Latest Posts by meadowsweetskoo - Page 9

daydream ⟡ hope on the stage cr. 0613data

250316 - seokjin on instagram

[460/547] — until we meet again, jungkook ♡

7 DAYS OF J-HOPE ⤷  in celebration of 'Jack In The Box' (6/7) (cr. dwellingsouls)

kim seokjin for harper's bazaar korea

he’s the most prettiest person to ever exist

(216/∞) the perfect nose for butterflies to land on it ♡ cr. @jung-koook

my daily routine consists of looking at hoseok and then screaming a little

250314 - bts on hope_to's instagram channel

jimin and taehyung are only two months apart but jimin sounds like hes 12 and taehyung sounds like he’s gone through puberty twice and this is why i have trust issues 

other words to use instead of quiet?

Quiet—the quality or state of being free from noise

Abeyance - a state of temporary inactivity; suspension—used chiefly in the phrase, "in abeyance"

Caesura - a usually rhetorical break in the flow of sound in the middle of a line of verse; interruption

Cessation - a temporary or final ceasing (as of action); stop

Dormant - asleep, inactive

Dumbstruck - made silent by astonishment

Hermetic - impervious to external influence

Hush - calm, quiet; silent

Inarticulacy - the quality or state of being incapable of speech

Interpose - to be or come between; interrupt

Interrupted - consisting of or containing a stop in articulation

Interspace - an intervening space; interval

Interstice - a gap or break in something generally continuous

Latent - present and capable of emerging or developing but not now visible, obvious, active, or symptomatic

Lull - a temporary pause or decline in activity

Moratorium - a suspension of activity

Moribund - being in a state of inactivity or obsolescence

Muffle - to deaden the sound of

Mum - silent

Mute - to muffle, reduce, or eliminate the sound of

Nonvocal - not having or exercising the power of producing voice, speech, or sound

Pause - a temporary stop

Peaceable - quietly behaved

Quell - quiet, pacify

Quiescent - marked by inactivity or repose; tranquilly at rest

Quietude - a quiet state; repose

Repress - to prevent the natural or normal expression, activity, or development of

Reserved - restrained in words and actions

Respite - an interval of rest or relief

Reticence - the quality or state of being inclined to be silent or uncommunicative in speech; reserved

Serenity - a state of utter calm and unruffled repose or quietude

Settle - to become quiet or orderly

Shush - to urge to be quiet; hush

Silence - absence of sound or noise; stillness

Soundproof - impervious to sound

Speechless - not speaking; silent

Squelch - to completely suppress; quell; silence

Stifle - to withhold from circulation or expression

Still - free from noise

Stilly - in a calm manner; quietly

Stupefy - to make stupid, groggy, or insensible; astonish, astound

Stunned - to make senseless, groggy, or dizzy by or as if by a blow; dazed

Sulk - to be moodily silent

Sullen - gloomily or resentfully silent or repressed

Surcease - cessation; especially: a temporary respite or end

Taciturnity - temperament marked by disinclination to talk

Tongue-tied - unable or disinclined to speak freely (as from shyness)

Tranquillity - the quality or state of being free from disturbance or turmoil

Uncommunicative - not disposed to talk or impart information; reserved

Voicelessness - having no voice; mute

Wordless - silent, speechless

Hope this helps with your writing. Do tag me, or send me a link. I'd love to read your work!

More: Word Lists

i think they have a moving castle somewhere...✨🤍 | for @jkvjimin

{cr. 0613data}

PRETTY DOLL

{cr. dwellingsouls, 0613data, namuspromised}

Is it hot in here, or is it just him? 🥵

Loving Esati so far, can’t wait to see how the story plays out! ☺️

I'm so happy to hear that! Thank you sm for reading🥺🧡

sweetest smile

🤣

𝑴𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒕

𝐊𝐢𝐦 𝐍𝐚𝐦𝐣𝐨𝐨𝐧

A good foot tall

Oneshot, College au, fluff, strangers to lovers. Part of the 'bts university au'

Synopsis: You ran into this cute dude with even cuter dimples who keeps appearing just when you need help. Coincidence?

𝐊𝐢𝐦 𝐒𝐞𝐨𝐤𝐣𝐢𝐧

𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘰𝘰𝘯

𝐌𝐢𝐧 𝐘𝐨𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐢

𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘰𝘰𝘯

Drabbles:

Sparkles (fluff, sci-fi, dystopian)

𝐉𝐮𝐧𝐠 𝐇𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐨𝐤

Little slave

Oneshot, college au, fluff, enemies to lovers. Part of the 'bts university au'

Synopsis: When a series of bad luck, or bad decisions really, land you in the palm of the most wicked TA at campus, what choices do you have other than to do his bidding?

𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐤 𝐉𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐧

𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘰𝘰𝘯

Drabbles:

Bubblegum (fluff, new year, neighbors)

𝐊𝐢𝐦 𝐓𝐚𝐞𝐡𝐲𝐮𝐧𝐠

Hey, thief

Oneshot, College au, fluff, crack, strangers to lovers. Part of the 'bts university au'

Synopsis: It seems Taehyung can't help but get roped in these late night adventures. This time though, he won't be coming back empty handed.

𝐉𝐞𝐨𝐧 𝐉𝐮𝐧𝐠𝐤𝐨𝐨𝐤

Esati

Series, Fantasy au, action, fluff, angst, smut(???), strangers to lovers.

Synopsis: When past comes knocking on your door wearing the face of unknown dangers, you can either refuse acknowledging it and be a sitting duck or find out what it was that turned your world upside down all those years ago—that has come back yet again to hunt you—with a stranger promising to keep you safe, by your side. One thing is sure: secrets will unfold. And it would not be anything you could've imagined.

Drabbles:

Jenga (fluff, college, friends2lovers)

Ungodly Hour (1)

That time you - a broke college student - were willing to do just about anything for a hulu account after your brother kicks you off of his - (and Jungkook would do anything to have you).

Series Masterlist

Word count: 1.687

Warning: idk yall, i was bored, smut, college au, jungkook is thirsty, reader is somewhat slutty but with good reasons, dirty talking, swallowing, oral (m receiving), unprotected sex, riding, cumming,

Your mouth wrapped around the tip of Jungkook’s cock, twirling the head in your mouth. You only slightly (maybe more than you want to admit) the way the salty pre-cum drips into your mouth as you suck. Even better were his moans - so soft and velvety; melodic. 

if anyone was to blame it had to be your brother - he was the nuisance in your life. It was as if he intended on making your life a complete mess.

You were a good person, daughter and sister. You did what you had to do - attend classes everyday. You went to work and then home without a care. You worked at a grocery store part time and made enough to pay your half of the rent. Sure, with the price of groceries now you couldn’t be bothered to buy any. But that’s where your parents came in. You craved independence from them but only for privacy. You made sure you were there every night for dinner and sometimes if you had time, breakfast in the mornings. 

Your brother was just upset that you accidentally bought an add-on on his hulu account - but how else were you supposed to watch what you wanted if he was too cheap to pay for anything further? It was bad enough you had to sit through 2 minute ads - it was the least he could do.

This is how you now found yourself sucking Jungkook off - the same man you had been dodging ever since the pair of you met. He gave off fuck boy vibes and the last thing you needed was that in your life - until you actually did need Jungkook. The irony.

Jungkook watches with hooded eyes at the beautiful sight of you. You had now grasped the length of his cock and began to pump him, focusing more on the tip of his head. He was glad the two of you were alone - seeing as you didn’t even have the decency to take him to your room and insisted on doing this on the couch. But Jungkook wasn’t a picky person - he prayed for times such as this. You were the play hard to get type and one thing he enjoyed was the chase. 

Jungkook places a hand on the back of your head and thrusts lighty into your mouth, groaning as he does so. You allowed it. You laid your tongue flat, eyes flickering up to watch his expression. Satisfaction bubbled deep inside of you at the sight of his lust-filled expression. Dark hooded eyes, gasping lips.

“I waited, fuck…so long for this.” Jungkook groans, pumping inside of your mouth a little faster. His thumb caresses your cheek. “I told you that I’d have you one day, didn’t I?” he says smugly. 

You groan a response, throat vibrating against his cock. That bastard, you thought. Jungkook did - he told you that one day your “play hard to get” act would crumble and when it did, he’d be there. But this couldn’t count - right? You were doing this for the greater good, after all. You had shows to watch and Jungkook just so happened to be the one that had a premium account.

You feel the tip of Jungkook’s cock tickling the back of your throat, testing to see how far you’d let him go. There’s a trail of saliva dripping from the corner of your lips and it drips slowly down your chin. Your mouth was heavy - wet and warm and inviting. You were determined to make him cum and he was determined to do just that. 

Jungkook’s hand grips your hair - you moan at the sensation. He pumps just a little faster, your slurps and gagging hitting his ears and he moans at just how filthy you were for him. 

“I’m about to cum.” Jungkook groans. His free hand wipes away a lone tear that releases from your eye. “You okay?” he asks, slowing his thrusts.

Your response was to bring him deeper into your mouth, blinking up at him. You slap his thigh harshly and that was all the permission he needed to fuck your throat. He shudders, feeling his toes curl. It didn’t help that your teary eyes watched his every move - and Jungkook couldn’t take his eyes off of you. Even now while he took control, you remain just as stubborn; challenging him. “F-Fuck…” Jungkook grunts. “W-Where do I cum?”

Jungkook wants to slap himself, forgetting that you can’t exactly respond to him. But he’s unsure if cumming inside of your mouth would be too intimate - but then again, you could always spit it out and he would be fine with that. 

You gag, feeling your throat swell with the warm, salty substance. You inhale through your nose and moan. “L-Let me find-” Jungkook watches as you swallow and lick your lips - he feels his cheeks redden and his heart thump.

You wipe your eyes of the pathetic tears and hum. “Don’t get big headed.” you hiss.

Jungkook smirks and bats his eyelashes. “Never.” he says. “I already made you a profile on my hulu account.”

You watch as Jungkook takes out his phone to show you the account and like state, he did make you your own profile. You snort at the name - stargirl. “I’ll text you the information to get into it.”

You place your hands onto his thighs. Your eyes lower to his cock - it wasn’t completely erect, but it wasn’t softening, either. 

“I was told I would get peacock and hbo max.” you say to him. You didn’t want to tell him that you were wet and wanted to ride him, his head was already big enough. 

“I have hbo max as an add on with hulu.” Jungkook responds, eyes darkening at the thought of feeling you. 

“Hm. That’s too bad.” you tilt your head. “I wanted to ride you.”

“I can add disney.” Jungkook responds far too quickly, mentally cursing at how desperate he appeared.

Smirking, you nod your head. “Deal.”

Jungkook’s eyes are wide when you lift from your knees and kick off your shorts, panties flying with them. He’s erect once more at the sight of your slick trailing down your thighs. Your thighs trap him beneath you as you center yourself on him. “I’m not on any birth control.”

Jungkook gulps. His hands place themselves firmly on your hips. “I can pull out.” he nods. “Unless you want another streaming service as payment for me cumming inside of you.” he jokes - unless…

Jungkook smirks at you and you could only glare. You sit down on him completely and wipe the smirk from his lips. Your hands grip his shoulders as you begin to pound on him. It doesn’t take time for the entire sitting room is filled with your moans mixed with Jungkooks as well as skin slapping.

“You look like you’re enjoying yourself.” Jungkook murmurs, inching closer to capture your lips with his own. You never said anything against kissing is his defense.

You deepen the kiss, grinding against him. “Says the man who hasn’t stopped moaning since we started.”

Jungkook chuckles and does just that. His hands trail from your hips, to your thighs and upwards towards your breast. He grips both of your clothed breasts into his palms. “Pussy feels so good, I can’t help myself.”

You swallow your own moan back. You can’t let him know his words turn you on - he would never let you live it down. It’s bad enough you were fucking him for streaming services.

You shifted yourself, your feet firmly against the couch. You looked into his eyes as you began to bounce on him once more, satisfied that the man below you was a moaning mess - and broke eye contact first. His eyes begin to roll at the new found pleasure.

You decided that you wouldn’t hide your own pleasure anymore. Jungkook was big and this position only meant that his cock was hitting the right spot each time. 

“I know it feels good, baby.” Jungkook’s voice brings you back to reality - and so does his thumb upon your clit. His thumb rubs hastily on it, enjoying the way your pussy tightens around his cock.

“It does.” Maybe you were growing weak - but only because it did feel good. That, and the way Jungkook’s voice grows deeper and more sultry as he speaks is an added turn on. 

“What happened to the playing hard to get girl I know?” Jungkook’s now thrusting upwards inside of you to meet you halfway.

You clench around him. “Fuck you.” you murmur.

“I intend to.” Jungkook manages to laugh, his thumb leaving your clit to hook beneath your thighs. He continues where you left off, stamina unmatched. He pounds into you with such need - as if this was what he had been waiting for for who knows how long.

Your arms wrap around his neck and allow him the control - just this once. Jungkook’s reveling in your submission, murmuring dirty words in your ears as he fucks you. You were so wet - slick gripping out of you and onto his thighs - that he knew neither of you would last long.

You bite your lip when you feel Jungkook’s hands on your ass. He squeezes it with such need, moaning beautifully in your ears as his thrusts turn sloppy. “Where do I cum?” he asks suddenly.

“Anywhere.” was your response.

Jungkook took your lack of direction as a sign. His fingers lean down from your ass to find your clit once more. He toys with it as he thrusts, hellbent on making sure you cum right along with him. He wasn’t going to last - not with the way you were squeezing his cock right now.

“S-Shit!” you hiss, feeling yourself come undone right as Jungkook pulls out of you, cum leaking on your ass.

Jungkook leans against the couch and pants. There was no way he was going to leave you alone after this - but that’s okay because he knows you’ll close up once more and play that game you’ve been playing. Jungkook loved the chase and deep down, so do you.

Series Masterlist

Becoming a writer is great because now you have a hobby that haunts you whenever you don’t have time to do it

Little Slave | JHS

Title: Little slave; university au!

Pairing: Hoseok x reader

Genre: Fluff

Word count: 7.6k

Warning: curse words.

Summary: When a series of bad luck, or bad decisions really, land you in the palm of the most wicked TA at campus, what choices do you have other than to do his bidding?

Note: Hello! Thank you for reading this fic. It's the second part of my bts university au series but of course can be read as a stand alone.

Note: I'm reposting this from my previous blog.

(Credit. Deviders by: @chachachannah and @enchanthings ; The pictures are from Pinterest)

You need new friends.

New friends who won't make you play drunk truth and dare. New friends who won't be sitting somewhere in their dorms snickering at your misery. New friends who won't make you do things you do.

New friends who aren't the most chaotic trio on the whole campus, a.k.a. Taehyung, Yoongi, and Jungkook.

You went to hide under the desk of your professor's office the moment you heard shuffling outside the doors. Crouching low, tucking yourself in, and trying to keep quiet. Flashbacks of the past night were coming back to you.

You were tired of being named the fun-sucker by your friends and had agreed to a round of shots. You first mistake.

And in your slightly drunken state you let them drag you in the game of truth and dare where they made you pick dare. Your second mistake.

Then, you made the third mistake that night by accepting Jungkook's dare of sneaking in Mr. Lee's office and to bring one of his infamous crystal paper weights as a proof that you did complete the dare.

"It's to prove you ain't a scaredy pants." In Jungkook's drunk words precisely.

And now all those mistakes have lead you here in your current situation. You swear if you die right here you're going to haunt their ass-

You cut off your thoughts as you heard the sound of the door opening. Holding your breath in, you kept quiet as you listened to the sound of the footsteps nearing the desk.

Who could be here at this hour? It's still too early for the cleaning staff to come and way too late for any students or teachers. Don't tell me Mr. Lee forgot something before and decided to come back. Oh shit oh shi-

You ceased your internal panicking when you saw a pair of shoes just below on the other side of the desk. In the very little light coming from the small lamp on the desk—that was always left on—you saw that they were a pair of sneakers. Okay, not Mr. Lee.

It was silent for a while and then you heard the sound of shuffling of papers as if something was being moved on the desk.

Then the footsteps started retreating and you released a sigh of relief. Alright lets just get out of here now before someone else decides to show up.

Your relief was short lived though. Just before the person could reach the door there was a sudden, loud thump as if something or someone fell painfully on the floor. You tried peeking from your hiding place and look for the source—which seemed to be the small window on the upper side of the wall. You could faintly hear a person—or more, you couldn't really tell—but before you could get up and investigate further you realised that the steps had halted at the loud sound.

The person stood there silently for a couple seconds longer, in which you prayed that he would not think much of the sound, then he took a few more steps and you heard the door shut.

Finally letting out the breath you were holding, you slowly peeked out of your hiding space—the lamp illuminating the office in a gentle glow. Seeing no one around, you enhaled a deep breath and pushed yourself a little more out of the confined space; you looked towards the closed door—no one seemed to be standing outside either.

Wait. Your eyes narrowed in on something just beside the door. Are those...shoes?

"Gotcha." A voice whispered just behind you.

You got up at once, raising from your half crouch, hurriedly turning towards the person and just as you opened your mouth to let out a startled scream you found a palm pressed against your mouth making your scream come muffled against it.

You looked up at the owner of the hand and were met with dark eyes which seemed to be twinkling. The lamp was positioned behind the man—which you could confirm was most probably a student, now that you could somewhat see him—and it drowned his face in darkness, casting a shadow on his face making it harder to recognise him.

You stared silently at the man, brain coming to a full stop as he just stood there. He opened his mouth, a smile heard in his voice as he said, "looks like it's my lucky day."

This voice, it's somewhat familiar...no way...

As he turned his head slightly to the right it became washed in the orange glow of the lamp illuminating his features and it caused you to immediately thought of every curse word you could knew. Because not only did you get caught in your teacher's office late into the night—looking very suspicious, not to mention— but also the person who caught you was none other than the menace of the whole student body, the cocky bitch of a TA.

Jung Hoseok.

He took a step forward. You took one back. He took another. You didn't have space to move behind further.

He leaned closer to you, invading in your space and you tried hard to lean as far away as possible no sure what was gonna happen. He set his hand on the desk you were leaning against, your eyes widened and then there was a click.

Sharp white light flooded the office, the main lights switched on. Now you could see his face, a lazy smile on his lips, looking at you with eyes of a predator.

You heart was thundering in your chest—honestly, you were scared. Hoseok was not one to be messed with. You knew that and that information was making your palms sweat.

"Do you have an explanation as to what you were doing here at this hour?" He scanned your face from top to bottom and then back up, locking eyes with you.

You just let out a pathetic muffled whimper.

"Oh, my bad," he removed his hand where it was planted ln your mouth and shuffled backwards a bit but did not remove his hand from the desk beside you, his second hand moving onto the desk chair effectively trapping you in, in case you tried to make a run for it—which you don't think you can. Your legs feel like jelly.

"I can- i can explain, please," seeing as he was giving you a chance to speak you believed you still had hope and you didn't want to waste a second of it not defending yourself, "I'm not here to do anything suspicious, i swear! Look I was roped into doing this stupid dare by my stupid friends. I was just gonna get in here, collect- collect proof that I completed the dare and then go back I swear it was harmless please trust me-"

"Y/n" The utterance of your name from his mouth halted you in your rambling, "you're in mr Lee's class. I remember you. May I ask who gave you this dare?"

Now, you were many things but not a snitch, "just stupid kids at a party, we were all quite drunk," your voice grew smaller at the twinkling look in his eyes.

"Loyal huh? I like it usually, guess I'll have to make do with only you."

"What- what do you-"

"Okay, so, you broke into a teachers office this late at night, somehow passing through the lock by- how did you unlock the door by the way?"

You pursued your lips, you knew you shouldn't say anything,  you knew and yet when he moved just a centimeter closer and raised a single eyebrow, you squeaked out:

"i pick- I picked the- the lock..."

Your answer caused both his eyebrows to raise.

"So you're a professional at this-"

"It was just stupid easy to pick the locks! They are so cheap it didn't take much effort! A child could do it," you rushed out in a panic, contrasting his calm disposition.

"Oh I wouldn't know. Never needed to test the security of the locks, he stated as he looked down at his hand on the table where one of his fingers had a key on a ring around it.

"Let me get this all in order. You broke into a teachers office by picking the locks to the door, came here with the intention to steal-"

"No!"

"Shh." He took his hand off the chair and pressed a finger against your lips, effectively shutting you up.

"And got caught red handed in the act. Hmm, how should we deal with you? You could've taken sensitive information." You knew there was no information to steal. Mr. Lee always took all his answer sheet, future questions and mark sheets with him home. Something about not trusting the campus security.

"Look. I told you I wasn't here doing something wrong."

"How am I supposed know that? You could've been here doing god knows what. Not to mention mr. Lee will undoubtedly trust my words over yours if it came to that."

He was right. You really were stuck here.

He was smiling down at you like he also knew this fact. You were not liking the situation you were in one bit.

"What do you want?" You sighed.

Withdrawing himself completely from you, "now we're talking," he took several steps back and brought his palms together in a clap once, "you see I'm a busy man, lots of things to do at once. And having a helping hand would really be beneficial for me," you definitely didn't like where this was going.

"You could see it as a way to make up for your mistakes and no one will hear a word about tonight."

"You're asking me to become your slave."

"Not a slave. Just a helper." He smiled sweetly at you. You somehow hated it more than the sly smirks from before.

You were hesitating. Thinking of ways to get yourself out of this mess.

He saw that, "or we can go talk to mr. Lee himself what his thoughts are on your actions? If you'd prefer that?"

What other options did I have.

His eyes were saying the same thing your mind came to realise. None.

The next morning you woke up to the sound of your phone blaring.

Thinking about the fact that you didn't have a morning class and how you wanted to sleep in more, you reached under your pillows with an incoherent grumble and retrieved your phone.

Jung Hoseok

You sat up at once, rubbing your eyes to wake yourself up. Looking at the time you noted it was a little over seven thirty.

"Hello?" You said on the phone, already dreading what he'll say next. If you were being honest you half hopped for last night to be just a nightmare.

"Meet me on the first floor of the social sciences building in fifteen minutes."

No hello? Wow, rude.

"But-but I don't have a morning class?"

"I don't see why that's a problem? I have work for you so you better hurry unless you know-"

"Alright. Alright! I'll be there just give me a moment." You were flabbergasted, how can someone so beautiful be this cruel!?

"I gave you fifteen minutes. Now hurry." He ended the call.

You wanted nothing more than to dive back in your sheets and sob.

You entered the campus canteen at half past eight. Hair a mess and annoyance radiating off of you.

Roaming your eyes around you found the reason of your bad mood on a table in the back. You stormed up to him, "you're an ass."

He looked up from his toast, "you finished with your work?" He asked with a grin.

"Yeah." You all but seethed out of your mouth.

The work he was talking about was why he had called you in the morning. He asked you to come meet him at the social sciences building and then when you arrived at seven fifty, he was nowhere to be found. You called him, like any sensible person and what he said left you speechless for a second.

"hey, where are you? I'm here."

"Oh. Good. Now go into our history classroom and there you will find a bundle of study materials on the desk. Distribute them all for today's class."

"But where are you?"

"Home, where else?"

"What the-"

"Now finish your job and meet me in the cafeteria in around half an hour."

"What do mean- hello? Hello?"

He left you with all his work and didn't even show up.

"Why did you call me here now? To wipe your mouth with a napkin after every bite?" You hissed, still angry.

"Eat."

"What?"

"I said eat," he put his elbow up on the table and rested his head on it, giving you a devilish grin, "you're gonna need all the energy you can get for the rest of your day."

Now your anger vanished, replaced with dread.

You were done with your first class, which just so happened to be Mr. Lee's. As per Hoseok's request you sat in the front row with him only a couple seats over. You could feel Taehyung's confused glances directed at you at the beginning, wondering why you ditched him today but you couldn't tell him what happened last night and honestly you weren't in the mood to talk to him right now.

At the moment you were running towards your next class because even though he was quite tbe entire class when it ended Hoseok made you carry the stack of assignments to mr. Lee's office which made you loose precious time to get to the class in time.

This will be over soon. A couple days and Hoseok would surely let you go. Yeah you just need to hang of for a couple days more.

Little did you know.

From the next day he started working you like an ox in a field.

"Carry these files to the top floor. What? You don't want to?" You ended up being late for your lunch.

"Hello?" You had asked in a small voice. "Bring me an iced americano from the cafe on the other side of the campus. They make it best." He hung up before you could even reply.

"My bag felt heavy so I called you over, take them to my next class, will you? I gotta meet up with a friend." You stumbled in your place as the book bag was tossed in your face.

You were especially pissed off when he called you over to the library to,

"Flip the next page. My hands are tired." It's a damn comic book you ass. He looked up with a pout, his eyes wide and innocent. A wolf in a sheep's clothing.

You couldn't even scream out your frustration like you normally did and instead let out an almost audible sob. You were tired so very tired, when will this torture end.

This morning you were already up when your phone buzzed. Hoseok's terror made it impossible for you to sleep properly, especially since he himself was an early riser and liked to call you first thing in the morning to hand you over that day's first task.

So that meant you were very much awake when he said:

"Come over. I'm sending you my address."

You sputtered, wondering if you heard him right. "What? Your place- no wait- why?"

"Agh you're so loud, did you forget? You're my slave. You do as I tell you. Now hurry." He sounded bored. You couldn't guess what it was even if you tried to. It was a Sunday, that meant it couldn't be a something related to the classes and since he didn't tell you to stop by anywhere you weren't supposed to fetch him anything either.

You sat down heavily on you bed, brain in scrambles, what did he want from you this time? You were almost getting good at guessing, considering it's been about four weeks since that godforsaken night when he caught you.

Since then he's asked of you all sort of odd requests, working you to the bone. Although this last week he mostly called you for help with grading class test or reviewing assignments. So you had to spend quite a lot of time at the library. At some point it almost felt like you were friends, but the moment that thought crossed your head he would make you run half way across campus to fetch him a coffee. And just like that the illusion would shatter.

But now you had no idea. He never asked for you to visit him.

You didn't even have time to spend with your actual friends at all.

You sighed.

Before you could think of something weird you were up and ready to leave. You'll face whatever he threw your way and if he crossed any lines you'll break his nose. His threats be damned.

—

Wiping your sweaty palms on your pants you checked the address once again, confirming you were at the right place. Raising your hand you knocked softly then cursed at yourself wondering if someone even heard. As you stood there like a statue contemplating to knock harder, the door cracked open.

You straightened your back, prepared to throw your fist at Hoseok if need be but were surprised to see a girl your age at the door.

"Hi?" She tilted her head in confusion.

You mentally kicked yourself before answering, "Hi! I'm here for Hoseok," Her eye lit up, she opened her mouth to reply but a loud commotion was heard in the background and she was yanked from the door as it shut in your face.

It was an understatement to say you were shocked into silence. Your lips parted you stared at the closed door.

In two seconds the door opened once more and you were prepared to ask the girl if she was okay but the person standing in front of you was someone else.

"You're late," Jung Hoseok ruffled his wet hair as he stepped aside to let you in, "you gonna come in?" He raised a brow at your still figure.

You hurried inside, forgetting all about your fist and his face. Well not his face, because that's where your attention currently was. His whole body looked damp as if he just came out of a shower as a grey towel hung around his shoulders. His shirt a little wet at places as if he put it on in a hurry, the fabric clinging sinfully to his lean stomach.

Yoh gave your head a shake, what the fuck am I thinking!?

When you forced your eyes back up they locked to his dark ones. He was in his own world just like you were. You cleared your throat to get his attention.

"So," you shifted your wait on your feet, "what did you call me here for?"

He came back to his senses at the sound of your voice and blinked looking around the room. He opened his mouth to say something when you remembered something and cut him off.

"Wait! Who was that girl who opened the door? She suddenly disappeared-"

"Jung!" A second door up in the corridor burst open as the same girl stormed out, only this time her neat black hair was a mess and the glasses she was wearing were askew.

"I cannot believe you picked me up and threw me like a bag of potatoes-" She noticed your gaze, stopping in her rage laced tangent and smiled a crazy smile—or at least it looked crazy in her current state—and turned towards you, "hello! Sorry for his existence, I'm his roommate! Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you too um," You looked back at Hoseok as he stood there with his eyebrows furrowed.

"Oh don't mind him. He just didn't want me to meet the object of his affections. Torturous affections, I mean." She grinned like a kid at him which seemed to piss him off more.

He grabbed your hand and dragged you towards a room opposite the one his roommate came out of. Your panic came back in full force now as he shut the door but instead of locking it he went to his desk chair and sat down.

"What are you looking at? I called you over to work, are you seeing the mess in this room?" He gestured around you, "get to clean it up."

It was only now that you realised that you were standing in his room, his personal space and it felt weirdly intrusive to be here. But as you registered what he said a frown took over your face.

"Clean your room?"

"Yeah the vacuum is outside in the hall and-"

"Hoseok, don't you think it's a little too much? Asking me to clean your room?"

"-most of the clothes are clean just fold them and throw 'em back in the cupboard." He simply closed his eyes, settling his feet on the desk with his hands behind his head.

Chewing on the inside of your cheek you clenched your fist and took a deep breath. There was no reasoning with him, so you bent down and picked up a shirt from the floor, starting to fold it. He said most were clean. You threw it in the closet behind you. He can decide what's washed and what's not on his own.

In fifteen minutes you'd folded most of the clothing from the floors but it wasn't even half of it. There were still more his bed and chairs, pieces of fabric hanging off them. Just how many outfits he owns?

"Do you play fashion show in your room everytime you go out? Literally your whole closet is out on the floor." You picked up an pair of jorts, "ew, who wears these."

"People with a good fashion sense, don't worry your pretty little brain about my fashion choices or else you'll burn those last couple brain cells away too." He looked at you with a tilt of his head.

You wanted to punch him. But decided that it would not do you any good to piss him off.

"All these clothes and I didn't see one underwear. Do you not own one?" You said instead. "Or did Jung Hoseok is actually a gentleman who folded them himself to save himself the embarrassment." voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Why? Did you want to see them? Didn't take you for a perv-"

"Oh my god is that a speedo-" Hoseok's eyes snapped open as his frantic gaze zeroed in on your hands. But they were empty. You burst out laughing, "oh shit judging from your reaction do you actually own one?"

He scowled as you kept giggling, "just get done with it already. Next is the bed."

You walked to the bed, "so this is your trick to get girls in your bed? Is that an invitation for me?" You wiggled your eyebrows playfully. You were stuck slaving away your Sunday in his room, might as well entertain yourself.

Hoseok shot a look at his bed and then his gaze lingered on yours. You expected a retort from him but not this. His eyes intense, an unknown expression on his face. Contemplation.

That look gave you a weird feeling in your stomach, suddenly not very keen on entertainment. And so you tried to break the tension, or whatever it was.

"Are you sure you want me near your bed? What if I get my hands on your porn magazines?" You turned towards the bed starting to pick up the clothes strewn there.

Hoseok scoffed, "what do you take me for? A teenag- NO WAIT!"

He scream just as you lifted the mattress to pull the sheets intending to throw them in the laundry basket. You froze, watching as he stood up, one hand stretched in a pausing gesture. An evil grin spread across your face as you threw the clothes in your arm unceremoniously in favor of lifting the mattress as fast as you could.

But Hoseok was faster. He jumped on top of the bed, trapping your hand under it. He started crawling up on the bed but you moved back and in your hands was a booklet.

"Aha! What do we have- AAH!" You screamed as Hoseok jumped off the bed and started to descend on you. You twisted and turned, trying to keep the magazine out of his reach but he followed your motions. You ducked under his arm and started running around the room, Hoseok hot on your tails. You pushed his desk chair at him, turned and tried to climb up on the bed. One foot up you felt an arm snag your waist. In an attempt to throw him off you turned, and lost your footing.

You fell in a mess of limbs on the bed. Your hair spread around you and on your face, one hand stretched far, still trying to keep your possession protected from him while Hoseok lay on top of you. Before you could form any coherent thought--to your surprise--he burst out laughing, you've never heard him laugh so pleasantly. Hm, not so bad. Before you realised it you were laughing with him.

When the laughter started dying down you felt how ticklish your locks felt on your face. You tried shaking your head and blowing upwards to get them to move. To no avail.

Hoseok moved up suddenly and leaned his weight on one arm, gently he brought his other palm close and brushed your hair away with his fingers. Your vision cleared and locked with his. And there it was. That same intense contemplative look.

Not even a second had passed when you heard knocking outside the door, "are you guys okay?" It was his roommate.

Hoseok hurriedly rolled away, "yeah! We're fine."

"Oh. Alright then, just thought I heard a lot of noise and a loud thump," Hoseok winced a little, "just...be safe I guess." And then she was gone.

You have no idea what happened. Or what else might have happened just now. But you didn't want to think about it and so, you got up hurriedly, "I'll go get the vacuum and continue with cleaning." And with that you left the room.

Hoseok stayed on his back staring at the ceiling his gaze unfocused and pulse in a frenzy. He got up and decided to leave the room as well.

Just as you were about to enter the room again, vacuum in hand, Hoseok opened the door. You both stood under the door frame silently before he moved away, letting you pass. He left, closing the door behind him.

—

The door shut softly behind you as you bid Hoseok goodbye, finally done with cleaning.

Hoseok stood there in his living room, looking at the closed door, deep in thought.

"What was that?" He jumped in his skin turning to see his roommate standing beside him mirroring his actions and staring at the door.

"What? I told you I've got myself a little bird wrapped around my fing-"

"Oh shut up," She narrowed her eyes at him, "from what I saw you were the one shaking in your boots since this morning."

"What? No I wasn't."

"Hoseok honey for the love of all things wrong with you, you fussed over your clothes for fifteen minutes, hid all our freshman year pictures and took a shower before noon."

"I shower everyday." He huffed, insulted.

"Not on Sundays, not before playing dead on the couch till eleven o'clock at the very least." She pushed past him to sprawl on said couch. "Not to mention you called her to 'clean your room?' Hoseok, you're anal about cleanliness. Your room sparkles like our Dean's bald head."

She narrowed her eyes at him, "tell me," leaning forward with glimmering eyes, "what is going on?"

"It's literally what I said! She was here to help me clean-"

"Blackmailed, there's a difference. Look Hobi, I don't know what game you're playing but this is not gonna work."

"Worry about yourself. Or has Park finally asked you out for a date? Oh yeah, my bad, you refer to them as hangouts" Her face crumpled at his taunt, her eyes narrowed.

He huffed in annoyance, "you know what just forget it. I've got work to do and you should go do whatever lovesick fools do." With that he started walking back to his room ignoring her shouts.

"At least I'm not being as pathetic as you! Even those clothes you threw out on the floor were washed! All of them! I would know since you used my expensive detergent! Seriously dude if you want to see her that often this is not how you-"

The door slammed behind him leaving him in silence.

You didn't hear from Hoseok the rest of the day. And thus when Monday rolled up you foolishly let yourself believe that maybe he's finally bored with you and you'd get to live your life. You told yourself it was a good thing.

You were with Yoongi at the university convenience store getting snacks for your movie night with your friends. The first one in weeks. You were scrolling through your phone as Yoongi burned a hole through the store worker scanning your items, when the loud ring tone of your phone rang out.

You quickly silenced it looking up at Yoongi's questioning eyes.

"I'll just quickly take this and then we can get going."

"Who is it? Everything good?" He asked.

If only you knew. You wanted to say but instead smiled and said, "no one! Just a classmate. Everything is oka-"

"Just how long this thing with Jung Hoseok will go on for?"

All the words died on your lips. Staring at him in horror you croaked, "you knew?"

"Of course I did, just what do you take me for." He sighed, the bags of junkfood slung around his arm as he made to exit the store.

"How did- how long? Do the other two know?" You stumbled after him.

"I notice things, unlike those dumbheads. Well Taehyung is more focused on his new relationship so I wouldn't blame him and you know Jungkook. As for how long? About a month," You were shocked to know he'd known about this whole arrangement since almost the beginning.

"Why didn't you say anything?"

"It didn't seem extreme at first. Entertaining even," That made your eyes narrow. "But recently it has been a little too much. I wanted to talk to you about it but didn't know if you'd appreciate me bringing it up."

You were chewing on your lips. He was right, you were embarrassed about the whole thing and didn't want to talk about it and though it was not all it still was part of the reason, at the start at least.

"Hey. Look at me. You don't need to feel embarrassed okay? It was fun in the beginning but I can see that it's affecting you in more ways now. But the only thing I'd ask is: how long will this go on? And you know it's not just the whole you acting as his valet thing, but we'll focus on that for now."

He took out a piece of candy from the bags hanging from his arms and offered it to you, "you're not being yourself, you've been missing our game nights and hangouts for some time you know? We miss you. Please try and sort out whatever it is you two have going on. I'll see you later."

With one hand holding the candy while the other clutched you phone as it began vibrating once again, you looked at Yoongi's retreating back and picked up the phone.

"Hello?"

—

You entered the private study room with two coffees and a piece of strawberry shortcake and started scanning for a brown headed man. Which wasn't difficult since the room was pretty empty. You quickly spotted him in the far corner and hurried over to his desk.

"Here." He looked up at you voice. Surrounded by stacks of papers with sleep evident in his face it took him a moment to register you were there.

"Oh," He sat up straight. "Yeah, um thanks." You set down the items and watched as he opened the lid of one of the iced americanos and took two mouthfuls like it was water. You were honestly a bit disgusted.

"I'll leave you to your coffee now. Bye." You checked your wristwatch and decided that if you leave right this moment you'll make it to your friends by the end of the first movie, maybe they will let you choose the second one-

"Where are you going?" He interrupted your thoughts. "Can't you see how many assignments I have got here to grade? I will need help with that, sit down."

If he could feel your distress in the air then he said nothing, simply took another sip of his coffee and went back to work.

"I'll do them later this night, just give them to me and I'll take them back home and finish them by tomorrow morning." You attempted to get him to let you leave. You really didn't want to miss out on yet another hangout and firmly believed that there was still time to salvage it. But you should have known, the moment you picked his phone up it was already too late.

"None can do. I need them done by the night, so sit down and get started." He didn't even look up at you. When you didn't move he looked up at you wrangling you fingers, "or did you forget that you do as I say?" He warned.

Immediately you froze. Not because you were scared, you realised you hadn't been scared for a long time now. Even started feeling something pleasant somewhere back then. Instead what you felt now was anger. Frustration and just pure anger. You remembered Yoongi's words. Yoongi was right just how long you would keep playing this game. How can he still reduce all you did for him and the time spent together to nothing but that stupid threat?

"Are you just going to stand there-"

"Enough." He felt the change in the atmosphere and snapped his head up, eyes wide.

"Enough of this Hoseok," you voice came out even stronger that you felt. "I'm tired of this and I can't do this anymore."

He opened his mouth to say something but you were not in the mood to listen. "I was supposed to be with my friends right now. I was supposed to be with them all those times when you had me sit with you doing something stupid. But I'm done now and I can't do this anymore."

You took a deep breath, voice getting calmer, the dam was open and and there's no stopping you.

"And you know it's not just that. It was almost going good after some time, for moments it felt like we were friends and I was helping you as such but then you'd go on about your threat and how I was your slave and it was honestly frustrating." You didn't wanna sound weak but your next words were vulnerable, "I thought you cared if only a little. Getting an extra drink for me, being mercyful for once when grading my assignments, cracking jokes, acting playful, you even gave me your hoodie when it was late and it had started to rain once. I thought we were friends because honestly we both knew it was stupid to blackmail me for this long but I still went with it because I thought we were getting closer. But you don't care"

Pulling your shoulders back your voice hardened again, "go tattle to whoever you want to about whatever suits you. Whatever happens then would be better than what is happening right now, I don't care anymore."

Hoseok sat stunned on his seat as you turned and disappeared from his sight.

When he came to his senses he stood up in a haste to try and catch up to you. What he'll even say to you? No idea.

But in his hurry he banged the table with his hip causing his half finished coffee to fall and spill all over the wooden surface. He was quick to gather the tissues from the pastry container that came with the coffees. As he dabbed at the liquid, praying it won't leave a stain, he noticed the strawberry cake and another cup of frappe—both of them for you. Now forgotten. The table and a few of the assignment copies ruined like the night he'd planned, working beside you.

It was Friday. Hoseok was, for once unshowered on a week day and his room a little less than pristine.

That was how his roommate, who had barged into his room found him. Slumped against his desk with wrappers of chips and cups for water strewn on the floor.

"Alright," coming into the room and taking a seat on his bed she continued, "what are we doing?"

Hoseok lifted his head and scrunched his brows, "about what?"

"You being a miserable moron."

He scoffed, "what are you talking about? I'm fine."

"Yeah and I had a threesome last night. Now that we're done playing 'who tells the biggest lie' can we talk about how you've still not acknowledged you little crush and how you absolutely smashed your chances with that crush?"

"God, it wasn't a crush" He groaned, "you know I was stretching my time anyway, I wasn't even expecting the arrangement to last this long. You know how it is, I get my work done and let them go in a week or two. She just happened to stay longer and I kinda got used to it."

"Hoseok." Her voice was stern but also exasperated, she seemed genuinely tired of his shit.

He sighed. She was wrong. It wasn't that he hadn't acknowledged his crush it was that he didn't know how to act on it. He'd been stupid and now you probably hate him. Rightfully.

"I know. Okay? I know I ruined it. I just wanted to keep seeing her and now she won't even look at me." He had seen you at class the next day you told him off and you were back in your seat at the back with you friend. "Can't do anything now though. She hates me for taking advantage of her."

"That's what she said? You know you were being an ass the first couple weeks but was it always the same even later on? From her perspective too?" Her words were making him confused because of course it was always like that, he was overbearing towards you.

"Think about what she actually said Hobi," she started to head out but before leaving completely, "and take a shower."

He sat there and thought over what she had said. i thought you cared because you had cared. And he had been selfish and careless with you.

When you had seen the text on Saturday you thought you were mistaken.

Hoseok: meet me at the icecream parlor at five

You contemplated not going. Wondering what he was calling you for. But at the end decided to go anyway. To get done with this whole fiasco at last but also because you hadn't talked to him in days and after weeks of spending hours together it felt odd.

Rounding the corner you almost believed he won't show up, that he'd forgotten what happened on Monday and had found a new way to torment you.

But you saw him sitting there on the outdoors table, his back facing you and before you could change your mind you walked the rest of way, quickly reaching him.

You sat down without a word, eyes on your hands and avoiding him.

"Hi." he called out softly.

Now you had to look up, "hey." You said as you noticed two cups of ice cream in front of him.

"Oh. I just went ahead and ordered for you as well. If you want you can get something else-"

"No. It's fine." You pursued your lips. You saw it in his face, he was feeling bad, for whatever reason. Harassing you with work? Being annoying? Hurting you? Justified. But you couldn't be mad at him because you believed in some sort of budding friendship that wasn't there.

He scooped some of the chocolate dessert but then promptly put down his spoon. "I'm sorry."

You looked up at him, fingers playing with the plastic spoon. You didn't know what to say so he continued on.

"I'm sorry. I was being a piece of shit. I've always been that way, hell even enjoyed it before," He winced, "but I know I fucked up and I want to sincerely apologise for that."

You didn't realise how much you wanted him to acknowledge his wrongs until you heard it out loud. "I also want to say sorry for treating you like the way I did and for keeping you from the people close to you." He took a breath, "also for hurting you for..." You knew he meant the last part of your conversation.

"I appreciate the apology. Truly." And he knew you meant it, "for being insufferable and about my friends, I accept those apologies. But you don't need to be sorry for my accusations of you not caring. There were no feelings, I understand that. I tried to make something out of nothing and ended up hurting myself-"

"But there was." His firm voice startled you. When you met his eyes you saw how they were filled with desperation. "I was always finding ways to keep you near for longer and excuses to call you over often." He looked at your confused eyes and gulped but carried on, "I was being selfish and inconsiderate because I didn't know how else to keep your attention on me and get to know you more. I didn't know what else to do because I was an idiot who couldn't work out a normal way to tell you that... That I liked you."

"What?" Now, you expected a hundred different things when you came here but hearing this? It had you reeling.

"I know, shocking right? I mean who in their right mind blackmails the girl they have a crush on. But that night I found you at our professor's office and just knew I couldn't let go of the opportunity. I was an idiot then. And an even bigger one because I thought I could be normal about it. But what even was normal about the last month and a half." He sighed rubbing his face, "I know, I know you hate me and I don't blame you-"

"Do you really think I did all that because you threatened me?" He blinked owlishly, letting out a confused huh?

"I said do you really think I would've stayed this long because of some flimsy threat like that?" You scooped some icecream into your mouth then swallowed before continuing, "at the beginning? Maybe. I thought I would have to deal with you for a few days and at the time it definitely sounded better than dealing with my professor. I would be honest, I didn't took particular notice of you before that night but somewhere when I got to know you more I realised it was almost tolerable to spend time with you. Half of the time at least."

"So...what you're saying is..." He trailed off.

"Yes. What I am saying is that half the reason I spent time with you was because I wanted to. I was hoping for something more I guess."

"But then I went and ruined everything because I couldn't get my actions to match my feelings. I'm such an idiot." He said, dragging his hands down his face.

"Not going to argue with that."

"No. Wait. We've got this all wrong." He slid his icecream far away leaving you confused and then looked expectantly at you to do the same. When you did, he took a deep breath and, "let's start this right. Tomorrow night? Are you free?"

"Uh yeah?"

"Then let me take you out to dinner. I want to get to know you and spend time with you."

You were speechless and that made him nervous. Had he interpreted your words wrong?

In his hurry he added: "The normal people way."

You chuckled at that, "you mean by not asking me to sign a slavery contract?"

"If you wish then I'll be the one signing the contract this time around," He leaned back on the chair, "ready to bend backwards at your beck and call."

You smiled with a shake of your head. "Alright. Tomorrow night. But you're picking the place."

He grinned and gave a slow nod. His clear brown eyes shining as he looked at you. And you were excited for this new beginning.

That night when you had agreed to take part in this stupidity you hadn't known you would go from being his little slave to the one who ruled his heart.

Maybe you had your idiot friends to thank, for the stupid dare which landed you here in the first place. But you'd rather die than admit that.

Looking at his heart shaped smile as he tried slurping the now melted icecream, which made him scrunch his face in a disgusted expression, made you heart feel warm. Even though he might act like an ass some times, you liked him.

And it was honestly a little cute to imagine him having a crush on you—you couldn't wait to hear all about that in the near future. All in due time.

𝗔/𝗻: Thank you so much for reading! Send your feedback by comment/reblog/or send an ask! I would really love to hear from you about anything literally!!

Anonymous asked:

Saw your prompt game. Can you do8th for yoongi?? Thankyou in advance!! And sorry for bad english .

Title: Sparkles Pairing: Yoongi x reader Prompt: “Let’s go outside and watch the firework.”

Word Count: 1.2k Genre: sci-fi/dystopian au, fluff

A/n: hello dear anon! Thank you for sending this request♡ And please don't apologize for anything!! I've never written something so fast but damn I would always find reason to avoid looking at my textbook lolol. Hope you enjoy it!! Also I wrote this at like 3am so forgive any mistakes

Note: this is a repost from my previous blog.

The wind howled as you tucked your coat closer to your body. Pulling the hood tighter you slipped a hand in your pocket, patting the paper bag—for the eighth time now—hidden inside as if to make sure it hadn't suddenly vanished this time.

You unzipped your tent, the canvas immediately flapping against the manic breeze and let yourself in. You could feel the chills settled in your bones starting to melt a little, "they always turn on the frost engine in full at the last day of the year," You huffed taking off your shoes and shaking whatever artificial snow was stuck on you.

It was a modest shelter, just enough for two people to sleep, was resistant against nature, and you had finally saved enough for a heat-caster that you bought last year—which you flipped on. In an instant a wave of warmth engulfed the entire place, a red coloured mesh like light painted on the walls around you.

You unfolded your mattress and dragged the folding table, setting it up to the side. The table wobbled, you didn't pay it any mind and just continued pulling out another little box from the corner containing the few of your belongings.

You pulled out a blue plate, one with delicate floral design, it looked out of place in this bland place. For a second you thought of the homeless shelters back in the city, the ones where you once accommodated, a piece of dirt invisible on the ground as the people of worth made a seperate world for themselves in their sky high cities and floating homes.

You had sneaked up there once, mingling in the crowd of lowly workers, full of wonder in your eyes. It was like a dream come true, for a moment at least. Soon you saw the ugliness in it all, the way people of less worth were treated as less than human.

You pulled the paper bag out and set it down carefully on the plate. Giddy about the treasure it held.

You remembered how you had scrapped up enough savings—out of your pay from scrubbing the air taxies—to get yourself one of those round pastries on the corner store. They refused you, insulted you and kicked you out. Out of rage you had grabbed a plate, one some other patron left on the outside tables decorated with hologram flowers and went to slam it against the glass window, but a boy caught your eye—standing frozen his eyes trained on you, making you loose your anger and leave quickly—blue plate still in your hand.

The sound of someone unzipping the tent sounded again, "hah, oh good you have turned on the heat." The person said, pulling his hood back and ruffling his brown hair, he looked up and you couldn't help but let a smile slip on your face. "What are you smiling for?"

He raised an eyebrow, cat like eyes trained on you with his mouth in a questioning frown as he walked in further in a lazy stroll, shoulders hunched and eyes a little sleepy upon a closer look.

"Nothing. Was just reminded of something," You said and he gave you the same curious look that he once had, outside that pastry shop. The guy was non other than—

"Yoongi, I have something to show you."

He came closer and saw what you had in display, "what's this?" He sat down beside you, poking the paper. When you first saw him he was in a similar condition as yours and at the time he worked at the shop as a cleaner. He had stolen a rejected pastry for you and offered it to you the next time you saw him, the only fault in them? They weren't round enough.

"Just have a look," You said, unwrapping the paper and immediately getting struck with the smell of something sweet.

"Don't tell me," He let out a puff of air. What you presented in front of him was a golden coloured pastry, the same one that was the reason you ever met him.

"I made them myself! Got the ingredients from Jin"

"And what did it cost you?" He questioned with glee.

"Filling up his water tank for him for a week."

He raised a brow.

"Alright. Two." You sighed out.

His gummy smile blinded you. He tore a piece and fed you first, then took a bite himself, somehow his smile brightened even more.

"I know you don't care much for it," You started, "but I still wanted to do a little something special for New years." You smiled softly as you looked at him past your lashes.

"Are you kidding? This is perfect." His deep voice vibrated the air. He gently cradled your face, and dropped a kiss at your forehead. As he pulled you closer to his chest, you thought, you would not exchange this for anything.

His shoulders jerked, as if he just remembered something, "I have something for you as well," You raised both your brows. He pushed you away looking in your eyes.

"What?"

"Since you adore this so much, we should celebrate New years properly right?"

"What do mean?"

“Let’s go outside and watch the firework.”

You sat there confused for a moment, "Yoongi? What are you talking about?" You let out a confused giggle, "why do we have to go out, we've got the hologram right there." You pointed out to the radio like device and the memory chip, where you stored everything dear to you.

"Not that. The real ones," Now this had you more curious than ever. Fireworks weren't easy to come, and even if he had some, no ways you could watch them without being noticed by the air patrol.

When you didn't move from your spot, he got up, "just come with me." He groaned as if in pain. It was amusing.

He led you outside in the cold, past the resident tents and out in an open space, which used to be a garage.

There were already a few people standing there, you recognised them to be friends of your and Yoongi's.

"Taehyung went scavenging the other day, found them intact." He explained as you came to a stop. Indeed, a blue mop of hair was bouncing around distributing something among the people there.

"But Yoongi what if the the patrol catches us-"

"These are not the kind that go in the air," Taehyung said, coming over towards you, "these are the smaller sparklers, the mesh ceiling of the garage will be enough to hide them."

His hand disappeared inside the bag he held and he pulled out a sparkler, "sorry guys but are you good with sharing the one? I've not got enough."

"It's perfect," You said as Yoongi hummed a response.

"Quick, we're starting the count down." He left and walked towards the fire built in the middle.

"Shall we?" Yoongi looked at you and you gave a nod, cheeks stretched in the biggest smile.

With the sparkler lit, you huddled closer to Yoongi. He placed his hand on top of yours where it was holding it and with the other he encircled your shoulder, tucking your head under his chin. The casted a golden shine on his pale skin, making it seem like he was glowing.

The countdown started and during the whole time you both just looked into each other's eyes. He looked so soft and as you fell into the endless depth of his warm and comforting gaze, you thought that—

No firework in this world could ever compare to the beauty in is eyes.

"Happy new year, Yoongi."

"Mm, happy new year, love"

𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠!

so happy to hear that it was to you liking!!! I'm working on the next part, it's gonna clear some of the things for poor oc (and the readers) . Thank you so much for reading and leaving such kind words!!!

𝐄𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢 | 𝐂𝐡 𝟐

Pairing: Mercenary!Jungkook x ?? Female!Reader

Summary: When past comes knocking on your door wearing the face of unknown dangers, you can either refuse acknowledging it and be a sitting duck or find out what it was that turned your world upside down all those years ago—that has come back yet again to hunt you—with a stranger promising to keep you safe, by your side. One thing is sure: secrets will unfold. And it would not be anything you could've imagined.

Word Count: 7.3k

Genre: Fantasy au; adventure; action. Fluff; angst; future smut(??)

Rating: 18+ (violence and mature themes)

Warnings: Fighting, some blood, minor character death, dead parent mentioned

Published: 11th March 2025

Note: between my previous blog getting shadowbanned and my writers block, it took an awfully long time for it but finally the next chapter is here!! I swear I'll try to be more consistent with the updates now. Please let me know your thoughts on this chapter and the story so far!!!

Glossary and Map: here

Esati Masterlist

You clung to your father's arm, as he moved around your little home, trying and failing to put his things in his satchel. He needed to leave soon, it bothered him if something was not done in accordance with his timetable, but there was a small hindrance. A hindrance who was currently sulking. 

"Can't I come with you too, Pa? Please?"

Big brown eyes blinked up at Alastair, trying to look more innocent than they were. "It is not a place for a child, love. I'm meeting with an old friend, and most of the time we will be talking about work talk; you will get bored." He pried your fingers clutching around his arm, and started on actually getting some work done.

"I won't! I want to see the market," you huffed, round cheeks puffed out and coloured a soft pink hue, "Jioo said the people in town have decorated it for the spring feast. It's reeeally pretty!" You stretched the word.

Your father slung the satchel across his body. "If the only thing you want to do is roam around the town, then I am afraid that I won't have time for that. Oh, and before you say anything about going on your own, then that is an even firmer no."

You scrunched your brows, lips in a downturn. But he just laughed, "I know, I know, my little bird is all grown up, but you will always be a little girl to me." Pinched your cheeks, "I can't bear the thought of you alone out there just yet, understand the worries of my heart?"

Now he was the one making that innocent pouting face. You started pouting harder.

Your father sighed, "I'll take you there the day after. You can invite Jioo too if you'd like? "

You hadn't even tried to fight the smile that took over your face. "Promise?"

"Promise," he came over and pulled you in an embrace, planting a peck at the top of your head, "I'll be back soon," and with that he was out the door.

You followed him out, shutting the door behind yourself, already on your way to go gather some herbs from your small garden while your father was away.

Before you could even fully turn around, a massive weight was thrown on you.

"Oof," you stumbled but managed to stay on your feet. "Buck! Don't do that! You're not a tiny baby anymore," you laughed.

The husky only looked at you with innocent eyes as if he didn't understand why he couldn't jump at you anymore. He wasn't even two years old and yet so huge.

"You big baby. Take care of Pa, alright?" You ruffled his furs as he took off running in circles.

Your father called for Buck and began walking. "Don't stay out for long! And the foo-"

"'Food is on the kitchen table, make sure to eat it.' Yeah, yeah, I already know. Now go."

"Take care and don't stay hanging on the window waiting for me, you will catch a cold." Your father called out one last time, still looking at you. He wondered when his daughter grew up so much, as you grabbed your basket and hummed on your way towards the garden.

———————————————————— A cool breeze ruffled your hair, and you slumped even further against your folded arms, which you were currently leaning on, staring out the open window.

It was getting late. Usually when your father goes to town, he comes back by now; one look at the sun, and you knew it was past the fourth hour. There were no bell towers this high and far into the mountains, so you couldn't hear the bells signalling each hour, but you had gotten good at guessing over the years. Though your father did own one of those chain watches, he always carried it with him. 

You were getting worried, even after being well aware that if he went to see someone regarding business, it could take time; it still made your mind fill up with unease.

Maybe he's just catching up with his friend and forgot about the time. That seemed like a possible reason for his delay.

But at this point it seemed like you were only reassuring yourself.

You lived at the edge of your village; not to mention, because of how late it was, most of the people were either inside their homes resting after a day's work or busy with supper and preparing for the evening gatherings. No one was near you.

And so no one heard the pained groan followed by the frantic thuds on your front door.

You ran to the door, letting out a gasp of horror the moment you opened it. The person who stood there was almost unrecognisable, covered in several gashes and crimson painting his face. Blood.

"Pa! No, no. Oh god! What happened to you?"

You were crying. Your mind couldn't register yet, but tears blurred your vision and slipped past your chin down to the floor in rivulets. Your father stumbled inside the house and slipped to the floor just inches away from the door frame.

He opened his mouth, trying to say something but ended up coughing instead and spitting more blood on the floor. He was bleeding from the chest too, or maybe it is his stomach? You didn't know. Couldn't make sense of the scene in front of you. Red. It was too much red.

"I-I will get a rag- sit- i-" You didn't know what was coming out of your mouth. You didn't know what you were doing. But you had to do something. Even as those words left your mouth, you didn't move and just stared at him in horror and confusion, arms raised and reaching for him. You felt like the world was collapsing, and you could not find your footing on the broken floor. 

"No," he gruffed, grabbing at your calf, trying to stop you. "They are coming for you," he huffed out.

"Pa-" You tried to reach him.

He heaved a breath and cut you off. "Listen, listen carefully," he coughed again. "Get out of here, don't look back. Go...go west. Down the mount- mountain. Run,"

"What are you saying?" You whispered shakily, coming back to reality and finding your voice again. You were distraught and scared as you watched more life force spill out of his body and pool around him. "You are hurt. Have to stop the bleeding—"

"Focus on what I'm saying," his booming voice stopped your nervous rambles in their tracks. But it seemed he used all his remaining energy in that one sentence and, as a result, had to lean on the still-open door, struggling to draw in another breath.

"Please go; they would not be very far, please."

"You're telling me to leave you like this? I can't—Pa, 'they'? Who's coming? Who did this?" Your nerves were frantic, eyes shaky as you looked out the door trying to locate any threat. Any sign of the person responsible for this. 

But your father didn't respond. Heart dropping to your feet, you hurriedly sat in front of him, taking his hand in one and tilting his face with the other one.

You were about to call out to him when his hand tightened, and he opened his eyes and looked you directly in the eye, "Take this." Gripped tightly in his hand was his satchel, which he still managed to keep safe in all the commotion. 

Tears were streaming down your face, you realised how serious he looked. How tired his eyes were. You didn't want to leave him, but his face said it all; you didn't have any other choice.

"My life was for you anyway; the day I had met you, I was born again as" cough, "as your father. Go. I'll be fine."

He was lying.

"I ca- can not," you hiccuped, "pa."

His grip loosened on your hand, and he managed to pull away. "Take this. You are my brave child, you will make it out of here, alright?" 

It was his chain watch. He pried your fingers open and pressed it into your skin. A beautiful silver thing, patterns of swords and wheat swirling around the front. You realised how small it was, as it sat in the middle of your palm.

You took the satchel, set it down on your lap, and grabbed both his hands tightly; he gave you the smallest of smiles, and you let out a sob.

But his hands were urging you up, and even if you wanted to just sit there and hug him tight, you got up, slinging the leather strap around your shoulder. You can't convince him, but you were going to go find help.

You looked back at him, standing at the doorframe, you tried one last time to convince him silently to let you stay when his eyes snapped up towards the back window. They held a look of panic in them as he hissed in pain.

"Go, hurry. You don't have time—"

Just then you heard a loud howl, and the window burst open as something big and black entered your home through the shattered window.

You screamed, backing away as your eyes connected with deep red irises. Not of a human's, but a wolf's. An insanely large wolf, who was staring right at you.

Frozen in shock, you didn't even realise that you were shakily taking steps away from it, but then you remembered your father. Your gaze shot in his direction as he pulled himself to his feet.

"Look here, you mutt!" Your father, who had looked on the verge of collapsing just a second ago, now stood straight and walked in front of the horrifying creature, "It's me that you want, don't you?" He spat. Dragging every shred of power he had left in his body.

You couldn't be sure—you mind couldn't comprehend anything that was happening—but his hands started glowing orange; your eyes were glued to his hands as you tried and failed to convince yourself that this was all a nightmare.

"Y/n...my little bird, run and don't look back. I'm sorry that I have to leave you alone, but didn't you say you were all grown up now?" You could hear the faint smile in his voice even if he didn't turn around; he just kept his eyes on the wolf, who now began to circle around him with its teeth out on display. "You will be alright. I know." He finished.

The black creature got ready to pounce. Alastair raised his hands—now burning a blinding orange. "Please!"

His pained cry reached you just as you turned around, but you kept running. Nothing crossed your mind at that moment but your father and his words—begging you to go. So you did. Disappearing among the trees, away from your village, your father. Your home. 

You hadn't had a home in a long time, not since you lost your father. But you had managed to create some semblance of that word, a space for yourself. And in this exact moment you wanted nothing more than to run back to its comfort and forget all about what happened.

But you were aware it was not possible.

"Keep your head down," The guy—Jungkook—instructed you, his steps twice the size of your own. 

After ensuring that there was no one else in the tavern looking for either of you, you made your exit through the back door. Slipping into the foot traffic undetected. 

As the sun rose, more and more people began filling up the streets; you took advantage of that and mingled with the growing crowd moving as a single body. You caught a glimpse of a knight from the First Order and promptly redirected your steps. They were more trouble than help. 

"This way," Jungkook steered to the left, ducking under a man carrying potato sacks, and entered the alley leading to streets away from the tavern. You both kept moving until you reached what looked like a desolate place with only a rarely used shed in dilapidated condition.

He stopped there, knocking on the wood; in the meantime, you assessed your surroundings. You didn't come in this part of the town, and from the looks of it, other people didn't either. This place looked like it had been abandoned for a while—which made you wonder what you were doing here? Most importantly, why were you following him still. 

While you were distracted, someone stepped out of the shed. "—inside," came a reply. Jungkook must have asked a question while you were busy inspecting the forest line in the distance, small critters coming out to inspect the intruders. He walked inside, leaving you alone with the other person.

It was then that you turned to look at the other person.

"Kane?" Your eyes widened as your gaze locked onto the other person, the same man who helped you unload your stuff just yesterday, who offered to walk you out like he always does, and now stood there expressionless, lips in a thin line. "What...? " But at that exact moment Jungkook stepped out, and he was not alone. Trailing behind him was a black horse, probably the most beautiful one you've ever seen.

He motioned with his head, telling you to get moving, but the familiar face in front of you had many more questions arising in your head than you already had bouncing around in the crevices of your mind.

He noticed you gawking at Kane too and sighed, "I'll explain later." Your gaze snapped to him.

You took a step back, tried to gulp back the rising bile of unease, and shook your head. "How do you know me?" A question you hadn't asked yet. How did he find you? How did he know it was you? To him, who even were you?

There was only more confusion and questions joining the pile with the ones that were circulating in your head. 

An epiphany struck you. Without paying you any mind, Kane had pulled out a red apple from somewhere and was feeding it to the horse. It made you think of the one that currently must be still sitting somewhere in your rented room from last night—just, in a different shade. You had seen that shade before.

"You've been following me?" An incredulous tone took over your voice. Your throat shrank, confining your inhales and reducing the air getting in.

He tried to keep a calm composure, running a hand through his hair. His expression pinched with impatience—tired with your constant interrogation, he has stayed here too long for his liking and you were only stalling them.

"You don't get the danger you are in, do you—"

"Stay away from me." Your eyes turned watery but still filled with determination. Your hands shook in disbelief, seeing Kane here, you started to wonder if Mayah and Kenzie had lied to you as well. To some extent? Was the care they showed you had been fake? What were they using you for? What did you even have that someone would want? Must be something, right? If the incidents in the past few hours and the men standing before you were anything to go by? 

The little world you had built for yourself was crumbling. But your world had fallen apart once before, you filled the cracks once, you could do it again.

"If you think that that man was the only one after you, then you'd be a fool to believe that." He evenly stated, moving a couple of steps forward, he gave his wrist a flick—a signal for Kane as he began walking away without a second glance in your direction.

Your gaze wavered, jumping between the two people. One a piece of the picture you thought you knew, and another is the messy blank canvas of the unknown. You fisted your skirts, nails digging deep in the dark fabric, and your feet felt light, ready to take off.

Jungkook stood there in silence before he let out a heavy sigh. "Yes, I was keeping an eye on you," he said. Like it was not odd—terrifying for the person—to tell someone he was stalking that he was stalking them. "But I had a reason to do it that you don't need to know right at this very moment. So please,"

You didn't move, but your eyes flicked for a fraction of a second in the direction where Kane left; he caught that. "He's an informant. No, the old man and his daughter didn't know, if that makes you feel better." It did. "Now, we don't have time to spare. Please, I'm trying to keep you safe." He pleaded, pushing a loose strand of hair back, his eyes wide and eyebrows pushed down, appearing to look appealing and trustworthy.

You were hesitant; he did save your life.

Your eyes glazed over, pondering his words, and you kept your eyes trained on him while contemplating your next step. It was then that you flicked your eyes sideways, just behind him, and stared. Your eyes grew wider. 

"Who's there?"

Not wasting a moment Jungkook swirled, sword drawn out, shoulders hunched and legs set apart. He scanned the area—left to right and then back again—but caught no movement. He couldn't see anyone, and after a couple of moments, he turned around. "Where did you—oh, this cannot be real."

He sputtered in disbelief as he took in your absence from the place you were previously standing at. You were running and had covered a significant distance in just a few seconds. He could not believe he fell for the oldest trick in the book. You did not even glance back, just sprinted as far away as possible, and missed the utter look of bewilderment—mixed with just enough amusement—on his face.

"Dang it, she is fast on her feet," he muttered, stepping back, eyes locked on you. It seemed you were moving towards the deeper forests. He turned, patting the horse, "Ready for a game of chasing chickens, Orla? Just like old times?" Orla snorted her agreement, and Jungkook quickly hopped behind her, setting himself on the saddle. With a hiya! and a tug on her reins, she broke out in a sprint. 

By now you had crossed the forest line, hurrying deep and far, and disappeared from his sight entirely. 

————————————————————

Yes, he had saved your life. But a single encounter—one under this skeptical situation—cannot possibly make you just trust a stranger. Especially now, when you knew that you were being hunted, the 'who' and 'why' still remaining a mystery yet to be unveiled. Do you really want to see beyond the veil, though? A mocking voice, very much like yours, rang from the back of your head. The answer was always the same—no. You never did. You ignored the voice. 

You needed to focus on now, on your circumstance. You thought of Jungkook. 

He knew you. What else does he know? Your name, where you're from, the family you once had? What compelled him to come seek you? The possibility that he might be one of the people whom he had warned you about was there. The fact that he seemed to know where to find you and he was familiar with that other man back in the tavern wasn't helping his case—although that might be the result of him being an Information gatherer, as he himself stated. You're taking that with a grain of salt.

And so, you did the one thing you were good at. You escaped.

Looking behind your back, you saw no sign of a dark-eyed man, but it didn't mean you could stop. He had to be there, chasing after you, for whatever the price you had earned on your head—it seemed like a possible scenario—unless he decided you were not worth the trouble after all.

Twigs snapped and leaves crunched as you trudged your way deeper into the forest. You had no idea where you were or where you were going, just that you needed to go. A left. Right. Another left. Under the tangled branches. One more right.

After just a few minutes, while walking through a patch of dense shrubs, you heard it. Thud, thud. It looked whatever price you had on your head, you were definitely worth the trouble. 

The sound of hooves echoed through the still of that place, bouncing off of trunks and leaves. 

He was closing in on where you were. You were on foot, and with his horse, it won't take long before he catches up  to you. Panic announced its presence in the form of the fast beating of your heart. You looked around for a way out. But with no better options, you dipped down bending yourself. You made your figure as small and unmoving as possible as you curled up on the forest floor, trying to keep yourself hidden within the bushes. 

Unmoving, you sat there, feeling the ground vibrate with the arrival of your doom. Just then, you heard a flock of birds, wings flapping and loud with caws and screeches, as if scared away by something somewhere far in the other direction.

He was redirecting his horse the other way—you could sense the change—must've thought it was you who scared the birds, so he went that way, trying to find you.

You stayed an eternity in that position before you were sure that no one was coming anymore. Getting up and off the ground, you brushed your clothes.

Where do you go from here?

It was a question you had asked yourself countless times over the past years. You turned and decided to go west. Find a way to get to a town and then decide what to do next.

Walking through woods like this, with no clue or aim, instigated a sense of déjà vu. You recalled the lady, a shoemaker you don't know the name of—maybe you hadn't asked, or maybe you didn't remember. She had nursed you back to health and offered the warmth of her home to a complete stranger; you'll forever be grateful to her. You had stayed there for a few days, sick with grief and guilt. But you didn't try to find out what happened back home—you had made your assumption anyway. It was too much to take in, so you decided to move on for that time.

You recalled travelling with gypsies, waggons decorated in a rainbow of colours, recalled going from one place to another. For a year you kept changing towns and villages, never staying more than a few weeks to a couple of months. Then one day you found yourself on the border of Fubroch and decided that that was it. You were tired of moving. The mountains brought the memories of a home—providing comfort, so you made them your home.

And just like that, years flew by without a hitch as you built a life for yourself here. A life that felt very distant at this moment.

As you hiked your way through the woods, lost in your own musings. You failed to notice the consistent shadows following right at your heels. You were distracted, but not for long.

As you were passing by an old dried well, you sensed some movements just out of the corner of your eyes. You paused. Fingers scrambling for your thigh, shoulders tense, you resumed walking again.

Had Jungkook found you? You thought he went in the other direction?

Your stroll changed into an urgent march. Your eyes flicked from one corner to another, hoping it had been a trick of your eye.

You left behind a series of crumbling structures of stones and mud, your gait hurried—almost a jog now. You chanced a glance back, turned around again, and screamed.

Someone jumped off one of the stone walls just as you turned. A woman. You lost your voice, eyes set on hers. You blinked quickly, getting a better look at her. Dark pants and an equally dark tunic. She had short hair and the gaze of a predator, with which she was scanning you from head to toe. An amused quirk sat on her thin lips, painted a deep maroon complementing her sandy complexion.

"Well, you look lovelier than I expected." Her voice called out, a deep and rough texture paired with the unsettling blue of her eyes. It had you standing on the balls of your feet, ready to flee.

You kept your glaring gaze trained on her, aware of even a twitch in her muscles.

"Aww," she cooed, "look at you, so scared and lost." She lifted a hand, placing it on her cheek, her expression the same as a child would have upon finding a hare hiding in his vegetable patch. Except to you, she felt more like a wolf cornering the hare than said child.

"Why so tense, though?" She took a step closer, hands behind her back. You widened your eyes, sweat gathering at your back and hands getting clammy. She was making you nervous, something akin to the town's flood bells ringing in your ears. For a second your thoughts drifted to Jungkook; you definitely preferred him to whoever she was.

You started walking backward, trying to keep some distance.

"Oh no, no, no, I'm here to help you. To lead you towards the right path." She scrunched her brows in faux concern.

"No need," Somehow, you shakily managed to speak up, "I'm on the right path; I don't need any assistance."

There was no point in dragging this out. You got ready to find an opening and make a run for it, but you didn't even get the time to blink when you saw more people jump out of the rubble.

Two men walked up to the woman, coming to stand behind her. They were more rugged in appearance—the exact opposite of her. Some henchmen.

No time to think. You patted at your knife just as the woman stretched her neck back, looking up at the sky, "Get her."

You wouldn't go down without a fight.

Just as the man lunged for you—bare hands; you couldn't see any weapon on him as far as you could see—you ducked, ramming your body forward and pushing him back with as much force as you could gather. He was caught off guard, not having expected such strength from someone this small. It made him stumble back and gave you a chance to create some distance.

You turned and used that as an opportunity to run. You traced your steps back the same way you had come from, this time in a sprint. You could hear the man following. You pushed for yourself to go even faster.

You were running on just adrenaline and pure terror for your life, but you could not let up, could not let them catch on. You couldn't help but question your predicament. You were being hunted like animals for meat. Who were these people? Looking for you. Hunting you.

"AAH!" You screamed as a hand grabbed a hold of your arm and yanked you back. You were thrown forcefully into a nearby tree, rough bark scraping against your skin. Before you could gather yourself, he was in front of you, grabbing your short braid, twisting it around his palm.

"ARGH!" You cried out, one hand going up in an attempt to free yourself of his grip.

"No more running, bitch," he said in a gruff voice, spit flying in your face from the proximity.

He started dragging you back—yanked at your hair when you refused to move, feet digging in the soil. You tried scratching at his face, desperately aiming for his eyeballs. If you got near enough, you wouldn't hesitate to claw them out.

"If done for survival, the gods forgive you," is what your father had said when you once punched the nose of the person who had tried to drown Buck in the river. After which he also taught you how to land a proper punch.

And that's exactly what you did when—to avoid your nails attacking his face—he loosened his grip and tried stepping back to take hold of your arms instead. The moment you got enough space, you reeled back and aimed for his throat. Thumb tucked under the folded fingers and not inside, using only the first two knuckles, throwing your whole body's weight. Hard and fast.

He winced and coughed, trying to get air inside his throbbing windpipe. You grabbed a rock and slammed it against the side of his face. He wobbled and fell on his face.

No longer constricted by his hold, you breathed out in mild relief, but it was short-lived. While you were fighting off the first man, the other one had caught up with you. This realisation crawled upon you when he delivered a blow to your back.

You were pushed to the ground before you could even form a thought. All the air wooshed out of your lungs as sharp pain erupted on one side of your shoulder, "Oh god, no." Your left arm felt numb; nothing was broken, you were sure, but you could feel the dull pain thudding across your back and limbs.

The other man was taller, leaner, and scarier. He was looking down at you with his eyes blown out and mouth pulled in a crazy grin. He leaned down, "Ah, ah. Be a good girl, will you?" He made a tutting sound, reached out, and grabbed one of your legs.

You screamed, kicking out in the air, "No use in resisting, you should have come willingly when we asked nicely."

"Let go of me!" Your throat was raw, body aching and bleeding. Your pitiful condition didn't affect him; however, it only seemed to delight him in seeing you this way. He stood up and started walking away, his hand still gripping your foot tightly.

It was the most pain, physically, you'd ever felt for as long as you can remember. Rocks dug into your backside, your skin scraped against the ground, and hair got tangled with twigs and leaves, pulling at your scalp. All this while he had only taken a few steps.

You kicked out harder; this time your upper body reacted as well—digging your palms in the ground and holding onto anything they could.

You managed to land a hard kick, causing him to drop your limb. You didn't waste a moment and grabbed at his own legs, pulling yourself up and throwing all your weight to make him fall on the ground. Your right hand went to your thigh, and you pulled out your knife, scrambling on top of his chest and locking his arms there by his side with your thighs pushing at him.

Your left arm felt useless, but with the other, you brought the blade to his neck, holding it dangerously close. Just a hair's breadth away from ending him.

"Why are you doing this to me?" You gritted out, eyes watery. The whole day's worth of distress was threatening to unleash from the depths of your consciousness, something you had been suppressing. "What did I ever do to anyone!?" You yelled.

The smile—previously present on his face—had disappeared from his face as you sat there with the cold metal digging into his skin. You have taken life before—but only of animals that you were going to eat. Now that the creature against your blade was an animal of a different kind, you hesitated.

And hesitation kills you in this world.

You didn't see the other man coming until the very last moment. He must not have been as disoriented as you thought. He pounced at you, but this time you had your knife out. This time you didn't hesitate.

In a single motion, the blade found its home deep in between the shoulder and collarbone of the first man.

Blood immediately coated your hands, making them slippery as you let go of the knife, watching your victim slump. Cold dread froze up the blood in your veins. You had killed someone.

There was no time to answer, as the stone of unease weighed heavy in your stomach; the guy below on the ground switched places with you. Now you were the one held horizontal to the ground as his palms made contact with your sternum, wasting no time in squeezing them tight, blocking out all the air but not crushing your throat—yet.

"You crazy bitch!" He barked.

Haze clouded a grey shade around your eyes, growing in size after every excruciating blink. Your torso was crushed under the full mass of an adult man twice your size; you wondered if he was trying to break your ribs. But you couldn't push him. Couldn't even struggle.

Your bones became a burden, pulling your exhausted body deeper into the grass and soil, acting as a makeshift grave you were about to descend into at any minute. Your mind was a numb shell, unable to see what was in front of it, unable to comprehend.

That must be your fate. Your life in exchange for the one you took just now. You would not call yourself very religious, but you believed in a God, and he must have seen the pathetic way you'd been living and is here to claim you.

Your vision turned black; the man was screaming something at you, but no words could penetrate the oxygen-depraved sheet of lethargy coating over your being.

As you lost more of your breath, the thuds of your heart started becoming louder. One second they were in your chest, and the next in your ears. Soon you could feel them vibrating the very land you lay upon. Thump. Thump. Thump.

All of a sudden, you felt light. The force of the man pushing against you lifted off of you in an instant. It was there one second and then vanished the other. Air came rushing back in through the once constricted pipes. You gasped for the breath hungrily, making its way into your lungs, and sputtered on your greedy inhale.

It took another few moments before the shadowy haze cleared from your eyes, and you were blinking back at what seemed to be two males locked in a sword fight.

One of them was the man who had been choking you, and the other—your eyes widened upon the realisation that the other person was none other than—

"Jungkook?"

His name was merely a whisper in the air, breathed into life through the brush of your lips against the words.

He delivered the last blow—a slash down his opponent's chest—before he turned to you.

Jungkook stood there with his sword dripping red while he panted; from the short fight or having hurried over to come save you, you didn't know. Maybe the latter. No, definitely the latter, if his pinched expression directed at you was anything to go by.

"You," he stepped over the fallen body groaning on the ground, "are an idiot."

You felt like laughing. He was fuming, and you let loose a single puff of airy laughter. You couldn't help it; the stress had taken a toll on you; your body ached in more places than you could count. You were beaten and bleeding. You almost accepted that you were going to die. But here you were, saved by this man not once but twice, in the same day.

You owed him.

"Glad to see you still have it in you to smile." Came a deep, feminine voice.

Both of your eyes turned towards the direction the voice came from. You leaned on your arms while he drew his sword for an attack.

There stood the blue-eyed woman from before, and upon seeing Jungkook take an immediate protective stance in front of you, something gleamed in her gaze.

"I must admit, watching you fight for your life was so entertaining." She sauntered forward, showing no sign of even grabbing for her weapons strapped to her, "and a pleasant surprise."

She rounded around where you were and stopped a good distance away, "even more surprising to see that you have got mercenaries protecting you." She said as she eyed the black ink on Jungkook's arm, which was now exposed.

You flicked your eyes between her and Jungkook. He remained motionless, but you can see how taut his muscles were, ready to pounce in a moment's notice. He didn't say anything, just observed. What is this woman playing at?

She let out a shrill whistle. Loud. Like a signal of some sort.

You prepared for the worst. Did she call for help? Backup?

Instead, a dark brown horse came running from behind the broken stone columns, galloping towards her. It didn't even stop completely before she grabbed the reins and hauled herself onto it mid-run. Walking in a circle, she faced you, looking straight in your eyes.

She tilted her head back, stretching her neck in a lazy motion as if the possibility for more bloodshed wasn't hanging in the air waiting for the moment she draws her weapon too. "So damn resilient, like your damn father." She muttered lowly; you thought you had misheard her. She stared at you.

"Alastair is protecting you even after death, huh?"

The air stopped blowing, the screeching of birds silenced, and your throbbing body went numb.

Palms digging in the forest floor, you could only gawk at her as she regarded you with disdain.

Her eyes, blue as the summer sky, looked red in that moment. Wild and predatory. You felt dizzy. But then she blinked, and the illusion broke; they were blue again. You shuddered. The voices from years ago rang in your ear.

She was one of them. The people who came chasing your father that day. The ones who killed-

A silent whimper left your parted lips.

So this was what it was about. Why you were targeted. Why your life was in danger. It was all due to what happened to your father. Now you will meet the same end. They came for him then, and now they came for you.

You thought it was over. Oh, how wrong you were.

You ran as much as you could and yet couldn't outrun your fate. Were more people coming? With swords? They will leave you bloody and torn. Will they kill Jungkook too? He would leave before that happened. Is that wolf nearby? Was he the one who led them to you?

A tear slid down the curve of your cheek. You imagined all the ways they would end you, the most scary one being torn to shreds by the sharp teeth of an atramentous beast.

The sound of her horse neighing cut through your terror-filled questions.

She met your dazed, tear-glazed eyes. "I'll see you soon."

You watched her go. Still in your place, disconnected from reality.

It wasn't until you heard your name being called out loud that you came back to reality. Someone was shaking you by the shoulder.

"-get up? Y/n, can you stand?" You flicked your gaze up, connecting with inky ones staring deep in yours.

Swallowing, only the sandy taste of dread scratched against your throat. Yet, you managed to open your mouth: "Are you one of them?"

Your voice was grating to the ear, stifling in defeat, so unlike the demanding tone you had before. It caused Jungkook's expression to display an emotion you couldn't quite put your finger on. Unsurprising, given you couldn't take in anything right now, really.

He watched you stare up at him for a moment before something snapped in him. He got on both his knees, grabbing a hold of both your shoulders. He squeezed tight; it strangely grounded you a little.

"Look here, in my eyes, and listen." His voice was firm, and he spoke slowly but with a surety, "I know it's hard to trust me right now, but I need you to get this one thing." He paused and inhaled before letting it out, "Your life is in danger, and I meant it when I stated I'm here to keep you safe. I will protect you."

The words came and swirled around in your mind, not quite settling in. His eyes were intense, and when you looked, really looked, past the darkness, you could see the hint of genuineness. In this moment, you held onto that as a lifeline, and so when he asked.

"Understood?" You nodded your head. "Good."

His palms lifted off of your shoulders, and you would be floating again in the vast uncertainty and fear had he not offered one of them right in front of your face.

"This place is not safe. We need to move on from here," he nodded, urging you to grab his hand.

What else was there to do? It was clear that you would be killed if you refused, and if he too wanted the same thing, unlike what he claimed to be doing, then at least it looked like he would be quicker in his kill. And so you lifted your arm, gently placing your palm against his, letting him haul you up.

Another, black horse came trotting over. You recognised it to be his. He gave your palm a squeeze, telling you to get up on it.

You flicked your eyes between the majestic creature and its master. A soft groan forced your eyes away and towards the other men lying on the ground; it seemed one of them was still conscious.

"He... he is alive." You murmured, looking at the man you had stabbed.

"Want me to finish him off?" He threw in casually.

You gaped at him, eyes full of disbelief and horror.

He puffed air out of his nose, "I didn't mean that." It wasn't very convincing. You looked back at the man, "Are you seriously considering helping him? After he attacked you?" You weren't.

His brow raised as he regarded you with a tilt of his head and a semi-disapproving look on his face. At last he just sighed, "You need to think about only yourself, or else you will get us both killed."

He walked you to the horse and stopped, "Wait a moment." He let go of your hand and reached out to grab a piece of clothing from a few feet away. It was your cloak; you had dropped it during the fight. He dusted the deep green fabric and gently pulled it around you. Then almost immediately grabbed your hand again.

He gave your palm another swift squeeze, and this time you mounted the horse with his help.

As he peered up at your fiddling form, down from where he stood, the lines on his face grew a little softer, his expression a little more sympathetic.

He latched his foot on the holding, "You will get your answers soon," and climbed behind you expertly.

As he reached his hands around you to grab the reins, his front touched your back, and while you were not one who gets particularly cold, his warmth was a surprisingly welcome sensation against your bruised backside.

His knuckles tightened in a grip, you kept your hands close to you, "you trust me?" He clicked his tongue, getting the horse to move, and it started walking at a leisurely pace. He felt you shaking your head against his chest, his lips quirked, and if you had turned around, you would've witnessed him grinning softly.

"Good."

The horse broke out in a sprint as you both rode off, leaving behind the forest and—you had an inkling—this town for good.

Soon you were at the southern border, riding along the river marking the end of Fubroch's territory.

And despite what you had insinuated about your opinions for the man, you soon found yourself leaning your head back and drifting off to an unconscious state. Away from the reminiscence of the events that occurred today and the pains of the past. The nipping cold of the reality slipped away as you gave in to the firm warmth of the momentary comfort.

Taglist (from my previous blog) : @runariya @jksusawife @boyfriendtaekook

the temptation to start a lengthy slow burn fic at 3 am is no joke bcs why am i staring at my phone at half past four in the morning with an assignment submission and test in about six hours😭😭😫

I Want You to Stay (01) | JJK

Pairing: Jungkook x (f.) Reader

Genre/Tags: boss!JK x assistant!reader; idiot strangers to lovers; slow slow burn; k-drama feels; angst, drama, fluff, smut

Chapter (Series) Warnings: foul/explicit language; alcohol consumption & passing out, unhealthy coping mechanisms; family drama; minor injuries; power dynamics (JK starts off as a jerk); work-related anxiety, feelings of helplessness, insecurities; childhood traumatic experiences, nightmares; sexual harassment, prior incidence of domestic violence (PLS PLS BE CAREFUL WHEN READING); arts and business/property devt talk that’s probably inaccurate; commitment issues & emotionally constipated characters; cold and detached JK; explicit sexual content (specific warnings stated per chapter) (18+)

Chapter Word count: 12k

Series Masterlist

Status: Ongoing

Series summary: Working for Jungkook isn’t the same as working for Hoseok. For starters, Jungkook doesn’t smile, he doesn’t appreciate you, and he gives you too much work. It doesn’t help that he’s incredibly handsome and has women at his beck and call. But as the tension grows, it becomes impossible to resist him. You’ve dedicated yourself to your job for 8 years so when you finally decide to put yourself first, he asks you to reconsider. And while you know that leaving is difficult, you learn that when it comes to Jungkook, staying is always so much harder.

Playlist 🎶: on the way home

A/N: Happy 2024, everyone! 🎉 Dropping this tonight as a welcome to the new year and the start of the wild journey that is this story. It's a different JK that I'm used to writing. It's also a different arrangement for me as the story is still being written, so just a heads up that updates won't be as regular compared to before, but they'll definitely come (pls don't come at me hehe 😁)! This is also a painfully slow build-up with lots of details and office talk so please be patient! I don’t know how this will turn out and be revived but I hope you enjoy! 💕

Also my biggest thanks to @wonwoonlight as always 🥰

Jung Hoseok’s smile is like a ray of sunshine - warm on cool mornings, radiant on sunny afternoons. It’s light and infectious, but more than anything, it’s genuine. There’s comfort in the way his entire face beams and how the rest of his body follows; there’s this sense of openness that makes it easy to be around him, that makes it easy to work for him.

It was 10 years ago when you first encountered that smile - bright and encouraging as he welcomed you and the rest of the interns to his family’s company. It slowly dissolved the anxiety you were feeling over being 1 of 12 chosen students to work for one of the leading real estate and property development corporations in the country. You’d see it again two years later as an employee, and you recall how he perked up at the sight of you, having remembered those eight weeks you spent preparing the conference room for their meetings and serving the executives their coffee. 

You wouldn’t have expected that five years after that, you’d be seeing that smile everyday as his executive assistant, and it was one of the things that made the job bearable. Despite the long hours and the amount of work you had to do and events you had to accompany him to, working for Hoseok always felt worth it. Despite the insane amount of pressure he was put under and the stress he had to endure, Hoseok somehow always managed to smile. 

He was serious when he had to be, but there was joy in how he did things. He allowed himself moments of calm, of time to check in on his support team for a few laughs. He’d spare himself a few minutes a day to sway to the soft music he plays in his office, he’d preside over meetings with vigor, and he’d start and end every interaction with anyone with that smile - the same smile that assures you that all your hard work is appreciated and which encourages you to keep learning.

It’s that same smile that he has on right now, as he hands you a custom-made cake with ‘you worked hard’ written on it. He says the words as your eyes turn to him in surprise. 

“Thank you for all that you’ve done,” Hoseok says. “I know you were new to the role just like I was but you made everything so easy for me. I’m gonna have to get used to being without your brilliance, Ms. Cho. I hope you never doubt yourself ever again.”

Your astonished face turns into a pout, as it dawns on you that it’s Friday, the first unofficial day of you no longer being Hoseok’s executive assistant, given his appointment as President not long ago. Yet despite the big change he’ll be experiencing starting next week, he’s the one affirming and comforting you, something that’s rare for someone of his stature and something you’ll definitely miss. 

“You know I don’t cry, but I just might,” you respond, earning you a chuckle. “But really, I… I can’t thank you enough for taking a chance on me. I know my credentials weren’t like the others but—”

“Ms. Cho,” he interjects. “The only credentials those other applicants had were the universities they went to, but none of them matched your level of skill and dedication to the role. I can assure you that none of them would’ve managed the past three years like you did. I should be thanking you for dealing with all the craziness with me.”

“You’re a good boss, it’s that simple,” you return the compliment now. “You were patient with me and challenged me to be better without putting me down. That does a lot for a person’s confidence, you know?”

“I know that now,” he smiles again. “But really, I don’t think I could’ve asked for a more competent right-hand woman. Jungkook’s lucky he’s taking my position with the most capable assistant to help him out.”

At the mention of the man’s name, your face sours, something that Hoseok picks up, earning you another laugh. 

“Not a fan of him, I see,” he eyes you curiously.

“I don’t mean any disrespect, Mr. Jung, but your cousin is not you,” you explain. “I may have only seen him a handful of times but those are enough to let me know that he does not smile.”

“Yes, I do confirm that,” Hoseok chuckles. “Jungkook’s quite the perfectionist and very much a workaholic. But he’s brilliant and creative and you’ll learn a lot from him, too. He’s being primed to co-lead the company with me and he needs a strong support for that and I think that’s you. His father thinks that’s you, and for the CEO to think so means a lot, ___. Uncle has seen how you work and was adamant that you remain in this role, especially with his son assuming the Vice President position.”

You know that Hoseok means to reassure you, but you suppose your insecurities over having this role and even being in this company won’t ever really go away. You didn’t graduate from a prestigious university in Seoul like most employees here did, and in this society, that usually means everything. You’re thankful for the trust that you’ve been given and you agree that you worked hard for it, too, but it will always be overwhelming; even then, it sometimes still feels undeserved. 

At your silence, Hoseok speaks again. “___, as your former boss and as your friend, I’m here to back you up. Jungkook’s family but if he, for some reason, acts like a hard-headed jerk, you let me know, okay?”

He turns serious now, as he silently asks for you to promise him that you’ll speak out if you need to. Hoseok knows what you went through under Mrs. Byun, the former manager who abused her power over you until her own slip-up caused her downfall years later, and he doesn’t want you to go through that again. 

“Okay. But I didn’t mean to imply that he’s a jerk just because he doesn’t smile,” you clarify. “I guess I meant to say that… I’ll miss working for you. That’s all. We somehow always got a laugh in, no matter how stressful things were. I’ll miss being with A-yeong, too.”

“I know you also meant to say that I’m the best boss you’ve ever had,” Hoseok chuckles, though you don’t miss the sadness in his eyes, too. “But I’ll just be two floors above you. You’ll still see me everywhere. And A-yeong’s gonna miss you, too, that’s why she can’t let you go without having dinner out, that I’m apparently not invited to.”

“We’re just gonna gossip about you, don’t worry,” you tease, appreciative of the fact that his wife has been kind to you all these years, apologizing to you on his behalf during the rare times he’s cranky, and gifting you little things from their trips abroad. “But thank you again, Hoseok,” you continue, dropping the formalities when you mean to speak to him as a friend, because that’s what he is, and it’s a rarity in this industry where those in power tend to take advantage of those below them. “You’ve treated me well, and I’ll never forget that.” 

“Thank you, ___,” he smiles once more. “I’ll finish setting up my new office now. I’ll see you there in 30 minutes, okay? I know Jungkook officially starts on Monday but he wanted to get all the administrative stuff out of the way as soon as possible and since my old room is being sanitized, he’ll be staying at mine the whole morning. HR has everything he needs to sign so please get those documents from them before heading to my office.”

“Oh, so he’s coming today?” You ask, unable to hide the mix of surprise and disappointment in your voice. You’re clearly uninformed about this. “Didn’t he just arrive last night?”

“Yes, he did. I thought he’d at least spend today resting but no, he called me an hour ago to say he’ll drop by this morning so he can get straight to business on his first day,” Hoseok explains, shaking his head at the thought of his cousin wanting to get straight to work. “I know it’s short notice so you don’t need to brief him or anything yet. You’ve been buried in organizing all my files this past week after all.” 

“Okay, but I’ve got everything organized for him already anyway in case he wants to start,” you say, having prepared all the documents he’d need to ease into his role more smoothly, knowing it’s your job to help him with that. 

“Of course you have,” Hoseok chuckles, impressed as always with how on top you are of everything. “I’ll see you in half an hour.”

You sulk in your seat once he’s out of view, whining internally because much as your files are ready for your new boss, you’re the one who isn’t. You’d held off on mentally preparing yourself for meeting the Jeon Jungkook, second son of the current CEO of Jeon Corporation and the new Vice President, thinking you’d have the entire weekend for that, so you’re caught off guard at having to face him today. It’s one thing to move on from no longer having Jung Hoseok as your boss - that itself took you months to process and accept; it’s another to have to get used to assisting someone else, someone you know is completely different in attitude and approach to his work.

Jungkook used to be an executive in the Singapore office, the Southeast Asian headquarters of the company. In your three years as Hoseok’s assistant, you’d only seen Jungkook a few times, such as when he’d fly to Seoul for an official visit or a family gathering but you never interacted, as you didn’t really have a reason to, especially since you were always busy with making sure the event was running smoothly. 

But you’d definitely noticed him, partly because the female staff always talked about him when he was around, and partly because next to his parents and his cousins, who are all personable in their own ways, Jungkook sticks out like a sore thumb. You’re not exaggerating when you say that you’ve never seen him smile - not for the pictures and not when he’s talking to the other executives and employees, a contrast to his father’s infectious charm and his mother’s youthful energy.

You’ve gotten used to Hoseok’s passion balanced with his thoughtfulness and joy - you always enjoyed the videos that A-yeong would show you of their weekends doing ballroom dancing because it’s what he loved to do with her. You’re unsure how you’ll manage assisting someone who’s the complete opposite. You’ve heard of Jungkook’s abilities though; his father always spoke of them with pride. Creative and innovative, he’d say of his son, but he always lived in his head, too, and perhaps that’s why even if he can socialize with others, he prefers not to, given that you’d always seen him at the bar after said events, drinking on his own.

You didn’t think those times that you’d one day be having him as your boss. You didn’t expect the appointments to come this soon, nor did you expect to still be in the company by the time they happened. But here you are, about to meet him and hoping to the heavens that whatever preconceived notions you have of him based on what very little you know would be proven wrong. 

Wanting to calm yourself down before meeting him, you head to the management support team’s office for a cup of tea in the pantry, but you’re stopped by Do-hyun, one of the project assistants. 

She hugs you like she always does, even if you rarely ever return it, and she whines like you expect her to, given her unusually pouty face. 

“It’s only been an hour but I already miss Mr. Jung,” she laments. “Why did they appoint him as President so soon? They could’ve waited for another year or so, or at least let him take us with him!”

You find yourself being the reasonable one this time, as you pull her away from you so you could talk to her properly. 

“We always knew he was going to be President, Do-hyun. But then the Board decided to make Ji-woo head of the Singapore office after their uncle stepped down, and that meant Hoseok had to take his sister’s place,” you explain, knowing how generational corporations like this work, with family members rotating in the executive positions. “And much as he’d like to take us with him, the position already comes with its own team. He’s just two floors above us, though. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind if we popped in every once in a while to say hi.”

“No, I’m bitter,” she pouts again, earning her a laugh from you.

“Well, at least the new Vice President isn’t a stranger,” Manager Lee chimes in. 

“I heard the CEO’s son doesn’t smile,” Do-hyun counters. “How do we go from assisting someone who literally gives all of us the energy to work each day, to someone who doesn’t think there’s anything worth being happy about? I also heard he’s a workaholic, so what if he demands that we can’t leave the office until he does? And that he’s kind of a fuck boy, so what if he has a scandal that we have to—” 

“Yah! Those are just hearsay, and we don’t listen to those,” you warn her, not wanting the team to start on a bad note because of some rumors about your new boss that may or may not be true. 

And if those are, it’s your job to make sure that those are handled properly and that there’s no friction between the management support team and the Vice President. The thought suddenly hits you and you feel nauseous. You’ve never had these worries with Hoseok because he always prioritized the team - he made sure that tasks were properly delegated, that you all took your well-deserved break, that you weren’t burnt out, that you all knew he got your back the way you all got his. 

But then again, it’s natural to be anxious about change, especially when what you had was already the best it could’ve been. And much as you were the one worrying about this earlier, you’re now the one who has to reassure the team, especially the younger members, that things are going to be okay. 

“You’ll meet him soon, and I’ll make sure he’s properly oriented with everything before he sits down with you all,” you say. “Let’s just be optimistic about this, okay? Manager Lee has been here a while and he can guide all of us when it comes to adapting to changes like this.”

The rest of the team nods, voicing their agreement about being open and welcoming to your new boss. 

“Okay, good. Now let me get my tea before I combust,” you chuckle, heading towards the adjacent room. 

You’re busy taking breaths in between sips of your hot drink when you see a familiar face in the room through the glass window, prompting you to head back outside.

“Mr. Ri,” you greet, causing the man before you to turn towards you. “What are you doing here? Does Mr. Jeon need anything?” 

Knowing you’re referring to the elder Jeon, Mr. Ri shakes his head. 

“I’m here as Jungkook’s chauffeur and bodyguard, actually. His father appointed me, wanting people he trusts to help his son,” he clarifies. “I’ve just driven him from his penthouse.”

“Oh,” you say, unable to control the way your face falls a little. “So, he’s here.”

“He is. He said he wanted to get things done today so he doesn’t waste his time when he starts next week. He’s at Hoseok’s office right now. I believe he’s supposed to sign some documents?”

“Oh shit,” you blurt out, immediately setting down your half-finished tea and rushing out the door to speed-walk to your desk, ignoring Mr. Ri’s demand for you to slow down. 

With what little you know of your new boss, he seems like the type to not excuse tardiness, so you take your files, head to HR to retrieve some documents, and then proceed to Hoseok’s office. You try to catch your breath as you head towards the door, which opens before you get to knock, revealing Bitna, the President’s assistant, who greets you with a sweet smile. 

“Hi, ___. I was just about to call you,” she says. “CEO Jeon is inside as well. Just walk in, they’re waiting for you.”

You cross the small hallway as the door gently closes, and you stop in your tracks the moment you hear Jungkook’s voice.

“I still prefer my old assistant,” he says, obviously displeased. “He was very organized, highly educated, and well-traveled. While this Ms. Cho didn’t even study in a top university in Seoul. And Hoseok says she doesn’t know any other foreign languages when that’s one of my requirements.”

“Son, you’re being too harsh,” CEO Jeon chides. “Ms. Cho is a top performing employee, very hardworking and dedicated. She’s worked here for eight years and she imbibes all our values; she knows the company culture and knows the ins and outs of things with how she’s been exposed to them. Ask your cousin; Hoseok speaks highly of her.”

“___ is great, Kook. She’s incredibly organized and highly analytical and observant. She doesn’t need a Seoul education to be good at what we need her to be good at,” Hoseok argues. 

“I still want my old assistant. It’s more convenient that way. Lucas already knows how I work and what I require of him,” Jungkook insists. “I’m just saying that I need things to be efficient and she and I can’t be adjusting to each other when there are multiple projects that I’d much rather give my attention to.”

“And I’m saying that Ms. Cho probably knows more than you do when it comes to these projects,” the elder Jeon counters. “Plus, your old assistant would have to adjust to life in Seoul and that’s harder. It’s just not practical, especially since you’re due to start in a few days. You have other things to worry about. ___ is there to make your life easier. Give her that chance to do her job.”

“But I—”

“Good morning, gentlemen,” you greet, not wanting to hear whatever unfounded things that Jungkook has to say, even if you have your own preconceived notions about him which, you remind yourself, are partly founded. Barely five minutes in and you already can’t stand his judgmental and entitled ass. 

You walk towards the middle of the room where they’re congregated on the couches, with the elder Mr. Jeon and Hoseok smiling at you while Jungkook merely glances at you, his jaw clenched, perhaps irritated at the fact that you’d overheard him completely misjudge and undermine your abilities without even knowing who you are.

“Good morning, Ms. Cho,” CEO Jeon says. “I know you’ve seen him a few times but I’d like you to officially meet my son and the new Vice President, Jungkook.”

Jungkook turns to you with a disinterested look but he doesn’t meet your eyes. You bow as a sign of respect, even if it’s the last thing you think he deserves.  

“My pleasure, Mr. Jeon,” you respond. “I was told that you’d like to proceed with administrative matters this morning. I have all the documents with me and I can explain each one to you before you sign them. I’ve also consolidated all the things you need to know prior to your meetings next week,” you add, handing him an iPad. “This has the resumes of each member of your management support team, including their professional and development goals. Mine are there as well, so you can read about my credentials and achievements in this company the past eight years, which I think have tremendously helped me in performing my duties satisfactorily. There’s also a folder of team profiles of each of the departments you’re overseeing. You’ll also find closure reports of completed projects from the past five years, progress reports of ongoing projects, and approved and working proposals of upcoming ones. I’ve included summaries and key figures for each of them. You may read them prior to your meetings, and if there’s anything missing that you’d like me to include, I can have them ready by the end of the day.”

“Hmm,” Jungkook hums, as he scrolls through all the folders you’ve prepared for him.

In your periphery, you can see the other two men holding in smiles as you seemingly render the younger man speechless, but while he assesses all that you’ve provided to him, you’re given time to observe the man seated before you. Other than his slightly longer hair, not much has changed from when you saw Jungkook in last year’s gala. 

As he drags his tongue across the inside of his cheek with his scrunched eyebrows in judgment, you’re reminded that this is the first time you’ve seen him up close. And even from his angle, you can tell. 

He’s unfairly handsome. 

He’s got dark expressive eyes, soft-looking pink lips, and a sharp jawline that complement his lean figure. You understand why the staff are enamored by him even from afar and - if the rumors about him are true - why women would shoot their shot with him at clubs, in hopes they’d be the lucky one he’d choose to be with for the night.

The illusion breaks, though, as he turns to you with a hardened gaze. 

“I’m sure I’ll find something that’s missing,” he states.

“If they’re relevant and necessary, I can have the files ready by today,” you respond, knowing full well that you’ve included every possible document that would be of use to him. 

“I’ll be the judge of what’s relevant and necessary, Ms. Cho,” he counters. 

“Of course, Mr. Jeon,” you say, conceding. “Whatever it is, then I’ll make sure to have them ready for you as soon as possible.”

Jungkook hums in response, turning his attention to the HR documents this time, breezing through the text and ignoring your brief explanations of the contents before signing at the bottom of the pages. You inform him of sections he’s missed, and he groans at having been corrected but you don’t mind. He’s the one who chose to do all this now and in here, in front of his father and his cousin.

Once he’s done, he hands you the signed files and holds your gaze. “Is there anything else, Ms. Cho?”

“I suppose that is all, Mr. Jeon. Unless there are other things you want to assess, or people you want to ensure are qualified to assist you with your functions,” you say. 

Jungkook huffs in displeasure. You can sense the tension build, as irritation paints his face. It’s at that moment that his father chimes in, suggesting that you introduce him to his team.

“You can maybe also orient him on the current projects and partnerships,” the older man says. 

“That can wait. I’ve had enough of engaging for today,” Jungkook responds, his voice cold, detached. 

“In that case, let me lead you to your floor, Mr. Jeon.”

You step back and wait for him to walk ahead, before you excuse yourself from the older men. You don’t miss the sorry looks on their faces, and you give them a smile as if to say that it’s fine, that Jungkook’s someone you can handle, and his obvious displeasure towards having you as his assistant doesn’t faze you. It doesn’t change the fact that you wish he wasn’t your boss though, or at least, that he wasn’t such a jerk like what he’s being right now.

Walking behind him as you both head towards the elevator, you see the way he carries himself - hands in the pockets of his sleek black trousers, his eyes focused straight ahead, nothing like Hoseok who was always gesticulating as he spoke to you every time you walked side-by-side from one place to another.    

Jungkook stands in front of the doors, seemingly waiting for you to press the buttons and you do it before he could even express his annoyance. You stand in front this time, then make sure you hold the doors open for him to exit, and you resume your spot behind him as you walk down the hallway. 

“On the left are two small meeting rooms and one conference room,” you start, thankful that there’s not much to tour him around on this floor, given that everything is exclusive to the Vice President. “On the right is a seating room, and up ahead is an archive room. Down the—”

“I’ve been here before, Ms. Cho,” Jungkook interjects as he looks at you blankly. “This is my family’s building; I’m very much aware of how the floors look like.”

Not rattled by his disruption, you nod and smile, wanting to show him that whatever intimidation or humiliation he’s trying to make you feel isn’t gonna work on you. You know if you show any sign of frustration, that will just give him a reason to have you replaced and despite your clear dislike for the man, you need this job, especially this position that allows you to pay your rent in a safe part of town and send money to your family every month. At this point, that’s the only thing that will keep you going.

Approaching the management support office, you walk faster and make sure to enter the room before he does, signaling the team with your eyes that their new boss is coming, your silently frantic gaze telling them to be on their best behavior because their usual antics won’t work on Jungkook the way they did with Hoseok. 

Once Jungkook appears, everyone bows and greets him, and you can sense them holding their breaths as they look up, taking him all in. You see him eye each person, and you can tell he’s already assessing them individually. You take it upon yourself to introduce each one, stating their name, where they studied and what course they took, describing their primary role in the team and their specific strengths. You see him follow your words, nodding and humming as you go, and you think he’s processing the information and making sure he remembers them. 

There are no pleasantries; Jungkook just goes straight to the point. 

“I’m sure you have concerns about having a new boss and the changes that come along with it. But I’m here to tell you now that you should get over whatever those are, as I’d like the adjustment period to be as short as possible,” he starts. “My cousin is brilliant at his job and so am I, but we work very differently, so whatever you got used to doing with and for him, don’t expect the same with me. I demand excellence and efficiency from each one of you because that’s what I commit myself to and that’s the only way that this team will be able to do its job. Am I clear?”

“Yes, sir,” the team answers in unison. 

“We commit to those as well, Mr. Jeon,” Manager Lee says. “As the head of your support team, I will make sure that all our deliverables are of high quality and that things will run smoothly so that we may properly do our job of assisting you.”

“That’s good, and that’s what I expect,” Jungkook says, nodding at everyone before walking out the door to head to his office, with you trailing him from behind. 

“Is my room still being sanitized?” He turns to you. 

“Yes, sir.”

“Why did it need to be sanitized? And why today?”

“It’s protocol, sir. We also had a sendoff for Mr. Jung yesterday so the room smelled of food. And he instructed for this to be done today so that I don’t need to come here tomorrow, as he doesn’t like any of his staff working during the weekend,” you reply. “This should be finished this afternoon. I’ve also purchased the oil for your diffusers. The room will be ready for you by Monday.”

Jungkook merely hums and looks around, specifically at your designated area with your desk and shelves at the back, then takes a call before turning to you again to say that he’s heading out to meet his friends.

“Is there anything else you need, Mr. Jeon?” You ask, thankful that you don’t have to deal with him for the rest of the day.

“No.”

“Okay then, sir. I’ll meet you at your apartment at 6:30 AM on Monday. Is that time alright?”

“Sure,” he responds, then turns around and starts walking out. “Just keep your phone on. I work during the weekend.”

He’s gone before you can even respond, and you rush to the support office once you’ve heard the elevator ding that indicates that he’s gone. When you get there, you’re greeted with everyone’s frowns, with Do-hyun close to tears.

“I don’t like him, ___. He looks so unapproachable and too serious!” She complains. “I miss Mr. Jung. Is there an opening in his team? Should I just resign?”

“Aish!” You reprimand her. “Don’t speak like that. And don’t let those few minutes determine everything for you.”

“Well, those few minutes are enough to tell me that I don’t like him. No matter how good-looking he is,” Chin-sun says.

“He is, right!” Do-hyun chirps now, a complete 180 from seconds ago. “I’ve seen him around but I didn’t think he’d be even more handsome up close! It just sucks that he’s a grinch and that makes all the difference. Maybe that’s why he doesn’t have a girlfriend! He’s probably too snobby and—”

“Yah! You really need to stop it with those rumors,” you scold her this time. “That’s your boss. His personal life is none of our business. Where do you even hear these things?”

“Every washroom in this building, basically. Staff are always gossiping there, you know?” Do-hyun responds. 

“And since when do we listen to gossip,” you scowl at her. “Sure, he’s not our favorite person right now but we don’t have the right to make claims about aspects of his life. And where are people even getting those ideas!”

“People talk, I guess,” she shrugs. “And he’s often spotted in clubs with those Kim brothers so maybe they see things. I’m not saying they’re all accurate… just that rumors often have some truth to them, you know?”

“No, I don’t, and we shouldn’t be sticking our noses in places where they shouldn’t be,” you say.

“Fine, but it’s just a heads up,” Do-hyun says, turning serious now. “You’re his executive assistant, and you have no choice but to stick your nose in places because personal and professional lines are often blurred in your situation, and that’s just how our world’s set up.”

“She’s right,” Chin-sun chimes in. “I mean, you need to know his personal schedule, go to his apartment, do errands if you need to, maybe buy a box of condoms if he runs out… You just got lucky that Mr. Jung’s pretty chill and has a wife who’s even nicer than he is. Your only problem was that he was damn scared of everything that moved and wasn't human.”

You’d laugh at the last statement if you could, but you know they’re both right. Hoseok wasn’t perfect, and neither was his marriage, but it never reached a point where you had to be put in a compromising position because you were his assistant who, by nature of your work, had to be privy to some of his personal matters. The most involved you were was when he and A-yeong had an argument and they used you as their messenger, but even that was more of a miscommunication issue than anything serious. They apologized to you after and promised to never put you in that kind of situation again.

But with Jungkook as a single man, you’re unsure what personal business you’d end up being involved in. You just wish it wasn’t something that would test your principles and cause you to lose your job. Regardless, whatever that would be isn’t something you can even really talk about with others.

“Well, I don’t wanna think about any of that right now,” you sigh, knowing you’ve got enough to worry about, such as how you’re going to start surviving everyday assisting a man who clearly doesn’t want you around. 

But if he’s gonna be a hard-head about it, then you’re just going to have to match him. You got to where you are because you’re determined to prove yourself constantly, and you’ll just show him that he needs you, and he doesn’t really have a choice unless he wants to argue with his father. 

You try to encourage your team once more and give Do-hyun that rare hug in comfort before going back to your desk, intent on finishing all the presentations for your briefing with Jungkook next week. You begin setting up his room by mid-afternoon, using a photo of his Singapore office as a basis since you were told that he prefers a certain style for his furniture and decor. You’re no stylist but over an hour after you finish, you think you did pretty good. You were so into designing the space that you didn’t notice the time fly by; before you know it, it’s 6PM, because you can hear A-yeong right outside calling for you.

“Hi,” she chirps, hugging you in greeting. “Are you ready?”

“I’ll just pack my things,” you say, walking to your desk. 

A-yeong takes a peek at the room and praises your efforts. “This looks so different from how it used to be. And that’s good because those cousins have such different tastes. But I think Jungkook will like this. He’s into the masculine and moody vibe, so good job, ___.”

You know that despite her kindness, she wouldn’t lie, and you could only hope that she’s right. You think it looks nice, but it’s what he thinks that matters; you’ll just have to wait until Monday to find out. 

As you’re about to leave, Hoseok appears in the hallway and asks how you are. Your scowl pretty much gives you away.

“I’m sorry about Jungkook, ___. He’s stubborn and a hot-head sometimes but he isn’t always like that, and this isn’t me making excuses for him,” your former boss says. 

“Why, what did he do?” A-yeong asks worriedly. 

“Basically implied that I’m not qualified for this role, among other things,” you respond. “But it’s okay. Not like I haven’t heard that before.”

“And you know that’s not true,” Hoseok comforts you. “He’s not good with change, that’s all, and you know how these appointments were all pretty short notice and he’s just been frustrated ever since. But whatever it is he said, don’t take them to heart. He’ll get a word from me, and he’ll definitely get one from his father.”

You want to say that it’s not easy to just disregard what Jungkook said; he’s your boss after all, and all that matters is what he thinks about you. But you’re not one to air out these feelings to Hoseok now that you’ve experienced a bit of what it’s like, so you just shake your head and ask the older man to let it go.

“He’s probably just tired,” you make an excuse this time, not wanting to discuss further with Hoseok. “And he had that assistant for over five years. I can understand wanting that familiarity and convenience. I’m just gonna have to adjust; there are a lot of things going on right now and he’ll need to focus on the projects, not his compatibility with his assistant.”

“But that matters though,” Hoseok insists. “I got things done because we worked well together. He’s gonna have to meet you in the middle with this one. And I’ll make sure that he does.”

“I know you said you want to look out for me but I don’t think it’s a good idea if you intervene this time, Mr. Jung,” you say, letting him know you’re serious and you mean business. “I’ll be okay, don’t worry about me.”

You give him a comforting smile, and you hope it’s enough to quell Hoseok’s own worries and it works this time. He returns it before letting you and his wife go, and it’s the Thai dinner and incredible desserts that somehow make up for your not-so-great day. 

You think the weekend will give you the peace you need to face your dreaded week - you do your errands and chores on Saturday and go to the market and watch a movie by yourself in the cinema the next day. 

All it took was a text from Jungkook that Sunday evening, asking for copies of certain policies and disapproved proposals from the last five years, that just had to ruin it, as you spend the entire evening consolidating the files, making you already wish it was Friday.

Jungkook’s apartment building is one of the Jeon properties that you haven’t been to yet, as it’s one of the newer massive residential structures that they built three years ago. You enter the sleek-looking lobby then submit your documents at the reception in exchange for your own access, and you internally marvel at how luxurious everything looks. 

You get to the 42nd floor, and it seems that there are only two units here. You walk towards the one on the right, choosing to be on the safe side by ringing the doorbell. It’s Monday, after all, and it’s your first time here; you don’t want to just enter without him permitting you to do so. 

You’re about to press the button again after a minute of no response, when the door opens and you take a moment to process the sight before you. 

There, standing just a few feet away, is Jungkook with nothing but a pair of black gym shorts on, his taut chest glistening in sweat, and his entire right arm covered in black and colored ink. His hair is damp and ruffled, and it’s probably due to the boxing he’d just done, as evidenced by the wraps on his knuckles and the way he’s panting heavily. 

You get your senses back and look away, not wanting to look affected by his half-naked form, even if you’re the one who has to catch her breath this time because much as you dislike the man, you can’t deny that his body is something that definitely deserves to be praised. 

“You’re here,” he speaks first, surprise laced in his voice as he takes in your obviously flustered form.

“I asked if 6:30 AM was a good time to come, Mr. Jeon,” you answer, glancing at him before looking at whatever you could behind him. “Perhaps I misheard your confirmation. I can wait downstairs if you’re not yet done with your exercise. My apologies for coming in early.”

You don’t actually have anything to be sorry for; he did confirm the time, and he’s the one who decided that working out at this hour was a good idea, knowing that his assistant’s scheduled to come. You would’ve appreciated it if he says you don’t need to apologize, but he doesn’t.

“It’s fine, I just finished,” he huffs. 

He leaves the door open for you to enter then heads straight to the large room on the right, which looks to be an indoor gym. You allow yourself a few seconds to look at his retreating form, quietly gasping as his broad shoulders and slender waist blind you a little, then scolding yourself for doing so. You stay rooted by the kitchen and look around the spacious penthouse as you wait for him to return. He exits the gym wearing a loose white shirt now, combing his hair with his fingers as he drinks a bottle of water.

“So, Mr. Jeon, uh, I would prepare Mr. Jung’s outfits for the week and then help his house staff make his breakfast. I run down his schedule as he eats. Are you okay with the same arrangement?” 

“Sure. I just don’t have any staff with me so you’re on your own. I’m fine with anything though. I’m not usually hungry in the morning,” he says before walking to the other side of the apartment.

You follow him, careful not to enter spaces you’re not given permission to, which is why you stand by his bedroom door before asking to come in. 

“How will you prepare my clothes from there?” He huffs. “Of course you can enter. Just be done before I finish taking a shower.”

You nod shyly and then head to the walk-in closet that thankfully has a separate door from the bathroom. He’s already unpacked his clothes, although not everything has been organized. You spot a few suits that are ready to wear, and you fix those first, taking note of asking him if there are things he wants dry cleaned or pressed. 

You leave his bedroom in time, hearing him slide open the door as you make it out, and proceed to make his breakfast. There’s really not much you can create with what little he has, so you make do with eggs and toast and whatever spread you find in his cupboard.

Jungkook walks into the kitchen not long after, the dark gray suit looking immaculate on him as you expected. Spotting his crooked necktie, you immediately walk up to him to fix it, unaware of how he holds his breath with how close you are. Noticing his body stiffen, you step back right away, apologizing for not asking permission first. 

He looks away and says it’s fine, then sits on the spot at the dining table where you’ve set up his meal. He stares at it for a good few seconds, prompting you to explain yourself.

“That’s… that’s all I could make with what you have, Mr. Jeon,” you say. “I can arrange for online groceries for you, as well as dry clean and pressing for your clothes and—”

“I’m having someone come in to clean my place and do all of that,” he says, as he takes a bite of his food. “So, what’s my week like?”

You start to enumerate the conference and lunch meetings he’ll be having this week, including who they’ll be with and their purpose. They’re mostly with the department leads to discuss updates on processes and current projects, and you’re thankful that Hoseok involved you as much as he did, given that Jungkook’s questions are more specific than you expected. 

Sure, he’s a Jeon and obviously works in the same company, but the Southeast Asian projects are different from the ones being implemented in South Korea, and while he used to oversee overall compliance to design standards, he’ll now be in-charge of setting those very standards this time. As Vice President, he’ll be involved in crafting policies; he’s also free to manage his own construction projects, and that’s what the support team is for. Given his much more expansive role this time, there are more departments and projects to oversee, and definitely more executive decisions to make. 

You suppose it’s why his questions don’t stop, even after he’s cleaned up and you both find yourselves in the backseat of the car and on the way to the office. He looks through the iPad with all the files you gave him, and you see the notes he’s made on them as you turn to him to answer his queries. Even if you know that he’s also still assessing you - perhaps on your knowledge and attention to detail - you can’t help but admire his thoroughness. You may have also cursed him in frustration for making you work on a Sunday, but he seems to have done way more than you, given that he went through all the documents over the weekend. You suddenly don’t feel too annoyed. 

But of course, he has to ruin it again.

“I need these annotated versions of the project and departmental documents ready before my meetings with the respective teams,” Jungkook says, his voice low and stern. “And I expect progress reports to be as detailed as possible, so make sure to check them first before they get to me. The ones you gave need revisions. I believe you’re trained enough to know immediately that these are lacking.”

“Yes, sir,” you respond, noting his instructions on your notebook while internally yelling, given that you’re unsure of the need for them before the meetings. 

Surely, he could give you some time to work on them, but with a meeting with one team in the afternoon and seven more the rest of the week, and on top of the other things you need to do for him, you already know you’ll be cramming to get everything done. 

You try to manage your breathing. Somehow, your habit of pressing your nails against your palm when you're stressed has miraculously come back today. It was something you developed while working under Mrs. Byun, which you eventually got over after working for Hoseok. You feel the anxiety build up, especially as you look at the half crescent marks on your skin, and it’s times like this that you wish your best friends were based in Seoul instead of Busan, so you’d at least have people to comfort you when things are a little tough. 

It’s not to say that work wasn’t overwhelming before. It definitely was, but Hoseok always found a way to make everything bearable and he was always reasonable with what he demanded of you. Now you’re stuck with a man who already makes you feel like your hard work isn’t enough. 

You make it to the office with no other words said and a thick tension in the air. It follows you to the elevator and into Jungkook’s room, where he dismisses you so he can prepare for the first meeting of the day. You rush to your desk and get on with your tasks, making sure to work on the annotated project file that he needs by the afternoon. 

It’s an hour later when you find yourself in the conference room for the meeting with the management support team. You prepped them just 10 minutes earlier, and while you tried to hide your frustration, your unusual lack of energy told them enough that it wasn’t exactly a good start of the day. 

They come in one by one, and you take the time to prepare Jungkook’s coffee, remembering from his former assistant’s notes how he wants it. He’d put it off earlier, given that he prefers to drink his protein shake after his workout, so this is the first time you’re doing it for him.

His eyes flit from the coffee in front of him to you as you place it on the table.

“Two espresso shots and half teaspoon each of milk and sugar,” you state, wanting to confirm that you got it right.

He merely takes a sip, places it down again, and then starts the meeting. 

How bold of you to assume that he’d thank you or even acknowledge it, as if he’d shown you even the tiniest amount of gratitude for anything you've done for him since Friday. Which he hasn’t. 

You let it go and proceed to sit next to him, your eyes and ears ready for what you already predict is gonna be a long meeting. 

It ends over three hours later. As you expected, he had a lot of questions. He made sure that each member had time to explain their current tasks and how they will monitor the projects assigned to them. You didn’t miss the way he’d acknowledged them with “good” and “well done,” and thanked them after they finished. He only nodded at you after your turn, with his eyes barely meeting yours, and for all the confidence you built over the past three years, you can’t process how it’s his non-acknowledgment that’s just going to undo all that. And quite frankly, you’re unsure if that’s on him or if that’s on you. 

Half of the meeting was spent discussing the big project that he wants to take on as Vice President. There’s a property they recently acquired - a non-operational arts center that he wants to revive by adding a performance hall, small theaters, a grand library, function rooms, and a permanent exhibition presenting the buildings that his family had developed over the years to showcase their architectural designs. 

You saw the excitement in your team members’ faces. Hoseok took over with several unfinished projects so you all had to focus on those. Aside from Manager Lee, this is the first time that you’re all handling something new and different. Even you felt the excitement creep in, a welcome emotion given how your day’s been going, but that shattered once he said that he wants it done by June of next year in time for an International Media Festival happening in August. The 12-month period he’s giving is too short with everything he wants to do, and you saw that the team felt the same. 

You go to them after Jungkook leaves for a lunch meeting, and their sighs and pouty faces tell you enough. Mr. Lee does his job of encouraging the team, and you add that you’re all gonna be supporting each other through it all. Sure, you’d have to match Jungkook’s ambition and thoroughness, but you should all take it as a challenge. 

You’re clearly not convinced yourself as the words come out of your mouth, but you don’t have time to debrief with them, as you still have that meeting with the design department that you have to prepare for. You take two biscuits and a cup of tea, and you decide that this is enough to last you throughout lunch, given that you’ll be spending the entirety of it working on the files. 

You don’t realize that an hour and a half have passed until you hear footsteps and see Jungkook’s form appear in the hallway. You stand to greet him, with him asking if you’re done with the annotated documents. 

“I’ll send it in five minutes, sir,” you say, hoping he’ll at least give you that. 

“Okay,” he responds. “Come to my office after you’ve sent it.”

“Yes, sir,” you say, quickly finishing the last two pages once he closes the door. 

You rush to get everything done and click send, then you head to his office and prepare yourself for more questions. It’s quiet inside as you watch him behind the desk, with his legs crossed and his eyebrows furrowed as he reads the document. You answer one of his questions and it’s at that moment when your very empty stomach decides to make itself known.

You freeze on your spot, as the grumbling sound starts low, getting louder for a few beats before it temporarily stops. Your eyes widen in embarrassment, and you press your belly so hard with your fingers in hopes that that would do anything, even if you’re too far gone at this point. Your only hope is that it was all in your head, but Jungkook’s eyes flitting to you tells you otherwise. The only other sound in his room is the air purifier, but it’s not remotely loud enough to drown out your intense hunger. 

It goes again, and all you can do is look away; humiliating yourself was definitely not the plan for your first day as Jeon Jungkook’s assistant.

“Do you need to step away, Ms. Cho?” He asks, not meeting your eyes. 

“Oh, it’s not… uh,” a bowel emergency or something, you want to say. “I just had a busy lunch break.” 

You settle for that, a hint that you’d spent its entirety doing something in such a short notice. Hoseok would always be apologetic whenever he had you do something during your break; he always made up for it with a nice meal as thanks. You doubt you’d get anything close to that from this man.

Jungkook hums and surprisingly doesn’t ask for anything else. He dismisses you and orders you to go ahead and prepare the conference room for the next meeting, and you do just that, dropping by the pantry for a muffin that you eat in four bites, in hopes that it would be enough to shut your stomach for the next three hours. 

Right as you exit, Jungkook picks up his phone to make a call. And then another one.

“Mr. Ri, please pick up the pastries that Ms. Cho ordered at the food hall,” he instructs his chauffeur. “She’s too busy right now.”

“Will do, Mr. Jeon.”

Taking minutes of a meeting when you’re starving is not a good thing. You know this because you’ve done this so many times, like during monthly executive meetings and the quarterly board meetings that have you spread out thin. It’s also not rare to miss out on lunch because there’s a report to finish or a site to visit; during events, you go on a day with having barely eaten anything. 

But just because you’re used to it, it doesn’t mean that your body has fully adapted, because here you are, eyeing the croissants in front of you, your mouth watering at the gloss and softness of the pastry. They’re so tempting and also out of reach, given that you need to be entirely focused on the discussion that you’re documenting, and munching on something is out of the question. You don’t even know where this is from and you think maybe the design department called for snacks but it’s really not helping your concentration.

You hope the way you’re nibbling your lips doesn’t give you away, but Yoongi from across the table picks it up, as you get a notification of his message.

[From: Min Yoongi] you didn’t have lunch, did you? 

You ignore the prompt on your laptop and respond to him with a look instead. You know your pouty lips will give him his answer, and he merely shakes his head at the confirmation. 

You do your best to shut out the sight and scent of the food before you, absorbing instead the discussion so you can note this down properly with just minimal edits needed. You have a lot of documents to work on for the next few days after all, and that’s on top of the file reorganization that Jungkook asked you to do. 

It works after you hang on by a thread for two and a half hours, a little earlier than you expected to finish. All you want is to sneak out that croissant and maybe some tarts, too, but your heart breaks when you look up and find the boxes empty. 

You let out a sigh, relieved that your boss didn’t hear you because he’s already on the phone and heading out the door. But it’s that same time that a plate of food appears in front of you, and it feels like the gates of heaven have opened. You’re not surprised anymore to find out who it’s from.

“Eat,” Yoongi says from next to you. “I could see your hands shaking from across the table.”

“What about you?” You ask, your lips in a pout once more. 

“You know I don’t eat these things,” he shrugs.

He doesn’t, and you know this, too. You also know he called dibs on these earlier, seeing as his staff were quick to get them, and he’d saved these so he could give them to you. 

“Ten years later and you’re still trying to make sure I eat, huh?” You say, nudging him with your hips to tease.

“If I don’t, who would?” He responds, walking out of the conference room with you. “You have a bad habit of not doing that.”

“Well, duty calls. What can I do?” 

“Take care of yourself even if it’s hard,” he replies. 

“Says the man who rarely does it himself,” you chuckle. 

“You know, the best advice I give are the ones I don’t actually follow, so disregard the fact that I don’t even do what I say because they apparently work,” he says. “But I mean it, ___. Eat this now.”

“Thanks, Yoongi,” you smile, taking a piece of pastry and eating it in two bites. 

Your puffed out cheeks cause him to laugh, and despite still being hungry after this, you suppose it’s enough to not make you faint at this moment. 

“And eat a proper dinner, okay?” He follows up.

“I’ll be off late, so I’ll just grab something from the convenience store,” you say. “That’s as proper as I can afford tonight.”

“Aish, fine,” he shakes his head. “But let me get you coffee at least. Those tarts won’t taste as good without one.”

“That would be life-saving,” you dramatically say. “What did I do to deserve a friend like you?”

“Don’t know. I mean, I’m not that great,” he shrugs. 

You playfully roll your eyes. “I’ll save the compliments once I have the coffee.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever,” he feigns annoyance, gesturing for you to get back to your desk then walking the other direction. 

You take your seat and clean up the document, deciding that you’ll just review the meeting minutes tomorrow so you can get on with other pressing matters. It’s 20 minutes later when Yoongi returns, a tall cup of coffee on one hand and a banana loaf on the other.

“This is all they have left,” he says. “I hope it can last you until tonight.”

“It will,” you smile. “Thank you again. No one looks out for me here as much as you do. And that means a lot, more than you know. I don’t think I would’ve survived all these years without you.”

“Wow, all because of coffee and snacks,” he laughs, teasing. 

“It’s a fair trade. You feed me during my greatest need, I boost your ego,” you tease back. 

“Yeah, whatever,” Yoongi huffs in submission, but you know he enjoys it. 

You’re thankful that after everything that’s happened, you’re still able to maintain the friendship that you created when you were a mere intern and he was just starting out his career. 

“Anyway, I’m quickly meeting Jungkook and I need the portfolio of the contemporary arts institution joint project from 2019. It was VP-led so I assume it’s still here? Unless it’s in the archive room,” he continues.

“It’s within five years so it should be here,” you say, turning to the shelf behind you to confirm. 

You spot what you need and make the attempt to pull it out but your fingers barely even touch the rack.

“Need help?” Yoongi asks.

“And what help could you give, huh?” You tease again, earning you a playful groan.

“You brat.”

You laugh and pull out the small stool you keep for times like this. 

“Just make sure I don’t fall and embarrass myself further today,” you say, climbing up the steps then pulling out the heavy folder. 

You feel Yoongi’s arm move from where it was near your waist to over your head, as he lightens the load. You both try to balance it and laugh at your distorted faces in the process, and it’s moments of relief like this one that you’re glad you’re afforded after a long day like today. 

From inside the room, Jungkook sees you through the window, your eyes crinkling as you laugh along with Yoongi, head of the design department and one of his very few friends in the company. It catches him off guard, as he realizes that since meeting you last Friday, he’s never seen you laugh, much less smile or even have an expression that isn’t agitated or serious.

He knows that that’s probably on him. He’d spoken ill of you after all, something he regretted once he saw the frustration on your face when you made it known that you were in the room with them and had definitely heard everything he said. But he’d been tired and HR confirmed that he could bring Lucas over as his assistant; CEO Jeon was the one who vetoed that decision. 

Jungkook had already mentally prepared himself for the ease of his transition, knowing that he’d be assisted by someone who knows how he works and the quality of outputs he expects, only to come here and be told by his father that the current staff will stay, and that you - someone he’d only heard of as Hoseok’s assistant - will be the one assisting him from now on. Your resume didn’t even impress him.

Jungkook doesn’t like change and when he has to undergo it, he needs as much of what was familiar and convenient to remain; that’s the only bit of control he can have and he hates not being in control of things. You just happened to unluckily be at the receiving end of his anger.

But unlike what he expected, you stood up to him in the subtle ways you could. He’s been so used to people just following him, partly because his way is always the best but also because he commands that respect, and he knows his capabilities enough to know that he deserves it as well. So when you answered back, he felt rattled and just a little bit uneasy. He was unable to backtrack after, but he didn’t really plan to.

That doesn’t mean that he didn’t plan on being a bit of a jerk today, too. He’d been exhausted working over the weekend after going through all the files you gave him that he snoozed his alarm so many times and ended up doing his workout later than he intended. When you rang the doorbell and stood by his door with your skirt and satin top, he suddenly felt lightheaded.

He mentally smacked himself once the thought that your pastel colored outfit brought out your eyes more than the monochrome ensemble from last week floated in his head. He just hated that not only are you thorough with your work, you have to be beautiful, too. He’d never admit to anyone that both of those things make him nervous, and it’s the only reason why he thinks he needs to establish his authority so that he doesn’t get rattled the next time you counter him.

That’s why he demanded more work, which he didn’t intend to take up so much of your time, like your lunch break. He’d seen how your hands shook while you were taking notes during the meeting, prompting him to end the meeting early so you can have something to eat of what he’d bought but he’d left before he could find out if there was anything left for you. 

Maybe there wasn’t enough, as he also witnessed Yoongi hand you what seemed like food with coffee that the man also got for you just minutes ago. The smile you gave him was bright and sincere. Jungkook doesn’t think he’d ever see that directed at him, considering how he’d been to you on his first day, but maybe that’s also good; that could be his defense. Maybe it’d help quell that initial attraction that he doesn’t want and cannot allow at all to grow.

It doesn’t mean it doesn’t agitate him to see you a bit too close with his friend, because with the way you seem so comfortable and with the way that Yoongi sports that rare smile, it almost feels like there’s something there.

Jungkook is the son of the CEO, and having personal relationships within the company isn’t exactly advisable, but he’d gone to university with Yoongi and their introverted personalities instantly clicked. The older man is perhaps the only non-relative company employee that Jungkook kept in touch with when he was in Singapore, not that he even really talked much to his family outside of work anyway.

But in all the years of their friendship, his friend never mentioned any relationship - nor the makings of one - with another staff member. Jungkook hates how his curiosity is slowly getting to him. Maybe a few more moments would tell him more, but something about the scene happening outside his room is making him nervous and uneasy, so he decides to step in.

“Hey, Yoon,” he says as he opens the door. “Can we discuss now? I have to meet my parents for dinner in an hour.”

Your bubble with Yoongi bursts at the sound of Jungkook’s voice, and you immediately return to your seat. Your friend nods at you then enters the room, leaving you the peace and quiet you need to plop down on the floor for a quick snack of your loaf before going back to work, glancing inside every once in a while to see how the two are going, and perhaps confirm the friendship that you didn’t expect the two would have.

“This building is a good starting point,” Yoongi agrees with Jungkook. “If this is the general feel you want for the Arts Center, I can look into other projects and designs and come up with ideas. I’ll just ask ___ for the files I need.”

“You two seem close,” Jungkook says too quickly. 

Leaning back against the chair, Yoongi processes the question that he didn’t expect he’d hear. More than that, he tries to read what’s underneath it, knowing that his friend’s tone of voice and feigned stoic expression mean something more.

“You could say that,” Yoongi replies. “She did say that no one’s looked out for her here as much as I have. And that she wouldn’t have survived all these years without me.”

“So you’re actually friends?”

“Yes.”

“Were you more?”

Yoongi chuckles, the question giving him the answer he’s looking for. Jungkook may often be too serious but he can be transparent sometimes, too.

“Does it matter?” The older man asks.

“Just don’t want to be surprised, that’s all,” Jungkook shrugs. “If there’s an employee relationship happening under my nose, I should at least know.”

“It happens here a lot,” Yoongi responds. “I mean, it gives people something to gossip about but it’s how things are - work sucks sometimes and we want someone to hold at the end of a terrible day.”

Feeling like he won’t get an answer to a question that Jungkook doesn’t know why he felt the need to ask in the first place, he just shakes his head to concede. 

But it’s what prompts Yoongi to reply. 

“We met when she was just an intern,” he says. “We used to take the same bus then found out we both came from Daegu. Then she was employed and we were both on the logistics team before I was reassigned and she got the EA role.”

Jungkook merely hums, taking in the information.

“I also asked her out before,” Yoongi continues, earning him a surprised look from the younger man. “You just can’t help what you feel sometimes, you know?  But she turned me down, said she didn’t want to lead me on because she didn’t feel anything more. She also doesn’t like being involved with a co-worker, so yeah.”

“How are you still friends?”

“Asks the guy who’s still friends with his ex,” Yoongi laughs.

“Chaerin and I are civil, there’s a difference. And we haven’t spoken in years.”

“You loved her, though,” Yoongi counters. “I never got to that point.”

“This isn’t about me,” Jungkook huffs. 

Knowing it’s a topic that his friend doesn’t like talking about, Yoongi relents. “I moved on. That was years ago,” he says. “And it seemed like she needed someone. I mean, she’s not from here and her friends aren’t here, either. She appreciated the friendship even if she said she didn’t think she deserved it. I guess that made me really get over her, you know? That’s all she wanted and needed from me; it was better than not having her around.”

“How brave,” Jungkook remarks. 

“You mean mature?” Yoongi corrects. “Yes, that’s what I am, and it’s the best I could be for her. Especially since she’s got a boss who makes her miss lunch because somehow, there’s just so much to do for your first day on the job.”

“Don’t remind me,” Jungkook groans. 

“I will. Only so you could feel bad.”

“I already do. That’s why I…”

“Bought the pastries,” Yoongi finishes. “I mean, I didn’t order them.”

“Was any even left for her?” Jungkook sighs, remembering how he was internally screaming for you to just get from the box and he’d been the jerk to not offer you some even if it was technically for you.

“Sort of. I put some aside for myself so I could give them to her.”

“You sure you don’t like her anymore?” Jungkook cocks an eyebrow, an attempt to hide his uneasiness over something he doesn’t understand. He finds you attractive, that’s it. He doesn’t know why his mind searches for more answers.

“You don’t have to like someone romantically to be nice to them, you know?” Yoongi responds. “And she needed it. Heavens know the support she’d need now that she has to deal with your rude ass.”

Jungkook sighs, but the remark is a welcome one because he did tell Yoongi not to treat him differently just because he’s the Vice President now. He also partly agrees. But he sees the effort; his friend wouldn’t call him out for how he does things, so the most he would do is offer help to you. And Jungkook could maybe take advantage of that, as Yoongi stands up to leave.

“Hey, could you, uh, grab dinner for her at the food hall? And not say it’s from me?”

“The food hall’s closed,” Yoongi says.

“The cafe down the street, then?”

“You can’t be fucking serious,” the older man groans. 

But Yoongi knows his friend, knows the distance he creates from the people around him, knows his need to have control over everything, including his feelings, and knows the walls he builds because it’s easier to keep others out rather than do the hard task of letting them into a space that’s become comfortable because he’s been the only one inside for so long.

So Yoongi does as he’s asked. He takes the money then heads to the cafe to order pork cutlets and curry. He returns and sets them on your desk to your surprise, and you ask what it’s for.

“Just thought you deserve more than just convenience store instant noodles and gimbap given the day you’ve had,” he says. 

“Hey, those are delicious,” you pout, but wanting to melt at how good the rice bowl smells. “But thank you, again. I owe you a lot, Yoongi. I mean it.”

“Just make sure to eat on time so I don’t have to buy your dinner again,” he teases. “I mean it. You have to stay healthy, okay?”

“Okay,” you smile brightly. “Get home safe tonight.”

Jungkook glances out the window and holds back a smile himself at how innocent and genuinely happy you look. There’s this joy that you seem to enjoy to yourself and he sees that, he understands that. And somehow that’s enough to lessen the guilt for now. 

He still doesn’t know if he’ll ever see that smile directed at him or if he’d ever want that because of how disarming it is. But seeing it from afar is enough; it’s trivial and short enough to let him bask in it without having to climb out of his walls. He’ll watch you from behind, he thinks. He just wishes he doesn’t push you away in the process.

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𝐄𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢 | 𝐂𝐡 𝟐

Pairing: Mercenary!Jungkook x ?? Female!Reader

Summary: When past comes knocking on your door wearing the face of unknown dangers, you can either refuse acknowledging it and be a sitting duck or find out what it was that turned your world upside down all those years ago—that has come back yet again to hunt you—with a stranger promising to keep you safe, by your side. One thing is sure: secrets will unfold. And it would not be anything you could've imagined.

Word Count: 7.3k

Genre: Fantasy au; adventure; action. Fluff; angst; future smut(??)

Rating: 18+ (violence and mature themes)

Warnings: Fighting, some blood, minor character death, dead parent mentioned

Published: 11th March 2025

Note: between my previous blog getting shadowbanned and my writers block, it took an awfully long time for it but finally the next chapter is here!! I swear I'll try to be more consistent with the updates now. Please let me know your thoughts on this chapter and the story so far!!!

Glossary and Map: here

Esati Masterlist

You clung to your father's arm, as he moved around your little home, trying and failing to put his things in his satchel. He needed to leave soon, it bothered him if something was not done in accordance with his timetable, but there was a small hindrance. A hindrance who was currently sulking. 

"Can't I come with you too, Pa? Please?"

Big brown eyes blinked up at Alastair, trying to look more innocent than they were. "It is not a place for a child, love. I'm meeting with an old friend, and most of the time we will be talking about work talk; you will get bored." He pried your fingers clutching around his arm, and started on actually getting some work done.

"I won't! I want to see the market," you huffed, round cheeks puffed out and coloured a soft pink hue, "Jioo said the people in town have decorated it for the spring feast. It's reeeally pretty!" You stretched the word.

Your father slung the satchel across his body. "If the only thing you want to do is roam around the town, then I am afraid that I won't have time for that. Oh, and before you say anything about going on your own, then that is an even firmer no."

You scrunched your brows, lips in a downturn. But he just laughed, "I know, I know, my little bird is all grown up, but you will always be a little girl to me." Pinched your cheeks, "I can't bear the thought of you alone out there just yet, understand the worries of my heart?"

Now he was the one making that innocent pouting face. You started pouting harder.

Your father sighed, "I'll take you there the day after. You can invite Jioo too if you'd like? "

You hadn't even tried to fight the smile that took over your face. "Promise?"

"Promise," he came over and pulled you in an embrace, planting a peck at the top of your head, "I'll be back soon," and with that he was out the door.

You followed him out, shutting the door behind yourself, already on your way to go gather some herbs from your small garden while your father was away.

Before you could even fully turn around, a massive weight was thrown on you.

"Oof," you stumbled but managed to stay on your feet. "Buck! Don't do that! You're not a tiny baby anymore," you laughed.

The husky only looked at you with innocent eyes as if he didn't understand why he couldn't jump at you anymore. He wasn't even two years old and yet so huge.

"You big baby. Take care of Pa, alright?" You ruffled his furs as he took off running in circles.

Your father called for Buck and began walking. "Don't stay out for long! And the foo-"

"'Food is on the kitchen table, make sure to eat it.' Yeah, yeah, I already know. Now go."

"Take care and don't stay hanging on the window waiting for me, you will catch a cold." Your father called out one last time, still looking at you. He wondered when his daughter grew up so much, as you grabbed your basket and hummed on your way towards the garden.

———————————————————— A cool breeze ruffled your hair, and you slumped even further against your folded arms, which you were currently leaning on, staring out the open window.

It was getting late. Usually when your father goes to town, he comes back by now; one look at the sun, and you knew it was past the fourth hour. There were no bell towers this high and far into the mountains, so you couldn't hear the bells signalling each hour, but you had gotten good at guessing over the years. Though your father did own one of those chain watches, he always carried it with him. 

You were getting worried, even after being well aware that if he went to see someone regarding business, it could take time; it still made your mind fill up with unease.

Maybe he's just catching up with his friend and forgot about the time. That seemed like a possible reason for his delay.

But at this point it seemed like you were only reassuring yourself.

You lived at the edge of your village; not to mention, because of how late it was, most of the people were either inside their homes resting after a day's work or busy with supper and preparing for the evening gatherings. No one was near you.

And so no one heard the pained groan followed by the frantic thuds on your front door.

You ran to the door, letting out a gasp of horror the moment you opened it. The person who stood there was almost unrecognisable, covered in several gashes and crimson painting his face. Blood.

"Pa! No, no. Oh god! What happened to you?"

You were crying. Your mind couldn't register yet, but tears blurred your vision and slipped past your chin down to the floor in rivulets. Your father stumbled inside the house and slipped to the floor just inches away from the door frame.

He opened his mouth, trying to say something but ended up coughing instead and spitting more blood on the floor. He was bleeding from the chest too, or maybe it is his stomach? You didn't know. Couldn't make sense of the scene in front of you. Red. It was too much red.

"I-I will get a rag- sit- i-" You didn't know what was coming out of your mouth. You didn't know what you were doing. But you had to do something. Even as those words left your mouth, you didn't move and just stared at him in horror and confusion, arms raised and reaching for him. You felt like the world was collapsing, and you could not find your footing on the broken floor. 

"No," he gruffed, grabbing at your calf, trying to stop you. "They are coming for you," he huffed out.

"Pa-" You tried to reach him.

He heaved a breath and cut you off. "Listen, listen carefully," he coughed again. "Get out of here, don't look back. Go...go west. Down the mount- mountain. Run,"

"What are you saying?" You whispered shakily, coming back to reality and finding your voice again. You were distraught and scared as you watched more life force spill out of his body and pool around him. "You are hurt. Have to stop the bleeding—"

"Focus on what I'm saying," his booming voice stopped your nervous rambles in their tracks. But it seemed he used all his remaining energy in that one sentence and, as a result, had to lean on the still-open door, struggling to draw in another breath.

"Please go; they would not be very far, please."

"You're telling me to leave you like this? I can't—Pa, 'they'? Who's coming? Who did this?" Your nerves were frantic, eyes shaky as you looked out the door trying to locate any threat. Any sign of the person responsible for this. 

But your father didn't respond. Heart dropping to your feet, you hurriedly sat in front of him, taking his hand in one and tilting his face with the other one.

You were about to call out to him when his hand tightened, and he opened his eyes and looked you directly in the eye, "Take this." Gripped tightly in his hand was his satchel, which he still managed to keep safe in all the commotion. 

Tears were streaming down your face, you realised how serious he looked. How tired his eyes were. You didn't want to leave him, but his face said it all; you didn't have any other choice.

"My life was for you anyway; the day I had met you, I was born again as" cough, "as your father. Go. I'll be fine."

He was lying.

"I ca- can not," you hiccuped, "pa."

His grip loosened on your hand, and he managed to pull away. "Take this. You are my brave child, you will make it out of here, alright?" 

It was his chain watch. He pried your fingers open and pressed it into your skin. A beautiful silver thing, patterns of swords and wheat swirling around the front. You realised how small it was, as it sat in the middle of your palm.

You took the satchel, set it down on your lap, and grabbed both his hands tightly; he gave you the smallest of smiles, and you let out a sob.

But his hands were urging you up, and even if you wanted to just sit there and hug him tight, you got up, slinging the leather strap around your shoulder. You can't convince him, but you were going to go find help.

You looked back at him, standing at the doorframe, you tried one last time to convince him silently to let you stay when his eyes snapped up towards the back window. They held a look of panic in them as he hissed in pain.

"Go, hurry. You don't have time—"

Just then you heard a loud howl, and the window burst open as something big and black entered your home through the shattered window.

You screamed, backing away as your eyes connected with deep red irises. Not of a human's, but a wolf's. An insanely large wolf, who was staring right at you.

Frozen in shock, you didn't even realise that you were shakily taking steps away from it, but then you remembered your father. Your gaze shot in his direction as he pulled himself to his feet.

"Look here, you mutt!" Your father, who had looked on the verge of collapsing just a second ago, now stood straight and walked in front of the horrifying creature, "It's me that you want, don't you?" He spat. Dragging every shred of power he had left in his body.

You couldn't be sure—you mind couldn't comprehend anything that was happening—but his hands started glowing orange; your eyes were glued to his hands as you tried and failed to convince yourself that this was all a nightmare.

"Y/n...my little bird, run and don't look back. I'm sorry that I have to leave you alone, but didn't you say you were all grown up now?" You could hear the faint smile in his voice even if he didn't turn around; he just kept his eyes on the wolf, who now began to circle around him with its teeth out on display. "You will be alright. I know." He finished.

The black creature got ready to pounce. Alastair raised his hands—now burning a blinding orange. "Please!"

His pained cry reached you just as you turned around, but you kept running. Nothing crossed your mind at that moment but your father and his words—begging you to go. So you did. Disappearing among the trees, away from your village, your father. Your home. 

You hadn't had a home in a long time, not since you lost your father. But you had managed to create some semblance of that word, a space for yourself. And in this exact moment you wanted nothing more than to run back to its comfort and forget all about what happened.

But you were aware it was not possible.

"Keep your head down," The guy—Jungkook—instructed you, his steps twice the size of your own. 

After ensuring that there was no one else in the tavern looking for either of you, you made your exit through the back door. Slipping into the foot traffic undetected. 

As the sun rose, more and more people began filling up the streets; you took advantage of that and mingled with the growing crowd moving as a single body. You caught a glimpse of a knight from the First Order and promptly redirected your steps. They were more trouble than help. 

"This way," Jungkook steered to the left, ducking under a man carrying potato sacks, and entered the alley leading to streets away from the tavern. You both kept moving until you reached what looked like a desolate place with only a rarely used shed in dilapidated condition.

He stopped there, knocking on the wood; in the meantime, you assessed your surroundings. You didn't come in this part of the town, and from the looks of it, other people didn't either. This place looked like it had been abandoned for a while—which made you wonder what you were doing here? Most importantly, why were you following him still. 

While you were distracted, someone stepped out of the shed. "—inside," came a reply. Jungkook must have asked a question while you were busy inspecting the forest line in the distance, small critters coming out to inspect the intruders. He walked inside, leaving you alone with the other person.

It was then that you turned to look at the other person.

"Kane?" Your eyes widened as your gaze locked onto the other person, the same man who helped you unload your stuff just yesterday, who offered to walk you out like he always does, and now stood there expressionless, lips in a thin line. "What...? " But at that exact moment Jungkook stepped out, and he was not alone. Trailing behind him was a black horse, probably the most beautiful one you've ever seen.

He motioned with his head, telling you to get moving, but the familiar face in front of you had many more questions arising in your head than you already had bouncing around in the crevices of your mind.

He noticed you gawking at Kane too and sighed, "I'll explain later." Your gaze snapped to him.

You took a step back, tried to gulp back the rising bile of unease, and shook your head. "How do you know me?" A question you hadn't asked yet. How did he find you? How did he know it was you? To him, who even were you?

There was only more confusion and questions joining the pile with the ones that were circulating in your head. 

An epiphany struck you. Without paying you any mind, Kane had pulled out a red apple from somewhere and was feeding it to the horse. It made you think of the one that currently must be still sitting somewhere in your rented room from last night—just, in a different shade. You had seen that shade before.

"You've been following me?" An incredulous tone took over your voice. Your throat shrank, confining your inhales and reducing the air getting in.

He tried to keep a calm composure, running a hand through his hair. His expression pinched with impatience—tired with your constant interrogation, he has stayed here too long for his liking and you were only stalling them.

"You don't get the danger you are in, do you—"

"Stay away from me." Your eyes turned watery but still filled with determination. Your hands shook in disbelief, seeing Kane here, you started to wonder if Mayah and Kenzie had lied to you as well. To some extent? Was the care they showed you had been fake? What were they using you for? What did you even have that someone would want? Must be something, right? If the incidents in the past few hours and the men standing before you were anything to go by? 

The little world you had built for yourself was crumbling. But your world had fallen apart once before, you filled the cracks once, you could do it again.

"If you think that that man was the only one after you, then you'd be a fool to believe that." He evenly stated, moving a couple of steps forward, he gave his wrist a flick—a signal for Kane as he began walking away without a second glance in your direction.

Your gaze wavered, jumping between the two people. One a piece of the picture you thought you knew, and another is the messy blank canvas of the unknown. You fisted your skirts, nails digging deep in the dark fabric, and your feet felt light, ready to take off.

Jungkook stood there in silence before he let out a heavy sigh. "Yes, I was keeping an eye on you," he said. Like it was not odd—terrifying for the person—to tell someone he was stalking that he was stalking them. "But I had a reason to do it that you don't need to know right at this very moment. So please,"

You didn't move, but your eyes flicked for a fraction of a second in the direction where Kane left; he caught that. "He's an informant. No, the old man and his daughter didn't know, if that makes you feel better." It did. "Now, we don't have time to spare. Please, I'm trying to keep you safe." He pleaded, pushing a loose strand of hair back, his eyes wide and eyebrows pushed down, appearing to look appealing and trustworthy.

You were hesitant; he did save your life.

Your eyes glazed over, pondering his words, and you kept your eyes trained on him while contemplating your next step. It was then that you flicked your eyes sideways, just behind him, and stared. Your eyes grew wider. 

"Who's there?"

Not wasting a moment Jungkook swirled, sword drawn out, shoulders hunched and legs set apart. He scanned the area—left to right and then back again—but caught no movement. He couldn't see anyone, and after a couple of moments, he turned around. "Where did you—oh, this cannot be real."

He sputtered in disbelief as he took in your absence from the place you were previously standing at. You were running and had covered a significant distance in just a few seconds. He could not believe he fell for the oldest trick in the book. You did not even glance back, just sprinted as far away as possible, and missed the utter look of bewilderment—mixed with just enough amusement—on his face.

"Dang it, she is fast on her feet," he muttered, stepping back, eyes locked on you. It seemed you were moving towards the deeper forests. He turned, patting the horse, "Ready for a game of chasing chickens, Orla? Just like old times?" Orla snorted her agreement, and Jungkook quickly hopped behind her, setting himself on the saddle. With a hiya! and a tug on her reins, she broke out in a sprint. 

By now you had crossed the forest line, hurrying deep and far, and disappeared from his sight entirely. 

————————————————————

Yes, he had saved your life. But a single encounter—one under this skeptical situation—cannot possibly make you just trust a stranger. Especially now, when you knew that you were being hunted, the 'who' and 'why' still remaining a mystery yet to be unveiled. Do you really want to see beyond the veil, though? A mocking voice, very much like yours, rang from the back of your head. The answer was always the same—no. You never did. You ignored the voice. 

You needed to focus on now, on your circumstance. You thought of Jungkook. 

He knew you. What else does he know? Your name, where you're from, the family you once had? What compelled him to come seek you? The possibility that he might be one of the people whom he had warned you about was there. The fact that he seemed to know where to find you and he was familiar with that other man back in the tavern wasn't helping his case—although that might be the result of him being an Information gatherer, as he himself stated. You're taking that with a grain of salt.

And so, you did the one thing you were good at. You escaped.

Looking behind your back, you saw no sign of a dark-eyed man, but it didn't mean you could stop. He had to be there, chasing after you, for whatever the price you had earned on your head—it seemed like a possible scenario—unless he decided you were not worth the trouble after all.

Twigs snapped and leaves crunched as you trudged your way deeper into the forest. You had no idea where you were or where you were going, just that you needed to go. A left. Right. Another left. Under the tangled branches. One more right.

After just a few minutes, while walking through a patch of dense shrubs, you heard it. Thud, thud. It looked whatever price you had on your head, you were definitely worth the trouble. 

The sound of hooves echoed through the still of that place, bouncing off of trunks and leaves. 

He was closing in on where you were. You were on foot, and with his horse, it won't take long before he catches up  to you. Panic announced its presence in the form of the fast beating of your heart. You looked around for a way out. But with no better options, you dipped down bending yourself. You made your figure as small and unmoving as possible as you curled up on the forest floor, trying to keep yourself hidden within the bushes. 

Unmoving, you sat there, feeling the ground vibrate with the arrival of your doom. Just then, you heard a flock of birds, wings flapping and loud with caws and screeches, as if scared away by something somewhere far in the other direction.

He was redirecting his horse the other way—you could sense the change—must've thought it was you who scared the birds, so he went that way, trying to find you.

You stayed an eternity in that position before you were sure that no one was coming anymore. Getting up and off the ground, you brushed your clothes.

Where do you go from here?

It was a question you had asked yourself countless times over the past years. You turned and decided to go west. Find a way to get to a town and then decide what to do next.

Walking through woods like this, with no clue or aim, instigated a sense of déjà vu. You recalled the lady, a shoemaker you don't know the name of—maybe you hadn't asked, or maybe you didn't remember. She had nursed you back to health and offered the warmth of her home to a complete stranger; you'll forever be grateful to her. You had stayed there for a few days, sick with grief and guilt. But you didn't try to find out what happened back home—you had made your assumption anyway. It was too much to take in, so you decided to move on for that time.

You recalled travelling with gypsies, waggons decorated in a rainbow of colours, recalled going from one place to another. For a year you kept changing towns and villages, never staying more than a few weeks to a couple of months. Then one day you found yourself on the border of Fubroch and decided that that was it. You were tired of moving. The mountains brought the memories of a home—providing comfort, so you made them your home.

And just like that, years flew by without a hitch as you built a life for yourself here. A life that felt very distant at this moment.

As you hiked your way through the woods, lost in your own musings. You failed to notice the consistent shadows following right at your heels. You were distracted, but not for long.

As you were passing by an old dried well, you sensed some movements just out of the corner of your eyes. You paused. Fingers scrambling for your thigh, shoulders tense, you resumed walking again.

Had Jungkook found you? You thought he went in the other direction?

Your stroll changed into an urgent march. Your eyes flicked from one corner to another, hoping it had been a trick of your eye.

You left behind a series of crumbling structures of stones and mud, your gait hurried—almost a jog now. You chanced a glance back, turned around again, and screamed.

Someone jumped off one of the stone walls just as you turned. A woman. You lost your voice, eyes set on hers. You blinked quickly, getting a better look at her. Dark pants and an equally dark tunic. She had short hair and the gaze of a predator, with which she was scanning you from head to toe. An amused quirk sat on her thin lips, painted a deep maroon complementing her sandy complexion.

"Well, you look lovelier than I expected." Her voice called out, a deep and rough texture paired with the unsettling blue of her eyes. It had you standing on the balls of your feet, ready to flee.

You kept your glaring gaze trained on her, aware of even a twitch in her muscles.

"Aww," she cooed, "look at you, so scared and lost." She lifted a hand, placing it on her cheek, her expression the same as a child would have upon finding a hare hiding in his vegetable patch. Except to you, she felt more like a wolf cornering the hare than said child.

"Why so tense, though?" She took a step closer, hands behind her back. You widened your eyes, sweat gathering at your back and hands getting clammy. She was making you nervous, something akin to the town's flood bells ringing in your ears. For a second your thoughts drifted to Jungkook; you definitely preferred him to whoever she was.

You started walking backward, trying to keep some distance.

"Oh no, no, no, I'm here to help you. To lead you towards the right path." She scrunched her brows in faux concern.

"No need," Somehow, you shakily managed to speak up, "I'm on the right path; I don't need any assistance."

There was no point in dragging this out. You got ready to find an opening and make a run for it, but you didn't even get the time to blink when you saw more people jump out of the rubble.

Two men walked up to the woman, coming to stand behind her. They were more rugged in appearance—the exact opposite of her. Some henchmen.

No time to think. You patted at your knife just as the woman stretched her neck back, looking up at the sky, "Get her."

You wouldn't go down without a fight.

Just as the man lunged for you—bare hands; you couldn't see any weapon on him as far as you could see—you ducked, ramming your body forward and pushing him back with as much force as you could gather. He was caught off guard, not having expected such strength from someone this small. It made him stumble back and gave you a chance to create some distance.

You turned and used that as an opportunity to run. You traced your steps back the same way you had come from, this time in a sprint. You could hear the man following. You pushed for yourself to go even faster.

You were running on just adrenaline and pure terror for your life, but you could not let up, could not let them catch on. You couldn't help but question your predicament. You were being hunted like animals for meat. Who were these people? Looking for you. Hunting you.

"AAH!" You screamed as a hand grabbed a hold of your arm and yanked you back. You were thrown forcefully into a nearby tree, rough bark scraping against your skin. Before you could gather yourself, he was in front of you, grabbing your short braid, twisting it around his palm.

"ARGH!" You cried out, one hand going up in an attempt to free yourself of his grip.

"No more running, bitch," he said in a gruff voice, spit flying in your face from the proximity.

He started dragging you back—yanked at your hair when you refused to move, feet digging in the soil. You tried scratching at his face, desperately aiming for his eyeballs. If you got near enough, you wouldn't hesitate to claw them out.

"If done for survival, the gods forgive you," is what your father had said when you once punched the nose of the person who had tried to drown Buck in the river. After which he also taught you how to land a proper punch.

And that's exactly what you did when—to avoid your nails attacking his face—he loosened his grip and tried stepping back to take hold of your arms instead. The moment you got enough space, you reeled back and aimed for his throat. Thumb tucked under the folded fingers and not inside, using only the first two knuckles, throwing your whole body's weight. Hard and fast.

He winced and coughed, trying to get air inside his throbbing windpipe. You grabbed a rock and slammed it against the side of his face. He wobbled and fell on his face.

No longer constricted by his hold, you breathed out in mild relief, but it was short-lived. While you were fighting off the first man, the other one had caught up with you. This realisation crawled upon you when he delivered a blow to your back.

You were pushed to the ground before you could even form a thought. All the air wooshed out of your lungs as sharp pain erupted on one side of your shoulder, "Oh god, no." Your left arm felt numb; nothing was broken, you were sure, but you could feel the dull pain thudding across your back and limbs.

The other man was taller, leaner, and scarier. He was looking down at you with his eyes blown out and mouth pulled in a crazy grin. He leaned down, "Ah, ah. Be a good girl, will you?" He made a tutting sound, reached out, and grabbed one of your legs.

You screamed, kicking out in the air, "No use in resisting, you should have come willingly when we asked nicely."

"Let go of me!" Your throat was raw, body aching and bleeding. Your pitiful condition didn't affect him; however, it only seemed to delight him in seeing you this way. He stood up and started walking away, his hand still gripping your foot tightly.

It was the most pain, physically, you'd ever felt for as long as you can remember. Rocks dug into your backside, your skin scraped against the ground, and hair got tangled with twigs and leaves, pulling at your scalp. All this while he had only taken a few steps.

You kicked out harder; this time your upper body reacted as well—digging your palms in the ground and holding onto anything they could.

You managed to land a hard kick, causing him to drop your limb. You didn't waste a moment and grabbed at his own legs, pulling yourself up and throwing all your weight to make him fall on the ground. Your right hand went to your thigh, and you pulled out your knife, scrambling on top of his chest and locking his arms there by his side with your thighs pushing at him.

Your left arm felt useless, but with the other, you brought the blade to his neck, holding it dangerously close. Just a hair's breadth away from ending him.

"Why are you doing this to me?" You gritted out, eyes watery. The whole day's worth of distress was threatening to unleash from the depths of your consciousness, something you had been suppressing. "What did I ever do to anyone!?" You yelled.

The smile—previously present on his face—had disappeared from his face as you sat there with the cold metal digging into his skin. You have taken life before—but only of animals that you were going to eat. Now that the creature against your blade was an animal of a different kind, you hesitated.

And hesitation kills you in this world.

You didn't see the other man coming until the very last moment. He must not have been as disoriented as you thought. He pounced at you, but this time you had your knife out. This time you didn't hesitate.

In a single motion, the blade found its home deep in between the shoulder and collarbone of the first man.

Blood immediately coated your hands, making them slippery as you let go of the knife, watching your victim slump. Cold dread froze up the blood in your veins. You had killed someone.

There was no time to answer, as the stone of unease weighed heavy in your stomach; the guy below on the ground switched places with you. Now you were the one held horizontal to the ground as his palms made contact with your sternum, wasting no time in squeezing them tight, blocking out all the air but not crushing your throat—yet.

"You crazy bitch!" He barked.

Haze clouded a grey shade around your eyes, growing in size after every excruciating blink. Your torso was crushed under the full mass of an adult man twice your size; you wondered if he was trying to break your ribs. But you couldn't push him. Couldn't even struggle.

Your bones became a burden, pulling your exhausted body deeper into the grass and soil, acting as a makeshift grave you were about to descend into at any minute. Your mind was a numb shell, unable to see what was in front of it, unable to comprehend.

That must be your fate. Your life in exchange for the one you took just now. You would not call yourself very religious, but you believed in a God, and he must have seen the pathetic way you'd been living and is here to claim you.

Your vision turned black; the man was screaming something at you, but no words could penetrate the oxygen-depraved sheet of lethargy coating over your being.

As you lost more of your breath, the thuds of your heart started becoming louder. One second they were in your chest, and the next in your ears. Soon you could feel them vibrating the very land you lay upon. Thump. Thump. Thump.

All of a sudden, you felt light. The force of the man pushing against you lifted off of you in an instant. It was there one second and then vanished the other. Air came rushing back in through the once constricted pipes. You gasped for the breath hungrily, making its way into your lungs, and sputtered on your greedy inhale.

It took another few moments before the shadowy haze cleared from your eyes, and you were blinking back at what seemed to be two males locked in a sword fight.

One of them was the man who had been choking you, and the other—your eyes widened upon the realisation that the other person was none other than—

"Jungkook?"

His name was merely a whisper in the air, breathed into life through the brush of your lips against the words.

He delivered the last blow—a slash down his opponent's chest—before he turned to you.

Jungkook stood there with his sword dripping red while he panted; from the short fight or having hurried over to come save you, you didn't know. Maybe the latter. No, definitely the latter, if his pinched expression directed at you was anything to go by.

"You," he stepped over the fallen body groaning on the ground, "are an idiot."

You felt like laughing. He was fuming, and you let loose a single puff of airy laughter. You couldn't help it; the stress had taken a toll on you; your body ached in more places than you could count. You were beaten and bleeding. You almost accepted that you were going to die. But here you were, saved by this man not once but twice, in the same day.

You owed him.

"Glad to see you still have it in you to smile." Came a deep, feminine voice.

Both of your eyes turned towards the direction the voice came from. You leaned on your arms while he drew his sword for an attack.

There stood the blue-eyed woman from before, and upon seeing Jungkook take an immediate protective stance in front of you, something gleamed in her gaze.

"I must admit, watching you fight for your life was so entertaining." She sauntered forward, showing no sign of even grabbing for her weapons strapped to her, "and a pleasant surprise."

She rounded around where you were and stopped a good distance away, "even more surprising to see that you have got mercenaries protecting you." She said as she eyed the black ink on Jungkook's arm, which was now exposed.

You flicked your eyes between her and Jungkook. He remained motionless, but you can see how taut his muscles were, ready to pounce in a moment's notice. He didn't say anything, just observed. What is this woman playing at?

She let out a shrill whistle. Loud. Like a signal of some sort.

You prepared for the worst. Did she call for help? Backup?

Instead, a dark brown horse came running from behind the broken stone columns, galloping towards her. It didn't even stop completely before she grabbed the reins and hauled herself onto it mid-run. Walking in a circle, she faced you, looking straight in your eyes.

She tilted her head back, stretching her neck in a lazy motion as if the possibility for more bloodshed wasn't hanging in the air waiting for the moment she draws her weapon too. "So damn resilient, like your damn father." She muttered lowly; you thought you had misheard her. She stared at you.

"Alastair is protecting you even after death, huh?"

The air stopped blowing, the screeching of birds silenced, and your throbbing body went numb.

Palms digging in the forest floor, you could only gawk at her as she regarded you with disdain.

Her eyes, blue as the summer sky, looked red in that moment. Wild and predatory. You felt dizzy. But then she blinked, and the illusion broke; they were blue again. You shuddered. The voices from years ago rang in your ear.

She was one of them. The people who came chasing your father that day. The ones who killed-

A silent whimper left your parted lips.

So this was what it was about. Why you were targeted. Why your life was in danger. It was all due to what happened to your father. Now you will meet the same end. They came for him then, and now they came for you.

You thought it was over. Oh, how wrong you were.

You ran as much as you could and yet couldn't outrun your fate. Were more people coming? With swords? They will leave you bloody and torn. Will they kill Jungkook too? He would leave before that happened. Is that wolf nearby? Was he the one who led them to you?

A tear slid down the curve of your cheek. You imagined all the ways they would end you, the most scary one being torn to shreds by the sharp teeth of an atramentous beast.

The sound of her horse neighing cut through your terror-filled questions.

She met your dazed, tear-glazed eyes. "I'll see you soon."

You watched her go. Still in your place, disconnected from reality.

It wasn't until you heard your name being called out loud that you came back to reality. Someone was shaking you by the shoulder.

"-get up? Y/n, can you stand?" You flicked your gaze up, connecting with inky ones staring deep in yours.

Swallowing, only the sandy taste of dread scratched against your throat. Yet, you managed to open your mouth: "Are you one of them?"

Your voice was grating to the ear, stifling in defeat, so unlike the demanding tone you had before. It caused Jungkook's expression to display an emotion you couldn't quite put your finger on. Unsurprising, given you couldn't take in anything right now, really.

He watched you stare up at him for a moment before something snapped in him. He got on both his knees, grabbing a hold of both your shoulders. He squeezed tight; it strangely grounded you a little.

"Look here, in my eyes, and listen." His voice was firm, and he spoke slowly but with a surety, "I know it's hard to trust me right now, but I need you to get this one thing." He paused and inhaled before letting it out, "Your life is in danger, and I meant it when I stated I'm here to keep you safe. I will protect you."

The words came and swirled around in your mind, not quite settling in. His eyes were intense, and when you looked, really looked, past the darkness, you could see the hint of genuineness. In this moment, you held onto that as a lifeline, and so when he asked.

"Understood?" You nodded your head. "Good."

His palms lifted off of your shoulders, and you would be floating again in the vast uncertainty and fear had he not offered one of them right in front of your face.

"This place is not safe. We need to move on from here," he nodded, urging you to grab his hand.

What else was there to do? It was clear that you would be killed if you refused, and if he too wanted the same thing, unlike what he claimed to be doing, then at least it looked like he would be quicker in his kill. And so you lifted your arm, gently placing your palm against his, letting him haul you up.

Another, black horse came trotting over. You recognised it to be his. He gave your palm a squeeze, telling you to get up on it.

You flicked your eyes between the majestic creature and its master. A soft groan forced your eyes away and towards the other men lying on the ground; it seemed one of them was still conscious.

"He... he is alive." You murmured, looking at the man you had stabbed.

"Want me to finish him off?" He threw in casually.

You gaped at him, eyes full of disbelief and horror.

He puffed air out of his nose, "I didn't mean that." It wasn't very convincing. You looked back at the man, "Are you seriously considering helping him? After he attacked you?" You weren't.

His brow raised as he regarded you with a tilt of his head and a semi-disapproving look on his face. At last he just sighed, "You need to think about only yourself, or else you will get us both killed."

He walked you to the horse and stopped, "Wait a moment." He let go of your hand and reached out to grab a piece of clothing from a few feet away. It was your cloak; you had dropped it during the fight. He dusted the deep green fabric and gently pulled it around you. Then almost immediately grabbed your hand again.

He gave your palm another swift squeeze, and this time you mounted the horse with his help.

As he peered up at your fiddling form, down from where he stood, the lines on his face grew a little softer, his expression a little more sympathetic.

He latched his foot on the holding, "You will get your answers soon," and climbed behind you expertly.

As he reached his hands around you to grab the reins, his front touched your back, and while you were not one who gets particularly cold, his warmth was a surprisingly welcome sensation against your bruised backside.

His knuckles tightened in a grip, you kept your hands close to you, "you trust me?" He clicked his tongue, getting the horse to move, and it started walking at a leisurely pace. He felt you shaking your head against his chest, his lips quirked, and if you had turned around, you would've witnessed him grinning softly.

"Good."

The horse broke out in a sprint as you both rode off, leaving behind the forest and—you had an inkling—this town for good.

Soon you were at the southern border, riding along the river marking the end of Fubroch's territory.

And despite what you had insinuated about your opinions for the man, you soon found yourself leaning your head back and drifting off to an unconscious state. Away from the reminiscence of the events that occurred today and the pains of the past. The nipping cold of the reality slipped away as you gave in to the firm warmth of the momentary comfort.

Taglist (from my previous blog) : @runariya @jksusawife @boyfriendtaekook

- sylvia plath

nothing left but a diamond necklace on you girl ✨

𝐄𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢 | 𝐂𝐡 𝟐

Pairing: Mercenary!Jungkook x ?? Female!Reader

Summary: When past comes knocking on your door wearing the face of unknown dangers, you can either refuse acknowledging it and be a sitting duck or find out what it was that turned your world upside down all those years ago—that has come back yet again to hunt you—with a stranger promising to keep you safe, by your side. One thing is sure: secrets will unfold. And it would not be anything you could've imagined.

Word Count: 7.3k

Genre: Fantasy au; adventure; action. Fluff; angst; future smut(??)

Rating: 18+ (violence and mature themes)

Warnings: Fighting, some blood, minor character death, dead parent mentioned

Published: 11th March 2025

Note: between my previous blog getting shadowbanned and my writers block, it took an awfully long time for it but finally the next chapter is here!! I swear I'll try to be more consistent with the updates now. Please let me know your thoughts on this chapter and the story so far!!!

Glossary and Map: here

Esati Masterlist

You clung to your father's arm, as he moved around your little home, trying and failing to put his things in his satchel. He needed to leave soon, it bothered him if something was not done in accordance with his timetable, but there was a small hindrance. A hindrance who was currently sulking. 

"Can't I come with you too, Pa? Please?"

Big brown eyes blinked up at Alastair, trying to look more innocent than they were. "It is not a place for a child, love. I'm meeting with an old friend, and most of the time we will be talking about work talk; you will get bored." He pried your fingers clutching around his arm, and started on actually getting some work done.

"I won't! I want to see the market," you huffed, round cheeks puffed out and coloured a soft pink hue, "Jioo said the people in town have decorated it for the spring feast. It's reeeally pretty!" You stretched the word.

Your father slung the satchel across his body. "If the only thing you want to do is roam around the town, then I am afraid that I won't have time for that. Oh, and before you say anything about going on your own, then that is an even firmer no."

You scrunched your brows, lips in a downturn. But he just laughed, "I know, I know, my little bird is all grown up, but you will always be a little girl to me." Pinched your cheeks, "I can't bear the thought of you alone out there just yet, understand the worries of my heart?"

Now he was the one making that innocent pouting face. You started pouting harder.

Your father sighed, "I'll take you there the day after. You can invite Jioo too if you'd like? "

You hadn't even tried to fight the smile that took over your face. "Promise?"

"Promise," he came over and pulled you in an embrace, planting a peck at the top of your head, "I'll be back soon," and with that he was out the door.

You followed him out, shutting the door behind yourself, already on your way to go gather some herbs from your small garden while your father was away.

Before you could even fully turn around, a massive weight was thrown on you.

"Oof," you stumbled but managed to stay on your feet. "Buck! Don't do that! You're not a tiny baby anymore," you laughed.

The husky only looked at you with innocent eyes as if he didn't understand why he couldn't jump at you anymore. He wasn't even two years old and yet so huge.

"You big baby. Take care of Pa, alright?" You ruffled his furs as he took off running in circles.

Your father called for Buck and began walking. "Don't stay out for long! And the foo-"

"'Food is on the kitchen table, make sure to eat it.' Yeah, yeah, I already know. Now go."

"Take care and don't stay hanging on the window waiting for me, you will catch a cold." Your father called out one last time, still looking at you. He wondered when his daughter grew up so much, as you grabbed your basket and hummed on your way towards the garden.

———————————————————— A cool breeze ruffled your hair, and you slumped even further against your folded arms, which you were currently leaning on, staring out the open window.

It was getting late. Usually when your father goes to town, he comes back by now; one look at the sun, and you knew it was past the fourth hour. There were no bell towers this high and far into the mountains, so you couldn't hear the bells signalling each hour, but you had gotten good at guessing over the years. Though your father did own one of those chain watches, he always carried it with him. 

You were getting worried, even after being well aware that if he went to see someone regarding business, it could take time; it still made your mind fill up with unease.

Maybe he's just catching up with his friend and forgot about the time. That seemed like a possible reason for his delay.

But at this point it seemed like you were only reassuring yourself.

You lived at the edge of your village; not to mention, because of how late it was, most of the people were either inside their homes resting after a day's work or busy with supper and preparing for the evening gatherings. No one was near you.

And so no one heard the pained groan followed by the frantic thuds on your front door.

You ran to the door, letting out a gasp of horror the moment you opened it. The person who stood there was almost unrecognisable, covered in several gashes and crimson painting his face. Blood.

"Pa! No, no. Oh god! What happened to you?"

You were crying. Your mind couldn't register yet, but tears blurred your vision and slipped past your chin down to the floor in rivulets. Your father stumbled inside the house and slipped to the floor just inches away from the door frame.

He opened his mouth, trying to say something but ended up coughing instead and spitting more blood on the floor. He was bleeding from the chest too, or maybe it is his stomach? You didn't know. Couldn't make sense of the scene in front of you. Red. It was too much red.

"I-I will get a rag- sit- i-" You didn't know what was coming out of your mouth. You didn't know what you were doing. But you had to do something. Even as those words left your mouth, you didn't move and just stared at him in horror and confusion, arms raised and reaching for him. You felt like the world was collapsing, and you could not find your footing on the broken floor. 

"No," he gruffed, grabbing at your calf, trying to stop you. "They are coming for you," he huffed out.

"Pa-" You tried to reach him.

He heaved a breath and cut you off. "Listen, listen carefully," he coughed again. "Get out of here, don't look back. Go...go west. Down the mount- mountain. Run,"

"What are you saying?" You whispered shakily, coming back to reality and finding your voice again. You were distraught and scared as you watched more life force spill out of his body and pool around him. "You are hurt. Have to stop the bleeding—"

"Focus on what I'm saying," his booming voice stopped your nervous rambles in their tracks. But it seemed he used all his remaining energy in that one sentence and, as a result, had to lean on the still-open door, struggling to draw in another breath.

"Please go; they would not be very far, please."

"You're telling me to leave you like this? I can't—Pa, 'they'? Who's coming? Who did this?" Your nerves were frantic, eyes shaky as you looked out the door trying to locate any threat. Any sign of the person responsible for this. 

But your father didn't respond. Heart dropping to your feet, you hurriedly sat in front of him, taking his hand in one and tilting his face with the other one.

You were about to call out to him when his hand tightened, and he opened his eyes and looked you directly in the eye, "Take this." Gripped tightly in his hand was his satchel, which he still managed to keep safe in all the commotion. 

Tears were streaming down your face, you realised how serious he looked. How tired his eyes were. You didn't want to leave him, but his face said it all; you didn't have any other choice.

"My life was for you anyway; the day I had met you, I was born again as" cough, "as your father. Go. I'll be fine."

He was lying.

"I ca- can not," you hiccuped, "pa."

His grip loosened on your hand, and he managed to pull away. "Take this. You are my brave child, you will make it out of here, alright?" 

It was his chain watch. He pried your fingers open and pressed it into your skin. A beautiful silver thing, patterns of swords and wheat swirling around the front. You realised how small it was, as it sat in the middle of your palm.

You took the satchel, set it down on your lap, and grabbed both his hands tightly; he gave you the smallest of smiles, and you let out a sob.

But his hands were urging you up, and even if you wanted to just sit there and hug him tight, you got up, slinging the leather strap around your shoulder. You can't convince him, but you were going to go find help.

You looked back at him, standing at the doorframe, you tried one last time to convince him silently to let you stay when his eyes snapped up towards the back window. They held a look of panic in them as he hissed in pain.

"Go, hurry. You don't have time—"

Just then you heard a loud howl, and the window burst open as something big and black entered your home through the shattered window.

You screamed, backing away as your eyes connected with deep red irises. Not of a human's, but a wolf's. An insanely large wolf, who was staring right at you.

Frozen in shock, you didn't even realise that you were shakily taking steps away from it, but then you remembered your father. Your gaze shot in his direction as he pulled himself to his feet.

"Look here, you mutt!" Your father, who had looked on the verge of collapsing just a second ago, now stood straight and walked in front of the horrifying creature, "It's me that you want, don't you?" He spat. Dragging every shred of power he had left in his body.

You couldn't be sure—you mind couldn't comprehend anything that was happening—but his hands started glowing orange; your eyes were glued to his hands as you tried and failed to convince yourself that this was all a nightmare.

"Y/n...my little bird, run and don't look back. I'm sorry that I have to leave you alone, but didn't you say you were all grown up now?" You could hear the faint smile in his voice even if he didn't turn around; he just kept his eyes on the wolf, who now began to circle around him with its teeth out on display. "You will be alright. I know." He finished.

The black creature got ready to pounce. Alastair raised his hands—now burning a blinding orange. "Please!"

His pained cry reached you just as you turned around, but you kept running. Nothing crossed your mind at that moment but your father and his words—begging you to go. So you did. Disappearing among the trees, away from your village, your father. Your home. 

You hadn't had a home in a long time, not since you lost your father. But you had managed to create some semblance of that word, a space for yourself. And in this exact moment you wanted nothing more than to run back to its comfort and forget all about what happened.

But you were aware it was not possible.

"Keep your head down," The guy—Jungkook—instructed you, his steps twice the size of your own. 

After ensuring that there was no one else in the tavern looking for either of you, you made your exit through the back door. Slipping into the foot traffic undetected. 

As the sun rose, more and more people began filling up the streets; you took advantage of that and mingled with the growing crowd moving as a single body. You caught a glimpse of a knight from the First Order and promptly redirected your steps. They were more trouble than help. 

"This way," Jungkook steered to the left, ducking under a man carrying potato sacks, and entered the alley leading to streets away from the tavern. You both kept moving until you reached what looked like a desolate place with only a rarely used shed in dilapidated condition.

He stopped there, knocking on the wood; in the meantime, you assessed your surroundings. You didn't come in this part of the town, and from the looks of it, other people didn't either. This place looked like it had been abandoned for a while—which made you wonder what you were doing here? Most importantly, why were you following him still. 

While you were distracted, someone stepped out of the shed. "—inside," came a reply. Jungkook must have asked a question while you were busy inspecting the forest line in the distance, small critters coming out to inspect the intruders. He walked inside, leaving you alone with the other person.

It was then that you turned to look at the other person.

"Kane?" Your eyes widened as your gaze locked onto the other person, the same man who helped you unload your stuff just yesterday, who offered to walk you out like he always does, and now stood there expressionless, lips in a thin line. "What...? " But at that exact moment Jungkook stepped out, and he was not alone. Trailing behind him was a black horse, probably the most beautiful one you've ever seen.

He motioned with his head, telling you to get moving, but the familiar face in front of you had many more questions arising in your head than you already had bouncing around in the crevices of your mind.

He noticed you gawking at Kane too and sighed, "I'll explain later." Your gaze snapped to him.

You took a step back, tried to gulp back the rising bile of unease, and shook your head. "How do you know me?" A question you hadn't asked yet. How did he find you? How did he know it was you? To him, who even were you?

There was only more confusion and questions joining the pile with the ones that were circulating in your head. 

An epiphany struck you. Without paying you any mind, Kane had pulled out a red apple from somewhere and was feeding it to the horse. It made you think of the one that currently must be still sitting somewhere in your rented room from last night—just, in a different shade. You had seen that shade before.

"You've been following me?" An incredulous tone took over your voice. Your throat shrank, confining your inhales and reducing the air getting in.

He tried to keep a calm composure, running a hand through his hair. His expression pinched with impatience—tired with your constant interrogation, he has stayed here too long for his liking and you were only stalling them.

"You don't get the danger you are in, do you—"

"Stay away from me." Your eyes turned watery but still filled with determination. Your hands shook in disbelief, seeing Kane here, you started to wonder if Mayah and Kenzie had lied to you as well. To some extent? Was the care they showed you had been fake? What were they using you for? What did you even have that someone would want? Must be something, right? If the incidents in the past few hours and the men standing before you were anything to go by? 

The little world you had built for yourself was crumbling. But your world had fallen apart once before, you filled the cracks once, you could do it again.

"If you think that that man was the only one after you, then you'd be a fool to believe that." He evenly stated, moving a couple of steps forward, he gave his wrist a flick—a signal for Kane as he began walking away without a second glance in your direction.

Your gaze wavered, jumping between the two people. One a piece of the picture you thought you knew, and another is the messy blank canvas of the unknown. You fisted your skirts, nails digging deep in the dark fabric, and your feet felt light, ready to take off.

Jungkook stood there in silence before he let out a heavy sigh. "Yes, I was keeping an eye on you," he said. Like it was not odd—terrifying for the person—to tell someone he was stalking that he was stalking them. "But I had a reason to do it that you don't need to know right at this very moment. So please,"

You didn't move, but your eyes flicked for a fraction of a second in the direction where Kane left; he caught that. "He's an informant. No, the old man and his daughter didn't know, if that makes you feel better." It did. "Now, we don't have time to spare. Please, I'm trying to keep you safe." He pleaded, pushing a loose strand of hair back, his eyes wide and eyebrows pushed down, appearing to look appealing and trustworthy.

You were hesitant; he did save your life.

Your eyes glazed over, pondering his words, and you kept your eyes trained on him while contemplating your next step. It was then that you flicked your eyes sideways, just behind him, and stared. Your eyes grew wider. 

"Who's there?"

Not wasting a moment Jungkook swirled, sword drawn out, shoulders hunched and legs set apart. He scanned the area—left to right and then back again—but caught no movement. He couldn't see anyone, and after a couple of moments, he turned around. "Where did you—oh, this cannot be real."

He sputtered in disbelief as he took in your absence from the place you were previously standing at. You were running and had covered a significant distance in just a few seconds. He could not believe he fell for the oldest trick in the book. You did not even glance back, just sprinted as far away as possible, and missed the utter look of bewilderment—mixed with just enough amusement—on his face.

"Dang it, she is fast on her feet," he muttered, stepping back, eyes locked on you. It seemed you were moving towards the deeper forests. He turned, patting the horse, "Ready for a game of chasing chickens, Orla? Just like old times?" Orla snorted her agreement, and Jungkook quickly hopped behind her, setting himself on the saddle. With a hiya! and a tug on her reins, she broke out in a sprint. 

By now you had crossed the forest line, hurrying deep and far, and disappeared from his sight entirely. 

————————————————————

Yes, he had saved your life. But a single encounter—one under this skeptical situation—cannot possibly make you just trust a stranger. Especially now, when you knew that you were being hunted, the 'who' and 'why' still remaining a mystery yet to be unveiled. Do you really want to see beyond the veil, though? A mocking voice, very much like yours, rang from the back of your head. The answer was always the same—no. You never did. You ignored the voice. 

You needed to focus on now, on your circumstance. You thought of Jungkook. 

He knew you. What else does he know? Your name, where you're from, the family you once had? What compelled him to come seek you? The possibility that he might be one of the people whom he had warned you about was there. The fact that he seemed to know where to find you and he was familiar with that other man back in the tavern wasn't helping his case—although that might be the result of him being an Information gatherer, as he himself stated. You're taking that with a grain of salt.

And so, you did the one thing you were good at. You escaped.

Looking behind your back, you saw no sign of a dark-eyed man, but it didn't mean you could stop. He had to be there, chasing after you, for whatever the price you had earned on your head—it seemed like a possible scenario—unless he decided you were not worth the trouble after all.

Twigs snapped and leaves crunched as you trudged your way deeper into the forest. You had no idea where you were or where you were going, just that you needed to go. A left. Right. Another left. Under the tangled branches. One more right.

After just a few minutes, while walking through a patch of dense shrubs, you heard it. Thud, thud. It looked whatever price you had on your head, you were definitely worth the trouble. 

The sound of hooves echoed through the still of that place, bouncing off of trunks and leaves. 

He was closing in on where you were. You were on foot, and with his horse, it won't take long before he catches up  to you. Panic announced its presence in the form of the fast beating of your heart. You looked around for a way out. But with no better options, you dipped down bending yourself. You made your figure as small and unmoving as possible as you curled up on the forest floor, trying to keep yourself hidden within the bushes. 

Unmoving, you sat there, feeling the ground vibrate with the arrival of your doom. Just then, you heard a flock of birds, wings flapping and loud with caws and screeches, as if scared away by something somewhere far in the other direction.

He was redirecting his horse the other way—you could sense the change—must've thought it was you who scared the birds, so he went that way, trying to find you.

You stayed an eternity in that position before you were sure that no one was coming anymore. Getting up and off the ground, you brushed your clothes.

Where do you go from here?

It was a question you had asked yourself countless times over the past years. You turned and decided to go west. Find a way to get to a town and then decide what to do next.

Walking through woods like this, with no clue or aim, instigated a sense of déjà vu. You recalled the lady, a shoemaker you don't know the name of—maybe you hadn't asked, or maybe you didn't remember. She had nursed you back to health and offered the warmth of her home to a complete stranger; you'll forever be grateful to her. You had stayed there for a few days, sick with grief and guilt. But you didn't try to find out what happened back home—you had made your assumption anyway. It was too much to take in, so you decided to move on for that time.

You recalled travelling with gypsies, waggons decorated in a rainbow of colours, recalled going from one place to another. For a year you kept changing towns and villages, never staying more than a few weeks to a couple of months. Then one day you found yourself on the border of Fubroch and decided that that was it. You were tired of moving. The mountains brought the memories of a home—providing comfort, so you made them your home.

And just like that, years flew by without a hitch as you built a life for yourself here. A life that felt very distant at this moment.

As you hiked your way through the woods, lost in your own musings. You failed to notice the consistent shadows following right at your heels. You were distracted, but not for long.

As you were passing by an old dried well, you sensed some movements just out of the corner of your eyes. You paused. Fingers scrambling for your thigh, shoulders tense, you resumed walking again.

Had Jungkook found you? You thought he went in the other direction?

Your stroll changed into an urgent march. Your eyes flicked from one corner to another, hoping it had been a trick of your eye.

You left behind a series of crumbling structures of stones and mud, your gait hurried—almost a jog now. You chanced a glance back, turned around again, and screamed.

Someone jumped off one of the stone walls just as you turned. A woman. You lost your voice, eyes set on hers. You blinked quickly, getting a better look at her. Dark pants and an equally dark tunic. She had short hair and the gaze of a predator, with which she was scanning you from head to toe. An amused quirk sat on her thin lips, painted a deep maroon complementing her sandy complexion.

"Well, you look lovelier than I expected." Her voice called out, a deep and rough texture paired with the unsettling blue of her eyes. It had you standing on the balls of your feet, ready to flee.

You kept your glaring gaze trained on her, aware of even a twitch in her muscles.

"Aww," she cooed, "look at you, so scared and lost." She lifted a hand, placing it on her cheek, her expression the same as a child would have upon finding a hare hiding in his vegetable patch. Except to you, she felt more like a wolf cornering the hare than said child.

"Why so tense, though?" She took a step closer, hands behind her back. You widened your eyes, sweat gathering at your back and hands getting clammy. She was making you nervous, something akin to the town's flood bells ringing in your ears. For a second your thoughts drifted to Jungkook; you definitely preferred him to whoever she was.

You started walking backward, trying to keep some distance.

"Oh no, no, no, I'm here to help you. To lead you towards the right path." She scrunched her brows in faux concern.

"No need," Somehow, you shakily managed to speak up, "I'm on the right path; I don't need any assistance."

There was no point in dragging this out. You got ready to find an opening and make a run for it, but you didn't even get the time to blink when you saw more people jump out of the rubble.

Two men walked up to the woman, coming to stand behind her. They were more rugged in appearance—the exact opposite of her. Some henchmen.

No time to think. You patted at your knife just as the woman stretched her neck back, looking up at the sky, "Get her."

You wouldn't go down without a fight.

Just as the man lunged for you—bare hands; you couldn't see any weapon on him as far as you could see—you ducked, ramming your body forward and pushing him back with as much force as you could gather. He was caught off guard, not having expected such strength from someone this small. It made him stumble back and gave you a chance to create some distance.

You turned and used that as an opportunity to run. You traced your steps back the same way you had come from, this time in a sprint. You could hear the man following. You pushed for yourself to go even faster.

You were running on just adrenaline and pure terror for your life, but you could not let up, could not let them catch on. You couldn't help but question your predicament. You were being hunted like animals for meat. Who were these people? Looking for you. Hunting you.

"AAH!" You screamed as a hand grabbed a hold of your arm and yanked you back. You were thrown forcefully into a nearby tree, rough bark scraping against your skin. Before you could gather yourself, he was in front of you, grabbing your short braid, twisting it around his palm.

"ARGH!" You cried out, one hand going up in an attempt to free yourself of his grip.

"No more running, bitch," he said in a gruff voice, spit flying in your face from the proximity.

He started dragging you back—yanked at your hair when you refused to move, feet digging in the soil. You tried scratching at his face, desperately aiming for his eyeballs. If you got near enough, you wouldn't hesitate to claw them out.

"If done for survival, the gods forgive you," is what your father had said when you once punched the nose of the person who had tried to drown Buck in the river. After which he also taught you how to land a proper punch.

And that's exactly what you did when—to avoid your nails attacking his face—he loosened his grip and tried stepping back to take hold of your arms instead. The moment you got enough space, you reeled back and aimed for his throat. Thumb tucked under the folded fingers and not inside, using only the first two knuckles, throwing your whole body's weight. Hard and fast.

He winced and coughed, trying to get air inside his throbbing windpipe. You grabbed a rock and slammed it against the side of his face. He wobbled and fell on his face.

No longer constricted by his hold, you breathed out in mild relief, but it was short-lived. While you were fighting off the first man, the other one had caught up with you. This realisation crawled upon you when he delivered a blow to your back.

You were pushed to the ground before you could even form a thought. All the air wooshed out of your lungs as sharp pain erupted on one side of your shoulder, "Oh god, no." Your left arm felt numb; nothing was broken, you were sure, but you could feel the dull pain thudding across your back and limbs.

The other man was taller, leaner, and scarier. He was looking down at you with his eyes blown out and mouth pulled in a crazy grin. He leaned down, "Ah, ah. Be a good girl, will you?" He made a tutting sound, reached out, and grabbed one of your legs.

You screamed, kicking out in the air, "No use in resisting, you should have come willingly when we asked nicely."

"Let go of me!" Your throat was raw, body aching and bleeding. Your pitiful condition didn't affect him; however, it only seemed to delight him in seeing you this way. He stood up and started walking away, his hand still gripping your foot tightly.

It was the most pain, physically, you'd ever felt for as long as you can remember. Rocks dug into your backside, your skin scraped against the ground, and hair got tangled with twigs and leaves, pulling at your scalp. All this while he had only taken a few steps.

You kicked out harder; this time your upper body reacted as well—digging your palms in the ground and holding onto anything they could.

You managed to land a hard kick, causing him to drop your limb. You didn't waste a moment and grabbed at his own legs, pulling yourself up and throwing all your weight to make him fall on the ground. Your right hand went to your thigh, and you pulled out your knife, scrambling on top of his chest and locking his arms there by his side with your thighs pushing at him.

Your left arm felt useless, but with the other, you brought the blade to his neck, holding it dangerously close. Just a hair's breadth away from ending him.

"Why are you doing this to me?" You gritted out, eyes watery. The whole day's worth of distress was threatening to unleash from the depths of your consciousness, something you had been suppressing. "What did I ever do to anyone!?" You yelled.

The smile—previously present on his face—had disappeared from his face as you sat there with the cold metal digging into his skin. You have taken life before—but only of animals that you were going to eat. Now that the creature against your blade was an animal of a different kind, you hesitated.

And hesitation kills you in this world.

You didn't see the other man coming until the very last moment. He must not have been as disoriented as you thought. He pounced at you, but this time you had your knife out. This time you didn't hesitate.

In a single motion, the blade found its home deep in between the shoulder and collarbone of the first man.

Blood immediately coated your hands, making them slippery as you let go of the knife, watching your victim slump. Cold dread froze up the blood in your veins. You had killed someone.

There was no time to answer, as the stone of unease weighed heavy in your stomach; the guy below on the ground switched places with you. Now you were the one held horizontal to the ground as his palms made contact with your sternum, wasting no time in squeezing them tight, blocking out all the air but not crushing your throat—yet.

"You crazy bitch!" He barked.

Haze clouded a grey shade around your eyes, growing in size after every excruciating blink. Your torso was crushed under the full mass of an adult man twice your size; you wondered if he was trying to break your ribs. But you couldn't push him. Couldn't even struggle.

Your bones became a burden, pulling your exhausted body deeper into the grass and soil, acting as a makeshift grave you were about to descend into at any minute. Your mind was a numb shell, unable to see what was in front of it, unable to comprehend.

That must be your fate. Your life in exchange for the one you took just now. You would not call yourself very religious, but you believed in a God, and he must have seen the pathetic way you'd been living and is here to claim you.

Your vision turned black; the man was screaming something at you, but no words could penetrate the oxygen-depraved sheet of lethargy coating over your being.

As you lost more of your breath, the thuds of your heart started becoming louder. One second they were in your chest, and the next in your ears. Soon you could feel them vibrating the very land you lay upon. Thump. Thump. Thump.

All of a sudden, you felt light. The force of the man pushing against you lifted off of you in an instant. It was there one second and then vanished the other. Air came rushing back in through the once constricted pipes. You gasped for the breath hungrily, making its way into your lungs, and sputtered on your greedy inhale.

It took another few moments before the shadowy haze cleared from your eyes, and you were blinking back at what seemed to be two males locked in a sword fight.

One of them was the man who had been choking you, and the other—your eyes widened upon the realisation that the other person was none other than—

"Jungkook?"

His name was merely a whisper in the air, breathed into life through the brush of your lips against the words.

He delivered the last blow—a slash down his opponent's chest—before he turned to you.

Jungkook stood there with his sword dripping red while he panted; from the short fight or having hurried over to come save you, you didn't know. Maybe the latter. No, definitely the latter, if his pinched expression directed at you was anything to go by.

"You," he stepped over the fallen body groaning on the ground, "are an idiot."

You felt like laughing. He was fuming, and you let loose a single puff of airy laughter. You couldn't help it; the stress had taken a toll on you; your body ached in more places than you could count. You were beaten and bleeding. You almost accepted that you were going to die. But here you were, saved by this man not once but twice, in the same day.

You owed him.

"Glad to see you still have it in you to smile." Came a deep, feminine voice.

Both of your eyes turned towards the direction the voice came from. You leaned on your arms while he drew his sword for an attack.

There stood the blue-eyed woman from before, and upon seeing Jungkook take an immediate protective stance in front of you, something gleamed in her gaze.

"I must admit, watching you fight for your life was so entertaining." She sauntered forward, showing no sign of even grabbing for her weapons strapped to her, "and a pleasant surprise."

She rounded around where you were and stopped a good distance away, "even more surprising to see that you have got mercenaries protecting you." She said as she eyed the black ink on Jungkook's arm, which was now exposed.

You flicked your eyes between her and Jungkook. He remained motionless, but you can see how taut his muscles were, ready to pounce in a moment's notice. He didn't say anything, just observed. What is this woman playing at?

She let out a shrill whistle. Loud. Like a signal of some sort.

You prepared for the worst. Did she call for help? Backup?

Instead, a dark brown horse came running from behind the broken stone columns, galloping towards her. It didn't even stop completely before she grabbed the reins and hauled herself onto it mid-run. Walking in a circle, she faced you, looking straight in your eyes.

She tilted her head back, stretching her neck in a lazy motion as if the possibility for more bloodshed wasn't hanging in the air waiting for the moment she draws her weapon too. "So damn resilient, like your damn father." She muttered lowly; you thought you had misheard her. She stared at you.

"Alastair is protecting you even after death, huh?"

The air stopped blowing, the screeching of birds silenced, and your throbbing body went numb.

Palms digging in the forest floor, you could only gawk at her as she regarded you with disdain.

Her eyes, blue as the summer sky, looked red in that moment. Wild and predatory. You felt dizzy. But then she blinked, and the illusion broke; they were blue again. You shuddered. The voices from years ago rang in your ear.

She was one of them. The people who came chasing your father that day. The ones who killed-

A silent whimper left your parted lips.

So this was what it was about. Why you were targeted. Why your life was in danger. It was all due to what happened to your father. Now you will meet the same end. They came for him then, and now they came for you.

You thought it was over. Oh, how wrong you were.

You ran as much as you could and yet couldn't outrun your fate. Were more people coming? With swords? They will leave you bloody and torn. Will they kill Jungkook too? He would leave before that happened. Is that wolf nearby? Was he the one who led them to you?

A tear slid down the curve of your cheek. You imagined all the ways they would end you, the most scary one being torn to shreds by the sharp teeth of an atramentous beast.

The sound of her horse neighing cut through your terror-filled questions.

She met your dazed, tear-glazed eyes. "I'll see you soon."

You watched her go. Still in your place, disconnected from reality.

It wasn't until you heard your name being called out loud that you came back to reality. Someone was shaking you by the shoulder.

"-get up? Y/n, can you stand?" You flicked your gaze up, connecting with inky ones staring deep in yours.

Swallowing, only the sandy taste of dread scratched against your throat. Yet, you managed to open your mouth: "Are you one of them?"

Your voice was grating to the ear, stifling in defeat, so unlike the demanding tone you had before. It caused Jungkook's expression to display an emotion you couldn't quite put your finger on. Unsurprising, given you couldn't take in anything right now, really.

He watched you stare up at him for a moment before something snapped in him. He got on both his knees, grabbing a hold of both your shoulders. He squeezed tight; it strangely grounded you a little.

"Look here, in my eyes, and listen." His voice was firm, and he spoke slowly but with a surety, "I know it's hard to trust me right now, but I need you to get this one thing." He paused and inhaled before letting it out, "Your life is in danger, and I meant it when I stated I'm here to keep you safe. I will protect you."

The words came and swirled around in your mind, not quite settling in. His eyes were intense, and when you looked, really looked, past the darkness, you could see the hint of genuineness. In this moment, you held onto that as a lifeline, and so when he asked.

"Understood?" You nodded your head. "Good."

His palms lifted off of your shoulders, and you would be floating again in the vast uncertainty and fear had he not offered one of them right in front of your face.

"This place is not safe. We need to move on from here," he nodded, urging you to grab his hand.

What else was there to do? It was clear that you would be killed if you refused, and if he too wanted the same thing, unlike what he claimed to be doing, then at least it looked like he would be quicker in his kill. And so you lifted your arm, gently placing your palm against his, letting him haul you up.

Another, black horse came trotting over. You recognised it to be his. He gave your palm a squeeze, telling you to get up on it.

You flicked your eyes between the majestic creature and its master. A soft groan forced your eyes away and towards the other men lying on the ground; it seemed one of them was still conscious.

"He... he is alive." You murmured, looking at the man you had stabbed.

"Want me to finish him off?" He threw in casually.

You gaped at him, eyes full of disbelief and horror.

He puffed air out of his nose, "I didn't mean that." It wasn't very convincing. You looked back at the man, "Are you seriously considering helping him? After he attacked you?" You weren't.

His brow raised as he regarded you with a tilt of his head and a semi-disapproving look on his face. At last he just sighed, "You need to think about only yourself, or else you will get us both killed."

He walked you to the horse and stopped, "Wait a moment." He let go of your hand and reached out to grab a piece of clothing from a few feet away. It was your cloak; you had dropped it during the fight. He dusted the deep green fabric and gently pulled it around you. Then almost immediately grabbed your hand again.

He gave your palm another swift squeeze, and this time you mounted the horse with his help.

As he peered up at your fiddling form, down from where he stood, the lines on his face grew a little softer, his expression a little more sympathetic.

He latched his foot on the holding, "You will get your answers soon," and climbed behind you expertly.

As he reached his hands around you to grab the reins, his front touched your back, and while you were not one who gets particularly cold, his warmth was a surprisingly welcome sensation against your bruised backside.

His knuckles tightened in a grip, you kept your hands close to you, "you trust me?" He clicked his tongue, getting the horse to move, and it started walking at a leisurely pace. He felt you shaking your head against his chest, his lips quirked, and if you had turned around, you would've witnessed him grinning softly.

"Good."

The horse broke out in a sprint as you both rode off, leaving behind the forest and—you had an inkling—this town for good.

Soon you were at the southern border, riding along the river marking the end of Fubroch's territory.

And despite what you had insinuated about your opinions for the man, you soon found yourself leaning your head back and drifting off to an unconscious state. Away from the reminiscence of the events that occurred today and the pains of the past. The nipping cold of the reality slipped away as you gave in to the firm warmth of the momentary comfort.

Taglist (from my previous blog) : @runariya @jksusawife @boyfriendtaekook

250311 - bts on twitter

"Thanks to our babies here, the atmosphere is very bright"

bonus:

parkitrighthere asked:

Iki, my love!! Aaaaaahhhhh!!! I love you so much, like SO MUCH!! Okay, okay, focus—soooo, you’re finally taking requests, huh? Well, guess what? Here’s mine!! Prompt 15 (because it's horoscope and soulmate, and for me, it is EVERYTHING) and, of course, Jimin (because, duh, it’s Jimin, who else??). Take your time with it, no rush! I’m just so excited and happy and aaahhhh!! Love ya!!

Title: Bubblegum Pairing: JiminxReader Prompt: 15. “My horoscope told me I would meet the love of my life next year.” “Then let’s meet up again after midnight.”

Word Count: 1,035 Genre: flufffff Warnings: none except for tooth rotting fluff

Note: This is a repost from my previous blog. It was written for a drabble ask game.

"Hold the door!" You paused at the yell, turning to look back at the source. You were greeted by the sight of a mountain of boxes and a pink head of hair poking from the top. The person carrying it barely keeping from stumbling.

Hurriedly you placed your foot against the glass door at the entrance to your building just as the person reached you on wobbly legs.

The pink haired man, thinking he had made it safely, started to walk a little straighter and failed to notice the box at the top sliding. It fell, but your reflexes were fast and you reached out just in time to catch it.

"Oh thank god-"

"Are you alright Jimin?"

Jimin, not having his vision blocked by the box anymore, look up at your voice, staring with his eyes wide.

"Y/n! Oh, hey! Didn't realise it was you," He squeaked, then released a breathy chuckle.

You gave him a smile in response, "what is all this? Was there a sale or something?" Releasing the door the both of you started walking together towards the lift, you carrying the box in your hand for him.

"Oh, I wish there was," He chuckled again, "These are for the new year party I'm having at my place."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. My friends, we have this tradition. We do the whole eating grapes and making toasts, ending with the countdown, so we may be little loud. Apologies in advance," He finished as you both reached the elevator, you went ahead and pressed the call button since Jimin was clearly occupied.

"Oh I don't mind but I can't say the same about that man who lives next door to you. The one with four cats?" You gave him a grin with your brows wiggling up and down.

He gave you a smug one in return, "you're late on the news, he moved out a month ago."

The elevator doors opened and you both moved to enter, "no way! How did I not know?" You huffed.

"Maybe because you were too busy stressing about your finals?" He gave a shrug and adjusted the boxes, holding them more securely.

In that time you leaned and pressed your floor number and the one below it for Jimin. You straightened and narrowed your eyes at him.

He rolled his eyes, "you walk at midnight when you're stressed. A lot. With heavy steps." He finished.

You snorted, "well guess you can get even with me by being loud then."

He grinned, "that's the plan," You could only stare as his crooked tooth made an appearance. Mouth stretched wide and his eyes squished close as pink strands fell in front of his face poking him in the eye. You almost reached out and fixed them for him. Almost.

He shook his head, blowing the locks back. You cleared your throat, "this tradition, you must've had it somewhere else last year." You blurted out in an attempt to stay at the topic.

"Yeah we shuffle every year, choosing the place most convenient, which happened to be mine this time. Last year we went to Joon's, but how did you know?" He tilted his head slightly.

"Oh, um, I just. Well I had made cupcakes so I thought I would share them with you, but nobody answered your door so I assumed you were out," You cheeks burned and you could feel embarrassment washing over your being.

"You came at midnight?" He asked with eyes wide.

"No no, in the evening," You reassured him, internally praying that he had been out at the time you stated.

"Oh makes sense. Damn I missed some cupcakes then, we're they delicious?"

You winked at him, "you bet," And giggled.

Jimin watched as your face brightened. He noticed over time how your cheeks always turn pink whenever you laugh. It is very you. You eyed the numbers going up, almost at his floor now and he glimpsed your side profile.

Coughing slightly he grabbed your attention, "so, any plans for new years?"

"Eating a large pizza and watching year end shows counts right?"

He laughed, "of course it does. Sounds like a luxury to me."

You grinned.

"Anything you're excited about the next year?" He asked one last question as the elevator came to a stop at his floor but he was looking at you, waiting for an answer. Always so polite.

"Well there was one thing I saw this morning," You began, “My horoscope told me I would meet the love of my life next year." You let out a giggle.

He just stared at you, the doors opened, it was time for him to get off, “Then let’s meet up again after midnight.” he said breathless.

You were confused for a moment, before it clicked. Your mouth fell open a little. You couldn't form any words, too shocked.

He stood there, eyes locked with yours and opened his mouth but the metal doors started closing and in a panic he did the first thing he could think of—step out in a hurry.

He turned back, breathing heavy as if he ran a marathon and stared as the door shut in your face, your eyes just as wide, not leaving his. He let out a shuddering breath and closed his eyes leaning against the wall before entering his apartment.

Inside the elevator you were a confused mess, had he really meant what you thought he did? The elevator stopped at your floor and just as the doors opened your phone dinged. Still in a daze you walked out and opened the text without seeing the sender and saw it was from Jimin—an invitation for the new year party at his home, complete with doodles that you knew were drawn by him.

As you were checking the message you realised that the box you were carrying for him was still in your other hand, you had forgotten to give it back.

Shoving the phone you turned and pressed the call button again, the door opening immediately, and got in. Head thumping back against the metal you let a silly smile slip on your face.

Guess you wouldn't have to wait for the next year to meet him.

𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠💚