Song: B.A.P - Wake Me Up

All that Jungkook had learned during the 17 years of his life was how to survive. Being a part of a gang was dangerous and he needed to be alert all the time. He hadn’t ever time to care about things like emotions or feelings or a subject like the beautiful girl sitting in front of him.

In a huge, almost dark, abandoned warehouse, there were only two people. Jungkook who had his two eyes pierced on the unconscious girl and Minah who had been tied to the chair by Jungkook’s gang members.

Her black hair was spread around her shoulders and were covering half of her face. It looked strangely beautiful for Jungkook, although he was sure that she had looked even more beautiful if he could have gathered his courage, walked toward her and curled the strands of hair behind her ear.

Whop! Even thinking about it made him uneasy.

He stood up. The only way to stop his trembling hands and beating heart was to leave and ask one of his hyungs to watch her. After all, she wouldn’t be here for too long. As soon as her rich prosecutor father sent the appointed amount of money, which wasn’t a small amount at all, she would be set free.

He was about to leave but it seemed like his fate stopped him.

Yoo Minah growled out of pain before opening her eyes. Her body was numb yet her wrists that were tied behind her were stinging so badly. She was light-headed because she didn’t eat much for the past two days and her eyes couldn’t distinguish between dream and reality anymore. But somehow she was sure that the round-eyed boy standing before her, looking like he was caught off guard, really existed.

“Hey.” Minah called slowly before glancing into his eyes. “Can you give me some water?” She asked carelessly and it made Jungkook more perplexed. Wasn’t she supposed to be afraid of him?

“No?” She called again but the boy wasn’t moving at all. “What is he? Statue?” Minah mumbled under her breath and sighed. One day, everyone was running around to prepare the best condition for her to study for the entrance exam as she was a senior and the other day she was tied into a chair in the middle of nowhere begging for a cup of water.

Jungkook gulped and prayed that she wouldn’t notice that he was flustered because of her. Finally, he grabbed a bottle of water and raised it up in front of her.

She glanced up and could catch a glimpse of his face behind the cap he used for disguise. She could see that he was much younger than the guys who brought her here, maybe he was even at the same age as her. She noticed the innocent look in his eyes and wondered that if he really was a criminal.

“I can’t drink it myself.” Minah remarked her status and Jungkook wanted to facepalm himself for becoming such a moron in front of her. “You know, your friends tied my hands to the chair.”

Jungkook nodded while opening the bottle. He wanted to decline any kind of relationship with the bastards who tied up such a beautiful girl but that didn’t make any sense.

“Lower it a bit.”

Jungkook did as she told him and soon he was focused on her lips around the bottle. His ears were turning red and he forgot how to breathe.

Minah nearly choked on the water when the bottle slipped a bit from his hands. “Ahhh! Are you trying to kill me this early?!” She opposed his action and moved away from the bottle.

“Sorry.” Jungkook mumbled and threw the bottle away. He needed to get away from her. She was a dangerous creature that turned him into a fool.

“So you can talk. I thought you were a bit slow-witted.”

“I AM NOT!!” He yelled but seeing how sincere she looked, he softened. “I’m perfectly fine…”

Minah smiled for the first time since she was kidnapped and that was kind of crazy but on the other hand he was cute. “You don’t look like a bad person.” She commented innocently.

Jungkook opened his mouth to say that ‘I’m not a bad person’ but he shut up as soon as he remembered the relation between them.

“Why did you end up being in a gang?”

Her question triggered him. It was easy for her to say that. She was born in a rich family and didn’t know a thing about struggles of life.

But why did he ended up being in a gang? Simple. His parents, well if he could call those people that, left him on streets when he was six. Some of the gang members found him and gave him food and a place to leave under the condition of being a part of the gang. Well, he didn’t have much of a choice. However, he never did a wrong thing while being there. They’d just ordered him around with simple tasks, like keeping an eye on her.

“My shift is over.” Jungkook said as he snapped out his thoughts. He was about to leave when her soft voice melted his heart for the thousandth time.

“Will you come back again?”

For the rest of the day, Jungkook was drowned in his own thoughts. He hadn’t ever doubted the way he was living but her words made him think. Was he living in a right way? Was that the life he wished to have? To spend it in a gang? To be a criminal?

Honestly, he didn’t want. He wished he could quit the gang life before he would commit a crime. Before it became too late. He was going to be 18 in two weeks and he wanted to live a normal life. He wanted to be a person who had the right to like someone like her.

However, deciding to leave the gang was one thing and actually leaving was another thing. Of course, they wouldn’t let a member leave as simple that, Jungkook knew it. The best scenario was that they would kill him.

Jungkook shrugged the thoughts away and stopped by the door of the warehouse. He had promised Minah to come back. However, he was crazy to stop and fix his bangs under the cap before entering.

In the room, Jungkook met the unexpected. Some of his hyungs were circling Minah and she was covered with blood.

“Your dear dad would better pay or else I’m going to send him your dead body. I’m a little impatient as you see.”

Jungkook watched as his hyung punched her in the stomach since her face was already ruined. Jungkook’s hand curled into a fist. He couldn’t watch anymore. He stepped forward to stop him but someone else did it for him.

“We better keep her alive till night. Her dad may decide to pay after you send him her photo.”

The first guy growled but stopped hitting her. They walked past Jungkook, who was frozen in his place, and ordered him to keep an eye on her.

After hearing the door closing, Jungkook walked toward her. Her face was full of bruises and cuts while the drops of her blood had stained her shirt. Her status was exactly the reason why he didn’t want to continue the gang life.

Minah noticed that Jungkook was there and she lowered her head. She didn’t want him to see her like that. Somehow her pride wouldn’t let her show her vulnerable side to anyone.

This time it was Jungkook who broke the silence. “Are you okay?”

She chuckled bitterly but flinched in the middle because the cut on the corner of her lips hurt badly. “Do I look like to?” Her gawky side just burst out in front of him.

“I’m sorry.”

“That’s not going to help me.” She remarked with a grown.

Jungkook dropped his head low. He hated himself although he wasn’t the one who had done that to her. He decided to grab stuff to treat her cuts and stopped himself from saying ‘stay here’ to the girl who was tied tightly to a chair her. He almost became a fool again.

Minah was nearly unconscious when she felt someone touching the strands of hair that was covering her face. She flinched in the thought of the gang member’s return but it was just that boy with innocent eyes. He reached for her face with a damped towel to clean the blood.

“What are you doing?!” She turned her head away and refused.

“Stay still… please…” Delicately, he put his hand on her chin and made her face him. The moment her dark brown eyes locked with his, Jungkook’s heart skipped a beat. He shouldn’t have boldly made her face him, now it was only his heart who would suffer.

“It would hurt a little.” He started removing the blood stains out her face and she would flinch from time to time when he passed her cuts.

“You said ‘a little’.” She growled under her breath when he pulled away to prepare the ointment for her cuts.

“Sorry.” He apologized again.

“Have you ever hurt badly?” Minah asked out of curiosity. Exactly why she was curious about the boy who she didn’t even know his name, she couldn’t reach a conclusion.

“Uhm.” Jungkook started thinking about one time that their rival gang beat the crap out of him as a revenge. Another reason for leaving the gang. He thought his life would end there but he survived anyway and for the first time he was thankful. He got to meet her.

From his expression, Minah realized that it was a hurtful memory for him. She didn’t want to see him sad so she changed the subject. “I don’t know your name.”

He walked closer and put the ointment on her cuts.

“Shiiii…” She nearly swore and it made Jungkook chuckle.

“It’s Jungkook.” He said softly. That was the first time a girl wanted to know his name.

“You’re doing it a bit roughly but anyways, thanks Jungkook.”

Hearing his name, Jungkook stopped working on her cuts for a couple of seconds. As he regained back his conscious he found her smiling at him.

“You…” He stopped when he realized he started his sentence wrongly as he was busy admiring her beautiful smile. “Will your father send the money?” He asked, hopeful that he would. The leader was out his mind at this point.

Minah sighed. She knew her father too well to know how devoted to the law he was. Actually, that was why she loved and respected him a lot. “I don’t think so.”

“WHAT?!!” Jungkook snapped, terrified, he glanced at her.

“Why are you look more scared than me.” She wanted to but she wasn’t exactly in the right situation to tease. “My father never does anything against the law.”

“But this is about your life!”

Minah shook her head firmly. “That’s impossible that he sends the money.” She didn’t hate her father for that but on the opposite, she was proud of him. She believed that her father would find the best way to save her from there.

Jungkook was out of it. That Yoo prosecutor had enough money, why couldn’t he just spend some to rescue his one and only daughter and save Jungkook from this anxiety too.

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