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ahundredtimesover · 3 months

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Hold Me Closer | JJK

Pairing: Jungkook x (f.) Reader (ft. brother Jimin)

Genre/Tags: brother’s best friends au; slight angst, fluff, smut

Warnings: foul language, alcohol consumption; kitchen emergency; eldest child feels, adulting; explicit sexual content (making out, oral m & f receiving, unprotected sex but be safe please!); Seven JK (18+)

Word count: 19.2k

Read Part 1: Hold Me Close

Summary: When you're asked to look after your parents' house and meet them before they go on vacation, you, Jimin, and Jungkook take the trip to your hometown of Busan and relive memories of your youth. While your new relationship has you feeling like a lovesick teenager with all the affection that Jungkook shows you, you're still you - a professional trying to make it in the corporate world, and an eldest child trying not to disappoint her parents. And that turns out to be your undoing, as a little blunder causes a rift between you and Jungkook, resulting in a trip that you might as well have messed up... Not if your brother can help it, though.

Listen to 🎵: Hands Down by Dashboard Confessional

Playlist 🎶: High School Playlist

A/N 1: I know I said I’d be on a break but I reread Hold Me Close and found comfort in this Jungkook 🥹 so I went ahead and wrote this little piece! Whipped and comforting boyfriend JK is what I needed so I hope you enjoy this 💕

Six - the number of work calls you’ve already taken in the last hour, with each one of them lasting one whole song. Jungkook calculates that you’ve spent half of the entire drive since leaving Seoul talking with your boss about some report that he somehow can’t complete without you, which sucks because Jungkook was really looking forward to this road trip with you and his best friend.

You groan after you hang up and the clackity clack of the keyboard continues. He was hoping to hold your hand while he drove and maybe sing with you some of your favorite songs that he put on but it doesn’t seem like those will happen anytime soon. You’re immersed in your work but he guesses you have to be; the sooner this ends, the sooner your focus will be on him and this present moment.

He finds the positive side of it at least. He gets to listen to you explain things - why the numbers are what they are, what targets you reached, and what risks you managed. It’s quite silly but it’s kind of a turn on, hearing you talk about something you know like the back of your hand, pretty much proving to your crap of a boss how good you are at your job and why you’re an asset to the company. You know your shit, and you have a classy way of making sure they know that you do.

Six calls, and Jungkook already knows half of your project report. And perhaps he’ll know more, as the seventh one comes.

You let it ring for one, two, three times, as you hold your phone in one hand while you continue to type away with the other.

“I swear to god, ___. If you don’t pick that up, I’m gonna throw your phone out of this car,” Jimin, who’s comfortably seated in the backseat, growls.

The dramatics is understandable because one, it’s Jimin and two, the constant ringing is a little bit much.

“___, I’m not fucking kiddi—”

“Hello, sir,” you finally answer, then proceed to discuss this month’s analytics and projections for the succeeding quarter.

Jungkook predicts it’s gonna take you another whole song to finish, so he instead focuses on the road and appreciates the clear skies and familiar scenery of the drive to Busan. His thoughts go to how these next several days are gonna go. There’s visiting your favorite spots growing up, going to a resort, staying in to eat and play video games, and of course, cuddling with you in your room, as you and Jimin will have your parents’ house to yourselves once they leave for their anniversary trip in two days.

His musings are disrupted though, when he looks at the rear view mirror and sees Jimin’s annoyed face blocking his view. Jungkook can’t help but laugh, especially when he hears his best friend grumbling complaints just behind him.

“Leave her be, she’ll be done soon,” Jungkook dismisses him. “They sound like important stuff.”

“She’s talking so loudly!” Jimin groans. “I just want to reminisce and sing along to our teenage emo music, Kook.”

Jungkook turns the music off.

“There, I paused it. You can sing along once she’s done speaking on the phone,” he says.

Jimin pouts in response. “You always take her side. You weren’t like this when we were kids.”

“Well, if it means anything, I always took her side. I just never told you,” Jungkook laughs.

“Traitor.”

“I’m literally your most loyal friend.”

It’s a statement that Jimin can’t counter. Jungkook is his most loyal friend. And the most supportive. And the most dependable. And definitely the one who’s never left his side.

When Jimin casually told their group that he likes girls and boys, Jungkook was the only one who didn’t need time to “warm up to the idea.” Jungkook was also the only one who never disappeared whenever he had a girlfriend. He was also the one who never missed a single one of Jimin’s dance showcases in college and professional shows.

And of course, Jungkook was the one friend who took up his offer to drink that Friday afternoon, resulting in that infamous gutter incident - as you like to call it - and his subsequent unemployment and homelessness. While you, his beloved sister, were there to pick up the pieces, so was Jungkook, the way he promised he would after they became friends at 10 years old.

Those months when Jimin was heartbroken and unsure of what he was going to do with his life, his best friend was there to make sure that he wasn’t going to lose his drive and love for dancing. His best friend is also the one constantly cheering him up about this long-distance relationship that he decided to have with Taehyung while others continue to be a skeptic.

Jungkook is that friend, and Jimin supposes he can forgive the other man every time he sides with you.

Jimin is about to complain again when you put the phone down and make one of your restrained cries. He pities you, but it doesn’t change the fact that he wishes you wouldn’t be doing your work stuff while you’re on a trip of what’s supposed to be a mini-break.

“I don’t get why you don’t pick up after the first ring,” he huffs.

“It’s so Mr. Soo knows that I’m not easily available,” you say.

“But you are. You answer it anyway,” Jimin rolls his eyes.

“Exactly, I’m gonna answer it anyway. Might as well make him wait for it because he needs me,” you point out. “It’s bad enough that he’s calling while I’m taking the leave he approved, so I’m just pissing him off. He doesn’t know I changed the prompt to leave me a voice message to an annoying song so he’ll have to sit through it to get to me. I already know it’s getting on his nerves.”

“Ooh, petty. I like that,” Jimin hums.

“I know. I got that from you,” you proudly smile.

“But why are you even working?” He whines, your brother’s tone more of pity than annoyance. “It totally defeats the purpose of a leave. And you shouldn’t be indulging him!”

“Well, Mr. Soo approved this leave thinking that Chul would help him craft this report, which is based on the project that I proposed, only to realize that he doesn’t know shit about it because I wrote everything, and he just took the credit,” you explain. “I don’t want to be doing this, too, but I also just took the chance to show who’s driving the wheel, and it’s definitely me. Plus, I worked hard for that project. Working on the report at least gives me a chance to give myself credit for it.”

“Hmm, I guess you’re right,” Jimin concedes. “Your voice is just so loud.”

“I’m sorry. I just wanted to match his tone,” you say. “But he’ll be in a meeting for the next hour or so and he probably won’t need me again until then. You can turn the music back on.”

“Ugh, thank god,” Jimin groans again. “I missed my favorite song.”

He leans forward and squeezes himself in the small space between you and Jungkook. The proximity causes Jimin to smack his elbow on your face, which you know is intended, considering how much of a brat he is. So you do what you always do - flick the back of his head.

He yells but gets over it once he manages to press the rewind button and plays the song he’s been wanting to hear. You haven’t been paying attention throughout the drive and hadn’t even known what they were listening to, but once the music comes on, a wave of nostalgia hits you.

You take the CD case you see in the compartment and scan the song list.

“Dashboard Confessional?” You read out. “Mayday Parade? Something Corporate?”

You go through 2 other CDs and look at both men questioningly.

“These are literally plucked out of my high school playlist that I illegally downloaded,” you state, given that music streaming sites weren’t a thing over a decade ago. “Why do you have them in CDs? And did you even know these songs back then?”

“Yes, because we listened to your playlist when you weren’t around,” Jimin confesses, earning him a flick on the arm.

“You went through my computer? You were in my room?!” You yell.

“Don’t be dramatic,” Jimin rolls his eyes. “It was a boring room, there was nothing to see. We just wanted your music because they were cool, but I’d never admit it.”

“I’m sure,” you shake your head. “But it was my ex, remember? He was a new kid from the US and he got me into these emo rock bands and I thought they were cool, too. He downloaded them illegally for me and I just jammed to those songs all the time even after we broke up.”

“We know. Jungkook and I could hear it from my bedroom,” Jimin says, “which is why we used to sneak in and listen when you weren’t around.”

“Is that why you put them in a mixtape? So you could listen to them whenever you wanted?” You ask, turning to Jungkook because between the both of them, he’s definitely the one who’d know how to do this.

“Yeah, Kook. Why did you make these mixtapes when neither of us had a portable CD player… but my sister did?” Jimin presses, cocked eyebrow and smug face on display.

You’re looking at him now, and it’s a curious look that Jungkook can’t resist.

“I just thought to put your most played ones in CDs,” he shyly admits, “and uh, planned on giving them to you before you left for college. But I chickened out so I just left them in a box in my room that I brought to Seoul. I’d forgotten all about it until Jimin raided my studio and found them.”

“You… you made me mixtapes? When you were 15?” You ask.

“___, I think I’ve established enough that I had a huge crush on you when I was a teenager,” he turns to you and laughs.

It’s a little embarrassing even if he’s already dating you. It still feels surreal sometimes, as he thinks of his growing up years and how he always looked forward to sleeping over at Jimin’s place and then catching glimpses of you. There were the times when you’d watch movies with them in the living room, and then he’d help you clean up in the kitchen so he could spend more time with you.

That was over 10 years ago and so much has changed, but the admiration he felt for you never dwindled. There was always that image of you looking happy. He kept that version of you in his mind, even when you had your boyfriends. He just wanted to remember your smile, and now he gets to be the reason for it, like now.

“It’s just… it’s very sweet and thoughtful,” you say softly.

“I… Well… I took interest in the things you liked. I guess that happens when you like someone.”

“Told you he’s a romantic,” Jimin nudges you.

Between the fairy tattoo he designed and did on your shoulder, the dinner and picnic dates he takes you to despite both your busy schedules, and the way he holds you so close to him whenever and wherever he can, you can definitely say that Jungkook is a romantic.

It’s only been three months but it feels as if you’ve been dating him for longer, given the overflow of affection he’s been giving you. It’s in the way he always holds your hand and kisses you so passionately. It’s in his encouraging words and the way he spoils you with the littlest things.

It’s refreshing to be with him. He has boyish charms that have become even sexier with his slightly long hair and the lip ring that he recently got. And whatever he’s wearing, there’s just something so comfortably sexy about him that’s both warm and exciting, and you often find yourself swarmed in butterflies whenever he talks about you.

It’s only been three months but it’s a relationship you’re still slowly being open about. Your friends were definitely surprised. Hoseok fell off the couch with all his body movements; Jin spat out his drink; Yoongi gasped, then followed it up with a teasing smirk; So-Hee and Na-eun gushed over how Jungkook treats you, and took the chance to say how he’s gotten more handsome over the years.

You asked them if it was that shocking for you to be dating someone younger - and your brother’s best friend at that - and while they said it was a bit unexpected, what really got them was how different Jungkook is from your exes. He’s not some corporate man with ambitions, they pointed out. His life is less structured, too, given his freelancing career and gig at the tattoo parlor. He’s definitely a lot more laid-back and more casual than they’re used to.

They were short of remarking that Jungkook’s lifestyle isn’t as stable and secure as what you normally go for, and they wouldn’t be wrong. It’s a thought you’ve had before, and something even he brought up because he didn’t want you thinking that he can’t keep up with you. But you’d been the one to point out to your friends that stability can come in different forms. With how Jungkook has been so dependable and assuring, that’s given you more security than you ever thought.

But it’s not something that’s easy to explain. Maybe your friends could understand. They’ve made careers in different industries, after all, with short term jobs forming part of their resume. But your parents are of a different generation and mindset. Stability for them means one thing, and they raised you to want the same thing in the same way.

Which is why it’s already been three months, and you still haven’t told them about you and Jungkook.

“I started young,” he laughs, pulling you out of your thoughts as he takes your hand and interlocks his fingers with yours. “I used to just choose my moments of romance but with you, I’m romantic all the time.”

“Really? Does being a flirt count as being romantic?” You cock an eyebrow.

Because that’s what he is. He likes to tease and call you out when he affects you. He likes to charm and then edge you until you’re pleading for him to do more.

“Definitely! I mean, I’m out here living my teenage dream, you know?” He winks at you. “Not just anyone gets to say that they’re dating the person they had a crush on when they were 13.”

“Oh god, here we go again,” Jimin groans, earning him a laugh from you and Jungkook.

But even if your brother fake-gags at your not-so private displays of affection, you know deep down that he’s happy for you and his best friend. The two most important people in his life found comfort in each other, and he gets to witness and bask in that.

He also gets to brag that it all happened because of him.

You spend the next hour jamming to all your favorite emo rock songs because Jungkook wasn’t kidding - he really did include all of the ones you had on repeat from your playlist. It takes you back to over 10 years ago of playing the music so loud while you’re in your pajamas, jumping on your bed and singing your lungs out. They don’t really remind you of your ex-boyfriend. That was a short-lived relationship that only really had you appreciating the songs he shared and not much more.

Your boss doesn’t reach out to you until a half hour later. He’s taken to sending you messages instead, and when he does, you’re back to typing away on your laptop, to the displeasure of both men.

They don’t call you out this time and instead leave you be. Until, of course, it hinders you from enjoying yourself.

The car has stopped but you’re still on your laptop, double checking figures. Jimin has stepped out after telling you that he’ll throw your laptop in the ocean if you don’t stop, but Jungkook stays with you inside the car. He bops his head and hums to the music that neither of you could barely hear. He picks on his fingers and yelps at the hangnail he pulls out. He opens the window and shoos away a bug, then hangs out his head to feel the late morning sun.

“Kook, you can go out if you’re bored,” you say, your eyes still glued to your screen. “You don’t have to stay with me here.”

“But I want to,” he responds. “I’m not leaving until you do, not when you said we’re spending the week free from work and stress.”

“I just need to get this done,” you sigh, rechecking your stats for the third time and then aligning the table. “I’ll be finished soon.”

“You said that 15 minutes ago,” he points out, not wanting to sound like he’s complaining, although he might as well be.

“It’s just—”

“You’ve done your part, babe. You’ve encoded the figures and cross-checked the targets and objectives. Writing the rest of that report and formatting it isn’t your job anymore,” Jungkook says. “You weren’t even supposed to do those. You’re not on the clock. You’re on leave, and you deserve this break.”

“I hate that I have to work, too, but it’s not something I just can’t do, not when my boss is calling and expecting me to do all this,” you groan.

You see his eyebrows furrow and you get defensive.

“You know what, nevermind. You work solo, you answer to no one, you don’t have to prove yourself to corporate assholes. You won’t get it.”

You sigh once more and return to reviewing the conclusion, but the sudden silence is unnerving. You glance at Jungkook and see the look on his face - it’s not sadness but disappointment, and it’s one you don’t see very often on him.

You’re about to apologize when he speaks, his voice soft and low, as if speaking is difficult for him.

“I work with so many clients on a daily basis, with more than half of them setting deadlines that they don’t even follow and demanding so many things so yes, I get it,” he says. “But I put my foot down when I need to, because I learned a long time ago that I shouldn’t let people walk all over me. I know you’re up against a lot of things and you may feel like your hands are tied but they aren’t. A break won’t hurt you. And you know you deserve it. We deserve your attention, too.”

Your heart cracks at his words. Even more at the way he looks, as you see that all he wants is to spend time with you. He’s been busy, too. He’s spent the last few nights at his studio, buried deep in his projects because he said he wanted to focus on you this week. And you know that he’ll keep his word like he always does. Jungkook is dedicated to his work but he focuses on you when he says he will. You’re the one not loyal to what you say.

“Kook, I’m—”

“Just do what you have to do,” he interjects, his eyes downcast now. “I’ll be outside with Jimin. Come out when you’re done. You like it here, so don’t worry. We won’t leave until you’ve come down.”

Jungkook exits the car before you can say anything. You watch him walk down the stony path towards the ocean.

You hadn’t even realized you’re here.

You’re at Cheongsapo, with the pebble beach just meters away being one you all went to as kids. Jungkook’s older brother used to drive you here during summer, and you all enjoyed the calmness of the place. You used to bet on who would treat ice cream by playing rounds of stone skipping, with Jimin winning every single time. You remember how you and Jungkook taught each other how to do it, and then tag-teamed against your brother so he could finally treat you both that one time.

Whenever you’d visit Busan during your college breaks, you’d always come down here with your friends, with Jungkook and Jimin in tow. You’d visit at sunset and hold out your sparklers, then navigate the terrain at night and laugh about who tripped and slipped on the way back.

Jungkook’s right. You like this place. It holds so many memories of your youth, and you find yourself constantly reminiscing, as you try to recall his place in your life back then.

You mentally smack yourself. He didn’t deserve your dismissal. He didn’t deserve the way you spoke to him. He’s been trying to help, especially with how busy you’ve been these past several weeks. You were supposed to work from home while you housesat your parents’ house but Jimin convinced you to take your untouched leaves when Jungkook decided to come, and then they both called it a mini-break.

And maybe you need it, considering that all this preoccupation with work has caused you to snap at your boyfriend when all he wanted to do was ease your mind.

So you get out of the car and head to him.

There’s a small forest to pass through and a steep staircase to maneuver, but you manage. You look out to see Jimin already throwing stones and Jungkook standing by, reacting to every gliding pebble on the water. You spare a few seconds to admire him from the back, with his plain white shirt and light gray lounge pants, accentuating a figure that has you weak in the knees. His hands are in his pockets and his slightly long locks are in a half-bun, and he looks every bit of comfort in this place that holds so much of your years growing up.

You walk to where he is and wrap your arms around him from behind. He stills but he doesn’t say anything. You savor his natural scent and the way the tips of his hair tickle your face. You bask in the taut figure that somehow softens under your touch. Once you feel him relax a little, you tilt your head and whisper in his ear.

“I’m sorry for snapping at you. You didn’t deserve that.”

He remains quiet and unmoving. All you can hear are the sounds of the waves and Jimin’s cheering from some meters away.

“I just got caught up with work but I’m done with it. It wasn’t right of me to neglect you when I promised I was gonna take a break and spend time with you,” you continue.

Your voice is low and Jungkook could hear your pout. Just a little bit more and he’ll give in.

“You look so hot today and I just want to—”

“Yah!” He whines, finally returning your affection and caressing your arms that are now wrapped around him tightly. “Don’t tease me.”

“Hmm, that caught your attention, huh?” You giggle, lightly kissing his neck.

He shivers at the act, and he laughs at himself for how whipped he is for you, giving in so quickly.

“You know it would,” he huffs, turning around to face you now.

You still have that pout and he just wants to kiss it off you.

“How was walking down the steep staircase?” He asks, knowing that was your only non-favorite thing about this place.

“I tripped on a step but I’m fine,” you proudly smile now.

“You should’ve called me,” he frowns now.

“But you were upset with me!”

“So? Doesn’t mean I wouldn’t help you down the stairs and risk you tripping. You know how those steps are. And the pebbles can sometimes be slippery. You can trip here, too, and— what?”

“Nothing. You’re sexy when you’re worried about me,” you say nonchalantly.

“Ugh, come here,” he groans, pulling you in a hug, one that you fall into immediately. “I’ll always worry about you. And I’ll always help you, even if I’m upset.”

“I know,” you sigh. “I’m sorry again. But I’ve laid off the report now. I told Mr. Soo I shall not be disturbed anymore for the rest of my leave.”

“Good,” Jungkook hums, pulling away to face you now. “Because I really want to know what you wanted to do.”

“Ah, many things, Jeon Jungkook,” you smirk. “But I’ll maybe settle for this first.”

You lean in and kiss him - deep enough to have him moan against your lips, and you suddenly can’t wait until you can do more.

“Oh, my eyes!” Jimin squeals, prompting you to look at him with his arm covering his face.

Jungkook only laughs but you scowl at your brother.

“You’re so dramatic,” you roll your eyes. “You’ve seen worse.”

“And I’ve erased that image of my sister and my best friend swallowing each other’s faces from my mind. Please don’t remind me again,” he groans. “But anyway, are you tolerable again?”

“Yes,” you frown. “I think,” you mutter, turning to Jungkook.

“You’re alright,” he teases, before he wraps his arm around you and pulls you close. “Now Jimin here wants to reassert his dominance as the stone-skipping king. You game for a match?”

“Do I have a choice?” You cock your eyebrow.

“No. So okay, same rules,” your brother announces. “Loser treats everyone to coffee and pastry. We all know it won’t be me.”

“Brat,” you say under your breath.

But he’s not wrong. He dominates and Jungkook ends up losing. The wink he makes tells you he let you win. And though you like to play fair, you won’t lie and say his teasing smirk definitely turned you on.

You spend the rest of your morning enjoying iced coffee while overlooking the beach, then you head to your favorite seafood restaurant for lunch. You go to your usual market for ingredients for the week, including tonight’s dinner that your mother will be preparing. She wanted to cook for all of you before they flew out, she said, and that got you excited.

It’s refreshing to walk through the streets and spots of your childhood and reminisce with your brother and boyfriend. The memories take on different forms this time, as Jungkook tells you things from his perspective.

You remember that one time you scolded them for sneaking out on a school night and then picking them up at an alley with Jin driving you. Jungkook says he liked how caring and understanding you were then; you said you’d cover for them after flicking their foreheads.

There’s that summer when you got your friends to buy from Jimin and Jungkook’s ice pop stand so they could buy these skateboards that neither of your parents wanted to get for them. Jungkook recalls how you complimented his recipe and told everyone he made them so that they’d praise him, too.

There’s that winter when, after your brother’s begging, you had him and Jungkook join you and your friends’ bonfire night at one of your secret beach spots. Jungkook points out that you always made sure that as the youngest ones there, they were warm and well-fed.

And then there were their sleepovers when you’d join them play video games and watch horror movies in the living room. Jungkook gushes at how pretty you looked and how you’d always prepare them popcorn and drinks. He outs you as the one who puts the blanket over him and Jimin when they fall asleep on the couch.

“I tend to forget a lot of things but I remember when they’re about you,” he mumbles as he starts the drive to your house. “It’s just always stuck with me. Please don’t be weirded out.”

You giggle but assure him that you aren’t. You understand him - there are things and people and moments that naturally stick with you, and they’re the ones you hold dear, too.

He was a kid with a crush and his attention was often on you, and you suppose that given how you’d felt comfortable around him then, it was also maybe natural that you’d feel the same way now that you’re both older. It just so happened that he ended up looking as attractive as he did, and that’s just an added bonus.

Jungkook drops you and Jimin home before he drives three blocks away to his parents’ house. He’ll greet them first before heading to your place, he says, excited for your mom’s cooking that he always enjoyed.

It’s been some time since you last saw them. They don’t always drive out to Seoul, only doing so to watch Jimin’s shows, and you haven’t had time to go home, either. Plus, you had an injured brother to take care of, and he’s also really the topic of every conversation you’ve had with them these past months.

And there are no bad feelings there. He’s had injuries and illnesses that had them worried, and you’re pretty much as unproblematic and predictable as any eldest child could get. You think you’re that monotonous or unexciting, too, and you suppose that just meant they didn’t feel the need to check on you as much as they did with Jimin.

But you express your longing once they offer you their hugs. You say how you miss your mom’s cooking and your dad’s baking, which is code for saying that you’ve missed them, too.

You get your stuff to your room and sigh in relief at the comfort it still gives you. Not much has changed between your double bed, your desk, your beanbag, and the large cork board of photos on your wall. You pin the Polaroids from earlier, deciding to keep the ones of you and Jungkook for your place back in Seoul.

You huff this time, unsure how you’ll open the discussion of you dating your younger brother’s best friend to your parents. They’ve known him since he was a kid; they watched him get into all kinds of trouble with their son, and were there for his milestones, too.

Jungkook was always Jimin’s partner-in-crime; they were two peas in a pod who went through everything together. Now it’s you and him and you don’t really know how they’ll take it.

But you brush it off for now and think it’s a conversation for later, or maybe when they come back from their trip. You intended on telling them in person, which is why they’re still in the dark. It’s just a matter of how you’ll say it.

You head downstairs and take in the scent of seafood soft tofu stew. The two boys are already at the kitchen counter, munching on the rolled omelet that they shouldn’t even be having yet. But your mom lets them, as Jimin talks about his new agency and shows videos of him doing some choreographies.

You stand next to Jungkook, who sneakily feeds you. You don’t know why you get flustered at the act, even more when he whispers in your ear.

“So, I finally get to see your room with your permission,” he cheekily smiles. “I promised Jimin a few rounds of Overwatch before going to you.”

You merely laugh and tell him that your dad’s asking him something.

“So, Jungkook. How has work been? Jimin tells us you’ve been getting more projects recently,” your old man asks.

“Ah, yes, uncle,” he responds. “I’m getting more clients and exposure now. It took a while but it’s all going well.”

“That’s good. Although I always wondered why you never thought of joining a firm. Doesn’t that mean a more consistent client base? And better for you financially, too.”

“Well, I get to choose my clients and my projects as a freelancer,” Jungkook explains. “I control my time. And it allows me to take appointments at the tattoo parlor.”

“Oh, right, your hobby,” your dad nods. “I guess having multiple sources of income is the new trend these days.”

Jungkook just hums in agreement, already used to your dad’s frame of thought when it comes to a career. So are you, because it’s often the first thing he picks up on with your boyfriends. Each of your partners just happened to be working in corporate so there was never this line of questioning followed by an awkward silence.

But Jungkook is just your brother’s best friend, as far as they know. You wonder how they’d react once you finally tell them the truth.

You don’t completely fault your dad, though. It’s less about judgment and more about practicality. He and your mom came from the generation that believed survival and security mattered more than passion. They always thought the latter could come later on in life, which is why they opened their own cafe not long ago, at a time when they were already pretty secure. You suppose it’s his way of looking out for you, which is why he’s always been concerned about your partner’s occupation.

The conversation changes, as the focus now turns to your parents and what they’ve been up to. You assist your mom in the kitchen while the men hang around, helping when they’re called upon. Jungkook stands near you, asking if you need him and attempting to feed you with a dumpling this time, but you manage to feed yourself and he merely looks at you in understanding.

Dinner is finally ready and you all head to the dining table. You take the seat next to your mom, across from Jungkook, and he looks at you curiously but you offer him an apologetic smile. You only told him that you’ll tell your parents about your relationship in person, which you planned on doing.

That is, until your parents bring up your friends.

“Sweetie, Jin’s son is so adorable,” your mom chirps. “I saw the pictures on Facebook and the little one took after his father so much. I can imagine how happy he and his wife are.”

The topic of your dear friend and his family injects energy into you. You say how Jin’s been bragging about his mini-me but that the nursery you helped put together looks so beautiful. You were all there when his wife gave birth a few weeks ago and though you’re still unsure about having kids, you won’t deny how much it warmed your heart when Seo-yoon’s tiny fingers wrapped around your thumb. It’s not something you say though, as your mom eventually mentions Na-eun and her fiancé.

“I read that he’s been promoted as Director of their company,” she says.

Your dad pipes in that So-Hee’s new boyfriend is apparently the son of one of his former colleagues, and you’re quite frankly over the conversations about your friends’ partners. The insinuations aren’t lost on you.

“How do you even know these things?” You groan.

“Facebook,” your mom replies. “Of course I’m friends with all your friends. And it’s nice to know how well they’re doing since we don’t get to see them much anymore. You’ve reached that age of settling down, after all.”

“I guess,” you hum, no longer interested in the conversation. Jimin’s roll of his eyes tells you he feels the same. “Lots of good things are happening for them.”

You don’t mean to sound bitter and you aren’t. You adore your friends and genuinely love that things are looking out for them. You’re not the same person from months ago who felt lost and falling behind amongst them. Sure, things could be better career-wise, but you haven’t felt this much security in yourself and your relationship until Jungkook. Explaining why is a different thing altogether.

“What about you?” Your dad asks. “I know we’ve been calling every week to ask about your brother but we haven’t been checking in on you. I’m sorry, dear,” he continues, his eyes softening. “Is there anything new in your life?”

If the earlier conversations hadn’t happened, perhaps you’d willingly hint on the newest thing in your life, which is the relationship you have with the man currently looking at you with his doe-eyes in anticipation.

But they did, and you know mentioning your friends’ partners was their way of subtly pressuring you about being with someone of similar stature. And you’re not really in the mood for that right now.

So you end up doing the stupidest thing you possibly could, and that’s to lie.

“Not really,” you say, hating the prolonged silence that follows.

And as you look at Jungkook across from you, you see his face fall, and you hate even more that it’s because of you.

Your lack of a follow-up prompts your parents to move on. They know that when you’re in the mood to talk, you will and when you’re quite passive, it means you aren’t.

Your mom turns to Jungkook instead and asks him what else he’s up to other than his various jobs and looking after Jimin. He looks at you before his gaze shifts towards them.

“Not much else, auntie,” he replies.

The crack of your heart knows you completely messed up, because if it stings like this, then you know it hurt him even more.

“Oh, is there no one special in your life?” She asks, as she often does. Given that she treats Jungkook as part of the family, she’s lost all filter when it comes to him, too. “I recently met with my friend and her daughter. She’s such a lovely young woman, Kook, she’s brilliant and oh so charming. She’s in Busan for the week, too. Do you want to—”

“Is it time for dessert?” Jimin butts in, not wanting this conversation to continue.

He knows Jungkook wouldn’t know how to turn your mother down, and if he even slightly entertains the idea to appease her, you’d be the one upset, even if you technically put this upon yourself. Jimin already sees you a bit uncomfortable, and if there’s anything he can do to not make this worse for you and his best friend, it’s to be a brat.

“Oh, yes. Your father made an apple pie and some ice cream,” she says. “Let me—”

“I’ll get it,” you offer, standing up from your seat now.

You don’t want to know what your mom’s other propositions would be. You’re sure she’ll find some person’s son to match you with, given that she’s done that a few times after your breakup with Namjoon. You’re also not ready for Jungkook to agree with her about meeting someone, even if you know he won’t mean it.

Which is really stupid because if you’d just told them the truth, then you’ll be having a completely different conversation, although you’re unsure if you’re ready for that one, too. But at least Jungkook wouldn’t look as upset as he does right now, as he’s resorted to picking on his food instead of finishing it, which tells you that he’s lost his appetite and that’s never a good thing.

You go to the kitchen to slice the pie and scoop the ice cream. You do it so slowly to lengthen the time before you’re back there, only because you don’t want to know what else they’re talking about.

You’re in the middle of cursing yourself when you feel the sting of a tiny pinch on your arm, and you yelp in pain and smack your brother’s chest in reflex.

“Ow!” You yell, frowning at the man before you and ignoring your mother’s order to “behave,” even if they’re used to you two quarreling.

“You deserve that,” Jimin scowls at you. “Because what the fuck was that?!”

“I know,” you sigh, glancing at Jungkook who’s trying his best to be interested in what your parents are saying. “I… froze. You know what they wanted to hear, Chim. All those things about my friends’ boyfriends and what they do? I just didn’t want them to compare them to what Jungkook does if I tell them.”

“Why, what’s wrong with what he does?” Your brother raises an eyebrow.

“Nothing. It’s just… you know how focused they are on career stability and shit like that,” you try to explain. “You heard what dad was telling him earlier. I just didn’t want Jungkook to hear any underhanded comments from them and then feel bad about it.”

“And you think denying that you’re dating is any better?” He chides. “That’s literally worse!”

“I—”

“Jungkook knows how our parents are. And after you got together, he already anticipated that they’d question how he’ll be able to sustain your life together once you told them about your relationship,” Jimin explains. “He was ready for it. I doubt he anticipated this…”

You stand there, the crack in your heart getting deeper and bigger as the seconds pass. You hadn’t realized that Jungkook was already confiding in Jimin about any concerns he’d have about facing your parents. You suppose he would, given that you said you’d tell them when you saw them the one time that Jungkook asked if they knew, and you didn’t raise it again after. Living in your bubble together seemed more important, and you’d forgotten to mentally prepare yourself for this conversation.

“Chim, I fucked up,” you pout.

If it were about anything else, Jimin would push it. It’s how you always were, and you’ve reached that point in your relationship where you could call each other out and know it comes from a good place. But he doesn’t want to do this today, not when you’re already sad and guilty and he doesn’t want you to feel worse. He doesn’t want to take sides, even if he’ll admit that you were in the wrong, but he doesn’t want to antagonize you either.

“Hey,” he nudges your arm. “It’s not the end of the world. You’re both gonna figure it out. I don’t know how hard he’ll take this but he’s a really soft-hearted person, so just… keep that in mind, okay?”

You nod, wanting to believe that you’ll be able to fix it.

“And don’t hate yourself too much,” your brother adds. “He’s really, really into you. I just know he won’t be able to resist you.”

You nod again but you think that just makes it worse. You doubt he expected that out of all the people to disappoint him, it would be you. Yet here you are.

You and Jimin return to the table with the plated desserts. You hand one to Jungkook but he doesn’t acknowledge you. He doesn’t meet your eyes either when it’s all you try to do. He peacefully eats his apple pie while you feign interest at your parents talking about their recent weekend at a spa.

When everyone’s done, he helps Jimin clean up. It’s how you know that Jungkook’s considered part of the family, as your parents don’t stop him from doing so, unlike when it comes to other guests or your friends.

You watch helplessly as he washes the dishes, turning down your offer to help. You take the rest of the plates and walk towards him instead, standing close so you could place them in the sink. He just moves his arms to give you space then returns to his task, not sparing you a glance.

You stay with your parents in the dining area to talk about their trip. They leave you with important documents and give you instructions should anything bad happen to them while they’re away, as they always do whenever they go on a trip. Everything is your responsibility as the eldest, they remind you.

They finally go to their room to continue packing and you sit on the corner of the couch where Jimin and Jungkook have just finished watching some video of a guy reacting to other videos. You constantly glance at your boyfriend but he seems to be intent on not giving you attention because he’s not like this - he always wants to be close to you, needing his hand to be touching your arm or your thigh or even your hair, and his pretty eyes locked on you. But not tonight.

You recall how months ago, you avoided him because of what you started to feel. And perhaps this is how he felt then - helpless, unsure, and desperate for you to be next to him again.

You find the tiniest bit of courage and call out his name, hoping he’d at least turn to you this time.

“Kook, I’m—”

“Hey, we should probably play now so we finish early,” Jungkook nudges Jimin’s knee. “It’s been a long day; I don’t really want to stay up late.”

Your brother looks at you in apology as he responds to the man on his left in agreement. They both head up, leaving you rooted in your seat, wishing that Jungkook would turn around to tell you that he doesn’t mean creating this distance, but he doesn’t.

And you wouldn’t blame him. You’d stay away from you, too.

You end up watching Aliens on your own, crouched on your corner of the couch with the large blanket over you. You give up after an hour, once the movie starts getting intense and scary though. There’s no Jungkook to hold you during the jumpscares, or to tease you about your screaming, or to assure you that he’ll protect you from all types of monsters.

There’s no Jungkook next to you but you want him there, and it’s another half hour later when you decide that you’re not going to bed without speaking to him.

You hate sleeping sad and upset. You don’t like ending the day not being on good terms with him. There are so many things you want to tell him but more than anything, you just want to hold him close. He always said he liked that, because even during the times when there’s so much to say or feel, falling into each other’s arms is the easiest thing to do. It says enough. It shows enough. And you’ve both survived misunderstandings and stressful moments by holding each other, and then holding each other closer.

Walking up the stairs and towards Jimin’s room, the nerves kick in. Jungkook has been ignoring you the whole evening and you’re unsure if he’s willing to hear you out.

But you try, as you knock on the door, your heart beating fast when it slowly opens. Your brother’s downcast eyes meet you and you don’t need to say anything else.

He opens the door wider then turns to the man lying on a mattress on the floor.

“Kook, my sister’s looking for you.”

You glance at him, dressed in that black tank top that always made you breathless, but once again, he avoids your gaze. But he does stand up after a nudge on the foot from your brother and walks over to you.

“Can we, uh…” you gesture towards the room just across the hallway.

He doesn’t say anything but he doesn’t shut you out, which is a good thing. You take it as your cue to start walking and you hear his footsteps right behind you.

You let him in then close the door behind him. There’s so much you want to say, like you’re sorry and that you were stupid, that you didn’t mean to deny him but that you didn’t know how to tell your parents, or what you were even nervous about. You want to say that you just want to spend tonight wrapped up in his arms and apologizing in all the ways that you can.

But instead of uttering the words, your throat dries up. Seeing him standing there with that upset and disinterested look on his face breaks you a little. So you reach out, your hands pressing gently on his chest to try to feel him, to be close to him, hopefully to hold him and make your mistake go away.

“Kook, I…” you tremble, trying so hard to find the words.

Jungkook looks back at you, your face nervous and unsure, unlike his that’s probably still painted with disappointment.

He still doesn’t know what to make of your denial. He’s been trying to see things from your point of view all evening, but doing so only in his head because verbalizing them, especially to his best friend, makes it sting a bit more. Maybe Jimin can explain on your behalf but that would just confirm to Jungkook one of two things - that you don’t really intend on telling your parents about both of you for whatever reason he can’t comprehend, or you don’t think he measures up to their expectations and for that, you might just think he’s not good enough for you.

He doesn’t think he’s ready for that, so he shuts Jimin down when he asks. They watched videos earlier to have something to laugh about but he was faking it. He suggested playing a game just so he wouldn’t respond to you calling him earlier but all they’ve done since going to the room is lie in silence.

Jungkook doesn’t want to talk about it with his best friend. And he certainly doesn’t want to talk about it with you. He doesn’t want an explanation right now. It’s not what he wants to hear.

And it seems as if it’s something you’re even struggling to give him, as you stand there quivering, your hands slowly trying to pull him closer to you.

It’s what you usually do when you can’t find the words to express something - when you’re stressed and frustrated, when you want to patch things up after a small misunderstanding, when you want his comfort. And he always loved it when you did. He always willingly gave you that hug and that kiss and those whispers of “it’s okay” and “we’re okay” and “I’m just here.”

But not tonight, not when there’s this unnamed thing that’s eating him inside, and not even you can fix it.

“I don’t… I don’t really wanna do this right now,” he mutters, taking your hands to slowly slide them off him.

The look of hurt in your eyes is one that’ll probably haunt him for a while, but he’ll learn to deal with that. It’s better than talking with you about something that you don’t even know how to express.

This isn’t like him. It’s not like him to be upset at you like this, to not want to comfort you, to not want to be around you. This messes him up, too, and all he can do is step away and walk out.

He doesn’t really wanna be here, he thinks to himself as he enters the room just across, to the surprise of Jimin who half expected both of you to have made up. Jungkook would go home if he only brought his keys and it wasn’t too late to ask his parents to open the door for him.

But his best friend’s floor mattress will do for now. And so Jungkook puts on his earpods and plays whatever music is loud enough to shut out the thought of you until he falls asleep.

In the other room, you lay in your bed in complete silence. You don’t want to cry, only because he’s not there to wipe your tears away. And you don’t ever want to know what that’s like, so you don’t. You keep the tears at bay and force yourself to drift away.

You jerk awake the next morning to your mother knocking on your door. You promised to do errands with her today, so you get off the bed and yell out that you’ll just fix up.

“No rush, dear. I’m still having breakfast with your father. You can join us when you’re ready.”

You head down and eat the pastries that they brought from the cafe. You don’t have much appetite and these will suffice, but your mind goes to Jungkook and how he was craving kimchi fried rice and spam yesterday.

So that’s what you make for him and Jimin. You even prepare iced coffee the way they like it. You’re about to set the dish aside for them to heat up when you hear rushed footsteps down the stairs and you know they’ve woken up.

“Wahhh, it smells so good,” Jimin exclaims as he walks over to the counter while his best friend sits on the table. “Did you make something, dad?”

“Oh, your sister cooked for you and Jungkook,” your father hums. “It’s making me hungry now.”

“There’s still some in here if you want,” you call out, with him responding that he’ll get some later.

You serve the dish in two bowls. You hand one to Jimin and then place the other in front of Jungkook without sparing him a glance.

“Iced coffee is in the refrigerator,” you tell them.

You hear Jimin’s little squeal before he gets them. “Where you off to?” He asks.

“I’m running errands with mom.”

“Make sure you two make it in time for dinner, okay?” Your father says.

“Of course. I can’t miss your steak, dad,” you give him a small smile.

“Good. I prepared meat good enough for five Actually, six. I count Jungkook as two people,” he laughs.

The thought of this comfort and familiarity hurts you because you’re the one who made Jungkook think otherwise. You see him smile at your father’s remark but you turn away when he looks your way. You know he’s still upset and you don’t want to force it if he’s not yet ready to speak with you. You also haven’t gotten over the way he pulled away from you last night, and so looking at him today is a little difficult.

“You’re still joining us at the party, right?” Jimin asks.

Their friend, Hari, whom you know briefly dated Jungkook in high school, is celebrating her birthday tonight. Their group always looked to you as the cool sister so you’re always invited to whatever they’ve got going, and while the three of you talked about attending later, after what you did, you doubt Jungkook would want you to spoil his evening. You’re also not exactly in the partying mood for obvious reasons.

“I’ll pass, Chim,” you respond. “You guys should have a best friend night.”

You go back to your room to fix up before joining your mother to head out.

Back in the dining room, Jimin nudges Jungkook’s knee.

“She’s still playing favorites,” he playfully rolls his eyes as he gestures to the generous amount of spam in his best friend’s bowl compared to his decent serving.

Jungkook just hums, guilt forming that he didn’t even thank you for this because he really has been craving it. Before any of them could say anything more, your father speaks up.

“Your sister okay, son?”

“Uh, yeah? Why wouldn’t she be?” Jimin nervously answers.

“She just doesn’t seem like herself, that’s all,” your old man replies.

“Maybe it’s work. It’s been tough lately,” your brother reasons.

“But she’s more tired and frustrated when it comes to work but that’s not what she is. Maybe it’s a guy.”

At this, Jungkook chokes on his food, and he’s glad your father doesn’t react.

“What makes you think so?” Jimin asks, his eyes flitting to his best friend.

“Hmm, it just seems different,” your father insists. “Or maybe it’s just wishful thinking on my end. She hasn’t introduced anyone since Namjoon. And I wish she would, just so we know she’s moved on, you know? And that the breakup isn’t still hurting her.”

“She has, and it doesn’t affect her anymore,” Jimin confirms, certain of at least that bit.

“Then why hasn’t she introduced anyone yet?”

“Maybe it’s because you really liked Namjoon, and he seems to be your standard so ___ is just probably just taking her time.”

“Well it’s because he’s smart and stable and very self-assured and—”

“Also very much married. And a soon-to-be father,” Jimin interjects, already being protective of you.

He wonders now if this is how your parents talk about him to you, and that you’ve always just protected him from all of it.

“Oh,” your father sighs. “It could’ve been her.”

“But it isn’t and that’s totally fine,” Jimin exclaims. “She’s young and she’s got time. And who knows, maybe that’s not the life she wants, or at least not yet? If you could accept my version of happiness, you should be able to accept hers, too. And what does ‘stable’ even mean?”

“Someone with ambition, with a direction,” your old man explains. “Someone who’s secure and financially capable of sustaining this good life that your mom and I gave you both.”

“Those are all the things she is, too, you know?” Jimin frowns. “And also, I love you, dad, but you’re old. By that I mean your thinking is old. It’s outdated. You think stability is about prestige and money and I get that but… that’s not everything. There are other things that matter to her and if you lessened the pressure a bit, you’d see that. She’s your daughter, don’t you want her to be happy? To be loved?”

“Of course I do,” your father sighs.

“Well then don’t let your version of what a good partner is dictate her life,” Jimin advises. “She’s a grown up, she knows what she wants and how to get it. But she’s also your daughter who doesn’t want to worry or disappoint you. What if she’s found someone who makes her happy and treats her right but she’s nervous of what you’d think because of all these expectations you have of her?”

Jimin’s eyes flit to his best friend again who’s quietly munching on his food but is clearly taking in this exchange. While Jimin still thinks you were wrong to deny your relationship, he at least hopes that Jungkook could understand what was going through your mind and it was all this.

“Well if she has then I’d want to meet him,” your father insists.

“And maybe you will, once she stops feeling the pressure of what she’s supposed to be for you and who she’s supposed to date,” Jimin explains.

“I guess you’re right.”

“Of course I’m right, dad,” Jimin groans. “I lived with her for months and she just… she worries about a lot of things. It would be nice if she doesn’t worry about this. So please, stop with all the projections and underhanded remarks, okay? She sees right through you. Just let her live her life.”

A smile forms on your father’s face. It was never his intention to put all that pressure on you but he supposes you just accepted that it comes with the territory. But he realizes it shouldn’t be. His son’s right - he’s old. He and your mother worked hard so that you and your brother could have a life where you didn’t have to worry about anything, but he supposes the intention got muddled along the way. At least you and Jimin have each other.

“I know you and your sister don’t like to admit it but it’s really touching to see how similar you both are,” your father says.

“Excuse me, I’m cooler and funnier and definitely more talented,” Jimin pouts.

“Maybe,” your old man laughs. “But she’s sat on that same chair, lecturing me and your mom about letting you live your life and now you’re doing the same. She’s your biggest advocate and your biggest protector. It’s just nice to see how you’re the same for her.”

Running errands with your mother has always been your responsibility, but it’s once you’ve hit your late-twenties mark that you’ve come to appreciate it.

You learn a lot about the practical stuff like insurance and emergency funds and inheritance when you accompany her to the bank. You’re also reminded that sometimes you have to spend more to make things last when she drops off her clothes at the laundry service and picks up the bag and shoes she had professionally cleaned. You also remember the important things like buying flowers and leaving them on your grandparents’ graves.

You’ve just left the shopping center after she bought your father an anniversary gift, and her excitement over the satchel and perfume she got him has you smiling. You wonder how differently she feels for him 30 years later, and if this life they have together is everything she imagined it to be.

“Was it hard at the beginning? Being married to dad?” You ask.

“Of course, dear,” she answers. “Because it’s how marriages typically go. Your father and I were together for two years before we got married and it was a big change. You just… learn to consider another person, and you get used to someone always being around you.”

“It’s a good thing you can stand each other then,” you chuckle.

“That’s true,” she laughs back. “You’d be surprised to know how many married couples can’t. But we just always managed. And we had to be on each other’s side, you know? It’s the reason why we’ve lasted as long as we have.”

She looks quite emotional as she says the words and it’s probably because of what they’ll be celebrating soon but she turns to you with a smile.

“Your father’s parents wanted me to become a housewife, a stay-at-home mom who just ran the household,” she continues. “But I wanted to work so I could help my parents, and your father stood by my decision. He saw how working gave him financial freedom and he wanted that for me, too. And we just… worked hard. We fought a lot at the start because we were building our careers and raising a family but we knew it would all be worth it, as long as we stood by each other.”

“Then I suppose that’s what’s important in a partner, isn’t it?” You say. “Being dependable, being supportive, not… not what kind of career they have.”

“Well, a stable career helps,” she points out. “I mean, it’s how your father and I got to afford sending you and your brother to good schools. It’s how we could afford trips as a family and how your father and I can be secure at this age without needing much help from our children.”

“But that’s also because you worked hard, plain and simple. And you and dad had each other and overcame whatever challenges you faced together. You can’t say the same for all married couples,” you push.

“That’s true. I mean, it wasn’t like this during our parents’ time. I guess people had less options then. The world’s changed so much, hasn’t it?”

“It has,” you hum. “Not everyone cares much about their partner’s upward mobility and stuff like that. They want to savor the good life their parents gave them. And because they work hard, too, they just want someone to enjoy it with them. You know, like me.”

There’s a beat of silence as your mother processes your words.

“Is that why it didn’t work out with Namjoon?” She asks, reminding you that you’d only given them a general reason as to why things ended.

“We spent too much time planning for our future that we kinda lost our way,” you explain. “I guess that’s when I realized that I wanted someone to enjoy the moments with, regardless of what they do for a living. And we’ll never know what life will throw our way and I need someone who’ll stand by me, the way I’ll stand by them. You know, cheesy things like that.”

You smile to yourself as you think about Jungkook and his shameless affection that he shows in so many ways. You enjoy the cheesiness but you’ll deny it first before admitting it. But then again, he probably knows already. He pays attention to you after all.

“Well, I suppose that’s why we wanted to give you and your brother a good and secure life, so that you can enjoy it,” your mother hums.

“Exactly. You raised us well, mom. We’re not gonna throw our lives away, however we choose to live it, and with whom,” you assure her.

She gives you a warm smile. She takes your hand at the stoplight and caresses it. Perhaps it’s the assurance you need, too.

You return home to your father preparing the meat for tonight’s dinner. There’s a platter of steak, vegetables, and sausages that he’s seasoning to grill, and you can imagine how happy this is gonna make Jungkook. He always liked it when your dad prepared dishes like this paired with your mom’s spicy chicken soup, and you wish you could enjoy it together.

But you’re giving him space to feel what he feels and you’re doing the same, even if all you want to do is apologize. You haven’t had an issue quite like this, so things are a little unfamiliar to you. You tried to talk to him last night but he wasn’t ready, and you’re unsure when he will be.

You head towards the counter and cut up the vegetables for the soup before slicing the fruits. You’re focused on your task, knowing how sharp the knives are, but it’s at the same time that your brother and Jungkook arrive. Seeing your boyfriend look as good as he does in that denim jacket-over tank top fit is so sinful; it’s a crime you’re not talking that it distracts you, and it’s what causes you to slice through your finger and yelp in pain.

“Did you hurt yourself, dear?” Your mom asks as she stirs the pot.

“Yeah,” you say, placing your hand under running water.

You’re about to ask Jimin to get the First Aid kit from the drawer but Jungkook gets to it first, knowing where it is.

He knows that your brother, who’s terrified of blood, won’t help you, and despite your situation, Jungkook can’t stand not helping. So he lathers an antiseptic once the bleeding has stopped, then he wraps a band-aid around it. Just like him, you focus your gaze on your finger. Or maybe you’re stuck on the way he tends to you. Or the fact that this is the most physical touch you’ve done this past day when you normally can’t take your hands off each other.

He sighs to himself. If he wasn’t so hung up on his hurt feelings, he’d be able to tend to you better. This might not even have happened if he’d just spoken to you last night.

But he shakes the thought away. He’s still upset. But he’ll always want to take care of you; that’s the one thing that won’t ever change.

“Thank you,” you mumble, still not meeting his eyes.

“I’ll do this,” he says, waiting for you to step aside before he takes your place.

“Jungkook dear, do you mind helping me with the glazed potatoes after you finish that?” She asks.

“Sure thing, auntie,” he replies.

You watch him work around the kitchen the way he’s done so many times before, and your heart stings at the sight because you want to be doing this with him, with your parents, in your family kitchen. But it’s not like you could talk to him right now, not when you don’t know how to say what you want to say. So you head outside to where your dad is grilling the meat and help him instead.

It’s not long after when dinner is ready, and you’re seated across Jungkook again. It’s a little tense when you look at him when he looks away, but Jimin thankfully finds a way to keep the conversation light and focused on him.

Your parents insist that both men don’t need to help clean up, and Jimin asks you if you’re really not going.

“Yeah I’ll just… stay home, make sure mom and dad are packed well and just get everything in order for tomorrow,” you say, half lying.

“Gee, you make me look like a useless child,” Jimin pouts.

“You’re alright,” you hum. “You can drive them to the airport tomorrow.”

“But mom asked Jungkook to do that.”

“Well then you could just… make them a card or something,” you shrug.

Your brother sticks his tongue at you and you do the same.

“Fine, we’ll head out,” he announces.

“You guys have fun,” you say softly, glancing at Jungkook before walking towards the sink to do your duty.

You turn to your brother. “Call me if you need me to pick you up. No driving drunk, okay?”

He salutes you in response then heads out after Jungkook.

It’s uneventful after that. You help your parents with last minute packing then have a long shower. You lie on your bed and mindlessly watch some movie on your laptop hoping that you’ll fall asleep soon, and that when you wake up, you’ll find the strength to go to Jungkook and tell him that you’re sorry and that you don’t want to go another day without him.

“Hey, Jungkook. Dance with me.”

Jungkook looks up to find Hari and gives the same answer he’s given the last two times.

“Sorry, I’m injured,” he says.

She raises her eyebrow as if she doesn’t believe him and he can’t blame her; he doesn’t exactly know how to act like it.

“Oh, Jimin. There you are,” she chirps as the said man approaches the table. “Dance with me.”

“Sorry, I'm injured.”

“Great. It’s my birthday and I spot two hot guys in this party without girls around them and they’re fake injured,” she scowls. “What’s up with you two?”

“I’m not in the mood,” Jungkook shrugs.

“I’m babysitting,” Jimin says, gesturing at his friend. “But Mingyu and Eunwoo are right there. Go tell them to dance with you.”

“Fine. I’ll get in line then,” she rolls her eyes then walks away.

“How come no one believes me when I say I’m injured?” Jungkook asks as he munches on the fried chicken wings his best friend got.

“Because you’re a terrible actor. People believe me because I’m believable,” Jimin hums.

“They believe you because you posted all over social media that you hurt your ankle,” Jungkook corrects.

“Yeah but that was like, half a year ago.”

“Why are you even pretending you’re injured? You don’t have to stay with me, you know? Go to the dance floor and have fun. That’s your thing.”

“Well, maybe I’m also not in the mood because my best friend’s sulking,” Jimin frowns.

“Gee, I wonder why.”

“You know my sister’s sorry, right?”

“She’s ashamed, that’s what she is. And I’m just supposed to live with that.”

Jimin sighs as he watches his best friend mindlessly stare out onto the dance floor. Jungkook’s probably trying to rid himself of the image of both of you dancing and kissing and having fun if you were here. He could be making sense of what he feels, or his mind could also just be completely blank right now.

But what Jimin knows is that another glass of whiskey is something that Jungkook shouldn’t be having, so he stops his best friend from ordering another one.

“You might get drunk and then you’ll call or go see her and then you’ll say things you’ll regret and then you’ll hurt her and you’ll get even more hurt and you’ll have a harder time fixing things and then it just won’t stop and you’ll feel stupid because you’re not talking over something you could easily fix,” Jimin heaves.

It’s a lot to process but Jungkook knows that Jimin’s right. He’ll just get too emotional and won’t be able to control himself and despite what he feels, hurting you is the last thing he wants.

So he orders water instead, finishes it, then heads for the door.

“I don’t wanna be here anymore,” he says. “I need to get some air.”

They end up at a park, the one that you used to hang at with your friends in high school. Jungkook knows because he always accompanied Jimin there when you’d tell him where to meet you. It’s peaceful at this time of night and much more beautiful, too. It’s no surprise he keeps thinking that you’re right next to him, with your head on his chest and laughing at his jokes.

“Why is this affecting me so much?” He wonders out loud. “Why am I so hurt and so stubborn?”

“Because she said something she shouldn’t have. But also because you put her on a pedestal,” Jimin answers. “She made a mistake, and you’re free to fault her for it. I mean, anytime someone we care about hurts us, it sucks like hell. But you also have to think that maybe it’s affecting you as much as it does because she’s always been faultless in your eyes and she isn’t.”

The reality is a slap on the face, but one that Jungkook thinks he needs to have. You were everything he ever wanted and these past three months have been a bliss. But now that reality hits and you have to face the pressure that’s part of your life, your humanness is showing. And that’s what he’s always liked about you, isn’t it? The imperfections and the flaws? Now that those are affecting him, it’s affecting him hard, and he’s having a hard time getting over it.

“Maybe once you accept that she’s human and not just the dream you’ve had since forever, then you’ll realize that things like that happen but she never means to hurt you,” Jimin adds. “You can’t think that she does. You learn to work it out by facing it, Kook. You have to talk about it. You have to tell her it hurts and you have to listen to what she says, and then you forgive. That’s kind of how grownup relationships go.”

“Guess I’ve never had one before, huh?”

“Maybe they just didn’t mean enough to hurt you.”

“This means everything, then,” Jungkook sighs, as things get clearer in his mind. “Because I think what hurts more now is not being next to her.”

“Great! Then can both of you patch things up now?” Jimin beams, feeling hopeful. “I hate seeing both of you sad and so stupid. Plus, my parents are leaving tomorrow and you won’t have a buffer anymore. So please just talk.”

Jungkook admits feeling touched. He knows at the end of the day, Jimin cares about him and you more than anyone, and he probably misses being around both of you at the same time. Jungkook does, too, but he misses you the most and it’s only been a day.

“Tomorrow,” he says. “I don’t know what to tell her and it’s late. She might be asleep and—”

“Now you’re just making excuses,” Jimin crosses his arms.

“Well, what if I expect her to be the one to talk to me?”

“She tried but you didn’t want to, remember?”

“That was last night. The wound was still fresh,” Jungkook pouts.

“Oh god. I feel like I’m dealing with children,” Jimin groans.

“Imagine how we felt taking care of you,” Jungkook answers back.

“At least I was just one person,” Jimin rolls his eyes.

“Your dramatics were equivalent to two people though.”

Both men bicker as they walk back to the car. It started to drizzle so they decided to go back to their respective homes. Jungkook could stay over at your place and maybe talk to you if he really wants to but he’s seriously just chickening out over it.

He’s never had to make up with you because none of your previous arguments ever led to you not talking to each other, or him pushing you away. He’s never had to spend a day ignoring you. And now, there’s so much to say and so much to feel but he doesn’t know how to approach it. He’ll need tonight to sort himself out and then he’ll speak to you, maybe after he drives your parents to the airport. Or maybe on the way back.

He drops Jimin off; 30 seconds later, he’s home, too. You’re so close but so far away just like you used to be. But at least this time he knows that when the next day comes, he’ll have a chance to just pull you close and tell you he doesn’t want to be like this ever again.

There’s an incessant knocking on your door, and as you’re about to yell out that you’re asleep, you realize it might be Jungkook. You sit up on your bed and when the door opens and you see your brother instead, your face falls.

“It’s just me, unfortunately,” he says. “Kook’s back at his place.”

“Oh,” you sigh. “Why are you home so early? It’s like, 11.”

“Because after the third girl, his fake injury excuse wore off and people just didn’t believe him. We looked like losers sitting on the table eating chicken,” Jimin chuckles. “So we left after an hour then went to a park and I knocked some sense into him and now he’s not so upset anymore. And I’m here to knock some sense into you, too.”

“I already know I made a mistake, Chim. I’m… I’m so fucking stupid. I just… don’t want him to think that I’m ashamed of him or that I don’t think he’s enough or any of that. I mean I’m—”

“Crazy about him, right?”

“I kinda am,” you smile softly.

“Good, because so is he and he’s hoping you’d go talk to him even if he says he’ll talk to you tomorrow. Don’t waste time anymore and—”

You’re bolting off your bed and putting on your hoodie before your brother could finish his sentence.

“If mom and dad look for me, tell them I—”

“Got attacked by a clown in the sewer.”

You look at him incredulously then realize you’re wearing yellow then you frown.

“Just make up some excuse. I’ll… hopefully be back in the morning,” you say.

“Alright. It’s drizzling though so—”

And just like that, you’re gone.

It takes all but 10 seconds for the rain to pour, and your hoodie and sweatpants are no match for it. You groan at your brother for underselling the weather but then again, you also should be thanking him for telling you what you needed to hear - that Jungkook’s not so upset anymore and that he’s hoping you’d speak to him.

Much as you think you would’ve taken any chance today to patch things up, you also would’ve frozen in front of him. You suppose you needed to know he was ready for you, and if he wouldn’t tell you, then of course, Jimin would. You just really wish he had the foresight to know it would rain this hard but you’re probably asking for too much.

But Jungkook’s place is just a few blocks from yours so you power through. When you get there, you realize that you forgot your phone, so you make the stupid decision of climbing over the short fence and then hitting your cut finger in the process.

You have no time to feel pain though, as the next order of business is getting Jungkook’s attention. But before you can execute your plan of throwing rocks on his window, the front door opens, and you telepathically thank your brother who probably called your boyfriend to alert him that you’ll be arriving at his place wet from the rain.

“___, what are you doing here?” Jungkook asks with worry painted on his face.

“I just… I needed to come and see you,” you manage to answer.

His face softens and you feel the hope bloom in your chest. He pulls you inside by the wrist and instructs you to quietly go up the stairs. You’re at least not drenched but you still got wet, so he leads you to the bathroom to wash up. He tells you to wait as he gets you something to change in, and he returns after half a minute with a towel and a large shirt.

“Cream and band-aid, for your wound,” he says, placing them on the counter. “My room’s the second door to the right, in case you forgot.”

You take him in, in his black tank top and shorts, his tongue playing with his lip ring the way he always does when he’s nervous. You manage to nod before he heads out, and you take a quick shower and then pull his oversized shirt over you.

You quietly walk to his room, knocking on the door first before opening it slowly. It’s a bit dim but seeing him is all you need. After placing your clothes on the nearby chair, you look at him again.

He looks tired and worried. He also looks like he has so much to say but he doesn’t know where to start. There’s a hint of sadness in his eyes but there’s longing, too, and you suppose he’s mirroring how you look. You feel a lot. You also want to say a lot, but you don’t know where or how to start.

So you do the one thing you know often works. You approach him then wrap your arms around his torso. You fall into his embrace as quickly as he falls into yours, as he seems to have the same idea. You hold him tighter and pull him closer. You flush your cheeks on his chest while he buries his face on your neck. You grip his top and he does the same with yours. Your heart beats fast in longing and you feel his own do the same, too.

There’s so much to feel and say but this is all you can do. And right now, it’s quite enough.

You loosen your grip, but only so you could nuzzle his neck while your arms wrap around them. He feels so warm and he smells so delicate and he’s all you need.

“You knew I was coming?” You ask, turning to him

“Jimin said you were on your way without an umbrella and your phone,” Jungkook chuckles. But his face softens as he wipes the lone tear that falls down your cheek. “You’re lucky it wasn’t a typhoon or anything.”

“I had to get to you,” you mumble.

“He also told me he wasn’t subtle in telling you to come here.”

“Well, he did say you wanted me to talk to you. And I wanted to. I just wasn’t sure if you were ready to hear me out and I was… giving you space.”

“Yeah well, I don’t know what to do with that space without you there,” he sighs, his eyes shy and absolutely adorable.

“Neither do I,” you smile. “So, uh. Will you invite me to your bed, maybe fill that space and more?”

“Of course,” he laughs, taking your hand and leading you there.

You get under the covers and once he lies next to you, you scoot closer, hugging him again until you’re laying on top of him. But he doesn’t complain. He just hugs you back tightly, pulling you closer until he’s able to bask in your scent and the warm feel of you.

But despite the relief, you know you actually have to do the talking. You pull away and lay on your side. You take in his beauty and his softness and the way they make you feel like all is right again in the world. Your fingers trace his face, from his nose to his cheek to his lips, and he does the boyfriend thing of kissing your hand - including your cut finger - before wrapping it around his waist. He looks like he’s anticipating your words, too, so you try and hope they’re enough.

“Kook, I’m so sorry,” you start. “I… I have no excuse. I was being selfish and cowardly because I didn’t know how to tell my parents. I didn’t want to deal with what they’ll say about your job, knowing how they are and what they value and I just…”

“That’s for me to deal with though,” he says. “Because I chose this. And I’ve always known how they are but I still chose you.”

“It’s for us to deal with, and I did it so terribly,” you shake your head. “I don’t want you to think that I’m ashamed of you and what you do. That freedom, the ability to create… they’re things they don’t really understand. And I thought I knew how to make them. I just ended up denying us and that was so wrong. I’m so sorry.”

“I… I get it,” he responds, caressing your cheek now. “They worked so hard to give you this life and of course they want to make sure you’re taken care of. And for them, they only know of one way that could happen. I’d be naive to think they’ll just accept that the man who’s crazy about their daughter isn’t some corporate dude with secure employment and upward mobility in his career.”

He doesn’t miss your shy smile and the way you nibble your lip and that just triggers the butterflies in his belly.

“But that’s for me to show them that I can take care of you, and not because you can’t do it yourself but because I want to,” he adds. “I… I wanna be that person who makes things better and easier for you and who makes you happy.”

And who makes you feel loved, he doesn’t say. That’s a conversation for another day, he thinks.

“You do,” you assure him. “And I feel it everyday. You’re good at that, and I don’t tell you enough.”

“I know now,” he smiles, leaning closer to kiss you softly.

You return it but pull away. “Do you forgive me?”

“Of course I do,” he says, falling into the kiss that he gives again.

“Okay. I don’t wanna hurt you like that ever again.”

Your pouty face tugs his heart and he wants to tell you that none of that matters now because you’re back in each other’s arms, and that’ll always be enough for him.

He just hums as he goes for another kiss that’s deeper this time. And when you let him push you to lay on your back as you moan against his lips, his heart soars even more. He’s missed you, and it’s definitely going to be a long night.

He hovers over you now, and he shivers when your fingers graze his neck and then his chest. You open your legs to meet his hips, and the feel of your clothed cunt against him has his brain short-circuiting. He gets in the rhythm of grinding against you while he kisses your lips then your jaw then your neck, his hand now sneaking under your shirt to fondle your breast.

It’s when he sucks on that sensitive part near your ear that you yelp in pleasure, and he immediately covers your mouth with his hand while he giggles.

“Gotta keep it down babe,” he whispers. “My parents are in the other room.”

But he doesn’t stop his kissing and you don’t really want him to.

“It’s not like you’re making it any easier,” you moan as he pinches your pert nipple.

“I’m not and I won’t, but you gotta try,” he smirks before his lips trail downward.

You’re unable to say anything once his tongue swirls around your buds. His hands wrap around your breasts that he praises, that he kisses and licks before slowly letting them go to hold onto your waist this time. He presses open-mouth kisses down your torso, his lips in tandem with your underwear that’s teasingly being removed off of you.

You hear him let out a breathy moan as he spreads your legs wider.

And while you know that this tender-hearted man has a cheeky streak in him, you didn’t expect for him to have his finger against his lips to shush you, knowing what he’s about to do. His smug face turns you on even more, and your breath is caught in your throat once you feel his tongue flat against your flesh, warming it up before the tip of his wet muscle swirls around your nub.

But you go along with his request, biting back your moan, even as your pussy chases his mouth for more.

And it’s what he gives, as he dives in and sucks and bites your clit while his two fingers explore your hole. The cold of his lip ring is a contrast to how hot you feel, and it’s a sensation you can never get enough of. You whimper in silence but you manage to look at him, his eyes closed as he buries his face in your cunt.

“Look at me,” you whisper and he follows, his gaze meeting yours. “Fuu-uuck, Kook. You feel so good,” your voice quivers.

His mouth’s full but yours is hanging open. You cover yours with your free hand while the other pulls on his long locks. He’s enjoying this so much, you can tell with the way he squeezes your thighs and moans against your skin. He follows a pace that has your body shaking, straining in intense pleasure until it gives in. You let out a low scream as your orgasm hits, and he’s right there, riding out your high with you.

He cleans you up with his tongue and then makes a show of licking your essence off his fingers before kissing you again.

“You did good,” he teases, as he caresses your cheek.

You’re about to say that so did he when bucks his hip against yours, and the feel of his hard cock against your still wet cunt ignites another fire in you. He repeats it, and it’s what has you moaning again.

“Fuck baby, I told you to keep it down,” he says, continuing his movements.

You know you can’t help it at this point, not when he’s back to licking your neck and kneading your breast.

“Whatever. Not like this isn’t new to your parents or anything,” you say.

It’s a guess but you doubt you’re wrong.

“What? Fucking a girl in my room?”

“Yeah?”

“But you’re the first girl I ever brought in here,” he cocks an eyebrow.

“That’s uh, that’s kinda sweet,” you reply, your breath steadying now.

“Yeah and well, who gets to say they fucked their childhod crush in their childhood bedroom?” He smirks again. “I can.”

He’s back to kissing you and much as you enjoy this, the itch to feel him in your mouth overtakes you, and you take the chance when he trails down your neck.

“So, can this childhood crush suck your dick?”

“Yes, she can,” he chuckles.

He removes himself from you and leans against his bed frame. You get on your knees and pull off his boxers, salivating at the sight before you. You get on top of him, your damp lips gliding against his hard cock and his mouth drops open, an invitation for you to do what you wish.

With your movements on his hips, you focus on his neck, licking up the smooth flesh and the protruding vein that has him biting back his moan. Then you kiss him, desperately and passionately, as you slowly remove his tank top and rest your hands on his chest.

It’s your turn to trail kisses down his torso now and you give every inch of him ample attention. But when you make it further down, there’s one part of him that deserves so much more. You tease him only a little, stroking his length and kitten-licking his slit, before swallowing him whole and swirling your tongue around and all over his cock. He’s hard and thick and everything you want inside of you.

You hold back a gag while he holds back his whimpers. You stroke him relentlessly so you could watch his mouth hang open and his strained body almost folding in pleasure as his thighs tighten in your hold.

“You like that, baby?” You hum.

“Fuck, baby, you feel so good around me. Fuck,” he keens, his voice quivering now.

You let his sounds guide you on how hard and how deep to go, but he’s the one who stops you, as he leans close and captures your lips in a searing kiss. He pulls you back on top of him to slide down his cock and the stretch makes you moan in his mouth.

He’s propped up on his arms for support while you move up and down, loving how he drags inside you in an angle that has your mind going hazy. You wrap your arms around his neck while he pushes upward to meet you, and somehow doing this while trying to be quiet is making the pleasure more intense.

It gets too much for Jungkook and he wants more. He wants to hit your deepest spots. He wants to be as close to you as he possibly can. He wants to swallow your moans and touch every part of your body and pleasure you in every way that he’s able.

So he pulls you off and lays you on your side, sliding back in from behind, with your one leg raised. The angle has you keening, even more when his one hand finds your breast and the other does its work on your clit. He pushes gently then roughly, no longer caring about the odd sounds the bed is making against his wall. He wouldn’t mind making up a reason to his parents if they ask him about it. Right now, all he wants is to reach his peak with you.

Your body is shaking in pleasure and overstimulation but you urge him, wanting to feel his seed inside you as well.

You lick his mouth. “Baby please, I want to feel your cum inside me,” you beg. “I want you so bad, fuck fuck.”

He loves it when you plead to him like this. He loves hearing what he does to you. He revels in the way your body molds into his, the way it aches to be close and to be one with him. His movements continue, and with his unrhythmic pounding against your pussy, he comes. You come right after, caused by his intense fiddling of your clit, and you feel like floating, your body in the clouds of pure pleasure.

But like always, he’s there with you, making sure you safely fall into a bed of hugs and kisses and warmth. He stays inside you as he softens, but his arms wrap around you, his face in your neck as he mumbles words of praise.

“Fifteen-year-old me would never believe this,” he heaves as he turns you over to face him.

You giggle in response.

“You’re crazy, you know that?”

“I do. It’s how I am with you. In the best way, of course,” he smiles his boyish smile, an interesting mix of innocent and cheeky.

“It’s the same with me,” you whisper, kissing his nose. “And 18-year-old me would never believe this.”

You wake up the next morning to the alarm that you set on Jungkook’s phone. Your parents are leaving early in the afternoon and they wanted to prepare breakfast for all of you, and it’s a meal with them that you’re excited and a little nervous to have.

You kiss the chest that your face is flushed against, and this elicits a groan from the man next to you.

“Good morning, babe,” you greet, shifting up to kiss his nose this time.

“G’morning,” he grunts.

“So, uh, we’re supposed to meet my parents for breakfast. And uh, I’m going to tell them about us.”

It’s what prompts him to finally open his eyes, and the softness in them makes your heart burst.

“Okay,” he smiles. “I hope it won’t ruin their trip or anything.”

“It won’t,” you assure him. “I… I tried to get through to my mom yesterday. You know, just telling her the things I value and stuff.”

“Hmm. Jimin did the same with your dad. I guess I won’t be such a disappointment now, huh?”

“Shush, you’re not even that,” you pout. “I think they’ll understand.”

He mirrors your smile and there’s a giddy feeling at finally - hopefully - seeing your parents be happy for you. So you get off the bed and sneak out of Jungkook’s bedroom to go to the bathroom.

You wash up quickly, only to make it to the hallway and find his parents standing there, wide-eyed as they look at you in surprise. You realize you’re only wearing Jungkook’s shirt that falls just above your knees and you try to cover whatever you can with your hands.

“Hi, uncle. Hi, auntie,” you shyly smile. “This, uh, this isn’t how I wanted to meet you.”

“Well, we don’t really mind,” Jungkook’s mother smiles. “We’re just glad you’re here. It’s been a while since we’ve seen you.”

“I know. I, uh, I wasn’t dating your son yet the last time I was here.”

“And that calls for a celebration, doesn’t it?” She giggles. “That boy has had a crush on you since forever. It’s funny he never believed that we knew. He wasn’t exactly subtle.”

“It’s not the first time I’ve heard that,” you laugh back.

You hear a door open and before you know it, large arms are wrapping around your waist and a mop of hair tickles your cheek. Jungkook grunts against your neck as he says that he’s finally awake, and you cringe at his parents’ amused faces.

“Kook, your parents are in front of us. This is so embarrassing.”

“Nah, they don’t mind. They’re cool,” he says.

“Yeah, and my parents aren’t,” you sigh.

“So, I’m guessing your parents don’t know yet?” His father asks.

Your pout prompts him to explain. “Well, the day after you got together, our lovesick son here told our family about both of you. But he said that you haven't told your parents yet so we’ve kept it from them ever since. It’s hard since we see them all the time but we managed.”

“Kook also told us about what happened,” his mother asks. “He was grumpy all day yesterday and we got him to tell us why he was so upset.”

“I’m sorry,” you pout again. “That wasn’t my finest moment.”

You feel Jungkook’s hold on you tighten, his way of telling you it’s all okay.

“It’s alright, darling,” she smiles. “We know how your parents are, and their reasons come from a good place. We tried to make this boy here understand them and you as well. Firstborns carry immense pressure to meet expectations; he just doesn’t get it because he’s the youngest. But it seems that it’s worked out with both of you, and we’re glad it did.”

“He couldn’t resist me,” you shrug, to his parents’ amusement.

“Uh, you’re the one who walked through the rain to come see me,” he reminds you, his head popping out of your neck now.

“You wanted me to.”

He tickles you in response and you’re all laughing in no time. It’s a different dynamic with his parents, as Jungkook always had a very close relationship with them. You saw it as a teenager and now, you get to be part of it, too.

They finally let you go and ask you to have dinner with them tomorrow, and that’s one meal that you’re definitely excited to have.

You push Jungkook towards the bathroom and then return to his room to dress up. It’s shortly after when you’re both walking the few blocks to your house, fingers interlocked as you give each other comfort.

You make it home and once you unlock the door, you can already hear laughter and clanking pots from the kitchen. You head there, meet Jimin’s smug face, and clear your throat to announce your presence.

“Oh, there you are. We were wondering where you were,” your mother says. “And hi, Jungkook.”

He greets your parents and from behind you, you take his hand again.

“I went for a walk… with Jungkook.”

He clears his throat and you backtrack.

“I mean, I, uh, was at his place. That’s where I slept.”

“Oh?” Your parents say at the same time, their eyes looking at you in confusion.

“He’s kinda my boyfriend.”

“Kinda? Babe, I think I’m more than ‘kinda’ your boyfriend,” he exclaims.

Your parents look shocked and next to them, Jimin is laughing in his seat.

“I mean, he is my legit, actual boyfriend,” you correct. “The new thing in my life that I denied is actually him. And the person who stands by me, who makes me enjoy the moments? That’s him, too.”

Their faces soften, and somehow that’s the comfort you need. Perhaps all the talking that you and your brother have done has gotten into them. You wouldn’t be surprised if they talked about it, too.

“Why didn’t you tell us, then?” Your mother asks.

“Because he’s not what you expected,” you sigh. “And I didn’t know how you’d take it.”

“Well, he is your brother’s best friend,” she points out.

“Who’s had a crush on me since he was a teenager,” you explain.

“That’s… not surprising,” your father laughs. “We could tell.”

“Oh my god, Kook. You are not subtle,” you elbow him. You turn back at them. “But I… I didn’t know how to tell you because you expect me to have a partner who’s part of your world, you know? And Jungkook likes his freedom. He likes his art and… he really likes me. And I happen to really like him, too.”

“He treats you well? Makes you happy? He’s someone you can depend on when things get tough?” Your father asks.

He smiles tenderly at you and you feel like crying.

“Yes, very much,” you nod.

“Then I think he’s everything we need him to be. A good partner, I’d say.”

You let out a sigh of relief. This is all you needed to hear.

“We’re sorry if you felt like you couldn’t be honest with us,” your mother shakes her head. “I guess we just needed some reminding of what we want for you and your brother. And well, Jungkook’s shown us his heart all these years. He’s always been a part of the family and he’ll be even more.”

They’re words that Jungkook didn’t expect would get him emotional, and he hugs you from behind just to steady himself. But it’s what makes your mother walk towards him for a hug, and your father surprisingly does the same.

“Alright, I guess it’s fitting to have this family breakfast together,” your mother says.

You all take your seats at the dining table, with yours being next to Jungkook now.

Jimin cheekily smiles. “Well, if this whole dance thing doesn’t work out, I guess I can just be a counselor or family therapist or something.”

“Just don’t call your clients ‘stupid,’” you roll your eyes.

“I won’t. That’s only reserved for you.”

And just like that, everything is as it should be.

You get through breakfast with lots of laughter, as you and Jungkook tell your own versions of the story while Jimin butts in to tell his own. It’s heartwarming to see your parents this way, especially when they tease your boyfriend about his crush on you growing up.

But even they admit that they’ve depended on him all these years, too, and that they don’t doubt his loyalty and commitment to you.

You share a tense moment with him after you all drop your parents to the airport, though. Jungkook has just unloaded all their things and as they hug you goodbye, your father teases.

“Just don’t welcome us home and tell us we're grandparents already.”

Jungkook dry laughs and so do you. That’s another topic for another day, you suppose, and while you’re still unsure of having a family, you just know it’s something you’ll both talk about.

You all get home soon after to wash up. Jungkook’s excited about how you’ll spend the day now that you’re both talking again, and you suggest hanging by the beach and then going out for dinner.

Jimin says he’ll stay home to let you two make up for the past two days and so he could have that online date with Taehyung, and you agree.

You and Jungkook end up having a really good day.

You go to a mall and walk around. He gets you a pair of stud earrings to commemorate the day you went official to your parents and you buy him a silver chain necklace for the same silly reason, but also because he looks really good in one and you want him to have more. It pairs real nicely with the shirt and joggers casual outfit he’s been sporting these past days, and the teasing look he makes after he puts it on reminds you of that one time his necklace was dangling on your face when he was pounding into you on your couch.

You get fruit drinks and snacks at the stalls you both used to buy from as teenagers, then you head to the beach where you lounge until sunset. You wade in the water, splash each other, and then make out when there’s no one around.

You feel so free and light, so young and hopeful. These are the moments you love having with him, the ones you like to enjoy and savor and have more of. And you know you’ll have them for the rest of this trip and when you get back to Seoul.

Jimin joins you for dinner at a burger place, then you all buy cup noodles and beer and head to your favorite park. It’s just like how most of your nights together go, just in the outdoors. You and your brother bicker and Jungkook referees; there’s also the occasional “you’re so cheesy” comment from you to your boyfriend and Jimin’s gagging sound.

You confirm plans for the rest of the trip. Your parents will be enjoying Hawaii for close to two weeks, and you have all that time to rest and spend time with your two favorite people. You’ll be off work. Jungkook has some projects to finalize while you do your own thing, and Jimin will be watching dance shows to get him inspired.

But there are more beaches and parks and villages to visit. There’s also that two-night stay at a resort you’ll be having. There are other sites and restaurants to go to, and you’ll be reliving your teenage years together while making new memories.

You’re now back at home, snug in Jungkook’s arms as he leans against the bed frame in your room, with you in between his legs.

“Today was a really good day,” you say, turning to him after he kisses your cheek.

“Today was amazing,” he hums.

He smiles as he replays the scenes of you shopping for each other, frolicking on the beach, and walking around your favorite spots. They’re all so simple and things you’ve done before but today felt so much more. There was a look in your eyes that held such tenderness and care for him. You held his hand as if you didn’t want to ever let go, as if you didn’t want him to.

“I really like you, Kook,” you mumble, almost like a confession, as if it’s not known. “I don’t know how else to say it.”

His eyes soften, as does his smile that he’s had on pretty much the whole day. But he just looks at you, and though you know he feels the same way, you want to hear him verbalize it again.

“Hey, say it back,” you nudge him.

“I love you though,” he says after a beat of silence.

You’re now the one who looks at him, unable to say a word.

“Are you that surprised?” He looks back at you nervously, nibbling his lip ring. “I mean, I think it’s quite obvious, just like everything I feel about you is.”

“Kook, I…” you try, but you don’t exactly know how to respond.

You don’t doubt his feelings but somehow you can’t help but think that maybe right now, he loves the idea of you and not you, and there’s a difference.

“I think I always have but I guess I didn’t realize just how much until this whole thing happened,” he continues, wanting you to understand what he feels. “I asked Jimin why it was affecting me so much and he said it’s because I put you on a pedestal. You were this dream I’ve had for so long that I admired from a distance and now I get to be with you and you’re… human, not some flawless being who doesn’t make mistakes. So when you hurt me, I faltered. That’s on me, too. Because I… I expected too much. And I’m sorry.”

His focus is on his hands that are playing with yours before he turns to you again.

“I realized that I wanted so badly for you to want me, that’s why it hurt. I wanted to be that person you cared for and trusted and needed because you’re all that for me. And when I saw you at my door last night, nothing else mattered but you,” he continues.

“Whatever misunderstanding or mistake or disagreement, I learned to accept them and I just wanted you, in my arms, so I could show you that you’re all I need. I’ve dreamt of you for so long and this version of you is more than I could’ve imagined. And I just… I love you, okay? It doesn’t matter how you feel. I just need you to know that I do, and I don’t think I’ll stop.”

Your heart is about to burst, and all you could do is cup his face in your hands and kiss him, hard and deep until you run out of air. You kiss him eagerly because you’re desperate for his touch. You kiss him passionately because there are things you feel that you can’t put into words yet, and this is how you tell him.

He’s quick to follow your pace, wrapping his arms around your waist as he helps you sit on his lap. Your fingers comb through his hair and grip his top and pull him closer, all while you grind against him and moan in his mouth.

But when he tucks a strand of hair behind your ear and caresses your cheek, you go tender.

“I love you so much,” he whispers against your lips, and all you feel is the warmth of his touch and how it’s all the comfort and security and stability that you need.

You slowly pull away and graze your nose against his. You don’t say anything else and he doesn’t expect you to. But you kiss his cheek and hug him, and you hear him sigh in relief.

He pulls away and cheekily smiles.

“You know, there’s a song for this.”

“A—what?” You laugh.

“A song.”

He pulls away from you then stands from the bed. “Let me get it from Jimin’s room.”

You stare at him questioningly because you really didn’t think he could surprise you even more. He returns with one of his burned CDs and you ask him if he has a sex playlist or something.

“I used to daydream about you to this,” he says, as he puts it in the CD player that your parents got you for your 17th birthday. “I listened to it after that very kiss we had and, well, we’re back home rehashing so many memories and I kinda just want to fulfill another fantasy of mine.”

He plays the song and the first notes get you all giddy and excited and nostalgic and very much turned on.

“This was my favorite song,” you say, as you signal him to come closer.

“I know. You played it all the time, I could hear it from the other room.”

You giggle, and it’s a sound he wants to listen to forever.

“So, what’s this fantasy of yours?” You ask, as you take your shirt off.

He licks his lips at the breathtaking sight of you, but he softens at the fairy tattoo on your shoulder, the one he customized and that you love showing off.

“Just… make love to you while this plays in the background,” he manages to say.

Your face softens, too, and it’s a sight he also wants to see everyday of his life.

“I’m all yours, Kook. Do whatever you please.”

It’s a week later when you tell him.

You’d just gotten back from that short trip to a resort that had you relaxed and stuffed with food. You video called with your parents during their sunset cruise and your father once again teased about not being grandparents yet and just like the first time, you brushed it off.

You’re lying on Jungkook’s chest as you laugh about Jimin’s terrible bowling skills. And in the silence, he asks, “does it bother you that your parents expect you to have kids?”

You knew he’d picked up on it the first time, but it’s just now that he’s bringing it up.

“A little. I try not to think about it though,” you sigh. “It’s another one of those expectations, you know? But I guess it’s a harder thing to talk to them about, that I don’t know if I want kids.”

He just hums and combs your hair with his fingers.

“Does it bother you?” You ask, suddenly feeling nervous. You know enough this is a make-or-break for many people.

“Not really,” he says. “It’s not easy to raise a child, much less carry one, and that’s something I can’t do for you. But I guess, it doesn’t matter. We can have kids. Or not. We can have a dog or a pet tortoise or a fish, really. When I think of a future, all I see is you. The rest is just a bonus.”

He speaks of your future with such certainty. He’s always talked about enjoying the moments but the one version of a future he wants is the one where you’re with him.

“I just want you to know that whatever you’re worried about, share it with me. I don’t want you to worry about me. We do this together. We figure it out together,” he adds.

And just like that, the fears and pressure you feel slowly dissipate. He’s the only version of the future you want. Everything else is just a bonus.

You turn to him with a kiss on his cheek.

“I love you, Kook. I don’t want anyone else to love me, and I don’t want to love anybody else,” you whisper like a plea, just like a promise.

“I’m not loving anybody else,” he kisses you.

And it’s his own promise he makes.

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dollyyun · 3 months

Text

𝐝𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐥'𝐬 𝐤𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬' 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐲 | 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝟔.𝟏

SYNOPSIS: The mystery behind whoever orchestrated the incident has yet to unravel, and the very same incident is the start of the palpable rift in your relationship with the four leaders. Things get gradually worse, and problems after problems keep piling up, especially having discovered a shocking revelation that causes you to develop mistrust towards them, but at the same time, you are caught in a dilemma where your mind and heart are in dissonance. In spite of it all, your heart still desires for them — the ones whom you have given your heart and soul to.

PAIRING: non!idols enha hyung line x fem!reader

GENRE: 18+ (mdni), semi-college au, adulthood, reverse harem, dark themes.

WORD COUNT: 24.7k

WARNINGS: mentions of christianity, profanities, explicit themes, dramas, angst, sexual assault, coercion, violence, blood, mention of death, manipulation, corruption, toxicity, lots of crying, dubcon theme, smut.

PLAYLIST: Disturbia - Rihanna, Animals - Maroon 5, RUNRUNRUN - Dutch Melrose, Gods & Monsters - Lana Del Rey, Poker Face - Lady Gaga, The Heart Wants What It Wants - Selena Gomez, Church - Chase Atlantic, Right Here - Chase Atlantic, Circles - Post Malone, Kiss It Better - Rihanna.

PREV (PART 5) | NEXT (PART 6.2) ✘ SERIES MASTERLIST ✘

-smut warnings under cut:

smut warnings: unprotected sex (no!), meandoms!heejake, name calling, degradation, manhandling, mild bondage, blowjob, fingering, pussy slapping, edging, crying, squirting, creampies, overstimulation, multiple orgasms, threesome (kinda).

An excruciating pain plummeting into your head precipitously pulls you out of the dreamless slumber, drawing out a wince from your lips, while the gradual return of your consciousness enables you to feel an indescribable affliction that aches tremendously in every part of your body.

You force your heavy eyelids to pry open, and once you do, your vision slowly adjusts to the red neon luminosity that provides a dim setting of your surroundings before you finally gain clear-sightedness, in which the view beholds stagger you. Though you remain immobilised with your cheek pressed onto the floor, you are acutely aware that there are dozens of mirrors ahead of you.

Soon, the confusion fuzzing your head is eclipsed by fear, impelling you to hasten away, but even the simple task of lifting a limb exhausts you as your body feels like it weighs a ton. You can feel your immobilised body shivering from the sheer coldness despite being adorned in a wool cardigan, denoting the protracted duration of your unconscious arrival at this unknown place.

As you remain motionless on the numbing hard ground, questions begin to surface in your muddling mind ─ who was responsible for knocking you out cold ruthlessly and why have they brought you to this place? Most importantly, what did you do wrong to deserve this?

For a moment, you nearly fall tempted to concede defeat and succumb to the inviting darkness that threatens to consume you once more, but when you immediately spot your phone just a reach from your outstretched arm, determination sparks in your eyes before you decide to rally every strength and courage from your inner core. The next thing you know, you force your upper body to rise from the ground despite the incessant aches.

You quickly retrieve your phone while silently thanking whoever is your kidnapper for being foolish enough to leave your phone with you, be it intentionally or not. Your eyes are fixed intently on the phone screen while your trembling fingers are trying their utmost to remain cooperative with the firm resolution to call the first person that comes to mind.

“Come on.” You mutter to yourself as you press on Yunjin’s contact, desperation lacing in your tone before the sheer disbelief comes forth as you are unable to reach out to her because of the deficient network, possibly due to the location you are at.

You try again as you raise your phone a little higher in hopes of gaining a better signal, and this time, you attempt to reach out to Wonyoung, Karina, and even the four men who no doubt will come to your rescue. A glimmer of hope tingles in your chest at the moment you are able to reach Jake as the signal stabilises, just nearly, but disruption returns before he could even answer your call.

You refrain from erupting into waterworks as you tuck your phone inside your pocket. Refusing to remain a damsel in distress any longer, the firm resolution morphs into one that has you miraculously regaining vitality as you find yourself rising from the ground, now standing on your feet. You curl your slightly trembling fingers into a fist, grasping the courage that fuels your determination to save yourself from whatever possible imminent loom before it gets you.

Swallowing enough spit to moisturise your parched throat, you begin the first step to your escapade venture with the intention to find any doors that lead to the exit, but as your eyes wander to the mirrors that no doubt provide illusions and tricks, your determination falters as you find yourself questioning your perception and sense of reality altogether, especially as you reach out to touch the cold surface of the mirror before you can even carelessly bump into it.

You retract your hand, your eyes darting to your surroundings, which only daunt you further due to the unknown labyrinth filled with infinite reflections and endless hallways. Your chin wobbles and your breaths go slightly uneven as you grapple with maintaining equanimity while the panic expands in your chest painfully. How are you even going to find your way out of here?

Still, you advance forward with your arms latching around your figure to provide a semblance of security in an attempt to alleviate your inner turmoil, while the hauntingly cold atmosphere only feels progressively oppressive, as though there is more than just one predator awaiting the right moment to pounce on you.

A wince leaves your lips just as you bump into a mirror, your fingers ascending to rub your throbbing forehead that only seems to worsen your persisting headache while your palm presses on the mirror to support your body just when you nearly stagger back. Forcing yourself to focus and return to the right track, you release a sigh before lifting your head, but just as you do, you are being greeted with a manly silhouette from a few distances ahead of you.

Whoever they are seems to be taking a step forward, and this time, the red neon illuminating the figure allows you to gain a clearer view of him ─ clad in an all-black ensemble with the hood covering his head, but what sends you a huge wave of relief is the familiar yet distinct red mask he adorned.

It is peculiar because, despite the compelling urge to run into his arms, something is strongly holding you back as you remain rooted to the ground. Just before you can call out his name, the small smile on your lips falters as soon as your eyes catch sight of a gleaming hunting knife in his hand.

“Jaeyun?” Amidst the palpable fear that churns in your tummy, confusion laces in the echoes of your voice throughout these hallways as you call out to the man who you thought wouldn’t do anything to hurt you. “Jaeyun, stop it. This isn’t funny.” You muster the courage to sound as stern as you can, but cowardice soon influences you at the moment he begins to advance in the direction of your transfixed figure.

A part of you wants to believe that Jake is simply trying to give you a good scare, just as he did on that one night where he embodied ghostface, but you should know better than to defy your better instinct, and so you heed it, turning around with the intention to flee from the man who you thought wouldn’t hurt you.

Little did you know that you had been too inattentive to your surroundings to notice an ominous presence looming over you from behind, resulting in you bumping into a solid figure that nearly sends you plummeting to the ground, but you quickly regain balance before you look up with your breath hitching in your throat when you recognise the silver mask he adorned.

“Sunghoon.” You utter his name in a splintered whisper as you slowly back away from him, discerning the malevolent mockery just by the mask’s visage alone. A whimper clogs in the back of your throat as you spot a vaguely familiar axe in his grasp, which he used on Devil’s Night and was dripping with blood.

“S-Sunghoon─” Just when you decide to implore him, stark terror strikes you as he raises his axe with the intention to attack you, drawing out a genuine scream of horror from you before you swiftly dodge his wilful aim as he brings down his axe with such skillful precision that you know your body would be butchered into half if you had remained standing in front of him.

Refusing to dawdle any longer, you pivot on your heels in the other direction and dash forward in trepidation, fleeing from your two predators. It is as though you have mastered adroitness in countering the illusionary as you manage to avoid bumping into transparent glasses and mirrors, but you are too concentrated on getting out of here, hopefully unscathed, to marvel at your agility.

Tears begin to accumulate in your eyes while anxiety tightens your chest upon hearing their footsteps echoing from behind you, spurring you to pick up the pace despite your temporary vitality on the verge of teetering as the effect of the unknown substance they injected into you gradually returns.

In the face of peril, the tempestuous hurricane of emotions threatens to sweep you away, each vying for dominance, but you know that you can’t be distracted. Just as you drift to a corner, a terrifying shriek tears from your throat upon the appearance of another predator, adorning himself in a familiar black mask.

You scream as soon as he swings the sledgehammer, aiming for your head before you deftly dodge his attack, only for him to hit the mirror at the side as it shatters. Amidst the fear pumping in your heart, heartbreak is palpable as you watch him in horror. He is relentless, aiming for your head with his weapon while you continue to elude him.

“Jay! Please! It’s me!” You decide to implore in the hopes of knocking senses into him while your voice blends in with the sound of shattering mirrors due to his aims. “Jay.” Your voice trembles while your throat hurts from inhibiting a bundle of emotions that threatens to implode.

Finally accepting defeat in your failed attempt to reason with him, you run in the other direction while silently thanking God for the multitude of hallways that allow you to choose either one to continue your escapade. This time, however, your depleting vitality impedes your coordination to elude your predators, as evident in your laboured breathing.

Exhaustion begins its descent on you, followed by the weeping as you finally allow the brimming tears to cascade down with strangled sobs leaving your lips. Could this be what the anonymous guy meant after those cryptic messages he sent you regarding your safety and whatnot? Could he have also known that the reason behind Jinae’s death was because of the four men who have each captured your heart?

You grit your teeth while unrelenting tears continue their descent on your cheeks as you inwardly berate yourself for stubbornly refusing to listen and heed your best friends’ words of advice and warning after all this time. Yet, your mind is battling an internal conflict with the rational part of you, which adamantly urges you to expunge any affectionate feelings you harbour for them, but you can feel it in your pumping heart; your love for them outweighs your rationality.

Unbeknownst to you, another impending danger is set off to inflict harm upon you as he sees the apparent exhaustion in your tapering pace and how you are preoccupied with wiping your tears languidly. Lacking focus, you accidentally bump into a transparent glass, resulting in you losing balance and almost plummeting to the ground if it weren’t for strong arms holding you steady from behind.

Instead of gratitude, you become highly alarmed by the touch of your predator while your widening eyes are staring at the mirror just a few distance away from you, which reflects your figures, allowing you to soak up the haunting image of the familiar white with a vertical red stripe on half of the mask. Instantly, you force your way out of his chilling grasps before turning around to face him.

“Missed me, sweetheart?” The familiar voicemod device he uses to manipulate the pitch of his voice brings you back to Devil’s Night, taking you by surprise, which is your first mistake, because just as you blink your eyes, you feel the force of his gloved hand ramming your head into the mirror.

As soon as you hit the mirror, you feel a splitting pain that has struck you deeply in the side of your head, while the brutal impact caused the mirror to crack in a rippling effect. You don’t even have the opportunity to recover when he clutches a handful of your hair into a makeshift ponytail to seize control over you, ramming your head into the mirror once more and this time shattering the broken pieces of the mirror that have been stained by your blood while a cry tears from your throat due to the agonising pain that eventually melds with the effect of unknown substances flowing through your veins.

The rough release from him causes your weakened body to collapse to the ground as your buckling knees have given up on you. You can feel warm liquid trickling down your temple before your eyes flicker at your reflection in the mirror, only to spot blood oozing from the wounds on your head as it trickles down your temple.

“Give it up, sweetheart.” Heeseung─ no, White says with a sickening delight in his tone as he revels in the way you are pathetically trying to crawl away from him with sobs leaving your lips. Before you can crawl any further, he stops you with his booted foot on top of your leg by applying pressure, prompting you to look up at him with sheer fright.

“H-Heeseung.” You whimper out his name while he becomes enamoured by the sight of your pretty eyes glistening with tears as well as the crimson smearing your skin. “Please don’t do this.” You implore him in between fearful yet heartbreaking sobs amidst grappling with the torrent of emotions within you, especially when he is now holding a fairly long melee knife, the blade promising pain.

“On the contrary, I do need to do this.” He crouches down to your level, toying with his knife idly before bringing it to caress your cheek with the sharp tip, causing your heart to rattle against your chest. “You have no idea how long I’ve waited for this.”

Despite the fear, a palpable heartbreak carves the hurt that was punctured in your chest while you stare at him with glistening eyes of betrayal. “I should’ve known that you were going to make me end up like the girl you toyed with the same way you did to me. Jinae.” You choke back a sob, wanting him to hear the remaining last words from you if this is indeed your last moment.

“So you finally learned about Jinae.” The tip of his knife is treading dangerously on your neck. Although he uses the same voice-mod device, you can discern the cruelty in his cold chuckles, sending involuntary shivers down your spine. “Don’t worry, sweetheart. After I fuck you, I’m going to kill you and carve out your heart to keep it in a pretty box. I’ll store it along with my other prized possessions.”

“You’re downright mental!” You manage to find your voice as it comes out strong, but soon the dam breaks as you weep again. “How could you do this?! I thought I meant something to you! I thought you loved me─” In a blink of an eye, your head is turned sideways due to the impact of his slap on your now-stinging cheek, while the ruthless action only seems to amplify the splitting pain in your head.

“Shut the fuck up, or I’ll cut off your tongue.” He nearly growls out before seizing your chin, forcing you to look at him again while feeble sobs leave your lips. “This wouldn’t have happened if you hadn’t foolishly invited and spread your legs like a filthy whore so easily, but I guess you’re just the same as your mother. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree after all.”

The mention of your mother manages to send you a jarring sensation amidst the splitting pain that threatens to consume you whole as you stare at him confoundingly. “My mother? What do you mean?” You dare to inquire adamantly, despite knowing that he can end your life with a single swift drag of his knife across your neck.

“How pitiful.” He lets out a faux sigh. “You have no idea the dirty secrets they’ve been keeping from you, but just know that your mother is not the devout Catholic you thought she was.” His answer is vague, and just before you can ask him for more elaboration, he makes the disapproving sound of a tut. “A mouthy thing, aren’t you? Even in the face of death.”

“The only mouthy thing here is actually you.” You have no idea what possesses you, but it may stem from the fact that he insulted your mother, and thus, you take him by complete surprise when you use your foot to hit him in the sack hard, resulting in him falling to the side as he groans out in pain.

You try your utmost to gather whatever strength is left in you as you rise from the ground before wasting no time in fleeing from him. “Y/N!” You hear him roaring in sheer anger from behind you.

This time, your better instinct strongly beckons you to go in the specific direction in which you feel a sense of anticipation that you’re most likely able to find the exit, but he is not far from you, as evident in the sound of his footsteps. A terrifying shriek is elicited from you just as his melee knife hurls straight ahead of you, nearly hitting your head if you hadn’t been on time to dodge it.

“You can run for as long as you want, but you’re not going to live to see the next day!” He roars out to you again, but you choose to ignore him as you navigate your way to find the exit, remaining persistent. Finally, after every twist and turn, you spot it while hope and relief mingle in your chest.

Before you can have your mini celebration in your head, a pounding pain plummets into your head, nearly impeding you, but you quickly refocus and proceed on while strands of your hair are stuck to your sweaty skin.

The passage of time appears to be slowing down, with the red neon luminosity encompassing you gradually fading into a blur, while the bright sign of 'exit' ahead remains a beacon to your fortitude, but your quest to the road of freedom grows languid as the eventual exertion dawns on your body.

Tears welling in your lower eyelids are a recrudescence of terror, parallel to your inner turmoil that remains unabating, and you feel as though it is eating you alive from the inside, dwindling the hope you so desperately clutch onto.

Your ears perk up at the sound of familiar, heavy-booted steps from not far behind you, eliciting a forlorn cry from you before you force your weary body to pick up the speed in spite of the unknown yet lethal substance streaming through your every fibre and returning to take its major effect on your whole being.

No, this is not how you imagined facing your demise. You never would have thought that one of your worst nightmares had manifested itself and plunged into your reality.

Your skull is throbbing painfully, with blood seeping from the fresh wounds that trickle down the side of your face, while your heart aches tremendously. A sob emerges from the back of your throat before waterworks cascade down on you, but you refuse to allow yourself to die tonight, not when you’re nearly getting the taste of freedom.

Before you know it, you use the force of your body to push the door open as it swings outward violently, and you continue to run on the asphalt ground, having no clue of your current location, while your heaving chest is starting to hurt with how ragged your breathing is that mingles with the sobs.

“Please.” You choke out, your tearful eyes blurring your vision, while you feel as though more needles are piercing into your skull. “Please let all of this be a nightmare.” You manage to whisper in between broken sobs, nearly succumbing to the hyperventilation that renders you unfocused on your surroundings as your body remains in a fight-or-flight mode.

The next thing you know, you bump into a solid chest that nearly has you staggering back if it weren’t for strong arms latching onto your trembling form. The moment your eyes meet his concerned eyes that soon blaze with anger, a frightful shriek tears from your parched throat before you push him away from you, as though he is a disease.

“Princess?” Sunghoon, whose head is fogging with confusion, frowns visibly as he sees the way you are looking at him as though he is a terrifying stranger.

The movements from Jake and Jay catch your heightened sense, prompting you to cower away from them as you back away. “Stay away from me!” You shout at them, the fear is palpable in the tremor of your voice, to which they halt their movements.

“Baby, it’s us!” Jay exclaims while trying his utmost not to give away the tempest of wrath that storms within him upon seeing the state you are in.

“Lovely…” Jake takes cautious steps towards you, but even his loving, gentle tone is not enough to dispel the betrayal and heartbreak you are still reeling from.

“I said don’t come close to me! Please!” To see you hyperventilating as you sob hard hits them in the face, but what pains them is the terror you exhibit right now because they never wanted you to fear them as though they would really hurt you.

You turn around with the intention to run from them, but this time, Heeseung’s figure is a hindrance as he blocks your way. His hands find their way to hold you firmly while you attempt to thrash and struggle in his captivity.

“Let go of me!” You become relentless, your fear is now eclipsed by anger that stems from the fresh betrayal.

Despite the confusion upon seeing the blazing anger in your crystalline eyes, Heeseung remains calmly collected as he holds you effortlessly yet is unable for you to escape from. “Sweetheart─”

Being utterly overwhelmed and blinded by the maelstrom of pain, betrayal, sadness, and anger, you raise your hand and bring it down to land a harsh slap to his now-stinging cheek, shocking the other three from behind.

“Do you think this is meant to be humorous to you?!” The rage in your voice is unmistakable as it sounds foreign to your ears, but your focus remains on his face as he slowly turns to look at you while you are oblivious to the raging storms in his dark eyes. “Is this really your endgame?! Once you’re satisfied after fucking me, you'll kill me?!”

Heeseung’s deadly silence only seems to fuel your wrath, and so you begin to throw punches into his chest that don't even have any effect on him. “Fight back!” You scream in between sobs, tears relentlessly streaming down your cheeks. “If you want to kill me, do it now!”

“Y/N, stop.” Jake and Jay appear from behind, intervening as they grab you away from Heeseung’s defeated grasps while you continue to struggle and fight against their strong hold valiantly despite feeling debilitated.

“What are you talking about?” Heeseung’s calm voice manages to reach your ears despite the sound of your hysteria.

“Yeah, what do you mean by killing you, lovely?” Jake asks with a frown as soon as you shoot him a glare. “We would never do such a thing─”

Miraculously, you manage to escape from their grasps, and your glaring eyes penetrate into each of them. “Don’t lie to me! I know you’re the ones who kidnapped me and brought me to this God-forsaken place, and for what? To kill me!”

“We didn’t!” Jay objects vehemently, disbelief lacing his tone. “Why would we ever want to kill you?”

“Liar!” You retort before breaking down again, the sound of your cries only fuels their anger to hunt down whoever dared to hurt you. “If you weren’t the ones back there, then how did you even know where I was?”

“I installed a tracker on your phone. It’s the reason why we managed to track your location.” Jake steps forward, his softening eyes seem to balm your hysteric nerves. “But you have to believe us, love. We would never do anything to jeopardise your life.”

You open your mouth to speak, but a whimper comes instead as you feel the familiar pain plummeting into your skull, prompting you to clutch your still-bleeding head, and Sunghoon, being the nearest to you, holds you steady against him just as your body sways lightly.

“You’re still bleeding, princess.” Sunghoon murmurs, his gentle tone and his touch send you into a whirlwind of confusion. Disappointment seeps through him as you push him away while your mind is waging a battle of internal conflict, recalling the girls’ words about them, but at the same time, your love for them remains palpable, which only makes your head spin.

“Don’t touch me.” You protest weakly as you attempt to yank your arm from Heeseung’s firm grasp, but the substances injected into you that flow in your system wholly revoke the remnants of your vitality, rendering you debilitated as you find yourself leaning into him.

Without a word, Heeseung effortlessly carries you in a bridal style, with your whole body going limp as your consciousness slips away faster than you like before the darkness welcomes you once more.

“Gather all the knights from your respective houses. We’ll be having a meeting tomorrow morning.” Heeseung orders calmly, causing the three to exchange glances. “All of them, and not a single person is to be left out.”

“You got it.” Jake gives him a firm nod.

Heeseung catches Sunghoon and Jay’s eyes, and they immediately understand his deadly intent. “Find those fuckers inside and do what you need to do. Bring their heads to me.”

It turned out that no heads were brought to Heeseung last night, much to their discontentment. Both Sunghoon and Jay have conducted the hunt throughout the entirety of the place, not missing out on every nook and cranny, which took them approximately an hour just to find no one other than shattered mirrors alongside your blood. But the four of them have shared a mutual understanding and collectively concluded that the likelihood of who was responsible for what happened to you must have been orchestrated by their very knights, especially when they are more than aware that they have enemies even within their fraternity. It’s just a matter of time before those said enemies finally decide to drop their amiable pretences.

Hence, with the exception of those who are currently travelling abroad for the holidays, every junior and senior knight from their respective houses has been summoned to the meeting, which is highlighted as crucial. Those who dare to defy will, of course, face the consequences.

The cold atmosphere in the general meeting room is patently imbued with a palpable tension that derives from the four leaders as they stand before these suspected knights. The intimidation emanating from the four silent leaders seems to dominate the entirety of the fraternity in the room as the sound of their incessant chatter and exchanged conversations decreases.

“This meeting won’t end unless you come forth and confess that you did what you did.” Sunghoon raises his voice with a distinct authority that has almost the majority of knights feeling dreadful, especially as they recognise the signature callous smirk drawn on his lips. “We can wait all day.”

“Or better yet,” Jay toys around with the metal baseball bat in his grasp, evoking fear from some. The smirk on his lips mirrors Sunghoon's, while his eyes gleam with a familiar delight at his penchant for brutality. “We can do this the hard way by beating the confession out of you. Every single one of you.”

“This isn't fair! Us juniors did nothing!” One of the juniors, who goes by the name Taesan, bravely speaks for his fellow peers, earning him murmurs and whines of agreement. “At least I know I did nothing.” Taesan adds, his tone lacing with sincerity.

“Yeah. We weren’t the ones responsible.” Another junior, Jaehyun, says this as he stands next to Taesan. “As a matter of fact, the juniors were out partying at Sunoo’s crib last night.”

“Sunoo?” Jake looks over to the familiar blonde-haired male, who has been occasionally checking himself out on the camera phone. “Is it true that you hosted a party at your crib last night?”

“Oh, yes.” Sunoo, alongside Jungwon and Riki, doesn’t appear to be the slightest affected by the leaders’ intimidation, as he beams with a lopsided grin on his face, scrolling through the gallery on his phone before showing them a video. “Look! Seunghan went completely wasted and sprawled by the dance floor after puking up─”

“Dude!” Seunghan’s loud groan can be heard amidst the snickering amongst the juniors, while Sunoo shoots him an innocent smile.

“They’re all right.” Jungwon steps forward, drawing the four leaders’ attention to the intense conviction written across his features. “You told Sunoo, Riki, and I before that you have complete faith in us and trust us, so trust me when I say that the juniors were not the ones responsible for whoever captured and attacked Y/N.”

“Even if any of our juniors dared to, you know that I wouldn’t allow for this to pass.” Riki adds on, the austerity he exudes is clear in the way he casts a momentary yet warning glare at his fellow peers. “We know better than to mess with someone else’s prey.”

“Right, prey.” This time, someone else from the senior batch decides to speak up, drawing their attention to Choi Soobin, who adorns a smirk that is clearly a mockery as he stares sharply at the leaders. “It does beg the question: why do you care so much about your prey?”

“Yeah, who cares if she has gotten injured because of what happened last night?” Hyunjin scoffs, agreeing with Soobin. “Preys are meant to be hunted down by hunters, which is us.”

“I personally think that you should be grateful that someone else is doing the job for you by hunting and hurting your precious prey.” Taehyun remarks with a cynical smile that only adds more suspicion to the leaders. “Plus, she was probably hallucinating or even fabricating shit when she might be the mastermind behind the attack on herself.”

“Hallucinating?” Jake is seething with anger, taking the others by surprise with his unexpected shortness of temper. “You dared to spew shit about my girl, Kang? For fuck’s sake, she was bleeding out of her head! Who in their right mind would inflict harm on themselves?!”

“Easy.” Heeseung, with ease, holds back Jake as he places his hand on the latter’s chest before directing his sharp attention on Taehyun. “Congrats, Kang Taehyun. You’ve just become our number one suspect.”

“Y/N could’ve died if she hadn’t gotten immediate medical attention.” Sunghoon says, clenching his jaw as he tames the tempest of wrath within him upon the obvious agreement to Taehyun’s statements.

“Even if she had died, why does it matter?” Hyunjin asks, and a smug smile dawns on his lips as he leans back on his seat leisurely. “I mean, look at what happened to Jinae. She was your prey, just like Y/N, and yet her death didn’t seem to affect you in the slightest.”

“Who is Jinae?” A collective murmur of confusion emanates from the juniors, including Sunoo, Jungwon, and Riki, whereas the seniors look equally dreadful, and some are sighing at Hyunjin’s idiocy.

Sunghoon and Jake exchange wary looks while Jay is more than ready to launch his attack on Hyunjin, but as they finally look at Heeseung, they find it surprising to see his calmly collected demeanour.

Hyunjin continues to run his mouth idly, not affected by the foreboding tension in the air. “Either way, you guys are going to end up killing your prey─” Seated beside him, Jeongin punches his shoulder in an attempt to silence him.

“Meeting dismissed.” Heeseung announces in a low rumble that this is enough to send almost all of them scurrying from the meeting room. His eyes meet Beomgyu’s for a fleeting moment, and yet, despite Beomgyu’s small smile, which he knows is supposed to send some form of supporting assurance, it only seems to stir his inner turmoil.

“We have two suspects. Taehyun and Hyunjin.” Jake informs his best friends once all the knights have made their departure except their three apprentices.

“Add Choi Soobin as well.” Sunghoon rolls his eyes in annoyance, followed by a disdainful scowl etched on his face. “Did you see the way that fucker smirked? I bet he’s involved too.”

“What are you guys still doing here?” Jay asks sternly, his attention directed to their three apprentices while they exchange glances with apparent curiosity in their eyes.

“Yeahh, you see, we’ve been wondering who the hell Jinae is. So we’re not leaving until you tell us.” Jungwon voices out, his face is devoid of any mischief as he crosses his arms over his chest. “And what did whatever Hyunjin meant earlier mean?”

“And how come we’ve never heard of this Jinae girl?” Sunoo frowns, his lips jutting into a pout. “I thought we were all the best of friends to share secrets!”

Riki, ever the most observant, whose sharp eyes are scrutinising the four leaders who have been silent, notices the sombre casting shadows over them alongside the irresolution written across their features. “This Jinae, the girl you’ve preyed on before, is dead. Isn’t she?”

For a moment, the air in the room shifts uncomfortably with palpable intensity. Heeseung catches Jay’s eyes and gives him a head nod before the latter steps forward with a sigh. “Since you guys are so annoyingly adamant, I’ll tell you the truth, but not a single word goes out to the others.” They don't miss the edge of warning in his tone.

“I don’t understand. If it’s the truth, then why does it matter if it goes out to the others?” Sunoo inquires rather bluntly while his eyebrow is arched inquisitively.

A muscle pulses in Jay’s jaw as he briefly looks away. “Because the truth is more complicated than you think. Come. Let’s head to my office.” Like a bunch of ducklings, Jungwon, Riki, and Sunoo begin to trail behind Jay without any objections.

“We should check in on Y/N.” Sunghoon tells Jake and Heeseung as soon as the others leave the room, earning him nods of agreement before they proceed to venture their way to your room with silence wrapped around them.

After you passed out in Heeseung’s arms, they wasted no time in bringing you to the hospital where Heeseung’s older brothers were working. Coincidentally, Daehyun and Jaesung were working night shifts when you were referred to the emergency department instead. To say the twins were shocked upon seeing the dire state you were in was an understatement, but nonetheless, they offered to be the ones to oversee you as their patient. You had only been admitted to the emergency ward after your wounds were treated and the drugs in your system were excreted, until Heeseung adamantly requested that you recover in the palace instead.

Of course, the older twins could never refuse Heeseung, and so here you are, currently asleep and tucked comfortably under the covers on your bed as Sunghoon, Jake, and Heeseung watch as Jaesung has just completed another medical check on you, especially since your body is still recovering from the drugs injected in your system. Their hearts ache upon seeing the white bandage wrapped around your head. They recall when Daehyun informed them last night that if they hadn’t brought you to the hospital sooner, you would’ve been in a coma or worse.

“She needs plenty of rest and sleep over the next few days since the drugs that were previously in her system strongly affected her body.” Jaesung informs them with a mask of professionalism that immediately recedes when his eyes narrow at his brother. “You owe me, brother. Now, care to explain what the hell happened?” Before any of them can speak, Jaesung heaves a deep sigh as he pinches the bridge of his nose. “For the love of God, please don’t tell me that you’re doing what I think you’re doing.”

“And what do you think we’re doing?” Sunghoon asks rather rudely, to which Jaesung dismisses since he has long since gotten used to the bunch being so ill-mannered, even towards their elders.

“You know exactly what I meant. Toying around with Y/N just as you did three years ago.” Jaesung’s lips press thinly while a sombre shadow casts over his features. “I understand that the preying has always been part of the devil’s knights’ tradition, but to the point where their lives are endangered─ don’t you think it’s too far? I don’t know what Y/N did, but she most certainly doesn't deserve to get hurt or worse.”

Heeseung scoffs coldly, his eyes are ablaze with seething anger. “You thought so lowly of us just because of what happened three years ago when we would never dare to harm Y/N.”

“Heeseung’s right. If we were the ones who harmed her last night, Heeseung and Jake wouldn’t have brought her to the hospital quickly.” Sunghoon intervenes before Heeseung can get further pissed off at Jaesung. “Besides, Y/N is different.”

“Y/N is not like Jinae.” Jake adds, his clasped hands raising to support the back of his head as he leans.

A humourless smirk plays on Sunghoon’s lips. “Yeahhh, our girl is not crazy pants.”

“Guys, the least you could do is to talk about the dead girl respectfully.” Jaesung shakes his head, expressing his disapproval, before he glances down at his wristwatch. “Since my job here is done, I’ll be taking my leave, and don’t forget to feed her the medication I’ve given you.” Jaesung pats Heeseung’s shoulder firmly before exiting your room.

“Wonyoung texted me earlier. She and the other girls will be coming over to visit Y/N.” Sunghoon breaks the silence, watching as Jake heads over to the bed and crouches down next to you, holding your cold hand in his to give a gentle kiss on your knuckles. Sunghoon tears his gaze away from you to look at Heeseung. “I tried refusing, but you know, Wonyoung being Wonyoung.”

“Let them. If it weren’t for them, we wouldn’t have known that Y/N were taken by some fuckers.” Heeseung clenches his jaw while his callous eyes harden. The thirst for vengeance is palpable in his veins. He looks over to Jake, who remains by your side and whose longing eyes are tethered to your angelic face. “Jake, what’s the progress of cracking the code? It’s highly possible that whoever the anonymous texter who pestered Y/N before is responsible for this.”

“It’s getting nowhere.” Jake releases a soft sigh, and his shoulder slouches in defeat. “Trust me, I tried, and I even got extra helping hands from Sunoo and Riki, but it’s as if their firewall is made out of an impenetrable shield for us to hack through.”

Sunghoon’s phone chimes loudly in his hand, prompting him to look down at his phone screen. “Be right back. Wonyoung and the girls have just arrived.” He informs them before departing your room.

Jake places one last kiss on the back of your hand before standing, and he even reluctantly releases your hand gently from his grasp. He walks over to Heeseung, who appears to be in deep thought.

“Heeseung, what do we do when she wakes up? You’ve already seen how terrified she looked at us last night.” Jake sighs out in frustration as he brushes his long strands to the back. “I’m suspecting that whoever attacked her impersonated us in some way.”

“Our masks.” Heeseung blurts out as a bulb lights up in his head. He meets Jake’s storming gaze that parallels his wrath. “It makes sense. If not, why else would she be so afraid of us?”

Before Jake can voice out his thoughts, a knock on the door interrupts them, prompting them to look over to see Wonyoung, Karina, and Yunjin. The two spot Sunghoon behind them, who beckons them to give the girls some privacy with you, and they do, but not before one of the girls speaks to them.

“Has she not awakened since morning?” Karina asks sadly, the only one who doesn’t entirely have her guard up around them, unlike Wonyoung and Yunjin. Though they did inform the guys about the commotion Yunjin heard over the line last night that resulted in your sudden disappearance, that doesn’t mean they trust the leaders.

Jake shakes his head in response as the two are standing at the entryway. “She might be awake in the next few hours or so, hopefully.” He tells them curtly.

“Heeseung.” Wonyoung’s cold voice draws their attention while her unwavering eyes penetrate into Heeseung’s, to which his eyes narrow as he senses such hostility from the tall girl. “You guys may be the ones who rescued Y/N, but if I ever find out that you guys were the mastermind behind all of this, you’ll be sorry.”

“Is that a threat I sense?” Heeseung’s voice drips with callous mockery while a smirk plays on his lips and his eyes glint dangerously. “Careful, Wonyoung. You might want to remember who you’re speaking to. I can only tolerate much.”

Jake shields in front of Heeseung in case the latter decides to do something unpredictable. He casts a charming yet wary grin at the girls upon noticing how Wonyoung is fuming. “We can assure you, ladies, that we weren’t the ones responsible. We care for Y/N more than you think.”

“Oh, really? Do you really?” Wonyoung lets out a sardonic chuckle while Yunjin is holding the girl by her arm. “If you had cared for Y/N, you wouldn’t have preyed on her in the first place.”

“Enough.” Sunghoon intervenes with a low warning rumble, his stern eyes meeting Wonyoung’s. “We’re not here to fight you. We’re all here for Y/N, aren’t we?”

In return, Wonyoung scoffs before turning her back on them at the same time the guys do as they proceed to leave your room. The longer they are in the vicinity of the ones you called your best friends, the more they find them insufferable.

The sound of murmurs and the heavy dip on your bed rouse you from the deep slumber you were in before an incessant pounding pummels into your skull, causing your face to contort into a grimace, as well as a whimper that emits from you alarms them. You can hear them calling for your name, but they sound muffled as your mind decides to focus on collecting the fragments of the events that transpired last night, which eventually coalesce into one account.

You have been hoping that it was all just a nightmare, but the tremendous aches throbbing in your body as well as the splitting pain in your head counter otherwise. The sensation of a warm hand enveloping yours causes you to flutter your eyes open, to which you are greeted by the ray of sunlight filtering through the window that casts shadows across your ceiling.

Everything feels languid, even as you turn your head to look at the person who is holding your hand gently yet with familiar reverence. Upon meeting the tenderness of his warm eyes, a soft smile unfurls on his lips. “Hey, baby.” Jay greets you softly, his tone holds an unmistakable affection that is only reserved for you.

“Jay.” Your throat feels dry as sand as you whisper his name, longing, but at the moment he squeezes your hand in return, it is as though something in you has triggered off, prompting you to immediately yank your hand from his while your abrupt change of demeanour startles them.

A frown touches Jay’s lips before he attempts to reach out for you again. “Baby─”

“Go away!” You yell, tears accumulating rapidly in your eyes as you attempt to scoot further away from them until your back hits the headboard. Your body is trembling, emanating an intense fear, while your mind is in tumultuous chaos, as manifested in your irregular breathing.

“Princess,” Sunghoon, who has been sitting next to you on the bed, holds your arm firmly while his concerned eyes examine the borderline hysteria you exhibit as you are reeling from the transpired event that serves as a playback tormenting you in your mind. A frown pulls at his lips as he sees you struggling in his firm grasp. “Princess, it’s us.”

“Get out!” You scream in between sobs as tears descend on you. You are more than conscious to know that they were not the ones responsible, but you can’t help with your mind as the sight of their hands reminds you of the weapons their impersonators possessed and attempted to murder you.

“Sweetheart, you know that it wasn’t us.” The mellow tone of Heeseung’s voice miraculously manages to break through the whirlwind of hysteria you are in as you flicker your eyes at his towering figure by the bed. Despite his benign demeanour, you tremble under his gaze, recalling his impersonator's brutality towards you that nearly cost your life.

“I-I─” The words you wish to utter are stuck in your throat, and a whimper emits from you instead as you shake your head in protest while your chest feels encircled by pressure, rendering your breaths alarmingly uneven as though something is choking you.

“Princess, hey!” Sunghoon holds you by the shoulders as he forces you to look him in the eyes, but your vision is in an unfocused blur while the sound of your irregular breathing gets frantic, and your pounding heartbeat is going rapid as it drums loudly in your ears. “I need you to calm down and focus on me.” But Sunghoon’s stern instruction only seems to worsen the situation as you weakly attempt to push him away from you, recalling his impersonator with the lethal axe.

Your surroundings feel disoriented, as do the muffled murmurs from them in the background. Finally, Sunghoon’s hands slip from your shoulders, only to be replaced by another pair of warm hands cupping your tear-stained cheeks. Before you can even jerk away from their touch, his gentle tone serves as a temporary balm.

“Breathe, love. Slow and steady.” Jake says so softly yet firmly, enough to draw your focus as you finally meet his warm brown eyes that hold an unmistakable affection amidst the solicitude. Your hysteria ebbs away at the moment his warmth touches you, and you begin to follow his guidance as you attempt to regulate your breathing, earning you an encouraging head nod from him. “That’s it. Good girl.”

“J-Jaeyun,” Your voice sounds hoarse as you utter his name brokenly. Another sob escapes you, rivulets continuing their descent on your vulnerable countenance. “Jae─”

“I got you, love.” Jake pulls you into his warm embrace, hugging you closely while you don’t hesitate to cling your arms around his torso, your face burying into his chest as you continue to weep into him.

Oddly, there are no ill feelings as they watch Jake, who has successfully managed to be the one to calm you down, comforting and holding you close. Only a huge wave of relief washes over them. Jay makes a gesture to Heeseung and Sunghoon, beckoning them to leave Jake alone with you, and they do before Heeseung, being the last person to exit your room, closes the door quietly.

With one arm around your heaving body, the other ascends to run his fingers through your soft locks and occasionally massage your head, careful enough not to come into contact with the bandaged area. He presses a gentle kiss on the side of your uninjured head before dipping his head down to kiss your earlobe and whispering, “I’m here. We’re all here. No one is going to hurt you ever again.”

You only squeeze your arms around him in return, while the sound of your weeping gradually ebbs as you continue to silently bask in the comfort he emanates, providing you with a blanket of security. The weight in your eyelids seems to be pulling down, and before you know it, you flutter your eyes closed as you slowly go lax in his arms.

You have no idea how long it has been since the moment you returned to your slumber, but long enough to be awakened by a strong arm encircling your waist and his hand cradling the back of your head as he tucks your face into his chest, prompting you to briefly glance up just to see Jake being asleep.

Your heart warms at how protective yet intimately he has secured you in his embrace, even as he is sound asleep. But then comes the cold reality as your mind recalls a certain memory you don’t wish to revisit.

“You have no idea the dirty secrets they’ve been keeping from you, but just know that your mother is not the devout Catholic you thought she was.”

Maybe you would turn out to be wrong, but you have a strong sense that whatever Heeseung’s impersonator meant is highly correlated to the four leaders, which also involve your mother.

However, the big question remains: Why would your mother be involved? And why did he speak in a manner that you would’ve assumed he knew your mother personally?

So many questions are throbbing in your head, and yet you know you should unravel whatever secrets have been kept from you sooner, even if it means that you’ll be destroying established trusts.

When the next day arrives, the compelling urge that derives from your fervid intuition for you to start the investigation beckons, resulting in your intrusion into the familiar yet prohibited part of the palace once again. With steely eyes of determination, you recall the distinct memory of when Anonymous’s instruction the last time enticed you to invade the forbidden, as you now find yourself entering Heeseung’s office.

This time, however, you could care less if either of them discovered of your abrupt rebellion, especially when your wilful mind is set straight with one ultimate goal, and that is to discover what sort of association your mother had with the devil's knights. Sure, you could turn out to be proven wrong, and the likelihood of you getting punished by Heeseung or any of them is high, but you adamantly wish to dispel your vehemence of curiosity.

Still, despite the steel of your resolve, your fingers are trembling slightly as they hover over the keyboard while your stomach churns with turmoil, but you immediately fix your composure, distinctly recalling Anonymous’s instruction the last time he enticed you to do this with the exception that you are now doing this of your own accord.

The familiar sight of the computer screen displaying files arranged meticulously in rows greets you before your keen eyes begin to search for the familiar folder named ‘001’, and once you do, you use the mouse to click on it.

Naturally, you expect a pop-up webpage that requires you to enter the password to appear again, but this time is different because, when you click on it, it reveals a few different files listed, bringing a frown to your lips and your face contorting into confusion.

Ding!

Your phone chimes in your pocket, and you quickly fish it out to check, only to be greeted at an eerie notification from an unknown number to which you have a strong inkling that it is the same anonymous as before.

UNKNOWN NUMBER: You’re welcome :)

Goosebumps arise on your skin, ignoring the fact that he is undoubtedly watching you, and you have no idea how or where. Instead of replying, you shove your phone back into your pocket and redirect your focus to the computer screen.

As your eyes scan these mysterious files, something feels odd as you recognise that some of the files are saved as images. Slowly, as you hover the cursor over the first file, your pulse drums loudly in your ears while your stomach begins to churn violently. Before you allow hesitation to seize you, you begin to click on it.

What greets you isn’t anything you expect. It’s pictures in sequence of your mother and the familiar face of Heeseung’s father in a car. The images seem to look recent, but the file's name states otherwise, as it was saved a few months ago.

Your eyes narrow at your mother and Heeseung’s father’s interaction, noticing how intimately close they are in the first picture, while the second picture looks like he is caressing your mother’s cheek with his eyes full of unmistakable affection. The third picture has you gasping in sheer disbelief, as they are undoubtedly in lip lock.

Haphazardly, you close the file and proceed to open another, and this time, you recognise Jake and Sunghoon’s fathers in this sequence of pictures, seated in a cafe with your mother. In the first few sequences, they seem to be catching up, and you would’ve thought that they were long-lost college friends if it weren’t for the fact that one of them embraced your mother in an intimate hug before the next image shows the other kissing her forehead.

You can feel the sheer betrayal and hurt squeezing around your pounding heart. You know you should not continue, yet you find yourself going through another file, showing images of Jay’s father and your mother standing on the porch of your home in an intimate hug as well as in a lip lock unabashedly.

“No. This can’t be true.” You murmur to yourself, distress is written across your features as you decide to close the file, unable to look at your mother’s unravelling infidelity any longer.

You don’t understand why your mother would do this when her declaration of love for your father has always been consistent, and most importantly, how did she know them?

It is as though something is beckoning you to the answer you seek as your eyes spot a video that looks starkly different than the others, and the date indicated on the file shows that whatever is contained in it is older than you think.

Swallowing down the bile of emotions harshly, you proceed to click on it and brace yourself, or perhaps you didn’t prepare yourself enough for what is presenting to you.

“Oh my god….” You whisper brokenly as tears fill your waterline. More gasps emit from you, prompting you to cover your mouth with your palm. The longer your eyes remain fixated on the obscene orgy that their younger selves were engaged brazenly alongside their lewd noises, the more you feel utterly revolted, wanting to puke up as the churns in your tummy become intemperate.

Upon the atrocious revelation that entailed the dark history your mother had with their fathers, you decide that what you have just unravelled is enough as you quickly close the file and proceed to shut down the computer.

In a state of complete distraught, with tears flowing down your face, you continue to make your departure from the prohibited territory. Fortunately, the four of them are nowhere in the palace, as Jake texted you earlier that they had some business to settle. You wouldn’t know what to do if you had to face any of them sooner, or maybe you don’t wish to see them at all.

As you wallow in the overwhelming tumult of emotions on your bed, all curled up and underneath the covers, you weep. You can’t believe that your own devout Catholic mother would do this, but above all, confusion mingling with resentment and betrayal is directed at Heeseung and the rest for storing such videos, and for what?

You simply don’t understand what benefits them, as they keep this dark revelation to themselves. Had they known all the while that their fathers had always harboured some form of affection and lust for your mother, even back in their college days?

After having had enough of wallowing, you decide to head into the bathroom to wash your face. As you look at yourself in the mirror, momentarily grimacing at the visible exhaustion on your complexion, which denotes how mentally drained you are, a firm resolution hardens your once-bleary eyes.

You don’t have the heart to meet them or even to see a glimpse of their faces. You should’ve known that they were more than capable of anything, especially after killing Jinae. You feel genuinely sick and disturbingly uncomfortable at the thought of being around them any longer.

No longer are you able to withstand this incessant dread that crawls on your skin, and so with a heavy heart, you proceed to pack whatever minimal necessity into your sling purse before heading into the walk-in wardrobe to change your clothes into something a little presentable, but you end up choosing an oversized hoodie.

Biting down your lip harshly, you look down at your phone, where the screen displays your group chat, before typing away with your trembling fingers.

Y/N: I’m going back to my dormitory. HEESEUNG: Why? SUNGHOON: Is something wrong, princess? JAY: Yeah, are you feeling too lonely, baby? We’ll be returning soon. Y/N: No, I just miss my best friends and I want to reconcile with them so I won’t be returning to the palace. Please understand. JAKE: Of course, lovely.

Arriving at the lobby of your dormitory gives you a whiplash as you recall when the lights fully blacked out before you were attacked and rendered ruthlessly unconscious, causing you to wrap your arms around your frail form before you hasten your steps to the elevator while you ignore the odd stares you receive from the other students.

However, with each step nearing the door of your dormitory, the nauseousness you forced yourself to keep at bay surges while your mind is still reeling in revulsion from the prior discovery. You wish to wash your eyes with bleach and erase the stark images of their obscenity.

With a shaky hand, you fumble with tapping your access key card on the smart lock, and once it chimes, you quickly push down the handle and open the door, haphazardly entering the household that is filled with distinct chatter from your roommates.

“Y/N!” Karina is the first one to spot you by the living room, but you overlook the genuine surprise written across their faces upon seeing your unexpected appearance as you dash for your room. You hear them calling for you, but you are too preoccupied with the pain of holding back your nauseousness.

Finally barging into your bathroom, you head for the toilet bowl before crouching down with your back hunched as you lean over to throw up liquid content into the bowl. It appears that the alarming sound of your retching reaches the ears of your best friends, and before you know it, you hear footsteps rushing from the outside to your bathroom.

“Oh my god! Y/N!” You hear Karina gasp loudly amidst the echoes emanating from your retching throughout these bathroom tiles, but you don’t turn around to see them as the pain from your stomach and your throbbing head consumes you, as does the pain that stems from the fresh betrayal.

“Y/N.” Wonyoung’s worried voice manages to break through before you feel her presence next to you as she assists you in holding your hair up to prevent the strands from getting in the way before you continue to puke for another time while Yunjin crouches down on the other side to rub your heaving back soothingly.

After what feels like forever, both Yunjin and Wonyoung assist you in bringing you over to the sink for you to wash your mouth, while Karina heads out to the kitchen to grab a mineral bottle for you. Yunjin and Wonyoung exchange confused yet wary glances at your resonating silence as they hold your frail body, walking out of the bathroom.

“Here.” Karina jogs into your room, one hand holding the bottle as she extends her arm towards you. Without meeting her gaze, you shake your head before taking a seat on your bed, with Yunjin and Wonyoung refusing to leave your side. Karina releases a sigh. “You need to hydrate yourself after throwing up nothing but water.”

“For that matter, why are you here?” Yunjin inquires worriedly, and her tone indicates that she wants to chide you. “You should be resting in the palace, and even if you wanted to come back here, you should’ve at least texted one of us to fetch you. What would’ve happened if you had fainted on your way here?”

“Jen’s right, Y/N.” Wonyoung places her hand on your tensed shoulder, taking notice of your loud silence and your avoidance as your head hangs low. “What happened? Are you feeling sicker than usual? Or are you─” Wonyoung pauses as her eyes widen, mirroring the same expression as Yunjin and Karina. “Are you pregnant?”

You barely flinch at the obvious wince in her tone as you remain reeling in pain from the betrayal. A part of you wants to confide in your best friends, but you also don’t wish for them to know the revolting truth about the history your mother had with the four leaders’ fathers, fearing that they would abandon you again out of sheer disgust.

“No. I’m not pregnant.” Your voice sounds scratchy due to all the puking that leaves a bitter acid on your tongue. “I um─” You pause, swallowing harshly as you look down at your trembling hands on your lap before you clasp them together, but the tremor in your voice remains. “I couldn’t stay there any longer.”

“What? Why?” Wonyoung asks, her tone sounds firm. “Did they hurt you? I swear if they hurt you─”

“They didn’t.” You shake your head, the instinctive urge to always defend them is still strong, which is perplexing because you know that you no longer feel comfortable being around them, and yet the emotional attachment you have towards them remains unchanging. You bite down on your lip hard, completely frustrated with yourself. “They’ve never hurt me, but I don’t think I want to be around them any longer.”

“But aren’t you in love with them?” Karina inquires, treading carefully with her words as she kneels down in front of you to get a better look at your face. She places her hand on top of yours. “Y/N, we don’t understand─”

A sharp sob leaves your lips, unable to articulate your muddling thoughts and feelings that are parallel in a tumult, and alas, the waterworks erupt with uncontrollable sobs emitting from you, prompting Wonyoung and Yunjin to offer you their comfort with their hugs while Karina holds your hand firmly. The three share the same sympathy despite feeling genuine confusion at your abrupt emotional breakdown.

“I know they wouldn’t hurt me, but─” A hiccup escapes you just as you manage to speak in between sobs. Wonyoung pulls you into her side embrace, allowing you to fall weak as you rest your head on her shoulder. “But I’m honestly scared. I really love them, and I don’t know what to do.” You continue, letting your established feelings be known to them, no matter if they vehemently disapprove.

“Y/N, if you really love them, then you should let them know.” Karina tells you, encouraging you with a small smile, but you shake your head in return.

“It’s complicated.” Wanting to tell them the truth is so close, but you force yourself to hold back. Instead, you resort to another path, and only you know that they wouldn’t do something so deplorable to you, or at least you hoped. You lean forward as you clutch your head with your elbows on your thighs, supporting you. “Maybe it isn’t love, or maybe it is, but what you girls said about Jinae the other night got me reevaluating my feelings for them.”

“It’s true that she died because of them, but Y/N, as much as we hate to admit it, we can see that they care greatly for you.” Wonyoung rubs your back comfortingly. “I think they love you the same way you do.”

Silence is all they receive from you for a moment before the sound of your sniffle comes, watching you wipe your tears away from your cheeks. You finally lift your head to look at the three of them, your nose and eyes red from the relentless weeping from earlier until now.

“I still don’t understand why they killed her, and how did she die?” You allow yourself to voice out one of the many questions lingering in your head.

“Initially, we didn’t know what to believe because of different speculations circulated on campus, but at the end of the day, it had been confirmed that Jinae did something to piss off all four leaders greatly.” Karina unravels, and it does seem like an uncomfortable subject for her to talk about, as evident in the grimace on her face.

“She was found dead in their palace.” Yunjin continues for Karina after a brief, sombre silence. Her lips press thinly while her eyes search for yours, seeming to be studying your expression. “But since they’re the sons of affluent figures in the eyes of the government, of course they were not arrested for committing another crime.”

“It’s one of the reasons why I despise them.” Despite Wonyoung’s declaration, her tone remains gentle as she speaks to you, matching the way she offers you a small smile as she tucks a hair behind your ear. “But I’ve long since realised that you couldn’t help with who you’ve fallen for, even if they turned out to be the ones I despise most.”

From your inner core, you are terribly shaken up by this new information. To be honest, you never really wanted to believe that the four leaders were responsible for Jinae’s death, but upon hearing the undeniable truth that she was found dead in their palace, it genuinely fucked you up in the head.

Tears well in your waterline as you look at them with a pained expression. “Do you think they’ll kill me just like they did to Jinae?” You ask in a splintered whisper, and you feel as though a vine has wrapped itself around your heart, squeezing it painfully with the jagged ends prickling you.

“I don’t think they would ever do anything to hurt you, Y/N.” Wonyoung reassures you with her balming tone, but as she looks at Yunjin and Karina, you can see the glimpse of uncertainty in her eyes.

“What if you’re wrong?” A fallen tear trickles down your cheek at the agonising thought of your life being ended in the hands of your loved ones. “I did something, Wony. I broke one of their rules again.”

“What did you do, Y/N?” Yunjin inquires sternly, but you know that she is concerned for you. Yunjin flickers her gaze at Karina and Wonyoung. “Should we do something? I don’t know about you two, but I don’t want to risk anything concerning Y/N’s life.”

“Calm down. We’re only adding more panic and stress to Y/N.” Karina tells Yunjin with a disapproving frown before returning her gaze to your face, her eyes softening. “What do you want to do now?”

The thing is, you have already made up your mind about your next move. They see it in your eyes—the firm resolution that is familiar to them whenever you are determined to get what you want. “I need your help.” You tell them.

“Of course. Whatever you need.” Wonyoung gives your shoulder a firm squeeze.

“Yes. We’re here for you, Y/N.” Karina reaffirms this, earning nods from the other two.

You meet Karina’s eyes. “I need you to drive me home tomorrow afternoon. I want to visit my parents.”

The three of them exchange wary glances, feeling an immense sense of guilt after being the reason why your mother has practically disowned you.

“But why?” Yunjin dares herself to ask, her eyes studying your expression carefully. “I don’t mean to burst your bubble, baby girl, but aren’t you on bad terms with your parents?”

She is more than right, but frankly speaking, you’re still in contact with your father, whereas your mother refuses you. You don’t meet any of their gazes as you discreetly curl your fingers into a fist. “I have something important to confront my mother.” You say curtly, and just the tone of your voice is enough for them to avoid prying.

“Okay. I’ll drive you home instead.” Karina offers as she rises from the ground. She checks the time on her phone. “We’re actually planning to dine outside. Do you want to join us?”

“No, thank you.” You politely decline, giving her a weak smile. “I still don’t feel good.”

“I’ll check if there are any medications for you. Stay put.” Yunjin instructs you, like a mother to her child, before she walks out of your room.

“Rest, Y/N. We’ll buy some food for you.” Wonyoung tells you as she assists you to get comfortable on your bed, tucking you under the covers.

A faint chuckle leaves your lips while you hold back from crying again, feeling touched and nostalgic about this dynamic with your best friends. “I’m not a baby, Wony.”

“Nonsense, you’re our baby girl.” Wonyoung insists before pausing, almost as if she is contemplating whether to take back her words. “In a good, unrestrained way, of course.”

“What Wonyoung meant is that no matter what, you are still the same Y/N we know and love.” Karina adds, and it doesn’t help that you are gradually getting sappy as you smile at them with tears blurring your vision.

Not too long later, the whole of your dormitory is filled with complete silence as your best friends have left to dine outside. At first, you feel the familiar comfort of your old, homey room as you get snuggly under the covers, but soon, a profound sense of loneliness dawns on you.

Your eyes turn crestfallen as four handsome faces appear in your mind. There is no denying that you are already missing them, despite your rationality, which has given you a litany of reasons why you should not have given your heart to them in the first place.

Your phone buzzes next to you, and you reach for it to read the message from a certain individual.

SUNGHOON: Can I video call you? I’m already missing you, princess.

Tears immediately spring in your eyes as you choke back a sob. The strong yearning in your bleeding heart consumes you. But you don’t reply to him, knowing that you’d only cave in to your yearning, and so you choose to sleep without any of their warmth embracing you that you have grown accustomed to.

Old habits really do die hard. It is something you have always done, ever since you were young. Throughout the two-hour journey from your dormitory to the town you grew up in, your fingers would occasionally ascend to fiddle with the silver cross in an attempt to seek a semblance of alleviation from your churning inner turmoil.

Unlike Wonyoung and Karina, who are currently settled in the backseat and comfortably sound asleep, you chose to forgo the calling of sleep that beckoned you, only focusing and thinking about any worse possible outcome of the impending confrontation, and you have no idea if you are being ignorantly foolish about this, which resulted in you remaining frozen in the passenger seat.

“It looks like your parents are having guests over.” Karina remarks as she leans forward, her folded arms resting on the leathered steering wheel. Her eyes trail over to you while you are staring at the same sight of four different car models parked on the massive asphalt road outside of your two-story house. “Do you recognise those cars?”

“No. Not that I know of.” You frown, your face contorting into confusion, and yet, your inner turmoil seems to worsen at the mere sight. You look at Karina, giving her a wry smile as you busily unbuckle your seatbelt. “Wish me luck.”

“Call us if you need some help.” Karina offers you an encouraging smile that does nothing to ease your incessant perturbation.

The crisp afternoon air greets you as soon as you exit the vehicle before making your way to the sidewalk. Your steps feel heavier on the concrete pavement as you feel daunted. Your palms are starting to feel clammy, to which you wipe them on your skirt as you now walk on the gravel path that leads to the familiar front porch of your humble abode.

A wave of nostalgia washes over you as your eyes flicker to the creamed wooden swinging bench on the front porch, alongside the lovely adornments. You recall the times when your father would find you seated there to wallow in sadness, which prompted him to accompany you and engage in talks with you in an attempt to cheer you up, or whenever you willingly helped out your parents in decorating the front porch to match the seasons.

But the sentimentality that softens your features immediately fades away, only to be replaced by something so sour that embitters you as you vividly remember the picture of your mother and Jay’s father on this very porch.

The vehemence of resentment you now harbour towards your mother sets in motion, storming towards the ajar door and pushing it open as you break through the threshold, not forgetting to remove your shoes and wearing the house shoes you retrieve from the rack.

Your eyebrows arch inquisitively upon seeing four different polished shoes that no doubt belong to businessmen, before your ears perk up at the sound of chatter coming from somewhere in the living room. You amble further, but those manly voices accompanying their laughter evoke a tremendous dread in you. You hope that they’re not the ones you think they are.

Mustering whatever bravery you have left, you increase the pace, and alas, the sight of the four men being amicable with your mother appals you, causing you to flinch visibly as though you have been smacked in the face.

Upon your obvious presence in the room, all eyes are on you, each mirroring the other, filled with genuine shock, but your blazing eyes are fixed intently on your mother’s soon panicked expression as she rises from the single couch.

“I’m home, mother.” You announce your arrival calmly, and the word itself comes out of you as though it is poison, to which your mother flinches. A cold smile plays on your lips, wickedly revelling in the way she becomes flustered amidst the apparent panic. “Where is Dad, by the way? Does he know you have guests over?”

“Y/N Kang, I taught you better than to be discourteous.” Your mother reprimands you, but the tremor in her voice is palpable, eliciting a low scoff from you. Your mother flashes ingenuine smiles to the four men in distinct sumptuous suits as she heads towards you. “Forgive my daughter’s lack of manners. Please continue. I have to speak with my daughter privately.”

You fold your arms over your chest, displaying your defiance, while the coldness in your eyes mirrors your mother’s. “I, for one, feel that we should have our conversation here since, after all, it involved these intruding guests.”

“Enough, Y/N Kang.” Your mother is practically seething with anger beneath her composed demeanour as she holds your arm tightly. “I won’t tolerate this disrespect any longer. Follow me.” It is not as if she gives you a choice, as you find yourself being dragged by her.

Once you are out of their sight as your mother finally brings you to the kitchen instead, you yank your arm from her tight grip roughly, adding to the palpable tension that sizzles in the air before you meet her glaring eyes.

“How dare you even step foot into the house when you are not permitted to come home, let alone disrespect those four gentlemen? Do you even know who they are?” Your mother speaks harshly—nothing to the mother you once knew and viewed her as—because the woman standing before you is someone you no longer recognise.

“Should I know them? I mean, sure, they look classy and rich, but don’t you think it’s a little inappropriate to have male guests around while Dad is away for work?” You are more than conscious that you choose to cope with sarcasm, as your voice drips with mockery, which only fuels your mother’s indignation, as evident in the way she is fuming.

“Don’t you dare teach me what is appropriate and what is not.” She snaps back coldly at you, and you can see it in her eyes that her firm, scowling demeanour is teetering due to the unceasing panic. Disgust forms a sneer on her features. “What do you know about morality when you’re the one who spreads your legs like a shameless whore for their sons?”

You ignore the pang of hurt in your chest, masking it with a humourless grin that smears across your lips. “Like mother like daughter, don’t you agree?” Your coy remark makes her go visibly flinching, and you know you managed to hit a spot.

Your mother quickly recovers with a glare, but her trembling hand is enough for you to be satisfied that she is feeling disturbingly antsy. “What are you talking about? If you’re here to show your insolence instead of sincerely apologising and redeeming yourself, then get out.”

“Oh, don’t feign ignorance, mother.” You sneer at her, unfolding your arms as you stalk towards her. “I know what sort of relationship you have with them. I know about you.” Your tone holds a tint of darkness that is foreign to you, but you are driven by the resentment towards your mother as you continue with the cruelty deepening your smile. “Ah, the lovely irony of whore-shaming your own daughter when you’re just the same. The apple indeed doesn’t fall far from the tree─”

A loud smack resonates throughout the kitchen as your head is flung sideways from the impact of your mother’s palm, and there comes the stinging pain on your cheek, but you refuse to allow the waterworks you have been keeping at bay to erupt any sooner, and so a chuckle leaves your lips instead as you slowly divert your attention back to your now teary-eyed mother.

“How could you stoop so low to disrespect your own mother?!” She raises her voice, and the betrayal in her tone elicits a disbelieving scoff from you while she continues. “You don’t know anything, Y/N Kang!”

“Don’t I, really? I’ve only recently discovered your infidelity, but I know for a fact that you had an immoral history with them! Yet you dared to chastise me for fucking around with their sons when you don’t even have the right to!” It has now become a screaming match, no longer are you bothered by the fact that they might hear you.

“Y/N!” Your mother gasps loudly as though you have just physically attacked her, but you are relentless, and this time, tears begin to spill from your eyes. “I am your mother! And you have no idea what I feel for them─”

“I don’t give a damn about your feelings, but for fuck’s sakes, you are a married woman!” The veins in your neck are protruding as you overpower her sound. A sardonic yet broken chuckle falls past your lips. “Oh, so now you want to remind me that you’re my mother, but weren’t you the one who declared that you no longer recognised me as your daughter? Because to you, I’m apparently a whore!”

You cut off your mother before she can open her mouth to speak, hurling your pent-up emotions, including resentment towards her, like shooting bullets. “You’re a hypocrite, mother!” You spit out while hot angry tears continue their descent on your face. “You condemned me for spreading my legs and fucking around, but you’re even worse! You sneaked behind Dad’s back to pursue your trysts with them! Do you even realise how disgraceful that is?!”

It seems that your words are impactful because this time, any traces of indignation in your mother’s firm demeanour completely dissipate, replaced by the fear and indignity dawning on her. Her lips tremble as she attempts to reach out for you. “Y/N─”

The fresh pain of betrayal and hurt consumes you as you back away from her. “Dad has always worked hard for this family, and no matter how busy he gets, he always makes time for us and for you.” You sob out at the same time she does. “I thought you’re in love with Dad. I thought you’re happy with him.”

“I do! I still love your father!” She defends herself, lacing with such desperation, and yet her declaration doesn’t deter you. “Please, honey, my feelings for your father have never changed, but you have to understand that my history with the four of them is something that is complicated. I still care for them, but the one that I truly love is your father!”

“But those pictures said otherwise.” You sniffle, wiping the continuous tears away from your cheek.

“What? What pictures?” She asks, confused.

“It doesn’t matter, but what matters is that you ruined what I thought the love you had for Dad was.” You manage to utter something in between the weeping as you stare at her with betrayed eyes. “I feel so fucked up because, throughout my life, I have known you as a doting mother who is a devout Catholic. You even instilled the teaching of Christianity in me, and yet what I discovered has ruined the version of my mother I viewed in my head.”

“I’m so sorry.” Is all she can utter, covering her mouth with her palm as she looks down due to the mortified realisation and sheer humiliation.

“Like what you’ve always said, seek forgiveness from God instead.” You say wryly. “Oh, and maybe seek forgiveness from Dad too, if he has yet to learn of your infidelity.”

“Y/N! Wait! Please, wait!” Your mother frantically calls for you just as you turn your back on her, wanting to exit from the kitchen, and she manages to grab a hold of your arm. “I’m sorry! I shouldn’t have done what I did to you!” A sharp sob heaves from her, and the sound of it only seems to clench your heart. “I’m so sorry for disappointing you.”

Of course, you’re not about to forgive her just so easily. Without a word, you force yourself to escape from her flimsy clutch and hasten as you navigate your way around with the intention to leave the house, choking back more sobs before you cover your mouth with your palm.

Just as you walk past the living room, Heeseung’s father stops you as he calls for you, causing you to halt your steps before turning to meet his eyes. You hate how he is gazing at you kindly while guilt is written across his features.

“We admit that we overheard your conversation with your mother.” He pauses to look over his shoulders, meeting the others’ gazes as they nod their heads before continuing. “But don’t put the blame on your mother. Blame us.”

“He’s right.” Jay’s father steps forward, and it takes everything in you not to cower away due to the icy intimidation he exudes despite his neutral gaze. As you stare at the man, you can only see him as a pathetic excuse for a father who abused his son. “It was our fault. Your mother is a great woman, and she has always wanted the best for her baby girl.”

“Do you guys still love my mother?” You inquire sharply, wanting to get straight to the point. The silence from them and the way they avoid their gaze tell you all you need to know, which only brings a sneering disgust to you. “You are married, and yet you dare to love my mother? Do you think this is a game to you?”

“Y/N, I can assure you that nothing is a game, including our feelings for your mother.” Sunghoon’s father firmly counters, and you recall when Heeseung told you about Sunghoon’s father wanting his son to be erased from the face of this earth.

“I don’t care about your feelings for my mother or that you still love her, but please don’t ruin my parents’ marriage.” You plead in a cry, tears springing in your eyes once more before you cast them a withering glare. “Don’t fucking ruin my family just because yours are fucked up. I don’t want any of you to be around my mother like you always have.”

You don’t wait for their response as you flee from the living room, making your way to the door. After hurriedly putting on your shoes, you are ready to leave when the door swings abruptly open, revealing your father, who looks delightfully surprised to see you.

“Honey! What a pleasant surprise.” He stops as soon as he notices the tears staining your cheeks, the redness on your cheeks, and your lower lids from the relentless weeping. He cups your cheeks with his callous palms while his eyes go stern. “Baby girl, what’s wrong?”

You only manage a whimper in response as you shed tears silently. You open your mouth to speak, your chin wobbling with sadness, but it is as though you lost your voice, and with a heavy heart, you shake your head at him before gently pushing him away and running past him.

Yes, you hate your mother, but seeing your father after so long, you don’t have the heart to reveal the truth about your mother’s infidelity to him. You decide to sob out whatever is left in you, wiping your tears with your sleeves as you make your way to Karina’s car.

Forcing yourself to compose despite the annoying hiccups emitting from you, you startle the girls as soon as you open the door and shove yourself inside the car before slamming the door.

“That was actually longer than we thought.” Yunjin remarks from the backseat, oblivious to the sadness you emanate, but Karina, who has been examining you the moment you entered, is no stranger to the redness of your eyes and nose.

“Y/N, what happened?” Karina asks quietly, and her question draws Yunjin and Wonyoung's full attention before they lean forward to get a better view of your side profile.

You don’t meet any of their eyes as you lean back comfortably, your eyes gazing out to the window instead. “I don’t want to talk about it. Can we go somewhere else, please?” Your voice sounds hoarse from the crying and screaming.

“Of course. We know just the place you need.” Wonyoung chimes in hopes of livening the atmosphere in the car, but you remain the same. With a resigned sigh, Wonyoung’s eyes meet Karina’s with a certain knowing. “You know where.”

“I, in fact, don’t.” Karina replies as she proceeds to drive off from the curb, earning a glare from Wonyoung, but Karina, in fact, knows exactly what you need.

“So, do you feel better now?” Yunjin’s voice pulls you out of the stupor you are in, prompting you to gain full consciousness of your surroundings and spot Karina and Wonyoung making their way to your table from the restroom.

Apparently, the three of them thought that bringing you to the ice cream parlour, which is located near your campus, was a good idea and may lift your spirits, but honestly, you feel even worse. Never mind the fact that the strawberry cheesecake-flavoured ice cream tasted amazing.

“Ice cream won’t solve my problems, you know.” You state this flatly while Wonyoung and Yunjin return to their seats.

“But you love your ice cream, though.” Yunjin points out, earning hums of agreement from the other two. “Come on, you must’ve felt at least slightly better.”

“Alright, fine.” You concede, and maybe you do feel a little better now as you find yourself adorning a faint smile before your eyes glaze with gratitude as you look over to them. “Thank you so much for being my moral support. I don’t know what I would do without you.”

“Consider this as our apology.” Wonyoung grabs your hand to give it a squeeze. You notice the guilt in her delicate features. “We didn’t mean what we said to you before, and we shouldn’t have treated you like that.”

“Wonyoung’s right. We’re sorry for what happened.” Yunjin offers you an apologetic smile. “To be honest, we’ve missed you so much.”

“We’ve missed being with you like this, just us girls.” Karina adds, turning the once lively atmosphere in the parlour into a pensive sadness. “Let’s never fight like that again.”

“What happened in the past is already in the past, so let’s not dwell on it.” You reassure them with a smile before proceeding to engage in another topic, gradually losing track of time due to getting immersive to the point where you almost forget all sorts of problems in the back of your mind until the night has fully ascended.

“Is it possible to get full just by eating three ice creams?” Karina asks with a groan as she pats her belly while your arm is interlocked with hers. The four of you are currently walking along the pavement to make your way to the parking lot.

“Maybe it’s just you, but I can easily finish off five ice creams and still have room for other desserts.” Yunjin tells her, and a smug smile on her lips earns her a playful scowl from Karina, to which you chuckle as they proceed to engage in banter, and soon enough, you have reached the nearly empty parking lot.

“Uh oh. It looks like we have unwanted people coming this way.” Wonyoung’s remark prompts you to look at her, spotting the sternness in her face with her eyes looking straight ahead, which you follow as you turn your head just to see two familiar figures clad in leather.

Your eyes instantly meet Jay’s steely ones, and from his expression, you have a feeling that you may or may not be in trouble. Before you can speak, Wonyoung shields you from their sight, prompting the other girls to follow her protective stance.

“Move.” Jay’s cold voice cuts through the nightly air sharply, but his stern command doesn’t deter your best friends. “I don’t have time to fuck around with you. I said, move.” You flinch slightly at the hint of warning in his flinty tone.

“No.” Yunjin seems to match the level of his austerity, and as you try to take a peek, your eyes widen at the stark, raging storms in the glaring eyes of Jay, whereas Sunghoon’s demeanour appears to be collected, but you know that he is just as pissed off as Jay. “Why are you here?”

“We need to speak with Y/N.” Sunghoon answers, his vehement tone indicates that there is no way they are leaving unless they get what they want. “Alone.”

“Whatever you need to say to her, you can tell her now.” Wonyoung counters strongly, as she has her arms over her chest in an intimidating stance.

“Didn’t you hear him? He said alone.” Jay glowers at them, but they remain unmoving, to which Jay no longer bothers to conceal his detestation towards them. “Why the fuck are you acting like her bodyguards? For fuck’s sake, it’s not like we want to hurt her!”

“Do you, really?” Karina asks in an annoying mockery that has their eyes twitching. “You guys are beyond predictable, so we don’t trust you to be alone with Y/N.”

Before things can get worse between them, you decide to step in, moving out of their body shields and revealing yourself in front of Sunghoon and Jay, whose eyes immediately latch on your figure.

You offer your girls a small smile in an attempt to assure them. “It’s okay. You girls can go ahead and wait for me in the car. Besides, they won’t do anything to hurt me in public.”

You can feel the sheer disbelief emanating from Sunghoon and Jay as their eyes drill into the side of your face. You ignore them as your eyes meet Wonyoung’s, giving her a firm nod.

Wonyoung releases a sigh, denoting her resignation, before nudging the other two. “Let’s go.” She says, and they eventually acquiesce, but not before shooting the guys a withering glare.

As the girls make their retreat to the car, you finally shift your attention to the disbelieving males, and this time, there are no traces of austerity or callousness they exhibited in front of your best friends. Just noticeable hurt glinting in their eyes by your previous statement, but they composed themselves with the rare sternness patch on their countenance.

“Do you know how much trouble you’re in?” Jay initiates the confrontation, his steely eyes penetrate into yours. “You shouldn’t have done what you did. Have you forgotten that there are always consequences to your actions?”

Your lips press thinly, refusing to back down despite feeling gradually small under their dark, pinning gaze. Your arms latch around your form, feeling the chilly wind hitting you. “I don't know what you’re talking about.” You lie so easily, and yet there is a palpable tremor in your voice.

“Heeseung is furious at you, princess.” Though Sunghoon is just as austere as Jay, the softness in his tone is so unmistakable that it almost impels you to cave into your longing and run into the comfort of his arms.

“We’re furious at you.” Jay seems to correct Sunghoon’s statement, and you nearly deflate like a balloon under the intensity of his dark gaze as he takes an intimidating step forward. “We don’t know why you did what you did, but you better have a good, reasonable explanation.”

“Stop.” You force your voice to come out strong as you back away, just before Jay can reach out to you. Your glare of hostility throws them off, and it is as though they are back to square one with you. “I’m not going anywhere with either of you. Just leave me alone.”

“Why are you being like this? Did we do something wrong?” Sunghoon voices out his frustration, while there is a hint of longing in his tone. “Talk to us, princess. Don’t shut us out.”

You shake your head, fighting against your vehement longing for them. “I just think it’s better for us to distance ourselves from each other.” You utter a broken whisper as you look away from their confused yet hurtful gaze. The tumult of emotions threatens to come down on you, springing tears to accumulate in your waterline. “You guys overwhelmed me, so please give me the space I need. Tell Heeseung that I’m sorry.”

Just as you are prepared to leave, Jay grabs you by the arm, pulling you close to him until he has you flushed against him. Your heart pumps rapidly at the warm contact of his body on yours and the way his dark eyes bore into yours deeply.

“You’re not going to walk away from us until you tell us why you’re avoiding us.” He demands calmly, while the low rasp in his voice awakens a familiar flutter in your beating heart. You notice the way his eyes flicker at your parted pink lips briefly. “I don’t want to force the answer out of you, baby.”

“Just go away!” You attempt to push him away from you in the chest while he still seizes control over your other arm, so you struggle in his unyielding grasp. Tears prick your glaring eyes as you look back at him. “I don’t have anything to explain to you! I’m not even your girlfriend!”

“Princess, calm down.” You feel Sunghoon’s presence behind you before his hands land on your tensed shoulders, alarming you at the fact that you are now being sandwiched between them.

You remain adamant, shaking your head vehemently before trying valiantly to escape from their possession, but exhaustion dawns on you more quickly than you like. “Just please…” You plead, and your voice has a noticeable crack in the end as you are caught in a whirlwind of emotions.

Succumbing to defeat, you hang your head low, hiding the sight of you in tears from them, before you instinctively lean your forehead against Jay’s chest. “Please let me go. I don’t want to argue with you two any longer. I’m tired.”

Sunghoon resists the urge to wrap his arms around you from behind, and when his eyes flicker to meet Jay’s, he gives him a firm nod, causing Jay to loosen his hold on you, but you remain in a defeated stance, unmoving.

“Fine, we’ll give you the space you need, but don’t think for a second that this is the last time you’ll ever see us.” Sunghoon speaks in a low murmur next to your ear, his cold breath fanning your earlobe.

Sniffling, you finally look up and push them away from you. Avoiding their gazes, you hug yourself in an attempt to provide some warmth amidst the chilly wind. “Forget it. I don’t want to see any of you anytime, sooner, or ever.” Despite your declaration, your heart vehemently disagrees. “I’ve decided to revert to the girl I was before she foolishly allowed herself to fall for your charms.”

“Princess…”

“Baby…”

You muster the last of your courage as you glare at them through your teary vision, unable to see the expressions they wear. “Whatever we had before, it’s over. We’re over.”

You don’t give either of them the opportunity to speak or counter-remark, as you immediately flee from them, heading towards Karina’s car, where your best friends have been watching the entire interaction closely. As you shove yourself in the passenger seat and slam the door, Karina wastes no time in driving you off, and alas, you release the restrained waterworks.

You stayed true to your firm decision about reverting to the good Catholic girl you were before all the corruption you allowed to break you from the inside, because when Sunday morning arrives, you find yourself entering the familiar divine building alongside other churchgoers. Settling on a pew in the right aisle, you grab your bible from your tote bag and place it on your lap while your other hand clutches the rosary as you await the service to begin.

It feels foreign to you to come back here after so long, but above all, stepping foot on these holy grounds evokes an immense guilt in you, and you feel as though you are undeserving after having your impurity ripped off due to your immoral willingness. Nevertheless, you know that those thoughts are whispers of the devil in order to lead you astray again.

As soon as the service commences, you attempt to direct your full attention on the pastor as he delivers his preaching, but your eyebrows furrow at the feeling of eyes watching you, nearly dissuading you from your focal point before you force yourself to refocus again while clutching your rosary.

Perhaps it is your paranoia at the possibility that whoever attacked you the other night is back to hunt you down, but you can’t shake off the feeling of eyes fixated on your figure, especially in the way the back of your hair rises and goosebumps on your skin hidden underneath your white cardigan that matches well with your cute white floral dress.

Okay, maybe you are being paranoid, and those eyes probably belong to people seated in the rows behind you since you are seated in the very first row, but you have this strong urge to turn around, and you do so slowly. As your eyes briefly scan these people, their focus seems to be on the preaching. Just then, you feel a burning sensation drilling into your face, prompting you to shift your eyes elsewhere.

At the moment your eyes lock with his, your breath goes hitched in your throat while your heart pounds hard against your chest. Seated amongst the other churchgoers somewhere in the backrow in your aisle is Lee Heeseung.

The bill of his cap does nothing to shadow the wicked glint in his dark, mesmerising eyes, and a devilish smirk plays on his lips. Your eyes follow the movement of his tongue gliding across his bottom lip, which is adorned with the familiar silver ring. Despite the forbidden arousal stirring in your core, confusion fills your head.

What is he doing here? At least to your knowledge, Heeseung has never gone to this church, nor is he someone who is religious, so his unexpected appearance greatly confounds you. Nevertheless, you force yourself to break the devilly yet heavenly trance from his eye contact, facing the front again.

When the service ends, you exchange polite greetings and farewells to the others in your vicinity before abandoning your seat to make your way through the departing people to greet the priest, and midway, you look over your shoulder to check if Heeseung is still there. A frown touches your lips at the empty spot where he was seen earlier. His sudden disappearance only seems to unnerve you.

You grace your countenance with a polite smile as soon as the priest greets you warmly. The thought of Heeseung immediately dissipates as you engage in a meaningful conversation with the priest. However, you feel weirded out upon noticing his lecherous gaze and how often he compliments your overall look, not forgetting the way his eyes linger on your revealing legs even though the length of your dress reaches just above your knees.

You inwardly shake your head and silently berate yourself for such ill-thoughts of the priest when he has always been kind to you. Besides, your intention is to make a confession entailing your sinful pursuits, and so the priest begins to guide you to the sacrament of penance while the church gradually becomes quieter due to the others’ departure.

However, uneasiness is gnawing at you while your stomach churns, noticing that something is indeed off as he guides you to a different route and the atmosphere gets ominous.

You bite down your lip, contemplating before deciding to act upon your better instinct. “Um..Father, from what I recall, this isn’t the way to the─” You are cut off when he grabs a hold of your arm tightly, feeling as though he has stopped the blood flowing in your arm.

“What are you doing?!” You try to yank your arm from his deadly grip as he continues to drag you with him into one of the rooms where the lights are dim, shoving you inside. Panic and anxiety expand in your chest as you feel helpless against his strength.

Something dark casts a shadow across his features as he looks at you, his lips curling into a wicked sneer while you grimace at the lecherous gaze of his. “I’ve waited a long time for this, for you, my sweet child.” He says so amorously, pulling you closer until his prominent bulge is pressed against your thigh.

“Get away from me, you perv!” You scream, trashing against his hold, no longer do you hold such respect for him. “Help! He’s trying to─” He slaps you hard on the cheek and shoves you to the ground, standing over you.

You choke back a sob while tears prickle in your eyes, not understanding why the priest would do this to you. Just when you think there is no hope, the door is violently pushed open, with the handle being wholly destroyed. Before you know it, the priest has been shoved away from you, manhandled by an imposing figure.

“You sick hypocritical fucker!” Jake’s enraged voice startles you as it reverberates throughout the room. When you look at the side, you gasp upon seeing Jake deliver brutal yet skillful punches to the priest’s face as he hovers over. “You dared to assault my woman?!” He roars out, making you go flinching.

Jake is seeing absolute red and becoming relentless. Another punch, and this time, you can’t bear to see the violence as blood begins to spill.

You stand with shaky legs, getting ready to bolt your way out of here, but when another figure enters the room, you gasp again upon seeing a melee knife in Heeseung’s grasp while his eyes are ablaze with rampant storms. His focus is solely on the priest, who is being beaten relentlessly to the pulp.

You should be running away by now, but you remain frozen with fascination and horror as you watch the vicious element Jake revels in, as evident in the way he smirks. Clutching the nearly half-dead priest by his blood-stained shirt, Jake casts a glance at Heeseung. “Should we kill him off quickly or painfully slowly?

Heeseung mirrors Jake’s smirk as he toys around with the knife. “The latter is music to my ears.”

Your heart drops to the pit of your stomach at the dreadful realisation of their firm decision to kill off the priest. Sure, you now loathe the priest and feel completely revolted by his assault, but killing doesn’t sit right with you.

Just when Heeseung brings the pointed tip of the knife near to the priest’s bloodied face, you stop him with a plea, “Don’t kill him!”

The sound of your voice draws their attention in an instant, but the expressions they wear on their faces cause your stomach to churn unpleasantly. Jake scoffs, his gaze burning into your face. “You don’t get to decide the fate of this sick bastard. He fucking assaulted you, Y/N. He must pay the price.”

“N-Not like this. Please.” You try to reason with them, and a tear trickles down your cheek while you tremble with a palpable fear for them. “We can report him to the police instead. Just please, no killing.”

“You don’t seem to understand that you are in no position to make demands.” Heeseung says lowly, the warning projecting in the rasp of his voice while his dark eyes penetrate into yours. A cold smirk plays on his lips as he diverts his attention to you. “For that matter, you had the audacity to stop us and tell us what to do after what you did.”

“H-Heeseung…” You whisper in a panic, your tearful eyes bringing him a wicked delight as you slowly back away from him.

Heeseung stalks towards you, chuckling softly. “Oh, sweetheart, you didn’t think I’d forget your rebellion, did you? It’s time for you to face the consequences, and how fitting it is to punish you on these sacred grounds.”

Entering fight-or-flight mode, you decide to flee from them, bolting out of the room and navigating your way back to the pew since you had left your belongings there. You hear thundering footsteps from behind you, eliciting a fearful sob from you as you know that Heeseung is relentlessly chasing after you, and unbeknownst to you, he is catching up fast.

When you arrive at the crossing, you are greeted by a desolate sight, bare of any churchgoers. It is eerily silent too, with the exception of your harsh panting as you halt from running, needing to gasp for air while your chest feels tight. Running really is your weakest suit.

You spot your belongings at the previous spot you were seated at, and just before you move forward, the door ahead of you from afar opens, revealing Sunghoon and Jay sauntering into the church leisurely with equal boredom on their countenances, and in their manner, it is as though they are on the grounds of their territory.

“You two are just in time.” Heeseung startles you from behind, but your reaction in eluding him delays, resulting in you being caged in his possession with his hands seizing your arms now being interlocked behind you securely.

“Heeseung! Let go of me!” You struggle valiantly against him despite apprehension coiling within you, and when a rising anticipation at the feasible thrill of what they have in store for you stirs in your inner core, you silently berate yourself for nearly forgetting your morality.

Your eyes flicker to Sunghoon and Jay as they continue to advance forward, their neutrality at the sight of you being held captive in Heeseung’s possession confounds you. Nevertheless, you have no idea why you desire their help when they are probably in it too. “J-Jay, Hoonie…” You utter their name weakly, feeling dejected by their indifference.

“They’re not going to help you, sweetheart.” Heeseung chuckles lethally and softly beside your ear, sending shivers down your spine. “They’re here to take out the trash, and who knows if they want to watch us as well?”

“Heeseung, please.” You whimper out, fear is palpable in the tremor of your voice, and yet you can’t seem to put a stop to your stirring arousal in your core at the deliverance of your punishment from him. “I’m sorry, okay? I didn’t mean to.”

“Oh, but you did mean it, sweetheart. The camera in my office captured everything. You just couldn’t keep your pretty hands to yourself and stayed curious like the good fucking girl you were supposed to be.” He snarls coldly, evoking more dread in you that soon mingles with your unbearable arousal, causing you to discreetly squeeze your thighs together.

The commotion coming from the side prompts you to turn your head, and your eyes widen in horror at the sight of the fucked-up priest, whose face is close to wrecked with blood smeared all over, being dragged across the floor by Jake with ease.

“Thank fuck, you guys are here. He’s heavy as fuck.” Jake groans loudly as he releases the priest’s limb without any thought of gentleness when Sunghoon and Jay approach him. “Handle him, and I don’t care how or what you choose to do with him.”

“What did he do again?” Jay inquires rather uninterestedly, wanting this to be done as soon as possible.

“Sexually assaulted young girls for the past few years and threatened them into staying silent.” Jake lists them down, whereas you become genuinely appalled by the revelation. When his eyes flicker at yours fleetingly, you flinch slightly. “The fucker assaulted our girl too.”

“Say less. We’ll get the job nicely done.” Sunghoon affirms, adorning a smile that gives you the chills. You watch as Sunghoon and Jay drag the priest by his arms, seeming to be making their way to the other exit and leaving you with the very two predators you should be evading.

“Lovely.” Jake drawls out, his charming grin is a deception you recognise, while his eyes are overtly displayed with a mingling displeasure and lust. “Where are your manners, my love? We did save you from that pretentious bastard.”

“T-Thank you.” You stammer, your cheeks flushing pink with humiliation, under their burning derogatory gaze.

“Awww, isn’t she adorable, Heeseung?” Jake coos, his gentle tone dripping with mockery, as does the way he looks at you, akin to how a predator is ready to pounce on their prey before devouring them alive.

Heeseung hums in agreement as he strokes your cheek in a hauntingly loving gesture. “You’re right. She’s so fucking adorable.” You hear the sneer in his voice before he directs his speech to you. “Just like how adorable you were trying to escape when you should’ve known that I’ll always win over you, sweetheart.”

“I wasn’t trying to escape!” You accidentally display your defiance, denying the obvious truth, and you smack your lips shut together while berating your idiocy once more.

“So she lies as well.” Jake tuts disapprovingly. “The list just keeps adding. First, you broke one of our rules by trespassing on Heeseung’s office for the second time. Second, you didn’t want to see us anymore. Now, this?”

“Someone needs to be taught a lesson or two.” Heeseung chuckles darkly, eliciting an enticing whimper from you that goes straight to their cocks. “It really is fitting for our girl to be punished on these sacred grounds, right, Jake?”

“Definitely.” The sensation of Jake’s eyes raking all over you feels scorching. “Bad girls need to be taught some lessons, and it looks like our sweet angel has fallen. We can’t have you become bad. No, you need to be good just for us.”

It is really confusing. You are caught up in a predicament where the rational part of you beseeches you to follow your morality and refuse your awaiting predators, but another part of you, which you regard as corrupt, is pulling you to its side, lulling you to succumb to their depravity.

“Did you know that Jake was such a good boy, just like you?” Heeseung purrs in your ear, dripping with his seductive allure that projects in his husky voice.

You shudder lightly as you feel his wet muscle licking a stripe on your earlobe before speaking to you in a deceptive, gentle tone that belies familiar darkness. “Oh, yes. He even took his studies in religion to a higher level, which almost granted him the opportunity to become a preacher. It’s rather fitting for him to preach and correct the errors of your ways now, yeah?”

A whimper leaves your lips when Heeseung seizes your chin without any gentleness to forcefully turn your head to look at Jake, whose dark eyes penetrate into yours and bear such wicked intent, while a smirk unfurls on his lips as he stalks towards you.

“Please.” Your voice is barely above a whisper, while a tear escapes from the corner of your eye as Jake caresses your cheek in a hauntingly loving gesture. “I-I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to─”

“Oh, you’ll be begging for forgiveness, alright.” Jake chuckles coldly, no traces of his usual charming mirth are detectable. His thumb brushes across your bottom lip sensually before tugging it down, causing your lips to part open while you remain helpless in Heeseung’s impenetrable hold.

“I’m your fucking preacher now, and since you are so desperate to seek forgiveness, you’ll be confessing your sins to me while I fuck you until I decide when you can be pardoned.” Jake says so harshly, causing more tears to accumulate in your eyes. His dark eyes bear zero ounces of clemency, while his countenance reminds you of the night when he embodied a serial killer. “Now face the damn cross and get down on your fucking knees.”

Once Heeseung releases you, you know better than to delay further, following Jake’s instruction despite the humiliation descending on you before you finally find yourself kneeling on the ground and facing the imposing cross.

“On your fours, sweetheart.” Heeseung instructs firmly, his gentle tone does nothing to ease your frayed nerves. You swallow down a whimper as you reluctantly lean your body forward with both palms pressed on the floor, feeling exposed from the back since you are bare of any safety shorts.

You feel Jake’s hands manoeuvre from behind you, lifting the entirety of your dress to fully expose your ass, with your white lace underwear barely covering the expanse of it. You don’t have time to grasp the sensation of his callous palm landing on your ass cheek hard, as it sends you a shocking wave in a painful ripple through your body before he does it again.

“Ah! Jaeyun!” You yelp out, your body jerking forward due to the impact, before you feel fingers tangling in your hair to grab a fistful of your hair and apply enough pressure to pull your head to the back, making you face the high grand ceiling.

“I’m not hearing any apologies from you yet, lovely.” Jake tuts as he rubs the soreness of your ass cheek soothingly before taking you by surprise when he smacks it twice hard, eliciting a sob from you, and yet, you can feel your arousal staining your underwear as it leaks from your needy cunt. “I can do this all day.”

“Please! I’m so sorry! I made a mistake by breaking your rule!” You begin your confession, apologising through sobs as well, while tears are prickling in your eyes as he remains unforgiving in spanking you. “I promise I won’t do it again! Please! It hurts!”

“Oh yeah? If it hurts, then why are you so wet from your punishment, lovely?” He chuckles sardonically as he finally ceases the spanking, only for his fingers to migrate your lace underwear and stroke the outer of your cunt, where he spots a visible wet patch on the material. “Naughty, dirty angel. If you wanted to be punished like this so badly, then why didn’t you say so?”

You feel him releasing your hair, allowing your strained neck to rest. “I-I don’t─” A gasp leaves your lips at the moment Jake practically tears your underwear savagely and tosses it aside. “Jaeyun! My underwear─”

“Shut up.” Jake cuts you off sharply, earning him a dejected whimper from you while he loosens his slacks, freeing his erection that desires to be buried in your warmth after so long. “I’m going to fuck your sweet cunt, and you’re going to fuck Heeseung’s cock with your mouth. You’re going to take us both like the well-trained slut you are for us.”

It isn’t really helping when your cunt keeps clenching anytime either of them delivers their degradation to you, and it’s even worse when you are eagerly anticipating for their cocks and for them to ruin you once more.

“Come on, sweetheart. Open up.” Heeseung towers over your figure in front of you while your hungry eyes are staring at his erection, the pink tip is engorged. You part open your lips, inviting him to push his cock into your hot cavern, and he does.

You try your best to avoid gagging as the head gets further away, grazing against the roof of your mouth. A pleasurable sigh leaves Heeseung’s lips as soon as you begin to fuck him with your mouth, your tongue swirling around the head before deepthroating him skillfully like a pro, earning you an approving rumble from his chest while his dark eyes watch you.

Seeing as you are too distracted with Heeseung’s cock, Jake smirks softly and aims his cock directly at your cunt, just for the head to rub against your slick folds, eliciting a muffled moan from your stuffed throat as the head continuously bumps your neglected clit.

Without any further foreplay, Jake thrusts the entirety of his length into you as your walls welcome him, despite the tightness that has him biting down his lips. The sheer girth of his shaft has you whimpering and moaning that are restricted by Heeseung’s cock, causing you to stop as Jake unyieldingly delivers his slow yet hard thrusts into your needy cunt with the walls fluttering around him.

Not satisfied with your performance, Heeseung grabs a fistful of your hair while your jaw goes slacken, and your teary eyes meet his stern ones. “I didn’t say you could stop, did I?”

You immediately shake your head at him before resuming, but it is getting harder to focus on Heeseung when Jake is fucking you from behind so deliciously as the sound of his thighs smacking against your bums resonates throughout these sacred walls.

“Oh, fuck, lovely.” Jake throws his head to the back, gritting his teeth at the delirious sensation of your fluttery walls practically vacuuming his cock, as though they never want to let go, prompting him to deliver shallow thrusts while picking up the pace. “You must’ve missed my cock that much, yeah?”

There is no possible way to verbally respond to him other than muffled moans. Heeseung uses your hair as leverage to fuck himself into your mouth; each thrust gets shallower as the head hits the back of your throat.

“Good girl. Take my cock like the champ you are.” Heeseung coos, admiring your tear-stained face and how sinfully innocent you look with your eyelashes fluttering as you look up at him while your mouth is stuffed full by his cock. A muscle pulses in his jaw, unable to prolong the impending orgasm as it reaches its climax. “I’m gonna cum, sweetheart. You know what to do, yeah?”

You nod your head, eager to please him, and hurl him to the edge as you play around the sensitive tip with your tongue before deepthroating him and going still as he finally cums into you while you gladly swallow every drop.

“That’s it. Oh, my beautiful sweetheart.” Heeseung continues to shower you with compliments that make your heart swell, whereas Jake feels neglected by your lack of attention.

As soon as Heeseung steps away from you, Jake grabs you by the hair and pulls it back while he fucks you harder yet precisely shallow, which has you nearly seeing stars in your vision.

“Oh God!” You moan out, lost in a haze of intense pleasure, with your eyes rolling to the back of your skull as he sets a brutal pace that you never knew you needed from him.

“No God, baby.” Jake rasps, his voice thick with gratification and his eyes darkening as he revels in the sweet sound eliciting from you, adding to the symphony of your sinful intercourse in front of the holy cross. “Only Jaeyun for you. I’m your God now.”

“Jaeyun!” You begin to blabber, deprived of complete coherence, as you begin to fuck yourself back on him, wanting to feel him deeply, and when the head manages to hit that spot deliciously, a loud moan tears from your throat. “Oh! Jae! Right there!”

“Right fucking there?” Jake growls as he tightens his grip on your hair, drilling his cock deep into you, and fuck, he feels it, the head hitting something spongy inside you while the repeated action of his draws out more moans from you. “Yeah? That’s your spot, lovely?”

“Please! More!” You sob out, completely delirious to the sensation of his cock that consumes your every sense, and unbeknownst to you, more than one pair of eyes have been watching you.

“Don’t be greedy, love. It’s a sin.” Jake chuckles, mockery lacing his tone, but his voice sounds nearly strained as his impending orgasm comes forth, rendering him teetering at the edge while his vigorous thrusts don’t let up. “Fuck. I’m going to cum in you, lovely.”

You whimper out while tears cascade down your cheeks, and at the same time, your orgasm hits you violently when his hips go completely stilled with his cock burying to the hilt, dumping his cum into your womb to mix with yours. Still, you feel dissatisfied, as evident in the way your walls go clenching around him like crazy, eliciting a breathy chuckle from the male.

Jake gently pulls out his cock from your nearly battered, fluttery walls, earning him a needy whine from you, which he clicks his tongue at. “Don’t worry, lovely. You’ll get what you want. Now get up.”

Slowly, you stand on shaking legs while your thighs and knees are evidently sore. Heeseung takes you by surprise when he grabs your arm firmly to guide you forward. Your confusion is mingled with immense guilt as you feel the weight of the holy cross glaring at you while he guides you until you reach the altar.

“Sit and lay down with your legs spread open.” Heeseung calmly instructs you, but you remain frozen, shaken from the core at the realisation of what he is about to do. “I’m not going to say it again, sweetheart.”

Not wanting to piss him off, you obediently follow his absurd instructions while ignoring the wicked thrill in you. As you sit on the altar and face the front, your heart nearly drops at the sight of Sunghoon and Jay, who seem to have been watching you from the spot where Jake had fucked you, while one of them is clearly recording you with his phone.

In a blink of an eye, Heeseung has you laid down on the altar, your legs now spread flexibly for their eyes to feast upon your cunt that pulsates with the incessant need to be stuffed full again.

“Greedy for more, aren’t you?” Heeseung looms over your vulnerable figure in front of you, whereas Jake stands behind you to bind your wrists above your head, denying you any possible defiance against what Heeseung is about to do. A smirk plays on Heesueng’s lips, seeing the heavy lust amidst your teary eyes. “It seems you’ve forgotten that this should be your punishment. I guess Jake didn’t execute your punishment properly.”

“Fuck you, I did.” Jake retorts, but Heeseung merely ignores him as his eyes trail to your pink, slick folds from both Jake and your cum. A breathy moan leaves your lips as his fingers stroke your throbbing clit before rubbing it for good measure, just to take you by surprise when he suddenly lands a sharp slap on your pussy.

“Heeseung!” You scream as he does it again painfully, and another comes that has you struggling in Jake’s firm hold while your hips jerk at the impact. You sob out, feeling your pussy being abused by his relentless slaps and teasing of his fingers, occasionally rubbing your aching clit, as though to edge you in an agonising way. “Please! No more!”

“No more? But you’re fucking wet, sweetheart.” Heeseung unfurls a soft smirk as he finally relents, just to slide his fingers down on your slippery folds that are coated with your slick arousal. “Gonna baptise you, pretty girl.”

“Our sweet angel just loves the pain, doesn’t she?” Jake smirks down at you cruelly, his eyes marvelling at how docile you are being displayed like this and how your legs seem to be spreading for more room. “Oh, you do want this, yeah? Fucking give it to her, Heeseung.”

You flinch again when Heeseung delivers one last smack on your drenched-reddened folds before he lowers himself to level with your throbbing cunt and wastes no time delving into you, his hands pressing on your inner thighs to keep your legs from closing.

You gasp at the abrupt intrusion of his wet muscle thrusting into your cunt, but as his tongue dances across your sensitive flesh, licking your every wall with his nose rubbing your clit, you arch your back as you move your hips in tandem with his expert tongue delving into your cunt and the way he teases your quivering walls with his lip ring. His cap has completely fallen off as he becomes utterly drunk in your sweet pre-essence, his hunger for your cunt is insatiable.

Jake watches as your angelic face contorts into pleasure with your eyes fluttered close and moans spilling from your lips that go straight into his now-twitching cock.

The slick sound emanating from your slick cunt is utterly obscene as it reaches to your ears, only turning you on more as does the

“Oh my god! Seungie!” You mewl at his uninhibited movements, ravaging you as though your pussy is his last meal. You feel him humming, sending vibration through your quivering body, before he drags his tongue across your slick folds to find your clit and sucks on your nub, setting your bundles of nerves aflame.

“Fuck!” You cry out when he bites down on your nub without any ounce of mercy before he laps it up to soothe the pain, and yet it is a pain you have grown to crave. “Seungie.” You mewl again, moving your hips sensually as his tongue expertly swirls and licks your sensitive clit, and you become wholly consumed by the pleasure.

Without letting up his tongue, Heeseung plunges two fingers into your sopping cunt, thrusting vigorously with primal abandon. The sheer intensity of his tongue and fingers hurls you to the teetering edge, your pleasure building to a crescendo while wanton moans spill from your lips, surrendering to the rapturous onslaught.

Your tearful eyes meet Jake’s, whose eyes darken with a primal lust as he watches Heeseung unyielding punishment to your sopping cunt, and you begin to feel it—the familiar white-hot sensation sizzling through you at the same time his fingers curl in you, hitting that spot unrelentingly. “I’m gonna cum.” You moan brokenly, sobbing.

“Do it, lovely.” Jake coos as he brushes away the messy strands from your face, his eyes hold an unmistakable affection amidst the lust. “Wanna see you squirt for us.”

With Heeseung’s one last flick on the nub, your orgasm comes crashing down like tidal waves, and your release gushes out messily with fluid while your body convulses uncontrollably on the altar as you sob out at the sheer intensity of the overwhelming pleasure. Just when you think he is done, his fingers resume fucking into you, even as you continue to squirt.

Heeseung looms over your figure, his face is demented with primal lust, and a devilish smirk plays on his lips. Your heart flutters at how good he looks, his sheeny nose and chin dripping with your slick essence while his hair is tousled and his dark eyes gleam with insatiable lust for you. You whimper as he roughly removes his fingers to deliver a slap on your wholly drenched pussy.

“Look at you. Being fucked and ruined by us on these holy grounds.” Heeseung's husky voice is laden with lust, while his dark eyes gleam with familiar corruption. He slaps your sensitive clit sharply, drawing out a cry from you as he continues to degrade you while you remain powerless against Jake’s hold. “You should be ashamed of yourself, sweetheart.“

“I’m sorry.” You sob out, unable to think straight as your mind has melted into a puddle, only wanting to succumb to the exhaustion.

“That’s right. Seek forgiveness only from us.” Jake says so softly, his caress on your cheek feels deceptive, and yet you lean into his touch, your lidded eyes struggling to stay open. “We’re your salvation, lovely. You need only us.”

You nod your head slowly, feeling languid, but just as you are about to succumb to the darkness that nearly consumes your every sense, you manage to spot them holding their phones, snapping shots of you, before you finally pass out on the altar from the sheer exhaustion.

As soon as you gain consciousness, the soreness in your lower region serves as a reminder of the event that transpired earlier in the holy church, and the recollection hits you with an unadulterated mortification as you remain numbly unmoving from the bed, facing the familiar ceiling that is painted in delicate tapestry from the soft glow of the moon filtering through your window.

You can’t help but feel surprised when they bring you back to the palace instead of abandoning you and leaving you half-stark naked on the altar, considering that you did displease them and how their cruelty was punctuated in the way they gave you both pleasure and pain.

Yet, despite the gratification that satisfies your longing lust for them, you are still caught in the dilemma of whether you want to be closer to them or to listen to your rationality and depart from their lives for good. Tears prickle in your eyes, frustrated at the clear dissonance of your heart and mind.

Not long later, you are freshened up. The whiff of your shampoo scent hits you as you march your way around to find them, your eyes hardening when you vividly recall one of them recording the entire obscenity in the church earlier, spurring you into confronting them while a stab of betrayal plunges into your heart.

After long minutes of searching for them, you finally found them across from the arcade room, where they are in the middle of playing billiards. The lighting in the room is aesthetically dim, exuding an air of allure, especially when the entire space is dominated by their tantalising presences.

You ignore the familiar jitters that flutter in your tummy at their distinct, sharp gazes on your figure, while the cold atmosphere feels oppressive, punctuated by the cadence of your rapid heartbeat. Ignoring the jitters, you focus on the resentment that stems from the betrayal, which has deeply stained the mistrust you have developed for them.

“I know you guys recorded and snapped pictures of me earlier.” The coldness of your voice is tinged with utter disbelief while your steely eyes glare at their seemingly neutral demeanour, with the exception of their equally callous gazes. A muscle pulses in your jaw, refusing to back down from their oozing intimidation. “I did not consent to any of it. So please delete them.”

Still, your sensibility has been hoping that they would listen to you since they always do, but the air of nonchalance exuding from their imposing figures shatters that hope, and the cruelty shines through in the way Heeseung smirks.

“We knew that you’d be confronting us about it, but we’re not going to delete them unless you confess to us about why you did what you did.” Heeseung says calmly, leaning his lower back against the pool table with his arms crossed over his chest.

“Oh, so you’re trying to blackmail me? Is this what you’re doing now?” You let out a disbelieving chuckle while you feel as though a knife has slashed your beating heart. “And if I don’t confess? What do you plan on doing with them, then? Posting and spreading those pictures and videos online?” You bombard them with rhetorical questions.

Heeseung narrows his eyes at this, and you notice a flare of protectiveness in his eyes. “No, sweetheart. We would never do any of that, because your body is meant for our eyes only.” He nearly growls out, as if the thought of anyone who dares to get a glimpse of your nudity enrages him.

Nevertheless, you scoff, rolling your eyes as you fold your arms below your chest. “That doesn’t change the fact you guys took them without consent from me!”

“How else are we going to get your undivided attention when all you’ve done is avoid and try to escape from us? Especially after knowing what your mistake was.” Sunghoon counters firmly, his eyebrows arching at you.

“That’s the second time you broke one of our rules, Y/N.” Jay remarks, the austerity he emanates reminds you of his father, to whom the elder managed to leave an impression. “We didn’t expect such behaviour from you.”

“Speaking of behaviour, you’ve become different after going through Heeseung’s computer.” Sunghoon points out. “Clearly, you’ve discovered something that led to your avoidance, princess.” You ignore the way your heart lightly flutters at the endearment.

“And we don’t usually give second chances to anyone’s rebellion, not even you.” Jake’s statement deepens the hurt in your chest, which springs the tears in your waterline, and when you look at him, he seems to regret the words left in his mouth before the steeliness in his eyes melts. He releases a soft sigh, settling on the single couch at the side. “Just tell us the truth─”

“I found out about our parents.” You cut him off sharply, trying your utmost to maintain your composure and not go all hysteric on them. You continue, even when the cold atmosphere feels foreboding. “I saw those pictures of them, and what disgusts me the most is that you kept an old tape of theirs─” You inhale sharply as you turn away from them, unable to continue when the recollection of that God-forsaken tape resurfaces in your mind.

From your peripheral vision, you spot Jay moving towards you rather cautiously. “Baby, we can explain─”

Your eyes are ablaze with anger and hurt as you return your gaze to them, every fibre of your being surging with unbridled tumultuous emotions that you have been keeping at bay. “What is there to explain?! That it’s beneficial for you to keep such sickening content?” You lash out at them, and fuck, you hate it whenever you are caught up in the haze of your anger, tears will always spring up in your eyes.

Jake clenches his jaw, his eyes storming dangerously with pique. “Lovely, if you just allow us to explain─”

You cut him off with a sardonic chuckle, which escapes you as your chin wobbles with sadness that derives from their betrayal. “Oh, I know. Those pictures and videos you took of me, you’re going to keep and jerk off to them just like you do to our parents’ orgy.” You can see it in their countenance—how greatly angered they are by your statements, which they deem false.

“Fucking hell, Y/N. Why would we jerk off to their sex tape when it’s meant for blackmailing our fathers?!” Sunghoon exclaims, his eyes in utter disbelief at your accusation. “Fine, if you want to know why, it’s because we’re going to blackmail our fathers once the time is right.”

“For what? Revenge against them?” You press on the matter, scoffing as you wipe away your tears. “I don’t care about whatever grudge you have against your fathers, but to involve my mother in your revenge scheme? How could you─”

“It’s not in any of your business, Y/N.” Heeseung’s low voice serves as a warning. His callous gaze seems to hurt you more. “You don’t have the right to question what we do.”

“It is when my mother is involved!” You retort angrily before sobbing, as tears are unrelentingly cascading on your cheeks. “If I had known that you were this deplorable, I shouldn’t have given my heart to you in the first place.”

“Baby.” Jay attempts to reach out to you, but you back away from him, shaking your head.

“I can’t do this anymore with all of you, and this time, I mean it when I say that whatever we had, whether I’m just your fuckdoll for you to toy around or whatever, we’re over.” You force your voice to come out strong, and yet you falter with the pain expanding in your tightening chest.

But Heeseung stops you just when you are ready to egress. “Y/N Kang, don’t you dare leave this room without taking back your words or─”

It is as though something so profound snaps within you as you whirl around to glare dementedly into his eyes. “Or what?! You’re going to kill me just like you did to Jinae?!”

This time, your strident exclamation staggers them into a complete silence that is deafening throughout the room, with the exception of your harsh breathing. The look on their faces dispels any lingering doubts about them being Jinae’s murderers, although it is not a telltale sign of guilt but rather something so cryptic as you scrutinise them for another time.

Nevertheless, your resolve remains unwavering, determined to get the entire truth out of them, wanting to listen to their side of the story of what exactly happened three years ago.

“No more hiding anything from me. Tell me the truth.” You demand, and the palpable tremor in your voice punctuates your qualm. Their deafening silence only seems to aggravate you as you clench your fist. “Why did you kill Jinae?”

“It’s been three years since her passing. Why bring it up now?” Jake deftly dodges the question as he looks away from you, his chiselled jaw goes clenching.

“How did you know about her?” Sunghoon asks sternly, his thick eyebrows furrowing at you.

“It doesn’t matter how I know about her, but I know enough that she was your prey, just like I am now. That’s why you guys targeted me in the first place, right?” Your resolve in the way you firmly speak slowly wanes as hurt flickers in your gaze at the dawning realisation. “I’m not anything special to you. I’m just your prey for you to fuck me over until you decide to end my life the same way you did to Jinae if I ever cross any of you, right?”

“Do you really think the worst of us, sweetheart?” Heeseung asks quietly, something that is akin to the hurt reflecting in your eyes glinting in his. “Do you really think that we would ever do anything to jeopardise your precious life?”

His questions hit you like whiplash as you blink away your tears, and a shaky breath leaves your lips, unable to think of anything other than the look in his eyes. Never have you ever seen Heeseung being hurt, especially by you.

Still, you don’t relent, acting upon your ego as you swallow the painful emotional lump in your throat. “Yes.” You answer shakily, looking away from them. “But by all means, you are welcome to prove me wrong. Until then, I don’t want to be around any of you because I no longer trust you.”

Like a bolt of lightning, you depart from the room before any of them can stop you, your hasten steps guiding you back to your room with the intention to pack whatever necessities and head over to your dorm.

You sniffle, wiping the remnants of tears away from your cheeks with the sleeves of your blouse, unaware of your surroundings to even hear heavy footsteps behind you that punctuated his vehemence in preventing you from ebbing away from his reach any longer.

A startled gasp tears from your throat when a hand latches on your wrist to spin you around. Transient confusion fills your muddling head. “Sunghoon─”

Without a word, Sunghoon manoeuvres you swiftly, being quite nonchalant in the way he does as he carries you over his shoulder effortlessly with one arm hooked around your waist for security before he advances forward.

You gasp once more before vexation takes you over, swinging your legs and delivering puny punches to his toned back in defiance. “Park Sunghoon! Put me down!” You squeal just as his palm smacks down on your ass cheek, causing your cheeks to turn rosier while the stinging pain of the impact renders your silence.

Not too long later, Sunghoon pushes open the door to his room and brings you over to his bed before settling down as you stand by the edge of his bed. It seems that he has already predicted your next move, because before you can dash for the door, he grabs your wrist tight and spins you around.

“Park Sunghoon─” You don’t have time to process anything when he yanks you into his chest and silences you with his lips slamming into yours.

The faint taste of cigarettes on his lips pervades your overwhelming senses, and just when you have every intention to push him away, the way he is kissing you dissolves your resistance as you melt against him like butter, reciprocating the kiss with equal fervour while your hands go winding in his hair.

Sunghoon manoeuvres you over his bed without breaking the lip lock. Your back is pressed against the mattress with him hovering over you as he kisses you like he needs air, prompting you to force yourself to pull away from his chasing lips.

The sound of your bated breath mingles with his as you gaze into his dark, penetrating eyes that swirl with unfathomable emotions. His hair is just as tousled as yours, tempting you to skim your fingers through his soft locks once more.

Before you can speak, he silences you again, capturing your lips in a kiss that is a reflection of the depths of his feelings for you while the fluttering butterflies remain in their wake.

“Sunghoon,” You manage to utter in between the kisses, your hands latching on his nape. You gasp when he gently nips at your bottom lip before placing a chaste kiss at the corner of your lips. “Sunghoon, wait─”

“Don’t leave, princess.” Sunghoon’s desperation is accentuated by the uncharacteristic softness of his deep voice, which throws you off guard, his lips ghosting yours and pressing a deep, tender kiss on your lips while his arm slithers beneath your back, hugging you close to him with a longing sense of raw intimacy.

You gasp for air as soon as he pulls away, and when your eyes flutter open, your breath hitches at the glinting vulnerability in his eyes. You swallow harshly, looking away from him. “You can’t change my mind, Hoon.”

“Please, I─” Sunghoon dips his head into the hollow of your neck, mapping his kisses on your skin, each a testament to his desperation and affection reserved for you and only you. You hear him whimpering, or maybe you heard wrong, but you swear something stirs in your fluttery heart. “I can’t bear the thought of you leaving for good. I need you, princess.”

“You don’t need me. You never had.” You whisper, choking back a sob as you are overwhelmed by emotions. Your feeble attempt at pushing him away ceases, and you surrender yourself to his addictive kisses on your neck.

“Just don’t leave.” He remains adamant as he murmurs against your neck before trailing his kisses upward and reclaiming your lips in a searing kiss. “Let me fix this, yeah?” He rasps hotly against your lips before forcing his tongue into your mouth, exploring every inch and dancing in an intimate tango with your tongue, eliciting a breathy moan from you.

His kisses and his touch feel like a scorching brand all over you, enticing you to succumb to his overpowering allure. Finally caving into what your yearning heart desires, you slowly wrap your arms around his neck, pulling him close to you and deepening the fervent passion in the exchange of your kisses.

Maybe it won’t hurt you to indulge your heart, but you know that, at the end of the day, you need to put some distance between you and them for the sake of your sanity.

Losing track of time since the moment you made out with him, Sunghoon now basks in the warmth of your arms in silence, his head comfortably on your chest while his cheek is pressed against the plumpness of your boob with his arms around your waist, never letting go of you. Your fingers gently treading through his soft locks lull him to sleep, and having fallen for your deception, he allows himself to drift into the realm of sleep.

But Sunghoon is roused awake by the missing warmth of your body and your scent, which he has grown addicted to. Sitting up on his bed, he ruffles his tousled hair in frustration, silently cussing himself out for falling deep asleep, as evident in the soft glow of the moon filtering through his room.

Just as he has every intention to go to your room, his door pushes open, revealing Jay. Sunghoon’s frown deepens upon seeing the sombre casting a shadow on his best friend’s countenance.

“Don’t bother. She left the palace a few hours ago.” Jay tells Sunghoon in a grave tone as he leans sideways against the doorframe. A muscle pulses in his jaw. “As much as I oppose the idea, maybe it’s better if we give her some space to think.”

“What if we lose her for good?” Sunghoon voices out his worst nightmare while his eyes harden. “We can’t lose her. There's no way in hell I’m about to let that happen.”

Jay opens his mouth to speak, but footsteps approach from behind him, prompting the two of them to look at Sunoo, whose face is adorned with a mischievous smirk while Riki’s countenance remains ever so stony.

“We have good news.” Sunoo informs them in a cheery manner, totally ignoring the grimaces on Sunghoon and Jay’s faces at his bright demeanour.

“Yeah? Unless it’s Y/N coming back, then fuck off.” Sunghoon shoots him a scowl, earning him a pout from the latter.

“Well, if you don’t want to know the identity of Y/N’s anonymous texter,...” Sunoo drawls out, smirking as he sees the obvious shifts in their demeanour. “Oh, yeah, we finally cracked the code. But before we tell you who, Heeseung and Jake are waiting for the both of you in Heeseung’s office.”

“Just tell us who the fucker is, damn it.” Jay says impatiently. “Is it any of the guys on our suspected list?”

Sunoo and Riki exchange glances. Riki releases a sigh before finally revealing, “It’s─”

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#enhypen #the devil’s knights’ prey #enhypen smut #heeseung #jay #jake #sunghoon #reverse harem

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