"I think the hardest part of losing someone, isn't having to say goodbye, but rather learning to live without them. Always trying to fill the void, the emptiness that's left inside your heart when they go."

-Unknown

***

Lisa heard it.

The gunshot.

Her first instinct was to run inside the house, but then her eyes got stuck on the car full of kids. She exhaled deeply before knocking on the rear door window.

"Unlock the car, Jin," Hobi said. "It's Lisa. She looks like she has something to say."

Jin shrugged and unlocked the car. Hobi opened the door for Lisa.

"Listen," she said, breathless from rushing. All the kids leaned in, Jin turning in his seat and resting his arms on the two front seats so he was hovering over the console. She thought she heard a sound, but it was hard to hear over the blood rushing in her ears. "Something's going on inside the house. It's dangerous, okay? So you all need to stay in the car no matter what, got it? Doors locked. If anyone besides me or Namjoon comes out, hide, okay? Just - I don't know. Crouch down. Don't let them see you."

"Okay," Hobi said.

"Um, Lisa?"

"Sorry, Jin, I don't have time to-"

"Um, Tae is gone," Jin said.

"What?"

"He was right here," Jin said, staring at the seat. "I think he got out when you started talking."

"Why didn't you stop him?!"

"I don't know, I just...I didn't really notice...I thought he just needed some fresh air..."

Lisa stepped back from the car and noticed a big pair of footprints leading to the door. Namjoon's.

And a smaller pair, the footsteps much closer together.

Tae's.

"Damn it," she snapped before turning back to the kids. "Doors locked. Got it?"

They nodded and she ran towards the house, getting to the driveway just as she heard a second gunshot.

***

Chul pulled the trigger, and Namjoon couldn't move even as he watched Chul's finger tighten.

Is this it?

Is this the end?

But...Jimin. I finally found him.

And my kids, outside in the car, waiting for me...

It was the thought of his kids rather than himself that forced him to duck slightly, throwing up an arm as though that would stop the bullet.

Following the gunshot, Namjoon felt instant pain and saw his arm painted in red from where the bullet had hit him.

He scrambled up, away from Chul. He didn't have a gun, let alone any sort of weapon. And he was wounded.

And he didn't want to put himself in front of Jimin in case Chul shot at him and accidentally hit his son.

So he was forced to back up towards the window, away from the door. He was planning to break through the window and, he didn't know, figure out a plan to somehow get Jimin back.

Lisa. I'll call Lisa, he thought, dazed from blood loss, but his thoughts stopped when he heard the door open and saw Tae standing there, looking small and cold.

Namjoon froze in horror. No, no, nonononono-

"I thought you said the kids were in the car," Chul said to Eungi without turning. "Looks like this one has been a bad boy."

Tae's eyes scanned the room, stopping for a moment when he saw the gun, and then going to Namjoon, stopping when he saw Namjoon's arm. "Daddy, you're bleeding," he said, his voice quiet, too quiet, since the gun had been fired close range and Namjoon's head had been filled with a horrible ringing.

"Who are you?" the boy on the stairs asked, and Tae's head snapped to look at him.

Tae stared, and stared. "Jiminie! It's you!" His face lit up in a grin, having completely forgotten the circumstances of the situation, and he went to run to Jimin when Namjoon saw Chul raise the gun.

No, no, nonononono.

Namjoon didn't freeze this time, just ran at Chul, putting himself between the gun and Tae. He didn't want to get shot again, but he'd do it to stop Tae from getting hurt.

Namjoon got to Chul before he could pull the trigger, and Namjoon collided with the larger man, knocking him off balance but not strong enough to tackle him or knock the gun out of his hand.

They fought for control of the weapon, punching and kicking and using all the available limbs as weapons of urgent desperation. At some point, Namjoon could taste blood in his mouth, and everything in his body hurt, especially his arm, which was bleeding profusely, and his fingers, which were clenched around the gun in a death grip, but he would not let go no matter what.

It could have been seconds, but Namjoon lost all track of them. All of his thoughts were on the gun.

Get the gun, get the gun, get the gun-

Another gunshot to cut off his thoughts, and the desperate struggle stopped. Everything stopped.

There was a new silence in the house as everyone watched on, horrified and uncertain and anticipating the final verdict.

Namjoon looked down, but he was already covered in so much blood from his arm that he couldn't tell if he'd been shot.

Chul was also looking down, and Namjoon saw blood, but he wasn't sure whose it was.

That's when Namjoon realized.

He was holding the gun.

And that's when Lisa ran in.