↻ ᴄᴏɴꜱɪɢʟɪᴇʀᴇꜱ ᴀɴᴅ ᴡʜɪꜱᴋᴇʏ ↺
"That's not going to work, Gguk, and you know that. It's too dangerous," a white haired male says, and Jimin watches him with curious eyes as this is a new face. "Their security levels are way too high, not to mention the plethora of guns and personnel they have. We may be the most venerated mafia in all of Seoul, however that doesn't mean our numbers are large," he continues and the teenager listens in intently from his standing position by a wall, meanwhile both Starling and Agust speak with this new man in a room he's never been in. It appears as though it's a meeting room, and seeing as Jeongguk is the leader, it only makes sense that he sits at the end of the table; however, this white haired man seems to have his own fair share of power, judging as he's given the opportunity to weigh both options in his hands, one more heavier than the other. He's not afraid to voice his opinions and as Jimin is similar in that aspect, he feels some form of respect for the stranger.
"I think RM's right, Gguk," Yoongi chimes in whilst pressing his cigarette into an ashtray. "I know how important finding who killed your mother is to you, but you have to keep in mind that the teenager hasn't taken a shit yet, or at least not one that counts. Unless you plan on cutting him open and getting it yourself, you should probably consider the dangers of the mission before you send him in there. Not that I care if he gets hurt or not, but if he doesn't know what he's doing, that USB is as good as gone as well as the information it carries," he explains thoroughly and Starling digs the heels of his palms into his eyes, rubbing hard enough until his vision is tinged with random multicoloured splotches.
"Do I get a say in this?" Jimin questions and although he's looked at by all three handsome men, they ignore him and continue speaking. Well, he supposes that answers that question.
"...I'm sorry," Jimin starts again, bravely interrupting their conversation...again. "But you're talking about cutting me open and I'm standing right here. I can hear everything you're saying, and if you're gonna send me off into some death zone, at least let me weigh my options with you," he requests with good argument, even if the three men don't see it as so.
However RM chuckles, staring at Jimin with an entertained look in his eyes. "This one's got some bite, Gguk. I appreciate that," he states and Jeongguk rolls his eyes, meanwhile Yoongi groans.
"Yeah, well he's a pain in the fucking ass," the smaller man complains before lighting another cigarette, placing it between the sweet curve of his lips. An intoxicating yet entrancing puff of smoke leaves his mouth and twirls into the air, hoarding all of Jimin's attention in a tendril-like manner until the door opens next to him and the teenager flinches, pulled from his fleeting daze.
"Byeong-cheol?" Jeongguk asks with grit in his voice, and his owlish eyes narrow in the older man's direction as he stands from the wooden table abruptly, knocking his chair back with his thighs.
As soon as Jimin's trembling gaze meets Byeong-cheol's, he gulps roughly and instinctively, he presses his legs closed. He absolutely despises his inclination to cower and shrink in the man's presence, wishing he could stand tall and hold his ground. However that's not the case, because as soon as he takes one step closer, the teenager falls onto his ass and Byeong-cheol barks out a hoarse laughter.
"...Gguk, take it easy," Yoongi says as he rises from his own chair slowly, noting the burning embers in the boss's eyes.
Starling's jaw tauts as him and Byeong-cheol make eye contact. Taking their last conversation into account, the older man seems rather unphased regarding the heavy threats Jeongguk left him to ponder. Perhaps he maybe even could have taken the time to reflect on his actions, yet a switch seemed to have flipped in his rotten mind and not even a sliver of remorse flickered in his aging eyes.
"I thought our conversation yesterday made it pretty clear that you're no longer wanted on missions. Your inability to think about others before acting out does serious damage to this family. A family that you clearly don't care about," Jeongguk fumes and Byeong-cheol doesn't seem menaced, yet rather entertained by Starling's dwindling temper.
"I will admit that I was scared for a second...but you need me, Gguk. That teenager needs me. I know you want me gone, but who better to show him the ropes than me?" Byeong-cheol offers and Jeongguk's face goes red with anger. Jimin trembles on the floor, taking a disliking to each and every word that rolls off of the sick old fuck's tongue.
"There's no fucking way in hell--"
"Wait," Namjoon starts, effectively silencing the room. He presses two of his fingers to his bottom lip, evidently mulling something over in his head. His fingers are dropped from his mouth and instead tap against the wooden table. His eyes flit from every face in the room until they land on the boss himself. "As much as I know you're going to hate hearing this, he does have a point. Byeong-cheol's been around long enough to know how our procedures work. He's exalted in this type of work field. The work field the requires sneaking in and blending in. The teenager is younger and so in the eyes of our enemies, he'll be much more appealing than an old pedophile. Well..." he continues and then looks at Byeong-cheol who seems to sport a rather victorious expression, however it soon falters at RM's next words.
"I'm sure people would love to hear what kind of man you really are, wouldn't they? I'm sure you can imagine the things they'd do to a rapist. Even I have to admit that the possibilities are tempting. However I'll leave the pleasure for somebody else as soon as the time comes," Namjoon finishes and the older man's face scrunches into a bitter state.
Jeongguk looks to the watering eyes of the teenager and then to Agust, who seems to be on board with the notion. As much as he hates to admit it, and as much as he wants to gut Byeong-cheol like the pig he is, all points taken into consideration, Namjoon is right. There's a reason why he was appointed the position of consigliere in the first place. Jeongguk trusts his intuition.
"Fine," Starling agrees and immediately, Jimin bites down on his lips, trying to keep his tears at bay. The last thing he wants is to be left alone with the very man who fosters every inch of fright the teenager bears.
"Then it's settled," Yoongi says gratefully, taking one last puff of his cigarette before pressing it into the ashtray. "The sooner we get started, the sooner this shitshow ends," the smaller man states and he walks over to Jimin, lifting him off of the floor roughly by his arm, completely disregarding his sobs. Agust shoves him toward Byeong-cheol and Jimin yelps in fright as soon as the older man's calloused hand wraps around his wrist.
"...If you touch him again," Jeongguk breathes and Byeong-cheol gives him a cynical look.
"I'll let you know," he responds and before Starling can lunge forward, Namjoon grabs his arm and holds him back. All three of them watch as the teenager and Byeong-cheol leave the conference room, the echo of the door closing resonating in their ears.
"Fuck!" Jeongguk shouts immediately, slamming his fist against the table. "We're all well aware that he's going to try something again once he gets the chance, right?"
Agust sighs, placing his hands on his hips, clearly exhausted with the events of the day. "Why do you care so much about whether he gets touched or not, Gguk? We have bigger things to worry about. Yeah, I know that you have a past, but--"
Yoongi is interrupted as soon as the collar of his shirt is clutched by Jeongguk and he's pushed up against a wall. Rather than freaking out and trying to fight back, his breathing remains moderate and his temper is neutral.
"You know fucking well why I care, Yoongi. Don't fucking test my patience. If you're beginning to question your loyalty to me then go ahead and fucking leave. But I can't promise you'll make it out in one piece," Jeongguk threatens and as he adds pressure, Yoongi's fingers wrap around Starling's wrist.
"Enough, you two. We can't have our backs to one another. Not right now when we're so close," the white haired males says and Jeongguk gives Yoongi one last little shove before he lets the man go.
Jeongguk runs his hands through his hair, and this is the most stressed either Yoongi or Namjoon have seen him in a long time. Starling doesn't make a point of saying any words before he leaves the conference room and heads straight to his quarter, immediately drowning himself in a bottle of whiskey.
By the time night rolls around, he's completely wasted and all of his morals are flushed down the toilet. He promised himself he was never going to touch a drop of liquor again, yet here he is, sobbing into the palms of his hands because he has caved. Because for some reason, the teenager reminds him of everything he once used to be. Because the whole fucking mystery behind who killed his mother makes his head spin and eats away at every morally right thought in his head until he has nothing left but a rotting infestation to call his mind.
All is quiet (minus the voices in the back of his head) until the doors to his office swing open and there stands none other than Byeong-cheol with a passed out Jimin in his arms. His limbs hang down lifelessly and his head is lulled back, mouth parted and eyes closed. His brown hair sits askew on his head.
"What the fuck are you doing here?" Jeongguk asks bluntly, mentally cursing himself for not having had the older man's fingerprint removed from the system. "And why is he still with you?"
Byeong-cheol looks everything but pleased as he literally tosses the teenager onto the couch, having no care for the pained whimpers he hears as a result. He turns his attention to Starling who's clearly halfway departed from his regular mindset, amused.
"I showed him the ropes and so he should be ready for his first mission tomorrow. However he's not sleeping with me. I can only handle so much sobbing and fighting in one day," Byeong-cheol states with an exhausted expression, and Jeongguk believes he deserves every ounce of discomfort he gets.
"...Whiskey?" he questions and Jeongguk looks up at him with a hooded gaze, glaring.
"It's none of your fucking business. Now go. I'll take care of the teenager," he waves his hand in dismissal and a whisper of a covert smile brushes the older man's wrinkling face as he exits the office, the doors closing behind him.
Shortly, the silence returns, and after downing another shot of whiskey, Jeongguk's eyes can't seem to keep away from the sleeping teenager on his couch. Something about how he's curled up in a fetus position with his hands layered beneath his head evokes some sort of innocence Starling lost much too soon. The boy tries snuggling further into himself, likely seeking unattainable warmth and Jeongguk decides to stand from his chair, placing his shot glass down against his oak desk with a clank.
He rounds his desk and approaches the teenager slowly, attempting to calculate his next moves with the little bit of sober sanity he has left. He's not too sure what prompts him to, however he crouches down in front of the teenage boy, watching his face intently as it twitches. He must be dreaming, and then he sees a tear roll down the bridge of his nose, only to meet with the leather couch.
He reaches his hand out and with his knuckles, brushes away at the tear streak. Unknowingly, Jimin seems to soften and then slowly, his eyes pull open. They widen as soon as he registers where exactly he is, and who sits in front of him. Who touches his face. He goes to pull away however Jeongguk grips at his chin.
"Wait," Starling voices and Jimin freezes, able to pick up the aroma of alcohol the taller man's breath emits. He doesn't dare move and his heart picks up as soon as he sees Jeongguk taking his suit jacket off.
No. Not again, he thinks to himself.
But he's taken completely by surprise as the taller man wraps his jacket around Jimin's small shivering frame, and the teenager peers up at him warily, watching him as he takes a seat at his desk once again.
"Go ahead and sleep on the couch tonight," he offers and Jimin just knows that he's wasted, if the nearly empty bottle of whiskey on his desk is any hint.
And so he curls into the man's suit jacket, knowing full well that this isn't going to be something Starling remembers in the morning. However he takes it as it is, just wishing he could share this experience with Taehyung.
Still wanting to know why he's locked up.
(A/N): I know Jeongguk and Jimin haven't had a lot of time together but I don't want their relationship to be rushed. :]