Posted originally on the Archive_of_Our_Own at https://archiveofourown.org/
works/8430274.
  Rating:
      Explicit
  Archive Warning:
      Graphic_Depictions_Of_Violence, Underage
  Category:
      M/M
  Fandom:
      방탄소년단_|_Bangtan_Boys_|_BTS
  Relationship:
      Jeon_Jungkook_&_Kim_Namjoon_|_Rap_Monster
  Character:
      Jeon_Jungkook, Kim_Namjoon_|_Rap_Monster, Kim_Seokjin_|_Jin
  Additional Tags:
      Alternate_Universe_-_Serial_Killers, Angst, Lots_of_it, But_also, Smut,
      Lots_of_that_too, A_smorgasbord_of_angst_and_smut, Slow_Burn, Serial
      killer_Namjoon, Protégé_Jungkook, Jungkook_Is_Bad_at_Feelings, Namjoon_is
      a_whole_other_story, Loss_of_Virginity, Graphic_Description_of_Corpses,
      Graphic_Description, Mental_Health_Issues, Mental_Anguish, The_underage
      warning_is_there_because_its_literally_a_few_hours_before_his_eighteenth,
      Basically_im_jungkook_trash_and_dark_kookie_is_best_kookie, Seokjin_is
      only_mentioned, sorry_:/_-_Freeform
  Collections:
      2016_Spellbound_Halloween_Fic_Exchange
  Stats:
      Published: 2016-10-31 Completed: 2016-12-02 Chapters: 4/4 Words: 50000
****** A Storm Blowing Up Your Horizon ******
by Takujaepls
Summary
     Jungkook had never been normal. He wasn't exactly sure what
     normal
      was, but he knew he wasn't it. He had always felt different, wrong,
     not right
     .
     Cue a mysterious murderer who shows Jungkook how good it is to be
     bad.
Notes
     Welcome to a world of angst! I was really excited for this prompt
     because it's such an amazing opportunity to explore a more dark and
     twisted BTS than I've done before.
     As I'm writing this I'm not 100% done but I am almost 30k in and
     almost 2/3 done. I will be continuing this story as this is only a
     short first part. If you enjoy it PLEASE leave a comment and kudos
     because it is extremely appreciated!
     I'd like to call this story my baby. I'm really proud of it honestly
     and it's been such an amazing experience.
     Thank you sevenbyseven for the amazing prompt and for giving me this
     gift!
     Without further adieu I present you serial killer BTS!
***** Part I *****
Chapter Notes
See the end of the chapter for notes
   Jungkook liked to walk. He enjoyed the feel of the pavement under his feet,
steady and strong, unyielding. He liked the sound of the leaves crunching
beneath him as the wind blew them into his path. Most of all he liked the
silence that came from being by himself. There were always people around him
but now, when he was going nowhere and no one was expecting him, he could
pretend for a moment that they couldn’t see him; He was just there, and they
were there, but they weren’t there together.

   He didn’t have a specific path he took. He just walked until he felt like
stopping. Sometimes he’d walk through downtown, slipping through the crowds of
people taking up the sidewalk. Other times he’d walk through the suburbs, just
him and his thoughts to accompany him. Today he found himself at a small park,
nestled between some small shops and mid-rise apartments. It was mostly quiet,
only a few people making use of the perfect weather.

   He took a seat on one of the wooden benches and not for the first time he
found himself observing those around him. He watched the others in the park and
wondered what it would be like to be like them. The mother pushing her child on
the swing, the man walking his dog, the two teenagers smoking dope beneath the
play structure; they all seemed to lead such simple lives. Did they have
darkness in them too, he wondered? Were they as happy as they pretended to be
or did they too feel like strangers in their own lives?

   What was it that made them so different from him? Rather, what was it that
had gone so wrong for Jungkook? Had he taken a wrong turn somewhere? Perhaps
he’d read the map to a normal life wrong and stumbled into some unknown area,
far from the safety of the crowd. Now he was lost, wandering, trying to keep
the wolves from devouring him. He’d spent his whole life trying to find his way
back but the trees were so thick and the stars clouded. He was beginning to
call this other place home.

   He was floating, a dead branch adrift in a stream of emotions he could never
grab hold of. He had never been part of the pop culture parade; He didn’t see
the point in obsessing over celebrities and sports team he knew nothing and
cared nothing about. When he heard his classmates gushing about reality TV
shows and Miley Cyrus he felt like he was standing outside, watching everyone
exist through a window he could never open with no doors in sight. Then he
realized he was the one on the inside and he’d closed the blinds on everyone
else. Maybe the window had been put there just so he could see what he was
supposed to be but not to become it. The disconnect between him and the rest of
the world was an unbridgeable chasm, separating him from a life he could never
have.

   Of course, the longer he went without it the more he realized how useless it
was. People had become nothing but rats in a maze: chasing the cheese of
gratification and praise. It was all about likes and retweets and whether or
not they got their picture in the yearbook under “Most Likely To Not Be A
Failure.” Jungkook wanted nothing more than to throw his middle fingers up and
tell them to go fuck themselves but he had to play the role. He had to seem the
same as them; he couldn’t show people how different he was, how wrong he was.
Basketball, Skateboarding, Choir: His body was a trophy case of participation
medals, second hand awards placed there to fool those around him but he could
never fool himself; he wasn’t a person. He was a placeholder for the soul his
body had never been given.

   He didn’t hate being different most of the time. After all, it wasn’t like
he wanted to be like everyone else. No, that was the farthest thing from what
he desired. The problem was he didn’t really know what he desired. There was a
hole inside of him where his heart should be and it made figuring out what he
wanted that much harder. The phantom longing was nestled inside of him, deep
and strong like a tumour he could never remove. It pulled at everything he was
until he felt like he was going to break. Who knew? Maybe one day he would.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
JUNE 1ST 
   He was on his way home from his dealer’s place when he saw it. A small area
of the park near his house was cordoned off. Tacky yellow police tape was
attached to the trees and running around the perimeter of what was apparently a
crime scene. He couldn’t see what was going on from where he stood, watching
curiously from the shadow of a large elm tree a few yards away, but it had to
be something big by the looks of how many cruisers had showed up.

   I should leave, Jungkook thought, before anyone notices me. It was two AM
and he was loitering around a crime scene, a murder no less with enough drugs
on him to get him in some serious trouble. Well, he assumed it was a murder.
That many cops didn’t show up for a simple act of vandalism. If it was a murder
then the police would be on their guard. The urge to see, though, to find out
if he was right, was pulling his body forward before he could stop himself.

   He stepped out onto the sidewalk and shoved his hands in his pockets,
slipping on his mask. Apathy, this time; A bored kid on his way home and not a
potential suspect. He hoped. His ear buds were in but he kept his music paused,
bobbing his head to an invisible beat and listened.

   His heart was pumping its way out of his chest and his brain kept screaming
at him to TURN BACK but he ignored them both, the little nagging feeling behind
it all telling him to keep going. His excitement grew as he got nearer, gnawing
at his stomach and threatening to give him away. Part of him thought it was
strange to be excited about seeing a murder but he’d never been particularly
normal anyway. It didn’t surprise him (much) that the thrum running through his
veins and tickling just under his skin was desire rather than fear, a thirst
bubbling up from his core.

   He knew better though, knew just how dangerous it would be to let that show
so he kept his face blank and impassive, looking every bit the apathetic
teenager he wanted to portray. He’d always been good at fooling the world
(though he’d never been able to fool himself).

   The flashing blue and red lights bathed the area in an eerie clash of
flickering colours, too jarring to the senses to ignore even if he’d wanted to.
He peered over casually, taking in the uniformed officers dotting the scene as
they spoke into their radios and scribbled notes on little pads of paper. There
were a fair amount of them. It was definitely something serious. No one was
wearing heavy gear or weapons so a bomb threat or hostage situation were
definitely out. It wasn’t until a group of officers moved that Jungkook could
see into the park and the reason they were all gathered.

   There, sat delicately against the tree, was a woman. Rich auburn hair fell
past her shoulders, perfectly parted to frame her soft cheekbones and plump
lips. She held a purple flower to her chest like she was posing for a painting;
only it was stained red with blood. In fact, her entire torso was streaked with
blood from her neck where it had been slit. Jungkook’s own blood pounded in his
ears as he removed his headphones. The world quieted to a whisper around him as
he looked into her still open eyes. She was looking past everyone else, right
at him, challenging him to ignore her. He couldn’t have, even if he’d wanted
to.

   She was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. He wanted to reach out and
call to her, to close the distance and touch her. He took a step forward and
stopped; He couldn’t. If he did they’d see him and he’d be in trouble. He
couldn’t let that happen but he couldn’t tear his eyes away either. It was a
million years held inside a moment, a thousand revelations all happening at
once inside his head so quickly he couldn’t process them. He didn’t know what
he was feeling, he just knew that it was different than anything he’d felt
before. Suddenly he wasn’t there anymore; His body was standing in the middle
of the street but he was in the park, with the woman that had turned his world
upside down and stolen the ground from beneath him.

   “HEY! YOU!” One of the officers had seen him and in no less than ten seconds
he had three police officers standing around him, hands poised to draw their
weapons. “Who are you and why are you here?”

   He tore his eyes away from the body, staring at the man in shock. “I-I-I...”
His eyes were drawn back to the body, swallowing as he looked between her and
the man regarding him suspiciously. He’d never had trouble with words like this
before. They were weighed down in his stomach, rooting themselves deep so that
Jungkook had to tear them out from within. “I-I-I was just- just walking home
a-and...” He wasn’t even sure what he was saying, just grabbed at the first
words he could find.

   When he looked back at the body again the woman who had captivated him a few
seconds ago was gone, replaced with a corpse. The portals he’d been lost in
before were now glassy and blank, staring at no one and nothing. His whole
being flipped around and he doubled over, throwing up on the police officer’s
shiny, black shoes.

   “Oh! Gross!” They backed up a step away from him. The man he’d thrown up on
was trying to shake some of the bile off his shoes.

   He wasn’t sure exactly what came over him but he knew what to do. He looked
up at them, tears threatening to spill from his wide eyes. “She’s dead? I’ve
just seen a dead person?” He gagged in the direction of another officer,
spitting up what saliva he had in his mouth.

   “Nasty,” the third man murmured under his breath.

   No one seemed very keen to move towards him and he took advantage. He fell
to his knees in the puddle of puke on the pavement and wrapped his arms around
himself, forcing the tears out. “I can’t believe... She’s dead.”

   It took a moment but he felt a hesitant touch on his shoulder and looked up
into the eyes of one of the men. He looked down on Jungkook with pity, just as
the boy had wanted. He sniffled, breathing out erratically as his bottom lip
quivered. The officer’s eyes softened and he looked at the other two men. “He’s
just a kid.”

   The recipient of his vomit eyed him warily but took a tentative step
forward, kneeling down just far enough he avoided the mess on the street. “I’m
sorry, son, but we need to ask you some questions.”

   Jungkook nodded, wiping his nose on his sleeve and leaving a trail of snot
across his face. The officer held his eyes steadily. “You need too-“ Jungkook
hiccupped. “You need to find who did this, right?” The officer nodded. “O-Okay.
I-I’ll help.” He pushed himself up, noticing that he didn’t have to fake the
tremors in his hands.
===============================================================================
It was much easier than Jungkook had expected. They bought his story far too
quickly, tricked by his sad eyes and apparent vulnerability; although he was
telling the truth when he said he had nothing to do with it so there wasn’t
much to ‘buy’. One of them even offered to pay for his cab. He took their
offer, giving the cabbie the same fake address he’d given the cops earlier. He
wasn’t sure why he gave a fake one. He just knew he didn’t want them to know
who he really was. Once the cab dropped him off he waited until the yellow car
had made its way far enough down the street and doubled back, stopping in an
empty alley way. He sat and hid next to a dumpster as he tried to make sense of
what had just happened.

   The image flashed across his mind, as vivid as if he was seeing it for the
first time all over again: cherry red lips against ice white skin. He expected
disgust, nausea, questions about the frailty of human existence... But that
wasn’t what he felt now.

   He wasn’t sitting there wondering what kind of person would do that like he
probably should, he wasn’t sickened by the very thought of someone else taking
a life like he should, and he wasn’t sad because someone was dead like he
should be. All the things he should have felt were at the very back of his
mind, eclipsed by his fascination. He couldn’t get her eyes out of his head,
the way she’d looked right through him like his walls were actually windows. It
unnerved him a little but more so it made him feel so alive!

   He wanted to understand it. He wanted to know why seeing a corpse had
brought him a greater sense of peace than the drugs burning a hole in his
pocket right now. He wanted to know why his whole body was a mess of adrenaline
and endorphins, why this felt like a better high then what his dealer sold him.
He wanted to know why, in the back of his mind, he had seen the briefest flash
of himself holding the knife to her slim neck.

   Jungkook’s lips turned upward into the faintest hint of a smile.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
JUNE 2ND 
   He scoured the internet the next day for any information on the murder.
There were a lot of articles but none held any valuable information.
Frustrated, he slammed his laptop shut. He hadn’t been expecting much but he’d
hoped for something at least. His mind was a mess of thoughts all tangled
together; Right when he thought he had a handle on one he found six more
knotted to it and lost his grip. He realized he wasn’t going to get it figured
out in one night but his patience was wearing unusually thin already. He wanted
answers now.
   He set an alert to notify him if anymore articles under the search term were
added and went to get ready for school.
He didn’t hate school but he didn’t particularly enjoy it either. Who did? The
classes and work weren’t so bad; he’d always had an affinity for bullshitting
his way through assignments. It was the people that made it tiresome. He had to
constantly be in control of himself. He could never let his mask slip. It was
his only protection from the world and he wore it as not only a shield but as a
life vest. He wasn’t bulletproof after all. Just because he didn’t care didn’t
mean he couldn’t be hurt.

   He took the bus to school because his parents were already gone in the
mornings when he got up for school and riding a bike in New York was more
dangerous than it was helpful. Everything in New York was dangerous. He’d seen
a hot dog vendor get held up last month. Some guy robbed him at gun point and
almost caused a traffic collision running away. A four year old girl had nearly
been run over by a car and was sent to the hospital, all for $347. People like
that made Jungkook question whether or not prison was the best alternative. He
might be fucked up but even he knew hurting an innocent kid was wrong.

   He took a seat on the curb by his bus stop and waited. He lived far enough
near the outskirts of the city that traffic wasn’t absolutely horrible most of
the time. It could still be a bitch some days though so he never knew if the
bus would arrive on time or not.

   Finals and graduation were at the end of the month so he pulled out his
study guide and leafed through it tiredly. He had already memorised all the
material but it gave him something to do.

   He heard the bus before he saw it. Raucous laughter and a medley of too-loud
music leaked through the open windows and drifted down the street. He closed
his book and stashed it into his bag as he got up. As the bus drew closer he
sighed and slipped on his mask again. Time to fool the school.

   “Ayy! My man Kook!”

   He grinned and nodded at Jace through the window, turning his cap around as
he moved to get onto the vehicle that took him to hell every weekday from eight
to four.

   “What’s up Jace?” He slid into the seat next to the younger boy, slouching
back as the bus screeched and began moving.

   “Did you hear about the party this weekend? It’s gonna be sick. Avery’s
parents are out of town and the football team is bringing three kegs.”

   “Sweet. I’ll see if I can make it.” Truth be told he hated parties. It was
so much harder to pretend when he was drunk. He’d gotten into the habit of
making fake mixes to avoid it. It worked most of the time but it was a hassle
trying to keep it up all night when everyone and their mother seemed to want
his attention. Sometimes he thought he wore his mask a bit too well.

   “You gotta man. Sinclair is gonna be there and a little birdie told me she
wants the Kook-D.”

   “For the last time,” Jungkook sighed and drew a hand over his face. “Stop
calling my dick that. It’s weird.”

   Jace snickered and threw his arm around Jungkook. He always wore too much
aftershave and it gave the older boy a headache. Did girls actually like that?
“Not a chance. Comedy gold such as that cannot be forgotten. Besides, every
boat needs a name before it’s christened.”

   “For the last time: I. AM. NOT. A. VIRGIN. Just because I don’t fuck every
girl who looks at me doesn’t mean I haven’t fucked any.” He was lying but
admitting the truth was like setting a giant spotlight on himself. He was
turning eighteen in four months. Eighteen year old virgins were weird and too
suspicious.

   “Pics or it didn’t happen.”

   He shoved Jace away and smirked. “Sick dude, and not the cool kind. You’re a
perv.”

   “And the ladies love it.” He howled like a wolf and Jungkook laughed on the
outside but on the inside he was already counting down the hours until he could
go home and find out more about last night.

   Since Jungkook was a senior his class schedule wasn’t too full anymore. His
grades were excellent and he’d gotten most of his required courses out of the
way early on. When the ‘friends’ he’d made complained about how busy he was he
told them it was what his parents wanted but it had actually taken quite a bit
of convincing them to allow Jungkook to fill his timetable completely. They’d
been worried he’d become overwhelmed and fall behind but in the end reluctantly
agreed.

   Jungkook had thought that the fuller his schedule would be the easier it
would be to avoid others as much as possible. It hadn’t quite worked out that
way. The work had been too easy and soon his classmates began pestering him to
hang out and ‘get crunk’ and whatever the hell it was they did. He had said yes
a few times to placate them. Maybe if he agreed once in a while they’d lay off.
Unfortunately his ability to bullshit extended well beyond school work. He
played his part too well and they actually liked him. Well, liked his mask,
anyway.

   Fast forward three years and he’d somehow found himself amongst the popular
kids, the best point guard on their basketball team and the object of quite a
few girl’s affections. He should write a book. He’ll call it How to Trick
People Around You So Well You’re Stuck with the Bastards for Life - An auto
biography by Jeon Jungkook.

   Being as popular as he’d become was both good and bad. Yes, he had eyes on
him more often than he’d like but his reputation preceded him enough that no
one really looked. He was just ‘Kook’, the popular Korean kid who was good at
basketball and broke all the girls’ hearts without trying. He could put himself
on autopilot with them and remain hidden. It was the new kids he had to put a
bit of an extra show on for; Them, and the teachers.

   It had been tricky, at first, charming the adults. They weren’t all as naïve
as his classmates. It had taken a lot of work, observing each teacher until he
picked up on the things they liked and disliked. Then he just played into it:
Included a paragraph about the superiority of Russian government systems in his
history paper for Mr. Kyotlov, argued that importance of monogamy in his family
studies essay for Ms. Bentley, who’d been cheated on and divorced a year prior,
etc. The list went on. In the end they’d been just as taken with the smart
little Korean boy who got good grades and stayed out of trouble. (And maybe
he’d played up the stereotype for them a bit but it had worked and that’s all
that mattered.)

   The downfall of how well his plan had worked was that now he only had four
classes, three before lunch and one after. The rest of his day was empty and
left him at the mercy of the others with spares. Sitting in the cafeteria
playing stupid card games, playing a pickup game outside when the court was
empty, going for cruises: it was all boring. Granted pickup games meant he
didn’t have to talk as much so they were a preferred option. Sometimes girls
would come to watch, giggling and whispering behind their hands anytime he
glanced at them. He smirked and showed off because he knew that’s what any boy
would do but he never asked for their number afterwards. Sometimes they gave it
to him anyways. He grinned and shoved it in his pocket but at home they ended
up in the trash can.

   He’d never been attracted to them. He could recognize when they were pretty
but he’d never thought of it himself. He’d wondered once if perhaps he was gay.
A part of him had rejoiced because he’d thought if he was gay maybe that was
what was wrong with him and he could fix it but alas, it was not that easy. He
wasn’t attracted to men either. He just wasn’t attracted to anyone. He didn’t
care to figure it out either because he didn’t feel the need to change it.
Getting into a relationship was the last thing he wanted right now. Having
anyone, male or female, clinging to him, constantly trying to touch him and be
around him, was enough to make him shiver. It would make it harder for him to
pretend if there was someone so close to him all the time, constantly trying
“get to know him better”. He couldn’t afford complications like that. His life
was taxing enough as it was without adding things to the mix.

   Lunchtime in the cafeteria was the worst part of the day. He had to continue
his song and dance for a whole hour. No letting his irritation show when
someone looked away, not when his audience was everywhere. The only thing to do
was play along. For the whole hour. If he had a heart it would break at the
thought.

   The cafeteria worker slopped something onto his tray and ushered him along.
He thought it was beef stew but at this point he had learned to stop guessing.
The only day the food was good was pizza day because if there was one thing
they couldn’t fuck up it was pizza. They were New Yorker’s after all.

   He decided to play it safe today and grab an apple before making his way
over to their table. It was universally known that the middle table by the
windows was theirs and nobody broke that rule. He didn’t give a damn where they
sat, personally, but it was all part of the ‘status quo’.

   He took his seat next to Jace as the younger boy nodded and continued
whatever story he was using to get into some girls pants today. He didn’t know
who today’s victim was but he rarely knew them. Jace went through them faster
than Jungkook could keep track. The younger boy was leaning in as he spoke,
brushing her side with his arm occasionally and she was eating it up. Jungkook
sighed to himself before taking a bite of his apple and reserved himself to
another fifty-two minutes of torture.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
JUNE 2ND 
   It wasn’t until he sat down on the bus at the end of the day that he had a
chance to check his phone. There were a few dozen new hits for the previous
night’s murder waiting for him. He glanced around to make sure no one was
looking and swiped open his screen. Most of them were as useless as the others
he’d read but he found one that mentioned something new. It was the most recent
one, posted twenty-seven minutes ago. It seemed that the reporter had gotten
new information from the police department.

   GRUSOME MURDER IN HENLEY PARK LEAVES POLICE BAFFLED
   The brutal murder of an unidentified woman in Henley Park last night has
left the community shocked. At approximately 1:06 AM John Bates looked outside
the window of his studio apartment to be met with a grisly site. A young woman
was found murdered, throat apparently slit, inside the quiet park. “I couldn’t
believe it,” Bates said. “It was awful. I’ve lived here in this neighbourhood
for twelve years and never seen anything like this. It’s a quiet place, you
know?”

   While the method of murder is not strange sources inside the Homicide
department revealed that no D.N.A. aside from the victim’s was left on the
scene. According to the same sources the investigative team on the case has
little to go on aside from eye witness reports which have revealed nothing.
   When asked, Chief Inspector David Hale had this to say: “It’s still early on
in the investigation. Our people are working hard to process the evidence and
follow any and all leads. We are confident that we will find the person
responsible for this.”

   Authorities have not revealed the name of the victim. No word yet on whether
the family of the woman has been contacted.

   He was impressed and relieved to know they didn’t find the killer’s D.N.A.
Jungkook didn’t want him getting caught before he got his answers. Well, he
didn’t really want him getting caught period. He was too vital a piece of the
puzzle Jungkook had become. Somehow he’d taken Jungkook’s life and not only
flipped it but scrambled it like a diner breakfast and they’d never even met.
He’d been fine enough with his life before. It had been boring but at least he
had had a hold of the reigns. Now he was left hanging on for dear life while a
stranger steered him into open water.
 
 
===============================================================================
 


   JUNE 16TH 

   To say that he was disappointed was a massive understatement. A flurry of
information had been released since the murder but it was all useless. The
victim was a woman in her late twenties, Marie Rodgers. They had her husband
(Widower now) on all the news stations talking about how “hard it was to lose
her” and “how devastating it was on their family”. They had one daughter, four,
with cerebral palsy that the media went nuts over. Anything for ratings, he
guessed.

   He wasn’t even sure what he had been waiting for himself. Short of
miraculously running into the murderer on the street and striking up a
conversation there was no way he was going to get his answers anyway.

   Just when he decided maybe it was time to forget all this and find something
else to occupy his mind his phone vibrated from inside his bag. Upon fetching
it he saw it was a link from Jace. He opened it and as the page loaded his legs
nearly gave way. There’d been another murder.

   There weren’t many details. The authorities could not confirm the murder was
linked to the Henley Park incident but there were similarities. He sat down on
the bed and stared at his phone as he processed the new information. So they
couldn’t confirm it but they didn’t deny it either. It wasn’t much but it was
better than nothing. He’d been ready to give up when the link was so
conveniently given to him. He didn’t believe in fate or some higher power
watching over the world but if he did he’d say they were on his side. He had to
find out more.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
JUNE 16TH 
   Finals were right around the corner and most teachers had stopped giving out
new assignments which meant classes had essentially become study hall. It also
meant Jungkook had to listen to his thoughts repeating and churning in his head
like they were a radio he couldn’t shut off. His knee kept bouncing beneath the
desk, his pen tapping above it; he couldn’t sit still. He wanted to see the
second murder scene. He knew the body would be long cleaned up but there was
still the actual location. He’d nearly given up after the lack of anything in
the past two weeks. Now that there was something new he had to go see it.

   He packed his stuff up, taking extra care not to drop anything with his
trembling hands and walked to the front of the class. He coughed quietly and
Mrs. Keeting looked up from her workbook.
   When she took in Jungkook’s state, probably pale and definitely a little
shaky, she let out a gentle breath. “Oh dear, Mr. Jeon. Are you alright?”

   “Not really,” he admitted. “Would it be alright if I excused myself a bit
early?”

   “Of course,” she almost cooed. She scribbled her signature onto a hall pass
and added “sick” in red pen along the bottom. “There you go dear. Go and get
some rest.” Jungkook thanked her and left as quickly as he could. For once he
was legitimately glad he had played teacher’s pet.

   He got a cab outside of the school and gave the cabbie an address a couple
buildings down to be safe.

   “You sure you wanna go there kid?” The cabbie looked at him through the
rear-view mirror. “Someone got killed nearby there last night. Sick son of a
bitches out there.”

   Jungkook’s jaw set and he bit back his comment about minding his own damn
business. “Yes, I’m sure,” he said instead.

   When they got there Jungkook tossed the cabbie some money and got out before
he could get another lecture. He walked a couple buildings down until he
spotted the address. It was a nail salon that took up the far right side of a
small strip-mall. There were no police vehicles in front which made sense. It
had been almost six hours since the body was found; The police would be long
done with their forensics.

   He glanced in the windows as he walked by but there was no one inside and
the sign said closed. That suited Jungkook just fine; in fact he preferred it.
He didn’t want someone seeing him snoop around. He walked around the side of
the building and to the back where the article said they found the body. He saw
yellow police tape and knew he was in the right place. He was already
anticipating the delicious satisfaction that would pump through his veins. He
held his breath and turned the corner.

   Nothing. He stopped in his tracks, staring down at the scene with an empty
mind and a hole in his heart. The ground and wall were covered in blood but the
sight did nothing for Jungkook. He waited for the rush he’d felt the first
time, for his veins to pulse with adrenaline and fire but nothing came; If
anything it frustrated him. He didn’t understand. He’d waited two weeks for
something and when he’d finally gotten it he was left with more confusion and
yearning than before. He wanted more.

   He hadn’t been aware of how thirsty for it he’d been until he had it taken
from him. It was if something he’d been promised had been snatched away. He
felt cheated, like a child not allowed his dessert. He’d come to relieve the
ache inside of him, not make it grow. Now he was left staring at the browning
stain on the pavement and wishing he could turn back time and catch just a
glimpse of what had been.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
   
   JUNE 17TH 
   The next day found Jungkook researching again. It was still too early for
anything useful in news articles aside from things he’d already assumed: No
D.N.A., no witnesses, no clues. He admired the killers commitment to self-
preservation. This was New York, the city that never sleeps, and yet not a
single anonymous tip or anything leading to his identity. It was all very
impressive, if not a little aggravating. He had nothing to go on! Not a single
thing. He was essentially standing there with his dick out, waiting for an
opportunity. Well, the first step in any war was to gather information, right?

   He started googling famous serial killers to try to gain some sort of
insight. He learned that they were actually rarer than Hollywood would let you
believe and those that remained uncaught even rarer still. In this modern age
of science and technology it was easy to leave evidence behind; A fingerprint,
a single hair, even a cigarette butt could be your demise. The fact that the
killer had struck twice and left nothing was extraordinary.

   The more he thought about him the more Jungkook felt this burning desire
deep inside of him. He’d always assumed he didn’t have a soul but now he’d
found it and it was alight with thoughts of this mystery artist. There were so
many things he wanted to ask him, so many things he wanted to say. It was odd;
He’d never met the man but he’d gotten closer to Jungkook than anyone else in
almost eighteen years. It was strange for him to desire someone’s presence.
He’d spent his whole life wanting to be alone and suddenly he didn’t want to
anymore. He wanted him. How or why he was still unsure, but he definitely
wanted something.

   He printed out any useful articles and pinned them to the back of his closet
door. He marked in his calendar when the murders occurred and even charted out
on a map where the bodies were found. Before long his closet door looked like
something out of a movie.

   Soon, he resolved, I’ll find him and get my answers.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
   
   JUNE 28TH 

   He’d been asked to be Valedictorian for his graduation but declined. He
didn’t need to impress these people any more. He’d already gotten offers from
multiple colleges and a few scholarships. He could afford himself this one
mercy. Besides, he was too distracted to stand up in front of anyone. Lately
his mask was dangerously close to slipping as it was.

   The day was especially hot. He was glad he’d worn shorts beneath his gown.
Who the hell decided to have an outdoor graduation in June? Sitting amongst his
classmates, rows and rows of red stretching on around him, his thoughts were
far from them. The first body had been found two weeks before the second. Maybe
that was the killer’s schedule? Would there be another body soon? It had been
about two weeks since the second body was found so it stood to reason there
would be. He was hoping so. He was tired of this waiting game.

   He smiled when they called his name and shook the principles hand, waving
down at his parents before getting off the stage as quickly as he could. The
sooner this was all over with the sooner he could get the hell out of here and
never have to see these people again. High school might not have been hell for
him but it had been far from heavenly.
 
 
===============================================================================
 

   JULY 25TH 
   Two more murders and a month later Jungkook had come to a realization: He
idolized this man. For the first time in his life he was looking up at someone
instead of down. His closet had gone from covered to cramped with newspaper
articles and maps, phots of crime scenes overlapping like a macabre collage. He
wondered who he was, why he did what he did, what he felt when he did it. He
couldn’t keep the thoughts out of his head. They filled it and leaked out the
sides, leaving him dripping with curiosity.

   The police had been hopefully outmatched from the start. The ‘Manhattan
Murders’ had left them looking foolish and out of their depth. When they got
nowhere after the third victim the FBI were finally brought in. They claimed
they were ‘on his trail’ but Jungkook saw through the smoke they were blowing:
They knew nothing and had nothing. If they had anything they would have brought
in suspects for questioning or issued a warrant for someone’s arrest.

   The more Jungkook thought of the killer’s brilliance the more he grew
agitated. He wanted to feel again what he felt that first night. It was like a
fire burning within him, threatening to burn him up if he did nothing. He
wanted, needed, to recreate that first time. The only solution he felt was
right was to meet this killer personally. It was a long shot, he knew that, but
it was the only way.

   He thought long and hard about the right/best way to contact him. The number
one factor was secrecy. If he left a message to a serial killer that was found
by the cops he’d be fucked. Even if the cops determined he was innocent, he’d
be the first person of interest in their investigation and the media attention
would kiss any ideas of talking to the actual killer goodbye.

   After he’d exhausted every option he settled on something he knew would get
the killer’s attention; He decided to fold origami flowers like the one he’d
seen the first time and leave them around the city. None of the articles had
mentioned any flowers so either the killer hadn’t left anymore or the cops were
keeping it quiet: either way only the killer and the authorities knew about
this.

   He knew literally nothing about flowers so he had to do quite a bit of
research, starting with purple flowers and narrowing it down until he was
positive he’d found the one from that night.

   Purple Hyacinth – asking for forgiveness or expressing deep sorrow/regret.
   The symbolism confused him. He doubted the killer left behind a flower
without meaning its symbolism but this made no sense. In his research he’d
found serial killers were rarely remorseful, when they were it often meant a
deep mental or emotional struggle over their actions that often led to sloppy
disposal and their eventual capture. This man had been meticulous to the
extreme which suggested emotional stability. So why did he ask for forgiveness?

   As the list of questions he had grew longer the list of answers got shorter
until it was as empty as he now felt. It was wrong, so wrong. He’d always felt
different and lost but never completely empty. Maybe he’d put himself on auto
pilot so much he had forgotten how to actually feel. Now his emotions had
become a freight train heading straight for him. He worried if he didn’t either
pull the brake or find a way to hop on he’d be destroyed.

   He spent all night getting ready. His mother had a habit of starting craft
projects she’d never finish so it was easy enough to find some purple paper in
their cupboard. He spent most of the night folding. He had to look up a
tutorial and he completely messed up the first few but soon enough he got into
the hang of it.

   The rest was trickier. While the public would think nothing if they saw one
of these on the ground the police would probably see a red flag. He had to
leave a message so he could get in contact with the killer but he couldn’t
completely give himself away should the authorities find one. He found a
writing forum where people could post story ideas or general inspiration on a
message board. It wasn’t full proof but none of his plan really was.

   Pen in hand he wrote the website and a username he’d created on every
flower, as well as a message to the killer. It took him a while but once he was
done he looked down at his handiwork with satisfaction. Odds were the cops
wouldn’t find them but the same went for the killer. Still, he couldn’t let
himself do nothing. He had to try something or else he’d spent the rest of his
life regretting.

   His desk was littered with scraps of paper and his fingers were marked where
they had been cut but his mind was clear. Jungkook would find him, he would
find Jungkook: they would find each other. He prepared everything and slipped
it into his messenger bag, sliding it beneath his bed lest his parents invite
themselves into his room again.

   He tried to sleep but his mind was swimming with possibilities as he stared
at his ceiling. Along with them, the message he’d left also replayed in his
head. He thought it over and over until he didn’t have to think at all, it just
continued filling his vision as finally succumbed to exhaustion.

   You don’t need to be forgiven.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
 
JULY 26TH 
   He slept fitfully all night. His dreams were consumed by a film reel of dark
eyes and flitting shadows whispering to him, calling him closer and praising
him sweetly in shades of silver. He woke in a cold sweat, clutching his sheets
between his fingers and his pulse pounding. He stared at his ceiling once again
and as memories of last night flooded him so too did his excitement. If his
plan worked he could finally speak to this killer and find the insight he
desperately seeked. He was wide awake now.

   He went over his map and checked the locations where the bodies had been
found. All three were scattered randomly about Manhatten and finding a
distinctive pattern was difficult. It was his best guess at this point so he
chose areas he thought would be secluded or dark enough and just hoped. He
carefully grabbed his bag, wary of crushing the paper, and left.

   He took the bus. His plan was more suspicious than just visiting a crime
scene and the anonymity of public transportation was welcome. The places he’d
chosen were pretty well dispersed across the island so he ended up taking
multiple buses and routes. That was good, though, because should anyone look
into it they would find it hard to track. (Perhaps he was thinking into it too
much but his gut told him the more careful he was the better.

   He’d written a list on his phone of all the locations he’d leave his
messages for safeties sake despite having it memorised. He didn’t want to leave
anything to chance. Every new location he visited ignited the fire within him
just a little bit more and when, a few hours later, he’d finally finished he
made his way home satisfied. This was the best he could do.

   According to the timeline there would be another murder soon. Jungkook had
planned it as well as he could. The killer did not leave a body every two weeks
exactly like clockwork but often within a few days of the mark. Now he had to
wait. He logged onto the writing forum and left his message. He hadn’t wanted
to do it too early since the closer it was to the murder the more seriously he
hoped he’d be taken by the killer.

   Art in the Night
   I knew a man once who was an artist. He created something so beautiful that
it changed my life. It was his first work but he’s created many more since
then. I haven’t had the pleasure of seeing his new pieces but I know they’re
just as wonderful. I hope to see another, and hopefully, him too.

   Satisfied with his message he turned his computer screen off. He sparked a
joint and leaned back in his chair, puffing on it and habitually flicking the
tip as he thought. He was reaching out, as foolish as it might be, in the hopes
that one man in a million would grab his hand. He’d never been the type to put
his faith (if you could call it that) in something he didn’t know. So many
things he felt and did now were new to him, fuelled by the hope they’d be
explained soon. If not he feared the pressure might become so overwhelming he
would finally break. Only time would tell.
 
Chapter End Notes
     Did you enjoy the first part? I hope so!
     I reeeaaallly enjoyed writing this Jungkook. I like the idea of him
     being so twisted inside despite seeming so perfect outside. It made
     for quite the interesting journey as far as character development and
     there's LOTS more to go. (Seriously, I have almost 20k more of his
     journey and I've barely reached the tip of the iceberg.)
     I'll be posting more this week and hopefully have it all done by mid
     November. Subscribe if you'd like to read more! ^-^
***** Part II *****
Chapter Summary
     Jungkook finally gets to meet the killer but he's not exactly what
     the younger expected. Still, he learns a lot: about himself and
     Namjoon and The Monster inside him.
     (Maybe he learns a bit more about himself than he was prepared for)
Chapter Notes
     WARNING FOR THIS CHAPTER: Aside from the general graphic descriptions
     warning I'll add that this part has EXPLICIT sexual content. It was
     100% consensual but is of a darker variety so those faint of heart
     might not want to read. (Although those faint of heart probably
     shouldn't read this at all since it only gets darker~)
See the end of the chapter for more notes
JULY 27TH
 
 
   When Jungkook woke up the first thing he did was grab his phone. He needed
to know if he’d been right, if there’d been another murder. A quick google
search brought up new articles confirming there had, in fact, been another. His
heart raced. The fact that he’d guessed there would be another and had been
right was incredible. It wasn’t exactly at one of the locations he’d chosen but
it was less than a block away. He wasn’t disappointed. It had been a long shot
to guess and the fact he’d gotten as close as he did made him swell with pride.
The kinship he felt grew from a spark to an ember, burning low in his soul and
bringing it back to life.
   He had no idea if the killer had gotten his message or not but there was
only one way to know for sure. He jumped out of bed and went straight to his
computer. Anything they wrote would be seen as discussing plot ideas so
hopefully the killer had felt it was safe enough.
   He’d left the webpage open and only needed to refresh it to find out whether
he’d been answered.
   There were three replies. One was from a user blessboo who talked about how
art moves people, another from Oceanic72 asking if he had any photos, but the
third one was much more interesting.
   Guest_User - Perhaps his art is not quite what you think it is. The devil is
in the details and maybe you didn’t look as closely as you thought.
   There was nothing to prove it was the killer but Jungkook just knew. He
typed back a response as best he could with his mind scattered and hands
shaking.
   PreyWolf – Or maybe he thinks he’s the only one that could understand what
he made. If that’s the case, he’s wrong. His art definitely found a way of
understanding me.
   All day he checked the forum on his phone but there were no responses. His
patience threatened to wear thin but he held on. He made a day trip to the
other locations and disposed of the flowers he’d left. Clearly they were
useless. Furthermore, he had yet to hear from the cops so he assumed they had
not found the flower near the crime scene. He’d gone there himself but found
nothing. Did that mean the killer had taken it with him? The idea that he was
in possession of the gift Jungkook had left him sent a shiver through his body,
of excitement or satisfaction or something else, he didn’t know. He’d felt so
many new things since that first night that he was at a loss to explain them.
   He just knew the itch to meet this man, to see the face behind his
fascination, was growing stronger every day. With it so grew the flame inside
of himself. It was well kindled and making its way through his body to the
point that soon it would consume him. He wanted it to.
 
AUGUST 9TH 
 
   It took exactly thirteen days for him to receive another response. The
website was left open 24/7 on his computer so he didn’t miss it. He was worried
at first he’d turned the killer away with something he’d said. He’d run it
through his mind over and over as he wondered what he’d said wrong until he
felt like going crazy so when the little box at the top of the page changed
from blank to a little red bubble he almost forgot to breathe. It was a private
message instead of a reply.
   Guest_User - I’ve rarely known understanding to truly be reached between
oneself and another, only an expectation of known behaviour and information,
but then I’ve never met anyone like you. I wonder how was it that you came to
know my work.
   Jungkook’s hands were shaking and he had to take a deep breath before he
responded back. The fact that the killer was conversing with him as an equal
made him feel like a child Christmas morning that opened their present only to
find what they’d wanted so desperately tucked beneath neat sheets of tissue
paper.
   PreyWolf -I saw it that first night, at Henley Park. It made me feel… I’m
not sure what it was exactly but I want to feel it again. Can you help me?
   Jungkook hit send and his message popped up on the screen. He realized he
was holding his breath and exhaled slowly, eyes glued to the screen. The sudden
realization that it’d been almost two weeks dawned on him. Is he going to
strike again tonight? If that was true it meant something big: that the killer
remembered him after almost two weeks and was interested enough to message him
again before he killed again. He didn’t need to know him personally to know
that meant something; He didn’t know what yet but he didn’t care. He was one
step closer to hopefully meeting him and learning what it all meant.
   He wasn’t expecting a response back right away, assuming the “guest user”
would be too preoccupied tonight but a minute later his computer dinged and a
little red “1” appeared in the top corner. He clicked it, leaning forward in
his chair as he read.
   Guest_User - Consider my interest piqued. Meet me tomorrow night at Henley
park, 1 AM. We’ll see just what it is you really want.
   He blinked and rubbed his eyes but the message remained the same. The killer
had agreed to meet him. He’d actually succeeded. Shock and a little relief had
him unmoving in his chair as he continued staring at the screen.
   He’d wanted this but now that the opportunity had actually been presented to
him he could hardly believe it. Nights and weeks of obsessing and researching,
the unending ache inside beginning to split him open, all of the confusion and
questions: it would stop. The killer could fix him.
   The sun had set long ago but sleep was not coming to Jungkook anytime soon.
He sat with a joint between his still shaking fingers and the lights off,
watching the light of the city move the shadows in his room. Swirling and
shifting across the wallpaper as they did he could almost see the story unfold.
The dark trapped the light and snuffed it out so easily, sneaking away like a
thief in the night and leaving not a trace.
   The thought that perhaps the killer would murder him came to his mind. He
didn’t have an M.O. for victims that anyone could see: men, woman, elderly and
young, it didn’t seem to matter. Although there had been no children, no one
under eighteen. Jungkook wasn’t quite eighteen yet but he was close. His
birthday was only a week away. Still, he couldn’t quite bring himself to fear
the killer. Something inside him told him he would be in no danger. It was only
a hunch but it felt right.
 
AUGUST 10th 
 
   The meeting was the only thing on his mind all day. He stayed in his room
and waited, passing the time as best he could which wasn’t very well. He was
too keyed up to focus on anything. By midnight he was pacing back and forth,
eyes darting up to the clock constantly.
   He looked through his clothes, searching for something to help make the
killer take him seriously. What did one wear to such a meeting? He over
analysed every article of clothing, picking his closet apart until he found
something to his liking: A plain black pullover and dark jeans. He smoothed the
wrinkles with his hands and looked back at the time. It was 12:30 which meant
if he left now he’d only be ten minutes early.
   The park was a twenty minute walk but he made it in fifteen. He stood
beneath the tree the first victim had been left at and waited. And waited. And
waited still.
   By 1:45 he was beyond frustrated. He double and triple checked his phone was
set to the correct time and kicked at the ground. He’d been conned. He was
pretty sure he had been talking to the killer so why wasn’t here? Had he
changed his mind and decided Jungkook was not worth his time or something?
Whatever the reason he clearly wasn’t going to be showing up. Jungkook walked
home feeling more than a little discouraged and very disheartened.
   The first thing he did when he got home was to send the killer another
message asking why he hadn’t shown up. Maybe he’d wanted to show up but had
been held up by something important so that he couldn’t contact Jungkook. It
was plausible until, a minute after Jungkook sent the message, he got a
response.
   Guest_User – I’m very sorry I was unable to make our appointment. Something
urgent came up I had to attend to. Please wait for another message and I will
arrange another time.
   Jungkook scoffed, feeling the anger of being stood up bubble at the surface
of his control. He was like a dog that had been promised a walk and left
chained to the front porch instead. Did the killer think he could just blow him
off and Jungkook would nod his head and say “thank you sir, more sir”?
   He didn’t respond and instead went to roll himself a joint, only to find he
was out of weed. Of course, he thought to himself bitterly. Of fucking course.
The pressure was building in his core, a burning mix of anger and
disappointment that threatened to swallow his last little bit of hope. He
forced himself to take a deep breath and not give up. He didn’t want to think
about what that would mean for the fire that had taken hold and what it would
end up consuming then.
   His dealer lived nearby and was up most of the night, sleeping the day away
instead. He texted him and asked if he could pick up. When he got a
confirmation he left and began the walk to his dealer’s place. It was the
second time he’d had to walk somewhere tonight but at least this one wouldn’t
end badly.
   He knew most of the people his dealer hung out with so when he got there he
barely spared those on the couch a nod before handing over his cash and
grabbing his shit. He just needed a hit. After that then maybe he could quiet
the chorus of broken whispers tugging at the back of his mind, trying to take
him down.
   “Fuck buddy. Rough day?”
   “You have no idea,” he muttered while packing the bong.
   He stayed for a few hits, just long enough to feel the weed creep up his
spine and paw its way into his head. The tension eased some and he pushed the
rejection and despair that had started to invade his brain to the very back,
not forgetting but wilfully ignoring.
   He said his goodbyes and left for home. His mind was just barely fuzzy, not
so much as to impair him but enough to slow the progression of his thoughts
slightly. He could reach out and grab them now, separate them into piles for
processing.
   “Is that how you spend your time? Getting high?” The sudden voice behind him
made Jungkook whip around and he stumbled on a crack in the pavement. Fingers
wrapped around his forearm and held him upright. He yanked his arm away and
took a step back, staring up at the stranger that had startled him.
   The first thing he noticed was the man was Korean as well. He was taller
than Jungkook by a few inches and definitely older by a few years. His hair was
shaved on the sides but left long on top, a silver mop that was gelled back
stylishly. He was looking down at Jungkook with something similar to disdain
and something else entirely that the younger boy couldn’t quite identify.
   His first instinct was to tell the man to fuck off but he laughed instead.
“And who the hell are you?”
   The man quirked his head to the side and studied Jungkook. It uneased the
younger boy immensely but he couldn’t fathom why. Something about this man
screamed danger but in the best possible way, drawing Jungkook in rather than
frightening him away. “The more important question is who are you? Are you a
child who wastes his days getting high in some miscreant’s apartment, allowing
your brain cells to wither away and die?”
For a moment Jungkook was at a loss for words. He had never seen this man
before yet he was confronting and lecturing Jungkook in the middle of the
night. In New York. That didn’t happen. People didn’t give a fuck here so why
did this guy? He was too tired to deal with this shit right now. “Who the hell
are you to judge me? You don’t know me,” he retorted. “Fuck off.”
   He turned to leave when the man grabbed his arm again, pulling him back to
face him. Jungkook tried to pull his arm back but the man’s grip was tight. “I
know you better than you think, Mr. PreyWolf,” he spoke in a low voice, drawing
the words out.
   Jungkook froze, the hand that had just been trying to free himself stilling.
He looked up at the man, realization dawning on him. “It’s you,” he breathed.
“But how?” His brow creased in confusion as he recalled their conversations.
He’d never once mentioned any personal information yet here “Guest user”, the
killer, was.
   “Did you really think I would meet you without knowing whether it was a
trap?” His voice was mocking, his face condescending and Jungkook’s earlier
rage won out over his curiosity.
   He ripped his hand from the other’s grip. “Fuck you. I waited for almost an
hour.”
   “And proceeded to do drugs,” the other said tiredly, sighing and shaking his
head. “I think I made the right decision.”
   Jungkook growled and stepped closer, looking up right into the other’s eyes
with as much anger as he could muster. “You have no fucking clue what you’re
talking about! You promised to meet me! You fucking lied!”
   The other man moved quickly, slamming Jungkook back into the wall and
holding him there. “No, I didn’t. I promised we’d meet and now we have,” he
snarled, tightening his grip on Jungkook’s wrists as he held them against the
wall. The younger could feel the bruises forming already as the circulation to
his hand was cut off. He struggled against the other man but it was no use. He
couldn’t budge even an inch from where the elder held him. “But I’m
disappointed,” he continued. “You’re so much better than this. I thought you
were. I’m sorry to be proven otherwise.
   It felt like a punch to his gut and Jungkook laughed bitterly to hide it.
“What would you know,” Jungkook fired back. He shoved at the man but the elder
had him pinned firmly to the wall, one leg slotted between his thighs and
making escape impossible.
   The way he looked at Jungkook like a lesser being, something stuck to the
bottom of his shoe he wanted to scrape off... It wrapped around Jungkook’s
heart like black ice, freezing him down to the core. He felt panic creeping up
him until he wanted to scream. This man was supposed to be his oasis in the
desert but he barely wanted to look at the younger.
   He so genuinely wanted Namjoon to understand, to see why he needed it. “You
don’t understand. It helps! My thoughts are always clashing and screeching
inside of my head and this makes it stop. Well, not entirely but at least it
does something!”
   “There are better ways to deal with your thoughts,” the other countered.
   “Not like this!” Jungkook thrashed in the man’s grip again and growled when
he got nowhere. “You don’t understand! I’ve spent my entire life cut off from
everyone else: different. I can’t identify with anyone and I can’t feel
anything! It’s like I’m not even human.” The confession ripped itself free
without him meaning to and his shoulders sagged in defeat. When he continued
his voice sounded uncharacteristically small and foreign to even his own ears.
“I don’t care about anything. The weed just helps me to forget who I am for a
little while.”
   The grip on his wrists loosened a little. Jungkook could fight him off and
get free now but he didn’t bother trying, the fight having died with his
dignity. He had admitted his weaknesses to the man he’d looked up to for so
long, aspired to be. Now shame hung heavy on him.
   The anger slipped from the elder’s face and in its place was understanding.
You don’t need to forget,” he said solemnly. “There’s nothing wrong with who
you are.”
   He sounded like he was trying to reassure Jungkook now. It was a total 180
from his previous mood and the younger laughed. He looked up, shaggy black hair
falling into his eyes as he locked gazes with the elder. He decided he was sick
of guarding himself and let his mask slip. For the first time he let himself
really show through. “What do you know? We just met,” he said, words arguing
but eyes showing the other all the anger and confusion and hope and despair he
had been holding inside.
   “Maybe,” the other replied with the hint of a smile, dimples on his cheeks
that looked oddly soft for the darkness in his eyes. “But I know because you’re
like me. You’re a predator masquerading as the prey. You shouldn’t. You’re
worthy of so much more, of greatness. If only you reached out for it.”
   Jungkook’s lips suddenly felt drier than the Sahara desert and his tongue
stuck out to run along them nervously. The other’s eyes flicked down at the
motion, pausing on the younger’s lips before looking back at him with a curious
expression. Jungkook felt a strange twist in his gut, like the fire had gone
from lighting his soul to everywhere. The flames licked their way across his
body, engulfing him in their warmth. It was an entirely new sensation to him
but he loved it.
   He didn’t even hesitate when the other man invited him to his apartment to
talk. Maybe it was stupid and it was definitely a little dangerous but who was
he to stare a gift horse in the mouth? He had finally gotten the chance for
answers he’d been waiting for and he sure as hell wasn’t walking away until he
had them.
   “So what’s your name?” Jungkook asked as they walked back to the park where
the elder in question had left his vehicle.
   The other paused, turning back and studying him. He wasn’t sure what the
elder was looking for but he must have found it because he nodded once and
continued walking. “You can call me The Monster.”
   Jungkook laughed but stopped when the other looked at him questioningly.
“Wait, you’re serious? Isn’t that a bit… much? Why did you choose that?”
   The Monster smirked and shook his head, turning to Jungkook as they stepped
into the park. “I didn’t chose it; I was born with it.”
   “What?” The Monster’s legs were longer than his and now that he had picked
up the pace Jungkook had to half-jog to keep up. “Really? What kind of parent
names their kid ‘The Monster’? No offense,” he added quickly. “It’s great for a
serial killer but school attendance must have been a bitch.”
    The Monster chuckled but gave no other response. Jungkook decided not to
pry further. He’d gotten an answer and even managed to make The Monster laugh.
Baby steps. (Although he was still quite curious about the story behind his
name.)
   As they went through the park they passed by the tree where the first body
was left. Jungkook’s eyes were drawn to it immediately, remembering the scene
that had begun his fascination. “It’s fitting,” he said quietly.
   “And what’s that?”
   Jungkook turned to The Monster and smiled genuinely for the first time in
months. “This is where it all began for me. It was like I was sleeping my whole
life but when I saw her…” The right words wouldn’t come to mind but he doubted
he needed them with The Monster. “Anyway,” he said, following The Monster to a
white BMW parked along the street. “The first part of my story started here; it
makes sense it would continue here, too.” The Monster hummed thoughtfully as he
unlocked the vehicle and climbed inside.
   The ride to The Monster’s apartment was silent yet it was comfortable
enough. Jungkook still had questions but he appreciated the time to sort
through them first. He didn’t want to go into this unprepared and end up
embarrassing himself. Underneath his calm exterior The Monster radiated danger
and more so power, like a nuclear reactor that could go off at any moment.
Jungkook was wary of saying the wrong thing. It wouldn’t do to piss him off and
lose his chance so early.
   The Monster’s apartment was a half hour drive away from where Jungkook
lived, in a slightly richer area. Jungkook had been born and raised middle
class but this was closer to upper-middle class. Little things like the upkeep
on gardens and less garbage on the street made the difference, as well as the
buildings appearances. It was essentially his neighborhood upgraded.
   They stopped in front of a brick building two stories high. From between the
buildings he could see the water of the east river and in the distance the
lights from New Jersey dancing across the its surface. Jungkook could already
deduce The Monster made good money if he could afford such a nice place.
   He followed the other towards the building, waiting as The Monster input a
security code into a metal keypad next to the door. It beeped and the door
clicked as the elder beckoned Jungkook forward.
   “I shouldn’t be surprised you have a pass code,” the younger remarked as he
moved past him and through the door. With his back exposed and the fact he was
conveniently now inside The Monster’s ‘lair’ he wondered briefly if he was
about to be attacked but The Monster merely closed the door and continued past
him.
   “A necessity in my line of work,” he called from over his shoulder as he
began walking up a set of stairs. Jungkook followed, taking in the door he
assumed went to the bottom floor next to the set of stairs and filing it away
for his questions later.
   He hadn’t been sure what to expect when he ascended the final step to the
top floor but it wasn’t what he saw. The apartment was curiously decorated with
parts looking bare and sparse but others well furnished and comfortable. Before
he could really check the place out The Monster led him to a set of couches
near the middle, surprisingly worn, and as they both took their seats Jungkook
felt his heart race. It was about to happen. He was actually going to be able
to speak to The Monster. No more waiting: the time was now.
   “No need to look so nervous,” The Monster chuckled. He had sprawled back
onto the sofa, his legs crossed as he grinned at the younger in amusement.
   Embarrassment ran through Jungkook at his mistake and his cheeks felt
slightly warmer as he looked away from those prying eyes. “Easy for you to
say,” he muttered, more to himself, and let out a deep breath. The Monster sat
quietly as he waited for Jungkook to speak, face lit with a twisted sense of
mirth. “You seem awfully cheery for a serial killer.”
   The Monster laughed and rolled his head back, grinning at the younger as he
bounced his leg on the ground. “Not all serial killers are that of Hollywood
legends. We can be happy, too. It just tends to be different things that make
us happy.”
   Jungkook nodded. That made sense.God, why were his palms so sweaty? He
rubbed them on his jeans and prayed to any god that existed to spare him from
this mental block between him and his words.
   “I’m very confused,” Jungkook began, both thinking aloud and choosing his
words carefully. “I’ve never even thought about murder or death like this
before. I mean, not in the way I enjoyed it. I don’t- I’m not sure how this
happened, to be honest.” Now that he no longer had his mask to hide behind he
felt lost, unsure of how to act. It had always been so easy to behave how he’d
been supposed to. Behaving how he wanted to was much scarier.
   “Really? Interesting.” The Monster sat forward, resting his chin on his hand
as he watched the younger curiously. “Most people who commit ‘violent’ acts
like murder have always been drawn to it, hurting animals and people until
gradually it escalates.”
   “Like psychopaths,” Jungkook interjected. A majority of the stuff he’d read
had mentioned psychopaths, even going so far to say that an estimated 15% - 20%
of them were responsible for half of the violent crime in society. He wasn’t
sure how relevant this fact was but it was all he could remember right now.
   “Sometimes but not always,” the other nodded. “I do not claim to be an
expert on every individual but some that serial murder are, indeed,
psychopaths. Others, such as myself, are of a different, albeit rarer, breed.
People like me are not incapable of true feeling or uncaring of our actions. We
do not see taking a life as insignificant, a mere way to pass the time or use
to sexually gratify ourselves like some cretin.” He leaned in, his eyes full of
fire and passion as he spoke. “We know what we’re doing,” he said, smile
creeping onto his face once more, “and we love it.”
   Jungkook licked his lips again, intrigued by the Monster’s words. They were
powerful and unforgiving, coming from a man who didn’t let his fears or worries
keep him from doing what he really wanted. It was freedom.
   “I can tell that you’re the same,” he spoke again. “You, like me, see the
truth behind it. You don’t shy away from it like the rest of the world.”
   “I think- I think you’re right…” Jungkook’s voice was quiet but his
resoltution was firm. He wanted this; He wanted to feel the power of holding
someone in the balance between life and death, a stones throw from fading from
existence, hinging on a mere flick of his wrist. The idea made him drunk with
longing, the need to watch as the life left someone’s eyes coursing through his
veins like alcohol.
   Is this why he’d been so taken with the Monster’s work? Because he had
wanted to do the same, deep down inside? He had always buried his feelings,
keeping them hidden and paying them very little mind most of the time. He knew
it was possible he could have just kept them locked away so well that he didn’t
even know what was inside.
   “I knew it,” The Monster purred, leaning back into the couch once again.
“You have and always will be a predator. No matter how much the world tries to
tame you, you will never become domesticated, not really. You are far too
strong for that.”
   “I let myself play house pet,” the younger muttered venomously as he allowed
the feelings he’d always held at bay to finally swim to the surface. They broke
through the ice, hungry and howling victoriously. He stared down at the coffee
table between them, not caring to hide his anger anymore. “I let them tell me
who to be and how to act. I hid behind my mask for years just so that they
wouldn’t see who I really was. I hid so well I didn’t even know myself.” He
looked back at The Monster and this time he didn’t need to think of what to
say. “I hate them. I hate them because they nearly made me betray myself.”
   Instead of disdain or amusement there was something akin to pride on The
Monster’s face. “Never again,” he vowed. “From this moment on you will only
have to be yourself and no one else.”
   It was better than what Jungkook had let himself hope for since that first
night, that he could meet the man responsible and not only talk but connect. To
have someone tell you, when you had felt wrong you’re entire life, that you
could be yourself was… It was something Jungkook had never expected to find. It
exhilarated him.
   “There is a somewhat pressing matter to attend to, unfortunately.” The
Monster rubbed his temple in apparent irritation and Jungkook panicked as he
tried to think of what he could have done wrong.
   “Yes?”
   “You’ll have to speak to him first. He’s quite anxious to talk to you.”
   Jungkook stared at The Monster in confusion. “Him? You have a partner?”
Nothing about what he’d said so far had eluded to that fact.
   “You could say that, although he takes no joy in what I do. We have reached
an agreement though.” The Monster laughed and shook his head. “Although this
time it seems he is adamantly refusing me. I’m not surprised, of course. He
thinks I’m trying to corrupt you, not set you free. I believe he’s going to try
to talk you out of this. I hope you don’t let him.”
   Before Jungkook could respond The Monster closed his eyes and let out an
annoyed breath. When he opened them again his demeanor seemed to change
completely. He leaned forward, fingers intertwining and elbows resting on his
thighs as he looked at the younger. “Damn straight I’m gonna try to talk you
out of it,” he said resolutely.
   Jungkook was still confused; in fact he went from confused to bewildered.
“Uh, what? I thought you said-“
   “He did. Hi, I’m Namjoon.” He held his hand out in greeting. Jungkook looked
down at it, baffled, and returned his gaze to The Monster-Namjoon- He had no
fucking clue.
   “He? Where’s your partner?” Jungkook asked slowly as he tried to figure out
what he’d missed.
   The Monster/Namjoon sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose tiredly. “I’m
not his partner. I hate it when he calls me that, he knows that.”
   Jungkook went from confused to bewildered to completely and utterly lost. It
must have been written all I’ve his face because The Monster/Namjoon’s eyes
softened and he leaned forward to pat Jungkook’s knee reassuringly.
   “I’m sorry. This is probably confusing to you. I’m Namjoon. The person you
just spoke to was The Monster.” Namjoon took a deep breath that broke when he
laughed anxiously. “Really, it’s not entirely that simple but that’s the gist.”
   “Wait,” Jungkook started but then stopped because what was he going to say?
The man in front of him now was, indeed, entirely different than he had been a
minute ago. Where there had been darkness lurking in his eyes there was now
kindness, instead of a refined arrogance this man was open and inviting, like
someone who volunteered to play Santa at the mall. It was a hard concept to
take in but if he was being honest he didn’t see any reason to doubt the other
man’s words. He had, well The Monster, had trusted Jungkook and it was only
right he extend that same respect back.
   “It’s a strange situation, that much is true.” Namjoon sighed again and ran
his hand through his hair, mussing up the perfect locks and allowing some bits
to fall onto his forehead. “The Monster is the other part of me. We both exist,
somewhat harmoniously, together.”
   Jungkook blinked. He blinked again but still the man in front of him could
not possibly be seen as the same as before. There was no way the man in front
of him now, Namjoon, was the same as The Monster. The Monster was all fire and
ice, raw and burning passion coupled with icy gazes and a cold indifference.
Namjoon was entirely warm, like a cottage fireplace that beckoned you in softly
like you were a weary traveler ready to fall to your feet.
   “I don’t entirely understand,” Jungkook admitted. “You’re Namjoon but he was
The Monster? And you both share a body?”
    The warmth in Namjoon’s eyes dimmed a little as he spoke, replaced with
sorrow or pain, something that made him seem deeply sad. “Yes. We are bound to
the same body, the same memories and thoughts. When he’s awake I can see and
feel everything he does. Likewise for him.”
   Unlike a few minutes ago when Jungkook felt like he could reveal every
detail about himself he now felt the need to hide again. Something about
Namjoon made him feel anxious. “Do you… not like what The Monster does?”
   Namjoon laughed bitterly, much as Jungkook had done earlier that night.
“No,” he spit out. “I do not like it. I do not agree with the idea of taking an
innocents life.”
   “Oh,” Jungkook said. Well, this was awkward. Namjoon’s earlier statement
about memories came to mind and he turned to the elder carefully. “You said
you’re bound to the same memories… Does that mean you heard what we spoke
about?”
   Namjoon nodded gravely. “I did. Tell me, do you really agree with him? Do
you actually believe you share the same darkness as him?” He seemed almost
hopeful that Jungkook would tell him no, that he didn’t really and he’d changed
his mind. The idea that one part of him was prodding Jungkook on and the other
was trying to pull him back was comically messed up.
   Jungkook shook his head, stifling a quiet laugh that had nearly broken
through. “I am,” he said, looking up at Namjoon with the makings of a smirk. “I
am more like him than you could possibly understand. I’m not going back now.”
   “I really hope that’s not the case,” Namjoon said sincerely, shaking his
head.
   “But it is. Sorry but you won’t be able to get rid of me.” He shrugged and
leaned back into the couch waiting for Namjoon to argue. He didn’t, not really.
   “We’ll see,” he said skeptically. He said nothing else, pursing his lips and
biting back the rest of the words he must be dying to say.
   Jungkook shrugged again, grinning in amusement at the elder. With The
Monster he felt the need to constantly be respectful, to listen and learn from
everything he did but with Namjoon it was different. He could already tell he
was getting under Namjoon’s skin and he delighted in the fact. He would be fun
to play with.
   Namjoon shook his head at Jungkook again, making the younger chuckle, and
got up from his seat. “I have work in the morning. I suppose you can sleep on
the couch for tonight.” He turned to leave when Jungkook stopped him.
   “Wait,” Jungkook said, sitting up. “Work?”
   “Yes. I actually have to make a living.” He made to leave again but Jungkook
grabbed his arm.
   “But I want to talk to The Monster more!”
   Namjoon turned to face him tiredly. “You can talk to him tomorrow. He’s not
going anywhere.” He removed Jungkook’s hand and left for one of the two doors
on the top floor. “Trust me,” he added under his breath as he walked away.
   Jungkook watched him go and it wasn’t until the door closed behind him that
he sat back down. Of course it made sense that Namjoon had to work. Jungkook
had known when he saw the apartment that it was expensive so obviously Namjoon
worked somewhere but he felt the timing was incredibly inconvenient. He had
waited months for this and now all he got was an hour.
   “Fuck,” he muttered to himself as he fell back onto the couch. How he was
expected to sleep was a mystery to him. He sent his parents a text saying he
was at a friends place so they didn’t send out any search parties. Then he just
lay there, staring at the ceiling and willing himself to sleep.
 
AUGUST 11th 
 
   When Jungkook woke up he forgot where he was for a moment. His back ached
and he had no idea why. He rolled over and instead of moving to the other side
of his bed he fell straight onto the ground.
   “Fuck.” He groaned and pushed himself up, rubbing his side and looking
around. There was a moment of panic when he didn’t recognize his surroundings
but then he remembered what had happened last night and where he was.
   Using the couch to pick himself up he looked around for The Monster- or
Namjoon- whichever (that whole situation was no less confusing after one nights
sleep) but the apartment seemed empty. He even knocked on the door Namjoon had
disappeared through last night but there had been no response and he was not so
bold as to enter the room without permission.
   According to his phone it was just past noon so Namjoon had probably left
hours ago. Still Jungkook was hesitant as he walked through the apartment. He
was an invited guest but he still felt a little like he didn’t belong. This was
The Monster’s lair, the place where he lived and breathed and came home to
after every kill. That in itself left Jungkook a little in awe, that he had
been welcomed into his and Namjoon’s home.
   Now that he was more awake he saw the note laying on the ground next to the
coffee table. It must have fallen when he rolled into it earlier. He bent down
and picked it up, ignoring the ache in his back growing stronger as he did so.
   I’ll be back at 4. You still have time to change your mind, if you want. If
you’re not here when I get back I’ll assume you won’t be back and both of us
will leave you alone. You can get out if this now, no consequences. Think about
it.
   He didn’t need to think about it because he’d thought about it plenty last
night. The Monster had opened the door and Jungkook walked willingly through
it, closing it with finality behind him.
   Now was an opportune chance to look around some more at The Monster and
Namjoon’s apartment and learn some more about the both of them.
   There was a home gym in one corner opposite the living room, one of those
huge rigs that had more things than Jungkook could recognize. Namjoon had been
wearing a sweater and jacket last night so he really had no idea what the elder
looked like beneath it. If he used that machine to half it’s extent he had to
be in incredibly good shape. Then again, Jungkook supposed he had to be to
overpower his victims.
   On the wall opposite the workout area was a library of sorts. Physical
training meets mental, he mused. It was impressive for one person’s personal
collection. There were six floor to ceiling bookshelves, all full. Books upon
books neatly lined them, arranged by size, authors and subjects. Jungkook ran
his hand along the spines, browsing the titles. There wasn’t a speck of dust on
any of them.
   He looked through a few of them. They were all intelligent and thought
provoking. There was one, Life in the Labyrinth, that went mostly over his head
but from the bits he could gather it seemed like a book about “voyaging between
macrodimensions”. He was pretty quick to put that one back. He wondered which
ones belonged to which: The Monster or Namjoon. Clearly they were both
incredibly intelligent and cultured, more so than anyone else he’d met. They
made Jungkook’s English teacher looks like a children’s librarian.
   The kitchen was immaculately cleaned, a trend he’d noticed throughout the
apartment. Even in the cozier looking areas everything was tidy and well taken
care of. The apartment looked more like a catalogue showroom than someone’s
actual home.
   He peeked into the fridge. It was all healthy food which didn’t surprise
Jungkook considering what he knew about them so far.
   The rest of the apartment was mostly the living room. There was the sofas, a
coffee table and a piano off in the corner. They were all dust free as well.
   He walked over to the piano, curious to see what they had been playing. The
sheets resting above the keys were made of fine paper and the words on top were
written in beautiful calligraphy. Rachmanioff - Vocalise, it read. He’d never
heard of it.
   He’d taken piano lessons as a child and although he didn’t remember much he
could string together the notes well enough to hum the melody. He decided to
try to play the song since he had time to kill. He was also a bit curious what
the music they listened to would be like. It looked a little complicated but he
was confident enough he could do at least some of the parts.
   He started slow, letting his fingers roam as he reacquainted them with the
keys. Despite the years it had been it wasn’t long before they moved across the
white and black tiles with ease. He’d always been gifted where music had been
involved. It was something he had never had to fake.
   He played a few notes in the wrong key and readjusted his hands, trying
again. The song was harder than he’d thought, the melody changing tempos a lot,
and he didn’t manage to go long between notes without messing up. Still he
pressed on, determined to work past it until he could play it through
perfectly.
   He lost himself in the music. The apartment sang the notes back to him after
he played them, floating through the air and surrounding him so completely that
when Namjoon came home Jungkook didn’t even hear him. He hit the wrong note
once again and growled in frustration.
   “I didn’t know you could play,” he heard from behind him and his hands went
down on the keys in surprise, making a horribly discordant noise. He whipped
around and saw Namjoon standing behind him, a small smile on his face.
   “Then again we just met,” Namjoon continued. “So I don’t really know
anything about you, aside from what he knows.”
   Jungkook ignored the comment about “them,” because he was still quite
confused on that subject and didn’t know what to say, and answered Namjoon’s
implied query instead. “I used to. Not anymore, though.”
   He was embarrassed to have been found using the piano without being told it
was okay, as well as having messed up the music, and was about to get up when
Namjoon stopped him with a hand held out in his direction.
   “Continue, please. I’d like to hear.”
   “I’m really not that good,” Jungkook said nervously. He had thought he was
okay until he really got into the song and felt the complexity. If Namjoon or
The Monster could play it they must be very skilled. Jungkook would look like
an amateur next to them.
   “I insist. Please,” The elder asked. He was smiling down genuinely at
Jungkook and while the younger knew Namjoon wouldn’t make fun of him he was
more worried about the idea of failing in front of The Monster, even if it was
Namjoon in front of him right now. But at the same time how could he say no
because he was scared? If things turned out the way The Monster had led him to
believe then he would be doing a lot more frightening things soon. It was time
to man up.
   “Okay,” he agreed. His voice was deceptively confident considering how
nervous he was but he was thankful. He turned back around and placed his hands
onto the keys, taking a steadying breath as he looked at the music in front of
him. He began playing the notes, getting all the way through the first couple
lines before he messed up again.
   “That was pretty good,” Namjoon complimented. “You just have to get the
timing down a little better.”
   He surprised Jungkook by sitting on the bench next to him, moving his hands
to Jungkook’s as he brought them back to the starting notes. “Try it again but
let me lead you.”
   Jungkook tried to focus on the notes but Namjoon’s hands on his were so
distracting. His fingertips were rough and calloused and tickled at Jungkook’s
skin when he moved. He messed up even more at first but Namjoon was not so
easily deterred. He brought the younger back through it again and again,
starting over every time they made a mistake. Eventually Jungkook could get
through the first couple parts easily, him pacing gone from being led to
pulling Namjoon with him.
   “I’m not sure you could do the rest at this point, even with my help,”
Namjoon laughed. “I haven’t quite mastered it myself.” He removed his hands and
Jungkook’s skin felt cold where Namjoon had been touching him.
   Namjoon offered to make some tea and Jungkook accepted, mostly because he
wanted the chance to talk to The Monster again. He followed the other to the
couches and as they sat down Namjoon began to explain a bit more about him and
The Monster.
   “For as long as I can remember he’s been here. When I was young he was
mostly quiet but as I got older he started to get louder, trying to take
control. At seventeen he was a near constant in my mind. He never shut up. I
thought I was crazy.” He laughed quietly. “I’m petty sure he’s the crazy one
but of course he would say the same about me.” Namjoon paused like he was
thinking about something and suddenly scowled. “Rude,” he muttered bitterly.
   “I’m sorry?”
   “Not you,” Namjoon assured him. “It was him. He says some nasty things
sometimes but I’m mostly used to it.”
   “So you can hear him right now?” Jungkook was very interested to learn how
Namjoon and The Monster’s relationship worked. If he was going to be around
them more often he had to.
   “Always,” Namjoon sighed. “We can hear each other at all times. Just because
I’m here right now doesn’t mean he isn’t, too. We hear and see everything of
each other, including thoughts.”
   “Isn’t that sort of awesome though?” Jungkook thought the idea of being able
to converse with someone telekinetically was like something out of a comic
book.
   Namjoon, however, shook his head adamantly. “Not at all. Imagine for a
moment if you will, having to share one mind between two people. It’s like
connecting two rivers to a damn built for one: it cannot possibly hold
everything back. Things leak out and overlap sometimes, his voice overlaying my
own so much it’s difficult to tell the two apart.”
   “Oh,” Jungkook said. He knew better than most people did about having two
voices going at once in your head.
   “Even right now,” he admitted, “He wants to come out. He’s been getting more
restless lately. He’s harder to control.”
   Jungkook wasn’t going to lie and pretend that wasn’t exactly what he wanted.
“Why can’t he come out?” He tried to ask it nonchalantly but he couldn’t hide
the excitement in his voice entirely and it showed in the way the pitch of his
voice got higher at the end. “I want to ask him some things.”
   Namjoon sighed for what felt like the thousandth time. Jungkook was getting
annoyed but he bit it back, intent on getting what he wanted. “That’s what
scares me,” Namjoon replied. He put his tea down at looked at Jungkook
seriously. “Do you have any idea what you’re doing? How dangerous this is?”
   “I’m not afraid,” Jungkook said as firmly as he felt. “I want this. If you
know what he knows then you know I’m not like other people. I don’t belong with
them. He’s the first person who’s understood me.”
   “I really hope that isn’t true because I don’t think you can go back if you
do this.”
   Jungkook didn’t care. “I don’t want to.” He truly believed it. He’d found
where he belonged now. He couldn’t go back anymore than Namjoon and The Monster
could exist without each other.
   The elder closed his eyes but not before he spared Jungkook one last, sad
glance.
   He ignored it as he waited for The Monster to resurface. It was barely a
moment this time and Namjoon was gone.
   “I’m pleased to hear that,” The Monster crooned.
   “I’m pleased to say it,” Jungkook replied with delight bordering on the
obscene. The endorphin rush of happiness was amazing. He wasn’t sure he’d ever
really been happy before, only relieved when things ended up being easy or less
tiresome. He could get used to this.
   “There is, however, one more discussion me and you need to have before we
move forward.”
   Jungkook leaned in, entire being abuzz with anticipation of the things to
come and satisfaction that they were actually on their way. “Anything,” he
breathed.
   The Monster hummed in approval as he picked up the tea Namjoon had left on
the coffee table. He sniffed it, crinkling his nose in revulsion before setting
it back down. “If you are serious about moving forward with me we must make an
agreement. I would be honoured to take you on as a protégé of sorts but first I
need to have your word that you will follow mine. This is delicate work where
one mistake can be your undoing and in turn mine should you make a mistake.”
   Jungkook nodded. He’d expected as much. “I understand. I know how easy it is
to leave evidence. If you teach me I can be just as careful.”
   The Monster clucked his tongue and crossed his legs. He was studying
Jungkook. The younger did not waver under the scrutiny; in fact he thrived
under it. He knew The Monster would find no weakness, not here. “Are you sure
about that?” He asked Jungkook, not sceptically but more like he was seeking
reaffirmation.
   “I can promise,” Jungkook answered honestly. “I’ve always been good at
learning and they were always things I never even cared about. I can say
without being boastful that I will take to this much better.”
   “Alright,” The Monster nodded, accepting Jungkook’s words. “I will
unfortunately have to kill you should you break your word,” he added as
nonchalantly as if he was discussing the Yankees game.
   Perhaps Jungkook should have been bothered or even offended by the statement
but it had no effect on him. “I get that,” he said with a shrug. “But I’m not
planning on doing that so I have no issue.” He hadn’t expected The Monster to
laugh, literally laugh out loud. It was closer to a bark than actual laughter
but the point remained the same.
   “Oh my,” the elder said as his laughter faded to a light chuckle and finally
stopped entirely. “Most people would run screaming for the hills and here you
are shrugging it off like a scolding for taking a cookie without permission.
You certainly are something.” There was a fondness to The Monster’s smile that
Jungkook had not seen before. It made his stomach do more of those weird flips
and he couldn’t decide if he loved or hated it. He definitely liked the idea of
being the one to make The Monster, not Namjoon, smile.
   He took every word out of The Monster’s mouth as reverently as congregations
would take those of their pastors. In a sense The Monster was his religion now,
the one thing he would follow devoutly without wavering. In turn he would
receive his salvation.
   The Monster told him about his first kill, how it had been impulsive and
unplanned and how close he’d come to being caught. “No one knew it was me, of
course, but had I been slightly more careless in the disposal I could have been
caught.”
   Jungkook had moved to sit on the ground a while ago, similar to a child at
story time except to anyone else it would be a horror story. “But how’d you get
away with it?”
   “Honestly?” He grinned down at Jungkook and waved his hands to illustrate
his next words. “Luck. It was all luck back then. I did not know then what I
know now but Namjoon’s years of watching movies played to my favor when I
dumped the body in the river.”
   “And what did Namjoon say?”
   The elder scoffed and waved the question off. “What else? He was broken,
racked with guilt and remorse. It was irritating. Eventually we came to an
agreement though. Namjoon picks the victims for me.”
   “Wait,” the younger deadpanned. He knew his surprise was obvious but he
really couldn’t believe what The Monster had just said. “I thought he hated
what you did? And you just let him pick your victims? Doesn’t that bother you?”
Jungkook didn’t have personal experience yet but he felt like choosing his
victim would be half the fun. He didn’t understand why The Monster would give
that up.
   “As long as I get what I want I don’t give a damn about the rest.”
   “Really? But why does Namjoon pick?” He had leaned forward to place his arms
on the coffee table, resting his chin on them as he looked up at the other in
fascination and not a little worship.
   “That, my dear Jungkook, is a story for another day. Namjoon is quite
obnoxiously reminding me he has to work in a few hours.”
   Something inside Jungkook lit up at the term of endearment and as much as he
wanted to ask the elder to stay he knew he didn’t have the right. Jungkook
wasn’t sure how sleep worked amongst the two but he was positive that a decent
amount was needed for them to both function.
   “Is it okay if I, uh, stay here one more night?” He’d grown relatively
confident around the pair but this particular question still made him feel shy.
He didn’t want to overstay his welcome but he couldn’t bear going home right
now either.
   “Oh?” The Monster was amused and Jungkook felt the fire inside dim a bit
until the former spoke again. “I was under the impression it was obvious? Of
course you’re meant to stay. I had assumed you would be moving in, actually?”
   Oh. Jungkook was completely at a loss for words, the first time since he’d
actually met The Monster and Namjoon. “Oh,” he murmured quietly. “I- I didn’t
know that was supposed to happen.”
   “How else do you expect me to teach you?” The elder questioned.
   “Of course. I’ll just have to talk to my parents,” Jungkook said quickly to
hide the extent of his surprise.
   “And what will you tell them?”
   “I’m not sure,” Jungkook admitted. They were simple people but their love
for Jungkook went deep. He had to come up with a way to get them out of his
life completely now but without raising any red flags. “I could tell them I was
taking a year off to travel?” He looked up at the elder, seeking his opinion.
   The Monster shook his head. “That won’t work. I don’t plan to keep you
chained up in the basement, you know. If you tell them that and they see you on
the street one day questions will be raised. You need something that will make
them not care if they see you but not to the extent it makes you suspicious.”
   “That’s a tall order with my parents. They're loyal to a fault. I’ve seen
them convince their entire parish to donate an outrageous sum of money to my
dad’s work friend who got into an accident during a recession.” It had been a
long two weeks for Jungkook, with people over at their place constantly. He’d
hid in his room most of the time.
   “Are your parents perhaps Roman Catholic?”
   Jungkook shrugged. “Yeah. Why?”
   The Monster smirked down at him devilishly. “I might just have an idea.”
   An hour later Jungkook was locked into a shouting match with his normally
quiet tempered parents, bag packed and ready to go. “I don’t give a damn what
you think dad! This is who I am!”
   “No!” His dad was pacing on the other side of the kitchen table while his
mom sat in the living room, sobbing silently into her sweater sleeves. “No,
it’s not! We’ve known you for eighteen years! We raised you under our roof!
There’s no way you’ve fallen to the sins of homosexuality! I won’t believe it!”
   Jungkook laughed with little humor, shaking his head at them and allowing
his actual anger to fuel his next words. “No,” he said quietly. “You’ve never
known me. You just made me be what you wanted! Well no fucking more. I’m going
to be who I want now.”
   His mother sobbed louder from the other room and his father pointed a finger
angrily at him. “Lies! You’re just sick. We can help you. Just let us!”
   He knew his parents were kind at heart but if he just pushed a little more
he could break them and he’d never have to deal with them again.
   “Oh I very much doubt that,” he said, lips curving up into a smile. “Unless
that method involves shoving a dick up my ass and asking me to call it daddy.”
   His mother gasped and clutched her chest and his father paled to the point
he almost blended in with the starch white wallpaper behind him.
   “Get out,” he said so quietly Jungkook almost didn’t hear him. “Whatever you
are you are not our son. GET OUT!”
   “Gladly,” Jungkook spit out as venomously as he could manage. He made sure
to slam the door behind him and didn’t stop until he was a block away and at
the safety of Namjoon’s vehicle.
   “Went that well?” The Monster questioned from the driver’s seat.
   “Better than I’d hoped,” Jungkook grinned back at him from the passenger
seat.
 
AUGUST 29TH
 
   The next few weeks were spent with The Monster teaching Jungkook everything
he knew. The younger was a tad disappointed when he couldn’t accompany the
elder on the next murder but he understood; he wasn’t ready. Yet. That didn’t
stop him from badgering the elder with a list of questions when he returned.
The Monster answered them all, every detail about the kill and how it had
played out. By the end Jungkook could practically see the desperation in the
victim’s eyes as their throat was slit and they bled out.
   “My my, you are a vulgar one,” The Monster laughed when Jungkook said as
much.
   “Could I be anything else and still want this?” The younger quipped.
   “True,” the elder conceded. “I still love to hear it though.”
   In the time they’d spent together The Monster and Jungkook had grown closer.
They really were two peas in a pod and Jungkook couldn’t have been happier
(except for the eventuality of The Monster taking him on an actual kill, of
course.)
   It was during the Monster’s lessons that Jungkook learned what Namjoon did
for a living. He sterilized the clean rooms for a major Manhattan hospital. It
all made sense after that, how The Monster had been so good at making sure no
evidence was left: Namjoon had access to a whole host of chemicals and supplies
The Monster could use.
   “That’s genius,” Jungkook had said.
   The Monster had looked down at him and smiled. “That is why we don’t get
caught,” he’d said.
   When Jungkook asked about the flowers (because it had been gnawing at him
for quite a while) The Monster rolled his eyes. “Namjoon insists. I suppose
it’s his way of coping.”
   Jungkook thought it was silly to allow someone to murder when you were
against it and believe leaving flowers made up for it but he wasn’t really one
to judge. He wanted The Monster to continue and if leaving the flowers was
Namjoon’s way to let it happen he wouldn’t argue.
   Namjoon had kept trying to dissuade Jungkook for a while but by the second
week he’d given up. Jungkook almost felt bad but he chalked it up to side
effects of his bond with The Monster. When Namjoon struggled so too did The
Monster, however minusculely.
   As promised Jungkook took to The Monster’s teachings remarkably well. By the
end of August he knew everything The Monster had to teach him. In theory. He
had yet to actually test it out but he was confident he would succeed.
   With the amount of time spent together came some rather unwelcome feelings
as well. Now that he was on their schedule he began to notice his eyes
lingering on Namjoon during his morning workouts. He wrote it off as the
curiosity of a student watching his teacher- until it gave him a hard on. He
had felt a stirring in his gut and before he knew it his boner had been poking
out against the blanket. He had rolled over before the other could see it and,
after the elder had left for work, he’d jacked off in the shower. He’d been
hoping to rid himself of the hunger that had grown inside his stomach but
afterwards he just felt empty and dissatisfied.
   It was bizarre. He’d never really had sexual urges like this before. Sure,
he’d gotten horny before but it had always solved by beating himself off
quickly with nobody specific in mind, just to get it over with. Now he actually
wanted things sometimes, fleeting feelings that left him antsy and frustrated.
   Namjoon and The Monster were quite fit, actually. They weren’t bulging
muscles but they were all toned and solid, barely any fat on them. Jungkook
started to find himself watching Namjoon work out in the morning more and more.
It often left him feeling frustrated and trying to sort his feelings out was
only more frustrating.
   The sudden shift of his sexual appetite was hard to deal with, especially
when Namjoon and The Monster were around so often. From 8 AM until 4 PM he was
spared but otherwise they were almost always there, aside from Thursday when
Namjoon came home from work at 6 PM instead. For a horny still teenage boy it
was torture. He was adamant on holding it back so he didn’t appear weak but it
grew in intensity every day. By the day before his eighteenth birthday it had
become so strong he’d had to feign sleep to resist jumping Namjoon before he
left for work.
   As much as he tried to push it back all day he could not. He was restless,
pacing around the apartment nervously for hours. He tried reading and playing
piano and even cleaning (although Namjoon did that well enough) but he couldn’t
sit still long enough to get anything done. His nerves were so bad that when
Namjoon opened the front door it scared him so bad he knocked over the stack of
books he’d tried and failed to pay attention to earlier.
   “Oh fuck,” he cursed as he fumbled to grab anymore before they fell. He
arranged them hastily back onto the little table in the library.
   “You alright?” Namjoon asked from the doorway where he was kicking off his
shoes. Jungkook’s eyes were fixed on the slope of his ass underneath his fitted
slacks as he bent over so he didn’t answer until Namjoon cleared his throat.
   “What? Oh, yeah.” He swallowed nervously and tore his eyes away from the way
Namjoon’s cream coloured sweater fit snugly against his torso. “I just- Uh- I
need the bathroom.” He bolted from the room before Namjoon could respond and
through the only other door in the apartment besides the one to the master
bedroom.
   He locked it behind him and sat down on the ground, head between his knees
like he’d learned in health class. He was half hard and his hands were shaking
where they gripped his legs. This was ridiculous. He’d seen Namjoon for all of
ten seconds and he’d been reduced to an absolute mess. His brain wouldn’t slow
down long enough for him to process anything.
   There was a knock on the door and Jungkook heard Namjoon’s voice on the
other side. “Are you okay Jungkook?”
   “I’m fine,” he said but his voice cracked. Fuck.
   “You don’t sound fine. Can you let me in?”
   The thought of them both in the small bathroom so close together made his
heart beat faster. Jungkook shook his head before he remembered Namjoon
couldn’t see that. “No, don’t. I’ll come out. Just give me a second.”
   He splashed his face with cold water and stared at his reflection. His face
was still flushed and his pupils were noticeably dilated. He knew what was
going on but he wasn’t quite sure how to deal with it at the moment. He tucked
his erection into his waistband the way Jace used to during gym class and took
a deep breath before opening the door.
   Namjoon was standing right outside and when Jungkook opened the door he gave
the younger a quick once over before heaving a relieved sigh. “I was worried.
Are you okay?’ He took a step forward and Jungkook automatically took one back,
right into the wall. He scrambled around Namjoon and into the living room.
   “I’m fine,” Jungkook said with as much conviction as he could (which was
really very little). He met Namjoon’s eyes but refused to look anywhere else
lest his eyes stray again. His pulse was pounding beneath his skin so loud he
was sure the elder could hear it.
   “You don’t sound fine,” Namjoon said worriedly. “You actually look a bit
flushed. Are you sick?” He took another step forward and Jungkook held his
hands up to stop him.
   “No! I’m not sick! I’m really fine.”
   Namjoon eyed him skeptically. “I’m around sick people all day. Do you really
think I don’t know it when I see it?” He stepped forward again and Jungkook
backed up, unaware of the coffee table behind him. He lost his balance and fell
back into it, smacking his head on the wood surface. He barely had a second to
react before Namjoon was above him, grabbing his arms to help him up.
   “Oh! Are you okay?”
   Jungkook gulped. He hadn’t wanted the elder to touch him but now that he
felt slender fingers wrapped around his biceps the surge of warmth in his belly
did little to persuade him to fight. He lay frozen beneath Namjoon as the
latter looked down at him in worry.
   “I’m fine,” he croaked when his airway began to clear. Namjoon was still
crouched above him. He was only a few inches away, so close Jungkook could lick
his skin if he moved up a few inches. He was drowning in his own need but he
had no idea how to sate it properly.
   He was spared having to explain to Namjoon when the elder looked down,
Jungkook’s erection having been shifted out of his waistband and now pressing
into Namjoon’s thigh through his jeans. “Oh,” he whispered. For a moment he
didn’t move, eyes glued to Jungkook’s “problem” pressing literally into him.
Then he let go of Jungkook, backing up quickly and looking away from the
younger.
   “I’m sorry,” Jungkook whispered, sitting up and looking at the floor. He was
terrified that Namjoon and The Monster would think of him disgusting and kick
him out now.
   “You don’t have to be sorry,” Namjoon murmured from somewhere above him. “It
happens, right?”
   The urge to lie, to pretend it meant nothing and move past it, was so
strong. Jungkook had promised himself though, as had The Monster, that he
wouldn’t have to be anyone but himself now so he shook his head and told the
truth. “It doesn’t to me. Not until recently, anyway. I tried to stop it but I
couldn’t.”
   It was silent for a moment before Namjoon knelt down in front of him. “Hey.
What are you talking about?” He reached out to touch him again and Jungkook
panicked. He clambered away, off the coffee table and towards the wall again.
Namjoon turned back to him but didn’t try to get closer.
   “I don’t know.” Jungkook swallowed nervously and bit his lip. The words were
all mixed together and jumbled inside of his head. “I’ve never-“ He took a deep
breath but didn’t need to continue because the next moment Namjoon finished his
thought for him.
   “You’re a virgin?” There was surprise and something else in his voice,
something that filled Jungkook’s lungs and threatened to steal his breath.
   He looked up and nodded, thankful he didn’t have to say the words but no
less ashamed. “I’ve- I’ve never wanted to...”
   “But now you want to...?” At least Namjoon looked as uncomfortable as him,
although the fact still worried Jungkook. The fear of rejection was new and
therefore twice as scary. He watched as the elder closed his eyes but this time
The Monster didn’t come out. He just kept them closed and Jungkook’s nerves
only became more frayed as the seconds passed. He reached out to touch
Namjoon’s shoulder when the elder moved so fast it was almost a blur. He
grabbed Jungkook’s hand and pulled it away, locking eyes with him.
   For a second Jungkook wasn’t sure who it was. There was so much fire in the
elder’s eyes, something he’d never seen in Namjoon before so he assumed it was
The Monster until he spoke. “You shouldn’t touch me right now. I’m trying very
hard to keep him in.”
   With the realization it was still Namjoon Jungkook became confused. “What?
You mean The Monster? Why?”
   “Because,” Namjoon said through clenched teeth. “He wants things he
shouldn’t be asking for from you.” His grip tightened on Jungkook’s arm. The
younger’s hand was beginning to turn white.
   “Oh,” Jungkook said, realizing what that implied. He also realized that was
what he wanted. He had been so afraid of letting himself just feel this because
he thought The Monster would be disgusted. Now that he knew it was the
opposite, and he wanted Jungkook to some extent as well, he saw no reason to
fight. “But what if-“
   “No,” Namjoon interrupted him roughly. “No,” he repeated after a few deep
breaths. “Not your first time. I will not let him do that.”
   Clearly Namjoon was having a hard time too. He was tense and sporting his
own growing boner inside his slacks. (Although that could have been The Monster
too.)
   “But I want to,” Jungkook insisted. “ I want t-“
   Namjoon twisted his arm until he was pushing Jungkook up against the wall,
caging him between it and his own body. “You have no idea what you’re asking
for,” Namjoon growled. His eyes were like liquid fire, churning and sparking
right in front of Jungkook. “He’s not like everyone else. He won’t be able to
control himself and he’ll hurt you. I won’t let him.”
   Jungkook was getting real sick and tired of Namjoon trying to make his
decisions for him. He pushed back against the elder’s grip, narrowly letting a
shallow breath escape when he felt his erection rub against the other’s leg. “I
don’t need to be protected! My birthday is tomorrow and I’ll be eighteen!”
   “This isn’t about how old or mature you are! Don’t you understand?” Namjoon
pushed him back hard and the air left Jungkook’s lungs. “You’re the ultimate
prey to him right now!”
   “Oh.” Jungkook’s lips parted in surprise as he realized he’d assumed too
much. He had just been happy The Monster wanted him; he hadn’t cared how.
   He understood, to an extent, what that meant, how dangerous it could be. He
bit his lip and Namjoon’s eyes were drawn to his mouth like a magnet. Jungkook
wished it was The Monster’s teeth trapping his lips right now, biting and
sucking and giving. It must have shown in his eyes, or maybe the struggle
between The Monster and Namjoon was just too strong, because the elder squeezed
his eyes shut and pushed away from Jungkook, taking a few steps back. Jungkook
stayed where he was, leaning against the wall, skin warm and breath coming
quicker now that he was unrestricted.
   “I’m sorry,” Namjoon said quietly, eyes still closed. He took some deep
breaths but Jungkook didn’t dare break the silence. He was more aroused than
he’d ever been but he was also afraid. (He wasn’t sure how much that was
contributing to the former.) He waited for Namjoon to speak, barely holding
onto his control in the mean time. The elder finally opened his eyes. “I’m
sorry,” He repeated. “I just don’t want him to hurt you.”
   “Okay,” Jungkook replied slowly. He was weighing the options in his head,
trying to think up a solution so that he could still get what he wanted but
appease Namjoon. “What if,” he began, pushing off the wall and taking a few
small steps closer. “What if you don’t let him out? What if- What if it’s you,
instead?” Jungkook couldn’t deny that, while he started off not liking Namjoon
very much, he was definitely attracted to him physically. He was part of The
Monster; If he liked one he had to like the other, right?
   Namjoon’s lips parted in surprise but no words came out. He swallowed and
pointed his finger to his own chest. “Me?”
   Jungkook took another step forward and clutched at a straw so far away he
wasn’t sure it was even real. “Yes, you. You like me, don’t you?”
   Namjoon stepped back again when Jungkook went another forward. He looked
every bit like a dear caught in the headlights. “Well, of course I like you but
that’s not-“
   “Not what? Not the same way I like you?” He fluttered his eyelashes and
looked up at the elder, slipping on a mask of a different type this time,
something he’d never tried before.
   Namjoon’s back hit the wall and he held his hands up defensively. “It’s not
like that. I can’t. Even if we tried, I couldn’t guarantee he wouldn’t-“
Jungkook could see the cracks forming in his resistance. He just needed to push
a little bit more.
   He stepped right up to him, trapping the elder against the wall this time,
and Namjoon’s protests stopped. His pupils were dark and blown with lust and
his erection had not gone down. Jungkook looked down at it and then back up at
Namjoon, making sure he let every bit of his need show through his eyes. “What
if we make a deal with him?”
   Namjoon swallowed and his adam’s apple bobbed beneath his skin, drawing
Jungkook’s attention. Oh, how he yearned to taste that skin. “I really don’t
think you could offer something he’d agree too, not when he’s this riled up.”
   Jungkook considered this, chewing his lip. He realized Namjoon probably knew
better about their control than Jungkook did given he’d only known them for
less than a week but he really wanted this. Still… “The main concern is not
letting The Monster hurt me, right?”
   Namjoon nodded and opened his mouth to say something but Jungkook wasn’t
done yet. He held up his hand and let his finger rest against the elder’s plump
lips, silencing him. “So maybe we just make it so he can’t.”
   It took some (a lot of convincing) but Namjoon had been easier to break than
Jungkook had expected. Within minutes he’d had the elder in the palm of his
hand, agreeing to his plan. Now Namjoon was naked and handcuffed to the
radiator, essentially at the mercy of the younger. It had been the only way
Jungkook could think of to reassure Namjoon he would be safe. He was going to
question why the elder even had cuffs and then he remembered that he was about
to fuck a serial killer. Well, part of him. Sort of. The hand cuffs made sense.
   As eager as Jungkook was he was also woefully inexperienced in this area.
Namjoon talked him through the prep, watching with heavily lidded eyes as
Jungkook followed his instructions nearly to a tee.
   It had been uncomfortable at first, even with the lube Namjoon had fetched
from his bedroom, but Jungkook had expected that. What he hadn’t expected was
that as he became slightly more accustomed to the sensation of being filled
with his own fingers and began stretching himself further that the pain would
feel so good. The first sharp sting had drawn a gasp from between his lips and
a surge of heat through his abdomen. He paused, allowing himself a moment to
settle when he realized the heat was dimming. He pushed his fingers deeper
experimentally and found the feeling return, stronger and richer than before.
   “Are you okay?” Namjoon worriedly asked from below him.
   “Fine,” Jungkook panted. Better than fine. Sooo good. Namjoon’s cock
twitched, probably from how wrecked Jungkook thought he already sounded. His
control had somehow gotten better but he was still a mess, sweating and flushed
as his cock dribbled precum from the tip. Jungkook wondered what it would taste
like and debated crawling down to lick it off but he felt that would be pushing
his luck more than he already was. Next time.
   He wasn’t sure how ‘prepped’ he really needed to be but he was growing
impatient and he’d reached three fingers within himself already so he decided
it was time. He fumbled with the lube in his haste, squirting some onto his
hand and rubbing it between his hands until Namjoon declared it ‘probably warm
enough.’ He slid it along the elder’s length, his own cock twitching at the
feel of Namjoon’s between his hands and the way he let out a little moan when
Jungkook touched him.
   Jungkook was about to lower himself onto Namjoon when he stopped the
younger. “Wait,” he spoke, voice gravelly with lust. “Just give me a minute.”
Jungkook paused, hips raised over the other’s torso and frowned. He didn’t want
to wait, at all, because he’d waited long enough already but still did so
(reluctantly). Wasn’t it normally the person getting fucked asking for a
minute? The elder clenched his fists and Jungkook’s complaints were put on hold
as he watched the muscles in Namjoon’s arm flex and move beneath the skin. It
fascinated Jungkook and turned him on even more. “You’ll have to be slow,”
Namjoon warned. “To be honest I’ve never tried to do this before.”
   “You’re a virgin too?” Jungkook asked in surprise.
   “No, but you are,” Namjoon said. “The other times were, well, definitely not
as appealing to him as you are. It’s going to be difficult. I can’t promise
anything either.”
   Jungkook didn’t care; more accurately he didn’t care about the danger of
what Namjoon was saying. All he could think was He thinks I’m appealing. He
just wanted and wanted and nothing was going to stop him from getting it now.
Namjoon gave him the okay and he wasted no time in lowering himself onto
Namjoon’s cock.
   The prep was nothing compared to this. The stretch was painful, very, but he
was half-crazy with lust and the pain made it even better. His dick twitched
and he continued lowering himself until his ass was flush with the elder’s
pelvis.
   Namjoon sucked in a sharp gasp, closing his eyes and throwing his head back.
His hips jumped just a fraction and Jungkook gasped as he felt himself being
stretched open even further. Namjoon’s eyes flew open and moved to reach up
before the hand cuffs stopped him. “Are you okay? We can sti-“
   “Shut up,” Jungkook grunted. “Please,” he added when Namjoon looked at him
with worry and a little confusion. With every movement a fresh jolt of pain
shot through him but it went straight to his dick. He started moving, fingers
wrapping tightly around Namjoon’s hips as he moved his own. It was fantastic.
Now he understood why people went so crazy for sex. With time the pain started
to ease and he had to move harder, faster to get it back.
   Namjoon was sweating beneath him, lip caught between his teeth and low moans
drifting out from between them. “Slow down,” he warned. “If you don’t-“
   “I know what will happen,” Jungkook panted, leaning down to look into
Namjoon’s eyes, “but I’m not afraid.” He slowed his hips just a fraction so he
could connect their lips. It was sloppy and messy because he’d never kissed
anyone before either but it was still so good. Namjoon hesitated before he
finally began kissing back, slowly like he was afraid one of them might break.
Jungkook wasn’t looking for slow right now. He nipped at the elder’s lip to
gain a reaction and his hips jerked up into Jungkook hard, hitting his prostate
for the first time.
   The mix of pleasure and pain was intense and he bit down harder on Namjoon’s
lip by accident. The elder jerked beneath him and Jungkook swallowed his
stuttered moan. The taste of copper slipped into his mouth and he realized he’d
drawn blood. He pulled away to apologize to Namjoon when he saw it wasn’t
Namjoon anymore.
   The Monster swiped his tongue across his bottom lip, tasting the blood there
and smirking darkly at Jungkook. Before the younger could register what had
happened the elder snapped his hips up and thrust harshly into him. Jungkook
gasped, falling forward onto the elder’s chest. He put his hands on the floor
on either side of The Monster and looked up into his eyes right as he did it
again. Jungkook’s arms gave out and he fell onto the Monster’s chest, sucking
in a raspy breath as his body struggled to process everything.
   The Monster planted his feet firmly on the ground and began thrusting
harshly into Jungkook, mercilessly and with no time for him to catch his
breath. The younger gasped and moaned with every thrust, feeling the elder
stretching him more than Namjoon had dared to. He rested his head in the crook
of The Monster’s neck, muffling his own sounds into the skin.
   He felt something wet on his earlobe and sucked in a shuddering breath as
The Monster caressed him with his tongue. He tried desperately to regain his
composure, failing miserably when The Monster brought his teeth down hard,
catching his skin between. He whimpered and brought his hips down, losing
himself more and more in the pain and the pleasure, so connected now he
couldn’t tell where one ended and the other began. He decided they didn’t end
or begin anywhere: they just were, together and the same like two sides of a
coin.
   “I knew you’d like it,” The Monster purred throatily into his ear. “He just
didn’t want me to play with you.” He moved to bite down Jungkook’s neck now, no
doubt leaving marks across his skin.
   Jungkook’s breath was coming in short gasps now and he tried for words.
“Please,” he whined, hiccupping on his words. “Please.” He didn’t even know
what he was asking for and he didn’t care, as long as it kept going.
   “You want more? You want me to fuck you so hard you can’t walk straight for
three days?”
   “Yes,” Jungkook sobbed into The Monster’s skin, back arching and body
quivering as the mere thought. He felt so lost and found all at the same time,
like every moment in his life had let up to this one.
   He had no idea how it happened or how The Monster even managed it but in the
next second he somehow used his body weight to flip them over so Jungkook’s
back was on the floor and the Monster was above him. He looked down at Jungkook
with a hunger so raw it sent shivers up the younger’s spine. His arms were
crossed at the wrists where he was still cuffed to the radiator but the rest of
him was free to move as he’d like. He slammed into Jungkook so hard the younger
boy slid upwards on the floor, head knocking into the radiator painfully.
   Jungkook cried out in pain and his cock twitched painfully between them,
precum leaking all over both their stomachs. He reached up, grabbing the
radiator above his head so he could push back between them and into the
thrusts.
   “You like the pain?” The Monster asked, slamming repeatedly into the
younger’s tight hole. Jungkook had to bite his lips to keep from crying out
loud so he just nodded his head, back arching off the ground in pure pleasure.
Tears slipped from his eyes and down his cheeks, making his eyelashes stick
together. He had to blink repeatedly to clear them enough to see.
   The elder leaned down and smashed their lips together, biting and licking at
every part he could reach. Jungkook tasted blood from where he’d bit Namjoon’s
lip earlier. He ran his tongue across the break in the skin, letting the blood
swirl around in his mouth until all he could taste was iron.
   The Monster pulled away to bite at his chest and neck instead, breaking the
skin and drawing blood of the younger’s own. Jungkook gasped and threw his head
back, hitting it against the radiator again. The combination of pain from his
head and chest and neck made his head spin and added to his already building
high until it felt like he was about to shatter into pieces.
   He wrapped his legs around The Monster’s waist and dug his nails into his
back, probably drawing blood with the force of his scratches but he couldn’t
help it; he was on fire and The Monster kept adding fuel to it until he was
sure he would consume everything he touched. The pressure was so overwhelming
as it built and his breath got shorter and shorter, his vision going blurry
with the intensity.
   He was shaking beneath the elder, so close to the edge of something he’d
never felt before, not like this. His entire being was held together with
strings that were on the verge of snapping. Sweat stung his eyes and mixed with
his tears, wetting his cheeks. He felt raw and broken and alive. He dug his
nails into The Monster’s back harder, gasping into his shoulder as he felt
himself begin to lose control.
   “I can’t- Oh god, harder, please.”
   The Monster complied, impaling Jungkook on every thrust until all the
younger could see was stars. He felt his release approaching hard and he closed
his eyes, allowing himself to feel it all. He met The Monster’s thrusts as hard
as he could and with one more hit to his prostate he let go. His stomach
tightened and the string snapped and he cried out loudly as the most intense
orgasm he’d ever felt shot through him. He clutched desperately at The
Monster’s back to ground himself but he couldn’t control any of it. His body
turned to electricity and he came between their stomachs, jets of white
coursing out and streaking across their skin, gluing them together as The
Monster continued fucking him through.
   He lost track of time, floating inside his own head as he moaned wantonly
into The Monster’s skin, still not sated and begging for more. As his orgasm
faded the over sensitivity grew and grew until he felt like he was being split
apart with every rough thrust of The Monster’s hips. He loved it and hated it
and wanted more at the same time.
   The Monster picked up his speed even more, slamming into Jungkook like a
jackhammer as he chased his own release. Jungkook let himself be shoved, pushed
and destroyed as The Monster fucked into him. His erection had had gone but he
still wanted so much. He dug his nails in harder and wrapped his legs around
the elder’s waist tighter, pulling him in as deep as he could and clenching his
ring of muscles tightly around The Monster’s cock.
   The Monster growled, his thrusts becoming erratic as he too approached his
own climax. He bit down hard on Jungkook’s shoulder and the younger whimpered,
rocking back into The Monster and almost crying into his skin.
   The elder licked across the break in Jungkook’s skin and moaned. “Fuck, my
pretty little boy,” he gasped. “All mine. Mine to take however I like.”
   He was close, Jungkook knew. His own interest began to perk back up. He let
his hands go and the next thrust sent him reeling into the radiator. His head
was ringing and he brought a hand up to hold it, feeling something sticky in
his hair. The Monster was still thrusting as Jungkook brought his hand down and
stared, stared at the blood trickling down his palm and across his fingers. He
met The Monster’s gaze as he sucked his fingers into his mouth, licking the
blood from them.
   “Yes,” The Monster growled. He leaned back and rammed into Jungkook, sending
him into the radiator and causing the younger to reach his second orgasm of the
night as pain shot through his head and down his body. He screamed and dropped
his hands to the floor, overwhelmed completely at the sensations. The Monster’s
hips stilled inside of him as he let out the deepest and most sensual moan the
younger had ever heard, spilling himself completely inside of the younger.
   Jungkook saw stars, except they were so dark. They got bigger and bigger
until his vision became a mass of shapes and then everything went entirely
black and Jungkook lost consciousness.
 
Chapter End Notes
     So one important thing here: I do no think every Roman Catholic is
     the way I depicted Jungkook's parents. Just in this one work of
     fiction were his parents this way, not just because of their
     religion. I don't believe a religion dictates how you behave: his
     parents are the way they are for a reason.
     Anyways, now that that's cleared up, did you enjoy this? The smut
     sort of took on a life of it's own without me meaning to. Basically
     my finger slipped and here is 2k of filthy smut between The Monster
     and Jungkook. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
     This is the second in what will be either a three or four part
     series. Let me know what you thought with a comment and if you
     enjoyed please kudos! ^-^
***** Part III *****
Chapter Summary
     Jungkook got what he wanted: The Monster had accepted him and he was
     on his way to fulfilling his new but bold dreams. Namjoon decided
     that this new dynamic meant it was time for himself to open up too.
     All hell broke loose.
   SEPTEMBER 1ST

   Jungkook woke up the next morning to a stabbing pain below his waist when he
rolled over and a splitting headache. He cursed, laying still and squeezing his
eyes shut. When he didn’t move again the pain subsided into a dull but
manageable ache, in both his head and his backside. He blinked his eyes open,
careful not to move. He looked around sleepily at first but when he didn’t
recognize his surroundings his eyes snapped open fully.

   He tried to get up too quickly and the pain roared back to life, stronger
than before and he winced, laying back down and trying to remember how to
breathe. He felt like a crash test dummy that had gone into a brick wall, been
thrown down the stairs and then lit on fire. And then stomped out.

   “Oh thank god! You’re awake,” he heard Namjoon say from behind him. He
couldn’t roll over to see the elder but he could hear relief in his voice which
confused Jungkook this early in the morning. “I was beginning to wonder if I’d
need to take you to the hospital. The jury’s still out on that until I check
you out, though.”

   Namjoon came around the bed, a washcloth in one hand and a glass of water in
the other. He set the glass down on the nightstand next to the bed (was he in
Namjoon and The Monster’s bedroom?) and leaned over him, inspecting the
younger.

   Jungkook tried to speak but found his voice quite hoarse and his throat hurt
more than a little. “Where-“ He cleared his throat, frowning when the movement
caused another surge of pain from his incredibly sore backside, and tried
again. “Where am I?” He asked in a raspy voice.

   Namjoon frowned above him, pausing in the middle of whatever he was doing
with Jungkook’s head. “In my bed,” he said carefully, drawing back to look down
into the younger’s eyes. The way his eyes roved over Jungkook, assessing him
made the younger feel like he might as well be in a hospital. “Do you remember
what happened last night?”

   Jungkook was the one to frown then, looking up at Namjoon in confusion. His
head throbbed when he moved and he made a mental note to not do that again. “Of
course,” he replied. “Me and you- we- The Monster too- We had sex.”

   Namjoon blushed but nodded, moving his hands back to Jungkook’s head. “So
you don’t have a concussion. That’s good.”

   “Why would I-“ He hissed in pain as Namjoon did something horrible to his
head and his vision went blurry for a second. He was glad he was laying down
because the sudden dizziness he felt probably would have knocked his legs out
from beneath him. “What are you doing?”

   “Checking your bandage,” the elder replied from above him.

   “Bandage?” He didn’t remember anything about a bandage from last night. He’d
lost his virginity with Namjoon, but then The Monster had come out, and they’d
continued and then-

   “Oh,” he said quietly. Flashes of images played through his mind: him
pushing Namjoon too far, The Monster positively wrecking him, how much he
enjoyed it... “I remember.”

   “That’s good. I guess,” Namjoon muttered unhelpfully. He laid a cloth over
Jungkook’s forehead and the younger closed his eyes in relief at the cool
sensation on his skin.

   “Yes but why am I in your bed?” He thought back to the previous night and
licked his lips, suddenly very thirsty as the memories slid down his throat and
stole the moisture there. It had gone better than he’d expected. He’d been able
to bring the Monster out and live to tell the tale, completely disproving
Namjoon. He smiled, satisfied and rolled over.

   “Fuck,” he cursed as the most intense wave of pain yet crashed through him.
He felt tears spring to his eyes. It was like he was being ripped open from the
inside-out. That, paired with the sudden intense ringing in his ears, was
enough to allow a small whimper to escape from between his chapped lips.

   “That’s why you’re here,” Namjoon said worriedly, helping Jungkook roll back
onto his side before the younger pushed his hands away.

   “What?”

   Namjoon crossed his arms and glared down at Jungkook, looking like a father
who caught his kid sneaking out after curfew, except Jungkook was no child and
Namjoon definitely was not his father (even if he acted like it sometimes).
“You pulled a dangerous stunt last night. You’re lucky you’re not in worse
shape right now."

   Jungkook quirked an eyebrow up at him, chuckling into the pillow as he got
comfortable again. So long as he didn’t shift too much the pain wasn’t so bad.
He felt almost floaty, whether it was because he was happy or from the wound to
his head; it didn’t really matter to him right now. “You should see the other
guy,” he muttered.

   Namjoon squirmed, rolling his shoulders back and wincing. The younger
imagined he had some nasty scratches there if his memory served correct. He
looked pointedly down at Jungkook, chastising and maybe a little bit pissed
off. “I am the other guy.”

   The younger snickered, moving carefully so he was curved with his back to
the bed, and wiggled his eyebrows up at Namjoon. “Did you enjoy the show?” He
asked with feigned sweetness.

   “You shouldn’t encourage him,” the elder said with a disappointed shake of
his head. “He’s practically purring,” he spit out.

   “Well he certainly did a bit of that last night,” Jungkook replied with a
devilish smirk.

   “Unbelievable,” Namjoon murmured. “He nearly tears you to shreds and you
look like a kid at Christmas.”

   Jungkook shrugged, almost able to ignore the pain it caused, and closed his
eyes again. “What can I say,” he yawned loudly. “I’m weird.”

   “That’s an understatement,” the elder replied.

   Truthfully Jungkook enjoyed the pain. Not in the same way as he had last
night, where it had coursed through his veins and lit them with the fire of his
lust; It was more like a reminder now of what had happened, like even though it
had ended Jungkook still bore The Monster’s mark. The idea made his insides
feel strangely squishy but in a good way.

   “Don’t be mad at him,” Jungkook said tiredly. “I wanted it.”

   “Say that all you want but it doesn’t change a thing,” Namjoon said with a
sigh. “You are far too reckless.”

   Jungkook snorted into the pillow. “Not reckless. Unafraid,” he corrected.

   “Well Happy Birthday to you then, Mr. Fearless,” Namjoon muttered.
 
   “Oh yeah,” Jungkook said, opening his eyes to glance up at the other. He had
forgotten it was his birthday.

   “You should go back to sleep for now,” Namjoon instructed. He tucked the
blanket in around Jungkook, ignoring the younger’s protests, and brought the
glass of water and a straw to his lips, along with two pills. “They’ll help a
little with your headache,” he said as the younger swallowed the pills and
washed them down with the cool water.

   “Thanks.” Jungkook curled back under the blanket. His ass was still on fire
and his head was no better but at least his throat ached a little less.

   “I’ll be back to check on you later,” the elder said quietly before he left
the room, closing the door behind him.

   Jungkook fell back asleep easily. The problem was staying that way. He kept
rolling around in his sleep, aggravating his injuries and jolting himself
awake. After what might have been a few hours of it, or maybe only a few
minutes, he’d had enough.

   He threw the blanket off, intent on getting up when he noticed for the first
time since that morning that we wasn’t actually naked like he’d ended last
night as. He assumed it was Namjoon who had dressed him in the tee shirt and
sleep pants he was now wearing. They weren’t his so they must belong to the
elder. It was funny that Namjoon would still try to protect his modesty after
all that they had done last night. At this point Jungkook had nothing left to
hide.

   My pretty little boy. All mine.

   He shivered at the words The Monster had said to him and what they implied.
Did he want Jungkook the same way the younger wanted him? For Jungkook it
wasn’t even a question he needed to be asked; he already belonged to The
Monster, had since the first night he’d touched Jungkook’s soul at Henley Park.
It would take a lot more than words or guns, a whole lot more than riches or
muscle, to make him leave now. Nothing short of death could take him from where
he belonged.

   His stomach rumbled and he groaned in hunger. He had no idea what time it
was now. The curtains in the room were black and thick, letting no light in, so
he had no idea how long it had been since he’d eaten last. He tried to get up
but that had been a very bad idea. The minute he swung his legs off the bed he
cried out in pain, stumbling and falling onto the floor. He curled in on
himself instinctively but that only made the pain burn hotter.

   The door burst open and a worried Namjoon appeared in the doorway, cursing
when he saw Jungkook on the ground. “Are you okay?” He asked, hurrying to help
Jungkook up.

   “I’m fine,” he said, pushing away Namjoon’s hands. “I can get up myself.”

   “I doubt that,” the elder scoffed. He ignored Jungkook’s protests and pulled
him to his feet, the younger gritting his teeth the whole time. If Namjoon was
going to be this obnoxious he’d have to get back on his feet quickly.

   Namjoon helped him to sit back on the bed, the act in itself intensely
uncomfortable, and once he was safely sitting he pushed Namjoon away. “I could
have done it,” he muttered in annoyance.

   “You have a head wound, a decently serious one, and don’t even get me
started on what he did to the rest of you,” Namjoon snarled. He was as mad as
Jungkook had ever seen him and certainly didn’t look like he was going to back
down anytime soon. “The fact that I let him get away with this pisses me off
enough. Don’t start pressing yourself and making things worse! What were you
even doing trying to get up?”

   Jungkook scoffed at the elder, narrowing his eyes and scowling at him. “I’m
hungry, for your information. I haven’t eaten in I-don’t-know-how-long and in
case you’d forgotten I sort of wore myself out last night.”

   “You could have just called for me. I’m right in the other room,” Namjoon
argued. He sighed and held his hand out to help Jungkook up but the younger
pushed him away again and tried to get up himself, making the elder growl in
frustration. “Dammit Jungkook! Let me help you or I swear I’ll carry you bridal
style through the goddamn apartment.”

   Jungkook glared back. “You wouldn’t dare.”

   A lot of curse words and death threats later Namjoon lowered Jungkook from
his arms and onto the living room couch.

   “I’m going to kill you,” Jungkook vowed, ignoring the sharp sting in his
bottom when he made contact with the seat. “And cut up the pieces so no one
ever finds your body.”

   Namjoon laughed as he made his way to the kitchen. “Make sure to wear
gloves,” he called over his shoulder.

   If looks could kill Namjoon would be so dead right now. Jungkook huffed and
crossed his arms, seething. He had wanted to appear strong for The Monster,
like someone worthy of his attention but Namjoon kept babying him. It was
ridiculous and stupid and- Wait, what happened to the lights?

   “Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you!”

   “Huh?”

   Namjoon was walking in the dark through the apartment, a cake topped with
lit candles as the only light to guide him. He stopped in front of Jungkook,
smiling. “Happy birthday dear Jungkook, happy birthday to you!”

   Jungkook blinked up at him in shock. “You... got me a birthday cake?”

   “Yupp. Grabbed it this morning while you were still sleeping. Make a wish!”
He lowered the cake so that it was in front of Jungkook, waiting.

   “I – Uh...” He blew the candles out and looked awkwardly up at where he
guessed Namjoon was. “Thanks, I guess?”

   There was a scraping sound and soft footfalls and suddenly the lights were
back on. Jungkook blinked at the sudden brightness, turning to Namjoon. “Do you
even need light to see?”

   “No,” he said sing songy, grabbing some plates and forks from the kitchen.
“So what did you wish for? Oh, I suppose you’re not supposed to tell anyone
that.”

   “I didn’t wish for anything,” Jungkook said honestly, shrugging at Namjoon’s
frown. “That’s children’s stuff.”

   Namjoon studied him silently for a moment, whatever he saw making his frown
deepen before returning it to his earlier broad, dimpled smile (maybe a little
less bright now). “Well that’s what you think then.”

   He cut them each a piece of cake, butterscotch as the elder had chosen.
Namjoon had smiled sheepishly, saying he didn’t know Jungkook’s favorite so he
picked his own. Jungkook was still a little annoyed about earlier so he kept
the fact that it was actually one of his own favorites to himself.

   Jungkook could feel the tension the elder was trying so hard to keep away.
He clearly was just trying to do something nice for Jungkook, and while the
younger appreciated it, he wasn’t a cake and candles kind of guy. He wasn’t
much of a celebrating person in general, really. He preferred to acknowledge it
and then move on. Still, he didn’t spoil the moment for now, letting Namjoon
have it. He liked the way they bickered and how easy it was to get under the
elder’s skin but he didn’t actually hate him. He would prefer it if they could
get along, especially considering things between him and The Monster were...
developing.

   “Uh, Namjoon?” The elder hummed in response and Jungkook put his plate down
on the coffee table, his half eaten cake having grown warm. “Can I talk to him,
please?”

   Namjoon’s hand froze, fork hovering an inch over his nearly finished slice.
“You really aren’t mad about last night,” he stated matter-of-factly without
looking away from his plate. He sighed and put his plate down, turning to
Jungkook with a frown. Jungkook didn’t understand why Namjoon still wasn’t over
this. Every time Jungkook asked to speak to the Monster it was like this. He’d
thought Namjoon would get used to it already.

   “Of course I’m not. Why would I be?”

   Namjoon shook his head, his eyes turning sad and flat, the sparkle that had
been there when he’d sung happy birthday to Jungkook fading away. He didn’t
argue though, just closed his eyes with resignation.

   When The Monster opened them, however, there was a different kind of spark
there all together. “Hello there,” he spoke, grinning playfully. “Oh, and happy
birthday.”

   “Thanks,” Jungkook muttered. He wasn’t sure what to say now that he was
actually face to face with The Monster again, given that last time had ended
with him literally being fucked so hard he passed out. He felt his face heat up
as his blood began pumping faster.

   The Monster chuckled lightly at him. “There’s no need for that,” he said,
getting up. He moved gracefully to stand in front of Jungkook, lifting the
younger’s chin with his finger as he leaned down. Jungkook looked up into his
eyes and he was sure his heart would explode in his chest with how hard it was
hammering.

   The Monster stopped when their faces were a few inches away, just close
enough he could feel the elder’s breath on his skin. He smelled like body wash
and something else too, a musky, almost earthy scent that filled Jungkook’s
nostrils. “There’s nothing to be embarrassed about,” he said softly, brown eyes
staring straight into the younger’s.

   “I’m not,” Jungkook said, breathing in more of his scent in the process. It
was true. He wasn’t afraid of showing himself to The Monster, in anyway. The
last barrier that had held him back had now been broken last night. He was
finally free to follow The Monster one-hundred percent.

   “Hmm,” the elder hummed, dragging his eyes along the curves of Jungkook’s
face, taking in every inch of his skin before settling back on his eyes.
“That’s good then, because now that I have you I don’t plan on letting go.” He
closed the distance and pressed his lips to the younger’s, placing his arms on
the couch to either side of him and caging him in as they kissed.

   Jungkook’s gasp was swallowed by The Monster’s lips. It wasn’t quite the
same type of kiss as last night, more controlled and less desperation, but
somehow it was better. The way the elder pulled and licked and sucked at his
lips and tongue made him feel lightheaded, a low moan tearing itself free from
his throat.

   The confirmation that it wasn’t just Jungkook who wanted this, wanted them,
had whatever tiny doubts or fears his rational mind had tried to conjure up
thrown out. The fire only The Monster could create was back and burning hot and
bright in his core. He brought his hands to the elder’s shoulders, pulling on
them to bring him closer. The Monster chuckled and moved to nip at his jaw and
down to his neck, tongue laving teasingly over the marks he’d left last night.
Jungkook gasped and rocked his hips up and towards the elder, barely caring
about the pain the movement caused.

   The Monster paused, lips hovering right above his collarbone. “Would you
really let me fuck you again?” The elder murmured the question into his skin
and Jungkook shivered, the cool air dancing over the wet spots he’d left. He
nodded vigorously, trying to pull the Monster closer again. “Amazing,” The
Monster whispered. He pulled back and stared down at Jungkook reverently, like
he was a piece of art that should be on display.

   “What?” He asked, catching his breath. His voice was already laced with need
and his erection was tenting in the flimsy cotton sleep pants Namjoon had
dressed him in.

   “You truly are remarkable,” The elder murmured. His hand moved to cup
Jungkook’s jaw for the briefest of moments before trailing delicately down to
his neck, pulling the neck of his shirt away. It was already loose on him so it
fell easily to his shoulder. The elder traced the bruises and bites he’d left
with his finger, causing Jungkook to let out a little stuttering moan as his
hips jerked beneath them, need pulsing in his veins.

   The Monster’s eyes snapped back to him, a low growl leaving his throat and
he pounced on the younger. He pulled Jungkook into a slightly hungrier kiss,
pushing him back into the couch with force. His knee was on the couch next to
Jungkook and he was half-straddling the younger, a hairs breath of space
between their hips. Jungkook kissed him back just as fervently, trying and
failing to pull him down onto the couch with him completely. “Come down here,”
he muttered into the kiss.

   “As much as I want to,” The Monster whispered, pulling away from the kiss to
look at him again. His eyes were dark with lust and just the sight of them made
Jungkook’s cock twitch. “No. You are in no condition for a repeat performance
of last night.”

   “So be gentle then.” Jungkook went for another kiss but The Monster pulled
further back, bringing Jungkook’s hands back down.

   “It doesn’t work that way,” The Monster chuckled blithely. He moved back to
the other couch and took his seat once again, his pants just a tad tighter
across his front. “Besides, I doubt I could be gentle with you.” His eyes
roamed over Jungkook, from his still bare shoulder to the quiet pant of his
breath between his kiss swollen lips. “No,” he shook his head slowly.
“Definitely not.”

   Jungkook felt himself pouting, and that was weird enough because he had
never pouted in his life, but then The Monster laughed at him. “Acting cute
will not get you anywhere, my dear,” he laughed, an almost tender smile on his
face.

   “It worked before,” Jungkook muttered under his breath. His fists were
clenched in frustration on his lap and he had to clamp down on the urge to grab
his own erection to relieve some of the tension.

   “And before was quite different,” The Monster replied, heaving a tired sigh.
“Anyway, Namjoon is quite ticked off as is. There’s something he wants to do
with you and he’s nagging me to go already.”

   “Wait! Can’t you stay a bit longer?” Namjoon always choose the worst
possible times to come out. Jungkook was literally being cock – blocked by him.
He really was going to kill the man.

   “I’ll return soon, don’t worry.” He winked at Jungkook one last time and
left, being replaced with a very angry Namjoon two seconds later.

   “Jeon Jungkook, what is that makes you so eager to abandon your own self
preservation?”

   Jungkook waved him off and leaned back into the couch, squirming to find a
comfortable position. “Calm down gramps,” he muttered. “No need to over react
about every little thing.”

   “Over react? I’m overreacting?” He pushed himself off the couch, walking
around and getting right in Jungkook’s face as The Monster just had. The
difference being where Jungkook had just been praised he was now going to be
scolded. Oh how the tables have turned, he thought sarcastically (and maybe a
little bitterly).

   “You are injured,” Namjoon hissed. He put his hands on Jungkook’s shoulders
and stared straight into his eyes, trying so hard to make the younger see his
point. “If you want to fuck him I clearly can’t stop you at this point but do
it once you’ve recovered! You are quite literally bleeding from the first time.
Your body needs time to rest and recuperate before you attempt anything again!
Continuing on like this will do nothing but allow you to destroy yourself!” His
voice had risen in volume until he was almost screaming at Jungkook, the
younger’s eyes widening.

   He seemed to realize how carried away he’d gotten because he took a deep
breath and let go of Jungkook’s shoulders. He sat down on the coffee table and
put his head into his hands.

   “Tell me how you really feel,” Jungkook said quietly after a moment of
silence. He was a little shocked to see Namjoon get so angry like this. His
normal levels of frustration and anger ended far before it escalated this far.
He’d never yelled at Jungkook before.

   The elder sighed and spoke, words muffled by his hands. “I’m sorry.” He
shook his head, laughing humorously at something. He dropped his hands and
looked back up at the younger. He looked so tired. “I know that you won’t
change your mind about being with him. I can see that now. Just,” he looked
away. He seemed entirely too defeated. “Just let me take care of you sometimes,
too, if you won’t do yourself,” he said, looking back at the younger with
desperate eyes. Jungkook was struck by how much sadness was in them.

   He knew The Monster and Namjoon were two different people but sometimes he
forgot just how different. Namjoon was not a brutal killer, he was just a man
who had to hold the blade behind The Monster. He didn’t want to be there like
Jungkook did; he had no choice. He probably felt helpless in his own body
sometimes, seeing and hearing and feeling everything The Monster did when he
wanted none of it.

   Jungkook felt sort of guilty for the first time in his life. He didn’t
change his opinion on The Monster and killing, not even close, but he realized
that Namjoon must feel similarly to how he had before he met them: trapped,
living a life you didn’t want and having other people control your actions.
Even though he knew that what he was doing was right for him, it was hard for
Namjoon to watch. He understood now. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to ease up on him,
just a little; for both their sakes.

   “Okay,” the younger agreed quietly.

   Namjoon looked up from his hands where his gaze had dropped while Jungkook
was silent; Now his eyes were wide with surprise, like he didn’t quite believe
what he’d just heard. “What?”

   Jungkook didn’t want Namjoon making this some sort of big deal (he was
beginning to regret agreeing already at the hopefully troublesome look in the
elder’s eyes) so he shrugged nonchalantly. “Whatever helps you sleep at night,”
he mumbled and turned away to stare at the window instead. He didn’t miss the
small smile that slipped onto the elder’s face in response.

   “Thank you,” he said sincerely.

   “Yeah, yeah. Just don’t overdo it.” Jungkook turned back to him and at the
sight of the elder’s genuine happiness almost smiled himself but he caught
himself at the last second. Jungkook changed the subject before the other could
get too mushy. “You wanted to do something, right?”

   “Yes, about that.” Namjoon’s smile changed, from a satisfied to a nervous
one, his hands fidgeting on his knees. Jungkook wasn’t sure if that was good or
bad so he waited.

  It seemed like whatever Namjoon wanted to say wasn’t an easy thing for him to
get out as he had to take several deep breaths first. When he finally spoke his
voice was soft, with a hint of apprehension underlying it, like he wasn’t sure
he should be saying what he was. “You and The Monster have grown... ah, closer
much faster than I expected...”

   Dread filled Jungkook’s insides. “Oh god. You’re not going to give me the
talk, are you? Because I’m pretty sure last night proves it’s a little late for
that.”

   Namjoon giggled (actually giggled) and the tension in the room dissipated a
little, the elder’s shoulders hunching a little from his burst of laughter.
“No,” he said and Jungkook breathed a sigh of relief. “No, this is not about
that. This is about me and not him, actually.”

   “You?” Jungkook asked curiously, wondering what they could have to discuss.

   “Yes, well... I just thought since you and him are becoming so close, and
since it’s clear you’re both serious about your, ahem, relationship, that it
only made sense for you to learn something about me too.”

   “Okay,” the younger nodded. “What’s up?”

   “This is something important to me, probably the most important thing to me,
so you need to understand how much trust I’m placing in you by including you.”
Namjoon’s tone had become serious, all traces of his laughter gone. The younger
could feel the shift in attitude, the way Namjoon’s back straightened and his
eyes sharpened while getting softer somehow.

   Jungkook nodded, sitting up straight and giving Namjoon his full attention
to show that he understood. “What is it?”

   “You know how I work two hours later on Thursday’s?” Jungkook nodded again
and the elder drew in a long breath. “Well, I’m not actually working late.”

   The younger’s lips parted in surprise. “Oh? Then what are you doing?”

   Namjoon looked a little uncomfortable, drawing his legs closer and gripping
the edge of the coffee table. Jungkook had a feeling this was something that
Namjoon really cared about or was really embarrassed about for him to be so
worried about saying it. Jungkook knew The Monster’s biggest secret; Was he
about to learn Namjoon’s too?

   “You don’t have to tell me,” Jungkook offered. “Not if you don’t want to.”

   The elder shook his head, closing his eyes and releasing a breath. “No,
actually, I do,” he said turning to look back at the younger. “I just- I just
don’t know how.”

   “It can’t possibly be any worse than my confession,” Jungkook joked. The
elder chuckled, directing Jungkook a grateful smile.

   “No. It’s nothing like that. It’s not even in the same ballpark.”

   “So just tell me. What’s the worst that could happen?”

   Namjoon grimaced, looking at the floor with a fear in his eyes so strong
Jungkook could almost feel it himself. “I could let someone else get hurt,
someone I really care about.”

   Jungkook stayed silent, digesting that while he waited for the elder to
continue. As far as he had known neither Namjoon or The Monster were close with
anyone aside from, recently, him. If Namjoon was talking about someone else
then he had done a very good job of keeping this person secret. There must have
been a reason he wanted it that way. Jungkook couldn’t push too hard here: If
Namjoon wanted him to know he would have to be the one to tell him.

   Namjoon sighed. “I suppose I’ll start at the beginning. God, it was so long
ago but I remember it like it just happened. I suppose that’s normal, though.
I’ll probably never forget.”

   Jungkook wasn’t sure what Namjoon was talking about yet but he did his best
to process the information as it came, not wanting to rush the elder in any way
when he already looked so fragile.

   “I had a boyfriend in high school,” Namjoon began, eyes shining with
fondness. “Beautiful, so beautiful. Seokjin was like an angel, perfect and way
too good to be real. We met my freshman year when he was a sophomore. He was so
popular. Everyone loved him. It was impossible not to,” Namjoon said with a
smile aimed at Jungkook. The younger could feel its warmth and even if he
wasn’t the one who put it there he was suddenly glad it was there anyway.

   “He was smart and kind and had this ability to charm anyone he spoke to. It
didn’t matter who you were; You loved Kim Seokjin. He was involved in lots of
clubs and got good grades and he was friends with everyone, the popular kids
and the geeks alike. When he spoke to you he made you feel like you were
invincible, like you could do anything if you worked hard enough. He was that
kind of guy.

   I volunteered to join the tutoring club he ran just so I could meet him. My
grades were on the way to a perfect 4.0 so he was ecstatic to have me.” Namjoon
laughed, eyes crinkling at the corners the way only true happiness could bring.
“The first time I actually met him I swear I was already in love. He made me
feel so... peaceful. He wasn’t as loud when Seokjin was around.”

   “You mean The Monster?”

   “Yes. Seokjin had a way of calming him. Even The Monster couldn’t totally
resist him.” Namjoon laughed quietly, shaking his head like it was a bad joke.

   “We spent a lot of time together. He was always supporting me, telling me
nice things and helping me through my troubles. I never told him about what was
really going on but I think he sensed a bit of the darkness inside. Still he
never turned away from me. It took me a year to work up the courage to ask him
out. He smiled down at me and said “I was hoping you’d ask me that.” I think
the school was a bit shocked when they found out the one and only Seokjin was
dating a grade down but no one ever troubled us about it. There were a lot of
broken hearts though, people who’d wanted Seokjin too.

   Honestly I was pretty shocked myself. I couldn’t believe it at first.
Seokjin would have had his pick of numerous pretty girls and a few good looking
boys too but he chose me.”

   Namjoon looked happy, happier than Jungkook had ever seen him. He sensed the
story was going to turn sad soon and found himself wishing it didn’t, even
though he was the one sitting there in front of Namjoon now.

   “We dated for a year and a half when it happened.” His face turned sour, the
joy that had been there replaced with deep sorrow. His shoulders slumped and he
rested his elbows on his knees, staring blankly at the couch next to Jungkook.
   “We were driving home from a movie, some romantic comedy Seokjin had dragged
me to, and we didn’t even see it coming. The truck driver might have been
eating or not looking, I don’t know, but he went straight through the red
light.”

   Jungkook felt his breath halt as his lungs chose to drop working. He watched
Namjoon’s face crumple and distort in pain, the type of pain that most people
lived their entire life without even seeing.

   “He hit the drivers side,” Namjoon said in a quiet and feeble voice as
memories must have flooded his mind. “They were speeding, too. They were going
way too fast. They shouldn’t have been going that fast. I don’t know why they
were going so fast...”

   He was rambling. Jungkook reached out before he knew what he was doing,
resting his hand on Namjoon’s forearm. The elder jolted, words ceasing but the
pain still etched deeply onto his face. He took a shuddering breath before
closing his eyes.

   “The car flipped. They told us later it was only twice but it felt like we
were rolling forever. I can still remember the screech of the metal grating
against the asphalt, like the roar of a hideous monster coming to kill us.” His
fists clenched and Jungkook felt the muscles in his arm shift beneath his
fingertips. He waited for the elder to collect himself, pressing lightly into
his skin to remind him he wasn’t alone.

   This feeling was strange to Jungkook, the urge to comfort. He’d never wanted
to comfort someone before. Some part of him wanted Namjoon to feel better, or
at least not to cry. He didn’t really have time to figure it out right now
because Namjoon was taking another deep breath and it looked like he was about
to speak.

   “A lot of people talk about accidents and say they don’t remember, that it’s
hazy and blurry. Maybe they’re just the lucky ones because I remember
everything. The car was on its side. I could see the ground next to me through
the broken window and there were shards of glass everywhere.”

   Jungkook didn’t need to know the details, he could see it well enough in his
head, but Namjoon kept going, eyes closed as he relived every excruciating
detail.

   “I remember being confused. It had happened so fast that I couldn’t piece it
together. Then I heard Seokjin. He was coughing, a horrible wet cough that
sounded like he was drowning. I looked above me and there he was, seat belt
holding him up from falling. His eyes were closed and there was blood
everywhere.

   I tried to reach him but my seat belt was jammed and every time I tried to
move I felt like I was being stabbed in my side. There was so much smoke, thick
and cloying and choking. It stung my eyes. I tried to call out to him but my
throat was too wrecked to speak properly. It was just broken noises but he must
have heard because his eyes opened.”

   Namjoon looked up at Jungkook, eyes shiny but no tears spilled, and the
younger felt his heart drop into his shoes. He had a horrible feeling what
Namjoon was going to say next would be awful, so awful that his own eyes began
to sting with the threat of tears.

   “There was nothing there, none of his warmth. His eyes were open but he
wasn’t there. Seokjin was already gone; I just didn’t know it at the time. It
only took a few minutes for the ambulances to get there but it was the longest
few of my life. All I could do was look up at Seokjin, broken and dying, and
wonder if they would get there before it was too late.”

   Namjoon shook his head, sniffling. He pulled away from Jungkook and smiled
sadly. “It had always been too late. We were brought to the hospital and that
was where my memory did get a bit fuzzy but not enough to make me forget:
Seokjin was hurt, very hurt and I kept trying to go see him but they wouldn’t
let me. They said I had a few broken ribs and some internal bleeding and they
whisked me off to surgery. I never even got to say goodbye to him.”

   “I- I’m really sorry,” Jungkook said quietly. He didn’t know what else to
say.

   “It’s okay,” Namjoon said, rubbing his palms into his eyes to stop his tears
before they began. “There was nothing I could have said to him that he doesn’t
already know, anyways.”

   “Didn’t, you mean,” Jungkook corrected quietly.

   “No, I mean doesn’t.” The elder turned back to him, sighing. “Seokjin might
be gone but he is not dead.”

   “Wait, what?” Jungkook wasn’t sure what Namjoon meant. “Did he or didn’t he
die?” He hadn’t meant for his tone to sound as demanding as it was but Namjoon
didn’t seem bothered.

   “The Seokjin I knew and loved died in that accident but his body is alive.”

   Jungkook listened as Namjoon explained how Seokjin had received brain
trauma, how he’d lost most of his cognitive abilities and was in an almost
constant comatose state now.

   “So he’s alive but he’s not him anymore?”

   “No,” Namjoon answered sadly. “He is not him. He cannot eat or drink or go
to the bathroom himself anymore. He’s awake but it’s like there’s no one
upstairs. His body performs the most basic of functions on instinct, like
blinking and breathing but that’s where it ends.”

   “But can he understand when you talk to him? Do you think he remembers you
at all?”

   “I like to believe so,” Namjoon admitted, “But the doctors said he most
likely can’t.”

   “So that’s where you go Thursday’s after work?”

   Namjoon nodded. “Even if the doctors say he can’t hear me I’m still going to
keep trying. I can’t leave him alone. I wont,” He corrected.

   “I had no idea,” Jungkook muttered. He leaned back into the couch and tried
to absorb all the new information he’d learned. It was hard to enough to
believe Namjoon had been carrying this secret the whole time but the fact that
he visited his high school boyfriend every day for years... It put Namjoon in a
whole new light for him. The differences between him and The Monster were
growing clearer every day. They were sugar and spice, murder and everything
nice all wrapped up in one package.

   “The reason I told you is because I’d like for you to come with me to visit
him today.”

   Jungkook looked up at him in surprise and confusion, completely blind–sided
by the request. “M-Me? You want to bring me to see Seokjin?”

   Namjoon nodded. He was trying his best to seem confident but Jungkook knew
him well enough to see the fear lurking behind his steady gaze. Fear of what
though? Rejection? Humiliation? That Jungkook would somehow hurt Seokjin? From
what he had heard Seokjin was as pure and sweet as a child. Jungkook would
never dream of hurting him and he didn’t need meet him to know that. He didn’t
want Namjoon to fear for Seokjin’s safety because of him.

   “Are you sure? Will he be okay with that, meeting me?”

   Namjoon smiled, the closest to a genuine smile Jungkook had gotten since
he’d begun explaining the situation. “Yes,” he replied. “I believe he would
love to.”
 
===============================================================================
 
   True to The Monster’s words Jungkook literally could not walk. He thought
that would put a crimp in their plans but Namjoon somehow produced a
wheelchair. “I’ve had it for a while,” he said nonchalantly as he loaded it
into the back of his vehicle. “Over the years you pick things up when you work
at a hospital.” Jungkook eyed him suspiciously, thinking it was a little too
coincidental he miraculously owned one, especially given he’d admitted to going
out in the morning, but in the end he said nothing. He knew this was going to
be hard on Namjoon and he didn’t want to make things harder by being an asshole
and arguing over something small.

   The drive there was mostly silent. If Namjoon’s fingers gripped the steering
wheel just a little tighter than normal, well, Jungkook couldn’t blame him. If
he was bringing someone to meet The Monster and he knew they could hurt or
expose the elder he’d probably be pretty tense too. Not that he didn’t think
The Monster could take care of himself; he’d proven quite capable of that. It
was just that matters of the heart, he was learning, were not rational or
justified. He would worry for The Monster’s well being in a dangerous situation
no matter what, even if they had the upper hand.

   The radio played classic rock quietly between them as they made their way.
Jungkook wasn’t sure what to say and he wasn’t sure Namjoon knew either.
Namjoon was bringing Jungkook into a part of his life that no one else was
given the invitation to. First The Monster and now Namjoon: they were trusting
Jungkook unequivocally, giving him the power to destroy them both in their own
ways. Jungkook wasn’t going to take that lightly. He had earned their trust and
he was going to make sure he kept it.

   As they arrived at the gate to the estate for the home Seokjin lived in
Jungkook took in the scenery around him. Bright green grass covered the front
of the property and stretched around to the back with lilac bushes lining a
small front garden. There were so many types of flowers everywhere; The only
reason Jungkook even recognized the lilacs was he’d encountered them in his
search for the flower left at the first crime scene.

   “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” Namjoon’s voice was laced with a bittersweet
sadness. Jungkook turned to him and nodded, smiling lightly once before looking
back out the window. “I wanted him to be somewhere as beautiful as he is, so he
doesn’t have to forget.” Jungkook didn’t ask what he was afraid Seokjin would
forget because he didn’t need to. According to the doctors he had forgotten
everything. He didn’t think he could blame Namjoon for hoping against hope that
something remained. He would want the same thing if it was The Monster in there
instead. He stayed silent, reflecting on those thoughts as they pulled up the
drive and to the front door.

   “Wait here,” Namjoon said sternly before getting out to grab the wheelchair.

   “As if I’ve got anywhere else to go,” the younger muttered under his breath
once Namjoon closed the door.

   He took the opportunity to get a closer look at the actual building the home
was in. Greenburn Rehabilitation Center was written on a bronze placard next to
the heavy oak front doors. The actual structure was red brick and looked at
least thirty years old. It gave off a soothing vibe and his nerves lessened
just a smidgen. It looked closer to a castle than a hospital. He understood why
they’d chosen this place.

   Namjoon came around the car and opened the door, unfolding the chair and
helping Jungkook into it. They made their way to the front desk. It was a bit
of a struggle with the front door but once they were in the rest was easy.

   The woman at the front desk seemed to know Namjoon. She hesitated only a
second on Jungkook’s face before smiling and waving them in. The elder pushed
him down the hallway, moving through every twist and turn confidently and
without pause. Of course he would know the path perfectly; he’d been taking it
every week for years.

   They stopped in front of a closed door, 253 K. Seokjin written on it. “This
is it. Are you ready?” Namjoon’s voice sounded no more confident than Jungkook
felt.

   He took a deep breath and tried not to over think what was about to happen.
“Not really,” he admitted. “To be honest I’m a little nervous with how highly
you talk about him.”

   Namjoon moved to crouch in front of him. He placed his hand over top of
Jungkook’s and gave him a reassuring smile. “There’s nothing to worry about.
He’ll love you, I promise.”

   Jungkook nodded his head but inside he was still nervous. Seokjin was the
most important person in the world to Namjoon and meeting him was sort of a big
deal given he was now in a relationship with the other person living inside his
body. He had to make a good impression here. He was confident if he did Namjoon
would finally accept him 100% and him and The Monster could continue on
(relatively) hassle-free.

   “Alright,” Namjoon said, standing up and gripping the door knob. He looked
down at Jungkook, his almond eyes shining in a way the younger had never seen
before, and grinned from ear to ear. “Let’s do it.”

   He knocked quickly on the door twice, then once more before opening it. He
moved back and grabbed Jungkook’s chair, rolling him through the doorway before
going back to close it.

   The first thing Jungkook noticed was that the room smelled pleasantly like
citrus; not so much as to be overpowering but just light enough to tickle
gently at his nose. It was like a nicer version of the floor cleaner his mom
used to use and the aroma filled the room and Jungkook with a nostalgic
comfort. The second thing he noticed was a man by the window, also in a
wheelchair. His back was to them and all Jungkook could see right now was a
short brown mop of hair. It wasn’t until Namjoon parked the chair next to
Seokjin’s that he could see his face.

   He barely held back a gasp at just how beautiful the other boy was. Namjoon
had said he was gorgeous but the younger hadn’t really been prepared for it.
His features were defined but not too sharp, his jaw and nose sculpted to
adorable little points. His lips were full, fuller than Namjoon’s and much
pinker. Jungkook had wondered whether there would be scars from the accident
but his face was as unblemished as a runway model’s.

   His eyes though... they were gorgeous, no doubt about it but they were just
staring out the window blankly. He understood what Namjoon had meant when he’d
was nothing was there. Seokjin didn’t even seem to be aware of them, or
anything for that matter.

   “Hey Jinnie.” Namjoon moved to kneel in front of them, placing one hand very
delicately on Seokjin’s pajama-clad knee and gestured with his other to
Jungkook. “This is my friend, Jungkook. He wanted to meet you.”

   The younger smiled nervously and did a small wave (which he immediately
regretted as it made him feel like a child). “Hello Seokjin.”

   There was no response but Namjoon seemed used to that. He squeezed Seokjin’s
knee lightly before moving back to sit cross-legged on the ground in front of
them, beaming up at the eldest.

   “Today’s his birthday. He’s eighteen now. Isn’t in nice you got to meet him
today of all days?” Still no response but Namjoon was unfazed. He grinned up at
Seokjin. “Don’t worry, I made sure to buy him a cake. It wasn’t quite as good
as one of your parties but then again you always had a knack for out doing
yourself again and again.”

   Jungkook felt almost like he was intruding on a private moment with the way
Namjoon changed around Seokjin. He got happier and sillier, making more jokes
and grinning wider than he normally did. It was like he was just Namjoon,
nobody else inside. It wasn’t that Jungkook liked the idea of The Monster being
so far away but he did sort of like seeing how happy Namjoon was. He’d spent
his entire life seeking out the joy the elder was feeling right now. He’d found
it recently, and although it was a bit different for the two of them, he
understood a little of how Namjoon felt.

   He listened as Namjoon launched into a story of a birthday party Seokjin had
thrown for his step-brother Jimin in high school. It had been murder mystery
themed (fitting) and he’d even gotten the drama club to play a few roles
through it. Apparently he’d also managed to convince the cheerleading team to
perform somehow, gotten a popular local band to play for free and supplied
alcohol to everyone for the whole night.

   “Of course you didn’t drink; You were too busy making sure Jimin stayed out
of trouble. That didn’t stop him from finding it though.” Namjoon laughed
boisterously. “Man, I thought Troy was gonna kick the shit out of him when he
found him in the bathroom with his girlfriend. How you talked him out of it is
beyond me. You even managed to get him to apologize!”

   Jungkook chuckled and Namjoon seemed to remember he was there. He smiled
sheepishly at Jungkook before turning back to Seokjin.

   “Anyways, I wanted to introduce you two because Jungkook is living with me
now. I thought you would both get along well.”

   And so it went, with Namjoon leading the conversation and Jungkook adding
little bits here and there. Mostly it was Namjoon reminiscing about memories
and things that that two of them had done before the accident. Namjoon didn’t
once make it seem sad though. The entire time his smile was blindingly bright
and very real. He really loved Seokjin.

   He found he genuinely enjoyed hearing about Namjoon’s past. It was
interesting getting a peak into the elder’s life before things had changed so
much. Time flew by and suddenly Namjoon was announcing they had to leave.
“Thanks for letting us stop by,” Namjoon said to Seokjin.

   Jungkook turned to the oldest, slipping on a polite smile that was mostly
sincere. “Yes. I really enjoyed meeting you, Seokjin. I hope I can come to see
you again.”

   Seokjin’s lips twitched, a little at first but than more until they pulled
up into what could only be described as a smile. Jungkook’s mouth opened in
shock, no words leaving them but still unwilling to close. Namjoon had said
Seokjin couldn’t express emotion or pain. He’d said it yet here the eldest was,
a slight but happy grin on his face. It only lasted a few seconds before his
face returned to the blank slate it had been previously but it was more than
the tlunger had expected to receive. Jungkook turned to Namjoon but the elder
was already moving towards Seokjin, wide eyes trained on his face.

   “Seokjin?” Namjoon knelt closer to him, his large hands wrapping themselves
around Seokjin’s small ones. He looked hopefully up at him. “Jinnie?”

   Jungkook held his breath as he watched, waiting for the oldest to respond.
They waited and waited. They could have heard a pin drop in the absolute
silence. After a few minutes Namjoon’s smile slipped a fraction. He held
Seokjin’s hands tighter, looking up at him with hope and joy, maybe a bit of
fear hidden beneath it all. “It’s okay, Jinnie. If its too hard you don’t have
to do anything. You did so well now already. I’m still here and Jungkook’s
still here. We’re already so happy so don’t worry, okay? We’ll come back and we
can try again.”

   They left shortly after, saying goodbye to Seokjin and promising to see him
again next week. Namjoon wheeled him slowly down the hall, not a word spoken.
Jungkook thought it was because Namjoon’s eyes were growing very shiny and his
mind was probably quite muddled. They stopped at the front desk on the way out
and Namjoon asked to speak to one of the doctors. He explained what had
happened, asking them if there had been any improvements in his condition, his
excitement becoming more and more clear.

   The doctor seemed sympathetic to Namjoon’s situation, placing a hand on his
shoulder in what was supposed to be comforting but came off as stiff and
formal. “No, no changes. I’m sorry. It was probably just a muscle spasm.”

   The ride back was completely silent. Namjoon seemed to be thinking very
seriously about something. He chewed on his bottom lip the whole way back,
deeply lost in his own thoughts. He gripped the steering wheel tighter
sporadically, like whatever he was thinking made him nervous. Jungkook could
only imagine the things going through his mind after the days events.

   Joy for the possibilities, anger at the world for everything, fear of what
would change now. The most overpowering one seemed to be hope. It radiated off
of him in waves, filling the vehicle and sneaking it’s way into Jungkook as
well.

   He wasn’t sure how it would work if Seokjin got better, how it would affect
things. Namjoon would probably tell the elder the truth. He couldn’t hide it
from Seokjin if they got back together. Jungkook wondered what he would say,
what he would think about the fact that Jungkook was in love with The Monster
and they killed together, Namjoon just sort of there for the ride.

   Wait... in love? Had he just admitted he was in love? Was it possible for
him to love? He’d never done it before. Of course everyone peddled that “true
love, your one is out there” stuff but he’d never bought any of it. The only
times he’d even seen it were all disgustingly cheesy moments, full of sharing
desserts and kissing each other in public, nothing at all like him what they
were doing. Was this, what him and The Monster had, love too?

   “Oh,” he breathed out, unable to keep the oxygen from rushing out of his
lungs. The realization hung in the air around him, inescapable now that he’d
come to it.

   “What’s that?”

   He regarded Namjoon carefully, taking in his face and imagining it was The
Monster next to him. He thought of what he would feel and think of, what he
would want, both to do and say. He did this for a minute and after deciding
that the answer to those questions was everything, that he couldn’t narrow down
what he wanted because there was just too much, he nodded slowly.

   “I’m in love with him.”

   “What? Who? Seokjin?”

   “Of course not,” Jungkook corrected quickly when Namjoon gave him an
uncomfortable look. “The Monster. I’m in love with him.”

   “I know,” the elder replied nonchalantly, glancing over his shoulder and
switching lanes, as casually as if they were discussing the Sunday crossword.

   “What? You know? How could you know? I only just figured it out!”

   Namjoon laughed at him, taking one hand off the wheel to ruffle the
younger’s hair much to the latter’s discontent. “You may have only just figured
it out but that doesn’t mean we’re all as naïve.”

   “Really?” Jungkook turned sideways to face Namjoon now, giving him a look of
annoyed disbelief. “You’re calling me naïve?” The elder was naivety in human
form for fucks sake! That was the darkest pot imaginable calling the kettle
black.

   “I’m not naïve; I just don’t believe in violence.”

   “Oookay then,” he responded. He wasn’t buying it, not even a little but the
mood was too good for him to spoil now. Namjoon deserved to revel in his
happiness a little longer.

   By the time they got home Namjoon had managed to talk Jungkook into playing
Smash Bros with him. He’d never played video games much but it was one of the
few he had on occasion played with Jace. He wasn’t fantastic or anything but he
was at least half way decent. Better than Namjoon apparently because he beat
him almost every round. As much as Jungkook didn’t want to admit it out loud,
it was sort of fun... But he would take that to the grave.

   A few hours later they had just finished a particularly brutal and close
round, Namjoon managing to clinch it just barely at the end, when the elder’s
phone rang. As he pulled it out of his pocket Jungkook busied himself deciding
which character he was going to use next. He tried his best not to eavesdrop
and instead was debating between Samus and Kirby when the elder sat bolt
upright, phone held so tightly in his fingers that his knuckles were beginning
to turn white.

   “Wh-What? That- it has to be a mistake. We were just there. He was fine! You
must have called the wrong person.”
   Jungkook watched as whoever Namjoon was talking to responded and the colour
drained completely from the elder’s face. His breathing sped up, short,
stuttering gasps bordering on hyperventilation as he shook his head vigorously.
“No! No, you’re wrong! He cant- No! I don’t believe it. You’re wrong,” he
repeated. He sounded desperate.

   Jungkook strained to hear but the person on the other side of the phone was
too quiet. He was getting extremely worried now. Namjoon looked bad, very bad,
and his breathing had managed to become more erratic as sobs wound their way in
between his shallow breaths.

   “No, I ca- I just- I don’t believe. I can’t believe. I need to- I need to
see him! I’m coming down there.”

   Jungkook moved closer but Namjoon was too wrapped up in his conversation to
notice. He could hear some of the other person’s voice now. “... are sorry Mr.
Kim but according to the family’s wishes no one is allowed to see him until
they identify the body. My hands are tied.”

   It couldn’t be... He looked up in horror as Namjoon shook his head again, so
fast Jungkook was surprised he didn’t break it. “No, you don’t understand. He
would want me to come!”

   “I’m sorry but there’s nothing I can do. I called you out of courtesy. All
official documents list them as guardians and the power is in their hands. I’ll
call you once the family arrives and reaches a decision.”

   “Wait! Don’t-“ The dial tone sounded through the receiver and Namjoon cried
out in anguish. He threw his phone and it hit the wall, cracking the screen as
little pieces of plastic fell to the ground. Namjoon screamed, his voice
ringing loudly off the concrete walls of the apartment, and fell to the ground.
He screamed again and Jungkook’s heart broke inside.

   “Namj-“ He couldn’t even get the elder’s name out before he screamed again,
and again, letting his pain and frustration loose on nothing and everything.
Jungkook leaned down to reach out to him but he just pushed him away. His fists
came down onto the hardwood floor and he pounded on it as sobs wrenched
themselves free from his chest.

   Jungkook watched in shock as the usually calm Namjoon lost it. He hit the
ground over and over again until his hands started to bleed but he didn’t even
seem to notice. The younger couldn’t watch anymore. He reached out and grabbed
Namjoon’s arms, holding them down forcefully. The elder was stronger and fought
back, dragging Jungkook down and into the coffee table. The younger winced,
pain clouding his vision for a moment before shaking it off. He wrapped his
arms around Namjoon in a bear hug, using all his strength to pin the elder’s
arms to his side.

   He snarled but it dissolved into a wail halfway through. He thrashed in
Jungkook’s grip but the adrenaline seemed to be wearing off and his sobs got
stronger and stronger.

   “Shh, it’s gonna be okay.” He wasn’t sure he believed it but it was what
Namjoon needed to hear right now so he said it confidently and without
hesitation, burying his head in the back of Namjoon’s neck.

   He was sobbing violently now, gasping for air hysterically. He finally gave
up and slumped into the younger’s embrace.
   “No,” he sobbed into Jungkook’s skin. “No, no, no.”

   “Breathe,” Jungkook reminded him. He rubbed Namjoon’s lower back absent
mindedly, shushing the elder’s cries as soothingly as he could.

   “I can- Oh god, I’m gonna be sick.” He ripped himself from Jungkook’s hold
and barely managed to turn his head before he spewed all over the ground and
part of the couch. He gagged again, doubling over. Between his sobbing and
heaving Jungkook was surprised he could breathe at all, although from the
sounds of it that wasn’t go too well for him either.

   Jungkook continued rubbing his back, saying whatever things he could think
of to make Namjoon feel better. He wondered where The Monster was in all of
this. Was he fighting his way out? Was he hurt too? Was he trying to console
Namjoon? Wherever he was, whatever he was doing, he hoped it was helping
somehow.

   Finally Namjoon’s heaves produced no more vomit and his sobs lessened to a
more manageable level. Jungkook pulled the elder back into himself, using his
sleeve to wipe clean any of the leftover throw up from his mouth. He held
Namjoon to his chest, wrapping his arms around his front, and tucked his chin
into the crook of the elder’s neck. He kissed his cheek softly and just held
him: held him through the sobs, through the endless tears, held him until
Namjoon became silent, tears sliding slowly down his puffy cheeks.

   “He was better,” Namjoon whispered in a broken voice. “He was going to be
better.”

   “I know,” Jungkook said softly. “I wanted him to be better too.” The younger
gave a quiet laugh, resting his chin on Namjoon’s shoulder. “You know, I bet he
would have kicked your ass for what you did to your hands.”

   Namjoon looked down at his hands, holding them out and observing them like
he was only just noticing the broken skin, and let out a quiet sound; It wasn’t
quite a laugh but it wasn’t a sob either. “Yeah, probably. He would have hit me
in the head and called me a brat and then told me to take care of myself
first.”

   Jungkook hummed, imagining it from what little he knew of Seokjin. He bet he
would have been sassy about it, too. He seemed like the type. “He was caring.”
It wasn’t a question; he could tell, both from Namjoon’s stories and from the
softness he’d seen in the eldest’s face, like he’d never frowned before.

   “More than should have been humanly possible,” the elder agreed softly.

   They sat like that for a while. Namjoon sniffled occasionally, his tears
having mostly dried up but not completely. Jungkook just stayed quiet, giving
Namjoon the shoulder to cry on he needed. He wondered if Namjoon was imaging
Seokjin holding him and he felt his heart pang dangerously. He kissed Namjoon’s
cheek again, letting his lips linger against his skin and Namjoon pushing back
into him slightly was answer enough to him.

   “Jungkook?” Namjoon’s voice was smaller than he’d ever heard it before and
suddenly Jungkook decided he’d do almost anything to steal the pain away from
the elder, even if just for a moment.

   “Yeah?”

   “Can you sing to me?”

   For a moment he was surprised but then he nodded his agreement into
Namjoon’s hair. “What do you want to hear,” he murmured into the elder’s scalp.
Namjoon shivered but shrugged his shoulders weakly.

   “Anything.”

   Jungkook didn’t know what song Namjoon would like or enjoy so he went with
something he’d heard a few times before on the radio and not completely hated.

   “Lately I been thinking, thinking bout what we had...” Namjoon burrowed
further into him and he continued. “I know it was hard, it was all that we
knew. Have you been drinkin to take all the pain away? I wish that I could give
you what you deserved.”

   Namjoon turned so that he could hold Jungkook back. His head rested in the
crook of Jungkook’s arm, his eyes staring straight ahead at the wall and his
hands holding Jungkook’s tightly. Jungkook’s throat threatened to constrict at
the raw hurt in those eyes. He gathered what strength he had left and kept
singing.

   “There’s nothing like us, there’s nothing like you and me, together through
the storm.”

   The elder closed his eyes, a deep breath in and then out, in and out.
Jungkook watched him as he sang. His heart hung heavy in his chest.

   “Lost in confusion, like an illusion. You know I’m used to makin your day.”
The next words wanted to get stuck in his throat so that he had to force them
out. “But that is the past now, we didn’t last now. I guess that this is meant
to be.”

   Namjoon’s breaths were more even now, steadier and further apart. Jungkook
guessed he was probably a few moments away from falling asleep. He wasn’t sure
how much time had passed since the phone call but he knew Namjoon needed rest.
Nothing was going to fix this but a good night’s sleep, and a few hours of not
having to remember, would help.

   “We were so perfect. But baby I just want you to see. There’s nothing like
us, there’s nothing like you and me...”

   Namjoon had fallen asleep now, hiccupy breaths let out beneath the younger’s
chin. Jungkook didn’t move yet, afraid to wake the elder. He sat for a while
like that, holding Namjoon as he slept and trying to figure out what to do. He
couldn’t think of anything that would make Namjoon feel better; That upset him
more than anything. He couldn’t explain his sudden feelings for Namjoon’s
happiness. It was confusing and troublesome to care so much about someone’s
wellbeing but it seemed he had no choice in the matter now he only hoped he
could do something to lessen Namjoon’s burdens.

   After a few minutes he gingerly pulled himself out from under the elder,
being careful not to rouse him from his slumber. He didn’t want to leave
Namjoon on the couch but he also didn’t want to leave him alone.

   He carefully knelt down and positioned his arms under the elder, slowly
moving to stand up. He was heavy for his size (all that damn muscle) and
Jungkook nearly lost his balance. He steadied himself, glancing down to assure
Namjoon hadn’t woken up, and began the arduous journey of getting him to the
bedroom. His body was screaming at him but he grit his teeth and worked through
it. He pushed the pain by his waist to the very back of his mind and made his
way, step by agonizing step, across the apartment.

   When he finally reached the bed he gently lowered Namjoon onto it,
swallowing the hiss of pain before it could escape. After a couple deep breaths
he looked back down at the elder. He looked so small now, curled in on himself
like that. Jungkook carefully removed the blanket from beneath him and lay it
across the elder’s sleeping form.

   He laid down next to the elder, making sure to be slow so he didn’t hurt
himself, and just watched him sleep. He knew he couldn’t fall asleep any time
soon, partially because it was only 10 PM and partially because he felt an ache
inside of himself that had nothing to do with his own pain. He wanted to make
things better for Namjoon somehow but he couldn’t think of anything.

   He wondered if maybe he was becoming more human now. He’d never cared about
anyone before The Monster and Namjoon. The irony of it was not lost on him:
that it took him finally succumbing to the darkest parts of himself to find the
warm-hearted bits too.

   When he finally did fall asleep all he dreamed of was Seokjin: smiling and
laughing and holding Namjoon the way he wanted to be held, something Jungkook
would never be able to give him.
***** Part IV *****
Chapter Summary
     The waiting ends and finally it's time for Jungkook’s first kill.
Chapter Notes
     WARNING:::: This chapter is the darkest yet and I really encourage
     those easily triggered not to read. Even some of you who read the
     earlier chapters might find this too much so if you start to feel
     that way please stop reading.
     This chapter includes: GRAPHIC sex scenes, GRAPHIC depictions of
     violence and death, just general psychotic behavior~
      
     Those of you still reading: Welcome to Jungkook’s final descent into
     the madness that is this twisted love.
See the end of the chapter for more notes
 SEPTEMBER 6th

   When Jungkook woke up the next morning he was groggy and tired still, like
he hadn’t slept all night. He rolled over and opened his eyes a crack,
expecting to see the elder but instead was met with air. The other side of the
bed was empty and Namjoon was gone. For a split second the younger was afraid
Namjoon had gone off in a fit of despair and done something stupid and
dangerous that would affect both him and The Monster. He couldn’t bear the
thought of losing them both so suddenly. His panic only lasted a moment before
he smelled the familiar and wonderful scent of bacon drifting through the crack
in the slightly ajar bedroom door and relief flooded though him.

   He was careful getting up, noting with satisfaction that the pain in his
backside was not quite as fresh anymore. It was a low and subtle ache now,
thank the heavens. He made his way slowly through the doorway and into the
apartment, yawning and rubbing the sleep and crust from his eyes.

   Namjoon was indeed making breakfast in the kitchen. There was bacon sizzling
over the left element and eggs on the right and the smell was absolutely
delightful. Jungkook’s stomach churned and it reminded him of how long it had
been since they’d eaten anything. They’d been planning on ordering a pizza to
celebrate last night but then the call had happened and.... well, needless to
say food hadn’t been a priority after their reason to celebrate had been yanked
away. All that sat in his stomach now was the vague remains of cake when he
burped.

   Jungkook padded slowly towards the kitchen, wary of spooking Namjoon,
especially in his fragile condition. He was planning on stepping into Namjoon’s
field of vision before speaking but he was still a few steps away when the
elder spoke, startling Jungkook instead.

   “Good morning.”

   Jungkook paused, surprised that Namjoon was still as aware of his
surroundings as ever. Maybe some things never changed. He made the last few
steps forward and nodded at Namjoon. “Good morning,” he echoed softly.

   Namjoon didn’t look up from the food nor did his face seem to change. He
continued poking at the bacon and eggs. He looked... okay. Jungkook was
confused. Last night Namjoon had been destroyed by Seokjin’s death. The younger
had been sure he’d wake up to find a depressed and vulnerable Namjoon, perhaps
sobbing into a carton of ice cream or watching sad movies in the living room,
curled up on the couch with a blanket and probably sobbing into ice cream then
too. The man in front of him right now looked no more upset than if he’d
stepped in a puddle or been a few minutes late to work. Why did he seem so
unaffected suddenly?

   “How are you feeling?” Jungkook asked tentatively. He wasn’t sure what
answer he wanted to hear, so long as it was honest.

   “Fine,” the elder responded politely.

   Jungkook waited for him to elaborate but he said nothing else. “Fine?”

   “Yes, fine.” Namjoon turned the element off and began plating their food and
carrying it to the living room, all without returning Jungkook’s gaze. He
showed no signs of grief or any emotion. It was more than a little confusing
for Jungkook.

   He wasn’t good with feelings. He had understood enough to get by in school,
although that was mostly due to the fact that Jace’s emotions had consisted
almost entirely of lust and anger. It had been easy to avoid probing deeper
with any of his “friends” by changing the topic of conversation or making a
crude joke. As such he was pretty lost right now. He was new to the whole
“caring” thing. He’d managed fine yesterday, when Namjoon had needed him so
desperately; It had been almost instinct then. He knew most people wanted to be
held when they were sad, knew they wanted to hear kind words and be told
everything would be fine even if it wasn’t. That much he could do. This... this
was completely out of his depth. He had no idea if Namjoon was just pretending
to be okay or if maybe he was happy Seokjin wasn’t in pain anymore or if he
thought he’d moved on to a better place: the younger just didn’t. know.

   He followed the elder to the living area and thanked him when he handed
Jungkook his food. They ate in silence. Jungkook nibbled on his bacon and
subtly watched the other for any signs of, well, anything: a sniffle, a sigh,
some sign he wasn’t as okay as he was trying to look.

   After a few minutes Namjoon sighed tiredly and looked up at him. “Yes?”

   “Nothing,” Jungkook said immediately, swallowing his toast past the lump in
his throat when Namjoon gave him a look saying he didn’t believe that one bit.
“It’s just...” He chewed thoughtfully on his lip, trying to figure out a way to
bring up the subject without upsetting the elder.

   “Just what?” Namjoon prodded.

   “Just, well, you seem okay now but last night you really weren’t and I was
just wondering...” He wasn’t sure exactly what he was wondering if he was being
honest with himself. He just wanted to know what the elder was thinking.

   Namjoon shrugged, going back to stabbing at the eggs on his plate and
bringing a fork full up to his mouth. “I had time,” he said between bites.

   Jungkook didn’t know much about the grieving process but he was pretty
fucking sure it took a whole lot longer than one night’s sleep. “You mean you
got over it in a few hours?”

   “No,” Namjoon said with a shake of his head. “Not over it but I know he
wouldn’t want me to be sad so I’m trying not to be.” He said it as confidently
as normal but his exterior cracked and for just a second Jungkook could see the
pain behind his eyes again. He blinked and it was gone. “I just want to move on
and do the best for Seokjin that I can.”

   “Alright,” Jungkook responded carefully. That was a fair reason. He wasn’t
sure if that was what was actually best or not but who was he to argue?
Ultimately It was Namjoon’s decision and if this was how he wanted to cope then
Jungkook could only support him through it (or at least not berate him).

   He expected the elder to call in to work for the day but a few minutes later
he left to get ready as usual.

   “Are you sure?” The younger asked for the third time as he watched Namjoon
brush his teeth.

   “Yes,” the elder said for the third time. He spit into the sink and rinsed
his mouth out with water, gargling it in a way that would usually have gotten
on Jungkook’s nerves if he hadn’t already been walking on eggshells for the
elder.

   “I need the distraction,” he said, turning back to pat Jungkook’s shoulder
before moving past him.

   Jungkook wanted to argue but he felt like at this point, after asking three
fucking times that if Namjoon wanted to change his mind or talk to Jungkook
about it he would have.

   “I’ll be home at the usual time,” he told the younger as he pulled his shoes
on. He said goodbye, managing a small but forced smile before closing the door
behind him. It wasn’t much in the way of getting better but Jungkook still
considered it a victory, albeit a small one. From that moment on he let the
issue drop. He felt like a nagging wife and Namjoon clearly wanted to work
through this himself. If he needed to talk he would tell Jungkook. Hopefully.

   As the days passed Namjoon continued his relative silent treatment. He said
good morning and good night and made polite conversation but the subject of
Seokjin wasn’t bought up again.

   The Monster was much more talkative. He worked more and more with Jungkook,
running through what he’d taught the younger and quizzing him regularly and
without warning. Sometimes he’d wake Jungkook up in the middle of the night and
the younger’s sleep addled brain would struggle to find the words to describe
the difference between stainless steel and carbon steel tactical knives. It was
like Jungkook was in school again. The only difference was this time he wanted
to get the answers right. He stored every detail from The Monster deep inside
of his memory and ran through them whenever he had time. He knew that both
their lives could literally hang in the balance so he took it none too lightly.

   His backside no longer stung and the wound on his head was almost completely
healed. Namjoon had cleaned and applied new bandages to it every day,
diligently making sure it got better as quickly as possible. Jungkook probably
could have done it himself but he still felt guilty for worrying the elder
before and with Seokjin’s death still fresh in his mind he bit down his own
pride and played the good little patient. If it would help Namjoon feel better
to help him then so be it.

   The Monster finally showed Jungkook the first floor of his apartment. He’d
forgotten about its existence entirely until the elder brought it up. As he
followed him down the stairs he wondered what would be behind the door. Maybe
it was a replica of an operating room that he used to kill his prey? Or perhaps
it was one giant weapons locker, filled with shelves and shelves of knives and
daggers, swords and various other assorted blades. It could even have been a
trophy room where he kept mementos from his victims, though he had never
mentioned anything to Jungkook. His mind ran wild with the possibilities.
   But when The Monster led him through the thick, metal door it wasn’t what
Jungkook had thought it would be. He’d expected all types of slaughter-eques
rooms straight out of a horror movie; Instead it was just a giant storage room,
full of neatly stacked boxes and closed cabinets, save for one corner where
there was a desk on the far wall, a hanging light casting the rest of the room
in shadow. He led Jungkook there, gesturing for him to sit in one of the two
office chairs provided. Jungkook did so, wondering idly if the elder had added
a second chair just for him.

   The bright fluorescent light above them cast half of the elder’s face in
shadow and gave him a sinister appearance that only added to Jungkook’s already
building anticipation. He waited patiently (mostly) for the elder to say
whatever was on his mind.

   “I know you still have some unanswered questions. You’ve been incredibly
patient so far and I feel you’ve earned the right to be told everything so go
ahead: ask any question and I will tell you what you want to know.”

   “Really?” Jungkook didn’t bother hiding his surprise or eagerness. He sat up
straight, eyes wide with excitement and waited for the elder to reply and tell
him he was serious. Everything had led to this moment. He was going to take the
final step.

   “Yes, really.” The Monster leaned forward, elbows laid on his thighs and
intertwining his hands, looking at Jungkook with a warm sense of approval.
“I’ve taught you everything I can as far as how I do it. Now is time you
learned why.”

   The younger’s heart sped up; he could feel it thumping inside his chest like
a jack rabbit. “Please,” he requested, somewhat desperately. He didn’t mean to
sound so but he’d been waiting so long already for this exact moment that he
didn’t even care anymore.

   The elder leaned back into his chair and stared down at Jungkook, eyes
reflecting a similar yearning like the younger felt right now. He wondered what
it was that The Monster wanted right now and his train of thought went slightly
off track. The barest stirring in Jungkook’s loins had him shifting in his seat
as he told himself not here, not now. “What would you like to know first,” He
asked slowly, the words lingering in the air between them.

   Jungkook chewed on his lower lip, thinking of what he still didn’t know. Why
didNamjoonchoose his prey? Where did The Monster take them to kill them? Why
did he do it every two weeks and not more or less? He had so many, enough that
he could probably interview the elder and write his autobiography. The actual
specifics of The Monster’s kills hadn’t yet been revealed to him. Out of the
many one was tugging at Jungkook’s curiosity more than the rest. “How does
Namjoon pick the prey? Why does he do it? I though he was against you killing.”

   “Ah,” The Monster hummed, crossing his legs and tapping his chin. “I don’t
believe I’ve ever told you that full story. You recall my first kill, yes? The
one I tossed in the river?” Jungkook nodded. “Well, after that Namjoon wanted
us to turn ourselves in. You see I had never come out before that. Namjoon had
kept me locked away very well. With Seokjin’s help,” he added.

   “He was quite intent on going to the police. He was positive heaven nor hell
could stop him from ‘making it right.’ Until I reminded him of Seokjin, that
is. Who’s going to look after him if you’re in prison? It didn’t take long to
change his mind after that.”

   “Ah.” Jungkook understood now. He had wondered why Namjoon let The Monster
carry on killing when he was so clearly opposed to murder but bring Seokjin
into the equation and things changed. Namjoon was, had been, unfailingly loyal
to the man. He had said he wasn’t going to leave Seokjin alone; Being in prison
would definitely put an end to his visits. “So he didn’t turn you in but what
about him choosing for you? I don’t understand.”

   “Since he wasn’t going to be turning me in and he knew I wasn’t going to
stop, not after I’d had the first taste, we came up with a system.” The Monster
opened a drawer in the desk and pulled out a stack of manila folders. He tossed
them onto Jungkook’s lap and the younger had to scramble to keep them from
falling onto the floor. “Take a look.”

   Jungkook gave him a curious look but opened the top folder anyway. “Oh,” he
exhaled softly.

   It was her, the first and only body Jungkook had actually seen. It was a
blurry photo, taken with a cell phone or something but it was definitely her.
His eyes lingered on hers, feeling the emotions from that night rush back with
a startling strength: the awe, the confusion and desire, the hunger. The
picture was curling at the edges where his fingers clutched it too tightly and
he took a deep breath as he loosened his grip.

   There was more behind the photo. He (reluctantly) moved the photo away to
see the small stack of papers behind it. There were all sorts of documents: a
handwritten list of the places she’d been and people she’d seen, a list of
phone numbers, detailed notes on her habits.
   He pulled one piece out, holding it under the light to see it more
carefully. “ Is this... a blueprint of her hotel?” Namjoon nodded. “Wow. How’d
you get it?”

   “You’d be surprised by how many things are public record, especially older
buildings. It used to be a civil servants centre. It might have been repurposed
as a hotel but the base structure remained the same.”

   “Wow,” Jungkook repeated. The Monster had told him about his research,
obviously, but he hadn’t grasped just how in depth it was. He was once again
struck by The Monster’s meticulous attention to detail. No wonder he was so
good at not getting caught. With as much research and notes he did he could
probably get to anyone.
“You still haven’t told me how he chooses though.”

   “Ah,” The Monster said with a reserved sigh. “That is a much more boring
story. I’m afraid it’s as simple as him choosing bad people. Cliché, I know,”
he added with another sigh, “but in the end we agreed it would be his
decision.”

   “That sounds very much like Namjoon,” he muttered.

   The elder laughed harshly. “Yes, it does. I don’t know how he can stand to
be so boring.”

   Jungkook ignored the last comment because he did not want to deal with an
upset Namjoon right now. Instead he went back to the task at hand which was
figuring out as much as he could right now. “So what did they do?”

   “This and that,” The Monster waved his hand in disregard. “I’m assuming you
want to know what the woman you saw did, hmm?” Jungkook nodded his head
enthusiastically and The Monster chuckled lightly. “So eager. Yes, she did
something not-so-nice. I assume you read about her daughter, yes?”

   “Yeah. She was sick, right? Cerebral Palsy?”

   “Yes,” The Monster confirmed. “The woman I killed, her mother, was planning
on leaving the husband and daughter for a lover. She would have taken all the
money and left the father unable to take care of his own bills, let alone the
hospital ones. That is why Namjoon chose her.”

   “But how did he know?” Jungkook rolled his chair closer, intent on hearing
every detail on the nights conversation.

   “She stopped in the hospital to speak to a specialist here and spoke to her
lover on the phone. It is my understanding the husband set the appointment up.
She needed to keep up appearances until she set the paperwork in motion, I’m
assuming.”

   His nose turned up at the thought. He knew The Monster- well, actually he
didn’t know exactly what The Monster felt about kids but Jungkook thought the
idea of someone doing that was despicable. That was just him and he was about
to become a serial killer. For someone like Namjoon, who had a naturally kind
heart, it made sense that if he had to choose someone to die he’d choose
someone who hurt others.
“Is that why he chooses? To make sure it’s “bad” people?”

   “Precisely,” Namjoon spoke. “Like I said, so long as I’m the one to end
their lives I really don’t care why.”

   He thought about what it must be like for The Monster, to actually draw the
blade back. He imagined his prey, helpless and begging for mercy and The
Monster standing above them, smile glinting dangerously off of a shiny silver
blade. He drew himself up, sitting straight and took a deep breath, making one
hundred percent sure he was ready to say what he was about to. “I want to come
with you this time. I’m ready. I don’t want to just hear about it anymore; I
want to be a part of it.”

   The Monster regarded him seriously at first, eyes staring holes into him and
then he smiled, small at first until it reached his eyes and his dimples were
showing. “I believe you’re ready too. Jungkook, my dear, we’ve got quite the
night ahead of us tomorrow.”

   Jungkook’s brow furrowed as he did the mental math. Tomorrow wasn’t right.
It had only been eight days since the last time. “Tomorrow? But you always do
it two weeks apart. Tomorrow is too soon.”

   “We’re mixing things up,” the elder said as he swivelled his chair. “It will
keep the cops on their toes, so to speak.”

   “But will we be ready?” Jungkook hadn’t noticed The Monster doing any
research and while they weren’t together 24/7 he was still around the elder
enough that he couldn’t have done much without him noticing.

   The elder merely shrugged and gave him a heart-stoppingly impish grin that
made Jungkook’s heart thump faster in his chest. “Do not worry. I have it
covered. All you need to do is come along and enjoy the ride.”
   He leaned back in his chair and spread his legs a fraction and if not for
the promise Jungkook had made to Namjoon about one week of celibacy he would
jump the elder right there and then. He held back out of respect. Originally
he’d agreed because Namjoon had been worried about his physical state. While he
felt fit as a fiddle right now the elder was dealing with too many things right
now for Jungkook to add disappointing him to the stack so he held the desire
back. Instead he focused on the fact that all his effort was about to finally
pay off and his dreams would stop being just that and become reality.

   They went their separate ways for bed, with Jungkook still sleeping in the
bedroom despite his protests. He really was feeling well enough to take the
couch but The Monster had insisted. “I want you well rested,” he’d purred.
   Jungkook had to stifle a moan at the silkiness of the elders words. He
wanted so bad.... No, he told himself with a shake of his head. He had promised
Namjoon and to fuck if he was going to break that. So he curled up in the bed
on his own and tried to remind himself how important it was to be supportive of
Namjoon right now. Namjoon’s welfare = The Monster’s welfare.
   He repeated the fact over and over until the urge to get up and join the
other man on the couch was barely there. Still.. He’d only promised not to have
sex; that didn’t mean he couldn’t he take care of himself.
   His hand slipped under the covers and beneath his waistband and he licked
his lips. He was already half hard from his own imagination so it didn’t take
long before his erection was full and throbbing in his palm. His breath came
out in little pants as he jacked himself off rough and quick. Images of his
night with The Monster filled his head and heightened the pleasure until he was
so close. He rocked his hips into his hands and the slightest twinge of pain
from his backside sent him over the edge. He sucked in a shuddering breath and
bit down on his lip to hold in the moan that almost escaped as he threw his
head back and rode out this euphoria.

   Once it had faded to a pleasant buzz atop his skin he tugged his pyjama
pants off. He used the clean parts to wipe himself off and threw the soiled
bottoms off the side of the bed. He let out a long and steady breath and curled
back under the blankets. It wasn’t as good as The Monster, not by a long shot
but it was enough to keep him from breaking his promise.

   He felt sleepy now that he’d released some of his pent up tension. He pulled
the blanket up to his chin, yawned widely, and closed his eyes, allowing sleep
to take him before the endorphins wore off and he could think too much about
tomorrow.
 
   SEPTEMBER 7TH

   Jungkook woke up to The Monster’s lips on his. He hummed his agreement and
sleepily wrapped his arms around the elder to pull him down. He wasn’t
expecting the elder to allow him but none the less his weight came down to rest
half on top of Jungkook, his arm braced next to the younger’s head.

   “Good morning,” he spoke softly into Jungkook’s lips, pulling away to mouth
at his jaw.

   “Definitely,” Jungkook responded, a little breathily from the way elder’s
tongue and teeth were suddenly working on his neck. He snaked his leg out from
beneath the blanket and wrapped it around The Monster’s ankle, slotting them
more firmly together. “Can you wake me up like this every time?”

   “Mmm,” The Monster hummed. His hand came down to grip Jungkook’s leg, his
long, slender fingers wrapping around the younger’s thigh and making his breath
hitch. “Although it seems you don’t need me for that.” He pulled back to smirk
at the younger as his hand travelled upwards, gripping Jungkook’s bare hip and
squeezing. “Correct me if I’m wrong but you were wearing those sleep pants
yesterday, right?” He gestured with his head to the floor and the soiled pair
of cotton pyjamas.

   Jungkook almost blushed but it was hard to be embarrassed when The Monster’s
fingers were kneading slowly into his ass and he looked like he wanted to
devour Jungkook right then and there. “It’s better with you,” he responded
quietly and pulled the elder back down.

   The Monster complied, pressing his plush lips to Jungkook’s and licking his
way into the younger’s mouth. He tasted of toothpaste and mouthwash, with the
faintest traces of orange juice beneath it all. It made Jungkook dizzy with
desire, although when didn’t it? Everything the elder did turned him on and
made him want to seal their lips together in an unending kiss. Well, not
unending because there were plenty of other things he wanted to use their
mouths for. Speaking of...

   He pulled away from the elder, looking up into his now murky brown eyes. “I
want to suck you off,” he stated matter-of-factly.

   The Monster raised an eyebrow, giving him a puzzled look. “Really?”

   Jungkook nodded and pushed on the Monster’s chest so that he would sit up.
“Yes, so move.” The Monster didn’t move an inch. “What? You don’t want me to?"

   “Believe me, I would very much enjoy that,” he spoke, his eyes lingering on
Jungkook’s mouth before reluctantly meeting his gaze. “But Namjoon is going to
be late to work if we don’t leave now and we can’t afford any extra eyes on us
today.”

   Jungkook groaned. “Cockblock,” he muttered. “Fine,” he said louder. “Go
then.”

   The elder brought their lips together one last time, nipping and tugging on
Jungkook’s lower lip with his teeth as he pulled away. “There will be more
chances, little one. Of that I can assure you.”

   “Just go,” Jungkook sighed as The Monster stood up. “I need to study
anyway.”

   “Learn well,” he said with a wink before he left. Jungkook watched him go
and tried to will his erection away. He really did need to study up for
tonight.

   The Monster had left the information he had on the coffee table the night
before so that Jungkook could make himself familiar with their, and his first,
prey. It was a detailed sheet of information on them: everything from where he
liked to go to how often he was late on his bills. He had no idea how they got
the information but it was extremely helpful. While the elder was still taking
point Jungkook couldn’t walk in blind. He’d never forgive himself if he messed
something up and got The Monster or Namjoon in trouble. Or worse.

   He spent the whole day while Namjoon was at work preparing. By the time
Namjoon came home and he could see The Monster he had it all memorised. The
latter quizzed him, incredibly pleased when he didn’t get a single fact wrong.

   “You were born for this,” The Monster praised. He pulled Jungkook to him,
capturing his lips in a bruising kiss that left Jungkook a little breathless
and very turned on when the elder finally let go. If they weren’t about to
prepare for Jungkook’s first kill he would throw himself on the elder right
there.

   They were waiting for nightfall so Jungkook used the time to ask for a
complete rundown of the plan before they left. He still didn’t know all the
details of what was supposed to happen tonight.

   “The prey is recently out of jail. He’s staying with his sister until he can
find a place of his own. She’s supposed to be out tonight so we’ll move in,
grab him and bring him with us to the warehouse.”

   “And that’s where you bring them to kill them, a warehouse? Isn’t that a bit
too... cliché?

   The elder smirked and brought his pointer finger to cover his dimple while
resting his chin between his thumb and forefinger, looking quite pleased with
himself. “That is precisely why it’s so brilliant. One of the first things
police check into for things like this is empty warehouses and private
properties. I don’t own this warehouse but I know who does: A semi-wealthy
businessman who came in for an emergency appendectomy. He had plans for it but
they fell through and he’s too busy with his other properties right now to
create a new development plan. He’s not going to sell so for now it’s empty. I
know the maintenance schedule and when it will and will not be empty.”

   Screw James Bond and Jason Bourne; the world needed The Monster saving it.
“How did you figure that all out?”

   “Because while Namjoon might be the most unassuming individual to ever
harbour a serial killer beneath his skin he also has impeccable hearing and a
tendency to go unnoticed by most. He doesn’t even need to pay full attention to
the prey. He can go about his work while I listen. It makes it very easy to get
what we need.”

   “You really do have it all figured out. I’m impressed,” Jungkook praised.
The system was so perfect. If Namjoon didn’t look like he was paying attention
then clearly no one would think otherwise. After all, how could they know there
was someone else inside his head? All Namjoon had to do was keep his head down
and do his job and The Monster could take care of the rest. It was incredible.

   There was one other thing that he was curious about though. “Why not just
kill them at their house? Doesn’t that eliminate the danger of trying to
transport them before the kill?” It seemed like the risk of moving a victim
across town wasn’t worth it when there were easier ways.

   “Alright,” The Monster agreed. “Let’s say you decide to do that. What
happens if you kill them in their home and a family member comes home or a
visitor unexpectedly arrives? What then?”

   “But what are the odds that happens if you research properly?”

   The Monster sighed and folded his hands in front of him. “We don’t deal in
odds Jungkook. We need absolutes. You can’t perform a kill anywhere if you
don’t know all the variables. It makes it too dangerous. Yes, moving them while
they’re alive is a small risk but going into any situation that could flip on
you at any moment is a bigger risk.”

   “You plan everything down to the letter, don’t you?”

   “You need to when you do this, when you’re killing. There’s no button to go
back if you make a mistake. If you screw up and leave too much evidence you
will be caught. There are some messes that can’t be cleaned up.”

   The lump in Jungkook’s throat at the very idea of messing up and getting the
Monster caught was almost too big to swallow past. He had faith in the elder to
keep them safe but not as much in himself should he slip in The Monster’s
teachings. He knew everything backwards and forwards, fucking upside down but
as the elder kept drilling into him: Things change. Always be prepared to
adapt. Whether that meant taking another approach or knowing when to bail out
of a sticky situation, both were crucial to remember. And so The Monster
quizzed him, again and again, over and over.

   What’s the address? 783 South 5th avenue. How many points of entry and exit?
Five windows on the bottom floor and three doors, one that leads to the
basement and two to the main floor. Where will we come from? Enter through the
basement door and make our way up to the main floor. What do you do first? Cut
the phone lines and set up the radio jammer before we enter and make sure we
get to our prey before they can reach an exit. Wrong, first you make sure the
house is empty save for the prey and then you cut the phone lines and go in.

   By the end of it all Jungkook’s head was spinning, not from confusion or
exhaustion but from the sheer amount of information repeating itself in his
mind. He could go over it sixty more times if he wanted but he wouldn’t know it
better then he already did. He was ready. There was no more preparing or
waiting now. Night had begun to fall and it was time.

   They started by switching Namjoon’s license plate to a fake. He had a
shoebox full of dummy plates, all carefully chosen to be as diverse as
possible. Next was loading the vehicle, currently pulled into the small garage
at the back of the building that Jungkook hadn’t even seen before.

   “Is this why you guys live here? Because you don’t have to have anyone else
in the building being snoopy?”

   “Of course,” The Monster responded as he carefully tucked the plastic
sheeting and rolls of tape into the vehicle. “I can’t have people watching me
load a car full of knives and duct tape, now can I?”

   “Probably best not to. No,” Jungkook agreed. He handed the elder the last
box of gloves and stood back as he slammed the trunk shut. They had everything
they needed to complete the kill and clean the crime scene. All that was left
now was to do it.

   Their prey lived in the Garment District, conveniently one of the
neighbourhoods in Manhattan with the highest rates of crime. Everyone was
suspicious in some way so they should blend in easy enough (if they were seen).
They knew the house and knew where to park without being seen and avoiding the
security cameras along the streets, knew when the prey’s sister would be
leaving and for how long (Jungkook still didn’t understand how The Monster
figured that bit out) and had all the supplies to carefully and quietly get the
actual prey out of the house and into their vehicle. Everything was figured out
and they had more than one contingency plan. Nothing could be left to chance.

   He was strangely calm on the drive there. His nerves had been haywire all
day but the moment he stepped into the vehicle his heart rate slowed and his
head cleared. He hadn’t been nervous per se but the excitement had wreaked
similar havoc on him while waiting in the apartment. Now that he was going to
the kill, and they were doing it, not preparing, everything quieted down to a
whisper inside of him. He could still feel the anticipation and desire but
rather than an open flame boiling in his blood it was more like a coil,
transferring and moving the heat through his body like fuel. He could feel it
there, licking at the edge of his subconscious, reminding him of what he
couldn’t forget: life and death were the only absolutes and only one was
permanent. True power came from taking life, not giving it.
 
===============================================================================
 

   “We’re almost there,” The Monster spoke softly. He turned his head to
Jungkook, watching the younger’s reaction to his words.

   “Good,” Jungkook answered truthfully.

   The elder turned his head back to the road but his attention remained on
Jungkook. “How are you feeling?”

   “Well,” the younger carefully began, analysing his feelings. “I’m not sure
how to describe it exactly.”

   “Nervous maybe?”

   Jungkook shook his head. “Not nervous. I’m... looking forward to it. I’m
excited but at the same time I don’t feel it, like it’s something I’ve done
before.”

   He turned to The Monster just in time to see the elder crack a wide smile.
Without looking away from the road he reached over and grabbed Jungkook’s knee,
giving it a solid squeeze. “You’re going to be a natural.” Jungkook swelled
with pride at The Monster’s commendation. He wanted the elder to be proud of
him. He hoped he would live up to it.

   They parked in the same spot they had agreed upon, behind the house, hidden
just on the other side of a rundown tool shed. They crouched behind some bushes
in the alley between the streets and waited. It was quiet. Their position was a
good vantage point between the back door and the driveway, so they could see
through the fence when their prey’s sister rounded the house and got into her
car, leaving almost twenty minutes later.

   The Monster turned to Jungkook and nodded once. The younger moved around the
bushes to the grey metal box hidden behind them. He lifted the panel, taking a
pair of wire cutters out of his sweater pocket. The Monster had told him what
the phone line would look like and left cutting it up to him. The security
system installed in the house was relatively rudimentary but had some safe
guards in place, like the fact that if the wrong wire was cut the silent alarm
would go off and alert the authorities.
   The Monster was leaving this up to Jungkook, not even bothering to check if
he chose the right one before cutting. The amount of trust he was placing in
the younger was astonishing. Instead of putting pressure on Jungkook it gave
him the confidence he needed to squash the fear his irrational mind wanted to
project on him. The Monster was smart: he wouldn’t give Jungkook this task if
he didn’t know the younger could do it.

   He held the wire between his fingers, positioned it between the blades and
snipped, holding his breath. If it was the wrong wire the only way to know was
to wait for the small LED light in the bottom right to go off. If it stayed
dark then it was the right one he’d cut and they were home free.

   Five seconds. His heart was beating steadily in his chest, a consistent ba-
dump, ba-dump. Four seconds. His eyes didn’t leave the small plastic covering
or blink.

   Three seconds.

   Two seconds.

   One second.

   Nothing. Jungkook let the air out of his lungs and placed the panel back
over the box. He made his way back to the elder, giving him a thumbs up when
they were close enough to see each other.

   “Good job,” The Monster whispered. He gestured to the house. Jungkook nodded
his understanding and followed as the elder hopped the fence. When they were
both over they began the creep to the house, staying in the shadow of the five
foot fence. It ran along the entire back and sides of the house so it was easy
to reach the house. Now came the tricky part.

   The plan was to go in through the basement door but that only worked if it
was left unlocked. The Monster said they rarely locked up but the pair couldn’t
be certain ahead of time. They just hade to hope the prey and his sister forgot
about it more then they remembered.

   The Monster motioned for him to wait and crept forward. The way he sunk into
the shadows and moved between them was like the monsters Jungkook had heard
stories about growing up. He’d never been afraid of them like the other kids.
While his classmates had been begging their parents to check under their bed
and in the closet Jungkook had done it himself, disappointed when there was
nothing there. Maybe he hadn’t been afraid because somewhere, deep inside, he’d
known he would become a monster too one day.

   The Monster reached out, a black gloved hand coming out of the darkness, and
grabbed the doorknob. He twisted. It didn’t budge. Jungkook cursed under his
breath. They had back up plans but they were more complicated and definitely
more dangerous. The back door was still well hidden and they could avoid anyone
seeing them enter but there were no windows nearby to check whether their prey
was near enough to hear. The front door was much more exposed but they would be
able to see through the glass whether it was clear or not. Both had their own
dangers.

   He watched as The Monster jogged quietly back through the shadows to where
Jungkook was waiting. “What now?”

   The elder paused, eyeing Jungkook carefully. “What do you think?” He asked
in a low voice.

   Weigh the risks, Jungkook told himself. The back door was a gamble because
they could lose the element of surprise and things could get messy. The front
door was risky because if they were seen someone could call the cops. Even if
they got out before cops showed up their descriptions could be given and they
would be fucked.

   He looked behind The Monster, studying the building. “What about that?” The
elder followed his finger, pointing past the back door and to the higher than
average window near the corner of the house. “It’s probably not locked since
you can’t reach it by yourself. We could just take a peek around the side
windows to make sure he’s not in there and then you could lift me up.”

   “And how exactly am I to get in?”

   “I can sneak around and open the back door for you,” Jungkook whispered
quickly. A plan was forming in his head too easily and he began moving around
the house.

   “Wait,” The Monster hissed. He grabbed Jungkook’s arm and yanked him back,
bringing their faces close together as he spoke. “What if you get up there and
he’s between you and the back door? If you’re trapped in there I can’t help
you!”

   “I’ll be fine,” the younger insisted. He removed The Monsters hand from him
and placed his own on the elder’s shoulder. He wanted to prove just how sure he
really was. He knew he would be okay. “I’ve learned a lot from you. I’m not
going to mess this up. I promise. What better option do we have?”

   The Monster seemed to debate that, finally nodding his head solemnly. “Okay,
you’re right. I know there aren’t a lot of options. But,” he said as Jungkook
moved to turn away, “We do this my way.”

   His way meant him checking personally that their prey was not in a position
to endanger Jungkook before allowing the younger to continue with his plan.

   “Okay,” he whispered as he came back around the house. “He’s watching TV in
the living room. You’re good to go.”

   They positioned themselves beneath the window, with Jungkook’s hands on The
Monster’s shoulders and his foot on the elder’s knee. “Ready,” he said quietly.
As the elder lifted him, hands bracing Jungkook’s hips, the younger reached up
and grabbed onto the window sill. He hauled himself up, using his knee for
leverage to pull himself onto the narrow ledge.

   If the window was locked they were out of luck and would have to choose one
of the riskier plans. Jungkook prayed to anything and everything that it wasn’t
as he dug his fingers under the wooden frame and slowly pushed up.

   It moved.

   If he wasn’t in the middle of a secret break in he would have whooped but as
it was he only let out a quiet but relieved breath. He pushed the window all
the way up, grinning down at The Monster once before sliding through the open
frame.

   He stayed perched on the frame as his eyes adjusted to the dimness of the
room. From what he could make out it looked like a bedroom with the actual bed
placed conveniently beneath the window. It seemed like luck was on his side
tonight. He lowered himself down, letting go of the window and dropped onto the
bed.

   Creeaaak.

   His heart stopped and his blood pounded so loudly in his ears it was
impossible to hear anything past it. It hadn’t been that loud but any noise was
dangerous now. If there had been a break between commercials or a quiet moment
on the TV their prey could have heard him. He held his breath and counted the
seconds. The muffled sounds of the television leaked under the door. He
strained his ears to search for footsteps accompanying them.

   Three minutes later and nothing had happened. He exhaled heavily (but
quietly) and carefully removed himself from the bed. The floor was carpeted and
swallowed his foot falls as he tiptoed to the door. According to The Monster
the hallway he would exit into was relatively short. The first door to the left
was a bathroom and the one directly after that was the kitchen with the living
room directly across from it. The living room had a partial partition so if he
was quiet he could sneak to the back door and let the elder in without their
prey seeing them.

   His fingers wrapped around the door knob and he slowly twisted it open.
Every click of its turning felt as loud as a gunshot in his ears. He sent up
another prayer that the hallway would be empty. The last click and the door
cracked open a centimetre. He carefully pulled it further back and light
spilled into the room. Now he could see the ugly orange of the walls, the
stains and cigarette burns in the rug beneath him.

   He took a few deep breaths, pulling in as much courage as he could before he
peeked a fraction around the doorway. He was met with nothing but an empty
hallway and smiled. This wasn’t as difficult as The Monster had made it out to
be. He was about to take a step forward when he paused, seeing the hardwood
floor beneath him. It would be much harder to stay quiet if his boots were
clunking down on wood. He quickly slipped his boots off and placed them in the
room behind him, hidden in the shadows just in case.

   He slowly crept down the hallway in his socks, listening intently for
movement beyond the laughter on the TV. There was nothing but the commentary of
some talk show host, going on about the dangers of plastic surgery. Maybe their
prey had fallen asleep. He doubted it would actually be that easy but he could
dream.

   He could see the kitchen at the end of the hall now to his left. The lights
of the television flickered across it, reminding Jungkook of the horror movies
Jace had insisted on watching. He’d wanted to scare girls into his arms but
nine times out of ten he’d been too afraid to finish them himself. Jungkook had
thought it was funny; Now he understood the fear a little better. He wasn’t
afraid of their prey. It wasn’t a matter of fearing for his own safety but fear
of ruining their plan that was worming it’s way into his stomach right now. If
he alerted their prey before he could let The Monster in then there was no
telling what could happen. He wasn’t equipped to deal with this on his own yet.
Sure, he could kill the guy but as the elder had said some messes can’t be
cleaned up. They needed to get their prey out of the house and into the vehicle
as precisely and discreetly as possible, leaving no evidence behind.

   He took his time nearing the end of the hall. He was almost to the kitchen
when he heard a bout of laughter from the other room and stopped dead in his
tracks. The breath left his lungs and fear spiked through his core. He didn’t
move a muscle, not even to blink. He waited and waited, making sure nothing
else happened. The very real possibility that their prey could get up to use
the bathroom or grab a snack rooted him to the spot.

   After a minute of no movement from the other room he finally allowed himself
a quick breath. He couldn’t wait here forever. The longer he stayed in the
hallway the greater the chance that their prey would actually get up for
something. He needed to move. Quickly.

   There was an island that divided the kitchen from the hallway. If he could
make it there he would be hidden well enough to make it to the door without
being seen. He crouched down and leaned against the wall next to the corner. A
deep breath in, deep breath out. He couldn’t let himself fall into the cycle of
fear. He ducked his head, peeking around the corner and pulling his head back
around in less than a second, enough time to see their prey on a recliner,
facing away from the kitchen. That was good. He needed to move now.

   Without hesitating he ducked/ran as fast as he could while remaining silent,
almost crawling across the open space and crouching behind the island and
pushing himself into the corner within a couple seconds. His heart was
hammering in his chest, fear trying to snake it’s way back into him. He almost
let it but he knew it was wrong. He had to keep his cool no matter what.
Gritting his teeth, he steadied his breathing and put his head between his
knees. Count to five.

   One, he thought as the TV switched to commercials. Two, he thought as he
heard a rustling sound from the living room. He didn’t get to three because he
could hear the recliner snapping closed now and their prey was getting up.

   He had a split second to decide what to do. He could pull himself back into
the corner, hoping shadows would cover him and their prey was not entering the
kitchen. He could hide behind the very edge of the island and attack their prey
when he walked past. If he hid and the prey came into the kitchen then he would
be fucked but if he attacked early and it could have been avoided...

   Foot steps were nearing the island now, right on the other side, and he had
to act. He did the fastest thing he could: he pressed himself right up to the
counter and drew his knees in, curling himself into the smallest ball he could.
Breathing was impossible because his heart was as heavy as concrete, weighing
him down and crushing his lungs. He was vulnerable now like this. If their prey
walked into the kitchen he would see Jungkook and everything would be over.

   Time moved at a quarter of the speed. Jungkook watched as their prey’s head
appeared over the counter, watched as a foot appeared in the kitchen, watched
as it stopped. “Fuck it. Gotta piss first.” The foot drew back and the prey
moved down the hallway. Jungkook waited until he heard the bathroom door open
and close before he moved. He didn’t care why he got lucky; He didn’t have time
to care. He needed to get The Monster inside now. He shuffled as quickly as he
could to the back door, sliding the deadbolt back and pulling the door open.

   The Monster was waiting on the other side. Surprise flit across his face
before it settled on relief as he gave Jungkook a quick once over and saw he
was uninjured, then confusion when he noticed his missing boots. “No time,” the
younger hissed. He grabbed the elder and pulled him in, shutting and relocking
the door behind them. “He’s in the bathroom. He’ll be back any second. What do
we do?”

   The Monster looked around him, scanning the house. “There,” he pointed to
the other side of the partition. “Come on.”

   Jungkook followed him behind the wall, about to ask what now when the elder
pinned him to the wall and kissed him roughly. The younger froze, not against
the sudden intimate moment but definitely confused at the timing. Their prey
could come out at any second. It was incredibly risky wasting the few seconds
they had to make out but he had never been one to say no to The Monster. By the
time he was ready to kiss back though the latter was pulling back quickly,
locking eyes with Jungkook. “Don’t ever scare me like that again,” he growled
in answer to the younger’s unasked question. “Now when the door opens we wait
for him to round the corner and I’ll grab him. You help me subdue him.”

   Jungkook nodded, his heart fluttering for an entirely different reason than
the danger they were in. “What then?”

   The elder opened his mouth to speak when they heard the bathroom door open.
The Monster immediately pushed Jungkook behind him, bracing his back to the
wall and getting ready. Jungkook wasn’t quite sure for what but he had a pretty
good idea of what was going to happen.

   He had never been more wrong in his life.

   It was almost too fast for Jungkook to process and his brain struggled to
keep up with what happened next. Their prey rounded the corner and The Monster
lunged. The man’s face contorted in shock, his lips forming a question before
The Monster knocked him to the ground. They grappled, the prey trying to knock
the elder off.

   “Who the fuck are you!” He looked between Jungkook and The Monster,
confusion and fear playing on his face before he began sucking in a deep
breath.

    “Fuck no,” Jungkook snarled. He raced down, covering their prey’s mouth
with both hands before he could let out the scream he’d been readying. Their
prey trashed harder, trying to rock the Monster off but his hold was firm as he
pinned him down. The Monster moved his knee to their prey’s throat and pushed
down, simultaneously holding his arm down and pushing into his windpipe. The
man’s eyes widened and he began clawing at any part of them he could reach.

   “Calm down,” The Monster grunted. “You’re pissing me off.”

   Jungkook looked up at the elder, waiting to be told what to do but The
Monster wasn’t paying any attention to him. He was using his free hand to rub
his temple and his eyes were firmly shut. The prey tried to lunge up but
Jungkook used his own knee to hit the side of his head, momentarily stunning
him. “What now,” he whispered at the elder.

   “In a moment,” The Monster growled. His face was contorted in what Jungkook
could only describe as pain, his mouth a firm line and eyes screwed shut tight.
The younger looked between him and their prey, watching them with fearful eyes.
He didn’t know what to do. He was waiting for the elder to direct him.

   “But-“

   “FUCK OFF,” The Monster screamed.
Jungkook’s own eyes widened and he flinched back at the raw anger in the
elder’s voice. He didn’t understand.
   “What did I do?”

   “You shouldn’t be here,” the elder growled again.

   Jungkook had no fucking clue what was going on. Had he done something wrong?
He knew the plan had gone a little awry but they could still turn things
around. Why was The Monster so angry?

   “I said- No, I don’t care! Back the fuck off or- Fuck!” His hand dropped
from his head onto the ground, holding him up as he sagged down. Jungkook’s
hold on their prey loosened, worry for The Monster temporarily distracting him.
   “Are you ok- Fuck!” The man had bitten his hand. He pulled his left hand
back, shaking it off pushed his right down harder, covering his nose as well
and cutting his air supply off. “Stay fucking still!” He thrashed harder
beneath them but it was in vain as both holds were more than sufficient enough
to hold him down, even with The Monster so preoccupied.

   “You fucking piece of shit.”

   When he spoke again Jungkook’s head snapped over to look at The Monster,
only something wasn’t right. He looked furious, like he wanted to rip the man
to shreds. His knee pushed further into the man’s throat and Jungkook realised
he was still restricting his breath. He shifted his hand to just cover his
mouth as The Monster leaned down, getting right in their prey’s face.

   “Hello again. Remember me?”

   Jungkook looked back and forth between their faces, trying to figure out
what he’d missed. He whispered back at the elder, making sure his hand remained
on the man’s mouth. “You know him?”

   The Monster turned to Jungkook and smiled, pain flashing through his eyes
and- Oh. It wasn’t The Monster.
   “Namjoon,” the younger breathed.

   Namjoon turned back to their- Jungkook and The Monster’s, prey and his face
contorted into a mask of anger, disgust and hatred. “I know him. I don’t think
he knows me, though.” He grabbed at their- No, Jungkook’s now? prey’s shirt.
“What, you kill so many kids you forget their faces? Huh? Did you forget
Seokjin’s face too?”

   “Seokjin?” It clicked for Jungkook now: why the elders had rushed the kill,
why they hadn’t taken enough time to prepare as fully as they normally did, why
Namjoon was here. “It’s him, isn’t it? The driver who hit Seokjin? How did you
find him?”

   “He thought he could escape what he had done. No, I won’t let him.” The
elder drew his fist back and went for the man’s face, intent clear to both the
man and Jungkook.

   “Stop!” The younger man tried to grab his hand before it struck the man’s
face but only managed to draw it off course, hitting his chest instead.
“Where’s The Monster? Namjoon, what is going on!?”

   “He killed Seokjin,” Namjoon screamed at the man. He was angry, very angry.
He took another swing and Jungkook was able to stop him this time at the
expense of covering the man’s mouth.

   “Calm down!” He couldn’t restrain them both and now that there were no more
hands on him the prey used the opportunity to roll to his right, away from
Jungkook and out from under The Monster. The elder fell to his side, snarling
and reaching his hands out for the prey. Jungkook didn’t know what was going on
with Namjoon but he didn’t have time to worry about it because their prey was
on his knees, scrambling to get up.

   Jungkook was closer so he pushed himself towards the other, wrapping his
arms around their prey’s back and trying to pull him down. He fought Jungkook,
thrashing and clawing blindly back at the younger. He got Jungkook on the side
of the face and he winced as the flesh of his cheek was torn open. The younger
pushed harder, flexing his knees and twisting his body to bring the prey down
with him.

   His back hit the ground with a hard thud and the air left his lungs. He
grunted and rolled over, pinning their prey’s wrists to the ground and
straddling his hips. Before he could try to scream again Jungkook pulled his
head back and brought it down to connect with their prey’s forehead. The prey
cried out, head lolling back in a dazed manner.
   Jungkook’s own head seemed to explode with pain and his hands loosened
around the prey’s wrists. They were both too dazed to fight for a moment but
adrenaline kicked in earlier for Jungkook and he tightened his grip once again.

   “He needs to suffer,” Namjoon choked out. Jungkook looked and saw the pain
almost take over the elder’s face, combining with the anger and turning him
into a bottle rocket of emotion. “He needs to- We need to make him suffer, like
Jinnie suffered.” He sniffled, trying to stand up but his knees shook too much
and he collapsed back onto the ground, a sob escaping his lips.

   “Just- Please just stay there Namjoon. We need- Fuck, I don’t know what we
need to do. Give me a second.” He looked back and forth between the two
quickly, trying to figure out a solution when he heard the front door open.

   “Jack?”

   “Fuck,” he cursed. The sister was back. She wasn’t supposed to be home for
another two hours at least! Literally every-fucking-thing was going wrong right
now. He quickly moved his knees to hold down their prey’s arms so he could also
cover his mouth before the alerted the girl. The Monster was gone and Namjoon
was in no position to make any decisions right now so he couldn’t look to
either of them for an answer. He had about four seconds for the sister to round
the corner and find them.

   He slammed the man’s head into the ground at the same moment he reached
forward and pulled the knife out of the holster on Namjoon’s waist. He
scrambled to pull the man up while holding the knife to his throat at the same
second the girl turned the corner.

   “I forgot my phone. Can y-“ She froze as she looked up and took in the
strange men in her home, one of them holding a knife to her brothers throat.

   Before she could move Jungkook held the knife tighter to the man’s throat,
drawing a single drop of blood as he held the other tightly back. “Scream or
try anything stupid and he dies.”

   Their prey could no longer fight now that a blade was pressed to his
jugular. He held extremely still against the younger as Jungkook backed them up
a few steps. “Do what he says,” he choked out.

   “Who are you? Please let him go,” she begged. She took a step forward and
Jungkook pulled the blade back a fraction, allowing a small trail of blood to
slip down the man’s neck as he gasped.

   “Don’t move,” he warned her.

   She stopped moving immediately, holding her hands up in surrender. “Okay,”
she agreed. Tears were sliding down her face and she sniffled. “I’ll stay.”

   “Good,” Jungkook said. He had no idea what to do now but he couldn’t let
them know that. He needed to appear in control no matter what. He glanced down
at Namjoon on the ground, now biting his lip so hard it was bleeding and
sobbing quietly to himself. He had showed up and acted out so suddenly that the
younger had no idea how to move forward. He couldn’t ask The Monster and-

   “Let him go,” the girl demanded suddenly. He looked up and flinched when he
saw the barrel of a pistol staring him in the face. She’d taken a few steps
forward when he wasn’t paying attention and now stood only ten feet away,
pointing a gun directly at Jungkook. She must have had it in her purse or
something. Stupid, he screamed at himself. He should have gotten her to throw
her purse to him or something. Now he was in danger of losing control of the
situation and fast. His only choice was to bluff his way out of it.

   “You sure about that?” Jungkook took another step back, pulling the man with
him. “You ever shot one of those before? How’s your aim? How sure are you that
you can hit me without hurting him too?” He pulled the man closer, covering
himself with the other’s body so that only his head and arm was showing.

   She hesitated, thinking over what Jungkook said. For second he thought he
had her but then her eyes hardened and she pursed her lips, glaring at him.
“Maybe I can’t hit you but...”

   She started turning towards Namjoon, his eyes widening with shock as he
looked between her and the younger man, and Jungkook acted out of instinct. He
dropped his hand and pushed the man towards his sister, startling her and
drawing her focus. Then he lunged forward, bringing his hand up to knock the
gun easily from her hand. It dropped and skidded towards the front of the room,
out of either’s reach. He hooked his leg behind her ankle and pushed, knocking
her down to the floor and straddling her as he attempted to restrain her.

   She fought back.Of course she fought back. She lashed out at his head. Her
nails were longer than her brother’s so they hurt much more when she raked them
down his face but he had adrenaline on his side. He shoved her hands away and
punched her in the face, drawing a cry of pain from her lips. She responded by
kicking up from under him and hitting him between the legs, getting a perfect
shot on his testicles. He cursed and doubled over, giving her the perfect
opportunity to bring her own fist to the side of his head. Even if Jungkook’s
head hadn’t still been pounding from his earlier head-butt he would have
screamed. He could feel his head wound from earlier that week tear back open
from the force and tears clouded his eyes.

   He heard shouting from behind him and chanced a look back to see Namjoon
grappling with their original prey, rolling around on the ground as they both
fought for control. He didn’t have time to be relieved their prey hadn’t gotten
away yet because another fist to the face snapped him back to his own current
problem.

   He pushed her hands away from him, wrapping his hands around her wrists and
slamming them back into the ground. “You’re really starting to piss me off, “
he growled.

   “Fuck you, prick.” She spit in his face and Jungkook saw red. This was not
the way it was supposed to go. Him and The Monster were supposed to have
grabbed their prey easily without even seeing the sister and should have been
on their way to the warehouse by now but no, instead he was stuck here fighting
this stupid bitch and Namjoon definitely wasn’t supposed to be here and
Jungkook snapped.

   “Fuck this,” he snarled. He let go of her wrists so that he could wrap his
hands around her throat instead. Her eyes widened as he squeezed and her hands
came up to desperately tug at his. It was almost comical how silly she looked
and Jungkook laughed, flexing his fingers and applying more pressure to her
windpipe.

   Tears were sliding down her cheeks and Jungkook leaned down, dragging his
tongue along her skin and collecting the salty liquid for himself. He wanted to
savour every moment of this, of his death and rebirth. He knew he was going to
kill her. He had too. It was the only way now.

   She might have whimpered but it was hard to tell with his hands still
wrapped tightly around her throat. Her body bucked and moved beneath him in an
effort to get him off but he had the upper hand now. He licked his lips and
giggled, smiling down at her gleefully. Blood was dripping down his face from
his wounds and it slipped into his mouth and in his eyes, colouring him in like
a macabre kids drawing.

   The look on her face was pure, unadulterated terror. Jungkook loved seeing
the emotions flicker across her eyes as he strangled her, stealing the air away
before she could even receive it. Although she had been without air for over a
minute now and the purple and blue creeping into her complexion was probably
masking some of her true emotions. Her face couldn’t be accurately believed
right now. Jungkook looked at her curiously, wondering what else was there
hiding behind her eyes. He loosened his hands, just a fraction, and she took a
shuddering breath, gasping and sputtering. He smiled and tilted his head to he
side, studying her reaction. “How did that feel?”

   “You – You’re fucking crazy,” she choked out. She coughed desperately and
Jungkook grinned a Cheshire cat smile.

   “All the best people are,” he agreed. Before she could respond he tightened
his hands again and stole back the air he’d given her. Her hands flew out to
the ground as she scrabbled uselessly at the floor. She was the mouse and
Jungkook was the cat, a predator taking down his prey. The delight was almost
too much for him to handle as he continued to giggle.

   Apparently her scrabbling was not so useless because she swung her arm back
up and something sliced into the skin of Jungkook’s shoulder. He howled and let
go of her, drawing a hand up to clutch at his arm. There was a nasty cut
running along the top of his arm just below his left shoulder, spanning the
width of his bicep. His sweater was wet with blood already and it continued to
flow. Where the fu- His knife! The bitch was trying to kill him with his own
knife. “No fucking way,” he growled.

   She thrust her hand out again, aiming for his face this time. He blocked it
with his injured arm and used his right to grab the hand holding the weapon. He
gripped her forearm and yanked the knife from her grip just as she twisted her
hips and propelled him off of her. He fell on his side as she scrambled up and
onto her feet. He lunged and made a grab for her but just barely missed her
shirt. He got up and ran after her as she made a dash for the door.

   She reached the door right as Jungkook’s hand gripped onto her shoulder. He
whipped her around and pushed her back against the living room wall. At the
same moment he moved the blade of his knife forward and into the soft flesh of
her stomach. She made a choked little gasp, mouth falling open to make an ‘o’
shape. She looked down to where the blade was still pushing into her skin until
all eleven inches of it had disappeared inside of her.

   “Looks like it fits,” he giggled. He twisted the knife and she screamed. It
faded to a choked gurgle as the younger continued to dig around her insides
with his blade. He yanked it out and stabbed her other side, watching all her
fear and pain play out on her face like she was his puppet. He pushed deeper
and she cried, he pulled it back and she whimpered, her actions directed by
Jungkook’s own. “How’s that for a prick?”

   Her legs gave out and she crumpled against him, coughing up blood and tears
and the last little bits of her life. She looked up at him once more, eyes
pleading. “Okay,” he agreed. He pulled her up straight and gave her one last
smile. “Have a nice fall.”

   He shoved her back, holding onto the knife as it slid out of her, rather she
slid off ofit, and fell with a thud to the floor. She lay unmoving, legs
tangled up beneath herself. He would have liked to appreciate the view more but
a distressed grunt from across the room drew his attention back to the other
situation.

   Namjoon had their prey on the ground, uselessly struggling against the
elder’s hold. Jungkook moved toward them, intent on helping but before he could
get there Namjoon wound up and punched him in the face. Hard. If he had been
playing one of those arcade games where you see how hard you can hit the bell
he would have broken the thing.

   “It’s your fault! He’s dead because of you. You fucking killed him!” He
punched the prey again, and again, cracking the man’s lips and spraying blood
on the ground next to them.

   Jungkook watched in awe as Namjoon continued to hit the man, fist coming
down into his face over and over again. He heard the crack of the man’s nose
breaking from across the room, another spray of blood splattering across
Namjoon’s chest. Whatever anger Namjoon had hidden before was coming out in
full force now, distributed fully to the man Namjoon blamed for destroying his
world.

   By now the man was dead, there was no two ways about it. The rise and fall
of his chest had ended some time ago and he made no more noises as the elder’s
fists continued beating in his skull. Jungkook wasn’t sure if Namjoon was even
aware enough to realize it.

   He walked over to the elder and crouched down next to him. Namjoon was so
far gone he wasn’t even sure if he could bring him back. He still had to try
though. He needed The Monster to help him deal with the mess anyway. “Hey,” he
said softly.

   The elder didn’t answer but his fists stopped and his arms moved limply to
his sides. His knuckles were split open and blood was all over him; Jungkook
didn’t know where the elder’s ended and their prey’s began.

   “It’s done, okay? He’s dead.” He squeezed Namjoon’s shoulder and gently
nudged for him to get off of the body. Namjoon allowed the younger to pull him
over to the floor, eyes glassy and unfocused as he stared at the ground.

   “I had to do it. I had too. He hurt Seokjin. I had too.” He repeated it over
and over, staring blankly ahead and shivering.

   “Shh,” Jungkook quieted him. He knelt down in front of the elder and held
his shoulders, tilting his head down to meet his eyes. “I know. It’s okay. Do
you think I could talk to The Monster for a bit?”

   Namjoon looked up at that, gaze slightly more focused now as he stared at
Jungkook. “He wasn’t very happy about what I did before but now he changed his
mind.” Namjoon hiccupped and choked back a sob. “He knows now. Now he knows...”

   “What does he know Namjoon?”

   The elder looked up at him, face a mess and blood everywhere and frowned.
“That I’m like you now.” He removed himself from Jungkook’s hands, shaking his
head and scooting backwards.

   Like him? Did that mean he wanted to kill now? Or maybe he just meant...
Jungkook had no idea what else he could have meant. “What do you mean,
Namjoon?” Jungkook moved forward and Namjoon shook his head again.

   “I can’t. I don’t want to- Not right now. I need to go.” He curled in on
himself and Jungkook paused. There was no point now. Namjoon was way too close
to cracking. He needed to talk to The Monster, not Namjoon, and he was pretty
sure that was what was about to happen.

   He waited for the elder to move again and when he did, his head coming up
fluidly and he was met with those eyes he breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank
god,” he mumbled.

   “I don’t think he had anything to do with any of...” The Monster waved his
hands around theatrically. “This,” he finished.

   “Such a fucking mess,” the younger agreed. “How are we supposed to clean
this up?

   “It will be a pain but we can do it easily with what’s in the truck. Still,
one good thing did come out of all of it.”

   Jungkook laughed, looking around at the carnage surrounding them. “And
what’s that?”
   The Monster got up and stalked, not walked but stalked over to him. The look
in his eyes had become pure, raw hunger, like a beast in the middle of a
bloodlust. He towered above Jungkook, his clothing ripped and stained with
their prey and Namjoon’s blood. The way he stared down at Jungkook; he looked
like he was still on the hunt, a different kind of hunt all together. The
younger stared back up, stomach suddenly doing back flips and handstands and
fucking twists.

   The Monster pushed him down onto his back and crawled on top of him without
a word, pinning him to the ground completely. Jungkook could feel the wetness
of more blood seeping into the bottom of his shirt but he didn’t care because
then The Monster was kissing him and all other thoughts flew from his head.
Kissing wasn’t even the right word; He was going to swallow Jungkook whole at
this rate. The insistency of his lips against the younger’s was stronger than
ever before, like it was their first and last time.

   Clean up be damned, Jungkook decided. He moved his lips back just as
eagerly, opening his mouth to allow The Monster’s tongue entrance when it
pushed at his teeth. His hands wrapped around the elder’s shoulders and he
tried to pull him closer despite the fact that their chests were already
touching. He didn’t care. He just wanted to get as wrapped up in the other as
he could, physically and emotionally and what-fucking-ever else.

   The elder nibbled at his lip, tongue flicking out to caress between his
teeth before he bit down hard. Jungkook let out a shallow moan and pushed his
hips upwards in search of some type of friction for his rapidly growing
erection. The Monster groaned and brought a hand up into Jungkook’s hair,
tangling in between his dark locks and yanking his head back. He trailed down
to bite at the younger’s exposed neck, licking and sucking at the skin and
making more moans spill from between the younger’s lips.

   “Do you have any idea how fucking irresistible you look right now, painted
in blood and death and beauty like this?” He ground his hips down into Jungkook
and the younger whined, clawing at his back desperately. “I would have you
every way possible right now.”

   “Please,” Jungkook begged. The rush of adrenaline from his first kill was
still burning in his veins and combined with his hormones was creating an
insatiable want. He felt like he was on top of the world right now but he
wanted to go higher and he knew only The Monster could bring him there.

   “Fuck,” the elder growled. He pushed himself up to his knees, pulling
Jungkook up with him by his hair. He winced but let out a breathy gasp after,
staring up at the elder with wide eyes blown with lust. He had never wanted The
Monster more than he did right now, both of them bruised and battered and
victorious.

   “Please,” he repeated. He didn’t even care what he got as long as he got
something. He was burning up inside, quickly being consumed by his own desire.
“Anything, please. I want you. Please.”

   The Monster yanked him forward with the hand still intertwined in his hair.
He tumbled forward and had to grip the elder’s front to keep from falling over.
“You have such pretty lips,” the elder spoke, words like silk washing over him.
He reached up, caressing Jungkook’s lower lip with his thumb. “I wonder what
they would look like stretched around my cock.”

   He pushed his thumb past Jungkook’s lips and into his mouth. He closed his
lips around it instinctively, sucking lightly on the pad of his finger. It left
a metallic taste in his mouth, or that was from Jungkook’s head. He didn’t
care. He licked at it, tasting the blood and cleaning it from The Monster’s
thumb as the elder watched with lidded eyes.

   “Breathtaking,” he murmured, pulling his thumb down to tug on the younger’s
lips. Jungkook whimpered, moving his head with the touch to keep the elder in
his mouth. He sucked harder, swirling his tongue around the digit and the elder
groaned. “Enough of that.”

   He drew his hand back and released his hold on the younger’s hair, causing
him to whine and reach out for the elder. The Monster grabbed his hands and
held them together, easily wrapping one hand around both of his wrists as his
other hand went down to his waist and yanked the button of his jeans open.

   “Yes,” Jungkook pleaded. He watched eagerly as the elder pulled his zipper
down, releasing Jungkook’s hands to sit back and tug his pants off.

   “Come here,” he growled, grabbing his hair again and yanking him forward.
Jungkook scrambled to catch himself on his hands as the elder dragged his head
down towards his bare cock, tip red and leaking precum already. He forced
Jungkook’s head down and the younger got the message. He grabbed the elder’s
thighs to steady himself and opened his mouth, taking the head of The Monster’s
cock between his lips and closing around it. The elder moaned low and deep,
hips twitching beneath the younger as he took more of his cock into his virgin
mouth.

   He tasted every bit as good as Jungkook had imagined, flavors heady on his
tongue and so delicious. It was salty but also sweet, the lingering taste of
blood in his mouth mixing in with The Monster’s own exquisite essence and he
hummed his delight.

   “Fuck,” The Monster cursed. His hips jumped a fraction and pushed his cock
further into Jungkook mouth, bringing the younger’s nose down enough to graze
his public hair. “You feel so good,” he moaned. His hips twitched and Jungkook
hummed again, enjoying the way the elder’s muscles tensed beneath his hands.

   He had no idea how to actually give a blow job so he was working off of
instinct, doing all the things he imagined would feel good if the Monster did
them to him. His own cock was heavy and full in his pants and he ached to touch
it but he refrained. He didn’t know if he would be able to hold back if he
started touching himself and he was really enjoying right now as it was.

   He tried to take the elder deeper, pushing himself down until his nose was
buried in his public hair. The head of The Monster’s cock hit the back of his
throat and he gagged, trying to swallow back his spit before he drooled all
over. “Oh god,” The Monster murmured as the younger’s throat constricted around
him.
   His hand tightened in Jungkook’s hair and he pulled him down farther,
forcing his cock as deep down the younger’s throat as it would go. The groan
that left his lips went straight to Jungkook’s dick. He wanted to hear more if
it.

   Tears sprang to his eyes but he fought them back, using every ounce of his
strength not to gag. He read somewhere that tucking your thumb into your fist
helped with your gag reflex so he did it with both hands, continuing to suck as
best he could. The Monster groaned, deep and guttural and snapped his hips up
into the younger’s mouth.

   “You look so fucking beautiful right now,” The Monster murmured, voice deep
with arousal as Jungkook did his best to accommodate him into his mouth. He was
happy that he was doing it right and The Monster was enjoying it. All he wanted
right now was to please him and make him proud of Jungkook.

   He set to work relaxing his throat as much as he could, allowing the elder’s
cock to reach in farther. He swallowed around it, humming and allowing the
vibration of his vocal chords to add to the pleasure. The Monster grunted,
snapping his hips up again and this time Jungkook barely gagged at all. The
elder continued thrusting shallowly upwards, his hands twisted into Jungkook’s
hair and pulling his head down as his hips went up.

   He began quickening his pace, fucking up into Jungkook’s mouth with wild
abandon. The younger did his best to comply, breathing through his nose when he
could and using his tongue to slide along the underside of his cock. His mouth
began to ache and on one of the elder’s down thrusts he accidentally grazed his
cock with his teeth. He gasped around the elder, worried he’d hurt him and
suddenly feeling very upset.

   The Monster moaned, head pushing into the floor and he pulled Jungkook off
of him. The younger looked up at him, lips puffy from the abuse and cheeks pink
from exertion. “Did I hurt you?”

   “No,” the elder gasped. He quickly moved up to his knees, grabbing Jungkook
and crushing their lips together. Apparently he needn’t have worried at all.
“It was fucking amazing,” he continued between breaths. “But I would like to
fuck you now. Is that okay?”

   Jungkook whined and squeezed the elder’s biceps involuntarily, his dick
twitching painfully in anticipation, and began fumbling with his own pants.
“Good boy,” The Monster praised.

   He replaced Jungkook’s hands with his own when the younger boy got nowhere,
too excited to manage with his belt. The Monster made short work of it, shoving
Jungkook back and ripping his pants off. He wasted no time crawling between his
legs and crushing their pelvis’ together.

   “Please,” Jungkook whimpered, pushing back into him and delighting in the
feeling of something finally touching his own cock. He rutted desperately
against the elder as The Monster looked down at him. His eyes were so dark and
his face so bloody and he was so fucking hot that Jungkook couldn’t wait even a
second longer. He needed him now. “Just fuck me. Please. Don’t do anything
else, just fuck me already.”

   The Monster made a noise in his throat, something between a growl and a
moan. He spit into his hand and brought it down to his cock, working it along
his length until it was glistening. He pulled back, grabbing Jungkook’s ass on
both sides and lifting his hips up to line his cock up with the younger’s
entrance. Jungkook felt the head press against his puckered hole and sobbed,
pushing back into it.

   “That’s my boy,” The Monster purred and slammed into him. Jungkook jerked,
momentarily overcome with a pain so intense it clouded his vision so that he
could only see white. The elder set to work, pulling back almost all the way
and thrusting back in roughly. The younger gasped, eyes squeezed shut in
pleasure and pain.

   Jungkook felt it happen, felt himself tear open as The Monster pounded
mercilessly into him. His head went fuzzy and he might have blacked out for a
second. When he came back to himself he moaned and pushed back against the
Monster, squeezing his muscles around him and trying to pull him in farther as
pleasure began to work its way through his veins.

   The elder leaned down, licking at Jungkook’s lips. The younger sucked the
other’s tongue in between his own lips, making lewd wet noises as he sucked it
like a lollipop. The Monster groaned, jerking back to take Jungkook’s leg and
hoist it up and over his shoulder, snapping his hips faster.

   “You take my cock so well baby. Fuck.”

   Jungkook was getting close, had been close for a while but it was becoming
too hard for him to hold back now. He dug his nails into The Monster’s arms,
meeting his thrusts as evenly as he could. “Harder,” he begged. Please, fuck me
harder.”

   “Anything you want,” the elder grunted. He pulled back to lean on his knees,
shifting Jungkook for a second before ramming back into him. He shoved his cock
farther and harder inside of Jungkook, stretching his tight ring to its limits.
His nails dug into Jungkook’s hips so hard that they left little red half
crescents in his skin.

   “Feels so good,” Jungkook murmured. His legs were shaking and his whole body
felt amazing. He was on the edge of a cliff and he wanted nothing more than to
fall off.

   “You like that? Do you like the way I fuck you baby? Hmm?”

   “Yes, fuck yes,” Jungkook sobbed. “You’re cock feels so good stretching me
open. So good.”

   The Monster grunted, hands flexing on the younger’s hips. “Ohh, you’re so
good for me baby. I want to tear you apart so I can put you back together
again. How does that sound?”

   Jungkook lost it. His cock twitched once before he blew his release all over
himself, the force of The Monster’s thrusts sending his cum everywhere. Some
landed by his mouth and he flicked his tongue out to taste it, moaning wantonly
as he met the elders eyes. That was the elder’s own undoing as he thrust
forward twice more before stilling, lips parted in ecstasy as his cock shot
copious amounts of his cum inside of the younger boy.

   They stayed like that for a while, The Monster panting heavily and beaming
down at the younger like they’d just pulled off a some type of super
complicated mission and Jungkook just barely summoning the energy to smirk back
up at him. Finally, though, the elder gingerly pulled out, a stark contrast to
his previous actions and it made Jungkook laugh. More like a breathy pant
because he was fucking tired right now but whatever.

   “Was that... did you laugh just now?” The Monster asked as he lay down next
to him, carefully arranging himself so that he could wrap his arms around the
younger without jostling him too much.

   “Yes,” Jungkook said (croaked, actually) and laughed (panted) again. “You’re
an animal during sex and now you’re being all careful. Why?” He looked back at
the elder, wincing because moving hurt.

   The elder sighed and brushed Jungkook’s bangs out of his eyes, hand
lingering to cup his face for second before pulling away. “Namjoon has had
some... things to say about the way our relationship worked before. He has
urged me to be a bit more cautious with you lest I actually break you.”

   “What? Why would you listen,” Jungkook scoffed. He rolled onto his back, in
very large amounts of pain but thanks to the adrenaline and endorphins it was
easy enough to ignore for now. “I like it when you treat me rough,” he reminded
the other.

   The Monster nodded. “I know,” he said as he pulled Jungkook further into
him. “But if I’m to be rough in some areas I need to be gentle in others. He’s
right about that. If we want to do things like what we just did we can,
provided you allow me to take care of you afterwards.”

   “You sound like him,” the younger sighed. He understood what they both
meant. He needed to take care of himself so he was actually in the condition to
be able to do these things. That didn’t mean he had to like it.

   “Hmm. He changed tonight,” The Monster murmured.

   Jungkook knew as much but he didn’t know anything else as to whether it was
good or bad, if he was okay or not. Namjoon had been a mess when the younger
had spoken to him. Maybe if he gave it a little while and Namjoon could rest,
safely tucked away in the back of The Monster’s head for now, the next time
he’d see him the elder would be willing to talk. Jungkook looked up at him,
into The Monster’s eyes, and maybe it was just his imagination telling him he
could see a bit of Namjoon in there too. He was also very tired and a little
bit crazy now.

   “So,” The Monster began, shaking his head to clear away unpleasant thoughts.
“How was it? Your very first kill: Shame I had to miss it,” he lamented.

   “Good,” Jungkook laughed. “She was pissing me off so much I think I actually
enjoyed it more than if it had been him,” he said as he jerked his head in the
direction of their original prey.

   “I’m glad,” The Monster whispered, leaning forward to kiss Jungkook’s
forehead. It felt strange for the elder to make such intimate, almost tame
gestures but Jungkook supposed he couldn’t be an animal all the time (probably
just most of it).

   “What about this?” The elder stretched his arm above them to clutch the
knife where Jungkook had dropped it right before he’d pulled Namjoon off their
prey. The elder held it above them, twisting it in the light and admiring it.
“Maybe we should get it framed,” the elder joked. At least Jungkook thought he
was joking.

   As The Monster held it above It caught the light and for a moment Jungkook
could see his eyes reflected beyond the blood on the surface. There was
something so dark in them; He hardly recognized himself. Gone was the dull
covering of apathy and boredom he’d originally come to the elder with. In its
place was a hunger that mirrored that of The Monster. He had fed the fire
growing inside the Old Jungkook and as it roared to life so did the New
Jungkook. Like a phoenix rising from the ashes he too was reborn.

   The Monster handed the knife to him like the ceremonial passing of a torch.
He held it reverently in his hand, the tool that he had used to begin the
journey he was now on with his lover and mentor. It felt so right in his hands,
like it had always meant to end up there. Oddly enough, the way The Monster
held him made him feel those same things. It wasn’t like he had to pick one or
the other though, killing or loving. He could do both. He’d never fit into the
molds other people made anyways. Maybe they were just two very unique people,
meant to do and be more than the world could possibly imagine. He was alright
with that.

   “Thank you,” he said softly. He looked up at the elder and smiled the most
genuine smile of his life. “Thank you for showing me who I could be, was meant
to be.”

   The Monster quirked his head to the side, studying Jungkook with a pleased
and fond look. The younger would never want to stop seeing that look, never
want to stop being the one to put it on the elder’s face. “Jungkook, I think
you are my greatest masterpiece yet.”
 
 
 
   SOME TIME LATER

   The lights of Paris drifted in through the open window, dancing across the
broad planes of Jungkook’s back. He had grown in size since they’d began their
journey, his muscles becoming much more defined and almost tripling in size.
Namjoon’s clothes no longer hung loose off his shoulders. He had come into his
own very well.

   The Monster watched as the younger slept, eyelashes fluttering slightly
every time he traced the muscles with his fingers. He knew he should stop soon
or else he’d wake the younger man up but he found himself unable to do so
today. Jungkook was just too irresistible to him, with the little noises he
made in his sleep and the way his noise crinkled every so often. He made The
Monster feel almost human. He was still a predator but Jungkook had proven to
him that not everyone needed to be prey.

   The younger man sniffed, fidgeting beneath the blanket and the elder knew he
had woken him up. He shuffled down, pulling the younger to his chest. “Go back
to sleep baby,” he whispered into Jungkook’s ear. The younger smacked his lips
together and sighed, curling into the elder’s side once more.

   It was shaping up to be a wonderful honeymoon so far and it had only just
begun. Tomorrow they left for Italy, then Beijing. The world was their oyster.

   Downstairs the front desk worker scrolled through a news article on her
phone, fear and horror her reactions to the latest headline.

   THIRD BODY FOUND DEAD THIS MONTH
 
Chapter End Notes
     I need to bathe in holy water for sixteen days after that. I'm sorry
     if I hurt you:: I hurt me too T_T
     So that's it. That is Jungkook and The Monster and Namjoon’s story.
     This twisted love triangle thing is over, although really it's just
     beginning for them~
      
     Thank you again to all my readers for sticking with me during this
     dark and messed up beast of a story.
     Thank you to sevenbyseven for giving me a prompt that allowed me to
     do something as completely new and terrifying and
     amazing
      as this story.
     And one last thank you to all my amazing bingo babes who helped me
     through plot kinks and holes and just all of the technical stuff!
     ....
     ....
     ....
     Why are you still reading? That's it.
     ....
     ....
     No, seriously.
     ....
     ....
     Okay, here have Bunny Kookie
     (\__/)
     (='.'=)
     (")_(")
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