#hobie hates the am but he loves being a menace more | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

orphaned-kiirokero · 4 years ago

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Outro: Love is Not Over (Epilogue)

Pairing: Daycare Teacher! Hoseok x Single Mom! Reader.

Genre: Single Parent! AU, Teacher! AU, Hybrid! AU, Fluff, Angst, Adorable Kids,

Warnings: Um, Hoseok cries but they’re happy tears, like very brief mentions of kids without parents.

Word Count: 4.3k

Note: Oh no.. Writing this made me sad :( It’s really over? (I don’t know why I’m asking that... I’m the author...)

Summary: Years after a relationship goes south. You are the single mother of a beautiful 6-year-old golden retriever hybrid who you named Yunho. He is the light of your life. Yunho is everything to you, and you’d do anything for him. But you’re a human. Yunho doesn’t care, he will tell you he doesn’t. “You’re still my Eomma. No matter what.” He says. But you can’t help but feel like you will never be enough for him. You can’t be the mother he deserves. You can’t show him the ropes of being a hybrid, and you can’t teach him things the other moms can. But you try. You try your damn hardest. So, when a handsome German Shepard hybrid comes into your life, helping you and guiding Yunho in a way you can’t, you can’t help the cozy home he sets up in your heart.

Chapter Guide:

Previous / The End ❁

Masterlist

I’m not a morning person.

Never have been.

I used to dread the signs of a new day. I used to go to bed and groan at the thought of the sun peering through my curtains and calling me back to the real world. I’d curse the morning birds and their repetitive song and roll my eyes at the overly cheerful morning news host, who obviously sported a fake smile every time she was on air.

The only reason I used to wake up was for Yunho.

When my alarm went off, my first thoughts were getting Yunho ready for the new day, so he didn’t have to hate it like I did. I’d wake him up, help him choose his outfit for the day, make his breakfast while he got dressed, and send him off to school. With a genuine smile. Even if I wasn’t a morning person, I’d be one for him.

But things are different now.

The sun peeked its soft, pale yellow rays through the sheer ivory curtains that covered the windows of our bedroom. The sun’s warmth laid over my face like the hand of a mother trying to rouse its child from sleep. I was familiar with the motion. Several birds sung their morning tune, perched up on bare branches as they serenaded the woods like they have been since the first time they peeped. It was winter, meaning the birds have migrated to warmer places, although Busan’s climate didn’t make it feel like such. Yes, it was cold, but it was no winter wonderland.

Despite the slight chill outside and the slightly cloudy skies, everything felt pleasantly warm. Like the house was on its own schedule, changing seasons whenever it deemed necessary. It felt like the perfect April spring day under the white sheets of our bed, wrapped in a pair of gentle, slightly tanned arms. My body cradled in the embrace of my shirtless lover.

“Ma! Hobi! Wake up!” A giggle voice called, followed by the patter of running feet. Hoseok and I grumbled, playfully ignoring the hybrid and snuggling deeper into the covers. We heard Yunho scoff as we held back our giggles, waiting for him to do what he always did. He indulged our silent expectations. Yunho jumped up on the bed, shaking the mattress and us as he hopped up and down, laughing.

I relented and peeked my eyes open. My heart softened when I saw Yunho’s smile (Which was missing a couple of teeth) “Well, good morning to you too,” I chuckled, moving to sit up. “No...” a gruff voice from beside me grumbled. Hoseok tightened his arms around my figure, trying to persuade me back down in bed so he could snuggle me more.

I smiled, petting his bed head as compensation for my utterly rude movement. He grumbled again, opting to just snuggle into my side. “Hobi!! Wake up!” Yunho whined, bounding over to the older hybrid, jumping on top of him and grabbing his face with his hands, which were comically smaller. Hoseok let out a little “oomph” sound before he let Yunho move his head around and poke at his cheeks.

Hoseok’s eyes were still closed, but the heart-shaped smile that graced his face gave off waves of happiness. “Okay, champ, I’m awake,” He chuckled, peeking his honey eyes open to look at Yunho. The ten-year-old cheered in victory, scrambling off Hoseok to sit in my lap. “Do you know what day it is?” He grinned, his missing front teeth on full display.

I hummed playfully, tapping my finger against my chin as Hoseok watched us with a smile from where he was laying next to me. “Hmm, well, today is a big day, am I right?” I teased. Yunho nodded vehemently. “A very big day,” Hoseok commented. “Could it be... Your big day?” I asked. Yunho giggled. “Yes!” He exclaimed, wrapping me in a hug and nuzzling his face in the crook of my neck. I wrapped my unoccupied arm around him, giving him a kiss on the top of his head.

“Why don’t you get dressed and I’ll make your favorite breakfast?” I offered. Yunho pulled back and looked at me with stars in his eyes before chirping out an “okay!” before he squeezed me one last time, bent down and gave Hoseok a hug, and scurried out of the room. The two of us watched him go with warm, melted hearts. “He gets cuter as the years go by,” I sighed. “Wait until he’s a teenager,” Hoseok poked. I looked down at his teasing smile with a pout. “Don’t say that!” I whined, doing my best to wiggle out of his grasp.

Hoseok didn’t let go, he just held me tighter while he cackled at my attempts. “You’re mean,” I chuckled, pushing his face away from my side. Hoseok playfully nipped at my hands with his sharp canines, fighting them off like his life depended on it. All with a smile on his face. “But you love me,” He gushed, nuzzling his face into my stomach once he won the fight against my hands.

I rolled my eyes, giving him one last scratch behind the ear before I swung my legs over the side of the bed and stood up. Hoseok whined, but let me go. “Come on, you menace. Put a shirt on and help me with breakfast.” I said, throwing on one of his sweatshirts and making my way downstairs. I heard him dramatically groan.

I made my way to the kitchen and got out the ingredients for blueberry pancakes, Yunho’s favorite. Today was January 14, Yunho’s 10th birthday. He’s been eagerly waiting for this day since December, constantly dropping hints of what he wanted and what he’d like to do. So for today, Hoseok and I planned to take him out to a new amusement park with Hyejin, Yoongi, and Hajun (a different from the one we frequented), go out for dinner, and come back home for ice cream. (and presents of course)

“Hobi!!” I heard Yunho call from upstairs and the aforementioned man responded with a “Yes?” before I heard his footsteps trail through the upstairs hallway. When Yunho was about 7, he started calling Hoseok “Hobi” instead of “Mr. Hoseok” once he realized that Hoseok was sticking around for a bit. I think it was because Yunho fully accepted him into his life, but Hoseok argues that “Mr. Hoseok” was just too much of a mouthful.

“Eomma... Where’s Hobi?” Yunho mumbled one morning while I fiddled with the coffee machine. I looked down at him with a quirked brow. “Hobi?” I asked, and he nodded. “Yeah, Mr. Hoseok. Where is he? Did he leave?” He pouted. I gave him a reassuring smile as I picked him up and sat him down on the counter.

“Hobi went out to get some breakfast, don’t worry, he’ll be back,” I said, petting his head. Yunho leaned into the touch, looking up at me with his puppy eyes. “Promise? Promise he’ll come back?” He asked, sticking out one of his pinkies. I chuckled, grabbing his pinky with my own. “I promise. Hobi wouldn’t leave us, bub,”

Right on cue, the front door opened. Yunho’s ears stood at attention, and he quickly jumped off the counter. He ran over the Hoseok who had a box of donuts in his hands and latched onto his leg, nuzzling his face into the material of his jeans. “Hey, champ. Are you okay?” He asked, moving the box over to one hand and resting his newly unoccupied one on Yunho’s head. “Don’t leave like that!” He whined. Hoseok frowned, bending down so he could look at Yunho properly.

“I just went out to get donuts, bub,” He explained, opening the box in front of him. “I got your favorite,” He smiled, motioning for Yunho to take one. Yunho complied, picking up a regular glazed donut and taking a bite out of it. “Did Hoseok scare you because he wasn’t here when you woke up?” I asked, leaning against the wall. Yunho nodded with a slumped head.

Hoseok looked at me with sad eyes before he turned his attention back to Yunho. “I’m sorry, I’ll tell you next time, okay? And if I’m ever not here when you wake up, know that I’ll always come back.” He smiled. Yunho looked up at him. “Do you promise, Hobi?” He asked. I could tell the new name caught Hoseok off guard, but he shook it off, holding out his pinky for Yunho. “I promise.”

And he’s been calling him that for three years now.

Suddenly, Hoseok came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist, resting his head on top of mine while I mixed the pancake batter. “What was up?” I asked. “His adult canines are sore again, so I gave him some medicine,” He explained. I sighed, “Hopefully they’ll settle soon, and correctly.” Hoseok moved his head to rest over my shoulder and reached over to pop a blueberry in his mouth before saying, “It’ll be okay. I remember when mine started growing in, I cried until they settled. He’s already stronger than me,” He chuckled, giving me a kiss on the cheek before he pulled away.

Not long after, Yunho came running down the stairs, bouncing over to where Hoseok was leaning against the counter and plastering himself to his leg. Hoseok smiled down at him and ruffled his hair. “How are you feeling?” He asked. Yunho shrugged, “Okay,” He answered. “Do you think you’ll be able to eat?” I asked before actually cooking any of the pancakes. “Mhm! I can eat,” He reassured. I chuckled, “Roger that,” Hoseok and Yunho both gave me a kiss before they moved into the living room to watch cartoons.

I never thought I’d be a morning person, but damn, waking up next to Hoseok really changed that.

Since that day at Geumjeongsan, Hoseok and I took things slow and steady. Nothing changed at first. Hoseok would come by for ice cream nights like he always did, but then he’d stay after I put Yunho to bed. Then he took me on dates. Then he’d stay over for a couple of days. Then I asked him to move in with me. And now here we are, about 4 years later, with a new Jung Hoseok added to Yunho and I’s little family.

My bed never felt cold anymore, nights weren’t lonely or silent, and I looked forward to the morning. The mornings where I could peak my eyes open and see Hoseok’s sleeping face right in front of me, his hair all tousled. The mornings where I could wake up and hear his laughter mixed in with Yunho’s downstairs. The mornings when I was roused from sleep with a gentle, “Wake up, baby,” or “Honey~ wakey wakey~”

I’ve never been a morning person.

But Hoseok and Yunho made me one.

The joyous screams of amusement park visitors echoed through the chilly air. The grind of rollercoasters tracks and other thrill rides hummed in a familiar rhythm. The smell of popcorn and cotton candy wafted past our noses as we entered the gates of the amusement park, keeping an eye out for a certain cat family.

“If it isn’t my favorite sister! Ready for some amusement park fun?”

“Hyejin, you’re an only child. You basically adopted me in college to fill the little sister role. And yes, of course.”

Hyejin cackled as she ran up and wrapped me in a hug, while Hoseok excitedly greeted Yoongi, his best friend, with a hug of his own. Yoongi grumbled, but I could tell liked it by the way his noir tail swished back and forth. Yunho ran over to give them a hug as well, a blinding smile plastered on his face.

Hyejin pulled away and greeted him enthusiastically, picking him up and spinning him around. Yunho squealed in delight, their giggles intermixed with each other. Once Hyejin let him down, Yunho gave her a proper hug before bouncing over to Yoongi to give him one, too. “Oh god, you're getting big,” Yoongi commented, sounding exactly like an old man. “You’re going to be taller than your mother when you 're an adult,” He snickered, and I whacked his shoulder in defense. He let out an “ow” but continued to laugh.

“You know, that means he’d be taller than you too, Yoon,” Hoseok said, and Yoongi immediately cut off his chuckles to give the taller hybrid a shoulder whack of his own. I watched the interaction with a satisfied grin before I felt a tug on my shirt. I looked down to see Hajun looking up at me, silently asking for a hug. “Well, isn’t it my favorite nephew,” I said, kneeling down to wrap Hajun in my arms. He wrapped his arms around me in return, quietly nuzzling his face in my chest.

After we all exchanged our greetings and went over the rules with the kids, Hyejin clapped her hands together with a smile. “Alright! Let the adventure begin!” She exclaimed. Hajun and Yunho cheered with her as we started walking through the park. Yunho grabbed onto Hoseok’s hand while Hajun took Yoongi’s and the two of them pulled the grown men every which way. Hyejin and I lagged a bit behind, lost in our own conversation.

We walked through the food stands and carnival games, collecting drinks and a couple stuffed animals that Yunho and Hajun guilt tripped Hoseok and Yoongi into winning for them. “Look Hobi! It looks like the dragon from my show!” Yunho grinned, pointing up the red dragon plushie that was one of the prizes for winning the “Throw the ball and knock down the bottles” game.

Hoseok looked at what he was pointing at and nodded in agreement. “Do you want it?” He asked and Yunho quickly nodded his head yes. “Now, now, I think you’ve won enough for right now,” I said. Yunho pouted, about to whine out a “But Ma...” before Hoseok beat him to it. “It’s fine, baby, just one more? Then we’ll stop,”

I sighed, relenting pretty quickly under Hoseok’s persuasive smile. He and Yunho cheered, going over to give the stall employee his money. The employee gave Hoseok three balls and pointed at the stack he’d be aiming at. Hoseok gave one of the balls to Yunho and asked him to take a shot at it. Yunho stuck his tongue out in concentration and threw the ball. It completely missed, but Hoseok was quick to turn his pout into a smile when he threw one of the other balls, successfully knocking down some of the bottles.

Now, a man throwing a worn out baseball should not be attractive. But it was. It was attractive. I knew Hoseok went to the gym whenever he could with his friend Jeongguk, and it obviously paid off. He was fit, and his flexing biceps only proved that fact further.

Hoseok threw the second ball and knocked down the rest of the bottles, winning the dragon for Yunho. Hoseok handed the toy to Yunho, but before Yunho took it completely, he rubbed it all over Hoseok, getting his scent on the toy. Hoseok let him with a smile on his face. Once he deemed it scented enough, he hugged it to his chest and grabbed Hoseok’s land, running back to where I was standing.

“Look Ma!” He said, proudly showing the stuffed toy to me. “Wow!” I gasped in that typical “impressed mother” way before I shot Hoseok a grateful smile. “What do we say?” I asked. Yunho turned around and hugged Hoseok’s leg, “Thank you, Hobi,” He said in a singsong voice. Hoseok chuckled. “You’re welcome,”

We continued on our journey through the park, occasionally stopping to get on rides like the teacups and the merry-go-round. I made sure to take plenty of pictures of Yunho’s bright face and Hoseok’s heart-shaped smile. (And occasional face of fear when the rides suddenly sped up)

“Ma! Can we go on that one?” Yunho asked, pointing at one of the rollercoasters. It was quite tame, nothing crazy, just fast paced and a couple of small drops. I looked at it, feeling my stomach go a bit queasy. I was never the best with rollercoasters. “Go with Seok and see if you reach the height limit,” I said. Yunho grabbed Hoseok’s hand and shook with excitement as he led him to where the height limit board was set up. Hajun also pulled Yoongi over.

Hyejin giggled. “They look absolutely adorable, don’t they?” She asked. “Who? Yoongi and Hajun? Yes, Yoongi and mini Yoongi are the cutest,” I chuckled, but Hyejin shook her head. “No, silly, Hoseok and Yunho,” she clarified, and I let out an ‘ohhh’ before I nodded my head in agreement. “Yes, they are also the cutest.” I smiled, watching as Yunho bounced up and down in excitement when Hoseok told him he reached the limit. The two of them looked over at me and I shot them a thumbs up, waving them off as they got in the queue.

“I’m proud of you, ya know,” Hyejin spoke up, turning to look at me. “Why’s that?” I asked. Hyejin playfully rolled her eyes because to her it was so obvious what she was alluding to. “The little family you’ve made with Hoseok,” She said, “You changed so much, and for the better. You’re literally glowing every day and so is Yunho. You don’t have that doubt anymore, and that feeling isn’t rubbing off on him anymore.”

“Really? I mean, I definitely feel better, but I didn’t know I was looking like it too.”

“I’m just happy to see you so happy.”

I smiled, looking back at where Hoseok, Yunho, Yoongi, and Hajun were standing. The four of them in their own little world as they talked about whatever. Probably music, which was what the boy’s new obsession was about. “My boys make me happy,” I said with a shrug.

“Have you ever thought about marriage?” Hyejin blurted out.

I choked on the water I was sipping, coughing it up as it made its way down the wrong pipe. Hyejin gently pat my back, like a gentle form of the Heimlich manoeuvre however the Heimlich wouldn’t help in this situation since water wasn’t a solid. “W-What?” I stuttered out, looking at Hyejin with wide eyes.

Hyejin took the fact that I wasn’t dying as an invitation to start laughing. I swatted at her with a pout. “Don’t laugh! You caught me off guard!” I whined, and Hyejin laughed harder. After she had calmed down, she took a deep breath and cleared her throat before looking at me again. “Have you ever thought of marriage? Like, marrying Hoseok?” She asked for the second time, but this time I didn’t choke. (Luckily)

“Um... No? I haven’t, isn’t thinking about this a bit too soon?” I argued. But Hyejin shook her head. “You’ve been together for like, 4 years. I don’t think it’s early at all,” She said, crossing her arms. “You’re saying you haven’t thought about it at all? Like never?” She questioned, and I shook my head. “Not at all. I just, live in the moment and appreciate the fact that Hoseok is with me in the first place,” I gushed.

“Do you want to though?” She rose a playful brow, nudging me softly. I spluttered, “I um. I don’t know...? Yes...? Marriage is expensive, though. The venue, the dress, the food-” I listed, but Hyejin quickly cut me off with a finger to my lips. “Gosh don’t think about that, think about if Hoseok were to get down on one knee and pull out a ring right now, would you say yes?” She asked. I chuckled, “Hyejin that’s-” “Nope! Answer the question!” She chirped.

I rolled my eyes. “Yeah... Yes, I’m sure I would,” I answered truthfully, feeling my ears heat up in embarrassment. Hyejin squealed, bouncing up and shaking me out of excitement. “Ah! So cute, I can’t wait for the wedding,” She gushed, wrapping her arms around me so I’d bounce up and down with her. “Hyejin! Stooopp” I whined, feeling the stares of passersby.

Hyejin pulled away once the excited cheers of rollercoaster-high Yunho and Hajun came bounding over to us. They cheerfully told us all about how Hoseok screamed and Yoongi closed his eyes the whole time. Hoseok walked over to me with a pout, clearly embarrassed about his lack of courage. He wrapped his arms around me and whined about how awful the rollercoaster was. But I could only blush as I thought about what Hyejin had talked to me about.

“Happy birthday, dear Yunho, happy birthday to you!”

“Is the cake good?” I asked Yunho who had a forkful of ice cream cake in his mouth. He nodded with a smile, his face scrunching up cutely. I chuckled, petting Yunho on the head before I started to clean up the mess we had made, which was mostly wrapping paper mess from Yunho’s gift unwrapping extravaganza.

As Hyejin and I went to put the dishes in the sink and throw the trash away, she spoke up with a pout. “We’ll have to get going... All three of us have things to do in the morning,” She sighed. “Why do you sound so guilty?” I chuckled, patting her on the back in reassurance. “Because it’s so early! And I wanna hang out with you longer,” He whined. “Hyejin, you see me like all the time. It’ll be okay. Why don’t we meet up for coffee on Wednesday?” I offered.

Hyejin immediately cheered up, enthusiastically agreeing to the plans and wrapping me in a hug. “I love you,” She said. “I love you too,” I responded. Yoongi came back in from where he and Hoseok had disappeared out back, keys in his hands as he looked over at Hyejin. “Ready?” He asked, and Hyejin nodded.

Yoongi told Hajun to say his goodbyes, which he did, albeit reluctantly, as Hyejin and Yoongi said their own. “Take care,” Yoongi whispered to me, and he gave me a shoulder hug. “You say that like you 're going away for a long time,” I said. Yoongi just shrugged, “I’m not, but still, take care.” I smiled at him. “Will do and I love you too,” Yoongi looked away with a blush, running off to hide behind Hyejin.

“Bye!” We all waved as we watched them go from the front door. The Min family reciprocated with their own set of waves and chorus of “Bye”s. Having guests leave after a party aways feels so odd. I never realized just how quiet the house was at night.

“Okay! Time for bed,” Yunho chirped, padding over towards the stairs. Hoseok and I raised our brow, looking back and forth between each other and Yunho with wide eyes. That was abrupt... “You don’t want to stay up? This is the only day I let you,” I said, utterly confused. Yunho turned around and shook his head no. “Nope!” He said, popping the ‘p’ “I have school tomorrow,” He said.

“Alright, since when do you want to be ready for school?” Hoseok chuckled, tilting his head at the younger hybrid. “Tomorrow is Appa day, where we’re supposed to bring our Appa to school with us,” Yunho smiled, like what he was saying was nonchalant. I cringed. I never really like the concept of “Eomma days” or “Appa days” because, like Yunho, not everyone had an Appa or Eomma. It just seemed harmful, in a way.

“Are you sure you don’t want to stay home tomorrow?” I asked, but Yunho vehemently shook his head no. “Then Hobi and I would miss Appa day!” He whined. Now if Yunho surprised us with his enthusiasm for school, he rendered Hoseok and I... Well, speechless.

Hoseok coughed, taking a minute to process the meaning of Yunho’s words. “Is that okay...?” Yunho cautioned after seeing Hoseok’s reaction. “Yes! Yes. It’s perfectly okay. We can, um, we can get donuts for breakfast, yeah?” He sputtered out. Yunho’s face lit up. “Okay! I’m going to go take a shower,” He proclaimed before he ran up the stairs towards the bathroom.

Silence.

There was nothing in the air but silence between Hoseok and I.

Until Hoseok’s soft sniffles reached my ears.

I made my way over to Hoseok and cupped his teary face in my hands. “Hey... Why are you crying?” I asked with a worried look. Hoseok didn’t answer at first, and I gave him the space to calm down and gather himself. “He-He wants me for Appa day, so does that mean...?” He sniffled, looking at me with pleading eyes that silently asked me if this was real and not a dream. I nodded. “I think it does,”

Hoseok cried even harder, burying his face into the crook of my neck and wrapping his arms around me, holding me tight. “He sees me like that?” He cried. I didn’t realize just how seriously Hoseok took his role as a father figure, and I guess the conformation from Yunho that he was, in fact, his father figure made him feel like he had won the World Cup. “He does. You deserve that honor, Hoseok,”

“I just... I don’t... Appa”

“Shh, take a deep breath, okay?”

I let him cry in my neck until he pulled away by himself, leaving me with a saturated collar and sleeve. Hoseok looked at the wet spot and chuckled. “Sorry,” He croaked out, but I shook my head and took one of his hands in my. “No need to apologize, it’s just a shirt. Let’s get ready for bed, okay? You have a big day tomorrow.” I smiled.

Yunho was my light.

And now he has a father could be things that I couldn’t.

I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Just Yunho, Hoseok, and I

“What’s stopping you, Seok?”

“I’m just nervous, Yoon. What if she says no?”

“Why would she say no?”

“I don’t... Know...”

“Exactly, so just take her somewhere nice and ask. That’s how I asked Hyejin,”

“You make it sound so easy... But alright... I’ll do it.”

Tag List: @kurochan3 @mrcleanheichou @anonymous-armys-blog @bella-raina @purelyecstacy @lindsayjoy444 @unicornbabylover @xicanacorpse @creatorspalace @thesweetest-peas @fangirl125reader

Another Note: I have drabble plans for the OLINO universe that I might write and post. They won’t be out for a while but I might write them.

#bts #bts fic #bts fanfic #hoseok #jung hoseok #jhope #bts jhope #hobi #hoseok x reader #jung hoseok x reader #jhope x reader #bts jhope x reader #bts hybrid au

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acc3ssdenied · 5 years ago

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HOW JIMIN STOLE CHRISTMAS | pjm

SUMMARY: it must have been the eggnog that persuaded Jimin to finally act on his seven-year old feelings when he began to get jealous at how close you were to another one of your friends.

PAIRING: reader x jimin

GENRE: fluff, angst, non idol au, idiots to lovers au

WARNINGS: mild strong language, alcohol consumption, jimin and oc are so stupid and oblivious it causes physical pain, the ending is wholesome it makes me mushy.

WORD COUNT: 8.0k+

A/N: merry belated christmas everyone <3 i hope everyone had a great holiday, i started working on this on christmas day which is why this is so late — my timing is impeccable, i know. I hope you enjoyed reading it, I really like how it turned out and maybe i’ll do a second part next year?? i love you all :))

23rd December

As soon as the last leaf fell for the year, you would become a Christmas-centric monster. Every time a friend would enter your house, there would be a new variety of gingerbread to try or a new type of tinsel wreathed in your hair. They would find it both endearing and terrifying; it was adorable how enamoured you were with the holiday whilst, simultaneously, your grim figure covered in dough from a cake explosion and a rogue piece of tinsel in your teeth (don’t ask how) was a reoccurring sleep paralysis demon of theirs.

Christmas was your favourite time of year; it was the only time when your entire group was together at once. For half of the year, Jimin would travel with his work; Jungkook was studying in Kyoto and only came home at the end of semesters whereas the others all had busy jobs that limited how much free time they had. Nowadays, the one you saw the most was Hoseok who came over every weekend for movie nights that were mostly spent with him cowering behind the sofa as he cursed you out for choosing a horror movie. Thankfully for him, the festive season was a mandatory only-Christmas-movie showing so your weekends were considerable less tearful on his end.

Things had changed a lot since you all first became friends, Jimin and you were next-door neighbours and went to the same middle school as Taehyung so the three of you had always been joined at the hip until you turned eighteen. Namjoon lived across the street from you both and would drag Hoseok over to see the three of you. By the time you were thirteen, you had managed to grab a hold on Yoongi and Seokjin who always seemed both tired and amused by your antics. Somewhere along the way, Taehyung swooped Jungkook under his wing and he easily fit in, you all adored and doted on him.

It could never have last forever. Yoongi and Seokjin were the first to go, both attending Yonsei University and becoming too busy to spend as much time with you all. Then was Hoseok and Namjoon, the former studying at a dance academy whilst the latter attended a conservatoire in the centre of the city. The triple-threat (you, Taehyung and Jimin) all went to different universities and Jungkook would only see you on the weekends before he went to Kyoto to study computer science. You and Jimin had gone from being inseparable to exchanging texts and video calls when he was on the opposite side of the world and sporadic sleepovers when he wasn’t working himself half to death. But, the love between the eight of you had never faded away.

As a consequence, you would turn Christmas into the biggest extravaganza every single year without fail. It would be a week-long affair where they needed to be at your house every day and the final day would be New Year’s Eve with a large party that included the rest of your friends. This was what lead to you, sat in a pile of flour on December the 23rd as Hoseok perched himself on your kitchen counter with an uninterested expression on his face.

“I hate Christmas,” you mumbled softly, tossing some of the flour against the cupboard in front of you as you scowled petulantly.

A knowing hum came from above you and, without stopping his twitter marathon, Hoseok replied, “No you don’t,” in a sing-song voice. Scowl deepening as you gathered another handful of flour and tucked it behind your back.

Clicking your tongue reluctantly, “No,” you admitted, shuffling slightly so you faced him as you suppressed the mischievous smirk creeping up onto the corners of your lips, “I couldn’t hate Christmas - otherwise, I couldn’t do this,” you thrust your hidden hand into his face, the white powder exploding into a cloud in front of his face before you jumped to your feet and slid behind the kitchen counter. You bent at the waist, holding your stomach lightly as you laughed at the frozen expression of surprise on his face.

Dramatically, he raised his hand to his face and brought it away to examine it coating his hand. Sighing slightly, a deadpan expression settled on his face and he pushed himself away from the counter. As you calmed down slightly, you noticed that he was slowly beginning to approach you, a wicked smile appearing as he opened his arms before pursuing in a playfully menacing manner. “No, no, no,” you muttered, arms raising in surrender as you scuttled backwards.

“What?” he asked innocently, glancing around, “I just want a hug,” he shook his hands teasingly and you took a larger step back before turning and running. Unfortunately for you, Hoseok was far more athletic than you and was quickly able to flip you over onto the sofa, pinning you down so he could tickle you mercilessly.

Shrieks fell from your mouth uncontrollably, flour getting in your mouth as it drifted from his face onto yours. Beneath both of your hysterical laughter, you missed the sound of your front door being unlocked and your name being called by a familiar voice. Jimin had decided to surprise you, forgoing calling you as he usually would when came back home. He was coming straight back from Kathmandu for his work trip to stay with you for the week as he usually did for Christmas instead of stopping by his apartment - he couldn’t wait to see the smile on your face, nothing could make him happy like the look of sheer joy on your face.

It had taken 3 years for it to occur to Jimin that his level of care for you was not the same as his care for the others. Granted, he had known you for a few months longer than Taehyung but, he considered the latter his ‘soulmate’ in the friend sense: they had a level of understanding that was almost preternatural. But with you, he could look at your face and automatically feel as though the world was entirely at peace. For a while, he thought it was just because you were best friends but, it wasn’t until Yoongi pointed something out to him when the two of you were sixteen. You were celebrating 3 months with your first serious boyfriend and, for a week, Jimin has been acting strangely: he had been ignoring your texts and when the whole group was together, he’d be cold towards your boyfriend and attempt to ice you out. Yoongi suggested that Jimin was jealous, he was acting out because he didn’t like the fact that you were happy together with someone else. It took another year for him to entirely accept it.

“Should I come back at a better time?” He asked coolly, a stony expression on his face as he observes the, admittedly quite intimate, position the two of you were in. Hoseok was pinning your arms above your head as he straddled your waist, it could easily have been read into to be something that it wasn’t. Both of your heads spun to face him, wide eyes with surprise as you looked at your stern-faced friend.

As quickly as he could, Hoseok peeled himself off from on top of you and straightened out his shirt that had ridden up amongst the fight. This allowed you to leap from the sofa to wrap Jimin into a tight hug. His stiff figure immediately softened into it, arms looping around your waist to press your front against his own. Idly, his left hand came up to run through your hair as you spoke into his chest, “I thought you were coming in two days?” Your voice was muffled from your face being pressed into his hard chest but, he was still able to make out what you said.

“I wanted to surprise you.” He looked over your shoulder and made eye contact with Hoseok, sending him a cold glare that caused his older friend to visibly become taken-aback. He pulled away from you so he could look at your face, “Should I have waited until you weren’t busy?” There was enough teasing in his voice that you could safely assume he was joking but, it was fairly obvious to the older man that Jimin was entirely serious.

You rolled your eyes at him playfully, the tell-tale sign of your heart speeding up and a blush rising to your cheeks appeared as it always did when you were gonna in Jimin’s. In the back of your mind, you ridiculed the idea of him ever sharing similar feelings for you that you did for him.

“Don’t be stupid,” you said, shoving his shoulder lightly as you separated from him, “Hobi’s my Guinea Pig for a new gingerbread recipe!” The older man nodded eagerly from where he had sat down on the arm of your sofa.

This did nothing to reduce the cold expression on Jimin’s face, in fact, it only became more down-cast, “I thought I was your recipe tester...” he mumbled almost inaudibly so that you couldn’t decipher what it was that he had said.

A confused frown made creases appear between your eyebrows, your head tilting to the side slightly, “What?” The expression on Jimin’s face instantly shifted, his eyes morphing into sweet half crescents as he beamed at you brightly - the direct contrast to his face previously almost gave you whiplash.

He rubbed your shoulder reassuringly, “Nothing,” he said, eyes drifting over to where Hoseok was still sat, “Am I okay to put my things in the guest room?” You nodded in agreement, allowing him to scurry back to where he had dumped his bags in the entranceway.

No matter how jealous he was, it did nothing to stop the fond smile from creeping onto his lips when he heard your squeal of joy when the oven timer went off: a high-pitched shriek of ‘my cookies!’ filling the apartment. He had missed this.

24th December

In true Christmas Eve fashion, you were awoken by the feeling of another body pressing down heavily upon you. A sleepy groan escaped your mouth and you swatted your arm out in front of you, your instincts telling you to remove the intrusion so you could return back to your sleep. Your hand grazed against a hard chest uselessly, a giggle vibrating within it and you scowled. “Really?” you slurred, hand released by the body so you could rub the grogginess from your eyes. “Do you need to do this every year?”

The body slid off from on top of you so they were lying on their side facing you, “Yep!” Jimin sang, a wolffish grin corrupting his angelic features as you managed to peel your eyes open, “It’s 12 years of tradition!” He feigned an aghast expression, hand reaching for his chest in shock.

“It’s a shit tradition,” you muttered unhappily, lip jutting out excessively as you glared up at him. Had you not been grumpy and half-a sleepy, you were convinced that you would have stopped breathing at the sight of him. He had bleached his hair whilst he was away working and was an ashy blonde colour that emphasised the golden tone to his skin. It was early so, he hadn’t had the chance to put any makeup on but, he was still every bit as perfect without it. You didn’t know how he expected you to lie there with him looking at you like that and not feel emotions.

Jimin laughed, a child-like sound that made his eyes crease up - he would complain about this when you both had been younger, claiming ‘he couldn’t see’. He rested on his left arm, his right hand gently poking in your side as quick as an adder, “Don’t curse on the tradition!” A sound akin to a growl came from your chest and he continued, “It’s Christmas Eve, I made you breakfast just like I always do.”

Your eyes were wide awake at that; the familiar rush being around Jimin made goosebumps erupt upon your skin and you were sure that your cheeks must have been blushed pink. Every Christmas Eve since you had both moved out, Jimin would wake you up to a home-cooked breakfast. “Did you now?” You managed to get out, your lips turning up at the corners into a tiny smile.

“Yeah,” he nodded, reaching forward to tuck a rogue lock of hair behind your ear so he could see your face better, “Tae’s coming over at 4pm with Tannie as well so, I’m assuming you want to bleach every surface of the house.” You were torn between kissing and cursing at him. As soon as his fingertips had grazed against your skin, it had burned a hot red colour and made your stomach erupt in butterflies. Any form of affection was quickly eradicated by his reminder you were hosting for guests; it was one thing he arrived unannounced the previous afternoon when you were cooking with Hoseok but to have an ‘official’ guest and their dog - it was enough for you to break out in hives.

You whined childishly, hands turning into fists around the duvet as you tried to bring it up over your head. Jimin laughed before slipping off the bed and reaching over to yank the duvet away from you. Groaning loudly, you stretched your arms above your head, your cami riding up to just above your waist. He gulped, eyes flickering away to focus on anything other than the soft skin that the sight of was setting your nerves alight. You kicked your legs over the side and dragged yourself onto the floor, clambering to your feet and blindly stumbling towards him. Burying your head into his chest, you tugged him towards you by his waist and allowed your eyes to flutter closed. “Naptime,” you murmured, nuzzling into him. In the back of your mind, it occurred to you that Jimin’s heartbeat sped up but, you waved it off.

“Come on,” he encouraged, fingers rubbing circles on the bottom of your back soothingly, “I made pancakes,” he sang, trying to tempt you into moving. Evidently, he succeeded as your back quickly straightened before you ducked out of his arms and scuttled down the stairs. Jimin’s laughs echoed through the house as he trailed behind you, finding you perched at the breakfast counter in front of your plate as you bounced your knees excitedly.

Your heart may as well have stopped beating as you smiled down at the stack of buttermilk pancakes your best friend had made you, he had written out ‘I love you’ but with a heart made of strawberries instead of love. You looked up to where he was leaning against the doorway, smiling at you fondly, “I love you too, Jimin-ie.” As you looked back down at the plate, you missed the smile fading from his face as he realises you misread what he was saying.

The doorbell rang two hours later, Jimin’s fact automatically brightening significantly as he jumped up from his post for icing cookies to scramble towards the front door. You breathed out a laugh, wiping a piece of hair out your face and accidentally coating it with bright pink icing. A giggle escaped your mouth as you looked down at the set Jimin had been icing; their eyes were all wide-set and had tiny mouths with small curves for noses, they were wrapped up in hats and scarves with had pink icing on their round cheeks. You looked up when a loud bark sounded through the house followed by the pattering of tiny claws against your wooden floor.

Yeontan’s little head poke through the doorway and headed straight towards you, feet only just missing a pot of icing as he jumped onto your lap. “Hi, gorgeous!” You cooed, voice rising in pitch as your fingers scratched behind his ears, “I see you’re ready for Christmas.” Taehyung had tucked him into a dark green jumper with a white snowflake pattern, his collar had a tartan bow attached.

“Just like his Dad.” You glanced up to where Jimin’s voice had come from to spot Taehyung in an identical jumper to his dog’s, his freshly dyed black hair curling at the collar. Unable to help it, you laughed at him, shaking your head incredulously because it could only have been him to do such a thing. Cradling the pomeranian in your arms, you got to your feet and headed over to where your best friends were stood. You passed Yeontan over to Jimin carefully before attacking Taehyung in a tight bear hug, his height making him perfect for burying your head in his chest.

Pulling away, you leant up to press a kiss against his cheek as you always did. Once again, you were oblivious to the way Jimin seemed to deflate at the shared act it affection between the two of you. “How are you, Tae?” You asked, heading back over to your cookies which you began to slide onto display plates so you could leave them on the side.

“I’m pretty good,” he said, picking Yeontan up before settling on a stool at the breakfast bar with him on his lap, “My editor’s been pretty impressed with my photographs this quarter, my supervisor says I might be up for a promotion.”

Jimin paused his destruction of the leftover cookies, a gingerbread head stuffed into his mouth as he exclaimed, “That’s amazing!” Except, it was almost indecipherable as he sprayed the breakfast counter with gingerbread crumbs.

You paused your tidying to give him a disappointed look that told him exactly how disgusting you found him, he pouted and shoved the torso into his mouth in defiance. Taehyung only ignored your bickering, nodding at Jimin in thanks as he waved it off as he usually did. “Forget that,” he said, rubbing Yeontan’s tummy beneath his jumper, “How are you doing? Is Hobi still coming over for your weekly movie nights?”

As you finished setting them out, you snickered rolling your eyes as you recalled your various movie nights with Hoseok — there was a lot of shrieking and crying on his end. “Obviously,” you drawled teasingly, teaching towards Yeontan with grabby hands and cooing when the small dog was in your arms again, “Nothing makes me feel better than when he throws me on top of him so he can’t see the film to be scared by it,” you and Taehyung both rolled your eyes playfully at your words, having both been party to Hoseok’s desperate attempts to avoid a horror movie.

“I have no idea why he still comes round every week to watch them, you always choose horror movies just to fuck with him,” Taehyung pointed out, trying and failing to sound disapproving after his antics — after all, it had been the both of you that started the tradition of scaring your older friend.

Clicking your tongue, you shrugged nonchalantly, “What can I say, he loves me!” Despite you both laughing at your conversation, there was a deeply contrasting reaction from the rest of the room. Jimin let out a sound that wasn’t dissimilar to that of a child which was unhappy with the amount of attention he was receiving, his arms were crossed as he glared at the floor with his mouth in a harsh, straight line.

The smile on your face faded into a frown as you looked at your best friend in concern, “Is everything okay, Jimin-ie?” He has been so happy when you were icing cookies together and singing along to the Frozen soundtrack terribly. But, now it was as though he was an entirely different person, he had completely closed off.

Any sign of distress from Jimin disappeared as he gave you a far too convincing smile, “Yes, I’m great, sorry. I just got distracted is all.” You returned his look with an uneasy smile; something was off with him, there was a hard glint in his eye that wasn’t usually there and it was unnerving you.

“Sure, if you say so,” you glanced over to Taehyung who looked equally as disconcerted as you, “I have an idea!” You beamed at your best friends brightly, “I’ve got Trivial Pursuit in the closet somewhere, should we play it — just like old times?” Even if they hadn’t wanted to, there was no way they could have said no to the wide-eyed look of excitement on your face. They both chorused in agreement and allowed you to skip upstairs, handing Yeontan back over to Taehyung as you passed, humming Feliz Navidad under your breath as you went.

As soon as you had reached the top floor, Taehyung turned to face Jimin head-on, an uncharacteristic scowl disrupting his usually happy features, “What was that?”

“What was what?” Jimin shot back, stepping away from his best friend in slight shock from the unusual confrontational nature of the conversation — it wasn’t often the two of them would disagree, they were usually on the exact same wavelength.

Taehyung scoffed, letting Yeontan onto the floor as he began to wriggle around in discomfort, “‘What was what?’” He repeated mockingly, eyes rolling so hard they could have gotten stuck in the back of his head, “Why are you acting so weird?” He hissed at him, eyebrows forming deep furrows in his tan skin.

Jimin’s face curled up in confusion, “I’m not acting weird?” He said, voice tilting upward slightly in uncertainty.

“Oh really,” Taehyung said, sarcasm almost dripping from his words, “As soon as _____ started talking about Hoseok your mood plummeted, why?” There was an almost interrogative nature to the conversation and Jimin took half a step back, he felt slightly on edge from such a direct question coming from his best friend.

Granted, Jimin probably could have gotten away with re-directing the conversation — had his face automatically not fallen into a scowl at the mention of their older friend. Through gritted teeth, he managed to say, “I have no idea what you mean.” His body slumped, he knew that he had been caught out.

Taehyung arched an eyebrow, blowing out an incredulous laugh as he looked over his features, “Oh, I can’t believe this,” he shook his head in disbelief, “You’re jealous! This is rich.” It was Taehyung who had been the confidant to you about your many turmoils regarding your feelings for Jimin. There had been many nights spent curled up under a fluffy blanket with a half a bottle of tequila shared between you as you cried over Jimin’s latest ‘fling’. Sometimes, he couldn’t quite comprehend how oblivious the pair of you were.

Completely thrown, Jimin glanced upward as though you were listening in from directly above them, “Lower your voice,” he hissed, “What do you mean?” Taehyung was speaking as though he knew something that he didn’t and it was making Jimin nervous.

“You’re both idiots,” as he spotted the confused look on Jimin’s face, he laughed humourlessly, “God, you’re both oblivious,” Taehyung shook his head and glanced towards where you had disappeared off to, “Be jealous all you want but — don’t you dare ruin Christmas.”

25th December

“Noona!” Jungkook called out, skipping into the kitchen, “Where should I put the presents?” He asked, moving around to stand over your shoulder and press a kiss against your temple. You were pouring a mixture of dark rum and Cognac into the vat of eggnog you had set up on the kitchen counter. Behind you, Seokjin was wrapping the pigs in blankets as he stood with his chest adorned by his ‘Kiss the Chef’ apron and Yoongi was basting the roast potatoes before he could slide them into the oven.

You paused what you were doing to reach around to return a kiss on his cheek before beginning to stir in the alcohol, “They should be alright beneath the tree — just make sure Tannie doesn’t open them.” He nodded before scurrying back into the living room, you could hear him instructing the others on what to do and you smiled to yourself. You turned to call out to Yoongi, “How long left?” You were finished and the sooner the fiends you called your friends ate, the sooner you could open presents.

“Just about done,” he said softly, dropping the tray onto the side carefully so nothing was knocked. From beside you, Seokjin let out a sigh of relief as he finally began to carve the turkey whilst both you and Yoongi started preparing the plates.

Once he was finished, Seokjin rolled his sleeves up and called out loudly to the others, “Yah! Come and eat!” The thundering of footsteps quickly overwhelmed the Christmas music Taehyung had playing quietly on the speaker as they all rushed to get the best seat at the table, the three of you exchanged playful rolls of your eyes.

As hard as you tried, Jungkook ended up with half of the food piled onto his plate as always and you were far too weak for the youngest to deny him. You found yourself sat between Hoseok and Taehyung with Jimin sat directly opposite to you. Just as you all finished eating, Namjoon (who had been drinking far too much Soju) started a beautiful rendition of Last Christmas and, somewhere along the way, Hoseok had joined in and was swaying in his seat, an arm wrapped around your shoulder affectionately.

Eventually, you all finished eating and you joined in the singing, your head resting on Hoseok’s shoulder as your right hand rested in Taehyung’s left. Once again, you were oblivious to the way Jimin’s entire body had stiffened when you moved closer to your older friend. Following this, Jimin has received a stern and disapproving glare from Taehyung who had witnessed the usually soft features of his face darken. Seokjin was soon able to tempt you back into the living room with the promise of opening presents and you were now laid out across one of the loveseats with your legs propped up on Jimin’s lap. A blanket was wrapped around your shoulders, you left hands in fists to keep it right with the presents you had opened on the floor beside you.

“_____!” Hoseok shouted, almost making you jump out of your skin at how loud he was, “Give me my present!” He stomped his foot childishly, exaggeratedly sticking his bottom lip out to give the impression he was a whiny infant — it was successful.

You shook your head, kicking your legs off of Jimin and ignoring the tiny whine that came from his chest when you left him. “Here,” you said, tossing the large present over to him, making Namjoon duck when the bottom of it almost slammed into his face, “Open it,” you encouraged eagerly as you made your way over to him and perched on the arm of the sofa nearest to him. You couldn’t stop the bark of laughter that came out when you saw his face drop once he had ripped off the paper.

It was a real life-sized body pillow with your face embedded into the fabric of the head. The entire room was in hysterics as they watched him look down at the gift with utter disdain. You slipped off the arm of the chair, your amusement masking any pain you felt in your back from the fall. “Now you can cling to me in fear even when I’m not there,” you managed to get out between shaky breaths. You had no idea how quickly he had moved because your hands had been hiding the ways your face contorted as you laughed but, Hoseok was above you and tickling you mercilessly, managing to drag shrieks of laughter out of you.

During the uproar you and Hoseok caused, Jimin had slipped into the kitchen and was leaning against the wall, glaring at the fridge across from him harshly. God, he wished he didn’t have feelings for you — not when it was so obvious that you would never return them. How long would he have to watch you and Hoseok flirt right in front of him, it was ruining his Christmas.

“You’re such an idiot,” Yoongi commented dryly, hip propped up against the counter in the centre of the kitchen. Taehyung was beside him and giving him an equally disgruntled look. “_____ is worried about you.”

The shorter man’s face screwed up in confusion as he glanced between his two friends, “Sure didn’t look like it,” he scoffed incredulously, head tipping slightly to where you still resided. They were telling him you were worried but, how could he believe that when he had seen how ecstatic you were with Hoseok?

Before Jimin could react, Yoongi has moved forward to clip him round the ear, glaring at him darkly as he retreated back to Taehyung’s side. A high pitched whine came from him but, they just ignored him, “_____ and Hoseok only started spending time together because she was sad about you being gone so often,” his face softened slightly, “And because she’s far nicer than any of us deserve, she refused to say anything — we took matters into our own hands.”

Taehyung sighed softly, easily identifying the confusion on his best friend’s face, “Out of the two of you, she’s the one who has more of a right to be jealous — she’s stood by and watched you fuck around with anyone that caught your eye.” This did nothing to ease Jimin’s confusion, his face contorting even further than should be possible. “I can’t say anything else just — wait to see her Christmas present for you? Okay?” It must have looked as though the two of them were lecturing Jimin quite harshly because as you entered the kitchen you froze in the doorway, a concerned look on your face as you glanced between the three of them.

“Is everything okay?” You asked, mouth turning down slightly into a frown as you quickly noticed the affronted expression on Jimin’s face.

Smiles were quick to replace the stern scowls on Taehyung and Yoongi’s faces, the former rubber your shoulder affectionately as he moved over to you, “Everything’s perfect, nothing to worry about.” The two left, not before sending a meaningful look towards Jimin.

Eyes narrowing slightly, you turned back to him but, chose not to say anything and instead, gave him a bright smile, “Come on, I want to give you your present now.” You laced your hand through his own, fingers interlocking, and pulled him towards the back door. Jimin stumbled slightly on the top step, not expecting for the two of you to be heading into the garden.

“Why’s my present out here?” He asked dumbly, his mind failing to find better words to ask you — when it came to you, he never really could think straight.

Shoulders shaking with laughter slightly, you guided him down the steps and paused in front of him, “Look up, idiot.” There was laughter behind your words as Jimin looked up with an entirely gone out expression, he hadn’t thought to check what had been happening around him.

He felt as though his breath had been stolen from his lungs, in the corner of your garden was a treehouse. There was a rope ladder leading up to the entrance which you had lined with flickering fairy lights, he could see the inside which, despite being small, was lined with fuzzy blankets and rugs so it was perfectly cosy. For a moment, he just stood there with his lips parted in shock; you had made a replica of your shared childhood treehouse. It had been built on a tree that passed over the fences of both of your gardens and it was simple enough to build ladders up from both sides. There had been countless nights spent in that treehouse, laughing quietly to not wake up your parents, shared secrets beneath hushed voices.

“Y-You,” he was absolutely speechless, a knot forming in his stomach as he took in the sight, “You built it?” There weren’t enough words to form a sentence that would explain what the treehouse meant to him.

You hummed, nodding in affirmation and you began to pull him towards the rope ladder, “Not on my own — Hoseok was a big help,” you paused at the base of the tree, “But essentially, yes.” Jimin’s chest rose and fell repeatedly, eyes not leaving your face for so long that a pink blush began to rise to your cheeks. “Come on, let’s look inside.”

You were both sat on the edge of the wooden floor, your legs dangling over the edge as you feet occasionally knocked against the rope ladder between you. Beside you, Jimin shuffled with something that he held between his fingers but, you kept your eyes trained on the sky as you tried to spot the very few constellations you could identify. Orion’s Belt, Capricorn, Cassiopeia.

“Merry Christmas, _____,” Jimin said softly, his hand extended out to with a small square box within it. You exhaled slightly, wide eyes flickering between him and the box making him nod to you in encouragement. With shaking fingers, you were able to slowly open the lid of the white leather box.

A quiet gasp filled the treehouse as you stared down at your present with glistening eyes. It was a pendant made from two interlocking circles, on one of the curves it had ‘forever’ engraved into it. But, you knew Jimin couldn’t mean this in the way you hoped he would — he must be showing his appreciation for your twelve-year long friendship, he might have even gotten one for Taehyung.

“I mean it,” he said, voice almost inaudible despite the relative silence of your surroundings, “You and I, _____, we’re forever.” At that moment, you could have sworn a shard of your heart entered your lung at the rate your ability to breathe was leaving you.

Sniffing slightly, you allowed your fingertip to trace the engraved word as you admired it with tear-filled eyes, “Yeah, we’ll be best friends forever, Jimin-ie.” You cast your eyes down to the ground, as always, you were oblivious to the way your words had made his stomach sink and twist in its place. You would never return his feelings, everything was pointless. Beside him, you were doing your best to squeeze the unwanted tears back into your eyes as you resigned yourself to the eternal position of his best friend. You didn’t want to get your hopes up. “Let’s go back to the others — it must be eggnog time now.”

There were two lost hearts in that treehouse.

26th December

Maybe the eggnog hadn’t been that good of an idea. The creamy alcoholic goodness had not lasted long after Jimin poured the majority of it down his throat as soon as he got into the kitchen. From there, the group had moved to pure spirits and liquors which was what had led to Seokjin stood on your coffee table with a wooden spoon for a microphone. As much as you hated to admit it, he was doing Bonnie Tyler’s ‘Total Eclipse of the Heart’ some form of justice as he leant on one knee, eyes closed in passion.

You were leant against Hoseok’s chest, a blanket covering the pair of you as you tucked your legging clad legs into your chest. Your hands were wrapped around a coffee mug that was, in reality, filled with rum and coke which you were sipping on in between your additions to the songs your friends were singing. Thankfully, it seemed that Seokjin’s voice was finally beginning to strain and the rest of them were beginning to quiet down, huddling on the other sofas and laughing far too loudly.

“Noona, can we watch a film?” Jungkook pleaded from his spot on your right, his doe-eyes appearing to have stars in them with the way the light was hitting them. As much as you were nowhere near the oldest of the group, they all knew that Christmas was entirely your domain.

There was a chorus of agreements from everyone else, Hoseok letting out a shriek of joy that earned him an elbow to the ribcage. “Of course, Kookie. What do you want to watch?” Quickly he leapt up from his seat on the sofa and launched for the remote, already beginning to search through what you had on-demand.

An excited squeal came from him as he began to bounce slightly on the spot, “Can we watch ‘How the Grinch Stole Christmas’?” In response to him, almost everyone shouted their desire to watch the film, Yoongi most notably saying that he ‘modelled his personality after him’ - in reality, he was the biggest softy of you all but, you and the boys liked to let him pretend otherwise.

“No,” Hoseok whined, leaning forward so your body was bent uncomfortably, “_____ and I watched it last week.” There was a general response of contempt from everyone but, no one was more enthusiastic about Jimin. After consuming at least half of the eggnog was not the end of Jimin’s antics, it seemed that he had also monopolised the bottles of Tequila he knew you kept in your cupboards and was now nursing a bottle as though he was 3 months old again. He had been watching you and Hoseok curled up in the corner and it seemed that extreme amounts of alcohol tended to make him highly spiteful, it only made sense to him that the reason you obviously didn’t return his feelings was because of how close you and Hoseok had become - the others were either ignorant or hiding something. Of course, had he been sober he would be entirely too aware of how ludicrous he was being but, unfortunately for everyone in the house, he was not sober.

He had scoffed overly loudly, the sound filling the room with a silence that seemed to stifle the air out of everyone’s lungs. Your back stiffened, muscles coiling up in knots as you turned in on yourself, trying to appear smaller from your spot in Hoseok’s arms. A low grumble vibrated in his chest from behind you, a hand rubbing a soothing circle on the skin of your waist. “I’m sorry, Jimin, is something wrong?” His voice was low, he leaned forward slightly so he could turn his neck to raise an eyebrow the younger man’s way.

You tried to subdue the small whimper that was building in your throat as Jimin let out an indecipherable noise that was undoubtedly a result of the alcohol blurring his brain. Hoseok clicked his tongue in mock disapproval, “I didn’t quite catch that, speak up.” Honestly, he felt that he had every right to be overprotective of you considering he had been a first-hand witness to your various heartbreaks at the sight of Jimin’s various conquests.

There was a collection of mutters from the other boys, as Jimin fidgeted in his seat - not out of nerves but rather out of stifled jealousy. “I said that there was nothing wrong,” he ground out, teeth clenched harshly as Yoongi gave him a stern look. However, this did nothing to calm Hoseok who scoffed from behind you and began to sit even further forward, forcing you to straighten yourself entirely.

“Oh really? Because ever since you’ve come home you’ve been acting pretty shit.” This time you couldn’t help the tired groan the fell from your mouth, you wrapped the blanket around yourself tighter out of discomfort. You hated when any of the boys argued, it made your skin crawl uncomfortably and you closed your eyes as if it could allow you to disappear from the room.

From behind you, shuffling could be heard that you knew was Jimin stumbling to his feet, “Maybe if you and _____ weren’t throwing your happy relationship in our faces the whole time, I wouldn’t be.” A pin could have dropped in your living room, that was how silent it had fallen — you weren’t even sure that you were still breathing. Had all of this been because of Hoseok becoming closer with you? Maybe Taehyung was right about you being oblivious.

With silver-lined eyes, you got to your feet and turned to face him, “You’re such an idiot,” you said, a wobbly smile betraying your emotions to the room. You turned on your heel, leaving the house as quickly as humanly possible.

Hoseok turned to face Jimin fully, ready to sling out a steady stream of curses that portrayed exactly how he was feeling towards him at the moment but, Yoongi has beaten him to it. “Get up!” He snarled, pointing towards the stairs as he stormed over to him, gripping his wrist tightly and dragging him out of the living room. The two left the room behind, the others whispering about what had been said and what it meant.

“Sit down,” Yoongi ordered, pushing him into the shower in your en suite. Stuttering slightly, Jimin eventually did as he asked and curled up beneath the showerhead in a child-like manner. “First, you’re going to sober up. Then, you’re going to go back out there and fix everything,” he said glaring down at the younger man coldly.

Jimin looked up at him with wide, confused eyes that made him appear as though he was a tiny puppy, “Why do we have to be in the bathroom for that?”

Had Yoongi not been irritated with him, he probably would have cooed at him but instead, a wicked smile spread across his lips, “So I can do this.” The cold tap turned on full blast, the sound of rushing water not overwhelming the high pitched shrieks that were spilling from his mouth. They could be heard from downstairs, the other boys sharing both amused and concerned glances about what exactly Yoongi was doing to Jimin.

“Should I stop now?” He asked teasingly. Jimin tried to speak up but only spluttered against the strong current of water, his eyes blurring from the liquid. “Guess not,” he said, clicking his tongue is feigned disappointment as he continued focusing the water on Jimin. This continued for another three minutes until he was sure that his friend’s eyes were entirely clear and he was sober. “Better?”

Jimin coughed, a hand brushing back the soaked hair off his forehead before he turned to glare at his older friend darkly, “Yes.”

As soon as you had managed to escape the living room your first thought was to go to the treehouse, you weren’t overtly hiding from any of them just wanting some peace where they wouldn’t see you shed any tears. You knew Jimin would come and find you eventually, you weren’t sure what that conversation would entail precisely. Had he been jealous? Your best friend should have known you better than to think you would hide a relationship from him — especially one with another of your best friends. You must have been up there for around ten minutes before anyone joined you.

The first thing you saw was the top of Jimin’s head, his ashy blonde hair was slicked back to expose his forehead — internally, you cursed his ability to make your heart skip a beat even when you were upset. As he clambered up, you averted your gaze out of self-consciousness, you knew that your skin must have been red and puffy from crying. You only turned when you knew he was sat beside you.

“Hoseok and I have always been just friends,” you spoke softly, afraid your voice would shake at all, “We only started spending so much time together because he knew I missed you.” With your head tilted slightly to face him you saw him open his mouth to interject, you placed your hand on his own gently to stop him, “Let me speak first, please,” you inhaled softly, “I’ve been in love with you since we were fourteen. It’s always been you, Jimin-ie.” Out of fear, your eyes flickered away from him and chose to rest on the bench that resided by the back of your house.

In an act of reassurance, Jimin tightened his grip on your hand and interlaced your fingers together, both of you stared down at them — you and he together had always felt so right. “I don’t remember when I fell in love with you,” he whispered, eyes firmly fixed on where your hands met, “But, I knew for sure when we were sixteen; I couldn’t stand seeing you with anybody else — I was jealous.” Plucking up some form of courage, his fingers gently grasped your jaw and tilted it so you were looking him in the eye, “No one— forget that — I only feel truly like myself when we’re together. It’s like I can’t breathe but, I don’t need to because you’re with me.”

Your cheeks were dusted with that familiar shade of pink that only seemed to appear with him, “W-What are you saying?” Your voice was only just loud enough to be heard, you didn’t want to think you had misinterpreted anything. At this, Jimin rolled his eyes at you, hand falling down to delicately rest on your shoulder.

“Tae and Yoongi were right — we really are both idiots.” Your eyes narrowed and you lips parted to curse him out but, he continued, “What I’m saying is, I love you, _____, and I want to be with you,” his eyes widened, “If you’ll have me, that is.” There was a shy smile on his face, half of him was terrified you would change your mind and tell him it was a Christmas prank — if they even were a thing.

Chuckling softly, you leaned forward, fingers curling around the waves at the base of his neck, “Of course I’ll have you, idiot.” Your eyes flickered down to where his plump lips were slightly part as he did the same, your eyes fluttered closed and you pressed your lips against his. There weren’t any fireworks, honestly, you weren’t sure if there ever were for anyone but, you had never felt so at home and certain about a person than you did with Jimin.

He pulled away to breathe, his thumb caressing your jaw as you rested your forehead against his, “I love you,” he murmured, eyes only open slightly so he could gaze into your own.

“I love you,” you returned, hand pressing against the back of his neck to tug him back into another a kiss, lips gently massaging against his. Something occurred to you and you pulled away, hands gripping onto his collar as you looked at him curiously, “Why is your hair wet?”

He sighed, eyes closing in a tired form of resignation, “Yoongi showered me in cold water to sober me up.” You couldn’t help the laughter that bubbles at your lips, head ducking down in a weak attempt to hide it from him. Jimin gasped in feigned offence, trying to pull away from you but you gripped onto him tightly, you didn’t want to let go of him if you didn’t have to.

Smiling down at you softly, he murmured, “Merry Christmas, _____.” He pulled you into another kiss, both of you smiling into it as his tongue lingered at the seam of your lips i. a way that seemed to promise more.

Out of breath slightly, you moved back to whisper, “Merry Christmas, Jimin.”

There was a reason Christmas was your favourite time of year.

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psycho-slytherin · 5 years ago

Text

Strangers ch. 36

Your relationship with Yoongi gets picked apart, and the commercial begins.

Pairing: Yoongi x (female) Reader

Word count: 2.3k

Genre: fluff, angst

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Your heart drops into your stomach, rips through your body, and continues down through the Earth’s crust. “Oh, c’mon, that wasn’t me. You have to know that wasn’t me.” It’s who I was before I knew you, a voice in your head echoes. God, did you love this man before you met him, before you fully registered that he was real.

Yoongi laughs. “Oh, I figured– I only wanted to tease you. You’ve been hacked, right?”

“I must’ve been, yeah. I haven’t liked any tweets like that.” You wink exaggeratedly. “At least, not since I knew you.” There’s something about the newfound freedom in your heart, the lightweight truth, that lends you far more confidence than you’ve had lately. He is your friend, after all.

Yoongi rests his elbows on the table. “I just hope you’ve changed your password already, before your hacker does it first.”

“Oh shit, you’re right!” You’ve had the same password for most of your online accounts for years, and it’s probably time to change them around before someone else gets into your electronic life. You hurriedly grab your phone and change your Twitter password; thankfully, it doesn’t seem like whoever trolled you did so first.

“How are you doing, by the way? With the cold, I mean.”

“Heh, what do you think?” You unzip your jacket to reveal a sweater underneath. After your photoshoot yesterday, you felt like you’d never be warm again. “It’s weird, I never minded the cold before.”

“After what happened, it’s no wonder you’re traumatized.” Yoongi rests a reassuring hand on your shoulder, and some part of your heart begins to sing. “Just, you gotta know that your body is warm enough already, and I don’t want you to get heatstroke from all those layers.”

“I’ll be careful.” Seoul’s central hospital is probably sick of you at this point, not that you can blame them.

“Good.” Yoongi leans back, and the loss of contact is almost startling. “Watcha up to this week, workaholic?”

“Besides Moon Over the Sea?” You check your work calendar, the one both you and Lisa have access to. “I’ve got a commercial shoot for some cologne all day Friday and Saturday.”

Yoongi whistles. “Why’ve they got you scheduled for men’s cologne? And damn, I was gonna ask if you wanted to come over to our place Saturday night for dinner but it sounds like you’ll be busy. We’re gonna be working in Japan but we get back Saturday.”

“Don’t count on it, but I’ll see if I can make it. I’ll text you, yeah?”

“Sure.” Your friend rises from his chair. “Well, I better be off. See ya tomorrow for filming, and…” he winks. “Don’t get too distracted by my tongue, hm?”

Every drop of blood in your body rushes to your cheeks as Yoongi bursts out laughing. “I was hacked, you goddamn flirt!” You swat at him, forcing your racing heart to calm. “God, does Hobi know you’re cheating on him?”

“You know him, he’s worse than I am.” Yoongi’s voice is still full of mirth, his lips pulled back to expose his gums. It’s the kind of expression you died for when you were an ARMY… and it seems it’s still affecting you now.

“Just go away, nerd. Aren’t you working on your next mixtape?”

“Yeah, and it’s gonna be fire.”

“Enjoy arson then, but enjoy it in your own studio. I have homework.” With a final lighthearted salute, Yoongi departs and you’re left alone in your apartment, your heart hammering dangerously. You don’t have homework. Or, you do, but you certainly don’t plan on doing it. You’re an actress now, and gaining acclaim. You have better things to do– which is why it’s so frustrating that you’re letting Yoongi mess with your head. You thought you’d put the feelings you’d had as an ARMY behind you– those childlike emotions, the rush of excitement that left you reeling, the breathlessness at his every verse– you’d fallen in love with Suga, just like every other ARMY.

Once you got to know Yoongi, and not just Suga, you were certain your heart would stop skipping a beat when you saw him. And it did for a while, when you were dating Xiumin. But now, now that you’re supposed to be dating Suga…

It feels… different. You feel different.

Your thoughts are interrupted by your buzzing phone. More hate comments, you’re sure. One of these days you’re gonna be mad enough to respond to the shit you’re getting, and that’s gonna be a fucking good day.

The days pass, and the filming of Moon Over the Sea continues smoothly.

“Ji-Woo! A letter! Ji-Woo’s got a letter!” The actress playing one of your sisters hurries to you, clutching an elegant envelope.

“A letter?” The rest of your character’s family crowds around you as your ‘mother’ speaks. “Go on, Ji-Woo, read it!”

You tear open the prop envelope. “It’s from Mr. Moon’s sister…” You pretend to read. The scene is all about you discovering that Yoongi’s character has gone back to the city without warning, even after he said he loved you. It’s about you learning that you’ll never see him again.

Never seeing Yoongi again… the thought makes your heart ache and you feel tears begin to well up, almost spilling over. You grip the paper tighter, struggling to maintain your composure. Yoongi’s not on set today, and it makes it easier for you remember those times, those terrible, stupid times when you and Yoongi stopped talking for weeks or months because of some dumb argument or another. You can’t even begin to imagine being truly separated from your friend again.

“Oh, give me that!” Your sister snatches the letter out of your hand– you’d been so zoned out you forgot to say your lines. Shit, what kind of actress are you? “It says that they’re leaving for the city! Without a goodbye? I thought for sure that Mr. Moon was in love with Ji-Woo!”

“Oh, mercy!” Your mother wails, wringing her hands. “I was so certain there’d be a wedding by the end of the summer!”

You turn sharply. A wedding? As if Yoongi would ever marry you. Yet how many times had you, as his fan, dreamt of such a day?

Bo-Young, the main character, draws you away. “Are you alright, Ji-Woo?”

“I’m-” At last, you’re able to recall your lines, what you’re here for. “I’m perfectly fine. We were friendly acquaintances… nothing more.” Yes, just strangers. You remember when you had to pretend Yoongi was a stranger to you, and not a man you’d fallen for four years earlier. You summon that familiar sense of utter denial and let it rest upon your shoulders, relaxing your features, even as you feel close to breaking.

“Come, Ji-Woo, I know that’s not true!” “I said I’m fine, sister.” you reply sharply.

“And cut! That was spectacular, ladies, I think we’re keeping that take– Jeongyeon, good improvising. And y/n…” Avery turns to you. “That was great acting. Really great. I could feel the emotion there.”

“No wonder, it’s her boyfriend that’s left,” one of your costars, Jeongyeon, giggles. “She’d better get used to it.”

“Jeongyeon!” Bo-Young scolds. “That’s mean.”

“What? Y/n’s dating Suga from BTS! You really think they’re going to stay together?” Jeongyeon shoots you a glance. “Sorry, y/n, it’s just the truth.”

“Oh, I…” There’s nothing you can say. “I mean, you’re allowed to speak your mind.”

“But you do like him, right?” Jeongyeon leans forward and you laugh nervously, shrinking back as she looms over you.

“What are you, a reporter?”

“I’m just curious! It’s not like you two are all lovey-dovey– you don’t even seem like a couple!”

“Love doesn’t need to be physical,” Bo-Young steps in and you smile at her gratefully. “As long as they’re happy together, it’s none of our business. I’m sure y/n has enough on her shoulders without her costars attacking her as well, Jeongyeon.”

“Sorry, sorry, sheesh– c’mon, y/n, you know we all love you! Except your haters, amirite?” Jeongyeon pokes you teasingly and flounces away.

“Sorry about her,” Bo-Young says later, as the crew packs up the set for the day. “She’s just a gossip– Jeongyeon doesn’t mean any harm. Are you gonna be okay?”

“Hm? Yeah. I’m used to it.” You chuckle hollowly while slipping on your street clothes. “It’s whatever. Thanks for the help.”

“Of course. You’re getting a lot of hate, I’ve seen it online. We’ve all been there, y/n, and the only thing you can really do is turn to your friends when it gets hard.”

“Thanks, Bo-Young.” You check your phone and notice the time. The commercial shoot is in forty minutes. “Shit! I gotta get going– see you at filming tomorrow!” You bid your costar a hasty goodbye and hurry to the door, already opening your phone to call a car when you hear a honk outside the studio.

For a second, you feel excitement flood your veins– did Yoongi decide to pick you up even though he didn’t have to be onset today?

Lisa pokes her head out of the window. “C’mon, girl!”

Oh, right. The members of BTS are promoting in Japan.

“Thanks for the lift,” you say as you climb into your friend’s car.

“Of course! I mean, your address hasn’t leaked online and we have to keep it that way, ya feel?” Lisa clasps her hands together. “No more rideshare apps for you, miss y/n!”

You laugh. “Love you, Lisa– and please keep your eyes on the road.”

Your friend coughs. “Right back atcha, darling. The love, not the road.”

The drive to your shoot is quiet for a moment before Lisa speaks again. “Hey, there haven’t been any weirdos around set, right? I’ve been seeing a ton of online rumors that there’s a plan to leak Moon Over the Sea footage to, and I quote, ‘ruin y/n’s career’.”

You roll your eyes. “I’ve seen those. Yeah, no creeps that I’ve noticed, and I have a feeling they’d only come to film Yoongi, not me.”

“Speaking of, how’s your Prince Charming doing?” Lisa asks, raising a brow.

You sigh. “He’s not my Prince Charming.” Honestly, the one time you tell the truth is the one time your friend doesn’t believe you. Talk about crying wolf.

“Yeah, yeah, you’re keeping it quiet for the cameras, I get it. Just let me know if he breaks your heart, got it?” Lisa cracks her knuckles menacingly.

“Hands on the wheel, girl!”

“It’s fine, I’ve never crashed before.” Still, Lisa straightens up and grips the wheel once more. “Hey, do you ever get to meet the rest of BTS?”

“Uh…” What should you do, what can you say? “Sometimes?”

“Woah. See, that’s fuckin’ amazing. My best friend, everyone! Casually meeting the greatest musicians on the planet!”

You laugh at Lisa’s enthusiasm. “Turn right, the studio is down there.”

“Yeah, yeah. Anyways, I was wondering if you could, y’know, maybe…” Lisa’s tone turns wheedling. “Let me meet them? Or at least just send me another video of Jimin talking to me?”

“I…” You should’ve expected this– it’s the kind of thing your best friend would consider a given. “I’ll see what I can do, okay? No promises.”

“Thanks, love! I appreciate it more than you could ever know.” Lisa stops the car outside the studio. “Break a leg!”

“Only if you don’t break yours,” you reply as you get out and head towards the studio door. “Drive safe, Lisa!”

Once inside, you make your way to the front desk. A pretty woman with a tight bun greets you.

“Hi, I’m l/n y/n here for the cologne shoot?”

“Miss l/n…” The woman shuffles through some papers. “Ah, here you are! Yep, that’ll be on set number three, second door on the left.”

“Thanks!” You follow the directions, wondering what exactly your role will be in a men’s advertisement.

Soon enough, you have your answer.

“Y/n, darling, come on, get a little closer to Wonho!”

“I– how do I even do that? Like, physically?” You adjust yourself on your coworker’s lap, hyperaware of your surroundings. Wonho is shirtless and– not that you noticed– very well built, with broad shoulders and an almost illegal amount of taut muscle.

The commercial director stands with a sigh. “Just… lean into him. The whole point is this cologne makes girls fall all over you, y/n. You gotta be all over him.”

“Yes sir,” you mutter under your breath. Wonho must hear you, because you sense him stifling a chuckle. You can barely inhale with the black halter top and high-waisted shorts they’ve dressed you in– and god, you’re cold. You’re sitting pretty in Wonho’s lap, and his hand is resting lightly on your hip.

“You’re doing fine,” Wonho says while the director is distracted by your latest take. You take the opportunity to slide off of him and sit in your own chair.

“W-what?”

“I can feel your heartbeat– it’s kinda hard not to. You’re nervous, huh?”

You laugh hollowly. “You can tell?”

“Yeah, but the camera can’t. You look great, y/n, and you don’t need to worry. If anything, I’m the one that should be nervous.

“Why’s that?”

“Ah, shit– I don’t want Yoongi to kill me once this commercial gets out!” Wonho grins mirthfully.

You start. “You know Yoongi?”

��Sure, our paths have crossed during work and we’ve been to the same parties– the fact that he’s gonna see me with you on my lap is probably gonna make him pretty jealous.”

You scoff to hide your blush. “Uh… Yoongi doesn’t really get jealous.” After all, why would he be jealous? You’re not really dating.

Wonho raises an eyebrow. “You sure about that?”

“Back to work, people! We’ve got a day and a half to shoot this so let’s get it right and we can all go home early tomorrow, eh?” The director claps his hands and you and Wonho scramble back onto set. Yoongi gets back tomorrow, and if you finish up early, maybe you can surprise him. How cool would that be?

A/N: Please don’t forget to like, comment, and reblog! <3

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