@yongguksgiggle: Hey can you write a fan fiction for my friend, @mirajaneasuna ,about Jungkook taking you out on your first date being a night picnic?
Today was many things. It was a Saturday, it was the fourteenth day of the month, but most importantly, it was the day you were having your first date with the one and only Jeon Jungkook. He had first asked you out several months prior, but you initially turned him down. He was a world famous kpop idol after all, and you were just a student with a part time job at a cafe he liked to visit.
That’s where the two of you had met. His visits to the cafe, sometimes alone, sometimes with his bandmates, soon became one of your favorite parts of the day. He was always so sweet, very funny, and just a little bit flirty - all of that coupled with his handsome face had you crushing on him in practically no time at all. Still, you felt like you had to turn him down when he asked you on a date. Why would he want to date a part time barista when he could have any singer, model, or actress he wanted? You assumed you were just some temporary infatuation of his, but he was determined to prove you wrong. He asked you out a second time, and a third, and a fourth. If anyone else was doing this, you would have complained to your boss and had them banned from coming into the cafe anymore by the third time asking. But this was Jungkook, and you wanted more than anything to forget your anxiety about the situation and say yes. It was this fourth time he asked when you threw caution to the wind and accepted. He was ecstatic. The two of you exchanged numbers and had been talking all week, getting to know each other better before your upcoming date.
Jungkook told you he had a special surprise planned for tonight, and you were very excited, but also very nervous. You sat on your bed staring at the closet, unsure of what to wear. If you didn’t know what the date entailed, how on earth were you supposed to choose something appropriate for it? What if you put on heels when he wanted to go for a walk in the park? Or you were wearing a plain on t-shirt and he planned on taking you to a fancy restaurant? You shook your head, if it was anything where you had to dress a certain way, you had to assume Jungkook would have mentioned that much. You finally settled on what you thought was a safe outfit - regular old blue jeans, a simple but nice black shirt, and your favorite pair of red Converse high tops. You quickly changed and then sat out on your front porch steps, waiting for Jungkook. He came to pick you up at 7:00 pm - exactly when he said he was going to. You climbed into the passenger’s seat of his car and flashed him a shy smile. He responded with that cute little bunny grin of his.
“You look really pretty,” he said, making you turn your head to hide your blushing cheeks and squeak out a quiet ‘thank you’. You were a little embarrassed, but turning your head kept you from seeing that he was blushing just as much as you were. He cleared his throat in an attempt to keep an awkward silence from building and started driving down the road again.
“So…” you started off, “how has your day been going?”
“Honestly? Kind of stressful. I had practice all morning into the afternoon, and then I had to make sure everything was ready for tonight. I wanted to make sure everything was perfect, and I may have gotten a little too into it and, well, yelled at Namjoon for something stupid,” he explained. Even though he hadn’t said much, you could see his posture loosen up a little bit, like some weight had been taken off of his shoulders. You felt really bad for laughing, but you couldn’t help it. Not only was Namjoon his hyung, but he was the leader of the group, and the thought of Jungkook being so nervous and stressed out that he would yell at him just seemed so unlikely to you. He looked really confused and a bit hurt, so you rushed to explain yourself.
“I can’t believe you were nervous about this! You’re Jeon Jungkook, you perform on a stage in front of hundreds of thousands of people on a regular basis, and going on a date is what makes you nervous?” you asked incredulously.
“Well, yeah, when that date is with you it does,” he responded softly. You felt touched, and before you could stop yourself you let out an ‘aww’ that made you blush more than you had before. But doing that made Jungkook smile, so your mild embarrassment was worth it.
“If it makes you feel any better, I was probably just as nervous getting ready for tonight, maybe even more so” you confessed.
“Really?”
“Yeah, I even spent like half an hour just staring at my closet trying to figure out what to wear.”
“Well, if it means anything I really like your outfit, so there’s that.” At that moment, Jungkook pulled over to the side of the road next to the trees and turned off the car. He looked at you before speaking. “Well, we’re here,” he said. He sat there, fidgeting his fingers in his lap, making you giggle. You looked out the window and saw a dirt path winding its way through a park, passing by a few trees and leading down to a perpendicular path that ran alongside a river.
“And where exactly is here?” you asked.
“The site of our picnic!” he answered cheerfully. Then he got out of the car and came around to open your door for you. You thanked him while getting out, and he assured you it was nothing as he took out a cooler and blanket that you hadn’t noticed had been sitting in the back seat of the car. The two of you made your way down to the river’s edge and set up the blanket on the corner of grass where the two paths met. As you settled comfortably on the ground he pulled out two bottles of lemonade and two cling wrapped sandwiches.
“I’m not much of a cook, but I wanted to make something. I remember you eating peanut M&Ms on your break a few times, so I know you’re not allergic to peanuts, so I made us peanut butter sandwiches. And you mentioned the other day that there’s a street cart that sells lemonade that you like to stop at on the way home from work, so I brought lemonade to drink. I know it’s really simple, but I hope you like it,” Jungkook explained shyly, his eyes wide with hope and cheeks tinged pink with mild embarassment.
“It’s perfect,” you commented, earning another bunny smile from your date. The two of you ate your simple yet delicious meal in a comfortable silence with the murmuring of the river and the chirping of bugs as your background noise. The awkwardness from the start of your date had mostly faded, and what little bit remained was a good kind of awkwardness that stemmed from your general personalities and not a lack of knowledge of how to behave around each other. When the both of you were done eating you laid down next to each other and looked up at the sky. The two of you began talking about anything and everything - work, your interests, the current state of your lives.
Through the canopy of the trees you could see a quickly darkening sky as the sun set, lit up in spots by the emerging stars and flashing lightning bugs. You were starting to get a little cold, and despite your best efforts to keep it under control Jungkook noticed your shivering. Without a word he gestured for you to go closer to him, which you did. He put his arm around you and you rested your head on his chest. With your new warmth and the calming sound of his steady heartbeat blending in with the nature sounds around you, it was easy for you to start dozing off. Jungkook didn’t seem to mind, as he let you lay like that for a while before deciding it was getting late and the two of you should probably head back home. After groggily getting off of the ground, you helped him pack the picnic stuff back into the car and got into the passenger’s seat. He drove you back to your house and despite your protests that he didn’t have to, he walked you to your front door.
“I had a really good time tonight, I’m glad you finally agreed to go out with me,” Jungkook admitted, sheepishly scratching at the back of his head waiting for your response. You smiled at him.
“I’m really glad I did, too.”
“Can I ask why you said no the first three times?” he said quietly. Your smile faltered and you couldn’t look him in the eye.
“Well, you’re so talented and famous and amazing and I’m, well, I’m just… me.” He grabbed your hand in his and you looked back at his face to see him looking at yours.
“Are you kidding me? You’re so smart and funny and beautiful and just a little bit crazy and I like you so, so much.” He blushed bright red once he realized what he said, but it didn’t matter because you were a matching shade. Before your moment of courage could fade, you leaned forward and pressed a quick kiss to his cheek.
“Text me, okay? I get to plan our next date,” you said. He just nodded, not fully comprehending what just happened. You opened your front door and gave him a quick wave goodbye, which he returned, before he headed back to his car and you entered your house.
You couldn’t imagine a better first date.
i probably should reread this to make sure it’s as good as it can be but it’s almost 2000 words and i really don’t want to do that. i hope you both like it!
Warning: hardcore impregnation kink, possession, dirty talk, vaginal sex, basically a major creampie bro.
A/N: I’m going through major baby fever, so please enjoy my imagination
You felt Jungkook’s hands press roughly into your hips as he pounded you from behind. The sound of your husband’s groans and whiny sounds filling the air as your face was pushed into the mattress.
“You like the way that feels baby?“ He asked as you gripped onto your marital sheets. You tried to nod, your words failing you but your back being bent unnaturally stopping you. “Oh god baby” He moaned as he felt your walls flutter around him. You squeezed around him again unconsciously causing him to buck harshly into you, the angle causing him to kiss the base of your cervix, a shiver running down your spine as you let out a wanton moan. The movement caused Jungkook to pause. You grew worried and tried looking back only to see the man you called yours with his eyes shut, head tilted as you watched him breathe through his nose heavily almost as if to keep himself sane. You called out to him with a weak call of his name catching his attention breaking him from the trance he was in, you watched his eyelids open slightly, his usual coffee coloured eyes now a lustful black eyeing your sweaty body.
“fuck” He let out as his eyes moved from you to where the both of you were joined, his cock twitching slightly at the filthy ideas running through his head. “Look forward again for me baby” He breathed out, his voice an octave deeper causing a submissive whine to catch at your throat before turning. His hands gripped your hips even rougher, this time his nails digging into your skin before pulling his hips back slowly and bucking back into you, knocking the air from your lungs. He repeated this before your body started fluttering around him again and all his thoughts began to slip from his mouth.
“Fuck baby wanna fill you up so badly, so f-fucking badly” He moaned as he pounded into you roughly. You moaned in response which only urged him on even more.
“Wanna cum so deep in you baby, wanna fill you with my seed pretty girl” He rambled as he threw his head back losing himself in you. “Jungkook please” You whined not knowing what you were even asking for.
“You want it too baby hmm? want me to fill you up and knock you up?” He pressed, his words sending a shock into your system at the thought of him getting you pregnant. It’s not like you both hadn’t talked about it, babies were a subject you just both silently agreed on that when it happens, it happens and apparently for Jungkook it needed to happen now. “God beautiful I’m gonna put a baby in you, would you like that hmm? like my cock hitting your womb baby” He asked, his voice straining at the end.
“Answer me baby, wanna hear you say it” He groaned as his hand sneaked between your thighs and started began rubbing harshly at your clit. You tried to figure out what was going on in your head but the mixture of Jungkook’s fingers pressed against your clit and his cock hitting your cervix was too much for you. You could feel your climax literally on the tip of your tongue but the thought was stopped the minute you felt a harsh slap on your clit sending your hips to jolt forward. “Baby-I told you-to answer me” He punctuated with harsh thrusts. You gasped, your eyes filling with tears as you tried lifting your head to give him what he wanted.
“J-jungkook please, fill me with your cum, want your b-baby in me, make me yours” You gasped out, his shit eating grin practically beaming even if you couldn’t see it.
“That’s right baby, you’re fucking mine” He growled, his fingers back on your clit his hips angling to press even deeper into you. “Can’t wait to show you off, all big and round with my baby” He whined, his orgasm catching up to him as yours hit you. Now you’ve never experienced a vaginal orgasm but with the way Jungkook’s cock hit the end of you, your body just went into overdrive. You felt like it was everywhere, causing your body to shake underneath Jungkook like a leaf in an aggressive wind. The feeling of your walls convulsing around him aggressively had Jungkook growling as hips forced his cock into you. “Gonna cum baby, g-gonna cum and fill you. take it, fucking take it- Fuck!” He let out as he pressed into you till you could practically feel him in your stomach, The heat of his orgasm filling you to breaking point. You let out small whines as Jungkook moved his hips slowly milking his orgasm “so deep, so fucking deep” He whispered as he watched his softening cock fuck his cum back into you.
“You good baby?” He asked breathless as he fell down next to you. You slumped your body down, wincing at the aftershock. “Ask me again in nine months” You breathed still catching your breath, your eyes closing but not missing the way he beamed at your words.
Extra
“Kook, what did you do to Y/N, she looks so pale lately” Hoseok asked as he plopped down next to the younger, the boys weekly catch up at your home.
“Yeah, I offered her the left over eggs from my plate and she literally gagged and ran off” Jin pitched in as snatched the remote away from Taehyung before scolding him.
➬ Summary | When your countdown appeared on your wrist right on the morning of your eighteenth birthday, you had thought that perhaps the universe was on your side, especially since the final seconds were already ticking so soon. You just never expected to have your first meeting with your soulmate to be the day when you had to let him go. But hope was not lost when you still found love without the bond, and Jungkook showed you that it was possible to find happiness beyond the system that was written for you. Except that the universe doesn’t seem to have enough of its game, when your past sacrifice comes back hitting you straight in the face, just when you had believed that you had written off the perfect ending to your bittersweet tale.
↳ Pairings | Jungkook x reader / Namjoon x reader
↳ Genre | Soulmate!au, Second Chances!au, Angst, Eventual Smut
There is nothing that Namjoon despises more than waking up to a warm morning with vicious throbbing happening inside his head.
The ache feels so potent that he can hear the sound of each throb echoing against his temple. He can even feel it all the way to his toes, feel how the world seems to move with it even when he is still lying in bed, unmoving. The kind of feeling that is completely unwelcome that he dreads opening his eyes.
He may not have always been a morning person, but Namjoon isn’t someone who would find himself in this predicament during a regular weekday, jeopardising what should have been a normally productive day for him. For years, Namjoon has maintained an image of himself where he is in complete control of his own self and need, always knows how to keep his composure in any given situation possible.
And yet, for the first time, he finds himself breaking all the rules and habits that he has created for himself. He can feel that contentment and control slipping out of his fingers only because he gave in to his sorrow. Even his body feels as if it is no longer his own, when every move he makes becomes a struggle and whatever he does only escalates it further.
Fucking hangover.
The entire room seems to tilt over whenever he tries to get up, while the spinning still doesn’t stop even when he closes his eyes to put everything to a halt, just like how he feels his world tilting and spinning in all directions. And it has been this way ever since the night he saw you at Bovine.
When his headache becomes too much, Namjoon gives up on trying and falls back on the bed. So far, his memory is a bit fuzzy and unclear. But as the pulsing headache slowly becomes numb, and just when he is not forcing himself to remember, they simply return to him, random bits and pieces of what had happened—starting from the night before to all day yesterday and then ending on the events unfolding just last night—come flooding back to him.
He remembers coming home late from the studio two nights ago, pissed at himself and feeling incredibly frustrated after his encounter with Jungkook that he decided to grab a bottle of liquor to soothe his uneasiness and wash down the aggravation that followed him home. Things didn’t turn better the next day, when he heard nothing from Jungkook and after he found out that his friend didn’t even make it to work.
Feeling lost, and distraught, thinking that Jungkook might have decided to spend the day with you to salvage and find some reassurance in his relationship with you, Namjoon spent the entire day being holed up inside his home, wallowing in his misery with the collection of liquors that he had kept in his home. He must have passed out or fallen asleep at some point because the next thing he realised, he had lost an entire day as it went past him. It was a miracle that he didn’t poison himself with all that alcohol, though he did remember stopping once in a while and the short naps he had in between helped him sober up each time. And yet even as time went by, even after all the effort that he had done to wash everything away with those liquors, the unsettling feeling inside his chest still lingered, as if it had been rooted so deeply inside him ever since the moment he had the talk with Jungkook.
It was sometime around sundown when he was awakened from another nap by the quick call that his assistant made to him from the lobby, notifying him about a guest who had come asking for him. The nap did so little to sober him up, and yet he made it to reach the front door, even with a few struggles as he tried not to stumble or fall over the coffee table on his way there.
The urgency of the phone call and how his assistant had stressed that he needed to hurry made him think that perhaps there was an emergency, something so urgent that he needed to deal with that nobody else could. He clearly was not expecting to find that the surprise guest that his assistant had sent to his door would be you.
It had taken him quite some time to process what he was seeing. At first, he had thought that he was dreaming when he saw you standing right outside of his home not too long after he was mulling over his situation with you. But then you charged at him, shoving him in anger and the pain he felt in his chest was enough to let him know that it was real. And he took every single thing you were throwing at him—every punch you gave to his chest and every word you screamed at him—so willingly. Because even in his haze, he still knew that he was responsible for everything that was happening.
That he was the reason why you were here.
And then you broke down right in front of him, and he nearly fell down with you when seeing you in that state had made him feel weak. Even now, as he is struggling to recover from his hangover, the dread that he felt from that moment still lingers inside him.
Once he feels steady enough to sit up, Namjoon leans back against the headrest, rubbing his palm across his bare chest as he can still feel the ghost of your touch that he had gotten from the moment you pushed him away and the fading warmth that he felt when he took you in his arms. The pain that you had inflicted on him was nothing compared to what he is feeling inside, though he knows now that he was also far too numb to feel anything last night compared to how raw he is feeling everything now.
But does he have a right to complain when he knows that you might be feeling more pain after what had happened? When what you had experienced had been too unbearable for you to deal with that not even his touch or his embrace had been enough to fix you.
That was why he had accepted everything that you gave him. Because he understood. And he took you in his arms because he understood how much you needed someone to hold you up and keep you from falling. Even if he couldn’t erase your pain, he knew that he had to offer you what he could give you then.
Although it doesn’t exactly justify what he did next.
It is the feeling of rage and disappointment that he has in himself that forces him to get up and leave his bed. He wastes no time and quickly freshens up, getting himself ready to face the repercussions as he marches out of his bedroom with the constant throbbing in his head accompanying every step he makes.
As he trots down his empty and silent home to reach the kitchen, Namjoon’s eyes linger on the locked door of the guest bedroom, the only other room in his penthouse that has rarely been used. Knowing what is waiting from the other side of the bedroom door gives him a sense of longing, even if he knows that he doesn’t deserve to even hope that something good may happen. Looking away from the room, his gaze falls on the foyer instead, right at the corner where he held you tight last night in his arms, holding you as an anchor that kept you from falling apart.
When he closes his eyes, he can still sense everything from that moment. Your warmth, the scent of your shampoo, the way you fit perfectly in his arms and how right it felt when you laid your head on his shoulder. That moment had been short, and yet it was still enough to make him feel complete. He felt as if his soul was awakened then, as if there had been a huge hole inside him that he kept carrying with him for years and you had managed to fill it so easily just by falling into his arms.
He had welcomed that feeling, just as he had welcomed his punishment from you. And he still remembers promising himself not to let you go, that he would always hold you up the same way, that he would never take any of it for granted just as long as he could keep you in his arms for as long as he could.
If only he didn’t royally fuck up right after, and let every chance of making it happen to slip away from his hands almost too soon.
Tormented by his guilt, Namjoon becomes determined to make things right. But first, he needs to make sure that he would do it while sober and that he would do everything the right way. While he has the coffee brewing on the kitchen counter, he picks up the phone and contacts the staff to take that first step of redeeming himself.
“Yes, sir?”
Namjoon clears his throat and keeps his voice low when he responds to his assistant. “Can you have the cook send out a complete breakfast set to my loft, please?”
“Anything specific, sir?”
Thinking and talking only worsen the ache lingering in his head. Closing his eyes, he presses his fingers on the bridge of his nose to try and stop his headache from rapidly increasing. “Nothing—just get me today’s special and some fresh fruit,” he says before quickly adding, “Make that two sets of everything.”
A movement catches his attention just as he ends the phone call, and he looks over to the guest bedroom and finds you standing in the doorway, looking like a deer caught in a headlight with your eyes looking around warily and your fingers fidgeting, as if you need to hold onto something to stop yourself from falling down again.
But what has his chest grow tight is the sight of you wearing his t-shirt, how it seems to be hanging loose on your body and its hem falling on your thighs. And he cannot deny how good it makes him feel to see you wearing something of his. The possessiveness that is building up inside him is driving him crazy, even more than how alcohol had driven his sanity to nothing but an intangible mess when he was supposed to be in control, even if it was only to offer support when you had most needed one.
His heartbeat starts pacing rapidly as he looks at your face and catches your eyes looking back at him, and more images from last night come rushing back to him. Not only for the comfortable warmth that he felt when he was holding you, but also for the cold realisation of how hurtful his actions had been to you last night.
“Perhaps it is a good thing that he is gone. Have you forgotten? You were supposed to be mine. Always have been.”
The dick comment that came out of his mouth makes him wince when he remembers ever voicing it out loud. He should have been consoling you instead of being a jackass about it and acted as if he was celebrating while you were in pain.
Namjoon would never be able to forget your reaction that came right after he said those things to you—the crestfallen look that took up your entire face, the pain in your eyes that became clear to him when they widened in shock after hearing his words, and how you pulled back so quickly, leaving Namjoon feeling mesmerised and too stunned to notice what you were about to do until it was too late. He didn’t realise what was happening until your palm landed right on his cheek and the sound of the loud slap you had landed on his face echoed through the foyer. He didn’t realise what had happened until his skin stung and the horrified gasp you made snapped him out of his shock.
Just as he recounts that very moment, his hand comes up to his cheek, touching the numbing pain on his skin. He is not entirely sure which one hurts the most—the slap of your palm that seems to linger or the constricting pain inside his chest that keeps rising and building when he tried to imagine what you were feeling then. But then everything comes to a halt once he looks at you again, the sight of you being engulfed in his oversized shirt and the knowledge that you had slept on his bed seems to calm his restless soul.
You clear your throat, looking flustered as you avoid his gaze while you remain standing there. “I think I should go…,” you murmur softly with a hoarse voice. “I know that I’ve overstayed my welcome. I shouldn’t have stayed anyway.”
“I was the one who offered. I couldn’t let you leave in the state that you were in last night,” Namjoon quickly says, wincing when he remembers how that night had ended. How right after you slapped him and while he was stunned into silence, you had somehow realised that he had been drunk when he opened the door for you, and how it pushed you to go around his kitchen and living room to find the missing bottle of liquor that he had left behind. His chest tightens when he recalls how you had then grabbed the bottle and started drinking your pain away, and how he couldn’t stop himself when—
Clearing his throat, Namjoon shakes the thoughts away and forces a smile. “And I don’t believe you are ready to go either. Why don’t you stay a bit longer and take your time until you settle down? At least stay for coffee and join me for breakfast. Maybe we can start all over and then later on, if you’d let me, I can lend my ear to listen or my shoulder to cry on if you want to.”
You open your mouth—ready to refuse him, no doubt—but stop yourself when you look conflicted. Knowing that you are at least considering it, Namjoon jumps at the chance and asks again,
“Please. It’s the least that I could do,” he says, quickly biting on his tongue to stop himself from saying, ’—after acting like such a schmuck to you last night.’
“We haven’t had a chance to talk either, have we? For us to talk properly, I mean, and without yelling at each other and while we are both sober,” he adds later on, drawing a smile to your face when you seem to realise that he is right. Namjoon’s lips turn to a wry smile when he realises that he had wasted the last few chances he had to talk to you before, how it had always ended with the both of you yelling hurtful things to each other instead of trying to figure out how to deal with the situation.
“Okay,” you whisper after a moment of silence, much to his relief, though he is still surprised that you would agree with him. Your gaze flickers toward the coffee machine as you sigh, before you meet his gaze again. “But I should probably freshen up real quick. Would you mind if I use the shower?” you ask him as you tilt your head towards the en-suite bathroom inside the room you had been sleeping in.
“By all means, help yourself,” Namjoon says with a genuine smile on his face, trying his best to hold back from adding—
Everything in this place will also be yours anyway. All of it.
It took you about 30 minutes to finish washing up.
Though it might have been more. You just know that you have lost track of time as you indulged in the luxury that the marvellous hot shower inside Namjoon’s en-suite bathroom had provided you.
It had not been your intention to stay that long in the shower, but after spending the first five minutes admiring his spacious guest bathroom and its entire fancy setup, it took you another five minutes filled with a lengthy pep talk about how much you deserved to enjoy this moment after what you have gone through before you could finally step into the shower. And you were soon filled with relief that you had talked yourself into taking it when you realised how good it felt as the hot water came running down your body. It almost felt like everything was being washed away—your fear, your pain, whatever was left from last night’s debacle—while the falling water felt more like magical fingers massaging your tense muscles until you could slowly relax. It had been too good and it felt like such a waste to step out early that you stayed longer than you should have, and you had only left when the hot water seemed to cool down and once your stomach began to protest, begging for breakfast.
After coming here completely on impulse and without carrying any personal belongings other than your small purse, you had worried about not having anything to change into. You can only sigh in defeat at the thought of the clothes that you were wearing yesterday turning into a complete mess after spilling some alcohol on yourself at some point following your impulsive act of barging into his home—hence why Namjoon had let you wear his t-shirt when it was somehow decided that you were staying for the night.
You had settled to the thought of wearing your dirty clothes again after your relaxing shower, telling yourself that you would only need to wear them on your way home anyway. But as you step out of the bathroom, wrapped in a fuzzy towel that you had found in the vanity earlier, you are surprised to find a pair of grey sweatpants and a fresh t-shirt left on the bed for you.
Taking no time to dress up, you bite down the smile that keeps trying to sneak its way to your face from thinking about how thoughtful he turns out to be. It feels like a complete turnaround after seeing the side of him that he had shown you last night, knowing that he cares enough to figure out about these things before you could.
The lavish breakfast setup and the scent of freshly brewed coffee welcome you when you walk out of the bedroom. For some reason, they bring some sense of warmth into Namjoon’s home, when all you had felt ever since you walked into this place has been nothing but hollowness. The place had seemed cold and so unfamiliar that it took you a lot of effort to feel comfortable when you laid to sleep last night. Seeing the vacant dining seats, you turn to find him standing all the way in the living room, looking out the massive window to watch over the city as it comes to life.
“This is a lot. Were you trying to feed an army?” you comment loudly before you can stop it, gaining his attention as he turns away from the window to look at you. The moment you meet his gaze, the smile on your face just comes to rise so easily, much to your surprise. And his, judging from the way he blinks rapidly as if he cannot believe what he is seeing. “Thank you for the clothes, by the way. I was already preparing myself to get through the day with the same clothes I was wearing yesterday.”
Namjoon smiles and shakes his head. “I thought you’d want something more comfortable to wear to make you feel better after that shower,” he says while making his way to you. The movement seems so natural that it almost feels like he is used to doing this—that he is used to having you here in his home. But Namjoon is quick to catch himself before getting too close, swiftly stopping and going around the table, taking the seat across from the one you are standing close to and putting the necessary distance between the two of you. “Come sit and eat with me.”
For a moment, you still feel hesitant to take his offer. Sitting here at the dining table with him seems too intimate, too soon, and too confusing. But there is something in his presence and in his words that seem to compel you into moving, eliminating every excuse that you could think of to escape as you easily slip into the empty chair right across from him without so much of a word.
The breakfast starts with silence, and for some reason, it feels oddly comfortable rather than it is being awkward to share this moment with him even when you barely know him. Things continue this way until Namjoon clears his throat and speaks first. “I want to apologise,” he starts, stopping briefly until you pay attention to him so he can continue, “I shouldn’t have said what I said to you, that was wrong of me. I won’t even justify my condition as it happened. I was drunk and caught off guard with the situation, but none of those things should give me the excuse to be an asshole.”
Your lips curl up to a small smile before you can stop yourself. “So you do realise that you were being an asshole?”
Namjoon scoffs in response to your teasing, though his shoulders sag in relief somewhat when you merely joke about it instead of yelling at him like how he seemed to have expected you to. “It’s quite hard not to,” he says with a shrug while giving you a remorseful smile that seems genuine. “I shouldn’t have said such a thing when you were going through so much already. Your life had changed irrevocably in the span of, what—hours?—after years of living in the stability which you had built with Jungkook as a huge part of your life. While it sucks for me to think about it, I understood. And it was way out of line for me to say such a thing when what you needed was someone to hold you up while you were falling.”
Once again, you are stunned speechless. His apology was something that you had expected to hear, but you had initially thought that he would simply say “I’m sorry” and then be done with it. And yet here he is, giving you such a lengthy apology and looking so terribly sincere with every word he says that you feel warmth blooming in your chest. There is also something else tugging within you as he was speaking, something that has your heart pumping and coming alive.
“You’re forgiven. For now,” you whisper to him as you return his gaze. With a sigh, you shake your head and murmur softly, “It must’ve been a shock to you when I came here unannounced, and to top it all, I created a scene—” you stop for a moment and your gaze flicker towards the living room, where the ‘scene’ from last night had happened. You wince when you remember how unruly your behaviour had been and add, “—and made a whole mess at your home when you probably wanted to have some alone time. And for that, I owe you an apology too.”
Instead of taking it, Namjoon only shakes his head. “There is no need for that. You were frustrated and needed someone to yell at. Someone you could put the blame on for everything that had gone down and I had been the most eligible bastard who deserved it, so I’m not going to blame you to take that opportunity when you could,” he says with a smile, drawing a chuckle out of you. But then he lowers his gaze, and the look that he is giving you is filled with concern as he watches you from under his eyelids. “Not to mention—it wouldn’t be fair for you to deal with this on your own when I have just as much part in this as you are.”
With his words reminding you of what had happened, the pain returns inside your chest, and you swallow hard to stop it from becoming stronger before it takes away your calm just when you finally start feeling better. Saying nothing about it, you lower your head and nod. “I didn’t know where I should run to,” you whisper, admitting how lost you had felt when Jungkook left. “And you were right, the moment I found out that Jungkook had learned everything from you, I acted out of instinct and rushed out here to—”
You look up at him just then, finding him lifting his eyebrows when you fail to finish your sentence. “To do what?” he asks, speaking softly and teasingly at the same time. “To punish me? To punch my face and release your anger?”
“All of the above, I suppose,” you answer him, allowing a shy grin to take over your face when he simply does the same. Although the grin quickly fades when your gaze falls onto his cheek, seeing the slightly pinkish shade on his skin which seems to take its time to fade and feeling the tingle on your palm that returns when you remember what you had done.
“I’m sorry, though. For assaulting you last night,” you start to apologise. Your cheeks are beginning to feel warm when you think about how reckless you had been, but you disguise it when you lift your hand and point it at him. “You know, the uhm—” you say to him, stopping to wave a hand at his cheek. “I’m sorry for slapping you.”
Namjoon laughs. “I already told you, I deserved it,” he says with a dimpled smile that has your heartbeat going so fast it nearly takes your breath away with it.
Your gazes lock to one another for a brief moment, and the air around you seems to sizzle. It prickles on your skin and makes your cheeks grow hot that you instantly look away to cease whatever it is that seems to be building between you. It is the connection, your conscience continues to remind you, but you deny it by simply ignoring it, refusing to acknowledge it for the sake of keeping it from becoming real. Thankfully, Namjoon no longer pays attention to you since the moment you severed that connection, already has his eyes on his phone as he continues to finish his simple meal, unaware that you now have your eyes on him again.
Your eyes linger on his face for a moment, silently taking him in while you have the chance to. The memory you have had of him from college and the pictures you have seen over the past few years have done no justice to what you are seeing up close. If you had thought that Jungkook is a perfect specimen of a human being, then Namjoon is—well, a different kind of perfect. While you have no intention of comparing him with your missing fiancé, there is no helping it when you keep seeing Jungkook’s face inside your head while you have your gaze on this man.
The one thing that you love about Jungkook is the soft features he has on his face even when his body is all firm and strong, but with Namjoon, everything about him is all hard, and all male. From the sharp lines on his face to his hard chest—you still remember how he felt under your palms when he pressed you against him—and his strong arms that made you feel small when he held you in his embrace.
As much as you hate to admit it, there is simply no way that you could possibly deny the attraction that is slowly beginning to sink in before you ever had the chance to realise it. When did it happen? Was it an instant pull, right when the soulmate bond snapped into place the night Namjoon’s mark appeared on his wrist? Or did it happen last night, right after you unleashed your anger on him and then you—
Your gaze trails down to find his lips, and almost instinctively the tingles start appearing on your lips just as you are once again taken back to last night, when in the middle of your frenzy, right when your mind was still clouded in the thick haze of your heartbreak and while you were slowly losing all control against the soulmate pull that your body simply—gave in. Right at that moment, you close your eyes, hoping that it would be enough to erase the flashing image of what happened in your blunder, only to feel your stomach dip when you fail and the memory returns.
Why did I have to kiss him?
You reach up and press your fingers on your lips, hoping to wipe the sensation away. But even as you try to do it by brushing your fingers across your lips, you can still feel it coming back to you each time the memory returns, and every single time it happens, your chest tightens with guilt.
It wasn’t that the kiss had been intended. Your emotions had been completely out of control, and the strong alcohol that you had drunk in the desperate need of erasing your pain must have clouded your judgement. You faintly remember Namjoon rushing to stop you from finishing his bottle, yet it only caused your rage to rise further, and you pushed him away while calling him names and accusing him to be petty and selfish for not wanting to share his drink. And when he finally caught your arm and glared at you to reprimand you, when the shove you gave against his chest wasn’t strong enough to draw him away, you ended up grabbing him by his collars and pulled him down until you could press your lips on his.
The kiss was meant to be brief, just something to shut him up because half of your mind had been thinking of smacking his lips with your palm and it was almost as if your body simply decided that using your lips would be a better idea. Clearly, your mind had already short-circuited just then to react so impulsively before you even realised what you were doing.
Despite the numbness and everything about last night that had become nothing but blurry fragments of moments, you still remember everything about the kiss. You still remember how his body stiffened when you reached out and pulled him down and how he was unmoving for a moment when you pressed your lips on his. You still remember how soft and tender his lips had felt when he began to reciprocate and pressed them against yours instead of pulling away, how he took over and seized control until your head spun with delight.
And you cannot deny the fact that your body came alight upon contact and how the tingles kept rising in the heat of the kiss, how it felt just as intoxicating as the drinks that you stole from him that you kept leaning in when he started to deepen the kiss, allowing his tongue to slip in while his hands pulled you closer to him. But the worse part of it all is the fact that instead of pushing him away, you simply relished the way your whole body was burning from the inside and out.
Thinking about it now makes your cheeks burn and your body heats up once more, but you shake it away. You had tried to convince yourself that it would be better for you to forget that it ever happened and move on. But now that he had put everything out in the open, after both of you had been so willing to own up to your mistakes, that decision simply flies out the window and you give in to the guilt that you are feeling inside.
Lowering your head to hide your burning face, you murmur to him, “Then I’m sorry for kissing you. That was—for the lack of a better word, completely inappropriate.” Unsurprisingly, hearing this only makes his smile grow wider, the dimples on his cheeks deepen when he chuckles so pleasingly as if he enjoys seeing you so flustered.
“I’m honestly not too sorry about it,” he softly says, and you almost swear that your heart nearly jumps out of your chest, most specifically when he slowly lifts his intense gaze to yours. You try to act like his words have no effect on you, but you doubt that you can hide it well when a grin comes onto his face. “But all is forgiven. Neither of us had been in our right minds when it happened.”
His words should be giving you some sense of relief, and yet again, your body reacts differently, when a rush of warmth engulfs you. It makes it even harder to deny it when both his words and the way he is looking at you are making you feel—wanted,even if you know that it is only coming from the bond you have between you and nothing else.
Nothing like what you share with Jungkook.
You say nothing to respond to his words, then simply turn away to enjoy your coffee so you would stop getting drawn to his intense gaze. “I don’t remember seeing you cook and there is no traces left in the kitchen showing me that you prepared breakfast while I was in the shower. Except for the coffee. Do you have staff helping you with all of this?” you ask him once another moment of silence settles in, choosing to change the topic just so you can stop thinking about the kiss again, which happens whenever your mind is idle.
Namjoon smiles bashfully. “I do. The staff belongs to the exclusive floors in this building, though. My boss, the benefactor behind the recording company, owns this building, and the staff is always on standby just in case we need anything. They always send me breakfast in the morning. All I had to do was ask for some extra portions so I can have you join me this morning.”
“You must have done it often, haven’t you? Invite someone to stay the night, feed them with lavish breakfast in the morning to woo them—” You have no idea where this thought had come from or what you are trying to accomplish by saying them out loud. And you certainly have not expected to feel a pang of jealousy for picturing all those women he had taken photos with sitting on this very same table with him, possibly in a more intimate way. You clutch onto your cold glass of water to stop yourself from pressing your palm onto your chest, right where the sting is coming from, though the feeling is quick to be replaced with guilt.
Because if knowing that he had shared his life with others before hurts you, even knowing that all he had gone through had been nothing more but short term relationships or flings, then how had he felt when he had to watch you with Jungkook?
“You may not believe me,” Namjoon speaks after clearing his throat, and you lift your eyes to find him looking straight at you so intensely that it makes you shudder in your seat. “But I’ve never invited anyone to stay the night here, or have the staff cook for them. Except for my family, of course.”
“Really? Not even your past girlfriends?”
You immediately regret asking him this when a spark of mirth comes to his eyes. When he seems intrigued at the fact that you are asking him about his past love life.
“How did you know that I’ve been with anyone else before?”
Gritting your teeth, you bite back the response that might end up with you confessing to him that you have been keeping up with his life over the past few years. It didn’t happen often, and not always on purpose either, when his photos just basically appeared even when you were not searching for anything related to him. With a forced smile, you simply answer him with, “Lucky guess. After all, you have always had a date clinging to your arms on the two occasions we met. Surely, it wouldn’t be wrong of me to assume that there are others in between.”
Namjoon blinks. Whether or not he believes you is not really your problem, though you are surprised to see a mix of shock and guilt in his eyes for a brief moment—and maybe a semblance of shame—before everything fades in the next blink. However, he still keeps his eyes on you when he says, “There had been a few casual relationships that I’ve shared in the past, some casual flings, nothing truly serious. Some of the women that people may have seen with me as my date have also been a part of—” he grimaces, “Well, you may call it as special arrangements.”
“What do you mean?”
Namjoon shrugs and gives you a small smile. “It means it was nothing but that, a front to show the public that I had connections. It helped boost the business when I showed up on dates with people who mattered in the business and it mostly helped them at the same time as showing up with me in public put their name out there for people and the media to recognise,” he says, once again surprising you when instead of telling you this while wearing a sense of pride on his face, all that you see on his face is a hint of shame, before he puts on another mask, and he wears a determined look on his face when he says, “So, the answer is no. They’ve never spent the night here and I’ve never opened my home to them. While I can’t say that I’m a saint either, I have had flings, friends with benefits, women that I could call when I needed a company, and oftentimes the public date that people were seeing me in would continue for the rest of the night, if you know what I mean. I can’t tell you all the details, but—” he stops to look at you in the eyes to add, “The time I spent with them had never been spent here, not in my home.”
Clearly, you have no idea how to react to that, or how to respond when he is looking at you with some sort of a hopeful look in his eyes. How could you even say anything when he just opens up that part of his life so easily, to be so easily honest instead of putting up a front just to amuse you? Unable to find anything to say, you look away, nodding at him as you tell him, “I see. Well, what you do at your personal time isn’t truly my business, is it?”
“Did. What I did in my personal time—” he quickly says with a firm voice, drawing you to find his eyes again. “Things have changed. It has to be.”
“You don’t have to change anything just because—” you begin to speak, hating the way your heart is giving some happy little flops in your chest just for hearing him say those things. Because it doesn’t matter. It shouldn’t matter. And you shouldn’t be jumping up and down in joy when his life doesn’t concern you. “We don’t even know each other to be saying things like this.”
“Then perhaps we can change that.”
“What?”
With a sigh, Namjoon leans forward to get closer to you, his eyes never waver from your face as he speaks, bringing back everything that had once been said between you the last time you met.
Before Jungkook left to give you space.
“Perhaps we can take this chance to get to know each other better. Past the memory of me being the douchebag who talked shit about the soulmate system and ignored you while you were waiting to see me, past the knowledge of me being Jungkook’s friend or the man who put up a front as if I have had a glorious love life in the past,” he says, and you can swear that there is a fire in his eyes, a look that tells you that he is not backing down. Not from this one.
“There is a reason why the universe had put the both of us together and matched us since birth. There is a reason why fate still insisted that we met, regardless of what had happened to us in the past that had kept us apart. Don’t you want to know what reason that might be?”
The weight of Namjoon’s offer sits with you all through breakfast. While it doesn’t do much to ruin the serene moment that you have been sharing with Namjoon right until the moment he said the words, it still has you growing weary and uneasy for the rest of the morning you spend with him.
It becomes a wonder for you when you manage to walk away from the dining table completely unscathed, even if your mind continues reeling over it without even being able to give him a sold answer. As if he can sense it, Namjoon merely smiles when you fall silent after hearing his offer and suggests that you would take your time to consider it.
“You don’t have to give me an answer or agree with it right away. Try to think about it, don’t let me force or affect any decision you make,” he says, before changing the topic just when you come close to start thinking of ways to escape and flee out of his home.
By noon, you are back at your apartment, sitting on the sofa right in front of the television, its empty screen looking back at you. Namjoon had sent his driver to take you home merely an hour ago, right around the same time he had suddenly acquired some motivation to get back to work and had decided that the driver would be of better use to drive you home while he did his duty from his fancy penthouse.
Feeling drained and sensing no other emotions but the emptiness that had followed you since the day before, you had fallen onto this sofa moments after you walked in and you have yet to move away from it since. You should be mulling over his offer, or perhaps plan out what to do to get Jungkook back and have him talk to you. But you are too numb to do anything, much less to function when you can barely think clearly, as if both your body and mind have shut down ever since you returned to your empty home.
Home.
Looking around, you take in your surroundings, gazing at the space that you had built together with Jungkook as a place where you would be—should have been—building your future together. You look at the beige-coloured walls around you which have been adorned with various framed pictures of the two of you and posters of everything that you both enjoy in life, at the room that is filled with all the mementoes that you have collected together with Jungkook through all the years you spent together.
Your mind takes you back to Namjoon’s home, which had appeared a complete contrast to your own. Despite calling it his personal space, Namjoon’s penthouse seemed scarce of intimate touches. It had felt too impersonal for you, with only essential things filling his home instead of the things that would make his personal space homely, with monochrome colours painting all the walls, spaces, and furnitures which seemed to be the opposite of the vibrant colours that you could find in yourhome.
And yet, as you are sitting here on your own, this apartment suddenly feels colder, hollow, as if the warmth that has been a huge part of it has been sucked dry the moment Jungkook stepped out of the door, the moment every bit of hope that you have built simply shattered when he turned away from you, taking all of that hope and your joy away while taking away your right to choose.
With a sharp inhale of breath, you finally snap out of it, and you soon fall in motion to start picking your life back up as much as possible.
You start by contacting your workplace, while you had informed your co-workers of your absence for the past two days, you decide to make it clear that the ‘family emergency’ you are currently dealing with will take some more time to fix and that you will need to take an early vacation leave before you can return to work. Then you start making more phone calls, sending out texts, doing the best you can to trace Jungkook’s whereabouts and confirm that he is okay, that perhaps you can find him and drag him back home to you.
Your stomach dips when Jungkook’s brother contacts you back only to let you know that your fiancé has yet to appear back at their hometown—not at their parents’ house, not at the brother’s house, and nowhere near their other relatives or old friends. Another call confirms what Namjoon had told you that Jungkook has yet to step foot at the company either, while none of your close friends claims to have been contacted by Jungkook since the day he was gone.
It takes a lot of convincing and pleading to Jungkook’s brother to make him believe that nothing is wrong and to make him promise that he wouldn’t let the news reach their parents. And it takes you a lot of vague explanations to answer all the questions that your friends throw at you with each call or text to keep them from finding out what is actually happening.
Your sister is the last person you call, and her voice immediately feels like a warm hug. Even before you start explaining to her all the details, Gahee seems to have sensed it, as if she had been expecting to receive this call for a long time.
“Gosh, I’m so sorry, _____, I have no idea what to say. Do you want to stay here with us until he comes back? Youngjae has a conference to attend out of town this weekend and I was just about to ask you to stay here to keep me company and help out with Gyeoul anyway,” she softly says.
“I don’t know,” you whisper into the call. “I want to be here if—when he comes back.” Your throat feels constricted that you can barely say those words, and you realise just how unconvincing you sounded even to yourself. Your eyes begin to prickle and burn with tears for the lost hope, but you suck a deep breath and hold everything in. Only for your effort to turn futile when your sister offers,
“I know that you want to wait for him. But would it be a good idea to wait on your own? At least when you’re here, you have Gyeoul and me to distract you. You wouldn’t have everything that reminds you of him suffocating and torturing you in your wait.”
Suffocating? Is that what this place is making me feel?
You begin to wonder about this just when your chest grows even tighter the moment your eyes fall on one of the photos that Jungkook had put on display. An old photo of you taken on your birthday two years ago.
You close your eyes briefly before taking another look around you just as you end the phone call. Not a moment too soon, the silence sinks in, as if it has been waiting in the shadows, lurking around you until the moment you are no longer busy with calls and texts to finally notice it and it would finally engulf you, wrapping itself around you until you find it hard to simply breathe.
Right at that moment, you know that you would never be able to survive sitting here in your silence and in the not knowing only to wait helplessly for Jungkook’s return. Determined to not let yourself drown in sorrow, you finally make your move.
By dusk, you have your personal things packed up. Essential things that you would need to get through the upcoming days and only enough spare clothes to get through the week. By nightfall, you are sitting inside an Uber ride taking you across the city. The hollowness follows you even after you are kilometres away from your apartment, though you can slowly feel it fading, chipped in with every added distance. You try not to think too much about where you are heading to, keeping your eyes looking out the window and watching closely at the city that still thrives while your entire world seems to be falling apart.
By the time you reach your destination, your chest no longer feels tight, though you still feel completely numb. And it doesn’t help eliminate your spiking nerves as you stand right in front of the doorway, your heart stammering in your chest as you are waiting for it to be opened.
The sound of the keys and the door clicking open feels like a gavel coming down to seal your fate. A sense of uncertainty plagues you as you are standing there, though it all fades so quickly when you lift your face and meet Namjoon’s eyes.
“I—I don’t know why I’m here, but—”
Once again, you feel as if your throat is clogged when you are not even completely sure how to explain yourself. The last thing you remember was feeling the dread of loneliness while being alone inside your home. That intense feeling had pulled you right out of it to find solace, only to lead you all the way here, back to his door.
While you are busy questioning yourself, Namjoon simply smiles at you and steps aside, widening the door behind him so you could step right past him. There is no question in his eyes, no doubt in his smile, and there is nothing but pure warmth engulfing you when he says,
“Come in. You’re always welcome here, _____.”
➥ Author’s note | Forgive me for the wait, but this one took a bit of time to finish. As you may have noticed, I have added another chapter on the masterpost. I have decided to split the original chapter into two, with chapter 8 as the filler chapter, while more intriguing stuff will happen later on chapter 9. I hope you enjoyed reading this one. Thank you for joining this emotional ride. Any feedback is welcome!
summary:Jeon Jungkook has fucked up big time. Unlike you, he woke up with perfectly clear memories of fucking you. He spends every spare moment of his shift staring at you and trying not to get caught. Your father is his, uh, bosswho very much knows how to use a knife, yikes. Jungkook definitely shouldn’t like you. But he does. Ah, shit.
warnings: rated M (18+) for language; Jungkook is low-key a horny mess at work; graphic descriptions of sexual acts (fem reader, penetrative sex, cowgirl); actually just fluff; non-idol!BTS; waiter!Jungkook x hostess!reader; Jungkook’s POV, ft waiter!JImin
–
“Fuck, that ass is illegal. Those fucking legs. Ugh, I don’t know how she does it, wearing those heels all night…”
“Lusting after your favorite hostess?”
Jeon Jungkook jumped ten feet into the air, greeted by the mischievous, perceptive expression of Park Jimin. The shorter man was dressed sharply in the restaurant’s waiter uniform – black vest, crisp navy shirt, black slacks, restaurant logo pin on the vest pocket atop a tucked, folded, patterned navy handkerchief.
“How many times do I have to tell you?” Jimin chastised the second Jungkook faced him, reaching over with his small hands and plucking the handkerchief from Jungkook’s vest. “Left over right, not right over left.”
Jungkook felt his cheeks burn as the blond-haired man refolded it. The restaurant was bustling with activity, loud conversations and utensils against plates enough to mask Jimin’s words to anyone but him, who was standing in front of his hyung.
“What’s with you lately? You were getting the hang of it and now you’re forgetting these details and nearly arriving late, looking all messy… Are you trying to make me look bad? After I helped you get this job?”
Debatable, but yes, Jimin had set up the interview when he asked for help job hunting. The restaurant had been looking to hire a few more servers. Jungkook felt eyes on him as Jimin returned the perfectly folded handkerchief to Jungkook’s vest with a pout, puffing one of his round cheeks as he continued talking. Instead of listening, he looked up.
Right into your eyes.
You gave Jungkook a teasing smile, the ever-so-slight sliver of pink tongue peeking between your painted scarlet lips.
Jungkook turned red.
Jimin jabbed him in the chest.
“Stop making googly eyes at the head chef’s daughter! You’re gonna get yourself killed!” he hissed.
Too late.
Jungkook was already remembering your hands on his waist, pulling him to you, kiss hot and passionate, your fingers sliding under his navy shirt, his own white t-shirt on your pretty frame, your sensual whisper in his mouth.
“I said I would give it back,” you had breathed against his moaning lips.
Jimin snapped him out of his thoughts by smacking him upside the head.
“Come on, back to work.”
Jungkook hurried to the kitchen, nearly colliding with the head chef himself. The older man raised an eyebrow and shook his head as Jungkook apologized.
“Pay fucking attention. You better not be running with the food,” the head chef snapped gruffly. “Kids these days, always making a damn mess of things…” he added with a grumble, rerolling his sleeves as he walked past Jungkook, revealing the pattern of intricate inked leaves on the muscular, spotted forearms, reminding Jungkook of his interview when applying for the job.
“No tattoos.”
The head chef was glaring at Jungkook right hand with flinty, hard eyes surrounded by lines of age that had seen far too much shit to be dealing with Jeon Jungkook right now. Park Jimin had been hiding behind one of the kitchen doors, wincing at the gruff dismissal. Jungkook sputtered, retreating his hand from the table.
“A-ah, I could wear a g-glove or–”
“Who cares these days, Papa?”
And there you were, waltzing in with your hostess uniform, floaty navy blouse with a black tie, restaurant logo pin gleaming in the center, tight black pencil skirt, sheer tights, black heels. You swooped down and grabbed Jungkook’s hand under the table, dropping it back on the tablecloth.
“They’re small and, look, one of them is a heart. What gang do you think he’s part of? Hm? Gang of spreading love throughout the galaxy?”
The older man rubbed his forehead, running his fingers through salt-and-pepper strands. “It’s going to look fucking terrible for our reputation if–”
“What looks terrible is you swearing in the back all the time,” you chuckled, taking the resume in front of your father. “He’s handsome. Think of all the customers he’ll bring, especially the younger crowd. They’ll think he’s cool.”
“Work is not about being cool–”
“Butappearances matter,” you cut off your father once again, framing Jungkook’s stunned expression with the paper and your hand. “Look at him. He’s a good-looking guy. People will come back to eat here just to see him.”
Your father sighed, relenting slightly but not too much. “His hair is too fucking long.”
“Then he’ll cut it.”
And then you finally, finally turned your head to look at him, sparkling eyes full of life, taking his breath away, your simple but exquisitely done makeup merely accenting your mirthful gaze and teasing smile, thoroughly amused with knocking down your father a peg.
“Mmm, maybe not too much though. You look pretty good with long hair.”
Jungkook’s lips parted, completely speechless.
You turned away from him and he could finally breathe again, still slightly dumbstruck at the whole exchange and amazed at how the harsh man in front of him produced such perfect offspring. He barely registered you speaking to your father.
“Besides, what are you acting so old for? You have tattoos.”
“Youth is so careless these days,” your father deflected, standing up.
You laughed, light and musical. “You too, weren’t you, Papa?”
The older man scowled at your bright, playful expression before sighing and admitting defeat. "Have Jimin show the kid the ropes,“ your father mumbled, placing a hand on your head for a moment before stalking off to the kitchen.
"Now I have to fix my hair,” you sighed, combing a hand through it.
Jungkook thought you looked wonderfully sexy with slightly disheveled hair.
“Ah, Jimin, there you are, you rascal, were you listening in? Could you…?”
Jungkook was cut out of his thoughts once again as orders were rattled off to him. He mentally noted them with ease, his short black ponytail bouncing with his movements, collecting the tray of streaming food carefully, balancing it well. He hadn’t known it at the time, too desperate for a job to consider it, but he was good at the work and, what’s more, he enjoyed it. There was something nice about feeding people good food and seeing their big smiles after a filling meal, thanking him with gratitude. Like everyone, Jungkook got his share of assholes (suspiciously, mostly men whose wives spent their time staring at him), but it didn’t matter, because at the end of the night, he would laugh about it with Jimin and his coworkers over dinner, swapping stories of funny things that happened.
And the best nights were the nights when you helped out.
You always ate later than everyone else and always your father, helping him clean up. Sometimes your mother was there too, and Jungkook would watch the three of you interact. You were a lot like your mom, more carefree and friskier, giving your gruff, stoic father a hard time. No one could joke around with the head chef besides you and your mother.
Jungkook spent every free moment he had to observe your attentive gaze tending to the customers, leading them with elegant steps and a gentle smile, on the cusp of playfulness but not quite. Jimin had noticed his infatuation immediately and teased him incessantly about it… until he realized Jungkook was serious.
“Are you crazy?” Jimin choked on his drink when he came over to hang out on their off day and Jungkook admitted to his crush. “You couldn’t lust after any other girl but the one with an angry father that has access to literal knives and knows how to fillet a fish in less than five seconds?”
“Uh…”
“… Do you have a death wish or what?”
Maybe.
But Jungkook also knew he couldn’t stop thinking about you. You were way too cool for him, too attractive, too capable, switching between hostess work, chef work, management, fuck, even waiting on the tables if someone suddenly called in sick. You knew all the ins and outs, always ready to help someone who was having some trouble. One time the men’s toilet was clogged and you tied up your hair, rolling up your sleeves and unclogged it yourself, not even batting an eyelash.
Jungkook did not think he would ever find anyone holding a plunger sexy, but he also hadn’t met you.
It was an absolutely terrible, no good, very bad idea to want you, his coworker, his boss’s daughter, his incredibly-skilled-with-a-knife and usually-wielding-an-iron-wok boss’s daughter. He tried not to think about it and stay polite and definitely avoided staring too long at your ass, because then he would have to run to the bathroom and calm his dick down, knowing he was never going to tap that.
Or so he thought.
Until that moment in the break room. Jungkook had ducked into the back to take a breath and hydrate from a particularly busy day, sweating a little from the hot kitchen. He nearly ran into you.
“Oh, s-sorry!”
“It’s okay, Jungkook. I don’t mind if it’s you.”
He had gawked at you and you gave him that gentle, almost teasing smile. Then your body turned a little, preparing to walk past, not asking him to move out of the way.
“Gotta get back to work.”
Your ass brushed against his crotch due to the narrow doorway, his body automatically following, pressing back, nearly pinning you to the doorframe. You paused, eyes shifting to him. Jungkook felt his ears heat, trying to pull away, not wanting you to feel his rapidly growing erection. There was a split second where you could have recoiled in disgust, maybe even yelled at him, but you hadn’t given him any time to move away or avoid you and he wasn’t trying to–
You leaned back, wiggling your ass on his already hard cock.
Jungkook’s eyes widened.
Now your smile was definitely teasing.
“Don’t take too long. I’ll miss you too much,” you purred, looking up into his eyes.
And you left.
Him and his dick.
Both very depressed about it.
Then there was that whole thing where he spilled rum on your jacket when he was out that one fateful night, not expecting anything, but it somehow led to conversation, more drinks, heated kisses, and finally going home with you to fuck like animals. He wasn’t supposed to like you in the first place and you weren’t supposed make him fall harder by being the perfect blend of wild and sexy. And to top it all off, you were endearingly confused and cute the next morning, slowly piecing everything together and wanting to stay with him once everything clicked.
Wanting him more.
Fucking him more.
Jungkook was, officially, well and truly screwed.
He watched you right now, chatting with a disturbingly handsome man – one might even say, worldwide handsome – looking so perfect and pretty next to someone like that, someone with a great smile and laugh, someone that didn’t wait tables for a living. It made his heart ache as you bowed politely, waving goodbye to the handsome man.
You seemed to sense his gaze and you turned your head slightly, smiling at him underneath your neatly pinned hair. Jungkook started and threw himself into the kitchen. If he bothered to look back, he would have seen you laugh a little, making the other hostess look at you questioningly.
It was all very bad and getting worse, because now Jungkook had memories of your nails raking down his back, your breath on his skin, pleading with him to fuck you harder, to drive his dick into your tight, wet pussy, to mess you up and claim you, pushing his head down so he could bite your shoulder when he came, ecstasy shooting through his veins, your thighs squeezing his waist. He now had memories of you wearing his shirt, laying in his bed, standing in his kitchen, eating on the couch with him. Memories of your smiling mouth against his, rolling your hips into his crotch, knowing you two were nearly going to be late if you started again, but you breathed his name into his mouth, saturated with desire, your bare thigh rubbing against his already hard, leaking cock.
Jungkook couldn’t say no.
Not to the most diligent, capable, beautiful hostess he’d ever seen.
A minor issue that your father sharpened his knives while glaring at anyone in his path, including Jungkook. Maybe a little extra violently when spotting Jungkook. He was getting less and less subtle about his attraction to you.
He tried very hard not to look at you, because if you caught him, you would give him that oh-so-familiar smile and then all he could think about was the way you rode him, hands on his shoulders, nails digging into his skin, head thrown back and messy hair floating around you, your tits bouncing right in front of his face. That harsh smack of hips to hips, the squelch of wetness mixing with moans, the pleasure racing through his spine, him wishing it would never end.
Sometimes you didn’t even have to look at him and he was already thinking it.
It was already the end of the night and you were shouting at your father.
“Don’t stay out too late!”
“What do you think I am, a fucking child? I’ll be fine. Stop worrying,” came the gruff response from the back. “Tell your mother the address if she wants to come.”
“She won’t, because unlike you she likes to sleep.” You were laughing in the kitchen, the other chefs already leaving with your father, off to a night of drinking with their boss. “What about me? Can I go have fun?”
“After you close up properly,” your father sighed.
Jungkook poked his head over the kitchen door, witnessing you grinning up at your father, everybody outside chatting as they waited. The older man frowned as you plucked the chef’s hat from your father’s head and put in on yours, taking his jacket as he handed it to you.
“That’s dirty. Take it off.”
“Why? You used to let me wear it all the time.”
“That’s because you were a kid, always trying to follow me around,” your father scoffed.
“I want to be like you. You will always be my hero, Papa.”
Jungkook noticed your father’s ears flush pink as he turned away, grunting. “Don’t forget to lock up.”
You hugged him and your father made a disgruntled grumble. “I love you. Be careful, okay?”
“Fuck, what are you, my mother?” the older man mumbled, but letting himself be hugged, patting your neatly pinned hair. You let go and he hurried off, letting out a puff of annoyed air.
“Bye, Papa.”
The head of salt-and-pepper stopped. Jungkook jerked his own head back as your father looked over his shoulder. He heard him sigh heavily, softer words now, words only meant for his daughter, words no one else was supposed to hear, kind and warm.
“Love you.”
Jungkook should really just leave. Everyone else was gone. Jimin had warned him multiple times not to stay behind, but Jungkook had pushed his hyung away, saying it was fine, telling Jimin not to worry because he had overheard that the head chef was treating all the kitchen staff to drinks tonight and that meant you weren’t going directly home with your father.
“Is it gonna be fine when I’m scraping your remains off the walls?” Jimin muttered and he pulled on his coat and shook his head. Jungkook had shooed him away.
He should really just leave, but he couldn’t, because, maybe, if there was a chance…
“Jungkook?”
He jumped, eyes shifting in every direction except your face right in front of him.
“Ah… yeah? It’s me?”
Smooth, Jeon Jungkook. He winced at his own response.
You tilted your head, swerving it this way and that to try to catch his gaze. “What are you still doing here? I thought you went home with the others?”
“Uh… I thought… I was hoping, maybe, if you want to…”
He finally looked at you and your playful expression, energetic despite the late hour, a true night owl and definitely not a morning person. Your smile grew. His cheeks felt hotter and hotter with every passing second. He really needed a few drinks before he could loosen up around you.
“Go eat something?” he squeaked.
You blinked at him. “Haven’t you eaten? I saw you devouring three bowls of samgyeopsal.”
Oh. Right. He did eat three bowls of pork belly. “Er… but you haven’t eaten yet. I saw you were cleaning.”
You nodded. “I could eat, yeah.”
Jungkook brightened, grasping at the little hope you gave him. “What would you like? I could order something right now and we could go pick it up. If…” He swallowed, realizing he hadn’t even asked if you wanted to spend time with him yet. “If you want to hang out with me for a little while, that is…”
You chuckled, shaking you head. “You don’t have to order anything.”
“O… oh.” He felt his heart sink.
“I’m already looking at my meal.”
He blinked at you. That gentle, teasing smile slowly graced your lips.
“I like Korean.”
Immediately Jungkook puffed his cheeks, whole face heating. “H-Hey–”
But you cut him off, leaning in and pressing your lips to his, hooking a finger on one of his belt loops and pulling him closer, arm gliding around his waist. Soft kisses, light and airy, murmuring his name, and he couldn’t help it anymore, his own hands landing on your hips and moaning into your mouth, squeezing that ass he had been staring at all evening.
“I want to hang out with you all night, Jungkook. You want that?”
Fuck yes, he did. But he also didn’t want to die.
“B-But, your dad…”
“Why do you think I spent all that time buttering him up, hm? Papa won’t mind if I tell him I’m hanging out with a friend… especially after a few beers.”
summary:Some parties you attend to have fun. Some parties you attend to forget who you are. Min Yoongi is looking for a friend that’s trying to do the latter. Jeon Jungkook wanted her to hurt him. Because if she didn’t, he was going to hurt himself.
warnings: rated M (18+) for language; mentions of (side character) drug overdose; background alcohol consumption and implied hard drug use; there are (even more) Marilyn Manson and Slipknot references; mentions of a previous toxic relationship (cheating and emotional manipulation); sad!JK almost does something stupid, but instead has sex (nice!); D/s smut (fem reader, use of a black leather collar and a chain leash, dubious placement of said chain (in mouths and in pants), public heavy petting / exhibitionism, choking, nipple play, so much saliva, slapping / scratching, literal ripping of clothes, hair pulling, spitting kink, m-receiving oral, m-masturbation, handjob, mentions of voyeurism); non-idol!AU - heartbroken, sub!Jungkook x goth, dom!reader; shifts from third person POV, JK’s POV, reader’s POV; I guess it’s a dork-meets-goth troupe
–
now playing – tainted love by marilyn manson
“Oh,fuck, she showed up.”
“You’rekiddingme. Shit!”
The crowd was suddenly more alive than before, rushing to the front of the huge house, the owner too preoccupied to notice, busy behind locked doors, upstairs with a rolled-up bill and credit card. Half of the people at the party didn’t even know who the owner was. The other half vaguely knew and didn’t care. All everyone cared about was that there was free alcohol, free swimming pool, and the very real possibility of getting laid.
Desperate times called for desperate measures, right?
There was one such desperate, not in the sense that he wanted to get laid.
Heneededto get laid.
The car slid to a halt and parked.
The sound wasn’t loud, but it seemed loud at the sudden hush of the crowd. The sleek obsidian car was adorned with a gaudy hood ornament of a skull with horns, complete with blood-red gems that matched the metallic scarlet rims. It was obnoxiously loud, it was borderline hideous, it was nothing compared to those that suddenly appeared around it. A whole damn entourage seemed to walk out of the shadows, except they clearly came from the cars that were suddenly parked along the massive driveway of the mansion, their pale white faces looking up to the flashing lights in the windows. All in black, mesh, vinyl, leather, thick chokers and silver rings, too much makeup and too many tattoos. Skirts too short, tops too tiny, clothes too shredded, pants with too many chains on them, heavy boots and wicked-looking high heels that looked more like murder weapons than shoes.
It was all very surreal.
The door to the skull car opened.
The desperate looked out the window.
A man stepped out. Fair-skinned, wearing all black. Rather simple in a long coat, black turtleneck, and leather pants, devoid of flashy accessories. Sleek black boots with neatly tied laces. His hair was black, lightly curled over his forehead and the tops of his ears. The sharp, pointed, cat-like eyes were barely visible, framed by dark circles.
He clicked his tongue, peering up at the mansion.
“What are you doing in a place like this?” the man muttered under his breath.
The passenger door opened and a woman in black strode out.
Plaid skirt, bare legs, mesh top over a black bra, topped off with a cropped, lush fur jacket, hair wild, left eye with a white contact. Just the left. A black choker with the word ‘MEOW’ was around her neck. Wine-red stained lips, black eyeshadow, and an amused smile.
“You sure your little friend is here, Yoongi?”
Min Yoongi let out thin sigh. “That’s what Jimin said.”
She ticked her finger to the crowd behind her, indicating them to follow, strutting up the winding path to the front door. Yoongi fell in step right behind her, eyes darting from side to side, searching the watching faces in the windows.
“He’s trying to get involved with cocaine?” she called, moving like liquid grace, each heel from the heavy black boots thudding loudly on the concrete, hypnotic hips swaying.
“I don’t fucking know what he’s doing, other than he shouldn’t be here. He just moved to the city. Jimin said apparently he broke up with his long-time girlfriend and now for some reason he’s in a place like this.”
The crowd was silent as the sea of black filtered in, dark lips claiming surprised mouths, suddenly injecting sound into the silence, causing a ruckus as they pushed people aside, heading for the alcohol, keeping a lookout for the one she asked them to find.
A favor for her.
“Yoongi.”
“What?”
“What are you going to do if I find him first?”
The man in black shrugged. “If he’s with you, then he’s better than fine.” He chuckled, clearly thinking about it. “In fact, I’m hoping you find him first.”
She grinned demonically, tongue tracing her teeth.
-
Jeon Jungkook was desperate to forget.
He didn’t like things like this. Big parties, too much alcohol, babbling strangers. The mob scene that was too obscene, trapped in a sea of faces knowing no one and nothing, but he needed to get out, get the fuck out of his head and his feelings and his memories. He had never been someone who thought memories were tortuous.
It was easy, Jungkook. You’re so fucking easy to trick.You’ll believe anything.
They were. Memories were torture.
Jungkook still hadn’t brought himself to finish his first drink though.
He had been clutching the plastic cup for nearly two hours now and he couldn’t finish it because he really didn’t know what the fuck he was supposed to be doing.
Get drunk? Get laid? Attempt to take some of that of those weird questionable white powder those giggly girls had tried to offer him? They had moved on quickly before he could get a stammering reply out.
“Sorry, you’re straight-laced, huh? Hehehe, don’t tattletale now! Good boys should stay good!”
Fuck.
Was it really thatfucking obvious that he didn’t fit in here?
No one tried to make him leave, but no one tried to speak to him either. Not that he could talk that well anyway, because he didn’t know what to say. He just clutched his cup and scooted around the edges of the party, watching everything behind his thin, silver-framed round glasses. He shouldn’t have worn these. He thought they would make him look more approachable, but now he realized they made him look like a dork.
The crowd suddenly became silent.
Jungkook found himself following the gaze of the masses, looking out the window in the second story of the mansion.
A woman was departing from a car.
He felt his breath catch his throat.
There were lots of other people down there too, everyone in black and chains and leather, but the woman was clearly the leader, the one with the short fur coat and plaid skirt, wearing a wicked grin that disappeared under the awning of the front porch.
Jungkook stayed away from people like that.
Usually.
But.
He was lovey-dovey, sad and lonely.
You’re such a cliché, Jungkook. Flowers and chocolate? You never were that creative. I found someone else. Someone better.
What the fuck was better supposed to mean anyway? That’s what she liked, or at least that’s what she said so. She said she liked the traditions. He struggled with public displays of affection, but went through the cheesy photos anyway because his girlfriend liked them.
Were those lies too?
Jungkook found himself in the bathroom.
No.
Not his girlfriend anymore.
His ex-girlfriend.
His reflection stared back at him, wide brown eyes, silver round glasses, short black hair neatly parted, blue and yellow wide-striped shirt with a contrasting white collar, straight leg blue jeans. Shit. He looked like a children’s TV show host. No wonder no one talked to him.
How many? Eh, I don’t know. Five? Six guys? Yeah, the entire time. What, you thought I was serious about you? Of course not. Your gullible ass will do anything as long as someone says I love you.
Fuck.
He should just find those giggly girls again, snort as much of that white powder as he could, and pray that he didn’t wake up in the morning.
“Hey.”
Jungkook started at the sudden voice. A guy with long, stringy black and red hair was standing next to him. He was short. He appeared to be wearing a white mask with black lines all over it. It covered his whole face so Jungkook couldn’t see any of his features except his eyes. He was also wearing black coveralls that indicated a small, thin frame with callused hands and chipped black fingernails.
Oh, fuck, he was going to get mugged or worse.
“You look like you could use some new shit,” the grating, hollow voice beneath the mask said.
“N-No, I’m g-g-good…!”
There were more. More people, all in black, crowding into the small bathroom, leather and chains and fishnets and eyeliner, cornering him.
He was gonna die.
He was gonna die right here, surrounded by a bunch of guys dressed like Dracula’s school peers.
The one with the white mask reached up and plucked the round glasses off his face. Jungkook jerked back, dropping his cup into the sink, spilling the beer down the drain.
Oh, fuck. He just yeeted his emotional support alcohol. Now what was he supposed to do with his hands?
The white mask inspected the silver glasses.
“No offense, dude, but these make you look like Harry Potter,” the gruff voice chuckled, snapping them closed and tucking them into his coverall breast pocket. “I don’t think you’re going to need these tonight. You wanna get laid, don’t you?”
Was he thatobvious?!
Jungkook’s eyes darted around to the people around him, feeling his ears burning hotly. The rest of the guys shrugged and gave him looks that read, good try, maybe try harderandthey did make you look like a nerd, bro. Casually affirming his dorkiness. Great.
“She’s not gonna want you like this.”
“P… Pardon? Who?” he squeaked.
He asked who, but Jungkook felt that he kind of already knew.
The short man in the white mask cackled, raspy and guttural.
“Let’s get you outta these elementary school kid clothes and put you in something she’ll actually want to fuck you in.”
-
Yoongi tilted his head.
“Move.”
The man wearing a fake designer sweat set tugged the expensive headphones off his ears and pointed to himself. “Me?”
“Yeah, you. Move. This music is shit.”
“Uh… but… my stuff… don’t break it, man.”
Yoongi’s eyes followed the DJ as he stumbled out from behind his equipment, looking a mixture of confused, sheepish, and intimidated. He waited until the man had sufficiently scurried aside before striding behind the turntable, glancing at the laptop and current playlist.
He clicked his tongue disapprovingly.
“Don’t worry,” Yoongi assured the man coldly, wiping off the earcups of the headphones with his coat sleeve. “I treat music equipment with much more compassion than other human beings.”
“Ha… hah…”
“Go get a drink. You’re done here now.”
Yoongi typed into the computer to bring up his own Spotify playlist. Clicked around. Ho. It looked like the owner of the house had a nice speaker system going on here, spread out over the inside and outside of the house. He could control what played through which speakers. Neat. He smirked and placed the headphones around his shoulders.
He was supposed to be looking for Jeon Jungkook.
Then again, it was always Yoongi’s plan to not find him first.
He cracked his neck and fed the house his music.
-
“What happened to Hana? I thought he was supposed to be coming today.”
“I’m here.”
You turned your head to face the raspy, grating voice. The short man with the white mask stood behind you and the living room armchair you had claimed as your sitting spot. It was one of those fancy, quilted, blue velvet things that looked better than it was comfortable.
Rich people were certainly weird.
“There you are, Hana. How are you feeling?” you chuckled, twisting your body in the chair, one of the shoulders of your fur jacket slipping off. “Seen anything interesting?”
“Mhm.”
You leaned your head against your fluffy sleeve and smiled at the white mask, waiting for him to elaborate.
Instead, he looked up and past you.
You heard the clink of a chain and a yelp.
“I found what you were looking for.”
You faced forward again to a man tumbling into your lap.
Immediately, you twisted your body back, snatching the flying silver metal that was falling in the air, gathering it in your fist and yanking up, pulling it taut so the man’s head snapped straight because the chain was attached to a thick leather collar around his neck.
Giant, quivering brown eyes outlined with black eyeliner and smoked eyeshadow gawked at you. His large hands were clutching the armrests. One tattooed. One not. He was wearing all black. Mesh black shirt, revealing the defined, muscular torso. Right arm tattooed underneath, barely visible. Thick black cargo pants with the side straps pulled as far as they would go because of his slim waist.
You looked into those terrified eyes.
Not his clothes, probably.
“Hana, what did you do?” you growled.
“Nothing.”
You noted the shoes. Chunky white sneakers. “You were psychotic enough to dress him up, but not to change his shoes?”
“You know how it is. The guys are possessive about their shoes.”
“U-Um…”
You looked back up to shapely lips and a trembling mole underneath them.
“I-I-I'm–” he sputtered.
You cut him off. “I know who you are, Jeon Jungkook. I’ve been looking for you.”
You spread your legs and jammed his thighs between them. Jungkook yelped, his knees hitting the underside of the cushion, awkwardly bent and hovering over you. You lowered your hand but kept your grip on the chain.
“Sorry Hana thought it would be funny to dress you up,” you sighed. Your voice became colder, addressing the one behind you without looking. “You should apologize.”
No reply, just the heavy bass and loud conversations of the rest of the party goers.
“Hana!” you snapped, turning around.
No one.
No short man with stringy black and red hair wearing black coveralls and a white mannequin-style mask with black streaks.
“That son of a bitch,” you huffed, turning back. You looked up to see Jungkook peering curiously over your head, frowning slightly.
“Uh… can I ask… what’s with the mask?”
“He doesn’t like being in public. He has a birthmark on half of his face. I’m trying to get him to be more of a people person, but apparently he kidnapped you and dressed you like one of us most likely against your will, so, as you can see, it’s working.”
You clicked your tongue, letting your gaze drift down. What a body. Very attractive. He must work out a lot to get a body like that. You noticed out of the corner of your eye that one of the guys was holding a beer and wearing a stiff blue and yellow wide-striped shirt with a contrasting white collar.
Ew.
Had he been wearing that? What was he, an elementary school kid?
“Um.”
You directed your attention back to Jeon Jungkook, the one you were supposed to bring to Min Yoongi and prevent him from doing anything stupid.
Jungkook slid down to his knees and looked up at you from between yours, tilting his head.
His short black hair was messy, pushed back with product. Some kind of gel. He had dark brows and a silver eyebrow bar piercing. The hairstyle and dark eyeshadow made his strong features stand out, high cheekbones and angular jaw, sharpening his eye shape if he wasn’t looking at you with those wide, innocent, doe-like brown orbs.
“Do I look bad?”
You smirked wickedly, closing your knees, sandwiching his shoulders between them.
“Nah. You look fuckin’ hot.”
His ears and cheeks flushed pink.
“What… What’s your name?” he asked with inquisitive wonder.
You told him.
-
She tilted her head at him.
A thrill shot up his spine.
Jungkook recognized the music playing now. He didn’t know the woman in black, but the raspy, sharp bars and well-crafted beat was enough for Jungkook to guess who came after him. He didn’t think anyone would know where to look.
But, then again, it seemed like his hyung was friends with the shadows.
The woman in black licked her teeth with her tongue and smirked at him. No. Grinned. Kind of demonic.
A little psychotic, a little mischievous, a lot sexy.
“You know a guy named Min Yoongi?” she asked, still holding onto the silver metal chain. It was attached to the collar on his neck. Jungkook had asked why they were putting it on him but nobody answered. They made him hold it and guided him out of the bathroom to the blue velvet chair that was holding juicy thighs and a plump ass. The short plaid skirt revealed quite a lot and not enough at the same time. Cropped faux fur jacket, leather boots, mesh shirt, bra, thick choker that read ‘MEOW’.
A pure white contact in her left eye.
“He’s been looking for you. Thinks you’re gonna do somethin’ dumb.”
Her voice was slipping into satoori, deeper, slightly gruff. Disturbingly attractive. She cocked an eyebrow.
“Why do you wanna do dumb shit, Jungkook?”
This was not the time to be turned on, but the way she said his name in that low octave of hers wasn’t legal. At least, it didn’t feel legal. He found himself sitting up straighter, swallowing hard.
Her knees were next to his shoulders, plaid skirt barely draping over the darkness where her legs connected.
Her hand darted out, two fingertips on his chin and pushing it up. Eyes narrowing, one white and the other with a dangerous glint.
“Answer,” she snarled coldly.
Your gullible ass will do anything as long as someone says I love you.
The woman raised her chin, looking down at him through her lashes.
“I…”
Jungkook felt scolded, like a misbehaving pet.
“I want to forget,” he whispered.
She leaned in, the gaze changing to one of stern attentiveness, listening.
You’re going to come back. You always do. You’re a hopeless romantic that believes in forever and happily ever after.
“I don’t want to go back.”
All I have to do is snap my fingers and you’ll be wrapped around them in no time.
“I don’t want to be who I was.”
His hands were falling down the armrests, blue velvet on the pads of his fingers, his voice getting smaller and smaller, staring into two different colored eyes, hexed by a poisonous voice from the past haunting him, in his memories and in agony.
Jungkook heard his own voice now.
I’m not coming back. I’m moving away. I never want to see you again.
But his brain wouldn’t stop bringing back memories he didn’t want anymore.
“I’m new now,” he breathed, not sure if he meant it or not, desperately wanting to mean it, breathing slowly and shallowly because she was so close, her ear against his lips, listening to his words, her skin radiating body heat that seemed to seep into his senses, soaking him anew with something different, heady from warm sweet perfume that reminded him of the earth, digging him and his memories deep down six feet under to find another side of himself. Jungkook was wearing someone else’s clothes, but he never felt more like himself in this strange and unusual situation, on his knees, whispering his thoughts into the ear of an unknown woman.
“They made me a new person. Your people.”
She chuckled darkly.
“They’re not my people.”
She turned her head slowly, slowly, one white iris in his line of vision, the color completely fake and artificial, but there was no mistaking the realness behind the contact lens.
“All I did was ask them to keep an eye out for you. They did this wardrobe change because they thought it would be funny. Didn’t have anything to do with me. People are individuals and they do what they want.”
Now her head ticked slowly, slowly to face him, one fake iris, one real iris, both fixated to his eyes. The hand holding the chain held it loosely. He could stand up and walk away right now. He could go home and hide in his room, crowded by his thoughts.
Or.
He could sit here, in a crowd where he knew no one, not even the demonic grin before him.
“What do you want, Jungkook?” she drawled.
You’re going to come back.
“I’m not going to go back to who I was,” he replied firmly.
His hands found the chain and her hand, closing her fingers around the metal, pressing his lips to that a little psychotic, a little mischievous, and a lot sexy smile.
-
“Oh, you’re home.”
“Daughter! Come here! I have something for you since your papa went to Vegas!”
Bright lights, boisterous casinos, big money. Everything for the risk, the excitement, the thrill. Life was a game to him. The bigger the bet the better, the hotter the fire the more your father jumped in, the more broken the heart the less he cared.
You used to be angry.
Then you found out you really were your father’s daughter.
It was hard to stay angry when you knew you were just like him.
“Ah, you’ve finally figured out my vibe.”
Your father had handed you a gaudy car hood ornament of a silver skull with wickedly curved horns. Blood-red gems glittered in the eye sockets.
“You won just this?” you scoffed. “You’re losing your touch.”
He clapped a hand around your shoulders, giving you a devilish grin, a little psychotic, a little mischievous, a lot like yours.
“I won the whole damn car.”
Your father left a week later. He left the car keys on a hook next to the door and gave you warnings that had nothing to do with the imported obsidian car now sitting in the driveway.
“Stay away from boys.”
You rolled your eyes. “I’m an adult now. They’re not boys anymore. They’re men.”
Your father smirked.
“Stay away from those too. You should know men are irresponsible and foolish. They live recklessly.”
He waved a hand and walked out to the black imported SUV waiting for him. You watched him go. You always watched him go, never arrive. Never arriving to birthday parties, never arriving to parent-teacher conferences, never arriving to graduations. He never said, I’ll come back. You used to think one day he wouldn’t, but your dad always beat the odds.
You smiled and went back into the empty house far too big for you.
-
“How you doing?”
“Mmm.”
“Hana.”
“… I ain’t dead.”
“You came come live with me again. House is empty now.”
“I spent my recovery there. It still… still gives me nightmares.”
“Sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry. You kept me alive. It’s the most anyone’s ever tried to do. The other guys don’t understand. They don’t understand why I chose to be a drummer so I don’t have to stand in front of the stage. They don’t understand why I grow my hair out over my face. I don’t care how sick or metal they think my birthmark is. I hate it. I hateit.I hate it.”
You waited for the shorter man’s shaking form to subside.
“You’ve been trying the mask thing for a while now though.”
“… Yeah. Helps.”
“You talk more now.”
Silence.
“I try.”
The white mannequin-style mask turned to face you. Only the eyes were visible.
“I try because you tried.”
You shrugged.
You had found him on the floor of the recording studio the band had rented out, among his massive drum set, pieces torn off and rolled every which way. Bottles and vomit and broken drumsticks. Snorted so much cocaine his body had gone into shock. How long, you didn’t know. He should have died. The doctors didn’t know how he survived and made a full recovery. They told you he beat the odds somehow.
You were your father’s daughter after all.
“Can I ask you to help me look for someone? A friend is looking for his own friend that recently moved here. Said friend seems to be asking around looking for something specific. Those big parties you used to frequent.”
You gazed at the mask, exhaling slowly.
“Probably to trying to do the same thing you used to do.”
You waited.
Silence.
Well. It was worth a shot.
“You coming with?” the raspy, hollow voice finally said from behind the mask. “Don’t think I can walk into those places without some supervision.”
“I’ll come, yeah. I’ll bring a few guys along.”
The white mask bobbed in a slow nod. “You bored or somethin’?”
You shrugged. “What else am I gonna do? Watch you mash some drums and pluck some strings?”
“Oh,that’sthe friend, huh?”
“Shut it.”
The white mask laughed, a grating, chilling, maniacal wheeze. “You’re changin’, Boss.”
“That’s Dad’s title.”
The shorter man stood up, waving a hand as he strode to the door of your office. “You’re actin’ more and more like your old man these days. Suits ya.”
“I’m not a wrinkly devil,” you scowled.
Hana, which wasn’t his real name, but the number he liked to be called when he was wearing the mask, paused at the doorframe. You hadn’t referred to him by his real name since the overdose.
He let out a low chuckle.
“Yeah, you’re more like a hot demon bitch.”
-
“Who hurt you, innocent one?”
He was too big for the chair. The blue velvet armchair was heavy, but it couldn’t quite fit two people, leading to the awkward position. His knees were on the seat and her legs were wrapped around his waist, her ass off the chair, his hands on the ends of the armrests to counterweight her back leaning against the back of the chair.
One of her hands was on his chin, her pointed black fingernails digging in.
“I can tasteit, Jungkook,” she hissed to his swollen lips, low and gravelly, tongue flickering. “Taste your desperation and your pain.”
Her other hand was tangled in his hair.
The fingers dropped from his chin and yanked the chain taut, making Jungkook gasp into her face as the leather collar snapped into the sides of his neck, his gaze captured by two different-colored eyes, unable to look away. She smirked, licking her teeth, her voice seeping into his thoughts and his memory, sweeping out old ones to fester new ones.
“I’m supposed to give you back, but I ain’t gonna do that yet.”
Rough tone, low octave. Was she aware of how sexy her satoori made her voice? Maybe not. He was entranced by it. The unique quality seemed almost dreamlike along with the moment itself. She wound the silver chain around her hand and raised it into his line of sight. Metal and fingers. She tilted her head, quirking an eyebrow.
Jungkook felt his breath still in his throat.
She pressed the chain to his lips.
His tongue slid out and curled around her fingers and the silver, moaning at the metallic taste and the flavor of her skin, unfamiliar and warm, coating it with his saliva, messy and slippery.
The side of her mouth quirked up in amusement.
She rubbed the center of his tongue with her middle finger, her eyes narrowing. Watching carefully. Thrill sliding up and down his spine, his head cradled by her hand and his tongue stretching out more, licking her chain-wrapped hand with a breathless whimper, clutching the armrests so tightly that his knuckles felt strained.
“Someone’s gonna see how depraved you look right now.”
Her rough voice was gentle.
For him.
He retreated and kissed down, pressing his lips to her palm, his eyes closing, shuddering.
“No one knows me here,” Jungkook whispered to that warm skin, feeling her wet fingers caress his cheeks and nose, smearing his own saliva on him. “I came… to get lost.”
A dark chuckle.
“Sorry. You’ve been found.”
-
You heard your name being called, but you ignored it. You were busy.
“Stop squirming.”
Positions reversed now.
You dropped your ass onto Jungkook’s crotch and bounced your heat against his hardness, one hand over his mouth and the other tugging on the chain, pulling it tight and choking him, the clinking sound mixing with the bass and the hoots of the crowd surrounding you and Jungkook.
His hands were on your waist, clutching the top of your skirt, his half-lidded eyes partly hidden by his short black hair. You tilted your head, switching to rolling your hips into him, watching his eyelids fluttering, throbbing erection pressing into your core. You wound the chain tighter, pulling harder, his wanton moan leaking out of your separating fingers, a slow grin forming on your face as Jungkook’s eyes closed, his ears burning red, his hands holding you tighter. Your hand on his mouth clawed down, down, molding to his pecs through the mesh shirt, choking him with the black leather collar and your manipulation of the chain, shorter and longer, cutting off the circulation and letting it rush back, leaving it for longer and longer each time, roughly flicking his nipples through the thin material, feeling them harden under your fingertips.
Jungkook moaned your name, hazy and intoxicated with lust.
Your name was called again, raspy and guttural.
You tucked your tongue into your cheek.
“Yoongi says take it upstairs.”
You yanked the chain taut and Jungkook resisted you, choking himself.
“You outta here then, Hana?” you asked calmly, looking up to the short man with the white mask covered in black streaks.
“I gotta get out of there,” he muttered gruffly.
“Make sure one of the guys goes with you.”
The mask jerked away with a tongue click, stringy red and black hair swinging.
You cocked your head. “You said it yourself. Supervision.”
“I heard you.”
The white mask and black coveralls turned, slinking into the crowd. You made eye contact with a group in black. Well, one was wearing the navy and yellow striped shirt. They noticed your look, nodded, and slunk after the short man.
You could hear Yoongi’s voice and his beats resounding in the walls, the lyrics inaudible because of the loud sounds of the party. You would hear the sound better upstairs even if it was farther away because it would be quieter in the bedrooms, behind closed doors.
Just you and Jungkook.
“Come. I got the green light.”
-
“She’s going up.”
“Took a guy with her.”
“As long as it isn’t me. She’s hot, but she looks crazy.”
“You wouldn’t survive.”
The three men wearing crisp dress shirts and khakis turned to face the tall form in black at the DJ table, headphones around his neck. The owner of the equipment was nowhere to be found.
Dark brown, cat-like eyes flickered upward.
“Go ahead. Talk shit.”
Yoongi slowly lifted his head to scrutinize them.
“Come on. What do you got that I haven’t heard before?”
His voice was quiet, ice-cold. A bristling sea of black was creeping in between the colorful crowd. One by one, they came. Leather, vinyl, mesh, too much makeup and too many tattoos, sharpened gazes clutching beer bottles and looking from Yoongi to the three men holding plastic cups looking increasingly uneasy.
A pack of vultures looking for prey slain by a sharpened tongue.
Yoongi waited for the end of the verse. He reached over and cranked up the volume to his own voice.
“Go fuck yourself, huh!”
He turned it back down.
Didn’t look away the entire time.
The three men backed up. “Uh… let’s go. Get some air outside. And stuff…”
Multiple sets of eyes followed, unblinking. Yoongi turned from the outside world to the computer, now disinterested, checking the playlist. Some of the songs were his. Some were unfinished beats with no lyrics. But it wasn’t all his music. He had other artists thrown in there. Inspirations. Musicians he liked for various reasons.
Out of the corner of his eye, Yoongi spied those in black fading back into the shadows.
Jungkook could have asked her to see his hyung.
But he did not.
Instead, the younger man had been making out with her in a blue velvet armchair wearing a collar and a chain leash, according to the short man in the black-streaked white mask. Yoongi figured Jungkook would want to do something reckless. He was not surprised by this turn of events. In fact, he had anticipated and hoped for it.
Jungkook probably needed her expert hand.
Dark brown, cat-like eyes glanced up to the ceiling. An open-mouthed smirk danced on Yoongi’s lips.
-
His mouth was full of metal.
“Come here, innocent one.”
His skin was on pins and needles.
“Want to see your body move for me, Jungkook.”
He was in all fours on the floor of a random bedroom in a random house. Probably a female’s room from the pink silk sheets and large, cutesy bunny plushies flopped over each other on the large bed. She was standing in front of it, black fur coat thrown on the white fuzzy throw blanket, her long shapely legs on display, hip cocked, grinning like a demon as he crawled to her, the black leather collar around his neck feeling heavy, carrying the chain leash connected to it in his mouth with a whimper, told that he couldn’t drop it on this dirty floor even though the blush pink carpet looked clean to him.
Jungkook didn’t question it though. He didn’t want to question anything.
He just wanted to act.
He was gambling with his safety, his sanity, and maybe even his life, but he didn’t care.
She leaned down as he neared; hand outstretched.
“Drop.”
The chain fell into her palm, wet from his spit.
She frowned.
“It’s wet.”
Faint disapproval. His body felt hot and cold. The bass was shaking the walls, beat thundering throughout the massive speaker system in the mansion.
Jungkook lowered his head. “S-Sorry…”
The chain rattled.
He could only take one breath before it was violently yanked straight up, silver gleaming against his cheek, the steel ring from the black collar knocking into his chin. Jungkook yelped, forced to stare at the ceiling, leather cutting into his jaw and under his ears.
She wound the chain round and round her hand, lowering herself out of his line of vision.
“Head up,” she growled dangerously. “I ain’t here to teach you to be a meek little bitch.”
And she slapped his chest, hard.
Jungkook gasped, wind knocked out of him, not because it was forceful, but because it stung, fuck, it was like searing fire, miniscule pins and needles racing across his hot skin, injecting him with the rush of prickling pain that morphed into something else, something heady and insane as her open palm whipped across his pecs, followed by vicious fingernails tearing across the flared path. He heard the mesh ripping, his moans turning into helpless whimpers, his eyelids fluttering, begging for more, one hesitation holding him back.
“T-This isn’t m-mine…” he managed to choke out.
“I know it’s not,” that gruff, amused voice teased, switching from the slaps to the long, deep scratches that were creating bigger and bigger holes, his exposed skin finally under her nails, no more barrier thin as it was, struggling to catch his breath, inflamed ecstasy clouding all common sense.
“I’ll pay him back. Don’t worry about others so much, innocent one.”
The tension in the chain suddenly laxed and Jungkook coughed sharply, oxygen shooting back into his brain, blinking rapidly before registering her hands were on his chest, grasping at the mesh shirt, growling animalistically.
“Worry about yourself.”
His eyes widened and she ripped the shirt in half.
Holy shit.
HOLY SHIT!!!
She dropped her head so fast that she was a black blur in his dazed shock. He whimpered needily as her pink tongue slid out between red-stained lips, planting on his bellybutton and licking one single, fat stripe up his abdomen and sternum, dripping what felt like scorching saliva, lifting off with a curl of wet muscle and a devious smirk, suddenly eye to eye with him. The shreds of the shirt were falling, falling down his arms, drifting to the floor. His chest was heaving, shivering, shuddering, cold and hot.
From sex and violence.
One white eye, one with a dangerous glint.
“You wanna rip mine off?” she snickered, white teeth gleaming in his vision.
She wasn’t serious, right?
Right?
Her tongue slid out, pink and slick, wiggling in the air, squatting in front of him, thick thighs spread, plump ass resting on her boots, mesh shirt stretched over her black bra, swell of her breasts clearly visible from how close he was, thin fingers spread out on her knees. Pointed matte black nails. The tendons on the back of her hands flexed.
She looked like a succubus. All that was missing was some horns and little bat wings.
The sides of her lips curved upwards, a demonic grin as she leaned forward and licked his lips.
Jungkook determined he must be the crazy one for being turned on by it.
“Tell me if you can’t take it.”
Any response he had was choked off by her dropping head, tongue and teeth on his exposed chest, fingernails clawing into his bare skin, hard then soft, hardthensoft, sucking on his nipple and swiping her nails up his side and down his back, hard and soft, hard and soft, his back arching, moans torn from his throat, pain and pleasure blossoming like flowers over his skin, artful and deliberate, cold metal against his abs and stomach, the chain hanging down.
No.
The chain being tucked into the waistband of his pants.
She pulled on the waistband, button undone, the chain falling into his boxer briefs.
“Ah!”
Instant cold skimming past his hard, hot length, his body writhing from the shock of the sudden chill on his most sensitive skin, her free hand bunching the end of the chain into his clothed crotch, pressing it against his balls and length, the heat of his body rapidly warming the metal, a strange, surreal sensation that made his eyes roll back and his body fall into her grip, rocking his hips into the foreign object, her name dripping from his lips, overflowing liquid lust in the form of a garbled moan.
“You got a mouth,” she reminded him sharply, her knee pressing down on his thigh warningly. “Talk.”
“F-Fuck… Don’t s-stop, please, do whatever you want, please…”
“Yeah?”
Her voice was a treacherous octave, driving him insane as he felt her heated breath on his skin, licking slowly, nails in the small of his back.
“Innocent, but a masochist? Who would have guessed?”
Mocking, but not unkind. Squeezing him a little, unrelenting metal next to his hardness. He felt his cock twitch, low groan drifting from his throat.
“I’m not… innocent…”
“’Course you are. You don’t know anything about this world you walked into, Jungkook.”
She jammed both knees into his thighs and slammed down.
His hands flew up and clutched the front of her black mesh shirt, emitting a pained whimper as his knees were ground into the floor, lowering his head to look into her eyes. It hurt, but only for a second. His thighs were hard and tense, tightness in his chest as he gazed at that wicked smirk.
Sucked in a breath, enraptured.
She raised her hands and spread them out, fingers splayed, her chest out.
Jungkook curled his fingers into the shirt and pulled outwards, tearing it straight in half.
Her grin grew, a sensual hiss streaming from between her teeth. Her shirt shredded by his hands and his heated passion was falling off her body, his own eyes widening, surprised he had done it, unsure how she had convinced him, almost regretting it, but she purred his name and his head snapped up, one half-second of dual-colored eyes and then his lips were claimed, weight off his thighs because she was now sitting in his lap, grinding her clothed pussy into his thigh and her powerful tongue his mouth, stuffing his whines back into his throat.
His hands flush with her waist, gliding down to her hips.
Her hands on his face, gripping his head, holding him in place.
Strong tongue thrusting into his lips, her saliva slipping into his mouth, so, so good, swallowing it, fuck, why did it taste so good, drunk on it, sinking his fingers into her softness, his fingertips slipping under the skirt’s waistband, toying with top of her panties, trembling, thoughts racing, impurity crossing his mind.
“S…Smmph…”
She yanked her tongue out, hot breath on his swollen lips.
“Tell me.”
Cradling his head, inescapable fingers in his hair, her nails digging into his cheek.
She’s going to think you’re crazy.
Her tongue lazily licked around his open mouth, waiting for him patiently.
“S… Spit in… in my mouth…” Jungkook shivered, voice quivering.
She arched a brow, smirking.
“Open wide.”
His head tipping back, thrill shooting up his spine, her legs closing around his thigh, towering over him, eye to eye, white and dangerous glint reflecting his dirty desire. He was crazy. Crazy for asking and crazy for getting harder and harder. She yanked his head back by his hair, immediate flaring pain.
Spat in his mouth.
Oh.
Fuck.
It was watery, sweet, running down his tongue and throat, his eyes rolling back, moaning as if possessed, cut off by a voracious kiss, his grip on her waist tightening, pressing chest to chest, more saliva seeping into his mouth and Jungkook drank it up, drank it like it was life’s nectar, body to body, heat to heat, his hair pulled back again, the kiss broken forcefully with his airless gasp, mouth open wide to receive it again, whimpering for it.
She spat his mouth and the entire lower half of his body lurched with a gurgling, messy groan, smashing his crotch and the chain into her heated core.
“Careful,” she warned, nipping at his lower lip.
He was vaguely aware that she was keeping him in check, but this point he could no longer think straight, didn’t want to think straight, all reason forgotten, forgot why he was there, forgot what he was doing, forgot why he ever wanted anyone else in the world, his body covered in burning scratches, so hard that he felt lightheaded without being choked.
“Don’t want to be careful,” he gasped, swallowing hard, leaning forward, mouth open, wanting more, shuddering exhale on her lips, his grip on her waist tightening. “Want you.”
He reached down, tugging the chain out, sucking in a breath at the strange sensation, placing the warm metal links in her open palm, closing her fingers around it, pressing his lips to her jaw, soft skin and deviant smirk beside his shaking whisper.
“Want you to ownme.”
-
“H-Hyung?”
“Hm?”
It was the end of the night. Yoongi had treated him to drinks on his first day of moving to the city. They were standing in front of the bar, waiting for the taxi. The older man had hooked a finger on the navy silk scarf knotted loosely around his throat, shaking it lightly to cool off.
Jungkook spotted the red lines on Yoongi’s neck from the streetlights.
“What… What happened to your neck?”
The hand paused.
A small smirk appeared on those shapely pink lips. Yoongi lowered his arm, covering it back up. Those sharp, cat-like eyes glided to him, observing him closely.
“I should have worn a turtleneck, huh,” the older man mused, not saying anything more.
-
Jungkook was definitely going to need to wear a turtleneck tomorrow.
“Please…”
Her left hand was wound around the chain, pulling it so hard that the leather collar was pressing into the sides of his neck, right under his ears that were burning hot from blood and anticipation, her body crouched over him, wearing her black bra and panties. He was sitting on the pink bed that wasn’t his, surrounded by massive bunny plushies that weren’t his, discarded pants on the floor that weren’t his, completely naked except for the collar, her fingertips on his lips, opening his mouth as she opened hers, clear liquid collected at the tip of her tongue, dripping down, seeping onto his waiting tongue with a wanton moan, his eyes rolling back into his head at the sweet taste, the watery feel, the dirty act of him swallowing her spit while being choked.
Underneath them, the babble of bitches and rebels hooking up messily at the party. The very air saturated with the sight, sound, smell of sex.
And, in this bedroom, not forgotten.
The violence.
The only way to cure the lovely-dovey, sad and lonely, right?
She hooked two fingers into his lower jaw and forced his mouth open, wiggling her tongue in the air of his breath, one white orb and one with a dangerous glint, mocking his pathetic whines, her saliva trickling into his throat, leaving him hazy and drunk and drooling onto her fingers, his own tongue trying to extend and catch hers, living for the accidental grazes and her dry laughter bubbling in her throat at his attempts before she closed her lips around his tongue and sucked.
Bobbed her head up and down and fucked it, he couldn’t describe it any other way, the stretch and the grip inescapable, electric stings and cracks of flooding endorphins spotting his vision and his sanity, his hips shaking uncontrollably, his cock leaking onto her smooth thigh, pre-cum smearing everywhere.
She unlatched from his tongue and relaxed her hold on the chain, causing him to gasp and choke on the abrupt rush of oxygen, righting his head and lowering his chin, his eyes unfocused, but he was sure she was smiling, a little psychotic, a little mischievous, a lot sexy.
“What’s the matter? Cat got your tongue?”
Of course.
Jungkook looked down to the black choker around her neck that read, ‘MEOW’.
She snickered devilishly.
It drove him insane, unbearable arousal spiking like a red-hot poker searing his skin, goosebumps tingling all over his arms, his chest suddenly tight, breath trapped inside.
“What this mouth on you, Jungkook?” she purred, tongue dancing on the edge of her smile, already sliding down because he was furiously nodding, chain clinking against his chest, silver metal slowly unraveling from her hand, letting the end fall to the bed beside his body, her plump ass swaying with her movement, black panties framing the juicy curves with lace edges. Thighs sliding down his thighs and calves, softness against his hardness, deliciously flared out hips laying on top of his legs.
Fuck.
From his view looking down at her ass, it created a perfect heart shape with a black line cutting it half.
He was going to go crazy. Maybe he was already crazy. His eyes travelled up her spine, her wild hair, those dual eyes, stopping at her mouth hovering over his semi-hard cock already twitching at the proximity of her hot breath.
Pink tongue sticking out, glistening with spit.
A thin stream of saliva dropped down and hit his length, his jerking hips trapped by her fingers sinking into them, vehemently affixing him in place as the liquid streamed down and coated his cock and balls, trickling onto the pink sheets with the unknown owner.
Jungkook was sure he was definitelycrazy.
“Nuh uh.”
He whined, pleading.
She shook her head as if she was scolding a misbehaving pet, her head lowering, tongue snaking out and snapping her head from side to side, swift, rapid swipes ghosting his rapidly hardening cock and bucking hips, trying to get more in her mouth. Her nails dug into his skin sharply, forearms slamming down onto his shaking thighs. Pain shot up his body, causing him to gasp sharply, clutching the pink sheets, wet spot already under his ass.
“Naughty, naughty,” she growled. “Guess I’ll have to teach you a lesson.”
She dived down.
“F-Fuck!”
One smooth motion, hand off his hip and swooping under his drenched cock, back of her hand pressing it to his lower abdomen, and then tongue, tongue everywhere, licking fast and forceful, bouncing his testicles in the sensitive skin, raising an eyebrow as he yelped at the foreign sensation. She gave him a sly smile, lapping at the base of his cock right where his balls connected, her saliva his aphrodisiac, dribbling down and soaking everything.
“Oh… Oh, God…”
Touch so light the pleasure shimmered over his skin, brimming and threatening to overflow, wet muscle slurping around one quivering curve, then the other, sloppy, slippery kisses like shots of ecstasy invading his bloodstream, and then he realized.
The quality of her saliva had changed.
It was slicker, thicker, clinging to his hot skin and her tongue, a different consistency than when she spat in his mouth. His eyes found hers and, sure enough, her gaze sharpened, smirk widening.
“It’s different, huh?” she lowly chuckled. “You noticed?”
“H…How…?” he croaked out, exhale quivering in his throat.
But she didn’t answer, wrapping her lips around his nuts and he gasped out her name, tongue slinking out and collecting the other, stuffing her cheeks, his eyes squeezing shut, his moans uncontrollable, clawing at the sheets and locking his elbows, lost in the sensation of the warm cavern swallowing him up and drawing circles and diamonds all over his bulging, taut skin, her hand suddenly rubbing up and down the underside of his cock, muscles of her palm and fingers flexed and hard, ridges of sensation mixed with her drying saliva, his brain fogging and filling all his thoughts with mindless euphoria.
Wait.
Wait.
“Can you…?”
He was crazy.
“Can you spit on my dick so I can jack off?” Jungkook gasped out.
Thelookshe gave him.
She popped her mouth off, smug succubus-like grin hovering over him, lowering her hand, turning it so his cock was resting on his fingers, his own hand appearing, ink black tattoos on his knuckles and fingers leading up to those on his arm and shoulder. Their fingertips touched. A strange exchange, the pads of her fingers replaced by his own, his eyes flickering from her face to his cock, his heart pounding fast, so fast, but unable to breathe.
She opened her mouth and a thick, concentrated stream of spit dropped from her tongue and onto his rock-hard length, leaking in between his fingers, that smile and dual eyes honed in on his reaction.
Jungkook closed his fingers and began to pump himself, the violent moans he suddenly emitted so loud that he was sure someone outside must have heard. Were currently hearing. Listening.
Fuck, whatever, he was gone.
“Oh, fuck meeeeeee….”
Leaning back onto his elbow, giving that mouth access and she gave it to him without him asking, lips and tongue and kisses all over his soaked balls, adding more, licking under, all the way down, oh fuck, fuck yes, don’t stop, saliva everywhere, wetness stuck to his ass, one of his balls in her mouth and the other being licked, shit, fuck, how, how, how, no answer, her fingers splayed out on his hips and thighs, tendons on the back of her hands flexed and visible, him staring at it, staring at himself rapidly stroking his own slick cock centimeters from that beautiful demon on top of his body, her curves so hot that he was on fire, hexed and possessed by lust, the door rattling, someone banging to be let in, but he barely registered it, mind hazing out, dazed and dragged to the second circle of Hell, the hurricane intensifying in his lower belly, so close, so close, fuck, I’m so close, her lips tightening around him, tugging on one of his balls and bouncing her head up and down, sucking it hard and rough, the storm inside threatening to break.
“Open your mouth, please, please, fuck, wanna cum in your mouth, please–”
She didn’t have to do shit, she didn’t have to do anything he said, but she popped her mouth off and tipped her head back, glistening tongue lolling out, the red head of his cock hitting the tip, fringes of stimulation and the erotic visual plummeting him to climax.
“Fuck!”
He was so turned on that he actually shot into her mouth, missing her tongue and hitting the back of her throat because he didn’t see the thick white cum fall onto shiny pinkness until a second later, his hips flinching and gasping for breath, so much, oh, God, it was so much, awed at himself squeezing out stream after stream and hearing her swallowing with her mouth open, holy shit, sweat all over his back and hair, panting so hard his lungs felt like they were rattling in his ribcage. When he was nearly done, her lips closed in and he moaned at the feeling of her mouth around the sensitive head as she swallowed the rest of his orgasm, cleaning him off.
Licking him.
Jungkook was drunk, intoxicated on the high.
Lips so soft that he groaned her name, sweet and hoarse to his ears.
He was getting hard again.
Her hands were on his crotch, thumbs and forefingers creating a diamond shape around his cock, her fingers spread out, leisurely sucking him so gently, so deliberately, so good. He couldn’t talk. Couldn’t think. Could barely breathe.
That was how good it was.
Jungkook’s right hand was still wet.
Creeping to her hand, wordlessly tugging on it, his chest heaving every time he sucked in a greedy breath, the chain jingling against his torso, leather collar heavy and weighty on his neck. Her eyes found his. Whines at his throat, pulling her fingers off his skin, curving them, nudging them to her mouth that was now moving.
Up. Up. Up.
The tip in her lips, pulsing suction, shocks of pleasure.
Popping it off, his whine turning into a helpless cry.
“I-I can cum a-again,” Jungkook stumbled through his words, too horny to think straight. “P-Please, if you just–”
He must be easy to read, because she spat on his dick and started jacking him off hard and fast.
“Fuck, yes, fuck!”
Throwing his head back, staring at the unfamiliar ceiling, crystal chandelier and garish rose wallpaper, his veins on fire, lust incarnate, snapping his chin back when he felt her body rise, rise and grab the chain again, grip it and his soul. His eyes widened, his jaw dropping, that smile, a little psychotic and mischievous, too seductive, too addicting, too sexy, too much, and then – none – one last breath and he held it, her hand closing into a fist and yanking hard. Immediately, Jungkook locked his shoulders and choked himself with the collar, suffocated from throat to cock, his heart thundering in his ribcage, tremors all over his core and to every extremity, wet and soaked and messy from saliva and his own pre-cum pooling at the tip of his length and smeared all over by an expert finger, overstimulation excruciating but a welcome agony, the head now an angry purple-red, veins rubbing against bone and hard muscle, sogood, you feel so good, you make me feel so good, punishing his pulsating hardness in a wonderful erotic prison, his head empty, overflowing with dirty desire and filthy want, black threatening the edges of his vision, reducing it to those eyes and that smile.
“Scream my name,” she exhaled, cutting through his moans, low octave from her satoori, licking her teeth slowly, pink on white. “Scream my name, Jungkook, let the bitches hearyou.”
She could have said anything and he would have done anything.
No hesitation.
“Where’s your innocence, hm?”
A wicked, demonic snicker.
Tight, hot, wet, there.
Jungkook threw his head back and wailed her name so loudly it boomed with the bass.
She laughed like a maniac, his thick white cum shooting out and coating her fingers, his crotch, his thighs, and the pink sheets, unknown bed sullied by all the bodily fluids, handprints of his lust all over them and now his jerking hips were splattering his orgasm in flecks on her, on him, on the bed, everywhere, a whole damn mess. She yanked on the chain and his head snapped back, her lips crashing down, and Jungkook completely forgot what he came here to forget because now he only wanted to remember this wicked tongue, one white eye and one with a dangerous glint, demonic grin against his grateful smile, wrapping his arms around those sinful curves.
-
They were outside.
Their clothes were back on or, at least, what was left of them. That left them both shirtless. Nobody complained as they exited the party mansion, led by a silver chain instead of holding hands.
Now, his knees were on the asphalt.
Her fingers were tangled in his hair, yanking his head back nearly ninety degrees.
Jungkook really didn’t care who was watching. In fact, he wanted them to watch. He wanted no one and everyone to watch. Fuck it, he really didn’t care who was looking or not, he was much more preoccupied with his hands sinking into her juicy ass and begging for her to do it, please, please, want it, give it to me, and his knuckles were pressed into the door of the imported obsidian car with the ghoulish skull hood ornament. It hurt, but not as much as her denial.
He whimpered, giving his best pleading expression, opening his mouth.
The woman in black leaned down, playful smirk full of promises.
“Aw, don’t look so sad. Okay, I’ll give you the gift you want, Jungkook.”
And she spat into his throat.
Fuuuuuuuck.
His eyes rolled back, not registering the tall form in black, moaning depravedly and wretchedly, his fingertips slipping under her panties and grazing the wet slit underneath, wanting that too, but she had told him to wait earlier because she needed to talk to someone.
“You going to spit in his mouth like that in front of my face?”
Jungkook started at the familiar voice, recognizing the rasp and coldness. He scooted closer, unable to face it, heat rising to his ears and cheeks, staring at the short, black plaid skirt.
“H… Hyung…?”
“Hello, Jungkook. I see you’ve met the angel whose halo is held by devil horns,” Min Yoongi remarked calmly.
Jungkook clutched her thighs, frozen on whether to get up or hide under her skirt.
“Would you rather me spit on his ass in front of your face?” she replied just as calmly, running her fingers through Jungkook’s hair.
His eyes widened and his dick twitched, immediately hard.
“Both are things you can do in front of my face when we get back to your place. You know I don’t like it when other people watch you work.”
Suddenly, Yoongi was beside him, leaning over him, pushing Jungkook’s face into her crotch with his crotch. Jungkook’s eyes widened as he felt hardness behind his head, the scent of her sweet sex invading his nose, making him moan into her heat as he heard Yoongi kissing her above him, growling into her amused chuckle.
“OnlyI’mallowed to watch you go all the way,” his hyung hissed possessively. “And he has years of a shitty relationship to forget, so you have your work cut out for you, Boss.”
Her thumb stroked Jungkook’s ear, nail tracing the curve. He whimpered softly, slightly suffocated, trapped between pussy he couldn’t touch yet and a very hard erection.
“I keep telling you that’s Dad’s title. Stop calling me that.”
She pushed Yoongi away lightly and tugged on the silver chain. Disoriented and woozy, Jungkook stumbled to his feet, falling into her. Caught Yoongi’s sharp gaze and felt his cheeks flush hotly, looking away quickly. Fingertips gripped his chin and yanked him back, forcing him to look at Yoongi. The older man cocked an eyebrow.
“S… Sorry, h-hyung… I…”
“Sorry about what?” Yoongi responded coolly. “I planned for you to get fucked. Don’t be ungrateful.”
Jungkook felt his face burn hotter and darted his eyes to the woman in black, but she glared at him, telling him to look back to his hyung by digging her fingernails into his cheeks. He looked back reluctantly, swallowing.
“T… Thanks…?” Jungkook squeaked out.
Yoongi didn’t miss a beat.
He smirked, open-mouthed, a little psychotic, a little mischievous, a lot like hers.
“You’re welcome. Now, let’s leave so I can watch her spank your ass for coming here to get coked instead of coming to me to find someone to fuck your worries away.”
Smoke and Mirrors: a magician’s trick, the art of making an entity appear to be floating through the use of smoke and mirrors. In figurative speech, something which, once examined, is proven to be an illusion. Like the moon reflected on water, or a flower reflected in a mirror. Unable to be touched.
Description: Listless idol Jeon Jungkook has lost his creative spark. Something just feels…missing. And between jet-setting across the world and constantly evading public scandals, Jungkook’s life up until now has felt like a movie. One thing Jungkook can count on, however, is video games. Y/N has been gaming forever. And when a new VR game called Arcana is released, both Y/N and Jungkook are all over it. But what will become of Jungkook’s online persona when life forces the two to work together? And will Jungkook manage to keep his identity a secret from one of his closest Internet friends?
Genre: Romance, Drama, Fluff, Angst
Pairing: Jungkook x (gender unspecified) Reader
Word Count: 12.1k
Tags: Solo Idol!Jungkook, Gamer!Jungkook, Makeup Artist!Reader, Manager!Seokjin, Florist!Hoseok
Warnings: Swearing and mentions of alcohol, although infrequently
A/N: Haha….ha….ha….um, well this is awkward isn’t it? I haven’t been active on here in a long, long time! But God does it feel nice to return. In the time I’ve been away, I’ve been working on a lot of things at once. Too many chefs in the kitchen, except the chefs are projects/responsibilities and the kitchen is me and is also on fire. I think right now more than ever, I’ve leaned into writing to help me feel a bit better about the world. So if this story can make you happy that’s honestly all I can ask for. I don’t think I’ll be keeping a posting schedule, as that feels like too much for me right now, but maybe in the future I’ll come up with a schedule that doesn’t feel overwhelming! Regardless, I’ve missed you guys and I’ve really missed posting my writing here. I hope you all still remember me! And I hope you enjoy this story. Really. As always, please feel free to send me any thoughts or concerns! Questions, critique, comments: send them all my way! I can’t wait to get chatting with you all again.
And I’m on Twitter! I’ll put the link here if you want to follow. I’m very active over there!
“Well work harder, damn. Tiki’s about to go down,” you say, gritting your teeth as you whip around toward the dragon staring your party down.
It circles you, never once looking away, several stories tall with glowing yellow eyes that seem to leave trails behind in the darkness of the cavern. You feel at once impossibly small and impossibly fragile in front of such a behemoth, all purple scales and saliva stringing across pointed fangs.
“Just focus on offense for now,” says Sapphire, grunting as he lunges sword-first toward the dragon.
Your brows shoot sky high as Sapphire, a DPS like you, runs straight for the enemy. His silver knight’s armor clanks in his wake. “Wait!” you call, but it’s too late. Your teammate has his sword plunging in and slicing out and slashing wild before you can even prep your next spell. “Jesus, Saph!”
Smoke and Mirrors: a magician’s trick, the art of making an entity appear to be floating through the use of smoke and mirrors. In figurative speech, something which, once examined, is proven to be an illusion. Like the moon reflected on water, or a flower reflected in a mirror. Unable to be touched.
Description: Listless idol Jeon Jungkook has lost his creative spark. Something just feels…missing. And between jet-setting across the world and constantly evading public scandals, Jungkook’s life up until now has felt like a movie. One thing Jungkook can count on, however, is video games. Y/N has been gaming forever. And when a new VR game called Arcana is released, both Y/N and Jungkook are all over it. But what will become of Jungkook’s online persona when life forces the two to work together? And will Jungkook manage to keep his identity a secret from one of his closest Internet friends?
Genre: Romance, Drama, Fluff, Angst
Pairing: Jungkook x (gender unspecified) Reader
Word Count: 12.1k
Tags: Solo Idol!Jungkook, Gamer!Jungkook, Makeup Artist!Reader, Manager!Seokjin, Florist!Hoseok
Warnings: Swearing and mentions of alcohol, although infrequently
A/N: Haha….ha….ha….um, well this is awkward isn’t it? I haven’t been active on here in a long, long time! But God does it feel nice to return. In the time I’ve been away, I’ve been working on a lot of things at once. Too many chefs in the kitchen, except the chefs are projects/responsibilities and the kitchen is me and is also on fire. I think right now more than ever, I’ve leaned into writing to help me feel a bit better about the world. So if this story can make you happy that’s honestly all I can ask for. I don’t think I’ll be keeping a posting schedule, as that feels like too much for me right now, but maybe in the future I’ll come up with a schedule that doesn’t feel overwhelming! Regardless, I’ve missed you guys and I’ve really missed posting my writing here. I hope you all still remember me! And I hope you enjoy this story. Really. As always, please feel free to send me any thoughts or concerns! Questions, critique, comments: send them all my way! I can’t wait to get chatting with you all again.
And I’m on Twitter! I’ll put the link here if you want to follow. I’m very active over there!
“Well work harder, damn. Tiki’s about to go down,” you say, gritting your teeth as you whip around toward the dragon staring your party down.
It circles you, never once looking away, several stories tall with glowing yellow eyes that seem to leave trails behind in the darkness of the cavern. You feel at once impossibly small and impossibly fragile in front of such a behemoth, all purple scales and saliva stringing across pointed fangs.
“Just focus on offense for now,” says Sapphire, grunting as he lunges sword-first toward the dragon.
Your brows shoot sky high as Sapphire, a DPS like you, runs straight for the enemy. His silver knight’s armor clanks in his wake. “Wait!” you call, but it’s too late. Your teammate has his sword plunging in and slicing out and slashing wild before you can even prep your next spell. “Jesus, Saph!”
Smoke and Mirrors: a magician’s trick, the art of making an entity appear to be floating through the use of smoke and mirrors. In figurative speech, something which, once examined, is proven to be an illusion. Like the moon reflected on water, or a flower reflected in a mirror. Unable to be touched.
Description: Listless idol Jeon Jungkook has lost his creative spark. Something just feels…missing. And between jet-setting across the world and constantly evading public scandals, Jungkook’s life up until now has felt like a movie. One thing Jungkook can count on, however, is video games. Y/N has been gaming forever. And when a new VR game called Arcana is released, both Y/N and Jungkook are all over it. But what will become of Jungkook’s online persona when life forces the two to work together? And will Jungkook manage to keep his identity a secret from one of his closest Internet friends?
Genre: Romance, Drama, Fluff, Angst
Pairing: Jungkook x (gender unspecified) Reader
Word Count: 12.1k
Tags: Solo Idol!Jungkook, Gamer!Jungkook, Makeup Artist!Reader, Manager!Seokjin, Florist!Hoseok
Warnings: Swearing and mentions of alcohol, although infrequently
A/N: Haha….ha….ha….um, well this is awkward isn’t it? I haven’t been active on here in a long, long time! But God does it feel nice to return. In the time I’ve been away, I’ve been working on a lot of things at once. Too many chefs in the kitchen, except the chefs are projects/responsibilities and the kitchen is me and is also on fire. I think right now more than ever, I’ve leaned into writing to help me feel a bit better about the world. So if this story can make you happy that’s honestly all I can ask for. I don’t think I’ll be keeping a posting schedule, as that feels like too much for me right now, but maybe in the future I’ll come up with a schedule that doesn’t feel overwhelming! Regardless, I’ve missed you guys and I’ve really missed posting my writing here. I hope you all still remember me! And I hope you enjoy this story. Really. As always, please feel free to send me any thoughts or concerns! Questions, critique, comments: send them all my way! I can’t wait to get chatting with you all again.
And I’m on Twitter! I’ll put the link here if you want to follow. I’m very active over there!
“Well work harder, damn. Tiki’s about to go down,” you say, gritting your teeth as you whip around toward the dragon staring your party down.
It circles you, never once looking away, several stories tall with glowing yellow eyes that seem to leave trails behind in the darkness of the cavern. You feel at once impossibly small and impossibly fragile in front of such a behemoth, all purple scales and saliva stringing across pointed fangs.
“Just focus on offense for now,” says Sapphire, grunting as he lunges sword-first toward the dragon.
Your brows shoot sky high as Sapphire, a DPS like you, runs straight for the enemy. His silver knight’s armor clanks in his wake. “Wait!” you call, but it’s too late. Your teammate has his sword plunging in and slicing out and slashing wild before you can even prep your next spell. “Jesus, Saph!”
You hear his laughter like bells echo through the cavern, seeming to bounce against the domed ceiling and drip like water from the clinging stalactites. “Tiki! Distract!” you call as the dragon whips wildly: first toward Sapphire and then toward you. “Shit,” you whisper, examining your mana with a hiss. “I need a second to recover!”
Tiki, a massive green orc and also your team’s tank, rushes in with his battle axe. Upon the first hit, the dragon writhes in pain and turns toward Tiki, ire in its yellow eyes. Tiki says nothing, just lets out a string of labored breaths as he swings his heavy weapon. Sapphire is quick to attack at the dragon’s heels. The dragon opens its mouth to spew flames across the charred cavern, aiming right for Tiki, but before it can Zero finally heals him with a flash of white light and a bolt straight to his broad green chest. You jump, turn to the side to see Zero is standing beside you about twenty feet from the dragon.
“Get spelling, Nova!” he shouts, long blonde hair flying in the breeze his spell created.
His voice, deep and gruff, doesn’t suit his pretty, dark-skinned elven body: particularly the well-rendered female…curvature. Every time he talks, it takes you off guard. You shake it off and nod once.
“Loli! Get punching!” you call to your resident monk as she idles near the dragon’s tail. She says nothing. You sigh, rest a hand on your hip. “Loli!”
She jumps to attention. “Sorry! My roommate needed me,” she says with a laugh, rubbing the back of her half-shaven head.
“Tell her to piss off!” calls Tiki as the dragon, halted by Zero’s healing spell, recovers and swings a mighty paw his way.
Your mana is finally restored and, shutting your eyes, you summon a bolt of ice. With a shout, you spin your staff over your head before slamming it down with a thunderous clap. Ice splinters dizzyingly fast from the ground beneath your staff and crawls like frost until it hits the dragon, stunning it still for a few seconds.
“Health’s low! Saph, go for the kill!” Lolita shouts as she lands a solid punch on the dragon’s belly that shatters your freezing spell.
Without waiting a second more, Sapphire shoves his sword into the dragon’s heaving chest as it writhes from pain. It looses a cry that sends vibrations through the cavern. A few rocks tumble from fissures in the cave walls, and a stalactite cracks and careens toward the ground where it explodes into shards.
And, with that, the massive beast falls to its stomach, its head clunking to the ground in front of Tiki’s feet. The ensuing silence rings in your ears as the five of you stand completely still, waiting. It wouldn’t be the first time an enemy has fallen only to reveal a dormant ability that results in a second battle. None of you says a thing until the massive body before you begins to dissolve into pixels, leaving you with only the skull as a prize and a bag of loot in place of a carcass.
Lolita is the first to break the silence with a loud hoot. “Wooh! Hell yeah!” she shouts, clapping her hands.
You chuckle, lean on your staff. “Loli, you can only celebrate halfway since you missed half the fight,” you tease with a fond sigh.
She rushes toward you, wipes off her blue robes and crosses her arms. “My roommate came in!”
“And you didn’t warn us,” Zero chides as he smooths a few flyaway hairs, smiling. That model of his is just too pretty…
“I-,”
“Guys!” Sapphire shouts, jumping once as he examines the loot bag. “Look at this!”
You spin your staff in your hand and jog to stand beside the knight. His red eyes are bright, digging through the bag until he produces in one gloved hand—
“Is that a Philosopher’s Stone Fragment?” asks Tiki, similarly enraptured as he comes up beside Sapphire’s flank.
Sapphire nods. “Which means—,”
“Which means we’re one step closer,” you say, and you lock eager eyes with Sapphire who only nods. “Well shit!”
“Also means we were right to come this way,” Lolita says, holding up one finger as if correcting us. “And whose idea was that?”
Zero shoves Lolita by the head and turns back toward the loot bag. “Anything else?” he asks.
Sapphire digs around before shrugging. “A shield,” he says.
“Don’t need it,” Tiki says.
“And…mm…,” he pauses, brow furrowing as he pulls out a piece of paper. He purses his lips, runs a hand through his blue-black hair, cocks his head to the side. “Schematic?”
“For what?”
“Oh!” he exclaims, turning to you as he hands you the paper. You look it over and scoff. “Superior elemental staff.”
“Cuts down the mana I need to do spells,” you say, rolling your eyes as you pocket the paper. “Coulda used that today.”
Sapphire claps your shoulder. “Next time! We’ve still got three fragments to find before anyone else does.”
You nod. “Well, with that settled…,” you begin, itching to use the bathroom.
“Ah! You gotta leave?” asks Sapphire.
You nod. “Got work in the morning.”
“Eugh,” he sighs, shoulders slumping. “Me too.”
“Me three,” says Zero.
“Ah, the working world. We’re lucky, huh Tiki?” Lolita says with a wistful sigh as water from overhead drips onto her shoulder. She jumps a little, but settles easily. “Don’t you miss your reckless college days?”
You laugh. “I only graduated last year,” you say, turning toward Sapphire. “Speaking of which, Saph did you ever go to school?”
He stiffens. “Ah, uh…,” he begins, glancing at his feet. He’s quiet for a moment. “No. Not past high school,” he says with an almost sheepish nod.
You don’t say anything, but it seems like there’s something he’s keeping to himself, something he doesn’t want to share. Sapphire is always like that, but this feels a little different.
“Hm,” you say, sensing his discomfort. “Welp, I’m gonna peace out for the night. Message me when you guys wanna go for the next fragment. I’ll keep researching where it might be.”
“Mm, sounds good,” says Tiki. “I’m starving. Loli, wanna get some food?”
Lolita glances at Tiki out the corner of her eye. “You mean, like, real food?”
Tiki sighs. “Obviously real food. I don’t wanna waste money on game food.”
She laughs and nods. “Alright. I’ll meet you at your dorm.”
“Mm.”
Without another word, both Tiki and Lolita blink out, leaving nothing behind them. You turn toward Zero and pat his back. “Sorry for getting on your case tonight,” you say. “I was worried Tiki would fall and then…well, you get it.”
Zero shrugs, examining one of his perfect fingernails. “No, I wasn’t on my game tonight. I’ll be better next time.”
“Me too,” you say, waving as Zero too blinks out.
You turn toward Sapphire and offer a smile. “Sorry for asking about college,” you say.
He stiffens, brows raised. “Hm? Oh, no it’s fine,” he says, rubbing the back of his neck with a smile. “It’s just, uh…well, you know my dad always wanted me to go to college so…”
You wave your hands, shake your head. “Forget it, alright? I won’t bring it up unless you do first.” You smirk. “You played tank tonight, didn’t you?”
He laughs. “Yeah, a little.”
“Don’t do that shit,” you say, but you can’t help your smile. “What would we do if we lost you in the middle of a battle?”
You can see his posture go a little straight. He turns to you, blinking. “You…?” he begins, but cuts himself off with a laugh. “Ah, mm, well…I’d better get going.”
“Mhm. Message me if you get any new info about fragment locations,” you say, then chuckle. “Or if you just wanna talk about The Bachelor or something.”
He laughs with you. “I don’t watch The Bachelor!”
“Well, whatever you watch!” you call as you jog a few paces away. You offer a wave which Sapphire mimics before pressing the disconnect button on your headset.
You shake your head, disoriented as you return to your bedroom, your window sitting before you, the outskirts of Bucheon spreading out in spindly arms around you. Your head throbs a little and you wince, removing your sensor gloves and setting them gently on the light wood table beside your computer. You guide one of the philodendron leaves to the side so it won’t tickle the gloves. You shuck off the sensor jacket too and leave it draped over the back of your gaming chair. Slowly, you return your attention to the window, smiling down at the sea of lights undulating in the dark. It’s a nice evening, you notice as you press the pads of your fingers to the cool glass.
Your phone, until then sitting dormant on the tabletop beside your potted jade plant, pings to life with a notification. Your eyes widen and you grab for it, stretching your torso as you do to work out your aching muscles. Tonight’s session with the group had gone long, and the fatigue on your back is severe from slumping in that gaming chair like a shrimp. And even though you have to move your upper body to activate the full range of Arcana’s sensor controls, your ass feels like you’ve just sat through back-to-back, four-hour lectures.
BeastSlayers™
SacredSapphire: miss u guys already :-(
You laugh, watch as Tiki begins writing a message in response.
TikiTikiRoom: ..
TikiTikiRoom: dont be soft bitch ill kill you
You pad down the hallway, watching your phone as you stumble through the dark apartment with one hand on the wall bracing you. You connect your phone to the TV speakers and play some lofi something or other, bop your head as you enter the kitchen and flip on a flickering yellow light. You rifle through the freezer, produce a cherry red popsicle. You press it to your lips and smile.
Lolovely: I haven’t even made it to Tik’s dorm wtf why are you being sappy already?
CodenameZer0: Looool, Saph? More like SAP.
TikiTikiRoom: press f
SuperNova: I think it’s sweet :’)
SuperNova: Wanna voice chat?
SacredSapphire: nonono
SacredSapphire: someone’s coming over lol
Lolovely: ominous…
You chuckle and take a bite of your popsicle. But as you do, the thing turns to mush and slides from the stick like slop, staining your white shirt and your lips red. “Shit!” you exclaim, then rush to the freezer.
With a sigh, you notice that a layer of ice is frosted over the back. And as you jam your hand in, you can feel that the temperature is higher than it should be. Hence, melty popsicle. You groan, take to it with a knife from the creaky drawer. You chip away at the ice and keep chipping until the back of the freezer is visible once more.
“Cheap piece of crap,” you mumble, kicking the fridge with your socked toe.
You return to the group chat to a slew of messages.
TikiTikiRoom: WAIT SAPH DO YOU HAVE A BOY/GIRL/THEYFRIEND??
TikiTikiRoom: IM GONNA HAVE AN ANEURISM
Lolovely: !!!!!!!!!
Lolovely: ??????
CodenameZer0: Hohohoh
CodenameZer0: Could it be?
SacredSapphire: NO!!
SacredSapphire: i don’t have a boy/girl/theyfriend! i’m too busy, rip
SacredSapphire: it’s just someone
SacredSapphire: don’t worry about it lol
Lolovely: sus…
Lolovely: nova’s better at this stuff
Lolovely: interrogation
Lolovely: think if i scream hard enough nova will come back?
Lolovely: NOVAAAAAA
You laugh and take a few photos. First of the old laminate floor which now resembles a crime scene in cherry popsicle red. Next of your shirt, now streaked in slush. Third, of your face, lips stained like you’ve smeared lip tint on your skin. You pull a pout before snapping the shot, then send all three together.
SuperNova: I crave death.
SuperNova: Stupid cheap fridge. Freezes over literally monthly.
SuperNova: I hate it here.
Lolovely: oooh that pic…
Lolovely: kinda….sexy hehe
SuperNova: ???
You set your phone aside and take to cleaning the floor. Last thing you need in this shithole is an ant infestation. Your music bumps gently through the sound bar beneath your TV. Sure, your apartment is decked out in tech, but the place itself?
You glance around the kitchen, a sanitary white with pretty fixtures, and suppress a sigh. It’s all for show anyway, this apartment. Like almost all the others in the area, it only looks nice. The reality, however…
Well, it’s melted popsicles and a shower that only runs lukewarm.
You check your phone with a hip against the countertop.
TikiTikiRoom: lewd lol
SuperNova: Shut up lmao nothing lewd about my shitty fridge.
SuperNova: Anyway, no I’m not gonna help you bully Saph.
SuperNova: Leave him alone or I’ll bite your ankles.
Lolovely: !!!
Lolovely: qu'est-ce que pas?
Lolovely: Nova…you’ve been defending Saph lately…
Lolovely: hold on i’m seeing something…
CodenameZer0: Don’t threaten my ankles.
SacredSapphire: nova baby ur the only loyal one here
Laughing, you type your response and make your way to the couch, falling flat on your stomach with an unpleasant thump.
Jeon Jungkook sits still, swiveling in his gaming chair with a soft smile as he watches the messages surge through the Discord group chat. Even though they’re busy teasing him, Jungkook can’t help the swell of fondness in his chest for his group mates. He leans back precariously far, the room nearly pitch black save for the shifting LEDs on his keyboard and the purple screensaver on his monitor.
SuperNova: It’s you and me, Saph.
SuperNova: Now come here and get your kith :3
Jungkook chokes a laugh with his hand, covering his mouth as his eyes squint. He tosses his head to the side, lets out a sigh. Quietly, he touches the photo you sent and lets it spread across his screen. He chuckles, examining your expression. Displeased, you eye the camera with furrowed brows and a pout. Briefly, Jungkook considers telling you it’s cute.
But he quickly clicks out of the photo, clears his throat, and catches up with the chat.
CodenameZer0: God, barf.
TikiTikiRoom: no kithes for zero
Lolovely: lolol i want a kith :(
SuperNova: Get in line then. Saph first.
SacredSapphire: i….*blushes*
SacredSapphire: N-N-Noona!
CodenameZer0: FUCKING BARF GOODBYE
Zero’s icon goes offline and Jungkook laughs in earnest now, his head lolling back. But before he can respond, the door to his studio opens with a robotic jingle. He jumps a little, turning his whole body toward the door. He nearly falls off the chair as he swivels.
In the doorway, Kim Seokjin shuffling across the threshold with two cups of coffee in a carrier. He looks a little disheveled, hair windswept and eyes scanning the room round and round. His gaze lingers here and there: resting on Jungkook’s wall of figurines, then on the futon still pulled down and covered in a messy heap of sheets, then on Jungkook’s face as he sits perfectly still, perfectly redhanded. Jungkook’s mouth agape, his fingers poised to type another message to the group chat, his computer monitor showing no lyrics, no notes, no Ableton. Just his screensaver.
Jungkook had planned to pull up his WIP song before Jin arrived, but the opportunity to do that has long since passed.
“Uh…,” Jungkook says, dumbfounded with round eyes glowing in the flashing keyboard lights. “Hey, Seokjin.”
Jin’s nostrils flare, his expression fiery. His attention flashes to the sensor gloves, the controllers sitting beneath them, the sensor jacket left astray on the ground, haphazard.
“Jeon Jungkook-,”
“I can explain!”
Seokjin glares at him, cocks one single brow. “Uh-huh?”
“I…,” Jungkook begins, flustered as he rises to his feet. He feels like he’s in school again. Seokjin’s gaze is disarming, intense, and his knuckles are white as he crushes the cardboard handle of the coffee carrier. “Uh…I was taking a small tiny little break.”
“A small,” Seokjin begins, placing the coffee on Jungkook’s work desk and resting his palm beside it, “tiny,” he continues, leveling his eyes with Jungkook’s, “little break?” Jin’s jaw is clenched.
Jungkook swallows hard. “Mhm…”
Jungkook expects Seokjin to bare his canines, to sneer at him, to scold him to kingdom come. But his manager simply eases into a sigh and leans away from Jungkook, rubbing his forehead. It’s clear the will to fight with Jungkook is slowly leaking, and before long Seokjin has fallen backwards onto the futon, crushing the blanket mountain in his descent.
“Listen,” Seokjin says, fatigue in his voice. “You’ve got…so much going on in the next few months, you know?”
“I know!” Jungkook says, quick to sit beside Seokjin, brows knitting. He feels like a kid again, and the disappointment laced through Jin’s words feels like his childhood. “Trust me, I’m not just…like, procrastinating. It’s not that.”
Jin eyes him sidelong. “Then what is it?”
Jungkook stiffens, his back straight as a board. He clears his throat, stares at the coffee. “Let me get those,” he says, rushing to his feet with a clumsy stumble and grabbing the coffees before returning to his spot beside Jin. He hands Jin a coffee, expectant and, begrudgingly, Seokjin takes it and sips.
“Don’t avoid the question,” he says, stern. “If anyone’ll understand, it’s gotta be me, right?”
Jungkook nods. “No, you’re right!”
“Like, we’ve gone through some hard shit and where have I been? Right behind you. From day one,” he says, leveling a serious look at Jungkook. The lighthearted mood has fled from the room through the cracks in the walls. “All I’m asking is for you to put in the effort.”
Jungkook sighs, rests his forearms on his knees, laces his fingers around the coffee cup. He stares at the space between his toes. “I just…,” he begins, voice choked with insecurity. He doesn’t want to say it. In fact, he’d rather do just about anything else.
Because, after all, saying it means it’s real.
And if it’s real, then it’s a real problem.
“Listen,” Jin begins, patting Jungkook’s back. “I get it. Making music…it can be really tiring, right?” he says. Jungkook can only shrug. “And sometimes you might not feel like you can do it. Like you don’t have the inspiration.”
“Mm…”
Seokjin gives another pat, stronger this time. “But that’s how life is, Jungkook. Work doesn’t just wait. You’re an adult now. You’ve got adult responsibilities. And when you make a passion into your full-time job, you kinda sacrifice the freedom. Deadlines are a thing. You can’t just…be flippant and casual about it.”
“I’m not being casual,” says Jungkook, and for the first time since Jin walked in his voice is strong and steady. He sits up straight and meets Jin’s imploring eyes.
Seokjin offers a small smile. “Good,” he says. “I trust you. And, you know, you’ve got a whole team of producers behind you who wanna see you succeed. All you’ve gotta do is call.”
“I know.”
“You’re not doing it alone, alright?” he asks, and Jungkook’s throat tightens a little. “That’s the good thing about making your passion into your full-time job, huh? Now…well, now it’s not just your responsibility. It’s divided.”
“Yeah.”
“Well…,” Seokjin says, patting his thighs as he pushes to his feet. “Just wanted to drop by and check on you.”
Jungkook offers a smile and nods, standing with his manager. “Yup.”
“You do remember what’s on deck for tomorrow, right?” asks Seokjin, cocking a brow as he takes another swig of coffee.
Jungkook nods again. “Screen test with the drama people.”
Jin smacks the side of Jungkook’s head and crosses his arms. “Not the drama people!” he says, rolling his eyes. “It’s IJBC.”
“IJBC, right,” Jungkook says as he tenderly rubs the side of his head. “I remember.”
“Do you even know the name of the drama?” The younger boy falls silent, sheepish. “It’s called Give Up Generation, Jungkook.”
“I remember,” Jungkook says, pouting a little. “I just…forgot for a minute.”
Jin can’t help chuckling. “Get to bed early then so you don’t have dark circles,” Jin says with a smile, nodding as he turns toward the door. “Ah!” Seokjin pivots around, casting a disdainful look over Jungkook’s shoulder at the foldout futon. He pulls a scowl. “Sleep at home tonight, will you?”
Jungkook chuckles. “Alright. Stop nagging now,” he says, patting Jin’s back as he guides him out the door and into the hallway. “Bye, Jin!” he calls, not awaiting a response.
Slowly and with his head down, Jungkook shuffles back inside and slumps into his gaming chair, staring at his screensaver. He heaves a deep down sigh, lets it escape through his lips nearly pinched shut. Like exhaling cigarette smoke.
His phone pings to life with an incoming message.
SuperNova: Alright, I had your back before but I don’t cosign the Noona Agenda. I don’t even know if I am your noona.
Lolovely: seconded.
Lolovely: plus it’s icky.
TikiTikiRoom: boooooo
SuperNova: Wait, I think I just heard something in the hallway. Hold on.
Lolovely: SCARY!
TikiTikiRoom: burglars lol
Lolovely: ctrl z yourself, tiki
Lolovely: what if it is though…?
TikiTikiRoom: doubt it.
SuperNova: !!!
SuperNova: Lol it was a package…?
Lolovely: so late…?
SuperNova: Yeah…Lemme open it hold on.
The next message that comes through is a photo you send. Jungkook sits up straighter, opens it quick, and grins once he realizes what it is. A cardboard box, relatively big, sitting torn open on your kitchen floor, the photo features a look inside at several pretty makeup palettes and brushes. Jungkook doesn’t know the names of everything he sees, but he knows why it’s a big deal.
SacredSapphire: !! they finally sent it!!
SuperNova: They did!!
Lolovely: wait what? what did who send?
SuperNova: Lol, sorry. Uh I guess I only told Saph. But the brand I’ve been communicating with actually sent me a PR package! I’m gonna use it on my next job.
SuperNova: This shit’s super expensive too, so I’m lucky I’ve been in contact with a rep.
SuperNova: Gotta use the best to be the best!
TikiTikiRoom: i forgot ur a makeup artist lol
TikiTikiRoom: .-.
SuperNova: …
SuperNova: We’ve been group mates for like four months jfc
SuperNova: Anyway, yeah I’m glad. I guess they sent it to the wrong apartment? So my neighbor brought it over. He just got back from work.
Lolovely: neighbor?
Lolovely: cute neighbor?
SuperNova: He’s like seventy so no, not really my type.
SacredSapphire: nova, that’s super cool. i’m sure you’re gonna get big gigs soon.
SuperNova: Well, I can hope haha.
SuperNova: No, well…all I can do is work hard.
SuperNova: >:-)
All you can do is work hard, huh?
Jungkook tosses his phone to the side and rubs his hands up and down his face. He pinches his eyes shut and relaxes into the back of his chair, feeling the lull of sleepiness finally pulling at him.
And instead of going home like Jin asked, Jungkook simply pads over to the futon and, without moving the blankets, collapses atop them and falls asleep where he falls.
“I’m very sorry.”
“No…uh, no it’s fine.”
“Of course, you can keep the fees or whatever.”
“Oh, um, I…no, I’ll refund those too.”
“Really? I’ll give you a really good review!”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“I’m really sorry.”
You sigh, plant a hand on your forehead and heave a sigh. Forcing a smile, you shake your head and press your phone into the crook of your shoulder, bending down to give your fiddle-leaf fig a hose down with your watering can.
“It’s fine. Things come up, you know?”
The girl on the other side of the phone, a young independent model going in for headshots, had called you an hour ago and had spoken at length about why she has to cancel her appointment with you today. How the photographer did this or that, how she actually watched a few tutorials online and figured she could do it herself, how she felt so so bad. You feel bad for her, of course. Kind of.
“Listen, I’ll give you a shoutout on my page, alright? I’ll tag you in my story,” she says.
You shake your head. “No, that’s fine. Just, um…you know, take care. Remember to clean your brushes.”
At this, she laughs. “Thanks for being so cool. I was actually super nervous to call and cancel. I’ve had to cancel a few things like this before, and I’ve had bad experiences,” she says. “Anyway, I’ll recommend you!”
“Alright.”
“Thanks!”
You nod as she hangs up the phone. Gently, you rise to your feet and set your watering can aside on the kitchen table. You set the phone beside it, pausing to glare at the black screen. Well…there goes your Sunday. You turn over your shoulder, pad to the window, crack it open a little. A bracing breeze whistles through, cooling your skin. You shut your eyes against it — only for a moment — before you turn on your heel, shove your feet into your sneakers sockless, swipe your phone and house keys, and shove out the door.
The florist’s is a healthy walk away, but the weather is nice enough and you’re too tired to brave the subway even if it’s only a few stops. You pass buildings and parks as the landscape becomes more and more urban and the high rises look like they could puncture the cloud layer. Before long, you’re standing in front of Happy Garden and, stepping through the sliding doors that are always left open and all-but nonfunctioning with the lush green plants climbing all around. You breathe a sigh of relief, pat your chest a little as the fresh, grassy scent settles your heart.
You aren’t there for more than half a minute before Hoseok stumbles out from the back room, grinning wide with a bouquet of hydrangeas in his hands, wrapped in butcher paper and twine. He curves around the stumbling greenery littering every surface and encroaching on every walkway and comes to a stop in front of you. He smiles.
“Hey,” you say before he gets the chance. You hold up one limp hand in a lazy wave.
He glances up and down, from your head to your toes, and sighs. Still holding the hydrangeas, he rests a hip on the checkout counter and cocks a brow.
“That is the opposite of encouraging,” you remark with a scowl.
He chuckles, pats your arm. “What’s up?” He jerks his head toward the front of the store where bouquets are displayed and you follow behind him as he leads you there. “Unsuccessful raid?”
“Contrary to popular belief, my life doesn’t revolve around video games, actually,” you say, but his laugh wipes the grimace from your face.
His fluffy hair bounces as he bends down to add the hydrangeas to the display and when he stands upright once more he crosses his arms. “You know what I mean. You’ve been in here a lot lately.”
“Pardon me for trying to raise plants,” you say with a pout.
Again, he laughs. “Jesus, stop trying to pick a fight!” he says. “You must be in a really bad mood if you’re here acting like this.”
“Well what’s that supposed to mean?” you begin, outrage all over your face, before locking eyes with Hoseok and composing yourself. You sigh, nod your head. “Yeah, no I’m being annoying.”
He smiles, heart-shaped, and the apples of his cheeks grow rounder. What a joyful guy, you think to yourself with a wistful sigh. “Tell me about it then.”
He pulls one of the empty display boxes over and offers you a seat as he begins tending to the plants all around. You oblige, settle in, and sigh again. “It’s just…everything kinda feels like a dead end right now.”
“Hm?” he asks over his shoulder, graceful hands guiding a waxy leaf back in place.
“Like with my work,” you say, then shake your head. “No, that’s not it. Not entirely.”
“What do you mean?”
“Like…things are okay, you know? I’m getting PR gifts. I’m growing my following on Instagram. I’ve got consistent clients,” you say, nodding. “Like everything is fine, you know?”
“But something feels…missing maybe?” Hoseok offers as he moves to spraying the ferns with water.
You shake your head. “More than that, it’s…like, I feel like I’ve hit the ceiling of what I can do, you know? Like what if this is the best I’ll ever do?”
“Is that bad?” he asks.
You sigh. “Not bad, just…disappointing,” you say. “I wanna work on movies. Red carpets. Editorials.” You rest your chin in your hand and your elbow on your knee. You stare up at Hoseok, now trimming brown leaves from another plant across the store. “I don’t wanna be stuck doing birthday parties forever.”
Hoseok hums, turns toward you with his hands in his apron pocket. He offers a smile. “You sound like a brat.”
You stiffen, eyes wide. “I-,” you start, but there’s really not much you can say to retort. So, softly, you slump once more and shrug. “Yeah…”
“And if you keep that attitude, you’re never gonna be an editorial makeup artist. I can promise you that,” he says with a nod as he approaches once more and crouches before your knees, still smiling. “Everyone has to grow somehow, you know? Be grateful you’ve got opportunities to build your resume.”
You nod. “Yeah.”
“What brought all of this on?”
Shrugging, you glance away toward the big croton plant in the corner, basking in morning sunlight, leaves all stiff and red and green. It’s a pretty plant. You tilt your head to the side, stare longer.
“That model bailed,” you say, but you’ve almost forgotten the self-pity of a moment ago. You stand to your feet and wander toward the plant, hitting halfway up your thigh. You crouch before it and look it over. “Hoseok, this is a really big croton.”
He laughs. “Mhm.”
“How much?”
“With the pot and given its height, it’s going for thirty-five-thousand won.”
You raise your brows. “I expected worse.”
“We’re fair here!” he protests, wagging his finger at you as he comes to stand beside you.
You smile softly, run a finger along the edge of a leaf. “It’s really pretty.”
“Suits you,” he says.
Without noticing, your anxiety begins to subside. “I think I’ll take it.”
“I’ll give you five-thousand off since you’re having a bad day,” he says, patting your back.
You turn to him with a smile. “Thanks.”
He chuckles. “I’ll loan you the dolly so you can get that thing home. Just bring it back before two.”
You stand up, stare down at the plant, nod once. “Mhm.”
Hoseok makes his way toward the cash register, punches in a few numbers. You linger a few steps behind, still staring at the croton. You get a good feeling off that one. Hoseok would tease you if you said as much, but you know when to listen to your intuition.
“Your big break will come Y/N,” Hoseok says as he rings you up, not once glancing to meet your eyes. “Just keep going.”
Jungkook sits with his head leaning against the rattling van window, eyes half-shut. Seoul blurs past him in shades of silvery grey and it’s all he can do to keep himself from falling asleep. For all his nagging, Seokjin had been right about one thing: Jungkook was sporting purplish bags beneath his eyes from a restless night’s sleep. Jin sits beside him now, frowning at his phone as he scrolls through Twitter. He’d given Jungkook a very stern talking to once he’d seen him, and really Jungkook deserved it. He knows that.
“Your voice is in good condition, right?” asks Jin.
Jungkook sits up straight, clears his throat. He shrugs. “Yeah. Why?”
Still stewing over his phone, Seokjin waves his hand without looking up. “Don’t worry about it.”
Jungkook sighs, leans back once more, gazes out the window once more. His phone buzzes once and he grabs it quickly, eager to distract himself.
BeastSlayers™
SuperNova: [image attached]
SuperNova: check him out OJO
Jungkook clicks the image you sent and chuckles as it loads up. The photo features nothing of you save for one hand, reaching out from behind the camera, throwing up a peace sign. Behind your hand, a houseplant. A pretty big one at that.
Jungkook smiles and drafts his reply, but the others are quicker.
CodenameZer0: Another plant? Lol isn’t your apartment overflowing with them by now?
SuperNova: Hush. Look at him.
LoLovely: cute!
LoLovely: does he have a name?
SuperNova: I don’t name my plants.
TikiTikiRoom: lol
TikiTikiRoom: because THAT would be weird
CodenameZer0: At least Nova can care care for a plant in the first place.
CodenameZer0: Let’s be honest here, Nova’s probably the only one among us who is even remotely responsible enough.
SacredSapphire: Nova it’s cute!
SacredSapphire: name him after me ;3
SuperNova: Sapphire?
SacredSapphire: hmmm say my name hehe
CodenameZer0: STOP IT FOR THE LOVE OF CHRIST
CodenameZer0: IF THE FLIRTING DOESN’T STOP I’M GETTING YOU A TWO-WEEK BAN ON ARCANA
SacredSapphire: SHIT okay okay, let’s just take it easy
SacredSapphire: talk this out like adults…
SuperNova: Once I’ve finished setting up my new plant, I’m gonna play Animal Crossing. Anyone free to join? I’ve got oranges and mums.
SuperNova: Also had a meteor shower last night and have leftover star fragments first come first served.
The offer is tempting, to be sure. Not only would he receive star fragments, he’d be able to wander your island with the others. It might feel like you guys are side-by-side for real. Jungkook reaches into his backpack, slumped between his knees, and rifles around for his Switch. But as he produces the case, Seokjin shoots him the evil eye.
“If you’ve got time to play games, you’ve got time to review your lines,” he says, cocking a brow.
Jungkook sighs a little, slides the Switch back inside his bag. “I’ll look them over again.”
“Good.”
He takes one last look at his cell phone, checking the group chat with a frown that pinches the sides of his lips.
TikiTikiRoom: MEMEMEME
TikiTikiRoom: if any of you fakes get there before me ill go apeshit
TikiTikiRoom: i need so many
LoLovely: don’t need fragments, just wanna see ur cute face hehe
SuperNova: /blushes
SuperNova: I’ll open the gates once Sapphire Junior is nice and settled.
CodenameZer0: I’ll come too. I wanna shop.
SuperNova: Can’t you be cute like Lolita?
CodenameZer0: /gags
SuperNova: You coming, Saph? I’ll save a few fragments for you.
TikiTikiRoom: FAVORITISM
SuperNova: I am transparent about my favoritism toward Sapphire.
SuperNova: Because he is indeed my favorite.
LoLovely: *shocked pikachu face*
SacredSapphire: soz :-( i can’t
SacredSapphire: working
SuperNova: :-(
SuperNova: Next time we’ll all come to your island.
Jungkook tries not to feel that twinge of melancholy that tugs at his chest. That one he always gets when his friends go out for barbecue or grab drinks and hit the karaoke rooms. The one that feels like he’s really, deeply, fundamentally missing out on something important.
No, he doesn’t feel it. Instead, he focuses his attention on the printout Seokjin had given him three days ago. He scans the lines over and over, committing them to memory.
“No! That’s the thing, she didn’t even tell me!” says the girl below your brush.
You attempt to guide the highlighter across her cheekbones, but before you can make contact with her skin she’s jerked away once more, talking so animatedly that you can’t even tell if you’ve made her eyebrows even.
“That’s shitty,” says her friend beside her, likewise preoccupied as Jieun struggles to match her skintone.
The two of you lock eyes, both hovering over the two women as they chat over matching cups of coffee. Jieun puffs out her cheeks, raises her brows, and goes back to work, smoothing foundation on to the client’s chin with a brush.
You stand in a nice apartment — all marble floors and high ceilings and windowed walls overlooking Seoul. When you’d gotten the offer for a Seoul gig with Jieun, you’d been hesitant. The subway ride is long and you prefer to stay relatively local. But something made you agree. You don’t know exactly what. Call it divine intervention or epiphany or Jung Hoseok, but the words just keep going had been replaying in your brain since you last saw your friend. The pair of women — likely in their thirties — had booked both you and Jieun to do their makeup for a Sunday luncheon.
“And you know she’s looking out for him,” says Hyejin with a scoff. “As if I’m gonna bite the kid’s head off.”
“Maybe you will,” jokes the other woman, laughing just as Jieun reaches in to apply some liquid blush to her cheeks. “You know she’s got a soft spot for him.”
“Yeah well it’s a soft spot in all of our wallets if he doesn’t get his shit together,” says Hyejin, sighing. There is real woe in her expression and you can feel from the shift in atmosphere that things have turned serious. “He’s talented, you know? But…sometimes I think she goes too easy on him,” she continues, and this time her tone is decidedly softer, the movement of her face less pronounced.
You use the opportunity to work some powder beneath her eyes with a sponge. “Well, that’s motherhood for you,” says the other, flippant.
“Have you seen what the folks are saying on Twitter?” asks Hyejin as you apply shadow to her eyelids. “About his voice.”
“Hm?”
“Well some of his bigger hate communities have been compiling all the footage of his stage mistakes and they’re spreading it around,” Hyejin says with a huff. “Stupid, honestly. They’re making it out like he makes those mistakes all the time.”
“Netizens are like that, Hyejin,” says the other woman, now easing into her chair with her eyes shut as Jieun can finally get to work setting her base.
“Still…”
“Nowyou’re the one defending him,” she remarks with a laugh.
“It’s not that,” Hyejin says, scoffing. “It’s just…like if he doesn’t prove himself soon, all those commenters are gonna have more ammunition, you know? Which is annoying for all of us.”
“Sounds like you care a little bit.”
“I dont.”
“Hm.”
You focus on Hyejin’s full lashes, applying mascara with delicate, steady strokes. She hums a little as you use the pad of your fingertips to tame stubborn eyeshadow into blending more seamlessly. It seems, at least, that the conversation has died down. For that, you are very grateful.
“Say, do you two know anything about k-pop?” asks Jieun’s client.
The two of you lock eyes once more. It’s true that you are well-versed in pop culture: video games, TV shows, YouTube drama. But you’d be lying if you said you tune in to Inkigayo every week. And despite Jieun’s age and her trendy look, you know she’s not the type to keep updated on current idols. And you see in her brown eyes your own shock mirrored.
“Um…no, not particularly,” you answer for the both of you. Jieun releases a breath she’d been holding and smiles her thanks. “Do you two work in the field?”
Hyejin waves her hand and sighs. “Don’t go bothering them with those sorts of questions,” she says, and you notice for the first time the easy poshness that this woman has. Even with her head tilted back and her eyes shut tight, she seems sure of herself.
You envy her just a little for that.
“What? They’re young,” says the other woman, grinning with her eyes shut as Jieun works on her eyeliner. “You ever heard of RTE?”
“Hey now,” says Hyejin, warning in her voice.
“I’m just curious,” the woman continues with a sigh. “Look us up if you haven’t.” The woman chuckles, reaching out blind to smack Hyejin’s upper arm. “Hey, maybe even tweet something nice about our artists!”
“Knock it off and let them work,” Hyejin says, prying open one eye to meet yours. She offers a smile, apologetic, and sighs. “She’s just playing around. You can ignore her. It’s what I do.” She nods her head and leans it back once more.
Quietly, you get back to work. But you can’t help but feel like this woman’s incredible presence makes you paler somehow.
“What’s the point if it makes me unhappy?” Jungkook shouts, brows knitting, eyes growing watery. “The money, the lifestyle…what good is it?” his voice settles into a bare whisper, cracked.
“You only say that because you’re young! You’re stupid! You’re naive! You think things work out just because you want them bad enough?” says his costar, glancing down at the script every now and again as the two stand across from one another.
The set bustles on behind them, crew carrying tall lights and fixtures as they scuttle by. But Jungkook and his costar — a man named Namjoon acting as his older brother — continue their scene under the watchful eye of the cameras, trained right on them. Less of a screen test and more of a chemistry check between actors, Director Lim watches the monitor closely with his scrabbly chin in his palm.
“So what if I fail?” Jungkook asks with a quiver, referencing his script once to make sure he got the line right. “What’re you gonna do? Tattle on me to Dad?”
“I won’t have to,” Namjoon says, sighing as he grips the bridge of his nose. “He’s got his watchdogs trained right on you.”
Jungkook stiffens. “He’s been…following me?”
“I told you you’re too naive for the real world, Jiwon.”
Director Lim claps his hands and in an instant the tension and the scene are broken. Jungkook takes a respectful step back from his costar, and Namjoon offers him a bow of the head. Jungkook returns it, fighting off a nervous grin, and turns to the director as he circles around the equipment to stand in front of them. He’s a middle-aged man, handsome in a way with salt-and-pepper hair and eyes that seem to grab you and hold on like a snare. Jungkook is pinned in place like a bug in a shadowbox.
But Director Lim’s face splits in a crooked smile and Jungkook feels himself ease, exhaling long and slow. “Great job, boys!” he says, clapping both of their shoulders. “You were selling it well.”
“Thank you, Sir,” Jungkook replies too quick, like an eager child.
Director Lim chuckles, pats him again. “I’m praising you, kid. Don’t look so scared.”
He swallows hard. “I…I know. Um…thank you, Sir.”
Behind the trio, a group of stylists cart a rack of costumes quickly to the other side of the set, snagging the back of Jungkook’s shoe as they do. Jungkook stumbles to his knees, caught off guard, and the girls jerk to a stop as they catch themselves on the clothing rack. The two stare down at Jungkook, wide-eyed, and each of them covers their mouths. Immediately, they bow their heads in apology, both muttering sorry, so sorry almost too quietly to hear. Jungkook shakes his head and stands to his feet.
He too bows his head. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have been standing there,” he says gently, hoping to assuage their concerns.
But the girls remain bowed, as if too afraid to even lift their heads. Jungkook, puzzled, leans down slightly to meet their eyes, but they glance away so quickly that he can’t even get a proper look at either of their faces.
“Um…it’s really not a problem,” he says, but before he can say more Director Lim approaches with a grim severity in his eyes. Jungkook, quick to stand up straight and face the director, stutters a little as he settles himself in front of the stylists. “It’s no big deal,” he says to Director Lim, but it’s like the man can’t even hear him.
“We were distracted, Sir,” says one of the girls, raising her head slightly to meet Director Lim’s gaze. “We are very, very sorry.”
“It really isn’t-,” Jungkook begins.
“You think it’s appropriate to crash into my actors? In the middle of a conversation about their performance?” Lim asks, but it’s clear the question isn’t meant to be answered. His tone has shifted into something cold. “You could have very well injured Jungkook.”
“I’m fine-,”
“But what if you weren’t?”
Jungkook shuts his mouth, staring helpless at the girls as they both stand up straight once more, eyes on the floor and hands knitted in front of them. He feels a hand on his back between his shoulder blades and jumps a little, turning quick to find Namjoon standing close.
“Don’t,” is all he says, voice terse and so quiet Jungkook almost doesn’t hear it, before dropping his hand and taking a half step back.
Jungkook’s jaw clenches, his hands work into balls as he stares. The lighting is low, dramatic as if a scene composed by Lim himself. The two girls lift only their eyes to gaze up at him.
“We’re very, very sorry, Sir,” says one of the stylists, guiding a lock of dark hair behind her ear.
“Mhm,” he says, looming. “Make sure it doesn’t happen again. Can’t afford to replace two stylists and a makeup artist in the same week.”
Jungkook simply stares, Namjoon’s warning freezing through him like ice. His limbs feel leaden. And as the two girls rush off, dragging their rack behind them, Jungkook focuses again on Director Lim.
He swivels back around to the two actors with a bright, fatherly smile. “Pardon me,” he says, waving his hand with a warm laugh. “Gotta keep the crew in check otherwise they’ll slack off.”
“Ha,” Jungkook puffs out in response, smiling in turn.
Namjoon hums a little. “Why don’t we try the reconciliation scene?”
“What in the world do you mean?” Hyejin yells into her phone just as she ushers you into her apartment. You eye her as her face grows red, her brows coming together. “He’s not quitting!”
Hyejin pauses to offer you an apologetic smile. She’s dressed in a modest pajama dress, padding barefoot along the cool marble floors. She leans against the arm of a nice black leather sofa, raises a hand to her flushed cheek, looks at her toes with vexation. Carefully, you set your makeup kit on her kitchen island, meeting her eyes with raised brows as if asking permission. She waves her hand, nods once before pinching the bridge of her nose between her index finger and her thumb.
“Listen, we knew Lim was difficult. But this is a huge opportunity for his career.” Hyejin rubs her kneecap, massaging. Her short hair falls along the line of her jaw as she dips her head in a deep sigh. “I know you know that, Seokjin. But you’re his manager. You’ve gotta keep convincing him.”
You begin unpacking your things, setting them neatly along the edge of the countertop, and try not to eavesdrop as Hyejin continues letting out chopped sighs. You can hear her fidget around the apartment behind you. She’d called you again, only a few days later, to secure you for another important event. A meeting, she’d said. You didn’t want to agree. Wanted to say you were too busy, that the commute was too much.
“Hey,” she whispers behind you. You jump, but turn nonetheless to find her cupping one hand over the phone’s receiver. Her eyes are severe, jaw clenched. “How long can you stay? This call might take a while.”
You raise your brows, think back over your schedule. “Hm…,” you respond, then shake your head. “I’m free all day. But…when’s your meeting?”
She stiffens, eyes flashing to the clock on the oven. “Shit,” she mutters. She approaches you with a frown. “I’ve only got two hours to get everything ready—Yes! Yes, I’m still here Seokjin. Stop panicking, for Christ’s sake—,” she says, her shoulders pinching. She glances at you again. “Um…”
You glance around the apartment. It’s spotless, as usual. But you spy in the corner beside a massive potted umbrella tree a taupe pantsuit, hanging beside a steamer. You’d have thought someone in her position would have sent it to the cleaners to be properly steamed, but perhaps it had slipped her mind. With the way she’s pacing around the apartment, still dressed in her pajamas, you wonder if perhaps she’s not as put together as you thought.
“I’ll steam that,” you say with a nod, pointing to the suit.
She stares at you, wide-eyed. “Oh, no. You don’t have to do something like that-,”
You shake your head. “No problem. What else do you need done here?” you ask, consulting your wristwatch with a hum. “If we keep it light, I can have your makeup done in forty-five minutes.”
She blinks at you. “Uh…well…,” she begins, then jumps a little as a voice in the phone shouts loud enough for you to hear. “No! No! Can you relax? I’ll talk you through it in just a minute! I’ve gotta sort some things out,” she shouts back at the phone. She turns her attention back to you with a sheepish smile. “Um, I need to steam the suit, wrap the fruits — they’re a gift for the client —, call the restaurant to confirm the reservation, shine my shoes, organize our documents chronologically and set them up in a binder,” she says.
You have to admit that the sheer volume of busywork has you taken aback. But you steel yourself with a bracing sigh, nod once, and offer her a smile. “Consider it taken care of,” you say.
“Ah! I…I really feel bad dumping all of this on you,” she says, crossing her arms with knit brows. “Normally I’d have my assistant doing all of this, but she’s ill.”
“Not a problem,” you say, smiling once more. “Just take care of your phone call and leave the rest to me! As long as we’ve got forty-five minutes for makeup, we’ll be fine.”
She lets out a sigh that seems to deflate her, shoulders slumping as if in profound relief. She nods once, smiling, and turns on her heel. “I’ll be in my office, alright? I promise I’ll be out in time!”
You give one wave as she rushes through a clouded glass door and shuts it behind her. You roll up the sleeves of your sweater and get to work on the suit.
Two hours later, and you’re accompanying Hyejin out into the apartment hallway. She pauses as the door clicks shut, waiting for it to give a chime, and turns to you with a sigh. She looks pretty. You had to rush a bit once she emerged from her office, and after taking care of the other chores you found it difficult to focus on her makeup, but you’re proud enough of your work given the circumstances. You’ve managed to match her eyeshadow to her pantsuit with gentle oranges and reds.
Since you were rushing to finish everything in time, the two of you hadn’t had a chance to exchange words. Perhaps you are curious — just a little — about the emergency she had to quell over the phone. Or maybe you just want a proper thank you. So you linger beside her in the well-lit hallway, you let your eyes wander to a potted fern in the corner by the elevator, wait for Hyejin to say something.
“I’m sorry,” she says, sighing. She glances at you through her lashes.
Your eyes go wide. “Hm? What for?”
“For having you do all of that,” she says, flitting one manicured hand. “I feel guilty.”
You shake your head. “No,” you say with a smile. “It’s no problem at all, honestly. You had me booked for an hour and a half anyway.”
She sighs again. “I really feel bad.”
“Don’t worry about it…,” you say, eyeing her. She crosses her arms, vexed, and purses her lips a little. “Um…was that call about an artist?” you ask.
She snaps back to herself, glancing at you. “Oh? Yes. That was about our biggest artist actually,” she says. “I think I’ve got it taken care of though, thanks to you.” She guides the two of you to the elevator. “I’ll pay you extra, alright?”
You laugh. “No, no. It’s fine! I’m just glad it all worked out.”
She stares at you, scanning you for a very long moment as the elevator rises to your floor. You try not to fidget, not to shrink under her scrutiny, but you feel yourself recoiling just a little. Her gaze is intense, knowing, as if she can see right through you and she’s looking for something. And as the elevator arrives, she gives a hum that sounds contented and you wonder if she’s found it.
Jungkook glances around the empty pavilion, scanning the cobbled streets for any sign of escape. From above, a dark mage is laying waste to the small shanty town. Not a single player has ventured out this way, all following a lead in the Elysian Forest to the west. But after you had mentioned a tip you got from researching at the Library of Arcana, you’d suggested visiting the seaside nook on the far south of the map. A legendary evil slumbers hidden, you’d recited over voice chat with a laugh, Sounds about right.
Only now, Jungkook’s alone. His hands are sweaty around the controllers in his palms and the realistic graphics are serving only to make him more nervous as the mage swings low near the central fountain and sets off a spray of fire just in front of him. Jungkook can almost feel the heat.
Jungkook had set out to do some scouting. Nothing extreme. Just a simple peek about, seeing if he could find any clues. He sent a message to the group chat, but he hadn’t waited on a response before he signed in. He’d had no idea that the Big Bad herself would come flying from the fountain the moment he touched the water with his sword. And now she’s circling him like some sort of hawk. Quickly, Jungkook calls up his inventory menu and searches through his items. A few extra swords he picked up, some ritual herbs, his old chainmail armor, some healing potions and…
The fragment…
If this mage takes him out, he’ll end up dropping his entire inventory. Including the fragment.
And by the time he can make his way back over here, other players will have come running from the commotion.
And the fragment will be gone.
“Shit,” he hisses out, dismissing the menu and focusing back on the mage as she releases a chilling cackle.
The quaint village is smoking, with thatched roofs catching fire and whole storefronts crumbling into piles of simmering stone. The sky is nearly blotted out with ash, and all he can see is that mage, swirling around up there in billowing black robes and shiny white teeth exposed in a wicked grin.
Jungkook glances over his shoulder toward the street he’d taken in to the village, but it’s too smokey to see anything more than the outlines of ruined buildings. There’s no way he’ll be able to navigate his way out of here without a lantern. And if it’s this smokey, he’s absolutely positive that nearby players have noticed. Which means more competition.
And more people to snatch his fragment when he falls.
The mage gives a cry, shouts her line, “Not enough yet?!”, and swoops down at a dizzying pace. Jungkook stumbles back, but he’s not fast enough. She’s approaching in a dark blur, too quickly for him to counter. A flash of regret washes through him as he squeezes his eyes shut inside his VR headset. He doesn’t want to see this.
He waits for a tense moment that way, anticipating the melancholy piano chords that accompany in-game death, but none come. Instead, he hears very keenly the sound of the mage grunting as if in pain. And, in an instant, he opens his eyes wide to see standing on the other side of the fount
↳ Summary: You’re a creature of habit, you plan everything from each hour to each day, so you can imagine the chaos which ensues after you discover a random guy leaking black goo in a ditch- who just so happens to be an alien.
↳ Pairing: Jungkook/Reader
↳ Genre: lowkey strangers to lovers, alien!jungkook, fluff, smut,
Word Count:12k
Tags: before anyone asks, yes tentacles are involved because I’m a proud monster fucker, jungkook has separation anxiety from Mc :(, he’s immediately whipped, and he can’t speak any human language at first oops, he like,,,tries it for a second before MC goes ♀️ this is unedited and for that im sorry bc yikes
___ | Next
In many cases, you could recall how you got into situations. For instance, when you were late to your mid morning lecture, you had zero excuses- not that the professor cared at all when you walked in with a bag of mcdonalds and a venti latte from starbucks. But the principle of the situation remained the same, you knew your actions would cause you to be late. You understood the consequences of your actions.
The same could not be said for when you took in the curious male who didn’t understand a word you said.
“What do you mean you just- picked him up off the side of a fucking ditch!” Jimin flailed his hands as you twisted around to face you, the male was examining his hands as if he had never seen them before, not paying either of you any mind.
You held up your hands as you replied, “I did!” You shouted back, immediately gaining the males attention as his eyes flashed between you and Jimin, “He was just…! Laying there! I don’t fucking know! What was I supposed to do? Leave him, look he’s hurt.” You pointed out the obvious wounds he sported.
“…He’s bleeding black goo Y/n! Have you never seen a horror movie before oh my god!” Jimin grabbed his head as his voice became dramatic and peril, “You’re practically number one on his kill list! He’s probably here to abduct us and- and butt probe us or some shit!”
You raised your brows defensively as you crossed your arms, “Look at him!” You pointed a finger at the male making him flinch a little, leaning a little away from you where he sat as his expression shifted, looking as if he was a kicked puppy at your tone, “Does that look like a butt probing alien to you shit face?”
“Maybe!” Jimin snapped back, “He ain’t human that’s for fucking sure! Just…!” Jimin flailed his hands, “Just look at him!”
a.n- Ah I missed this couple! Sorry about the late response anon but I hope you enjoy this! <3
A big warm thank you to @chateautaeand@alpacaseok for beta reading this and squealing with me about this Jungkook
As always feedback appreciated, a reblog and a like goes a far way. Send me an ask!
-
People assume that leadership of a company is the most stressed when things are not going well, when the stocks are plummeting and market share is dwindling. However, what most don’t know is that the most stressful time is actually when your company is thriving, because unlike the earlier ways there are no problems to solve, the biggest problem is to predict how others might steal your spot, how your consumers might get bored of you, how even a slight mistake might lead to the downfall. It’s a practice in predicting human behaviour – something inherently difficult to quantify.
Collaborating with Saga was supposed to be a reprieve from the workload, it was supposed to be a way for Jungkook to finally gain the respect of his employees as he transitioned from part-time to full-time. Yet, he still overheard their snide comments, still had to bite his tongue when he received scathing looks from people who blamed nepotism for not sitting in his seat, people who made his job inherently more difficult, sending in sloppy reports compiled by interns. It was infuriating, and Jungkook was so so tired.
Running a hand through his hair, he walked into his dark apartment, tossing his jacket haphazardly on the floor along with his bag before trudging towards the couch and sprawling on it unceremoniously. He could feel every muscle in his back ache, a dull pain that made him whine. He didn’t think he even had the energy to turn on the lights, let alone make it to his bedroom. However, as much as he tried, he couldn’t shut off his brain, strategies from the earlier meeting roaming around like flies, buzzing annoyingly.
With a sigh, he sat up, reaching into his pocket for his phone and dialling your number. Talking to you always relaxed him, especially when he was having trouble with work. It helped that you could organise his thoughts, ask him questions that instantly made him see solutions instead of problems. It was reassuring, and his heart eased a little even as the dial tone rang out crispy through his phone.
“Hey Kookie! How’s my baby?” you answered cheerfully, and in his tired state Jungkook couldn’t help blushing a little, the endearments making him feel soft and fluffy. He knew you were equally as busy, your new job taking a bit to adjust. He didn’t want to invite you over. He knew that he should refrain because you had told him about your first big project and all that you needed to prepare for it, but it had been a long week without seeing you. Too long without the caress of your lips against his, and the longing manifested as a quiver in his lip.
“I’m… okay. Sorry, are you busy?” he asked, throat suddenly dry as he tried to control the wobble evident in his voice.
“Hey, what’s wrong?” you asked, the concern lacing your tone bringing out his vulnerabilities as he laid his head back, staring at the ceiling, eyes tracing the beam of light escaping his blinds and dividing the darkness into two.
“Long day,” he sighed, loosening the top few buttons of his shirt before continuing, “Long week. Miss you.”
“I miss you too, baby,” you assured softly, the conversation petering out as the two of you sat in silence till Jungkook apologised again meekly. It didn’t take you long to make up your mind, leaving work to catch a cab to his home, stopping only to pick up some food.
When you entered the code on his door, you were met by darkness, eyes taking a little too long to adjust as you took off your shoes and jacket, following the trail of Jungkook’s things to the living room where the man sat hunched on the couch. Placing the take out boxes on the coffee table, you kneeled in front of him, aligning your face to his as you held it in your hands.
“Hi sweet boy,” you cooed, kissing the little pout on his face. Jungkook couldn’t take a deeper breath even if his lungs allowed it, drowning in your intoxicating scent as he wrapped his arms around you and held you tight, burying his face in the crook of your neck. Lifting you up, he placed you in his lap, grip still an iron vice around you as he nuzzled into you, relishing the way your fingers softly massaged the back of his neck.
“I missed you,” he breathed, finally looking at you, eyes roaming your features. It had only been a week and somehow he had forgotten how beautiful you were, how just looking at you made his heart skip a beat. The soft smile on your lips felt like champagne in his veins, bubbling warmth through him till he had no choice but to capture it with his lips.
Jungkook wasn’t a shy virgin anymore, months of practice with you had turned him confident, albeit a little cocky at times about his ability to turn you into a squirming mess within minutes. But sometimes when he was exceptionally stressed and needy, he forgot about his preconceived notions about how sex was supposed to be. He forgot about the worries about pleasing you just right so you wouldn’t leave him, and he forgot about everything else but the taste of your lips and the feel of your touch. In those times he loved the way you pampered him, instructed him, called him a good boy in that sultry tone that made his mind blank and his blood fizzle. The same tone you were using now.
“Does my Kookie wanna be a good boy,” you said against the skin of his clavicle, your kisses having since departed from his lips to his jaw to his neck, leaving him blissfully sinking into the cushions. His breath came out in little pants, his hands flexing by his side because to truly be a good boy meant now touching you with your permission.
“Please baby,” he gasped just when your teeth nipped at the skin of his Adam’s apple, lust shooting through him and manifesting in the tightness of his pants under you.
You cooed at him, always ecstatic when he submitted so easily, relishing how you could provide him the solace you knew no one else could. Your fingers slowly unbuttoned his shirt, feeling the strong muscles he’d work so hard on, mouth relentless in tasting the slightly salty skin. As you kissed down his chest, you swiveled your hips against his, his cock already hard beneath you providing the perfect amount of friction to have those breathy whimpers escape his lips. Usually you would pull his pants down and sink him within you, ride him till he was mumbling incoherently and cumming within seconds, but it had been too long since you’d had him and you needed to cherish each moment, stretch it out so that by the time you were done his knitted brow and bags under his eyes would disappear.
With his shirt wide open and chest decorated with the blooming scarlet granted to him by your lips, you stood up, watching him as he peered at you from below his lashes, head tilted back. His hands quivered by his sides, chest rising with each breath but he didn’t dare move, and a proud smile made its way to your face. You ignored his little whine as you took his hands and walked him to the bedroom, you heart hurting a little at how tired he seemed, steps heavy and shoulders tight.
“Strip,” you commanded as you sat on the edge of the bed, watching how he slowly revealed more of his skin to you, your panties getting damper as he shrugged off his boxer to stand proudly in front of you. You were still in awe of how beautiful he truly was, rippling strong muscles protecting the most gentle heart underneath.
Standing in front of him, you looked up at him, running your hands over his shoulders, slowly coaxing him into contentment. His eyes fluttered, goosebumps rising as you traced the tattoos on his right arm before your fingers moved to his chest, roaming over his pebbled nipples and solid abs and trailing over the little path of hair that led to his hard dick patiently waiting for you.
“Tiger… baby,” he groaned when instead of gripping his cock like usual you just caressed it with a finger, your nail tickling him in a way that made his dick weep. The more you teased, the more he felt his legs shake, mind turning into the pink mush he craved so much around you. He never thought it was possible to lose yourself in someone this easily. Jungkook was used to hiding himself, being strong so his parents thought he was reliable, being stoic so his friends wouldn’t baby him, but with you he felt like he could be himself, raw and vulnerable because you would never hurt him.
When another featherlight touch threatened to make his knees buckle you guided him to the bed, laying him over the sheets and climbing to lie next to him. He looked over at you, confused, expecting you to straddle him and put him out of his misery but you just smiled, kissing him till all his thoughts floated away.
“Wanna forget everything today?” you whispered, hand cupping his jaw and lips pecking his nose. He felt as if he was melting into the mattress, nodding breathlessly as you started stroking him in earnest. He couldn’t help the high pitched whine that escaped him when you suddenly picked up speed, eager to reach his end. He was on the cusp, legs stretching out as his head leaned further into the pillows. His toes were tingling, sparks shooting up and down his body chaotically.
Seeing the stretch of his neck, so eagerly displayed for you, your lips started sucking on the skin, bruising it deliciously, his moans a chorus swelling through the room. You knew he was close by the way his thighs were shaking, quivering under your forearm and so with a tight grip at his base, you stopped.
“No no no,” Jungkook whined, fists clutching the sheets below him before pleading at you, begging for a release. But you knew Jungkook, knew that if you edged him a few more times he would melt away his stress when he finally came. With a placating sloppy kiss, you straddled him, legs stretching over his thighs as your hand began it’s movements once again, slowly torturing him.
The way he was keening had you throbbing, your pussy clenching over nothing and when you edged him once again he developed that dazed look on his face that made you almost push your panties to the side and climb on. Yet you decided to pull more of those sweet groans when you decided to lick his tip, relishing the salty bittersweet taste.
Moaning loudly, you closed your lips around him, sucking deep till your nose met the little hair at the base of his dick. One swallow around his flesh and Jungkook felt as if he would lose his mind, his breaths turning into wheezes as he tried his best not to cum, tears lining his eyes.
“Please please please I’m gonna cum,” Jungkook protested, yet you didn’t let go. His brain felt like it was escaping out his ears, muffling all sounds as he concentrated on not cumming without your permission. He wanted to be good so bad, wanted to please you, worship you, love you. His mind was filled with just a chorus of your name, the way your nails were taking over his abs making him heady. When he thought he couldn’t control himself anymore, you released him, his orgasm ebbing away just like his sanity. It felt as if he was in a different plane, floating peacefully in bliss from being so good for you. He didn’t cum and he didn’t care that tears were easily streaming down his face, he was so happy that he followed your instructions, and even happier when you kissed him, whispering affirmations in his ear.
“So proud of my Kookie,” you cooed, lying over him, kissing every part of his face, hands wiping his tears. “My good boy. My best boy. My favourite boy.”
Jungkook repeated your praises, mumbling incoherently, eyes closed and unaware that you had shed your ruined panties. You smiled at him, kissing him once more, as he easily let you invade him with your tongue. You guided his poor tortured cock into you, letting your walls envelope him in your warmth, the stretch making you moan softly.
You matched his bliss when you started rotating your hips, the angle making you see stars. It wasn’t long till you lost your patience, changing the pace to one that was faster, more haphazard, one that made the sounds of your bodies colliding echo around the room even louder than Jungkook’s begging.
“Please baby! Please wanna touch you! Wanna so bad,” he cried, hips thrusting into you trying to match your pace on shaky legs. It seemed impossible how many endorphins were rushing through him, making it seem as if he had already cum when he knew he was still harder than he had ever been.
“Go ahead baby,” you moaned and the words had barely left your lips when he was looping his arms around you to pull you to his chest, his grip so tight that you could barely move. Yet the change helped your clit grind perfectly against him bringing you closer, agonizing him as you got tighter around him. His begging was barely recognizable as words, full of yearning, drool dripping as he mouthed at your chin, bringing your orgasm to the cusp.
“Cum for me Jungkook,” you whispered, right as you fell off the edge, muscles quivering under his hold, his loud whine filling your ears. And seconds later he was cumming, unable to stop how he spasmed, squirmed from the euphoria flowing through him as he breathlessly moaned your name again and again.
When the tide had ebbed, you stayed close, holding him tight and whispering how much you loved him, how proud you were of him. He didn’t care that the two of you were messy, sticky with sweat, his mind too frayed to want anything other than the comfort you provided.
It seemed like hours till he was able to speak again, answering your questions about different video games he liked as you brought him back to earth, your fingers gently running through his hair. He noticed that somehow the two of you had changed positions, his head now laying on your chest as he curled around you.
“How are you feeling, my pretty boy,” you checked in, and Jungkook couldn’t help blushing at the endearment. He never thought being called pretty by you would make him feel so alive but the praise felt like a balm to his earlier torture, the haze melting into love as he looked up at you. You smiled at his glistening doe eyes as you kissed his forehead, loving the grin that showcased his teeth and scrunched his nose.
After pampering him with a bath and listening about his day, you changed the sheets, cuddling your giant loveable boyfriend and assuaging his worries. Sometimes you wished you could take his stress away from him, steal it away so it wouldn’t burden his shoulders. But looking at him now as he cutely kisses you, relaxed and boneless, you were happy to give him at least this temporary reprieve.
“I love you, you know that right?” you asked him, gently stroking his cheek as he gazed at you adoringly.
“I do. Thank you for loving me,” Jungkook whispered, kissing your lips once again. “I love you more than anything, my soulmate.”
You giggled at his silly belief but still picked up his hand from where it laid on your waist.
“My soulmate,” you acquiesced with a kiss to his pinky before intertwining yours against it, enjoying the way he smiled before drifting off to sleep.
Genre: (Inaccurate) Historical AU || Strangers to lovers AU || Supernatural AU || Implied smut || Fluff || Angst
Summary: Picking which road to go down is easy when you think about how alone you would be without Jungkook, even if he hadn’t been the most honest with you from the start.
Word count: 9k
Tags/ warnings: angst, fluffy-ish, minor mention of blood, self deprecation, more lying, soft yandere kook, mentions of murder/ killing, definitely probably an unhealthy relationship, too much talking about dates it’s slightly confusing me thinks that is all
Notes: after a two month hiatus i have returned to my favorite child, i don’t really have an excuse except i’m ass at multitasking and shouldn’t have started a second series basically right after starting this one, so i recommend maybe going back and re-reading the last chapter like i had to unless you have sexy good memory
“Of course I’m mad Jungkook” you look at him in disbelief, “What if they had been thorough in their search? What if they found out you were the one who killed that man? Are you stupid?”
Jungkook swallows thickly, bottom lip jutting out into a pout as you berate him. He was more upset that you seemed genuinely angry with him that the possible consequences of getting caught because he couldn’t keep his anger in line. It wasn’t his fault the seedy old man had touched you without consent, what was he meant to do? Let the man go? That would go against all his morals and values.
“I told you it wasn’t me” he gently grabs your hands, his thumbs running over your palms. He looks down, eyebrows furrowing as a sad pout moulds onto his face, surely you couldn’t be angry at him when he looked so upset!
You look at him with a deadpan look, pulling your hands from his own. Because even if Jeon Jungkook looked like a kicked puppy, you weren’t about to forget the crime he had committed. And you would make it clear that if you were carry on knowing each other then he wasn’t allowed to go around killing men or women. Or anyone for that matter whatever they identified as. No killing.
By some miracle you’d made it out of the village without any other issues; you’d been so scared when you’d been stopped at the gate, convinced your life was truly over when it had hardly even begun. Turns out the men couldn’t care less about the murder, forced into the job last minute by the head of the village because no one had volunteered, simply asking the three of you to step away from the wagon so they could take a look for anything suspicious.
It seemed the man who had harassed you hadn’t been liked by many, the chief of the village only going ahead with protocol to appease his higher up in the capital so he himself wouldn’t be arrested.
They hadn’t even looked into any bags, their eyes skimming over what you were carrying, mindless hums passing through their lips as they prodded a bag or two, giving the three of you a curt nod and wishing you luck on your travels.
You’d thanked them, not missing the way their eyes had lingered at your chest as you climbed back into the back of the wagon; and it took all your will power not to kick them where the sun doesn’t shine. Namjoon seemed to share your anxiety, the way his shoulders had stayed tense until you were far enough from the village a clear sign, he had shared your sentiment. Only relaxing slightly once far enough to be considered safe.
You didn’t blame him. Felt a little sorry if anything.
It wasn’t every day that you have to travel with two complete strangers. One a four-armed demon who had arguably (definitely had) twisted morals, who was stubborn beyond belief sometimes and a foreigner who may still be wanted dead by the royal family because they believed you were a spy. (Something you will soon find out is a law that was demolished 6 years ago along with the fact there was a new king)
“Now you must think I’m stupid” you shake your head, “what other demon would have been in that small village?”
“Probably a lot” Jungkook argues, “I’m not the only demon and you know that”
You release a heavy sigh, fingers coming up to pinch the bridge of your nose, “No killing people, okay? It’s not right”
“I would never” Jungkook says, lie easily slipping through his cushiony lips. Anything to appease you.
You make eye contact with him, searching for something behind his onyx eyes, only to find nothing. He didn’t seem to be lying, Jungkook had no reason to lie to you. Maybe it was a little naïve of you to believe that Jungkook could do no wrong; maybe you were biased because he’d only ever shown you kindness. He treated you as an equal, not some house maid that had to cook and clean all day, nothing more than a tool for him to boss around to feed into some fucked up superiority complex. You’d liked to believe Jungkook was as honest with you as you are with him, and it felt easy to read him, like he wore his heart on his sleeve and if he were to ever lie, you’d know.
“Okay, I believe you” you whisper, heartrate picking up as he smiles down at you so brightly. How could someone so kind kill a man? Sure, he threatened Namjoon here and there but you saw where your demon friend was coming from, the world was a shitty place and not everyone can be trusted.
Namjoon clearing his throat catches your attention, “We’re almost at the capital” he informs.
You look up at the sky, full moon hanging high above the three of you, illuminating the path for Namjoon as he meanders down the dirt road towards the large gates of the capital.
You peek over the walls of the wagon, lips quirking into an excited smile as you catch the faint silhouette of a few high-rise buildings. It was hard to see in the silver glow of the moonlight, but you imagine it looked exactly how Taehyung had described it in his notebook. Tomorrow you’d have to take a look over his notes again and plan out how you’d spend the next three days here with Jungkook.
You turn your head to look at said demon as he snakes his arm over your shoulders, his eyes trained on the path ahead, his own smile quirking onto his lips.
“If it looks this beautiful in the moonlight it must be ethereal during the day” you tell him, smile widening when he turns his head to look at you.
Your eyes close briefly when he leans forwards, a gentle kiss being pressed between your eyebrows.
“Yes, but nothing will ever match your beauty” he murmurs against your skin, your eyebrows furrowing at the ticklish feeling.
You let out an unattractive scoff, pushing his arm from your shoulder as you sit back down, view of the capital being obscured by the walls of the wagon. Jungkook sits back too, a knowing smile on his face as he starts packing up both of your things into his backpack.
He just adored how shy you could be something, and he didn’t mind playing your little games if it meant he could see the strawberry pink flush of your cheeks, illuminated by the silver moonlight.
Jungkook wishes he could engrave this moment into his mind. You always had looked like a fairy in the cool glow beneath the moon, so undeniably beautiful he wanted to keep you all to himself. No one in this world deserving enough to see you looking so delicate, no one but himself. He find it hard to keep his hands to himself, wanting to caress your soft skin, kiss every inch of your body until you understand its beauty, maybe leave a love bite or two so you’ll remember him even when not together. He wonders if you’d trace the sensitive skin, pressing on it just to feel the dull ache, or if you would leave them out in the open for anyone else to see; a sign that you’re taken.
The rest of the night went by in a blur, entering the capital was easier than you had initially assumed it to be, you believe because it was so late into the night the guards were laxer than they would be during the day. It didn’t seem to be common for visitors to arrive so late, the three of you the only ones waiting for the gate to be opened, what lay beyond the walls silent, everyone having gone to bed or closed their shops until sunrise.
A guard had recognised Namjoon, more than happy to hurry up the process of getting you into a decent inn so you wouldn’t have to camp out in the wagon until morning; understanding your backs must ache and eye weary from a long day of travel.
The woman at the front of the inn was more than happy to house the three of you for the next few days, a beautiful smile on her face as she handed Namjoon and Jungkook a key. She’d then turned to you, assuring you that you were more than welcome to come and sit in the bar area downstairs and embroider with her during the day, she was having trouble with a project and would be extremely happy if you were to help out at some point.
You’d eagerly nodded, smile so wide your cheeks had started to hurt. No one had ever wanted you to help them with their embroidery before!
She reminded you of the mother you’d never had, something so soft and warm about her that you couldn’t help but say yes to everything she was saying. You’d have to sit with her at breakfast and ask her what the capital was really like, and maybe she could even look through Taehyung’s diary with you and make a plan to make the most of your three days in the capital.
“Good night” you wave to Namjoon as he unlocks the door to his own room adjacent from yours and Jungkook’s.
Namjoon waves back, dimpled smile making a brief appearance before he scuttles back into his room, door being locked from the inside.
Jungkook pulls out a pair of pyjamas for you to wear, throwing them onto the bed as you flop onto the mattress.
“Get changed before you sleep, pretty” he reminds you, smiling when you reply, muffled by your head being stuffed into the layers of silky blankets on the bed. Though he assumes it must be something along the lines of ‘can’t be bothered’ to ‘in a minute, kook’
He rummages through his bag, trying to find his own sleep clothes (he liked to pretend to sleep beside you even if his body didn’t need it like yours did, something so blissfully domestic about laying beside you, your calm breath a beautiful symphony in the dead of night), however his focus is trained on you. The slow raise and fall of your body as you just lay there, unmoving, exhausted.
He tuts, abandoning his task as he pushes himself up from the floor, sauntering over towards you with purpose in his steps.
You let out a surprised squeak when his first pair of arms snakes around your waist, easily lifting you to sit up.
“Come on” he encourages, one of his arms stretching to grab your discarded clothes, placing them in your lap.
“But ‘m sleepy kookie” you whine, falling back onto the mattress with a dramatic sigh.
Jungkook, amused, lifts you up again, this time by pulling you up from under your arms, like one would a baby. And maybe you were his baby, the most precious little thing in his life. Truthfully, he doesn’t mind moment like this, adores them actually. Each time you rely on him, he can prove to you that he is good enough to provide for you, and he can only hope that with small moments like these you were slowly falling in love with him. He knows you’d never love him as much as he loved you, that was impossible! No one could love anything as much as he absolutely worships your very being, but he believes one day you’ll love him. He believes you already do, why else would you have stuck around for so long? He just knows you’re a little shy and being the considerate person that he is, he’ll wait a little longer before he tells you his master plan. Surely you’d be thrilled.
The perfect plan to keep the two of you together for the rest of time. Even thinking about it makes his cheeks burn, dusted a light pink, like the sunsets that you like to watch each evening while he reads you passages of his favourite books, maybe even feeding you a slice of fruit between pages just to make sure you’re not hungry before bed.
You don’t complain as he easily slips your shirt from your head, sighing in bliss as he kisses your bare shoulders before helping you put one of your sleep shirts on. He does the same with your pants, placing a feather light kiss to your ankle as he helps you change. Fingers skimming your pretty skin, he has to stop himself more than once from running his tongue along the expanse of it, wanting to relish the feeling of you in as many ways possible.
Once done, he leaves you to flop back on the bed, reminding him of a sleepy floppy bunny, as he lifts a few of the blankets, before lifting you to tuck you into bed; something had seemed to be a routine at this point. He wouldn’t be able to count on his four hands the number of times he’d been able to tuck you into his bed, safe from the world, if only for a night.
“Thank you” you whisper, voice laced with sleep.
Jungkook brushes your hair from your face, deftly tucking it behind your ears.
“Anything for you” he whispers back, a fond smile on his face.
He waits until you’re asleep, carefully slipping from the bed, trying his best not to wake you because he knew you were a light sleeper. Rummaging through his bag he bites his lip as he pulls a map from one of the pockets. Trying his best to stay silent, as unrolls the paper, humming to himself as he scans the map, finger tracing the library he needed to visit. He wondered if books were more expensive in the capital, Taehyung would usually collect the ones he wanted, and it was easier to give his friend a few coins each month and whatever was left, Taehyung could keep. Jungkook never had much care for money anyways.
He nods in thought, turning towards the bag once more, praying to the devil down below that he had enough for the specific book he wanted, no… needed.
He rummages around until he finds the small pouch of money. Opening the drawer strings, he cringes at how much the two of you had left. Saving had started to get harder over the last few years. After the new king had risen to power and demons had become public enemy number one, the villagers hadn’t been as generous with putting their coins into shrines.
And Jungkook was now facing the consequences.
His whole life he had relied on the money humans would leave at his shrine, it was easy to live off, even after you’d started living with himself and Taehyung, the donations were generous enough he never had to worry about money for food, clothes or books, but looking now, money was starting to become an issue.
He wouldn’t tell you this of course. He couldn’t have you worrying, he couldn’t let your pretty little head come up with a stupid idea (like leaving him), just because the two of you had to be a little frugal with your money until he figured out a way to earn a decent living once again.
Maybe he could sell Taehyung’s art, it wouldn’t sell for a lot, Taehyung was by no means a well-respected painter, that is why he had struggled for years before he’d met Jungkook. But that didn’t mean his art was worthless, they would have to at least sell for a couple of pennies a piece.
Jungkook thinks you wouldn’t be happy if he were to sell Taehyung’s art. You adored it, having spent hours a day letting Taehyung teach you the basics of painting, and after finally getting a glimpse at his art, you’d stay hauled up in Taehyung’s room, connecting with him through his artwork even if he wasn’t physically with you anymore. You’d be crushed if any of the pieces were to disappear.
Maybe he could take a few of the smaller pieces? The ones you wouldn’t notice went missing, he just needed a way to earn a few extra coins. The last thing he needed was for you to starve. Or even worse, you to leave him because he can’t provide for the two of you. And if you were to find out, he could jut out his bottom lip, maybe even shed a tear or two until you forgave him, he’s sure you’d understand his struggle if he cried a little.
+++
Namjoon was suspicious.
He’d been thinking for a few days, ever since he’d spoken to you at the beach about the village in-front of the mountains and how you’d met Jungkook. It all seemed… off. Nothing was falling into place. Odd pieces of the puzzle that didn’t connect, or worse, that one puzzle piece that goes missing, impossible to find and so the picture will remain incomplete. Forever.
He had considered asking you a few more things about Jungkook but decided against it. Not only was Jungkook constantly glued to your side, the few times he strayed away from the two of you, he seemed to be lurking close by enough to be able to listen to your conversations. So, asking you was out of the question. For now.
And from what he had seen, you probably weren’t the best person to ask about the demon.
Sure, you lived with him, probably knew a lot more than you were letting on but either the demon was threatening you to not say anything, or you genuinely didn’t know all that much. Both seemed just as likely. Namjoon had been on the receiving end of Jungkook’s threats more than a few times during this trip and knew how scary he could be, but Jungkook was also extremely secretive. Like how he clearly didn’t want you know about what happened in the village 6 years ago.
Namjoon was also suspicious of the fact that you seemed to have forgotten a lot of what happened in your life over the last few months. By no means was he a doctor, he’d given up on that dream long ago, but nothing made sense. You seemed so confused, genuinely asking him for help, and no matter how hard he tried to think of ways your memories had disappeared, the conclusion always led back to Jungkook. Suspicious Jungkook who definitely had a few too many secrets.
And so, Namjoon had the bright idea to follow the demon to wherever he may be going instead of interrogating you back at the inn while you had breakfast with the nice front desk lady.
It wasn’t all that surprising when Jungkook walks into a library, the demon always had a book in his hands. And with how much he read, Namjoon wasn’t all that surprised he needed a new book so soon into the trip.
What alarmed Namjoon was the location of the library, hidden in the dark crevices of an alley way on the outskirts of the capital. A place you’d have to have known prior to the trip happening, either having visited this location before, or someone who knew of it telling him before the trip had begun. It was in too much of an obscure place to be any old library.
Namjoon waits for Jungkook to enter the building, his foot tapping against the cobblestone path for what felt like a minute before he decides that he should just go in.
It looked like any other library, shelves stacked up to the ceiling, books organised by category, clearly labelled with large wooden signs, hung on the end of each shelf. The young boy behind the front desk hadn’t bothered to look up at from his own book as Namjoon wanders inside. (If he had, Namjoon would have seen the third eye the boy had)
It’s fairly easy to spot Jungkook even among the tall bookshelves with his broad back and slightly suspicious looking navy cloak, Namjoon tries his best to stay a fair amount of distance between the two of them. He wondered how good Jungkook’s senses must be as a demon and the last thing he wanted right now was to get caught. That would be the end of him, and he promised his mother he would be home within a week.
The village boy slips to hide behind a nearby shelf once Jungkook stands down one of the isles, fingers lightly skimming over the spines of a few books. He peeks up at the wooden sign, checking what sort of book Jungkook could be looking for.
His eyebrows furrow. ‘Conversion theory’
In all his times spent at libraries he’d never seen that genre of book. And Namjoon, although his friends back at the village make fun of him, quite likes to read. He had taught himself how to, never having had gone and learnt from a scholar, but he liked to live the lives of other through the pages.
He himself was trapped in his mundane life on the farm, nothing more going for him. But he could adventure the globe through a book, learn the history of his land, picture what life beyond the vast sea must be like, and so much more, just from paper and ink.
He takes a look at another shelf, gulping when he reads the sign.
‘Demonic entities’
Namjoon has to slap a hand over his mouth as he looks around, finally taking a look at the library properly; completely forgetting he was here to see what Jungkook could be trying to find.
Mixed among the humans were other beings, just like Jungkook.
+++
You watch Jungkook shove an unfamiliar book into the backpack, “You bought a new book?” you ask absentmindedly, more focused on brushing the knots out of your wet hair. You felt like a brand-new person, freshly washed, smelling a little less like dried blood and sweat after the incident from the day before.
You’d washed your hands at the previous inn, but the stench of blood had lingered, even then you don’t know if that was your mind playing tricks on you. The wound still fresh as you think back on the good times with your pretty kitty.
You wondered if you were okay, feeling so numb to the fact that another companion of yours had died. That was the third one in under two years. You thought you would have cried more, wanting to lock yourself away from everyone else a wallow in self-pity until your head hurts and your skin is dry from the salty tears. But you felt the opposite, wanting to finally go out and explore. Maybe you were a shitty person for moving on so fast, but maybe it was for the better. Or maybe that was a smaller part of you trying to convince yourself it was all okay when in reality it really wasn’t.
You could only hope that your cat would have a better life when reborn. That would be enough to let you sleep peacefully at night.
Jungkook hums, “Something about the history of this land”
You nod, never having been fond of history. It felt a little a little unconventional, why would you focus so much on what has already happened when you have the whole future to look forward to?
“I was thinking we could go out for lunch; I saw a nice place on my walk this morning” Jungkook turns towards you, happy with how far down he’d been able to stuff his book into the bag.
He doubted you’d ever rummage through his stuff, seeming more content with him riffling through the bag to get clean clothes or a snack. But better to safe than sorry. Especially since it was becoming evident you could read now; he would hate for his plans to be ruined because he was kind enough to share his knowledge with you.
“Sure” you reply, handing him the hairbrush to be put back neatly into the bag.
Jungkook was right, the small building the two of you had entered was more than nice. It even had two floors! (The owner explaining it had been inspired by building from the countries overseas who had places to eat with more than the ground floor like the hanoks) The outside was lined with small flowers, vines clinging to the walls, climbing their way up to the balconies above the ground floor.
You don’t ask when Jungkook requests the private balcony area on the second floor, assuming it was so the two of you could eat comfortably without worrying someone would try and hand you into the royal family or freaking out because Jungkook had four arms.
You watch the bustling streets, watching some kids play a game you weren’t familiar with, a few stealing loose fruits from crates, giggling as a few elderly people chase after them.
You wonder if that is what a real childhood looked like. All the children in the capital seemed so happy, happy with their parents and siblings, happy with their lives. The perfect life you could only ever have dreamt of becoming a reality.
You wouldn’t say you were jealous. If you hadn’t left the home you’d grown up in, your life would have been completely different. Your friend would still be alive, maybe you would have married by now. His father wouldn’t have approved, but you supposed you could have run away together. If you’d run away would the outcome, be the same? Would he have died because he had married a spy? You suppose he wouldn’t have been safe either way.
Regret is a fickle thing. There have been so many moments in your recent life where you wish you could just go back and change what has happened. You wouldn’t care if the future was different, that is something the you of then would have figure out. Because the you of now wanted to go back and change all the times something had led to the death of someone you loved so dearly.
You would convince your friend to stay home, he wouldn’t have died a brutal death. You would tell Taehyung he shouldn’t go down to the village, you’d go alone because if you could survive the disease once you could do it again and then he would still be by your side. You’d have taken lil meow down with you to breakfast the other morning, that way you’d still have your furry companion.
You regret not knowing, which in hindsight sounds stupid because how were you meant to know all of these bad bad things would happen? And it was easy to feel sorry for yourself, and the small, selfish part of you thinks that you feeling sorry for yourself if justified. Because why were you still alive and they weren’t?
Maybe you regret being born, you didn’t really have much say in the matter, but maybe it would have been better if you hadn’t tried so hard all your life to stay alive. Fighting tooth and nail to survive in a world that clearly didn’t want or need you.
If you hadn’t been born you wouldn’t be a bad omen to those around you, and everyone you’ve ever loved wouldn’t be dead. Jungkook may have been a special case, born blessed as a being that is unable to die. And maybe that’s why you stayed, because no matter how unlucky you may be, Jungkook would never fall into the hands of death because of you.
If you hadn’t been selfish, childish, then the poor cat would still be alive. Roaming the mountains free of burden. If you hadn’t been selfish and wanted to spend just a few more moments with your friend you’re your childhood, he wouldn’t have suffered an unjustified death. If you hadn’t agreed to stay in the hanbok, then maybe Taehyung could have waited out the winter with what food you’d eaten, and neither of you would have contracted a disease. He would still be alive and happy, carefree as he carries on the same routine he had for years without you coming and interrupting his peaceful life with his friend.
“Y/n?” Jungkook calls you, tugging at the sleeves of your cloak to catch your attention.
Your eyes flit up to meet his own.
“Are you okay?”
You hum, waving him off with a quick smile. It was easy to smile while looking at Jungkook’s face. Maybe it was because you didn’t want him to worry, so a smile was easy, or maybe Jungkook just had that affect. Such a nice face that you have no other choice but to smile too brightly at him. Or maybe you smile because you don’t want him to ask too many questions that you yourself don’t know the answer to.
He watches you for a moment longer, trying to gauge if you were lying or not. But then he sees your eyes light up at the array of food laid out on the table before the two of you.
“You bought so much” you mutter in awe.
“Well, aren’t you going to eat?” he asks, nudging a pair of chopsticks into your hands.
You nod slowly, “I’m trying to engrave what it looks like into my mind”
Jungkook laughs, a fond smile on his face as he just watches you, “No need, we’ll just come back in a few months and eat here again” he tells you, easy smile on his face.
“Okay” you grin.
Jungkook’s eyebrows furrow when you push yourself from the cushion on the floor, feet light as you skip your way over to his side of the table.
You lean down, pressing a kiss to his cheek, “Thank you for the food, Jungkookie” you smile.
Jungkook feels his heart stop, his fingers moving on their own as they wrap around your wrist.
Your head tilts in question, your breath hitching when he pulls on your wrist, so you’ve leant down once again.
You bite your lip to stop the big smile that threatened to pull onto your face when he presses a kiss onto the apple of your right cheek.
“You’re welcome, my lovely” he replies, motioning for you to go and sit down, “Now hurry and eat before the food gets cold”
“Yes sir” you mock salute, giggling when Jungkook rolls his eyes, tone teasing as he tells you to hurry up and sit down.
+++
You grip onto the sleeve of Jungkook’s cloak when a large group of people move in a clump down the narrow street.
You look up at Jungkook in confusion, ready to ask if he knew why so many people were moving in tandem, but your mouth clamps shut when you see the annoyed crease in his brows.
“Burn the demons!” a burly looking man shouts, the posse of people following him repeating his words with just as much enthusiasm.
Jungkook pulls you back into his chest when a new wave of civilians shove their way down the street, although their movements lack the mesmerising movements like the sea’s waves crashing against the shore, more shoulders bumping shoulders, the delicate crash of the waves replaced with grunts as they all bounce off one another.
“What’s going on?” you ask, voice raising in hopes that Jungkook would be able to hear you.
Either he does, or choses to ignore you as his fingers take a hold of your hand, dragging you into a narrow alley way beside the building the two of you had just had lunch in. You try and pull your hand from Jungkook’s fingers feeling as though they were going to snap with how tightly he was holding your hand.
“Jungkook what’s going on?” you ask, voice a little breathy as you try and catch up with Jungkook’s long strides.
The demon slows down a little, apologetic furrow of his brows as he watches you try and catch your breath, “They must be protesting” he mutters, and you simply nod.
“Against demons?” you ask, watching Jungkook release a long sigh.
“I should have told you” he turns towards you, “Not all demons are kind, my love. Some do bad things, and so they get punished” he explains, hoping the worry evident in his tone is enough to convince you of this white lie. It was technically half the truth, but you didn’t need to know the full problem, you losing your memories of what happened the night years back had already helped him move forwards in his plan.
As long as you believed it was the same year, where you were a wanted spy, and he was a harmless demon that was worshiped by all then everything would be okay. His plan would continue to run smoothly and then he could hold you in his arms without worrying about trivial human matters like death.
“Was there a bad demon here then?” you ask, worried you’d get caught in-between the conflict.
Jungkook nods, hand coming to rest on his chin as if in thought, “It seems so, we should head back to the inn for the rest of the day, just in case”
“That’s probably a good idea” you agree.
Jungkook takes a step before stopping. You make a noise in the back of your throat in question, watching as he releases your hand, turning to face you as he rummages through the pockets of his cloak.
Your head tilts up to look into his eyes when he pulls what looks to be a small pocketknife from the confines of his cloak.
“What?” you ask when he thrusts it in your direction.
“Just in case something happens and I’m not there, you’ll be able to protect yourself” he leans down to take a hold of your right hand, placing the pocketknife into your palm.
Your left hand traces the intricate design of the handle, wood having been carved out into small delicate flowers, painted with so much care there were no smudges or random pieces of colour bleeding into one another. It truly was pretty, like nothing you’d ever seen before.
“Jungkook I—I can’t” you shake your head, not daring to sheath the actual blade.
“You know I’ll always be by your side to protect you, but just in case” he pushes your hand away when you try to give it back, “Please, I’ll be able to rest easy knowing that if anything were to happen to me, you’d at least be able to put up a fight”
You swallow, eyes flitting back down to the pocketknife before you look back at Jungkook. Even with the warm afternoon sun being obscured by the roofs of buildings, in the dingy alleyway that was nothing more than grey cobblestone, greened with moss and small weeds, Jungkook looked so pretty. He looked so calm, unlike how he had been moment ago in the street. You sometimes wonder if he had lied about being a demon, he looked nothing like the scary beings that old wives’ tales made them out to be. Maybe he truly fell from the sky, an angel sent to help guide you in life.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” he scoffs, finger pushing at your forehead.
You sigh, “I was imagining what I could do with this thing” you dangle the offending weapon between your thumb and forefinger
Jungkook laughs at that, “You can’t kill a demon with a measly knife” he waves you off, easily slipping his fingers between your own as he pulls you out the alleyway.
“Then how am I meant to defend myself”
“That’s what I’m here for”
“But you just—”
Jungkook presses a finger against your lips, “I’ll always be there for you, but it never hurts to have a back-up plan”
+++
You’d been thinking for a few days about the conversation you’d had with Namjoon about the part of your life that you felt, had gone missing. Maybe you were paranoid, or just plain stupid. Or maybe you imagined the incident that happened in the village. Or you were overthinking everything. All seemed like possible answers but no matter how hard you try to remember, you can only ever think back to the moments before the rocks had been thrown at you, enamoured by how intricately made the wooden bunny was.
And then blank. You couldn’t recall anything after that. Like it never happened. Seeming swallowed into a blackhole, making no sign of ever returning.
You faintly remember a dream, but after the first day of waking up it had been pushed to the furthest corner of your mind, Taehyung’s death taking up most of your thoughts. And whenever you try and think back to it now, you can only seem to remember how fresh the air had felt, and the soft scratching of golden grass on the backs of your hands as you wandered into the horizon. The sky a bright blue that otherwise hurt your eyes, a dull pain in the back of your head that would return when you would think too hard about what may have happened in your dream.
Nothing adds up.
It had been winter the day you’d gone down to the village with Taehyung, you were sure of that, you remembered how soft the scarf was Taehyung had gifted you, a gift for your first winter spent with himself and Jungkook. And if what Jungkook had said was correct; that you’d been passed out for only a few weeks, then there was no way it should have been that far into the spring once you’d woken up. Flowers in full bloom, sun not shying behind the clouds throughout the day.
But why would Jungkook lie?
Your fingers gently brush over your cheek, contemplating whether it was possible for such a deep gash to heal in such a short amount of time, with no evidence left behind. No scar, no tender tissue or discoloration. You’d woken up like nothing had happened. Maybe that was common? But as a child such a deep wound would take months to fully heal.
He wouldn’t lie, would he?
You fall onto your back, mattress cushioning your fall. Your head turns towards the door of the inn room, Jungkook’s large backpack coming into view.
Maybe he kept a diary like Taehyung did?
Jungkook had gone out for a walk that morning, whispering to you while you battled between staying asleep or finally waking up, sun peeking in through the windows, encouraging you to peel your eyes open. You’d hummed and waved him off when he asked if you wanted to join him. And that was less than an hour ago.
He did say he would be gone for a few hours… that would leave you with more than enough time to quickly snoop through his bag and see if he was hiding anything.
You felt a little bad because you knew that looking through people’s stuff was wrong. Really wrong. And you think Jungkook would be disappointed if he ever found out you’d gone and peeped into the bag while he was gone. But, if you wanted to figure out the anomalies in your life, Jungkook may be the perfect place to start.
You don’t know what you would do if you ever found out he was actually lying to you, and that’s why you pause when your fingers make contact with the bag.
Whatwould you do?
Maybe it’s better you never know.
Or maybe Jungkook had done nothing wrong, and you were being paranoid. What if he found out you’d gone through his stuff, and kicked you out of his home? Left you stranded, leaving you to fend for yourself. You both knew that was impossible, your best bet would be to hide in the forests, no one usually ventured into the woodland. Although, you doubted you’d be able to survive of wild berries alone, the thought of having to kill an animal making you feel squeamish.
Then what? You’re back to square one where you die alone, unwanted by another person?
You swallow.
But what if he never found out?
What if he never found out and you got the answers you were looking for? It would be easy to put everything back in the backpack the way you’d taken it out, and it’s not like he would notice miniscule changes in the packing.
You look at the door, waiting to see if he would walk in. When he doesn’t, you turn back to the backpack, fingers deftly pulling the strings open.
You carefully remove the layer of folded clothes, placing them neatly beside you. Soap, hairbrush, sack of apples, more clothes, a map. (What you fail to notice is his ‘history’ book wasn’t in the confines of his bag, because who would need a book on history when you plan to buy supplies?)
Your shoulders slump forwards when you find nothing. No notebooks, no pieces of paper with anything written on them, nothing. You even look into the pockets, nothing.
With a defeated sigh, you start to pile everything back into the bag, only praying that you were putting them all back in the correct order and hadn’t messed up.
You tie the top of the bag, pushing yourself up off of the floor.
Deciding you’d take a break in your investigation, breakfast sounded really good right around now. So, you skip downstairs with Taehyung’s notebook secured under your arm.
“Morning!” the inn owner calls out to you, smiling as you plop yourself down at one of the bar stools.
“Good morning, do you have some ink and a quill?” you ask, thanking the woman when she tells you she’ll be right back.
Your legs swing back and forth as you wait, peering around the room.
“Do you know where Namjoon is?” you ask when she places the ink in-front of you.
“Said he was going to check on the horses, he already ate so I imagine he wouldn’t be back until lunch time” she replies.
You nod, opening a new page in Taehyung’s notebook.
You flip back one page, checking the latest date, making sure you had the year correct.
Taehyung’s latest entry had been November 1859, written the day before the two of you planned to visit the village. You didn’t read too much of what was written, respecting that it was Taehyung’s private thoughts, although from what you caught a glimpse of, it spoke of the things you both needed to buy in the village.
You supposed if it was already spring then it must be 1860, which further confuses you. Deciding to brush off the suffocating feeling that consumed your body, your tongue pokes out as you figure out exactly what you want to write.
“1860? That was a while ago wasn’t it… I hadn’t even opened the inn yet. Do you plan to write a novel?” the inn owner asks you.
You look at her with wide eyes, “A while ago?” you ask, confusion heavy in your voice.
She nods, “Yes, I heard novels of recent history are popular these days, with the new king rising to power”
“What year is it now?”
“This year it would be 1865”
“Right now? It’s 1865?”
She nods, eyebrows furrowing in confusion as you start to flick through the pages of Taehyung’s diary.
“Are you okay dear?” she asks.
Your head shoots up to look into her eyes, “Yes!” you slam the notebook shut, “I’ll be back in a minute”
“But my—your breakfast!”
“I’ll come back for it” you call out to her as you sprint up the stairs, lungs squeezing for air as you push open the door to yours and Jungkook’s room.
You fall onto the bed, careful as you pull open Taehyung’s notebook once more.
When you said you had never lied to Jungkook, that was a lie in itself. You learning how to read and write so well was meant to be a surprise. You wanted to show Jungkook how quickly you’d progressed in both skills, how you’d practiced with Taehyung while doing chores, and sometimes you’d dream of studying certain characters that you found difficult.
You did plan to surprise him when you got back to the hanok, maybe by asking if you could read to him before bed, not the other way round.
You flick to Taehyung’s most recent entry once more.
[November 1859;
Tomorrow me and y/n]
Your eyes zero on your own name. That was definitely your name.
If you’d been with them in 1859, how was it currently 1865?
You knew you hadn’t had the best gauge of how much time you’d spent with them but basing it off the seasons it shouldn’t have been more than a year. It definitely hadn’t been a year since Taehyung died. If you’d woken up weeks after the incident, then Taehyung shouldn’t have been dead for more than a month.
Taehyung wouldn’t have written the date wring so many times, would he?
From the few times you’d been in his room it seemed he kept more than one notebook. When you’d first met him and asked what he would write down every other day or so, he had told you about his habit of writing. How he liked to document special moments in his life so he could go back and read about his past in years to come.
How likely was it that he had gotten the years wrong all this time?
Taehyung was quite a meticulous person, not the type of person to guess a date and go with it. He was particular about small details like that.
You chew on the nail of your thumb, but why would Jungkook lie?
Say it hadn’t been weeks, and it had actually been years.
How were you alive? Without food or water surely, you would have died. If it had been 6 years, then how come you hadn’t aged at all?
That would explain how the wounds you had gotten from the village boys would have fully healed, but nothing else made sense.
You slam Taehyung’s notebook shut when the room door opens. Your heartrate speeding up as Jungkook saunters into the room. You look at him with wide eyes, swallowing thickly as he roves his eyes over your body.
You see his eyes slightly narrow, as if trying to gauge what you were doing before he came into the room.
“What were you going?” he finally asks, eyes trained on the notebook tightly clasped by your fingers, his own tightening on the woven bag in his hands.
You stay silent for a moment, mind racing a mile a minute as you try to find a decent lie. Something believable enough that he wouldn’t ask any more questions, because your heart felt seconds away from beating right through your chest with how hard it was pounding against your ribcage.
“Jungkookie?” you eventually say, tone a little sweeter than usual.
He looks up at your face, head cocking to the side in question.
“I have a request”
“Only if you answer my question” he prods, clearly unsatisfied with turn of conversation.
“It is about that actually” you look down at your lap, fingers fiddling with the hem of your shirt, “I was looking through Tae’s list, and he says the royal palace is really beautiful”
Jungkook is silent for a moment, and you keep your eyes trained in your lap, scared that if you were to look into his eyes, you would spill everything you had discovered within the last hour.
“Is that all?” he eventually asks, easy smile on his face; because you were just too adorable. Of course he would take you sight-seeing if that’s what you really wanted, nothing to be embarrassed about.
You nod, breathing a sigh of relief when he agrees.
“Let me just put this stuff away” he says, “Then we can leave”
You watch him pull the book he had purchased the day prior from a woven bag, your eyes narrowing when there is nothing written on the cover of it.
“Jungkook?” you ask, he hums, not turning towards you as he tries to shove it further inside the bag, “Is that history book interesting? I think I want to try reading harder books now, not just children’s poems.”
Jungkook pauses, eyes meeting yours briefly before he turns to the backpack once more.
“I don’t think you’d like this one, love. The vocabulary is hard, even for me” he explains.
You hum in understanding, deciding it was best not to prod any further.
“Ready to go?” Jungkook stands up, hand stretching out to help pull you up from the bed.
“Yeah, I still have to eat breakfast before we go”
Jungkook sniggers at that, nudging your shoulder as he tells you how breakfast is the most important meal of the day and that it was closer to lunch time now than it was breakfast.
You shrug, explaining that even breakfast can be eaten at lunch sometimes.
+++
How well did you truly know Jeon Jungkook? Why had it taken you so long to ask this question?
You knew it was because he was the closest person you would get in this life that would always be a constant. He liked you, he couldn’t die, so why would he leave you? Just like yourself he had no one else in this world. And maybe you were cowardice, projecting your own insecurities and fears onto him, but it was true was it not?
Loneliness was simultaneously the best and worst thing that could happen to a human. It was a valid fear, as humans were social creatures that overall worked better as a team than in solitude. Two pairs of hands are always going to be better than one and being able to confide in another person should be second nature, because no one should have to deal with their pain alone when they had so many that cared for them.
Loneliness however can force you to learn to love your own company. If there is no one else around, you can only rely on yourself. And at the end of the day, you are the only constant in your life. Forced to fend for yourself, live for you, and you only.
But that scared you, what was living if it wasn’t for other people? Forced to marinate in your own thoughts, figure out your own feelings and live just because you want to or feel obligated to because you were given life so maybe you should live it out for a while.
Unless you’re Jeon Jungkook. He never seemed alone.
You believed that you would stay with him for a long time, because he had nowhere else to go just like yourself. And wherever he went, you think you would follow, because you were scared of being alone. Scared of the solitude that some found comfort in.
But why would you blindly follow him? Because he was kind enough to house you? Feed you? Put a roof over your head and help you develop skills that otherwise you would have no resources to do so? Even if he had been lying to you, deceiving you even.
If Jeon Jungkook was a colour, he would be grey. Muted, his character unimposing until you peel back the layers upon layers that he shields his being with only to find black. Onyx. A dark plain that can only be described as Jeon Jungkook, the ghost of a hand pulling you into his warm embrace until you settle down and thin sticky vines trap you beside him with no escape, remaining by his side for the rest of his eternal life.
Even with a small crack in what is Jeon Jungkook, a lie exposed to you, you chose not to say anything.
Why?
Because he’s familiar, and you’re scared of being alone.
Why would you willingly fall headfirst into a spiral of solitude when you could remain by his side, acting oblivious as he plays you like a puppet. Chipping away at your very being until you’re too warn down, leaning on him for support like he had planned from the start. He’s never hurt you, his caress gentle, and words sweeter than fresh honey or sugar cane. Blindly guiding you further into his abyss, steps away from the point of no return.
But you’re okay with that. Willingly holding onto him like he holds onto you, like the two of you are the only two left in the world, needing nothing more than each other to survive.
Now you find yourself at a crossroad. Why walk down the path of loneliness when you could walk down the path towards Jungkook, who happily waits for you at the end of the road with his arms wide open? It seemed obvious which path you would choose. And maybe you were spineless, allowing someone you barely knew to swing you around like a doll on some strings instead of facing your fears.
Maybe Jungkook was scared of being alone too. You’d never considered living an eternal life, simply living day to day hoping you’ll wake up tomorrow. But you worry how lonely he would feel if you were to ever leave him, a twinge of empathy flaring up at just the thought of it. Left to live alone for the rest of time. If you could live together, without the fear of desolation… walking the ways of life hand in hand with no one but each other.
And that’s why as you shut the book stuffed away inside the lower depth of Jungkook’s bag, you say nothing. Washing away what you had read from your mind, smiling happily when the demon re-enters the room, freshly washed, looking like the epitome of ethereal as he flops onto the bed, beckoning you to come over with a kiss to your cheeks, his own flushed the prettiest shade of dusty rosy, pink.
Genre/Tags:single mom lawyer!OC x pastry chef!Jungkook; angst, fluff, smut; age gap
ChapterWarnings: foul/explicit language; single parenthood, motherhood; mention of a sexual harassment case; explicit sexual content (making out, straddling, ass slapping, oral (m & f receivin), protected sex, OC hates kinky pet names, love bites (18+)
Chapter Word count: 16.2k
Status:Ongoing
Series summary: Driven by your perfectionist attitude and need to have everything in order, you planned that by age 30, you’d have made junior partner, bought your own apartment, and have children. You achieved them, of course, and while the last bit required you to take matters into your own hands - no thanks to your ex-boyfriend who dumped you but to your best friend who directed you to a fertility clinic - you’re now a 31-year old who pretty much has her life under control. You’re ready to raise your child on your own, that is, until the 20-something pastry chef flirts his way into your heart, messing up the perfect little life you worked so hard to have for yourself.
A/N:2 to go! I hope it’s been a fun ride for you who joined me on this journey!
“Well, well, well. I never thought I’d see the day when Atty. Kim ___ would be openly and shamelessly flirting with one of my own,” Hobi smirks as he sits across from you in your favorite corner at Blue Side, laughing as he watches you bite your lips and hold back a smile while Jungkook tries to show off his coffee-making skills, smirking as he goes.
“And you, little angel,” the cafe owner continues, tickling Heejin who’s in a high chair. “What do you think of your Mamabeing all giddy about it?”
“Oh, she’s getting used to it. Getting used to him, actually,” you reply, cocking your head towards Jungkook who’s now boxing some eclairs for a to-go order but who cheekily smiles at you when he catches your eyes again.
“And how does that make you feel?” Hobi asks, sipping the iced americano he can’t go a morning without. “Also, can I just say? I love how you’re not denying anything. About time.”
“Okay, well there was nothing to deny before,” you correct, but feeling good that you’re able to properly talk about this with Hobi. “You know how things were for me, and Jungkook just didn’t fit into it. He was okay with being my friend but I knew he wanted more and I couldn’t give him that.”
“And what about now?”
“I think I can. This little angel and I finally can,” you smile, mirroring your friend’s sweet and infectious one.
“Who would’ve thought that my impulsive Singapore trip that one year would lead me to meeting Jungkook in the hotel where he interned and I got to snatch him up… only for him to, well, be my best asset and also be the reason why my favorite customer is as happy as she is right now,” he chirps.
“You’re glowing, ___. And Jimin says the same. I’m so glad it’s working out with you and Jungkook. I won’t say I’m not surprised because the kid is relentless, but he cares about you and Heejin so much. It makes me emotional just thinking about it.”
“And why is that?”
“Well, you know how he is. Jungkook is a ball of joy and innocence - for the most part, at least - and he’s just always taken life so lightly, so carelessly, searching for that next high, content with what he finds and what he loses. But ever since you and Heejin came around, things started to matter more for him,” Hobi narrates, like a proud older brother.
“He likes to joke around all the time but with you taking him seriously, trusting him, believing in him… that did a lot to him. Like he could be someone that another person can truly depend on, that they can trust, that they can one day love.”
You take in your friend’s words, thinking that as someone who’d taken a chance on Jungkook and who’d watched him grow professionally at this cafe, through the ups and downs of the job and what he had to go through because of you, this means a lot for him, too. Hobi and Jimin have always been cautious talking to you about Jungkook, not wanting to take sides nor push something to you knowing how you are. But with things looking up for you and the cheeky pastry chef, it seems that there’s more openness on their end this time.
And Hobi is right. Jungkook likes to enjoy things. He likes to have fun and treat life like a wave that he rides through, like he can just get back to the surface if he falls into the water and he’d be laughing as he gets up because it was a pretty amazing wave. And you like that about him; you like that confidence in himself that he’ll be okay whatever happens, that what matters is he even gets to experience something remotely beautiful, and somehow, you get to watch him do that.
He elicits a certain joy that’s child-like in a way but heartwarming, too. And he has that sense of wonder all the time. Whether he’s talking about some cave he explored during a trip somewhere, or narrating his multiple failed attempts before making the perfect napoleon, or going to a nearby beach to watch the sunrise, he looks at the world like it’s the first time he’s seeing it. And he makes you want to look at the world that way, too.
You can’t help but think that at some point, you took that away from him. Or at least, for the briefest moment when he was trying to get over you, the joy died down a bit. After the argument you had the other week about his neighbors and your own insecurity overwhelming you, you had time to think about all the things he said.
He talks about losing you like it’s his biggest fear, and for all the times that you’d been the one left behind, to have someone be scared of not having you in their life is different. It’s quite transformative, too.
“You know that I hurt Jungkook a lot, though,” you break out of your thoughts. “I can’t ever take those back.”
“I know. It’s easy to tell when his heart is breaking, too. Everyone kinda figures it out,” Hobi laughs. “We’ve had to talk a lot about that, what he was feeling and all, what he should and shouldn’t do. But all those times when it was hard, he did something harder - he kept still. He waited for you. This is a guy who rarely stops to think about what he’s doing and why and where he’ll go, but when it came to you, it was all he did.”
“Bet it was a new experience for you, huh?” You chuckle.
“Yeah, it was pretty heartbreaking. But I felt proud, too, in a way. It became clear to him what he wanted, what made him happy. And that was you and Heejin, and trust me, ___, he’s really happy. He’d talk about your weekend trips as if he’d never been to Nami or Seoul Forest before,” Hobi playfully shakes his head.
“Oh, god. That is so embarrassing. We’ve become thatcouple,” you cover your face in shame, to your friend’s amusement.
“Hey, it’s adorable!”
“What’s adorable?” Jungkook says, settling next to you as he places the breakfast croissant in front of you. “Me?”
“You being whipped for me and Heejin, according to Hobi,” you reply.
“Well, Dea tells me to shut up most of the time but at least the boss here thinks it’s cute,” Jungkook shrugs, bending to face Heejin and giving her a spoonful of strawberries.
“Hmm,” Heejin hums with her eyes closed as if she didn’t have those last night.
“What do you say to Kookoo, bubba?”
“Thank you, Kookoo!” She smiles, giggling when Jungkook kisses her cheek multiple times.
“You’re welcome, sunshine. Eat up, okay?”
Jungkook turns to you. “And you, too. You have a long day at work, so have this, then I’ll get you something for in-between meetings today.”
“What about my breakfast dessert?” You smile innocently.
“As an employee of this cafe who abides by the rules, I’m afraid I cannot give you free food, sorry,” he says teasingly. “You can suck up to my boss for that one.”
“Ugh, pine after me again. I miss the days when you’d give me free dessert.”
“You liar, you hated it!” He laughs, bending again to feed Heejin after she tugs his hand.
“Maybe just a little,” you admit. “But fine. I’ll just wait for the next time you get inspired and need me to taste test. Now go focus on work. Hobi and I are gossiping about you.”
“Be nice,” he mouths before heading back to the kitchen.
“I can’t decide if you two are like a married couple or teenage lovers,” Hobi chuckles.
“We’re both, I guess. Depends on how I’m feeling,” you shrug.
“It’s nice to see, though, you I mean.”
“It’s nice to experience it, too. After everything that’s happened, he lets me feel like I don’t need to apologize for who I am or what I’m not,” you share. “I don’t feel like I’m too much or not enough. Do you know how refreshing that is, to be exactly like myself and have someone who doesn’t feel threatened, who doesn’t ask for too much, who just… wants to be with me?”
“It is quite special, isn’t it?” Hobi smiles. “You and Heejin deserve all this, keep that in mind always.”
You nod in response, appreciating the friendship you’ve created with the radiant cafe owner that’s brought you here.
You both proceed to talk about the past weekend you spent at an amusement park because Taehyung and Sun-hee just suddenly felt like it. Jungkook was the excited one, joining your siblings in all the rollercoasters but enjoying the most when he went on the carousel and teacup ride with you and Heejin. He had her on his shoulders as you walked around while she pulled his hair in excitement, and Hobi coos at all the photos and videos you show him.
You’re finishing feeding Heejin when Jungkook approaches you again with a plate of eclair.
“This was this morning’s sample,” Jungkook says, side-winking at you but Hobi sees it anyway, earning both of you a high-pitched laugh.
“Thank you, Jungkook,” you chuckle.
You stop when you see your mother enter the cafe. She makes it to your table and greets each one, kissing Heejin on the cheek and then hugging Jungkook.
“Hi,Auntie.Are we going for pastry or French Toast this morning?” He asks.
“Oh, the French Toast, Jungkook!” Your mom chirps. “Still thinking about that one. Thank you, dear.”
“No worries. I’ll make it for you.”
Your mom settles on the seat next to Heejin. “So, this little one and I will cozy it up at home before we head out to lunch and some shopping. Do I drop her off at your place at night or you’ll pick her up?”
“I can pick her up at your place,” you respond. “I have a hearing in the afternoon and that might take a while.”
“Got it, honey. She and I will bond and have fun, so don’t worry about it, okay?”
You nod and then ready yourself to leave, kissing your mom and Heejin goodbye before walking to the counter with Hobi for your to-go order. Jungkook exits the kitchen with your mom’s order, scurrying to serve it to her then going back to you.
Dea hands you your coffee then Jungkook hands you a small box with some bite-size hazelnut-filled pastry.
“Thanks for dropping by my office this morning, ___,” he says, putting on his customer service smile.
“Well, I come for the desserts. And the coffee. They’re amazing,” you say.
“That all?” He cocks an eyebrow.
“And the staff. Dea over there is a chick,” you say, earning you a wink from her, as you’ve both come to enjoy teasing Jungkook.
He stands there looking absolutely charming with a pout and though you’d give in easily, you’re still gonna keep him sweating. You wave a barely amused Jungkook goodbye and head out.
[From: ___ ] Always love seeing you in the morning, Jungkook. I’ll call you when we get home, ok? Have fun at work!
**
Jungkook secures Heejin in the car seat of his sedan, leaning by the open door as he watches her play with her deer stuffed toy, her new favorite after that trip to Nami Island you all had the other week.
She squeals as she raises her arms, and he knows she’s a little antsy. She expended so much of her energy running around at daycare, he was told, and she’s still got some left.
“We’ll get home and play all afternoon if you want, alright sunshine? But I made something for Mamaover here so let’s ask her first if we can visit.”
It’s been months since the practice of Jungkook having at least one day a week of looking after Heejin. With the babysitter only able to come twice a week, usually anyone from your family or best friends offers but when the schedule is tight, daycare is your last resort.
Heejin gets moody and demands attention most days, you said, so you prefer to have her there as little or as short a time as possible, and Jungkook always offers his afternoons. He was met with curious eyes the first time you endorsed him as one from a long list of guardians who can pick Heejin up but by now, all the workers know him already, mostly as the guy who spins the little girl around when she runs to him.
It’s a Thursday and Jungkook took the opening shift so he could pick up Heejin in the early afternoon. You’ll be meeting with witnesses in one of the cases you’re handling today, you’d said, and that might take a while. He knows it’s scheduled in two hours, and with how your stress level shot up yesterday after some challenges in the case, he wanted to get you something to hopefully cheer you up.
You’ve been craving cherry desserts recently so he made you some cherry and dark chocolate mini tarts this morning, which he decided to be the featured dessert at the cafe today. It was a hit and was wiped out by lunchtime so he knows you’re going to like it. Initially wanting to surprise you, he decided otherwise, since you might feel uncomfortable with him carrying Heejin and showing up at your office uninvited.
He’d texted to ask if he could call and he’s surprised to see you calling him instead.
“Hey, that was quick. You okay?” He asks, as he settles in the driver seat.
“Yeah,” you huff in what sounds like exhaustion. “Just having lunch while Park and I go over some things. Have you picked Heejin up?”
“Just now,” he responds. “And you’re just having lunch? It’s almost 3PM. Did you have at least something since you dropped by the cafe this morning?”
“Three more cups of coffee, actually. But I’m fine. It’s hard to think about food with all the stuff going on. So are you both okay? Did you need anything?”
“We’re fine. Just thought you’d have a bit of a mid-afternoon break so Jinnie and I can pass by,” he says, suddenly thinking it might not be a good idea. You’re busy, after all, and him passing by might not even help.
“I made you something to nibble on but maybe we can just wait for you at home?”
“Oh, please pass by,” you almost plead, their presence the only breath of air you’ll have for the day. “I have some time before we leave and I’d love for you to come.”
“Okay, we’ll be there in a few,” Jungkook smiles, somehow excited at the thought that he gets to visit you at your office for something good, unlike the last time, then hangs up after you give him instructions.
“So, he decided to tell you, after all,” Jimin chuckles from in front of you. “He was gonna surprise you with Heejin and asked me if it was okay but he got worried you might not be too happy about it.”
“Why wouldn’t I be?” You ask.
“Maybe because you aren’t officially a couple and he might be imposing if he comes here with your daughter?”
“Is that what he thinks I’d think?” You wonder.
“Uh, yeah? It’s kinda weird. I almost think you’re rubbing off on him with how he’s thinking too much,” Jimin shrugs. “But you guys are… a couple, right?”
“I guess. But we haven’t really talked about it. Do we need a label for these things?” You furrow your brows.
“It’s not a label, ___. It’s just describing how you two are. I’d call you a family but I don’t know if you’re ready for that. I mean, are you?”
“Well,” you start, trying to make sense of all the thoughts in your head. “That’s kind of a loaded question, don’t you think?”
“It is, and an important one, too. Where else do you think this whole thing would lead? You didn’t go through what you did in three years just for you to be unsure of your endgame,” Jimin states.
“It’s more like, I’m not sure if he’sready for that,” you mumble. “Watching over Heejin and playing house is one thing. Actually being a father to her and mypartner in this life is another. I mean, of course I’ve thought about it but he hasn’t really raised it. I’ve been taking things so incredibly slow but now I don’t know if he’s just matching my pace or if he hasn’t thought about our future, like not just what happens in the next 5 years but the next 10, and 20, and more.”
“You know, I’ve known Jungkook for a good few years. And if there’s anything new I’ve learned about him just in the last three since meeting you, it’s that he would do anythingfor you to be happy,” Jimin says. “Whether your happiness is with him or not is entirely up to you, but I swear it, ___, he’d give you and Heejin the world if you let him, and that means sharing his life with both of you for the next 5 years, 10, 20, and more.”
It’s easy to imagine that kind of life with Jungkook. The way life works is kind of amusing, you think, as over two years ago, you couldn’t picture him as part of yours then,butnow, you can’t picture it without him in it.
Much as you want to hold onto that thought longer, your phone ringing ruins it, especially once you learn what’s got one of your associates panicking.
Outside of your room, Jungkook stands by the door with Heejin in his arms, who’s babbling as she hammers her bunny stuffed toy on his eyebrow piercing, something that she likes to do. It’s better than her trying to pull it off like those few times, so he just takes it.
“Hey, Heejin,” a familiar voice says.
Jungkook turns around. “Who’s that, sunshine?”
“Min!” She squeals, catching the attention of all the other employees in that side of the office.
“Hey, kiddo. Nice to see you here again,” Yoongi says, then faces Jungkook. “And you, too. Are you still going to surprise her?”
“Nah, I gave in and told her,” he chuckles. “Didn’t know what she’d think if the local cafe worker just dropped by her office with some desserts and her child.”
“More like, if the guy she’s super into just dropped by with sweets that will definitely make her happy and her daughter whom she trusts to spend the rest of the day with you?” Yoongi corrects.
Jungkook shyly smiles, not missing the way his heart swells at your friend’s words.
“She’s been having a tough day. I’m sure seeing you and Heejin will make it better, even if just for a while.”
Jungkook nods, and before he can say anything else, he hears Jin call his name.
“Oh, good, you’re both here,” he pats Jungkook’s arm and greets Heejin. “She has a meeting with the witnesses later and she needs to be at her best. She’s been jittery and it’s unlike her. I know how you and this little one calm her down.”
Jungkook decides to bask in the thought of your colleagues knowing how he affects you later on, but right now, what matters is getting to you. He knocks on the door and it’s his friend who meets him.
“Hey, Kook,” Jimin smiles. “And hey little angel,” he caresses Heejin’s cheeks. “___ is just in a call but you can go inside.”
Entering the room, Jungkook takes in the simplicity and organization of it. You’re seated on your chair, phone on your ear while massaging your temples, clearly in a state of mild distress as you nibble your lips and take multiple long breaths.
He looks around and smiles at the sight of the top of your shelf, with picture frames of you and Heejin, your family, your best friends. All your accolades and certificates are lined up on the second row, representative of what matters to you - even with how hard you work, your loved ones will always come first, but that doesn’t take away your commitment and passion for your job.
Jungkook stands by your table, carrying Heejin in a forward-facing manner now, just waiting for you to finish. He watches you state your case - some approach in speaking with the witnesses and instructing whoever’s on the other line on what to do, and it’s moments like this when he gets to admire you. It’s not you questioning a witness like those times he watched your trials on TV, but it’s the behind-the-scenes work that you’re doing, all the while ensuring that the people are safe.
“Make sure they’re okay, you hear me? We need them for this case but we need them safe and alive more than anything,” you say before hanging up.
You look up at him with tired eyes and a soft smile, as if the world is slowly crashing around you but there’s Jungkook and Heejin who are the only stable things remaining. You get off your seat and walk towards them, wrapping your one arm around him and the other on your daughter, sighing in relief at their presence and warmth.
“Hey, you,’ he whispers near your ear, the gruff tone sending another type of heat in your body. “You’ve got this, okay? And we’ve got you.”
You nod in response, briefly kissing his cheek then burying yourself in his embrace once more. You stand there with them for a few minutes, giving yourself this time to take the only breather you’ll have for the day.
You release yourself from their hold; any more time and you wouldn’t want to let them go.
“You said you got me something?”
“Cherry tarts,” Jungkook says, as he hands you Heejin whom you hug tightly and who yells your name.
“Oh, god. I’ve been craving cherry things,” you state, marveling at the pretty desserts in front of you.
“I know, that’s why they’re the feature at the cafe today. They ran out quickly.”
“And I get to have these?” You pout. “Jungkook, I know Hobi’s my friend, too, but this is still a business. You can’t keep giving me these things that you sell at the cafe all the time.”
“It was the first batch, and Hobi doesn’t really mind. He knows how many of our items are inspired by you and it’s little payment for how much my mind gets going because of it,” Jungkook winks.
“Fine,” you hum, taking a piece and feeling like crying at how good it is. “Seriously, you both and sweets are all I need. This is so good.”
He chuckles as he hands you tissue and your glass of water. He cups your cheek as you look back at him, just letting his presence ground you like all the times it has. He kisses your forehead and your eyes close reflexively, as if you’re melting at the feel of him doing something so simple yet intimate like this.
“Thank you,” you mumble, feeling like you’ve lost your voice at how overwhelmed and grateful you are. “I needed this. Thank you for coming. And, uh, you can come whenever you want to.”
“Okay, good,” he whispers as he kisses your forehead again, this time lingering. “But we don’t want to keep you since you’ve got some badass, queen things to do. So do well today, okay? We’ll be home, waiting.”
You don’t expect those last four words to affect you the way they do, and they’re truly the most comforting thing you’d heard from him. It just sounds certain, so final, and it’s exactly what you need to get through the day.
“I’ll see you at home,” you smile, kissing his cheek this time. “I’ll see you both at home tonight.”
**
The rain is hitting hard against your windshield, and the only consolation is that it poured right when you and your team finished having dinner at a restaurant a few streets down the nearest parking space. It had been a long evening, indeed, primarily because after the big blow to your case, you all had to debrief and then restrategize while the earlier conversations are still fresh in your minds. You called Jungkook then, saying you’ll be late and he said he’d already given Heejin a bath, something he’d recently learned how to do on his own.
Hitting a stop sign, your phone rings with Jin on the other end.
“You holding up okay?” He asks worriedly, something he tends to do when he knows you’ve got a case that hits close to home.
“Somewhat. The team’s more level-headed about it than I am.”
“You trained good lawyers, then,” he responds in an effort to encourage you.
“Yeah, I guess,” you mumble.
“Let them do the groundwork and give yourself some time. You’re gonna figure it out. Also, I know it’s already been a tough day but don’t forget the conference that my father asked us to attend tomorrow morning,” he says, earning him a groan at the reminder. “Just take the afternoon off and get proper rest this weekend. That’s an order. I shouldn’t be receiving emails or messages from you once you leave the hotel tomorrow.”
“Got it, boss,” you tease, knowing he hates being called as such, then hang up.
You drag yourself to your apartment, your legs shaking from how much you’ve been pacing and walking all day, but knowing that on the other side of the door are the people you need to see and be with the most is what keeps you going.
The living space is dim, with but the accent lights turned on. Jungkook said he’d read Heejin a story and get her to sleep hours ago, and you wonder where he opted to stay. You push the half-open door of Heejin’s bedroom and your heart melts at the sight before you.
Seated on the single sofa next to the toddler bed is Jungkook, his feet up on the ottoman, with Heejin sleeping soundly on his chest and her favorite blanket over her back. He’s securing her with his firm hold on her thighs while making sure she’s still got room to breathe, and you can’t help but smile at her squished cheek against him, her mouth slightly parted as always, her breathing soft and steady.
Jungkook’s head is lolled back, his mouth slightly parted, too, with his breathing a little harder, and you can’t imagine how tired he’s been. He was up early for the first shift and spent all afternoon watching over Heejin, playing with her, feeding her, giving her a bath, and putting her to sleep.
He looks peaceful, though, so at-home and natural, like he’s been doing this for years; like he can keep doing this for more.
You kneel next to him, marveling at his beauty with the light from the lamp illuminating his features. He’s incredibly handsome, something you don’t think you’ve ever told him. There’s a softness in his face that contrasts the toughness of the rest of him, and with him, holding your daughter like this, there’s tenderness that captivates you.
Heejin is comfortable and that says a lot with how well he’d taken care of her today. And you know she wasn’t anxious being away from you. You know she had fun and felt safe, and that’s all that matters.
“Hey, you,” you whisper, not wanting to rush Jungkook in waking up. “I’m home now.”
It takes a while and you caress his cheek as you wait for him, enjoying the smoothness of his face and the way you want to smooch every inch of it if possible.
His eyes flutter open and a satisfied sigh leaves his lips once it’s registered that it’s you.
“Hey,” he hums. “What time is it?”
“11PM,” you say. “I’m a few hours late. It rained so hard, too; it was tough to drive for a while.”
“You okay, though? You ate well?”
“I did.”
“Okay, good,” he replies, shifting to sit up straight without disturbing Heejin then motioning for you to sit on the armrest. “This little one couldn’t sleep without you. I had to massage her, rock her, read to her, sing to her… all the works.”
“It’s because I was out the whole day,” you giggle, softly caressing her cheeks. “But I’m sure she enjoyed being with you today. Thank you for taking care of her.”
“Of course, ___. I loved today with her. She’s doing so well at recognizing more animals. And she’s saying the alphabet with fewer pauses now. And she was singing the tomato nursery rhyme.”
“Less yelling and actual singing?”
“Less yelling and actual singing,” he chuckles, knowing of Heejin’s tendency to yell everything she wants to say. “I took videos. I’ll send everything to you later.”
You smile and nod, taking his free hand in yours in thanks for how good he is to her, and all the while making sure that you’re not missing out on anything at all.
“We should lay her down. I’m sure you’re tired, too,” you say, standing up and taking Heejin to cradle in your arms.
You lovingly kiss her then gently put her in her bed, letting the mobile play because she likes to have the music on.
“Goodnight, Jinnie,” Jungkook whispers after you do, smiling softly as he watches her turn to hug the deer stuffed toy next to her.
You take his hand and guide him to the living room, motioning for him to sit on the couch where you snuggle next to him, humming in satisfaction as you wrap your arm around his torso and his wraps around your shoulder.
He’s gotten used to this, holding you at whatever time of the day while you fall into him, sighing in relief or exhaustion. He likes the gradual escalation, too, as your grips have come to signify something more than warmth. Security, he thinks, and perhaps desire as well.
But it’s comfort for you, first and foremost. You didn’t realize what coming home to this would do for your mind and your heart.
“Two of our witnesses in the sexual harassment case backed out today,” you say after a prolonged silence, which was spent finding the right spot for your head on his chest and taking in his Heejin-tinged scent.
“They’re crucial to the case but they got scared and I can’t blame them,” you continue. “It’s hard out there. Hard for them, whether they speak up or not. They lose either way and I can’t do anything about it.”
Jungkook processes your words. He’ll never fully understand what it’s like as a woman, but still, it only takes human decency to know that what those women went through is terrible, something no one should be experiencing in the first place.
“It’s the culture you’re fighting against, ___,” he says. “But you’re fighting it. Whether they speak up or not, they know you’re fighting for them.That’s a change in itself, regardless if it’s in the system or their lives, it’s still something.”
“Wise words, Mr. Jeon,” you smile. “Just what I needed to hear.”
“They’reyourwords, Atty. Kim,” he smiles back.
You look at him questioningly.
“I listen to you talk, you know?” He chuckles. “Everything you need to keep going is right there in that brilliant mind of yours, and in your heart. You just need someone to remind you every once in a while, I guess.”
“Yeah, I guess,” you huff, curling your legs on top of his lap.
Enveloped in silence, he places his hand on your leg, caressing it and eliciting a soft moan from you.
“I like this,” you hum, lifting your face to softly kiss his cheek.
“What, a leg massage?”
“Yes, that,” you chuckle. “But also, this.Having you hold me this way, listening to me, telling me things I need to hear. I know I’m a lot to handle most days but this, this is nice. To just have you next to me is so grounding, you know? Like it’s all that I need.”
“It is, huh?” He turns to look at you, his star-filled eyes that you always drown in meeting yours.
You nod in response and he strokes your cheek before kissing your forehead, then your nose. You feel all the words he doesn’t say in the lips that tingle your skin, and you know where else you want those on.
Yours.
So you move forward, capturing his lips in a kiss that feels too much and too little at the same time. You hold him there, familiarizing yourself with the sensation, with the emotion, with the tingle of his warm breath against your skin.
He parts his mouth and then it’s his taste you’re quickly getting addicted to, his tongue you’re entangling yours with in a sensual battle, his silver hoop that’s cold and comforting, his moan that’s bewitching. He inhales you like you’re oxygen, and you hold onto him like you’ll run out of it.
He responds by tightening his grip on your back, his other hand that was glued to your leg, now inching up to trace patterns on your knee, then your outer thigh, keeping it there to hold you both steady, as he feels the burning desire for you slowly take over.
It’s slow and amorous, with a tinge of desperation as you both try to get closer than you are, but it’s still tender and euphoric. He’s like a drug you can get high on, and any amount won’t seem to ever be enough.
He does the hard task of pulling away, breathing against you as his forehead meets yours, his eyes closed as he tries to wrap his mind around how good you taste, and smell, and feel like.
“You like that, too?” He smiles.
“Yes, very much,” you whisper back, placing your hands that have found purchase on his neck on his cheeks this time. “It’s been a while.”
“No shit,” he says, eliciting a laugh from you. “Sorry, I had to.”
“I guess I deserve that,” you smile. “But god does it feel so much better this time around.”
“Wasn’t good enough the last time?” He teases.
“I wasn’t ready the last time,” you correct.
It was good, definitely. You think about that kiss a lot.
“My bad. I’m sorry,” he says.
“Not in that way. You know what I mean.”
He nods, smiling as he looks at you constantly eyeing his lips.
He’d want more if this continues, so much more. Much as he’d been dreaming of this, he was caught off-guard, and he’s unsure if you’re ready for what morewould mean for him. Though he’s the more generous - and dare he say, desperate - one when it comes to physical affection, he wants everything with you. He wants it to be perfect, with no holding back, no doubts or questions, no fears or apprehensions. Just you and him and all the emotions kept in that can’t wait to finally be completely felt, returned.
“You had a long day,” he mumbles, kissing you deeply again. “And you have another long one tomorrow.”
“I’ve got that conference in the morning with Jin,” you confirm. “But he gave me the afternoon off. I think Heejin would love to spend her Friday with me, don’t you think?”
“Yes, she does. She kept calling for you every time you showed up in the videos,” he chuckles, pulling you closer by your legs and wrapping his arms around you.
“Hmm. We’re gonna have an afternoon of tickle fights and boyband music. It’s my stress relief.”
“Bet if she could talk back, she’d tell you to choose better music.”
“Don’t be a hater,” you playfully smack his arm. “Plus, she loves it! She jumps up and down when I play the songs, just like how prepubescent me was doing it.”
“She takes after you so much, it’s amazing.”
“Who else would she take anything from?” You chuckle. “There’s just me.”
And me, hopefully. One day, Jungkook thinks, but he keeps the thought to himself for now, not wanting to scare you with the life he’d planned - and hopes to have - with you.
“Do you feel better?” He asks after a beat of silence.
“I do, thank you,” you face him, letting that sense of calm you get from this intimacy with him overtake you.
He holds your gaze for a while before he fights off a yawn.
“You had a long day, Jungkook,” you say, the exhaustion from earlier coming back. “And you have another one tomorrow. And Saturday, right?”
“Dea and I will start with the prep work tomorrow,” he says.
A celebrity who’s also a regular at the cafe booked them to set up a dessert table for a baby shower on Saturday morning. He’ll be working all Friday for it and he’s anxious and excited at the same time.
“What time does it end?”
“Around 2. But we won’t stay. Only Hobi will,” Jungkook responds. “Dea and I will set up and the boss will do the socializing and promoting.”
“Hmm. Does that mean you’re free in the evening?”
“By the afternoon, actually. What do you have in mind?”
“A date. Just you and me. There’s this place I want to try,” you tell him, taking his hand in yours. “I feel like this is the longest we got to even talk this whole week and I’m thinking maybe you want to spend Saturday night with me.”
“It’s like I didn’t pine for you for three years, ___,” he laughs. “Of course. Let me know the plans after my event, yeah? I’ll be too excited and I might not be able to focus.”
“Okay,” you smile, knowing you have to let him go now.
You stand up and lead him towards the door, the thought of saying goodbye after sharing that heartstopping kiss with him makes you feel all kinds of loss.
“Just let me know when you get home even if I’ll be asleep by then.”
“I will,” he says, turning to face you after he opens your door. He kisses you again, one, two, three times.
You look at him with a mix of amusement and confusion.
“For every year that I yearned for that,” he says simply, certainly.
You want to go for another round, maybe do more this time. You definitely want that. But it’s been a long day and the only thing you want more than him is a warm bath followed by your soft sheets.
You merely nod in response, not trusting yourself with words this time. “Good night, Jungkook.”
“Good night, ___. I’ll see you soon.”
**
“Alright, bubba. Be honest. How does Mamalook?”
Heejin is propped up in the middle of your bed, playing with her toy bus, which she deems as infinitely more interesting than you.
“Bubba, look at me, please?” You pout, as if your almost-three year old can fully comprehend what you’re asking of her.
She throws her toy on the floor and you pick it up, hiding it behind your back and asking her again.
“DoesMamalook pretty, bubba? Do you think Kookoo will think so?”
“Mama!Bus please,” she whines, hands reaching out for you.
“DoesMamalook nice? Yes or no?”
“No,” she shakes her head, and this goes in the list of times you wish it wasn’t her favorite word.
“Okay, thanks for the encouragement, bubba. Let’s just wait until Kookoo gets here and then we’ll see. Thank you, I still love you,” you say, planting a kiss on her forehead and returning her toy.
“Kookoo! I want Kookoo!”
“I know, bub. But he’s mine tonight, okay? I promise, you’ll be with him tomorrow,” you smile.
It’s another second that you let yourself question if you’re being selfish with this - asking your mom to care for Heejin overnight so you can spend the evening and hopefully until the next day with Jungkook. Ever since that kiss you shared two days ago, it’s all you could think about.
You won’t lie and say that a part of you expected he’d take it further, perhaps a longer makeout session where he’d lay you down and kiss you all over, maybe have his hands explore your body and ask to stay the night.
But he didn’t, and much as you’d hoped for that - even if you were the one taking your sweet time in the first place - you slept that evening with a tight knot in your belly, and you’ve just been waiting for it to uncoil.
You barely spoke to him yesterday and he’s been busy all morning. He took a nap once he got home so he could be fully present for you tonight, he’d said, and the thought itself is making you giddy, excited.
There’s no more hiding or tempering what you feel. And you wanna be able to tell him that, show him that. And you hope he’ll still take what you can give.
You look at yourself one last time in the mirror and manage a smile. You don’t even recall the last time you wore this dress but you’ll definitely remember tonight.
The doorbell ringing startles you and it’s probably because of how anxious you are.
You and Jungkook have gone on dates but tonight is different - it’s a lot fancier and well, your mom convinced you to let her take Heejin for the night after you spent the whole afternoon talking about Jungkook and she had to remind you that it’s okay to want this for yourself.That includes spending a night with him. Doing so doesn’t make you any less of a mother. Part of parenthood is choosing things for yourself once in a while. You need to teach your daughter how to choose herself, too, your mom reminded you.
You place Heejin on her mini couch and you walk towards the door, your breath catching in your throat at the sight before you.
You’ve seen Jungkook in a variety of outfits of all colors - mostly monotone with pops of color every now and then. He’d sported less casual wardrobes the few times you went on dates and they always left you speechless with how sophisticated they looked, and tonight is no exception.
He has on a black silk polo with a few buttons undone underneath a burgundy velvet jacket and black slacks, which are deliciously tight enough for you to appreciate his toned thighs. His hair is slicked back with a few strands of it dangling at the side like how those Hollywood leading men would do it. It’s a mix of youthful and mature, but sexy nonetheless, especially with his pierced brow and lips; he definitely upped his game tonight.
He revels in the way your mouth opens and closes, your eyes raking all over him, something he’d caught you sneakily do a few times recently, but it’s the first time you’re openly ogling at him and he’s got to admit, it’s the confidence boost he badly needs.
“Find your voice yet?” He teases, cocked brow and all.
“Now I have,” you get back to your senses. “Just not used to you dressing up all grown up and stuff.”
“Then how have I been dressing up the other times?” He chuckles, finally entering your apartment.
“Well, the oversized everythingscreamed too casual and like, uh…”
“Boyfriend?” He smirks. “I mean, that’s what I’ve heard you say a few times to Hobi when you’re at the cafe.”
“Eavesdropping on your customers? That’s not nice.”
“Hey, I just happen to hear you two when I serve people since, you know, I work there? But that’s besides the point,” he says, voice dropping a few octaves. “Is that what I am? A… boyfriend?”
“Is that what you want to be?” You say, matching his tone.
He walks closer to you, his arm snaking around your waist as he pulls you closer.
“Yeah,” says, his gruff voice in a whisper sending chills down your spine. “That would be fucking amazing, actually.”
“Okay,” you say, meeting his eyes. “Do the boyfriend thing and kiss me, then.”
He glances at Heejin who’s engrossed in watching Pororo run about, and he turns back to you, his smug face the last thing you see before your eyes fall closed at the feel of his lips on yours.
You didn’t realize how much you’d miss it with just a day being without it, and now all you want is to drown in his kiss that’s gentle and desperate at the same time. His motions are smooth, but the rest of his body is tense; you feel the eagerness and the hesitation. So do you.
Your heads barely move and your mouths part only minimally, but you can taste his strawberry chapstick and the mint he’d just had. His tongue lightly brushes past your lower lip, like a tease of what he wants, of what more he can give, and sometimes you wonder why you ran away from this all those years ago.
But when you think of how easily you almost fell into this, you’re reminded of why you had to turn your back on him then. If at the end of all of that, you get to have this,then maybe it’s all been worth it.
Jungkook pulls away again this time, smiling giddily at your post-kiss face, and then pecking your lips. “I may have ruined your lipstick a bit.”
You wipe the taint of it on his lips and giggle. “And I’m glad you did.”
You motion towards Heejin, who you say has been looking for him, and you watch him as he kneels in front of her for a hug, asking what she’s watching, and then listening to her talk about the show that’s on.
“You ready to go to Mom’s,bubba?” You ask, joining them. “She’s taking you to a light show tonight. You’ll be good, alright?”
“Yes,Mama!” she squeals, hugging you back as you nuzzle her nose.
“So come, Kookoo and I will take you to her.”
Jungkook carries her as you all make it to his car, the drive to your mom’s apartment, a surprisingly short one on a Saturday evening. Your mom’s ecstatic and smug face reveals too much, even more so as she keeps reminding you and Jungkook to “have fun” and “make the most of your time together.”
“We will, but please call when you’re putting her to bed,” you say.
“I will. Now you lovebirds, leave our apartment now.”
You and Jungkook eventually do, but not without multiple goodbye hugs and kisses on Heejin. She indulges you only briefly because the newly-assembled dollhouse catches her attention and then it’s like you don’t exist anymore.
Jungkook takes your hand as you both walk to the car, something he does while he drives as well, and throughout dinner.
You chose a fancy Japanese restaurant as per Jin’s suggestion and you’ve always sworn by his recommendations. Their array of interesting dishes got you and Jungkook feeding each other, then listing the other places you both want to try. It’s a few hours of him making you laugh, gushing over Heejin as you both watch the videos from the other night, him randomly taking your hand to kiss, and looking into your eyes while you speak.
He goes from the charming Jungkook with the shy, boyish smile and nose scrunch to the confident, lip-licking man with a hypnotizing gaze in seconds - he’s been giving you a whiplash all night.
You, on the other hand, have been letting yourself drown in all that he’s giving and doing to you. No more walls up or any other apprehensions unlike before. This time - as you’ve been the past several months - you feel safe enough to be yourself, desires and flaws included.
You both head back to the car for a quick drive to your final destination for tonight. It’s right when you enter that you get a photo of a sleeping Heejin on her belly, cheek to the side with her butt propped up.
“What was she doing?” You laugh right as you call your mom.
“She didn’t want to sleep yet so we were watching TV,” your mother shares. “The channel stopped at a musical and she wanted to keep it there. She was bobbing her head and clapping and found her position, fighting off her yawns until she gave up. It was so adorable, honey.”
“Okay then, guess it’s musicals for us for the next few weeks. But thanks, Mom.I’m sure she enjoyed her time with you guys.”
“Oh, she did. She wouldn’t play with the dollhouse unless Jung-jae was next to her. She’s really comfortable with him already.”
“That’s great to hear.He’s a constant now, too,” you respond. “But she’s good? Sleeping soundly in bed and all?”
“Yes, honey. Looks like she’ll have a good, long sleep. Jung-jae and I will bring her to you first thing in the morning so she won’t throw a tantrum when she wakes up without you,” your mom offers. “Would 8 be fine? Just let me know if you want us to drop by later, though. Don’t want to ruin any morning shenanigans or something.”
It’s her teasing and sultry tone that makes you gasp, and you hear Jung-jae laughing next to her, telling her to leave you and Jungkook be.
“Alright, I will. You lovebirds enjoy tonight, okay? I mean it.”
She giggles this time, and she hangs up before you even say goodbye.
Jungkook doesn’t say much, having only faintly heard the conversation. He stops the car and wraps his arm around you as you both walk two streets down to an alley.
It’s one of those hidden cocktail bars in the city, with an unassuming facade hiding an elaborate interior. Taehyung suggested this place when you asked your family for bar options, as he’d done gigs here before for jazz nights. The high ceilings and dim lights, the soft music, and the couches made for two make it a nice place for enjoying each other’s company.
Jungkook sets his one hand on your waist while the other draws circles on your exposed knee that’s brushing against his, only removing it when he takes a sip from his drink.
“Jinnie doing okay at Auntie’s?” He asks.
“She is,” you smile, sharing what your mom had said about their day, to Jungkook’s delight. “But I miss her already.”
“I do, too,” he sighs. “But I like this,” he adds, meeting your eyes.
“I like you,” you respond, catching him off guard, his eyes instantly widening at your declaration.
“That’s, uh, that’s nice to finally hear,” he beams before hiding his face in your neck as he tries to get himself together.
You laugh at his response, caressing the back of his head and pecking the side of it.
“Yah! What’s with the reaction? It’s not like it isn’t obvious. We’ve been going on dates,” you say, pushing him up to face you. “And I’ve been kissing you.”
“But it’s different to hear you say it, after all this time.”
“I guess I just got caught up in what we finally are that I didn’t bother to verbalize it,” you narrate, something that’s unlike how you normally are because you tend to lay out in words the things you’re experiencing and thinking to be able to make sense of them. “And I realize now that I don’t think I’ve changed much from the last time. Maybe I haven’t been fair to you.”
“What are you talking about?” He looks at you curiously.
“Back then, my siblings used to give me shit for treating you like that puppy I found adorable and would pet and stuff but wouldn’t actually want to keep,” you admit, recalling how they always found a way to remind you of the analogy they came up with.
“You just always stood by next to me whatever I was doing and years passed and it was kind of like that again, right? You’ve just been waiting for me to be ready all these months and it took so long before I could even say it, before I even considered giving you anything.And I’m sorry I haven’t been giving you much.”
“Hey. You’ve been giving me a lot,” he comforts, lifting your chin to face him. “I knew what I was getting myself into the first time, and even now. And not once did I feel impatient or that it was all for nothing. You’ve given me your time, Heejin’s time, your trust, your heart… and I’ve been happy, ___. Really happy.”
There’s contentment in his eyes when he says the words, but even then, there’s a tinge of hope, and something else that he holds back. And for all the times that he’d been the transparent one, with you having control of your emotions, it seems that the roles have been reversed, as you feel like baring everything to him while he maintains as much composure as he possibly can.
“I am, too, Jungkook,” you say softly, inching closer to him, taking in his sandalwood scent he’s chosen over his usual sporty one.
You’re internally grateful for the bit of privacy you’re being afforded, although looking around, you don’t seem to be the only couple that finds themselves in an intimate moment.
“You make me feel things I’ve felt before… but in extremes. Like, there’s this longing when you’re away, and this unabashed joy when I’m with you. I’ve sort of conditioned myself not to feel too much so it’s kind of overwhelming sometimes, but in a good way. Like it’s all these amazing things all at once and I don’t know what to do with them, but at the same time, I can’t be without them, without you.”
Jungkook merely gazes at you as a satisfied smile forms on his face.
“Not used to you being speechless,” you chuckle.
“I’m not yet immune to you, you know? You still surprise me.”
“And what if I don’t anymore, would you still want me then?”
“Always,” he says instantly, certainly.
The lights are dim and the nearest customers have just left, and the desire that’s been gradually growing since he showed up looking like pure sin in your doorway overtakes you. You lean forward and kiss him deeply, your tongue sliding inside his mouth to let him know what you want from him. It’s like time freezing as the tension melts away; like sucking the air out of him, and when you part, he breathes heavily like it’s exactly what you did.
“My apartment, please?” You pant, your forehead leaned against his, eyes closed just like his.
“Okay,” he huffs, stealing a soft kiss before paying the bill and then heading out.
Jungkook has to choose between walking quickly to get to your destination faster or strolling so he could savor this moment with you - walking underneath dim street lights, your satin midnight blue dress flowing up to your shins.
He chooses the latter, as you seem to want to savor this, too, much as you seemed to yearn him so much just minutes ago.
It’s his turn to steal a kiss when you both enter the car, and the ride home is filled with tension that you know how to resolve but need to wait more time to actually address.
You arrive at your apartment without making any public scene, letting the tension follow you there.
“Kind of unusual coming here without Heejin squealing or laughing or yelling at us,” he chuckles, pulling you from the back for a hug, his head nestling at the crook of your neck - another new intimate act that you already want more of.
“I know,” you say, shivering at the kiss he makes near your ear. “But Mominsisted on having her for the night and bribed her with whatever. They’ll come tomorrow morning. And I agreed because, well, I really wanted to be alone with you tonight,” you add, turning around, your hungry eyes raking all over him.
“You did, huh?” His gaze locks on yours, all the desire he feels reflecting in it.
He hasn’t been able to stop thinking about your lips on his since the other night, and he can’t help it when his mind starts to conjure all the other things he wants to do. He has to control his thoughts so he doesn’t expect too much - of what else you want to do physically, and what that would mean for your relationship.
He realized that when it comes to you, he regards things much more deeply, meaningfully, and so every act and word holds so much - his fears, his desires, and hope with and for you.
“Yeah, I—” You whimper at his sudden grip on your waist, glancing at his parted mouth, mirroring the way your tongue licks your lips, aching to feel him there.
You can feel the heat radiate off his body with how close he’s gotten, as you feel the rush of desire overtake your own. Your heart beats rapidly, anticipating what’s to come next, and for the seconds that feel like more, he rests his forehead against yours, your noses grazing while you breathe each other in.
He gives in first, cupping your cheeks as he angles your mouth to fit his. His tongue slips in, exploring you in this way, and you fall right into it with him, gripping the collars of his polo as you meet his fervent action. It’s messy and raw and unsteadying, and you feel like you’re in a haze of some sort as you try to take all that he gives all at once.
His hands move to your waist as he continues to kiss you, parting only very briefly. He nips and licks and sucks your lips, your joint moans gradually getting louder. He slowly pushes you backward until you hit the armrest of the couch, and you lean on it as you feel like you’re losing balance with how much of yourself you’re giving with this kiss.
“Fuck, I can do this all night,” he groans, his mouth descending to peck on your jaw and your neck.
“Just this?” You moan teasingly.
“What else did you have in mind?” He turns to you, his lustful eyes turning curious.
“Everything,” you heave, taking his hand and guiding it to your breast. “I don’t want us to hold back.”
He strokes it only gently, and much as you know that at some point, it would lead to this, you’re slightly worried why he doesn’t seem as into the idea of doing it right now as you expected. You’re about to ask what’s wrong when he speaks.
“I won’t want to turn back after this,” he says pointedly, eyes locked on yours to make sure you know he means every word. “I’m gonna want more. I’m gonna give you and Heejin the whole world, you have to know that, but I’m gonna need you to want this with me.”
You hear the mix of certainty and desperation in his voice but unlike all the times he’d spoken in this way, you know that you want it, too. Whatever it is, you want it.
“Okay,” you pant. “I want more, and I can give you more.
“Okay,” he gasps, pecking your forehead, then your nose, then your lips where he lingers. “Good. That’s good.”
You both kiss again like you’d done earlier, but with more need this time. It’s heated, even messier, more intentional, and louder, too.
You push the jacket off his shoulders and he pulls you much closer, his hands sliding down to your ass, which he squeezes intensely. Pulling up your dress, he does it again, lightly slapping the cheeks as he gets into the moment.
You moan into his mouth, bucking your hips against his to let him know how it affected you.
“Fuck, you like that?” He rasps, nipping at your neck now.
“Yes,” you answer, moaning even louder when he does it again, a little harder this time.
You’re lost in his scent, in his heat, in the way his mouth explores whatever he can at this position, and the dampness in your underwear only says what more you want from him.
Guiding him towards the couch, you lightly nudge him to sit, gazing at him hungrily before settling on his lap, kissing him again like you’re memorizing every inch of his mouth and his lips that you can’t get enough of.
While his hands knead your ass and simultaneously push you to grind against his aching cock, yours hurriedly unbutton his polo, wanting a taste of what you’d seen that afternoon at the pool. You’d thought of how he looked underneath all the clothes he wears and you finally get to do more than just imagine all of that.
After undoing the last button, you palm his chest, toned and smooth as you’d expected, his pert nipples exciting you as you flick them to his delight. Your lips detach from his, then you briefly gaze at his bare body, and move towards his chest, your open-mouthed kisses all over it intensifying his desire, and he’s the one who’s now unzipping your dress from behind.
Pushing you to sit back up, Jungkook meets your glazed eyes, and he slowly pulls down the straps off your shoulders, followed by your bra to reveal half of your breasts, your own pert buds teasing him.
He pants as your fingers trace the dips of his abs, and unable to just sit and marvel at you any longer, he attacks your breasts, taking one in his mouth, ravishing it as he fondles the other.
The pleasure is immediate, as the way he swirls and strokes your erogenous region makes you feel suspended, especially as he does so in a carnal yet passionate way. You grind against him, feeling his stiff length poking your stomach. Your hands grip on his taut back, feeling its tense muscles as he exerts all his effort on making you feel good, which he knows he’s doing so well at, given your expletives and moans that keep getting louder.
“You sound so good,” he groans in your ear, another sensitive part of you, something he’s figured out, as he nibbles and licks its shell, and he instantly feels the hairs of your arm raise at the action.
You hum, pushing him to lean back again so your eyes could rake all over his body, liking the way the dim light illuminates the beads of sweat on his chest, and with him panting like this and seeing the hunger in his eyes while also knowing he’ll get to do more, he’s absolutely stunning.
“Done admiring?” He asks cheekily.
“Yes,” you reply after a beat of silence, though you doubt you’d ever get enough of see this. “You?”
“Need to see everything first, babe,” he smirks.
So you stand up, unhooking your bra then fully unzipping the dress that’s pooled on your waist, doing so in a sensual manner as you slowly reveal more of yourself to him, liking the way his eyes widen in shock and lust at the same time.
You’re left with nothing but your silk thong, a shiver running down your spine when he moves towards the edge of the couch, his hands caressing your outer thighs before groping and slapping your ass cheeks once more.
“Can’t get enough of these,” he moans, not matching the tender way he kisses your torso.
You cradle his head, and he’s suddenly reminded of all the times he used to see you do this. He looks up at you teasingly.
“Hmm, this is what it’s like.”
You remember it, too, and you laugh at the way he nuzzles your belly then smirks at you, like he’s thoroughly enjoying himself. You’d been in a lustful mood just seconds ago, and he brings you back in it as quickly as he took you out, as he starts sucking on the skin that leads to your cunt.
He glances at you while he nibbles at the hem of your underwear, his fingers teasing your lips and feeling the dampness that’s pooled in there. Slowly, he removes the last piece of clothing you have on, staring at your hooded eyes while he does.
Now completely bare in front of him, he brings you with him as he sits back on the couch, having you straddle him again, your mouths touching once more, the fervent actions at pace with your thrusting hips.
“You’re so wet, I can feel you all over me,” he mumbles in your ear, pushing your core down to grind against his clothed crotch.
“Need your mouth to do something about it,” you groan, as the ache in your cunt starts to get unbearable, needing relief.
✿ : The one where everytime you get dumped you pretend that you never met the guy before to mess with their heads. To the point that if you run into them somewhere you reintroduce yourself and act like you’ve never seen each other before.
Enters fuckboy Jungkook who disappears after your night together, not knowing how much he was about to regret that choice.
✿ : Romance, Humor, Fluff, Angst, College AU
✿ /: I’m truly sorry for this sad excuse of an update.
Jungkook was a mistake you saw coming from a mile away. His smile, his voice, the way he dressed, everything screamed “We both are going to need therapy very soon!”. So you decided very early that you’d not entertain or humor him in any way, shape or form, not sparing a single glance in his direction, keeping your distance and indifference.
Little did you know, indifference was the one thing he could not stand.
✿ : The one where everytime you get dumped you pretend that you never met the guy before to mess with their heads. To the point that if you run into them somewhere you reintroduce yourself and act like you’ve never seen each other before.
Enters fuckboy Jungkook who disappears after your night together, not knowing how much he was about to regret that choice.
✿ : Romance, Humor, Fluff, Angst, College AU
✿ /: I’m truly sorry for this sad excuse of an update.
Jungkook was a mistake you saw coming from a mile away. His smile, his voice, the way he dressed, everything screamed “We both are going to need therapy very soon!”. So you decided very early that you’d not entertain or humor him in any way, shape or form, not sparing a single glance in his direction, keeping your distance and indifference.
Little did you know, indifference was the one thing he could not stand.
Jungkook could handle rejection, mockery and even anger. At this point, he was used to the violent aftermath of his short and sordid affairs.
Angry tears and shouted voicemails no longer fazed him, being sort of an occupational hazard, an expected outcome to his fuckboy lifestyle. Crying girls didn’t move him, no matter how much they sobbed. Jungkook was fully prepared to deal with any sort of hard feelings left behind a one night stand.
Except, of course, apathy.
Talented, funny and charming, Jungkook was born and raised in the spotlight. He grew and thrived under praise and attention. Even then, in his most rebellious phase, he was still loved by his family and adored by his peers. Older and more infamous, Jungkook was still golden to everyone.
Except, of course, you.
At first, it didn’t really bother him. You were just a girl in his class that didn’t actually pay that much attention to him, which was fine, since he had all the attention he could possibly need. But then he started noticing other things - like how you didn’t laugh when he cracked a joke out loud or the way you never acknowledged his presence even outside of the lecture hall.
Those little acts of disinterest very quickly started getting under his skin, annoyance growing when he saw you interacting with anyone but him, smiling and waving at his colleagues but seeing right through him until it all culminated into him cornering you after class, determined in catching your eyes and making you notice him, if only to understand why you didn’t before.
“Hey” he said, leaning on your desk as you put your things away, other students long gone “have we met? You look familiar”
You looked up, reluctantly meeting his stare with a deadpan look “Yes, we have both been in this class for months” your delivery was dry and disengaged.
“No, that’s not it” he followed you as you started to walk away, flinging your backpack over your shoulder and almost hitting his face “I think I’ve seen you before this”
You did not answer, just quickened your steps, but he carried on, getting desperate “Maybe in my dreams”
Your steps faltered and for a moment he thought he had you “Or maybe” you turned slightly to him, picking up your pace “in your nightmares. Like those where someone is trying to chase you with a machete and you try to run, but can’t, so you get stuck in a morbid fantasy which later leads to subconscious oneiric trauma, deeply harming your sleep schedule. Maybe I’m your sleep paralysis demon.”
That was not the answer he was expecting, if he was expecting any at all. Jungkook stopped in his tracks, goosebumps on his skin from fear and an inexplicable, slightly questionable attraction. You did not look back, leaving him flabbergasted in your wake “Let’s not stick around to find out which one!”
That day, Jungkook went home and googled what oneiric meant, head full of obstinate fascination, determined to understand why you hated him and how to change that.
Fast forward to a few weeks later and Jungkook completely understood why you hated him. In fact, your hatred was expected and justified, which was why he left your bed early enough to not have to deal with it, slipping through your sleeping fingers.
“I can’t believe you just left.” Taehyung, his friend, told him later. They were hanging out at the campus cafe, waiting for the first class of the day to start.
Jimin snorted from beside him “Have you met Jungkook before? He never stays around.”
Jungkook nodded, eyes darting around looking for you, ready to run at the sight of a single strand of your hair.
“It just sounds counterproductive, that’s all.” Taehyung continued “You spend weeks running after this girl despite her apparently hating your guts, finally gets her to go out with you just to tap out after one night? Why go through all the trouble? Just to get your ass kicked? Is it like a pain kink or a death wish sort of thing?”
“I think it’s a ‘I need psychological evaluation’ sort of thing” Jimin added teasingly.
Jungkook groaned, covering his face with his large hands “Maybe it’s a ‘mind your fucking business’ kind of thing”.
“Well, your fucking business is coming our way, so maybe you shoud start minding it for a change”
Jungkook’s head snapped up so quickly his neck cracked loudly, his eyes finding you in the crowd easily after several days worth of practice. You were just walking in, on your phone, the backpack you always carried hanging by one shoulder strap, swinging as you walked up to the end of the ordering line, close enough to his table that he could listen to snippets of your conversation “Jane, please, we have talked about this… Saying it louder is not gonna make me agree with you! Jane…” you shifted in place, rolling your eyes before accidentally meeting Jungkook’s stare.
He froze, eyes locked unblinking, holding his breath while his friends watched his demise with nothing but amusement.
But then you blinked twice, frowned and looked away. “Some guy is staring at me” he heard you say, voice weary “I don’t know who it is, Jane, some dude” you glanced at him again quickly, looking creeped out “of course I’m carrying a taser, Jane, I’m not an animal… You know what, this coffee is not even worth the visual harassment, God I hate men…”
And with that you exited the place, once again leaving behind a very confused Jungkook, his now perpetual state.
“Dude, I thought you said you fucked her?”
“I did.”
“Did you forget to tell her?”
“Or did you just get to the ultimate level of being a whore, where you don’t even have to sleep with people, you just have to believe you did? Sort of like being a manifestation slut, sending horny energies into the universe…”
“Oh my God, shut up!” Jungkook snapped “Of course I slept with her! Why would I lie about shit like this?”
Jimin shrugged “Because maybe you couldn’t get her to actually sleep with you?”
Now that got Jungkook blood boiling, never being one to take jabs at his abilities lightly.
“Come to think of it, have we ever seen those two together?”
Jungkook had heard enough, standing and flipping his sniggering friends off before storming off after you.
He did not know what kind of game you were playing or if this was some sort of weird comping mechanism you had, but he was determined to set his record straight. Despite the less than stelar state of your now dead non-relationship, you had a history together that had to be acknowledged, afterall Jungkook lived for the recognition of his accomplishments and he would not allow you to tarnish his carefully and purposefully dirty reputation by turning him into a liar.
Gore, violence, zombies, mention of drugs and drug dealing, weapons discharge in self defense, main character death, zombies, course language, zombies, drinking, did I mention zombies?
Summary:
They were the top of their game, known throughout the city as the smartest and most dangerous crew to ever hit the Daegu streets. But what’s going to happen when this group of young men encounter something right out of a horror film?
Gore, violence, zombies, mention of drugs and drug dealing, weapons discharge in self defense, main character death, zombies, course language, zombies, drinking, did I mention zombies?
Summary:
They were the top of their game, known throughout the city as the smartest and most dangerous crew to ever hit the Daegu streets. But what’s going to happen when this group of young men encounter something right out of a horror film?
Gore, violence, zombies, mention of drugs and drug dealing, weapons discharge in self defense, main character death, zombies, course language, zombies, drinking, did I mention zombies?
Summary:
They were the top of their game, known throughout the city as the smartest and most dangerous crew to ever hit the Daegu streets. But what’s going to happen when this group of young men encounter something right out of a horror film?
Gore, violence, zombies, mention of drugs and drug dealing, weapons discharge in self defense, main character death, zombies, course language, zombies, drinking, did I mention zombies?
Summary:
They were the top of their game, known throughout the city as the smartest and most dangerous crew to ever hit the Daegu streets. But what’s going to happen when this group of young men encounter something right out of a horror film?
The kitchen erupted into a surge of chaos at the sound of Jin’s voice. I’d rerouted the audio to my cell phone, which Taehyung had rigged long ago to double as a receiver so we could communicate during missions and various outings.
It was a chorus of shouts and sobbing as the boys scrambled to be heard over each other by their elder.
“How did you survive?”
“What the fuck happened?”
“Where are you now?”
“Are you hurt?”
“I saw you get shot, what the hell?!”
Even Yoongi seemed shaken, which was hard considering.
That windshield wiper laugh sounded through the receiver and I crumpled to the floor, sobbing with relief as I clutched the phone to my chest.
“Aww, come on now boys, look what you did to her.” Even at a distance and fresh from the grave he still managed to find a way to scold his younger brothers.
Jungkook helped me to my feet and I placed the phone on the counter, angling it so that everyone could hear and be heard before burying myself into the crook of his arm.
“Hyung, seriously, how did you manage to survive that shot?” Jimin squatted down at the counter across from me, arms crossed on the metal surface so he could rest his chin on them and still be able to see the phone.
“Same way Hoseok did. We had our vests on.”
This sent another wave of relief and cheering through the group. Even Jeanette and Rose were sobbing off to the side when they heard Hobi’s cheerful hello on the other end of the line.
“Fuck sake man!” Namjoon sniffled as Taehyung wiped his nose on his shoulder. “You both had us half way to grieving over you.”
“Seriously though, what exactly happened?” Junkgook demanded, though he couldn’t hide the tears that clung to the back of his own throat.
And so Seokjin filled us in.
After he’d been shot and Jeanette and Yoongi had been taken away, he’d played dead for a bit. Long enough to watch as the helicopters took off without him.
He’d made his way to the front of the house, almost losing it when he spotted Hobi’s unmoving form on the ground. He’d quickly realized though that the blow back of all those shots had simply rendered the bodyguard unconscious. The bulletproof vest had done its job perfectly.
“We had him checked out, nothing broken, but the ceramic plates in his jacket and vest are fully toast.”
“What do you mean…we?” Namjoon interrupted. His curiosity caused his voice to crack slightly as he spoke, eliciting a snicker from the others.
“Well, you see…”
Jin was interrupted by a voice that had my blood running cold.
“They had a little help from a friend.”
“Eun Kwang!”
A chorus of voices rang out, drawing the attention of several nearby civilians. I smiled at them sheepishly, to which most shrugged and ignored us, though a few seemed to now have at least half an ear turned in our direction. It didn’t matter though, I had more important and pressing matters to attend to.
“You skeevy bastard what the hell?!” Jungkook was nearly purple with rage and I could tell he was on his way to saying something stupid.
I stepped in, touching his arm and gently taking the phone to redirect his attention.
“Easy there killer, not the place or time for all this.” I smiled softly to him, handing the phone over to Namjoon and placing a hand on Jungkook’s cheek.
“Let’s have Namjoon find out what happened. There’s too many people around to have you going full mafia boss rage mode.”
He snorted, though the sound was not one of amusement and we turned our attention to the ongoing conversation.
“We were on our way over to negotiate a peace treaty to be frankly honest.” Eun Kwang’s tone was mocking to say the least, I could almost hear the sneer in his voice.
“Hyun sik heard the chopper first so we hid until the shots died out and the bird took off again. Found your boys barely breathin’ when we managed to get there. Don’t worry though little dongsaeng, we made real sure to secure your property, get everything valuable to a nice an safe place.”
“Mother f…” Jungkook inhaled. I could feel the rising tension in his form, the muscles in his arms writhing beneath my fingertips as he clenched and unclenched his fists.
“Boss?” Namjoon whispered, eyes scanning his younger brother’s face as his brows creased with concern.
“What do you want Eun Kwang…” Jungkook asked, words clipped as he struggled to keep his temper under control.
“Well, I know you and your crew are in a bit of a bind. Trapped on that American base with no way out and surrounded by rabid bodies? Not a good look man.”
“And?!”
“I’ll help you escape, sure. But on one condition.”
Jungkook growled, throwing his hands up in the air and turning away with a huff.
“Of course there’s a fucking catchin!” He slammed his fist on the counter, causing Jeanette to yelp from the corner. I sent her a half hearted and apologetic smile.
“What do you want Eun Kwang?” I muttered into the phone when I took it from Joon.
“I want Daegu.”
“What?!”
“If I send my crew out there, I’m risking their lives to get you out. I need to know that the risk is worth the reward. Daegu is my reward.”
“But Eun…”
“Yes yes, I know. How is that going to work if you all are still in Daegu when this is all over? Simple. I want you all gone. I don’t care where you go or what you do. But Daegu is mine.”
Namjoon stepped up, waving for me to hand him the phone again. I obliged, passing it over and turning to watch Jungkook as he began pacing again.
“Why not just leave us here then? Why not just let the Americans deal with us or kill us or whatever it is they have planned for us?”
“Because if anyone’s gonna kill Jungkook, it’s gonna be me. You damn well best believe I’m not letting any other mother fucker have that satisfaction.”
***
Our conversation was suddenly interrupted by a commotion at the kitchen door. I grabbed the phone quickly, lowering the audio volume as much as possible while shushing the men on the other end of the line.
“We’ve got company.” I muttered, hoping that whatever this could be, it wouldn’t spell disaster for our escape plans.
“Daddy!” The shout echoed across the kitchen as several soldiers walked in, startling us to no end as one of the nearby children rushed over and nearly tackled one of the soldiers to the ground.
The sight would have been heartwarming if not for the fact that as soon as the two hugged it out the young boy began whispering to his father while pointing back at us several times.
“Fuck…” Jungkook grumbled. Apparently he’d been watching the exchange as well.
“There’s nothing we can do about it now Boss.” Namjoon moved to block our sight of the two, pulling our attention back to him as he shoved his hands in his pocket.
“If we draw attention to it now they’ll know or at least suspect that something’s up. Just watch and wait for now, see where this takes us.”
It didn’t take long for the commotion to become organized.
The group was divided into two lines, children at the front and adults split into two groups that were led out into the darkness of the bowling alley.
After hurriedly ending the call and shoving the phone in my pocket I joined the groups. Half of us were led to the front of the building, Rose, Jeanette, and myself included, while the others were instructed to stay put.
“They’re taking us to the bathrooms.” The little girl that had taken a liking to Namjoon and Jeanette whispered up to me.
I smiled down at her gratefully, heat rising to my cheeks when she slipped her tiny hand in mine and squeezed it tightly.
“I wish they would take us more often, but Mommy said they do it so that the ones with guns can keep us safe from the monsters.” She glanced toward the front door, eyes wide as her gaze darted across the dusky twilight of the sky.
I squeezed her hand, bringing her attention back to me so I could shoot her a reassuring grin.
“It’s brave of them to want to protect us, don’t you think?” I asked as we made our way into the imposing darkness of the women’s bathroom. A few of the sinks had lanterns on them, but it really did little to dispel the gloom that prevailed in the entirety of the large space.
“Well…I guess it’s brave. But really they’re just pretending. Grown-ups do that a lot.” She shrugged, letting go of my hand and making her way to one of the toilet stalls.
I wondered at her words as I did the same, finishing my business as quickly as possible so I could spend a moment or two longer at the sink.
I glanced to the side after finishing with my face, smiling and letting out a small chuckle that echoed slightly when the little girl had reappeared beside me with Jeanette, Rose, and her mother in tow.
Reaching her hand out once more she quickly pulled me into the group, giggling the whole way back to the kitchen at the new friends she’d made for herself.
When we got back I broke away from the others, making my way over to Jungkook who’s eyes were on the dad and son duo we’d been watching earlier. He frowned when the adult glanced our way, his fist clenching at his side when the man began walking over.
“Kookie, you’re gonna end up with arthritis if this keeps up.”
He glanced down at me, face full of confusion as I wrapped my hand around his fist and brought it up to gently brush my lips over the knuckles. “Relax baby. I know this is tough but please, ease up on yourself.”
I wasn’t even sure if my words registered in his mind as the man in uniform stopped before us, hand on the holster at his hip as he sized us up.
“My son tells me you all have a plan?” His clipped Korean sounded foreign on his tongue, though the pronunciation was immaculate.
“Couldn’t possibly begin to know what you mean, Sir.” I replied, giving him my most charming smile possibly.
“Mmm, no I get it. With everything going on, what reason do you have to trust me?” He shrugged, leaning his hip against the counter and finally moving his hand away from his holster to cross his arms over his chest.
I tilted my head, smile still in place as I attempted to sooth the seething beast that was Jungkook by tracing my fingers over the bulging muscles in his forearms.
“We weren’t exactly given a choice to leave our home, safe as it was and out of the way of the chaos. Two of our family members were shot and killed, and by YOUR people at that.” I shook my head, eyes brimming with tears to emphasize the point.
The soldier sighed, nodding and frowning as he turned to look out at the group of civilians loitering around the spacious kitchen. “Sad fact is, people tend to do stupid shit when they think they’re saving people. Get high and mighty in their authority and think they’ve become god when they’re the ones holding the guns.”
I hummed in thought, curling my fingers over Jungkook’s knuckles and placing just enough pressure to encourage him to loosen his fingers so that I could slip my hand into his.
“Seems that’s a universal fit. People with authority want to keep their authority, no matter who or what gets in their way.”
The soldier pursed his lips, eyes finding the young boy who’d called him Daddy earlier. He was now playing with the young girl and Namjoon, smiles bright as he told them one of his many stories while balancing each of them on either of his knees. The man was good with kids, there was no doubt about that.
“I’ve seen the type of people my so called superiors are. The way they run things around here? I’d rather have my kid out there on the streets than have them in this dingy ass kitchen until whatever’s left of the world’s governments decides to figure their shits out.” He turned back to use, face determined for a moment before softening into a look of sad resignation.
“Look, whatever it is you and your people are planning, me and mine are in. Just say the word and we got your back, there’s more of us than them. In the end you can’t lose.”
Summary: Today is supposed to be a peaceful day off, but when you find a pair of hands sticking out from underneath your car, it becomes all the more interesting.
Count:2,400+ words.
Note: Adapted from my old story of the same name. Not much has changed, I just liked this piece and wished to repost it!
A day off is well needed after six shifts straight, alongside a whole lot of homework from lectures that have kept you up until the late hours of the evening. Or more so, into the earliest minutes of the morning. So when you notice that your Thursday is completely free of absolutely anything at all, the sight of the blank space on your calendar nearly brings a tear to your eye, and you decide it can be the perfect twenty-four hours to treat yourself, to at long last, kick back and relax.
And what a lovely day it has been so far! You sleep in without any concern of an alarm, briefly waking only to roll over and drape yourself back into your sheets, welcoming another hour and a half of dreams. The sound of your roommate slamming the front door on her way out to one of her own tutorials has you decidedly getting up, taking your time to make toast, switching the kettle on to boil until you open the coffee jar and realise the dreaded fact that less than half a teaspoon of grains is found stuck to the bottom.
But no, nothing can ruin this day. So you butter your toast and shower, adorn your figure in a lovely, floral summer dress that you have not yet had the chance to wear, sauntering out the front door and into the student parking where your compact little car is blinking its lights in welcome as it is unlocked. You could have walked down to the cafe, less than a few blocks away, but you decide that once you retrieve your coffee, you should go for a drive down to the oceanside. Barely seven minutes has passed by the time you are zipping into a conveniently open parking bay on the street, directly parallel to the cafe, and you breeze into the atmosphere of coffee beans and warmed pastries, waiting in line with patience, no qualms to be anywhere else, using the opportunity to search up maps and scenic routes on your mobile.
The coffee is delightful, scalding hot when it reaches your tongue, but you cannot bring yourself to mind. Clutching at your cup of the roast, you hurry back across the street to your car, unlocking it with the button on your keys and eagerly about to jump into the driver seat with the interesting route you had discovered ready on your cell screen, until–
“Wait!”
The abruptness of the shout has you leaping back with a shriek, butterfingers allowing the biodegradable cup of coffee to clatter down onto the asphalt, the lid instantly popping off and leaking the steaming liquid across the bitumen. The sight is practically unbearable to witness, a moan of agony whimpering from your lips as you watch the rivulets of caramel brown spread in all directions, and then, you are seeing the pair of broad palms and slender fingers that are sticking out from beneath your car. It almost appears as though a dead body has been dragged underneath the vehicle, if it were not for the way that they defensively gesture, causing you to yelp and jump all over again.
“Oh shit, sorry to startle you!” The low voice travels from your toes and up your calves, curving around the shell of your ear and encouraging you, after a moment of hesitancy, to slowly bend and peer beneath the idle vehicle, avoiding the pool of caffeine that is already beginning to dry beneath the sunlight.
There, with his palms facing out to you in surrender, is a boy unfamiliar to your sight, though a delightful one in appearance at that. His hair is tousled dark chocolate, wide eyes akin a deer, rosy lips parted in surprise or awe, you are not entirely sure until they are suddenly spreading into a grin of pearly white bunny teeth at the very sight of you. He is very long too, the soles of his feet almost poking out at the rear to bask in the glorious sunlight, the remainder of his lithe limbs all bunched up, folded origami. A beautiful stranger, lying within the shadows, almost completely pressed against the engine of your car.
“What are you doing?” Is all you can muster, gaping with the remnants of the shock he had instilled in electricity sparking beneath your skin with his obtuse shout. Or possibly, because he is so handsome that you wish to shake the hands of his parents.
“Hiding,” the boy responds in an indifferent tone that is more suited to say just buying the newspaperorthe weather is nice today. You eye him from the peculiar angle, he horizontal and you not quite so until suddenly there are loud shouts in the distance and his face drains of its muted pink colour, a sheet of white casting over instead. “Quick, get under the car.”
You blanch at him before tilting your chin upward to where the commotion is arising. Two boys, who appear to be of similar age to the one taking refuge beneath your Hyundai, are hollering a name that you can barely make out coherently, assumedly belonging to the firm palms that are wrapping urgently around your ankles and– Hey, hold on!
“Jesus, just please get under the car!” The boy urges you, his voice strained and a little irate and although you do not wish to get your nice summer dress dirty, you find yourself completely yielding to this anonymous being. Within seconds, you are almost completely beneath the vehicle, but apparently your movements are not fast enough because his arm is looping as best it can in such a confined space around your waist, dragging you into his chest as the sound of four feet go thumping past, a trail of taunting laughter following in their wake.
“Ow,” you moan at the gravel grazes your elbows, the side of your thigh, pulling a face of distaste down at the already grimy material of your attire before you flit your eyes back up to the ones of the boy, unbelievably close. His arm is still firm around your waist, pressed near uncomfortably between the metal and your flesh.
“Sorry,” his apology feels genuine although the grin that it is whispered around. “Also, hello, I’m Jeongguk.”
“Y/N,” you breathe, disturbing a few loose hairs around your face and the boy now named Jeongguk watches them dance vivaciously against the flushed roses of your cheeks. His smile deepens, you pink further. “May I ask, other than the obvious, why on earth you are hiding beneath my car?”
Jeongguk sniffs. “Playing Manhunt with those two idiots who just ran by.”
“You made me spill my coffee,” you enunciate the words very slowly, “over a sillygame?”
“Well, how about this,” Jeongguk winces as he tries to draw his arm from around your waist, so you momentarily lay on your back for moveable space to be accommodated. Free, free, finally free, he wriggles and writhes until he can get his hand into the back pocket of his jeans, retrieving a small leather wallet. “I will take you out on a date, my treat.”
Choking on the limited availability of clean air, you cough at the complete bluntness, the sheer and utter confidence of this boy that appears to roll off him in tidal waves, and you are getting dragged out into its sea. “A d-date? You only just found out my name!”
“So? You willingly crawled under your car to lay with some guy who could have been a downright creep,” Jeongguk points out. The damn bastard has a point. “Plus, I like your freckles. You have ticked all the right boxes so far.”
Huffing, you watch him fiddle through the tiny plastic sleeves of his wallet. “The creep part is still valid until you prove me otherwise.”
“That’s cool, I can prove that wrong quickly,” he is grinning to himself, finally retrieving a perfectly cut white card and pressing it into your palm. “So, wanna make out?”
“See? You are doing a marvelous job of proving the creep part correct already.” You sigh, faux disappointed, staring down at the block letters and numbers that are inked in black on the paper. “Seriously? Is this a business card?”
“What’s wrong with that?”
“You look about eighteen.”
“Ouch, low blow.”
“Fine. Tell me why, you who is older than he appears, has a business card?”
Jeongguk continues to smile. Gee, he does that a lot, but you sure are not complaining. You want to see it across flickering campfires and reflected in bathroom mirrors and among tufts of white bedsheets. “To give to pretty girls like you while I am hiding underneath their cars.”
“You are absolutely enthralling,” you comment, a tentative smile itching at the corners of your lips while you tuck the card tightly into your palm where, later, you will discover how the ink has bled into the lines of your skin. “How long must we lay beneath here?”
“Until we have told each other our life stories,” Jeongguk waggles his eyebrows and you bark out a short laugh, which he believes sounds alike to wind chimes. “They will be running back past here any minute. So once they return and realise that I have vanished like the Houdini himself, we can get out.”
Your legs are beginning to ache and so you stretch them out, rolling the joints of your ankles. “Well then, you may as well tell me the life story.”
“Jeon Jeongguk, as you know, twenty years old–“ He ignores the pointed look that you gave him of see, I was not far off– “I study music at The Institute of The Arts. I grew up with nice parents, I spend my days singing to the rooftops and wooing girls beneath cars into kissing me. Seriously, your lips are gorgeous, entertain the idea at least.”
The hope that glances through his eyes at your mischievous smile has your lips tilting higher. He is a human-sized puppy, eager for attention, and you would be a complete liar to say that you do not want to kiss the life out of this boyishly handsome stranger. “Fine. But maybe on our date instead. You have grease on your lips.”
“Aha! So you will call me!” Jeongguk boasts in triumph, wiping the back of his hand against the nonexistent marks on his mouth. “I’m glad. Anyhow, life story, come on.”
You drum your nails against the bitumen and he watches the movement with piqued interest. “Y/N, same age. I study literature at a quaint little university and work in a bookstore just up the avenue. My parents are also rather lovely, and I spend my days drinking way too much coffee, but this is the first time that I have spilled aforementioned precious liquid to then be dragged beneath my very own car by somekid–“
“I am twenty years old.”
“– Who has thus, ruined my pretty dress and, potentially, my perfect day off.”
Jeongguk skims his eyes down your figure then, gaze landing upon the exposed expanse of your thigh where the cotton has been hitched up, the skin smooth, the face of a pearl. “Indeed, it is very nice.”
The way that you flush and fluster fuchsia pink has him grinning that sweet smile all over again, watching your fingers grapple at the dirtied cotton and hide your limbs beneath once more. You are about to make a comment, something along the lines of pervert, though there is suddenly the very distinct sound of gravel crunching beneath the soles of feet and Jeongguk is looking rather frightened. His eyes are saucers of pitch black galaxies.
“Jeonggukie!”
The voice that sings out is high, musical, yet entirely taunting. Gooseflesh creeps up your own spine at the way it slithers beneath the car in a threat. The boy before you starts to kick, scramble, inching closer to your body in the way that he flounders like a fish gasping upon land, and then he is suddenly yanked down to the height of your breasts by hands that you cannot see.
“Oh god,” Jeongguk panics, grappling onto your hips while you lace your fingers around his wrists, but the hands wound around his ankles are too strong and he is being dragged far, far away. “Oh god, oh god, they have got me.” And then, much louder for his two friends to hear. “Ow fuck! Watch it!”
“M-My palms are too sweaty!” He is slipping out of your grasp, and the way that he is being dragged is beginning to pull at you too, making you bend into a rather painful position that has you yelping and releasing him entirely. Jeongguk spits another string of curses behind him and then stares at you, wide-eyed and serious.
“I shall miss you, recent lover!” You call as though you are a woman watching her man set off on the seas, when in reality, he is just being dragged out from beneath your car. The preparation to sprint like a gazelle once he is completely out in the open is evident in his eyes.
“Tell our children I love them!” Jeongguk calls back and you burst into a fit of laughter. “Save us that kiss!”
He smiles with the radiance of sunlight at the way the humour of the situation envelops you. “Of course!”
As soon as his body has entirely emerged from beneath the car, you can hear the briefest of struggles before there is a harsh grunt, and then the sound of feet propelling away at a speed you certainly cannot imagine. The two men stand softly swearing at one another at the rear of your vehicle for a moment until they were also taking off, groaning something about how that damn kid has got some nerve.
When you roll to shimmy yourself out from beneath the car, you notice the tiny puddle of coffee has completely dried up in the bitumen by the golden sun. The outline is explosive, a miniature bomb that had been set off the moment that his voice called, hands outstretched and helpless, begging at your ankles until you decided to lean down and see the boy for yourself.
Remembering the way Jeongguk had stared at you like an unsure, yet excited child, how he had spoken so confidently and promised coffee and clearly much, much more once you thought to call, you decide that maybe your perfect day has not been ruined at all. Anyone who receives the cell phone number of an attractive stranger with a delightful personality to match must be utterly mad to call such a day anything but absolutely brilliant.
| Aubade | n.| au•bade | meaning: a poem or piece of music appropriate to the dawn or early morning. |
⤷Genre:romance; fluff; light angst; husband!jungkook x wife!reader.
⤷Warnings:themes of fear; insecurity.
Jungkook had a way with effortlessly stealing words directly from your mouth.
It was almost facile to your love as he bound you within a stunned silence and left you gaping at his every soft act of love, whether it was a mere kiss stolen before his elders or a plethora of romantic whispers trickling into your ears.
He burned your flesh with an addictive warmth and made you gasp into his affections, reducing you to a stuttering and feeble mess in all he did.
But none of these things mentioned could compare once the disheveled curls and sleepy irises of your lover peeked into the warmth you found in his blankets, his eagerness to have your undivided attention fluttered your heart before the sun had even kissed the sky.
Your sleepy hums and whispers of love that were always promised to escape your lips when you first awakened were taken from your throat once his slender fingers delicately slipped the other half of his ear buds into the hollow of your ear.
“I need you to hear this, love.” He whispered his needs as his only explanation for his excitement that almost trembled his every limb.
Your lips parted in a silent question of what he had meant, but the words melted upon your tongue the moment the rich tones of your love’s voice spilled over your senses as he delicately crooned of the words of love to fill your heart.
Your sleepy mind was suddenly serenaded by every soft note or poetic lyric as his honeyed voice dripped into your senses, to capture your heart with the words of love he confessed your relationship had inspired, you were astounded.
The alluring crescendo kissed your cheeks with the warmth only your lover could elicit, as the crest stirred the butterflies of your stomach in the early hour of blurred vision and sleepy love’s.
The devoted symphony toyed with your heart and dizzied your head within Jungkooks arms until the charming music melted into the cathartic sounds of your love’s even breaths that grew shorter in anticipation of your reaction, and his eyes shyly met yours.
“So, what do you think?” His head fell to the side, curious of your thoughts when not a word dared to pierce your silence.
Your love’s molten eyes stared into yours, so soft and warm as he patiently awaited your answer to his question, the twinkle of hope for your approval within him ensnaring your heart.
The string of the ear buds he shared with you tightly connected your bodies, forcing you to share the little space that waned with every inching closer of his body as his creation overwhelmed you with emotions.
His slender fingers nervously toyed with the warm skin of his hands that you wished to hold so closely, but the stunned silence his soft voice entranced you with kept you locked in your place before him, wrapped in his heart just as well as his sheets.
He was so much like a small puppy as he timidly stared into your eyes, his unkempt hair almost begging to have your fingers threaded through the silken locks as it fell into his gaze.
It was only once you realized you had only stared at him through the tears that gathered behind your lashes rather than answer his request for criticisms did he pour the contents of his heart to you.
“I was just thinking so much of you and how much I love you, a-and the words just poured out-”
The nervousness of revealing the raw depths of his love for you poured his thoughts into you as his hand instinctively reached for yours in search of comfort and tranquility.
His dark eyes squeezed shut until his button nose wrinkled with the force he applied and a soft sigh suffocated each of his flustered ramblings and his hand found it’s place, covering your own.
“I just couldn’t get you out of my head.”
He confessed at last, cautiously revealing his starry eyes once more, fearing your rejection of his particular display of his love for you.
But once he felt the familiar weight of your arms wrap around his shoulders as your body pushed him into the plush pillows that waited to hold your entangled bodies, his stomach twisted with affection, because though he doubted himself, he knew deep in his heart that he was safe in your hands once he stared up into your eyes.
However the gentle caresses of his fingers burned the flesh of your thigh, and his heavy stare suffocated every word that formed upon the back of your tongue, yet your lips parted with confidence.
For the very first time in your relationship, you gathered the words he took from your mouth with his soft love, and you returned his displays of love whilst you whispered into the curve of his ear.
“Jungkook, I didn’t think I could physically hold anymore love for you, but-” your words collided with the kisses you fluttered over the line of his jaw and pooled between your tightly wound forms until you tenderly pressed your mouth to his to whisper into the parting of his lips. “I was so very wrong.”
He tenderly peered up at you through unkempt locks and his fingers dug into your soft flesh as he merely gaped at you, simply enamoured by the passion that held him so dearly.
“I meant every word in that song, (Y/n),” he confessed in the intimate moment you found yourselves wrapped within, his fingers reached into the empty spaces of your own, “you make me whole.”
Your heart warmed at his confession of love that came as naturally as oxygen to his lungs, and you fell for him even more as he raised himself beneath you just enough to meet your lips again, after craving the taste for so long.
And with yet another kiss stolen in the first morning light, Jungkook stole your words once again to leave you gasping in his love, to forever promise to leave you speechless with his heart’s devotion.
⤷Genre:romance; fluff; idiots to lovers; college au; oblivious!roommate!jungkook x female!reader.
⤷Warnings:themes of fear; brief mention of nausea; dizziness; pining.
Jungkook was oblivious, almost painfully so.
He was excruciatingly blind to the fond words of every sticky note you placed to his mirror wishing him a wonderful day,
And his ears were torturously deaf to the sweet whispers you murmured into each cuddle session you held at his place that he most likely shouldn’t have overheard.
The flutter of his heart that alighted his chest at the mere trace of your fragrance was overlooked as no more than excitement for your next adventure, and the rosy hue that spread over his cheeks with every kiss you pressed to them was assumed to be a faulty heater.
Even the gentle reveries of kissing your lips or the wonders of how your hair felt around his finger was written off as a mere phase.
Because everyone falls a little in love with their best friend at least once, right?
All of this being why Jungkook gave no second thoughts to your eager persistence to make a filling breakfast together before you classes started, as a team, as friends, rather than allowing him to sneak to the nearest bakery and snag a breakfast burrito that was almost too much to stomach this early in the morning.
Because you shared a home, definitely not because you cared for him.
It was simply routine for him to stare at your features from afar as the warm, morning light accentuated the shape of your face, as you carried out whatever your mind was set to, seemingly unbothered by his blatant admiration, that is until your voice broke him from his focus.
“I love spending time with you, Koo.”
His eyes ascended from the comically large mitts that covered your hands to peer into your own that were already awaiting his.
“I wouldn’t mind spending every morning with you.” His pulse quickened once more at your words but the fact was discarded in the very same breath he took in to answer.
“That’s what friends are for, I’d love to share my mornings with you too.”
He smiled innocently before it quickly faded once he witnessed how the corners of your lips fell, though he remained ignorant of the cause of your change.
Despite your valiant attempt to break through Jungkook’s friendzone to atleast make your feelings known, your lingering glances that remained upon his for a second too long was accepted as nothing significant, just as your hesitance to release his fingers from your grasp as you guided his hands around the whisk was no more than apricity.
Every blantant hint you dropped went unnoticed until you all but shouted to the whole campus of your love. His oblivion of today growing even more tiring than the years you practically confessed to him daily with no response.
Your thoughts of the future dizzied your head until merely thinking of bearing another day by his side without knowing if he returned your love in full physically hurt as you bothed danced around the other in the kitchen.
But you decided you had nothing else but to take matters into your own hands.
So once the familiar heat of his presence stood behind you, you turned upon your heel to effortlessly exchange your positions, his hip pressing into the corner of the counter with every step you took closer.
But just as your eyes locked upon his, they strayed over his features that always tugged your attention back to him, no matter where you found yourself, and your heart faltered in your plan, his perfection drowning your confidence.
Jungkook was the epitome of what humanity wished to be, he was what artists strived in vain to capture, from his dark lashes and his pretty lips to the barely noticeable freckle just below them. He was perfect in your eyes.
“I have something to tell you.”
The words breathlessly spilled into the air between your tightly pressed bodies, as if a cherished secret only ever to be heard by the one who captured your heart.
Your heart slammed against your chest and into his own, but you didn’t have a care in the world, you needed this release.
You drew in a deep breath in one last desperate attempt to settle your nerves and soothe the butterflies he placed within your stomach, before it all spilled out.
“Jungkook, I love you.”
The words slipped past your lips, never to be taken back again now they pierced the air and met his ears. Silence fell over you both as niether dared to answer nor follow up with the weighted confession.
You stared up into his blank expression with the wonders you harbored for more than two decades, still awaiting an answer that manifested itself as a mere furrow of his brows.
You nibbled lightly on the insides of your cheeks as your mind returned to the negatives of your confession, as you waited for the painful sting of rejection or a nervous laugh that churned your stomach.
His lips parted to speak and you winced in anticipation of his next words, but a scoff never came- but rather something you should have predicted.
“Like, more than a friend or?”
Your eyes rounded into spheres as you stared up into his sincere expression, dumbfounded by your clueless love, your eyelid twitching slightly.
He was still so lost with his feelings for his childhood friend, he never wanted to ruin what he did have with you, all for a kiss or the title of a boyfriend, only to lose you in the end. Until you showed him.
You reached to gently dip your fingers into the flawless canvas of his features to cup his cheek within your hands as you rose to the tips of your toes to gently graze his inviting lips with yours.
You could hear your pulse within your ears whilst your fingertips tingled as you kissed your best friend, as a potential lover, that waited for his response.
“I like you a lot more than a friend, dummy.” You whispered, pulling back just a bit to simply admire him once more, just in case he would never be yours to adore again.
Your eyes fell to his lips that were much warmer and sweeter than you expected, even in the fleeting taste you had, to witness your favorite bunny smile of his grace the dewy flesh.
His strong arms which you cuddled into so many nights and ran to for comfort in every drizzly day wrapped around your waist and pulled you into his chest, without an inch of space separating you.
“I like you too.” He confessed at last, and your eyes nearly spilled over with tears, he was finally yours.
His lips met yours as the tip of his nose grazed your cheek with every sweeping of his tongue, and your breath lathed over his skin to elicit goosebumps.
Your fingers reached to thread through the tousled strands of his hair as your bodies pleaded to come closer, as it just felt right.
And once the timer of the oven startled you within his arms and you both parted, breathless with a smile upon your lips, you only hoped Jungkook caught the hint, you liked him much more than a friend.
Synopsis: Born with a silver spoon in your mouth, you’ve done your best to rid yourself of the taste since you were old enough to walk. Occasionally though, your mother manages to rope you into an obligatory function – or a blind date with playboy billionaire, Jeon Jungkook. Jungkook stands for everything you loathe about the world you left behind, but you can’t deny the spark of attraction between you. Intrigued by the promise of mutual satisfaction, you agree to one night in bed… and quickly realize you’re in far, far deeper than you ever intended.
Rating:18+
Warnings:semi-public sex, breast play, fingering, dirty talk (hypothetical cum play, possessiveness), spanking, multiple orgasms, somewhat rough sex
TW:descriptions of past emotional abuse (gaslighting, manipulation, coercion), angst (!)
Word Count: 12,479
Author’s Note: links to be updated at a later date!
Pairings:Jeon Jungkook x Reader (ft. the rest of BTS)
Genre:Science Fantasy, Angst, Apocalypse Au
Words:7K
Description:…and so they just meet each other in these stories written inside these worlds built in their minds. Of course some will be sad, and others happy, but that’s just the way the universe is…chaotic, imperfect, but magnificently beautiful.
You’ll always remember his eyes, a pair of dark obsidian orbs, cloudy and unreadable to many but to you they were always crystal clear like the polycrystalline structure of black diamonds.
“Hurry, we need to go!” He beckons urgently as you remained huddled in the corner of your bedroom closet, arms wrapped around your legs and chin resting on the caps of your knees.
“Where’s mommy and daddy?” You peer up at your older brother, eyes wide and stricken with fear.
It was already dark outside. The bright glow of blue and red lights flicker through the glass windows, ricocheting off the walls of the room your parents once read you bedtime stories in. You can hear the voices of police officers and military personnel through the loud speakers, advising everyone to evacuate the city.
“They’re waiting for us, come on.” Yoongi responds more softly, flashing you a tender smile, one that you have witnessed more than anyone else, giving you more than enough strength to latch on to his extended hand.
You were just nine years old when news of the first outbreak was broadcasted over the television. At the time, it had not occurred to you how strange it all was, or perhaps it did, but it was all too confusing to even begin questioning any of it. You knew nothing about viruses or the spread of diseases in general, but after moving to the designated “safe haven” for your district and continuing your education through your teens, some things have naturally come to light.
Like back in high school chemistry, when your teacher demonstrated the effects of acid on protein to show students how you could go blind if it got in your eye. It was simply to remind everyone to wear goggles, but you’ll never forget the way the drop of HCl seared the egg white, making the fluid bubble up and solidify instantly. You imagine the virus doing the same to human flesh, only with a more complicated mechanism that had less to do with altering the structure of existing proteins and more to do with actually changing gene expression.
It only takes one person. One mutation. One strand of viral DNA to contaminate it all.
It almost sounded too easy, and though the official announcement stated the virus originated in the jungle off the coast, countless people had suspected it was actually developed by the government, a biological weapon gone awry. It wasn’t until over a decade later that it became quite clear, though still unofficial since the elite would never admit to such a horrendous act publicly, that everything was more or less planned as a means to control the population.
So no, the virus did not entail the end of the world. The world government had actually done a pretty job controlling it. How could they not since they planned it all anyways? But of course, if the world wants to end, it’ll find a way to end.
That, you had also learned through a news broadcast.
“Karma” Hoseok exhales, twisting the key and turning off the engine.
“Hoseok, it’s not Karma if the top 1% still survive.” Yoongi mumbles, stepping out of the passenger door and stretching out his back.
“The biggest fuck you would be if the comet just disintegrates right before it strikes.” Hoseok scoffs. “If only…”
You ponder the possibility of this all being a false positive. “Maybe it’ll miss Earth, and everyone will have evacuated the planet for no reason at all.” It’s a joke, but not the funny kind. You know it’s impossible, but you didn’t really say it for the purpose of anyone agreeing with you or even refuting the statement, considering the nonexistent possibility.
“Maybe…” Hoseok exhales, not entirely paying attention to what he was even responding to but rather just blankly gazing at the open field with its tall grasses swaying in the wind.
Yoongi remains silent. He has been the whole trip for the most part, and in a way, his nonchalance was peaceful and reassuring as it had always been for you growing up.
But this is it. This is where you part ways.
It’s a strange feeling, really. You’ve always imagined this moment to be more emotionally overwhelming, saying goodbye to your brother forever and all. He was the only person you’d ever really trusted, and the only other person who has felt like the closest thing to home, a place that never really existed, and even if it did, it won’t for long. Maybe habituation, or months of convinced acceptance has left you numb, or maybe it’s the effect of building something so much up in your head that the actual experience doesn’t live up to what you’ve expected all this time.
“Are you sure?” Yoongi’s voice is low and subdued. He doesn’t make eye contact as he awaits your response, and perhaps it’s because he’s never questioned your personal decisions or the fact that he’s directly expressing his concern for you that you find yourself hesitating for the first time in months.
Did he invite you on this trip hoping you would change your mind in the end?
The thought makes your heart clench, and you have to tell yourself you’re overanalyzing. Yoongi wasn’t the kind to hint at what he wanted. He always directly expressed his thoughts no matter how offensive or uncalled for they are. You’ve always admired him for that sort of bravery, so it wouldn’t make sense for him to change now. Besides, you had made up your mind half a year ago, ever since you saw the timer flash across the T.V. screen.
Six months was how long they gave the general population to decide. Either you were rich enough to leave earth or you had to come to terms with the end. They had known about it years in advance, and though it’s unclear whether or not the planned viral outbreak was related to the detection of the comet’s trajectory, what’s undeniable is that they had kept everyone in the dark to avoid chaos.
You had no interest in space, nor did you want to be a part of a system so cruel. Yoongi didn’t either, not initially, but you weren’t going to blame him for meeting a boy who was the literal manifestation of the sun, someone who could make his heart beat in ways it never did.
“Your spot will always be open” Hoseok chimes in with his bright sunshine of a smile, and you can almost feel a fraction of what Yoongi feels when he sees it too.
“There’s more I want to see before it’s too late.” It’s not like you were alone. There were millions of other people staying on the planet- those who couldn’t afford a ticket on the escape ship.
Yoongi nods lightly, turning to walk up the steps to join Hoseok, who was already at the top still looking at you standing below, perhaps also hoping you would change your mind. Even now, you can see the softness in the latter’s eyes, the tangibility of the warmth that he radiates, and you have no trouble understanding why your bother fell for him.
And that’s the last image you see of the two. Hoseok’s melancholic gaze and the slight upturn of Yoongi’s lip as the doors close.
…
There’s a certain kind of calmness that accompanies solitude, even when the entire world is ready to burst under suppressed chaos. There’s also a strange detachment that comes with wanting to do everything while at the same time not wanting to do anything at all because none of it mattered anymore.
Stepping onto the train, you immediately get a whiff of the stench of sweat and body odor, the kind that tells you you’re not the only one who thought spending the next few days just gazing at the world was a good way to ride through the end. Most of the seats were taken, homeless people with all their bags large and small, scattered across the floor. You almost trip on someone’s sleeping bag as you navigate down the aisle, looking for a less crowded cart, which you are fortunate enough to find just as the train begins to move.
Settling down in the seat closest to the window, you momentarily let your eyes dwell on someone sitting a couple seats away. His attention was focused on the scenery outside, but he somehow sensed the weight of your scrutiny as he turns just as you were about to lean to get a better view.
You barely avert your gaze before he catches you staring, though you’re pretty sure he noticed because the next thing you know, he’s made his way over and is now seated across from you. Despite the sudden proximity and the bout of nerves it has initiated, you choose to keep your attention pointed at the passing scenery now zipping by in parallel with the train’s increasing speed.
“Gorgeous, isn’t it?” His voice is light with a deep, husky undertone that glides through the air.
You look up to find that he isn’t even looking out the window. You swallow, finding it bizarre that he’s staring at you so intently. “Indeed.”
“Traveling?”
You nod.
“Going anywhere in particular?” He tilts his head curiously; a motion almost child-like in nature and it makes you relax for the first time since you started this solo venture.
“Nope.”
He smiles, eyes crinkling at the edges. “So your plan was to just sit on this train and look out the window?”
“Pretty much, yeah” You shrug, sensing your anxieties dissipate as he does not seem to pose a threat of any kind.
He chuckles softly. “But don’t you want to go out there and really feel the earth. Really experience being alive on this planet one last time?”
“It’s dangerous.”
“It’s the end of the world. What do you have to lose?”
He was right, and your excuses don’t even sound convincing to yourself anymore.
“So what exactly are you proposing?”
“This train loops around the entire continent. I say we get off at each stop and do one thing we’ve always wanted to do.”
“We?” You’re thrown off by how easily he placed the word in his sentence. How he didn’t even hesitate to include you in his spur of the moment proposal.
He nods.
“Together?” You ask again, still skeptical.
He laughs softly; looking down and back up again with a playful smirk.
“What if we want to do different things?” You counter, still unsure why you are playing along with this stranger who hasn’t even introduced himself.
“Ok. We’ll get off at each stop and do one thing you’vealways wanted to do.”
“You’re sure putting a lot of bets on someone you don’t even know.” You comment, waiting to see how he’s going to react.
There’s a peculiar look in his eyes, one that speaks of anticipation precipitously lost to the wind. He drops his gaze momentarily, smiling to himself before looking up at you once more.
“Or you could say I’m going all in on someone I would like to get to know.” There’s cheerfulness in his voice that you haven’t heard in a long time, an unfamiliar yet heart racing aura of beginnings rather than the familiar imminent end that has surrounded your life for months. It makes you smile, but you can’t help but notice the sad glint in his eyes merely seconds before it’s gone.
“I…actually haven’t really thought about what I want to do.” You confess, diverting your attention to the landscape outside. Your life had always been planned. Whether it was wandering down paths that others had led you towards or the world leaving you no alternative option, you had never been offered the freedom of uninhibited choice. It was like the events had already been written, and you were just living it out like a character in a story everyone already knows the end to.
“Maybe you shouldn’t think about it.” His voice startles you, making you realize you had paused mid conversation.
“What do you mean?”
“I’ve found that overthinking leads to indecisiveness.” He tilts his head, analyzing your reaction as if waiting for a specific response.
“I’m not indecisive, and I don’t overthink.” You deny, despite knowing full well you are and have always been.
He doesn’t look convinced. “Ok, then you’re afraid of regrets?”
“I’m just…I dunno…scared?”
He nods, displaying that he understands what you mean. “But you are here now, so you must’ve found some source of courage.”
You wouldn’t really consider your decision to stay on earth courageous. To you it was more like the final act of rebellion you had the chance of carrying out, not that you ever came close to rebelling in the past.
“Well?” The train has stopped, and you can tell he’s waiting for you to decide to get off with him or not.
It’s not forceful or pressuring in anyway, but communicates an air of patience you find to be very comforting. And there’s something about the way he speaks to you, the way he gauges your response as if he already knows what you’re about to say that inclines you to believe he knows more about you than logically possible for someone you just met. Maybe you were just easy to read, or this guy is just really good at reading social cues. Whatever it may be, you had two seconds to make your decision, and if the past has taught you anything, you already know that there’s no turning back.
…
Getting off the train, you’re surprised by the number of people still around and the cultural music dancing through the air. You expected the city to be less crowded and the mood to be more somber, a scene that makes the end of the world more obvious, in what way you weren’t sure, but definitely nothing close to what you were currently presented.
“They’re just here, like us, enjoying these last days.” He blinks slowly, somehow able to tell that the scene has left you dumbfounded.
“I guess I just expected something different” You reply, still looking around at the people laughing and chatting away in the outdoor seating areas of restaurants and coffee shops.
“Only 1% of the population left, and most of them probably didn’t live in old towns like this.” He glances at you from under the sunhat he had put on right after exiting the train.
His response puts a smile on your face. A picture of a smiling Hoseok and Yoongi flashes through your mind as you are remembered how they spoke about the privileged. It had been a long time since your mood has felt this light.
“So are you going to properly introduce yourself? Or am I going to have to ask you questions?” You narrow your eyes, feeling mischievous all of a sudden.
He laughs, eyes crinkling at the edges again. “It’s the end of the world. I could tell you anything and it wouldn’t even matter.” He skips a few feet ahead of you before twirling around and offering you his hand.
You’re surprised by your own lack of hesitation as you reach out almost instinctively.
“Wow, that was easier than expected.” He comments, referring to how quickly you accepted his offer compared to your obvious indecision back on the train, eyes almost wide as he gives your hand a light squeeze, making sure that it was indeed real, and his eyes weren’t just playing tricks on him.
“It’s the end of the world.” You shrug, repeating the words he had been reiterating since the two of you met. An unfamiliar fullness engulfs your heart, and you wonder if the boy next to you feels it too. You don’t remember the last time you had held someone’s hand like this or if you had ever held a hand that fit to yours so perfectly.
“Jungkook.” He suddenly breathes out, probably noticing the way you’ve been staring at your interlinked hands like he would suddenly let go or disappear into thin air.
“Huh?” You look up almost dazed.
“My name. It’s Jungkook.” He smiles, gripping your hand a bit tighter.
“Oh, um, I’m Y/N.” You response almost awkwardly, unprepared for his sudden revelation of sorts, trying to recall why the name seemed familiar while at the same time knowing with the utmost certainty you had never known a person with that name.
He bobs, the expression on his face making you almost suspect that this wasn’t new information to him.
“So what would you like to do, Miss Y/N?” He gestures at the completely foreign town, the lake and mountains not too far in the distance.
“I don’t know.” You reveal truthfully, not having thought this far yet. You were kind of just banking on intuition, but you were so caught up analyzing him along with your own shifting disposition that you hadn’t actually thought about the actual world and what you wanted to do. “With the virus and all, I had never made a bucket list or anything. I just assumed I would never get a chance to come to places like this anyways.”
“Even when it was nearly eradicated?”
“Then came this whole comet ordeal.” You sigh. “End of the world, remember?”
“Not like I could forget.” He starts swinging your interlinked arms causally. “Shall we just walk around then? Explore some abandoned buildings that may or may not be haunted.”
“You can’t seriously believe in ghosts, can you?” You cock a brow. “In this day and age?”
He cackles. “I was just testing you.”
“Sure you were” You flash him the look, but it doesn’t last before you’re consumed by his contagious laughter.
It wasn’t long before the two of you stumble upon a rather decent looking lodging facility, not that you were looking for anything fancy. The walls were made of stone, a suitable complement to the cobblestone roads you had been walking along since leaving the train station, with ivy crawling up the sides and lining the windows. The building gave off the impression that it was an affordable choice for two broke travelers, not that money really mattered anymore.
“We should probably put some of our stuff down and explore the city.” Jungkook suggests, looking up from the map on his phone.
You exhale slowly, almost having forgotten how heavy your backpack weighed on your shoulders. The sun had moved to the middle of the sky, causing beads of sweat to form and start sliding down your forehead. It wasn’t extremely hot, but you had opted to wear a few extra layers in an attempt to keep your bags a bit lighter.
Following him into the lobby, you don’t expect Jungkook to arrange a room for you as well, but he comes back with two keys to two separate rooms.
“Thanks” You voice softly as hands one of them to you.
“It would probably be safer to stay in the same room, but I don’t want you to think I’m some perverted stalker trying to take advantage of you.”
You smirk before failing to contain your own laughter. “I already assumed you were.”
He rolls his eyes. “Just let me know if you need anything, ok?”
You nod, glancing at him one last time before heading towards your room. He seemed concerned, or his mind was thinking about something else.
The room smelled moist and musky, with an almost rotten scent, like it hadn’t been cleaned in quite some time. Not that you were expecting some pristine hotel room or sterilized classroom like the facilities back in the cities during the viral outbreak, but it was pretty clear the place hadn’t been tidied in weeks. The bed sheets were unwashed, and the trash bins hadn’t even been emptied.
You walk over to open a window, hoping the air outside would somehow neutralize the pungent odor. Just as you were contemplating going over to suggest exploring the markets, you hear a knock at your door.
“Who is it?” You call out, hoping that it was just Jungkook coming back to check up on you.
There’s no answer, but you can hear the pounding get louder, like whoever was on the other side was trying to break down the door. There’s a loud crack as the wooden door pane splinters, the rusty knob just falling off and rolling across the floor. You’re frozen in place, eyes full of fear as you stare at the large man standing at the entrance.
He slowly walks towards you with a frown on his face, blocking your view of the hallway and only escape.
Before you could scream, you hear a loud bang and the next thing you know, the man was on the ground. Your eyes immediately dart up and to your uttermost relief, you see Jungkook with a lamp clasped in his hand, eyes wide with alarm.
“We need to get out of here” He exhales, quickly grabbing your hand and making a run for it.
You don’t get a chance to look back, all you can focus on is keeping up with Jungkook’s speed as he leads you back out to the street and navigates through the crowds of people.
“Wha-how did you…?” You look at him and back in the direction the two of you ran from, mind still reeling from the hasty course of events.
“It was my bad really, I should’ve know most places aren’t safe anymore.” He shakes his head, looking around at the people still gathered in large crowds when you’re finally at a safe distance from the lodge. “Maybe that’s why everyone is here out in the open.”
“Hey, it’s ok, we’re fine and there’s only like three weeks left anyways” You give his hand a tight squeeze, unsure of why you felt so compelled to make him feel better. Perhaps it was the sadness in his eyes, something you can’t seem to ignore because it looked so familiar yet you’re unable to comprehend it fully.
He sighs. “Three weeks…are you the type who prefers to count down?”
You want to forget about it, to not be constantly reminded that the world you once knew is gone and these last moments will soon be swallowed in the same way. But no matter how hard you try to ignore the thought, it’s always there at the back of your mind, a subconscious countdown that keeps showing up intermittently.
“I just want to be as prepared as possible, and I don’t like surprises.”
“Somehow that’s not so surprising.” He smiles for the first time in a while, and you don’t miss the hint of playfulness in his words. It’s reassuring and quells some of your anxiety.
“You don’t seem to mind this whole ordeal.” You suddenly blurt out. Ever since you met this dark haired doe-eyed Jungkook, he’s seemed so…okay with everything, like the end of the world was some kind of adventure and not a dark and dreary end to existence.
He cocks a brow. “Almost getting us into some deep shit back there?”
“No, the fact that we have three weeks left, and then it’s over.” You exhale, letting out a breath you didn’t know you had been holding in for so long and finally feeling that weight being lifted off your chest.
His features relax as he turns to face you. “I’m looking forward to what lies beyond the end and in the meantime, making the most of what we are given now.”
You don’t quite understand what he means, and there are so many questions you want to ask, but the determined look in his eyes makes you wonder if you’re missing something deeper, something he wants to convey but is waiting for you to reach your own conclusion.
“Beyond the end?”
He chuckles lightly. “Like how people say endings give birth to new beginnings?”
“You sound like my mom.” You huff, knowing that he’s just playing around again and avoiding the real answer to your question.
“Do you miss her?” He suddenly asks.
“She was never really around much. Neither was my dad.” There’s an extended pause as Jungkook waits for you to continue, almost like he senses there’s more you want to say. “My brother Yoongi was my rock, the only person in my life that I could turn towards for guidance like an actual parental figure. My parents were loving and all, but being adopted, they were just nice picture parents. They didn’t offer me the kind of depth I needed. And my brother, you know, was older and I’m sure he didn’t think much of it at the time, but his advice was something I always took seriously, whether it was subconscious or not. His opinions impacted a lot of my decisions in life…” You trail off, thinking back to all the decisions you had made because Yoongi had expressed some form of bias towards it and still question to this day if they were the right ones. It’s not like you had that many regrets, but you can’t help but wonder if your life would’ve turned out differently had you made more choices independently. “You know I could’ve just said fuck it and did the thing I actually wanted to do.”
“Well, here’s your chance.”
…
The two of you decide that the safest place to sleep is the train.
Though it was often crowded and smelled of human sweat, it was still better than figuring how to set up a tent or having to climb a tree. And after the incident at the lodge, neither of you really wanted to risk it again. Besides, spending one or two days in one city is more than enough to grab some local food and do some sightseeing. You also realize that all of the towns sort of start blending into one another, like the days you’re still trying not to countdown. You’ve gotten to the point where it doesn’t bother you as much, at least not when you’re with traveling with someone you’ve grown too fond of too quickly, but in the best way ever.
“I guess I really didn’t think any of this through, but none of it really matters now, does it?”
You were trailing behind him in the orchard, the sun’s rays filtering through the leaves casting moving patterns on the ground. Spending the past few days visiting gardens and vineyards had been more fun than you had expected. The fruit was sweet and the flowers were bright and lively. Each farm you visited looked to stretch on for miles and miles, twisting and twirling along the hills and rivers. You had always been told that beauty existed in the most unexpected of places, and you were finally given the chance to witness it for yourself.
“You know there’s no point in living every day thinking about the fact that you’re going to die anyways.” He takes a bite of the apple he just picked off of one of the lower branches of the tree. The sound so crisp and juicy, you can feel your mouth salivating.
You release a light chuckle. “You’re telling me this when it’s literally the end of the world?”
He turns to toss you an apple. “I’m advising you to stop thinking about endings.”
Catching it in your hands, you stare at the intermingled colors for a moment, red, yellow, and a tad bit of green merging but never really mixing to become one. Taking a bite you realize its sweetness is lace with a tangy after taste, like those bittersweet endings you’ve come to know so well.
“I used to come to these places filled with so many thoughts on how to remember the details that I forget to enjoy the actual experience.” You pause, taking the time to decide if you wanted to continue.
Jungkook doesn’t make a sound, no signal to hint that he was going throw in commentary or interrupt your train of thought. You turn to glance at him, wondering if he’s wrapped in his own contemplation, only to find that he just looking at you, staring so intently you have to look away as you feel the blood rush to face.
“You’re still afraid of losing your memories, huh?”
It leaves his lips as a whisper, so soft that you are compelled to believe he was just mumbling to himself. You want to linger over his interesting choice of words, but you try not to think much of it and continue.
“So I tried to reason that if the journey is what we should be focusing on, I should just set goals that I’ll never reach. That way I wouldn’t have to deal with endings or being directionless in life.” You laugh. “And of course that backfired.”
“Continuously chasing after something you’ll never obtain?” He tilts his head towards the sun, closing his eyes for a brief moment.
You observe his side profile, visually drawing the outline of his silhouette and carving the image of his physical form into your brain knowing that it will last only as long as the end of time will allow.
“I just don’t like endings…or goodbyes…or even the thought that this is all there is to it.” You murmur, shifting your eyes back to the ground.
“There’s always more too it than you think.”
“And then I read somewhere that people don’t remember what you do but they remember how you made them feel.” You don’t know where you’re going with your outburst of thoughts, and maybe the diminishing days are convincing you to let it all out before it’s too late no matter how nonsensical everything you are saying is.
The breeze blowing by emphasizes the brief silence that follows, in which only the gentle rustling of leaves can be heard. You don’t know what else to say. You’ve never gotten this far in a conversation where your thoughts have been unhindered and you hadn’t planned an entire speech out. At this point you’re just waiting for him to respond, to tell you that you should stop thinking about uselessly irrelevant things or at least question why you’re telling him all this.
You watch as he turns to face you, not having realized you had closed the distance between you whilst ranting. He was so close you can almost feel the light brush of his shirt as it lifts up slightly in the wind and the heat of his body radiating off his smooth skin. His gaze is distracting. It’s something you’ve learned over the past week and then some. The way his dark pupils twinkle mysteriously almost mimicking those of someone’s you will never forget, but there’s something different about his. His eyes reflected the sunlight like there were stars inside.
You’re so enraptured by his beauty that you don’t realize he’s reduced the remaining space between the two of you to almost nothing, lips just millimeters away now. Without another thought, you lean forward and kiss him, mouth clumsily crashing with his. You can feel his lips curve into a smile as he kisses you back much in a much more composed and practiced manner, like he has done it a million times before, only you know that’s not possible. He breaks free temporarily only to murmur one sentence in response.
“I’ll always remember the way you made me feel.”
…
Time starts to fluctuate in ways you begin to lose track of.
Sometimes you wake up in the middle of the night confused about where you were and frantically searching for something to calm your racing thoughts. You have dreams about different phases of your life, places you’ve been, people you used to know, only they are distorted in ways that make them almost unrecognizable. And then when you try to dig them up from your memories, you find that they are lost and everything has changed.
Now you find solace in the moonlight pouring through the curtain windows of the train and the solidity of Jungkook’s hand intertwined with yours as his jacket covers both of your bodies. The way he never leaves your side is unusual for someone you didn’t even know existed until about two weeks ago, and yet he gives you no reason to doubt that he would ever leave.
It’s something you’ve too grown familiar with, the scent of his body and the warmth of his smile. And as you walk the streets of foreign cities, navigating through crowds of strange people whose faces you won’t even remember, you choose to inscribe the details of his features in your memoirs, the softness of his skin, the width of his shoulders, the veins on his forearms…
You’ve learned that he enjoys gazing at large bodies of water, lakes, rivers, and oceans, which is why you find yourself on the beach at the last stop of your journey.
“Would it make sense to say I’ve always liked being alone, but I’m not too fond of being lonely?”
He takes a minute to contemplate your seemingly contradictory statement.
“Makes perfect sense to me.” He absentmindedly tosses a seashell at the incoming wave. It’s swallowed instantly, and all you can focus on is the foamy ripples that wane back into the seemingly endless blue. “I think what makes us feel lonely is being with people who don’t really understand us, and that doesn’t happen when you’re alone since you’re just by yourself. ”
“Wow, you’re the first person who hasn’t just told me I’m just being anti-social…well, technically the second.” You smile, breathing out slowly. “I think you and my brother, Yoongi, would’ve gotten along pretty well.”
“Did he leave?”
You nod, recalling the last image of him still safely tucked away in your memories.
“And you wanted to stay to enjoy these last few weeks.”
You arch a brow, having expected him to ask why you didn’t leave rather than stating the exact answer you would’ve given him had he asked.
“How’d you guess?”
He laughs. “I figured, since you don’t seem bothered wasting all this time with me.”
“True.” You smile. “Although I wouldn’t call it wasting…”
The salty sea breeze is something you definitely didn’t have the luxury of smelling growing up. This is your first time visiting the beach, first time seeing the ocean. Each day you’ve spent on this adventure of sorts with Jungkook has been a first…and a last now that you think about it.
“You’re right. I couldn’t have asked for a better end to life on earth.”
…
Home.
It’s not a concept you are familiar with in the traditional sense. It’s not a feeling you’ve experienced first hand nor is it a place you’ve truly been to.
But looking into Jungkook’s eyes you can see it.
You can see it in the way he looks at you, the way he embraces you in his arms not because it’s the end of the world and there is no one else to hold, but because it’s where you belong and neither of you would have it any other way.
“This can’t be it.” You choke out, already losing yourself to the rush of tears, though you had tried so hard to keep it together until the end. “W-we j-just met…”
He doesn’t say anything, but instead holds you tighter.
“I never even asked you anything about yourself. All I did was ramble on and on about me, throwing all my stupid thoughts out there like any of it mattered.” You’re tears won’t stop. You had always hated endings; putting the utmost effort into not caring so you wouldn’t have anything you were afraid of losing. But you just couldn’t do it. Not with him.
He flashes you one last smile as he gently cups your tear-streamed cheeks in his hands, a gesture that is not overpowered by a deep sense of hollowness but rather reflects an almost peaceful ray of hope.
“I’m here. I’m not going anywhere. I’ll always be here.”
…
…
“I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve watched him die. I just remember always crying until I have no tears left to shed. But he always gives me that reassuring look, with those stars in his eyes and that twitch of his soft lips like it isn’t the last time, that we’ll for sure meet again.” You release a trivial laugh, already feeling the effects of the alcohol. “Of course, I never pick up on it until I’m about to wake up.”
The bar was dim and comparably quiet, being that it was only you and Namjoon sitting at the counter. It was a Monday night, not exactly the best of days to get drunk, but it’s not like you really cared, though you probably should. You had invited the entire lab out for dinner to celebrate the publishing of your most recent paper, which turned out quite pleasant and ended roughly an hour ago. All the other students and professors had gone home.
“He’s always waiting.” You murmur, staring at the shot glass in front of you, still talking as if you were by yourself, reiterating the words that continuously circle back in your head.
Namjoon looks up, startled by your sudden comment after a lengthy pause.
“I never have to look for him because he always comes back to me.” You scoff, bringing the glass up to your lips, tilting your head, and letting the liquid burn down your throat. “And then when I react like I’ve just met him for the first time, he just flashes that gentle smile of acceptance like I didn’t just break his heart.”
Your bottom lip quivers, and before you know it, tears are streaming down your face. God, you feel ridiculous.
“And that happens every time?” Namjoon’s voice is barely a whisper, his eyes focused on his own glass.
“Never misses a beat.” You sniffle softy, picking up a napkin to dot away your tears. “I thought I was ok, but I guess I am insane.” You laugh pathetically.
“I understand. He means a lot to you.”
“He’s the kind of forever that never changes, the kind of time that does not reach an end just to continue that moment you’ve always wanted to last for an eternity.” You don’t even know what’s gotten into you, and though you’re aware of the mess you must look like right now, you can’t seem to pull it together.
There’s a long pause, and nothing but the sound of stifled music and distant footsteps can be heard.
“Professor Y/L/N, I know it’s not my place to be curious about your personal life, but can you really not think of a single person that resembles him, whether it is in the past or now?” Namjoon voice is more desperate than he probably intended, but any could tell you were not being quite yourself.
A forced smile makes it’s way to your lips as you shake your head. “He was always exactly what I needed. He was always too good to be real.”
“It’s not impossible.”
“It’s bad to be too dependent on other people.” You flash him an amused look, not really knowing what you are saying anymore as your head begins to spin from the alcohol. “And please, please, don’t get me wrong. I’m not weak or insecure.”
Namjoon doesn’t respond, sensing your tipsiness.
“It’s not that he gives my life meaning or that he makes me feel complete.” You run your hands through your hair, trying to keep your cool, but anyone could tell you’re losing it. “He’s the only truth in a world of lies. Even when I’m not aware that everything around me is merely a dream, he always feels like the only thing that is real, and for him I would be content never waking up because the rest of reality doesn’t even matter. And don’t get me wrong, I’ve long learned to be independent and logical, to refrain from getting lost in dreams, relying on others, and carrying expectations that will only result in disappointment. I’ve practiced the art of self-love for all my life, and I’m fine. My life has purpose, and I am complete the way I am.” You release a shaky breath, palms feeling cold and clammy. “I’ve always felt that I’ve had everything and yet… he offers more.”
You look up to meet Namjoon’s eyes that are nothing but sympathetic.
“How could I not want more?” You croak, beginning to cry again. “I’m so greedy.”
That’s what it is. Always wanting more, never feeling like what you have is enough. When will you learn to be grateful for what is and stop trying to obtain what is not yours to begin with?
“You are not greedy.” Namjoon’s voice is discreet, but firm. “You’re afraid to believe of his existence.”
Your eyes shoot up to meet his. “Because I know he doesn’t exist.”
“Then why do you keep going back?” His question is not for the purpose of attacking you or for blatantly calling you out for something you’ve been guilty of for years, but it catches you off guard, and you suddenly find yourself exposed… vulnerable.
“My research” You reply dryly, maintaining a steady voice amidst the fable you’ve been repeatedly telling everyone who’s ever asked. “I don’t really have a choice.”
Namjoon doesn’t look convinced, but he doesn’t try to force the truth out of you even though he knows exactly why. “No, I mean, why does your mind subconsciously always go back to him?” He murmurs, staring at the table solemnly.
His query once again seizes you in unfamiliar territory, and for the first time, you don’t know what to say or at least can’t come up with an answer that will not expose the true reason you’ve been experimenting. Because you know Namjoon is right.
I know It’s short, I’m sorry, I’ve been dealing with some things at home. I haven’t had a chance to edit this because I just really wanted to get it out. Tomorrow morning I’ll edit it! Thank you for all the love and support, I love you.
______________
Classes soon started and for a little over a week, you didn’t see much of your roommate or his friends. The few times you had run into them had been brief and barely more than a “hey,” before someone was rushing out the door or to a class.
You’d also learned pretty quick just how well known the trio was, although to you, their popularity didn’t quite add up because they didn’t really do anything. At least not that you’d seen.
You were lounged under a tree in one of the courtyards with the two friends you’d managed to make, when the topic of Jimin, Taehyung, and Jungkook came up.
“Man, look at them. Their life seems so easy!” Gabriel, your lanky red-headed friend groaned, his words saturated with jealousy.
You paused reviewing your notes, glancing up to follow his gaze to the three men that had just walked out of one of the lounge areas. Nothing they were doing was any different from the dozen other students scattered around the courtyard, so you looked to your friend quizzically.
“It does?”
Your second friend, Cody, piped up, “Yes! Look at them! They’re so handsome, rich, and everyone around them loves them!”
You didn’t really understand how that made studying, passing tests, and generally living college life easy, but for all you knew, it could.
“Oh,” your interest ended there and you returned to your notes.
Conversation died down after that, everyone resuming their studies. A good ten minutes of comfortable silence passed before something happened.
“Want a bite?” You, Cody, and Gabriel all jumped at the unexpected presence as a piece of sushi was held in front of you, Jimin’s recognizable ringed fingers expertly holding it with chopsticks.
You leaned to the side, turning your head back to look at the man crouched behind you. His blonde hair was brushed back, highlighting the earrings dangling from his ears, and with the way the sweater he wore hung loosely on his frame, you weren’t entirely convinced it was his.
You managed to shake your head at his offer, too scared to open your mouth for fear you would stutter. He pouted at your denial and as if it was a reflex to his disappointment, your mouth dropped open. Grinning, he shoved the sushi slice into your mouth before you had a chance to change your mind.
Gauging your reaction as you slowly chewed, he smiled blindingly.
“It’s good, right?” He encouraged a response so you nodded. You couldn’t remember the last time you had sushi.
A clearing of the throat grabbed your attention and you turned to your friends. They both looked at you with wide, questioning eyes.
Your ears got hot and you reached for your water bottle to wash down the bite of food. You almost choked when Jimin made himself comfortable next to you, giving the others with you a nod, his expression neutral. Polite.
Gabriel and Cody were all too excited to introduce themselves, no doubt hoping to get in Jimin’s friend circle. The three boys chatted for a bit, but Jimin didn’t seem particularly interested in what they were saying and you were suddenly much too shy for casual conversation. A common occurrence when Jimin, Taehyung, or Jungkook were involved.
Eventually, Taehyung and Jungkook wandered over as well — much to Gabriel and Cody’s delight. Your hands became clammy as you avoided their gazes, eyes repeatedly scanning over the same paragraph in your notes but not retaining any information.
After that, word got out that you were Taehyung’s roommate and people seemed to think that meant you were somehow super close with the three men, which was not true.
“What are they like? You know, behind the scenes.” You were asked, having been cornered after class by a few peers.
“Uh-I, I’m not sure?”
“Can I come over to yours?”
“I don’t think that’s…” You struggled to find words.
“We should be friends!”
“A-alright.”
“Do you want to grab lunch with-”
“I’m sorry, I have to go.” You abruptly cut off, hating the amount of attention that was on you. Ducking away, you rushed back to your dorm room.
When you reached your dorm, you were overjoyed to find it unoccupied. You’d met your quota of human interaction for the week and planned to stay in the dorm until your next class on Monday. You were excited because you found that on the weekends, Taehyung & Company were nowhere to be found.
Dumping your belongings onto your bed, you dug around in your bag for your notebook and laptop. Taking a seat at the shared desk between yours and Taehyung’s bed, you buckled down and did your homework.
It took a few hours, but eventually, all your work was finished and you were able to just relax and enjoy the rest of the evening. First, though, you wanted to take a shower.
Gathering all your necessary belongings, you slipped into the bathroom and began our shower routine.
About 45 minutes later, you were out and getting ready to get dressed, only to realize you must’ve dropped your underwear on the floor.
Peaking your head out the door, your eyes searched the room to make sure it was still empty. It was. You stepped out, your hair in a towel, clothes in hand, eyeing the floor for your underwear.
Furrowing your brow, you became confused when you didn’t see them. You were sure you’d grabbed a pair.
Standing in the center of the room, you turned around for one last once over of the room. You did a double-take, noticing what looked suspiciously like your underwear in the little space between the end of your bed and the chest.
You didn’t even get the chance to make a move towards them before the door swung wide open…
The two’s argument, that lasted all the way back to the dorms, luckily came to an end when their attention was diverted by a group of men walking by. You concluded that Jungkook and Jimin were on very good terms with the group because they stopped helping unpack the car, wandered over, and began a very animated conversation with the group. Well, Jimin was animated, Jungkook was noticeably calmer.
Although you were relieved to once again be a part of the background, you were nervous to go back to your room without them. You didn’t know if Taehyung would be there and you weren’t quite ready to face him alone yet. You knew your fear was irrational — he was your dorm-mate, you’d have to face him at some point.
Stuffing two pillows under your arms, you struggled to collect all the bags in your hands. The lack of muscle on your thin and lanky frame proved an issue as you attempted to lift everything out of the trunk. Determined, you successfully heaved it out and trudged to the door. Using your elbow, you bumped the handicap button and the doors slowly swung open. Making your way to the elevator, the weight of everything making you waddle somewhat, you again used your elbow to try and press the button. After your third unsuccessful attempt, you huffed and set down all the bags, stuffing one of the pillows between your legs and angrily jabbed at the stubborn ‘up’ arrow. You glared at the steel doors in wait.
“Ellliee!” You heard him complain moments before he draped himself over you.
Never in your life had someone made you as uncomfortable as Jimin. Most men were put off by you — your soft features and smaller build making them fear their sexual orientation being questioned. A stupid fear, because so what? But they feared it all the same. Jimin, of course, being twice as beautiful as you had no reason to fear this. Not to mention, nothing and no one seemed to deter him and he acted like everyone was his best friend. It wouldn’t surprise you if everyone was his best friend.
Now, you didn’t exactly dislike him, but he definitely put you on edge. From what you’d learned in the hours you’d known him was that he was very touchy-feely. Always hanging off someone as if he lacked the ability to hold himself up. He was too comfortable and you were nevercomfortable.
Gently shrugging him off, so as not to hurt his feelings, you bent down to resituate the pillow back under your arm. As you began picking the bags back up, the distinct ding of the elevator met your ears.
Helping you out, almost absentmindedly, Jimin grabbed half the bags and stepped confidently into the small metal box. Making a move to follow his lead, you jumped when his head popped back out.
“Guess he’s taking the stairs,” he laughed when he didn’t see Jungkook. You didn’t comment.
As the doors closed and you slowly began to rise up, you can’t help it as your eyes trail to the man next to you. His attention is on whatever is on his phone screen, leaving you with the opening to admire his beauty. His jawline was surprisingly sharp, contradicting his otherwise soft facial features, rings adorned almost all of his fingers and you wondered if it was painful to hold the bags.
“Is Taehyung going to be there?” The words came out before you could properly think them through.
Luckily Jimin didn’t seem to think much of it as he shrugged, “I doubt it. I think he wants to avoid you about as much as you want to avoid him.”
You tried not to flush at his words, embarrassment coursing through you. Were you really that see-through?
Thankfully the arrival of your floor saved you from having to respond.
Unlocking your respective door, you dropped everything off by the bed.
“Ready to go?” Jimin asked, almost impatiently.
Just the thought of seeing Taehyung again had your stomach rolling, making you feel ill. He was scary.
“Actually, I think I’m gonna stay here and unpack,” you motioned back to your stuff.
Before Jimin could argue, Jungkook came in, unannounced.
“You didn’t hold the elevator,” he glared at Jimin.
You shrunk back under his stare, there was no way you were going out with them now, especially with Jungkook upset.
“More importantly, you don’t want to come and eat with us?” Jimin seemed genuinely offended as he turned to frown at you and you suddenly felt the pressing urge to take back your words, just to please him and return his smile.
Jungkook sobered up, “You don’t want to come?”
“I-I,” you felt like puking. It’d been a long time since you’d been this nervous.
“How can you not want to go? Le Fabricant de Pain has the best food in the world!” Jimin continued and Jungkook nodded in agreement.
“Did you do something?” He accused Jimin.
Jimin looked affronted, “No!”
“Please ignore Jimin, he has no respect for personal boundaries,” Jungkook apologized sincerely, for the first time all day looking genuinely annoyed with Jimin.
“I didn’t!” He insisted, hesitating for a second before looking at you. “Did I?”
You looked back and forth between the two.
“You guys should really go,” you said with a hint of finality, resisting the urge to wring your fingers. What you’d really meant was ‘You guys should really go eat without me’ but the words had gotten stuck in your throat and in turn come out of your mouth much too harshly.
They both looked visibly taken aback, not expecting your tone.
Jimin sobered, leaving the room without another word. Jungkook hesitated before following after him.
Shutting the door behind them, you let out a sigh of relief. It felt good to be alone again, almost euphoric after the stressful morning you’d had.
Methodically, you began to unpack your things, willfully falling into a calm state.
*****
*Taehyung’s POV (ish)*
The morning sun glared too brightly through the restaurant window, aggravating the painful throbbing in his head. The fact that Jungkook and Jimin were late only furthered his bristling annoyance. Briefly, he wondered if his new roomie would be tagging along.
Elliot Wiley, 19, born in Quincy, Illinois. 4.0 average, received a scholarship to St. Helena’s University. He mentally ran over everything he knew about the man he now shared a room with.
Man. He almost scoffed. Boy fit his character much more.
A firm clap on Taehyung’s back broke him from his thoughts. Immediately, he noticed the change in Jimin’s mood, his normal bubbly attitude considerably dampened as he sat across from Taehyung without a word.
Taehyung looked at Jungkook accusingly as he sat beside him, “What happened?”
Jungkook shrugged, “Elle told us to leave, Chim is upset,” he explained.
Taehyung raised his brows. Elliot didn’t strike him as the kind of person to say no to anyone, much less ask them to leave him alone. And as much as Elliot didn’t seem like one to say no, Jimin didn’t like to be told no. His mood was expected under the circumstances.
“Does he know you call him that?” He asked, a smirk playing on his lips as he leaned back into his chair and took a sip from his iced tea.
“Call him what?” Jungkook had already moved on from the conversation and turned his attention to the menu, even though Taehyung knew he was going to get what he always got. The only thing that ever changed was his drink order.
“Elle.”
“Yes. It fits him better, don’t you think?” Jungkook responded, not looking up.
Taehyung hummed thoughtfully.
……
You walked out of the bathroom in clean clothing, towel drying your freshly washed hair, and jumped a little when an unexpected knock sounded at the door. Curiously, you cracked open the door. Standing on the other side were two overly excited females. You held back a grimace and instead forced a smile, opening the door a little more. They both looked a little startled at your appearance, but it didn’t deter them.
“Yes?” You urged, brows raised.
“Hey, i-is Taehyung Kim here?” One asked. She had bright magenta hair that complemented her caramel skin tone nicely. Not that you would ever tell her and risk focusing her attention on you.
You shook your head, “He’s out with some friends,” you made sure your words were vague enough that no one could be mad at you for spilling beans.
The girls simultaneously drooped and you almost smirked. It was much easier to be amused by pining girls when it wasn’t directed at you.
“Do you know when they’ll be back?” The second girl questioned hopefully. She was much shorter than her friend, looking like she barely stood at 5’0.
“I do not,” You feigned sympathy.
“Okay,” Purple hair sighed, discouraged.
After a few moments of silence, you piped up, “Was there something else? I can pass along a message,” please don’t make me pass along a message.
“No…” Shortie blushed, refusing to look you in the eye.
“Okie-dokie, have a good day,” you waved, quickly closing the door so as not to give them any more chances to talk.
Sighing, you swan dove onto your bed with a huff. Everything from the shopping trip had been unpacked, you just needed to wash the sheets before she could make the bed.
Standing back up, you gathered everything you needed and headed to the dorm laundromat.
***
Three hours later, you were laying down on your clean bedding, nose deep in a fat book. You tensed, though, when you heard muffled voices outside the door and from what you could make out, most of it was not in English.
You almost didn’t recognize Jimin’s voice as he came barging into the room, Taehyung commenting something back, following him into the room, but you couldn’t understand any of it. You were frozen, your book clenched tightly in front of your face.
Another response was thrown, followed by what was definitely Jimin’s laugh.
“I don’t know why I’m friends with you,” Taehyung grumbled in English and you could hear someone sit on the bed across from yours.
“Ellie!” You barely had time to brace herself before Jimin jumped on you.
“Oof!” You wheezed, not prepared for a grown man to pounce on you.
“Nice Chim, two times in a day,” Jungkook teased carefully, but you couldn’t see anything past the curly locks and blue eyes that stared down at you.
“Hello,” you breathed, still a bit in shock.
He grinned, teeth showing proudly, “Hey”
“You’re a bit heavy,” you whispered, trying to gently push him off you.
“And you’re a bit bone-y!” He laughed, rolling off you and onto the mattress beside you. Your breath hitched at his words, but just like that, his attention was back on the other two boys.
“He’s going to get annoyed at you again,” Jungkook gently advised, sitting next to Taehyung and for the first time that you’d encountered, Jimin hesitated and looked at you warily.
“I’m not annoyed,” you assured, offering an uncomfortable smile. Jimin relaxed immediately, crashing back into the mattress.
“What are you reading?” He asked and you had to resist flinching when he leaned so close that you could feel his breath on you. You immediately handed him the book, hoping he’d back up. Jungkook started a quiet conversation with Taehyung, threatening to divert your attention to them.
“Inheritance,” you finally answered, although you knew it was pointless because he was already flipping through the pages.
“Eragon is the first book, right?” He asked, unexpectedly interested.
“Yeah,” you smiled more genuinely, pushing yourself upright so that you were sitting and subtly scooting further from his warm body. You were especially uncomfortable at the desire coursing through you to move closer to his warmth.
“Do you recommend the series?” He wondered, his eyes alight with curiosity. You nodded numbly, not sure what to say.
“It’s good,” you finally got out.
He nodded, handing you the book back and resting his head on his arm. He started absentmindedly fiddling with your comforter, looking exhausted and you recalled him mentioning that Taehyung hadn’t gotten much sleep and you wondered if he, too, hadn’t slept. You’d initially written it off as goofing off and too much partying, but the melancholy look in his eye had you second guessing that assumption.
“Jimin, if you’re going to sleep, take out your contacts.” Taehyung suddenly commented, cutting off Jungkook in the middle of whatever he’d been talking about.
Sleep?! It was your bed! He couldn’t possibly be so bold…could he?
Before Jimin could respond, you shuffled down the bed, hopping off the end and making an escape to the small bathroom. You were in there for a good ten minutes, staring at yourself in the mirror, wracking your brain for what to say, what to do. You’d never been in this situation before, never been around people quite so shameless.
Finally flushing the toilet (even though you hadn’t used it), you washed your hands and crept back into the room. It seemed whilst you were in the bathroom, everyone had settled in. Taehyung was laying on his back, phone in his hand, Jungkook was sat beside Taehyung, on his laptop (that you had noticed on his bedside table earlier) and Jimin was out cold on your bed, leaving you at a loss as to what to do. He wasn’t taking up a lot of space, hardly any in fact, but you were still hesitant to return onto your bed.
You didn’t understand why your body and mind was reacting the way it was, you’d been around men your entire life! Men were usually a comfort zone for you, so why did these three cause your heart to race and your mind to get muddled? Sure, Taehyung had snapped at you one time, but that didn’t explain how you felt about the other two.
Taehyung must’ve noticed your hesitation because he spoke up.
“I can move him,” he offered, shocking you. Jungkook glanced up curiously before returning his attention to whatever he’d been doing.
Taking in Jimin’s peaceful expression, you just couldn’t bring yourself to ask Taehyung to disturb him.
Could this possibly be what it was like to have friends? Friends shared things, right? Friends slept over. For fucks sake you were rooming with someone now, you should get used to having people over.
“No, it’s alright,” you mumbled, very carefully climbing over Jimin, picking your book up and continuing where you left off.
The hours passed in a blur as you were sucked into the land of dragons and monsters. You didn’t even notice Jungkook leave or Taehyung fall asleep. It wasn’t until the light coming through the window became too dim to read with that you realized what time it was.
Biting your lip, you gave yourself a moment to gather the courage to wake Jimin up.
“Hey,” you whispered, gently shaking his shoulder.
No response. You tried again.
“Jimin, wake up,” you still kept your volume low, not particularly wanting to wake up Taehyung.
This time, Jimin gave a response, rolling over. Your heart jumped in panic when he rolled towards the edge of the bed and you thoughtlessly grabbed at his waist in an attempt to catch him before you fell.
Of course, because the man weighed twice as much as you, he took you both over the edge.
“Shit!” You hissed as you felt gravity take you both down and winced as you landed on top of him. The petty part of you absently called karma for jumping on you, but you were quick to brush the thought away.
You both let out a groan, but he actually started laughing quietly.
You looked down at him in confusion.
“You didn’t have to body slam me to the ground, or is this revenge for this morning? I didn’t take you for vindictive,” he chuckled with a wince as he brought his hand up to rub the back of his head.
You quickly scrambled off him, “N-no! Of course not!”
He sat up slowly, taking in his surroundings and your eyes widened at his brown ones before you remembered Taehyung telling him to take out his contacts. Habitually, you copied Jimin and did a once over of your surroundings, doing a double take when you saw Taehyung’s head resting on the edge of his bed, one eye peeking up at you.
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You were jerked awake by the ceiling light being suddenly flipped on. Squinting, you rolled onto your back, gazing around in confusion.
Glaring at you, a storm brewing in his eyes, was the most beautiful man you’d ever seen. His hair was dark and wavy, falling into his anger-filled eyes and you wondered if he was a god. It took you entirely too long to stop staring and realize it was just your roommate.
“Move your shit” he growled, aggressively kicking your bags closer to your bed. It dawned on you that he must’ve tripped over them when he got up to use the bathroom. It had been so dark when you’d arrived that you hadn’t realized just how far away from your bed you’d placed them.
“I’m so sorry!” You gasped, sitting up and reaching over to pull them onto the bed. He just huffed and stormed into the bathroom, slamming the door behind him.
You squeezed your eyes closed in regret and fell back onto the bed, completely embarrassed, “I’m such an idiot.”
By the time he came back out, you were rolled back onto your side, facing the wall and pretending to be asleep. You wanted to avoid his confrontation for as long as possible.
You heard him roughly shut the light off and crawl back into his bed. You waited, counting the seconds that turned into minutes before rolling onto your back and staring up at the ceiling. The moon shining through the window cast haunting shadows across the room and although you hadn’t expected it, the presence of your roommate actually made you feel better. You weren’t facing the shadows alone. With that thought, your eyes drifted shut.
***
“Wake up sunshine!” You barely had time to open your eyes before a figure landed right on top of you, a feral grunt escaping your lips at their weight.
“Oh shit!” They exclaimed when they realized.
“Chim?” Someone else questioned, flipping on the light. You shied away as the person scrambled to get off you.
“Apparently Tae’s roommate got in a little early,” the so-called Chim replied, sounding a bit sheepish.
“What is going on?” A deep, raspy voice quieted the two males down.
“Tae!” Chim cried in excitement, jumping onto the other bed.
Your roommate grunted at the weight, much like you had, but he was strong enough to roll out from under him and face the wall, pulling his blanket over his head. Chim sat up and looked over at your undoubtedly disheveled appearance.
“Sorry I jumped on you, we were told you wouldn’t be here till this afternoon,” You got a better look at him now that he wasn’t moving around. His curly blonde locks were wild and untamed as he ran a hand through it apologetically, his eyes were a starling icy blue and his white v-neck shirt hung off one of his well-defined shoulders delicately. It was unreal how beautiful the man was and if you were any less awake you would have thought him a god, too. Aphrodite, maybe.
“You jumped on him?” the 3rd, unidentified male echoed, shifting uncomfortably. He had dark hair, brushed neatly across his forehead, big brown eyes, and multiple earrings dangling from both of his ears. His hands were tucked into the pockets of his black jeans, and in fact, everything he wore was black; his hoodie, his jeans, the aircraft carriers he had disguised as shoes. All black and yet somehow he was pulling the look off as ‘cool’ instead of ‘emo and depressed’. He, too, was unrealistically beautiful.
“It’s not like I meant to!” Chim defended, panicked.
“It’s okay” You murmured, rubbing your sternum where his elbow had jabbed into it.
“I’m Jungkook,” the man in black introduced, a subtle accent peeking through.
You gave him a smile, albeit a little strained, and returned the introduction, “Elliot.”
Sitting up, you brought your knees to your chest, turning your attention to Chim on the bed opposite yours. He was mimicking your positioning, not mockingly so, and bringing his knees to his chest. You briefly wondered what material his skinny jeans were made of for them to so comfortably stretch over his impressive thighs like that.
“I’m Jimin! Again, sorry for the…” He trailed off, motioning to the bed with a sheepish grin. His accent was much stronger than Jungkook’s, but you still had no idea where it was from.
“You’re fine,” you really wished he would stop bringing it up.
“You’re Tae’s new roommate?” Jungkook changed the topic, likely having noticed your discomfort.
“Tae?” You trailed, turning your head to take in the slumped figure on the bed.
“Taehyung,” the said man corrected sharply, raising his head to glare at the three of you. Jimin smirked and leaned back into him, letting his legs fall down again whilst Jungkook just gave you a small, somewhat awkward smile.
Focusing back on you, Jimin tilted his head to the side. “You have no,” he paused, motioning to the naked mattress, “bedsheets.”
You looked down, “I was going to get them yesterday, but I got in later than I’d thought,” you explained sheepishly, scratching the back of your neck.
“We can take you?” That was the last thing you’d expected from the quiet one in black. From anyone really. You were more of a lone wolf, help wasn’t something you offered or accepted often.
“Who’s we?” You asked hesitantly, glancing over at your roommate’s slumped figure. He’d raised into a sitting position and was heavily leaning into Jimin, obviously the least awake out of all of us.
“Ah, ignore him. He hasn’t slept much the past week,” Jimin waved off and Jungkook nodded in affirmation
Taehyung rolled his eyes and got up, causing you to flinch back. The movement caught his attention, but he disregarded it as he stalked into the bathroom.
“Is bedding the only thing you need?” Jungkook wondered aloud, eyeing your small bags doubtfully.
“It’s okay, I can get everything myself,” you assured, rifling through the duffle for a clean shirt.
“This is your first year though, right?” Jimin asked as Jungkook took a seat on Taehyung’s bed.
“Yes…” Where was he going with this?
“This is our third year, so we know where everything is,” he continued.
“Oh, okay,” you caved, realizing they weren’t going to let it go. Glancing warily at the bathroom, you leaned back into the bed, perfectly happy to wait for Taehyung to finish if it meant avoiding him.
“Tae! Hurry up!” Jimin yelled when he realized your train of thought.
Taehyung stepped out of the bathroom with a glare and you shrunk back in fear of his wrath. Deciding that you could just go in your pajamas, you grabbed some socks and shoes and hurriedly put them on.
“You aren’t going to change?” Jimin asked in confusion, completely unphased by Taehyung’s irritation.
“No, this is fine,” you brushed off, grabbing your coat and wallet before darting across the room and out the door.
“Hey, wait up!”
You frowned as the two men followed you, but you hesitated for them all the same.
“Don’t mind Taehyung, he’s just annoyed that he has to share a dorm,” Jimin explained, much to your confusion.
“What do you mean?” The words slipped out before you could process them.
“Tae usually has his own wing, but because they’re expanding the school this year, he has to live in the dorms until they’re done building,” he explained.
You came to the conclusion that Taehyung was very well off if he had his own wing. Clearly spoiled too, if his bratty actions were anything to go by.
“I’m sorry if he’s been unpleasant. I’ve known Tae for a long time, I know he can be…difficult sometimes,” Jungkook spoke up quietly from behind.
“He hasn’t done anything,” you quickly diffused, knowing that it was your fault for leaving your bags in the middle of the room, anyways.
Both Jimin and Jungkook looked at you skeptically.
“Where to first?” You changed subjects, uncomfortable with the attention that was on you.
***********
You had never met a guy that liked to shop as much as Jimin did. If you’d had it your way, you’d have been in and out two hours ago, but the happy-go-lucky, and admittedly adorable, Jimin insisted on going down every aisle and showing you anything he found minutely interesting.
“Softer is better, there’s no way anyone finds firm pillows comfortable,” Jimin snipped, glaring at the wide variety of pillows.
“Chim, they’re for Elle, not you,” Jungkook reminded softly, his ears reddening slightly when you looked shocked at his nickname for you
“Yeah! But as the guide, it is my job to make sure that he gets the best one!”
Jungkook ignored him, turning to you, “Which one do you want?”
“Either is fine!” You rushed out, not wanting them to be focused on you any longer than necessary. You were enjoying being the third wheel, it was as close as you’d ever gotten to comfortably being around friends.
“See Kook? I told you,” Jimin grinned, turning back to the pillows in satisfaction. After grabbing the soft pillow, he twirled back around, “alright, what’s next?”
A bit startled, you glanced to the basket of everything you needed, “that was the last item.”
“That’s all you’re getting?” Jungkook questioned in surprise.
“I don’t need much,” you shrugged, gripping the cart a little tighter.
“Oh, so we’re done then? Great, I’m starving!” Jimin pushed past, marching in the direction of the cashiers. Jungkook seemed to agree with him because he was right on Jimin’s tail.
Trailing after them slowly, a large part of you wished they’d go get food without you and leave you be, but a small, tiny, itty-bitty part of you wanted to go eat with them, wanted to makefriends.
“Hurry up!” Jimin called back, jumping onto a startled Jungkook’s back.
As you approached the checkout counter, Jungkook’s phone began to ring. Looking at the screen, he immediately answered, shrugging Jimin off and making his way out of the store for more privacy.
“Is that really all you need?” Jimin questioned, looking over everything, unconvinced.
“Yes,” in fact it was more than you had originally planned on getting.
“Man, you’re so easy. We went shopping with Tae last month and he was so needy!” You scrunched your brows together, unable to imagine that anything about Taehyung was needy.
As you were piling the bags back into the cart, Jungkook returned.
“Tae is going to meet us at Le Fabricant de Pain for lunch,” he explained, mostly addressing Jimin.
Jimin made a delighted groaning sound, startling you so much you almost dropped a bag.
“We haven’t been there in ages!” He exclaimed, turning his attention to you and continuing, “they have the best sandwiches.”
You nodded, having no real intention of eating anything. You hadn’t eaten a sandwich since you were 8 and if you wanted to keep your secret, it needed to stay that way.
“Come on, we’ll drop your stuff off at the dorm and then head over there,” Jimin said, taking the cart full of bags and walking out the store.
Looking back to the pretty cashier, you accepted her receipt with a shy head bow and an awkward smile before nervously following the boys out.
Noticing Jungkook was doing all the work to pack your things into the trunk of his car, you jogged up and quickly began helping.
“It’s okay, I can do it,” you insisted, grabbing ahold of the bag in his hand and receiving a funny look. He didn’t argue though and instead took the opportunity to join Jimin, who was already in the car connecting his music to the Bluetooth.
“Tae already revoked your rights to the Bluetooth,” you heard Jungkook scold quietly and you noticed that the longer you spent with them, the less you noticed their accents, which was frustrating because you still didn’t know its origin.
“But Tae isn’t here, is he?” You could hear the grin in Jimin’s words.
“No, but the rest of us haven’t suddenly gone deaf,” was Jungkook’s quipped response and the music was abruptly shut off. Personally, you hadn’t minded the song, but you weren’t about to speak up.
After pushing the empty cart off to the side and shutting the trunk, you came around to the passenger door and tapped 3 times on the window.
Jungkook’s car was only a 2 door Challenger, which meant Jimin had to get out and the seat had to be pulled up before you could get in.
He didn’t pay you much mind as he hopped out, still bickering with Jungkook. Luckily, the seat was on spring rollers, otherwise, you didn’t think you’d have had the upper body strength to pull it up.
“Huh, you like her too, right Elle?” Jimin addressed loudly over your shoulder as you climbed into the back seat, making sure Jungkook could hear him.
Jungkook interrupted before you had a chance to say anything, not that you had much to say on the matter anyway.
“You can’t ask him, just because you know you’re wrong.”
“That makes no sense!” Jimin disagreed, pushing the seat back roughly, unknowingly hitting you in the process. You bit your lip, bringing your knee up to your chest. He hadn’t hurt you, but you still didn’t want to be in the way.
The two’s argument continued all the way back to the dorms. Honestly, it was the most you’d heard Jade speak and you wondered if this was his true personality or if Jimin just annoyed him that much.
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Warnings:Crossdressing, anorexia, and disguised child abuse. Please read with caution if you think this might be triggering.
——————–
“All packed?” Your mother asked gently, petting your head lovingly.
“Yeah,” you were always a shy kid, a recluse inside yourself. This was showcased in the meager items you had packed to bring with you.
“Are you sure that this is all you want to bring?” Your father worried.
You looked over what you were taking. Your favorite shirts, a new pack of underwear, a few pairs of jeans, 2 sweats, a hoodie, a pair of pajamas, shoes, a small first aid kit, and a couple of miscellaneous things. You’d also packed a suit, just in case.
“What about shampoo? A toothbrush?” It was your mother who was worried this time.
“I’ll buy them new when I get there,” you assured, placing your carry-on bag next to the open duffle.
“Oh, I’m going to miss you,” your mother gushed, yanking you into a bone-crushing hug. You patted the teary-eyed woman’s back, uncomfortable with the sudden affection.
“It’ll be fine,” you muttered, pulling away.
“And don’t cheat your diet again! You don’t want to gain weight and start menstruating again,” she reminded.
“I know.”
“And don’t change in any locker rooms!” Your father pitched in. As if you could forget.
You nodded, quietly letting them get out all their worries and reminders while zipping up your duffle. You were anxious to get to the airport.
“I know you hate it, love, but it’s for your own good. Girls don’t get treated in society the same way boys do, we just want what’s best for you,” Your mother sympathized as she took in your pained expression, but you’d heard this lecture more times than you could count.
You sighed, giving your mother a smile, “I know, mom. You worry too much, I’ll be fine.”
“Oh, we just love you so much!” She gushed, bringing your father and you in for a group hug.
“I love you too. The taxi will be here soon though, I need to get downstairs,” You reminded, stepping out of reach.
“Come on, honey, we don’t want to make him late,” Your father chided, guiding your mother out of your room.
Him. You hated the word.
Picking up your bags, you heaved them out of your room and to the front door. It was perfect timing too, the taxi had just pulled up.
“I love you! Be safe! Make smart choices!” Your mother called as you shuffled out the front door.
You too. You thought back, giving the taxi man a smile as he got out of the car to open the trunk.
“Thanks,” you breathed out as he lifted your bags into the trunk. He nodded in return.
Slipping into the back seat, you sent your parents one last wave as the taxi pulled away.
You were staring out the window, lost in thought when the driver said something, pulling you back to reality.
“I’m sorry?”
“Off to college?” he repeated.
“Oh, yes,” the conversation fizzled out there.
The rest of the drive was exactly how you liked it—quiet and uneventful. You were able to zone out with your headphones, daydreaming as you stared out the window. The time danced by with the notes of the music, making the ride seem much faster than it was.
“Here you are, young man,” the driver grinned, removing your bags and setting them before you on the sidewalk.
You nodded and gave a cursory smile in appreciation to the man, handing him the money you owed for the ride.
“Have a safe flight!” He called, getting back into the car and pulling out into the hectic traffic of the airport drop-off.
You nodded to yourself, an action meant to help build your confidence for the upcoming events.
With your ticket in hand, you entered the large building, getting in line to check your bags. There was a group of women on the other side of the rope guidelines, giving you flirtatious glances and your skin instantly crawled. You wanted to shrink into yourself and disappear.
Avoiding eye contact, you noticed a service dog walking by. Perking up slightly, you admired the dedication the animal had to its job of helping his disabled owner.
You had always defaulted to animals, feeling calmer around them. Maybe it was because they didn’t care, maybe it was because they didn’t talk, you didn’t really know. But you loved them.
Not wanting to be rude by staring, you turned away, startling yourself as you realized you’d turned back towards the women.
They were cooing at you.
Just leave me alone. You thought bitterly, wiping your clammy hands onto your loose jeans and taking a shaky breath.
You didn’t understand what about you was so attractive to other women. You weren’t tall, maybe 5’7, and your frame was thin and scrawny, not much muscle on you at all. Your shaggy hair was always a mess and you had no style or ‘swagger’ whatsoever. It just didn’t make sense to you why so many females tried to flirt.
You turned your attention to the ticket in your hand, your name in bold letters at the top; Elliot Wiley.
You frowned, you’d always hated your name.
Your body language only got stiffer and stiffer as the line moved on until you eventually checked your bags, got through security, and boarded the plane.
Your seat number was C-16, right between a mother and her infant and a tired businessman. You hoped the flight wouldn’t be like the movies where he fell asleep on your shoulder and the baby screamed nonstop.
The mother gave you a friendly, if not somewhat awkward smile as you squeezed past her and you tried not to cringe away when your legs brushed. Unfortunately, the plane you were in was one of those planes that stuffed as many passengers as possible in the cabin, leaving ridiculously small seats that made it nearly impossible to avoid touching your neighbor.
You sat down and put your belt on, picking nervously at the dirt under your nails, impatient for the plane to take off.
“Nervous flyer?” You flinched back when the woman next to you murmured in your ear.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you. I’m Delilah, this is Elle” the woman smiled apologetically, motioning to the small creature asleep in her arms.
You nodded in forgiveness, your voice quiet and timid as usual as you returned the introduction, “Elliot.”
“Is this your first time flying?” The woman’s voice was still calm, patient.
You hesitated before nodding. She smiled reassuringly.
“I was terrified the first time I flew, but it’s really not as scary as you think. After a while, you forget you’re even in the air.”
Right. you’ll just conveniently forget you’re thousands of feet off the ground. You resisted the urge to roll your eyes.
“Thanks,” you muttered anyways, turning away.
Come to find, the woman was right. After the initial take-off and the occasional turbulence, the flight wasn’t bad. It didn’t feel like you were hurtling through the air at alarming speeds, instead, the world floated by almost peacefully outside the window. You couldn’t see much over the businessman’s shoulder, but whenever they passed a mountain, it was a unique experience to observe something you’d seen a thousand times, but at a completely different angle.
The landing of the plane was by far the most nerve-wracking part of the entire flight. Getting so close to the ground, seeing no runway, no runway, no runway, and suddenly—BAM! You hit the runway. The ‘wrrr’ of the engines working overtime, the terrifying hum of flaps fighting the air. It had your heart beating erratically in fear.
“Thank you for flying with us, we hope you had a good flight!” a flight attendant bid adieu as you and the rest of the passengers filed off the plane. The second you stepped out off the plane and into the tunnel, it suddenly felt like gravity was pulling at you differently. You’d never appreciated solid ground quite so much.
The trip to baggage claim was longer than you’d expected, giving the fear that your bag might get stolen plenty of time to arise in your chest.
Relief flooded you when you saw bags still getting spit out and glee filled you when your light brown leather duffle came toppling down onto the slowly circulating belt.
Snatching it up quickly, not wanting to lose sight of it, you headed out of the airport. You were supposed to take a bus to the city the college was located, but the papers were in your smaller carry on bag.
Setting your things down beside you, you shuffled through the bag, pulling out the envelope you’d stuffed all your necessary documents in.
Reading the name off the printed receipt, you looked around for the bus stop, pleased to find that it wasn’t a very far walk.
By the time you reached your dorm room, the sun had long since passed, leaving you worried that your roommate might’ve already checked in and you were in danger of waking them up.
Opening the plain wooden door as quietly as you could, you popped your head in, looking around. It looked like a basic room—two twin beds across from each other, a desk and chair between them, and a chest at the base of each bed. On the right wall, there was another door, leading to what you assumed was the shared bathroom.
Your heart beat faster when you took in the sleeping figure spread out on the left bed. Tip-toeing in as quietly as possible, you gently placed your bags beside the other bed and sat on the mattress. Thankfully, the bed wasn’t loud, so there was no risk of waking your roommate that way.
You tapped your fingers against your knees anxiously. You hadn’t planned on getting in so late and now it was too late to pick up a new pillow and bedding. Letting out a small sigh, you grabbed your navy blue pajama bottoms and a white t-shirt, then as quietly as possible, you slipped into the bathroom to change.
Looking at yourself in the mirror one last time before you slipped back into the room, you frowned at your shaggy locks. It fell just passed your jaw in a very messy fashion and it was even longer in the back, reaching the base of your neck.
I really do need a haircut. You thought bitterly.
Shuffling back into the room and climbing onto the bare mattress, you curled into yourself and let your eyes slide shut.
Please let me know your thoughts! I love to hear what you guys think xoxo
Warnings:Panic attack and floofy fluff. Yoongi is a babe in this one. Also so very very loosely edited, heh. I’m sorry.
——————–
“Would you run away with me?”
…..
“Tasia!” Jungkook exclaimed frantically.
“Jungkook? What’s wrong?” At my serious tone, the three men with me instantly turned their attention my way.
“Put it on speaker.” Hoseok demanded and I did as told.
“-what happened! I just-I left to use the bathroom for like 2 seconds! That’s it!” He trailed off, Korean tumbling out of his mouth in what I assumed were panicked curses.
“Hey, it’s okay, just tell me what happened. You’re okay,” I consoled, doing my best to bring his attention back to me.
“I won’t be after I tell you what happened” he mumbled.
“What the hell did you do, Kook?” I sighed, exasperated.
“I maybe, sorta, kinda…lit…your kitchen on fire?”
“You did what?!”
“It was an accident!” He exclaimed and I could hear Jimin and Hoseok snickering behind me.
“Shut the fuck up!” I snapped at them causing them to flinch back and stop laughing.
Turning back to my phone I asked, “are you fucking with me right now?”
He let out a whimper, “no.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose, trying to reign in my anger. “Okay, so, how did you manage…that?” My breathing was shallow from the effort I was putting in to keep my patience.
“I was making food and I didn’t see the kitchen towel by the stove and I just left for a second to use the bathroom and when I came back….there were a lot of flames”
I hung up the phone, rushing over to the curb and crouching into a ball, trying to battle back the panic attack that threatened to overtake me. I was going to be evicted, I was going to have to pay for repairs, I didn’t have a place to stay.
I flinched when someone gently placed a hand on my shoulder. “Don’t touch me.”
“Maybe it’s not that bad,” Jimin murmured, crouching beside me.
I could feel the tears welling but I nodded nonetheless. We stayed crouched there for a while, Jimin affectionately brushing my hair back behind my ear and rubbing my back.
“Come on, let’ go” he encouraged a minute or two later, ushering me to stand back up. “Hoseok, take-” Jimin hesitated, not remembering Beatrice’s name, “Tasia’s friend back, we’re gonna get a cab.”
I didn’t even argue, too far gone in self-pity.
***
When the cab pulled up outside the apartment building, I saw the hoard of police and firemen. The threat of a panic attack crept up again, but Jimin must have been paying attention because he was quick to wrap his arms around me. I couldn’t fathom why I felt so comforted when not even a half hour ago I wanted the ground to swallow me whole every time he so much as glanced my way.
“Tasia!” I was tackled the second I stepped out of the cab.
“Get off.” I wasn’t stable enough to put any emotion into my voice.
Jungkook flinched back, likely not expecting it.
“Tasia?” He murmured cupping my cheeks but I shrugged him off, I was afraid that if I looked at him I would say something I would later regret.
I stalked into my apartment, brushing past the firemen and police officers, my chest tightening uncomfortably the second I laid eyes on my roastedkitchen.
“Excuse me, Miss Lloyd?” I turned at the sound of my name, coming face to face with my landlord.
It felt like the world was closing in on me, my chest getting tighter as I fought to breathe. I stumbled round the side of the building, hoping no one had followed me, slumping against the brick wall and sliding down til my ass roughly landed on the cement.
***
I darted out of my apartment a few hours later and hurled myself down the steps. I couldn’t stop the flow of tears any longer. Everything was too much, it was all too much. Too many people, too many problems, too many emotions—I couldn’t handle it. The officials had all left but the seven men now in my life were more than I could handle in that moment.
Breach of contract. Evicted. The words repeated over and over til my head was swimming.
I wasn’t sure how much time had passed before I finally calmed down, but when I did, I took notice of the figure standing beside my slumped form.
His dark hair was almost completely covering his eyes and he had a black mask covering the rest of his face, but his silhouette was unmistakable.
“Yoongi?” I asked. The only response I got was an almost imperceptible turn of his head as his one visible eye met mine. “Do you want to get out of here?” I held my hand up for him to take, hoping that he would.
His gaze flickered down to my hand. There was a beat of silence before he cautiously pulled his hand from his jean pocket and gripped mine. He pulled me, with more strength than I thought he had, up from the ground. Not prepared, I stumbled forward into his chest.
“Was that payback?” I snickered into his chest. I wasn’t sure what it was, but something about him in that moment made me feel safe. I knew I wasn’t being rational and the last thing I should be doing right now is running away, but I didn’t want to stay. I didn’t want to deal with my anger towards Jungkook or my inevitable homelessness. I wanted to run.
And so we did. Still hand in hand, we took off running. I don’t think either of us had a destination in mind, our only goal was to get away. We ran like our asses were on fire down the sidewalk, taking a chance and darting across the too-busy-to-be-jaywalking street. We kept running till we could no longer see the dreaded apartment building.
Jogging to a stop, we were both panting and clutching our sides, laughter bubbling up inside me. Looking at Yoongi I noticed that somewhere along the way he’d removed his mask and for a moment I was struck dumb by his beauty. He wasn’t quite laughing, but there was a grin on his lips that I’d never seen before. Slowly, we both sobered up as we stared, studying each other.
“Come on,” I nudged after a moment, a taxi pulling up to the curb behind him catching my attention. It still didn’t feel like we were far enough away if one of the boys decided to come looking for us.
Yoongi helped the elderly woman get out and I took the opportunity to slip in. I waited for Yoongi to join before I told the driver to do just that. Drive.
It was about thirty minutes of driving around and we eventually got to the more populated part of the city with lots of little boutiques and tourist attractions.
“Here’s fine!” I called, startling the driver a little I think. Yoongi had his mask up again, but I think I saw his cheeks lift into a smile and I grinned back at him.
Where had the fear I’d felt for him gone? Where was the anxiety I felt around any of them at any given time? Where was the stress from my home situation? I wasn’t sure but right then I wasn’t going to worry about it.
Yoongi slipped the driver some cash and we both tumbled out of the vehicle, small giggles leaving my lips.
People were hustling and bustling down the streets, the tourists easy to pick out. Not wanting to lose Yoongi in the crowd, I laced my fingers with his.
Spotting what had prompted me to tell the driver to stop, I tugged gently on Yoongi’s hand and began making my way to the entrance. It was a small bar that I’d never been to but had always wanted to try.
The little bell chimed above the door the moment we stepped in and Yoongi pulled his mask down to rest under his chin, looking around. The place wasn’t anything special or fancy, but it looked clean.
Leading him to the stools, I sat down. “Let’s drink.”
…..
The first thing that caught my attention as I woke up was the horrendous taste in my mouth, my tongue feeling like it’d been glued to the roof of it. I had a few blissful seconds of this before the headache registered, pulling a pained moan from my lips. I rolled over, deeper into the covers while clutching my skull.
I’m never drinking again. I thought.
The last thing I remembered was bar hopping with Yoongi and I prayed that was who I had just heard walk into the room.
My breath hitched when they clumsily plopped onto the bed, rolled closer and threw an arm around my waist — pulling me closer. I risked a glance down and closed my eyes in relief when I recognized the ring and bracelets on the hand.
“You scared the shit out of me,” I sighed, not willing to speak any louder. Yoongi just hummed halfheartedly in return, the sound muffled by the pillow his face was pressed into.
“Where are we?” I grimaced once again at the taste in my mouth, somewhat regretting opening it.
He let out an annoyed sigh, took his arm off me and shifted to lay on his back.
“A hotel room.” He deadpanned.
“Did…did we do something?” I sat up, biting my lip nervously not missing the opportunity to appreciate his beauty. His eyes were closed, his hair messy and brushed back.
He cracked one eye open, unexpectedly sitting up too, the proximity making our noses brush. “Why? Do you want something to have happened?” There was a mischievous glint in his eye, his minty fresh breath fanning across my lips.
I pulled back, not wanting him to smell my breath.
“I have to use the bathroom!” I blurted, stumbling out of the bed. I had moved too fast because now the pressure in my brain made me feel like it was going to pop. I took a second to wait for the pain to ebb away.
“You good, jagi?” He asked with humor clear in his tone of voice.
“Yeah, I’m okay,” I paused, furrowing my brows and looking back at him, “what did you just call me?” I’d heard Jungkook call me that a few times before and he’d always made it seem like it was a slip of the tongue, but the way Yoongi was smirking at me, I knew he’d said it intentionally.
“Jagiya.” He said, slow and mocking.
I rolled my eyes, “yes, and what does that mean?”
“It means your breath stinks. Go brush your teeth, I’ll order room service.” He huffed, rolling off the bed and leaving the room.
My eyes narrowed in annoyance, glaring at the door he’d just exited out of before huffing and stalking off to the bathroom.
Sitting on the marble countertop was an unopened toothbrush, some toothpaste placed next to a second, used toothbrush. Somewhere in the back of my mind I wondered when he got toothbrushes and toothpaste, but I was more concerned with my missing memories of last night to give it much attention.
With my mouth full of sudsy paste, Yoongi walks in.
“What do you want?” He asked in such a way, I was confused. He was the one that walked in, why was he asking me what I wanted?
Then I realized he meant for breakfast. Or lunch. I wasn’t sure what time it was.
I spit out what was in my mouth, my heart skipping a beat when I felt him carefully tuck some stray hair back behind my ear before I accidentally spit on it.
“Thanks,” I smiled shyly after I’d rinsed out my mouth.
He nodded in dismissal, “so?”
“Oh, um, anything is fine.” I finally answered the question he’d come in for.
He frowned but didn’t argue, turning to leave. He wasn’t a really expressive person, but something told me that he hadn’t been asking me what I wanted to be polite—he actually wanted me to pick something.
“Eggs and bacon!” I called out to his departing figure. He looked back at me and nodded.
I nodded as well, mentally congratulating myself as I turned to face myself in the mirror. I cringed at my reflection. My hair was an actual rats nest and my complexion looked like I had just risen from the dead. I felt a little like it too.
Making my way barefoot out of the room, I took in my surroundings. It was clear we were in a hotel suite and my stomach dropped at the thought that Yoongi had paid for this just because I didn’t want to go back home.
How much did a room like this even cost? I wondered fleetingly.
I followed the sound of Yoongi’s low voice, finding him on a couch with a phone the hotel provided pressed to his ear. He hung up when he saw me come round to the front of the couch.
“They said it will be 15 minutes. How’s the head?” He was mocking again, probably more than amused by how much alcohol I must have consumed the night before.
“It’s fine.” I snapped, trying to hide my embarrassment, “What time is it? And where are my shoes?”
He vaguely motioned to the side of the couch, his eyes not leaving me as I stalked around to find them lined up beside his own with my socks neatly tucked inside.
“Are you usually this grumpy in the morning, or is it just the hangover?” I looked up in time to see him casually brushing his hair out of his eyes and the arrogance in that simple action had annoyance flaring up inside me.
“Are you flirting or trying to start a fight right now?” I called him out, hoping for some kind of reaction, be it irritation or, better yet, embarrassment but he just shrugged noncommittal.
Huffing, I plopped down onto the couch, as far from him as possible. I didn’t really have a right to be annoyed with him, he’d pretty much taken care of me all night but I just couldn’t help but feel annoyed. A lot of it probably stemmed from my own embarrassment and I begrudgingly had to be thankful that he seemed to realize this as well.
We sat there in silence until room service came, him scrolling through something on his phone and me staring absently out the window.
When the table of food was wheeled in and Yoongi took in upon himself to uncover everything, I saw that he’d ordered us the same thing. When I looked at him in question, he just shrugged. And then I understood, it wasn’t that he hadn’t wanted to decide forme, he hadn’t wanted to decide at all.
Sitting down beside him on the couch in front of the trolley, I picked up the utensils neatly wrapped in cloth and pulled a plate closer to me. “Do you want my bacon?” I offered.
He shook his head, “you eat.”
I winced, “I-I don’t actually like bacon…” I trailed off, guilty.
He squinted at me for a moment, probably trying to decide if I was mentally challenged or something. I avoided his stare, nibbling on one of the apple slices that were available.
***
I let out a loud sigh as Yoongi’s phone made another *ding*. It was the sixth notification and he hadn’t shown any sign of getting up and checking who was trying to contact him.
“It’s Jungkook. He’s worried about you.” He announced, at least acknowledging my annoyance.
Guilt gripped my heart. I’d reacted too dramatically yesterday and now that I’d calmed down and even blown off some steam, I was ready to forgive him. I knew it had been a mistake.
I slouched down a little, my body rejecting my next words, “I guess we should head back and join reality again, huh?”
He studied me for a moment, “I’m not in a hurry.”
“I think he’s been stewing in guilt long enough,” I sighed. He hesitated, surprising me, before nodding. He didn’t seem to necessarily disagree with my statement, instead he seemed to be wondering if I truly believed my statement. I did.
***
“Tasia? Tasia!” Jungkook sprung up from his seat on my couch and rushed over. “I’m so sorry, okay? Please forgive me”
“Of course I forgive you, I’m a simp,” I sighed, knowing it was true.
Jungkook sagged in relief and wrapped his arms around me, pulling a wheezed huff out of me at the tightness of his hold. I had been holding Yoongi’s hand because I hadn’t admittedly been ready to face everyone alone and despite Yoongi being a little unapproachable, the events the evening before had made us much closer. Even if neither of us would admit it.
“You’re gonna break me,” I breathed out, doing my best to pull away. He let me go.
“Hobi-hyung is talking to the landlord right now, I promise we’ll do our best to make sure you still have a place to stay. I’m really sorry,” his big doe eyes stared into me and I held back the urge to pull him back into a hug.
Hobi-hyung? We? I’d heard him call Hoseok that before, so I knew that was who he was referring to, but what I couldn’t understand was what any of the others had to do with the situation.
“He’s talking to the landlord?” I echoed. Jungkook nodded but didn’t elaborate and frankly I was a little too scared to ask.
“Um, alright,” I wasn’t really sure what to say anymore so I just moved towards the couch, bringing Yoongi with me.
He hadn’t said anything the whole time but he hadn’t pulled away either so I decided to keep him as close as possible for as long as he’d let me. At this point, his warm hand in mine was the only thing grounding me and keeping me from getting lost in the panic. Something told me he knew it too.
Pausing, you realized there was only one open seat on the couch. Yoongi obviously had noticed long before me, though, because he didn’t even hesitate letting go of my hand and taking a seat on the arm rest next to the open seat. He didn’t motion for me to sit, or even really give me any indication that his actions had been for me…but it was pretty obvious he’d done it for me.
Glancing about the room, Jungkook was the only one paying attention to us. Taehyung looked exhausted, staring blankly at the wall, Jimin was resting heavily into him focusing on whatever Jin was telling him in Korean, and Namjoon had his nose in a book, looking completely oblivious of his surroundings. My face flushed and I ducked my head, taking a seat beside Yoongi. My shoulder pressed against his side as I did my best not to disturb Taeyung who was sat next to me on the cushion. I was a little surprised when, not looking up from his phone, Yoongi dropped his hand down onto my lap and laced our fingers.
I couldn’t help but look at Jungkook, wondering what the man I was in love with thought about Yoongi’s and I’s new relationship. I couldn’t help the feeling of pain that shot through my heart when he stared fondly at our hands.
Please let me know your thoughts! I love to hear what you guys think! :))
Since I hadn’t really planned to go anywhere, it didn’t take me very long to get ready at all. I had let my hair air dry, I had no intention of putting on makeup and my clothes consisted of black leggings and an oversized white t-shirt. These were all decisions I regretted deeply the moment I told Namjoon I was ready and he’d replied with, “let’s go to the library”
Public? He wanted to go out in public? Normally I wouldn’t have given it a second thought, because really, who dresses up to study? But the fact that I was going to be accompanied by an unrealistically attractive man had me second guessing my life choices that morning.
The memory of what those girls thought of me when I was seen with them flashed through my mind and I grimaced. I didn’t need a rerun of yesterday.
“You sure you don’t want to just stay here?” I asked, hoping he would see the desperation in my eyes and have pity.
“No, we should go somewhere the others won’t feel tempted to follow and interrupt” I slouched at his words.
“Kay…” I sniffled, staring longingly at my kitchen table. He rolled his eyes at my antics, grabbed my bag and led the way out of my home.
In the time it’d taken for me to eat breakfast, he had showered, styled his hair and transformed into some kind of wandering, homeless, monk. Even stranger was how well he was pulling it off.
I’d successfully dodged Jimin thus far, although I had a feeling he wasn’t trying all that hard to interact with me either. He, Seokjin, and Hoseok had all gone back to Jungkook’s before Jungkook and I had even finished our conversation. And although I hadn’t checked, I suspected that along with Jungkook, Taehyung and Yoongi were asleep.
Under any other circumstances, I would never have left strange men alone in my home, but with Jungkook being there and them being the people he trusted most…I felt that it was somewhat safe to leave them unattended for a while. That saying, I was also piss poor so it wasn’t like I owned anything these aristocrats would want.
“Your school has a library, yes?” Namjoon broke through my thoughts as we trotted down the stairs to the ground floor.
Now it was my turn to roll my eyes, huffing, “of course”
If I had been looking I would’ve seen the smirk on his face.
We were about halfway to my school when I began to have that itching feeling that I had forgotten something.
Patting my legging pockets as subtly as possible, I mentally did a checklist.
Phone? Check. Wallet…my wallet! My bag!
“Oh no!” I gasped.
Namjoon jumped a little at my outburst, shooting me an annoyed but confused glare.
“My bag! It’s—oh.” I drooped as he held up my bag that he’d been carrying. A fierce blush shaded my cheeks.
I stayed quiet the rest of the way there, more or less shrugging off all his attempts to start a conversation. The building embarrassment from the growing list of stupid mistakes I kept making around them had my mind otherwise preoccupied.
When we got to the library, the calm, focused atmosphere rapidly relieved me of my anxiety. We settled at a table by the windows and it was when he sat next to me and leaned in to read what I was setting out before us, I realized just how good he smelled.
I inwardly groaned. How was I supposed to not think of this man as more than Jungkook’s best friend when he 1. Looked like a greek god 2. Smelled devine, and 3. Had the biggest brain of anyone I’d ever met.
Still, I sent him a shy smile in hopes of hiding my internal battle.
The day carried on quickly and I was astonished by how much more things made sense when he explained them. He was also unexpectedly patient, so at the times my brain just wouldn’t comprehend what he was trying to explain, he would calmly figure out new ways to explain instead of getting annoyed. I would’ve gotten annoyed with me ten times over if I had been in his place.
“Want to take a break?” He asked after my third brain fart in a row.
I bit my lip, unsure. “Can we?”
He was already sacrificing so much of his time to help me study, but I really needed to be away from the books for a while.
“Yeah, of course. You pack up, I’ll get a ride and then we’ll go eat” he stated, grabbing his phone off the table and stepping away.
I wasn’t exactly sure what he had in mind. My thoughts were that we were just going to go to the food court, but it was clear he had different expectations. Whatever, he’d been kind enough to help me this much, I wasn’t going to complain over where he wanted to eat. So I did as told and packed up my bag.
It wasn’t long before he returned.
“He said he’d pick us up,” he announced, again coming to sit next to me.
“Who?”
“Hoseok,” he elaborated, not looking up from his phone. He was sitting close enough and in such a way that I could easily see what was on the screen, but out of respect and slight disinterest, I turned my attention elsewhere.
“Ah”
A few minutes of silence passed and my attention had returned to his phone. I hadn’t even noticed that I was leaning into him or that he had angled his phone so I had a batter view until we were approached.
“Tasia!” I jerked back at the sound of my name, looking around to find who had called it. I instantly recognized the woman, a friendly acquaintance I knew from highschool.
“Bea! Hey!” I greeted, returning the somewhat awkward hug she pulled me into with a couple pats on the back.
Pulling back, she helped herself to the seat across from me and her gaze understandably wandered over to the man sitting beside me, who was much more interested in his phone than her. He’d actually slouched back into his chair, looking the most unapproachable I’d seen him.
That didn’t deter her. “Who’s this?” she wiggled her eyebrows at me and I had to stop myself from rolling my eyes. The woman was acting like we were in grade school and I was sitting next to my crush.
She wasn’t too far off on the “crush” part though.
“This is my friend Namjoon,” at the sound of his name, his eyes trailed up to meet mine, “Namjoon, this is Beatrice”
For the first time, Namjoon looked at her. He didn’t say anything, just stared. It was like he was waiting for her to do something worthwhile to pay him back for the attention he was giving her. I squirmed in my seat. Why was he being so rude?
“I didn’t know you went here!” I did, I’d seen her in the hall once before, but for the sake of breaking the ice, I pretended I didn’t. “What are you studying?”
She seemed grateful for the escape, “I’m an art major! What’s your major?”
“I’m a psychology major”
“Oh, so you’re learning to read minds?” I stared at her for a second, deciding whether or not she was being serious.
Taking the safe bet, I just laughed and shook my head.
“Nothing that cool. Though if they ever give telepathy classes, I’ll be the first in line” I laughed, the strained interaction already taking its toll on my energy reserves.
“So what exactly is-” she was cut off by Namjoon’s voice.
“Yeah?” I turned to see his phone pressed to his ear.
“In the library…Okay…Yeah” with that he hung up, shoving his phone into his pocket.
Returning my attention to Beatrice, I smiled apologetically.
“Hoseok is outside,” Namjoon announced, flicking at my ponytail to get my attention.
“Oh, okay”
“I’ll walk you guys out! I need to get some food anyways, I’m starving” Beatrice groaned, rubbing her belly.
A part of me admired her confidence. Even after being stared down, she was still making the effort to interact with us.
On a whim, I offered, “We’re headed out to eat right now too, wanna come?”
She lit up at my offer, “Yeah! Where are we going?”
“Um…” I looked at Namjoon for guidance, but he ignored me, grabbed my bag and walked away.
“Oh! Guess we’re going then!” She laughed and we both walked quickly to catch up with him.
I wanted to call him out, tell him that his legs were almost twice as long as ours, but I knew he wouldn’t appreciate being told off in public. I didn’t even know him well enough to tell him off in private.
At the pace he was walking, we got to the front parking lot in record time.
Leaning against the hood of a grey Charger was Hoseok and the very last person I wanted to see—Jimin.
Out of reflex, I grabbed the back of Namjoon’s navy kimono. He looked back at me curiously, “what?”
“Uh, n-nothing” I shook my head, letting him go.
Jimin spotted us first, coming to meet us halfway. In a very lazy fashion, he bumped into Namjoon in what vaguely resembled a hug.
“Anastasia” Hoseok singsonged in a way that felt somewhat mocking, “you brought a friend”
“I-uh-yeah. This is my friend Beatrice” I introduced, stiffening when Hoseok threw his arm around my shoulders the same way he had the night before. Goosebumps travelled across my skin as I recalled his hot breath fanning across my neck.
“Hello, Beatrice” I couldn’t see his face, but from the saccharine tone he used, I knew he was smirking at her.
She wasn’t immune to his charms and her ears instantly became red hot. “Hello!” she squeaked.
“Will you be joining us?” Now it was Jimin, who’d rested his hand on Hoseok’s shoulder and his chin on top of it. Again, I couldn’t see his face, but by the way Beatrice was fidgeting and blushing, I knew she was getting his bedroom eyes full force.
“I mean, Tasia?” She looked at me desperately, as if I was any less flustered than she was.
“Anastasia invited her” Namjoon didn’t even try to hide his displeasure.
“How exciting” Hoseok didn’t exactly sound as thrilled by the news as his words might lead you to believe, but he didn’t lose his friendly tone.
“Let’s go eat!” I blurted, lurching away from Hoseok and grabbing Beatrice by the wrist, marching off towards the car.
I knew there were only five seats in the car, but it wasn’t until I actually climbed in and scooched to the middle seat that I understood just how tight a fit it was going to be. Beatrice was on the curvier side, which just meant that she took up as much space as the boys did, leaving a little more than a foot of room in the middle for me to sit.
And of course, of course Jimin was the one that climbed in next to me. He didn’t look angry, but being pressed flush against me probably wasn’t what he wanted either.
Beatrice struggling to buckle in her seatbelt caught my attention, notifying me that I was half on it.
“Oh, sorry” I murmured and shuffled over, consequently bumping into Jimin. I tried not to react and just wait patiently for her to finish before scooting back because I was too scared to see his reaction.
Awkwardly, I twisted back to reach for my own seatbelt, freezing when a hand came to rest over mine.
“Lemme help” he murmured and I probably wouldn’t have heard him if he wasn’t leaning in so close.
“Okay!” I squeaked, wrenching my hand back. He didn’t exactly laugh at me, but the huff of air he let out and the smug grin on his lips told me that he was in fact finding amusement in my embarrassment.
The back of his hand glided across my abdomen as he pulled the seatbelt out and around. I bit my lip and averted my eyes to the roof of the car. Was this man bipolar? Suddenly Taehyung’s face popped up in my brain and I grimaced. Those two were eerily similar.
I glanced over to Beatrice, wondering what she thought of the whole situation, looking for something that told me I wasn’t going crazy, but she wasn’t paying attention. Whoever was outside the window (I couldn’t see from where I sat) had all of her focus.
Namjoon opening the front passenger door and sliding in successfully brought my attention away from Jimin strapping me in, though it was hard to ignore our shoulders bumping as he shifted to get better access to the buckle.
I could hear Hoseok standing outside Namjoon’s open door, the two discussing something in Korean and if I had to guess, I’d say it was lunch plans. I almost laughed when in the middle of Hoseok’s sentence, Namjoon pulled out his phone and started typing. I hoped Beatrice saw it, though unlikely as he was directly in front of her, so maybe she wouldn’t feel bad that he was ignoring her earlier.
“Where are we going?” I spoke up, relaxing slightly when Jimin leaned into the window and away from me, closing his eyes.
Hoseok ducked down so I could see his face and gave me a smile, “Namjoon is getting the directions”
I nodded and smiled back. It was hard not to get caught up in him, his smile was so contagious and…happy.
When he moved away and I saw his figure walk around the hood of the car, Beatrice whispered in my ear.
“I can’t decide if he’s hot or cute” I couldn’t help the giggle that bubbled up because she had spoken my thoughts.
Still laughing, I nodded my agreement.
The drive was pretty funny, with Namjoon not paying as close attention to the directions as he should have been, leading to us making more than one U-turn. Throughout, I tried my very hardest not to tip into anyone’s personal space every time we turned, knowing neither person well enough to be that close. After about half an hour of driving, Hoseok pulled into an open space on the street, a little ways down from where I knew there was an upscale restaurant.
I was nervous because I was a broke college student but I had a feeling that Beatrice was probably feeling the same way so at least I wasn’t alone. Although I was curious, didn’t you need a reservation to eat there? There was no way they got one on such short notice on a busy Saturday.
I let out a hiss of pain when I leaned in to unbuckle myself, not realizing Jimin had done the same leading to us bumping heads.
“Sorry,” I winced, rubbing my head.
“It’s okay,” he mumbled, putting a ring clad hand to his own head.
Biting my lip anxiously, I ungracefully shuffled out of the car after Beatrice, almost tripping on the curb.
The five of us gathered, making our way towards the restaurant’s front doors. There was a lot of hustle and bustle on the streets, people enjoying their Saturday to the fullest and although I probably shouldn’t have even been surprised at this point, my eyes still went wide when Hoseok put a protective arm around my shoulders, pulling me close.
I chewed on the inside of my cheek as we entered the restaurant, not sure how it would go. I’d never been inside before, let alone had a meal here, but still I expected the luxury and comfort that was presented before us. The moment you stepped into the well lit entrance there was beautiful gold latticing on the walls and a warm brown podium about ten feet deep into the room. I immediately felt sorely underdressed in my leggings and t-shirt.
Namjoon took the lead, strolling up to the podium where an employee stood, ready to check customers in.
The man behind the podium had short, quaffed bleach-blonde hair that clashed with the elegant black uniform he wore, his nametag reading Zach. He looked Namjoon up and down, no doubt judging his hobo-chic, but the suspicion and judgment in his eyes left quickly when he took in Jimin and Hoseok who were clearly wearing designer clothing and expensive jewelry—Hoseok’s big gold watch was hard to miss. He barely spared Beatrice and I a glance before he refocused on Namjoon.
“Hello! Do you have a reservation?” Zach’s tone was considerably brighter than I thought it would be.
I winced at the question, I was right. You needed a reservation to get in.
“Hoseok Jung” Namjoon’s voice commanded. My eyebrows shot up and I pulled away to look at Hoseok.
“I know people,” He murmured with a smirk, answering my questioning gaze.
My curiosity wasn’t exactly sated, but I would wait til we were at least seated before I started asking more questions.
Zach looked more shocked than I did at the sound of Hoseok’s name and I could see the panic in his eyes as he sputtered a little bit with his response, “You’re-of course! Your table is right over here” He bowed, ushering us around the beautiful island wall leading to the rest of the restaurant.
I don’t know why I was expecting a low lit, sultry vibe but that was not what greeted us. Instead, it was a bright, spacious room filled with soft chatter and laughter. There were modern chandeliers hanging over the bigger tables and the decor about the room was impeccable. It felt strangely welcoming.
Zach led our small group to one of the tables in the center. It was a bigger table that could sit twice as many people than we had but I wasn’t about to argue.
Hoseok absentmindedly pulled out my chair before taking the seat next to me and engaging Namjoon in conversation, both of them ignoring Zach completely. Beside me, on my other side, I noticed Jimin pull Beatrice’s seat out for her too and watched as she flushed pink. Jimin gave her a knowing smirk and went to go sit beside Namjoon who was across from us.
We were all sat fairly centered at the table, empty seats on both sides of us and for some reason that made the table seem not as big as it had before.
“Your waiter will be right with you,” Zach notified, looking a little miffed but bowed in departure nonetheless.
I made sure to give him a kind smile and said “Thanks, Zach.” He smiled back and left.
At my words, both Namjoon and Hoseok cut off whatever they were saying and looked at me.
My eyes widened. What?
“You look good today” Hoseok commented after a moment and I scoffed. He and I both knew I looked terrible. Although when he shot me a confused stare, I began to question his sanity.
Before I could say anything about his questionable sanity, a beautiful woman interrupted us and it took me a second to realize she was our waitress.
“Good afternoon,” she smiled enchantingly, making me feel small and even more out of place in this lavish restaurant. “I’m Terrance, I’ll be your waitress today” the gentle smile never left her face as she carefully passed out the menus.
“Thanks” I murmured, noticing the way Terrance eyed Beatrice. My mouth made a small “o”.
“Of course! May we start you off with something to drink?” she grinned, her eyes continuously flickering back to an oblivious Beatrice as she waited for our responses. I couldn’t help the smirk on my lips as I looked down and fiddled with the utensils that were beautifully wrapped in a cloth napkin.
“Just water” Namjoon answered dismissively, probably more oblivious than even Beatrice.
“Water for me too, what about you Bee?” I prompted. I knew from highschool that Beatrice played both sides.
She looked so flustered when agreeing that just water was fine that I had to reconsider, maybe she wasn’t as clueless as I’d pegged.
Suddenly I got a rush of excitement at the thought of the two but I squashed it down, catching Jimin’s gaze. He was relaxed back into his chair, legs crossed with an arm slung lazily over the back of Namjoon’s chair. He raised an eyebrow at me, a smirk playing on his lips.
My breath hitched at the sight, trying desperately not to get caught up in him. Luckily Hoseok saved me when he lightly nudged my arm with his elbow.
“Hey, I don’t have your number” he announced, as if for some reason that was myfault.
“My number?” I repeated like an idiot.
“Yeah,” he nodded holding up his expensive phone that was displaying his contact list.
“Twenty eight hundred contacts?! Would you be able to find it even if you did?” I guffawed, tearing my eyes away from his screen to look at him.
He just grinned, pressed on the screen a few times and held it back out for me. The recognizable “Create new contact” page was now open.
I bit my lip, contemplating. Did I really want to give my number to him? My nerves were shot enough as it were, more contact with them didn’t really seem like the best idea for my health.
My decision was steadfast in my brain, it really was, but the moment he smiled at me my brain just stopped functioning and I autopiloted my number into his phone.
His smile grew at my actions and I couldn’t even find it in me to regret them.
“So how did you guys all meet?” Beatrice asked suddenly, probably feeling like the odd man out and I suddenly realized I hadn’t introduced anyone after Namjoon.
“Oh! Um, do you remember Jungkook? From highschool?” I asked.
“Of course!” Her eyes lit up, “are you guys still friends? I remember that by graduation you two were basically connected at the hip.”
I laughed, memories sparking in my mind. It was true, we’d both been pretty lost teenagers, resulting in us becoming emotionally dependent on each other. Three, almost four years later, we’d grown up a lot and made our own friends. We didn’t need each other to survive anymore.
“They moved in together” Jimin spoke up with a smugness before I could confirm Jungkook’s and mine’s ongoing friendship status. Beatrice’s eyes grew comically and she whipped her head to look at me for confirmation.
“No! No. We did not” I corrected, holding my hands up as if to stop her thoughts. “And that’s not even the point. Point is, Hoseok, Jimin, and Namjoon all grew up with him” I said, pointing at each man respectively.
“Oh really? What was he like growing up?” she asked what I’d been wanting for a while.
They stopped to think about it for a moment.
“Irreplaceable.” Jimin eventually surmised.
I was about to coo at the statement, but Namjoon interrupted me.
“Woah, hey, careful! What are you trying to do, eyeball it from the empire state building?” We all turned to see what he was talking about and I had to roll my lips together to stop from laughing. A young boy had been pouring water into glasses and Namjoon was right, he was pouring from way too high.
The boy apologized and all was forgiven and forgotten and the afternoon carried on seamlessly after that, conversation coming easy.
Exiting the fancy establishment two hours later, I got a call. Pulling out my phone, I glanced noncommittal at the caller ID but a smile unknowingly stretched across my face at Jungkook’s name.
“Hello?” I answered.
“Tasia!” I sobered up at his frantic tone of voice.
I’d love to hear your feedback! It’s what keeps us authors going :)
Warnings:Violence that you can’t really call violence?
Um, I love you, I’m so sorry it took me so long to get this out I was dealing with some issues. I’m doing a lot better now so I’ll be able to more regularly update! And longer updates! This one is a little shorter but I needed to get something out.
Love you x
——————–
“It passes, but it does not pass away” - F. Scott Fitzgerald
…..
After I had recovered from Taehyung’s disarming good looks, we finished cleaning up the kitchen and surprisingly didn’t wake anyone up, though when I voiced my concern he’d had let me know that they could all sleep through a tornado. I knew Jungkook was like that and if I took a second to think about it, it made sense that the rest of them would be like that too. I remembered a year or two ago, when I was babysitting my cousins, they’d been able to sleep peacefully through their siblings rather enthusiastic reenactment of King Arthur and Merlin. I suppose if I was around people all the time too, I might be able to sleep through my trip to OZ as well.
Now that everything was cleaned up and put away, we stood at the edge of the living room looking over the six sleeping figures. I bit my lip, should we wake them? I wasn’t exactly thrilled about the idea of waking any of them up, but the thought of them spending the night in my home was just as nerve-wracking.
Taehyung must have seen my face because he offered to wake them.
For some reason, one unbeknownst to me, I grabbed his wrist before he could get far. “No, don’t”
He looked back at me questioningly, but I didn’t have an answer for him.
“They look so tired, is it okay to wake them?” I finally whispered out, suddenly feeling the need to be quiet even though we’d been anything but not five minutes prior.
An odd look passed over his face but it was gone before I could place it.
“Where do you all sleep at Jungkook’s, anyway? He only has one guest room” This question had been gnawing at me for a while.
Taehyung didn’t hesitate, “three in Jungkook’s, two in the guest and two on the couch”
“Three in Kook’s?” I couldn’t imagine. He only had a queen bed (he’d wanted to buy a bigger one but it wouldn’t fit in the room), how had they been able to fit three grown men comfortably? Although, looking at them curled awkwardly, in neck cramping positions, maybe comfort wasn’t a necessity for them to sleep.
“Yeah, Jin-hyung, Hoseok-hyung, and Yoongi-hyung. Jimin and I took the guest bed and Namjoon-hyung and Jungkook took the couches”
“Jungkook took the couch?” I was becoming more and more convinced that the Jungkook I knew and the Jungkook they knew were two different people. The Jungkook I knew wouldn’t even share his bed with any of his friends, much less give it up entirely. In fact, if he could avoid it, he wouldn’t have his friends over at his place at all. The Jungkook I knew was territorial and a bit selfish, always wanting to be the best at everything he did. And he was.
I didn’t notice Taehyung nodding, too caught up in my own mind.
“Anastasia?”
“Mm?” I hummed, glancing his way. I kept having to remind myself that he was a con artist and his sweet, innocent smile was nothing but a play to get something out of me. But what, though? The million-dollar question right there.
“Where should I sleep?”
“Huh?” Now he had my full attention. “Oh, um, take advantage of the empty apartment next door and get a good night’s sleep”
He slouched into a pout at my words.
“But it’s lonely, don’t you have a guest room too?” He stared down at me with hopeful eyes.
Oh yeah, I have a guest room.
“Oh right, uh, yeah I guess you can take it? Can’t promise it’s very fresh, I haven’t aired it out in a hot minute” I warned, cringing inwardly.
“That’s okay, I’ll sleep with the window open” He shrugged, sauntering off towards the said room. He’d obviously noticed that Jungkook and I had the same floor layout.
I jumped when suddenly Yoongi got up off the couch and followed after him, making me wonder how long he’d been awake or if he’d ever even been asleep in the first place.
I did one last sweep of the room before I awkwardly made my way to my own, changing into a pair of pajamas. After making a quick trip to the bathroom to wash up, I climbed into bed, my body instantly relaxing. I had a full day of studying with Namjoon tomorrow and it would do me well to get a good, restful sleep or at least the illusion of it.
***
“Turn that shit off” Somone growled in my ear, effectively pulling me from unconsciousness. Patting blindly around my bedside table, I did as told and shut off the blaring alarm coming from my phone.
“Kook, get off” I grunted, slapping Jungkook’s arm impatiently after I’d attempted to roll onto my back but his arm had been too firmly wrapped around my waist to allow such movement.
He groaned and rolled away, immediately falling back to sleep. Briefly, I wondered when he had come to my room because I usually didn’t let him sleep in my bed as it wasn’t good for my heart, but I quickly decided it wasn’t really a pressing question. I couldn’t exactly blame him for choosing my bed over sharing a couch with multiple people, after all.
Rolling my eyes at him, I climbed out of bed and stumbled to my closet, silently picking out a change of clothes. Tip-toeing to my door, I carefully opened it and peeked my head out, taking a second to listen for any sign of life. I grinned, pleased when everyone appeared to still be sleeping.
Jetting to the bathroom as quickly as possible so I wouldn’t be seen in my PJs, I closed and locked the door securely behind me. Wincing, I turned the shower on, praying that the noise wouldn’t disturb anyone before removing my clothes and slipping in.
I was in and out of the shower in record time, speedily drying off and throwing on clothes. Being naked, even with a locked door between us, when there were 7 gorgeous men around made me jittery with nerves.
This time opening the door, I was positive that someone would be awake by now but as I made my way into the living room—everyone was still asleep.
The panic set in instantly. It was one thing to see them sleeping in the middle of the night with Taehyung, but what if my presence woke them and they found me staring at them? What if they thought I was watching them sleep?!
Spinning around, I headed back to my room to wake Jungkook. He’d know how to handle the situation.
“Psst! Kook!” I hissed, shaking his shoulder, “Wake up!”
He groggily opened his eyes, licking his dry lips as his gaze focused on mine above him. His mouth pulled into a smile that made my heart skip.
“Hey, baby” I jerked back at his morning voice, even though I’d heard it a thousand times before.
“Get up, you have to wake everyone” It took everything in me not to stutter when he looked at me like that.
I almost wanted to take my words back when he frowned and pulled away, curling into the blankets.
“You do it,” he grumbled.
“Wha-! Jungkook, I can’t! They’re your friends, not mine!” I insisted, shaking him again.
He barely turned to look back at me. “I don’t wanna. It’s okay to wake them, they won’t mind if you wake them” his words becoming progressively more garbled.
“Jungkook!” I resisted stomping my feet lest I anger the downstairs neighbors, but my clenched fists still tempted me to hit him.
Deciding better than to act on my violent impulses, I stormed out of the room, ending up where I started—in the main room. Taking a deep breath, I eyed the possible candidates. There was absolutely no way I was going to wake up Hoseok or Jimin, Namjoon intimidated me so he was out of the question as well which left…Seokjin.
My thoughts went back to yesterday morning when he’d done his best to make me feel comfortable and welcomed. I wasn’t feeling very enthusiastic about undoubtedly ruining any good feelings he had for me by waking him up, but my only other option was Taehyung and he was with Yoongi who I was still terrified of and if I accidentally woke him up too it would only make everything worse.
Biting my lip, I accepted my fate and carefully stepped over a sleeping Jimin on the floor and crouched in front of Seokjin, not wanting him to find me looming over him when he woke.
Very,very gently I patted his thigh as I couldn’t reach his shoulder from where I was without the risk of losing my balance and tipping into his lap. I softly called his name and at first, there was no response, but after some persistent nudging he finally roused. His awareness seemed to come a lot sooner than Jungkook’s ever did, his eyes blinking open as if he’d only been resting them for a few moments, not the entire night.
However, when they settled on me and he just stared and blinked for a few seconds, I realized that he wasn’t quite as awake as he appeared to be.
“Hi” I whispered with a small wave, still crouched. I didn’t want to stand up quite yet and risk making him more confused than he already was and possibly uncomfortable as well.
“Hi,” he responded, his voice low and raspy as he turned his head to take in Hoseok next to him and Namjoon on the floor. His attention came back my way but didn’t stay long as he focused on Jimin’s figure behind me.
“I was hoping you might help me wake them up?” I felt so bad for waking him up that on a whim I’d decided that if he helped me, I would suck it up and wake some of them up as well.
He nodded, taking me in for real now that he was a little more awake.
“Your hair is wet” he murmured so quietly that I almost missed it, reaching out to feel it between his fingers.
“I just took a shower” I explained nervously.
“You look pretty,” he concluded, not giving me a chance to reply before shaking Hoseok awake.
Hoseok jumped, startling me enough that I jerked back and lost my already precarious balance. This would have been fine, except Seokjin had tried to grab my hand in an attempt to catch me but didn’t get a good enough grip making me lose my footing entirely, sending me back…on top of Jimin.
The said victim cried out, curling into a ball with his hands over his crotch that had just been elbowed.
“Oh no! I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to! Are you okay?” My hands fluttered uselessly over him, not sure what to do to make things better. I’d never stuck around after nailing a guy in the jewels so I wasn’t exactly sure what the proper protocol was or if there even was a protocol. Was there a way to lessen the pain or did he just have to wait it out?
“Fuck off!” He growled and I quickly pulled back, not expecting his tone even though I should’ve. I could hear Seokjin and Hoseok snickering behind me and my humiliation grew tenfold.
“I’m so sorry” I murmured one last time before standing up and dashing to my room, fully prepared to never leave it again.
Slamming the door behind me, I dove face-first onto my bed, letting out a groan into my pillow.
“What happened?” I’d almost forgotten Jungkook was there.
Anger stemming from embarrassment licked up my spine and I whipped my head around to glower at him. “I told you to fucking wake them up!” I seethed, making sure I was quiet enough not to be heard from outside the room.
He seemed utterly confused and rightfully so, but I wasn’t in the mood to see reason.
“What happened?” He asked, reaching out cautiously to rub my arm. His question brought back the feeling of humiliation and I shoved my face back into my pillow, letting out a low whine.
I wanted to curl up and die. I wanted the ground to swallow me whole so I would never have to face Jungkook’s too-attractive-to-be-real friends ever again.
“Tasia” he prompted gently.
“I elbowed Jimin in the dick, okay?” I snapped, knowing he would find out anyway.
“You-…what?” If he wasn’t confused before, he sure as hell was now.
“I’m never leaving this room” I mumbled to myself, ignoring my baffled best friend.
“Tasia”
“Ugh, he probably hates me”
“Tasia”
“Everyone closest to you hates me, Ihate me”
“Tasia!”
“Jungkook, I’m gonna move away and I’m never coming back, okay?” I ended, looking at him with tears in my eyes.
He rolled his. “You’re such a drama queen, no one hates you”
I guffawed, “says you! I’m positive the six men on the other side of that door have opposing opinions”
This made his brow furrow, “Why would you think that?”
“Because! The first night I meet them, Seokjin interrogates me, Jimin and Taehyung give me the third degree, I made Yoongi fall and I’m pretty sure they all blame me for you not going back to Korea and I mean, are they even wrong? Am I the reason you didn’t go back to your family?”
“Stop, stop, stop, woah. Tasia, no one hates you or blames you. I’m my own person, I make my own choices and they know that. They also know you’re not the only reason I stayed.”
Things in his story weren’t lining up with my personal experiences with them, but I decided not to comment on that. And not the only reason he stayed? Did this have something to do with why he was sent here in the first place? A long-dormant curiosity flared back to life but I knew right now was not the time to confront him.
“Yoongi still hates me. And Jimin, there’s no way he doesn’t hate me, I just….” I couldn’t get the words out.
“Yoongi-hyung doesn’t hate you and Jimin might put salt in your drink or shake your soda in retaliation, but he won’t hate you either”
I didn’t answer, knowing the only thing to come out of my mouth right then would be complaints.
“Come on, you have a study date with Namjoonie-hyung today, get up,” Jungkook said shoving me off the bed.
I let out a squeal, resisting the urge to curse at him.
Warnings: Pretty vanilla for now, just setting up the plot.
——————–
“I’m acting like I’m okay, please don’t interrupt my perfomance” - Unknown
…..
I paced back and forth in my living room, unhappy with how I left Jungkook. I knew the others cared for him, I knew Taehyung cared for him, but what if Jungkook said something else that tipped the scale for the rest of them and they all started brawling? What if someone got seriously injured?
Regret pooled in my belly, I shouldn’t have let Jungkook talk me into going home.
I sat down on my couch and rested my head in my hands as my leg bounced with anxiety. Nibbling my lip, I contemplated going back. But when I thought about it, what help could I have given when I was the problem! If I went back over, I could be the thing that tipped the scale and started a brawl.
Sighing in resignation, I leaned back into the couch and rested my head against the cushions. I stayed like that for a minute or two before deciding that it was a waste of time to sit around twiddling my thumbs. I may as well get some homework done whilst I waited for news from Jungkook.
I heaved myself off the couch and clumsily stumbled over my own feet as I headed towards the front door—where I usually left my bag. A split second of panic went through me when I didn’t find it there, but then I remembered that Seokjin had left it by the door in Jungkook’s apartment. Groaning, I crouched down into a ball.
I had everything in that bag, my laptop, my notes, my books, even the novel I was in the middle of reading. Letting myself tip backward, I sprawled out on the floor, contemplating my life choices.
And that’s how Jungkook found me—spread out like a starfish on the floor, staring absently at the ceiling.
“Hey,” his sudden presence had my limbs folding to my chest like a lawn chair.
“Shit” I hissed and scrambled to my feet. How had I not heard him come in?
When I turned to face him, my embarrassment turned to horror when I saw that he was not alone. Beside him in the open doorway stood Yoongi, holding two full bags of take-out.
“Sorry, we didn’t mean to scare you” Jungkook apologized with a guilty smile.
“Don’t worry about it,” I waved off, trying to hide the shake in my voice before motioning to the bags, “that food?”
“Yeah!” Jungkook agreed, stepping in further so that Yoongi could come inside all the way.
I made a move to close the door behind him, but more people trailed in after him until there were seven men total standing in my living room. Taehyung and Jimin were the most surprising guests. Hoseok, who had come in after Yoongi, also held bags full of food and Jungkook held my schoolbag in one hand but the rest were visibly empty-handed.
For a brief moment, I wondered how much they spent feeding themselves because they seemed to eat a lot.
“Thought we could all eat here? My place is so messy because of them” Jungkook didn’t wait for my response and instead set my bag down where I usually did and headed straight for the couch while Yoongi and Hoseok headed for the open kitchen/dining space to put the food on the table.
“Don’t lie, it was messy before that. The only place you keep tidy is your room” I responded with a scoff.
Jungkook let out a small laugh and to my surprise, Taehyung came to sit on the arm of the couch, placing his hand lazily on Jungkook’s shoulder for balance. What had I missed in the 30 minutes I was absent?
I was astonished by how easy they were acting with each other, not a hint of tension. In fact, they almost seemed closer.I’d definitely missed something.
A light hand on my waist caught my attention and I looked back to see Seokjin.
“May we use your dishes for the food?” he asked politely and I turned to look into the kitchen where Hoseok was already helping himself to my cabinets.
Rushing over, I showed him where the plates were and right as I was opening the right cabinet, I noticed Yoongi fishing through my drawers for, presumably, utensils. He was about to open my junk drawer where I shoved every miscellaneous screw, lightbulb, pen, paper, coughdrop and even sometimes mail that I didn’t have a home for, but I lunged for his hand and yanked hard. Apparently too hard because it caused him to lose his balance and stumble into me, sending us both to the floor.
It took me a second to catch my breath and a second longer to realize that he was on top of me with his legs entangled with mine. Our eyes met and the world faded out for a moment until he dropped his forehead to my chest breathed out a quiet ‘fuck’. The warmth of his breath made me shiver as a thousand little goosebumps appeared on my skin.
Using his arms, he pushed himself off me and a whoosh of cold air came between us. Hoseok, who had been laughing hardily at our expense, bent down to help us both up. Once we were both upright Yoongi pretty much immediately left the room and I had a nagging feeling that I should probably go after him and apologize, but I ignored it and turned to face Hoseok, who was still grinning ear to ear but at least his snickering had subsided.
“You okay?” he asked, unable to help the giggle that followed as he brushed the hair that had fallen in my face back behind my ear.
“I’m great, thanks” I rolled my eyes, swatting his hand away. I was far too embarrassed to be cordial.
“Don’t be upset,” he coaxed.
“I’m not, I just…I think Yoongi is” I sighed quietly, glancing in the direction he’d escaped in.
Hoseok looked delighted by my confession, “He’s not.”
I huffed, not believing him for a second, turning around and getting the utensils from their drawer.
My eyes went wide, though, when Hoseok threw an arm over my shoulder, resting it across my chest and pulling me into his.
“I’ll prove it if you want” his breath was hot in my ear.
For a split second, I was tempted, but then I remembered they all hated me and this was probably just a follow-up game to Jimin’s pash sesh.
“No thanks,” my tone came out a little harsh as I shrugged him off and walked away.
He didn’t stop me.
I made my way to the living room, placing the acquired knives and forks down on the table as I passed by before taking a seat on the floor in front of Jungkook, leaning back against his legs. There was still a free spot on the couch, what with Taehyung still on the armrest and Jimin, Namjoon and Seokjin also on the floor, but it was between Jungkook and Yoongi and if Yoongi was mad, I didn’t want to make it worse by sitting next to him.
I made a mental note to apologize to him before the night ended.
“Okay! Come eat!” We all looked up to Hoseok who stood at the kitchen table, taking out boxes of food from the bags.
Taehyung was the first up, practically vaulting off Jungkook as he darted to the table. Jimin wasn’t far behind, followed closely by Jungkook, Namjoon, and Yoongi. Seokjin and I took our time, him being a gentleman and helping me up. I smiled and offered a shy ‘thanks’.
The night went on fairly uneventful until we eventually migrated back to the couch to watch movies. Somehow, they’d fit five people on my 3-seater couch, leaving Taehyung, Namjoon, and me to sit on the floor. Although the earlier tension had seemed to have magically disappeared, I was still wary of Taehyung.
When I had hesitantly gone to sit between him and Namjoon, he’d smirked flirtatiously at me. It was the same smirk I’d noticed on Jimin’s lips a couple of times—like they had a secret that no one else was in on.
“You don’t have any classes tomorrow, right?” Junkook asked randomly when Yoongi got up to pick out the next movie, pulling me from my thoughts.
“No, I don’t, but I haven’t gotten any homework done the past two nights, thanks to you, so I’m dedicating the entirety of tomorrow to that” I declared, shooting down any plans he might’ve wanted to make.
He hummed, pouting a bit, “are you still having trouble with your thesis?”
I groaned, partially because yes I was still having trouble with it but mostly because Jungkook had no filter and had just blabbed in front of everyone that I was struggling with my schoolwork.
“You know, Namjoon is really smart, he could help you,” Hoseok offered.
At the sound of his name, Namjoon looked up from his phone.
“Huh?” We all laughed at the irony.
‘Really smart’, how smart could the guy be if he didn’t even have a major and was only taking, what was it, two classes?
“Nothing, really, it’s—”
“Tasia was wondering if you could help her with her thesis” Taehyung cut me off.
“Wha—” I whipped around to stare at him in disbelief. He just grinned and winked.
“Okay,” came Namjoon’s reply and I turned back, not expecting him to have agreed.
“No, honestly, you’d have to have taken the class to be able to help. I mean, I’m in the class and I barely understand how to do it” I waved off.
“Which class is it for?”
“Psychological Statistics” I answered immediately.
He was quiet for a second before nodding, “I can help.”
“I just said—”
“I’ve taken the class” he interrupted, sparking some irritation in me but it was overshadowed by my surprise.
“You’ve taken the class?”
He nodded, “I got my Master’s in Psychology two years ago”
The nonchalant way he had said it made that tidbit of information seem like it wasn’t a big deal, but it most definitely was.
“I’m sorry, what?”
“Yeah! Joonie has a bunch of degrees. Business, Accounting, Psychology, and Mathematics” Hoseok bragged proudly.
I felt like my brain was going to explode. How could he have that many degrees when he didn’t look anywhere near old enough to have gone to school for the amount of time it would require.
“He…what?” I could barely get the words out.
“He’s got a sexy brain” Seokjin threw with a chuckle and I got the feeling I’d missed some inside joke, but at this point I was speechless so I just nodded and let it go.
“So, if you want, I can help” Namjoon offered, ducking his head so our eyes could meet.
My face flushed but I nodded nonetheless.
“If you wouldn’t mind…” I trailed, scared that if I accepted his help he’d be annoyed and grow to dislike me as well. He’d been so casual this morning, I didn’t want to push the boundaries of what he would put up with from me.
However, when I thought about it, all of them seemed to have had some sort of change of heart with me, though I’d be willing to bet money that it had something to do with Jungkook’s earlier ‘if you want to be in my life, you need to accept that she’s a part of it’ comment.
“I don’t mind”
“While you’re at it, Namjoon-hyung, help her with the rest of her homework. The faster she gets it done, the sooner we can hang out” Jungkook said.
“Since when did you need me around to hang out with your friends? Besides, what about yourhomework, Kook? Have you done it?” I turned back, glaring at him suspiciously.
“I always do my homework, Taisa” Jungkook smirked, flicking my nose with his finger.
I blushed fiercely and looked away.
“Whatever” I grumbled, shifting my weight so I was facing completely away from him and towards the TV.
“And we don’t need you there to have fun, it’s just more fun when you’re there” he finished.
And so it was settled, Namjoon would be over, bright and early tomorrow to help me with my homework.
As the hours passed, I became fully engrossed in the movie that played on the telly so it was startling when a weight came to rest against my shoulder, but not nearly as startling as the fact that the weight was Taehyung’s head.
It didn’t take long for me to realize that he had fallen asleep and probably wasn’t snuggled into me of his own accord. When I looked around the room to see if any of the others had noticed, I realized that most of them were asleep too. I couldn’t see Jungkook, who was directly behind me, but Hoseok, Yoongi, Namjoon, and Jin were all asleep and Jimin, who’d gotten up earlier to get water and opted for the floor when he’d returned, was now laying down passed out. I couldn’t help my eyes from trailing down where his shirt had ridden up ever so slightly, highlighting his slim, fit waist.
My attention came hurtling back to Taehyung when he looped his arm around mine and snuggled closer, making my heart rate speed up.
In a moment of panic, I nudged him awake. The second that I did, I regretted it, but by then it was too late. His eyes slowly blinked open, staring up at me. It took him a moment to become fully coherent and pull away. His movements were sluggish, but he surprisingly didn’t fall back asleep and instead watched me as I got up and moved to the kitchen to clean.
He didn’t immediately follow me like I was for some reason expecting, so I was able to throw all the trash away and begin washing the dishes in peace.
“I’ll help”
I jumped a bit at the deep voice behind me, almost dropping a plate into the sink.
“Taehyung?” The surprise was clear as day in my voice.
“Anastasia.” I bit back a shiver at the way my name sounded from his deep, sleepy voice.
Snapping out of it, I turned back to the dishes, “it’s okay, I can do it”
“I’m really good at washing dishes,” he insisted, coming next to me and submerging his hands into the soapy water as well.
“O-okay” I squeaked, taking a second to appreciate his flawless side profile. Honestly, did the man even have a bad side?
We washed the dishes in silence for a while before he broke it. “I’d like to apologize”
“Huh?”Apologize?
“For my behavior,” he continued, “I was angry, but it was wrong of me to take it out on you”
I couldn’t understand.
“So,” he paused to take my hands in his and make me face him, “I’m sorry for being intentionally rude to you”
I was at a loss for words. Was this even the same person?
“I forgive you” I eventually croaked out, the oxygen leaving my lungs when the most beautiful smile appeared on his face.
➳ 1k+ words | fluff, ceo!jungkook, secret agent!reader | jeon jungkook x f reader | nc-17 | flirty!jk, swearings, suggestive language
Imagine yourself lounging on a luxurious yacht’s deck with your favourite cold drink in hand. The sound of crashing waves and distant seagulls shrieking acts as background music as you relax under the warm sun. That is your dream getaway. Of course, the ship had to be peaceful with not many people around. After dealing with various people in your work, crowds would only prevent you from indulging in your relaxation.
So, you planned to come back to your hometown for a quick family visit and pack your vacation essentials. Then you’d go to the port where the rented yacht is waiting to take you on your merry way.
You deserve this break, after all. You are one of the best in the field, but you also helped train other new agents back in the headquarters.
Seeing you worked your ass off had moved your boss to give you a long holiday. She even rented a private yacht for you (since it was all you can talk about whenever someone mentioned a break). You barely stifled your grin when you received the news.
Everything was according to plan - that was until you faced a hindrance in the form of your childhood friend. Not that you hated him or anything. You two talked from time to time, even flirted a little back then, but it never crossed any line due to your unusual occupation. You had to keep everything under wraps, which led you to underestimate how much power he possessed.
And somehow, you find yourself drifting further and further away from your dream vacation. How so? Well, instead of luxuriating in your rented yacht, you are now sitting in a high-class bar. Surrounded by rich people, looking totally out of place in your midi sundress and straw hat.
“Did you not get the outfit I sent you?”
“Did you not get I am on vacation?”
Jungkook shrugs in response. “Your vacation can wait, but I can’t.”
“Well, I don’t care! You could have hired someone else who is not on holiday!” You hiss in annoyance, placing your hat on your side. “There are lots of other agents capable of dealing with whatever antics you’d like to drag them into.”
“But they aren’t the best.” Jungkook counters, tugging off his suit jacket and handing them to you.
“You don’t know that!” You shoot back, tugging on his suit to look more inconspicuous.
“It wasn’t written in their profiles.”
You want to wipe off that smug look on his face, but you can’t create a scene.
“Okay, Mister I-Am-A-Big-Shot-CEO. You might have the resources to dig into anything you can get your hands on, but that does not give you the right to do so—”
“But I just wanted to know what my dear childhood friend is up to - why she never called, how is she doing—”
“You broke the law and my organisation’s privacy rights. They could have sued you and—”
“But you told them I can be trusted. Plus, I help their funds now. Literally, your headquarters wouldn’t have their tech and gadgets as advanced as now if it wasn’t for me.”
Cocky little shit.
…But he’s also right. So, you deflate, giving up on arguing with him. You should have known talking to him would go around in circles, so you opt to take a deep breath and ask, “What do you want?”
Jungkook notices your change in demeanour and pouts. “I was hoping you’d put up more of a fight.”
“Well, not with that big ass ego of yours. Plus, the faster we are done, the faster I can catch up on my ride.”
Jungkook sighs in defeat as you switch into your work mode. “A competitor of mine has been making deals with someone from my company. I’ve been receiving reports of copyrights when no one should know of my developing products yet.”
You want to strangle him at this point. This is probably like a B-class case (or even C, actually), and your organisation has a handful of capable agents to deal with this.
“Kook, you’re going to sleep with one eye open tonight.”
“Why? You’ll come visit?” He grins at your apparent annoyed attitude. “Babe, that’s like a dream come true. You never visit my place. Should we get dinner too? I’ll wine and dine you, or do you prefer Netflix and chilling—”
You sigh deeply for the umpteenth time. Seriously, how did that shy boy turn into this menace, you wonder.
“How the hell did you turn into this when you were so nice back then.”
“I am nice.”
“The news article I found about you says otherwise.”
“People would say anything to get attention. Plus, they don’t know me personally anyway. Unlike you, right?”
“I don’t know…” You shoot back. “Things changed.”
“Huh…” Then he leans closer to you, voice reducing into a seductive whisper. “But I’m still me, aren’t I? Still your Kookie?”
You groan, pushing him away. “My cookie monster phase is in the past, okay? I don’t call you that anymore.”
“Why? It’s a cute nickname. Only you would call me that.”
“Kook.”
“Kookie,” he responds with a shit-eating grin.
You glare at him. “Jungkook. How long is this mission gonna take? You know the longer you waste my time—”
“Mhmm, don’t mind at all. I can pay as much as you’d like anyway.”
As you’re about to fire back at him, there’s a new guest in the bar just arriving on the doorstep when you shush Jungkook with a finger on his mouth. “A guy with a briefcase just enter the place.”
Jungkook blinks before turning his head to glance at the entrance behind him. “Yep, that’s him alright. But we still need to find the rat.”
“Today’s a workday. Are there any uniforms or ID that your employees use?”
“Just ID card, but who’d be stupid enough to bring that here—” His breath hitches as you cup his face in your hands to make him face you.
Apparently, someone just walks to the entrance to approach the newcomer. They face in your direction, which can lead them to identify Jungkook if you’re not careful.
Leaning in so close to him, your lips are mere millimetres away from that it’d look like a couple making out to anyone around you. You tilt Jungkook’s head a bit while you tilt to the other side to keep your eyes on the two men. You both stay that way until the traitor and his friend is back in their seat.
“The rat is wearing a champagne tie, and he’s stupid enough to keep on his ID card around his neck.” You chuckle, releasing him from your hold. Jungkook is still in a daze as you mutter all the details. “—and… Are you listening?”
“Huh?” He snaps out of his trance.
“His name is Yu Junseo, part of the developer team in your company. No wonder it’s easy for him to share classified information.”
“…Yeah.”
“Yeah?” Your brows furrowed in confusion. “Is that all you have to say?”
“I-I mean, yeah, I’ll look into it.”
“See? It’s not a hard mission at all, Kook. How dare you say there’s no other agent capable of this,” you say exasperatedly, crossing your arms, but the initial annoyance has ebbed away.
“I only hire the best, you know that. How did you read his ID from this far?”
“Yeah, yeah,” you shake your head, finishing your drink in one gulp before pointing at your eyes. “Special contact lens, remember? Where you invested your funds on.”
“Ah, right…”
“Mhmm, I better get going now.” You are about to leave your seat when he grabs for your wrist. “What now?”
Jungkook looks lost for a brief moment before he babbles, “Where are you going now? I’ll drive you there.”
You raise a brow at him. “It’s fine, Kook. There’s an Uber nearby. Shouldn’t you go back to your office?”
“Nah, I’ve got time. Especially when I can spend them with you.”
And let’s just say you ended up with an unexpected company for your vacation on an even bigger private yacht.
With your eyes glued to your phone, you impatiently wait for Jungkook’s message. He promised that he’d make you discover Seoul at night on his motorcycle, he described it as a very unique feeling, and since he talked about it, you’ve been dying to do it although it makes you extremely anxious to be on a motorcycle.
Everyone around you, except Jimin isn’t aware of this new little relationship with Jungkook. To be honest, you’re not even sure you can call him your new boyfriend so for the moment, you just don’t say anything. You simply disappear for hours with him without warning anyone.
Of course, your parents have started to realize something is a bit off with you but you’re a grown woman, and they are leaving you alone. Your mother is simply happy that you’re finally happier, she was really scared that the after Baekhyun would destroy you even more. She knew how much love you had for your ex-boyfriend.
jk : i’m in front of your place, honey
You jump out of bed before running to the entrance door. You only take with you your phone and your id card, nothing else should be needed for a motorcycle little trip, and you put on your shoes and jacket.
“I’ll be back in two hours,” you say to your mother before pressing a kiss on her cheek.
“You’re not eating dinner with us?” she asks.
You shake your head. On top of a little city tour, Jungkook promised to cook you dinner at his place before dropping you off at home, and that’s honestly thoughtful of him. However, you believe this man has some other plans on his mind, probably something including you being on his bed with your legs completely spread for him or something very similar.
“Have fun then!” she replies with a bright smile on her face. There’s absolutely no doubt you’re going to have fun with mister loverboy.
“See you,” you say before leaving the house.
As you step outside of your place, you find Jungkook in front of his motorcycle with two helmets in his hands. Your heart flutters at the sight, and for a moment, you simply look at him. Never in your life have you ever thought that this fuckboy would interest you or the other way around.
The man waiting for you is wearing a black leather jacket on top of a white shirt and ripped black skinny jeans. His eyes are looking down while he’s waiting for you to come out of the house. To say that he’s handsome is more than a total understatement, you could keep staring at him for hours. When he lifts his head and a smile arises on his face, you swear your heart skips a beat.
He starts walking in your direction but you almost run to him as he does so because you know your mother is hiding behind some window to get a sneak peek of the person you’re going to spend the night with. For the moment, you don’t want her to see him since you know she’ll directly invite him for dinner to question him. It’s too soon for that, you’re simply having fun with him for the moment.
“Stay where you are,” you practically yell at him.
A little chuckle leaves his lips before he halts, still holding tightly the helmets in his hands. Quickly, you take a look behind to check if your mother is really hiding behind a window. Thankfully, you don’t see her but you’re sure she’s there.
“My mom is for sure trying to see who I’m with, and she’ll force me, later on, to invite you at home,” you tell him as you get closer to him.
Jungkook puts the helmets on his motorcycle to be able to hold you tight in his embrace before he drives the two of you to the city. Honestly, this exclusive thing with you is very new to him and he doesn’t know what to do most of the time. The only thing he’s absolutely certain of is that he craves to be around you all the time. For that, he’s ready to overcome himself.
“But that wouldn’t be a bad thing, no?” he asks while he grabs you tightly in his arms.
A little giggle escapes your mouth when he pushes you into his arms before he presses a tender kiss on your lips. Automatically, your arms wrap around his neck as you kiss him with passion. Being around him has been making you feel alive in a way you’ve never felt before. Everything with him seems a hundred times better, and you desire to keep him in your life for the longest time possible.
“My mom adored Baekhyun,” you reply as you break the kiss. “I’m sure she’d make you go through hell to be positive that you’re better than him.”
His arms hold you tighter. “I managed to convince her daughter that I was better than him, maybe I’ll be able to convince her,” he replies before placing a strand of hair behind your ear.
“My mother will eat you alive, JK,” you say. “The first time she met Baekhyun I thought she was going to kill him, it was a miracle she ended up liking him.”
If your mother finds out that he used to be a fuckboy, there’s absolutely no way she’ll like him, not even a tiny bit.
“But let’s not talk about this right now,” you tell him.
Thinking and talking about your ex is never easy for you because it reminds you of all the pain he gave you towards the end of your relationship. You’re not even sure you’ll ever be able to forgive him for what he did to you.
“Is he still texting you?” Jungkook asks with concern.
Recently, Baekhyun has been texting you a lot, trying to get you back which is honestly super annoying. Before you left him, he absolutely didn’t care about you, and now, he suddenly realized that he had a girlfriend he apparently ‘loved’. Jungkook is more than mad that your ex only opened his eyes this late, but he’s really on the verge of kicking his ass.
“Yep, he texted me an hour ago,” you sigh.
You wish things would have happened differently with him because damn, you were so in love. Your heart was only beating for him but then, Jungkook showed up, turned your world upside down, and made you realize you were worthy of so much more. Since he appeared in your life, things have changed for the better. To you, he always does things right to make you feel extremely special, and you’ve tried your best to make him feel the same way.
“I swear to god that I’m going to kick his ass,” he rolls his eyes.
The only reason why he hasn’t done it yet is that you’ve begged him not to. The rumors are already so huge behind the reasons why you and Baekhyun aren’t together anymore, and you don’t want to make things worse. People keep gossiping that Jungkook is the reason why you aren’t together anymore but it isn’t fully because of him. You and Baekhyun are the real ones responsible for the ending of your relationship. The campus fuckboy just opened your eyes, nothing else.
If the boys start fighting over you in front of everyone, it’ll just make things worse. People will start saying that you left Baekhyun over Jungkook, and your ex will most probably think that it’s true. Right now, all you want is for things to calm down, and see how things with Jungkook can work. It’s all too new.
“Please don’t,” you reply while cupping his face in your hands.
He presses a kiss on your lips as if he’s saying “okay, I won’t do anything” and once he puts an end to the kiss, he grabs one of the helmets.
“Now, let’s get into this motorcycle for a little night out,” he says.
He hands you the helmet and helps you out to put it in your head. It honestly feels like all your face is being squeezed but it’s always better to play safe when you jump into such a monster like Jungkook’s motorcycle. For a brief moment, he takes the time to admire you. It’s the first time ever he’s letting a girl take a ride with him on his motorcycle, but you’re not any random girl. You’re his girl.
“Ready?” he asks before putting his helmet on.
There’s no doubt that he looks absolutely hot with it. Well, absolutely everything fits him well, but something about this outfit with the helmet makes him look extra good. For sure, with him looking this attractive, you’ll end up having a very steamy session once you’re at his place.
You nod, ready to explore the city with this stunner. The man adjusts your helmet visor to protect your eyes, a smile appearing on his face. He can’t help but think you’re absolutely adorable.
“Okay, give me your phone,” he says before you hand him your phone.
Jungkook puts it in the pocket inside his jacket, keeping it safe for you while you explore the city on his motorcycle.
“I’m going to place myself first, and you’ll take a place behind me,” he starts saying. “I’ve put handles on each side so you can hold yourself onto them while I drive,” he shows you the handle placed on the right side. “And you’re going to put your feet here,” he shows you the footrest of the motorcycle. “If there’s anything, you just tell me and I’ll stop right away, okay?”
You simply nod before the two of you take a seat on the massive motorcycle. Of course, you do as Jungkook explained to you seconds ago and it seems like a correct position to enjoy the view around you. Your heart is starting to beat extremely fast, you’re not really sure about this little drive with him although you’re a hundred percent confident he’ll be very careful. What you don’t trust is the motorcycle.
“I’ve connected our helmets together so we can easily talk and listen to each other while I’m driving,” his voice echoes in your helmet as if he was whispering in both your ears.
You can see his face turned to you, a little smile appearing on your face. This man has thought about everything, even connecting your helmets to have a normal conversation. This warms your heart in an indescribable way, and it makes you wonder once more how this man was a fuckboy not so long ago.
“Thanks, Jungkook,” you reply with a small voice, confident that he heard it perfectly in his helmet.
He simply nods, happier than ever to have you on his motorcycle. The man puts his gloves on before slowly and carefully starting the engine. Your heart beats faster at the loud sound, your hands strongly grabbing the handles.
“I’m going to start riding very slowly, let me know if it’s not okay for you,” he says, his eyes focused on the road in front of him.
“Okay,” you answer.
As he said, the motorcycle starts to slowly move but you’re extremely nervous right now. You try to calm yourself down while the man gently drives. It’s more than obvious he’s being extra cautious because he doesn’t want to scare you or make you panic, but it goes to his heart that you’re ready to test something he’s passionate about.
Slowly but surely, you start to feel less anxious, and you grow accustomed to being on this vehicle. The feeling of being on the motorcycle is quite unique, the wind collides against your entire body but Jungkook’s body almost feels like a shield in front of you. Everything around you moves at the same speed as if you were inside a car but there’s no window between you and the world around you. You’re in direct connection together.
“How are you feeling?” Jungkook asks with apparent concern.
“Better,” you answer without any hesitation.
The city around you doesn’t seem to be sleeping at this exact moment. There are cars everywhere, people walking in the streets, lights turned on in almost every building, and animated restaurants. This is a world you never got to see, even inside your car when you’re driving at night.
For a little longer, Jungkook keeps driving at the same speed, not going any faster as he wants to make sure you’re just fine. He can imagine that this must feel odd for you and every step of the way, he desires you to feel comfortable. If tonight you don’t go faster, it’s totally fine for him. All that matters is that you’re feeling good.
But you love speed, you love the adrenaline that comes with it. So now, you want more.
“You can go faster, Jungkook,” you inform him.
“Are you sure?” The man doesn’t look back but he wishes he could because he’d love to see your face.
“A hundred percent sure,” you answer without any hesitation.
Your eyes watch with wonder all around you, the regular breathing of the driver in your ears, the wind brushing against your body, and the sweet scent of Jungkook lingering in your air. This is and feels wonderful. This is definitely something you’d like to repeat again and again with him.
You barely feel it when he drives faster as you’re completely hypnotized by the world around you. Seoul at night is wonderful and a scenery everybody should have the opportunity to see. You already believed that driving at night was something, but discovering it from the passenger side of a motorcycle is magical.
“It’s beautiful,” you whisper.
Jungkook doesn’t need to see you to understand those words come from the bottom of your heart, but he desires now to see the sparkle in your eyes as you stare around you. He’s sure your eyes are shining so bright at this exact moment.
“Not as beautiful as you,” he replies.
Your heart flutters at his words, and unexpectedly, you leave the handles to wrap your hands around his tiny waist. Carefully, you press your head against his back while you keep admiring the view before your eyes.
“Thanks for this, Jungkook,” you tell him.
His heart warms in a way he can’t quite explain. No other woman has ever had such power over him, he wants to give and make you discover the world. He’s always ready to give you his entire being, knowing that you’ll listen to him and try to understand his point of view. Around you, he isn’t scared to be himself.
For the rest of the ride, you stay pressed against him while you discuss both your favorite places. When you talk together, you realize there are so many places in the city you’ve never got to visit despite the fact you’ve been living here since the second you were born. Jungkook doesn’t tell you the places he has brought his hookups to because he doesn’t want to ruin this moment, but he has some memorable souvenirs at some places with some girls.
“You’re the first person to ever get on my motorcycle,” he confesses.
To say you’re surprised is an understatement. You truly believed that this man would have brought back home his hookups on it since a lot of girls only seem to talk about how attractive he looks on it. You thought he would have used it as an argument to have more girls spreading their legs for him.
“Really?” you ask with surprise.
“My motorcycle is my baby and I don’t want some random people to be on it,” he says. “Plus, I love driving alone, it helps me to think, but I really wanted you to discover this unique feeling of being on a motorcycle,” he explains.
A smile grows on your face at his words. Jungkook definitely knows how to make you feel special.
“You’re so thoughtful,” you reply with still that idiot smile on your face.
“Well, I want you to step inside my world and it starts with this,” he explains.
You hold him tighter, he’s being too adorable with you right now, and it’s making your heart flutter way too much. You’re not sure you can handle him being extra cute with you, you’ll probably faint or something.
“Now, let’s go home, babe,” he says. “It’s getting late and we still need to eat.”
You simply nod, your arms still wrapped around him while he drives the two of you to his place. Tonight is definitely a very special night, and for sure, one of the best nights of your life. Being on a motorcycle is something you can’t quite explain, but it’s a wonderful feeling.
The drive to his place is quite fast but none of you speak during that time. Jungkook is simply enjoying the fact of having you completely pressed against him while you’re enjoying the beautiful city displaying before your eyes. So the silence is definitely not an awkward one.
Once you reached the parking of the apartment complex where he lives, he stops the vehicle before he steps out of it. Without any hesitation, he helps you get out with still your helmets on your head. As soon as you put your feet on the ground, Jungkook takes the helmet out of your head because he desperately desires to see you. The second he sees your sparkling eyes, his heart instantly warms.
“How was it?” he asks while he takes his helmet off.
“Wonderful,” you reply before pressing a kiss on his lips.
Jungkook smiles while kissing you. This day will for sure be one he’ll never forget, no matter what happens between the two of you.
“Perfect then,” he replies.
The two of you head then to the elevator to reach his apartment’s floor and finally eat dinner together. Useless to say that he ate you out before you both eat dinner.
