The sun was bright, streaming through the small window above the door. Aside from that stream of sun, the rest of the cramped apartment was cast in a shadow. There wasn't much in the apartment, two single sized beds, a tiny kitchen, bathroom, and a low table in the centre. Posters hung along the walls, random ones collected over the years. Over the windows hung heavy curtains, to stop the New Order from snooping. It hardly looked like a place someone would live willingly, but it was home.

Jungkook bit his lip as he stared at the computer screen. It was early, and Jin was still sleeping soundly on the small bed to the left. Jungkook's hyung looked so peaceful, and young. They were young, Jungkook supposed, but their battle had forced them all to mature a lot quicker than they should have. He knew his friends tried to keep the worst of their fight from him, and while it did bother him, he understood why they did it. If they got caught, at least maybe Jungkook would be spared.

The screen showed the news, silent as always about the steady takeover of NO. People were too scared to speak out, to stand up for themselves. That's what Jin believed. He was determined to make sure the truth of NO would spread, it's how the little rebellion was developed. There was a propaganda commercial, declaring the unity the New Order would instill. If anyone saw anything that went against the New Order's laws, and they called it in, they would be paid handsomely. It was a trap for BTS, that much was known. They posed a threat to NO. Seven boys against a whole government order. Though their numbers were slowly rising as well. BTS had grown from seven to at least thirty, with more people showing up to meetings daily. More numbers meant a greater risk, but Jin made sure to move the meeting location weekly. Never in the same place more than once, all devices had to be left at home and they were checked every meeting.

Jungkook flipped to a report that BTS had collected. It would be their next release, Jin explained. Jungkook read over the list of disappearances, his brow furrowing. He couldn't understand how people just allowed this to happen. How the government let NO take over like this.

Jin groaned from the bed, catching Jungkook's attention. He set the laptop on the mattress and slipped off the bed. The older boy suffered from nightmares, something about his family being taken away. He never spoke of it, grew quiet every time Jungkook asked, so Jungkook learned to keep quiet about it, no matter how curious he was. But he never liked watching his hyung restless. Tiptoeing across the floor, Jungkook crept to Jin's bed and curled up next to him. Jin stiffened and then slowly relaxed, and Jungkook smiled. He rested his chin against Jin's shoulder and tapped his hyung's forehead slightly. Anything to distract the older boy from his nightmare.

"Go away Jungkook," Jin mumbled.

"But hyung, it's almost noon," Jungkook said innocently. He couldn't hide the smirk off his face.

That got Jin's attention. He sat up with surprising speed, startling Jungkook. The younger boy toppled to the floor with a yelp, his elbow hitting the table. He groaned, rubbing his elbow, and felt Jin's irritated gaze on him. He ignored the bruising pain and threw on another smirk. It worked. Jin was awake and the nightmare was over. For now.

"Oh come on, that was funny," he said. "But you didn't have to throw me off the bed like that."

Jin rolled his eyes, and threw the blanket off, exposing his bare chest. He ran a hand through his brown hair. "What are you doing up so early anyway?"

Jungkook shrugged his shoulders casually, trying to keep his eyes from darting to the laptop. "Couldn't sleep with you snoring away beside me. Get up, I'm hungry. Let's go for breakfast before we meet everyone." He stood and hurried into the bathroom.

"So demanding for a maknae," Jin grumbled, swiping a t-shirt off the ground.

He threw it on and glanced at Jungkook's bed where the laptop still sat. He didn't have to look at it to know what was on the screen. No matter how hard he tried to keep Jungkook away from their work, the maknae was stubborn. Tae-hyung said it was only natural, the kid wanted to be included, but Jin felt protective over the youngest of their group. Responsible for him even. They only had each other, and if Jin ever lost Jungkook.... Jin shook his head. No. He wasn't going to think like that. That would be like thinking they were going to lose. He wasn't going to let that happen. He wasn't going to lose this fight because he was doing it for Jungkook, whether the boy knew it or not. 

"Hyung, you almost ready?" Jungkook asked, poking his head around the door.

"If you would hurry up in the bathroom," Jin retorted, swallowing back his unease.

If Jungkook noticed, he didn't say anything. He slipped out of the bathroom with an eye roll. He grabbed his boots from beside his bed and tugged them on as Jin moved into the bathroom. Jin washed his face and glanced in the small mirror. His haunted brown eyes stared back.

As much as he tried, he could never get the image of his older brother being dragged away and his parents lying dead in their living room. The only reason Jin was spared was because he had been hidden under the floorboards. He felt his parents' blood dripping onto his forehead, his mother's screams echoing in his ears, his father's lifeless eyes staring down at him etched into his mind forever. And his brother's struggling. They were the reason Jin started BTS. And it were those events that led him to finding Jungkook. The one thing he needed to keep him fighting.

After he dried his face, Jin glanced at Jungkook, who was on the computer again, this time playing a game. When the dongsaeng felt Jin's stare, he looked up and smiled.

"Ready?"

Jin nodded, and tossed the towel onto the rack. He grabbed the house keys and stuffed his wallet into his pocket. "Yeah, let's go. If we're late again, Tae-hyung is going to throw a fit."