The Wrong Soulmate (BTS OT7)

Chapter 1.8-Taehyung

I'll admit it, I spent the whole day sorting through the threads of our bond to find Yoongi just to see if I could tell from his emotions how it was going. But as usual I just experienced the same calm evenness that Yoongi was known for. Other's emotions were easier to read, Jungkook and Hobi were the easiest, while Jin and Yoongi projected the most relaxed and consistent vibes.

When Yoongi and Yoona finally got home I expected Yoona to make a break for it and return to hiding in her bedroom. I couldn't have been more surprised to see her come into the living room hand in hand with Yoongi instead.

"How did it go?" I asked, seeing her arm tightly wrapped in a brace.

Yoongi responded on Yoona's behalf. "The doctor said it was just a bad sprain and she'll be recovered soon. In the meantime Yoona has been experimenting with sharing her emotions with me, isn't that right kitten?"

I could hardly believe my ears. It was one thing for Yoona to be holding Yoongi's hand, it was another thing altogether if she was comfortable enough with him for that type of pet name. It was like he brought back a totally different person.

Yoona nodded, but I could tell she was still a bit tentative.

"Kitten, I have a few things I still need to do today. Would you please tell Taehyung about our day? I bet he'd be particularly interested in hearing your opinions on the best ice cream flavor."

I saw Yoona nod, but as soon as Yoongi released her hand she started to scoot away, avoiding eye contact. I could immediately tell that Yoongi had been pressing on her emotions. While I knew some of our soulmates were opposed to this approach, I could see how much happier Yoona appeared to be so I was willing to give it a try too.

"Hey Yoona, why don't you sit next to me on the couch?" I smiled expectantly at her. She came and sat as far away as possible but I didn't hesitate to scoot closer, quickly grabbing hold of her uninjured hand. Immediately I was almost overwhelmed with her anxiety, but I pressed back with feelings of joy and affection, hoping to keep that dark cloud from overwhelming her.

Before long she began to relax and eventually I could feel her bumping up against my emotions, starting to try to feel me out. It was so different from my other soulmates who would take a more direct approach. Hers felt soft and a bit tentative, and it made me want to swaddle her up in warm blankets and never let her go.

"So tell me about your ice cream discovery. I'm sure Yoongi took you somewhere delicious."

As Yoona's emotions evened out she began to gently smile. "I'd never seen so many flavors before, Yoongi let me try a few but I think my favorite kind was the toffee flavor."

"Mmm, yes I love that kind too." I wanted to pay attention to what Yoona was saying but honestly I couldn't stop staring. I had very handsome soulmates, but Yoona was gorgeous. Her long black hair shimmered and everything about her eyes were absolutely captivating.

I could see Yoona begin to look at me in confusion as I let my hormones take reign and she could begin to feel it through the bond so I quickly tried to press those feelings back. It felt a bit strange. After so many years with our other soulmates there were no secrets and we shared our emotions freely. It would take a while to get used to being a bit more reserved with Yoona.

Taking the opportunity of her feeling more at ease I began to ask her questions about her life before we met her. While she hesitated at first, she eventually opened up a bit.

"I'm an only child, and my parents were rather poor. They worked for my soulmate...um, I mean maybe my previous soulmate's parents when I was very young. My mom and dad were offered a job overseas where they could make much more money to support us, and Hyunjin's parents offered to let me live in their household and take care of me while they were away. So I've lived there since I was a small child, maybe around the age of 5?"

"I talk to my parents regularly on video, and they usually come to visit once a year. I know they moved abroad to give me a better life, and with Hyunjin's family's support I received an excellent education."

I could feel Yoona begin to falter, not quite sure what else to say.

"And how do you feel being with us now? I know it is a big transition." I tried to flood the bond with warmth and affection.

"Oh, um, I don't really know." I could feel her drawing away from me, both physically and through our bond. Eventually she pulled her hand from mine. "I think I'll go upstairs and rest now. I'm a little tired."

And with that she was gone.

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Yoona joined us for breakfast the next morning, and every meal after that, but she was always glued tight to Yoongi's hand. Nobody was quite sure why she was so comfortable with Yoongi compared to the rest of us, but we chalked it up to him being the first she opened up to. On the one hand we were glad to see her becoming more comfortable, but it was hard to see her so attached to Yoongi when the rest of us were kept at arm's length.

We could see Yoongi trying to create opportunities to strengthen the bond between all of us, but there was only so much he could do. Some days it felt like instead of gaining a new soulmate we had lost Yoongi since they were always together and usually alone.

Everyone was experiencing the current situation very differently. Jin was the most patient, constantly encouraging us to take the long view. If she was willing to come to meals or be in the same room that was good, even if she was glued to Yoongi's hand. At least it meant she would be getting more comfortable around us. And in the meantime Yoona was beginning to open up to Yoongi so we were able to hear more of her story from him, allowing us better insight into what her life had been like.

Yoongi felt a bit guilty that she had opened up to him but wasn't as open to the others. He knew that hurt some of the others feelings, but really didn't know how to fix it.

Hobi was mostly irritated. He strongly opposed Yoongi's approach of pressing into her emotions, convinced we should give her more time to come around. And as Yoongi and Yoona grew closer, his irritation grew as well. Not only had Yoongi done something he didn't agree with but as far as Hobi was concerned Yoongi was using that to keep Yoona all to himself.

Namjoon was puzzled. Everything about Yoona and the situation was hard to understand. Trying to figure out how she hadn't known about soulmates, how to draw her in, and what to do next was a mystery he just couldn't seem to solve. And it was becoming a major frustration.

Jimin had always been the most sensitive to everyone's bonds. He was the first to sense if someone was out of sorts. Any individual feeling down was bad enough. When there was disagreements or fighting within the bond he was easily crushed by the emotions. So for the most part it seemed like he had gone into hiding and had started to block his connection to us just to allow himself some stability.

But I think Jungkook was having the worst of it. He was our baby and he had been dreaming of this soulmate the longest, wanting someone he could take care of. But he was also the least confident of us when it came to strangers and girls in particular. He had spent his entire life trusting his soulmates to fix any problem and take care of him. Not being able to make any progress with Yoona was crushing his idealized view of his soulmates as superheroes who could fix anything. And he hadn't even worked up the courage to say one word to Yoona yet. He truly felt like everything he had believed and imagined was being destroyed right before his eyes.

And for me, I felt all of this but I also felt anxious for Yoona. Her distrust and discomfort was weighing heavy on me. The best distraction I'd found so far was to snuggle up close to one of my soulmates. If I didn't have them I would have felt totally bereft. The bond to the other soulmates was the only thing that was keeping me strong.

But Yoona largely remained a mystery. And I don't think any of us were prepared for what we learned as that mystery started to unravel.