"It's such a shame." Namjoon inhaled deeply, exhaling slowly, examining the body from its toes to its head. "I didn't know he was in… pain." He leant back on the wall, staring down at the two maknae pitifully. Jin had the decency to sit down and comfort the two maknaes Jungkook and Jimin who were shaking uncontrollably on the cold floor. The ceiling fan look as if it had almost had it, hanging on by a slight bit. Namjoon couldn't blame it, it was managing to hold 134 lbs of weight hanging off it.
"Lets go Jin, take the maknaes, lets get to the car." Namjoon spoke up, attempting to lighten the mood.
Yoongi was silent throughout the whole thing, same with Hoseok. They just didn't know what to say, speechless. Seeing their dongsaeng hanging from the ceiling was indescribably saddening. Five members of the group trudged off, but Jungkook, the youngest stayed in his exact same standing spot. He collapsed onto his knees, breaking out into a fit of sobs.
"Ah Jungkook-ssi. Why be so sad?"
Jungkook froze.
His eyes slowly follow the body up to his face. He leapt back, accidentally smacking his head against the wall. Taehyungs lips curved upwards into a cheerful smile. The rope was still tight around his neck, the area had gone purple and his face pale, but still held the happy smile.
"Tae-hyung!?"
The present
"The answer is 24." Taehyung beamed, passing the pencil to Jungkook who tapped it frustratedly on his bedroom desk.
"Are you sure thats the answer?" Jungkook turned to Taehyung, confused, then looking down at his homework.
"Here, I'll show you how I worked it ou-"
"Jungkook-ah!" Jin opened Jungkook's door, Namjoon was standing in the doorway with him too. "Dinner is ready."
"Mmm, I can smell it. Jungkook can you ask if I can come?" Taehyung smiled sweetly.
"Fine, I'll ask but you know what they are going to say right?" Jungkook whispered back to Taehyung before facing his hyungs.
"Can Taehyung come?"
"Jungkook.. You need to get over this whole… thing." Jin sighed
"Jin hyung it's alright, its just his way of coping with his hyungs death. Lets not be too harsh." Namjoon sighed in reply, keeping it quiet.
Jungkook slowly trudged to the dinner table and slid onto a seat
"So, how has school been Jungkook?" Jin started conversation first
"Good I guess."
"Studying a lot still?" Hoseok asked keenly
"Yeah" Jungkook sighed shrugging
"Ah, no fun. That means no time for video games." He grinned to him, Jungkook smiled back.
Jungkook only could shrug and smile again warmly at Hoseok.
The next day was school. Jungkook gulped nervously, his face growing pale. He could see the obvious pile of stacked papers on the teachers desk.
Test day.
He could see by the looks on the other students faces that they were equally as nervous. The tests were distributed to each student and they were given 40 minutes to complete it. Jungkook fidgeted with his pen, tapping it on his desk.
Taehyung loomed over him.
"Pffft! Thats east Jungkookie. The answer is 143"
"Taehyung! You aren't supposed to me helping me!" He sighed
"And the next one is 86"
Jungkook quickly scribbled down the answer.
"43"
"1963"
"639"
"73"
"82"
"295"
"How do you know all this!?" Jungkook broke the stream of answers. Taehyung the shrugged. "Hey! Is that a calculator?!" Taehyung!"
But Taehyung just giggled and kept feeding the desperate-to-pass Jungkook answers. Jungkook was the first one to finish his test, but was nervous about his answers so he waited until someone got up first before handing in his own. He had 10 minutes of spare time. In this time he spend doodling in his book random things.
"Awh, Is that us?" Taehyung whispered, pointing out the two figures in the sketch, which Jungkook nodded to. The bell rang soon later. Jungkook began to shove things into his backpack. He swung it over his shoulder but then
"Mr. Jeon. May I speak to you?"
Jungkook shivered, walking up to him anxiously.
"I'm here to talk about your grades… Your grades have skyrocketed and you have been marked 100% on every single test I have given you this year!"
"Yes sir." Jungkook beamed proudly, standing now a little taller.
"And last year your grades were falling bellow average, which only leads me to believe you have been cheating. Why have you been cheating Mr. Jeon?"
Jungkook's shoulders dropped.
A dead boy gave me the answers.
Nobody would believe that story, plus, his teacher wasn't one to believe in the paranormal.
"Urm… My hyung, Jin has been forcing me to study extra hard." He gulped, he hoped lying would patch this up. He could hear Taehyung snickering from behind him. It wasn't a complete lie, Jin had been forcing him to study way more than he did, but he usually chose to play video games with Taehyung instead.
"Hmmm… Is that so?"
"Yes sir."
"I might have to call your parents."
"You can't call my parents. They don't live here anymore, But you can call Jin. He is like my parents."
The teacher lowered his glasses suspiciously.
"Will do. You can go Mr. Jeon." He dismissed
Jungkook breathed a heavy sigh of relief.
What will Jin say?
"What are you!?" Jungkook breathed as he backed up to the wall of his own room, Taehyung just stood shyly. "Speak!" But Taehyung remained silent."I know what you are.. You are a ghost. Ghosts aren't real!"
"Ghosts aren't real." Taehyung finally spoke up, the words spilling out of his mouth robotically,
"Then what are you!?" Jungkook wanted to test his ghost theory, he raised his hand to almost karate chop through 'Taehyung', but only just gave him or whatever he was, a painful whack on the shoulder.
"Ouch! Why did you do that?" Taehyung frowned, rubbing his shoulder.
"Ah! Sorry Tae-hyung!" Jungkook apologised quickly, rushing up to his hyung.
"Everything okay in here?" Jin had opened the door a tiny bit, peeking through the crack.
"Look at Tae-hyung!" Jungkook whipped around to Jin
"Is this some kind of joke, Jungkook?" Jin's eyes constricted into slits
"N-no, He is right here"
"Jungkook-ssi. You shouldn't joke about these things."
"B-but Jin-hyung!-"
"Jungkook. Maybe it's time for you to rest."
Jungkook just whimpered, folding his arms. Jin just pulled the door shut gently, cautious about the emotionally fragile boy as well. Jungkook's eyes began to well up with tears. The tears trickled down past his cheeks, dripping off his neck onto the carpet. His knees buckled and he collapsed to the ground, clasping his own wrist to his chest, folding himself up on the floor. His body convulsed as he sobbed into the carpet, his arms now lay at his sides hopelessly in defeat. He drew in sharp irregular ragged breaths,
"Jungkookie.. It's alright. Just breathe."
"W-why me?! Why do you have to torture me like this with your presence?"
"Jungkook, I'm not trying to hurt you, I'm trying to protect you."
"I would rather die than you protect me!"
"Jungkook.. please"
"You are not real. You are a ghost. Go away."
"I'm just trying to protect you!" Taehyung whimpered
"You aren't protecting me, you are just causing pain."
"But-"
"Leave. Me. Alone."
Jungkook tossed his school bag onto the floor. He was about to go to his room upstairs but jin was blocking the way.
"Jungkook. We need to talk." Jin tapped his foot
Jungkook was nervous because Jin was slightly scary when he was mad. Jungkook just pretended he didn't know anything about it, when really he knew it was about his grades.
"Yes Jin-hyung? What is it about?"
"Your teacher called me."
"Yeah?"
It is great you have been getting these high marks. But tell me honestly Jungkook, have you been cheating on your tests?"
"No. I would never."
"Then how are you getting these scores?"
Jungkook just gulped, regretting not taking his own advice and purposing answering a few wrong.
"Speak up." He tapped his foot impatiently
"Taehyung is giving me the answers!" Jungkook blurted out accidentally
"Jungkook, this isn't a funny joke."
"I can see Taehyung, he tells me the answers."
"So you are saying you can see Taehyung?"
Jungkook nodded
"And he gives you the answers?"
Jungkook nodded once again.
"Alright.. fine. I'll speak to you about this later."
Jungkook nodded for the third time and raced up the stairs into his room. Jin picked up his phone and looked on google for a few seconds before dialling a number.
"Hello?"
Jin paused.
"Ah, Yes. I would like to schedule a therapy session."
He paused.
"It's for someone else."
He tapped the bench with his fingers.
"Yes, Jeon Jungkook. J-E-O-N J-U-N-G-K-O-O-K."
Jin nodded.
"Thanks. 1 PM tomorrow will be perfect."
Jin pressed the red button on his phone, switched it off and placed it back on the bench where it originally was.