ALADDIN ; BTS AU

ACT I ; SCENE VI

Jungkook let out a groan as the guards roughly shackled him to the dank and grimy wall of the dungeon. It was dark, and dirt and dust were to be found on every surface. Expecting for the guards to finally leave him be once he was chained up, Jungkook leaned back against the wall, arms at awkward angles above his head. To his dismay, they did the opposite. The head guard suddenly snatched him up by his neck, pressing him against the wall.

Jungkook desperately pulled at his restraints, his wrists going raw and red. He could feel the drops of blood trickling down his arms and to his shoulders as he struggled to breathe.

"How does it feel, street rat?" He hissed. Jungkook wheezed helplessly, though his eyes were aflame with rage. The head guard merely laughed at Jungkook's pain and suffering. "How does it feel to finally lose?" He chuckled. Jungkook could smell the garlic on his breath and could see the malicious glint in his eyes. Right as Jungkook was beginning to see stars, the guard dropped him. He was prevented from sinking to his knees in a coughing fit by the shackles that kept him pinned to the wall. Jungkook coughed and gasped for breath, tasting bile and blood on his dry tongue. "You're lucky I don't kill you right now, street rat. You're going to end up that way soon enough."

"Aren't we all?" Jungkook rasped cynically, voice hoarse and throat sore. He could feel the blood rushing to his neck, feel the bruises forming already.

"You think you're clever, don't you?" The guard sneered, kneeling down to look Jungkook in the eye. "That's what got you sentenced to death in the first place." This caught Jungkook's attention.

"Don't be so sure. My trial hasn't happened yet." Jungkook reminded the guard. The guard smiled, a smile that struck blood-curdling fear into the pit of Jungkook's stomach, a smile that said he knew something he didn't. He threw his head back in a laugh, a booming one that echoed in the cavernous dungeon.

"Did you really think you'd actually get a trial?" The guard laughed, shaking his head at the boy. He patted Jungkook's shoulder in condescension, and Jungkook jolted back. "Trials are for people. You, boy, are nothing. You are a street rat. You were born a street rat, and you'll die a street rat. See you at dawn." He said, standing up straight before spitting directly in Jungkook's face with a laugh. Jungkook let out a sound of pure anger, something resembling a growl as he pulled at his chains with all his might. He watched, trapped, as guard exited the dungeon, locking the barred door. "Oh, I almost forgot." Jungkook watched as he pulled a loaf of bread from his pocket, and tossed it into the cell. Jungkook lunged for it, but it was no use. The bread fell just out of Jungkook's reach. "Oops." The guard said, without a trace of remorse, and then he was gone.

Jungkook felt the last sliver of hope in him diminish completely as he slumped as far as his shackles would let him. The backs of his eyes prickled and stung with tears, but he refused to cry. Holding back the panic and hopelessness as best he could, he looked to the ceiling of the musty, disgusting dungeon. Just like that, with his head tilted to the skies and the saltiness burning his dark eyes, he thought for a while. He thought of the girl.

The princess. How could he have ever thought that someone like her would be anything other than royalty? He thought about those few seconds before the guards discovered them: the way his lips hovered over her own, the way he could vividly imagine the taste of apples and joy on her tongue. He knew his chances of her saving him were practically nonexistent after all he said about the palace, not even bothering to understand her perspective of the palace being a prison.

How ironic.

Then, Jungkook thought of Hoseok, Jimin, Taehyung and Namjoon. His heart broke a little at imagining the boys returning to the hut with the water they collected, expecting him. They would continue to expect him all night, hell, all week. And he would never show. And Namjoon would ultimately blame himself for not convincing Jungkook to work for him when he had a chance. And they would never know what truly happened to him, their little brother. And he would never be able to provide food for them ever again. He would never be able to hear Hoseok laugh or watch Hoseok dance again. He would never see Taehyung smile or hear about what he wants to do in life again. He would never listen to Jimin complain or feel one of his hugs again. He would never get to be with his family again, and that hurt more than the fact that he was going to die in less than twenty-four hours.

Then, Jungkook thought of his mother. His heart was torn for a multitude of reasons. Part of him was devastated; he had never gotten to make his mother proud of him, he hadn't been a good son. But part of him—part of him was happy, in some odd way. He was relieved. After all these years, he would finally get to see her again.

"See you soon, Ma." He murmured to the nothingness of the dungeon.

He just hoped that she would hear him, and be happy, too.

this is short but i wanted to update a sad one

guess who you'll meet next chapter ;)