FLASHBACK

JULY 24TH, 2004

Daegu Dalseong Park

"Yoongi, stop running like that! Why can't you behave like your brother?" His mother complained, shaking her head.

Ms. Min sat on a wooden bench, reading a magazine while her two sons played around in the park. Yoongi, her oldest one, ran as fast as a rocket, humming to himself, circling trees and hopping from stone to stone. Daeshim, her youngest, walked quietly among the flowery bushes.

"Yoongi don't go near the lake!"

"But Eomma, I just want to see the ducks better." The boy sighed, jogging back and away from the pond.

"I don't understand how can a seven year old behave better than an eleven year old." She breathed, displeased, not peeling her eyes away from the magazine again.

Yoongi walked to his brother, who was now squatting near a tree.

"Want to play hide and seek?"

"No." The younger one said, dismissing his brother with a swift hand move. "I'm busy."

Yoongi furrowed his brows.

"Busy with what?"

Daeshim did not reply, instead crouching over himself, as if trying to hide something.

Yoongi fought his way around him and was horrified to find a featherless baby bird smashed dead against the base of the tree trunk. He had never seen anything so sad and so revolting in his short life. What caused an uneasy feeling in his chest, though, was the bloodied stone beside it.

Without another word, Yoongi turned around and went sit still next to his mother until it was time to go home.

He never asked or mentioned it ever, but from that day on, he never looked at his little brother with the same eyes.

Not again.

END OF FLASHBACK

Min Yoongi sat on the very same chair for countless hours now.

He guessed it was a new day. His wrists bled where the ropes ate at his flesh, every inch of his body hurt. Still, he barely registered those facts, for his mind was far from him. His mind was on Yuna and Hoseok, on the other side of those doors. Had Hoseok woken up from his fall? Was he ok? Was Yuna ok?

He hadn't heard footsteps, nor the door being opened, so he was quite positive that they hadn't been taken away from the other room. He felt helpless, useless.

And perhaps what most scared him, he felt hopeless.

He wasn't one to fake the funk - they were completely, absolutely and undeniably screwed. There was no way out of that compound they were stuck in. No one would come to their rescue, except perhaps Hoseok's father, but then again, what could he do against the dozens of murderers lurking in there? He wouldn't even be able to get in and supposing he was, he would meet certain death.

Like the rest of them.

He felt a painful sting to the heart at that thought. He would die standing, but could he watch his father figure of the past year die in front of him? Could he bare watching Hoseok die in front of his own eyes? And Yu-na...

Anger mixed with despair when he remembered Yu-na and Hoseok had literally put themselves out there on purpose. What did they expect? To walk in, cut the ropes and then walk out of there waving goodbye?

Jenjang! How stupid are they? Out there, they at least had a chance.

No, they aren't stupid. They just wanted to help. If anything, that only showed how much he meant for Hoseok. For Yu-na, maybe?

In the end, all the blame came down to one person.

Min Daeshim.

His blood boiled with hatred. He had beaten himself mentally, many times for having such ill thoughts about his own brother. But he would no more. Daeshim, antisocial and sociopath or not, sick in the head or not, needed to be held accountable for his own mistakes. Maybe not by the hands of these people, that would be too cruel, but in some other way. Any other way. So he would not push down what he felt. He hated his brother and that was the truth.

Daeshim had crossed him for the last time and in the worst way he could.

He could set him on fire all he wanted. He could take his life anytime and him over a thousand times.

But not Hoseok.

Not Yu-na.

×

"Rise and shine, beautiful!"

I cracked my eyes open, the reality slapping me across the face and last night's events drowning my memory like a tsunami.

I was yanked upwards and away from Hoseok, who was now conscious and growling profanities at the man who had me by the arm, his words muffled by the piece of cloth tied around his mouth.

"What about that one?"

"Leave him." He said, resting a foot on top of Hoseok's body. "We'll see if he's still this spirituous once our special guest arrives."

He kicked Hoseok in the stomach and barked laughing at his pained groan. Without either of the men expecting, I twirled around and kicked my captor on the shin with all the strength I could muster up. Then, I nearly made it the couple steps that separated me from Hobi, but he was faster.

"You ought to rethink your actions, girl." He hissed, all hints of his previous amusement gone from his face.

Pulling his gun out and pointing it straight at my face, he added with a devious smirk:

"I'm not as soft and certainly not as slow as my predecessor. And of course, wouldn't want a hole through your pretty face. Well, at least not before it's due."

Hoseok thrashed and fought his way upright, but it proved to be an impossible task with the ropes around his ankles and his hands tied behind his back.

"Take her upstairs."