Tangeled in shadows | Min Yoongi

Chapter 14: Through the Fire (continued)

Yoongi paced the length of the room, his fingers brushing against the phone in his pocket. Time seemed to slow down as Yoona lay unconscious in the room next door, the medic doing everything he could to stabilize her. Every now and then, Yoongi glanced at the door, waiting for any news, but so far, there was nothing but tense silence.

His mind was racing. He had made a decision that crossed the lines of loyalty, of logic. He knew what this could mean—for him, for his crew, and for hers. But none of that mattered right now. All that mattered was keeping Yoona alive.

Yoongi pulled out his phone, scrolling to a number he never thought he’d call. His thumb hovered over the screen, and for a split second, he hesitated. Contacting her crew could escalate this, make things worse, but he knew they deserved to know. They’d come for her eventually, and it was better they heard it from him.

He pressed the call button, bringing the phone to his ear. The line rang for what felt like forever before a familiar voice picked up.

“Who the hell is this?” It was Jisoo, her tone sharp and suspicious.

“It’s Agust,” Yoongi said, his voice low, controlled.

A tense silence followed on the other end of the line. Then Jisoo’s voice hardened. “What do you want?”

“I need you to listen,” Yoongi said, his jaw tightening. “Yoona’s been shot.”

“What?!” Jisoo’s voice was filled with anger and panic. “What the hell did you do to her?”

“It wasn’t me,” he growled. “One of my men acted without my orders. I’m dealing with him, but right now, Yoona’s in my safehouse. She’s alive, but she’s in bad shape. You need to know.”

The line went silent again, but this time Yoongi could hear the tension. Jisoo was thinking, calculating.

“Why are you telling me this?” she finally asked, her voice more measured, but still laced with suspicion.

“Because I want her to live,” Yoongi replied, his voice steady. “I’ve got a medic working on her, but I need you to come. She needs her people here.”

There was a pause before Jisoo spoke again, her voice softer, but guarded. “You expect me to believe you actually care about what happens to her?”

Yoongi clenched his fist, staring at the door where Yoona lay. “I don’t care what you believe. Just get here.”

With that, he ended the call and shoved the phone back into his pocket. He didn’t have time for arguments or accusations. He just needed to make sure she made it through the night.

---

It wasn’t long before the sound of footsteps echoed down the hallway. Jisoo, Seulgi, and Jungkook appeared in the doorway, their expressions a mix of worry and fury. Yoongi stepped aside, giving them room as they quickly moved toward the room where Yoona was being treated.

Jisoo turned to Yoongi, her eyes blazing with suspicion. “You better have a damn good reason for this.”

“I already told you what happened,” Yoongi said, his voice clipped. “I didn’t give the order. Someone went rogue.”

“And that makes it okay?” Jungkook snapped, stepping forward, his fists clenched. “You think we’re just gonna let this slide?”

Yoongi squared his shoulders, meeting Jungkook’s glare. “I don’t care if you let it slide or not. I’m just trying to keep her alive.”

Seulgi, who had been standing back, watching Yoongi with a calculating gaze, finally spoke. “Why?”

Yoongi didn’t answer right away, his eyes flicking to the closed door behind them. “Because I can’t let her die. Not like this.”

Jisoo folded her arms, her eyes narrowing. “So what’s the plan, then? You think we’ll just wait around while she’s bleeding out in some room? How do we know this isn’t some kind of trap?”

Yoongi’s patience thinned, and he exhaled sharply. “If I wanted her dead, she’d be dead already. I wouldn’t have called you.”

Jungkook looked like he wanted to argue, but Seulgi placed a hand on his shoulder, stopping him. “Let’s see her first.”

They pushed past Yoongi and entered the room where the medic was working on Yoona. The sight of her lying on the makeshift table, pale and weak, sucked the air out of the room. Jisoo’s expression softened immediately, her eyes filled with worry. Jungkook’s anger seemed to melt into helplessness as he watched the medic stitch the wound, his hands moving quickly but carefully.

“She’s stable for now,” the medic said, not looking up from his work. “But she lost a lot of blood. She’ll need time to recover, and that’s assuming there’s no infection.”

Yoongi remained at the door, his eyes never leaving Yoona. He could feel Jisoo’s gaze flicker between him and her friend, suspicion still clouding her thoughts, but for the moment, her worry for Yoona seemed to override her anger.

“Why did you call us?” Jisoo asked again, quieter this time, her voice uncertain.

Yoongi leaned against the doorframe, his face impassive. “Because she’s your leader. You deserved to know. And because, like I said, I want her to live.”

Jisoo eyed him for a long moment before speaking. “You should’ve killed her a long time ago. Isn’t that what we do in this life? You had the chance.”

Yoongi’s jaw tightened. “It’s not that simple.”

“Why not?” Seulgi asked, her voice calm but curious. “She tried to kill you more than once.”

He looked at Yoona’s unconscious form, then back at them, his voice rough. “Because somewhere along the line, killing her stopped feeling like the right answer.”

Jungkook scoffed, shaking his head. “That doesn’t make any sense. You’re the same guy who’s burned down empires for less. Why spare her?”

Yoongi turned to face them fully, his gaze hard but filled with something that none of them could quite name. “Maybe I’m just tired of the killing. Maybe I’m tired of this endless cycle. Or maybe…” He hesitated, the weight of his own words sinking in. “Maybe she’s different.”

The room fell silent, the tension shifting as they all processed his words. Jisoo’s expression softened just a bit, though the suspicion remained in her eyes. “Different, huh?”

Yoongi didn’t answer, his eyes going back to Yoona. He wasn’t sure when it had happened—when he had stopped seeing her as a threat and started seeing her as something more—but the truth was undeniable now. He cared about her, whether he liked it or not.

Jungkook sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. “So what now? We’re just supposed to sit here and wait?”

Yoongi nodded. “That’s all we can do. If she pulls through, we’ll figure out the next step. But right now, she needs to rest.”

Jisoo glanced back at Yoona, her expression softening with concern. “Fine. We’ll wait.”

The tension in the room eased, if only slightly. The lines between enemies and allies were still blurred, but for now, they had a common goal: Yoona’s survival.

As they settled in for the long night ahead, Yoongi found himself standing watch by the door, his thoughts heavy. He didn’t know what would happen next, but one thing was certain—everything had changed.