In This House // BTS Mafia au

Chapter Ten

Night.

Miyeon's least favorite time

She didn't want to admit it to anyone, even herself, but it had always been, and always would be the dark. The dark was a mystery; she couldn't see things coming after her in the dark. She couldn't find her way in the dark. It was horrifyingly embarrassing, and just horrifying alone. 

And now, Mr. Jin was leaving her in his bedroom, with not a sliver of light, alone, so she could sleep with privacy while he stayed in Taehyung's room. She could barely sit up, let alone walk over and turn the lights on for the night.

So she was left propped up against the headboard. All night in the dark.

Ok, this is easy. Just don't think for a few hours. Maybe even fall asleep. Just don't freak out.

Don't.

A bump made her jump so intensely she felt it in her wound. It would be a long night. 

That was, until a soft knock on the door led to light flooding the room. The knock made Miyeon's heart nearly burst, but the light finally gave her relief. She watched as one of the members, the one who always smiled, entered. Hoseok.

"Ah, Miyeon," he said, closing the door and turning on the light. "Sorry to intrude. Something told me you wouldn't be asleep yet."

Miyeon only nodded politely. The only ones she really talked to were Mr. Jin, Monster, and Jungkook. Hoseok obviously seemed just as kind as the others, but why was he here?

"I'm Hoseok, if you don't remember." He walked up and stood by the side of the bed, giving her the same smile from before. His cheeks rose high when he smiled, and his eyes were never angry like Jungkook's or piercing like Monster's. They were somehow brighter, happier, so much so that Miyeon couldn't imagine him killing anyone. Bangtan was known for hitmen, but this was who was doing it?

"I just wanted to make sure everything was okay with you, I guess." He sat himself on the bottom corner of her bed, away from her feet. "Jin and Monster are great, but they're not too good with feelings."

"Oh," Miyeon said softly. 

"I know your other home wasn't that great," he continued. "Trust me, none of ours were. So if you ever want to talk about it, just let me know. I think it would be good for you to talk about it."

Miyeon nodded again, pleasantly surprised by the offer. A slight tug in her mind made her want to take him up on it, but at the same time, she barely knew him. 

"Here, how about this," he said, "I'll tell you about me first."

Miyeon cleared her throat. "If-if you want."

Hoseok gave another warm smile, then began. "I was born in some other city, one pretty far away I guess, but I was rarely allowed outside to explore it. Before I could even figure out where I was, my mother died getting jumped on the street when I was young. My dad moved us far away and never spoke of my hometown again." He looked around thoughtfully. "So we came here. But I guess he didn't know how to handle the pain, so he got into the drug industry. I grew up alone, without him. Besides, he was either brain-dead-high or gone, probably doing the same thing somewhere else. When I was old enough to cook and provide for myself, I started going to this public school nearby in secret. Only a few of us here went to school, you know."

Miyeon nodded. Her schooling was done "at home", not that she was taught anything.

"Anyway, by the time I was fifteen I had been in school for two years, working at a diner and a corner store blocks away, you know, in a safer part of town, basically living alone with a heroine monster in the room next to me. I think months would pass where I never said a word to him. He would barely eat, and when he did, it was when I was gone or asleep. Sometimes he was gone for days at a time. I never really found out what he did out there when he left, but I can only assume it was him shooting up in a greasy corner..." Hoseok's voice trailed off, not like he was sad, more like he was telling someone else's story.