K, so I felt bad for leaving y'all on a cliffhanger... so, next chapter!
XXX: Taehyung
I catch Jungkook before he can fall, bringing him close to my chest. He's shivering and his breath comes out in short puffs. When I put a hand to his forehead, I nearly pull it away when I feel how hot he is.
He has a fever.
A bad one.
"Jungkook!" I shake his shoulders. No response. His head lolls to one side, and his eyes are squeezed shut. Even though his forehead is so hot, his whole body shivers like it's the middle of winter.
"Out of my way!" I hear a voice nearby, and a moment later, Jin is at my side. "Lay him down on the ground, Taehyung. Let him use your lap as a pillow." I quickly do as he says, wrapping an arm around Jungkook's shoulders to keep him close. Jin puts a hand to Jungkook's cheek, before taking a circular tube filled with liquid out of his bag.
"Taehyung, give him this right now." I take the tube from him, and part Jungkook's lips, pouring the liquid down his throat. He immediately recoils at the taste, body jerking as he tries to spit it out. A pained cry leaves his lips, and it takes all my willpower to keep him steady.
"What did you give him?" I ask, horrified as I feel Jungkook's body go limp once again in my arms. "A type of painkiller," Jin replies, still intent on searching through his bag. He gives up with a groan, running a hand through his hair.
"I don't know what's wrong with him. We need to get him back to Armad as soon as possible. Most of my medicine is there. Here, give him to me." Jin reaches out his arms, but I pull away. "I'll take him. It's faster to fly to the portal rather than run. He'll have more time that way."
"Taehyung, you need rest―"
"Damn rest," I growl loudly, making Jin flinch. "My soulmate is in pain right now, and you want me to just do nothing? There's no way in hell that I'm not coming with you. Where's the door?"
Jin pauses. "Fine. It's in the woods next to the healing center. And once you're back at Armad, make sure to put wet a cloth and put it on his forehead. That should calm his fever down. I'll look at the gash on his face and his fingers when I get there." I nod, gathering Jungkook's frail body up in my arms.
"Yoongi! Namjoon!" Both men come out of the crowd, and I'm glad to see that they're uninjured. "Take care of the military while I'm gone. Make sure the wounded get proper care and none go crazy from bloodlust. The dead should be given a proper burial and be remembered with honor. Tend to it!" They both salute, turning back to the crowd, and start barking orders.
I swiftly pick Jungkook up, careful to avoid his broken hand. His body is so light that I know I can carry him and fly at full speed without getting tired. I've done it before. The soldiers part as I weave my way through the crowd, half from respect for my status, and the other half looking worriedly at Jungkook.
Once I get to the edge of the mass of vampires, I have enough room to spread my wings and take off. As I fly through the abandoned streets, I'm painfully aware that Jungkook looks so much paler than before, and his shivering is back. I use one hand to wind the cloak around his body, but it doesn't seem to do any good.
"Stay with me Jungkook," I whisper. He moans, and the blood that had clotted at the corner of his lip now flows freely again. I tighten my grip on his body as he violently shudders. "You don't have to open your eyes. You don't have to speak. Just stay with me."
I can't arrive at the door sooner, and I wrench it open, feeling the cool air of the kitchen hit my face. Running up the stairs, I open the door to the healing room, feeling a bit better when I see all the vials of medicine lining the walls. There has to be at least one of them which could heal my soulmate.
I lay him down on the silk sheets, changing him into a looser tunic which breathes better against his skin. His whole body is hot, and I wonder what made him catch such a horrible sickness. Rushing to the sink, I fill a basin with cold water, and take a cloth from Jin's pile. Wetting the cloth fully in the water, I squeeze it and gently put it on Jungkook's forehead. He lets out a small whine but relaxes as the water cools down his forehead. He still doesn't open his eyes, but he looks calmer than before. I sigh in relief, clasping his smaller hand in mine and leaning my forehead against it. "Why do you have to endure so much pain, my love? Every time you get hurt, it comes closer to killing me."
I hear the healing center door open and close, and in a moment, Jin is in the room, finding bottle after bottle of medicines. Coming to Jungkook's bedside, he nods in approval as he sees the wet cloth.
"Good job. Taehyung, you can go out now. I'll handle it from here."
"I'm not leaving him." I say, and Jin raises an eyebrow. "Until I'm sure that he's going to be fine, I'm not leaving his side." Jin opens his mouth, but closes it again, nodding. "Okay. But if you're going to be here, make yourself useful. Do you see that green bottle over there? Bring that to me, along with an alcohol pad. Let's first treat Jungkook's bones and cuts."
With Jin's careful instructions, we set Jungkook's broken bones and treat the gash on his face and lip. With each injury that we treat, I murmur an apology into Jungkook's ear. It was my fault that he was so hurt. If I had just killed Lucius before he had a chance to torture Jungkook like this, then none of this would have happened.
Jungkook flinches when we put the poultice on his cuts, which I take as a good sign. I try not to worry myself over the fact that he hasn't regained consciousness or that his body is still burning hot.
Jin gets Jungkook to drink a few different medicines, but from what I can see, none seem to be doing anything. Jin finally pulls away from Jungkook with a ragged sigh.
"I don't understand," He mutters. "Nothing is working. I've tried everything I can think of, and he's not responding to anything! I don't even know what type of sickness he has! If he doesn't wake up..." Jin shakes his head, walking over to the window. I follow him, unimaginable dread blooming in my stomach.
"You don't mean..." When Jin doesn't answer I shake him by the shoulders. "Jin! You can't be serious! Are you telling me that he's just going to die? Like this? N-no. I won't accept it. I won't Jin, I just won't."
"He's human, Taehyung," Jin whispers. "Humans can die. They don't have strong bodies like you or me. They're much more vulnerable to fatal illnesses. Maybe Jungkook just doesn't have enough power to fight off whatever is killing him from the inside. We have to prepare for the worst."
I back away from him, shaking my head. This was all wrong. Jungkook shouldn't have to suffer like this. What did he do to experience so much pain? Why him, of all people? Why did so much bad fortune have to befall us?
"T-tae?" A weak voice comes from the bed, and I whirl around, not daring to believe what I heard. But all my thoughts of being calm fly right out the window when I see that Jungkook's eyes are half open, and his hands roam across the covers like he's searching for something. "Tae?" He calls again, "W-where are y-you?"
"Kook!" I rush to his side, and I want to cry when I see his beautiful golden brown eyes looking back at me.
"T-tae..." He shakily reaches his hand out, and I instantly take it, squeezing it reassuringly. "You're going to be alright, love. Jin knows his medicines."
"It hurts, tae. It hurts so much." Jungkook's breathing is labored, and his eyelids are fluttering. "The pain... it's―it's burning."
"I know, my love." I sit next to him, caressing his locks of hair which are sweaty from his fever. "Stay strong. Whatever it is, Jin can fix it. You'll be back to normal in no time." I don't let any of the doubt I'm feeling taint my words. The last thing he needs is to know the full extent of his sickness.
Jungkook nods, his feverish gaze drifting to Jin. "Kai? Is he okay?" He croaks, and Jin nods. "After you went missing, Chen returned with the yarrow. Just in time, too. It was enough to keep Kai alive until we half-dragged him to the healing center. Once there, we almost lost him again while Hoseok went to get the witch hazel. But now he's stable and doing well. Chen went to find you, but, well..." Jin looks at Jungkook's form. "No wonder he couldn't find you," he whispers.
"You mean that it was you who let him out of the infirmary?" I grab Jin's collar with my hand. "What were you thinking? He could have gotten killed! As it is, he's already had two of his fingers broken, and is now suffering from a high fever! And not to mention that he was almost bleeding raped! Did his safety mean nothing to you?"
Jin holds my furious gaze levelly. "A soldier was dying, Taehyung. I'm a medic. I'm not going to let someone die just because I was foolish enough not to accept the help someone gave. And besides, Jungkook has a naturally sweet personality. If I had refused his offer, he probably would have found a way to sneak out and trail me anyway. He was safer with me."
"Offers be damned―" A pained gasp from Jungkook has me releasing Jin's shirt and clutching onto my soulmate's hand. As I watch, Jungkook coughs, bringing his uninjured hand up to his mouth. When he pulls the hand away, I see that the palm is red with blood. Jin sees it too, because his eyes widen and he turns white as a sheet of paper.
"Jin..."
"Taehyung," Jin's voice is shaky. "You have to go. Now." The urgency in his voice is frightening, and I stand up. "Do you know what it is?"
"I have a few ideas. All of which I'm hoping to god is wrong." Jin moves toward the medicine cupboards, a franticness in his steps that wasn't there before. I look down at Jungkook, seeing him starting to close his eyes again. The hand holding mine goes slack, and I kneel beside him, pleading him to open his eyes. I look at Jin, who's watching with a sad expression on his face. Like how a doctor looks before he breaks the bad news.
"Please," My voice cracks, "You have to help him. Tell me he's going to be alright. Swear it, Jin. Swear it."
"Taehyung," Jin's voice is gentle as he brushes a hand across my shoulder. "I know how you feel. I've come close to losing Namjoon more times than I like to count. But you have to trust me. Go outside. Get some rest. I'll report to you as soon as I find anything new."
"Anything." I say, and Jin nods. I make myself rise from Jungkook's side, walking slowly towards the door. Once there, I pause, every cell in my body begging me to stay with Jungkook. But I've never heard Jin so serious in my life. I have to trust his words. "Heal him, Jin. Please." He meets my eyes, and the flash of fear in them makes me want to break down and cry. "I'll do everything I can."
☆☆☆
Five long, painstakingly slow hours later, Jin comes out of the healing center, wringing his hands together nervously. I immediately stand up, desperate for anything that could ease my worries. But from the look on Jin's face, I was going to get the exact opposite.
"You're still here? In the waiting room?" He asks. I look up at him. "Did you really expect me to be anywhere else?"
"No," He admits. "I didn't." A silence stretches between us, and I wait for Jin to give me his report.
"Taehyung..." Jin hesitates. "You're not going to like this."
"Any news is better than no news," I say, steeling myself for whatever he was going to say. "Tell me, did you find out Jungkook's sickness?"
"No," He says, and I feel my heart stop. "Because it isn't an illness." He meets my gaze, and his hands grip mine strongly like he wanted to give me strength.
"He's been poisoned, Taehyung."