Jungkook-hyung! || Jinkook

22. A shadow of the past and future

I get tossed around like a stuffed animal in the dryer as the machine does its best to take me to my destination. I hear parts breaking loose but I can't bring myself to open my eyes. All I can hope for is that I'll arrive in one piece. 

Everything comes to a sudden stop along with a sound as loud as dynamite. I get thrown on the ground and metal pieces rain over me. I protect my head as best as I can, but I still take some decent blows, especially when the door lands on me. Once it's over, I drag myself up from the pile of junk and take a look around. I'm at the lab, but it looks a bit different. The testing room is completely empty aside from myself and the remains of the machine. I suppose at this point in time, the time machine was till in the early stages of development, and they hadn't started building anything yet. As expected, I'm back two years in time to 2016.

I brush off as much dirt from my clothes as I can. I want to look at least somewhat presentable. The machine, or rather what once was the machine, gets left behind as I walk out into the corridor. It should be early in the morning here, and if I know him right, he should already be here somewhere. I walk around for a bit, checking the smaller rooms before entering the lounge. Over by the coffee machine I see him. 

He has his back turned, but he still looks like I remember. The neat hair, the clean lab coat and the thick glasses that he keeps having to readjust. He's tall and has impeccable posture. He puts some sugar and milk into this coffee, just like he used to do when I worked with him here.

"Hyung," I say with quite a bit of excitement, and he immediately spins around in surprise. It doesn't even take him that long to understand who I am. 

"Jungkook...hyung?!" he says in shock. 

I run up to him, happily grabbing his hands and making him spill some coffee on the floor.

"Yes, it's me!" I exclaim. "I came to see you!"

Namjoon is speechless. He probably thought he'd never get to see me in this form again. 

"But you- Seokjin-hyung said it never happened," he mumbles. "People said I was crazy."

"You're not crazy, not at all! You were right all along about time travel."

"Why have you come here of all places?"

"Well... there's a bit of a disaster that I must prevent. But honestly, I think I've already managed to fix it."

"R-really? That fast?"

I laugh a little.

"Yup. All I had to do was to come see you."

Just as I finish talking, the rest of the scientists enter the room. Seokjin is the first one in line and he freezes the second he sees me. I wave at him with a big smile.

"Hello!"

"...Jungkook? What happened to you? I saw you yesterday, you can't possibly have had such a makeover in one day."

"No, two years would be more accurate."

The others shove Seokjin out of the way to see what's going on and they're all equally confused when seeing me.

"How come you're already here?" Hoseok asks. "Did Namjoon give you a tour of the place already?"

They glance at Namjoon for answers and he nervously clears his throat.

"You guys, this is not the Jungkook you all think it is. He's from the future."

Out of five faces, four are confused while one is in absolute shock. Seokjin looks like he's seen a ghost or an alien.