JUNG HOSEOK KNEW PARK JIMIN!? WHEN?
==[Back Story / Flashback]==
Jung Hoseok and Park Jimin had been best friends since their fourth year of primary school, they'd been lucky enough to get into the same high school and even shared most of their same classes and subjects. Both Hoseok and Jimin loved to dance and although their styles were almost opposites of each other, the boys complimented each other perfectly.
Jimin loved modern, contemporary and ballet styles of dancing while Hoseok preferred hip hop, street and freestyle. Jimin loved to sing and his voice was high to mid-range while Hoseok preferred to rap and his voice was mid to lower range. They complimented each other wonderfully and were virtually inseparable.
Until their second year of high school...
*Flashback*
3RD PERSON'S P.O.V.
Jimin and Hoseok were chatting away in the library during their free period instead of studying (like they were supposed to be doing) and the elder of the two could tell something was bugging his friend, the ebony haired male was fidgeting with his pencils and doodling rather than taking the notes he was talking about.
"What's up Minmin? You nervous about asking that girl to the party?" The younger looked up at Hoseok as if the other had read his mind, though they knew each other so well by now they could practically could read the others body language and almost know what was going on with their best friend.
"Well... I figured something out but I don't want to tell you in case you freak out or, like, hate me for it," Jimin looked at Hoseok trying to blink quickly to remove any trace of the tears he could feel coming, he was so nervous since this wasn't something they'd discussed.
Hoseok laughed and looked at Jimin, reaching out he grabbed one of the youngers smaller hands in one of his own. "You're my best friend Min, why would I ever hate you? Even if you told me you killed someone I'll be like, 'lemme just help you hide the body', yeah? So don't worry so much and just tell me." He reassured his best friend, wondering what had him so hyped up that his friend would be worried to tell him anything. "Breathe, Min. Take a breath and just say it. Or text it to me if you're that worried, okay?"
Jimin nodded and opened the messaging app on his mobile phone. He typed something short and hit send. Squeezing Hoseok's hand so much tighter when he heard the notification sound on his friends phone, the elder felt the tremble in Jimin's fingers as he accessed the message. Looking at Jimin with his head tilted he lets his hand go lax and pulls it away, dark chocolate orbs stare at him welling with tears. They overflow as Hoseok pushes his chair back and stands up, but the reason they overflow is because Jimin is embraced in a warm hug.
"It's okay Jimin. Who you like doesn't change you. You're still my best friend and we'll always be best friends!"
== LESS THAN HALF A YEAR LATER ==
Hoseok watches as the bullies beat up the person he used to be best friends with. Someone had found out and was blackmailing Hoseok with threats of exposing photos to his parents from a party that were... Let's just say they were unflattering and very explicit. For a 15 year old guy, this was the worst thing that could happen.
Slurs like faggot, cum dump, slut, whore, monster, gaybo, pansy and many more were thrown around like it was confetti at high school. Bullies were viciously tearing down the teenager in front of them.
Each word spat by the group of eight or so bullies, both male and female, caused a slice to open up in Jimin's heart and any self esteem or confidence he'd had before he came out to Hoseok was gone. It had gradually been chiseled away with each insult over the last few months and with every hit that landed on his lacklustre skin from the group, as well as everything that had happened at home. He didn't speak back anymore, he didn't smile. His skin was constantly painted with purple, black and blue patches, accented sometimes with crimson red as it fell from the cuts that were both self inflicted and not.
Hoseok felt a familiar ache in his chest for his best friend, it had been a near constant companion since Youngjae had approached him but he pushed the feeling away like he usually did. Dulled dark brown eyes caught his for a brief moment before he landed Jimin's final breaking blow. "What're you looking at me like that for - you think I'm going to save you? You're nothing but a waste of space so why don't you go take a flying leap off Saint Kilda pier. Even better, why don't you post it live? Fucking faggot."
Hoseok knew the moment Jimin broke. He saw it in his eyes and he wanted nothing more than to run to his friend and wrap him in a hug and to tell him he was sorry... But Hoseok didn't recognize the look in Jimin's eyes before he turned to walk away. He brushed it off as nothing important. "Come on guys, the little fag's had enough for today. Leave the fucker alone for now."
***
Jimin lay on the ground bleeding and alone. He was by himself behind the school gym and nobody was likely to find him. He coughed a few times, his chest aching and a sharp pain in his chest told him he probably had another cracked rib. Jimin tried to stifle the sobs that wracked his skinny frame. 'Alone. That's all I am and all I'll ever be. I wish that I'd never told him. I wish I'd never loved him. I wish I would just die. There's nothing left to live for anymore so why don't I just do what he wants me to do and die...?' The ebony haired boy coughed again but this time, as well as tears of pain, he smiled because he recognized the familiar feeling of his lungs getting heavier. 'Good. They pierced a lung. Maybe this time I'll die.'
***
3RD PERSON'S P.O.V.
The tattooed boy with sky blue hair and pierced lip had found a quiet place to be able to withdraw when he needed time to himself, whether to smoke a joint or write poetry or just stare at the clouds passing by. He was on his way to his quiet place when a rowdy group of teens passed him, the orange haired male in the front of the group caught his eyes and a brief look of guilt crossed his face before averting his eyes quickly.
The tattooed boy often found a younger teen at his quiet place and the group of troublemakers was known to pick on others, especially their most recent recruit, Hoe-something. A bad feeling brewing in his guts he began to jog to the place around the back of the school gymnasium before he'd finished passing them.
What greeted him was a picture out of a horror movie. Pulling his mobile phone from his back pocket he made a phone call. "Harin? Meet me at the bottom school gate with the wagon, bring your boyfriend and throw some towels in the back. We gotta get the Kid to the hospital NOW, he's been fucked up pretty bad."
He picked up the ebony haired boy as carefully as he could. As he was walking the hundred meters to the bottom gate he saw blood spill from the plump colourless lips and trickle down his once full cheeks. "Fuck! Hold on, just hold on Park."
***
JUNG HOSEOK'S P.O.V.
Our group's hanging out at the crude benches under the trees at the top of the school to discuss where we were going next, there were debates between laser tag or paintball, some of the girls wanted to get food first and others argued for after.
We watched as an old gold Ford XA station wagon came barrelling over the hill, the brakes screaming in protest as it skidded to a stop in front of bottom gate of the school. A few of us shouted at them to do burnouts or fishtails, but mostly continuing their debates about whether we would eat or play first today.
My eyes lingered absentmindedly on the vehicle long enough to see someone jump out of the passenger seat long enough to put the back 'gate' down and help the person into the car. "What the fuck? Morons. Why would you get in the boot when there's a back seat. Dickheads." I rolled my eyes as I mumbled the rhetorical question. I watched as something large was drag-lifted in after him. The passenger slammed the boot up and ran to the front of the car, tyres screaming again as it took off - barely waiting for the passenger to be in the car, doing a u-turn and flying back up over the hill past the group.
Jimin wasn't at school the next day, or the next day.
Or the day after that.
Or the day after.
"Shit."