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basketofverbiage · 2 years

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I'm not dead! Here is the first part of a story I've been working on for a week. JinKook apparently own my brain.

tw: domestic violence, emotional abuse, food, vomiting, hospitals, surgery, medication/pills, blood, language, fist fight, mention of stitches, bruises, mentions of needles/IVs, respirator, police investigations, restraining orders, minor panic attack/anxiety, handcuffs and not in the fun way, jail, toothdamage, mentions of JKs mom dying of a terminal illness, broken bones, and catheters...

When Jungkook graduated college and got his first job as a photographer for a large events space in Seoul, he was beyond proud of himself. He’d grown up with just he and his mom until she’d died a week and a half after his eighteenth birthday, and he’d busted his ass to graduate with honors for both of his degrees, photography and marketing. After he was offered the job, he spent the next three weeks crashing on his best friend’s couch until he’d found a good apartment in his price range. He didn’t own much; he and Taehyung had been able to carry it up in one trip up the elevator before going to Ikea to get him his own bed, a sofa, and a computer desk so he could work from home on occasion. Taehyung had stayed to help him assemble the god-forsaken things and eat his weight in chimaek as payment but having his laughter bounce around the walls helped the apartment feel a little more like home.

Jungkook was quiet by nature and didn’t feel the need to surround himself with much noise. For the first few days, it seemed that his neighbors subscribed to the same philosophy. On his fourth night in his apartment, Jungkook laid awake in bed listening to the sound of one of the men in the apartment on the other side of the wall screaming at his boyfriend that he was a stupid whore and more than one dish shattering upon violent impact with the drywall. Even through the first man’s screaming and tossing of glassware, the only sound Jungkook ever heard from the man’s boyfriend was a few soft moans of pain. Jungkook tended to be a mostly non-confrontational man, but after 3 hours of the screaming, he began to wonder if he should call the police. By the time that he grabbed his phone off his bedside table, the fight seemed to have ended and Jungkook was able to drift off to a fitful sleep.

When his alarm went off the next morning, Jungkook drug himself to the bathroom and into the shower. His mind was racing as he couldn’t help but remember the night before, wondering if he’d done the right thing. He’d just stepped out of the spray and was toweling off when he heard the shower next door kick on. The apartments were apparently mirror images of one another, and he could hear the same soft voice who’d moaned in pain sobbing in the shower an apartment away from his own. His heart clenched, but he wasn’t sure if there was anything he could do to help the situation without making it so much worse.

He continued to be distracted by the memories of the night before as he took the train to the office then settled down with his travel mug of coffee to edit some of the photos he’d taken a few days prior during a formal event the company had sponsored. He kept pinching the inside of his arm, trying to refocus his mind in order to get the edits done on the photos, but he wasn’t very successful.

“Jungkook-ah, you okay? You’ve been staring holes in your laptop screen for 30 minutes now. It’s starting to freak me out because you aren’t blinking.”

Jungkook nearly fell out of his chair at the comment from his desk-mate, Yoongi. “Ah, Yoongi-hyung! I didn’t sleep very well last night, so I’m having issues focusing.”

“Sorry for startling you. Wanna talk about it?”

Would talking about it be violating the privacy of the couple next door? Maybe, but at the same time, Jungkook needed to decide what he’d do if it happened again.

“So, you know how I moved into the new apartment, hyung?” Jungkook paused for a moment to allow Yoongi to nod before continuing on. “I’ve been there 4 nights now and it’s been super quiet until last night. Last night, I could hear one of the men living next door screaming at the other. Like screaming profanities and glass breaking and the other man barely making a peep except to moan in pain. At first, I thought it was just a normal couple fight until I could hear the other man hurting and stuff. It lasted for 3 hours, and just as I had decided to call the police, it went quiet. I could hear the other man crying in the shower this morning. Hyung, what do I do if it happens again? And I keep thinking that I shouldn’t have waited so long to decide to do something.”

Yoongi’s mouth had moved from a soft smile to a hard angry frown the more Jungkook described the incident. “Jungkook-ah, I don’t want you to feel guilty about not getting involved and being unsure what to do. That’s a very difficult situation, but I think that the next time, it might be a good idea to call the police. They would be able to help the situation without you getting hurt. You could call anonymously so the people in the apartment won’t know that you were the one to call.”

Just hearing his Yoongi-hyung tell him that he shouldn’t feel guilty and building up a game plan made him feel much better. Even though he’d wasted half of his day, he was able to buckle down after the conversation and get enough work done to feel accomplished. He left the office at a decent 6 pm for a Thursday evening and picked up some takeout udon from his favorite noodle shop before heading home. When he stepped into the building, he noticed a tall man with the broadest shoulders he’d ever seen waiting on the elevator. The man’s hands were full of multiple reusable grocery bags, and he was having difficulty pressing the button to go up. Jungkook smiled softly then reached out and pressed the button for him. The man was wearing long sleeves and the biggest pair of sunglasses Jungkook had seen in a while, but the man’s hands were so full that Jungkook just assumed he wasn’t able to remove them yet.

The elevator arrived just after the man smiled slightly and offered up the softest “thank you” Jungkook had ever heard. Jungkook held the doors to make sure he was able to get in with all of his purchases before the doors closed, then pressed the button for the fifth floor. “What floor are you heading to? I can press the button for you since your hands are full,” Jungkook offered.

“Thank you so much, but I’m heading to the fifth floor too.”

They made small talk until the elevator arrived, where Jungkook assumed that they’d part ways, but he followed along in awe as the man stopped in front of the door right next to his own. The very apartment that had been on his mind most of the last 24 hours.

“Ah! Looks like we’re neighbors! I moved next door last weekend,” Jungkook mentioned as the man was struggling to get his keys out of his pocket amongst all the bags of groceries. “Would you like some help getting the door open?”

The man laughed softly. “That would actually be amazing. My name is Seokjin, by the way.”

“Jungkook.”

Seokjin had gotten most of the key ring out of his pocket, so Jungkook was able to take it the rest of the way without putting his hand in the stranger’s pocket. He slipped the keys out and chose the one that Seokjin instructed before unlocking the door. The lock had just clicked enough to turn the handle and crack the door open when a dark laughter echoed down the hall around them.

“Well, well, well. What do we have here? Seokjin playing the filthy whore as always,” a tall man growled from beside them.

“I live next door and his hands were full. I was just trying to help him, nothing more,” Jungkook replied cautiously before stepping toward his own door.

The man’s eyes narrowed, and he snarled at Jungkook before he shoved Seokjin through the door. Jungkook stood frozen in shock for a moment as a couple of glass jars in one of the bags Seokjin had been carrying shattered and his knees slammed against the entryway floor. The man tried to push the door closed but was unsuccessful, and Jungkook could hear the crack of a slap before the man started screaming that he knew Seokjin had been whoring around and he’d teach him a lesson he’d never forget. Something about the sound of the slap across Seokjin’s face and the clack of his sunglasses clattering into their wall snapped something in Jungkook. He pushed the door open to find the man standing above Seokjin, kicking him as hard as he could in the abdomen with the steel-toe of his work-boots. Jungkook’s mind shut off as he shoved the man to the ground and punched him over and over until the man stopped fighting back. He was still alive, just unconscious, but something dark in Jungkook wished the man were dead. Instead of finishing that thought and finishing off the man, Jungkook pulled out his phone and called emergency services. From where he was still kneeling above the man, Jungkook could see that Seokjin wasn’t moving, but he couldn’t tell if he was breathing.

Time seemed to trickle out like frozen molasses, and twenty minutes later, the police finally came. They took Jungkook’s statement and looking over Seokjin lying half dead on the floor and the blood on the man’s boots seemed to be enough for them to believe him. They handcuffed the man’s hands together and he started to come-to as the cuffs clinked closed. He immediately started screaming, “Let me go! I need to finish off that fucking slut on the floor!” It took three police officers to get him out of the apartment and down to their police car.

In the meantime, Jungkook watched from his knees as the paramedics cut off Seokjin’s shirt to try to help him. Jungkook felt physically sick at the volume of bruises in all shades of repair across his chest and abdomen, and the way Seokjin’s stomach was starting to swell brought a whole new wave of nausea. The paramedics lifted him off the floor onto a stretcher, and Jungkook choked on a sob when he saw bloody shards of shattered glass jars beneath him and spikes of some sticking out of his skin.

“Sir, you can ride with him in the ambulance if you want. We can work on your knuckles on the way,” one of the paramedic’s told him. Jungkook looked down at his own hands for the first time and saw the cracks in the bends of the fingers on his right hand from smashing into that asshole’s face. Blood was trickling down two of his fingers, and they were beginning to swell a little, but Jungkook thought the price was worth it. His left hand was beginning to bruise but wasn’t in bad shape considering. He’d known Seokjin less than an hour, but no one should be abused like that, and Jungkook was glad to have given his assailant even a miniscule taste of his own medicine. Jungkook honestly wished he’d taken his boxing lessons more seriously lately; he felt some satisfaction though when he saw a good-sized chunk of the man’s tooth when he grabbed his laptop bag where it had fallen during the scuffle. Seokjin’s keys were still hanging in the lock of the door, so once the paramedics had the stretcher out into the corridor, he locked the door and jogged down the hall to catch up.

The elevator was just big enough to hold the stretcher, the 2 paramedics, and Jungkook. The paramedic closest to the key pad inserted an emergency master key that allowed them to prevent the elevator from stopping until they reached the bottom floor. As soon as the doors slid open to the lobby, the paramedics maneuvered the stretcher out to the ambulance and loaded Seokjin in. One of them jetted around to the driver’s seat while the other helped Jungkook in and closed the doors. The sirens above their heads were blaring and Seokjin was fidgeting around at the noise. Jungkook grabbed his hand with his left hand while the paramedic began disinfecting and wrapping his right hand with gauze and tape. She had nearly finished when Seokjin stopped moving and turned a pasty white.

“He’s not breathing! Seokjin!” he cried, catching the attention of the medical professional.

She sprang into action, beginning CPR when she wasn’t able to find a pulse. She did several minutes worth of compressions before Jungkook heard a small sickening crack as one of Seokjin’s already damaged ribs snapped from the strain. Jungkook was horrified that she didn’t stop CPR immediately, but after a second snap, she was able to find a pulse just as they pulled in to the emergency room driveway. Jungkook held the partial wrappings around his own hand and leapt out of the ambulance to follow them into the main portion of the hospital. They were immediately swarmed by a massive team of doctors and nurses, one of them leading Jungkook off to a triage bay while they rushed Seokjin’s lifeless body through some giant swinging doors. Jungkook tried to pull away to follow Seokjin, but the male nurse who’d been assigned to him assured him that they’d keep him updated and take him to Seokjin’s room when they could.

“My name is Jimin, and I’m a nurse here. I know you’ve been through a lot, and you’re worried about your friend, but let us help him. The paramedics mentioned that your knuckles are a mess and need some attention, so can I take a look?”

Jungkook nodded, then allowed him to unwrap the bandage that had been started. His mind felt like it was full of static from the chaos of the evening. It was definitely not how he’d planned to spend his Thursday evening. He didn’t even know what had happened to the takeout he’d picked up on his way home. Jungkook’s mind was zipped into focus when Jimin dabbed an abrasion on his pointer finger with antiseptic and the sting shot through the static.

“Your first two fingers need some stitches. Just three or four each. Can you tell me more about what happened?” Jimin asked.

“Honestly, it’s crazy. I moved to a new apartment over the weekend. Last night, I heard the neighbors fighting, one of them screaming profanities and breaking dishes and punching the other. This afternoon, I met Seokjin in the elevator. He was carrying a bunch of groceries and was struggling to get the door open. When I unlocked his apartment door, his boyfriend came and shoved him in the apartment and started hitting and kicking him. So I tackled him to the ground in the entryway and punched him until he passed out so I could call for help. He came to when the police got there and threatened to kill Seokjin.”

Jimin soothed him as he gave him some local anesthetic and stitched the skin back together. His ring finger and pinky were both okay and just needed some antibiotic ointment and a bit of gauze. Once he was wrapped properly, Jimin led him through the halls to a small private waiting room.

“I’ll come back when we can take you to see Seokjin. They called his brother and he’s on his way here, so you will probably meet him. Is there anyone I can call for you?” Jimin asked.

“No, I’ll call my friend. I just don’t want to be alone.”

After Jimin left the room to go check on Seokjin, Jungkook took a deep breath before calling Taehyung. As soon as Tae answered the phone, Jungkook felt the adrenaline start to slow down enough to explain what happened and elicit a promise that he was on his way. It was only 8 pm, but Jungkook knew he wouldn’t be able to work the following day. The medication he was supposed to take for the stitches was already making him feel groggy, so he called his supervisor. Even though he’d only been at his job around a month, the staff were all tight-knit and close. He explained to Sejin-ssi what had happened and let him know that he’d work on the edits he had left over the weekend. He was sure he may have to speak with the police officers more about the incident as well.

Jungkook had just disconnected the call with his supervisor when Taehyung burst into the room. He had a bag of takeout in one hand and an overnight bag in the other that he plunked down at Jungkook’s feet and pulled him into a nearly bone-snapping hug. He only let go when Jungkook’s back popped.

“What the actual fuck were you thinking, Jeon Jungkook?” Taehyung snarled in worry.

“That Seokjin was going to die because I tried to help him.” Jungkook’s voice cracked on the last syllable and the last of the adrenaline drained out of his body. He slumped into Taehyung’s chest and cried out the amalgamation of emotion from the last few hours before he had calmed down enough to eat some of the budhae jjigae Taehyung had brought. He only ate about half before the waiting room door opened to reveal Jimin and a tall serious looking man.

“Jungkook, this is Namjoon. He’s Seokjin’s brother. He’s going to be waiting in here with you,” Jimin introduced them before leaving again.

Jungkook knew that he was in for a long night, and eventually talked Taehyung into leaving. Once he was gone, Jungkook curled up as tiny as he could in the chair he was in and covered his legs with the extra jacket Taehyung had packed for him.

“So…how do you know Seokjin?” Namjoon asked softly.

“I just moved in the apartment next door. I’ve lived there 5 days.”

The surprise that showed on Namjoon’s face was the only thing Jungkook needed to try to explain what happened. His conscience would not have allowed Seokjin to take a beating because Jungkook had tried to help. He was hurt, and as far as Jungkook was concerned, it was his fault that Seokjin was hurt.

“Whatever blame you are trying to swallow right now…don’t,” Namjoon stated. “I’ve been trying to get Seokjin to leave Kangdae for months now. I’d heard the things he’s said to him when we’ve talked on the phone, but Seokjin is so stubborn. I had no idea it had gotten so physical though.”

Jungkook choked up again before saying, “When they were prepping him to go in the ambulance, they cut his shirt off and he’s covered in yellow, green, and purple across his chest and stomach and sides. It made me wish I’d hit the fucker more. The stitches were worth knocking one of his teeth out though.”

They fell into silence after that, with Namjoon staring out the window while Jungkook stared at the wad of bandaging in his lap protecting his stitches. He’d always been a very non-violent person until pushed too hard. He couldn’t pinpoint what made him almost enjoy taking the situation into his own fists, but some primal protective instinct had fled to the forefront the moment Kangdae slapped Seokjin. After hearing that Kangdae had been abusing Seokjin for months, Jungkook felt validated in throwing a few punches.

Jungkook’s internal processor spun around the events of the evening, trying and failing to sort out how he truly felt about things. He dozed off sometime during his analysis, waking up to someone gently shaking him. His eyes popped open to Namjoon, hovering over him.

“The doctor is here to update us.”

That woke Jungkook faster than injecting espresso into his veins. He didn’t take the time to wonder why he was so invested in this whole situation. The doctor pulled out a file and showed them a scan of Seokjin’s abdomen, pointing out almost 13 fractures in his ribs and clavicles, all in various states of healing. Some of them were almost better, then there were 4 that looked freshly snapped. The doctor went on to explain that Seokjin had been beaten severely for months, but that if Jungkook hadn’t been there tonight, he’d have died. Kangdae’s steel-toe boots had ruptured Seokjin’s spleen and gallbladder, damaged his liver, and caused massive internal bleeding.

“I think I’m going to be sick,” Jungkook murmured, and rushed across the room to vomit partially digested budhae jjigae into the small trash bin in the room.

The thought that someone was capable of causing that kind of damage to someone they were supposed to have loved mixed with the medication he’d taken to prevent infection in his stitches made him vomit a couple more times. When he was done, he brought the bin with him and apologized to the doctor and to Namjoon.

“It’s okay, Jungkook-ssi. You’ve had a very long evening. I’ll have Jimin bring you some medication for the nausea,” the doctor commented before continuing his discussion of the surgery Seokjin had undergone to repair all the damage. They had removed his gallbladder and spleen, then stitched up the lacerations in his liver and intestines. Depending on how he was doing, they would discuss next steps towards him going home.

“Seokjin-ssi is in critical, but stable condition. He will be spending the next few days in the ICU so that we can observe his progress and dress the surgical wounds. You can see him but just be aware that he is heavily sedated and attached to multiple monitors,” the doctor said.

Namjoon went first as the doctor wanted Jungkook to have some anti-nausea medication before moving around too much. Once he was able to take the medication and keep down some ginger ale, he’d be allowed to visit Seokjin too. Jimin came in with a tiny white pill in a medicine cup and an 8 oz tin of soda.

“Alright, Jungkook. Let this little white pill dissolve under your tongue. It will get into your system faster that way. It’s berry flavored, so hopefully it won’t taste too bad,” Jimin instructed.

He waited with Jungkook while he took the medication and allowed it to dissolve. After fifteen minutes had passed, he had Jungkook sip slowly at the ginger ale. It stayed down so Jimin changed the garbage bin liner to dispose of the one Jungkook had been sick into. Jungkook stayed sitting in the chair he’d been in most of the night with the small hospital trash bin tucked between his knees and took long, slow sips of ginger ale. He had drunk maybe a third of the tin when Namjoon came back into the waiting room. Namjoon’s face was pale and drawn when he sat down beside Jungkook.

“Jungkook, thank you for saving my brother. The doctor said you are the only reason he is alive. And even though he looks so bad right now, he’s going to be okay because of you,” Namjoon stuttered out through his tears. “Do you want to go see him?”

Jungkook couldn’t speak, so he nodded. He knew he wouldn’t be able to rest until he could see Seokjin with his own eyes. When he stood up, though, his knees nearly buckled, so Namjoon held to his arm and walked him to Seokjin’s ICU room. Namjoon helped him to sit in a chair at Seokjin’s bedside, and Jungkook’s eyes flitted over the frail, broken man lying in the bed. His hair lay limp over his forehead and an oxygen mask was strapped over his slightly puffy cheeks. Seokjin’s lips that had granted Jungkook soft smiles when they met at the elevator were now wrapped around the tube of a respirator to assist with his breathing. Due to the extent of his wounds and the staff’s needs to make sure that everything remained clean, he was covered in a sheet and the clasps of his hospital gown were partially undone revealing sickening shades of yellow and green from healing bruises. The only movement, besides soft controlled breaths, was his eyelids fluttering occasionally in the depth of dreams and medically induced sleep. Jungkook knew nothing about this man, but his heart screamed with empathy. He reached out and gently ran two fingers across the back of Seokjin’s hand. The fingers twitched slightly then returned to their immobile state.

Jungkook couldn’t help the tears in his eyes. “I’m sorry. Seokjin, I’m so sorry. I listened to him scream and fling glasses at you for hours last night. I should have called for help. I should have called for help before he could do this to you,” he sobbed.

Namjoon rubbed Jungkook’s back as he cried his apologies out for a while. They both stayed in the room until the nurses came in at 6:30 am to change Seokjin’s dressings. While they waited for the okay to go back in, Namjoon convinced Jungkook to call a taxi and head home to rest. They traded phone numbers before the taxi arrived and Namjoon promised to call him later with updates.

Jungkook got to his apartment with the bag that Taehyung had brought him tucked under one arm. He felt like his skin was saturated in the scent of hospital antiseptic, so he stripped down and took a shower, being careful not to get the gauze protecting the stitches too wet then fell into bed. The adrenaline crash from the night before and the effects of the anti-nausea medication dropped him into a heavy, dreamless sleep. He woke up around four hours later to sharp rapping at his door. Jungkook got up and grabbed a tee shirt out of a drawer before heading to his apartment door. He was still dragging the shirt over his head as he opened the door to come face to face with a pair of professionally dressed men.

“Can I help you?” Jungkook asked.

“Jeon Jungkook-ssi? My name is Detective Jung Hoseok and this is my partner, Detective Im Changkyun. We are wrapping up our investigation into the altercation that occurred between yourself, Lee Kangdae and Kim Seokjin last night. We’ve already spoken with the surgeons in charge of Seokjin-ssi’s care and gathered some details from the crime scene as described by the initial officers to the scene. We honestly just need to take your statement. Would it be alright if we come in?”

Jungkook had anticipated that something like this may need to be done so he brought the detectives into his living room and offered them cups of tea. They graciously accepted, so after brewing three cups, he sat down to speak with them.

Detective Im pulled out a small notepad from the breast pocket of his jacket. “Jungkook-ssi, would you mind describing what happened last night?”

Jungkook took a deep breath and a drawn-out sip of tea before describing the sounds he’d heard the night before the event, meeting Seokjin downstairs, offering to help, and Kangdae attacking Seokjin. The detectives pretty much let him talk straight through, only stopping him a few times to ask some clarifying questions. After about 35 minutes of discussing the events of the previous night, the detectives rose and thanked Jungkook for his time.

“Thank you so much, Jungkook-ssi. At this time, no charges are being brought against you as your actions were to help protect Seokjin-ssi,” Detective Im told him as Jungkook walked them to the door. “If any new questions arise, we will be in contact.”

“I do have one question before you leave if you don’t mind. Seokjin-ssi is going to be in the hospital for a while and won’t be in the shape to clean up the mess in the apartment. I grabbed his keys out of the door on the way to the hospital last night. Would it be okay if I go over and clean up the glass and stuff? I just don’t want to ruin the crime scene if you need anything else.”

Detective Jung smiled softly. “Thank you, Jungkook-ssi. The responding officers took photos before leaving last night with the suspect, so you should be fine to clean up the apartment. I’m sure Seokjin-ssi would appreciate that.”

Just as Jungkook was closing the front door behind the detectives, Jungkook’s phone started ringing. He jogged back through the apartment and snagged it off the bedside table to see a phone number he didn’t recognize on the caller ID.

“Hello?”

“Jungkook-ssi? This is Namjoon, Seokjin’s brother. I just wanted to call with some updates. The doctors want to take Seokjin off the respirator at dinner time and start to allow him to wake up. Would you like to be here when he wakes?”

Jungkook was slightly shocked that Namjoon would ask that, since he was essentially a stranger to his brother, but he was relieved all the same. “I’d really love to. I just spoke with the detectives that are investigating the case and they said it would be okay. Do you think Seokjin would mind if I go over to his apartment and just clean up the glass and things? I’d have to throw out the groceries he bought that were meant to be cold too.”

“I think he would appreciate that very much. Thank you so much for everything you’ve done for him. I really can’t express how grateful I am for you.”

After speaking for a few more minutes, Jungkook slipped on his sneakers and padded next door with the bundle of Seokjin’s keys. He stayed in his worn-out sweats so he could clean comfortably. He knew that Kangdae was still in jail and would be for a bit. He’d apparently been in such a rage that he wasn’t able to continue hurting Seokjin that he attempted to harm one of the arresting officers, so that sealed what remained of his fate. Seokjin would be eligible to request a restraining order for additional protection after he woke up, which wouldn’t help that much physically, but might help his peace of mind. Jungkook opened Seokjin’s apartment door as quietly as possible and sat down the bucket of cleaning supplies he’d brought from his own home. Upon entering the apartment, the first order of business was to sweep up the glass from the shattered jars and throw out the foods that had been left out. Luckily, there didn’t seem to be that much to throw out other than the container of beef for bulgogi that had already begun turning a sickly color and the lettuce for ssam. The bananas, apples, and pears inside the bags were still okay despite some slight bruising so Jungkook sat them on the kitchen counter and proceeded to mop up the blood that had scattered around from the wounds in Seokjin’s back and the smaller pool of blood where Jungkook had knocked out Kangdae’s tooth.

Jungkook cleaned the entryway to his own standards, including lining up their shoes in a neater stack on the shoe rack. Once he was satisfied with the cleanliness of the room, Jungkook gathered up his supplies and emptied the garbage bin liner before setting them in the hallway. He locked up Seokjin’s apartment and took off the trash before heading into his own and put away his cleaning supplies and showering. He rushed through getting dressed and grabbed his medication before stopping to pick up some fried chicken to share with Namjoon and heading off to the hospital. When he arrived, he was able to go straight up to Seokjin’s room, where Namjoon was dozing in the chair at Seokjin’s bedside. Seokjin didn’t seem to look any different from the night before, so Jungkook gently woke Namjoon to offer some dinner. They ate the chicken in no time and Namjoon excused himself to the restroom before the doctor came in. The doctor came in just as Namjoon returned, so he was able to be present.

“The respirator that Seokjin has been on was set to help him breathe only if he needed it and measured the number of respirations he was taking on his own. He was initiating most of the breaths he took over the course of the day today, so it is safe to go ahead and remove the respirator. I want to ask you to step into the hallway so we will have room to remove the tube that’s in his throat,” the doctor explained.

He and Namjoon complied, watching through a small observation window as they removed the long tube that had been seated in Seokjin’s lungs. While they waited, Jungkook told Namjoon about the conversation he’d had with Detective Im and Detective Jung and the things he’d done to straighten up the apartment.

“Oh, Namjoon-ssi! I should probably give you back Seokjin-ssi’s keys,” Jungkook said, beginning to dig around in his pocket for the small key ring with a cute alpaca cartoon character.

“Please, call me hyung. I can’t imagine being so formal with the man who saved my brother’s life. Also, please hang on to Seokjin’s keys. I’m a little forgetful and clumsy, so I’m afraid I’d lose them.” Namjoon reached out a finger and poked the small alpaca keychain. “He’ll have my head on a pike if he wakes up and finds out I lost RJ.”

When the doctor and nurses gave them the okay to go back in the room, they let them know that it may still be a few hours before the medication that had been keeping Seokjin asleep finished wearing off. They entered the room and talked quietly between themselves for a bit, but Jungkook could see the exhaustion from the last 24 hours settling weighty upon Namjoon’s shoulders. Jungkook just naturally allowed the conversation to trail off, then covered Namjoon up in one of the extra blankets the nurses had brough in for them. The room slowly filled with the white noise of Namjoon’s soft snores and the steady beeping of Seokjin’s heart monitor, both sounds soothing to Jungkook’s soul. He spent the next hour or so playing a quiet game on his phone and allowing both Kim brothers to rest and heal.

But mobile games can only keep your attention for so long, so Jungkook locked his phone and sat it on the overbed table beside him. He took a moment to really look over Seokjin lying in the hospital bed. He wasn’t sure why he had become so attached to this man, but he had. He reached out and delicately slid his hand under Seokjin’s battered one on the sheets, pressing them palm to palm and slowly rubbing his thumb in easy lopsided loops. Something about sitting here with Seokjin hand in hand soothed a shattered ache in Jungkook’s chest he didn’t even know was there, so he decided to hold on for a while. He leaned over to look closer at the streaks of tape holding the IV in Seokjin’s inert arm. It took him back to his mom being sick when he was a teen, sitting in drab hospital rooms holding her hand and singing lullabies to her to combat periods of terminal agitation. The memory sat so strong beneath his sternum that Jungkook didn’t notice that he’d started softly singing his mom’s favorite lullaby to Seokjin while he held his hand and stroked the pallid skin covering delicate bones, tracing the lines of Seokjin’s fingers down to where his fingertips grazed Jungkook’s inner wrist.

After finishing the first lullaby, his reverie broke a little and he lifted Seokjin’s arm off the bed as gently as he could to press his lips tenderly to the top of Seokjin’s wrist. If you asked Jungkook later, he would tell you it was like a fairy tale. The moment his lips brushed against Seokjin’s skin, Seokjin’s eyes fluttered open. He made a pained, confused sound as his eyelids flickered a few times before his eyes met Jungkook’s. Jungkook placed Seokjin’s wrist back down on the bed and hastened to slip his hand away. He moved to stand up and wake Namjoon, but a tiny squeak from Seokjin stopped him in his tracks.

“Don’t go.”

His voice was wrecked, but he was reaching for Jungkook with both hands. Jungkook could hear the panic beginning to set in on Seokjin’s part because the steady beep, beep, beep of his heart monitor’s rhythm began to beepbeepbeepbeepbeepbeep, so Jungkook dropped back into the chair he’d vacated and placed his hand back under Seokjin’s.

“I’m here, Seokjinnie. Take a slow breath for me, okay?” Jungkook tried to soothe the panic out of him before it got out of control. “I won’t leave you. I was just going to wake up Namjoon-hyung. He’s here too.”

Jungkook leaned over and pressed the big red button that would alert the nurse’s station that they needed help. They spoke through an intercom to ask if everything was okay, and he was able to let them know that Seokjin was awake. A nurse that Jungkook hadn’t met and Jimin both rushed into the room. The new nurse tried to shoo Jungkook away from the bed, but when he moved to comply, Seokjin began to thrash around the bed trying to get to him. It was as if Jungkook had become Seokjin’s lifeline in the last 24 hours and he wanted to have his hands on Jungkook at all times. To keep him calm, Jimin brought Jungkook to the head of the bed so that they could still examine him and make sure Seokjin hadn’t ripped any of his surgical staples loose in his frenzied reaching for his chosen object of comfort.

The commotion in the room finally woke Namjoon up from his nap and he smiled as he watched his brother cling to the arm of the man who’d saved him from months of abuse. It was nearly unbelievable to think that Jungkook had known Seokjin less than a week but had changed his life for the better in that short amount of time.

“Alright, Seokjin. My name is Jimin, and I’m the primary nurse in charge of your care. I’ll be here all night to help take care of you. You’ve been through a lot over the last day or so and we don’t want to overwhelm you, but I have a question or two, okay?” Jimin spoke soothingly to Seokjin as he adjusted the sheets covering the hospital bed. “Are you in pain?”

“Yeah. Hurts to breathe,” he croaked out.

“Okay. In just a minute, I’ll go get your pain medication. Your ribs are broken in a lot of places and you had a major surgery on your abdomen, so I need you to be as stationary as you can for a little while. You have around 17 staples across your stomach helping to keep your incision closed. If you move a lot, you might tear them loose. You also have a catheter. If you feel like you need to pee, go ahead. You won’t wet the bed.” Jimin continued explaining as he jotted down the different measurements showing on various monitors around the bed. After noting everything on a small scrap of paper and placing it into his pocket, Jimin grabbed a clean washcloth out of the closet and dampened it with warm water. “Seokjin, I’m just going to use this to wash your face a little. You’ve been asleep for a long time, so let’s wash some of the sleepy-time yuck off.”

“Kangdae?” Seokjin rasped.

Jungkook could see the fear in his eyes when the name slipped through his lips. He swallowed down the rage bubbling below the surface of his chest before finally answering.

“He’s in jail. I punched him a lot and called the police. He was screaming about killing you and fighting the officers when they dragged him out. He’s going to be in jail for a long time for what he’s done. And when he’s out, he won’t be allowed within 1000 feet of you,” Jungkook replied. “He can’t hurt you anymore, Seokjinnie.”

Seokjin visibly relaxed at the reassurance that Kangdae wouldn’t be allowed near him. Jungkook brushed his bangs out of his eyes, then ran his fingers through Seokjin’s hair to continue to soothe him. He kept it up for a few moments until Jimin came back to give Seokjin some pain medication in his IV and some antinausea medication by mouth. The tiny pill looked like the same one Jungkook had been given the night before, but Seokjin frowned at the flavor.

“Hate fake berry,” he grumbled before gulping down some water before Jimin forced him to slow down.

After Jimin got him settled and promised to come to check on Seokjin in an hour, Jungkook moved to the other side of the bed so that Namjoon could get closer. Seokjin still kept his hand in a death grip anytime he thought Jungkook was going to let go, but he did allow him to switch sides so Namjoon could sit in the chair by the bed. The respirator had caused his voice to sound so wrecked that Seokjin had been instructed not to speak to cause it more irritation, so he was forced to sit there and just listen.

“Jinnie-hyung, I can see it in your eyes that you are dying to apologize to me. I don’t want to hear any apologies from you. The only thing I want is for you to swear that you’ll never let another man treat you like Kangdae did and that if he comes around, you’ll call the police. That’s all I need,” Namjoon told him, eyes glazed with tears. “If Jungkook hadn’t been there and hadn’t intervened, you’d be gone. You are the only family I have left, Jinnie-hyung. I can’t bury you too.”

Jungkook wanted so badly to excuse himself and allow them to have this moment to themselves, but when he tried to step to the side, Seokjin’s eyes shot up to him with brows furrowed and he yanked his arm back towards him. For having just survived a major attack, Seokjin’s arms were apparently still strong because he nearly pulled Jungkook over the bed rails. Jungkook just squeezed his hand a little to let him know he wasn’t going and Seokjin looked back at Namjoon. Namjoon had tears streaking his cheeks as he cradled Seokjin’s other hand against his cheek for a moment before he lowered the bed rail to gently put his forehead on Seokjin’s sternum. Seokjin tangled his fingers in his brother’s hair and cradled him close, letting the building emotions drain from his own eyes. They stayed like this for a few moments, just soaking in the comfort of family, before they separated and Seokjin pressed a soft kiss to Namjoon’s forehead.

Namjoon honestly looked exhausted from crying and worrying, so Jungkook convinced him to go home and sleep in his own bed. It surprisingly took less convincing than Jungkook thought it would after Jungkook promised to stay the night with Seokjin. By this point, Seokjin’s pain medication seemed to have kicked in and his eyelids were beginning to droop. Jungkook suspected that he’d knock out the minute Namjoon was out the door, but he fought the medication to stay awake. Jimin came in to check his pain levels and to jot down his vital signs one more time before tucking him in for the night and encouraging him to sleep. He brought in a cot with an extra pillow and blanket for Jungkook, but Seokjin seemed loathe to let him go, so Jungkook took up his old stead in the chair at his bedside.

“Ongoo-ah,” Seokjin croaked out.

“You aren’t supposed to be talking, hyung. You heard Jimin,” Jungkook scolded.

Seokjin tried to give Jungkook a pouty face before giggling and patting the bed beside him. “Ongoo-ah, hug hyung.”

Jungkook tried to refuse, but when Seokjin tried to pull him into the bed on top of him, he gave up. He was terrified that all the tugging at his arm was causing more damage to Seokjin’s plethora of injuries, so Jungkook slid into the bed beside Seokjin as lightly as he could. As soon as he was on his side curled around the outline of Seokjin’s body, Seokjin snuggled in as close as he could get without moving from his back and rested his head against Jungkook’s chest. Jungkook wrapped his arm around Seokjin’s chest, trying to keep the weight off of him as much as possible. Seokjin kept running his slightly gnarled fingers over the bandages wrapped around Jungkook’s right hand.

“You got hurt because of me,” Seokjin whispered.

“I’d do it a thousand times over, hyung. Because Kangdae hurt you because of me,” Jungkook replied.

“Are you an angel, Ongoo-ah?” Seokjin slurred before drifting off to sleep.

Something in Jungkook’s chest flipped over at Seokjin’s sleepy dreamer’s words. He wasn’t sure how to respond to anything like that, so he just softly began to sing into Seokjin’s silky hair. He sang until he couldn’t remember the words or the melody anymore, then followed Seokjin into dreamland.

Jungkook woke up the next morning to the click of a photo being taken and a soft “ha ha” from Namjoon. He blinked rapidly, trying to remember where he was while protecting Seokjin still pressed against his chest asleep. When he realized what the clicking sound was after his brain had spent several minutes firing useless signals into the void, he frowned at Namjoon, then tried to extricate himself from Seokjin without waking him up. The moment he moved his arm from around Seokjin, he started to wiggle around to try to get closer to Jungkook. When Seokjin whined in pain a little from moving too much, Jungkook stopped trying to pull away and put his arm back.

“Seokjinnie has always been a light sleeper. Any sudden movement will wake him up. Sorry, Jungkook-ah. You’re probably going to be stuck there for a while,” Namjoon whispered, giggling gleefully at Jungkook’s confused expression.

A few moments later, a nurse came into the room to check on Seokjin. When she did, Jungkook had no choice but to get up because she needed to check over his incision. Seokjin was very displeased that his human security blanket had been removed from the bed and forced to leave the room. He glared at the poor nurse the entire examination and only cheered up a little when Jungkook was allowed back in the room with a light breakfast for him. He was only allowed to have slightly bland juk but it would been the first food he’d been allowed in nearly 2 days. He wanted to devour it but forced himself to eat much more slowly as it would be the first thing to enter his system since the attack and surgery. They were hoping that the juk wouldn’t cause too much pain or nausea. After eating, Seokjin wanted nothing more than to be allowed to shower, but even walking into the attached restroom for a sponge bath seemed like he had attempted to lift a car. Immediately after his sponge bath, his healing body demanded a nap.

He had fallen asleep gripping Jungkook’s hand, so when he woke up without him in the room, he nearly had a panic attack. Namjoon explained that Jungkook had simply gone home to freshen up and had only been gone about ten minutes, but Seokjin was nearly inconsolable the entire time he was gone. Seokjin felt like a puppy who had imprinted on someone not his owner the whole time Jungkook was away.

Jungkook had just unlocked the door to his apartment and started to step through the door when his text tone went off. It was a photo of Seokjin frowning at the camera with upset eyes and furrowed brows. Namjoon had captioned the photo, “Someone woke up grumpy without you. Please hurry back, Jungkook-ah.” Jungkook could see the fear that still reflected in Seokjin’s eyes, and it squeezed his heart that he felt that way. He took the fastest shower of his life and was still drying off when his phone rang again. Jungkook answered the phone, placing it on speakerphone so he could finish getting ready while talking.

“Hello?”

“Hey Jungkook-ah, it’s Yoongi-hyung. Sejin-hyung mentioned you were out on Friday due to an emergency, so I wanted to check-in on you.”

Yoongi was a great hyung, always looking out for him, so his concern made Jungkook smile. “Yeah, hyung. I’m okay. I was just getting ready so I could head back to the hospital.”

“The hospital?! Jungkook, I thought you said you were okay.”

“I am okay, hyung. Do you remember the neighbors we talked about on Thursday?”

Yoongi sighed deeply in relief before replying. “Yes, Jungkook-ah. What happened?”

“Well, when I got to my apartment building on Thursday, the neighbor who was being abused was at the elevator with about 4 bags of groceries. I helped him choose the buttons and things and we introduced ourselves. His name is Seokjin. His hands were so full of groceries that he was having trouble unlocking his door. So I took his key and unlocked the door for him and that’s when the asshole came home. I tried to explain that I was just helping him unlock the door, but he shoved Seokjin in their apartment and didn’t close the door all the way and I heard him slap Seokjin hard across the face. When I pushed the door open, the fucker was kicking him in the gut with steel-toes on. I beat his face in a little bit and called the police and paramedics. He got arrested and was screaming about killing ‘the fucking slut on the floor’ when they drug him out the door. Seokjin had to have surgery and has been clinging to me since he woke up. I just make him feel safe, so I’ve been going over a lot to keep him calm and prevent him from damaging his surgical incision,” Jungkook explained.

“Damn, Kook-ah. Have you eaten dinner yet?”

“No. I was just going to grab something on the way back to share with Seokjin’s brother. Seokjin is on a fairly strict diet right now since they had to stitch part of his intestines back together.”

Yoongi heaved another sigh through the phone. “I take it you’ve eaten takeout for every meal since Thursday.”

Before Jungkook could defend himself, Yoongi basically laid down the law that he’d be meeting him at the hospital with a homecooked meal for both Jungkook and Seokjin’s brother and he’d not take no for an answer. Yoongi’s elder brother was a fairly well-known chef in Seoul and Yoongi had been known to help out at his restaurant in emergencies; he was more than capable of whipping up an excellent meal. Jungkook finished dressing in his comfiest sweatsuit and packed a small overnight toiletry bag. Based on the way Seokjin reacted when he left, he may end up staying the night again. He’d have to break it to him that he had to go to work on Monday, but he figured they could discuss that later. He grabbed his keys and headed out with a plan to stop by a convenience store to grab some drinks for he and Namjoon and a coffee for Yoongi to thank him for making dinner.

He was almost to the hospital entrance when he saw a familiar shape in the window of a nearby toy shop. It was a stuffed animal that looked like the tiny alpaca keychain on Seokjin’s keys. He remembered that Namjoon had called it RJ. Jungkook stared in the window of the shop for another moment before deciding to buy it for Seokjin. Maybe being able to clutch onto a larger version of RJ would make things easier for Seokjin while he was at work.

“So…Seokjinnie…” Namjoon started, then trailed off, trying to decide how to bring up the conversation he wanted to have with his brother.

“Yes, Namjoonie?”

“What’s going on with you and Jungkook?”

Seokjin rapidly choked on the sip of water he’d just taken. Namjoon helped him lean forward a little and tapped his back a bit until he was able to cough up the water that had slipped down the wrong way.

“He just makes me feel safe, Joon. Nothing more, nothing less. The other neighbors on our floor have listened to Kangdae beat the ever-loving fuck out of me for six months and never did anything. Didn’t even file a noise complaint. Then Jungkook moves in like my own goddamn guardian angel and literally saves my life after knowing me for less than 10 minutes. I don’t want to get too deep about it, but when Jungkook is here, I’m less afraid that Kangdae is going to come through that door and finish what he started. I just want to be his friend and maybe one day I’ll be able to repay the kindness he’s shown me,” Seokjin fired back after regaining his ability to breathe.

“I didn’t mean to imply anything, Jinnie. I just wanted to make sure that you weren’t jumping in over your head into something you aren’t ready for.”

Before Seokjin could say anything else, there was a tap-tap-tap-tap on the door. Just a moment later, Jungkook popped his head in the door, and Seokjin blatantly ignored his heart skipping a beat at Jungkook’s bright bunny smile and floofy, freshly washed hair.

“Hi, hyungs! I’m back. I hope it’s okay that I brought my other hyung with me. He heard about our emergency and wanted to help by making dinner for us,” Jungkook explained happily as he opened the door wider then turned to take an insulated bag from a smaller man behind him. “This is—”

Namjoon interrupted before Jungkook could finish his sentence. “Yoongi?”

Yoongi’s head whipped up to face him before he whispered, “Joon…”

“Oh my god. It is you,” Namjoon said tearfully before grabbing Yoongi into a tight hug.

Jungkook looked between them, eyes wide and confused before Seokjin’s peals of laughter rang out. “Ah, Yoongichi. I’ve missed you.”

“Do you all…know each other?” Jungkook stuttered out.

“We grew up next door to each other in Daegu. When Yoongi and Jinnie did their mandatory service together, I was still in high school then went to college overseas. Sometime between my undergrad and serving my own military conscription, we lost touch. Then Jinnie took a job in London and the time zones wrecked their friendship too. I didn’t even know you were in Seoul,” Namjoon explained.

“Yeah. I moved to Seoul with my hyung about 3 years ago. When Appa died, he finally opened his restaurant and made it big as a hot shot chef. I work with Jungkookie for Sejin-hyung at Hybe. We are both events photographers.”

They took turns catching up on the missing years from their time together as Yoongi unpacked the three insulated totes he’d brought. He’d brought manduguk, fresh sticky rice, bowls of samgyeopsal and galbi, plus a plethora of banchan. Out of the final bag, he pulled a large bowl of juk he’d made for Seokjin and that they’d okayed with Jimin before bringing it in. They all ate and talked happily for a bit while Seokjin kept one hand on Jungkook at all times. After they’d eaten enough to nearly burst, Yoongi reached into the final bag and pulled out a surprise. He’d stopped at a bungeoppang stall near his apartment on the way and bought 4 of them, and he was so glad he had. It was worth it to watch Namjoon’s eyes light up when he was handed a red bean filled pastry. He’d brought a custard one for Seokjin, hoping that the milder flavor wouldn’t cause any issues, and Jimin had okayed it since he’d done okay with foods so far.

After finishing their dessert, Yoongi could see Seokjin struggling to stay awake. He had Jungkook’s left hand held fast between both of his own, occasionally dragging the tip of his finger over the bruises mottling Jungkook’s knuckles. Each time he did that, Yoongi watched him suck in a shuddery breath, probably mentally berating himself over the results of Jungkook’s rescue mission. Yoongi rose and packed up the dinner bowls and silverware, preparing to leave before Seokjin could sink any further into that pool of guilt and self-loathing.

“Hyung, would it be okay if I escorted you home?” Namjoon asked. Earlier in the evening, they’d discovered that Yoongi and Namjoon lived in the same neighborhood, literally 3 blocks from each other. It was a miracle they hadn’t run into each other before now.

“I’d really like that, Joon-ah.” Yoongi smiled at him before leaning over Seokjin to hug him and press a lingering kiss to his forehead. “I’m glad you are okay, my sweet, silly, Jinniya. Let Kook-ah watch out for you more often, eh?”

Yoongi ruffled Jungkook’s hair teasingly before gathering up the bags and leaving with Namjoon. Right after, Jimin came in to change the bandaging on Seokjin’s abdomen and to give him some medication. Jungkook stepped into the en-suite hospital bathroom to brush his teeth and wash his face before bed. Seokjin protested a little less since Jungkook left the door open and Seokjin was able to see his face in the mirror while Jimin palpated the swelling in his achy abdomen and re-wrapped the bandages around his staples. Jungkook came out and put his toiletry bag in his backpack before pulling out the bag with the alpaca plushie in it. When Jimin left, Jungkook sat beside the bed and handed Seokjin the bag.

“Hyungie, I got you a little present. Before you open it, I just wanted to talk to you because I have to go back in to the office to work on Monday. I was hoping that this present might make that a bit easier for you,” Jungkook told him with an easy smile.

Seokjin reached into the bag and pulled out a soft, white plushie. “RJ! How did you know, Ongoo-ah?” (The nickname Seokjin had slurred out that first night he’d been awake had stuck and Jungkook would be lying if he said it didn’t make his heart feel like a puddle of goo every single time Seokjin used it.)

“He’s on your keyring. The one I opened the door with the night we met. They were still hanging in the door, and I locked your apartment before we came to the hospital. I tried to give the keys to Joonie-hyung, but he was scared he’d lose them. They are hanging on my key rack in my apartment. I’ll bring them back before you go home.”

“Joonie would loose his own head if it weren’t attached, so I’m glad he let you hold on to them. I’m sorry for being so needy. I’m sure it’s interfering with your life spending so much time with someone you barely know,” Seokjin started.

“Let me stop you right there, hyung. I had literally nothing to do this weekend. I was able to work on my edits while you napped in the afternoon, so it’s no big deal. I’ll go to the office on Monday, and come visit you afterward, okay? You’ve been through a lot of trauma, hyung, and if me being around makes you feel better, I’ll hang out. Besides, we’re slowly getting to know each other better.”

Before their conversation could continue, Seokjin yawned widely. “I haven’t slept more than an hour or two a night in months. If I got up to go to the bathroom, Kangdae would accuse me of trying to sneak out to meet someone and hit me, or if I made sounds in my sleep he’d shove me out of the bed. It’s like now that I’m safe, my body thinks I need to sleep 15 hours a day to try to catch up.”

Jungkook had to physically restrain himself from snarling about Kangdae’s behavior, but he realized that Seokjin needed soothing more than his righteous rage. Seokjin tugged on his hand a little, then patted the bed beside him.

“C’mon, Ongoo-ah. RJ and I need to cuddle you.”

Part2 Part3 Part4 Part5

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