4 o'clock

PROLOGUE | 0000

"Hey! Jimin! I will catch you!" Taehyung yelled at Jimin who was running around the bush, as Taehyung was trying his best to chase him. It was their almost-daily routine to go out and play together, just both of them, until sun sets.

A hobby of 12 year olds.

Jimin's soft chuckles could be heard while he was running,

but it didn't last long when he suddenly fell to the ground.

"Jimin!" Taehyung's eyes widened when he saw his best friend collapsing in front of his eyes, as he ran towards Jimin who was moaning in pain.

The closer he got to Jimin, the clearer he got to see. Do Gook-soo and his friends, bad boys in the neighbourhood who love to tease kids around, especially Taehyung and Jimin, were standing in front of him.

"Jimin! Are you okay?!" he collapsed to the ground, placing Jimin's head on his thighs. He glanced up and shot a death glare to Gooksoo, "Gooksoo! What are you doing!" he yelled to him, who was glancing down at Jimin. He was curling up while having his palm pressing against his stomach.

"I've told you many times, and I really hate repeating something that I've said. I told you not to play around in my area, flower boys," he grinned, looking down to both Taehyung and Jimin.

Taehyung placed his hands on Jimin's shoulders, squeezing them softly as his eyes were full of worries, looking at his best friend who was moaning in pain.

"We're not flower boys!" he raised his tone to Gooksoo. He chuckled, "Oh? Then how about this!" he threw a punch on Taehyung's face, and he could feel his jaw swelling up and a throbbing pain that was slowly taking over himself.

"You see, you can't even endure that. Yet you're still declaring how much of a flower boys you both are," he laughed, as his friends followed along his evil laugh.

Taehyung cannot help but stare at him angrily, he could feel himself heating up as his heart was boiling with hatred and anger. He clenched his teeth, and got up to his feet, trying to stand up when Jimin suddenly snaked his hand out and grasped his arms.

"Taehyung, don't do anything," he said, his voice came out hoarse and low as he was talking in pain. "Oh? I see you're trying to fight me, huh?" Gooksoo snorted.

Jimin who was curling up, let out a loud moan out of pain when Gooksoo kicked him in the stomach.

"Arghhh!" he moaned. Taehyung gasped while witnessing what Gooksoo had done to him.

Jimin had an unknown problem on his stomach since last week, Gooksoo should've not done that. Even the doctor said that he should take a good care of his stomach if he dooesn't want anything bad to happen.

Anything bad?

Taehyung's mind flashed with worries and thoughts that could be happening to him. His eyebrows were plunged to a frown, and tried to stand up on his feet once again because he can no longer stand still and watch him in pain.

"LEAVE MY JIMIN ALONE!" Taehyung shouted at him. "My Jimin? Oh? I'm sorry for touching your boyfriend," he chuckled proudly.

Gooksoo crouched down and stopped Taehyung from getting up, as he placed his hand on Taehyung's shoulder and pushed him down.

"Next time, listen, to, my words," he said slow, in a tone that anyone would feel like smacking him in the face. Taehyung was staring at him with fierce eyes, as he was cursing him under his breath.

Gooksoo giggled, before getting up and walked away from them, following him was his friends at his back.

As soon as Gooksoo and his friends disappeared from his sight, he glanced down on Jimin who had his eyes closed shut, enduring the pain he was feeling.

"Jimin, are you okay?" his voice sounded worried. "I'm fine," he gave him a weak smile.

"Come on, I'll help you get up," he pulled Jimin's left arm up and put it around his neck, while slowly helping him getting up on his feet whilst Jimin's other hand was still pressing against his stomach.

"One day, I promise he will learn his lesson," Taehyung said under his breath, while having Jimin wrapping his arms around his neck, walking with difficulty.

Suddenly, Jimin used his force to stop himself from walking, which brought Taehyung to surprise and moved his gaze to Jimin.

"Why did you stop?" he asked, looking at Jimin whose eyes were focusing on the ground, he seemed worried. "I'm scared," he said low, it came out almost like a whisper.

"What are you scared of?"
"My mother, she will beat me up if I came home looking like this," his voice was shaking, sounded horrified at the thought of his mother.

Jimin's face was bruised, and he cannot even walk properly. It wasn't the first time he got beaten up by Gooksoo, and every time he did, his mother will scold and beat him up, saying how he picked up a fight with Gooksoo, a son of Jimin's mother's boss.

"It's okay, I'm here for you. I will explain everything to your mother and she will understand," he encouraged, before continued walking. But Jimin used his strength to stop himself from doing so.

"No, don't do that," he said, slowly moving his gaze and met Taehyung's eyes.

"Why not?" he asked, raising his eyebrows.

"She don't believe in people,"
"But I'm Kim Taehyung?"
"Are you not a person?" he said. Taehyung was startled at his sudden answer and did not seem like he could think of a word to say.

...

"Jimin! What happened to you!" his mother's eyes widened twice in size as soon as she pulled the door open, seeing her son's bruised face as he was standing with the help of Taehyung in front of their house.

"Jimin was beaten up by someone earlier. He didn't do anything wrong, we were playing around and suddenly the bad guy came and threw a punch on his stomach," Taehyung explained, hoping how his mother would understand the situation.

Jimin shrugged, as he avoided eye contacts with his mother who was staring at both Taehyung and him with worries.

She did not make any sound, no sense of getting angry and boiled up, ready to scold him like she always did. Instead, she was staring down to both of them, blinking several times with an expression that no one could read or what was going through her mind and even Taehyung found it strange.

"Jimin, go inside the house. Taehyung, thank you for helping him," she sighed and gave a motherly smile before turned to her back and walked into the house.

Jimin did not move an inch, he was standing steadily next to Taehyung, afraid and scared if once he stepped into the house, his mother will beat him up, which he'd never wished for.

"Mother, I'm sorry, please don't beat me," he sobbed while having his knees on the ground, and his head was laid low. She was surprised by the sudden apology, and turned to her back seeing her son on his knees, sobbing and begging.

"Don't worry, I won't. I promise," she said, her voice was soothing, and took a step into the house before disappeared from the front door.

Taehyung placed his hands on Jimin's shoulders, "Jimin, you'll be fine," he took Jimin's hand and pulled him to his feet, and held him until his sobbing subsided.

Jimin's empty gaze shifted momentarily from the ground to his face. "Thank you, Taehyung. I don't know what I would do without you,"

"It's okay," a slow smile worked its way across Taehyung's face and into his eyes.

"Promise me we'll be friends forever!" a cheeky smile formed up on his lips, as he stuck his pinky finger out and Taehyung intertwined it with his,

"I promise,"

Jimin,
I don't know what I would do without you too.