Found Family
Pairing: Kim Namjoon (BTS) x GN!Reader; slight OT8?!; Genre: Hurt/Comfort, Established Relationship AU, some Angst, some Fluff, suggestive at one point, Found Family trope; Rating: sfw, NC-17; Warnings: mentions of Namjoon being a bad boy, mentions of child abuse (Jungkook is the “child”), a physical fight including insults and punches, bruises and split knuckles, nudity, a little suggestive, hints of sexual activities, nightmares, lots of bickering, overworking; Wordcount: 12.367
Summary: People would say Namjoon was someone dangerous. Not to you though and not to those you cared for. You realised that when Namjoon helped you saving Jungkook from his abusive father. You also realised it when your old college friends and Jungkook’s friends visited more often and continued to stay at your place. That crazy bundle of people was his found family.
A/N: I rewrote this story sooooo many times... and I basically only wanted to write that “save JK” part... now we have a lot more
“Are you awake?”
You groaned and turned away from the voice beside you. “No”, you mumbled and pressed your eyes close, hoping to cling to the faint sensation of sleep. It had taken you hours to somewhat feel tired.
Sure, you kind of noticed that someone had entered your bedroom and laid down next to you, but deep inside of you, you had hoped you could still continue to sleep.
A deep chuckle filled your ears.
You sighed heavily, accepting sleep wasn’t meant for you just yet. You turned back around and searched with your hand through the dark until you linked fingers with another hand. “I didn’t expect you tonight”, you whispered, a smile ghosting over your lips.
Even though you wanted to sleep you were happy in his presence. His natural scent engulfed you and put you further under his spell.
Namjoon’s calloused fingertips painted small figures on the back of your hand as he chuckled again. “I haven’t visited you in a while now. You’re early in bed though. What are you up to these days?” He squeezed your hand before his gaze flicked up to your face.
The dim light of the moon outside of the window behind him illuminated your face just enough to see your reaction. An annoyed scrunch of your nose and a downcasted look.
“Work. It has been a little tough lately.” Another deep sigh fell from your lips as you once again started to repeat the list of duties you still needed to fulfil inside of your head. Whenever you finished a task, somehow three new tasks appeared on your list and it felt like you weren’t getting anywhere.
“Wanna talk about it?” Namjoon moved his free hand to your face and brushed a few strands of hair behind your ear, leaving his hand on your cheek.
You contemplated his question, not wanting to escalate and spill all your troubles like a waterfall without any end in sight. On the other hand talking about it could relieve your stress and maybe give you an idea what you could do with some of your problems. Kind of like scientists used rubber duckies to find the solution to a problem.
“Hm?”
“Are you willing to be my rubber ducky?”
Another deep chuckle rang through the air, making every fibre of your body tingle. “Rubber ducky, hm?” Namjoon snickered again. “I’ll be anything you need.”
You smiled, feeling your heart flutter in your chest. Even though people considered him as a bad guy, he was nothing but sweet and understanding towards you.
You had met him at a party during your first year of college, where he got into a fight with a group of students. You can’t really remember what made you walk over to them, telling the guys some kind of lie and watching them scurry away until you were alone with him. At first Namjoon had blocked any of your attempts to talk with him but you on the other hand were quite persistent.
Ever since that party you met him around campus every now and then. Your presence was somewhat refreshing in Namjoon’s opinion. You never pried into his private life, silently patched his wounds up while talking about your classes without asking him where he got those. He knew you were curious, seeing the dozen questions in your eyes, so he appreciated it even more that you didn’t question him.
Namjoon squeezed your hand again, reassuring you to let your emotions out whenever you were ready. You sighed and scooted closer to him, leaning your forehead against his chest until it nodded in sync with the movement of his chest when he breathed. A tremble ran through your whole body, thinking about the new workload on top of your shoulders and the fact you’re already struggling. “I’m not sure how much longer I’ll be able to fulfil all the requirements.”
He hummed lowly, knowing there was no use suggesting changing or even dropping out of some classes. You would never give up on the extra credits that might be useful later on.
“I feel like I’m slowly giving up. Even you noticed that I’m in bed early. Usually I stay awake studying or preparing for classes but here I am. In bed. Doing nothing.” You sighed and closed your eyes, a list of things you should be doing appearing in your mind. “I offered to tutor younger students for one of the classes I had during the first semester. Maybe that was a bad idea though.”
“Are there others tutoring too?”
“Yeah, there are five others with me. We should be working together and checking in on what topics we want to cover next but none of them answered my emails so far and I really don’t have the energy to run after them.” A small pout appeared on your lips and tears pricked at the corners of your eyes.
Namjoon softly wiped them away with his thumb, kissing the top of your head. “I know you wouldn’t drop the tutoring”, he said, scoffing in amusement when you nodded, “but I suggest you simply do your thing. You reached out to them and if they don’t answer you it’s not your fault. Ignore them, do what you think is right and everything will work out in the end.”
“What if I get in trouble for not working with them in the end?” You sniffled silently, rubbing with the palm of your hand over your cheeks. “I really don’t wanna get in trouble.”
Namjoon rubbed over your upper arm, placing soft kisses on your forehead, temple and cheeks. “How about you take some time tomorrow to create a tutoring plan and send it to your professor? If they tell you that’s fine with them, you’re good to go.”
“So I’m not giving up right now? Maybe I should get back up and work some more.”
You were about to push yourself up, when Namjoon wrapped his arms around your body and pulled you close against his. “Absolutely not. Resting is just as important. You’re staying here with me and trying to relax a little.”
You sighed deeply but relaxed in his hold nonetheless. Even though a part of you still worried and wanted to keep working, you could see and most importantly understand his reasoning. “I’ll cut my lunch break short to do that then.”
“Not sure if the guys let you do that”, Namjoon chuckled and readjusted both your positions until he felt comfortable and closed his eyes, ready to drift off any given moment.
You groaned and hid your face in his chest. You had somewhat ignored that you usually met your friends during lunch. Even though they were quite understanding, neither of them would accept you cutting your lunch break short for work. Especially not Jin, who basically lived for food.
“I’m trying anyway or do both at the same time.”
“Good luck with that”, Namjoon mumbled, struggling to stay awake after a long day.
You stretched yourself and placed a kiss on his jaw line. “Next time I’m all ears for your day.”
Namjoon chuckled softly and patted your back. “Appreciated.”
Soon enough both of you fell asleep and when you woke up the next morning, you were alone again. Only a note was left on the pillow next to you. Namjoon often left before you woke up in the morning, sneaking out of your apartment the way he got inside. Even though you didn’t see him as someone bad or dangerous he was extremely conscious about your image and tried to hide his connection with you. Which you ignored much to his dismay.
You smiled sadly, wishing he had stayed a little longer as you read the note with a scribbled heart at the side. Nobody would think that such a giant loved to create cute little things like this note and you liked knowing this side of him. It felt like a side exclusively for you. With a soft sigh you placed the note inside a little box you kept in a drawer next to your bed. Every note found its place there. Sometimes you grabbed the box and read through the notes again - especially when you hadn’t seen Namjoon for a while.
After stretching one more time you got up and ready for the day, going to classes, doing assignments and forgetting about everything else.
Only when you met Jin right before lunch break did you remember that you were meant to meet the group and that you did forget to eat at all during the morning. When Jin found out while you two walked to the cantine, he immediately started scolding you.
“Sometimes I think you should become a rapper”, Yoongi said as he joined you two, shaking his head in amusement upon hearing Jin simply continue nagging you. “What did you do this time?” He looked you up and down with a soft smile, knowing full well Jin’s rants could be unreasonable from time to time.
“Forgot to eat”, you admitted shyly, laughing awkwardly when Yoongi stared pointedly at you.
“Well, I’m not gonna judge you since I’m definitely not better.”
“Not better at what?” Hoseok joined the group and looked expectantly between the three of you, grinning brightly as a greeting.
“Eating regularly.” Both you and Yoongi answered in unison.
“That’s not good for your health!”
“I’ve been trying telling them that ever since we met each other”, Jin sighed dramatically, “but they won’t listen to me.”
Yoongi only shrugged his shoulders. “If food wasn’t necessary I would ignore it completely.” You nodded along, thinking about all the time you could use otherwise instead of cooking or preparing three meals a day.
“Would you eat at all if we didn’t meet for lunch every day? What are you eating during the weekends, Shorty?”
“Cereals.”
Jin smacked his forehead before he glared at you. His gaze told you, you shouldn’t be sounding so proud when saying that.
Yoongi snickered next to you, mumbling he only ate take out - if at all.
You giggled as well, bumping your side into his, showing him silently you understood.
As soon as you all sat down at a table, you pulled out your notebook - ready to do the workload you wanted to do while eating. You didn’t even notice the stares of your friends on you as you quickly typed away. You bit on your lower lip, struggling with the wording of the paper.
“Put that notebook away and eat!” Jin glared at you and then stared pointedly at the food next to you that slowly turned cold.
Hoseok leaned over to you, reading over the things you’ve written. “What class is that for? I don’t recognise the topic.”
“It’s a lesson plan for the tutor class I’m holding.”
Yoongi scoffed and rolled his eyes. “Don’t you think you already have enough on your plate? Someone else should hold them. Do you even get enough sleep?”
You looked up from the screen with a raised eyebrow. “Don’t talk to me about sleep, Grumpy”, you gently scolded him, pointing out he had days where he only consisted of energy drinks and coffee. Days where you stopped by and brought him ramen or any other kind of fast food. “Seeing your hands I have a feeling you’re not getting much sleep either.”
Hoseok and Jin both shot their gazes towards Yoongi’s hands, surprised to see several band-aids on his fingers.
“Where the hell did you get these from?”
“What did you do to get hurt?”
You smirked triumphantly while Yoongi sighed and shot you one single glare, silently getting off of your back. “I bought an old house.”
“You bought what?” Instead of focusing back on your notebook like you had planned, you shut it and looked at Yoongi with wide eyes. Despite having seen his fingers you hadn’t thought about that.
“An old house.”
“Why?” You asked the question the other two had on their tongues as well.
He shrugged his shoulders again. “Felt like a good investment.” Yoongi barely finished his sentence before the others bombarded him with more questions.
You listened intently, your initial workload completely forgotten. You couldn’t fathom getting a house while still being in college, you even struggled to know what you wanted to do the next week. So thinking about your own home in the future seemed like something far off in the distance.
“If the house is nice we could stop crashing at Y/N’s place”, Hoseok thought out loud, followed by Jin agreeing loudly and Yoongi groaning in despair.
You giggled softly. “That does sound like a nice idea. My living room gets easily crowded with more than two people in there.” You winked teasingly towards Yoongi as he glared at you. “I even promise to help you renovate the house in exchange.”
“Fine.”
Jin and Hoseok immediately joined that promise and started to make plans for when they could come over and what needed to be done.
You slowly tuned out of the conversation again, looking over your own schedule with tight lips. Even though you definitely wanted to help Yoongi, you already felt the dread clawing at your insides, knowing you had less time to prepare other things.
“Hey, Y/N?” Hoseok waved his hand in front of your face, grinning once he caught your attention again. “You should come to my dance class after your tutoring sessions. We can go to Yoongi’s together once my classes finish as well.” He pointed at the open slots on your schedule with his finger.
“You don’t expect me to dance though, right? I could prepare for the next class during that time if you don’t mind.” A pained smile crossed your face and you hoped he would simply agree with your suggestion.
“Alrighty! Though I can’t promise you, you’ll follow your own request.” He grinned once more and patted your shoulder.
~~~
Over the last few weeks you somehow managed to get some sort of rhythm with all your duties - even if it meant less sleep and sometimes no meals because you were too focused on a task. Though as long as you functioned it was alright.
You tried not to stress over little things like Namjoon always told you but seeing that only one student from the first semester came to the tutoring session did get under your skin. You placed your bag on the table at the front with a heavy sigh. “There is some sort of unwritten rule that if there aren’t more than four students the tutoring doesn’t have to..”, you couldn’t finish the sentence, feeling slightly upset with the fact you couldn’t keep the students, “you can go home if you want.” With that you turned away and stared blankly at the desk in front of you, trying desperately to keep your tears at bay.
“I’d still like to get the tutoring session.”
You jumped up and turned around with wide eyes, surprised the young male hadn’t left the room. You quickly wiped over your cheeks and blinked a few times. “Are you sure? I mean, I don’t mind but maybe we can go over stuff you don’t understand instead of the plan I made.” You waited hesitantly until he pulled his books and notes out. With a soft smile you grabbed your own bag and walked over to his seat in the last row, sitting down right across from him. “Thank you”, you whispered and looked down on his notes, too embarrassed to look him in the eye.
During the tutoring you often drifted off topic with questions Jungkook asked you, listening to your stories with wonder in his eyes. Soon enough you realised he didn’t mind talking about other stuff than the topics for his class. Though you only realised it once you looked at the time and saw that you were already supposed to be at the dance studio. “I’m so sorry for keeping you over time!” You jumped up and packed your stuff, mumbling more apologies to the young man. “I didn’t realise what time it was. You should say so next time! I didn’t want to keep you away from home.”
Jungkook flinched at the mention of home though when you stopped to look at him with a questioning gaze he played it off and told you he had fun today and didn’t mind staying behind. He ever so slowly packed his own stuff as if he tried to buy some time.
You wanted to question him but before you could open your mouth your phone started ringing. You apologised again with a pained smile and rushed out of the room, accepting the call and immediately saying that you were on your way.
Slightly out of breath you reached the dance studio and quickly slipped into one of the training rooms. You plopped down on a bench at the side of the room with a soft sigh, leaning against the wall behind you with closed eyes. You heard Hoseok’s voice over the music and opened one eye with a small smile on your lips.
A group of dancers tried to follow his choreography in the middle of the room, focused on his every movement and call.
“You’re late for class”, a deep voice whispered next to you.
You laughed softly and shook your head, getting rid of your initial surprise. “I’m no dancer. I’m just a friend of Hoseok and waiting for him.” You stretched out your hand and introduced yourself.
The man next to you followed with his own introduction, explaining he currently couldn’t dance due to a twisted ankle but his friend refused to go alone to the dance practice - hence why he sat on the bench.
Even though you had planned on working while waiting on Hoseok, Taehyung pulled you into a conversation - way too happy he had found some distraction in you. Within half an hour you knew quite a lot about him and his friend Jimin, which made you wonder why you still didn’t know a thing about Jungkook despite having talked with him for over ninety minutes.
This thought stuck with you and gnawed at your insides. No matter where you were or what you did, your mind constantly went back to Jungkook. You were distracted during the renovations - being basically of no use - and even later during your nightly study session. The constant distraction continued the day after and after that too. By now you were sure that thought even plagued you in your sleep.
If you could fall asleep that is.
“You’ve been twisting and turning around for a while now. What’s on your mind?” Namjoon wrapped an arm around you and pulled you against his sturdy chest, finally ceasing your relentless moving.
You sighed heavily and tried relaxing into his hold but the second your muscles relaxed, alarm bells went off in your head again. You groaned and pressed the palm of your hand against your forehead. “It’s just this kid. I can’t seem to shake it off thinking about him. I don’t even know why and I will see him tomorrow during the tutor session again but… I don’t know.”
“Tell me more about this kid.”
You frowned, trying to find the beginning of whatever you wanted to say about Jungkook. You also struggled to keep his identity a secret since you weren’t supposed to talk about your students. Everything you experienced with them was supposed to be confidential.
“As long as you’re not saying his name, you’re not breaking any rules.”
A small pout formed on your lips. He knew just too well what you were worrying about. And so you told him everything. Everything except the name. Though it wasn’t much to begin with, only the few things you had noticed over the time you spent with Jungkook.
From him being extremely quiet over him only wearing long sleeved, baggy clothes despite the heat up to Jungkook always staying behind and wasting as much time as possible before going home.
While you were talking, Namjoon tensed unconsciously.
“What’s wrong?” You stopped talking as soon as you realised how tense he was.
“Next time you see that kid”, he swallowed harshly, “don’t let him go home.” With that Namjoon stood up and rushed out of your room.
You sat up, worry lacing your features. The reminiscent warmth next to you slowly faded underneath your fingertips. You weren’t able to fall asleep that night.
You didn’t know much about Namjoon but you knew he avoided his emotions and more importantly avoided letting others see his emotions. But from his reaction you knew it had to be something serious.
You dragged yourself through the whole day until the tutoring session, seeing Jungkook already sitting in the classroom and doodling on a piece of paper.
You still didn’t know what to do. How were you supposed to keep him away from his home? You were his tutor and at the end of the day you had to let him go, no matter how much you would have extended his stay. You also didn’t want him to think you were punishing him for staying behind.
Jungkook didn’t seem to think that at all. His smile brightened whenever he glanced towards the clock and noticed more and more time passed.
Yet when your phone rang - just like last week - his smile immediately vanished. He slowly started packing his stuff, knowing it was the end of the tutoring after all.
You noticed the shift in his mood and bit on your lower lip, remembering Namjoon’s words from last night. “Hey,” you started hesitantly, catching Jungkook’s attention instantly, “would you like to tag along? I’m going to the dance studio around the corner. If you want to, we can continue our discussion while I wait for my friend.”
You’ve never seen Jungkook pack his stuff this quickly, making you laugh quietly. Within seconds Jungkook stood next to you, eager to follow you to the dance studio.
Though once you reached the dance studio, Jungkook got so distracted by the practice held by Hoseok that he couldn’t concentrate on anything you said. “I’m sure you could join them if you want to”, you said loud enough to get his attention - even for a short moment.
He stared at you like a deer caught in headlights, contemplating what you said in silence. His gaze wandered to the dancers following Hoseok in front of the large mirror, longing to join them.
“It’s alright”, you reassured him, smiling softly and basically shooing him away from the bench you two were sitting on.
Hoseok grinned at you through the mirror as soon as he noticed the newcomer dance along. You had mentioned the situation only briefly when you two had arrived and Hoseok wasn’t one to question it - at least not as long as it wouldn’t be harming you or any of his friends.
You could be resuming to study for one of your classes but somehow you were transfixed on Jungkook and his dancing. He quickly followed along, grinning like a kid on the morning of its birthday. Though during a jumping move your breath got caught in your lungs. You only saw a glimpse of his torso but you were sure you saw several bruises.
You kind of hoped to see Jungkook’s torso again to confirm it but throughout the rest of the practice it never happened.
Jungkook came back to you like a little puppy, practically glowing from the inside after the joy he just experienced.
“You should come by more often”, Hoseok told him and patted his shoulder, turning to you then. “Where did you find such a natural?” He laughed brightly and grabbed his duffel bag. “Ready to head to Yoongi’s?”
You smiled and shook your head, being used to Hoseok just asking one question after the other without even waiting for an answer in the first place. “Don’t remind me. There’s still so much work to do at his house.”
For a moment you even forgot Jungkook still stood next to you, shifting from one foot to the other. Only when Hoseok turned to him again and asked him if you two should drop him off somewhere did you focus on him again.
To your surprise Hoseok managed to convince Jungkook to drop him off at his home before you two wanted to head towards Yoongi’s new house.
Yet when you two did exactly that, your stomach twisted in pain. You silently watched Jungkook walk up the patio of the simple suburban looking house and after a moment of hesitation vanish into it.
Hoseok drove off again, humming cheerily along to the radio on the way to Yoongi.
Yoongi and Jin sat on the Hollywood swing they installed a few hours ago, waiting for you and Hoseok to arrive. Jin lazily waved with his hand as Hoseok parked in front of the house, jumping out of the car and skipping up the few steps towards them.
You on the other hand only stepped out of the car and looked over your shoulder. Something inside of you begged you to get back, begged you to get to Jungkook.
“Y/N?” Yoongi stood up, noticing something was wrong.
“Namjoon wanted to stop by, in a bit, don’t worry!”
Even though Jin’s words should be reassuring and comforting to you, you could only muster a pained smile. “I have to get back.”
“Back to where?”
Yoongi ignored Jin’s question and grabbed his car keys, tossing them to you without a question. With a quick movement of his head he pointed to his car.
You mouthed your thanks and rushed to his car, getting in and driving back to Jungkook’s place.
You couldn’t stop thinking about him, couldn’t ignore the guilt flaring up inside you and the vision of the bruises but most importantly you couldn’t stop thinking about Namjoon’s reaction when you told him about Jungkook.
You arrived back in the suburban area. Some of the houses looked a little worn out, with colour splitting from the walls or graffiti tainting the once beautiful surface.
You stopped the car in front of a small house with only two stories and the porch. Most of the curtains were closed and if you hadn’t seen Jungkook entering the house prior you would have thought nobody was home.
Biting on your lower lip, you got out of the car and walked to the front door. You raised your hand, about to knock against the wood, but your knuckles hovered over it.
You heard screaming from the other side of the door and something crashing, making your stomach drop with dread. You swallowed harshly and finally knocked against the door.
Waiting.
You knocked again, this time even louder than before.
You heard heavy footsteps behind the door before it was nearly ripped out of its frame with the force the man used to open it.
“What?”
You flinched at his brute tone, quickly blinking a few times before you were able to recover. “Hello Mr. Jeon? I’m Jungkook’s tutor.”
“Did that brat cause trouble?”
Your eyes widened in shock when you heard how negatively he talked about his own son. “No, no”, you rushed out, “not at all. I stopped by because I forgot to give him some important notes. He needs them for the upcoming exam.”
“I can give them to him”, he grunted and stretched a hand out towards you.
You laughed nervously, brushing some strands of hair behind your ear. “If it’s alright with you, I’d like to give them to him personally. There might be some things we need to make clear.”
“If he’s too dumb to understand the notes it’s his problem.”
“I’m sorry to disagree with you, Mr. Jeon, but as his tutor it’s my duty to make sure Jungkook understands what the notes are about.” You stared at the man in front of you, keeping eye contact despite wanting to turn around and just leave.
The man looked you up and down with an uninterested look. He resembled Jungkook a lot, you noticed, just a little older and less boyish. He wore a suit, with his tie loosened around his neck. If it weren’t for his tousled hair and the hard look in his eyes, you might even like him. But something about him, set off the alarms in your head.
“Could you please get Jungkook?” You tried again, your eyes darting to the area behind him, hoping Jungkook would appear in the hallway any minute.
“No.”
You tensed and looked back at the man in front of you.
“He’s unavailable at the moment.”
“When will he be available then? I really need to speak to him.” You pressed, the unrelenting feeling in your stomach gripping you even harder than before.
The man scoffed and leaned down to be on eye level with you. “Why wouldn’t you be able to give that brat the notes tomorrow? What is the real reason a young and pretty tutor needs to talk to him?”
Your eyes widened in shock, swallowing harshly at the indication in his question.
Before you were able to redeem yourself in front of him, you felt a presence behind you. Mr. Jeon straightened again and stared behind you, his eyes narrowing in suspicion.
“Get the kid”, Namjoon ordered lowly, and for a moment you weren’t sure who he was talking to, “I’ll take care of this bastard.”
You jumped slightly, when Namjoon pushed you into the hallway, before he attacked Mr. Jeon, pressing his arm against the man’s throat and holding him against the door frame.
You hesitated, staring at Namjoon, whose face was twisted with rage. You’ve never seen him like this and it somewhat scared you.
“Go!” He growled, glaring towards you for just a second.
You turned around and hurried further into the house, gently calling for Jungkook. You found him on the kitchen floor, dozens of glass shards around him. He had his eyes closed and didn’t react when you had called for him.
You rushed into the kitchen and dropped on your knees next to him, ignoring the glass cutting through your pants.
“Jungkook? Hey, can you hear me?”
He groaned and opened one eye, turning a little on his back so he could look up to you. “Y/N?” Jungkook coughed badly and writhed in pain. “What are you doing here?”
You had tears in your eyes. You had the feeling this wasn’t the first time Jungkook was mistreated and you were shocked you hadn’t seen it earlier. Even disappointed in yourself for not understanding the signs sooner. Yet, Namjoon had caught on to them immediately.
“Getting you out of here”, you whispered, your voice broken from the tears you tried to hold back. “Can you get up?”
Jungkook pushed himself up, closing his eyes in pain. He breathed heavily and halted for a few seconds before he was able to look at you again. This time with both his eyes open.
“He wouldn’t let me leave like that.”
You bit on your lower lip, your heart breaking from the hurt tone in his voice. “Don’t worry about that. You won’t stay here a second longer. Not as long as I’m here.”
“He’s going to hurt you as well.”
Before you were able to answer, a loud crash interrupted your conversation. You winced slightly, hearing Jungkook’s father screaming in rage. “Fucking scum! How dare you lay a finger on me!”
Jungkook stared towards the general direction of the commotion, before he slowly turned to you. “What..”
“Let’s just hurry, okay?” You asked with a forced smile. “We get some of your stuff and leave.” You helped Jungkook up on his feet.
He leaned half of his weight onto your smaller form. Something you hadn’t noticed before. Even though Jungkook was younger than you, he was already significantly taller.
Jungkook directed you towards his room, where you placed him on his bed before you grabbed a large bag and started throwing in clothes and other necessities. Once the bag was full you grabbed his college bag and stuffed books, his notebook and more into it.
“Do you need anything else?” You asked and looked around his room, unsure what else to pack.
Jungkook watched you warily before he leaned over and pulled one stuffed animal from underneath his pillow.
You softened, seeing him holding the plushy with trembling hands. “Hold it in your hand. We wouldn’t want it to get squished in the bags, yeah?”
A crooked smile played over his lips as he nodded, pushing himself up again. Without saying anything he hoisted the bigger bag up on his shoulders and dragged himself over to take the other bag as well.
“No, no, no”, you pulled the heavy bag away from him, “I’m going to carry this one.”
Jungkook nodded and slowly walked out of his room, his hand continuously hovering over anything near him, ready to catch him at any time.
You hurried next to him, wrapping your free arm around his waist to steady him. You guided him through the hallway and only stopped when you saw Namjoon wrestling with Jungkook’s father.
“Namjoon!” You called out, fearing he was about to kill the man with the force he put behind his punches.
Both men stopped fighting briefly, staring at you and Jungkook.
Namjoon softened upon seeing your fear-stricken face. “Get out”, he mouthed towards you, “I’ll see you tonight.”
You wanted to nod but instead a scream escaped your throat as Mr. Jeon punched Namjoon square in the face. He pushed him off and quickly stood up, staggering towards you and Jungkook.
“You can’t take this brat!”
You froze and stared at the man with wide eyes. There was no way for you to fight back against him. Definitely not with Jungkook leaning on you for support. You saw Mr. Jeon raising his hand, ready to hit you.
Instinctively you closed your eyes but before you felt the impact, you were spun around. You opened your eyes again, facing away from Mr. Jeon. Instead Jungkook stood between the both of you, taking the hit of his father.
You gasped in shock, the slap ringing loudly in your ears.
“GET OUT!” Namjoon yelled and pulled Mr. Jeon away from you and Jungkook, punching him over and over again.
Jungkook didn’t hesitate and pulled you out of the front door. He tried to walk most of the way on his own but at the same time he was glad he could lean on you, afraid he would fall otherwise.
You looked back over your shoulder, scared for Namjoon, who stayed back in the house. Even though you knew he was able to stand up for himself, you were still scared he would get injured badly.
“Y/N?” Jungkook’s weak voice pulled you out of your worry. “Where do we need to go?”
“That car.” You chided yourself mentally, needing to focus on the task at hand. Jungkook was injured and you needed to get him away as fast as possible. You threw the bags into the trunk and helped Jungkook on the passenger seat, before you sat behind the wheel yourself. You looked back at the house one last time. Then you started the engine and drove towards your own home.
“How bad are your injuries?”, you asked and glanced towards Jungkook shortly, quickly focusing back on the road again. “Should we stop by a hospital?”
“No hospitals please.” Jungkook leaned his head against the window, his eyelids heavy. “I just need some rest.”
You glanced at him again, doubt playing over your features. “If you don’t want to go to a hospital, would it be okay to let a friend check you? He studies medicine and is close to becoming a doctor.”
“A friend?”
You hummed, focusing on the street ahead.
“Okay”, Jungkook whispered, “if it’s a friend I’ll trust him.”
Soon after you arrived at your home and helped Jungkook into your living room. He passed out minutes after you sat him on the couch. While you brought his bags into the room as well, you dialled the number of Jin, waiting patiently until he picked up.
“What’s up Shorty?”
You ignored his teasing and cut straight to the matter. “You need to come over!”
“Are you finally asking me out on a date?” He laughed loudly, and you could imagine him wiping away a stray tear.
“Jin, please. I need your help.”
He immediately sobered up, upon hearing your desperate tone. “What’s wrong?”
“I need you to come over and check up on someone”, you explained quickly, moving over to Jungkook and carefully sitting down next to him.
“Okay, what happened?”
You heard Jin rummaging through some things on the other end of the line. As well as the murmurs of Hoseok and Yoongi.
“I found him passed out on the floor.”
“A few more details, Shorty. I need to know what I should take with me.”
You quickly explained everything you could think of, waiting for Jin to ask a few more questions, which you answered as well.
“Alright, I’ll be there in ten.”
You thanked him and cut the call, placing the phone on the little table in front of you. Your gaze drifted to Jungkook.
His face twisted in pain and a small whimper left his lips as he slightly moved. He clutched the stuffed animal to his side, his fingers digging deep into the plush.
You gently brushed a few strands of hair out of his face, watching him silently. You smiled sadly when your eyes landed on the plushy, an old, pink bunny.
A knock on your door ripped your attention away from Jungkook. You quietly hurried to your door and smiled in relief seeing Jin standing in front of you. “Thanks for coming.”
He hugged you briefly and motioned you to guide him to his patient. “You didn’t tell me he passed out.”
“I thought he was just resting. If I’m correct he always just rests.” You frowned in thought, nibbling on your lower lip as you started to worry.
“So you’re telling me now he had ‘accidents’ like this more than once?” Jin cocked an eyebrow and kneeled on the floor next to Jungkook. His fingers carefully lifted Jungkook’s hoodie, revealing dozens of bruises - some a deep purple while others already faded into a yellowish green.
You gasped in shock, eyes trained on the bruises, realising he had some of them for weeks. And you only noticed today.
“It’s good you got him out of wherever that was”, Jin mumbled, gently palpating the boy’s upper body. “No broken ribs. At least something positive.”
Jungkook suddenly sat up, pushing Jin away and crawling to the end of the couch. He stared with wide eyes towards Jin, his whole body trembling.
You slowly walked into his line of view. “Jungkook? Hey, how are you feeling? You apparently passed out?” You glanced towards Jin, who nodded with your statement. “I told you about my friend, right?” You carefully sat on the edge of the couch, still keeping a little distance from Jungkook. “The almost doctor?”
“The what now?” Jin protested but you shushed him immediately, ignoring how he mumbled he was a real doctor already.
“That is Jin. He was checking up on you. I’m sorry we scared you. Do you need a minute to collect yourself? I think Jin needs to check a bit more when you’re ready for it.”
Jungkook’s eyes darted towards you and he slowly relaxed again. “Are you going to stay here with us?”
“If you want me to stay I can do that. Though I don’t mind giving you some privacy as well.” You smiled gently.
“I think it’s better when you get out of the room, Shorty”, Jin jumped into the conversation. “I’m sorry but after I saw your torso, I have to ask you to take off most of your clothes. I need to check if there are any more severe injuries that need immediate treatment.”
A blush appeared on Jungkook’s neck and cheek and he quickly avoided looking at you.
“I could just turn around?” You suggested, feeling Jungkook didn’t want you to leave. “I promise I won’t look.” With that you turned around and faced your bookshelf, reading the titles of the books one after another. You heard some rustling behind you and for a second you really wanted to turn around and look, especially because Jin gave no reaction at all.
You were about to read the titles of your books for a third time when Jin cleared his throat and told you that you could turn back around again.
Jungkook sat awkwardly on the couch, clutching his pink bunny against his chest while Jin sat on your small couch table.
“No strenuous tasks, no sport and a lot of rest.” Jin told him, glancing towards you every now and then, as if he wanted to make sure you would keep an eye on that as well. “I assume you’re staying here?”
Jungkook turned to look at you, unsure what to answer.
“Yes”, you jumped in and nodded quickly, “I’ll prepare the couch as soon as possible. And then you’re free to stay as long as you want to.”
“Then I suggest, you, young man, rest up and don’t move around, while Shorty over here prepares your bed and I’ll cook something so you can regain some strength.” Jin clapped into his hand and stood up, stretching his body shortly before he walked towards your kitchen.
Soon enough you heard him curse loudly. “How the hell are you able to live?! There is absolutely nothing here to cook anything at all!”
“There is!” You shouted back from the living room, struggling to get the sheets on the couch.
“Instant ramen is NOT actual food!”
“You’re able to eat it, are you not?” You grunted and fell onto the makeshift bed, pushing yourself up again and blowing some strands of hair out of your face. “Then it IS food.”
“Don’t argue with me, woman!” Jin shouted and stomped out of the kitchen. “I’ll be back soon, but I need to buy stuff. I really can’t believe you’re still alive. Do you even eat regularly?! I swear to god, Shorty. I told you to stop only living off of instant ramen and coffee or energy drinks. That is NOT healthy.”
You sat back on the couch again, pushing some hair back before you crossed your arms in front of your chest. “I know it isn’t healthy but it IS the only way to get through all required tasks.”
“Required, my ass”, Jin laughed and shook his head, “you do too many additional classes. They aren’t necessary!”
“Of course they are! It looks better on my degree with all that stuff.”
Jin sighed. “Whatever, I’ll be back in a few.”
You blew a strand of hair out of your face as you let yourself drop back against the couch, a small pout adorning your face.
“Y/N?”
You turned to Jungkook, your features softening immediately as you saw his doe-like eyes.
“You only called him a friend but you two seem very close.”
You scrunched your nose in amusement, remembering how a lot of people assumed the same thing whenever they saw you together. “Yeah, only a friend. My best friend but nothing more. We kind of vibed immediately and just became closer over time. Jin is somewhat part family to me. Like a brother even? Or maybe a weird uncle?” You laughed lightly and shook your head quickly. “He’s there whenever I need him, which is great.”
“And the other man? The one you called Namjoon?” Jungkook was curious as to how you were connected with that man. He observed you squirm on the couch, a soft smile playing over your features.
You weren’t able to answer though when both your and Jungkook’s head snapped to the crash coming from your bedroom.
Without hesitation you stood up and walked to your room.
“Wait”, Jungkook whispered harshly, one hand stretched out for you, “you can’t just walk in there without any sort of protection.”
You were about to tell Jungkook it was okay when the door to your bedroom opened and Namjoon stumbled basically into you.
You quickly wrapped your arms around his middle, trying to steady him in your arms as he leaned against you, his head resting on top of your shoulder.
“Hey”, he breathed lowly, one of his hands squeezing your hip momentarily, “are you okay?”
You gently brushed his hair out of his eyes and kissed his cheek. “Shouldn’t I be the one asking you that question?”
Namjoon hummed, ignoring your question. “How’s the kid?”
You looked over your shoulder to Jungkook, who observed you two with wide eyes. “I think you should answer that since you know best.”
His eyes widened even more, but he was able to stutter his answer, thanking Namjoon as well for saving him.
“That’s good”, Namjoon hummed, his eyes closing and his body getting heavier.
You struggled holding him up and hurried with him over to the couch, nearly dropping his larger form onto the cushions.
“Should Jin check him as well?” Jungkook asked and looked at Namjoon, seeing a few cuts on his cheek and arms.
“He never allows it”, you sigh and move him into a more comfortable position, “but he also experienced worse. Some food and sleep should do the trick again.”
The front door opened again and Jin walked into the room with a bunch of bags full of groceries. “Hey Shorty, guess who I met at the store?”
You looked up and blinked a few times, praying he didn’t just invite whoever he met over to your place.
“Grumpy and Happy!”
You couldn’t help yourself but snort at their nicknames, remembering how Jin came up with them one day during a lunch break.
“I thought they were at Yoongi’s? Did you invite them?”
“I wanted to but they wanted to get back to the house, yeah. So I invited them for the next weekend. You should be free, right?” Jin walked further and vanished into your kitchen, rummaging through the bags before he was able to start cooking. “It’s nice to see the whole crew here again.”
“It would, but why my place? You guys always leave such a mess! Can’t we go to Yoongi’s house then?” You whined and trotted after Jin, pouting greatly when he turned to you and only shrugged.
“Stop pouting and take care of those two. I’ll take care of the food.” He gently pushed you out of the kitchen, snickering when you still pouted.
You thanked him unwillingly and walked back to the living room, seeing Jungkook staring at Namjoon with wide eyes. He sat stiffly on one side of the couch, not daring to move at all, while Namjoon had his eyes closed and seemed to be passed out.
Your gaze turned to Namjoon, noticing how his knuckles were split open and bruised. A soft sigh left your lips as you walked to your bathroom and got your own first aid kit, not wanting to use Jin’s stuff without him next to you.
You walked back to Namjoon and kneeled on the floor next to him, gently taking one of his hands to clean them.
Namjoon hissed and wanted to pull his hand away but your grip on him was strong enough to hold him there.
“Will you stay tonight?” Your voice was barely above a whisper but you knew Namjoon still heard you.
“Are you sure you want me to stay?” Namjoon mumbled and pried an eye open, observing your reaction. He had seen the fear in your eyes earlier today. The fear you had due to him. Not the situation, not the other man. No, fear of him.
“Please.”
He closed his eye again and relaxed slightly. “Then I’ll stay.”
The corners of your lips twitched shortly into a sad smile, glad he wouldn’t just leave again. You silently cleaned his hands. Once you finished you were about to stand up and bring your kit away again, when Namjoon grabbed you by the waist and pulled you down on the couch, trapping you between the backrest and his body. You squealed and giggled lightly while your legs dangled over his body.
“You’re not hurt, are you?” He nosed against your neck, taking in your scent. Namjoon wrapped his arms around your middle and held you securely in place, growling lightly when you tried to get up again.
“I wasn’t the one fighting.”
“Hmm. You got attacked though.”
You placed a hand on his cheek and kissed his forehead with a soft smile. “Jungkook saved me back there.”
Namjoon hummed again before he sat up and turned to the younger boy. “Thanks kiddo.”
Jungkook blushed slightly from the attention on him now, so he quickly nodded and looked away again.
At that moment Jin walked into the living room, carrying a tray with food and dishes. “Something easy on the stomach, for you guys.” He glanced towards Namjoon, hesitating for a moment before he spoke again. “That bruise on your jaw doesn’t look too good.”
“No need to tell me you’re more handsome. I know that already.”
“That’s not what I meant”, Jin sputtered, his ears turning red, “I wanted to suggest giving you an ointment for that.”
Namjoon lightly touched his jaw, still feeling the throbbing from the punch earlier. He winced shortly and pulled his fingers away again. “No need, but thanks.”
You narrowed your eyes, not happy with his answer, but he ignored your staring. Instead he grabbed you and pulled you between his legs, pressing your back against his chest while his arms snaked around your middle and gently rested on your lap. “You can kiss it better later tonight”, he whispered in your ear with a hint of a smirk on his lips.
“Not in front of the kid you two!” Jin scolded him and sat next to Jungkook, giving him a double serving.
“You guys know that I’m an adult, right?” He tentatively asked, looking between Namjoon and Jin.
“Compared to my age you’re a kid.” Jin said and Namjoon nodded along, while you rolled your eyes.
“It’s not that they don’t see you as an adult. But calling you kid gives them the chance to pamper you.”
Jungkook grinned brightly, while Jin and Namjoon tried to argue against your explanation.
“So, if I were you, I’d take it.” You smiled as well, loving the flustered looks on both of your friends.
During the meal you saw Jungkook getting more and more lively, especially with Jin. Both of them bickered whenever they had the chance to do so. It made you happy seeing that carefree side of him again.
Jin stayed until late into the night, helping you with cleaning the kitchen and living room after the meal. When he left, he reminded you of the meeting with your friends during the weekend again, telling you he’d revive the group chat to plan some stuff.
It didn’t even take him a minute after he left before you heard the ping of your phone, the melody you used for the group chat playing through the room. Knowing he was still standing in front of your closed door, you loudly called him an idiot, smiling brightly when you heard him laughing and finally leaving.
As you returned to the living room you saw Namjoon had already gone into your room, leaving Jungkook sitting on the couch like a lost puppy. You walked over to him and placed the blanket and pillow for him on the prepared part of the couch.
“It’s not much but I’ll find a solution for the future, I promise. The bathroom is down the hallway and you already know where my bedroom is. Should you need anything you can come to me any time, okay?”
Jungkook nodded and thanked you softly, waving you goodnight before you left the room. He looked around the room, checking where all his stuff stood. He still couldn’t fathom this was real. Somehow Jungkook still believed he was just dreaming and would wake up any minute - back in his own room and back with his father. He was scared to fall asleep, fearing it would trigger this dream to end. Still, he crawled onto the makeshift bed after turning off the lights, clutching his pink bunny close to his chest.
You tiptoed into your room, careful not to make any sound in case Namjoon already slept. You were about to change into your pyjamas when Namjoon grabbed you and pulled you onto the bed, caging you underneath him. “So you’re still awake”, you whispered with a small giggle.
“You know I only sleep well with you in my arms.” He leaned down and placed a kiss on your lips, the kiss turning more and more desperate with every passing second.
You could feel how he battled with himself, even though you didn’t know what was the cause for his inner turmoil.
“I’m sorry”, he breathed once he broke the kiss, leaning his forehead against yours, “I’m sorry I wasn’t able to protect you.”
“Don’t”, you whispered and pulled him down onto you, ignoring the fact you were only halfway dressed. You gently ran your fingers through his hair as Namjoon rested his head on your chest, listening to your steady heartbeat. “There is no need to apologise. I don’t expect you to protect me all the time. Just like I don’t expect you to walk for me. I have to walk on my own and sometimes I will fall. I can’t avoid that. You neither. But you can help me up again so I can continue to walk. So even if you don’t protect me, I’m happy when you’re by my side and help me afterwards.”
Namjoon’s grip on you tightened and you knew he wasn’t agreeing with you on that. Ever since you met him, he always wanted to keep you safe, to keep you protected.
Silence came over the both of you and even though you wanted nothing more than to rest and leave the events of the day behind you, your mind couldn’t calm down. You restlessly fidgeted with your fingers and squirmed underneath Namjoon every now and then.
“What is it?” He asked gruffly, not able to rest himself with your behaviour.
“I’m sorry”, you whispered and patted his head softly, “I just. I didn’t want to ask with Jungkook around. But his father..” You couldn’t finish your question, too scared of the answer.
“He’s alive if you want to know that.”
You breathed out in relief, not even realising you had held your breath to begin with. “Okay.”
“Not that he deserved that though.”
“That’s not our call to make.” You kissed Namjoon’s head and finally relaxed underneath him.
“What if it were though?” Namjoon pushed himself up and stared down at you, trying to suppress the smirk upon seeing you still only halfway dressed. “If it were our call, what would you choose?”
You sat up as well, starting to get rid of your clothes as you wouldn’t be able to sleep in them. “I don’t know. Probably the reason why I didn’t want to become a judge.”
Namjoon stopped you from reaching for your pyjamas, leaving you in your underwear. “You really don’t have the slightest wish to just end that scumbag’s life?”
“What if I had?” You looked Namjoon straight in the eyes, not wanting to miss a single reaction. “What if I wished for something even worse than death? What if I wished eternal suffering for him because he abused his own child? What if I wished I could be the one making him suffer for the rest of his life?”
A smirk appeared on Namjoon’s lips. “I corrupted you too much then.”
You scoffed and hit his chest playfully. “And here I was working on your redemption.”
Namjoon snickered and pulled you on top of his lap, his large hands gently gliding over your exposed skin on your waist. “And how would you do that?” He cocked an eyebrow, challenging you to an answer.
You gently grabbed his wrists and moved his hands further up your torso until they rested on your breasts. “With my heart”, you paused and moved your hands away from his, unclasping your bra, “my soul”, you slipped out of your bra and leaned forward over Namjoon, “my mind”, you kissed his lips before you whispered into his ear, “and my body.”
“Damn you, woman”, Namjoon breathed out, his eyes sparkling slightly upon squeezing your breasts and feeling your bare skin underneath his fingertips, “you really drive me crazy.”
“That’s a sign it’s working.” You grinned and kissed him again, wrapping your arms around his neck.
“Then it’s working damn well”, he grumbled against your lips, moving his hands now down to your ass as he pulled you closer against his body.
~~~
Later that night you woke up in Namjoon’s arms, his body still pressed flush against yours from behind. You sleepily rubbed your eyes, wondering why you even woke up to begin with, when you heard screaming.
Alarmed, you pried yourself out of Namjoon’s arms, threw his large shirt over your body as well as your panties, and hurried out of your room. You quickly followed the screaming to the couch. Without a thought you rushed over to him, running over to his side where he was thrashing around in his sleep.
“Jungkook”, you crawled onto the couch as well, avoiding his limbs as much as you could to shake his shoulders. “Jungkook, wake up! It’s a bad dream.”
The young man gasped loudly when he woke up. His eyes darted frantically through the dark room until he focused on your shadowy figure next to him.
“You had a nightmare, sweetheart”, you whispered and sat next to him, opening your arms if he wanted to have a hug. You knew from your own experience you always craved a warm hug after a nightmare, but you wouldn’t force one onto him.
Jungkook looked at you for a second longer before he started to cry and crawl into your arms, bawling his eyes out while you soothingly rocked him from side to side. He hid his face in your lap, the tears slowly but surely staining Namjoon’s shirt, while Jungkook had his arms wrapped around your middle, shaking with every sob that escaped his mouth.
You hummed some sweet melodies as you ran your fingers through Jungkook’s hair, calming him with every stroke.
“Can”, Jungkook hiccuped, “can you stay here?”
“Of course I can. If you think it will help you sleep again.” You smiled softly, looking down on his trembling body. “It’s going to be alright. I promise.”
Soon enough Jungkook drifted back to sleep but his grip on Namjoon’s shirt and his hold around your middle never loosened up.
After a while you passed out as well, sleeping in that uncomfortable position until Namjoon woke you up the next morning, sending you a questioning look, as to why the kid was half curled onto your lap.
He helped you get out of Jungkook’s strong grip until he suddenly whimpered.
You immediately turned back to Jungkook, humming lowly and running your fingers through his hair.
Namjoon made a sound of understanding in the back of his throat, kissing you on the cheek and leaving the room again.
It became a somewhat regular occasion at night that you woke up and walked over to Jungkook, calming him down again after a nightmare. On rare occasions Namjoon would wake up before you and do the same.
The first time you had woken up in your bed due to the missing heat. Confused, and still pretty sleepy, you had gotten up and searched for Namjoon. Even though he didn’t directly live with you, he would always tell you when he would leave again and since you didn’t get a note, you were slightly on edge.
Your nervosity died down when you found Namjoon, humming a melody in a sleepy tone, with Jungkook curled over his chest. It took everything within you to not squeal at them loudly for how cute they looked.
Instead you had crawled onto the couch as well, snuggling up on Jungkook’s other side and wrapping your arm around his and Namjoon’s body.
On the even rarer occasion where Jungkook would wake up from a nightmare before you and Namjoon, he would knock at your bedroom door, waiting until you or Namjoon let him in.
It reminded you slightly of a small child needing to feel the protection of its parents after a nightmare. And thinking about it, even though Jungkook was of legal age, he probably had to grow up early on, not having the opportunity to be just a child when he was young.
Normally Jungkook was too embarrassed when the morning arrived, pretending to be the strong adult again, but more often than not did you see that innocent child in his actions. Be it playing with a puppy when you all visited the park for a picnic, be it playing games on his phone while sticking his tongue out in concentration or even the excited sparkle whenever you had a small surprise for him.
Even Namjoon mentioned to you that Jungkook was more of a child than an adult, receiving a gentle slap from you on his arm as you told him to let Jungkook be. Namjoon immediately used that chance to tease you, telling you how much you resembled a mother with your behaviour around Jungkook.
“I’m no mother”, you squealed and tried pushing him away, laughing loudly when he caught you and held you hostage in his arms.
“Not yet”, he mumbled into your ear, gently nibbling at your earlobe.
“Not in front of the baby!” Jin shouted as he slammed the door to your apartment open, Hoseok and Yoongi following him.
“We’re not even doing anything!” You yelled back and rolled your eyes, getting up to greet them anyway.
“I didn’t know you had a baby”, Hoseok said excitedly and hugged you just as tight as always. “Congrats to the mother!” He looked over your shoulder to Namjoon. “And the father.”
“Why do I have the feeling whatever Jin said wasn’t referring to an actual infant?” Yoongi grumbled as he mustered your reaction.
“Because apparently Jin has decided to turn Jungkook younger than he actually is.”
“You have a child?!” Hoseok practically screamed and grabbed your upper arms, shaking you slightly. “When did that happen?! WHY DIDN’T YOU TELL US?! Who is the godfather?”
You wanted to cry or rip your hair out in despair, though your irritation settled with a simple twitch of your eyelid. “I don’t have a child either.”
“Then who is Jungkook?” Hoseok tilted his head to one side, resembling a confused dog with his large, questioning eyes.
You sighed and moved out of Hoseok’s grip. “Jungkook is my student. Remember the naturally talented dancer? That’s Jungkook.”
“So where is that student of yours?” Yoongi walked into the living room, greeting Namjoon on the way before he sat down on the couch and got comfortable. His eyes quickly moved towards the door upon noticing a movement.
You followed his gaze, seeing Jungkook nervously stepping from one foot to the other. When you two locked eyes, his basically screamed for help. Before you were able to bribe him though, Jin had found him standing in the doorway as well.
He immediately walked over to Jungkook and slung his arm around the younger one, pulling him into the living room. “This is Happy”, Jin introduced and pointed towards Hoseok, who was grinning from one ear to the other and waving excitedly towards Jungkook. “And this is Grumpy.” Jin now pointed at Yoongi, who glared at the older man, rolling his eyes once he deemed there wouldn’t be a correct introduction from him.
“Actually their names are Hoseok and Yoongi”, you said and briefly explained why Jin called you and those two by nicknames.
Jin ignored your statement and pulled Jungkook towards the couch, placing him right next to Yoongi.
“Maybe Jungkook should have invited some friends over as well to feel less uncomfortable”, Yoongi mentioned while grabbing a pamphlet for takeout.
“Oh, the more the merrier! It would have been so much fun!” Hoseok agreed and nodded excitedly.
Your gaze wandered from your friends to Jungkook, feeling your stomach drop when you saw how timid he sat on the couch. “I didn’t even think about that”, you admitted. “I’m sorry.”
Jungkook quickly shook his head. “Don’t worry about it.”
Despite that you continued to worry about it. You glanced at Jungkook every now and then, drifting deeper into your own thoughts. You’ve never seen him with one of his classmates. You wondered whether he had friends outside of school but somehow your intuition told you there were none.
“Hoseok, are you still working as a dance instructor? Once Jin gives the go, is it possible for Jungkook to join your dance classes?”
You piped up again when Namjoon suddenly asked Hoseok that question.
“Yeah, turned into a full-time job now”, Hoseok answered with a bright grin, “I even changed majors for it!”
“Then Jungkook and I could stop by again?” You asked quickly, leaning forward and imploring Hoseok’s eyes. You missed Namjoon’s knowing smirk, having guided you towards a direction that somewhat helped you out of your worrying.
“Of course!” Hoseok clapped into his hands and jumped up, showing some smooth movements to an inaudible beat. “You’re always welcome!”
You turned your attention to Jungkook. “Would you like to go again? It could be an escape from hanging around me all the time.” You laughed softly, remembering at one point in your life you needed your alone time from everything and everyone.
Jungkook nodded hesitantly, mumbling something about not minding being around you and immediately getting teased by Jin for that.
You smiled and leaned back, satisfied you found a way for him to get in contact with some peers. “Would you mind joining us?” You whispered towards Namjoon, who had wrapped his arms around your body again, pulling you close against his body.
“I’m no dancer”, he simply told you and kissed your temple, watching with you how Jungkook warmed up to your group of friends.
~~~
Ever since that afternoon Jin, Yoongi and Hoseok have dropped by your place more often. Especially Jin, who made up the most ridiculous excuses to visit. At one point Yoongi simply agreed with such an excuse and came over as well, ignoring your stares throughout the night since you couldn’t believe he would do such a thing.
It took you a while to understand why Yoongi did such things, until you watched him place some of his food on Jungkook’s plate once he noticed the younger one ate all his meat.
“How is your house coming along?” You asked Yoongi casually. “I’m sorry I haven’t been helping you out as much anymore.”
Yoongi shrugged with his shoulders, placing more meat on Jungkook’s plate. “It’s not done but I’m able to live in it now.”
“That’s awesome!”
“Eh.” Yoongi scrunched up his nose, not entirely agreeing with you. “It’s quite spacious.”
Jin immediately chimed in, grinning brightly as he laid his arm around the smaller man's shoulder. “So you want all our meetings now at your place. You could have told us so!”
You grinned awkwardly and turned your attention back to Yoongi. On one hand you’d be delighted to meet up somewhere that wouldn’t get as crowded as your living room but on the other hand you didn’t want to pass the problem to someone else.
“You guys would be staying for a day or something and then the house is empty again, not really helpful.” Yoongi scoffed and rolled his eyes, scooping some rice into his mouth. He looked at you for a long moment before he shortly glanced over to Jungkook and the makeshift bed, he had been sleeping on for a month now, and looked back at you again.
“I’ve been meaning to ask”, he mumbled and you were barely able to hear him over he chattering of the others, “the house offers lots of space and rooms.”
You tilted your head to the side, unsure what Yoongi was hinting at. Your gaze wandered around the group and your - in comparison - tiny living room before it landed back on Yoongi. You frowned and blinked several times, gently shaking your head.
“Your apartment is only meant to be for one person, yet three people are living in it.”
“Are you asking us to move in?” You turned to look at Namjoon, realising he followed the whole conversation already. You raised your eyebrows, silently asking him for his opinion and leaning further into his embrace.
“It would be nice for the kiddo”, he murmured into your ear, “and I don’t mind as long as we’re together.”
“You sound like a dad”, you teased him and kissed his cheek, giggling when Namjoong pulled you harder against himself while growling softly.
Yoongi cleared his throat, grabbing the attention of everyone inside the living room. “So? What do you say?”
You felt how all eyes moved to you, staring at you somewhat expectantly and curiously. “I don’t know what to say”, you answered him hesitantly, “it’s your home. I don’t want to intrude.”
“I’m offering you to make it our home. Jin and Hoseok already agreed to move in. It’s just you now.”
“But I can’t speak for Namjoon or Jungkook!”
Namjoon chuckled lowly and kissed your cheek. “I already told you I don’t mind where we live as long as we’re together.”
“And Jungkook here refuses to leave without you”, Jin added and jabbed the younger man’s side while laughing.
You looked at Jungkook with wide eyes, surprised to hear that. At the same time you noticed how he blushed and awkwardly scratched the back of his neck, avoiding eye contact.
“So?” Yoongi repeated his question. “What do you say?”
You shrugged with your shoulders, shaking your head in disbelief. “I, uh, I’m saying yes, sure, why not.”
~~~
It still took some time for you to pack and move out of your apartment. You were sure it would have been a lot more without Jungkook and Namjoon by your side, who both willingly carried all the boxes and bags, so you basically didn’t have to lift a finger at all.
At Yoongi’s house Jungkook got his own room on the same floor as yours and Namjoon’s room. He also spent more time on his own or tagged along with the others - especially Hoseok to join the dance classes, where he met Jimin and Taehyung.
Both of them regularly came over after classes, playing with Jungkook or even helping out with the continuous renovations.
Somehow they fit in perfectly with the group. None of you ever questioned them being around and it happened more often than not that one of you even invited Jimin and Taehyung over.
~~~
You sat on the steps of the porch, observing the younger ones and Hoseok playing foot-minton on the grass. You nursed a glass of lemonade in your hands, smiling at the peaceful atmosphere. From inside you heard Jin and Yoongi cooking in the kitchen, bickering and sounding like an elderly couple.
Namjoon sat down behind you, gently pulling you closer into his lap and wrapping his arms around your middle. “What’s on your mind?” He kissed your neck and rested his chin on your shoulder.
“That I might be pushing a few classes to a later point.”
He chuckled softly and tightened his hold on you. “What made you consider that?” He knew you must have been thinking about it for quite some time now as you actually said it out loud.
“I want to spend more time with you. With all of you. But with all the classes I barely have any freetime. I also decided to quit tutoring since all these brats don’t want to show up in the first place.” You laughed softly and leaned into Namjoon, resting your head against his chest.
“I like the sound of that.”
“Not in front of the kids!” Jin yelled out as he carried two dishes out to the large table on the porch. “How many times do I have to tell you that?”
“At least the same amount of times as I have to tell you that we’re not doing anything”, you argued back, unable to keep the grin from your lips. “Also the guys aren’t our kids, Hoseok’s even the same age as Namjoon.”
“The way you’re mothering them they are your kids”, Yoongi chimed in, carrying more dishes out of the house.
You leaned around Namjoon to playfully glare at Yoongi. “Sure you’re the right one to say that? I could list you a whole lot of incidents where you’re basically worse than me. Do you want it alphabetically or in order based on the time?”
The bickering between you caught the attention of the players on the grass. “Honestly? All of you act like our parents at times”, Taehyung said with a snicker, laughing even more when Jimin nodded enthusiastically.
“Or better”, Jungkook added shyly, glancing towards you and Namjoon.
You smiled at him, stretching one hand out towards him. Your smile widened even more when he grabbed your hand. You pulled him towards you, giggling upon hearing his surprised yelp. Still, he wrapped his arms around you for a hug, basically melting into your embrace.
Taehyung and Jimin leaped forward, joining the hug with giggles. You weren’t able to see them but you felt Jin and Hoseok joining the hug as well, followed by some muffled groaning and another quick impact, indicating Yoongi joined the hug too.
“I gladly accept you as my family”, Jungkook whispered into your neck, tightening his hold on you.
“You are part of the family. All of you.”
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