The house was quiet that evening, the kind of stillness that almost felt heavy. Their parents had left after dinner, citing wedding preparations and last-minute details. The six of them were left to their own devices, scattered throughout the house in various states of relaxation.

Taehyung and Jungkook were sprawled on the living room floor, locked in a heated debate over a board game. Jimin sat cross-legged on the couch, occasionally chiming in with his opinion but mostly watching the chaos unfold with an amused smile.

Namjoon was tucked into a corner of the room, a book in his lap, though his attention frequently drifted to Seokjin, who was on a call with a wedding vendor.

And then there was Yoongi.

He sat by the window, his face half-hidden by the shadows, a cup of tea cooling in his hands. He’d barely spoken all evening, his gaze distant and unfocused. Jimin had noticed, of course—he always did.

“Hyung,” Jimin said softly, pulling Yoongi from his thoughts. “You okay?”

Yoongi blinked, then forced a faint smile. “Yeah. Just tired.”

Jimin didn’t look convinced, but he didn’t press. Instead, he moved to sit beside Yoongi, close enough that their shoulders almost touched. The proximity was comforting—more for Jimin than Yoongi, though neither would admit it aloud.

The quiet between them was interrupted by Taehyung’s dramatic groan.

“Jungkook, you’re cheating!”

Jungkook smirked, holding up a handful of Monopoly money. “I’m just better at strategy, hyung.”

“Better at lying, you mean,” Taehyung shot back, lunging for the fake bills.

Namjoon sighed, closing his book. “Can you two keep it down? Some of us are trying to have a moment of peace.”

“Peace is overrated,” Taehyung quipped, but he relented, flopping onto the floor in defeat.

Seokjin ended his call and joined them, his face flushed with mild annoyance. “The caterer is having a meltdown because we changed the menu last minute. Namjoon, why did we agree to have truffle risotto?”

“Because you insisted on it,” Namjoon replied dryly.

“Details,” Seokjin muttered, waving him off. “Anyway, how’s everyone doing?”

Taehyung gestured to the board game carnage on the floor. “Losing, thanks to Jungkook’s ‘strategy.’”

Jimin chuckled, the sound soft and warm. “Same as usual, then.”

As the conversation flowed, Yoongi found himself retreating further into his thoughts. The lively atmosphere should have been comforting, but it only reminded him of how out of place he felt. The laughter, the teasing—it was everything he used to cherish, but now it felt like a distant memory, something he couldn’t quite reach.

“Yoongi?”

Seokjin’s voice pulled him back. He looked up to find his older brother watching him with concern.

“You’ve been quiet all night,” Seokjin said gently. “Is everything okay?”

“I’m fine,” Yoongi replied automatically.

Seokjin’s gaze lingered, but he didn’t push. “If you need anything, just let me know, okay?”

Yoongi nodded, grateful for the reprieve.

As the night wore on, the group began to disperse. Taehyung and Jungkook retreated to their room, still bickering over the board game. Seokjin and Namjoon disappeared into the kitchen, likely discussing wedding logistics.

That left Jimin and Yoongi alone in the living room.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Jimin asked after a long silence.

“About what?” Yoongi replied, though his tone lacked any real curiosity.

“Whatever’s been bothering you.”

Yoongi hesitated, his fingers tightening around his cup. “It’s nothing.”

“Hyung,” Jimin said softly, “I know it’s not nothing. You don’t have to tell me everything, but… you can trust me, you know?”

Yoongi looked at him then, really looked at him. The sincerity in Jimin’s eyes was almost too much to bear. He wanted to open up, to let someone else share the weight he’d been carrying for so long. But the risk—it was too great.

“I appreciate it,” Yoongi said finally, his voice barely above a whisper. “But I’m fine. Really.”

Jimin didn’t look convinced, but he let it go, leaning back against the couch with a soft sigh.

“Okay,” he said quietly. “But I’m here if you ever change your mind.”

Yoongi nodded, though he wasn’t sure he believed it himself.

The house was dark and silent, save for the faint creak of the floorboards as Yoongi made his way to the library. Sleep had evaded him, as it often did, and the solitude of the library was the only thing that offered any semblance of peace.

He didn’t expect to find his father there.

The older man sat at the desk, a stack of papers in front of him. His expression was hard and cold, the same as it always was.

“Yoongi,” his father said without looking up.

Yoongi froze, his heart pounding. “I didn’t know you were still awake.”

His father finally looked at him, his gaze sharp. “Business doesn’t sleep. You’d do well to remember that.”

Yoongi said nothing, his hands curling into fists at his sides.

“Are you going to stand there all night?” his father asked, his tone laced with irritation.

“I was just—” Yoongi started, but his father cut him off.

“Go to bed, Yoongi. You’re useless to me if you can’t even function.”

The words hit like a punch to the gut, but Yoongi didn’t react. He’d heard them too many times before.

“Yes, sir,” he said quietly, turning to leave.

As he walked away, he could feel his father’s eyes on his back, a weight that pressed down on him even after he was out of sight.

In the darkness of his room, Yoongi sat on the edge of his bed, his hands trembling. The walls seemed to close in around him, the memories threatening to overwhelm him once more. The memories that have now become his nightmare.

And yet, despite it all, one thought kept rising to the surface—Jimin’s voice, soft and steady.

“You can trust me.”

Yoongi wasn’t sure he could. But for the first time in a long time, he wanted to try. He wanted to jimin. The reason unknown to even himself.

..................................