WARNING: THIS CHAPTER HAS DEPICTIONS OF VIOLENCE AND SLIGHT GORE (NOT TOO MUCH, BUT IT'S THERE). IF THIS MAKES YOU UNCOMFORTABLE, PLEASE DO NOT READ. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.

Taehyung was officially off to college. He was accepted into the Seoul Institute of the Arts, where he would take classes for the next four years, with Art History, Life Composition Drawing, and Color Theory going towards his art major. However, on the weekends, he would work as J-Hope’s apprentice, learning everything he can about being a tattoo artist. Taehyung had been eager to jump right in, but Hoseok reminded him that it takes experience, and that he would rather Taehyung get a college education first.

The college student had been living with Hoseok for about 6 months now. Taehyung had not had any contact with his father, but his mother called every once in a while to ask how he was doing. Once, she had called and it was obvious that she was crying. She begged Taehyung to come home and for them to all be a family again. The young boy told her that he needed to focus on his school and he couldn’t do that if he was too worried about domestic affairs. He did not let her respond before he hung up.

Hoseok had expected Taehyung to be a typical teenager when he first moved in, but V had proved him wrong. The boy mainly kept to himself, spare the few times he asked for help with something or wanted to ask a question about Hoseok’s job. Hoseok had been extremely impressed when Taehyung allowed him to go through his sketchbook, as the older male had mentioned he’d love to see some of Tae’s works sometime. The professional tattoo artist looked over the drawings and noted the impeccable detail and intricacy that Taehyung was able to create on paper.

All Taehyung ever wanted from Hoseok ever since he met him was for the man to acknowledge him as a fellow artist. He was more than excited when J-Hope complimented something that he had drawn. It was like a dream come true. Of course, Taehyung would never admit that. He would simply thank Hoseok with a slight nod, then continue on with his day, even though for the rest of the week he would be in an amazing mood.

School had been going well for the young college freshman. He worked hard and did his assignments on time (with a little help from Hoseok, who would threaten to revoke his privileges to come to the shop if his grades started dropping). Taehyung was as happy as could be. That is, until they came along.

Taehyung had made friends in his Art History class, the four students having been sat together in the center of the classroom. Jungyeol was to his left, Kinseok to his right, and Yejun in front of him. Yejun seemed to be the most talkative out of the three boys, while Kinseok seemed more timid in nature but more devious in thought, and Jungyeol, well, Taehyung couldn’t really learn much about Jungyeol since the boy never spoke much and kept his hands in his lap most of the time, running his thumb back and forth in a line on the back of his hand. V had thought of this as a strange habit, but never paid too much attention.

Three months later, Taehyung was sitting with Jungyeol at a table in the cafeteria, waiting for Yejun and Kinseok to join them. Jungyeol shifted awkwardly in his seat. He was a small boy with a thin frame and long, jet black hair that came down to his shoulders, which he mainly tied up in a small bun most of the time. His voice was quiet whenever he spoke, and Taehyung noticed that even when they did get him to laugh, he never grew louder than the people around him. He was as quiet as a mouse compared to Yejun’s booming voice that accompanied his muscular build, or Kinseok’s excited chattering that complimented his tall and lanky body. Jungyeol was not like the others. Taehyung could not figure out why the boy was so silent, or why he constantly ran his thumb across his hand. Back and forth. Back and forth. Back and forth. It was almost like it was programmed into Jungyeol; an automatic action that could be completed with little or no thought at all.

Yejun and Kinseok finally joined them at the table, their lunches on small, metal trays that they set in front of them. Normally, the boys would go out to get something from a fast-food place nearby, but today they decided the cafeteria food wouldn’t hurt.

“So, V,” Yejun grabbed his fellow student’s attention. “I was wondering if you wanted to come with us to hang out later tonight. We were thinking about going over to the movie theater to see that new action movie coming out.” He suggested around a mouthful. Taehyung had never really gone anywhere with them outside of school or the daily lunch routine, but he figured Hoseok wouldn’t mind locking up the shop on his own this one time. Besides, the theater was a block away from the tattoo parlor anyways, so he could just walk straight from the shop to the theater after he was done helping Hoseok.

“Sure. Sounds like a plan.” The boy agreed.

He didn’t realize how big of a mistake he had made.

Eight hours following that conversation at lunch, Taehyung said goodbye to Hoseok and walked from the parlor to the theater, where he waited for the others to arrive. Yejun got there first, telling Taehyung to wait for the other two as he went to the bathroom. Jungyeol got there a few minutes later. He rushed up to Taehyung, a look of panic taking over the small boy’s features.

“Taehyung, you should leave.” He talked so fast that the other didn’t understand what he had said. Before Taehyung could ask for him to repeat it slower, Yejun came back from the restroom, throwing an arm around Jungyeol’s shoulders in greeting, the boy tensing at the gesture, something Taehyung had indeed noticed.

About five minutes later, Kinseok walked up to them. Yejun smiled and greeted his friend with a handshake. The boys then turned and began walking down the sidewalk, away from the entrance to the theater.

“Guys? I thought we were going to see a movie? The theater is this way.” Taehyung gestured to the entrance, Jungyeol standing just behind him, almost as if he was hiding. Yejun chuckled and turned to face the freshman.

“Yeah, but we wanna show you something first. Come on.” The broad male continued walking, expecting Taehyung to follow. V looked back at Jungyeol, who was looking down at his feet, avoiding eye contact. When he really thought about it, Taehyung thought Jungyeol kind of looked like Jungkook when they had first met. The young student flinched at the memory of his best friend. It still hurt like it was just yesterday when the young male went missing. It was a constant hole in Taehyung’s heart that he wasn’t sure would ever be filled again.

He ripped himself out of his thoughts of Jungkook and brought himself to follow Yejun and Kinseok, Jungyeol hesitantly trailing along behind him. They turned a corner into a dimly lit alley, where Taehyung finally stopped dead in his tracks. “What are we doing here? What the hell is going on?” he questioned. The two males in front of him smirked, and began to chuckle.

“We wanted to ask for a favor,” Yejun began, “because we think you’re the only one capable of doing it.” Taehyung raised an eyebrow in silent confusion. Yejun stepped back and grabbed a discarded glass bottle form the ground. Suddenly, he smashed it against the wall while gripping the neck, giving it a razor-sharp edge. “Get rid of Jungyeol.” The taller man ordered, shoving the neck of the bottle into Taehyung’s hand forcefully. V looked up at him in disbelief.

“W-what?” he stuttered. There was no way he heard that correctly. He looked over at Jungyeol, who was tracing the back of his hand again with a look of pure fear in his eyes. With him being a little closer, Taehyung could just make out a faint line where the boy was tracing. Jungyeol had a scar.

“Kinseok and I have heard a lot about you. V for Victory. The boy who has never lost a fight; the one everyone can count on to win,” Yejun explained, “we were so impressed by the story of you beating that kid so hard that you broke some of his teeth,” the man chuckled darkly, “we just had to see for ourselves.”

“This doesn’t make any damn sense.” The brunet managed to get out, despite his shock and confusion.

“Oh, come on! Jungyeol has been a little pain in the since before I can remember. He just sits there and looks like a sad puppy. It’s pathetic. He’s basically asking for an -kicking. Well, from what we hear, you’re great at those.” Yejun smiled maniacally. A rush of fear and anger came over Taehyung, and he didn’t know whether to run or fight. “Come on, V! You made a name for yourself in high school. It’s time to make a name for yourself now. Do it.” The taller college student demanded.

“I don’t harm innocent people, you jackass.” Taehyung spat back, getting in Yejun’s personal space. The larger male grimaced at the invasion, his face then evolving into a smug expression.

“Well, if you won’t harm him, then I will just harm you.” Taehyung could barely process the words before he felt an immense pain in his side. He looked down and saw the end of the glass bottle protruding from his abdomen. Yejun had stabbed him. He faintly heard Jungyeol let a string of curses fly, and Kinseok gasp loudly.

“You never said we would stab him.” Kinseok whispered to Yejun. Jungyeol sprinted out of there while both were distracted.

“Shut up. Let’s just get out of here.” Yejun growled, yanking Kinseok out of the alley, leaving Taehyung by himself, bleeding and in too much pain to move. He was bleeding quite a bit and he knew he had to stop it before he lost too much blood. With an immense amount of effort and the most intense pain he’s ever felt in his life, he removed his jacket and pressed it over the wound, hissing as it made contact. He pulled out his cell phone and dialed the emergency number. The operator came on and asked what his emergency was. He explained how he had been stabbed and needed medical assistance. The woman on the line wasted no time in asking his location and assuring him that help was on the way. He then hung up after assuring her that she didn’t need to stay on the line with him. He called Hoseok.

“Hello?” Hoseok answered the phone.

“Hoseok.” Taehyung managed, the man’s name sounding more like a sob.

“Taehyung? Are you okay? You sound off.” His friend immediately noticed the difference in his roommate’s voice.

“Hoseok, please come. Hurry.” Taehyung couldn’t bother with full sentences at that point. Hoseok said something else, but the boy was already losing consciousness as everything faded into black, the pain becoming too much.

Hoseok arrived at the theater just as they were taking Taehyung into the ambulance. He sprinted to his friend’s side, panic and worry hitting the man like a truck as he saw the blood that covered Tae’s shirt. “T-Taehyung? What the hell happened?”

“Sir, are you a relative?” one of the paramedics asked the panicked male.

“No, I’m his roommate.” Hoseok replied.

“If you’d like, you could ride with him in the ambulance.” The two paramedics who were attending to Taehyung climbed into the ambulance, and the paramedic who Hoseok was currently talking to turned to look at him expectantly, and he rushed to join the others before they shut the doors.

Taehyung was rushed to the hospital, where he remained in the Intensive Care Unit for about two weeks. Although he was feeling better by day 9, the doctor decided to keep him until the end of the week for observation. Before he was discharged, one of Taehyung’s nurses explained the daily care he’d need to perform every day in order to help the wound heal faster and to minimize scarring, although she informed him that in his case, scarring was unavoidable.

During his stay at the hospital, police officers came in to ask Taehyung who stabbed him, what was their motive, and so on. Hoseok was by his side every minute he could, taking leave from work so that his friend wouldn’t be alone.

After ignoring Taehyung’s protests, Hoseok called the man’s parents to explain what had happened (although he had agreed to call them after Taehyung was already out of the hospital). That afternoon, Taehyung’s mother showed up to their apartment, crying and inarticulate. She hugged he son tightly as he greeted her at the door. They both remained like that for what seemed like hours to Taehyung, but it was probably only a few minutes.

“My baby, Taehyung, are you okay?” she asked as she pulled away, cupping his face in her hands. He gently moved her hands away from his face.

“I’m fine, mom. At least, I will be in a few months after I’ve healed for a little more.” Her son replied. She sighed in relief, pulling him in for another brief hug. When she let go again, Taehyung gestured for her to come in, closing the door behind her and leading her to the living room, where Hoseok was sitting on the couch, drawing in his sketchbook that he uses for ideas about potential new tattoo designs.

This was one of the moments that Taehyung dreaded. He knew Hoseok hated his parents ever since he had heard of his mother’s infidelity and his father’s neglect. He also knew that his parents disliked Hoseok simply because he had tattoos. So, he wasn’t sure what to expect when his mother walked up to the tattoo artist, his friend finally meeting V’s mother face-to-face.

“Thank you for taking care of my son.” She stated, holding her hand out for Hoseok to shake. J-Hope looked from her face, to her hand, then to Taehyung. The college student made what he hoped was a pleading expression when he made eye contact with his mentor.

Hoseok sighed, knowing that Taehyung’s mother indeed deserved to be told off, but he refrained from doing so for Taehyung’s sake. He reluctantly shook the woman’s hand. “It’s no problem. Taehyung is a good kid.” The tattoo artist replied. Taehyung cleared his throat to get their attention.

“Mom, Dad didn’t want to see me, did he?” he questioned, shoving his hands in his pockets. He watched his mother shift awkwardly from one foot to the other.

“Sweetheart, your father is a very busy man…” she trailed off. That was enough for Taehyung to know what that meant. His father has practically disowned him. Worst of all, it was over a tattoo. Taehyung had been stabbed and his father didn’t even want to come see if his son was okay just because he has ink on his body. “Anyways,” his mother was quick to change the subject, “how is school going? You never even told me what you were majoring in.”

“I’m majoring in art.” Tae answered.

“I suppose I should’ve guessed that.” His mom replied, “So, no offense, but what exactly can you do with a degree in art? Have you already decided what you’re going to do?”

Taehyung hesitated. He hadn’t told his parents what he had planned on doing for a living in the future, and he wasn’t exactly thrilled to hear his mother’s opinion on his dream plans.

“Um…well, I am planning on becoming a tattoo artist.”

His mother stared at him for a while, not saying anything. For a minute, Taehyung wasn’t sure if she had heard him at all. Then, she finally spoke.

“A tattoo artist? Are you sure? With the kind of talent that you have you could do much better than those lowlifes.” She responded. Taehyung watched Hoseok quickly stand up from the couch, getting the attention of Taehyung’s mother.

“Excuse me?” Hoseok directed the question to the woman who had just insulted not only him, but his friends as well.

“Do not ‘excuse me’, young man. You are probably the one who got that ridiculous idea in his head that he could make a living with that sort of career. This is exactly why I didn’t want Taehyung to be associated with scum like you.”

“Mom!” Taehyung exclaimed in disbelief, grabbing her arm. She ignored him.

“You just thanked me for taking care of him a minute ago.” Hoseok retorted.

“Yes, and that was my mistake. I thought you had supported and took care of my son, but it seems all you have done is corrupt him. It’s trash like you who I believe deserve to be put down.” Taehyung’s mother hissed. Taehyung’s mouth hung open in disbelief. He had never heard his mom utter such hateful words towards anyone, and he was shocked at the fact that it was Hoseok whom she was talking to. Taehyung didn’t even wait for his friend to respond.

“Mother, please leave.” She turned her attention back towards her son.

“I’m not going to leave you with this man. He’s corrupted and manipulated you and I will not allow you to be influenced by him any more than you already have. Come on, Taehyung, we’re going home.” She began dragging Taehyung towards the door until he managed to get his wrist free just as she got the door open to the hallway.

“Like hell we are! I’m not going back home just for Dad to kick me back out while you try to pretend like you care for my well-being. Hoseok is the only person who has actually treated me like family for once in my life.” Taehyung defended his roommate.

“Well if you hate your family so much, maybe you should follow in Jungkook’s footsteps and disappear.” She replied. Taehyung could practically feel his heart shatter all over again. He couldn’t believe the words that just left . A few moments later, she seemed to process them as well. “Oh my God, Taehyung, I’m so—”

“Get out.” Taehyung murmured, voice barely above a whisper. Tears had begun streaming down his face.

“Taehyung—”

“I said get out!” he screamed, refusing to make eye contact with the woman he once called family. He watched as his mother, now a stranger to him, walked out the door, closing it behind her.

Taehyung collapsed onto his knees, then sat back on his legs, hiding his face in his hands as he began to sob. He heard the light footsteps of Hoseok’s bare feet on the hardwood floor before he felt arms envelop him in a hug.

The boy had never told his friend the story of Jungkook, and Hoseok never asked about what Taehyung’s tattoo meant after the day he received it. The artist knew it was a sensitive subject, so he never brought it up.

But, Taehyung thought it was time that Hoseok finally heard the story of Jeon Jungkook: the boy who changed his life forever.

A/N: Ahhh I finally finished another chapter, guys! I hope it wasn't too bad. By the way, just a  quick note, I have nothing against Taehyung's real parents. I'm sure they are lovely people. These characters are not meant to resemble his real-life parents in any way.