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jeonggukkiepabo · 4 years

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MOONCHILD 🌙 6

SUMMARY: Soulmates are a common thing. Everyone has one. Some people think soulmates are the greatest gift fate could give, others are envious about happy couples that were lucky enough to receive a wonderful partner. One of them was Min Yoongi. Your time to meet your significant other hasn’t come yet, stumbling into the tattoo parlor with a simple idea in mind, not knowing that you will be bound to step by more often. When you leave for the first time, you’ll go home with your masterpiece of a tattoo.

When you leave for the second time, you’ll go home with not only one, but two soulmates.

The man that was supposed to be your only soulmate, the one that never wanted to tell you that he woke up with the exact same koi karp tattoo just sits and watches - until he can’t take the pain anymore.

GENRE: Soulmate!Au

PAIRINGS: Y/N x Taehyung / Y/N x Jungkook / Taehyung x Jungkook / Taehyung x Jimin / Jungkook x Jimin / Hoseok x Seokjin / Y/N x Yoongi

WORD COUNT: 8k

WARNINGS: mentions of anxiety, fluff, kissies, deep talk with yoongi, mentions of heartbreak

Somehow, it was easier to warm up to Namjoon and Jimin than you thought in the beginning. It’s a weird feeling, growing comfortable around basically strangers, but it feels like you’ve known them since forever. Thinking about it now, you’d totally agree to what Jungkook and Taehyung said before: a bond isn’t something random and that it’s impossible to ignore it. To you, it feels just right, without any further explanations needed. You even stopped wondering why you always feel so at ease when one of your mates is around, why any fears seem meaningless when you’re with them.

Because you couldn’t be happier about the bond you shared with your four… now boyfriends. Your soulmates. The loves of your life. Of course, everything is still new for you and the group’s dynamics are still confusing to you, but as Jimin once said: you’ve got time. Things are getting easier every day and everything is falling into place slowly, allowing you to feel lighter every day.

Soon enough, your spare days are consisting of either hanging around at the tattoo parlour or drawing in the bakery to at least spend some time with Jimin and Hoseok. You’ve grown closer to the latter, lucky to have a neutral person to talk to, someone unbiased when it comes to your lovelife.

He’s incredibly funny and you’d never complain about his teasing jokes, because you’re not the only victim; he’s unstoppable and your four boyfriends are his favorite target for his bickering. And Hoseok himself could only describe you with one word: endearing. He loves seeing you smile, loves to be the reason for your adorable reactions. The red haired man knows that he adores people way too much for his own sake, but you’re definitely one of a kind. He almost feels a soft lightning of jealousy whenever he notices how differently you brighten up once one of your soulmates comes into sight, but he’s quick to remind himself that he has an adorable soulmate on his own.

Hoseok even created a special cupcake flavor for you - a cotton candy cupcake with bubblegum frosting, pink and blue, melting on your tastebuds.

“Hobi those are amazing!” You smile as you lick the frosting off your cupcake, sprinkles sticking to your nose as you do so. Hoseok grins, shrugging his shoulders as he places another one in front of you. “I know right? The bubblegum frosting kills it! This one is the last, though. I don’t want to feed you cupcakes all day long. They aren’t going to be special to you any longer if you keep eating several of them every day.”You pout, looking over to your boyfriend to save you. Surely someone will make Hobi cave right? No one can resist you; you always end up having what you want.

“But I like your cupcakes, Hobi! Jimin, tell him that cupcakes are good for me. Some people might need vitamins, but I need cupcakes to live!” Jimin laughs, eyes disappearing as he holds up his hands in defence. Goodness, can you get any cuter? He can’t believe that their soulmate can be such a child sometimes. You’re worse than Jungkook and Taehyung and the three of you can become a dangerous trio.

“I can’t help it, peaches.” He walks over to you, bending down slightly to match your height. Then, he licks one fat stripe across your nose.

“Jimin!” You screech at the disgustingly wet feeling, but your boyfriend just giggles, licking his lips slowly.

“You had frosting on your nose, I couldn’t help it. Even though I have to say that I’m not a fan of the bubblegum.” He wiggles his eyebrows and you giggle quietly despite the sticky feeling not leaving your face.

“Yah! No sex in my bakery, Jimin go and do some dishes, mop the floor or do whatever you usually do at work!” Jin chimes in, gently slapping the back of Jimin’s head. You can’t help but laugh out loud as you notice Jimin’s dejected expression. He glares at you slightly, whilst you wiggle your eyebrow just like he did before. You get his “wait until we’re alone” message clearly and think that you might have to run away before his shift is done otherwise you might be in for a complicated time later.

“Karma, Minie. Thanks, Oppa! How are you doing, Jinnie? I haven’t seen you around in a while.” You smile sweetly, trying to distract him from your boyfriend before he gives him more work. The eldest sighs dramatically, showing you all the boxes he just carried inside the bakery.

“I spent the weekend in my hometown to see my family, but also went to this kind of coffee expo, that’s where I got all that new stuff, coffee beans with rose aroma, different oils to infuse the coffee and pastry and even some of those little sprinkles Hoseok loves using - but those glow in the dark!”

You scrunch your nose worriedly. “Are those healthy?”

“Yah! Who cares about health if you can have cupcakes that glow in the dark? Sometimes you’re the worldwide funny girl, Y/N.”

Jin laughs and shakes his head as he continues to carry the boxes into the storage room, mumbling how exciting those sprinkles are and that they were worth every cent. A big smile is plastered on your face and you’re sure it won’t fade anytime soon as you feel a warm sensation spreading through your entire body. This is one of your new safe places. You don’t know a lot about Seokjin and Hoseok, but they are possibly the nicest men you ever met (excluding your soulmates) and you often find yourself speaking with the two men, spending some quality time with them in the café. It feels like you’re a little family and you can’t help but giggle at the image that is now stuck in your mind; Jin being the loving grandma whilst Hoseok is the chaotic father that doesn’t even know his children’s friends' names.

“Hobi, please don’t put them on my cupcakes. I think Yoongi would love them though, they match his personality and that way you can test if they’re harmful or not.” You wink at the couple as you start collecting your belongings and shoving them into your backpack before returning your cup and plate to Jimin.

“Thanks, Minnie. I’ll see you tonight, right?” You press a kiss onto his lips before turning around to Hoseok.

“Hobi, help your man, you don’t have those strong arms for nothing! Thanks for the cupcake, I hope there’ll be more tomorrow!” Hobi laughs, shaking his head as he hands you a small bag of pastries for the boys in the parlour. You smile quickly before leaving. Jimin sighs behind, already missing your comforting presence.

“You have a lovely soulmate Jimin-ah.” Jimin perks up at the mention of you and he giggles quietly. Hoseok smiles at him, happy to see his friend so joyful, breathing happiness. Jimin has been glowing recently, and Hoseok knows who is responsible; and to be honest, he can’t really blame him.

“She’s the best”.

The days at the parlour are the most thrilling ones because Jungkook couldn’t stop suggesting to tattoo you, even if he’d only get to tattoo small little designs in hidden places. In the beginning, you were strictly against it, but his round doe-eyes combined with the adorable pout made it almost impossible to say no. And boy he knows it. He knows how to use his charms to make you cave in. So one day, you indeed gave in.

“Fine,” you sighed, “but make me a small dinosaur, I want something cute on my ankle.”

Firstly, he’s overjoyed that you said yes but then he replays the sentence in his mind and the thought is not so attractive anymore. Jungkook sighs, stomping his boot-cled foot on the floor.

“A small dinosaur? Why not something more.. dangerous?”

He can’t help but imagine you covered in his arts, only the prettiest pieces for you, and he can’t explain how much the thought arouses him. It has-scratch that-you have an effect on him that he can’t really comprehend. But… Come on, a small dinosaur? He expected better from you.

“I’m not dangerous, honey. I can still ask Yoongi to tattoo me one, though. If you’re not up for a challenge…” Smirking, you wait until he reacts, knowing that Jungkook would never say no to a challenge.

But what’s making him silently snap is not really the challenge but the thought of someone else accessing your skin. No. He’s not going to allow that; it’s either him or Tae, but no one else.

Behind you, Yoongi’s head pops out of the room he’s currently tattooing in.

“I’d say no as well, I hate those minimalist tattoos,” he replies before closing the door again, leaving you more than confused.

Once you look back to Jungkook, he already prepared some small designs despite his complaints. There is no way he is letting someone else tattoo your perfect skin, so he prepared a little t-rex, a stegosaurus and a cute little triceratops.

“The last one, the last one!” You clap your hands, excited for the new addition on your body. Jungkook grumbles, moving towards the desk to prepare a stencil.

“Get a girlfriend they said, it’ll be fun they said. Tae would never want a dinosaur tattoo from me.”

You frown, eyebrow raised as you look over to your boyfriend.

“Are you saying you regret being my mate? Because last night when you had your dick between my boo-”

“I didn’t say anything, calm down.” Jungkook rolls his eyes as he comes back to you again, pulling you into his own little tattoo corner. Sometimes you’re more dramatic than Jimin and he doesn’t know if he thinks it’s endearing or just slightly annoying. Usually, he goes for the first one.

Small tattoos were soon enough a weekly thing for you, sometimes Taehyung chimed in with an idea but it were mostly some scribbles from Jungkook’s sketchbook that caught your eye and were inked into your skin a few hours later. If the first dinosaur hadn’t really thrilled Jungkook, he began to adore these little additions to your skin somehow all fitting together. The two boys were getting protective of you and what you were getting on your skin, debating where and what to tattoo to make sure the whole would look pretty on you.

One day, Jungkook is just getting started to tattoo a little moon onto your wrist, next to the sun that he gave you last week when Yoongi comes into the parlour, cupcake and coffee in his hands. His eyes meet yours and for a second you see so many different feelings swirling in his orbs that you feel slightly uncomfortable, even with your boyfriend next to you.

“Y/N, again? Sometimes I wish I wouldn’t have pulled you into the parlour. Don’t you have a workplace to be or another one of your several boyfriends to annoy? Jungkook, you need to charge her for all that material at some point, I’m not shitting money.” The shop owner scoffs as he places his breakfast onto the front desk. You smile, ignoring his snarky remarks, because by now you know that all he does is bark but not bite. Yet, the gloomy feeling you have is not leaving your skin and you shiver for a second. Jungkook’s eyes snap to yours, worry written all over his features. You soothe him down as you feel his questions through the bond. Does he think he hurt you even though he still has not started the tattoo?

“Oh, you got a cupcake from Hobi-oppa? Wait, is that the special one he makes for his friend? Poor soul, his friend didn’t pick it up again?” Jungkook giggles, having to pause the tattoo gun for a second to look at his Hyung’s reaction. He knows who the friend is and your confusion is just peak comedy.

If only you knew what you had started.

Yoongi shoots him a warning glare before mumbling a “I’m the friend, you idiot”. It takes you a few seconds to understand what he just said and you realize why Jungkook is a giggling mess by now.

Hoseok’s friend is Yoongi.

Yoongi and Hoseok know each other and Yoongi picks up cupcakes on a regular basis even though he told you he wasn’t one for sweets.

“You’re friends with Hobi? I’m sorry I didn’t know it was you otherwise I wouldn't have been that rude.” You smile sheepishly even though the blonde man seems to be ignoring you. “That’s so unexpected though, you’re grumpy and he’s a sunshine. I wouldn’t have guessed it, you must make an interesting pair. When worlds collide, huh” you chuckle as you watch Jungkook finishing the last line. “Thanks, bub!” You press a quick kiss onto his lips before he wraps your wrist, then you’re done. He knows that Yoongi is about to say more; the older is unable to finish a conversation without making sure that he has the last word, especially when it comes to Hoseok. Jungkook is not one to get involved where he shouldn’t, but sometimes he has questions that are burning his tongue even if she succeeds in keeping everything for himself.

What you don’t hear is the painful sound coming from Yoongi as he watches you and Jungkook’s bond playing games with him again. He’s been trying to deny that the bond hurt him when he sees you with someone else, but sometimes, it stings a little bit too much for him to ignore it. Your tattoo was still there, even after you accepted your other mates, so who was he kidding? He wasn’t even enough for you, he couldn’t replace any of those young men - not that he wanted to. You were annoying, too gigglish and beaut- always there, you were always there. Whether it’s the bakery or their parlour, your scent, your laugh and your voice are everywhere. It follows Yoongi and he hates every second of it. Sometimes he feels like Edward when he met Bella for the first time. Not that Yoongi watched Twilight. No. He has… just heard of it.

You are everywhere and he hates it. He truly wishes he had not dragged you into his shop because now you’re not leaving even though he’s doing everything to avoid you.

But why does he even want you to be bothered? It's not like you mean anything to him, he has no reasons to expect a reaction from you right? Especially since you found other soulmates, far better than him apparently. You even spend more time with Seokjin and Hoseok than with him anyway.

“Yeah, I’ve known him for quite some time now. Free coffee and cupcakes from time to time are a nice thing to enjoy.”

Quite some time, sure, Yoongi thinks. What about your teenage years that you were inseparable? The crush you’ve had on him for ages? The one drunk kiss you shared the night before you turned 18? That drunk kiss could’ve activated the soulmate bond, but you chickened out and ran away like a baby, it’s your loss, bastard. Seokjin used his chance and what happened after that was obvious.

Yoongi turns his back to you to take a deep breath, his oversized shirt slowly moving down his shoulder and exposing his neck before he can do anything against it. He realizes his mistake a little bit too late even though he’s quick to turn around again, looking for any sign in each Jungkook’s and your face - obviously both of you realized something. He sees the confusion melting into a frown on your face and he cannot meet your eyes. This is happening, isn’t it?

“Why do we have the same tattoo, Yoongi?”

The fact that he doesn’t even bother to answer is making you angry. Why the fuck does he has the same tattoo? You’re 100% sure of what you just saw, you look at this tattoo every morning before getting dressed. You know the lines by heart and it is not possible for you to mistake it by any means.

So why the fuck does he have your tattoo copied on his skin? Reasons and possibilities are flying through your racing and furious mind. You already imagine the worst. Maybe one of the boys even helped him? He cannot reach this place by himself. It means that someone else did it for him. Did one of your very own soulmates betray you like that? “I drew it myfuckingself and now you’re running around with a cheap copy of it? Who did it, Jungkook!” You’re on your feet, getting closer to the young man at a dangerously slow pace. Jungkook blinks at the sudden call of his name “Tell me. Did you or Taehyung help him?” He tilts his head obviously confused by what you are saying and it only angers you more. Is he playing dumb now? You know a tattoo when you see one and even though it’s not your job, you’re well aware that the place of the tattoo is not one someone can reach alone. Someone had to help.

Jungkook is getting mad too as he starts pulling the puzzle together but he sighs, shaking his head. You are his priority, he has to get you to calm down first. You are a team, not against each other. “Neither Tae nor I knew about this, I’m as shocked as you are, love. We wouldn’t have done that, I promise you. A tattoo is far too personal for us to do something this low. Now though,” Jungkook glares at Yoongi, hands slowly balling into fists, obviously understanding what’s going on. Yoongi just smirks at him, happy to piss the younger off. “Don’t act up, Jungkook.”

At least Yoongi has the upper hand for now and if he can take a little advantage out of it, then he will. The angry face of Jungkook is too good to pass the opportunity. Though, Yoongi does not dare meet your eyes; he fears what he’s going to see if he does.

“Act up? Why? What’s going on?” But both of them ignore you and this is only rilling you up.

“You have some guts Yoongi, you still didn’t answer me!” You almost growl, looking at the white haired man whose lips are still holding that sassy smirk. He’s still not looking at you and the fact that he is ignoring you is pissing you off greatly. Who does he think he is?

“You knew about that and didn’t think it would be important to tell her?” Jungkook gets no answer so he goes on “you know what could’ve happened and yet, you didn’t tell her? She could’ve been in so much pain, you could have hurt her, don’t you fucking care at least a little? You rejected your mate without even telling her about it you fucking son of a bitch!” With one big jump, Jungkook was right in front of Yoongi, hitting him right into the stomach.

But then, you realize it. The tattoo appeared on his skin because it became the link between you and him. Your bond reached him through the tattoo.

Yoongi is your fucking soulmate and he obviously rejected you as he never talked to you about and seemed to be actively avoiding you. The thought alone causes you to shiver. You failed as a mate before even being given the chance to prove yourself.

You laugh darkly as your fears finally become reality. Four perfect mates who loved you and accepted you for who you were? This was only a story you find in books, not in reality.

No, in reality you have five mates and one would rather be risking both of your lives (thus risking all of the others as well) than to try to speak to you about it. Your voice is caught in your throat when you realize that you’ve also put your four other mates in danger because of this. If you’d come to lose the bond with them, it could damage their bonds with each other and most probably could hurt them physically and mentally as well. The tears are hard to swallow, but you have to for now. You want to vomit when you remember what you’ve been told about mates rejecting their other halves. It’s unfair how your bond is manifesting only now when it never did even though it reached for Yoongi’s. Because it hurts so much you wish you had felt the pain before, just for it not to hurt as much as it does right now.

You’re not really sure where the pain comes from but you’re lightheaded when you look at both men again. You see Yoongi on the floor and Jungkook’s rage is flagrant on his features. You never saw him that angry. You’re almost concerned for a few seconds but you laugh bitterly in your head.

Are you that pathetic that one of your mates had to punch someone for you?

Even though Jungkook’s move is well deserved - and makes you feel somewhat better, because he seems to feel the anger you’re feeling as well - this isn’t his fight. You’re not one to enjoy fights.

That’s not what you wanted.

Why have you been tied to all of them? It feels unfair. You’re only destroying what they have and not adding anything positive. Just looking at what is happening now, you only brought chaos.

Yoongi might not want you as a soulmate, that’s his own choice. It hurts, sure, but this has nothing to do with Taehyung or Jungkook because the tattoo happened before you were a thing. And now you’ve involved both of them, hurting both in the process and almost putting them in danger because of your bonds. You can’t let that continue, you have to find a way to stop everything.

Once you get a hold on Jungkook and are face to face with Yoongi’s cocky smirk, you can’t help the urge to just smack him across the cheek, tears spilling from your eyes before you leave into the locker room, knowing that Taehyung was just about to finish his break.

This is what Yoongi wanted, so this is what he gets.

You have to leave, you have to find another place to be because you can’t breathe correctly. You feel Jungkook reaching through the bond but you’re trying your everything to refuse him access. How do you cut a bond without hurting someone? Is that even possible?

You laugh over your thoughts as you notice that you are trying to reach for comfort. What are you doing? Are you trying to leave or are you trying to seek for one of your soulmates? What are you trying to do? Feel validated by one of the four men you adore? What if it only made them realize what you are? You’re just a nuisance after all. You keep on ruining what they all have. Do you really deserve to be selfish once again and seek for one of them to comfort you?

At least you know better than running to Jimin right now, because he would’ve told Namjoon, Namjoon would’ve called Taehyung and Taehyung would… You don’t even know what Taehyung would do, you don't even know what you are doing, you just don’t want to hurt or worry any of them, yet your mind is turning cloudy as you open the door and fall directly into Taehyung’s arms, bond reaching for his instantly.

You feel pathetic. Running into your soulmates arms as soon as something is going wrong. You’re just going to worry Taehyung, which is going to worry Jimin, who is going to worry Namjoon and- And you can’t think anymore.

Your mind is racing but you can’t focus anymore. The only good thing about finding Taehyung is that it’s better if he hears about what happened from you, rather than to understand everything by someone else. Besides, it feels a little bit soothing to have him close to you. You feel like you belong somewhere despite… Despite what Yoongi decided for you and for your bond.

“Angel, what’s wrong? I can feel a lot through the bond, but it’s… Quite negative, what is happening?” Taehyung whispers as he strokes your hair carefully, embracing you in a warm hug that soothes your hazy mind a bit, but everything still feels suffocating. You just hope that your feelings aren’t fully communicated through the bond because you’re probably setting everyone in panic if so. You can’t contain your words but your labored breathing makes it difficult to actually explain what is happening right now to your confused soulmate.

“Yoongi… he has my koi carp tattoo… He didn’t even tell me, god, Tae. Why me? He hates me, he so obviously h-hates me and now he’s mated to me as well? H-He doesn’t even want me and bad things happen to people that don’t accept the bond and it means that you g-guys are in d-danger because of m-me. God I r-ruin everything, I’m a-awful…”

“Wha- shh, angel, slow down. You’re okay, you’re safe with me, alright? Don’t say those things about yourself, you're perfect sweetheart. You’re not ruining anything” Taehyung has to breathe a few times not to curse loudly and yell some pieces of his mind to his Hyung.

He respects Yoongi a lot, he has always been his mentor. But there are things that he does not tolerate and making his soulmate cry and panic that much is one of them.

God, he has felt the urgency in his bond; you were trying to desperately find an issue. Had he not had his hands full of ink when the bond started to weigh his whole soul down, he would have flown to the lobby. He feels regretful for not throwing everything away in order to come to you.

You and Jungkook are both way more precious to him than some disposable things. He knew something was wrong and he had tried to brush it off, thinking that you both were together and thus, nothing could happen to you. He should have followed his bond at the exact moment he felt something.

Fucking shit, Yoongi is your soulmate? And he said nothing? What if something had happened to you because of his rejection of the bond?

Taehyung is gritting his teeth; he has to calm down otherwise he’ll never soothe you down either. Yoongi is an asshole. Okay, he didn’t think that he would ever do something that low but he has to focus on you and soothing the ache in the bond.

He tries to mentally erase the moment you started saying you were an awful soulmate because it is not helping him. He just wants to leave the room and find Yoongi.

But Taehyung is an adult, he knows that acting rash won’t help.

He’ll get angry at Yoongi later.

“Jungkook is probably talking to him right now, even though I’m… Definitely not the biggest fan of his actions, Yoongi... I don’t really know if he does, but I think that Yoongi might deserve it right now. However, that’s Yoongi’s problem right now. You don’t have to endure it, nor to wait for him. It’s not because he is your soulmate that you have to think of him first, alright? Do you want me to take you home? Away from Yoongi? I don’t have any more clients, I should be doing some sketches but I can do those at yours if you want to. Think of yourself first for once, will you? If you feel like you have things to tell him, then we can stay, but I don’t want you to feel any kind of pressure for an idiot that didn’t even think of you in his decisions.”

Tae kisses your forehead, but you shake your head no.

“I have to talk to him about it. I want to know why he hates me so fucking much. Also, I want to return the right of having a soulmate, some people are overwhelmed with just one, now I have 4 and a half!” Taehyung smiles, proud of you. “That’s my baby.” His thumb runs on your cheeks, erasing the tears that escaped.

“Whatever Yoongi chooses is not your responsibility, alright? It doesn’t change that we have a bond, the five of us and you are with us whatever happens, okay? You are an amazing soulmate, Angel. Don’t doubt it. The one who fucked up is Yoongi. Not you. Yeah?”

You nod quietly against his palm and he kisses the crown of your head. You don’t feel quite ready to speak with Yoongi but you guess that you deserve to know the truth and the full story. He does owe you that, at least.

It does surprise you that Jungkook and Yoongi weren’t fighting anymore once you came back into the lobby. Instead, they are seated on the couch and talking quietly, even though it’s more like a whisper-yelling from Jungkook’s side. You don’t really know how to feel, you’re confused and hurt obviously, but you’re going to have to be the bigger person and actually wait for him to explain if he wants to. Taehyung is reaching to you through the bond and you feel slightly more confident. You’ve been overwhelmed with so many feelings that you had begun to think about things that were so far from being the truth. Your mind just kept on escalating until you’d felt like nothing. You’ll have to thank Taehyung for grounding you.

“Yoongi..?” You shyly ask as you make your way towards them - somehow afraid of the platinum blonde man. Biting your lip, you try to calm your anxiety down for at least the talk, but how could you without knowing how this day would end?

You could either end up being heartbroken or happier than ever with a new mate, and with the way he always treated you, you don’t really feel like you have another happy ending incoming. It feels more like the start of the end.

And besides, you thought about him only but Taehyung told you to think of yourself first: would you even accept him if he actually comes to tell you that he wants to pursue something with you?

Would you let in someone who is not afraid to put everyone’s safety in danger just for selfish reasons? You’re trying to push the thoughts far from you for now.

Live the moment and see what can happen: whatever happens, you’ll be able to say that you tried your best until the end.

“Y/N,” Yoongi sighs and looks over to Taehyung, worry written over both their faces. You were just about to speak when Jungkook chimes in.

“C’mon Tae, let them talk. I’ll explain everything to you.”

The youngest stands up and presses a soft kiss onto your cheek before taking his boyfriends hand and walks back into the locker room. He sends you one last wink, silently cheering for you and you smile quietly. What do you have to fear when whatever happens, you’ll always have your soulmates cheering for you?

Yoongi swipes his hair out of his face, exposing his stern eyebrows before looking at you. God, he feels like an asshole. He knows that, technically, he has been one, but he never thought it would come to the point that he would knowingly hurt his soulmate. He always hides behind the fact that he’s in love with Hoseok, but that didn’t give him the right to hurt you. He should have at least told you…

“Sit down, please.” His voice is rough, almost exhausted but also sounds… painful? Distressed?

Slowly, you take place next to him, trying not to touch his leg, trying not to touch him at all. You’re still confused if you want to have anything to do with him to be honest with yourself.

“I’m sorry.” You choke out, barely whispering as you lower your gaze, avoiding his cat-like eyes that are probably full on judging you right now.

Yoongi tilts his head to the side, watching you confused.

“Why? You couldn’t have known that this would happen, I couldn’t know - otherwise I wouldn’t be doing that job. I mean, I’m the one that should be apologizing in the first place. I should have handled everything differently, and the only thing that I can do now is to explain, but… Yeah, the thing is, I don’t believe in soulmates.” He quiets down for a short amount of time, creating a break between his words to gauge your reaction, but you don’t seem to be that surprised.

For some reason, it doesn’t sit well with him. He knows he has done enough damages but he wishes for a reaction rather than your expressionless face. “I don’t think that fate should be the one to select your forever and always, do you get what I mean? Of course, I’m pissed about the fact that I got mated to you, but it’s not you that makes me hate being mated. You have done nothing wrong and I’ve been taking my frustrations out on you, and I know it’s wrong but... It’s just… I’m in love with some fucking stupid red haired baker that loves to add too many star-sprinkles on top of cupcakes and…” It clicks too easily in your mind as those words leave his mouth. It doesn’t excuse him, but you finally understand why everything has been this way.

“You’re… You’re in love with Hobi...” You didn’t expect it yourself, but a big grin takes place on your face as you clap your hands excitedly. Just the fact that you finally understand what is going on is making you- not really happy but - something along the lines. Once more, Yoongi is confused, it’s not the reaction he thought he would get. Not at all.

“Yes, but… Shouldn’t you be mad or jealous or something? I mean, not that I expect you to be, I’ve been nothing but an ass to you, but, that’s how I felt once you got mated to Taehyung and Jungkook, even though it’s my own fault… If I hadn’t changed your appointment…”

He catches how your glance suddenly changes at this information. You don’t seem to be mad, nor surprised, but you’re acknowledging what he says, as if you had already considered this idea. “Anyways, I mean… Aren’t you mad that I don’t want to be your mate?”

You shrug your shoulders, not sure what to answer. It’s quite a dumb question. Of course you are. Of course you are hurt. It feels like you’re not good enough for him. But… You try to understand his side, and you're not sure how you would feel if you had been in love with someone for like, forever, and you suddenly have to accept and love someone else. It seems like something that you would have had a hard time carrying yourself, so who are you to judge him, or to be mad at him?

“It’s rude, I guess. It doesn’t make me feel like I’m the most wanted human on earth for sure. It kind of feels like I suck so much that my own soulmate doesn’t feel like they can care or love me. So, the question is kind of easy to answer, I’d rather say that it stings, but who am I to be mad at you? I see your point of view and I’ve already got four mates that are caring and loving - three more mates than I thought I’d have. I never thought that I would have more than one soulmate. I’m always surrounded with love when I’m with them, so I'd say that knowing that there’s another man running around with my tattoo - a tattoo that means so much to me - is just overwhelming, knowing that you don’t want me as a soulmate hurts, but I’ll get over it if that’s what you choose, we’ll just have to be careful with our health because I’m not putting my mates’ safety in danger for you own comfort. Maybe we are soulmates to understand things and not to live them together. It does happen sometimes. I do agree with you, fate shouldn’t be the one to decide - but in our case, fate is just suggesting who to choose, don’t you think so? You decided against choosing me and we are still alive. Besides, I don’t…,” You seem to hesitate for a second, “I don’t feel a bond between us and you probably don’t feel that either.”

You feel a bit bitter to lie like that. You didn’t feel it until today. Until you realized who he was to you. But you guess that you shouldn't try to make him change his decision.

“But I do.” Yoongi whispers, finally looking up from the hole in his jeans.

He tries to read you, but you’re not easily opening up anymore. He feels like it’s his fault, but he still sees that glimmer of hope inside of your eyes, and trustfully, it kills him, because he just wants to give in right now. Yoongi wants to be held, to be loved, anything.

He just wants to feel. If he doesn’t accept you, would he ever get another chance again? Would there be another human soul accepting his own broken one?

“I fucking do feel bonded to you, Y/N. That’s the problem. I don’t want to smile whenever I feel you around. I don’t want to feel happy when I see your smile. And I don’t want to suffer just because I see you kissing Taehyung or Jungkook - even if you smile at them instead of me, it hurts. I want to be loved, I want to love. But the only person that exists for me is Hoseok. I’ve loved him since I was 16, but fucking fate destroyed - I mean, not destroyed, wrong choice of words but - my chance of being mated to him disappeared for me that day. The man I’m in love with is mated to someone else, and now even I’m mated to someone else. How do you think it feels like to be rejected by the only person you’ve been interested in? And then there’s your soulmate, you’re supposed to love her, to be everything she’s waiting for, to care and be there for her and a month later she’s suddenly mated to four other men. What does the fabulous fate want me to do? Get into a polyamorous relationship with four men and one woman? Being not the third but the sixth wheel? I don’t think so.”

You nod, slowly understanding his issues because that’s how you felt just a few weeks ago. From your dreams of a soulmate that would be your one and unique love, to your new reality composed of four men, who are absolutely amazing, do not kid yourself but, it’s so different from anything you thought would happen. It took you some time to accept what was happening, to accept four men who you’re supposed to be a lost part of their soul.

You don’t really like the idea of being broken without your soulmates, but it feels just right when you’re with them. In a way, you understand why people came to say that. Because it’s so powerful that it’s hard to define it differently.

Just like how Yoongi said that fate destroyed his chances with Hobi.

You understand. Because it’s overwhelming, it’s new. It feels like no one can help you out. However, you have your soulmates. It’s been the five of you to get through it and to start your relationship. Yoongi on his side, he has no one to talk to.

So, honestly? You understand him, as weird as it sounds. Even you, at some point, think that it isn’t right, that you shouldn’t be so understanding: you should be mad. You even thought about rejecting him if he wanted to pursue anything with you after all of that but now all your anger seems to have faded away.

Yoongi was expecting it from you too. But no. You aren’t. You’re just glad that he finally decided to talk and to stop running away from you. You don’t want to prevent him from doing anything, you just want to be here for him, at least. He is not alone, and he will always be able to count on you. Maybe you’re meant to be soulmates in a… friendzone kind of way.

“I know, Yoongi. I get it, don’t worry. I mean, I probably should be mad, but I understand. I don’t want to force you into anything, you are your own person with your own belief and choices. I’m not your soulmate to berate you, or to be annoying or whatever. You’re just, not alone in this, you know? I don’t want you to feel like you have to do anything with me or to get involved with me- but don’t you think you deserve love? Because... I think you do. Maybe love is what you need to get rid over the thought of Hobi being out of your reach? You need love to start a life where you only care about what the future holds, someone that helps to pull you out of that dark place. Crying and being upset over his bond with Jin won’t make your life easier. It would actually be the other way around. Maybe you need to let go, Yoongi. And once again, I’m not asking you to accept us. I mean, we don’t even know if you’re meant to be with the four other men in my life, and I know that Jungkook and Taehyung might not be your types, I thought so too when I realized that Jimin and Namjoon were a part of this too, but I gave them a chance, and I think that one chance might change everything. You already know all of them and I think that it is safe to believe that your two coworkers are your closest friends by now. You trust them, you take care of them even though you might not want to accept that. The bond doesn’t feel like we are forced to love each other, okay? It just happened and I don’t regret it. But it’s your decision, Yoongi. And I won’t take it away from you, just know that if you ever decide to accept me, accept us, then-”

And then, he kisses you.

Yoongi kisses differently from what you would have expected. He wasn’t soft, shy or holding back anything. His kisses are hungry, frustrated and maybe a little bit aggressive.

This time, the bond didn’t feel like fireworks or butterflies in your stomach, it was more like an explosion full of bad energy that rushed over into your body.

Yoongi grabs your face, pulling you even closer and as you put your hands on his cheeks, you feel them. Tears are spilling out of his eyes, the feeling of being complete finally settling into your bodies. It is amazing how a simple action holds so many consequences and feelings. It feels like you did something amazing, while you just kissed.

Once Yoongi breaks the kiss, he pulls you onto his lap, hugging you tightly whilst his body still slightly shakes from being overwhelmed.

“It’s alright, Yoongi. We’re here, we’re together. You have all of us on your side,” you coo, trying to calm him down as you run your finger through his messy hair.

He’s not alone, he has never been but if he never realized it and you’re going to change that. He’s going to be loved and cherished as much as he lets you.

You’ll give him anything, you know it sounds desperate, but you feel so much for him. Goodness, he changed everything upside down in one kiss and one talk.

You kind of hate it, but at the same time, it feels right. Maybe Yoongi is in it to prove to you that fate doesn’t do it all. You have to fight for your mates too. You can’t be given everything, love and trust is something that you gain.

You’re starting to feel exhausted because of the ride you just did. You went from anger to pain, to despair, to anger again, to shyness, to compassion and finally you’re here, hugging your missing soulmate.

“I’m so fucking sorry,” Yoongi whispers, eyes still spilling tears onto your shirt. “I treated you like shit, yet here you are, ready to soothe my pain.”

“Don’t, Yoongi. That was the past. Now we’re here. The healing begins.” You smile soothingly as his arms wrap tightly around you. He keeps on letting apologies fall from his lips and you don’t think that he listens to you when you tell him to stop. He doesn’t need to apologize, you understand him. However, if he feels like he has to, you’ll let him. You’ll give him all the reassurances he needs to walk further with you.

Seconds later, Jungkook and Taehyung run back into the lobby, eyes wide and lips parted in shock. “What happened, Y/N? I just got a love boner and that wasn’t because Tae and I were basically-”

“Oh, fuck it, Jungkook,” Tae groans. Then, his eyes fall on you and Yoongi, still embraced in a tight hug.

“Fuck, you did it, love.” His smile was generous, heartwarming and you just know he isn’t mad about the fact that you decided to love one more person.

Quite the contrary, Taehyung is a perceptive man. He doesn’t really want to tell anyone, but he had known it. He knew it would end up like that, and he can’t wait for the time when you and all your soulmates will be able to be together and walk toward a better future. On the other side, Jungkook furrowed his eyebrows, disbelief visible in his eyes.

“Yoongi, the fuck? You just said that you would never want her, minutes later you’re having her on your lap? Wow.” You feel the jealousy that washes over Jungkook, the boy doesn’t like sharing you, you are his baby, his best friend and his mate. He was fine that you were being mated to his soulmates, but Yoongi doesn’t belong to him.

He doesn’t know if he would want him to be his as well, or if he’s just jealous that you give love to someone else, especially someone that just made you cry. Taehyung told him how he found you and Jungkook was not happy. Either way, he doesn’t like it too much.

“Jungkook,” you sigh as you press a chaste kiss on top of Yoongi’s hair before sitting down next to him, patting the free spot. “Can you guys sit down? We should probably talk.”

After all of you talked and came down from the emotional roller coaster, the atmosphere was much calmer.

“I’m not kissing any of you, just to make that clear.” Yoongi looks at the two men, scrunching his nose in disgust.

“I wouldn’t want to kiss you anyway.” Jungkook mumbles, earning a kick against his shin from you. “Stop it, Jungkook. You’re gay as fuck and Yoongi is good looking, of course you want to kiss him. I would,” Taehyung shrugs as he grins at the eldest.

“I’m not gay, I’m bi. There’s a difference, because I like boobies too.” Jungkook pouts, looking at you to help him, but you just laugh, shaking your head.

“You don’t have to kiss everyone, Jungkook, nor do you have to, Yoongi. It’s fine. Even though I’ve got to tell you that Taehyung is an amazing kisser. But maybe, one day it’ll happen. I didn’t kiss Jimin and Namjoon on the same day I kissed Taehyung and Jungkook either. But we have each other, and that’s what prevails.”

Yoongi hasn’t felt that complete in a long time, yet here he is: happy. And strangely enough, he can’t wait to see what the future will bring.

TAGLIST (hopefully I didn’t forget anyone lmao): @ ithinkileftmycoatoutside , @ supertweetycherry ,@ rainyinseoul , @ btsismybiass , @ ray-of-sunshine10 , @ littlepinknightmare , @ quiet-anarchist , @ gali-005 , @ barbikatherine , @woosanniepabo , @ quiet-giant , @ asifetch7 , @ psiphidragon , @ hxsxxk-180294 , @ tellmeyoulovemepls , @ strawbewwymochii , @ do-you-dream-of-me , @intellectualxprincess , @yoshiure , @r-e-d-i-s-h, @mirror-juliet, @moments-of-melancholy, @ungodlyjoon, @heartblackerthancoffee, @i-like-puppy-mg, @holaaaf, @peachinnie ,

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theeightbts · 4 years

Text

The Eight, Chapter 40

Seven Korean Warriors and their Queen.

Always together. Finding each other in every lifetime. Their souls destined for each other for eternity. Sometimes as friends. Sometimes as lovers. Sometimes as spouses. Always together. Until around two hundred years ago, when the Queen vanished. The Warriors: Poet, Misdirection, Ferocious, Watcher, Mischief, Adventure and Passion, continued to find each other, always accomplishing great things in their lives. In their current lives, they’ve found each other and created the biggest boy band in the world. When their Queen is found, and The Eight souls are re-united, they have to figure out how to live, and love, together again.

Chapter 40

The Muse was feeling almost desperate for touch by the time they made it to their hotel in Brazil. That moment with Taehyung in the airplane did help a lot, but that was early in the trip.

Everyone was exhausted from traveling, and it was all they could do to eat before passing out for the night.

The first day of rehearsal in Brazil was different and interesting. Rehearsal itself went as it always did. But the fans were very different from what she saw in the US. The streets were lined with ARMY. It was intense. Being an empath, The Muse felt the excitement, happiness and love they were feeling when the caravan went by. There were so many interesting things to look at, too! The local shops and restaurants, museums and cafes. Local art, which she was sure that some would call graffiti, was also incredible to look at. She was hopeful that she would get to see some of it up close on this trip. But, she was to be disappointed. Her Warriors had their day off after the concert, but she was not allowed out. Or so Steve said.

Jinnie insisted they eat local fare, though. So she did get to experience Brazilian cuisine. Hoseok was a big fan of all things Latin, and they spent some time trying to learn a few latin dances together. It was fun and very sexy.

After rehearsal on that Wednesday, they were all in a conference room at the stadium. At least, The Muse thought it was a conference room. It was all concrete block walls, but it had a large oval table surrounded by chairs, and a few shelves against the walls with flower arrangements here and there. The flowers were very pretty. She wondered if they were something you could only find locally.

Hyun Soo came in, excitement and determination radiating from him. The Muse rolled her eyes at the weasel man and went back to thinking about the flowers. The colors were so bright and rich. Unfortunately, since she had reconnected with four out of seven of her Warriors, she was starting to understand a lot of Korean. It wasn’t perfect, yet. But now she could catch on to most conversations, even if she would prefer not to know.

“I have great news!” said Hyun Soo boisterously. “As some of you may know, I have been in contact with the only best television shows in Korea, and have been busily setting up your big reveal show!”

That got The Muse’s attention. “Reveal?” she asked. “What reveal?”

“You, of course.” Hyun Soo said with his best used car salesman smile, “And your Husbands have agreed it would be best to announce their identities. For the best price, of course.”

The Queen was looking at the weasel man now, head cocked to the side. “And when did you start working on this ‘plan’ with my Husbands?” she asked softly, slowly standing from her chair.

Completely ignorant of the ire he was arousing, Hyun Soo went on, “We started talking about it the day after your arrival, Your Highness.”

She had started to pace, anger beginning to course through her. Seokjin, her Warrior that seemed to be more in tune with her emotional state, was on guard and all but trapped between everyone and their chairs on the opposite side of the table. Watching her every move.

“The day after my arrival?” she said, slowly pacing three steps to one side, and then three to the other, eyes never leaving her prey as she paced a little closer at every pass.

“When One Husband couldn’t look at me.” Jungkook blushed a light pink, “Another Husband was angry at my very existence,” Jimin looked ashamedly at the floor, “One would stare but wouldn’t talk,” Taehyung nodded his head in sad acknowledgment “And the other would stare and speak very little to me,” Yoongi also gave a curt little nod, “That is when you started talking about how to make money from my arrival?”

“Danger” she heard Seokjin speak up from his side of the table, but no one seemed to pay him any mind. They were all focused on the behavior of The Queen.

“Of course, Your Highness.” Said Hyun Soo in a cocky tone, “We had to start getting ideas out there as soon as possible to ensure the highest bids.”

“Let me make sure I have all the facts and am understanding you clearly,” Said The Queen, still stalking her prey. Her anger crossing over into rage. She saw Seokjin stand in the corner of her eye, looking for a way around everyone. “While I was being whipped BLOODY” she yelled the last word, causing everyone in the room to flinch, “by an angry God because my Husbands were basically rejecting me, you were finding ways to make money off of me?” Her voice was rising and her movements were getting faster, jerkier, and Hyun Soo finally understood the danger.

“Instead of helping my Husbands find acceptance and peace with our new reality,” she was all but yelling now, “You spent your time trying to use us to make more MONEY!” She shrieked the last word as she finally made her way in front of him. Everyone except for Seokjin was frozen, either in fear or curiosity at what was to happen next.

Hyun Soo had started to stutter, not able to account for his actions.

“You were there when I was beaten!” She yelled, “You were there to help hold me down so I didn’t injure myself any more than necessary! You were covered in MY BLOOD!” Her shaking hands had grabbed the arms of the chair he had sat in, and she caged him in, making sure he could see the rage in her eyes as she pushed the rolling chair backward until it hit the concrete wall hard. Hyun Soo’s head bounced, and he was trembling and babbling, trying to come up with the perfect excuse for his actions as a smell that was definitely more than pee started to rise. “HE BROKE MY BACK!” The Queen, livid, let go of the chair and turned back to pace to the wall as Seokjin gave up getting around the table and just started climbing over it to get to her. She stopped at a shelf, turned to Hyun Soo and shrieked, “NEXT TIME YOU WANT TO USE SOMEONE’S BLOOD TO MAKE MONEY, HOW ABOUT WE USE YOURS!” she grabbed one of the flower arrangements and with a feral scream threw the large glass vase at Hyun Soo’s head, barely missing him. As the glass shattered she shrieked again and lunged for the man, who was trying his best to curl into a ball in the chair, screaming in terror as the Queen bared down on him. Seokjin jumped from the table and grabbed her around the waist, preventing her from reaching her goal. She continued to scream, clawing at Seokjin’s arms and kicking at his legs to get him to let her go, her eyes never leaving her prey. Everyone in the room looked on in shock as Seokjin picked her up and took her out into the hallway, her shrieks and screams changing into cries and wails as he continued to hold her.

“Take me away from here. Please Jinnie. Please take me away from here.” she cried.

He looked up and found Steve down the hall, knowing he couldn’t leave with her again without her security guard. They left, The Muse sobbing into Seokjin’s chest the entire way back to the hotel.

Master List

#mother dragon #anger #BTS #BTS soulmate #The Eight #The Muse #mild violence #angst

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taesthetes · 5 years

Text

cloud ten.

you’re my first and last.

pairing: kim taehyung x reader | jeon jungkook x reader genre: angst, fluff type: soulmate au word count: 11,929 words warnings: none playlist: death by a thousand cuts (taylor swift) ⋆ you were good to me (jeremy zucker & chelsea cutter) ⋆ salvation (gabrielle aplin) ⋆ time lapse (taeyeon) ⋆ two (sleeping at last) ⋆ my first and last (nct dream) author’s note: sike you thought this blog was dead? i’m here to drop my biyearly update. shout out to t swift’s lover album for giving me motivation to finish this and thank you @nochanchu for listening to all my rambles ily mel ♡

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

AGE FOUR.

At only four years old, life was simple. Your favorite question comprised of three words: “What’s for dinner?”, and your biggest worry was being able to claim your favorite heels and purse that were both much too big for you during dress-up time at preschool. And the so-called disease labelled “cooties” that girls your age screamed every time they saw you and Jungkook playing together at the swings was something you did not care about. Jungkook liked superheroes, and so did you, and that was all that mattered in terms of forming friendships for you.

At only four years old, a girl in class informed you that girls and boys who were friends meant they were boyfriend and girlfriend. You didn’t know what that meant. So she asked you if you loved Jungkook, and you didn’t know what that meant either. She said that it meant that you wanted to kiss him the way Cinderella and Prince Charming kissed. You and Jungkook were curious, and that was how your first kiss happened inside the large, multicolored, plastic rocket that stood in the corner of the playground area. Jungkook’s lips were red and slightly chapped, and you did not like the kiss very much, so you guessed that meant you did not love Jungkook.

At only four years old, you didn’t quite understand what love was yet, but all you knew was that your stomach did funny flip flops whenever you were in the presence of a certain six year old who lived next door named Kim Taehyung. You liked the way his eyes always sparkled like the pretty stars in the sky and how he always saved his grape flavored fruit snacks for you because he knew they were your favorite. His lips looked pink and soft, and maybe, just maybe, you might be okay with kissing him the way Cinderella and Prince Charming kissed.

At only four years old, you learn about the soulmate system.

It was an ordinary afternoon when the newfound concept of soulmates is introduced to you. You and Jungkook had walked home together with Taehyung from school and are now sitting on the couch, munching on fruit snacks and juice in front of the television set. But the show playing on the screen is long forgotten, and you are wide eyed, soaking up every single word that came out of Taehyung's mouth. Said boy speaks in hushed whispers as if he is revealing top secret information, but punctuates every sentence with wild hand gestures.

"You see the cool gold tattoos that our parents all have? That's 'cause they're soulmates!"

"They're all soulmates together?" Jungkook scrunches his nose as he frowns in confusion, and you tilt your head in agreement, mouth still preoccupied with the straw puncturing your apple juice box.

"No, silly! Your mommy and daddy are soulmates to each other," Taehyung points at Jungkook before continuing, "And _______'s parents are soulmates to each other."

"How do you know that?" you pipe up, looking at the older boy with your interest piqued.

"They all have gold tattoos. I heard some big kids talking about how they only turn gold when you meet your soulmate." Tae explains importantly, "And you get your tattoo when you're older!"

“How much older?”

“Eighteen!”

You scrunch up your nose in disgust. “That’s old.”

"What happens if you don't like your soulmate?" Jungkook asks, staring at Taehyung with anticipation, his fruit snacks now abandoned on the cushion next to him.

"Why wouldn't you like your soulmate?" you interrupt, perplexed as you squeezed the now empty juice box in your hands, before Taehyung could answer. "You and your soulmate are perfect together."

"Well, who do you want to be your soulmate?" Jungkook points his stare at you now, and your cheeks turn rosy as you avoided his gaze.

"Um..." You peek over at Taehyung, who gives you a toothy grin, and your face becomes an even darker shade of crimson as your stomach begins to fill with butterflies again. "... Taetae?"

Jungkook's impossibly large doe eyes widen even more at your answer in surprise, and Taehyung beams happily, his eyes rivaling the crescent moon. The butterflies multiply in your tummy as he plops down on couch next to you and grabs your hand innocently.

"I want you to be my soulmate, too!"

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

AGE FIVE.

As kids, your attention span was smaller than a goldfish, and the topic of soulmates did not come up again until the following year. Taehyung burst through the front door of your home and skids his way into kitchen. Being older than you and Jungkook, his school day would last longer than yours now, a fact he often complained about. Jungkook suggested Taehyung move down to your and his grade, but Taehyung’s mother said no and the boy sulked for the rest of the day.

You and Jungkook are quietly settled at the table, drawing pictures of your respective families that are needed for class tomorrow. Your teacher announced that the following day would be Parents’ Day in which one or both of your parents will come in. You will show them around your classroom and give them your drawing as a present. And most importantly, there will be cake and juice.

Taehyung peers down at your drawing with slight interest before plopping himself down in one of the empty chairs and grabbing a chocolate chip cookie from the center of the table for himself.

“Today, I got to see my teacher’s tattoo change,” he announces loudly, munching on his snack.

Your curiosity piqued, you look up at Taehyung, all thoughts of finishing your drawing flying out the window. Jungkook carefully finishes the family member he is working on before capping his marker and placing it down, his eyes inquisitively trailed on Taehyung now.

“What was it like?” you ask eagerly, bouncing in your seat as Jungkook stares at Taehyung, impatiently waiting for his answer as well.

“Well,” Taehyung starts, his voice hushed as if he is divulging an important secret. And in a way, he is. “Miss Kang was helping me add numbers together and then the new fourth grade teacher, Mister Jung walked into the classroom on accident. I think he got lost, but when Miss Kang saw him, her tattoo started getting all shiny! She showed it to us before and it was a boring black, but I saw it start to shine! It was like glitter!”

“What happened next?” you ask, eyes round in anticipation, as Taehyung slowly takes another large bite of his cookie.

“I touched her tattoo and told her it was glowing! And we stared at it until it turned all gold!” Taehyung says enthusiastically, crumbs spraying everywhere. “And Mister Jung’s tattoo was gold, too, and he asked Miss Kang out for… oh, what’s that drink grown-ups always have? The one that your mom says makes you short?”

“Coffee!” you supply, and Taehyung nods at you fervently, “Yeah, that one!”

“Coffee is gross,” Jungkook quietly says, scrunching his nose. “He should get her milk.”

“Yeah,” you agree, frowning a little now. “Or apple juice. I hope my soulmate likes apple juice.”

“I like apple juice!” Taehyung exclaims, grinning at you, a smudge of crumbs and melted chocolate on his cheek. You smile back at him happily. Jungkook observes the two of you quietly, eyes flitting back and forth between you and Taehyung.

Apple juice is good. But he still likes milk better.

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

AGE SIX.

In a make-believe world fueled by your mind and Jungkook’s, you become superheroes, race car drivers, astronauts, dragons and knights—because you refuse to sit in the treehouse like some prissy princess. It’s much more fun to pretend to be a dragon and chase Jungkook the knight with your fire breathing skills, conjured up with bits of orange and yellow construction paper and a sprinkle of imagination.

You are in the midst of another game of pretend when Taehyung stops by, waving around one of those twenty-four pack of markers that every kid on the block envies. “_______! Kookie! Want to try out the new markers I got?”

Game now forgotten, you and Jungkook hurriedly stumble over to Taehyung, following him back to his house where he haphazardly spread the markers across the kitchen table. The three of you settle down with sheets of paper and markers of your favorite colors, happily scribbling across the blank canvases. Engrossed in your art, none of you hear the front door open, and Taehyung’s older brother and his friend entered into the kitchen.

“Jinnie! Was basketball fun? Are you on the team?” Taehyung bounces in his seat, his attention focused fully on his brother. Seokjin grins as he opens the refrigerator door for some milk. Yoongi stands next to him quietly, but a proud smile adorns his face.

“Yeah, I made it onto Yoongi’s team! We have a game in two weeks, and coach said I can play shooting guard!” Seokjin exclaims, beaming, and an identical smile is found on Taehyung’s face. “Maybe mom can take _______ and Kookie, too, if they want to watch?”

“Yes! I wanna watch the game, too!” You nod fervently, and Jungkook echoes your agreement.

“Let’s make a banner for their team!” Taehyung suggests, and the three of you busy yourselves with making a brightly multicolored sign that might even put actual rainbows to shame.

Yoongi quietly observes how Taehyung carefully passes markers between him and you as Jungkook silently and slowly works on his corner of the banner. Seokjin and Yoongi slip away from the kitchen wordlessly, leaving you three alone.

“You think they’re soulmates?” Yoongi asks, nudging his friend as they make their way up to Seokjin’s room.

“Who? Tae and _______? Or _______ and Kookie?”

Yoongi shrugs. “Either one.”

“Maybe. Who knows?”

“If they are, it’s gonna suck for one of them.”

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

AGE SEVEN.

“This is Jiminnie! He’s in my class, and he just moved here.”

Taehyung introduces you and Jungkook to his new friend, a chubby cheeked boy with nicely combed black hair. Jungkook hides behind you, peeking out and carefully scrutinizing the newcomer. Jimin shyly waves at the two of you, and you do the same cheerfully.

“We’re gonna go ride our bikes to the park. See you later!” Taehyung pulls Jimin away with him, leaving you and Jungkook standing in your front yard. You stare at them riding off wistfully. Their bikes don’t have training wheels anymore. Maybe you can ask your mom to take those off later. You are a big girl now, too, right? Maybe Taehyung will let you play with him and Jimin if you can ride your bike without training wheels, too.

“I’m gonna take the training wheels off my bike,” you announce, and Jungkook frowns, furrowing his eyebrows.

“That’s dangerous! You can’t do that.”

“But Tae doesn’t have training wheels,” you points out before Jungkook tugs at your sleeve.

“Because he’s a big kid and he and Jimin are playing big kid games. Let’s play Mario Kart. We don’t have to take turns because Tae isn’t here.”

You follow after him to his house, sulking. “Does this mean he’s not gonna play with us anymore?”

Jungkook scrunches up his nose. “I don’t know. But we’ll have fun! C’mon, let’s play before you have to go home for dinner.”

“Okay…” You trail behind him, looking over your shoulder once more in the direction of the park.

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

AGE EIGHT.

You stand at the base of the tallest tree in your neighborhood, craning your neck to see the highest branches above your head, as Lisa and Rosé huddle together nearby. Lisa had climbed up a few of the branches earlier before quickly clambering down. Yugyeom and Jaehyun are already sitting on some of the branches, calling for Jungkook to climb up with them.

“C’mon, Jungkook! Race you to the top! Winner gets a whole carton of chocolate ice cream!” says Jaehyun. In a flash, Jungkook nimbly makes his way up the tree, rapidly reaching the other two boys.

Chewing on your bottom lip, you too want the ice cream, but the thought of climbing up all those branches makes you shudder. Your stomach wins over your mind however, and you start the ascent mere seconds later.

“Be careful, _______!” Rosé cries out, but you rise even higher than the three boys, who watch you in awe. Finally, you are perched precariously on the top branch, grinning down widely, as the other two girls now cheer for you.

“_______ gets the ice cream.” Jungkook shrugs, sliding down from his seat and beginning his descent. Jaehyun and Yugyeom mumble in agreement as they start to get down as well. The smile on your face that might as well be the spitting image of the Cheshire cat’s now dims when you see how far you really are from the ground. Hastily, you wrap your arms around the trunk of the tree, clutching on for dear life.

“C’mon, _______, let’s go get ice cream,” says Yugyeom as all five of your friends waited at the bottom, looking up at you.

“I can’t! I don’t think I can get down.” Your bottom lip quivers slightly, but you keep the tears at bay.

“Should we get an adult?” Lisa pipes up.

“No! We’re gonna get in trouble for climbing.” Others chime in agreement, and you almost regret climbing up here, but the prospect of getting ice cream still shines in your mind. You tighten your grip around the tree, clinging to it.

“What’re you doing?” A familiar voice is heard, and soon, Taehyung stands under the tree with Jimin in tow.

“_______’s stuck!” exclaims Lisa as the others point up to where you sat, trembling. Taehyung and Jimin both look up at the same time, eyes widening when they see your tiny figure at the top. You try to give them a brave smile and a wave, but you quickly put your arm around the trunk again. In a flash, Taehyung clambers up to where you were.

“I’m gonna climb down first, but you follow after me, okay? I’ll show you where to put your foot to get down,” he instructs you, and you nod. He stretches down, finding his footing, and settles on a lower branch. You try to mimic him, foot dangling down, and you tremble slightly.

“Almost there!” he cheers, and you find the right footing before carefully moving down and sitting next to him. He beams at you, and you smile back at him, relieved. The two of you follow the same pattern until you finally reach the ground to your utmost relief.

The two of you split the ice cream.

After all, he reached the top, too.

And you don’t mind, of course.

It’s Tae after all.

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

AGE NINE.

You and Jungkook are sprawled outside on your front porch, a pile of board games stacked haphazardly next to you. The game of “Sorry!” spread out in front of you barely piques your interest as you keep glancing out towards the yard. Jungkook grows tired of reminding you to roll the dice every time it was your turn, huffing loudly in annoyance.

“What are you looking at?”

You whip your head back towards the game, automatically reaching for the dice. “Nothing.”

He scoffs, “It’s my turn. Pay attention, dummy.”

You narrow your eyes at him. “Then why didn’t you go already, dummy?”

“It’s no fun when you’re not paying attention,” he complains before throwing the dice and eyeing the large red construction paper next to you. “Stop looking for Tae.”

Your face immediately feels warm before you screech out, “I’m not!”

“Hi, _______!” Taehyung’s voice rings out and you quickly turn to see him standing at the edge of the front lawn. Hurriedly, you scramble up and pick up the crimson paper beside you. Rushing down the front steps, you skid to a stop in front of the surprised boy and thrust the valentine into his hand.

“This is for you!” you manage to stammer out, digging the toe of your shoe into the dirt anxiously, as you clasp your hands together behind your back. He grins widely, eyes forming miniature moon crescents and sparkling as they always do like the stars in the night sky. He gazes at the brightly decorated card with delight, and perhaps, your little heart speeds up a tiny bit.

“Thank you!” He digs around his pocket before pulling out a purple wrapped lollipop. “I got this for you, too. It’s grape flavored!”

Nine-year-old you nearly swoons, and that was the moment when you knew you wanted Taehyung to be your valentine every year after that.

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

AGE TEN.

“Hey.”

Jungkook pokes your shoulder harshly. Both your parents had finally agreed to let you both have a sleepover in his treehouse, so the two of you lay side by side in sleeping bags, surrounded by an abundance of snacks and several stuffed animals.

You roll over to face him, poking him back with just as much force. “What?”

“Do you…” he hesitates before continuing, “Do you believe in love?”

“Yes,” you answer immediately, hugging your pillow to your chest.

“But… you know Jin and his girlfriend?” he asks, and you hum in acknowledgment. “What happens if they find out they’re not soulmates? But they love each other?”

You stop fiddling with the zipper on your sleeping bag. “Well… if they love each other, then why wouldn’t they stay together?”

“But they’re not soulmates.”

“Does it matter? They’re in love.”

Jungkook sits up, wide eyed. “Wouldn’t you love your soulmate? When you meet them, you fall in love.”

“But do you stop loving your girlfriend then if she’s not your soulmate?”

“Well… a soulmate bond is stronger than that,” he says confidently.

“Huh,” you mull over his words before a sly grin spreads across your face. “Does this have to do with the new girl in our class? Is little Kookie in love? Does he want her to be his soulmate?”

“Shut up!” His face turns red before he throws his pillow at you. Laughing, you toss it back at him, hitting him square in the chest. He falls back onto his sleeping bag, glaring at you.

“I feel bad for whoever’s gonna be your soulmate.”

“Right back at you, Kook.”

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

AGE ELEVEN.

At age of eleven, you experience your first heartbreak. It’s funny how a boy can break your heart when he never knew he held it to begin with. You didn’t even realize that’s what heartbreak is until that moment. All you knew is that you didn’t want to see him holding her hand anymore.

“Hey, _______! Jungkook!”

You and Jungkook stop in your tracks and turned to see Taehyung waving excitedly at the two of you. Your eyes immediately drop to where his hand is being tightly interlocked with a very pretty girl’s. When he halts in front of you, you can feel Jungkook nudging your arm subtly.

“H-hey, Tae,” you manage to mumble out.

“I just wanted you to meet my girlfriend!” he says proudly, and the girl smiles at you shyly, introducing herself. The two of them continue speaking to you and Jungkook, but you can’t for the life of you pay attention. She is simply too pretty, too nice, too perfect, and you want to throw up.

“I-I need to go—stomachache.” You dash up the block and up the walkway to your house, fumbling with the keys before letting yourself in. Jungkook is startled, only staring at your retreating figure, before turning to face the surprised couple. “I’m gonna go check on her. Nice to meet you.”

“I hope she’s okay,” Taehyung says, concerned, and Jungkook almost found himself glaring at the older boy. “Yeah, me too.”

Jungkook quickly departs, letting himself into your house. He makes a beeline to your room where you are curled up in the center of your bed. Clearing his throat, he awkwardly stands in the doorway, rubbing the back of his neck. “So, uh, I can beat him for you?”

You let out a strangled laugh, sitting upright. “No, it’s okay. Just… pretty dumb of me to have a stupid crush on him all this time, huh? What was I thinking?”

Jungkook shuffles over and sits on the edge of your bed. “You’re not dumb. Taehyung’s the dumb one. And if you ever tell anyone I said this, I will eat all of your Hot Cheetos stash, but… he doesn’t deserve you anyway. My best friend deserves someone who isn’t dumb.”

You smile gratefully at him. “Thanks, Kook.”

“Anytime.”

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

AGE TWELVE.

“So you… broke up with him?”

“Yeah.”

You sit cross legged on your bed, idly twirling your pen in hand, as you continue to work on your science homework. Jungkook stares at you, mouth agape and math worksheets abandoned. You and Minghao agreed the two of you were better off as friends, and that was that.

“But why?”

“I just…” you shrug, tossing the pen onto the comforter and leaning back onto the palm of your hands. “I didn’t like him that way. I thought I did, but when I was with him, I don’t know, it felt like hanging out with a friend. What about you and Eunbi?”

“Oh. We broke up a week ago,” he mutters, fiddling with the edge of the sweater sleeve.

“What? I thought you liked her! You liked her since last year!”

“She didn’t feel like my soulmate.”

“Soulmate?” you repeat incredulously. “We literally just got our first boyfriend and girlfriends, and you’re already thinking of soulmates?”

“Well, you broke up with your first boyfriend, too,” he fires back.

“Yeah, because I didn’t like him that way,” you explain slowly, “But you just broke up with her because you didn’t think she was your soulmate? How can you even tell who your soulmate is?”

“I’ll know!” he exclaims defensively before smirking and leaning forward, “Just like how you know Taehyung is your soulmate.”

Your face flushes, and you scowl at him. “He is not my soulmate.”

“But you want him to be,” he teases you, and you throw a discarded crumpled paper at him. He easily dodges you much to your disdain. “Well, you didn’t deny it.”

Your voice is quiet when you finally answer him.

“He doesn’t like me like that.”

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

AGE THIRTEEN.

At the age of thirteen, you discover red tattoos. No one had told you anything about them before, and you didn’t even know they existed until Yoongi showed up at Jin and Taehyung’s house with one. While Jin was ecstatic about the discovery of his own tattoo and his girlfriend’s turning a pretty shade of matching gold a few months earlier, the same could not be said for his friend.

When Jin quickly pushes Yoongi past everyone with prying eyes and up to his room, you hear faint mumblings from the smaller teenager about not wanting to go home just yet. Taehyung, Jimin, and Jungkook had begun to shout happy birthday, which quickly dies down when the two older boys brush past them, ignoring the drooping birthday banner entirely. You are the only one to see the new glaring tattoo on Yoongi’s wrist. You recognize the name as belonging to a very kind upperclassman who had graduated from your middle school a couple years ago. But what you don’t understand was the color of the tattoo.

It is crimson.

When you go home that day, you ask your parents during dinner why a tattoo would be scarlet. Your parents exchange indiscernible looks before your mom quietly answers your question.

“Your tattoo turns red when you meet your soulmate... but their soulmate isn’t you.”

At only thirteen years old, you learn that the soulmate system isn’t fair.

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

AGE FOURTEEN.

After encouraging Jungkook to try out for football and finding out he made the team, you no longer had a walking buddy to go home with. When Taehyung found out about this, he had taken it upon himself to designate himself as your new walking buddy. And every day, without fail, he greeted you at your locker, and the two of you started the journey back home.

You were halfway to your houses when Taehyung halted in his tracks, dropping his backpack on the ground and unzipping it before rummaging through its contents. You patiently wait for him a few steps ahead, gazing at the pretty flowers blooming alongside the road.

You hear him close his backpack and make his way towards you once more. “Hey, can you hold this for me real quick?”

You outstretch your hand, paying no mind to whatever it is, when he nimbly slides his fingers through yours and squeezes your hand gently. His hand is large and warm, enveloping yours completely in a way that makes you feel safe instantly. Eyes widening, you stare down at your intertwined hands, mouth agape.

“I—we’re holding hands,” you manage to stammer out, and he smiles at you, albeit nervously.

“Is that okay? Sorry, I should have asked first and—”

“No, it’s okay, I like yo—I mean, I like it.”

There’s an ear splitting grin across his face now as his eyes sparkle like the stars. “Were you about to say you like me?”

“W-well, I—”

Stammering, you start to back away, but Taehyung tugs you towards him. Your face can rival a tomato at this point, but all you can focus on is how close his face is to yours. You can count nearly every single one of his long dark lashes framing his pretty eyes, and you so badly want to kiss the little mole on the tip of his nose. He gently places a kiss to your cheek, and your heart nearly implodes.

“I like you, too.”

You don’t think it’s possible to feel any happier than you did that day.

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

AGE FIFTEEN.

Jungkook lounges around on your bed as you pace back and forth in front of him in your heels. Taehyung is taking you to junior prom, and you had spent months, searching for the perfect dress, and even had Jisoo and Joy come and do your makeup and hair.

“Calm down. You look fine.” Jungkook says, looking up from his phone.

“What if I trip and fall down the stairs? What if I spill food? Oh god, what if I step on his foot during the dance?”

“_______, listen to me.” Jungkook stands up in front of you. “I’m one hundred percent sure that if you trip and fall, Taehyung will help you up. If you drop your food, he’d get you a new plate. If you step on his foot, he’ll still love you.”

“We, uh, we’ve never really said the L-word yet,” you mumble, wrapping your arms around yourself.

“_______, he’s whipped,” your best friend deadpans. “Trust me, he’s in love with you.”

When Taehyung knocks on the door to pick you up, your father sets him with a steely look before letting him in. He waits anxiously for you with your corsage in his hands. And when you descend down the steps, he is absolutely enamored. He nearly drops the flowers and stumbles over his words as he tells you that you look beautiful. He shakily slides the corsage onto your wrist, and your mother refuses to let the two of you go without taking a dozen or so pictures.

He drives the two of you to the dance, hand clutching yours the entire time. The two of you loudly sing along to every love song on the radio, and he presses your hand to his mouth, leaving a soft kiss, at every red light.

When the two of you are at the dance, he pulls you closer for every slow song. At some point, you pass by Jimin, and he winks at you before whisking off his date. The paper decorations and crinkling stars spin around gently overhead as the blue lights are dimmed, and Taehyung softly sings along to the ballad to you. You rest your head on his shoulder, swaying along to his voice.

“Sunshine,” he murmurs, and you raise your head to look up at him. His hair is ruffled, and there’s the softest expression on his face as his eyes shine. He leans down and captures your mouth against his. When he pulls away, he rests his forehead against yours, a hazy smile playing on his lips.

“I love you.”

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

AGE SIXTEEN.

Taehyung knocks on your window at 11:55 p.m. and you carefully open it, scared of waking up your parents. He crawls in before pulling you in for a hug. You wrap your arms around him, burying your face into the cozy sweater he is wearing.

“Five more minutes until your birthday,” you murmur, and he squeezes you to his chest even tighter. You can hear his heart thudding so quickly, and you imagine yours is the same.

“I wish time would stop. I want it so badly to be your name,” he whispers, and your heart almost stops. “If it’s not yours…”

He can’t bring himself finish the sentence, and you tilt your face towards him to kiss him gently. When you pull away, he laughs softly, leaning down and giving you one more kiss.

“I don’t think I’ll be able to ever stop loving you even if it’s not your name, sunshine. Your laughter, your smile, your very being, I don’t know if I can live without you.”

When midnight comes, you and Taehyung stare at the black ink now permanently found on his wrist: your name in pretty cursive. He embraces you, laughing breathlessly, as he can’t tear his eyes away from the new marks on his skin. He tenderly traces his finger across your cheek before cupping your chin and leaning down to nuzzle his nose against yours. His eyes hold all the stars in them as he stares into yours with the loveliest gaze.

“It’s you. It’s always been you. You’re my first and last.”

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

AGE SEVENTEEN.

It is the day before Jungkook’s birthday, and you know he’s been waiting for this moment his whole life. He texts you nonstop the moment he wakes up, asking you if you think the new pretty transfer student could be his soulmate or maybe the girl who sits three seats behind him in AP Physics. Or perhaps, his soulmate lives on a different continent and in that case, how is he supposed to meet her then? You reassure him about all his worries, and he continues to message you about the various scenarios he’s conjured up in his mind about how they will meet and how he’ll ask her out.

Your phone buzzes nonstop up until midnight.

And then it’s radio silence.

He leaves your text message unanswered when you ask him who she is. You are left wondering the entire night. Perhaps, it’s someone he doesn’t like. Maybe she already has a soulmate. What if he didn’t get a tattoo?

He continues to evade you at school and everywhere else. His friends prove to be no help, and when his mother can only offer you an apologetic smile when you visit his house for the nth time this month, you finally give up.

Losing your best friend hurts more than you can ever imagine.

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

AGE EIGHTEEN.

Today is the day.

Today was not just any Friday or your regular school day. It was The Day. You had woken up earlier than usual, giddier than usual, as you went through your morning routine and set off for school. Classes felt as if they went in slow motion; you were more preoccupied with watching the hands of the clock tick tock around and around in circles until it reached 3 p.m. Your friends all gave you shouts of encouragement, and you waved at them before rushing home.

You tried to concentrate on your homework and managed to do the bare minimum needed. Dinner was a rushed affair, and your parents exchanged knowing looks.

After all, today was the last day without a tattoo.

When midnight appears, you will finally have the name of your soulmate written upon your skin.

You are pacing back and forth in your room, impatiently waiting for the last few hours to trickle by, when the doorbell is heard throughout the house. You hear your father opening the door before the sound of footsteps are pattering up the stairs.

“How have you been, sunshine?”

Eyes widening and heart nearly stopping in your chest, you immediately turn your attention to the figure leaning against the doorway. Taehyung widely smiles back at you, and you immediately rush into his embrace, burying your face in the space between his neck and shoulder.

“I’ve missed you!” you manage to mumble out despite pressing your face into his shirt, inhaling as you are hit with the familiar faint scent of strawberries, pine, and home. His laugh vibrates through his chest, and he presses a soft kiss on your forehead.

“I missed you, too. I tried to take the earliest train after my last class to come here, but I’m a little late, sorry. But I made it! Oh, and here! I got you these.”

He presents to you a lovely bouquet of sunflowers, lavenders, and baby’s breath. “The flower shop lady helped me pick them out, and I even learned the meanings of each one.”

“They’re gorgeous,” you breathe out, carefully taking them into your hands. “Thank you so much, Tae.”

He grins sheepishly. “Anything for you.”

When the two of you finish getting a vase and arranging the flowers to stand on your desk, you and Taehyung are curled up together on your bed. You lean your head on his shoulder, still admiring the flowers.

“What do they each mean?”

“The sunflowers are for loyalty and happiness,” he starts, taking your hand into his gently. “The lavenders are for devotion.” He then intertwines his fingers and yours tightly. “And the little white flowers are for long lasting love.” He carefully tugs your hand up, placing a tender kiss on the back of your hand.

He flips your hand over to reveal the blank canvas on your wrist. Carefully, he traces his name on the empty expanse of your wrist with a soft smile making its way across his lips. “Are you excited?”

“Yes.” You reach out to grab his other hand and lovingly trace the familiar letters etched on his wrist. “I still can’t believe you have my name.”

You line your arm up next to his. “And in a few moments, I’ll finally have yours.”

He nuzzles his nose in your hair before you lean up and place a gentle kiss on the corner of his mouth. He laughs, giddy at the mere thought, before excitedly giving you a proper kiss.

A fleeting feeling of warmth spreads across your wrist, and the two of you finally part, dizzily smiling at each other, before gazing at your new tattoo. Suddenly, it feels like someone has dumped an entire bucket of ice water on you. Your blood runs cold, your heart stops, and the mismatched colors start to blur as the tears begin to cluster.

Rather than matching gold on your wrists, the taunting colors of ebony and crimson glare back at you.Your name, now in red, is branded harshly on Taehyung’s skin.

And there, permanently stamped on your own wrist, are unapologetically bolded letters in black.

Jeon Jungkook.

You blink away the tears, staring at the name in horror. Immediately, you begin scrubbing away at your wrist, shades of red blooming on your skin, as you try to scratch the name off. Taehyung covers your wrist with his hand, grabbing your hands with his other.

“Please stop,” he says softly, “you’re hurting yourself.”

“No! I don’t—I don’t understand!” Your voice cracks before it rises in volume. “This isn’t right! This is a mistake! This is wrong! They gave me the wrong name!”

The sound of rushing footsteps is unheard over your cries, but your parents soon crowd into the room. “W-what’s going on?”

Hysterical, you wave your wrist wildly in their direction before clawing at the black script in despair. “This is the wrong name! This isn’t Tae’s name! Why isn’t it Tae’s name?”

You collapse on your bed, tears pouring freely down your cheeks, as your parents finally see the tattoos of red and black adorning his and your wrists. Taehyung gently gathers you in his arms, and your hands desperately clutch onto the front of his shirt as you bury your face into his chest. Numb, you can barely register the feeling of wetness on the crown of your head as he embraces you tightly and cries with you.

At the age of eighteen, you experience heartbreak for a second time.

At only eighteen years old, you learn that the soulmate system is cruel.

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

Your birthday is not a celebration, but rather, a farewell.

Saturday is dreary with gray clouds hanging overhead. Stray pieces of newspaper are scattered by the wind, flapping around aimlessly. Save for a few other people far from earshot, you and Taehyung are alone on the train platform in the early morning.

“Sunshine...” he begins before swallowing hard. “_______, I don’t think we should be together anymore.”

You freeze, staring at the train tracks in front of you. They run parallel, stretching on for miles, never touching.

“_______?”

“You don’t mean that,” you say at last, voice barely above a whisper.

“We don’t belong together,” he says quietly. He reaches out for your hand before stopping himself, retracting his hand slowly. “You don’t belong with me.”

You grab his hand and hold on tightly. “Stop saying that. Don’t be ridiculous.”

“_______... I’m not your soulmate.” His voice breaks, and he finally turns to you, cupping your chin gently with his hand. His gaze is soft, but resolute. “Your soulmate isn’t me. I can’t make you as happy as your soulmate can. You were made for me, but I wasn’t made for you.”

“Tae...”

He leans down, and his lips touch yours tenderly, before he pulls away. His eyes still glimmer like all the stars. Stars always shine the brightest before they extinguish. He smiles wistfully, caressing your cheek softly, before hugging you tightly. “Thank you for making me so happy. Even if it’s not with me, I want you to find happiness, too. I want you to have the love you deserve.

Thank you for loving me. You’re my first and last.”

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

Taehyung doesn’t return any of your calls. You simply receive radio silence from him from there on out. And you tried reaching him on nearly every single mode of social media possible. His parents offered no help either, merely polite answers and avoidance of mentioning their son. Jin is sympathetic, but you hit a wall with him as well.

Your friends had said nothing since two Sundays ago during your birthday party. They had made no mention of your new ink after they noticed it covered by several large bracelets and hair ties. The only acknowledgment from them were well wishes of happy birthday and thoughtfully chosen presents. They comfort you, exchanging words of condolence and sharing tubs of your favorite ice cream, when you finally told them about the red tattoo, but left out the name of your soulmate.

At school, you remain quiet, barely participating in conversations. Rosé looks at you worriedly as you push back and forth the vegetables on your lunch tray absentmindedly.

“_______, are you feeling okay?” She gently pries, and you smile tiredly at her.

“I’m fine, really, I—” you cut yourself off, spotting a familiar figure disappearing out the cafeteria door. “Hold on.”

You jump out of your seat, leaving your friends bewildered, as you rush towards the same entrance, pushing your way out into the hallway.

“Jungkook!”

Your voice rings out, bouncing against the walls, and the boy stops temporarily before speeding up. You run down the hallway now, hand reaching out until your fingers wrap around his arm. He finally turns to look at you for the first time in months, and when his eyes meet yours, the tingling feeling of warmth begins to make its way across your wrist.

You rapidly shove up the sleeve of your sweater, now staring at the glowing, glittering letters of gold stretched across your skin. You only faintly register the gasp from Jungkook when he recognizes his own name before he exposes his own wrist, your name emblazoned in the identical color.

“You... you’re my soulmate,” he whispers, gazing at the shimmering names, almost entrances. He reaches out to touch his name, but you jerk your arm away, covering it up with your sweater once more.

“This isn’t—this isn’t right,” you start to back away and turn away. “It’s supposed to be red.”

“Red? You wanted a red tattoo?” Jungkook grabs your hand and stares at you incredulously.

“God, Jungkook, you ruined everything!” You yank away your hand and start to storm off down the hallway, but Jungkook refuses to let you get the last word, calling out from behind you.

“Are you kidding me? I ruined everything? I didn’t choose to be your soulmate!”

You whirl around on your heel, fiercely looking him in the eye. “No, Jungkook. Are you kidding me? Why didn’t you tell me you had my name instead of avoiding me like the plague? What the hell is wrong with you? You refused to talk to me at all and now you just expect me to accept this?”

“Because I thought my tattoo would be red!” he explodes, “Because I’ve been waiting for my soulmate my whole life, and then I saw it was you. I thought you and Tae are soulmates, so mine would be red. Why would you want a red tattoo?”

“Because this is a mistake!” you burst out. “It’s supposed to be Tae! I thought if this turned red, that meant the whole thing would be a mistake, that it’d be okay that Tae’s tattoo is red because both of ours would be the same color!”

“The universe doesn’t make mistakes!”

“Then what is this?” You bare your wrist at him, the sparkling letters making him wince. “We’re not even in love!”

“A lot of soulmates didn’t know each other and weren’t in love when they got their tattoos!”

“Well, we’ve known each other forever! We didn’t fall in love!”

He falls silent, and the two of you just stand there. And for the first time in a long time, you really take a look at him. He looks scared and small, shoulders hunched. You know this isn’t fair for either one of you. You know how long he’s waited for his soulmate. You can’t imagine what he went through alone when he received his tattoo.

Finally, you turn and leave.

He doesn’t stop you.

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

You avoid Jungkook after that. It becomes an unspoken rule between the two of you to stay clear of one another. Your last message to Taehyung about your changed tattoo two months ago was left unanswered. As much as it pains you to sound like any other angst filled teenager, your friends and parents don’t understand you. They don’t understand why you refuse to acknowledge your soulmate. High school relationships aren’t meant to last, your mother says, your soulmate is the one made for you. You wonder if she would be relaying the same sentiments about short-lived juvenile relationships if your tattoo spelled out Taehyung’s name.

“How is he?” you ask, lingering near the CD racks and trailing your fingers across the spines of them. Yoongi remains a few steps ahead of you, sorting through the box of discs in his hand to place the correct one on the shelves. After graduating college, he had taken on a second job at the music store downtown in exchange for working in the backroom music studio at night for free.

“He’s… better. His latest art piece is nominated for an art show.”

“Oh, that’s amazing!” You reach over to pick up a few CDs from the box and arrange them on the shelves. “I’m really happy for him—”

“_______.”

“—and if he gets into the art show, maybe I can go and see it!”

“_______.” You stop short as Yoongi calls out to you a second time. “What?”

“This isn’t good for you.”

“What do you mean? I’m fine.” You reach out to grab another CD to shelf, but Yoongi drops the carton on the floor. “Listen to me, _______. You need to move on. This isn’t what Taehyung would want.”

You drop your hands to your side, shoulders sagging. “How would you know that?”

“Because I have a red tattoo, too.”

His quiet confession shakes you to the core. While you had caught a glimpse of it five years ago, he had never mentioned anything about his tattoo to anyone after that day. Everybody else had merely assumed he will meet his soulmate sometime in the future, and you sometimes wonder if what you remembered was a figment of your imagination. But he lays out the bare truth right here and there.

“You—I—what?”

“We were school friends. She never knew I had her name though. She had her tattoo first. I saw her fall in love with her soulmate. I saw her tattoo turn gold when he came to school with her name the day after his birthday. I saw when her name turned gold for him. I wondered why mine turned red instead.” He stops suddenly before glancing over at you. “Do you know what’s the most fucked up part about a red tattoo? You get to feel your soulmate’s most intense emotions.”

Your mouth feels dry, and you want to reach out towards him but for some reason, you can’t.

“I felt it when she cried over her father’s death. I felt it when she found out she got accepted into med school.” He swallows hard. “I felt it when he proposed to her, and she said yes.”

“Yoongi…”

“But you know what?” he continues, eyes turning fierce as he finally fixates on you. “Feeling her become happy… that was my peace. My soulmate was the happiest she’s ever been when she’s with him.”

You are silent, and Yoongi reaches down to pick up the discarded box. He resumes stacking various CDs and records on the walls and shelves.

“That’s how I know.”

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

You had sat down on the bleachers, gazing out across the football field in front of you. Practice had still gone on for another fifteen minutes, but you knew Jungkook spotted you the moment you stepped near the grass. When he walks off the field, you are waiting for him by the entrance.

“What is it?” He is guarded, and you don’t blame him.

“I just…” You start, but trail off, and his eyes soften. He notices the defeated look in your eyes, but your eyes don’t waver when you stare into his, asking gently, “Do you really think we can really fall in love?”

He falters, his hand coming up to wrap around his wrist and gently touching the golden script. He looks down and traces the letters of your name.

“Of course. We’re soulmates.”

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

When you announce to your parents that you and Jungkook have begun dating, you can’t help but loathe the way your mother’s eyes light up and how easily your father accepts him into the family. Your friends chatter on excitedly about prom and how the two of you will easily win King and Queen. Jungkook is the star quarterback after all, and your high school is a living cliché, so you don’t doubt that he would get the crown. Everyone accepts you and him together as a pair.

All because of a tattoo.

As you take down the pictures of you and Taehyung and the small mementos in your room—all the things that documented your relationship and remind you of him—you can’t bring yourself to throw them away. So you tuck them into a shoebox and push it into the corner of the tallest shelf in your closet.

However, the vase of dried sunflowers, lavenders, and baby’s breath remains on your desk.

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

How do you dress when you’re going out on a date with your best friend? Well, former best friend, but still. Rummaging through your dresser drawers and closet, you try on various outfits before finally opting for a pair of jean shorts and your favorite shirt for a bit of luck. You put on a pair of comfortable shoes before slipping out the door and sitting on the front porch steps, waiting for Jungkook. Your friends have all sent their well wishes and good luck’s to you in the group chat, and you reply to them in the meantime.

“Hey, _______.” Jungkook awkwardly stands in front of you, hands shoved into his jeans pockets. “I was thinking we could go to the arcade?”

“Alright.” You give him a half smile as you stand up, and the two of you begin the walk alongside each other to your destination. You walk in silence, but you feel comfortable, a slight hazy feeling coming into play. There’s something that draws you to him that wasn’t there before, and it slightly unnerves you with how at ease you are just within mere minutes of your date.

Jungkook must have felt the same way because a few seconds later, his hand gently brushes against yours once or twice, before he bravely slips his hand into yours. And they fit perfectly together, like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle.

As if your hand was meant to be held by his.

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

A month into your newfound relationship, you find new flowers on your desk.

When you finally reach home after finishing your afterschool club activities, you find Jungkook sitting on your bed, waiting for you like old times. He smiles proudly, greeting you happily, and you are slightly confused until you notice the fresh flowers. Blooming daffodils, daisies, peonies, and roses burst forth in bright colors.

“I thought it’d be a nice surprise if I replaced your flowers… they were all dried and… _______, are you okay? Why are you crying?”

To your surprise, you belatedly realize there are tears slipping down your cheeks, and before you can wipe them away, he stands in front of you, tending brushing them away. The way his fingers gently graze on the apples of your cheeks leave a trail of sparks on your skin, and you can’t bring yourself to push him away. His face is inches from you, and you know he finally registers this fact when his eyes flicker down to your lips, and he swallows nervously. Hesitantly, he slowly leans in, and his lips meld against yours perfectly.

It’s your first kiss with him, and it’s perfect.

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

AGE NINETEEN.

Jungkook makes it onto the football team at the university you both decide to attend, and you go to every single home game, sitting in the bleachers alongside your friends and wearing his jersey number. When his team scores the winning touchdown and the game is over, he runs over to you, clambering up the bleachers to meet you, adrenaline still rushing through his veins, as he pulls you in for a kiss with a breathless “I love you” slipped in between.

“My lucky charm,” he affectionately calls you as the two of you celebrate together with the team and their significant others at a nearby diner.

“Kook, it’s all you,” you say, giggling before stealing several fries from his plate. Grabbing an onion ring from your dish in retaliation, he shakes his head. “Nah, it’s because you’re there cheering me on.”

“And you’re here.” He taps his wrist where your name still glimmers like the very first day. “You’re with me on the field, too. My lucky charm.”

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

AGE TWENTY.

It’s winter break, and with your parents gone for the weekend, Jungkook sleeps soundly next to you. You stare at your phone, watching as the clock ticks down each second from 11:59 p.m. until it hits midnight. Your thumb hovers over ‘send’ button as the simple text message of three words stares back at you.

Happy Birthday, Taehyung.

Jungkook rolls over, wrapping his arm around your waist before pulling you closer to him. He nuzzles his face in your hair before drowsily murmuring, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong, Kook. Go to sleep,” you whisper, and he curls himself around you even more, nodding off. You take one last look at the message before deleting it and setting your phone on the nightstand next to you.

That night, your dreams are visited by a boy with stars in his eyes and sunflowers tucked in his hair.

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

AGE TWENTY-ONE.

The two of you sit across from each other in the café, partaking in another one of your join study sessions. You help him with math, and he helps you with science. It’s a great trade off, save for the fact that Jungkook tries his utmost best to distract you from your work at all times.

“Hey, _______. Give me your hand.”

“Why, so you can give me your hand to hold?” You say absentmindedly as you flip to another page of the chemistry textbook in front of you. Jungkook chuckles, reaching out and taking your hand himself. “No, but if you wanted me to hold your hand, you could’ve just asked.”

“No, I—” You stop yourself as nostalgia from a past familiar memory hits you like a tidal wave. A similar conversation with a different boy replays itself in your mind, and that familiar pang in your heart resurfaces. “Never mind, what is it?”

Jungkook gazes at you with an unreadable expression before brightening up and sliding on a folded paper ring onto your right ring finger. He raises his own hand and wriggles his fingers around to show you a matching one. “Look, I made us couple items. Custom, one of a kind soulmate items!”

You hide a smile. “Is that what you’ve been doing instead of studying?”

“I’m trying to be cute here, and you ruined it,” he whines, frowning, and you laugh before reaching out and squeezing his hand, familiar tingles spreading down from your fingertips, your heart speeding up just a fraction. You feel so, so happy—the happiest you have ever been.

“Thank you, Kook.”

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

AGE TWENTY-TWO.

The opened envelope produces a creamy white invitation that announces the matrimonial union between Jin and his girlfriend. You stare at it, the RSVP portion laying out in front of you, pen held loosely in your hand. Your mother insisted that you go, while slipping in a thinly veiled hint about how you can learn from it when the time comes for you to plan a perhaps near future wedding.

“Jin’s getting married? We’re going, right?” Jungkook comes up behind you, and you nearly jump out of your skin, the pen clattering onto the counter. Chuckling, he wraps his arms around your waist, resting his chin on your shoulder. You curse the butterflies that still erupt in your stomach every time.

“Y-yeah, I guess we are.” You watch as Jungkook picks up the pen and checks all the boxes before tucking it back into the return envelope. “C’mon, let’s go send this out. Lisa’s been giving me the stink eye ever since I came into your apartment.”

“She’s still mad at you for eating that last slice of cake she was saving last week.”

“I said I was sorry!”

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

You knew he would be there, but nothing could have prepared you for seeing him again for the first time in so long.

Taehyung stands as best man for his brother, looking as beautiful as ever. It’s been four years, yet he looks the same as he used to, perhaps a little softer around the edges. Your eyes are focused on him throughout the entire ceremony, absorbing in his presence. His hands are clasped in front of him, and you wonder if they are still as soft and warm as they were on the very first day he held your hand. His lips are pulled into a genuine smile, one that you haven’t seen in ages and very dearly miss, as he laughs at the amusing parts of his brother’s written vows. His eyes gleam brighter than ever, like all the stars are captured within them, and your heart aches as you wish, just once, he would glance over in your direction.

When the ceremony is over, Jungkook takes your hand as you walk over to the reception. The two of you drop off your gift before making your way over to the artfully decorated tables, searching for your name cards. As you weave around the tables scanning the place cards, you bump into someone, teetering slightly in your heels, and they quickly grab your arm, steadying you.

“Oh, I’m so sorry!” You laugh a little sheepishly before looking up. Familiar eyes—ones teeming with all the stars and unspoken words—gaze back at you, and suddenly, you forget how to breathe as the air is knocked out of your lungs. Suddenly, you feel like you are fourteen again, a silly teenage schoolgirl stuck on a crush. You are suddenly hyperaware of how his hand gently grasps your elbow still, and how much you miss his warmth when he lets you go.

“It’s okay, sunshine.” His quiet baritone voice is heard before he gives you a soft smile and walks off.

Jungkook squeezes your hand, and startled, you look over at him, still dazed. He purses his lips slightly before saying, “I think our table is over there.”

“Okay.” You follow after him, and the rest of the night passes by quietly.

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

We need to talk.

After complete silence from his end for the past few days, the simple text message from your boyfriend filled you with dread, and when you walked through the door of his apartment, the tension was already palpable. You sit down at the kitchen table with an untouched mug of green tea with a teaspoon of honey prepared beforehand for you. He is leaning against the counter, a similar mug placed next to him.

“You’re still in love with him.”

His voice cracks the silence, and you wince as the accusation hangs in the air.

“We barely spoke to each other.”

“God, _______, you didn’t even need to! Literally everyone in the room could tell.” He paces around back and forth. “It was obvious that he still loves you. It was obvious that you still love him!”

You stay silent, angry and sad tears beginning to mingle, and you harshly blink them away. He looks at you, frustrated, as his hand wraps around the mug in front of him tightly. “It took us months, years to get our relationship to where it is now, and he undoes it all in seconds! I don’t understand it! I don’t even know if you love me.”

His voice wavers near the end, and your heart wrenches. You start to speak up, but he shakes his head, forlorn, as he asks quietly, “If the situation was reverse… if I was the one with the red tattoo, would you fight for me, too?”

Your heart clenches in your chest, and you turn away, unable to meet his gaze.

“I see.”

“Kook,” you plead with him softly, “It’s not like that…”

“Then enlighten me please. What’s it really like?”

“You just—you want me to stay with you because of the tattoo, and then, you expect me to stay with you if you didn’t have the tattoo? I don’t understand what you want!” You stand up from the table, the chair making the most horrific screech across the tiled surface.

“I want you to choose me!” Jungkook bursts out, roughly wiping away a stray angry tear. “We both had your name on our wrists, mine was the gold one, yet you still chose him! You always chose him. Even now, you choose him.”

“You don’t know that.”

“Don’t I?” he laughs bitterly, “I’m your soulmate after all. Even if you don’t want me to be, I am. I know you better than anyone else.”

Silence falls like a heavy weight, and neither of you makes a move. The two of you sit there on opposite ends of the table like opposing sides of a chessboard, until you finally crack.

“Jungkook, do you even love me?”

“Of course I love you!” Jungkook raises his voice, frustratingly carding his hand through his hair before his voice softens, “I love you.”

“But why?” you whisper, “Why would you love me?”

“Why?” he repeats incredulously. “Because you’re my soulmate.”

“But, Kook, that’s the thing,” you say softly as you finally look him in the eye. “You love me because I’m your soulmate.

But would you have fallen in love with me if I wasn’t?”

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

Jungkook finds himself wandering the streets for several hours afterwards, stuffing his hands into his pockets, as he replays your words over and over in his mind. What did you mean by that? He loves you for you because well, you are his soulmate. The universe chose you for him and him for you. The word ‘soulmate’ and you are synonymous. Aren’t they?

When Jungkook looks around, he realizes that his feet had taken him to the front of a very familiar bar. Stepping inside, he is welcomed by Namjoon with a wave and shuffles over to take a seat in front of the dimpled bartender.

“How have you been?” his friend greets him, already pouring out the usual drink order.

“Confused,” he answers honestly. “Joon, what do you think about soulmates?”

Namjoon sets the drink down in front of him. “It’s an interesting system. We’re taught that there is someone out there who’s perfect for you, yet it’s never specified in what way. We all assume it is a romantic bond, but who’s to say it’s not platonic?”

“So you’re saying best friends can be soulmates?”

“Soulmates are about a connection between two people,” he explains, “A soulmate is someone who understands you on the deepest level. Your minds have this unexplainable connection strengthened by mutual respect, understanding, and love. It’s someone who can understand your mind and heart and accepts you for who you are. Whether that is platonic or romantic, I believe it can vary.”

“So then _______ and I were made for each other,” mumbles Jungkook, tracing the rim of his glass absentmindedly. “The universe doesn’t make mistakes.”

“Tell me, Jungkook. What do you think of those with red tattoos?”

“Well, they’re mista—” he cuts himself short, jaw going slack.

“But the universe doesn’t make mistakes,” Namjoon hums as he wipes down the counter.

“They’re meant to be alone then.”

“Then why are they given a tattoo to begin with?”

He falls silent, staring at the amber liquid in front of him. Is it possible to have multiple soulmates? Only one name shows up on your wrist though. Not two. Just one. His.

“But it’s my name on her wrist.”

“Do you love her, Jungkook?”

“Of course I do,” he says, his hands curling into the small fists, “She’s my soulmate.”

“Does she love you?”

“Yes.”

“And how do you know that?”

“Because…” He unfurls his hands, small crescent shaped indents now littering his palms. You do love him. But not because of some soulmate tattoo. And he knows that—

“… Because she stayed. Because she loves me enough to stay.”

For all these years, he finally realizes, you did choose him. You chose to stay with him. You chose to be with him.

“But I know she loves him more,” he murmurs. “And I know he loves her, too. He’s been in love with her from the beginning. And that’s what I don’t understand. He had her, and he let her go.”

“Taehyung loves her enough to let her go,” Namjoon muses, tapping his fingers on the scratched wooden surface. He looks at Jungkook, gazing at him with such intensity that the boy, for some reason, cannot look away.

“Do you?”

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

When you return to your apartment after your last class the next day, Lisa greets you before gesturing towards the envelope on the counter.

“He left that for you.”

She disappears into her room soon after, and you gingerly pick it up. Opening the envelope, you tip the contents out and find a folded note resting in the palm of your hand. Unfolding the lined paper, you instantly recognize the messy scrawls of handwriting.

Thank you for loving me.

Taped to the bottom is a familiar, well-worn paper ring.

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

“Tae!”

You bang on his door loudly. Several minutes pass, but you remain persistent, knocking on the door in rapid succession, until the sound of rushing feet is heard, and the door swings open. Taehyung stands before you, a look of shock quickly morphing into one of concern and confusion.

“What are you doing here? How do you know I’m here?”

“Yoongi finally told me.”

“Sunshine… you shouldn’t be here.” He looks tired, sad, as he retreats back into his apartment, beginning to close the door. “You should go back home. To Jungkook.”

“We broke up.”

His eyes widen. “What? Why?”

“Because I love you.”

The words tumble out of your mouth as you listen to your heart for the first time, rather than your mind, soulmate system be damned. Your heart pounds faster than ever in your chest, blood rushing through your veins, as you stare at the man in front of you.

Taehyung inhales sharply. “Sunshine, you belong with your soulmate, not me.”

“No. No, I don’t belong with someone because of some ink on my wrist. I belong with someone because I choose to be with them. Because I choose to want them. Because I choose to love them.”

You take a step forward, and Taehyung watches you with soft eyes as you gently touch his face, your bodies now millimeters away from each other. There are no sparks, no electricity igniting beneath your fingertips, but you feel a comforting warmth that curls around your heart and makes it bloom.

“I love you, Tae,” you repeat softly, “I’ve always loved you. You’re my first and last.”

So you close the distance and press your lips against his.

You choose the boy with the starry eyes.

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

EPILOGUE.

Rays of morning sunlight peek through the gossamer curtains hanging on the windows, creating light patterns upon the duvet. With his arm draped around your waist and his other one resting beneath your head, you are held gently in your husband’s embrace. Still chasing the last remnants of sleep, you drowsily rub your eyes. Tilting your head upwards, the corners of your lips tip upwards into a soft smile at the sight that meets your eyes.

The light hits his face in all the right angles, shining the softest of glows that illuminates his sun kissed skin. It filters through his long, dark eyelashes, casting shadows onto his cheeks. Small puffs of breath escape between his lips with a quiet snore. His hair falls close to his eyes, and you carefully brush the strands away.

“Mama! Daddy!”

A bundle of energy launches herself at the two of you with a squeal. An audible oomph is heard from next to you as you let out a laugh, pulling into your arms the little girl whose eyes mirror her father’s and smile identical to the one on your face.

“Hello, my little munchkin.” She greets you back happily, rubbing her nose against yours in an Eskimo kiss before sloppily placing a kiss on your cheek. You return the gesture, a kiss gently pressed on both of her rosy cheeks, as she giggles before rolling over to her father.

He groans when one of her flying elbows land in his stomach, but he quickly scoops her up, pulling her into his chest. She wriggles out of his embrace in seconds, but her interest is immediately caught onto a tattoo inked upon her father's wrist that's identical to the one on your own skin, and you already know the next words on the tip of her tongue. It is her favorite question to ask every morning after all.

"What do the flowers mean?" she asks, admiring the art etched permanently upon forgotten, faded letters of red and gold. She clutches her father's hand in one hand and your hand in her other, comparing the two tattoos as seriously as any four-year-old can, and you answer her question softly, smiling over at him, as he gazes at you with the same star struck look in his eyes all those years ago.

"They're called lavenders. They stand for devotion."

But they also stand for so much more. And your daughter will learn this when she’s a little older, whether she chooses to follow the tattoo on her wrist or the one on her heart and whether they are one and the same for her.

“The lavenders stand for how much your daddy and I love each other.”

They stand for shared childhood memories that you hold close to your heart. They stand for late night arguments and loud disagreements that end with good night apologies. They stand for hands that do not perfectly fit together like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, but still hold onto each other as tightly as possible. They stand for lips that were not made for each other, but still find each other every morning and every night and all the times in between. They stand for the ups and downs you two had to work for to get to where you are now. They stand for your love for each other. Your first and last.

The journey to finding your love was not easy. It was not like the love story of soulmates. It was not simply a change of color to gold. You had to work for your love by learning to understand each other and enduring hardships together. Your love was not built upon the universe's red strings of fate, but instead, upon trust, loyalty, care, and ultimately, devotion. While your love may not be as intense and solid as a soulmate bond, it runs deeper, stronger, more genuine.

Love is not simply a feeling. Love is a choice. It is choosing to work through the difficulties and hardships instead of taking the easier path and walking away. It is choosing to stay. It is choosing each other yesterday, today, tomorrow, and for the rest of your lives.

It may not be as serendipitous and magnificent as walking on cloud nine hand in hand with the one who was named on your wrist, but you don’t care one bit. It doesn’t matter to you. It doesn’t matter at all because he carved out a piece of heaven just for you.

Because Kim Taehyung takes you to cloud ten.

602 notes · View notes

youarejesting · 5 years

Text

Femme: 37

[MASTERLIST]

Pairing: BTS - OT7 x Reader,

Rating: Mature.

Warnings: Sumata (thigh sex), exhibitionism, voyeurism, masturbation, shower fun, Kissing. Boy Love,

Length: 2k words

Announcement: Thank you to everyone following the story and dealing with me while I am sick. You all are amazing and bring me so much joy. I have hidden so many things in the last chapters, some of the wording and things that have double meanings, even the dreams are hints.

Recap: Discussion and planning for your trip to America (TV interviews). Yoongi and Jimin take their relationship further. Hoseok also reveals he is open to the idea of romantic relations with his fiances’. Meeting the Families of the boys and their adorable pets

Tired from socializing and playing with the rambunctious puppies, you were quiet on the way home. The boys quickly agreed to a relaxing evening watching movies. It was a love story and with your legs over Jungkook’s lap and your head in Seokjin’s you were hardly keeping up with the storyline. Seokjin was mindlessly combing his fingers through your hair in a soothing manner. You felt like you could drift away. The main characters were engaging in a heated love scene.

Smiling at the thought of sharing life's greatest pleasures with the one you loved. Something press against your calf. Looking down the couch trying to find whatever was the cause. You noticed Jungkook's ears had gone pink and his breathing had turned shallow.

Throwing a grape a Namjoon, his brown eyes searching yours in slight confusion. Head tilting in a way that reminded you of Monie, his canine friend. Flickering your eyes obviously in Jungkook's direction, hoping the older male would understand. Yet he only appeared more confused. Your hands which had been interlocked across your stomach motioned subtly at the youngest in the room.

The smile that spread across Namjoon’s face was purely mischievous, his dimple appeared. This look was innocent and though his work hadn’t aged him severely, it did take a toll on his appearance. Sometimes the bags under his eyes were so strong you wanted to just hold him till he fell asleep. But this face. This look was your favourite. It wasn’t Mister Kim-Leader-Detective-Genius. It was just Namjoon.

Jungkook seemed to break free of his trance. His eyes searching the room guiltily. They met Namjoon’s and the boy gently moved your legs and escaped to the kitchen. Namjoons eyes followed Jungkook's retreating figure longingly. Resorting to throw another small fruit at the supposed genius before you beckoned him over. Sitting at on the couch he folded himself over you to whisper. Jin’s hand without hesitation left your hair and dove into Namjoon’s locks.

“Get over there and tell him how you feel, and just know he is shy so be confident” You gave him a bold kiss, he went to pull back but you held him by the ears. Whispering to the oldest in the room. “Jinnie can you give Namjoon a good luck kiss”

There was no hesitation as he leaned down pressing his plush lips to the shocked detective.

Namjoon staggered off and you looked up at the oldest male grinning “halabeoji, you need a haircut, it’s getting shaggy”

“Are you finished playing matchmaker, you can’t force others to fall in love”

“I am not trying to, but I am trying to normalize affection, you can hold hands kiss and say I love you and still not want to be with someone romantically. I just want everyone to be open and happy”

“I think you should let everyone figure things out on their own, otherwise it might backfire”

Those words had replayed in your head ever since that night. Jungkook and Namjoon haven’t really spoken to one another since and it was putting a strain on everyone. You felt horrible the feeling of guilt weighing heavy in the pit of your stomach. You took a cab to Jiyong’s home to try and get some advice to fix the balance you had broken.

Seung-Hyun greeted you at the door with a smile. The two of you sat eating ice cream in the dining room while Jiyong was showing you designs for your trip to America. “And Namjoon confessed but, Jungkook didn’t say anything and ran away to his room. That’s really pretty is it for Yoongi? And I don’t know what to do because they haven’t spoken since”

“The art of love is largely the art of persistence. Albert Ellis” Seung-Hyun spoke in his usual low tone. “Give it time and they will come together”

“Let’s hope”

The apartment seemed hollow, empty, still, the steel grey walls echoing the silence and making you feel wretched once more. You dropped your bag. Walking to the kitchen feeling distraught, you opened the freezer taking out a tub of ice cream. Sitting on the tiles, your pulled knees to your chest. If only you had listened. You stupid girl. Namjoon had barely stepped out of his office and didn’t look like he had been sleeping. He hasn’t joined everyone at dinner since that night. You had stuffed up, you had really ruined everything. Tears made slow trails down your cheeks as you shovelled ice cream into your mouth to keep quiet.

Needing to use the restroom rather urgently, you lifted your sorry form off the floor. Having too many glasses of tea whilst visiting Jiyong. Who knew the ginger tea was something that could chase away the sickening churn of guilt that filled you. Walking to the bathroom, you opened the door to see, Jungkook pressed to the mirror Namjoon behind him grinding his hard length between the maknaes thighs.

They froze.

Apologizing for interrupting, Jungkook whined ‘Hyung’ making Namjoon involuntarily buck his hips. Namjoon explained what had happened while you were out. You were sad you didn’t witness the confession as it would have been a beautiful moment to cherish forever. You promised them you would not meddle again.

You left the boys to their activities, sharing a quick kiss with Namjoon and a desperate one from Jungkook.

Shutting the door you headed to the other bathroom. It was open but when you stepped in Seokjin was sitting on the side of the bath, moaning as he pumped his hard length.

“I am sorry, I just wanted to pee,” turning to leave something about Seokjin’s expression seemed lonely. Striding over to his side you placed your hand on his cheek. “Do you want some company?” Resting his head on your shoulder, he was panting heavily. Shuddering when he came against you his arms wrapping around your waist. He sobbed into your collar, the sight making your heart constrict.

“Jinnie, my love, what has you this upset?” Revealing his feelings was hard, Seokjin felt like his heart was breaking. But he continued explaining even when his voice wavered and cracked. He was in love with you and he assured you this, but he was in love with Namjoon and felt he was losing him to Jungkook. Yet he proceeded to express his love for Jungkook and wished to always see him happy. He felt everyone was finding love and he was unrequited on the side fawning over his fiances’.

“I promised not to meddle but, I really want you to tell them all how you feel, the better we are with expressing our feelings the happier we will be, Now I love you Jinnie, but I really am going to pee myself, if you don’t let me use the toilet. Afterwards, we can shower get into our pyjamas and cuddle in your room, we can even order in some food if you’d like”

Starting the shower seemed to call the wolves. You were quickly joined by Jimin and Taehyung, the two were content squeezing into the smaller shower. “Hyung can you wash my hair?” Tae grinned brightly. “Sure” Seokjin began massaging shampoo into Taehyung’s hair.

“I know I said I wouldn’t meddle but these boys are probably some of the nicest and I think you should tell them how you feel” “What’s wrong?” Taehyung looked up at Seokjin getting shampoo in his eye. He let out a deep cry. Seokjin took his face in his hands “Hyung it stings” “Shh, I got it, stay still while I wash it off your face,” Jimin came over with a dry towel, Seokjin pressed it to Taehyung’s eyes wiping away any leftover suds.

“Can I open my eyes now?” Taehyung asked “Uh not yet, I have to wash out your hair properly best keep them shut” “Jinnie, tell him” You whispered “Tae, I um wanted you to know that I love you” “I love you too Hyung, you are the best”

“No I mean, I am in… in love with you” his eyes flickering to Jimin, who had rested his chin on your shoulder “I am in love with all...all of you” Taehyung opened his eyes looking up at a nervous Seokjin, as soapy water poured into his eyes. “Ah it burns”

Repeating the rinsing of Taehyung’s eyes, he whined keeping them closed “Hyung, kiss it better, please?”

Seokjin took Taehyung’s face and pressed soft kisses to the younger man's closed eyelids. Taehyung pouted pointing to his lips until Seokjin kissed him properly. Taehyung wouldn’t let it end there, deepening the kiss with a fervent moan. The scene in the shower got heated and you gently pushed Jimin forwards, “Give Jinnie, some love he was so worried how you would react”

“Ah, Hyung we love you too. We are all getting married remember”

After a sweet fumble in the shower, you all stepped out with goofy smiles on your faces. “You showered without me Jagiya?”

“Hobi, Jin-Hyung has something to tell you” Taehyung smiled slapping Hoseok’s arse stepping behind him. Wrapping his arms around Hoseok’s neck leading him to the living room. Jimin who was standing behind Jin popped his head out from under the older man’s arm, his arms firmly secured around Seokjin's waist walking him to Hoseok.

“Ahhh,” Seokjin cried out in frustration at the nerve of the maknaes, Hoseok was laughing at the playful interaction. Falling in love a little more with his fiances’.

“What is it? Is this about the time I fell asleep in your bed without showering first” He laughed nervously eyeing you for any information.

“No it’s not that, I wanted to tell you that I- wait you slept in my bed without washing”

“I have also slept in your bed without washing, Hyung,” Jimin confessed

Taehyung whispering a quiet ‘me too’ before Seokjin put Jimin in a headlock dragging his knuckles back and forth on Jimin’s scalp.

“Ah, I’m sorry!”

“You disgust me, you are both pigs” Seokjin tried to grab the other two under his arm, Taehyung shrieked pushing Hoseok at the older Hyung and hid his tall frame behind you.

Hoseok tripped falling into Seokjin and he held the two under his arms. “You put your filthy feet on my clean sheets”

“But..” you prompted him to remember the point of the interaction.

“But I love you both you are my fiances’ and if you do it again I will make you eat Namjoon’s cooking for a week”

Jimin kissed Seokjin, “you forget, I can cook, Hyung” the word ‘Hyung’ wasn’t said as sweet or innocent like Taehyung’s expression. This was darker and daring. The tension increased as Seokjin and Hoseok wordlessly stared at one another. Hoseok smirked confidently, reaching to grasp the taller males hips.

Hoseok was always a fiery passionate guy, so it was no surprise that he pressed his lips to Seokjin’s making him moan in ecstasy. You understood the feeling, having been on the receiving end of one of Hoseok’s kisses before. Namjoon and Jungkook stepped out of the bathroom both dressed once more.

At the sight of his two fiances’ loving embrace, Namjoon’s chin pushed forward, an action he did when he was pissed. The two broke apart breathless.

“What is wrong with your eyes, did you get high?” Jungkook said looking up at Taehyung’s reddened eyes.

Taehyung, unable to help himself, went around the room kissing the daylights out of everyone. Each kiss was different. You could see who was taking control and who was following Taehyung’s lead. Yoongi stepped out of the hallway to see Taehyung’s lips locked on yours.

“Should I come back later?” He mumbled turning. Taehyung grabbed his wrist pulling the smaller man against him for a searing kiss, except Yoongi put up a fight biting Taehyung’s bottom lip until he whimpered surrendering to the older man. Yoongi broke the kiss and walked to the kitchen to fill his coffee mug. Though that kiss had fired him up more than any caffeinated beverage ever could. “are you high?”

“No I just love my family” he giggled

Femme Media 37

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maaaaaatryoshka0325 · 5 years

Text

Tourniquet - Han Jisung Gang AU Part 5

(Part1) (Part2) (Part3) (Part4) (Part6) (Part7) (Part8)

Your eyes fluttered open as you woke up out of a peaceful slumber.

Odd. This doesn’t look familiar.

The color of the couch you were sleeping on wasn’t the same color as the one you owned. You turned over and your heart skipped quite a few beats as you looked directly at Jisung. He was laying on the opposite half of the couch. But the pieces were pushed together, so your face went directly into his hair, which tickled your nose.

You turned your head away and sneezed, making him jolt awake. He slowly sat up and rubbed his eyes, before looking at you.

“Oh, good morning.” He said.

“Good morning? You sound so casual.” You said, shocked.

“What do you mean? You fell asleep and I didn’t want to wake you up.” He pointed out, tilting his head.

“You still SHOULD have woken me up.” You said.

“Why?” He asked.

“We don’t know each other THAT well.” You pointed out.

“So we’re not friends?” He asked with a pout.

“I mean we are but...” You trailed off.

“I’m a boy and you’re a girl?” He asked.

You looked at him for a moment and you both started cracking up.

“Wow, you’re really funny Y/N.” He said, wiping his teary eyes.

“I’m glad I amuse you.” You said, scrunching your nose.

He scrunched his nose back and gave you a wide grin before stretching.

“I’m starving. Are you?” He asked.

“A little bit.” You giggled.

He beckoned you out of the living room and into the kitchen as he reached around. He pulled out pancake mix and smiled.

“Pancakes?” He asked.

“Sounds amazing.” You said with a big smile.

He looked at the box and you laughed.

“Ha, amateur.” You said, taking the box from his hands.

You measured out everything on your own and began to make the pancakes, making them extra fluffy. He went into the fridge and grabbed whipped cream and some fruits.

You placed a couple fluffy pancakes on each plate as he put whipped cream on the top and added the fruits.

“Master pieces.” He said, kissing his fingers.

“I cooked.” You giggled.

“I made them look like art.” He laughed.

You both sat down on the couch and ate as he turned on a comedy. You both laughed and talked while you ate, and you found conversation coming to you naturally while around him, which was rare.

“I had a lot of fun yesterday.” He said.

“Me too. It was probably the most fun I’ve had in awhile.” You said, looking thoughtful.

“WELL, not meaning to toot my own horn or anything... But I’m a fun guy.” He said.

“Mmm, I guess.” You hummed.

“You GUESS? What?” He asked.

“You’re alright.” You said, scrunching up your nose playfully.

He stuck his tongue out at you before taking another bite of his pancakes. You giggled as you turned back to the TV screen, not really paying attention to it.

“Hey Jisung we’re ba- oh.”

You looked up to see Felix, a grin on his face.

“I didn’t know we had company.” He said.

“Who?” Chan asked.

He walked into the living room and stared at you before laughing.

“Hey Y/N.” He said.

“H-Hey Chan.” You said lwoly.

“Did I hear Y/N?” Changbin asked, walking into the room.

He looked at you and started laughing.

“This is a pleasant surprise.” Changbin laughed.

“Yeah, I didn’t think you’d make a move on her this quick.” Chan laughed.

“What?!” You and Jisung both yelled at the same time before looking at each other.

All three boys laughed at the both of you as both of your faces turned red.

“No ones making a move on anyone.” Jisung grumbled.

“Mhmmm, okay- WAIT! Did she sleep here?” Felix gasped.

Changbin and Chan both arched their eyebrows as your face turned bright red.

“It was down pouring last night, I wasn’t gonna have her walk home in that.” Jisung pointed out.

“Mhmmmm.” Changbin cooed.

Jisung picked up a pillow and chucked it at Changbin, hitting him in the face with a grunt. You giggled as Changbin glared at Jisung.

“Jerk.” Jisung said, sticking his tongue out.

Changbin stuck his tongue out back and smacked Jisung with the pillow.

“You started it.” Jisung hissed, grabbing the pillow.

“And I’m ending it.” Chan said, taking the pillow from Jisung before turning to smile at you. “Welcome to our home Y/N.”

You bowed your head and giggled.

‘Thank you Chan.” You said.

“So what did you guys do yesterday?” Felix asked.

“We went to Bukchon Hanok Village.” Jisung said.

“Ohhh, that’s a nice place for a first date.” Felix said teasingly.

Jisung glared at him and Felix giggled.

“I’m kidding, I’m kidding.” He giggled.

“Did you enjoy it?” Chan asked, looking at you.

“Oh yes, it was nice.” You said with a smile.

The front door opened and you heard someone walking towards the living room, and your stomach dropped when you saw it was Hyunjin.

“Hey Hyunjin.” Chan greeted the taller boy.

“Hey-” Hyunjin cut himself off when he saw you sitting there.

“What’s she doing here?” He asked.

“Don’t be rude Jinnie, she’s Jisung’s friend.” Changbin said.

“Right.” Hyunjin said.

“He’s just mad she rejected him.” Changbin giggled.

“Am not.” Hyunjin mumbled.

His eyes landed on you.

“Since when are you friends with Jisung?” He asked.

“Since he started following me around.” You said, earning a gasp from Jisung.

“I DO NOT!” He gasped.

“Do to!” You shot back.

Hyunjin was still eyeing you, his eyes narrowed. Chan sat beside you, the opposite side of Jisung.

“How’s Korean going for you?” He asked about the class you shared.

“Good, I still haven’t finished that project though.” You sighed.

“Isn’t that due in like, two days?’ He asked.

“I recently started procrastinating.” You groaned.

He laughed and shook his head.

“Things like that happen.” He said.

“I’ve never been like that until recently.” You laughed.

“It happens to the best of us.” He giggled.

“What did you guys do in Bukchon Hanok?” Felix asked, plopping next to Chan.

“Jisung so nicely volunteered me to help one of the women out with making Hanbok’s.” You laughed.

“Hey! She said you were perfect for it and modeled you, and gave you one.” Jisung laughed.

“Ooooh! She gave you one? Can we see it?” Felix asked.

You grabbed the bag the women put it in and pulled it out, showing them.

“That’s beautiful.” Felix said with a big smile.

“She looked really good in it.” Jisung said.

“I’m sure she did.” Changbin playfully teased.

“Shut up.” Jisung pouted.

You stretched and looked at your phone.

“I should leave soon. I have a study session.” You said.

‘I’ll walk you.” Jisung offered.

“You don’t have too, it’s a long walk.” You pointed out.

“It’s not a big deal, you shouldn’t be walking around alone.” He said.

He went and grabbed your clothes and handed them to you.

“You can keep the T-shirt and sweatpants.” He said.

“Are you sure? I can get changed-” You started.

“Nah, they’re pervs and will try to sneak a peak.” He said.

“If any of us would do that it’d be you.” Hyunjin said, not looking at either of you. “She doesn’t have much to look at anyways.”

Your face went red and you were about to say something smart, when Chan smacked Hyunjin pretty hard upside the head.

“Don’t act like that.” Chan scolded.

“Yeah, don’t be an asshole.” Jisung said, glaring at him as he led you out of the house.

“I’m sorry about Hyunjin, he can be a dick.” Jisung said.

“it’s no big deal.” You reassured him.

It really wasn’t, but you had enough self esteem issues already without him saying that. Jisung ruffled your hair as you both continued to walk. You kept your eyes pretty low, making Jisung feel a little worried.

“Y/N.” He said, stopping right in front of your house. “I was being serious when I said don’t listen to him. He was just salty you said that to him.”

“It’s okay, really Jisung.” You said with a smile.

“Good... Because I-” He was cut off by his phone ringing.

He looked down in annoyance and answered.

‘Yes Chan?” He asked.

He listened and his eyes narrowed.

“I’ll be there soon. Send me his location.” He said, hanging up the phone.

“I have to go, I’ll see you in school.” He said, running off.

You watched him curiously as he took off.

“That’s... Odd.” You sighed to yourself. Usually he stays and chats.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

You couldn’t focus much during your study session with a couple people in your major. You kept thinking back to the dark look in Jisung’s eyes that you’ve never seen before. He was always happy and joking, but his demeanor changed as soon as he started talking on the phone.

“Y/N? Are you listening?” Your one classmate, Minchul, asked.

“Oh, yes, sorry.” You bowed your head and he smiled.

“It’s okay, just try a bit harder to pay attention.” He said.

You all went over your notes and such and before you knew it, you were walking home. You looked at your phone and noticed Jisung never texted you if he got home okay. He usually does, ever since you’ve given him your number.

You: Are you okay? Did you get home okay?

You cleaned yourself up for bed and checked your phone again, and felt dismay at the blank phone screen.

Odd.

You sighed and laid down, feeling waves of tiredness crash into you like it was beating on rocks at a coastline.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

None of the boys were at school that day, and you didn’t receive an answer from Jisung, which alarmed you a bit. You looked around your Korean class for Hyunjin and Chan, but they were no where to be seen. You tried to focus on the class, but your mind kept drifting.

“Hey Y/N.” You jumped and turned your head to see Minchul standing behind you.

“Did you finish the project for this class?” He asked.

Minchul was the ‘class president’ and in multiple of your classes. He was in the same major as yours, and made it known he was the smartest. He also made it known that his family is rich by using designer bags, jewelry, and clothing.

“Oh, I’m almost done.” You said.

“It’s due tomorrow, silly.” He said with an amused chuckle.

“I know that your the class president, and no offence, but my academic career is kinda MY business.” You pointed out.

He raised his hands in submission and gave you a friendly smile.

“I’m sorry if I gave off that vibe, I really didn’t mean it that way. You’re really nice and one of the only genuine people here. I was just making sure you were doing good.” He said.

You sighed and bowed your head.

“I’m sorry for my response, thank you for worrying.” You said.

“No need to apologize, I see where your coming from.” He said with a smile.

“Well I should get to my next class, see you.” You said, bowing before walking out of the room.

After school you ran home to get dressed into your work uniform and hurried to work, clocking in right on time.

“Hey Y/N!” Your boss greeted you with a big grin.

“Hey Mrs. Ito.” You greeted her.

You quickly set up the tables and got everything ready for your shift. You were working with Nari that night (Welcome back Nari :D) and knew it was going to be a smooth night. Your customers were steady coming in, and everything was peaceful. By the end of your shift, you made a lot of tips and felt satisfied with the way the night had ended. You waved goodbye to your boss and Nari before making your way home.

You were putting something away in your bag when you were a few blocks from your apartment when you bumped into someone.

“I’m sorry.” You said, looking up.

You and Jisung stared at each other, and he looked like a deer in headlights.

“Oh... Hey Y/N.” Jisung said with a smile.

“Oh, hey.” You greeted with a small smile.

“Sorry I never got back to you, I’ve been pretty busy.” He said.

He looked nervous. Why was he so nervous. He started rambling about stuff when something caught your eye.

“Jisung... What happened to your lip?”

#straykids #stray kids #straykidznet #kpop imagines #kpop #han jisung fluff #skz han #han stray kids #han jisung #stray kids han #jisung

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thekpopcloud · 5 years

Text

Write to love

Stray Kids Seungmin soulmate AU

Seungmin x reader, non-idol!AU

requests are open!!

Soulmate Sign: You and your soulmate can communicate by writing on your skin, whatever you write on your skin will appear on the other person’s skin and vice versa.

(gif not mine! credit to owner!)

You were one if the luckier people in the world, you and your soulmate had a simple way of connection, through writing on your skin. The first time the connection showed up was on a weird day. You’d been at school when a you felt weird sensation on your arm, you looked down and almost screamed.

There was a sentence scribbled down across your arm, one you certainly didn’t write, and it was barely readable.

You were prepared to roll down your sleeve and hide it when your friend looked over, she was just as shocked as you were, except she was a lot more vocal about it.

“Y/N GOT THEIR SOULMATE MARK!!” She’d screamed to almost the whole class and suddenly, everyone’s attention was on you.

That was simultaneously the best and worst day of your life.

“I hate this damn thing!”

Looking up from your revision book, you watched as Hyunjin tugged on the dark red ribbon wrapped tightly around his wrist. He was your best friend, since the day your were born.

But he hated the idea of soulmates, absolutely despised them. He’d grown to hate the ribbon locked around his wrist, the ribbon that only his soulmate would be able to untie.

You rolled your eyes at him, placing the pen down. “You say that everyday Hyunjin, maybe if you stop complaining you’ll meet our soulmate and they’ll take it off”

The familiar sensation shot through your arm and you looked, a smile crawling onto your lips as you watched the words appear on your arm. It was your soulmate, Seungmin was his name.

‘I’m starting at a new school today, help :(’

“You’ve practically got hearts pouring from your eyes...” He mumbled, clearly annoyed.

Picking the pen back up, you scribbled a reply onto your arm. ‘Aww don’t worry Min, you’ll be fine :)’

“At least i care about my soulmate..” you spoke, shooting him a glare. Though you both seemed angry at each other the smiles on your faces said otherwise.

Before he could shoot a comment back, two people came barreling through the the library door and towards you and Hyunjin but not before giving the head librarian guilty glances.

“What’s got you two in a rush this early in the morning?” You asked the tow boys, glancing between them and the clock on your phone.

Felix crashed onto the chair beside you while Jisung crashed next to- almost on top of- Hyunjin.

“There’s gonna be a new kid in our class, I've gotta show him around” Jisung replied, folding his arms on the table and resting his chin against them.

You mumbled a reply, not really too stoked about another kids joining your class. The feeling returned to your arm and you looked down, diverting your full attention to your soulmate.

Instead of a comment or anything, there was a somewhat detailed drawing of a sunflower on your arm. You bit back a giggle and scribbled down onto your arm.

‘Did you get bored?’

Seconds later words began appearing underneath your own.

‘Yep :(’

“Y/N...are you paying attention to anything i’m saying?” Jisung asked, reaching over and tapping your arm.

When you didn’t reply, he took a hold of the pen in your hand and pulled it away, you jumped in surprise and looked up.

“Hey! I’m mid conversation! Give it back” You tried to reach for the pen but he leaned back in his chair and held it far from you.

An idea popped into Jisung’s head and he smirked, sitting normally again.

“Let me write something on your arm and i’ll give it back” He suggested, raising an eyebrow.

Felix piped in. “Ooh me too!”

“And me” Hyunjin joined, his voice had an evil tone to it.

You sat back in your chair, genuinely thinking about it for a moment. “Ugh okay fine, if i see one inappropriate thing I’m replacing all of your’s shampoo with bleach”

“You wouldn’t dare..” Jisung muttered as he grabbed your other arm and rolled up the sleeve, immediately starting to scribble down something.

10 minutes and one aching arm later, you’d finally gotten your arm and pen back. The first thing you did was look down, eyes widening when you saw the amount of things on your arm.

“How..what the...since when did any of you know how to draw so well?” You asked and admired the weirdly cool pattern on your arm.

Felix, who looked very offended, slapped your arm lightly. “Hey! I’ve always been able to draw!”

“Your work in art class tells a different story” Hyunjin scoffed, resting his chin on his hand.

The three of you started to laugh, minus Felix who crossed his arms over his chest and pouted, looking like a child.

Words slowly appeared on your other arm, making you look back down.

‘How did you draw all that so quickly?’

‘I didn’t, my three friends did :)’ You wrote back.

The school bell rang, catching the attention of all of you. You quickly packed up your stuff and slid it all into your bag, swinging it over your shoulder.

As the four of you left the library, Hyunjin appeared by your side and swung his arm over your shoulder, pulling you into his side.

“You alright, Hyunie?”

He forced a smile onto his lips. “Perfect”

The teacher came into the class, her arms stacked high with papers and a boy trailing behind her like a lost puppy.

He was a handsome boy, there was no doubt about it, his brown hair parted down the middle. Okay he was very handsome.

You adverted your eyes, choosing to glance around the class. The fact that every desk was taken, the only free seat being beside you, seemed so cliche.

“Class, listen up” The teacher spoke as she dropped the papers onto her desk rather aggressively, silencing the whole class. Even the new kid beside her jumped.

“We have a new student joining us today, please make him feel welcome, care to introduce yourself?” She directed the last part to the boy.

He nodded and bowed to the class. “Hello, my name is Seungmin, pleased to meet you all”

Seungmin? no way... it can’t be...

You shook the thought away and propped your arm up onto the desk, resting your chin flat against your palm.

“You may sit...over there!” The teacher smiled, pointing over at the seat next to you.

As he walked over you looked behind you, shooting Hyunjin a look that screamed ‘save me!’ but he only laughed and shook his head.

“Hello...” Seungmin greeted you as he sat down, you smiled and mumbled back a hello and shuffled your chair over.

The teacher took out a folder labelled ‘PROJECTS’ and the class collectively groaned.

“It’s projects or recreating scenes from Romeo And Juliet...consider yourselves lucky!” She stated, but still some of the class complained.

Opening the folder, she took out a sheet of paper and read over it. “For this topic, you and your partner must research a mythical creature and do a small paper on it, this will be 30 percent of your final grade”

Mythical creatures...this will be fun

One the students called out. “Can we choose our partners?”

“No, you will be working with the person beside you, and no it is not up for discussion”

You glanced at Seungmin in the corner of your eye. He was slumped in his chair, toying with the hem of his shirt, upon a closer inspection you caught glimpse of a what looked like a drawing poking out from his sleeve.

There’s no way he’s that Seungmin...no way..

The teacher was still speaking but you were paying no attention to her, too focused on the boy beside you, trying to subtly stare at him.

Eventually, the teacher stopped talking and everyone was given time to discuss their projects. You felt a tap on your shoulder and turned in your chair, now facing Hyunjin.

The first thing you noticed was the frown on his lips, he looked beyond annoyed. “What’s wrong?” You asked, leaning back in your chair.

He motioned towards the person beside him, rolling his eyes.

“Ha, you’re screwed” You laughed, speaking just loud enough for Hyunjin to hear you.

He huffed and crossed his arms. The person he sat with was the worst person to work with during projects, she never did any work and did nothing but party.

“Well good luck Jinnie, you’re gonna need all the help you can get” You commented, patting the top of his head before turning around.

As you turned to Seungmin, he was already looking at you, making you jump. “Hi...”

He giggled. “Hi, so erm...what should we do for the project?”

“I don’t know, the teacher said mythical creatures so maybe...vampires?” You suggested, shrugging.

Seungmin hummed and nodded his head. “Good idea, should we...do the work in the library?”

“Yes, i don’t feel like doing work anywhere else..”

It seems like me and him are gonna get along..

“You can join us for lunch if you want to!” Jisung suggested enthusiastically, his arms swinging by his sides as he walked.

Seungmin held a rather large textbook close to his chest. “If it isn’t a problem...”

Jisung shook his head. “Of course not!”

He walked ahead while Seungmin trailed beside you, walking slowly. You gently nudged his shoulder, catching his attention, and smiled.

“Stick by me and you’ll be fine, I’m the only normal one left out of the four of us...” You stated, laughing a small bit.

Seungmin snickered and nodded his head.

The three of you rounded the corner to lunch hall and headed towards your usual table. Hyunjin saw you first and jumped from his seat, jogging over and practically launching himself at you.

“That lesson is going to be the death of me! All my partner did was try and get me to come to a party on Saturday” He complained, putting all of his weight onto you.

With him still basically attached to you, you stumbled over towards the table and let him fall into his heat before grabbing the last free seat.

“So Y/N...any more messages from Mr.Soulmate?” Felix asked, his lips pulled into a smirk.

Out of the group, Felix was the only one that had found his soulmate. It was one of the Baristas that worked in the schools coffee shop, his name was Changbin.

You shook your head, reaching over to take a fry from his plate. Felix whined and smacked your hand away from his plate.

The conversation quickly switched to something else and you slumped back in the chair, glancing down at your sleeve. An idea popped into your head, reaching into your coat pocket for a pen.

Uncapping the pen, you stretched out your palm and brought the pen down. As it touched your skin you felt someone flinch beside you.

Seungmin silently watched you scribbling on your hand, his attention was drawn to you until someone called his name, snapping him back to reality.

He absentmindedly replied to what Hyunjin was asking him, glancing at you out of the corner of his eye.

It couldn’t be....

Seungminnie: My house @ 12?

You looked down at you phone, a smile grazing over your lips upon seeing the text. Seungmin had been at the school for a few weeks and you closer than ever.

Quickly texting him back, you got changed and made yourself look somewhat presentable. You’d never put this much effort to look nice for someone else, but it was different with Seungmin, it wasn’t like you had a crush on him but it was something else.

You rushed out of the house with your jacket half on and your bag swinging on your arm. Rushing down the stairs, you almost tripped and fell, if it wasn’t for the banister you would’ve landed on your face.

As you speed walked down the road, your phone rang in your pocket. You fumbled around and looked at the screen before answering.

“Hello?” You asked.

“Y/N! What are you doing today?” Felix asked down the phone.

“I’m going to get the final bit of this project done at Minnie’s house, why?”

You could hear him shuffling around on the other end. “Binnie hyung wanted to know if you could come round and help him with a track.

“Hmm maybe, we’ll see what time we finish working” You hummed.

“Are you gonna tell him? Oh please tell me you are!” He pleaded, you shook your head.

“Tell him that i think he’s my soulmate? No way! Cause if he isn’t then it’ll make things hella awkward!”

Felix sighed, you could picture him shaking his head with a disappointing look on his face. “Y/N...”

“No lix, i’m not telling him! Now go spend so time with your boyfriend, but don’t do anything i wouldn’t!”

He laughed. “Haha, alright then, bye!”

You put the phone down as you got to Seungmin’s house, knocking on the door twice.

The door swung open to reveal Seungmin. His hair was messy and he was dressed in a casual pair of sweatpants and a hoodie, a pair of glasses sat on his nose.

“Y/N-ie!!” He smiled, opening the door fully, You walked in and took you shoes off. Before you could speak Seungmin pulled you into a tight hug and rested his head against yours .

You ignored the hammering in your chest, snuggling against him. “Seungminnie~ how are you?”

“Good, better now that you’re here” He pulled back, looked down at you and winked.

Shaking your head, you pulled back and patted his chest. “Whatever you say Seungmin. Now, should we get started on this work?”

Two hours later....

“I swear if we don’t get a good mark on this i’m gonna have words with the teacher” You ranted, tapping away on your laptop.

Seungmin laughed, looking over at you. “Now that is an argument i would like to see!”

“Well...” you started, clapping your hands together once. “Arguments later, this must be finished first!”

“Actually...i’m kinda hungry...” Seungmin trailed off, pushing his laptop onto the coffee table beside you.

You hummed in agreement, taking your hands off the laptop. “Should we go and make food? or nah?”

He shook his head. “Let’s order something, what d’you want?”

“Let’s get pizza, give me the number of that pizza place down the road!” You said as you picked up a pen, a little idea popping into your head.

Seungmin started to say the number and you scribbled it on the back of your hand, when he stopped speaking you looked up at him and raised an eyebrow at him.

“You alright min-”

“I had a feeling it was you, the minute i heard Felix say your name” He mumbled, looking down at the back of his hand.

I was right

He’s my soulmate

You jumped from your seat and wrapped your arms around Seungmin as tight as you could, he slowly wrapped his arms around you and held you against him.

“I knew i wasn’t stupid, i knew it wasn’t just a coincidence” You mumbled against him.

Seungmin pulled back and looked at you with confusion written all over his face. “What do you mean?”

“The fact that you joined my school the day my soulmate tells me he’s starting a new school? And the fact that there’s probably not a lot of people in the world called Seungmin? It had to be you”

A comfortable silence fell over the two of you, staring at each other. The two of you slowly leaned in until your faces were inches apart.

You took the opportunity and closed the gap, pressing your lips to his. Seungmin could feel his heart speeding up in his chest as he kissed back, his eyes fluttering closed.

The kiss was short and sweet, still managing to leave you breathless as you pulled away. Seungmin pressed his forehead against yours as his eyes slowly opened.

“As first kisses go, that wasn’t too bad” You smiled, looking up at him.

Seungmin smiled, full of happiness at that exact moment in time.

He’d found his soulmate, and his soulmate happened to be the person he was developing a crush on.

“We need a break from work, a date?” He asked, unable to stop the smile.

You nodded, retracting your arms from him and standing up. “A date it is”

This was now the happiest day of your life.

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