Enraptured [Jungkook x Reader]

♕ VII - DISSONANCE

VII: DISSONANCE

After what had happened, Jimin didn't want to get further involved with Jin and Jungkook. He'd begged me to stop helping them too, but I couldn't betray their trust. Aside from the favor I owed, I'd given Jin my word. And I'd be lying if I said I wasn't concerned about Siwoo's motives. Sure, for now, he was just a problem for the Gods of Solanaceae, but how much longer until he became a problem for those I cared for? I couldn't risk that happening. It was better to figure things out while I had an alliance with other powerful Gods.

Jin finally divulged more information about what was going on at Solanaceae with Siwoo. Some of their patrons were coming forward with gruesome curses or disappearing entirely. They'd found that all of them had interacted with Siwoo. At first, they'd planned to ban him from the club, but when they approached him, they got the same sickening feeling that I'd gotten when I was near him. Once they felt that, they knew it wouldn't be that simple. Finding out who or what he was, was step one.

I'd gotten so close, but not close enough. Jin recommended we train to hone our godly powers- both Jungkook and I. I agreed for the sake of our mission, but I was seriously not looking forward to it. Things between Jungkook and I were unbearably awkward since the night with Siwoo. Anytime he walked into the room I felt my body tense up and my mouth run dry. I felt awful for how I'd behaved when he came to save me, and he didn't seem keen on accepting my apology. Apparently, it was easier to ignore me.

"Are you two even paying attention?" Taehyung sucked his teeth and slammed a fist down on the table in front of him.

Taehyung was to be our teacher. The God of Magic. The truth of the matter was that his ability was limited to using a few small spells and tricks. Think changing the color of a rose or making a card disappear. His true power came from his skill in developing other God's abilities. Today's lesson? Group meditation. Also known as the worst possible thing for two people who were avoiding each other.

Jungkook opened one eye. "Shouldn't I...not be paying attention to you?"

"Must you take everything so literally?"

I felt a tad stupid sitting on the floor with my legs crossed and eyes closed, trying to 'think' myself to death. I couldn't quite comprehend how this was going to make me stronger. Jungkook and I probably shared that sentiment. I was trying to take Taehyung's teaching seriously, but you can only sit in silence for so long before you start thinking exclusively about what you're going to have for dinner.

"Take a break, then," Taehyung frowned. "I'm going to go get a tea and then we will resume where we left off."

I opened my eyes and debated if my best course of action was to run away or sit here quietly. Against my better judgement, I prodded. "Are you seriously going to keep pretending like I don't exsist?"

Jungkook scoffed in disbelief. "Are you joking?"

"No, I'm not. I apologized, okay? I realize that the way I reacted to you coming to help me was wrong, but I really wanted to do my part and it felt like you didn't trust me to know when to stop."

"Of course, I didn't trust you to stop! You ended up going completely overboard. Why are you so eager to get yourself killed?" He let out a deep exhale and met my eyes directly for the first time in a long time. "I appreciate your help, but you are way out your element here, so it would be best if you played by my rules, Goddess."

"And what exactly are your rules?" I scrunched my brows, my mouth twisting in displeasure.

"What I say goes."

Ugh, seriously? "You may be the most pretentious man I've ever met, Jungkook."

"I'm not a man, I'm a God," he smirked. "You'd do well to learn that you too are not and will never be human, Y/N. You certainly act as though you cannot die, though that gift was stolen from us Gods."

I wanted to smack him. He was so impossibly irritating that it made my blood boil. It was like he was seeking out another argument- and it was working. I could feel my temperature rising as I clenched and unclenched my fists. His snide remarks about humanity only made me more aggravated. What a surprise...he blamed them for our loss of immortality. Predictable.

My eyes flashed gold with my rage as I jumped up to a standing position. "You may be a God, but I am a Goddess, and I will never follow the rules of someone who has no respect for humanity."

Jungkook rose to his feet right after me. Given his height, he was looking down at me with ruthless intimidation, his eyes now swimming with purple. "Y/N..."

"What?" I challenged him, stepping closer.

His jaw tightly clenched. "This is not worth my time." He stormed away, bumping past my shoulder on his exit.

His words hurt and I wished they hadn't. We were just too different to see eye to eye on this. Every time we met it was like fire and ice. Maybe light and dark was a better comparison, even if it was a little on the nose. But could we really blame our differences on our bloodlines? Our titles? He held some contempt for humanity that I simply couldn't understand. I wanted to. To understand him. I wasn't certain why. It felt like we were worlds apart, but I wanted to bridge that gap.

"Where did Jungkook go?" Taehyung questioned, scanning the room.

"We got into it," I sighed. "I doubt he is coming back to your lesson today, and he possibly won't be ever again so long as I'm here."

"You're a feisty one," Taehyung chuckled. "To piss off Jungkook and live to tell the tale is truly impressive. What even started it?"

I scrunched my nose, unsure if I wanted to get into the details with this man I'd just met, but maybe it'd be therapeutic. I assumed he knew Jungkook well since they'd worked together for a long time. "Does Jungkook have a reason to hate humans so much?

"Uh- uhm, well..." Taehyung seemed startled by my question. "It's not really that. Y/N, imagine being a God who invokes fear just because of your name. No matter how much good you do, they are still terrified and cast you away. Wouldn't you grow cold to them too?"

"They fear him?"

"Didn't you fear or even dislike the Gods of the East End before you came here? Most do."

I bit my lip. "Yeah, I did."

Taehyung smiled softly. "It's alright. Like I said, most do. Besides, you don't feel that way anymore, right?"

I shook my head vehemently. "Absolutely not! I'll admit, I had a bad first impression of him, but I've been shown kindness during my time here."

Taehyung's words nearly mirrored what I'd already heard from Jin- I just hadn't realized the extent of the judgement Jungkook faced. And I'd thrown it in his face yet again. I wasn't sure if another apology would cut it this time, but I needed to try. The problem was if I tried to approach him now, I was likely to end up with a door slammed in my face. Giving him a night to cool off was probably in my best interest. Tomorrow would be our fresh start. I was determined.

"Can you give me some advice, Taehyung?"

He tilted his head and pouted his lips. "Hmm?"

"How should I go about apologizing to Jungkook? It seems like every time I open my mouth it pisses him off a little more."

He wiggled his fingers against his chin. "Try less words with that mouth?"

"What does that even mean?"

He burst into a fit of laughter, tears forming in the corners of his eyes, while I sat watching him in utter confusion. "Just think about it, Y/N."