Namjoon POV:
"Thank you. Please come again soon." Taehyung directed his bright smile at the customer as they left. Turning to me with a grin, he wiped his forehead with the back of his hand. "Wow. That was busier than normal."
Nodding my head, I returned the smile. "Yeah it sure was. I think they come to see you since you're so handsome." Pinching his cheek, I laughed when he blushed, but his bashful smile gave it away that he enjoyed the compliment.
Taehyung went to say something else, but was interrupted when Owen came in from the kitchen. "Hey Joon. Is Y/N feeling any better?"
"Yeah she is." I gave my boss a smile. "Whoever said doctors and nurses make the worst patients was correct. She said to tell you and Maribel thank you for the fruit basket." Owen and his wife, Maribel, had met Y/N a couple times when she had come into the coffee shop and had instantly hit if off. When my poor mate came down with a bug, they sent her a beautiful fruit basket. A fancy arrangement with cut up melons, pineapple, strawberries, and grapes all put together like flowers. Y/N had been touched by their kindness, her already watery eyes leaking more tears.
After Owen went back into the kitchen, a gentle touch to my shoulder had me turning around to see Taehyung, his pretty brown eyes filled with worry. "Is... is Y/N okay?"
Although I was hesitant to talk about my human mate with him, I could see the clear distress in his face. "Um... yeah she's okay. She was sick for a little while, but she is feeling better now." I could see he wanted to know more, but when I said nothing, his shoulders slumped in a clear dejected manner. I felt a twinge of guilt for keeping information from him, but my three youngest mates had made their decision and there was nothing I could do about it. If I tried to push, it would only make it worse for all of us and that was something I was not willing to do. The tension between us all had finally settled down a little bit and even though Yoongi was still reluctant to visit, he had agreed to meet them for dinner at least once. The meal had been awkward, but I knew we all needed it. Jin, Hoseok, Yoongi and I were very careful not to mention anything about Y/N and Jungkook's disappointment was clear. He wouldn't ask about her; his pride wouldn't let him, but I knew he was curious, knew he was missing her.
"Um... can you tell... tell her that I said I hope she feels better?" Taehyung's voice was filled with pleading and I knew being separated from his human mate was hard. Although I had been frustrated with him for just going along with Jimin, I had also tried to understand why he did. Taehyung didn't know Y/N like Jin did and his last experience with humans had ended him up in the hospital with an infected leg and damage to his beautiful golden wing. He didn't know that Y/N was the sweetest, most caring person in the world and since she had respected Jimin's wishes of staying away from them, he hadn't gotten the chance of getting to know them.
"Yeah. Of course I will." I hated lying to my mate, but I just couldn't do it. Although Y/N reassured us all the time that she didn't mind if we talked about the other three around her, I could see the hint of sadness in her eyes, especially when Jungkook was mentioned. She hadn't gotten the chance to really know Taehyung and Jimin, but I knew she was hurting because of them. With Taehyung it was more the fact that she was pushed away from him before she was able to get close. And with Jimin? I knew it was more fear than anything else. I had heard her mention it to Jin one night and the knowledge that my human mate was afraid of Jimin had broken my heart just a little bit more. "She's doing better now though. Back to work and all."
Taehyung hung on every word and I could tell he was anxious for any news, any information about her, but when I said nothing else, his shoulders slumped again. "Oh... um... that's good to know."
"Are you excited to spend time with us tonight?" I changed the subject, trying to bring a smile back to my handsome mate's face, see the happy light come back to his eyes. From the grin that crossed Taehyung's face, I knew it worked.
"Oh yes! It will be nice to see everyone tonight." Taehyung's voice was filled with excitement and I could see him almost vibrating with happiness.
Y/N had taken a late shift at the sanctuary tonight so the rest of us had made the decision to go visit our other mates. It had taken some convincing on Yoongi's part, only agreeing to go when Y/N had encouraged him, telling him he needed to spend time with his other mates, including Jimin. Her understanding of the situation had touched my heart, making me even more grateful for her. Even though the other three, or at least Jimin and Jungkook, didn't want her, she never showed anger when we went to visit them. She understood the importance of building the bond with them and encouraged Yoongi to do so, even if it hurt her.
The rest of the afternoon passed quickly and before I knew it, Taehyung and I were heading out of the coffee shop, saying our goodbyes to Owen and Maribel, who had arrived a little while ago. I had driven in today, finally getting my license a couple of weeks ago. I had never felt the need for it before, but since the house we had chosen was a little further away, it suddenly became a necessity. Y/N and Jin had been patient, teaching me to drive, and had smothered me in kisses and a spine-tingling blowjob when I passed the driving test. We had gone and found me a car a few days later and I had to admit that not having to rely on someone else for a ride was nice.
As we drove to the apartment that Taehyung shared with my other mates, we made small talk, mostly sticking to conversations about the coffee shop and some of the more interesting customers that we had met today, including a young woman who was so enamored with Taehyung that she could barely speak, scattered her change all over the floor and when she picked up her coffee from the counter, knocked over the other two that were waiting there. Taehyung had been polite to the woman, not once making her feel bad and his kindness made me fall for my mate just a little bit more.
I pulled up in front of the apartment and followed Taehyung up the sidewalk. As we entered the building, the faint scent of my mates filled my nose and I could tell that the others had already arrived. We stepped inside the apartment and were greeted with exuberant hellos, Jimin and Jungkook coming up to give kisses and hugs. There were several pizzas on the coffee table and Jungkook handed us each a plate.
"Food just got here so you have excellent timing." Heading into the kitchen, he came back with sodas, handing us each one.
Taehyung and I filled our plates and I took a seat on the sofa next to Yoongi. "How was Y/N? Was she okay to go in today?" I kept my voice quiet, but I wanted to check on my human mate. Although she was feeling better after being sick, I wanted to make sure she wasn't pushing herself too hard.
Yoongi nodded. "Yeah. She was fine." The small smile on his face and the slight scent of chocolate covered cherries clinging to his skin made me realize that he made sure she was fine, probably in more ways than one.
As we sat there, we caught up on what was going on in our lives, sharing stories and things that had happened since we had last spent time together. I noticed Yoongi was quiet, still not completely comfortable around Jimin and Jungkook, but I was proud of him for coming, proud of him for trying to make the effort to get to know them, to build the bond.
Hoseok POV:
It had been almost a week since we all visited Jimin, Jungkook and Taehyung. Although there had been awkward moments throughout the evening, it had gone surprisingly well. Yoongi even opened up a little bit and my heart swelled in happiness when he hugged the other three goodbye. Y/N's scent had still been clinging to him and I couldn't help but notice the strange looks in their eyes when they clearly smelled it on him. There was something going on, something that they were keeping from the rest of us, something that they clearly didn't want to share with us. Although it hurt to know there were secrets, I tried not to let it bother me.
On the Saturday after the dinner at their apartment, I was in the park taking a stroll after lunch, wanting to get out and enjoy the fresh air. Most of my other mates had chosen to stay at home and I knew Y/N was at the cemetery with Sehun. They had lost a hybrid a few days ago and he was being buried today. Each time she came home after a loss, the tears on her face broke my heart a little bit more.
That evening, we had taken turns cuddling her, loving her, lending her our strength and when she woke the next morning, I could see that the crack in her heart was a little bit smaller. She had texted me several times that day, checking on me and it made my heart happy to know she loved me so much that she worried about me. She had even asked about Jimin and I reassured her that he was fine. When I had arrived home later that afternoon, I learned she had texted all of us, even checking on both Jungkook and Taehyung. It was the things like that which made me want to shake my three youngest mates or knock some sense into them, whichever one would work the best.
As I walked, I saw Jimin, Jungkook, and Taehyung. The three of them were coming down the path towards me, smiles breaking across their faces when they spotted me. Even though I had seen Jimin each day at the studio, he still gave me that smile that showed he was happy to see me whenever we encountered each other and clearly today was no different.
Jungkook hurried over, wrapping me in a hug, his sweet banana milkshake scent washing over me and his dark hair tickling my nose. When Jungkook released me, Taehyung gave me the same exuberant hug, his smile bright enough to light the entire city. "Hey! How's it going?" I was happy to see my mates and I made no secret about it.
"It's... it's going good." Jimin's response was hesitant as he hugged me and I could see the hint of sadness in his eyes. When I looked at the other two, I noticed the same thing. They were smiling, but I could see the smiles didn't completely reach their eyes.
"What's going on guys?" My words were concerned and when I reached out a hand to Jungkook, his eyes went misty with tears, making me fill with panic. "What... what happened? Is everything okay?"
Taehyung looked at the other two, his smile wry. "Yeah. We're... we're okay. I think we've just been missing you guys."
His words broke my heart and I pulled him into a hug, nuzzling my nose into his neck and my tail wrapping around his wrist. "Aww Tae. We miss you too."
Taehyung hugged me tightly, his long arms wrapping around me and pulling me close. Reaching out to Jimin and Jungkook, I grinned when they joined us in the hug. After a moment, I pulled back and we moved to sit down under a tree, the spreading branches giving us some cooling shade from the hot sun above us.
I could see Taehyung wanted to ask me something, but was hesitant about it. "What's going on Tae?" Taking his hand, I laced my fingers with his, wanting him to know he could talk to me about anything.
"Um... how is Y/N? Namjoon said she was sick. Is she feeling better?" His question was filled with concern, but the mention of her name instantly made me tense up.
"She's fine." I didn't want to go into any more detail, especially with Jimin listening so closely. The last thing I needed was Jimin getting mad at my human mate because Taehyung was curious about her. I could see Jungkook wanted to say something, but I hurriedly changed the subject, turning my attention to Jimin. "Did you see the notice about the dance groups performing at the Fine Arts Festival? My kids' hip hop class was asked to perform."
Jimin's eyes darted back and forth between Taehyung, Jungkook and me before he sighed. "Yeah I did. They asked me if my kids' modern dance class would perform too. I mentioned it to the kids and they were pretty excited."
Nodding my head, I grinned, happy that the conversation had moved away from Y/N. "Yoongi's got a couple kids who are going to perform piano solos. They're even bringing in a professional dance troupe that's been traveling around the world."
"I thought I heard something about that. I've seen them perform once. It was only on television so it will be great to see them in person. They've been my inspiration for dancing." Jimin's voice was almost bashful, as though he was embarrassed to admit it.
Reaching over, I stroked a long bunny ear, grinning when he leaned into the touch, his eyes closing in happiness. "I'm glad you found inspiration. You're really a good dancer."
Jimin blushed at the compliment and I wanted to squeeze his plump cheeks and coo at his adorable reaction, but I just continued to stroke his ears instead. "It's... it's what made me happiest. I love to dance and this job of teaching the little hybrids is perfect for me."
I wanted to remind him that he wouldn't even have gotten the job if it wasn't for Y/N, but I didn't want to rub it in that a human had helped him. Even though I wanted all my mates together, I knew that wasn't the way to do it. As much as I wanted all of us to be together and happy, I had resigned myself to the fact that it wasn't going to happen.
We sat there for a little while longer, just enjoying each other's company. A quick text from Jin let me know that Y/N had arrived home. Eager to get back to my human mate and comfort her from the heartbreaking day I knew she was having, I stood up. "I'm going to head home. There's something I need to take care of."
Jungkook's eyes grew worried and I knew one of our other mates must have said something to him. "Did... did she go to the cemetery today?" Reluctant to answer, I said nothing, but then just nodded my head. "Is she okay?"
Not really wanting to talk about Y/N with them, I shrugged my shoulders. "Is she ever really okay on one of these days?"
His lips turning down into a miserable frown, Jungkook's eyes grew misty again, but this time it wasn't because he was missing the rest of us. "If she... if she needs someone to go, I can go with her."
Although I was touched at his offer, I shook my head, not wanting to let him get close to her again, just to break her heart again. "No. It's okay. Sehun's with her. You know how close they are. He's taking care of her so don't worry about her."
I could see Jungkook bristle when I said Sehun's name and Jimin's eyes narrowed in what looked like jealousy at the mention of the doctor. "What is her relationship with Dr. Sehun anyway?" Jimin's voice was tinged with irritation and I raised an eyebrow at him.
"Sorry Jimin, but their relationship really isn't any of your business." I didn't like what he was implying and although I didn't want to fight with him, I wasn't going to stand here and let him talk about my mate like that.
"Of course it's my business. Y/N's my mate." Jimin's eyes were narrowed in anger and I had to stop myself from barking out a laugh at the absolute gall of my rabbit mate.
Crossing my arms, I eyed the angry rabbit in front of me. "Your mate? I don't think so. Did you forget you rejected her? She's not your mate, at least not anymore. I love you guys, I do, but you have no business asking about her."
The tears spilled down Jungkook's cheeks and I hated myself for being the one to cause his pain. "Damn it Hobi! The rest of you won't tell me anything! I didn't know she was sick. I didn't know she lost a hybrid. I don't know anything!"
My anger dissipated and I pulled the teary otter into my arms. "Look Kookie. We don't tell you anything because it's not your concern. You're the one that pushed her away, not the other way around. I don't know what you expected to happen, but you rejected your mate." I pushed the damp hair from his face, stroking his cheek. "You're my mate but so is she. I will do what I need to do to protect her."
"Do you really think we would hurt her?" Taehyung's voice was filled with pain and I could see the sorrow in his pretty eyes.
"You have. Maybe not physically but you have hurt her so I'll protect her from it happening again." Wiping the tears from Jungkook's cheeks, I leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his lips, wanting him ton know my feelings for him didn't change and weren't going to change. "We're trying to help her heal, heal from the hurt she is feeling." Stepping back, I kissed the other two, trying to convey with actions that I loved them, wanted them. Just because I wanted Y/N too, it didn't mean I would push away the three of them. "But right now I have to get home. My mate needs me." With those words, I turned away, leaving them in the park alone.