Ambivalence || TAEJIN

NIGHTMARES

Warning ⚠️: Mention of violence ahead ⛔

Author's POV

It was a cold, windy winter night. Every light in the houses on the street was off, and everyone was sleeping soundly, oblivious to what was happening in the last house on the street. That night, only the screams of two guys were muffled within those walls.

A guy, about 18 years old, was being harassed mercilessly by two women and a man. Meanwhile, a 12- or 13-year-old boy begged the man who was watching everything with an evil grin on his face. The man warned the little boy that if he uttered a word, he would face the same consequences.

The man forced the little boy to witness the repercussions of disobeying his rules. Dirty words were exchanged between the two women and the man. The little boy looked on in horror at the teenage guy's wrecked condition; half of his body was bleeding. They couldn't speak a word in front of the man. Tears were the only expression of the agony they were enduring.

**********************

Jin's POV

Again, again why do I keep seeing the same things again? I'm sweating profusely; my entire shirt is drenched. I have no idea how I ended up in my and Hoba's shared room. The last thing I remember is bumping into someone; everything after that is a blur. And, just like everything in my life, my first day of university is also ruined.

Everyone says the first day of university should be memorable – making new friends, exchanging numbers, and whatnot. But my first day started with a ball hitting my head. I was lost in thought when I heard the creaking sound of our room's door opening.

I saw Hoba, Jungkook holding a tray of soup, presumably for me, and beside him was Jimin. Behind Jimin stood another short guy and Taehyung. What!!! Wait a second, what is he doing here???? Before I could ask or react, Hoseok and Jungkook engulfed me in a bone-crushing hug.

I could barely breathe, but before I could protest, I felt my shirt getting wet. Wait, are they crying!!! Oh no!! Please, I never wanted this. I glanced at Jimin and the short guy beside him; they both gave me a sad smile. Then, I made the mistake of looking at Taehyung, who rolled his eyes at our emotional state.

The audacity of this guy..... Jungkook broke the hug, rubbed his tears, and said in a shaky voice, "Hyung, do you have any idea how worried we were about you???? Why don't you take care of yourself? If anything happened to you, what would I and Hobi tell Namjoon hyung?? Tell me, what would we?" Jungkook broke down again.

I felt terrible, a horrible best friend, making them cry on our first day together after so many years. Taehyung spoke up, "Who is this Namjoon hyung??" But before I could respond, Jungkook cut me off.

"It's none of your business, okay, Tae hyung. You're free to go, though, and take Jimin with you. I'm worried that seeing Jimin's face might make Jin hyung remember things again. And Yoongi hyung, if you want, you can leave too." My Kookie is really caring, but I wished Jimin could stay; he seems sweet.

However, Taehyung was already glaring at me. Then, he glared at Jungkook and said angrily, "Kook, don't forget that I'm older than you. So, this guy is more important to you than us? Really, Kook? Wow, just wow. What a kind of traitor and bastard you are. Jimin, let's go. We don't need to stay in this person's house who can change people's personalities so easily by acting innocent."

Taehyung glanced at me as he spoke his last sentence. I wanted to respond, but the atmosphere was already tense, and I didn't want to make it worse. As soon as Taehyung left, grabbing Jimin's hand and closing the door with a loud thud, Kookie broke down again.

This time, it wasn't because of me, but because of something I never wanted him to experience. He asked, "Hyung, what should I do when my own best friend likes the same guy I love dearly more than my life?"