Deal With The Devil (drabble)

These Things Take Time (Yandere! Supernatural! Taehyung x Reader)

Synopsis: There's something wrong with your boyfriend Taehyung. At least, you think it's him.

16.5k

Trigger warnings: yandere behavior, psychological gaslighting, violence, gore, some heavy making out, strong language, AFAB reader (she/her) I'm sure I'm missing some but you know me and what I write lol

Authors note: just a real quick thank you to @bigbuffjoonie and @mustardpop for having beta read and brainstormed with me literally a year ago about this fic that I never published until now.

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He passionately thrusted her against the wall, mouthing at her neck while muttering disgusting things that he was going to do to her.

It was foul…

It was taboo…

It was…..

Your fingers paused and hovered over the keyboard, the constant clicking of your writing coming to a sudden halt.

Your eyes scanned the last few lines, lips instinctively mouthing the words and checking the overall flow of the plot.

Your two main characters were about to fuck each other’s brains out after a long ‘will they or won’t they’ that spanned well over a dozen chapters.

There should be a feeling of torture, a feeling of relief, a feeling of frenzied lust that just couldn’t contain itself anymore and combusted within the contents of these pages.

That is what you desperately wanted your loyal readers to experience when they get to this scene.

Yet when reading the long-awaited buildup, you felt nothing.

You cared for every character you created like a mother does their child, them getting their happy endings was just as important to you as it was to them. So why did you feel so numb and dissociated from everything you’ve been typing the past hour?

You released a disillusioned sigh and leaned back into your chair. Your eyes stung from staring at a screen for so long and your limbs ached to be stretched with hours of immobility.

Writer’s block was a bitch.

Unlike other skills, writing was one of the few expertise that working harder at it won’t guarantee a better outcome. You could type away until your fingers were bruised and bloody, but it doesn’t mean anything you wrote would be worth shit. Writing was a talent and it came and went as it pleased. And right now it was gone.

Which left you very depressed and your editor very pissed.

You gave up the fight and reluctantly closed your laptop. Then stood to your full height, to give your back a much-needed stretch.

‘I tried today. And that’s okay. I’ll try again tomorrow.’ You thought to yourself, half heartedly taking your therapist’s advice to acknowledge your efforts and not just the outcomes.

When in a creative slump, it has been said that reading other works can be a source of inspiration. Can’t be a good writer yourself, then go out and read a good writer. With this thought in mind, you slowly exited your office and descended down the stairs.

Last week your mom sent you a book she recommended, and you’ve been so busy trying to finish your own novel that you just tossed it somewhere and haven’t touched or looked for it since. Though, you were almost certain you caught sight of it on the coffee table yesterday.

When you stepped into the living room, you spotted a familiar figure standing by the large bay window.

The sight tugged a small fond smile onto your face.

Taehyung was your boyfriend of six months.

He was strikingly attractive, tall, kind and clearly didn’t know his own worth because not only was he dating you, but he also agreed to move into this secluded farmhouse while you tried to finish your book. He assured that he could use this time and space to focus on his paintings as well, but you knew deep down he just didn’t want to leave you alone out in the middle of nowhere.

Right now only his profile was facing you, his alluring feline eyes staring at the raining scene outside, dark brows furrowed in heavy thought. He looked to be biting on his lower lip, a habit you’ve never seen before, but you supposed you two have only been dating for a few months so there was probably a whole world of little quirks you didn’t know of yet.

The scene was a bit intense, as you weren’t used to your usually cheerful boyfriend looking so ponderous. Yet you shrugged it off and just assumed he was most likely brainstorming his next painting. Taehyung was your first artist boyfriend and your friends did warn you that they could be a bit dramatic.

You quickly surveyed the room and indeed located the book on the coffee table. While reaching for it you called out, “Hey love?”

Taehyung snapped his neck at a speed too fast for your liking, instantly facing you with eyes wide and blown out in what you could only assume was shock.

You giggled, thinking he was too absorbed in his own world that he probably just now noticed your presence.

“I know I said I wanted pasta for dinner but how about we order some chinese instead?” You asked. Taehyung didn’t say anything, eyes still wide in unknown revelation, entirely unmoving. You continued, “This weather makes me not want to do anything, and I know you complain about the delivery time but we could just reheat the food if it gets here cold.”

It seemed like forever but Taehyung eventually nodded.

He then turned to face the window again.

You inwardly sighed and guessed he wasn’t thrilled with the idea of chinese. He always complained that you didn’t take care of yourself and how you needed home cooked meals rather than greasy takeout. But when creatively burnt out like this, you tended to just reach for the doordash because the act of cooking seemed entirely too much for you.

Hoping to butter him up, you tipped toed from behind and wrapped your arms around him. You nuzzled your face into his back and took a deep breath, enjoying the familiar scent of his outrageously expensive cologne. His body seemed to melt into your hold, tense posture suddenly limp and calm.

You reached up and pecked his cheek, grinning when you caught sight of his lips twitching upwards. Harmless manipulation complete, you trudged out the room with a lukewarm “Thanks honey!”

You skipped up the stairs and made a left into a hallway, quickly getting into the bedroom and preparing to plop into the heavenly crumpled mess of sheets and blankets, when an unexpected sound caused you to still.

The front door was opening.

Afraid of a possible home invasion, you rushed out to see what was happening.

The door was wide open and emerging into the home…was Taehyung.

His hair and jacket was drenched from the rain, four or so heaping grocery bags in his hold as he looked up the stairs at you with a tired smile.

“Hey baby, can you give me a hand with some of this? I got some sauce for the pasta and picked up some other stuff we were running low on.”

Time stood still.

Your jaw dropped in bewilderment.

Your mind struggling to process this odd collapse of reality.

The nearest grocery store was, at its quickest, still a twenty-minute drive into town.

There was just no way Taehyung was able to leave and get back in the same time it took for you to get up the stairs and into your room.

No one can be in two places at once.

What the fuck was going on?

You just saw him. You just talked to him. You just smelled him. You just touched him.

Taehyung’s gaze worriedly ran up and down your face, correctly detecting that something was dreadfully wrong. He kicked the door closed behind him and rather ungracefully dropped the bags, hastily stepping over some of the falling items to race up the steps and take you in his hold.

“Y/n? Baby what’s wrong? You look like you’ve seen a ghost! Did something happen while I was gone?” He fretted.

“I-w-what-you-j-just-living room…” You stammered, not even being able to bring yourself to voice what was happening.

“What? What about the living room? You’re not making any sense.”

You gulped, looking up at him with fear. “T-Tae, I could’ve sworn I just saw you in the living room. I talked to you.”

Your boyfriend’s face dropped.

“Y/n, get in the bedroom and lock the door behind you.”

You irritably huffed while blinking away oncoming tears, realizing Taehyung didn’t quite understand what you were saying. “No! Not like an intruder! It was you.”

“I’m right here Y/n. I just got back from the market. I haven’t been home in the past hour. There’s no way you just saw me in this house.” He slowly explained, as if you were having some mental breakdown and needed to be talked off the ledge.

Your temper rose. “No shit Kim Taehyung! That’s why I’m scared! Do you have a twin brother or something? Or did you come into the living room before going back to the car to get the groceries?”

Taehyung backed away from you, clearly put off by your outburst. “No? First off, you know I’m an only child. Secondly, why would I come in and let you talk to me before going back out in the pouring rain, bring in groceries and then pretend I have no idea what you’re talking about when you said you saw me in the house just now?”

You glared up at him, now feeling foolish for even being scared in the first place of something that most definitely had a logical explanation.

Your boyfriend always had a more playful side than you and this was most likely the first trick he was trying to play in your very young relationship.

“I told you I don’t like pranks, Taehyung. You can pull them on your friends all you want but you promised to never pull one on me.”

He threw his hands up in the air in exasperation. “I’m not pranking you! It probably was an intruder who looked kinda like me and instead of letting me go and investigate, you're arguing with me?”

“It wasn’t an intruder! He didn’t take anything!”

Taehyung laughed incredulously, “Great, you're defending some robber over your own boyfriend now? I almost feel jealous.”

“There’s nothing to be jealous over because the guy was you!” You exploded.

“Which isn’t possible!”

“Go look then!” You relented.

Taehyung didn’t need to be told twice. He swiftly ran down the stairs and went through the entire house, searching for an unseen man who managed to trick his girlfriend into thinking he was him.

He found no such person.

It was only while you both wordlessly unpacked the groceries while licking the wounds of your little spat did Taehyung make a point that chilled you to the bone.

“Y/n, when you saw me…how did I look?”

You raised a brow at him. “I don’t know? You looked just fine.”

“Okay…and your working theory is I parked outside and came in, talked to you, then went back out, just to enter through the front again like nothing happened?”

You meekly shrugged, “Yeah I guess that would be a good trick.”

Your clever boyfriend pointed at the window, where it was still raining heavily. “I would've been soaked then, Y/n.”

That was the first incident.

— Dinner that night was a tense affair.

At least until Taehyung solemnly apologized for being so bad at hiding his true identity.

He then fessed up to being the Korean version of The Flash.

Against yourself, you bursted out laughing.

Maybe it was all the anxiety of the day that made you loopy, or your desperate need to just return to normal but you apologized for snapping and blamed your overactive writer's imagination for everything.

Taehyung said it was okay and that you actually looked hot when angry, you knew for a fact you didn’t but took the compliment nonetheless and suggested an early night in.

And just like that your first couple fight was over.

Yet that night when you were in the arms of your slumbering boyfriend, with his peaceful snores rumbling in your ear, all you could think about was the other Taehyung.

You regretfully lied to your boyfriend.

You knew for a fact that it wasn’t your imagination.

You were never the type of writer who got so immersed in your work that you began imagining things and confusing them for reality. If anything, you were too grounded in reality. In addition to this, you highly doubted that multiple weeks of writer’s block would even allow for such a vivid mirage to occur.

And the most damning evidence of all, if it was your imagination…why would your mind conjure up the exact replica of your boyfriend? The very man you live with and see everyday for hours on end? Wouldn’t it be a character from your book? Or at least someone you haven’t seen in a while?

It all didn’t make sense, but you didn’t have enough information to say what it was, you just knew what it wasn’t.

You rolled over and buried your face into Taehyung’s chest, practically praying for the mystery to soon be over and solve itself quickly.

It was most likely the overthinking and looming dark corners of the bedroom, but you began to feel like someone was watching you through the small gap in your ajar bedroom door.

– A few days passed and you have almost forgotten about the incident.

I mean, maybe not entirely but you were at least willing to chalk it up to a freak incident.

Scrolling through some discussion boards online showed that your story was actually pretty tame to what other unexplainable experiences some people have had. At least the other Taehyung didn’t try to scare or hurt you. It just seemed like he was doing his own thing really, like he was lost in his own world staring out that window. Thus you concluded that you weren’t in danger, and it therefore wasn’t worth freaking out about.

Mainly because your editor was on your ass and there was nothing productive about thinking of him when you were already so late on a deadline.

Naturally, you attempted to throw yourself into your writing, which was proving to be as fruitless as ever. Yet you knew giving your editor anything was better than nothing, leading you to sending half-assed drafts to him and enduring long calls about how your writing was okay, but not great.

You and Taehyung have been off too.

There was no more fighting or even words exchanged about the fiasco. However there still was an uneasiness between you two. You doubted that Taehyung believed your imagination excuse, but you also knew that he didn’t trust your original recollection of events either. Your boyfriend sort of walked on eggshells around you, almost as if you’d somehow think he was the imposter whenever he’d step into the room. You would be lying if you said you weren’t a little offended by it.

Luckily, Taehyung was currently immersed with his art, rarely leaving his little workspace. You wished you could say the same but you felt like you were simply writing in circles without actually getting anywhere. It was hard to not be jealous, but at least you were given some space away from him after a rather unresolved fight.

Meanwhile, you were planning to take a day or two off of writing, to just let your mind wander and relax so that maybe the next time you sat behind a laptop you could actually produce something worthwhile.

Of course it would just so happen that it would fall on the very day you get sick.

Waking up that morning you felt feverish and lightheaded, telling yourself that you could just use fifteen more minutes of sleep and you’d probably feel better.

You woke up five hours later; feeling even more feverish, lightheaded, and now nauseous.

You trudged downstairs to the kitchen and popped back some painkillers with a glass of water, already fantasizing about getting back into your warm and comfy bed once again.

Except what could make your bed even warmer and comfier? Taehyung.

Your boyfriend was always the more affectionate one between you two, you often practically had to push him away when you were trying to get work done. But now that you were willingly going to ask for his affection, there was no way he’d let you go uncuddled.

Any awkwardness in the relationship was long forgotten as you stomped towards his workspace, a demand to be held heavy on your tongue. You were too sick and exhausted to try to navigate relationship politics, but the whole point of a boyfriend was that he was supposed to provide attention on demand, right?

You reached his door and feebly knocked, trying to be polite to his artistic process and not just barge in.

You heard some shuffling on the other side and soon enough your boyfriend was in front of you. Taehyung hadn’t shaved his face in days, a faint goatee gracing his already intimidatingly handsome face. His black hair was messy and fluffy, a gold chain gracing his neck and drawing attention to his lack of shirt and gray sweatpants.

He grinned at you, “What’s up baby?”

You pouted up at him, momentarily not even ashamed to resort to such cheap tricks, “I feel sick and want to be cuddled back to sleep.”

“Aww poor thing.” He crooned while leaning against the doorframe. “Why don’t you head back up to bed and I’ll be up as soon as I can? I just finished a sketch and really need to focus on the next few steps before I can quit for the day.”

You huffed, kind of annoyed that he wouldn’t even take a break to hold you.

He rolled his eyes at your reaction, “Don’t look at me like that, honey. When the muse strikes, I gotta paint. Otherwise I don’t know when I’ll get the next chance for inspiration. You understand, right?”

“Yeah, I’m just really crabby and being held sounded really good.”

Taehyung chucked, muttering to himself a “cute” before leaning forward and pecking your lips. “I promise I’ll try to be quick. Go drink some water and wait for me. I’ll bring you some soup when I’m done.”

You just nodded and left him to his work. Instead of the bedroom, your feet somehow led you to the living room.

Maybe you should watch some tv while Taehyung worked? You already slept a lot today and if Taehyung was gonna be in bed with you later, perhaps it was a good idea to stay up for a little bit. Besides, you’ve been avoiding this part of the house ever since the incident and you needed to get comfortable in your own living room eventually.

Such a reminder of that rainy day caused you to cast a wary glance at the bay window, oddly feeling both relief and annoyance that nothing was there.

You plunked down onto the couch and wrapped a throw blanket around you, searching your usual streaming services for some comfort show to watch.

It was halfway through an episode of some show you’ve already watched countless times, when you heard footsteps approaching.

You looked up and saw your boyfriend, looking as cute and messy as before. Except now he held a sheepish smile on his face as he held up a steaming mug of something.

“What’s that?”

He took a seat next to you and gently handed the drink over. “Hot chocolate. I know protocol is tea whenever someone is sick, but I know how much you hate the taste.”

You fondly smiled and took the mug, flustered that he remembered such a minor detail about you. “Thank you love but you didn’t have to. You should be focusing on your work. Don’t let me distract you!”

Taehyung shook his head and threw an arm around you, holding you tight against him. He craned his neck and looked down to you, almost meeting you nose-to nose to connect his gaze with yours. Suddenly a serious expression replaced his formerly sheepish one.

“Actually, I wanted to talk.” He said, taking a deep breath before continuing, “I-I wanted to say sorry.”

“For what?”

He licked his lips, “I know we’ve been kinda out-of-sync ever since you said you saw someone and I didn’t believe you. But, it just didn’t make sense. Like, how is that possible? Whatever the case though, I shouldn’t have made you feel like you were going crazy or something.”

You raised an eyebrow, “So you believe me then?”

“Yes. I know you wouldn’t lie. I don’t know what happened but…I know you know what you saw.”

A warm feeling spread across your chest, temporarily putting your sickness on the back burner. In truth, you weren't sure if the situation even called for an apology but you felt so pampered that your boyfriend cared enough to. “I-I’m sorry too, Tae. I shouldn’t have assumed you were being mean and pranking me. Snapping at you wasn’t cool.”

Taehyung just shrugged. “Nah, I probably would’ve done the same thing.”

You secretly agreed that you were in the right but still, if he was being a big enough person to say sorry so should you. You turned your attention back to the drink in your hands, taking a sip.

You nearly moaned in pleasure when the flavor graced your taste buds.

“What did you put in this?”

“Oh just some cinnamon and-”

“Ginger.” You interrupted, knowing without a doubt that it was the other spice.

“Yup. Why? Is something wrong?” He asked, probably worried you didn’t like it.

“No! It’s perfect.” You said before gulping down more of the nostalgic hot chocolate. “When I was a kid, I had a babysitter who would make her hot chocolate with cinnamon and ginger. Mrs Fritz was her name, a really kind old lady from down the street. I was her favorite so she made hot chocolate for me all the time and watched me for free whenever my parents went out.”

Taehyung hummed, a small smile on his face as you fondly recalled one of the biggest figures of your childhood. “She must’ve had great taste.”

“Mrs. Fritz had impeccable taste.” You good-naturedly corrected with a giggle. “I miss her. When other kids wouldn’t play with me she would stay inside with me and color or read me these cool stories.”

“I would’ve played with you.” Taehyung grumbled, in all likelihood noting how you grimaced at the memory of not being all too popular as a kid.

“Haha, you definitely wouldn’t have! I was such a dork and actually hated playing outside. Kid me much rather be at home watching some old movies or something. Not to mention I was quite an ugly little girl.” You laughed.

Tae gasped dramatically, “That’s not true! You were adorable!”

“You saw like one picture of me at eight! And my mom did me all up for that picture! Trust me, I didn’t look that good at all.”

Taehyung looked like he wanted to argue further, but realizing you were right he just dropped it with an unconvincing, “Whatever you say.”

“But anyway babe, you really can go back to painting. I don’t want to keep you. If I had any inspiration right now, you wouldn’t be able to tear me away from my laptop.”

His arm tugged you even closer. “Nope, I’m alright where I’m at right now. What kind of boyfriend would I be if I left my sick girlfriend all alone?”

You blushed, logically aware that you could handle yourself but emotionally over the moon that this beautiful man didn’t want you to. Selfishly, you wanted to take advantage of his presence even if it came at the expense of his art progress. So you placed the mostly empty mug on the coffee table, fishing out your phone from your sweatpant pocket and setting it there too.

You then curled up into his side, suddenly feeling so drowsy.

Taehyung held you closer, even playing with your hair as you lost the battle with your increasingly heavy eyelids.

You felt him press his lips against your forehead in a drawn out peck, as his nose ticked the crown of your head. He inhaled deeply, his everlasting love for your shampoo revealing itself once more.

“You okay?” His baritone voice whispered.

“Yeah. I just took some medicine that’s probably making me all sleepy.” You mumbled back.

You didn’t hear anything else, just felt as he rested his head on top of yours, presumably also closing his eyes to rest.

Slowly but surely feeling the mechanisms of your brain shut down, the darkness steadily taking over as the sound of the tv became more and more distant.

A notification from your phone caused you to open a single eye, quickly scanning the screen on the coffee table.

Taebear: Hey almost done over here! Do you mind turning down the TV a bit tho? Kinda distracting :(

Before you can even gasp, the medicine-induced darkness consumed you completely, effectively and brutally knocking you out.

That was the second incident.

–

“So like I was saying, I dumped his ass because what the fuck do you mean you ‘don’t know what we are’? I met his damn parents, Y/n!”

The voice blarred over the phone speaker, as you hummed rather noncommittally. “What a jerk. You can do a whole lot better, Lisa.”

You were in the laundry room, slowly taking clothes out of the dryer and folding them as you spoke on the phone with one of your closest friends. About once a week you two would have a call and catch each other up with your lives. Although, Lisa led a much more interesting life than you and usually had a crazy story to share every week, while you just reacted to it. It was kinda like a one listener podcast, but you didn’t mind as you were always very entertained with her.

“Thank you! I don’t know where I keep finding these guys. You really got lucky with Taehyung, all the other men our age are such assholes.” She groaned.

You wanted to laugh, but at the mention of your boyfriend’s name you froze.

Not catching your silence, Lisa continued, “Anyway, how are you and Taehyung doing? What’s it like to live together only six months into a relationship?”

“Actually…we had our first fight.” You told her. “Maybe. I don’t know. It may not even be considered a fight so much as a disagreement but I’ve been feeling a little awkward.”

“Oooh, what happened?” She didn’t even try to mask her excitement.

“It…I…Something happened and he didnt…I don’t know, Lisa. I’m going to sound crazy but I feel like I’m experiencing a glitch in the matrix or some shit.”

She pushed, “Try me. Remember when I used to be a flat earther? I’ll believe anything.”

Lisa made a good point, she was always down for conspiracies and even proclaimed herself a supernatural expert. So you relented, “Okay. Look, I don’t want you to laugh at me or anything because I’m being completely honest. I’m telling you this because I desperately need theories.”

“I promise I’ll give you a theory! Just get to it!” She barked over the phone, anxiously awaiting your story.

“Um, so earlier this week I went downstairs and saw Taehyung. I talked to him about ordering out instead of cooking, hugged him then went up the stairs. Then not even a second later Taehyung came home with groceries, telling me he wasn’t in the house at all when I said I saw him.” You paused, waiting for her to interject.

“Huh…” She trailed off, stumped herself with what that could mean.

“And yesterday, I went to Tae’s workspace to try to cuddle but he said he needed a bit more time with his painting and then he’d meet me upstairs. I went to the couch to wait and he suddenly came in and apologized for not believing me earlier. We cuddled and talked then…I got a text from Taehyung asking me to turn the tv down because it was distracting him.”

You took a deep breath to calm your rising nerves, not liking how you were managing to scare yourself all over again. “Lisa, how was I in Taehyung's arms when Taehyung wasn’t even in the room with me?”

“How did this other Taehyung act? Was he any different than your actual boyfriend?”

“I mean, the first time he didn’t say a word and I left the room quickly. The second time he was so sweet and…I don’t know. Maybe even nicer than my actual boyfriend but not like suspiciously so.”

“And there’s no difference between him and Taehyung? Same height, voice, birthmarks, everything?”

“Yes.”

A brief silence as she no doubt was working with a theory. “And you’ve never had experiences like this before you moved into that farmhouse?”

“None.”

“Ah-ha! It’s probably a ghost then!” She assured triumphantly.

You, however, weren’t so sure she solved the case. “A ghost that looks exactly like my boyfriend?”

“Well, crazier things have happened. You know, scientists say that each person has around six doppelgangers out there somewhere. What if this ghost was your boyfriend's doppelganger?”

“Still, why would he act like he was my boyfriend? Like, this ghost must have a different name and background than my Taehyung so why does he go along with it whenever I call him Taehyung and treat him like a boyfriend?” You questioned.

“The afterlife can get pretty dull. The ghost is probably just bored and noticed that Taehyung looks alot like him, so he’s using that to his advantage to mess around.”

“That doesn’t make me feel better.” You grumbled, pissed at the prospect of you being a little plaything to a bored spirit.

“I know babe but ghosts are mostly harmless. If it really starts to bother you, maybe get a medium to move him along or whatever.” Lisa advised.

“Yeah, maybe.” – Mom: Look what I found!

The text came with a video attached, and you clicked it without thinking much.

A chubby little girl of about three to five years of age was badly hiding in a school cubby. Her mini feet sticking out and wiggling as the rest of her body was covered by a hung up winter coat. The cameraman sighed dramatically from behind the scenes, asking loudly, “Oh where could Y/n possibly be?!”

The girl giggled and a new figure slowly snuck into frame, approaching the cubby with a large grin.

The preschool teacher suddenly reached into the cubby and snatched the girl up, holding her up in the air as if the toddler was a prize of some sort. “Gotcha!”

The mini version of you laughed in her hold, kicking the air in glee. “Miss Addison you found me! You’ll find me anywhere, right?”

The young teacher nodded as she placed you on your feet. “Of course! I have a really good Y/n sense! I’ll find you anywhere.”

“Even the moon?” Innocent you asked, most likely just having learned about the star.

“Yes, I’ll find you on the moon if I have to!” Miss Addison chuckled.

The video ended and you went to type your mom a half-hearted reply, mostly inquiring how she still even had that clip after all these years.

While doing so, you caught yourself wishing that you could show this to Taehyung and prove that you were indeed not the best company as a child, your teacher had to play hide-and-seek with you because no one else would.

Yet, it wasn’t Taehyung you had that particular conversation with. Rather other Taehyung.

Or as you and Lisa had nicknamed; ghost Taehyung.

You failed to tell your boyfriend about the second incident. He woke you up an hour or so later with his promised bowl of soup, softly scolding you for never turning down the tv.

Deep inside you were sure that he was already convinced you were crazy from the first time his replica showed up. You didn’t seek to push that theory even further. Mostly because you didn’t want him to admit you to a psych ward, but also because of another glaring reason. The first time you were sure that Taehyung himself was messing with you somehow, which prompted you to accuse him, but this time around you knew for a fact he was innocent.

Instinctively, you didn’t feel threatened by the doppelganger spirit. If anything you sorta wished he’d pop up again with a ginger-cinnamon hot chocolate. It was kinda weird that he was acting like your boyfriend when he wasn’t, but he didn’t try to be too intimate with you or anything. The lease on the farmhouse was only twelve months so you could put up with a friendly ghost for a while if need be.

The only creepy thing was that you weren’t sure how you were going to tell if you were talking to the real Taehyung or not. Thankfully, the sick day incident seemed to be the last one, the last few days being almost eerily mundane.

The door to your bedroom suddenly slammed open, revealing your beaming boyfriend.

He held up a champagne bottle with one hand and two glasses in the other. “Guess what just happened!”

You sat up in bed and placed your phone on the nightstand as he giddily approached you. “What? Are we celebrating something?”

“Only the Bauhaus Gallery agreeing to schedule a showing for my latest collection!”

You jumped up in surprise, instantly wrapping your arms around him and plastering his face with kisses. “Oh my god! Tae! That’s amazing! I’m so proud of you! When is it?!”

“Next Friday at eight.” He chuckled through your kisses, fully basking in your attention.

The Bauhaus gallery was an uppity German gallery in town that apparently served as a who's who in the world of painting. Personally, you didn’t get what the big deal was, but Taehyung made it one of his career goals to have a show there. He always said that his career would really take off if he could showcase his work at such a place.

You pulled back and began thinking out loud as Taehyung worked on the bottle, “Wow, okay! I need to get a dress. And we should invite some friends to support you. Oh! Namjoon and his wife would probably try to buy a painting so we should see if they’re free-”

Taehyung cut you off with the resounding pop of the bottle, “Yeah yeah, we can plan that all out later. Right now I just wanna celebrate with my pretty girlfriend please.”

You quieted down and held the glasses as he poured. He then placed the bottle aside, took a glass and held it up for you to clink. You did so while your boyfriend declared, “To my collection and girlfriend; both beautiful and priceless!”

“You better announce that again at the afterparty!” You laughed, covering your blush.

You both finished the drinks rather quickly, him with a refreshing “ahh” and you with a cringe. Champagne really was overrated in your opinion, having no idea why it was the token celebratory drink. The glasses were then shoved somewhere aside, courtesy of Tae.

You laid back down in the bed, Taehyung unhurriedly following suit and even climbing on top of you at a leisurely pace.

Taehyung’s face was now inches away from yours, his every breath tickling your skin. His previous mood of joy shifted into something more…sultry. Cat eyes darkened, fully taking you in with a steadily growing smirk. The artist licked this bottom lip in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it speed, before quirking one brow up in faux inquiry. His voice was low and husky, purring into your ears, “You know, it’s been a while since we’ve fucked.”

You snorted, “Gee, that’s hard to believe when you put me in the mood like that.”

“You like a man who's upfront.” He shrugged, not wasting a second more as he leaned down to slowly melt his lips against yours.

The intimate sensation felt almost foreign, the last few days having only been filled with obligatory pecks due to you two being so caught up in your work. You almost forgot how talented he was at making you feel special.

You kissed back just as slowly, feeling the intensity of his lips and taking the time to reacquaint yourself with them. It was gentle, deep, and meaningful. He kissed you gingerly, carefully, but that’s not what you wanted. Not after all this time. Pent-up sexual frustration caused you to knot your fists in his shirt, pulling him harder against you.

Taehyung groaned softly, low in his throat while encircling you in his arms to gather you against him. You two rolled over in the bed, tangled in the sheets, still locked at the lips.

His tongue slips into your mouth, tender but demanding. You swirl your tongue against his, moaning into his mouth as his hands snuck up to twist in your hair and grip you impossibly closer. Taehyung’s slight stubble prickles you, but somehow the extra sensation just excites you even more. Your boyfriend's lips pull back and meet their ultimate home at your neck, him now mouthing fervently at the sensitive nerves there as you gasped for air.

As you felt hotter and hotter, Taehyung answered your unsaid prayer and positioned his thigh between your legs, obscenely brushing against the place you needed him most. Knowing you like the back of his hand, he purposefully tensed his thigh as you not-so-subtly grinded against it, all the while he sucked and nibbled at the spot just below your ear.

A tug at your clothes.

Softly biting your earlobe, he whispered, “Be a good girl for me and take this shit off.”

Just when you were about to oblige, an unexpected sound cut through all the haze and caused you both to freeze.

It sounded like a…bang?

From somewhere deep within the house.

It was so loud and shrill, it effortlessly echoed off the walls of your humble bedroom. If you had to describe it, it was as if someone had just thrown a bowling ball with all their might.

Undoubtedly snapping into protector mode, Taehyung immediately jumped off of you and reached under the bed to retrieve a metal baseball bat.

“Stay here.” He ordered, already marching out the door before you could even protest.

You fearfully obeyed, reaching for your phone in case 911 had to be called.

Your once warm and flushed body was now icy with panic. Sitting upright in the bed, you strained your ears for any idea of what was occurring downstairs.

But alas, the house remained freakily silent. Almost as if that brutal sound was in your head and nothing more.

This did nothing to help your anxiety, a cold sweat quickly forming.

Minutes passed, you waited with bated breath for something. Anything.

But nothing ever came.

Your worry grew tenfold.

The longer Taehyung was away, the more you felt weighed down with dread, heart nearly in your throat.

‘What was happening downstairs? Was Taehyung okay? Did he find something? If there was a struggle, surely you would’ve heard it by now, right?’

Then ultimately, as the seconds ticked on, ‘Was your boyfriend going to come back?’

At the ten-minute mark, you made your decision.

Now concerned for your boyfriend’s safety, you sprung out of bed and ran out of the room. Your body purposefully moving too fast for your mind to catch up and halt your movements in the name of self-preservation.

“Taehyung?!” You desperately called out as you practically plummeted down the stairs.

“In here!” A croaky voice answered, sounding like your boyfriend but oddly…defeated?

You correctly traced the voice to his workroom, stepping into the space and seeing a scene that swiftly broke your heart, effectively replacing all your fright with woe.

Taehyung was on his knees in front of an easel, head bowed down.

The easel held a half-done canvas.

It was a sketch of two people, a man and a woman that closely resembled you and Taehyung.

It was partly painted, the scene depicting a warm sunny day at the park that looked alot like where Taehyung had taken you for a picnic and officially asked you to be his girlfriend. You were in Taehyung’s arms, kissing his cheek as he smiled his signature box-smile. You could recall that precise moment easily, you had just said yes to being his and sheepishly pecked his cheek, embarrassed by the old man on the bench a few feet away that eyed you two like a hawk.

It was a wonderful piece of unfinished art, not only due to the sentimental value but also the artistry and time that clearly went into it.

If only there weren't angry red sloshes of paint that cut through it, ruining the picture and turning it into something that looked like a horrible bloody mess of goo and not the romantic day it was.

“I-I was going to gift this to you….on our seventh month.” Taehyung’s voice was watery.

You didn’t even know what to say.

All of his hard work and thought was simply…gone. Erased. Ruined.

It would’ve been the equivalent of someone breaking into your laptop and deleting your entire novel’s draft. What would you even do? If roles were reversed, would there even be a way for Taehyung to console you? To make matters worse, it was his gift of love to you. He didn’t make that painting for himself, a buyer, or a collection…he made it for you.

Your empathy made you almost cry for him, but you knew that would be the last thing he’d want to see right now. His guilt would only grow.

You walked further into the room and got on your knees beside him.

Wrapping your arms around him, you cradled his head in the nook between your head and shoulder while rocking the two of you. “Tae baby, I’m so sorry.”

He didn’t say anything for a while, although you felt wet teardrops on your skin.

“Who would do this? It doesn’t make sense why someone would break in, take nothing and just destroy my gift?”

You didn’t know either, but you wanted to make him feel better. “Listen, I think it was the perfect gift. It’s really the thought that counts and I’m just happy that you even thought to make me something like that. Especially in the middle of working on your own collection, it must’ve been hard.”

Taehyung pulled back, regarding you with a tearful but hopeful gaze. “Really?”

“Of course! I was literally going to just get you a watch or something. That gift kinda would have made me look bad.” You attempted to joke.

He shakily smiled, even chuckling a bit before pulling back entirely and standing to his full height. Tae then held a hand out for you, pulling you up as well.

Not wanting to be in the room anymore with that awful mess, you gradually pushed him towards the door, eventually up the stairs and into your bedroom.

You both sat on the bed, him with his head in his hands and you awkwardly suggesting yet another early night in.

But instead of agreeing and attempting to join you under the covers, Taehyung continued to sit almost painfully still at the edge of your bed.

Then, he spoke.

“Y/n, you were lying when you said that guy was probably just a figment of your imagination.”

It wasn’t a question.

He knew.

He believed you now.

–

It was now the official opinion of the house that a ghost was indeed roaming around somewhere.

You wanted to pat yourself on the back because truly, your taste in men was superior.

Taehyung wasn’t one of those horror movie boyfriends that was convinced every unexplainable occurrence must’ve had a logical explanation. It only took that one experience for the artist to admit that something weird was going on, and although he never saw the ghost himself, Taehyung believed you when you said it looked exactly like him.

You were happy that you two were on the same page…well, mostly.

Taehyung reasoned that the lookalike ghost must’ve been the one to ruin his painting.

You don’t know why, but somewhere deep within, that accusation just didn’t feel right. Without thinking much, you had told your boyfriend that destroying his gift didn’t seem like something ghost Tae would do.

Obviously Taehyung was bewildered at your sudden defense of the spirit’s character and demanded to know how you could be so sure that it wasn’t him.

Feeling that your hand was forced, you fessed up to the second incident in which you ran into the other Taehyung. You explained that he was sweet, brought you hot chocolate and even held you as you fell asleep. It was only after the real Taehyung texted you that you realized it wasn’t your boyfriend, but by then it was too late.

Your boyfriend was understandably furious.

For one, you never told him that you were cuddled and taken care of by another man, dead or otherwise. And secondly, this spirit seemed to be taking too much of a liking to you. The artist was a weird mixture of jealous and protective, following you around the house and barely leaving you alone in fear that his replica would show up and snatch you away.

You thought he was overreacting, but Taehyung's determination to get rid of the ghost only grew as the days passed.

One day you took a break from writing and went downstairs to refresh your coffee, when you paused at the sight of your boyfriend waving an odd burning stick around the living room in a fashion that somehow made sense to him.

“Sage cleanses the home of negative energy and basically tells unwanted spirits to fuck off.” He told you as if you were the idiot and not him- wildly thrashing his arm around in a puff of smoke and demanding that his evil ghost twin left the premises immediately.

You shrugged, “Just don’t set off the smoke detector, please.”

The next day, Taehyung informed you over dinner that he called a security camera company and had ordered a set to be installed in your home.

“Don’t you think that’s kinda a big fucking thing to not run by me?”

“I’m sorry baby, but I knew you wouldn’t have agreed.” He apologized without seeming even the tiniest bit apologetic.

“If you knew I wouldn’t have wanted it then why do it anyway?!”

“Because as the man of the house it’s my job to protect us and I would like to witness everything that’s going on. Next time he comes out and tries to touch you, I will be able to see it from my phone and confront him.” He then reached for his water and took a self righteous sip before muttering under his breath, “That is if the sage didn’t kick him out already.”

“Man of the house?!” You echoed incredulously. “You call twirling around with some burning twigs and yelling at a harmless ghost being the man of the house?”

“He’s not harmless! Why are you so convinced that it’s just a casper that we’re dealing with?!”

You opened your mouth to retort, but snapped it shut when you realized you didn’t really have any reason to believe he wasn’t dangerous. So you just focused on the main glaring issue, “Nevermind that. I just don’t like how you made a big decision without telling me. Are we not equal in this relationship? It wasn’t even worth consulting me about?”

Taehyung didn’t say anything.

It would seem that he understood your point, but was stubbornly holding onto his just a tad more.

Appetite ruined, you stormed away in a display of vexation.

Not wanting to go to sleep beside him either, you stayed all night in your office and tried to just focus on editing the latest version of your draft.

Somewhere along the way, you managed to fall asleep on the keyboard.

You blearily awoke hours later to the sound of the door firmly shutting.

Groggily you sat up and twisted to see if anyone else was in the room with you, all the while rubbing off the key imprints on your cheek and leftover drool.

No one was there.

When you turned your attention back to the desk, you softly gasped in surprise.

A plate of grilled cheese sat there, still hot.

Alongside it was a steaming mug of hot chocolate.

One sip and you instantly recognized the ginger-cinnamon.

It wasn’t your boyfriend who left this.

The sage didn’t work.

–

Ralph was a man of about fifty years of age.

Tall, lumbering, calloused and not necessarily easy on the eyes, he shifted awkwardly at the entrance of your delicate farmhouse as Taehyung listed off the places in the home that he’d like covered.

Ralph was to set up the cameras while you and your boyfriend went out for a quick errand.

The gallery showing was tomorrow, and so was the little afterparty that you had arranged to take place. You did so without really realizing all that you would need for hosting. The guest list was an intimate circle of seven, but given you and Taehyung were running out of groceries for even just the two of you, you figured a trip to the market was needed to properly prepare.

You rolled your eyes and waited for your boyfriend to finish his little pep talk, sighing in relief when Ralph was finally free to disappear into the living room with his bag of tools.

“Ready?” You asked Taehyung, not really waiting for an answer as you stomped past him and out the door.

He followed you wordlessly to the car.

The ride into town was stiff and awkward, neither one of you saying anything and music not even playing in the background as Taehyung drove.

You both were still angry at each other.

Well, more like you were angry at him and he was correctly trying to not poke the bear by instigating useless chatter.

The cameras were overkill in your opinion and a giant waste of money. You both were artists, which means a severe lack of steady income. You needed to be smart with what you threw cash at because no one knew if your next book or his next painting would even sell. Nothing was ever guaranteed.

You felt for him that his gift was wrecked, but you weren’t lying when you said that the thought was all that really mattered to you. You genuinely didn’t care either way, it would’ve been nice to have the painting, but it was just as nice to know that he was painting one for you.

If you were a betting woman, you would bet that this was more about Taehyung’s unfounded jealousy than anything else. Usually you would find harmless jealousy kind of attractive, but not when it went into installing cameras into your home at the “low” price of a couple hundred dollars.

You thought of this in a quiet rage as Taehyung pulled into the grocery store.

He parked, you both got out and walked inside before grabbing a cart.

“Let’s split up.” You said, your tone leaving no room for argument.

“Fine. What do you want me to get?”

“Get the drinks. They’re mainly your friends so you’d know what they’d like more than me. I’ll get some stuff for a charcuterie board.” You ordered, just wanting to get back home as soon as possible

He nodded and swiftly went over to the alcohol section as you made way into the food aisles.

You were looking at the different types of crackers and wondering what the fuck the difference was when a sudden call of your name took your attention.

“Y/n?”

The voice was light and airy, tone warm and nostalgic to the ears.

No way.

It can’t be…

You swirled around to face the owner, nearly choking on your spit when you realized your suspicions were correct.

Park Jimin was as gorgeous as ever. The cherub face was just as you recalled, somehow both ruggedly handsome and softly docile. His eyes crinkled behind a pearly smile, a small hand coming up to swiftly brush through his dyed blonde hair as he approached you.

“I thought that was you.” He chuckled. “How have you been? It’s been so long.”

You managed a wry smile.

Jimin was once your college boyfriend of one year, five months, and eight days.

But hey, who was counting?

“I’m doing okay.” You choked out, not liking how he quickly frowned at your strained tone. If there was one man you could never lie to, it was Jimin. “How about yourself? Did you open up that studio you always wanted?”

The truth was you knew he did. Before meeting and dating Taehyung, you were guilty of occasionally checking his social media. It simply couldn’t be helped. Jimin was the longest relationship you ever had. The first man you ever really loved. And your first ever heartbreak.

“Um, yeah I did! I heard you published your first book last year. I bought a few copies myself…” he trailed off sheepishly, suddenly avoiding eye contact. “It uh, was really well written. Are you um, working on anything now?”

You bit your lip, not sure how you felt about the man you were once wildly in love with reading your novel after years of not talking. Much less buying more than one copy to support you. “Y-Yes I’m writing my second book.”

He nodded, a proud expression on his face as he pursed his lips in thought.

“I’m sorry this is…weird.” He finally huffed. “I really didn’t think I’d ever see you again.”

You sighed with some relief, thankful he felt the same way. “Same. After you said you wanted to date other people I really didn’t expect to say another word to you like, ever.”

Jimin laughed, “Haha, what? Your memory continues to suck, Y/n. If anything it was you who ghosted-”

“Y/n.”

A much deeper voice cut through the air, bringing all the attention to a new figure descending upon the scene.

Taehyung strode up from behind you, placing an arm around you and regarding the other man with a brooding look of regard.

“Whose this?” Your boyfriend asked, purposefully deepening his already deep voice.

You inwardly rolled your eyes, noting how the artist was practically puffing his chest and glowering at the much shorter man.

“Taehyung, this is my old friend Jimin. Jimin, this is my boyfriend Taehyung.”

The two stiffly nodded at each other, you dodging the questioning look Jimin secretly shot at you for being described as ‘an old friend’.

A pregnant pause hung in the air.

“So…how long have you two been together?”

Before either you or your boyfriend could answer, a pretty lady suddenly skipped into the aisle and grasped onto Jimin’s arm.

“Babe, I can’t find the oat milk! I thought you said- Oh hello!” She just now noticed you and Taehyung, smiling politely and not-so-subtly nudging at Jimin to introduce her.

“Oh, um, this is Molly.”

“His girlfriend! And you two are?”

“I’m Y/n and this is my boyfriend Taehyung.” You introduced. “Jimin and I went to school together.”

“Really? I never get to meet any of Jimin’s old friends! We should have a double date or something!” Molly was an over the top girl, your ears almost ringing at the volume she exuded. But she seemed nice, so you smiled warmly at her and vaguely agreed.

Another brief, awkward and only slightly painful silence.

“Actually…” You trailed off in thought, an idea forming in your head but you didn’t know if it was a good one. Yet it was too late. Before you could even backtrack, all three sets of eyes were on you, eagerly waiting for you to finish the thought. “…what are you two doing tomorrow night?”

“Was just gonna drag Jiminnie to see this new movie! We can totally blow it off though!”

“Well, my boyfriend is a really talented artist and he has a showing tomorrow night. We’d love it if you two could make it.”

You felt Taehyung stiffen beside you, but you paid it no mind.

From what you understood about showings the more people, the more eyes, the better. It was harmless, wasn’t it? Jimin bought multiple copies of your book, and you’d invite him to a gallery showing to please his over hyper girlfriend.

Even, right?

Molly beamed, asking for your number to exchange the details.

You did so, pretending not to notice how both Jimin and Taehyung bore their stares into you.

When finished, you waved goodbye to the couple as they made their way to the dairy section. You and Taehyung then continued your own shopping in a rushed manner- your boyfriend grumbling about having to get back in time for the cameras.

The ride home was a bit more talkative, with Taehyung asking how you knew of Jimin and what made you two friends. You answered the questions rather honestly, just leaving out the parts about how your friendship blossomed into something more.

You weren’t exactly trying to be deceitful. It was just that he was under a lot of stress and paranoia the last few days, you didn’t want to push his poor nerves any further. If he was willing to set up a bunch of cameras to keep some ghost away from you, you didn’t want to push your luck by mentioning that Jimin was your ex boyfriend and longest relationship.

Besides, it wasn’t like Jimin was any kind of threat. You would never entertain the idea of going back to the guy who dumped you. He also now had Molly, so clearly you both moved on.

Taehyung pulled the car into the driveway, asking if you could handle the few bags as he went in to talk to Ralph and sort out the last few steps of installation. You agreed, watching him jog into the home as you gathered all the groceries and took your time to get inside.

You beelined straight to the kitchen with the newly bought food, raising your brows when you saw Taehyung staring at something intently on the counter.

“What is it?”

Taehyung didn’t answer.

You walked up behind him and stood on your tippy toes to spot over his shoulder what he was looking at.

It was a note, in messy and hurried handwriting.

“Sorry but the cameras could not have been installed. It won’t work here. -Ralph.”

–

If there was any man on top of the world tonight- his name was Kim Taehyung.

The Bauhaus gallery was swarmed with countless people, all clamoring to gaze upon the latest Kim collection and ponder the intricate meanings behind each piece. They wore luxury clothes and drank fancy wine that you couldn’t even pronounce, their tax bracket clearly a couple pegs above yours. There was of course some idle chatter, almost every corner of the building being filled with some pretentious snob rambling about the brush strokes, artistic style and commentary your boyfriend was allegedly trying to make with his art.

Such a crowd was not something you were accustomed to.

Thus you clung to Lisa, both idly sipping at wine and watching your boyfriend from afar as he charmingly answered questions.

“You know, he’s going to make thousands of dollars tonight.” Lisa thought out loud. “These rich types will outbid each other like crazy.”

You shrugged nonchalantly. You were happy for him, and knew he deserved it but you would be lying if you said he wasn’t in the doghouse.

“Still mad huh?” Lisa correctly assumed, reading your expression. “What happened after the camera dude disappeared?”

“Taehyung was really upset and called the company to demand his money back. They refunded him entirely, apologized and even sent someone to get the company van. I guess the Ralph dude was an alcoholic and everyone just kinda accepts that he skipped town.” You explained. “I tried to calm him down but he sorta snapped at me about how I never even wanted the cameras so I was probably just loving it all.”

Lisa lowly whistled, “Damn. Well, he probably snapped about the cameras but I promise you it wasn’t just about that.”

“What do you mean?”

“You invited your ex to his showing.” Lisa lectured, as if you were a child who didn’t even understand what you did wrong.

You stuttered, “B-But he doesn’t know Jimin is an ex! I told him he was just an old friend.”

She rolled her eyes, “Y/n of course he would see right through that. There's always going to be chemistry between Jimin and you, he probably picked up on it and is aware you’re not telling the complete truth about what you two were.”

“He’s just overly jealous. He wants to fight our ghost too. At this point, every man is a threat to him.”

At the mention of your ghost, Lisa’s eyes practically sparkled. “Oh I can’t wait to go back to your place! I want to feel the haunted energy for myself.”

Now it was your turn to roll your eyes, “It’s just like any other home, Lisa.”

“That’s because you don’t have a psychic sense to save your life, Y/n.”

You didn’t know whether or not to be offended by that, so you decided to distract yourself by scanning the room for your boyfriend’s invited friends.

Kim Namjoon was an old boss of Taehyung that remained good friends with the artist even after he dumped his job to take up painting full time. Currently, he and his wife Jennifer were talking rather seriously to a thin-lipped curator, most likely about purchasing one of the artworks displayed.

Right across from where you and Lisa stood, Taehyung was conversing with his former coworkers; Jin and Hoseok. They appeared to be laughing about something, their lightheartedness standing out in the overly serious room of people.

If you craned your neck a little to the left, you could spot Yoongi and Jungkook hiding in a corner away from everyone else, almost perfectly mimicking you and your close friend. They both nursed their drinks quietly, occasionally sharing words but mainly just waiting out this event.

You always kind of thought that Lisa and Jungkook would make a good pairing if properly introduced and pushed. So you turned to your friend and was just about to suggest you guys walk over, when she made a face at something behind you.

“Uh oh, here comes the ex.” She mumbled.

You turned around to indeed see Jimin and Molly approaching.

Jimin wore a suit, dress shirt unbuttoned at the top to reveal some of his sun kissed chest. His blonde hair was properly done this time, brushed to the side and back to fully expose his forehead. He raised a hand and waved, rings catching the light and nearly blinding you in the process.

Beside him, Molly looked as pretty as ever in a blue sweetheart dress that complimented her figure. Yet, she looked rather irritated. She attempted to give you a smile in greeting, but it looked more like a grimace.

Jimin spoke first, “Hey, I’m so sorry we’re late. I’m hoping we didn’t miss too much?”

You wanted to be annoyed but without meaning to, a giggle escaped you.

“Things really don’t change.” You told Jimin, a knowing look simmering in your eyes. While dating, you guys were often the couple that showed up late to any event. Most people assumed that it was your doing because you were the girl, when in all actuality it was Jimin.

Jimin shamelessly grinned, “I’ve gotten better, I swear.”

You didn’t believe it for a second and he knew it.

You both shared a laugh, staring at each other fondly like old friends reliving the old times.

It was hard to believe that you were joking with the man you once thought you’d never get over or forgive. Countless nights were spent eating your feelings, hysterically crying and obsessing over all the videos or pictures you couldn’t bring yourself to delete.

But there are some people in life that as soon as they come back, it’s like they never left.

And it was almost as if Jimin never left.

You two continued to gaze into each other, lost in your own comfortable bubble when a sudden throat clearing broke the haze.

“Um, actually the showing is almost over.” Lisa informed, her and Molly visibly looking left out of the nostalgia.

Your ex had the decency to look guilty. “Oh no! I’m so sorry! Maybe we can all just get drinks? There’s a nice bar two blocks down. I can buy a round for everyone?”

“That’s sweet but we have a little after party planned back at my place. I live kind of out of town though, so it’s okay if you can’t make it.”

“No! We can make it! What's the address?” Jimin seemed eager.

You told him, him pulling out his phone to save it into his gps system.

Molly was silent all this time, which was kind of worrying as your first meeting with her led you to believe she was the bubbly type. Now that you mentioned it, it looked like she was avoiding looking at either you or her boyfriend, focusing on a spot on the wall somewhere behind you.

You opened your mouth to maybe ask if she was alright, but quickly shut it when you realized that could be overstepping some boundary.

Fortunately, Lisa seemed to have enough of this entire interaction and grabbed your arm while saying, “Me and Y/n were just going to go to the restroom! Please take a good look around and enjoy her boyfriend’s work! See you guys at the after party!”

Your friend then swiftly dragged you away, barely leaving you enough time to smile apologetically at the couple.

When you both entered the restroom, Lisa simply marched up to the sink and began fixing invisible smudges in her makeup as you shifted awkwardly beside her.

“So…” She started, looking you up and down in the mirror. “Please tell me you know Jimin is still in love with you.”

“W-What?! No way!” You spluttered.

“Y/n it’s so obvious. I actually felt bad for his girlfriend. He couldn’t take his eyes off you.” She rolled her eyes, almost disappointed in your lack of awareness.

“It’s just been forever. It’s hard to not hyperfocus on eachother, we’ve both changed so much. Also, why would the guy who dumped me out of nowhere still be in love with me?”

She released a deep sigh, “He knows he made the shittiest mistake of his life and is now regretting it when seeing you and your talented boyfriend doing so well.”

You chuckled at the thought of someone looking at your relationship and being jealous.

“Listen, just remember tonight is Taehyung’s night and fighting or not, he’s still a wonderful boyfriend overall. And Jimin is your ex who broke your heart. Inviting him to your place after this might’ve been too much. I suggest you keep your distance.”

“Lisa, thanks for the advice but I honestly was just being friendly. He seemed sorry that he missed most of the showing. Besides, I’m going to be too busy hosting to have a deep heart to heart with him or anything.” You explained, a little offended that she thought you were going to play part in some dramatic reconciliation.

A sudden announcement echoed outside the restroom doors, your ears straining to hear a gallery worker asking everyone to gather on the main floor for the artist’s speech and thus the final part of the night.

Saying nothing more, Lisa and you made your exit to join the audience.

– The clock was nearing midnight.

Your usually quiet farmhouse of a home was not at all quiet.

Your boyfriend's friends were merrily talking and drinking, once in a while their masculine laughs would sync up and reverberate through the halls. They all conversed and lounged in the living room, the largest part of the house that could fit all of them comfortably. Yet, you and Lisa stayed in the kitchen, making the drinks and finger foods, as you indulged in harmless girl talk.

“The one with tattoos is so hot, Y/n. Please tell me he’s single!”

“Jungkook? I’m pretty sure he is. Taehyung told me that Namjoon is the only other one in the friend group that’s in a relationship.”

“Okay, so far so good.” She paused to pop a stuffed mushroom in her mouth, humming in thought. “What’s his type though? Like, would I have to make the first move? Does he like a straightforward girl? Because he hasn’t so much as looked at me tonight.”

“I’ve only met Taehyung’s friends once before so I don’t know their types or anything. I do think Jungkook looks a lot manlier than he actually is. He’s very kind but shy so you’ll have to talk to him first.” You explained while opening another bottle of wine for the two of you.

Lisa frowned at the thought, not used to being the one that had to chase.

You poured two glasses, handing her one with a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry, I can introduce you two. It’s kind of a good thing he’s avoiding you like the plague, Tae once said he only acts like that with pretty girls.”

Your friend lit up like the fourth of july.

“Hey babe!” A familiar deep voice called out.

You looked around to see your boyfriend stepping into the kitchen, a buzzed smile on his face and a slightly glazed film over his eyes.

Moments like these made you realize how much of a lightweight your boyfriend was. It only took one or two drinks for him to get tipsy. But it was still his night and he was already home amongst loved ones, so all you could do is smile endearingly at his slightly intoxicated self.

“Yes, handsome?”

His boxy grin grew, “The boys want more beer.”

“Already?! I put out a twelve pack! People need to be able to drive home, ya know!”

He laughed, “Baby, my friends can drink a gallon each and still be able to drive home with their eyes closed if need be.”

“Well I don’t have any more beer up here. Just wine. There might be some more in the basement, though.”

He nodded in thanks, turning his back to presumably go to the basement and retrieve the drinks.

Lisa waited for him to get fully out of earshot before leaning over and dramatically whispering, “How is Jimin and that Molly girl doing?”

You shrugged, “Last time I was in there, Hoseok was making conversation with Jimin and Molly was all over Yoongi.”

“Damn, trouble in paradise?”

“I don’t know. He didn’t seem too bothered and she seemed a little drunk. She might just get overly friendly when she drinks.”

“And you’re still convinced that he’s over you?”

You rolled your eyes but ultimately stayed silent, aware that the couple was acting sorta strange but also not so sure that you were the cause. You took your wine in one hand and a plate of appetizers in the other, motioning for Lisa to grab the rest and follow you.

When you both entered the living room, you were thrilled to spot Jungkook sitting alone on one of the loveseats. You quickly set the food down and pulled Lisa along with you, approaching him with a friendly smile meant to put him at ease. Considering the way his eyes widened at the sight of your friend, you didn’t know how successful you were.

“Hey Jungkook, it’s been a while!” You greeted.

“Y-Yeah it has been. How’s your erm, book going?”

“It’s doing okay, thanks for asking. Have you met my friend, Lisa?”

He briefly scanned your friend, nervously gulping before saying quietly, “…No I haven't.”

“Oh well, Lisa was just saying how much she liked your tattoos.” You nudged her, prompting her to say something.

She just nodded in agreement, suddenly meek.

He blushed, “Thank you.”

“Actually, Lisa, weren't you saying that you were thinking of getting a tattoo?” You pretended to think out loud, as if you weren’t outright playing them. You didn’t wait for her to answer the rhetorical question, “Jungkook, don’t you do tattoos now?”

Now on a topic of interest he was for sure confident in, Jungkook practically jumped in his seat, “Yeah! I do! I’ve only tatted myself and some friends but I hope to work on more people.”

You watched with a smirk as Lisa moved to sit next to Jungkook, her now explaining what she’d like done and Jungkook asking questions about placement, size and color.

You felt sure enough in them to leave them alone, now inhabiting your little corner as you finished your wine while taking in the scene.

Yoongi and Molly stood by the window, and were obviously the most inebriated. He was the type to ramble pointlessly when tipsy, and she giggled at every little thing he said, playfully shoving his shoulder once in a while. You knew for a fact that Yoongi was too deep in his own self-epiphanes to notice her bad flirting, either that or he was just trying to talk to anyone who was willing to listen.

Namjoon and Jennifer were sitting on the couch and talking to Jin, laughing at whatever odd impression he was attempting. Beside them on the loveseat, Hoseok was politely nodding along to small talk from Jimin. Being one of the friendliest and most calming of the group, it made sense that Hoseok was the one trying to make your ex boyfriend feel included.

Content to just watch your guests for a while, you stood by your lonesome and slowly sipped at the remnants of your wine.

Playing host wasn’t exactly your forte, so you were enjoying the little lull while it lasted. Unlike your boyfriend, your social battery tended to max out at the two-hour mark when in group settings.

And as much as you loved the people in your home (with maybe the exception of your ex and his girlfriend), you couldn’t wait for them to get out so you could take a long, hot shower and head to bed.

The stress of the last few days was really tiring you, and you just knew that as soon as the excitement of the showing and sold paintings wore off, Taehyung was going to continue his spat with you about the cameras.

When you and Jimin dated, you two were always on the same page. Fights very rarely happened. And Jimin was such a people pleaser that if literally anything slightly upset you, he would practically fall over himself to make you smile again.

Taehyung was the first boyfriend to genuinely pick a fight with you, being more stubborn than you about matters you didn’t necessarily want to back down from either. Your relationship conflict resolution skills were being tested, and you just didn’t have the patience or experience to keep fighting much longer. You would call a truce or some type of compromise, if it weren’t for the fact that there was no way to really keep both of you happy.

A few minutes passed as you pondered this to yourself.

Seemingly materializing out of nowhere, a mysterious arm wrapped around your waist.

The suddenness of it all caused you to jump and release a very unflattering squeak.

Speak of the devil and he shall appear.

A deep chuckle rumbled beside you, Taehyung smirking lazily before diving face first into your neck and nuzzling it in some sort of drunken stupor.

“Don’t sneak up on me like that!” You groaned, trying to forcefully shove his face away from you. “Where’s the beer you went to fetch?”

Your boyfriend expertly dodged your shove and dove back into your neck, mumbling against the skin something about not being able to find more drinks.

The vibration of his lips on such a sensitive spot made you want to squirm, but his halfhearted mumbles took your attention a bit more.

“No beer? I could’ve sworn-”

“Hey Y/n!” Someone interrupted with a call across the room. You looked up to see Lisa trudging over with a determined look on her face and a fogged up look in her eyes, perhaps a bit more tipsy than you remember leaving her. “Aren’t you going to show me where exactly you saw the ghost?”

Your dear friend most likely thought she was being discreet and having a normal conversation at a perfectly appropriate tone. But no, she was actually speaking way above a conversational volume, causing everyone else in the room to halt their conversations and turn to look at you.

“Ghost?” Jin laughed.

“You saw something in this room?” Hoseok inquired with a trembling voice, most likely regretting having come over. Beside him, Jimin quietly shook his head to himself.

“No way, Y/n doesn’t believe in stuff like that.” Your ex confidently informed the group.

At the sound of your past lover’s voice, you felt Taehyung stiffen beside you. The artist untangled himself from you, standing to his full height and facing the guest with an unknown expression.

“We had a little bit of a ghost problem, but it’s taken care of now.” He paused, and you could nearly hear his smirk when he went on to declare, “I got rid of it.”

Yoongi laughed boisterously, having to hold himself up with the wall to prevent falling over. “I’m sorry, but the image of little Tae boxing a little sheet with two holes for eyes is really sending me.”

Half your guests laughed at the thought. The other more believing half still stared at you inquisitively.

An awkward silence.

“Ghosts are real.” Jennifer started, effortlessly drawing all eyes to her. “I used to live in a haunted house when I was a kid.”

She put her drink down and folded her hands across her lap, suddenly immersed in thought and careful about what she was about to share.

“In my childhood home, there was a garden in the backyard. Almost everyday, at sunset, I’d look out the window and see this lady circling the flowers and humming to herself. After ten minutes or so, she would disappear into thin air. I told my parents but they never believed me.”

She paused, either for dramatic effect or to recollect.

“Until one day, my mom saw her too. And when she went out to confront what she thought was an intruder, the lady disappeared before her eyes. My mom then did some digging about the history of the house and it turns out, the previous owner was outside gardening when she had a heart attack and died.”

A pregnant pause hung in the air as everyone silently digested the anecdote.

“That’s fucking terrifying, please tell me your parents moved houses after that.” Hoseok broke the silence first, pleading with watery eyes.

Namjoon’s wife laughed, reaching for her drink once more. “How is it scary? The lady was just checking on her garden in the afterlife. However, I then grew up really interested in supernatural stuff.” She turned to you. “There’s some tell-tale signs that a home has a spirit attached to it. Cold spots, shadow figures, whispers, scary dreams and the biggest of all: always feeling like you're being watched, even if there’s no one else in the room.”

You quietly thought to yourself. Were there any cold spots in the home? No. Any shadow figures? Nope. Whispers and nightmares? Nada.

But…the last one, being watched when no one is there.

If you really focused on your intuition, you faintly felt that even now amongst all these people, you were being watched by something unknown.

Goosebumps raised on the surface of your arms.

Chills ran down your spine and you shivered, the reaction causing Taehyung to grasp you tighter against him in what was supposed to be comfort.

You felt even more cold.

“We haven’t had any of that. Really guys, it’s taken care of.” Your boyfriend told the room, effectively shutting down the paranormal subject.

You assumed Taehyung felt a bit defensive of his ghost expelling skills, either that or he genuinely wanted another topic of discussion.

You then felt a little bad, it was still his night after all and here you were unintentionally ruining it with your little ghost stories. The focus of the room should be on him and his achievements, not everyone's supernatural beliefs and stories.

“Taehyung is right, it’s all resolved. But I’d like to ask all of you to fill up your glasses one last time, and raise them with me, ” While they did that you quickly scanned the room, “Um, except maybe you, Yoongi. Feel free to sit this one out, bud.” You laughed as the drunk man just grumbled at you, defiantly snatching another beer and holding it high while swaying on his feet.

Hopefully he wasn’t the one driving home.

You cleared your throat, “I'd like to propose a toast to our own Taehyung. Everyone in this room knows it was only a matter of time before your artistic genius was recognized by the world, but that doesn’t make us any less proud than we are of you tonight. To the first of many showings! To Taehyung!”

“To Taehyung!” the room loudly parroted back, everyone thrusting their drinks of choice in the air before knocking them back.

The artist beside you laughed and shook his head, “Really, guys it’s no big deal. Just a few paintings that I’m lucky even got sold. But thanks so much for making it. Most of you-” he snapped a side eye where Jimin sat, “have supported me so much, I’m just happy to have such a great group of friends.”

Said friends all smiled and nodded, although a few caught on to Taehyung’s subliminal dig and warily looked over at your ex.

Jimin pursed a tight smile, clearly trying to be nice and not make it obvious that he was the outsider at the party. You caught his eye and shot him a sorry look, but he shook his head in what was clearly meant to say “don’t worry about it.”

Your boyfriend continued, “However! ‘Friends’ don’t really beat ‘love of my life’. So without getting into all the lewd details of how I plan to spend my night celebrating, I’m going to need you all to start clearing out,” Taehyung smirked. “Y/n is a screamer.”

“Ew!” Lisa shouted, beside her Jungkook was suddenly unable to make eye contact with you.

The older men in the room just cackled. You slapped the artist's chest while trying to hide your blood red face.

Taehyung ducked and mouthed at your ear to whisper, “Sorry baby, but you know it’s true. And don’t act like you don’t want them out sooner rather than later.”

You wanted to be mad, but understood he was tipsy and riding on the high of his showing. So instead you played along and harshly whispered to him, “I doubt you can make me scream tonight. It’s not right to be misleading to your friends.”

He tiled your head to make you face him.

Taehyungs’ left brow twitched in vexation, his lips pulling back in a little growl. He looked around to make sure the guests were distracted with finishing their drinks or saying their goodbyes to each other. When he confirmed no eyes were on you two, he secretly placed his hand at the back of your head, running his long fingers through your hair and stopping right at the ends, to quickly form a fist and pull.

It was just one short tug, but the power of it made you gasp.

You would be lying if you said it didn’t make you a little wet too.

You had no idea where this came from. He never pulled your hair. Your boyfriend wasn’t rough and was one of those really progressive artists types that viewed any kind of manhandling in the bedroom as sort of sexist. But when you peered up at him, with the doe eyes he said he loved so much, and saw the clouded nature of his gaze, you just knew that inebriated Tae was very different from sober Tae.

Black and white, really.

‘I’m in for quite the night’ you thought to yourself while biting your lip, inwardly smug at how Taehyung transparently honed in on the action.

“Um, hey I think I’ll take my leave first.” You looked up to see Jimin awkwardly shifting in front of you two, a blacked out Molly in his hold.

“Oh god! Is she okay?” You exclaimed, noting the poor girl looked dead.

The dancer chuckled, “Yeah, she just gets really hyper when she's drunk then passes out after a bit. Ironically, sleep is all she needs I guess since she always wakes up good as new. No hangover.”

“Here let me show you out. I can help put her in the car.” You offered, already detangling yourself from Taehyung. He made a small sound of protest and made move to hold you tighter.

You placed a hand on his shoulder and consoled him with a smile, “You wanted people to leave, so we should help everyone get home safe. Can you check on Yoongi and maybe see if Namjoon and Jennifer can take him home?”

He looked conflicted, carefully sizing Jimin up through his peripheral. You wanted to roll your eyes. Although tipsy Taehyung was apparently a sexy beast, he was also an immature toddler who needed to be tricked.

You got on your tippy toes to whisper in his ear, “The quicker we get people out, the quicker you get me all to yourself.”

That seemed to convince him as he reluctantly stomped away in the direction of the couple, shooting one more guarded look at the dancer.

With that you led Jimin to the front door, even helping him put Molly’s heels back on before stepping out into the driveway and walking him to his car.

Silently, he opened the car and laid her in the backseat, tucking her in with his jacket. Then he shut the door, but instead of walking around to the driver spot, he turned to you and sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck.

“So….”

“Look, I’m sorry about Taehyung. I didn’t even tell him you were an ex but he’s just been really possessive and weird lately. It’s not just you.” You informed him, hoping to make him feel better.

Jimin just waved it off with a chuckle, “No, I get it. You’re really gorgeous, kind and talented. I also struggled with jealousy when we were together. Can’t really blame him.”

You hoped your blush wasn’t too prominent as you said, “Yeah, but you were always nice to people regardless of feeling possessive. He was just rude. Again, I’m sorry.”

“Well, you can’t really date someone breathtaking if you’re going to be an insecure prick about it.”

You gaped like a fish at the implication you were still breathtaking in Jimin’s eyes. Words were suddenly hard to come by.

It was silent for a moment, the tension between you two as thick as it can possibly get for two past lovers.

“Y/n…why didn’t you tell him we dated?”

“L-Like I said, he’s already been acting jealous and I didn’t want him to focus on that when it was his night. Besides, It’s not like-”

“I broke up with Molly.”

“…What?”

“It happened on the way to your after party, she was upset that I still held a candle for you. And yeah, I couldn’t drag her along when I never felt half of what I felt for you, for her. I just said it without thinking, terrible timing of course. But that’s pretty on brand for me, I suppose.” He attempted a joke.

You smiled politely, although you had no idea how you should feel.

He continued, “I just thought I should say sorry because the reason she was such a drunk and sloppy mess in your home was because I carelessly dumped her on the way there.”

“It’s um, okay Jimin. She wasn’t the only drunken mess tonight. I hope you two manage to stay friends.” You said, then after a beat added, “And that you find what you’re looking for.”

“Listen, I know you're with Taehyung and happy but, I think there was some kind of misunderstanding about our breakup. I’m not trying to be a homewrecker or anything, but can we get a coffee sometime and just…talk?”

You smiled, finding no harm in the offer. “Sure-”

“No.”

You gasped and whipped around to see Taehyung standing behind you, arms crossed and hell in his eyes as he glowered down at Jimin.

How did he get there without being spotted or heard?

It's like he fabricated out of nowhere.

“I suggest you get in your car, leave and never speak to her again.”

Your ex held his hands up in surrender, “Look man, I wasn’t trying anything-”

“What kind of guy goes to their ex when she’s clearly in a happy and healthy relationship, and tries to drudge up the past in the name of closure? Fuck your closure. You lost her, and now I have her. And trust me, she has better things to do than getting coffee with the guy who broke her heart.”

“Please, Taehyung-”

You were cut off.

His voice was the lowest you’ve ever heard it, eyes pitch black and face blank as he calmly finished, “It’s pathetic. You’re pathetic. And if I see you again I’m going to break your kneecaps and skin you alive, you little spineless boy. Run along now. While you still can.”

The threats were so visceral and promising, coupled with a man who looked downright murderous yet somehow calm. As if he had done it before and doing it again would be more so an inconvenience than a whole life-ending ordeal.

In this moment, you didn’t know your own boyfriend and you were terrified with this new persona.

No one moved or spoke, in fear one step or word would make Taehyung good on his promise.

You and Jimin were paralyzed, like two helpless deer in the presence of a blood thirsty wolf, the only hope was to stay still and go unnoticed. You met your ex’s eyes and while he did look afraid, he was focused only on you and your proximity to Taehyung.

Jimin was fearful. Not for himself, but for you.

And while you wanted your ex to run away, you were also scared to be left alone with someone so different from your usual Taehyung.

How could a few drinks and some jealousy cause such a behavior?

“Hey what’s going on here?”

Namjoon and Jennifer were babysitting a toddling Yoongi, the couple was also making way to their vehicle when they spotted the scene. The so-called ‘leader’ of the gang was quick to pick up on Taehyung’s aggressive stance, probably prompting him to get involved.

You felt your body lighten in relief.

Namjoon was always good at calming people down and taking control of situations.

Like a switch was turned on, your boyfriend grinned at the oncomers and nodded over at the dancer. Seemingly happy as a clam he chirped, “Nothing, hyung! Jimin here was just leaving. His poor girlfriend had too much, I think.”

Namjoon didn’t quite believe that, you and Jimin still looked rigid with alarm after all. Nonetheless, he played along for everyone’s sake. “Really? Maybe you should leave now then Jimin, get her in bed as soon as possible. It was nice meeting you.”

Jimin took the hint with grace and wordlessly ducked into his car, not acknowledging anyone else as he mouthed to you “call me”.

He started up the car, then slowly backed out of the driveway, and eventually down the road.

“Dude, are you sure you’re okay? It looked like you wanted to kill him.” Namjoon asked the artist.

Before hearing whatever bullshit was going to spew out of his mouth next, you promptly whipped around and stormed back into the house, making sure to purposefully shoulder-check your boyfriend as hard as you could in the process.

What the fuck was wrong with the bastard?!

Talking as though he was some offender or even a murder, just because your ex wanted to catch up?

You were so dreadfully embarrassed! Jimin must’ve thought you lost your mind after him and went off to date some real weirdos.

If you weren’t already on a lease with the man, this probably would’ve been the part where you blocked him and made it your personal mission to never see him again.

Instead, you busied yourself in the kitchen and washed most of the dirty dishes your guests left behind. You hoped Taehyung was wise enough to leave you alone, if the jerk knew what was good for him.

About 15 minutes had passed, and the kitchen was nearly as spotless as it was before the party had started, thanks to your furious cleaning and scrubbing. The house was now silent, and you were just debating putting all your spices in alphabetical order when you heard a shuffle behind you.

You snapped around and instantly scoffed at the sight.

Taehyung was leaning against the doorframe, hands in his pockets and fixing a sheepish look at you.

“So…that got a little out of hand.”

You barked a disbelieving laugh. “More like you got out of hand, Taehyung. Threatening people like you’re some felon! Wouldn't be a surprise if there’s a rumor spreading about me dating a serial killer now."

“Y/n, I’m sorry. But please let me make it up to you.”

“Make it up to me? Your actions cannot be undone Taehyung! I cooked and cleaned after your friends and tried to make this night special for you. I just wanted you to have a nice night and be nice, and you flip out over a platonic coffee date? Who do you think I am? A slut who will open her legs to any ex who talks to me?!”

“W-what? No- Of course not! Please don’t think-”

“What the hell am I supposed to think, asshole?! Even if Jimin still had feelings for me, it would take me reciprocating them for anything to happen! You clearly don’t trust me, and if that’s the case, then what are we doing here? Should we just become roommates or something?”

A painful struck his face, watery eyes met yours when he choked out, “Do you even hear yourself? Why would I try to fight your ex if I truly didn’t love you? You’re mine, and I love you so much it’s just…I can act a little crazy sometimes.”

You sighed, turning your back on him to lean on the sink in exhaustion.

“I thought you were different from other guys, Tae. That caveman shit is extremely degrading to not only you, but especially me.”

“I’m sorry…it’s just a primal part of me that I can’t turn off. Give me a chance to make it up to you.”

You shot a look over your shoulder at him, still pissed.

He shot his hands up in the air, as if in defense. “You can still be mad at me all you want.”

“You’re sleeping on the couch for a week.”

“Done.”

“And….And you’re forgetting all about those stupid cameras.”

He quirked a grin, unknown mirth dancing in his eyes. “Sure.”

“At the end of the week, you will personally apologize to Jimin via a phone call or letter.”

His smile dropped, your glare sharpened, “Umm..fine okay. It won’t be sincere though.”

You rolled your eyes, “Doesn’t have to be, it’s the right thing to do so you’ll do it.”

“…anything else?”

“Not for now. I’m going to bed soon so if there’s anything you need from the room, get it now.”

He wordlessly turned around, and you then faintly heard him going up the stairs.

Biting your lip in deep thought, you proceed to wipe off the last of the counters.

Could you forgive him? When he was willing to do all that to appease you?

If you were being honest with yourself, you could feel the irritation already start to melt away a bit. You hadn’t expected such a 180 in his stance, he went from threatening Jimin with murder to begrudgingly agreeing to apologize within only a matter of half an hour or so. You thought you would have to at least give him the silent treatment for a bit before you could even bargain a “sorry” for your ex. Taehyung was usually much more stubborn…

Nonetheless though, you were still upset and embarrassed about the scene.

You hated when men got violent around you, it made you feel so unsafe and small. You thought Taehyung was different, him even poking fun at the meatheads who would pull stuff like that at the local bars you would frequent while dating. So what changed?

Footsteps slowly descended back down the stairs, telling you that Taehyung had returned from your bedroom and it was safe to go up.

You left the kitchen, turned off the lights and passed through the hallway. Briefly you stopped, just short of the stairs, to see your boyfriend grumbling to himself while arranging some blankets on the couch.

A sudden and chilling thought ripped from your lips before you could even quietly ponder it.

“Taehyung…how did you know Jimin was my ex?”

He stopped in his tracks, slowly turning to face you with a blank look.

“Uh, Lisa might have slipped up and told me.”

You relaxed, unknowingly releasing a breath you had been holding. “Hmm, okay. We’ll talk tomorrow then. Goodnight.”

“Goodnight baby.”

“Oh! Let me get some water first, can you check that the doors were locked?” You asked while skipping back towards the kitchen. You hated waking up with a dry mouth and always kept a glass of water on your nightstand, restless bathroom trips be damned.

You didn’t hear any response to your request, but you paid it no mind, assuming Tae probably already double, if not triple, checked the locks being the worrywart that he was.

Right next to the kitchen entrance was the basement door, and it was shut.

Yet, something stopped you in your tracks.

The light under the basement door…it was on?

“Well I don’t have any more beer up here. Just wine. There might be some more in the basement, though.”

It couldn’t be….could it?

Your intuition was hollering at you from within.

A force greater than you pulled you to the door handle.

Against yourself, you opened the door to the basement…

And choked back a horrified scream.

At the bottom of the stairs lay Taehyung.

Unconscious, pale and bleeding horrifically from some head wound that was forming an inky pool under his crumpled form.

It wasn’t your Taehyung that returned upstairs.

So...this has been sitting in my drafts for over a year lol. I do have a dramatic ending in mind and some final scenes but yea, I don't think I could finish this unless people actually wanted it so let me know if this is a plot you kinda liked? I never tried flat-out supernatural horror like this. Anyway, happy October guys! Love you all. Luna :)

A little preview of my Gwi nam's fic

Maybe it will be posted on this weekend.

___________________

"There you are." Gwi nam looked so scary and you knew at that exact moment how fucked up you were. He was no longer just a human, but a monster too. "It was pretty cool playing hide and seek, but that's enough now, don't you think?"

"Fuck you, I'll kill you if you come near me!" you raised the pocketknife in your hand threateningly, although you were trembling a little. Gui Nam's lips curved slightly in a mischievous smile.

"Silly girl, you can't kill me," his voice contained an explicit malicious tone, full of promises of the things he could and would do to you from now on. "Behave yourself and I won't hurt you. Otherwise, it will be much worse."

Angel Eyes

𓆩♡𓆪Pairing: Patient! Jungkook x Reader

𓆩♡𓆪WC: 8.2k

𓆩♡𓆪Content Warning: hospital romance, mentions of birth, blizzard, car accidents, smthn abt soulamtes, ft Jin, medical emergencies, making out, jk is a free spirit, tattoos, rehabilitation, they're so cute, cafeteria dates, meet cute, weddings, sexual themes, comas, newborn baby, angsttt :(

The double doors to the emergency room burst open with a team of paramedics meeting a team of nurses over the limp body that was being rushed in on a gurney.

"26-year-old male. One of many from the four-car pile-up on Highway 400. Blunt head trauma —shattered ribs, compound fractures in both legs. He's unconscious, showing premature signs of decline. We need to get him stabilized immediately."

"Prepare the operation room." One of the nurses orders and the chaos moves around the corner with the gurney.

A team of trauma surgeons and nurses worked frantically to stabilize him. He was quickly assessed for injuries, and diagnostic tests revealed the extent of the damage he had sustained

The man suffered from internal injuries, including a punctured lung and severe abdominal trauma. There was a point when doctors were sure he wouldn't make it but they were wrong.

After undergoing several surgeries in the first few days following the accident, including procedures to repair his fractured bones, remove damaged tissue, and stabilize his internal injuries he was beginning to show small signs of improvement.

However, it was only the beginning of a very long and hard journey for him.

𓆩♡𓆪 2 months later

"Where is she?" You stand up at the sight of your brother-in-law, Jin rushing into the waiting room of the labour and delivery wing. Face flushed and hair a bit frazzled. He'd obviously run here from the parking lot.

"Down the hall to your left. They're just running some tests and checking the baby." He pauses in his steps, letting it all sink in. Placing a hand on his chest as he tried to stabilize his breathing.

Taking the chance to place a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Everything is going to be okay, breathe." You encourage, taking tips from the Lamaze classes your sister had made the three of you take in preparation for this baby.

He smiles before making his way to his wife and out of sight.

Meanwhile, you stayed put in the waiting room as your sister made it very clear she did not want you in the room any time her vagina was out and you weren't going to argue.

Seeing that the doctors needed to check up on the baby once the two of you arrived no less than 15 minutes ago, you had already excused yourself to the hall.

Once you saw the familiar nurse you remember being assigned to your sister walk past you, you deemed it was safe enough to return to her room. Knocking first with your hand over your eyes.

There was soft laughter, "It's been put away, you can open your eyes." Eunji says, allowing you to lower your palm from your gaze to see Seokjin sitting on a chair nestled near Eunji's bedside.

"Wow, they've got you hooked up like a TV." You snort, pointing to the IV drip, pulse oximeter, and various other tubes taped to her arm.

Shaking her head at your typical Y/n-Antics but refusing to acknowledge your joke any further. "What did the nurse say?" Jin asks, almost anxiously, taking her hand in his.

"The baby is fine, she's healthy, but I'm a long way from giving birth. Apparently-" Eunji pauses, her eyes squeezing shut just as they did back at your place when the two of you discovered she'd been having contractions.

Taking deep breaths she opens her eyes and resumes speaking as if it never happened, "Apparently I'm only one centimeter dilated. I'm already tired of this place." She pouts sadly while Jin gently moves a stray hair from out of her face.

You sighed internally, hoping that one day you'd find that.

"I'm just glad you guys made it here safely. The roads are getting worse with that blizzard coming in tonight." Jin shares which prompts you to check your phone while the couple talks about what a normal couple would discuss at a time like this.

Jin was right. There in fact was a blizzard heading your way and it was nasty. Up to six feet of snow in some regions and harsh winds. It was practically impossible to see the road through all the flurries on your way here.

It was unsafe for anyone to be driving at a time like this hence why Eunji had already begged your parents to stay home until the roads were safe. No matter how much she knew your parents wanted to be present for the birth of their first grandchild it was just too dangerous.

This winter was packed with a punch this year. You can't forget the first major storm of the season about two months ago that blindsided everyone.

The severity of the storm dawns on you as you remember driving past a nasty collision on the highway on your way home from work.

You could only hope that this would be the end of the strenuous icy season and that spring would be just around the corner. You were looking forward to the blossoming season of spring but not as much as you were looking forward to holding your niece in your arms in just a few short hours.

𓆩♡𓆪

Clearly, you and your niece weren't on the same page.

It's been 4 hours and the hospital was on lockdown, any visitors in the building were forbidden from leaving due to the severity of the storm outside. Honestly, some part of you believed you would have been able to hold your niece and go home all in the last three hours, but oh how you were wrong.

"What do you mean you're only 3 centimetres along?" You say, exhausted from waiting. "Oh, I'm sorry Y/n, are you tired? How inconsiderate of me!" She exclaims, clearly annoyed with you.

You dropped your shoulders, you deserved that. Eunji had been battling her contractions restlessly for hours on end, you couldn't imagine how she felt.

"Do you want me to get you anything?" She shakes her head while Jin returns with a full cup of ice for her to chew on. Your stomach rumbles, and not quietly.

"You should go down to the cafeteria and get something to eat. I'll stay with Eunji." Jin offers and you nod, deciding it was time for a break anyway.

With your bag slung over your shoulder, you stood in the café line, unsure what to get before deciding to get a typical iced coffee and a turkey sandwich.

Once it came time to find a spot, your eyes were scanning every nook and cranny of the filled cafeteria due to the overwhelming number of people trapped in this building just as you were.

Finally, you found one available spot, at an occupied table. "Is anyone sitting here?" You ask the man who was enjoying his own coffee. "It's all yours," He smiles and you reciprocate it as you take a seat.

Paying him no mind as you bite into your meal and pull out the book you've been reading over the last few weeks.

"The String of Fate," The man across from you mumbles as he reads the title of your book causing your eyes to flicker to his. "What's it about?" You close the book almost too eagerly.

"Do you believe in soulmates?" He blinks at you.

"Y'know, like two people that are destined to be together no matter the time or place." His brow arches. "Not a chance." You frown, "Well, basically this book explains the concept of soulmates and how they're connected by this invisible string between them that will always guide them back to each other. No matter the time or place."

He sighs heavily, head now resting on his hand. "I'm gonna take a shot in the dark here and assume that you believe in soulmates?"

"What's there not to believe? It makes total sense-" You ask, about to take your first bite of your sandwich. "I wouldn't eat that if I were you," He says quickly, and you close your mouth, placing the sandwich back down.

"Why not?" He simply stares at you, "Trust me. I've been here long enough to know." You nod slowly, "You must visit a lot."

With a shrug of his shoulders, he finishes the last of his coffee, "Something like that." He mumbles.

Your stomach reminds you of the hunger you'd just permitted to exist longer all in the name of this handsome stranger you'd just met. "So what can I eat here?"

He grins and your stomach twists.

"Follow me." You pack up your stuff and stand. Unable to process your thoughts once the man moves away from the table in his wheelchair.

"Oh c'mon, don't give me that look." He sighs.

"What look?" You counter, genuinely confused.

"That look of 'oh my gosh, he's in a wheelchair. Now everything is different.'" He says in a slightly raised tone.

"First of all, I didn't think that at all. I was just shocked." He looked almost deflated until you spoke up, "So are we still getting jello or what?" He smiles, leading the way.

-

"Hey! Hey! Mister Lightning McQueen, do you mind slowing down a bit? Or at least tell me your name so I don't have to keep yelling mister." You pant, finally catching up to him at the end of the hall.

"Sorry." He flushes a light pink before a quick clearing of his throat, "I'm Jungkook." He stretches his hand and you shake it gently, "Y/n." You say, the two of you hold hands a little longer than necessary before a visitor attempts to get by and you pull your hand away first.

Fast forward to the two of you sitting on the chairs in god knows which wing of the hospital, the building was so damn big. Licking the spoons of your delicious cherry jello as you were both facing the window that looked out into the midnight sky.

"So what brings you here tonight?" He asks as he scoops around his cup for another spoonful. "My sister is giving birth. At least that's what I thought was supposed to happen but the baby doesn't want to come yet." He laughs, "That's amazing. Not the part about the baby holding your sister's womb hostage but- you know what I'm trying to say."

Unable to control your laughter at his bizarre wording, "Yeah, I get it." A silence falls between the two of you, sitting on your shoulders. You wanted to say something but you weren't sure- "It's okay, Y/n. You can ask." He speaks without even looking at you. Focused on getting his next spoon of jello.

"How did you end up here?" You ask and Jungkook begins the age-old story. He was coming home from work during that crazy storm 2 months ago. He said he didn't remember much from the actual accident, one second he's in his lane and the next there's an eighteen-wheeler sliding right into him and dragging two others in with him.

"I don't even remember being rushed in here, I just remember waking up 3 days later and the doctors telling me I was lucky to be alive. Telling me I had basically injured every bone I had. Head trauma, shattered ribs, a punctured lung, fractured both my legs- and the list goes on."

Your jaw falls open. Hand raising to cover your mouth for two reasons.

"You really are lucky to be alive."

It seems that Jungkook disagrees, "Yet I don't feel all that lucky. I wake up to the same faces, getting poked at and pricked every hour. Going to rehab every other day, my body hurts constantly. I can't even count how many painkillers and antibiotics I take every morning." You frown.

"I'm grateful to be making progress of course, but sometimes It feels like the world is passing me by while I'm standing still-- or sitting, for that matter.." You'd never connected to anything more.

"I totally understand. Under different circumstances of course, but I think I get what you mean. Ever since I was 7 I'd had this perfect vision of how my life should be by the time I was 25. A nice house, with a loving husband and maybe a baby on the way with my six-figure paying job but here I am, 26, sitting in a waiting room, single, waiting for my sister to have a baby so that I can go home to my office job that sure as hell doesn't pay enough for a nice house."

Your story provokes a soft chuckle to come rumbling from Jungkook's chest and you swat at him. "And it's like, you want to take steps forward but it's almost like you can't because everything is out of your control. The most decisive factor of a good life is controlled by everyone but you. It sucks." Jungkook expands on your thoughts further and you'd never felt so seen before.

"I-" You begin but the PA system begins to blare someone's voice as they make an announcement.

"Code Yellow. Code Yellow." Jungkook's vision darts to his wristwatch. "Shit. It's been an hour already?" You weren't following, "What's going on?" Jungkook begins to roll back, tossing away his garbage in the bin while you stand and do the same.

"Code yellow is just their dramatic way of declaring a patient is missing. Although-" His eyes fly past you and to whoever was behind you, it was a furious nurse. "Jeon Jungkook." She says and he groans, "I know- I know."

Jungkook hardly got to speak before he was being pushed away back to wherever his room was. "I hope your sister has a safe delivery." You stand still in the middle of the hall as you watch Jungkook get whisked out of sight.

Unable to stop thinking about how disappointed he looked once that nurse appeared. Clearly, he didn't want to go back. You couldn't shake what he told you, about seeing the same people every day, following the same painful routine.

You wondered if he had any family that visited him.

Speaking of which, it was time for you to return to your own.

𓆩♡𓆪

7 hours later you were finally holding the most perfect baby girl in your arms. "She's beautiful, Eunji," you say tearfully, staring at the adorable infant who was just so tiny in your arms.

"I can't believe I'm holding your baby right now." You say to no one in particular while Seokjin stands behind you looking down at the baby, he looks like he's still in awe himself.

Carefully passing her back into your sister's tired arms. You had the honour of taking their first family photo. With Seokjin's eyes full of love and your sister displaying the happiest smile you'd ever seen.

"She's perfect." You hear him whisper with a kiss to Eunji's forehead and your heart just about melts at the heartwarming sight.

𓆩♡𓆪 7 days later

The moment that you left that hospital that morning you felt almost... sad? Like you had a happiness hangover. You were truly overjoyed, you finally got to meet your niece and you met Jungkook who left an unanticipated imprint on your brain.

You tapped your nails against the desk in your cubicle, your bottom lip tucked between your teeth as your eyes glanced at the time at the bottom of the computer screen.

Your break was in 20 minutes, you had an hour to do whatever and sure, you could spend it here continuing your work so that you could go home earlier...but the hospital is nearby...

No more than a 10-minute drive.. maybe you could drop by? Just for a little?

You didn't leave yourself much time to debate it as you were already marching out of the office the moment the clock hit 12. You'd decided to pick up some flowers from the gift shop on your way up.

Following the receptionist's instructions that she gave you to locate his room with a nervous click of your heels with each step. What if he didn't want to see you? Does he even remember you?

You saw him through the glass window briefly and adjusted yourself to an angle where he couldn't see you. He was just laying there. Staring up at the ceiling, but he sat up once a nurse walked in.

It seemed that she was doing some routine checkups before pricking him with a needle of some kind. You'd always been the type to squirm with needles yet he was unfazed, it was like he couldn't even feel it.

Once she left she passed you with a small smile. Slowly you walk to the door and his gaze slowly drags towards you. His eyes smile before his lips, and he sits up.

"Y/n!" He says with such a joyful tone, you would never expect the voice to belong to someone sitting in a hospital bed. "Hi," You say, unsure of what to do with the flowers.

"Don't tell me you're still waiting for your sister to give birth." He says with a little sarcasm and you laugh with a shake of your head. "No, little miss Seol-a came fashionably late."

"As in 'snow child'? That's a perfect name." You agree. Watching him as his gaze drops to your arms. "Oh- These are for you." Bringing the small bouquet of tiger lilies to him, he accepts it gratefully.

"Thank you-- Really, you didn't have to. You visiting me is more than enough of a gift, and they're Tiger Lilies, too. Fun fact, that's actually my birth flower." It was like a lightbulb had gone off in your head but you ignored it.

Maybe that was just a coincidence, but you didn't like that word. You preferred to use something much stronger, that starts with an 'F', and ends with an 'ate'.

"Pull up a chair, please. I don't want to be the only one sitting." He insists, gesturing to the chair near the wall and you bring it a bit closer.

Letting out a soft sigh of relief once you were off your feet, "God, I hate heels." You mutter, "I'm guessing you have to wear them for that magical job of yours," Your face turns sour, "Magic isn't the word I'd use to describe it,"

Just like that the two of you fell down a rabbit hole of conversation, exchanging work experiences and even phone numbers at one point.

"So tell me, Y/n. In a perfect world, if you could just drop everything, what would you do?" You pretended to give it thought as if you hadn't known for the last decade. "I'd want to open a hair salon... Is that crazy? I don't think I've ever actually said that out loud before."

"What's stopping you?" You laugh, a little too hard, thinking of the dozens of reasons why it wasn't practical and way too impulsive but the longer you looked at his neutral expression you began to reflect on the reasons.

And they all came back to the same root, "What if I fail?" He shrugs, "You can't fail unless you give up." You couldn't believe you were actually considering this. Shaking your head dramatically, clearing your brain.

"You're such a bad influence, y'know? I can't believe you really almost made me do that." His bunny-like smile is on display when he speaks, "That wasn't me, that was your instinct. For a brief second, you just listened to your heart."

Woah.

"Wanna see something cool?" His hand raises and gestures to his lower body, and you watch as the blankets begin to stretch over the small peak that began to form under the covers as he bends his left knee slightly.

"Jungkook! That's incredible." You gasped, eyes wide and you weren't sure what came over you, but before you knew it you'd taken him in your arms.

His body was still a bit weak but his arms responded almost immediately. Holding you still for the short duration of the hug before you pulled away.

"Are you okay- I'm sorry, did I hurt you-" A small panic consumes you as Jungkook's eyes tint a faint red and well with tears. "No, no. You didn't do anything wrong. It's just been so long since someone's been so happy for me."

His words weighed down in your chest like a pile of bricks. "Does no one visit you?"

"All my friends and family came to visit right after the accident. Then it was just my best friends and my parents who came a few times a week. Soon people don't have time to visit someone who makes such little progress every day."

He continues to explain, "But I don't hold it against them. It's a time commitment. The real world is more demanding than I am and I just can't wait for the day I get to meet them out there."

Gently placing your hand on top of his, "You're gonna be out of here before you know it-" A familiar ringer goes off in your bag. You pull out your phone and stop the alarm. "Well, my break ends soon." You stand and you tell yourself that you're imagining the small frown peels over his lips.

Putting the chair back where you found it you walk to the door. "Bye Jungkook, it was good to see you again." With that, you walk away and Jungkook is left in despair. That was it? It's over?

You were just gonna walk into his room and bless him with the most revitalizing conversation he's ever had and you're leaving?

Before he gets the chance to deflate into his pillows your head pops back into the doorframe, "See you tomorrow." You wink and vanish once again. Knowing that you'd given him a little wave of sadness at first.

His shoulders shake with laughter, relieved.

𓆩♡𓆪

Staying true to your word, you in fact did go back to visit him the next day, except you went after your shift since 40 minutes simply wasn't enough time.

For the first few weeks of your daily visits, Jungkook was afraid that one day you would stop coming and he wouldn't see you again, but once three months had passed, there was no doubt in his mind he would walk out of this hospital without you by his side.

You'd even met his parents once, by accident of course. You were just leaving when they'd been walking in and of course, they had no idea who you were.

Telling them about how the two of you met was quite entertaining, Accidentally mentioning the part where Jungkook had been called a missing patient which earned him a soft pinch to his arm from his mother.

But you'll never forget the words his mother whispered in your ear as she hugged you. "Thank you for loving my son." Your cheeks flushed and you stuttered, trying to clarify things but she didn't want to hear it.

"It's okay, I know." She says with the most subtle of winks before walking off with her husband who shook your hand graciously.

Not every day was full of laughs and feasts that you'd bring him from the outside world, there were definitely down days. Days when the pain would call for a stronger dose of his medications which left him burnt out and groggy.

But there were also good days like today. You had the honour of helping Jungkook take some of his first steps for a few feet before being right behind him with the wheelchair.

You weren't able to stop your tears while Jungkook apologized to the physical therapist for your constant crying. You cried every time you saw him move on his own, but he thinks it's cute.

It's evident how much you care about him. By now your entire family knew about your blossomed friendship, and it seems he was all you could talk about. He could only hope that you knew how much he cared about you.

He would love to surprise you at work one day with lunch or take you to your favourite places. Alas, that was among the list of things he unfortunately couldn't control but promised to do once he got out.

He had a section of notes dedicated to you and all the places he would take you, it's what he always hid against his chest anytime you tried peaking.

-

"You won't believe what I just did!" Those are the first words that escape your mouth in the most dramatic of ways as you practically burst into his room.

He jolts, his book now falling forgotten from his fingers, you'd startled him and you apologized. You weren't usually here at noon. So he welcomes your explanation with a warm smile and curious eyes.

"So I went to work this morning, and they called us all in for a meeting. I was expecting another spontaneous workshop about professional behaviour or something. They drop this huge bomb on us that the company is downsizing so they're laying off a third of the company and basically cutting everyone's salary in half." It all comes out in a single breath, so you give yourself some time to breathe.

Jungkook wasn't following, "This sounds like... bad news? Am I missing something? Why do you look so happy?"

"Because I quit my job. I've been thinking about what you said for a while now, about following my heart, and I think I've always been waiting for some kind of sign or opportunity to just go for it, so today was the day." Now that you'd finally gotten the jitters out, you pulled up a chair.

"I know it's crazy, I don't know what I was thinking, but I just got off the phone with one of the property managers of those empty studios downtown and it was all so exciting and I don't even know where I'm going to get the money but I think I can-"

Jungkook finally silenced you with his lips.

He kissed you.

His lips were soft as they worked against yours. You could feel him smile as the kiss deepened. You moved out of your chair to the bed without breaking contact. Pulling away briefly for air but resuming as though you couldn't be apart for more than a second.

You weren't sure when you'd ended up on top of him with Jungkook on his back and your hips grinding down onto his softly, still a bit cautious.

"You have-" He kisses down your neck, peppering kisses between his words, "-No idea-" His lips kissing right below your ear, "-How long I've wanted to kiss you." His teeth gently nibble on the skin of your ear causing a whine to escape your lips.

Suddenly there was a fast beeping and it was only getting faster.

A nurse walks in and you just about throw yourself off of Jungkook and onto the ground. "What's going on in here? Your heart rate was way too fast, Mr. Jeon." He bites his lip nervously while you get yourself on your feet.

"Sorry, Nurse Lynn. I was just trying some new exercises and I guess I got a bit carried away." He says the last part with a lustful look in his eye when he glances towards you.

Once she left you let your hand cover your mouth in pure shock, laughing uncontrollably. "Oh my god, I can't believe that just happened." Jungkook throws his head back onto the pillows with a heavy breath.

"Those nurses can't let me have shit in here. I can't even rub one out in the shower without them barging in." Your jaw drops, "It's happened more times than I'd like to speak about." The shame that seems to swallow him up makes you laugh even harder.

-

"How's the salon going?" He's the first to ask you once you walk out of the bathroom and your shoulders drop. Taking a seat beside him on the bed, "It's a lot harder than I thought it would be. My contractor is being a total pain in the ass, but at least it's starting to come together, look-"

You swipe through the photos of the empty studio that was now painted. "I can't wait to see it." He says, and you look away from the screen. Focusing on his beautiful brown eyes. "Me too." He steals a sweet kiss from you before resuming his swipe through your phone with a cheeky grin.

For the first time, you noticed how empty his left arm was compared to his right. His right arm was covered in tattoos that the two of you had spent nearly an hour talking about once, while his left arm was blank.

"Why don't you have any tattoos on your left arm?" He places down your phone, making eye contact with you once again. "I wanna save it for something special, something meaningful, like the Batman symbol." His nerdy remark makes you snort.

𓆩♡𓆪

"Hi Jungko-Oh." This was unusual.

Of all the times you'd visited Jungkook, there was probably only one other time where you'd caught him sleeping, although that was a late night. It was only sometime around 3 in the afternoon.

You didn't want to disturb him, so you left him a little sticky note for him to read when he wakes up. You didn't want him to think that you never came.

The following day the two of you were having a bit of a hard time getting Jungkook out of bed. "I thought you wanted to do some more walking?" You offer, standing with his walker but he laid back unmotivated.

"Not today, maybe another day. I'm just a bit tired." He mumbles and you nod, "Oh. Okay." But your heart wasn't settled, something was wrong.

The week continued with his slow responses and fatigue. "Are you okay?" He hums, his eyes shutting tight as he grunts softly. "Yeah, just got a bit of a headache, that's all. I'll be better by tomorrow." He reassures you, and you insist on getting him some water.

"Nurse Lynn." You call out for the Nurse as you cross paths as you return from refilling Jungkook's water bottle. She stops and begins to approach you. "Jungkook has been acting a bit off lately. He's been really tired and he says he has a headache and I just want to know if anything is going on."

You can see that she really begins to think about anything it could be. You follow her as she goes off to check his charts. Looking through the window, Jungkook had already fallen asleep.

"His numbers seem to be fine, but we'll keep a close eye on them tonight and run some tests in the morning." Leaving you with a reassuring hand on your shoulder, but you still didn't feel any better.

You went home to your parents' house. You'd moved back home after impulsively quitting your job since there was no way you'd be able to afford your old apartment anymore. Besides, this arrangement made the most sense.

Now you were able to save your money and focus on your salon. The salon Jungkook had inspired you to open, god you couldn't stop thinking about him. Something felt off.

"Y/n?" Your dad snaps his fingers in front of you, finally catching your attention. "Sorry- What?"

"Your mom and I were wondering if you'd be joining us for dinner or if you already ate." You shake your head slowly, "It's okay, I'm not hungry."

"Is everything okay?'' Your stretches her neck from where she sat on the couch. "I don't know. Jungkook's been acting off lately and I just don't know if everything is okay." Anyone who heard you could hear the worry that wavered in your tone. You wanted nothing more than for him to be okay.

"Oh, honey." Your parents hugged you and for a moment you felt like everything was going to be okay.

Until it wasn't.

-

It was around 2 in the morning when you'd gotten a call from Jungkook's mom.

He'd gone into a coma.

You didn't find yourself to be a religious person yet you found yourself praying to any god in the sky who was listening as you drove to the hospital that he would be okay.

Running through the halls, letting out careless apologies to those you nearly bumped into as you did so. "What happened?!" You say frantically, his mother was in no state to speak, her eyes were bloodshot and her lips quivered whenever she tried to speak.

Instead, his father took on the role to tell you, "The doctors said there were unforeseen complications from his accident. There was some inflammation in his brain that went undetected and was applying pressure to his brain stem which is why he was experiencing those headaches and fatigue. They've done all they can to reduce the swelling, but there's no guarantee he'll-"

His dad struggles to finish his sentence, choking up a bit himself at the possibility of Jungkook never waking up. "C-Can I see him?" You swallow back your tears and that sore feeling in your throat as you walk in slowly.

You didn't want to cry, but the moment you saw him hooked up to all those machines, the same ones he hated so much, the way his body lay so still, it broke you.

Your cries came out more as wails than anything else, you couldn't say anything but his name. You weren't just crying, you were begging, pleading with the gods to spare him.

"Y/n-" You hear his dad's voice behind you, catching you in his arms just as you fall to your knees. He could have never anticipated a reaction quite like this one. It seems he underestimated how much Jungkook meant to you.

Now he knows.

All his friends and family knew.

As they trickled in and out of Jungkook's hospital room over the following weeks they would see you sitting by his side, the same way you did all the days before.

His mom liked to say you were there more than Jungkook was. She knew he was lucky, he'd found something special with you. A kind of love that was rare to come across these days.

You spent every waking moment beside him until visiting hours were over, and would be back the next morning the moment they begin. Your parents told you to keep yourself busy with your salon and you tried, but how could you when everything inside reminded you of him?

Today was a quiet day, with no visitors or flowers for you to find space for as his room was filled. You focused on reading to him. You'd been told that hearing familiar voices can help to stimulate brain activity and you were willing to do anything.

"As Batman ran through the dark streets of Gotham-" You chuckled to yourself, unable to take the story seriously.

According to his parents, this was his favourite comic book growing up, and you'd been reading it to him for the last few days, and yet you still weren't interested in DC.

You rummaged through the bag of books you had on the side, your fingertips grasped the familiar cover that started it all. "The String of Fate" You mumble, a soft smile as the title takes you back to the night you met.

Back then he was nothing more than an opinionated patient on the loose, and now, he was everything.

You opened the book, going back to the page you'd bookmarked as a favourite. Deciding to read it out loud for the sake of Jungkook hearing your voice.

"In the garden of destiny, soulmates blossom, each petal a reflection of the other's beauty, each leaf a testament to their shared growth. Together, they tend to the soil of their dreams, nurturing them with the water of their love, as they chase the sunsets of tomorrow, hand in hand, forever intertwined."

Your voice began to shake halfway through, and your tears landed on every other word. You closed the book, placing it back in the bag so that you could take Jungkook's hands in yours.

"Please," You whispered, "I love you."

It was no surprise to anyone. You had nothing but love for the man who changed your world for the better. He had no idea how much space he takes up in your head, your heart. It's his, it belongs to him.

"Can we come in?" There are soft knocks on the door and you're pleasantly surprised to see Jin and your sister, assuming the baby was with your parents.

"Thank you for coming," You hug them both, "If there's someone important enough that you went MIA during my labour, then I have to meet him." Eunji says jokingly and you smile sadly, "I just wish you got to meet under better circumstances."

The days turned to night then day once again, and the pattern continued endlessly for the following month. It just continued to repeat in this painful process of dwindling hope.

Nothing could have prepared you for the devastating conversation with the doctor this morning.

"Please understand, during this difficult time, we have carefully monitored Jungkook's minimal brain activity. Given the duration of his coma and after our intensive examination of his condition, if there were indications for a potential recovery leading to him waking up, we would have observed signs by now. I know this news is incredibly challenging to hear but-"

His mother wept.

"We're so sorry." The doctor says as if it was rehearsed, you couldn't imagine how many times he'd had to give such gut-wrenching news to other families.

You listened with a broken heart, unable to cry. You were all out of tears. You'd cried and cried your heart out all month, you couldn't bear the thought of it all being for such a tragic conclusion.

-

That was almost a week ago, you'd remained by Jungkook's side regardless. Never leaving, not moving.

"Y/n, Honey. You've been here all day, when's the last time you ate something, hm?" His mom gently tilted your chin upwards, you looked pale in colour and your eyes were dull with sorrow.

"I don't know, Tuesday maybe?"

It's Thursday night.

"Go." She orders, and you know that tone. She wasn't willing to negotiate this with you. She'd begun to care for you like a daughter of her own, and as much as she respected and adored your dedication to her son, it was just as important that you were healthy.

Still following Jungkook's advice, you avoided most of the shops in the cafeteria except for a select few that he deemed sanitary. Sitting at one of the tables by yourself, you poked at your food, not all that hungry but you took bites anyway.

Taking a long sip from your water bottle you ignored the buzzing from your phone. You're sure it's just the contractors giving you a hard time again. You were set to open in a few months from now and you'd never felt more grateful for your mom stepping in to help while you were.. away.

Your phone buzzes once more, you finally check the messages.

Ever since that night, every time Mrs. Jeon messaged you, it left you with a pit in your stomach, quite like the one in your stomach right now.

She was calling you back to Jungkook's room immediately.

Completely abandoning your half-eaten meal on the table as you rushed back up to the room you'd begun to know like the back of your hand.

There his parents were, teary-eyed as they sat outside his room, making calls and texting loved ones. Soon you saw a team of nurses walking out of his room with some medical technology that you're sure had very complicated names and--

Oh no.

Your brain was putting the pieces together. What was once a pit had evolved into a full-fledged sinkhole. Your hands were shaking as you walked into the room, eyes landing on his body, not expecting to meet his familiar brown orbs.

They blinked at you slowly. Just like the first time you'd visited, they smiled before his lips did. "There she is," His voice was weak, understandably but it still had that softness to it.

Your body was overwhelmed and unable to make any coherent sounds. You were standing still as a statue. You pulled your bottom lip between your teeth to stop your lips from quivering but you couldn't stop it.

Your breathing became shallow and the sound of your heart drumming in your ears seemed much louder than it did a minute ago. You felt like your eyes were playing tricks on you.

"Is it-" Your voice airy and broken, not wanting this to be a dream. You so desperately needed this to be real. He nods slowly with a grin, "It's me." Just when you thought you had no more tears left, there were more spilling down your cheeks.

Finally picking up your feet and walking over to him with broken sobs, meeting him at the side of the bed. On your knees with his arms around you while you held him in yours. "I thought I lost you." You swat him with teary eyes and a small laugh.

"You can never lose me, Y/n, and I want to make sure of that." He says, and your head tilts instinctively. "What do you mean?"

"Marry me."

Eyes wide and your mouth nearly kissing the floor.

"You can't be serious," Oh how you hoped he was serious.

"You've been by my side every step of the way. When I walk through those hospital doors one last time, I want to be beside the woman I love. Let me spend the rest of my life making you as happy as you've made me." Now he was the one getting misty eyes.

Your mouth struggled to keep up with the eager nodding of your head. "Yes." Holding his face in your hands and kissing him like you'd longed to do for weeks.

Finally.

"Wait- You don't have a ring," Jungkook leans slightly for the box of band-aids on the side table. "Jungkook, I don't need-'' Your efforts go in vain as he shushes you kindly, taping the band-aid around your ring finer.

"It's symbolic for now until I can get you the real thing."

-

Nothing could have prepared you for the busy year ahead of you. Between visiting Jungkook, opening a salon and planning a wedding things were beginning to get chaotic but it all seemed to fade in importance once Jungkook finally got to go home.

And you were right, he was home just in time for Thanksgiving, and he had a lot to be thankful for. He made that clear during his speech at your parents' annual Thanksgiving dinner.

The fact he was able to stand for it was reason enough. Although he wasn't able to walk far distances, he was improving every day, and it just warmed your heart.

Your speech wasn't nearly as tear-jerking as Jungkook's was, but you still had a lot to be grateful for. Just looking around the table from where you stood, smiling at your parents, your sister with Jin and Seol-a, Jungkook's parents, and Jungkook, of course.

Everything you ever wanted was right in front of you.

Keeping your speech short and sweet, "And I know she's grateful for that huge rock on her finger." Eunji whispers loudly causing the table to erupt in a fit of giggles, the tips of your ears turn red as you smile shyly.

From Thanksgiving to the opening day of your Salon. Staring up to look at your name written out in a cursive font across the top of the building you were in awe. "Pinch me," you mutter sarcastically, not expecting Jungkook to actually pinch you.

With a pout you rubbed the pink mark he left on your arm as the two of you walked into the moderately busy salon. Your mom had sent out flyers and emails about the opening day all season.

You wouldn't have been able to do it without her.

"I'm so proud of you," Jungkook whispers and you turn to face him with the look of a puppy. "I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you," He shakes his head, "I didn't do anything. This was all you, all you had to do was listen to your heart." Giving him one of those upside-down smiles you wrap your arms around him, talking into his chest.

"I can't wait to marry you."

Before you knew it, the wait was over.

Today is the day. 

You could only stress about one day so much, you'd gone over every last detail down to the very inch and you were sure it was going to be perfect, after all, you'd had it all planned out in your head since you were 7 and Jungkook was more than happy oblige, 'as long as I get to marry you', he would say.

Your wedding was beautiful, it left your guests breathless the moment they entered the venue and the ceremony hadn't even begun yet.

Your wedding had its own special and heartfelt twist to it. Instead of Jungkook standing ready at the altar, he had the honour of picking a heartfelt song to walk down the aisle to with no arm crutches or wheelchair to support him. Nothing but his parents on either side holding one of his arms.

Some of the audience cheered while some let their tears fall quietly, knowing how far Jungkook had come to get to this point. Once he made it to the front, his best man, Jimin, handed him his arm crutches once again.

Soon the rest of the bridal party had made their way down the aisle, prompting the audience to stand. All heads turned to the grand double doors that soon opened as a romantic instrumental of "Look After You" began to play.

Jungkook could hardly see you from the distance he was standing but just knowing that you were walking towards him had him choking up already.

By the time he really could see you, he couldn't. His eyes are cloudy with tears until Jimin hands him his pocket square to wipe his eyes. Blinking the rest of his tears away, he smiles at you.

You looked beautiful.

Like God's most perfect creation sent down from heaven. There you were, smiling back at him with those angel eyes of yours. It would be a lie to say you didn't want to cry but the last thing you wanted was to ruin your makeup.

However, you weren't so strong when it came time to listen to Jungkook's vows after just finishing yours.

"You once asked me if I believed in soulmates, and I remember saying it was a load of crap. I had no idea they were sitting right in front of me. Your unconditional and unchanging demonstration of love has completely changed me from the inside out. Through you, I breathe again, and for you, my heart beats. Today, I give you more than just my word. I give you mind, I give you my soul, my everything. I pray from this day forward we will chase the sunsets of tomorrow, hand in hand, forever."

The last part he recites from the passage of your book you'd read to him while he was still unconscious. Your makeup is now a victim to the stream of hot, salty tears that flowed from your eyes, "You heard me." You say just loud enough for only him to hear you. He smiles. "I heard you."

With no more tears and the unravelling of a touching ceremony,

"I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride."

This was it. The moment Jungkook had been anticipating for months. Unclipping himself from the crutches around his arms, he hands them to Jimin.

He stretches out his arms dramatically, pretending to crack his neck.

Carefully taking your face in his hands, knowing how important it was to you that he didn't smudge anything, but your lipstick was going to need some reapplication after the way he pivoted and swooped you down for the most passionate of kisses.

The kind where your leg raises in the air while the photographer gets the money shot, capturing the bright smiles all around.

As if it was possible, the reception was even better than the ceremony. The toasts were both funny and touching. All eyes were on the happy couple who sat at their special table on the elevated platform for all to see.

Unable to hear what was being said but they could only assume it was something heartfelt based on the way your hands had clasped over your mouth.

Jungkook had just rolled up the sleeve of his left arm, showing you a new tattoo that you'd never seen. It was a delicate dark vine that wrapped around his forearm, with blossoming flowers, encircling the words 'Garden of Destiny', just like from your book.

"Are those-" You point to the types of flowers, "Tiger Lilies and Cosmos, your birth flower? Yeah." You pout, "Please don't cry, you'll be so upset if you ruin your makeup." He gently moves a loose strand of your hair from your face with the same hand you'd just been examining, and that's when it hits you.

"It's on your left arm." He grins,

"Of course it is."

𓆩♡𓆪This was only supposed to be 900 words. oops. 𓆩♡𓆪

𓆩♡𓆪 mentions and reblogs are always appreciated <3

The Caretaker

✂ Pairing: Yandere! Childe x Female! Reader

✂ Word Count: 1,7k+

✂ Trigger Warnings: Implied forced marriage, mention of manipulation

[Edited]

Do not re-upload my writing to another website or use it without my permission.

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The Return of an Empress Masterlist

Title: The Return of an Empress

Status: Completed

Pairing: OT7 x Reader

Genre: Isekai, Angst, Romance, Fluff, Smut 

Characters: Empress!Reader, Advisor!Jin, Advisor!Yoongi, General!Hoseok, Advisor!Namjoon, Assassin!Jimin, Knight!Taehyung, Knight!Jungkook

Summary: After one fateful night, you find yourself transmigrated into your favorite novel as the Empress that shares the same name as you. As a bookworm, most would think you’d be happy, but how could you be happy when the Empress you’ve become is expected to be killed in three months. The only thing on your mind now is to learn how to survive.

Warning: May contain depictions of violence and mentions of abuse throughout the story.

Total Word Count:  280,808

Smut - | ☼ |  Fluff - | ♡ |  Angst - | ☆ |

Keep reading

The Taste of Deceit(Maknae Line Part One)

Request

Yandere Masterlist

Warnings: Violence, Dark Characters with Darker Intentions. And the plot would only get darker from here. Disturbing imagery, allusions, blood.

Word Count- 15k+

(GIF credits to the owner. I do not own them)

Kindly excuse the typos and errors

*****

Inspiration - 'Art Deco' by Lana Del Ray: The Great Gatsby Edit

The place was…she had no words to describe the beauty and grandeur of the place. Nothing seemed enough. And under the gigantic chandeliers, high ceilings and shimmery walls dwarfed everyone in the great hall. dwarfs with fancy attires and even fancier masks covering half of their faces.

(Y/N)’s eyes searched for her friend– he had abandoned her after bringing her to his boss’ party as his plus one.

“Once I get my hands on this punk, I swear!” she muttered to herself before picking out one of the many delicacies presented in the venue for the guests.

She did not care about the side-eyes she received from the mingling dolled-up women standing by the long table. At least that was what she liked to think. They were like bees to flowers– hovering, searching, but hardly touching anything. 

Her eyes caught the sight of the relatively isolated balcony- relying more on moonlight than blinding chandeliers.

Picking up her filled plate, she made her way towards the balcony. At the peak of summer, the air was understandably still. The warmth hit her instantly as soon as she was out of the airconditioner bubble. But she did not mind.

The moon, some scattered patches of cloud on the otherwise clean indigo sky and people below passing by, coming and going like fancied miniatures. Each of their movements seemed calculated and self-conscious. No wonder she stuck out like a sore thumb, more interested in the food than dancing with masked strangers. 

Apparently, no one was allowed to take off their masks publicly at the party. So she put up with her shimmering mask, covering half of her face delicately. At least the mask was of commendable quality.

It was peaceful for a while before a sudden commotion shook it off. She watched as security, people with cameras and even guests followed a car that entered the place, fashionably slowly, before halting just below the balcony she stood on. Every car stopped at the exact same spot, but none of the vehicles were thronged by people like that. Soon, the balcony was no longer her private space. People filled in, around her, eager to catch a glimpse of the Porsche. Or maybe the person inside. 

“Oh, he’s going to step out, click a picture, click a picture!” one of the women squealed to her friend.

“(Y/N), where were you?” her friend suddenly appeared beside her, catching her attention instantly.

“Where were you? I was left all alone there Hyuk, why did you even leave me alone? You know I don’t know anyone here.”

“I’m so sorry, it was my manager, he wanted me to meet his mentor, and I did not want you to be bored out of your mind.”

“Hyuk at least—”

“Ohmygod, ohmygod, he is out of the car!” 

The woman standing beside her cried out loud. (Y/N) held back a grimace at the obnoxiously loud voice as her eyes flickered below once more. 

There, stood a man in all black, an ebony mask covering half of his face. She could not see the details of the mask, but the shape was slightly different, and shades of silver gleamed occasionally as his face moved. The design around his eyes was more defined. His hair was parted from the side and combed back to perfection. His shoes shone under the flashing cameras and artificial lights surrounding him.

“Who is he Hyuk?” (Y/N) did not take her eyes off the man as she leaned closer to her friend.

“The big boss, the owner of the company I work in and many other such companies, and the host of this of party– Park Jimin,” he explained.

At that moment, the man’s face lifted, and the lower half of his face exposed his beauty. The mask made it almost impossible to decipher the shape of his eyes, but the way they glided over the place as his plump lips curled into a smirk had her gaze stuck on him. 

And then, his eyes stopped on her, standing right above him,or maybe it was someone behind her, beside her, but she could see the deep, dark eyes and the gleaming silver lines of the mask around them. 

The eyes…

She could not explain what it was, but they reminded her of deep, dark, forbidden forests, drowned ships laying on the ocean beds, and gigantic, maze-like caves yet to be explored.

Even with the flashing cameras, his eyes never blinked as they held her gaze. 

It was only for a long moment, but it felt like an era before she managed to look away, looking at Hyuk instead.

“Shall we go inside?” She asked, and he nodded.

And without turning her gaze back to his still figure, she pushed through the crowd and made a beeline towards the hall.

—----

Even after she was inside the hall again, those eyes stayed with her, nothing else but the eyes—the deep, dark eyes that spoke in silence. She had felt the shivers when his eyes held her gaze. And she was not familiar with such… bizarre emotions.

“Hyuk, Hyuk, let’s go home.”

“(Y/N), I must meet Mr. Park first. Are you feeling unwell?”

She gulped and shook her head. She was not feeling unwell at all, but she did not like how those eyes stayed with her so stubbornly. There was something magical and magnetic about them.

“We will only greet him, and then we can go home; how about that? Oh look, he’s here.”

It was not difficult to notice that people moved to greet him and then moved aside to make way for him. 

“Oh, he’s headed this way. Do I look like a smart employee?” 

Hyuk was thrilled to have the opportunity to improve his career prospects, and that was the only reason she did not walk away from Park Jimin’s approaching figure. She could not do that to her friend. 

“You look good Hyuk.” she patted his back in reassurance, offering him a small smile.

“Hope my employees are enjoying the party?” His voice was sweet honey with an edge of milk and cinnamon.

“Of course Mr Park, in fact, I am honoured to have been invited to your party.” Mr Park’s eyes stayed on her for a good moment before flickering to Hyuk

“Efficiency and hard work, Hyuk, are always rewarded in my business.” He patted her friend's shoulder with a smile that could only be described as angelic,

“I assume she is your plus one here?” He asked 

“Yes Sir, I came with my friend.”

“Hello there, I hope you are enjoying the party?”

“Certainly, Mr Park, it is a party like no other.”

Mr park only chuckled “It’s a business party, wait until you experience the parties at my residence.”

Turning to Hyuk, he smiled at him.

“Mr Won, we need employees like you, why don’t you attend the party I have at my residence? You will have the opportunity to meet many important figures there, I assure you that it would be my responsibility to create acquaintances.”

“I…that would truly be an honour, Sir.”

“Why don’t you bring your friend as well, I am sure you would enjoy the more…casual setting.”

Before she could come up with an excuse, Hyuk spoke out on behalf of her,

“Of course, I am sure she would not mind. We will be there.”

Mr Park’s lips curved into a slow smile.

“Sure, enjoy the party.”

And with that, he was gone, swept away with the crowd of people around him.

“Oh, my God! (Y/N), did you hear that? He knows me, he likes my work (Y/N). I would finally get a promotion, won’t I?

“You work so hard Hyuk, either way, you would have been rewarded with a promotion.”

“No, (Y/N), Mr Park knows me– the Park Jimin, you are a journalist, you must know his name.”

“I am an investigative journalist. I deal with crime, criminals and every other twisted thing a human mind could come up with, Hyuk, not the pale, rose gold business world.”

“But, he is the owner of the Park Enterprise.” Hyuk leaned into her ear and whispered “And he is only thirty-two.”

But (Y/N) could not care less. A bit surprised, of course, but that was it. Park Jimin, as much of him she could see of him, looked like the epitome of youthful charisma. There was an aura of authority, a sense of command, yes, but he looked anything but a man in his thirties. She was certain that he was only a couple of years older than her, twenty-eight at best!

—------

That night, as (Y/N) lay on her bed, staring up at the ceiling of her bedroom, she could not help but have all her thoughts occupied–no–engulfed by him– the mysterious yet charismatic Park Jimin. The way he walked, the way he spoke, like every move was a graceful dance for him. It was hypnotic, but also held an edge of danger. 

Even though it had only been only months since her joining as an investigative journalist for a publication house that printed and published news, magazines and booklets, she had begun to rely more on her gut instincts– they helped.

And her gut told her that no matter how alluring Park Jimin was, with his electric gaze and swan-like movements, she needed to keep her distance. After all, everything enticing had a sinister face. That was the rule of nature. At least whatever she knew of nature and the world.

—-----

“This is the last time I am getting along with your bullshit!” (Y/N) huffed, unceremoniously bunching up the gown she wore as she made jumped out of the taxi.

“And that is the fourth time you are telling this to me. (Y/N), I couldn’t say no to him, okay? He’s my boss.” Hyunk followed close behind as they made their way towards the gates of Mr Park’s penthouse. 

“Are we at the right place Hyuk?” the penthouse should have been booming with music, or at least chitter-chatter.

But the place seemed eerily quiet and the minted windows did not help much. 

“Uh, excuse me, is this Mr Park’s residence? We have been invited to the party here? I have the invitation.” Hyuk opened his phone and showed it to the two towering men guarding the main entrance.

“Yes, the party is inside. Please show me your ID and write down your details here.” one of them spoke out without a single twitch on his chiselled face.

No, it had to be Mr Park’s penthouse. Who else would have this level of security?

After they were done with the procedures, they were given masks again. They were somewhat similar to the ones worn at the formal party, these had an edge of funk in them. They glimmered under the light and had soft feathers attached to the top and reminded her of their presence every now and then as the softness caressed her temple

“Please do not unmask yourself publicly, at least not Mr Park allows it.”

The man surely had a thing for masks. She concluded as she nodded and made her way towards the seemingly quiet penthouse with Hyuk.

“Why’s so quiet here?”

“Why Hyuk, thought mr Park’s favourite employee would know?”

Hyuk rolled his eyes as they reached the front door of the penthouse. There, two more guards greeted them before opening the door, only to startle them with the boom of the party rushing out.

“It's soundproof!” Hyuk had to raise his voice in order to be heard as the music overshadowed every other sound in the place.

“I can see that Hyuk. Where’s the host though?”

Masked figures surrounded them, dancing, drinking, eating–the typical party-goers. The lights were slightly dimmed on one section with streaks of neon and flashes illuminating the figures dancing in the area, on the opposite side were plates and trays filled with beverages and bites that could well be consumed as dinner. The bar had a bartender making drinks with a spectacle– doing the expert tricks she had only seen in the viral videos. 

This party stunk of ‘How Rich People Party’. Mr Park brought a nightclub home.

Hyuk was already walking towards the table, eyes set on his favourites. At least someone was enjoying the party. Had it not been for Hyuk, she would have not even bothered.

Her eyes took in the place, the penthouse was huge, especially the ground floor, and the party seemed to be limited to there itself. Her eyes flickered to the first floor. There were people standing there too, but they seemed detached from the party, busy speaking with themselves and—

Her eyes caught a figure on the first floor, overlooking the party, the familiar lithe frame and ebony hair stood out, even in the dark. But what made him stand out the most was the mask he wore, it stood out, with the most ethereal, angelic white and swirls and twines of silver around the eyes.

The eyes…They were stilled on her already, as if they had been watching, waiting.

“Is that Mr Park?” she nudged Hyuk subtly. 

Of course, it was him, she remembered his magnetic stare. She simply needed to keep herself grounded.

“Holy shit. It is, did he see me gobbling up the sweets?” Hyuk immediately waved at him. 

“What else are parties for?”

Mr Park waved aback after a moment of calculated delay before gesturing them to join him upstairs.

“I’m not going there.”

“What but—but Mr Park called us.”

“He called you Hyuk, he had invited you mainly. Its about you. I have no interest in your dull business talks.” 

“Are you sure? What if I mess up, he’s a big name.”

“You will be fine, meanwhile, I can get some drinks. Just go, don’t make him wait, he’s the boss.” She patted him with assurance and watershed as he hurried up the stairs with a smile.

Her eyes flickered up once more, but Mr Park was nowhere to be seen.

Maybe…Maybe his eyes had been on Hyuk all the while.

Hyuk had not returned even after an hour and (Y/N) had found company in the tipsy-worthy cocktails and delectable bites. She knew that his career meant the world to him, but she was left in a room filled with masked strangers and she did not—

“You didn't come upstairs.” she felt the breath before she heard him speak, making her jump with a gasp as she turned around, only to face the mask that stood out.

“Mr Park! Sorry, I did not see you there.”

“Didn’t invite you to get bored,you know.”

“Oh no, I was waiting for Hyuk.”

His lips tilted ever so slightly, the smile was barely visible but it managed to be soft

“Hyuk is busy speaking with my friends. They’re impressed by him.”

“He works really hard. This was his dream career,” she added with a smile.

“Oh, I am an investigative journalist for (XXX) Papers. Not from the Paparazzi, if you’re worried.”

“Oh no, I don’t fear the media, don’t worry. If anything the journalists should fear me.” His lips tilted more, causing an unpleasant tingle to run down her stomach

“What?”

“I am terrible with interviews, I stray away from the topic so badly and I suck at using new and high technology.” He chuckled, finally showing off the mesmerising smile that made her gulp yet sigh in relief.

“Oh, right, that’s okay, I don’t like conducting interviews, so…”

Park Jimin was a charmer, she could not tell if he were a social butterfly or not, he did not leave her side even for once, and with each minute she spent with him– laughing, talking, just enjoying– her guards began to turn wax against fire.

Or was the alcohol in her system?

At that moment, she did not care.

He was like lightning in the night sky, stunning, entrancing but also intimidating. He reminded one to be careful but also could make thoughts cease simultaneously. It was almost...Sublime.

But she did not have much thought regarding that, she did not have the chance to dwell, not when their lips fit in oh-so-smooth with the ease of two puzzles fitting just right.

She did not even remember what thing led to what and how they found each other in the darkest little corner, tucked away from the party. One minute they were speaking, the next, they were flirting playfully and the next, his lips had brushed so delicately with hers, she melted into his arms.

It felt absurd how they still wore their masks, their accessory rubbed against each other as their lips clashed once more, it was teeth and tongue this time. She felt him opening a door that led to an isolated staircase, narrower but there were no prying eyes and it led straight to his bedroom.

She was not drunk, but she was tipsy and so so charmed by those eyes of his. And finally, when he undid the ribbon behind her head and let her mask fall off, she never felt more exposed, more vulnerable before.

“What have you done to me?” Jimin's voice had a desperate edge as his eager fingers.

She did not reply, shouldn’t she be asking him the question? But she was too curious, too eager to argue. She simply undid the strings of his mask, only the reveal the allure hiding behind. Park Jimin was the definition of beauty, crafted to perfection– but in flesh and bones.

His lips came crashing on hers, the sheets, like their bodies, like mating swans and snakes, like the rain touching the soil, absorbing and soaking into each others’ essence, fusing into one.

How would she ever forget those hypnotizing eyes now? That perfect face, that electric touch?

But she knew that she must leave soon.

As it was expected of her.

—------

“Where were you last night? I searched for you and called you so many times! You left the party without telling me?” (Y/N) could visualise her best friend fuming through the phone

“Yes, I left early. I was drunk a bit and wasn’t feeling great.”

A necessary white lie

“Oh…I shouldn’t have left you alone for so long, I’m so sorry.”

“That's completely alright, I understand, did you manage to make new connections?”

“Yeah, kind of, can’t say much. Where are you right now?”

“In an amusement park.”

“What?”

(Y/N) rolled her eyes at the response “Of course I’m at work. I don’t have Saturdays off. It's a half-day.” (Y/N) sighed “I have a lot pending, bye.”

“Wait I—”

Cutting the call, she dropped her phone back in her pocket and licked her lips. Even they seemed to remember the foreign warmth.

No, no (Y/N) he doesn’t even remember your face perhaps. Stop thinking about him!

 Looking around her office, scattered with closed and opened files, folders, papers and pens rolled out from a dropped penholder, she really wished she was home. But she was desperate for a good distraction. And what could be a better distraction than work?

Besides, she had taken up a murder mystery. And while the police had closed the case, her boss thought that maybe with further investigations, they could stir up a good storm.

After all, that was all this business was about.

“Agnes West, an English Teacher- engaged to Cha Kyunwo.” she read out aloud, eyes skimming through the information to find something—

There it was.

Homicide.

“Police suspected it was a case of homicide. But there was no evidence? This case is interesting.” She sat up straighter as she began to read into the details.

“Police concluded it as an accidental explosion caused by a leak in the gas pipeline--oh, that's brutal. Bodies unrecognisable, more than ninety per cent burnt but DNA matched with their daughter who was not home during the accident.” 

She skimmed through for more information, but there was no evidence found or submitted officially. At the end of the file, there were two pictures attached. The gruesome details were now in front of her. It was truly a brutal accident and if it were a murder…The killer must have hated them.

She was well into researching the case. Not much was put up to her surprise. But the real surprise came when one of her colleagues knocked on her cabin door.

“Yes, come in.”

“Hi.” her colleague peeped in “There’s someone who wants to meet you.”

“Meet me?” (Y/N) frowned. 

Hyuk had an emergency, her parents lived miles away and her other friends were not the kind to just drop by randomly. They had their lives with their partners, while she…she had her life with her office.

“Okay, I will be there.”

Her colleague gave her a tight smile before nodding and shutting the door on her way out.

Walking out of her office, she was greeted by a towering and wide man beside a shorter man with the lithe frame now etched on her brain. She would recognise it anywhere, even when his back was turned towards her. The taller man, supposedly his bodyguard whispered something in his ear before the man turned around.

Park Jimin wore his mask like he wore the grace of a swan. But Park Jimin without the mask, bare to the eyes and eyes on her, looked like a fallen angel.

For a moment, it was all stillness and silence, only the click of his shoes reached her ears as he approached her– movements slow but smooth. Perhaps he really was a swan-incarnate after all.

“You left this morning, I thought you’d stay.”

Wait. What?

“I…I had…work and I thought–well I was sure that—you were expecting me to stay?” 

She mentally hissed at herself for bumbling like a schoolgirl with a crush but what had ever changed by crying over spilt milk?

There was the same ghost of a smile she had seen the night before.

“Why think that? Of course, you would stay. Don’t leave like that again. Hmm?”

Again?

“What do you mean? You’re playing with me?”

This had to be some sick joke. Didn’t he see how she looked at him, how her mind lost to her heart every time he was in front of her? Or was it daily bread for him? Charm and then walk away?

Defying all her expectations, Jimin frowned with looming in her eyes, but still slower than the desire she had seen igniting in those hypnotic eyes last night.

“That night when I first saw you at the party, wearing that translucent mask, in the flood of prying, smitten eyes, I could see only your eyes…Do you know why?”

She had no answer to his question, he seemed to notice that too. 

Leaning closer, he continued-

“Because your eyes were the only ones that looked at me with such a sweet, innocent curiosity. I instantly knew you did not belong there. I was not even supposed to look up, I could hear their annoying screams. But something told me that I must. And I found you, and I knew I could never go back. I am still stuck in that magical moment (L/N)(Y/N).”

She saw his eyes zooming in before she felt his lips touch hers once more, this time in a chaste kiss, but enough to flutter her heart open and her eyes close.

“I will be waiting for you in the cafe across the road.”

With that, he walked away. 

“Was that the Park Jimin I just saw?”

(Y/N) jumped at her boss’s voice creeping behind her. She was a woman in her late thirties, spoke business but never forgot humour. (Y/N), on the other hand, was not in the mood for humour and her boss’ prying.

“Miss Yoon, if you want to know about him I must make it clear I barely know him myself.” She turned around, facing her editor.

“Oh, but he seemed to be interested to know you? I knew it was perfect for you It's God-sent, I tell you!” Miss Yoon’s words made no sense to her. Her boss seemed extraordinarily delighted to have discovered her acquaintance with Park Jimin.

“What are you talking about? I don’t understand?”

“Oh my…Don’t tell me that you do not know much about him.”

“I’m afraid that’s the case.”

Her boss only smiled cryptically and nodded  “I think you ought to know more, girl.”

—------

The cafe was a quaint little place, usually bustling after office hours with people rushing to grab some bites and even dinner for home. But as she approached it, she realised how empty it was– all lit up, all staff members working but there was no sign of the rush hour she would witness every day she would witness after work. Especially on Weekends.

She had never paid attention to how the door would creak when opened, it was usually hustling in there. But now, the creak was louder than her footsteps.

Odd

(Y/N) frowned before her eyes caught the corner seat of the cafe– perfect for two, isolated yet closer to the counter and set just by the right window– the one which would offer ample view of the busy street. Yet it was not the seat that was in her sight, it was the man sitting there.

Park Jimin’s eyes were already on her. He had been watching her from the movement she had stepped inside the cafe. 

“Hope you like the place,”  he spoke up as soon as she was near enough.

“No place could have been better. It's even quiet here today.”

“Yes, I had booked it all for the evening. In case you were uncomfortable,” He stated nonchalantly as she took a seat in front of him.

“Oh, that was unnecessary…”

Jimin scoffed with a smile as he poured her coffee kept on the table. His eye, previously on her cup flicked up to match her gaze with a heat that made her gulp.

 “Only the best for my lady.” He pushed the filled cup towards her as his plump lips curved upwards “I have realised that my approach last night and that evening might have made the wrong impression…I do not do casual nights (Y/N). If I lead you to my bedroom, I mean to lead you into my life as well.”

She stilled. She felt her heartbeat turning louder at his words. A lump formed in her throat and her stomach flipped. 

“Do you want to be in my life?”

His question jolted her. But the sparks were mild. She blinked but managed to nod “I would give it a try.”

Park Jimin’s smile widened– evidently pleased. He offered her his palm. As soon as her hand was in his grip, he reached for his pocket and fished out a delicate platinum bracelet and wrapped it around her wrist.

“Welcome to my world Sweetness.” His eyes fixed on her with a burning gaze as his lips fell on her wrist in a hot kiss.

++---++

“Have you gone through the case file I have given you?”

“Yes– it was suspected to be a murder by the police.”

Miss Yoon shook her head “Just one officer. He was new in the post and had a clean record according to my sources. In fact, he was at the top of his academy. Had solved a few cases before that were somewhat complex. But this case was different.”

“What do you mean?” she was intrigued.

“This officer was sure that it was a murder– a cleverly-planned, cold murder. He had begun to gather pieces of evidence, point out and interrogate suspects. There were many leads but after six months there was something worth making the news.”

“What?”

“The case was suddenly declared closed after being concluded to be an unfortunate accident and the officer was transferred to some remote village.”

“This sounds fishy?”

“Oh, I see you are learning. Yes. My sources have found some confidential pieces of information. Before this abrupt closure of the case, the officer had managed to lay his hand on a solid lead, and that led him to chalk Park Jimin as a suspect.”

(Y/N) stilled.

++---++

****

Inspiration- "M." by Anil Emre Daldal

The road was isolated, nothing could be seen beyond the thick December fog and the piles of snow separating the road from the woods on either side.  While tiny snowflakes floated in the air, the blizzard was still hours away, as per the weather reports.

Taehyung’s eyes flickered on the reflection of her sleeping form on the backseat– tucked away with blankets and pillows. His eyes fixed back on the road ahead.

Just a few more hours and we will be fine.

He promised as pushed on the accelerator.

They won’t find us, they can’t.

He was confident, but he never allowed to get that to his head. He used to be four steps ahead of them, now that they knew his game plan and he had the love of his life to take care of, he had to think ten steps ahead.

He glanced back, turning his head completely to check on her, the car was tearing through the frosty air but he slowed down, just in case.

Turning to the road again, Taehyung sped up. The sun was already setting down.

+---+

The restaurant offered him the perfect amount of privacy and smooth services, extras included since he was one of the wealthiest patrons there– a regular, paying hefty tips.

But tonight was different. Tonight he was less worried about some prying eyes, some authority informant and more focused on striking a deal with one of his rivals and potential ally. 

The waiter returned with another glass of old whisky. But Taehyung did not bother to look up.

“How’s the weather boy? Sunny or gloomy?” It was a code language for inquiry if anything suspicious was going on outside or in the restaurant.

“Uh… it's nighttime, Sir.”

It was a woman’s voice. Just not the type he was used to hearing. It was gentle…without anything to hide– plain, soft and gentle and clueless. And that made him look up from his drink.

Yes, he could see it in her eyes. Clueless, plain– the kind of simplicity he was not used to but he could see that she was anything but one-dimensional. Taehyung simply smiled, eyes fixed on her as they began to take in the little details. She clearly did not belong there.

“Oh, of course. Pleasant evening,” He said, letting his smile stretch as he watched her place the drink in front of him and give him a bow. “Please send Jun in; I’m not used to sudden changes,” He asserted as soon as she turned around to leave. 

“Sure, Sir.” Nothing was different in her eyes or smile.

As if it did not bother her. But somehow, it did bother him. But he was too proud too distracted to acknowledge that.

“Have I seen you before?” He threw the question, it was like a litmus test, one wrong twitch and he would catch it if something was off.

“Oh no, Sir, I joined yesterday. I’m not permanent yet,” She replied with that gentle voice of hers that just…hit him somewhere.

“What’s your name?”

This time, her eyes held surprise, and it felt like a victory to him, to affect her like that, and bring out something beyond a professional mask. Something that made her seem more exposed and gave him the upper hand.

“Alice.” it was the name on the nameplate given to her. And none of the names were real.

“Your real name, Alice.” She blinked at this question.

“Eui, Sir.” Taehyung nodded, testing the name on his tongue

“Eui, you are in the wrong place.”

+---+

The constant ringing of his phone made him hiss. But he could not pick that up, he needed to reach the mansion first. His eyes kept flickering between the road and the backseat. His eyes matched the cold outside the spending vehicle, yet there was a fire lit inside him. 

But it was nothing compared to the first time his lips met hers.

+----+

He knew that Jun was a sleazy man, but that he was a fucking bastard surprised Taehyung. Slightly. Taehyung had ignored his dirty eyes on the girl; he had pretended not to hear that man slap her rear and grab it painfully enough to elicit a gasp and whimper from her.

But when Eui entered the room the third time and Jun pulled her on his lap, the girl was screaming and terrified, with tears streaming down her face. 

Taehyung finally looked at him.

“I'm a regular here, Jun. I don’t want to leave a bad impression, the place is my favourite.” He warned calmly, sitting still as a stone, eyes fixed on the struggling woman in that man’s grip.

Taehyung was good at ignoring such things; they did not bother him much. He was not new to the underworld. But the sight in front of him made something in him flutter. It was tiny, but there was something akin to a spark.

“Since when did you begin to care, boy? You know what? I think she would do better in the hotel I have at—”

“Let go of her.” 

Jun froze, the mirth leaving his face. But it was just for a moment. He scoffed, pushing her away and standing up.

“You know my reach, boy, you better shut that tone of yours or we can call this stupid deal off. Your men will be left with nothing, I see them in our area, and I slaughter them. Are you listening to me? I will fucking kill them, you need this deal more than anyone else!”

While Jun fumed, his voice and ballooned ego stretched and poked, Taehyung continued to eat, only having his eyes flicker up once as Eui scurried away. Most of the time, his eyes remained on his plate. It looked a bit bland, though, he noted, before finally looking up.

Taking a toothpick, he began to clean his teeth with leisure, firing up the old nuisance's rage. He grabbed Taehyung by his collar and pulled him up.

“You know what I can do to you? And that little empire of yours?” He barked.

Taehyung shrugged, still cleaning his teeth. But this time he smirked,

 “You are so full of yourself, aren’t you, Jun? Guess what you can do to me and my empire.”  

With a flick of an eyelid, the toothpick was already buried in Jun’s left eye.

 He screamed in agony as Taehyung’s face turned besprinkled with blood. “Nothing Jun. You can do nothing.” 

Taehyung finished by slamming his head straight on the heavy table. The food, the wood, the chair, everything was now marred with his blood.

Now the plates looked interesting.

But he was not done. Far from it. It was not a flutter anymore. It was something more. Taking out his gun, he shot both of his palms before burying a skewer into Jun’s throat until there were no screams but gurgling and struggles.

He pulled his dying rival closer with a smile that could make children shake hands with him. Innocent, nice, and soft. But his eyes gave way to his blackened soul 

“I am Kim Taehyung, Jun. And I am here to rule. You don’t get to fuck with the lion in a jungle.”

 He smiled with his lips still marred with blood while Jun turned into remnants of flesh, bones, and blood. Even Taehyung’s shirt had blood on it, but it was jet black.

Snatching the overpriced handkerchief from Jun’s pocket, he wiped his hands and face before his eyes found hers. She stood in the corner, frozen, petrified. He knew he was evil enough to feed off others’ fear but for the first time, the fear in someone’s eyes made his heart skip a beat.

“I thought you scurried away.” 

He sauntered towards her, smirking at the sight of her trying to become one with the wall.

“I told you you are at the wrong place, Flower. How did you appear in this wasteland?” 

He whispered when he reached her, invading her space as if he owned her. He did not mind the idea of that, though.

“You should have run away at the first chance you got, far away.”

Was it the strange numbness that he felt after every kill, or the fact that he was coming down from the high of adrenaline? He had no clue. But something in him told him to kiss her, he must kiss her. And so he did.

Only to feel a flame like no other arise from his chest and spread into his blood like a disease. If it were the most lethal of diseases, he would die a content man. For he found the lips that could kiss his soul.

+---+

“Just a few more miles, Darling.”

Taehyung whispered to her sleeping form in the backseat. She looked so serene, even when the situation was anything but.

Even after three years, Taehyung remembered every detail of the night. The night he met her for the first time and touched the gates to heaven. Taehyung always thought that indifference and lust were all that was left for him to feel in moments like that.

But the moment he had kissed her, it jolted him awake, a part of him that even he did not know was asleep– in a deep, long slumber all his life as if waiting for that one moment. 

His phone came to life once more as the screen showed a random number. This time, he picked up the phone, keeping his eyes on the rearview mirror.

“Sir, where are you?”

It was his assistant.

“We need to go underground for a few months, prepare yourselves. I have made all the arrangements already and am heading somewhere safe. You know where to go and guide the rest of the team. Don't try to contact me on this phone. I will contact you.”

"But Sir---"

With that, Taehyung hung up, pressing on the accelerator, he took out his gun from the dashboard. His suspicion was right there was a black sedan closing the distance with his car. He purposely slowed down a bit, letting the chasing car close the distance. The tinted windows like his vehicle only made him click his gun into readiness. 

When the car was running parallel to his, the window slid down, revealing one of the many he detested with passion. 

“Long time no see, Officer!” He yelled out, lowering the window as well.

The man in uniform did not reply, only swerved his car, hitting Taehyung’s vehicle to the point of taking a 180-degree turn with violent jerks.

+---+

Right after the moment he kissed her, Eui pushed him off and ran away. Something she should have done way sooner. But it was too late now, so miserably late. Kim Taehyung had his eyes set on her, and the rest vanished.

It was so easy to find her and even easier to predict her patterns– simple, straight and plain. She was like every other people passing by. She was an average citizen, an average girl by every book.

Then why?

Why was he pulled towards her? Like a man hypnotised, as if she were the siren, and he, the willing victim. 

His eyes would be on her, like every nocturnal creature watching its prey from the darkest corner, enveloped by the shadows of the night, where the moon could not reach and the birds never sang.

Kim Taehyung was surrounded by magnetic women– women of beauty and power. But none of them could ignite the flame Eui did. Jang Eui. A young woman with no family, barely any friends and a college degree that would not yield much. Sad.

But she had him.

He was everywhere she frequented. While initially, he did not let his presence be known, preferring to just watch her instead, after two months of thorns hugging his yearning, he let her know. 

She ordered something in the cafe? It was paid for already.

She looked at a T-shirt for too long, it was delivered to her the next day. Getting off from work late at night, four people were tailing behind by a fair distance.

She feared him, he made her uncomfortable. Did it bother him? Yes, but he was a creature of habit. He could be a gentleman as long as he had things his way. Otherwise, he was a sinister deception.

She was working at a bookstore and when the night got a bit lonelier, he found it the perfect opportunity to saunter in. Her eyes gave away her fear, and with each step closer, she drew back until there was nowhere to go, just bookshelves closing them in. It was a cramped place, to his delight. 

“I have not told anyone about that night, please leave me alone!”

“Oh? Why don’t you try now and see, Flower?”

 He smiled, amused as he stepped close enough to flutter her hair with his breath. She looked a bit pale and tired.

“You will not overwork yourself anymore. I can’t have that.”

“Why do you care?” It was not a question out of spite but plain confusion.

His fingers found her cheeks but he flinched, only urging them to be firmer. But he retracted them soon after. He leaned closer, close enough to smell her, close enough to be able to see the minute details, the slightly roughened skin, the bumps and sweat, the chapped lips, the fine lines forming on her forehead though she was too young for that.

“I care for everything that belongs to me,  Flower.”

+---+

“Where is she?” Officer Jeong was cold and calm

“I don’t know who you are talking about, Officer?” Taehyung grinned

Officer Jeong pointed his gun towards him “You know very well who am I talking about.”

Taehyung smiled– slow and sinuous “She is the love of my life Officer, and I don’t like it when someone even looks at something that’s mine.”

Officer Jeong smiled back– frosty and sharp “You have this bad habit of stealing, Kim.” He clicked his gun.

+----+

It was not the last time he visited the place or found his way to be close to her. And with each passing day, she turned less tense. It was a progress Taehyung would pat himself for and when he caught her faint smile looking at the wildflowers he had laboured for, Taehyung understood what true happiness meant, what it meant to feel content.

When they went on their first date, at the same restaurant he had gone to when he earned his first bulk, Taehyung felt flutters across his heart. 

And when he slept soundly like a baby in her arms, Taehyung discovered that he had been chasing all the wrong luxuries before.

“You don’t sleep well, do you?” she asked

“It's just like that with me, barely get to sleep at night, even if I tried…I just can’t.”

“Sleep here.”

“I can’t Jagi, if I stay the night in your apartment I might alert the snakes. I am a bad man, and I have rivals worse than me.”

“I think they are already suspicious. You visit here too often Taehyung.”

“Then come with me.”

“What?” Eui blinked in confusion.

“Come home with me. Move in with me?” Taehyung offered hopefully

Eui only smiled “I will think about it, okay? For now, here, lay your head on my lap.”

And when he did.

He had something to look up to, someone to come back home to, someone to live for, someone to imagine his life’s twilight with, a reason to not be so reckless. After a long time, he felt the fear he never knew he craved– the fear of Eui’s safety.

It was the kind of happiness he was foreign to. Something he could not have even imagined. Like a wild, starving beat being petted and fed for the first time.

But his relationship with happiness was strange. Happiness was like watching fireworks for Taehyung. It immersed him, mesmerised him, and made him forget his woes.

But it never lasted for long.

+---+

“Surrender now Taehyung, and you will live.”

“Now you know my name?” Taehyung smirked

“We know your hideout, we know your overseas bank accounts, we know your business, we know it all Taehyung. The rest of my team is under their way Taehyung, we know where you are headed to. There is no escaping from us. Not anymore Taehyung.”

Taehyung’s jaws clenched. No matter what he did, how much he tried, he knew that he could not turn reality.

“I like the confidence, despite with nothing but failures on record.” Taehyung poked.

“No matter how far or how fast we run, Kim. Our deeds catch up with us. No matter the form– police, rival, accidents, fate? We never escape consequences.”

+----+

Within a month into the relationship, Eui moved into his mansion. He liked to call her the Lady of the mansion, just as she was the lady in his heart– the only woman he could think of, liked to look at and wanted to kiss and have himself buried in.

She was the reason he looked forward to returning to his mansion– he called it home now. But his business did matter. Running an illegal buisness and keeping a disguise was stressful and risky, to say the least. Add a long wait to the list and one would have a pissed-off Kim Taehyung. Only the big names in the underworld knew his real name. The rest of the world knew him by one menacing name– V. 

And they also knew not to get on V’s bad side.

It was a rainy afternoon, one could confuse the afternoon sky with that of dusk. The rain made it even more difficult to see through. But there was a certain shade that might just catch one’s eyes. He saw it from the corner of his eyes and then turned. It was pouring out and Taehyung had to squint and clear up the fog on his window to get a better look. And he kept looking after that– still as a tiger on alert.

It was Eui, his Eui in a police vehicle with an officer.

Taehyung’s gaze never left them, not even for a moment. But he knew the longer he stayed, the riskier things would get for him. His face was stoic and a blank canvas all the while.

“Drive away.” He commanded the man driving, no essence left in his voice.

There were no questions asked. The man drove away, and all the while, Taehyung’s eyes remained on her.

+---+

“I’m asking you again, Taehyung. Where is she?” Officer Jeong demanded.

“I should have killed you that day.”

+----+

“Taehyung? Are you home?” 

Her voice was melodious as ever. But this time, it did not soothe him. It burnt him. As if his skin was falling off. But he stood motionless in silence. Watching her from the dark corner of their room as she entered it.

“Tae?”

Taehyung felt an unpleasant shiver run down his spine. The tone, the voice. Filled with so much love turned his eyes glassy.

Lies.

Lies

Lieslieslieslies.

That was all he could hear in his head, that was all he could think of. Life could never be fair to him, could it? He was perhaps a cursed soul. A wretched on earth.

He saw as she tripped over the dead body on the floor, screaming out as soon as she realised that blood coated her hands and clothes.

“How many more?” He finally spoke up, walking into the little light that partially illuminated the room.

When she looked up, there was fear in her eyes, but it was not the only emotion swirling in those oceanic eyes. For the first time, her eyes spoke the truth. She let them. He realised that– they spoke because she let them.

“Your partner in crime.” He whispered out with a cold smirk but his eyes began to well up. “I’m–I’m one fucking…” he shook, stopping himself right before his voice could crack and give away his heartbreak and vulnerability. 

Instead, he fished out a lighter from his pocket and a pack of cigarettes. Taking in a shaky breath, he tried to keep his shivering hands steady as he lit the cigarette. All the while looking at the nightstand where the engagement ring sat. It was going to be his sweet surprise to her. He could look at anyone and anything but her. He could not even look at her, he could not risk meeting her eyes and exposing himself. He was a shell of a man before and now, a broken man.

“What is your real name?” He finally looked at her, being able to get a hold of himself finally.

“Tae I—” She shut up with the click of the gun he pointed at her.

“What is your name?” He gritted out.

“Eui, I am Eui you—”

“Your. Real.Name.” His voice was low but left no room for any more lies or questions

The silence that reigned after was thick and dangerous.

“(Y/N). My name is (Y/N).” she finally whispered, looking into his eyes without an ounce of fear. 

Taehyung nodded. A lone tear finally managed to escape his eye, though his face remained unreadable

“(Y/N)...” The name felt foreign yet oddly satisfying on his tongue “I really want to kill you right now.” 

His voice shook and so did his hands. But he did not care anymore.

+----+

“ You are going to be arrested either way Taehyung, so you better let (Y/N) go. She is our responsibility.” 

“She is mine!” Taehyung growled, but his words dragged into a warning tone. 

“She works for us, and I am not leaving without her. Now, where the hell is (Y/N)?”

“Hye! Hye?” 

Both Jeong Hye and Taehyung turned towards (Y/N) who managed to open the car door with effort.

“(Y/N)!” Pushing Taehyung out of the way, he rushed towards her.

While Taehyung watched, glaring at Officer Jeong’s back before he fired his gun.

****

Inspiration- 'Gender' by Really Slow Motion

Jeon Jungkook was the kind of boy one’s parents would invite for dinner. The model student, polite, lovable, funny, good in sports, good at everything. Not the valedictorian but fairing well enough to aim for the top universities. 

No wonder (Y/N)’s parents were happy with their son’s choice of friend circle– well, maybe not the circle as a whole, but if Jeon Jungkook and Kang Dayhun were friends, they were all too happy to have his influence on their son. Like every parent, they wanted the best for their children, after all.

Being the eldest child came with a hell of pressure and responsibilities. Like most parents, her parents wanted their eldest child to fare better than them in his life– the expectations, the standards– it was all in the skies and to (Y/N), it was clear that the pressure was crushing him.

She often wondered, why could their parents not see, he was doing his best?

Things were much different for her. She was the youngest in the family after all. She was saved from the overwhelming pressure and scrutiny.

“Is the table ready (Y/N)? And don’t you dare pick up the fries, they’re for Jungkook!” 

Their mother could not be more obvious in showing her anticipation and excitement for hosting the Golden Boy of the town. She ran around, fussing over every detail, even the most irrelevant ones.

“ Dayhun, son, are you sure these are his favourite flowers?”

“You never even bothered to bring Dad his favourites?” (Y/N) hid no malice behind her words, so her mother’s glare had the fourteen-year-old clueless.

“He’s coming here with his parents, (Y/N). You know how influential the Jeons are?”

“I know they’re famous here? Have the picture-perfect family and lots of money.” (Y/N) replied innocently.

Her mother neared her “Yes, child, yes. But if we manage to get in their good graces, we can have a brilliant future ahead. Don’t you want that?”

“But wasn’t this about Dayhun and Jungkook?” She was confused now.

Her mother smiled “Of course it is. Jungkook is our priority. But it is always better to have good connections around.”

—----

Even when in high school, Jeon Jungkook stood out. He was tall, and lean but had a stature that visibly showed his capabilities. Despite some of his sharp features, he did sport two round doe eyes that reminded her of rabbits. No wonder her classmates were going crazy for him.

Jungkook was of her brother’s age, seventeen. While she was fourteen. Most people might assume that Jungkook was immediately her school crush. No, he wasn’t, she had seen him a handful of times before he was invited with his family for dinner, but all she knew was her brother’s friend.

Jungkook was high on manners– no wonder her parents loved him. His smile was bright and contagious and his humour had won over the dinner table. Needless to say, he was the star of the evening. As always. But the thing was, him being the star would not bother anyone. He was an angel! Her parents loved him, her brother loved him, she did not hate him– what else would one want? It was the best impression any high schooler had put on her parents.

Maybe her mother’s words made sense? To the fourteen-year-old (Y/N) ‘connections’ meant making good, amiable friends, and the Jeons were just that.

+---+

“By the time my brother and Jungkook graduated from high school, Dad was already the branch manager in the company he had given so many years to. My brother stayed back but Jungkook was sent abroad, to learn the ins and outs of the business world.” 

(Y/N) explained to George, her boyfriend since college, as she rushed around– packing things up for the long holiday she had planned with her family.

She had stayed in the foreign land even after her graduation. While the job she was offered was the prime reason, it was also George.

“But why are you telling me about Jeon Jungkook?” George’s asked.

It was supposed to be the holiday when George would finally be introduced to her family. Why would her brother’s best friend matter?

“Because George, my parents adore him, he’s their ‘ideal son and ideal man’ model.” She rolled her eyes with her fingers in the air.

“You are not a fan of him, are you?”

(Y/N) sighed “It’s just that…I don’t care. I just don’t like it that someone outside our family would have an influence on them,, especially to the extent that I have to tell my boyfriend all about him so that he could be in that guy’s good books.”

“Saadd~” George sang out with mockery.

“Sad indeed.” She couldn’t help but nod.

—-------

“Okay, I have told them that I am bringing my friend with me.”

“What? You didn’t tell them that I’m your boyfriend?”

“Don’t worry, they will understand. For now, just focus on your first impression. Be free, don’t crack your terrible jokes just smile, okay?”

 (Y/N) explained to him as she drove into her house’s driveway, a bring smile making its way as soon as she was inside the gates 

“Just smile as I am smiling.” She spoke through her grin.

“Aye, Sir!” George gave a salute before the car came to a halt and they stepped out.

“(Y/N), you made it!” Her mother was visibly glowing. (Y/N) observed as her smile stretched.

She was excited too– beaming with happiness. It had been almost two years since she had seen her family physically– video calls and pictures stood in no comparison to the feeling of home and warmth.

Her job was demanding and her brother worked under the Jeons now. So, while he did live with his parents, he was constantly travelling with and without his friend and boss– Jeon Jungkook.

The man was supposed to visit their home with his parents for dinner. The (L/N) residence was different– not the mediocre house she remembered from her childhood memories. It was now a house with life-sized glass walls, five bedrooms, two servants, one cook and one gardener who gave a weekly visit to tend to the beautifully kept garden at the back of the house and the lawn on the front. It was a lovely villa that showed off their elevated status clear and loud. It had kept memories as well– after all, it was purchased when she was still in college. But maybe, she liked the old house and the old neighbour better.

But she could tell how happy her parents and brother were about the house– it symbolised Dahyun and her father’s economic ascension. And most importantly, the place was closer to her family’s favourites in the town– the Jeons, who, with their expanding and promising business, resided in a sprawling mansion. She was not sure about Jeon Jungkook’s whereabouts though.

Much to (Y/N)’s surprise, her family’s reception of George had been…smooth, no questions asked, not a speck of suspicion in their eyes. None of them even bothered to ask about a foreign man’s closeness with their daughter– their only daughter. They were amiable to him, warm with their reception and mingled with him as if they had known him for years.

But their response to George only fuelled her confidence regarding the revelation of her relationship with him. 

Maybe she was thinking too much? Her family would have no problem sending their daughter away to a foreign land as a permanent resident there. They would not object to her marrying a foreign man after all.

The conclusion blessed her with a sense of relief as she tried to decide the right time for the disclosure.

—------

The night lit up with laughter and chit-chat. Jeon Jungkook was running late due to something work-related, Mr Jeon had explained to (Y/N). Jungkook’s parents were warm to her, as always. But this time, they seemed to have missed her, for they had brought her a pendent set of sapphire and diamond. 

Two earrings and the delicate but custom-made intricate designed pendant with the blue and white winking stones were surely eye-catching. But it was the single-string bracelet that came with it was the set that made her accept the expensive gift– the most expensive gift she had received from the Jeons yet.

“Oh, don’t you worry child, you deserve it, we have missed you so dearly.” Jungkook’s mother had scoffed away her refusals. 

(Y/N) did not want to seem rude and ungrateful, so she accepted the gift that she knew cost a fortune, but it was probably minimal for the Jeons. Something that Mr Jeon would frequently gift his wife.

There was no doubt that the set was stunning, something one would imagine wearing on the most special days, and on her mother’s insistence, she wore the bracelet for the rest of the dinner.

It was about an hour later and five calls from his father– two of which were never picked up– that Jeon Jungkook rang the bell. His entrance was no dramatic feet or anything, but maybe his transformation was, to some extent.

(Y/N) remembered him as slightly shorter,  of the lithe frame and short hair, a highschooler with doe-eyes(he still had them, gladly), clear skin, except for the occasional pimples and acnes that came with teenage years and pretended to cause havoc.

But this Jungkook was not the boy she remembered him as– he was a man, surely– something not only his towering and perfectly proportioned frame showed, but also his aura. His face was now pristine,honey-shaded porcelain and doll-like lips now sported a piercing, like one of his eyebrows, she had noticed the two dots later.

As soon as his eyes found hers, she found herself containing the urge to gulp as she subconsciously leaned towards George who stood by her.

“(Y/N)! It has been so long huh? I almost did not recognise you.” His smile remained the same, reminding her of a bunny.

“Yes, it has been a while.”

“Six years.” He added as he stood in front of her, towering.

“Six years?” 

No wonder so much changed about him. Jungkook nodded with a smile before his eyes shifted to George.

“Oh, he’s my friend. He joined me here for the holidays.”

George greeted Jungkook with enthusiasm and in return was greeted with warmth. It was barely a problem to teach him about her culture. He knew the culture and language– his mother was Korean and his father was American. He was, evidently, the best of both worlds. It was, after all, the one trait that caught her attention.

The evening rolled on with laughter and a generally light environment until it was time for dessert.

(Y/N) watched as her father rose from his cushioned seat and rang the delicate spoon against the ceramic to gain everyone’s attention, he had it in seconds.

“Since we have all gathered here– I mean each and every one of us–It has been long since we have had such occasions, all the children and the parents–anyway, I’m steering away from the topic– yes, so, we are all here, enjoying dinner and each other’s company after a long time…”

Turning to (Y/N), he offered a smile before continuing–

“You know, I remember both of these just running around the old house, chasing each other, chasing butterflies, cycling– the general stuff. We used to think we had that we had a long way ahead, bringing up the children. And maybe it is true– that’s a long journey…But it certainly did not feel long. All of a sudden, Dayhun was going to a university and (Y/N) was leaving for college– flying to a completely foreign land and we felt jobless.”

The room burst into chuckles. 

“But we were wrong. We were not jobless. Parenthood is a lifetime process. And so is friendship. The Jeons have shown their trust in us by giving Dahyun a chance into a responsible and accessible post as the Operational Manager of the company…”

“And he has not disappointed, no one could have done this job better than Dahyun, the man has worked at the ground level to know the ins and outs.” Mr Jeon commented, smiling at Dahyun

“I agree, I have no idea what I would have done without Dahyun” Jungkook chimed in, patting her brother on the back. He was evidently happy with her brother’s work.

“Yes, so, it would only make sense if we showed our trust in the Jeons too. And when Daejung came to me with a proposal, we immediately recognised it as a sign– a sign to show our trust in the Jeons…By giving our daughter’s hand in marriage to their only son– and a son to us as well– Jungkook.”

The laughter and clapping in the room was muffled in (Y/N)’s ears, all she could hear was her clear, loud and rapid heartbeat– it was like she were in a dream, everything was too slow, too unreal and full of surprises.

Looking around, she caught Jungkook’s eyes, he smiled at her, his gaze set on her– as if reading, calculating.

“Of course, of course if (Y/N) has no problem to the union?” Her father added moments later.

She looked around the expectant gazes set on her frozen form. Jungkook’s expression remained unreadable. 

Shaking off the shock, she prepared herself to tell them the truth– she was in love with George– George Winston.

“Actually I—”

“What a pleasant surprise (Y/N)? Isn’t that great?”

 She was left speechless at George’s interruption, his hand on her shoulder prevented her from rising.

“What are you saying?” She hissed

“Just play along.” He spoke through the grin.

“(Y/N)? Everyone is waiting, child.” It was her mother who spoke out.

Looking at the Jeons, she understood the meaning behind the expensive gift she received. Sapphire was Jungkook’s birthstone and the diamond signified eternal love and beauty.

—-----

“What the fuck were you thinking!” 

“Shh, calm down, your family will hear you.” George tried to pacify pacing (Y/N)

“Let them! I’m not—” she lowered her voice into a whisper “I’m not marrying Jeon Jungkook, I have hardly known him. This is atrocious! How could they do this to me?”

To say that she was upset, would be an understatement. She was on the verge of tears. 

“Why did you do this George? Why? What are you afraid of?”

“Because (Y/N), it's clear who holds the reign here. I did not want to shock and offend everyone like that–rejecting the proposal and then revealing our relationship. A lot depends on the Jeons, you cannot afford to offend them in any way.” 

“Now you are talking like my mother.”

“And she is right (Y/N). We will reveal our relationship, you will not get married to Jungkook, you have my word. (Y/N) I love you! How did you even think that I would let you be married to some other man here?”

“But now what? I said yes, I had to!”

“We will find some other way. The engagement date has not been fixed yet, we have time. We will find a nicer, gentler way– something that would not go against your family’s future (Y/N). Okay?”

She knew that he was right. The Jeons were powerful people, her brother’s career depended on them. She could not counter that. She had to find another way.

—------

There could be no better way than to talk it out to Jeon Jungkook, (Y/N) had figured out. While she knew she should have shared her thoughts with George, she feared he would not see this as she did.

She might not have been very close to Jungkook, but she knew him, he was a well-mannered, mind-tempered boy, given that was the version six years ago, and that she had only met him two days ago…

The realisation made her halt.

The Jungkook she knew was just a high schooler. The man who joined her family for dinner. And he looked different, to put it lightly.

But it was too late, she was already facing the receptionist in the gigantic Jeon Headquarters.

“Welcome Ma’am, I have already informed Mr Jeon of your arrival, he will be here shortly.”

“Eh, is there an appointment under my name?”

The receptionist seemed confused but smiled anyway “Why would you need an appointment, you are our boss’ fiancee.”

“Oh, you know that already?” 

“Ma’am everyone in the office knows who you are, Mr Jeon has—-”

“I’m here, Ara, thank you for informing me and keeping her company.”

Jungkook walked up to both of them with a ghost of a smile etched on his pierced lips. The tiny ring shone, along the theo dots on his eyebrow under the sunlight filtering in through the glass walls.

She expected him to question her, but there were no questions asked, he simply guided her towards the elevator.

“What a pleasant surprise, but since you are here, and I have no tight schedule, why not show you around?” he offered once the elevator doors closed.

“There is no need of that Jungkook—”

“Yes, yes, you already work in the corporate world, an office tour is probably the last thing on your mind, are you hungry? We can go for some brunch.” He continued as they walked inside his office.

His attitude surprised her. Did he not have a lover, an affair? Anything at all? He seemed all too happy to entertain her. Did he have no objection to this marriage at all? He knew her just as much as she did, they never really had any deep conversation.

But now that she came to think about it, he did not show much of a reaction to the wedding announcement.

“Jungkook, I have something important to tell you.” Her words made his steps halt. 

“And I’m all ears.” He hummed before shutting the door for privacy and gesturing for her to take a seat on the leather couch in his office.

Gingerly, she joined him there.

“Jungkook-shi…”

“Jungkook is fine (Y/N), you make me seem like a stranger.” He scoffed playfully.

“Yes, Jungkook…Are you– I mean are you okay with this marriage?”

His smile faltered at that. Though his smile still remained, he frowned

“Why would I have an objection? I always knew that we are going to tie the knot someday."

“What?” She was officially growing resentful of surprises.

Jungkook’s smile returned to its full force, it seemed the same but felt different. His smile did not change much, but it did not reach his eyes either.

“Was it not obvious enough?”

“But I never wanted to marry you.”

The words slipped out before she had the time to sugarcoat them.

She had expected the smile to fall from his face, and it did. But it peeked out in a slow, sinuous manner– she was looking at a completely different man.

But it was too late anyway, she had to take the chance.

“I am...I’m in love with someone else Jungkook.”

There, she had said it out loud and clear. The silence shared between them was nothing if not vaporized tension– it had begun to turn eerie when Jungkook moved– tilting his head as his eyebrow-piercing gleamed ominously.

She cleared her throat but failed to clear the tension. But finally, Jungkook spoke up.

“We were supposed to select the rings today–tch-completely slipped my mind.” He scoffed and the smile returned to his face. “Come on, we need to get there soon, after that, we can have a lavish dinner–what do you think?”

(Y/N) blinked. Did he not hear her?

“Jungkook, I cannot marry you.”

She asserted, looking up at the man who now stood, looming over her like a threat to the future she had pictured with George.

“Of course, you can, Jagi. Now, shall we go?” His palm was large. She observed when he offered it to her graciously.

“Didn’t–did you not hear me?”

Jungkook licked his lips and let the smile fall. He bent on his knee, lowering for her. Up close, she realised that he looked like a completely different man. She could see and feel how well-built he was. The type that would evoke both fear and admiration.

“You are one naive creature…Look around you (Y/N). Everything you see, everything you touch, belongs to the Jeons. Including you and your family.” He spoke as if he was dealing with his daily business- money-matters.

When she refused to move, he sighed and rose up, now looking down at her with pursed lips, as if she were a petulant child. If anything. He was the one with stubbornness, showing his influence in place of stomping his foot.

“Here is how things are going to happen, Honey. You will come with me, choose the rings, we will have lunch, get to the boutique your mother has chosen and choose your wedding gown dress and give them measurements and ideas about your dress, we get dinner, reach your home, eat with your family and I leave after that. Everything would remain normal and I would consider that this conversation never happened. So…”

He offered his palm again.

But this time, a defiant glare replaced the confusion in her eyes.

“And what if I don’t?”

The question hung in the air for a couple of tense moments, before he scoffed, looking away and shaking his head before he bent down smoothly, surprising her into a vulnerable position. She had been surprised by Jungkook, she had been flattered by his exceptional kindness towards her before, but she had never feared him, until now. Up close, with his dark orbs set on her, he was, for the first time, intimidating to her. Her throat dried up as she pressed herself to the leather of the couch.

“If you don’t, I will have your brother removed from every privileged position and favours I have so generously bestowed upon him and make sure your family ends up on the streets. I will make sure your so-called loverboy is removed from every record available– authorities cannot search for a man who does not exist. And you would still be married to me.”

(Y/N) could not decipher what she felt– it was an awful amalgamation of fear, distress, anger, resentment, shock and many more she could not pinpoint. But his words and the promise he held in his sharp gaze left her breathless.

“So,” he moved away, giving her the space to breathe “It is up to you. I know you are not a fool. So, choose wisely– either way, you are going to end up on the wedding altar. I like your family (Y/N), do not make me do things I might regret later, hmm?”

She flinched when the back of his hand touched her cheek, running over her skin delicately as if she was made of glass.

“You know…” She gulped, trying to steady herself and arrange her words right. “You know that you can have anyone you want.”

He nodded with a smug smile tugging his lips “I know, Jagi. And that’s why you are here– the girl I have always wanted. Now, let’s get going, we do not have all day.”

This time, he did not wait for her, he simply, grasped her hand and dragged her along.

—-----

He drove her to an exclusive store that had on display what she had only seen celebrities showing off. The Jeons were not limited to just the town, she had realised during the dinner itself. They had their reach to the capital and beyond.

She remained mostly quiet during her time in the expansive store, and to her pleasure, it evidently irked Jungkook. But she knew that she could not keep this game for long. Such passive actions would only irk him, nothing more. He would still be able to do what he pleased, however, he pleased.

“As amusing and adorable as I find this attitude of yours, I have had a long day and it is getting on me, (Y/N).” He whispered from behind as he locked her gaze through the mirror, the pendant he had chosen for her hung around her neck. 

“Good.” She shot back, glaring at him through the mirror. 

But he only smiled a cold, cryptic smile that made her stomach flip.

“Trust me, Jagi, you would not like to upset me.”

A couple of hours with him and she already felt trapped. There was no question regarding her refusal of this marriage. She did not like Jeon Jungkook, not even one bit. But it was not about just the disdain– it was the fact that she feared him too. She had never found him intimidating before, but the way his large, tattooed hand sat on her shoulder imposingly, she knew that she had to warn George.

—------

“Where were you?” 

Worry would be an understatement to what (Y/N) had been feeling ever since she arrived home and found that George had gone to explore the town all by himself. And he was not answering her calls. She had only managed to call him twice.

Jungkook had filled through each of his words, they had lunch together before he took her to his friend’s boutique where her measurements were taken and designs for the wedding dress had been chosen. After that, they packed an elaborate dinner to share with her family before finally returning home. But of course, Jungkook had to share the dining table with her parents tonight and openly show how delighted he was by the arrangement

“(Y/N), please calm down, I went to—”

“Yeah, Mom told me, you went to explore the town, but why the hell did your phone just kept ringing?”

“I had kept it on silent accidentally (Y/N), I’m sorry okay?” He snapped, his waning patience now visible.

“George, I was worried here! Don’t show me that attitude.”

“Keep your voice down (Y/N), your family will hear you!” He hissed.

“Then let them! It is the only option left now anyway!” She ran her fingers through her hair.

“What do you mean?”

She choose a short pause, feeling drained and helpless like never before. She was not only worried about the marriage now but also about keeping George safe.

“What is it?” Now he sounded concerned, and it made the tears surface.

“George, we need to leave, we all need to leave as soon as possible it is not as simple anymore, I don’t know what my and his family had made a deal about but this marriage cannot be stopped.”

“What are you talking about (Y/N)?”

“George you need to leave, he–he threatened me.” She lowered her voice but the tension remained thick in the air.

“Hey, hey, hey. Calm down, calm down okay? Here, sit.” He gently led her to the bed, making sure she sat comfortably there “I will bring you some water.”

“No I don’t want water George, I want a ticket back. For now, you must leave, so I can deal with everything once you are safe George. You need to leave before he finds out.”

George paused, his eyes narrowing, “What do you mean? Did you…?”  He left the question incomplete, but he needed no more confirmation than her nodding. 

“I had to do something?” She was spelt out hopelessly.

George ran his hand through his dark brown hair, frustration and fear evident in his eyes.

“George we can—”

“Why the hell did you have to go to him when I told you not to? Are you fucking stupid? What the fuck is wrong with you? Fuck!”

He walked away with his hands on his waist before he began pacing in the room.

“George?” She tested the waters.

With a long sigh, that followed a longer pause, he finally looked at her again.

“I didn’t want to do this but…” He shut his eyes tightly, hesitant to continue before letting out another laboured sigh.

“I am not going anywhere (Y/N). I can’t.”

—----

“It's weird Jungkook took you for the wedding dress measurements first, this boy.” 

Aunt Eunhae shook her head as she went through the arrays of silks, satin, cotton and muslin, a woman followed behind her and (Y/N), ready to assist.

Her to-be mother-in-law took it upon herself to pick out the engagement dress. Even if the Jeons preferred to keep a low profile, some guests could not be left out. 

“How about this, child?” She picked out a pale lavender gown that moved with fluidity and appeared just as delicate as it felt comfortable on touch. “I would hate to see my daughter-in-law uncomfortable. I thought we could skip those overly fancy and choose something breathable.”

“Yes, I would like something breathable too. It's so soft.” At least there was something to help her out in the engagement lest she fell into a breathless fit in despair

“Muslin Madames, made with Indian cotton, designed in Milan and the embroidery is hand stitched.”

“You like it? Give it a try.” Aunt Eunhae insisted.

“Okay.” (Y/N) managed a faint smile with a nod.

It turned out that  Aunt Eunhae had an incredible knowledge of textiles as she had exquisite taste. The chiffon outer layer gave the gown all the ramp-up it needed while it was shimmery on the outside, the soft muslin was soothing on her skin. If there was anything she was looking forward to about the engagement, it was wearing this gown.

“You have been so quiet, are you okay?”

Aunt Eunhae’s words made her look up from the menu, not that she was paying attention to that either– she kept floating in and out of her daydreams and thoughts.

“Yes, I am fine, Aunty, don’t worry.”

“Call me Mother now, I have always adored you so much, child.” She waved her hand lightly, (Y/N) smiled but Eunhae’s eyes remained on her “I know that the marriage proposal came abruptly. But I want you to know that I had never seen you as an outsider, child. I adore you, you should know that by now.”

There was no lie to that. Aunt Eunhae always wanted a second child, a daughter, specifically, but due to some complications, they could not have another offspring– Jungkook was their only child. When the (L/N)s came into the picture, (Y/N) filled out the place for a daughter.

“I know, Mother.”

“And so, you should know that my affection for you would not change even if you call off the engagement.”

“Mother?”

She shook her head “I am a middle-aged woman (Y/N), and I can sense cover-ups from miles away. You are not ready for the engagement.

“Was.” (Y/N) corrected.

“Huh?”

“I was not ready, to be honest. But after spending some time with Jungkook… I realised that—” she gulped “That I could give this a chance.”

“Really?” Eunhae’s tone reflected her relief.

“Yes, really.”

—----

The engagement date was fixed just as swiftly as the marriage proposal was presented on her return. Now she doubted whether she would even be returning to America or not.

“You look exquisite, my darling child.” Her mother gushed as she fixed the strands of (Y/N)’s hair– framing her face delicately.

She wore a necklace of freshwater pearls, the subtle lavender lustre went perfectly well with the gown. The set contained a pair of tear-drop earrings, and a single strand of the necklace with an amethyst in the centre, sitting perfectly in the middle.

The engagement was to take place at Jeon Mansion– or so she thought.

It was the Jeons' permanent home but not the mansion she remembered from her early days was no more there. She had only been there a handful of times, and they were renovating and expanding but she had never thought of it growing into an estate- Servant Quarters littered near the main building, crafted gardens, a man-made pond hosting varieties of koi fish, a number of dogs, a ground for golf, and the rest was yet to be discovered. 

The Jeons were royals.

“You are going to live here, you see? Jungkook is their only child (Y/N), you will be the queen of this estate!”

“I know, Mom, and that makes you very happy.”

(Y/N) did not bother to hide her spite as she sat stiffly in the car her mother drove. Her brother and father were already in the mansion.

The said mansion was perfectly suited for the expansive estate– it was an imposing building with elements of modern and traditional architecture fused to stun.

“Did you and Jungkook have a disagreement? Do not worry about that child. Once you are married, your husbands are bound to listen. Eunhae adores you, mr Jeon loves you too and Jungkook, have you seen his eyes whenever he looks at you?”

“Yes, Mom, I now see how he looks at me.” She replied flatly, her mind going back to a week ago.

+----+

“I’m not going anywhere (Y/N), I can’t.” 

“What?” (Y/N)’s voice refused to rise above a whisper “What do you mean George?”

George did not reply– only ran his fingers through his hair and looked away.

“George, I’m asking  you something, George!”

“I didn’t want to do this! I did not want to risk so many lives…”

“George, what are you saying? I don’t understand…”

George looked at her with eyes she felt foreign to. Without another word, he picked up his travel bag, opened it and from somewhere deep within, fished out a card.

An Identity Card.

Police.

+----+

The mansion was twinkling with all the lighting arrangements, simply as per Aunt Eunhae’s taste- simple, delicate but unique. The said woman was waiting by the entrance with her husband and the rest of their families. 

(Y/N) smiled at her brother and father approaching 

“For once, you do not look like an ape.” There he was, her most beloved brother.

“At least come up with a better insult, I have been hearing the same since I was six.”

“Because that was when I found out that I have an ape for a sister.”

“Okay now, Dahyun, let your sister be for once, it's her engagement today.” Their mother chided him.

Dahyun only shrugged “Save your tears for the wedding Mom.”

“I am not in tears honey, but look at that nervous smile you have.”

Dahyun only rolled his eyes before leading (Y/N) inside the mansion. The celebration hall was not let stuffed with people, but there were close friends and family members around. And they all were so warm and welcoming, it made her wonder what wrong might at occurred during Jeon Jungkook’s birth. 

He was such an entitled—

As if her thoughts summoned the devil, he appeared, seemingly out of thin air, with a smile that made him look just as much of an ideal as he looked gorgeous– she had to admit that the man could turn head wherever he went. 

She noticed that he chose to match the colours– a white shirt, pale lavender blazer and trousers along with his hair brushed back and tied into a bun. He was a sight to behold, but his eyes could make the devil proud.

“You look ravishing, Jagi.”

His compliment brought ‘awws’ giggles and whistles from the people around, but she could only manage a smile. That was all she could come up with at the moment. Her eyes flickered, and she spotted George in the corner with ease.

Gulping down a scowl, she looked away. She had been too ignorant, too naive, that was why she was where she was.

“Smile, Love,” Jungkook whispered to her as he led her towards the couch reserved for them.“Look around you, the people love you because you are going to be a part of the family. Is it so bad to become my wife? Be the mistress of the household? Have everything on your fingertips?”

Yes!

Yes, it is.

She remained quiet, sitting beside him like a lifeless doll.

“Answer me (Y/N)...”

I NEVER WANTED THIS!

She wanted to scream it out, it was a cliff on one end and a well on the other, nowhere to go. Betrayal on one side and an unwanted union on the other.

Jungkook did not poke further, only sighed softly and held her closer. She was thankful for the little kindness. 

Her eyes found George again, he stood at the corner, with her brother, both of them enjoying the delicacies and drinks being served.

+----+

“What…what is this George?”

It was like her mind had numbed down suddenly, frozen, unable to function, unable to read the letters properly. But she knew, deep inside her mind she knew what it was leading to.

“That is not my real name. I can’t tell you my real name yet.”

She remained quiet, still processing. But he continued.

“We have been tracking Jeon Jungkook for a while now. He is not the businessman he shows himself to be. He is involved in the illegal drug buisness and weapons supplies. His father started it, but it was only the headache of this government. But by the time Jeon Jungkook took over, the business has expanded its reach, it is an international matter. We have been keeping an eye on him for the last seven years– as he was the only known heir to his father’s throne. The Jeons dominated the underbelly of this nation, and they have no intention to stop. We were growing desperate. Jeon Junhae was a far-sighted, clever man, he covered his steps well, cooked the black into white and kept the price. Jeon Jungkook is four steps ahead of his father. We needed a weak string.” 

He paused and eyed her still form, before looking away to continue.

“And then, one of our informants here was able to gain access to his room. We did not find anything substantial business-wise but we found a photo album. It was you. Each and every picture was yours, and there were also some sketches of you. The earliest of them was when you were fourteen or fifteen maybe. We found our way into the wolf’s lair.”

This time, she stumbled back, almost tripping before ‘George’ caught her, worry flashed in his eyes along with sympathy, but there was not a trace of regret. Gently, he helped her sit on the bed.

“I was assigned this…Project.” He eyed her warily as he confessed.

Project…

The time they shared, their relationship, their moments, their nights, their days, their love…Everything was reduced to ashes... No, a ‘Project’

How many people had made her a pawn in their games?

“Please tell me it’s all a li-lie, please George, I will be reduced to nothing…Do you even hear yourself? We have three whole years George! Please…”

She reached her hand to hold his, and even with her tightening grasp and begging, his fingers remained loose and still as if he were an unfeeling puppet

“George…” She sobbed out, her emotions running everywhere as her thoughts. 

This could not be possibly true? 

Why must fate be so cruel to her? Why must she suffer for others’ greed?

+----+

“Today, we gather here to witness the testament of Mr Jeon and Mr (L/N)’s friendship as we attend the engagement of two lovely souls, the apple of the eyes of their respective families– Jeon Jungkook, my best friend and boss, and my beloved little sister, my baby, (L/N) (Y/N).”

At Dahyun’s words, the room erupted in smiles and clappings. Happiness and flamboyance echoed through the walls of the Jeon Estate as Jungkook slipped the engagement ring over her finger– the sapphire fit perfectly. But she felt a snake wounding around her finger, trying to crush her will.

But she smiled through it all. She had to.

+---+

“You drag me into the games of yours, you use me and yet have the audacity to ask this?” Anger was a far cry from what she felt. Even she could not pinpoint the exact emotion.

“Your brother and father are close to Jeon Junhae and his son– our main target– Jeon Jungkook. If you do not help me, help us, they are going to be treated criminally by the law too. Their involvement is too deep for the government to give them a clean chit (Y/N). One way or the other, we will expose Jeon Jungkook and his father, your family is going to be wrapped in the dirt, even if they might be innocent.”

“They are. Innocent.” She glared at the man in front of her. It was like a  stranger had slipped under George’s skin.

‘George’ nodded grimly “I can believe you. But the court runs on evidence, (Y/N), and their close associating with the Jeons would only act against them.”

(Y/N)’s shoulder sagged at his words. Her mind ran miles but found no respite.

“I know that you love your family (Y/N), you would do anything for them. This is the easiest way to save them. Work with us to bring Jeon Jungkook down and we will make sure that your family is saved.”

“You just told me that they are dangerous people…” She whispered.

“We assure you that you will have people watching over you in the mansion, your safety is our responsibility. If you choose to help us. You are the most efficient way to reach Jungkook and expose him. He is in love with you, to put it lightly.”

“When…When this is over, my family will be safe?”

“You have my word.”

She narrowed her eyes at the response.

“You lied to me before, I have no reason to believe in your ‘word’.”

The man nodded

“I understand your lack of trust. But I want you to know that I do not mean any harm to you or your family. I did betray you, but only because I am devoted to my uniform and the duties that come with it. You know that too (Y/N). I know you would never want to be trapped with a man like Jungkook. I offer you and your family a new life once this is over. But you will have to help us (Y/N), get to us all the crucial information we will need.”

She simply sat there, still and numb.

She could not even bring herself to look at the man in front of her anymore. 

“I will leave you alone for now. Get some rest.”

With that, ‘George’ began to walk out of the room.

“George.”

 When she finally gathered the courage to look up, his back was already turned to her. He stilled but did not turn around. But she could not care about that anymore. She could not afford to– even if it tore her apart.

“Can I ask for another favour?” 

There was no response but an empty silence. 

“When all this is over…Please do not show your face to me ever again.”

He said nothing, only walked away in silence, leaving her all alone in the quiet night.

+----+

The ring twinkled under the light. It was lovely to look at, and it felt even more unreal with Jungkook holding her hand so delicately. When it was her turn to put a ring on his finger, she felt cold. When she was a moment late, Jungkook’s hand wrapped around hers before he gave it a gentle squeeze, and she was not sure if it was a gesture of reassurance or a threat.

But she managed to gear up a faint smile anyway and slid the ring on his finger before he rose his hand to proudly display it, evoking cheers, hooting, lighter and claps.

“Congratulations on your engagement kids!”

Who was holding the mic? Oh, it was Jeon Junhae, his father.

Confetti flew around with balloons being tossed in the air as Jungkook pulled her close to him.

Camera flashes flooded out, the champagne bottles popped open, and people rushed in the greet Jungkook and her, to have a better look at her. And she braced for it all.

The word was cheering, but she wore a smile to hide her tears.

****

So here it is, finally. Incredibly late but done at last. At this rate, I think before I complete my second request, I would be greeting everyone with a happy new year.

Please let me know what you think of this as a reader, constructive criticism is always welcome.

Now I can begin working on the final part of hyungline and hopefully, it would not take an eternity.

Oooh, fluff you say 👀👀 I think I have one fluffy scenario if you don't mind it hehehe 💚 how about some hcs with scara, childe, albedo, zhongli and xiao (i love this men sm 😭😭💕) when they overheard their crush gushing to others about how amazing they are? 🤭 thank you so much and please take care 💚💚💚

- 🐦 anon

— ❛ 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝗐𝖾𝗋𝖾𝗇'𝗍 𝗌𝗎𝗉𝗉𝗈𝗌𝖾𝖽 𝗍𝗈 𝗁𝖾𝖺𝗋 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗍 ! ♡

pairing. . . . . . scaramouche, childe, albedo, zhongli, xiao x gn! reader.

warnings. . . . a bit manipulative scaramouche (forgive meee i can't see him any other way but he loves you i swear)

genre. . . . . . . fluff.

notes. . . . . . . i hope you like this!! <3 please take care you too, is always nice seeing your requests jsjsj.

⩩ SCARAMOUCHE

when luckily he hears you say all those things about him, he literally stops to listen to everything you think of him. this boy will hide somewhere where you don't see him but he can hear you perfectly, and at the same time he'll act totally disinterested.

the only thing that scara thinks now is… “i'll use everything you say in my favor. yeah, i'll gain your trust more easily. you'll be in my hands in no time, y/n.”

oh, do you say you like the way he occasionally looks at you from afar? well then, his eyes will be following your figure almost whenever he has the chance. he'll even give you a smug smile, just for you, capable of accelerate your heart beats with a single grin. oh man, this little brat knows very well what he is doing.

do you like the way he expresses himself, or when he starts teasing his comrades for his own amusement? he will do it again, but making sure that you are in front of the scene.

and when you talk with him, expect a lot, lot of teasing on his part as well. you speak wonders of him, that just means you're crazy about him, aren't you? that's what his narcissism says at least.

if you want him to be softer with you, he will be. scara will act like a good boy, but only with you. his true intentions will remain hidden, but the longer he keeps them inside, the higher his desire to corrupt you is.

he wants you so, so bad. and this situation has only caused him to want you to himself even more.

⩩ CHILDE

he'll be at first like... “wait, who is y/n talking about? do i have competition?” but when his name comes out from your lips, he opened his eyes in surprise. man couldn't be happier.

don't doubt that childe will show himself in the middle of your passionate talk about him. has nothing in mind, just let you know that he has heard it all. to tease a little bit.

“did y'all hear that? y/n is talking about me!” he'll say without any shame, impossible for him hide his pride.

then, ignoring the presence of other people in front of you both, he'll address only you. “i didn't know you thought all that about me. you shouldn't keep those things to yourself, you know?” childe's voice is now softer. he's being serious about that. you're his soft spot, can't help it!

that only makes you blush. he really caught you at the worst time. you don't usually talk about him, and just now that you're dedicating the best words to this boy, he appears!

but that gave childe a great boost of motivation. your words were worth more than anyone else's, sometimes more than his own.

so next time, say it directly to him. you don't know the impact you have on him, positively speaking, of course. a praise from you, and childe can find himself smiling for the rest of the day.

⩩ ALBEDO

oh, so are you talking about albedo? what a coincidence that he just unintentionally overheard it all.

a mix of various emotions disconcert this boy, he's quite confused by how he really feels about your words.

shame, joy, satisfaction... although all this was expressed with a small smile, while pretending to do something else and that he wasn't listening.

what you were saying was much more interesting to him. hence from time to time he could find himself static, simply using his sense of hearing. when he realizes it, he shakes his head to focus again and get on with his stuff.

he doesn't plan to tell you anything about what he heard. at least not if it's not necessary, but he may drop little clues during your talk, to make you think a bit or leave you wondering if he really caught you talking about him or not.

“if you want, you can come and do some research with me. i think you could be of help to me in the future, also... i'm pretty sure you are quite interested in the way i work, correct?”

so he can spend more time with you and enjoy your company. you don't know, but he's thanking all the archons for having heard everything you said about him. now he's more confident while having you around. so just stay by his side, alright?

⩩ ZHONGLI

zhongli heard everything he had to heard. a smile appeared on his face as he watched you silently, just paying attention to your words as the other sounds around him became secondary.

then one of the people accompanying you whispered something in your ear, and you immediately turned around, making eye contact with zhongli for a few seconds, before turning back flustered and flushed.

the man chuckled, also somewhat blushed and left without saying a word. maybe if he wasn't there anymore, you'd calm down faster, or so he thought.

but no way zhongli's gonna leave that matter unfinished! he also has several things to tell you and will find some time to invite you to go somewhere — he won't care too much which place, he just wants to enjoy your presence alone.

“you always manage to pleasantly surprise me when i least expect it. maybe i should start doing the same with you...”

expect a lot of nice words from this man, and all of course, 100% honest from his point of view. you are perfect to him and the fact that you think so highly of him as well will only make him want to declare his love for you a lot sooner than expected. he can't wait to tell you his feelings and show you the affection you deserve.

⩩ XIAO

xiao will disappear as soon as he realizes that you are talking about him. i mean, you're not even going to have time to know that he has heard everything.

xiao will be so embarrassed and will think TOO MUCH about what you said. do you really think that of me? how can you see all that in someone like... me?

the next time you make eye contact, he will blush and look away as fast as he can, releasing a slight “tsk”, and mentally scolding himself. “i should stop looking at you. why can't i? control yourself, damn it. it was just a few simple words.”

as much as he tries to downplay it, those 'simple words' of yours hit differently for him. the only thing he can feel is helplessness for not being able to do anything about it.

it's possible that he won't speak to you in a while and you have to be the one who speaks to him first. the only thing he will say to you is “call my name if you ever need me.”

nothing out of the ordinary, he doesn't want you to know that you have such a great effect on him. he'd feel so vulnerable in your presence if you knew how he feels about you.

Woo-jin or Gyeong-su bf headcannons from all of us are dead , pls & thank you :)

Bf headcanons

a/n- tysm for requesting this! I made it super fluffy and cute (and I did both characters! :)), so hope you enjoy! Also, I kinda rambled on with both hcs and got off track sometimes, but I think you get my point tho and I think they're cute :D ALSO, I barely edited this, like at all, so if there are mistakes or something was worded weird or sounds weird pls let me know❗

premise- bf headcanons about Gyeong-su and Wu-jin

rating- PG-13 (kissing??)

warnings- fluff, talks about kisses, and I dont think there are any?

Gyeong-su

-he acts all dorky ("class clown" energy), which he totally is, but he'd show you a side of him that no one else gets to see

-like as soon as it's you two alone, he'll start acting like the gentlest gentleman ever (with some jokes thrown in there ofc!)

-he'd always be super sweet and flirty

-but, especially before you two had started going out. he'd always have the pick-up lines and cheesy sayings ready before he saw you, ready to try to make you like him, which you already did ofc

-after you finally said yes to his flirtations and pick-up lines, he'd feel like he just won at life, like he accomplished getting the only thing he'd ever wanted: you

-the first few weeks of dating would include so much teasing, blushing, soft pecks, and soft cuddles

-after you got out of the "honeymoon" phase, he'd still be super flirty and dorky, obviously, but he'd start being less shy and nervous and being more vulnerable and intimate with you

-remember when I said that he'd be super gentlemanly as soon as you two were alone? What this means is him not wanting to show too many of his emotions to anyone but you (such as how much he likes you or wants to kiss you)

-did I mention that he'd be super teasing? Yes, yes I did, and I'm going to again, because you know how flirty this man would be, no matter what stage in the relationship

-he'd just randomly come up to you when no one was around and kiss you out of nowhere, making you super flustered, which makes him smirk: "what?" like you know what you just did, sir 💀

-obviously we know he'd be super sweet like 24/7, more funny when everyone else was around, but still a sweetheart, nevertheless!

-he'd give the softest cuddles in the world when you're feeling down (or if you're fine, like he'd totally just want to cuddle you all the time-)

-and you and this man would roast eachother, yes you're dating, yes you like eachother, yes you're super sweet to eachother, but you would totally just start joking around and roasting eachother out of nowhere

-like if you're tall and he couldn't reach something and you saw him struggling, you'd grab it for him and sweetly give it to him and then you'd walk away but not before muttering something like "short ass", and if you're short, then vice-versa.

-oh, and the first time he says the magic three words, he'd be super, super nervous. He definitely prepared a whole ass speech or a special dinner or just something for the occasion.

-and all his nerves would go away when you finally said it back :)

-anyway, your relationship would be filled with the sweetest laughter and the sweetest kisses :D

Wu-jin

(Sadly, I could not find a gif for him!^ :()

-yo, this man right here^ yes him, I love him

-i feel like he'd be the first to contract feelings, like, all of the sudden, he'd start being super giggly and shy around you

-and him always being super sweet and nice, like he always is, but this time more, what's the word? flirty?, would make you super flustered and try to figure out if you had a crush on him

-"hey, y/n!" he would say from the doorway of the classroom before walking over to your desk with a smile. You'd turn away from your friend to speak with him. "Yes?" you'd ask him when he didn't say anything. Suddenly a pink tint was seen on his cheeks before he just suddenly blurts out "You look really cute today." This would make you extremely flustered and honestly you would not know how to respond, like he just said that out of nowhere. After seeing your reaction and how speechless you were, he'd become less shy and walk away with a tiny smile, satisfied

-after all of these tiny compliments, quiet jokes no one else could hear, and those sweet smiles saved just for you, you finally came to terms that you had a huge crush on him, I mean who doesn't

-you had been building up the courage for awhile and decided you were going to give him your name tag. You wiped the sweat off of your palms and triple checked that your name tag was still in your pocket

-when you gave it to him, he'd be super shocked. Which led you to believe that he didn't like you back, so you'd try to reach for the name tag out of his hand and you'd start muttering a sorry, trying not to cry. But, then his hand would stop you and he'd be like "Nuh-uh, you already gave this to me, its mine now!"

-he'd finally tell you how he feels and ask you out, which would in turn make you super giggly and happy

-the first few days before your first date were awkward, just seeing eachother at school and not knowing how to really approach eachother

-the first date was awkward, but cute, very cute

-after a few months of being in a relationship, people had started to notice you two hanging around eachother and were kinda confused, when had you two become friends?

-you hadn't planned to keep it a secret, you just didn't see a reason to announce it to the world

-Dae-su finally decided to approach you both and ask if you two were dating, obviously he's curious, but it's also his future brother-in-law we're talking about, so ya know he was extra curious, would you be his future sister-in-law???

-"So, y/n, you like my brother-in-law? I never thought I'd have a sister, too!" he would randomly say to you and Wu-jin while walking home after school one day. Wu-jin would just be done at this point. "Dae-su!" he'd exclaim with red-tinted ears before shooing him away.

-the whole school soon knew after that, because, hey, its Dae-su

-his sister would congratulate him, and then ask to meet you to make sure "you're good enough for him"

-your friends and his friends would be super surprised, but excited

-anyway, feel like I got carried away here, but your relationship would be super, super cute (all of your friend group would be jealous) and he'd be super protective of you cuz he loves you so much :(

my beautiful taglist 😘- @sweetrainwrites (rain <3), @freckledwinterfalls (xie <3), @azure-arcanum (teah <3), and @thesunshineshop (network <3) tell me if ya wanna be tagged!

a/n- I've never written a headcanon before, so this is really messy and kinda all over the place, but I think it's cute, and I hope everybody enjoys this! Anywayy, I will be getting through my aouad requests, so expect more of this soon!

Reverse Genshin AU(?) Scaramouche -THE Y/N main-

Introductions!

Works as a waiter in a shady club in the outskirts of town; can and WILL get information out of people and sell it for a price. Barely touches the game while working, but makes up for it when on his way back home on the train. There was on time when someone tried to steal his phone despite his “fuck off” vibes; the poor to-be-thief didn’t get to even get his hands on the phone before Scaramouche basically killed him with a glare. Plays whomever he finds enjoyable, but is willing to spend money on his favorites (especially you). WHEN you appeared on the story he was absolutely floored, obliterated, GONE, WRECKED- ok, to be fair, he LOVED your design and after you said your first line, he was smitten. Will hunt down ANY crumbs about your story, past, present and future; in case you have a tragic tale, despite his claims about not giving a shit, he will be quite understanding and i’m not the one to tell you, and you’re not one to know but he may or may not have shed a tear or two.

Wishing!

Screams “FUCK YES!” When your trailer is revealed, has your OST on blast in his room; despite your banner coming up WHILE he’s working, he will wait until he gets back home to throw all his wishes to you.  Loudest out of everyone when it comes the time to pull on your banner. Everyone will know the moment he gets you. C6 you a week after getting you first, he wanted to ensure he likes your playstyle that people sing praises to. He fucking LOVES IT. Scaramouche also gets surprisingly lucky on his pulls to C6 you, wins his 50/50 almost every single time and gets your designated supports to c6 too. Had a respectable amount of wishes piled up JUST for you. He gets absolutely wrecked when it comes to your weapon tho- so much bloodshed on that banner, gets a couple of weapons to R5 before he gets yours.

Time to Play!

The bitch that refuses to make public his builds despite having really solid ones If you manage to see them however, you will NEVER see a (Y/N) better built in your life, those artifact rolls are the “see it to believe it” trope. He loves you so much is incredible.Will change his profile to ONLY show you and your build. Gets a reputation after some youtuber comes across his profile and fawns over that glorious build. He’s known as THE y/n main after that.High-key proud but won’t be caught dead saying that.

crawling fighting bleeding losing fighting bleeding losing rn sjdbshsvsb I JUST LOVE ITTO SO...SO MUCH??? PLS HE'S MY COMFORT CHARACTER SO HERE'S SOME SAGAU BRAINROT W HIM ALDHSJDBSB Itto is so baby, that I literally made him baby here jsdkfhsdj

tagging @nicebonescomrade cause she said she would love some itto content :>

in terms of warnings, there's a bit of discrimination against Oni at the very start, so please take note! But regardless, i can only write fluff so I won't be going too deep into it

also, i wanna take this time to say asks are open and everyone can send any reqs or brain rots !! however, i still have a life outside of tumblr so if i get bombarded, asks will be closed. I'll also be making an intro post soon sdhfkdf

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"Nuh-uh! I was just trying to help the fox! Its leg got caught under a big rock!"

"Yeah, mom! Itto was just helping the poor fox!"

The little boy's mother huffed in frustration, grabbing her son's wrist and pulling him along with her, "Onis are onis, no matter what! Stay away from them, young man!"

The young oni could only pout as his newfound friend was taken away. He resented being an oni sometimes, the horns that weighed heavy on his head serving as a reminder that he was not human, he does not fit in, he does not belong.

Vision becoming cloudy with tears, the young oni bit his lip.

"I don't want to cry, crying's for nerds...!"

The young Arataki states, his tiny form shaking as the tears started to stream down. Wiping them off, the cry of the fox he saved caught his attention.

"Huh? What is it, little guy? Need some water?"

Itto carefully picks up the fox carrying it to the river for a drink. The fox eagerly drank from the river, Itto patting its little head as he stared into his own reflection on the water.

His white hair was muddied, knots and tangles everywhere as well as a few twigs and leaves. His face covered in dirt from falling down while running away from humans who wanted nothing to do with him.

And to top it off, his auburn gaze turned to his reflection's horns.

Arataki Itto hated his horns.

Arataki Itto didn't like being an Oni.

'If I didn't have my horns, then my friend's parents would let me play with them!'

'I didn't mean to push Renren too hard, I didn't think I could be that strong! I'll be careful from now on, please let me keep playing with Renren!'

'I'm not scary! I just want to play with all of you...'

The fox that was drifting off to sleep next to Itto was startled when the young oni slapped his reflection on the water again and again, getting both himself and the fox wet. Itto continued until he wasn't sure if his face was wet from his incessant attack at his reflection in the river, or from the tears that never seemed to cease their flow.

In a moment of impulse, the little oni wrapped his hands around one of his horns, pulling as hard as he could to get rid of them.

"Come...on...! I don't...need...my horns...! Get off...of me...! AH—"

Losing his balance, the young Arataki fell face-first into the ground. Groaning, he let go of his horns in defeat before feeling a warmth against his skin. Curious, he lifted himself off of the ground, dusting off most of the dirt and soil that got on his face. Following the source of the warmth, his eyes turned to you.

You were beautiful— holy, even. Itto had never seen such a divine being such as yourself. He watches as your hand gently floats over the injured fox he saved, its wound healing instantly. His gaze reaches behind you, you had the most beautiful wings he had ever seen.

Scratch that, you were the only person he's seen with wings! Itto was ecstatic, he called out to you without thinking. After all, no one else had wings like you do, much like how he had horns no one else had. Maybe you two shared similar sentiments.

"Hey! Are those wings of yours the same pain as mine!?"

Your attention was immediately caught, such a joyful voice saying such heartbreaking words. His eyes were glowing with curiousity, yet they also looked hollow. Scanning his small frame, your heart sinks as you think about what the young oni has been through.

You motion for him to come towards you, inviting him to sit next to you on the grass. He does so eagerly, wanting to hear your answer. You dip your hands into the river's cold water and gently clean his face, Itto let you.

"Well little one, they're not..."

Itto pouted, his mood sinking once more.

"Of course they're not...everyone probably thinks you're really cool! You can grab the biggest onikabuto on top of trees, right? Man, I wanna do that too!! All I have are these stupid horns..."

You clicked your tongue, who would dare to say such rude words to a child? Oni or not, Itto was still a kid, trying to get by with his day to day life by himself.

"Now who told you that? Your horns look beautiful, they fit you very well."

Itto was confused, he had never heard anyone tell him that.

"Hey, uh...you're not like, blind, are you?"

You chuckle, carefully removing the leaves and twigs stuck in the young oni's hair.

"I'm not, it's the truth. I'm sure you'll be a very handsome oni when you grow up."

He huffs at you, "I don't wanna be an oni! Humans don't play with oni! You're not human, right? You can play with me!"

"I'm afraid I'm very busy, little one. But one day, I'll make it up to you. We'll fly around high places, run around and help people, and we'll eat all kinds of delicious foods!"

The stars were in Itto's eyes, he failed to notice your wet hands trying to detangle through the bird's nest he called hair— that or he didn't mind you accidentally tugging at his hair while you tried to comb through it.

"Really!? You promise!?"

"Well, only in one condition."

Itto pouted but waited for your deal.

"I want you to take care of yourself while I'm gone, and don't try to pull out your horns, okay?"

"But I hate my horns! People say they're ugly and that I'm a monster! It's not like they're wrong...stupid, ugly horns..."

Itto looks down at his clenched fists, tears pricking at his eyes once more. But this time, he feels your gentle touch under his chin, making him look up at you.

"Listen here, little one."

Itto bit his lip, not used to such intense eye contact, despite your eyes holding nothing but a warmth that felt like home to him, even if he's never really had one.

"I don't know what they said to you, but you're brilliant the way you are. I don't see those ugly horns you're talking about, I see a beautiful crimson crown. A symbol of pride, a testament to what you are; the one and oni."

"...Was that a pun?"

You laugh lightly, Itto pouted once more before laughing with you.

Once laughter died down, you lead Itto to the river, encouraging him to look at his reflection.

Clean and fresh, hair neatly brushed and horns at full display. Itto takes in how different he looked, how his horns seemed to shine proudly against his white locks of hair.

"See? And I'm sure you're a wonderful person too, little one. Horns and all."

For once, Itto was quiet.

Thoughts went through his head, comprehending everything that had just happened. He used his brain so much, he fell asleep.

♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡

You carry the little sleeping oni in your arms, taking him to a nearby village where one of your most dedicated followers lived, she was peculiar woman, and you were certain she'd take the little oni in and raise him with the love and care he deserved.

You knock on her door.

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Itto wakes up in an unfamiliar room with an unfamiliar woman offering him a bowl of porridge, it took a little bit of back and forth before Itto gave in. Looking around, he sees something on the desk next to the bed.

It was a comb, and a note.

"Take care of yourself, my one and oni. We can play together when time allows it.

~ Your Winged Friend"

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"And after that, Granny Oni told me all about our creator, and that's when I decided I'd make sure my hair's always perfect!"

Itto's boisterous laugh fills the teapot as Aether hums.

"Wow...Teyvat's creator really is something, huh?" Paimon comments, but Itto disappeared. Looks like their creator has logged in.

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Itto looks down at the ground below him, soon feeling the warmth that told him his creator was ready to go exploring with him once more. Jumping off, the wind glider opens.

Flying in the skies, helping people, and eating good food. He owed it all to you.

Arataki Itto loves being an oni.

Arataki Itto loves his horns.

Arataki Itto loves you.