CHAPTER SIXTY EIGHT
"Jung Hoseok."
Hoseok looked at Namjoon, eyes widened in surprise and nervousness. It has been hours since he was locked in his own room, and no one bothered him. But what is Namjoon doing in his bedroom? He let out a groaned, closing his eyes before opening them and stared right through the man as if he doesn't exist. He just couldn't bare to look at him in the eyes.
The day's event was too much for him.
"How are you coping?" The new King asked him as he walked pass the Duke and sat down on the bed. "I hope that you're comfortable being locked inside your own room."
The Duke scoffed. "Thank you for the words but I hope that you will choked on your own food too."
Namjoon chuckled wryly, understanding the reason as to why his best friend was acting like that—he should be blamed.
"Why are you doing this?" Hoseok sneered, glaring at Namjoon. "Taehyung didn't do anything to you, and took care of you as well for a thousand years."
Studying the man's facial expression, he just couldn't get any. He doesn't know whether Namjoon was happy nor sad. It seemed that he was showing his emotionless expression.
"Even more than a thousand years!" He hissed, adding and giving a death gaze towards the new enthroned king.
"Isn't it fun?" Namjoon tilted his head, laughing bitterly before it changed into a serious expression. "Anyways, we didn't find any trace of scent in the place you told us."
"What?" Furrowing his eyebrows, he looked confused.
"Seokjin hyung's scent and Ha Na's scent aren't at the place you told us." Namjoon said nonchalantly, shrugging his shoulders.
"That's impossible! You didn't catch Jin hyung?" Hoseok's heart leaped at the thought of Seokjin, Ha Na and Jimin not being caught, and that means that they escaped. He was happy that three flew out.
However, anxiety filled him up when it hit him that there would be another condition that should be replaced in order for Seokjin's life to be spared.
"You should be thankful that they escaped." Namjoon huffed.
Of course, that was a lie. Namjoon never intended to tell Hoseok that Seokjin was caught that time while Ha Na and Jimin were the only ones who escaped.
"We had an agreement." Hoseok groaned as he tried not to show any emotion, rolling his eyes. "You kill Ha Na and save Seokjin hyung. That's the deal, and you have to spare his life."
"I want to save him of course—I want to save all the Dukes but then," The new King snickered. "We didn't catch them, so whose body shall I sacrifice?"
"What are you—"
"Tick tock," Namjoon sang those words again in mockery and amusement. "Whose body will be it if not our hyung or Jimin?"
Namjoon brought his index finger, tapping his chin before locking his gaze with Hoseok as he smirked. "Then it'll be Kim..."
His smirk got even wider, eyes never leaving Hoseok's gaze. "Taehyung."
"Namjoon!" Hoseok squeaked, eyes bulging out as his lips parted and watched Namjoon walking away.
"Wait!" Hoseok yelped causing Namjoon to stop and turn around. He fiddled with his fingers, biting his lips as he stuttered.
"I-If you have to choose...then," he gulped.
Namjoon raised his eyebrows, waiting for the Duke to finish his words. "What...?"
"Kill them." He spits making Namjoon looked at him, baffled and confused as to what his friend is talking about.
"Kill Taehyung," He breathed in causing the new king's breath hitched.
"Especially the Princess." He sighed, looking down in embarrassment.
"Princess...?" Namjoon mumbles in question and astonishment. Just why is Hoseok telling this?
Hoseok shuddered, closing his eyes tightly again. "Just don't hurt Seokjin hyung or maybe Jimin as well if you find him."
Namjoon blinked rapidly, jaw dropped as soon as those words hit his eardrums. Maybe he was just hearing things because there's no way that Hoseok would betray Taehyung as well—just like he did right now.
The new king inhaled sharply before walking towards Hoseok as he tilted his head to the side. He gets why Hoseok was trying to protect Seokjin so much to the point of killing Taehyung because of their friendship when they were humans, but what Namjoon can't get was the fact that why would Hoseok loathe the princess?
"I still don't get why you hate the Princess so much..." Namjoon shook his head, bewildered.
The Duke stared blankly before his lips curved up into a smile. "Maybe because it's my destiny as well."
The memories of that day replayed in his mind, and he wished that Jimin didn't give him the ball of memory. He wished that his memory was forever vanished, and with his memory gone, he won't be living in this pain and guilt anymore.
Just why did his memory even come back?
Hoseok closed his eyes, reminiscing the words that he said to Namjoon back then as tears rolled down his cheeks. He shouldn't have done that and now, he have sinned against Taehyung—the one who helped him accept the reality of being a vampire.
He tried to kill Ha Na, the princess and Taehyung just to save his best friend, Seokjin and Jimin. He would do everything for Seokjin, even sacrifice his life for him. He just didn't have a choice because he was confused as to who to save and who won't be saved. He didn't hesitate on whom to choose the main person to be saved, and spout any names that he could come up with just to save Seokjin.
Even though he knew that Taehyung wouldn't die so easily in the hands of Namjoon, he shouldn't have done that even though he did that to protect both Seokjin and Jimin—mainly the eldest. He said those words to protect the one who have suffered the most.
Seokjin is one of the weakest Duke along with him, and for sure, he will die in the hands of Namjoon unless someone's life will take part in saving the elder's existence.
And that is the strongest vampire in history that won't be easily killed, Kim Taehyung.
That was the only solution he could have to the exchange Seokjin's life with Taehyung's death. That was the only thing that he could think of. He just wanted to protect Seokjin so that he could be with his family again, but then it all went down because of his own mistake.
Seokjin didn't even have the chance to know the presence of Caroline and Jungkook because of him not being prepared to tell him. He just couldn't.
Besides, Hoseok knows that Taehyung wouldn't die easily but that is until he heard the news of Namjoon being the King because that only means that Taehyung is already dead.
If he could go back to the time, he would do that.
He doesn't want to live in guilt and misery anymore. It was hurting him already.
FALLEN
Written by Hannah (daddiehoseok)