WHOA ANOTHER UPDATE. Guys, we were blessed with Yoongi in a kitty mask on that last Run episode, so the stars were aligned in our favor.
This man is a bonafide baby, lemme protect-
This is kind of a mashup of prompts from SpaceNovak on AO3 and EmptyInside here on Wattpad. The latter asked for a date night, and the former asked to see how Yoongi does in public settings. Enjoy!
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"Literally nobody gets a babysitter for their cat," you insisted.
Yoongi only scowled. "But Y/N -"
"Besides, what do you think I do when I have to work and you're at the studio?" You cocked a brow, lips upturned in a grin. Checkmate.
Yoongi's eyes turned into slits, his tail whipping back and forth in poorly-concealed irritation. "You leave Yeonglihan all by herself?"
He made it sound like you were a negligent owner. "She's not gonna get kidnapped." A beat. "Or, well, catnapped."
"But - but!" His gaze snapped down to the cat in question. Time had turned Yeonglihan into a sleek, angular creature; she couldn't really even be called a "kitten" anymore. You pointed this out, and Yeonglihan offered her hybrid owner a headbutt to the shin to punctuate your words. With a groan, Yoongi relented, "Fine. Fine, if you're so insistent that she'll be okay. But if the toaster falls off the counter and lands on her head, and she stumbles into the open fridge and gets trapped and freezes to death, I'm never going to forgive you."
That was quite a specific scenario.
"Yoongs," you eased, biting back a laugh. "The toaster is in the cupboard, and the fridge door is shut. She'll be fine."
Really, it was too late to be having this conversation anyway. You were both dressed up and ready to head out - you'd spent the better part of the past couple hours making sure your hair and makeup were perfect, though your relationship with Yoongi has existed long enough that it probably wasn't necessary. But the way the cat hybrid's dark almond eyes raked down the front of your slim red dress when you first emerged from the bathroom made it all worth it.
For his part, Yoongi had shrugged into a tight-fitting black button down and slacks of the same color. His hair was messy as usual, but in a way that crooned "tousled" instead of "bedhead."
It took a lot of convincing to get Yoongi to agree to this. At first, he replied with his favorite comeback - "no way in hell" - but after a healthy dose of cuddling he relented with a begrudging, "I'm not going anywhere too crowded."
And so, you wouldn't. You could give him that much. Compromises, and all that.
It was a good thing you were obliging that request, too - Yoongi was feeling a bit cat-ish today. Nothing too serious, but enough to cause a bit of anxiety at the thought of taking him out.
"Whatever," Yoongi grumbled. "Are you ready? Let's get this over with."
You knew he was actually looking forward to tonight, though he'd never show it. Still, cautious, you asked, "Are you sure you'll be okay? We can take a raincheck."
Yoongi's nose wrinkled. "What did I say earlier?"
A moment as you tried to remember. "I believe it was something about -"
"I said I'll be fine," he finished with a hiss. "Now fuck off. Do you smell like me?" A heavy sniff. "I guess that'll do. Why do you insist on wearing perfume? I hate it. Let's go."
Yoongi had been making an effort to be nicer. He really had. So, you should have really stopped to think about what it meant for his assholery to show its true colors in such vibrant hues.
But you didn't, and with a final goodbye to Yeonglihan - who had disappeared, so the goodbye was shouted into nothingness - you made your way out of the apartment to the parking garage.
The drive to the restaurant was smothered in thick silence. Yoongi's arms were crossed over his chest, his back smooshed as far as it could go into the seat. His tail brushed your arm every once and awhile as it swished back and forth, but whether out of nerves or his usual grumpiness was up for debate.
Finally, as you pulled into the lot of your destination, you turned to your hybrid. "Yoongi."
"Hm?"
He didn't even look at you.
"Yoongs," you insisted.
"Jesus Christ, what do you want, Y/N?" he snapped, throwing his arms to his sides and shooting you a dark look.
"I'm serious. We don't have to -"
"I swear to god, if you suggest a raincheck one more fucking time -" he scrubbed a hand down his face, releasing a hiss into his palm. The moment of animalness seemed to be all he needed, and he straightened and said in a much quieter voice, "I'm fine. Let's go."
He wasn't fine. You could see it in the rigidness of his body - how he looked ready to pounce on any possible threat. But you trusted Yoongi, didn't you? If he said he was fine, then he was fine.
"Okay," you relented.
His fingers fumbled over the buckle of his seatbelt, clumsy and shaking. If only you used the number system like Hoseok and Taehyung, then maybe you'd know what was really going on. Wordlessly, you helped him unbuckle, and he shoved himself out of the car with an angry meow.
What was wrong with your baby? This wasn't just him being an adorable jerk, this was him being mean.
"Yoo-"
Before you could continue, Yoongi lurched away from the car. You scrambled to catch up, meeting him at the restaurant's entrance. His tail whipped back and forth behind him, and you grabbed the appendage and gave the white tuft at the end a soothing rub with your thumb. Thankfully, his shoulders seemed to relax a bit, and when he held the door open for you, he actually managed a brittle smile.
"Reservation for two. Name's under Y/N," you told the hostess standing at the oak podium in the foyer. The woman's hair was in a tight top knot, and her popsicle stick figure was squeezed into a short black skirt and white blouse. She repeated your statement into a radio attached to her collar before beckoning your little train into the depths of the restaurant.
You had picked out a nicer restaurant than usual, hoping its steeper price tags yet shabbier location in the middle-class part of the city would mean there would be fewer people.
Boy, were you wrong.
Almost every table was filled, the atmosphere brimming with noisy chatter, and Yoongi's ears twitched in annoyance as he growled, "I said no crowds."
"I'm sorry," you mourned truthfully. "I thought -"
"Whatever," he rolled his eyes. "Just sit down."
With a start, you realized the hostess had found your table.
And of course, it wasn't at the edge of the horde. It wasn't even close to the door or bathroom. No, it was right in the middle. Right in the throes of that roiling, boiling throng.
This date night was not turning out very well.
Yoongi's eyes flitted back and forth, his entire body stiff as he pulled out your chair. Thankfully, no fans of Agust D seemed to be in the restaurant, so nobody looked twice at the cat hybrid who'd entered. Every step to his own seat was labored, and his nostrils flared with the force of his breathing.
"Yoongi -"
"I'm fine."
With a huff, you tried, "Baby -"
"Y/N," he groaned, finally looking at you. "I'm fine."
Your waiter - a man with a light dusting of facial hair aging his youthful appearance - came by with menus and glasses of water, but thankfully didn't stick around long as Yoongi's squinted eyes followed his every movement. Only when he was gone did your cat hybrid snatch up his water and take a long, heated gulp. Sweat beaded on his forehead, clumping his dark hair in tendrils. His skin was flushed red, and you realized what was about to happen with a start.
Yoongi was going to have a panic attack.
You jumped into action, pushing yourself to your feet and snatching his hand. He looked up, confusion furrowing his brows. "What are you -"
"Come on," you ordered, and thankfully he obeyed without another word.
You all but shoved your way through the crowded restaurant, never releasing Yoongi's trembling hand. The cool night air embraced your joined forms like an old friend, and only when you were back at your car - not inside, but standing by its rear bumper - did you stop and breathe.
"Y/N -"
"It's not nice to lie!" you snapped with a withering glare. "You were not - are not - fine, so don't try to pretend otherwise!"
Yoongi gnawed on his lip, and you tapped his chin with an insistent finger before he could draw blood. He refused to meet your gaze, so you finally sighed, "Let's go for a walk. There's a park nearby."
A nod was the only reply, but it was enough. Taking his hand again, you pulled him to the sidewalk. The park was only a block away, the streets swelling with standstill vehicles and the smells of the city - street food and smog and car exhaust. But it all fell away like magic the second you stepped through the park's entrance - or maybe that was just your imagination. Darkness had taken over the night sky, nothing but the shining skyscrapers and the occasional lamppost to light your way down the path. At this hour, there were only a few other people strolling through the park. But it wasn't until you were away from all of them that Yoongi stopped, feet planting so that you couldn't keep him walking even if you tried.
"Sweetheart, talk to me," you murmured, brushing his drying hair out of his face. "What's happening in that beautiful brain of yours?"
His tail snapped around behind him as he croaked, "I'm sorry."
Sorry? "What for?"
"Don't be dumb," he ordered. "You know what for."
"No, actually," you insisted, "I don't."
He groaned, making his way to a bench underneath a nearby lamppost. A few moths fluttered under its pulsing light, and Yoongi's eyes followed their haphazard journeys with longing. Unsure, you sat down beside him, gaze trained on the side of his face.
"Tonight was going to be special," Yoongi whimpered, looking down at his hands in his lap. "We were gonna go on a real date. A real one, Y/N. Like normal people do. But I had to go and fuck it up."
"Honey -"
"Don't," he begged, desperation flashing in his eyes as he turned to you. "Please don't."
Please. Yoongi was too good for words like that. So, you closed your mouth, swallowing whatever you were going to say.
"I'm sorry," he mumbled, looking away again. "Why do you even love me? I'm just a dumb cat."
"Okay, that's enough," you ordered, cupping his face in your hand and turning it so he'd look at you. "You can be a brat to me, to our friends, to your fans. But you will not be a bully, especially not to yourself."
"But -"
"So we didn't get to go to a restaurant tonight. So what?" You took his hands, offering a bright smile. "I got to spend time with you. I get to sit with my darling kitten in the quiet right now, in a beautiful park. He gets to be as much of a cat as he wants to be, and no one's around to make him feel bad for it."
Yoongi's eyes softened, black ears twitching. "So, it's okay?"
"Yes, baby," you promised. "It's okay. I love you - every part of you. Even the parts you can't help. Especially the parts you can't help."
He mewled quietly, pleased. You sat in the gentle night air, gazing up at the moths and fireflies, more than happy with how your date turned out.
"You've been holding back all day," you breathed. "I know you have, and I appreciate how much you wanted to have our restaurant date tonight, but I want you to let that go right now. Can you do that for me, sweetie?"
Yoongi searched your face, brows scrunching. When he found what he was looking for - or perhaps didn't find what he was looking for - he offered a nod and stood up. Your eyes followed the movement, a small smile plastered across your lips.
"Well, that's honestly good," he sighed, tail flicking lazily. "Because I really want to kill these moths right now."
You rolled your eyes, "Yoongi -"
"Don't worry," he slurred, voice thick as he loosened himself into his cat headspace. "I'll get one for you."
That wasn't what you were worried about, but you only shook your head in amusement and sat back against the park bench, watching happily as Yoongi's hands started to paw at the air.
Yeah, this was definitely a great date night.
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I don't even know what this is honestly, but I hope you liked it anyway. Okay, I gotta go work on the chapter for TSOTS, so I'll see you later! Let me know what you thought in the comments, I always try to respond! I'm happy that it seems a lot of you haven't given up on this story despite the long hiatus.
Please don't forget to Vote, and feel free to leave prompts in the comments!