Adrenaline takes over sometimes. It makes you do things you could never do if you had the chance to think. It makes you make decisions in a split-second. It can save lives.

Jungkook prayed that would be its purpose this time. Because when he saw his leader fall over the edge of the cliff, he lunged forward and grabbed him by the hand without a second thought.

He toppled over the edge with him, managing to catch the ledge with his other hand, precariously holding the both of them from falling into the dark abyss below. The sudden force on his arm as he stopped the older man's fall made him cry out in pain and clench his eyes closed. For only a second. Because there was something more important than the pain that he had to focus on.

He looked down to find Namjoon staring up at him, his eyes wide and filled with terror. But Jungkook very quickly realized that the other wasn't afraid for himself. No, he was gazing at him with that look, and Jungkook knew Namjoon was only worried about him. He had learned to hate that look, because it always seemed to mean that Namjoon was about to do something stupid in order to protect him. He may have been a genius, but he was always all too willing to do stupid things for the sake of his team. And Jungkook didn't want to give him the opportunity to try.

He grunted in effort as he began to try to pull the other man up to the ledge, but he gave up after a moment with a huff. He was too heavy, and the ledge was too far. Jungkook was just as strong as he was stubborn, but even he could already see that it wasn't possible. He directed his gaze up towards the ledge, trying to formulate a plan and avoiding looking at Namjoon's face. Then, he had a thought, and glanced back down.

"Hyung, climb up," He said, lifting him by the arm slightly in an urging gesture. He felt his stomach start to sour when Namjoon shook his head.

"You won't be able to hold on if I shift my weight too much," Namjoon replied evenly. He may have been right, but Jungkook could not focus on what was reasonable right now. He only knew he had to get his leader to safety. And he had to distract him before he said what he was about to say...

"Here, I'll lift you so you can grab my waist and-"

"Jungkook-ah," Namjoon interrupted, and Jungkook was stunned into silence for one second too long. "Drop me."

And that was it. That was what he was afraid he would say. That was what he had been absolutely terrified that he would say.

"No," Jungkook growled in response.

"Please..." Namjoon pleaded, and Jungkook made the mistake of looking down and catching his hyung's desperate eyes. Because, beyond all reason, that expression always made him want to listen.

"No! We're both getting out of this, do you hear me?"

"Jungkook, you have to let go so you can climb up!" As if to prove him right, Jungkook's hand on the ledge slipped slightly, shifting the two boys and making them both gasp. After a moment of exhaling shakily, Jungkook dared to attempt to adjust his hand and strengthen his grip again. He held his breath and his heart was pounding the whole time, but he was successful.

"Okay, climb now!" Jungkook urged again. He felt more than a little terrified when Namjoon didn't respond, and he willed himself to look down once more. Namjoon wasn't looking at him now, head down. Jungkook's breath caught in his throat when he felt Namjoon's fingers start to wiggle in his grasp. He tightened his grip as much as he could.

"Don't!" Jungkook yelled, panicked now. But the fingers continued to move. Namjoon brought his other hand up and started trying to further destabilize Jungkook's grip. Jungkook's stomach contracted painfully at the sight of this, and his voice broke when he cried out again. "Don't do this, hyung!"

Namjoon lifted his head and looked back up at him again. He no longer looked worried, but just completely devastated as he looked up at his dongsaeng.

"You have to let go," Namjoon told him, and he was begging again. Jungkook's resolve was wavering, and he was slowly starting to give in to the hopelessness attempting to strangle him. But then, the look in Namjoon's eyes made him realize exactly how he could get out of this situation.

"Climb or I will let go...of the ledge," Jungkook said, voice suddenly steady again despite what he was saying. He wasn't sure how, but this option didn't scare him nearly as much.

"No!" Namjoon shouted immediately in response, eyes blown wide and expression both shocked and distressed. It was a low blow, and Jungkook had a feeling he'd pay for it later, one way or another. But he couldn't even bring himself to feel guilty...because he knew it would work.

"Then climb."

Namjoon stared up at him, looking defeated now. Ever so hesitantly, he began to reach towards Jungkook's leg with his free hand. Jungkook grunted as he lifted Namjoon as much as he could so the other could grab ahold of his waist.

Despite the confidence Jungkook had just exuded in his tone, when Namjoon actually began to climb, he held his breath and he could feel his body trembling. He was both terrified and pouring every last ounce of his strength into holding the two of them up with just one hand.

Namjoon was clinging to him now, arms wrapped around his waist and legs encircling his thighs.  He was holding on for now, but Jungkook knew it wasn't an ideal position and that he'd surely start slipping soon. As of that moment, Jungkook hadn't lost his grip on the ledge yet, but he had no way of knowing when he would.

"Wait, let me try something," Jungkook said, glancing down at his hyung. He'd never admit to the overwhelming terror he was feeling in that moment. He was just relieved that it didn't show in his voice. Because if he screwed up right then, then both of them would die. That kind of pressure didn't help to steady his already shaking muscles. "Hold on," he said, trying to give the older a look that he hoped was reassuring.

Jungkook steadied his hand on the ledge and took a deep breath before starting to try to lift the both of them up a little ways. He brought up his other hand and tried to catch the ledge. He missed and both of them swung a little as a result. Jungkook felt Namjoon's arms tighten around him, and he wondered if the other could feel the erratic beating of his heart. Jungkook exhaled shakily before trying once more. This time he made it, clasping his other hand to the ledge and shifting to distribute the weight evenly to both his grips.

"There," Jungkook breathed out, trying to disguise the intense relief he was feeling. It wasn't over yet, but at least now he had a better hold. "Keep going."

He felt Namjoon shift, and he focused on holding on while the older started shimmy up his torso.  Once his arms were around his shoulders, Jungkook felt infinitely more assured. Almost there. But then, Namjoon stopped moving.

"Hyung!" Jungkook shouted, and the absence of movement made him painfully aware of how strained his muscles actually were. He was losing strength fast. "Hyung, you have to go now!"

"Don't let go, Jungkook-ah..." He could feel Namjoon's unsteady breath on his ear now. After a second, Namjoon continued to climb, though Jungkook could sense his hesitance. Jungkook internally rejoiced when he finally saw Namjoon's hand find a hold on the ledge.

"Hurry!" He cried out in a gasp of breath, because he was starting to feel himself slip. At this point, he knew Namjoon didn't want to continue. But he was also absolutely sure that he wouldn't stop. It was too late to stop. If he did, it would surely mean both their deaths. If he kept going, they at least had a chance.

Jungkook felt Namjoon's knee on his shoulder and felt an almost crushing sense of relief as his hyung climbed up safely onto the ledge. But then he grunted sharply as one of his hands lost its hold and he dropped a little, swinging with only one hand on the ledge again.

The drop destabilized him enough that his other hand was already straining to keep its grip. Just as he felt his last hand, his only lifeline, begin to slip, there was a familiar grip on his arm. He looked at his hyung's terror-filled eyes for only a moment before the older yanked him up. Namjoon's pull was faster and stronger than Jungkook expected, and he suspected he owed that to adrenaline as well.

Soon enough, he was flat on his stomach on the cliff, hands and face pressed against the hard ground, and he thought he had never felt anything so amazing in his life. He rolled onto his back, breathing heavily, and turned his head to find Namjoon laying down a little ways away from him.  The elder met his gaze and they didn't say a word, both of them trying to get their breathing under control.

After a long while, Jungkook noticed as a strange expression flickered across the older's face. Before he could decipher it, Namjoon had gotten to his feet and turned to leave, waving back to him in a barely there gesture for him to follow.

~

Later that night, Jungkook had long forgotten about the strange look on Namjoon's face. The two of them had returned safely to the group's headquarters, along with the rest of the members. There had been a short debriefing to go over the status of everyone's missions, but afterwards they all went to their rooms to rest. Jungkook probably should've done the same, but...he wasn't sure if he'd be able to fall asleep if he tried right now.

Nobody knew what had happened to them today. Neither of them mentioned it during the debriefing--and Jungkook really thought there was no reason to do so. He didn't want to worry anyone, and honestly, things like that were just a part of their jobs, a part of their lives. What had happened was...a little jarring of course. But it was something that had happened before, and would certainly happen again in the future. Not that it hadn't shaken him to watch his hyung almost die...to almost die himself...

It had been a long and stressful day, to say the least. But Jungkook was trying his best to not think about it, to move on. And he was sure he would. He had to, and quickly, because he had yet another mission to focus on the moment he woke up in the morning. So there he was, sitting alone in the den of the headquarters, just trying to calm down after the day's events before he turned in.

He was sitting in an armchair to the left of the fireplace, thick blanket wrapped around his shoulders and sketchpad resting on his lap. Drawing had always been a way for him to relieve some of the stress from his missions--and just his life in general. Whether he was drawing silly sketches of the members or detailed pictures of random objects, it always helped. But tonight, his mind was coming up blank, his pencil held in a loose fist in his lap and eyes staring blankly ahead into the fire.

He was so lost in thought he hardly noticed when Namjoon entered the room. The older didn't look surprised to see him, just nodding towards him in a soft greeting before plopping down on the couch across the room. He leaned back with a heavy sigh that could only be produced by a leader with an enormous amount of weight on his shoulders, and he started to flip through a file in his hands that Jungkook assumed was filled with papers detailing the team's next mission. He was always planning ahead.

Jungkook quirked a half-smile to greet him in return, turning his gaze back to the fire after a moment. It wasn't an unusual occurrence for them to be alone in this room together. They were both common occupants of this room, and they both went here when they needed peace and quiet. And they were two members who seemed to need it very often. So Jungkook thought nothing of it. The room was silent except for the crackling of the fire, but it wasn't uncomfortable between them. At least, Jungkook didn't think so. He had no reason to believe there was a particular reason that Namjoon was there, and he certainly had no reason to believe it had anything to do with that day's events.

That was why it shocked him so much when Namjoon spoke up, shattering the peaceful moment.

"You were bluffing before...weren't you?"

"What?" he sputtered in response, looking up to where Namjoon was sitting on the sofa. He noted that the older man looked reluctant, but his eyes were boring into Jungkook without wavering.

It didn't connect with him what the other was even referring to, because he was so certain that they would never speak of it again. He was so certain that there was no reason to do so, because he figured they would just let it go and move on like they always did.

"When you said you'd let go of the ledge...you were bluffing, right?" It would've sounded like a statement, but his voice was so massively uncertain. It was obvious from one look at him that he had just been stewing in these thoughts all day, and Jungkook never considered that he wasn't the only one shaken by what happened. He had always had this view that the leader was infallible, even if he rationally knew that it couldn't possibly be true. He knew that Namjoon was only human, but he couldn't help but see the leader as so far above him, as too strong to be bothered by a mere near death experience.

"No," Jungkook answered without a thought, without even thinking about lying. Because something in the other's gaze made him answer immediately. It was news to both of them, but Jungkook couldn't deny the fact he was perfectly certain of his answer.

Namjoon leaned back and his face darkened, though Jungkook knew that neither answer would have satisfied him. There was a bit of silence again, this time very uncomfortable as Namjoon glared off into space, and Jungkook just watched him cautiously. And then, Namjoon turned back to him so suddenly that Jungkook jumped a little in his seat.

"What the hell were you thinking?"

"What?" Jungkook asked, genuinely confused.

"You almost got yourself killed!" Jungkook was stunned into silence for a moment as Namjoon just sat there fuming.

"M-me?" He finally stuttered out. "You're mad at me for saving your life?"

"You were facing almost certain death and you wouldn't just let me go!"

"We're a team, that's what we're supposed to do for each other."

"This is different," Namjoon shouted back, standing up from his place on the couch in anger. Jungkook rose to his feet as well, feeling too much like a little kid being scolded with Namjoon at his full height above him. "You threatened...you were going to kill yourself if I didn't try to climb up." Jungkook felt his resolve waver a bit when he saw the truly hurt look in Namjoon's eyes as he said this, but he didn't let it affect the strength of his next words.

"If I hadn't said anything, you'd be dead!"

"Jungkook..." The maknae heard it immediately when Namjoon's tone changed. Suddenly, he wasn't just letting out his frustrations, now he had the authoritative voice of a leader. What he said next would surely be an order. "You can't do that again. If I tell you to leave me behind, you need to do it." Jungkook clenched his eyes closed, shaking his head furiously.

"No..." He meant for it to come out strong, but it just sounded broken. All he saw on the back of his eyelids was what would've happened if Namjoon had fallen off that ledge--or worse, if he had dropped him. "Hyung..."

"I am not worth your life..." That pissed Jungkook off enough that he snapped out of his stagnant state and glared straight ahead at Namjoon. Because how could he think so little of himself? How could he put his life so far below the rest of the team? Jungkook was simply shocked by how the leader could so drastically underestimate how much he meant to all of them. How much he meant to him...

What would they all have done if he'd died tonight?

He only tuned in to Namjoon's voice again in time to hear, "...In a situation like that--"

"Hyung, with all due respect, in a situation like that, I am always going to drop the ledge before I drop you."

That stopped Namjoon in his tracks, body stiffening and mouth falling open in shock. After a moment, his expression twisted into a disbelieving scowl. The both of them fell silent, and again the crackling of the fire was all that could be heard in the candlelit den. It was like nothing had changed in the few minutes since Namjoon had entered the room, but it had. The moment stretched on, eye contact never breaking as they stood there, each of them just stewing in two very different kinds of discontent.