Chasing Butterflies

Loss

"Izzy wait!" Jimin shouted as he started after her retreating figure, but he was held back by Youngkyun's hand. His eyes glared down at the hand on his chest and then at the despicable man to whom it beloved.

"Don't touch me," Jimin hissed.

Youngkyun's hand retreated. "Don't go after something that is already gone," he fired back.
"You lost. She knew what she was betting, and I guess she didn't care that she would be leaving behind seven scheming, cheating boys," he spat at them.
"She made the wager. Now all you boys have to do is uphold it," he began to walk away but stopped mid-stride.
"I seem to recall that upholding your deals is something you've struggled with in the past. I'd work on that if I were you all." Youngkyun turned on his heel and strode away with stiff shoulders and heavy footsteps.

One black leather shoe tried to start forward after that heinous man but this time it was Hoseok's hand that held Jimin back.

"Let's me go," Jimin tried to tear free from the hold on his arm but more hands restrained him.

"Jimin don't go after him," Taehyung voiced.

"Let me go," he hissed again.

"You won't solve anything by going after him," Namjoon reasoned.

"I don't care about him. I want Izzy back," he ripped out of their hold and started for the ballroom doors.

"Jimin!" Jungkook yanked his friend back forcefully, not allowing him to go one step further. He saw the fury, the impossible rage in Jimin's eyes, but beneath that he saw nothing but pure, heart-wrenching pain. Jungkook couldn't imagine how his friend must be feeling right now.

"We will get her back, Jimin," Jungkook whispered unsurely. "But we can't just go charging blindly after Youngkyun—"

"Don't say that bastards name," Jimin fumed while his glare burned holes through the marble flooring.

"We need to make a plan. And Izzy can handle herself until we do. She's stronger than you'd think, we all know that." Jungkook placed his hands on Jimin's shoulders until his eyes finally glanced up.

What Jungkook saw shocked him, along with the others who now stood at his sides. Jimin, who was normally the backbone of their group, had tears swimming in his reddened eyes.

"I can't lose her, not now," his voice was nothing more than a tiny, broken whisper.

"We'll get her back," Yoongi assured, even though he was not so sure himself.
"But for now we should go home and figure out how we plan to do that." Jimin glanced up, and seeing the unwavering eyes of his friends, he sighed in defeat.

"Alright," he consented. "Let's go home."

There was nothing to be said for the immensely sharp and constant stab of pain that pierced his heart. One heavy foot was placed in front of the other. Step by step, the boys made their way through the silent ballroom. Dozens of eyes followed them out, gripped with a sick sense of curiosity. The very rich are a poor bunch of bastards when it comes to quality entertainment, it seems.

They walked with purpose, trying to get out of that hotel as quickly as possible, while simultaneously trying to shield a heartbroken Jimin from the reporters outside. He was kept in the center of their group, it was a formation that they'd taken up when Izzy joined their group. They'd meant for the protective wall of bodies to shield her from any physical harm. But there was nothing that could have protected her from the mind games that Youngkyun had played them in.

The group moved sluggishly beneath the bright lights of Central Dongdae, coming to a stop when their car pulled up to the curb beside them.

"Come on Jimin," Hoseok placed a comforting hand in his shoulder and guided him to he car, motioning for him to slide in first. He was trying to put on a strong front but on the inside he was nearly as heartbroken as Jimin. To Hoseok, Izzy really was like a little sister, and seeing her walk away from them killed him. The way her shoulders slumped and her face was rid of any emotion was the worst thing he had seen in years. He only wished that he hadn't seen the pure and unadulterated fear that swam through her eyes as Izzy took hold of that key card.

With the boys safely inside, the car pulled away from the curb and rolled at snail speed towards the South Side. With each mile that passed by the tinted windows they grew further and further from the girl they'd come to love like family, and further from any hope of getting her back. They sat in painful, undisturbed silence until Taehyung posed a question.

"So what do we do now?" His face was grave, a look that didn't suit him well.

"I don't know," Namjoon mumbled, dragging his hands down his face in defeat. "I don't know."

"Well, she has her phone right? We can call her or track it—" Jungkook's proposal faded off when Jimin shook his head.

"Her phone was dead so she left it at home," he mumbled. "It's still laying on her bed."

"We should start with the hotel," Jin offered. "Find out what room Youngkyun was staying in and go from there. But he won't be there tonight, he's probably already left the hotel," the eldest of the group let out a heavy sigh and gripped Namjoon's shoulder.
"So for now we go home and sleep. Then tomorrow, we get our Izzy back."

Their car rolled to a stop a few blocks from their apartment and the guys clambered out. None of them saw the dark figure that sprinted around the corner several blocks ahead. They walked slowly, leaning on each other to stay upright beneath the heavy weight of sleep that threaten to settle over them. It was 3 in the morning after all, and needless to say the last few hours had been exhausting. The view of their apartment building came into view and the boys dragged their tired limbs up the metal staircase up to their door.

Namjoon patted his pockets in search of his keys and came up short, like always. If it weren't for the painful tension that cloaked them, Taehyung would have normally cracked a joke about Namjoon's uncanny gift for forgetting his keys.

"Here," Jin handed his own set of keys to Namjoon.

The apartment door creaked open and bounced lightly off the wall behind it. This night was just like any other. Only tonight Izzy wasn't with them, and even though it shouldn't have, her absence made a world of difference in the atmosphere of their group. The light flickered on. Seven bodies crashed to a halt. Their unblinking eyes fixated of the familiar old couch and the figure that occupied it. The eerie silence of their home was broken only by Jimin's dazed whisper.

"Izzy."

Authors Note
We are nearing the end of this book which means you'll need something else to read pretty soon.

Try my Min Yoongi fanfic!

😁😁😁
–A