go hard or go home // namkook

001

The news spread like an untamed wildfire across the vast racing world and sent shock spiraling down the spines of the loyal fans who had looked up to Jungkook since his rookie days. His social media was going crazy with activity, a seemingly never-ending stream of notifications being sent to his overflowing inbox. Diehard fans, news reporters, and anyone who wanted answers were desperately trying to reach him; but he really didn't plan on answering a single question.

He didn't need to.

He hadn't expected such a reaction out of everyone if he were honest. Maybe a big commotion from some of his fans, but that was about all he thought of coming about if this. He figured it would be a quiet, quick goodbye, and then he could easily slip under the radar and go undetected. Obviously, he misjudged and underestimated the power of the media.

Jungkook lethargically sighed, and took another smooth sip from his cherry cola, comfortably humming at the delicious aftertaste. He debated whether he should just shut off his phone for a while and obtain some peace, but he knew that it would be pointless in the end. The stream of notifications didn't plan to stop any time soon if his rising number of notifications had anything to say about it. He would have to turn it back on and face the world eventually.

So he settled for resting on the couch in his living room, feet kicked up onto the wooden table in a relaxed position. It was all stressful, needless to say. His (now old) manager had warned him of the sort of backlash he could receive from suddenly dropping out, but he hadn't taken it seriously, figuring it was just some over-exaggeration to try to scare him into staying in the industry. Boy, was he wrong.

He had the TV remote in his other hand, mindlessly channel surfing, and searching for anything to get his mind off the crazy amount of people wanting some sort of statement from him. Nothing really seemed interesting, but switching the channels alone was enough to occupy his mind for a bit. He set his cherry cola down on top one of the little coasters that sat on the side table, silently hoping that the reaction would eventually pass. It had to, right?

Eventually, he found that he had landed on a news channel, and his eyebrows scrunched up in disgust to see that they were reporting about him. He curiously glanced at the clock to see that it was indeed time for five o'clock news. He silently wondered just how many stations were going to report his story.

"Professional race car driver, Jeon Jungkook, has mysteriously dropped out of the racing world after winning his final race on Saturday night. The race driver has had many wins under his belt and for the past three years, has risen to a surprising popularity. It seems that fame is possibly coming to an end, however," The woman on screen had reported in that classic reporter voice, confidently looking into the camera as she spilled the information out to the world.

Jungkook couldn't help but find himself watching, interested in just what the media had to say about him.

In the racing industry, he was known as the golden rookie at first, remarkably showing what he was made of during his first couple of races. It wasn't long before he had a sizable following behind him, people cheering him on with passion and fire. People seemed to like his attitude; competitive, a little cocky, but still humble if he ever lost or fell behind.

He was a rising star, interviews, magazines, any other media outlet wanting to get a scoop of his story. A true rookie to legend story, that what it was. It was only something you saw in movies or works of fiction, and he was living proof that it was indeed possible. He had obtained his professional (legend) status in only a short time of three years too, which meant all the more to his achievements.
Racing fans loved him, his rivals hated him, it was perfect.

Until it wasn't.

"The consecutive champion resigned from his position without explanation shortly after the race, sending race fans into a devastating frenzy. A few speculations have popped up as to why this reigning champion would give up his title, but the reason for his resignation is still unknown. We reached out to Jungkook himself for a statement on the situation, but unfortunately haven't gotten word back," The woman continued, turning to her co-reporter to talk about the situation.