The Unfazed Gaze||Jinkook✔

2. Rebirth

My execution skills need a lot of improvement. 

°°°°

Jungkook woke up with a start, his eyes immediately searching the dimly lit room. His heart pounded as he sat up, the sense that something was wrong gnawing at him. He noticed a note on the table beside him, the parchment neatly folded. His breath hitched, and he bolted out of the drawing room, heading straight for his bedchamber.

"Seokjin hyung?" he called out, his voice echoing through the empty space. There was no answer. He threw open the doors of the wardrobe, checked under the bed, even looked behind the heavy drapes. Seokjin was nowhere to be found.

Panic surged through him, his mind racing. He had been slowly, undeniably falling for the assassin, the man who had captured his heart despite the odds. Now, the thought of losing Seokjin was unbearable.

He stumbled back to the table, hands trembling as he unfolded the note. Seokjin's handwriting was precise, the ink dark against the paper. The words began with the elder's usual sarcasm, but as Jungkook read on, his heart sank deeper.

"Jungkook,

I know you wanted to know why I chose the name Lotus. You always did have a way of asking the most inconvenient questions. But I'll indulge you one last time.

The lotus is a beautiful flower, yes, but it grows in the dirtiest waters. Its beauty comes at a cost. If you want that beauty for yourself, you have to wade into the mud, the filth. No matter how much you try to stay clean, the dirt will cling to you. That's what I am. Beautiful, maybe, but rooted in the filth of this world.

You don't belong in that dirt, Jungkook. You're pure, kind, and your heart is too good to be stained by my darkness. You should find someone who grew in the light, not someone who's only ever known the shadows.

Forget me. Forget the man who brought danger to your doorstep. Fall in love with someone worthy of your goodness, someone who can give you the happiness you deserve. This is my final act of kindness.

Goodbye, Jungkook."

Jungkook's eyes blurred with tears, the note falling from his grasp. He sank to his knees, his chest tightening with a pain so profound it felt like his heart was being torn from his body. He had known Seokjin was complicated, but he hadn't realized just how deeply the assassin's self-loathing ran.

His mind replayed every moment they had shared, every touch, every word, and oh those beautiful, mesmerizing eyes. He couldn't accept it, couldn't just let go of the man who had come to mean everything to him in such a short span of time.

The thought of Seokjin out there, alone and convinced he was unworthy of love, was too much to bear.

Jungkook raced down the dimly lit corridors of the estate, his heart pounding with a mix of fear and desperation. He pushed open the heavy door to his father's office, his breath coming in ragged gasps. Lord Siwoo looked up from his papers, his expression softening at the sight of his son.

"Father, I need to talk to you," Jungkook said urgently, barely able to keep his voice steady.

Siwoo's brows furrowed with concern as he set aside his work. "What is it, Jungkook? You look distressed," he said, rising from his chair and moving towards his son.

Jungkook struggled to find the right words, his thoughts a whirlwind of anxiety. "Father, do you know where I can find Lotus?" he asked, his voice trembling.

A chuckle escaped Siwoo's lips, though his eyes remained serious. "If I knew where Lotus was, I would have captured him immediately," he replied, a hint of amusement in his tone.