Charlie couldn't keep herself still as she sat in the van on their way to the drop off location. She was dressed in all black, and while the clothing was snug against her skin, it was still comfortable enough so that she could easily move. Hoseok had crafted some fingerless gloves for her to wear that had a little extra padding to cover her knuckles so she could fight longer. Her small belt that hung around her hips held a number of throwing blades as well as some emergency first aid things... just in case. She had pulled her hair back into a high ponytail and had hairsprayed the shit out of it earlier in order to keep everything in place.
"These are your earpieces. You can hear the other members through it and it has a small mic as well," Hosoek said, handing a small black gadget to Jungkook and Charlie. They both grabbed them and placed them into their ears.
"They're in," Jimin said out loud.
"Hotshot, do you copy?" Taehyung's voice was heard in everyone's ear.
"Copy." Jungkook responded.
"Blade, copy?"
"Copy you Circuit," Charlie responded.
"Perfect. How're you both doing?" He asked.
"Good, I think," Jungkook said, turning towards Charlie who nodded.
"Yeah, we're good," She replied.
"Charlie won't stop bouncing her leg. She's nervous," Jimin revealed, giving her a sly smile. Charlie was already annoyed with him, but she tried to push away her disdain for him for the sake of this assignment.
"I got you Blade, one second," Taehyung said. Charlie was confused as to what he was doing, but within a couple seconds, she heard one of her favorite songs come through the ear piece. She instantly started smiling and moving her head to the beat of the music.
"What the hell is this?" Hoseok asked, the annoyance evident in his tone. Charlie turned to Jungkook and saw that he was jamming out to the music as well, a small smile on his face.
"This better not be going all night," Jimin complained.
"Relax, it's just one song," Taehyung replied, his voice coming in over the music.
Everyone stayed silent as they pulled up to the location right as the music ended. Jin turned around from the driver's seat and faced the four in back.
"This is it. I'll stay here unless I need to move. If that happens, then Circuit will let you know my location," he said. Everyone nodded and Hoseok opened the side door to the van. Charlie was about to follow him when she felt Jungkook grab her arm. She turned towards him, seeing a serious expression on his face.
"You good?" he asked while Charlie smiled. He was always so worried about her, which she found a little annoying but also very endearing.
"Of course, you keep me safe, remember?" Charlie earned a small chuckle from her best friend.
"And you sure as hell keep me wild," he replied. Charlie wrapped her arms around his neck, giving him a quick squeeze before exiting the van and splitting off into their two groups.
Jungkook and Hoseok took off to the building next to their target location and quickly climbed the couple flights of stairs in order to get a good vantage point. Once at their location, Jungkook set down the large case he was carrying and pulled out the sniper rifle, carefully setting it up.
"Phantom doesn't want us killing anyone, so Chemist sent us with some darts," Hoseok informed, handing some dart bullets to Jungkook, who took them and loaded his sniper. Looking through the scope, he saw Jimin and Charlie on the side of the building getting ready to enter.
"We're in position. How's it looking Hotshot?" Jimin asked. Charlie noticed that Jimin's personality had completely shifted as soon as they left the van. He was serious and focused, a clear distinction from his usual flirty and playful demeanor.
Jungkook looked through his scoop to get an idea of how many men were inside. He couldn't see everything, but he could map out most of the building.
"Visual on our target. Center of the large room. Looks like about 4 other men with him. That's all I'm seeing," Jungkook relayed.
"Transport incoming in 10," Taehyung said.
Jimin turned towards Charlie with a serious expression.
"Ready Blade?" He asked and she nodded. "Remember, we are only knocking 'em out. You use those knives to disarm or as a last resort, got it?"
"Got it," she replied. Charlie and Jimin made their way into the building, keeping to the shadows as they snaked through the halls.
This made Jungkook really nervous since he didn't fully have eyes on either of them. He waited until he could see them enter the larger room with their target.
Jimin led the way, peering around the corner as he noticed two men standing guard. He pulled back and held up two fingers to Charlie, who nodded in response. Jimin knocked quietly on the wall, getting the two guards' attention as they walked in their direction. As soon as they were close enough, Jimin and Charlie stepped out of the shadows, quickly attacking.
Charlie knew this felt different because this guy could actually kill her, this wasn't a sparring match. She put everything into it and was thankful for the gloves that Hoseok had made since they definitely helped. This guy was good and pretty much blocked everything that Charlie gave him. She blocked one of his punches a little too late and could feel the bruise on her jaw already starting to form, but she shook it off and landed a kick to the side of his head. She tried to kick again, but he grabbed her ankle and flung her to the ground.
She landed hard, and was a little slow in getting back up as the man grabbed the back of her neck, pulling her up and landing another punch to her face. Charlie was getting pissed and instead of trying to get out of his grip, she pulled him closer and kicked her leg up behind her before landing a blow right against his head. She took the opportunity to take control of the situation and twisted his arm, feeling it dislocate as she landed a final blow to his head, knocking him unconscious.
She looked over at Jimin who was currently pulling the other unconscious man around the corner. Charlie attempted to do the same, but this guy was heavy. Jimin came to help her, and once the two men were hidden, he stopped and looked at her.
"You good?" he asked, looking at the blood dripping down the side of her lip. She nodded as she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.
They continued through the hall and approached the door to the main room.
"Hotshot, we're in position," Jimin said.
"Ready when you are," he responded.
Jimin slowly opened the door as Charlie peered in. No one was close, so they quietly walked in and hid behind a couple crates.
"I have visual on Blade and Breaker," Jungkook said, finally feeling at ease.
Jungkook placed his crosshairs on the man farthest from their target and closest to Charlie and Jimin. He took a deep breath, letting it out half way before gently squeezing the trigger. Charlie watched as the small dart landed into the neck of the man right in front of them. He stumbled a bit and Jimin quickly walked up behind him to catch him, slowly lowering him to the ground. They stayed low and went to the second man as he too was shot and lowered to the ground.
"2 minutes 'til incoming," Taehyung said, warning them to get ready before the transport arrived.
Everyone waited until the car pulled up and watched as the deal was made, noticing their target now had a black case in his hand. As soon as the car left, Charlie and Jimin snuck around so they could intercept him. They watched as the other two men fell to the ground, loudly, and the target scrambled, looking around, finally seeing all his men on the ground. The target pulled out his gun and held it up, trying to protect himself.
"Hotshot, can you take him down?" Jimin asked.
"Negative, I don't have a good visual," Jungkook replied.
Charlie peeked at the man and looked behind him, seeing some crates that someone could easily hide behind. "Get to his 6, I'll get the gun from his hand and you jump him," Charlie said while Jimin nodded and took off to the other side of the building. She expected some comment or even a wink from him, but nothing. She would have to ask him about his weird behavior later.
Charlie took a deep breath and took out one of her blades, kissing it before throwing it right at the man's hand, the one holding his gun. He screamed out in pain as he dropped the gun and the case and Jimin ran behind him and knocked him out in no time. Charlie sauntered out from her hiding spot and picked up the black case.
"Package acquired," she stated.
"Nice shot," Jimin told her as they started to walk back to the pick up location.
Upon hearing that the mission was complete, Jungkook put away his sniper, then he and Hoseok made their way back to the van.
When Charlie and Jimin arrived at the van, they saw that Hoseok and Jungkook were already sitting there waiting for them.
"Nicely done!" Hoseok complimented as they climbed in. Jungkook held his arms open as Charlie fell into them.
"Living up to your name already, Hotshot," she said, earning a laugh from him.
When she pulled away, the expression on Jungkook's face changed as he lightly grabbed her chin and looked at the dried blood on her lip and the slightly purplish coloring on her chin. "It probably looks worse than it feels," Charlie said while Jungkook forced a smile. He knew she would get hurt at times and he had come to accept that, but it still put a knot in his stomach seeing his best friend with bruises on her body once again.
"I bet the other guy looks much worse," Jungkook joked, causing Jin to look back before glancing at Charlie with furrowed brows.
They all heard Yoongi's voice through their earpieces. "Perfectly executed. We will debrief when everyone gets home."
"Got it, see you soon," Jin replied before making sure to cut off his mic. He turned back again, trying to get a better look at Charlie. "You okay?" he asked.
"Yeah, I'm good, just took a few hits, nothing too bad," she replied.
"Hey Hoseok, can you drive? I want to make sure she's good," Jin said. Hoseok nodded, getting out to switch places with Jin. Jin pulled out a small first aid kit he kept under the backseat before turning on the light, facing Charlie as he gently grabbed her chin, assessing the damage.
"This doesn't look too bad, just some minor bruising," he observed. Jin pulled out some gauze and rubbing alcohol to clean the cut on her lip, trying to keep his hand steady as the car hit a bump, causing the liquid to spill a bit. "This won't be the first time you get hit, you sure you want to keep doing this?" he inquired.
Sure, he was the one who recruited the both of them in the first place, but he couldn't stop the worry from gnawing at his insides knowing that Charlie got hurt. Granted it was a few minor injuries and this wasn't the first time that someone got hurt, but this was different.
"Why do you say that?" Charlie asked, trying to figure out what Jin's true meaning was behind the question. Jin let out a sigh and she knew she had seen that look before.
"Let me ask you something, did you say the same thing to Jimin when he started?" Charlie inquired. Jimin finally looked over, noticing the tension between the two.
"Not exactly, but Charlie you are-" Jin started to say but Jimin cut in.
"She's tough and bounces back, doesn't let anything get in her way. She's the perfect field agent Jin," he said, looking over to Charlie who actually started to blush at the first sincere compliment coming from him.
She swallowed her pride before turning to Jimin. "Thanks," she muttered while he nodded, giving her a small smile.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. I just want to make sure you're still okay with this after what happened tonight," Jin mumbled, putting the rubbing alcohol away before placing the first aid kit back under the seat.
"Don't sweat it, just please don't treat me differently because I'm the only girl on the team. I know how to handle myself and I need you to trust me, especially since you're the one who recruited me," she replied, causing him to nod his head in response.
"So, we good?" he asked.
"Yes Jin, we're good," she said, giving him a small smile. Charlie leaned against the window, her eyes taking in the nightlife scene. It was pretty late, so barely anyone was out and all the stores looked like they were closed. She felt her eyes grow slightly heavy when a neon sign caught her attention.
She sat up, grinning as she stared at the tattoo parlor. "Wait, stop!" she shouted, startling everyone in the car as Hoseok swiftly hit the brakes.
"Oww," Jimin groaned, rubbing his forehead slightly since he hit the seat in front of him when the car came to a sudden halt. "What the hell Charlie?" he grumbled, glaring up at the girl who was still looking at the tattoo parlor.
Jin looked out the window and noticed what had caught her attention. "Are you seriously thinking about getting a tattoo right now? At this hour? It's late," he said.
She turned to him, a small frown on her face. "Please? Jungkook and I just successfully completed our first mission, I want to get something to commemorate this special moment," she replied, trying to convince Jin to let her go.
"We really need to get home," Jin pushed, feeling the exhaustion settle in. All he wanted right now was to just settle into the comforts of his bed.
"Then you can just let me off here and I'll figure out a way back home," she replied while Jin shook his head, telling her that they're not going to leave her there alone.
"I'll go too, that way she won't be by herself," Jungkook chimed in, causing Charlie to turn to him with a small smile.
"We're not leaving the two of you alone this late at night. Look, I'll drive you here tomorrow myself, let's just go home," Jin reasoned.
"I'll stay with them. We're not too far from home anyway, so we can just walk or I can call Namjoon to come get us once we're done," Hoseok suggested, noticing the way Charlie's face lit up at the suggestion.
He couldn't deny the slight guilt he still felt for their confrontation months ago. He stayed because he vowed to protect her, and right now, he wanted to try to make amends. The two barely talked, just the occasional greeting or talking during training, but that was it. He wanted to change that. He saw the way she would interact with the others and wanted her to know that he would be there for her as well.
"Fine, just be safe, okay?" Jin gave in, staring at both Charlie and Jungkook as the two nodded before eagerly taking off their equipment and weapons, getting out of the car with Hoseok following close behind.
Jin sat behind the wheel while Jimin sprawled himself out in the back now that the seats next to him were vacant. The oldest waved at them before driving off.
When they entered the tattoo shop, there was a man sprawled out on the small couch in the designated waiting area, both of his arms covered in tattoos while a young woman stood at the counter, multiple piercings in both her ears while a tattoo of a dreamcatcher covered her forearm. Upon hearing the door open, the woman looked up, her eyebrows raising slightly as she stared at Charlie's face, noticing the faint bruises and the busted lip before glancing at the two guys with her.
Her partner got up from his spot on the couch, furrowing his brows as he also stared at the girl who just walked in, frowning slightly at her appearance.
"Welcome to Trigger Happy, what can I do for you?" the woman asked.
Charlie stepped forward, a huge grin on her face. "I was hoping to get a tattoo," she said, glancing at the dreamcatcher tattoo while the woman raised an eyebrow, staring at Charlie.
"You old enough to get one, kid? You don't look like you're 18," she commented.
"I'm almost 19," Charlie replied. The woman nodded, too tired to even question it.
"You have an idea of what you want?" she asked while Charlie shook her head. "Here, take a look at some samples and let me know if anything catches your eye," the woman said, pull out a book from behind the counter before handing it to Charlie.
Jungkook stood behind her, eyes peering over her shoulder as she was flipping through the pages while Hoseok walked around the parlor, glancing at the various tattoo designs plastered on the wall. Charlie finally stopped when the design of a phoenix caught her attention. She figured this would be perfect, since her being a part of Bangtan felt like a new beginning, like she was rising out of the ashes from her past and becoming a new, stronger person.
"This one," she confidently said, pointing to the design. The woman smiled, eyes meeting the young girl's.
"You sure about this? There's no going back once we get started, and this one is definitely going to take a few hours," the woman commented, wanting to make sure Charlie knew what she was signing up for.
"I'm sure," she replied while the woman nodded, letting Charlie know she was going to start sketching it out while Charlie walked over towards Hoseok. Jungkook remained with the woman, watching her sketching the outline of the design, fascinated by the process.
Charlie noticed Hoseok observing the pictures and came up next to him, joining him in admiring the ink on the wall. "So, you planning on getting one?" she playfully asked while Hoseok let out a small laugh.
"Nah, I'm good," he replied, glancing down at her. "Did you figure out what you want to get?" he asked, initiating the conversation.
"A phoenix," she replied. "But it's going to take a while, so I hope you and Jungkook don't mind waiting," she said while he shook his head, letting her know it was no problem. "Thanks for coming with us Hoseok, I appreciate it," she added, giving him a small smile as he nodded in response. The two of them settled into a conversation, getting to know each other a bit as Charlie waited for the tattoo artist to finish drawing the outline.
Jungkook continued to watch the woman, fascinated by the design Charlie picked. It took the woman about fifteen minutes to draw it all out, and right when she was about to call Charlie over, an idea popped into his head.
"Hey, can I add something to that?" Jungkook quietly asked. The woman looked over at him curiously and hesitated. "I promise it won't be anything bad."
"Sure kid, what should I put?" the artist asked.
"Would it be ok if I wrote it?" Jungkook wondered if the woman would even let him do it, but was surprised when she smiled, handing him a piece of paper.
"Practice on this because once you write it with what I have drawn here, that's what's getting tattooed." Jungkook gratefully took the paper and wrote out the words that came to mind when thinking of the tattoo and his best friend. The woman looked over his shoulder and nodded. "I think that's perfect," she said.
Jungkook then added his part to the tattoo as Charlie called for him.
"You should get this one Kook!" He turned to see Charlie pointing at something on the wall and walked over to her. He looked at the picture of a man's shoulder that had a really cool animal print design on it.
"Umm, not really a cheetah print kind of guy," he said, scrunching his brows together as Hoseok laughed.
"Well of course not cheetah print, you dummy," Charlie said smacking his chest. "What about... feathers?" Charlie slightly turned towards him and noticed him biting his lip, thinking it over. "We could have another matching tattoo! Well, kinda."
"I don't know Char," Jungkook said, still trying to visual it.
"I can draw something out and you can let me know if you like it," the man on the couch said as he started to stand up.
"Yeah, that sounds perfect," Jungkook said as he followed the man to a nearby counter.
"Ready for you dear," the woman called, both Charlie and Hoseok following her. "So where do you want this?" She asked. Charlie looked down at her own body, trying to figure out where it would go... How had she not thought about where her new tattoo would go? The woman walked towards her and placed the paper lightly against Charlie's upper thigh and hip. 'What about here?" she suggested. Charlie smiled and nodded in agreement. "Alright then, there is a bathroom over there. You can strip and use the sheet in there to cover up. Since this'll be on your hip, I will need underwear off as well."
"You know what? I'm just going to go wait outside," Hoseok said, walking back out towards the waiting area while Charlie headed towards the bathroom.
She was finally ready, laying on her side on the chair and covering up as much as she could with the sheet provided. The woman placed the paper on Charlie's thigh and hip area, wetting it down to transfer the purple ink to her skin. When she pulled up the paper, Charlie noticed the words that were added along one of the feathers: Still I Rise. The woman saw her confused look.
"Your friend added that, wrote it himself," she said, nodding towards the door as she got some of the ink colors ready.
Jungkook walked in and noticed the outline on his friend's body. He paused a little when he saw so much of Charlie's skin exposed, noticing how toned her legs were from training for the past few months. He didn't seem too fazed by it, both of them used to seeing some skin after years of living together. It was normal at this point.
"Do you like it?" he asked.
"I love it, thanks!" Charlie replied.
The other man walked in behind Jungkook and motioned towards the other chair.
"Time to lose the shirt," he said as Jungkook reached for the hem and pulled his shirt over his head. Charlie noticed how much more toned and muscular Jungkook had gotten since being with Bangtan, proud of how much he's grown. He wasn't the skinny little boy who she met when they were 16.
With all the details on both of their tattoos, it took a little over three hours to get them done. When they were finally finished, both of them glanced at their designs once more, pleased with the fresh ink before the tattoo artists wrapped it, instructing them on the aftercare process.
They both got dressed and went back out to the front where Hoseok was waiting. The woman gave them the amount owed for the tattoos once they were back at the counter.
Jungkook quickly took out his wallet, handing her the cash for his while Charlie frantically patted her non-existent pockets. "Shit! I don't have any money on me," she grumbled, realizing that her stuff was attached to a small pouch on her belt, the one she left in the car along with her blades.
"It's okay Char, I can get it," Jungkook offered before Hoseok stopped him.
"No, I've got it," Hoseok insisted, already handing the woman a couple of bills. "It's the least I can do after being an ass before, and I hope there's no hard feelings," he said while Charlie smiled up at him. "Alright, kids, let's go home," he said, resting his arms on Jungkook's and Charlie's shoulders before leading them out of the tattoo parlor.
A/N: The next update is finally here! Again, it will be mostly weekly uploads and one of is starting classes and the other works :)
Tell us your thoughts about their first mission? --->
Charlie and Jungkook's Tattoos