The Trials and Tribulations of Pathos - Jikook

Chapter 7

Jimin stares at Yoongi, mind not quite catching up to the mint-haired male's words. "Kook... and Tae?"

Yoongi huffs, rolling his eyes before explaining "Duh. What's a shortened version of the name Jungkook? Kook. Taehyung? Tae." Jimin huffs as well. "Yeah but that could also be a shortened version of the name Taemin. Or Taeyong. Or like- a whole bunch of other names."

Yoongi sighs, hand coming up to rub at his forehead. "You think I would tell you this if I wasn't absolutely sure it was them? The descriptions match." He pulls out his phone, scrolling through it before turning it around to face Jimin. "These are the police sketches of the two men. I asked to have them done before I came here- now pull up the pictures of our targets, I know you have them saved on your phone."

Jimin eyes Yoongi warily as he takes out the device. He had indeed taken pictures of the targets in the file- how Yoongi had guessed this was unknown to him. Jimin takes Yoongi's phone, comparing the sketches to his pictures. They do look very similar, the sketched versions varying slightly as it pictures the two men with bruises and cuts, cheeks slightly hollow and eyebags sagging.

The ash-haired male finally nods, handing Yoongi his phone. "You're right, they do look similar." "Finally," the mint-haired male grunts. "Do you want to go get fingerprint samples too? Or do you actually believe they're the same people-" Jimin waves his hand in a conceding gesture, to which Yoongi smiles.

"You know, if we're gonna work together well, we have to trust each other. You have to trust that I know what I'm doing- I won't bother you with insignificant details or tell you stuff if I'm not completely sure I'm right. I've been doing this for years; I know my stuff. But, you have to work with me in order to do this assignment quickly and thoroughly."

Jimin nods, a bit of guilt bubbling up inside him. It's not that he doesn't want to trust Yoongi- after his last assignment, he feels the need to be cautious about everything. He doesn't want to be the cause of any more innocent people's deaths, and he went into this assignment thinking that he'd be able to do most of the work himself.

It turns out that is not the case, if the way Yoongi just told him off is anything to go by.

It does help that Yoongi is at the top of his group, and Namjoon doesn't let just anyone have a high rank. Jimin trusts Namjoon's judgement, and he's already warming up to Yoongi. Trust comes with time, but they'll have to speed up the process as they don't have much of that precious time. The young assassin nods again, voicing his thoughts to his partner. "I do trust you. To a point, of course, but I'm sure I'll trust you even more as this assignment pans out. I'll work on that, but yeah. Let's get this show on the road. Less chatting about feelings and more talking about our targets."

Yoongi nods slightly, a smile creeping onto his face. The mint-haired male can feel that his time as Jimin's partner won't be a dismal one. There are so many secrets about the twenty-five year old that he doesn't know yet, and he can't wait to piece everything together and unlock the puzzle that is Park Jimin.

"So, we've found their trail," Jimin concludes. "I was thinking we go to Jeju and follow our lead. My guess is that they're trying to get out of that area. Maybe out of Jeju completely? I'm not sure, but it's somewhere to start. Keep an eye on all plane and boat tickets going out of Jeju." Yoongi nods, taking out his phone and pulling out a stylus before writing everything down. Jimin guesses Yoongi's phone is like his own notebook, and his ideas are confirmed when he leans over and notices Yoongi writing in code. Jimin can't read anything, as he only knows his personal code and the company's official one.

Yoongi's seems to be a combination of symbols and numbers, lines winding down the phone as he switches from a light blue to an orange to a green, colors and characters clashing in a language that makes sense only to Yoongi and Namjoon.

The use of their codes and files makes the organization feel more covert than Jimin would've guessed when he first signed up for this life- and he absolutely loves it. It brings back the childhood dream of wanting to be a spy, and the highschool life of withholding secrets and gossiping discreetly to friends, digging up dirt on fellow classmates and guarding it with everything they had.

Suddenly, Jimin sits up, a thought striking him as he turns to Yoongi. "They're obviously fleeing. But the question is why? Do they know that we're hunting them down? And if so, who told them? People who have nothing to hide don't run. People who think they have nothing to run from don't flee. So they must know we're after them."

Yoongi nods along, back of his stylus coming to tap on his lips. "It might not be us," he says at last. Jimin tilts his head, a single brow shooting up his forehead. "What do you mean?"

"It might not be us. Who they're running from. It might not be us."

Both men stay silent for a while, minds running a mile a minute as they both try to make sense of what they've learned so far. What Yoongi brought up is entirely possible. The two targets could be fleeing for a different reason. Had the client gone after them personally? Or maybe they were running from something that has nothing to do with this case? Jimin sighs softly, chubby, ring-adorned fingers coming up to rub at his forehead.

"It does us no use to fret about that right now. Let's go to Jeju and follow their trail; hopefully we'll find more clues over there," the ash-haired assassin mutters finally. His mint-haired partner agrees reluctantly, standing up and brushing off his pants. "Well then. It was good to finally meet you, Mr. Park. I hope this assignment gets done quickly and efficiently, and I look forward to working more with you."

Jimin stands up as well, a grin prominent on his face as he takes his partner's outstretched hand and shakes it, acknowledging the smug smirk on Yoongi's face as he pats him on the shoulder. Jimin shows Yoongi to the door, undoing his many latches and locks and sending his new partner off into the now darkened night with a wave.

He turns around after relocking all the bolts and resetting his alarm system, waltzing back into his study and shutting the door behind him. He sits down at his large desk, glancing over the files resting there yet again. He further studies the sketches Yoongi sent him, double checking that they match well with the pictures of the two targets.

He sits back in his velvet chair, kicking his feet up on the furniture in front of him. He looks back at the police sketches, taking in the obvious cuts and bruises depicted on Kim Taehyung and Jeon Jungkook.

Why would they be hurt and roughed up? "Maybe they were fighting with whoever they're running from," Jimin whispers to himself. He imagines a scenario in which a young, innocent-looking girl is being beat up by the two men before a large, buff, blurry-faced man comes up and starts beating up the targets, pushing the young, frightened girl to the side and to safety.

Somehow, he can't imagine the two straight A students, who have an entirely clean track record along with many reports of friends and teachers raving about how sweet they were, doing anything as harmful or cruel as to deserve those injuries.

No, Jimin has a sinking gut feeling that suggests that all is not as it seems.

He picks up his phone, scrolling through his contacts before pressing on the one he was looking for.

"Hey, yes, this is Park Jimin. Oral verification is 'peach magnolia orchards'. I need two plane tickets to Jeju for tomorrow morning. Preferably first class. Thanks, Namjoon."