[CONTENTID1] THE MARINE - part 1 [/CONTENTID1]

[CONTENTID2]

Yoongi + OC (Song Ga Yoon)

Word Count: 4.6K

Written by: AnnieWilson

Captain Min Yoongi retrieves his passport from the security guard and, after receiving thanks from the man for fighting for his country, he smiles, nods, and makes his way to the baggage reclaim area. He waits, his hands in his pockets, his briefcase at his feet.

“Yoongi-ah!” he hears someone call out. Looking up, a smile forms on his face, genuine and true. They reach his eyes and he raises his hand, waving at the nearing figure. His childhood sunbae and neighbour, Kim Seokjin, runs over and they share a warm hug. “Yoongi-ah. It’s been, God, how many years?”

“Seven,” Yoongi states matter-of-factly. “Seven years, five months. That’s without seeing each other. Letters don’t count…” He looks the older man, only by a year, up and down and smiles. “You look good, hyung. Maybe a little tired — but good.”

“Oh, please,” Seokjin laughs, patting his own hair. He then puts a hand on the blond man’s shoulder. “Your hair. You changed it. It used to be red, right?”

“Eung, you get a little more freedom when you get out of the initial training. It doesn’t have to be shaved, like in the movies. And you can change colours, but they have to be solid and look natural.” Seokjin quirks a brow and Yoongi grins sheepshly. “What? I could’ve been born a blond.”

“Right,” the older man snorts, shaking his head. He then gives the blond man another once over. “You look good in that uniform, Yoongi-ah. How is it, being in the Marines? Are you…are you still struggling?”

Yoongi’s smile falls and his face darkens, “I’m fine. I find it hard to fall asleep at night, still, and I’m jumpy all the damn time — but apart from that, I’m fine. I’m just like any other soldier, hyung.”

“It’s not healthy, Yoongi-ah,” Seokjin murmurs softly.

“Still playing doctor, huh?” Yoongi teases and Seokjin cracks a smile, shrugging.

“Actually…”

“No way! You made it?” the Marine questions excitedly. Just then, their luggage pass and they quickly pick them up, then start walking to the airport’s exit together. “I can’t believe it. I mean, I can — you were always a genius and kind-hearted. I just can’t believe I missed seeing it happen.”

Seokjin chuckles and bumps shoulders with him. “It’s not a huge deal…” At Yoongi’s sceptical look, he blushes, “Okay, maybe it is. But I’ve only been in the business for a year. It’s a long process. I’m currently working towards a promotion. I love this job, Yoongi-ah.”

“Wow…” Yoongi smiles proudly, “Well done, hyung. I’m proud of you — you did it.” He huffs out a breath, “man, Ga In must be so happy for you and proud to call herself your wife. How is she anyway? And the kid — Jinwoon, was it?”

He hasn’t yet noticed how Seokjin’s face has contorted with shame and pain. He slides his eyes over to the older man and they widen. “Hyung? What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, nothing…” Seokjin mutters, then sighs. “It’s just — Ga In. We’re having some problems.”

“Marital?”

He nods. Yoongi tongues the inside of his cheek.

“You’ll figure it out. You guys always do. All couples fight, hyung, it’s as natural as breathing. You’ll get over it and be stronger than ever,” he assures the doctor. Seokjin flashes him a grateful smile and nods. “Anyway, what brings you here…well, if we’d landed in the right country.”

They’re in Guilin, China instead of Bangkok, Thailand. After their plane was landed in a U-shaped valley, they were made to wait several hours before buses and helicopters came to them to the nearest city; Guilin.

Of course, their tickets were refunded but most — if not all — of the passengers are just grateful to be alive and have not filed any complaints. They’re all indebted to the captain and the co-pilot of that plane.

Yoongi never forgets a name so he’ll make sure to send Kim Namjoon and Geum Jun Ri — if he finds their addresses — thank you letters.

“It’s a two week training program,” Seokjin explains to Yoongi, regaining his attention. “It’s based in Bangkok, though, so I’ll have to find my way there somehow. I’m already late.” He sighs and shakes his head. “Never mind. What about you, Yoongi-ah? Why were you going to Bangkok?”

“I don’t even know,” the marine answers with a snort. “I asked some of my comrades and they said treating myself to a holiday would help with the stress and…the other stuff.” He shrugs, “I don’t know. I guess I just wanted to forget for a little while.”

“I don’t think you can just forget things like that,” Seokjin says, looking at him worriedly. The last time they spoke, and it was through e-mail, Yoongi had returned from another deployment in worse condition than ever. That was almost five years ago. “He was your friend.”

“Brother,” Yoongi corrects. “He was my brother. Marines aren’t friends — we’re brothers. And I didn’t save him.”

“You can’t—”

“Don’t tell me I can’t blame myself,” he snaps. “Just don’t. He figured it out before I did — I ranked higher, I was in charge. I should’ve been there for him. He died for me— because of me.”

Seokjin realises that he won’t be able to change his mind on that so he tries a different tactic.

“You need professional help if you want to get better, Yoongi,” he tells him. “I didn’t study psychology or anything but a friend of mine, actually, she’s younger — your age — is a psychologist. She only has two years of experienced — she graduated early — but she’s good. Really good. She’s actually my sunbae.”

Yoongi sighs, “Hyung, don’t bother, please. Don’t you think I’ve tried seeing shrinks? I have but none of them tell me anything new. They don’t help, they just take my money.”

Seokjin nods and purses his lips.

“Mmm, okay, yeah. Tell you what, I’ll give you her number and you give her a try,” he says, retrieving a business card from his wallet. “Yoongi, please. You need help and she’s your best chance at getting better. Give her a call and go to one appointment. Just one. Please.”

“Seokjin…”

“Please,” the older man begs. With a defeated sigh, Yoongi takes the business card and slips it into one of his pockets. “Thank you.”

“If I hate it, I’m never going back,” Yoongi states bluntly. But nothing he says can wipe the content smile off Seokjin’s face. They walk together to the nearest coffee shop and spend the rest of the night chatting away, catching up and retelling old childhood stories.

~ ♦ ~

“Have you at least tried talking to your wife about these problems you’ve been having?” Doctor Song Ga Yoon asks her fourth patient of the day, Kim Junmyeon. “Junmyeon-ah-” He’s been coming to her for a year now and they’ve gotten relatively close, though maintaining a professional relationship, “- you can’t keep this up. You’re going to ruin your marriage at this rate. You said Seul Bi already thinks you’re cheating on her whenever you come to see me.”

“I want to— I really do, Ga Yoon seonsaengnim. It’s just…” the angel-faced man rubs his face tired and leans back in the comfortable leather sofa. “She’s…not understanding. If I say I feel…upset, she’ll tell me to it up and get over it.”

“Then maybe the problem isn’t breaking it to her but, instead…breaking things off with her,” Ga Yoon suggests, even if it is a dangerous piece of advice to be giving. But from what she’s head from Junmyeon, his wife treats him rather badly or just neglects his needs and feelings. It sounds like the classic scenario of a submissive husband and an emotionally abusive/neglectful wife.

Unfortunately, even when he comes in with a swollen cheeks, it is against patient confidentiality for her to report his wife to the police.

And that, Ga Yoon thinks, is the worst part of her job. Being able to help…but still not being able to help.

“I can’t do that, saem, you know that,” Junmyeon sighs, burying his face in his hands. “The kids…they need me. Or I need them — I don’t really know. If I try to leave, she’ll take them away from me. I love them, saem.”

“I know.”

“I can’t lose them,” he mumbles, “I’d kill myself.”

“Junmyeon…” Ga Yoon gulps.

“I really would. Don’t you know the way the system works these days? Women almost always win custody. The system favours them over the fathers, it’s fact.” Ga Yoon knows, without a doubt, that he’s right. She, herself, grew up with her mother instead of her father. Now, her mother wasn't mean or neglectful in any way.

In fact, she was wonderful — still is. Ga Yoon adores her and visits her often. However, her father is also a good man but he didn’t get many chances to prove it until she turned 18 and was able to see him whenever she pleased. Her mother made sure that he rarely got to see her, only because their marriage ended badly.

Still, her mother won full custody because her lawyer painted Ga Yoon’s father as a bad person. 

“Have you tried going to couples’ counselling?” she asks her patient. Junmyeon snorts and lifts his face from his hands. “It’s worth a shot, don’t you think? Junmyeon, you need to do something.”

“I thought I was doing something by seeing you,” he retorts.

“Yes, but I can’t help you if every time I make you better after a session, your wife destroys those good feelings as soon as you go home,” Ga Yoon counters. “Do you see the problem, here? Your wife is counteracting your progress, Junmyeon. If we move a step forward, she knocks you two steps back.”

“I…I know,” the patient croaks, letting his head hang. Ga Yoon bites her lip and tentatively reaches over to pat his back. Although she believes in comforting her patients, she tends to do so with words. Using physical contact to uplift a patient risks them getting attached to you — although those risks are put in place as soon as the patient starts requesting for more frequent and closer-together sessions.

“It’ll be alright,” she murmurs, patting his back gently. He lifts his head and stares at her for a while. Oh God, she thinks. The way he’s looking at her has red flags popping up all around her. She retracts her hand and leans back in her chair, checking the gold watch on her wrist. “Alright, that’s your session.”

“Already?” he asks and she nods, smiling softly. “Can…can I see you again this week?”

“Junmyeon…” she sighs, biting her lip before meeting his gaze. “You’ve seen me twice already this week and it’s only Thursday. I’m worried that…you might be getting too attached to me. Now, a strong patient-therapist relationship is crucial for this process to work, which is why we encourage you to contact us outside of your sessions but…Junmyeon, I saw you yesterday.”

His eyes widen and his cheeks go bright red. Ga Yoon doesn’t want to go on but she knows she has to. She has to put some distance between them before things escalate — on his side.

“You can’t follow me, Junmyeon. For one, it’s breaking my personal boundaries and those that were put in place between us but, also, it’s considered stalking in the eyes of the law,” she informs him. He looks down, unable to meet her gaze despite how captivating it is. “I understand that you like me, I like you, too but…this is getting out of hand.”

“I’m sorry,” he whispers, ashamed. “I won’t follow you again — I promise. Please don’t transfer me to another therapist! I can’t see anyone else, they don’t help. Not like you do.”