kept running as far as his feet carried him.
He didn't know where he was going, neither did he care. He was all by himself, all alone.
Many people watched him as he ran past them. They all knew him as Park Jimin, the son of the richest family in the city. However, they also knew that this family went bankrupt and had heard what happened in the news. His parents were dead.
Jimin was the only one that didn't understand. He was about 15 and didn't really have any contact to the world outside of his house.
His parents had never let him go further than their yard.
"It's that boy... it's their son..."
People whispered all around him and stared as if he was a zoo animal. It made him feel ashamed and guilty for some reason.
Why were they all staring at him?
He didn't dare and look as he ran further down the streets he had never seen before in his life.
Hiding in an alleyway, he felt how he was shivering out of fear. His parents were really gone? That meant that he was alone. He was all by himself and didn't know what to do.
He hated being alone. Little sobs left his lips for the first time after finding their ruined house and the police that morning.
"Ey rich kid", a grumpy voice called out to him.
He turned to see a dark haired boy, not much older than himself. His clothes were baggy, his eyes squinted to straight lines.
"Y-you mean me?", Jimin asked.
"Whoa you talk so formally", the boy exclaimed.
"That's hilarious."
Jimin felt his face becoming red. He suddenly felt so small even though his parents had always told him he had more power than the people in this city.
"Who are you?", Jimin asked.
"Me? Oh you can call me Suga", he said.
Jimin's nose twitched.
"What kind of a name is that?"
"You're that Park kid. The one whose family went bankrupt and commited suicide", Yoongi continued without answering the question.
Jimin got up on both feet.
"Don't talk like that about my parents!"
"Ohh rich kid has some temper", Yoongi awed.
"You might even have what it takes to join us."
"Join you?"
"You fancy killing people?", the older playfully asked.
Jimin's brows jumped as he took a step back.
"Are you crazy? I'd never kill someone! What kind of monsters do that?!"
Yoongi spat on the ground and pinned Jimin against the wall by his neck.
"Monsters, you say? Then how come those monsters are the reason you're still alive?"
"What are you talking about?", Jimin choked.
"Do you have any idea how many gangs have tried breaking into your house to kill you? How many of them almost killed you and your parents while they still had their money? Well, we monsters are the reason they didn't manage to do that."
Jimin was speechless. He had never noticed anything like that. This guy must have been lying.
"Why would people do that? It doesn't make sense", Jimin mumbled.
Yoongi rolled his eyes in disbelief.
"Because you have money kid, that's all that matters nowadays."
Jimin furrowed his eyebrows. He had never heard something like that before. His parents had always told him he shouldn't go outside because it's dangerous. Was this what they meant?
"I don't care. Let me go!", Jimin protested.
Yoongi's lips twitched before hurling Jimin onto the ground. He made a short gasp upon landing.
"There, there Yoongi-hyung, don't overdo it", an unfamiliar voice called out to him.
Yoongi turned to see Namjoon and Jin appear from the darkness of the alleyway.
"Who are you? Are you some thieves or gangsters?", Jimin gasped.
"Do you want my money too?"
Jin chuckled.
"No. We came to help you out."
"Help me? With what?"
"We heard about your parents", Namjoon stated.
Bangtan had been receiving several assignments to protect the Park family from gangs and such.
Jimin felt the bitter tears forming in his eyes again. "So? I don't want your condolences! I don't need you to tell me you're sorry!"
Yoongi snickered under his breath before Namjoon spoke again.
"I'm not sorry. My parents tried to poison me as an attempt to get rid of me", he coldly said.
Jimin gulped at Namjoon's grim expression. He didn't know what to reply.
"We all have our own issues", Jin stated.
"That's why we're very much alike, you and us."
"We're not alike!", Jimin argued and got up again.
"Why? You think you're better than us?", Yoongi asked.
"No! I would never be able to kill someone, that's just wrong", the younger uttered.
Namjoon threw a sceptical gaze at Yoongi for telling him already.
"Well then, if you saw a man trying to rape a girl and you had a gun in your hand, what would you do?", Namjoon questioned calmly.
Jimin was caught aback by the question. "I-uh..."
"Would you just let him do it because you can't bare to kill someone?", the leader continued.
"N-no, I'd call the police!"
"There is no police. They can't do anything about it."
Jimin struggled internally. He'd be too afraid to be in a situation like that.
"I don't know!"
"You'd just let it happen?", Yoongi angrily asked.
"No I wouldn't! But I couldn't just-"
"You couldn't kill the man?", Namjoon completed.
Jimin felt his head nerly overheating. Why were they even asking him these questiones?
"I don't know, okay?? I've never thought about things like that!"
Yoongi scoffed again.
"There's no point Namjoon, he's too innocent. There's no way we could ever train him. It would take years and years-"
"I know. But I believe he could do it", Namjoon interrupted.
Jimin was even more confused than before as he watched the boy named Namjoon approach him.
"I believe you'd manage to save a life in exchange for someone else's. That's the kind of job we do."
"We kill bad people in order to save others. That's how we saved your life several times", Jin added.
"Only you didn't notice a thing", Yoongi finished.
"I don't know why Namjoon is so focused on you, but he wants you on our team."
Jimin's eyes examined each of the three boys. They looked nearly his age, but seemed a lot more experienced. The looks on their faces were dark, yet friendly. The things they'd seen could be read off of their faces, or their eyes.
"I don't want to join your group!", Jimin shouted.
He didn't want to kill, no matter if it meant doing a good deed.
"Fine, you don't have to", Namjoon stated, causing the others to look at him sceptically. But they knew he had a plan.
"Still, you're all alone and don't know where to go, right?", he continued.
Jimin hesitantly nodded.
"You can come live with us. We won't harm you or push you into anything you don't want to", Namjoon promised.
"Live in a house with killers? No way", Jimin argued.
"We're not killers", Jin explained with a smile.
"We're just a group of students that live together in a dorm."
The boys exchanged smiles while Jimin thought about it. It was true. He didn't have a place to go and these guys did seem quite normal.
At this point, anything was better than being left alone.
"O-okay", he agreed. "But don't pull me into your weird business, or else..."
----
A few weeks had passed since then. Jin, who was already 18 wrote an anonymous email to their school, introducing himself as Jimin's parents.
He announced that Jimin would be joining their school, which also happened several days later.
Jimin felt more comfortable with the guys and truly didn't get involved in any kind of killing business. There was also another member who had joined them recently, called Hoseok.
Jimin only sometimes woke up in the middle of the night when the guys went out for a mission.
Other than that, he would sneak out to the training field and watch them practice every day.
"You're getting better", Namjoon told Yoongi after the shot he took.
Of course, he had always noticed Jimin hiding behind the wall, watching them.
"Hey Jimin", Namjoon called out, making the younger shrug.
Embarrassed, Jimin hopped out of his hiding spot.
"Y-you knew I was here the whole time?"
Namjoon nodded.
"Could you get us some more bullets from the weapon's room please?"
"Okay!", Jimin squeaked and ran inside the house.
"What's your plan with him anyways?", Yoongi asked sceptically.
"I mean, he's a cute kid, but what are you trying to pull?"
Namjoon pursed his lips.
"I don't know. I have a good feeling about him. Trust me, I know what I'm doing."
Jimin came running back with the box Namjoon had asked him to get.
"Thanks."
He noticed how Jimin didn't move from the spot and kept on staring at what Jin was doing in the back.
"Jin-hyung is pretty good, isn't he?", Namjoon casually asked.
"Y-yeah, he is", Jimin muttered. He couldn't help but wonder what he would be like in shooting.
"You want to try?", Namjoon proposed and held out the gun for Jimin to take.
"You don't have to if you feel nervous about it. Holding a gun shouldn't be taken so lightly."
Jimin watched the silver weapon being passed to him. It felt so normal, that he had no problem to take it in his hand. The weapon was heavier than expected.
"Okay good, now try hitting the target", Namjoon softly spoke.
Yoongi moved to the side so Jimin could take his place. Nervously, the younger stood in position like the others had done it before.
He held up the gun in both hands and shut one eye to aim. Without much hesitation, he pushed down the trigger, causing his ears to hurt because of the loud bang.
He had managed to hit the target. It wasn't a bullseye, but it was good for his first time.
"Not bad. Try to keep your elbow straight", Namjoon suggested.
"You're a natural."
"Really?", Jimin asked, suddenly feeling a burning sensation to try again and get better.
He liked being complimented by Namjoon.
"Yeah, you'd fit in perfectly", Namjoon joked.
Jimin's smile fell a bit.
"Sorry, I don't think I could do that."
He gave Namjoon the gun back and started walking back to the house. The adrenaline in his veins didn't stop flowing, not even when he was back in his room.
Ever since then, he had started sneaking out at night, sometimes even when Bangtan was gone on a mission, to practice shooting by himself.
Jimin kept getting better and always managed to hit the bullseye. Somehow, shooting those targets gave him the feeling of being able to do something. As if he had something he was good at.
He wanted to keep getting better for himself, so he could feel proud. But what would all of that hard work do him if he didn't put it into any use?
He didn't really want to become a member of Bangtan. Killing people was different than shooting targets.
"You're getting a lot better Jimin", Namjoon spoke behind his back.
"You scared me", Jimin gasped and turned to see his friend leaning against the door.
"Noticing someone sneaking up behind you is essential for our job."
"Who said I wanted to do your job?", the younger sassed.
"Just saying", Namjoon defended himself.
"But you do know that shooting doesn't do you much if the enemy is right in front of you and you have no weapon?"
"What do you mean?"
In a matter of seconds, Namjoon had approached Jimin, who was brutally thrown to the ground.
"I mean that you have to shape up."
Jimin was fascinated by the speed Namjoon had. He hadn't even had the time to think before being tackled.
"C-can you teach me that?"
"This technique? Sure", Namjoon proudly said.
"On one condition."
"What?"
"You'll think about joining us."
Jimin sighed and looked to the ground. He had known these guys for a few weeks now and they were completely normal students and friends. On the other hand, they were killers. Even if they did kill bad people, it was still a burder knowing someone was dead because of you.
"I'll think about it", Jimin stated.
A little smile appeared on Namjoon's face. "Great. Let's get to work then."
It didn't taken Jimin long to be able to beat the others in a hand-to-hand combat match. He learned very quickly and ambitiously.
I
t just so happened, that he was actually interested in seeing what theye guys did and how they used these techniques during their jobs.
"Can I come with you and watch?", Jimin dared to ask as soon as he saw the members getting ready for a mission.
They looked surprised, but also happy.
"Sure. You can stay in the back with Jin-hyung", Namjoon agreed, trying to hide his optimism.
Jimin excitedly took a bulletproof vest and put it on, as well as an earpiece. Jin helped him get ready and handed him a gun.
"Put this on your belt, just in case."
---
"This is Snipe Monster, how's our newbie doing? Over", he joked over the earpiece.
"Shut up and concentrate", Jin ordered.
He and Jimin were hidden in the back and watched the other two complete the mission. Hoseok had some kind of injury and couldn't come along.
Jimin's heart felt as if it was going to pop out of his chest at any minute the closer the target approached.
"This is Snipe Monster, the shot is blocked."
"This is Suga, mine is blocked too."
Jin rolled his eyes. "Sorry Jimin, I'll be right back."
He sneaked away from the hiding spot and took out his rifle, while Jimin was left behind to watch. He was fascinated by how quiet everything went on. Jin had just vanished and was probably aiming at the target at that very moment.
The guy had no clue.
Or at least that was what Jimin thought.
In the next moment, the target took out a gun himself and started shooting in Jin's direction.
"Jin, get out of there!", Namjoon yelled.
Jimin felt his stomach twist when the target turned to look around. He looked really dangerous and menacing. Not just that, but he had tried to kill Jin already.
"We can't shoot him and he has sighted Jin, what do we do?", Yoongi asked.
"Jimin, can you help?", Namjoon requested.
"He'll shoot Jin if you don't do something now."
Jimin gulped and looked over to the man who was still trying to avoid Jin's shots as well as fire his own. It was a perfect shot for him, as the target didn't know he was there.
Getting into a better position, he detached the gun from his belt and gripped it firmly. His palms were sweating as he placed his fingers on the trigger.
"I'm sorry... I'm sorry... I'm sorry", he mumbled to himself before shooting the man down.
He had his eyes closed and didn't even know whether he had managed to get him or not.
"Well done Jimin", he heard Namjoon say before he fell onto the ground crying. He had just killed someone.
The fact that it didn't bother him that much was the thing that made him cry. It scared him that he was so relaxed with it and just shot the man like that.
"Woah Jiminie, it's okay", Yoongi calmed him as soon as he had returned to the spot they had left the boy at.
"That's normal for the first time... it will pass", Jin soothed.
Jimin shook his head wildly. He felt as if he was a disappointment to his parents who had raised him to be kind and selfless. This would make them ashamed of their son who had just become a murderer.
"Jimin, listen to me", Namjoon ordered.
The boy hadn't even noticed him joining them.
"I just- I can't-"
"Yes, you can and you just did", Namjoon urged.
"I'm not forcing you into anything, but know that you saved Jin-hyung's life just now."
Jimin's glassy eyes looked over at a smiling Jin. He nodded in confirmation.
"We're not criminals, not murderers. We're a group of people who kill for justice and fairness, even though we don't enjoy the idea of killing either."
Namjoon kneeled down next to Jimin, so they could be on one eye level.
"No matter what, Bangtan always stays together as a team. Teamwork makes the dream work."
Jimin stared at the three boys before him in fascination. He looked up to them for being so brave and doing what they did.
"We all have our pasts, like you do. So we understand and support each other. The job is just one of the things that connect us", Yoongi explained.
He was being friendlier to Jimin than before.
"If you ever need any help, we're all here for you."
"Y-yeah.. I'd like to be a part of that", Jimin admitted.
The boys had big smiles on their faces before they welcomed their new family member.
"Welcome to the team, Jimin."
----
A/N: I personally enjoyed writing Jimin's past a lot. He used to be such an innocent mochi.
I wish I could make chapters about all their pasts, since that isn't planned for the future of this book but yeah... maybe as bonus chapters in the very end.
Btw one more chapter before this book goes on hiatus and I start a new one:')
I'll publish the prologue some time this/next week!
Thanks for reading!
[Yoonginyaan]-Author💜