HOBI POV:

The moment my eyes meet hers, it's with hope that makes my heart thud as well as anticipation, and when they do meet- I lose myself slightly in the soft wide orbs- so expressive. And I watch as realisation dawns on her features, and then there's almost something shuttering behind her eyes; something being pushed to the back. 

And it makes me worry.

I hurry forward, soul screaming that something's wrong, and I place my mitten-clad hands on her shoulders, looking down at her.

"Are you okay?" I ask gently, in my rush to soothe- I forget the consensus we'd come to that we wouldn't initiate touch unless she wanted it, and to absolutely avoid skin contact unless she was willing to activate the soul bonding process. We didn't want to push her into it.

And I can feel the slightly heated stare of Jin hyung but there'd been this niggling feeling that something was bothering her.

"I'm fine...are you Joon or Hoseok?" she asks, and her soft lilting voice calling my name, my name that rolls off her tongue so easily, so perfectly. Her head tilting in confusion, the gesture is so cute that I have to hold back my squeals and my urge to smoosh those adorably full cheeks but manage to control myself...barely.

"I'm Hoseok." I reply, eyes sparkling as I look at her. She shoots me a sweet soft smile, shy but not hesitant.

And then that moment is disturbed by Namjoon-ah, who shatters the connection of our eyes as he chirps from where he's sitting.

"I'm Joon, well...Namjoon. You're choice though." He says, waving and dimples poking out in his excitement.

I see the moment she turns, when recognition floods her eyes and she lets out a small gasp, which I swear is the most adorable sound I've heard. 

"You're the boy from my Anthropology class. And the one who told me not to touch the artwork." She says.

And the rest of our eyes flash to him, glaring slightly- Taehyung's eyes in particular flash red for longer and he shrivels slightly under the combined stares.

"Well she wasn't meant to be." He splutters.

But then something wonderous happens.

(Y/N) lets out an airy laugh, tinkling and melodic and brief- quickly vanishing into the air. And then she flushes when our eyes flash to her next, squirming under the combined stares of the five of us.

"Well, lunch." Jin hyung announces, gently ushering (Y/N) forward to a chair at the head of the table and the rest of us scramble for chairs closest to her- being beat by Jungkook who snags one on her right side and Jin hyung smoothly slides into the other. The table is for eight. And now that we've found her, there'll be no more sad lingering glances to the lone empty chair at the table. Now it'll be full, occupied. Whole.

If all things go well and (Y/N) allows us to court her.

She dips her head in thanks, a small murmuring voice when Jin hyung fills her plate first. He beams at her bent head and when he hands us our plates- we're also quick to voice our thanks for two reasons; to escape hyung's wrath which will explode on us if we don't and because I know there's a part of all of us that wants to impress our youngest mate with manners and etiquette.

Rather than the food on my plate, I find my focus on her; taking in the way her hands delicately handle the utensils, the way she lets out a hum after the first mouthful- approval of the taste and digs in with gusto. Jin hyung's eyes are shining with pride and happiness seeing her enjoy his cooking; after all feeding is such an intimate part of courtship and coven behaviour. It's giving him great pleasure to see her animated face as she eats and I know it's not only my eyes that dart to her. I can see Kookie's cheeks bulge with food but his eyes are trained on her every now and then, relishing in seeing someone have a natural healthy appetite. 

Namjoon becomes engrossed in observing her that he doesn't note that his elbow is dangerously close to his full glass and I see the moment it's about to tip over; but it's too quick and sudden for any of us to intercept it, even though stopping it would've taken less than a glance of hyung's eyes. Everyone is so focused on (Y/N) after all. And the small chatter that has been floating lively across the table is shattered when Kookie screeches when icy cold-water soaks into the lap of his trousers. 

It shatters the softness of the moment and Tae bursts out into laughter, the force of his laugh making him throw his head back- clutching onto me for support as his laughs peter down into breathless giggles.

Jin hyung looks exasperated and amused and he dries the puddle quickly. But Kookie's trousers are still wet.

"Umm Jungkook..." (Y/N) calls and he turns to find her holding out one of the napkins to him, expression it's usual soft countenance, not a trace of laughter or mocking tease on her lips.

He takes the napkin gratefully and I wince when I see how close their fingers came to brushing. And as his head bends to focus on dabbing up the water- I see pink growing steadily across his cheeks.

But not only does it show his blush, it also reminds me that he's fed recently; a good thing to because once (Y/N) stepped into the nest; the home had swum with her tempting scent, one of the most intoxicating and headiest I'd ever encountered and mingled easily with our own. And if the five of us hadn't fed before she came, the control we held over our instincts would've been considerably weaker.

I don't even realise hyung has cleared up our empty plates and brought out dessert in the time I was silently musing.

And it's as she's eating I come to a realisation. (Y/N) has a sweet-tooth; there's a noticeably lit up expression on her face as she eats, a constant smile at her face and there's much more pleased hums she lets out- music to our ears.

But what happens next is something no-one was expecting. That no-one could've foreseen. Not even Jin hyung.

(Y/N) POV:

I try to hold back the sounds of pure and utter bliss that threaten to escape my mouth at the explosion of flavours across my tongue. I'm seriously contemplating whether they have some magical touch in their hands- that transmits into the food and just makes stopping, that much harder.

But the questions that have silently been niggling away at my mind, badgering at me finally slip out.

"So where are Yoongi and Jimin?" I ask, the question meant to be gently said but from the way Namjoon splutters and Taehyung stares- I wonder if it came across as something else.

"How do you know about Yoongi hyung and Jiminie hyung?" Jungkook asks as he swallows a mouthful of cake, curiosity shining in his soft brown eyes.

I glance at Hoseok.

"Well I knew Hoseok was Yoongi's mate, and I know Yoongi was Jimin's mate. And then Hoseok is my mate so...put two and two together I guess." I say, tailing off at the way they stare at me intently.

"Well uh, you see the thing is..." Taehyung starts and stops- his usually energetic chatty demeanour fading and giving way to stilted silence.

I refocus back onto the plate in front of me, maybe it's best if some things aren't asked. They don't want to say that the two of them want nothing to do with me. That despite the two being fated to be my mates, can't stand the sight of my face.

Hurt wells up as well as resignation- I can't force them to accept me.

I should've known that everything isn't smooth-sailing and easy.

Who said the mates business would be?

"Never mind, I know they don't want me anyways." I say softly, not knowing that over my bent head the five of them are exchanging looks and looking at me with hurt.

The conversation is soon steered onto safe ground and I clamber to my feet to help with the dishes; the very least I can do after everything they're doing for me. My feet itch to take up Jungkook and Taehyung on their offer for a tour but knowing that perhaps somewhere in the large house; Yoongi and Jimin are there, makes me nervous and slightly apprehensive, not wanting to broach the safe space they have.

But to my surprise Namjoon offers to show me their garden space and when I nod happily, he doesn't steer me outside but rather leads me upstairs, up levels of the house until we're stepping out onto a flat terrace and all I can see is greenery blossoming beautifully- a slice of paradise set apart from the rest of the world for them to indulge in.

He's bashful as he leads me around the garden, to where flowers are in full bloom despite the cold season, where the greenhouse gives peeks to fruits and vegetables thriving, to the way the shrubbery and vines intertwine and trail over wooden benches- small flowers dotted across, as if the garden is alive. As if it exists with a power that is beyond comprehension.

"It's beautiful." I breathe, marvelling at the sight, spinning around slowly to take it all in- to take in as much detail as I can, the vibrant hues of so many colours, the soft sweet floral tones in the air and the greenery; so lush and bright.

Namjoon's eyes sparkle as he looks at me, our eyes meeting.

"It's a part of my ability. A connection with nature." He confides quietly.

And my mouth drops. This all is because of Namjoon?

Such beauty is a craft of his hands. I wonder how many hours, how many nights passed for him to build the garden to this extent.

I can imagine a mud stained Namjoon fumbling with a watering can, whispering sweetly for the plants to grow. It seems like something he'd do.

It fits with the sweet shy nature he emanates. 

It's something that warms me despite the chilly air.

But when Namjoon notes a particularly violent shiver, he ushers me down apologising constantly. 

"Wait here." He says before vanishing into one of the rooms, I take in the few paintings that lie across the walls- tasteful art from different eras and in the centre there's an old photo of them; smiling brightly at each other, the camera forgotten as they bask in each other's presence.

I smile wistfully when my eyes snag onto Jimin and Yoongi; their faces so transformed and lit up. Such a stark contrast from the ones I met, that I wonder if they were the same people as the one in the photograph.

There's the sound of a door opening and I call without turning back.

"When's this photo from Namjoon?" I ask.

But there's no reply.

And when I turn, I freeze.

It's not Namjoon in front of me.

It's Yoongi.

YOONGI POV:

I smile down at Jiminie's sleeping figure, at the way his cheek bunches up where it rests against the pillow and his body curls towards where I'm lying. But I frown at the tearstains that lie on his skin, the slight puffiness to his eyes and the dark circles under them.

He's hurting, it's obvious to anyone who sees. And we all know he's been silently tormenting himself for his actions, blaming himself and internally directing all the blame towards his tender soft heart.

And I feel his ache amplified to the extent it feels like razor blades tearing into my flesh over and over again, acid bubbling in open wounds, soul being shredded apart as if captured between razor sharp fangs. 

His emotions transmit loudly across the bond but as an empath- it feels worse.

And to know what he's feeling, suffering alone with doesn't help. At all.

So when Jin hyung announces at dinner a week earlier that he invited (Y/N) to the nest, to our nest- it hurts, the feeling gets worse and Jiminie's face becomes dim. As if the light is sucked out promptly from his soul.

Jiminie has always felt things intensely and I know it'll only take his will for someone to be compelled to feel what he wants them to, but he hurts alone. His heart has always been soft, it's what led him down dark dangerous paths before- paths stepped with sin where he was easily manipulated, the soft personality we all adore was considered malleable, to be shaped and distorted at will. 

That's why even though my soul screams to let go of my own thoughts, I can't. Not when I see Jiminie and see how easily he could be hurt by all this; how again it's a human that could be the potential bringer of doom and pain onto our soul bond.

I don't want that.

So even if it makes me look cold to her, even if it makes my mates question how long it'll take for me to heal.

I have to keep that distance between us.

Even if I find myself standing behind her minutes later. And when she turns- I can't look away.

(AHHH! THERE YOU GO! HOW WAS IT? LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS! I HAVE MADE IT OUT ALIVE FROM IKEA- ALL'S GOOD IN LIFE PEOPLE. 29K READS AND NUMBER ONE STILL! THANK YOU LOVELIES! WHAT DO YOU THINK WILL HAPPEN NEXT? THEORIES? I HOPE EVERYONE'S HARD STANCE AGAINST YOONGI WILL OVER TIME BEGIN TO SOFTEN BECAUSE NO MATTER HOW DESTRUCTIVE HE APPEARS- THERE'LL BE A REASON FOR IT. STAY SAFE!)

What you see on the surface isn't the full image, there are many layers to a person, what we see is the mere tip of the iceberg. What lies at the centre, that core- is who they truly are, that part that we shield and hide to keep ourselves safe. The more layers you uncover with people you know, the more you'll learn.

Borahae! 💜💜💜

PurpleQueenie <3