Amber eyes raised themselves up to peer into the rear view mirror that reflected the image of the man in grey suit seated in the back of his cab. A frown marred his facial features as he listened intently to whatever the person on the phone said. Jimin shifted his gaze back to the road as the passenger grumbled out a string of profanities.

He felt slightly apologetic to whoever was on the other end of the line. From the short conversation he had overheard, it seemed the passenger occupied a high position in an office while the person on the other end of the line came under him. His absence in the office wasn't appreciated by the passenger, it seemed, and the "excuses" he gave for it only further infuriated the man.

In his five years as a cab driver, Jimin had seen a variety of passengers. The teenage girls that would travel together in groups of three and four and giggle the whole journey, Jimin would swear that he'd be rendered deaf someday soon with them but at the same time it was a kind of entertainment for him to listen to their gossips and silly stories.

The nervous kind that would sit in the backseat with wide eyes and twiddle their thumbs or pick at their skin, Jimin would take a gentle approach with them and make a small talk to help them calm their nerves.

The extreme extroverts that would love to engage in conversations with him regarding any random topic, their energies would remind him of his soulmate and long-time pal, Kim Taehyung. He loved interacting with them. It made his work feel less like a job and more like a fun experience.

The frustrated kind who would snap or grumble in the back of his cab, he knew by now to not meddle with them or their affairs. He'd stay silent for most of the journey and speak only when spoken to. He preferred any other crowd over them but in all honesty, he had his days too.

Some days he felt energetic. Some days he felt patient, others he felt frustrated due to lack of sleep or exhaustion or other personal factors that may have caused him to come off as rude more than once. So he understood that he might have caught them at their worst moment and they just need to let off some steam to cool down. He learned to be more patient and give such passengers their space.

The passenger tapped his foot impatiently and Jimin could tell the man was seconds away from his fuse being blown. His fingers fumbled with his wallet as he worked on his speed and pulled out a couple of coins.

"Could you do it any faster? I have other places to be," the passenger growled grumpily.

"I'm so sorry, Sir. Here you go," Jimin apologised as he placed the exact change in the man's palm.

"Thank you!" the man snapped in a tone that did not sound even a tad bit grateful and Jimin heaved a small sigh when he left.

He glanced at his wristwatch that read 19.00 and a yawn escaped him. He was done for the day, he decided and with the thought of a scrumptious meal, his stomach grumbled aloud. He patted his stomach with a little chuckle.

"And that's my sign to head home," he said to himself.

He twisted the key in ignition and the engine of the car roared to life. He pocketed his wallet before he released the handbrake and skillfully steered the car back onto the street. He stepped on the gas pedal and drove without any rush. He refused two passengers along the way and to avoid traffic, decided to switch his normal route with a shortcut so he could reach home a bit earlier.

His fingers fiddled with the music system in his cab and soon a soft melody had filled the taxi. Jimin belted out the lyrics to Ed Sheeran's "Perfect" as he steered through the street when he caught sight of a man under a street lamp. The man had his hood up and his hand stuck out to signal to him that he needed a ride.

Jimin sighed.

If the man's destination was in the same direction as his own, then he wouldn't really mind giving him a lift. So he slowed down the cab and rolled down his window. He was surprised when instead of informing him of a location to which the man wished to travel, he pulled open the cab door and hastily got in the passenger's seat.

"Um-" Jimin mumbled a bit awkwardly.

"Anywhere. Take me anywhere. Please. I'll pay you as much as you want. I don't mind going anywhere. Please," the man frantically spoke and pulled his hood lower to cover his eyes.

Jimin felt his brows furrow in concern at the man's words and observed the way his hands trembled as they reached up to tug on the hood of his jacket.

Jimin nodded although he knew the other wouldn't see it with how low his hood was. He stepped on the gas pedal and drove down the street.

"Are you alright, Sir?" Jimin couldn't help but ask, too concerned to let it slide.

"Yes," the passenger answered, although it sounded more of a question to Jimin than an answer, but he didn't press any further.

He was just a cabbie. His job only asked him to drive passengers to their destination. Yet he was human and more than curious, he was also concerned. The man seemed to be young, probably in his twenties just as Jimin was.

"Are you Korean?" the passenger suddenly asked and Jimin realised he had read his name off the licence card on display on the dashboard of his cab.

"Yes, I am," Jimin cautiously answered. He wasn't a stranger to the racist behaviour of certain individuals towards his ethnicity.

"I am too," the passenger softly replied.

The cab driver did a double take before he paid attention to the road ahead of him.

"May I know your name, good Sir?"

"Jeon Jungkook," the man mumbled.

Jimin noticed the way Jungkook's fingers picked at his skin out of nervousness. So he decided to speak in hopes it would help the man calm down, even a little if possible.

"Is this your first time in here? In the UK?"

He was surprised when Jungkook lowered his head. Through his peripheral vision he could see the way his arms wrapped around himself as if to offer himself some security and it caused Jimin's heart to ache. He wondered what the man must have been through and couldn't help but worry about him.

"Yes," came a soft reply.

Jimin's sharp ears, however, caught the waver in it.

"I see," Jimin said gently, "I've spent the past five years as a cab driver here. Honestly, moving from Busan to Edinburgh was nerve-wracking for me. I had to improve my english skills and everything."

"Busan?" the man whispered and Jimin noted that Jungkook had beautiful doe eyes that were emerald green in shade, "I . . . I am from Busan."

Jimin was surprised.

"My gosh! Really?"

Jungkook nodded, "why did you move to Edinburgh?"

Jimin steered left, "I actually shifted here to complete my studies but it didn't work all too well for me so I took up this job instead. The pay is not much but I do enjoy this. What about you? Are you here for a vacation or -"

"I live here now," Jungkook said but the tremble in his voice did not go unnoticed by Jimin. He didn't mention it though as he turned the steering wheel to the right.

"Could you drop me off here?" Jungkook suddenly asked and Jimin felt his blood turn ice cold when he realised where they were.

A bridge.

They were on a bridge.

Literally right in the middle of a bridge.

The cab slowly came to a halt. There weren't many people that used this route so it didn't come as much of a surprise to Jimin when he didn't see any pass by them.

"How much do I owe you?" Jungkook asked and Jimin could tell he fought to keep his voice steady.

"Sir," Jimin began as he watched Jungkook pull out his wallet with trembling fingers.

"Sir, you-"

Jimin's eyes went wide when the man shoved a couple of bills in his hand, pushed open the door, and hastily got out, just the way he got himself inside the cab.

"Thank you so much, Jimin-ssi. I'm grateful to you."

Without wasting another second, the man turned around and walked towards the railing of the bridge. If the sirens in Jimin's head didn't ring loud enough before, it certainly did right then. He quickly applied the handbrake and all but rushed out of the car.

Jungkook's body heaved with a broken sob as he leaned against the rail to stare down into the raging waters but he was gripped by the arm just a second later and pulled away from the edge. With the force, his hood fell back to reveal his face and Jimin sadly raked his eyes over the little details that he tried to hide so desperately.

His flushed, tear-stained cheeks and red puffy eyes came into view and Jimin's heart ached at the sight. Jungkook stared blankly at the cab driver, feeling completely and utterly lost.

"Jungkook-ah, what are you doing?" Jimin asked in korean, using a soothing busan dialect.

Jungkook's face crumpled and the tears he held back so desperately refused to be suppressed any longer as they fell down his cheeks in rivulets. His hand immediately reached up to hide his face from Jimin's view and he sobbed into his hands. The cab driver gently guided him to the comfort of his shoulder.

Jimin wasn't sure what exactly to say without knowing the source of the issue Jungkook was facing so instead he opted to comfort the man through physical touch. He rubbed the man's back in a soothing fashion and cradled his head with the other hand.

He allowed the man to cry as much as he wanted to and didn't utter a single word. When Jungkook's sobs had reduced to occasional sniffles, Jimin spoke, "let's take a seat, alright? Just for a little bit, hmm? There we go. Just lean on me."

"I'm tired," Jungkook whimpered, "so exhausted. I can't - can't continue."

It was exactly what Jimin had feared. He held the man tighter and rested his cheek against the younger's head.

"I'm listening," Jimin promised softly.

"I left Busan for him. I left my family for him. They disowned me when they found out I was gay and in a relationship," Jungkook sobbed, "I caught him cheating on me and-"

A series of painful sobs escaped him and his body heaved with the force.

"I miss home so much. I can't go back though-I want mumma back but I am such a disappointment of a son and I couldn't even please my boyfriend enough to make him stay. I'm worthless and-"

"I will stop you right there. Jungkook-ah, you are so young; too young to allow this world to steal something so precious away from you. Your boyfriend cheated on you. You have no fault in that whatsoever. He couldn't be loyal but I will not listen to you blame yourself for his mistake. Nothing about you can justify his cheating," Jimin spoke and felt himself tear up at the heartbroken sobs the man emitted, always the empathetic one that his friend group teased him for.

Doe-eyes met amber ones.

"Did you ever try to get in touch with your family after you moved here?"

A head shake.

"Before you start labelling yourself, why don't you try to contact them? They are your parents. They may be old-fashioned, bound by fears of what society may think, which of course should not be the case. But they are still your parents. You are still their son. They may have said what they did out of anger but may regret it now. You never know. If not, it's not your fault. You can't help who you love. You can't change your sexuality and that's okay. They should be the ones to understand it. You aren't a disappointment to anyone."

"You don't even know me," Jungkook whispered and his lower lip wobbled. How can you be so sure of it, went unsaid.

"But I want to."

"You don't understand, Jimin. I have no one here. I don't have anywhere to go. I'm . . . I'm alone," Jungkook's breath hitched and he swallowed down a fist sized lump in his throat. His airway seemed to constrict as panic suddenly gripped his heart.

"Jungkook-ah," Jimin said firmly and Jungkook took a deep breath as he looked Jimin in the eyes again.

"You're coming home with me. We'll get your belongings from wherever it is tomorrow morning. For tonight, you can borrow my clothes."

Jungkook blinked back tears, "what?"

"You're not alone. You have me now. Hyung will take care of you."

♛

The end!