"Fire them. All of them, except for Min Yoongi of course, I'm keeping him. Permanently. Yeah, I'm very serious. Also, have a look with security and see if they have an open spot for him, that or make him my second personal assistant like you, or my personal bodyguard, I don't know. He's a white wolf, he looks like he can handle himself and I'm sure he's a fast learner. Of course I asked him first, who do you think I am, San? I- yes, the reunion went very well, thank you. Hmhm. Alright, thanks".

I end the call, then put my phone away before staring at my seven soulmates with a pleased smile, not at all fazed by the fact that San is going to go back to the company building while I'm still here.

I'm not scared of danger with them by my side, I know deep down that I don't risk anything if they're with me. It helps to know that the real danger is all behind me, that Hae-in hasn't contacted me even once since I left.

I'm also too lost in the feeling of loving when I can fix problems easily - or rather get someone to do it for me - it's one of the things that make me feel like I've won at least a little bit in life.

Having the power to punish the wrong and help the weak - not that they're weak in the literal term - makes me feel very good about my past struggles.

"There, that should be enough for now. Of course, we're going to have to look into more contractors and be more selective, because their behaviour towards hybrids is unacceptable, but that also means that we could find and banish one more unfair business from the world" I muse aloud, and Yoongi's eyes widen comically large.

"Banish?".

I nod innocently.

"Banish. As in... gone. Their business will be shut down, and even if they try to open under another name in the future, they still won't succeed because they're now on the black list. Or I'll make it happen later, anyway".

Hoseok claps his hands excitedly, then shows me two thumbs up as if to praise me, my own personal hype man, what a wonderful soulmate.

My emotions softly tilt between turning bashful and proud under his loving pair of almond eyes, and a mix of both results as my smile widens and brightens up the half-finished room.

So quickly, I've started to feel complete again in their presence, like there are no more broken pieces in my soul, which was confirmed earlier when we all glanced at our fully healed soulmarks.

I almost started to cry right there and then, because it had taken too many years to see their flowers alive and dark on my skin again, just like they were always meant to be. All of this mess was never meant to happen to begin with.

Namjoon had seen through my tough mask though, and I'd melted and wept a few tears in his arms until Jimin took over with a hug of his own, unable to stay away and watch when he could comfort me himself.

We were all happy for a healed bond, and it showed in everyone's eyes.

At the sight of my smile, Taehyung dramatically hides his eyes with a hand, a grunt past his lips before he throws himself at my feet in a pretend-faint, the tip of his tail curling on itself in delight when I burst into laughter as I crouch down to cup his giggling face between my hands.

There's no denying that he still has that special talent of duality, of choosing when to be cute and when to be terribly sexy, but right now, seeing that dazzling smile of his does it for me. He's the prettiest when he looks like this.

"You silly man. Get off the floor, there's still dust everywhere and I wouldn't want you to get any in your eyes".

Adoration is how he looks at me in answer and he lets me help him up to his feet despite the fact that he's gotten incredibly heavy, though that's only an excuse to move his grip from around my hands and onto my hips once he stands before me.

And I'd forgotten that his hands are like handcuffs.

You need a very rare and well-hidden key to be freed once they close around you, and he knows how to be persuasive so you don't even seek anything else but his touch.

Not that I'd ever want him to release me.

I let him hold me close as I hum to myself in contentment, eyes glancing around the unfinished mansion and wondering what's going to happen with the renovations now.

It's most likely going to take longer since we'll have to find someone else to continue what was done, which is throwing me off a little bit. I'd meant to leave the city as soon as I could, but now I'm finding out that I'll have to stay there for longer after all.

Sure, I might be going a bit too fast by wanting to be with them all the time already, but they've welcomed me so warmly that I can't possibly wish for anything else when it's all I've ever longed for.

"What's wrong, Y/N?" Taehyung asks as he peeks down at me with a caress of his tail around my waist, its weight settling nicely over my curves and staying there as I bring my eyes back to his.

It feels so natural to be held by him again, and it brings me so much peace.

"I was excited about moving back in here, back in my hometown, and hopefully closer to all of you. I'd meant to ask if you'd perhaps want to move in once everything would be ready, if I had you back in my life by then, but now I don't know when the renovations will be complete and I'm a little bummed".

My seven soulmates look at one another at my admission, a silent conversation happening between them while I observe in confusion, and Yoongi is first to clear his throat when everyone nods at him, something I don't miss, though I don't quite understand the meaning.

His ears twitch under his nerves, and he gulps in air with a nervous hand to his chest before he meets my gaze head on, his dark eyes looking deep into my own and unfaltering.

"We could take care of finishing the work ourselves, if you'd allow it. I know what needs to be done, and I'm pretty good at doing it. I could guide the others with the easier tasks, there's not that much left to be done anyway, nothing that we can't take care of ourselves, if only we'd give it a few hours of our time once in a while".

I blink at the handsome group that they make, then more specifically at the wolf, not having expected that offer in the least. I hadn't complained so that they'd take the matter into their own hands.

"But aren't you tired of working in construction, Yoongi? It's bad enough that you had to work in an abusive environment in here without my knowledge" I ask him with a frown, not liking what this means for him.

He told me just a moment ago that if he could have another career in which he could feel respected and valued, he would be thrilled.

It didn't matter to him what he ended up doing, that's what he said, but I could hear in his voice that he was done with construction, that this field had him overwhelmed and always living in anxiety.

That's why I need to make sure that this is something he really wants, because if he's forcing himself to do something that he wants to stop just because of me, then I don't feel comfortable with that at all.

And don't the others have jobs already? Working on this gigantic building on top of it all seems a bit much... Some rooms and areas can wait until later, but the living spaces alone are still going to need a dozen hours of work before completion.

The white wolf seems to think about it, truly contemplating how it is that he feels about the project, but he reaches an answer faster than I would have myself.

"Well... it's not really work anymore if I'm working on the building I'm to live in. Doing this with my soulmates seems like fun, honestly" he says with a dismissive shrug that doesn't cover the bashful blush on his cheeks, or the sound that his tail makes as it thumps through the air quickly.

He grunts as he fails to grab the appendage a few times before he finally slaps it against his back, and he keeps it there with an expression that pulls a small snort from Hoseok and Namjoon, which only seems to worsen the pout that he tried to hide.

Yoongi is the most adorable wolf I've ever had the pleasure of meeting, that's for sure.

"And before you worry about us, we don't mind working on the mansion in our free time, though it'd mostly have to be at the end of the day, when we're back from work" Jungkook adds, ever the mind reader that he is, and I give a soft exhale.

Seeing everyone agree so easily reassures me, because doesn't that mean they also agree to moving in with me? Or is that me wearing pink glasses right now?

None of them have given me a clear answer, besides Yoongi anyway, but they haven't hinted at a refusal either. Agreeing to help... I'll take it as the possible yes that it is for now.

"Then... why don't we all work together on evenings when we feel able to do so? We could have diner together, then do a little at a time. Surely I can help too, there must be something I can do" I wonder with renewed hope flaring in my chest, and I turn and twist in Taehyung's tight grip to see what could be a task for me, what can I do to help?

Would it be helping with the flooring? Or painting the walls? What about the kitchen? I don't think I'd be much help there, but surely there's something I can do other than watch from the sidelines.

"You can be our motivation. You just sit and give us a smile when we're getting tired, we'll be unstoppable if everything we do earns us one of your pretty giggles" the tiger muses sweetly, and I fight against a blush as I purse my lips at him.

There, that's what I didn't want to hear.

"That's not fair, I want to help too. This is my building after all and there's a lot to do. What you're asking of me right now is to sit like a doll while you do all the work, and I don't like that".

"Far from me the idea of making you into a doll, I'm only asking that you do not get hurt in front of us" Taehyung corrects me, and he softly taps on my nose before smiling at me, fingers kneading into my sides and pulling my chest flush against him.

My heart skips a beat and I melt into him, which earns me a small purr, the sound a lot richer and deeper than it was in the past. It has my insides fluttering with joy, with love and shyness. I'd missed this.

"Anyway, we're not doing that today so let's have that conversation another time, bunny. We just got you back and we've yet to get to know three of our mates, I think it's only right that we spend the day doing that for now. The mansion can wait".

I open my mouth to retort something at the old nickname that I hadn't heard in ages, then close it again when his words finally settle in my mind with a logic that I can't counter, because he's right.

We have to make use of today to get to know each other, to reforge our bonds.

While I still remember bits and pieces from the past with Jungkook, Namjoon, Jimin and Taehyung, I can't say the same about Yoongi, Seokjin and Hoseok. I actually know very little about them at the moment.

"Where should we go, then? Here is not exactly the best place to relax and talk" I ask him, though the question is directed at all of them. "We could head to my penthouse in the city, unless any of you live closer?"

"Let's go to our place, it's closer since it's next door" Jimin offers with his soft voice, one that never fails to soothe me in ways that none other can, and I'm about to nod, only to frown instead when I process the look on his face.

How close is 'next door' exactly?

Four grins grow onto the faces of my childhood loves, and I push Taehyung's arms down so I can make a step back and glance at all of them warily, though it simply amuses them further.

"What did you mean when you said 'next door', Jimin?"

"Why don't we show you instead?" Namjoon muses with an elegant bow that makes my stomach flutter.

Before I can reply, he walks to and opens the front door before inviting me outside by his side with a motion of the hand, an arm offered to me to seek a contact that he craves once more, that car ride was not enough.

There's no hesitation to be had as my fingers softly slide onto his sleeve until they meet his skin, and goosebumps travel the length of his arm until they tickle my fingertips, a sensation that brings a small smile to my lips, eyes misty with nostalgia.

I've yet to truly and properly process this day so far.

It still feels like a dream, one that I never want to wake up from, and I'm terrified that I might open my eyes at any time and realize that everything was fake before I could have a moment with each of my soulmates.

With everyone following behind us in silence, I let the tall man lead me by the arm when he pulls softly to get my attention back on him, on his eyes that always help to ground me into the now.

Namjoon guides me across the large lawn until we reach a much smaller but cozy house, and indeed, it is one that is right by my mansion, as Jimin had said. That leaves a lump in my throat, the why behind it not unknown to me.

Why would they buy a house beside my childhood home if not in the hope of finding me through it?

Namjoon smiles my way as he gets his keys out of his pocket to unlock the front door, and once he pushes it open to show me a warm interior that looks well lived-in, I hesitate to walk inside despite his wordless invitation.

This is the space that housed my soulmates for I don't know how long.

The space that saw them shed tears over my absence and betrayal for I don't know how many times. This is where they comforted each other when I was on their mind, when they grew impatient after failing to find me countless times.

Do I deserve to be here? Do I deserve to enter this sacred space after all I've made them go through?

My eyes waver at the sight before me, my heart rolling down a mountain hill with so much speed that the scenery becomes a blur, and I close my eyes to fight off a dizzy spell, fingers now clenching on Namjoon's forearm for balance.

It's very subtle, but it's enough to let him know that I'm somehow not doing too well at the moment, and he stares at me with sharp scrutiny, his mind searching far back in his memory for anything similar that might've happened in the past.

The answer is no, panic attacks were never a thing with me, not that he knows of.

A burning-hot chest pushes itself onto my back, arms meeting at my front before a chin rests over my shoulder, and the spicy scent of Jungkook's shampoo greets my senses before I let myself lean back into him with a sigh that comes from deep within my soul.

I allow myself to breathe deeply as he noses against my cheek, lips dragging down my jaw and throat, to my neck and then shoulder where he drops a soft kiss from over the thin fabric of my blouse, to reassure and comfort me.

Chills erupt from where he's holding me, and he squeezes gently when my scent pulses under his loving attention.

My skin warms up as he never ceases to caress a heated hand over my covered tummy, but my heart slows down to a peaceful pace, my nerves melting away as if they never existed to begin with.

It doesn't matter how temporary of a break I know it's going to be.

If this is a dream, then I never want to wake from it. I would rather be stuck in a coma until the day I die and remain in this dream forever, rather than to keep living a life that keeps me away from them, from him.

"It's not a dream" Jungkook murmurs against the shell of my ear once he feels me calmer, and my skin shivers from all over my body this time, rather than focused in one place.

"It feels like one right now, but it isn't. You're here, in my arms, against my heart. Our souls are connected once more, and I- we are never letting you go ever again. If you must go anywhere, we'll follow you, wherever that may lead us. Life is not taking you away like it once did, I'm not going to let it do that a second time".

He speaks with such fervor that I feel his words in the depth of my guts, they echo in each of my bones, in my nerves and muscles, but they feel too good to be true.

Can it really be that easy? I've learned to be wary of promises so pretty, because they rarely happen the way that they're said.

"Open your eyes, honey, look at me" Namjoon speaks up this time, and it's the touch of his large hands on my cheeks that gets me to listen, glistening eyes staring back at him with more vulnerability than he's ever seen on me.

Other than that nightmarish day of the past, that is.

He makes one step closer, his huge body hiding the sight of their home and easing the pressure of guilt onto my heart.

"You've always let your mind wander too far when we were younger and I know you haven't changed on that regard, so let me assure you now. Whatever is ours is also yours, and no sadness can ever rival with the love that was kept alive for you within these walls. When you walk inside, I want you to soak in that love, alright? Only the love, and nothing else".

I bite on the inside of my cheek, not sure if I can make that promise.

What if I find in every corners of every rooms a proof that I once hurt them?

I think it might be felt like a dagger in my heart if I do, and I'm not sure if I could resist what's left of my soul's waterfall from forcing its way out again until its river is nothing but dry rocks in the end.

I don't know why I'm so hesitant. Why I'm so fearful of what I might find inside.

They've continued to remain together for twelve long years while I was doing jobs of all kinds for Hae-in with San by my side. We've lived completely different lives, and yet, they were always linked together at the source.

So what am I scared of? Is it to see that they could keep making memories together while I wasn't there? Or is it seeing that they might have stopped living their life in their desperate attempts at finding me?

The seven men can see the battle raging in my head at the moment. They can see the ice that's growing over my feet and keeping me glued to the ground. The vines that rise and twist around my legs and arms to keep me still.

The fear that stops me from making one step inside is smelled by four hybrids who can't begin to imagine what can be done to help, and three humans are even more powerless as they know that words can't begin to stitch back a wound so deep and raw.

Fear has a way of making the impossible possible, and the possible impossible. It twists reality and paints over the bright colours with slashes of darkness.

Like a curtain drawn over a window, it hides the beauty of the world beyond and leaves behind only emptiness.

Everything is still for what feels like hours, uncertainties dotting the shadows of our features, like tainted morning dew over a field of sunflowers, until a flutter of feathers informs us that one of my soulmates has had enough.

Seokjin can't stay and do nothing when he's seeing with his own eyes that everything is descending into a messy oblivion, that his mates are not wearing the smiles that we should have on such a happy occasion anymore.

No. He decides that he's going to try the only thing he can think of, and both Jungkook and Namjoon step back as he approaches with resolute steps, though their warmth doesn't leave me for long when a pair of wings tuck me against a firm chest the next second.

A safe cocoon of soft feathers and body heat, just like yesterday.

"Everything you've done was always for them. You rejected to protect, then survived to accept back into your life. Now you have them within reach and yet you find yourself stuck in a dilemma. Your heart believes this too good to be true, am I right?".

The vibrations of his voice seep into my body, and I slowly nod my head, arms frozen by my sides as he hums lowly.

His wings keep the light from reaching my eyes in here, they keep me in the dark, and I don't know why, but it helps, because If I can't see, then I have to feel. My eyes can always betray me, but not my senses.

Not their warmth, not their touch, or their voices.

"Then let it believe this a dream. In the dark, just like this, bask in this dream and let it flow through you until you open your eyes again when you're ready. When you feel more grounded. Only then will I give you back your sight, so that you can see that your dream has been made into reality".

His voice lulls me into a strange state, but I don't fight against it - I welcome it.

Accept that this is a dream, then wake up from it, and see how it was made into reality. It's a harmless trick of my senses to convince my heart that what's around me right now is not made from my imagination. I like that.

"Is there anywhere we could sit, Namjoon?".

A moment of silence before a small answer is uttered, and Seokjin slowly guides me inside the house with my back still pushed against his chest, his wings protective as they keep me from seeing anything, for as long as I need.

Once inside, there's another moment of stillness before Seokjin asks if he can pick me up, and then I'm gently settled onto his lap once he's sat down onto a couch, his arms resting around my back with my head tucked in his neck while the softness of his feathers caresses the exposed skin of my arms.

This is nice, I think to myself. This is nice, and definitely not a dream. This I can believe, not because I see it, but because I feel it, and because I feel safe and loved.

Just like when Jungkook hugged me, the way that Namjoon's warmth seeped into my skin, or the weight of Taehyung and Jimin's arms as they clung onto me like lovebirds. That was all real, just like Seokjin holding me is real.

But my heart still struggles.

It's been twelve years of longing for them, and in an absurd shift of reality, the fact that they're here right now can only mean that this is my imagination.

My brain knows that no dreams have ever felt as real as this does, and yet I still struggle to make sense of things. It's confusing and hard to confront, and I don't know how to go at it.

Seokjin begins to draw slow and large motions onto my back, a small hush on his lips, and I relax again. I hadn't realized that I'd tensed up so much, my muscles tight like rocks, or that my heart had sped up to a sickening pace without my knowing.

The couch dips to my left, Seokjin's right, and a hand finds the one that hangs limply by my thigh to hold gently.

Whose hand is this? It feels unfamiliar, strong, bony but warm. The fingertips are calloused, rough to the touch but not uncomfortable. There's a strange softness to them despite how rough they are on my skin, and it makes me seek more of it.

I intertwine my fingers with them, and they squeeze back tentatively, hopeful.

No words are shared, none are needed as we all sit in the living room together.

I don't need to see them to feel them close, with my soulmark thrumming like a heartbeat in the middle of my palm. Slow and easy, as if trying to let me know that here is safe, that here is where I belong.

There's something incredibly special in this, in the way that Seokjin hides me from the world. It's a type of safety that I've never felt before, a comfort that seems out of this world, and yet, it feels so natural.

As if I was made to be hugged in the cradle of black, thick eagle wings.

It's silent for a long while, and then it breaks when one of my soulmates speaks up softly, maybe to remind me of their presence, or because he can't handle the stillness that fills his home anymore. Maybe it's both.

"Well... it's almost lunchtime. Why don't we get working on something to eat for the eight of us while she calms down?" Jimin asks while I hear him get up from a seat nearby, and Jungkook makes a noise as he also forces himself onto his feet.

"I'm in, it'll keep me busy. Has everyone had breakfast this morning? Should we make something big or something simple and light?".

"I had a small bowl of cereals, so I'm getting rather hungry right now".

"Same for me. I didn't have much appetite earlier, but now I feel like I could eat an elephant, I'm starving".

This conversation serves to remind me that I've yet to eat anything today, and thus, my stomach makes sure to inform Seokjin of its emptiness before I can voice out my own hunger aloud.

"I think it's safe to say that Y/N is hungry too. I just felt the vibrations of her stomach rumbling as if it were my own. Did you eat anything recently or did you skip a week's worth of meals?" the eagle probes for an answer with a light warning tone that has me pinching my lips nervously.

I turn my face the other way as if that would change anything. "I haven't had anything since last night".

His wings rustle around me, clearly not pleased with that bit of information, and feet begin to patter from the living room and to where I assume must be the kitchen in quick consecution, like multiple of my mates suddenly rose to their feet with the quest of feeding me this instant.

"We can't have that be a thing again, I don't know why I'm not more surprised than that" Jungkook mumbles under his breath as he searches in his cabinets while Jimin chuckles softly.

"She did forget to eat often, back then, didn't she? It's almost as if she did it on purpose, like she was willing to suffer the hunger just to have us swarm her with words of scolding while we hand-fed her ourselves".

"I bet it was on purpose. She tried to hide her smiles but I could see them. She loved the attention".

I pout at that, a blush rushing from my feet all the way to my ears as I hear a truth that I thought well hidden.

It isn't fair that they know me so well even though we've been apart for many years. It puts to shame my own knowledge of them, or I've forgotten most of what I used to know.

I don't like either options.

"Did she really do that often? I somehow can't imagine it. I see her as this strong woman who runs to change the world, but she'd go as far as to willingly forget to eat just to get her soulmates' attention? Maybe she's got a more childish side to her after all, it's kind of cute actually".

Hoseok's comment has a tone of teasing in it, which I know is there solely for me to hear, and I wiggle on Seokjin's lap until I get to peek my head out from above one of his huge wings to look at the man who grins at the sight of my frown.

"I am not childish, and I do not skip meals on purpose either. I am strong though, and I am running to change the world, so you can keep seeing me like that" I let out with an unconvincing voice, for I know that San would've rolled his eyes at that.

How many times have I denied meals only to have him literally run after me with a spoon of food in his hand? How many times have I had to deny the feelings of joy that rose from me during those little moments?

I will die before I admit it.

The hand that still holds mine tugs a little and I look in its direction to find Yoongi staring at me with a raised brow, and something on his face tells me that he doesn't believe me in the slightest either.

"If you're so strong and ready to change the world, why didn't you eat this morning? You should know that it's the most important meal of the day, and one needs energy to keep running steadily".

I remain silent, then hide back into Seokjin's chest and in the safety of his wings, unaware of the fond smiles that grow on everyone's faces, and more particularly the eagle's.

He'd keep me here forever if he could.

"I was too excited to see my soulmates this morning, I had the feeling that I'd get sick if I ate something on the way" I say in a pout, why do I feel like I have to explain myself to them? Can I not decide whether I eat or not myself?

"Understandable, but not a recommended habit, no matter the circumstances. As Yoongi said, breakfast is the most important meal of the day and I ought to believe we've told you enough times for it to be printed into your brain wrinkles even years later".

I grimace at Namjoon's chiding.

I hate when they start treating me like a child, it's a love-hate thing, far from how I wish they'd treat me, but it feels like home, and that's enough to like that it's happening anyway.

"Here, make her eat that for now, it's not much but it should satiate her for long enough, until lunch is ready" Jungkook states firmly from nearby before going back to the kitchen with a mission driving his steps.

Wondering what it is that he brought over and thinking that it might be given to me while I remain in the cocoon that I'm getting so attached to already, I await patiently.

But then nothing happens even after a minute and a half, and I end up parting a few feathers near my face to get a peek of Yoongi to see him already staring with a smirk on his pink lips.

"You're not going to risk dirtying those pretty wings by eating in there, are you?".

I feel the subtle stutter of Seokjin's heart just as my own does a shy tantrum - why can't I? - but after another long minute of debating about what I should do... he's right, I can't dirty the eagle's pretty wings.

I sigh before trying to leave the comfortable lap to eat more conveniently on one of the other couches, but Seokjin does not allow that outcome when he squeezes an arm to keep me right where I am - on him.

"He mentioned my wings, not what you're seated on. You stay here and eat, darling" Seokjin says like it's no big deal, like he didn't just request that I remain on his lap himself.

He folds only one of the two wings behind his back, the one closer to Yoongi, which means that I become fully exposed to the rest of the house, and I startle and still at the newfound shower of light and attention.

Obviously, this means that I can see the kitchen where everyone is standing and staring and... yeah, that is rather embarrassing. I am acting kind of childish, aren't I? How ridiculous.

I huff and puff to myself, for no matter what I do, I am at a disadvantage, then sit on Seokjin's lap like he's a mere chair I own, mask of confidence pulled onto my face before I stretch out a hand towards the wolf to accept the snack that Jungkook brought over for me.

He swallows a snort, gives me the yogurt with the spoon, and I ignore everyone else in the room as I actively focus on opening the cup before eating its content.

Be cool, be confident, you're a strong woman, Y/N.

I hum at the taste that melts on my tongue, it doesn't matter how simple of a thing it may be, and my soulmates nod their head in satisfaction as I eat another spoonful, and another.

It's a simple snack, a good one, but my hunger awakens the more I eat, and too quickly do I reach the last half-spoonful I could manage, which leaves me fully unsatisfied and discontented.

As soon as I'm done with the little cup of yogurt, I experience utter disappointment, like eating it only made my raging hunger worse, and now, that isn't nice at all.

"Oh, I know that face. That snack wasn't enough, was it?" Namjoon muses with a chuckle as he comes over with a tray that he carefully carries over to the living room, one that holds four mugs of tea, for Seokjin, Yoongi, Hoseok and I.

Yoongi takes my trash from me and settles it onto the coffee table before wrapping his fingers around the hand closer to him again, and some of my impatience immediately fades away.

"I'm beginning to believe that she doesn't know herself that well, truthfully. She appears confident, but it's starting to feel like a mask. That pout of hers is starting to look cuter by the minute".

Okay, my impatience is not fully gone after all.

"Everyone keeps teasing me, I didn't know coming here would result in my being bullied by my soulmates of all things" I complain all the while accepting the warm mug that Namjoon hands me, and his dimples make a grand appearance when his smile widens prettily.

"But it's helping, isn't it? You're feeling better, otherwise you wouldn't be reacting like this".

I need a moment to process that, just now realizing that this is what they've been doing since earlier. They were trying to take my mind off whatever worries and fears my brain and heart kept pushing to the front, weren't they?

Why am I so dumb when it comes to these men? It's like my brain cells fully give up on me when they're by my side.

"I- I suppose you're right, but it still feels bitter" I utter bashfully before drinking some of the tea, a weak attempt at hiding the blush that still coats my cheeks, for I feel so silly.

The taste that fills my mouth is not one that I remember ever tasting before, but it's good, and I stare at it while bodies keep moving around us.

"Maybe we should calm down on the teasing, then" he replies with a soft hum, hands grabbing another mug that he gives to Hoseok who's been observing more than he's been participating, though it satisfies him this way.

His brain is absorbing every words, eyes noticing everything, and he finds us fascinating.

"Thank you, Namjoon" Seokjin says warmly as he too accepts one of the mugs, his free hand feeling at home as he settles it over my thigh with a firm grip to keep me angled towards him.

I'd have thought him too reserved to do something like this, but he's pretty bold, actually.

Feeling more at ease now that I've gotten used to this position, I lower my mug onto my lap before resting my head on his wide shoulder, then close my eyes with a slow exhale.

Exhaustion is catching up to me, I fear. I've done too much in too short of a time, felt too many emotions too quickly, and my brain has not had a single break until now.

But here, in this very instant, I feel rested. I don't know if this is the bond at work or if it's Seokjin himself, but I could fall asleep right here, right now, without any fear of what might happen to me if I did.

My mug is gently taken from me, and I tiredly blink my eyes open as I watch Yoongi move it to the coffee table before accepting the thin blanket that Hoseok hands him, one that must have been on the couch already.

My eyes flutter shut before I can see more, but I don't need to wait for long before I feel the light fabric being drawn over me carefully, edges tucked under my legs and over my upper body to keep me comfortable and warm.

"You should rest, my little moon, you look like you need it" Yoongi utters softly, and when a wing curls closer around me, there is no fighting against sleep as it turns off the light in my head, Seokjin's heartbeat lulling me into a restful wonderland of warm cuddles and kisses onto my skin.