He didn't want to delve too deeply into his feelings, at least not for now.
Anyone would think that after the Christmas holidays the world would return to its normal rhythm, which, although it was quite fast, it was normal. But no. It was as if they were still partying, with the only difference that they had to go to work, but people took time - Yoongi didn't know where - to fill the streets, shops and restaurants. To a certain extent, he understood that the stores were packed, which is why people ended up returning or exchanging gifts that had not been the most suitable, but there were still too many people for his liking.
Of course, his company had also wanted to join in the post-vacation frenzy. There was not a second of rest, the pressure to finish all the projects started was noticeable in the environment, even at the entrance, which only had the reception and the elevators; But they all hurried from one place to another, and those who were always thirsty for gossip could not see their hair unless it was their hour of rest, and even then it did not last long either; basically, they lacked time to work, and that was what they played after the Christmas break.
Overtime was the order of the day, and although you could choose not to do it, none of them liked that someone had the audacity to leave while there was still work to be done and they had their superiors looking at everything they did with a magnifying glass. Yoongi did not escape from this situation, and he was used to working under pressure, and sometimes he liked that adrenaline rush that gave him the knowledge that the deadline for composition was three days later: it drove him to give your best in times of crisis.
But even he had a limit, and he was fed up with so many changes, he was so upset that there was always an excuse: that if the melody was too aggressive, or too simple, or that it was missing something but they didn't know what.
That same day he had been about to send someone to shit because he was sick of them changing everything at the last minute and because they could not decide the musical style they wanted for the new group. Yoongi didn't even remember who the smartass changed all the guidelines (again).
"Easy, Hyung. Think that it's Friday and that you have the entire weekend to forget about all this." Namjoon told him with a hand on his shoulder as he tried to prevent a murder in that same room where they were still meeting after two hours.
"If I think about it, I'll despair even more. What I want, is to lose sight of all these idiots who think that we have nothing better to do than be at the expense of their requests, as if it were so easy to do what they ask of us." He answered through his teeth and trying to contain himself.
"They just see bars on our screens and think it's like a game. They don't know everything we have to do to make it sound good." said one of his fellow producer who was at his side and was just as pissed off with all these changes. "The only reason I can put up with this shit is that in an hour I'll be home with my wife and kids."
Yoongi and Namjoon nodded their heads and resigned themselves to listening to what was happening in the room until it was time to leave. The CEO himself disagreed with so many changes and finally took the reins, clarifying that he would speak at length with those who had trouble deciding what they wanted. Just looking at the horrified face that the guy he almost sent to shit had made, Yoongi felt satisfied, if only for a minute, because the next he was walking out the door with Namjoon and many others who did not want to risk staying longer than necessary.
"We are free, finally!" Namjoon sighed as he dropped into the chair, Yoongi the following suit in front of him.
They had stopped at the cafeteria next to work to disconnect from the world for a moment before arriving home. After talking for a while about pointless things that had nothing to do with work, and finishing their drinks, the two of them went out to catch the subway. When they were near his stop, Namjoon began to gently shake him to wake him up.
"Haven't you been sleeping well, Hyung?" Asked his friend once he saw that his eyes were open, and he was back in reality.
"Not very good, really. I've been having nightmares." He replied as he rubbed his eyes with the palm of his hand.
"You mean...?"
Namjoon left the sentence unfinished, but Yoongi knew very well what he was referring to.
"I don't know. I remember little about what I dream. They're not pleasant, that I know for sure, but I think it's more because of stress than the fact that they are stalking me again." He said while trying to suppress a yawn. "Also, now that I've found Jungkook, they can't get near me, remember?"
It was only a couple of minutes until the subway stopped at their stop.
"Yes, I know, but there are so many things we don't know about, and everything that happened with your gem and Jungkook's... So many strange things have happened that I can't help but worry that those things will come up again." Namjoon said in a whisper. A couple of people got up to get off at the same stop as Yoongi, and the rapper wanted the least for someone to find out about their strange conversation, even though no one could really understand what they were talking about.
"Don't worry, Joon, I'm sure it's stress." He said before saying goodbye and promising his friend that he would call him if something happened.
Yoongi understood his friend's concern, and he himself was worried because even though it had been months since he saw a strange shadow hanging around his house, the nightmares only reminded him that there was a possibility that they would find a way to reappear. He hadn't lied to his friend when he said that nightmares had nothing to do with shadows; Although he had thought it too, it was a fear-induced thought, and if logically carried it, it was impossible for the shadows to return if his gem and Jungkook's were connected.
When he got home and finished showering, he dressed in comfortable clothes and started tidying up the house a bit. Tomorrow was Saturday, and the least he wanted was to put anything on when all he could do was stay in bed all day sleeping. This also allowed him to take his mind off work because even if he no longer had to go to work for three days, there were still projects to be finished and long hours in the studio creating a song that was worthy of the approval of the superiors.
Yoongi was good at what he did. You could say that he was a genius, someone who always found the right note for a song when others hadn't even noticed it. Calling himself a genius was an exaggeration: he simply loved music and was passionate about what he did, just like his other peers, But every time he said this, Namjoon, and even the CEO himself, would tell him that there was nothing wrong with giving yourself the value you deserve. And all this, however flattering it was, led him to the point of having to meet certain expectations that were expected of him; No one might have said them out loud, but they were implied, and the rush of work ahead required all their concentration and genius.
So it was to be expected that after a while his mind would return to work. It was difficult to disconnect from your work when this was what you were most passionate about: it was practically impossible.
Namjoon also went through the same thing, but he had Jin, who kept him busy with anything other than work and music during the time he was with him. Yoongi had Jungkook, but he didn't want to depend on the boy and his gem's mysterious ability and use it for his own benefit. It was cruel to play with someone else's feelings like that, especially if that person was Jungkook, a boy who had been nothing but respectful and patient with Yoongi.
There were rare occasions when the young man let himself be carried away by his impulses and hugged him out of nowhere or grabbed him by the shoulder while telling him something that had caught his attention; Jungkook did these things when he was so excited that he forgot how cautious he was always around Yoongi for fear of doing or saying something that would upset him. There were moments when it could infuriate how much the boy tried not to cross the invisible line that he had marked, but at the same time, it was admirable that he kept his word and accepted the little that Yoongi gave him.
It was difficult for him to lower the barrier and let Jungkook pass. It was difficult because Yoongi didn't want to suffer again. He might have recovered from the first one, but he knew that if he let Jungkook in all the way and Jungkook decided over time that Yoongi was no longer worth his time, it would be his end. It was one thing to break up with your boyfriend because he had found his happiness in someone else, and it was quite another to go through the same thing with your soulmate: it was something that promised pain and little chance of recovery. And that's why Yoongi had tried with all his might to act as normal as possible about the whole thing, to act as always as if nothing had happened as if Jungkook was not his soul mate but a new member of his group of friends. But that had been impossible.
To get started, their gemstones, so each knew if connected to the two the other person was okay or not based on how their gem reacted; And if you add to that the strange, but effective, an ability that Jungkook's gem had to calm him and his gem, the mixture was something amazing and hard to ignore.
But the hardest thing to ignore was Jungkook himself: he was a shy boy with a big heart, who lived life with passion. Try as he might, it was difficult to look away from the boy, to look at him every time he laughed at something that Taehyung and Jimin had told him, it was difficult not to stare at him spellbound every time his eyes shone with emotion when he spoke from something he was passionate about or when he listened to the songs that he and Namjoon composed in their spare time. So each one knew if the other person was okay or not based on how their gem reacted;
It was difficult to be away from Jungkook, and when Yoongi was away from him, it was difficult not to think about him. In fact, Yoongi thought of Jungkook more often than he cared to admit, and on many of those occasions, his thoughts strayed quite far from the category of pure and innocent. But Yoongi was stubborn, and he would keep trying to keep his thoughts at bay and his actions in the friend zone until he had no choice but to succumb to fate.
With a small sigh of satisfaction, Yoongi ended his housekeeping session. He still had a few hours to go until it was dinnertime, so he used the time to review and finish his own songs.
He took a bottle of water out of the fridge to have something to drink and avoid having to stop in the middle of editing because he was thirsty. Losing track of time was common when you were immersed in something that required your full attention, so it was logical that time slipped through your fingers like sand, sunlight fading to make way for night and its artificial lights. Despite his desire and motivation, Yoongi could not advance as much as he would have liked with his songs; In fact, he only finished one when he finally looked away from the computer screen and realized that it was dark without him noticing.
Today had been one of those days when his soul seemed to have abandoned him altogether, or he might not be in the right mental and emotional state to interpret his signals, likely considering what a shitty day he'd had. With a resigned sigh, he put away the progress he'd made and headed to the kitchen to make dinner.
When he was halfway to the kitchen, a sudden movement caught his attention, and his gaze fell on the window where there was a figure that Yoongi couldn't make out in the dark. Pulse-pounding, and Namjoon's words of concern echoing in his head, he reached for the switch at his fingertips without taking his eyes off the window.
This story belongs to @nometoloko on AO3. I'm just her translator.
Back again! I have no life. Hope you like the chapter. I love cliff hangers.