Siren Song | KNJ ✅

Chp. 46: My Name is V, and I'm a Good Boy

Ari's POV 🌸

I barely remember how I got to the hospital; everything is a blur. The police asked Joon and me question after question, and when they were finally satisfied, Joon asked Tae to take me to the bathroom and makes sure I scrubbed the remaining blood off me.

Glancing in the mirror over the sink, I notice I look like a complete mess, face dirty, hair disheveled, looking like I haven't slept in a thousand years. Then I look back down and see the sink turning red, not realizing there was so much blood still on my hands, and I start to hyperventilate. The sobbing starts again, it's like the whole event just hit me, and I've truly started to understand what I witnessed. "No, no, NO!" I scream.

Tae pushes the bathroom door open and runs over to me, throwing his arms around my waist and laying his cheek on my back. We sob together for a few minutes until the water runs clear and we can both get a hold of ourselves.

I'm sitting on a chair in the private waiting room the hospital set us up in, and Tae is holding my hand on one side, and Hobi is on the other, staying close. Jimin is pacing back and forth, trying to keep himself together. Joon is on the phone talking to Jin, while Jungkook and Jae are away on a business trip.

Yoongi sits alone with his face in his hands while a myriad of security guards mull around.

"How long will she be in surgery?" Joon whispers.

"It depends what they find when they get in there and see what has been damaged. The doctors will have to make decisions as they go and explore the complexity of the wound. They are performing a laparotomy now. It's going to be a long night..." Jimin replies.

I'm not sure what any of that means; I'm not sure that any of us truly do, I just know we are all terrified.

"It could be hours before we get any news, Yoongi-Hyung. Why don't you go home and try and sleep, and I can take the first shift waiting here. I'll call you if someone tells us anything," Jimin's words are level as he tries to hide the tears that want to come but don't. "Lily is going to need all your strength when she wakes up..."

"No," Yoongi replies.

"You are going to exhaust yourself," Jimin warns.

"I am not leaving this hospital until Lily walks out that damn door with me," Yoongi says in a quiet, authoritative voice that no one dares challenge.

A person I don't recognize that seems like a manager or an assistant steps over and sits next to Yoongi and begins to whisper to him for a few minutes.

"Fuck you," Yoongi finally replies without bothering to whisper back. The firmness of his words fills the entire waiting area. "This mother fucker is telling me that this 'story' is too big to contain, and too many staff members work here. No amount of NDA's will keep people from knowing I'm here waiting for Lily. They said if I don't leave, the public will find out she's my girlfriend, which could ruin things for us..." Yoongi growls. It's as if I can feel his blood boiling even from across the room.

"I don't care if it ruins us," Jimin answers immediately.

"Let it all burn down; I don't care either," Namjoon's voice cracks, and the tears start. "I just want Lily to be okay..."

It's not long before all the guys agree. "This is bigger than the group. We support you, Hyung," Hobi decides.

"You guys should contact Jin back as well as JK and let them know because I'm telling you right now, I am not fucking leaving here," Yoongi's voice is matter of fact.

Calls happen, and without hesitation, everyone is in agreement. Nobody cares about news stories or rumors from this point forward. It's ironic that Joon has been working for months to shift his idol image, and in minutes they all agreed that none of it was worth having to put up a front in this situation. The pursuit of money doesn't trump love in this situation.

Tae is shaking next to me, everything is getting to him, and I reach over, folding him into my arms as we lean back against the wall. I hold him tightly for what feels like hours as we all sit in silence.

Later, a hand is lightly shaking my shoulder. "You two, come on. I'm taking you home," Hobi's voice comes out as a whisper. "You two fell asleep a few hours ago."

I open my eyes to find myself hanging onto Tae, who is still asleep, wrapped in my arms. "What about Lily?"

"No word yet," Hobi murmurs. "Yoongi and Jimin won't leave, but we should all try and get some rest because eventually, these two are going to burn out, and we will need to take over."

Tae rubs his eyes, and I look around, seeing Namjoon is nowhere in sight. "Can we stay together?" Tae asks with a tear rimming his eye.

I nod at him, and Hobi drops us off at my place. We both take some time in the bathroom one after the other.

I step into the shower, turning the hot water up, scrubbing the soap over my limbs over and over, trying to wash away the day, but every time I close my eyes, I keep seeing Lily's face and hear her whisper Yoongi's name. I finally give up the fight and turn the water off, resigning myself to the fact that I may never stop picturing that scene.

When I'm done with my bathroom routine, I exit the bathroom and find Tae curled up in a ball on my bed. I crawl in next to him and pull the comforter over us; we clutch each other tightly, trying to give each other a feeling of security. It's nothing sexual; it's just two friends that need comfort as we try and deal with the fact that we don't know what is going on with Lily.

"I....I didn't get to surprise her and tell her I've recorded most of my jazz album....it was supposed to be a surprise. I wanted her to be proud..." Tae breaks, and sniffles fill the room.

I squeeze him to me as I close my eyes. I'm desperate to stop seeing the images of Lily frozen on the floor below my hands. "They will save her," I reply simply. "She will get to be proud, Tae. I can feel it deep inside."

I'm not sure if I actually believe my words, or need to hear them myself, but I hear Tae sigh and then go quiet as we get lost in our thoughts, and hours later, we fall back to sleep from exhaustion.