[CONTENTID1] Meeting the Troublemaker [/CONTENTID1]

[CONTENTID2] warning: mentions of alcohol and implied underage drinking (don't sue me please :'( ) )

     Everyone at the Bang Tang club sat in the center of the room. Moonbi remained seated on the couch for the most part, observing while the boys went to grab their bean bagged chairs and plopped right into them. No one said anything for a while which made her jittery nerves worsen.

It's awkward, and that's okay, because she's suppose to be an understanding person. Not an impatient one. Her fingers taps away on her jumpish right knee and she almost crosses her legs to feel at least somewhat comfortable, but then remembers there were also three other guys in the room. 

And... well... she's suppose to be one as well. So the closest thing Moonbi figured to do was prop an elbow on her left knee, resting her chin into the palm of her hand and to spread her right leg further out. 

She's probably giving off a crummy vibe right now, but the stiff silence and uneased tensions does not mix well for her. Moonbi is nearly at the point to go ahead and outright ask them to talk, though it seems Jimin finally eased tensions for her.

"The guy who came in is Jungkook's brother, Jaehun. He is the oldest as you can obviously tell and he is incredibly popular and favored by everyone." Jimin started listing off examples with his fingers. "Smart, charming, active in the sports and academic department. It's no wonder why everyone loves him! But Jungkook is..." he winces and looks off somewhere, as if uncertain to say anything remotely bad about his friend. "Kind of the opposite?"

"How opposite?"

Moonbi's eyes moves to Namjoon as he speaks. "Like yin and ying." He states this like it is the world's most given fact, "Whereas Jaehun is academically intelligent Jungkook is... okay, maybe. Sometimes if he's lucky he receives a couples of Bs on his academic scores. Good at sports, and good at everything else really but there are too many stigmas about him. It doesn't mean they are true within the slightest but it's not like people are invested in gathering accurate information."

So there are rumors surrounding Jungkook. The discussion brought back a memory of her sitting next to him, watching as he focused on his little notebook of sketches right before she overheard the students gossiping. Still, it doesn't really give her much to work with as for now but Moonbi has little to complain about.  

Suppose it's Jimin's turn to speak again when he adjusts himself in the bean bag. As for Taehyung? He has been a total mute since they started this entire conversation.

"He gotten into sports while in middle school and excelled effeciently in almost everything. Soccer, basketball, swimming, tennis, running... hell, you name it? He'd probably done it. Though Jungkook didn't exactly receive the same favor from everyone unlike Jaehun. Parents and peers were far too stuck up their asses to really give a crap about him, and Jaehun was an arrogant brat to begin with."

Jimin then pauses, his eyebrows furrowing in thought, and his eyes soon narrowed as if he was debating something... but what, exactly? She couldn't tell. He his goldfished lips and decided to fold his arms into his chest.

"I met the Taehyung and Jungkook over two years ago during a swim competition in Busan. Jungkook was born there and Taehyung had just moved in the area so I figured it would be great to make some friends. We became pretty close but it's not like we went to the same middle school... so I didn't get to face the struggles like they did." He then nudges Taehyung and leaned in his ear whispering something indescribable.

Taehyung grunts out gibberish and shakes his head. "Come on Taehyung," Jimin tries to coaxs him, although it did little to change anything. "You can probably descibe the situation far more accurately than any of us." After a few more times Taehyung still shakes his head, refusing to utter a single word.

Moonbi hums in thought.

"You're not obligated to speak if you don't want to." She means, that's an obvious lie because of course she wants Taehyung to spill his beans. She wanted to understand what brought about the unnecessary amount of rumors and gossip and what makes the discussion so secretive. Invasive? Perhaps so.

"Bullied."

"What?"

Taehyung huffs out the word again. "Bullied." He repeated, "We were bullied by the kids in the area. Jungkook's brother was one of 'em. Him and his goonies use to beat us up all the time, lied on us, and made parents think we're some stupid troublemakers... it didn't help our situation after Jaehun won the nation's sports championship and became the famous 'Olympic Champion'." His already deepened frown had transformed into something of a scowl, almost snarling at the next set of words.

"The first year of freshmen was hell. We suffered through it because it was that, life. It was primarily hell for Jungkook cause of the rumors people spreaded around about his anger issues. Ya know? Aggressive, beating up students, but then to make matter worse Jungkook was falsely accused of assualting someone-" A light gasp.

Everyone paused, suddenly focusing their attention on Moonbi again.

Hell, she didn't expect that to happen. . "Sorry," An apology slips out of with eyes blinking away the shock. "That caught me by surprise. It's an accident. Go on."

Taehyung did. He went on to explain how Jungkook was falsely accused by some rich guy of assualt. Gotten slapped with a new criminal record and was pretty much expelled from public high school.

Everyone began to shun him and even his own family. At that point there was no hope for Jungkook until his brother, Jaehun, managed to get him into IBBA as a new student through, quote, ''connections". 

Taehyung and Jimin also gained an opportunity to enroll in IBBA through academic and sports scholarships, and damn did they worked their asses for them. "We weren't going to abandon Jungkook to the wolves here, so we followed him." Jimin shrugged with little regret of the idea.

Lies. Rumors. The bullying. The abuse...

It only intensified when Jungkook enrolled in the academy. The rumors from his old school followed him here to IBBA, and let's be honest, there isn't anyone with a reasonable amount of wealth from his old school to attend here, so the only person capable of spreading the rumors were no other than Jaehun himself.

Being loved and admired by everyone. Hating and despising another.

"I see." Moonbi murmurs.

"One would assume a childhood between brothers would be a pleasant one, but that was definitely not the case." Everyone redirected their focus on Namjoon again. "They always held an estranged relationship. It was a given fact Jaehun used to abuse Jungkook and students who dared defied him."

The brother who constantly belittled and beat his younger sibling into submission. How people could turn a blind eye to it. Strange how Jaehun who claims his brother as a troublemaker when it was him all along creating the chaos.

Taehyung glowers at her.

"Doesn't help when the got money. Money to pay off any authorities. Connections to twist the stories around. Friends to spread the lies and create distortions." 

Jungkook. The provoker, this supposed abuser, an absolute disgrace.  

Jaehun. A perfect mastermind to conceal his true intentions throughout the years.

Moonbi's didn't know how to perceive all of this. This is something beyond her experience. Why? What brother would do something so heinous to his own sibling? It... it made her... feel really out of place. 

Upset? Of course, who wouldn't be. Knowing someone is being mistreated by society and can do little to fight against the cruel injustice. Yes, it is incredibly upsetting. So maybe it does makes sense when the flare of heat inside her chest feels incredibly tight and suffocating.

Common sense and skeptism should be factored in at all times, but it's moments like these that makes her absorb the information without question. It doesn't seem to be the case where Taehyung would lie about any of this. Why should he when he's willing to defend Jungkook to the very end? It wouldn't make logical sense.

"This... this is a lot of information." She couldn't deny it. Listening to someone's mistreatment felt sickening to the gut, a blow to the stomach where bandages and ice packs and tons of pain medications will not be able to soothe the pain. Moonbi stands from the couch and shoves her now clammy hands in her pants pockets.

"I'm going to go. Thanks for sharing." Moonbi was getting ready to leave until Namjoon calls out to her.

"Moongi?"

"Yeah?"

"Promise us not to tell anyone about this." He was standing upright too, face void of any emotion. Then, there was a hint of worry evident on his face. "It's bad enough as it is and we don't want to break Jungkook's trust."

Moonbi only nodded.

"Okay."

      Moonbi needed to leave the campus for a bit to refresh her mind. Remaining here would only trouble her mind with more questions and create further problems.

If I could release myself from this issue then that would be delightful. Just thinking about everything makes her feel strange, too lost in the reflection from earlier. The what ifs, if you may. 

Perhaps having a person to care about, to worry and fret over their safety. To watch as the very person cared about suffers, dissolving into a crumbled mess until there's nothing left than broken insanity. 

Suppose there are true evilness in the world. Birthed to plagued such misery and endless suffering, relinquishing to others cowering in fear beneath them. Living their lives in harmony after destroying anothers. 

Or taking, rather.

The uncomfortability is still lingering, festering inside and gradually expanding. And god damn it, Moonbi did not realize how much this would bother her until now. Should she feel bothered? Yes, but is it the care she needs to carry? No. But here she is fretting over the matter which she had no business to parttake in.

The first lesson Moonbi ever learned about reality is that regardless how horrible situations become, stay out of them. Avoid them. Ignore it. Consume all the ills until there's nothing left withstand.

Though, maybe it is after the death of her brother that she finally disregarded the last bit of her upbringing formalities. It is not clear to say how far her and the entire family strayed across the map since Daemin died. Maybe it left her a little loose in the head, too.

Who could be so evil to someone like that? Human nature. The woman's words hunted Moonbi once more. It's only in humanity itself to commit such sinister deeds whether massive or miniature.

For a split second the internal desire to switch out her brother's death with Jeon Jaehun does not sound all too bad. Hanging above the ceiling with his broken corpse instead...

Hands still shoved inside her pockets Moonbi's eyes burned into the sidewalk. It was an average day in Seoul, Korea as the streets were busy and dozens of people going about with their daily lives. How everyone appeared so collected and calm, uncaring about the harsh realities of this world.

She wasn't sure how to control this intense unpleasant feeling from within. Again, very rarely has these strong emotions annoyed her until today, so the only probable theory to resolve this irritation is food. Incredibly spicy food.

Right above Moonbi was a random hotpot restuarant. With a simple huff the girl walked inside. Entering the restaurant resembled that of a Chinese shop.

It reminded her of that one summer spent in China for a modeling gig. The hotpot soups, the atmosphere dedicated to Chinese culture and many connotations to its heritage. Moonbi walks a tad further as she continues to admire the scenery.

It's not a large restaurant. It would probably fit no more than a dozen, two dozen maybe, people in total.

The restaurant was indeed packed but not too crowded. This should give her some flexibility... "Excuse me," "Sorry," "My bad!" Moonbi quickly moved through customers with intentions of finding an empty seat.

When Moonbi walked closer all the breath was taken out of her.

Please, tell her these are simply mere coincidences. Call is a blessing and a curse if you will, but meeting familar faces is starting to become almost the norm for her. There were a couple seats available, although somehow in someway perched on top of the stools was no other than Jeon Jungkook himself.

Eyes downcasted. Lost, uncertain of what lies. His brows were deeply furrowed and lips dragged into a sullen frown.

"Jungkook?"

The boy snaps his head towards her, eyes suddenly wide like a deer startled in headlights. Shock filled those eyes momentarily. Then anger.

He looks away.

Moonbi slide across the stool and rested her arms on the countertops. "Uh..." She combed through her hair as she tried to find the appropiate words to say. How can she even talk, honestly? This is much more complicated than before. "Go away." Jungkook muttered loud enough for her to hear.

"It's okay. I'm not here to shame you or do anything, really."

He turns his body in the opposite direction from Moonbi with little intentions to communicate.

Oh. Oh. She understands.

Moonbi pursed her lips and straightens in her seat. It's okay, she doesn't need to for him to talk. It's perfectly fine for her because she understand it's a very ty situation to be in that cannot be taken lightly with basic prep talk...

And so, to pass the time Moonbi grabbed a random menu off the counter and peaked at it. She continues to stare at it although there were very few items remotely interesting.

"So uh, a dollar bill, a nickle, and a dime walks into a bar. They order themselves a drink and enjoy the night until soon a very drunk dime says to the nickle and dollar, "Hey, bet I can get Penny to go out with me." And the equally drunk nickle said, "What's the wager?" and then the dime replies, "You can date my cousin. She's been single for a while and is looking for someone." Thankfully the dollar was pretty sober and wanted to smack them both. "No you drunk idiots! You can't date either of them because you're all related!"" 

No response.

...Did it get hotter in here or is it just her? Sweat forms against her brow. She coughs.

"D-did you know my dolphin puns are terrible on porpoise?" Again, nothing. This is so embarrassing... why did she think this would ever work in real life? Screw those comedy shows.

"A burger walks in a bar-"

"Okay, I get it! Geeze." Jungkook finally turns around, glaring at her much harder than needed to. He didn't appear to be intrigued by any of her jokes, and that's okay, because she wasn't expecting him to. 

Jungkook didn't say anything. Instead, he continued to drink out of his glass cup of water and fiddled with the plastic straw. Moonbi said nothing as she wondered if her presence made situations worse.

"Can you quit looking at me like that?"

Moonbi looks away. "Sorry," she didn't know what else to say. Eventually he released a long, drawn out sigh. "...I really hate my life right now..." He then mumbles.

"I... I can see why," Moonbi said slowly, "I wish there was something that could make it all better." If only she knew what to properly say, or how to make a good joke, or... or even a cheesy one for matter. Jungkook looks at Moonbi with much in-depth criticalness. "Why do you even care about my problems?" The question leaves her bewildered.

Why does she bother to care? She did not know how to properly answer that. Her silence made Jungkook tsk, "Right. You're new. You don't know anything, and if you did you wouldn't want to be bothered with me." His deep hazlenut eyes somehow brought out a midst of strong emotions from within.

"That's not true. I may be ignorant to some things but I am not that stupid."

"Didn't you hear him?" Jungkook's lips churned into a nasty snarl as he gripped his fists. "I got a criminal record. I have anger issues. I'm not the smartest and I get into fights. I'm a freaking monster-" he didn't get the opportunity to finish that sentence. Moonbi wouldn't let him.

"I doubt it. You don't seem like the type."

He turns away. "Okay, you don't. Many do." The boy stated.

"Oh."

"Isn't it funny when I try to do the right thing for once, I get blamed for it?" A harsh laugh rumbled from Jungkook's chest. "I tried to help someone and I gotten accused of assualt. I tried to help that woman, I really did, but that of a boyfriend accused me of nearly killing him!"

The teen proceeds to laugh as if that's the best joke he has ever heard. However, his laughter was anything but amusement and rather of pain and hurt all intwined into this uncomfortable ball of bitterness.

Some of the customers stole glances at them, and Moonbi could feel the pins and needles of uncertainty prickle her skin.

"I see..." She mutters and continued to observe Jungkook, trying to disregard the uncomfortability. He looked very happy, yet underneath that facade are wounds and complete misery. Hurting, in pain, and grieving in the way he understood most through pure aggression.

Alas, the girl shook her head. "No, I don't believe for once you are the type to hurt. Fighting for what you believe in? Probably, but being a monster is overkill. You got good friends like Taehyung, Jimin and Namjoon doesn't believe it either or else they would've never befriended you."

She hoped in some way her words would hold a sense of value. Everything she had witness up until this point had indicated to her that Jungkook is nothing of those things. And even when, yes, many tells her how ludicrous these ideas may be, she felt the need to stick by them.

A brief moment and the flames of hate in his eyes simmered. "I know." He whispers. "I know there are people who care for me. It just... It... It hurts, you know? Knowing that I'm nothing in to my family. I'm nothing to anyone but few people, if that." His eyes reverted back to the countertops and losing themselves in a swirl of endless emotion.

"Does those few not count? Why be loved by so many under a false disguise? Jungkook, your friends cherish you so much you don't even realize." What the hell am I even saying? Did she get this from some romantic drama? Good god. Moonbi moved closer to Jungkook and placed a careful hand on his shoulder.

Yes, she knows it is a risky move. Schm