The Shadows of power

7

The BTS members gathered in the meeting room, focused on the footage Suga had hacked from the remaining CCTV cameras. They were still uncertain whether the enemy was trying to mislead them with a fabricated pattern or if this was their method of human trafficking. As they examined the evidence, one clip in particular grabbed their attention. In a care center, a boy around 16 or 17 years old—his mental state regressed to that of a 4-5-year-old—was clutching a small elephant toy, tears welling up in his eyes. The image was heartbreaking, and just as the members watched, the boy suddenly vanished in a cloud of white smoke produced by an explosion from the enemy's bombs.

Jin, who had been silently observing, grew visibly uncomfortable. Without saying a word, he stood up from his seat and left the room. His abrupt departure was seen as disrespectful by some, but Namjoon remained calm. He watched Jin leave, but did not react negatively. Instead, he stood up from the head of the table, and, as a show of respect, the other BTS members also rose to their feet.

Namjoon instructed the team, “Continue digging into the footage. Gather as much information as you can.” Then, without another word, he followed Jin, wanting to see where he had gone.

Jin, familiar with the building, made his way to the terrace. Once there, he found a quiet corner and sat down, clutching his knees to his chest, tears falling freely as he hugged his knees tightly. Namjoon followed him up, pausing for a moment at the terrace gate. His face reflected a deep, unspoken sadness as he looked at Jin. “Even after all these years, your tears still hurt my non-existing heart,” Namjoon thought to himself.

Composing himself, Namjoon approached Jin. Without saying anything, he wrapped his arms around him in a tight hug. Jin broke down completely, sobbing uncontrollably in Namjoon’s embrace for a solid 15 minutes, maybe even longer. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Jin looked up at Namjoon, his voice trembling, “Why can’t all this just stop? Why do these horrible things keep happening in the world?”

Namjoon, cupping Jin’s tear-streaked face gently, responded, “You’re too innocent for this world, Jin. This is just how the world works, as much as we wish it didn’t.” Jin, not fully grasping the weight of Namjoon’s words, looked down and hugged him again tightly.

After a few moments, Namjoon pulled out a chocolate bar from his pocket—Jin’s favorite. Jin’s face lit up as he took the chocolate, unwrapping it with childlike excitement and eating it in small bites. Namjoon chuckled softly at the sight, thinking to himself, “I never liked chocolate before, but I started loving it because of you.” It was clear there was a deep connection between them, one that extended beyond the present.

Meanwhile, back in the meeting room, the other members continued their analysis. Suddenly, Taehyung froze, his eyes widening in shock as he stared at a picture. The girl in the image was someone he knew—someone he knew very well. Jungkook and Jimin, both of whom studied at the same university with Taehyung, were equally shocked upon recognizing the girl.

Suga and J-Hope, noticing the reactions of the three, immediately asked what was going on. Taehyung, his voice shaken, replied, “Let’s wait for Namjoon and Jin to come back. I’ll explain everything then. We need to talk about this connection to human trafficking.”

The air in the room grew tense, the mystery deepening as they awaited Namjoon and Jin’s return, wondering just how this girl was connected to the dark network they were uncovering.