It was unbelievable, really.

Entirely unacceptable.

Acre had gone too far this time. They crossed a huge line. A massive one.

Taking what belongs to him, right under his nose, and claiming conditions over returning his own possession.

To say that Taehyung, or rather V—was furious, was a complete understatement.

"Move." His voice startled the air around him, laced it with his quiet but deadly poison, an icy breath from his throat. He slammed his hand harshly over the Acre man's back—Chulsoo, pushing him forward while he stumbled with cuffs around his wrists. "Faster. I assure you I'm really not in the mood for this shit."

"You held me captive in one place for all that time.." Chulsoo boldly uttered out through his dry throat while he treaded along, despite the fact that he truly felt fear for his life around the other male in that moment. "So, where are... you taking me now, all of a sudden..?"

"Back to your bullshit comrades," Taehyung grunted. "You should be grateful that I'm such a nice guy for returning you home."

The other man's eyes blinked in slight disbelief. There was a curt silence, and then he managed out a quiet laugh. "So they've managed to hold something over you, huh... Over Bangtan. Interesting..." A small smirk began to form over Chulsoo's lips, his confidence trickling back into him.

Though only slightly. God forbid he said something stupid at the wrong time and was murdered in cold blood by the Bangtan captain shoving him down an isolated dirt road.

"Is this the rendezvous point?"

"Stop talking." Taehyung's voice lowered an octave or two. "I'm growing tired of your stupid, bitchy voice. It's giving me a fucking headache."

Chulsoo's lips pressed into a thin line, a gulp traveling down his throat before he decided he'd just do as he was told. He wasn't quite sure what the hell was going on, but if Acre had plans to retrieve him and things went well, this could only mean his own freedom.

The two men continued down the empty path full of rocks, mud and dying grass; until they were able to see a greyed, run-down building start to peek the horizon over in the distance. Chulsoo recognized it to be an abandoned factory where gang gatherings—whether violent or tame, took place.

They drew closer towards the old building, Taehyung walked closely behind Chulsoo, gripping onto the cuffs around his wrist. He then pulled a gun hoisted at his hip and kept it beside him cautiously, eyes scanning the area while the sky began to wash over in a melting orange gradient.

Soon the two stopped a good distance from the front, concrete walls, letting the silence of the field they were at sink deep into their bones. Taehyung narrowed his eyes in focus, head turned to his left while he continued to look around, his ears attentive to even the tiniest sounds.

In a matter of seconds there was a fluttering noise, and Taehyung snapped his head to watch a crow cawk out, spread its wings and take flight into the sky. He lowered his gaze, noting a string of smoke now emerging from the missing front door of the abandoned factory, where a hooded man now stood with his hands cooly inside his pockets.

The three stared each other down for a while, a cold breeze sweeping at strands of their hair, chilling their skins. Taehyung released his grip on Chulsoo and stepped back a bit before he raised his gun and directed it toward his hostage.

"Now hold on a minute.." The hooded man then hurriedly spoke up, tossed his cigarette towards the dirt and raised both hands up into the air. "Relax. I'm only here for a peaceful exchange. We can't afford to start any fights with you right now. Lower your gun."

Taehyung kept the weapon aimed firmly at Chulsoo's head, a stagnant expression drawled his eyes.

His response was sturdy. "Bring the other hostages out first."

The hooded Acre man gave a light chuckle, hands still raised in the air as he progressed closer toward the other two with wary steps. "Yes, sir. But like I said—we don't want any trouble. Please, lower the gun."

Taehyung stood still, seemingly as if to contemplate the man's authenticity. But unfortunately, he knew how this shit worked. He had to show some level of cooperation if he wanted things to roll his way under such situations.

The Acre man halted at a safe distance from the two, his eyes locked on Taehyung, ready to react to any sudden movements. But when the three of them all made no effort to move, awaiting each other's actions with great caution, he eventually let out a quiet sigh.

"Seriously, these are my orders, Mr. Kim." The man wore a stern expression. "We're not completely oblivious to the underground scene. We know that dealing with both Bangtan and Namida at the same time is no easy feat. Please understand—we're a rookie gang. We asked for our terms, so cooperate with me here. I just want to get this shit over with."

Taehyung continued to stare at the man, brows furrowed, pupils dilated as though awaiting verification to maul his prey. Even at this point, the opposing Acre man could tell that all he saw was red.

"Let me give you a warning." The guy then continued. "Your hostages are out in the back, with guns aimed at them. I'm unarmed, so if they hear a gunshot go off they've been ordered to shoot both hostages."

He could almost see the colors slowly returning to Taehyung's vision.

"Just let me take Chulsoo here. And I'll go to the back and bring out the other two. Then we can all just go off our own ways and pick a fight some other day. Sound good?"

The Bangtan captain remained silent. Chulsoo closed his eyes from where he stood, inhaling in a much needed breath.

And then, finally, Taehyung began to lower his gun—gaze still piercing the eyes of the other Acre man.

"If you don't come back here in two minutes with my comrades, I'm shooting every single Acre guy you brought here with you."

The guy twitched up a smile. "Alright. Do whatever you want."

Taehyung signaled towards the factory with a nod of his head, then returned his focus toward Chulsoo. "Your time starts now."

The Acre man waited while Chulsoo quickly began to dash toward him, and once he reached him the two made a beeline straight into the factory building. Taehyung watched them from where he stood, now hoisting his gun up cautiously, aiming directly at the entrance for safe measure.

"..twenty-two... twenty-three..." He whispered beneath his breath, counting the seconds down as he carefully drew closer towards the factory building.

Once he reached sixty, he restarted from one, his finger placing at the trigger in preparation.

"..forty-five... forty-six.."

And, he waited.

"forty-nine... fifty..."

Taehyung heard a sudden noise, and immediately halted his thoughts, head peering at the darkness coming from inside the factory. Except, the sound felt as though it were rumbling from the outside, and the man began to lower his gun, eyes slowly widening as he came to realize what the sound was.

"Fuck..." He whispered, the grip on his gun tightening in frustration.

He kicked dirt over the ground while he ran beside the factory building.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck."

He heard the revving noise grow louder as a vehicle began to rush down the dirt road, leaving him alone in the deserted area.

"Shit.. I fucking knew it... Shit.." He murmured curse words repeatedly to himself, watching the Acre man drive off with his captain.

Without a single Bangtan nor Namida member in return. Just as he had fucking predicted.

That Acre had no intention of cooperating with them in the first place.

※ ※

The large room felt much cooler the longer Jeongguk remained sat on the floor, wrists tied behind him to a metal pole. His body shuddered every few seconds, a pale complexion over his face, lips dry.

He had lost track of time. Was completely unaware of how long he'd been in this space for, nor when the last time he had eaten was. At random times, some guy would burst in and force feed a bottle of water to both him and the stranger tied a few feet away from him.

Out of fear, Jeongguk hadn't spoken a single word. He'd usually avoid eye contact too, and wouldn't reply to the other captive man's attempts at communicating with him.

So eventually, his hostage partner had given up. And the two men remained confined in the room together in utter silence.

Silence.

Silence that went on for minutes. Hours.

Days?

Maybe. Maybe not. Truthfully, Jeongguk wasn't sure how long it had been. Nor why he was there, or why there was another stranger tied up in the same room as him.

"Don't be ridiculous!" He heard a voice shout from outside the room, coming from what he assumed was the hallway beside them. Jeongguk's entire body flinched, scrambled the short distance backwards against the pole until his back hit the hard surface.

The large metal doors in the distance suddenly swung open with a loud creak, allowing a screeching sound to pierce through the once quiet air. The stranger on the floor, his captive partner, snapped his head up and seemed to wake from his sleep, his weary eyes lifting to see that a guy was headed straight towards him.

"My bad—did I wake you?" The man grinned down at him.

Jeongguk watched with wide eyes as he came to recognize the man to be none other than Park Sungho—the same guy that had dragged him into the vehicle that night. The one responsible for his captivity.

The seated stranger looked up at Sungho, lips pressed calmly together.

"What's the matter, Hiro?" Sungho scoffed out. "Still think you're hot shit?"

The man—Hiro, grunted out as Sungho suddenly swung his foot across his stomach, kicking him with great force. Jeongguk let out a quiet gasp, brows rising as his captive buddy was then kicked again, this time even harder than before.

"St—..." He whimpered out beneath his breath, unable to look away as Sungho continued to beat the shit out of the tied stranger, enough to draw blood from his coughs. "Stop!"

Sungho's movements came to a halt. He slowly turned his head to look down at where Jeongguk was.

"Hm?" The man snorted. "Stop, you say? Now why on earth would I do that?"

A shaky breath left Jeongguk's parted lips, trying his best not to get too intimidated by the menacing stare the male was giving him.

"Tanaka Hiro. Age 23, from the Namida gang.." Sungho began, arms crossing in front of him. "Shot a member of Acre during a gang fight, resulting in our comrade to be hospitalized. We still don't even know if he'll make it."

Jeongguk's eyes enlarged, every bone in his body freezing in that sole moment.

Namida gang...?

That was the group allied with Bangtan. The one that Misun belonged to.

He glanced at Hiro's bloodied face, head hanging low, the man seemed to be fighting to stay conscious at this point and Jeongguk felt... oddly guilty.

The poor guy had been trying to talk to him this whole time, and Jeongguk had completely ignored him. Sure, he was only being cautious, but if Hiro was from Namida then certainly Jeongguk could've trusted him. They were held captive together, for fuck's sake. Why on earth didn't he just give him a chance?

Perhaps Hiro was trying to get a sense of what was going on, or try to plot an escape or something—anything. And Jeongguk had entirely shut him down.

He saw what was going on now. Sungho must be a member of the Acre gang, plotting something against the two other allied forces.

How could he have been so ignorant?

"And... Jeon Jeongguk." Sungho continued, a clear grin now evident on his face. "Around age 19. From the Bangtan boys. New to the gang, but was spotted quite often around their most dangerous captain, Kim Taehyung."

Jeongguk felt a shudder run down his skin.

"With the two of you, surely we'll be able to retrieve Chulsoo-hyung back to us.." Sungho huffed out. "And if we're lucky.. Well, Bangtan and Namida would get into a fight over how to deal with our exchange request, and it may even make a tear on their alliance..."

"You're wrong.." Jeongguk found himself choking the words out. "Y-You've got it all wrong, I'm n-not... I'm not even p-part of the B-Bangtan gang.. I j-just have friends there.. I'm not t-their comrade.."

Sungho rolled his eyes. "Nice try. But we've heard your name pop up in the underground scene. Apparently you've even done drug trade jobs, too. You can't fool me."

Jeongguk lifted his head, a confused glint in his eyes.

Drug trade jobs..?

He blinked once. Then twice. An eerie feeling began to sink into his stomach as he gradually recalled that one day with Taehyung, at the mall.

"You just did your first drug dealing mission, sweetheart."

Jeongguk felt nauseous now, a pressure closing in on his chest.

That's right.

Taehyung had tricked him into delivering drugs to some woman that day.

He had thought he was giving her some kind of birthday present, so he had given the woman his name—said that Taehyung had sent him.

But, no. It turned out he had given her drugs she purchased from Bangtan instead. Made it seem as though he was their member, newly affiliated to the gang.

Does that mean everyone in the underground world knows his name now? Associates him as a Bangtan member? A gangster?

Jeongguk's heart seemed to be racing at a dangerously rapid rate, unable to come to terms with it all.

"If your precious gangs don't come flying to your rescue, then..." A brooding smirk spread over Sungho's face while his hands reached to pull a gun out, aimed directly at the young one's chest. "I'll take care of you both myself."

Jeongguk opened his mouth to say something, but not a single breath managed to make its way out. And before Sungho could utter another word, the heavy doors opened once again, and a tall man with a laidback demeanor strolled past the frame. Though, his collected stance was soon overcome with an ounce of panic when he caught sight of Sungho's weapon out.

"Lower that gun, now!" The man commanded, startling Sungho, who quickly obeyed his orders. "What the fuck are you doing? I thought I told you to keep these pathetic guys alive for now."

Sungho bowed his head. "I'm sorry, sir. I was just giving the Bangtan boy a scare."

Jeongguk looked over at the new Acre man's presence, fear evident in his eyes as the male then looked back at him. And once again, the boy found that the guy looked awfully familiar, though he couldn't quite pinpoint the exact details.

Yet, from the way Sungho had reacted to and addressed him as, it wasn't difficult for Jeongguk to assume that this man was no ordinary Acre member. But rather, a captain.

"Don't worry, kid.." The man cracked an intricate grin. "It's alright. I just got a call and, well... Apparently we were able to retrieve Chulsoo safely." A loud laugh. "Without even giving our hostages back!"

Sungho's eyes widened at the news, much like Jeongguk's did. Except while Sungho jumped into the air, eyes twinkling from excitement, Jeongguk contrasted his delight with sheer panic.

Acre got their captain back?

Did Bangtan surrender him just like that?

Was no one coming to save him?

Well, considering he had just explained how he wasn't actually a Bangtan soldier, maybe it was to be expected.

Why risk anything trying to rescue someone like him, anyway?

Jeongguk dreadfully gulped down an array of saliva gathering at his tongue, watching as the Acre captain now glanced between him and Hiro.

"What happened to the Namida boy?"

Sungho shrugged his shoulders. "I beat the shit out of him."

The Acre man hummed, observing the blood dripping down the tied up man's face. "Clearly not well enough. He's still conscious." He drew a couple steps closer, then stomped his foot forcefully down Hiro's chest, earning him a squeaked grunt before the Namida man finally fell to the ground.

Jeongguk watched in horror, hands shaking uncontrollably behind him.

Did they just... kill a man? Just like that? No warning—and right in front of him?

He flinched when the gang captain then turned towards him, and Jeongguk just then noticed that he'd been carrying a small plastic bag this entire time.

"Woosik... With all due respect, sir, I thought we were to not harm our hostages too much.." Sungho gaped at the older.

Jeongguk froze.

Woosik... As in, Choi Woosik...?

Now that he thought about it, even this man's voice sounded familiar.

"Stop there and don't move."

"I'm only here to deliver a message to Bangtan. Although I would love to bend a few rules and just kill you right here and now."

Shit.

Jeongguk remembered it all now.

This was the guy who held him and Taehyung at gunpoint that one day. The man had issued a warning toward them back then, and argued with Taehyung over his sister.

His sister... Choi Eunha. Whom Woosik had claimed was taken advantage of by Taehyung.

Eunha.

Jeongguk really thought he could throw up any second now.

He'd thought the name sounded familiar before. Back when those two girls were lurking around campus looking for a man named——

Jeongguk coughed loudly, the memory returning to him.

"I don't think I know his real name. He told me to call him V."

"You're Jeon?"

"We're looking for someone."

"He told me to call him V."

"Nice to meet you, Jeon Jeongguk!"

"I'm just here to return this to him."

"He told me to call him——"

The words looped over his thoughts like a broken record.

Two girls—one with blue hair, one blond; the blond one was named Eunha; that sounds like Choi Eunha; Choi Eunha is related to Choi Woosik; Choi Woosik who stood in front of him now; Choi Woosik who had pointed a gun at him in the past, while he was beside Taehyung; Taehyung, who had relations with Eunha in the past; sexual relations, in which her brother implied that Eunha had claimed to be sexually assaulted; taken advantage of by Taehyung; Taehyung, who had roughly denied it.

Jeongguk's head was spinning, spiraling with information, possibilities, questions, continued with illogical reasonings and equally logical solutions.

Eunha, who showed up at his school campus with her friend, the blue haired girl; looking for a man. A man named——

V.

A trembling breath pushed past his dry throat, a paled complexion over his face. He had been staring mindlessly towards the floor, the corners of his vision blurry, and it was only when he had lifted his head that he realized Choi Woosik was now in front of him, bending down to his level, staring meticulously at him.

"Looks like this one's getting delusional.." The man murmured. "You haven't eaten in a while, hm?" Woosik dug into the small bag he had been carrying with him. "I brought you a snack. It's not much, but I figured you'd take in anything on an empty stomach, no?"

He pulled out a tiny spoon, his frightening gaze locked directly onto Jeongguk, who seemed as though he could hyperventilate at any rate now. A sly smirk curved at the corner of Woosik's lips.

"I heard from a little birdie that you... are fond of men, hm?" He spoke the words in a dark voice. "That you love sucking on dick, like a little slut.." He tilted his head to the side, gaze eyeing the boy up and down. "Like a girl."

He let a few chuckles leave him, eyes lowering back down toward the bag while he pulled out the snack he had spoken about. Jeongguk eyed him cautiously, watched as Woosik lifted a cup of yogurt and began to peel off the top.

The man then dipped the spoon and scooped up a serving of the vanilla dairy product, reached it toward Jeongguk's lips to feed it to him.

"Go on.." He whispered, a soulless look in his eyes. "You love swallowing white shit, don't you? Lick it off, and show me how you do it for that Taehyung asshole."

Jeongguk's eyes glossed over with tears. His stomach ached desperately for any source of nutrients, but in his head the boy was terrified of consuming anything that could possibly be offered to him now.

"C'mon now... Poor boy..." Woosik hummed, a wickedly dazed look in his eyes. "Taking dick in you.. Engaging in gay sodomy. I feel so sorry for you. You'll never become a true man."

The younger gaped at him, remaining silent even as Woosik pushed the spoon forcibly into his mouth.

"And to make matters even worse, you have a heartless monster taking advantage of you for your body. Using it for his own sick pleasure, much like he did to my sister.." The man's face became blank. "You poor thing."

Before either of them could do much of anything else, the large metal doors of the room swung open yet again, and Woosik's head turned to see who had stepped in while Jeongguk let his head hang low.

"I'm here to have my fun, oppa~" He then heard an obnoxious voice fill the deafening silence. Woosik lifted himself from his bent knees position and rolled his shoulders back.

"Good timing. I was just about to head downstairs to wait for our returning champ."

"Go do that. The guys should be settling in by now," the feminine voice said in response, and Jeongguk slowly blinked, forced his gaze up to see blond strands of hair cascading down pale shoulders.

Blond, long hair.

Jeongguk held in his breath.

"So we meet again, don't we, Jeon?" The girl gave a rather evil grin, a hand settled over her waist while her brother walked past her, towards the exit.

"Don't kill him just yet. Have your fun with him and join us upstairs immediately," Woosik called out, his last words before he completely exited the room, taking Sungho along with him.

Jeongguk shifted against the metal pole, glancing towards Hiro's bloodied body in the distance. He could hear the sound of heels clacking against the floor while Choi Eunha stepped closer towards him. At this rate, Jeongguk lost all feeling in his chest, unable to hear the own beating of his heart any longer.

"Do you remember me?" The girl spoke in almost a whisper, and somehow it terrified him. He felt as though he'd been robbed of his own voice, that it'd been taken into custody along with the rest of his body. Eunha merely grinned. "With the look on your face right now, it seems that you do.."

The girl lowered himself to meet Jeongguk's eye level, her smile now long gone while she gazed at him almost fiercely, as though any second now she could rip him apart.

"Apparently you know Taehyung, hm? In fact, you know him well, it seems.." Her words pierced into his ears in a grating tone. "And you know what..? I despise that man with every inch of my being, so... I hope you understand when I say that I have to take my revenge on him somehow. You'll be understanding, won't you?"

Jeongguk gazed at her with large eyes while she placed a hand at his chest.

"It's not like this is a bad thing, either.." Eunha continued, lashes lowering. "I'd be doing you a favor. Helping you become a man. You get it, don't you?"

Her fingers traced down his shirt, stopping once she reached the edge of his trousers.

"And even if you don't understand, maybe you will... One day." She grasped at the hem of his pants and tugged on them. "And then you'll thank me, even. For showing you what it's like to taste a woman."

A startled, choked squeal pushed past Jeongguk's throat while Eunha boldly began to palm over the fabric of his underwear, against his crotch.

"P—.. Ple-.. -ease..- D-D-Don't—"

"Shh..." She hushed, a frightening smile rising on her lips. "Let's have fun, Jeongguk. I'll be taking my revenge with my own hands."

"Plea—"

Eunha reached her free hand and clasped it forcibly over Jeongguk's mouth, silencing his words. Her movements over his crotch became more aggressive, and the poor boy couldn't stop his body from naturally reacting to its friction. At the sight of his crotch beginning to bulge, the girl let another grin slip upon her face.

"See...? You like it, don't you...? You've been holding back this entire time, haven't you?" She pried her hand underneath the fabric and pulled it down, freeing Jeongguk's dick into plain sight for her amused inspection. "Don't worry... I'll give you a taste of manhood. M'kay..?"

Jeongguk's pleads came out muffled against Eunha's hand, and he felt a tear slip down his left cheek, watching in horror as the woman continued to stroke him into full erection, against his desires. And in that moment Jeongguk cursed at himself for letting his body react in such a way. But then he figured—if his body had reacted in this way, he only had himself to blame for it.

So he did.

He blamed himself. Blamed himself for letting this happen to him. Despised himself for the way his penis welcomed her touch, despite the fact that in his heart he wished nothing more than to be in his lonesome.

But he had asked for it.

By letting himself be touched like this he couldn't be upset if she were to take advantage of it.

That's right.

He only had himself to blame.

So he gave up trying to escape it. Gave up trying to retaliate, even as Eunha lifted her skirt and began to pull her panties down. Even while she pumped him a bit longer, then adjusted her entrance against the tip of his unwilling cock.

Though Jeongguk indeed sat there, gazing at the ceiling, he didn't feel anything. Couldn't hear a thing.

Couldn't hear the way Eunha had gasped beside his ear, hand still firmly clasped over his mouth while she began to bounce herself on top of him. Couldn't hear her quiet moans while his skin slapped against hers, nor the lustful words she whispered to him, ones she'd thought would make him enjoy it all.

Couldn't hear the commotion happening outside the isolated room. Not even the creak of the metal doors swinging open for the final time.

Couldn't hear a thing.

Until——bang!!!!

The sound of a gun going off snapped Jeongguk's attention from the spot on the ceiling, down towards the woman who was settled over his lap. He watched as Eunha's hand removed itself from his mouth, her body drooping to the side until she fell limp on the cold floor, bright red blood quickly oozing from her head.

The boy gave somewhat of an internal scream at the sight, the noise not quite having spurted out loud nor reach the air around him. He heard his name being called out, almost muffled in his ear. His head felt sluggish. When he turned to look to his side it felt as though he were perceiving the world in slow motion.

And he saw a familiar figure approaching him, lower down to his side and grab his shoulders.

Jeongguk was stunned, staring wide eyed at the male now in front of him. His words came out hoarsely, in a weak voice.

"Taeh—!" He stopped himself, lips parting, body still in shock. "...No." He quickly corrected himself, studying the other's body language.

The man in front of him looked directly into his eyes, dark pupils grasping his sight, demanding his full attention.

Jeongguk swallowed.

"You're V."

✱ ✱ ✱

{ A / N }

goshhh writing this was so difficult 🙃

i know i said i wasn't going to put up any warnings after the one DISCLAIMER chapter, but i truly hope i didn't make anyone too uncomfortable (though i guess that was the point of that scene but still—)

also, about chapter 43.5, i wanted to post another one of those bonus dialogue chapters and i thought including that was vital to understanding V a little better (or maybe understand him less? lol)

i believe by now you guys know that V is the most complicated character in this story by far, and that's definitely on purpose. he requires a bit of 'figuring out' so i think that bonus chapter contributes to his understanding as a character (again, i may talk more about this later, maybe in the next book notes)

some of you figured out that it was additional dialogue from chapter 21, so good job on that :p

i think it's also worth noting that for both chapters 37.5 & 43.5, if you assume that the two people speaking are V and Yerin, it makes just as much sense to the point it's also correct to say it's indeed them. in that sense there's "more than one right answer" so keep that in mind 😳

and of course; can't end this note without thanking every single one of you for your continuing support! you all are the reason i decided to keep writing this book consistently, despite my busy schedule :]

💜