Chapter 39

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Jungkook sighed as he slowly sat down in the bathtub, the heat soothing his sore muscles. Today had been a weird day. He was sick but Taehyung was taking care of him. They had finally named that poor cat and Taehyung had made food that was actually good, and especially good considering how little experience he had cooking.

But probably the weirdest part of the day had been how clingy Taehyung seemed. He hadn't really noticed at first because of how tired he had been but it was 9 in the evening now and Jungkook couldn't even remember one second that Taehyung had left his side. Instead he had been next to Jungkook all day. Not too close, but seemingly constantly alert. That had been the most noticeable though when Jungkook had order some black bean noodles and Taehyung had been practically glued to his back when Jungkook opened the door.

Since he really had no clue what Taehyung had been doing but wanted to know and didn't want to ask Tae, he ended up messaging Jimin just to ask whether he had an idea. The answer had been... something oddly sweet but at the same time confusing. At least if Jimin was right with the reason for Taehyung's behavior.

Jimin
I think he's guarding you

Jimin
You know the environment in the ocean is quite harsh

Jimin
Siren's don't get hurt easily but usually when someone in your group is hurt the other person stays by their side to protect them

Jimin
From anything that could be harmful really

Jimin
I think we established Taehyung likes you so maybe he's doing it unconsciously

Jungkook was really lucky that Taehyung couldn't read because it allowed him to actually talk to Jimin about Taehyung even when Taehyung was sitting right next to him. But yeah apparently whatever Taehyung had been doing was a good sign.

Even when it was a little uncomfortable when Taehyung just wouldn't let him take his bath in peace. Instead, he was sitting by the edge of the bathtub, playing with one of the bath bombs Jungkook still hadn't used up. He kept dipping it into the water, watching it dissolve before pulling it back out.

"Isn't it kinda uncomfortable on the floor?" Jungkook tried. "You don't have to sit here and wait for me to finish my bath..."

Jungkook felt odd with how many mixed emotions he had around Taehyung now. This weird combination of fondness, comfortableness, uncomfortableness and fear was really not something he was used to. On one hand he wanted to close his eyes and just nap a little in the bathtub, because the water was warm and the soft tapping of Taehyung's claw against the ceramic of the bathtub was oddly soothing, but on the other hand he was too aware of how close that claw was to his leg and he felt like he had to make sure Taehyung was comfortable too.

Jungkook was about to let out a sigh of relief when Taehyung got up from the floor because he expected him to leave, but he didn't. Instead Jungkook watched him as he pulled his t-shirt over his head and then pulled both his sweatpants and underwear down. Jungkook quickly averted his eyes, because the siren still didn't seem to care at all about nudeness but Jungkook did.

He startled when he felt Taehyung step into the bathtub. This had not been what Jungkook had meant at all. He had wanted to take a bath in peace! Not take a bath with Taehyung in the bathtub. That wasn't comfortable and peaceful at all.

Taehyung totally knew what he was doing though. It was pretty damn clear from the amused smile on his lips as he turned around before sitting down between Jungkook's legs. All Jungkook could do was let out an exasperated sigh, not even nervous anymore when Taehyung got this close into his personal space. He already knew that Taehyung was okay with the two of them touching now.

Jungkook felt Taehyung properly settle between his legs before leaning back against Jungkook's chest like Jungkook was a personal pillow.

"Better."

Taehyung totally knew what he was doing. Jungkook was good enough at reading Taehyung's tone now that he could tell that to some extent Taehyung was teasing him.

Yet he couldn't help but wonder whether sirens really weren't bothered by nudeness and body contact like this... after all they were nude all the time in a way. Maybe they didn't have their dick out and swinging about but they still didn't have any clothes underwater.

Maybe Taehyung was teasing him because of how stupid humans' issues around nudeness were. Whether they were nude or not, it really didn't make much of a difference to Taehyung... probably. Unlike Jungkook who was just a little sexually confused by the very attractive naked man sitting between his legs, that he was not quite attracted to.

"I swear to god you can't just do that." Jungkook whined, dropping his head against the edge of the bathtub.

"Why?" Taehyung was totally teasing him. It was more than evident in his voice. Jungkook really didn't have any doubt about it anymore.

"Because this is my bathtub and I was the one taking a bath... and it's not normal to just bathe together." Jungkook tried to reason, already knowing full well that he wasn't going to get Taehyung to leave either way.

"I let you join me last time." Taehyung stretched out his legs and Jungkook couldn't help but swallow a little at the clean white skin of Taehyung's legs. He couldn't see a single leg hair... siren magic. "It's only fair."

Jungkook would have reasoned that last time it had also been Taehyung who had wanted Jungkook to join, but he knew it would lead absolutely nowhere, so instead he just sighed defeatedly.

"Okay... just this once."

Taehyung hummed, leaning his head against Jungkook's chest and letting his body slip a little deeper into the water. For a second Jungkook wondered what he was doing but then he realized when Taehyung placed his legs on the edge of the bathtub. He was going to shift even with Jungkook in the bathtub.

"Wait Taehyung!" To Jungkook's relief Taehyung's movement stopped and he glanced up at Jungkook. God it was weird to have Taehyung look at him like that, leaning against him. It felt too intimate. As if there was something either sexual or romantic going on between the two of them and Jungkook really didn't know how to feel about that.

"If you shift in here with me you'll for sure hurt my legs..."

He watched as Taehyung glanced down to Jungkook's legs on either side of him, before muttering a soft. "I'm careful."

Before Jungkook got another chance to protest, Taehyung's legs changed and Jungkook got to watch the transformation for what he was pretty sure was the first time. For some reason he expected it to be something either quick or kinda rough looking, but it was the opposite.

Taehyung didn't just grow scales. Instead the skin of his legs slowly turned darker like the one of his arms and his legs started shifting form fluidly. Jungkook felt oddly reminded of that time Taehyung had shown him how he could control and form water. It was quite similar to that. The scales were the last thing to appear. Slowly forming from what had been previously skin and growing both glossy and harder.

Jungkook barely ever got the chance to look at them this closely so he did this time. He could feel the slow expansion of Taehyung"s chest as he breathed and his heartbeat against his chest... and for some reason even though Taehyung's skin was incredibly tough from his experience... it felt more than soft against his skin. Warm and soft.

Even his skin was a perfect mirror image of Taehyung's character. Dangerous and tough, but soft and inviting to the touch. Jungkook wondered whether he was going to continue seeing more soft Taehyung now or if scary Taehyung was going to make his return soon.

"Considering how dangerous your scales are, they are really beautiful." Jungkook muttered, still taking in the spot where the skin of Taehyung's toned stomach melted into his strong tail. It was not a straight line at all. Instead it was a gradual change that started earlier in some areas and later in others.

Jungkook wanted to reach out and try the skin with his fingers to find whether it was going to be rough or soft like Taehyung's back. As if sensing that Jungkook's fingers were itching to touch Taehyung spoke up.

"If you're careful you can touch them and not cut yourself."

Jungkook still hesitated. He remembered that night when they had cut into his skin. The cut on his finger had been quite deep. He really didn't know if touching was the best idea. Taehyung took the choice from him though when he grabbed Jungkook's hand and led it to his scales.

Luckily he didn't force Jungkook's hand down on his tail though and instead let go right above it. Jungkook was so torn between curiosity and being aware of how dangerous those scales were... just like Taehyung's claws, that had actually just been right on his hand but hadn't done anything to him.

Maybe it really wasn't that dangerous as long as he was careful and Taehyung had no ill intentions. At least for now it seemed like Taehyung was merely being nice to Jungkook by letting him feed his curiosity. After all Jungkook was intrigued by what Taehyung was. More than intrigued actually.

The fact that Taehyung was siren was fucking cool. Jungkook really would have appreciated it more if they had had a bit of a better start, but Jungkook still got really excited every time he realized that he had a real siren in his home. One that was even more badass than the stories he had heard.

With his water powers, healing and strength Taehyung was just as cool as he was intimidating.

Jungkook smiled a little when he felt the surface of Taehyung's scales under his fingers. It was a little rough, which wasn't really surprising given how matte it was and warm. That was probably what surprised him the most. Jungkook hadn't expected for it to feel warm. After all, fish were usually kind of coldish, but Taehyung's tail felt warm. Not as warm as the hot water in the bathtub but warm.

Jungkook carefully placed his hand flat on Taehyung's tail and moved it with the direction that his scales grew. Just from this he really wouldn't have been able to tell how easily those scales could cut into the flesh when they were moving in the right direction.

For a second he wondered if maybe this was weird. Sitting here touching Taehyung's tail like this... but then he realized that he was sitting in the bathtub naked with Taehyung between his legs and came to the conclusion that this was already way past weird and whether Jungkook was touching Taehyung's tail or not was not going to be the decisive point.

"This is really cool, not going to lie." Jungkook finally admitted before slowly pulling his hand away, careful not to cut himself. He also focused back on not moving his legs because he could feel Taehyung's tail against his lower leg and he really didn't want to risk any injuries there either. It was as Taehyung had said. As long as they were both careful it wasn't really likely for Jungkook to hurt himself.

They sat there in silence for a bit. The bath was helping a lot with the coldness Jungkook felt like, but at the same time he could feel himself grow a little dizzier because of the heat. Tiredly he let himself slip a little lower conscious of every single movement his legs did as he did.

Taehyung's ashen hair was there right in front of him, close enough for Jungkook to feel some brush against his nose. If there was one thing Jungkook really liked about Taehyung it was his scent. His looks were mesmerizing but also scary, his voice just the same, his tail and claws quite terrifying and his character... well... Jungkook couldn't say he didn't like it, but he knew to be careful even now that they had become a little closer.

But Taehyung's scent was something Jungkook could appreciate even without acknowledging the issues of his and Taehyung's relationship. He smelled like the ocean. Like the mix of salt and a warm breeze. If that could even be called a scent. It just perfectly captured this perfect holiday break scene...

For a second Jungkook allowed himself to close his eyes and just relax. Imagine he was somewhere in a different country lying on the beach, surrounded by the ocean and the soft sound of waves crashing against the beach. Sunshine on his face and seagulls shrieking in the distance.

It brought him comfort... he really needed a break. He had for a while now. To just enjoy himself and not worry about possibly dying or pissing off Taehyung for a couple of days.

And he was going to get that. Taehyung was going to leave soon. And Jungkook was both relieved and sad at the same time.

He let out a sigh. If Taehyung was going to leave soon... Jungkook was going to properly take his break. Just enjoy himself for a bit and finally get the space he had been deprived of these last months. But he was also going to tell Taehyung to come back. Before that moment he hadn't been sure, but sitting there in the bathtub... Jungkook wanted Taehyung to come back.

Maybe it was dumb, but it was his decision. He hadn't felt comfortable these last few months, but right then and there... he actually felt somewhat safe. Not completely because Taehyung's tail was a danger in itself, but Jungkook... didn't feel threatened by Taehyung.

Really hadn't the whole day actually.

He still got confused by Taehyung's behavior and maybe got a little paranoid sometimes. But he hadn't sensed any malice from Taehyung for a while now. Taehyung was really just being... nice to him. Playful maybe, but Jungkook liked that. Way more than the serious but scary siren he had met at first.

It felt like Taehyung was opening up a little to him in a sense.

And Jungkook wanted to let Taehyung in too. But he couldn't do that if these were going to be the last few days they would spend together.

Jungkook stared at Taehyung's shoulders and a dumb idea bubbled up in his mind. Just because of the last time he had been sitting in a bathtub like this with someone.

"Have you ever had someone massage your shoulders?" Jungkook curiously asked, shifting his foot a little. He felt it scrape Taehyung's tail and god damn it that hurt a bit. Still he simply ignored it. He could live with a small scratch.

"No."

Jungkook wondered whether Taehyung's hour long television sessions had told him what massaging was but Jungkook was just going to give a quick summary either way.

"It's something humans do to get rid of any tensions. Because the muscles in our shoulders get harder when we're stressed or not sitting right and so on. I don't know if it even works the same way for siren's but from experience, it can feel really good." Jungkook explained, a little frustrated because he couldn't see Taehyung's expression and reaction to what he was saying.

"Are you okay with me trying to massage you?" He eventually asked, just accepting that he couldn't see Taehyung's face to keep track of his mood all the time. Actually, that had to stop if Jungkook wanted to try and be more comfortable with Taehyung. He had to stop being so careful and on edge.

To his relief Taehyung nodded, sitting up a little. Maybe he had seen massages in movies before. Once again Jungkook grew aware of just how naked they both were as he watched the way Taehyung's muscular back beautifully curved all way down to where his ass usually would have been but now the tail started.

Jungkook was really glad that he was mostly desensitized to pretty boys and didn't just spring a boner every time he saw Taehyung naked, because that would have made things a lot more awkward.

Slowly he placed his hands on Taehyung's shoulders to make sure he wouldn't startle the siren, before carefully kneading them. Jungkook had messaged a bunch of people all throughout his life. His parents used to ask him to, he massaged Minji whenever she had had a rough day at uni, he'd even massaged his cousin when he had some problems with a sore shoulder, but Jungkook never felt shoulders like Taehyung's before.

For one they were clearly strong, which really wasn't the weird part. The weird part that even with all the muscles that Jungkook could easily feel under his hands... his shoulders were completely soft. Like Taehyung had never had a single muscular tension before. His shoulders were as relaxed as they could be and Jungkook couldn't help but wonder whether that had something to do that Taehyung just never had a reason to be stressed or if it had something to do with his siren nature.

That was actually a good question. Did Taehyung have something that made him nervous or scared him?

"Your shoulders are really soft." Jungkook continued the massage nevertheless because it could be comfortable either way. "You don't have to answer if you don't want to, but I'm kind of curious. Do you have anything you're scared of?"

For a while they sat there in complete silence and Jungkook was almost worried that maybe Taehyung did not want to answer, when he finally spoke up.

"I'm scared of Jimin getting hurt."

Taehyung finally answered and for some reason that did something to Jungkook's heart. Taehyung's first thought was his brother... that was the one thing he was worried about. Not something that was about him... no it was his worry about someone else.

As scary as Taehyung was and as dangerous as he might have been to humans, Yoongi had been right. Sirens and humans were completely different, but that didn't mean that siren's were bad just because they killed humans.

Taehyung was someone that deeply cared about his brother. Someone that liked some things and didn't like others. Someone that was full of pride and didn't want to show weaknesses. Taehyung had all these human qualities that made him so much more than just a scary monster.

This was what had been so confusing for Jungkook the last few months. Trying to balance these two sides of Taehyung. But those weren't really two sides. Taehyung didn't just switch between "This is a siren. I need to be nice to siren." and "This is a human. Need to be mean to human.". Taehyung wasn't switching.

Taehyung just had the people he cared for and felt the urge to protect and he had the people that didn't mean anything to him. And he treated them just like that. They just really meant absolutely nothing to him. He had no morals that told him to treat them with a certain level of niceness like humans had. Instead he just viewed them as food when he needed food and when he was not hungry they were just nothing.

And as little as Jungkook could understand not having these morals of not wanting to kill... this was something he could work with. This was something he understood. He didn't have to worry about Taehyung suddenly switching from viewing Jungkook as something friend-like to just food.

Taehyung had always been straightforward with him. Jungkook had always known where he had stood. There was a clear difference in the way Taehyung treated him now in comparison to how he had right in the beginning.

The Taehyung Jungkook was working with now was the same Taehyung Jimin and Yoongi saw. Not a scary creature, even if theoretically he still was. Taehyung was treating Jungkook with the same respect he was treating Jimin... even if that was not a lot based on the few interactions Jungkook had seen before. Well, Taehyung did respect Jimin but it was easy to tell they were both stubborn and easily got into fights.

"But Jimin's strong just like you... how could he get hurt?" Jungkook asked, running one of his hands over Taehyung's neck while he continued working Taehyung's shoulder with the other one.

"Yoongi is weak... he's human."

Jungkook remembered what Jimin and Yoongi had told him. About how Yoongi wasn't going to age as long as he was with Jimin, but how he was still a lot more vulnerable to injuries than Jimin. And how if Yoongi were to die Jimin would die as well.

It was just as sad as romantic. But Jungkook understood why Taehyung was worried. He had opened up to Jungkook about how the ocean was lonely and he had only found his brother again after centuries without him. Jungkook could only imagine how horrible losing him would be.

"I'm sure Jimin will protect him with all he has." Jungkook reassured, running his fingers over Taehyung's neck, before tiredly closing his eyes and dropping his head on Taehyung's shoulder. He was so fucking tired and dizzy. He was pretty sure his fever was picking up again, since it was getting late.

Taehyung hummed, before bringing his clawed hand up to pat Jungkook's head. The touch was oddly calming in a way.

"Your heart is beating really quickly... you need sleep." Taehyung muttered and Jungkook could only agree. He felt fucking tired. He was pretty sure he could have fallen asleep on the spot if he wanted.

"This is going to sound dumb, but I really don't want to dry off. It's too cold outside of the bathtub." Jungkook chuckled, moving away from Taehyung to throw his head back in exasperation. "I wanna sleep in here but the water will get cold and then I'll just get more sick."

He could feel Taehyung move a little and almost got a heart attack when he felt something touch his leg quite roughly, but it was normal skin. Taehyung had changed back, without Jungkook noticing. Jungkook watched in confusion as Taehyung got up and stepped out of the bathtub. He was still buttnaked but Jungkook barely noticed just blankly watching Taehyung as he dried himself off.

Jungkook was really fucking tired considering he stared a hole into Taehyung's dick for good ten seconds and didn't even consciously see what he was staring at.

"Get up." Taehyung ordered and Jungkook felt like whining. He'd just said he didn't want to get out of the bathtub. He just wanted to close his eyes and sleep finally. The room outside wasn't nearly as warm as his bath and he didn't have the energy to dry himself off.

Yet he ended up following what Taehyung told him, well aware that he couldn't sleep in the bathtub.

As expected the air was a lot cooler than the bathwater and Jungkook could feel goosebumps all over his body, but before he could complain Taehyung wrapped the towel around him. Jungkook admittedly had no idea what to say, even less when Taehyung simply started patting the towel against his body to dry him off.

He didn't make any jokes or tease Jungkook. Instead he just made Jungkook turn around so he could get most of his body dry before grabbing Jungkook's arms and forcing him to sit down on the edge of the bathtub. Jungkook just did what he was told, at a bit of a loss for words.

Even though Taehyung was still using his claws instead of changing them into hands Jungkook barely noticed. Taehyung didn't hurt him in any way. Just helped him rub his hair dry for a bit before handing Jungkook his clothes. Jimin had been right. What Taehyung was doing... what he had been doing all day, was take care of Jungkook.

And Jungkook felt that tug at his heartstrings just a tiny little bit.

A/N

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I just wanna hug them but I already know neither would let me hug them😂 So I will just look forward to them hugging instead 😖

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