Jungkook's pov

Five years ago

"Stop slacking and get to work." Sehun let himself into my office, dropped his guitar case on the couch, and joined me at the window. "I hate it. The director at that callback I had yesterday told me I needed to get my work fixed."

"You don't need to fix shit, and he's a moron with no taste."

He sighed. "I didn't get the part."

"See? Told you. No taste."

"You're biased because I have sex with you."

"No." I pulled him close. "I sat through a fucking opera last week because you have sex with me. I tell you you're a good musician because I've been to every show you've played since college, even when you're hidden in the orchestra pit. And since you started acting, I've seen every one of your off-Broadway show"

Sehun gave me a skeptical face. "What part did I play?"

"The hot guy part."

"I played the father who was dying of tuberculosis. You had your nose in a crossword puzzle the entire time."

Oh. That play. "I might have missed some of that one. In my defense, I had just found crossword puzzles. Come on...three-letter word for something that goes in dry and hard, but comes out wet and soft? I was busy counting the letters in dick, cock, pecker, and prick a dozen times each before figuring out the answer was gum."

"You're such a perv."

I gave him a chaste kiss. "Let's go for dinner."

Outside, I turned left to head to the nearest subway station, but Sehun turned right.

"Could we catch the 3 train on Broadway instead of the usual one?" he asked. "I want to stop over at Gwacheon ."

"Sure." Sehun had started volunteering at food banks and shelters when we were in college. I loved that he was passionate about helping people. But this place had some rough, transient types. It wasn't unusual for a fight to break out a couple times a week. I'd tried to broach the subject of his safety. Unfortunately, his volunteering was one of the few areas where he wouldn't bend.

One of the more frequent visitors at this shelter was sitting out front when we arrived.

"Hey, Eddie," Sehun said.

I'd met the guy before. He was probably only in his forties, but the streets had aged him. His words were few and far between, but he seemed harmless enough. Sehun had a special bond with him-he'd say more to him than he did to most.

"What happened to your head?" I leaned down, careful to keep the distance I knew he needed. He had a wide gash near his temple.

"How'd that happen, Eddie?" Sehun asked.

He shrugged. "Kids."

Lately there'd been incidents of teenagers beating up on homeless people overnight out on the streets

"I think you should go to the police, Eddie," Sehun said.

With all the time he'd put in at these places, he still didn't get it. Homeless people didn't go to the police. They walked the other way when they saw them coming.

Eddie shook his head furiously and pulled his legs up to his chest.

After a few minutes, I finally convinced him to leave the poor guy alone and go inside to do what he'd come to do. When we went in, the shelter manager, Nelson, was cleaning up dinner service.

Sehun immediately started to interrogate him. "Do you know what happened to Eddie's head?"

He stopped wiping down the table. "Nope. I asked. Got the usual response-nothing. You're the only one he says more than please and thank you to."

"Do you know where he sleeps at night?"

He shook his head.

Sehun frowned. "Okay."

"I know it's not easy. But we can't help the ones who won't take our help. He knows he's welcome to stay here anytime."

"I know." He pointed to the storage room in the back. "I forgot to take the inventory list."

While Sehun was gone, I looked around the shelter. The place had recently been painted, and each volunteer had donated a framed poster with their favorite motivational quote.

The first one read -- Even at the end of the darkest night, the sun will rise again.
"Is this one yours?" I asked when Sehun returned with a folder.

"Nope." He gave me a quick peck on the lips. "You can read them all another time, and I'll give you a reward if you find the one I brought. But I want to catch Eddie again before he's gone." He tugged my hand. "So let's go."

Eddie was no longer sitting outside, although he was easy enough to spot. Halfway up the block, he was ambling along. He had a limp on the right and a garbage bag slung over his left shoulder.

Sehun saw him just before he rounded the corner. "Let's follow him. See where he goes."

"Absolutely not."

"Why not?"

"Because it's dangerous-and an invasion of his privacy. We're not following a homeless person."

"But if we know where he sleeps at night, maybe the police would help."

"No."

"Please..."

"No."

"Fine."

I should have known he wasn't going to drop it so quick.

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To be continued.......

There will be chapters related to Jungkook's past in this story which at the end will connect all the dots.....