Korea in the Joseon Dynasty c. Year 1500

"No you can't make me marry him. You cannot! He's like a hundred years old. And Chinese! How can you marry me to a Chinese man?" Mi-Cha spoke with obvious restraint. To the others, her voice probably seemed not far from calm, but Taehyung knew how much she was holding back out of respect for her elders. He knew how much it had taken for Mi-Cha to challenge their parents in the first place.

"Filthy, disgusting old man..." she muttered under her breath, quiet enough for their parents not to hear her. In her efforts to control her raging emotions, she smoothed the beautiful shimmering fabric down her front and ran her fingers over the sophisticated hair piece weaved into her hair, checking its placement.

She was pacing around the room in urgent steps, as if the speed at which she was moving would somehow hasten the resolution of this unpleasant matter. Even though she could see her mother's annoyed look clearly telling her to sit down, she could not bring herself to stop her fevered pacing for fear of losing her argument.

How could she stop panicking when all her parents were doing was sitting down, calmly drinking tea while discussing the rest of her apparently insignificant life as if it were a business deal? Well, of course that's exactly what the marital arrangement was, nothing more, nothing less.

Mi-Cha was to be married to the Chinese Lord Zhu Zanjin, who held the most land and prestige in the region and this union would stabilise and ensure the Kim family's status in the county. But this well-thought out yet little-loved arrangement meant that in a month's time she would no longer be here, and Taehyung would be all alone.

"How could you even consider marrying your only daughter to someone so old and so sick? Do you not love me at all?" Tears were welling in her eyes, her arms dramatically waving beside her, making all the silky fabric wrapped around her fly like butterfly wings.

She even added a little soundless stomp of her slipper-covered foot for added emphasis which caught her father's eye. He had always had a soft spot for Mi-Cha and Taehyung could see the pained expression in his eyes, even though he tried hard to hide it.

Quickly, Taehyung went to calm her down by gently rubbing her arms up and down, worried that Mother would have one of her attacks due to all the upset.

"You know they are only doing the best they possibly can, Mi-Cha, for the family. They love you dearly, you must know that." Taehyung spoke softly, pleading with desperation in his gentle eyes.

Although they looked almost identical to the point of sometimes being confused for each other, Mi-Cha and Taehyung had very different personalities.

Despite being born on the same day, they were like night and day. Their mother always enjoyed reminding them of this, describing their characteristics fondly as if she had hand-picked them herself and she always made sure everyone she ever met knew this as well -that's how much she loved her children.

In her words Mi-Cha was the day and Taehyung the night.

She said this because Mi-Cha was always sunny, bright and loud whereas Taehyung was more prone to melancholy silence and bouts of shyness -he spent more time within himself when Mi-Cha always wanted to spend time with others. Together, they made the perfect whole.

Even though Mother, too, had been resistant to the marriage arrangement for Mi-Cha, she had long since realised that it was the only way the family would survive and had therefore accepted it, begrudgingly.

She knew Mi-Cha would survive, for she was a survivor. Mother had always been more worried about the gentle Taehyung and how he would deal with the harsh realities of the world when the time came for him to fly the nest.

Taehyung and Mi-Cha had spent what felt like every moment of their lives together since the day they were born, even before then, because they spent so many months in their mother's belly holding each other close. They were best friends, confidantes, soulmates. That was Mi-Cha and Taehyung.

No one could ever come between them. Until now.

"We are lucky to have the opportunity, Mi-Cha, you are so lucky to have the opportunity. You are nearly twenty years already and not yet married! We are practically the laughing stock of the whole town!

...This is your chance to bring honour to us all, have a prosperous life for yourself and your children-to-be and provide us with some security for older age." Mother spoke with the quiet dignity that so seemed to define her.

Taehyung was so upset, he couldn't even speak. The thought of living apart from his other half was soul-destroying and he would do anything if only she could stay. But being the dutiful son, he did not have it in him to resist his parents.

The days between the announcement and the wedding day dragged on and many, countless, tears were shed both by Mi-Cha and Taehyung.

"You will come and visit me, won't you brother? You'll come and stay for a while? You could come and live with me?" she would ask with eyes welling in desperation, her feelings exactly mirroring Taehyung's.

The tears would turn to sobs when Taehyung would say that he would have to stay and look after their parents, especially Mother, since there was no one else to do that... so she would have to be all alone.

The more Taehyung thought of that, the tighter his stomach wound and the deeper the pain became within him.

*

On one of his quiet walks, Taehyung strolled to his favourite place in the meadow.

In the height of summer, it was a sea of dancing colour when the wild flowers rocked in the breeze. Taehyung liked to find a quiet spot right in the middle of the field and lie down in the sun and just listen to the crickets and the swishing flowers, soaking in the warmth, smelling the sweet scent of the blossoms.

He tried not to think about the fact that it was only a few days until Mi-Cha would be taken away from him forever. He tried not to feel the broken shards of his shattered heart in his chest. He tried not to cry because surely he couldn't have any more tears left in him. Yet they flowed, freely, while he hid in his colourful sanctuary and allowed himself to really feel the pain.

He heard the whispered giggles and took a moment to recognise who they were coming from.

Mi-Cha's voice held surprisingly warm tones and had oodles of happiness lacing through it. Taehyung realised with sadness that he had not heard the beautiful sound of his sister's laughter since the marriage arrangement had been announced weeks ago.

Somehow sensing the privacy of the moment, Taehyung lifted his head only enough to see through the greenery and saw Mi-Cha's face lit with happiness and.... Love. He thought that was what love looked like, he hadn't seen it before -but neither had he seen Mi-Cha's face glowing so.

"Run away with me, Mi-Cha! Run away with me and forget that ogre. Marry me instead. We will be so happy. Have children... Please. I love you." He stroked Mi-Cha's cheek gently and she closed her eyes, leaning into the touch, returning the love wordlessly.

The man's voice was warm and soft, his pleads genuine. Taehyung choked when he suddenly realised that Mi-Cha would probably never have children with the old man. She could never be truly happy with the "ogre", she would be alone and miserable. Not loved and cherished like she was right at this very moment.

This broke Taehyung's heart all over again.

*

On the morning of the wedding, Taehyung watched Mi-Cha wake up with tears in her eyes, staring out of the window as if her life was about to end.

Nowhere could he see those happy, glowing eyes, the joy, the life bursting out of her that he had seen on the day she had been with the man amongst the wild flowers. When Taehyung saw the grief in her eyes, he could only think with his heart and not with his head.

"If you could go with him right now, would you?" Taehyung asked, his voice quiet.

Mi-Cha jumped and prepared to make up some story or lie or to feign ignorance, that is, until she looked into Taehyung's eyes and knew that he knew why she cried.

"I will be able to live on just by having had this. Just by having been loved, I can spend the rest of my life without it, it's alright Taehyung. Don't be sad, please." She said, with her eyes brimming with tears.

There was no way Taehyung could take another moment of this.

"I can't watch you sacrifice yourself Mi-Cha. I simply cannot. I refuse. You must leave and go with your love while I take your place for long enough for you to get away. Then no one will ever find you and you can go and live happily with the man you love." Taehyung spoke with such urgency, Mi-Cha thought he might have lost his sense of reality.

"What are you saying? Have you lost your senses...?" Taehyung saw she really, really wanted to go so, wordlessly, he encouraged her with his eyes. She shook her head but Taehyung could clearly see the battle raging inside her.

"But what about you? I can't leave you here to deal with everything and take the blame, what will happen to you?! And when would I see you? At least by going with Lord Zhu Zanjin I'd know I'd always be able to see you when I wanted to!" Mi-Cha tugged Taehyung's arm desperately as if Taehyung were the one making the decision, not her.

"Listen, my dear sister. Mi-Cha. I love you more than I love anything else in this whole world. You have to be happy. You have to. I won't be able to live with myself if I let this happen. All that matters is your happiness and everything else can be dealt with. I need you to leave so that I can be happy, alright?!" Taehyung smiled, trying to hide the tears of desperation in his eyes.

That seemed to be enough for Mi-Cha who was thinking of her love with one foot already out of the door.

"Alright, I'll never forget what you have done for me, brother. I love you..." Her arms were so tight around Taehyung that he nearly saw stars.

"...but if you are going to go through with this then we need to make you seem a bit more believable... You are lucky that it's a Chinese wedding -otherwise everyone would see your face straight away. At least this way you will have until the end of the wedding, until all the guests have left, before they'll find out you're not me..." Her face fell. "But are you sure this'll be alright? I can't help but to think you'll be in a heap of trouble because of this?" Taehyung could see the hesitation in her eyes and immediately reassured her:

"Oh don't worry Mi-Cha, they will just think it's all a big joke, it'll be fine!" Taehyung said, patting her shoulder gently, despite knowing it would not be quite so easy. He wondered if he would even survive the consequences of his actions but he didn't really care because if Mi-Cha married that sick, old creep, he would already be dead.

This way, at least she would have a chance at happiness and for that, Taehyung was glad to risk everything.

Mi-Cha dragged Taehyung to the washroom and made him have a rose petal bath. She took a long time detangling his long, black hair afterwards, scenting it with vanilla oil to make it shine beautifully.

The underlayer of the dress was an almost see-through golden robe, the edges of which showed beautifully in the neckline of the wedding dress that slid on top.

The dress itself was a rich red, as was the custom of the Chinese, and beautifully embroidered with gold thread. It was loose on the shoulder, which allowed for Taehyung's much wider frame, with wide, long sleeves that nearly reached the floor. A wide golden silk belt created a beautifully feminine shape, one that Taehyung was able to pull off easily with his slim waist. Only the shoes were too small but those Taehyung could hide under the dress.

It was a challenge and incredibly uncomfortable for Taehyung who was not used to it, but Mi-Cha did up his hair in the traditional Chinese wedding style, up in large globes of black, decorated with a sophisticated golden headpiece which would be hidden under the wedding veil. The red, silken fabric would cover his face down to his chest, until it was time to reveal the bride to her new husband in the privacy of their shared bedchamber after the wedding ceremony and gathering.

Despite many protestations from Taehyung, Mi-Cha insisted on putting some make-up on Taehyung, using some lightening powder, blush and lip tint and a hint of coal like black that emphasised his almond eyes beautifully.

With the whole ensemble together, there would not be many that would mistake him for a man. He was incredibly beautiful and even Mi-Cha said so.

"I think you are more beautiful a bride than I would have been, brother." Her eyes were glistening from all the words she wanted to say but was not able to.

All of Mi-Cha's things were packed and she was dressed in her travelling clothes. She would leave at the same time as Taehyung departed on the journey to his supposed new home in his wedding carriage.

*

The dress was uncomfortable, the hair was uncomfortable. The bloody veil was a pain in the ass. Taehyung's toes were cramping inside the tiny wedding slippers, his heels poking out from the back. The make-up was itching his face and the scent was intolerable, he was sure he smelled like a flower garden. "I sincerely hope this will be worth it," he thought and then concluded: "Anything is worth it, if it is for Mi-Cha's happiness."

The carriage made him jostle over the cushions at the back. He dared a quick peek through the curtains of the carriage but wasn't able to see a lot through the red veil covering his face.

The journey was a few hours long. Mi-Cha had told Taehyung they should be there by sundown for the celebrations.

Right when Taehyung felt like he had been sitting in the carriage for an entire day, he heard voices, thinking they must have arrived. But it was nowhere near dark yet and listening to the voices closing in on them, they were not familiar, nor friendly -especially since they came with swords and arrows.

Hardly able to breathe, Taehyung kept still and quiet, hoping that whatever was outside making all that racket, would just magically disappear and ignore him altogether. Well, that was unlikely, considering they were there for Taehyung -well, for Mi-Cha.

It was a bridenapping.

Gripping onto his dress as if it were the life raft that was going to save him, Taehyung tried to come up with some sort of a plan. But there was no plan. The only thing he could do was to try and keep the veil on for as long as possible and feign ignorance, in the hopes that somewhere along the lines there would be a possibility of escape.

He tried not to think about the fact that there was nowhere to go after the escape because it only just dawned on him that his parents wouldn't be able to accept him back after the loss of face over Mi-Cha not following through with the wedding.

When the door of the carriage suddenly opened and Taehyung saw the man barging in, he did nearly pass out like a virginal bride. He tried to struggle but his silk-covered limbs were no match for the man dressed all in black with his face all covered with the exception of the largest, darkest eyes Taehyung had ever seen.

"Come on then, beautiful." The soft voice with the dark eyes said.

The man's long fingers wrapped around Taehyung's slim wrist in a vice-like grip, making it obvious without the use of words that there was no point in trying to escape, whatsoever.

He brought Taehyung's wrists together and wrapped a piece of coarse rope around them. He left a long piece at one end which he wrapped around Taehyung's neck, over the veil. Then he yanked him toward a horse. With some manhandling, he had Taehyung sitting on the horse in between his strong legs and arms.

"Can you see?" his voice was deep and right at Taehyung's ear and it made him shiver strangely.

He shook his head, without speaking, worried that his deep voice would give away his identity.

"Good. No need for a blindfold then." His voice smiled.

Wrapping his arm around Taehyung's midriff tightly, he set off on the horse at such speed, it made Taehyung jump and whimper a little. JungKook chuckled, holding him tighter.

The journey was short but intense. Taehyung felt surprisingly invigorated by the actuality of being bridenapped, it was probably the most exciting thing that had ever happened in his life.

Taehyung even felt slightly fortunate because the situation he would have met at Lord Zhu Zanjin's house would have probably been even more dangerous than the situation he was in right now.

At least, for the moment, his life was worth something. Then again, thinking a few thoughts further, Taehyung understood that as soon as they realised he was not who they thought he should be, he would most likely be dead in a ditch somewhere. But until then, he was willing to take things as they came...

The man in black helped Taehyung off the horse by letting him slide down his muscular front. Quite unexpectedly, Taehyung found himself feeling somewhat flustered in the man's presence, his heart beating a little faster, a little louder. It was strange to be so physically intimate without having even seen each other's faces.

Holding onto his wrists to guide him, the man walked inside, pulling Taehyung along. He reached down to remove Taehyung's shoes at the entrance, only to realise there were no more shoes left, just dirty feet. Wrinkling his nose at the state of them, he walked Taehyung into the house.

Suddenly the man let go and disappeared.

Taehyung was nervous, adrift in the room without any point of reference, his heart beating out of his chest.

The veil kept puffing against his mouth, sightly damp, every time he breathed in and out. The only thing he could make out through it was the faintest suggestion of brightness toward where they had just come in from.

The rough ropes chafed against his wrists, there was no give in them, no chance of escape. Taehyung wondered how far he would make it if he just pulled the veil down and ran as fast as he could without looking back. He figured not that far. The men seemed organised and well-trained, the man in black even more so.

Taehyung didn't think it was even worth trying, especially considering he had nowhere else to go. So he resigned to his destiny, realising he didn't have long to live. He thought of Mi-Cha and smiled, hoping she was now happily with her man.

When the fingers suddenly appeared out of nowhere and started undoing the tight knots at his wrists, Taehyung actually felt a little flutter of butterflies in the bottom of his stomach at the prospect of what was to come. Despite being so close to his demise, or perhaps exactly because of it, Taehyung felt more alive than he had ever felt before.

When the ropes fell off his wrists, he was surprised at the soft touch where the ropes had chafed his tender skin.

"I'm sorry. I hope it wasn't too uncomfortable for you?" The soft voice asked.

Trying not to use his voice, Taehyung just shook his head again, attempting to seem coy. Suddenly it wasn't at all difficult when soft fingers started to rub gentle circles over his bruised wrists.

A small gasp left his lips and he blushed at his own reaction, for once deeply grateful for the red veil hiding his face.

JungKook couldn't wait to see what was hidden under that red scarf. He had heard stories of the beautiful Mi-Cha, so when he had been given the opportunity to advance his political agenda as well as getting his hands on one of the most beautiful women in the county, he didn't hesitate.

It was not beneath him to resort to a bit of violence. He felt it made more of a stand than negotiating and deal making -if used within reason and not all the time.

It had been a challenge riding the horse with the delightfully scented soft body whimpering against him and if he were entirely honest with himself, he admitted to riding back at slight harder than his usual pace, just to keep hearing those little gasps and whines fall off the woman's lips and to be able to hold her tighter against him. The way she had leaned into him in terror had done things to his insides he hadn't felt for a long time.

Even at that speed on a horse, his focus had been drifting to the figure of the woman in his hold, to the gentle curves of the hip and the neck -even with all those clothes on and the veil covering her face, JungKook could tell she was beautiful. Her slim frame fitted perfectly within his embrace.

JungKook hadn't really thought much further ahead than removing Mi-Cha from the marriage with Lord Zhu Zanjin. Politically that marriage would have brought too much power to Zanjin and it would have created further unrest within the county. If JungKook married her instead, linking the Jeon family with the Kim family, his position of power would finally be irrefutable so that not even Zanjin could challenge him anymore.

Because he wasn't overly keen on marrying her, JungKook hadn't thought about doing anything to the woman but the longer he felt her squirming against him, the more he wanted to... explore his options.

Of course there was nothing other than his own morals to stop him. No laws, no officials. JungKook, being one of the most powerful people in the county, never had to worry about people telling him what to do. He was free to do as he pleased.

So when an occasional temptation appeared in his way, surely he could be forgiven for taking advantage of it?

JungKook admired the woman's beautiful hands while he rubbed the tender, red flesh of her wrists where the rope had scuffed them. The fingers were the only part of her body that JungKook could see and they were smooth, delicate, slender and so very long. He wanted to kiss them. So he did because there was no reason why he should refrain from doing so. He was here, she was here. No one else knew where she was -she was entirely at his mercy. This thought turned JungKook on even more.

He heard a gasp from underneath the veil when he lifted the soft fingers to his lips.

Taehyung didn't mean to aggravate the man, the lips on his fingers were just so much of a surprise that he didn't have time to think about his reactions. So he yanked his hands away and took a wobbly step back.

"So coy, I like it. There is thrill to be had in chasing but I wouldn't recommend you run, princess -because you have nowhere to go." JungKook's voice had dropped a few notches and suddenly sounded a bit scary.

Taehyung could hardly breathe. He hadn't considered this at all!? What kind of an idiot would not realise that a stolen bride would most likely end up in the bed of the person who had taken her?

But rather than feel sacred, Taehyung felt something else. Just the thought of being in bed with this man, whoever he was, made Taehyung blush uncontrollably.

He tried not to think about what was going to happen when his identity would be discovered because there didn't seem to be a positive outcome in any of the alternatives he could think of.

JungKook smiled to himself. The coyness and the resistance seem to rile something up in him and the more the woman resisted, the more he wanted her. So he pushed a little more.

"No one knows where you are... and even if they did, no one would challenge me. Do you know what that means?" JungKook smiled when she took a few more unsteady steps back, shaking her head silently.

JungKook followed, a step for a wobbly step until her back landed on a wooden pillar, which stopped her in her tracks. JungKook didn't stop until he was face to face with the red veil and then no longer able to resist the urge to touch, his fingers wrapped around the neck of the woman, pulling the veil tight across her face. Gently, he placed his lips over hers through the silky fabric.

Taehyung could hardly breathe and it had nothing to do with the hand gently wrapped around his throat. He had never kissed anyone before and to have his first kiss stolen by a man of all people was positively outrageous. Taehyung wondered if it actually counted as a first kiss when it was through a bit of fabric, then he considered how his body reacted to it and realised it would be most naïve to say it didn't.

A strange wave of heat flushed through his body, tightening everything, bringing everything to life. Suddenly, Taehyung's insides were burning and all it had taken was a single kiss from this stranger whose name he didn't even know. Shocked and confused, Taehyung reacted.

Even though he knew it wouldn't make any difference, he pushed the man's chest to resist, his fingers landing on the sliver of skin between the sides of his wraparound shirt. His body was all hard muscle but soft and smooth at the same time and hot, so hot Taehyung wondered if he was unwell.

Instead of being repelled by another man's body, his hands wanted to explore more, suddenly twitching against his chest rather than withdrawing in shock. Of course he noticed this.

"Ah, surprised? Hmm.... I think you've been hiding behind this veil for long enough. Girl!" JungKook shouted for the maid.

"Yes, sir." She curtsied.

"Take this woman into my chambers and remove her wedding garments and undo her hair. I want the veil back on for me. Leave her underlayer on. Oh and wash her feet." He said with a disgusted nose scrunch.

"Yes, Sir." She curtsied again and came to tug Taehyung's arm gently to direct him toward JungKook's chambers.

Under the veil, Taehyung was panicking because this was going to be it. This was when he was going to die.

The servant girl sat Taehyung down to a low seat and pulled the veil off his face. When the curious, young face saw the face hiding behind the veil, a surprised gasp fell off her lips. Prepared for the inevitable revelation, expecting the girl to shout for the guards, Taehyung closed his eyes in fear.

When no such thing was forthcoming, he dared to open his eyes to see why the maid was so deathly quiet.

"I have never seen anyone as beautiful as you are..." she said in a shy voice and in awe, while gently sliding her tiny hand along the side of Taehyung's face, before realising what she was doing when she abruptly withdrew it.

Taehyung was shocked. Could the girl not see that he was a man?

Quietly and with deft hands, she started undoing the elaborate hair arrangement on Taehyung's head and placed all the jewellery adorning his head and neck, fingers and wrists on the small table in front of them.

Taehyung felt so much lighter without all that on him and once his hair was down and brushed until it shone smooth, he felt more himself.

When the girl reached for the wedding dress with apologetic fingers, Taehyung immediately grabbed the dress with coy fingers and said:

"I want to do it myself." Taehyung was surprised at the almost regal sounds coming from his mouth and how feminine he managed to make them sound despite the richness of his voice.

The girl curtsied again and waved at the screen, indicating he should get undressed behind it and left the room.

Taehyung noticed the strange look the girl gave him on her way out. It was something akin to pity, as if she knew something Taehyung did not, and it made Taehyung feel uneasy.

Once he had all the heavy clothes and jewellery off and his long hair flowing around his shoulders and down his front, Taehyung felt naked... and suddenly very... male.

He was sure that the second JungKook would walk into the room, he would see the truth, even with the traces of make-up still on his face. There was no way he wouldn't know instantly. But why would it matter anyway, he would find out the second he was naked, so why delay the inevitable? He pulled the veil over his head.

Sitting on the edge of the high, very royal looking bed, Taehyung yanked the sides of the thin robe around his flat chest, trying to remember how to breathe. The red veil on his face was suffocating him to the point that he would rather have it off and be found out than have it on for another second longer.

Taehyung heard steps approaching and prepared.

"So here you are, patiently waiting for me." Taehyung wondered why his voice sounded even deeper and harsher than before.

"I can't say I haven't been looking forward to this..." he approached until he was directly in front of Taehyung, looking down at him.

"Are you ready to see your captor?" He said, teasing.

Taehyung shook his head, causing a ripple of laugher to escape the man's lips.

"Either way, it's happening... but I just realised I haven't even told you my name. It's JungKook."

Without further words, Taehyung could feel a tug at the corner of the veil and giving himself a few more kind words, he looked up toward where he thought the voice was coming from and took a deep breath.

When the veil fell, a long silence fell.

A long, long silence during which two pairs of eyes observed, travelled, appreciated in awe and surprise before finding each other again.

Taehyung expected the worst, preparing to die when JungKook's words reached him.

"Well, the rumours were true. Mi-Cha is, indeed, the most beautiful woman in the county."

Taehyung's eyes opened into saucers. How could all these people think like this, even in the face of such obviousness?

He would have wondered more but he was too busy appreciating the sight before him.

The man in black turned out to be an extremely handsome young man with big, bright, brown eyes. His very long black hair was tied into a ponytail at the top of his head but harshly trimmed off at the sides. His demeanour was fierce and dark yet Taehyung sensed hints of gentleness somewhere in the corners of him. Because of these contradictions, he was unsure how to be in his presence.

With less layers on, Taehyung confirmed that his initial assessment of the man's physique had been correct, he was obviously very strong and lithe. Taehyung couldn't resist admiring his narrow hips and strong legs -he seemed the most perfectly proportioned man he had ever met.

When he looked up again, JungKook just looked at him with his eyebrow raised and a cocky grin in the corner of his mouth. Taehyung blushed fiercely, realising that the man had seen him stare.

JungKook had been expecting beauty but the face that stared up at him from behind the veil astonished him, nonetheless.

The clear, warm skin, the large, soft and dark eyes, the delicate neck, the jaw... but the lips. The full, pink, luscious lips. One kiss from those and he'd be happy even if he died the very second after kissing them ... all of that framed by beautiful, shiny, long black hair falling over the delicate frame.

In that moment in time, JungKook considered himself the luckiest man ever to have lived.

There was worry and concern in those dark eyes and JungKook had the strangest need to remove the nasty feelings from those beautiful, beautiful eyes and see only happiness and joy in them.

She lifted her hand up defensively before JungKook had even done anything and pleaded with her eyes.

"JungKook, I'm sorry. I need to tell you something, there's been a mistake... I'm not who you think I am..." Before she could say another word, JungKook's mouth was on hers.

It had all been so incredibly sudden, one moment Taehyung had been speaking and the next, he found himself on his back on the bed, JungKook on top of him, kissing him.

But this kiss wasn't anything like the kiss before, through the veil, this one was... ruthless.

JungKook held Taehyung down. Sitting on top of him, he had one hand over Taehyung's throat and the other pressing at his shoulder while his strong, long tongue pushed deep into his mouth, licking inside it, sucking his tongue, nibbling at his lips.

Taehyung was completely overwhelmed, for a moment unable to do anything until his body woke up and started fighting. Pushing and shoving, kicking, Taehyung resisted.

Enraged, JungKook grabbed Taehyungs wrists and slammed them against the bed, fiercely staring into his eyes.

"Stop. Fighting." A dark threat.

"Let me go. There's been a mistake, please." Taehyung panted and hoped that maybe there was still time to salvage the situation. He should have said something before it got to this. Why hadn't he?

Not knowing what else to do, Taehyung resumed the struggling until JungKook painfully twisted him over onto his front.

"Can't fight like this, can you?" To make even more of a point, JungKook pulled a rope that had been hiding at the top of the bed and wound it around Taehyung's already sore wrists until he was immobile, facing down, breathing into the bed helplessly. He didn't even think to wonder why there was rope there in the first place.

With rough hands, JungKook ripped the thin, golden robe, revealing Taehyung's honeyed back and he ran his fingers over the expanse of it.

A repressed moan escaped Taehyung's mouth despite trying to resist the pleasure arising from JungKook's surprisingly gentle and smooth hands.

"See, I can make you feel so good, if you'll just let me. Just stop fighting." He whispered, voice suddenly gentle.

"It's not that... I'm not..." Taehyung tried one more time.

"Shhhh..." JungKook just shushed him and carried further down.

His fingers pulled the pants down, pooling them around Taehyung's buttocks like layers of curled up white icing, framing his lush lobes beautifully.

"Oh my... I am a lucky man, indeed..." JungKook whispered under his breath while his long fingers spread around the globes, kneading slowly.

"No. Wait. JungKook. Please. Please. Please." Taehyung pleaded, now with tears in his eyes.

When JungKook's lips landed on a buttock, Taehyung virtually screamed.

"I'm a man! I'm a man, I'm a man..." his voice diminishing by the word, head buried into the sheets in shame, sobs shaking his shoulders.

Absolute silence filled the room.

Taehyung kept his head buried, hoping that everything would just disappear if he just ignored it.

"What?" JungKook's voice was quiet. Dark. Scary.

"I'm a man." Taehyung's voice was so quiet you could hardly hear it.

"WHAT. DID. YOU. JUST. SAY?" He almost shouted, suddenly yanking Taehyung painfully around until he was lying on his back, his arms still tied up above him.

JungKook saw Taehyung's incredibly beautiful, red, tear-stained face on a bed of black hair and despite so not wanting to, his eyes slowly travelled over the front of him.

The shredded robe did not hide the flat chest nor the obvious tent in his pants, not one bit.

In shock, JungKook just stared until the ramifications sunk in.

He didn't care about the fact that Taehyung was a man, that was irrelevant to him in sexual terms, what JungKook was concerned about was the fact that if this wasn't Mi-Cha then where the hell was she and who the hell was this man in his bed!?

"How the hell...? Who the hell are you? And where the hell is Mi-Cha?" JungKook's rage was burning Taehyung's eye sockets off.

"Im-mm-mm Taehyung. Mi-mi-Mi-Cha is my sister." Taehyung stuttered, unable to stop the aftershocks of the violent sobs, still hiccupping.

Harshly, JungKook grabbed Taehyung's jaw to twist it side to side, assessing Taehyung's face.

"How can a man be this beautiful?" He had been speaking to himself, nonetheless, Taehyung blushed at the compliment.

JungKook sat over the side of the bed, his head hanging low.

"I'm-m sorry." Taehyung whispered and JungKook couldn't fathom why he would apologise in a situation like this, how could he possibly be the one to blame for what was going on?

"Where is she?" JungKook asked quietly.

Taehyung stayed silent, staring at the ceiling, eyes still glistening with tears.

"Where is she?" JungKook turned to face Taehyung who had flinched in response to his tone of voice. He wondered if Taehyung was scared of him.

He looked at Taehyung, really looked at him, and he could see the fear, hell, he could taste it but he could sense something else too. A gentle pink was still dusting Taehyung's cheeks and when JungKook scanned him over again, he couldn't help but to notice that the tent was still there -Taehyung was still aroused.

JungKook's fingers twitched with the need to touch him and going by the way Taehyung's body was squirming against the restraints, he really wanted to, needed to, be touched as well.

"Where is your sister?" he asked, gently, almost sweetly, this time.

Taehyung looked at him with a slightly sweaty brow, his chest heaving, fingers grabbing air in the restraints. He shook his head in denial, a stuttering sigh leaving his lips.

JungKook reached a single finger to trace a straight line up the whole of Taehyung's covered member and admired the way him eyes popped wide open, as did his mouth, before a round moan escaped his lips, his eyes rolling to the back of his head. In an attempt to stop any more from escaping, Taehyung bit his lower lip and that tiny action alone hit JungKook in the guts like a kick of a horse.

The desire this man evoked in JungKook was dangerous because it burnt so hot it was white.

Taehyung was in an internal crisis. He was in a crisis because he was feeling good, so good, even though he was supposed to be feeling bad. Anyone tied up with an enemy threatening their lives should be feeling bad or scared, yet all that Taehyung felt was heat and want.

The more JungKook threatened, the hotter Taehyung got.

The tightness of the restraints -that he was supposed to feel at his wrists- he actually felt in his insides. They were tight, winding, coiling and it was impossible to stay still. His hips started rolling, his back arching and everything just felt so good it was impossible to... by the time he thought he had it under control, Taehyung realised that JungKook was already aware of his predicament. What Taehyung hadn't anticipated was how JungKook reacted to his arousal.

The touch, the single stroke over his hard-as-rock member had a tsunami of feeling crashing through him and he felt powerless against it. Having never felt anything like it, the desire had Taehyung entirely on his knees and no matter how hard he tried, he could not contain it in his body. It overflowed out of him as a moan that sounded so loud in Taehyung's ears.

"Fuck, you are so... exquisite..." JungKook was annoyed that the words slipped out of his mouth without permission to do so but when Taehyung whined a little in response to his words, he was more than happy to forgive himself the transgression because he had never heard anything as delightful as the needy whimpers coming out of Taehyung.

Suddenly there was no Mi-Cha, there was no Lord Zhu Zanjin, there were no political agendas, there was only Taehyung.

JungKook slid his fingers under the shredded robe and felt Taehyung's waist, moving his hands over the soft, smooth skin. He increased the pressure of his fingers until he was firmly grabbing it and the harder he pressed, even when he pressed had enough to bruise the tender skin, the harder Taehyung moaned, his hips lifting off the bed.

"I need you to tell me where your sister is, Taehyung..." he said, having already forgotten why he needed to know that. His fingers drifted up from the curve of the hip, up and over Taehyung's curving ribcage until he reached a nipple. He tweaked it, hard. A loud noise shot out of Taehyung's mouth but it wasn't a bad noise, it was a desperately wanton noise. JungKook bit his lip at the sudden, incredible tightness in his pants.

Unable to even form a coherent word, let alone a sentence, Taehyung shook his head in sharp snaps, his eyes closed, his mouth open in a silent moan. His body was on fire. He wouldn't be surprised if he now opened his eyes and saw his body burning into ashes because surely no one could survive such heat without going up in flames.

Every muscle in his body was straining, pulsing hot and his heart was beating in his cock, not in his chest. There was not enough air in his lungs.

In his heat, Taehyung couldn't understand why every bit of discomfort JungKook inflicted on him... just seemed to make everything more intense, as if the pain he caused gave the heat inside him infinitely more fuel.

"I c-can't... I can't tell you..." Taehyung moaned in between desperate pants.

"Well... then I'm just going to have to torture it out of you, Taehyung." JungKook leaned over and whispered into Taehyung's ear. "It'll be a shame to mark such gorgeous skin..." he ran a single finger up the middle of Taehyung's chest, up his throat, and flicked his fingers away at the tip of his chin. Taehyung's back arched with need but he didn't know if it was because of the compliment, the lingering touch, or because of the obvious threat of pain.

JungKook had no idea how he managed to leave Taehyung in his own bed, mostly naked, and walk away without taking advantage of the entirely helpless -and by all accounts willing, victim writhing on his sheets.

He had to get some distance because Taehyung was clouding his judgement -heck, he was blinding JungKook to everything else that had ever existed. He forgot everything that he needed, no, wanted to do, all his plans and dreams. They all faded away when Taehyung's eyes were on him, pleading.

Those very same pleading eyes made his insides twist in an unfamiliar way to urge him to do unfamiliar things, things that he all but abhorred to even think about. He wanted to squish Taehyung, devour him... hurt him. He wanted to hurt him until he cried and begged for mercy. He wanted to mark that honey skin until he was covered in things that said his name on him.

Wanting to do those horrific things wasn't the worst of it. The scariest part was that JungKook knew with absolute certainty that Taehyung wanted him to do those very things to him and he would undoubtedly love every second of it. His pleading eyes and wanton body had told JungKook enough.

"Girl!" JungKook shouted again, expecting immediate response.

Running, the maid appeared.

"Get some clothes for our prisoner. His name is Taehyung and you are responsible for looking after him. Feed him, wash him, get him whatever he needs and then take him with you to work for now until I figure out what to do with him."

The girl hesitated.

"Well, what is it?!" JungKook was annoyed.

"Him?" The girl asked with a small voice.

JungKook couldn't help but to smile. At least he wasn't the only one who'd been fooled.

"Yes. The bride was a man. Now, get on with it." He waved the confused girl away.

When the blushing servant girl came to untie Taehyung, she could hardly look at him.

Pretty much all of Taehyung's chest and abdomen were visible and some of the bruises were already starting to show.

"Come." She said quietly, making her way out of JungKook's chambers toward the servants' quarters.

"I'll give you something to wear but I'm afraid it'll be women's clothes, I have nothing else... But it's not like you're not used to it." She said under her breath, giving Taehyung a little apologetic smile. Taehyung rolled his eyes. Anything was better than the shredded robe that showed most of his naked body.

"We'll go and have some food and then... I was about to wash the floors in the main building so you can come and help me there. It should be empty after dinner." Taehyung nodded his thanks, not understanding how he had been turned from a bride to a prisoner and then to a maid servant in the course of an afternoon. At least he was still alive.

The sun was already setting by the time the servant girl, whose name was Hae-Won, and Taehyung arrived at the main building to clean the floors. Hae-Won reminded Taehyung of his sister and he told her so and then nearly cried at the thought of Mi-Cha, wishing with all his might that her sister's fate was better than his.

"I wasn't sure why you were here but now I understand. What a disappointment it must have been to Lord Jeon, I believe he was much looking forward to having a wife..." she giggled with the candle light flickering on her face, creating shadows, before she realised. "Of gosh, I've said too much, I'm sorry about your situation, I think it's really brave what you did, you know..." her smile was wide and warm and Taehyung took comfort in it.

Taehyung groaned internally when he saw the size of the floors of the building they were to clean.

"You know how to clean floors, right?" Hae-Won asked, embarrassed, passing Taehyung a bucket of water.

"Yes, I always wash the floors with Mother." Taehyung smiled, suddenly sad and homesick when he realised he probably wouldn't be seeing Mother ever again.

"Ok, you can start from that end then and I'll start from this end and we'll meet in the middle. There are quite a few rooms to go through. The cleaning cloths are in the storage cupboard at the end of the corridor, you'll see it when you get there. Oh and you can use this to light some candles if you need to, it's quite dark already and it's always darker over at that end." She passed the candle to Taehyung and headed to her end of the building.

Taehyung wandered slowly, lifting up the candle to see, looking from room to room, impressed with everything he saw. Having never been in such a prestigious household and there was a lot to look at.

"Why are you here?" a voice boomed behind Taehyung, making him jump so hard he dropped the candle and the bucket of water and it went everywhere.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry." He bowed deeply and reached for the bucket to clean it up.

"You didn't answer my question, Taehyung."

Suddenly realising the man was JungKook, Taehyung blushed acutely, lowering his eyes.

"I'm here to wash the floors..." he looked at the mess and couldn't help but to giggle. "But this wasn't exactly how I was planning on doing it..."

"You think it's funny, do you?" The tone of JungKook's quiet voice travelled all the way up and down Taehyung's spine before it settled to coil around his midriff, making it hard to breathe. Taehyung's fingers gripped the folds of his dress. He felt rather embarrassed to be seen wearing a dress now that JungKook knew he was a man.

"N-n-no." He whispered, unsure what JungKook expected of him.

"Dry it." He ordered, quietly.

"B-B-but I haven't got anything to dry it with, the cleaning stuff's at the other end... I'll go get it and be right back." Taehyung started to turn but JungKook's words stopped him.

"No. Use your dress."

Quickly flicking his wide eyes up to JungKook's to see if he was being serious and seeing that he wasn't going to take a no for an answer, he removed the dress, leaving only a thin, almost transparent white underlayer to cover him.

Wordlessly, JungKook walked away and sat down behind a desk on the opposite side of the room, staring at him expectantly.

When Taehyung just stood there in his indecision, grasping the crumpled dress to his chest like a shield, JungKook lifted an annoyed eyebrow that made Taehyung quickly drop down to his knees and start mopping up the water. There was a lot of it.

Taehyung was soaking wet, kneeling in the puddle while he worked. The dress in his hands soaked up the water and Taehyung squeezed it dry into the bucket, starting to feel the cold creeping up his wet feet.

He repeated the action so many times he lost count. Every time he squeezed the water out of the dress, helpless to resist, his eyes found JungKook's. Every time his eyes were staring right back at him like two pieces of shiny coal, burning in their sockets.

Taehyung could hardly breathe for the feelings his intense gaze evoked in him.

He kept thinking about the way he was kneeling on the dirty floor in front of JungKook, cleaning the mess he had so carelessly made and before he even noticed, all the embarrassment had turned into excitement and heat in his loins and cheeks and he felt his cock harden under the thin fabric.

Shame tinting his cheeks kept his face down and he carried on cleaning, trying to keep his breathing level -without much success.

Unable to stop his wandering eyes, he stole another glimpse at JungKook. He felt the intense heat from JungKook's gaze boring a hole into the back of his eyes at the contact and it made his teeth clamp onto his lip and his eyes close over a moan desperately trying to escape his mouth.

When he flicked his eyes open, all he could see was JungKook storming in his direction like a pouncing Leopard about to attack its helpless prey. All breath left Taehyung's body when JungKook stopped directly in front of him, towering over his kneeling form.

A ruthless grip on his wrist yanked him up and without saying a word, JungKook dragged him to the desk and threw him at it so hard that Taehyung landed face down, knocking over inks, brushes and papers, his legs painfully banging against the edge of the desk.

Looking back toward JungKook may have been a risky move but seeing his face so full of darkness thrilled Taehyung more than he'd care to admit and his excitement exploded into pure lust when JungKook's harsh fingers gripped the back of his neck and slammed him down onto to desk so his face was flat against it.

JungKook held him down firmly, his groin pressed against Taehyung's ass and feeling the hardness against him, Taehyung gasped, unconsciously arching his back to rub himself against the hard mound.

"Shit!" JungKook's fingers weaved into Taehyung's long, black hair, gripping tightly, still pushing down.

"You drive me fucking crazy with those goddam hungry eyes, Taehyung." His voice strained over the words.

Suddenly with a real sense of urgency, JungKook started yanking the fabric of Taehyung's dress over his ass until he had gathered it all up, revealing the naked curve of the flesh.

When he ran his fingers over the delicious, soft roundness of Taehyung's ass, a particularly possessive growl rose from his chest before he lifted his hand and smacked down, hard.

Taehyung had never felt pain like it. To him it didn't even feel exactly like pain, it felt more like searing heat that spread all over his body, making his legs go weak.

"Ohgod...." Was all that came out of him at the first sharp stab of pain. It was delicious, Taehyung thought it was beautiful. "Yes..." was the second slap and when, on the third, Taehyung just moaned "more", JungKook lost it and the slapping noises interspersed with the wanton moans of Taehyung, filling the air.

JungKook's palm kept landing on Taehyung's buttocks at such force that his body jolted forward, legs hitting the front edge of the desk at every smack. Taehyung was so turned on that he could feel his cock leaking down his legs, throbbing, so close to release. He moaned and whined, writhing in JungKook's hands until suddenly JungKook let go of his neck and kneeled on the floor behind Taehyung.

He gripped Taehyung's cock from between his legs and shoved his face between his buttocks, shoving his tongue harshly right into his little hole.

Taehyung screamed, gripping on to the table under him, unable to stop his legs spreading more, his hips rolling to push against JungKook's tongue. His whole body was shaking from the unfamiliar sensations...

With his face still deep in Taehyung's ass, when JungKook's fingers grabbed a tender, swollen ass cheek and squeezed firmly, sending a sharp jolt of pain through Taehyung, it was right at that moment that everything just became too much -the pain, the pleasure... Taehyung came with a loud cry and released into the folds of the fabric hanging in front of him.

Unable to even see straight, Taehyung just lay on the table, his ass hanging out, glowing red, trying to find his breath which had gone missing the second JungKook had smacked his face onto the table.

"Fuck!" JungKook slammed his fist onto the desk so hard that Taehyung flinched.

When JungKook's harsh grip found Taehyung's hips and his clothed hardness snuck into his wet ass crack, he gasped, regaining some of his consciousness.

"I want to shove my fucking cock in you so fucking bad, Taehyung, you have no fucking idea!" his voice was raw but something in the tone of it stopped Taehyung from asking why didn't he.

Breathing heavily through his teeth, JungKook reached down and pulled the fabric gently back over Taehyung's ass, patting it very lightly, with affection. When he had caught his breath, he spoke quietly:

"Go and find Hae-Won and tell her I said to find you a room. Go and rest. Wait for me to call for you."

With that, JungKook disappeared before Taehyung was even able to peel himself off the desk.

The shame surfaced as soon as JungKook left. The shame over behaving so lewdly, shame over doing it here and above all, shame over begging JungKook to do it.

Taehyung didn't dare to admit to himself that he had wanted it more than he had ever wanted anything. He didn't dare to admit that being compromised in such a way as he had been on the dirty floor in front of someone turned him on so much. Neither did he dare to admit how much he had enjoyed being manhandled by JungKook him but above all, he didn't dare to admit to himself that he enjoyed, no loved, JungKook hurting him.

While Taehyung was agonising over his behaviour, so was JungKook. His hand still stung from how hard he had been smacking Taehyung's ass. He couldn't imagine how much Taehyung's ass was hurting if his hand was this bad. How could he hurt someone like that? How could he hurt someone so beautiful and fragile as Taehyung? JungKook thought. He felt utterly disgusted with himself and vowed never to do it again.

*

"Father, there was no way I could have known!" JungKook turned back to face his father from where he had been staring out of the window in frustration.

"Are you telling me that you cannot tell the difference between a man and a woman?" he glared at JungKook from behind the desk, rage burning in his cold eyes.

"Well... with this particular one it was an easy mistake to make... It really was a genuine mistake. Mi-Cha wasn't in the carriage, there was no one else there! Why would I even have considered that the bride might be someone else?" JungKook argued while simultaneously pleading with his hands.

"Well, then you must get the information out of this person... Taehyung? Our lives depend on it! You know that. Whatever it takes, you make him talk." His request was unequivocal.

JungKook hesitated and remained silent because he knew how ruthless his father could be and for some unfathomable reason, he felt fiercely protective of Taehyung.

His father could see the hesitation in JungKook's eyes.

"Oh for goodness' sake JungKook! You know why we are doing this so I don't understand why I have to keep telling you?" The frustration was clear in his voice.

"But I don't really need any more power, Father, I'm quite happy with what I have now." JungKook said quietly, meaning every word. All the scheming was becoming just too much for him. All he wanted was a simple life. To be happy. With someone to love. He couldn't understand why Taehyung's beautiful face suddenly appeared in his thoughts.

"Well it's not just about you, JungKook! You know it's not just about getting more power, it's securing the power we already have! Marrying that woman is the easiest way to secure our power and to ensure that the next generations will carry on being successful, bringing more honour to the Jeon family name." he turned away from JungKook.

JungKook had stopped listening to his father half way through his sermon, because he had already heard the supposed justifications a million times before, yet every subsequent retelling they felt weaker and weaker to the point of not making any sense whatsoever.

He had spoken of Mi-Cha as if she were just some chess piece to be pushed around the board, without any consideration over the impact his selfish decisions might have not just on her but on other people around her.

All of a sudden JungKook saw his father's ever-present greed and how this had led to Taehyung sacrificing everything. He felt anger at the injustice bubble just under the surface. He clenched his jaw when he thought how Taehyung had offered to be the sacrificial lamb for his father without any concern for his own safety, just to save his beloved sister.

Taehyung was willing to die for those he loved. This moved JungKook who had never felt such love in his life.

Yet, as an honourable son, it was his duty to obey his father's wishes.

*

It had been a few days since JungKook had manhandled and spanked Taehyung over the desk but thinking about it still had hot waves travelling all over Taehyung's body. He couldn't stop feeling JungKook's hands on him, how loving the pain had been as if JungKook had been cherishing him with his ruthless hands. Nor could he stop thinking about how they had completely melded into each other in the moment as if JungKook had been the missing puzzle piece in Taehyung's very being.

He had no idea what all these things meant and he was in profound conflict over the mixed messages his body was sending in response to pain and pleasure. Already, his body craved the intense stimulation, craved it like a drug, and it felt like JungKook was the only person who could ever quench this thirst he felt inside him.

He didn't know what to do so all he did was wait.

Finally, a servant came to get him.

"Lord Jeon requests your presence." He said it in a tone that implied no choice in the matter.

Silently, with his head held down and a small smile playing in the corner of his mouth, Taehyung followed the servant to the familiar room, unable to repress the memories of what it had felt like to be bent over the desk with JungKook so close behind him, his hard hands on him.

When he bowed down in greeting to the delectable Jeon JungKook, all Taehyung could think about was how that face had been deep in his ass while his own face was squished against the very desk he was now standing in front of. Immediately, his body responded with a heated wave that spread all over, tingling in his fingertips, rising as a deep pink on his cheeks. He felt very flustered and didn't know where to look.

Stealing a quick glance, he realised that, going by the hint of pink also present on JungKook's cheeks, that maybe, just maybe, he was thinking about the very same thing.

JungKook waited for the servant to leave before speaking.

"H-How are you?" JungKook asked, chastising himself for stuttering.

"I'm well thank you?" Taehyung almost framed it like a question back at him, wondering why he would ask in that kind of tone until he realised that JungKook was actually asking after the wellbeing of his ass. Blushing even brighter red, he answered: "Yes, very well, thank you." The nervous grip of his fingers over the fabric around his legs was noticeable.

"Taehyung?" JungKook's voice was hesitant, soft.

Taehyung lifted his eyes to JungKook and was surprised to see regret in them. Apologies.

"Are you ready answer my question?" His voice was suddenly loud and hard as if someone else had taken over. It made Taehyung quake a little and not in a good way. His brows furrowed in confusion, not over the question but over the tone in which it was asked. Taehyung realised that perhaps it had been too much to ask that things might be different between them after what had happened. How naïve of you, Taehyung.

"Answer?" Taehyung asked with a small voice, despite being fully aware of what JungKook was asking.

"Your sister. Where is she?" JungKook's mouth was tight. His fist was tight too. For some peculiar reason, Taehyung felt like crying.

"I... don't know." He whispered, looking down if for no other reason than to avoid the steely eyes staring right through him.

It wasn't even a lie. He didn't know where Mi-Cha was because he had told her not to tell him for this very reason. If he didn't know, he wouldn't be able to tell anyone, no matter what they did to him.

JungKook stood up slowly, the chair screeching against the floor. Taehyung swallowed with difficulty. His survival instincts kicked in and with his heart beating out of his chest, he scanned around the room for potential escape routes. There were none. His mouth dried, his cheeks heating up. He didn't know whether to feel scared or excited.

When JungKook got close, unable to help it, Taehyung stepped back. He felt a blush spread down to his neck. When JungKook carried on getting closer, Taehyung's hand lifted in front of him as if it had the power to stop him. He tried stepping further back, but there was only a wall behind him.

"Please." It was only a broken whisper but it made JungKook's armour crack a little and when he saw the tears glistening in Taehyung's large, soft eyes, it hit him so hard, he could hardly breathe.

"Please." Taehyung repeated, not even knowing what he was pleading for because he could feel the familiar heat coil in the pit of his stomach.

"I don't know where she is. I really don't. Please." Taehyung's voice was a teary breath over the words.

JungKook felt a strange stirring at Taehyung's tears. They were beautiful. He was beautiful with diamonds in his eyes. He wanted to make Taehyung cry more.

Not thinking too much about it, his hand reached up and wrapped around Taehyung's throat. He tightened his grip until he saw Taehyung's eyes suddenly widen and his hands started to shove JungKook away desperately without effect.

"I need to know where she is, Taehyung. I can't let you go until I do." He whispered, the hand on Taehyung's throat changing position, thumb nudging at the sensitive groove under the jaw.

He pressed it, making Taehyung wince and gasp before his chin lifted, opening his vulnerable neck.

Leaning down, JungKook licked it, humming deeply in his chest. Taehyung's hands fell to his sides in complete submission and a soft sigh left his lips.

"You want me to do this to you, don't you, Taehyung?" The fingers snuck from Taehyung's throat to the nape of his neck and weaved into the thick hair.

Pulling ruthlessly, he yanked Taehyung's head back until he whined, his large eyes flicking wide open, long lashes fluttering, a gasp at his pink lips.

"I can do whatever I want to you. Anything. Even kill you. No one would bat an eyelid." JungKook whispered quietly into Taehyung's ear, making him mewl. His fingers grabbed Taehyung's waist until he squealed from the intense pressure, yet he didn't ask JungKook to stop.

It hadn't escaped JungKook's notice that Taehyung was practically panting and his cock was hard, rubbing against him. His cheeks were beautifully flushed, his lush lips open, dark eyes hooded and sparkling. It was obvious he was so turned on and this enticed JungKook because he, too, wanted more.

Taehyung looked so lush that JungKook couldn't resist him any longer so angling his mouth, he kissed him so hard that Taehyung's head bumped against the wall. Taehyung took his tongue eagerly, moaning into their mouths while his slender arms climbed around JungKook's shoulders and gently pulled him even closer, if that was even humanly possible.

Suddenly JungKook dropped Taehyung and looked around as if he'd heard something.

"Come to my chambers at sunset." Was all he said before he stormed out of the room, his cheeks tinted a beautiful shade of pink.

Taehyung's heart was beating out of his chest.

*

Hovering outside JungKook's chambers in the fading light, Taehyung was trying to find his lost senses. This job seemed impossible because both his mind as well as his body were in complete chaos over JungKook and what he had woken up in Taehyung since they had met.

His whole being seemed to be plagued by opposites and contradictions. He wanted to be safe, he wanted adventure; he was scared yet excited; he felt pain yet he felt pleasure... The same way as right now he wanted to go through those doors almost as much as he didn't, for fear of what he might find out... about himself.

It had become obvious to Taehyung that he was travelling on a rough and steep road to self-discovery and that already, he had unearthed things he had never known could exist within himself. He was also aware of the fact that his guide on this journey thus far had been JungKook and he seemed to be the only one who knew the way.

Either way, the Taehyung who wanted to go in won the battle and he made a move, despite Hae-Won's warnings still ringing in his ears.

Earlier, Taehyung had taken a long time to get ready, soaking forever in the bath, getting all pruny, when Hae-Won had come to tell him off for hogging the bath for so long. She was clearly trying to tell Taehyung something but he didn't let her speak until she had given him a clean robe.

Hae-Won had stared at Taehyung for a long moment and when she asked him directly if he was going to see Lord Jeon, he told her an honest answer. There was no point in lying since servants in places like these always knew what was going on, no matter how secret the matters were.

"Be careful." She said, blushing, knowing she was speaking out of place.

"Why? What do you mean?" Taehyung was confused.

"Just be careful... I've seen people come out of that room in such a state, blue and black, limping... I'd hate to see you hurt." She whispered, looking over her shoulder.

It was Taehyung's turn to blush because he knew the shock Tae-Won would be in if she found out that Taehyung wouldn't be as averse to that outcome as one might expect.

Taehyung took one last breath and slid the door open. He removed his slippers and stepped in, taking his time to slide the door back closed, delaying the unknown inevitable.

He needn't have been worried because the room was empty.

The air was thick with the rich smell of incense.

While he waited, Taehyung took in the lush room that he had never really had the chance to look at before.

Beautiful hand painted murals decorated the walls, the figures in them almost dancing in the flickers of the candle light and ornate carved pillars supported the ceiling between beautiful dark, wooden furniture: various chests, shelving full for scrolls. Large vases and statues decorated the space around the low table where materials for the tea ceremony were arranged in neat little rows.

Against the back wall, in the middle of the room, was the beautiful, regal bed.

Taehyung noted that there was a thin fabric hanging over the bed, creating an enchanting canopy that he didn't remember seeing before, nor did he recall the beautifully embroidered bolster cushions as wide as the bed at either end of the mattress, in the same colours as the bed cover.

He was so overwhelmed by the sumptuous decadence all around him, he decided to sit down on the bed to wait for JungKook. But as soon as he felt the softness of the mattress under him, he lay down. The bed in his room was very uncomfortable and because of it, he had hardly slept for days. It didn't take long for Taehyung to drift off to sleep.

JungKook was late. Very late.

It was already dark and had been for a while by the time JungKook arrived back at his chambers.

His father had taken longer than usual to finish his ranting and JungKook had started to wonder if it was some cruel twist of fate that he had to keep waiting before he could be with Taehyung again, perhaps to pay back for his former sins.

He had not anticipated the amount of pleasure he would feel upon seeing Taehyung's slippers neatly lined up outside the door to his chambers. Eagerly, he slid open the door, listening, and when he didn't hear any noises, he tiptoed inside.

He found Taehyung's ephemeral figure curled up on his bed, in the middle of a pool of black hair against which his white clothes and red lips made him look like some enchanted fairy tale creature. His long, dark lashes fluttered, his lips pouted and when JungKook caressed the rest of Taehyung's curves with his eyes, he was still in awe as to how this person, this beautiful, perfect person could be right here, right now, just for him.

JungKook was at two minds whether to let him sleep or to wake him in order to hold him in his arms, so for the moment, he decided to compromise and after removing everything but his underpants, he climbed to lie down behind Taehyung, burying his nose into the thick black hair.

He realised that not once had he touched Taehyung gently.

The touches between them had been all fire and spark, bruising passion the likes of which JungKook had never experienced before. But behind this passion, JungKook did feel tenderness that he hadn't been willing to acknowledge until just now when he had seen Taehyung's fragile shape so vulnerable on his bed. He felt a strong urge to protect him, to cherish him.

So he admired Taehyung's sleeping form, desperately wanting to touch him but feeling like it was wrong to do so while he was sleeping. No longer able to wait, he gently nuzzled into the space between Taehyung's neck and shoulder and placed a small kiss onto it.

Immediately, a small hum and a peep rose from Taehyung and his soft form squirmed against JungKook. That was all it took for him to feel a stirring down below which was only made worse by the fact that Taehyung, perhaps without thinking, rolled his luscious ass against JungKook's groin while he stretched and woke himself up.

"Hmmmsorry I fell asleep. Yer bedis so comfy hmmmm..." Taehyung mumbled with a deliciously deep and rich voice, still with his eyes closed, his lush mouth pouting.

JungKook gripped Taehyung's hip more firmly than he intended to because very soon he would not be able to carry on a conversation if Taehyung's hips kept moving like this against him.

Then again, he realised it may be too late for that when, painfully slowly, he ground his hardening cock between Taehyung's generous ass cheeks. Immediately, Taehyung was wide awake, eyes wide as saucers, as if he had only just remembered not only who he was, but where he was and why.

"Ohh..." he blushed, half looking at JungKook over his shoulder. He froze. He had no idea what to do or say because all he could feel were JungKook's harsh fingers at his hip and his hard cock grinding against him and those were enough for Taehyung to instantly melt inside. Especially when he noticed that JungKook was almost completely naked.

Slowly, Jungkook traced the delicious curve of Taehyung's hip towards his waist and with a single finger he found the hem of his shirt. Humming deep in his chest, he pushed the hem until he felt skin. Momentarily he stopped and looked at Taehyung, waiting for him to say something.

He remained quiet but his cheeks were deliciously flushed, his eyes glued onto JungKook's finger, his chest rising and falling loudly. Licking his lips, he looked at JungKook and pointed at the finger with his chin as if to say "well?"

The skin underneath was warm and smooth and when JungKook slowly pushed the fabric up far enough, he could see the bruises in the pattern of his spread fingertips on the curve of Taehyung's waist. The pleasure JungKook felt over having thus marked Taehyung's skin was overwhelming and without realising he was doing it, there was a long, deep moan that rose from somewhere deep within him that urged him to touch, to feel, to poke.

When his finger pressed on a particularly deeply tinted bruise, Taehyung gasped, bringing JungKook's attention back to him. He was just about to apologise for his momentary insanity when he saw the glowing eyes, the teeth denting the pink, luscious lip and realised that Taehyung had enjoyed what he had just done, as deviant as it may have seemed to others.

If either of them had been harbouring any doubts, they all vanished the second their eyes locked over the pain inflicted and the pleasure gained. Everything clicked together and they knew, they understood, that they were meant to be with each other like the lost puzzle pieces finally brought together.

It was at that exact moment that something was released inside JungKook and he felt a heavy weight lifting. He realised that with Taehyung, he wouldn't have to pretend to be someone who he was not, he'd be able to express himself without constant care over what might be considered "normal". He could finally do this because Taehyung was right there with him, on the same page, and at the same time vulnerable and eager, trusting.

Taehyung had also felt that connection with every inch of his body. He understood, almost subconsciously, how they fitted together like two sides of a coin: one wouldn't be anything without the other, yet together they were gold.

So without worries or doubts, he surrendered to JungKook, fully knowing he could trust him, that JungKook would never go past where he wouldn't want him to go.

He felt safe and protected in his arms, especially so when JungKook inflicted pain on him -that felt like affection to Taehyung. It felt like love.

Staring into each other's eyes for what felt like eternity, JungKook finally asked:

"What do you want, Taehyung, tell me?" His voice a whisper close to Taehyung's ear.

Gazing deeply into JungKook's eyes, with his own sparkling with tears, Taehyung whispered shakily: "Everything... I want everything you can give me. I'm all yours... do with me as you wish."

JungKook groaned at his answer.

He nuzzled into Taehyung's neck, gently speaking against the softest skin: "You don't know what you're asking, flower. I will eat you up and there will be nothing left of you but skin and bones..." Emulating the beast waiting to be unleashed within him, JungKook growled under his breath and sunk his teeth on Taehyung's neck, nibbling gently.

Taehyung's back arched when he opened his neck further and whispered:

"Harder."

The bite hurt so badly that Taehyung's eyes watered but it shot so much pleasure throughout his body, he felt it in his fingertips and toes and the tip of his eager, throbbing cock. He accepted it all willingly, without fear, wanting more.

Suddenly all dams broke and JungKook grabbed the hem of Taehyung's shirt, desperately pulling it over his head. Taehyung struggled to get it over his shoulders and was caught unawares when JungKook stopped him from taking the shirt off all the way, leaving it stretched across his elbows, right above his head. A strong arm landed on top and suddenly, Taehyung was under him, restrained, and exactly where he wanted to be.

"Kiss me, kissmekissme..." Taehyung tried to reach up with his lips, stretching his neck up, anything to get JungKook to kiss him. He admired the muscular torso in his face, the beautiful contours rippling while he leaned over him, holding him down. Taehyung tried to reach the perfect, tight nipple decorating the beautiful curve of a muscle but he fell short. Frustrated, he rolled his hips against JungKook who growled at him in warning.

"Please..." JungKook stared down at Taehyung's tethered, squirming form.

"This won't do..." JungKook muttered to himself, straddling Taehyung's chest and holding his arms down. Taehyung took a long moment to appreciate the defined thigh muscles embracing his chest and couldn't believe how much the muscle curved in by the time it came out from under his low hanging underpants and showed at the narrow waist. JungKook was so beautiful and Taehyung told him so.

JungKook smiled with a hint of pink colouring his cheeks and reached for the rope, removed Taehyung's shirt and tied his wrists together before attaching them to the bed the very same way he had done when they had first met.

Taehyung blushed just as much this time around as he had done the first time.

"Don't go all coy on me now, petal." He grinned.

JungKook climbed back down and leaning over, finally kissed Taehyung who had gotten to the point of desperation waiting for him.

"Hmmm.... You taste so sweet..." JungKook hummed against Taehyungs lips, making eager hips lift to grind against him.

"So eager, my little flower. Can I call you flower? Petal? You are just as beautiful as a flower, I think it suits you..." He smiled with affection and traced his finger on the curve of Taehyung's rosy cheek. Taehyung could only nod eagerly as he liked JungKook calling him those things so much that he thought he might just ask him to call him that and nothing else, forever.

Finally, JungKook climbed all the way down and pulled Taehyung's pants off, leaving him so vulnerable and helpless, all naked under him.

"You are so beautiful, Taehyung. Perfect." JungKook whispered.

Taehyung felt like his whole body blushed.

He turned his face to hide it into his arm, embarrassed over being so lewdly exposed.

"Heyhey, that's not allowed, petal." He smiled saying the pet name, because he had seen the glow in Taehyung's eyes when he used it.

Taehyung's lush cock was straining against its skin, blushing and shiny, leaking dollops of dew onto his soft stomach.

"Oh look at you, my little flower petal, so turned on already. So eager, you just can't control yourself can you? Whatever am I going to do with you...?" He drew a gentle stroke across the side of the eagerly bobbing rod, using just the very tip of his finger, making Taehyung moan. He noted that Taehyung was also panting quite heavily, so he couldn't help but to wonder if...

"Taehyung... how do you expect to last very long if you are already so desperate?" He used a harsher tone. "Look at this mess everywhere. I'm going to have to get you to clean it...this is no good, Taehyung..." He chastised sternly and immediately, Taehyung panted some more, whimpering and squirming, his cheeks like tasty red apples. Something flipped with excitement inside JungKook.

He reached for the glimmering puddle on Taehyung's stomach and rubbed his fingers in it then reached up toward Taehyung's mouth which was already cracked open, eagerly waiting.

He almost whispered, licking his lips so eagerly: "Let me clean it, I'll clean it, I'll be good, please..." His voice was an urgent whisper over the words and when his pink, glistening tongue came out to suck the fingers into his mouth, it was with such enthusiasm that JungKook felt it in his cock.

Using his other hand, JungKook reached down for the leaking cock in front of him and as he looked directly at Taehyung, he flicked his fingers against the taut flesh three times, snapping hard enough for the sounds to echo around the room.

Immediately, Taehyung's hips lifted off the bed with a scream. He tried to suck the fingers in his mouth all the way, to muffle the sounds of his shrieks. His excited cock was still bobbing up and down long time after, his hips undulating eagerly, the red marks already showing on his shaft.

"Fuck, Tae!" JungKook was straining against his pants so bad. "Was that good?" He was pretty sure what the answer was going to be but he wanted to be sure. Fiercely, Taehyung nodded, blinking with his eyes so wide and blown, humming in agreement, his lush lips stretching over the fingers still deep in his mouth.

Wanting to comfort the pain he had just inflicted, he pulled his fingers out of Taehyung's mouth and leaned down to lick over the slightly swollen, pink welts, caressing them gently with his tongue.

Taehyung was panting, his chest rising and falling rapidly, whining frantically in a way that it was impossible to tell if he was doing it out of pleasure or pain. Wanting to tip the scales toward pleasure, JungKook opened his mouth and stretched across the heavy member, gently sucking the head into his heated wetness.

Taehyung felt like dying and being born all at the same time, his insides a turbulent mess when he tried to come to terms with the incredible feelings induced by the pain. The sharp shock of JungKook's fingers on his sensitive cock had shot through him, piercing through his being, shattering it into million pieces only to build it back up again, in blinding white and deep, warm pleasure which felt like an embrace all around him.

He had felt tears stinging in his eyes but they weren't from the pain -well, they were, but not right at the pain but the heaven directly after it. They were tears of joy, tears of happiness, tears of finding your place in the world. This felt real, this felt so right.

When JungKook's hot mouth sank on his cock and his tongue slid over the still aching welts, Taehyung knew there was a real chance of him dying a happy man and that the event of that death was imminent.

"Ohgoodsogood.... JungKook please... I can't... ngh..ahh ngh please..." Taehyung moaned with shaking legs.

Struggling against the deliciously tight and rough ropes pressing on Taehyung's tender wrists and feeling JungKook's firm but gentle mouth sucking on his cock, he felt his hips move on their own, his whole being overtaken by pleasure, chasing it, needing it, pushing and pulling over and over and over... until everything snapped and he floated, high on the feelings dwelling within his hot body.

"Is this what heaven feels like?" Taehyung thought before his body slowly floated back on the bed.

Hardly able to move, he lifted his heavy head to see JungKook's glowing eyes staring at him from between his legs.

"Ohgod..I'm.. I can't..." Not a single muscle would move in his loose body, it was still too lost in its post-orgasmic bliss.

"Fuck, Taehyung... you are so gorgeous when you come... Everything about you is so beautiful..." he whispered, wrapping his long fingers around Taehyung's slim waist for a moment, his eyes caressing everything while he climbed up between Taehyung's legs until they faced each other.

Gently, ever so gently, he kissed Taehyung's chin, his nose, his cheeks before he brushed his lips against Taehyung's in a whisper of a kiss that held all the emotions he didn't know how to express.

"I want you..." his gruff voice whispered into Taehyung's ear with need while he towered over him.

Taehyung's eyes lit up but JungKook could see that there was also worry lurking in the back of his eyes.

"What is it, petal?" JungKook ran a thumb along Taehyung's delicious lower lip.

"I- I- I- I haven't... I don't know... how..." and a keen embarrassment flooded his face and suddenly he couldn't look JungKook in the eye anymore.

"Ohmygod... are you saying you've never... been with anyone before?" Taehyung braved a look when he nodded infinitesimally and gasped at the horror on JungKook's face. "Ohmygod... what have I done?" JungKook stuttered, whispering, breathing in heavily through his nose. Immediately, he went to release Taehyung's wrists.

"No!" Taehyung almost shouted and struggling against his restraints he quickly wrapped his legs around JungKook to stop him, pressing their hips together. "Stop... Please... pleasepleaseplease! Don't. Please." He begged with his all. "I need you, please." Tears were welling in his eyes. He was so angry at himself for having told JungKook about his inexperience - he should have known this was going to be the reaction to his admission.

"Please... why don't you want to be with me...? I'm sorry, I can try harder, I'll do anything just... please don't throw me away just because I..." His voice cracked, tears falling down his cheeks.

"What? Why would you ever say that...? I'd never throw you away, I want to cherish you, I just don't want to... ruin you. I'm the one who's not... worthy... of you..." His throat tightened, choking up the words, sudden shame shadowing his face.

He looked down at Taehyung whose eyes were dark, damp pools of desperation and felt such a deep need to protect him and to love him -yes, to love him, that in the end, he couldn't bring himself to say no, he couldn't bring himself to deny him.

Without another word, decision made, he crushed Taehyung's mouth with his, pushing his tongue in deep to claim him, to own him. As far as he was concerned, Taehyung was now his and no one else would ever have him, not even over his dead body.

Taehyung mewled into JungKook's mouth, his waist lifting off the bed. Tightening his thigh grip around JungKook's narrow waist he rubbed himself against the hardness he could feel through the thin layer of fabric, wishing nothing more than for it to be inside him.

"I'm going to make you weep tears of joy, you hear me Taehyung? I'm going to make you weep." He licked off the tears that had ran down Taehyung's neck and kissed his way up to his ear where he sucked the soft lobe in between his teeth, biting it harshly. Taehyung cried out eagerly.

He ran his fingers in a firm touch around the back of Taehyung's waist and wormed his way down to his ass, grabbing a cheek ruthlessly, squeezing hard enough to bruise.

"Fuck your ass is so delicious... I can't wait to have it and shove my cock so deep inside and make you scream... til you beg for more..." JungKook whispered into Taehyung's ear who was getting more and more riled up, his breaths leaving him in rapid puffs, his body on fire.

With quick, harsh movements, JungKook flicked Taehyung over onto his stomach.

"I'm going to tie your feet as well?" Since he framed it as a question, Taehyung nodded eagerly, pleading with his mews for JungKook to move quicker just so he would get to the part where they were joined together as one. That was the only place Taehyung wanted to be at right now. He ached for JungKook.

Having both his arms and legs tied up and leaving the rest of him stretched and immobile in between made Taehyung realise that being completely unable to move made him feel safe. It didn't make him panic or fight, it made him relax because once all power had been taken away from him, he felt at peace. In fact, he had never felt this kind of peace before. It was as if he had arrived home.

JungKook admired his handywork and caressed Taehyung all the way down from his tied wrists, down his slim arms, over his shoulders, down his gently sloping spine and curve of the hip, across those divine cheeks, then he ran his hands down either side of where he was sitting, tracing the outline of the long, long legs spread in front of him.

"This might just be my new favourite view -one that I'll never tire of looking at, Taehyung... ever."

It felt like a promise that made Taehyung's heart sing. Given the choice, if he could have this and nothing else, if he could just be with JungKook, he would do it without a moment's hesitation. This is where he belonged. Within Jungkook's hold.

Even though he was expecting it, the first ruthless sting on his ass cheek still took him by surprise.

He gasped, folding into the pain, stretching with it almost endlessly until it rounded up into a glow inside him and slowly warmed up all of his limbs. Taehyung felt his cock leak against the sheets. The second smack only added to what he was already feeling, taking him on a wave of pleasure even higher than the first.

"Ohhgod... so good. Please..."

JungKook hummed, pleased, and reached for a small glass bottle at the side of the bed. He poured some liquid out all over Taehyung, starting from his shoulder blades down to the small dent at the top of his ass crack, where it pooled beautifully, directly overflowing down into the crevice.

The oil smelled divine, sweet and flowery and when JungKook spread it with his long fingers all over Taehyung's back, massaging it into the tender skin, Taehyung moaned over the way his body relaxed into his firm touch.

Rubbing further down, JungKook's hands wrapped around Taehyung's waist, his strong fingers reaching a long way around the curve of it, sliding over it, up and down, admiring the bruises adorning it. His hands nudged against the hip bone, testing the strength of grip and pull on it.

When JungKook reached the delightful, lavish and bright pink cushions of Taehyung's ass, he hummed in appreciation when he saw how the oil made the red glow under his fingers. He gripped the cheeks in a slippery hold, denting the flesh deeply with his fingers, massaging, kneading, pushing and pulling. He smoothed the soft skin up the curve and let go, drooling over how the flesh jiggled deliciously on its way back down. But touching Taehyung's ass wasn't enough, JungKook couldn't get enough of it, he wanted to eat it.

Tracing his teeth along the plump flesh he nibbled on it gently. At every gentle nip of his teeth Taehyung tensed a little and JungKook could hear his peeps of anticipation, expectant whiny pleads that got whinier and whinier the harder he nipped. When he took a large mouthful of ass and bit on it hard enough to leave marks, Taehyung squealed as if he had just come.

Panting, he said: "Ohmygod... JungKookie... I- I love the way you make my body feel.... ... I feel so good. So... warm..." his voice was drunk with desire.

JungKook groaned admiring the marks left on Taehyung's soft skin.

Finally, his fingers slid in between Taehyung's cheeks and traced over the sensitive hole. Taehyung moaned loudly, attempting to squirm against his restraints, trying to roll his hips for more contact.

"Hmmm.... So sensitive... Are you sure you want to do this?" JungKook asked, hesitant. It didn't seem right that a person like him, such a... corrupt soul... was to be the one to have him, the innocent, beautiful, gentle Taehyung.

"I want nothing more. I want only you JungKookie. Please, have me, I'm yours. Hurry." He panted, the eager words falling out of him in a seemingly unstoppable torrent.

Spreading the cheeks apart, JungKook lowered his face and licked wetly along the groove, reminding himself of how delicious Taehyung was and how much he enjoyed having his ass devoured. He also wanted to remind himself of the privilege of having been the only person ever to taste him. Possessiveness reared its head when JungKook appreciated the fact that Taehyung was all his and only his.

He licked and rolled and pushed in with his tongue but he was getting too impatient to do it properly. The need to shove his throbbing, steely cock into Taehyung's tight little hole was becoming so strong, it was blinding him.

So he pushed in a finger and straightaway another. Taehyung was relaxed and eager and already rubbing his cock against the sheets, whimpering, chanting "please, please, please" quietly under his breath as if it were the spell to make it all happen immediately.

"I want you to fill me up Kookie, I want to feel so full, I want you to stretch me please, stretch me with your cock..." The shameless whispered words started pouring out of Taehyung without him having any power over them as if he had suddenly breached a line past which he had no control.

His wanton body took over and it was no longer going to listen to hesitations and restraints, it was no longer going to be shy and meek, it was going to demand what it wanted and what was rightfully his.

"NOW! I want it NOW!" he sobbed, almost crying out of frustration while JungKook just played with his ass with a measly pair of fingers.

"Woah, someone's getting a bit feisty, who would have guessed my little placid Taehyung even knew how to speak like that?!" JungKook teased, revelling in the newly discovered fire burning in Taehyung, all the while gently and slowly pushing two fingers in and out of the rapidly softening hole.

"Your Taehyung? YOUR Taehyung?! If I'm yours then prove it! I won't believe you otherwise!" Taehyung taunted JungKook, feeling unhinged with need, yanking at his shackles in desperation while his hips rolled hard against JungKook's fingers as far as his restraints allowed.

"You're not ready yet, darling." JungKook said, holding himself back with an impressive amount of restraint, gently nipping at the lush globes, admiring the fingers sinking into the tight hole right in front of his face.

Taehyung wanted to look at JungKook so badly, he wanted to be staring into his eyes when he said it, not speaking to a wall. So he turned his head to the side as much as he could and said, quietly but firmly:

"I don't care. I don't want to be ready. I want it now. I want to really feel you ruin me." Taehyung's voice was shaking like he was about to lose it.

JungKook gasped, suddenly completely unable to breathe. His fingers stopped.

"Do you even know what you're asking?" JungKook whispered.

"Yes. Do it. Now."

With suddenly shaking fingers, JungKook climbed up, removing his last remaining piece of clothing and positioned himself between Taehyung's legs. As much as he had always dreamt about shoving his thick cock into a virgin hole with minimal preparation, he couldn't help but to hesitate because it was Taehyung.

Even though it was obvious Taehyung enjoyed pain, this somehow felt different, so... intimate.

"Tae?"

"Do it. Do it!" He cried, his cheeks glowing red, sweat dripping on his temples, the strands of his hair sticking to his neck. The oil all over his skin made his body glisten in the candlelight so much it glowed.

He could see Taehyung's gleaming, richly pink ass rolling directly underneath him, the starfish between the lush cheeks squinting at him, tempting him while he whined, begging almost soundlessly.

As if in a dream, he reached for the oil and poured it all over Taehyung's crack and over himself, rubbing it over his shaft until it was dripping with it. Suddenly, with newfound awareness, he felt the real weight of his cock and the absolute girth of it, and he thought about how tight Taehyung's hole had been over only two of his fingers. His cock swelled so hard, he swore he was only a few pumps away from an orgasm.

"Taehyung, you have to tell me if you need me to stop, please promise me?" JungKook whispered with a shaking voice at Taehyung's ear while he slid his soaking wet dick into the oily groove of Taehyung's ass. It was hot and slippery and it wasn't even in yet. JungKook's arms shook so badly from pure excitement, he was worried he would collapse on top of Taehyung.

"Pleasepleasepleasepleaseplease...." Taehyung's chanting had gained momentum and his hips moved, gently undulating, sliding his lush ass against JungKook's cock until a gentle lift changed the angle and there was a little snag, just a tiny catch of cock onto the very edge of the hole. It was enough for both of them to stop breathing.

"Are you ready?" Was all that JungKook could whisper with a unsteady voice because all of his restraint was directed towards stopping himself from shoving his cock into Taehyung's hole so hard, so deep, so right now. He needed to be in Taehyung balls deep before he would go blind from want. He had never wanted anything more than he wanted this.

Taehyung wasn't even able to form words at this point, his voice had turned into a constant wail so all he could do was to nod.

JungKook rose to take all his weight on one hand so he could direct his cock directly into Taehyung.

The hole was so fucking tight, JungKook's eyes rolled to the back of his head even before the tip of his cock was all the way in, his jaw hanging slack in a silent scream.

"OhFUCK!" Taehyung screamed, his head sinking into the sheets. "It's so fucking big, ohmygod so tight...hmmmm.ngh....fuck..." Panting, barely able to speak, Taehyung pleaded:

"Bite me. Bite my neck. Pleaseplease."

Without questions, JungKook lowered himself and, just like some feral, wild animal mounting to mate, he sunk his teeth into the back of Taehyung's neck and bit down hard, marking his possession.

Taehyung screamed but immediately, JungKook's cock slid all the way in to the tightest hole he had ever breached.

Taehyung had never felt anything like what he felt when JungKook's cock impaled him to the bed. The fullness, the tightness, the burn. Sparks of energy shot throughout his body making his eye lashes burn. His skin felt tight like his whole body was just filled with heat, about to explode. The glowing ball of pleasure within him was burning so bright Taehyung wondered if one could see it glowing through his skin.

He felt incredibly vulnerable and safe and sore and amazing, violated and loved all at the same time and he was filled with so much emotion, he was full to the brim. The immense pressure of feelings within him built to such levels that it overflowed out of his eyes as tears, even though he wasn't sad, he wasn't in pain. He was happy. Incredibly happy. Happiest he had ever been.

Slowly and gently, JungKook lowered on top of Taehyung with minimal movement. He kept gently kissing his shoulders, back, neck, ear, the little bit of cheek that he could reach.

He'd be lying if he said he didn't panic when he saw the tears.

"Taehyung, petal. Talk to me. Please tell me you're ok?" There was more than a hint of worry in his voice.

Taehyung nodded, quite unable to speak for the overwhelming feelings swirling inside him.

"I'm O-OK... i-it didn't hurt, not r-really...." He sniffled a little. "It's just that... I'm so... happy and feel so good, I can't keep it all in..." he giggled tearily.

"Please, move." Taehyung pleaded, rolling his hips under JungKook, to encourage him. The movement was enough to make them both groan.

Encouraged, JungKook started to move his hips, rolling slowly, languidly while still lying with his whole length on top of Taehyung. Leaning onto his elbows and gently grasping Taehyung's arms from under him, he brushed his lips over Taehyung's temples, whispering sweet nothings into his ear.

"You are so beautiful... you feel so amazing... I love kissing you... Your skin is so wonderful... I can't stop touching you..." and for each and every whisper, Taehyung peeped a little happy peep, leaning his back against JungKook's shoulder behind him.

"I love your weight on me, JungKookie, it makes me feel so safe." He hummed, suddenly so aware of the thickness inside him that was moving and stroking against his tight walls. It felt so incredibly good.

After no time at all, lying down wasn't really enough for either of them and the pace picked up, JungKook lifting off Taehyung, pummelling into his ass at such a speed that their skins stuck and unstuck, slapping together, loud, needy moans rising out of both of them.

JungKook admired the red rope burn kissing Taehyung's wrist and the tight ropes stretching his ankles. The realisation that he was entirely, completely, in charge of what happened to Taehyung made him drunk with lust, swell with need. The desire to own him was like a sharp taste on his tongue when he hammered into the shamelessly screaming shape under him.

Momentarily, he slowed down to catch his breath, listening to the incoherent pleads for more and panting that rose from Taehyung. He admired the thick shaft spreading Taehyung's ass and how it sunk in and rose up again, shining in the candle light. He felt himself throb at the sight, getting too close.

Pausing for a moment he withdrew.

"I'm going to untie you now, Taehyung, you must be so sore after all this time." Grumbling, Taehyung consented to being detached.

"Hmmm... I don't mind it, I quite like it... can I keep my wrists tied together?" He pleaded, sticking out a bottom lip when he sat up, followed by a wide smile on his tear-stained, flushed face. His lips were pink and swollen, his eyes drunken and dreamy. JungKook felt such a twist in his stomach and an ache in his heart when he realised he'd never be able to live without this man.

Rather than answer, he pulled Taehyung into a deep kiss and hoped that his love shone through his actions.

"Put your hands behind my neck, petal." Taehyung lifted his tied hands over JungKook's head, smiling at him while he helped Taehyung straddle over his crossed legs until they were tangled together, legs and arms around each other, cock against cock, slotting together perfectly.

JungKook reached for the oil and started dripping it down between them until he glazed the heads of their cocks, drenching their shafts, soaking them both to a slippery sheen.

He reached down and spread the oil over the shafts, all the while looking directly into Taehyung's eyes. His eyes were black, glazed over with lust, his delicious lips cracked open, his pink tongue slipping out every so often to gloss the puffy flesh.

JungKook palmed, kneaded, rubbed and fisted their cocks together with a restrained Taehyung squirming and moaning on his lap. His eyes had long since drooped shut, his neck beautifully extended while he moaned close enough for JungKook to feel his hot breath on his face, his body constantly writhing against him. It was all intolerably hot.

JungKook kept nipping and biting at Taehyung's neck, shoulders, jaw, ears, marking over the collarbone until he looked like he was wearing a bruise necklace. The sight of his delicate skin so marked was such a turn on for JungKook that he worried he might come just using his hand and with Taehyung's cock sliding against his.

But the need was still building and Taehyung's moans and squirms were getting louder and more desperate, building JungKook's need with them.

While rubbing the sensitive spot along the tip of Taehyung's cock and causing a ripple of moans and hip thrusts, he slid a hand over the beautiful ass and found the puffy hole.

Instantly, Taehyung ground his hips against him and pushing his cock into JungKook's fist.

"Please, please JungKookie, I need you so much, please." He moaned with deep desperation.

Needing no more encouragement, JungKook lifted Taehyung up enough to place his thickness against the tight hole, letting Taehyung lower himself at the pace he wanted to, not really expecting him to just impale himself on it so hard that JungKook nearly choked on his own spit when the heat and tightness engulfed him.

"Yesyesyesyes...." The look on Taehyung's face was pure bliss when he started grinding on JungKook's cock with wild abandon, bobbing up and down eagerly. Through the haze of pleasure, he gazed into the large, deep pools of chocolate in front of him while JungKook touched parts of him he didn't even know existed.

The dark of his eyes seemed to hold so much in them. The tenderness or softness that Taehyung thought he'd seen hints of when they had first met was now there, fully on show across JungKook's suddenly gentle face ... if Taehyung didn't know better, he would say he was seeing ... love.

His heart suddenly aching and his eyes welling, Taehyung slowed down to a soft grind while he pulled Jungkook to him, tenderly nipping his lips with his teeth, placing small, wet kisses over his mouth as if these alone would tell him the words he wanted to whisper into his ear more than anything.

A large hand caressed the side of Taehyung's face, testing its fit around the jaw while curious fingers wrapped tightly around the hair at the base of the neck. JungKook tethered Taehyung completely in place between his cock and the grip in his hair while, as if determined to utterly devour him, he owned his mouth. Taehyung moaned directly into JungKook's mouth, ecstatic to be devoured and owned when a possessive hand slid down and pulled his slim waist and lush ass against JungKook.

Their oily, damp bodies started sliding against each other to the point that it was difficult to tell where one started and the other ended. Taehyung leaned into JungKook's muscular chest and engulfed his mouth, pushing his tongue in leisurely, tasting him like he never wanted to stop.

A familiar tightness that had been on a slow burner lifted its head when JungKook rolled his hips, encouraging Taehyung to move again. Lifting himself, sliding up and down the thick cock inside him, he moaned loudly, revelling in the deliciousness of it all. The heat, the damp, the textures, tastes. He lost himself completely in the rhythm until frustration filled him.

"Nhg...need.... Harder.... Deeper...." He whined, suddenly getting an idea.

Taehyung leaned against JungKook, holding onto the back of his neck and said:

"Lean back a little..." his voice a breathy whisper.

JungKook straightened his legs, spreading them further and leaned back a little, all the muscles on his front gaining impressive definition. Carefully, still tethered onto JungKook's cock and tied hands behind his neck, Taehyung also straightened his legs and leaned back, resting his feet against the end of the bed.

"FUCK!" they both gasped when new depths were reached by changing the angle.

"Is this alright?" Taehyung asked, all of a sudden feeling a little shy under JungKook's intense stare.

"You have no idea...." JungKook's eyes rolled to the back of his head and he was panting.

"I'm going to move then..." Taehyung gasped.

Pushing against the end of the bed for leverage and pulling on JungKook's neck for support with his tied hands, Taehyung lifted up and slammed back down, bending his legs so that he slid as deep as he possibly could on JungKook's cock. He almost screamed when the rod inside him dragged across the sensitive spot inside him, over and over until he felt he was going to die from the intense pleasure he was feeling. He was unravelling.

JungKook couldn't believe the view in front of him. The view alone could make him come if he focused on it in too much detail. The gleaming, beautiful body of Taehyung, his rosy, shining, swollen cock, nodding in front of him, leaking onto their stomachs, the black hair flowing over his shoulders, his shiny lips hanging open, moans leaking out of his mouth in an almost continuous song... but most of all... his eyes.

Staring directly into JungKook's soul, Taehyung's eyes were completely black as if he had lost himself in his lust and the only thing that mattered was the heat, the building tension, the pure, unadulterated need.

Every single muscle in JungKook's body was flexing and burning when he withstood Taehyung's violent thrusts on his cock while trying to keep them both steady and upright. It wasn't comfortable but fuck was it worth it.

The tightness and heat around his cock were phenomenal. JungKook was feeling almost dizzy from the intensity of the moment, the heat, the debauched sounds, the slippery hotness of their skins sliding against each other, the taste of Taehyung on his lips.

The fact that he could see his thickness sinking into Taehyung's tight hole, over and over and over, stretching it so wide, had his hips joining in, slamming against Taehyung until he was screaming on top of him.

JungKook could feel himself starting to swell inside Taehyung and knew, despite his best efforts, that the end was neigh.

"Tae... shit... petal... I'm gonna... ngh... can't...." With a silent scream JungKook shoved his cock as deep as it could possibly go. The final, deep shove snapped something inside Taehyung, and he shrieked with his back arching and legs shaking and shot his pearly fluids all over their stomachs, slumping over, knocking their foreheads together.

Panting, completely out of breath, he took a long moment and then he lifted his head to face JungKook.

Taehyung opened his eyes for a moment and just gazed at JungKook, wordlessly, with eyes filled with so much emotion, some of it spilled out again and his eyes brimmed with beautiful, big dollop tears that plopped onto JungKook's chest one by one.

JungKook lifted his shaky fingers and cupped his face, gently wiping the tears with his thumbs, caressing the soft flesh gently. He pulled Taehyung to his lips and kissed him, gently, slowly, taking his time, wanting to tell him but not quite able to. He was so in awe with the beauty of Taehyung, he was literally struck speechless.

He reached for Taehyung's wrists and brought them forward, instantly gasping at the state of them. The skin was red raw all the way around the wrists, some of the rope was tinted red.

Horrified, he glanced back up at Taehyung and undid the ropes with urgency, lifting the sore flesh to his lips as soon as the ropes fell away.

"I'm so sorry, Taehyung.. petal. Please forgive me?" He pleaded with his big, dark, glistening eyes.

Taehyung smiled, dreamily, still straddling JungKook.

"Don't be silly. I love them. I love you." He whispered, suddenly very shy after he realised the words had slipped out of his mouth. He may not have intended to say them, but he definitely meant them.

He reached for JungKook's stunned face, he cupped his cheeks and kissed him gently on his lips. As if to emphasise the point, he kissed again. And again.

"I. *kiss* Love. *kiss* You. *kiss*" He squished JungKook's cheeks together so much that his lips pouted far out which made him giggle uncontrollably.

"Hey!" JungKook finally woke up from his daze and grabbed Taehyung's fingers, wrapping his own stronger ones around his slender ones. For a moment he just stared at Taehyung before he kissed the tips of his fingers individually, all the while his dark eyes were still on Taehyung who could hardly breathe.

"I love you." He whispered so quietly he wasn't sure if he had even said it out loud.

Wordlessly, JungKook lifted Taehyung off him and lay him down on the bed. Leaning over his naked shape, JungKook kissed the red wrists gently, absentmindedly fiddling with his fingers while Taehyung's dark, loving eyes were gazing at him intently.

"You're going to have to stop looking at me like that...." He was going for a tone that would chastise but there was too much love and happiness in his voice to pull it off.

"Or what?" Taehyung teased, lifting his chin in a challenge.

"We're going to have to do that again..." It was supposed to be a threat.

"Oh... I don't that is going to make me want to stop somehow..." The grin on his face was cheeky when he reached up and kissed JungKook, his mouth still curved in a smile.

Reaching out for the drags of clothing, JungKook wiped the biggest mess off them and curled up against Taehyung's back, completely surrounding him with limbs and warmth. Happy sighs were the only noises in the room when they drifted off to sleep, holding each other like they were afraid to let go.

Taehyung's first sensation when he stirred was that everything was hurting. The pain was dull and beautiful, warm. It reminded him of why he was hurting and that made him smile.

He opened his eyes, looking around in the room to see if it looked any different in daylight, when his eyes caught movement further away in the room.

He cleared his throat because nothing came out on the first try.

"JungKook?" The second try wasn't much better, only a deep gravely grumble.

JungKook walked to him, face all light and happiness, dark eyes glowing at Taehyung. He was hardly recognisable compared to the man Taehyung had first met, that's how much light was beaming out of him. Because Taehyung knew he was the reason for this change, he could only feel intense happiness over it.

"Hello beautiful. Did you sleep ok?" He sat on the edge of the bed, already fully clothed.

Taehyung nodded, feeling intensely shy. Too afraid to say anything in case it was the wrong thing to say, Taehyung played with the wrinkled sheet in front of him.

"Hey." JungKook lifted Taehyung's chin to see his eyes.

"What's wrong? Cat caught your tongue?" His smile was wide and Taehyung couldn't help but to respond with a smile of his own. "Are you OK? Is anything... hurting?" It was JungKook's turn to blush a little.

Taehyung leaned over and put his head on JungKook's clothed lap and looked up at him.

"I'm OK. Everything's hurting so I feel amazing." They both laughed at the joke they shared. Taehyung's smile was so wide and so bright, JungKook could hardly breathe in the face of it.

Taehyung reached up to caress JungKook's cheek.

"My pain is your love on me, it's there to continuously remind me of you, remind me of where you touched me... owned me..." His voice dipped so low JungKook could hardly hear it.

"...and it turns me on..." Taehyung traced down JungKook's front with a long finger, suddenly looking at JungKook through hooded eyes, licking his lips. His rough voice made the hairs at the back of JungKook's neck stand on end and shivers travelled all over his body, starting something.

"Hmmm..." Helpless, JungKook's eyes closed, his dick stirring. "Straightaway you're making me feel things...but..." He pulled Taehyung's hand away. "There is nothing I want more than to stay here and ravish you again but I have to go away for the day on business." He looked down, disappointment clear on his face.

"Will you miss me?" He joked but his face was serious.

"Always." Taehyung whispered, hoping his eyes would tell him the truth.

Forcing himself to get up, JungKook tried to sound bright when he said:

"There's some warm water here for you to have a wash with and Hae-Won is going to come and ask you about breakfast shortly."

Taehyung stared at JungKook with a question in his eyes.

"What is it petal?" A coy smile and a gentle blush lit Taehyung's face at the pet name.

"Erm... what should I do? I mean while you are out?" he hesitated, wondering if he should go and find Hae-Won and work.

"Please stay here, I think you need to rest. I'll sort everything out when I get back, don't worry." He stroked Taehyung's soft hair and bent down for a gentle kiss. Stopping before they got carried away again, he pressed his lips on Taehyung's forehead and stood up.

With a small smile, he walked out.

Moving around on the bed in slow, gentle movements, Taehyung assessed the condition of his body. He was surprised to find, despite the intense love making for most of the night, he was actually ok. His ass was a little tender, but that was more from the spanking than the fucking -sitting was not going to be on the agenda today.

He had a wash and found bits of clothing to wear. He located his pants and was just doing them up when Hae-Won appeared out of nowhere with some food.

Taehyung felt conscious of the fact that he was only wearing his pants, showing all the bites, scratches and bruises that had been so lovingly placed on his body but Hae-Won didn't bat an eyelid.

"Here, you missed breakfast." She placed some food on the table and was about to leave.

"Wait, Hae-Won. Thank you for bringing the food over, I really appreciate it." He tried a little smile but she still looked a bit annoyed.

"I'm really sorry I'm not going to work with you today, I know you really could have done with an extra hand... but JungKook told me to stay here and... rest." He blushed.

Suddenly, Hae-Won giggled. Confused, Taehyung looked at her, hugging his waist.

"You're so funny Taehyung! Really!" Still none-the-wiser, Taehyung scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment when the door opened with a violent shove and a crowd of steps filled the room.

"YOU!" The handsome, older gentleman shouted, pointing at Taehyung with an angry finger.

Taehyung was momentarily so blinded by the man's aggressive countenance and the pure opulence of the his clothing that he just stood there, like a deer in headlights, all the more aware of the lack of clothing on his own body. Three men stood in front of him and they all stared at Taehyung with darkness in their eyes.

Hae-Won immediately fell to her knees, which could only mean that this was JungKook's father, Jeon Jung-Ji.

Taehyung went to get on his knees but before he got down, a sharp slap of a folded-up fan hit the bottom of his chin, clearly indicating he should stay standing. He lifted his eyes to the angry man in front of him and tried to swallow. His voice had disappeared somewhere in the recesses of his entirely still body and refused to come out.

"Taehyung, I presume?" he asked, staring at Taehyung like he was a piece of dirt not worthy of even the bottom of his shoe to walk on.

When Taehyung nodded to confirm his identity, all the man did was to nod to one of his men.

Without any warning, a hand fisted into Taehyung's hair with such force that he yelped. When the man started dragging him out of the room by his hair, panic rose to his throat until finally he found his voice.

"Wh-wh-what are you doing? Ow, let me go!" He clawed at the hand in his hair to no avail.

Struggling, tripping over and scuffing his knees, shoving at the wall of a man... nothing made any difference, he just pulled Taehyung up by his hair and carried on as if Taehyung were a sack of potatoes to be lugged about.

Taehyung knew JungKook would protect him and keep him safe, nothing bad could happen to him here as long as he was JungKook's. He felt secure and comforted for that small moment until he realised that Jung-Ji had chosen, probably entirely on purpose, a time when JungKook wasn't here to protect him.

Quickly, it became obvious that Jeon Jung-Ji had become unhinged, Taehyung could see the crazy glint in the man's eye. It scared Taehyung because it made him think that he would stop at nothing to get what he wanted out of Taehyung. The biggest problem with that was, of course, that Taehyung didn't even know the thing Jeon Jung-Ji wanted out of him. The irony of dying over that wasn't lost on Taehyung.

Weakly, he resigned to his fate, after all, he had lived a lot longer than he thought he would since the second he put that wedding dress on, so perhaps he should be grateful to have made it this far? Perhaps he should be thankful for having known JungKook?

The biggest irony of all was the fact that finally, the day of his demise was the first time in his whole life that he actually cared whether he lived or died. The beautiful, gentle face of JungKook floated into his mind and he felt tears fall down his cheek. It seemed so unfair to have had that, only to have it taken away.

There was no hope for Taehyung.

The grip in Taehyung's hair finally loosened when he found himself on the stable floor amongst scattered pieces of hay. The smell reminded Taehyung of home and he couldn't help but to wonder if his parents would ever find out what had happened to their children.

Getting up onto his knees, he looked at Jung-Ji. He felt empty.

"Now. This is your last chance to tell me where Mi-Cha is." His voice was cold and the kind that would take no nonsense.

Taehyung looked down to the floor, already knowing it wouldn't make any difference what he said. Jung-Ji was out for blood.

"I don't know where my sister is. I have never known where my sister is because I told her not to tell me. So you can torture me all you like, I'll never be able to tell you." Taehyung didn't really care if he were provoking him because Jung-Ji had already decided what was going to happen, irrespective of his words.

He nodded coldly and the man who had dragged Taehyung to the stables grabbed his hands and tied them together in front of him with rough movements. The rope stung on his already sore wrists.

"What's another few marks, eh? Looks like you've had plenty of fun last night..." His eyes travelled, disgusted, over Taehyung's body, over every single loving mark as if defaming them.

"You do realise that he is just playing with you, don't you? He likes little playthings and once he is done with them, he throws them away." He voice was so mean that for a moment Taehyung believed him and nearly cried at the pain threatening his heart. That was before he remembered who they were and what they had -he would never forget JungKook's words of love and would always believe them until the day he died.

Jung-Ji's man pushed Taehyung over a fat stump, attaching his tied arms onto a metal hoop on the other side and walked to the wall where there was a whip hanging, waiting to be used.

*

Hae-Won knew she wouldn't have long. She knew how Jeon Jung-Ji was and for him to have reached that sort of state, he must have been furious. Furious never ended well.

Had she not liked Taehyung, Hae-Won would have erred on the side of caution and let things run their course. But Taehyung was sweet, kind, considerate and what they had with JungKook was real, anyone could see that. Some of that sweetness and kindness had already leaked into JungKook, already after such a short time: he was the softest and happiest she had ever seen him. For him, that was saying a lot.

So she climbed on a horse and rode like the wind to find JungKook.

The second JungKook saw Hae-Won's face, she didn't even have to say a word, he was already on the horse and on his way back, horror painted on his beautiful face at the thought of something bad happening to Taehyung.

*

When the first strike hit, Taehyung thought his back had broken in two. The sharp pain shook him from side to side and top to bottom but it was so bad, he couldn't even tell which way it ran.

He felt the tears burning in his eyes and he felt the drips of blood but he refused to cry. He wouldn't give the man the satisfaction.

"You do realise that this isn't going to stop until you tell me, Taehyung?" his voice was close, speaking almost directly into his ear. He pretended to wince at the wound on his naked back and chuckled. "I somehow doubt if you're going to be able to take many more of those, little Taehyung..."

He nodded ever so slightly and the man hit again. This time Taehyung knew what was coming and he sunk into it, tried to absorb it and redirect the pain but it wasn't working. He sobbed.

Jung-Ji wasn't even asking anymore, it felt more like a punishment rather than an interrogation.

Just when the arm rose for the third strike, Taehyung heard angry voices outside. He closed his eyes, preparing for impact, not knowing if he could take a third hit, when a loud "STOP!" echoed in the room and JungKook ran in.

The whip landed, but not on Taehyung.

All Taehyung could hear was "Sorrysorrysorrysorrysorry..." chanted into his ear and he felt tears falling down his cheek even though he wasn't the one crying. JungKook hovered over him, not knowing where to put his hands so as to avoid hurting Taehyung but at the same time wanting to hold him desperately.

With shaking fingers, he undid the ropes and for the second time that day, he kissed Taehyung's sore wrists gently, apologising.

Slowly, as if carrying a precious baby, JungKook lifted Taehyung into his arms and took him to his chambers.

As gently as humanly possible, he placed Taehyung on the bed face down and cleaned and dressed his wounds with the help of Hae-Won. He took some time to pack a few things and asked Hae-Won to get some food for them to take with.

"You're back. I missed you." Taehyung smiled brightly at JungKook and turned to say hello before the excruciating pain stopped him.

"Hey, don't move. This is not the time to joke, petal, you are so badly hurt." His eyes glimmered with tears. "And yes I'm back... and I'm never going away again." He stroked Taehyung's hair with regret deep in his eyes.

"I'm so sorry Taehyung, so, so sorry. I should have been here to protect you. This is my fault."

"Please don't say that. It's ok, you're here now. I love you." JungKook could see so much love in Taehyung's eyes, it made his heart ache.

"I love you too." JungKook said, hesitating a little, considering... so hoping that Taehyung would feel the same. He braved it and said:

"We're leaving." His words not much louder than a whisper, his heart beating out of his chest.

"Where do you want to go?" Taehyung asked, as if already realising the enormity of the question.

"Anywhere, I'll go anywhere with you." JungKook answered.

*** The End***

🌷🔥✨🐰💖🐯✨🔥🌷

The gorgeous, beautiful, wonderful, incredibly talented Humanlouvre @HMNLVR created this marvellous piece of art after the story left such an impression on her. I'm so incredibly happy I don't even have words to say how much it means to have this artwork produced from my own words.

It depicts the scene exactly how I imagined it! What about you?

In 2022, Humanlouvre also created an illustration for another fic of mine which was inspired by her art, Hold Me Now (Beware the Double Bunny). In case you want to go and have a look!