Chapter 19

Notes:

I was going to wait until tomorrow but since I got it finished I thought I'd go ahead and post today....I hope that makes you happy!

Hoseok twitched restlessly as his sluggish brain struggled to regain consciousness.  His arm felt itchy and without opening his eyes he reached up to scratch the affected area.  Almost immediately a large hand enveloped his and he could feel the soft, deep voice  that started to speak as much as could hear it.

"Aish....Don't pick at that IV line, Hob-ah.  You don't want to make the nice nurse that Jin-hyung's been trying so hard to flirt with upset now, do you?"

"Oh, well...far be it from me to complicate hyung's booty call," grunted the sleep addled Beta.

The voice hummed in agreement.  "Good choice.  He's not pleasant when he's frustrated."

"Yeah...well...Neither am I..."

Hoseok forced his eyes open and blinked twice as the concerned face of Min Yoongi loomed into his field of vision.

"Hey, there....How are you feeling?" whispered the Alpha.

"Like I got shot," grumbled the Beta.

"That's probably because you were."

Hoseok lay very still as his most recent memories came flooding into his mind.  He took a moment to sort through them before asking, "Am I...okay?"

Yoongi gave a relieved nod.  "Luckily.  The bullet missed the femoral artery and the bone.  It'll hurt like hell when the meds wear off and you'll have a wicked scar on your right thigh from here on out but other than that you're going to be fine.  You'll have to stay off that leg for a couple of weeks but then you should be right as rain."

"How's everyone else?"

"Everybody's fine," assured the Alpha.  "The police are in the process of arresting the remainder of Dae Hee's organization so hopefully that means the threat against Jimin-ah and Namjoon-ah is over. "

"So Minnie, Joonie and JK are all safe?"

"Yes.  They're good.  They're all chomping at the bit to come and see you." Yoongi chuckled softly.  "Jimin-ah even forced your doctor to video conference with him."

"Really?  How'd that go over?"

The bodyguard gave an amused snort.  "I think the doctor wants to release you as soon as possible to avoid having his credentials, work history and treatment plan cross examined any further by Park Jimin.  You know, if he ever decides to give up on dancing, that little guy has a hell of a future as a prosecuting attorney."

"Yeah...I've seen him when he gets started.  It's pretty intimidating."

The Beta gave a tired smile as he attempted to sit up on his own, causing Yoongi to quickly intervene, grabbing the controller that adjusted the angle of the hospital bed and using it to move Hoseok into a more comfortable position.

"That okay?"  asked Yoongi.

"Yes.  Thank you."

Hoseok shifted against the pillows then asked, "What about Jin-hyung and Tae-ah?  They okay?"

"They're both fine.  Tae-hyung is helping the pups held captive by Dae Hee get settled into a temporary shelter and Jin-hyung just popped down to the canteen to grab us some coffee.  I think that nurse he's taken a fancy to just went on break though so I don't hold out much hope that the coffee will still be hot by the time he gets back."

"Oh, well...good for him..." Hoseok smiled fondly.  "You said Tae was with those pups that you guys liberated?  How are they doing?"

"They're safe and sound.  Namjoon-ah has already gotten in touch with an organization that's going to oversee their care for the time being.  They'll try to return as many as possible to their families and those who can't return - for whatever reason - will stay in a safe house until suitable adoptive families can be found for them."

"That's good,"  Hoseok nodded then suddenly a thought occurred to him that caused his face to pucker as if he'd bitten into something incredibly sour.  "What about my dear friend, Seo MoonJo?"

"He's been arrested.  He'll probably get offered a deal to serve as a witness against the remnants of Dae Hee's organization in exchange for a lighter sentence but he'll definitely see some jail time."

"I'm glad to hear that...although I have to confess that I regret not punching the Slimy Sycophant while I had the chance."

"Understandable."

An awkward silence descended over the room which lasted until it was finally broken by Hoseok.

"And you?"

"What about me?" asked Yoongi.

The Beta gestured towards the Alpha's arm which was now professionally bandaged and in a sling.

"This?" scoffed Yoongi.  "Not to worry....'Tis only a flesh wound..."

Hoseok snorted and shook his head in disbelief.

"Seriously?  You're going to start quoting Monty Python now?"

The bodyguard gave a dismissive shrug.

"It's always a good time to quote Monty Python, Hoseok-ah."

There was yet another self conscious pause as Yoongi watched Hoseok shift uncomfortably in the bed.

"Aish...." the Alpha muttered.  "I can't believe you let yourself get shot in the leg.  You're a fucking dancer."

"Yeah, well, sorry, but, in my defense, I wasn't given a menu of options to chose from," huffed the Beta.

Hoseok was surprised to see that, instead of a terse comeback or a witty insult, there were tears now suddenly welling up in Yoongi's eyes.

"This...this is exactly what I was trying to protect you from, Hob-ah," the bodyguard said in a quivering voice.  "What if that bullet had gone through a little bit more to the left?  You could have bled out before we'd even reached the car."

Yoongi swallowed hard as he breathing started to become erratic.

"Or what if it hadn't been your leg?  What if it had been your chest or your head or..."

Hoseok took pity on the man and reached out to grab his hand.

"Hey!  Hey! Stop!  Look at me!  Look at me!  None of those things happened hyung so calm down, okay?  Why don't you take some deep breaths with me, alright?  Like this...inhale through the nose and exhale through the mouth....good...that's right...."

The Beta kept his tone low and steady as he lead the Alpha through a series of breathing exercises until the worst of the panic attack had subsided.

Once Yoongi seemed a bit calmer Hoseok asked, "Better now?"

"Honestly?  No...now I feel even worse about what I did to you earlier.  I mean, here you are, lying in a hospital bed after being shot trying to save my *** and you're trying to comfort me."

The bodyguard shook his head sadly.

"Hob-ah...can...can you ever forgive me for what happened today?"

"Which part?"

"All of it.  Everything. Please," Yoongi begged.  "Tell me what to do.  Tell me how to make this right with you."

Hoseok closed his eyes and tipped his head back against the pillows.

"I...I'm not sure, hyung...."  he sighed.  "I know that you were trying to protect me and I get that but you also knew how I feel about being forced to obey without any choice in the matter.  I'm not saying I can't ever forgive you but I'll be honest...flowers alone can't fix this one."

Yoongi gave a sad nod of understanding.

"I know...and I- I don't know if anything can,  but maybe - just maybe? - this can be a start."

He took a deep breath and Hoseok's eyes flew open wide when he realized the Alpha was preparing to once again use his command voice.  The infuriated Beta had just opened his mouth to protest when he heard the words Yoongi spoke.

"Jung Hoseok," the Alpha announced in a firm, clear voice. "I hereby declare you exempt and immune from any future form of outside coercion.  From this point forward, you will have the capability to resist the commands of ANY alpha, including myself.  No one will EVER be able to compel you to act against your will ever again."

The bodyguard dropped the command voice then added quietly, "But please promise me that in the future you'll at least be willing to listen to reason if those around you feel like you're putting yourself in unnecessary danger, okay? I...I don't want to ever stand by your hospital bedside again."

In that moment, all the flabbergasted Hoseok was able to do was to stare blankly at the Alpha.  He'd heard of one or two Omegas of royal birth that had been gifted with this sort of autonomy but it was so rare that the Beta had assumed it was some sort of urban myth.

Interpreting the ensuing silence as rejection, a contrite Yoongi took a step away from the bed.

"I-I should p-probably go now," he stammered. "P-promise that you'll let me know if you need anything, okay?"

The forlorn Alpha was turning to walk away when the Beta finally found his voice.

"Stop! Where do you think you're going?  Do you actually think you're going to do something like that then just walk away?"

Hoseok grabbed Yoongi's hand and pulled him back in his direction.

"You aren't getting off that easy, you Lilliputian Liberator.  You...you are just going to have to stick around and keep doing nice things for me. Repeatedly.  Over an extended period of time."

He stuck out his chin and gave Yoongi a determined nod, which caused the Alpha to smile tentatively as he interlaced their fingers.

"Well, I suppose if that's what it takes then...I guess that's what I'll do."

Hoseok's lip started to quiver, causing Yoongi's alpha to react in panic.

"Hob-ah?  ****!  Are you okay?  Do you need more pain meds?  Should I get the nurse?"

The bodyguard was searching for the call button when Hobi stopped him.

"No!  Don't!  I'm okay it's just..." The Beta averted his eyes before quietly admitting, "Hyung... I...I killed a man today."

Yoongi's expression softened as he reached over and brushed a lock of hair from Hoseok's forehead.

"No. You didn't."

"Yes I did," insisted Hoseok.  "Don't you remember?  I was there.  I pulled the trigger.  The gun went boom.  A person died."

"No," countered Yoongi.  "You didn't kill a man, Jung Hoseok.  You put down a rabid dog.  There's a difference."

The Beta shook his head.

"I still feel bad."

"Why?"

Hoseok bit his lip as he stared at the thin hospital bed sheets.

"I-I feel bad...because I don't feel bad.  Jang Dae Hee was a wretched, evil excuse for a human being that murdered lots of innocent people and was about to kill you so...I'm glad I did it.  I'm glad that I killed him."

The Beta looked up in distress. "Does-does that make me a horrible person, hyung?  Does that make me...like him?"

Yoongi moved his free hand and laid it tenderly on Hoseok's cheek.

"No...Not at all, baby.  Not at all," he whispered in a soothing voice as his thumb caressed the Beta's face.

"Just think of how many lives you saved by taking him out.  How many children won't be victimized by that horrid waste of space. How many partners won't have to go home to an empty house because that piece of excrement won't be around to hurt anyone else.  How many people won't have to live in fear of making that miserable son of a ***** angry. "

He leaned forward and pressed a gentle kiss upon Hoseok's forehead.

"Hell, if it were up to me I'd giving you a ******* medal for providing a meritorious service to humanity."

"Really?" asked Hoseok in a tired voice.

"Really."

"Thank you, hyung.  I...I think I needed to hear that."

The Beta exhaled slowly and leaned back as his eyelids began to flutter.

"I know we  ought to talk some more about us but right now I'm kinda tired.  Would it be alright if I went to back sleep for a little while?"

Yoongi squeezed Hoseok's fingers as he smiled.

"I think that's an excellent idea, Hob-ah.  You lay back and relax.  I'll be here to take care of you when you wake up."

"Ahh....that sounds nice...." The Beta murmured sleepily. "I'm  looking forward to that. My very own Dinky Doogy Howser."

"Aish..." Yoongi grinned as he ruffled Hoseok's hair.  "Hush and rest, my Petulant Patient."

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