(Y/N) POV:

When Myungsoo oppa speaks, it's like experiencing the pain and agony all over again, heart shredding itself with the loss of Hye-Sun unnie, the wound once again fresh in my heart.

One of my hands are tightly clutched in oppa's and the other is fisted and the other is pressing hard down on my chest as though the pressure will somehow ease the pain, lessen it slightly.

The grip of Myungsoo oppa's hand in my own is grounding me, reminding me that he is well, he's not in that dark place anymore, he's not victim to the shadows of the mental spiral where he'd been able to speak for a long time. He's fine. I'm fine.

"I'm sorry you had to go through that, but I'm glad you had each other to help you get through it." Jinnie oppa speaks up, voice sounding so sad but his words ring true. So true.

"Are you in pain oppa?" I ask, voice low so as not to bring attention to myself, but in the silence of the room, my whisper carries.

"Yes..." he breathes, not hiding that the fact that his mark is flaring up with iron-hot flames of grief. I'm glad he's not long since stopped hiding it from me. That on the date of her death, his mark tears him apart. It's another reason why he spends most of the day as Soo-ah.

I hurry to guide him to lie on his stomach, healing energy thrumming under my fingertips.

"Joonie oppa, Hobi oppa, could you hold his sweater up please?" I ask, and both hurry to my side, hands pinning up his sweater upto the plane of his shoulders.

I wince when I see how angry and irritated the mark looks.

The mark is a deep maroon, I know the darker the mark foes from red, the deeper the pain. It looks like its been scoured into his skin, burnt into his flesh.

I press my hands to the centre of his mark, a pair of beautiful angel wings which spread across the entire pane of his back. But he's hurting right now. I can feel the healing energy rush out from beneath my fingers, a soft cool sensation as it seeks to soothe oppa who is heated and feverish.

I spread my hands outwards, gently tracing them across each elegant curve of his mark, allowing the energy to flow through me without restraint- my only intent is to heal, if I end up absorbing his pain to do so, then so be it.

It's a slow careful movement of hands and eventually I can feel his muscles slacken under my touch and then relax.

"Sleep oppa." I whisper, words also carrying the rush of healing magic, words carrying him off into a slumber.

And when he closes his eyes, eyelashes fluttering before coming to a rest, it is only then that I turn to face my soulmates.

JOON POV:

I feel a surge of pride well up inside me at the sight of our strong, caring soulmate looking after her friend, helping him before she turns to us.

The way her body unconsciously acts like a shield for him, body tilting to cover him from view. Its natural, an instinct to protect him when he's in such a weakened state. It brings tears of both sorrow and pride to my eyes.

She has been shouldering such a huge thing on her shoulders, small dainty shoulders which whilst they look fragile are strong and firm in carrying such a burden. She is my living reminder and a constant example that people can always continue to surprise you, that you should never judge someone according to their appearance.

I look at her and see a fighter. I see a survivor.

"We're so proud of you baby." I say, pulling her into a hug, drawing her into my arms to soothe her own frazzled nerves and tell her over and over that I'll never stop being proud, I'll never stop being awed by her.

"So, so proud." Jin hyung echoes but the others press in close, their presences speaking for themselves in the way their eyes also beam with pride and mouths that don't tire from smiling.

But whilst hugging her, I feel her body almost imperceptibly flinch and I'm sure I didn't imagine the sound of a strangled whimper, muffled before it is swallowed.

I lean back, alarmed, eyes widening as I scan (Y/N)'s face for any signs of distress, hurt or pain. I don't see any but I still need to confirm.

"You're in pain." And the words sound like a statement which is when I realise it's the truth, a fact that has been stated.

Her eyes slide away from my own and I realise the gleam I saw in them earlier wasn't tears or relief. It was pain. A silent cry that I had overlooked.

She doesn't deny the words, which means its true.

I feel our soulmates turn in alarm, and their voices coming out in hushed urgency.

She clutches at her head, eyes going out of focus slightly.

"Please stop." She whimpers. I realise yet another time, that I never want to hear that sound from her again. I never want her to be in pain.

The voices hush and then before anything else can happen, two pale arms shoot out to gently grasp (Y/N) and shift her into his hold. Yoongi hyung.

"She can stay with me; my room is the quietest." His words brook no argument, they're firm but lowered for the sake of (Y/N). And without another word, takes her and leaves the room.

And we are only left gaping, wondering what had just happened.

YOONGI POV:

I set down (Y/N) gently, her eyes have slid shut but the furrow between her brows remain, she's still in pain even though she's asleep. And I wish I could take it away. I quietly get into bed next to her, adjusting myself so her head is burrowed into my chest.

As I draw the blankets over us, I start humming a soft tune, one that I'd been taught is gentle on the ears and is soothing to the soul. I just hope it does the same for her. Whilst I hum, I begin to smile when I realise that the tension in her body vanishes, the stiffness in her body is gone and she loosens, body now relaxed and curling further into me. I don't stop humming until I can see the pain from her face disappear and only soft exhales leave her mouth. I gently draw my hand through her hair, sifting through the strands slowly, leisurely until the movement sends me to sleep- a hand pressing lightly at the base of her head.

----

When I wake, it's to a dazzling smile and joyous eyes that look at me, at some point during the night, we've shifted so our faces our close, her head tilted up towards mine, and our legs have entangled.

But I only get to see her face for a brief moment before she's pressing a soft kiss to the tip of my nose and sliding out of bed quickly, leaving me stumped at what had just happened. The soft pressure and light fluttery movement, somehow still lingering, alerting my half-awake mind that it did in fact happen and I didn't imagine it.

I sluggishly get to my feet, staggering out of bed to dart after our teasing soulmate, the little peck she left before vanishing somehow filling me with energy, energy I usually lack in the mornings before a cup of coffee.

I see the end of her legs darting through the bathroom and just as she's about to slide the door shut, I slip in behind her, meeting her crinkled eyes in the mirror with my own which glare at her- but even I know there's no heat behind the glare.

"You look like a cross kitty when you do that." She calls, still meeting my eyes before she grabs her toothbrush. I huff before striding over to pluck my own out and gently nudge her to the side with my hip.

Washing up in the morning with her is a new experience, one I'm glad to be awake for. Somehow, even in the morning she's so expressive and open. Something I realised we had been denied of in the time she was avoiding us.

This was who she was.

Someone who hummed whilst she brushed her teeth, who wore oversized t-shirts to bed and left her hair open at night. She was someone who always put on a soft headband before washing her face and liked placing her toiletries on the right side. This was our soulmate. This was who we had been waiting for.

I didn't realise I was smiling at her, waiting for her to finish drying her face but then her eyes met mine curiously.

"What?" she asked, head tilted to the side.

She was also someone who reminded me of a baby kit.

"Nothing." I replied, shaking my head at her, and turning to leave with her to go to the bathroom.

But just before she stepped off the last step of the stairs, I turned to face her.

"Would you come with me to the studio today?" I ask, soft and low.

Her face first breaks open into a smile that tentatively tugs at her lips until it lights up her face and she's beaming.

"I'd love to."

I lean forward, brushing my lips slowly, lingeringly on her forehead.

----

"Come on Yoongi oppa." She laughs as she drags me along behind her, giggling at my attempts to slow down and walk slowly.

Taking her to my studio was letting her in. Letting her see a deep, private part of myself. Somewhere where my thoughts and emotions became creations, where the buzzing of my mind materialised into beats and lyrics. Where my soul became expressed into the music I created.

Letting her in meant, I was willing and ready to show her my vulnerabilities, let her see where I broke down and rebuilt myself up. It was sharing with her, a part of me.

I couldn't get out of my head, the look of rapt concentration as I tried to explain the different equipment, the way frustration to label them melted out to happiness and sheer joy when she and I listened to my latest work, somehow the lyrics and beat speaking to her far more easily than I ever could verbalise my feelings. And then the look of softness and understanding as she turned to me, eyes shining bright and silently told me how much she loved it, how much she knew it meant to me.

"Let me lock the door at least." I huff, amused at her eagerness to get back home.

She didn't listen, hand still tugging at my own and then I pulled her back, into me watching as the joy wiped off her face to give place to shock.

I pulled the door shut, hearing it click with the automated lock before my hands were tugging at her waist, pulling her to stand flush to my chest, smiling at the way a soft rosy blush crept onto her face.

"What's the hurry kit? We've got all the time in the world together." I breathe watching as her eyes flutter slightly and her breath catch. But I can't wait any longer. Not for this.

And I slide my hands to cup her face, fingers sliding across her jaw in a slow caress bringing her face to tilt upwards. I can hear her heart thud loudly, hear the way her breath catches slightly, and the way her pulse at her neck throbs violently.

But all I can see is her.

And then I'm lowering my lips down to meet her own, slowly brushing them against hers.

(Y/N) POV:

Yoongi's lips are a soft plush pressure on my own, both firm and gentle as they slide over mine. I lean into the kiss, tilting my head upwards in a silent plea. His lips tease me, slowly and carefully exploring my own, sliding over mine before he slowly grasps my bottom between his lips and sucks at it, the pressure randomly alternating from soft and gentle to harsh suckling that causes me to whimper. He laves his tongue over my lip, the caress leaving tingles behind and then suddenly nips at my lip with his teeth, a sudden sharp sting which he then seeks to soothe over with soft kitten licks. I groan into his mouth, mouth parting slightly. And his tongue darts in, breaching past my now swollen lips as he caresses the inside of my mouth, guiding my tongue to meet his own in a heated tangle. Each movement of his tongue is slow, purposeful, and deliberate, each sweep and stroke of his tongue leaving me breathless and gasping. Sounds which he swallows up by pressing further into me, mouth claiming me as his. His tongue slowly retreats, lips now meeting my own in hurried, urgent pecks that are demanding and cause me to lean into him, body pressing further as an attempt to get closer, closer.

I can't help the small whimper that leaves my throat when he parts but the look in his eyes causes the sound to fade. His eyes are blown wide, deep as they bore into me, his lips are glistening and swollen, and his throat is bobbing.

He's looking at me like I'm the only thing he can see. His look is so intense that I just feel a rush of love flood me and even after looking at his dilated pupils and parted lips and knowing that we did that. It makes me feel like I'm home, I belong.

I tilt my head so I can press a soft kiss to the inside of his wrist, on the blue veins I can see under his pale skin. And in that soft kiss I tell him thanks and try to convey how I'm feeling.

----

Walking back home is like floating on a cloud, my feet don't seem to touch the ground and I can't stop darting glances at Yoongi oppa, the high of his cheekbones are dusted with a soft pink but in contrast with his fair skin, it catches my eye whenever I turn. Our hands are lightly brushing against each other's as we walk, soft touches that send sparks shooting up my arm and make my heart flutter. It's not an uncomfortable silence, more so the precious moments after kissing him that cause me to shoot covert glances as though I can't believe it was real. That he's real. Even from the side, his lips look swollen from the kiss we've just shared, a deep shade of rose that entice my eyes and make me wish we were still pressed against the studio door.

I flush at my own thoughts, eyes sliding away from him. Just then his hand is tugging at my own, a sudden harsh jerk that startles me out of my stupor.

I look at him in alarm but the look of content that mirrored my own has vanished, giving way to a steely pair of eyes, lips pressed tightly until they appear colourless and a set jaw. His feet have stilled and the same hand comes to tug me backwards until I'm standing next to him, my shoulder brushing against his chest.

I follow his line of vision, seeing what has caught his attention.

Standing in front of us, scantily dressed in clothes that seemed to squeeze every part of her body and almost project her out of them is Yuna.

Just the way I remember her vicious smile to look like, hair dyed to a copper shade which contrasts with the paleness of her skin. There's nothing humane on her face, the bright flash of teeth resembling fangs and the narrowing of her eyes so akin to a predatory gaze. This is a beast in human clothing. And even while I know I'm with Yoongi oppa, I can't help but fear what poison will slip through her vicious forked tongue.

"Yuna." Yoongi oppa speaks, the name coated with every shred of resentment and hate and anger he has for her.

But the sound of her name from her lips causes Yuna's eyes to light up like a kid's on Christmas Day. It's nauseating to see.

"Oppa, you haven't forgotten me." She croons but makes no move to close the reasonable distance between us. I narrow my eyes at the gap she's making no attempt to broach.

A feeling of unease stirs in my gut.

"How can I forget the thing behind the pain of my soulmates?" he spits.

I feel like recoiling from the venomous tone of his voice but his hand remains gentle and comforting by my side, a squeeze reassuring me, somehow sensing my discomfort.

"Oh, I bring pain?" she looks almost...affronted.

"What about the poison you're holding? What about the ugly past (Y/N) is hiding?" she drawls, each syllable striking fear in me.

And even though the pressure in my hand is soft and gentle. Even though they know I come from a broken past.

It doesn't make it hurt less. Because it comes from the mouth I least expected to know.

It comes from Yuna.

(TA DA! HATE ME, LOVE ME? WE HAD SOFT MOMENTS AND THEN THIS...GOSH! WHY DOES HAPPINESS SEEM SO FAR AWAY? IT'S LIKE SHE ONLY EXISTS TO BE A PAIN IN THE ASS BUT RIGHT NOW I'M FIGHTING THE URGE TO EITHER CLAW HER FACE OR JUST KILL HER ALREADY. URGH! ANYWAYS LOVELIES, LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THOUGHT! I LOVE HOW THE MAJORITY OF THE COMMENTS (WHICH HAVE NOW REACHED 4K?!!) ARE ABOUT HUNTING YUNA DOWN AND THE PROTECTION SQUAD FOR BABY (Y/N)- IT'S SO SWEET TO SEE ALL OF YOU SO INVESTED IN SAVING AND HELPING HER! YOU'RE ALL A BUNCH OF CUTIES PROTECTING A CUTIE! 79K AND 4K VOTES FROM THE BEST, MOST LOVELY READERS I COULD EVER WANT! THANK YOU! ALSO MANY OF YOU ASKED FOR THE NAME OF THE DRAMA THAT LOVELY MYUNGSOO IS IN AND THE PHOTOS ARE FROM... IT'S MEOW, THE SECRET BOY, IT'S ABOUT A CAT WHO CAN SHIFT INTO A HUMAN, IT JUST FINISHED AIRING A LITTLE WHILE AGO- I HAVEN'T FINISHED WATCHING IT BUT TOTALLY GO AHEAD AND WATCH! ALSO NO SPOILERS IF YOU HAVE FINISHED IT! SEE YOU ON THE OTHER SIDE, WITH A FUMING YOONGI!)

When you look in the mirror, never shy away from who you see!

Borahae! 💜💜💜

PurpleQueenie <3