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@jungkook j. › ares。 [h ow do you write so well on mobile i'm triggered also gET READY GET UR HEART READY]

The moment that Jungkook closes his eyes Taehyung's gone, merely a flutter of a laugh left in his wake though it seems hollow to his own ears. The path to the human world is easy to find and Taehyung seems to dance through the steps, his smile a mirror to his teasing steps though it doesn't seem to reach his eyes. He doesn't make it hard to find himself, in fact it seems almost as if he teases Jungkook to find him with the gentlest of touches. The man leaves fireflies buzzing in his wake, all of them near death but healed to show the other the path towards his eventual epiphany.

They're beautiful, buzzing in the city to a pattern that would only be decipherable to an immortal but Taehyung barely pays attention to his own games. He allows himself instead to be drawn to the heart of suffering, to where the screams are most concentrated, not truly searching for a place to hide but something else.

He finds it in a dark alley, illuminated by a single lamp, the human like shapes lurking barely visible to the eye. In the depths of the night, it was the one place that mortals avoided, and with the wariest of smiles Taehyung makes himself visible. He takes the guise of a mortal, diminishing the glow of his immortality as he substitutes it with a pair of earbuds carelessly stuffed in both ears. Hoodie up, the boy seems to stride into the alley without a car in the world, eyes focused blankly on something that could not be seen. Nothing seems to jolt him from his stupor, not when he bumps into one of the shapes and doesn't hear the growl of "Watch where you're going!" But he's always watching.

There's a vague wonder if it would be better for him to fall on his knees and weep or merely to stare at the other blankly when his earbuds proceeded to be yanked out and the words are growled again, but Taehyung knows the latter works best when he's pushed against the wall with some murmur about respect. He had chosen carefully, they would rough him up and hurt him but not kill him, they would manhandle him but not touch him, he would hurt but not break.

Taehyung doesn't make a sound at the first punch. It's enough to send his head snapping back but not enough to make him scream and the man seems surprised that Taehyung doesn't fight back. But how could the god of healing bring upon pain with his own fingers? Not unless he was furious could he do so, but the man seems to shrug off this oddity easily, and the second punch has a gasp of pain exiting from Taehyung's lips. The third one proceeds to crack some bones and Taehyung gradually loses himself in the swirling pain as his mortal self takes a beating in wait for his savior. There's a small odd, upwards turn of his lips.

The fireflies were buzzing.

Come find me, they crooned.

@taehyung k. › asclepius。 [ I'M ON MOBILE AND UGLY AND I'M PROUD ]

The undulation he'd so easily dismissed from himself was the making of a riptide, wafting unendingly beyond the walls of the hotel and touching down to earth's forsaken crevices. He feels it the moment it does, the madness that entangles into the mortals and steers forth such a violent surge of blood-lust as restless as a cacophony of whispers. To Jungkook, it's nothing short of melodious--- a sound as soothing and constant as a babbling ravine--- and so he's stricken bewildered when his companion seems to wrench from it.

So this is what it looks like...

A careful, calculative gaze studies Taehyung from the moment that he collapses. His own hand lifts as if to steady him but all Jungkook could find it in himself to do is not much more than observe. The other's eyes are woven in the throes of pain, and Jungkook only knows this because he's memorized that very look on the battered faces of his own victims. He's astonished, in a sense, that the god could level himself so lowly that he'd actually share the agony arisen from mortality... He's always known Taehyung to be sympathetic but this...

The likes of true madness.

When Taehyung gathers himself, Jungkook is one again uncertain as to whether he could call it a recovery. But he's left with no time to ponder it for the proposition that leaves Taehyung's lips snatches his attention. "Dear one, you're either madder than I thought..." Or cuter. Unendingly so. Jungkook prides himself in anticipation but even now, he can't predict what on any living realm Taehyung could be planning. That familiar niggling sense of concern is there once more, but as he swivels on heel--- back to the other and the sorrow laced in those brown eyes--- Jungkook rears his focus to that request as if it were beheld upon dying breath. "I honestly don't see what this'll do, Tae, but I swear if you use this to dip out on me..."

He leaves his threat unfinished, wafting it aside with a dismissive wave of his hand. A part of him wonders if that truly is the boy's intention, to play him for the fool he is for going along with this... But Jungkook had never gone a moment without trusting Taehyung, a god who'd proven over the ages to have bound himself to his word. And so, with that thought in mind, he tethers himself back to the present.

Closing his eyes, Jungkook begins to count.

@taecyeon o. › iasion。 [] no worries no worries!!! Of course I'll wait but you'll have to wait for me too since I'm traveling for at least 15 hours on Friday GMT +8. After that I'll be GMT +1??? I guess???

@jieun l. › demi god。 () i think i might be gone for until friday hha but i will try to reply as soon as possible please wait for me OTL

@taecyeon o. › iasion。 [] No worries darling I can work with your length <3 And I know the struggle of being on mobile so it's fine!

"Three hours late?", Jieun asked, voice a little incredulous as she looked up at her fellow bartender, raising one perfectly shaped eyebrow at him as her eyes glinted with humor. "That's where you're wrong.", she smiled sweetly, tapping his chest with her matte gray fingernail. "My shift actually starts in an hour. I wasn't scheduled until later, but I knew you would be bored out of your mind." With a wink she turned around, only to stifle a snort as Taecyeon pushed her towards the businessman, who still rambled on without even noticing the exchange between the two bartenders. "Tch.", she cliched her tongue playfully, giving Taecyeon a pointed look before she turned towards the man, her smile slipping into a mask of friendliness.
"Would you like another whiskey and then a taxi, sir?", she asked, leaning over the bar to drop her voice into a more mellow tone, something that always got people to shut up and listen to her. It was strange, that ability of hers, like her voice alone was something that made people do exactly what she wanted. Well, most people, that was. On most of the staff and around ninety percent of the people who frequented the hotel she had no effect whatsoever and if she did - well - nobody showed it to her. The man went wide eyed, nodding with his mouth slack and Jieun gave him a brilliant smile, quickly filling his glass with amber whiskey. "There you go, Sir. I'll be right back and then you can tell me about your co-worker, ok? She sounds lovely."
With a small flourish she turned around and snatched the cleaning cloth from Taecyeons back pocket, leaning in just close enough so only he could hear her voice. "And you... So typical to only have eyes for the pretty ladies. Tss, tss, tss."

@jieun l. › demi god。 () haha okay thank you will try to write as i can on mobile T^T

Taecyeon smiled as he nodded listening, more like blankly staring at the male with the best fake smile he could manage on his face as watched the customer continue to blabber on and on about his business. Still he waited now even more in need of his coworker who was great at dealing with boring customers who loved to talk and mostly repeat what they just said. As the door swung open he couldn't help but glance at the noise and notice his coworker come in with a small grin on her face. Great. She probably was super entertained by how he was being tortured by this horribly bland man of a customer. Hearing her little witty comment on the glass and empty bar he chuckled leaning in to whisper to her. "Nah. You don't get to make jokes when you are 3 hours late for your shift. Plus. Cleaning the glass is the only thing keeping me from flipping out at the boring customer." Taecyeon groaned as he pushed his head into her back pushing her towards the dull man. "Talk to the man and get him off my back. I'll do anything." Quietly he moved away from the man to make a cocktail for the business woman who had just walked into the bar. Maybe she'd be less dull.

@taecyeon o. › iasion。 [] It's fine dear don't worry about it!! And I know how hard it is to give length on mobile so don't worry about it either <3 Don't feel obligated to mirror my length ok? I just had muse right now!

Live as a bartender was not for anybody. Most people only saw the long working hours, the hours you spent standing behind the bar, listening to the slurred worries of people of all ages and professions - complete strangers pouring their heart out to you and all you could do was nod along and smile politely, filling up their glass if they needed it and in the end call a taxi for them or a bell-boy to get them to their room.
But exactly those things were what made this so perfect for Jieun. A look into the human mind without the filters of a sober brain, without a filter to hold back all the dark secrets and desire that some people carried around with them day in and day out. And for some reason, people seemed to flock towards her as soon as she stepped behind the bar, their hearts on their sleeves and all their most secret thoughts on the tips of their tongues. Jieun was always there, smiling at them while they talked, soaking it all up like a dry sponge would soak up water. So what else was there to say? This job was perfect for her.

With light steps, even a small spring in them, Jieun made her way across the dimly lit bar, tying her apron around her middle and fixing her hair that was in a half up-do, the silken raven locks falling just around her shoulders and curling softly. When she saw her co-worker already standing there, cleaning a glass that was more or less spotless already, she couldn't help but to bite her bottom lip, barely hiding her smile as she slipped behind the bar and patted Taecyeons arm as the only sort of greeting he would get from her. He seemed annoyed and Jieun was utterly bemused by that. To her it always seemed like the exact thing that made her enjoy her job so much was annoying him. Having to listen to people.
"Busy night tonight?", she asked with a simpering smile, sarcasm basically dripping off her skin while she bent over and slid the single customer sitting at the bar another glass of whiskey, eyes trained on Taecyeons face, her grin widening just slightly, teasing around the edges. "You've been cleaning that glass for five minutes already. Just saying."

@jieun l. › demi god。 () sorry I took so long I have no access to a laptop XD and it is short otl sorry

Taecyeon hummed along to the new song which had been playing throughout the night. It had been about the twelveth time it had played and now it was already stuck in his head. He thought the solution was to sing it all the way through and shoot it out of his mind. There weren't many people here tonight since the banquet hall was fully packed with guests for a someone's wedding anniversary. Which was always a plus since the night would be slow and he could relax a little more and interact with pretty much every who walked through the door. Wiping the same glass for over ten minutes and he had been listening to the male businessman who had walked in a few hours ago and had ordered one shot of whiskey with ice and rambled on about his life to Taecyeon for about 3 hours. Maybe more or a little less about he was just worried he'd never leave. A part of his worried his coworker would show up soon and help him clean up the place.

@jungkook j. [aY I WAS ON MY COMPUTER AT THE TIME OMF]

Even fully prepared with the knowledge of what was coming, Taehyung still isn't prepared for the onslaught of voices in his head, the screams and pleas that have him recoiling as one hand reaches up to press fingers lightly against his temple. It takes a moment for the man to gather himself, the moments ticking by as Taehyung sinks slowly to the ground, hand now moving to cover his trembling lips as he sifts through the noises. He's far gone at this point, eyes blank with horror and though Taehyung shudders out a soft "Okay." he can't even hear his own words over the chorus in his head.

"Okay." now he can hear it, his voice as he gathers up the feelings to shove into the recesses of his mind, erecting a wall that would keep those thoughts and his own separate. By the third "okay, I'm fine, I'm sure." Taehyung's actually okay, rising from his squatting position as he offers Jungkook a smile, though the tremble of his lips seems to betray his emotions. His hands were no longer warm and sweaty, now they were chilled, and Taehyung takes a moment to allow a shaky breath to escape his lips--the final bit of weakness before he gathers himself up together completely and focuses.

Its the first time he's experienced it with the perpetrator right in front of him and Taehyung wonders vaguely if it would be easy to leave the first part of the lesson there. They could go home and save the rest for another day when Taehyung was feeling particularly bitter about his existence. But he knows it's not nearly enough, because though Taehyung's gaze may fault Jungkook for whatever pain he's caused internally he knows that the other couldn't help it. And he had requested it in any case.

"Let's play a game." it's hard to keep his voice light, not even a hint of a tremor to betray the dissenting wavelength between contentedness and crazed. But his eyes show signs of the discord, somewhere buried deep back under his walls and if the other was perceptive enough he would know that Taehyung was stringing together what little control he had left to do this. Sacrifices for someone who was important, a voice seemed to whisper in his head. It was all white noise at this point. "Let's play hide and seek. You seek, I'll hide. Count to sixty seconds then come find me--the only rule is this." The man cracks the faintest of smiles "When you find me, you have to wait sixty seconds before you're able to tag me. Understand the rules?"

@taehyung k. › asclepius。 [ YOU'RE ON F U CKING MOBILE. HOW AR EYOU TYPIN G SO FAST??? ]

A shift remains poised between them. It wrenches a void only widened by the release of Taehyung's hand, a somber chill that encapsulates his fingertips until Jungkook curls them in on his palm. He watches, transfixed, for this is the first time he's actually seen the man endure the wrath of 'the call'. Like the coiling rancor of tumultuous thunder, he arrives only after the fact to receive the boy in the throes of the aftermath. But this time, he waits--- observing the pallid complexion that briefly sweeps over the boy's usually olive-tinted flesh tones. Those eyes, so akin to flickering flame in the way they swivel and ignite, now clouding over to give way to the sight Jungkook's all too aware of. And when he comes to, the god of war feels it as deeply as if it had began and ended within himself.

"Interesting way to put it... There's a loophole in that somewhere, I'm certain." He's right back to jibes, but he's honestly a touch relieved. Part of him truly believed Taehyung would remain as stubborn as ever, effectively fed up with the other's 'tantrums'. Foul play was never beneath Jungkook, but Kim Taehyung is among the first to make him so intimately aware of his dependence on it.

Without question, he stands--- like a trained hound toddling after his master without a single to give. Even as the other swivels to regard him, even as Jungkook beholds that suddenly wry twinge to those petalesque [ yes, I made up a word, b y e ] lips, he can't find it in himself to evade the jubilant feeling ghosting the swell of his chest. Almost as if he hadn't just indulged in human suffering to get what he wanted... He's certain a 'anything for you' or something too frighteningly similar is stowed somewhere at his throat, but he settles instead with a brief: "You know it'll be my pleasure, Prince." And with that, the hue of his irises transcends their usual onyx gleam and readjust. Twin orbs stained a deep-set carmine--- the clotted colour of dried blood. The restlessness leaves his fingertips and wafts outward in a nearly palpable wave, his forthcoming exhale followed with a flutter of his lashes.

"So far, it seems like the only one bent on feeling regret is YOU, Prince... You sure about this?" And despite his languid smirk, there's concern beaten in the undertones. It shades his words a pastel frailty that he opts with all his being to ignore. After all, wasn't the very reason Taehyung came to him in the first place due to the fact that he needed the discord to end?

@jungkook j. [cackles cause get ready to suffer hon]

There are feather light kisses pressed against his skin and in any other case Taehyung would have recoiled almost instantly, caught off guard by the motion most definitely meant to catch him off guard. But he's more preoccupied with the screams that piece through his skull, more preoccupied with getting an ambulance to the poor boy who happened to by saved by a bystander with a kind enough heart to stop what was happening in the darkness. Though his face was devoid of emotion it was obvious, Taehyung was no longer present and by the time he's done counteracting what Jungkook had done the kisses were over, leaving merely tingles where the other's lips had been.

Instead all that's left is a heavy acceptance, a soft sigh exiting Taehyung's lips at the question or perhaps, the statement. Because with that line there came a condition and a price to pay and somehow Taehyung had managed to spin himself willingly into the tangled web in which he now had to forcibly unravel. "One thing you'll learn about regret is that it really does help uncover our true emotions." Taehyung offers the other the barest hints of a crooked smile, though it doesn't reach his chocolate brown eyes. Because even as Taehyung speaks he's busy constructing walls for what was to come. What he would willingly walk into. "So we'll see by the end of tonight, if I can lay out what you feel bare for yourself."

The man rises. Slipping out of his seat, he stuffs hands in his pockets. They're not cold, sweaty instead, balmy and disgusting but Taehyung resists the urge to wipe away the sweat. Instead he allows it to stay, along with the bitter feeling and steels himself for what was to come. "Let's take a walk to the human world." the son of Apollo, the God of Prophecies, Taehyung would show Jungkook exactly what regret would be like in the span of a night. He would make the other suffer or understand perhaps, his true emotions.

He was not ready for the role of a teacher.

But it's unavoidable and though the man doesn't spare a look behind him as he walks he has a feeling Jungkook's with him. Not even a moment to spare for Taehyung to get his roiling thoughts in order. But Taehyung already knows what he has to do, all he has to do is to do it. The bitter taste doesn't leave his lips as he turns to face the male, a smile now truly appearing on his lips. It's twisted into a harsh line, there's a muscle that Taehyung's pulling that he's not used to, but Taehyung still utters the words he needs to say. "Before we go through, do me a favor, Jungkookie." the nickname is tacked on almost as a mockery "Make the humans violent tonight, and angry. Do it for me okay? And I'll show you exactly what regret feels like."

@taehyung k. › asclepius。 [ f ILES MY N AILS o u o ]

He doesn't quite consider the weight of his request until it's regurgitated back at him, Taehyung's lips the only balm to the acrid puncture of his own stupidity. , what the hell is he doing? The god of war kowtowing to likes of human idiosyncrasy? Just ludicrous. And he can't even pin it on the alcohol this time because Jeon Jungkook is brash and perhaps rather hotheaded--- but he isn't stupid. He's seen too many men fall privy to its seduction to know for certain that it only reflects the quieter crevices of a consciousness sobriety would like to ignore.

But at the other's jest, he's snapped out of his reverie in a rather jarring manner. For a moment, he can almost feel the look of 'I dare you to try' morphing across his features but he's quick to keep it at bay. Instead, he merely lifts Taehyung's hand toward his face with a curt hum of acknowledgement. And somewhere in the bustling city of Bangladesh, a young man cries out in pain at the thrashing he receives at the hand of it. It's dark, he's not supposed to be out this late, but he had an errand to run--- possibly for his sickly mother. A kick is landed against his chest, effectively breaking at least two sets of ribs, and he coughs violently as blood pools into the bases of his lungs. Only when that raspy scream spills between the gods does Jungkook imprint feather-light kisses against the other's knuckles.

Not so much a warning, but a reminder...

At the end of the day, he is only doing his job. Only stepping in time with the path he's been given. Whether or not it suits Taehyung's favor is an aspect of control he opts out of letting the other in on.

He releases that hand--- probably all the better for Taehyung to throttle him with or something of the sort--- only to veer a silent deadpan at his companion. "No one. Though I'm touched you think I've the heart to be so fond of anyone..." He's curious as to how Taehyung could think it's him... How the boy could whittle down his iron-clad persona and tether it to a vulnerability such as fondness. He opens his lips to question just that, but he thinks better of it and decides to rein back on task.

"If... I am so fond of you, then who's to say you aren't the one I care about?" So many foreign words in one sentence. It was utterly off-putting to liken them to himself, but he does. He plays Taehyung's game, no matter how apprehensive it makes him. After all, he initiated it by drawing a wildcard... He just needs to refrain from showing his hand.

@jungkook j. [cHOKES CAUSE that bOMBSHELL WTF]

Regret. A strange word. It's not easy to catch Taehyung off guard but Jungkook utters those words and Taehyung can feel himself jolt, surprise sending tremors down Taehyung's spine as his hand spasms lightly in the other's grip, fingers twitching as the other takes moments to process the information. It's a strange demand, and one that has the cogs of Taehyung's mind spinning. A war god, a man of no remorse was essentially asking him to show him what he could never be, what he could never have. The fourth wheel on the car with only three.

How very interesting.

"You ask me to show you how to regret." the words tumble from Taehyung slowly and he's truly thinking, brows furrowed as movement stills except for the plush lips that part every once in a while to utter words that could easily be bound into a prophecy. Taehyung had always been liberal with his words, the son of Apollo blessed with the golden tongue and the words of the gods themselves but here Taehyung was careful, weighing his options. "Would it not be easiest then, for me to walk away and never return?" and now there's a hint of a smile, because where Jungkook lacks in seeing himself Taehyung sees it all. The man may seem steadfast in his path, eyes never straying from the road but he still sees what's around him, flaws and all. "After all you use the word intriguing but let's be real Jungkook, you've known me for millenniums and will know me for an infinite amount of time. You're fond of me, if I were to say so myself. Would you like to see me turn away and never come back no matter what you did?"

There's a coy smile that dances over the man's lips, he's only teasing, Taehyung's too tangled in a web to pull back away from the man sitting across from him but there's a hint of truth. It would be easy, for the smile to disappear and the walls to fall back into place, for whatever intimacy lay here to return back to distance and duty. But Taehyung doesn't think he can do that. Part of him seems to know he can't do that. So instead, there's another option that swirls up in his mind, one that has him smiling as he lifts the glass to his lips with his free hand and drinks before he utters a soft, inquisitive.

"Tell me something or someone you care about though Jungkook. And it doesn't have to be me even though you are--unbearably open even when you are closed."

@taehyung k. › asclepius。 [ s WE RVES iNTO THIS REPLY e u e Oh look I'm on time for once ]

He's never noticed the tiny mole that resides at the base of the Taehyung's thumb.

It takes astute effort on Jungkook's part not to chortle when he realizes it's an envying replica of the one just at the tip of the man's nose. And as he clasps those hands, his mind drifts to where in the realm of earth they'd touched upon. He imagines them hovering above the battered figures of the fallen--- heroes and hoodlums alike. Kim Taehyung was indiscriminate and that was something that had always confused him. Even now, he imparts kindness towards the very man who's owned up to making him suffer. But instead of gratitude and admiration on Jungkook's part, he finds himself only capable of bewilderment... and discomfort.

"You still keeping an eye on me, Prince? I'm flattered, honestly." The smirk embodying his lips is stifled before it can reach those smoldering eyes--- formerly swathed in idle boredom, now alit in the presence of the other male. He knows it's not true, anyhow. Taehyung could only ever be going by the fact that any torture felt by the screams had deadened. But it didn't hurt to pretend. "I just find no further reason to make them suffer when the only one who'd care to help them is here." False. All of it. He's got the cause-and-effect terribly backward and he knows it, but he hones his focus on the intertwining of their fingers now. "But to answer your question... Yes. Not just entertaining--- intriguing." Beguiling, almost, but perhaps it's the alcohol talking.

But it's when THAT question is slipped between them like a hidden wild card that Jungkook stills.

His frame goes ramrod straight before he catches himself, surprise embedding his features and interest so thoroughly piqued. He's certain somewhere within, he longed for Taehyung to speak those words. What it would take--- what he could do... He was essentially hoisting up a sanguinary offering, and the leather booth Jungkook perched upon was the ivory temple. And he'd damn himself to Hades and back before he allowed this opportunity to slip by.

"I want you to teach me something," he begins, thumb idly tracing patterns on the back of Taehyung's hand. A gesture that reminds him of what the god before him had done moments prior, his own palm still searing from the placidity left in its wake. "Teach this 'brat' what it's like to suffer," he implores, easing back against the seat with a steadied demeanor that rivaled the surface of his abandoned drink.

"Teach me regret."

@jungkook j. [iT'S OKAY BOO <3 I promise issok]

The ironic thing about it all is that Jungkook's not broken at all. At first Taehyung had thought it strange that a being like Jungkook wouldn't be enveloped in the cacophony of screams that filled the recesses of Taehyung's mind. Jungkook was an anomaly, the perpetual conflict in Taehyung's life and when he had been another being he had wondered why he couldn't fix Jungkook as to make the other disappear.

But somewhere down the line he realized it, that Jungkook was meant to be here as much as he was mean to. Created by nature, sculpted by the gods, it was all irrelevant--Jungkook had a place in this world and there was nothing about him that Taehyung needed to fix. Nothing mental, nothing emotional, nothing physical though the other drew him in every time, teasing, almost begging to be fixed when Taehyung knew he was no problem at all.

It was all incredibly frustrating to Taehyung, but somewhere down the line the push and pull and become just pull and Taehyung had understood that if one was alive the other would be to, polar opposites destined to oppose and dance around each other till the ends of time.

"It's your role and yet some days you are noticeably quieter than others. Actually, I suppose you've been quieter for a long time. Not planning on starting any large scale wars? Suppose I'm entertaining enough for you then?" Taehyung doesn't pull away. He instead allows his fingers to curl, exploring the other's soft palms as almost absentmindedly he traces the lines that define the other's mortal self. It's a gentle motion, contrasting with the sharp dryness he speaks with. It's all true. Taehyung hasn't gone nearly insane with the voices in a while. He could still remember the last time it happened, stained somewhere in the deep recesses of his memory. He wondered if Jungkook had enjoyed seeing him like that.

Sometimes he thinks that the other does it just to piss him off, to see how far he could make Taehyung bend but not break. The other always had him dancing on the line, torn between sane and insane and Taehyung should have been glad, glad that the other wasn't pushing him until he broken and shut himself away but all he can manage to show his appreciation is a small snicker and a roll of his eyes. "You're a brat." the words are insulting at worst, affectionate at best, and Taehyung can't bring himself to look up. He focuses instead, on their fingers, so mortal and breakable, though he could easily conjure up the healing light, though they held immortals who had been alive for eons. "What would it take you to stop though? Pushing me like this."

@taehyung k. › asclepius。 [ i'M SO RRY ]

At the rear of his mind, Jungkook tucks away every other droning thought. He dismisses the buzz that alights in him the nerve to back up his moxie, all in lieu of focusing on the nimble being before him. But between them both, he's certain neither god can fully ignore the terror ricocheting off the mortals even worlds away from theirs. Like white noise, it persists beyond the seams that embody Jungkook's smile in stitch work.

"Taehyung, when have you ever likened me to 'normal'?" In his eyes, normalcy is just a touch too intimate to humanity. It'd be too merciful on his part not to feed into his own innate desire to wreak havoc, just as he's certain Taehyung feels the beckoning need to heal. Two souls of likened passion, but each poised on an end of a spectrum that could never convene. A true Shakespearean tragedy if he's ever seen one.

He assesses the other with a softened hum, pretending as if to only half-hear the words his mind's ever so tethered to--- every syllable, the dip of cadence in that already husky tone. Melodious even as the boy implores in him things that Jungkook, himself, could never help. "I think you misunderstand me, Tae... I'm only following through with my part in the ecosystem. We've all got our role, I'm simply fulfilling mine."

Without hesitation or even request, he reaches out to capture his companion's hand in his own hold. Like a child discovering fingers for the first time, his gaze roves over Taehyung's. "Whether you were part of the deal or not, I'd always do this." He commits the arch of his knuckles to memory, the feel of palms only lightly calloused by the tedious nature of his work. The very work Jungkook's only unraveling for him. And once in the finite lifetimes he's lived, Jungkook experiences a hollow swell within his chest that barely refrains from choking on.

"The fact that you're in the mix is..." Coincidental but certainly not unwanted. "Convenient. Pretty safe to say I've grown fond of these little meet and greets. Call me spoiled, no?" It's selfish on his part and he knows it. Given his line of work, it's pretty necessary to disown a conscience and feign it never existed to begin with. But there were fleeting moments wherein he softens--- a lapse in which the design of his work ceases to regale in him that usual 'high'.

He's noticed each of those times happen to involve Kim Taehyung.

@jungkook j. There had been a time when Taehyung had been good at resisting. In the thread of time spanning eons Taehyung can remember numerous of invitations which he had turned down with an upturned nose. Most times when push came to shove he had just walked away, except those couple times when Jungkook had made him angry enough to actually punch the other. But somewhere down the line, the invitations had gradually worn down Taehyung's resistances and the brash male had become somewhat of a constant in his existence. As much as he hated to admit it there was a comfort in seeing him, a knowledge that he had a place in the world even as a minor god, merely to oppose a man who spilled blood with reckless abandon.

That didn't mean Taehyung had to like the other constantly though.

But it's enough to have a disgruntled snort exiting the god's lips as he settles himself down in a chair, offering an airy "If you wanted to see me, you could have just done it the normal way, like mortals do it, Jungkook." before his eyes flicker towards the other's features. He couldn't exactly guarantee that he would appear, but eons of strife had made him soft. After all, what was a god of healing good for if he could not eve heal himself? But even he had bitterness and anger built up in him that he could not brush away, even when those dark piercing orbs and wolfish grin made Taehyung swallow hard.

There's something undoubtedly alluring about the other, a direct contrast towards his own build and soft physique, that always sets Taehyung off balance when he sees him. It was a face that went with the attitude the bloodthirsty king that should have been wrong for this world but was also incredibly right. Jungkook always managed to grind his gears in the wrong ways, even as he reeled Taehyung in like a fish on a fish hook. Frankly, Taehyung wouldn't be surprised that if Jungkook had decided to contact him like a regular god, or mortal he would have gone regardless of his biting words.

"Not like I can escape my work, especially when you're causing extra for me. What's your deal, my head's been pounding like no other." the screams just seemed to multiply when Taehyung focused on them, he could pick them out, a gang war of sorts, explosions, moans of pain, pleas for help, Taehyung flinches. A mother and her child. "Please don't tell me you hurt that mother's child for the purpose of just getting me here. Please tell me that wasn't your doing."

@taehyung k. › asclepius。 Ah, utmost beguiling temptation.

The balm of the damned and the salvation of his ever-present boredom--- Jungkook can't say he's anywhere near surprised as he observes the object of his innate curiosity stalk toward him. If anything, he devotes more effort than he'd care to admit to stifling the smirk as it births across petallic lips. The rim of the glass, now dewy with condensation, conceals his loss--- but as his eyes skirt the boy's approaching frame, he can't help but feel like nothing less than the victor in a gladiator ring.

"Still addressing me by 'that' name? And look at that... Even my title--- Asclepius, precious god of the healing arts?"

Only when he's certain he's successfully reined in his control, he dismisses the liquor to leave it to rest atop the leather cupholder before him. All the while, not once does Jungkook's gaze drift away from the other male. Even in that tenebrous lighting, he's apt to make out the other's stark features. Slim nose arching down to greet the graces of plump lips, pursed in habitual disdain. Alabaster flesh carved across sovereign cheekbones and that sharp jawline. But what catches Jungkook the soonest, each and every time, are those piercing orbs--- twin pools resounding in the same chestnut and mahogany hues as the mocha he's addicted to for his mornings.

"Pull up a chair, Prince. A frown like that isn't healthy at this age." And though he's tempted enough to point out that it isn't within his 'pay grade' to be so 'kind', he opts to continue to dance around Taehyung's obvious focus. His only reason for even being there in the first place.... Jungkook can't place exactly why that knowledge triggers a silent twinge within him, but he hopes he doesn't betray himself with his features.

"I'll even order you a round, my treat. Least I can do for a friend to take out the time to visit me--- Certainly you're far too busy with other things anyway." He lifts an arm to rest his elbow flat against the table's surface, inclining his head to perch that adept chin into the curve of his palm. Coquettish grin still fixated in place, he exudes an air no less than that of a sultry king welcoming the peasantry to brood over his palace. But in his case, the one thing he desires isn't something he can just so easily 'pillage'.

"Relax. No one likes bringing their work home with them."

@jungkook j. He had hoped that the amber liquid would bring him solace, the bubbles enough to drown out the pleas for salvation that echoed in his head. He had come here often enough to drink away in any case, there was no doubt when he had first entered that things would be no different. But as the night had dragged on the prayers and cries of pain had merely multiplied with each glass he consumed and when he finally had enough sense to find sobriety the dull throbbing of his head finally caught his attention.

If anything Taehyung hated serial killers, they made his life a million times more difficult. More work for him, more alcohol and self control to dull the pain. Perhaps the only thing he hated more was war, usually those cries enough to send him to the brink of insanity. On most nights Taehyung would have attempted to shut it out, the ceaselessly multiplying prayers thousands of miles away; he could never get to them all. But tonight the echo seemed to be too close for inaction and almost against his will the man drifted towards the sounds, hoping to dull the aching pain in his head.

The voices had led him well, while he had hoped to be of use to heal and to soothe, instead crafty and sly the voices had taken him directly to the source, to a place where he had been hours ago, fixated on the drinks that would quell his mind for another day. This time however, his eyes didn't drift to the drinks as much as they did to the incarnate of evil himself--at least to Taehyung. "Ares, God of War." the words come out more hollow than Taehyung expected. The man could already recall the long spinning history between them, a twine binding them to the point where Taehyung's lips curled down in disgust merely thinking about it. It was only natural that he was the cause of all this madness.

"Kindly do me a favor and keep your hands off the mortals." a glimmer of anger seemed to dance now into Taehyung's own voice. Trust that the man working against him would be the one to ruin what he had hoped to be a good night. "I have enough screams echoing in my head to need anymore."

@taehyung k. › asclepius。 Adroit fingers cloak the crystalline glass the moment it rests before him. A parting grunt all he spares the bartender as the man swivels away, a satyr of some sort by the look of it... Even the cut of his pants can't exactly hide the outline of the angle of his jaunty knees.

He hums once in his throat, a sonorous sound that ghosts the rim of brandy--- aureate liquid sloshing carelessly at the surface of his lips. In the back of his mind, he registers the prickling savor, but Jungkook finds most of himself quite occupied with thoughts that transcend that cozy, corner seat in the bar.

He drifts, instead, to the screams.

Some of them bloodcurdling war cries, while most a pitiful outcome of the carnage. Whimpers of acrid pain, agony and remorse laced in melodious groans. It was a symphony of sorts to him that no other could hear, for only he was so deeply intertwined with the soils of bloodshed. But what he most looked forward to most wasn't exactly the art of his own hands, but the audience it summoned.

Namely one man in particular, whom he'd seen frequenting the stools not too long ago.

♚ ⟩ ❝ Χαίρετε.