A/N: I apology in advance for what is about to occur. Also please leave comments! I read all of them and I really want to see reactions throughout this chapter. Enjoy this extra long chapter <3
Much like Chan-woo had predicted, he barely had any down time to relax with the upcoming album deadline looming over all of their heads. Over the past five days, his daily activities had been pretty similar. He would wake up, have a quick breakfast, then get straight into work, before eventually calling it quits and going straight to bed without dinner. Only to repeat it all again the next day. At least he did have variety in the work throughout the day so it didn't become tedious.
Part of the time he would be tasked to compose music, other times he'd work with Namjoon and Yoongi on lyrics, another day he went into the company and participated in a vocal and rap lesson with the others. As each day progressed, he could feel how difficult it became to continue at the same intense pace. He found it harder to get out of bed in the morning and the amount of times he yawned throughout the day dramatically increased.
That was why Chan-woo had been completely relieved that on the Sunday they would have the entire day off. He had gone to bed on the Saturday night without setting an alarm, his body craved to catch up on the much needed rest and he would most certainly take advantage of the rare sleep in. As he crawled into his bed for the night, he didn't even bother to scroll through social media to see the reaction from his newest photoshoot that had been posted earlier that day. Exhaustion bribed him into quickly falling asleep, he'd leave that task for the following day.
Even after the sun had well and truly rose for the day, Chan-woo hadn't stirred in the slightest and continued to peacefully sleep. He was out cold, oblivious to the world, wrapped up in the warmth of his duvet. The exhausted boy had been in such a deep slumber that he didn't react when a somebody knocked on his door. Nor did he react as that said someone opened his door and quietly walked over to him.
"Chan-woo," Hoseok whispered as he lent down and brushed some of the hair out of the younger's face. Chan-woo currently was curled up on his right side, head barely peaking out of the covers. "Chan-woo."
The disturbance slowly brought Chan-woo out of his sleep. A soothing hand ran through his hair that roused him gently, finally he began to stir for the first time that day. He stretched his limbs as he pried an eye open, only to find Hoseok's bright expression close to his face. Hoseok wore a contagious smile on his face that spread to Chan-woo as he rolled onto his back and proceeded to stretch his legs again.
"I'm surprised you are still asleep. It's late in the morning," said Hoseok while he lifted the covers and made himself comfortable next to the younger.
"You look like you only just woke up too," chuckled Chan-woo as he rolled his head to the side and observed the messy state Hoseok's hair was in as well as the sleepy expression.
"Maybe," he quietly laughed as he rolled onto his left side to face Chan-woo. With his left hand he held up his head and with his right hand he lightly traced Chan-woo's face. "I didn't get to bed until late though. So you've been sleeping a lot longer than me. I was starting to get worried."
"Oh, sorry for worrying you. I was just very tired after working non-stop the last week," sighed Chan-woo. His eyes closed automatically upon the relaxing touches.
"Do you want to keep sleeping?" worriedly asked Hoseok. He of course knew that not even a month prior had Chan-woo been pretty sick. He was concerned for the younger's health. "I'll leave you alone?"
"You can stay if you want," he said quietly, eyes still closed, and a blush formed on his face.
"You want me to keep sleeping beside you?" he asked with a bright smile.
"Yes," shyly nodded Chan-woo as he looked over to Hoseok.
"Of course I'll stay with you," cooed Hoseok who gently pinched the younger's cheek before he ran his hand through Chan-woo's hair. "So cute when you blush."
"Hyung," he whined as he felt his face grow even more red in embarrassment.
"Come here my baby," Hoseok continued to coo as he coaxed the younger to shuffle closer to him. "Let's sleep now."
Chan-woo didn't say anything further as he rolled back onto his side and cuddled right up against Hoseok. He smiled as he felt Hoseok adjust his position until he had both arms wrapped tightly around him. He found his head snuggled perfectly under Hoseok's chin and snaked his own arms around the other's waist. His eyes closed as he slowly settled back into a peaceful sleep with his head cushioned against the other boy's firm chest.
Only a few seconds had passed before Chan-woo's breath had evened out in the quiet room. Even his grip on Hoseok had loosened as he had relaxed completely. Hoseok huffed in amusement as he noticed how quickly the younger had fallen asleep in his arms. He closed his own eyes as held the other closer to him and rested his chin upon the soft hair. Hoseok slowly relaxed further, until he too, fell asleep.
The room stayed silent as the pair continued to catch up on the much needed rest after such a long week. Neither boy moved, too comfortable in their current position, content with the warmth that seeped from the other. The duvet only added an extra layer of cosiness, with the weighted covers providing them both with much needed comfort. Not even the distant sounds from the rest of the household could disrupt them.
That was until a knock pulled Hoseok out of the calm dream he had been having. He sleepily looked around as he tried to figure out why he had been awoken. He tilted his head down to find that Chan-woo was still deep asleep. He frowned as he turned his head over his shoulder, confusion written over his tired face. Another set of knocks came and before Hoseok had the chance to respond, it opened.
"Oh, hey," Yoongi whispered as he entered the room and closed the door behind him.
"Hey Hyung," whispered Hoseok, making sure to keep his voice as low as possible since he didn't want the youngest to wake up. "Everything okay? Did you need something?"
"No. I was just coming to check up on him since he's been asleep for so long," he said with a soft smile as he stood over the pair and stared adoringly at Chan-woo.
"I tried to wake him up earlier," quietly explained Hoseok. "But I ended up telling him to get some more rest. He looked so tired."
"He's been working so hard. He deserves it," Yoongi smiled as he leant down and gently brushed the hair from Chan-woo's forehead.
"What time is it?" he asked while he settled back into his previous position.
"Nearly midday," he answered, hand still lightly played with the youngest's hair.
"We really should get up," Hoseok huffed quietly, yet his eyes still closed on their own accord.
"I'll let you two sleep some more," Yoongi whispered as he started to pull his hand away and stood back up straight. "Wish I could join you both."
"Why don't you? I'm sure a certain someone wouldn't mind," he answered with an amused smile.
"You have a good point," mused Yoongi with thought.
Yoongi felt his heart pull with longing as he stared down at the sleeping Chan-woo's face. He wanted nothing more than to snuggle up right behind the younger and waste their day away in bed. He hadn't been able to spend much time with the younger since the previous Monday where he had convinced Chan-woo to join him in his bed instead of working. They had both been insanely busy ever since.
Mind made up, Yoongi moved to the end of the bed before he crawled up the length behind the pair. He tried to be careful as he moved so as not to disturb Chan-woo, but it was inevitable. A happy smile graced his face as he slipped under the covers and immediately nestled against Chan-woo's back, slotted perfectly with his body.
"Hmmm?" Chan-woo hummed in confusion as he twisted he head towards Yoongi.
"Shhh, it's just me," Yoongi chuckled and ran his left hand through Chan-woo's hair in comfort.
"Hyung sleep too?" tiredly mumbled Chan-woo as he settled back into his previous position with his head buried against Hoseok's chest.
"Yes Chan-woo, Hyung sleep too," softly cooed Yoongi as he buried his own head into the back of Chan-woo's neck and wrapped his arms around the younger.
None of the three said another word as they settled in. Yoongi, however, had been awake for a few hours prior and didn't feel the need to sleep. He was content to simply lay with the other two in a peaceful silence. A soft sigh passed his lips as he settled into the warmth, and allowed the thumb on his left hand to rub soothing circles into Chan-woo's left hip.
Not even a minute later, Chan-woo lightly grabbed onto Yoongi's wrist and pulled it up to his chest. Yoongi smiled in amusement as he felt small fingers intertwine with his own. He could tell that the youngest in the middle of the cuddle pile was deep asleep again which made the whole action even more adorable to Yoongi. He must have unknowingly grabbed his hand during his sleep and he internally gushed over how adorable he was.
As Yoongi continued to cuddle up to the smaller boy, he couldn't help but reflect. There were so many missed opportunities in the past to get closer to Chan-woo and progress their relationship. If only he hadn't been jealous of Daniel, then maybe they would have been much more comfortable around each other over the last few weeks. He had missed out on being able to express his physically affectionate towards Chan-woo and it broke his heart. Subconsciously, he held the younger closer to him.
"Time to wake up!" a loud voice yelled which startled the trio in the bed. A thud followed by a groan was heard soon after. A bright smiling face was directly in front of him as Chan-woo properly opened his eyes for the first time that day. "Wake up!"
"Taehyung-ah, careful of Chan-woo. He's still healing," sternly warned Hoseok through gritted teeth, fully alert thanks to the heavy weight of Taehyung upon him.
"Oh right, sorry," Taehyung said sheepishly as his hand shot out and squished the youngest's cheeks. "I would never want to hurt this precious little thing."
"Thanks Hyung," quietly thanked Chan-woo as he stretched his limbs yet again in the arms of the other two.
"Come on, it's almost midday," whined Taehyung as he unashamedly bounced on top of Hoseok who groaned under the weight. "Let's do something. I'm bored."
"I thought that Kookie and Jimin were going to play games with you?" Yoongi said with a frown.
"Yeah, but they are hogging the console so I can't get a turn," huffed Taehyung in annoyance. "They keep saying five more minutes but that was three hours ago. So I want to play with Chan-woo instead."
"Well how about I go sort out this sharing problem with those two, and we let Channie wake up for a bit," said Yoongi as he sat up and ruffled his own messy hair.
"You'll help me?" perked up Taehyung which caused the other three to laugh at the adorable look on his face.
"Of course. They need to learn to share," Yoongi said as he rolled his eyes.
"Let's go then, what are you waiting for," and with that Taehyung was out the door before any of them could blink.
"We'll let you wake up," Yoongi said as he patted Chan-woo's bicep and crawled his way off the bed. He left the room without another word.
"As much as I could stay here all day, I think we really should get up," Chan-woo said as Hoseok didn't move a muscle. He laughed softly as he felt the older tug him back towards him. "Hyung, seriously we should wake up now. We've been in bed all morning."
"But Channie," whined Hoseok as he rolled onto his back.
"No but's Hoseokie," he chuckled as he shuffled around the lump in his bed and stood up. He stretched his tired muscles before he looked back down at the guest in his bed. "Come on."
"Fine," he agreed and finally rolled out of the bed as well. He, too, stretched his arms above his head before he wrapped an arm around the younger's shoulders. "I'm making you breakfast, what do you want?"
"Pancakes?" he tested the waters, eyes full of hope, looking tiny nestled under the taller man's arm.
"Sure," chuckled Hoseok as he led Chan-woo out of his bedroom.
>_< >_< >_<
Music played through the pair of headphones as Chan-woo continued to work on his lyrics. He had been sat at the desk in his bedroom for the last few hours, leisurely working away. After Hoseok had made him the promised pancakes, he had squirrelled himself away in his room. He had felt awkward down in the living room as Jungkook, Jimin and Taehyung played a game on the console, out of place and unsure what to do with himself.
As he typed away on his keyboard, he noticed movement to his right. The corner of Chan-woo's lips turned upwards with amusement as he knew exactly who had just entered his room. Every time Taehyung had the controller taken off of him, he'd come straight to Chan-woo and try to convince him to "stop working on his day off" and join the fun. And each time he would brush off the request.
What he didn't expect was for the other boy to settle on the ground to his right and lean with his back against the panel of the desk. Chan-woo then felt a few pokes on his legs a few seconds later. He saved and paused his work so he could give the obviously bored boy his full attention. After he placed his headphones on the desk, he turned his chair to the right and leant forward. He returned the gesture by poking Taehyung on the cheek.
"Woowoo," whined Taehyung, the nickname caused Chan-woo to blush. "I'm bored."
"Again? They keep taking the controller off of you?" he gave the older a sympathetic pout as he ran his hand through Taehyung's fluffy hair.
"Yeah. They said I'm just slowing the game down and messing up their stats," he sighed as his hands flopped by his sides.
"What are they playing right now?" he asked with a tilt of his head.
"Call Of Duty Black Ops 3," he said sadly. "We had a rule that you swap the controller when you get killed. And I keep dying so it's not really that fun for me."
"Why can't you guys play a game that is fun for everyone?" Chan-woo asked as he sat back in his chair.
"Because they said they wanted to play that," shrugged Taehyung.
"Have you asked them to play something else?" he asked.
"No," he answered sheepishly.
"And why not?" he chuckled with a frown. "If you aren't having fun, wouldn't it be better to play a different game?"
"I don't know. They seemed really eager to play it and then they've been so focused that they haven't been swapping the controllers all the time. Thought I'd just leave them alone," he shrugged as he looked down at his lap.
"That's very kind of you, Taehyungie," he said as he brushed his hand through the older's hair yet again. "But what are you going to do now, huh?"
"Annoy you?" he asked innocently as he looked up at Chan-woo.
"Yeah?" he asked with a wide smile.
"Why are you working on your day off anyway?" Taehyung asked with a frown as his hands grabbed onto the hem of Chan-woo's pyjama pants and played with them absentmindedly.
"If I'm being honest, it's because I feel like I have a lot to prove. I haven't debuted yet so why should I get a day off? You know, I want to show you guys that I am good enough to join the group," explained Chan-woo in an unsure hushed tone. "Plus I've seen the comments that people have left under the photoshoots and they are already judging me without yet hearing me."
"But you've been working hard all week. Don't you think you deserve some down time?" he asked with a pout.
"Not yet," he sadly chuckled.
A small silence befell the pair. Taehyung kept his eyes downcast as he continued to play with the hem of Chan-woo's pyjama pants, rolling the material around between his fingers. Chan-woo leant forward and swept his hand through the fluffy hair before him. He grew more concerned as the silence continued and he could see the deep frown on the other boy's face.
"What's wrong? What's with the frown?" cooed Chan-woo as he ran his hand through Taehyung's hair.
"I just got sad because I know how hard life has been for you. It's been so unfair what you've been through. And it's not like we made it any easier with how badly we've treated you. At the end of the day, I just want Army to accept you and give you all the love you deserve," Taehyung looked up at him with a very sad expression.
"It's okay Taehyungie. Life is full of tests that make you a stronger person. Mine has just had a lot more than other people. Try not to let it make you sad, alright? And as much as I would love to have the acceptance from Army straight away, I understand how difficult it can be to introduce a new person into a group," he tried to reassure him to the best of his abilities.
"I guess," he sighed as he shuffled forward and hugged Chan-woo's left leg tightly. "I would absolutely hate for them to treat you how we treated you. Bringing you into the group gives us so many new potentials."
"Yeah? Like what?" he asked with a slight blush.
"Like we've somehow ended up with another crazy good producer and songwriter. I'm not even exaggerating when I say your skills are out of this world. You really embody the message we want to convey to the world too. I've only heard you sing once but I really enjoyed it. And you can dance too. Plus it helps you're good looking too," ranted Taehyung as he continued to squeeze Chan-woo's leg, his right cheek rested against the younger's left knee.
"So you don't think that I'm ruining the visuals anymore?" tentatively asked Chan-woo, remembering one of the conversations he had overheard between the maknae line.
"What makes you think that?" he asked in shock as he sat up straighter, yet his arms remained around Chan-woo's legs.
"I overheard you say it once to Jimin Hyung and Jungkook Hyung," he admitted with a shrug.
"I said that?" he repeated the question to clarify he hadn't misheard.
"You did," nodded Chan-woo. "It was when I had first moved in though. Not recently."
"Wow. I can't believe I said that. Because no matter how much I didn't like the idea of you joining us... From the very start I found you fatally attractive with your cuteness overload. I almost envied you for pulling it off," Taehyung admitted with a small blush as he returned his head to the other's knee. "Maybe I was just saying it to go along with the others? I know I said mean stuff about you that I didn't think was true. But the others thought differently so I just pretended to agree to some extent, I guess?"
"You...? You think I'm attractive?" quietly gasped Chan-woo as his wide eyes stared down at the fluffy hair.
"Yes," nodded Taehyung without making eye contact.
"Is this a dream? The Kim Taehyung of BTS thinks that I, Jung Chan-woo, is attractive?" he mused out loud, hoping to see the older boy smile, while his own heart was secretly leaping out of his chest from such an admission.
"Here," Taehyung said before Chan-woo felt a sudden sharp pain on his right leg.
"Ow! What was that for?" he loudly whined after he had jumped from the pain.
"Aren't you meant to pinch yourself to check if you're dreaming?" Taehyung asked as he turned innocent eyes his way.
"I guess so. But don't do that again. Next time let me pinch myself," he mock-scolded the older with a pout.
"Can I ask another question?" Taehyung asked with a tilt of his head, changing the subject.
"Of course," he softly smiled down at Taehyung, who had moved to rest his chin on his knee.
"What gave you the inspiration to write Fake Love?" Taehyung asked quietly.
The question caught him off guard. He hadn't been expecting the conversation to shift in that direction. Apart from Namjoon and Yoongi, no one had enquired into the thought process behind the song. He knew that eventually one of the other members would ask him, or perhaps a media source of a type when the song gets released, or even one of the managers that worked for the group might ask him in the future.
"Well, a lot of people grow up with unconditional love from their parents. I didn't have that. I had very conditional love. But even then, most of the time, it was fake or forced conditional love. The main time I saw this, what I call "fake love", was when we were out in public and they had to play the role of a caring parent," he explained with a grimace. "I don't think my parents have ever shown me genuine love."
"Wow," breathlessly said Taehyung before his eyes began to well up with tears. "That's heartbreaking. It physically hurts me to hear that."
"Awe Taehyungie," cooed Chan-woo as he saw a stray tear roll down the other's face. He immediately wiped it away for him before Taehyung buried his face into the side of his leg.
"No more sad stuff and no more work," he said, perked up with determination in his eyes. "You and I are going downstairs for the rest of the afternoon and taking over the tv so we can watch whatever we want."
"Are you sure I can't do a little more work?" asked Chan-woo as he started to turn around in his chair.
"Absolutely not sir, come with me," Taehyung said as he stood up, grabbed Chan-woo's wrists, and gently pulled him out of his chair.
"Wait, I need my phone," loudly laughed Chan-woo, happy that Taehyung was in a better, playful mood again. He had been genuinely sad to see him upset. He quickly grabbed his phone and turned off his computer before he turned around. "Alright, now we can go."
Taehyung grabbed his left hand and interlocked their fingers. Chan-woo giggled happily as he was led downstairs. He felt a lightness in his chest that he hadn't experienced in a while. The bright smile that was on his face reflected how he felt inside. If someone had told him how safe he could feel around the group when he had first joined, he would have laughed in their faces at such a ridiculous idea.
Loud sounds from the tv reverberated throughout the entire downstairs area as the pair approached the living room. Chan-woo could hear the shouts of celebration and cries of frustration from the two that were in the middle of a heated battle. He understood why Taehyung had come to him for company as his eyes landed on Jimin and Jungkook. The pair were fully engrossed in their game, completely oblivious to their surroundings. As he was pulled further into the room, he also noticed Jin and Namjoon sat side-by-side on the far couch that was facing the hallway.
"Sorry to burst your bubble, but we've come to crash game time," Taehyung asserted himself as he dragged Chan-woo by the hand into the middle of three couches. The pair blocked the view of the tv for Jimin and Jungkook. Both boys went to object but Taehyung simply held his hand up with a stern expression. "You two have been playing all day so I don't want to hear a word out of either of you. Chan-woo has been up there working on his day off. So I've made him take a break and we are going to watch something down here."
"Actually that doesn't sound bad to me," shrugged Jungkook as he threw the game controller to his side and stretched his arms. "Right Jiminie?"
"Right," Jimin nodded, a smile on his face and his eyes sparkled with delight as he saved their current game and exited it. "Should we get the other two Hyung's for a movie marathon?"
"If you can drag them down here then sure. But I'm starting with or without them," said Taehyung as he let go of Chan-woo to collect the remote from the coffee table.
"Hey Chan-woo? Can we go talk quickly?" Namjoon asked him with a nervous smile upon his face.
"Sure," he answered with apprehension.
Just as quickly as Chan-woo had entered the living room, he was being whisked back out of it. Namjoon stood up from where he sat next to Jin and motioned to the younger to follow. Chan-woo gulped as he walked a few steps behind the leader. He had absolutely no idea why he was being pulled aside, neither what the conversation would be about. Of course, his first thoughts went to if he had done something wrong or if there had been a change in plans and suddenly he wouldn't be allowed to debut with the group.
"This won't take long," Namjoon said over his shoulder as he opened the door to their home studio and gestured for Chan-woo to enter. The younger of the pair nodded in understanding as he walked over to the desk chairs and sat in his usual spot on the right. Namjoon took up his usual spot on the left after he had closed the door. "So I've been wanting to talk with you for a while, but we've been too busy."
"Is it bad? Have I done something wrong?" worriedly asked Chan-woo as both boys swivelled their chairs towards each other.
"No, not at all. It's nothing like that. I just wanted to talk to you about something I noticed," reassured the leader.
"Oh," he exhaled before he frowned deeply, still unsure on the direction the conversation was about to head.
"I want to reassure you before we talk that no one is going to be in trouble regardless of what really happened. If it turns out that what I think happened is true, then I just want to stop and correct the behaviour before anything else occurs," vaguely explained Namjoon with a serious expression.
"I know you said that I didn't do anything wrong, but the way you are leading into it is making me think otherwise," quietly admitting Chan-woo as he nervously wrung his hands together in his lap and averted his gaze from the other.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I meant it when I said that you haven't done anything wrong. I'll cut to the chase. This is about Jungkook actually," he said in one rushed breath.
"What about him exactly?" he asked nervously with a confused frown.
"When we were leaving the fanmeet last Sunday, I asked Jungkook to wake you up so we could go home. And I overheard what you said to him as you woke up," explained Namjoon, getting straight to the point. "Do you remember what you said?"
"No," he answered after a few seconds of silence, unable to recall what he had said.
"You said something along the lines of 'don't hurt me again Hyung' when you saw who had woken you up," said Namjoon with a serious expression, his eyes flickered over Chan-woo's face as he took in the information.
Upon hearing what he had accidentally said in front of Namjoon, Chan-woo's heart increased in speed. His palms felt even more clammy then before. How could he have slipped that out? The last thing he wanted to do was jeopardise the newly built relationship between him and Jungkook over something that happened weeks and weeks ago. Although he had long forgotten about the incident in the living room of the old apartment, perhaps his subconscious mind had not.
"Now knowing what I do of your home life, I understand that this could all be a big misunderstanding, and what you said after you woke up could have been out of instinct," pushed Namjoon as soon as he realised Chan-woo didn't know what to say. "But the only thing that doesn't make sense is why you'd say 'Hyung' if it was instinct. So that's what has led me to believe maybe something has happened between you and Jungkook in the past for you to say that."
As the leader continued to talk, the younger felt as if he was being backed into a corner with no way out. It felt like no matter which direction he went, he would hurt someone. If he lied to Namjoon and said nothing happened, he would be building a foundation upon lies and mistrust. If he told him the truth, he could potentially damage everything he had worked for between himself and Jungkook. Chan-woo didn't know what to say.
"Like I said, no one is going to get in trouble. Unless of course something serious has happened between you two. But if it's something small that I can hold him accountable for without taking it to anyone higher, then I'd like to do that," Namjoon said with a frown. "Would you like to tell me if I was spot on? Or if I was reading into something that wasn't there?"
"I don't know what to do Hyung," admitted Chan-woo with a defeated sigh. "I don't want to lie to you. But I also don't want to risk what I've worked so hard to build with Jungkook. I've come so far with him and I still have a long way to go with him. I would hate for something to ruin it and set me back to the start again."
"I can't promise what will happen after I talk with him. But whatever happened needs to be addressed. Okay? We need to be a team and feel physically safe around each other," he said, trying to pry the information out of him which he could tell he was close to doing.
"It happened on one of the first few days I had arrived. One morning, I was asleep on the couch when suddenly I had been pulled off and hit the ground pretty hard. I landed on my arm which dug into a really big bruise I had on my ribcage. When I looked up, I saw that it was Jungkook that had done it. It's really not a big deal and I really don't want him to get in trouble because of it," Chan-woo admitted quietly before he said the last sentence in a bit of panic.
"And you didn't tell anyone what he did?" he asked with a deep frown.
"No?" he asked in return with hesitancy. "Was I meant to?"
"Well yes, you are meant to. If you ever are physically manhandled or hurt in any way, you tell someone so it can be dealt with accordingly," Namjoon explained.
"You don't get it," he huffed with some hurt.
"What don't I get?" he asked slightly taken aback.
"Do you think I had anyone to tell back then? I couldn't have turned to you because you probably would have shrugged and walked away. I couldn't tell Bang PD-nim because it could have tainted my chances of debuting with you. Let alone how mad all of you would have been with me if I had told him," he reminded Namjoon about the circumstances when he had first arrived. "Who do you think I should have told when that happened? I was all alone."
"Fuck I'm sorry," Namjoon looked down at his lap in shame.
"I just don't want him to get in trouble Hyung, okay? I don't want everything to be destroyed because of me," tiredly said Chan-woo while he looked towards the door with sadness in his eyes.
"I promised you no one would be in trouble and I stick to that. All I'll do is pull Jungkook aside and talk with him. I'll give a warning that if he repeats that behaviour towards you or anyone, then it will be taken higher. Are you okay for me to do that?" he asked as he reached forward and patted the younger's knee in comfort.
"Yeah I guess you can," he sighed before he turned his head back to the leader and gave him a tight lipped smile. "Just can you not do it today? I already feel like I'm intruding on his game time with Jimin so I don't want this to ruin his day."
"Alright, I'll compromise with you since you were so honest. Which by the way, I really appreciate that. If anything ever happens again I want you to feel comfortable coming to me," Namjoon said with a much more relaxed smile. "Should we go rejoin the party?"
"Yeah. Thank you for this Hyung," said Chan-woo as he stood up.
"Of course, it's okay. And I'm sorry this happened. I don't want you to feel like you are alone with no one to turn to. But more importantly, I don't want you to be afraid to talk if someone ever does something to you," Namjoon said as he hugged Chan-woo to him and then led him out of the room with an arm wrapped around his shoulders.
"I don't feel alone these days. I feel like I can turn to a few of you," he answered truthfully as he looked up to Namjoon with a calm smile.
"I'm really glad to hear that, Chan-woo," he replied with a wide smile that made his dimples reappear.
"Guess who I managed to drag down," excitedly said Jimin as he saw the pair enter the living room once more.
"Only doing it for you, Channie-ah," grumbled Yoongi as he slumped further into the middle couch and patted the empty spot beside him. "Come here and tell us what you want to watch."
"Yeah, what do you want to watch?" asked Hoseok with a bright smile.
Chan-woo smiled as he separated from Namjoon after one last hug and made his way to the empty space between Yoongi and Taehyung. The second he had made contact with the couch, Taehyung had immediately clung onto his arm, linked their fingers together, and cosied up to his right side. A small, lighthearted giggle left him as a second later his left hand was also taken captive by a certain grumpy looking boy next to him.
After sharing a smile with the two beside him, he looked around the room as he noticed how quiet it was. He looked to the right to find Namjoon and Jin cuddled together on the couch with a blanket thrown over their laps. His eyes then looked to the left to see that Jungkook, Jimin and Hoseok were settled close beside each other on that couch. All eyes were on him as they waited for him to answer the question.
"What about a comedy or a horror?" he asked the group, not sure what they would normally watch.
"Could not have chosen two more different genres," chuckled Jin as he shook his head.
"Why not a horror comedy?" gasped Taehyung with joy as he squeezed Chan-woo's arm and rested his head upon the younger's shoulder.
"Sure," agreed Jimin with a nod.
"I don't really care as long as I get to sit here next to Chan-woo," shrugged Yoongi nonchalantly.
"Who has the remote?" asked Namjoon which caused all eight of them to look around.
"I saw Taehyungie grab it just before Namjoon Hyung pulled me away," Chan-woo spoke up.
"That's right! I had it last. Now, next question is where did I leave it?" said Taehyung as he moved the cushions around that were on his other side. "Aha! Found it!"
Chan-woo giggled as he looked at Taehyung with fondness. He settled back into the couch and gripped Yoongi's hand a little tighter. He felt the older boy look at him so he turned his head towards him. Any prior awkwardness or guilt for disrupting Jimin and Jungkook's quality time had disappeared. He noticed that all of the other boys seemed excited at the prospect of having a movie marathon. He smiled at Yoongi as he leant to the side and rested his head on Yoongi's shoulder.
>_< >_< >_<
The living room was clouded in darkness, which didn't trouble the eight occupants as their attention was drawn to the tv. The light from the tv was the only source that illuminated the now dark room. Hours ago the sun had set for the day, yet none of the eight boys seemed to take notice, as they were truly engrossed in the movie marathon they had embarked on. The only sounds were that of the tv, the reactions from the boys, and the snacks they munched on that they had spread out on the coffee table hours ago.
Chan-woo had stayed nestled between Yoongi and Taehyung for the entire time. He had found that Taehyung, in particular, had been extra clingy ever since the pair had a deep conversation earlier that day. There had barely been a second that the other had let go of his hand or arm. They had basically become joined at the hip. When Chan-woo would go for a water break, Taehyung would go for one. When Chan-woo would go for a toilet break, Taehyung would whine as he got up and then immediately attached himself once he had sat back down.
All of a sudden, Chan-woo's attention had been drawn away from the movie as he felt his phone begin to vibrate on silent in his pocket. He managed to wiggle his right hand from Taehyung and fish out the device. He frowned as he noticed the 'no caller id'. His instinct was to let it go to voicemail and ignore it in favour for the movie. However, not even a second after it had rung out, it started to vibrate again. He had no clue who was trying to contact him that late at night through a hidden number.
"Are you going to answer it? We can pause the movie for you?" whispered Taehyung as he looked over his shoulder down at the phone.
"No it's okay. I'll just go outside, no need to pause it," he sighed before he stood up.
With an uneasy feeling, Chan-woo walked over to the glass sliding door and opened it up. He stepped out into the cold night air as the phone stopped ringing. He stared down at the screen in anticipation, only for it to start vibrating at the incoming call yet again. He closed the glass door behind him as he turned to face the dark backyard. But what he failed to notice was that it hadn't closed all the way and was still open a slither. He took a few steps away from the door and answered the calling, putting it cautiously to his ear as if it could hurt him.
"H-Hello?" he answered with an air of uncertainty.
"I thought you were never going to answer," a familiar voice whispered through the phone that immediately sent shivers down his spine and caused the hair on his arms to rise. "You know, I've been seeing pictures of you over the internet the last few days. Where are you?"
"You're not meant to call me," he somehow managed to say without a shake in his voice.
"I am your Mother! Of course I'm allowed to call you!" she yelled into the phone, full of fury, full of rage. "Who do you think you are? Huh? Running off from under this roof we've fought so hard to keep over your head! You ungrateful little brat!"
"You gave me no choice!" he suddenly snapped at her from all the years of repressed emotions. "It was either I stayed there with you two and fucking died or escape the absolute hell I was put through!"
"How dare you," his mother seethed.
"I had enough of all the shit you put me through. I couldn't stand to be around you any longer. Or him. Both of you made my life hell. Leaving was the only option I had. And I don't regret it. Maybe I'll actually be able to do something useful with my life instead of barely making enough income to feed my parent's alcoholic tendencies," he snarled angrily into the phone as he walked closer to the edge of the verandah.
"You won't get any where in life, you talentless piece of crap! They'll soon see you aren't good for anything! Won't be able to make a cent off your name because you can't do shit! And then what? Huh? Think you can come crawling back to us? Begging for us to take back in our only son who abandoned us?" she shrieked into the phone, a slight slur to the edge of some the words, obviously drunk like normal.
"I would never dream of crawling back to you!" Chan-woo spat as he felt angry tears brim in his eyes. "I'd rather die than ever have to live with you two again! I wouldn't be caught dead begging to you two!"
"That's rich coming from someone that wouldn't have anything in this world without us! We provided you with everything you ever needed growing up and more! Some kids aren't lucky enough to even have the basics necessities and here you are throwing it right back into our faces! We even went above and beyond to give you money for all those lessons! And how do you pay us back? By this? You are nothing but an entitled little fuck!" she screamed.
"Did you ever stop and think that maybe the reason I left was because of you two and the way I was treated? Did you maybe consider that if I hadn't been fucking abused that maybe I would be grateful enough to pay you back more than you ever gave me? Did you ever contemplate that you're the problem here?" he said with a bite to his words that he had never heard from himself before.
"You fucking little shit! How fucking dare you to talk me like that!" she gasped in shock. "Either you tell me where you are right now or you come home this instance! I will not have you acting this way!"
"You don't fucking control me anymore!" he yelled in pure rage as the tears finally began to fall. "And you know what? You're not meant to contact me according to the Non-Disclosure Agreement! You were paid to keep your distance and to keep quiet to the media! Any breach of it and you can get in trouble!"
"What they don't know won't hurt them," she huffed and he could tell, he knew, that on the other end of the phone she was smiling with a dark glint in her eyes.
"If you ever, ever, contact me again... I will tell the fucking CEO without hesitation! And guess what? He will do something about it. He will take the breach seriously," he threatened with an air of seriousness.
"You're a fucking piece of shit! You know that right?" she yelled again. "You're a waste of space! I regret the day you were born! You deserved everything that happened! We should have done it more if this is the way you behave! How fucking dare you show this type of disrespect to your own parents! How fucking dar-"
"No stop! I've had enough! Fuck you! Just fuck off! Never contact me again!" he yelled into the phone, over the top of her continued screaming, before he pulled it away from his face and pressed the hang up button.
The moment the line went dead, Chan-woo let out a chocked sob as he felt the tears stream faster down his face. With a primal grunt from years of suppressed rage, he blindly threw his phone off the end of the verandah and into the dark backyard. In that moment he didn't care for the welfare of his phone. All he wanted to do was get distance between the object that had brought him so much hurt and misery in the past few minutes.
A pair of arms suddenly wrapped around his shaking body as loud sobs left him. He instinctively turned his head into the chest and buried his face there for comfort. A few seconds passed before he felt his knees give way. All of his energy had gone to finally stand up for himself and now he couldn't even stand on his two own feet. Whoever tightly held onto him didn't seem to mind as he soon found himself knelt on the hard, wooden deck, arms still firmly around him.
Why did life always have something in store for him? Why couldn't he have some peace and harmony for once? After all that time, he thought he had finally escaped the clutches of his abusive parents. Turns out they had been lurking in the dark and were waiting for the right moment to strike. He should have expected that from them. He supposes that's what he gets for allowing his guards down.
In amongst the uncontrollable crying, he felt at least another pair or two of hands softly touch him in various places. From his head, to his back, to his arms. He knew he wasn't alone and wouldn't be surprised if the entire group was stood around him. A wave of embarrassment washed through him at the prospect that the whole group had witnessed his outburst. He didn't have a clue how he would explain any of this to the ones that knew nothing of his past.
"H-How much did you guys hear?" he asked as he slightly pulled away from the chest, barely coherent between his sobs.
"Most of it," admitted Namjoon quietly. And even through his blurry vision, Chan-woo could see the pity in Namjoon's eyes. "Are you okay?"
"No," Chan-woo sobbed out and felt the person cradle his head back into his chest. He desperately grabbed onto the soft fabric of the other boy's shirt and pulled him closer as endless sobs continued to escape him. "I hate them."
"It'll be okay," a voice whispered into his ear.
It was only then that he realised who held him. Out of all of the group members, Jimin had been the one to hug him. If he hadn't been so emotionally drained, he would have jumped away in shock. But he couldn't even muster the energy to move a muscle after the realisation. The two knelt awkwardly on the cold, hard wooden deck, arms firmly around one another with hands that desperately pulled the other closer. In that moment, it was exactly what he needed though and he didn't care who it was that held him.
"Do you want to go back inside? Get out of the cold?" asked Namjoon after some crying filled silence elapsed.
"N-Not yet," softly hiccupped Chan-woo and shook his head. "I want to stay out here on my own for a bit more. Clear my head, you know?"
"Can I stay with you?" Jimin asked softly.
"Sure," he whispered as he closed his eyes again. If he was being honest, he was too tired to put up a fight.
"Come get us if you need anything," said Namjoon before he herded the rest of the group, albeit reluctantly, back inside.
Chan-woo slowly calmed himself down as Jimin and him continued to awkward kneel on the hard deck. He shivered as one of Jimin's small hands rubbed soothing circles on his back and the other gently massaged his scalp. Every few seconds the other boy would whisper calm words into his ear. Despite feeling exhausted, he couldn't help the uneasiness he experienced due to the sudden nice demeanour used towards him.
"How about we move to the steps? Hmm? Get more comfortable?" Jimin softly asked as he begun to shuffle his way towards the back steps that was only a ruler's length away.
Without saying a word, Chan-woo forced his weak body to follow along. The pair settled down beside each other, arms and legs against each other, as they looked out into the pitch black backyard. Jimin shuffled that inch closer as he wrapped his right arm around the younger's shoulder and grabbed onto Chan-woo's hand with his left. The younger wiped away his remaining tears with his right hand as he hung his head in shame.
"That was your parents?" Jimin asked quietly with a deep frown.
"Y-Yeah," he answered and nodded.
"They sound toxic," he whispered while his thumb rubbed a soothing pattern upon Chan-woo's hand.
"You have no idea," he whispered as he bit his lip in an attempt to stop further crying.
"I have some idea," Jimin responded. "I don't know what your parents are like. But I also came from a bad home life."
"You did?" he gasped softly as he looked up into the sad brown eyes of Jimin.
"I did," he nodded while he gave him a sad smile. "My parents were horrible to me. They made me feel inadequate. I felt like I could never be my true self, let alone think I could chase my dreams. They truly did say terrible things to me. It wasn't until I joined this group that I found some confidence in myself and was able to become my true self. I haven't spoken to them in many years now."
"M-My parents also say horrible things to me," he stuttered and looked at his lap in shame.
"They do? Like what?" he asked and gave a comforting squeeze to both his hand and shoulders.
"Like... Like I'm a pathetic waste of space," Chan-woo said which caused Jimin to softly gasp and his eyes to widen. "A-And that I'm not talented and will never do anything with my l-life. They told me they wished they never had me. That I-I'm ungrateful. That I'm stupid and disrespectful. That I don't d-deserve to be happy. T-T-That I deserved what they did to me."
"Chan-woo... What did they do to you?" whispered Jimin with tears in his own eyes.
"You mean what didn't they do," he couldn't look the older in the eyes as he whispered his answer. "They hurt me."
"They hurt you?" he repeated in a whisper.
"Yes," he nodded as a stray tear fell down his face.
"Chan-woo," whispered Jimin as he pulled the younger to him and cradled his head against his chest.
Chan-woo didn't mean to cry anymore. He didn't. But to hear Jimin say his name in a broken whisper full of pain, it hurt him. It didn't help that his brain already had mixed emotions from the sudden compassion, warmth, and kindness being shown towards him. Out of all the members, he assumed Jimin would have been the least understanding and empathetic of his previous life. Maybe he had judged him wrong.
But who could blame him? After all, Jimin was the only member that had yet to make a connection with him. The entire time he had been there the pair had never connected on any level. Jimin's eyes were always full with hatred, coldness, jealousy, despise, and resent whenever he looked at him. It was completely reasonable for Chan-woo to be so taken aback by the current interaction and have a seed of doubt as to how genuine Jimin's affection was.
"I'm sorry," Jimin whispered with a wave of raw emotion in his voice.
"Hyung," he chocked out as he felt the wetness on Jimin's cheeks.
"I'm sorry," he said louder as he held onto the younger tighter.
"Hyung," he cried as he finally pulled away, both boys had tears that ran down their faces. "Y-You didn't know."
"But that's not an excuse," Jimin sobbed as he pulled Chan-woo back to him and practically squeezed the life out of him. "I should have seen the signs. I should have recognised another broken person. I'm sorry."
Chan-woo listened to the words and felt his heart break. While he empathised with whatever Jimin had been through, he felt torn with the treatment he had received. It had been cruel. He could not ignore that fact. All seven of the boys had been cruel to him at some point. Yet he had always understood where they were coming from and tried to move passed it in hopes of a better future. He had a very understanding nature which at times had caused others to exploit that side of him. It was only in the last year that he had decided to put up some barriers to protect himself from the inevitable hurt.
Could he do that with Jimin? The last member of the group to come around? Surely out of everyone, Chan-woo could relate to him the most with coming from a rough past. Maybe he needed some time to be able to move passed the hurt and awkwardness. Of course he would like to hope that one day everything between him and Jimin would be fine. In fact, he hoped that with all the members. But he just needed time to heal. He just hoped that they would all understand that and take it slow and easy with him.
"I don't think it would be a good idea to go over it tonight, but I'd like to hear your story," finally Jimin said to break the silence that had been filled with the both of them crying.
"Sometime soon Hyung," he nodded as he wiped his tears with the back of one of his arms.
"I'm so sorry for the way I acted and treated you," said Jimin as he pulled away and held onto both of Chan-woo's hands. "There's not enough apologies in the world that I could give to make up for the past month. I hate the way I conducted myself."
"I would be lying if I said it's okay. But I understand where you all came from. I understand how hard it would have been to accept a new person into the group after all the hard work you all have put in over the years. To get to where you are today and to have someone come in all of a sudden. It would have been hard to come to terms with. But in saying that, I wasn't given a chance. I was immediately casted aside for a decision I had no power or say in," Chan-woo told him as he stared deeply into the sad brown eyes.
"But even then, we acted immaturely and, it wasn't even borderline, it was intimidation and bullying. What we did, what we said, it was so fucking wrong," Jimin shook his head in shame. "We were so caught up in our own emotions that we took it out on you without even getting to know you. We should have treated you with the decency like any human being deserves."
"Hyung, I appreciate what you are saying. I really do. And if I didn't come from the home life that I had, I would have run for the hills weeks ago. But I was so used to being treated the way I had that I was able to handle it all. I said to myself that it felt like I went from one hellhole to another, but for different reasons," softly explained Chan-woo.
"For my part in it all, I'm so sorry," Jimin whispered as he pulled Chan-woo closer again.
"Thank you Jimin Hyung," whispered Chan-woo.
"Should we go inside before we catch a cold?" he asked after a moment of silence.
"Good idea," he nodded. "I regret rushing out here without shoes."
"Let's get you warmed up," Jimin moved to stand and pulled the younger up with him.
The two boys walked back inside with Jimin's arm around Chan-woo's shoulders. They entered a completely silent living room, movie long abandoned, all six pair of eyes were trained on him. Jimin guided him until they were on the only couch that was unoccupied. Chan-woo barely was able to sit down before he felt another pair of arms attach to him. He blinked and locked down to find Taehyung suddenly staring at him with questioning, sad eyes. He hadn't even seen the other boy move across the room. He smiled sadly in return as Jimin, Taehyung and him settled on the couch.
"How are you feeling?" Namjoon was the first to ask, the ever concerned leader side of him showing.
"I don't know," quietly said Chan-woo as he noticed the sadness on all of their faces.
"We got your phone for you," mentioned Taehyung. "It kept ringing so we turned it off."
"I see," nodded Chan-woo as he nervously looked down in his lap. "Thanks for getting it for me. I didn't even think of it while I was out there."
"No need to thank us. Here you are," Jin said as he stood up, walked across the room, and passed the device to Chan-woo. "There's a crack in the top corner now though."
"It doesn't really matter. It's replaceable," he shrugged as he accepted the dreaded device.
As Jin walked back to the couch, the silence continued to persist. Chan-woo looked down at the phone in his hands. His thumb traced the new crack on the top right corner of the screen that ran a few centimeters downwards. It didn't matter to him. His phone was an item that could easily be replaced. His anger at his parents had caused that uncharacteristic outburst, but it was long overdue. It just so happened that the target of his rage had been his phone unfortunately.
"Would you like to talk about it?" tentatively asked Namjoon.
"Not tonight," he answered with a small shake of his head. "I-I can't..."
"It's okay. We just want to make sure you are okay," said Taehyung as he slipped his hand into Chan-woo's right hand.
"I'll be okay," he said with a frown.
"Are you going to talk with Bang PD-nim about this?" Yoongi asked, his face mirrored the frown.
"I think so," he stuttered and nodded as he looked at the other across from him. "She violated one of the terms in the contract. And I can't keep letting them get away with it otherwise they will continue."
"You're doing the right thing and we will be right here to support you in any way that you need," spoke up Jimin as he squeezed Chan-woo's shoulders.
"I appreciate that," quietly said Chan-woo as he looked up at Jimin with a sad smile.
"Would you like to keep watching the movie? Or would you like to go to bed?" asked Hoseok from where he sat beside Yoongi.
"Keep watching the movie," he answered. "I don't want to be alone right now and there's no way I could sleep after all that. I just want something to distract myself from what just happened."
"That's completely understandable. We'll help you however you want tonight," smiled Namjoon as he stood up and picked up the tv remote from the coffee table. "Are you cold? Do you want a blanket before I sit down?"
"Yes please," he nodded shyly, his feet freezing from the bitter coldness of the night.
"One blanket coming right up," chuckled Hoseok as he rushed from his spot, before Namjoon had a chance to react, and brought the spare blanket over to Chan-woo. The brightly smiling Hoseok threw the blanket onto Chan-woo, Jimin and Taehyung before he then tucked the edges around the three of them. He leant down and placed a gentle kiss on the youngest's temple. "There you go."
"Thanks Hyung," he whispered with a shy smile on his face, cheeks burned with embarrassment.
"My turn!" loudly proclaimed Taehyung as he leant over and placed a peck on Chan-woo's right cheek.
"Taehyungie," Chan-woo whined as he sunk further into the couch and hid his face beneath the blankets, only his eyes and forehead poked above it.
"So cute," whispered Taehyung as the rest of the boys chuckled while they settled back into the couches and turned their attention back to the tv.
His eyes stared at the tv unfocused as Chan-woo allowed himself to get comfortable in the arms of Jimin and Taehyung. He reflected upon the events that had just transpired and unfolded before him. It had felt like an uncontrollable dumpster fire that burned before his eyes. While he had been broken by the conversation with his mother, a small part of him had been utterly grateful that he had the seven boys around him to lean on him and pick him up during the aftermath of it all.
He just hoped it stayed that way...