Two

Seven months passed and a lot happened, the Yakuza attacked the mansion and I saw how violent Taehyung can be, after all the chaos my father was furious again when news of me kissing Taehyung reached his ears. Jeon Jae-jin decided to state my engagement with his best enforcer.

I felt like I had fallen into his trap without knowing, 'The walls definitely had ears that night.'

Since then my anxieties grew more and more, sometimes I almost considered giving up on running away and just try to come to terms with my marriage to Taehyung.

There were also moments when he gave me that cocky smirk and I'd wish I could run as fast as my feet could carry me as I actually wanted to kiss him, despite knowing what I'd seen him do while under the guise of doing his work.

Jinnie kept close to me, he didn't take my hand like he might have done a couple of years ago but his arm brushed mine as we walked toward Yoongi, Taehyung and Jimin.

"Are you okay?" I whispered.

He jumped, flushing, he almost managed to hide his nerves from me, "Yeah." He squared his shoulders. "I'm fine.".

Before I could respond, Jimin ran toward us when we'd almost reached them and threw his arms around both of us. "I missed you so much."

"We missed you too," I whispered, kissing his cheek.

Jinnie beamed at both of us and Jimin shook his head. "You're as tall as me now. I still remember when you didn't want to go anywhere without holding my hand."

Jinnie groaned, remembering the old days, "Don't say anything like that when Namjoon is around. Where is he anyway?"

I rolled my eyes, and Jimin laughed. "He's probably at his apartment."

Jinnie must have managed to get over his anxiety around Namjoon at some point.

'Puppy love turned you blind.'

"Come on," Jimin said. "Let's go."

As expected, Jinnie went shy again the moment we stood in front of the guys. My protective side wanted to step in front of him and shield him from everything but I knew it'll be futile and he'd be embarrassed.

My gaze found Taehyung's eyes, they were warm like a normal guy's eyes, and for an instant, I wanted to believe the lie, he was so good at telling lies, I forced myself to break our staring contest.

"The birthday boy," Taehyung said with a smile at Jinnie, arms crossed over his chest.

He looked so approachable and harmless, I knew he was doing it on purpose because of Jinnie. Despite my best intentions not to, I felt grateful but I couldn't help but wonder how he can be kind and funny one moment, then do all these other horrible things.

'Like Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.'

"Not yet," Jinnie said, biting his lip. "Unless you have an early present for me."

I almost exploded with relief, I'd worried Jinnie would be as nervous as last time when he'd see Taehyung, but he was a master manipulator and had him wrapped around his finger again.

"I like the way you think," Taehyung said with a wink. He took his suitcase, then held out his arm for Jinnie to take. He glanced between Taehyung and me. "Won't you carry Jungkook's luggage?"

"Yoongi can take care of it," Taehyung said, eyes dancing with mirth as they settled on me.

'Why did he have to be so… tolerable? If I didn't know it any better, I'd say he had a suspicion I was trying to figure out a way to run away from our impending marriage.'

I narrowed my eyes at him before turning to Jinnie. "Go on."

He linked arms with Taehyung and they walked ahead. Yoongi took my suitcase without a word before following both of our younger brothers. I fell back with Jimin, "Maybe our old man should have married Jinnie off to Taehyung instead of me," I said, only half-joking.

'Jinnie seemed to have no trouble getting along with him.'

"Taehyung needs someone like you, someone who talks back to him. I don't think he could handle him."

I snorted. "Seriously? You think I can?"

Jimin slightly frowned as he searched my face, "There's something you're not telling me."

"Later," I whispered, he nodded with a glance toward Yoongi and Taehyung.

~~~

I didn't get the chance to talk to Jimin until much later that day, and only because Yoongi and Taehyung had work to conduct in their club 'Dynamite'. Namjoon was still there but Jinnie had convinced him to play some board game in the living room. While he was occupied as I led Jimin out onto the terrace despite the cold.

Once we stood at the edge of the terrace, Jimin turned to me. "You're up to something, aren't you?"

I hesitated, suddenly feeling guilty for even considering Jimin's position, "I can't do this, Jimin. I want out. Out of my arranged marriage. Out of our world. Just out."

Jimin's face became still, brown eyes wide. "You want to run?"

The wind had picked up and tore at my hair, but I wasn't certain if that was the only reason why I shivered.

"Yes."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes," I said, though sometimes doubt kept me awake at night. 'This was a huge step.' "Ever since the Yakuza attacked the mansion months ago and when I saw what Taehyung is capable of, I knew I needed to run."

"It's not just Taehyung, you know that, right? He isn't any worse than any other enforcer."

"That makes it even worse. I know that pretty much all the men in our world are capable of horrible things and I hate it. I hate every second I'm trapped in this messed up world."

"I thought you and Taehyung were getting along better. You didn't try to rip each other's head off today."

"He's trying to manipulate me. Didn't you see how easily he could make Jinnie forget his nervousness around him?"

Jimin shrugged, "It could be worse, Kookie. Most men wouldn't have forgiven you for giving him such a hard time, he seems to like you."

'Did he? I was never sure about Taehyung. He was too good at hiding his emotions, at choosing the mask he wanted to show to the world.'

"Are you on his side?" I asked with a bit more force than I'd intended.

"I'm not on Taehyung's side. I'm just trying to show you an alternative to running away."

Stunned, I said, "Why? You know I've never wanted this life. Why are you trying to make me stay?"

Jimin glared, gripping my wrist, "Because I don't want to lose you, Jungkook!"

"You won't lose me."

"Yes, I will. Once you run away, we can't ever see each other again, maybe not even talk unless we figure out a way to do it without risking our father, the Cheong Ryong and the Baekho tigers tracing you!"

'Fvck!'

In the back of my mind, I'd known that would be the result of my escape, but I'd pushed it aside, not able to bear the thought.

"I know," I whispered. "You could come with me."

Jimin parted his lips in surprise and even before he spoke I knew his answer. "I can't."

I nodded, facing away from him and letting my gaze wander over Seoul, I had to blink the sudden tears away a few times.

"Because you love Yoongi."

He put his hand on mine. "Yes, but, that's not the only reason. I can't leave Jinnie behind either, and I've made peace with this life. It's all I've ever known. I'm okay with it."

Guilt crashed down on me, "Do you think I'm abandoning them if I leave?"

"They'll understand. Not everyone is cut out for a life in our world. You've always wanted to live a normal life. You have to think of yourself, I just want you to be happy."

I wrapped my arms around Jimin, burying my face in his hair, "I don't think I can be happy here."

"Because you don't want to marry a killer and you can't live with what Taehyung does."

"No," I said quietly. "Because I can see myself being okay with it."

Jimin drew back, his brows drawn together. "What's wrong with that?"

I wanted to laugh and cry at the same time because I had a feeling that Jimin wouldn't have asked that question before Yoongi.

"Are you okay with what Yoongi does? Don't you ever lie awake at night feeling guilty for being married to a man like him?"

"We come from a family of men like him." He stepped back, arms dropping to his sides. "Do you want me to feel guilty?"

"No. Can't you see how messed up this is? I don't want to be like that. I don't want to spend my life with a man who carves up his enemies."

Jimin stared at me quietly, he looked sad and hurt, that just made me want to kick myself hard for opening my stupid mouth.

"I'm sorry. I didn't want to make you feel bad. I just…" I trailed off, not sure how to explain my conflicted emotions to Jimin. "I know I have to risk it. I have to try to get away from all this and live a life without all the violence and messed up morals. I'll always regret it if I don't."

"You know you can't ever come back. There's no coming back once you've run. Even if Taehyung would forgive you for insulting him like that, our father would be responsible for your punishment and running away from the clans is betrayal."

"I know."

"The clans punish betrayal with death and because you aren't an 'enforcer' they might decide to go easy on you by throwing you into one of the whore houses or marry you off to someone far worse than Taehyung!"

"I know."

Jimin gripped my shoulders tightly, "Do you?! A few risk running from our world and there's a reason for it. Most people get caught!"

"Most people but not all of them."

"Have you ever heard of someone who escaped our father's wrath successfully?"

"No, but I doubt anyone would tell us. Neither our father, Taehyung or Yoongi have any interest in putting ideas in our heads."

Jimin sighed, "You are really determined to go through with this."

"Yes."

"Okay," he said, sounding resigned.

This was the perfect moment to ask him for help but I realized I couldn't do it, couldn't ask that of him.

And Jimin being Jimin didn't need to be asked, "You can't do it alone. If you want any chance at succeeding you'll need my help."

I stared at my brother, my beautiful, brave brother. I'd often thought we were twins who'd been born apart by some cruel twist of fate. He was the one person I'd die for and if he'd asked me to stay, told me he couldn't live without me, I wouldn't even have hesitated.

I'd have stayed, married Taehyung for him but Jimin would never ask that of me.

My older half brother, Jimin, was the one thing that reminded me that there was good in our world too. I hoped he'd never let the darkness around us corrupt him.

"No, I can do it on my own."

But Jimin ignored my comment.

"If I help you to run," he said with a distant look in his eyes.

'But… you'd be betraying your husband, Jimin.'

I shook my head, "I can't let you take that risk. I won't let you risk it."

He linked his fingers with mine. "No, I will help you. It's your only choice, if anyone can make it, then it's you. You never wanted to be part of all this."

"Jimin, you said it yourself, what I'm doing is betrayal and the clan deals harshly with people who betray them. Yoongi isn't the forgiving type."

"Yoongi won't hurt me."

There wasn't a hint of doubt in his voice. 'Sadly, I don't share his conviction.' I opened my mouth to object but he raised his hand.

"He won't. If the old Min were still alive, things would be different. I would have been under his jurisdiction, but Yoongi is the new leader of the Baekho, he won't punish me."

'How could he trust that cruel bastard like that? What must it be like to love someone so much that you would put your life in their hands without hesitation?'

"Maybe his men won't give him a choice. He's a new leader and if he looks weak, his men might take action. Yoongi won't risk his power, not even for you. The clan comes first to 'enforcer'."

"Trust me."

"I trust you. It's Yoongi whom I don't trust."

'I was talking to a wall from the lack of impact I'm making on Jimin.'

"And if you think about it, I wouldn't be betraying our father. You are still part of the Cheong Ryongs until you marry Taehyung. That means what I'm doing is a betrayal under our father at most, but I'm not bound to him anymore, so I can't betray them."

"Yoongi might not see it that way. Even if you aren't betraying our clan, you're still going behind your husband's back. Not to mention that Taehyung will probably move heaven and earth to find me."

"True," Jimin said slowly. Shoulder's slumping, "He'll hunt you."

"He'll eventually lose interest."

Jimin looked doubtful, "I wouldn't count on it. We have to make sure he can't find you."

Above us, the sky was quickly turning dark, the first signs of an impending storm. If I were superstitious, I'd probably see it as a bad omen.

"Jimin, I shouldn't have come to you with this. You can't get involved."

Jimin rolled his eyes, it was such a thing I'd do that I couldn't help but smile despite the severity of our conversation.

"Don't try to talk me out of it. I'd feel guilty if I didn't help you and you get caught."

"And I will feel guilty if you get in trouble for helping me."

"I'm helping you. End of story," he said with finality.

"How can I ever make it up to you?"

"Just be happy, Jungkook. Live the life you want, that's all I want."

That's so typical Jimin, if anyone deserves a life outside of this fvcked up world, it would be him. I pressed my lips together, fighting tears, "Shit."

Jimin gave me his signature smile, "Stop it, you dork! We need to figure out how to get you away."

"I suppose it's a bit too late to give it a try during this visit?" I forced a smile, wanting to get rid of the heavy feeling in my chest.

"You'll definitely have to run when you are in Seoul. You'll never escape from our father's men."

'Sadly, he was right. Our 'dear' old man didn't let me out of sight for a second. He didn't trust me.'

"And Namjoon is always around."

Both of us glanced toward the living room where Jinnie was laughing at something Namjoon must have said. He looked so happy.

"I think we can get him off our back," Jimin said.

"Next time Jinnie won't be around to distract him. I don't want him to know about this."

Jimin nodded, "I'll figure something out. I tricked him once before. I can do it again. Yoongi trusts me. Namjoon doesn't follow me as much as he did in the beginning."

Guilt twisted my insides again but I ignored it, "I have to get a passport so I can leave the country. I'll never be safe here."

"You should go to Europe!"

"I've always wanted to visit Malta," I joked.

Jimin cracked up, "Yeah, that sounds like a foolproof plan."

"I need money, maybe I can find out where our father keeps his stash."

"No, he'll immediately notice, we'll have to take Yoongi's money. If we wait until the last minute before we take it, he won't notice until it's too late."

"Are you sure?"

Jimin nodded but there was a flicker of hesitation in his eyes.

"Maybe we can get money from somewhere else. I could ask one of the credit sharks for a loan. It's not like I'll be around for them to get it back," I said quickly.

Jimin shook his head at once. "All the credit sharks belong to the Cheong Ryong. That would be the quickest way to get caught."

"I know I can't ask them but what about the Yakuza? They're credit sharks. I won't have to announce who I am. I could pretend I was some random guy with financial troubles."

Jimin seemed to consider that but then he shook his head. "It's too risky. Those guys are dangerous."

Memories I'd tried to bury resurfaced like a tidal wave. I'd been terrified when the Yakuza attacked the mansion seven months ago. I'd been sure we'd die a horrible death, sure we'd be raped and tortured.

I didn't want anything to do with the Yakuza ever again but Jimin didn't need to know how much the images of that day still bothered me. Most of the time I managed to lock them away and once I'm in Europe, away from the world, they'd hopefully disappear for good.

"Jimin, you are married to the man all those dangerous guys are scared of."

"And you, Kookie, are engaged to the man who cuts those dangerous guys up," he looks at me directly and continues, "the Yakuza are worse than our men. They don't have any honour."

I wasn't sure if that was possible, but I wasn't in the mood for that argument.

"Okay, so no loan sharks, what about a forged passport? I'll have to get that from somewhere. Is there anyone we could bribe?"

Another gust of wind tore at us, raising goose-bumps all over my body. Jimin moved closer to me until we huddled together.

"No one will go against Yoongi."

"Except for us, tell me this isn't crazy," I said with a snort.

"It's crazy, but we'll figure something out." He paused, scrutinizing me.

I raised my eyebrows. "What?"

He smiled, "I have an idea. Remember, that one Halloween where you dressed up as me? The makeup was so good that people thought you were me."

"Not if you look closely. I'm a couple of inches taller than you and then there's this." I lifted a strand of my hair.

"Yeah, but if we dye your hair blond, nobody will doubt that you are me. Yoongi has a few forged passports with different names in the same place where he stashes the money if we ever need to leave the country fast. You could use one of them."

"Yoongi will be able to track them."

"Yes, but you'll already have landed in Europe by then. You can throw away the passport once you're there and travel around without a passport until you figure out a way to get a new one. They don't have border control in the EU, so you should be fine to cross over to other countries within Europe."

Hope kindled in my body, "That could work."

"It will."

We stared at each other.

"When?"

"Next time you visit, so we have time to think every detail of our plan through."

I couldn't believe I was going to do this, but now I wouldn't back out, even if part of me wondered if this was really what I wanted.

~~~

I was allowed to visit Jimin again after a month, pretending that I had finally come to terms with my marriage to Taehyung had made my father more lenient with me.

Lying had once been hard for me but I was getting better at it.

I hugged Jinnie before I left Busan, knowing it might very well be the last time I saw him but I didn't allow myself to linger on that thought. If I started to cry, someone might get suspicious, it would make things more difficult.

When I arrived in Seoul, Jimin picked me up from the airport with a new bodyguard. There was something bittersweet about our reunion. The new guy gave me a quick nod after Jimin and I had pulled apart.

"Who is he?" I whispered.

"That's Hoseok. He's one of Taehyung's men."

So Taehyung had already chosen a bodyguard for me, for a future life as his husband, someone who would cage me in whenever Taehyung wasn't around to do it.

Once we were in the penthouse, my new bodyguard retreated to the kitchen under the pretence of giving us privacy. As if there was ever such a thing under his constant surveillance.

Jimin and I lingered near the sofa, out of earshot, "Does Yoongi still have Namjoon guard you all day?"

Jimin shrugged. "I don't mind having Namjoon around, especially when Yoongi is busy. Hoseok has experience but he's never watched me before."

"You need to ask Yoongi to let you go to college or do something else before you go crazy over here. I want you to be happy too, Jimin. I want to know that you'll be okay once I'm gone."

"Don't worry, the last few weeks I've been pretty busy planning your 'itinerary,'" Jimin whispers with a teasing smile but there was a hint of wistfulness in his voice.

We both glanced at Hoseok who was making coffee. "Why is that Hoseok guy here?"

"Because of you."

"Because I'm the troublemaker?"

"No," Jimin said with a laugh. "Because Taehyung wants you to get to know the guy who'll be your bodyguard once you move to Seoul."

"Oh great, how thoughtful of him."

'Again a decision about my life that no one had bothered to discuss with me. Why should I care? I'll be out of this world for good!'

With a nod toward Hoseok, I asked, "How are we going to get rid of him?"

"I have a plan." Jimin opened his bag and pointed at a small syringe. At my confused look, he explained, "I remembered how Yoongi found a new batch of tranquillizers in a drawer at the basement. So, I sneaked down there and took what we needed."

My eyes widened, "You are a genius, Jimin."

"Not really."

Our eyes darted toward our bodyguard once more, he was busy with his phone. "How are we going to do this? He's probably a skilled fighter."

Jimin bit his lip, thinking, "We have to distract him. Maybe I can talk to him and you ram the needle into his neck?"

"What if I break the needle by accident or if he smashes it?"

"We should try to get it right the first time."

Jimin could be so badass if he tried. "Are you sure the dosage is right?"

"I don't want him to get hurt so I reduced the dosage they listed on the packaging."

"Okay. It still should be enough to knock him out for a while, right?"

Jimin nodded. "We should probably tie him up. I found duct tape in the gun cupboard."

He knew where his husband kept his guns? "Yoongi must trust you."

Jimin didn't say anything and I felt bad for bringing him up. Did I have to remind him how he was risking his marriage for me?

"Come on," he said after a moment. "Let's do this. Taehyung and Yoongi will be back in a few hours. We should be gone by then."

After another look towards our target who was still reading something on his phone, Jimin quickly handed me the syringe. I hid it behind my back as we strolled toward the unsuspecting Hoseok who finally looked up from his phone and set it down on the counter.

"Would you like some coffee?" he asked with a hand toward his cup.

Hoseok was polite and his brown eyes were friendly. He didn't look very threatening but I didn't let that fool me.

Jimin leaned next to him against the counter and pressed a palm to his stomach.

Hoseok frowned. "Are you okay?"

"I'm not feeling so good," he said, then his legs buckled. It was a bit over the top if you asked me but Hoseok must have acted without thinking because he reached for him. My chance.

My arm shot out and I rammed the syringe into the side of his neck. Hoseok hissed, let go of Jimin. He caught my arm and I was thrown against the kitchen island, my back colliding painfully, I bit down on my tongue as I swallowed my scream.

After a few seconds, his movement was already less coordinated than usual. I quickly rushed toward the phone and kicked it away.

"Where's the stupid tape?"

Jimin nodded and rushed away.

Hoseok glared at me. "What are you doing?" he growled. He advanced on me, his hand fumbling for the gun in his chest holster.

'Did he want to hold us at gunpoint?'

He didn't get very far, his legs gave away and he fell to his knees. He shook his head like a dog, then tried to stand again.

"Jimin!" I screamed.

'What if this didn't work? What if our plan was over before it had begun?'

"I'm coming!"

He ran toward me with the tape.

"Grab his arms, Kookie."

I tried to pull Hoseok's arms behind his back but he was strong even in his dazed state. He shook me off. I tried again but he managed to push me out of the way but this time he dropped to his knees almost instantly, then fell to his side. Jimin and I made quick work out of tying him up, then he touched his throat.

"Is he okay?"

"He's... well, I'm sure he'll be fine." Jimin pants.

As soon as I got up, Jimin rushed off. A few minutes later he returned with a huge stack of euro notes as well as two passports. For a moment I thought he'd decided to go with me and that was why there wasn't only one passport then I realized how ridiculous that thought was.

He handed me everything. "Here. That's about ten grand, that should get you by for a while and two passports just in case. You definitely should get rid of them once you're in Europe."

I stuffed everything into my bag, then grabbed my suitcase.

"Ready?" Jimin asked, hesitating.

"As ready as I'll ever be."

He didn't return my smile, only glanced at Hoseok again before setting his phone down on the counter. I did the same to prevent them from tracking us.

We took the elevator down and hailed a taxi. Traffic was on our side and we pulled up in front of the Incheon international airport after fifty minutes.

After we'd entered the departure area, I headed straight to the ticket counter to buy a one-way ticket to Amsterdam while Jimin stayed back, the photo in the passport looked more like him than me and even if with heavy makeup if we stood beside each other nobody would have been fooled.

I gingerly slid the fake passport across the counter, the woman barely glanced at the photo. Although I didn't have blond hair she probably thought I'd dyed it red. A few minutes later, I walked over to Jimin with the ticket to freedom in my hand.

I'd have thought I'd feel more excited, instead of knots twisted my stomach so tightly from my nerves that I worried if I'll throw up.

"So how did it go?" Jimin asked nervously.

I waved the ticket in response. "She didn't even ask about my hair."

"That's good, once you're in Amsterdam, you need to change your appearance."

I smiled, touched by my brother's concern and at the same time wondering if I was doing the right thing. This could be the last time I ever saw Jimin. I couldn't even imagine a year without him, much less the rest of my life.

"Don't worry."

A small part of me wondered how Taehyung would feel once he found out. I didn't think my disappearance would do more than a simple bruise on his pride. This wasn't about love or even feelings.

Jimin peered toward the main entrance again.

"When does your flight leave?"

"In two hours. I should probably go through security."

"I will rent a car and drive it out of town as a distraction. Yoongi will think you and I ran away together, maybe it'll buy you additional time. Once you're off the plane, go to a restroom and put on the wig, in case there's already someone looking for you at the airport."

Jimin was talking fast but it didn't stop me from noticing the way his voice was shaking. He was trying to be strong for me.

I wrapped my arms around him, "Thank you so much for risking so much for me. I love you, Jiminie."

"Create the blog we talked about and post an update the moment you get the chance. I'll worry if I don't hear from you tomorrow at the latest," he said, his fingers digging into my shoulder blades. "Promise me you'll be happy, Jungkook. Promise."

"I promise."

'Could you even promise something like that?'

My eyes burnt furiously but I fought the tears, this was hard enough without me turning into a blubbering mess. I pulled back and ran a hand over my eyes, thank goodness I used waterproof makeup.

Jimin had lost his fight with tears. "If you ever want to come back, we'll figure something out."

"You said it yourself, there's no coming back," I said, and finally the truth sank in.

This was it.

This was goodbye to the life I'd known, to my family, to my clan, to everything.

I took a step back from Jimin, he gave me an encouraging smile. I quickly turned and hurried toward the security check. If I didn't leave Jimin now, I'd lose my courage.

Doubt and nerves were eating away at my resolve but this was my only chance. I had to take it, I needed to live my own life, needed to make my own decisions, needed to get away from the horrors of our world.

The security guards didn't stop me, nobody did, and once I was through I risked another peek over my shoulder to where Jimin stood. He raised his arm in a big wave before he walked away quickly, wiping his eyes.

I watched his back disappear, my heart felt heavy, my throat tight. It wasn't too late yet. I could still go back. We could figure out some ridiculous explanation for drugging Hoseok. Nothing was lost yet.

I peered down at my ticket to Amsterdam, my ticket to freedom, before I headed to the terminal where boarding would start soon.

As I waited, I kept checking my surroundings nervously, but nobody showed up.

'And why would they? Nobody had suspected anything.'

When Hoseok finally woke in a couple of hours and called Yoongi and Taehyung, I'd be on the plane.

~~~

My heart was beating in my throat when I boarded the plane. It was my first time travelling in economy class. Our father had always bought business or first-class tickets when we hadn't used a private jet.

I was wedged between a stranger, who insisted on using my armrest and the window. I barely dared breathe until we were finally up in the air, even then I kept looking for a familiar face among the other passengers. It took a while before I finally settled back into my seat and relaxed.

Now that there was no going back, a flicker of excitement mixed with my anxiety. This was my life and I was finally taking it into my own hands, finally taking back control from those who had ruled every aspect of my existence until now.

'I was going to be free.'