#bts ot7 au

[jiminiesfavouritecolourisblue]

Deadline - BTS OT7 CEO AU Chapter 15

This is what I call the fluff before the fall, there are a few events mentioned here that aren't in previous chapters but are in canon drabbles/pseudo drabbles, so I recommend you read this and this before the chapter below. 4.6k words

Hope you enjoy 💜

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Seven boyfriends, seven days a week, might sound like a lot for one person to handle, especially since now you were sexually active with them. It was as if you unleashed Pandora's box but instead of a plague that kills the world, it was seven sexy men that didn’t want to let you go to sleep alone. 

“Min Yoongi, why are you in my bed on a weekday?” Your eyes narrow in suspicion at the man staring at the ceiling. You just walked out of the ensuite in nothing but your robe, if he thought this was easy pickings he had another thing coming. 

“Relax kitten, I just wanted to talk,” he sighs, turning onto his side so he can face you, a soft but sad smile on his face that made you want to climb into bed with him and cuddle, so you did.

“You’re not here to break the rules?” you tease, arms wrapping around his middle when he embraces you. It earns you a chuckle at least.

“Because that worked out well for me last time,” he shakes his head. “You and your rules.”

“Who would’ve thought the roles would reverse huh,” you say absentmindedly, trying not to laugh.

“What do you mean?” He frowns, seemingly confused, he was never an enforcer of the ‘rules’, that was you and Namjoon. 

“Well you always went against them while Joonie lived by them, and now…”

Well now Namjoon had a new lease on life, where before he would always be militant with those broad shoulders of responsibility that carried the weight of everything, now he was a lawless man, and your biggest deviant. Since that morning you were both late to your respective workplaces, the one where he ate you out for breakfast and then fucked you against the counter, the troublesome trio became the least of your problems. Now it was Namjoon that tried to keep you up late on a work night until you had to force him out of the room. Namjoon who tried to sneak into the shower with you in the mornings, pretending he was going to behave and be good, “we’ll save water baby girl” he tried one morning. Seriously, did he think you were stupid? Namjoon who wanted to hold your hand all morning before you walked out the door for work, the others yelling at him that he was hogging you, while you tried to do your morning routine one handedly (his grip was strong). But he didn’t care, the others had gotten away with more in his eyes, it was his turn. 

“And now you’ve unleashed the monster in Kim Namjoon,” Yoongi finishes your thoughts for you, shaking his head before sighing, “can’t blame you too much, it was always there.” 

Too many times this week he’s had to be the level headed one, he’s sure it's just a phase but it needed to end quickly or Yoongi was going to get a headache. 

“It’s been a week, why is he still mad at me and not you?” Yoongi grumbles into your hair.

“I had sex with him,” you deadpan, shrugging before you bury your giggles in his chest. 

“Ah this is why Jimin calls you a vixen,” he thinks aloud playfully, making you pull back to look at him in question, did he?

“Well that’s a new one…” Your arms come around his neck, looking up at him longingly, waiting for him to figure out what you wanted without asking for it. 

“No it isn’t, he just calls you that behind your back, when you’re being too enticing for your own good,” he kisses your nose.

Your cheeks burn as you scoff, ‘enticing’, what was wrong with them?

“Like right now,” he calls you out, your favourite gummy smile beams endearingly at you when you gasp in mock outrage.

“I’m not doing anything right now,” you deny, ready to bicker with him.

“Hmmmmm,” his gaze changes dangerously, eyes almost mocking you, “So you’re not asking me for a kiss right now?”

You scrunch your nose, pressing your lips together to hold back a smile, dammit he could see right through you.

“No I’m not,” you shake your head, holding your head proudly. “You’re reading into things.”

“I don’t think so, Kitten,” he hums again. “I can read you perfectly.”

This time round he accepts defeat easily in your playful little squabble, lips pressed against yours and you both smile. 

—

Kim Jongin was a flirt, a shy one at times, but when the women bundled around him he couldn’t help but flirt, hopeless romantic and all. You however indulged him in no such thing, and he couldn’t help wondering why. He wasn’t serious, he was playing around, everyone knew it, but you didn’t even acknowledge it. 

He even called Jimin to ask him if something was wrong with you and after about a minute of silence on the other end from his friend, where he thought the line disconnected and called his name repeatedly, he got lectured for an hour. His friend and business rival went on and on about how he shouldn’t pursue you, and you were all business and professional and … well he stopped paying attention after that. But it did make him curious. It was almost a challenge, the cliche of forbidden fruit.

“Y/n you’re practically glowing today,” he says in passing, interrupting your conversation with your supervisors. 

You stop speaking for a second, looking at him briefly before resuming whatever it was you were saying. Heechul hides a snicker poorly, covering it up with a cough, not even paying attention to you.

“Aren’t you going to tell me how good I look?” Jongin presses, pout on his face, his eyes drooping in faux sadness. 

You almost glare at him, and he kind of likes it, the fire in your eyes. Why did Jimin warn him against you? Surely he would want to set up his friend with such a woman, or at least keep her to himself.

“Oh Director Kim you look so handsome today,” Kyunghoon says dramatically, Heechul unable to stop his laughter this time. It takes everything in you not to roll your eyes. 

“Somethings wrong with Y/n if she doesn’t see how handsome our favourite director is,” Kyunghoon continues, trying to act cute. You look at him disgustedly, what a suck up, and that was coming from you, the world renowned teacher’s pet. 

“I heard she went on a date with Mark and then ghosted him,” Heechul stage whispers to his boss as if it’ll win him favours. “I don’t think Y/n is good enough for our precious director.”

You lost count of how many times your eyes rolled in annoyance, it wasn’t a reflex you could help otherwise you would’ve thought twice before doing it in front of your boss and two supervisors. 

“It wasn’t a date,” you grunt, frowning at the paperwork. It was bad enough your boyfriends thought the same, and you sincerely paid for that. You shudder involuntarily, skin starting to heat up as you try to push the memories of those nights out of your head since you were at work. 

“Someone should’ve told Mark,” Heechul mutters under his breath to the other two.

—

“Should we sell the company?” Namjoon breaks the silence in the office with words so off-kilter that Jimin falls out of his chair. The lead CEO is practically bouncing in his seat, wanting the day to finish so he could go home and see you, maybe convince you to break some more rules.

“Who are you?” Jin asks, watching the CEO with distrust. 

Kim Namjoon, selling the company he got off the ground with his bare hands? Unheard of. Impossible. Pigs would learn to fly first. 

“Hyung!” Jimin whines, picking himself off the floor. “Please, come back to your senses! What’s happened to you?”

The CEO shrugs, looking at his desk as the words leave his mouth.

“I’m happy,” he grins, the others looking at him dumbfounded before they groan.

“You’d sell it and then cry,” Hoseok says, knowing his friend all too well, getting back to the papers on his desk before adding, “Sunshine would kill you.”

“If you sell the company I would never forgive you,” Jin adds. “I’m far too young to retire.”

“Plus you’re only saying this so you can spend more time with Noona right?” Jungkook continues, “but could you ever imagine Bunny giving up work?”

��You’d sit at home bored out of your mind,” Yoongi grumbles, agreeing with the maknae. 

“We could always convince her,” Namjoon suggests, making the others laugh in disbelief. 

“Have you met Kitten?” Yoongi grins, “the word stubborn doesn’t do her justice.”

Yoongi looks up from his desk when there’s no reply, Namjoon staring daggers at his head. Oh shit, well he walked into this one.

“You managed to convince her just fine,” he accused, making all of them groan again.

“Can we not do this again?” Jin sighs, closing his eyes, if he had this conversation again his brain would explode trying to escape it. 

“Please can we let this go,” Jimin almost yells, they all had enough of the silly war Namjoon was trying to begin with Yoongi. “Jealousy is an ugly trait you know.”

“Who’s jealous?” Namjoon contests, not sounding believable at all. “It’s about principle.”

“And the principle is Angel and Hyung did nothing wrong,” Jimin uncharacteristically sticks up for Yoongi, even the usual stoic CEO was shocked. “We were all dating at the time, they were both well within their rights, even if it was at work.”

Namjoon looks away dejected, knowing Jimin was right but wanting to hold on to the petty anger. 

“I mean why Yoongi hyung is an acceptable question to ask, but Angel doesn’t have the best taste in men does she?” Jimin smirks, teasing him.

“She’s dating you as well, Park Jimin,” Yoongi scoffs in reply, but the feeling of gratitude towards the younger one doesn't dampen. 

“It’s inappropriate at the workplace,” Namjoon finally  mumbles in response, making Jin roll his eyes. “What if they got caught?”

“You’re the head of the company and you didn’t catch them in the act,” Hoseok mocks with a smirk, an eye brow rising. “And you were in the room with them.”

A knock on the door interrupts their conversation, Jackson looking unusually cautious as he enters. He greets them all with a bow, approaching Namjoon’s desk.

“Depyunim…” he hesitates, putting the envelope in front of him. “There’s another one.”

Namjoon’s carefree disposition disappears, instead Jackson sees a bull about to charge, the fear instilled in him so sudden it takes effort not to move out of his line of sight. 

“How many is that now?” Jin asks quietly, the atmosphere in the office now dead. The youngest three looking at their hyung’s in question.  

“It doesn’t matter,” Namjoon seethes before commanding Jackson to burn it like every time before. The secretary never did, instead he always put it in the shredder and disposed of it in the confidential waste bins.  

He nods, leaving with the envelope and whatever contents it held that shook the four oldest CEOs. As curious as Jimin, Jungkook and Taehyung were, there was something about the murderous intent on their leader's face that stopped them from asking what was going on.

“How much longer are we going to hide this,” Yoongi says, knowing how much you hated secrets.

“We don’t need to worry her,” Namjoon dismisses the idea. He was content with pretending the problem didn’t exist, they all were. But how much longer could they ignore a mountain and pretend it was a molehill. 

“Maybe we should air on the side of caution and read what he’s said at least,” Hobi suggests.

“We don’t give criminals the time of day Hoseok,” Namjoon replies. “Nothing he has to say is worth our time, or Y/n’s.”

“But he’s incessant,” Jin states. “We thought he’d give up but it's been weeks Namjoon.”

The maknaes all watch the back and forth quietly, trying to decipher what the hell was going on.

“I don’t want to read his threats or blackmail, he has no power where he is.”

“Where we put him,” Yoongi scoffs, “he’s lost everything, which means we shouldn’t underestimate him, there’s nothing he won’t do.”

“What can he do?” Namjoon yells back exasperated. They were pretending for so long he almost forgot about the whole issue. 

“Well we won’t know unless we read the letters,” Yoongi responds calmly, knowing Namjoon’s emotions were all over the place. The anger was forefront, their leader usually was able to keep his cool in all aspects of his life, or at least use his emotions productively, but this was different. This made his level-headed nature dissipate, until all that was left was a man desperate to hold onto what he had, regardless of the consequences. 

—

“You wanted to see me sir,” you say as you enter the office. Kyungsoo was a good boss, he was a bit scary and blunt at times but always fair. The blank expression he usually wore gave nothing away, which is why everyone who ever interacted with him was always on edge. 

“Y/n take a seat,” he says, gesturing to the chair in front of him. The other CEOs were nowhere to be seen. 

“Is everything okay?” you ask, starting to worry since his expression seemed more serious than usual. 

He sighs. That one action has your heart dropping, you fucked up somehow, you must have. What other reason could he have to call you in here?

“I want you to know I usually don’t pay attention to baseless rumours,” he states, looking you dead in the eyes almost apologetically. “However there is one going around about you that has put your colleagues at a bit of unrest.”

Oh fuck, this again? This again because Jongin tried to flirt with you in front of your supervisors? You press your lips closed before you can start filling the silence with explanations, the man hadn’t finished your accusation yet. Innocent until proven innocent, you were guilty of nothing.

“A few of your supervisors have come to us with the senseless belief that you are somehow a spy for bangtan corporations,” he pauses watching for your reaction, other than your eyes widening in shock and your lips parting, he doesn’t see anything damning there. “We had no reason to believe it, except one of the managers claims to have seen you at dinner with your old bosses.”

You can feel yourself start to sweat under his gaze, for all the reasons he is unaware of. You were not a spy, but yes you had a secret, one that could not get out no matter what. 

“Director Do, I assure you, I am not a spy for any company,” you say sincerely, hoping he’ll believe you. “I’m close with my old colleagues and bosses after working with them for so long, but I can promise you I never talk about work.”

He takes in your explanation with silent eyes, you couldn’t read them and you hated it. When it was one of your seven boyfriends you could always read their moods and you missed that, you didn’t realise how much comfort it brought you until now. Even Yoongi, who was dubbed a stone by your old colleagues, you could always grasp his emotional state, this was foreign to you and as a proud teacher's pet it was making you anxious. 

“Okay,” he nods, seemingly accepting of your honesty. 

You breathe in relief, albeit mind in overdrive trying to think when this manager could’ve seen you. You all went out for dinner recently after coming back from Italy as a call for peace between the hyungs and maknaes. The so-called peace lasted for about ten seconds before they were arguing again about who was in the right and why actions were justified etc etc. It must have been then, the table was in a private VIP booth but they were loud, the noise levels could’ve caught anyone’s attention. 

You’re dismissed from the office, head hanging to the ground in thought. Do you tell the others? You probably should so you can all collectively be more careful, but at the same time, you didn’t want to worry anyone. 

—

In the end, you do decide to tell them. Your downcast expression when you got home gave away that something was wrong anyway, you didn’t have much choice after the probing from the maknaes. Yoongi begged you to tell them just to shut Jimin’s whining up. They didn’t like it, in fact they went a little too quiet for your liking, but they all agreed they would have to be more careful on dates out, which led to a compromise you weren’t all too happy about but hey, never look a gift horse in the mouth, whatever the hell that meant.

When you all started dating, Namjoon made a point about renting out whole places so you could all enjoy some privacy away from the public and you had vehemently refused. It was too costly, it wasn’t fair on other people that wanted to also visit the places of your dates, and it just didn’t seem normal. Now though, you had to give in, at least to keep your relationship under wraps. 

“Is it really worrying you?” Jin asked you after you were silent for a while. Both of you were sharing a slice of cake between you on the dining table, you mind preoccupied. 

“Yes,” you say honestly, sighing.

“Oh beautiful girl, I’m sorry,” he replies sincerely, pulling the leg of your chair so you’re closer to him. The action has your heart galloping despite your uneasiness, you’d never told them before but it was your favourite move. In every drama you watched, whenever the male lead did that you would just swoon, and when your boyfriend did it you swooned and died. 

For the first time tonight you smile genuinely, shyly trying to hide your expression as you play around with the cake. Jin can see the change in your demeanour, he wanted you closer to comfort you but he can see it had other affects. He pulls it closer even still, his face a centimetre away from yours so he can feel it burning. 

“Cute,” he comments quietly, but you hear him. Stupid racing heart, pumping blood to your face, why did you always have to heat up like a volcano whenever they did anything? 

He chuckles to himself when you fail to reply, mouth opening as if you were going to but you couldn’t find the words. He kisses your flaming cheek, possibly making them ignite even more going off how your skin almost scorched his lips. 

“Beautiful,” he whispers, “why are you suddenly being shy?”

You shake your head without looking at him, as if to say, ‘no reason’. He laughs at your antics, pleased that he’s managed to distract you from your worries for a little while. When you finally do turn to him, you've scooped up some of the cake on your fork, holding it out to him expectedly. Internally he could combust himself from the action, but he hides it well enough, as long as you don’t look at his ears. He doesn't break eye contact with you as he takes a bite, a little of the frosting still on his lips that catches your attention. You wait patiently for him to swallow before you lick it, turning back to the plate as if nothing had happened, leaving Jin spluttering in shock, his face blushing profusely as he tries to calm down. Oh what a dangerous girl you were. 

—

“Did you just lock the door?” You laugh incredulously at Hoseok as he climbs into your bed. “You know there’s enough room for more than just us right?”

You’re only teasing but he’s not all that impressed. 

“After all you were the one to say that was the reason I got the biggest bed,” you continue, laughing harder when he pins you with a hard gaze. 

“I’m not sharing you tonight,” he states, pulling you closer under the covers before reaching over to turn off the lamp. “Plus you still owe me after halloween.”

You’re about to answer when you’re interrupted before you can begin, there’s a knock on the door but Hoseok stops you from answering it.

“What part of not sharing didn’t you understand sunshine?” he says seriously.

“Sorry,” you reply sheepishly, making him finally break into a smile. 

There he is, your Sun like boyfriend, you always found it funny that he called you sunshine when he was literally made from it. People gravitated towards Hobi, he was full of character and laughter, you would have to be out of your mind to dislike him. Sure he was a little more… authoritative at work and in bed, but all in all he was one of the nicest people you had ever met, you were lucky to have him to yourself. 

The knocking on the door turned into loud pounding, making his smile falter into a stern expression. Oh you felt sorry for whoever was on the other side if they unleashed Hoseok’s mean commander persona. You remember the days working with him, he accepted nothing less than perfection, it was a trait he carried home, but it did lead to a lot of self induced stress from time to time. 

“Just ignore it,” you whisper, turning his face away from the door to you in the darkness, “they’ll get the message eventually.”

Unfortunately, whoever is on the other side has a death wish, the banging doesn’t stop for a second. You can feel the patience in Hobi wearing thin before he detonates.

“We’re trying to sleep in here!” He yells with a scowl, his head pounding to the same rhythm as the beats on the door. 

For a moment it seems like he’s won, the silence welcomed as he settles back into your embrace, before the sound comes back harder and faster. 

“I’m going to kill them,” he growls, about to get up before you tether yourself to him. 

“Babe, they’ll give up eventually,” you reassure him, pecking his face wherever you could in the darkness, quelling his anger. You couldn’t see the look of love he was giving you, despite the incessant noise and now voices of demand and displeasure (surprisingly Namjoon and Jungkook, you were so sure it was Taehyung and Jimin), both of you lose yourself to soft touches and as the sound settled, you both fell asleep. 

—

“Namjoon no,” you command like he was a misbehaving dog when he stands at the kitchen doorway staring at you with mischievous eyes. 

He only grins, staring at your accusing finger like it was nothing, no threat behind it at all. You were on your way out, purposefully avoiding him like every morning since his new habit of trying to steal time you didn’t have. You shouldn’t have risked filling up your coffee travel cup, but the drinks at your new company sucked, they only had machines, no cafe no nothing, you were truly spoiled at bangtan. 

Your train of thoughts distracts you from your current predicament until your boyfriend takes a step into the room towards you. Your eyes narrow, his hands behind him playfully, a carefree gait in his movements but his face was nothing less than predatory. 

“I just wanted some coffee,” he shrugs innocently, but you know he’s up to no good. You eye the exit behind him, calculating how to manoeuvre your way out of here when he closes the distance. You try to slip past him but he blocks your movement with his arm clutching the counter behind you. His other hand takes your travel mug from your grasp, taking a sip before wincing at the burn. 

“It’s hot you dumbass,” you try to snatch it back but he only places it out of reach on the counter beside you, before wrapping his arm around your waist. 

“You're hot,” he flirts shamelessly, making your jaw drop and your skin crawl with heat. You were not used to this new carefree attitude they all adopted in disarming you with compliments, your heart couldn’t take it. 

“No,” you draw out the vowel as if explaining something simple to someone stupid, “I’m going to be late, move.”

But he doesn’t, he just grins before stealing the kiss he’s been wanting since he woke up.  

“Joonie,” you whine when your lips part with a smack, the grin he has on his face is devious as it is sexy. He plays with a strand of your hair avoiding that hard stare you had that told him to behave as he cornered you against the kitchen counter. 

“So we’ll be a little late baby girl,” he kisses the corner of your jaw before sucking gently on the skin of your neck. You push him back firmly, face adopting Yoongi’s stoic mask while your heart flutters uncontrollably. 

“One of us owns the company and can afford to turn up late,” you say, voice dripping in sarcasm. 

“The other one had enough charm to win over 7 of her ex bosses and is cute enough to get away with murder,” he contends, the smirk on his face getting wider when you roll your eyes. 

“So you want me to flirt with my new bosses to get myself out of trouble,” you say with a raised brow. 

That wipes the smile off his face, he removed your hand from his chest pushing himself onto you, smothering his face in your neck as you giggle uncontrollably. 

“That wasn’t funny,” he mumbles against your skin. 

“I’m going to be late!” You complain while laughing, you feel him grin against you at the sound.

—

Immediately you can feel something wrong at work, the atmosphere was off but that was the least of your problems. Your coworkers weren’t being subtle in their whisperings and stares, but they were avoiding you and keeping their distance. Even your supervisors who usually confronted you about anything suddenly looked away when you saw them, muttering something between themselves and leaving before you could question it. 

Your phone buzzes in your hand, why was Namjoon calling you? He knew better while you were at work. You let the call go to voicemail, trying to get your head into work mode but everyone’s attitude around you was making you anxious, your skin felt like a thousand millipedes were crawling all over it, or under it, your heart switching to fight or flight mode, ready to run. They were looking at you like… you couldn’t explain it, like you had done something awful.

Your phone buzzes again in your hand, this time a message, and when you read it that sinking feeling only gets worse. 

Office romance

Namjoon : Y/n go home ASAP

Your heart was in your throat, you were trying not to hyperventilate. The murmurs around you suddenly get louder as a new figure approaches, splitting the sea of colleagues apart until he finds you.

“Miss L/n, a word please,” Kim Junmyeon had never looked so stone faced, his disposition was usually kind and gentle.

Without a word you follow him, putting your vibrating phone away in your pocket, you couldn’t look at it now. 

As you walk the stares only get more intense, more curious, and you wonder what the hell was going on. Your brain starts going into overdrive, remembering the conversation between you and Kyngsoo merely days ago. Was this about being a spy?

You expect the CEO to take you to his office but he leads you to one of the meeting rooms, the other CEOs sitting solemnly not meeting your gaze. The screen on the 60 inch tv screen used for presentations was on, and paused, on a news channel. 

“Care to explain this Y/n,” Junmyeon says, reaching for the remote and pressing play.

You really wished you listened to Namjoon.

#bts imagines #bts au #bts fanfic #bts x reader #bts fluff #bts ot7 x reader #namjoon au #bts ceo!au #bts ceo #ceo bts #bts ceo au #namjoon x reader #yoongi x reader #seokjin x reader #hoseok x reader #bts scenario #bts writing #bangtan au #bts ot7 au

[katisblue]

ot7 prompt

So, Jungkook isn't entirely sure what has happened. Well, he knows three things:

something went very, very wrong during his vampire transformation.

He no longer has a sire

and 3. He is most definitely, absolutely, stuck in his bat form. Small.

and you could maybe throw a four in there, that Jungkook has absolutely no idea where or what he is, except for the intense and furrowing urge to be nurtured.

Flying is hella hard though. His little wings can barely keep him up and he's knocked into multiple trees and branches, and his entire body aches and Jungkook is just so, so tired. He lets out a quiet sound, something exhausted and desperate, and what do you know, badda bing, badda boom, he's flying snout first into something that is not a tree.

"Taehyung-ah, what do you have in your hands?!"

Jungkook can tell instantly that this old, very very old, very powerful vampire is not amused. However, the nestling that is holding him utterly beams, holding out his palms to present Jungkook to him. Jungkook, in turn, flutters his wings just a little for presentation. He doesn't want to look too eager.

(It turns out, he had flown directly into a chest of a fledgling in the forest. And whelp, he had not questioned when he had been smuggled into a pocket and taken back to their house.)

"Look, Hyung!" The nestling, Taehyung, chirps, eyes glowing, "Isn't he cute?!" In turn, tall vampire turns to glare at Taehyung's companion threatingly.

"Namjoon-ah, why the hell does our fledgling have a bat?"

Dimples vampire looks sheepish, mumbling something about getting distracted. Tall vampire sighs into his hands, shaking his head almost violently, and Jungkook lifts his cute little head just a little, to sniffle, make his eyes big.

It's then that more eyes pop up over tall vampires shoulders.

"Ooooo!" One of them coos, his mouth erupting into a heart, and then there's one with cherry red hair, squinting at him, and finally, a short vampire with cat-like eyes who slips around the tall vampire to observe him.

"He isn't... a nestling or anything, is he?" Namjoon asks nervously, and Jungkook lets out a little squeak when cat vampire presses a thumb softly just above his eyes. His brow furrows, just a little.

"No, there's no magic signature. Taehyung-ah has picked up a very normal, very much baby bat."

Tall vampire lets out a sound like he's being stabbed and Jungkook blinks at him.

"Okay, okay, take him back!"

"Hyung!" Taehyung whines, pouting, but tall vampire stays firm.

"Back! Take him back where you found him."

"I'll go with Namjoon-ah," Red vampire murmurs, and Jungkook is plucked delicately from Taehyung's hands, even when the young vampire starts to cry. Jungkook glances back as he's carried out the front door and his heart squeezes when he sees Taehyung's glossy eyes, hands reaching for him, but heart vampire has his arms around his waist and is murmuring something to him, soft and loving.

A brisk walk later and Jungkook is promptly stuck on a tree. He squeaks, tries to shuffle back into the cool hands, but the red vampire is taking them away, smiling at him sadly.

"Goodbye, little one. Be safe."

And then he's alone, Jungkook is alone again, and he- he doesn't- he-

Dawn is just threatening to peek over the hills as Jungkook finally manages to make it back to the house. It's taken all his strength, half-flying, half-crawling through the long grass, fighting his way back, but he's here, he's back, and he collapses on the deck with a squeak. Deflating like a pancake.

(Needless to say, cat vampire, who has come out to enjoy a cup of coffee alone is very surprised to find him there.)

But even more surprisingly is when the vampire sits down next to him, and Jungkook, slowly, pretending not to be doing so and not to care, slowly inches his way over the deck and into his lap. Soft fingers run down his little body as he nestles in.

"Well." Is all cat vampire says, and a few minutes later he's being cradled and carried inside, much to the squawking shock of tall vampire and the joyful cheers of Taehyung.

"It's definitely imprinted on us, Hyung," Cat vampire says with a sigh as Taehyung gently picks Jungkook from his hands, the tiny bat wriggling his way into the nestling's throat.

(What they don't realise though, is it isn't a bat on vampire imprint, haha, nooooo, it's in fact a nestling on nestling imprint, but hey, how would they know? And Jungkook, well... he's never had a home before, so he's content to play the part as a little pet, to pretend that he's a bat forever. Right...?)

MORE THOUGHTS: But Jungkook has to drink blood, right? And being in bat form makes that tricky - he can steal into a blood bag late at night, but having to hide the evidence in his small form is hard. So OF COURSE he falls very ill at one point and his hyungs don't know what to do... will he be revealed?! :0

#bts fanfction #bts ot7 au

[taesclub]

The Wild Child, Act I ✦ BTS

✦ BTS x Fem! Oc's

━━━━━ ( SYNOPSIS. ) She is suddenly forced to attend the all-girls boarding school, St. Victoria's. Determined to break free, she tries to escape. Her only problem? To do so she must go through the neighboring boarding school and its notorious group, the Bangtan boys. Among them, one member captivates her the most, blurring the line between rebellion and romance.

genre. boarding school au, angst, fluff, smut

word count. 4,586

warnings. only curses for now

-ˋˏ masterlist ✦ next ˎˊ-

ACT I.

━━━━━━━━━ ✦ 

Claire, a tall girl with an eighty's aura and a shag haircut, sits in the passenger seat of her father's car, her arms crossed tightly over her chest. The car hums with tension as they drive down the road, the passing scenery reflecting the girl's inner turmoil. She was about to meet her doom.  

She gazes out the window, her expression a mix of anger and frustration. The weight of her resentment hangs heavy in the air. 

“I can't believe you're making me go to some stupid all-girls boarding school, Dad. This is so unfair!” she grimaces. This had been her constant complaint ever since receiving the news, but somehow, like a broken record, she still held onto those words, praying it would be enough to make her dad rethink his decision. It wasn’t.  

Her father, Mr. Deschamps, a middle-aged man with tired eyes due to his rushed businessman life, glances at her with a mixture of concern and regret. “Claire, we've talked about this. It's a better opportunity for you. You'll have a chance to focus on your studies and discover new interests.” he insists softly.  

Claire scoffs, her frustration boiling over. 

Her voice sounds angry as she replies, “Better opportunity?! What about my life here? My friends? You're ripping me away from everything I know!” 

Her father's grip tightens on the steering wheel, his tone laced with remorse. 

“Claire, honey, I didn't make this decision lightly. It's for your future. You'll make new friends, and have new experiences. Please try to understand.” 

Claire's gaze remains fixed on the passing scenery, her umbrage simmering beneath her rebellious exterior. “You simply don't get it, Dad,” she says resentfully as the view keeps changing dramatically into a more rural area. “You don't know what it's like to be uprooted from everything familiar, to start over in some stuffy boarding school.” 

Her father's voice softens, laced with a tinge of sadness. “I know it's hard, honey,” he admits sincerely. “But sometimes, we must make sacrifices for the greater good. Trust me, I only want what's best for you.” 

Claire's anger doesn’t wane, even though she is tempted to soothe at her dad’s words. “Change can be scary, but it also opens doors to new opportunities.” he continues, tenderly. “You're strong, Claire. You'll adapt, and who knows, you might find something incredible out here.” 

Her gaze shifts from the passing greenery outside to her father's warm and understanding eyes. She takes a deep breath, slowly releasing the pent-up frustration. There was no point discussing this with him, he would never back up on his word. And the truth was, ever since he got together with that Malibu Barbie wannabe called Blanche, this was destinate to happen. She had waited for the rug to be pulled from under her feet as her distrust in life itself was a rooted injustice carved deep in her heart, but now that it happened, she tried desperately to hold onto a shimmer of hope.  

And how tricky it was to expect, to wait for someone else to take the reins of one’s life... No one would come and save her, that was clear. So why not save herself? 

“Sure thing, Dad.” Claire mumbles resigned. At least for now.  

A bittersweet silence fills the car as they continue their journey, both aware that this new chapter holds challenges and possibilities that neither can fully anticipate. The beginning of a plan to escape the boarding school, however, started to thread like a lightning bolt in the girl’s mind. 

She would make sure no one would see it coming. And one thing was certain, Claire Deschamps would never settle into a life in the middle of nowhere, nor a life she hadn’t chosen herself.

━━━━━━━━━ ✦ 

Claire steps out of her father's car, her jeans bomber jacket with wide shoulders and lots of sewn trinkets contrasting greatly with the more conservative uniforms of the other students passing by. Their plaid skirts had at least two full hands more fabric compared to the black leather one she used.  

She takes a deep breath, bracing herself for what lies ahead. Mr. Deschamps opens the trunk, retrieving her suitcase and opening space for two employees to try and lift the big chest full of stickers that also belonged to Claire.  

“Here you go, honey.” He hands the lush green suitcase to her. “I hope you find… Some great things here.” 

She takes it, grudgingly. “Don’t be so disappointed when I don’t.” 

Her father shows a sympathetic smile on his face as he pauses to take in what she had just said. “I understand, Claire.” He opts to say. “Take care of yourself. Call me if you need anything, okay?” 

Claire nods, unable to hide her lingering resentment. Her father gives her a last reassuring smile before driving away. 

As she sees the Rolls-Royce disappearing on the dirty road, the Headmistress Winters, a stern and composed woman in her fifties whom she had already seen printed on the flyer advertising the school, approaches Claire with an air of authority. The disapproving expression that she wears only exacerbates Claire’s dislike for her furthermore.  

“You must be Miss Deschamps, our newest student,” the woman says, inspecting her closer. “I trust you had a pleasant journey?” 

To that, Claire rolls her eyes discreetly, her guard already up. “Oh, joy,” she mutters under her breath.  

Putting on a polite facade, the Headmistress takes a step further, “As you know, I am Headmistress Winters. Your father and I talked on the phone. Welcome to St. Victoria’s Academy. Here we expect our students to uphold the highest standards of discipline and academic excellence.” She waves her hand in a high class and fluid motion, introducing the grand structure of the school behind her.  

There is a moment of silence as Claire fights the urge to scoff, her skepticism apparent. 

“Sounds like a real party,” she mutters dryly under her breath.  

Headmistress Winters's eyes narrow not catching what the girl has to say, however, judging by the lack of excitement on Claire’s part and her many years of experience when it came to building character, she maintains her composed demeanor. She knows a troublemaker when she sees one.  

With thinly veiled annoyance she adds firmly, “Respect and compliance are expected from all students, Claire. You'll find that St. Victoria’s Academy offers numerous opportunities for personal development and camaraderie. I suggest you keep an open mind.” 

Claire's expression remains guarded, her disdain for the headmistress palpable the more words fell from her mouth. Her tone is pure cynicism as she answers. “Sure, Mrs. Winters. I'll keep an open mind while I'm here.” 

Begrudgingly, she follows the older woman through the school's grand entrance, the imposing architecture and hushed conversations heightening her unease. 

The Hall of Entrance in the all-girls boarding school exudes an air of elegance and tradition. Polished marble floors stretch out beneath the students' feet, reflecting the soft glow of the chandeliers that hang overhead. Tall, arched windows line the walls, allowing sunlight to filter in and cast a warm, inviting glow on the surroundings. 

As Claire steps into the hall after the Headmistress, she is greeted by a flurry of activity. Girls in crisp uniforms pass by more eagerly than the ones she saw outside, their eyes darting to and fro, their hushed whispers carrying snippets of gossip. The hall becomes a stage for both fellowship and rivalry, as cliques form and dissolve with each passing moment. 

The sound of clicking heels and rustling skirts mingles with the gentle murmur of conversation, creating a symphony of feminine energy. Some girls walk with confidence, their heads held high, while others seem more reserved, their eyes darting nervously as they try to find their place within the social hierarchy. 

Portraits of past headmistresses and notable alumnae adorn the walls, their stern gazes reminding the students of the institution's legacy and the high expectations placed upon them. Some peak Claire’s attention. One of the spaces in particular, the one dedicated to the sports league, shows boys’ teams and trophies they earned against them, but she can’t find the right moment to ask what it is about as Mrs. Winters walks like a thunderstorm.  

The aroma of freshly polished wood and the faint hint of perfume linger in the air making her curiosity calmly dissipate, creating an atmosphere that is both refined and pansy. 

A grand staircase, its banisters intricately carved, leads to the upper levels of the school. It serves as a focal point, drawing the eyes of the girls as they ascend and descend, their interactions playing out on the stage of the hall. 

Claire becomes acutely aware of the watchful eyes as she makes her way through the bustling crowd, trailing the steps of Mrs. Winters. Some girls shoot her curious glances, sizing her up and speculating about the newcomer. Whispers trail in her wake, snippets of conversation filled with intrigue and speculation. 

Mrs. Winters then suddenly turns to face her once more, revealing behind her shoulder line a girl who matches Claire’s height, with bangs and a cascade of hazel hair. The girl’s warm and open expression contrasts greatly with Claire’s defensive demeanor.  

Noticing Claire’s disinterest, Mrs. Winters starts, “Let me introduce you to your new roommate, Claire. She’ll help you settle in.”  

Extending her hand politely and rather excitedly, the girl before her greets, “Hi! I'm Ella. It’s really nice to meet you!” 

Claire reluctantly shakes Ella's hand, her guard still up. Frustrated by the already lack of choice on her end she mumbles, “Yeah, hi.” 

Headmistress Winters nods curtly, signaling the end of their interaction. “Miss Dubois, why don’t you show Claire to your dormitory and explain how things work around here? I was in the middle of a rather urgent matter when she arrived...”  

Without missing a beat, Ella promptly nods, understanding the task at hand. “Sure thing, Headmistress. Follow me, roomie!”  

The newfound nickname makes Claire hiss internally like a cornered cat, but she plays the part, thankful to finally get herself rid of the Headmistress's presence.  

Before the two of them can walk further away, Mrs. Winters dismissively points again, “Very well, off you go. Make sure you familiarize yourself with the rules and expectations of this institution, Miss Deschamps.”  

Claire raises an eyebrow, her rebellious spirit flickering to life. “I'll keep that in mind, Headmistress,” she replies defiantly, turning her back to the woman.  

Leaving the bustling hall and the scrutinizing eyes of the older woman, Claire turns to Ella, a sense of complicity forming between them as she notices how much more relaxed her new guide seems to be.  

Smiling, Ella reassures her. “I promise this is not all as daunting as it seems.”  Claire takes a deep breath, her apprehension giving way to a glimmer of hope. She follows Ella, ready to navigate the challenges of this new environment, determined to find her place amidst the rules and expectations she so vehemently resents. Who knows?, she thinks, maybe her new roommate can give her an escape route without even noticing. She could be escaping St. Victoria’s much earlier than she had predicted.

━━━━━━━━━ ✦ 

Claire wasn’t convinced if Ella had what it takes to be her newfound ally. The headmistress seemed to trust her enough which made her either valuable to the plan or a stone in her shoe. Although Claire was pending more to the former since the girl seemed very friendly as they kept a light conversation and she led the way through the bustling hallways. More often than not, the veteran would gush about her own friends as she vibrantly pointed to Claire how their day-to-day was, and for moments, more than to seek intel to architect her plan, the brunette found herself momentarily forgetting about her purpose as she got infected by Ella’s contagious energy.  

Their footsteps echo softly as they step onto the serene patio, where blooming flowers and neatly trimmed hedges create a serene oasis within the school grounds. The sound of laughter and animated conversations drifts through the air as girls gather in small groups, enjoying moments of respite and fellowship. 

Claire’s eyes scan the scenery, and they get caught in the ruckus three girls are making right by the center fountain of the patio. The one standing in the middle, a blonde with a high ballerina bun, dances excitedly as she flashes a knitted scarf to her peers. “You think JK will like it?” Her voice travels through the open space as she points specifically to the initials engraved in it.  

Noticing Claire’s mind is far away from whatever she is saying, Ella leans closer, whispering, “That’s Vivienne for you,” she chuckles as Claire’s glance shifts quickly back, “Everyone calls her Vivi and you’ll soon hate her too, trust me.”  

To that statement, Claire’s eyes return inquiring to Ella’s, her nose scrunching in doubt.  

“You see, she delusionally believes she and some trouble boy are meant to be. We’re all tired to hear about it, or witness moments like this.” Ella points with her head to the blonde once more. “There she goes, making him a scarf he won’t probably use. Tell me about waste of time!”  

Claire mildly snorts entertained, looking at the scene as well. “Poor girl.”  

“Oh, believe me!” Ella exhales, walking away and her roommate follows, “That one is nothing of the sort. Imagine Regina George in real life. That’s her, right there.”  

In a lack of response from the brunette, Ella gestures towards a row of benches shaded by a grand oak tree. ”Anyways, this is our patio, Claire. It's the perfect spot to relax and soak up some sunshine during breaks. And see over there? That's the canteen.” 

The delicious aroma of freshly cooked meals fills the air as soon as they step closer to the precinct. Girls line up at the serving counter, chatting and exchanging stories as they eagerly await their turn. The room is alive with vibrant colors, with posters and artwork adorning the walls, adding a touch of creativity to the space. 

“We refuel here, obviously.” Ella glances excited to see Claire’s reaction. “The food is surprisingly good, and there's always a variety of options to choose from… Well. When the boys don’t join, that is. They can be savages.” she chuckles nonchalantly. 

Suddenly Claire’s eyes perk with curiosity. Every bit of information she had gathered about the school before arriving said this was an all-girls academy, but then again, there were existent photos of boys displayed in the hall. Not to say Vivienne’s parade a second ago. Do they have a day off?, she muses, Could this be an opportunity? “What do you mean boys? Isn’t this an all-girls school?” she voices her thoughts as Ella takes the lead again, taking her on another stroll.   

The energetic roommate greets some girls that pass by them with a sympathetic smile before returning her focus to the newcomer beside her.  

“Well, yeah. The Alarie boarding school for boys is right across the river, and we often have classes together. You know, lack of teachers in the far countryside.” she shrugs. 

Before she can inquire further, Ella is already distracted, smiling at the passersby.  

“With Jimin? Again?! God, what’s her secret!” They hear a girl gasp to a friend as they crossways.  

Oh. I see..., Claire’s thoughts put the pieces together. She quickly looks at the hazel-haired girl making her company.  

By the raise of eyebrows that she gives her and the flicker of frolic that flashes in her eyes, Ella is quick to warn, “It’s strictly forbidden to hang out with them boys, Claire. No smogging. No funny hands.”  

“But she just-” Claire refuted pointing behind her shoulders to the girl that passed by sharing her indignation a bit too loudly.  

Ella gave her a warning yet laid-back glance, “Alright, people go on with it in secret but as you can see, nothing is really a secret around here. And then when you least expect it, bam! You’re in trouble!”  

“Are they at least hot? Or I don’t know... Worth the trouble?”  

Ella thinks for a second and then shrugs with a naivety Claire knows to be fake, “How would I know?”  

“If you say so!” Claire pretends to salute dramatically, a bickering well read by the other as to the current square state the Academy insisted on following rules. And so, Ella pulls her to a quick jog entertained, and a bit tempted to show her new roommate she also knew how to break a few of them. Even if the rules she was breaking weren’t as grand as Claire deemed them to be. The students passing by confirmed the thought as they judged their behavior, and Claire laughed even louder at their tedious conformism. The rule about not running in the hallways was true indeed.  

As they arrive at their shared dormitory, their footsteps grow softer as they enter the hushed ambiance of the living quarters. The dormitory is a cozy space adorned with tasteful decorations, featuring two neatly made beds, desks adorned with books and personal touches, and small corkboards for photos and reminders. 

Ella jumps to sit on her own bed, bouncing on the mattress as she does so. “And here we are,” she gestures. “Our humble abode. It may not be the biggest, but it's home.” 

Claire looks around the room, a hint of curiosity dancing in her eyes as she imagines the memories that will unfold within these walls, even if for brief moments. Ella seems a nice girl, but she won’t be around to discover much more about her. She needs to escape this. Her real friends await in the big city.  

“Yeah, it's not bad…” 

Ella grins with the comment, her warmth shining through. 

“We'll make it cozy, you’ll see,” she says encouragingly. “Plus, you still have to meet my girls! They are rooming right in front of us. It’s great to share stuff and to keep gossip in day!” She laughs at her own behavior.  

As Claire sets her suitcase down and begins to unpack, a bit aloof to her roommate’s words, a newfound sense of optimism fills the room. To Ella is the beginning of a new friendship, even if her roommate was a hard one to crack. But she was patient, everyone had their personal time after all. To Claire, it is a journey through a path she had never charted before, but her father was right about one thing---she is strong. And she will prevail.  

“We’ll meet them in a few!” Ella continues, snapping Claire out of her thoughts, “They went to pick up your uniforms for you.”  

Claire eyes her with gratitude, showing for the first time a smile, even if timid, and her roommate mimicked the action. Only hers was as big as her enthusiasm for finally having a friend to share her bedroom with.  

Still sitting by her bed, Ella watches as Claire takes only her toiletries out of her green suitcase, as well as a portrait of her and what the girl gathered to be her mom. The tall wild child discards the pouch with her cosmetics by the bed, as she walks toward the bedside table, closely placed to the window, adjusting the portrait on top of it. Her clothes, still inside the suitcase, didn’t seem important and were left forgotten still inside it, untouched. Or so Ella thought so.  

“Your mom is beautiful,” she comments gently, looking at how Claire’s eyes seem to hover with longing at the picture.  

The brunette opens a small smile, thanking her roommate almost in a whisper, eyes still glued to the image of her mom. How she missed her.  

And then suddenly a loud pang interrupts the moment, making her jump and Ella scream. Startled by the sudden impact of a ball against her bedroom window, she had fallen back onto her bed, her heart racing. She swiftly rises and storms towards the window again, fueled by annoyance and ready to unleash her frustration on the culprit responsible. 

Seething with anger, Claire flings open the window of her dorm room on the second floor, ready to give the culprit a piece of her mind. Ella knees on her bed to look at the indicted herself. “Shit.” She manages to say.  

Claire’s words, however, catch in her throat as she locks eyes with a boy she has never seen before, and taking by Ella’s reaction beside her, it was clear that wasn’t her case, her roommate knew him.  

His mischievous grin and charismatic presence immediately captivate her, and a flicker of curiosity replaces her initial anger. Still, she stands her ground and through gritted teeth, she lashes, “What's your problem?!” 

Both girls watch as he brings casually one of his hands to shield his eyes from the sun, his smile gleaming with amusement. 

“Oh, I apologize, princess,” he says charmingly. “You weren’t supposed to-” he trails off, “Well, I wasn’t looking to make an impression on you but now…” he considers, his smile doubling the size.  

Claire tries to maintain her composure, but there's an undeniable pull towards the Alarie’s boy that she can't ignore. 

“Impression?” She scoffs slightly flustered, “If it’s at being stupid, you've certainly succeeded. Who are you anyway?” 

The boy takes a step closer toward the shade of the tall building to see her better, a playful glint in his eyes as he keeps looking up chuckling at her response.  

With a smirk, he replies. “You didn’t hear of me? I'm Jungkook,” he says as if it explains a lot, with a smugness that makes Claire crazy to punch out of his face. “I go to the Alarie’s, right next door.” 

“JK!” another boy shouts from a distance, and Claire’s eyes travel to the field to meet the face of Jungkook’s peer. A group of boys is joyfully hanging out there, waiting for him.  

As her eyes turn back to him, standing beneath her window, with a raised eyebrow, Jungkook says with yet another chuckle, “You never told me your name.”  

She sneers, “And I won’t.”  

Despite her refusal, Claire can't help but feel a certain curiosity pull toward Jungkook. His confidence and charm leave her intrigued, even if she tries to deny it or finds it too brazen. 

Jungkook sends another intrigued look her way, a hint of mischief in his voice. 

“Don't worry, princess. I’ll find it soon enough.” that answer only makes her blood boil further. “Besides, life's too short to be boring, don't you think? I like the mystery.” He shrugs with a smile, picking the rugby ball that was fallen by his feet, and starting to walk back. He turns once again to see her reaction, raising his voice as he adds, “And tell your rat roommate that the next one is meant for her!” He lifts the ball in his hand as if he raised a toast. 

“I'm not fucking interested in your idea of excitement, Jungkook. Save your charm for someone else!” She shouts defiantly but he only laughs in response, now fully turning his back and jogging swiftly toward his friends.  

She can't help but watch his back and carefree stance, even if Ella’s presence is made heard by her side. Under rushed and muted curses, the girl gets up from the bed, initiating an anxious breakdown as she paced back and forth inside their bedroom.  

Claire’s gaze finally moves away from the window to fall upon her roommate’s state. “Not that it’s any of my business, but... You wanna talk about it?” she asks, gaining no response apart from a full stop on the pacing and Ella’s hands coming to a desperate grip on her own locks.  

“Ella!” Claire calls her, closing the distance between them, “Hey, what’s going on?” The change of attitude of the girl was so brusque from her previous joyful self that it got her worried.  

She gently touched her shoulder, and Ella’s eyes finally found her own. “I’m totally, completely, fucked.” She confesses finally.  

“What happened? Is it about this Jungkook guy?”  

The hazel-haired girl gives her a nod and Claire’s eyebrows knit together. She manages to inhale, ready to question further but they are interrupted by the cheerful tinkle of shoes and greetings.  

“We got it!” It’s what she hears as she looks at the door to their room that had been left open. Two girls enter the space, both shorter than Ella and her. They look excited, probably having fun on the way there.  

“Hi! You must be the new girl,” The shortest one says, giving her a cordial smile. She has her long honey-blonde hair held back by a bow. “I’m Lola, this is Avery...”  

“And this is your uniforms!” While Lola has a royal aura to her, somewhat restrained and charismatic, Avery seems more upfront and girly. Her hair is like coal and so glossy that it shines hues of dark blue in the light.  

Taking the folded clothes from her hands with a smile of her own, Claire introduces herself. “Thank you, I’m Claire. And you really didn’t have to do it-” 

“It’s totally fine, we wanted to!” Lola insists bubbly, waving off, and the brunette smiles thankful.  

The blonde walks her way toward Ella’s bed, familiar enough to sit on it as she grabs a pillow to hug as she did so.  

“Girls. He knows.” To Claire’s relief, Ella finally enters the conversation. “I hate myself!” She adds, grunting.  

She notices how the other two react fervently to the comment as she places the pile of uniforms on top of her bed, ceasing to be the focus of their attention. They look at Ella with staring eyes, clearly on topic but still indignant about the rest of the information that still doesn’t come.  

“What do you mean he knows?!” Avery is the first to question. “How would he know? There were no boys in class that day...” 

To which Lola quickly made a comment with a nudge at her waist, “I told you there was! Louis, remember?”  

At the same time, Ella explained. “Now Jungkook sent a stupid ball flying up the window on purpose. After my head of course!”  

While Claire looked from one to another trying to unveil the situation, both Avery and Lola unleashed a series of wroth exclamations, to what Ella took part in instead of actually providing a clearer explanation.  

“I’m sorry.” Claire interrupted. “But can someone situate me here? What does this Jungkook know? And why is it a big deal? I’m lost.” She had a notion she was being brazen as she wasn’t close to the three friends before her, but not a couple minutes before she had witnessed a boy sending a warning in the shape of a rugby ball to her roommate. If this was to continue while she stayed there, she needed to know at least the basics.  

Avery and Lola look from her to Ella apprehensively waiting. So this is mildly important, she thinks. And then the latter sighs.  

“I wasn’t completely honest with you about the boys’ part...”  

To that statement, Claire slowly realizes that there may be more to this school than meets the eye, and consequently, more that she needs to unravel to make her flight seem a mystery. Glancing out of the window, Alerie’s boarding school for boys is starting to feel like a needed pit stop, as it stands tall between St. Victoria’s building and her much-wanted freedom.

✦ TAGLIST.

send an ask in if you want to be part of it or comment down below.

#bts au #jungkook smut #bts ot7 au #jungkook scenarios #purplearmynet #bts scenarios #bts college au #bts high school au #jimin scenario #taehyung au #jimin smut #hoseok fluff #bts x you #namjoon scenarios #yoongi imagine #jin fluff #jungkook imagine #bts series #ot7 smut #ot7 x you

[bluenpjm]

horus academy 5 — bts x oc

© horus academy | all rights reserved. do not repost, translate or claim as your own. if you find this work elsewhere besides the three blogs stated, please report it to any of the writers.

@singguks × @socksjinie × @bluenpjm

summary: in a school where greek methods rules, not everything is as clear as it appears to be. heart, mind, soul, and body. those are the teams of the horus academy and boarding school. but deep within the long corridors, lies dark secrets. the so-called loving families formed in the shapes of teams begin to tear when an anonymous source unravels their deepest secrets.

genre: high school au | mystery au | social au | angst | fluff

pairing: OT7 × OC’s

rating: M

word count: 15.2k

warnings: foul language, friends fighting, getting stalked, lies and threats, bullying. really, a lot of fights and harsh words.

chapters. 04, 05, 06 ✹ masterlist

 

Three days had passed since the games and the rumor still hadn’t died down. 

People would stare and bluntly gossip whenever Jimin or even the rest of the group passed by in the halls. And the worst of it, for the group itself, was that the realization of it was indeed shocking. It was one thing being the talk of the hour because of teenage behavior regarding breaking into the boys' dorm rooms… Another was actually sleeping with a teacher while being a minor. 

At first, Jimin had the brilliant idea of wanting to skip biology class on Tuesday morning, which everyone was against. It was decided that he would not only go to class as a normal and not guilty student would, but he was to behave and cut all communication with his lover for a little while. Just until the rumor died down and he could come to his senses and end the rendezvous himself. 

Kaya, the one sharing biology class with him, kept a hawk’s watch on his moves. And Jimin was actually doing his best. She could easily buy the facade he was putting up. The one inciting fire to the rumor was Miss Bellum herself, who couldn’t help but look at the boy from time to time. And if Kaya was noticing it, the gossiping leeches were too. 

As soon as the bell rang, Kaya shoved her notebooks into her purse and pulled Jimin by the arm, dragging him out of the class. His backpack was still half opened and he had to carry the biology textbook in his hand. 

She turned the first corner she came into, and went down a few steps of the stairs, coming to a stop in its middle. Jimin looked at her completely lost, glancing at his sides to see if people were passing by or judging the moment as weird as he was. 

“Wha–” he tried but she interrupted him in pure frustration. 

“I can’t believe you told her!” she burst, still trying to be as quiet as possible so no one could hear. And before he had a chance to come up with a lie or an excuse to stall, Kaya continued. “Don’t even try and pretend you didn’t. She looked at you the whole time as if the world was ending and you were some abandoned dog!” 

Jimin glanced back at the corridor before answering, he couldn’t shake the feeling that they were being watched all the time. “I had to, ok?” a tired sigh left his lips, and Kaya held her tongue so she could let him speak. Before continuing his reasoning, he put the textbook in his backpack, all while the girl looked anxiously at him. “She texted me on Sunday–Just to check on me after the fight with Archie! Relax!” 

“How. Will. I. Relax, Park Jimin!” she slapped his arms outraged while he tried to evade it. 

He searched for words but nothing seemed good enough so he opted to hug her instead. Kaya was as much on edge as he was. This wasn’t just a vendetta against him, this was a deliberate attack on the whole group. “Listen, I promised you guys I wouldn’t be in touch with her anymore and I’m not. But she deserved to know what was happening, so I told her, ok? Just so that if anything happened–If any student said something, she wouldn’t be caught unprepared. It was the least I could do.” 

Kaya nodded in understanding. She could at least breathe more at ease, and she held Jimin for a few seconds more, wishing that she could wake up from this nightmare named You. 

Before their moment of peace could last a little longer, Jimin’s phone buzzed in his front pocket, taking an arrow straight at both his and Kaya’s heart. Not again, he feared. 

They broke away from the embrace. She anchored herself on the wall behind her, crossing her arms to form a shield against whatever was coming their way. Jimin, in turn, reached for the device while mustering the courage he still had. 

Kaya saw his eyes reading the message but she couldn’t decipher his face. From where she was standing, and the way his eyebrows slightly furrowed, it didn’t look good. She gulped. “So?” 

“It’s Tae.” he said apprehensively, taking a quick look at her face. 

The air escaped her lips and he saw her entire body relax. Recomposing herself she questioned, “You still haven’t talked about it?” to which he shook his head. “Well… Good luck with that.” 

With a not-so-cheerful pat on his shoulder, Kaya was quick to leave her friend on the empty flight of stairs to resume her schedule. 

The sun shined bright in the sky, and although Elena was lying down on their usual table bench outside, she couldn’t seem to enjoy the warm beaming on her skin peacefully. 

Yoongi, Jin, and Jungkook sat by the table with her, while they waited for the twins to grab something from the cafeteria for their lunch. And although two of them were contributing to her quiet beauty nap, Jin couldn’t help but throw in assumptions of who could possibly be You. 

“Listen, I wouldn’t doubt that Archie was psycho enough to just come at us,” Elena could hear him say, “I’m just saying it isn’t his style at all to come at someone through social media.” and although none of them responded to it, she could tell that both Yoongi and Jungkook were thinking about his reasoning because so was she. Jin had a point. And so he continued rambling, “He’s too… Aggressive to be just like–Oh I know your secret ha ha ha! I feel like he would at least brag about it while taking a punch at our beautiful faces.”

“Yeah,” Yoongi agreed. “The problem here is that we know nothing about this You person to even try and assume who it is…”

A defeated silence followed. It was enough for Elena to open her eyes, only to have to turn her face on the bench so as to not be blinded by the light. She couldn’t see the boys, since they were all sitting on the other side of the table, but she could watch how some students passed by. Even from far away, they would glance at them with judgemental eyes. She inhaled impatiently. 

“What’s taking them so long, by the way?” Jin was the kind of person that lived in the moment. And at this moment at least, food was more important. Elena’s stomach would agree, but her head was seething with possibilities. And so she sat up, making the three boys before her pay attention. 

She inquired, “What if we got to know something about You?” they looked at her pondering. “Even the smallest detail would help, right?” 

“And how we’d manage that?” Jungkook finally spoke up, while the older two were already pondering for themselves. 

All they did until now was wait around and be there whenever You decided to use them as punching bags. Elena was fed up with it. There had to be some way to strike back. Plus, in her head, if this You person was working alone, they would have the advantage. They were a whole group. 

“Why don’t we counter-strike on social media? Since it’s this loser's playground and all. I figure that if we manage to have everyone’s support and throw this shade at them like they’ve been obviously throwing at us, You will lose it.” she said, crossing her legs on the bench. The thing was not to add more to the fire but she felt the need to make this You person realize they knew how to stand tall as a group. Elena could picture herself receiving all this negative attention alone, and if that were the case she didn’t think she would like it very much or even be that secure to repeat the process all over again. 

Jin sighed. He recognized that she was right but at the same time, it would be a bold move. “What would we even say? Again, we don’t know who this person is… So we don’t know how to push their buttons.” 

“How about we start at the ‘You’re behind a screen because you don’t have the balls to come say it to my face’ part?” 

As Jungkook tried to hold his laughter and Yoongi pensively looked down with his arms crossed, Jin was obliged to answer Elena’s thoughts. “That seems well articulated to me.” he nodded in agreement. 

“Well, good, let’s watch how this rat squirms after I turn some sides then,” She added, making a go for her mobile that had been forgotten on top of the stone table. The girl managed to unlock the device and tap on the app to start writing before Yoongi made himself heard again. 

He started by saying, “I don’t think this is a good idea, Elena.” which made her stop what she was doing to look at him. “You’re going to provoke them, and then what?” 

How she exhaled and gesticulated with her free hand made him know she was fed up to the point of quitting too much explanation. Jin for the first time got quiet, and Jungkook’s eyes were once again doing that thing when he got apprehensive; they would double the size. “I get it. I know what you mean by wanting to know their next move. You’re going to try and fit them into a team and track them down that way. Maybe even scare them enough to not come after us again. But it’s an unsure move. What if it gets worse? I don’t know…” Yoongi tried to reason with her before something else blew right in their faces. 

“I mean. It can’t get worse than this!” she looked around and so did Yoongi. People kept gossiping and scrutinizing their every move. “We need to take action. You know that.” 

And before anyone could say anything else, she finished writing it and pressed send.

There was some comfort in Elena’s post, even if no one said much more about it. She treated the situation as if all of the things they were exposed for doing were nothing but mere rumors, and there was a big relief on that. Almost as if they could resume what they have known before as normal school life. 

“If you two took a bit more to arrive here I swear I would pass out of hunger.” Jin pointed out as soon as he saw Taehyung and Freya approach them, each holding two silver trays full of food. 

The boys were quick to organize the table and pick their plates to start eating, failing to notice how Freya’s glance was locked with Elena’s. Taehyung almost managed to sit in the middle of the two, if it weren’t for his twin shoving him to the side. 

As soon as she passed her legs through and managed to sit, she whispered in Elena’s ear, “Care to fill me in on what that post was about?” 

“I’m just relieved I said something back” she confided, “We really needed a win around here.” 

“You did good,” Freya agreed cheerfully. They looked at each other and realizing what she had just said, she tried to fix it, “Not you as in You but like. You.” she pointed out and Elena couldn’t help but laugh. “Oh forget it! You know what I meant.” 

Out of the whole group, everyone met up during lunch, as per usual. Everyone but Namjoon and Jimin. The former had to skip it because of the captain’s duties. Psykhe’s leader had to stay longer in a monthly meeting about their team’s expenses and such. 

Jimin, however, was being avoidant. Taehyung knew him well enough to know that. 

He knew that as soon as he texted him saying they needed to talk, the first thing Jimin would do was this—avoid him at all costs. So excusing himself politely from the table, Taehyung went back to the cafeteria and picked some chicken wings with sauce as a peace offering, making his way to the boys’ dorms. 

It was actually the perfect time for some privacy, as the majority of people were hanging on the patio for lunch and Jimin’s roommate, Hoseok, was also out. 

He had to knock two times before the door was answered. Jimin opened it sporting nothing but a towel around his waist. He didn’t say much, just made way so Taehyung could come into the room. 

The tallest stopped by the beds, feeling a little out of place because of his best friend’s unbothered eyes and sudden irresolvable stance. He hesitated with the box of chicken wings still in his hands. Jimin kept moving around in false pretense, entering the bathroom and then coming out of it seconds later with a smaller towel in hand, using it to boyishly dry his drenched locks. 

Deciding to approach carefully, Taehyung said, “Brought you some lunch,” he slightly lifted his hand showing the white squared box that transpired a mouth-watering smell. “The canteen was about to close, so…” 

Jimin gave him a small smile in return, still busy with his chore. “Thanks.” 

“Alright.” 

The food was placed at the closest writing table. Taehyung had to press his lips to contain his inner fuming. He turned around to face his best friend with a wave of anger he was finding quite difficult to contain.

His hands found his hips as he managed to say, “So you’re the one that gets to be mad at me? Not the other way around? I see.” 

“Oh please, quit the sarcasm” Jimin spits quite impatiently himself. 

“Sure. Just as soon as you cut the bullshit.” Taehyung said almost immediately demanding from his best friend what they haven’t gotten ever since the secret had been out. The courage to face the truth. 

Jimin had a very different reaction from what Taehyung had envisioned for what was to come. He saw how his best friend rolled his eyes before answering, and Jimin’s voice sounded tired as he said, “Not you too.” he exhaled. 

Taehyung looked at him with daggers in his eyes. His eyebrows twitched questioning, he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Excuse me?!” was all that he managed to blurt out.

“Go on. Spit it. I know you also have something to say.” 

 Still taken aback by Jimin’s reaction he scoffs. “Are you being serious?” His stance is as cold as the resentment he was feeling. His chest was about to explode due to the unfairness of the situation. The words fell short no matter what he thought of saying, and so he muted himself. The chocolate locks boy just stood there looking at his friend, feeling just as hurt. 

Impatient, Jimin ran his hand through his hair. “That was why you came here with the wings! Or do you think I’m stupid?” he said, panting in anger. His normally cheerful eyes were big and glossy. “We’ve been avoiding this talk long enough so just say whatever it is that you have to say.” his chest kept rising and falling in the heat of the moment. 

The boy before him had to take a second to answer. He stopped biting his tongue and all that fell from his mouth was the beginning of sarcastic laughter. Taehyung shook his head, scanning the room before meeting Jimin’s eyes again. “Yes.” He began, and the room turned to ice. “You do seem stupid after saying that.” he paused but Jimin wasn’t able to answer. A knot began forming in his throat. “And were we avoiding it?” Taehyung corrected with a pert yet sad smile, “Or were you? Because I didn’t see you coming to me to talk about it.”

Without much thinking, Jimin scoffed. “Stupid?” His words were laced with anger but his features told a different tale. “What else are you holding? C’mon, let it all out.” 

There was a pause. And a strike of realization from both ends. 

Taehyung exhaled. His eyebrows were knit together as his words began more paused and controlled than before. “I’m holding the fact that my best friend seems more eager to blame me than to actually understand what I really came here to do.” By the time his angry eyes meet Jimin’s, the latter feels drowned by his own guilt. “I’m not everyone else, you know…” Taehyung’s voice sounds hurtful. “I thought you knew that.” 

Jimin only understands his best friend had left the room as the sound of the door being hammered echoes. The anger consumes him and in a bashful split second, he grabs the first thing that comes into hand. Hoseok’s lamp is thrown at the wall. 

The din followed by scattered glass on the floor made him conscious of the mess he had just made. And that any mess could turn messier than what was thought possible. 

One by one the group started to disperse. The lunch break was a very needed one, but everything good in life came to an end. 

Yoongi was mindlessly scrolling his timeline in search of new song recommendations when he realized his friends had already moved on with their affairs. As he got up and grabbed his things he spotted Freya from afar. The girl was sitting by a big oak tree, basking in its welcoming shade. 

He had to get closer to note she had her eyes peacefully closed. There was a slight breeze that blew softly on her locks. From where he was standing, it looked like she was in a painting. 

“Not that is any of my business,” he said, plumping himself down right next to her. “But as your current fake boyfriend, I should say… Your brother sucks!” he joked, making her open a cheerful smile. 

With her eyes still closed, she asked, “What did he do this time?” 

“Well… He’s been hinting that he wanted to talk to me for a while now, you know–About us. But we still haven’t had the chance… All this You stuff and all.” Freya opens her eyes as she hears Yoongi sigh. “And now ever since Jimin’s thing came out he’s been all stressed.” 

The girl took a glance at him. Yoongi kept his eyes on the horizon, and if she knew him well enough, his head was spinning trying to find a practical solution to this mess. Even if his semblance was calm and composed. “And he’s been taking it out on you,” Freya states. 

“And he’s been taking it out on me, yeah.” 

Even though the boy beside her laughed about it, she knew it was bothering him deep down. She noticed how Taehyung was sharp and borderline surly to Yoongi during lunch. Her brother could be a bit too transparent about his feelings, never knowing how to suppress them. And she had a perfect notion she was a bit too much the same. 

“If it serves any consolation to you, he criticized my footwear of choice today,” she opts to say, keeping a light mood by clinking the heels of her recently acquired cowboy boots. Yoongi can’t help but laugh. Freya, as well as her brother, had always liked using questionable things when it came to fashion. And the thought of the twins having a discussion about the item can’t seem to leave his head. It felt so ridiculous that it immediately brought a smile to his face. 

Freya laughed along, pleased to hear his own loud one. 

Yoongi steals a glance at her as he leans his head on the trunk of the tree behind them. It’s been a while since they had been this peaceful, and he would hate to end the moment but at the same time, he felt the need to check on her. “And how have you been? On a more serious note.” 

“Same old same” 

“Freya.” He presses still looking at her profile. The girl sighs reluctantly and Yoongi can see the joy fading from her distant eyes. 

She turns her head so she can face him and give him the answers upon his request, as she sees no way out of it, but as soon as she opens her mouth she gets interrupted. “Hey!” her eyes leave Yoongi’s face and land on Jungkook’s. “Sorry…” The boy says as Yoongi’s gaze on him feels like a rebuke. As if he had interrupted a conversation that wasn’t made for his ears. “I–Mhmm… I hope I’m not interru–” 

“Hi!” Freya exclaimed with a sunny smile returned to her lips. “No, no! Sit!” 

Jungkook smiled along, doing as instructed, sitting in front of the pair. He rested his backpack by his knee as he sat cross-legged. “The bell rang and I have a free period right now, so…” Freya bit a smile as he fumbled with his shoelace still convinced he had to explain himself. “Everyone went their way and then as I came back from the canteen I saw you guys here–”

“Oh fuck!” Yoongi grunts getting up. He swiftly bats the dirt from his trousers and grabs his own backpack under the gaze of the other two. 

Freya chuckles in realization, “You’re late again aren’t you?” 

The boy flashes her a guilty gummy smile before confessing, “Pretty much! Mrs. Hough is going to kill me… Again!” He doesn’t take any more time before starting to run downhill with a lack of youthful spirit considering his age. “And we’re not finished!” Yoongi adds with a wink as he looks back at Freya, and Jungkook can’t help but wonder. The two looked nothing like a couple. Or maybe it was just his lack of experience in the matter talking. 

“So.” His eyes leave Yoongi’s back as he hears Freya say. When he looks at her he can’t help but gulp. 

“So…” Jungkook repeats her words. It had been a while since they last stood alone in each other’s presence, that specific day in the Wolf’s den dawning in his conscience, even so, guilt pairing in his heart or not, he had always felt intimidated by her stare. From the beggining. And sometimes he was convinced that if he got himself locked in her eyes long enough she would be able to read him like a book. Unravel all that there is to him. Nervously he adds, “You come here often?” 

Freya’s immediate reaction is to laugh. A burst of genuine laughter. There was something to his dorkiness that made her feel very comfortable. “Honestly? This is the first time I spend this free period here,” She decides to open up to his roleplay game. “I’m trying to find my new best place.” 

“And what does it take to be your new best place?” 

It seemed only natural to her to keep being true while looking at him. No need to even think before answering. “I’d say privacy is the first thing.” But to his insecure ears that sounded like a sign that he had crossed a line with her. “Ouch!” he lets out, finally breaking eye contact to look at the grass rubbing at his shoes instead. 

Realizing he misunderstood what she had said, she comes forward nudging his shoulder playfully. “Not you though!” He analyses her features again, a tad expectant. “You can exist with me.” Her voice sounds velvety and he feels the smile tugging on the corner of his mouth once more. 

With a faint of pink coloring his scarred cheek he asks, “And what’s the second requirement?” to which she answers promptly, “Mmm, I’d say a great view!” 

“And then?” Jungkook asks without realizing it, almost in a whisper. She had his full attention, and his brain couldn’t stop trying to match the nooks and crannies he had already seen around the school to fit her description. 

To her, much like to everyone else, the raven-haired boy before her couldn’t help but exude mysteriousness. A black translucent cloth covered him at all times from everyone’s curiosity. And it wasn’t shyness or just introspection. Freya had Yoongi to thank for being able to spot the difference. But sometimes, when the world outside seemed quiet enough–when there were just the two of them, she felt like she could glimpse the boy beneath such covers. In a trance, she mumbles just as quietly as he did before, “That’s it for now…”. They keep quiet for a moment, just enjoying each other’s features. If someone passed by them, they could easily mistake the moment for a stare competition, and the two competitors would miss the presence of the bystander just as easily. 

A sudden beep causes Freya to inhale sharply and Jungkook to jolt. Both of them exchange embarrassed chuckles as the girl takes her phone out to see what had snapped them to the real world. Jungkook eyes her expectant. 

She shrugs, tucking the device into her backpack once again. “It’s Yoongi.” 

“So the teacher didn’t kill him this time, huh” 

Freya leaned on the tree with a cheeky smile. She crossed her arms saying, “Not this time, no” as she watched how he fixed his backpack on the ground so he could rest his head comfortably on it. 

More silence follows. Jungkook keeps his eyes trailed to the scenery displayed to his right. He watches mindlessly as some students cross the greenery toward the main building. From time to time, when the wind hits his face, he feels compelled to close his eyes for seconds before opening them again. Freya doesn’t look at the view as he does. She couldn’t care less about those people passing by. Instead, she keeps her eyes trailed to his nape, and she watches how the hair there is starting to get big enough so it curves softly. She spots the scar on his left cheek and thinks of how it came to be, and how it seems so fitting that it was there. 

Jungkook fumbles with his lip piercing, still looking at the crowd below them. They all look so small from there. So distant. “Maybe I could help you find it,” he says as he turns his head to look at her. 

He notices how her eyes were already on him. How that summer blush spread across the line of her cheeks and nose as if she had been the whole day under a scorching sun at the beach. “I would like that.” 

He nods and the crinkles of his eyes start to appear. “Today after classes?”

“Deal.”

The rest of the free period is spent in comfortable silence. Both of them exist in each other’s presence, in wonder, basking in the sunlight. Enjoying the peacefulness of the breeze, and ignoring their surroundings. Caught not wanting that moment to end, but also anxiously waiting for the next encounter. 

Kaya decided to accompany her brother and Namjoon to the library post lunch after receiving a notification from the system saying the literature teacher would be canceling classes that day.

The boys were supposedly in their sociology class, but the extensive course was normally divided into two hours—one for research and the other for debating. So while they came up with a grounded speech, the girl fumbled through books, settling to catch up on the subjects she would have for the rest of the day. 

She was running her fingers through the numbers carved on the massive wood bookcase, eyes searching for the physics copy she needed, when she was laced by her hips and pulled to a dark corner. 

“What are you doing?!” she whispered, desperately glancing around so as to not be caught. 

Her captor didn’t pay much mind and kept kissing her neck. By now he was more than used to her apprehensive behavior. “My brother is right there!” she hissed again. On the tips of her toes, she tried with all her might to disentangle from the arms she loved so much. She just couldn’t be caught, and this was way too risky for her liking. 

“He’s focused on the task at hand,” The boy said, laid back. “I doubt he’ll get up before cracking that book first. You know how he is.” 

He pulled her closer, diving in for a kiss, sure that he had eased her mind just enough. To his misfortune, his lips were met with her hand. He tried again, playing it cool, but Kaya turned her head as she shoved him back. “Namjoon, please.”

He inhaled, as he rubbed his temples frustrated. 

Namjoon had never been a pushy guy. And he had always taken Kaya’s concerns into consideration. That was why they had been dating secretly in the first place. Because to him, they would have already come clean to everyone—including Hoseok—a long time ago. 

“Just tell me what you want Kaya,” he says plainly and she is taken aback. 

“What do you mean?” 

He sighs as the girl in front of him seems more preoccupied with checking around if anyone is listening to their conversation. More and more he felt tired of this. There was already too much on the table for them to be worried about. 

Namjoon leans on the bookcase behind him, crossing his arms. “It’s been a while now since we last were together,” he says carefully and her eyes search for his. “Ever since Freya took the blame in our place, to be specific.” 

“Ok…” she opts to say, as the words dissipate in her brain. 

“No. It’s not ok.” he huffs annoyed. Kaya knows him too well, and the moment he clenches his jaw in a pout, swinging it back and forth, she realizes he’s been piling this up for too long. “You’re my girlfriend. Yet I can’t see you in public or in private. I can’t kiss you or touch you–We can’t even talk like this without you looking around as if you’re up to something you shouldn’t be up to!” he whispers hushedly, calling her out. 

Kaya’s eyes are suddenly teary and the boy before her starts to get blurry. “But what can we do, it’s–” 

“We could just be together.” his eyebrows knit almost pleading. He is certain that he loves her. And he is certain that she loves him too. What hurts the most is that it doesn’t seem enough. Not for him, or her. 

Kaya starts shaking her head, eyes trailing on the wooden floor. She can’t deal with this right now. Not when her brother is mere meters away from finding the truth. 

“Let’s not do this now.” 

“Then when, Kaya?!” Namjoon can’t keep his cool anymore and she quickly covers his mouth to shush him. She looks apologetic at him, realizing how on edge she was being. He softly takes her hand out of the way. “I know these past couple of days have left us all walking on eggshells,” his voice sounds temperate again, the tone only loud enough for her to hear. “But I also think we can’t stop living our lives because of it.” 

She closed her eyes with a sigh. Kaya knew Namjoon was more than right. She just needed her scale to pend to the other side instead. Right now, she still has a lot to lose. “I know, it’s just–” 

The sound of a book dropping way closer to them than they thought possible, made both of their heads snap toward it, alarmed. Kaya’s breathing increased considerably and she froze on the spot. Namjoon looked around, and not seeing anyone in sight, he went toward the next row of bookcases. 

There was a single book left on the ground, scrambled from the falling. He looked at the cover as he picked it up, but the title didn’t say much to him. Before returning it to its place, he looked around once more. Kaya came from behind, quite apprehensive. Looking at her eyes, he followed her frightful gaze. On the other end of the long corridor of books, sat at a table for four there was Momo, Mark, and Tzuyu. The latter, unlike her Sarx companions, wasn’t writing or reading. She had her eyes craved on Namjoon. 

The Psykhe’s captain decided not to look too much, or read too much into the situation. He had to avoid looking suspicious. Recomposing himself, he put the book on the shelf once again and turned his back to Tzuyu’s prying eyes. 

“Let’s go back–” 

“She’s still looking,” Kaya whispered with concern. And before he could say anything else, she made rushed decisions for the both of them, “We’re stopping this for now. We can talk later.” 

As she turned the corner leaving him no space for refutation, Namjoon couldn’t figure out if they were stopping the conversation or their relationship altogether. He had to swallow his frustration as he was well aware his back was still being stared at. 

And who knew who else was paying close attention too…

Summer still lingered in the air as the students from class 104 dozed off to the sound of Mr. Perry’s soothing voice and the ceiling fans. Philosophy felt like a drag whenever the class was theoretical instead of practical. 

Elena sat in the last row of desks, sharing one of them with an absent-minded  Jungkook. She took notes from time to time just to keep herself busy and although throughout the first part of the class, she thought the boy beside her was doing the same, it became pretty clear that was not the case as she peeked to the side and saw a view from what she pegged being the Psykhe’s tower drawn on his notebook. 

She whispered so only he could hear, “That looks amazing”, and he took his while perfecting the twinkling stars on his pitch-black sky before answering with a brief chuckle, “I try”.

The class continued irrespective of Elena’s admiration and Jungkook’s pencil lining. The room was a stage for a lazy symphony composed by Mr. Perry’s throat being cleared here and then and some bored sighs at the end. The time of the class helped the preposition to be lulled instead of trying to create a ruckus with chitchatting. 

But then a notification sound reverberated alongside the teacher’s voice. Some heads, from owners that still had some stamina left, turned to the guilty one holding the phone. Elena’s included. The student apologized sheepishly doting a sheer of red on his face while turning off the device as if it had been a coincidental mistake. Mr. Perry was about to restart his explanation with an unbothered stance when the girl sat by Belle’s side, right at the front row seats, exclaimed reproachfully with her phone at hand. 

Some students exchanged glances, and others paused what they were doing to look at her expectantly. “What is it, Vanessa?” someone asked from the back. The teacher tried to pay no mind going instead to write on the imponent board behind him. 

Suddenly both Vanessa and Belle turn around and stare in Elena’s direction with pitiful eyes. The girl is taken aback by the gesture but tries to deflect them by looking back with a shrug. 

“Holy shit…” one of the boys let out while scrolling his phone. Elena looks at him apprehensively, and Jungkook finally lifts his head peaking above the shoulder of his table mate to grasp the situation. While the constant noise of chalk being dragged on the board serves as background, the class starts to get restless. Phones are being pulled out of pockets to kill the famish curiosity pairing in the air. Elbows jerk and eyes turn inquiring toward her. 

Elena panics and suddenly she knows. It’s You… Again. 

She doesn’t take the time to check. Jolting out of her seat she grabs her purse and rushes toward the door, exiting it with a minor bang. 

“Elena, wait up!” Jungkook has to sprint to catch up to the girl, ignoring the teacher’s warnings. The strap of his backpack hangs loosely from his right shoulder. “What happened?” 

She faces him with teary eyes, lips in a pout, as she manages to say through a sob, “I’m fucked.” 

The boy frowns. Not knowing what had caused her to be in such a state makes Jungkook panic a little. He had been a victim of Elena’s emotional side more than once but he was never alone to calm her down. “Let’s just take a deep breath.” He sounds more shaken than confident in the solution he was able to find. 

The girl dismisses his words as she keeps on cursing under her breath, phone up to her ear. Jungkook keeps on hearing the faint recording of the call being directed to the voicemail.  

“Should we go outside? Catch some fresh air?” Jungkook attempts again, this time even more uncertain. 

The girl doesn’t give him an answer, instead hastening her pace towards the courtyard. Her focus is still on her device and through the corner of his eye, Jungkook can make out the messages app open as she types feverishly into a group called The Runaways. Jungkook recognized the photos of the other two members of the group–Freya and Kaya. 

Taehyung had been the kind soul to explain the name to Jungkook once he heard Jin referring to the girls like that. His facial expression must have shown how confused he was by the nickname and so his peculiar roommate explained that the trio had tried to escape from Horus Academy one night during their first year there and got caught–of course. Kaya was a mess because of the two weeks of detention and Hoseok even added that she had palpitations from having to visit the dean’s office so soon after her arrival at the school. 

The group was close, regardless of all of them being so different. And to Jungkook that was something that was sometimes revealed to be difficult to comprehend. They were good people, that he was sure. Despite all their quirks and inevitable penchant for secrets. No wonder he had fit so well. 

“Was it You?” Jungkook finally dares to speak. They had already reached the courtyard and Elena had sat down at one of the picnic-style tables scattered around the place, her feet tapping on the bench rhythmically. The girl nods in response and Jungkook’s curiosity gets the best of him, “What did they say?” 

Sighing, Elena shows the phone to the boy and the way he frowns as his eyes scan the text on the screen makes her realize that she’s in for a hell of a couple of days.

“Is–is it true?” Jungkook asks hesitantly. The second the words come out of his mouth he regrets it. His stomach is in a twirl and he would rather not know the truth. 

“Of course, it is. Whoever that psycho is, they are deep into our lives and know all about our darkest secrets.” Elena speaks angrily. Jungkook’s question doesn’t bother her. He has been with the group for a while now and she trusts him. He has been loyal to them despite all the attacks they have been under since day one. Had she been in his shoes, she doesn’t know if she would stick with such a problematic crew. She always wondered why he stuck with them in the first place, and she had gotten close to asking him about it a few times, but Kaya cut it off after all her attempts, advising her to ‘not be rude and ask’. 

“Yoongi was right–” Jungkook flops down next to Elena, finding a seat on the picnic table. His tone isn’t accusatory, like a parent reprimanding a child, but mostly hopeless. “We shouldn’t be poking the bear,” he looks her in the eye, seriously. “it’s going to poke back.” 

Scoffing, Elena gets back up on her feet, hands finding a firm grip on her hips. “Of course, we should! We all got secrets, Kook, I know–”  She glares at the boy, huffing as yet another tear rolls down her cheek, “We want them buried but I’m not going to sit here and let it hold such power over my life.” 

“But–” 

“This person is insane. What if they start blackmailing us? Pinning us against each other?” Jungkook shifts in his seat but the action passes unseen by the revolted girl. “Are you going to sit by and watch the house burn down?” 

Eyes stuck to the floor, Jungkook finds comfort in analyzing his fingers. Elena’s words are marked on his brain as if she kept on asking the question over and over again. Pressing his lips together, he doesn’t manage to look her in the eye as he reaches the final verdict, “I–I don’t know Elena.” 

“I know Yoongi was right. But fuck this.” Elena’s focus is back on her phone. “Jesus Christ why is no one picking up their phones!” 

Relieved by the change of subject, Jungkook tries to uncover more of the newest secret You had revealed, “Are you trying to call your mom?” 

“Heavens no. If she got word that we were being harassed she’d come down to the school and take me out of it. I would never see you guys again.” Elena laughs drily. “What about yours?” 

Jungkook tilts his head, confused by the question. “What?” 

“What would your parents do if they knew you were strapped to a tree for an entire night?” Jungkook hadn’t been a target of You yet–at least not directly–and so far, the Sarx folks were the most fitting candidates for the shoes of psycho. 

Jungkook’s eyes are big as Elena sits down on the bench next to him. In an attempt to diverge from her stare, he takes out his notebook from his backpack. “You know–the same.” 

Glancing at the girl lets him know she was analyzing his not-so-confident answer. “Do you want to see more?” Jungkook is quick to ask as he lands on the page he had earlier been drawing on. The Kardia girl’s eyes light up as her lips turn into a smile, pleased to have a distraction, “Yes, please.” 

Word around Horus always traveled fast. But nothing could quite compare to bad news. With cell phones prohibited in class, it was astonishing how people had already begun whispering in the hallways about the latest rumor of the all-star group attending the boarding school. 

The first period of the afternoon had barely ended when the courtyard where Elena and Jungkook were, began to fill quickly. The raven-haired boy was quick to find a distraction for the girl that made herself heedless of the preying eyes in an almost impeccable way. 

“Damn…” The hand that rested on Elena’s shoulder had been what startled her but Jungkook was only aware of Jin’s presence when he made his voice heard. The Dianoia member was facing the opposite direction of the other two, back leaning against the table as he took a sip from his soda can. 

Jungkook swiftly shifts on his seat, his legs standing on each side of the bench. He can now see Elena and Jin perfectly. 

“Not that I thought you a straight record, but when you pulled a Regina George today on that psycho, I at least thought you were secret safe,” The expression on the oldest face says how incredulous yet disconcerted he is with the situation. He was in a complete mix of feelings. 

“Excuse me?!” Jungkook notices how Elena’s eyebrows furrow and how her once relaxed demeanor is quick to leave her body. 

“Don’t worry, I won’t say I told you so!” Jin reassures, lips wet from the last sip he took from his soda. He scootches closer toward Elena, casually crossing his legs while he still stands. “That will be Yoongi.” 

“Oh, fuck off Jin.” The girl in turn stands up from the bench, now leaving an empty spot between the two boys. Her phone is quickly retrieved from her pocket and placed on her ear once more.

“You kinda did, though,” Jungkook whispers to Jin, lips pressed. “You kind of said it.” 

Jin widens his eyes, distant, not really focusing anywhere. He then takes a last sip from the can in his hands, before spurring in Jungkook’s direction unable to suppress a nervous laughter. 

“Who are you trying to reach?” The doe-eyed boy opts to ask Elena instead. She had been nervously pacing back and forth. Her thumb rests between her lips the whole time as she nibbles on its skin. “Maybe I can help?” He offers again.

The proposal sounds weak despite his best intentions, and as a consequence, he ends up being ignored by the other two. 

In the distance, as he looks over to distract himself from the situation, Jungkook can make out a duo that skids through the increasing crowd. Taehyung and Jimin spurt toward their table, the latter’s hand already in the air, signaling his presence to the group. 

“Hey, you okay?” Taehyung reaches the girl first, hands finding her shoulders as he looks her down, almost as if examining her physically. “Is it real?” He questions as his hands slide toward her neck and his thumbs gently force her chin up so he can scan her eyes. 

“Of course it’s real.” The Kardia boy spats, passing by on his way to the vacant spot between Jungkook and Jin before Elena had a chance to answer. Taehyung sent a death stare to his back, biting on his tongue so as to not make the situation worse. The tension between the two best friends was so palpable even their algebra teacher had noticed that the pair was odd—as they used to spend the class playing games in each other’s notebooks or talking, now they avoided eye contact. It was impossible to deny that there was some unresolved business between the two. 

“Jimin–” Elena is taken off by the sudden attack of her best friend but before she can continue, Taehyung cuts her off, unable to look past Jimin’s pretentious eyes as he sat down and stared back. 

“Just because you tend to make shitty decisions it doesn’t mean everyone else follows the example so stop being–”. 

“It’s not that ludicrous. It happened to me, too.” Jimin shrugs and Jin scoffs at the sudden outburst, somewhat entertained. 

“Ludicrous? Huh,” He laughs. “Aren’t you a committed student...” Taehyung is quick to bark back. 

Jimin’s eyes are filled with fire, but he decides that ignoring his best friend is a better response. "Why would you even do that?" He directs his words at Elena instead. "What dumb thought crossed your mind that made you think that it would be a good idea to go after You after what happened to me?" 

"Dumb thought?! Was I supposed to just sit and watch this shit show?!" Hands anchored on her hips, Elena's focus is no longer on her phone.

Jimin laughs incredulously as he shakes his head and looks at the crowd. People kept staring at them, waiting for more drama to unfold. "Are you happy now that everyone is giving you the side eye?" 

"You certainly seem to be." Elena pokes at his chest, index finger waving in accusation. 

"Me?! I didn't even know you were going to do this. Let alone that you had this secret.” Jimin looks at her with accusatory eyes, and differently from Jin, Jungkook can’t help but think he should do something to stop the arguing. “Good job at being a best friend, by the way! If every best friend kept a secret like you we would all stand equally as strangers!”  

“You-!” Elena lifted her finger once more but was gently pulled back by the boy behind her. Taehyung couldn’t care less if people were beginning to stop their own conversations to eavesdrop on theirs. 

"Like you told me about yours?! Or any of us, for a matter of fact?" He is quick to jump back into the discussion. 

"This isn't about me." Jimin stands his ground, clearly upset.

“Do you know where Namjoon is?” Jin shifts on his seat, his arm resting on the table as he supports his head in the palm of his hand, eyeing Jungkook directly. He seems too comfortable with the ruckus happening not even two feet from them. The youngest doesn’t even get a chance to answer before Jin continues in a tired voice, “We need Namjoon to make them hold hands again.” 

“Hold… hands?” Jungkook furrows his eyebrows. The concern he once felt completely dissipates, leaving space for confusion instead. 

“I’ll tell you later.” Jin nods his head, reassuringly. “It’s just that Namjoon made them hold hands another time. When they fought, you know.” 

“Oh, God!” Elena raises her voice, gaining the attention of the two whisperers and the other two bickerers. “Where is Kaya!” 

“She shouldn’t take too long,” An out-of-breath Namjoon takes a seat where Jimin has previously sat by the picnic table. “I lost her and Hoseok in the crowd.” 

“We have a dumpling situation again,” Jin comments, pointing at the two boys standing. “Make them hold hands, for the love of God, I can’t hear them anymore!” He complains nonchalantly. “Lucky me I don’t have a mirror otherwise I’d see for myself I aged ten years while I sat here listening to this crap.” The Psykhe’s leader can't help the chuckle that escapes his lips as Jin rambles as fast as a bullet. "First things first, what happened?" He exhales as he asks the group, now recomposed.

"Elena bossed up and went after the psycho and now the psycho went after her, but much more effectively." Jimin explains, and the girl in question glares at him. 

Jungkook can’t help but rub his eyes frustrated. His right leg embraced a frenetic rhythm afraid the bickering would restart. “Not again…” He mumbles to himself.

Namjoon nods silently, glancing around to assert the gravity of the rumors. In his peripheral vision, he sees Elena ignoring Jimin, preferring to show attention to her cell phone instead. Taehyung looked at him expectantly but he was just as lost. He just couldn’t show it to his peers. Perhaps by being a leader he had picked up the habit, but something in his being told him it had to do with all those eyes prying at them instead. "It does nothing for us to be going at each other's throats…" Namjoon reasons with them, his voice low enough so only his friends could hear. He preferred to wait for the rest of the group to arrive before discussing their situation. He also prayed Yoongi or Hoseok would bring with them some sort of solution. Or at least help to calm the other’s down. 

"Freya, where the hell are you?" Elena asks, visibly relieved when her call goes through. The boys all look at her awaiting the answer to her question. As she huffs and looks at some point past the courtyard, listening to what Freya was saying, she feels the urge to interrupt with a plea. “Run faster then,” she says, “I can see her already and she is ready to kill me. I just know, alright? Just run… Ha-! Well, because you don’t sound like running to me!” 

The second Elena clicked on the red button to end the call, she realized Kaya had shortened the distance between them way too fast. Faster than she imagined, even if she was well aware her roommate was fuming. Hoseok stopped right behind his sister, panting from trying to helplessly keep up with her pace. 

Namjoon got up from his seat instinctively, worried that neither Taehyung nor Jimin, who were standing by, could do something to stop the wrath of his girlfriend. “I just can’t believe you!” Kaya exclaimed. “Wasn’t it enough seeing Freya, Yoongi, and Jimin being targeted?! Why would you do something so reckless, Lena? For heaven's sake!”

Elena sighs, fingers massaging her temples as she turns her back on her roommate. “Not you, too.” she says, and both Jimin and Taehyung are struck by déjà vu. 

“No, no, no! Don’t turn your back on me.” Kaya speaks through gritted teeth. “Don’t you even think that you will get away with this.” 

The shortest one doesn’t hide her arched eyebrow as she turns around. “Last time I checked you weren’t my mom, Kaya,” she says decisively. It takes a good minute for her roommate to process her spiteful answer, and a longer one for the silence that broke amongst their peers who watched the exchange like statues. 

“Just stop.” Hoseok cuts sharp as a knife. “It’s not the time to fight about who’s at fault here.” He glares at the both of them and as Elena mentions to speak up he continues, “I don’t care. I just want to know who the hell is behind this. Who could have this kind of information–All the freaking time!” 

Namjoon feels the need to intervene as he looks around and all of them, besides Hoseok who had a desperate demeanor to his face, had their eyes trailed to the floor, hopeless. In a space between the harsh revelation of both secrets, they had gathered no information about their stalker or even a thread of where to start looking. They were completely in the dark. “Let’s wait for Freya and Yoongi–Who are just much part of this as Kaya has said. And then we can all sit together and make a timeline of events. We’re gonna find something–“ The leader tries. 

For brief seconds Jungkook remembers how to breathe again, certain that this time Namjoon’s approach had worked out. It was visible how everyone collected themselves, pondering his words. He was right, after all, there was no point in arguing without everyone present. They would be just circling back and forth, wasting the little time they seemed to have. Even Jungkook, who was never the most patient one, could understand that. 

Students begin passing by them quicker, seeing there was seemingly no secret conversation to overhear. To them, the all-star group looked like showcase dolls being exhibited in the courtyard. 

“What did I say?” their heads move together as they hear Yoongi’s familiar voice. He circled the table with his arms crossed, making Jin scooch closer to Jungkook so he can sit on the bench as well. “I told you exactly how this would go down, didn’t I?” he says, looking disappointed but not at all surprised at Elena. 

And it is enough, just like a snowflake is to trigger an avalanche. 

“I will say it slow enough for you all to grasp it–Fuck. You.” Elena bursts. “It’s my secret.” she points to her chest with a wave of moved anger. “My choice.”

“Elena–”

The strawberry blonde one couldn’t find in herself the patience to listen to any of them anymore. The shock of the situation finally untied her naturally proactive self. “No!” she exclaims back. “I won’t shut up about it! Whoever this creep is, they deserve someone barking back.” 

“HEY, hey!” Freya comes like a tornado. It’s clear that the girl had been running to get there as the sunglasses that are almost always securing her hair back is crooked to the left. Her locks are tousled. “Finally!” Namjoon gasps. 

Freya places a hand on Elena’s shoulder as she comes closer, and it works like magic. The shortest one’s uproar quickly ceased. “Before we mess this up,” her voice is steady despite her rush, and commanding enough to make them all pay attention. “Let’s move this circus to a more private tent, alright.” Her over-expressive eyes pointed at the crowd beginning to surround them again. Some cell phones were being aimed like guns at them, ready to shoot and record the perfect evidence. 

Kaya, different from the rest of the group who tried to discreetly look around, was too possessed to notice anything but what was happening between them. “Heavens! Stop trying to make us forget what this is all about!” 

“I’m not the one that stops things from happening, Kaya. You got me confused.” Freya adverts. “Just get out of your head for a second and look around.” her eyebrows do the work this time as they shoot up. And for the Dianoian girl’s terror, she was the center of attention. 

"Freya is right," Yoongi speaks tiredly. Not that he was bothered by the ridiculously noticeable glares of the other students. He had been used to being the freak everyone stared, pointed, and laughed at. But this You person had really started to get on his nerves by assuming they could get rid of them as easily as possible. 

"Do you remember the spot of the last trial of the games?" Namjoon is already pulling the strap of his bag over his head as he speaks. He walks around the table, arm swinging around Hoseok's shoulder as he pushes him out of his ecstatic state and forces his feet to levitate from the ground. "Let's meet there in 10. All of us." 

Namjoon leaves with Hoseok. Being the captain of Psykhe had thought him a thing or two as the whole group—even the ones that were from different houses—respected his words. 

A stare-down happens between the two roommates, now not-so-seemingly best friends, and Freya stays right in the middle of them. The boys on the table don't dare to move. Until Elena lets out a dry chuckle, eyes rolling as she makes her way to the table to fetch her bag. "Will be seeing you all in… 8 minutes." Her sarcastic smile is directed at Yoongi, who sighs in response as he too gets up to go and try to get rid of the people who could possibly trail them. 

"You better go somewhere else." Taehyung coldly speaks to Jimin before skipping after the Kardia girl that was about to quickly get lost in the crowd. 

"What did I do?!" Jimin whines as he's about to be left alone by the table as Kaya storms by herself, and Jin seems to make his way to enter the main building again. "Jin–wait for me!"

Satisfied that everyone listened to Namjoon, making the rest of the students confused as to who they should follow, Freya pulls Jungkook by the hand toward the stadium. She wasn’t a fan of crowds. Passing by all those that were surrounding the courtyard—even if Horus Academy didn’t have that many students to begin with—felt like a nightmare. The grand stadium seemed the right choice as the structure was placed on the other side, they just had to cut through a grass path and some isolated trees. 

Not a soul seemed to follow the two. Jungkook made sure to look back every time he heard a different noise that wasn’t his own feet clashing with the dirt ground or Freya’s. And as some distance was already put between them and the unpleasant moment they had just experienced, Jungkook cleared his throat. For the first time, he was bothered by Freya’s silence amidst this chaos. “This, uhm… It wasn’t what I had in mind when we said we’d be meeting each other after classes…” 

The girl doesn’t slow her pacing, and neither does he, as they are still locking hands. “That’s because technically we’re still in classes. So this ain’t it.” She shrugs with a rapid smile. 

Jungkook chuckles and keeps his eyes on the back of her head. She wasn’t being her carefree self, he could notice. He wondered while she lead him astray from the path to the stadium and down a small ravine through the woods if she seemed distant only due to her best friend being targeted. Again, her relationship with Yoongi crossed his mind. It seemed odd that he was the one holding hands with her and not her boyfriend. 

He wondered if he was crossing a line. “Why isn’t Yoongi here?” he decided to give it a shot. 

“What do you mean?” The girl seems more preoccupied to point to him where he can’t step in order not to fall than not falling herself. He holds her hand tighter as she slips once before replying, “It’s just that he went alone. And you’re here–with me.” 

Freya’s eyes travel from the ground to his face and she halts her steps. They are right at the base of the ravine and the only thing they can hear is the whisper of the trees dancing in the wind. Jungkook nibbles on his lips as she eyes him without an answer. Suddenly his questioning seems rubbish to himself, his actions quite inappropriate and selfish, and the girl in front of him a dream within a dream. 

She opens her mouth to reply with a prepared lie, but nothing comes out of it. Not even an excuse for him not knowing well the paths around school, or looking seemingly lost back at the courtyard. Would it be so bad to tell him the truth?, she thinks to herself. His fingers laced on hers seems the answer and the fire that ignites her bold decision. “Yoongi and I, we–” 

Beep. 

Beep.

Their phones going off at the same time is enough to cut her sentence short. Their hands fall from each other as they grab the devices instead.

Jungkook’s eyes leave the screen first to check on the girl in front of him. She zooms in and out of the picture posted to check its veracity. As she glances up to see him, Freya is nothing but decided. Hints of anger flash in her irises. “We’re almost there. Are you up for a sprint?” she asks and he nods promptly. “Be careful with branches. They’re bitches for ankles–trust me.” 

They run, succeeding in avoiding smaller rocks and the tree branches the girl advised him about. Both had been here before for the games, but this felt more urgent. More secretive. And by the nature of You’s recent posting, much more treacherous. 

"I can't believe you." It’s the first thing they hear as they arrive panting. Everyone is already there, which confirms to Jungkook they had been the ones taking the longer route. Yoongi drops his bag on the floor. He's fuming. "I can't fucking believe you, Elena." 

"Oh, and here he goes again." Elena mimics his actions, bag, and jacket dropping right by her feet as she places her hands on her hips. "Here comes Yoongi, on his high horse." 

The boy in question chuckles. He rubs his forehead as he sighs, looking up at the treetops swinging, trying to choose wisely his next words. He didn’t want to start a fight, far from that. He knew their real enemy was clearly You, and whatever he did, he for sure wasn’t going to be compliant by serving exactly what that deranged wanted—them all fighting each other. "Just–What are you trying to do? I want to understand because it seems simple to me that this person isn’t one to be messed with" They now stand close to each other and both Taehyung and Jungkook feel the need to take a step forward. 

"I told you–I'm not going to stand down." Elena simply shrugs. "We've been friends for how long now, Yoongi? …Is it really too much to ask you to back me up on this?" 

It’s clear to them all how Yoongi ponders as he looks her in the eyes. "You're being selfish." Kaya spits. "You're just thinking about what you want." 

Elena turns to her roommate with a scoff, "And you're not?" 

"How am I selfish?!"

The look Elena gives her says enough to have both Namjoon and Freya on their toes. "Kaya…" The boy threads lightly. He has to stop himself, the craving of holding his girlfriend's hand driving him mad.

Jimin however is the one that moves, but away. He shakes his head as he goes to sit on a stem, looking defeated as he leans his forehead on his arms. Hoseok catches a glance at his roommate’s lack of spirit, deciding to intervene for him. "El, please. We've just been to hell and back with Jimin." He says harshly, as he leans against a tree with arms crossed. It was a rare sight to see Hoseok like that, and if the circumstances were other, the discussion would have ended with his word. But not everyone standing in that glade wanted to be picked at, and some had less to lose. 

"She's not wrong…" Freya points out, unafraid to be looked upon by Hoseok’s hard judgment.  

"Thank you!" Elena throws her hands up in the air, exasperated. Freya glares at her, clearly not finished with her point. Before some of them can revolt, she adds, "Lena is being reckless and she does need to calm down, but she did prove something." 

"Oh, c'mon Freya, don't encourage this." Yoongi complains and Jin feels the need to add, “People, this isn’t Law and Order for you to be proving stuff!”

Freya unlike the others wasn’t carrying a backpack, but she did take her glasses off her head, dropping them on top of a pile of things that rested next to a tree trunk. Her hair fell in the process to frame her face. “Listen–” she began, hands coming to her sides to put them all at ease. "You posted real proof. They had the evidence ready to go. Just like that." She snaps her fingers to add to her case, “This seems somewhat already thought through, no? Or at least it has to be someone that is able to get this kind of thing–Documents and shit.” 

Hoseok looked at Namjoon to confirm if he had to be worried or not, depending if the leader had bought the argument. The engines on his head worked speedily. "And that only makes everything worse," Jungkook says, breaking his silence.

"How so?" Namjoon is intrigued by the sudden intervention, and he is not the only one. Taehyung stares intently at their group’s novice expectant to finally hear his reasoning. Even Jimin looks up. 

"For starters this person is insane,” Jungkook states blankly. He wasn’t used to reasoning things out loud, but all eyes were on him, pushing him to speak further. “They have already proved this to us… With Freya, Jimin… Yoongi’s thing that day at the games as well… And now this Elena thing–And honestly, it's bothering me how normally you're all treating this situation–" 

"Normally?" 

There is some confusion pairing in the air, some eyes trailed to the floor reflexive over the last weeks. But the novice tries to avoid those so as to not lose himself in his own argument. "How are you not afraid, El?" Jungkook's eyes widen as he looks at her instead. She doesn’t answer as her point of view differed tremendously, and he tilts his head unable to comprehend the coolness they exuded faced with such things. "I don't know about you guys but I never had something like this happening to me. I was tied to a tree by a bunch of psychos–who still study here by the way, and Tzuyu is even Freya’s roommate–And you guys keep on getting threats…? They found out about Jimin being with a teacher and–no offense, man–but the logic of this person is to share it online to intimidate us and here we are, making secret reunions in the middle of the woods." 

Jin is the one to cut the silence by laughing nervously, "When you put it that way…" he adds, “No wonder we are being targeted.” 

Jungkook’s eyes are still unable to search for anyone else’s as he adds. "I just think we shouldn't worry about figuring out who this person is or what they want. I think we just need to know how to get them the fuck away from us." His voice sounds defeated as his focus shifts to a rock poking on the ground. He leans his body forward and kicks it.

"One thing very much so implies the other, I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news." Elena points out, and as soon as she does Taehyung gives her a reproachful look. She mouths him a questioning ‘what?’ in silence, as he shakes his head. 

Freya doesn’t listen to the comment, however, as her feet work just as intently as her head by drawing patterns on the grass as she paces around. "It can't just be anyone…” she says, deep in thought, more to herself than the others. “It's someone smart, clearly… And they have a motive."

"Stop it, you two!” Kaya’s outburst makes her brother jolt surprised, leaning further away onto the tree to shore himself. “For heaven's sake, just stop!" she begs, frustrated. Jin is quicker than Namjoon to side-hug her, and the Psykhe’s leader inhales relieved as he sees Kaya burying her face onto Jin’s shoulder, returning the hug. “This is getting out of line.” Hoseok comments fed up. “Look at what they’re doing to us!” he gestures emphasizing their defeated postures. 

"You're the ones allowing it." Elena shoots, crossing her arms. 

Kaya turns into Jin’s embrace in a flash upon hearing her words. "What is your problem, Elena?!" she mentions to walk toward her roommate but Jin wraps one arm over her shoulder line, pinning her in place. Still, she points an accusatory finger at the Kardia girl. "You're going to end up putting everyone in the front line with how you’re handling this." 

"It was one thing to play the rumor card at lunch but now…" Yoongi commented resigned as he closed his eyes. He too crossed his arms, and to the ones watching, he looked like basking in the sunlight that poured through the clearing as his face was tilted up. He opens his eyes and looks at the shortest girl before adding, "You just proved that everything they post is real. You showed that they are a credible source. You know that, right?" 

"So what?” Taehyung questions. “Just because they have proof of Elena's doesn't mean the rest is true." he shrugs in discontent. "And besides, she hasn't implicated anyone but herself." 

There is a sense of veracity in what he says, or better, how he says it, and the group goes calmer as they let his words sink in. Jimin is the only one that shows unconformity as he stands up with a scold plastered on his face. "Funny how when it's her, it doesn't matter, but then when it was my secret or Freya’s it was that big of a deal.”

Taehyung dismisses his remark with a simple side eye, and a scoff is heard before Elena adopts a sarcastic smile to her features "Are you seriously comparing being in a fucking deranged relationship to getting in an accident?" 

“Okay let’s–” Namjoon tries. 

"It wasn't just an accident. You were driving drunk, Elena." Kaya insists, untangling herself from Jin’s arm and retrieving her phone to showcase You’s report. "And according to this, I'm pretty sure your next stop was a stomach wash at the hospital." 

"Are you serious?!" the hurt in Elena’s voice is able to be sensed a mile away. 

"Am I wrong?" 

The group has a second of stillness as no one can think of a better thing to say, or even how to proceed from there on. Freya looks from one girl to another, fearing they were stranding too far for a possible rescue. She can tell how frustrated and fearful Kaya is being, but she can also see how profound the embarrassment in Elena’s eyes is as she shifts her stares through the group. “You know what?” the strawberry blonde adds, “Fuck you, Kaya.” 

"Am. I. Wrong?" Kaya keeps pushing with a clouded mind and the tallest of the three finally shouts a reprehensive ‘Hey!’ so as to break their flare. 

With drained faces, they all seemed a little out of orbit. The group has had its fair share of disagreements before, that picnic table in the courtyard of Horus knew how many spiteful arguments Taehyung and Jimin shared. The halls of the school were tainted with bickering. But it never felt like they were standing with a cliff between them before. And the fall, Namjoon feared if he didn’t stop it, would be too decisive. 

"That's more than enough." The leader spoke with bravado. "We came here to try and figure a solution out. This was not to go at each other’s throats!"

"No–Absolutely not. I’m not wasting time with this anymore.” Elena shakes her head, fed up. “I've had enough of your bullshit." She eyes Kaya as she speaks. "Always running around like you're Miss Perfect. I'm tired of this–I'm tired of you."

She walks toward the pile stacked by a tree, picking up her bag, resolute to walk away as Kaya replies. "If I’m the Miss Perfect for thinking of others before doing reckless things–Fine! Be it! I will rather be labeled as that than be labeled as a freaking selfish bitch."

Elena ties the sleeves of her jacket around her waist as she angrily rebuts, "Oh, don't you fucking worry, Kaya–your stupid little secret is safe!" 

The shock on Kaya’s face is tremendous as she gulps down her anger faced with the threat. Both Freya and Jin feel the need to barricade whatever reaction she was about to have, as he places a hand on her shoulder and the girl grips at her arm. On the other end, Yoongi is about to stop Elena from leaving, as he is still firm about coming to a conclusion for this unexpected and needed reunion when they all hear the snap of a branch nearby. 

No one says a word, as heads perk toward the sound and all pairs of eyes are busy scanning the foliage. 

“There’s no way… Right?” Jungkook questions almost in a whisper and a chill runs through their spines. More silence follows, no one dares to say a word. And although no one is able to indeed spot someone in the woods, watching them, they know in their hearts—You was somehow there. “MhmHm.” Hoseok shakes his head, picking up his backpack. “I’m done here,” he adds, as he starts to make his way to leave, pulling Jimin alongside him and signaling Kaya to follow. Elena’s last statment about his sister awakening a paranoid distrust in the pit of his stomach.

In a matter of seconds, the group is scattered. They leave in pairs, trios, and some even wander alone, but none is able to shake the awful sensation of still being followed. 

“I thought I might find you here…” Namjoon says as he approaches Kaya carefully. She had been skittish lately, especially with him, and much to his misfortune, the Psykhe’s captain couldn’t blame her even if he wanted to. Deep down he knew her reasons, even after their rocky encounter at the library. “I think–”

“Listen,” she interrupts him. Kaya fixes her position by the feet of the giant Gaia statue so she could stare at her boyfriend’s eyes properly. She had discovered that statue by chance due to venturing inside the maze, only a few students knew existed, in the gardens of the imponent boarding school. Lately, the girl felt perhaps, aside from her girlfriends, only she and Namjoon knew of its existence. “I know what you’re going to say. And I love you for caring but I really don’t need a lesson right now.” 

The boy before her lows his eyes to the colorful crystal-clear pebbles adorning the floor, and opens a smile as he tucks his hands into his pockets and kicks softly one of the tiny rocks. “Seems I can still surprise you after all,” he says and looks up to see her reaction. “I actually came to say I get how you feel.” 

As she looks suspiciously at him, he shrugs. “I get that just like me you know nothing about this ‘you’ persona and that all of us are scared.” he continued. “And I also get that you have a lot to lose in case your secret–Our secret comes out, and that is frightening.” 

Kaya looks at her own hands, curled in her lap while weighing his words. He then takes the opportunity to take a few more steps toward her. “Not knowing what could be thrown at us is scary and I would definitely take a more…” he stops to think of the proper choice of word. “Cautious approach. But that is my style, my personality faced with danger. So is yours.” 

Their eyes meet again and she takes force in his argument to let her anger out. “Exactly! So why–” Namjoon places a hand on her thigh, coming a little closer. 

“That doesn’t mean everyone will behave identically when confronted with the same situation… I get you, and I get myself for thinking the way we think, but I also get Elena.” 

Kaya scoffs, her anger still not subdued. She crosses her arms as she says “So much for saying you weren’t giving me a lecture.” and all Namjoon can do is laugh as he wraps his arms around her frame. 

“And I’m not! I was just saying I get everyone for having the reactions they’re having at the moment. Was it a bit imprudent of Elena to go at that psycho? Yeah, a bit… But I get her. Some people run, some people hide, others much rather grab the bull by its horns.” he says and she gently leans her forehead on his chest. “Besides, we do need to take action. That thing in the clearing…? It happened at the library with us.”

As the girl inhales deeply, with her eyes closed, Namjoon caresses her hair with a soft touch he only knew how to invoke for her. In this sense of security, Kaya is brave and steady enough to uncross her arms and place them around his waist. She pulls him closer, compensating for all the time they stayed out of each other’s reach. “You’re like a very much-needed cup of tea,” she says diverging subjects and looking up at him. Her chin is now the one being pressed against his chest. 

“Out of all things, a cup of tea?!” 

The smile reaches her eyes as he exclaims indignantly. “It’s the only other thing besides you that manages to calm me down.” she says.

His eyebrows waver and she sees how he is pondering her statement. It’s in moments like this that she finds Namjoon precious. She knows he will find the beauty in her phrase and intent, and because of that, this moment will be significant forever. He will make sure of it, as he had done countless times before by sneaking little poems he had written himself inside her books. 

“If that is the case… Alright. I’m good with being a cup of tea.” He muses, showing off his dimple. “Healing properties, right?” 

“Tons!” she says, grabbing him by the collar of his tee and locking him in a kiss.

Freya liked the transition from afternoons to evenings the best. There was something calming about how the sun would set every day just as she would. With a big breath of hers, it was already hidden away again, all of the stress that burned her shoulders gone within those bright and scorching oranges against the deep sea of blue. At least until tomorrow came.

The Psykhe tower was the best place to watch it happening, but ever since she found out about the shocking truth of someone stalking her from there, she hadn’t felt comfortable hanging in her old spot. And because of that, she found herself taking a stroll around the school grounds, searching for her new safe haven. Only the sun knew how much she needed some peace and quiet away to drown her frustration after the recent events and their last meeting at the clearing. And Jungkook, after their shared encounter earlier on. 

She had her headphones on, whispering soft melodies into her ear, and because of that, she didn’t take notice of someone walking behind her. She was really close to the borders of the woods, staying close by after having left the group’s rendezvous but opting to skip classes to uncloud her thoughts. When she looked up at the sky, the oranges began to fade, and all that golden light blind-sighted her. At this rate, she would lose the sunset. 

Then a gulf of wind hit her face and a chill ran down her spine. A pair of hands came in contact with her shoulders and she shivered, remembering the last moments before she and her friends were scared away from the clearing. 

Taking her headphones off in a hurry, she turned around startled. The sound of laughter invaded her ears before she could even meet the eyes of her jumpscare. 

“Got ya!” the tall golden retriever-like boy exclaimed as soon as she came face to face with him. 

“Mingyu!” she stressed. “For fucks sake, I almost died!” 

The response she received was more whole hearty laughter and that eased her mood. She smiled seeing him have fun but something else clung to her heart. 

Ever since the games, the both of them had grown slightly close. Every time they crossed paths around school, there was a smile there paired with brief hellos and sincere curiosity. By Monday morning a mutual invitation to be each other’s lab partners in one of the few classes they shared—chemistry. 

Still, he wasn’t the laughter she sought to hear when all that orange was about to clash with the soon-to-be night sky. 

“So what are you doing around here?” Freya asks and the brunette has to wipe his joyful tears to be able to answer. 

“I was on my way to the dorms actually. Just got out of practice.” 

Freya still couldn’t help but admire his genuine smile and how his freshly washed hair dropped some water droplets on his face. But at the same time, her head was dancing elsewhere. A few yards away, to be exact, where under an oak tree she had made a deal to meet after classes. The sun was setting, but she was still to hear from her free-period companion. 

“I saw you walking by and decided to say hi.” Mingyu continued searching for her eyes. 

“And that’s how you say hi?” she laughed. 

“Next time I’ll try to be more… Charming about it.” 

“Next time?” her eyebrow raised. She couldn’t say she ever paid attention to a guy from school before that year, or that she ever really liked a boy from there. Well, besides her friends of course. And that was mostly because she was afraid of things that required too much vulnerability on her side. And a tiny bit because no one had ever seemed worth the struggle she called trust. Did they genuinely like her, or did they just want the status? So the story unfolded naturally. There were too many eyes, and being a great wall to climb became a trait of personality she was too comfortable with to change. 

Ever since she got unrightfully exposed, however, by sneaking into the boys' quarters, some freedom of choice was returned to her in that regard. No one was interested in knowing who the next guy in her love life would be. And so she perhaps was beginning to feel ready to come out of her shell. Both in love and new friendships. But the former wasn’t the risk she wanted to take when it came to Mingyu… Possibly if someone else hadn’t arrived in that department first.

He seemed to understand her line of thinking as his eyes got bigger and his expression turned sour. Suddenly he was apologizing. 

“Oh–I’m so–So sorry!” he shook his head as if realizing what he had just done. “You have a boyfriend. I’m being disrespectful. I’m sorry.” 

At first, she was confused. Boyfriend? She didn’t have one. That wasn’t her point at all. But then the recent events hit her like a truck and she had to inhale hard to get hold of the little patience she still had. 

She liked Mingyu. She could tell they could be good friends, amazing even. So she took a leap of faith. 

“Can I tell you a secret?” she asked. Freya didn’t have much to lose at this point, and she needed this. A safe space of her own. 

Mingyu nodded attentively. 

“Yoongi isn’t my boyfriend. We never even hooked up.” 

She could see in Mingyu’s face how surprised he was. All the engines of his brain working to make sense of what she had just confessed. Freya was relieved, however, to finally get it out of her system. That someone knew the truth besides her and her girlfriends. That she was at least in control of that tiny little confession and somehow still free. She almost did it earlier on that day anyways. 

“Why…?” the words fell off his lips, afraid to lengthen the subject in question. Freya offered an encouraging glance, waiting for his inquiry to be resumed. He got hold of what her eyes wanted to convey this time. “Why are you two pretending to date then?” 

“I guess Yoongi knew how much bothered I would be by the amount of gossip even though I pretend I’m not… And he also knew people wouldn’t shut up about it until a name was given to the starving crowd. So why not his? Everyone already assumed we were together anyways.” 

“I’m proud to say I’ve never thought that,” Mingyu confessed, raising his hand as a solemn promise. “I even argued otherwise.” 

Freya chuckled, finding it endearing. “You would have been the only one then.”

The darkness of the night was already covering every nook of the school like a cloak when the group of friends received a text from Elena. 

Nothing but three words. Classroom 202 now. 

Receiving a text from the girl after what went down that afternoon seemed hard enough to conceive, let alone one so encrypted like that. And so, each and every one of them immediately stopped what they had been doing and rushed in secret through the marble tiles of the main building in search of the room she invited them in. 

One by one they entered. Elena was already there, pacing back and forth when the first of them arrived—Taehyung. It was evident that she possessed some kind of information that she would much more like to be false thinking of her part. He didn’t need a second look at her to prove that. 

Hoseok and Namjoon entered right after. Kaya was a few seconds behind them, and they all felt the same. Besides being afraid of possible detention for running through the halls so late at night, all sat in silence waiting, taking in the gravity of the situation by glancing into each other's eyes in the dark. And it didn’t get better as the more they waited, the more impatient and eerie they all got. 

Elena still paced, cryptic. Sometimes she would look out the window or check the door for the ones missing. She would hear some of them whispering to each other questions she couldn’t lose time answering, nor had the patience since she was still hurt by their last meeting. At least not unless everyone was present. 

And then Yoongi opened the door, everyone looked at him frightened and relieved at the same time. Some searched for something behind his back with their phones flashlights and that made him turn around to check the hallway. It was too dark.

“What?” he asked, spooked, searching for their eyes once again. His hand is still on the knob, keeping the door open, as he too turns on the light from his device.

Elena paces quickly in his direction, pulling him into the classroom and peeking outside to check if he was indeed alone. She closed the door rushedly. “Are you alone?” 

“Yes,” Yoongi replied confused. “Shouldn’t I be?” 

“We’re missing my sister,” Taehyung said, going toward the window alarmed. The only thing he could see through that darkness was the woods silhouette. 

“Ok…?” Yoongi continued completely clueless, barely making sight of everyone present in the room due to the poor illumination. “What am I missing? We better have a fucking good reason to be out here.” 

But no one replied. Or even attempted to. 

Both girls looked at each other in a silent question about Freya’s whereabouts, putting their resentment aside momentarily. They reached the same conclusion with a hopeless shrug of shoulders. And Hoseok’s concerns didn’t help to lift the mood. 

“You don’t think she was attacked like Joy… right? She wouldn’t…” As soon as he questioned it Jin slapped his arm with a hard stare and he shut up flustered. But the possibility taunted everyone present. 

There was a pause. Time halted in that classroom. In a flash, Elena pulled her phone to text Freya in desperation, the faint flashlight from her mobile turned off in the process and the room got darker than it already was. 

“I’ll go look” Jungkook offered, a dagger piercing his stomach for missing out on both his and Freya’s promise to spend the after classes period together. Right at the same time, Taehyung crossed the room to the door. 

“C’mon…” Yoongi mumbled as he pressed his mobile closer to his ear, trying to call the girl in question. He had finally grasped the gravity of the situation. 

Jimin and Kaya were by the big window, swiping the landscape beneath them inch by inch. A red bleep twinkled by the edge of the forest and Jimin leaned his nose against the cold glass to try and see it again. He squinted his eyes, but nothing appeared. When he was beginning to think his eyes were playing tricks on him, he got startled by the sound coming from the door. He turned back in a flash. As soon as Taehyung opened it to set foot outside he came to a halt. Jungkook consequently bumped into his back like a domino. 

“Get inside!” They heard Freya’s hushed voice demand. “Turn that off. Now!” 

Suddenly the room was engulfed in a deep blackness. The kind of dark that makes the hairs on your nape jump. The one that makes every fear you have come true. No one dared to whisper a word out. All they could do was search for each other’s shadows and listen closely for the haunting sound of thumping against the cold marble floors of the corridor. 

A few minutes passed, maybe seconds when Yoongi lit his phone again. Time was hard to pinpoint when faced with the extreme nothingness of a total blackout. Soon, all convinced that the night guard had moved on from that section, they all turned the soft light of their screens back on again. 

“Sorry–” Freya was the first to break the silence. “I was already outside… Had to go around that security.” 

“Just. Please,” Kaya begged on edge, “Let’s get on with this–Whatever this is and go to our rooms. Please.” 

In a silent agreement, all eyes turned to Elena. 

The strawberry-blonde girl lifted up from the crouch she was previously hiding in and leaned on the teacher’s desk. The ones close to the floor followed, sitting by the empty wooden chairs in front of the class. Only Jungkook and Yoongi were up. One leaned by the wall and the other by the door to keep watch. 

“I texted you all here because I think I figured it out,” Elena says, a bit taken aback by her own statement. 

“What do you mean…?” Jimin inquires, and everyone looks as if the world would end. Because in fact, it was. 

“I know who You is.” 

next chapter.

#bts au #jungkook smut #bts ot7 au #jungkook scenarios #bts scenarios #bts college au #bts high school au #jimin scenario #taehyung au #jimin smut #hoseok fluff #bts x you #namjoon scenarios #yoongi imagine #jin fluff #jungkook imagine #bts series #ot7 smut #ot7 x you #horus academy #bluenpjm #bluenpjm.docx

[singguks]

#fighton! ✱ 3 | bts

synopsis. like every college, this one also has gossip and drama to fill the hallways, as well as lot’s of parties and games to attend. but when two of the most popular groups start to collide the whole campus goes into havoc. suddenly all eyes are on them. what will be the final outcome of this clash of clans?

📕 this is a revamp; the old archive is here

pairing. bts x oc's

genre. college au + fluff + slice of life + smut + angst

word count. 17.5k

warnings. unresponsible drinking, lots of fights, and sexual tension.

a/n. dedicated to @tangyguk as a belated happy birthday gift!! thank you for being part of our precious group ♡ we adore you dearly and wish to have you next to us for many more years!! here's to you, sunny, and to your day. happy twelve of august ☀️

✱ chapters. #1 — #2 — #3 — #4

Carolina’s cell phone display marked eight-thirty am and the girl couldn’t help but shake her leg up and down in pure anxiety. 

She hated arriving late to practices in general, but today she just couldn’t. 

As it turns out, today was the first volleyball official game of the season. The male team would be competing later in the evening to classify, and whenever they had big games like that the whole team would be called to train together and help appoint errors on whatever they needed to better in court so they would be ready to ace the other team.

“Hey,” Ben called for her, his eyes trailing to the car changing lanes in front of them. “You’ll arrive in time, don’t worry!” He chuckled, finding the way she was clutching her seat belt in the passenger seat actually funny but also adorable. 

Carolina didn’t say a word, just nodded in agreement. For a second there, she felt guilty for choosing to sleep in Ben’s place instead of her own apartment, knowing it was way closer to the pavilion and Jin would always know shortcuts to get her on time. 

Her mind was only able to rest at ease when Ben parked the car right in front of the main door, and she gave him a quick peck before jumping out of the vehicle and running towards the locker room. She had precisely seven minutes to change her clothes, before the coach blew his whistle, marking the beginning of practice. 

She managed to barge through the court’s door a few seconds before Mr. Hoffman, their coach, blew that annoying thing he always carried around his neck. The players were all aligned, looking at Mr. Hoffman as he remarked stoically, “I thought you would miss today's sess too, Jones.”

“When did I ever?” Carolina punched back filling her spot on the line, and gaining what it felt to the start of a smile on the coach’s face. 

Mr. Hoffman had been a volley player too back in the days, so his natural stature of six foot one and his cranky face could make anyone step back in fear. But for the ones that dared to know the man better, or drive him mad at every opportunity like Carolina did, it was clear as day he was nothing but a softy deep down. He was just really stressed and short-tempered. 

“Alright.” He gave in. “Just don’t throw up like Jeremy over there… I know you guys had a party last night, but suck the hangover in, alright?! Shouldn’t hav’ gone to it in the first place.” 

They all held in laughter seeing the male’s team opposite hitter, Jeremy, laid on a bench, arm over his eyes like the world was ending. If they didn’t know him better, concern about him not being able to play in tonight’s game would surface, but then again, Jeremy was out and about every day. 

Countless times had he arrived minutes before practice with a massive hangover. And if you’re wondering… No, the coach didn’t need to take any measures. Jeremy is a wild card alright, but he’s also one of the best out there; he can be anything but unprofessional when it comes to volley. Or unpassionate. 

“So that’s where you were last night!” Lu whispered indignantly at Carolina’s ear while eyeing the bleachers. “I can’t believe you missed a sleepover at my house because of that gorgeous and sexy as hell man over there.” She added, making Carolina laugh and glance quickly at Ben, who waved at her. 

She saluted him jokingly, making him flash a big smile before she turned back to face the court to start practicing. And while she chatted cheerfully with Lu about her rendezvous, simultaneously stretching, a pair of eyes on the other side of the net followed her every move. 

Jungkook still hadn’t swallowed the scene he had witnessed the previous night. And seeing his teacher in the bleachers, staring at Carolina without a care in the world, wasn’t sitting right in his stomach. 

“JK?” Eunwoo, the male’s team setter, called for him again as he was lost in thoughts. “You following?” 

“Huh?” He snapped his head back to the actual team. As Eunwoo pressed again with a raise of his eyebrows, smiling at Jungkook’s unusual loss of focus when it came to the sport, he shook his head. “Sorry, yeah. Go on,” 

Eunwoo had been explaining what plays he wanted to make for their game later that evening, as he had been up late at night studying the other team’s moves. 

While he did so, and the rest of the team listened attentively, the girls were completely dispersed. The team itself wasn’t as close as the boys were, and that resulted in some inner circles as they stretched or practiced. 

Truth is, ever since Carolina arrived on the team there had been problems. Jennifer’s posh attitude had crashed immensely with hers, and to worsen the situation, the coach had appointed Carolina to the setter position and the starter line without even doing much training. 

At first, the collision was mostly bickering and eyes rolling here and there. Jennifer would always try to anger the girl somehow, but Carolina stood her ground without paying much mind. With time—not that long as you are probably thinking—things started running south. After the setter heard that conversation between Jennifer and Jungkook, she no longer ignored her snarky remarks or childish behavior. Carolina started barking back and that made things between the team shift. 

“Let’s move!” Mr. Hoffman demanded with arms crossed while his assistants kept a closer look at the players that were jumping up and down and taking their positions on the court. 

They were going to start the practice with the male team starter line playing against a mix of the female team starters and the male players that were on the bench as the coach would definitely make them substitute on the first or second sets. 

Jungkook was by the net and although Jennifer kept smiling at him from the other side, craving his attention, he had his eyes elsewhere. The bleachers.

“Don’t take it easy on us,” Eunwoo smiled friendly while offering his fist beneath the net to Carolina, who took the same position as him on the other team. 

She bumped it gladly, “Never!” 

Tracy, Jennifer’s best friend and the middle blocker of the female team, was getting ready to serve. Jungkook’s eyes went to follow her movement to try and predict where the ball would come to but all he could see was Ben’s figure leaning forward with a grin on his face while ogling Carolina. 

Is he looking at…?

“My bad!” their libero shouted as he failed to correct the ball’s trajectory to a perfect pass. 

Eunwoo moved swiftly to get the second touch and arrange the perfect position for one of his hitters. Jungkook saw the exact moment he was about to pass it to Jeremy, but he really needed that one. He needed to carve that ball deep into the court to let some steam off. 

“Open!” the raven-haired boy shouted with his right arm up; eyes eager and about to burn. 

Eunwoo didn’t think, he didn’t need to. Whenever this happened, his body reacted instinctively to Jungkook’s motion, much like a magnet. And so he tossed the ball to his teammate in a perfect parabole. 

Jungkook took a swing as if he was about to fly. 

As his body was raised closer to the net, he targeted the spot intended for the ball to go, and his hand came in like an unmerciful whip. Carolina, Tracy, and Jason jumped to block it, but they all knew it was a lost battle. Whenever Jungkook attained such a majestic form on the other side of the net, a point was guaranteed. So they all looked back when they heard the loud bang the ball made, but much to their surprise, it hadn't come in touch with the wooden floor like it always did. 

“Fuck!” They heard a loud groan coming from the bleachers. 

Carolina gasped as she saw the ball rolling down the seats, right next to Ben, who had his right hand over his shoulder with closed eyes and furrowed brows. 

“Holy…! Ben!” She went running toward him after the scene sank into her mind. To her relief, Mr. Hoffman had already sent his assistant to check on the man injured before her. 

Jungkook kept panting from the other side with his hands on his hips; his expression far from guilt or regret. 

“I’ve never seen you be so accurate before,” Eunwoo tapped on Jungkook’s shoulder with a naughty chuckle and a nod of his head making his teammate scoff and turn around to go fetch another ball. 

Jimin wasn’t supposed to be awake. At least not at eleven in the morning. 

He and Taehyung had arrived way too late last night, both unable to find their building or even walk straight for the matter. By the time they managed to do so, the sun was already shining bright on the horizon, turning everything it touched into shades of soft gold. 

The jock had planned to stay in bed until a bit after lunchtime, only getting up to eat something and then going back to his safe haven until it was time to get ready for yet another massive event—the volley team game and its party. Unfortunately, as he struggled to open his eyes, alarmed by the maddening sound of an unknown alarm, he saw himself in a different scenario. 

The owner of said alarm, Taehyung, sleeps soundly on the other side of the room, without mention of moving or even turning off the diabolical thing. 

So Jimin was forced to get up to do so. 

He kicked his blankets to the side, lazily crossing the distance to pick his friend's device up just to state his fear. Frowning to see how early it was, he cussed under his breath. The situation was about to turn south, as he turned off the maddening sound, ready to wake his roommate up with at least a pull on his leg when he spotted her. 

Right on the front lawn, under the willow tree that made their dorm have the best view compared to the others on campus, Jimin spotted Sarah. 

He didn’t have his glasses or contacts on, but he knew, from the way she laughed with her whole body, to her blonde locks fluttering in the light morning breeze that it was her. He had admired her long enough to know. 

The girl was accompanied by a group of friends, and she was the only one standing while the rest of them sat on top of a sarong extended on the lawn. They all looked at her, laughing as well. From what Jimin could gather, she was quite the taleteller. 

He looked at the device in his hand again. It was seven minutes to eleven-thirty. Jimin sighed. And then forgetting all about his rest, he opened his wardrobe, picking a pair of jeans and a loose dress shirt to put on. 

Not even fifteen minutes later, he was walking out of the building, teeth brushed, hair messily combed back with a pair of sunglasses to support his casual style. 

The coffee shop was right across, and he would definitely pass by Sarah if he were to trace through the lawn instead of going around it. It was perfect.  

But he should have predicted she would spot him first. And then what could have been a serendipitous moment became just a long catwalk while she stared at him with a large smile, and a hand over her eyes so the sun could be blocked. 

“Enjoying a morning walk after last night?” Sarah teased as he came closer to her and her friends. 

Jimin chuckled amused. “Came just for the coffee,” he said, pointing toward the coffee shop behind her. Then he looked at her friends sitting on top of a red sarong, with a shy smile. “Hey, how you doing?” 

The girls greeted him excitedly, exchanging glances between themselves. Sarah was too invested to notice. 

“Just for the coffee, huh?” she raised her eyebrow teasingly. Jimin chuckled. 

“Are you going to the game later tonight too?” a short girl with bangs asked him, all smiles. 

He looked from her to Sarah, as if waiting for an introduction and she quietly whispered her friend’s name to him. “Uh- Yeah! Are you going too, Sunny?” 

“We are!” she answered excitedly. “I was just telling Sarah we should go earlier since I’m pretty sure the place will be packed… Anything for a good seat!” she laughed, and Jimin nodded agreeing. 

“You should! I’m going earlier too” the boy added. 

“Well, I still have to find someone to interview today…” Sarah sighed, looking around as if her savior would come. 

Eliza, the other girl sat down, eyed her for a bit, and then shifted her glance toward Jimin. Sarah met her eyes and as soon as it happened she knew what was going to unravel next. She gulped nervously. 

“You’re an athlete aren’t you?” 

Jimin looked at the girl before even realizing the question was directed to him. “I am,” he said simply, waiting for further context.

Sunny looked at her too, expectant. Eliza then turned to Sarah. “Why not interview him?” 

“Oh I don’t know-“ Sarah said hesitantly. “I don’t want to take your time or anything…” she added, biting her lips. 

Jimin opened another radiant smile, looking at her fondly. He hadn’t expected to reach the coffee shop anyways, her company was all that he had been hoping for. 

Not knowing what the interview would even be about, Jimin answered. “It would be a pleasure to be interviewed by the infamous Sarah Lewis,” he added a wink at the end and the girl melted under his gaze. 

The blonde said quick goodbyes to her two friends, with promises of being as speedy with the interview as she could so they could meet early to attend the game. Meanwhile, the jock could only hope to extend their time together, after all, they did have some pending business.

Jungkook was pretty nervous. He was in the locker room, sat down together with his team, all waiting for the game to begin while their coach kept giving last advice and cheering them on. And although Jungkook very much liked the “old man” as he would call him, he had been listening to none of the words leaving Mr. Hoffman’s mouth. His only focus was the loud cheering he could hear from outside and the way their benches would shake from the crowd’s loud stomps. From what he could tell, the bleachers of the inside court were already packed, and he was right. 

Jimin was the first of his group of friends to arrive, and because of that, he was having some trouble safeguarding the seats for everyone. He was trying hard to balance out a rather large beer cup on his hands—that was already half empty—while his left leg was up to the side, on top of two seats, and his jacket on the other one by his right, as well as the cardboard piece he had made earlier that afternoon to support Jungkook. 

The more crowded the place got, the more he was finding it hard to keep the seats since they were definitely in the best spot to watch the game; courtesy of Jungkook who had given him the tip. The number of people trying to sit there just for him to say “I’m sorry it’s occupied”, especially the bad-mouthing session that came right after it, was proving to be a challenging task to his patience. 

He was about to curse someone himself, mentally blaming his friends for running late, once he heard Deo’s voice calling for him. 

“Chims!”, she did her best to get noticed by everyone passing by. “Down here!!” 

He took a second to spot her arms, waving the best she could as the place was very much full of people trying to accommodate themselves on their seats. 

“Come quickly!” he screamed back, caving into a full smile, “My leg is numb!” 

That was the thing about Jimin, he could get grumpy and emotional, or sometimes really mad, but he couldn’t do so for long. And if he were to be honest, he was always the one running late inside his circle of friends. Today had just been the exception thanks to a gorgeous blue-eyed girl.

“I thought I was going to lose a leg,” he sighed taking down his limb off the seats as Deo and Hoseok approached him to sit down, “I mean, I’m great at doing splits but this was just too long of a torture!” 

“Stop being dramatic,” Deo cut him off. “It was only fifteen minutes.” 

Hoseok laughed out, partially guilty while accommodating himself on his seat, “It was way more, and you know it!” 

The blonde one lifted his hand to point it at Hoseok, clapping it down again on his leg, happy for having someone side with him. “Thank you!” 

“Wanna die?” Deo intervened quickly with a look making her friend raise his hands in defeat as she bit down a smile. “Where’s Hyori by the way?” she asked, looking around. 

“Texted me a while ago saying she was just changing to come…” 

Hoseok took the cup from Jimin’s hand taking a quick sip, “Still? I dropped her off at the dorms hours ago!” 

Deo’s eyes quickly left the court to question Hoseok about her roommate. It wasn’t of Hyori to arrive late, much less to dwell so heavily on getting ready. “And you’re sure she went to our dorm?” 

“Mmhm, I’m sure.” 

Hoseok was clueless about the worrying state Deo immediately had gotten in. The sunshine of the group munched on some red gummies, sugar-coated, as his eyes scanned the volley court. With each second, more and more people were arriving and it was certain that there weren’t going to be enough places for everyone.

“There she is!” Jimin pointed out to the entrance on the other side of where they were seated before the strawberry blonde girl could ask Hoseok more questions. 

Hoseok squinted his eyes trying to look for Hyori among the crowd and as he found her, he got up from his seat raising his arms. “Wave at her!” 

“There’s no way she will see you.” Deo giggled while searching for her phone inside her purse. “I’m going to call her.” 

“Just shout her name,” Jimin added fuel to the fire getting up from his seat as well. 

“Guys, oh my God–” Deo covered her face as the two were already up on their seats, standing high. “Where’s Jungkook when you need him…” 

As the duo began to chant the brunette’s name, Hoseok began to jump, hands up in the air, trying to catch the girl’s attention. Jimin fell into a fit of laughter immediately, almost falling off his seat as his stomach began hurting. Deo already had her phone glued to her ear when Hyori hung up. 

“She sees me!” Hoseok's strident laugh is heard all through the venue, as he looks proudly at his friends. 

“Hope, you should try out for the cheerleading squad. That was amazing.” Jimin managed to say in between gasps for air.

Hyori had to strategically pick out a route to be able to reach her friends. And by the time she did, she was puffing, bag strap swinging over her head as she struggled to take off her jacket. Jimin, ever so gentleman-like, gave her his hand to help her sit as the other took care of the weight of her bag. 

“This place is packed!” Hyori commented, eyes scanning the room.

“Hell yeah!” Hoseok cheered, “those suckers won’t know what hit them!” 

The bleachers remained loud, people casually talking with their peers as they waited for the main attraction: the volleyball team, with Jungkook leading them out of the locker rooms. By this time, they were probably receiving a last-minute pep talk from the coach.

“Hyo, you look so nice!” Jimin squeezed the girl’s side, making her slap his hand. 

“Thanks.” Not knowing how to react to compliments, Hyori smiled, head leaning on the jock’s shoulder. “So do you.” 

“Hey, missy, what took you so long?” Deo inquisitively asked by her roommate’s side. 

“What do you mean? The game hasn’t even started.” Hyori replied coyly. If someone knew her was her roommate. 

Scoffing, the cheerleader presses, a smile adorning her features. “And did you have time to hide the evidence or when we get home your desk will be covered in highlighter?” 

Hyori furrowed her brows, eyes rolling instinctively. In her mind, she battled with her two options: keep being oblivious to her best friend’s questions or come clean. 

She chooses the latter. “Is it bad?” 

“Not at all.” Now eyeing the girl’s skin in more detail, the strawberry blonde compliments. “You’re at a pro level. Next time I need to do my makeup, I’ll come to you.” 

“Deal.” Hyori turns her body to chip in on the conversation of the boys next to her.

“Is it for the cute boy from the texts?” Deo whispers, teasingly and laughs right after, noticing how the girl beside her stiffens. 

“I–maybe.” 

Hyori knew that Deo wasn’t mocking her but she didn’t want the boys to know. They would make this a more significant thing than it actually was. And that was precisely why she hadn’t gone to Jungkook yet. Deo had pointed out how their friend could smooth things out for Hyori. So she glared at her bestie, a look the other knew as half a plea, half a threat to keep her mouth shut. 

“What cute boy?” Hoseok's head almost popped in between the two girls.

“Me, obviously.” Jimin smiled big, cockily. 

“You are such a jock.” Deo snorted. 

“Excuse me??” Pretending to be offended, the blonde boy protected his heart with his hands. “Am I not the cute bo–” 

“LOOK! THERE THEY COME!” 

The doors that led to the locker room opened with a loud bang making the crowd avert their attention to the players running towards the court. Both teams came to greet the audience from opposite sides. Jungkook passed by right under where his group of friends was, swiftly turning himself on his heels to look up and send them a flying kiss. They all laughed at his exaggerated expressions while doing so. 

“MAKE US PROUD!” Jimin shouted loudly, making the other three by his side laugh hysterically, and even join the chant of Jungkook’s nickname a bit after. 

The raven-haired boy couldn’t help but open a huge smile, even if he felt a bit embarrassed at the racket his friends were making on the bleachers. As soon as he sat down to hear the tactical moves his coach was about to suggest, however, he became serious and relentless. Almost like he couldn’t hear a single word around him but the ones falling from his coach’s lips. 

Not long after, the team got up. The players gathered around their coach to put their hands together, shouting the college catchphrase “Fight On!” like they were about to go to war. Once that was out of the way, the front-line players formed a line outside the court, waiting for the host to call for their names so they could make an entrance. 

“Here we go!” Taehyung exclaimed excitedly. A bucket of fries in one hand and a red and golden flag with the college insignia in the other; waving it proudly. 

Yoongi couldn’t help but chuckle amused as he saw Carolina cross her arms; she was sitting right under them, between their legs. “You are really out to piss her off today, aren’t you?” he looked at the players running to the court but Taehyung knew he was talking with him. 

“Pshh,” He scoffed, taking a fry to his mouth. “I’m not…” 

“I'm betting two dollars that Carolina will have him trapped in the girls' locker room by the end of this match,” Jin said casually to Namjoon, bending forward to see him as they were separated by Carolina and Luiza who sat in the middle. Not satisfied, he took two dollar bills out of his pocket and started waving them. 

The girl in question didn’t say a word. She was too pissed with what had happened earlier in practice to even bother taking her eyes out of the court. The thought of Jungkook failing all his serves played like a loop in her mind. Still, she couldn’t afford to think that way as the male team needed to win this game if they wanted to qualify for the finals. 

“What am I even doing with two dollars, bro?” Namjoon questioned, glancing at the bills in front of them with furrowed eyebrows. 

“Namjoon, sometimes you fail to see the beauty in capitalism… If you bet two dollars as well, we have four. The winner gets to buy a hot dog.” 

Jin didn’t need to say much more. Yoongi took his wallet out, fishing some bills out of it. “I bet she will at least pinch him. You know that hellish pinch of hers?” He asked with a sufferable expression as if he could feel his skin burning just from thinking of it. Jin looked up at him. 

“The sucker pinch?” The oldest asked while Taehyung ate his fries rather anxious while listening to their bets. “That’s a good one. How much?” he asked as Yoongi nodded his head. The game was about to start but the two were not at all focused. Namjoon, who was right in the middle of the trades, kept drinking his beer totally unbothered. 

“Three dollars” Yoongi flashed his bills out, “One hot dog and a beer.” 

At that moment, Taehyung scoffed. “She’s not pinching me, I’m like her bro- OUTCH!”, the boy’s hand went flying to his inner thigh in desperation, rubbing his burning flesh as Carolina laughed satisfied. Jin sighed, giving Yoongi two dollars and the latter immediately waved his hand in the air so the hot dog seller could spot him. 

“Why?”, they heard Taehyung whine. 

“Yoongi seemed hungry and you know, I like to help out artists… The music industry these days is tough”, she shrugged off with a serious face while Lu kept on laughing beside her. 

Yoongi bit down a tiny smile that threatened to escape, ruining his usual poker face. Before the hot dog seller approached him through the staircase, as he was sitting at the end of the row, he blurted out words that didn’t usually leave his mouth. “Love you.” 

“Love you too.” Carolina had said back without turning her head to look at him. She too was biting down a smile of her own. 

“What about me then?! Your dear roommate, hm?” Jin twisted his body completely to face her side profile; her lips trembling, struggling to hold in the laughter. Gaining no reaction or response from her, he exclaimed indignantly. “People these days! She’s worse than the music industry, let me tell you!” he was saying to whoever wanted to listen as the others laughed. Not satisfied, he glanced to his right, and locking eyes with a random guy he saw the opportunity to complain. “Can you believe this, Patrick?” 

There was a second of doubt. “M-My name is Noah”, the guy introduced himself awkwardly. 

“Oh…” Jin blinked, and if he got flustered he didn’t show. “Nice to meet you. I’m Jin. Can you call that girl over there selling fries, please? I’m hungry as fuck!” 

The boy beside him nodded, visibly taken aback by Jin’s behavior, and that only added more reason for Yoongi to burst out in laughter. “I can’t believe this guy”

“Hey Noah, ask her for one more bucket, please!” Taehyung added, acting naturally as if the boy in question was a friend of his and not a complete stranger. 

“And to think I argued with my dad to defend my friends…” Namjoon said humorously, taking another large sip from his beer. Both Carolina and Lu glanced over at him, and while the latter chuckled, assuming he had been making a joke, Carolina knew him better than that. His eyes weren’t smiling. 

She leaned back, waiting for him to look at her too, as Lu—who sat between them—was focused on the game playing on the court. 

“What happened?” she mouthed silently as his eyes met hers. 

“The usual,” Namjoon shrugged with a melancholic smile. “But not now. Maybe once I’m properly drunk I’ll spill my heart out to you.”

Carolina knew it was not the moment. Namjoon always talked whenever he felt ready to; on that, they were very much alike. So she nodded in agreement, giving him a bright smile, but holding onto that promise. 

“GO TROJANS!”, she shifted her focus back at the game as Taehyung screamed from above her, getting up to wave his flag passionately, smiling like a kid. Jungkook had scored another point. She sighed, slumping on her seat, head leaning on Yoongi’s right knee. 

To outsiders, it might seem she was supporting the other team, which was not so incorrect. It turned out she had been holding this childish grudge against the MVP of UCBL, so she was in internal conflict.  Carolina didn’t want her college to lose, but she also didn’t want Jungkook to win. To her misfortune, the sport she loved so much wasn’t a solo one… Losing, here, wasn’t an option, and she knew deep down they wouldn’t. 

The first set was almost coming to an end. The Trojans, Jungkook’s team, had already scored twenty points and the Princeton Tigers had a six-point difference to cover. Everyone in that court knew the Trojans would win. It was an easy game. But Jungkook was foolishly wasting all of his energy on the match. 

The team's main player had been, from the start, serving with brute force; his attacks were merciless and he would run with all his might after balls that weren’t worth running for. So much so, that once he scored the last point, securing the Trojans the win in the first set, and everyone cheered loudly screaming his name, his coach had no option but to call him in. 

“What are you doing, kid?” Mr. Hoffman asked as he came in sweaty, with a water bottle in his hands. Both teams had headed to their benches, as they prepared to switch sides and start the second set. Jungkook glanced around, with heavy breathing. “Hey, hey. Look at me! There’s no need to waste energy like that, you hear me?” 

“Why not?”, he retorted out of pure spite. His eyes encountered the confused ones of his coach for brief seconds before resuming to scan the inside bleachers, chugging down more water as he did so. “You always say we must have that kind of competitive spirit.”

“And it’s meant to use it wisely, you twat! What happens when you tire yourself out and they begin advancing on us?! What then?”, the coach exploded. The grey man had to take a moment to breathe, his hand coming to his hip as he looked down to inhale. Mr. Hoffman was close to grabbing Jungkook by his collar and dragging him to the bench to teach him a lesson, but he really couldn’t afford to take his best player out of the game before the second set even began. 

Jungkook tilted his head, starting to feel his blood boil again. “I know my limits, old man. My energy won’t end just because of this simple match,” he stated cockily. 

“That’s why you’re not my elective captain for when Sean graduates! You don’t think straight.” 

Jungkook finally looked at him properly. His jaw tensed to the sudden attack. “I’m your coach, kid. And I’m telling you not to waste any more energy. At the very least don’t make it seem like you need to give all of yourself to defeat them.” 

“That’s not fun–” Jungkook huffed vexed. 

“It’s not supposed to be fun, it’s supposed to be smart. So when we win this game our next adversaries—the Eagles that you sweat your ass so much to win over—are more mentally shaken thinking, ‘Wow that player didn’t even waste a breath on them’ you understand now?”, the elder asks him as if asking a five-year-old, verging on despair. 

Jungkook dropped the water bottle on the floor. “Fine.”

The coach sighed while watching him march his way to the court, waiting for the referee to start the second set. 

“What happened?” Hyori asked once the Trojans scored the seventh point in a carefree manner. “Why is Jungkook playing like he was playing beach volleyball with us?” 

Hoseok squinted his eyes toward the court, observing their friend. The boy in question had his hands on his hips as he waited for Eunwoo to go serve. “Is he already tired?”

“No it’s–” 

“Is he trying to mock the other team?” Deo cut Jimin’s explanation, turning to Hoseok for answers. 

“JEON JUNGKOOK IF YOU DON’T START REACTING RIGHT NOW I SWEAR–” Hyori yelled, alarming people around her. 

Jimin’s hand came to her mouth to shut her up. “He’s probably just playing lightly because they don’t need to do much to win against the Tigers, guys. Calm down.”

“But I mean… Couldn’t he at least try a little harder? It’s boring this way.” Deo added, and they all looked expectant at their friend who was preparing to jump. 

Eunwoo made a perfect pass and Jungkook came smashing it with full precision. The referee whistled. Another point for the Trojans team. “He’s doing good, nonetheless,” The group of friends heard, and one by one they turned around to see who had made that comment. 

It was Sunny, the girl Jimin had met earlier that day with Sarah. She greeted him with a knowing smile and he mimicked her actions. 

The petite girl didn’t play volleyball but she had been attending the games ever since she started college. Hearing one comment here and there about how the players made their moves, made her understand more of the game. And she could talk with ease about Jungkook’s skills now. 

“I think so too,” Jimin added, winking at her. Turning around to pick up the cardboard he had done, he nudged Hyori. “Help me out with this cardboard”, as soon as they lifted it up he shouted. “GO JK!” 

Jungkook was the outside hitter of his team, his function on the team was to be the last one hitting the ball so they could score. Even if he exercised said job lightly, he still managed to make it look amazing. 

The team had just blocked a counterattack from the Tigers, and the scoreboard showed the number twelve in red neon lights. Their rivals were still behind them, and at this pace, they wouldn’t be able to catch the Trojans. 

The referee beeped and they all stopped. The opposing coach had asked for a break. The crowd cheered as they watched Jungkook run to the side of the court alongside his peers to drink some water and take the opportunity to hear anything else their coach would like to add as well. 

“Any extra moves, coach?” Eunwoo, the team’s setter, asked with a victory smile. 

“You know, they’re not so bad…” Ian, their libero, let his thoughts come to the surface. “They’re just unprepared compared to us” 

“Don’t let that fool you. And certainly don’t drop your guards! Now– Keep it up, boys! You’re doing a great job.” Coach tapped their shoulders as a way of thanking them for the good work. He then proceeded to clap enthusiastically, gathering their strength before the time out ended. 

“Be careful with that hitter on the left…” Sean, their middle blocker and captain, warned them as he dried his forehead, looking at the other team pensively. “The kid managed to fit in points in some difficult corners” 

Eunwoo glanced at his captain, giving the water bottle he had in hand to their technician. “You think we should press his side more?” Sean didn’t give him an answer, however, just kept his eyes glued to player number twelve on the other side of the court. “What do you think, JK?” the setter turned to him, watching him drink water absentmindedly; eyes round and big, looking at the floor. Eunwoo knew him long enough to understand that was normal behavior whenever Jungkook had something stuck in his mind. “Hey! JK!” he punched his arm. 

“Mm?” Jungkook looked at them waiting for enlightenment.

“He’s too distracted with Jennifer… She’s in the bleachers somewhere” Jeremy, came by teasing and the boy in question snorted. 

But that wasn’t the case. Jungkook got to know of Jennifer’s presence there at that exact moment. No, his head was somewhere else entirely… It had been ever since he had witnessed Carolina with his History teacher last night in that alley. And earlier today again, when she showed up to practice with the ginger man. 

Something about the whole situation wasn’t sitting right with him. And he couldn’t brush it off. That wasn’t something he knew how to do. 

“Just worry yourself with hitting that ball inside their side of the court, Jeremy”, the raven-haired hitter countered, returning to the match, and making his peers laugh. 

Their captain, however, got nervous with the newly acquired information. “The girls came?!” Sean asked, looking around with a hand above his eyes to shield them from the lights. 

Eunwoo was about to answer when Mr. Hoffman showed up behind them, slapping the taller one on the back of his neck. “Stop looking for girls! Go play!” 

The three of them muttered a ‘yes sir’ and jogged with a different posture toward the court where Jungkook awaited. Eunwoo and Jeremy shared accomplices' looks before taking their positions, making fun of their captain. 

Having won the second set, and since the Trojans were once again leading the third one with a big gap, everyone started to expect a certain win. The boys were still executing elaborate game plays but more at ease. None of them were being forced to exceed too much. 

“Do we still have to be here?” Carolina mumbled to Lu, looking bored at the match. “We already know they are going to win… and I honestly have better things to do.” 

“Oh like making out with Mr. Benji?” Lu whispered with a smirk on her face, eyes peeking quickly at her friend before going back to a certain tall and tanned player. 

Carolina’s breath faltered, and she snapped her head to her friend, waiting promptly for explanations. She didn’t tell Lu about Ben being a teacher… Yet. She had been meaning to, but she left the party with the man instead of going with her friend as they had planned. 

Noticing the inquisitive glance of Carolina burning the right side of her face, Lu smiled, leaning to her side to whisper once again. “You know I’m his student, right? I have history of arts with him… And it’s been some days now that he tells us to read something while he grabs a coffee but he somehow always comes back half an hour later with lips way too red.” 

The brunette lifted one eyebrow at her reasoning, not buying it. “Carolina, the moment he showed up to practice it was clear you guys were making out. And like I said, he’s really my teacher.” Lu laughed, finding the coincidence funny and her stubborn friend trying to hide that fact even funnier. 

The oldest sighed, crossing her arms. “Fine. But are we going home or nah? I really did have better plans.” 

“First of all, it’s the two last points. They just scored twenty-three.” Lu pointed to the huge scoreboard across the arena. “And I’m sorry to break it to you but we are attending the party for the boys. You already called off with me last night, so shut it.” 

Carolina groaned torn by the fact she indeed had a debt with her friend. “Someone’s angry, how cute” Lu added, chuckling. 

“GO TROJANS!” Taehyung shouted from behind them too caught up in the game atmosphere. 

“Yeah, and that someone is me”, Carolina stated, glancing back with a scowl to the boy before sinking in her seat like a vexed kid. 

Luiza couldn’t help but laugh, squeezing Carolina’s cheeks, maneuvering her head so she could focus on what she wanted to show her. “No, that someone is him.” 

And she didn’t need to look much to catch hold of who the curly-haired girl wanted her to see. Jungkook was wildly running from place to place, making attacks way too angry once again. 

“What’s his fucking problem?” her question came muffled, as Lu’s fingers were still trapping her cheeks in a light squeeze. 

“I wouldn’t know… But mine is that one over there.” 

Luiza set free her friend’s cheeks, slumping her shoulders with a defeated sigh. Carolina raised her eyebrow. There’s no way she is crushing over Jeremy, the girl thought. And as if reading her thoughts, the honey-haired girl by her side clarified the situation, taking the opportunity that Namjoon was focused on buying something to eat while chatting with Yoongi. “Sean”, she said pointing to him with her head. 

Carolina’s expression lightened up excitedly, her mouth opening in surprise and her brown eyes doubling the size. “No way!”

“Shhh!” Luiza asked startled. 

The girl before her still had a chirp in her eyes, as if she had discovered the best secret ever. And indeed she had. Whispering, she got closer to her best friend who had her cheeks in a shade of pink, “I honestly think he’s not a problem for you at all” and as Luiza doubted her with a glance she added, “Lu, I’m serious! He’s all smiles around you!” 

The shorter girl looked at Sean once again, doubt all over her face. It suddenly subsided into a playful grin as her best friend nudged her with excited exclamations. 

“What did I miss?” Namjoon cut the party, taking an absentmindedly sip of his newly bought beer. “Oh wow! Final point already!” 

Jungkook was the one in charge of serving. It was their final point to score, and if they succeeded, the victory was theirs. They would qualify. 

As he assumed his stance on the edge of the line and lifted his eyes to see the Tigers on the other side of the net, he knew he could serve the ball and make it to be an ace. But that wasn’t fun. It didn’t spurge him, and he knew he had attentive eyes on him, waiting for yet another unforgettable game. The court was silent and expectant. 

The court devil, as everyone called him before ‘virgin boy’ became a thing, threw the ball up. His eyes were solely focused on it. Two large steps were taken, and suddenly he was suspended in the air. Jungkook made it look beautiful, easy even. 

The crowd held their breaths as his right hand came meeting the ball, spiking it directly towards the arms of the other team’s libero. It was a difficult ball to catch, even if he had put less impact on the effect he had perfected within the years. 

“NICE!” Jimin celebrated, seeing the ball hit on the libero’s arms but slip away to the side instead of going straight to their setter. 

The outside hitter of the other team was as good as Sean had made him be, managing to catch the ball and restructure the game. He had sent it in a larger pass to his opposite, accomplishing an attack, even if it wasn’t the quickest ever seen. 

“Shit”, Namjoon mumbled. His eyes were trailed on the game, afraid to blink. The beer glass he was holding was halfway to his mouth, still in mid-air. 

Ian, the Trojans' libero, managed to catch the spike as he dove onto the floor. But the blow had been a strong one, so the ball pinched on his hand and went backward. Jungkook knew Eunwoo wouldn’t get to the ball on time, so it was up to him to make the counterplay. If he managed to get to it too. 

But if anyone could, that would be him. 

He ran with all he had to the back of the court, eyes up on the ball, glued to it. So much so that he didn’t know what was in front of him. His legs moved recklessly. People from the crowd started to stand. 

Looking at the speed of the ball, he wouldn’t be able to do a bump, much less a basic pass to send it over to the net for someone to attack. In a last-minute call, Jungkook threw his body, reaching the ball with his foot instead. 

He landed with his butt on the floor with a loud thud, and if the circumstances were another, he would have felt the impact. But there was no time. He glanced back to see if he had succeeded, and before even confirming it, he was already back on his feet, running to his position. 

“Heavens!” Hyori gasped, worried. 

“Bro–” Deo couldn’t complete the sentence. 

Jeremy attacked, without much force due to the lack of precision on the ball thrown at him, but as always he made it seem effortless. As if the passes had been easily made from the start. 

“I don’t think I can look anymore,” Taehyung sang the last word, drowning in anxiety. “JUST SCORE”

The Tigers received the ball again, but this time poorly. The libero had passed the ball right to the other side of the net, failing to secure an opportunity of attack. 

Ian, in turn, received the ball like a feather. 

The ball flew graciously toward the net and Eunwoo switched position, changing the ball's course and speed. He had arranged it to perfection for Jungkook to make a speed attack. A fatal one. 

“JJK!” every UCBL student present was chanting together while stomping their feet on the bleachers. “JJK!” echoed in the air rhythmically. Every student but one. “JJK!”

Jungkook jumped high as ever, freezing time for brief seconds along with him. As his hand descended to attack, the ball was sent in the very corner on the end of the court, just like Sean had warned them about the Tigers hitter before. That was that hitter's signature move, and it took very little for Jungkook to perfect it, making it his own. 

The ball went through with such force and speed that the other team didn’t even notice it. The realization came with the referee’s whistle. 

Landing again on the floor, all Jungkook could hear was the chanting for his name and happiness overflowing through screams and shouting. But even amidst everything, his focus was elsewhere. As his teammates came to his encounter, celebrating their victory, he finally found what he had been searching for throughout the whole match. More specifically, who. 

There she was with crossed arms. 

He smiled smugly. And then he did what he shouldn’t have done. He started a war with a wink. 

“That fucking asshole,” Carolina grunted. In a second she had sprung to her feet, making way through the crowd to leave the place. 

“You guys go ahead, I’ll wait for Jungkook with him”, they heard Hyori say nodding towards Jimin. 

Once the game officially ended, the players have long gone to the lockers, and everyone started getting up to direct themselves towards the exits, Jimin had notified them he was going to wait for the crowd to subside. He had agreed to go to the court and wait there for Jungkook—who was going to take a quick shower before meeting his friends. 

Deo eyed her roommate suspiciously. In a fraction of a second, realization hit her. “We’ll wait for you three outside then…” a smirk was added to her features when adding, “Try not to take too long.” 

Before the black-haired girl could protest, her roommate had already turned around, taking Hoseok by his arm and pulling him along. Both of them were engulfed in a sea of students. 

“So…” Jimin started smugly, leaning on the railing before them. “May I know why I get the honor to be accompanied by the almighty Hyori who never once before wanted to wait inside a stuffed ambiance with sweat odors?”, he tried to imitate her voice as he quoted the last bit. She chuckled, giving him a soft punch to his chest and nodding her head. 

“I’m just being a nice friend.” Hyori shrugged. 

Jimin didn’t buy the act, however, and she knew that. Still, she was prepared to be evasive toward all the questions she knew he would start asking. Jimin has always had a curious nature, there was not much he wouldn’t know by simply pressing everyone until he got the information he wanted. 

“Look the route is clear!”, the girl added, making her way down to the court first. Jimin followed suit laughing at her attempt to change subjects. 

Hyori had barely touched foot on the court when Jimin pressed further, still behind her. “C’mon, spill it”, he whined with a smile. 

She was about to give him a poorly made excuse when the doors to the lockers opened and Jungkook came by carrying his duffel bag thrown back cooly on his shoulder. But Hyori gasped at the scene she witnessed afterward. 

Jungkook looked back, holding the heavy door long enough for Eunwoo to pass by. The scene seemed to display at a slow pace to the girl, but the commentary Jimin left in the air before the boys came closer made her snap out of it. 

“Oh, so this is why…” 

Her first reaction was to snap her head at the boy beside her, giving him a nudge, and making him laugh. 

She feigned normality. 

As they approach both of them, Hyori's smile widens exponentially. “There he is! Our superstar!”, and the moment she finishes her sentence and hears Jimin chuckle beside her she knows she made a poor choice of words. 

Jungkook seems even more embarrassed, smiling with full teeth and scrunching his nose to the new title. Before the situation gets worse, the raven-haired boy gets closer to her shaking his hair and making water droplets fall all over her face. 

“Stop!”, she cries. Her body is curled, trying her best to deviate from him. “Oh, my days, Jungkook! Stop being a dog!” she laughs and he stops. 

Jimin and Eunwoo watch everything delighted. “We went quickly from superstar to dog.” Jungkook scoffs, pretending to be hurt. 

Hyori doesn’t pay much mind to his complaint as her eyes lock with Eunwoo’s and he smiles adorably. “Hi,” he says making her smile. 

“Hi!” 

Before she gets the chance to say anything else, or try to extend the conversation, Jungkook interrupts. “Are we ready to roll?” Hyori shrinks as he’s not able to read the room. “You coming with us?” he looks at the setter standing next to him. 

“Yeah come with us!” Jimin tries as he sees the girl’s eyes get full of hope. “One of the girls can go on our lap or something. We can make it fit on the car.”

There’s some hesitancy on Eunwoo’s part as he sees everyone glancing at him. He smiles, ever so polite. His eyes almost disappear as they are shaped into an arch; his lashes beautify the movement. 

“Thank you but I already–”

“EUNWOO!” they all turn heads to see Jeremy far ahead with a hand up, trying to call for his attention. “YOU COMING OR NOT?” he shouts, tapping at his wrist as if he had an imaginary watch placed there. 

And again, Jungkook isn’t able to read the room like Jimin had been doing, much to Hyori’s demise. 

“We’ll see you there in a few then!” 

Eunwoo extends his fist so Jungkook can bump it. “See you soon!” he glances at Jimin and then Hyori, “Bye guys!” 

“Bye bro, and let’s celebrate the match!” Jimin says as the setter makes his way toward Jeremy walking sideways. A thumbs up confirming the proposition. 

The three of them watch as Eunwoo is reunited not only with Jeremy but also with a cheerleader Hyori knew from Deo’s classes, and Ian, the team’s libero. They walk towards the exit with a cheerful talk that can’t quite reach their ears properly. 

“Let’s go too then!” Jungkook says excitedly and Hyori sighs, glancing at him disgruntled. Jimin sees the exact moment she slaps the back of the head of their friend making him stop on track. He eyes her confused.  

She doesn’t return the eye contact as she marches up front leaving them behind. “I swear you are so dense sometimes!” he hears the girl grunt. Jungkook turns to seek explanations from Jimin, but he gives him no answers with a shrug of his shoulders as they start walking again to follow Hyori out of the venue. 

The music could be heard for miles. 

Of course, nothing could top a football victory party but the ones thrown in honor of the volleyball team followed right after. No invitation was needed and no one dared to miss them. Even those that didn’t care for sports attended. Jeremy always took care of the parties for his team, his frat house acting as the place to be after every single game. 

Yoongi scrunches his nose as soon as a new song starts to play. 

Despite the music at the moment passing as background for his ears, he’s too picky to not react to it. Even if no one around him noticed the scrunch. Tonight he’s not the designated DJ, nor the designated caretakerㅡof Taehyung, of course, who was usually the lightweight of the group. Still, it was likely that a change in one of those statuses would happen. If there was one thing that drove him mad was the frat party music. And as for Taehyung, well, somebody had to keep him in check, and not always his friends would leave a party walking straight. He was definitely the one that held his alcohol best. 

“And they introduced it like a pop tart?” Jin asked, mouth agape. 

“Yes!” Sunny squeals loudly. “It was disgusting!” 

“I would be scared for life.” Jin shook his head. “And I like a good prank.” 

“Prank me with everything, just— don’t put vegetables inside my pop tart.” Sunny’s expression is serious. “Or I will sue.” 

“Trust issues, man.” Taeha laughs out, making Yoongi grin by her side. 

Jin’s dramatics are intensified by the light touch of liquor in his blood and a simple conversation about Sunny’s most recent appearance in Taeha’s podcast swiftly turns into a serious—and perhaps even, the most important conversation of his life. 

“JK!” As quickly as Jin emerged in the conversation was how quickly he snapped out of it, his downstairs neighbor approaching the circle. 

“How’s it going?” Shoulder bumping with the oldest, Jungkook smiles big. Looking around the group, the volleyball player nods to both girls. 

“Great performance earlier!” Sunny speaks cooly. 

“Thanks.” Jungkook smiles from ear to ear. “But what nonsense was that about veggies in pop tarts?” 

Sunny chuckles, hand trapping a strap of her hair behind her ear. 

“It’s for Taeha’s podcast.” Jin nudges his head towards the girl that was now deep in a conversation with Yoongi. “Sunny tried the worst-rated restaurants around campus.” 

“Well, you kinda’ had to see it coming, then.” Jungkook laughs. 

“Strangely enough… I was counting on maybe food poisoning. Never crossed my mind to be betrayed like that. Someone should close that establishment–” 

The girl speaks seriously and both boys fall into laughter, only for the conversation to be interrupted by a tipsy brunette. “Let’s go dance!” 

And as the popular girl that Jungkook immediately recognized as Hyori’s cousin, Harin, swoops in on her friends, the girls can only share some glances with the confused boys that were left mid-conversation. But they are quick to shrug it off. 

“So,” Jungkook trails off. “Where’s the she-devil?” 

“Carolina?” Jin laughs. For some time now he had been sensing something between those two and he wanted nothing more but to meddle with it. “She’s off somewhere. But I swear I saw her here already.” 

“She was with Luiza,” Yoongi comments nonchalantly. “But you need to be careful. If she hears you…” 

Both troublemakers smirk knowingly, leaving an intrigued Jungkook in between them. “Oh, I can handle her.” 

“I thought so too…” Jin shakes his head, eyes glued to the floor as if remembering something traumatic. “I thought so too…” 

The repeating makes Yoongi crack. “Their house is a battlefield.” he clarifies. 

Jungkook smiles, not knowing what to say after that. Instead, he opts to scan the crowd of drunken people that danced in the middle of the living room of Jeremy’s frat. He had made up his mind and he intended to fulfill the task he had appointed to himself as soon as possible. 

His eyes fall on Namjoon. The clumsy tall figure of his housemate struggles to move through the crowd, arms in the air as he carries two red cups and another one dangling dangerously from between his teeth. 

“I hope that one isn't mine." Jin makes a disgusting face, mentioning the cup that was threatening to fall from the Dean's kid's lips at any second. 

"I've seen you lick dirtier things," Namjoon speaks immediately after Yoongi frees one of his hands. 

"Dang. What have you been licking, bro?" Jungkook laughs teasingly. 

"Do you really want the answer to that?" Now is Yoongi's turn to tease. "Because if I were you…" 

"Hey!" Jin pretends to be offended. "That was a one-time thing!" 

The entire group stares at Jungkook to see if he had bought the antic, as for a split second he seems to be speechless. He begins laughing, yet again not knowing what to say or do, and everyone follows suit. 

"Well, I'm going to get myself a drink." 

"Find us later if you want a ride!" Yoongi offers. 

"For sure! Hit me up before you leave and I'll meet you in the front." 

Jungkook doesn’t waste time and moves through the crowd toward the bar. He thinks to himself that not only does he need a drink but he also needs to find who he is looking for. His head was spinning with so many thoughts he could hardly enjoy the night as he had been planning. 

As he reaches the improvised bar, tucked on the farther side of the living room, almost next to the kitchen, he eyes his options. Beer wouldn’t do it for him tonight. He spots a brand new bottle of vodka mixed between the empty ones. Vodka it is. 

The MVP player of the night had just finished mixing his drink—vodka with grape and mint, his new concoction—when he turned back, taking a sip, and spotted Jimin on the other side of the crowd. 

Some people tapped him on the shoulder as he made his way toward his friend, all of them opening smiles and congratulating him for the game. He knew none of those people, but he still thanked them with his own kind of smile. 

“There you are!” Jimin pulled him to a side hug as soon as he spotted him. Jungkook was quick to pass the cup to his other hand in order for Jimin not to knock it out, spilling the content, as he had done many times before. 

“Where’s Kiri and Hope?” He asked taking a sip and eyeing as Deo rolled her eyes at something the boy by her side had said close to her ear. The boy was a friend of Jack, the girl's ex-boyfriend, probably annoying her to give him another chance. Or, even trying to have a chance for himself, as everyone knew how toxic Jack’s friend circle was, to begin with. 

“Hyo went to grab booze with Hobi but you know him…” Deo answered, taking the opportunity to escape the guy by her side, and Jimin laughed amused. 

“Hobi probably met some people along the way and aborted the mission,” 

“We’re waiting for Hyori here in case she is trying to find us again” the girl added. 

Jungkook nodded and took another sip of his drink. 

He bounced mindlessly to the sound of the beat while talking to Jimin and Deo. His eyes still got lost in the crowd from time to time, searching. 

“Gguk!” Deo tugs at the end of his shirt.

“There he is.” Jimin chuckles, noticing how Jungkook almost shook his head, waking up from the trance he was in. 

“What planet did you got dragged to?” 

“I’m right here.” The boy chuckled. 

“You’re so off today.” Deo crossed her arms over her chest. 

The usual annoying look that would be on the cheerleader’s face from Jungkook not listening to her was replaced with one that hinted at concern but also curiosity. Of course, everyone in the Hope Club was used to Jungkook spacing out. It happened all the time.

But today he felt different. 

Even before the game, when the strawberry blonde girl had a chance to see him, he seemed off. There was this spark in his eyes… One that he would have whenever he was planning a prank or being challenged. 

“You’d think that because you’re too sober now, Dee.” Jungkook acted cool. “Let’s get her a drink, Jiminssi.” 

Ignoring the protests of the girl, Jungkook swings his arm around her neck, Jimin following excitedly behind the two as they make their way through the crowd and into the kitchen area. 

A big marble counter was filled with drinks and the typical red plastic cups. The rows that once were stacked perfectly next to the drinks now lay scattered around the counter. Besides the last few that were still perfectly stacked, it was hard to tell which ones had been used and the ones that simply had fallen and were unused. 

Jungkook takes his time preparing his friend a drink. Pretending to know about mixology, he plays with the bottles, spinning them between his fingers as Deo can’t help but fall into laughter. 

“Thank you, barman.” 

“Where’s mine?” Jimin whines. 

“You have a cup in hand that it’s full to the top.” Deo rolls her eyes at the jock as he takes no time in drinking the whole thing in one sit. 

“Now…” He stops, catching his breath as he licks his bittersweet lips, a smile plastered on them. “Where’s mine?” 

“Coming right up!” 

Deo giggles, taking the red cup in between her hands and taking a sip. Jungkook looks expectantly before turning to Jimin’s drink. It wasn’t a cocktail—far from it, actually. Just a simple vodka with orange juice. He knew how much the girl hated the bitter taste that some beverages carried, so he would always make sure they were sweeter. Of course, most times, that ended up with Deo drinking way more than she was supposed to, burdening Hyori throughout the rest of the night, afraid of puking and shocking her to death while complaining that the room was spinning.

“There you are!” A high-pitch voice startles the entire group. And it’s visible on everyone’s faces the mood changing in the bat of an eye. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you, babe!” 

Jungkook sighs before forcing a smile on his features. The girl that had been standing with her arms around his torso now forces her way into his arms. Jennifer. 

“What’s up?” Jungkook asks but wishes it was rhetorical so there wouldn’t be an answer. 

“I wanna dance!” The pout on the volleyball’s outside hitter's lips shows how drunk she already is. 

“Go have fun.” Removing his arm from her shoulder, Jungkook turns to the drinks on the counter. 

“With you, silly.” Jennifer laughs. 

“He was kinda in the middle of something. Not that you noticed.” Deo smiles but is far from a polite one, finger twirling with her hair. 

“But Kookie always has time for me. Don’t you?” Jennifer pouts again, leaning on the boy. “And I have an idea of what we can do after,” The mischievous smile on her lips leaves little to no imagination to everyone standing there and as she leans to speak in Jungkook's ear, it becomes even more evident. 

“What the—” 

Deo’s disgusting stare is hard to miss and Jimin can’t help but laugh hysterically at the entire situation. Jungkook presses his lips together, a sign of apology for leaving his friends. 

“Men are so easy.” 

“Hey, hey!” Jimin lifts his hands up in the air, defeatless. “Is your drink not sweet enough?”

“Yeah, it is. But you’re making me sour.” Sticking out her tongue, the girl waits as Jimin finishes pouring whiskey into his cup. 

“Do you wanna go dance, too?” Jimin swings his arm around the small girl. “We can see what comes out of it later,” he jokes.

Deo can’t help but laugh, eyes rolling at the stupidity of her best friend. “You wish.” 

“Am I not good-looking enough?” Jimin cries, stopping in place. 

“Hmm…” Deo turns to face him, index finger on her lip as she pretends to be deep in thought. “You’re too emotional.” 

The girl giggles as Jimin's mouth is agape and his eyes widened to pretend he is offended and enraged. 

“How could you say that?” 

“Suck it, loser.” 

Middle finger up in the air, Deo continues giggling as she runs from the kitchen and towards the music. She’s sure Jimin is following right after her and so she speeds up her pace. 

The party was crowded. Fuck Up The Friendship by Leah Kate plays loudly and everyone in the living room dances. The smell of alcohol mixed with the sweat from the colliding bodies, grasping for touch as couples make out in-between moves, filling the entire room and setting the mood.

Deo gasps as her cup come flying off her hands, the impact hitting her out of nowhere. “Dude, watch where you’re go—” She stops mid-sentence, eyes reaching the face of the boy that had just bumped into her. “Taehyung.” 

“Didi, are you ok?” Jimin comes rushing to the girl’s side. 

“Yeah—” The girl takes a second to look herself up and down. 

The content of her red cup that was now laying on the ground had missed her completely—or almost. The white converses she was wearing were slowly changing into a soft shade of orange and she felt her blood boil. 

“It wasn’t me!” Taehyung’s eyes widen, and his hands shake by his chest, defending himself. 

“Really?” Deo scoffs. 

“I— I really wasn’t!” Taehyung looks to Jimin, silently asking him to come to his defense. 

“C’mon, it could’ve been a lot worse!” The blonde jock tries to help but clearly misses his shot, gaining a stern look from his best friends. 

“Whatever. The least you could do is apologize.” The girl rolls her eyes.

Deo turns to leave, only for Taehyung to grab her by the wrist. “It really wasn’t me. That guy—” 

Taehyung turns around, ready to point to the real culprit of the situation he was in but no one was in sight. At least, not the one that could take the blame for him. Deo lifts her eyebrows, expectantly. 

“I was trying to protect you.” 

“Protect me?” Now the girl laughs drily. “What? Don’t tell me he had a knife.” 

“He was going to bump against you.” Taehyung presses his lips together, taking a deep breath. 

“So you decided—in that pretty head of yours—that the outcome would be better if you bumped into me.” 

Logically, Taehyung knew it made no sense. But his intentions were pure. “Well, in my head, I was going to be able to reach you in time to avoid any collisions but he pushed me instead.”

“Gee, Jimin, you never told me you were best friends with Flash here!” The girl talks to the jock but doesn’t even bother to look in his direction. 

Taehyung laughs drily. Licking his lips, he looks the girl straight in the eye before scoffing. “Would you look at that? Yesterday we were fuck buddies, now we’re like this.” 

“What?!” Jimin finally wakes up from the conversation. 

Deo is caught off guard. Of course, she remembers what Taehyung is referring to. "Excuse me?” 

“You’re really going to pull the amnesia card on me?” he laughs incredulously. A hint of annoyance flashed through his eyes. 

Laughing nervously, Deo crosses her arms. “Are you calling me a liar now?” 

“You’re a terrible liar.” Taehyung lifts an eyebrow at Deo’s smile. 

“Guys,” Jimin tries to intervene but he’s completely ignored. 

“I didn’t lie!” 

“Would you prefer the term playing stupid?” Leaning against the wall, Taehyung watches the girl closely. 

“Do you insult all the girls you try to save?” 

For two whole more minutes, Jimin watches as his best friends continue to bicker, the subject now being changed to something else that was bothering one of the two. It was exhausting, Jimin finally concluded. The two were so absorbed in their argument, filled with nonsense, that they wouldn't even realize if the house would start falling to pieces.

“Wah,” Jimin sighs exasperated. “You’re both impossible to talk to…” 

The jock complains more to himself than anything, as both his best friends are more concerned to keep disagreeing with each other. 

“Yes, Jimin, let’s go to a party with your best friends! It’ll be super fun, you will see!” The jock adds, dramatic as ever. He stares at his empty red cup. “I need more booze to hang out with you.” 

His eyes travel to the pair in front of him just to state the obvious—they were still not paying attention. So he turns around and makes his way through the sea of people dancing in the living room. 

Only a couple of steps separated Jimin from the drinks counter but he had to stop multiple times to speak to several people. If he had to be honest, he didn’t remember half of them. But that was one of the things that came with being the quarterback of the university. Well… That and being extremely attractive. 

One drink after the other, one of the most well-developed skills Jimin had was his drinking. He could take it well. Mid conversation with a group of cheerleaders from the volleyball team, he comes to the conclusion that his red cup is, yet again, empty. Charmingly, he excuses himself from the boring conversation he had long lost interest in.

The bar is his destination, but as he walks, crumpled by the movements, he spots a familiar pair of blue eyes near the kitchen door. 

“Sarah!” he greeted, coming along, and the smile on her face got even bigger. The boy who talked to her before was long forgotten, as well as the drink Jimin was going to fetch. 

“Jimin,” The girl greets equally excitedly. “Twice in a day… I’m starting to think that the universe is pushing us together.” 

After their morning encounter, and the quick interview Sarah managed to get thanks to Jimin, they had to say their goodbyes. The girl had received a call from her sister who was expecting her to grab lunch. Jimin had walked her all the way to the front gate and although they said their goodbyes with a “see you later” they knew it was an improbable encounter. 

He is, however, somewhat dazed at the implications behind the blonde’s premise. His hand runs through his hair. 

“Either that or you’re a psycho.” The girl holds a serious expression before giggling. 

“So, what’s your gut feeling telling you about me?�� Acting coyly, Jimin jokes. He licks his plump lips once again. 

“I guess I’ll have to find out.” The playful smile that adorns Sarah’s face shakes Jimin. 

It was as if he had been asleep and suddenly a jar of cold water had been dropped on top of his head. Filled with goosebumps, he feels cool at the sudden approach of the beautiful girl that he so much dreamt about. 

He wasn’t about to leave her hanging, of course. 

Leaning in closer, with fluttering eyes, they were only millimeters away from each other’s lips. 

“Jimin-ah!” The sudden shouting isn’t enough for the drunken boy that engulfs his best friend in his arms. “I’ve been locking– looking everywhere for you.” 

Taehyung’s voice comes out slurry as he keeps leaning on the quarterback. Sarah can’t help but laugh at the situation.

Jimin doesn’t know if he should be furious or just murder his friend right away. 

“Tae, how did you get so drunk? You were good an hour ago.” 

“I’m not drunk, I’m coping” he mumbled, prolonging the last word.

Sighing, Jimin runs his hand through his hair. He knows he needs to help Taehyung but the moment he’s having with Sarah is all he wanted for some time now. “Do you mind?” The jock tilts his head with apologetic eyes, towards his friend that was still in his arms, now making small circles in Jimin’s chest completely spaced out.

“Not at all.” Sarah keeps on giggling at Taehyung. He was so out of himself that he didn’t even say hello to the girl. “I know we’ll find each other again.” 

Jimin can only sigh at the teasing comment the blonde has made. And as she turns her back on him, he hits Taehyung straight in the head.

“I can’t believe you.” He whispers under his breath, dragging him to the drinks counter. 

Taehyung was in desperate need of some food and water. Jimin had his back to him, searching for something in the cupboards. Cereal is good enough. But the drunken boy didn’t wait as his brain was already intoxicated with booze and his body seemed to move all by itself.  

Instead, he saw himself walking out of the kitchen through the second arch that led to the entrance of the frat. The party was still alive, and people would still walk in, either searching for friends or for having a good time. 

He kept walking, caving a path between the crowd, without a destination in mind. And he stopped whenever someone called his name, introducing him to people he could swear he had never seen around in college. When that happened, he tried his best to feign sobriety, smiling from ear to ear and giving a side hug accompanied with an “It’s really nice to meet you!”. 

Taehyung wouldn’t stop for long, excusing himself to go find his friends. He always claimed that they were waiting for him when in fact he was just trying to get out of the conversation before people realized the truth—he either had no idea who they were or wasn’t in a clear state of mind to interact as he should. 

The last group he stopped by was because he saw the familiar face of a Youtuber he had been following for a while now. She would visit the majority of unknown yet hip places around campus, and thanks to her Taehyung had never felt without options to visit on the weekends. 

“Yuna!” he said, approaching her as if they had been the greatest of friends. “You’re Yuna, right? From youtube?”

She offered him a smile, not so clueless about who he was, even though she had never talked to him before. Taehyung had a reputation… One well known amongst students and as he stood this close to her, she could confirm everything said was indeed true. 

He was gorgeous. 

“Hi!” she greeted with a chuckle. “Yes, that’s me!” 

She was standing beside two other girls, and Taehyung presumed they were her friends. He waved a hand at them accompanied by a smile and then looked at Yuna again. “Do you know where I can find one of those?” he pointed at the drink she had in hand. 

“We got some over there!” she turned back indicating the dining hall and Taehyung squinted his eyes at the scene unfolding before him. 

Across the sea of people, braiding back and forth around the house, he could see a crowd cheering around the dining table. Carolina and Lu were dancing on top of it. 

He didn’t say anything else to Yuna, just leaned on the shoulder of a guy that was passing by and went toward the commotion. “Hey!” he shouted before even arriving closer. Carolina wasn’t paying any attention, as she smiled loosely at the girl beside her, showing her moves. 

Taehyung pushed past some guys that were by their feet looking up. “Get down there! Carolina–” He demanded, tripping on his own feet as he too was out of himself. Carolina just twirled around, eyes closed as she danced to the rhythm of the song blasting on the speakers. “Hey!” Taehyung shouted back at her attitude, now facing her back. 

He knew for sure she had seen him. This was just her trying to ignore his demand. 

Not wasting any time, he pushed forward, his hip meeting the edge of the table. “You’re getting down now–” He grunted as he looped her around her waist and pulled her down. 

“Oh for fucks sake!” she exclaimed, not even debating much. Carolina knew the only fool crazy enough to pull her down from a table was him. 

She had to lean on someone that passed by as to not fall, easily concluding the state of how drunk he already was. “That pissed already, huh?” 

He shook his head. “No– No,” he swiveled his index finger. “No twirling on tables.” 

Carolina eyed him and laughed. “Oh so you can dance to Doja Cat on top of a table but I can’t?” 

He smacked his lips together with a funny face.

“You’re completely wasted, aren’t you?” she asked but he only laughed with a hand on her shoulder so as to not fall. 

The girl began thinking about what she should do to him, scanning the room and looking for any sign of their friends, to help her take care of Taehyung. He needed something to snack on. At least until they got out of there and made a quick pit stop at Mcdonald's drive-thru like they always did. 

She managed to drag him, as he shouted incoherent things or sang along on the way to the puffs she remembered seeing Yoongi and Jin. 

Carolina placed him between Yoongi and the edge of a couch, making both him and Jin promise they would take a look at him while she went to fetch something in the kitchen. 

The way there was rushed, but smooth. She wasn’t that affected by the amount of booze she had ingested so far. Besides, not mixing drinks was in favor to stay conscious longer so she could enjoy the party. 

“Hey, Jer!” she shouted, spotting the hitter from the volley team. The brunette sat on top of a counter in the kitchen, munching happily at some cookies. His eyes fell upon her and he opened his classic smile. His right hand placed a cookie in his mouth before he waved at her. 

“Do you have more of that for me?” Carolina said, as she came closer and looked at the cookies. Taehyung would like those. 

“Uhm… I think we have some more in one of these cupboards–” Jeremy looked behind him, opening one of them to check. Carolina quickly opened the one on the side to check as well, smiling wide as she spotted two more packages. 

The brunette held the door as she leaped forward to be able to reach and snatch the cookies. 

“Jackpot!” she said making him chuckle. “By the way, good game today. You really improved your jump. The pool training was totally worth it!” 

They laughed and he thanked her with a warm smile. Although he had a bit of a fuck boy reputation, Carolina had always thought fondly of him. He was a nice guy, the nicest if she were to think about it. And not because he had a hidden agenda in mind, but because he genuinely liked to be useful to people. If it weren’t for him, she would never be able to perfect her passes. 

It was with him that she trained to be able to deliver quick attacks to the hitters. 

Before she could turn around and go away, Jeremy looked at her. “Did you see the others already?” he questioned as to make conversation. “Eunwoo is around somewhere, I lost him… And Sean had been looking for you and Lu.” 

“Where’s Sean?” the girl asked. A quick pitstop to leave the snacks with Taehyung and then off to make a good deed for her friend. Luiza and Sean were a couple she had never seen coming but at the same time, the more she thought about it, the more it made the perfect sense. 

Jeremy pointed to the backyard with a nod. “Last time I saw him he was there with the boys… But I don’t know, I came to eat something to be able to handle the third round,” she heard him laugh but not a word sank in. As soon as she turned around to look at the spot he pointed, she saw Jungkook with a bottle in hand as Jennifer whispered something in his ear with a smirk. 

“Alright, Jer, go easy on those cookies”, she answered with a smile, before tapping his leg, taking a bottle of Jack that sat on top of the counter next to him, and making her way to her drunken friend. Something crawled inside her skin. 

After leaving two packets of cookies with Yoongi for him to tend to a drunk Taehyung, Carolina marched out to the second floor. She stomped her Adidas brutally as she went up the steps. 

Reaching the second floor, one-third of the whiskey bottle was already gone, and her social battery was certainly drained. So much so that instead of talking to some random boy that passed by calling her name, she ignored him in the search of a quiet place to sit by herself. 

“DUDE SOME PRIVACY” she heard as soon as she got fully inside a bathroom, locking the door behind herself. 

“Oh, hey there!” Carolina greeted, feeling quite sociable once again, feeling the booze hit her. “The door was… open?” she added, pointing backward with a poker face as the girl sat on the toilet and eyed her baffled. 

“Oh–” Deo concluded, looking at the door and then at the tall girl again. “Really? My bad,” and she resumed pulling some of the toilet paper to pat it on her shoes. “Fuck, it’s not working! Do you have baby wipes or something?” she eyed Carolina again. The girl was leaning on the sink, sipping from her bottle as she fixed her hair, looking at the mirror. 

Her brown eyes didn’t leave her reflection. “Nope… But I bet Jer has something. Wait–” Carolina crouched, her bottle still in hand, as she opened the drawers under the sink to snoop around. 

“What– Ah! Don’t! It’s–” Deo tried to stop her but it was in vain. She jumped to her feet a few seconds later with a pack in her hand, closing the drawers again with her knee. 

“Here it is–” she went towards the strawberry blonde girl, handing her the baby wipes. 

“Thank God, I owe you one!” she said while Carolina had her back to her, pacing around the bathroom. “Didn’t even think about rumbling through their stuff. Boys…” 

The other girl chuckled understanding what she was trying to say. “I’m acquainted with one of the boys living here. He always has baby wipes to clean his shoes, don’t ask me why.” they shared an accomplice glance before laughing. 

Carolina sat on the edge of the bathtub, taking another sip from her bottle as she saw the other girl resume her cleaning. “Hey, do I know you?” she added with furrowed brows. Her brain worked hard to place the face of the small girl before her with a name. “I know you, don’t I?” 

“Uhm, probably?” Deo glanced up quickly to face her, returning her gaze to her sneakers seconds after. “I think I know you too?” she added confused, discarding the wipe she had been using in the bathroom trash before directing herself to the sink. 

“Huh,” Carolina mumbled, slipping her legs into the tub and then sliding swiftly until she was comfortably sitting inside it. 

Deo eyed her through the mirror while washing her hands. “You ok there?” she looked again, scanning her face for any sign of sickness. “Need to puke?” 

Carolina laughed, turning her face and meeting her eyes through the mirror. “I’m fine.” she dismissed. “Thanks for asking though! I’m just here to relax a bit– Some people take me out of my right mind sometimes.” 

“Talking about boys? Cause let me tell you! Boys are the worst.” 

Deo turned around, with arms crossed, and leaned on the sink behind her. Carolina looked at the ceiling pensively and then sighed. 

“For me more like– People in general. But yeah.” 

There was a minute of silence between the two. They weren’t close, but there is a comforting sense in confiding in people you don’t actually know. So, as Deo eyed her, giving her the push she needed to come clean with her thoughts, all she could think was why not?

“Not that I think all men are stupid… I mean sometimes they are, but—” Carolina started with a sigh. “This one…” she grunted in the end. Her knuckles turned white as she grabbed the bottle of whiskey. 

“What did he do?” Deo asked, her eyes sparkling as she made her way toward the tub. “We’ll get revenge together!” 

“He existed. That’s what he did.” 

The smaller girl glance at her quite confused but brushed it off quickly with a confident nod of her head. “I feel you.” she looked at the tub and then at the girl before her. She bit her lips. “Is… Tub relaxing better than regular relaxing?” but before Carolina could answer her question, she already had one foot inside, ready to take a sit too. “Let me get in there with you!” 

Carolina quickly found some space to fit her in as well, pulling her knees closer to her chest. “It’s definitely better to talk about what angers you or sort your thoughts. Try it– What’s troubling you?” 

They sat face to face, both hugging their knees so they could fit inside. Carolina still held the bottle, shaking it softly toward Deo as a silent question. The smaller girl refused it with a shake of her hand and a smile. 

“So,” she started while Carolina siped it instead. “The problem is that there’s this boy… And my friend– my like. My best friend likes him but he just pissed me off, you know?” Carolina nodded in understanding while she ranted about it. “He’s so weird and his head is always up in the clouds… It’s so annoying.” Deo rolled her eyes. 

“And… You like him? Or you hate him?” 

Deo looked at her fingers, fidgeting with her ring, not knowing what to answer. 

“Uh! I know! Or maybe you hate him but also like him.” Carolina added, straightening her back as she felt excited. 

“Even if I like him—and that’s a big if—it just wouldn’t work. I just got out of a relationship and the last thing I wanna do is get tied down again. Like–” Carolina saw as the girl before her sighed and slumped her shoulders. “Even today he reminded me of something I said yesterday when I was drunk. Who does that? I just don’t think we’d match.” 

“That sounds… Like an episode of the OC, bro… I don’t even know what to say, really.” Carolina looked down, trying to think. The only thing coming to her mind was now an image of Seth, one of the protagonists of the show. “Is he hot, though?” she gave Deo a cheeky look. 

“The crazy ones always are.” 

“Now that’s something I have to agree on. They are.” Carolina nodded her head confirming the girl’s theory. “Look at us for example.” 

“I take the compliment,” Deo snorts. “Don’t you, like, wish— sometimes only, of course, that you were a psycho? Just so you wouldn’t care? And you could murder someone? And not even feel guilty? Cause I can barely roll my eyes at my friends.” 

Carolina’s brows come together as she stares at the tile wall by her side, tilting her head. The conversation had taken a serious turn. She had to thank the girl in front of her somehow for making her forget the reason she had been so mad as she first came inside this bathroom. 

“Uhm…? Not really…?” the tall one answered pensively. “I already go at them if they piss me off so–” 

“How?” The question is vague but Deo looks aimlessly at the wall in front of her. “How do you piss them off without you getting pissed off first?” 

“Uh… I do get pissed that’s why I get back at them…?” Carolina wonders before chuckling. 

Deo laughs too, and why she doesn’t know. “Well,” she starts once the laughter subsides. “I think I need more drinks now,” she states, looking at Carolina’s bottle, and noticing how little there was left. “You coming?” she started to get up, glancing at the two-tone-haired girl. 

“I think I’ll stick around a little longer,” she says, stretching her legs to fill out the space Deo had left. “Thanks though! And good luck with the dreamy guy from the OC!” she chuckles, seeing the smaller friend by the door, ready to unlock it. 

“He’s not dreamy!” Deo shouts back with a playful smile on her face before closing the door behind her with a minor bang. 

Carolina is left there to look at the ceiling. Her eyes flutter and close. Her mind trails off to the fact she forgot to ask the petit girl’s name. She laughs alone, remembering their conversation. 

And then she snaps her eyes open. Chugging the rest of the content of the bottle as she remembers why she got there in the first place. 

Also on the top floor of the frat, looking for the bathroom, was Hyori. She had sadly missed her roommate for just a few minutes. 

When it came to parties like this, she was really shy and anxious, different from Hoseok who loved to meet new people and hold gatherings. She loved those, and she would drink the most, but only if it were between her and her friends. Like this—a party full of people she had never talked to before—was rather nerve-racking. 

She still attended them, mostly because her friends wouldn’t let her stay at the dorms by any means. But every time the jet-black-haired girl found herself surrounded by drunken people dancing along to the loud music, she realized that the dance floor wasn’t her thing. Hyori would much rather take her booze to somewhere more private. Normally, her eligible choice was the backyard, but sometime, when she was lucky enough, she would find a nice room. One with a window large enough so she could drink quietly while peeking at the moon. 

The rooftop was one of Hyori’s favorite spots to be at a party like the one happening right now. And as she opened door to door, searching for a bathroom so she could have a glance at herself in the mirror, she found her safe haven instead. After receiving many complaints from couples that forgot to lock themselves before diving into a more passionate business, she finally sighed in relief. 

The girl was a huge fan of the space and everything related to it. On busy nights, when people danced and tumbled around, she would always choose to stay there; sitting with her legs close to her chest, eyes fixed on the twinkling stars, her lonely drink in hand, and a lot on her mind. 

Everything felt perfectly in place. She closed her eyes with a wistful smile on her face. 

That was until she heard a loud thud coming from the door. She opened her eyes in a second, head snapping toward the sound. 

A boy’s head came into vision, and he froze, meeting her gaze. Hyori couldn’t exactly tell who it was because of the light until he spoke. “Uh– Sorry! I didn’t mean to interrupt” 

Namjoon. 

She remembered his embarrassed tone from the previous night, on the backstage at the runway show. The smile returned to her face.

He mentioned closing the door again. “No!” Hyori protested hurriedly and he stopped in his tracks, peeking back at her. Suddenly the thought of him wanting to use the room for other purposes hit her and she felt the blood rush to her cheeks. “I– I can go. I’ll go so you can use the room–” 

As she started moving towards the window to get inside the house again, Namjoon got behind the door, getting inside rushed. He closed the door behind him and started waving his free hand. 

“No, no! It’s ok!” he explained hurriedly, his eyes nervously unfocused as he realized what she was implying by ‘using the room’. “I was just looking for my friend! Maybe you saw him?” 

Hyori stopped to look at him. Her legs waggled in the air as she sat on the windowsill facing him. 

“Maybe I was too distracted,” she chuckled shyly. “But uhm… I don’t think anybody came in.”

She saw Namjoon bite a smile down. “Tall, drunk… Maybe a tie wrapped on his head? He always does that.” It was his time to chuckle as he heard her laugh. “Taehyung is his name.” 

“Jimin’s friend?”

“Oh, shit. Yeah!” Namjoon said apologetically with a boyish grin. His free hand came to the back of his neck, rubbing it distractedly. “I forgot you know him.” They chuckled again. 

She nodded her head. “But no, sorry! I’d love to help but I really didn’t see him”, she noticed how his shoulders sank slowly. The thought of Namjoon searching for Taehyung around the frat for too long of a time crossed her mind. She felt silly, but she wished she could have helped him somehow. “But if I see him I’ll let him know you’re looking for him!”

He smiled, and she caught a glimpse of his dimple, carved on his skin just like the half moon shining brightly in the sky. 

“Thanks! That’s a big help!”, he said and they kept their eyes on each other. Normally silent situations made her uncomfortable but staring at his dark hazy eyes, the lack of dialogue seemed natural. She bit her lower lip intrigued. His eyes met the action. “Then– Uhm… I’ll go then.” He looked at her eyes again. “I really have to find him.” 

“Wait!” Hyori burst, before he could pass through the door he had already opened. 

“What should I do if I find him?” Hyori spoke fast and despite not being drunk, her speech came out slurry. “Should we set up a place to meet in like an hour or something?”

“Oh… of course!” Namjoon laughed shyly. Whatever had crossed his mind was long gone and his long shoulders were now relaxed. “What if… Hum… I can give you my number— We could exchange numbers?”

“Oh…” Hyori's slightly pouted lips made Namjoon feel butterflies in his stomach. “Good idea!”

Both pull out their phones at the same time and the struggle to find each other's free hand to make the exchange of the device would seem awkward to anyone watching. But there was no one there besides Hyori, Namjoon, and the moon. So she found it endearing and the boy ended up laughing right after a shy giggle left the smart girl's lips. 

With promises to text the other as soon as they found the tie deranged boy, they lingered on each other's stares before one going left and the other right, to the bottom floor, their hearts beating fast as if they had been running on adrenaline. 

Jungkook fishes his phone on the back of his trousers as he makes his way toward the entrance. He can see the first rays of sunshine hitting the windows and denouncing the party is in its last stages. And since the place is not so crowded anymore, he makes his way swiftly, phone in hand, ready to check up on Yoongi to see if he can score a ride home. 

Instead, his motions come to a halt, as he spots who he had been looking for all along. 

Carolina had her back to him, arms crossed as she looked to the side absentmindedly. The way she frowned as the sun came in contact with her eyes made him start walking again. A groovy tune fell from his lips in the form of a whistle as he came closer in a jolly mood. 

“There you are!” The smile on the boy’s lips goes all the way up to his eyes. “I know it’s already the day after, but I think you’re still in time to congratulate me on the big win.” 

The girl raises one eyebrow before he even comes into vision. She breathes deeply, and as he approaches her, a sarcastic smile is already shining on her lips. It had been ready for him. 

“Oh, so that’s how much importance I have in your life, huh?” she says with a feign cockiness, just to push his buttons. “Didn’t know you liked me that much, virgin boy” 

Carolina keeps looking ahead, too proud to spare him a glance. But he waits until she does, with a lack of response on his part. And as she turned her head to the side, to check if he was there and not just a mirage she made up in her mind, she caught herself staring at his big dark eyes. 

Only then does he answer, “Nah. I just wanted to rub the victory on your face” 

She snorts amused. 

There was an agreeable silence between the two. Jungkook looked expectantly at the two-tone-haired girl before him. She returned the gaze trying to decide what was going to be her next move. 

The thought of taking it easy for the first time ever since she started this bickering dance with him came to mind. But then again, the mean comments she once heard him share with Jennifer about herself had cut deeper than she had predicted. 

She pended her head to the side. “You won alright, but that doesn’t mean you played well. Your performance was poor, to say the least.” she rolled her eyes, clicking her tongue. Then she delivered the final blow. “Honestly disappointing.” 

Carolina observed how his jaw tensed at her comment and she had to force herself not to show how pleased she was with his discontent. 

Jungkook smirked. “I didn’t know you kept me in check like that” 

“Eunwoo is too nice to do the job, so–“ 

“Eunwoo–“ Jungkook snorted with laughter. His hands came to his hips and he turned around pacing. When he came face to face with her again, his face had already adopted a mad semblance. “I’m starting to believe that you’re doing this on purpose” he added fuming this time. 

That was the main problem between the two; whoever had a pair of eyes could see. They would always interpret differently what the other had said. 

“Doing what on purpose?” she asked, raising an eyebrow, somewhat confused. But Jungkook took it as a challenge. And he had been piling up until now too many situations to bother on not to burst. He wasn’t intending on holding back no longer. 

“You’re into Eunwoo too?!” he assumes more than he asks and she grins outraged. “What? Making out with my teacher wasn’t enough?”

Carolina was ready to laugh about his mistake over her snarky comment about Eunwoo, but she didn’t expect what came afterward. Her mouth opened and closed, piecing the information together. 

Jungkook nodded. “Yeah that’s right, Mr. Benjamin is my teacher,” he stated, index finger coming to hit his chest. She furrowed her brows, puzzled by the sudden information and even more by how he was reacting.

“And what does anything have to do with it?!” she burst. 

“I just don’t get it! What do you even see in the guy?!” 

“You’ve got to be kidding…” she chuckles, placing her hands on her hips and staring straight into his disappointed eyes. He crosses his arms waiting for an answer. 

“The question is what I don’t see in him” she spits and Jungkook feels his blood boil. He looks at some point by her shoulder before looking at her eyes again, tongue coming to poke the inside of his cheek. He exhales, doing everything possible to think straight. “And honestly, that’s very rich of you– ‘Cause Jennifer is superb” she snaps. 

He blinks. The urge of shaking her hard by the shoulders to make her understand his reasoning flashes before his eyes. Instead, Jungkook stays still, his chest moving up and down like he’s restraining himself. His hands halt before reaching her face from each side, fingers curling into fists the second after, in a nervous outbreak. He grunts impatiently. Her eyes never leave his face, unafraid, and mostly, daring. 

“What Jen–“ he starts. 

“Oh save it!” Carolina snaps again. “I hate to say something like this about someone but I feel like her purpose range goes to making out sessions only. I doubt you both ever talked about something other than demeaning other people—which disgusts me by the way. So fucking shut it with Ben. He’s great to make out? Yes, the fucking best but unlike your Kardashian over there he actually has a brain.” 

Jungkook clicks his tongue. And Carolina doesn’t know if it is the light breeze that hits them or the angered state he is in, but his eyes are glossy. 

“HE’S MY TEACHER FOR FUCKS SAKE! YOU’RE MAKING OUT WITH MY TEACHER.” Jungkook didn’t bother anymore if someone could hear them. And he dared to say that he would like it if that was the case. 

He wasn’t close with the girl in front of him, nor did he think of her as a friend, or even a colleague, but he hated every second of her relationship with his substitute teacher. He couldn’t tell why it bothered him so much but It was crawling under his skin and he just wanted it over with. 

“How do you think that makes me feel?” he asked with a tilt of his head, in a pouty manner. His eyes were angrier than she had ever seen. 

But he didn’t have the time to receive an answer, as for the second he asked, they saw a group approach them, snapping their gazes at their figures. 

Taehyung had his arms wrapped around both Namjoon and Jin’s necks. Yoongi came right behind them with his phone in his ear, and suddenly Jungkook’s phone began to ring. Everyone stopped for a second. 

“Are we going already?” Hoseok came out of the front door and Jungkook saw the rest of his group by the front lawn looking both at him and Carolina awkwardly. 

Hoseok looked from one to another, trying to grasp why the mood was so dreadful. He even whispered at Deo and Hyori, but the shortest one nudged at him with a sympathetic look on her face. 

Jungkook’s phone stopped ringing as Yoongi’s hand came down with the device, locking it. 

The tension was palpable as Carolina didn’t move by his side. He didn’t need to look at her to see what was going on, as in front of them, Taehyung pierced her with his gaze. His eyebrows were furrowed, eyes drowning in confusion and—as Jungkook could discern—disappointment. 

“What?” the drunken boy breathes. 

“Tae–” Carolina tries as the trio comes closer to them. 

Taehyung eyes her for brief seconds and the look she has on her face suggests that what he had heard was true and not just some mean gossip invented by the volley player fidgeting by her side. He knew her far too well to know when she was trying to come up with excuses. 

“I think I’m gonna be sick” he has time to say before taking one hand out from Namjoon’s shoulder to place it on top of his stomach. Jin’s face contorts in disgust but he still offers the stability his drunken friend needs. 

Jimin rushedly leaves both girls who had been cuddling by his side, being shielded from the breeze that welcomed the new morning, to go help his roommate. But he isn’t quick enough. 

Taehyung mentions retching and as soon as he does so, Carolina grabs Jungkook by the arm, pulling him closer. The boy stumbles, trying to take a questioning glance at her over his shoulder. Before he manages to do it, his black boots are covered with vomit. 

“I hope that’s leather,” Yoongi comments trivially as Jin holds a pale Taehyung by the shoulders, looking to the side as he mentions vomiting as well. 

© #fighton! | all rights reserved. do not repost, translate or claim as your own. if you find this work elsewhere besides the three blogs stated, please report it to any of the writers.

@singguks × @socksjinie × @bluenpjm

✱ if you want to be tagged for the next chapters, comment down below!

#bts college au #jungkook smut #taehyung smut #bts scenarios #btswritingcafe #bts series #namjoon smut #jimin smut #jin smut #yoongi smut #hoseok smut #bts x oc #jungkook x you #bts smut #jungkook scenarios #taehyung fanfic #namjoon scenarios #bts ot7 au #bts au #taehyung x you #jeon jungkook #kim namjoon

[socksjinie]

#fighton! ✱ 1 | bts

synopsis. like every college, this one also has gossip and drama to fill the hallways, as well as lot’s of parties and games to attend. but when two of the most popular groups start to collide the whole campus goes into havoc. suddenly all eyes are on them. what will be the final outcome of this clash of clans?

📕 this is a revamp; the old archive is here

pairing. bts x oc's

genre. college au + fluff + slice of life + smut + angst

word count. 10249

warnings. foul language, tension, fights, and jungkook being called virgin boy 24/7

a/n. to celebrate a special day with lots of special people ♡ here's to everything we've been through together, we are forever~

✱ chapters. #1 - #2

“Good morning, South!” Yoongi’s voice echoed through the halls of his college, and even though he should sound excited, his tone was drained and maintained in a monotone. A really, really, bored and sleepy one. 

Yoongi was responsible for the radio station. Well, one of them actually, but his regularity inside the dark booth was so prominent, that no one else knew who the others responsible were. 

On duty days he had to wake up extra early to be able to do all the announcements for the university, as required. It was his giant love for music that made him volunteer to take care of the station — that and the fact he really enjoyed being alone. Having the studio all for himself in a building filled with young adults was like having the golden ticket to the chocolate factory. 

And to those said young adults, having him there was more than a benefit. The halls were always filled with good music. 

“We’ll have pizza for lunch today — which in all honesty is golden even for the students who aren’t broke — and don’t forget! Saturday we have the volley male team game. If you miss it, you’re not a Trojan…” He ended his morning announcement by inciting the students with yet again another sarcastic remark. 

He was about to prepare the playlist to be played for the rest of the day around campus when he heard a knock on the door. 

Getting up tiredly from his chair, he exited the station booth to the lounge — which was currently empty much to his happiness — and went towards the door. He was about to get overly grumpy, not wanting to have meaningless morning conversations when her face showed on the other side. Carolina. A smile immediately formed on his face. 

“My lifesaver!” He says, a glint of relief reflected in his eyes, as he swings an arm around her neck, pulling her inside. She was holding two coffee cups and although one was for him, he didn’t wait much before grabbing it with a cheeky smile. 

“Oh, good morning for you too, sir!” She chuckles amused. “What’s up for today?” 

“I guess pizza for lunch?” She sees him scrunching his nose, pondering his options, which makes her laugh. “I’m getting too old to read these announcements. They sound ridiculous! Namjoon should definitely have a heart-to-heart with his dad…” 

Almost every morning Yoongi had to talk with the principal to receive the announcements. It was a mix of headaches and second-hand embarrassment every damn time. 

“You’re still in your twenties, Yoongs…” Carolina rolled her eyes with a smile insisting on escaping through the corners of her mouth. “But yeah, pizza sounds nice for someone who only slept three hours — I think? And still has volley practice to attend.” She sank into his embrace further, lacking the energy. “I need the carbs. Desperately.” 

“You’re also getting too old for that. See?!” He teases and she yawns. 

“Team granddads, always.” The reply sounds muffled, her face resting directly on the curve of his neck. 

“Can you keep one eye open though to help me with today’s playlist? There’s still a couple of songs I need to add and I always trust your taste.” 

As he asks it, Carolina seems to gain life, straightening her back once again. “Sure! What vibe are we setting today?” There was nothing more pleasing than to hear the songs you liked being played through the halls, and this girl, in particular, loved sharing her musical references with Yoongi. 

“We have to go more college vibes,” He said throwing air marks and mocking the principal’s tone. “So help me out here. No swear words either.” He scoffs. 

“Oh god, we’ve gone preppy…” She sighs as he sits on his chair once again and she finds a spot at the end of his lap, checking the list Yoongi already had. He casually drank his coffee waiting for her ideas. “Hmm, what about cosmos midnight? They have a nice vibe and could cheer your morning up… Something like- Talk To Me?” 

“Like I said before: my lifesaver.” He gave her a soft squeeze on her waist and she looked over her shoulder to smile back at him. 

Carolina and Yoongi would seem like a couple to everyone that passed by them. They were both crazy affectionate with one another, which was strange considering they weren’t like that to anybody else — especially Yoongi. But in reality, it was just a genuine friendship. They are very similar, which helps, but also very comfortable in each other’s presence to the point of not touching being weird. It could be anything really, side hugs, cuddles, intertwined hands… The only thing that kept them from indeed dating one another was the fact they praised their friendship way too much. That and the fact Carolina now had her eye out for a mystery drawing guy. 

“Let me add that one to the playlist and we’re good to go.” 

“And where we might be going?” She asked slumping on his chest and making him laugh. 

“Cafeteria, you lazy ass. I’m starving!” 

“I always forget how much you can eat whenever you have a game coming,” She laughs it out getting up from his lap. 

“I love playing, but I really do hate the intense practice…” He mused and once again swung his arm around her neck as he closed the door of the radio station, heading towards the cafeteria. 

By this time of the day, the corridors of the university were beginning to get flowed with people who had morning classes to attend, which consisted mostly of all the freshmen and juniors. And there were two juniors in particular that were always the theme of conversation around here. Eyes were glued to them wherever they went. Kim Taehyung and Park Jimin, the inseparable childhood friends. 

Taehyung, majoring in Fine Arts, was as eccentric as it could get. He would often change his hair, some said it went according to his mood, which now was blue. And how he manages to look like a god in every color possible it’s worth hours of debate, which every girl and every guy would pleasingly go through. And contrary to his exterior looks, he was the kindest person on earth too. That only contributed to the swarm of people swooning over him. 

As for Jimin, well, Performative Arts major and also head of the football team. How he got both going said a lot about him. He was appointed to being the official quarterback ever since he first set foot in this college, and between that and his stunning stages, he got to be undoubtedly the most popular guy in the entire university — maybe even state — in a glimpse. 

And the curious part comes now. Despite both of them being best friends and overly popular, when it came to their social circles, they didn’t belong to the same groups. Much like their own personal interests, their little troupe is polar opposites. That doesn’t mean they don’t support each other or even talk about everything. The major interest in the halls — although more and more scarce — is if they trade secrets behind their friends’ backs. 

“And then,” Taehyung was balling his eyes out laughing, “The seagull flew right from under the barrel next to the big one’s and I was getting all soft but the video- The video stopped and it switched to that meme of Nemo-” 

“Fish fish fish fish fish!” Jimin started singing with balled fists enthusiastically, also laughing loudly. Taehyung joined him in the chanting. 

“Why did you stop?” The youngest asked after a couple of ‘fish’ chanted, realizing he was doing it alone. 

“Look! There’s Deo. Let’s go to her!” Jimin dismissed his friend, dragging him by the arm towards the girl. She had her attention on her locker, stuffing some books inside. “Morning, baby!” He said cheerfully over her shoulder, and Taehyung just leaned on the locker facing the crowd passing by. 

“Morning!” She replied smiling widely and turning around to give him a tight hug. “Oh- hi.” She added, noticing Taehyung standing close by. 

“Hey.” He nodded. 

“Oh, c’mon guys. You already know each other, no need to be shy!” Jimin chuckled lightly, pushing Deo a bit closer to Taehyung. 

“So… How’s it going?” 

“Good!” Deo answered almost immediately, turning again to her locker to grab a book. “Well, I gotta get to class. See you.” She pointed out, slamming her locker door and throwing a death stare at Jimin. And then she left. 

“Oook!” Taehyung broke the silence with a smack of his lips. “So are we seeing that movie tonight or what?” 

“That was weird…” Jimin kept looking at the place in the crowd where Deo had wandered off, completely absorbed in his thoughts. “She looked weird. Don’t you think?” He glanced back at Taehyung but his friend had crossed his arms and had a questioning raised eyebrow, expectant of an answer. “Uh? Oh, yeah! Yes! We are. What was the movie again?” Jimin smiled sheepishly, lost in the conversation. 

“I told you about it five times already,” Taehyung sighed. “That noir one.” 

“Oh! Yeah, that’s right. The noir one… Yeah, we can totally watch it tonight!” 

“‘Kay then. But don’t forget!” He said with warning eyes, pulling away from the lockers to get going. “Gotta go. I’m probably late again…” 

“I’ll be there!” Jimin said louder as Taehyung kept going farther away, but his eyes went back in search of Deo. For the popular guy he was, he suddenly felt abandoned, and worst of all by his two best friends. One was clearly mad at him, although the why of it wasn’t that clear… Still, he needed to do something about that. And with that in mind, he made his way to class. 

Nearby, Jungkook, Hoseok, and Hyori were sitting in the lounge near the smallest bar. The morning sun was so pleasing shining through the big windows that the latter made them sit outside to enjoy some vitamin C. And suddenly, this seemed the perfect opportunity for Jungkook to vent out his problems. He wasn’t one to talk about what worried him, even though he knew his friends were always available and supportive. He was just accustomed to dealing with stuff alone. But this time, he felt like needing a second opinion. 

“I just don’t understand where it came from!” Jungkook let out frustrated. “Yesterday everything was fine, and now this morning as soon as I set foot on campus somehow all eyes were on me… I got to know through a guy that came asking if I was a virgin because I wanted or because I had problems down there!” The day hadn’t even started and the words ‘virgin boy’ had already hunted him in the halls. 

“Maybe you just need to let it go. I haven’t heard anything like that so far… Try and focus on something else? You know how these things are, they die down if you don’t pay much mind-” Hoseok suggested. 

“It won’t! Everyone’s whispering about it.” 

“I bet it’s just a jealous guy spreading that around to piss you off-” Hoseok tried but got interrupted. 

“Wasn’t a guy.” Hyori finally said something gaining Jungkook’s full attention. “I might be completely wrong though because I don’t have evidence just the word of a girl I tutor…” 

“Just tell me!” 

“She said Carolina was the one telling her…” Hyori admitted and Jungkook furrowed his eyebrows in deep thought. 

“What Carolina?” Hoseok intervened curiously. “And she just started it out without no apparent reason?”

“I don’t know her face, so I don’t know how to explain… The girl just told me she was from the volley team?”

“Same as JK!” Hoseok exclaimed, “Did you piss her off over practice?” 

“Jungkook!” Hyori slapped his shoulder so he could get out of his head and pay attention to them. 

“She- She lives in my building? And we have some classes together… And sometimes practice.” He answered honestly still in trance. “But I don’t remember having any interaction with her?” 

“You either did something and you’re just not remembering because boys never pay attention enough or she just likes to rile you up and it’s working,” Hyori commented. 

“I don’t think I did?” Jungkook kept rummaging his brain after some kind of interaction they might have had. 

“Maybe she has a crush?” Hoseok shrugged and Jungkook looked over to Hyori questioning. He needed girl intuition. “Even if it’s a weird way to call for attention… I mean- Virgin boy?” Hoseok bit down a burst of laughter. 

“Hmm… That’s an option, I guess? Who is she anyway?” Hyori asked curiously. She normally had a lot of information to share since the majority of students she tutored around campus loved a good gossip, but not always knew who they were talking about. 

“I don’t know how to explain it to you… She has half her hair dyed. Like the bottom half.” Jungkook said it as if was impossible for Hyori not to know who the girl was by that description. “Ah but really why did she start that?!” 

“Outstanding description!” Hoseok teased making him huff. “Here. Found her through the volley team account!” He passed the phone over to Hyori. 

“Ok… Isn’t this the girl that dates that troublemaker? The radio guy?” Hyori said scrolling down Carolina’s posts. “She seems bad news… I know for a fact they are always on that radio booth together, so I think it’s unlikely she’s pinning over another guy.” 

“She’s dating Yoongi?” Jungkook muttered more to himself in realization than anything. “Ok but— What should I do? About the whole virgin boy thing…” 

“Tell her to stop?” Hoseok sighed. “And if she doesn’t, I don’t know… Maybe just tease back!” He said jokingly but the other two didn’t take it that way. 

“Oh, that’s a good option… I mean, the worst that can happen is her boyfriend beating you up but he’s way smaller than you so you probably have a chance.” Hyori pondered and Jungkook thought about having to start a fight with Yoongi. “Or! She will beat you up.” 

“I can’t start a fight with my roommate though.” Jungkook chuckled. 

“Maybe that’s why she started this! Because he asked her to?” Hoseok was confused by his own track of thoughts. 

“The fact is we don’t even know if it was really her…” Hyori started, still scrolling down the other girl’s feed. “I’m betting she’s the culprit cause look- She totally has the ‘I’m causing trouble tonight’ style, but! You never know. We can’t go around accusing people out of nowhere…” 

“I feel like that’s exactly what you’re doing right now,” Hoseok commented laughing. 

“But why though??? Like. Why?” Jungkook was still pissed off he didn’t have the answers or the solution to this nonsense. The last thing he needed was a weird rumor about him going around right before an official match. 

“Ok, that’s it. Off to class both of you!” Hoseok got up and started pulling them with him. 

“Wha-” Jungkook started to protest but Hyori cut him off. 

“Let’s go, virgin boy! Can’t arrive late and ruin my perfect academic life.” Both she and Hoseok started laughing realizing the boy in question was cursing under his breath. 

As the group parted ways, Hyori walked at a fast pace to her class. She hated being late but the conversation with the boys took more of her time than she was expecting, and she couldn’t afford to lose any word that left the teacher’s mouth. 

When she got to her physics class, there were only a couple of seats vacant and she took the one that was nearest to the teacher’s table. That way she could still record the class in case she missed something and take notes later on at the dorm. 

She was in the middle of a way too long sentence when someone tapped on her shoulder. As she turned around, she saw Eunwoo, a boy from her class she wished she knew a lot better but never had the guts to go and talk to him before. 

“Sorry, can I take a peek at your notes? I can’t keep up the pace with her.” He smiled sheepishly. 

“Sure! Can you see like this?” The girl turned her laptop a little to his side, trying at the same time to hide how red her cheeks already were. 

The class continued but now Hyori was a little out of focus. She could still catch some words here and there, but the fact that Eunwoo was almost breathing down her neck was making her lose her senses. The only thing on her mind was the smell of his perfume that had quickly intoxicated all the air she was breathing. 

“Hey, it’s Hyori, right?” He asked leaning against the table as she was packing her stuff. The class had finally come to an end — She just didn’t know if that was a good thing or not. 

“Yes, that’s right”

“Well, uhm, thanks for helping me out during class! I pride myself on typing fast but I really can’t keep up with Mrs. Green,” He chuckled scratching the back of his neck and Hyori laughed alongside him. 

“It was nothing, really! But I get you, I sometimes record it in case I miss it,” 

“That’s clever,” He commented amusedly. “And uh… I was thinking… If you aren’t too busy maybe we could study together or something… After class?”

Hyori took a moment to breathe, being taken by surprise. “Sure! That would be great! Just say where and when!” Hearing that his eyes took a crescent moon shape yet again. But to her horror, she sounded way more cheerful and euphoric than she intended to. 

“Can I have your number? I have practice after class but we can check our schedules and set a date?” Eunwoo casually took his phone out of his pocket. 

“Of course! I have some tutoring to do as well, but sure, we’ll manage.” She laughed nervously as he handed his phone to her. 

“I’ll give you a ring then, so you can also have mine. Text you later, Hyori!” He grabbed his backpack and opened another killing smile to her, walking towards the door. 

“Bye!” She said dreamily, letting out a long sigh she didn’t even realize she was holding. Boy, she was starstruck. 

As Hyori left her class and made her way through the crowd, she spotted Jungkook with eyebrows furrowed staring intensely at his cellphone. He was probably waiting for her for them to meet Hoseok at the cafeteria. It was pizza day after all. No one could push them away from there. 

Unlike them, however, there was another group assembling in the halls. One that much preferred to eat outside and away from prying eyes. The fresh air didn’t make it to the top list of motives they always gathered on the bleachers, though. It was the peace and quietness that made it through to the first place. And since it was unusual for people to have lunch there, they had maybe half an hour to eat comfortably before the field would be filled with youngsters that wanted to lay down or play some ball. 

“Hey losers!” Carolina said approaching the boys. Yoongi came right beside her, with a hand on the back of her neck and the other holding his phone as a text popped up. He had this incessant tired look on his face like he had gone to bed too late. And he probably did. 

“Where were you this morning? I didn’t even see you,” Jin — the oldest of the group and also Carolina’s housemate — questioned. 

“I have classes starting at eight, remember? I don’t have your easy senior life.” She replied, sitting down next to Taehyung. He was currently sketching something in his journal, not really paying attention to the conversation or his surroundings. 

“After all these years I deserve a break don’t you think?” The oldest said chuckling. 

“Not really” 

“We’ll talk about that in two years… You’ll see.” 

“Where’s Namjoon by the way?” Yoongi asked making everyone, even Taehyung, look around for their friend. 

“Is he sick or something?” Carolina got worried. 

“Nah, I gave him a ride this morning…” Yoongi addressed her concerns. 

“He’ll probably show up in a few,” Jin commented returning his attention to the sandwich he was previously eating. 

“I bumped into him in the cafeteria earlier,” Taehyung had his eyes trailed on the paper resting on his leg, pencil moving swiftly in his hand. “I think his class ends a little after ours,”

“There he is!” Carolina pointed looking behind Jin. Namjoon had a fast pace and his hands were packed with large books. And although he was a little clumsy, he was a true catch. Tall, honey skin, charming dimples, cozy style, and a brain to die for. 

“Guys!” He called out astonished, “Did you hear it?!” 

“What happened this time?” Yoongi questioned uninterested, drinking from Jin’s coffee. 

“The rumor about JK being a virgin!” He spilled out and received different reactions. “You think it’s true? Like. He’s a nice kid and all but I didn’t think he was that nice,” Namjoon attempted to sit down and almost fell off the bleachers if it wasn’t for Jin and Taehyung holding him. 

“A virgin?” Taehyung scoffed. “I think he had a girlfriend or something… Jimin mentioned it once,” 

“Why do we even care? Let the kid be,” Yoongi said taking a bite of the sandwich that was in Carolina’s hand. 

“What would Jimin know though?” Carolina glanced at Taehyung, “And besides, I trust the theory of the purity ring he has on his finger all the time… Or the one about his willy-” 

“Like the Jonas brothers?” Jin interrupted her ready to have the laugh of his life. 

“That was even a thing?” Namjoon asked, completely lost. “Is he impotent though?” And to that Carolina nodded and muttered a ‘probably’. “Oh man, poor guy,” 

“And you seem to know a lot about the subject,” Yoongi addressed her with a smirk, “Odd!” 

“I happen to know because he has some classes with me that’s all…”

“I say we ask him gently on the way home today,” Jin suggested. “Maybe his father is a preacher… OR! He’s like those guys from Game of Thrones. How’s it called?” 

“Eunuch,” 

“No, his father is a designer, I know him,” Taehyung said casually. 

“He’s not a eunuch, for fucks sake,” Namjoon let out with a chuckle. “I’ve seen him around in boxers. He’s-” And instead of concluding the phrase he just gesticulated making everyone imagine what he was trying to say. 

“Ok!” Carolina said cutting the subject. “Can we now discuss the fact that Jin was caught trying to wear my bra yesterday, please?” 

“I SAID I WAS JUST DOING AN EXPERIMENT!” Jin burst and the others with him, but from laughter. 

“He was probably trying to open it with one hand only. You know, for practice,” Yoongi said in a monotone as if discussing the weather. 

“Bro, you could have said that… I would help,” Taehyung offered. 

“Wow,” Carolina looked at them. She couldn’t even act surprised anymore, this was practically her routine. 

“That’s some… Kinky shit right there,” Namjoon pointed out starting to eat his lunch. 

The group can seem a little odd to the outside viewers but they weren’t concerned about public opinion. They all had a lot in common, and not bothering to be anything but themselves was their first principle. 

Carolina and Taehyung had practically been raised together. Their parents were friends for a lifetime and to top that, they were also neighbors. When she came to college though, her schedule didn’t match his, and that’s how she ended up wandering around in some clubs trying to spend time and also trying to find someone to share her new apartment with. She would share it initially with Taehyung but unfortunately for her, he was already doing so with Jimin, his best friend. She didn’t have to search for long though, because on her very first week she somehow ended up in a vintage game conference and met Jin — a senior in college who was still desperate to get out of the campus dorm. And he even knew Taehyung, so it was a no-brainer to rent her spare room to him. Yes, he was a guy, but her parents were pretty open-minded, so was she, and if he knew Taehyung… Well, that was a major plus. 

In her second week, she met Namjoon, a nice and outspoken guy that was friends with Jin, and started casually sitting with them to grab some lunch. She only came to discover he was the son of the dean a month later when the group ended up in a mess — another common thing between them. Yoongi however, was a different case… Carolina met him because fate once more moved in her favor. 

In the building she lived in, there were more apartments and one of them belonged to Namjoon, who coincidently shared it with Yoongi and Jungkook (the now nominated college virgin boy according to Carolina, who may or may not have spread that rumor out). How did she discover that? Well, Jin asked Namjoon for a ride but turned out that Yoongi was actually the car owner and also the driver. Namjoon had never attempted to lay hands on a wheel. 

Yoongi was a tough one to crack at first, but once she unraveled they had the same music taste, they became really close. Nowadays, she will mostly spend her time skipping classes at the radio station, giving thoughts on Yoongi’s playlists whenever she is allowed to. 

In college, they mostly hang out in the bleachers because it is sunny and pretty far out of the rest of the campus population. And when it rains or it’s so cold they can’t stand being out, well, they either go to the lounge area to chat and eat something or to the big abandoned stairway located on the left-wing of the building. After classes, it’s always agreed to chill over at Jin and Carolina’s apartment since they have tried it once at Yoongi’s — seeing he isn’t one to get out of the house that much — and that didn’t go down that well. Carolina had arrived at the boys' apartment only to find Jungkook casually eating cereals just wearing boxers, and let’s just say she didn’t understand why he was there in the first place. 

The clock on her phone marked two o’clock sharp, and despite them being all super tired already, the day had to continue. They still had a couple of classes in the afternoon. The sun made them feel sleepy, especially after having their stomachs filled, so when they had to get up to go to class, it seemed more like a herd of zombies walking than actual human beings. 

The boys had this protective habit of walking Carolina to her class, so every day after lunch she was the first to arrive at whatever class she had. And as soon as she entered the door, they would disperse, each of them going off to their department. But today she decided to take her usual “sneak break” as soon as she set foot inside the room. She waited for the teacher to call out her name, announcing she was present, and soon after made her way out. 

Her trips to the broom closet were getting more and more usual. The girl gained this habit in her first week, and it became more and more regular when random doodles started to appear on the walls and door of the little space. It intrigued her. As far as she knew, she was the only habitant of the broom closet in the art department, and those drawings felt like hints, or even… Gifts. The smell of cigarettes made it even more appealing each time. She was absolutely dying to find who the mystery doodle person could be. 

Unfortunately, her time there had to be brief this time, she really needed to return to her photography class. And she wasn’t really in the mood that day. Carolina didn’t see the point of having a class like that if she wasn’t actually with a camera in hand, photographing stuff. She didn’t need to know how many pixels there were in how many centimeters. So, inspired by the doodles in her little safe haven, she scribbled on her own iPad. 

Everything was fine until she heard ‘pop quiz next week’ coming out of the teacher’s mouth. She wasn’t one to pay attention to her grades, but she really liked photography and this teacher. Somehow he was always very supportive of her, something none of her teachers so far had shown her, so the least she could do was to impress him enough. Her mind began racing and she looked around to see whom she could manage to get some info from, for the quiz. Her eyes stopped on a pair of scribbling hands. She really had no choice. 

“Psst, virgin boy,” Carolina called out none other than Jungkook. Despite very much unknown to her, he was the most familiar face she had in that class. And as he turned around, showing a fake uninterested semblance on his face, she continued. “Can I borrow your notebook real quick?” She whispered to him. 

“Why?” He asked, this time genuinely confused. If it was anyone else, or a different circumstance, Jungkook wouldn’t hesitate to help someone out. He liked feeling helpful. But she was the culprit behind this whole ‘virgin boy’ rumor, and he didn’t even know why. 

Earlier on, he had overheard some girls from the volley team confirming the information Hyori had given him, about Carolina being the one spreading it, and it only pissed him further. He thought of confronting her about the subject but he wasn’t really a guy to pick fights like that… And besides, nothing he could do would change the fact everyone believed what they wanted to believe. 

“Dude, just help me out. I have zero things written down.” 

He looked at her still not following her track of thoughts. First, she badmouths him and now she asked for his notes… And there was also the fact that to him, she didn’t seem the type to care about stuff like this, she was always drawing or doing anything else but paying attention. At least in the classes they shared. But something about it intrigued him. From the way her expectant eyes were watching him to the real motive she wanted his notes specifically. 

“Fine.” He ended up saying. “But you owe me one,” He passed her his notebook, to which she grabbed firmly, not letting go of his gaze. 

“That’s not how it works, virgin boy,” He couldn’t help but snort. It was starting to piss him off this whole nickname thing. And the more he thought about it, about the reason behind it, the more bothered he would get. 

“Just hurry up.” 

“If I want to,” Carolina dismissed, opening the camera on her iPad and starting to take photos of the pages before her. 

“So what? You’re keeping my notebook?” He arched his eyebrow, a smirk showing on his lips. 

“Why?” She paused the task to look at him curiously. “Is there something here I can’t see?” And he faltered his stance for a second, but a second was what it took for her to notice it and start imagining what she really could find between the pages of his book. 

“Browse away,” He pointed out the object with his head, “But if you want to keep something of mine, I can bring you a sweater. At least is comfier.” And the look he offered her, made her want to just kick his head out. 

“Is that you flirting with me, virgin boy?” She pressed on his new nickname, blood boiling. Jungkook snorted once again. 

“You wish. Just hurry up,” He turned back to face the board once again. “Or neither of us will pass the pop quiz next week. I need to write down what he’s saying.” 

“Here.” She said taking the last picture and handing him his notebook back. “And hurry up writing it down! I need the rest of it, thank you!” 

Once the class was over, Jungkook gathered his things and left. He had volleyball practice tonight so he wanted to go home and rest as soon as possible. Turns out he made a poor choice when he decided to stay up playing overwatch with some of his friends. 

He was about to leave the main hall when he heard someone call his name. Someone who was giving him lots of headaches lately. 

“Hey, virgin boy! You forgot the rest of the notes!” Carolina said almost sprinting to catch him. 

“Really? I think I got everything the teacher said?” He turned to face her, playing dumb. 

“No dumbass, you forgot to pass them on to me.” 

“I don’t think I did.” 

“But you did.” Carolina pushed back and he smirked. 

“Nope.” 

“Seriously,” She puffed. “Can you just stop this… Thing. And give me the notes? I really need them and you’re the most organized one so far. Plus your handwriting is- You know-”

“What?” He arched an eyebrow amused. “Pretty?” And she huffed rolling her eyes, completely impatient. “Well, maybe if you hadn’t started calling me virgin boy…” 

“It affects you that much, huh?” She narrowed her eyes looking at him, a smile threatening to pull at the corners of her mouth. 

The truth was: it was indeed Carolina starting the rumors. She didn’t plan for it to get that far, not even in her wildest dreams she thought the next day everyone around campus would be talking about it. But she underestimated Jungkook’s reputation, and the volley team’s integrity to keep a secret. 

It all started when their coach decided to appoint Jungkook — the ace of the boys' team — to watch a simple match between the girls. He was supposed to analyze their techniques and help the coach out to sort a better lineup since there was fresh blood coming in. Carolina was already the designed setter of the official team, and Jennifer — Jungkook’s unofficial booty call — was the designed captain, she was also a year older than the both of them. Same as Jungkook, she played in the wing spiker position. That day, the coach decided to make a team with Jennifer in charge and another with Carolina in charge since their game style differed quite a lot. 

Everything was going fine, until Carolina herself smashed a ball on the second touch, doing a feint, but Jennifer raised up to the net, trying to block it. The ball happened to be quick so the coach couldn’t really pinpoint if it touched the court line or not. But that didn’t matter to Carolina because she was sure it had hit Jennifer’s hand, therefore, the point was hers. 

At the time, Jennifer cried out to the coach Carolina was lying and the ball had not touched her attempt to block. The coach couldn’t solve the debate so he asked for a second opinion — Jungkook’s. He took a while to give the answer, and by the way he looked between the two girls, Carolina simply knew: he had seen the ball touching Jennifer’s hand, but she was also his booty call. So when he gave that point to Jennifer, she wasn’t surprised. Or hurt. Although it sucked losing a point like that, knowing she was supposed to have it. What came afterward though, was what truly pissed her off. 

She had stayed behind at the court talking strategies with the coach for their next game, after all, she was the setter on the team, and it was her obligation to think the game through. And she was certain the lockers would be empty by the time she went there to take a shower. But she was wrong. As soon as she opened the door, she overheard Jennifer and Jungkook’s voices talking about none other than herself. Jennifer had told him she didn’t know how a player like Carolina deserved to be frontline, and at the time Jungkook laughed. 

Carolina had marched out of the lockers that day fuming. And she wasn’t one to lose her cool like that, but something inside her snapped. So the next thing she knew, she was telling their libero Jungkook was still a virgin when the short girl inquired if Jungkook was doing Jennifer in the lockers and if that was why she couldn’t change her clothes. 

“You’re the one losing here, sweetheart.” Jungkook stuffed his hands in his pockets, “Anyway, you still have a week.” He turned around ready to leave but was stopped. 

“Hey!” Carolina held his arm. “First of all, you should work on that pet name thing, virgin boy, sweetheart is a major turn off — unless you’re like. British. But anyway! Just-” She let out a long sigh. “Borrow me your notes, please, I swear I’ll be quick,” 

He looked at her and almost gave in. She really wasn’t one to be desperate because of notes or grades… But she did him dirty in the end. He had to put up a fight somehow. “Not today,” Jungkook got loose of her hold and started walking towards the exit.

“God, I could break his legs right here.” She muttered to herself seeing him walk off. 

Carolina was ready to punch someone into a locker but she refrained herself, knowing it was of no use getting in trouble over him. Instead, she was planning on wasting all her rage at the volleyball court later on. Tonight’s practice was co-ed. 

The halls were all empty and Namjoon found himself wandering through the corridor he already knew like the back of his hand. He wasn’t in the mood for how the rest of his day was about to end, but he also knew there was no use in postponing this any further. So he made his way to the principal’s office — or better yet, his dad’s office. 

“You’re lat— What clothes are those?” Dean Kim frowned displeased, as soon as he gave Namjoon a quick glance. 

“My going out clothes…? Why? There’s something wrong?” The boy asked, looking down at himself to inspect if there was indeed something off. 

His father sighed. “I told you this dinner was important. I needed you in formal attire.” He added sternly. 

“I don’t have anything more formal than this, dad… I’ve been in college all day,” Namjoon sighed, trying to contain his temper from coming out. “And besides, nobody will even notice me, I’m sure,” He added trying to lighten the mood. 

“Either way, we don’t have time for you to change now. Your mother is coming too so we’ll have to go pick her up,” The older man said without even looking at his son, turning around to pick up his briefcase. 

“Mom is coming? Why?” 

“Because it looks better in pictures if she’s there,” He paused. “You already know this stuff,”

“No, I don’t. I don’t know why you two have to keep pretending… Don’t you see it’s a burden for mom?” Namjoon pointed out sadly. It hurt his heart to see his mom sad, and the more he tried to recollect his memories with his parents, the more he could see that was the only look he had ever seen on her face. 

“I don’t think this matter really concerns you,” He said in a cold tone, trying to put an end to the conversation.

“Yes, it does dad. God!” Namjoon let out in frustration, sitting down on one of the puffy chairs. “I’m your son and I have to see this act go on… And how it hurts all of us! This is not right. Can’t we just— I don’t know. Let’s just go the two of us.” 

“I already told you. This is not up for discussion, Namjoon. Since when do you stand up to my word, huh? Those friends of yours…” The dean basically spat. He didn’t approve of his son’s friends ever since the day they all came into his office for a prank they pulled and the whole cafeteria had to be evacuated. 

“This has nothing to do with my friends. I stand up for what I believe is right, and you would know that if you paid more attention to the real me, not the idea of a son you created in your mind,” 

“Why can’t you just have a good record and study hard so you can have a bright future?! I just want what is best for you. One day you’ll realize that.”

“And I do that. I study hard, and I have great grades. The only thing lacking for you is appearances,” Namjoon retorted, hurt by his father’s words. 

“Dressing better wouldn’t do you any harm. You look like a delinquent in those baggy clothes. I’ll ask your mother to take you out shopping soon. Now we have to go,”

“Sure thing… dad,” Namjoon said in a quitting tone, following his father out of the building, towards their luxurious car. 

He just wanted this night to end and it hadn’t even started. Ever since Namjoon was little, he couldn’t remember a moment when his mother was truly happy with his father. From early on, she decided it would be best to be a stay-at-home mom and take care of Namjoon and his younger sister. Mr. Kim was making more than enough money being the university dean to take care of the whole family, so why work? But that made Namjoon’s mom become more and more unhappy with time, and she didn’t have the strength to get away from the dependent relationship she had with her husband. When she finally managed to find herself a job and ask for a divorce, Mr. Kim found a way to continue controlling her. After all, what kind of strong and powerful family is one that isn’t able to hold a marriage? Namjoon just wanted to see his mom happy but he was still far from being capable of holding the power to change such things. 

As his night continued to go disastrously, Jungkook and Carolina were already at their volleyball practice, where their coach decided it would be a good idea to have a match between teams. Boys and girls, all against each other. 

Jungkook wasn’t lucky enough to be put on the same team as Carolina. And every once in a while, when he looked at her, he could see there was lots of pent-up anger inside that she was ready to let out by smashing some balls. Their coach even commented he wished she could play with the boy’s team in the upcoming game due to how roughly and determinedly she was playing. 

The more the match unfolded, the more the tension between them grew. They were going head to head in the net. That was until the coach made Carolina play as a spiker to try out the substitute setter in case something happened to her. That’s when it happened. The very first ball she spiked, went directly into Jungkook’s face. He was thrown straight to the floor with a bloody nose and a sore back from the impact. 

Jungkook never thought he could have such an impact on a girl. Especially not in this one specifically. It was just some stupid notes… He could not help but think about how would she react in case she was dumped. He took a mental note as he got up from the floor to try and do some peace offerings after resuming practice. Or at least understand why there was such a bad vibe between them. 

So when the time came to hit the lockers, he got ready as fast as he could and waited for her outside. Somehow, while waiting, he kept finding the situation funny that she could be so uptight. And that made him mad at himself because he was supposed to be mad at her. 

“So I guess practice wasn’t good enough to unload your rage?” Jungkook asked with a grin on his face, grabbing Carolina’s arm since she decided to pretend he didn’t exist. 

“Better take your hands off if you don’t wanna see what’s left of that rage” Her eyes glowed while staring at him intensely. 

“Oh, c’mon! Are you seriously mad because I didn’t give you my notes?” He almost snorted and that made her blood boil. 

“Yes. I am.” 

“I’ll give them to you then, if that’s what it takes to stop your whole hulk mode,” His hand was still holding her arm, keeping her in place. 

“No need,” 

“I see you also have a big, big pride,” The grin on his face duplicated size. 

“I just have an intolerance to bitchy people,” She stared at him so seriously that his superior pose started to crumble. “Now if you’ll excuse me,” She got rid of his hold and turned to walk away. Jungkook took a second before being functional again. 

“I don’t actually.” He grabbed her arm once more, making her spin back to him. “I’m the bitchy one? Really?” He took a step closer, getting rilled up. 

“What do you even want, virgin boy? Tell me ‘cause I’m kinda losing my patience here,” She huffs. Carolina was close to losing her temper and even closer to punching him in the face. 

“You’re the one acting like a child even though you started this ridiculous rumor about me and you still have the guts to say I’m bitchy.” He clenched his jaw. “You need to swallow that temper of yours. If you want the notes just tell me instead of this.” And she laughed acidly at his words, taking yet another inch of a step closer to him. 

“Listen, sweetheart, I asked you once. Maybe twice, for the notes. I won’t ask for them again. And the one being childish is clearly you. You came to offer your notes after I asked for them. And I said no. But for some fucking reason you don’t let me go.” She forced her arm out of his grip, never once breaking eye contact. “I call that childish behavior. Either you state what you want or you leave me be.”

He sustained her eye contact for a while. Tong brushing against his inner cheek. “Fine,” He snorts and leaves. Simple as that. 

That night Jungkook arrived at home so pissed off and bothered by their encounter, that he just got inside his room and decided it was best to sleep. He even ignored Namjoon’s attempts to call him to share a meal. 

On the other hand, still on campus, Hyori was trying hard to study for one of her upcoming exams but the buzzing of her phone and a certain doe-eyed boy kept her losing focus. Deo was on her bed, trying to read a book she had bought last week but the constant beeping and buzzing were making her stressed. And although she didn’t want to pry, she couldn’t stop herself from asking. 

“Why is your phone always beeping?” Deo approached the subject, putting her book aside. It was unusual for Hyori to have her phone on while studying and her roommate knew that. 

“Oh!” She turns around to face Deo, a blush creeping in her cheeks and a fast hand trying to silence the device. “It’s just this guy from my physics class. No biggie!” 

“A guy?” And if before her book had been put aside, now it was completely forgotten. Deo straightened her back, sitting crossed-legged, paying full attention to the conversation they were about to have. 

“As I said, no big deal. So don’t make it be! But yes. He’s cute and his name is Eunwoo,”

“How can I not make a big deal out of this when you just said he’s cute and you’re clearly putting your studies on pause to answer him?!” Deo answered excitedly. “What are you both talking about?” 

“He’s just super friendly that’s all!” Hyori let out a laugh, a nervous one. “If somehow it happens to be something more — not that it will — I’ll let you know. Really.” 

“Uhu…” She eyed her suspiciously. “But do you have a date yet?” The smaller girl wiggled her eyebrows teasingly making Hyori roll her eyes at the change of attitude and laugh right after. 

“What’s up with you though?” Hyori changed the subject, adorning a more serious tone. “I could see you furrowing your brows and thinking hard on your bed.” 

“It’s just this book… So intriguing.” 

“I see. Sure it is…” Hyori said eyeing the girl to see if she would finally say the real motive. “You know what’s funny? I have like. A million texts from Jimin asking me why you won’t talk to him. Does that ring a bell?” 

“Ugh. He’s such an annoying ass,” Deo whispered more to herself in defeat. “You know his friend? That Taehyung guy?” 

“The artsy one?” Hyori recalled. 

“Yeah, the one with blue hair. Anyway, you know I can’t stand him, right? And today Jimin just came to me with like ‘oh hey guys you are best friends!’ and no we’re not!” Deo let out a long and hard sigh. “It pissed me off. He already knows I don’t like the guy but he keeps pushing.” 

“And why is that exactly? That you don’t like him?” 

“I can’t believe you’re going to analyze me right now… I think you should drop out of psychology,” Deo tried, attempting to ease the mood but Hyori wasn’t having it. Her face was frozen, meaning she was still expecting an answer. “Well, first of all, he’s a weirdo. Just the other day he came to Jimin saying that the light bill was getting too high and that he needed to watch out for the lights he forgot to turn off. Bro, we live in the dorms!” She rolled her eyes, annoyed to think back at that moment. “And the real reason… I think it’s because I’m jealous?” 

“Jealous of Jiminie or… Taehyung?” Hyori pressed in a suggesting tone and that made Deo snort. 

“Why would I be jealous of Taehyung?!” She asked confused. 

“Of Taehyung… For no big deal. Now, of Jimin… Well. The way I see it, maybe you’re having a moment of ‘why this loopy blue-haired guy is messing with my emotional’?” 

“I don’t see it… I just don’t understand why Jimin likes him so much. I mean, I’m his best friend too! I should be enough… And ok, I know it’s not fair.” 

“Yes, he’s a little… Excentric? Out of the box? Anyway, the point is, he can be like that but he is kinda funny in his own way… And Jimin speaks highly of him. He’s always blabbing about how great of a friend and moral support he is. So even if you don’t like the dude, just maybe tolerate him for Jimin? You know you love Jimin.” 

“I smiled at the dude today!” Deo whined in defeat. “I won’t be disrespectful towards him because that wasn’t how I was raised but I really can’t stand his face.” 

“That’s either called love or pure I want to have sex with you,” Hyori smirked, teasing her roommate. 

“How— I don— Ok you know what?! Just go back to your studies and text the cute boy.” Deo stuck her tongue out to her laying down once more to resume her book. 

“Ok, scratch that. It’s more like. I madly want to have sex with him” She chuckles loudly. “But hey! I’m not judging. The dude is weird but he’s super handsome!” 

“I DON’T WANT TO!” Deo protested, throwing a pillow on the other girl’s head. 

"And you know what? The girls I'm tutoring said pretty good stuff about him too…” Hyori continued teasing. “His hands are that big for a reason" 

“HYORI!” Deo hid her face in one of her pillows, flustered. “Do you think he’s good at it though? Because he has the fame but you never know.” She lifted her head up to ask. 

“Oh, I’m pretty sure he knows what he’s doing.”

“I think you are the one who has a crush, huh? Loopy is your type then?”

“Loopy is… Hot. I give him that. But I’m more of a naturalist boyfriend kind of girl,” Hyori said, a little pensive in the last part, thinking of what her type would be. “Loopy is more your type really.”

“Just. Don’t ok! And don’t give Jimin any ideas. And stop having ideas too!”

“Will you start talking to Jimin again?”

“Yes…” Deo sighed. “You know I can’t stay mad for long.”

“Then it’s a secret.” She winked and laughed hard right after because Deo pretended to throw her book to her head as she did with the pillow.

But that girl talk really made Deo think. It wouldn’t be fair for Jimin to wait until the next morning for them to reconcile — if you could even call it that — and it shouldn’t be something done by text either. Or even through call. So putting her book aside for good this time she decided to drop by their dorms. 

Hoseok was the hall supervisor so that wouldn’t be a problem for her to reach their dorm that late at night. She put on some sweat pants and went out with her pajama shirt. Who cared? At this hour, very few roamed the corridors. 

She knocked on their door and soon it opened. Jimin greeted her a bit surprised, with his hair messy and torso bare. 

“Hey… Sorry to drop by this late,” Deo started and Jimin immediately involved her in a big hug. “I should be the one giving the hug, you know.” She chuckled against his skin. 

“Why were you mad at me today?” He asked with a pouty face, not beating around the bush. 

“Can you?” She pointed at the door signaling him to close it and he did so. They both stayed in the hallway, away from his roommate peeking curiosity. “I just— I’m sorry. I was being childish just because I’m jealous of all the attention you give Taehyung. I promise I’ll work harder to be nice to your friend.”

“You could’ve just stopped at the sorry but now that you said everything, I’ll make you keep the last part!” He gave her a big smile when she rolled her eyes.

“You’re an ass.” She said trying to maintain a straight face but failed miserably.

“Do you wanna come in? We were just watching a movie!” Jimin said already opening the door. He first shouted for the other boy to put a t-shirt on, and when he gave the green light, he let Deo in. Somehow they managed to hang an old projector on one of the walls over the bed and were watching the movie like they were in a cinema. They had popcorn and everything.

“Tae!” Jimin called for him again before entering all the way, Deo right behind him. “Deo is here!” 

“Shit…” Deo cussed under her breath only now realizing she was wearing her pajama. “Jimin,” She started, ready to give an excuse and leave when the blue-haired boy got up from behind a bed to greet her. 

“Hey there,” Taehyung gives a little wave with his hand. “Bro, can I press play already? I hate to pause it in the middle of an important dialogue. I always end up forgetting everything,” He looked frustrated at Jimin.

“Just a sec!” He turned to Deo once more. “Do you wanna watch the movie with us?”

“Oh, I don–“

“Effort remember?” Jimin almost whispered to her.

“Sure.” The girl sighed. “Do you mind?” She addressed Taehyung directly for the first time.

“Uh, yeah, sure.” He said casually playing with the hair from his nape. “But please don’t make me back up to the beginning of the movie.”

“I won’t!” She raised her hands up as a peace offering. 

“Ok. I’m pressing play! Shut the lights, Jimin!” Taehyung said once again sitting on the floor between beds and turning his attention to the scene being projected on their wall. 

“Go sit!” Jimin ordered Deo, pointing to the bed but she stood still. She didn’t want to have to sit in Taehyung’s bed and since this was the first time she actually got to see their room, she didn’t know which one belonged to who. “C’mon!”

“Popcorn?” Taehyung asked, raising the bowl towards her. At the sight of his hand, all she could think about was that silly conversation she had with Hyori about it and she found herself blushing from the thoughts that crossed her mind. He was just beneath her.

“No, I’m good! But thanks.” She dismissed quicker than intended. 

As someone who didn’t care much about hands and their beauty, she had to admit that his hands were just something else… And suddenly the room was too hot, and the actors were talking but she wasn’t getting any of it. 

“I want!” Jimin exclaimed breaking the imaginary tension and shoving his hand down the bowl, taking a hand full straight to his mouth.

For the rest of the movie, Taehyung kept on making comments about the whole aesthetic of the scenery while the other two remained in silence, just watching. Once it ended, they ended up enjoying the final credits and the music that came in, too absorbed by their talk about the actors in question. Jimin already had his head on Deo's lap and was close to falling asleep because she had been playing with his locks for the longest time.

"This is the kind of movie that makes me regret choosing performative arts," Deo commented after a big sigh, a frown adorning her features.

“Why?” Taehyung turned his body around so he could look up and face her directly. 

"Oh well... There's a lot of things I like to do and it gets hard having to choose only one. It's like choosing between kids, you know? I like photography, but I also like dancing and singing and I also really like movies so how am I supposed to pick one?"

“It’s not that hard if you are open-minded enough to be a lot of people at the same time,” He pondered, offering sincere advice. “I don’t think I want to do just one thing for the rest of my life either,”

"I meant more like in learning. Like. These majors are too expensive for me to take every single one I like." She answered back, Jimin’s eyes kept blinking slowly, almost lulled by his friends voices as background sound. 

“Hm… You just have to choose the one you identify yourself with most, not thinking you will be giving up the others. That’s what I think” Taehyung said after a long time of looking at the ceiling, thinking.

"That's a good way of thinking"

“Why are you so quiet?” Taehyung questioned Jimin once their eyes made contact. It wasn't much like him to be quiet.

"Oh, no reason!” He straightens his back smiling at Deo as a thank you for all the fondling. “I was just thinking along with your conversation… When I was little I used to get picked on a lot by my family because I liked to dance but I also liked football. So anything is possible if I think about it. I'm having the best of both worlds." He chuckles.

“I remember that,” Taehyung laughs along with him, thinking about those moments from their childhood.

"So, yeah, don’t stress too much. We can multitask, or try," Jimin said pinching Deo's nose to make her smile. "As long as you work hard for it, you can do it!"

"That's also a good way of thinking,” She pointed surprised. “Never knew you could be that wise, Jimin," She teased. "But anyway, it's getting late so I should get going." And although Jimin pouted dramatically as she got up from the bed, he followed her, knowing he too should rest a bit. 

“Working hard remembers me of the review I have to write due tomorrow” Taehyung sighed, making the others laugh. “There’s never a chill-out moment without paperwork to do after,” The boy in question went back and laid on the floor amongst pillows like a starfish, stretching every ounce of his body. 

"Do you need me to walk you to your dorm?" Jimin asked Deo. He didn't like it when she would wander around campus late at night. And her eyes weren’t on Jimin’s but on the blue-haired guy showing now part of his own torso while rolling on top of pillows. “Deo?” 

"Oh! No! No, I’m ok.” She was quick to snap out of her thoughts. “Thanks for the popcorns," She looked again towards Taehyung to thank him, already close to the door. 

"Sure, anytime!" He leaned on his elbows to show her a boxy smile. He indeed looked like a God waiting to be painted. 

Deo shook her head, turning again to Jimin. 

"See you tomorrow, babe." She lifted herself on her tiptoes and gave Jimin a tight hug, making her way to her own dorm in quick paces. “Please visit often!” She managed to hear Jimin’s voice cheerful and all she could think of was ‘God, no’.

© #fighton! | all rights reserved. do not repost, translate or claim as your own. if you find this work elsewhere besides the three blogs stated, please report it to any of the writers.

@singguks × @socksjinie × @bluenpjm

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[hjh-ceilo-monster]

10th anniversary special : Lost & Found (ot7)

Summary : At the top of a quiet alley, somewhere in the town, an ordinary cafe had its legend. Once the clock ticked at midnight, the place took you to another dimension. 

What you lost always waited to be found.

Inspo. photo : photo1 | photo 2 | photo 3 (pxfuel.com)

Inspo. ambience :   it's 12:04am, let's drive around the city with the radio blasting

Inspo. story : Dream on (TinyTan animation mv) | 5th muster magic shop vcr (sorry, I can’t find the official one🥲)  TW : Angst story

Happy 10th anniversary for BTS and Army

Author POV.

“I’m home.” 

A whisper left Y/n mouth as they unlocked the front door. The place was quiet as always. Ah well, they lived here alone. What could they expect after finishing all the work at their company? A bright room with someone waiting for them to return? 

All they could see was moonlight, a natural light source beaming into their room. The floor reflected some of it, thanked to their effort for waxing it last week. The room was alittle brighter at the edge to the balcony.

23:00 

They had overworked themselves again. It was fortunate enough to buy this room before the other client or it would take another 3 hours to arrive their home. 

Who the hell build the city plan? They wondered. The city wasn’t that big, yet the road system was poorly manage. Building highways and undergrounds where there weren’t necessary resulted delaying hours of travel.

fff...fff...fff...

In their favourtie slipper, they walked to a fridge, searching for food. There was none in their sight, making them sighed in disappointment.

“Let’s take stroll today.”

tick...tack..puck...

The gentle rain made different ambiences here and there. A higher melody when it hit the metals while a lower one came from their umbrella and cement path. 

At this hours, there weren’t many place left open. Y/n could see locked shops mostly along her way. Well, it was their fault to not buy something before heading home. They forgot that here wasn’t a district for a night owl or an all nighter.

Phew...

“Hey.” 

A strong breeze blew into Y/n face, stealing the umbrella out of her hand.

“Ahh...I’m broke right now. I don’t want to buy another one.”

Desperately, Y/n chased their umbrella, running up the hill. As if it was teasing them, the wind blew stronger. The umbrella flew higher and higher. 

Chasing with the eyes on the umbrella, their feets kept taking them up the hill until they met with tiny neon sign.

‘Special deal before midnight’

“Huh, nevermind. At least, I need something in my stomach.”

Cling.

The bell with a little whale mobile rang, catching everyone attention. 7 pairs of eyes looked at their new comer.

The two of them were wiping table.

The other three worked behind the counter. 

And the last two looked down from the second floor.

It was an ordinary cafe. 

A brick-wooden wall with the metal bars had some clothes hanging. 

The counter had some bakery displayed at the right. Fairy lights decorated the trim. 

The menu wrote nicely on all three pages of chalk board. Some photos pins on the cork frames at the bottom.

Lights hanged directly from the cieling, no fancy decoration. 

The place looked rustic and antique, yet it gave them a comfort. Y/n found this place cozy and warming.

“Umm..hi.” 

Y/n spoke to break the akward atmosphere. Suddenly, two men on the second floor ran down stairs and escorted them.

“Welcome. Sorry for making you wait. We didn’t think we will have any customer coming at this hour.” 

The tall man with his hair colored honey yellow, Namjoon, spoke.

“It’s closing?”

“Not at all. We just..didn’t expect anyone, despite opening till midnight everyday.”

“Oh.”

They followed quietly behind the two who lead them to the bar. One of them pool a stool out and gestured Y/n to sit on it.

“Thank you.” 

They thanked them softly. Yoongi, the silver hair guy at their left, nodded and handed her a paper. Y/n looked puzzle at the white sheet in front of them.

“It’s our special deal. Write down what you want to eat, what song you want to listen, anything you want to do here...anything.” 

Hoseok explained and gave his heart-shape smile.

Y/n cocked her head to the side, still confused. However, daring to ask no question, they wrote down everything orderly. It took some minutes to finish. 

Jin, who dressed in his chef uniform, came and took an order himself. 

“You have such an easy request. A stire fried black noodle with soju.” 

Jin read the list. The others, after hearing the order, dispersed to their position and prepared for the next event.

“Ready guys?”

3...2...1...

Tid..tid...tididid...

00:00

Snap.

Woosh.

Y/n was blind by the bright light for a moment. Opening their eyes again, everything changed.

This place...

A nostalgic feeling hit them hard. A familiar scene that surrounding them right now brought some tears to brim their eyes.

Sitting on the marble bench, they were in the middle of a garden. 

The orange-red bricks covered the ground nicely. To Y/n right side was a mini crystal clear stall for plants. There was a foundtain inside too, making the inside moisture and suitable for greenery.

‘My first home...where I born’ Y/n thought to themselves.

“Refreshing. It’s been long.” 

A little voice appeared behind Y/n, startled them from their seat. They looked behind and got surprise.

Little fairies were flying. Some of them looked awe with the scenery.

“V, you startle our guest.” 

“I did not. Look, Chim, they’re fine...right?” 

The little guy approached settled down on the round table and smiled at Y/n. The others soon follow him.

“Sorry for his behavior. He can get too excited sometimes.” 

Chim, must be him, spoke and gave a glared at V. 

One by one, the little fairies introduced themselves. 

Jhope and Koo started levitating again, telling Y/n they wanted to braided their hair. Suga, tired look fairy, borrowed your hand as a pillow and drifted back to sleep. 

V and Chim kept you busy by talking to you, trying their best to seek your attention. RM and Jinny, like parents, kept both of them from bickering each other. 

Y/n forgot everything inside her head. No questions needed to be ask. Nothing needed to be worry. Right now, all they want was enjoy this fantasy.

“I hope they didn’t bother you that much, especially these two.”

A raven hair guy, Jimin, served Y/n her order before picking up V and Chim from the table.

“Hey...don’t touch me. I’ll tell papa.” 

V pouted and tried to wiggle out of Jimin’s finger tips.

“And here is your soju...Awe poor V, Jimin, you don’t need to be harsh with my baby.”

“Appa...Chim bully m-.”

“Did not.” Chim interreupter V before he spoke any further.

“Huh...like father, like son. Taehyungssi, you are interrupting our customer time.”

Koo, who was sitting on their head, flew toward the man. 

“Jungkookssi...you’re here.” 

Koo landed on his shoulder.

The rest followed behind before all of them stood in horizontal line in front of Y/n. Y/n took a look one by one. They finally noticed the different of their uniform. 

Now all of them were dressing in white, like angels.

“Welcome to the memoir.”

“The...memoir?”

Y/n glanced back and forth between their order and the hosts. Jungkook then stepped up and started explaining.

“The memoir is a magical moment that comes every midnight. If the customer enters and orders something around this time before midnight, they will get a grant from the shop.”

“This place grants things accordingly to your deep wish or desire. And it seems like you want to walk through your favourite moment again, starting from here?”

Y/n looked down at the table. They was surprised to meet a hazy reflection of them...as a kid again.

“Ready to find your lost?” Namjoon approached you and offered his hands.

“The time only stops for an hour so we need to be hurry.” Yoongi added.

Without hesitation, they took an offer.

20xx

The first award they got in their life. 

A kid who was an outcast found their existent in the competition. Despite with little talents, their deligent brought them ,a courage, a wonder birthday gift for that year. 

However, it also brought them into a storm. 

Shadow was lurking. The achievement made them being an alien more than what they had been.

Their first identity then shattered.

201x

A new chapter after their storm. Restarting everything, they evolved into a more assertive person who ready to fought for their goals. A group of people soon formed around them and walked side by side.

Music had become a major part of their life. Discover that new world made them become stronger after the past pain.

Yet, another storm crashed everything down.

Their identity was even more shattered.

201x

A new persona emerged after what had happened. Coldblood was what people used to refer to them. Loneliness somehow become their friend, the most loyal friend ever. 

A group of people drifted away, leaving them in guilty. However, it was their plan to enter the deepest part of their life and then destroyed them from the inside.

Pain was their familiar, always reminding them how hurt they were and pushing them to the top.

Slowly and slowly, it consumed everything. Their persona finally took over their identity, ruling everyone with fear.

202x

They thought everything was fine now. Everything was working itself out. They finally got what they wanted. A peaceful life was what they always want.

Well, it seemed not what they would get.

When death knocked their door...

“Huh...huh...huh...give me a break. Why do I have to go through this feeling again?” 

Their chest tighten at the reel in front of them. Seeing themselves smiled for a moment and then became upset afterward flickered a deep pain inside Y/n.

Y/n looked at them with teary eyes. The anger, sorrow, disappointment, every negative emotion that burried deep down overflow into their system.

“But...it was...” Hoeseok tried to explained.

“I don’t desrve this. Why do I deserve this?” Y/n asked quietly to themselves.

“It must have been hard for you, must it not?”

A familiar voice appeared, instantly took Y/n’s attention. She turned around and met with another surprised.

“You...you come...how?”

“I’m your hyung. Of course, I’m going to know everything about you. Guesing your thoughts wasn’t that hard.”

A man walked toward Y/n and grabbed their hands into his.

“Thank you for bringing them here, I’ll do as I promise.” 

The man bowed at the seven men behind his beloved sister. They then left the siblings to have a talk.

“How’s the other side? Is it good?” Y/n asked, trying to sound cheerful.

“I’m not used to it yet, but it was nice. Now I have time to travel everywhere without waiting ships or airplanes.”

Y/n nodded. They were happy that at least their brother was fine. 

“Hyung...I’m sorry.” 

“I know. I’m sorry that I left you there, but time was up for me. It was not...”

“No, if I knew, if I was there, I would definitely help you. You know I can do it.”

Tears finally left Y/n eyes. The day that their brother died still stuck it Y/n’s mind. It was like yesterday when they recieved a call from his office.

“...He’s gone...by himeself...”

That one sentence crashed their existence entirely. 

“But...I can help...why don’t you *hick*...” 

Y/n was too overwhelm with sadness that it comeplately sut their sentence. The brother sighed.

And for the first time, he hugged his sister.

“I know as a siblings we both failed to support each other. It wasn’t your fault that they taught you to be my rivals, like they did to me. They forced you to grow when you were just a child. They taught me things in life with violence. It wasn’t our fault, Y/n-ah.”

“But, I still sided with them. I didn’t choose you. In the end, I...”

“Shhh...it’s ok. Like I say, my time was up. We couldn’t change the rule of time no matter how hard we try. You know that well.”

“As a siblings, we only got to knew each other for 7 years. It wasn’ t fair.”

“But, at least, you get to talk with me now. Here I am, fine and safe. Worry nothing and live your life, let the problem dissolve within my body.”

Y/n shook their head. They couldn’t accept the fact that he would soon be gone...for real.

“A bless from me to you, live your life well and keep fighting for your dream. I know you can do it. What you did for me was enough. Living your life as mine won’t make me happy. I want you to live your life as ‘your’ life, understand buddy?”

Y/n nodded, hugging tight onto their brother.

“The time is up. Remember what I say. I’ll be watching you from somewhere always so smile a lot ok?”

His body slowly faded. A smile was the last thing that they saw from him.

His very final moment.

“Did you find it?”

Y/n opened their eyes. They was back at the cafe.

“I don’t know, Seokjinssi.” Y/n answered.

“At least, he gave you a hint. What you lost wasn’t something big. It somehow was small yet precious. Mayber this noodle might answer your confusion.”

Namjoon pushed a bowl closer to Y/n. Taehyung gave you the chopsticks. They then started digging into their meal.

“That’s my milk.”

“Who get it first get it.”

“Urgh...fine.”

“You can’t win me when it comes to the arcade.”

“Try me, bro.”

“How about getting a pasrtner? Oh,,,wait, do I need to act as a protective brother?”

“No need to. You know my vibe wasn’t match most human.”

“Hahahahahahahha....”

What a familiar taste.

All the conversation between them and him flowed into their head. Despite getting to know each other kate, Y/n can only be themselve when they were around him.

The missing piece of their life was in this bowl. Something important, but was belittle by their surrounding.

A tiny core of Y/n, the ‘y/n’ identity. 

Y/n opened soju and pour a shot.

‘Till we meet again.’ 

“Guys, take a seat and drink with me. Drinking alone is no fun, y’know?” 

The hosts looked hesitate. However, seeing the first genuine happy expression, they dared not to reject the offer.

“Let me make some more dishes.” 

Jin and Yoongi went behind counter.

“Aye, how about we have a battle?” Taehyung proposed the idea.

“Then, I’ll be the judge with Joonie.” Hoseok grabbed Namjoon with him.

“It’s the younger trio vs our 2 big brothers....I’m in.” 

Jungkook got Jimin and Taehyung behind another part of kitchen.

An atmosphere was getting warm and cozy. The room filled with laughter and bicker. 

A reset moment started here.

In this small cafe,

where Y/n finally found what they lost.

A/n note : Hi. It’s been long since I got my free time. The schedule was so hectic that I had to take a break. I intended to post this last month on the 13th, but my schedule had another plan for me🥲

The idea of this story was from ‘into the magic shop’. Despite having it in us, sometimes we need a guide toward the shop. For me, it was BTS.

This story is a tribute from me to them.

This story was personal. Well, during my haitus, I had many unexpected events. I poured down most of it into this story. Through difficult times, BTS was my guide to reflect on myself, learn about myself again and search for the best of me in myself. 

A month passed for the band’s anniversary and a few days for the fandom. All I want to say was thank you, not only to them, but also the fans. In this community and other social medias, I found a lot of inspirations. The amount of support you guys showed toward each other and sent to BTS was incredible. Thank you.

We all have a magic shop in our heart. What you lost can be found there. The best of you is waiting ahead. Don’t give up.

Once again, happy 10th anniversary.

#happy bts day #happy army day #happy 10 years bts #happy 10 year anniversary #bts #bts fic #bts fanfiction #kpop bts fanfic #bts ot7 #bts ot7 au #bts x gender neutral reader #kim namjoon #bts kim namjoon #namjoon #bts namjoon #bts rm #kim seokjin #bts kim seokjin #bts seokjin #seokjin #min yoongi #bts min yoongi #yoongi #bts yoongi #bts suga #jung hoseok #bts jung hoseok #hoseok #bts hoseok #bts jhope

[simp4eshal]

Death herself was a beauty pt.2

Where you get stuck in the janitor’s closet with jungkook by accident

warnings: cursing, boob touching/feeling (?), sub and shy koo (but no smut), really bold reader, borderline panic attack from koo, reader has to calm him down and that’s when Koo puts his head between her boobs (start of everything lmao)

author's note: idk what that is lmao. it’s pure fluff but it’s kinda…yk ? jungkook ends up hard lmao. He uses y/n’s boobs as stress balls.

Fuck you Kim Taehyung.

That’s the only thing crossing your mind right now. Fuck him and his handsome face.

He only asked you to pick boxes from the Janitor’s, but he also forgot to tell you that the Janitor’s closet was fucking broken.

And now here you were, alone, angry and stressed because the door won’t fucking open. Your phone was at 1% and you could only call one person. 

So, hoping for the best you called the first number you saw.

“-Hello-

-Janitor’s closet. Now. Hurry.”

And it ended here. So now, the only thing you could do was wait until whoever you called came and saved you.

Not even three minutes later, the door opened again, letting your boss, Jeon Jungkook, in.

Joy overtook you, but it soon disappeared when instead of just letting you out, he walked in and closed the door again.

“NOOOOOOOOOO!”

And you started fake sobbing, knowing you were being dramatic.

Jungkook seemed more than perplex, but before he could even ask you anything-

Black. Everything turned black.

Someone, from outside of course, turned the lights off.

Hearing you whine again, Jungkook rolled his eyes before turning to the door and placing his hand on the handle.

“Come on Y/N, you’re being dramatic. We can just-”

When the door refused to open, he froze.

Now he understands.

And he panics.

“Fuck ! What are we going to do ? Everyone went to get lunch and- Y/N please I don’t wanna die here and I’m scared of the dark ! Y/N !”

His breath started to get erratic and loud, his vision blurry, while he desperately started searching for your hand, your face, you.

Scared that he might hurt himself with the way he kept moving around in the tiny closet, you hugged him, once again forgetting your work boundaries.

And he calmed down, slowly, but he did.

That’s when it hits him.

His face was between your boobs.

Your oh so soft and comfortable boobs.

Letting out a little scream and pulling out from your embrace, he almost yelled in your face.

“I-I’m sorry ! I didn’t want to take advantage of you or anything I, I swear I didn't even realize ! Y/N-”

Your soft giggles cut short to his panicked monologue.

“You can touch them.”

He almost short circuited.

“I can what ?”

“Touch them. Use them as stress balls, whatever. I know you’re stressed, and my boobs seemed to calm you down.”

He slowly looked up at her, admiring her fluffy curls, and he wanted to see more, truly, but the outline of her curls and of her face was the only thing he could decipher in the dark.

He went red. Beat red.

“...Can I ? Really ? S’not a prank, right ?”

He sounded so curious, so unsure and so soft, you couldn’t help the smile slowly creeping up your face.

“Of course you can.”

And in slow motion, his hands went up, testing the waters, brushing your breast slightly.

Then not so slightly anymore.

He tried again, this time slowly malaxing, seeing how it feels, if you’re uncomfortable.

And then he finally grabbed both of your breasts, malaxing them slowly at the same time.

He likes it. Fuck he likes it.

Without even noticing, he became more comfortable, now freely feeling up your chest, squeezing your tits, and the want to feel more, see more was beginning to bug him.

He wanted to take that stupid shirt off you, break you free from your lacy bra, and burry his head in your breasts, slowly circling your nipples with his tongue and twirling them between his fingers.

He knew that you liked it.

He felt your nipples get hard below his touch, and he was so close to put them in his mouth-

“Y/N ? Are you there- what the fuck is happening ?”

Thank God Jungkook’s back was facing the wall.

#bts #bts ceo au #bts story #bts one shot #ceo!reader bts #bts drabbles #bts drabble #bts au #bts ot7 au #bts smut

[trojansblr]

#FIGHTON! IS BACK? HELL YES!

dear fighton family,

hello from alison, lily and zoë!

as you all know, fighton has been on hiatus for a very long time but we missed it right from the moment we stopped writing it. truth be told, it was a lot of work for us as students, despite being extremely pleasant and fun! we have been talking for days now and it made sense to revamp it! fighton was one of our first stories and we have improved a lot in the last couple of years. considering how dearly everyone had this story and universe in their hearts, we have decided to keep it interactive but with a twist. that being said, trojansblr will stay as an archive, and the interactions will be made solely through the instagram pages of the characters. as for the chapters, they will be posted on our tumblr individual accounts (@bluenpjm @socksjinie @singguks), a chapter per page like we usually do with other collabs!

the igs for interaction are the following:

✱ hope club. jungkook hoseok jimin deo hyori ✱ troublemakers. namjoon jin taehyung yoongi carolina

we hope to have you with us in this newly and improved version of a story we love so much! we promise the drama will be more and the ships will sail!!!

#fighton!!

.

.

.

ps. first chapter going up in 3... 2... 1... !

#bts college au #jungkook smut #taehyung smut #bts scenarios #btswritingcafe #bts series #namjoon smut #jimin smut #jin smut #yoongi smut #hoseok smut #bts x oc #jungkook x you #bts smut #jungkook scenarios #taehyung fanfic #namjoon scenarios #bts ot7 au #bts au #socksjinie #singguks #bluenpjm #fighton

[bangtanflirt]

(Un)natural Instincts (Part 11)

*Series taglist is closed.

angst, fluff, smut

Pairings: OT7 x Fem Reader, Human CEO Reader, Human Assistant Yoongi, Wolf Hybrids Joon, Jin, Hobi, Jimin, Tae, and Kook.

Basic premise: You and your assistant end up rescuing six wolf hybrids. No part of the process is easy.

Part 1 > Part 2 > Part 3 > Part 4 > Part 5 > Part 6 > Part 7 > Part 8 > Part 9 > Part 10 > Part 11 > Part 12

General Warnings: Hybrid abuse and lab experimentation, hybrids as second-class citizens/owned property (Minors DNI, 18+ content)

Specific Warnings: trauma from past SA (vaguely hinted at this time, not explicit), jealousy, ambiguity around fidelity in hybrid pack dynamics, internalized prejudice (against wolf hybrids), mentions of drugs

____

Namjoon stills, his breath caught in his throat at the sight of Yoongi’s lips on yours. Discomfort has him wriggling in his skin, but he battles the feeling long enough to discreetly retreat—finding the nearest guest room before the two of you can pick up on his presence. The wolf shuts his eyes, trying to gather his thoughts.

This is ridiculous. I shouldn’t be jealous. She doesn’t owe me anything.

But all the rationale in the world can’t shake off the of jealousy. It’s not a strong, world-shattering type of feeling—but it’s there and it irks him nonetheless. He can’t help but feel like an absolute idiot for mistaking your offering of friendship as anything more. Was he the only one feeling a pull?

Of course she doesn’t feel anything for me. She wouldn’t think of a hybrid in that way.

As much as you talk of equality, Namjoon isn’t dumb. It’s one thing to support hybrid equality, but it’s an entirely different matter to see him equal enough to be a romantic option.

How could she ever think that way about someone she has to put a fucking leash on to be seen outside with? It’s impossible.

He doesn’t know why he let himself feel this way in the first place. He’s only known you for a couple of days—not to mention he already has a loving pack. Guilt stiffens his features, not wanting to think of what his pack would say at his pathetic little crush. Would they feel betrayed?

Relationships aren’t exactly as black-and-white as “open” or “closed” in hybrid packs. On one hand, a pack is always “open” to accept new packmates to form strong bonds with; however, their pack hasn’t had a new member in years…so were they “closed” now?

He doesn’t know why he’s thinking so deeply about it—you’re not even a hybrid. There’s no wolf in you for them to form a pack-bond with.

You should be with a human, someone who can actually build a future with you. Someone like Yoongi.

You should be happy with a human like Yoongi, and he should be happy with his amazing pack. It should be this simple. So why isn’t it?

___

“Yoongi…”

His heart beats hard against his ribcage, drumming loud in his ears. He waits patiently as you gather your thoughts, but every millisecond feels like a year. Some part of him hopes you’ll pull him back in for a second kiss, but it’s clear that’s not where your head is. He doesn’t realize he’s holding his breath until you start talking again.

“Was that…was that because I was teasing you?” Your voice is soft, almost a whisper, but the closeness between your bodies guarantees he hears every word.

Shaking his head, his mouth answers before his mind has any time to think.

“I’ve wanted to do that for a while.”

He doesn’t realize what he’s done until the words spill out.

There’s no going back now.

There’s a moment of regret. You literally gave him an out on a silver platter—just brushing the whole thing off as an answer to your teasing, fueled by wine. But he doesn’t think his response through, and now the entire friendship he’s built with you could easily go down the drain. His heart—which he’s kept guarded for so long—is fully on his sleeve, vulnerable to whatever you decide to do to it.

The confession lingers heavy in the air, sobering any slight buzz out of both of you.

“I’ve liked you for a while. I don’t know when it started…maybe a few months after I was hired? I don’t remember. I just—I like you. A lot. And I know it might be really stupid to say this and ruin what we have,” his voice barely holds it together to get the rest of the sentence out, “but if you tell me you don’t have any feelings for me then I’ll never act on it again, I promise. That’s all I need to know.”

The strain in his voice prompts you to find your own quickly.

“I…I have feelings for you too.”

Yoongi’s shoulders finally fall down, a mix of relief and elation washing over the second your words soak in.

“Thank fucking God” is all he can manage to get out before pulling you into a tight, cathartic hug.

___

Bacon sizzles on the stovetop, edges turning crisp as Jimin watches over. The fresh aroma of Yoongi’s favorite dark roast fills the kitchen, luring the man in as he’s getting ready to go to work. Jimin signals for him to sit, singing an unfamiliar song as he’s plating the bacon next to a stack of pancakes. The surprise on Yoongi’s face is evident, as Jimin hasn’t cooked him breakfast since the morning of the incident. He'll never say it out loud, but the site does endear him.

“You look happier than usual.” The wolf remarks, noticing the smile Yoongi can’t seem to suppress. It’s hard not to smile when all that’s going through his head are your words from yesterday.

“So do you.”

Jimin puffs out his chest in pride, “Because I just finished baking these” he gestures proudly to a tray of freshly baked muffins. They look mouthwatering, and Yoongi’s hand is reaching out before he even realizes it. But the wandering hand is quickly swatted away.

“Hands off. These are exclusively for Taehyung.”

“Not even one?”

Jimin almost gives in at seeing the pout creep on the man’s lips, but regardless, he stays firm, “Nope. This is step one in fixing our relationship. I need every muffin here if I’m going to make it up to him.”

Curiosity takes over Yoongi’s features, wondering what exactly a guy as sweet as Jimin could do to land himself in such hot water.

“You must’ve messed up really bad.”

Jimin shakes his head, sliding over a fixed plate and coffee. “Funnily enough, I still don’t think I did. It’s the drugs that messed up both of our minds.”

“Why are you making it up to him if you don’t think it was your fault?”

“Because love isn’t always about who’s right and who’s wrong. Sometimes you just have to do what you can to make things work.”

The man raises a brow, taken aback at the wise words coming from such a naïve face, which Jimin notices and starts laughing at immediately.

“I sounded so smart, didn’t I?” His eyes shut into happy crescents, “Namjoon hyung says that to us a lot. It sounds a lot cooler coming from him.”

Yoongi shakes his head in amusement, small chuckle leaving from his lips as he digs into the neatly decorated plate in front of him. Not even the mention of Namjoon could throw off his good mood this morning.

___

As much as you want to celebrate your recent developments with Yoongi, the current mood in the car has you (and everyone else) stiff with unease. The cause of said unease is looking out the window, paying no mind as he stares blankly at all the cars passing. It’s not lost on anyone how distant Jungkook is becoming towards you, refusing to acknowledge any of your attempts at conversation.

That isn’t the only cold front you’re experiencing.

The wolf in your passenger seat is also visibly off. Normally, he’d be the one trying to get Jungkook to get along with you, but it’s clear that Namjoon is lost in his own world at that moment. You steal glances throughout the drive, trying to decipher his expression: it doesn’t look like he’s mad…but it also doesn’t look like he’s comfortable? His responses are short and the smile he flashes is contrived at best, but you hold off on asking him why.

Hoseok’s also lost in his own thoughts, fidgeting with the sleeve of his shirt and trying to keep the bad memories away. His anxiety’s been spiking up as the synthetic hormone levels decrease, mind now unable to create a haze to block all the bad. There are moments, like right now, when he wants to scratch off his skin until he breaks flesh—grasping for any way to reclaim his body. His claws almost peek out, tempted to follow through with his intrusive thoughts, but he’s pulled out of it when he feels Jimin’s fingers interlock with his own.

The younger one leans in, car radio loud enough to allow them their own moment, “Is it the memories?”

Hoseok nods, eyes down on the interlocking hands, trying to focus on the welcomed touch instead of thinking about all the unwelcomed ones.

“Try tuning into your hybrid hearing when it gets really bad. Maybe that can help block them.”

Hoseok’s willing to try anything at this point, so he zones out on the back of the driver’s seat and lets his ears do their thing. It’s been far too long since he’s tuned into his heightened senses, and it feels disorienting at first, as if he’s no longer in the same place as his body. But natural instincts kick in and have him adjusting quickly, letting him filter through various conversations and noises until he’s focused on one moment. It’s a child begging his mother for ice cream, a sweet exchange. He follows their journey throughout the ice cream aisle, listening in as the mother finally gives in and the two discuss what flavor. Surprisingly, Hoseok doesn’t realize arriving at the doctor’s until Jimin’s unbuckling his belt for him.

Hoseok smiles, “That actually helped.”

Jimin simply responds with a peck on the cheek.

___

Dr. Gong notices Jungkook’s changed demeanor instantly, as he’s not acknowledging her either. The youngest simply sticks behind his pack, hands holding onto the bottom of Jin’s sweatshirt. She looks back and forth between Jungkook and you, and you don’t know what else to do but sigh.

“Good to see you all again. I hope all is well.”

You bow before ushering three of the hybrids to take the empty seats while you and the others huddle around her desk.

“We’re getting there” you say, half-heartedly smiling.

She nods, “I assume you all are familiar with the process of heat shots. We’ll do the rut suppressant first. Namjoon, please follow the nurse into that room.”

The rest follow one by one, coming out with band aids on their arm. Dr. Gong pulls out a pile of lollipops onto her desk for their return, scattering various flavors on the desk. Taehyung looks at them with curiosity, eyes telling Jimin he’ll take one if he does as well. Jungkook shoves a strawberry one into his jacket, not bothering to thank the doctor the way his hyungs do.

“I was actually with the authorities yesterday, going over the hybrids’ medical results for them. They’re collecting evidence for Kang’s trial. I expect they'll call me to act as a witness soon.”

Just the mention of Kang’s name has every hybrid in the room flinch.

You nod, "I’m waiting for that call as well. Even a life sentence seems too kind for him though.”

“Plans to distribute fevocaine should land him at least thirty years. But realistically, with his status, I won't be surprised if it's fifteen max.”

A low growl comes from Jungkook, startling everyone in the room.

“All the shit he did to us and he’s only tried for the drugs? You must be fucking kidding me.” The only thing that keeps his rage from boiling over is Jin’s firm tone telling him to settle. The raise in voice has Dr. Gong pulling back, fear creeping in at seeing a fired-up wolf.

“He won’t hurt you” Jin assures, snaking a hand around the youngest’s waist to keep him still.

The doctor gives an unconvincing smile, trying to regain composure.

You give an apologetic look, bowing on his behalf. “Sorry Doc.”

“It’s understandable. I also agree with Jungkook. The laws are ridiculous. The only real good news I can give you is that the synthetic hormones seem to lose most of their effectiveness without the fevocaine. There’s no chance of the collars entering the market anytime soon—hopefully ever.”

The information, although positive, has you baffled, “I knew it was a dangerous drug, but such small amounts really made that much of a difference?”

“It’s the base needed for everything else to work. Only fevocaine can subdue a hybrid’s nervous system enough for the other hormones to instill specific behavioral changes. Simply put, without getting the hybrids in a hazy enough headspace, the rest of the hormones just don’t work.”

You suppose it makes sense, as the Kang you know wouldn’t risk involving fevocaine into his plans unless it was absolutely necessary.

“You’re all set for this month. The receptionist out front can set you up for next month’s appointment. I remember you were hesitant about continuing them on the suppressants, though.”

You nod, “We don’t need further appointments. I’m sure they’ve had enough of synthetic drugs messing up their hormones to last a lifetime. Right guys?”

Namjoon’s eyes go wide, “Are you sure? It’s not safe for you to be around us in heat. We don’t mind getting the shots.”

Jungkook rolls his eyes, “I mind.” Jin’s grasp on him becomes tighter, an unspoken command to behave.

“It’s alright Joon, Yoongi said I could crash at his whenever you’re in your heats—or rut for you.”

Namjoon’s jaw ticks slightly at the mention of Yoongi, before he reminds himself that this is how things should be. Humans with humans and hybrids with hybrids. He reluctantly nods at your plan, thinking for the greater good of his pack.

“If that’s alright with you then yes, we would prefer not to be on them. Except for Hoseok.”

Your eyes go wide at the realization, of course Hoseok wouldn’t want to go through his heat. You curse under your breath for not catching that.

Hoseok, on the other hand, looks relieved that it was brought up before he had to bring it up himself. He thanks the heavens he has a good Alpha during situations like this.

___

“You’re back early” you muse, quirking an eyebrow at the figure standing at the door of your home office. Yoongi smiles, making his way to your desk before bending down to kiss your cheek.

“I told Minhyun I had to leave early for an urgent appointment.”

“So you lied to get out of work early? I could fire you for that, you know.” He tilts your head up, kissing the teasing grin off of your face.

“I didn’t lie. I had to come here and kiss you urgently.”

Another kiss.

“Well, this is a side of you I’ve never seen. Can’t say I don’t like it.”

“I have to make up for all the lost time. Besides, this is one step closer to my househusband dream, so I can’t afford to mess it up.”

You roll your eyes, “Am I just a means to an end?”

“Yeah, pretty much.”

You pinch his arm and he fakes a hurt face, causing both of you to laugh.

Yoongi traps you in your chair, one hand on each arm rest as he bends to eye level, taking in every second of the moment.

“It feels surreal. Getting to kiss you like this. It’s not something I ever thought would be possible.”

You snake your hands around his neck, pulling his face even closer. “I’ve liked you for a while too. I was just scared…the idea of losing what we already have by trying to be more is terrifying,”

You’ve been scared about the same things as him. This whole time.

“but nothing’s ever felt more right than that kiss. Made me realize that high risk and high return isn’t just for the next business deal.”

“Only you can figure out a way to make this into a business analogy” he chuckles.

“Well my gut instincts have gotten me this far with investments, so no use trying to fight them for everything else in my life.” You’re the one who leans in for the kiss this time, hands cupping his face as you chase after his lips.

“This is going to be the best investment of your life.”

“Those are big claims, Assistant Min.”

“I’m very confident, Miss Shin.”

___

Namjoon’s fork hits the table, slipping out of his hand and forgotten the moment Yoongi announces your relationship at dinner.

“We want to try and see where things go” you say, bringing your free hand to rest on top of Yoongi’s for everyone to see.

“You don’t have to make a big deal out of it. We don’t care.”

“Jungkook.” Jin admonishes, but the youngest pushes back this time.

“What? It’s true. Whatever they do has nothing to do with us. Unless you want us gone so you can be all lovey dovey. I’m sure he” Jungkook glares in Yoongi’s direction, “wouldn’t want his precious girlfriend sharing a space with us. I mean, we’re wolves after all.”

Yoongi cringes at the mention of his ignorant remark.

“Once again, I’m sorry for saying that. I wish I could take it back.”

You squeeze his hand, “Yoongi’s not like that Jungkook. Nothing about this changes the fact that you all have a permanent home here.”

Yoongi nods.

“I’m happy for you guys” Jimin beams, breaking the tension and making you extremely grateful.

“Me too!” Taehyung follows.

You look over at Namjoon, who sends a tight-lipped smile, “You two look good together.”

 “Thank you Joon,” his stand-offish demeanor still isn’t lost on you.

Hoseok barely reacts, only half present at the dining table. Jimin assures everyone to just let him be, explaining that turning up his hearing is helping him. He doesn’t need to elaborate, as everyone is highly aware of what goes on in Hoseok’s mind most of the time now. You’re just glad something’s helping.

It’s the sound of a record this time, playing maybe two houses down. A nice, soft melody that makes him want to hum along.

Namjoon volunteers to do the dishes this time, until Jin assigns the task to Taehyung and pulls the Alpha to the side, “What’s going on with you?”

“What?”

“You’ve been in your head all day. I could use a little help reigning Jungkook in, you know. It feels like I’ve been keeping him in check all alone since morning.”

Namjoon looks at the eldest with remorse, “I’m sorry hyung. My thoughts have just been all over the place lately. I should be paying more attention.”

“What is it that’s bothering you? Anything I can help with?”

He shakes his head, “No don’t worry about it. I have it under control.”

“You’re sure?”

“Yeah.”

___

The Alpha hangs by Yoongi’s door awkwardly, clearing his throat to make his presence known to both of you. You sit up from your cuddling position upon seeing him.

“Hey Joon, you need to talk to Yoongi about something?”

The wolf nods, “I can come by later if it’s not a good time.”

You shake your head and get out of the covers, much to Yoongi’s reluctance.

“I need to go look over some documents anyways. You guys talk.”

It’s when you’re right in front of him do you ask what’s on your mind, “Hey, are you okay? You don’t seem like yourself lately…unless this is another instance of the hormones wearing off?”

“No, this isn’t that. I’ve just been feeling a little under the weather today. It’s nothing serious.”

Your hand is on his forehead in an instant, “It’s not a fever, thankfully. You sure you’re good? Need any cold meds?”

“No it’s fine, really. I’ll let you know if I need anything.”

The wolf waits a second after you leave, making sure you’re far away from the door before speaking. Yoongi watches carefully, not in the mood for whatever “Alpha claim” he’s about to stake on you.

But Namjoon isn’t that kind of Alpha.

“I wanted to talk about y/n.”

“Go on.”

“Now that you two are…together” the word is bitter on his tongue, “we should get along. For her sake.”

Yoongi can’t say he’s not caught off-guard. He always thought a jealous Alpha would be one throwing temper tantrums and bearing teeth. Namjoon’s words don’t help make him any less wary, though.

“That’s hard to do when I see the way you look at her. I’ve wanted this for so long, and I’m not going to let a stranger walk into our lives and take it away.”

The word “stranger” has an unsettling feeling rise up in Namjoon’s chest, wanting to protest and that he and you are not strangers. That he understands you in ways Yoongi never will. But he stops himself. Because none of it matters if he can’t be the one thing you need: human.

That’s something Yoongi will always have over him.

“It’s just a crush, nothing serious. I’ll get over it without her ever knowing.”

“How can I believe that? How do I know this crush won’t turn into something serious in the future?”

“Because it can’t. She likes you. Not me. I’m not stupid enough to make a move and risk her kicking out the entire pack. I know you don’t trust me, but you can trust that I won’t risk the future of my pack over this.”

It’s the one statement that does placate Yoongi, because he’s right. The one thing he—and anyone who’s known Namjoon for longer than two seconds—knows is that his every decision revolves around his packmates’ wellbeing.

“Okay. I can believe that.”

____

A/N: Took a bit longer to get out this week, but I'm always grateful that you guys stick around and interact. Have a great day!

Permanent Taglist: @skyys-universee @morelovefortn @seagulljk @shadowyjellyfishfest @m4gg13-g @wittyreader

Series Taglist [CLOSED]: @welcometomyworld13 @kalala22 @fxirytaetae @btsfluffsworld @belikejk @shycreationdreamland @danielle143 @singukieee @blackrockshooter780 @g-b-artist @i-have-no-life-charlie @sopemee @no-regrets-just-confusion @acciocriativity @ldysmfrst @amara-mars @caelumwrites @estrellaburnxd @borahaetelevision @on-1ce @fuckthinking @jaiele

#bts hybrid au #hybrid bts x reader #poly bts #ot7 x reader #bts angst #bts fluff #bts smut #hurt/comfort

[jiminiesfavouritecolourisblue]

Severance - BTS OT7 CEO au Chapter 16

So did anybody guess what was on the news? I thought it was rather obvious (it’s getting harder and harder to find gifs I haven’t used)

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“Care to explain this Y/n,” Junmyeon says, reaching for the remote and pressing play.

You feel your world freeze, the newscasters lips moving but the thumping in your ears drowns her out. Footage after footage of your dates, the three maknaes and you at the airport, date stamped proving you played hooky, there was nothing you could say to disprove the videos, not when in every single one they steal a kiss.

Your mouth opens but nothing comes out, not even a breath goes in, you’re stuck. You don’t see anything but the screen where the secret you so desperately wanted to keep was aired out for the world to witness. You don’t see Jongin desperately texting Jimin under the desk, what you do see is the channel cut to a newscaster introducing the last woman you ever expected to see, the shock filling your lungs with air so fast it makes you dizzy. Your eyes sting with tears as she starts talking, was this karma? Was this the universe telling you you made the wrong choice, that you should never have fallen for them, that you were too greedy for their love. Was this the price, the consequences? 

“I think she’s hyperventilating,” the voice sounds muffled, your ears feel like they're full of burning cotton but at least someone has the sense to turn the screen off. Baekhyun fills your vision instead, hands on your shoulders with worried eyes on your form. 

“Cars coming to pick her up, back entrance,” you recognise it's Jongin that’s speaking but the word’s go over your head. 

Someone hands you a tissue but you don’t register the gesture until you hear a sigh. Chanyeol gently wipes your tears away, the stern look on his face softening when you look up at him. The sound of the phone ringing sounds so distant, like it was at the end of the tunnel. Jongin answers it before handing it to Junmyeon.

“Namjoon,” he greets through the line, the sound of his tone cutting through the fog you were drowning in. Joonie, you wanted nothing more than to be buried in his arms away from all this, but he wasn’t here. Whatever he was saying though the line made your current boss stare at you with an accusation that didn’t budge.

“We need to get her out without any more commotion,” he says to the others stiffly after he cuts the call. 

“I’ll sort out the employees,” Kyungsoo states walking out. 

The silence that follows is palpable, the lead CEO breaks it with a sigh, and you know it’s due to the aftermath he would have to deal with because of your decisions. He moves to walk past you, but you grab his sleeve before he can. You try not to flinch under his stare, your hands trembling where they hold him. 

“I’m so sorry,” you say as sincerely as you can through a hoarse whisper. He acknowledges your words with a nod before he leaves. You’re quickly ushered to the corridor by the others, the sight of them shielding you like your own personal bodyguards would make you chuckle on any other day, but you were still shaking like a leaf. 

All that work, all those years of making something of yourself, all the sacrifices and it came to this. Your life exposed to the world in a way that would cause it ruin. Your future at e.xo was done, no other company would ever employ you, you could never go back to work for bangtan. Everything was gone. 

—

“Yeah we’re in the car, we got her out safe,” Seokjin says through the phone while Yoongi drives, his eyes glancing at you with worry. 

A question Namjoon asks on the phone had Jin tensing, looking at you hesitantly. Is she okay?

“She’s not saying anything, she’s just shaking,” he sighs, he wanted to say more, how you were staring at the floor despondently, how when Jin tried to hold your hand to comfort you, you tensed and turned away.

The fear in their hearts that you regretted everything you had with them made Jin pull away, all he could do was be grateful they got to you before the media did, and in the tinted vehicle you were at least safe. 

“It’s safe to go back to the mansion,” Jin tells Yoongi when he hangs up the call.

The drive is silent, they didn’t know what to say, everytime they tried the words died before they could form. Security was back in full force at their estate, running out any media outlet that tried to sneak close, their lawyers were having a field day. Not to mention the commotion at the office as they walked out, the whispers conjugated together so loud, not even Namjoon’s glare could silence them.

The gates open to the estate, and Yoongi can hear his heartbeat thumping faster and faster in his ears, it felt like they were coming to an impasse and there was no going back. The car slows to a stop, and as he kills the engine all they can do is stare at you.

Move. You had to move.

You could hear a faint commotion outside, the three maknaes running towards the car but a stern look from Yoongi stopped them in their tracks. Worry, anticipation, anxiety, no one knew exactly what concoction of emotions paralysed them, what made them hesitate to reach out to you.

“Kitten,” Yoongi starts softly, “you need to talk to us.”

That made you move, the door opening without a word in return. Your legs work against you, feeling like lead on twigs, a second away from collapsing. You couldn’t speak right now, your whole body felt empty and yet the weight of thoughts in your head made you need to bury it. You wanted your bed, you wanted to hide, and you wanted to be alone. 

Yoongi shares a look with Jin, the hurt flashing between both of them at your rejection but they try not to take it to heart. You never wanted your relationship with them made public, not yet at least, you weren’t ready for the backlash, but now the choice was taken from you in the most heinous way. 

“Noona,” Jungkook calls for you gently, a sadness in his eyes at the way you were walking with your head hanging low. Jimin holds him back, understanding better than anyone how you were feeling. He used to do the same, when something went wrong, when he made a mistake, he cut himself off from everyone, it would be a mistake to approach you until you were ready, until the voices in your head either broke you or quietened down. 

The steps to the front door took so much energy from you, you didn’t think you had any left. You could feel them walking behind you at a distance, and yet it didn’t feel far enough or close enough. Something inside of you was tearing its way out and you didn’t know if you wanted to be embraced through it or to suffer it alone the way you had before so many times. 

“Y/n,” Namjoon didn’t get the memo, he tries to embrace you but feels you stiffen against him, letting go immediately to look at your face with worry. “Baby girl, we'll fix this, okay? We-”

You push him away and he looks at you in shock, you didn’t want to hear it right now, you were barely holding yourself together. Voices were pounding inside of your head, the same repeated phrases over and over about how all your work was ruined, it was all for nothing, all your dreams, all your efforts. You couldn’t handle anything right now, you just needed your bed and to cry yourself to sleep alone. 

“Y/n talk to me,” Namjoon says sternly, brows knitted at the way you didn’t even look at him. 

He blocks your path when you try to walk past him, why didn’t he understand what you needed right now? You hear him sigh, as if his patience with you was wearing thin. 

“Baby girl, you always do this,” he says, holding onto your shoulders to ground you, to keep you from leaving him. “You shut yourself down, you punish yourself, you push us away and then you break.”

“You can’t do that anymore sunshine,” Hoseok says standing beside you. “We’re in a relationship, we’re in this together, your pain is our pain Y/n.”

They watch you shake your head, bowing your head down so low as they hear the telltale sniffle that turns into a violent sob. Namjoon is quick to catch you in his arms, hushing your softly, stroking your hair until you calmed. All the while guilt ate him up, this was his fault, he could see it in all of their eyes as they watched you fall apart. 

—

The house was solemn and quiet, you had retreated upstairs to your room, Jimin staying beside you while you slept. 

“We underestimated that bitch,” Yoongi breaks the silence with what they were all thinking. They’re all scattered around the living room, Jungkook sitting deep in thought on the headrest of the sofa, Yoongi on the seat beside him. Namjoon sat opposite them with Hoseok on the armrest, Jin pacing the room slowly while Taehyung sat on the floor with his face in his hands. The black face of the TV on the wall stared at them, taunting them with what it held inside. The face broadcasted alongside yours and theirs was one that they barely remembered, but she had the audacity to be interviewed by any news outlet desperate enough for a story. They didn’t want to turn on the TV and see her face. 

“She signed an NDA,” Namjoon says, a headache forming, “we didn’t think she was going to be a problem.”

“That’s where arrogance gets us,” Jin scoffs.

“Flower worked so hard for so long,” Taehyung says quietly, mourning for you. They all knew it better than anyone. 

“We’ll fix this,” Namjoon states, he wouldn’t rest until they did. 

“Namjoon be real for a second,” Hoseok sighs, “we might not be able to fix it.”

“No company is going to take her without an agenda,” Jungkook pipes in stoically.

“Or without thinking she’s a corporate spy,” Jin agrees. 

“We can’t control everyone and everything,” Hoseok finishes, patting the lead CEO on the shoulder sympathetically. 

“And we definitely can’t ignore a problem away,” Yoongi scoffs, staring daggers into Namjoon. 

“Let’s not start this now,” Jin warns, feeling Namjoon’s guilt from a mile away.

“What does he mean?” Jungkook asks, feeling confused. 

“Namjoon’s been burning threats concerning us,” Yoongi continues accusatively. 

“We never opened those letters,” Namjoon argues back, “we don’t know what they contained.”

“Well we know now,” Yoongi says mockingly. He hated when you were upset, the feeling made his own claws unsheath, ready to tear into anyone who was held responsible. 

“We don’t know the two things are connected,” Hoseok tries to defend their lead. 

“Don’t be stupid Hobi,” Yoongi seethes, “Kitten’s whole career has gone down the drain because of us, what the fuck is she going to do if she finds out?”

“You best hope she doesn’t,” Taehyung snapped, his earlier melancholy now fueled by fear. 

“We can’t keep this from her,” Hoseok shakes his head, disregarding the point.

“She’ll hate us,” Jungkook states, terrified it would manifest before his eyes soon. 

“She’ll be angry at us,” Jin corrects him, “but we have to tell her.”

“Not now, it’s too soon,” Namjoon says quickly, his own fear warping his judgement.

“You should’ve opened one fucking letter,” Yoongi can’t let it go, all of this could’ve been avoided if it wasn’t for Namjoon’s stupid stubbornness. 

“What good is bringing that up now going to do?” Hoseok sighs again. 

“We don’t know if it’s connected!” Namjoon yells exasperated. “What we do know is Shin Suran leaked the photos and the story, and she is going to fucking pay.”

—

“So you’re saying the CEOs fired you because you threatened to expose their relationship to HR?” Solar, the newscaster asks her aghast. 

“Honestly, I didn’t want to expose their… relationship,” she can’t hide the disgust in her voice at the word, “but I was concerned for Y/n’s wellbeing, I thought maybe they were holding her job over her head until I found out she was only entertaining them to climb the corporate ladder.”

Both anchors were shocked, the information sending them reeling.

“I mean what self respecting young woman would sell herself like that? Y/n was never a team player, or very good at her job but somehow she was always favoured by the CEO’s. It should have been obvious really.”

“Wow, that’s a lot of information to unpack Suran,” Solar says. “Aren’t you scared of the repercussions, these are the world’s business leads you’re going up against.”

“I only want to convey the truth,” Suran lies through her teeth. “It isn’t fair that the women who have worked hard and devoted themselves to Bangtan corporations are not appreciated or given the opportunities they deserve.”

“But Miss L/n left bangtan corporations,” the other anchor Hwasa finally speaks after having watched the little snake for so long. Something didn’t sit right with her and this woman’s sickly sweet attitude, it stank of deceit and she wasn’t blind to it. 

“I have it on good information that she was sent to spy on the competition,” Suran’s eyes narrow, not liking her tone of voice. 

“That’s a wild allegation,” Hwasa replies, every bit the professional. “I hope you have the evidence to back it up.”

—

“Bangtan corporations are under serious investigation after allegations of corporate espionage came from their former employee…”

She smiles at the screen plating in front of her, the chaos unravelling in so many wonderful ways. The Sun was shining despite the winter air, how many interviews could she fit into one day? Many it seemed, and while the day was over there was always tomorrow to cause more havoc to your life. Now she would sit and bask in the TV light, watching all of her fire ignite. 

She had only gotten cosy when the doorbell rang to her little flat, groaning as she went to the door to answer it.

“Shin Suran?”

The three piece suit should give away something serious was in the brown paper envelope in his hands but she couldn’t bring herself to show any respect to the figure. She sneered and rolled her eyes, this man might’ve looked intimidating but she was currently on a high from ruining your life, nothing was going to bring her power trip down.

“Wi HaJoon,” he continues in the absence of a greeting, handing her the envelope. “You’ve been served.”

“What?” That elicits a reaction out of her, for some reason she didn’t even contemplate there would be consequences for her actions, deluded into thinking she was untouchable.

“You’re being sued for stalking, defamation and breaking the nondisclosure agreement you signed.”

That wasn’t part of her plan, her jaw drops to the ground and she realises maybe she played her cards all wrong. In the violent web of wanting to destroy your life she didn’t realise all her defences were gone. Maybe he was right after all.

—

When you wake up, the sun begins to set and Jimin’s warmth engulfs you. The feeling is comforting but fleeting, unfortunately real life problems don’t fade just because you’re in his arms. You wanted to bury yourself in his hold, have him take everything away until you were ready to deal with it. Jungkook’s favourite grey sweatshirt swallows you whole, his smell calming your senses, you try to focus on it when your mind tries to swim through the thoughts that wanted you to drown. 

The door creaks open, two figures cautiously peaking in whispering to themselves. When Tae notices you’re awake he takes a seat beside you, caressing your cheek in his palm gently, his thumb soothing your skin. His eyes are downtrodden.

Jungkook kneels on the floor next to you, taking your hand in his and covering it with hard kisses, resting his cheek where they intertwined.

You try to get up but Jimin beside you grumbles in discontent, shuffling closer mumbling something under his breath without opening his eyes. A chaste kiss to your shoulder where the fabric hangs off your skin, lets you know he’s awake but refusing to let you go. The gesture brings a small but genuine smile to your face, one that turns into confusion as the commotion downstairs gets louder.

The younger two give each other knowing glances, one you don’t miss.

“What’s going on?” You ask, voice still hoarse from crying.

The hesitation in both of them fills you with dread. Did something else happen? 

“They’re just trying to sort things out bunny,” Jungkook tries to reassure you, “it’s nothing to worry about.”

Despite Taehyung not wanting you to find out, something sickened him at the idea of keeping secrets from you. He knew how the truth always found its way out, and he knew if you didn’t hear it from them, it would have worse repercussions. 

“Tae?” you could see a storm in his eyes, a battle between the loyalty to the others and his love for you. 

“The hyungs…” he hesitates, Jimin now fully awake and sitting up at his deep uncertain tone. 

Jungkook looks at him imploring him not to say it yet, it was going to be too much to deal with so soon after this morning. You grab Jimin’s arm, pulling yourself up closer to Taehyung who now avoided your gaze.

“Guys what’s going on?”

“I’ve been here with you,” Jimin mumbles half asleep, his hair a soft mess on his head. 

“Kookie?” you turn to the youngest who bites his lips nervously, doe eyes begging you not to ask him. 

“You’re worrying me,” your nerves were shot, the trauma from this morning making you beyond paranoid. What could be worse than this morning, what weren’t they telling you. 

“Jimin, Jungkook and I didn’t know,” Taehyung starts slowly, not wanting to put his hyung’s under the bus but he wasn’t going to let them shoulder the blame when they were innocent. Plus when this was over he had a feeling you would ostracise the older four for a while, he couldn’t handle being a part of that. 

“Didn’t know what?” you ask tentatively, urging him to continue.

“I still don’t know,” Jimin grumbles, getting annoyed with the suspense. 

“Namjoon Hyung has been getting letters,” Jungkook says when Taehyung pauses for too long. He sighs, cursing the hyung’s for keeping this from you when he knew the betrayal would crush you. 

“What letters?” 

Something ticks in Jimin’s brain, his sleep filled eyes going wide with realisation. The other day in the office, when the hyung’s went solemn, it was to do with that?

“We think…” Taehyung tries not to stumble over his words, “they were threats, about you or us, but we don’t know because…”

Threats? You’re sent reeling, did Namjoon know this was coming? And he did nothing to warn you, or confide in you?

“Because what?” you breathe, your voice heavy, eyes watering as your thoughts ran away from you. Jimin places an arm around your shoulders, trying to soothe you.

“He burned the letters before he opened them,” Jungkook finishes, feeling a deep rooted shame for his favourite hyung, and for selling him out. 

“Angel…”

Jimin calls after you as you throw the covers off of you, storming downstairs to confront the men hiding things from you. 

“Sunshine-”

“You’ve been getting threats and you didn’t tell me?” 

They startle at your accusation, as right as it was, the four of them confounded until the younger three stumble in behind you. All four hyungs glance at them disgruntled and disappointed, this was not the way to handle things, the thought was hypocritical but justified in their minds. 

“You didn’t tell me?” Your teary eyes pierce Yoongi with so much sadness, of all of them you never expected him to keep it from you, and for some reason it stung the worst.

“Kitten,” he tries reaching out to you, a vulnerable edge to his voice. He would let you scratch and claw at him until you were satisfied, anything to keep you from looking at him like that again. 

“Babygirl it’s my fault,” Namjoon sighs, taking the edge of his hyung and shouldering all the blame. “I told them not to.”

You turn back to him with anger in your eyes.

“Namjoon you’re the lead at work but that doesn’t make you the lead in this relationship,” you snap. “You had no right to keep this from me!”

“I know,” he says, his voice small.

“How long have you been getting these letters?” You ask and he hangs his head in shame. 

“Months…” he replies, “since you left the company.”

You stare at him appalled and it wounds him.

“You have the gall to tell me how to behave in this relationship Kim Namjoon,” Your voice is strained through the onslaught of angry tears. “And you keep this from me?”

“I didn’t know what the letters said,” he says as an excuse, and he knows it’s a feeble one. 

You shake your head in disbelief.

“I thought you of all people would get it Joonie,” the way your voice breaks cuts through him with shame. “You built everything from the ground up, I admired you long before I loved you. So how the hell could you play with my future like this?”

“Baby girl that was never my intention,” he begs you to understand him now, that he didn’t behave nonchalant with a potential threat, he thought he was doing what was best. 

“It doesn’t matter what your intention was! There was a clear right and wrong, and you know it.”

He bows his head again, you were right, he disrespected you when he didn’t discuss the letters with you, you should’ve made the decision together as to what to do with them. But in his heart he thought he was protecting you, protecting your peace and happiness, but all of that was a bubble set to burst.

“We don’t know that it’s connected beautiful,” Jin steps in between you, speaking as softly as he can knowing you were full of rage and sorrow, but he watched Namjoon take the blow and needed to shield him a little. 

“We don’t know that it’s not,” you argued back. “We have no way of knowing, because instead of talking to me about something unpleasant, you guys decided to bury it.”

“Sunshine, I get that you’re upset-” Hoseok tries but the look of incredulous shock shuts him up.

“Upset?” you repeat, the strain in your voice carrying tears. “Everything I worked for, all my dreams, are gone.” 

It was a struggle to get out every word, having to take a breath between each one, but you were determined to. 

“No company is going to employ me, even if they do I’ll be subjugated to whispers and isolation and we know how that worked out last time.”

You sniffle, wiping your nose and tears with your sleeve. You wanted to appear strong but you were breaking down, didn’t they understand what they had done? Didn’t they care? Or were they so comfortable in their gold seats so far above you they forgot about their struggles on the way there?

“I didn’t join your company to seduce you, I wanted to work hard and make something of myself, maybe start my own company one day, but all of that is gone.”

“Kitten,” Yoongi dares himself to try again, to console you even if you pushed him away. He walks over to you, remembering all the times you seeked him out for comfort. It used to confound the others, how Mr Stoic Stone was the one that you reached for, and even though it was unusual for him to step into those shoes, with you it came so naturally. He wanted to be the one you searched for when you needed soothing, he never wanted to lose that connection he built with you, ever. He knew it was a privilege, one he never took for granted.

He hates the way you look at him now, it breaks his heart, those watering eyes showing how truly hurt you were while you tried to control the trembling of your bottom lip, tried to look strong in front of him. 

“Whatever you think is gone, we can rebuild,” he takes your face in his hands, kissing the top of your head softly before looking into your eyes. “I am so sorry for not telling you, but I promise you whatever dreams you had will come true. It's just going to suck for a while and that’s our fault.” 

“We know better than anyone how hard you work sunshine,” Hoseok smiles at you sadly, regretting not telling you. 

“If you want a company babygirl, we’ll get you a company,” Namjoon’s own voice thick with remorse. “Whatever you want.”

“There’s enough space in the office for another desk,” Jimin tries to lighten the mood with a teasing lilt to his voice, but he’s not joking at all. “No one would dare to whisper about our angel CEO.”

You shake your head, removing Yoongi’s hold on you. They didn’t get it. You’ve worked for everything you had, it was how you had always been. You didn’t want to be handed a title you didn’t earn, or have your powerful boyfriends buy positions for you. 

“Why would that be such a bad idea, beautiful?” Jin asks softly. “You’re more than capable.”

“I don’t need anyone thinking I slept my way to the top,” you scoff. 

“Who cares what other people think, Kitten?” Yoongi sighs. “No one can deny you deserve a CEO position.”

You shake your head again, breathes of humourless laughter escaping your lips. They really didn’t get it. It was so easy to say that when you were untouchable to people’s words. 

“You guys made the decision by yourselves to keep this from me,” you state, not looking at them but to the ground. “My career has nothing to do with you, whatever happens next is my choice.”

“Kitten-”

“You don’t have the right Yoongi,” you try to keep the anger out of your voice. “None of you do right now. I need to figure this out alone.”

“Are you breaking up with us?” Jungkook asks in a panic, not moving from the doorway, he would block your exit, he would fall to his knees and beg you to stay. 

“No,” you reassure him with a syllable. “I love you, I always will, I’m just angry right now.”

“And you have every right to be,” Namjoon agrees solemnly. 

“I just have one last thing on my mind,” you frown, an obvious question was left unanswered. 

You face Namjoon, knowing he would hold the answer.

“You destroyed the letters before opening them,” it’s not a question but it sounds like one. 

He nods, wondering where you were going with this. 

“So how did you know they were threats?”

He hesitates, trying to build up the courage to tell you how he knew exactly who they were from. 

“The return address,” Jin answers for him. “It was from the penitentiary.”

The realisation hits you, and for some reason it makes the whole situation so much worse. The accusation in your eyes returns as you gaze at Namjoon. He knew exactly what he was dealing with when he got rid of those letters, and looking at you now he knew he would have to beg for your forgiveness. 

—

Bonus scene flashback:

Dear Kim Namjoon,

You haven’t responded to the last 6 letters I have sent, so either you’re not taking me seriously, or you haven’t read a single one. Both choices are not in anyone’s best interest, I don’t think you realise the situation you’ve put me in, I have nothing to lose. 

The deadline is approaching for you to transfer the funds and secure my release. I am not spending years in jail because of your jealousy. Enclosed are copies of the images I will release to the media, I bet you’re wondering how I was able to get these when you locked me away. 

It seems I’m not the only one you thought you could cross and toss away. For your sake, I hope you make the right choice.

I look forward to hearing from you,

Alexander Pettyfer

“They haven’t responded to a single one of your stupid letters, what makes you think they will now?” Suran scoffs at the news that he sent another. 

“Just be patient,” he replies, the usually clean cut male looking rugged and rough. “We need something out of this other than just ruining their lives.”

“Look, the images I got are proof enough about what that whore is doing, I say we release them.”

“Not yet!” The rise in his voice gets the guards attention, and he takes a deep breath to calm down. Stupid woman didn’t know when to listen, it was unfortunate that he had to use her, although he should count his blessings the day she came and visited for the first time with an idea to take the CEOs down. 

#bts au #bts fanfic #bts x reader #bts angst #bts ceo!au #ceo bts #bts ceo au #bts ot7 x reader #bts ot7 au #namjoon x reader #seokjin x reader #jin x you #hoseok x reader #hobi x reader #jimin x you #taehyung x reader #jungkook x reader #bts fluff #bts scenario #bts writing #bts series

[katisblue]

Combler la lacune - complete!

17k

Vampire OT6/Human Jk

#bts fanfction #bts ot7 au

[taesclub]

The Wild Child, series masterlist ✦ BTS

✦ BTS x Fem! Oc's

━━━━━ ( SYNOPSIS. ) She is suddenly forced to attend the all-girls boarding school, St. Victoria's. Determined to break free, she tries to escape. Her only problem? To do so she must go through the neighboring boarding school and its notorious group, the Bangtan boys. Among them, one member captivates her the most, blurring the line between rebellion and romance.

CHARACTERS. ━━━━━━━━━ ✦ 

The Star Boys, Kim Namjoon ━ Kim Seokjin ━ Park Jimin ━ Min Yoongi ━ Jung Hoseok ━ Kim Taehyung ━ Jeon Jungkook

The girls, Avery Thomas ━ Lola Lemaire ━ Ella Dubois ━ Claire Deschamps

WRITING. ━━━━━━━━━ ✦ 

ACT I. « posted »

ACT II. « coming soon »

ACT III. « coming soon »

ACT IV. « coming soon »

ACT V. « coming soon »

© taesclub, 2023. all rights reserved. do not steal, repost, translate and/or claim these work as your own.

#bts au #jungkook smut #bts ot7 au #jungkook scenarios #purplearmynet #bts scenarios #bts college au #bts high school au #jimin scenario #taehyung au #jimin smut #hoseok fluff #bts x you #namjoon scenarios #yoongi imagine #jin fluff #jungkook imagine #bts series #ot7 smut #ot7 x you

[sweetlyskz]

Emerald Gem|| Chapter 1

Chapter one|Chapter two|Chapter three|Chapter four|Chapter five|Chapter six|

Paring: OT7! x Fem!Reader

Overview: Living away from society has its perks. All natural food from your thoroughly cultivated farm, no nosy neighbors, and peace and security with your animals. But sometimes you did get lonely, having no one to talk to but the cows and pigs. However, when 7 extremely wanted hybrids stumble upon your deserted farm, everything changes.

Genre: Hybrid Au, Strangers to lovers, slow burn

unedited*

At dawn, the roosters began to crow. They were your personal alarm clock. By the afternoon, you would have the Vegetables plowed and all the pigs fed. Emerald garden, full of color, would be watered. After all the chores were done, you could spend time on your hobbies. Painting, writing, cooking.

You truly kept yourself busy. But it became boring at times, lonely.

Emerald manor, your beloved home, was built for a family. With a large living room, a generous dining room, and too many bedrooms, it could be overwhelming for you. You liked to think about how you could fill this space, getting married, having a family. But you quickly realized that those things don’t come easy. Tired of the loneliness, you thought about adopting a pet. Maybe a dog to help with the farm?

And one day while you're cleaning the chicken coop you spot a fox about to pounce on one of the chickens.

“Hey!” you exclaim. “Get out of here!”

The fox stopped in its tracks and peered over at you, giving an intimidating glare. Then you realized, that wasn’t a fox.

It’s a person.

“Wait!” you attempted to come closer, but with each step forward, the fox went two steps backward. “I’m not going to hurt you. I promise.”

The fox seemed dubious, cautiously stepping towards you. “F-food, please.” His voice was raspy, sore.

You immediately ran to get some food, coming back to the coop with some leftovers. Maybe this will suffice, you thought. You sat him down on the grass patch next to the chicken's den. You watched him devour the meal, as if he hadn’t eaten anything in weeks. Based on his appearance, he probably hadn’t. His fur coat was dirty and torn. You could see his ribs and his belly rumbled with each bite. “Sorry, miss”, he whispered.

You shook your head. “Don’t apologize. You did nothing wrong. I’m Y/n. May I ask your name?”

You could tell he was nervous. Something about your presence made him anxious and fearful. Is he like this with everyone?

“H-Hoseok”, the fox uttered. “But I can’t stay long. My pack is waiting for me.” With a slight struggle, he stumbles back on his two feet. You grab him before he takes off.

“Please wait”, you politely asked. “Let me give you some food to take back to them. Don’t leave yet.”

He paused for a moment, seeming to be pondering over his next steps. “Okay”, he spoke softly. “But don’t be long. They may worry.”

With that, you hurry back into your home, running to the fridge to see what you can scrap up. Hopefully I have enough for all of them, you thought. Maybe you can give them a couple of chickens from the coop.

While carrying plastic wrap covered plates to your garden, you hear a scream coming from the coop. That must be Hoseok. Without haste, you ran to the chicken coops, the food left for the birds. Hovering over Hoseok was what looked like a wolf– well half wolf.

“Back away from him!” You yelled at the top of your lungs, trying to scare off the scary hybrid. He ignored you completely. Suddenly, you gain the courage to step up to it, pushing it off of the fox.

“Are you okay?” You helped him back on his feet, feeling the trembles in his hands. “Did he hurt you?”

“N-no, he would never hurt me”, He stuttered. “You don’t understand.” You looked at him confusingly, then looked at the wolf. He was fuming with anger.

“Y/n, this is my packmate, Joon.”

***

You’re not sure how feeding one hybrid led to having seven hybrids on your couch, but you have no one to blame but yourself.

“You want us to do what?!”

“Live here?” It was really just a random thought that popped in your head. You didn’t give it any thought. And seeing them dirty and hungry on your couch just made you blurt it out. Hoseok seemed thrilled but his Pack alpha, Joon, wasn't too excited.

“You must be out of your mind”, he laughed. “What do you think we are, pets?”

“No, not at all!” You shook your head. Something in the back of your mind tells you that they’ve been burned before, that they’ve been mistreated. You feel sort of sympathetic. Could they not trust anyone? “You guys don’t even have to stay here long. I just want to treat your wounds and offer some food.”

He still seemed doubtful. “Yeah? And what’s in it for you?”

That's the question he's been dying to ask. What about you? You thought about it for a moment. Wouldn’t any human being want to help out someone in need? The answer to that is no. However, maybe they need some good in their lives.

And you could use the company.

“Well, I kind of live here by myself”, You explain. “My parents moved to the city so I don’t see them often, and I don’t have any other family or friends. If I’m being honest, I really just need someone to converse with. And maybe a little help around the house.”

One of the packmates raised his hand, as if asking permission to speak. “We left the other home we were in. They may still be looking for us. We don’t want to put you in any danger.”

“We can figure all that out later”, you promise him. “Right now, you guys just need to wash up and get a proper rest.”

Hoseok turned to Joon, waiting for his response. “Please, Joon. We’ll be good, I promise.”

He glared at you for a second, trying to sense if this was another trap. Maybe she’s genuine, he thought. “Okay, but we won’t stay for long.” You could hear sighs of relief. Even you let out a puff of air, not realizing you were holding your breath.

“Thank you. Thank you so much for trusting me. I know that’s not easy.” You gave them a tour of Emerald farm, showing them their sleeping quarters and where they can wash up. When evening came around, you prepared a feast. Your hybrid guests gobbled down all they could– except Joon. He didn’t eat, probably from fear of being poisoned. Hopefully, one day he’ll trust me, you thought. But for now, all you can do is show them tender care and affection until they believe it.

When it becomes time for everyone to sleep in their rooms, you're left alone in the living room with our thoughts. Maybe some television will clear your mind. You never really use it. Living on a farm left you with plenty of other things to do, but why not? Turning on the television, you flip through the channels until one catches your attention.

Breaking news! Seven dangerous hybrids escaping from a research facility

*Taglist open!

#kpop #bts #bts fanfic #bts imagines #bts x reader #kpop smut #bts smut #kim seokjin #park jimin #bts series #kim taehyung #kim namjoon #poly!bts #ot7 x reader #bts ot7 #bangtan ot7 #poly!bts x reader #hybrid #bts hybrid au #strangers to lovers #eventual romance #eventual smut #rm bts #bts jimin #jk fic #bts fic #poly ot7

[singguks]

horus academy, 04 | bts

© horus academy | all rights reserved. do not repost, translate or claim as your own. if you find this work elsewhere besides the three blogs stated, please report it to any of the writers. @singguks × @socksjinie × @bluenpjm

summary: in a school where greek methods rules, not everything is as clear as it appears to be. heart, mind, soul, and body. those are the teams of the horus academy and boarding school. but deep within the long corridors, lies dark secrets. the so-called loving families formed in the shape of teams begin to tear up when an anonymous source unravels their deepest secrets.

genre: high school au | mystery au | smut | angst | fluff

pairing: OT7 × OC's

rating: PG13

word count: 11,829

warnings: foul language, bullying, pyromania (impulse control disorder regarding fire), exposing secret relationships, femicide. 

a/n: if you want to be part of the tag list so you won't miss the secret that'll be revealed next, comment down below and we'll add you :)

chapters. 01, 02, 03, 04, 05 ✩ masterlist

PREVIOUSLY ON HORUS ACADEMY

“Good morning Horus, and get ready for the Ascension,” The speakers throughout the entire school turned on as Kihyun’s voice, the school’s announcer, caught everyone’s attention. “The schedule of this week’s round will be the following—please take notes or regret not doing so—first stop, a game for intellectuals only. The second phase is for those who dare to be brave… and physical! The third and final round must be for the jacks of all trades. Best of luck to all teams- and may the greatest God or Goddess win!”

The Griffins were starting their day very uneasy… A little before the announcement of the game, the leader of the team, Archie Miller, opened the doors of their common room just to find it completely out of place.

The yellow sofas that normally stood on the four edges of the walls, against them, were placed in a circle and in the middle of the room. As he came closer to have a look at what was going on, he found a blue envelope on the floor, right at the center of the circle. It was as if it was inviting the whole team to gather around and take a seat to know what it contained. And some even managed to arrive on time to see their leader reading it alone because Archie was anything but patient or very loving.

To say the Sarx meeting didn’t go so well was more than an understatement. Archie was completely out of his mind; fuming in anger. All he could think about was how they managed to enter their common room. And he knew who had been the culprit, that was the sole reason he was so furious.

“Those damn wolves.”

[ ... ]

“And it’s… Correct!” One of the judges announced giving one more point to the Dianoia team. Jin and Kaya, the ones that were chosen to be representing their house in this first round, hi-fived each other while celebrating. 

Dianoia kept leading with two points ahead while Kardia and Psykhe were disputing second place, both tied with four points each. The audience was anxious. After all, this was a game of intellect but also speed. The fastest team to reach a total of nine correct answers would be given a clue to the location of the next round, and that meant the next duo would have to reach the secret location to be given an advantage quickly. No one could leave without the so-wanted nine, and the groups were waiting right there, completely powerless; the wait was slowly killing them.

“The seventeenth question is the following…” A girl from the judges' panel announced, “Which monarch officially made Valentine’s Day a holiday in 1537?”

There was a moment of silence, some glances from the teammates being exchanged, but then Vernon from Psykhe cut through it and slammed the button in front of him and his partner. “I think I know it, but I’m not so sure,” He chuckled in a boyish manner. The Psykhe team, all sitting behind them, started to shout words of encouragement. 

“We trust you, go on!” Dahyun, his partner, cheered alongside their team. 

“Would it maybe be Henry, The Eighth?” He tried, “No! Wait! Ok, no, Henry, The Eighth is my answer- Ah! I don’t know, man,” He laughed again confused, starting to feel the pressure. 

“Are you locking in that answer?” 

He took a glance back at the Psykhe team and everyone seemed cool with his reasoning, giving thumbs up and screaming Lock it! which made him feel more confident about it. Vernon was often not sure about the information he thought he knew, but the team did not doubt him. That was why they appointed him to the spot. The boy even had a nickname in the family. Tidbits, because he often shared tiny pieces of information no one ever heard about… Actually, a lot of the Psykhe students were like that, Dahyun included. He was just the ace of it.

“Yeah, I’m locking it!” 

“And the answer is… Correct! Another point for the Psykhe team!”  

They all cheered in unison. Mark, from the Sarx team, slightly punched their stand, murmuring a Fuck, I knew that! At this point, the Griffins were falling way behind… And the thing was, you were not allowed to receive the clue to the next location unless you had nine correct answers. The Sarx team, having only three questions on their belt, was feeling more than uneasy. 

“Okay folks, next question!” The judge called for their attention, “What is the rarest M&M color?” 

Not even a second after, Nayeon from Kardia, smashed the button overly excited. “It’s the brown one! Lock it, I’m sure.” And then she turned to her partner to say, “I googled it not even a month before this.” 

“And Kardia, your answer is… Correct! Congratulations!” The judge cheered, laughing, “I guess someone is an M&M enthusiast.” And to that, she received a truthful answer, shouted from Kardia’s stand. 

“WHO ISN’T THOUGH?!” 

“You got me there!” The judge chuckled, “Let’s carry on. Dianoia still leading with six points, close behind them with five points, we have Kardia and Psykhe now tied- again! And Sarx, you better pick it up, you only have three…” 

Archie Miller, Sarx’s leader, was pacing back and forth a few meters forward, where the second phase teams were awaiting. He would have to give his very best if he wanted Sarx to secure its place as the current champions. And the way Freya was stretching overly joyful by his side made him feel even more furious, after all, he was still brooding about the Wolves’ attack on their common room. 

“Nineteenth question! What is the loudest animal on Earth?” 

Jin pressed the button without hesitation and Kaya looked at him alarmed. He often said things without much reasoning and she was afraid they would lose their one-point advantage if he answered something stupid. 

“Sperm Whale,” He said and she looked at him incredulously, almost certain her track of thoughts was coming true and the other teams would catch up in a second. “Lock it.” 

“And the answer, Dianoia, is… Correct!” 

“I don’t know how I know but I know, ok? You can trust me.” He said simply when he looked at the face she was making. 

“Dianoia, two more questions, and you guys are ready to go!” The judge announced and the team got loud once more, cheering and chanting Go Stags! 

After that, Sarx managed to get a point, and Archie screamed more than his teammates competing in that round. Dianoia once more snatched a point, this time through Kaya, and they could already feel the taste of victory—at least for this round. Shortly, Psykhe snatched one more point and Kardia followed. 

“So, participants, what is the biggest-selling music single of all time?” 

You could see Kaya furrowing her brows, trying very hard to make sense of some song. The audience went silent again, some trying to think of the answer themselves, some just searching for the team who would ring the button. 

Dong!

Vernon had pressed it. “Candle in the Wind from 1997.” He stated very sure of himself this time, “Lock it.” 

“Psykhe… Correct!” 

Their crowd cheered and the boy put a hand on top of his chest, almost fainting, making them all laugh. 

“Ok, a little bit of science now… Shall we?” The judge wasted no time in introducing the next question, “What is the hottest planet in the solar system, and what is its temperature?”

“I know this!” Kaya shouted, making Jin jolt beside her with the jumpscare. She pressed the button, “It’s Venus! With um… I’d say with, umm about 460 degrees Celsius. Lock it!” 

“And Dianoia, your answer is…” The expectation was in the air. Kaya held her breath, she knew she was right but at the same time, there was a chance she wasn’t. Jin held her hand tight, waiting anxiously for their final and winning point. 

The audience was silent apart from the thumping of the feet of the Stags, everyone was up in their seats. 

“CORRECT!”

A lot of shouting could be heard, mixed with some boos from the Sarx team. 

“Congratulations Dianoia! Here is the clue!” The judge passed a black envelope to Kaya’s hands, “Solve it first and then give the location to your teammates over there!” She pointed toward Joy and Yeonjun, the participants of the second phase who were waiting a few meters away. 

While the rest of the trivia game was being resumed, Jin and Kaya started discussing the words written on the envelope.  

“It meanders this way and that, but prove you’re no fool. You’ll be both west and north of it, relaxing or should I say, feeling cool…?” Jin mused. “This doesn’t make much sense… Why would I feel cool?” 

But Kaya didn’t mind much of his question, her brain was working to full capacity. “What do we have inside the school both north and west?” She asked him expectantly, still thinking about the answer herself. 

“Um… Not much. I know North is that way for sure,” He turned to face the trail of the woods behind them. “But west-” 

“So it’s inside the woods!” She stated in a hushed whisper, “What do we have there? It meanders… Meanders.” 

“We better hurry, Psykhe and Kardia are one point away, I think.”

“Um, I think… Cool! It’s not the cool we’re thinking about, Jin!” She shook him lightly by the shoulders, “Think about it, it meanders and it’s cool… It’s water!” 

“Water?” His nose scrunched. 

“Yes! The abandoned pool!” She whispered excitedly, “That’s the only old building still standing in the woods, which is both north and I’m guessing west from here.”

“Oh, fuck.”

In a split second, both of them hurriedly went to the second team of Dianoia waiting. They briefed them about the location and how it would make sense since they were all warned through the speakers this morning the second team was the only one allowed to take an empty backpack to the challenge with them. 

“For the wet clothes or any object you might find at the pool.” Kaya clarified with a brilliant smile on her face. 

Once Psykhe passed their intel, Freya, and Jooheon ran as fast as they could through the dense woods. The sun was shining bright, as rays passed the little breaches between the leaves. Every little sound made the duo turn their heads, afraid they could be leading the team that had stayed behind to the next game. There was no explicit answer to the riddle so, despite being confident in Vernon and Dahyun, there was no way to know if the pool was the right place to head to. 

“Should we go in?” Jooheon asked Freya. A look at him would never reveal how much of a scaredy-cat he was. 

“What?” Freya asked as she kept on moving towards the old building. 

The pool was in ruins. There was no certainty about how long it had been abandoned. But the long ivy branches on the walls made it clear that it had been years since anyone had taken care of it. The rumors regarding it were many. No one could understand why the school had decided to leave an entire building and simply relocate all its services. 

“Didn’t someone die here?” Jooheon whispered. 

“Those are just stories.” Freya chuckled. “C’mon. Dianoia is probably already inside and Kardia was just ahead of us. We don’t have any time to waste.” 

The girl rushed inside, the glass doors creaking as the movement presented new to them. “Don’t leave me here!” 

Jooheon rushed after the girl who was fiercely striding into the building. Freya didn’t believe the stories. About the pool. Or the boy. She had heard so many versions of it in the last two years she had been in Horus that the more she knew, the more absurd they sounded. 

“There’s no way I would’ve come here after five,” Jooheon whispers, but his voice echoes anyway. The sound makes him nervous, as he tightens the grip on the strap of the black backpack he had been carrying for the game. 

“Shush-” Freya stops in her tracks. “Did you hear this?” 

“Is it- is it the boy?” He stutters. 

Freya moves after the sound and as she does, she is perplexed by the sight. The duo from Dianoia was putting on swimming suits, hurriedly. But the creative kids with blue uniforms can’t focus on their actions. Instead, their eyes fall on the pool. It was the size of an Olympic one, but it was far from it. What once might have been crystal clear water, now was dark green, with moss floating around. 

“Oh, gross!” Joy squealed as her bare feet hit the water. “I’m going to be sick.” 

“Oh God-” Freya let out, her hands instinctively covering her mouth as the other rested on top of her stomach. 

“Freya-” Jooheon called out, tapping the girl's shoulder. 

Isn’t the weather perfect for a swim? We are not that cruel—suit up! You should dive and find the consoling sight of home. Find the board with your crest and you shall move one house ahead. And don’t think you can fool us. We might not be present, but we are always watching your every step.

The duo couldn’t believe they had to dive into the filthy water. By now, Yeonjun had helped Joy into it and the girl’s squeals were echoing loudly through the abandoned halls. Freya was quick to rush to the suits, grabbing one for herself and another for her partner. 

“There,” Jooheon said softly, trying his best to not alarm the girl. 

Freya followed the tilt of the head he had given her only for her eyes to lay on one of the corners of the room, by the ceiling, with what seemed to be a camera with a red light flashing. The game had become increasingly serious and there was no policy for cheating. 

“Let’s get ready.” She shrugged. “There are snorkeling masks there, too.” 

The boy simply nodded as he began to get ready. But he was soon paralyzed, the sudden sound of screams coming from outside alarming him. Jooheon's eyes widened and he felt like he had stopped breathing. He was certain he would see a disfigured man, running towards him and pushing him into the mossy pool, as he took his last breath of air. 

“Spider!” A scream was heard and the boys fell straight on their asses. 

Everyone is silent for a second until Freya bursts out laughing, the sight of Jackson Wang and Kim Mingyu both screaming over a spider being too funny for her to hold it in. 

“How are you two here already?” Jackson points an accusing finger at the duo. 

“How aren’t you?” Freya remarks sarcastically. 

“It’s not like arrows were pointing Abandoned pool that way!” The boy from Kardia spoke again, his exaggerated personality being enhanced in moments of stress. 

“I’m not going in there,” Mingyu says, a disgusted look on the boy’s face as he reaches the edge of the pool. 

But as soon as he speaks, Jackson is already shoving his swimming suit up his legs, a sudden moment of courage filling his body. “For Kardia!” 

“We’re being watched?” Mingyu asked as he looked around, aiming to find the lurkers. 

“Top corner, to your left,” Freya commented as she put her hair in a bun. 

She watched as the Kardia boy looked around, eyes finally laying on the camera. And in that same moment, a mischievous smile appears on his lips. Freya tries to focus on the task ahead of her, the thought of having to dive into those waters grossing her out more and more as time passes. Still, she couldn’t keep herself from hearing Mingyu whisper to his teammate. 

“Let’s hide these.” 

From the corner of her eye, she sees Jackson smirk, grabbing the last two pairs of swimsuits and running toward the old balneary with them. She thought about playing some tricks herself, but she wanted to win this year’s games. Not even for the prize, but for the satisfaction of stealing yet something more from Sarx, and getting back at them for what they did to Jungkook. 

“How are we doing this?” Jooheon asks by the girl’s side. They are both standing so close to the edge, that their toes are curled in the air. 

Freya sighs, considering her options. For a moment, she watched the water, waiting for Dianoia to come back to the top. As time went on and on, she was quick to notice how much more frequent their visits to the surface were. 

“Do you think there might be flashlights or something lying around?” She whispered. 

Jooheon was quick on his toes, the sudden mention of the item rushing through his mind. “On the backpacks.” 

“Damn it!” Yeonjun let out a frustrated sigh as he came out for air. He climbed the edge of the pool, sitting down as he tried to catch his breath. 

Joy followed a couple of seconds later. “I can’t anymore.” 

“Let’s rest for a second.” The younger boy helped her climb out. 

“We should search separate areas. I comb one side, you do the other.” Freya suggested after overhearing the other team interaction.

“Deep side first?” Jooheon asks and Freya nods in response. 

“It might be best. We probably won’t have the strength to comb that part later.” 

“And if we find someone else’s board?” Jooheon whispers, eyes falling on the Kardia boys that were struggling with their suits. 

“We keep our mouths shut.” Jooheon nodded in agreement. 

There was still no sight from Sarx and everyone in the room was glad for that. Archie was close to losing his cool during the first game, and the lack of his presence made everyone sure he was destroying everything that stood in the way of his victory. Sooner, he would be storming over those rusty doors, getting a little too close to breaking them and diving into the sludge-filled pool with no second thought. 

But for the time being, the room was filled with Jackson’s squeals. Anyone that passed outside could think someone was being murdered. The mischievous boy had quickly faded into a soft one, too afraid—or better yet, grossed out—to enter the pool. Mingyu tried to give the example, but he too was petrified. 

As soon as the Psykhe team was about to dive, hands securing their masks as they adjusted them perfectly on their face, Archie came rushing into the room. 

“What’s the game?” He brutally asked, shoulder-shoving Mingyu out of the way as he stopped in front of the board. “Momo!” 

The girl came running into the forgotten building, a little out of breath. Everyone could tell she had been forced to run after him towards the abandoned pool. 

“Look for the suits.” 

“Suits?” She asked confused, considering she had no time to read the pieces of information about the game on the wall. 

“Swimsuits!” He screamed impatiently. 

The girl looked but the longer she took, the longer Archie pressured. He cursed the game makers for not ensuring there were enough suits for everyone. 

“Loser’s crops.” Jackson shrugged, knowing he would get a reaction from the Sarx leader. 

“What did you say?!” 

“You should work your brains as well.” An innocent smile was plastered on the Kardia boy’s face, but he was far from that. 

“Whatever dude.” Archie laughed dryly as he noticed the camera. “Momo, let’s go into the water. We don’t need suits.” 

“Wha-” The girl stuttered. It wasn’t enough that she wasn’t comfortable around water—or her partner—but she also had never tried to swim in these conditions. Just the smell that arose from the water made her stomach turn. “I can’t.” 

“What?” 

“I- I’m not a good swimmer.” 

“Bro, what?! And you’re telling me this now!?” The leader lost his cool, yet again. The Griffins were motivated with micro-aggressions better than with words of affirmation. No one could understand that house around Horus. 

“Relax dude.” Mingyu gets between the leader and the girl. 

“Fuck off, bro.” Archie makes sure to hit Mingyu with his shoulder as he passes him one more time daringly. “You’re not going in, Momo?” 

“I-I really can’t.” 

“I knew I shouldn’t have brought a fucking girl to this. Pathetic.” He spits as he turns around to face the pool. 

“You’re such an asshole…” Freya can’t keep quiet. 

“You’re out of your mind, dude. It’s a game.” Mingyu shakes his head. 

“Again, fuck off.” Archie gives everyone in the room a dirty glance before diving just as he was. 

Freya dived right after. She wanted to keep the advantage her house had so far from the Griffins but at the moment, they were standing equal. Even Dianoia, who had a good head-start, was now seemingly falling behind. Joy hadn’t entered the water ever since she last sat down on the edge of the pool. Even with the snorkeling masks, it had proven too difficult to stay down for too long. 

Joy watched all the other participants give their best. Her mind kept on rushing. The big windows let very little light in, most of them being covered by the tall trees of the woods that surrounded Horus. The wind made the leaves dance swiftly; the sight was almost peaceful. 

Yeonjun came up again for air. He was already exhausted. The pool was more than 6 feet deep. He had a hard time reaching the bottom, much like everyone else, and even harder staying there. More often than not, his flashlight would shut out and he would be lost in the darkness, his only sense being the faint touches of his pruney fingers. 

Mingyu, having the body of an athlete and the brain of a strategist, had already found a board, Psykhe’s. He stayed a little, analyzing the piece glued down, hoping that it would make it easier once he laid eyes on his. He wasn’t sure if it was from the small deprivation of air in his brain, but the more he thought about what would be the use for it, the less sense it made for him. 

He came back up for air. 

“You okay?” The boy from Kardia asked once he saw Freya leaning against the pool edge, her body still inside the water. 

She turned to see who was speaking to her. “Yeah.” But it didn’t sound as hip as she wanted, her lungs gasping for all the air they could get. “Not as easy as I thought.” 

Mingyu laughed, agreeing. “You should look elsewhere. You’ve been there for some time.” 

Despite her tiredness, Freya was quick to notice the look on the boy’s face. That wasn’t a simple comment out of care or worry. The thought of him passing by her team’s board was as if a bundle of fresh air. 

“I will.” 

Grabbing the ledge of the pool, she moved to where Jooheon was diving and waited for her teammate to come back up. She was quick to explain the interaction she just had and justify their new search area. Her partner agreed in a heartbeat. 

Not far from them, Archie had been making his best times so far. Sarx would have been proud if they were there watching. Instead, he only had Momo. It was the last time he was going against his gut, he had thought. She was quick to collect herself, giving him tips on where to look next, but the sound of her voice only made him more impatient. 

Fifteen minutes passed, with each player doing their best underwater—apart from Momo, who kept crouched by the pool shining light wherever Archie would choose to dive next—and from time to time someone would emerge gasping for air, or even scream. It was difficult to know which was worse: to stay by the edge of the pool gasping for air while hearing weary sounds that came from the trees or to stay underwater wrapped in shades of dark green and floating shadows that sometimes looked like creatures watching you. Both gave everyone the chills. Even Archie, that seemed way too stoic, would look behind his shoulders or flinch when plants would appear in his way. 

Freya emerged gasping, right in the middle of the pool. Jackson and Mingyu snapped their heads to look at the noise, they seemed to be strategizing while taking a light rest. “Joo!” The girl called. “You’ve seen him?” 

“I think he dived there,” Mingyu pointed out since Momo was too busy—and perhaps too afraid—to diverge her concentration from Archie. 

“Thank you!” Freya said excitedly while swimming her way towards the place he had pointed, just in time to catch her partner coming up for air. “Joo!” 

The guy screamed, scared to see a hand grabbing him out of nowhere. “It’s me! It’s Freya” She laughed it out. 

“Thank God, I thought I was done for good!” 

“In a certain way you are,” She said, attracting looks from the ones still resting by the ledges, “I found it.” She whispered last. 

Jooheon’s eyes got adorably rounded, “You- Really? Like— You’re sure, sure?” 

“Super sure.” She winked. “C’mon!” And as they swam their way out of the pool, the players remaining went under it again, too afraid to stay behind, too eager to win, and to get done and over with this game.

The Psykhe pair was quick to get out of their swimming suits and grab the walkie-talkie with a blue string near the Rules board. Freya looked around, her hair soaking the tee she was wearing, and she thought it was best if they talked about it elsewhere. They couldn’t, in any way, share information or clues with the other teams. Jooheon was quick to catch up on her thoughts, so they both ran outside. 

The radio screeched once she turned it on, and Jooheon kept fidgeting by the girl's side. Every breeze that hit his wet neck would make him jump, leaving him on edge. They were still deep into the woods, after all. 

“Tae, can you hear me?” Freya called for her brother through the device. 

“You guys okay?” She heard, but it wasn’t her twin’s voice, it was Jungkook’s. 

“Hey! Yeah, we're alright!” She answered with a satisfied smile, and with Jooheon’s protest by her side ‘Define alright’, as he pouted, making her nudge him playfully. “And we got the clue. Write it down, ok?”

“Ok, tell me.”

“Letter H and number 7,” She started, waiting for their response. 

“Ok, H and 7,” Jungkook repeated, and right after she heard Taehyung’s voice. 

“Any idea of what it could be, Frey?” 

Jooheon kept looking towards the crusty doors from the old pool entrance, trying to make himself useful and busy. He was on the verge of freaking out, the tales from the boy of the woods too impactful on his mind. 

“It was a chessboard!” Freya described, “The pawn was in the H7 position… But I don’t know if you should relate it to chess or if it’s just a coordinate, like the letter H and number 7?”

“Ok, we’ll see what we can do with that… I mean, we’re in the woods too, but in the south part, by the Stags greenhouse.” 

“Watch out for markings in the woods— or signs!” Freya spoke fast, her body getting filled with adrenaline as her mind began to formulate a million different theories of what the solution to winning the game could be.

“Alright.”

“Good luck,” She said as soon as she felt Jooheon poking at her side, notifying her a team was about to come out, “And you two better bring that trophy home, you hear me?” 

“Yes ma’am!” They laughed together, and that put a smile on the, most often than not, blasé girl. Something about them together felt awfully familiar, as if Jungkook had always belonged to her group of friends, or been close to her brother. 

Her thoughts were interrupted by a scaredy-cat Jooheon who was tugging on her arm for them to go to the finish line and wait for the outcome of the games. Or in reality, just to escape the nightmare people made these woods to be. 

While she was leaving, she offered one last glance to Mingyu, who was holding a red walkie waiting for the response of his team. 

He caught her glance, their eyes meeting for brief seconds. 

“See you guys at the finish line!” She said loudly, and to her surprise, it wasn’t to tease as she often would in the games. 

The smile on his face grew, and the radio screeched. “What took you guys so long?!” Elena’s voice sounded through. 

The sun was still up in the sky when the third game officially started, but the ones who had even the smallest of knowledge about anything sky-related knew for a fact they had to hurry up if they didn’t want to still be venturing into those woods late at night. 

Taehyung and Jungkook were well aware of that. They had barely succeeded in finding their way back hours before this. But here they were, running once more between the long trees that surrounded the school, this time with another goal in mind: find an H and a 7. 

“Do you think Jimin and Elena left already?” Jungkook asked his partner, his voice a little shaken due to running. 

“Maybe,” He heard Taehyung answer and pant a little behind him. “We were a bit far from each other and I don’t see very well from afar” He laughed it out making Jungkook chuckle and relate a bit to his roommate. 

“Oh- Look!” 

They came to a halt, slowing their pace. In front of them, some of the trees could be seen with markings, some with letters, some with numbers. They glanced at each other knowingly. 

They would have to search for two trees apparently, one with their number and the other with their letter.

“They’re painted with four colors…” Taehyung thought aloud making the other boy start looking at the trees once again, “You see there?” He pointed to his left. “That one has a B painted in blue but this one is painted in yellow.”

“So we have to find the blue ones with H and 7,” Jungkook concluded making Taehyung nod. “We could split up to cover more ground?” He suggested with his hands on his hips. 

“That’s what they want,” Taehyung said convicted while looking around once more. 

“What do you mean? Who?” 

The trees were dancing with a light wind right above them. Some melodic whistles floated in the air, little birds that were probably nestling around. Despite what he had been through, Jungkook still thought the woods were almost magical. It would be nice to venture around them in a lighter situation… 

“YOU’RE FALLING BEHIND!” Both of them heard Jimin’s voice echo and they snap their heads to follow the sound of it. Jimin and Elena were close by, towards their left, running further into the trees. And as they left into the distance, they could still hear the girl’s excited laugh.

“WE’LL SEE ABOUT THAT!” Jungkook shouted back with a smile on his face. He kept on looking at their backs distancing further and further from where he was standing, a million thoughts spiraling in his mind. Maybe this is where I belong, he thought. And looking back at Taehyung, he found the boy already smiling at him, amused and with a complicit look plastered on his face. 

For a moment Jungkook feared having to open up to his roommate for being caught in a moment like that. He didn’t think he was ready to say anything about his past yet, or if he would ever be ready for that. But thankfully Taehyung didn’t press him. Nor made fun of it, like he was sure any other guy would. 

“We’re not searching anymore,” Taehyung said simply, and Jungkook wasn’t able to follow his track of thoughts, getting confused. 

“What?”

“Follow me!” 

The two of them trailed together between the tricky spaces around the tall trees. Jungkook had to remove the flannel shirt he was wearing on top of a tee due to the sun's rays hitting his face and torso. All the walking and running wasn’t helping either. 

Taehyung’s eyes were sharp, looking for their clues. He suddenly stopped before a pine tree with a red seven painted on it and a small paper note attached. They had noticed before that each of the trees had this kind of paper glued to it, some contained the same text, and others had something entirely different. 

“What are you doing? That’s not our seven! Ours is blue,” Jungkook started but Taehyung turned around swiftly putting a hand on his shoulder as if explaining some big event to a child. 

“You can’t think like everyone else in this challenge, JK.” He said in a funny intonation. The more he spent time with Taehyung, the more he could see the guy was quirky and did things his way. “We only need a seven and an H. No one told us it needed to be in our official colors. Think about it. This is a challenge to make you waste time. It’s a tricky one.” 

And Jungkook reflected upon his words. He was… Right. Freya never told them it had to be blue. She only gave them a letter and a number. Taehyung was brilliant. And looking at him, a growing smile forming on his face, he knew exactly why the boy had been appointed to this challenge specifically. 

“Now, start digging!” 

“Digging?” Jungkook asked getting confused once again. 

“Look at the text on the paper.” 

Look up, players! That’s right, two flags you must find… One here, and one at the other coordinate. Will you climb? Hmm, that’s dangerous. A practical solution we will share: Go to the heart of it and your tool will be there. 

Jungkook read it two times, but the only thing he could take out of this was: one, climbing the tree to take out the flag swinging on the tallest tree branch, or two, go to the heart of the woods—its center—in hopes to find some tool to facilitate the process. So why the hell was Taehyung asking him to dig, he thought. 

He heard him sigh, “Pine tree roots are called heart roots.” Taehyung explained already kneeling on the earthy floor to start digging the soil with a stick he found laying around, “It might be a long shot, but I don’t think so because look at this,” He fumbled with a dirty spot near the tree, “The soil is darker here, meaning someone already dug it.” 

“And you know all this stuff… How exactly?” Jungkook asked surprised but found himself a larger stick to start helping. 

“My grandparents have a farm… We used to spend a lot of time there when we were kids… Freya and I.” 

“Huh, I see… That’s- That’s nice.” 

“Look!” Taehyung poked a part of the ground enthusiastically, discarding the stick he was previously using to shift some dirt around with his own hands. When he managed to pull at a rope, a whole flag came following. “I told you!” 

“Woah… You’re a genius,” Jungkook marveled. 

With yet another knowing look, both of them got up quickly and started running after any tree with a big H painted on it. On their search, they passed by the Dianoia team trying to throw rocks at the flag on top of their targeted pine tree, they too seemed to be trying to think out of the box… But with no immediate success. 

The Psykhe duo kept running, eagle eyes trying to do the job of finding their so-desired H. Both of them hoped the tree they found wouldn’t be next to any of the other teams, so they didn’t have to accidentally share their technique. Once they found it, a crooked H painted in yellow, they breathed relief for not being able to see a single person around, although they could hear slightly annoyed screams from the Sarx team. Something along the lines of ‘You have to push me harder, Minhyuk! I can’t climb a whole tree by myself!’ So they were the ones attempting the climbing scenario… Sarx was no joke. 

With their second and final flag in their hands, Taehyung grabbed Jungkook by the arm and just advised quickly, “Now we run, as fast as you can- Just don’t leave me behind. Please?” He begged, making his roommate laugh. 

With a certain nod of Jungkook’s head, they both sprinted towards the finishing line. If someone was winning the games this year, it would be them. Taehyung couldn’t help but laugh like a maniac already thinking about how good it would feel to see the Griffins’ faces, and his laughter echoed through the whole grove. 

Elena and Jimin had just found their first tree when the two of them passed by running, their clothing all stained with dirt and two flags in hand. Jungkook looked like he was filming an action movie, sprinting and jumping with great agility through his obstacles, while Taehyung followed him, the difference was that he was just wagging the flags above his head like a crazy person. 

“Those bastards…” Elena let out, hands on her hips as she tilted her head. “How the hell did they do it already?” 

“Why are they so… Dirty?” Jimin asked a bit baffled by the situation. 

Elena didn’t answer it right away, her eyes going from them to the tree marked by a big four painted in red. She analyzed it with half-closed eyes. 

“Were they rolling around in the ground? Climbing a tree doesn’t make you that dirty…” She pondered. “They had to be digging. Right?” Her eyes shoot up at Jimin as if something could start to formulate in her brain.

“What, like actual ground?” Jimin had his hands on his hips, and instinctively he kicked the tree trunk in front of him. 

“No, like a tree.” Elena looked seriously at him, “Of course, it’s the actual ground, Jimin!” She added and he started laughing at his dumb remark. “You’re too much!” She laughed alongside him. 

“Ok, so where do we dig? Here?” He pointed towards the base of the pine tree and Elena nodded, so he crouched down and started poking the soil. 

Not even ten minutes had passed by when they found the tip of the flag and started pulling it out. A little bit of hauling and more digging around the edge of it and the flag was loose and on their hands. Jimin was about to celebrate when Elena shushed him out, fearing the other teams would find out. 

“Let’s cover and smooth it as much as we can.” The girl said, looking around as her hands were quick to find the piles of dirt and put them back in their place. They only needed their F now, and as they searched for it, the situation wasn’t looking so good. The Kardia duo needed to hurry up if they wanted to have at least a shot at winning first place; with any luck, Jungkook and Taehyung had got lost, with no clue on how to arrive at the finishing line. Taehyung would certainly get lost, Elena thought to herself. Not only that but the Stags passed by them, one flag on Johnny’s shoulders as they moved through the vegetation.

Rumour had it that a long time ago, Horus Academy used to be much chipper. Only the richest would be allowed to pass by the front gates and marvel at the benefits of having the crest of the prestigious school right by their hearts. 

The halls were roamed by troublemakers. Grades weren’t important. Even the teachers wouldn’t try too hard with the students. An F could swiftly be transformed into an A by the end of the semester, a juicy donation made to the Horus Academy Foundation from the family acting as the factor of competence and credibility of the kids' performance. 

Despite all this, nothing could be perceived more than mischief. Kids were ruthless. They would speak their minds, not a care in the world if they could be shattering you into a million pieces. Some bullying… Some hazing… But never one step further than that. It was fitting, and not even slightly strange, after all, they had been raised by parents that thought money could fix anything. 

Even so, a look at the now long-lost records of the students of the Horus Academy could show that the most serious case that had turned up on school grounds had been a miscarriage—in consequence of a conceived in school-grounds pregnancy. 

That was, of course, until that day. The day when all changed. 

Chadwin Sinclair. Everyone knew him by his self-entitled nickname, Dragon. 

The story was that he had been sent to Horus Academy after almost burning his entire mansion down, with his family sleeping and all the staff still inside. He hadn’t meant it, of course. He was only nine. But his mother—had anyone cared to ask—always found it quite disturbing how his favorite toys were a box of matches. Still, she was too depressed to care or do something about his behavior. With another child on the way, Chadwin’s parents saw no other option than to send him away to a boarding school, as he represented a great danger to what could be the perfect frontman of the Sinclair family. 

And in no time, they had forgotten all about him. 

During the Christmas break, his mailbox was filled with gifts. He was thrilled. There were no visitations nor, like the other students, did he get the chance to go home. But he was still happy his family bought him everything he had asked for. After all, in the eyes of a child, a Christmas morning is fulfilled by presents under the tree. To Chadwin, sitting by the fireplace with his family was, most of the time, a burden. 

Sooner than expected, summer break was just around the corner and he had begun to pack. Some students had already gone home, despite there still being two more weeks left of classes. 

After all, it didn’t matter if they were there or not, if their attendance was perfect and their brains matched the level of the prestige school known to the outside world. As long as the deposit came through at the beginning of each month, all was well. 

Chadwin didn’t get the reception he was expecting. People teased him. Especially the older kids. 

Much like his mother, everyone found it a bit odd how enchanted he was with fire. He used to take refuge in the girls’ bathroom, escaping in between bells, just him and his matches. 

Chadwin completed one year with Horus Academy, then another, and another, never leaving the somewhat prison he had been sent to. He had quickly been forgotten by his family and his Christmas mornings were less and less crowded with the disguised wrapped love. So much so that he had stopped writing home. It was of no use. The far apart he grew from his family, the more the fire grew in him. 

Rumors intensified once he got admitted to the infirmary. And even more when he got released from it. For most of Autumn and Winter, he had been able to hide it with the long sleeves, but as Spring came around the corner and the sun began to fill the days at Horus, everyone spoke about his arm. 

It could fall off at any time.

He was probably trying to kill us all. Failed once… I guess he will forever be a failure.

What a freak.

Don’t go near him. Imagine ending up like that.

Again, children were ruthless. And if Chadwin thought he was alone before, now he was certain that he was nothing but a waste of space and air. He thought of himself as not being worthy of a kind word. They made him believe he was a freak. And despite his best attempts to leave his comfort, putting behind the warmth of the fire in his soul, he couldn’t. 

So he kept on playing with it. 

One afternoon, he was hiding in the Academy’s cafeteria. 

Some boys had decided that he should mix his elements. The freak should be in the water—a change of pace from his good ol’ matches. They had tried to dunk his head in the toilets. And they had succeeded. Not as much as they wanted, of course. What were a couple of minutes to dear Chadwin when he got to spend so much time with fire…

As it did before, the fire inside him grew. And Horus Academy was changed forever. No one cared to look for Chadwin Sinclair as the ghastly sound of flames was blended with the screams of frightened children, running for their lives. 

Horus struggled to get back on its feet. And truth be told, it almost didn’t. But as the corridors of the new buildings are roamed by a new kind of troublemakers, the Academy keeps on attempting to keep the dark secret of that day from ever being found. 

“I can’t believe they’re not here already.” Freya frowned, arms crossing over her chest. 

The sun was close to setting and had it been any other day, the focus of the students would be on capturing the beautiful tones that adorned the sky, with soft shades of blue, pink, and purple welcoming the moon. 

“I can’t believe our advantage didn’t mean anything.” Kaya laughed drily. The girl was usually a good sport, not caring much if she lost or won, only if everyone around her was having a good time. But this— this was different. It meant too much. 

“Honestly, I can’t believe you guys aren’t eating!” Jin spoke after swallowing hard on the big chunk he had taken from his hot dog. 

“I’m confident.” Namjoon’s dimple made itself known as he took a step closer to the finish line. “I can already sense Jungkook and Tae turning the corner, flags in hand, a victorious smile on their faces…” 

“They better not screw it. I didn’t dive in that gross water for nothing.” Freya lifted her eyebrow. 

“The second we knew what the other trial was, I was certain that we weren’t going to finish.” Hoseok laughed. 

“Hey man, don’t even mention it. I will have nightmares, forever.” Jackson cried, gaining a laugh from the ones around him. 

The crowd is silenced by the sound of screams. 

“What the—” Freya squints her eyes, trying to figure out what was going on.

“What’s happening?” Kaya spoke fast, eyes widening in comparison to the tall girl beside her. The brunette started to move, impulsed by curiosity, hand grabbing Freya’s wrist as she pushed past the group of students that stood by the finish line. “Are those…?” 

“Oh my God-” Freya gasped. “Let’s fucking go!” 

Jungkook passed by the two girls at full speed as Psykhe had been quick to notice what had been happening and everyone shouted his name, as well as that of the boy right after him. Taehyung was out of breath. It was obvious to anyone watching that he had a hard time keeping up with the new guy in school but the compliments weren’t any less. 

Stopping by the judges' tables, Jungkook handed them the flags. 

“Only the team can finish this trial.” One of the judges said eyeing him up, stating Taehyung’s absence. Jungkook puffed irritated, hands falling to his knees so he could finally catch his breath while waiting for his partner to catch up to him. His eyes fell on the time watch on one of the judges' hands. 

“Very well, boys. The flags, please.” Yeri, a girl from the Psykhe house winked at them. 

“We already finished. Won’t you stop the clock?” With a hand on his hip, Jungkook pressed, head nudging towards the ticking-bomb-like device. 

“We need to check the flags first.” Tzuyu barked back, eyebrows narrowed as she was not pleased that the boy in front of her wasn’t someone from her house. His eyes pierced hers defiantly, as he clenched his jaw and handed her the flags he had discarded on the judges' table. 

“What’s going on?” Taehyung who was lying down on the floor finally managed to ask. 

“And— stop!” Wheein, from Dianoia, lifted her hands in the sky. “Everyone!” Grabbing the megaphone from the table, she stands up on her chair, expecting eyes to fall on her immediately. “Guess we have our first place! Give it up for Psykhe!” 

The crowd roars, filled with wolves, and they rush toward the boys. Suddenly, they are being lifted in the air. Some boos are heard from the other houses, playfully but honestly sore from the defeat. All except the ones coming from the Sarx house. They don’t boo but a simple look at their expressions makes it clear that they would need their time to soak in the stomp on their winning streak. 

Jungkook gets put down on the floor again while Taehyung still fights for his safety; his teammates are too excited about the event to even care. 

Freya rushes to the new guy—that didn’t seem that new anymore as he fits the group as a glove—without even thinking, her arms swinging around his neck with excitement. He is quick to wrap her in his embrace, squeezing her tight and lifting her in the air. 

“Dream team, baby!” Jungkook says into Freya’s neck making her smile widely. 

“Hell yeah!” Freya can’t help but scream excitedly. Before she can even notice she is being surrounded by her housemates, a pack of Wolves, as loud as they can be, she catches herself feeling secure in this stranger's embrace. It was weird how she felt so comfortable in Jungkook’s presence yet knew so little about him. “Help!” Taehyung yelps cutting short her trace of thoughts, while almost falling to the floor as he is finally released from the sea of people he was in. 

Jungkook lets Freya out of his hold to go and help her brother stabilize himself. A rushed way out of the blood flushing to his years with the sudden proximity with the deep-eyed girl. 

“Everyone’s been trying to kill me today.” The twin lets out, as if out of breath. 

“Drama queen…” Freya laughs, arm leaning on her brother’s shoulder. 

“Do you know how hard it is to keep up with him?” He side-eyes Jungkook, who breaks out in a fit of laughter. 

“You’re just simply very much out of shape.” Freya chuckles.

“Nah, I’m just that fast.” Jungkook shrugs, nonchalant, and Freya scoffs amused. Hadn’t she been interrupted, she would be quick to fight him back on his statement. Perhaps that would be a theme of conversation for another time, much like her incessant curiosity to know more about him.

“My man!” Namjoon appears, engulfing Jungkook in a hug. 

“Hey, I was part of the team too!” Taehyung pouts. 

“Tae, we all know you’re the brains behind the whole operation but he was definitely the one doing the hard work.” Yoongi appears with a smug smile on his lips, hands stuffed in his pockets. “Good job, guys.” 

“C’mon, show a little more enthusiasm, I know you’re backflipping inside that head of yours.” Freya pokes the boy’s side, gaining attention from Jungkook.

“Uh, Psykhe.” The dripping dullness in his voice completes the blank expression on his face as his balled fist is thrown unamusedly in the air. 

Freya crosses her arms, one eyebrow raised. “That’s the best you can do?” 

“C’mon, louder! The sore losers need to know who’s the boss.” Taehyung joins in. 

“On three…” Jungkook smiles deviously. “1…” 

“2…” 

“3!” 

“PSYKHE!” The wolves shout in unison. 

“...ATE YOUR… Asses…?” Everyone hears at the end and looks at the culprit in question—Freya. “No…? Alright. No need to look at me like that, gee.” 

“You have no respect for the mourning of others, do you?” Kaya pushes Namjoon away from the circle they had formed while eyeing the electric twins, making room for herself. 

“Don’t be a sore loser yourself.” Freya sticks her tongue out, teasing her friend. 

“Shush it.” The younger girl demands in feigning authority for pure spite. 

The group dismisses the circle-like shape and is quick to stand by the finish line, eager to see which team would occupy second place. In a matter of seconds, the crowd that had become quieter over time was reminded that there was a competition still going on and a second place to earn.  

“JIMIN-AH! RUN!” Elena's strident scream can be heard even before she comes into sight. “THEY'RE CATCHING UP TO US!”

“Elena really wasn't made for this kind of situation.” Hoseok laughs, knowing that if it were him, he would also scream as loud as his teammate. 

“I'm surprised we didn't hear her any sooner.” Taehyung snorts, an amused look on his face. 

“YOU RUN!” Jimin giggled, grip tightening around the girl's wrist. Elena wasn't as fast as him—maybe it was the adrenaline or his insistent pulling on her arm—but she was running right by his side. 

“Those two together are absolute chaos.” Kaya shakes her head. The big smile she had on her lips is quick to fade though.

Following right suit, Johnny and Changkyun turn the corner, and the screams that left the blonde's lips get more intense. The boys from Dianoia are fast and close to catching up to them. 

“GO JOHNNY! GO KYUNIE! RUN!” Kaya suddenly jumps up giving in to the frenzy of the crowd, hands tightening around the fence placed between her and the running track. “JIN, LOOK AT THEM!” But the oldest of the group was nowhere to be seen.

“Go Jimin!” Taehyung swings his arms up in the air.

“Let's go, guys!” Hoseok also cheers. 

And the crossing of the finish line and delivery of the flags at the judges' table is only separated by a couple of seconds from one duo to another.

Despite the thrilling emotions both teams were feeling, trying to understand their places in the games, the focus of the crowd wasn't on the judges' table. Instead, everyone started staring at Archie Miller, the captain of the Sarx house. The look on his face, as he realized that his team would finish last, was nothing compared to the cussing words that left his mouth. He was enraged. He wanted to take the path and find the team he had sent out for the third game and finish it himself. 

“Can’t believe they didn’t tell us if we made it second.” Elena scoffs as she reaches her group, still trying to even her breathing from all the running.

“You never know.” Kaya teases. 

“I will smother you tonight. Don’t think I didn’t hear you scream for those two.” A mean expression adorned her face as she tilted her head towards the Dianoia team.

“What?! Oh, now I’m hurt.” Jimin’s hands flew to his heart. 

“Don’t mix business with pleasure, isn’t that what they say?” The smart girl laughs.

“Wouldn’t you know…” Elena sticks her tongue out to her friend as she sits down on the grassy ground next to Taehyung. “I still can’t believe you guys got first place.” 

“Who else could've?” Taehyung replied with a smug smile on his face, getting shoved right after.

“You only won because you had him.” The girl scoffs and points to Jungkook, who was standing proudly next to his team captain. “You should know that you got sorted into the wrong house,” Elena states to the new boy gaining his attention. 

“Look, another sore loser.” Freya jokes at the mercy of her friend teasingly. “But really, this was a collective win, guys. Look at Miller.” 

The conversation is quick to die down as the Griffins finally pass the finish line. The judges don’t bother to look at their flags like they had done with the other teams. Regardless of being successful or not, they came in last and their fate was very much decided at that point. As so, they don’t go to the podium. Sarx goes home without a prize, their player's hair all messy and clothes torn from their lack of imagination completing the third game, as they were the most likely team to present it as yet another physical trial. 

The third place is occupied by Dianoia. An upgrade from last year’s games. The judges make sure to assert the almost nonexistent difference between them and the second place: Kardia. Only seconds separated the two teams. The teasing between the group of friends is immense as if they had been disputing the first place, to begin with. Kaya, a naturally good sport quickly loses her composure as her roommate, alongside the other two Dragons of the group, Jimin and Hoseok, celebrates with a much-exaggerated dance for a clear win. 

Screams of excitement were heard as soon as the judges mentioned the real first place once again. Wolves—and even the Stags and the Dragons—made their contentment knowing Psykhe are this year’s crowned winners. 

However, quicker than expected the mood shifts. 

A loud and guttural scream is heard across the open field. A human shape dashing desperately through the tall trees that marked the woods' territory—Joy. 

The girl seemed out of her mind, scared, and looking like a mess. She was still wearing her swimsuit, or at least half of it since the piece was hanging from her upper body but still covering her from the waist down as if she had run in the middle of completing the task. 

Her hair was disheveled and full of dry leaves entangled in it. The closer she got to the paralyzed crowd the more it was visible how she was injured as well. A cut could be seen above her eyebrow along with some ugly scratches adorning the extension of her arm and her bare feet. 

“Help!” She managed to exclaim. 

Yeonjun, her partner from the abandoned pool game, was by her side in a heartbeat giving her the support she needed so she could finally know she was safe. His expression was mixed with confusion and worriedness, and he wouldn’t stop saying incoherent things, as if he was certain she had been inside the school perimeters this whole time and not in the woods. 

Even though she had not arrived with him at the finish line. 

And when questioned about what had happened, while being wrapped with a warm blanket, Joy, still crouched on the ground and shaking, had said she had been surprised at the abandoned balneary when she went to take her swimsuit out of her body by a strange figure. 

“I just got so scared, so I- I ran! And I knew it wasn’t one of the boys. I- I swear it wasn’t one of the boys that were on the pool with me.”  She had said between stutters. The more Jungkook heard her piece, the more his jaw tensed, being reminded of his own episode not so far ago.

Yeonjun promptly clarified that he had waited for her, and once he called for the girl by the girls’ balneary and she didn’t answer, he even entered to check. She was simply gone. So he didn’t make much of it, just assumed she went ahead and back to the finish line. 

He returned alone. 

A commotion began to form among the crowd. Everyone was nit-picking on their stories. Some pointed out that Yeonjun should have said something once he arrived, others defended the boy. After all, Joy could have perfectly arrived at the safety of her dorm to take a shower and clean the stench left by the gruesome pool, just like everyone else did. Well, everyone minus Archie who kept staring at the woods by the finish line too proud and anxious to lose his precious title. 

And then the gossip followed. In a question of seconds, the rumor of the boy of the woods was being spread, Jungkook’s tragic yet mysterious kidnapping as well, and looks of terror started to appear. That was until the first beep was heard. 

Suddenly the sound of notifications filled the air, and even the Stags who were all over Joy stopped their interrogations to pay attention to what was going on. Something like this… Could it be…?

“What’s going on?” Kaya asks, looking around quickly and approaching her friends again. “I don’t have my phone. What’s going on?” She insists, looking between them.  

“Namjoon?” Jungkook asks, big doe eyes as he can’t help but panic after taking a glance at his own screen. 

“Oh, great,” Yoongi laughs drily. It was impossible to ignore all the whispers and stares directed at him. 

The captain of the Wolves scratches the back of his neck, a big puff of air leaving his lips. “We have a situation here…” 

“So it’s me this time.” Yoongi sighed, the weight of prying eyes still on him. “Let me see.” 

“You.” Freya spat. It was like her body was on fire, rage overcoming all the positive emotions she had been feeling. “This is such bullshit.” 

“Yeah, don’t think they agree.” Yoongi chuckles, glancing at the hostile faces staring back at him. 

“Fuck them.” Freya gets closer to Yoongi, protectively wrapping her arms around his own, but the judging stares don’t stop. They only increase. Like a fire going out of control. 

Jungkook can’t help but look at the two of them together. His eyes keep falling on the way the girl strokes the back of Yoongi’s hand with her thumb, ever so gently, and so distant from the harsh expression shown on her face.  

The way Yoongi starts fidgeting in Freya’s embrace, even though he appears to be calm and collected, and the way he tightens the grip on her hand tells her all she needs to know—he’s overly uncomfortable. And she can’t stand it. 

“I’ll be right back.” She says decisively to him and to her friends, who were still close to each other, each with a look of uneasiness of their own. 

Freya marches straight to the mini stage, taking the megaphone Wheein was previously using to announce the results to the crowd off of her hand. 

“Hey!” She shouted and a screech echoed making some of the people standing close to the speakers cover their ears. Everyone winced but started paying attention to the girl instead of looking toward Yoongi. 

“This is bad,” Kaya stated anxiously. 

“Good. Now that I have your attention let’s clarify some stupid and nonsense rumors.” Freya scoffed, too mad that people deliberately chose to just believe some unfound and ridiculous tweet than actually think. 

“Someone take her out of there,” Kaya added, gripping Hoseok’s arm but unable to take her eyes off her friend, expectant and afraid You would drag her again to the mud. 

“I’m really sorry that Joy had gone through some sort of attack and all but are you really blaming it on Yoongi?” Freya questioned baffled. “That Yoongi? ‘Cause like- Unless he has actual superpowers I can’t see how he left my side to sprint towards the woods and go scare her.”

People started looking at each other. By the incessant whispers, it was notorious that they started doubting You’s statement but also clear that some of them were still not buying Freya’s lead. And all because of a tiny detail… One that could light a fire and burn everything down. She had a motive to defend him.  

Horus was filled with troublemakers, yes, but its walls also contained brilliant minds; Some bright, the brightest ever, and some ruthless—like said before. And one of them decided to speak, right at that moment, to ignite a flame. 

“I’m sorry but aren’t you his girlfriend?” Bambam shouted from the back of the crowd, a scoff leaving his lips. He had his arms crossed carefreely and an annoying smug smile on his lips that made Freya clench her jaw involuntarily. The way he looked around at people made it clear that he was after sympathy. Some even started to nod alongside him. “The one that was caught climbing his window two weeks ago or so…?” 

Her instinct was telling her to jump off that stage and fly up on his neck, but Freya knew better. He just wanted her to act up and lose all her credibility before the confused crowd. So she took a deep breath before smiling sarcastically, ready to give him an answer. 

Jungkook however, who was the least rational person in the precinct, was so ready to act that he managed to take his first step toward Bambam, tongue poking the inside of his cheek, anger in his eyes. He remembered the boy’s face from that day in the woods when he had been cruelly tied to a tree. 

But Namjoon stopped him right in his tracks. “We got this.” The team leader assured with a last confident smile before walking to the stage Freya was on. 

“And what is it to you?” She questioned smartly. “Does that have anything to do with the fact Joy was attacked by someone or are you just trying to start false rumors? Perhaps you know who’s behind that stupid account, no? They seem to follow your track of logic.” 

A group from the crowd let a wave of ‘uohows’ mocking Bambam who by now had his smile fading into a defeated frown. Jungkook couldn’t help but show his radiant bunny smile, victorious. Elena shouted a “Damn right” backing up her friend, and Taehyung went along proud of his twin sister. 

Before anyone else could point out Freya had just been defending Yoongi because she had something going on with him, Namjoon stepped up onto the small stage. 

Asking silently for the megaphone, that was handed to him after a brief exchange of complicit looks, the team leader continued. “I feel ridiculous having to even try and explain something regarding that rumor, but if it puts your minds at ease, Yoongi was with me the whole time waiting for our team to arrive at the finishing line. As soon as Freya ended her trial, she took a shower and met us here where, not only a lot of you had seen us, but also the judges.” 

In a matter of seconds, the crowd was silenced and some even quietly apologized to Yoongi while passing by him. 

Freya and Namjoon were about to step off the center stage toward their friends when another voice was heard. The fanfare was far from over. Among the crowd, there was a person who was still not over the events of the day. Archie Miller. 

With unmistakable annoyance in his tone of voice, he exclaimed. “You know what?! This is bull!” 

Suddenly all eyes were on him. 

“So these damn Wolves will just get off with anything?!” He continued enraged. “First our room, our stuff, now Joy… The poor girl can’t even say a coherent sentence.” He took a glance at the girl in question, who was being escorted towards the infirmary, with a feign of worriedness that didn’t belong to his normal behavior, gaining some raised brows in return. “I say we punish them.” The Griffins' leader stated finally what he wanted all along. 

“Punish them?” Freya questioned once again outraged. “Where are we? In Hunger Games or something?” 

“C’mon Miller… Acting so coy. We can barely recognize you.” Elena couldn’t help but join. 

Taehyung who was right behind her had to be quick, however. The last thing they needed right now was to add more fuel to the fire. Afraid Archie would unleash his anger on her, Taehyung covered Elena’s mouth with his hand, and in a swift move lifted the girl up, left arm holding her tight on her center, exchanging places with her. “Now’s not the time” He shushed her quietly. 

“Taehyung what the fu-” She was about to say when he circled her yet again in his arms, leaving her face glued to his back. All Elena could do due to the height difference was slap poorly his shoulder. 

The boy could almost breathe relieved knowing he had stopped chaos from happening, but the thought of peace went out as briskly as the breath he took. 

“Archie… Dude. If you want your trophy that bad why don’t you go fetch it?” Jimin retorted impatiently and his best friend was almost heard swearing a couple of feet away. “There are more important things at the moment. Joy’s incident had nothing to do with anyone here… Clearly.” 

There was a moment of pause; Some were expectant to what Archie could possibly answer back as everyone knew he was a walking ticking bomb. Some, the gossiping eyes of this school, were curious to know what was this “trophy” talk all about. 

Archie himself took a moment just to look at Jimin. You could see his brain was working like a fuming train just by the way he walked toward the other boy with furrowed brows and a questioning glance. 

“I never said anything about a trophy, Park.” He barked out, now only a meter away from Jimin. 

Instinctively, Jungkook balled his fists standing side by side with Jimin. If looks could kill, Jungkook would have opened a hole in Archie’s forehead. And he wasn’t the only one, as Jackson was furiously opening a path among the crowd to reach his Kardia teammate. Freya too was about to reach Jimin to give him a deserving slap in the back of his head for being such a damn taleteller when someone grabbed her by the wrist. 

As she looked up, all she could see was Mingyu’s profile, shielding  her from Archie in case something unfolded. Knowing the latter’s temper, a fight was about to start. 

Jimin scoffed with a smile. “Joy was attacked on school grounds and that’s where you’re stuck?”

Tension was palpable and shortly it was present everywhere. 

“Hey hey, what’s going on?” Jin appeared by Yoongi’s side confused by the sudden ruckus. 

“Where were you?” Taehyung asked his cousin under Namjoon’s attentive gaze, but the answer never came as Jin’s focus was purely on the fight about to happen right before him. 

Much like the oldest's reaction to the scene unfolding right in the center of a mass of students present, the crowd grew closer, engulfing the two boys in a circle. Whispers were heard from every side and some were even tempted to find the right words that would finally ignite the fight. Tzuyu had left the judges table and was now quick on her feet, right next to Mandy, a close friend of Jimin’s, who had been taping the entire scene from the moment she had heard Joy screaming. No one wanted to miss a second of the spectacle. 

“Are you going to let him talk to you like that?” Bambam had a devious smile on his lips as he spoke right at the ear of his team’s captain. 

And that was all the incentive the impulsive red-haired boy needed. His eyes fell on Jimin and the other guys backing him up but he was sure he could take them all. Hell, he had his eyes set on the prize. Launching forward, the captain of Sarx pulls his arm back, his fist ready to clash with the now so clearly thief of his precious trophy. 

“May I ask what is happening here?!” Miss Bellum’s voice froze them in their places before a fight could actually unfold. She worriedly passed by students trying to reach Archie and Jimin. 

Belle, the Dianoia student who worked as a secretary for the school during her vacant hours, came right after the teacher, as it was later found out she was the one reaching out to a professor to prevent something worst to happen. She also made sure to update her biology teacher about Joy’s episode on the way, as Miss Bellum questioned her why the brunette had been admitted to the infirmary with cuts and restless behavior.

“I won’t repeat myself, boys.” The teacher scolded. “If I catch any of you fighting we’ll have serious consequences. Archie put that fist down!” 

Jimin backed away, quickly apologizing to the teacher but his eyes were still on the boy before him. Archie didn’t say a word, he was far too angry for that, and in his head, this wasn’t over. Far from it. 

Before he could turn back from fighting Kardia’s golden boy, the incessant notification noise traveled through the crowd like a tidal wave yet again.

📓 [ CLICK TO CONTINUE READING ]

#bts au #jungkook smut #bts ot7 au #jungkook scenarios #btswritingcafe #bts scenarios #bts college au #bts high school au #jimin scenario #taehyung au #jimin smut #hoseok fluff #bts x you #namjoon scenarios #yoongi imagine #jin fluff #jungkook imagine #bts series #ot7 smut #ot7 x you #horus academy

[socksjinie]

#fighton! ✱ masterlist

© singguks × bluenpjm × socksjinie | all rights reserved. do not repost, translate or claim as your own.

📕 synopsis. like every college, this one also has gossip and drama to fill the hallways, as well as lots of parties and games to attend. but when two of the most popular groups start to collide the whole campus goes into havoc. suddenly all eyes are on them. what will be the final outcome of this clash of clans?

genre. college au ㆍ slice of life ㆍ angst ㆍ smut ㆍ fluff

pairing. bts x oc's

rating. M

warnings. lots of foul language, fights, and tension

✱ Y [ the hope club ]

hoseok ㆍ jimin ㆍ jungkook ㆍ hyori ㆍ deo

✱ X [ the troublemakers ]

jin ㆍ yoongi ㆍ namjoon ㆍ tae ㆍ carolina

✱ chapter one ✱ chapter two ✱ chapter three ✱ chapter four ✱ chapter five

✱ you can find it over here!

✱ made by you [ 📕 ]

#bts college au #jungkook smut #taehyung smut #bts scenarios #bts smut #bts x oc #jimin smut #jin smut #yoongi smut #namjoon smut #bts series #hoseok smut #jungkook x you #jungkook scenarios #taehyung fanfic #namjoon scenarios #bts ot7 au #bts au #socksjinie #singguks #bluenpjm #fighton