August 2016

Yoongi rubs the back of the black hair boy that lays across his lap.

Hoseok kneels on the floor in front of them, a steaming bowl of ramen in hands. Chopsticks set aside, he uses the spoon to gather some of the broth.

The boy, whose lying on Yoongi's lap, lifts his head to swallow the spoonful that is placed to his lips.

"What's wrong with my son?"

Yoongi scoffs. "He's our son, Joon."

Namjoon walks over closer to the three. His hand rubs across the boy's forehead. "He feels a bit hot. How long has he been feeling like this?"

I finally speak up. "He was like a heater when Taehyung and I woke up."

Namjoon looks between the boy and I. His eyes become soft.

"Sorry I'm ruining the trip," the boy croaks out.

The chopsticks twirl in the bowl before Hoseok lifts noodles to the boy's mouth. "Jungkookie, you're not ruining the trip. You didn't plan to get sick."

"But you guys are taking care of me," Jungkook argues.

"Because we want to." Hoseok gives a soft smile."

Yoongi ruffles Jungkook's hair. "What kind of parents would we be if we didn't take care of our babies?"

Jungkook lightly giggles. I smile in response. It's such a cute scene taking place in front of me.

"Really, hyungs, thank you for taking care of me.

Namjoon walks closer and crouches down next to Hoseok. He repeats Yoongi's gesture and ruffles Jungkook's hair as well.

"That's what family is for son. We're your family now."

"Yah! Give that back you little brat!"

All heads turn to the sound of Seokjin's voice. He's chasing Taehyung who has a yellow blanket wrapped around him like a cape.

"You have to catch me first!"

"I need that blanket for our sick child!"

Seokjin tackles Taehyung. They both tumble on the floor.

Hoseok watches the scene before turning back to Jungkook, his warming smile still present on his face.

"We're your dysfunctional family."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Present Day 2018

We all halt in our movements as the dinner guests arrive.

Jungkook reaches forward to grab Taehyung, pushing the boy behind him.

Seokjin, who is still shocked over Hoseok's death, continues to scream.

Yongnam and the two boys by his side kneel. The sound of a click, clack echoes through the kitchen, pauses while the refrigerator is opened, and continues after a brief moment.

"Yongnam, were you given permission to speak?"

Standing behind Yongnam and his war ready buddies are three more people.

In the middle stands a woman. A black beret is worn over her black bob length hair. A skin tight, knee length dress adorns her body. She wears black combat boots as well. Red lipstick is paired with a fierce smoky eye. She looks like an older version of Jungkook's mother.

She holds a carton of my fiancé's banana milk in her hands.

To her left stands a man in a white buttoned down, with rolled up sleeves, and dress pants. His black hair is sleek; his facial features are sharp. He wears a pair of black gloves. Instead of dress shoes he wears a pair of black boots. They almost look like rubber fishing boots.

I'm not sure what type of event he's dressed for but I think he's at the wrong stop.

He holds a hunting rifle in his hand.

The man to her right has a distinct, broadened nose bridge. His lips are thin. He has a thin facial structure as well. His hair is worn in a bowl cut that fits his face. He's a bit tall. He wears black jeans, black tee shirt, and a grey cardigan.

"I apologize, ma'am," Yongnam replies.

She hums to herself. A sip of banana milk is taken; her nose crinkles in disgust. Eyes scan the room before landing on Jungkook's figure. "I thought you would've chosen a more mature drink by now." She randomly throws the still full carton towards Taehyung; my fiancé ends up taking most of the hit.

Milk splatters everywhere. Large droplets land in his hair. A bit even splashes on Taehyung's face.

I start to reach out to check on my fiancé but Yongnam's gun is pointed my way.

"Aunt Wendy. Uncle Wooyoung. Mr. Lee."

My fiancé sticks his tongue out to catch the droplets of milk that fall.

The man in the dress clothing, Mr. Lee, gives an eerie smile.

"Jungkook-ah, I was beginning to think you forgot about me considering you've never responded to my label's offer."

So this is the guy that sent the talent scout for my fiancé.

"No, Jihoon, my darling nephew was just playing a prolonged game of Hide-N-Seek." Wendy's voice is cold; it's far from how someone should sound talking to their nephew. "He should be tired of running by now."

Heavy footsteps make their way towards my fiancé. Wendy, who is shorter than Jungkook, looks up to him with a straight face. A hand reaches out to grip my fiancé's face. Long, black polished nails dig into his skin.

"Did you at least stay pure? Or did you become as dirty as you look right now?"

Pure? She previously said he was running. What does she mean by all of this?

Is Jungkook meant to be a sacrifice?

My fiancé doesn't answer.

"Always such a little undisciplined brat." She pushes him back. He slightly bumps into Taehyung and I, but is able to hold his balance.

Wendy begins to pace. Her steps are slow, chilling. Her eyes meet every single one of ours. It's like she's trying to terrify us.

I can see Jungkook's head slightly turn with each step Wendy makes. It's as though he's trying to anticipate her next move.

Wooyoung points to the table beside us. "Look, Honey, our dear nephew still loves to play games."

I forgot about the unfinished game of Uno. It's hard to remember when someone like family to you is killed.

"How cute," she cooes in response. "Our nephew still loves games? Then I'm sure he'd love to play one last game of Hide-N-Seek. It was his favorite afterall."

Favorite? Once again, something I never knew about my fiancé.

More importantly, now is not the time for games.

"What do you say, Jungkook-ah?"

Jungkook shakes his head. "No, no thank you."

"Come on. Do it for Aunt Wendy." Her red lips form a pout. It's really unfitting. "We can play just like how we used to in the good old days. It can be you, us, and even your little friends."

"No!"

The room freezes. My fiancé's muscles are tense; fists are clenched by his sides. Wendy, Wooyoung, and Mr. Lee are visibly surprised by his sudden outburst.

I am even surprised.

"I think... I think Jungkook means that we played one last game of Hide-N-Seek with Yongnam there yesterday." Namjoon's voice is soft, and barely heard.

But it is heard.

Wendy's face hardens for a moment before she changes back into her sickeningly sweet persona. "Oh, you did?" She walks over to Yongnam grabbing him by the hair. "Our sweet boy, Yongnam, was not supposed to have any close contact with our dear nephew unless approved."

Smack.

Her open palm makes contact with Yongnam's face.

"Sorry about that boys." Her back stays to us for a moment. "Now on to the rules."

Taehyung and I share a quick glance.

Is she seriously expecting us to do this?

We both turn to Wendy who is now staring in our direction. Her eyes are locked with Jungkook's as she speaks. "We call this little game Hide-N-Seek : Dead or Alive. The six of you are the hiders. You have 15 minutes to pack a bag worth of survival supplies. Be sure to pack smart because our nephew here loves playing extended games."

Dead or alive? Survival supplies? What type of games did Jungkook play in his childhood.

"After that, you get an hour to hide. After an hour, we will come find you. Those three kneeling are our hunting dogs. I'm sure Yongnam isn't used to being on this side of the game." She points at the long haired boy who attacked Jungkook in the store.

"That is Mike. I was going to take Yongnam but he obviously doesn't abide by the rules. Mike, you're with me." Mike glances at us, a smirk is present on his face. His lip is still an ugly site from the previous scuffle.

Wendy then points at the other guy. "This is Jaehyun." Jaehyun has a stylish, black undercut. His wide, childlike eyes are distant, almost lifeless. He has a strong, square jawline. It looks like he does nothing but lift in his free time.

"Jaehyun, you will be with Mr. Lee. Yongnam, you will be with my dear husband. If any of you are caught by us, you're dead. Well, everyone except our innocent little nephew. He has immunity. He's the only one of you who can't get severely hurt. He's too precious and important.

"The rest of you will have to make it back here to survive."

"Or you'll have to kill us," Mr. Lee adds with a light hearted laugh.

Being killed is funny?

Wendy gives a single clap to catch our attention. "Your fifteen minutes starts now."

We all stand frozen. We're not sure what to do. One wrong move could result in our deaths. What if this is all some plot to make us feel at ease?

They could easily shoot us once we even attempt to move.

Wendy stares at us with her hands on her hips, eyes wide. She looks impatient. "You're wasting precious time..." she says in a sing song voice.

"My friends and I didn't agree to this, Aunt Wendy.

Her lips pout before turning into a smile again. "True." She raises a hand. Things happen in a blur.

Mr. Lee has his gun raised in Seokjin's direction. Yoongi, Taehyung, and Namjoon have knifes held to their throats by Wooyoung, Mike, and Jaehyun. I gulp as I look forward to face my fate.

Yongnam's gun is pointed toward my head.

Jungkook turns in a slow circle as he takes in the positions of all of around him. I give him a small grin. Don't worry, Jungkook. I'm honestly freaking out on the inside but I do not want my fiancé to do something he isn't comfortable with.

"What do you say, Jungkook-ah?"

"Fifteen minutes."

He and Wendy share an intense glare.

That's right, Omega Baby, stand your ground.

She snaps her fingers; all of her minions retreat back to their original spots.

"Fine. The fifteen minutes start over now."

We all scatter this go around. Seokjin and Jungkook rush into the kitchen. The rest of us head upstairs. Namjoon enters the bathroom. Yoongi heads into what was previously he and Hoseok's shared room. Taehyung and I barge into ours.

Taehyung immediately grabs Jungkook's backpack from the day before, placing it on the bed. He then searches through our luggage grabbing sweaters I assume to be for the each of us. Once done with that task, he packs the three portable chargers, that Jungkook purchased that night we saw his parents, into one of the smaller, zippered compartments.

"Grab his boots and change into your sneakers," Taehyung insists as he begins to put on a pair of sneakers as well. I nod before moving to do as I'm told.

Namjoon, who is now wearing a pair of boots, enters with supplies that he scavenged from the first aid kit. He immediately packs gauze, a tube of antibiotic ointment, and hydrogen peroxide. He exits as briefly as he entered to continue gathering supplies.

I sit on the bed in an attempt to put on my shoe. But, I can't. This is all so overwhelming. It's as though I'm in a horror movie. I haven't even been awoke that long. In less than an hour, I've flirted with my fiancé, laughed with friends, watched one of us die, and got forced into a sadistic game.

If only this were some horrible, horrible dream. I'd give anything just for someone to pinch me and make this all disappear. I attempt to put my shoe on once more but it falls limply from my hand.

Seokjin and my fiancé enter, each holding 3 water bottles, a sealed bag of fruit, and double bagged bags of raw meat. My fiancé's head is wet. The banana milk is notably missing from his hair.

"We'll explain later," Seokjin says quickly. He also holds a sealed bag of kimchi. The two pack the items into the backpack. Seokjin, who is trying his best to keep his composure, rushes to go to his own room. Taehyung, who has just finished lacing his shoes, follows behind him.

Jungkook notices my long forgotten shoe. He kneels to the floor, grabs it, and places it upon my foot. He even ties the laces. My other foot is lifted, a soft peck placed to it, before he repeats his previous actions with my other shoe. I can feel myself blushing.

He lays his head against my leg. My fingers begin to stroke to his wet locks. We're on a fifteen minute time limit before we have to run for our lives. Yet, it's as though me, him, and this moment are the only things that matters right now.

"Alpha?"

My eyes look down to meet his.

"We should get Hoseok's phone. I'm sure he has plenty of dance videos that he'd love the world to see." He pauses. "We have to let our friend's legacy live on."

My head silently nods in agreement.

My fiancé, always thinking of others, even at a time like this. It's sweet. I'm sure Hoseok never imagined that his last words would be telling his friends that's its okay to be intimate. But that was Hoseok for you. He was always somewhere being comforting.

His death was unnecessary and it is our job as his friends to ensure he lives on through his passion. That's if we live.

I find myself joining my fiancé on the floor. He's taken off guard by my lips crashing against his. I catch his bottom lip between my teeth, biting gently. My tongue slips in to explore every inch of his mouth. This may be my last time kissing him. Who knows what will happen once this game begins.

We kiss until we're out of breath. Soft pants fill the air between us. I stare into those wonderful, doe eyes of his. "I'm scared, Omega Baby."

Jeongguk captures me in a tight embrace. Even though he is the younger he was always the stronger one in our relationship. I slowly lay my head to his chest.

His heartbeat is calming despite our current situation. Now is not the time to be a hopeless romantic. I sigh at my own thoughts. His soft lips graze my ear as he begins to whisper sweet nothings to comfort me.

"No matter what happens baby, you are always the alpha to my omega, the beginning to my end, my first love and my last."