Till Death Do Us Part ||Taekook||

Chapter #70 Weakness

A/N: Special Bonus Chapter↓

Taehyung rushed into the kitchen where he swung the refrigerator door open. He grabbed cold water bottles and containers of pre-made food he had made for dinner.

"Jungkook?" He hollered. The house responded with silence.

"Jungkook? Are you hungry?" Taehyung ripped off the container lids and scattered the heap of rice, breaded chicken and vegetables onto a plate. The rice laid sporadically across the counter top. When the house felt too peaceful, a paranoid ripple of panic made Taehyung's heart race. He rushed into the living room to see Jungkook knocked out on the sofa. His chest felt tight with worry. He lowered to his knees.

"Jungkook?" He spoke softly. He pressed two fingers to his neck, ensuring the boy still had a pulse. He released a breath he didn't know he was holding when a subtle vibration communicated a steady heartbeat. He used a finger to brush Jungkook's bangs off his forehead. Taehyung felt queasy the longer he stared at him. 

This wasn't what he planned. Recently, with every day that passed, he felt more and more paranoid. With countless threats by phone call and through mail, Taehyung knew danger was looming closer and closer to their doorstep. That's why he thought it might be best to get away for a while, take Jungkook out of the equation.

Taehyung wasn't sure why, but Jungkook made his every inhale strangled. Almost like he had to hold his breath every time he was near. And when he was away, it was far worse. He felt like someone was piercing his lungs with needles, a voice echoing in his head repeating the same sick thoughts. Taunting him with repulsive "what ifs". 

Throughout the day he imagined countless ways the world could harm Jungkook. He's known for a while it was no longer a matter of pride or reputation. Jungkook had become a liability. Not just for business, but for his sanity.

Taehyung was sure he'd be safe from such a torturous fate of constant worry if he married a stranger, but Jungkook was no stranger. He was killing him. He became so distracted with the playful space of innocence the boy seemed to harbor. For a while he forgot who he was. He wasn't ruler of the Kim corporations, he was Kim Taehyung, the boy he was before reality stripped away his purity. Because of his naive mistake, Jungkook was snatched right from under his nose.

That day, he wasn't worried even for a second that he wouldn't make it in time, but losing him so easily was undeniably terrifying. He needed to remember who he was. Not the childish boy that played along with Jungkook's antics, the man that could ruthlessly mutilate anyone who dares cross him. He needed to eliminate his weakness. The problem? His weakness had pretty doe eyes, inked skin and a nasty temper that made his heart flutter.

Taehyung stared with an immoral glint in his eyes. A small tainted part of him was hoping Jungkook would've just disappeared into the skyline. But when he heard the loud bang of his pistol, his entire world shattered beneath him. He's never run so fast in his life. 

When he saw Jungkook sprawled across the path, he felt hollow. As if the life was sucked right out of him. Assuming he was staring at his husband's lifeless corpse, his first thought was to place the barrel in his mouth and pull the trigger; join Jungkook in his peace.

The thought of sacrificing it all for such a pathetic man seemed absurd now, but in that moment it was the only right answer. That was what terrified Taehyung, the man with no fears. He was sacred of what disease plagues his mind when Jungkook toys with his emotions. He felt like a puppet when all this time he was supposed to be the puppet master. 

Now he sat in silence, without a single light on, staring at the sleeping boy. His emotions ravaged his mind. In a sense he never felt more relieved, more at ease to be in anyone else's presence. On the other hand, he felt pure resentful hostility. He hated Jungkook for the torment he puts him through, the sleep he loses over thinking about the most trivial things. But his desire was stronger than his wrath. He rested the barrel of a gun on Jungkook's temple purely to humor himself.

He tapped his finger against the trigger lightly. Just a little bit more pressure and all his problems would wash away. But he couldn't do it. He knew it before he even aimed the barrel. He wished he had married anyone else. He was positive there wasn't a single individual that walked this earth that could ruin him as easily as Jungkook. 

In his efforts to flee his cursed luck, somehow he managed to put a ring on the very root of his misfortune. 

He wished he pulled the trigger while he still had the ability to. At the first sign of interest he should of known he'd be bad luck. Now it was too late and he was forever stuck with a ticking time bomb. If someone cuts the wire, he'll be dragged down too. From now on, if Jungkook perished in the blaze caused by his enemies, he'd let the fire claim his life just the same.

He had been too distracted all this time. He let Jungkook mean something to him. He let him fill an empty space in his chest that will kill him if left empty again.

Taehyung could feel his throat cinch. It was a common occurrence when he let his mind wander too far. He tossed the gun on the coffee table and dragged his feet to the kitchen to grab a towel. He gazed forward with a defeated expression, a bitter smile rested on his lips. 

He scanned his eyes across the kitchen where his carelessness created chaos. Rice was scattered across the counter, multiple grains making it to the floor. Chairs were pushed and shoved out of the way, salt and pepper shakers were knocked over, the fridge left open.

He couldn't even believe himself. How could he let himself venture to such a drastic breaking point? He was supposed to be invincible, a man with no weaknesses. The human depiction of perfection. He needed to find a solution to save himself from going under. 

If that meant imprisoning his husband from the public eye, he was more than willing to experiment with the extremes. He needed to lock away his weakness, keep it out of his enemies reach. Figuring out why Jungkook was his weak spot was the least of his priorities.

He knew the boy got to him and that's all the information he needed. He had to find a way to get a hold on this unexpected problem. If he couldn't solve it with bloodshed, he'd have to employ every ounce of his sanity to play the most suffocating mind game of all time. Manipulate, herd, corner, he needed to play offense. 

He needed his brat of a husband to submit to his every order. That meant tearing down his emotions to reach his core. The question remains. Is there a line separating ruin and resolution? Or would was Jungkook destined to perish, whether it be by Taehyung's hands or the starved piranhas who await in the dark waters of wealth. 

Only the future knew whether Taehyung would be Jungkook's savior or his path to complete desolation.

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