♚ Egomaniacs ♚ | vkook (ON HIATUS)

Chapter 9: A Loose Cannon

To say Jungkook isn't frightened by the way Tom is towering over him would be a lie. from his previous experience, if anyone were to bump into Tom, that would likely mean that Ethan and trent are probably somewhere close by, and though he hates to admit it...those morons scare him. In his short time of being here, Jungkook knows that he's probably already been crowned their number one enemy. The thought of it makes his stomach twist into knots, and though he immediately has the urge to run away upon catching eyes with any of them, he doesn't. Instead he stands his ground, feigning as much confidence as he can possibly muster up, as usual. He can only hope that a repeat of yesterday isn't destined.

"What do you want now?" Jungkook asks, cautiously looking over his shoulder to see if anyone is sneaking up on him, which in his mind, is sure to be the case. "Don't you ever give up??"

"Relax." Tom says, holding his hands up in front if him as Jungkook starts taking a couple of steps back. "I'm not here to hurt ya, man."

"What, are your friends waiting around the corner to do it for you?" Jungkook says, still scouring his surroundings for any signs of Ethan or Trent, but most importantly, Russell. He hasn't actually seen that monster of an 18 year old since yesterday, and he'd praying it'd stay that way.

"No, it's just me. Trust me, alright? You don't gotta freak out."

"Trust you? Ha, that's funny." Jungkook says, his voice audibly shaky with nervousness. "As if I'm really gonna trust someone who was ready to dunk my head into a toilet."

"Please...I know I have no right to expect you to trust me, but I promise on my grandma's grave; I'm not gonna do anything to you, okay?" Tom says, anxiously rubbing the back of his neck. "I just...wanted to talk to you for a minute. I promise it won't take long."

Jungkook stands there for a couple of moments, deep in his thoughts. His eyes look genuine...his voice sounds genuine. Can he really feel bad for what he did? He asks himself. No...surely this has to be another one of his tricks. But, he can't help but feel curious about what he has to say. ".....fine. 60 seconds; go."

Tom straightens out his posture and opens his mouth to speak, but his words fumble a bit. "I-I...I'm really sorry for what I did!" He says, speaking as quickly as he can possibly manage. "I was thinkin' about it last night and I couldn't sleep at all….you didn't deserve the way my friends and I treated you. We were stupid! You weren't even doin' anything!"

Jungkook raises his brow and his grip on his backpack strap begins relaxing a bit as Tom continues speaking; the color in his knuckles returning. "I don't even know why I did it...it's not like I enjoy treating people badly, but...when I'm around my friends, I turn into a completely different person. I hate it."

"Then why do you hang out with them? If you really hate the person you become when you're around them, wouldn't it be smart if you, oh I dunno, found new friends?? Friends who aren't toxic."

"It's not that easy...Trent and Ethan...they're my best friends. Yeah they can be jerks, but we've been friends since we were kids. I can't just leave 'em...if you got to know 'em, they're not as bad as you think they are."

"They won't even give anyone the chance to do that, though. Yeah, they might be cool to you, but to everyone else, they're monsters. And I'm sorry to say, but the same goes for you." Jungkook says, and Tom's face scrunches up a bit, giving him a look of pain.

"Oh man...I don't want to be known as a monster…" Tom mutters, placing his hands on either sides of his face. "I've seen my fair share of horror movies and those are some scary dudes!"

"Well...that's what happens when you decide to pick on innocent people."

"What can I do to change?? There's gotta be somethin'! Please, I'll do anythin'; just tell me what I need to do." Tom says, pressing his hands together and lowering his head down. "I can't keep livin' like this. I don't wanna live with guilt on my conscience for the rest of my life!"