Taehyung thought that existing as a tiger for the last forty years had been hard, but it wasn't nearly as hard as trying to converse with Gemini. After Namjoon had seen the state of his shredded pants, he had left the two of them to talk while he ran off to grab Taehyung another pair. Gemini seemed slightly confused about why Taehyung couldn't do it, but didn't argue, especially not since Namjoon left her with a new selection of books to look at that needed to be shelved. Taehyung stood numbly alongside her while her eyes scanned the book jackets, picking up a book once she had found one she had liked.

'You've got to say something to her,' thought Taehyung as he stood watching her eyes thoughtfully read the book summary of the book in her hands.

Taehyung found though - that every time he tried to open his mouth to talk - he'd be immediately closing it. He couldn't help but think of Chan-mi every time he looked at Gemini. Chan-mi had been the last woman he'd been with and it had ended horribly. As Taehyung fought to keep images of her death from his mind, he lifted his head and made eye contact with Yoongi. Yoongi had sprawled back out on the sofa with his arms crossed across his chest. He was faking sleep; Taehyung having already caught him once cracking one eye open to look his way. Taehyung knew that Yoongi didn't trust him. That fact was as clear as day.

As Taehyung looked at Yoongi, he paled when he thought he spotted Sung-ho standing a few feet behind him; his lack of eyes not dispelling the fact that he was looking right at Taehyung with a twisted smile on his face. Taehyung closed his eyes for a moment as he moved to lean back against the bookshelf, trying to take slow breaths to steady himself.

"Hey, are you okay?"

Taehyung opened his eyes. Sung-ho was gone and instead Gemini's face was in front of his. She looked at him with her eyebrows narrowed in concern. She put aside the book that she had been looking at before reaching out a hand to gently put it on his forearm. The sudden touch jumped him, causing her to look even more concerned. Sure he had hugged Namjoon and leaned on him for support once already, but he still wasn't used to being touched human-to-human anymore.

"You look like you've seen a ghost or something," continued Gemini. "You look super pale. How about you try sitting down?"

Taehyung nodded his head as Gemini kept her gentle grip on his arm, helping him to sit down on the floor. She moved to crouch down in front of him, pressing the back of her other hand to his forehead.

"You don't feel like you have a fever or anything," said Gemini. "Maybe you're overheated. I can go get you some water..."

Taehyung began to panic. Gemini was about to walk away and who knew if she would walk too far away and cause him to turn back into a tiger right in Yoongi's view. Just as Gemini was about to move away, Taehyung reached out a hand to gently grab a hold of her wrist.

"No...I'm fine. Stay?..."

Gemini paused as she looked at him before nodding.

"Are you sure you're okay though?"

Taehyung quickly nodded his head. Gemini looked at him for a moment more before moving to sit down beside him on the ground. Taehyung could tell that Gemini was still looking over at him, but he didn't know what to say. He put his hands in his lap, looking down at his fingers as the silence stretched between them. It felt so foreign to him to have his fingers back; a blessing that would be taken away from him again the moment Gemini left.

"You don't speak very much, do you?" asked Gemini finally as Taehyung lifted his head to look over at her before shaking it.

"Why not?"

"I...I worry about saying stupid," he admitted with a blush tinting his pale cheeks.

"Look, I'll let you in on a secret," said Gemini, pretending to drop her voice to a whisper even though she wasn't. "Yoongi says stupid things all the time, and yet he still talks."

Taehyung cracked a small grin; the grin growing a touch wider when the not-actually-sleeping Yoongi shouted out from where he laid on the sofa, "I HEARD THAT!"

Gemini chuckled and Taehyung felt his heart skip a beat hearing that beautiful laugh.

"The point I'm trying to make is that - even if what you say is stupid - it doesn't mean it's the end of the world. Besides, if I'm working here, I'd like to get to know a fellow co-worker. You are a co-worker, right?"

Taehyung nodded his head even if that was technically a lie. Gemini gave him a soft smile, moving to pat his knee.

"Say it?"

"Ye-yes," Taehyung got out as Gemini's smile remained on her cherry blossom pink lips.

"Who knows...maybe you and I will even become friends, Tae," said Gemini.

Before either of them could continue their conversation, both of them looked down the aisle as Namjoon reappeared with a pair of pants in his hands.

"Sorry it took me a moment. I was having a hard time..."

What Namjoon was saying died out as he looked at Gemini and Taehyung sitting beside each other on the ground. Even though Taehyung was better than he had been a few minutes ago, he was still pale.

"Taehyung, are you alright?" asked Namjoon,

Taehyung was going to nod his head - but remembering the conversation that he had just had with Gemini - moved to reply instead.

"I'm fine," Taehyung said. "Thanks for the pants..."

Namjoon nodded, noticing the proud little smile that Gemini now wore on her face as he moved to hand Taehyung the pants. Taehyung took the pants in his hands, looking towards the bathroom in the shop. The one stall public bathroom was tucked in the back of the shop. Taehyung knew that it was too far away from Gemini's current location and that if he was to walk there on his own, he'd turn back into a tiger.

Instead of moving towards the bathroom, Taehyung grabbed the pants and shifted a bit off the ground to drag them up over the shredded ones he was still wearing.

"Won't that be uncomfortable?" asked Gemini as Taehyung finished yanking them up.

"I'll be fine," he said as he looked at her.

Gemini nodded as she moved to stand up, extending a hand down towards Taehyung to help him to his feet. Taehyung reached up a hand to grab her offered one, slowly standing back up. Yoongi narrowed his eyes as he looked at Gemini and Taehyung. Namjoon looked over in Yoongi's direction and noticed the scowl painted on Yoongi's face.

"Have you ever tried smiling?" asked Namjoon as he walked towards Yoongi.

Yoongi - taken aback by Namjoon suddenly talking to him - turned his head to scowl at him. The scowl didn't phase Namjoon though as a dimpled grin graced his face.

"I smile when I want to smile," replied Yoongi

"Spoken like a true grouch," teased Namjoon as he walked past him to the front counter.

"You know nothing about me so you don't get to judge me," said Yoongi as he moved to stand up and walk after Namjoon.

"Well that just means that - since you don't know Tae over there - you can't judge him either," said Namjoon as he watched Yoongi open and shut his mouth like a fish. "What? I'm just using your logic against you."

Yoongi eventually opted not to say anything as Namjoon puttered behind the front counter; Namjoon casting his gaze over at Taehyung and Gemini once in a while to see that they had engaged in some sort of small banter. Namjoon soon turned away from the two of them as he looked over at Yoongi who was still standing in front of him.

"Relax," he finally told Yoongi. "You can trust Tae. He won't hurt her."

"And I'm just supposed to trust you?" asked Yoongi.

"Yes," said Namjoon to Yoongi's surprise. Namjoon chuckled as he moved to turn on a small radio that sat nearby; the semi-static voice of a reporter filling the air of the bookshop.

'Unfortunately, a gang known as The Red-Eyed Wolves has struck again. This time...'

"Turn that down!" snapped Yoongi, leaning forward to turn the radio down without giving Namjoon any time to listen to his command.

"What? Do you not like the news either?" asked Namjoon. "Is there anything you do like aside from music?"

"Ha. Funny," said Yoongi as he brought his hand away from the volume dial on the radio to look at Namjoon. "Gemini has a bad past with that gang. I don't want to trigger her."

"You really care about her, don't you?"

Yoongi nodded his head, looking over at her for a moment to see that Taehyung was watching her put away some books. Yoongi's attention was diverted back to the desk as Namjoon moved to slap a notebook on the front counter.

"What's that?" asked Yoongi.

"It's my music notebook," said Namjoon. "I'm trying to write lyrics, but I'm struggling. I thought maybe you could take a look and help me out."

"And why would I?"

"Because you aren't going anywhere until Gemini does and it beats being bored."

"Fair," said Yoongi with a small grin.

Namjoon matched his grin, nodding his head towards a nearby stool. Yoongi moved to drag it towards the front counter, taking a seat as he looked through Namjoon's journal. Everything seemed right with the world at the moment.

Too bad moments like that were fleeting and none of them realized what was about to come.