Covering the Classics Part 8 | Bob Floyd x OC
Summary: Now that Anna knows what Bob's hands feel like when he's holding her close, she doesn't know how to stop herself from going back for more. But she's unwilling to even humor Bob when it comes to what he wants the most.
Warnings: Fluff, angst, adult language, masturbation, eventually 18+
Length: 5300 words
Pairing: Robert "Bob" Floyd x Female OC (this story is part of the Beer Boy/Sugar and Jake/Jessica universe)
Covering the Classics masterlist. Check my masterlist for more!
"I'm waiting for you to thank me."
Bob looked up to see Nat in front of him with a little smirk painted on her lips. He'd been spending the last twenty minutes trying to act normal, something he forgot how to do after Anna kissed him in the kitchen. Because it wasn't just a kiss, it was everything. It felt like she really wanted him.
"Thank you for what?" he asked cautiously.
Nat laughed heartily like he'd just told a very amusing joke. "For pushing you and Anna together. Bradley told me the situation, and that woman was jealous of me touching you. Her face was all pinched, and her lips were pressed into a tight line. Jealous. She wants you. And my god, she's hot. What the fuck do they do at San Diego State? Only interview you if you've got your PhD and a modeling contract?"
Bob knew he was blushing, and he was happy she wasn't calling him out on it. His friends were all talking about him and Anna behind his back at this point, trying to figure out what was going on. "We kind of just made out in the kitchen," he muttered, glancing across the yard at Anna who was talking to Jess and still holding the can of ginger ale he gave her.
"Yes!" Nat said with absolutely no subtlety, slapping Bob's shoulder. "Oh fuck, the two of you will have the cutest kids! Freckles and strawberry blonde hair!"
He had to close his eyes against the idea of it, willing the flush in his cheeks to subside. When he opened them again, Anna was looking right at him. Her gaze was a little unsure, and he was starting to get afraid she wouldn't let him drive her home later. But he wanted to walk her up to her door. He had been thinking about it since the very first time he drove her home.
"It's not like we're together or anything," he muttered.
"Yet," Nat told him, looking so certain. "Not yet."
It was getting late, the sun dipping lower in the sky. The temperatures would start cooling down once it was dark, and Anna was only wearing shorts. Bob's eyes easily found those freckles on her thighs once again. Her skin looked so damn soft. He wondered if he would feel goosebumps beneath his fingers if he traced that pretty pattern, gently connecting her freckles with an imaginary line. He had to swallow hard as she started heading his way.
Nat squeezed his wrist and muttered something about work, and then she vanished into the house. With Anna standing right in front of him, Bob wished he could just lean in and kiss her the way Jake always did with Jess, and the way Bradley always did with his wife. He wanted it. With Anna.
"I'm getting a little chilly," she told him. "I guess I overestimated how warm autumn was going to be in San Diego. It's still better than New Jersey though." She was talking to him like she hadn't been rubbing the front of those little shorts against the fly of his jeans barely an hour ago, and now he was sweating.
"You should wear jeans next time," he replied before realizing how stupid he sounded. "Not that you should be covering your legs or anything like that! You have very nice legs. Nice freckles? I just don't want you to be cold."
He cradled his forehead in his hand while Anna laughed softly. "I'll wear jeans next time. Do you think you could give me a ride home soon?"
"Sure," he promised immediately. "Absolutely."
"Great." Then she turned, and Bob heard her saying goodbye to Jessica. Why was he so awkward? Why was that exchange so weird? How was he supposed to make Anna want to kiss him again when he could barely string two normal sentences together?
--------------------------
Anna was trying to make a quick getaway, craving another few minutes alone with Bob. His truck was cozy, and she knew it would feel warm. His voice was sexy, and so was the way he moved. She wanted to kiss him again, even though she knew it was a terrible idea.
"Take some leftovers!"
"No, I'm fine," Anna told the hosts as Bradley tried to talk her into taking some of the extra burgers home. "But thank you." She was terrified that Jess may have said something about how sad Anna's lunches were; she had been doing her best to hide her current financial state from her friends, but she must have slipped up somehow.
"Well, will you come over for dinner one night? I love cooking for Sugar, but I always end up making way too much food."
Anna looked down at her feet. "Sure. I could do that. Jake invited me over there, too. I know he always cooks for Jess."
"Okay," Bradley said, his voice a little rough and his face annoyed when Anna looked up. "I'm a lot better at cooking than Jake is, first of all. Second of all, why don't you have dinner at his lame ass condo, and then let me know what he cooked. Then I'll cook a much better version of it for you and Sugar one night."
She was trying not to laugh; she knew they were competitive, but she didn't know it was quite this bad. "That sounds great, Bradley. Thanks for inviting me over today."
He just waved her off. "You're always welcome. You're one of us." He said it so casually before he started scraping the grill and cleaning it up, Anna just stared at the pattern of his tie dye shirt for a few seconds. He considered her part of this group now? This ridiculously cool friend group? If she thought about it for too long, she knew she would start crying.
"Thanks," she whispered, turning and running directly into Bob's solid chest.
When she looked up at him as her fingers grazed along his shirt, he asked, "You ready to head out?"
"Yeah." Anna felt the slight pressure of Bob's hand at her lower back, guiding her toward the door.
"After you," he said softly.
Anna had to walk inside the house and past Natasha, who she had clearly embarrassed herself in front of before. But the brunette just waved goodbye like she was completely unfazed by the events from earlier. Like it was totally normal for Bob and Anna to be together, heading out front to his truck as the setting sunset turned the sky orange.
Bob pulled the door open and helped her into his truck, and Anna thought maybe it was okay for this to be normal? To get a ride home from Bob after kissing him in her friend's kitchen? To have a painfully unrelenting crush on him that made her feel like perhaps love was a choice that you made for yourself?
She watched him walk around the font of the truck, his glasses catching the last rays of sunlight as the streetlights started to warm up. He was beautiful. He climbed into the truck gracefully and looked at her bashfully. She was the reason he wasn't more confident right now; she knew it, and she was annoyed with herself for it.
He cleared his throat quietly and said, "Before I forget, I have your copy of Papillon." Then he reached for the glovebox, his knuckles brushing her bare knee. "Sorry," he whispered, pulling his hand away immediately.
Anna's heart was in her throat. How was she supposed to tell him that she liked it when he touched her, even by accident. He reached for the glovebox again, this time making sure his movements kept him clear of her leg. "It's okay," she told him, breathing deep. "I didn't mind it."
The only answer she got was Bob carefully handing her worn out book back to her. There was another little note folded up inside which made her remember she never read the one that was in Wuthering Heights before she left it in her office at work. He started the engine. The drive back to her place was too long, and too short at the same time. She was surprised to find that he was heading in the right direction without a reminder about her address. As the sky darkened, Anna tried to listen to the music playing on the radio, but all she could really hear was the sound of her own heart pounding.
When Bob parked the truck in front of her building, she watched him squeeze the steering wheel with both hands while he stared out the windshield. "Anna...when you say you didn't mind it when I touched you...what does that mean? And what happened back at the cookout? Am I allowed to kiss you now? Or am I supposed to just figure out how to get over you?"
She fumbled with her seatbelt, heart thundering at the sound of his unsure voice. She wanted to ask him why he even liked her, because she had literally nothing to offer someone like Bob Floyd. But instead she said, "I meant I like it when you touch me. Even if it's by accident."
He turned to look at her, and when he saw she was crawling across the seat, his eyes went wide, and his hands slid from the steering wheel. "Anna." He inhaled a sharp breath when she planted one hand between his thighs, brushing his jeans with her fingers. She couldn't stand him thinking she didn't want him for another second. He was all she wanted. Somehow moving to San Diego got her some actual friends and a job she liked, and now a decent man with only green flags was into her, and she just couldn't make him think she felt otherwise. Even if they couldn't be together.
Bob's hands were planted on the seat at his sides, and he wasn't moving an inch as Anna straddled his legs. It was dark out, but she could see his gaze dip down to her cleavage before he met her eyes. When he spoke, his voice was deep with need. "Is it okay if I touch you now?"
"Please."
Anna's little cry of delight echoed through the cab of the truck as soon as Bob's hands settled on her bare thighs. His touch was light yet intentional, and it just left her wanting more. He was running his thumb along the frayed edge of her denim shorts, teasing her as he whispered, "I want to kiss you."
She didn't answer. Instead she reached for him, letting her fingers sink into his silky hair, leaning closer until her lips met his again. The kisses in the kitchen had been a little frantic, forcing her to get over the fact that Bob didn't want Natasha. He wanted Anna. But this was something different. Languid and slow. Needy yet decisive. She wanted to touch the rough stubble of his cheek, so she did. She wanted to feel his bottom lip tugged gently between hers, so she did. Then she parted her lips and tasted him.
The scrape of her nails along his jaw had his fingers sliding up inside the bottom of her shorts, and she wished she wasn't wearing them at all. She wanted to know the feel of his hands everywhere. "Anna," he murmured against her lips. She tugged on his hair and kissed him a little rougher, but she gasped and gave up control as soon as his big hands found their way over her shorts to her hips and yanked her snug against him. There was no more polite distance. No more breathing room. Just his hard body pressed to her soft one.
Bob's glasses were cool against her cheek, keeping her grounded as his fingers met the skin of her lower back while he tasted her tongue. His touch tickled her, and she rolled her hips forward, earning a grunt of pleasure from him. "Please," Anna whined, like it was the only word she even knew. Then her mouth was back on his. Bob's fingers traveled an inch higher, and she ground against him, but this time he broke the kiss.
When he tipped his head back, he looked bashful in the glow from the streetlights. She could feel him. He was getting hard for her, and it was delicious. Her brain supplied every suggestive line of poetry it had ever absorbed in her lifetime, and all she wanted was to make him get harder.
She was ready to start unzipping his jeans when he eased his hands away from her body and whispered, "Will you let me walk you to your door? I've been wanting to do that for weeks."
----------------------
It was slow going, trying to get to Anna's apartment door. They kept stopping to kiss, even going so far as to end up with her body pinned between his and the wall in the stairwell. Her soft laughter as he kissed the side of her neck echoed through the enclosed space, and then she said his name.
"Bob."
Actually, it was more like a whine, and it reverberated off of the walls beautifully. "Yes, Anna?" he whispered, letting her lace their fingers together. He wanted to do this all the time. He wanted to be her boyfriend.
She just made a strangled sound as he kissed as many of her freckles as he could get his lips on before pulling her away from the wall. Then they finally made it upstairs to her door. If she invited him inside, he wasn't sure what she would expect. As much as he was ready to skip all of the pleasantries, he knew he needed to do this just right.
"Oh," she whispered, seemingly to herself as she unlocked her door. But she didn't turn the knob as she looked back at him over her shoulder. Her pretty brown eyes flashed with concern, so he took a step away, but then she just looked sad.
"Everything okay?" he asked. She nodded. "Will I get to see you this week? I'd love to buy you a ginger ale at the Hard Deck. Or Chippy's."
She bit her lip before abandoning the door and wrapping her arms around his neck. She was all rough kisses on her tiptoes, and Bob was ready to turn the knob, head inside and deal with the consequences later. But she ran her tongue along his bottom lip before pulling away from him just as quickly. "I need to...I'll see you later, Bob."
In a flash, she squeezed herself in through the smallest gap imaginable, and then she gently closed her apartment door behind her. Bob stood there for a minute, his cock still half hard in his jeans as he stared at the spot where Anna had just been standing. She was giving him whiplash at this point, but maybe he sort of liked that kind of thing.
He quickly adjusted himself in his jeans before heading back downstairs and out into the cool night. He was going to have to ask Jake or Bradley how long he needed to wait before asking Anna out. They would know what to do. And he had Nat back now as well. He had enough resources that he would figure it out.
But the next day after work, they all seemed to make everything more confusing for him.
"So did you finally fuck her then?" Bradley asked casually as he put deodorant on in the locker room.
"Well, no," Bob muttered. "We just made out for a bit."
"Kids these days," Bradley muttered, shaking his head. "Well, did you at least thank Nat? For coming to your rescue?"
Bob sighed, knowing this man was going to be no help after all. "I already talked to Nat," Bob replied as they walked out of the locker room.
Of course Natasha was in the hallway and did a double take. "Did I just hear my name? I've been so popular since I got home yesterday." Her smile slipped into a look of excitement. "Did you fuck the redhead?"
Bob cradled his forehead in his hand. "Her name is Anna. And no, because I'm actually trying to date her."
"Why not both?" Nat asked, leading the way out to the parking lot. "Give that girl what she so desperately wants."
Bob was scared Anna was going to pull away again. He hadn't heard from her at all since last night when she disappeared into her apartment. He wasn't sure if he was supposed to be texting her or not today. It was like he was living in a choose your own adventure story, but somehow none of the options were correct.
He turned right toward his truck while Bradley and Nat both turned left, but then he realized that Jake had parked next to him and was already in his own truck talking on the phone. Bob tried to sneak past, but Jake put his window down and said, "Jess wants to know what's up with you and Anna."
"Is she on the phone?" Bob asked, tossing his bag into his own truck.
"Hi!" came Jessica's voice through Jake's bluetooth. "What did you do to Anna? She was practically singing when she showed up at lunch today."
Bob immediately scrambled toward Jake's truck and stuck his head in the window. "She was?"
"Yes. And she was having a hard time paying attention. You know how she gets when her head is in the clouds."
Jake met Bob's wide eyed gaze and smiled. "You should go to her office hours," the other man drawled. "That's like a green light for fucking on her desk."
"Hey!" Jessica complained through the phone while Bob grimaced. "Jake, keep your mouth shut about it. But yes, Bob, you should go to her office hours. She'd probably really like that. It shows you're thinking about her."
Well Bob was almost never not thinking about Anna, so maybe it wasn't a bad idea. "Take her some flowers," Jake added. "Seriously, man, she'll be handing you her panties within a minute."
"Hey!" came Jessica's voice again, and this time Bob ducked into his own truck, not wanting to hear any more of that conversation.
-----------------------------
Monday was a bit of a blur. The first thing Anna did when she got to her office was grab her copy of Wuthering Heights from her shelf. The note she forgot to read from Bob made her smile right away.
This book made me feel like it's okay to be completely caught up in another person to the point where you forget where you are or what you're doing. Also, I'm going to think of you every time I see a dog eared page for the rest of my life.
She whimpered softly. There had been a similar, slightly more intimate note tucked inside Papillon when she checked it last night after she squeezed herself into her depressingly tiny apartment in embarrassment. She would never be able to invite Bob inside for anything. Not for a cup of tea, and not for a sleepover.
After that, Anna spent the entire night on Sunday reading her favorite poems and touching herself. Sky Writing seemed to have fallen in love, based on his new post. That idea wasn't surprising at all. Anna was convinced he was the perfect man, so it was just a matter of time. But the thing that did surprise her was the way he wrote about a certain woman with red hair. Late into the night, she was laying in her tiny bed with her fingers inside the font of her underwear, picturing Bob as she read the words to herself.
It was almost too much. Her lips were still a little bit puffy on Monday from all the making out, and she felt sated if only by her own touch. She knew Bob's beautiful hands would be so much better, and she was still thinking about them when she went to find her friends at lunchtime.
Tuesday wasn't much better. The only damper was that she hadn't heard a single word from Bob. Nothing. She hadn't texted him either, because what was she supposed to say? Hi, I think I could fall in love with you, but I'm not allowed. Can we still make out? That would be the worst idea in the world.
"She's got her head in the clouds again."
Anna blinked a few times and realized she was sitting by the weird tree with the warm sunlight on her face. Her uneaten sandwich was in her hand, hovering halfway to her mouth, and she had been staring off into the distance. "Sorry," she muttered, finally taking a bite. Her lunch didn't even seem as sad today as she thought about Bob's hands on her thighs.
"Can you blame her?" Jessica asked. "She kissed Bob."
"Not one bit," the other woman said with a grin, as if Anna wasn't even there. "He's a damn catch. Sweetest man ever."
Anna rolled her eyes and said, "As if you aren't married to the human equivalent of a golden retriever."
"Oh, so she is paying attention," Jessica said with a laugh. "We thought you'd blasted off for planet Bob with no return ticket."
"Your astrophysics jokes are the worst," the other woman said, and Jessica pretended to pout.
"Listen. All I know is that he's a great kisser, and that his hands fit really nicely right here," Anna said pointing to her back and her hips. Both women squealed in delight. "But I can't take things any further with him."
"Why not?" Jessica demanded. "The two of you have been playing this game since you met at the bookstore. And also since you met again at the Hard Deck."
Anna thought about Kevin and all of her money that she'd never see again. She thought about her manuscripts she'd put on hold to work three jobs. She thought about how she'd willingly given up Princeton for him.
"I don't want to drag him down to where I am," she whispered, running her finger along the condensation on her can of ginger ale. "I can't be in a relationship." That's all she wanted to say about Bob and Kevin right now, still too afraid to tell her friends everything. So she cleared her throat and asked, "What's with the cooking rivalry between Bradley and Jake? It's like an episode of Chopped." That seemed to open a very controversial can of worms, but at least the focus shifted away from her personal life.
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Bob didn't even know what kind of flowers were the right ones to get, and once again, everyone else gave him useless information.
"I rarely get flowers for Sugar. I usually just grab some good beers on my way to pick her up from school, and that's enough to seal the deal. Then I get to drink the beer I like while my hot wife goes dow-"
"We get the picture, Bradshaw," Jake said loudly. "Bob, just get some cheap flowers and save the money to make her dinner one night."
"Do not get her cheap flowers!" Natasha chimed in. "If the two of you weren't attractive looking," she said, pointing to Bradley and Jake, "Sugar and Jessica would have bailed before they bothered to uncover actual brain cells underneath the pretty hair." Both men looked startled before eventually nodding in agreement. "You need to get good flowers and plan to invite her for dinner. Not one or the other," Nat finished, pounding her fist into her other palm. "No wonder Bob never gets laid when I'm not around to straighten everything out."
"Can we not talk about that?" he mumbled, adjusting his glasses. "And it's not like I just want to...get laid. By just anybody."
"Yeah, yeah," Natasha said, tapping away on her phone. "You're a romantic. Go get her flowers like these ones."
Bob examined her screen when she held it up for him. He memorized the red and orange blooms the best he could, and soon they started to remind him of Anna's hair. "Got it," he told her, turning toward his truck before anyone else could tell him something that may or may not end up being useful. He'd get the flowers and then invite her over. He wasn't as good at cooking as Jake or Bradley, but he'd try anyway. He was mostly out of practice since he didn't have anyone to cook for, really, but they both offered to send him their favorite recipes.
The florist was nice and listened to him ramble about orange and red flowers for a minute before putting together something that was even prettier than he could have imagined. The sixty dollar price tag shocked him, but it didn't stop him from also grabbing a book from the front window of the shop next door. It was a new one he'd been wanting to read himself, not quite one of the classics that Anna seemed to favor, but he figured she wouldn't have read it yet. He'd let her borrow it and dog ear all the pages up, and then he'd read it and think about her the whole time.
But when he got to the San Diego State University campus, he sat in his truck and stared at the clock on his dashboard. It was 6:32. She had office hours until 7:00, so he really needed to head in there. Doubt was creeping in now, because they left things off at a weird place. He had no idea what Anna really wanted from him, if anything. If she told him no or hesitated today, he was going to have to start sorting out his feelings for her and dismantling them bit by bit.
It was 6:47 by the time he finally made his way through the academic building on his way to Anna's office. Several people turned and looked at him in his khaki uniform with the huge bouquet of flowers in his hand, and this would have been a lot less stressful if Anna was actually his girlfriend and not a woman he thought might never be that. When he reached the hallway that smelled like freshly baked bread, he found her small office right away where it was tucked back from the main walkway. The door was ajar, and he could hear her voice, so he stood there in the hallway a little awkwardly, trying to fight the urge to run back to his truck.
The door opened another inch, and Bob could see Anna's fingers and her burgundy painted nails peeking out as her voice got louder. "Here's a copy of the extra study guide. Don't forget there's a quiz on Monday. If you can ace that, then I think you'll be in better shape for the final. And try not to be too hard on yourself, Hemingway can be a bit of a challenge for anyone."
"Thanks, Dr. Webber."
The door opened all the way, and a young man filed out with a frown on his face, and then Anna was just standing there right in front of Bob. Her hair was in a loose braid, her lips had some sort of purple-ish gloss on them, and she was wearing some snug jeans and an SDSU sweatshirt. "Bob," she breathed, and it sounded like music. Her gaze raked over his uniform and the vibrant flowers before returning to his face, brown eyes more vulnerable than he ever thought they should be.
"Hi, Anna." He couldn't think of anything better to say as she backed up a step into her small office and nodded her head once for him to join her. After two of his long strides, Bob was practically bumping into her desk. Then she closed the door and leaned against it, hands tucked behind her back.
She cleared her throat, but her voice was still soft as she said, "You look nice in your uniform."
"Thanks," he replied automatically. She could have said anything, and he would have thanked her.
"Those are beautiful. Are they for me?" she whispered, eyes falling to the flowers again.
"Of course they are."
Bob watched her eyelashes brush her cheeks as her eyes fluttered closed. "You didn't have to do that. Flowers are so expensive."
"I got you a book, too," he said, sliding it out from behind the bouquet. Her eyes snapped open so she could read the title, and he said, "It's a new release, so I was hoping you didn't preorder it or anything."
Anna's cheeks were growing pinker by the second, making her freckles look more prominent. He was about to ask if she wanted to come over for dinner one night when she launched herself across the three feet of empty space, colliding softly with his body. Bob dropped the flowers and the book onto her desk just as she kissed him, her arms coming up to wrap around his neck.
She kissed him like they did this all the time, and his hands went right to her waist where they fit perfectly. "Thank you," she murmured against his lips. "Nobody ever got me books before you."
The words before you echoed in his brain. He didn't want there to be an after. He wanted this to be the real deal where neither of them had to be in a relationship where they weren't constantly trading books back and forth with someone.
Anna kissed him until his glasses were crooked, and she raked her fingers through his hair until he was sure it was a mess. And somehow she ended up pushing him back until he was sitting on the edge of her desk with his long legs splayed apart. He knew he was in trouble; he could feel himself slipping already. She let her hands trail down the back of his neck, over his shoulders, and down the front of his shirt. She adjusted all of his pins and touched his name tag along the way as her lips barely brushed his. Her fingers moved so slowly, he thought maybe he could get himself under control, but it was no use. He was hard in his pants, and her exploratory hands weren't stopping.
"Anna."
All that did was make her kiss him harder again.
"Please."
All that did was have her pressing the font of her jeans to his khakis with a little gasp. Maybe the guys had been right about this kind of thing after all. Maybe visiting her during office hours was all it was going to take to get to the next level. Her fingers made it all the way down to his thighs, scraping along just inches from his erection, and Bob was afraid he was going to embarrass himself. He thought about icebergs and refrigerators and the Arctic Circle, but nothing alleviated the aching heat under his skin as Anna licked his lip and almost nudged the tip of his cock.
But then she said the most devastating sentence he could think of. "Bob, I really like you. But we're just friends, okay?" Then she kissed him again like she hadn't spoken something so harsh, and he thought maybe he imagined it. "Just really good friends who make out with each other."
"Fuck," he grunted, trying to get control even as his hands kneaded the bare skin of her lower back. "Anna." He swallowed hard and pulled his mouth away from hers, examining her wide eyes. Her teeth sank into her pouty bottom lip when he said, "I was going to invite you over for dinner later this week."
"As friends?" she whispered, her hands still planted on his thighs.
Bob nodded like an idiot, because once again, he was going to agree to anything she said right then. "Sure."
She kissed him softly and said, "Okay."
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But is it okay? Is it really? Next up, let's see how this dinner goes. We might need Nat to fully step in and take care of business again. Also, I love Bradley and Jake in this chapter so so so much! Thanks @beyondthesefourwalls
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↳ Index [Chapter 01 - Besuch]
• Besuch (German; noun: visit)
Focus on Pairing: Taehyung x f.Reader
Warnings: so many fluffy sweet moments, talks about polyamory & sexuality, Tae suffers from PTSD, but he gets so much comfort, Yoongi is a nervous cutie, Jungkook is so sweet <3
Wordcount: 14.5k
a/n: OMFG BESTIES WE'RE FINALLY BACK IN BUSINESS! I'M SO HAPPY TO BE BACK WITH A LIL STORY FOR YOU GAAAH 💙
“Okay. Are you ready?”
“I am.”
“Me too.”
“Where’s Yoongi?”
“He said that he’ll be here soon.”
“I could call him.”
The door opens.
“I’m sorry I’m late, I couldn’t get the button to close”, Yoongi says, running to get to you and the others. You are busy closing the safety circle while the others are waiting on your floor surrounded by your travel bags.
“Why are you dressed like this?” Taehyung asks, following Yoongi with his eyes.
Yoongi looks down at his own body. He is wearing a black suit with a small white boutonniere in his front pocket.
“What’s wrong with my outfit?” he asks with a pout, “you’re wearing a suit too.”
Taehyung, dressed in an emerald green suit, shrugs his shoulders.
“It is just that these are my normal clothes, but you look as if you stumbled out of the wrong movie.”
“Why? What’s wrong with my clothes?” Yoongi whines, “I’m meeting her grandma. Can’t I dress up for that?”
You and the others laugh fondly.
“Stop laughing, you brats”, he hisses, crossing his arms in front of his chest.
“I’m just laughing because you’re so cute, my love”, you tell him, sitting down cross legged and patting the spot next to you, “sit down.”
Yoongi follows, tugging and pulling at his clothes insecurely. He can’t even look at your eyes because he feels so insecure in them all of a sudden.
You lean in and give him a smooch on his cheek, “you look so handsome.”
Yoongi blushes, “thanks”, he mumbles.
“I also think that you’re handsome, hyungie”, Jungkook says. He is dressed in a fancy shirt and slacks and has his hair in a neat half-updo.
“Thanks”, Yoongi says.
“I still think that you look peculiar”, Taehyung teases.
“Tae, stop that”, you say, hitting his leg gently.
“Fine. I won’t say anything again”, Taehyung gives up and snickers.
“You’re a brat”, Yoongi says.
“Can we start now?” you ask, looking between him and Taehyung fondly.
“Yes, of course”, Taehyung says and takes your hand. Next he takes Jungkook’s hand, holding it tightly.
“I guess. It’s so mean, I dressed up for the occasion and I get made fun of”, Yoongi murmurs with a pout as he takes your and Jungkook’s hands.
“I wasn’t making fun-”
“Hush, you guys. Focus. I need to channel your powers and I can’t concentrate when you talk”, you stop them in a chuckle.
The two bickering vampires stop, looking at you with the most innocent of eyes.
“Now”, you begin, “close your eyes and relax. It’ll tingle a little.”
The next time you open your eyes again, the scent of pine and wild herbs tickles your noses.
The ground beneath your feet crunches like small, angular stones. You run your eyes over your surroundings. Your lovers are beside you, looking around with awe in their eyes.
A high, dense forest surrounds you. The call of a blackbird echoes high above your heads and the humming of thousands of insects hangs in the air.
“Remarkable”, Taehyung gets out under his breath.
“Yeah right”, Jungkook whispers.
You find yourselves on a narrow gravel road. The road is just wide enough for one car and on the parts where no tires run along, high grasses and forest flowers grow. They tickle your legs as you stand in them. It is a nice sensation.
You know this road. Behind your backs, it leads into denser forests and high mountain paths. In front of your eyes, it will bring you to your grandmother’s house. You took this path a hundred times when you were younger. You will always find your way on it.
“Are we right here? Where are we? It looked different the last time we were here”, Jungkook asks.
“Yes, we’re right. It’s just not the back entrance”, you assure him, “come, follow me. I know the way”, you say and shoulder your bag, taking confident steps into the correct direction.
The three vampires lift their own bags and follow you with their eyes sparkling in awe. At least those of Taehyung and Jungkook, Yoongi’s eyes are glued to the ground.
“I can’t believe that you truly managed to get us here”, Taehyung says, following a squirrel with his eyes as it escapes through the trees, “a squirrel! Right above our heads!”
“Where?” Jungkook gasps.
“There. Right there”, Taehyung shows him and after some intense searching, Jungkook finally finds it.
“Wow a squirrel! So cute!” he exclaims in a terribly cute voice. He and Taehyung share giggles and hold hands, swinging them back and forth happily.
You hold hands with Yoongi, who has been worryingly quiet until now.
“My love?” you call his attention with a soft pull at his hand.
His head snaps to you, “mhm?” his eyes are widened.
“Are you okay? You’re really quiet.”
“I’m okay.”
“Are you sure?”
He nods his head, “nervous”, he confesses and looks away.
“You’re nervous?”
He nods his head, rubbing the side of his neck.
“I never really did the whole, uhm, meeting my partner’s family and stuff before. Uh, yeah, it’s new to me. Scary, uh, yeah.”
“Aww my love, don’t be nervous. My grandma will love you so much.”
“Yeah, uhm”, he lowers his head shyly.
“I’m serious, love. She told me that she saw glimpses of you in my memories and that she can see how well you treat me”, you assure him, hugging his arm, “don’t worry, she’ll look at you and see a kind, sweet and very loveable person. Yeah?”
He nods his head and glances at you. He squeezes your hand just once and leans in to kiss your cheek.
“Thank you”, he whispers.
“I’m only saying the truth”, you say and pull Jungkook and Taehyung closer by holding Taehyung’s hand, “as a matter of fact, she’ll love all of you. Oh, you guys”, you begin skipping in happiness, “I’m so, so happy to be back and to see my grandma again and to introduce her to you.”
“I’m really happy too. I can’t wait to see grandma again”, Jungkook says, watching you with sparkling eyes. You are so happy. He likes that you are.
“I am very excited as well, my darling. I cannot wait to try her raspberry pie.”
“Yes, god you really can’t”, you say and wiggle your shoulders, “it’s so, so yummy.”
Another squirrel scurries past you, crossing the narrow gravel road in small jumps. Jungkook giggles.
“It’s so cute.”
“It truly is”, Taehyung says, “however, I cannot find an explanation as to why there are animals and insects living here. Isn’t this a realm for the souls of deceased witches and warlocks? How come there is other form of life in this realm?”
You all look at Yoongi for an answer.
“What?”
“Why are there animals and insects here?”
“It’s just the way it is. I don’t know.”
“But didn’t Namjoon create this realm? Shouldn’t he have talked to you about his plans for it?”
“He did. I don’t know, it’s been too long. Maybe it’s because he loved plants and animals back then. I don’t know, sorry I’m nervous”, Yoongi says, ending his rant by exhaling loudly and blinking his eyes at you.
You give his hand an encouraging squeeze.
“It’s okay, love. Thank you for telling us.”
“Okay, okay I apologise for asking”, Taehyung says and reaches past you to caress Yoongi’s arm, “don’t be nervous, hyung. I am sure that you will be welcomed splendidly. If there is someone who should be nervous, it should be me.”
“Don’t say that, Tae. She’ll love you as well”, you insist.
“Yes, well”, Taehyung lets out a nervous chuckle, “she saw how wonderfully Yoongi treated you, so I am sure that she must have seen how awfully I acted.”
“Even if she did, that means she also saw how much you changed for the better. Don’t worry my darling, she will love you just as much as she’ll love Yoongi and Kookie.”
“Okay, okay”, Taehyung says and grins shyly, “thank you for saying this.”
You hug his arm against you and give it a little kiss.
“Of course, my sweetest”, you say and straighten up, “now let’s go. I can’t wait to see her again. Oh, I’m so happy. Do you guys think that she can feel that we are coming?”
“I am certain that she could sense it.”
“Yes, I get the feeling as well”, Jungkook assures you, while Yoongi is still lost in his nervous thoughts.
The walk to your grandmother’s cottage is a long one, but a terribly beautiful one. Being in nature is truly the best thing one can be. The long grasses and colourful flowers brush against your legs as you wander. The trees sway in the warm breeze and the sun shines through the canopy and makes light dance all around you.
“Did you know that there is a word in Japanese which describes the light shining through leaves?” Taehyung asks.
“No, I didn’t”, Jungkook says to which you agree with a shake of your head.
Yoongi seems to know already, because he doesn’t react. Or perhaps he is currently completely dissociated in nervousness. That would explain why he is staring into the distance with dazed eyes.
“Indeed there is”, Taehyung says, “komorebi. It is a beautiful word and I would say that it is rather fitting for such a beautiful view.”
“Yes”, you agree, letting your eyes follow the light. It is as if it was in a dance with the shadow, creating ever changing paintings, “yes I agree. Komorebi. I have to remember this word.”
“Thank you for telling us. I learned something new”, Jungkook says, painting great happiness onto Taehyung’s features.
The cottage is within reach. You can see the cozy house and the colourful, loved garden surrounding it. The rather unwelcome wooden stake fence doesn’t greet you this time around. A normal wooden fence stands in its stead. There are high wooden pillars on each side of the road and a wooden arch on which roses climb up and bloom. The gates are currently open, inviting you inside.
“It’s so peculiar not to see grandma’s staked fence”, you say.
“But it was there the last time we visited her, right?” Jungkook makes sure.
You nod your head, “it must be because we accidentally switched from my memories to this world. Remember? There were no stakes when we left the realm again, but because we were too preoccupied with our emotions, we didn’t really notice it.”
“Yes, right. Right, now that you mention it, I didn’t see any stakes when we left. So that means that we’re right, ___. You actually took us to the safe realm where no vampires are present.”
Jungkook breaks away from Taehyung and gets in front of you and the others. You all come to a stop. He steps closer and puts his hand on the chests of Taehyung and Yoongi. While Taehyung smiles at him, Yoongi seems to come back to reality with the touch. He blinks rapidly, gawking at Jungkook.
The latter smiles and bounces on the spot.
“You’re human”, he says, “you guys are human. We’re all human again”, he says and touches his own chest, “my pulse is back. Wow!”
Taehyung and Yoongi touch their chests and while Taehyung seems marvelled by it, Yoongi exhales shakily, blinking away the emotion in his eyes. He tightens his fingers around the fabric of his shirt, furrowing his brows.
“Oh how fascinating”, Taehyung gasps, looking at you, “darling, I can feel my heart beat.”
“I know”, you say, touching him gently, “I can feel it too, Tae.”
Taehyung smiles and places his hand over yours, pulling you closer this way, “sweetest”, he whispers and kisses you. It is a nice revelation that his first instinct upon being human again, is to kiss you. You kiss him back with a racing heart and in return, you can feel his heart race in his chest. Oh, how good it feels to kiss him.
By the time you pull back for air, you are just a little dizzy. He smiles at you, squeezing your hand gently. You retort his smile.
Jungkook’s giggles make both of you turn into his direction. He is giggling at Yoongi, while the latter is looking into Jungkook’s face. Their hands are on each other’s chests, feeling the other’s heartbeat.
“I can count the beats, hyungie”, Jungkook says, “your pulse is real.”
“Yeah, I know”, Yoongi answers him.
“It’s beating so fast.”
“Yeah, I know…”
You join their sides, caressing their arms.
Jungkook pulls you into a group hug instantly, smothering you between his body and Yoongi’s.
“Oh? Okay”, you accept your fate with giggles, which only grow when you can feel Taehyung join the group hug as well.
“We are human again”, Jungkook says and begins jumping in a circle. You join him soon even if Yoongi whines about it. It’s just way too exciting to be with each other.
“Honeybee!” someone calling your nickname breaks the group hug. The boys release you, watching with curious eyes as a couple seem to hurry to you. They are dressed in flowy summer clothes and seem to be in their forties. Jungkook is smiling, waving his hand.
“Grandma! Hello!” he calls out, but you can’t hear him anymore.
Your grandfather is next to your grandmother. Safe and sound. And alive. He is actually alive.
“Grandpa?!” you gasp, “you- oh”, you stop talking to instead run to them.
They welcome you with open arms, engulfing you in the kind of hug only loving grandparents can give. Despite promising yourself not to cry, you still do. You went so many years without them and to see both of them again, well and alive, overwhelms you in the best way possible.
“You’re alive! Grandpa, you’re alive!”
“Hello my little forest strider, how have you been?”
“Oh grandpa, I missed you so much”, you choke out and sob into his chest.
“Mhm, my girl”, he says and pulls you closer.
You break away after a few moments of emotional hugging, eyes switching between your grandparents’ faces.
“You guys are so young and, and you’re both here. I don’t understand. How can you be here?”
“This is a peaceful world. A good world. I am here because Agatha wanted me to be here.”
“And you are real? You are truly real?”
“I am”, your grandfather smiles and tugs your grandmother closer, “she just couldn’t say goodbye to me, could she?”
“How could I, Harald? I need to have someone I can annoy”, she jokes, which makes him laugh and kiss her cheek. She takes your hand afterwards, “there is a way to make sure that your loved ones will find peace in this world even if they aren’t born witches.”
“There is?”
“Yes, yes there is, but I will tell you later. My boys, welcome”, she says and turns to your three boys with open arms, “I’m Agatha, but you can call me grandma as well. Jungkook my dear, welcome back.”
“I’m so happy to be back, grandma”, he says, bowing his head.
She however tugs him into a hug, forcing a squeak out of him as he stumbles into her loving embrace. He is so much taller than her, lowering himself for her comfort.
“Welcome back, my boy. How have you been?”
“Good, really good. I missed you.”
They break the hug, but she keeps holding his hands.
“It’s so nice to have you back for a happy occasion”, she says to which he agrees with an enthusiastic nod.
Afterwards he turns to your grandfather, giving him a tight handshake.
“It is so nice to meet you. I’m Jungkook.”
“Agatha already told me a lot about you. It’s good to finally put a face to the stories”, he says and grabs his upper arm, “you’re a strong one. I can feel it. Are those tattoos?”
“Oh, uhm…” Jungkook blushes, “yes, I guess they are.”
“Aha, I see. How far up do they go?” he asks, trying to tug Jungkook’s shirt further up his arm.
Jungkook laughs nervously, glancing at you as a call for help. But before you can save him from your grandfather’s nosy, yet kindly meant, hands, your grandmother does.
“Harald, don’t be nosy. Dear god”, your grandmother swipes his hand away, turning her attention to Yoongi next.
“You must be Yoongi.”
“I am”, he croaks out, “sorry”, he says and bows deeply, clearing his throat as he does, “nice to meet you and thank you so much for housing us”, he says and bows at your grandfather as well.
“I’m happy to have you, my dear”, she says and gives his arm a soft caress.
“Agatha told me that you enjoy woodworking. I was a carpenter in my time”, your grandfather says and takes both his hands to inspect them, “mhm good worker hands. They don’t fit your face.”
“Uh? Thank you, yeah, uhm.”
Your grandmother rolls her eyes at him because he is being nosy again.
“___ told me that you were a carpenter. Yeah, uhm”, Yoongi pulls his hands out of your grandfather’s hold and scratches his own ear shyly, “I think woodworking is good. Yeah”, he mumbles and clears his throat again.
Your grandfather smiles. Yoongi is shy. Just as Agatha had told him.
Taehyung bows at both of your grandparents as well, “I am Taehyung. It is truly wonderful to finally meet the people who are so utterly important to ___.”
“We could say the same about you”, she says and studies him from head to toe. There is just the slightest, smallest, faintest mistrust in them.
“I, uhm”, Taehyung begins fumbling in his bag, “I have something for you”, he says and pulls out a box.
Your grandmother accepts it, opening it.
“Oh? Seeds?”
“Yes, indeed. They are seeds from our garden. ___ told me that she inherited her enjoyment for gardening from you and I thought that growing seeds from our garden in your own could be a special way to connect our families.”
Your grandmother exchanges a look with your grandfather. They smile, reaching out for a warm caress to Taehyung’s arms.
“Thank you, boy. We will cherish them.”
“This is such a wonderful gift, thank you my dear”, your grandmother says and points at the house, “come, I bet you must be really exhausted from the journey.”
“Not really. ___ did a really good job at sending us here”, Jungkook says and looks around, “it looks a lot nicer here than last time.”
“That’s because you entered this realm willingly and not accidentally. That is also why your heartbeats feel so real and why you can take bags with you. Because your bodies are actually here.”
“Woah, that’s wild to me. Did you know that, hyung?”
Yoongi shakes his head, “no, I’m sorry. I don’t know a lot about this world”, he murmurs shyly.
“I see. That’s okay, but you seem to know a lot, grandma.”
“Oh? Oh no”, she laughs, “I know enough to know that this world is safe, but that it will also be punishing to people who aren’t dead yet.”
“What do you mean? Are we in danger?”
“Only if you die in here. You will be lost forever, which is not a nice fate to have.”
“Oh god. You guys gotta be extra careful from now on. Okay?” you tell your three boys.
“We will, don’t worry”, Jungkook assures you to which the others agree.
“I’m sure nothing will happen”, your grandfather says and places his arm over your grandmother’s shoulder, “are you hungry? We were just about to start dinner when Agatha felt you enter this realm.”
“Dinner sounds lovely, Harald?” Taehyung says, “please forgive me if I got your name wrong.”
“You got it right. Name’s Harald, but you can call me grandpa if you want to.”
“It is lovely to meet you, Harald. ___ told me a great deal about you. You mean a lot to her.”
“Oh, she means more to me. My little girl, she’s my treasure.”
Taehyung feels warm in his chest. He loves to know that you have family who truly and honestly love you.
“We made raspberry pie as well”, your grandmother says.
“Yes, pie! I’m so ready to eat at least three slices!” you exclaim happily and take her hand, “grandma, can I have the recipe? I forgot to ask you last time, but I would really love to make it at home.”
“Of course, my honeybee. Do you have raspberry bushes at your home as well?”
“I do. Yoongi wants to teach me one day how I can make them grow like you make yours grow, but for now I have to learn better control.”
“Control is really important. I’m impressed that you managed to get all of you here unharmed.”
“I know. Oh god, grandma I was so nervous you have no idea.”
You take off your shoes by the front door. Your grandmother scurries off to prepare lemonade, while your grandfather leads you upstairs. He is carrying your bag because he insisted that it is a grandfather’s job to carry his grandchild’s bags.
“It’s so cozy here”, Jungkook says.
“Aye, cozy it is”, your grandfather says, leading you to your bedroom, “I built all of it myself. Not in this world, but the real one. The house was already there when I came here. Don’t ask me how it works, Agatha’s the one with magic, I’m just here to be her support.”
He makes you laugh with it. He smiles fondly, putting your bag on your bed.
“Two of you can sleep here. The rest can sleep in the guestroom. Ignore the mess on the desk. I use it as my hobby room when it’s just the two of us.”
“What do you enjoy as a hobby?” Taehyung asks, walking next to him. They are the same height, carrying themselves with good posture.
“I’m a collector of old weapons. Without the ammunition of course. I spend a lot of time cleaning and restoring old weapons.”
“Oh, that sounds wonderful. I have quite a few rare pieces in my own collection. I shall bring some of them with me next time we visit.”
“So you’re a collector too?”
“I am sure not as passionate as you, but my age automatically comes with many trinkets and pieces, which I find myself collecting.”
“I see, well anyways, that’s the guest room. Make yourselves comfortable”, he says and studies you, “however that will work. Do you pull cards to decide?”
“We prefer to decide spontaneously.”
“I see, well anyways, rest for a bit, get comfortable. I’m downstairs for now”, he says and turns to leave. He gives you a hug before he does, patting your head, “my girl.”
Once it is just the four of you, Taehyung speaks.
“I got the feeling that he wanted to ask more about our situation, but he didn’t know how.”
“Knowing my grandpa, he really did. Especially because I came back dating three men, who also date each other.”
“Mostly. Some are only acquaintances”, Yoongi corrects you, making Taehyung gasp dramatically.
“Acquaintances? Excuse me? Have we not spent enough centuries together to at least be friends?”
“I don’t know. You made fun of my outfit.”
“Oh, hyung you”, he nudges his arm, “you know that I was only jesting. You look very handsome.”
“Whatever”, Yoongi says and looks around the room awkwardly.
“Do you guys like it here?” you ask them.
“It’s so cozy. I like it a lot.”
“It also smells very good.”
“It does, gosh. And look, you can see the forest from here”, you say, hurrying to the small window.
Your three boys gather behind you, trying to get a glimpse.
“I spent a lot of time in this forest. I can’t believe that I get to walk in it again. We are gonna take walks in it, aren’t we?”
“Of course. I even packed my walking shoes for this occasion.”
“I’m so happy, you guys”, you say, following your grandmother with your eyes as she is hurrying through the garden to pick some mint, “I wanna go downstairs and help them.”
“We’ll come with you.”
You spent the rest of the day together, talking and laughing. You tell your grandparents everything which happened in the years they weren’t with you anymore and it felt so good to do because this time around, you know that you had no rush in speaking. Yoongi was with you again. Taehyung and Jungkook as well. Everything was well and you are allowed to waste time telling silly stories of your life. Your grandparents are so very happy to listen to every single one of them. And so you spent the day talking until the moon replaced the sun in the sky and the crickets sang their nightly songs.
Yoongi helped your grandmother with dinner. You could listen to them bond over food. They even exchanged recipes and chatted about bread making. It made you feel really good inside to hear how Yoongi talks to your grandmother. Respectful and in a soft spoken voice. He is such a gentle person.
You and your other two boys wanted to help as well, but then your grandfather dragged you into a game of cards. He was sure that he could win, because he always won when you were still a child, but soon had to realise that his little girl was all grown up now. It made him a little sad and so you let him win the next round, which made him tease you in the adoring way he always teased you when he won. It made you really happy. You missed the game of cards with your grandfather.
Dinner has been served by now. You sit around the table, sharing the food your grandmother and Yoongi prepared with utmost love. It tastes so good that everyone goes for a second serving. You even go for a third because the combination of Yoongi’s cooking and your grandmother’s cooking is quite frankly, the most delicious combination to ever exist. Two cuisines which taste like home mixed into one. Truly, food couldn’t get any better than this.
You talk about food for most of it. Soon your grandfather leads the conversation to a different topic however. It was during dessert when tea was shared with your grandmother’s raspberry pie. You feed a spoonful to Taehyung and then to Jungkook, doing so with giggles on your lips.
“Is it yummy?” you ask them.
“Really, I missed your pie so much”, Jungkook murmurs.
“It is so sweet and rich in flavours. I truly enjoy it”, Taehyung gushes.
“Well, thank you my dear”, your grandmother says with fondness in her eyes. She likes to know when people enjoy her food. Especially her pies. She is very proud of her pies. All the recipes are her creations and she takes great pride in them. She wipes down the counters with a happy smile on her lips, listening to the conversation.
You break off another piece of the pie and turn to Yoongi.
“Now you, my love”, you tell him.
Yoongi meets you in the middle with an open mouth. He takes the pie off your fork gently, meeting your eyes shyly.
“And?”
He chews and swallows, nodding his head.
“Mhm”, he lets out, “really good. How are you getting the raspberry flavors to stay so intense, Agatha?”
“I couldn’t tell you. I think my raspberries really like me. It’s how they taste naturally.”
“Mhm, I could have figured. As a nature witch, you have a talent for gardens.”
Your grandmother chuckles mischievously and that is the moment when your grandfather stirs the conversation into a different direction.
“___ my girl, now I must ask something.”
“Yes, grandpa?”
“Why are you all dating?”
“Harald, you can’t ask that out of nowhere”, your grandmother gasps, dropping the wipe on the counter to run to him and nudge his arm.
“It’s not out of nowhere. I really thought about it before I asked”, your grandfather defends himself.
“It doesn’t make it okay”, she throws back, but you assure her that it was alright to ask.
“I understand that it’s not really common to see, questions are allowed. Right, guys? Is it okay for you as well?”
“Of course. We are very open to answer your questions”, Taehyung says.
“I don’t have a lot of experience with polyamory, but I’m okay as well”, Jungkook says.
“Me too. I’ll try my best to answer”, Yoongi says, “I was honestly just waiting for you guys to ask us. I know it must be weird to see your granddaughter return with three men by her side.”
“Not weird just…uncommon.”
“Gosh Harald, stop being so negative.”
“What? I’m just saying. It must be uncommon for you too. I’m sure they know that it’s not something you see every day.”
“Harald!”
“It’s really okay, grandma. We know it’s not seen a lot. It would be weird if you weren’t confused.”
Agatha gives up with a sigh and sits down by her chair.
“Fine, okay. I admit that I’m a little curious as well.”
“What do you want to know? I don’t want you guys to have a bad idea of polyamory so I’m really open to all questions”, you say.
“What does it mean to be poly? Is that what you call the dating you are doing?”
“Yes, that’s the official name for it.”
“It sounds really stressful to me”, your grandfather says.
“It can be stressful if you don’t communicate and understand each other. If you talk and respect each other, it’s not stressful at all.”
“But how can you spend enough time with every person?”
“It’s easy for us because we live in the same estate, so sometimes we spend time by being in the same room.”
“I would also say that it really helps to make a schedule”, Taehyung says.
“A schedule?”
“Indeed. We sit down and make a plan of when someone wants to spend time with another. We plan dates, schedule holidays and decide on who wants to spend time with whom.”
“So you decide on special date days just for this one pairing? Are you even couples? How does it work?”
“Yes, we plan special couple days so nobody feels left out. Not all of us are dating however.”
“How can I understand that?”
“I’m dating Yoongi, Tae and Kook”, you say, “while Yoongi is only dating Kook and me.”
“I am dating ___, Yoongi and Tae”, Jungkook says, “but Tae only dates ___ and me.”
“So you and you”, your grandpa points at Yoongi and Taehyung respectively, “are just friends?”
“Indeed we are.”
“I guess.”
“But how does that work?”
“We aren’t interested in each other”, Yoongi says, “but we respect each other enough not to want to break up the polycule.”
“Indeed. We spend friendship time with each other, isn’t that so?”
“I guess”, Yoongi murmurs, avoiding Taehyung’s eye contact shyly.
“This is really mindboggling to me. All of it”, your grandfather says and looks at your grandma, “do you understand it, Agatha?”
“Oh Harald, why must you be so negative? If it makes our___ happy, then I understand everything I need to understand.”
“I wasn’t judging. I am just really confused. Don’t you get jealous or insecure?”
“Sometimes”, Taehyung says, “I think that jealousy can’t even be prevented in monogamous relationships and there are definitely more opportunities to get jealous in a polycule. Sometimes a person wants attention from someone, but the person they want affection from is busy with someone else. Jealousy or insecurities are unavoidable.”
“Exactly, sometimes you also feel as if your time spent with them is shorter than that of the others and you get jealous of that”, Jungkook agrees.
“Or as if you received less love than others, which can make you feel insecure”, Yoongi says.
“But the most important thing to remember is that jealousy is human and that it is important to talk about it. When one of us gets jealous or insecure, we sit down to talk and fix the issue together”, you say.
“It really helps because almost all of the time, the insecurities are gone after the conversation”, Taehyung says.
“And we realise that the jealousy was useless”, Jungkook says.
“I see. I might start to understand a thing or two. I thought that you never get jealous and found it unbelievable. It’s good to hear that jealousy happens, but that you talk about it”, your grandpa says and reaches out to caress your hand, “my girl, you have this from your grandmother. She always wants to talk about everything.”
“Talking about the issue is important. Otherwise it will linger and become an unwanted curse on your heart.”
“That is true, my darling witch”, your grandfather says and kisses her cheek.
She leans in with a mischievous giggle.
“Now one last question. You know me, I’m too nosy.”
“Yes?”
“Does it mean that intimacy is always together?”
“Harald, you are inappropriate”, Agatha says with a slap to his arm.
“I’m just saying. You know, the seventies were a wild time. Your grandmother and I have some experiences with org-”
“Harald!”
Your grandfather lifts his hands in defeat.
Your grandmother clicks her tongue, “crazy. Please don’t listen to him, he is being childish.”
Taehyung and Jungkook chuckle knowingly and exchange a boyish look with your grandfather.
“Do not worry. I find it very important to make sexuality a normal topic and to remove the negative stigma around it. Without sex, none of us would be here right now and intimacy can be a very important part to show affection to the people you love. So I believe that it is important to see sex as something positive and normal, instead of demonising it. Of course it is very important to keep such conversations age appropriate, but I see no evil in talking about it between adults”, Taehyung says.
“I agree, yes”, your grandfather says, “I don’t even want details, just a yes or no.”
“May I answer it?” Taehyung asks to which all of you consent to with a nod. So he looks at your grandfather and talks, “sometimes we share intimacy between more than two people, but most of the time, intimacy is shared between two people.”
“What about you and Yoongi?”
“We do not sleep with each other.”
“I see. Forgive me for asking.”
“Worry not. I hope that I could answer your questions.”
“You could”, your grandfather says and looks to the side. He seems just a little embarrassed to have asked such a question.
“Now I have a question as well”, your grandma says.
“Yes?”
“Does polyamory mean that you like men and women?”
“It can, but not always. There are also strictly same sex polycules or non binary polycules.”
“What does non binary mean?”
“Well, to put it very short. It means when you don’t identify as female or male. In a sense the person can identify as both or neither. This is the very short answer.”
“I see. And in your case it means that you are all attracted to men and women?”
“Yes, in my case it does. However I identify as queer. Gender isn’t important for my attraction to form, as I am drawn to the person and not their gender identity and I feel most comfortable in identifying as queer.”
“Gender doesn’t matter to me either, so I resonate most with being bisexual”, Jungkook says.
“I don’t do labels. I like who I like”, Yoongi says.
“I don’t know what I am. Sometimes I think about kissing a girl”, you confess, “I never told this before. Please don’t tell mom and dad, they don’t know.”
“How should we tell them?” your grandmother says with a fond laugh on her lips.
“Ah yeah, I totally forgot that this isn’t the real world. Damn, it’s insane to think that we’re in a magical afterlife right now. It feels so real.”
“In an unexplainable, but wonderful way this is real.”
You smile at the thought, reaching out to hold your grandparent’s hands.
“I’m so happy that it is. I really missed you so much.”
“We missed you too, my honeybee.”
“My girl, hm, my girl.”
“How is it possible for grandpa to be here? You said that you would tell me later.”
“Ah yes, I did”, she says, shifting into a more comfortable position, “there is a ritual you can do to mark the soul of a person so it is worthy to live in this realm after death.”
“There is?”
“Yes, yes there is. Harald, get me the book”, she says and gestures to the bookcase in the living room.
Your grandfather stands up, “the purple one?”
“No, the black one with the moon on the front.”
“Okay.”
He looks for it for a moment, returning with it once he found it. He places it on the table and sits down. Your grandmother opens it in the middle. Drawings of spell materials are on the right page while the left describes the ritual in detail.
“It is a very difficult ritual and dangerous too.”
“Yeah it really is”, Yoongi agrees, “if you get the mixture wrong, the soul ends up cursed.”
“So you know the spell?”
“No, I haven’t heard of it before, but I know what citrine powder mixed with too much beryl dust does. Especially when you use it in this kind of way and with these enchantments. It can curse the soul so that after death, it dissolves into nothing.”
“You know a lot about magic, don’t you?”
“Yoongi was a student of Nilrem.”
Your grandmother widens her eyes in surprise.
“Nilrem? The creator of magic?”
“The bringer of magic, yes. He always said that he came from another universe, but he was honestly crazy so I don’t know if he just made stuff up.”
“This is actually very shocking to me. ___ told me that you had knowledge in magic, but I never connected the dots that it is because you were one of Nilrem’s students.”
“Yeah no, I was”, he says shyly, scratching the side of his neck.
“Fascinating”, she says and giggles shyly, “please forgive me, but this feels as if I am meeting a celebrity.”
Yoongi blushes and looks to the side. You give his cheek a little kiss.
“He’s so cool, isn’t he?”
“Don’t say that”, he whispers, nudging you under the table.
“Mhm, he is the coolest”, you say and smooch him a second time despite his protesting nudge.
Your grandmother watches it fondly before looking back into the book.
“I bet you already know what you have to do for the spell to work, don’t you?”
“No please, don’t feel inferior in my presence. I seriously don’t know a lot about magic”, he assures her. He is being humble for her sake. It is obvious to all of you that he is.
“Did you enchant grandpa with this spell?”
“Yes I did. I measured the ingredients multiple times and practiced the spell many times.”
“So you can practice spells?”
Your grandmother looks at Yoongi.
“Please go ahead, Agatha”, he tells her, giving her enough confidence to continue.
“Yes you can. There is a method where you can enchant a hay puppet with it and then throw it into flames. When the smoke turns black, the spell would fail but if it turns white, the spell is correct.”
“I see. This is actually so helpful. When Yoongi was in a magical coma, I got help from Meredith and her coven.”
“I know Meredith.”
“Yes, we got help from them and they tested spells by drawing blood from Jungkook and inflicting the portions with the curse. It was really fascinating and I never thought that it was possible.”
“Oh you know so much already, my honeybee”, she says with great melancholy in her eyes, “it’s correct that you can find an antidote against blood curses by testing it on small amounts of the right blood”, she says and looks at Jungkook, “that would mean that you are from Yoongi’s bloodline.”
“I am. Wow, how did you know?” Jungkook gasps.
“The vampire curse is just a little different in each Creator’s blood, which means their creations are each just a little different because the change is based on the Creator’s blood. Which means that Meredith could only successfully test out the different antidotes on your blood because you shared Yoongi’s specific curse properties. It wouldn’t have worked otherwise.”
“Wow, I didn’t know that”, Jungkook confesses, “did you?”
Yoongi shakes his head, “not so detailed. I knew that my sire line shares the same curse as me, but I didn’t know that my curse also changed their blood to be the same as mine.”
“Does that mean that they’re the same in here as well?” you ask.
“No”, she shakes her head, “in here no curses can reach. You are all how you were when you were still human”, she glances at Yoongi, “or witches.”
Yoongi looks at his hands with widened eyes, as if he just realised what it meant to be free of his curse.
“Oh.”
“Wow, this is so cool”, you are too occupied with being excited to notice, “you know so much, grandma. This world is so cool and this spell is even cooler. Does this mean that I could make sure that they find peace in this world if they ever die?”
“You could, but you have to be careful”, she furrows his brows in seriousness, “this curse isn’t to take lightly. I only started practicing it once I knew I had complete control over my powers and I only put it on your grandfather after practicing it for months.”
“I understand. I won’t do it without practice, I promise.”
“That’s what I want to hear, my honeybee”, she says and caresses your cheek, “I’m so proud of you.”
You lean into her touch, feeling so very warm in your chest.
“Thanks, grandma.”
Taehyung helps with washing the dishes after dinner, while Jungkook and Yoongi help your grandfather outside with the animals. You stay with your grandmother and Taehyung, telling her more about how you think that your boys are the coolest people ever. She listens to you happily. After cleaning up, you play cards until your grandparents get too tired and excuse themselves for the night.
Your grandparents are the first to wash up, while Jungkook and Taehyung say that they will unpack their bags a little. You are the next to wash up, now currently leaving the bathroom in your coziest pyjamas.
“Careful.”
“Oh? Oops”, you stop in your tracks after almost crashing into Yoongi.
He lowers his hand, having wanted to knock.
“Did you want to knock?”
He nods his head.
“I didn’t hear anything, so I didn’t know if it was empty already. Human hearing and shit, it’s useless”, he says, making you chuckle.
“It’s empty now”, you tell him and step out of the doorframe, “if you’re quick, you even get the warmth.”
“Yeah, thanks uhm”, he says and disappears inside.
You study the closed door for a moment, having to smile. He’s especially cute tonight. Really awkward. You love when he’s awkward, because he gets so adorable when he is.
Jungkook is in your bedroom, turning to you when you enter. He looked at your desk before that. His eyes begin sparkling, his lips curl into a smile.
“Hey there”, he says.
“Hey there”, you say.
“Wow, I love the pyjamas. Purple. The colour fits you so well.”
“Thanks, heh”, you say, posing for him in a cute way.
He appreciates it with sparkling eyes and the brightest smile ever.
“And they’re really soft.”
“I can tell”, he says and continues with a shy gleam in his eyes, “I didn’t wanna be all alone downstairs, so I waited for you. I hope you don’t mind.”
“Not at all. Did you find something you like?”
“I looked at the drawings on your desk. Are they yours?”
“Yup, my childhood drawings.”
“Wow, you had talent.”
You close the distance between you and him, travelling your eyes over the drawings.
“I did, didn’t I? I mostly painted the cottage, my grandparents and the animals. This is Moo and this is supposed to be Jumper”, you say, pointing at the childish drawing of a cow and a brown rabbit.
“I can totally see the resemblance. You really nailed Jumper’s long ears.”
“I did, yeah”, you say, having to snicker.
Jungkook snickers as well, rubbing his hand up and down your back in an innocent show of affection. He ends the adoration with a little massage of your neck and a soft brush down your hair. You really love receiving it, feeling safe in his presence.
“The fabric’s really soft. You’re right”, he says, caressing your back again.
“I know, it’s so comfy.”
He leans in and sniffs you by your shoulder.
“Hm, smells good too.”
“It’s the detergent we always use.”
“It’s nice.”
He kisses your shoulder in an innocent show of affection, then straightens up to look at the drawings on the wall. More drawings of the cottage and its animals, a few drawings of flowers and other plants and some are family portraits of you and your grandparents.
“It’s kinda cute that they kept all of this even in the afterlife”, he says.
“I know, it’s so cute. Do you think that it looks different here than it did last time?”
“Yeah, totally. More alive I would say and a lot more lived in.”
“Yeah, I think so too. Did you test out the bed yet?”
He shakes his head, “I didn’t know if I could. I’m still in my clothes and all.”
“No, you totally could have”, you assure him and walk to your bed. You throw yourself onto it, bouncing on it with a big grin on your lips.
Jungkook laughs in fondness.
“Come here, the bounce is great.”
Jungkook closes the distance and sits down next to you, laughing loudly when you bounce next to him, making him shake around this way.
“Do it too.”
Jungkook does as he is told, bouncing on the mattress with silly laughter on his lips. You have to laugh as well, wiggling your toes because it’s so fun to be silly with him.
“Ah, I love it here”, you say, dropping into the sheets with your arms stretched far from you.
Jungkook rests his weight on his hand, having his torso turned to you.
“It’s really nice here, yeah”, he agrees.
“It also smells so nice”, you say, sniffling vividly.
Jungkook breathes in deeply, “yeah right. Like fresh laundry and hay.”
“Yeah, so nice.”
“My nose is so weak though. It’s a little weird not to smell a million scents all the time.”
“Gosh, this must feel like a holiday.”
“It does. I can only smell the laundry, the hay and your soap. At home I would smell your emotions and your blood and the animals outside and, and, and”, he huffs out air, “damn, I really smell a lot don’t I?”
“You really do.”
“Ah, it’s nice to take a break from it.”
Silence overcomes you where Jungkook gazes at you and you gaze at him. You end up having to smile at him. He retorts it and shifts his eyes to your stomach.
“You’ve got a little skin showing”, he says, reaching to fix the slipped up shirt.
“I know, the movement made my shirt slip up.”
“Mhm”, he hums and does the unthinkable thing of pulling the shirt further up your tummy so he could lean down and blow raspberries on it.
“No please!” you squeak, lifting your legs and grabbing his head because it tickles so much.
Jungkook does it again, forcing the loudest cackle to escape you.
“Koo stop”, you complain, trying to push his head away.
“Sorry”, he laughs and pulls the shirt down. He lies down next to you and attacks your neck next.
“This isn’t better, Kook stop it”, you complain in cackles and little squirms.
Jungkook smiles against your skin. His heart is racing like crazy in his chest.
“You’re so fucking cute”, he whispers and goes to attack you again.
“Please”, you squeal, having to laugh honestly and loudly. He is tickling you, but it doesn’t feel awful. It feels good. Safe. Tingly. You can’t stop laughing, trying to fight him off with soft tugs at his strong arm.
But Jungkook is stronger than you, pinning you down even more by lying some of his weight on your chest and attacking the other side of your neck.
He probably would have teased you to the point of tears of laughter if someone hadn’t knocked on your door. He stops instantly, lifting his head. Did you wake your grandparents?
Knock. Knock.
“Yeah?” you call out.
“It’s me”, Yoongi says.
“Come in.”
The door opens and in steps Yoongi. He is in his black pyjamas with his hair unstyled and his cheeks looking especially dewy. He closes the door, waddling to your bed. Then he stands. Stands and stares and rubs his own tummy.
“Do you need something, my love?” you ask him, sitting up in bed.
Jungkook sits up as well, looking at Yoongi with curious eyes.
“I was maybe thinking that, I don’t know, maybe uhm maybe, uhm”, he stutters, blushing shyly, “nevermind, it’s stupid”, he says and tries to flee.
You however stop him with a gentle touch to his inner wrist.
“You can talk to us”, you assure him, giving him a sweet smile, “what’s the matter, love?”
“Uhm”, Yoongi begins, “uhm, uh. Do you wanna, uhm, share a bed tonight?” he finally gets out, looking at Jungkook.
“Me?” Jungkook makes sure.
Yoongi nods his head, touching his own ear to soothe himself.
“I was thinking maybe it could be nice. I don’t know, it’s stupid. Sorry, it’s stupid.”
“No, it’s not. I love this idea”, Jungkook says and reaches out to touch Yoongi’s waist, “I would love to share a bed with you, my hyungie.”
“Okay. That’s cool”, Yoongi says dryly but with flushed cheeks.
“Is that okay with you, ___?” Jungkook makes sure.
You look between them. Jungkook is excited, while Yoongi is nervous.
“Of course that’s okay with me. You two deserve all the bed snuggles in the world”, you say and grin, “I also get to snuggle Tae, so that’s a win for me.”
Jungkook chuckles fondly while Yoongi relaxes in relief.
“That’s true, Tae snuggles are very nice”, Jungkook says and pecks your cheek, “is the bathroom empty?”
“Yeah”, Yoongi confirms.
“Coolio, I’ll wash up and I’m expecting you in the guest bed once I’m done”, he says and snickers, rolling out of bed to leave the room.
He closes the door.
Yoongi sits down on bed instantly, taking your hands. He squeezes them so tightly, one might wonder if he wanted to crumble them.
“I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
“I don’t wanna make you feel as if you’re not important to me. I, I love sleeping next to you, but I, I wanna spend time with Jungkook too. Sometimes. I’m sorry, Please don’t be too mad at me.”
“Gosh Yoongi, you’re worrying for nothing”, you say in a fond chuckle and kiss his cheek. You keep close afterwards, running your fingers through his hair, “I’m not mad at you. This is part of what being poly is. Sometimes you just wanna spend time with a certain person, but that doesn’t mean the other automatically loses value. I don’t feel mad that you crave Kookie time tonight.”
Yoongi relaxes his shoulders, gazing at you.
“Thank you for understanding, you’re so…” he sighs and speaks in a softer voice, “I’m a mess and you’re calm. This is all new to me. I haven’t done poly before. I’m a mess. I practiced outside ‘cause I was scared of your reaction. You’re so calm. I feel peaceful.”
“Gosh Boongie, you cutie. I’m glad that I make you feel at peace”, you say and kiss his cheek a second time.
He leans into the affection, closing his eyes halfway.
“I also understand your feelings about doing poly for the first time. It’s my first time as well and I’m really scared to mess up, but I think that our little family can make it work.”
“Yeah me too”, he agrees, nodding his head.
“We’re doing really well, I think.”
He nods his head, shifting his eyes to your intertwined hands. He traces your knuckles with his thumbs, following the movement with sparkling eyes.
“How are you liking the stay here?” you ask him because you crave just a little more of his voice.
“Good. I think it’s good”, he says, nodding his head.
“Yeah? Me too. I really love it here. Gosh Yoongi, it was my dream to show this place to you. It makes me so happy that you can finally see it.”
“I like it, yeah”, he meets your eyes, “I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
“I didn’t talk a lot.”
“At dinner?”
“Yeah.”
“That’s okay, my love. You were perfect. I can assure you that my grandparents love you.”
“I hope. I’m really nervous.”
“I can tell, but don’t be. You’re doing really well”, you assure him, combing your fingers through his soft hair.
“Thank you”, he whispers.
You kiss his cheek, rubbing his back afterwards.
“I spent so much of my early childhood in this room. I have really dear memories of it.”
“It’s a good room.”
“Yeah it is”, you agree and stand up to get the drawings from the table. You sit down next to him and show them to him, “I painted a lot in my free time. Mostly the cottage, the animals and my grandparents. Do you recognise the cow?”
“Is it the one outside?”
“Correct. Her name’s Moo. I named all of the animals here, which is why the names are very unoriginal.”
Yoongi smiles softly and takes the drawing with careful fingers.
“Moo is a good name for a cow.”
“I guess so, yeah”, you snicker, “the bunnies are called Jumper, Flopsi and Daisy.”
“Cute.”
“Yeah, they’re so cute. The second cow is called Milky.”
He laughs.
“Don’t laugh, I told you the names are very unoriginal.”
“It’s cute, I’m laughing ‘cause it’s cute”, he says, meeting your eyes shyly. You give him a grin, kissing his lips afterwards.
“You’re cute.”
He looks away, blushing instantly.
“You’ve been freaking cute the entire day. Do you know that, my love?”
He shakes his head, touching the side of his neck.
“Now you know.”
“Okay”, he mumbles and tries to change the topic by flipping the drawings, “do the chickens have names too?”
“Of course they do. I was obsessed with Greek mythology back then, so I named all the chickens after Greek goddesses, except for Jolene who I named after the song because my grandparents always played it and I was obsessed with it.”
Yoongi smiles. He thinks that you were very adorable as a child.
“The second brown chicken is Helen, the white ones are Aphrodite and Hera. The two black ones are Persephone and Hades.”
“Hades?”
“I was obsessed with him. I genuinely thought that he was so cool.”
“You think the weirdest dudes are cool.”
“I think you’re cool.”
“Exactly.”
“Yoongi, come on”, you nudge his arm, “you’re not weird. In some strange way you remind me of him.”
“I do? Why?”
“He really loved Persephone and dedicated a lot to her. He’s this scary dude to so many people, but secretly he is just a big softie for his wife.”
“Yeah, I guess that’s true. I’m soft for you”, he says, leaning in to kiss your cheek.
You accept his affection with closed eyes.
“Didn’t he also kidnap her and force her to marry him and live with him? I don’t think that’s what a softie would do. He forced her and that’s definitely not me.”
You laugh, “no, that’s definitely the part we’ll ignore. You’re not like that at all.”
“Yeah, he’s a fucking asshole”, he agrees.
“God, you and your harsh tongue.”
“I mean it. He’s an asshole. I don’t think I’m like him at all. I would never force you to do anything.”
“Okay fine, I admit it. You’re not like him at all, sorry. You’re a cutie patootie”, you say and kiss his cheek.
He smiles, leaning in with a fluttering heart.
“But you are a softie. Don’t fight me on that.”
He laughs, “I can live with that.”
You snicker.
“Hyung?”
You and Yoongi look at the door where Jungkook is standing in a light blue pyjama set.
“Are you coming?” he asks Yoongi.
“Huh?”
Jungkook steps into the room, grinning cutely. He struts to the bed and takes Yoongi’s hands. It results in Yoongi gawking at him with big eyes and parted lips.
“I told you to wait for me in bed, but you’re still here. Get your butt over here”, he says, tracing his knuckles gently.
“Sorry, I’m already coming”, Yoongi murmurs and looks at you, “sleep tight, my princess.”
“Sleep tight as well, my prince. And you too my honey, sleep tight.”
“You too, my honey”, Jungkook says, stealing a loving kiss.
You smile, smiling brighter when Yoongi steals a kiss as well before he finally stands up. The two men turn to each other and soon after, leave the room.
“What are you thinking, hyungie? Do you wanna make music together?”
“Only if you want to. I don’t know, maybe, yeah. Or no. If you want to.”
“Why are you so nervous? It’s just me”, Jungkook is teasing.
“Shut up, you brat I…”
Their conversation drowns out as they close the door behind them, but seconds later, Jungkook’s bright laughter can be heard.
You sigh in fondness, grinning to yourself. You are so happy that they have each other. To think that they will spend a lovely evening with each other, doing stuff they enjoy doing together, just makes you so incredibly happy. You really hope that their night is wonderful and filled with safe intimacy.
You roll out of bed and leave your room in search of Taehyung. You can’t wait to spend time with him.
The cottage is empty. How weird. Where could he be? You look around for a bit, noticing that your grandpa left the lights on outside. You open the front door, which is surprisingly unlocked. How weird indeed. Your grandpa is normally very particular with locking the doors at night.
“Huh?”
You turn off the lights to see better. There are candles burning where the small table is. Someone is sitting by it. You squint your eyes. Taehyung. Taehyung is sitting by the table. Your heart flutters. There he is, you finally found him. Oh, you can’t wait to get to him.
You wrap a blanket around yourself and grab one for Taehyung, leaving the house afterwards in your slippers. The good thing about this magical realm is that it never gets dark enough that you feel blind. You can still walk comfortably even now that it is night. And yet somehow when you are lying in bed, trying to sleep, the night feels like the darkest night you have ever experienced. Perhaps it is the magic infused in this air, which makes the night as bright or as dark as one needs it to be.
Taehyung doesn’t hear you. In the real world, he would have lifted his head the moment you stepped out the door, but not here. He is still oblivious to you. Only when you tap his shoulder, does he finally react.
“Oh heavens”, he gasps, flinching vividly.
“Sorry, oh dear”, you get out, placing your hand on his shoulder, “it’s just me, don’t be scared.”
“Darling”, he whines, looking up at you with big eyes, “you frightened me. Do not sneak up on me like this.”
“I’m sorry”, you say and snicker, “gosh, this was hilarious. You should have seen your face.”
“Yes, yes make fun of me all you want, but the truth is that I almost died right now”, he says and touches his own chest, “my heart is racing. Feel it.”
You reach down and place your hand on his chest. He wasn’t lying. His heart is hammering against his ribcage.
“That’s true. Your pulse’s going crazy”, you say and giggle.
“Yes, because you frightened me”, he says, giving your hand a gentle squeeze.
“I’m sorry, really”, you chuckle, “but I have to make use of you guys’ weak senses. You guys keep startling me in the real world, so this is all just part of my revenge plan.”
He laughs.
“Oh how terribly mean of you. I will pay you back.”
“Will you now?”
“Yes. Yes, I will”, he says and hugs your waist, squishing his cheek against your stomach this way. He giggles, scrunching his nose.
He is such a cutie. You feel so incredibly soft for him. You ruffle his hair, making him look up at you this way. The candle light shows his sparkling puppy eyes. His features look so timelessly beautiful. You trace them gently, which makes him open and close his eyes at you slowly.
“Okay, okay. If you really have to”, you say with a fond smile on your lips, brushing your fingertips down the slope of his nose.
Taehyung giggles and nuzzles his nose into your stomach. A kiss comes next. He turns back to the table afterwards.
You follow his line of sight. He is drawing. Using what formidable light the candles emit to sketch your bedroom. He uses a photograph as reference, drawing it with impressive accuracy.
“Are you drawing my bedroom?” you ask him, running your hand up and down his back mindlessly. He is already a little cool to the touch.
“Indeed I am”, he says, “I want to sketch it so I can finally start on designing the murals.”
“Really? Wow Tae, I’m so excited.”
“Yes, me too. I haven’t worked on murals in years, although I truly enjoy the process of them. Working on your wing will be a lot of fun.”
“I can imagine”, you say and rub his back more vigorously, “gosh darling, aren’t you cold? You feel so cold to the touch. Here, let me.”
You place a blanket over his shoulders, smoothing it down carefully. Taehyung looks up at you with big puppy eyes, holding his breath. You end your affection with a soft brush of your fingers against the underside of his chin. He tilts his head as he chases the touch.
“Why?” he asks in a whisper.
“What do you mean?”
“Why did you put a blanket over me?”
“Because I know how chilly it can get and you don’t have superpowers keeping you warm right now.”
“I see. That is correct”, he says, lowering his eyes shyly. His pulse is racing. It flusters him terribly whenever you take care of him.
“Can I stay with you a little while?”
“Yes, of course. Of course, you can”, he says, scooting to the side to make space.
You take it instantly, looking into the notebook. Your left hand is resting on his thigh.
“Are these sketches for the flower murals?” you ask him, pointing at the opposite page.
“Indeed, they are. What do you think of them?”
“They look lovely.”
“Do you like them?”
“I really do. I’m already excited to have them on my walls. I love them.”
Taehyung giggles and rests his cheek on your shoulder, grinning brightly.
“Thank you so much. It makes me so happy to hear this”, he says and nuzzles.
You turn your head, placing a kiss on the tip of his nose. Taehyung sighs and chases your kiss.
You and he share a sweet moment. He tastes like smiles and chocolate. It is a lovely combination. You break the kiss with a stub of your nose, caressing his skin with it afterwards.
“You taste like chocolate.”
“I am eating chocolate”, Taehyung says and sits up, “do you want some?” he offers.
“Thank you”, you say, breaking off a row. You bite off a good piece and let it melt on your tongue, the other piece you feed to Taehyung. He allows you with a fluctuating pulse. Truly, you make him feel so giddy.
“What do you think of it?” he asks you in a soft voice.
“It’s slightly bitter but with a sweet aftertaste. I really like it.”
“I like it as well”, he says and lowers his eyes, letting out a shy giggle. He turns his head away, “oh heavens.”
“What’s the matter?”
“When I look at you, my heart races. The feeling is so unfamiliar.”
“Can I feel it?”
Taehyung nods his head, holding his breath when you place your hand on his chest.
Badums. Badums. Badums.
His pulse is rhythmical and steady, keeping him alive here in this magical realm where no curse can reach and the world is alright. You circle your thumb in a gentle caress, lifting your eyes and meeting his shy gaze.
You smile. Taehyung retorts it.
“It’s racing.”
“It is.”
You kiss his cheek, speeding up his pulse for the duration of it. You pull back. Taehyung touches the spot you kissed, gazing at you with parted lips
“It fluttered when I did that”, you whisper.
“I know”, he breathes.
“It feels so strange, but in a good way.”
“I cannot get used to it.”
“You can’t?”
He shakes his head, “my heart stood still for centuries, but all of a sudden it beats again. I keep having to take deep breaths because I am so aware of it.”
“I can imagine. It must feel crazy to be alive again after all these years.”
“Crazy. I guess one can say it like this”, he whispers and turns away so he can draw again. Except that he doesn’t draw, twirling the pen in his fingers as his eyes race over the sketches.
You slide your hand to his side, hugging him and resting your cheek against his shoulder.
“Do you remember our first time?” you ask him.
“Our first time?”
You nod your head, “when we snuck away from acting class and hurried to my apartment. You were so touchy and I felt so giddy because you hadn’t been like this until then.”
Taehyung smiles softly, listening to you reminisce with a fluttering heart.
“I could barely unlock the door, but got nervous once inside. Do you remember?”
“I do.”
“Do you remember how we talked and shared some tea?”
“Of course I do. You told me that you didn’t have a lot of experience.”
“And you were so sweet about it”, you squeeze him gently, “do you remember the dreams we talked about?”
“You said that you wanted to make people happy.”
“And you told me that you wanted to be alive. That you wanted to be happy again.”
Taehyung lowers his eyes, tightening his jaw.
“Remember?”
“I do”, he whispers.
“Well, now you finally know how it feels to be alive”, you say and lift your head to gaze at him.
You furrow your brows.
“What’s the matter?”
“Nothing.”
“Tae, what’s the matter?”
“I don’t know”, he says and turns his head away when you try to cup his cheek.
You try again, doing it with both hands. You succeed, meeting his eyes.
“What’s the matter, darling?”
“I don’t know if I’m happy”, he whispers, forcing your brows to furrow. He attempts to look away, to hide because the worry in your eyes embarrasses him.
“Taehyung my darling oh god, this is so awful. Is there a reason why you feel this way?”
“I’m sorry, I just…I shouldn’t have said that.”
“No, please don’t be embarrassed. Talk to me, my darling.”
He meets your eyes again. Worry and love meet him there. Honest, deep love. The kind of love that wants to welcome and heal, to hold and cradle, to stay and grow. He remembers the last part of his wish then. That he wanted to be loved for who he truly is. He remembers it and realises that he can find this kind of love in your eyes. And as he realises it, his heart races unbearably, reminding him that he is experiencing the first part of his wish as well. He is alive and he is loved unconditionally.
Only the second part is hard to do. It wasn’t always difficult, or perhaps it was and he pretended that it wasn’t, and lately he is very aware of it, finding it hard to accept.
“Talk to me, my sweetest”, you whisper.
“It”, he begins and looks away because it is too embarrassing otherwise.
You allow him, holding his hand instead and listening to him with all your attention.
“It is difficult to be happy. I do not know what to do with myself now that I am…” he falters.
“It’s okay, take your time.”
“Namjoon is captured. He won’t ever hurt me and Jimin again. I should be happy, but I am not. I feel so lost.”
“Because we don’t have to hunt anything anymore?”
“No.”
“What then? If you want to tell me.”
“I want to tell you, but it is difficult to speak.”
“Do you want to write it down instead?”
He looks at his book. His pen. He picks it up and opens an empty page, writing down what he can’t speak. You allow him the time he needs, scratching his scalp all throughout.
Taehyung doesn’t take long. The unspeakable words aren’t much, but you know that sometimes the hardest words to speak are the shortest. I love you. I’m sorry. I need help. The words aren’t long and yet they are some of the hardest to speak for so many people. The way to the heart is short with them, which perhaps makes them so difficult to speak. Taehyung slides the book to you. You pick it up and read it.
“I feel lost and shaken, as if I am still drowning even now that I am on safe land. A scrambled mind and tortured body were my reality for decades and now I am to believe that I am free? How do I be free?”
You lift your eyes. He can barely keep up contact, but does it because he craves it.
“Oh Tae. My beloved, gentle Tae”, you get out and cradle his cheeks.
He leans into your safe touch, closing his eyes.
“I understand that the words are difficult to speak. This is a lot to feel all alone. How long have you been feeling this way?”
“Too long.”
“Gosh, come here”, you say, pulling him into a hug. You sway him gently, playing with his hair because you know that this soothes him.
Taehyung lets it happen with closed eyes and his arms tight around you. His nose is buried in the crook of your neck, his skin shares warmth with yours. The once scary words feel manageable in your arms.
“I’m so sorry that you feel this way, my darling. It must be so unfamiliar to be free after so many decades. I don’t know if you want advice from me and I honestly don’t know if I can even give you some, but I want to be there for you. That much is sure, you’re not going to figure it out alone because I’ll help you with it.”
Taehyung smiles and it is honest. He nods his head in understanding.
“Yeah, exactly. I’ll be with you. We’ll do it together. Everyone always says that healing is easy, but it’s not. Healing can be ugly and hard and scary. But we’ll do it together, okay?”
“Yes, okay”, he whispers, having to lift his head to make sure that you were truly real.
You cup his cheeks, caressing his skin. He smiles and so you smile as well.
“I’m happy right now”, he confesses in a quiet voice.
“You are?”
He nods his head.
“I doubt a lot in my life. I think the love I receive is an act of pity.”
“No-”
“Except yours. I don’t doubt your love for me. I gaze at it in wonder and awe because I find it unbelievable that you still love me after all I did, but I never doubt it.”
Your heart flutters.
“Thank you so much. You told me that your wish was to make people happy. Well, you are making me happy”, he smiles shyly, “at least happier for now.”
You laugh softly. He does too.
“You’ll be happy again, I promise”, you say and tug a strand of his dark hair behind his ear, “also thank you for saying this. I love you so, so much and it makes me happy to know that I don’t make you doubt it.”
“I love you too. I have done so ever since we snuck away from acting class and will always do so.”
“Oh my darling Taehyung”, you whisper, leaning in until you can rub your nose against his’ slowly.
“Yes, this will never change”, he whispers, matching your rhythm with his eyes closed.
“Oh my sweet, gentle Tae”, you breathe, kissing him softly afterwards.
He kisses you back, holding you in his hands as if you were the greatest treasure. And in some way you were. He feels lost and vast of happiness most of the time, but not right now. You gave him support again, an anchor to hold onto and hope to cling to. Maybe the feelings won’t last forever, but at least for a little while, Taehyung feels safe again. And that is perfectly alright for him, because sometimes just a little while is already enough to keep the soul going.
Taehyung breaks the kiss so he could hug you against his chest and feel your heartbeat this way. He cannot hear it, but that is okay for him because he can feel it match with his’ tonight. He is alive with you. He is alive and safe and loved. Taehyung presses you closer, inhaling the scent of you to make all of this realer.
“Our hearts are beating the same”, he whispers.
“I can feel it too”, you whisper.
“Wow, I really love you so much.”
You smile, “I love you too.”
“Holy fuck, I really love you.”
You laugh, “I fucking love you too, Tae.”
He laughs, “you have me cursing. That’s what you are doing to me.”
You snicker, “it’s cute.”
Wind rushes in the trees and reminds you of your own vulnerability. You and Taehyung tug the blankets tighter around your bodies, but the cold remains.
“I am very cold.”
“Yeah, me too. Maybe we should continue the cuddles inside”, you suggest, “after a warm shower and under the sheets.”
“This sounds very cozy.”
“It is cozy. Come on, we’ll get warm inside.”
“Yes, okay okay”, he says, standing up and packing his stuff so you could get inside.
Taehyung allows you to brush your teeth first because he still has to wash up for the night and will therefore take longer. So after brushing your teeth, you go to your room alone. The slit under the door of Yoongi’s and Jungkook’s room shows no light anymore. They must be asleep already. You wish then a silent good night behind the closed door and slip inside your room.
Taehyung comes inside not long after, still wrapped in a towel and nothing else.
“My bag is in the guest bedroom”, he says with a pout, “I forgot to take out my sleeping clothes.”
“Oh dear. Do you want to borrow some of my clothes?”
“Your clothes?”
“Yes, wait”, you roll out of bed to get to your bag, “luckily for you, I have another sleeping gown with me. You’ll look really fancy in it. I could also offer you some of my panties.”
He laughs, “I have to decline. My good parts are not going to stay in such little fabric.”
You snicker, “I bet it would look pretty, though. Here, I can offer you this”, you say, unravelling a long night gown, “tada.”
It is made out of lilac cotton fabric and has a rather straight cut to it. It isn't at all the prettiest nor the fanciest dress, but it is comfortable and that is all which matters.
“Oh pretty. It will do”, he says and exchanges the towel for the dress. He twists and turns in it, fixing the creases in the front, “how do I look?”
“It actually fits you perfectly, wow, you are so handsome in it. You also kind of remind me of Ebenezer Scrooge.”
“Hey”, he gasps, having to laugh, “if you were attempting to compliment me, it did not work.”
You laugh, “no, it’s cute. It fits you really well.”
“It is so comfortable. No wonder you took it with you”, he says and wiggles his hips, “oh? I feel so very free between my legs this way”, he jokes, gyrating his hips in a funny way and making you laugh with it.
“You look so handsome. Gosh, Tae you cutie you, com’ere”, you hug him, using the momentum to pull him into bed.
He falls onto you with a squeaked laugh, burying you under his weight, which makes you laugh and hug him even closer.
“Careful, ah, darling you are going to expose my bottom this way”, he giggles, trying to fight you gently.
“Com’ere you cutie, god you cutie”, you care rather little about his complaints, rolling around the sheets with his body in a tight lock.
After some rolling around and soft wrestling, you have him on his back with his face under your lips as you attack it with kisses. Taehyung lets it happen with giggles and squirms, feeling so goddamn giddy that his heart might burst in his chest.
“Mwuah”, you end your love attack with a loud sound, lifting your head so you can grin down at him. You slide your hand down his torso so you could fix the messy dress, caressing his waist afterwards.
“What?” he whispers.
“I just love looking at you.”
“Oh”, Taehyung blushes and scrunches his nose shyly, “I love looking at you too.”
“Hehe”, you let out and give him a kiss, lying down next to him afterwards.
Taehyung sits up, tugging you in under the blanket. You let it happen with a fluttering heart.
“Thankies”, you say.
“My darling should stay warm”, he says and rubs his hand up and down your covered arm, “are you warm this way?”
“Yeah, I am.”
“Wonderful.”
He leans down to litter your cheek and temple with kisses. He even kisses your ear and leaves a few tender love nibbles on your neck.
“My sweetest.”
He snuggles into the pillow, holding your hand. He gives you a cute grin.
“You are right, this is very cozy.”
“Right? It’s this place. Something about this room makes everything ten times cozier.”
“I truly believe that it is because everything is placed perfectly so the energies can flow.”
“Yeah, this could actually be it. It always felt healing to be here.”
“I can imagine. I find great healing here as well and it hasn’t even been a day.”
You smile, “I’m glad that you are healing. You deserve it.”
Taehyung kisses your knuckles in gratefulness.
“Thank you”, he breathes.
“I mean it. You and Jimin, you both deserve it.”
“Thank you.”
“Mhm, I mean it”, you say and kiss his lips.
You and he stay closer afterwards, still holding hands. You gaze at each other, feeling so connected that nothing could separate your souls.
You do not know how much time passes like this, but it must have been enough to allow sleepiness to settle in your fibers.
You yawn, setting off Taehyung as well.
“Oh dear, this sleepiness came out of nowhere, wow”, you say.
“Indeed”, he agrees mid-yawn.
“Do you want to turn off the lights?”
“Yes, we could do that.”
“You have to do it, you’re closer.”
“Okay, okay”, Taehyung says and reaches for the lamp, “I started saying okay, okay because of you”, he says, switching off the light, “it is addictive, I can’t seem to want to stop.”
“It’s cute, don’t stop”, you say, “it means that we’re spending so much time together that we started picking up habits from each other. I catch myself adding rather in front of words because of you.”
“I noticed”, Taehyung says and intertwines his hand with yours, “it is like we became versions of each other.”
“Yes, definitely”, you say and close the distance between you and him to rest your forehead against his’. You kiss his nose, nuzzling your own nose against it afterwards, “I love you, Tae.”
“I love you too, my sweetest”, he says, closing his eyes.
“I hope you’ll have a good sleep tonight.”
“I will. I am with you. I will.”
You smile, burying your hand in his hair to play with it until sleep drags you down. You are with him and he is with you. Sleep is going to be good. It truly will be.
“___?”
“Yes, Tae?”
“I just…I don’t know why I called your name, I guess that I wanted to talk some more.”
You chuckle.
“What do you want to talk about?”
“Whatever. I really enjoy the sound of your voice.”
“Gosh Tae, you’re so sweet. I love your voice as well.”
He relaxes in a small wiggle, running his fingers over your scalp as best as your hair texture allows him to.
“What is your favourite colour?”
“My favourite colour?”
“Yes. Do not ask why this is my first question, I didn’t know what to ask.”
You laugh softly, “it’s a good question. Mhm, I guess my favourite colour is the colour of your blush after I called you mine.”
“___”, he gasps, “why would you say such a thing? Oh, heavens.”
He makes you laugh. He is so adorable when he flusters.
“I’m serious. It’s a very pretty colour.”
“You”, he wraps his limbs around you, shaking you around gently, “I will cuddle you to silence. Stop it.”
You giggle into his chest. Taehyung lets you go after a few moments, heart racing very noticeable.
“Do you have more questions, you cutie?”
“I do not know. I am afraid that you will use them to fluster me again.”
You laugh, “I would never do such a thing.”
“Yes, you would. You became such a flirt. I remember how shy you were in the beginning, how I always managed to fluster you and now look at what you have become.”
“Hey, do not complain about the monster you created. If you hadn’t been such a smooth talker with me all the time, I never would have learned all this stuff.”
He laughs, “I cannot even argue you on this one. You have shown me the truth.”
“See? I’ve simply learned from the best.”
Taehyung hums and tries to kiss your lips but because of the blinding darkness, he ends up snogging your nose.
“Ew Tae, that was so wet”, you whine, wiping your nose on his shirt.
“Forgive me, I aimed for your lips but I…ew? Excuse me, did you just call my kiss ew?”
“I did. Loud and proud. You completely snogged my nose.”
Taehyung closes his lips around your nose again and drags his tongue over it as sloppily as possible.
“Tae”, you squeak, fleeing him, “why did you do that?”
“This is for calling my kiss ew. Now I gave you something truly ew.”
“You’re so gross, dear god”, he makes you laugh. Wiping your nose on his shirt again, you snicker and chuckle. He does the same.
You tilt your head, touching his chin to feel for his lips. Once you found them, you make your move, claiming them in a kiss. He kisses you back eagerly, ending it with a soft bite to your lower lip. You stay close, smiling goofily.
“This was wonderful.”
“It really was. Gosh Tae, I love kissing you. It’s been so long since we shared a night of kisses.”
“Indeed, far too long. Either danger kept us apart or we fought or were forced to be separated. These past few years haven’t been very kind to our bond.”
“Yeah, they really haven’t.”
Taehyung feels for your lips and kisses you. He tastes minty, his lips are soft and so nicely moisturised. His big hand cradles your face, soaking you skin in his warmth. You touch his chest because his racing pulse feels amazing to you.
The kiss breaks because Taehyung is so human here and humans need air way sooner than vampires.
“Oh heavens”, he gasps for air, “I genuinely became out of breath.”
“Now you finally know why I have to keep breaking the kiss in real life.”
“Now I truly know. Is this also how you see when we kiss in darkness?”
“Yes, it’s exactly like that.”
“Well, this is just heartbreaking. All this time, I believed that you were seeing me at least a little bit, but there is nothing. How are you even able to figure out where to kiss?”
“Practice. I’ve only known nights to be dark, so I learned how to navigate it.”
“I see. This is still very sad, you cannot even see me.”
“I know, it’s sad. But it’s also exciting because it feels like sensory deprivation without the blindfold.”
“Oh? Oh, yes it does. Oh how exciting, if I wasn’t so utterly exhausted I would have asked you to play.”
“It’s okay. I’m really exhausted too. Bringing you all here was really tiring.”
“I can imagine”, he rubs your back, “you are truly remarkable. I do not know if I told you already, but I am very proud of you.”
“Thank you, wow”, you whisper, feeling like floating. Being praised by him will never lose its spark.
“My darling witch”, he says with a kiss to your lips. One he only breaks when air is sparse and you are both just a little droopy from it.
You touch each other innocently, both having your eyes closed without managing to open them again. Sleep is so very close. The safe intimacy and love you exchanged only strengthened the tiredness.
“What do you imagine our days to look like from now on?” he asks in a sleepy whisper.
“Peaceful. Probably exhausting for me because I need to learn control, but once I did and we managed to get rid of Superior, I think our days will be peaceful.”
“I truly hope that they will be. I wished for peace for too long.”
“I promise you that they will.”
Taehyung sighs, hugging you against his chest.
“My sweetest ___”, he whispers, “I am so entirely grateful that I never lost you. There were so many chances where you could have been taken from me, so I am entirely grateful that you never were.”
“Me too, Tae. You’re very important to me.”
He sighs again, tangling his legs with yours. He yawns into your hair and smacks his lips.
“Sleepy”, he whispers, making you snicker.
“Me too.”
“Sleep tight, my darling. This time for real.”
“Sleep tight, you cutie.” Yes, sleep will be peaceful. It really will be.
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