Yoongi's friends were over the next day, bellowing voices clear through the basement door. One was loud and energetic, another cute and soft, and another deep, yet playful. There seemed to be at least four of them, if not more! Their unique voices blended together in a ballad, as if they'd had thousands of conversations before. It surprised Jennie that Yoongi was capable of having friends. Maybe they were into kidnapping assholes that give girls Prada to shut them up.

Yet as Jennie heated a frozen breakfast biscuit, she couldn't help but acknowledge the twinge of guilt paining her stomach. Her hunger did not mix well with the feeling, and the dry biscuit only parched her throat rather than cure her appetite. She pushed her makeshift breakfast aside. This was no Sunday morning brunch, with pancakes and bacon and avocado toast. No, this was the breakfast of a kidnapee, if that even counted as a word. In Jennie's divergent dictionary, it did, and that would have to count for now.

Since sleeping--rather, attempting to--in Yoongi's basement, Jennie longed for another form of social interaction. Sure, she saw Yoongi often enough, but he only came down for meals, and he wasn't the talkative type. Still, she guessed his company was nice, despite the fact he kidnapped her and ripped her away from the life she knew. Yeah, that would take a little bit to get past.

Jennie followed her normal daily routine, shower, dress, read, look out the window, play games, eat, repeat. Things got boring quickly on the level of cream walls and tan carpet. Second time through her routine--minus the extra shower--the kidnapee stared out the basement window. She no longer heard the loud voices from the upstairs, but sounds still muffled through. If anything was outside, she wouldn't know. Her vision was limited and her hearing blocked through the small rectangle and thick glass of Yoongi's basement window.

But it was when she noticed an approaching shadow that Jennie recoiled. Fear overtook her for a split second before she realized being double kidnapped was probably impossible. Instead, she sneaked closer to the glass, laying on her stomach to get a better look. And there he was, golden hour light shining on his plum colored hair and tanned skin. A ray of light adorned his head like a halo, one Jennie couldn't quite decide if he deserved yet.

Kim Namjoon was looking good as ever, his boyish nerdiness clearly growing off with age. Because instead of the bushel of permed hair once sported in high school, he made up for in sheer height. His long legs crouched to the ground, expensive-looking pants avoiding the ground at all costs. A popular girl like Jennie would've laughed at him, but now, seven years older and seven years improved, she couldn't deny how hot he'd gotten.

He spoke first, mouth moving without sound. Was he toying with her? She couldn't blame him... who wouldn't want to get back at their school bully? Still, she played to his liking, tapping her ear to indicate she couldn't hear him. Yes, the glass was thick, but certainly she would still hear him if he was talking. Not to mention how close he actually was.

Namjoon threw his head back in laughter, dimples complimenting his rosy cheeks. Was he wearing makeup? No one was allowed to look so effortlessly gorgeous. Then she spotted it. Just below his jawline was a black symbol, two parallel trapezoids tattooed with precision. It was the same as Yoongi's, yet smaller and in a much different place. ...so they weren't Death Eaters?

Still, with Jennie's eyes and ears fixed on the man in front of her, she couldn't hear his laugh. What was he doing? Yet in her investigation of what the hell kind of game the high school nerd was playing, she caught his eye. It sparkled from the golden hour light, illuminating him in an almost other-worldly glow. They simply stared at each other for a few seconds, eyes locked and searching. The only thing Jennie couldn't figure out was what she was looking for. Surely he would have answers.

Jennie shot up from her place on the floor, scrambling to find a pen and paper. Her mind and heart raced. Her emotions were peaked from the sight of another human being. How many days had it been? Three? Four? It felt like months to Jennie, being so alone. The simple sight of Namjoon surged her spirit with hope. Hope for escape, hope for leaving, hope for normal. Still, she knew that would never happen. Her old classmate was in a very sketchy organization, one she could only assume to be a gang. He would not help her, but if she had the chance, she was going to take it. She was going to do all she could to escape this prison and Namjoon was her greatest hope, even if he couldn't do much--if anything--for her.

It took quite a bit of rummaging through Yoongi's drawers, but she found a pen. She would have to write on a book. She arrived back at the window just as Namjoon stood to leave. Jennie considered banging on the window, but that would only draw Yoongi downstairs, and she didn't want him to know what she was doing. There was a significant chance he would be angry at her. Maybe Namjoon coming to talk to her was a test! Yet her hands still flailed, begging for the plum-haired man's attention. Surely he would report everything said and done back to Yoongi, who she also assumed to be the leader. Jennie didn't dwell on those thoughts, however. For now she was going to pry as much information from Namjoon as humanly possible, even if it got her in worse trouble.

Maybe getting his attention and showing him her pen and paper would get her in more trouble. Maybe Yoongi would take away the simple luxury of books from her. But what if he didn't find out? What if, in Jennie's wildest dreams, Namjoon gave her the information she needed to form an escape. The possibilities of something so miraculous happening were slimmer than Kim K's waist, but not even Kim's waist was zero. There was always a chance; there was always hope.

So, there Jennie was--ripping out a page of a book and writing on the paper in thick and shaky lines.

What do you have for me?

𑁍𑁍𑁍

UNEDITED CHAPTER
hello friends! thank you so much for reading today's chapter! i am trying super hard to have a schedule with updating so please bear with me! i'm super excited for this to progress, so keep an eye out. i love and appreciate you four people so much :,)

qotc: who's your favorite american musical artist?

aotc: i'm in  l o v e  with taylor swift and halsey!