Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

It was five in the morning, at the brink of the sunrise;

The florist was leaning over and peeking inside one of the windows of the local bakery.

The sky was as clear as ever and the tree leaves dancing with the wind, adding a sweet melody to the birds’ early singing. The streets were empty, deserted, only the fresh smell of Jeongguk’s baking goods perfuming the air. “Good morning, baker! May I have that, please? It looks so delicious…” The florist said with malice.

“Taehyung! I let this slide yesterday…! You can’t just come here and try to steal food from me every day! My boss will kill me if he sees you here. You know how,” the boy shivered, cookie tray slapping against the counter with a loud thud. The baker waved his hands in an attempt to cool them down. Damn those were hot. “ Harsh , Seokjin can be! Do you want me dead?”

“Relax, Jeongguk~” The brown haired man reached through the window for the tray that the youngest was carrying now, snatching himself a loaf of bread and tossing the change he was carrying to him in the process. “There! It’s paid!”

The inexperienced baker almost let the tray fall out of his gloved hands, change clattering to the ground. He cursed the florist in his thoughts, hoping that he’d get a stomachache from that bread he just took.

Kim Taehyung ran a flower shop in a small village of Seoul. And that’s about it. His life wasn’t that exciting in the slightest unless you counted the many times he’s fled from a very angry Seokjin holding a spatula and threatening to beat him with it.

This was his morning routine: getting up, going out, annoying Jeongguk and getting breakfast in one go, opening the shop. But he was happy with the way things were — humble, sweet and modest. Just like the flowers he sold at Diascia, his little happy corner.

Ever since he was little, Taehyung had a connection with nature and everything related to it. Animals and plants, especially. He had always loved flowers. Taking care of them and offering them to others in tiny gestures of affection made him the happiest, because even the smallest of flowers could make someone else smile and be happy.

Taehyung loved selling smiles.

Ding!, the bell over his shop’s door rang as he twisted the keys in the doorknob and walked inside, carrying his loaf of bread. Breakfast first, he reminded himself. The shop was small and cozy, but pretty much dark and cramped right now. The florist went over to a reserved room that only employees — himself — were able to go into, a small room where he usually ate and slept since in his view, going home to make food and sleep was too much of an hassle sometimes. He placed the bread down on the counter, cut a piece and coated it with butter only to stuff it in his mouth almost all at once and cleaning his hands on his apron carelessly.

Just when he finished opening all the windows, blinds and letting the sun finally sink into the building, there was a small honking noise outside and a very familiar van pulled up at the front of his shop. “Taehyung!” The florist heard as he left through the front door, jogging up to the van.

His flowers were here.

“And that’s the last box.” Namjoon — the deliverer — said as he handed one last crate that read “lotus” on its back, to Taehyung.

“Thanks Nam." He held onto the box carefully with one hand only, reaching in his back pocket to pay Namjoon for the flowers just like he did every other week.

After he left and Taehyung waved his friend goodbye, he went back into his store and settled by taking the plants out of the boxes and giving them a decent treatment. The florist transferred the plants onto biggers pots, watered them, made their roots comfortable so that nothing would wither away as time passed by and even took some to a backyard that was part of his property, planting them in a greenhouse. It took him about one hour to get everything settled and finally open his shop for the day.

The florist wiped the dirt on his hand over his apron, and began preparing a small bouquet of baby’s breath. The sun shined through the big windows at the front of the shop, kissing the flowers and Taehyung’s face as he worked. Soft jazz music played as a background, involuntary making the man hum and tap his foot along with the music.

From across the room, a boy shuffled out of his sleep inside a lily.

“A bouquet of blue lilies, please.”

“Coming right up, sir.” Taehyung gave off a politely measured smile at his newest client, grabbing his tools and crossing the shop to begin preparing the bouquet he was ordered.

It always hurt him; having to cut the flowers to make these bouquets... To be fair, his favourite clients were the ones who asked for vases instead.

Even so, reluctantly, Taehyung got to work and cut the blue lilies as gently as he could, placing them down on his working table. “Do you wish to have any other flower in the bouquet besides the lilies?”

“What would you find most fitting?”

“That might depend on the occasion, sir…”

And so, Taehyung left the table, all lilies that would be needed for now resting atop of it, and went over to the cashier again. The florist whipped out a small notebook and wrote down everything the client told him. The flowers were for a lover that was coming to visit overseas, he found out. After some discussion and a few suggestions from Taehyung on what flowers the man should pick, it was decided that he would come pick up a beautiful bouquet of yellow and blue lilies decorated with baby’s breath.

The client left the shop with a small wave of goodbye and empty hands with the promise that he would be back after lunch, and Taehyung was alone with his music again.

Or so he thought.

You see, Jimin was rather clumsy and often found himself in scary and dangerous situations.

Just like the one he was in now.

The last thing he remembered was taking a tiny nap and now he was here, inside the flower he fell asleep in, surrounded by big things and... people.

Scary.

He just wanted to take a little rest from his duties. Taking care of the plants in his hometown is so tiring… They are so many! How is he expected to keep up?

He needed to get out of here, but he couldn’t. If he leaves the flower he will be spotted, and he can’t flee because his wings are wet from when the giant decided to water the flowers… But he couldn’t just wait here for things to happen. He had to do something! Maybe it was lack of courage or motivation, but even with all these thoughts in his head Jimin found himself quiet and still, observing the human as he peeked over the petals of the blue lily.

Maybe it was a spike of curiosity or foolishness that hit him as he looked over the human’s work, watching him handle the flowers carefully in his hands as he tied them in pretty strings and made pretty combinations. Only then, when the human turned his head abruptly as if he’d heard something, Jimin realized that he had awed outloud.

“Hello?” the man’s voice was deeper than Jimin had expected, and it made a shiver go down his spine. He quickly lowered his head and hid inside the flower again, but to his doom, it shuffled slightly.

Taehyung frowned as he saw the flower move from where he heard that tiny noise, and decided to go check. As much as he loved bugs, he couldn’t let them get in his costumer’s flowers.

The florist placed down the section of the bouquet he was preparing, and walked over to his workbench across the room, brows still frowned as the guilty flower moved — once again — the tiniest bit. As gently as ever, Taehyung picked the flower between his fingers and brought it up close enough to peek inside of it, expecting to see a fly or even a bee, that happened sometimes, but what he saw made his jaw drop and his eyes widen slightly in surprise.

Inside the blue lily, just between all of its petals, there was a tiny boy curled up, small body shaking like a green leaf.

Taehyung allowed himself to scan over the boy from the position he was in, trying to soften his look as much as he could so he wouldn't scare him any further. He was baffled. Blown away. Unlike what many people might think, Taehyung never really believed in magic or the supernatural. Sure, the tooth fairy and santa were nice things to believe in, but he knew deep down that they weren't true. But now...? He was literally holding a tiny defenseless human — if he was one anyway — between his fingertips, separated by a mere lily. He seemed to be just about a little smaller than the length of his thumb.

Jimin was so scared. Close to crying, even. There was a reason why fairies hid from humans in the first place. His parents raised him around the thought that he should never — ever — let himself be seen by a human, no matter in which conditions. And now here was, at the mercy of one. Jimin had never expected to see one so close to him, and the suddenness of it all made him a bit too overwhelmed and pretty terrified. The fairy clung to his knees tighter, hiding his face and leaning against the back of the flower, hoping that the human would drop the situation and act as if he hadn’t seen a thing.
The florist stood still for a while, processing what was happening before he moved, gently, and pulled the chair of the workbench so he could sit down. He did, gaze never leaving the flower in fear that the boy might disappear without a trace if he looked away. Then, he realized, that maybe the fact that he was holding the flower only made the boy even more scared, and that was not what he wanted at all. Carefully and docilely, the lily was placed on the table, facing Taehyung.

He had no idea how to get the boy to stop shaking. And seeing him like that was making his heart clench and tug.

"Hey..." Taehyung tried quietly. He flinched. "You don't need to be scared... I won't hurt you. Wait here." The florist stood and jogged to the door, twisting the "Come in! We're opened!" sign to turn it into a "Sorry, we're closed." one. He pulled down some of the blinds to give them some privacy and turned on the lights. Once that was all done he made his way back over to the boy, pleased to find that he'd stopped shaking so much and that he was looking around, slightly confused. Tae got a small glimpse of his face once he sat, amazed by the fact that the black haired boy had long, pointy ears and dark eyes that made him look the prettiest.

"My name is Taehyung." The florist introduced himself, not expecting a response. Jimin nodded shyly, hesitant. He caught Taehyung off guard with an actual response. He grinned, hiding his teeth. "What's your name? Do you... have one?”

There was silence as he stared down at the flower then, for a few seconds before he moved again. Taehyung placed his chin atop the table, before tilting his head to the side. “Does this make it better?” he asked, ever so pure, “just so I don’t look as tall anymore…”

Something clicked inside Jimin at what the human said and the small shuffling of the table, so he opened his eyes and peeked over his knees slowly. He was surprised at how cu- considerate the human was… maybe he could be trusted? Slowly, and a bit shakily, Jimin let go of his knees and sat down cross legged. The fairy was still a bit too intimidated to talk, but he was listening. Maybe he could be perceived...

On the other end, Taehyung was the happiest to see that the boy was showing a bit more comfort in his presence. He could get a better look of him now, and saying that he was amazed was an understatement. “You’re very pretty.” The florist confessed right away, not missing the faint pink that appeared on the boy’s cheeks for a split second. “Why don’t you come out? I won’t do you any harm… we’re alone here. Maybe you’re hungry…” Taehyung babbled, tilting his head in thought.

Rumble. There it was.

Taehyung chuckled at the timing, “I'll be right back, okay? I’ll bring you something to eat.” and left once more, going into the room for employees only. There, he cut a small piece of the bread he brought this morning from the bakery, about the size of his thumb’s nail, and coated it with only the tiniest piece of butter. After putting it over a small tissue, Taehyung came back and sat on the same place he was before. The boy was still there, playing with his thumbs as he waited for him to come back.

“Sorry if you don’t like it,” he placed the napkin down in the middle of the space between him and the flower, maybe that would get the boy to come closer. “I didn’t have anything else back there.”

His head was back on table, and he looked over at the boy who was just staring at the piece of bread. “Don’t be shy, you can come and eat it. It’s fine.”

The boy didn’t budge. But Taehyung understood.

“It’s okay if you don’t want to eat right now here in front of me.” he said, “I don’t want you to be scared… I’ll go back to work. Make yourself comfortable, okay?”

He stood, waved at him softly before walking back to his front desk to mess with the flowers again.

Taehyung didn’t open his shop.

Jimin stood still for another while, watching over the florist who was humming as he prepared a bouquet. The human was so… nice? He had laid down so Jimin wouldn’t feel so intimidated — which worked — and he also called him pretty (even thought Jimin would never admit blushing to that) and prepared him food… It seemed odd, the way he didn’t look anything like what his family said humans were like. The fairy didn’t trust his legs for they were still rather shaky, but he tried standing up nonetheless and actually succeeded, to his surprise. He walked to the front of a petal and peeked out to see the human still working, acting as if he’d totally forgotten about his presence.

Jimin found that odd, but he didn’t question it for long. He was more hungry than anything really.

Approaching the piece of bread that sat atop the napkin slowly, Jimin gently nudged it with his pointing finger. It was fresh bread, still kind of warm.

Jimin was dying to eat it.

The boy sat down on the napkin and crossed his legs, looking over to the human once more before finally taking a piece of the large portion of bread — relatively to what he usually eats — into his mouth. His mouth was full, and yet it seemed like he had only taken a tiny crumb off the food. The bread and butter practically melted into his mouth, sending him into a grand state of satisfaction. His mood shot through the clouds!

On the other side of the shop, Taehyung smiled to himself, watching the fairy eat through the corner of his eyes.

After a while and a few more bites, Jimin was satisfied with what he had eaten and was currently still sitting on the napkin. He looked back, his wings were still dripping wet and staining the surface he was laying on. Maybe if he tried… with a little effort maybe he could fly, go over to the human and gather the confidence to thank him for what he did.

So he tried — oh he tried — standing up and getting his wings to work but he fell every time he did. They were still too wet — soaked and dripping — for him to fly. But he had to. Besides thanking the human, Jimin had to go back home… he had to fix whatever mess he got himself in.

The air in the room seemed to shift as Jimin didn’t cease his trials, now being able to fly over the tabletop for about two times his size. The human seemed wary, the atmosphere feeling so thick he could taste it on his tongue.

Taehyung was ready to jump on him if something bad happened.

Which was just what did.

Jimin had managed to hover higher than he had before all those tries, but this time, something in him made him stop. There was a sharp pain on his left side, and his wings stopped immediately, sending him into a fall face first onto the tabletop. His landing was everything but gracious for the fairy fell straight on top of his left wing, feeling the thin layer crumble under his heavier weight.

A small shriek of agony erupted from the small boy’s plump lips, and what happened next was like a blur. The sound of the human dropping his pair of scissors echoed through the empty store, and his heavy footsteps made the table Jimin was laying across shake slightly. A big shadow involved him, suddenly, before there was a small hiss infiltrating the panicked silence that ruled over the shop.

Taehyung hesitated as he leaned over the table. A small, almost inaudible curse slipped from his mouth, watching the boy writhing and resembling too much like an injured insect. “I’m sorry for this.” The human mumbled before gently scooping the boy into his large palms, cupping them slightly and holding them against his chest. The feeble creature trembled in his hold, being tucked away in the darkness and warmth of the human’s hands.

It was all too quick and sudden for Jimin to properly register when all he could feel was the soft, fleshy surface beneath him and the quiet noise of a heartbeat ringing in his ears like a lullaby. Suddenly everything felt all too comfortable than it should. The fairy began to forget the pain he felt on his thin wing as he dwelled deeper into the comfort, eyes feeling heavy.

Maybe he fell asleep, maybe he fainted.

Soft and incredibly warm was how Jimin currently felt.

His eyes were closed, blissful darkness surrounding him. The fairy was laying across a fluffy surface — it felt like a cloud, Jimin thought — and there was a thick, warm… thing? covering him. The pain in his wing was gone and he wondered if he was back in his own house in the forest. Although, when he opened his eyes and looked upwards, finding the extremely high white ceiling, he realized that he wasn’t home.

Jimin sat upwards quietly, trying not to mess up the surface he was laying across. He found himself in a makeshift bed of cotton, a soft white handkerchief draping over him and in a new room he still hadn’t seen. He was in a big kitchen, although, there was a bed on the other side of the room and a small bedside table right next to it.

The place was silent except for some quiet steps outside the closed door, which really didn’t preoccupy the fairy at all.

He was still a bit shaken after all.

Over his injured wing stood a small curative.

Taehyung had reopened his shop for the rest of the day once his client knocked on the door, looking for his bouquet. Luckily he had finished it before needing to go in the back to fix the boy’s wing. He had fainted right between his hands after the incident.

The florist had never felt his stomach drop so low.

Nevertheless, he had fixed him up as best as he could in his conditions. He couldn’t be blamed for not trying.

It was getting rather late, clock nearing closing time. The store was empty, now, leaving him alone to take care of everything. After brief moments of cleaning and getting everything set to lock the door, Taehyung felt his stomach growl in hunger, making him sigh. He hadn’t eaten anything all day because of what happened.

He was starved.

But what if the boy was awake?

The blond hesitated at the door, hand around the knob as he pondered before twisting it, slowly and quietly walking in as best as he could. There was a small squeak of surprise in the air once Taehyung stepped in.

“Oh.” he stopped midway. “You’re awake.”

“Sorry for uh… picking you up and stuff.” The human bowed his head, eyes scanning the floor in what seemed to be shame. “You looked really hurt and I panicked. I didn’t know what to do…” He tried explaining himself, “But you’re all fixed up now! You fainted after so I fixed you up… God that makes me sound like a creep.” It did.

The fairy giggled.

The human looked up with a shy smile glorifying his features. That was way too cute to be true.

“You know…” he fidgeted, leaning against the door. “You still haven't told me your name.”

There was a short pause in the conversation. Not long, but long enough for Jimin to decide what to say or not. You see, fairies and names were something powerful, tricky and scary to deal with. Once one knows a fairy’s full name, said self can control it and do whatever they wish for. But Jimin didn’t have to tell the human his full name right? Right… the actual question would be, can he gather the courage to say it?

“A..” He opened his mouth to speak,moving to sit at the end of his makeshift bed. The fairy bit his lip shyly before softly, and quietly saying: “J-Jimin.”

The night had draped the small city outside the shop as if it was a fluffy blanket, birds going silent and cars ceasing to move as people retrieved into their homes for the day. Taehyung had eaten — away from the fairy’s sight; he knew better than that, — and was now sitting on his bed against the wall.

He had decided that it wasn’t worth going home today. He was sure Jimin wasn’t comfortable with having to face the world outside, especially with him tagging along, and he had a bed right there, where he could sleep and wake up early tomorrow. Call it the best of both worlds.

The “bed” Jimin was taking was moved over to Taehyung’s bedside table, comfortably resting under his lamp that was shining a soft comfortable light, filling the room with calmness and tranquility. The fairy was sitting cross legged atop the bed, and Taehyung just had to break this silence.

“So, Jimin.” The fairy turned his head to him. “Why don’t we tell each other a little more about ourselves?” The only thing the boy had said so far had been his name, but Taehyung wanted to know more without having to force him to answer. He figured making up a small game would be fun for both. He loved games. The florist pushed his hair back and leaned on his palms, pushing himself backwards.

Jimin perked up his attention and stopped playing with his thumbs. “It’s a game called, ‘two truths and a lie’. I’ll tell you a fact about myself and you have to guess if it’s true or not. If you win, you get to say something about yourself. But if you don't, I’ll keep going.” The human explained, leaning against the wall behind him fully and displaying a warm and comforting smile. “Like that idea? Think you can play?”

Of course, Taehyung wouldn’t force the other to do anything he didn’t want.

The fairy nodded faintly as scooted closer to the edge of the bed. “Y-Yeah.” It was quiet and shy. Maybe a little too much to Taehyung’s enjoyment.

“Alright then. Let me start first…” The human pondered for a while, before finally speaking up. “I always loved flowers and nature. My mom and grandma were the ones who got me interested in the first place, you know. We had a big garden back in Daegu.” He nodded in the end, speaking in a rather deep and yet smooth like butter voice. “What do you think that is?”

The fairy tilted his head in thought, thinking over what the giant said. It seemed to be the truth, extremely believable and likely. Jimin had seen the way Taehyung worked. There was passion in his every move. “T-Truth…” Jimin stuttered in a whisper to his dismay, finding himself not quite confident in his small words and talking in general. The human’s face softened.

He must’ve noticed the wavering in his speech.

“That’s correct.” Jimin didn’t register when a small smile crept up his features. He was glad he answered correctly…? “Good job, Jimin.” The fairy blushed at the use of his real name momentarily. “Your turn now.”

He didn’t know what to tell the human, sudden nervousness running through him as if he had been electrocuted. “H-Huh…” Jimin shook slightly. He had never realized how surprisingly banal his routine was, and how much he didn’t know about himself. His life was boring. Waking up, serving the fairy folk, eat, sleep, repeat.

“You okay?” The voice came soft and quiet from up close, snapping the fairy out of his thoughts only then. The human leaned over him, staring with sweet eyes right into Jimin’s. A shiver went down his spine again. “It’s alright if you don’t want to play. I know you’re not quite comfortable around me, this was just a try at making it better.” There was a breathy chuckle. Jimin knew the human wasn’t the happiest. “It might be hard to believe, but from the moment that I saw you, something inside of me made me want to protect you. I know I’m… big and scary but I would never ever hurt you.” The human lowered his head onto the cabinet, resting his chin across it just like he had done earlier, a soft sigh leaving him as he looked aside. “Not on purpose...”

The last part was murmured as if Jimin wasn’t supposed to hear it, but he did. Jimin tried but he didn’t understand. Why was the human so nice to him?

Maybe...

His wings flapped lazily almost on their own, the right one more than the left one really, leaving him to stumble sending him to sit right next to the human’s soft cheek. Maybe it was foolishness, maybe it was craziness. Jimin leaned in to softly place his lips atop it.

Taehyung blushed fiercely, breath stopped and static. Well he wasn’t expecting that.

“T-Thank you… for being so n-nice.” The fairy stuttered, hand making contact with the other’s cheek as well. It was so warm… “I’m just not used to… y-you know. The elders have always p-planted fear inside of us. And… They say bad things about humans that seem to be true.” Taehyung sighed softly, eyes heavy and gloomy. “B-But not you!” Jimin was quick to correct himself. “You’ve been so nice and… you gave me food, space and fixed my wing…”

A hand came up from under him, his weight shifted as he was lifted onto the human’s soft palm and held at eye level with Taehyung. Somehow, he didn't feel a single drop of fear inside him.

There was a big and wide boxy smile onto Taehyung’s face. Besides his big and white teeth, he looked extremely cute. Eyesmile included.

Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all.

“I’m glad.” Was all Taehyung said.

The next morning rolled in smoothly and peacefully, the sun draping its light over everything that stood in its way; warming the streets and greeting the flowers with a soft “good morning”. Taehyung laid in bed, curled up and cuddling his pillow like he always does. Eventually the sun slipped in through the blinds, disturbing Taehyung’s sound sleeping but also the fairy’s. The human groaned, turning and tossing until he was eventually facing upwards.

The birds chirped softly, melody erupting the silence. Taehyung sat up and ran a hand through his bed hair. He must’ve gone on a war or something.

A yawn tumbled from his lips, before he looked over to his bedside table. Jimin was still sleeping, tiny body curled under the ‘sheets’. He stared for a while, but not long enough to make him creepy, and then settled for getting up and taking care of his appearance before going out to get bread and breakfast. He needed to get something special for Jimin this time.

He took a run to the bathroom and quickly got himself fresh and all set, walking into the room right after. Apparently just in time.

Jimin had seemingly just woken up, tiny arms stretching over his head as he sat up and rubbed the immense sleep out of his dark eyes. There was a quiet yawn, and maybe if Taehyung wasn’t paying this much attention to what was currently going on, he might have missed it. Jimin finally looked forwards and spotted Taehyung leaning on the doorframe, an immediate smile adorning his adorable features. “Morning…”

This was a good morning.

“Morning.”

After a bit of discussion and greeting, — aka Taehyung trying his best not to squeal over anything the fairy boy did, — it was decided to maybe it was a bit too early to go bother the baker. The sun had just risen, after all.

“We’ll go once it’s seven. It's late enough to get fresh food and early enough not to be beat by Seokjin.”

Jimin had no idea who Seokjin was.

“Do you think you can go?” Taehyung asked, pout forming on his lips. “You can’t fly yet and I don’t want to go all alone… I’ll have to carry you, or… my pocket? I’m not sure.”

“P-Pocket...?”

“Okay, maybe not my pocket.” Taehyung corrected himself once he saw that Jimin was hesitant over it. “Oh! Maybe my shoulders? I could give you a ride on my shoulders.”

“How is that supposed to work?”

“You...uh...you could hold onto my collar and everything.” The florist suggested warily. “We could try before going out. The village is always deserted until midday. You won’t be seen by anyone but me.”

Taehyung’s words reassured the fairy, but he still had his doubts. He was used to flying but not from very high places. Especially considering Taehyung’s size… it was a lot to take in. Even so, he didn’t want to be left all alone in the shop. What if someone tried to walk in? What was he supposed to do?

“But… it’s so high.” Jimin looked down shamelessly, sucking his bottom lip inside his mouth to scaredly bite into it.

“Hey, now…”

There it was. That soothing voice.

“You don’t have to be afraid of that. I won’t let you fall. You know I’ll catch you if something happens.”

Jimin was silent. He trusted Taehyung so far. He hadn’t done anything bad yet… “Okay… I’ll do it.” He blushed for only a second, “but promise to h-hold me.”

And so he did everything the fairy wanted, as expected. The sweetness of it all made the florist’s heart soar. With his hand extended over the table, Taehyung waited for the other to gather the courage to go and sit on top of it. That was the first task. Every time he had picked the fairy up until now was out of instinct, — and he probably won’t forget how it feels — either the panic or thrill of the moment; but now, trust was what he needed the most.

The fairy could only stare at the extended hand as if it was something alien — out of this world and completely different from every single hand he’d seen in his life.

Jimin stepped closer, slowly, hand reaching for the other’s a bit too shaky for the human’s liking but he decided not to comment on it; he understood. Once his hand made contact with Taehyung’s thumb; however, Jimin yanked his hand back immediately. He recognized the heat. The comfortable warmth that came from it.

He wanted to feel it again.

He stepped even closer this time, clumsily tripping as he placed foot on the human’s hand. Taehyung struggled with keeping himself steady, composed and not bursting with laughter. “Okay?”

Jimin nodded in approval, scrambling messily to find a place to sit before he tripped. Not worth standing up now.

Worry flashed in Taehyung’s eyes for a second. “Good then… u-uh.” He curled his fingers to try and make sort of a wall so the fairy wouldn’t fall backwards, thumb holding him against said wall like a seatbelt. Enough to keep him steady but not tight enough to hurt. “I’ll lift you now, okay? Tell me if you want to stop...”

Once again, Jimin only nodded, slight fear catching his words in his throat. His legs moved almost unconsciously to his chest as the human began to lift him upwards and sideways towards his shoulder. His eyes drifted closed, weight shifting as he went higher.

There was a small hitch in the human’s breath and then a small sigh. “Are you alright? You look so uncomfortable. Jimin-” Another sigh and then Taehyung’s thumb was off his body, his other hand coming close but stopping midway. Crystalline beads left the fairy’s eyes almost unwillingly and unnoticeably, small body shaking.

Jimin was terrified. This was not a good idea.

What was he thinking…? He couldn’t even fly, nevermind going on Tae’s shoulders. He couldn’t. He just couldn’t. It was too much. This was a disaster. He shouldn’t have let this happen. “I-I-I can’t!” Jimin sobbed. “I-I’m sorry I’m so s-sorry I can’t!”

The sound of Taehyung’s heart shattering could almost be heard from within his chest, glossy eyes shining suspiciously. Just like yesterday, when he had first found Jimin inside the lily, his heart tugged, pulled and clenched at the scene displayed in front of him; he was at a loss of things to do.

His flowers withered as Jimin sobbed in his hands. The flower shop was submerged in dark atmosphere as every petal of every single flower fell to the floor, dried up and faded.

“Y-You were so good, Jiminie.” the fairy rubbed at his eyes, looking up as a small ‘u-uh?’ tumbled from his plump lips. The human’s thumb was suddenly back on his body, tip rubbing against Jimin’s hair as gently as their size difference permitted. His free hand came around, holding his chin up ever so softly. Taehyung’s face was almost unreadable, a kind of fond that no one could decipher painting his attractive features. “You tried so hard, that’s all that matters. And you did so good! You’re so, so brave and I’m so proud. Please don’t cry.”

Jimin stood still, sobbing coming to an halt and tears ceasing to run down his cheeks as soon as the human spoke. “Y-You think?”

“Of course I do, Jimin.” The human reassured once again, voice sweet and dripping like honey. “You’re the bravest boy there ever was.” His thumb tried to wipe over the fairy’s tiny teardrops before he stood and walked over to his neatly made bed. There, he laid down, still holding Jimin in his soft grip. “Everything you did up until now, ever since we met, you’ve been so brave. It’s okay to be scared… I get it. You’re not used to me yet…” Sadly, that was the truth. His hand rested above his pillow. “I’m a human. I can’t even comfort you properly… Do you trust me, Jimin?” The fairy nodded shakily. He did. There was no reason not to. “Then please, please stop crying. Let me, the big and scary human, protect you from everything.”

That didn't sound like a bad idea at all.

“Comfortable?” Taehyung whispered as he crossed the street calmly, hands hidden away in the soft fabric of his apron’s pockets.

A tiny boy peeked out of the front pocket of his shirt, nodding. “Mhm!”

Somehow, Taehyung had managed to place him up there after a lot of cuddling and reassuring words from both the boys. They were currently walking to Jeongguk’s bakery, just in time.

“Good… You can look around, there’s no one here right now. We’re almost there.” And they were. The bakery was just around the corner.

The fairy boy glimpsed over the pocket, tiny hands holding onto the fabric for dear life without faltering once. Taehyung smiled simply, walking slowly and steadily. The sky was a mix of radiant blues and oranges, the wind was just the perfect breeze, bringing with it all kinds of nice fragrances. Fresh bread and pollen. Jimin inhaled deeply and Taehyung giggled quietly. “Like that smell, huh?” Jimin blushed. “It’s right around the corner. I can get something special for you if you’d like.”

Ding!, the bell of the bakery rang as Taehyung pushed his way through the door. It was empty, and the smell of fresh food made Jimin’s mouth water. “You might want to get down there again. I’m gonna call my friend now.”

And so Jimin nodded, descending into the pocket until he was sitting. The warmth of the pocket was so comforting… it made Jimin feel fuzzy.

“Jeongguk! Hey!” He heard Taehyung call loudly, grimacing slightly for his pointed ears felt sensitive to very loud noises. “C’mon you lazy! Don’t you see that you have clients here waiting?”

There was a loud bang behind the doors that led to the kitchen, and then a brunette covered in flour from head to toe emerged from behind said doors. “Taehyung?” Jimin couldn’t help but look over the edge of the pocket secretly. “What are you doing here?”

“How many things can you do at a bakery?”

“That’s not what I mean and you know it!” Jeongguk exclaimed, placing a large spoon down on the counter in front of him. He looked down at himself and whined, trying to get the flour off him. Jimin giggled at the sight quietly; Taehyung laughed back. “What are you laughing at! You yelled and I dropped flour everywhere. Ugh… what do you want? It’s not likely of you to come any closer unless it’s by my window.”

“I came here to get bread in a civilized way.”

Silence followed. “Who are you and what happened to Taehyung?”

Taehyung snorted, swatting Jeongguk’s arm playfully. The other human was closer now, Jimin had realized. Maybe a bit too close to the point where maybe it wasn't a good idea to be peeking at him.

Jimin was far too curious to care.

“I’m starving over here, Jeongguk. Will you give your friend some good bread or not?”

“I almost got fired yesterday.” Jeongguk trembled at the memory. “But I guess I can as long as you have the money. If Seokjin finds out that I’m giving you stuff for free he’ll behead me.”

Why did Seokjin sound like such a mean person?

“What do you—” Suddenly and unexpectedly, there was a tug at the fabric of the pocket as it was pulled down slightly. Jimin shrieked quietly and Taehyung suddenly yanked himself back from the brunette. “I know you’re weird but why the hell are u carrying a doll in your front pocket?”

“Hey! You can’t do that!” Taehyung retorted.

Jimin’s heart raced.

Taehyung placed his hand over the pocket protectively.

“Apologize!”

The brunette cocked a brow. “Uh? To who exactly? It’s not a big deal.”

“Apologize to Jimin!”

There was a small laugh. Jimin trembled. “Who exactly is Jimin? Don’t tell me you gave a name to your doll. Only my niece does that.”

Taehyung sighed loudly and his jaw visibly clenched in frustration. Jimin could feel the other’s heart race as well. Jeongguk had definitely seen him, Jimin was sure. It was his fault though… He had peeked when he shouldn't have. The fairy sighed and bit his lip again, the silence dragging out for far too long. He hit Tae’s chest softly to catch his attention. The human looked down at him secretly and Jimin only nodded. He knew the other would know what he meant.

Taehyung sighed yet again. “It’s not a doll.”

“What is it then? Your imaginary friend?” The brunette teased.

“Are you gonna stop being a dick so that I can show him to you or not?!” Jimin winced at the harshness of the conversation.

“Him…?” Jeongguk raised a brow. “Sure? Whatever.”

Reluctantly, Taehyung took his hand away from the pocket before walking over to the front of the store and locking the door. Jeongguk found that the weirdest thing, but decided to say nothing against it.

“Listen, you’re not gonna freak out or some shit, okay? Stay calm. He’s more scared of you than you are of him.”

Again, Jeongguk had no idea what the fuck the other was talking about.

“Okay? Just show whatever you want to show.”

A soft light entered the pocket as the fabric was pulled apart again. Jimin trembled a little before he let Taehyung pick him up tenderly.

He was becoming used to it. Slowly.

In an attempt to make the situation as comfortable as ever, Taehyung curled his fingers around him like they had done back in his shop. His fingers fanned over the fairy’s hair affectionately. The human took a deep breath. “I don’t know how the hell I’m supposed to explain this to you…” He rolled his eyes and bit his tongue, another sigh leaving his lips. “Yesterday, while I was preparing a bouquet for one of my clients, I found Jimin inside one of the flowers…” Taehyung turned his hands slowly, showcasing the boy he held in his hands to his friend.

The florist could feel the fairy trembling in his grip a little, immediately trying to soothe him with kind words and petting his hair.

Jeongguk could only stare with his jaw dropped to the ground. “So… You’re telling me, i- he’s not a doll? He’s alive? You found a tiny person inside of your flowers…?”

Taehyung shruged slowly, “yes?”

Tiny person? I’m a fairy!, Jimin thought, but didn’t say it before scrambling to crawl back as much as he could against Tae’s hand once the other human leaned in closer. His big brown eyes looked filled with curiosity and interest. Suddenly Jimin felt a little too exposed as the human scanned over his small figure.

Jeongguk boiled in embarrassment. “I’m sorry.” His cheeks heated up and turned into a deep scarlet. Suddenly he was bowing before Jimin could even understand why. “Please forgive me for being an asshole, Jimin. I thought I was just teasing Tae. I’m an idiot.” The baker pouted and made pleading eyes; how was Jimin supposed to say no to that? “Pretty please? I swear I’m nice.”

“I-It’s okay…”

“ TAEHYUNG, he’s cute and he talks I’m gonna have fucking heart attack.”

And he almost did. Nevertheless, Taehyung eventually placed Jimin down on the counter once his body had stabilized from the tiny shudders that wrecked his body. He was currently sitting on a napkin and nibbling on a bit of a croissant Jeongguk got for him.

Taehyung had made himself useful and helped the baker clean the mess of flour he made earlier. The bakery was still closed, as expected, but Seokjin wasn’t going to work today until Jeongguk’s shift was over so it would be fine.

Taehyung leaned against the counter Jimin was sitting on, wiping his forehead so it’d be ‘clean’ of sweat. “We’re finally done. Jeongguk made such a mess back there, you should’ve seen it. It was a catastrophe.”

Jimin laughed as Jeongguk chimed in. “You’re so dramatic! Jimin it wasn’t even that messy. He just wants to seem like a hero to you.”

“He kind of is.” Jimin said sweetly and quietly, “He saved me one time. That’s why I have this on my wing.” The fairy flapped them slowly so it wouldn’t hurt in some sort of demonstration.

The humans stared at Jimin in awe, speechlessly and with eyes dripping in fond. Jimin’s wings moved down slowly as if they were dog ears that flopped down once something bad happened.

“W-What is it?”

Jeongguk sighed and rubbed at his eyes, making a hurt noise. “Hyung, he’s too cute!”

His tummy was stuffed and warm, head feeling light and heart happier than ever. The florist and the fairy had finally left the bakery after a lot of goodbyes from Jeongguk and the promise that he’d be back at Tae’s shop after his shift was over so that he could hang out with Jimin — to which the fairy was very pleased to hear. Jimin liked Jeongguk. He was a cute kid.

“That, back there. Are you alright?” Taehyung asked as he made his way down the empty and familiar street. “I didn’t want Jeongguk to see you like this…”

Jimin peeked out the pocket again, looking up at Taehyung and smiling softly. “It was… scary at first. But he’s alright. He apologized and you were there, so it’s okay.”

Taehyung felt his cheeks heat at that. “I’m glad you think so. He’s a good kid.” Nod. “Also… that thing you said about me being a hero… did you really mean that?” The human sounded hopeful, words coated in the ever so deep tone Jimin was getting quite dependant on. It made him feel like he was listening to some sort of lullaby. It was like sugar; vicious.

“I did…” Jimin flushed, tone little as his small hands clenched over the fabric. “It’s just that… you’ve taken such good care of me so far. I feel like I can trust you… right?” Jimin asked, not really seeking such thing as an answer. “You said to let ‘the big and scary human protect me from everything’ but… I don’t think you’re that scary anymore.” His ears moved in a silly way, — up and down — something he did when he felt extremely embarrassed.

He could feel Tae’s heart hammering against his body. That made him giddy.

“W-Well.” He stammered, — cursing himself in his mind for it — his very own human ears turning into a pink shade. “I’m glad you think that way, then. Because I will protect you like I said I would.”

Silence pursued. Jimin sat inside the pocket again to hide his red face.

The trip back to the shop was pretty much uneventful and quiet, swallowed in the natural sounds of an early morning. Ding!, the bell over the door announced once Taehyung pushed through, closing said door right after. “Wakey wakey.” Taehyung called softly, hands reaching to spread the fabric once more and taking Jimin out of it. After a tiny sleepy grunt and yawn, Jimin finally let himself be carried out.

Jimin rubbed at his sleepy eyes, sitting on top of Taehyung’s soft palm. “I’ll have to open the shop now, Jiminie,” he began, “do you want to help me and hang out on my desk today or would you rather stay in the other room? Maybe watch TV?”

What is TV? Jimin thought but didn't voice. The answer was almost immediate; although. “I want to stay with you… being back there all day would be so boring, Tae.”

The human smiled fondly at that then, nodding. “Alright then. Let me just get you something comfortable to sit on.”

And so he did, getting Jimin’s temporary bed and bringing it to his desk. The human created some sort of blind and wide spot so that Jimin could stay there and spend the afternoon comfortably. After a few adjustments and tests, both the fairy and the florist were ready to open Diascia.

“Do you know how to make flower crowns?” The fairy had whispered after another nameless and numberless customer had left the shop. They were quite agitated today, for some reason.

Taehyung sat down with a sigh of relief and stared, before giving a smile so blindly bright Jimin was scared that he wouldn’t be able to open his eyes again.”Of course I do.” Jimin’s face lit up. “But almost no one ever asks for them.”

“Can we make flower crowns Tae?”

There was hope in his voice. Taehyung’s heart fluttered. “Sure.”

Soon Taehyung had displayed a few vases with small bushes dotted with petit flowers from his greenhouse outside for Jimin to pick. “Which colours do you want?” The human inquired; the fairy stood and climbed up one of the vases that held purple flowers, pulling a few out and making them grow back immediately — right in front of Taehyung’s eyes — as if it was something easy and totally normal. The plant glowed and dripped in life like Taehyung had never seen before. His mouth fell agape. “How did you do that?”

Jimin stopped, turning to him with his hold filled with tiny flowers of various colours and shapes. “Sorry, what?”

“The thing you just did! This bush never looked this much alive!”

“Oh.” Jimin keened in the praise. “It’s… it’s fairy dust.”

The human leaned in, eyes bright in curiosity. “Fairy dust… What else does it do? That sounds so cool, please tell me more!”

Technically, Taehyung wasn’t supposed to know about it, but then again, he knew about the existence of Jimin’s species now. The elders wouldn't be too mad would they…? Well, screw it. He probably wasn’t going to be accepted back into the folk again… “Well…” The fairy sat on the verge of the vase. “Fairy dust is something we… ‘produce’ naturally. It’s our magic…” Jimin raised his hand as he held onto a petit flower button yet to open. Something glittery and sparkly flowed around his fingertips and right through the button, making it bloom instantly. Taehyung stared with his mouth shaped in a perfect, and almost comic, ‘o’. Jimin found that maybe a bit too cute. “I’m a… garden fairy so my fairy dust works with things related to nature…”

The florist was in awe, staring at the fairy with a huge boxy grin. Jimin’s cheeks flushed. “You’re so amazing Jiminie!” the fairy blushed further as if it was possible. “You can do so many cool things!”

“Th-There are way cooler fairy talents though…” Taehyung frowned.

“To me, you’re the best.”

His heart was weak. He couldn't take the image of Jimin sitting with his legs crossed and interlacing flowers to make a pretty crown for him, with his bottom lip slightly jutted out in concentration. Taehyung didn’t know if it was normal or not, but Jimin was becoming too much for him to handle.

“Tae?” Taehyung blinked and finally came back to reality. “I made this one for you.”

Jimin was struggling to hold onto a piece of a relatively big delicate crown of camomiles and tulips, looking at Taehyung with wide and sparkly eyes and a cute smile. The fairy had his own crown on his head, purple, adorning his pointy ears.

Taehyung said nothing as he took the crown into his hands and placed it atop his head, leaving an expectant Jimin staring at him intently. “So… what do you think? Do you like it?”

The florist only dipped his hands and scooped the boy into his large palms, earning a tiny shriek from him before holding him close to his lips, smacking a audible ‘mwah’ on the side of his head. “There’s what I think of it.”

Jimin stared at the human, dumbfounded and with the reddest cheeks Taehyung had seen him with until now. His ears vibrated and he swore there was a glint of tears in his eyes. The fairy adjusted his flower crown that had tipped over due to the sudden kiss, also fixing a few hair locks. “I-I’m glad you l-liked it…”

“Y-You kissed my entire head.”

Taehyung giggled. It felt silly.

“I did.”

“W-Why did you?”

“I don’t know.” He cocked a brow, ready to apologize. “Did it make you uncomfortable?”

“N-No!” The fairy looked down. “It… it was good.”

There was silence for a bit longer.

“I-I liked it.”

They didn’t talk about it for the rest of the day mainly because of two facts; one being that Jimin was perhaps a little too embarrassed to do and two, Taehyung didn’t know how to handle the information that Jimin liked his big kisses.

At some point before Taehyung decided to close for the day, Jeongguk had knocked on the door like he’d promised, — here to hang out with Jimin and Taehyung.

They were currently in the back room, sitting on Taehyung’s bed. Jimin took his reversed place of Taehyung’s knee, sitting there as he waited for them to decide what to do. The three boys had agreed on watching a movie, to which, Jimin replied with a little confusion because he had no idea what a movie or TV was.

They settled for a disney movie, cliché and cheesy. Peter pan.

It wasn’t on purpose or anything, but Jimin caught himself maybe a little to entranced in the movie. It all seemed too familiar to his hometown… Even though Neverland wasn’t real, a few of the things mentioned were. The fairy folk was, at least.

The next hour after the movie was followed with endless questions from Taehyung and Jeongguk. “Are pirates still a thing?”, “ Mermaids too?”, “What about Peter?” To which Jimin either replied with a definite ‘yes’ or a ‘I think so’.

They also asked if Jimin could make normal things fly with his fairy dust and he confirmed it.

“I can prove it to you.” The fairy had said confidently as he was settled down on the bed. He asked for a random object, which Jeongguk stood up to get. He came back quickly and placed a fork down in front of the fairy. “Watch.”

He pulled his sleeves up slightly. Taehyung pulled a smile.

The fairy’s hands ran over the fork, the sparkles — or so called fairy dust — that Taehyung had seen earlier spreading itself through the fork and giving it a strange shine before slowly, but surely, the utensil began to levitate off the surface. Jimin stood and giggled, picking the fork with remarkably ease before pushing it upwards in the air.

The fork floated in mid air, catching all of the humans’ attention. Their jaws dropped, Jeongguk even poked it experimentally and watched as it began floating away and over to the kitchen.

“This is fucking insane!” Jeongguk bursted out enthusiastically. The bed shook as he bounced off it.

Jimin jumped a little.

“You’re so cool, Jimin!” The fairy blushed at the sudden outburst of the younger.

“I-It’s nothing really…”

Jeongguk left an hour later, claiming that he had to go home to take care of his niece. Taehyung and Jimin had waved him goodbye, the human letting out a heavy sigh and sliding down the door once Jeongguk was out of sight. His eyes drifted closed.

There was silence for a few seconds. “Tired?” Jimin inquired. Taehyung nodded lightly before opening his eyes again.

“A little bit.” He admitted. “I’ll have to crash at home and take a bath. Do you mind if we sleep at my place tonight?’

“Y-Your place…?”

“Yeah, Jimin. I don’t live here.” Taehyung chuckled dryly as Jimin let out a soft ‘oh’, cupping his hands around the boy and standing. “We’re close to it, don’t worry. My concern is that it’s getting cold and your clothes are far too thin for my liking. I’ll have to fix that soon.”

Jimin frowned slightly. “W-What’s wrong with my clothes?”

“Nothing really, I just don’t want you to be cold.” Mainly because he had no idea how he would take care of Jimin if he got sick, but decided to say nothing about it.

Taehyung got his keys, coat, bags and most importantly Jimin. The florist got himself ready to leave. He stood in front of the door, the blinds now closed. Maybe it was a good idea to take an umbrella.

“For today’s transportation we have the options of,” he pulled a funny voice, making Jimin giggle quietly. “my coat pocket, my front pocket and my bag. What will you choose, oh prince?”

The fairy couldn't help but giggle at being called a prince. “The front pocket sounds good…”

“Front pocket it is then.”

Slowly, much like when he did it first this morning, Taehyung helped Jimin getting inside the soft pocket. The fairy still felt rather uneasy getting inside but once he was in there there was mostly no problem at all. This is what took the most coaxing and soft words. Taehyung had learned that Jimin keened under praise and honey talk.

He would use such to both their advantage.

After endless “you’re doing so good.” and “you’re almost there Jiminie, just a little more.” Jimin was finally between the comfortable fabric.

“I-I made it.” The fairy whispered as if the human wasn’t supposed to hear it.

“You did.” Taehyung said, blinding smile tugging from ear to ear. He got the umbrella and keys, finally leaving the store and locking everything along with him.

The fairy blushed. Taehyung made his way back home.

“Only a few more streets to go.” Taehyung announced, not missing the soft and muffled ‘okay’ that came from within his pocket.

The streets were busy. Far too busy. The human was rather annoyed. Far too annoyed. He wanted to talk with Jimin but it was almost impossible considering the fact that cars, people, bikes and other things passed by him at all moments. And as if he couldn’t get more annoyed, it began to rain.

The florist groaned in displeasure, scrambling to get his umbrella opened while trying to cover Jimin from the rain.

“T-Tae?” He heard faintly. His mood brightened immediately.

“Yes Jiminie?"

“C-Can I come o-out please? I-It’s too hot in here…”

The human looked around to see if he could indeed come out. Since the rain had started, the streets were calmer. The people were seeking shelter, so he was free to come out. Only for a little though.

“Of course you can, Minnie.” Taehyung nodded, parting the fabric and finally smiling once a tiny black fluff of hair popped out. The fairy took a deep breath before yelping.

“It’s r-raining…”

“Yeah.” The human nodded, though he recognized the worry in the boy’s voice. “Do you not like the rain, Jimin? You don’t have to worry, I won’t let you get wet or anything.”

“M-Minnie- I don’t like t-the rain…” He stammered, shuffling further inside the pocket as if to hide from the thick drops that hit the ground. “F-Fairies can’t fly i-in the rain. Rain is scary…”

His heart clenched as the boy referred, or at least tried to, to himself in third person. Something deep within his chest striked his instinct to protect and even his hidden possessiveness. “We’re almost at my house, okay? I won’t let the evil rain get to Minnie. Hold on just a few more minutes.”

The promise was kept as Taehyung picked up his pace, arriving at his place in mere minutes, stopping by his mailbox to check if he had anything, which he didn’t. Another day with no taxes. Hooray.

He closed the umbrella, fumbling through his keys to enter the hall of the apartment complex.

“We’re here Minnie. You can come out now.” He whispered as he walked down said hall to the stairs. He still had a few to climb up.

“W-Where are we, Tae?”

He seemed disoriented, probably because of the fear he had showed a few minutes ago. “A few seconds away from my house Jiminie. We’re very close.”

After going up two sets of stairs, he finally arrived at his door. Twisting in his keys, he stepped inside swiftly and closed the door behind him.

The florist’s apartment truly wasn't much, like his shop, it was modest and humble with a living room, kitchen, bathroom and a single bedroom only. He had decorated it good enough to make little look pretty; he prided himself on that.

“Finally.” he said in relief. “Jimin, I’m going to get you out now okay?” Taehyung was quite nervous for the fairy’s reaction to the completely new environment. He wanted to make this as smooth as possible. After a soft ‘okay’ from Jimin, Taehyung reached into the pocket and held him ever so gently, taking him out slowly. “This is my place.” He announced, before heaving a reassuring smile and turning his hand to show.

Jimin gasped quietly. It was so big! But a bit messy, he found.

“It’s not much…” The fairy was shocked at that. How could the human say such a thing?! His house back in the forest was nothing compared to this.

There was a loud rumble that started Jimin a little, making him jump slightly. The human looked at him with an apologetic smile, soothing him down. “Sorry, I’m kind of hungry. It’s time to eat something don’t you think so?”

“You don’t eat meat right, Minnie?”

The human had asked while he was putting Jimin down on the counter gently, to which the fairy replied with a soft shake of his head.

“What do you eat?” Tae inquired as he made his way over to the fridge, opening and taking some things to prepare his own dinner. Pork belly and cooked rice. He was so f-ing hungry.

“U-Uh…” Jimin paced around the counter with a figure lightly tapping his chin, thinking over the question. He didn't eat a whole lot, that was true. “Honey!” He chimed in once he remembered the times where he would steal a bit from the bees. It was dangerous but honey was so addicting. “A-And vegetables in general…”

“So like, vegan?”

“ What’s a vegan? ”

Taehyung chuckled out loud, mincing up the uncooked meat with a sharp knife as best as he could. He didn't look at Jimin, not wanting to cut off a finger. “Humans who only eat veggies and other things that don’t harm animals. I’m not a vegan, though… I eat meat.”

“Oh…” The fairy trembled a bit. “W-Why do you eat meat? Fairies get sick when they eat stuff like that… really sick.”

“I need the nutrients so I can be big and strong.” He explained, throwing the meat into the cooker and watching as it sizzled. After washing his hands thoroughly, he turned to Jimin. “Don’t worry though, okay?” He leaned over him, casting a small shadow.

Jimin would’ve been terrified at this point if he didn’t trust Taehyung.

“o-okay…”

“I eat a lot of other things too.” He said, turning back to the meat to check it. “Vegetables, fruit. Anything really. I’m not picky and I love eating.”

There was no malice in his voice and Jimin knew, but he couldn’t help but feel a little worried.

“I’ll get your honey now, okay? And a little water too. Are you sure that’s all you need?”

The fairy nodded. “M-Mhm…”

In no time, the human was opening a cabinet and pulling a big, heavy jar from it. The secret stash of honey. Said treat was inside, resting peacefully and in calmness. The human set the jar next to the fairy who just stumbled out of the way.

Jimin’s mouth fell into a tiny and cute ‘o’. He had never seen this much honey before! And never this clean and… honey-like. If that even made sense.

The jar was almost four times his size.

He couldn't wait to taste.

“Wait until you try it. It’s even better than it looks.” The florist was able to pop it open after a few tries of pushing the lid, the instant smell of sugary sweet honey filling the air in an almost toxic way.

His mouth was watering already, waiting for the human to give the treat to him. He’d been a good boy, hadn’t him?

It took a bit, but eventually the human figured out a way for Jimin to be able to eat. He opened a bottle as used the cap away a small container and pouring a small spoon of honey into it. The fairy’s eyes widened and shined almost as bright as the honey itself.

He dipped his finger in it gently, feeling a shiver go down his tiny spine as his finger nearly got stuck. The fairy tasted it, a whimper falling from his lips at how good it felt to finally taste honey after such a long time. His ears vibrated yet again.

Taehyung chuckled as he finished preparing his food.

He couldn't be bothered to set a table, so he just sat on the counter next to where Jimin was savoring the honey he had giving him, wolfing down his meal.

Jimin had finished quickly, all the honey he could manage to eat resting comfortably inside his stomach. Satisfied, he leaned back on his hands and looked over at Taehyung. The fairy could not lie, he was scared of the way the human ate such a big amount in so little time. That much food, the rice alone, could feed the entire fairy folk for weeks on end and he was just wolfing it down like it was nothing. Jimin shivered. He understood that Taehyung needed to eat, but the comparison terrified him to the bones.

“Everything okay?” He heard coming from atop, making a squeal tumble from his parted lips. Only then he realized that maybe he had been staring for too long.

“Y-Yeah sorry, I-”

“You’re not scared of me, are you?” Taehyung said he placed the plate down, empty, and settled for picking Jimin up from the counter. The fairy squeaked a little, still, shivered just the slightest. Maybe it was a sign that Taehyung shouldn’t have picked him up just now. “Jiminie… Did I do something wrong?” His bottom lip was slightly jutted outwards.

“N-No…” Jimin shifted to get himself comfortable. “I-It’s not your fault. I-I’m sorry-”

“Don’t be sorry, please.” Taehyung reassured, moving a hand to pet his hair just the way he knew Jimin liked. His tone was everything but harsh, and Jimin found himself forgetting the image of him wolfing down the chunks of meat and tons of rice. “It was the way I was eating, wasn’t it? I should’ve known it was going to look bad… Will you forgive me Jimin?”

“B-But it’s not your fault… You were just e-eating.” Jimin sighed and leaned back, trying to get his voice to work properly. “It’s just… it’s a lot in comparison to what I-I’m used to seeing. B-But that’s okay! You’re a human and you’re… big. I’m not.”

Taehyung held his breath for a little, face dropping to a worried one. He bit his lip. “I’ll be more careful when eating around you… that sound good? You said it’s not my fault, but I still don’t want to make you frightened or upset, so I’ll be more careful.”

Jimin nodded a little after, consenting. That didn’t sound bad at all.

“Bath. We both need one.” Taehyung joked after relaxing into the sofa, Jimin laying down next to him on one of the arms of said couch. Jimin perked up at that.

“But… I don't have other clothes…”

Taehyung sighed. “That’s… I might be able to fix that. You don’t mind doll clothes do you?” The human reached for his pocket, pulling out a sleek, black and wide smartphone.

“Doll clothes…?”

“Jeonggukie? Yeah it’s me uh…” the human talked to the weird device. Jimin raised a brow in confusion. “Does your niece have like… dolls and stuff? We’re kinda running low on clothing over here. If you could help that’d be sweet.”

A tiny noise came from the device, sounding like Jeongguk’s voice.

Jimin had no idea what was happening.

“Alright! Drop by with a few if you can. Jimin needs them soon. See ya.” Taehyung took the weird thing from his ear and pressed on it, making it go silent.

“Problem solved.”

“W-what…?”

“Oh!” The florist chuckled. “You didn’t understand anything that just happened did you…?” Jimin shook his head in denial. “Well. This is a phone. You use it to talk to other people that are far and many other things… I pressed in Kook’s number and I was talking to him just now.”

“O-Oh…” the fairy nodded in understanding.

“Jeonggukie’s going to drop by with a few clothes for you from his niece’s dolls… Hope you don’t mind but we really don’t have other choices here.” Taehyung pouted.

“I-I don’t mind!” the fairy shook his head and smiled. “I’m thankful for the clothes…”

“I’ll get you new ones since tomorrow is my day off. You don’t have to worry about them at all. But for now…” He stood, “a bath sound good?”

“Y-Yeah.”

Swiftly and quickly, both the boys made it to the bathroom, now considering another problem.

“Where…” Taehyung clicked his tongue and looked around after placing the fairy boy down on the marble of the sink. “You need somewhere to bathe.”

“Uh…” Jimin pointed at a small container of porcelain that held a bar of soap, he figured. “That, maybe? I-It’s not too deep or too big…”

It had to make do for now. Taehyung nodded and took the container, taking out the soap and washing it thoroughly before filling it with warm water and testing it out first before Jimin. He deemed it good enough, so he settled said container on the marble counter next to Jimin.

“This should do it… the soap bar is next to it so you bathe with it.” The human blushed a little suddenly. “Do you want me to get undressed first, or…?”

The fairy blushed back, fidgeting on his very own feet. “U-Uh… You can go first.”

After such statement Taehyung stepped away with red cheeks and a nod, walking over to the large tub and starting to fill it. His hands wandered to the hem of his shirt, unbuttoning it and throwing it over his shoulders onto the ground carelessly. His toned back showed, skin dripping in a warm tone just like the honey Jimin had eaten earlier. The fairy boy blushed once more.

“Don’t peek.” The human teased with a wink before dropping his pants below his ankles and shrugging them off along with his underwear.

Jimin turned away with a loud squeak, ears vibrating again. Taehyung only laughed, stepping into the bathtub and leaning into it with a relaxed exhale.

“You can look now.” Tae said in a soft tone, defying the one he had let out when he teased the fairy. “If you want, you can get undressed now or whenever you feel comfortable.”

There it was. The caring, protective Taehyung that Jimin was growing to adore. The fairy smiled and nodded only, and the human focused on his own bath, sinking beneath the water to wash his hair.

After a few minutes Jimin stepped in, letting the warmth of the water sink into his bones, wetting his wings completely.

Silence filled the bathroom, only the sounds of droplets and water moving around.

The boys relaxed, mind eased. Today had been a long day.

“You know, I never really believed in magic before I met you.” Taehyung confessed, leaning on his arms over the edge of the bath. Jimin giggled. “Fairies and other things, specially… I thought everything was fake. Things you read to kids so they won’t feel sad.”

The other gasped, eyes wide. “A fairy just died!”

Taehyung slapped a hand over his mouth with wide eyes in sheer horror, jaw going slack.

The fairy giggled loudly, throwing his head back. “I’m just kidding. That doesn’t happen.”

Taehyung sighed in relief, pointing at Jimin with a weak finger. He couldn’t help but fail to keep in a tiny laugh. “You… you little-”

Jimin didn’t stop laughing.

Taehyung thought it sounded like angel bells.

“I’ll turn into a pile of wrinkles if I don’t leave this bathtub.” The human said as he glanced at the fairy. “Turn away, pretty please?”

The tiny boy did, a bit reluctantly this time, although. A small giggle erupting from his lips. Somehow, he couldn’t help it. He was in such a good mood!

Tae emerged from the tub, slipping into a robe and getting a towel to go over his head. His hair dripped.

“Do you want to leave the bath as well? Jeongguk must be close. He just texted me, actually.” The human had just checked his phone. Jimin pulled his knees to his chest and sunk further into the water.

“Okay… I need a towel though.”

“Let me get you a hand towel.”  He ducked to open a drawer, pulling one out and holding it unfolded as if it was a curtain, in front of the fairy’s ‘tub’. “Here you go, oh prince.”

Jimin really could do nothing but giggle again. He stood from the tub, flapping his wings lazily to shake away excess water. The human wrapper the towel around him lovingly.

The fairy keened in the warmth of the towel and Taehyung’s hands.

“There we go.” The doorbell rang. “Jeongguk’s here. Do you want to come get the door? Sound good?”

Jimin nodded. Taehyung held him as gently as ever in his hands.

The human left the bathroom and went over to the front door, opening it up to reveal a tall, young baker. Jimin thought that he looked like a kid, but with the body of a buff adult. He was cute.

“You came.” Taehyung said excitedly, fixing his robe and smiling squarely.

Jeongguk nodded. “Yeah. Figured it was urgent.” He handed him a small bag. “I took everything I could. She’s probably not going to realize that they’re missing for a long while, though.”

“Thank you!” Jimin chimed him, looking as bright as a sunshine.

The humans stared down at him lovingly. Jeongguk flashed him a smile before looking straight at Taehyung with a playful gaze. “You can pay me in banana milk later.”

Taehyung took the bag from the baker and rolled his eyes. “We’ll speak of that later, as well.” then there was a laugh and before Jeongguk excused himself to leave, Jimin waved a small bye.

The door closed. The human sighed briefly. “Time to play dress up.”

Jimin was absolutely one hundred percent up for that.

They were in the bathroom again, Jimin sitting in a pile that the towel formed, snuggled in with now dry skin, hair and wings. Taehyung was taking everything out of the bag, displaying it in front of the fairy.

Several pieces of tops and bottoms stood in front of him. Some with funky patterns, that didn’t look too good in Jimin’s opinion. He always liked plain things. Plain, big and cozy.

Taehyung absolutely adored to play dress up. Whether it was with himself, or anything really. The human had a keen on fashion and he showed it really well. He dressed exquisitely and in an unique way; patterns, silks, furs... The florist might be modest and humble, but his way of dressing never intended to show such.

Needless to say that when the opportunity of playing dress up with Jimin came along, Taehyung was just radiating with excitement. After getting dressed in his soft, striped blue pajamas, he went back to Jimin with a huge smile. “What would you like to wear, Jiminie? You’re lucky Jeongguk could bring so much stuff, wow…” The human scanned over the pieces, frowning slightly. “We’re going to have to cut some extra holes in those.”

After a while and various scraps of clothing littered across the counter, Jimin had finally picked something to wear. A big, red sweater that reached the boy’s mid thigh, — not that it was something hard to do — and a pair of random blue shorts that nearly went invisible as the fairy was swallowed in the top.

“W-What do you think?” The tiny boy said after popping his translucid wings through the holes, giving them a tentative flutter and spinning on his ankle. He still wasn’t able to fly, but it could be worse, he thought. At least.

“You look as pretty as always.” Taehyung stated immediately, without a drop of hesitation. Over these past two days it had become a thing between them. The loving praise that came from the human, dripping in fond like honey.

Jimin loved honey.

“T-Thanks Tae…”

Taehyung was on the verge of going insane, because Jimin did not just f-ing fall asleep on top of his hand. They had been chilling on the sofa, entertaining themselves with taehyung’s television while they were still pretty much awake. Jimin had snuggled into him at some point, but he figured he would’ve told him when he was ready to go to bed.

But no. Jimin had to be curled up on his palm, cheeks flushed and puffy as he slept through his tiredness.

Taehyung just couldn't take this anymore.

The human stood, wrapping his hands around the fairy so he wouldn't feel cold or bothered by all the shifting around. Soon he realized that he had forgotten the makeshift bed back at the shop, a soft sigh leaving his lips. He had to make-do today.

The quickest and easiest answer that he remembered was sharing his bed, which would be something rather dangerous, but considering that it was big enough for two times Taehyung’s size, he figured there wouldn't be too much trouble.

He walked into his room, feeling the comfortable carpet of the floor sink into his feet before hopping onto the bed slowly, playing Jimin atop one of the most comfortable pillows.

The boy curled up immediately, seeking Taehyung’s warmth and when he didn’t find it, he began to shudder himself awake. “T-Tae…?” He asked as he looked around, looking scared and disoriented.

“‘M here.” The human said quickly, touching the fairy and lightly petting his hair to make himself known. Jimin physically relaxed. “You’re okay. Just in my bed.” Taehyung’s voice was sweet as he reassured, laying down on the bed next to the pillow where Jimin was lying. “Long day today, you fell asleep on me,”

The fairy blushed.

“Just try to sleep again, yeah?”

And so he did. A few minutes later, Jimin was back with the tiny heaves of breath, curled up into a ball on top of the human's pillow. It smelled like him. It was comforting... The human stared like he had done back in the shop on the first day, this time for a bit longer. A smile tugged on his lips.

He could get used to this.

Slowly and delicately, he pulled the covers over himself and Jimin, calling it a day.