A Rose Between Thorns

Chapter 74: Would You Stay?

Namjoon's POV-

"Holy shit-" I hurry over to Taylor's side as soon as I see her collapse, too late to catch her from hitting the ground. Sketch whines beside her as I fall to my knees and carefully lift her into my arms, trying not to jostle her too much as she delves further into a panic attack.

It was so sudden I didn't even notice it happening until she was already well into it, I could feel my heart drop in my chest as she collapsed. "Tajang, love it's okay," I say in a soft tone, trying my best to pull the woman out of her panic attack. "I'm here, I'm right here but I need you to breathe okay?"

Taylor shivers in my arms, hands covering her head as some passerby give us concerned looks. I wave them off as Sketch lays beside us, resting his head on her leg. I gently run a hand along her arm, not wanting to risk startling her and causing more damage. "Just take it slow, try to focus on me okay? I'm not going anywhere."

I notice small tears beginning to form before she buries her face into me, causing my heart to sink a little more. I feel helpless seeing her like this, and I'm sure the rest of the guys would say the same. It takes her a few minutes to calm down, removing her hands from her head and slowly wrapping them around my neck.

I give her a sad smile before shifting her in my arms, standing up after tying Sketch's leash to my belt. For a moment I thought I heard a squeak of surprise come from the woman, but I shook my head.

I must be hallucinating, I tell myself, the rest of our stuff in the duffel bag that rests across my shoulder. Carrying this woman around isn't much of a workout, and I notice that she's gotten a little lighter in the past week.

I know she normally would have protested to me carrying her like this, but for obvious reasons she merely lets it happen. "How about we go home and watch a movie? Jin might be home by then with your new coloring book."

Taylor nods as she rests her head against my shoulder, and I can't help but smile as I feel a little bit of joy from the woman.

Jin had the brilliant idea of getting her a few coloring books to see if that might help relieve stress for her, and so far they seem to work wonders. Sometimes she'll come to one of us if we're free to color with her, she kind of reminds me of a little kid.

Sketch happily keeps pace beside me with his tongue lolling out of his mouth. Since Jimin and Hoseok came back with him yesterday he's been a great help, not to mention extremely protective of Taylor.

That's not the worst thing, he's practically her guard dog. Maybe after all of this is over we can get him trained as added protection for her.

Thankfully we still aren't bothered on the way back, and we find Yoongi waiting for us as we walk through the door. I set the woman down before untying Sketch from my waist, who immediately bolts over to his food bowl. Taylor takes my hand for a moment, gently squeezes it before heading off into the hallway.

Yoongi raises a brow at me as I set the duffel bag down, opening it up to grab the leftover food. "Did something happen?" The older male asks as I put the boxes in the fridge.

I let out a sigh, leaning back against the counter. "She had another anxiety attack as we were leaving," I explain, and Yoongi's expression changes to one of concern. "She collapsed and it took a bit longer than last time to snap her out of it."

"We shouldn't rely on Sketch's arrival too much then," Yoongi says with his back against the door frame. "Do you know what caused the panic attack?"

I shake my head in response, earning a sigh from my hyung. "Well, maybe we could ask her later when she's feeling better," Yoongi says before a ringing noise interrupts the conversation.