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jincherie · 5 years

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tentacledipity | three

➛pairing: jimin x reader ➛genre: alien au, space au, soulmate au, wanted au, smut (coming) ➛rating: sfw ➛words: 11.1k ➛warnings: none really jimothy snaps later on ➛notes: wow this took a while but I’m back tentacle fuckers! this one is double the size of the usual update so i hope it makes up for how long it took me a little bit. From the looks of the poll this will probably be the series I focus on first!

also; I will add links at a later date! pls enjoy & lmk what u think!

This tale starts, as any good fiction does, with a girl crash landing on a foreign planet. And, like any good fiction, it follows a theme of serendipitous happening, and tentacles. Behold, serendipity and tentacles— or dare we call it…. tentacledipity.

— posted; 17.03.2019 // ↞ prev. || three || next ↠

Not for the first time in your stay on this planet, you found yourself once more overcome with awe at the sheer beauty of your surroundings.

Today was a day you’d been looking forward to ever since Seokjin had asked you if you’d like to tag along three days ago—today you finally ventured past the tall, looming obsidian walls that guarded the edge of the palace’s property. You were going into town! The fabled city that nestled below the incline upon which the palace sat, with markets, stalls, parks, and all the other good things you’d heard of from Namjoon and the other humans but hadn’t had the pleasure of experiencing yet. You were beyond excited, quite literally bouncing down the path beside Seokjin. Contrary to what you might have expected, the male was surprisingly unbothered by your sudden hyperactivity. In fact, you suspected from the slight bounce in his step that he was barely restraining himself from skipping down the path with you.

“Where are we going first?” you couldn’t help yourself from asking Seokjin, not for the first time. Your arms were swinging and you felt a bit like a child but were too excited to really care.

Seokjin snorted as your hastened pace caused you to trip on a dark plum-coloured branch that had fallen onto the black stone path and blended in. His arm shot out with ease and stopped you from face-planting, a sheepish laugh tumbling from your throat in response.

“Well, I have a list of supplies I am to fetch. Normally a task like this would be assigned to someone in a lesser position, but since the event is so important it has fallen onto me. Additionally, it occurred to me that you hadn’t seen the town yet and might enjoy the opportunity to venture past the palace walls.”

“Aw, Seokjinnie~” you cooed immediately, your first instinct always to give in to your playful whims. You paused your skipping to latch onto the kelkie’s arm dramatically, nearly tripping again in the process. Was it your shoes? Or were you just incredibly uncoordinated today? “How kind of you, I can always trust you to take care of me!”

Seokjin let out a loud laugh at that, allowing you to cling for a moment before he peeled you off. “I know, I’m far too generous and considerate. Combined with my incredible good looks, it is a wonder I do not have suitors lining up for miles.”

You joined him in his laughter, bracing yourself on his arm. You didn’t bother adding to that since it was already funny enough as is, and in the following comfortable silence the male’s words from earlier caught up to you.

“Wait,” you turned to face the tall male, watching as his raven hair rustled in the breeze and patches of sunlight lit his skin in a golden glow. His dark eyes swept to meet yours, the light colouring them deep chocolate. You were thankful the walk so far had been one that was mostly under the cover of the foliage because you didn’t fancy the idea of being fried alive beneath the full force of the sun’s rays. “You’re going shopping for things for an event? An important event? What’s happening?”

Seokjin seemed surprised at your question. “You don’t know?” he queried, “Jimin didn’t tell you anything?”

At the mention of the male your heart simultaneously skipped a beat and dropped slightly. A surprising mix of a reaction, but one that occurred mostly because you hadn’t actually seen the male much at all since your last encounter in the gardens. Apart from glimpses caught in hallways or through windows, he proved to be as elusive as always. Something that tickled your competitive side about as much as it disappointed you. You just wanted to see the prospective alien love of your life, damn it.

“I haven’t really seen Jimin in a while…” you said, unaware of how your face was betraying your current state of perturb. Seokjin’s keen eyes caught every shift in your features, his lips pursing in concern and curiosity at the sudden drop in your mood. He waited a few moments to see if you were going to continue before he spoke.

“You are… a little hard to read,” he noted, bringing your gaze from the ground to his face. “What are you thinking, cheeky human?”

You frowned, considering whether it was worth telling Seokjin. A part of you wanted to keep your mouth shut, simply because you felt a bit like a fool thanks to your current train of thought, but the rest of you wanted desperately to let it all out and to talk to someone. You didn’t do well with bottling things up, and your philosophy was always more along the lines of the more communication the better anyway, so you ultimately decided you may as well spill your thoughts to the curious alien walking alongside you. Besides, he knew Jimin—perhaps he could offer some important insight.

You mulled over how to word what was running through your mind for a few moments before giving up and just attempting to go for it. “I… I just can’t help but wonder… You know, he seems busy, and I don’t see him much, but sometimes it’s like…”

Pausing to order your thoughts a little more, Seokjin waited patiently for you to continue. You sighed, deciding to bite the bullet, “It’s not me, is it? Is he really avoiding me? Does he hate me that much? I know I’m a little unbearable but still… that shit hurted.”

If Seokjin was perplexed at some of your speech habits he didn’t show it, instead gazing at you with a look that was somehow thoughtful and sympathetic despite the trickle of amusement you caught glimmering behind his eyes.

“I think,” he began, turning his gaze forward as he sorted his thoughts and the two of you continued down the path; you glimpsed something just beyond the trees as you waited for him to continue. “I think… you are something he hasn’t ever encountered before. I have not ever seen anyone interact with him the way you do, so I think that if he is avoiding you… it is because he is flustered.”

You felt your mouth drop slightly, forming a tiny ‘o’ shape. Seokjin continued, returning his gaze to yours; the warmth in his eyes helped to soothe the slight aches troubling your heart a little. “But besides that, the celebration that is coming—it is… incredibly important, probably the biggest one in over twenty sweeps—sorry, years. So it could also be that he is just busy. Jimin and I have received the biggest portion of work for this, since we are the King’s closest and most trusted advisors.”

Nodding, you took a moment to process all that. What he said made sense, and to his credit… actually served to mollify your worries a little. You felt a smile beginning to tug your lips once more, already over the brief stormy spell in your mood. Wow, Seokjin was a really good counsellor. No wonder he was one of the King’s best advisors, as he so often proclaimed.

“Thanks, Seokjin,” you said sincerely, offering him a bright grin. He returned it and you allowed a moment before the curve to your lips turned sly. “Anyway… back to the important topic at hand… just what is this celebration that’s so big and important that the King’s right- and left-hand men are working so hard to organise it?”

Seokjin mirrored your look, and you knew in that instant that this shit-stirring bastard wasn’t going to spill a single drop to you. He cooed instead of an answer, reaching to ruffle your hair.

“You can wait and find out with the rest of the population,” he snickered at the petulant look on your face. “Don’t think you get any special privileges just because you are awfully endearing for a human.”

Accepting that you weren’t going to get any more out of him regarding the mysterious celebration, you instead latched onto the other part of the sentence. You batted your lashes, giving him a shit-stirring grin. “You think I’m endearing?”

Seokjin let out a loud groan, distracting you as you rounded a harsh bend in the path. “I should have known when they told me you were like me that they weren’t kidding,” he lamented, pinching the bridge of his nose and shaking his head dramatically. “I am sorry y/n, but this planet only has enough room for one Seokjin. I am going to have to dispose of you… imposter.”

You laughed loudly at that, playful banter one of the things that truly sustains you. You opened your mouth to shoot back an equally riveting response when your attention was suddenly captured by the sight in front of you. Your mouth dropped open, eyes shooting wide. You missed Seokjin’s smug look at your current awestruck state.

You’d finally reached the town, and it was… beautiful.

Streams trickled alongside the path on either side, clear and crystalline and glimmering turquoise as they flowed between the edge of what you presumed to be a large, two-story homes built from smooth marble-like stone and the obsidian path. The road was a bit more worn as you entered the town, but still made for stunning visuals when paired with everything else. The area you were currently in appeared to be more of a residential one, the path leading to a large circular area in the middle of the section that branched off in main pathways in each direction. From those pathways more would split; short, curved stone that bridged the path to the front door of the homes over the stream, which acted as a moat of sorts around each structure. In the middle of the circle was a small water feature that had gorgeous water flora floating along the bottom pool, glistening prettily as the droplets of moisture caught the light.

“You are so easily impressed,” Seokjin mused, bringing your attention back to the current moment. The two of you had halted on the path right at the entrance to the town where the foliage ended and the buildings began. “It is as though you have never seen a residential section… what does it look like, on Earth?”

“Ugly,” you answered immediately, snorting at the shocked look that flitted across the male’s features. “I mean… some areas were pretty, but those kinds of areas are the ones that only richer people could afford. Most of the population couldn’t afford it, so they lived in places that are… less well-kept and structured.”

Seokjin seemed appalled at that, wide eyes flitting from you to the scene around you. “You mean to say that not everyone in your cities gets the same opportunity for housing?”

You nodded regretfully, Seokjin’s jaw dropping. “Most people live in decent places, but a lot of people live in housing that doesn’t have the main necessities, like clean water, or in a house that is falling apart because it is old. It’s… not great. It is better than it used to be, but there are still a lot of people who live like that—at least, there was, last time I was there. A lot of people can’t afford homes too, so they live on the street. Homeless.”

“That is preposterous!” Seokjin exclaimed, eyes alight with fury at the injustice present on your home planet—oh, if only he knew the half of it. “Everyone deserves the right to live in security! Does your ruler, your government not help them? Do they just leave them to suffer?”

You scratched the back of your neck. “I mean, a lot of people try and fix things but… humans have a long history of shitty actions and behaviours that is hard to undo. I mean, it’s part of why the environment and nature is so shot to hell. Humans ruined it.”

The male seemed to pick up how sad you were about that fact in particular, as he stepped forward and looped your arm with his.

“I do not understand the rest of your species,” he said decisively, beginning to move the two of you further into the town. “But I am glad that it was you who happened to come crashing down into our orchards. I think we have been lucky in only getting to meet the best humans.”

You let out a laugh at that, swinging your arms cheerfully. “True! And dude, even I don’t understand humans. It’s impossible.”

That brought a hearty chuckle from the male, and the two of you delved into another conversation as he led you further into the city and pointed everything out to you as you moved by it.

As the morning passed and you spent it following Seokjin around as he went to gather everything he had on the sneaky list he never let you fully glimpse, you began to grow familiar with the market portion of the town. Stalls upon stalls set up for trade, bigger boutiques and kiosks nestled into small buildings that provided shelter from the sweltering sun. While you moved through the slight crowd and cheerful chatter that filled the air, many things caught your eye, and Seokjin actually ended up purchasing a dress for you—not because you asked him to, but because he saw it and proclaimed quite loudly that it would suit you so well it was “practically made for you”. The vendor was a sweet elderly kelkie with what looked to be a tattoo curling up her neck and peeking over the edge of her jaw. When she caught you looking at it she smiled in amusement, but her attention was quickly taken by an elder male that sidled up to her with a fond look, running his hand across her shoulder and speaking to her in the native tongue you still had no idea how to understand. To your complete and utter curiosity, you noted that he had a matching tattoo in the exact same place in the exact same style. You knew better than to ask or comment on it, but couldn’t help but think to yourself how sweet that was. Ah, love. Marvellous to behold, truly.

You tailed after Seokjin like an awestruck little duckling, having to grasp the end of his shirt so you didn’t get lost. Despite how many stores and stalls he visited, the pile in his arms wasn’t that big. You supposed a lot of the things he had gone for were things that would need to be ordered and delivered to the palace for the mystery celebration. It was really burning you alive, not knowing what was going on, but you supposed that if even the people inhabiting the town by the palace didn’t know then you could bear to wait a little longer. It wasn’t like you were that left out of the loop.

As Seokjin neared the end of his list, you found yourself more than a little saddened that your trip was soon to come to an end. This was the first time you’d really been out of the palace and in all honesty, you thought you were in love with the town and the sweet townspeople who shot you bright smiles despite the fact you were very obviously not even from their planet. You knew as soon as you returned to your room in the palace that you were going to feel a sense of loss and emptiness. Now that you’ve tasted freedom, could you go back to what you had before? That sounded a bit dramatic, but all you meant was would you be able to resist the urge to sneak out every so often?

The answer was a very obvious no, and while you didn’t care that you were sneaking out you were a little regretful in advance for the scoldings you were going to get. Inevitable, you supposed. Couldn’t be helped.

A few of the stalls you’d passed had piqued your interest a little, but none so much that you had the urge to stop Seokjin and investigate. You were very much aware this was more of a sight-seeing trip than anything—hell, you didn’t even have any of whatever currency the Kelkie used. Actually, you take that back a little. You’d found out today that a lot of stalls aren’t that strict on the currency. Many will settle for a trade. The thing is, you didn’t think you had anything of worth to trade. Sad times in the y/n kingdom, it seemed.

Things changed when you began on your way out of the market area though, as you turned with Seokjin and caught sight of something glimmering in your peripheral. You halted on the spot, head whipping and a loud gasp tearing from your lips. Was that… jewellery? Seokjin, who had halted when you did, seemed amused that the thing that had finally caught your attention after a morning of wandering was sparkly metals and jewels.

You’d planned on just staring at the door to the boutique, and jumped when Seokjin spoke, his voice closer than you’d anticipated.

“You want to go have a look?” he queried, grinning when you turned to him with wide eyes shining hopefully. “Alright, let us go.”

You couldn’t stop the grin from spreading across your face, eager to follow the tall male into the boutique and keep up the duckling act from earlier. The outside was a sleek mix of black, navy and white marble-like stone, a sign of similar material placed by the door and engraved, with the letters painted pretty silver to stand out against the inky colour of the backing. You couldn’t read it, of course, but were happy to go and investigate nonetheless. Discoveries were more exciting when you had less clues as to what they were!

A soft tinkle rang above you as the two of you entered, the inside of the store painted a smooth, deep teal colour on some walls and stark pearl on others. There were rows of jewellery along the walls and on the short aisles in the middle of the room, but some of them looks peculiarly shaped and you weren’t sure what they were for… until you glanced one in particular with a barbell-like sculpt and realised belatedly that this was both a jewellery and piercing boutique. Your surprise must have shown on your face because Seokjin ended up laughing softly from beside you.

You were startled from your keen observations of the pretty jewels by a low voice from deeper into the store. Jumping in fright, your gaze whipped up; further towards the back there was a counter, more jewellery displayed on shelves beneath, and a tall Kelkie male who possessed broad shoulders, deep golden skin and a cheery smile. He was speaking in the language native to Kilkhea, if the familiar clicks and rolling sounds were anything to go by, and his gaze was flicking between you and Seokjin. He seemed pleased to see the advisor, marks across his cheeks and arms flushed calm blue.

To your surprise, in your curious observation of his features you found he had a number of piercings. Two jewels embedded in the skin under the outer edge of each eye, large, thick silvery hoops in his ears and a piercing just below the plump flesh of his bottom lip, the metal supporting a thin charm that dangled prettily against his chin as he talked.

The conversation went right over your head as Seokjin let out a laugh and responded in kind, patting your shoulder as he said something that was no doubt about you.

You let your gaze wonder as they conversed, brought back to the present when Seokjin suddenly addressed you.

“y/n, this is Hyunwoo,” Seokjin said, smiling big. “He is the town’s main jeweller and responsible for clan piercings.”

The male said something suddenly, a teasing lilt to his voice, and the Kelkie beside you snorted. “He says to call him Shownu since that is what everyone calls him anyway.”

The male nodded, satisfied, and you couldn’t help the soft laugh that escaped you. “It’s nice to meet you, Shownu! I’m y/n.”

Seokjin translated for you, and Shownu nodded at you once more with a smile. The raven-haired male beside you turned to face you in question.

“Does your clan participate in piercings?” he queried, tilting his head. “Do humans do something similar to this? You seemed like you recognised some of these…”

“Yeah, humans do it,” you affirmed, allowing your gaze to sweep over the contents of the shop before returning to Seokjin. “But I’m not sure what you mean… my clan? Do you mean my family?”

The male nodded, taking initiative to fill you in further at the sight of your confused expression. “It is tradition here for some clans—some families—to get a certain set of jewelleries and piercings on their twenty-fourth birthday. Shownu was the one who did mine— my clan does not have many interesting ones, save for the, uh… ears, and here…”

You weren’t sure what you had expected him to show you, but it certainly hadn’t been his tongue. He slipped it past his lips, and you nearly fell over in shock as you registered the sight of the pearlescent metal sitting in the middle of the flushed muscle. What the hell—had that been there the whole time?! And you didn’t even know?!

He returned his tongue back to its place, letting out a loud laugh at your shaken expression. “It was funny to show the other humans that too,” he admitted, incredibly amused. “For some reason, you never expect it.”

“It’s probably because you don’t look like the type of person who would get it back on Earth,” you said, grinning. “We don’t really get them to continue tradition, a lot of people get them just because they want them or think they’re pretty.”

Seokjin nodded, “Ah, that is true of some people here too. Do you have any, y/n?”

You nodded, pulling your hair back to show him the rings and studs in your ears. “I always wanted to get ones in other places, but I was a little scared… plus I never got the time to get them on earth, and I’m not about to look for reputable piercers in the back rooms of interspace stations.”

The Kelkie snorted at that, peering curiously at your ears and nodding in approval at what he observed. Shownu’s eyes seemed to light up as he caught sight of your bejewelled ears, beckoning you closer so he could have a look. You moved over without complaint, leaning so he could inspect the metal and jewels easier. You could hear him muttering to himself every so often, fingers softly prodding and nudging as his marked shifted shades of blue.

“Understandable,” Seokjin said, amusement curling in his tone. “But if you wanted them… why not get one here? There are many arrays to choose from.”

You fixed him with a pondering look, chewing your lip. “Would that even be okay?” you asked, worried about overstepping your bounds as a foreigner—as an alien on this planet. “Aren’t they important to you and other kelkie?”

Seokjin shrugged. “They are a rite of passage, but they are not especially meaningful aside from that. Often, they are just a marker of adulthood, and which clan you belong to. Still, some Kelkie pierce as they like. You’re human, so you are not really bound to any of our traditions. I think if you chose something, the clan that possesses that piercing would probably feel honoured you chose it.”

You hummed, mulling that over. His words soothed your worries somewhat, and as you turned your gaze over the jewels and pieces before you, your mind filtered back to the one you’d noticed earlier. The barbell, commonly used for navel piercings… something in your gut urged you towards that, and as someone that more often than not followed her instincts above all else, you were inclined to choose it.

“Do you… are there any, for here?” you queried, lifting your shirt and pointing above your bellybutton. Seokjin tilted his head, something curious yet unreadable curling in his gaze. Shownu grinned, shifting in excitement as he moved to grab a box from the top shelf behind him, bringing it back before you. Opening it, you were exposed to a soft cushion displaying a number of beautiful, intricate barbells with charms and jewels. You couldn’t help your gasp.

“Your…?” Seokjin said something in his mother tongue that you had no idea how to interpret but hazarded a guess as to what he meant. “Are you going to get it? We have time.”

“We call it a bellybutton,” you informed him, and he nodded in understanding with the slightest bit of perplexment, possibly at the name itself. Excitement began to curl within you at the possibility of finally getting to do this after hoping for it all your teen years, but you came crashing back to the present as you remembered part of why you hadn’t done it before.

“Ah, but I don’t have any money,” you said, taking a step from the counter and shooting Shownu an apologetic look. “I’m sorry, I can’t believe I forgot.”

Shownu shook his head, giving you a kind smile. Seokjin said something to him, receiving a rapid response and a smile. He turned back to you grinning brightly.

“He says that he is happy to trade in the stead of currency.”

You could feel you face lit up, before you realised your predicament in that sense as well. You sighed, “I don’t have anything to—wait!”

Your sudden exclamation had both males straightening, looking on curiously. You reached under the material of your shirt, with a little difficulty thanks to the high neckline, and fished around until you found what you were looking for and unclasped the two chains that found their way into your grasp. Shownu’s eyes lit up as you pulled the necklaces from your shirt, both gold and decorated with a different jewelled charm each. They weren’t really anything special, just things you’d once gotten from a prospective suitor and thought were pretty enough to keep.

The Kelkie chattered excitedly as he took them into his hold, waving his free hand at Seokjin as he inspected them eagerly. You wondered if he was so interested because almost all of the jewellery Kelkie had was of variations of silvery metal.

“He says this is more than enough for just the piercing—is there anything else you want while we’re here?” Seokjin translated, seeming proud of you in the way you presumed a mother would be of a child who was making their first purchase.

Excited, you let your gaze wander and your mind run. Was there anything you wanted in particular? You didn’t really feel any extra need for jewellery now that you were getting one in your navel, but you didn’t want to waste the opportunity…

Your pondering came to an abrupt end when you caught sight of something to the side, something that almost seemed to glow in a bid to catch your attention. You gasped softly, moving over to inspect it closer.

It was a necklace, the chain consisting of thickly woven silver links, intertwined with a molten-grey metal you didn’t think you’d seen yet. The silver was almost pearlescent, resembling mother of pearl more than it did actual silver from your home planet, but was firm beneath your touch. The thick chain was connected by a single large hoop of a slightly cooler silver, which was engraved lightly with patterns and swirls. It was stunning, magnetising, and upon looking at it, it immediately reminded you of a certain someone.

“Wow,” you said, unable to stop your words from flowing. “This would look beautiful on Jimin…”

Ignoring Seokjin’s look of surprise, you turned to Shownu and gestured sheepishly. You expected this to be out of the price range for the trade, but figured you may as well ask. “Would this be too much…?”

Snapping out of his stupor with a strange glint in his eye and an amused curl to his tone, Seokjin relayed your question to the jeweller. Shownu instantly shook his head, offering you a smile. You weren’t sure of the answer he gave you until the Kelkie by you translated once again.

“No, he says that meets it perfectly.”

Shownu hurried to come and grab it for you, holding it gingerly as he came to place it into a small, cushioned case made of a stone that, oddly-enough, reminded you of some sort of jade. Surprised that everything was coming together so easily for you, you couldn’t stop the big dumb grin from tugging your lips.

“You know, with a gift like that, one might get the wrong idea,” Seokjin was teasing you, you knew it, but still you couldn’t help but rise to the bait.

“What wrong idea? I’m clearly trying to woo him!” you shot back, your response eliciting a cackle from the tall Kelkie. Shownu spared the two of you a fond smile as he finished tucking away the necklace, pushing it towards you in its closed case and saying something to Seokjin.

The male brightened, turning to you with a grin as you took the case into your hold, relishing the comforting weight. “Well, that will have to wait for now, cheeky human. You have a… a belly… bellybottom to pierce.”

You burst into laughter at Seokjin’s slip up, hastily going to correct him as Shownu led the two of you to a room towards the back that you hadn’t even noticed until then. The male’s cheeks heated but he took the embarrassment graciously, laughing with you as you continued snorting and prepared for the piercing.

You definitely weren’t letting go of that one any time soon.

x x x x x x x

As you’d expected, your return to the palace had brought on a certain sense of emptiness after experiencing what was beyond the walls. It had been a few days now, and although you wanted to get out you hadn’t really wanted to venture into town without an escort when you had no money and couldn’t speak the language. So to settle somewhat, you’d slipped past poor Jongin and Jongdae again and snuck to a certain part of the gardens you’d discovered a while ago. You really ought to make them something for their troubles—you were sure their life was much more stress-free before you rocked up.

You liked this little spot; it was nestled in one of the corners of the garden that followed the wall by the back of the palace, not too far from the kitchens now that you actually thought about it. Perhaps that added to the charm. Even so, without taking its alluring closeness to a food source into consideration, the spot had its own charms. The corner itself consisted of thick hedges with deep blue leaves and stunning magenta and cream flowers, the obsidian wall that marked the end of palace property looming close behind it. The earth was soft and plush beneath your feet, soil rich and no doubt part of the reason the main tree that had grown there had grown to be so tall and thick in diameter. The wood was peculiar, in that it was incredibly supple yet completely sturdy at the same time, and it grew in curls and curves. This meant that it was an absolutely ideal tree for climbing, but you didn’t quite have the energy for that today. You were a bit bummed, and it wasn’t entirely because you missed the town.

You had a feeling Jimin was avoiding you again.

Well, either that or he was so ridiculously busy that he had no time for anything but sleeping eating and work. You’d been trying to track him and chase him down for days to give him the present you got for him at Shownu’s shop, but to his credit he was very hard to track. You pulled out all the stops you could think of and yet here you were, no closer to catching him and instead sulking about your failure beneath a tree as you laid sprawled across the ground. You probably looked as pathetic as you felt.

You let out a sigh, patting your stomach absent-mindedly and brushing your finger over the slight bump beneath the silky material of your shirt. You’d gotten the piercing expecting to get a lot of pain and limiting instructions afterwards, but to your complete and utter surprise it was quite the opposite. After piercing you, Shownu had cleansed the site with a teal-coloured liquid that shimmered green beneath the light. It stung for the barest of moments before every single sensation of pain disappeared completely. You felt the flesh tingle and watched, wide-eyed, as it appeared to heal before your eyes. Kelkie medicine was truly something else, and you were forever thankful that you’d crash landed on this planet of all possible planets.

Shownu had simply told you to be extra mindful of it for the next week but that after that, it would be completely fine. The mixture he used sped up the healing process almost entirely, something you could barely wrap your head around, and meant that you didn’t have to face a lot of the possible complications you knew could come with these sorts of things. You’d thanked him profusely, immensely pleased with how good the piercing looked, especially with the jewellery you’d chosen, and had made sure Seokjin told him how much you liked it and appreciated it. Seeing how pleased Shownu was at your words made Seokjin’s sassy eyerolls worth it.

Back to the source of your current lamentation, you’d left the parlour with a new piercing and a pretty necklace in a jade giftbox—a necklace you had still been unable to give to the person it was meant for.

Another sigh escaped you, eyes staring absently into the foliage above. Ah, nothing like becoming one with nature and disassociating as you attempted to sort through your thoughts and feelings. A classic move in your emotional organisation repertoire.

You’d come here for solitude, but despite that… you were actually feeling a bit lonely. Was it possible to want to be alone and around people at the same time? Because you were feeling that. Perhaps it was the slightly bummed turn your thoughts had taken that had you feeling this way. You closed your eyes, trying to clear your mind and start again so you felt less crummy. You didn’t get very far before something interrupted your concentration and scared you shitless.

“Connecting to a higher power, are we?”

You yelped loudly, eyes flying open and body lurching away from the source of the noise— a snickering Min Yoongi of course. You glared at the offending male, tempted to roll away and turn your back to him like a child.

“And what if I am?” you ask snidely, crossing your arms. “Shouldn’t you leave—I thought they didn’t allow creatures of the night into holy places, you little gremlin.”

Yoongi cackled at that, thoroughly amused, and took the invitation you most definitely didn’t give to sit beside you, leaning back against the thick trunk of the tree. Still, despite what the pout on your face might have him believe, you shuffled over to give him more room. The two of you sat in comfortable, amicable silence as his chuckles gradually calmed down, soaking in the serenity that came with such a beautiful segment of nature like the one that surrounded you now.

“So,” he began after a while, voice low above you. You didn’t bother looking to meet his eyes, it would have been too much of a struggle with the angle you were at. “What’s got you all mopey, peach cheeks?”

You groaned, fighting the urge to smack the male as he snickered softly at your expense. Yoongi looked cool and chic at first glance, but really that was just a front and he was just a goblin. Pouty whiny baby. He was fun to tease but a little too good at teasing you back, if anyone asked you. Well… perhaps that was a bit of a fib. You liked the playful banter he provided, and the fact he gave it back as good as he got. Kept you on your toes, you know?

“My prospective alien boyfriend is avoiding me,” you said, amping up the exaggeration colouring your tone because you knew he’d appreciate the humour in it. He did, letting out a snort.

“What’s new?” he snipped, before letting out a yelp as you smacked him on the thigh closest to you. “Ow! Alright sorry I didn’t mean it. Why is he avoiding you?”

“I don’t knooooooooooow,” you moaned pitifully, thrashing your arms a little like a toddler. “I’m just trying to give him this damn present I got him but he keeps turning tail and running every time he sees me, and I don’t even know if his cheeks are red because he’s blushing or because he’s exhausted from running away from me.”

You risked a glance upwards, and to his credit, Yoongi looked like he was trying very hard to contain the laughter attempting to climb his throat.

“What did you get him?” he asked after schooling himself a little, seemingly unable to contain his curiosity. You huffed, averting your eyes as you mumbled your answer.

“… a necklace.”

As expected, Yoongi let out a snort; it was as though you could feel him rolling his eyes. “Geez, careful y/n, give him a gift like that and he might think you like him or something.”

You sent him your best deadpan look, contorting your neck just to pin him with it face-on. He seemed entirely too amused with himself and it kind of really made you want to smack him. You didn’t even need to respond—you were pretty sure that not only Jimin but probably half the palace knew that you liked him by now. You blanched mentally for a moment—you hadn’t really realised it until now, but somewhere along the line in your stay here you’d progressed from simply finding Jimin attractive and voicing it to actually… liking him. Like, like-liking him. Oh god, was this a crush? Your stomach fluttered at the mere mention of his name, your heart jumped whenever he looked your way—you’d even gone and bought him jewellery without so much as a second thought.

Oh, this…. You were whipped.

Choosing to ignore that startling revelation for a moment, you released your neck from its twisted position and returned to staring mournfully at the foliage above you.

“Not that it matters, anyway,” you couldn’t help the sigh that huffed past your lips. “I can’t even find him to give him the damn thing in the first place.”

At this, Yoongi was silent for a few moments—you took the opportunity to bask in the moment a bit, taking note of the different sounds of nature that filtered through the air to brush your ears. Soft chirps from the small, violet-feathered, birdlike creatures that nested in the nooks and niches hidden in the curling wood of the tree’s branches and trunk; the faint rustling of the leaves and the soft creak of the thick, winding limbs as they swayed with the breeze. The patches of sunlight that managed to reach your form beneath the canopy were warm as they soaked your skin, but thankfully not unbearably so in such small doses. You didn’t doubt that if you weren’t mostly under the shade you’d feel like an overcooked meal by now, though.

“Well…” The sound of the male’s slow drawl brought your attention back to the conversation at hand as he began to speak, “Who says you have to give it to him in person? You could always leave it somewhere for him.”

You huffed, crossing your arms over your chest. “That’s the coward’s way out,” you grumbled, crossing one leg over the other to match your arms. “How would he know it’s from me?”

Snorting at your apparent view on gift-giving and how it should be done, Yoongi leans over to peer at you, albeit upside down. “Uh, leave a note? I’m sorry, I forgot you lost most of your brain cells when you crashed here. I’ll try and be a little bit more considerate.”

Whining, you smacked him on the leg—apparently the response he was expecting since he burst into laughter as soon as you did it.

“Okay yeah, you’re not wrong about that, but it doesn’t change the fact that I can’t write or even read k-kelk—kelkoe? Whatever it is people speak here.”

You peered back in time to catch Yoongi’s nonchalant shrug. “Namjoon knows a little, why not just ask him to help?”

You opened your mouth to protest but the words died on your tongue as you allowed yourself to consider it for a moment. That… wasn’t such a bad idea, actually. Plus, Namjoon might tease you a little but at least he wouldn’t be a little gremlin about it like Yoongi or Taehyung.

“… Alright, perhaps that’s not a bad idea…” you admitted, begrudgingly. Yoongi’s featured brightened and you were witness to a sudden shit-eating, gummy grin.

“Admit it, I’m a genius,” he boasted, leaning over you to stare at you smugly. You groaned but couldn’t keep the laugh that followed from escaping.

“Never!” you refuted, reaching to smack his thigh once more. “Stay humble, if your head gets too big the few brain cells you have will get lost.”

Yoongi rolled his eyes, rubbing his thigh where you got him; it wasn’t a hard hit at all but you managed to get him in one of the areas where the sensation lingered a bit. “Oh, you’d know all about that, wouldn’t you?”

A retort already bubbling up your throat, you sat up so you could argue a bit better. Yoongi resembled a smug cat as the two of you bickered, unaware of the eyes that watched from beyond the shrubbery, boring into you from one of the palace rooms that peered over the gardens.

x x x x x

Jimin shouldn’t be as angry as he was.

Really, he had no right. There was nothing tying him to you, or you to him—nothing that staked any sort of claim over you on his behalf. Based on this, even if he found you attractive, he should not have been feeling what he did, to the degree that he did.

Catching sight of you and one of the humans from the Queen’s crew, Yoongi, wasn’t something he had expected to spark a raging inferno of emotions within him. And yet, the second he glimpsed the scene in the far corner of the gardens, he’d been almost over-encumbered with too many feelings to name; yet one in particular was sure to rear its head and make itself known.

Jimin refused to accept that the sight of you with Yoongi had made him jealous.

Ridiculous, it was ridiculous. Ever since you’d arrived here everything had been out of whack for him—nothing had gone as it should, as it was expected, as it always had for years before your arrival. You were a threat to the knowledge he thought he had of his world and way of life—the knowledge he thought he had of himself. Jimin knew that in years past he had proven himself to be a Kelkie of exceptional control, yet the second you drew too close to him, the second your eyes met his or your alluring scent brushed his nose, he felt the limbs hidden in his back stirring to life and fighting to be free like he was some inexperienced fledgling. With your presence in the palace he was living on his toes, and the only way he’d managed to save face thus far was because he’d taken to doing his best to avoid you—something that while achieved its purpose had him feeling bittersweet. Despite the barest relief he felt, he actually found that he missed you. He couldn’t believe the audacity of his heart that it longed for you even after all the trouble you’d given him so far.

At first he had tried avoiding you simply to save himself from acting in an embarrassing manner, but lately it had been for a somewhat different reason. He could sense it lingering in the air that you moved through, could catch the new sweet undertone to your scent as it touched his senses—he didn’t know much about the human cycle apart from what the Queen had once told him, but he could tell—was acutely aware— that you were at the peak of yours. You had been close a few days ago, and he had no doubt that today you were at the height of your fertility; and he hated that he knew that, that he was so finely attuned to you in a way he never had been to anyone else. The pheromones you didn’t even seem to realise you were emitting permeated the air wherever you ventured, and shamefully even the sight of you through the window had a knot of longing forming in the pit of his abdomen. It was even more out of hand than usual with the state your body was in and he didn’t think he would last very long at all if stuck in the same room as you.

Which, incidentally, is exactly what he would be tonight.

The kitchen staff had thrown together a mock-up run of the dishes and foods that they were considering for the celebration coming, and Seokjin had insisted that everyone gather at once to try them—although he hadn’t gotten around to telling everyone yet. Jimin suspected that the male missed the nights where everyone would dine together, including the King and Queen. Knowing that, he hadn’t had the heart to refuse him, even when he realised this meant he would be stuck dining a few feet away from the human that had been troubling him so much lately.

Truly, he was at war with himself—he enjoyed your presence, more than expected, but he was also incredibly conflicted. He wasn’t against having fun and the odd passionate tryst, but with you… it felt like he longed for more than that. Which, frankly, alarmed him greatly—the only person he should be feeling that way towards is his Fated One. So, what would happen if he indulged himself in you and then in the next sweep received his Fate Mark and with it the person he was to spend the rest of his life with? Would he want them? Would he want you? The prospect of such a situation was absolutely terrifying to him, and he didn’t know how to sort through the mess of emotions and thoughts it spawned within him.

He didn’t know what to do with the way you made him feel, yet each time he saw you he grew a little weaker in his resistance to you. Why was it that the heavens had decided to curse him so?

His footsteps were a little heavier than usual as he stomped down the hall that housed his rooms, eager for a moment of reprieve before he had to start preparing himself mentally for dinner. It had been only this morning that he caught sight of you and Yoongi in the gardens, yet the mood it had thrown him into had persisted for the rest of the day as he did his duties. The ugly, icky feeling it incurred within him had clung to his insides ever since—Jimin never had liked the sensation of jealousy, the few times he’d experienced it in his life, and the same proved true now. He hated it, yet could not stop its presence at the thought of you with someone else. He shouldn’t be bothered—you were human, shouldn’t he be pleased at the prospect of you being with another human? Yet his heart clenched painfully in protest at the thought, stomach dropping. Against his better judgement, he didn’t like the idea at all.

He felt a momentary sensation of calm and relaxation wash over him as he stepped through the doorway into his room, shoulders releasing the tension they carried along the walk there. The sensation proved to be fleeting as he recalled suddenly that Yoongi would be at the dinner along with you and the other humans, and suddenly he was tense and stressed all over again. A large sigh huffed past his lips, eyes closing as he scrubbed a hand over his face and pushed his hair back a little. God, he kind of wanted to nap if only to escape the stress for a few moments.

Allowing his eyes to slide open, he surveyed the contents of his room, attempting to avoid the area with his bed lest he be tempted. Surprise filtered across his features as he caught sight of something amiss, something new that he certainly hadn’t left on his desk before leaving earlier. Curious and apprehensive all at once, he approached the soft green box with what appeared to be a note tucked neatly beneath it. Tentatively, he took the box into his hands, the stone cool to the touch and decently heavy, and retrieved the note. He was never sure whether to read or open things first, but this time he opted to inspect the paper.

He wasn’t sure what he had expected when he opened it, but it hadn’t been a note written in messy scrawl that looked like it belonged to a fledgling. It was in his language, but he had a suspicion that the person writing it wasn’t exactly familiar with it. Still, he read it, and with each word he took in he felt surprise tickle his ribs and his heart stutter excitedly. The person had forgotten to sign their name but even without it Jimin had a strong suspicion as to who had left him this gift.

Unable to stop himself from opening the box now that he knew it was indeed a gift for him, he placed the note down and took great care in lifting the lid. Inside, sitting neatly upon plush cushioning that worked well to contrast with the metal of the piece it held, was a necklace. He felt his lips part as he took it in, slightly mesmerised, fingers of his free hand brushing gently over the silver and black chain and the large hoop that connected it. Even without the knowledge that it was a gift, most likely from a certain someone, he instantly liked it. It was just his style, and the fact that they’d known…

He placed the box down, moving the hand over his heart as he felt it skip a beat once more. Once more, it seemed you were proving to be more trouble than he was capable of handling.

What on Kilkhea was he going to do?

x x x x x x x

When Seokjin had told you that there would be a small feast of sorts tonight and that pretty much everyone you knew would be attending, you hadn’t bothered attempting to hide your excitement at all. It had everything you loved. Food? Check. Your friends? Check. A fun family atmosphere? Check. Food? Check, check. You were almost bouncing off the walls before Taehyung laughed at you for it and you had to track him down to teach him a lesson. Seokjin had said that the food being served was all trials for the celebration that was coming, and that meant that given your food was normally good quality, this food was likely to be god-tier. You were almost drooling you were so damn excited.

Your renewed energy at the knowledge you were going to be fed well tonight meant that you were a little bit more unbearable than usual as you hung around the other humans, and by the time dinner actually rolled around you were sure Hoseok was ready to actually lay hands on you and choke you out. It was a recent development, since he’d actually joined you in your hyperactivity initially. You’d ended up outlasting him with your energy though, something that Namjoon, Yoongi and Taehyung found incredibly hilarious, and as soon as he was no longer in on your shenanigans he seemed to grow tired of them very quickly. As you all entered the small dining room where you’d be eating tonight you saw him beeline for the seat furthest away from you and couldn’t help but laugh. Did he think that would stop you? He really didn’t give you enough credit.

To your delight, even the guards you’d become so friendly with—Jongdae and Jongin as you recalled—had been allowed to sit in. The look they’d shared when they caught sight of you almost had you in stitches—especially since they were still under orders from Jimin to be keeping an eye on you and you’d slipped out of their watch earlier in the morning to spend the rest of the day free.

“Aren’t you two meant to be watching her?” Joy asked, having arrived at the same time they did and bearing witness to the fact it was without you in tow. She was more amused than anything, knowing firsthand how crafty you were, but still the two of them sputtered for an excuse.

“She—she is just so slippery!” Jongin burst, eyes wide and marks flaring a sheepish peach. “Every time we think she will cooperate, we turn our backs for a single second and when we look back she is gone!”

“And she tricks us,” Jongdae’s voice came out in a whine, pointing his finger at you accusingly. You smiled at him. “She leaves sweets and treats to distract us and escapes in our moment of weakness.”

You couldn’t hide your big, shit-eating grin because honestly you found the whole thing really funny—despite the fact you felt a little bad for deceiving them—and were having a riot listening to them talk.

“They’re gifts,” you said, no effort at all put towards sounding even remotely convincing. “Sometimes you look hungry so I leave things for you to eat, like a good friend.”

The two guards sputtered and you could hear Taehyung choking on a laugh behind you, snickering to Namjoon. Joy rolled her eyes, an affectionate smile tugging her lips, before she stepped in and urged everyone to take a seat since the food would be coming soon.

It didn’t take you long to notice that Seokjin and Jimin hadn’t arrived yet—oh the shock of excitement that bolted through you when you realised you’d finally see him—but almost as soon as you took note of that there were two familiar figures entering through the double doors and Taehyung was cheering.

“Yes! Just in time for the food to arrive—hurry and sit down we’re all hungry!”

You laughed, Yoongi snickering softly from beside you. Taehyung seemed to be right; as soon as Jimin and Seokjin entered from one door the kitchen staff entered from the other. The two hurried and took their seats, Seokjin across from you and Jimin next to him. You tried not to stare, you really did, but he just looked so good and it had been so long since you’d seen him—you kind of wanted to sob at how attractive he was. He’d donned a deep, deep purple set of silken clothes today, and when combined with his raven hair, the dangly silver earrings hanging from his lobes, the chains around his wrists and the rings sitting firmly and contrasting against golden skin on his fingers… it was a knockout look. Unable to help it, your gaze strayed momentarily to his neck on a curious whim—you wished the spike of disappointment within you wasn’t quite as prominent as it was. He wasn’t wearing it… that was fine. You hadn’t expected him to, really. Perhaps he just hadn’t gone to his room yet—

No, it was better if you didn’t think too hard about it. It was out of your hands now, you’d done your part in leaving it for him. What he did with it… technically didn’t concern you. You ignored the slight throb your heart gave and turned to the plates being placed along the table.

As the food was served there was inevitable chatter that followed, and you were surprisingly caught up with laughing at Seokjin and Yoongi, and occasionally Jongin, who was unfortunate enough to be seated on your other side and kept getting startled into dropping his food whenever you moved too quickly. Had you really traumatised them so much with your fleeing escapades?

Your natural inclination was to look at Jimin for the duration of the dinner, and you did look at him a fair bit, but for some reason tonight felt… different. It didn’t take long for you to notice that he was sitting stiffly in his seat, entire body tense, and each chew was accented with a clenched jaw that honestly had your stupid heart skipping a beat. Fuck, he was even hotter than usual. The nerve? The audacity? Right here in front of your… what was that on your plate, it looked to be a salad of sorts…?

Despite how your gaze was naturally drawn to the raven-haired male, every time you glanced towards him your attention was quickly drawn away by Yoongi or one of the others. And the second you turned from him, you could have sworn you felt eyes boring into your form with alarming intensity. You didn’t ever catch him, he was always looking back to his plate or at someone else when you turned back, but the butterflies in your stomach and your gut feeling told you that the stare belonged to him. The thought excited you, but you were also confused. His usual response to your presence was fluster and embarrassment, sometimes he was even a little grumpy. You didn’t know what changed, but something had, and you were eager to poke and prod and find out exactly what had caused his behaviour to shift ever so slightly.

You felt the stare intensify whenever you leant closer to Yoongi, or the guard beside you. The more you experimented throughout dinner, the tenser Jimin seemed to become. You caught Seokjin shooting him looks that seemed to be a combination of concerned, knowing and amused, but he never voiced his concern out loud. He cracked a few jokes that had Jimin’s lips twitching into a slight smile at several points throughout the meal, but his features consistently fell back into their tense default.

By the time the meal was over and people began cleaning dishes up and filtering out of the room, you were absolutely itching to pounce on Jimin and resume your usual antics of annoying and flustering the hell out of him. You hadn’t seen him in a while, so the urge had built up and you were keen to make up for lost time. A part of you protested softly, the same part that stung a little more at each little sign of rejection he seemed to display, but it was easily silenced

You had a feeling that Jimin was going to try and make a run for it, and your suspicions were confirmed when not even a minute after he helped stack the plates nearest him, he was standing from his chair and bowing slightly to the table.

“Thank you very much for the meal,” he directed this to the staff, offering those that had come over a soft smile. You cursed the small morsel of jealousy that wormed its way into existence at that. “I think this line-up will work well for the event. Perhaps one or two more fruit dishes? They seem to be a favourite.”

The staff nodded eagerly, taking in his advice, and he offered them another smile before he turned on his heel and uttered that he was going to retire for the night. You could see how tensed the muscles in his back were as he walked away, posture stiff and straight. By the time you realised he was about to get away and you launched from your seat, he was already moving through the doorway. You had to act fast!

“Thank you for the meal, it was delicious—as usual!” you burst, grinning widely. The kitchen staff, well-acquainted with you by now, rolled their eyes fondly at your next words. “I will give you a full written report of my thoughts and bring it later, thank you!”

With that you ruffled Jongin and Yoongi’s hair, and then you bolted from the table, only nearly tripping once. You could hear Seokjin cracking a joke at your expense as you left but for once, ignored it. It pained you to do so, but you had a bigger objective in mind right now.

Quicker on your feet than you anticipated, you zipped through the open doorway and burst into the darkened hallway just in time to catch sight of Jimin while he was still barely visible. The lights hadn’t turned on in this hall yet, and you made sure to watch a little where you were going so that you didn’t fall flat on your face in front of your apparent crush.

You were certain he heard you coming, but just in case he didn’t you decided to announce your presence very loudly. “Jimin! Wait up, peach cheeks!”

Visibility wasn’t great in the hallway, yet you still managed to catch it as the male stiffened and halted for a moment, apparently surprised. Perhaps he hadn’t heard you coming?

When the male turned to face you, you felt your heart stutter before skipping several beats and setting off a swarm of butterflies in your stomach. His jaw was clenched once more, muscles along his throat shifting as he turned his head, and his marks glowed deep rosy red—but what had your knees wobbling slightly as you ran up to him was his eyes, dark and molten and absolutely boring into you from where he stood. His tongue darted to wet his lips before he spoke, a motion you couldn’t help but trace with your eyes.

“Do you need something, pesky human?” he inquired without any real bite, and you hated that even a nickname as dumb as that had your heart leaping when paired with the velvet tone of his voice. God, you’d really starved in the days he hadn’t been around, huh.

“Absolutely,” you answered, face straight save for the twitch of your lips. “It’s something you can help me with, actually.”

Jimin tilted his head, lids lowering ever so slightly as he held your gaze. You nearly stuttered at the way it made your stomach dip. “Oh? And what is that?”

“I’m very desperately in need.” You stepped closer, just barely noticing him stiffen further. You felt your grin spread across your features, unable to contain it any longer as you leant forward, barely a foot from his face, and poked his side softly. You felt a little bit of shame at what you were about to say but pushed it away—go big or go home. “Very desperately in need of you, Mr Jimin.”

There was a beat of silence as the kelkie registered what you said, before shifted into a reaction. Except, it wasn’t anything like the pink-cheeked flustered reaction you expected.

You had barely a moment to catch the shift in his gaze, the smoulder of new fire behind his eyes, before he was stepping forward suddenly, his hands moving so fast you almost didn’t see where they went until you felt them grip your hips. A gasp escaped you as you were moved backwards quicker than you could keep up with and your back pressed to cool stone, Jimin’s front pressed against your own. Your heart leapt into action, thudding unevenly against your ribcage as you stared at him with wide, shell-shocked eyes. Fuck. Fuck what the fuck—

“You need me?” his voice was low and raspy yet still ran against your ears like rich velvet. Your stomach dipped, arousal lighting your veins on fire. His hands gripped your hips tightly, one shifting up to grasp your waist; you curved into him instinctively. “You shouldn’t say such things so carelessly.”

Your heart was racing and your mouth was open in shock—you had no idea how to even begin processing what was happening, but he didn’t wait for your mind to catch up. His fingers dug into your supple flesh enough that the slight ache melted into pleasure and had a whine building in your throat—a whine that shifted into a squeak as he pressed you further into the wall and rolled his hips against yours, sending molten desire shooting along your spine and throbbing at your core. Your pulse was out of control at this point, and you could barely catch sight of his features in the darkness.

His thumb brushed up, pressing into the flesh over your ribs through the shirt and nearing dangerously close to the underside of your breast; you felt your breath catch in your throat. It was as though your mind was filled with nothing but static and acute awareness of just how close he was, brain unable to track anything else.

“You shouldn’t push so hard, little human, I’m not sure you’d like the end result,” his voice grew lower, tone laced with such promise that it had a shiver rolling down your spine. He leant closer, full lips brushing your cheek before they moved to your ear. You felt something foreign brush against your leg, dragging up the side of your thigh before brushing the skin where your shirt had ridden up. You jerked at the slick sensation, a gasp tearing from your lips. Jimin’s voice returned, lips tickling your ear as he spoke and making your knees weak.

“You are not the only one that can play, petal.”

And then just like that he was gone, cool air greeting you in the absence of his touch, and your mind was left reeling in its attempts to catch up. Flabbergasted, with your cheeks unbearably hot and legs wobbly, you just barely caught it as he disappeared into the shadows down the hall, the darkness shifting oddly behind him. A heartbeat later and he was gone from sight completely, and you were alone in the hall with a racing heart and your skin still tingling from the remnants of his touch.

What. What…

What the fuck just happened?

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minyoongijjangjjangmanboongboong · 6 years

Text

Arranged Chapter Thirteen

Description: Y/N is a struggling student in Seoul: working multiple jobs, living in a broom closet apartment, and often sacrificing her dignity for the sake of her livelihood. What happens when a handsome stranger presents her with an offer she cannot refuse at the moment she needs it most?

Pairing: Min Yoongi x (f) Reader

Word Count: 6,574

Tags: Non-Idol!Au, Chaebol!Au, Company!Au, Arranged Marriage!Au

Warnings: Coarse language, although not frequently

A/N: Hey guys! Here’s the next chapter. We are getting pretty darn close to the end of the story here. Not quite of course! But we’re getting there. Anyway, as always please feel free to send me asks about anything really! I love talking to you guys. It makes the whole thing worthwhile for me. I’m so grateful for all of your support of this story! Like it’s really more than I could have ever imagined. And if you have any issues, feedback, critique, questions, or anything don’t hesitate to let me know!

Also! This is super important. I want to know which member you guys want me to write about next! So *drum roll* I created a poll! It’s pretty simple, so it shouldn’t take too long. But I want to write what you guys want to see, so whichever member gets the most votes in the poll will be the main character of my next fic! Hopefully, I can post a new fic as soon as this one is done!

Here’s the poll! I’d really appreciate it if you guys took the time to vote:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/YN9TDQT

–Mercury

Chapter One, Chapter Two, Chapter Three, Chapter Four, Chapter Five, Chapter Six, Chapter Seven, Chapter Eight, Chapter Nine, Chapter Ten, Chapter Eleven, Chapter Twelve, Chapter Thirteen, Chapter Fourteen, Chapter Fifteen, Chapter Sixteen (END)

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I didn’t know why I came here. I couldn’t figure out why. I stared ahead, stared through, for a long moment. Of all the places I could have gone in my state of crisis, in my confusion, in my mistrust and betrayal…I came here. I shoved my hands in the pockets of my slacks, let the breeze throw my messy hair around my face, and sighed. Then I walked through the gates.

I passed the fountains and the round driveway, the tall walls, knocked on the massive front doors. Why was I at Jungkook’s house?

“Hell-oh,” said a very startled Jungkook, staring down at me. For the briefest second he looked like his normal, carefree self. But once he stared at me for a long moment, his expression changed. He looked older, maybe sadder. His eyebrows furrowed and it didn’t take him long to sigh and place a hand on my shoulder. He knew. “You found out.”

“I…,” I began, then shook my head. “I need to hear it from someone I can trust.”

“And you can trust me?”

I nodded and set my jaw. “At least you had the decency to feel guilty about it.” He took a deep, steadying breath and nodded, leading me inside the house.

“Come into the kitchen. I’ll get you some food,” he said as he walked ahead, nothing more than a pair of broad shoulders in my cloudy vision.

“I don’t really have an appetite.”

“Water then.”

I sighed and shrugged, entering his large kitchen with an indifference I never would have had under normal circumstances. Of course, like everything else in this home, it was beautiful. White marble countertops, stainless steel appliances, an island in the center with a stove and that quintessential bowl of fruit. I sat down at one of the white metal barstools in front of the island and let my eyes go glossy, staring into the middle ground.

“I only found out about it when I started college. My parents saw that you were one of the newly admitted students. I don’t think they were gonna tell me until your dad told you,” he said, pouring icy water into a clouded glass.

I nodded. “So…the convenience store…,” I said slowly, my voice heavy. I wanted to sleep.

“They pressed me to get to know you. Said that it was better this way anyway, since you grew up with your mom and wouldn’t really want to be approached by a chaebol,” he said.

“They were right.”

“Not completely,” he said with a chuckle. “You married Yoongi.”

“It was arranged.”

“I know.”

“He told you?” I asked, my eyes lifting to meet his.

He handed me the glass of water and I only held it in my weak hands. “Yeah. After he found out who you were.”

“And when was that?” I asked.

Jungkook shook his head. “I’d rather let him tell you that.”

I sighed and nodded. “Fine. But…how? How did this happen?” I asked.

Jungkook pursed his lips. “Hm…well, while I was away in Busan and you were hidden in Seoul, your father was still building his business. My dad had a lot of money. Not as much as now, but more than your dad.”

“I see.”

“He offered to back the company as a shareholder,” he said, eyes trained on the grey lines in the marble counter. “With a contingency.”

“A contingency…”

He nodded. “That being, if the rumors about your dad having a secret daughter were true, that daughter would be betrothed to me. He figured that by the time that possible daughter was old enough to get married, Skyline would be massive. He knew that in eighteen years or so your dad would be raking in capital. He saw a lot of potential in his company.”

“What about Min Company? He was already acquainted with them and they’re a massive tech company. Why not partner?”

“I asked that too. He said it was a bad investment. Said that Mr. Min was too ruthless to be bought,” Jungkook said. “Not that your father is weak…just…he was vulnerable. My dad saw that and he…”

“He made a savvy business choice.”

“Yeah.”

“So there were rumors,” I said.

He nodded. “There are always rumors.”

“And your father banked on them being true.”

“Yeah. The way he saw it, it was a win-win. If the rumors weren’t true, he said he would have been fine giving him a loan upfront and demanding repayment plus interest down the road. But if they were true…,” he said.

“Then he’d be inexplicably linked with a growing company. He’d have all the power,” I said. “It’s like buying the company altogether. All he’d have to do to get my dad to bend is threaten to recant his investment. And my dad would be-,”

“Putty in his hands.”

“Jungkook…,” I said softly, looking up to meet his eyes.

He was already looking down at me, a mixture of sadness and apology in his eyes. “I…I don’t know what to say. I’m so sorry,” he said.

“That makes my marriage with Yoongi…”

“Potentially void.”

“So then…why did he…?” I started, furrowing my brow. “Why in the world did he marry me then, knowing I was already betrothed?”

He chuckled and shrugged. “That’s what I wanted to know.”

“And did he tell you?”

Jungkook shook his head. “Min Company has been suffering a lot lately. Ever since he married you, their stock value has gone up. People are starting to trust them again. Imagine what would happen when it’s revealed that you’re the heir of Skyline? One of the biggest and most profitable tech companies in the country? Don’t you think….maybe people would expect a merger? Maybe shareholders would up their stakes in anticipation of that merger?” he asked.

I shook my head. “I can’t believe I…,” I started then scoffed as more tears began to fall down my cheeks. “Even after everything I still…I still love him.”

Jungkook raised his eyebrows at me and met my eyes as I let the tears slide over my flushed skin. “What?”

“Isn’t that stupid? Don’t you just…hate me right now?” I asked, laughing slowly. The sound hung in the air with a palpable pain. “I hate me.”

“Y/N, I…,” started Jungkook, walking around to where I sat and sitting beside me. He turned his body to face me, his knees brushing mine under the marble counter. “No matter what you do, I could never hate you.”

I looked at him and laughed. “You should.”

“But I don’t,” he said. His expression was soft, almost pleading. “I don’t. And that’s the problem.”

I shook my head. “Please don’t say it.”

“I have to,” he said. “You told me to ask when I need help, and I need help right now.”

I turned to face him. “I’m not right. You’re so much more than I’ll ever be, Kook. Don’t say it.”

“I love you,” he said.

The tears came harder and I shook my head. “Stop it.”

“I do. Just like you love him. I didn’t realize it at first. I thought you were just kind of funny. I thought if I had to spend my life with anyone, at least it was with someone who made jokes and worked hard,” he said. “When I started working at the convenience store I thought you were nice, maybe even a little pretty. But I figured that as long as you never found out, we’d never have to actually get married. If your father never came to claim you…I figured we could just become friends,” he said.

“Please stop,” I sobbed, letting my head fall into my hands.

He shook his head and grabbed my wrists softly. “Listen, this is important,” he said. “I didn’t have feelings for you until I saw the way you looked at Yoongi that day outside the bar. Remember?”

“Jungkook,” I said, meeting his eyes.

He seemed certain, determined. His gaze was set sternly. Whatever he was saying, he had to say it. I had to let him. “Remember?”

I nodded. “You said I looked at him like it was hard to look away,” I said, wiping beneath my eyes and finding the side of my hand black with mascara.

“Right then, for some reason…I wanted you to look at me like that. I stopped seeing that girl I went on a date with. And that’s when the trouble began. The guilt, the anger, the jealousy…it all came. Slowly,” he said. “And what killed me was that you were happy. Really happy with him. I knew there was no place for me there.”

I shook my head. “There’s always a place for you, Kook.”

“Not the place I wanted,” he said with a sad smile. “I told you I wasn’t lying when I said I liked you before. I meant that.”

I nodded. “I understand.”

“So that’s why,” he said. “That’s why I’m gonna get this arrangement nullified. I’m gonna get us out of this.”

My body snapped to attention and I turned to him. He’d already thought that far ahead? I supposed he’d had far more time to process everything. “You are?” I asked.

He nodded. “Well…we are. We’re gonna fix this,” he said.

I swallowed the heavy lump in my throat. “Even though you could just…let it happen? You could just leave things as they are and…”

“And what?” he asked with a chuckle. “Force the girl I like to marry me instead? And know she’d be thinking about someone else forever? Why would I ever want that?” he asked, smiling when I turned my haggard face towards him. He shook his head, doting, and lifted a napkin to my cheek. He dabbed away at the tears, much like I’d done for him, and clicked his tongue. “Don’t you know that loving someone is putting their happiness first?”

Loving someone is putting their happiness first…

My father’s driver picked me up from Jungkook’s house after multiple frantic calls from my mom. She’d gone over to the apartment, had apparently spoken with Yoongi. She was upset. I could hear it in her voice on the phone. Yoongi told her the truth about our marriage and she’d been outraged. She’d chewed him out, she said. She’d given him a piece of her mind. All I could think of as she told me all of the choice words she’d yelled at him was his face as she berated him. It was stupid, but the thought of my mother making Yoongi upset caused tears to well in my throat. Was he crying too?

I drove in silence as the city passed me by. The driver had little to say, as I had come to learn was common of drivers. I didn’t know what awaited me at the end of this long highway, didn’t know where we were going or who would be there, but I wished, for a long moment under the canopy of buildings overhead, that I could fall asleep and find myself a child again, sitting on the river’s edge with a sandwich and my mom by my side. I wished I could go back to a time when life was simple. Again, I could understand Jungkook more deeply. I’d been naive before. But the burden of knowledge had aged me, and I no longer saw things as simply as I did that night playing Mario Kart.

Nothing was simple now.

“Oh my God, honey,” said my mother as I exited the car in front of what I could only assume was my father’s house. She rushed out onto the sidewalk to greet me and held my face in her hands. I longed to pull away, because her touch burned where Yoongi’s hands had been. I couldn’t meet her eyes as they probed my messy face. “Honey…,” she said quietly, pulling my body flush against hers in a warm hug. “I’m so sorry.”

I nodded. I didn’t even have it in me to cry anymore. “I know.”

She pulled away and looked at me again, wiping beneath my eyes and around my cheeks. “I can’t believe I kept it from you for so long.”

I looked away and, softly, pulled my face away from hers so we could walk inside together. The building wasn’t quite as magnificent as the Jeons’ house, but it was nothing to sniff at. It seemed to be inspired by Japanese architecture, with sprawling gardens and stone bridges out the front and around the sides. We walked over one of those small bridges and crossed a koi pond. I watched the fish swim peaceful circles around each other as we passed, Mom’s hand on the small of my back, keeping me on track. If I could have had it my way, I would have stayed right there on the edge of the water, watching those orange and white fish make streaks in the crystal water for hours.

We entered the house whereupon we were immediately greeted by a maid. My mother waved her hand at the older woman, like she’d done this a million times, like she was comfortable doing it. I stared at her, this person who had raised me alone, this person who I’d known and loved all my life, and saw someone foreign. I wanted suddenly to run away. I hated myself for it, but once again I could understand Jungkook.

“Y/N,” breathed my father as he saw me nearing the living room. Another beautifully decorated home with another immaculate room and another rich man holding the keys to my fate. I felt the almost undeniable urge to steal those keys.

I avoided him as he came to place a hand on my shoulder, ducking from his touch and turning my wary eyes towards him. “Sweetheart, there’s a lot your father needs to explain,” said my mother.

“Then explain,” I said. I’d never heard my own tone sound so frightening. A woman scorned was one thing, but a woman deceived? “You don’t need to act friendly with me.”

“Y/N, I…,” he began, then sighed. “Let’s sit.”

“I already spoke to Jungkook. I doubt there’s much for you to say,” I said, following nonetheless and settling in on the couch beside him, at least two feet away. My mother perched by my side on the arm of the couch, wrapping an arm around my shoulders.

He sighed. “At least let me explain,” he said, turning to face me. Those hauntingly familiar eyes, just like mine but lacking the painful sharpness, lacking the betrayal and the hurt. “When I agreed to this arrangement, I was desperate.”

“Good to know you have to at least be desperate to sell your daughter,” I spat, scoffing. “I was scared you would have done it for five dollars and half a peanut butter sandwich.”

“Please,” enunciated my father, setting his gaze sternly on me. I sighed and shook my head, but shut my mouth. “The company was just getting started, we needed the support from a conglomerate like JJK Group. And they were diversified in fields we hadn’t spread to. It was like an opportunity came down from the sky.”

“Please, Jack,” said my mother with a sigh. “Spare her the theatrics. She’s been through enough today.”

My father met my mother’s eyes and they shared a terse moment. “Fine. My point is, I wasn’t in a position to refuse. And I was certain that by the time he came to collect, you would be off at college far away. In a different country. I thought I could keep you hidden somehow.”

“Is that why…,” I began, then looked at my mother with furrowed brows and a distressing feeling of tightness in my chest. “Mom, is that why we left? Why we stopped living in that house?”

My mom sighed and rubbed her forehead. “Honey…,” she started. It sounded like she pitied me… “There were many reasons. But that was certainly one.”

“Your mother thought that if you disassociated with me altogether, you could avoid it. Become anonymous, enter society as a poor kid with all the other millions of poor kids. You could run and hide and live normally,” said my father with a rueful sigh.

“But when I married Yoongi, you came back…,” I said. “Why?”

“Because,” he said, meeting my eyes. “The second those articles came out, Mr. Jeon called me.” He didn’t need to say anything more. The look in his eyes was enough. I’d never seen a grown man look so frightened.

I nodded. “For the record,” I began, lacing my fingers over my knee with a heavy sigh. “Jungkook and I don’t want it. We’re gonna do whatever we have to do to get it retracted.”

My father shook his head. “It’s not that simple.”

“Then what would you have me do?” I asked. I couldn’t dance around it anymore. I was exhausted. I couldn’t take anymore indecisiveness.

He met my eyes and what I saw there again took me by surprise. His expression was rough, and he looked like he might actually feel guilty. “I want you to do it.”

I blushed and raised my eyebrows. “And if I don’t want to?”

“Why wouldn’t you? You agreed to marry Yoongi on a contract. What’s the difference?” asked my father, shaking his head.

I felt myself growing angry. “The difference is that I love Yoongi and I don’t want to marry Jungkook.”

He scoffed. “Do you really think the real world cares who you love? I’m living proof that it doesn’t,” he said with a rueful glance towards my mother who, in turn, shuffled beside me and looked away.

“No, I don’t think the world cares,” I said, standing to my feet and giving him a glare. “But I thought maybe my own father might.”

His face crumpled beneath my gaze and he stood too, my mother already at my side, holding onto my shoulders tightly. “Y/N, you know I care.”

“If you did then you wouldn’t make me do it. You’d suffer the loss and move forward honestly instead,” I said. “I don’t know about business, but I know about character. And I can tell you right now, people would respect you more if you took a stance and defended the thing you know is right.”

He shook his head, rubbing his jaw. “I…I don’t want to do this,” he said.

I looked back at Mom as she shook her head and pointed a finger at my father. “Don’t you dare. You promised me you wouldn’t,” she said. “You promised.”

I scoffed. “Whatever it is he promised, you’ve seen how much his word is worth when you don’t offer him capital,” I said.

He met my eyes with an angry shake of his head. “Don’t start. You have no idea the circumstances I’m in.”

“If you told me I’d know and we could fix it together!”

“How? Huh? How are you gonna fix it, Y/N?” he shouted. “You say you’re going to recant the betrothal, you’re going to get me out of trouble with JJK, but how? You can’t just arbitrarily say those things! You need a plan!” he shouted.

“So let’s make one!”

“Not everything can be fixed!”

I stared at him, fuming for a long moment. That ideology troubled me in a way I couldn’t quite explain. Did he truly believe that? Could he really think that he was in so deep there was nothing he could do to fix it? Just how large was JJK Group’s share in the company…?

I inhaled deeply and met his eyes again, this time softer and more desperate. “Jack, if you do this it’s the end. Y/N has been extremely kind to let you back into her life. Do you really want to jeopardize that?” asked my mother from beside me.

I turned to look at her. “Mom, what are you even talking about?” I asked.

My father cleared his throat. “I’ll offer you an ultimatum,” he said. “Two choices. Two paths. You will have a choice between them, and I’ll need your answer immediately.”

I stared back at my mother, my brows furrowing, and then met my father’s eyes with strain. He looked determined, but somber. Whatever he was about to say, it seemed it may hurt him as much as it hurt me.

He took a steadying breath before he continued…

We always have a choice…

I arrived at the apartment at nine. I’d spent the rest of the afternoon talking to my mother, hearing her side. It wasn’t anything I hadn’t figured out already, but I was glad at least that she wanted to be open with me. She couldn’t bear the thought of me marrying someone for the sake of my father’s company, so she’d taken me and left. She and my father had assumed that if I just laid low, I could run from it forever. My father had explained to JJK Group that I’d become estranged, that he couldn’t find where I was. It would have worked, had it not been for…

“Yoongi,” I breathed as I entered the apartment.

He was sitting on the floor, Holly pawing at his leg, leaning against the front of the couch. He’d shoved the coffee table away so he could let his legs extend, and he was staring ahead as if he could find answers in the black screen of the silent TV. Moonlight filtered in through the windows and caught on his form. His eyes were glazed, like he wasn’t even awake inside his own body. I could see the rhythmic rise and fall of his chest, and it was the only indicator that he was alive at all.

I walked slowly to his side and sat on my knees beside him. He seemed not to realize I was there, still staring ahead. I wasn’t sure what to do, what to say. Just that morning, we’d been pressed together. I could hear his heart. I could feel it too.

And I could feel it now.

A sweeping pain came over me as I realized just how broken things had become. I longed to wrap my arms around his waist, to bury my head in his chest and tell him it was okay, but I couldn’t. Because I couldn’t sit there and lie to him.

“Yoongi,” I whispered, lifting my hand to push his bangs from his face, revealing the smooth expanse of his forehead and his brows which were furrowed as if he may cry. If he cried, it was over for me. “Yoongi, it’s me.”

Slowly, he turned to meet my imploring eyes. I continued to smooth his hair out of his face, his gentle, soft, warm, and melancholy eyes caught in a shaft of moonlight. “Why…?” he asked.

I smiled softly and shook my head. “I’m here to talk to you.”

He labored his body up so he was sitting properly and looked at me. “Why would you come back? You gave me a chance to tell you before…you…”

“Stop,” I said. “I…I won’t pretend that I’m not hurt. I am. I…,” I started, wiping a few tears that stubbornly fell from my eyes. “I’ve never been more hurt.”

“I’m so deeply, truly, existentially sorry, Y/N,” he said quietly, taking my rattling hands in his own. “I’ll spend the rest of my life being sorry to you.”

“Please don’t,” I whispered, leaning to press our foreheads together. I shut my eyes for a brief moment before pulling away. “Just tell me one thing.”

“Anything.”

“Did you know?” I asked, meeting his watery eyes with my own. “Did you know about it when you asked me to marry you?”

He raised his eyebrows and I saw nothing but sincerity in his expression. “I give you my word that I didn’t.”

“So it was…a coincidence?” I asked.

He nodded. “A horrible, twisted, fucking disgusting coincidence.”

“When did you find out?”

His face was flushed with tears long dried and his skin was cool to the touch. It was like he was ill. “The day after.”

I shook my head. “What?”

“My father performed a background check on you. He wouldn’t agree to let just anyone marry into the family. He wanted to make sure that you weren’t someone dangerous,” he said, looking away from me towards where Holly sat leaning against his calf. “He was hesitant about me marrying someone who wasn’t from a big family, so I figured it was a waste to ask you the more I thought about it. And I never expected you to call.”

“Then why did you ask?”

He raised his eyebrows. “Because…for a moment…I guess I felt like you and I were the same. And I was willing to fight for that.”

I wiped my eyes and nodded. “But your father…he found out that I was actually-,”

“He found out about your background. Your father, your relationship with JJK Group. Those documents aren’t public record, they’re private. But my father’s connections are…extensive.”

I nodded and gently brushed a stray feather from one of the couch pillows off the high peak of his cheekbone. He captured my hand and pressed it against his skin, meeting my eyes with a longing I couldn’t help but reciprocate. “So he approved…because of my betrothal?”

He nodded, leaning into the palm of my hand. I’d never seen Yoongi, strong, smart, independent Yoongi, so small and depleted. “Because of that, because he wanted leverage with JJK, and because of your father. He wanted a merger.” Just like Jungkook said.

“He said that if you responded, I was supposed to marry you as soon as I could. Lock it down and put it into a contract that was legally binding,” he said.

“Lock it down,” I said, falling onto my bottom and pulling my hand away.

He held onto it tightly and met my eyes with a frantic shake of his head. “I couldn’t do it. I…I couldn’t make you sign away your life to me like that, like some…bargaining chip.”

“You…what?��

“The contract, Y/N,” he said. “In order for it to be legally binding, both parties must agree upon it. I didn’t. I never signed it.”

“What?” I asked, my eyes wide.

He nodded. “It wasn’t right. I didn’t want to…I couldn’t use someone like that. My father doesn’t know. And he doesn’t know that I never officially registered our marriage.”

“You never registered it?”

He shook his head. “No.”

“Then…in theory, all you would have to do to make the marriage binding would be…to sign the contract and register the marriage?” I asked.

“Yes.”

I thought for a moment, a plan beginning to take shape in my brain.

No. I couldn’t scheme. I couldn’t plan. I’d made my choice back at my father’s house. I couldn’t be sitting here, plotting like some petulant child. There was so much more at stake than there had been before. It wasn’t just my relationship with Yoongi in jeopardy. It was much bigger.

“Yoongi…why would you take a risk like that? When your father was breathing down your neck?” I asked, scooting closer to him.

He looked at me with tears in his eyes. “Because,” he said. “I…I’m not cut out for this world. I’m not cut out for the deception and the betrayal and the exploitation. I…you’re a good person. I couldn’t use you.”

“And you were scared that…because the contract isn’t binding…,” I said as I pieced it together.

“I was scared you’d leave,” he said.

I looked down at him and a wave of sharp pain rushed through my body from head to toe. “You were scared that without a contract I’d have no reason to stay?”

He nodded. “Why would you?” he scoffed. “You’re better than this world, better than me and my family and my company.”

“Why would I?” I asked, laughing. “Because, you idiot. I love you.”

He looked up at me, a mixture of surprise and sorrow in his features. “You…after everything, you can still say that?”

I nodded. “Of course I can. Feelings…they don’t just change like that.”

“You…,” he said, then sighed. “You saw the safe the other day didn’t you?”

“I did.”

“And you saw Eun’s file,” he said. My chest tightened at the way he said her name.

“Yeah.”

“And you tried to ask me about it this morning,” he said, softly tracing his fingers along the skin of my wrist as it laid between us.

I shrugged. “I didn’t want you to think I didn’t trust you.”

“Why should you trust me?” he said with a laugh. He retracted his hand and I longed for him to return it. “I’ve given you no reason to.”

“Yoongi…I…I don’t care. I want to trust you. It might not be enough, it might not be the right thing, but I…I want to believe in the you that I fell in love with,” I said softly, letting the heavy words settle in a tangible layer of tension between us.

He met my eyes, his dark and pulled downward by purplish bags. “My father,” he said. “Do you want to know the reason why I had to get married?”

“Of course.”

“It wasn’t just for the company. It wasn’t just to become the CEO someday,” he said, his voice cracking only slightly. “It was because of Eun.”

I swallowed the jealousy that rose like bile in my throat. “What about her?”

“When I broke things off with her, I told her not to contact me. My family can be ruthless. They see something vulnerable, some crack in a shield or a chink in a chain, and they exploit it. Anything innocent gets destroyed. I didn’t want that for her. I don’t want that for you,” he said, unable to look at me now as his gaze focused on his hands in his lap.

“Did they…use her to blackmail you?”

He nodded. “More or less. When things ended, I naively assumed my father would leave her alone, would assume she was no longer someone he could use. But I was very, very wrong,” he said, and began wringing his hands. “He hired someone to follow her, to track her. He found out she was married, that she was…she’s pregnant.”

My eyes grew wide. “She’s…,” I began, but I couldn’t say it. A sick feeling was rising in my stomach, and if I spoke more I might have puked. It was all so much more twisted than I’d thought.

Everything was tangled.

“My father needed me to get married to a girl from a good background so that I could help the company reclaim its image. A while back, my father got into some big trouble with the union for the state of his manufacturing factories, and since then more and more unsavory business has come to light. He was getting desperate. So with me at about the right age to be marrying…”

He didn’t need to finish. I already knew. “What did he threaten to do to her?” I asked as a chill ran up my spine.

He met my eyes. “He…he said she had a job working for a company my father knows. Both of them work there, Eun and Daehee both. He told me that if I didn’t agree to a marriage with a suitable partner, they’d lose their jobs. They’d lose their house. They’d lose everything. And their child…”

“Yoongi,” I whispered weakly, inching closer to him.

He shook his head. “I had to do it. He gave me her file when you and I got married. He said he didn’t have a copy of it, but he already had the information he needed. I kept it in case I ever had to help them. I don’t have any other way to contact her anymore. When things ended…she got rid of her social media. I told her she should, since my parents might look for her. She’s done everything right. Her…her only crime was getting involved with me,” he said, tears beginning to pool in his eyes.

“Yoongi, this is not your fault. You need to know that it’s not your fault,” I said, placing my hands on his cheek and jaw so he would look at me. But the second our eyes met, the tears he’d been holding back spilled onto his skin and he hiccuped past the sob I could see building in his chest. “I need you to know that none of this is because of you.”

He opened his mouth then shut it, opened it and shut it. It was like he was trying to speak, but the words were choked. “Everything I touch rots.”

I stared with wide eyes at him, at this broken boy before me, so fragile under my touch, so fragile under my gaze. I had no idea what I could do for him, and I knew that what I had to do in the morning would hurt that much more now. I sniffled and wiped his tears as they fell. He shook his head as he looked up at me and I tried to shush him before he spoke again.

“You didn’t do this. You’re a good person-,”

“I love you.”

I blushed and stared down at him as a searing pain scorched through my insides. “What?”

“I love you,” he said again, his eyes still producing plump tears that he could scarcely contain. “And I don’t want this for you.”

“Yoongi…”

“You, Eun, Hell, even Jungkook would be better off without me,” he said, shaking his head as his eyes flashed wildly around the room. God, he was spiraling.

I shook his head slightly so he would focus on me. “Min Yoongi, don’t you dare say that. I don’t want to imagine a world where I never met you. I don’t want to see a day when you’re not here. You don’t get to say that.”

“Why?” he sobbed. “All I’ve done is make things worse for you.”

“No you haven’t!” I shouted. His rapid eyes stilled as I raised my voice. “You’re in my best memories, you’re there in my most precious moments. My life has become richer, more beautiful…everyday I’ve been with you has been a day I’ve cherished.”

He scanned me, his expression still frantic, but his breath coming more steadily now. “Y/N, I’ve been so selfish. But I can’t be selfish with you anymore.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’ve been so scared of losing you that I robbed you of your choice. I…I’d like to hold you close, to keep you here, to shut the doors or run away or disappear together. But you were right. You’ve been right the whole time. I’ve been making the decisions on my own from the beginning,” he said, his voice a breath in the silver moonlight. He looked at me. “So I want you to choose. I want you to decide your own future now.”

I felt my brows knit together as I looked down at him, my hands lacing into his dark hair, the blotchy patches of red beneath his skin from the force of his tears. His eyes implored me, beseeched me, longed for me. And I knew in my heart what I wanted to do. More than anything, what I wanted was to collapse into him, to hold him and hear the beating of his heart as it slowed down. I wanted to stay, I wanted to shut the doors. I wanted to run away or disappear together.

But I remembered what my father said.

If you fight, he’d said, his eyes cold and hard against mine, Hana’s brother will lose his scholarship, and Hana will lose her financial aid.

It seemed Namjoon had done more than just spy on me and Yoongi. He’d found the weaknesses in my armor, just like Yoongi said his parents did. He’d found with pinpoint accuracy the areas in which I was vulnerable. He’d located the Hana-shaped hole in my heart. And my father had twisted his gnarled hand into that hole and gripped me by my very core.

I wasn’t just choosing my future.

I was choosing the future of the people I cared about the most.

“Tonight,” I whispered, crawling close to him and burying my head in his chest. “Tonight, let’s just…shut the doors and pretend for a while.”

He slowly lifted his large hand to the back of my head and smoothed down my hair, peppering soft kisses into my temple. “Okay.”

I nodded against him as my throat constricted with tears. So much had changed in a single day. I just wanted to rest now. Gently, Yoongi guided us to our feet and, without disconnecting our bodies, without detangling our limbs, we made our way to his bedroom. Immediately, we both fell against his mattress and he shimmied both of our bodies beneath the covers, facing me as he gently tucked the sheets around my back. He was sure to leave no gaps for the cold air to penetrate. And then he just laid beside me, looking at me.

I’d never felt so adored.

His eyes were tender and soft, his hand gentle as it ghosted over my hair, his fingers sliding featherlight against my cheeks. He fanned my hair out of my face with the back of his hand and let it linger on my neck. I snaked my arms around his waist and wordlessly pulled myself closer. He encircled me in his embrace and exhaled against the top of my head. For a moment, I let myself forget it all. I let myself forget the tragedy of the two of us. I let myself forget that my mother, my father, my friends, and even the man I loved had deceived me. I let myself forget that, despite what I may have thought before, love wasn’t always enough…

I don’t know when I fell asleep. I don’t know if I was the first to fall into the warm caress of dreams, or if it was Yoongi who had fallen prey to the beckoning lull of unconsciousness. But I was the first to awaken after a fitful night of restless sleep. I thought sleeping next to the person you love the most would make the night feel warm, but I’d shivered so much in my sleep that several times I’d awoken in the faint moonlight to find Yoongi with tears drying on his cheeks and the navy blue midnight touching every corner of his room. I stood to my feet as I awoke the final time to the first rays of sunlight. I padded out into the kitchen and then into my bedroom where I sat at the piano, running my fingers along it. I couldn’t bear touch the keys. Hearing that noise, the hum of the instrument that had brought Yoongi and I clumsily together…I couldn’t handle the thought that it would witness our separation too.

So I sat on the stool and I wrote him a letter.

I placed that letter atop the piano.

Loving someone is putting their happiness first. And I loved Hana enough to do that.

So I stood, grabbed my jacket, pulled on my shoes, and left the apartment.

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Will The Republicans Win Back The House

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Will The Republicans Win Back The House

Effect Of Republican Retirements

Donald Trump pledges to help Republicans win back the House

Indeed, 2020 was actually a Democratic-leaning year, with Biden winning the national popular vote by 4.5 percentage points. So theres a good chance that states will be at least a bit redder in 2022 than they were in 2020.

That could make these retirements less of a blow to Republicans than they first appear. Whats more, by announcing their retirements so early, Burr, Toomey and Portman are giving the GOP as much time as possible to recruit potential candidates, shape the field of candidates in a strategic way in the invisible primary and raise more money for the open-seat campaign. And in Ohio specifically, Republicans still look like heavy favorites. Even in the Democratic-leaning environment of 2020, Trump won Ohio by 8 percentage points, implying that its true partisan lean is probably even more Republican-leaning. Ohio is simply not the quintessential swing state it once was; dating back to the 2014 election cycle, Democrats have won just one out of 14 statewide contests in Ohio and that was a popular incumbent running in a blue-wave election year .

Nathaniel Rakich and Geoffrey Skelley, FiveThirtyEight

Read Also: When Did The Republicans And Democrats Switch Platforms

The Squad Coasts To Reelection

Three high-profile Democratic members of the squad in the House of Representatives held their seats in a comfortable fashion.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez will continue to represent New Yorks 14th District, defeating the Republican John Cummings by a wide margin, while Rep. Ilhan Omar also ran well ahead of the Republican Lacy Johnson in the race to represent Minnesotas 5th District.

Rep. Rashida Tlaib also defeated her Republican challenger, David Dudenhoefer, and will continue to represent Michigans 13th Congressional District.

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A Zombie Republican Party Will Overwhelm Joe Biden In The 2022 Midterms

President Biden promised he will restore the soul of America. Hes already running out of time. The commander-in-chief is 78 and unlikely to see out more than one term in office. By the time the pandemic crisis passes mid-2021, inshallah Biden could find his administration has run out of gas before it ever really got started. A week is a long time in politics. Two years can whizz by.

For now, Biden appears to hold the aces. He has a Democratic majority in the House Of Representatives and his vice president, Kamala Harris, can cast the deciding vote in a split Senate. The economy, stimulated to its guts, is expected to roar as this year goes on. His opposition, the Republican Party, looks prone wrecked by its calamitous marriage to Donald Trump. The Republican base still hates the Republican establishment and vice versa. The infamous storming of the Capitol on 6 January, we are told, has tarnished the American right for a generation or more.

The Republican Party, for all its problems, remains the strong favourite to win the House in the 2022 midterms, possibly by a large margin, and they may even take back the Senate

Trump or no Trump, the Grand Old Party marches on. The mistake pundits make is to confuse Republicanism with a normal democratic movement. It is more like the political equivalent of the undead a zombie army that horrifies every sane voter but somehow always wins because people hate the Democrats more.

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How Many Senators Are Chosen

The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each State, elected by the people thereof, for six years; and each Senator shall have one vote. The electors in each State shall have the qualifications requisite for electors of the most numerous branch of the State legislatures.

Also Check: Republican Secret Meeting To Stop Obama

An Incoming Class Of History

Several of the newly elected state representatives are making history.;

The Republican Madison Cawthorn, 25, who beat the Democrat Moe Davis to represent North Carolinas 11th Congressional District, will become the youngest member of Congress in modern history.

The Democrat Cori Bush is set to become the first Black congresswoman from Missouri after winning in the states 1st Congressional District.

The Democrats Mondaire Jones and Ritchie Torres will also be the first openly gay Black men to serve in Congress, after winning in New Yorks 17th and 15th districts respectively.

And nine out of the eleven Republicans who have so far unseated incumbent Democrats are women wins that will drastically expand the representation of women and especially of women of color in the House Republican caucus.

Currently, there are just 13 voting female Republican representatives in the House and 11 female Republican incumbents who ran for reelection in 2020.

Don’t Miss: How Many Democrats And Republicans Are In The House

Gop Lawmakers Threaten To Punish Democrats If They Win Back Control Of Congress

‘When we take the majority back in 2022, I’ll make sure consequences are doled out,’ said Rep. Madison Cawthorn.

Republicans are outraged that Democrats are governing by majority rule in the House. In retaliation, they are vowing to do the same things they now decry as unprecedented and wrong.

“Never in the history of our country has a Speaker acted like such an authoritarian,” House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy tweeted on Thursday.

He was upset that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had rejected his request to appoint Republican Reps. Jim Banks and Jim Jordan to the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the U.S. Capitol. Both men voted to overturn the 2020 election results and pushed the lie that President Joe Biden only won because the election was stolen.

“Never in the history of Congress and the select committee I checked with the historian has this ever taken place, where the one party decides who’s all on the committee,” McCarthy told Fox News in a video he with his tweet. McCarthy in fact voted to give Republican then-Speaker John Boehner the exact same unilateral appointment power in 2014 for the Select Committee on the Events Surrounding the 2012 Terrorist Attack in Benghazi.

But while House Republicans claim they are being mistreated because the majority won’t let them have their way, they are also promising to retaliate by turning the same actions they criticize now against Democrats in 2023.