{family ties}
Under the dove grey sky the colours of the city seemed rather bleak. Each hue was darker and richer then before, the crowd of city goers snug in their red, yellow or blue winter coats being the only pop of colour. Jungkook lifted his head to the wind, eyes open for the softly lit day. The winter sun took centre stage as the afternoon drove on, and Jungkook found himself making his way downtown to the B-ink tattoo parlour.
He had heard from Jimin that Yoongi and himself weren't on a mission today, so if he wanted his coverup... today was the best day seeing as Yoongi was unexpectedly free.
Exposed fingers wrapped around a cup of warm cocca, Jungkook soaked in the rays of the sunlight as he continued to head through the busy city streets. Eventually the crowd thinned out as he made it to the smaller streets where the soft light of a familiar neon sign glowed against the icy puddles outside.
Making his way to the store, Jungkook pushed open the glass door, eyes drifting over to meet with both Yoongi and Jimin. Whilst Jimin tapped his pen against the front counter in thought, Yoongi wore a bored expression, probably confused as to why he wasn't out on a mission in such a time of trouble.
Jimin's eyes rose from his papers, a soft smile spreading over his face as he brushed his faded orange hair from his eyes, "Hey, right on time."
Jungkook gave a nod, "Lets just get this over with." he sighed, walking up to the front counter.
Yoongi moved aside as Jungkook began to fill out some paperwork, "I guess I'm the one covering up the tattoo... if its okay with you, I'm going to incorporate the roses into the design and cover up the serpent with a couple of stems, vines and leaves to compliment the flowers." Yoongi explained flatly, but Jungkook could see that the male was slightly concerned about covering up a notorious gang tattoo.
Jungkook wasn't worried in the slightest, he wanted the thing off of his skin for years, and to be honest, he couldn't care less about what design would cover it up. "That's fine with me." Jungkook smiled.
Turning on his heels, Yoongi waved the pair off, "I'll go set everything up then." he said, disappearing into the back room.
The scribbling of Jimin's pen filled the sudden silence as the male finished off the paper work, lifting his gaze to meet with Jungkook's, "Mind if I watch for a bit?" he asked, leaning forwards a little, "I really wanna see Yoongi's technique for coverups."
Jungkook shrugged, "Sure, I don't see why not."
"Cool." Jimin chirped, grinning as he made his way past the counter, gesturing for Jungkook to follow him down the small corridor of the parlour. Jungkook followed the shorter male down to the back room, rounding the corner and entering into Yoongi's studio.
It was the only studio he hadn't yet seen. Unlike Jimin's which was simplistic, and Taehyung's which was a mess of colour, Yoongi's was quite bold. The walls were covered with graffiti designs, rough sketches pinned around the room in an unorganised fashion. Across his desk was open notebooks and sketchpads, and Jungkook was quick to spot the familiar design of his own Jeon tattoo. Yoongi had drawn over the sketch with his own design, one quiet delicate compared to his usual work.
"Alright." Yoongi sounded, taking a seat in his chair, "I turned the heater on so you won't get cold, you can remove your coat."
Jungkook slipped his arms out from his long black duffle coat, handing it over to Jimin who was casually leaning against the door. Jungkook then took off his sweater underneath, leaving him in just a plain black t-shirt.
His arms were once again exposed for the world to see. Yoongi and Jimin couldn't help but stare at his sleeve of ink, their gaze trailing down his arm. Jungkook found his eyes wonder down his arm too, studying the tattoo he hated most. The delicate design of a serpent twisting over roses caused a shiver to run down the back of his spine, this was the tattoo that started all of his trouble, the tattoo he almost stabbed in a fit of rage. Ripping his eyes away from the design, Jungkook took a seat on the tattoo bed, holding out his arm, "Just put the stencil on and finish it already."
Yoongi gave a lazy salute, "You got it." he replied, getting straight to work.
Still leaning against the door, Jimin rose a brow, "I never thought someone could hate a tattoo so much." he spoke, observing Jungkook's discomfort with the ink, "Heck- i've seen people with dick tattoos but I don't think anyone has ever wanted to cover something up as much as you."
Jungkook rolled his eyes, "Easy for you to say," he paused as Yoongi began to peel away the stencil on his arm, "You probably look at your gang tattoo and think proudly of it. When I look at mine all I see is bloodshed."
Twisting his lips into a frown, Jimin softened his stance, "If you don't mind me asking... what is it you would do for the Jeons?" he rubbed a hand against the back of his neck, "I never thought the successor of the Jeon Crime Syndicate would've pulled out you know... seeing as the life of bloodshed was probably the only life you knew?"
There was a moment of shared silence as Yoongi placed the needle of the tattoo gun against Jungkook's heated skin, the soft buzz of the machine almost soothing as Yoongi started on the coverup. It almost appeared as if Yoongi wasn't interested in the conversation at hand, but Jungkook could tell that Yoongi was just as intrigued to hear what kind of a guy he really was, and how Bangtan could possibly put him to use.
Jungkook let out a breath, "I was only five when my father began to train me. He said his successor needed to surpass him in both strength and wits, so my schooling was more advanced then most kids," Jungkook let out a low chuckle, "I'm still not very smart though..." Jungkook paused for a moment before he continued, "I learnt skilled close combat moves and of course trained in weaponry. You could say I'm an all rounder when it comes to my fighting skills, but that only made my father send me out on more missions." Jungkook swallowed thickly, eyes drifting away from Jimin and over to the wall instead, "I did terrible deeds." he confessed, bitting down against his lower lip as he hung his head in regret, "I murdered innocents, tortured people and shot my men for the slightest of slip ups... what's worse is I think I enjoyed it at some stage... fuck-" he brought his hand to his head, scrunching his hair between his fingers, "-maybe I did enjoy it..."
As Jungkook's words trailed off, Jimin and Yoongi both remained silent. Yoongi had unconsciously pressed harder against Jungkook's skin, slowing down his pace. Jimin on the other hand had his jaw clenched, pursing his lips in distaste.
Jungkook brought his hand away from his head, "I didn't know what was morally right and wrong, I wasn't ever shown what was good and what was bad... I lived in a world of kill or be killed so I kept up my game." he shook his head, "But after a while, someone showed me kindness." he began to confess, the smallest of smiles tugging at his lip, "Someone showed me love and taught me right from wrong... and I began to hate killing those who didn't deserve it."
Jimin rose a brow in interest, waiting for Jungkook to continue, "But despite that, the world of my father's gang was the only life I knew, so I stayed... until my breaking point."
Yoongi, who had remained silent the whole conversation paused, turning his attention to Jungkook. "What was it?" he asked with genuine curiosity, "What was your final straw?"
Jungkook's eyes filled with hate, his expression stern as he turned to the tattoo artist, "My father... he killed someone dear to me."
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The coverup didn't take any longer then an hour, and Jungkook was sent on his way in no time. The day felt excruciatingly long, and Jungkook couldn't wait for the sun to set.
Unlike the past couple of days, Jungkook found himself back in his small rundown apartment complex just outside of the city. He found the jittering of his keys satisfying as he opened the door to his apartment, shutting the door behind him with a thud before switching on the lights.
Casting his coat aside, Jungkook crept back into his usual nightly routine. Close the curtains for privacy. Organise his toiletries and step into the bathroom for a quick shower, and be careful with his freshly wrapped tattoos. After having a quick shower and drying his hair to the best of his ability, get changed, preferably into something warm and comfortable, and then prepare a late afternoon tea.
It felt good to get back into a routine, especially after staying with Bangtan for so long. Jungkook was never interested in large rooms and overbearing furniture like the mansion, more so smaller spaces. It was cozy that way.
With his towel draped around his neck, Jungkook shuffled his way into the kitchen. His oversized grey sweatpants were practically dragging on the floor as he moved, his two sizes too large black jumper also fitting rather loosely. Most people were jealous of Jungkook's proportions. His muscles were sculpted to perfection, yet he still looked slender, especially under a mountain of oversized clothes.
Ruffling his damp hair, Jungkook opened up his fridge, the cold air on his face causing him to squint as he searched for something to eat. But then letting out a sigh, he remembered that most of his go-to food would've gone off during his stay at the Bangtan mansion, so he probably needed to go fetch some groceries from the local convenience store.
So swiping his house keys off the kitchen bench, Jungkook threw his towel to the side, making his way towards the front door as he left the safety of his apartment.
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{Author Note}
I'm so excited for the plot line of this story, It's one of the only fan fictions I planned very thoroughly from the beginning. x