"Do you really believe NO can be taken down?" 

Jin opened his eyes and glanced over at Jungkook. They sat on the roof of their apartment building, watching the sun set. It had been a warm day, too warm to stay indoors, so they bundled up their blanket, grabbed some tea, and some snacks and headed upstairs. The evening breeze was chilly, but refreshing. The only thing keeping them cool in the apartment was an ancient, rattling fan that blew more hot air than cold. 

Jungkook nibbled on a cracker, while Jin sipped the hot tea. Its steam billowed up into the sky. They sat shoulder to shoulder under the thick blanket, on a bench someone put on the roof a long time ago. For the most part they sat in silence, but it was the content kind. It was a rare moment of peace. No worrying about food, getting caught, what their next move would be, about the rebellion. 

Jin contemplated his answer some more, staring into the mug of tea. Bits of herb swirled about in the amber coloured liquid. "It won't be easy, but it is possible. So, yes, I do believe it." 

Smiling, Jungkook stuffed the rest of his cracker into his mouth. "Nothing good in this life comes easy. As long as hope remains, then it'll all be okay." 

"Oh, Mr. Wise Guy now huh?" Jin smirked, nudging Jungkook playfully. He glanced at his watch and sighed. "Curfew's on in a few minutes. We should head back down...." 

Jungkook groaned but stood slowly. They couldn't risk getting caught on the roof, even if it wasn't technically leaving their house. The maknae was about to stuff the remaining crackers in his pocket, when he paused. He shoved them at Jin, who jumped in surprise. He opened his mouth to argue, but Jungkook shook his head and started bundling the blanket up. 

"You won't be able to stop NO if you starve to death." 

Jin smiled as the younger boy opened the door. In all the darkness of the world, Jungkook still managed to find some positivity and he made everything worth fighting for. Jin glanced down at the crackers in his hand as though they were the greatest gift anyone could have given him. 

****

Jin was laying on a stiff mattress. His head throbbed and he felt woozy. Slowly, he opened his eyes, and the ceiling above swirled sickly. He closed his eyes again to stop the movement, and when he was sure it was over, he opened them again. The lighting was poor, coming from a single lamp on the far side of the room. There were no windows, so there was no knowing what time it was. Jin propped himself up on his elbows, and glanced around. The room was scantily decorated. The thin mattress he lay on, sat on the floor. There was a tattered rug, as if that would add some colour to the room, the lamp, and a chair, which was occupied. A familiar young man, head resting on his chest, fast asleep. Taehyung. Jin remembered seeing someone with the same coloured hair as Taehyung, and it was like the flood gates opened. The strawberries. The boy being taken from his mother. The Shadows. Jungkook playing hero. Jungkook being taken...

He threw the blanket off and sat up fully. The sudden movement must have been enough for Taehyung, for he jerked awake and glanced wildly about. The chair was rickety, because it tipped, sending Taehyung to the floor. He groaned and picked himself up, while rubbing his behind.  His face lit up when he saw Jin, the pain and annoyance gone.

"Hyung, you're awake!"

"Jungkook -" 

"Wait. You need to slow down...." 

Jin pushed himself to his feet and the world tilted as a wave of dizziness washed over him. Taehyung was there, and helped ease him back onto the mattress. As the world righted itself once again, the door opened, light spilling in. 

"What's going on?" Another familiar face peered around the door, purple hair held out of his face by a headband. He looked between Taehyung and Jin, uncertain of what to say. Taehyung pointed at Jin. 

"He's awake." 

"No? Really? I hadn't noticed," Namjoon replied sarcastically. He gave Jin a fleeting smile before gesturing to the mattress. "You just woke up...maybe you should sit down." 

"I'm fine. We need to go after Jungkook." Namjoon and Taehyung exchanged an unreadable look that only irritated Jin further. "Are the others here?"

Taehyung nodded and before either of them could say anything else, Jin was out the door, heading down the hallway. It was a place he knew well. BTS' safe house. Taehyung, Jimin and Namjoon squatted in the safe house. It was an abandoned warehouse just on the outskirts of Seoul. It was their home away from home, and probably safer. Jin had been sleeping in one of the back offices converted into a bedroom. The main section of the warehouse was once a processing plant, though for what, they had no idea. Most of the bigger machines had been moved out, but the smaller pieces had been piled up against the walls to give more space for a common area. Three ratty couches sat in the centre, surrounding a wide, short table. Littering the table were comic books, magazines, some pencils, and a small music player Namjoon knicked off some street vendour and tweaked so it actually worked. 

On the left side of the common area was a door leading to more vacant rooms. On the right, among all the machines and debris, sat a shelf. It was caked in layers of dust, and random items sprawled the shelves. It looked non-descript, but behind it was a hidden entrance. Namjoon rigged it to spring open at the flip of a switch should the safe house ever be compromised. 

Sprawled out on one couch was Suga and Hoseok. On another was Jimin. An arm was draped over Jimin's eyes, and his chest rose with the deep, slow rhythms of sleep. Suga and Hoseok played a card game, not bothering to keep their voices down for Jimin's sake. Suga threw his hand down on the table with a slap and laughed loudly. Hoseok scowled jokingly, his eyes light with humour. 

"I beat you again! Hoseok, you at this game," Suga snickered, gathering up the cards. 

"I let you win," Hoseok pointed out, his eyes flicking up to the trio entering. He stiffened, and Suga glanced over his shoulder, smile faltering.

Jin tried to ignore the silence and looks as he stepped into the room. He kept his chin up and looked at each of them with a steady gaze. Hoseok stood and kicked the couch Jimin slept on. 

"Hyung..."

Jimin jerked awake and glared at Hoseok. "What was that for? I said to wake me up when hyung wakes up...." His eyes found Jin and his cheeks coloured. "Oh...." 

"Stop looking at me like someone died," Jin snapped. He moved to the empty couch and sat down heavily. "How long was I out?" 

"You've been out for a couple hours. The Shadow hit you pretty good. After Jungkook.... We brought you back here and have been holed up since."

Jin closed his eyes. Jungkook. The foolish boy. How could he have gone and done something so reckless? They all worked so hard not to get caught. They stayed away from trouble, kept to themselves, avoided the Shadows at all cost. Jungkook had been on edge lately, maybe saving that woman had been a breaking point. And look where that got him.

 "We tried to track the van," Jimin said. He grabbed a map from under the comic books and unfurled it. He pointed to a road just north of Seoul. "Sympathizers are all over the country. Two of them spotted the van driving along this road. Then all traces of the vehicle just disappears."

No one really knew where NO took their prisoners. Some speculated perhaps North Korea. Their leader had expressed support for NO in the past, so it wouldn't be that big of a stretch. Others figured prisoners were executed on the spot. Less to worry about. Jin tried not to dwell on that idea. But there was also a rumour that NO had a base somewhere in the country. Close enough to the city to access easily, but far enough away to stay hidden. 

Grabbing a pencil from the pile, Jin traced a circle around the road Jimin had pointed to. He went all the way to the North Korean border and around, as far as he figured they would travel. The facility really could be anywhere, but at least they had an area to start. And something told him that that's where Jungkook was being taken. 

"It's in here somewhere," he said with certainty. 

"That's a lot of ground to cover," Suga sighed. "We have no idea how long Jungkook has. If he's still alive." 

Hoseok nudged Suga roughly in the ribs, and shot him a dark look. "What he meant to say is that no one's every found this place before, and time isn't exactly on our side." 

"This is our chance. We can find this place and take it down. If this is where NO keeps their prisoners than it will be a huge win," Jin pointed out. "And it's where Jungkook is. He's still alive. I know he is." 

"And if he isn't?" 

Taehyung's voice was so soft, Jin thought he had imagined it. But then Taehyung looked up and spoke again. "No one's ever come back from that place. The security there will be tight, and we'll be risking our lives. If we die trying to save someone who's gone, then it'll all be for nothing." 

Heavy, tense silence fell over the group. Taehyung looked ashamed for saying those words, but he didn't apologize. Suga and Jimin squirmed uncomfortable, while Namjoon crossed his arms in thought, and Hoseok bit his lip, focussed on the map in front of him. Jin's eyes narrowed, but he managed to keep his face blank. 

"Anyone else think this is a waste of time?" It was a challenge. Taehyung cringed, his cheeks going red. "He's our brother. And this is our chance. If we can shut this facility down, NO loses their prison. Or whatever this place is." Whatever it was, it was important enough to keep hidden. 

"Security's going to be insane," Namjoon pointed out. 

"You're the best hacker out there. You'll get us in," Jin persisted. 

"This is a suicide mission," Suga muttered. "But I'm in." 

Hoseok nodded in agreement. Jimin bit his lip, eyes uncertain. "I agree with Taehyung. If Jungkook is...we need to be certain. But, he is our brother, and there's no way to know unless we go there and fight for him." 

"This might be our only chance, Taehyung," Jin pressed on. "Save Jungkook and take a piece of NO down. This will work." 

Brow furrowed, Taehyung ran a hand through his hair. Then he sighed, and his face softened. "Fine. We do this. And we tear those ers down." 

Jin allowed a ghost of a smile to dance across his lips. "Then let's get to work." 

****

A/N: can't believe I got a post out sooner than anticipated! I'm really excited for this story, and I hope you all are as well! Leave a comment, tell me what you think! I look forward to hearing from you! (Also, on a side note: somewhere in the middle of writing this chapter I ended up spelling Hoseok's name as Heseok....Dunno why, and I went through and tried to fix all of them but if I missed one, oops lol)