Warnings: Jeon Bam (yes, he needs a warning), fluff
A/N: Enjoy!!!
July 3, 2021
Tanaka Akari slouched against the black wall of the new HYBE training room, trying her best to fill her contracting lungs with air. She held a Cooky water bottle to her plump pink lips, hand shaking with adrenaline as the water slowly trickled into her mouth. Bottle blonde hair hitting the wall as her eyes closed, humming the tune she had practiced over and over again that day. Her first solo debut was fast approaching and the Maknae was panicking.
Just her own debut would've been enough to keep her mind occupied at all times, but with SAMURAI's coming up too, she barely managed to catch a break. So many lyrics to memorize, too many steps to too many beats. Akari was exhausted. Her head rolled to the side so her right cheek could feel the cool paneling of the wall when she heard a familiar chiming coming from the black pleather backpack that sat beside her.
Her shaky hand slithered in between the fabric, reaching for the source of the noise. With her phone in hand, Jungkook’s smiley contact photo came into view, the petitie human stalled a minute to stare before answering the call.
“What’s up baby?” Akari placed the phone between her ear and shoulder before picking up her practice bag and turning off the lights.
“So.. I have a problem..” She halted, allowing herself just enough time to laugh at her boyfriend's antics. He was always forgetting things during tour, Akari had to ship him underwear more times than she could count after he would accidentally left pairs in the hotel rooms. Luckily, he was filming for In the Soop 2, so it wouldn’t take her more than a couple hours to drive to him.
“Mhmm and? Let me guess..did you forget socks? Another member? No? Oh.. Oh, I know! You forgot Bam? ” he giggled at her. Both knowing very well that he forgot his underwear again.
“Can you bring me some?” Leaning against the hallway, she scrunched her nose. If Jungkook was standing right infront of her, he’d probably boop it. She silently laughed at the thought.
“Members? I’ll have HYBE hold auditions and Kat can drop them off in the morning.” She sarcastically remarked.
“No, goof. My underwear” He huffed again. He deserved to be let down a little after he was gonna make her drive all the way to him for some underwear. Especially since, unbeknownst to him, she'd made sure to pack extras in the front of his suitcase. It was a good thing she missed him tonight.
“I know, Kook,” she stifled a laugh. “How’s the new house?” Akari bowed goodbye to the front desk lady before stepping out into the humid Seoul night, silently thanking her for having the valet bring her car service around. The driver closed the door the second she hopped in.
“It’s nice, I made Bam a place to go potty and stuff. He seems to like it.” The next couple days would be hard on Akari with both of her boys missing, she wasn't really sure what to do with herself. But she was glad they were happy.
“Are you putting him to bed too soon? I don’t want to break his routine too much.” Jungkook laughed on his end, she was always worrying about Bam. It was a big decision when they brought him home. They had been together almost eight years at this point, Bam was the first step to any kind of future they planned together.
“Baby.. he’ll be fine, I promise. If he expresses any signs of discomfort I’ll drive him home myself. He’s okay, Apple. ” Akari released another shaky breath. Jungkook always knew what to say to relieve a bit of stress. When the young idol first introduced herself, Jungkook thought her name was apple and it stuck ever since. Making her smile a bit at the nickname.
While the two talked, the transport pulled into their driveway. The couple had just bought a new house after living in an apartment for the last two years. It had taken them a while to find a house that completed everything on their checklist: Jungkook wanted a gym, Akari wanted an open floor concept with a balcony of their bedroom. But most of all, they wanted a recording studio. Something that they could use when inspiration struck at the most random of times.
When they moved, the large house almost seemed too big for the couple in their early twenties. That’s when Akari proposed the idea of a dog. It had taken them far longer to decide what breed than it did to hunt down a breeder. Jungkook preferred to adopt dogs, he had done it before with Gureum, who eventually ended up in his brother’s hands. Sadly, Doberman puppies were a hard thing to come by in shelters, especially because most believed them to be an aggressive breed.
“Okay Kook, I’m home. I’ll call you in the morning.” Akari waved goodbye to her driver while simultaneously greeting the guard who met her at the door of the vehicle. Especially with Jungkook not home, she had doubled up on security. The young idol had always felt more safe when he was around. Akari unlocked the front door and stepped into the hallway, immediately being comforted by the familiar smell of natural, warm vanilla. Taking in a big whiff that made her miss the man who made the house a home.
“Goodnight baby, sleep well. Dream of me.” She could hear him giggle, making a faint blush creep onto her supple cheeks.
“That would be a nightmare,” She could hear his smile through the phone, trying not to let one grace her own lips.“I hate you.”
“I love you.” Jungkook replied, knowing full well she was trying to hide her amusement.
They both stalled a minute before hanging up, as if they had to force themselves to hit the red button. When the line went dead, Akari dropped her phone and practice bag in the entryway. Peering outside through the window, checking that the guard was still there before making her way up the stairs to the master bedroom.
She hurriedly grabbed her all black Louis Vuitton Weekend bag from the floor of their joint walk-in closet. It was too flashy for her taste but it had been a gift from Jungkook when BTS became ambassadors of the brand, so she made an exception. Being a master at packing at this point, she threw in one of her boyfriend’s matching sweat sets, one of his massive sweatshirts and a pair of black shorts. She gathered the rest of her necessities, Jungkook’s underwear and some more toys for Bam.
Quickly showering before putting on some light wash ripped denim jeans, one of Jungkook’s grey sweatshirts and a pair of Doc Martens. He pulled her newly dyed blonde hair into a clip and applied a small bit of makeup before grabbing the duffle bag, her Cooky water bottle and her cell phone, and made her way to the 2019 light blue Volvo XC40 that was parked next to Jungkook’s Mercedes. Akari loved her car, it had a beautiful leather cream interior that somehow always smelt like lavender.
To say Jungkook was shocked when she pulled up the first time, would be an understatement. Akari liked dark neutral tones, their styles often complementing each other because of it. Her car was very opposite of her. It made him laugh every time she pulled up, her dark ensemble contrasting the light interior.
Akari sent a quick text to both Sejin and Bora, BTS and SAMURAI’s managers, letting them know she was on her way to Jungkook and reassuring Bora that she would be home in time for practice. The drive was rather quiet with the only noise coming from her car speakers belting out the newest “Crime Junkies” episode. It was a bit eerie driving through the forest in the dark with a true crime podcast playing throughout the car, reminding her of a specific horror movie Jungkook had made her watch last week.
When Akari finally arrived at her destination, her dashboard screen illuminated a big 4:28. She slouched a bit in her seat, trying her best to gather the last of her strength to go find her buff boyfriend.
In the house, a starry eyed Jungkook and a shaken Jimin were staring out the window after having heard the unmistakable noise of a car pulling up. The duo tried their best to see through the dark pigment of the night. Could it be a sasaeng that followed them? Jungkook’s lungs expanded with anticipation. He fumbled for his phone to call Sejin, who was asleep in the staffing house a couple feet from their compound, much to Jungkook's dismay. Jimin held a finger to his lips, signalling Jungkook to stay quiet. While the elder shut off the lights, the Maknae hid behind the couch dialling security.
When it dawned on Akari that they didn't recognize her, she stifled her laugh with the sleeve of the grey hoodie she had stolen from Jungkook’s side of the closet . With her duffle bag over her shoulder and water bottle in hand, she tapped her knuckles on the cold pane of the large window. A small smile ghosted her lips as she slid the glass door open, silently chuckling when she realized they’d left it unlocked.
“Ya know, the best way to keep an intruder out is to lock the door” She stood in the middle of the kitchen, which granted her a clear view of the two dumbasses who were hiding behind one of the couches. They both released shaky breaths, thanking the universe when they realized it wasn't an actual intruder.
“Holy shit,” Jungkook put his phone back in his pocket and removed himself from behind the couch. Wrapping his chiseled arms around her head, bringing her into his chest. He could feel her laugh against the material of his sheer green pajama set. She pushed against his pecs to release herself from his hold, coming face to face with her smiley boyfriend. “What are you doing here? I thought you said your assistant would bring them?”
Jungkook was awfully chipper for it being almost 5 in the morning, Akari just shrugged in response and leaned into his arms again, feeling all of her exhaustion hit once more. Her boyfriend grabbed her hand to head back to his room but not before Akari waved at Jimin, who laughed at the couple's antics.
As they walked in the direction of his room, Jungkook felt Akari slowly begin to lean on him. “Apple, get on my back.” He kneeled down in front of his sleepy girlfriend, who happily did as she was told.
Akari couldn't contain her excitement, she missed Bam but was far too exhausted to react outwardly. When they arrived at the small apartment, Jungkook set her down. Knowing their puppy would want to say hello, he slid the door open.
“Bamie!” Akari called the large doberman, who’d came barreling out of the cage and straight to his mother. Running around her and in between her legs as she pet him. Jungkook laughed at the two, knowing it hadn't been that long since they had seen each other. When Bam calmed down, Jungkook led him back into his cage so they could all wind down for the night.
Akari pulled his underwear out of her duffle bag and threw it at him, making the elder laugh. Winking at the man before changing into her shorts, she didn't even bother changing out of her sweatshirt before crawling into bed. When Jungkook laid down next to her, he pulled her into his buff chest by her hips. Kissing the back of her head before propping it on his arm, feeling the woman kiss his bicep in response.
Knowing his girlfriend well, Jungkook started gently humming, until her breathing steadied and he could hear her soft snores. Only then was he content enough to let himself drift off.
When Akari awoke, the room was empty. No Jungkook, No Bam. She rolled over to the side table to grab her phone. The illumicent screen read 11:14, Akari groaned. She read through a couple emails, answered texts from her group mates and liked some tweets before finally getting up from the bed. She stretched her limbs, and grabbed the duffle bag off the floor.
The young idol changed into one of her boyfriends matching sets, grabbing the rest of her things and leaving a note on the front of his suitcase that read:
She knew they had already begun filming, therefore, the blonde sadly didn't get to say goodbye to her boys. Akari bowed to Sejin before climbing into her car, making sure to choose a less scary podcast this time. Eventually, she took a deep breath of forest air and began her journey back to Seoul.
