Requested by Anonymous
[🛑 New Requests Closed🛑]
--

Birthdays were special for the BTS boys. If they could have, they would have made each other's birthdays national holidays.

Every year the members would try to outdo each other with the birthday presents. It was always a battle of who got the best present for whoever's birthday it was. Many times they didn't even buy expensive things, but gave gifts that held sentimental value such as hand-written letters or hand-made sweaters.

Taehyung's birthday was coming up and he'd been talking about wanting to go out on the ocean for months now. Considering it was the end of December, the members figured something like that was out of the question and had planned to all get him other things.

Except Jin.

Jin had a plan.

All of the local boating companies were closed for the off-season, but Jin was fully aware of the power each of the members held. He knew all he had to do was pay a little extra and he'd be sure to secure a reservation for whatever boat he wanted at whatever time he wanted.

The plan worked. He made sure to call up a local yacht company and he was able to get the biggest one they had for a good five hour time frame. The best part about it was that Jin also made sure to set it up as a whale watching expedition, because he remembered Taehyung constantly talking about how it would be his dream to see them in their natural habitat and not in an aquarium. He knew Taehyung wanted the real thing so that's exactly what this hyung had planned to give him.

He'd also made sure to check the weather beforehand, and made sure to set up the trip on the warmest day within the week. Despite the fact it would already be the beginning of January when they went out, it had been an exceptionally warm winter and the reservation was on a day where it was supposed to be fully sunny and in the high 60's.

--

"Happy Birthday, Taehyungie!" Jungkook screamed as he ran to his hyung and picked him up, spinning him in circles.

"Thanks, Koo." Taehyung giggled and patted Jungkook on the head.

Soon all of the members were up and running to Taehyung, wishing him a happy birthday and immediately shoving their presents in his face.

"Mine first!" Yoongi ordered.

Jimin protested and shoved Yoongi out of the way. "No, mine!"

"Hey! Get in line!" Yoongi shot back.

Taehyung couldn't help but burst into laughter. This had always been his favorite day of the year. Jungkook and Hobi offered to make whatever Taehyung wanted for breakfast as well.

"But only after you open my present first!" Jungkook shot Yoongi and Jimin with a sly smile. He knew Taehyung would be hungry, so only offered to start cooking once his present had been opened. Hobi took advantage of this and also said he wouldn't start cooking until afterwards either.

Jin didn't care when Taehyung would open the present he got him, because he was internally boasting to himself about how he'd definitely gotten the best one. He looked at Namjoon who was also laughing about the other members' antics.

"Okay, okay. I will get to everyone's." Taehyung took a seat on the living room couch while opening his presents. After opening Hobi's and Jungkook's, the two of them headed for the kitchen. The rest of the members sat around him, excited as hell to watch him open what they got him. He'd received so many amazing things he couldn't even pick his favorite. It was clear to him that the members all truly paid attention to the things he mentioned wanting or liking throughout the year because he received all of it and more. New clothes, new stuffed animals, more handwritten letters, and even a new chair for his room that was shaped like a giant nose where the nostrils were the seats.

Jin was beaming when he handed him his little card. As Taehyung opened it, two blue tickets fell out. "What's this?"

"Read the tickets, duh!" Jin sat and waited for Taehyung to realize what they were.

"Whale watching on a private yacht?!" Taehyung jumped up to his feet. "Hyung, this is for me?!"

"Well, me too! For us to spend quality time together. I know you've been mentioning wanting to do it for quite a while and just thought-"

Before Jin could finish, Taehyung wrapped Jin in a hug and started to playfully kiss his hyungs face. "I love it! I love it! I can't believe you remembered!"

Yoongi huffed. "I guess Jin won this year." He looked over to Jimin and the two of them couldn't stop laughing.

"I want to go!" Namjoon demanded.

"Yah! It's not your birthday, is it?!" Jin playfully scolded Namjoon for the intrusion. "And I know how Taehyung is. His favorite thing is quality time. To be more specific," Jin wrapped his arm around Taehyung's shoulders, "quality time with his favorite hyung."

"What do you mean his favorite hyung?!" Hobi yelled from the kitchen. There was pure jealousy in his voice.

"You heard me!" Jin yelled back.

The rest of the day was spent pampering Taehyung. The members took him out shopping to his favorite stores and local restaurants, and it ended with them watching a movie that he got to pick out. Even throughout the entire day, Taehyung spent a lot of his time being excited for his ocean endeavor with Jin.

And finally, the following week, it was time to go. The members told the two to have fun and enjoy themselves.

"Take lots of pictures!" Yoongi demanded.

Jin let everyone know they'd be back no later than mid-afternoon, and soon he and Taehyung were on their way. The entire drive there Taehyung was clearly excited as he blasted music and danced in the passenger seat. He made sure to hand Jin the fake karaoke mic multiple times while he sang.

When they arrived at the boating docks, the two were happy to feel the sun on their skin and the slight warmth that was in the air despite it being January. Only one man was there to greet them, who told the two to call him Captain Wien.

"Nice to meet you, Captain Wien!" Taehyung cheered. His eyes went wide when he saw the size of the yacht they would be taking. "Wow, hyung. You didn't have to do all of this. This is...this boat is for royalty."

Jin smiled as he reached out and squeezed Taehyung's shoulder. "Exactly."

Taehyung squeezed Jin's shoulder back before turning and entering the giant boat. The members had been on many different boats of various styles and sizes, but this one took the cake. There were multiple stories, with different lounge areas both on the top of the ship and down below in the cabins. The lounges had cushioned couches, mini bars that appeared to be fully stocked, and even TV's that rose in and out of the middle of the mini tables.

"Have I told you that you're my favorite hyung?" Taehyung teased.

"Aish, I already knew that." Jin knew Taehyung loved all of his hyungs and Jungkook equally, but it was always fun to hear him joke about his favorites.

The captain got them acquainted with the amenities of the ship before taking his stand at the front and setting out for the far ocean.

While they traveled, Taehyung and Jin sat on the top deck, curled up together on one of the lounge couches while sipping on some soda. They watched as the shore got further and further from them. They enjoyed their time being one with nature while also taking a bunch of silly selfies together to document their trip. About two hours later, they found themselves to be in what felt like the middle of the entire ocean. Waves crashed around them on all sides with no shoreline in sight.

They heard the captain's voice come over an intercom. "If you look to your left, you will begin to see the whales splashing up and out of the water."

Jin and Taehyung immediately jumped up and ran to the side of the boat to watch. Jin spotted one come out of the water first and it was the largest living thing he'd ever seen. He started frantically tapping Taehyung on the back while pointing. "Look, look, look! There's one there! Oh and there! Look over there!"

Before they knew it, the two of them were witnessing one of the coolest things they'd ever experienced. They made sure to get as many pictures of the whales as they could so that when they got home they could brag all about it.

They lost track of time while being distracted with amazement, and before they knew it the captain came over the intercom again saying that they would now be heading back home to shore.

Taehyung was starting to feel a bit exhausted from the rush of excitement and suggested to Jin that they go and lay inside the lower deck cabin to curl up on the couch and take a nap.

"A nap sounds great," Jin remarked.

It wasn't as great as Jin had thought. While Taehyung was passed out on the couch, Jin was starting to deal with slight sea sickness. Maybe going inside the lower cabin wasn't the best idea.

He decided to let Taehyung be as he made his way back up to the upper deck. He checked the time on his phone and realized it was quite late and they should have been back to shore by now. He figured he'd ask the captain if they'd gotten off course or something. He hoped his members weren't worrying, because there was no cell service way out in the middle of the ocean. All anyone's phones were good for was picture taking and checking the time.

He was slowly making his way up the stairs when he overheard the captain speaking. He seemed to be having a conversation with someone. Jin peeked to see the captain was talking into a little walkie talkie that was connected to a radio signal. Not wanting to intrude on the man's conversation, Jin decided to wait until the conversation was over.

"Yes, I have both of them," the captain spoke into the radio. "We are still a few hours out, so I will let you know when I am closer so you can get your men ready to grab them."

Jin immediately became a lot more alert after hearing that. He hadn't even fully gotten up the stairs yet until he decided to lower himself back down a few steps so that his head wasn't visible and he was back below deck. He looked over at Taehyung who was still curled up on the couch, fast asleep.

He felt his heart rate rising and he could feel the heat radiating from his ears, face and neck. He tilted his head slightly to try and get a better listen over the crashing of the waves.

"Just the two, the other members didn't sign up to come. However, we can either use them as ransom for a shit ton of money or see who else might be willing to pay a pretty penny for them."

Jin's heart leaped into his throat. No. No. No. No. This isn't happening. I'm hearing things. I'm just hearing things. Maybe I'm asleep too and this is just a dream.

Jin pinched himself and it actually hurt. No. Fuck. Fuck. He placed his hand on his chest as he felt his breathing pick up. He could feel how rapid his heartbeat was raging inside of him. Maybe it's a prank? It has to be a prank. But...but...the captain doesn't even know I am listening.

Jin heard a voice come from over the radio, and while he couldn't make out what they were saying, he could tell the voice wasn't of anyone he recognized.

The captain responded, seemingly a bit more irritated. "Well if the men have the chains and guns when we arrive, there will be no chance of escape. Like I said, it's just the two of them. I have plenty of men on this mission. They won't be going anywhere once we get to the dock. And if they even try, then like I said, we have the guns. A bullet to the leg or foot won't let either of them get very far."

Jin felt the morning's breakfast begin to crawl its way back up his throat. He decided to take his phone and start secretly recording the captain hoping that the audio would pick up despite the sound of the wind and waves. He only hoped he'd be alive to give this evidence to whoever needed it. The captain re-explained the plan about how his fleet of men were to grab him and Taehyung directly upon arrival and immediately get them into chains. The next order was to shoot them to stop them from running if they even dared to try and escape.

Once the captain ended the conversation and put the radio down, Jin practically flew back down the rest of the steps. He ran over to Taehyung and crouched down in front of him. "Hey, hey Taehyungie wake up. Wake up, bub." Jin was gently shaking him and patting his face.

Taehyung woke up in quite a daze, not understanding why Jin was frantically grabbing his arms and cheeks while speaking to him. He noticed the look of pure terror in his hyung's eyes as they were bloodshot and glistening with tears.

"What's wrong?" Taehyung yawned as he rubbed the exhaustion from his eyes.

Jin didn't know how to explain this without scaring the absolute shit out of Taehyung, but he also knew this was something to be scared shitless about.

"Hey, listen to me. Okay? You have to listen to me."

Jin's panic was causing Taehyung's own heart to race. "You're scaring me. What's the matter? Are you sick? Did something happen? Is something wrong with the boat?!" Taehyung immediately started to look around, trying to scout out any signs of danger-such as the boat sinking.

Jin gripped Taehyung's face in his hands as he felt tears slip out of his eyes. "You trust me, right?"

Taehyung placed his hands over Jin's, which were still resting on his cheeks. "Please tell me what's wrong."

"We're in a lot of trouble, Tae. I-I overheard the captain talking on his radio and I overheard him say...he said..." Jin could barely get the words out of his mouth. He had to pause to take a deep breath. The look of terror in Taehyung's eyes was making this so much harder for him.

"Tae, we're being kidnapped."

Taehyung backed out of Jin's grip and raised his eyebrow while he crossed his arms. "Sometimes you go a little bit overboard with your jokes or pranks and I don't like this one. If this is some kind of delayed birthday shenanigan, then stop it because you're really freaking me the hell out."

"No, no, no." Jin grabbed Taehyung's arms and squeezed them. "This isn't any kind of prank. Does it look like I'm messing with you?! We should have been home a while ago already but there's no service out here so we can't even call anyone! I heard him, Tae. Listen, listen to this!" Jin played the video on his phone for Taehyung. It was hard to make out everything the captain was saying due to the various noises, but Taehyung did make out words like "chains" and "guns".

Jin could immediately see the color drain from Taehyung's face. He turned from a golden honey color to almost sheetrock white. He immediately began to shed tears as he brought his fingers to his mouth and started anxiously biting his nails. "I want to go home. Jin hyung, I want to go home." His face scrunched up as he began to ball his eyes out. Fear consumed every inch of his body. His hands and feet began to tremble along with the rest of him.

Jin pulled him into his arms, squeezing him tightly. Taehyung immediately began letting out deep, heart-shattering sobs into Jin's chest. He was soaking his hyungs shirt with his tears. "Jin, I want to go home. I want to go home," Taehyung kept repeating, his voice muffled.

Jin was sobbing now too as he rubbed Taehyungs back. "I know. I know. We...we have to get off this boat."

Taehyung backed away, anger evident in his eyes. "Really?! And how do you expect to do that?! It's not like we exactly have another one we can just hop on to! We're stuck! We're stuck on this thing until we get to wherever this man is bringing us! And then what, huh?! Then we're doomed! He's going to take us and nobody is ever going to find us again and we're probably going to get separated and hurt and-and-and-"

"Hey, hey. Taehyungie, breathe. Take a deep breath." Jin put his hand on Taehyung's chest as he instructed him to take deep breaths. It was obvious to him that Taehyung was having a complete panic attack. As much as he felt one rising within him as well, he knew he needed to be strong for Taehyung. Especially if he was going to get the boy safely off this boat. He offered words of reassurance. "We will figure something out, alright? Hyung will figure something out."

Jin didn't know what the hell to do but he wasn't going to tell Taehyung that. He knew they needed to get off that boat somehow.

Somehow.

This boat didn't have any emergency boats attached to it. Not even inflatable ones. Jin also realized they'd never even been given life jackets or told where they were. This whole thing was a set up. That captain wanted to make damn sure we had no possible way off this boat. He could only think of one plan.

"Listen to me. Hey, listen to hyung," Jin said. Taehyung's eyes were scanning all around him. Jin grabbed his cheeks again and tried to get him to focus. "We have to jump off it. It's the only option we have."

Taehyung stared blankly at Jin before blinking more tears away. "Into the middle of the damn ocean? Yes, great plan! It's either we stay here and get kidnapped or jump into the freezing ocean and drown. I know! Let's flip a coin to determine which way we die!"

"Well I don't know about you, but I'd rather die by the ocean than at the hands of men!" Jin shot back. "The only hope we have is to jump off this boat. Obviously not in the middle of the damn ocean! But...maybe...as we get closer to shore we can sneak off. Or if we come across a rock ledge or something. Then we can wait it out there."

"Wait out death?" Taehyung asked. "I don't want to die that way."

Jin pointed to the front of the ship. "The plans that man out there has for us...I don't want to live that way. I'm telling you if we can jump off and just...make it to some kind of platform then someone will come. You know damn well the others will send people out looking for us. Another boat is bound to go by."

"Yeah, but by the time that happens we will already be dead."

"Taehyung, please. It's the only chance we have."

"I'm scared." Taehyung dropped his gaze to the floor. "What if it doesn't work? Or what if he sees us jump out and sends people for us?"

"That's why we have to be sneaky about it. Honestly, we will have to jump and hide under the water until he's far enough he won't see us. Or long enough to know he didn't notice we are missing."

"We might die in the water before even reaching a platform or rock. The water is freezing."

"I won't let that happen. I promise," Jin reassured.

"That's not something you can say. That's not a promise you have control of keeping." Taehyung was wiping at the tears that had drenched his cheeks. "You don't get to control fate like that."

Jin dropped his head, feeling a bit defeated.

Taehyung grabbed Jin's chin and lifted his hyung's head up, meeting his gaze. "But for now I will pretend that you do. Just tell me when to jump."

Neither of them were too sure how long this trip was supposed to take as more hours had passed. The captain had even stepped into the lower deck to tell them the wind had put them off course a bit but that they were back on track and would be home shortly.

The two members kept their gazes out the window, preparing to jump into the ocean at the first sight of any kind of rock, platform, or ledge.

And finally there was one.

The ship was now moving along the edges of a giant cliff that had boulders and rocks all along the bottom. They watched as the waves slammed heavily against the boulders and the two had the same inner thought. That's going to hurt.

"This might be our only chance," Jin informed. "We jump, stay under, and swim to the rocks. We can wait for whatever rescue is coming while there."

Jin and Taehyung were now standing at the back of the boat, well below where the captain would be able to see them. Taehyung couldn't help but shed more tears of fear as he believed he was about to jump to his death and he wasn't sure what to think anymore. At this point he just hoped that if this was how it ends for him, at least he and Jin were together. He hoped that if he were to perish in the ocean, that at least Jin could make it to safety and continue to live for the both of them.

Jin, on the other hand, had different thoughts. He felt like this was going to be what saved them. This was their way out, even if they had to wait a bit. He knew he would do anything in his power to make sure they made it to those boulders. He'd fight against every wave he had to if it meant at least getting Taehyung to safety.

"This is it, Tae."

The boulders were getting closer and they knew they couldn't waste any time. They looked back to make sure the captain hadn't spotted them and thankfully he was still busy steering.

"When I say three, we jump. But listen closely okay? Once we are in the water, we have to stay under it for a little. No popping back up. Do whatever you can to stay under the water. The further out the boat gets from us, there will be a moment where if he turns around he will clearly see us. If we wait a bit, eventually he will be too far away. Are you ready to take the deepest breath of your life?" Jin stared at Taehyung, waiting for him to acknowledge that he understood.

"No. I'm not. I'll never be ready, but what choice do I have?"

"Okay, good." Jin waited until the boat was super close to the edge of the boulders and then counted to three. He grabbed Taehyung's hand as the two of them took deep breaths and jumped off the boat into the water.

Underneath the water, Jin held on to Taehyung. The two of them stayed underneath, making sure to stall their resurfacing. Eventually Jin felt Taehyung starting to struggle and felt him trying to reach the surface, but Jin yanked him further down. Taehyung panicked and started putting up a fight but Jin knew it was too early. He wrapped Taehyung in his arms while they were under the water and Taehyung started jabbing him with his elbow.

A few more seconds. A few more seconds. I promise just a few more seconds, Tae.

When he felt it had been long enough, Jin finally let go of Taehyung as the two came up for air.

Taehyung was livid. "What the hell, Jin?! Were you trying to kill me?!"

"No, of course I wasn't trying to kill you! It was too early! Look!" Jin pointed and the two noticed the boat was a significant distance away. The captain wouldn't be able to spot them anymore even if he scanned the water in search of them.

To their surprise, the water also wasn't as freezing as they'd expected. It was warm enough for them to be able to move their limbs, at the very least.

They both looked over to the boulders and knew what they had to do. It was just a matter of actually swimming to them. The swim was gruesome as they had to fight the wind and waves that kept crashing against them, sending them in the opposite direction of where they were trying to get to. They finally got somewhat close, and the threat of the waves slamming into the boulders actually began to worry the two. There was no way to swim safely to them, and the waves were too strong. Getting caught in them would mean getting your body slammed into the sharp rocks.

So, Jin made a decision. "Remember when you said you trusted me?"

Taehyung stared at him with confusion, but his gaze quickly broke as he saw Jin go underneath the water. "Hyung? What the hell are you doing?!"

He felt Jin grab his legs and before he knew it his hyung had somehow hoisted his entire body up out of the water, sending Taehyung flying above the waves and landing onto one of the boulder platforms.

Taehyung landed with a thud onto the rock, then immediately turned around to see what happened to Jin. His hyung was struggling against the waves.

"Hyung! What the hell?! Hyung!" Taehyung crawled to the edge of the rock and held out his hand in desperate reach of Jin but his hyung was too far away. The waves kept crashing down on the elder and sending him spiraling underneath. "Jin!" Taehyung screamed repeatedly. "Jin!" No. No. No. No. Come on hyung, come on. You just have to reach my hand!

"T-Taehyung!" Jin coughed out as his head came up out of the water. The saltiness was making his throat and nostrils burn. It was clear he had grown exhausted and out of breath as he struggled to stay afloat.

"Jin!" Taehyung couldn't reach any further, and then before he knew it Jin went tumbling back under the waves.

He never came back up.

"No! Hyung! Jin!" Taehyunge's eyes desperately scanned all around him but all he could see were rocks and the waves that were creating white foam along the edges of them. "Jin!" He screamed louder, his throat going sore. "No!" In a desperate attempt to save his hyung, Taehyung did all he could think to do.

He jumped back in.

It didn't work. He flailed and screamed for his hyung but he was nowhere to be found.

Lost.

Gone.

Taehyung's voice broke and screeched as he called out one last time. "Jin...no..."

Waves came tumbling towards him, and just like how it had happened when Jin had done it, the wave sent his body flying through the air and landing right back onto the platform of a rock. Taehyung curled up into a ball as he broke down completely. He wasn't sure how many tears he had shed but he knew that it had to be enough to fill the ocean a million times over. He was hyperventilating and screaming until his voice completely gave out. "Im-m s-so s-sorry, h-hyung. I'm so sorry h-h-hyu-ungie." He buried his face into his knees as his body began to shiver.

He could only hope that now he would die too. He couldn't imagine having to live the rest of his life without one of his brothers. Thoughts of sorrow consumed until his body gave out and he fell unconscious.

--

Taehyung wasn't aware of how much time had passed, but three days later, he woke up in a white room outline with machines. A soft, gentle beeping sound flowed into his ears. He looked around to see his members standing before him.

All of them except for Jin.

Taehyung's eyes rolled in his head as the reality hit him that Jin was gone. He remembered everything as though it had happened five minutes ago.

"Finally!" Namjoon cheered. "You had us so worried!"

"You're finally awake!" Jungkook leaned down and kissed Taehyung on the forehead.

Taehyung didn't respond to their words or touches. He stared blankly at the ceiling as tears spilled out of the sides of his eyes. How could they be so happy?  He felt as though there was a deep weight on his chest. He continued to stare blankly at the tiles above him, as though he were staring directly at the author of this story and wishing he could rewrite it.

He heard the sound of the door opening but didn't care to see who it was.

"Taehyung-ah! You're finally awake! Sorry, I was in the bathroom."

Taehyung's head snapped sideways when he heard Jin's voice. He had to have been imagining things.

Yet, he wasn't.

Jin had walked into the room. He eyed his hyung up and down for a moment trying to make sense of this. For a second he wondered if Jin was real or a figment of his imagination. He saw that his hyung had some stitches on his forehead but other than that he was relatively alright.

Without another wasted second, Taehyung sat up, turned, jumped to his feet and stumbled his way to Jin. He ignored the fact that his IV got ripped out of his arm and he'd almost knocked over several different machines if it weren't for the others catching them first.

"H-hyung...you're...alive...you're alive..." Taehyung threw himself into Jin's arms and the two embraced for a long, long time as they both melted into each other's arms. Taehyung gripped the front of Jin's shirt until his knuckles turned white. "I-I thought I lost you. I thought you w-were dead."

"Not dead. Concussed," Jin said as he pointed to the stitches on his forehead, "but not dead."

Taehyung backed away and took another glance at Jin. "But how?! Hyungie you went under and never came back up! I jumped back in to save you and you were gone!"

"You jumped back in?! Yah! I used all my strength to get you on that rock, how dare you jump back in!"

Taehyung knew Jin's tone hinted at the fact he was (somewhat) teasing, but he still couldn't believe it. "I couldn't just let you drown...I had to try."

"I struggled under the water and lost all sense of direction," Jin informed, "but came back up and you were nowhere to be found. I didn't have time to even think or comprehend what had happened before I passed out. It would appear I was also thrown onto a rock."

Taehyung turned to the other members who had gathered around him. Yoongi was gently putting the IV drip back into Taehyung's arm for him. It was just a small click and he was good to go.

"How did you find us?" Taehyung asked his members.

"With the help of the entire country's military," Hobi replied.

Taehyung felt himself get lightheaded and everyone helped lead him back to his bed. "What?"

"What? You think we were going to sit around and hope you guys eventually showed back up? You were missing for over an hour and at that point we panicked. We called the police, and once we informed them that you guys had gone on a boat ride, the police contacted the Navy who then contacted the Air Force who then contacted everyone else. Even the Special Forces were helping."

"They were helping too?!" Taehyung couldn't believe it. He had always dreamed about being in the Special Forces himself. Imagining that one day he would have muscles as big as theirs.

"Everyone was, Tae." Jimin was now sitting beside him and rubbing his back. It was noticeable that Jimin's eyes had gotten puffy, but the boy was trying to hold back. "We all went in search of you from every shoreline in the country while others searched on land in case you guys had docked somewhere. As the hours passed we knew something bad had to have happened. The Air Force was using special thermal technology that picks up body heat, and eventually they found your body laying on the rock. They sent the Navy in to retrieve you while they looked for Jin, and believe it or not he wasn't all that far from you. He was just around the corner. But unlike you, Jin woke up in the hospital the very next day."

"Yeah, it would appear your body decided to take a bit longer of a break," Jungkook said. "Scaring us half to death, by the way! We thought you were in a coma and would never wake up!"

Taehyung lay down in his hospital bed as he listened to this whole story. He didn't know what he'd done in life to deserve such a miracle, but he knew it would be something he was going to treasure forever. He hadn't even noticed it until now but he looked over and sitting at the head of his bed was a little tiny stuffed bear with a big "V" in red on it.

Jin noticed he seemed a bit confused. "I had it made at the gift shop downstairs. I was hoping you would accept it as an alternative birthday present. My last one kind of sucked." That statement got all the guys laughing. Taehyung couldn't believe that despite everything, Jin was still willing to crack jokes. He knew his hyung would always go above and beyond to make anyone feel better.

Taehyung hugged it against his chest. "Although I love it, nothing beats that you're alive."

Jin ruffled his dongsaeng's hair and nudged him teasingly.

"Do they know what happened?" Taehyung asked Jin.

"Of course we fucking know what happened." Jimin's voice was deep. His tone was a mixture of anger and guilt. "All those fuckers involved are in prison for good, and then once they die they get to then rot in Hell for the rest of eternity."

"Already? How long have I been in the hospital?" Taehyung didn't understand how everything had happened so soon.

"Three days. But as soon as Jin woke up he told us everything," Yoongi told Taehyung.

Jin told Taehyung how despite them both having lost their phones in the ocean, he was able to log on to his phone's account and retrieve the video he'd taken. The police were able to use some kind of program to delete all the white noise and hear everything the captain had been saying. "And once he was found and arrested, they were able to get into the radio signals and even listen in on the conversations he was having with the people over the radio. Then, everyone involved started tattling on one another and there was so much evidence that it was an extremely speedy trial. I mean, there's also the fact that it's...you know...us."

"Was it...as bad as we thought it would be?" Taehyung asked Jin. The elder knew what he was asking. How he was wondering if they really would have been chained up and shot if need be.

"No," Jin replied, "it would have been worse."

Taehyung felt his heart drop to his stomach, but he quickly regained his composure when he knew he was safe now. He knew Jin was safe now.

"Everything is taken care of," Hobi said reassuringly. "No need to worry anymore. You and Jin hyung are safe and everyone who even thought of hurting you will never see daylight ever again."

Taehyung smiled. Hobi's words were like music to his ears.

"And now, since your little trip is over and whatnot, I had a question," Hobi stood next to Taehyung with a beaming smile. "Who is your favorite hyung?"

Taehyung burst into laughter to the point he had to clutch his stomach because it started to hurt. The rest of the members joined in his laughter and suddenly Jin's windshield wiper laugh was louder than the entire room.

None of them knew how things would turn out when they knew Taehyung and Jin had gone missing. They didn't know how things would turn out when they heard that the two had been found unconscious.

Luckily for them, it turned out the best possible way it could have. With all of them together in one room again and with their hearts and souls full of love and laughter.

[The End]
[🛑New Requests Closed🛑]