The Flower of the Dark | k.th

.Twenty-Five.

"Would she like this?.." I ask myself as I carefully wrap the tortilla. I shake my head and smile, "I'm not as good as Jin, but I think I'm alright! Jieun will like my breakfast burritos!" My smile fades. Jin nearly threw up the last time I made him food.

I sigh and put the last burrito into one brown paper sack. I only made three burritos..well one I bought from Eat Jin I forgot was in my fridge for the past week. I marked the one I got from Eat Jin with an 'X' on the foil, just to know which one I couldn't give to Jieun.

"Should I get backups just in case she doesn't like what I made?" I nod and walk out of my apartment, already making the decision without a second to waste. Jieun couldn't stay in the situation she was currently in for long, considering the things she may see.

I hurry past the cats that all surround my feet, causing their owner to chase after them with concern.

"Kitties! Stop it! Where-" the cat lady looks at me in shock. "You're that...that..."

I make it outside without any cats following me, and answering the lady. After my time waiting for Jieun to grow older, I remember seeing a donut shop just around my complex. I always went there when I wanted a midnight snack. They were never opened that late.

It's a shop that has J's Sweets in large letters at the top of the building like a billboard. Most of the letters are dirty and some of them are gone, but the current owner hasn't bothered to fix the store up. She couldn't care less if they ran out of business.

I entered the small shop, and I'm greeted by a girl leaning on a wooden counter while on her phone. Her gaze snaps from her phone to me when the rusty bell rings as soon as I entered. She quickly gets behind the counter and smiles, slipping her phone in her back pocket.

"Hey, Taehyung!" she smiles. "It's been awhile since I've seen you. Glad you're back."

I nod and scan the bottom of the counter that's displayed with cakes, donuts, and pies. "Can I have two of those pink frosted donuts?" I gesture to the donuts just in front of me.

She nods. I glance around the uncared shop, and when I look back at her she's already got the donuts in a bag.

"Do you have money this time?" she's nearing the cash register.

I feel bad about never being here with money to give her, but she has other jobs. She just runs this thing to keep her brother's business alive as much as she can from what she's told me. Before I can respond, she hands the bag of donuts to me.

"Don't worry about it, Taehyung. Just go."

I take the bag from her and bow. I make it back to my apartment to just get my burritos and go see Jieun, hoping I'm not too late. I hope she's okay too.

When I open the door to my apartment, I'm met with Jimin standing behind my couch. His eyes grow wide.

"What are you doing here?"

"Where's Jieun?" Jimin ignores my question. "What'd you do with her?"

I smile and fake a gasp, "Don't tell me you're stalking me too! Ah, Jimin, I feel so flattered that you've taken an interest in me!" I close the door.

I take a few steps forward to get to my kitchen, get my burritos, and leave. I can see him move his hand to his butt pocket. I stop walking.

I see what you're doing... Couldn't you have been more lowkey, Jimin?

"Where's..." he's speaking slowly, "Jieun?"

"Safe. Don't worry about her. Take a seat, will you?" I nod my head to a single chair just next to my couch. "I've actually been wanting someone here to try my breakfast burritos, so I'm glad you showed up and somehow found my apartment."

His hand doesn't move away from his butt. He's still and tense. I smile at him.

"You can trust me, Jimin. We are friends, right?" Jimin doesn't change his position, narrowing his eyes.

"You know, I don't like you as much as you don't like me. We're both associated with Jieun though, and I don't think she'll like the idea of us getting hurt because of one another. So please sit. Let's start over and become friends. For Jieun." Jimin relaxes slowly, and hesitates to walk to the single chair I gestured to. "Wait here." Geez, he'll do literally anything for Jieun!

I walk to the kitchen and to the sack of three burritos. I pull one out and it's the one from Eat Jin. I don't put it back since it's the one I pulled out first, so might as well get rid of it quickly. I bring the sack of burritos with me when I go back into the living room where Jimin is sitting in awkward silence. I toss the burrito to him and he doesn't eat it right away.

"Hey, would you like music?" I ask him and he doesn't respond. I frown.

"Will you tell me where Jieun is?"

I shake my head. "Listen to Jieun for once. Whatever she told you at the house is probably for the best. Now, I'll put music on and get you something to drink. Do you like tea?"

He doesn't answer, and I can see his once-narrowed eyes slowly ease.

"I'll take that as a yes."

I found an old, small record player in the hallway closet that I didn't know was there. When I first found this apartment, I had stole a record from the Magic Shop that no one has noticed was gone. I wanted to keep myself entertained and I was in a rush to get here that I didn't pay attention to what song I got. This was the only record that wasn't scratched or broken, but it wasn't in its case.

I put the record player on the coffee table and rolled my eyes when the music began to play after I put the disk in. Great. Classical.

"I know this artist. He was.." Jimin speaks up. He still hadn't eaten his burrito.

"Yeah, I don't care." I walk away from him and back into the kitchen to make tea with my secret recipe.

When I finished making my tea, and I walked back to the living room, Jimin is slouched in the chair with his hand covering mouth. The burrito I gave him is on the coffee table, and only had one bite. A wave of guilt swooshes over me but I get over it when I hand him the tea.

"Yummy burrito, right?" I ask.

Jimin looks drowsy too, and I noticed that the same part of the song kept playing. Nice, the record is scratched too. I glance at Jimin who's wincing to sit up. What did that smart man do to his music that makes Jimin so...strange feeling?... I smile at how much I appreciate my hyungs. They make things easier sometimes.

I see the redness on around his wrists as he sat up. I wince for him. Jin messed you up pretty bad, didn't he?

"Ew!" Jimin quickly puts the cup I gave him on the coffee table, and wipes his mouth with the back of his grey sleeve. "You seriously suck at making things!"

"Did you swallow it?" I ask him. I'm standing next to Jimin who is slowly drifting in and out. He's out cold faster than I had expected.

I sit him up and pull out the scissors from his butt pocket. "Huh. What did you have in mind, Mr. Jimin?" I spot the dry blood stuck in the cracks of the screw. I glance at his bandaged arm and slip the scissors in my pocket.

My gut sinks and I fear feeling again.
What were you thinking, you fool?

DAILY SOCKS NOTE ::
24 and 25 just introduced Taehyung's feelings of the situation that recently occurred. I hope you guys didn't feel like it was boring considering that you've already read what happened to Jimin and Jieun.
~RightSock