It didn't feel real, almost. The way the steady wind had swept over his skin, tapped it with a chilly embrace, awakened him to the buildings and the ground beneath his feet. The world around him.

And the full moon, even, seemed to shine at a high luminescent opacity Jeongguk hadn't known could be achieved. Of course, he'd look at the night sky in leisure before. Countless times in his life, surely. But ever since he met the man walking beside him now, it was painfully evident that his own lenses now viewed the world in a different light. Perceived it in a more intricate mindset.

Jeongguk was sure that if he were to have a conversation with the him from a year ago, he'd think of himself to be outright naive.

Because in a short span of months, he's changed.

Though he wasn't sure if this change was a good thing or a bad thing, Jeongguk thought himself to be content with where he was in life. With this change came things that he'd learned about the world. Newfound knowledge. Knowledge he knew that meant little in the greater scheme of things, for he still had much to learn about the things he didn't know. Which was a lot of things.

Even so, learning about the things he didn't yet know was exciting to him. Scary still, but exciting.

Those were words he could use to perfectly describe how he felt walking beside V now, the alter who was to escort him back home safely, yet the two hadn't spoken much words since their stroll had begun.

In fact, Jeongguk's observant eyes took good note of the way the man was walking in great leisure, a drag in his step. If he were to judge on who was fronting just on the way Taehyung was walking, V certainly wouldn't have been his first guess.

But before he could play detective on that note, a greater realization hit him in an instant.

"Are we, um..." Jeongguk spoke up in a timid volume. "Are you not taking me h-home right now?"

Taehyung's hands were dug casually to his pockets, and the boy barely heard the quiet chuckle that left his lips.

"Not yet. I'm taking you somewhere."

Jeongguk's brows rose, his gaze wavering toward the less familiar surrounding area around him. "Oh... Well, I'm a little tired so I was.. hoping to just go straight home tonight."

"Hmph. Boring," Taehyung nearly scoffed. "It's a weekend now. I'll show you how to have real fun."

The boy's jaw lowered. "I wanted to-... Uhm, I was thinking of checking up on Jimin too, so um.."

Before he could add more to his point, the older skid his feet toward him and stopped, dark eyes settling over the young one.

"Enough, Jeon. You're coming with me."

Jeongguk blinked up at him, his raised brows slowly furrowing closer together. At the sudden proximity, he caught a whiff of a particularly strong scent mixing with Taehyung's usual musk.

The boy's lips parted. "Were you... s-smoking weed before picking me up..?"

Taehyung merely blinked back at him, then turned to continue their walk down the pavement.

Jeongguk continued. "You're high right now.. aren't you?"

"Why, would you like me to get you a blunt?"

The younger refrained from scoffing, and settled on lowering his head before shaking it. He decided not to give a verbal response—wasn't sure what he could or couldn't say that would give him less of a difficult time with the older. So he obediently followed him, a lulled silence settling between them again while their feet carried them across the textured pavement.

Eventually they turned a corner that led them toward a more secluded area, the darkness of the night shielding the seemingly run down buildings in the new turf. But cutting through that darkness were the occasional flashing lights, some in neon colors similar to Abyss karaoke, although something seemed off about this place. Even so, he followed Taehyung down the narrow path, and began to hear booms of music oozing from the thick concrete walls.

As they approached the entrance, Jeongguk saw a lit up sign reading the words 'Club Micro' across it. He turned to look at the older, a condemning frown over his face.

"We're going clubbing?" Jeongguk breathed out.

Taehyung responded in a coy smirk. "Not just regular clubbing," he landed a hand over the younger's shoulder. "This is an underground club. It's where that Jia girl used to work, actually."

Jeongguk's lips drew open, a hesitant demeanor taking over his body. But with a light push forward from the older, he proceeded toward a buff man who stood by the entrance. Taehyung merely gave the bouncer a single look, and the man nodded, stepped aside and pulled back the heavy door for them to comfortably slip through.

The booms of music got much louder. Despite the rundown look of the place in the exterior, to its contrary was the interior; a much more polished flooring, spacious, crowded with rowdy groups of people. The place was dark, but all kinds of flashing lights and disco gleams lit up the area more than well enough, and as Jeongguk's eyes roamed from side to side, his stomach seemed to curl up in tight wriggling knots.

There were men chugging all kinds of odd drinks, people grinding explicitly on the dance floor, shady business exchanges near the bar area, and the waitresses were all topless, their breasts fully exposed and bouncing as they walked around freely from table to table. Some of them even sat with their customers, mostly males smoking blunts in varying sizes, and they giggled at just about anything that left the men's lips.

"Mm? What do you think, baby boy?" Taehyung's voice appeared beside his ear, sending ragged shivers down Jeongguk's skin. "Not your style?"

Jeongguk flinched at his rumbling voice, then settled his shaky hands behind him. "I, um.. I d-don't know, this is... not really my thing." He inhaled a soft breath. "I should really just go home, V.."

He felt a large hand over his arm.

"Awh... so early?" Taehyung cooed. " We just got here. Have a drink with me first, will ya?"

Jeongguk opened his mouth to make an argument against it, but realized it was far too late once the older began dragging him towards the bar area by his arm, where he held him in a tight grip. The bartender behind the wooden stand seemed to recognize Taehyung right away, because once the men's eyes met, they were greeting each other and doing some kind of curt handshake.

"V, my man!" The guy grinned cheerily, "What will it be for you tonight?"

"Give us two vodka martini's, hyung. Make it strong, yeah?"

"Of course, fella. Coming right up." The guy snapped his finger towards him and turned around to make the first drink. In the meantime Taehyung plopped the boy down over one of the tall stools and stood beside him, the grip on his arm loosening.

Jeongguk tucked his lip out, brows still furrowed, and he looked back at the man. "You really go by V here?"

Taehyung gave a simple shrug, eyes busy studying the people nearby, and at the distance, and the corners. "Most people go by an alias at these places regardless. It's usually like this, in the underground scene."

Jeongguk turned his head to the side, wondering what the other male was so attentive toward. Then his focus was broken when the sound of another stool skidding against the floor caught both their attention, and Jeongguk watched as a long haired brunette settled on the seat opposite from them.

She gave a glance toward the two. A quick one, that had lasted only a second. But it was enough for them to see her round face, and her prominent deep red lipstick. Jeongguk felt a hand at his shoulder, and turned to see the sly grin at Taehyung's lips.

"You're early." The man spoke, his voice deep, profound, echoing in the blood rushing Jeongguk's veins.

At first he was a bit perplexed, unsure what Taehyung had meant by that. Until Jeongguk realized that the older wasn't talking to him, but rather toward the very woman that had arrived at their vicinity.

Said woman gave a cheeky smile, her expression coy and composed. She pushed her long strands behind her shoulder and leaned over the bar surface. "Now, why would I ever be late when it comes to seeing you?"

Taehyung's hand retreated from Jeongguk's shoulder, and he stepped closer towards her. "What's this? You've missed me that much, hm?" His fingers trailed the woman's cheek, settled over her chin.

Her lipstick-stained grin persisted as she looked up past the raven locks nearly shielding the man's eyes.

"You know I could never get enough of you."

Jeongguk watched with parted lips, his stomach churned with every pump of music bouncing off the walls in strong vibrations. Taehyung's long finger was brushing beneath the woman's lips, while she gazed back at him with fluttering lashes, wriggling her very visible cleavage in his direction, large breasts nearly bouncing from the movement. Her tight dress outlined every curve of her body, right down to the cut off mid-thigh, where her long legs were adorned by high heels.

She seemed like the kind of woman V would salivate over, and Jeongguk felt small.

All he could do was watch the tension between them until Taehyung eventually lowered his hand, his subtle smirk dissipating from his face.

"Did you bring what you owe me?" The man's voice was sturdy, yet lowered, but Jeongguk had managed to hear it nonetheless.

The woman's grin grew. She dug into her bra, pulled out a large coin purse, then casually crossed her leg over the other. "Are you going to give me what I want?"

Taehyung gave another smug smirk. "Mm, darling.." He nearly whispered, reached to run his hand down her long strands. "What kind of man do you take me for?"

She handed him the pouch, and in return Taehyung pulled out a second pouch, with a similar design. Just like that they exchanged the two, and Jeongguk sucked in a lowered breath.

"Treat me to dinner sometime, yes?" The woman then rose from the stool, her dress riding up her thigh, and Taehyung merely waved while she turned to walk off somewhere.

Jeongguk sat up in his seat, a frown over his face while Taehyung walked the small steps back to him. And just when he reached his side, a pair of hands placed two drinks over the bar table.

"Enjoy~" The bartender gave a wink before scurrying off to the opposite side, where more customers awaited him.

Taehyung licked his lips and grabbed a martini while the younger merely stared at him, dissatisfied.

"Was that... a drug deal just now?" came Jeongguk's small voice.

The older leaned his head back, swallowed the gulp of alcohol before meeting the boy's gaze.

"What if it was?" He blinked, nonchalant. "It's what gangsters do."

Jeongguk's brow twitched. "Is that what you... brought me here to do?"

Another gulp of the drink. Taehyung settled his own empty glass beside the untouched one, that had remained right where it was placed.

"No. I brought you here to dance. And to have a drink." He grabbed the other martini, presented it by Jeongguk's side.

The boy took a glance at it. "You know I don't r-really drink.."

Taehyung leaned closer. "It's fine once in a while, no?"

A permanent frown took over the younger's face, and he looked off to the side, actively ignoring the glass being offered to him. Taehyung's dark eyes watched him in silence, and he slowly put the drink back down over the wooden surface.

"Alright. Come dance with me, then," he motioned towards the dance floor with a flick of his head.

But Jeongguk didn't budge.

Taehyung blinked back at him, retreated his face from the boy and slowly crossed his arms.

"So you're ignoring me now. That it?"

Jeongguk grazed his teeth over his bottom lip. "I-I just want to go home.."

Taehyung nearly scoffed. "We're not going home just yet. So if you're not going to drink, and you're not going to dance, then the least you could fucking do with your time is be a man for once and go chat up some ladies, hm?" He grabbed at Jeongguk's chin and forcefully turned it to their right. "Look. The ones over there barely even have tits. Kind of like a guy's chest, no? Seems right up your alley. Maybe that'll put you at ease around a woman, mm?"

Jeongguk reached up to hold Taehyung's wrist, pushing down in an attempt to pry him away. "Let go of me.." He uttered, a timid voice.

But Taehyung's grip on him was sturdy. And once he decided to release his hold, the older grabbed onto the boy's arm instead.

"You're so fucking annoying.." He mumbled, shoved Jeongguk from his seat and dragged him harshly from the bar. The boy squealed out quietly in pain from the other's strong hold on him, and could barely protest while his feet struggled to keep up with Taehyung's speeding pace.

Before he knew it they had reached the dance floor just in time for the song to change into a higher tempo, and dance partners were beginning to swap across the crowd. Taehyung pushed the boy forward, and a woman was quick to sway her hips toward him, claiming Jeongguk as her partner once she had wrapped her arms around him.

"W-Wait—" Jeongguk stammered out, though his body was quickly swung left and right in rhythmic movements with the crowd, the woman guiding him with her steps. He looked around in search of Taehyung, who had now disappeared among the large sea of people.

His vision spun to the left, then swiveled to the right, hands grabbing at him from both sides while dance partners came and went in the blink of an eye. The flash of bright colors washing over the dance floor nearly blinded Jeongguk's vision, and he made an attempt to run off until someone else had taken hold of him from his side.

"I-I'm sorry, but I have t-to go..!" He shouted over the music, toward the girl who was giggling much too loudly to hear a single word he had said, and instead spun herself in rhythm using Jeongguk's hand to guide her.

Jeongguk blinked repeatedly, forced himself to focus, to scan the area around him. But it was upon further observation that he was quick to notice he'd been dragged to the dead center of the dance floor, with little chance of escape from the dancers swapping interchangeably around him.

He gave out staggering breaths, gave some more attempts at pushing past people who would only target him as their next partner. And after what felt like eons of shuffling, he finally spotted Taehyung at the very edge corner of the dance floor, swaying in rhythm to the upbeat music while a woman grinded her ass over his crotch.

He watched Taehyung's large hands over her waist, how he'd pull back and slap her ass repeatedly, making it bounce. And watched as the woman turned around, wrapped her arms over his neck and engaged him in a desperate kiss. One that the man responded to by devouring her in return, joining the other drunks who made out around them on the dance floor.

Jeongguk's lip trembled, a drop of his heart. He shoved whoever had been dancing in front of him in a panic, scrambling to push past the swarm of moving bodies; then felt hands try to grab at him, try to keep him in the hell of rhythm they had created, but he'd scream 'don't touch me!!' repeatedly and flick away in a hurry.

He could feel his eyes watering.

With change came things that he'd learned about the world, that much holds true.

Newfound knowledge. Knowledge he knew meant little in the greater scheme of things, for he still had much to learn about the things he didn't know.

Even so, learning about the things he didn't yet know was exciting to him. But it was also scary. Uncomfortable.

Maybe there were things about this world he'd rather stay ignorant to. Was that a bad thing? Did it make him a bad person, even?

Such thoughts would fill his head, until he saw light at the end of the tunnel—that being freedom from the swarm at the dance floor, and Jeongguk skid over the marble flooring toward a door with an exit sign above it. Until he felt a hand grab the back of his collar.

"Where the fuck do you think you're going, hm?" That familiar, deep voice boomed behind him.

Jeongguk felt the blood in his veins freeze. And following his silence, Taehyung began to drag him by the arm again, a seething look in his eyes.

"You want to go home so badly, that it?" The male grunted, and Jeongguk squirmed over his hold until he looked up, surprised that the man was dragging him not back toward the dance floor, but forward, to the exit.

The cool wind welcomed them to the outside, Jeongguk's feet stumbled over the concrete as they retreated to the empty back exit. Taehyung shoved the boy down violently toward the rough pavement, and Jeongguk landed with a pained exhale.

Wrath clouded the older's eyes, his gaze piercing at the boy who wailed softly beneath his breath.

"Go home then, you filthy slut." Taehyung's words were laced with threatening poison. "If you're so eager, fucking leave already."

Jeongguk slowly scrambled to sit up, shuffling back to gain distance from the man. He hesitated to speak up. Hesitated to ask if he intended for him to go home all on his own, so late into the night.

But those eyes. They didn't seem like ones that would walk him home to ensure his safety. No. Those eyes were blinded with hot temperament without reason, a threatening gaze.

So Jeongguk didn't dare to speak up. Instead, he watched as the older spit at the ground beside him and glowered at him.

"Get out of my sight."

With those words Taehyung turned to re-enter the establishment, loud music seeping past the open door and becoming mere muffles once it shut.

Jeongguk sniffled, the back of his hand wiping the tears that had gone yet unshed. He forced himself to stand up, zipped his jacket and glanced down the narrow exiting path, that led towards a shadowed alley back into the city.

He stared at it.

Would he dare make the journey home all by himself? Should he just hope that no danger would come his way if he did?

Jeongguk gulped down the lingering saliva in his throat, took a trembling step forward, braced himself to scurry his long journey home. But before his left foot could follow in pursuit, he heard the heavy door behind him swing back open.

The blaring music hit his ears once again, and he turned around to see a scatter of drunk people stumbling into the gravel path. They were babbling and laughing over something Jeongguk couldn't understand, and were too far gone to even notice him standing there.

Here we go, he thought to himself. It'd be better to walk out now that there were other people around. At the very least, it made him feel just a little more safe not to be alone in this area.

He hurried to follow behind the group—at a distance, of course. And then a sudden voice behind him made him freeze back in place.

"Jeongguk?"

He shuddered, then snapped to look at the owner of the voice, whose familiar eyes blinked back at him.

"It is you, isn't it?" A soft laugh. "What on earth are you doing here?"

Jeongguk's lips parted, his heavy heart slowly coming to find relaxation. He let out a gentle breath, took a moment to compose himself.

"H-Hiro... Hello.." He smiled at the Namida man sheepishly and reached to scratch the side of his head. "Um, it's a long s-story.."

Hiro looked at him with raised brows, then tilted his head, a concerned expression washing over him. "Are you okay, kid..? You look a little shaken up."

"N-No, I'm fine, I..." Jeongguk shook his head. "Were you just leaving..?"

The other male let his hands slip into his pockets. "Yeah, I was just here to drop something off to a gang mate." He sighed quietly. "This is a very dangerous place, Jeongguk. Are you alone?"

"I-I'm... I'm just trying to figure out how to get home.."

The man rubbed his forehead and went into deep thought for a moment, then lowered his hand and let out another soft breath. "Listen, we almost died together so I can't really pretend like I didn't see you here..."

A pause.

"I'll take you home, okay? My car's just at the corner." Hiro skid his foot over the ground, started to walk forward. "Or would you like me to call a Bangtan member to come for you? Maybe Kim Taehyung, the guy who saved us?"

"U-Um, no he's-... He's busy right now," Jeongguk rushed the words out, then lowered his head, fingers rubbing mindlessly over each other. "But I'm... I'm really sorry to bother you.."

"Nonsense," Hiro waved a hand into the air, a warm smile pushing his lips. "I'd feel much more bothered leaving you alone here. Now c'mon. This place gives me the creeps."

Jeongguk looked up as he felt the man pat his shoulder, then begin to walk away from the muffled music. He let out a gentle sigh in relief, his feet beginning to follow after the other male, heartbeat speeding, pulsing in his skin.

But he couldn't stand to be there even a moment longer, and hurried to reach Hiro's side while they reached the city streets away from the shady pathways—escape, as they had done before. Together.

✱