Chapter Text
Kim Seokjin is a brave man. He has no fears.
Okay, maybe he has one fear. He fears it when Jimin walks all over him and sucks his nipples. He fears it when Jimin yowls at three a.m. and flings poop everywhere like his life depended on it. He fears it when Jimin leaps onto him when he’s sitting down, fails, claws at him in desperation and leaves long, deep marks on his skin.
Yes, Kim Seokjin has one fear: his calico cat, Jimin.
The new tenant who just moved into the spare bedroom downstairs, though, seems quite capable with animals. He has a sleek black cat with white socks. The first time Seokjin was acquainted with the feisty feline, he (the cat, not Seokjin) was wearing three gold chains, sunglasses, and a bandanna. And Seokjin can’t even get Jimin to wear a bow without him screaming like Seokjin’s offended his great ancestors! The tenant must be a miracle worker when it comes to getting cats to obediently agree to dress up in cumbersome outfits.
And the black cat is not his only pet. Seokjin noticed on the day the tenant, who introduced himself as Namjoon, grad student, with a disarming dimpled smile, has a floppy-eared black bunny as well. Seokjin has no experience in caring for bunnies, but he assumes it should take at least some amount of work and admires Namjoon for doing it so well—at least better than what Seokjin himself is doing with Jimin, who is currently very aggressively scratching his mustard yellow sofa.
Namjoon also seems to be friendly with animals in general. When he handed Seokjin his phone so that he could help him look up directions to the nearest post office, Seokjin noticed that his phone background was Namjoon holding a tiger cub. Seokjin, like most people, has no idea how you’re supposed to interact with a tiger cub, but Namjoon seemed very comfortable in the picture, as did the tiger, who was curled up contently on Namjoon’s lap, nuzzling his chin with its furry round ears.
Seokjin couldn’t help staring at the photo a little bit longer than he intended to. Because Namjoon looked radiant. His smile was so big and genuine—clearly he loved being with animals—and his upper arms, easily visible in all his sleeveless-topped glory… yum. Seokjin found it hard to look away.
Namjoon seemed to take Seokjin’s fascination to mean entirely something else, though, and scrambled to explain. “No, that’s… I… I went to a big cat sanctuary… that was why I got to hold a tiger! Not like I keep a tiger cub under my bed in secret… not like that all… why would I have a tiger of my own, right? Haha? Hahaha?”
Seokjin had no clue why Namjoon was so flustered, clearly he couldn’t be keeping a tiger under his bed, but he did find Namjoon’s embarrassment mighty endearing. He also did end up thinking about Namjoon that night, before he went to sleep. And had a dream about Namjoon holding him in his lap like he did the tiger cub, except in the end they both got washed away in a flood, and then a nurse bit them in the butt. But Seokjin’s dreams usually end in weird ways like that, so that’s nothing new.
Seokjin wakes up the next morning to find Namjoon standing at the porch, all bare arms, round spectacles and short shorts, conversing cordially with a red squirrel. That’s when Seokjin knows he’s absolutely fucked. Because men with dimples and spectacles and a decent amount of respect for red squirrels have always been his type. But what if Namjoon finds him creepy? No one likes being hit on by their landlord, right?
Kim Seokjin now has two fears.
**
Seokjin is rudely awakened from a well-deserved beauty sleep by his phone ringing. He sits up, rubbing his eyes, makes a mad grab for his phone. Jimin slides down from his chest, landing on the mattress with a plop.
It’s Namjoon. Seokjin sighs. Why is Namjoon calling him at this unholy time of the night?
“I… I’m sorry, but there’s no hot water,” Namjoon explains, sounding very apologetic. Seokjin frowns. He clearly remembers there being hot water when he took the shower not long ago. And living in the same house, their separate bathrooms use the same heating system.
“Ooookay,” Seokjin groans, stretching his syllables out. “Can you go check the heater? It should be right outside the bathroom window.”
On the other end of the phone comes rustling sounds. Namjoon confirms that he’s found the heater.
“All right, can you show me the heater with facetime?” Seokjin asks, trying his best to keep his impatience out of his voice.
Namjoon responds with a meek “sure”, and the next thing Seokjin knows, he’s faced with Namjoon’s bare chest. Bare wet chest. Which makes sense because he probably had been trying to shower before discovering that the hot water wouldn’t come on, but still—
“Put on your clothes before facetiming me, goodness!” Seokjin screams. From the corner of his eye he can see Jimin watching him with those all-seeing amber eyes and it’s very disconcerting.
Namjoon sputters out an apology, attempting to explain he didn’t want to go fetch his clothes and keep Seokjin waiting because that would be so impolite especially since it’s so late and he thought he could just hold the phone camera to face the heater and not himself but that didn’t work out, and it’s three a.m. and Seokjin is exasperated but also hopelessly enamored.
They eventually discover that the heater is simply out of batteries, and Seokjin directs Namjoon to locating batteries in the second kitchen cabinet to the left, and that is that. Namjoon goes back to his shower and Seokjin goes back to sleep.
Except he can’t sleep, and Jimin knows. That little brat is climbing all over Seokjin’s man boobs, letting out gleeful mews. Seokjin gives up getting him to stay put and resigns himself to his fate, in which he’ll always have a cat sticking his head into his armpit hair no matter he wants it or not.
At least Jimin is soft and warm and purry. And looks like he kind of understands.
“I’m so fucked, Jiminie,” he mutters.
Jimin meows joyfully in agreement.
**
Seokjin is a young landlord, he knows this. Some people think he has it all, having inherited a house at a privileged age and not having to slave away in a company, he knows this too.
But he’s not as rich as he looks like—and he does have to work to make ends meet. It’s therefore extremely annoying when Jimin insists on sitting on his keyboard. He’s an industrial designer, dammit. He can’t work with a cat on his computer, as cute as the cat is.
That’s how Seokjin finds himself in front of Namjoon’s door, plate of cookies in one hand and a squirming Jimin in another.
“See, I have a cat, and you have a cat, so I thought—” he begins, as Namjoon swings open the door, in his cute spectacles and farmer overalls and fuzzy beanie.
“Yoog,” Namjoon says.
“Huh?”
“The cat. He’s Yoog.”
“That’s his name?”
“Well, his official name is Yoongi, but I call him Yoog, Yoongles, Yoobi, Yoon Yoon, Suga, Meow Meow, Toongi, and Yoongo,” Namjoon explains. Seokjin supposes he can understand. While his own cat’s official name is Jimin, he does call him little angel, little purry, little sweetie, little tiger, little assassin, little devil, and harbinger of death.
“So, yeah. You have Yoog, and I have Jimin. So I’m thinking, if it’s not too much trouble of course, maybe you could keep Jimin company for a bit while I work, so he would stop walking all over my keyboard? I mean, if it’s not too much trouble of course! And I’ll pay you! Unless you want coffee instead, in which case I know of a really nice café around the corner, and—”
“I’d love to.”
“Huh?”
“I said, I’d love to.”
Seokjin finally lifts his gaze to meet Namjoon’s. A warm, tingling feeling spreads from head to toe, and it’s not because he’s currently holding freshly-baked cookies.
Jimin turns and gives him a smug look before leaping into Namjoon’s open arms. That little devil. Harbinger of death. He knows.
Seokjin is so fucked.
**
Remember how Seokjin said he had two fears.
Yeah, no. Not anymore. Clearly, he doesn't need to worry about Namjoon finding him creepy anymore because Yoongi's there to take care of this part.
Now he's just worried about Namjoon finding it weird that he's got a landlord who won't even meet his eyes.
But then again, Seokjin tells Jimin as he putters around the house, cleaning, "It's not my fault, you know. I mean, if Yoongi maybe stopped staring at me like he's one paw away from murdering me in my sleep every time I get close to Namjoon, we might have had a functioning relationship."
Jimin stares at him for a long moment, turns and walks away.
Walks away. Like Seokjin hadn’t just bared his soul to him.
Seokjin throws the broomstick down with a huff.
That bratty kitty.
**
To be honest, Seokjin's not really sure he knows what he did to warrant such a hostile attitude from Yoongi.
Maybe it was the one time he almost accidentally sat on Kookie, hidden behind the cushions on Namjoon's black black couch? But hey, Namjoon had assured him later on that the bunny tended to do that a lot and that 'he would have jumped out before you could have squashed him with your ass, don't worry.'
Or maybe it's because of that one time Seokjin had called Yoongi “Yoongo”, which clearly, he tolerated only from his owner, if the scratch marks on Seokjin’s arm are anything to go by.
Or -
Ding.
Seokjin stares at the door suspiciously. It's eleven in the night and he's all alone at home. It's the perfect setting for a murder story.
Jimin pokes his head out from under the pillows and stares at him.
"You think they'll go away in search of another victim if I keep quiet and act like no one's at home?" He whispers to the cat.
The little devil jumps off the bed and pads over to the door. To the flimsy piece of wood separating Seokjin from possible death in a very gruesome manner. And meows, loudly , while scratching at the wood.
Jin lets his head thunk against the wall.
There goes his master plan.
That little menace.
Shaking his head, he grabs a glass from the kitchen and makes his way to the door.
"If I die, I swear I’m going to haunt you," he promises the kitten and reaches for the handle.
He opens it slowly, slowly, and something black darts into the house through the crack.
Seokjin screams.
The glass drops.
The wind blows the door open and there stands -
... Namjoon.
The look on his face is a mix between concern, worry and apology and Seokjin wants to cry. It’s eleven in the night and he's wearing his favourite worn-out-with-holes Mario Pyjamas, there's broken glass on the floor and Namjoon still looks like a snacc.
"Uh, are you okay?" Said snacc asks, hefting his bag - that's bursting at the seams - a little higher, hopping from one foot to another, clutching Kookie's carrier to his chest.
What the fuck.
The black bunny blinks at Seokjin slowly while nibbling on a carrot.
"Yeah," poor Seokjin replies dazedly. "Yeah. You - what - "
"Ah, I am sorry. I know this is like really short notice but I have to go over to a classmate's house for this assignment and the deadline's close and Yoongi's feeling under the weather, so I was wondering if youcouldwatchhimforthenight."
"I didn't get you - Yoon - where's he?"
"He just ran into your room," Namjoon says sheepishly, dimples peeping out and Seokjin wants to poke them, wants to see how deep they are - goodness Kim Seokjin get back on track and stop gaping like a stupid fool.
"Wait, my room? He was that black thing that ran in and made me drop my glass?" He screeches, and Namjoon winces.
"I’m sorry. He's mad at me because I always take him with me when I go out, but I really can’t this time... so yeah," Namjoon shrugs, one dimple showing apologetically.
"He’s what? Actually, you know what..." Jin takes a deep breath. "Just give Kookie to me and go. We can talk about this later."
The way Namjoon's face lights up is adorable as he gently places Kookie's carrier on the table near the door - his eyes go impossibly wide and his plush biteable lips form this tiny 'o', like he hadn't expected Jin to say yes.
Which, frankly, he shouldn’t have, because what fucking landlord takes kindly to being woken up at ass o' clock in the night to take care of a devil cat that's probably the grim reaper in disguise, plus a rabbit?
Kim Seokjin, that's who.
A very very whipped landlord who has absolutely zero self preservation.
Who fucking loves dimples and loves staring at his tenant like a creep - "Ow!"
Seokjin tears his gaze away from Namjoon's beautiful beautiful face and looks down.
Yoongi stares back at him with beady green eyes that promise death, claws digging into Seokjin’s leg through Mario's face on his pajamas.
"I’m so sorry!" Namjoon apologises quickly and bends down to scoop Yoongi up, except -
The damned cat doesn't let go of his leg. So they end up in this weird position where Namjoon's on his knees in front of Jin, holding his leg, and Seokjin's looking down at him because Namjoon's on his knees in front of him and - did he mention Namjoon is on his knees in front of Seokjin?
And everything's absolutely fine, just dandy, because he's definitely not imagining Namjoon on his knees for some other purpose. Pssh, he's not that much of a pervert, that's just -
Meow.
Fucking cock-block.
Seokjin shoots the black cat a withering glare. The little menace won't even let him fantasise about his neighbour like the creep he is.
Namjoon tugs a little harder and Jin almost falls, clutching onto the nearest thing for support.
Which is -
a mistake.
Because it's Namjoon's hair and now they're in a much more awkward position because not only is Namjoon on his knees for in front of Seokjin, but Jin's got his hands in Namjoon's hair, very soft velvety strands of purple, much softer than in Jin’s fantasies because he had always been under the assumption that dyeing your hair could make it brittle but of course the angel on his knees would also have perfectly soft soft hair, perfect for petting and -
"Uh, Seokjin hyung." Namjoon starts, a little red-faced, "My hair - "
Seokjin lets go and takes a step back so fast, forgetting that Namjoon's still holding onto his pant leg, would you look at that, and lands on his ass in a very undignified manner.
He hates his life so much.
"Are you okay?" Namjoon asks, concern bleeding from his voice and Seokjin wants to cry.
Which, to be fair, is one of Seokjin's three default settings around Namjoon - horny, weepy or dumb.
In the background he can hear Jimin's gleeful meoooow.
"Absolutely stunning," Jin says, with what he hopes is a cool shrug. "Why would you ask me that? I meant to do that, you know?"
"Uh, you meant to fall?" Namjoon asks carefully, scrunching his eyebrows..
"Duh of course not. I meant to let my ass kiss the floor," Seokjin says, realising how dumb he sounds when the words are out of his mouth, but he can't seem to be able to stop himself from spouting bullshit either. "I do this often. It's a nice floor. Nice ass. It's fun, you should try it."
Namjoon squints at him, and lets go of Seokjin's pant leg, finally, getting up slowly.
"If you say so, Seokjin hyung, I'll stop by tomorrow morning. Be good, Yoonie. Love you, baby. "
"Of course, Namjoon," Seokjin replies, waving weakly, until the younger's out of sight and he slumps against the wall, Yoongi still clinging onto his pajamas.
Nice ass? You should try it?! What the fuck.
**
Two hours into the night and it's one a.m., because of course eleven plus two is one and Seokjin's just sleep-deprived enough to find it funny.
Hilarious.
"Numbers are crazy, little mochi," he says, staring at the ceiling.
Jimin steps on his crotch in acknowledgement.
"Just like Namjoon probably thinks I am." Seokjin lifts his head to look at Yoongi curled near his feet, still staring at him, and Jimin walking around him in circles. "Fuck, he's gonna think I’m this weird, creepy old dude, isn't he?"
He lifts a hand and pets Kookie on the head. The bunny looks at him with unblinking starry eyes from where he's seated on Seokjin's chest.
"Urgh. I just told him I had a nice ass. And that he should try it." He groans. Jungkook keeps staring.
"I mean, I do want him to try it, but - that's eventually, down the line, maybe after we’ve kissed like maybe a million times and he's held my hand and what the fuck is that a tiger in my living room?"
Seokjin screams.
As is the natural response.
Because a tiger's a tiger even if this one is only a little bigger than Yoongi.
Jimin jumps off the bed, spooked, coming to a halt near the tiger, and Yoongi follows suit, curling himself around it and wait, what?
"You," Seokjin points at Yoongi, "know him?" He moves the finger to point at the baby tiger.
Yoongi gives him an unimpressed look, trying to wrap himself more firmly around the tiger.
And as if to add insult to injury, Jimin pads over and licks the tiger's face with a familiarity that speaks of time spent together, and the tiger purrs.
What. The. Fuck.
"You traitor," Seokjin tells his kitten, scooping Jungkook off his chest and setting him on the floor before getting up from the bed himself. "You're a goddamn traitor and I love you but I have no idea what's going on."
And then -
Kookie joins the cuddle pile.
Seokjin drops to his knees in front of them.
Now, he thinks, all that's missing is a red squirrel.
**
"Okay, wait, I don't get it! Namjoon's clearly not human, okay?" Seokjin tells the red squirrel that he's named Smiley because even though squirrels usually don’t smile this one looks like it could if it wanted to.
It's three in the night.
Seokjin's house has been invaded by a small army of animals.
And that's not even the weirdest thing, because the weirdest thing is him talking to them like they're sentient and them shaking their little heads like they understand.
Or at least Smiley does, bless his little squirrel heart.
The other four ignore him in favour of running after each other and wreaking havoc in his house.
He wonders if it's the sleep deprivation that's making it seem like Smiley's smiling at him and nodding his head.
"You... understand me, right?" He asks the squirrel, and the squirrel nods, nibbling on a sunflower seed.
"Oh thank god." He exhales, resuming pacing. "Yeah, so as I was saying. He's - he's... I know! A Disney princess!"
He smiles at Smiley triumphantly.
Somewhere in the kitchen a glass drops.
Smiley says nothing.
"I have proof!" Jin yells wildly, reaching for a pen and a piece of paper. Fifteen minutes later, when he gathers the animals around and shows it to them, it looks something like this:
- Animals love him.
- He baby.
- He tol and clumsy and must protecc.
- He smile and angels sing and flowers bloom.
- But really, he's got the prettiest smile and the kindest heart.
- That time he helped that old lady cross the street
- When he babysat Jimin for me more than enough times
- Tutoring so many kids for free even though he knows they can't pay him much
- And it’s not like he’s got lots of free time to spare, he has to study too
- Always having a nice word for everyone he sees
- Yoongi and the animals!
And underneath it all, Seokjin’s scrawled in extremely big letters "Snow White?" and underlined it twice.
Yoongi's the first to lift his head. He places his paw on top of the sixth point and moves it down to the Snow White part.
"You guys are Snow white's dwarves, right? I mean you must have taken a different form now, animagi and stuff. Yoongi's definitely a mix of Grumpy and Sleepy and - "
Kookie starts munching on the paper.
"Yah - yah, yah that's my blood, sweat and tears - "
**
"Jasmine?" He asks Tiger, tearing his eyes away from the laptop screen where the search results for disney princess tiger squirrel grumpy cat rabbit are displayed.
"She's the only one who's got a tiger, and to be honest, I can see Jasmine in Namjoon. He's strong-willed and spirited and is super cool - like magical carpet, genie, tiger-befriending super cool, and - "
Tiger drops his head onto the floor and closes his eyes.
**
"Tiana?" He asks Kookie and Smiley. "She's got dimples and seems good enough with animals, for fucks sake she kissed a goddamn frog she - wait." Seokjin narrows his eyes at the five animals. "Are any of you his Prince Charming? You’re not, right? Because I swear to god, if you turn into human after Namjoon kisses you and tell him all about the stuff I just said, I might just have to migrate to Antarctica and lead my life on the melting glaciers. You know too much at this point. Too much that he can't know."
Yoongi hops down from the fridge and says meep. Sounds harmless, but sends a shiver down Seokjin’s spine.
"Do I have to kiss all of you to make sure now?"
**
By seven in the morning, Soekjin's half loopy from sleep and knows more than he thinks he needs to know about disney princesses. He's pretty sure he knows more than every ten-year-old because hey, do they know that Aurora is the tallest princess at 5'6 or that Cinderella's fairy godmother gifted her a cat?
He just wishes he had backed out before reading about the morbid side of the fairytales. He really didn't need to know about Cinderella's little birdy friends pecking out her step-sisters' eyes while she lived happily ever after.
But - it did make him wonder if Namjoon is Cinderella, solely based on the way Yoongi stares at him sometimes.
The black ball of fur, the only one of the animals still awake, walks up to him and steps on the lid of his laptop, forcing it close.
"Yah - "
And then the furball curls up on top of it - on top of it! and goes to sleep!
Seokjin rubs at his eyes tiredly.
Maybe, just maybe, the furball of death is right.
Maybe he needs sleep.
He closes his eyes and lets sleep take over him, hoping that his dreams will show him the light, and the truth behind the enigma that is Kim Namjoon.
**
There are two ways for Namjoon to reach his downstairs bedroom from the outside. He can come in from the front door and pass through the common area, where there’s a bigger chance for him to cross paths with Seokjin, or there’s a separate door in Seokjin’s backyard, which most of Seokjin’s past tenants liked to use because that way they wouldn’t have to run into their landlord.
Namjoon’s been using the front door a lot more these days, much to Seokjin’s delight. Maybe it means that he’s warming up to him.
And there he comes, all wind-swept hair, round glasses and cute overalls, mumbling a greeting as he (unsuccessfully) tries to toe off his shoes. “Hey hyung, bit chilly today isn’t it, almost lost my hat when I—”
And then his eyes meet Seokjin’s and all his groceries crash to the ground.
“What’s up?” Seokjin says from the dining table where he’s seated, as he gracefully hand-feeds the tiger cub some sushi.
Namjoon is on his knees yet again, eyes wide and horrified. “Hyung, please, I can explain—”
Seokjin lifts the tiger cub by the scruff and holds him out to Namjoon. “If it’s about this little guy, I’ll have you know that this actually isn’t the first time I’ve met him. He’s been keeping me company at lunch for the past week because all my friends have regular office jobs and can’t have lunch with me and sometimes it’s lonely goddamit.”
Namjoon takes the tiger into his arms wordlessly, mouth agape, and slaps him gently on his furry butt. “I told you not to come out of the room, Taehyung!” He hisses between his teeth, then looks back up at Seokjin again.
“How… how are you so calm, hyung? This is no ordinary cat.”
Seokjin rolls his eyes. “Are you insulting my intelligence now? Of course I know this is no ordinary cat. Look at the rounded ears. Head shape. Overall orange-ness.”
“No, I mean—” Namjoon backtracks, “I mean, he’s… he’s not a normal tiger. Please don’t report us to the authorities, he’ll die if they take him away, I mean it, please don’t let them take him—”
Seokjin sighs, getting up from the dinner table and putting both hands on Namjoon’s shoulders. “You’re rambling. Calm down, Joon. I won’t report you to the authorities, I promise, don’t get your panties in a twist.”
Don’t get your panties in a twist—funny idiom, Seokjin’s always thought. But this is not the time to think about panties. He sits Namjoon down on the living room couch and kindly fetches him a glass of water. The tiger circles around them, rubbing his head on their legs, letting out happy chuffs.
“Taehyung, can you go back to our room please?” Namjoon asks. Taehyung looks less than pleased, but agreeably plods away once Namjoon promises to cuddle with him tonight. Seokjin tries his best to not think about how nice it would be to cuddle with Namjoon, especially in the current sweater weather.
Namjoon takes a sip of the lukewarm water. “Taehyung is from the circus. Genetically modified. He’s not gonna grow any bigger than this for the rest of his life. He won’t survive in a wildlife sanctuary, he smells too different because of the modifications, the other tigers will despise him, and he’s too small to fight back. And clearly I’m not letting him go back to the circus. They barely feed the animals sometimes and make them sleep outside in the snow. My bedroom isn’t the greatest place to be—oh I don’t mean it’s bad, hyung, I like it a lot, I meant it’s a bit small for a tiger—but it’s better than letting the authorities take him.”
Seokjin crinkles his nose. “Hmm, he does smell a bit like citrus. I thought it was from whatever lotion you use, but… come to think of it, you don’t smell like citrus.”
Namjoon shrinks a bit into himself, as if suddenly self-conscious about whatever he smells like, and Seokjin desperately wants to assure him that he smells great, just great, like trees and beach houses and sunsets, but can’t come up with a way to say it without sounding creepy, so he resorts to handing Namjoon a cushion.
Namjoon takes the cushion gratefully and holds it against his chest. “I’m just… thank you, hyung. Thank you for agreeing to not report us. I just… I just want them to be happy… I can’t give them much, I’m not rich or anything, but… at least, a warm bed and food and lots of cuddling… that I can give. I just want them to be happy. And safe.”
By them , Seokjin assumes that Namjoon means his animal companions. If Taehyung is a circus rescue, Seokjin wonders what exactly are Yoongi and Kookie. Cats and bunnies are common pets, but perhaps they have tragic backstories too? Perhaps that’s why Kookie likes blending into objects, and why Yoongi always seems so jaded? And what about Smiley the red squirrel? Was he one of Namjoon’s rescues too?
It seems that with every new thing Seokjin learns about Namjoon, he becomes even more enigmatic. He’s a grad student, yes, but he seems to lead a rather different life outside of seminars and TA duties.
It also seems that with every new thing Seokjin learns about Namjoon, he adores him even more. And here, now, with Namjoon sitting beside him, jaw tense with the thought of losing his animal companions, Seokjin feels a sudden surge of tenderness and protectiveness.
“You have nothing to worry about. In fact, you don’t have to keep Taehyung in your room all the time now. Our garden walls are pretty high, I don’t think the neighbors will see if he uses the pool or runs around outside. And he can keep me company while I watch TV. Your secret is safe with me,” he tells Namjoon, patting him awkwardly on the shoulder.
“That’s not my only secret, though,” Namjoon mumbles, face still worryingly pale. “If you find out… if you find out what I really am, hyung…”
He sits, fists clenched, body rigid, and Seokjin forces himself to bark out a laugh, attempting to lighten the atmosphere. “What secret can be worse than having a tiger under your bed, huh?”
Namjoon grimaces. “You have no idea.” He leans closer to Seokjin suddenly, and settles his head on his shoulder, the way Jimin sometimes does when he’s feeling especially possessive of his own official poop-scooper.
Seokjin smiles. Namjoon reminds him of a very large cat.
They sit there in peaceful silence until Namjoon’s bedroom door creaks open and Taehyung pokes his head out, takes a few soft steps over to the two, yawns, and hops into Namjoon’s lap. Namjoon’s fists are still balled up, so Seokjin takes up the task of petting Taehyung between his ears.
“He’s never gonna grow any bigger, huh,” he remarks to Namjoon.
“Makes me sad sometimes, that he won’t get to prowl around in a jungle like other tigers,” Namjoon mumbles. “But part of me is kind of glad too, because if he gets any bigger he’ll crush my chest when he sleeps on me at night… and I’ll need a bigger bed.”
Seokjin chuckles lightly. “Are you complaining to me, the landlord, that your bed is too small? I’ll have you know that your bed is fine , your legs are just too long. And you have too many animals sleeping with you.”
And Namjoon laughs with him, and everything is all right.
And Namjoon’s bed being small doesn’t end up to be much of a problem, because, somehow, as if on an unspoken agreement, Namjoon starts migrating into Seokjin’s king-sized bed almost every night.
At first, it’s because Jimin yowls and scratches and gets the zoomies all night unless Namjoon’s animals join him in Seokjin’s bed. This leaves Namjoon sad and alone, so he moves to Seokjin’s bed too. And then it simply becomes routine.
There’s no cuddling, no touching, always a furry wall in the middle dividing the space. Very platonic, nothing special, just two bros chilling in the same bed. As Seokjin tends to sleep in and Namjoon has eight a.m. classes, he usually wakes up to find Namjoon’s side of the bed cold and empty, save for an absurd amount of cat hair.
It still makes him feel all warm inside.
**
Seokjin has only one— one— heart-stopping fear right now.
As he looks at the massive cat that's sprawled across his dining table and staring at him with pupils that are mere dots, he prays to every cat God that he can think of that the cat will like him.
And stop hissing at him.
And glaring at him like he's the reason there's global warming or something.
Because he thinks he'll cry if that happens.
The cat hisses aggressively and he gulps, taking a step back, hands raised in front of him placatingly.
Okay, strike that.
He's definitely going to cry.
"Joon-ah, come on, you know me," he pleads with it him. "It's me! Seokjin hyung! Your Jinnie hyung who makes you Japchae and sleeps with you - okay wait that came out wrong but yeah - "
He knows he's babbling but - but in his defense - it's justified! It's not every day that your super cute neighbour whom you like in a completely unplatonic way turns into a cat in the middle of your living room without any warning!
The cat - Namjoon - levels Seokjin with a look that clearly says I am thoroughly unimpressed by you, please stop humiliating yourself, and Seokjin changes tracks.
"I can't believe you are so completely different as a cat," he says, still inching backwards because hey, The Cat is Scary looking, and Huge, Human-size huge. And has sharp teeth and - well you can do the math. "Where's my loveable, cute Namu Namu? I’m pretty sure he's hiding in there somewhere. Where's my sweet dorky dongsaeng hmm?"
The cat keeps staring at him, unmoving. Merciless.
Jesus fucking Christ.
How did he even end up in such a situation?
Okay, wait, he knows.
It was eleven thirty in the night...
Forty-five minutes ago
"Joon-ah, you sure you don't want to come to bed? You can always finish the essay later and you’ve got an early day tomorrow," Seokjin calls out from where he's seated on the bed, face mask in place, five furry purry creatures crawling all over him.
"Hmm, five minutes, hyung," Namjoon replies distractedly, pushing his glasses up his nose with one hand as he continues typing with the other.
The harsh glare of the screen's light makes Namjoon’s face look so much softer, and Seokjin continues staring at him unabashedly because it's already been established that he's a creep and Namjoon's got a nice face to look at.
It's not Seokjin's face - all symmetric proportions and stuff, but that's okay because it's Namjoon's face and he's got that heavenly razor-sharp jawline and those plush biteable lips, which Namjoon is biting by the way, and it's making Seokjin a little weak in the knees - he's glad he's sitting down and -
He feels a mild pressure in his thigh and sees Yoongi staring back at him with a confused expression on his face as he tries to sink his claws deeper into Seokjin's thigh but fails.
"Oh you poor baby, you can't draw blood, can you?" Seokjin coos at the kitten, scratching the top of his head, and the furball of death tries to sink another claw in but fails again.
"These pajamas have three layers," Seokjin tells the cat with a pleased little smile, grabbing him by the scruff of his neck and bringing him to eye level. "And Namjoon-ah just clipped your claws so you won't really be able to hurt me, you poor poor thing."
The cat tries to bite off his nose, and Seokjin moves him away with a sigh. "Well, that's fair. I shouldn't have brought you near my face."
Yoongi meows, this loud, offended, upset noise, and Seokjin feels a pang in his heart.
"This is so unfair," he whines as Yoongi stares at him sadly, and he knows the cat's being manipulative, knows there's not a single remorseful bone in Yoongi's tiny body, and yet -
"Fucking fine," he mutters, rolling up his pant leg and setting the kitten down on his bare leg. "Go ahead. Scratch my leg as much as you want."
The cat meows again, gleeful, sadistic, and sinks his claws into Seokjin's leg. Seokjin lets his head hit the headboard with a thunk.
It doesn't really hurt, not anymore, he's gotten used to it. He also thinks that Yoongi might be deliberately not scratching him as hard as he used to, but he doesn't really want to voice that thought in fear of the kitten clawing him deeper just to be petty.
He likes this new relationship they have.
This relationship somewhere - " Ow!"
"Yoongi, why did you claw me so hard?" Seokjin wails, staring at the cat's form - at the traitor's form as he struggles to jump off the tall bed, claws caught in the sheets, meowing all the while.
Distressed meows, the likes of which Seokjin's never heard before. Yoongi is meowing desperately at his owner Namjoon, who's still working on his essay, blissfully unaware, bopping his head to some unknown tune.
" Meow," the cat wails again, loud enough that the other animals stop playing with each other and turn to look at the cat.
Seokjin takes pity on Yoongi and frees his claws from the sheets, and the cat leaps down onto the polished floor, skitters across it into the leg of the table, gives an indignant meow before continuing on course towards his owner with an urgency and speed that the furball's never displayed before.
"Meow, meowmeowmeow," the cat says, grabbing onto Namjoon's pant leg and clawing his way up, seemingly trying to communicate something, and -
And then all hell breaks loose.
Namjoon rips his headphones off his ears, stares at the full moon beginning to peek out outside and then at the clock a few minutes shy of twelve. He pales, hands beginning to shake violently.
Seokjin thinks about making a Cinderella joke, but refrains when he sees how genuinely distressed Namjoon is as he starts packing his things in a haste, muttering under his breath.
"Joon-ah?"
"Not now, hyung. I’ve got to get to my own apartment," Namjoon says, stumbling away from the table, eyes a little wild.
"Joo - "
"Fuck, fuck, how did I forget, I can't believe I forget," he mutters, scooping Taehyung up with one hand and Yoongi with his other. "Didn't mean to have you find out like this - fuck - "
"Joon-ah, calm down. Find out what?"
When Namjoon meets Jin's eyes, he looks weary. Exhausted. Resigned.
"I’m sorry that it's come to this - I really really loved staying here the past few months," he says, swallows, looks away, eyes a little wet, and now Seokjin's panicking.
"What, wait, why does this sound like a goodbye? What the fuck, Kim Namjoon?"
"I’m just gonna ask you to please let me spend one more night here because I really don't want to be seen on the streets like this and to please not report me to the authorities or - "
"Kim Namjoon," Seokjin interrupts him sharply, because Namjoon looks like he's on the verge of a mental breakdown or maybe a panic attack, and Jin's heart aches for him. "Yah, what's wrong with you? Why are you acting like you have a secret that'll make me kick you out to the curbs? Do you really think that poorly of me?"
"It's not you, hyung," Namjoon whimpers, bringing a hand full of kitten to rub at his eyes.
"It's you ?" Seokjin asks, dryly. "Really, Joon? You're pulling out quite the cliches now."
"Hyung," Namjoon whines, and Seokjin sighs.
"Come here," he says, pulling the younger closer and throwing an arm around him. "Tell hyung what's wrong. Because if it's you turning into a werewolf or something then I can help you bury the bodies you kill. It's no biggie."
Namjoon looks up at him sharply, eyes widening in surprise and then a little bit of indiganance.
"Hyung! I wouldn't kill people! Why would you say that?" He protests, and Seokjin shrugs.
"I don't know, just," he waves his hand in the air, " full moon and all that. You were panicking so hard, so..."
"So your first conclusion is that I kill people?"
"Namjoonie, Namjoonie, relax, hyung's just saying that it's okay even if you do that, hyung's there for - wait , are you a werewolf?" Seokjin narrows his eyes at Namjoon. "You didn't say you’re not."
Namjoon looks down at the floor, fidgeting. "Uh, not exactly, but you still don't want to be around me when I turn and - "
"Kim Namjoon - "
"You really don't want to be around me - "
"Are you a werewolf?"
"I’m a - "
The clock strikes twelve.
There's a puff of golden smoke, and -
In the place of Kim Namjoon, there's now a massive cat in Seokjin's living room.
" - a werecat," Seokjin finishes for him, staring at the animal.
Yoongi meows in confirmation.
Seokjin sighs.
**
So anyways, that's how they are where they are now. With a massive tiger-sized Pallas’s Cat, Seokjin's found out with the help of Google and Yoongi - Yoongle, his brain supplies hysterically, because Yoongi + Google is Yoongle. Seokjin really hates the tiny stupid voice in his brain sometimes.
Where was he? Right, there's a massive Namjoon-turned-Pallas’s-Cat in the room, and said Pallas’s Cat, as apparently is in their nature, is being very antisocial even as Seokjin tries his best to make it love him with cat treats.
"Joonie-ah, you sure you don't want treats?" He asks the cat, waving a few in front of his face, and the cat stares at him, a little more unimpressed.
Seokjin collapses onto the floor. He's at his wits end - he's been doing this for almost an hour and the cat still looks at him with disdain and he's - he's losing it.
He doesn't even know why he's trying so hard - all he knows that that's actually Namjoon and he'll be damned if he doesn't make every form of Namjoon love him. With renewed vigour, he starts googling how to make a Pallas’s cat like you.
**
In the end, what actually does it is this:
Yoongi rubbing himself all over Seokjin, like he's telling the Joon-cat that Seokjin is an okay human and that he can get off the dining table and stop staring at him suspiciously.
That's it.
Yoongi's approval is all Joon needed and - and Seokjin is equal parts thankful and frustrated with the furball of death that looks all too smug with himself.
"Yah," he tells Yoongi, grabbing him by the scruff of his neck, "you could have done this ages ago instead of letting me make a fool out of myself!"
Yoon smirks and swipes a paw down Seokjin's cheek. Seokjin shrieks and drops the cat onto the bed.
Jooncat ambles over, offering him a concerned look, and Seokjin forgets his throbbing cheek.
"I’m fine baby, it's okay," he tells the cat, reaching down to sink a hand through its fur - soft soft fur, and the cat purrs, curling its tail around Jin's wrist.
Seokjin falls in love all over again.
**
Two hours later, as Namjoon walks all over him, Seokjin realises a few things:
- He's got a werecat in his apartment.
- Said werecat is super clingy, Jimin-plus-plus levels of clingy, which is a feat in itself
- Namjoon as a werecat is also the cutest thing ever, even when he's half-smothering Seokjin to death
- Joon-cat doesn't realise that he's not a smol cat like Yoongi who won't cause much damage if he walks over Kim Seokjin's laptop or his table or any of his possessions
- Joon-cat loves Seokjin if the way he's always attached to him is anything to go by
- Kim Seokjin is a weak weak man for Kim Namjoon no matter what form he takes, even if he's already broken half the things in Seokjin's apartment
- His tenant a FUCKING WERECAT AND HE'S BEEN CALLING HIM BABY
He can't believe it took him two hours for the surrealness of the situation to sink in. And even then it's the second part of the last point that has him freaking out more than the first. He thinks it probably has something to do with the fact that he's already been convinced for the past three months that Kim Namjoon's definitely not normal, and “werecat” explains a lot of things that even “animal whisperer” hadn't.
"Oh no, I shouldn't be calling you baby , right, baby?" He asks the cat that's currently a heavy weight on his chest.
Joonie looks up at him, offended.
"It's inappropriate, " he splutters. "You're technically a grown ass man and I have had a crush on you since forever oh my god no I didn't mean to tell you that just forget it I'll shut up now."
Taehyung chuffs and it sounds like the tiger's laughing at him.
Well, all the animals are laughing at him to be honest, including Smiley - Hobi - who's thumping his tail against the refrigerator which is like the biggest betrayal ever.
"Hobi Hobi," Seokjin whines, "don't laugh at me. You know how poor my brain-to-mouth filter is."
Hobi offers him something that could be interpreted as a sympathetic smile before going back to messing around with Taehyung.
Joonie meows lazily, smugly, and Seokjin pouts.
"This is domestic abuse, you know. Landlord abuse. You're all ganging up on me."
Joonie gets up and licks Seokjin all over the face before settling over him completely as a sign of affection, and Seokjin doesn't have the heart to tell him that he's being crushed because the cat looks so pleased with himself and so so happy.
Death by suffocation would at least make for a great headline.
**
Three hours later, Seokjin understands what Namjoon meant by you don't want to be around when I shift.
At first he had wondered if it was because Namjoon would go feral and kill him by accident or something.
But now - now - he understands.
"Joonie-monie, I really really need to pee, so... " Seokjin trails off when the cat pointedly refuses to get up from where he's curled around his legs. "Baby, come on, I'll be back, I promise."
Namjoon lifts his head, opens one eye and decisively shakes his head.
Yoongi lets his tongue loll out in a smirk.
Jungkook offers him a bunny smile, which is kind of creepy because bunnies don’t smile.
And Jimin... is nowhere to be found.
Which is another issue. Besides Seokjin’s bladder reaching its bursting point. His baby angel's been missing for the past half hour.
Well, not missing per se, because Seokjin's more than sure that the kitten's simply holed up in the bathroom, but why he's there is a major question. Because Jimin is clingy and super attached to Seokjin and never stays away from him unless he can help it. Which makes this a very abnormal behaviour for him.
"Mon, I need to go talk to Jiminie, baby. You need to get up," Seokjin tells Namjoon again, and this time he injects a little bit of sternness into his voice, even if it pains him to see Namjoon's sad sad face as the cat slinks away from Seokjin to curl around Jungkook and Yoongi.
Yoongi glares at him but Seokjin brushes it away as he quickly hobbles towards the bathroom - finally.
Jimin's there, as expected, curled up on top of the basin, eyes closed, but definitely not asleep, and Seokjin stares at him, puzzled, as he does his business.
He finishes quickly and moves to wash his hands and Jimin - Jimin still doesn't even acknowledge him.
Maybe the kitten's sick?
"Jiminie, little darling, you sick?" Seokjin asks the kitten, gently lifting him by the scruff. The kitten refuses to look at him or answer.
Frowning, he brings the kitten into the room and Namjoon ambles up to them, looking at them quizzically.
Seokjin shrugs, leaning down to use his free hand to pet Joonie and -
Jimin hisses.
His pupils shrink into thin slits and he hisses at Namjoon. Like he's never done before. Seokjin startles and Joonie stares at Jimin, confused.
"Hey, hey, we don't hiss in this house, Jimin," Seokjin tells the cat, bringing him up eye level. Jimin glares at him, defiant.
"What is it? It's just Joonie, baby." Seokjin says to the cat, bopping his nose. "It's the Joonie you love, baby. Don't you love him?"
Jimin hisses, face scrunching up, almost like he's saying no I don't like him which is just - weird. The little angel had been completely okay when Namjoon had first turned into a Pallas’s Cat. Had even clambered all over him like he was already used to Namjoon's other form, but now -
Joonie meows, sounding a little sad, and when Seokjin turns to look at the other cat, he looks more Namjoon than Joonie. Like he's in human headspace instead of cat.
He taps his claws on the floor and starts using them to form letters.
J - e - a - l - o
"He's jealous?" Seokjin huffs out, lips twitching into a smile, and Namjoon nods.
What the fuck.
What the fuck.
Seokjin can't help the laughter that spills out of him.
Namjoon and Jimin both look at him, offended.
"Oh no no, I’m not laughing at you guys," he chokes out, still grinning like a fool. "I didn't really expect him to act like a brat because he was jealous."
He turns to Jimin and peppers kisses all over his tiny face.
"Oh baby, really? You were jealous that I’m showering Joonie with love? You're my little purry, I'll always love you the most." He kisses Jimin on the nose and rubs noses with the kitten.
"My little miracle." Kiss. "My little angel." Kiss. "My little baby." Kiss. "I love you so so much. Don't ever doubt that, okay?"
Jimin looks a little dazed when Seokjin's done with him and he meows quietly, pleased. And then he looks down and meows at Joonie, looking a little apologetic.
Seokjin sets him down on the floor.
Jimin quickly stumbles over to Namjoon and licks his face while Namjoon meows at him, gently moving to curl around the little kitten, looking so so fond.
And if Seokjin takes a picture of that and sets it as his lockscreen no one needs to know that but him.
**
By the time it's five, and yes, Seokjin's sleep schedule’s been thoroughly fucked up since the arrival of one Kim Namjoon, all the animals have now migrated to Seokjin's huge bed.
The bed doesn't seem so huge now.
Not with not one but six animals sharing the space with him and one of them being human-sized.
Seokjin should be asleep. He's aware of this.
And yet - he can't.
It's not a he doesn't want to. It's more of a if he tries to even close his eyes Namjoon will whine because he's the clingiest cat to ever exist and just wants constant attention and love.
Which - Seokjin would gladly give Namjoon on any day, but it's five in the morning, he can't even call it night any longer and he's tired as fuck and if he doesn't get at least three hours of sleep, he'll cry.
Now, he really understands why Namjoon didn't want him to be around. Even if he wouldn't trade the experience for anything else because he loves the werecat.
Joonie meows, bringing Seokjin out of his thoughts and he resumes petting the cat with one hand while he strokes Jimin with the other.
And the thing is - it's so hard to stay awake because Joonie's half-wrapped around him and the cat's no more than a huge fur pillow, which means even that if Seokjin's being suffocated, he's being suffocated by an extremely heavenly soft pillow and that makes him so much sleepier.
"Joonie, can I please sleep?" He asks the cat for the twenty-fifth time, scritching him between the ears, and the cat looks at him contemplatively. "Please baby I am really tired - " He yawns.
The cat stares at him a bit more and then - then - when Seokjin's about to kiss his beauty sleep goodbye - nods. Slowly.
Seokjin's about ready to cry.
Tears of happiness.
He quickly plants a big fat smooch on top of the cat's head and moves to lay back down.
Seokjin's asleep even before his head hits the pillow.
It's been a long day after all.
**
“So… a pallas’s cat, huh.” Seokjin takes a placid sip of his cup of tea. Despite all that’s happened, he’s feeling very at peace with himself today. A good night’s sleep always does wonders, as does good tea from his favorite Japanese restaurant. The food there isn’t authentic Japanese, he’s sure, but it’s cheap and orders are served super quickly.
“Yeah.” Namjoon is spinning a fork in one hand. “Now you see why I really don’t want others to see me in… that form. Such a rare species. If the authorities found out about me… I don’t even want to imagine what they’d do.”
Seokjin doesn’t want to imagine what they’d do either. Maybe they’ll bring Namjoon back to the mountains “where he belongs”, or force him to mate with another one of his kind. Not good news for Namjoon, who’s trying to get a degree here.
“I just don’t get why you’d not want me to see you in that form, I guess,” Seokjin muses. “It’s not like I’m gonna report you or anything. I’ve had a tiger cub in my house for weeks and I told no one.”
Namjoon rubs his neck with one hand, the other still playing with his fork. “It’s… it’s not you. I don’t have anything against you, but I… I look like… like that . How could anyone ever accept me when I look like that? I don’t want someone I like to see me look like that.”
Seokjin is already very aware that Namjoon likes him, thanks to the previous night in which the giant werecat had not left him alone for even a single second, but hearing it straight from his mouth still brings a blush to his face. “What’s wrong with looking like ‘that’?” He complains. “What’s wrong with looking round and soft and sage and jaded and having a meme face? In case you haven’t realized, Kim Namjoon, your cat form is the cutest thing I’ve ever seen. Which is saying a lot because I’ve seen your human form, which used to be the cutest thing I’ve ever seen before I saw your cat form. Damn, that sounds like a tongue-twister.”
It’s Namjoon’s turn to look down and blush now. Seokjin is pretty sure Namjoon knows all about Seokjin’s gigantic heart boner for him, considering how many times he’s slipped and called him “baby” and how Jimin, that shrewd little calico menace, must have told Namjoon all about Seokjin swooning over Namjoon’s Instagram photos when he thought no one was looking, but still—
“Wait. You can understand Jimin and the rest, right? You can communicate with them?”
Namjoon nods, still looking a bit shy and a hundred percent squishable under his round spectacles and soft beanie. “We can understand each other. And they actually know some human languages too, they just can’t speak it.”
Seokjin vaguely remembers reading an article titled “Cats Understand What We’re Saying, They Just Don’t Cooperate Because They’re Assholes”. He gets it now. “I was gonna ask you to talk to Jimin for me, to explain to him that tickling my butt with his whiskers when I’m on the toilet is freaking disgusting and that gnawing at my hands while I’m trying to open his cat food bag won’t help me get it open faster, but… but all this while, he actually understands me.”
“He understands you,” Namjoon confirms.
“He just doesn’t cooperate because he’s an asshole,” Seokjin concludes.
“Sounds about right,” Namjoon says, and Seokjin sighs.
“This is so not fair.” He lifts the teapot and graciously adds some more hot mugicha into Namjoon’s cup. “They understand me… they hear everything I say, those little spies… but I don’t understand them .”
“Technically, you can learn,” Namjoon says. His eyes shine in earnestness. “I can teach you.”
Seokjin narrows his eyes. “Really?”
“It’s not that hard with the right teacher—me. Soon you’ll be a pro. We can start with Kookie, rabbits don’t say that much so their words are easier to decipher.”
Seokjin thinks it over and doesn’t recall ever having heard Kookie make any sounds. So quiet and docile. The ideal pet. “What does he usually say? When he does talk, that is.”
“Mostly stuff like ‘hungry’ and ‘carrot’. He thinks Hobi is a walnut so he says ‘nut nut’ when he misses him.”
Seokjin can’t help cooing. “What a sweet baby… so they only say, like, words? Not full sentences?”
“Depends,” Namjoon says. “There are very eloquent rabbits too. The most talkative one in the household is actually Yoongi-hyung, he has a lot to say about capitalism. Hobi chitters a lot but it’s usually song lyrics… he’s learning to rap, you know.”
Yoongi. Capitalism. Cute. Seokjin smiles as he imagines the wise black feline lecturing Namjoon on current social issues.
He smiles even harder when he realizes that Namjoon just called Yoongi, a cat, “hyung”. Which makes sense because Namjoon is half a cat himself, right?
“I’d love it if you teach me,” Seokjin says, as they finish paying and stroll out of the air-conditioned interior into the sunny streets. Traffic is busy, and Seokjin snakes an arm around Namjoon’s waist, pulls him closer, away from the honking cars.
“Is this okay?” He asks. He’s pretty sure Namjoon likes him, and he’s also pretty sure Namjoon knows that it’s requited, and he can feel the sparks in the air even though they haven’t actually said anything about going official yet—but he still wants to make sure, just in case.
Namjoon nods, tip of nose slightly pink in the biting wind, and Seokjin pulls him in a bit more. It feels right, being like this. Seokjin had missed this feeling. It’s been a while since he’s dated—it’s been a while since he had physical contact with humans, in fact. Working remotely has its perks but he sure misses the human touch sometimes.
Maybe being a grad student can be kinda lonely too, especially if you’re afraid to make friends due to your half-cat status, Seokjin thinks. Namjoon leans in closer.
**
Seokjin learns fast. It’s been a while since he’s last picked up a new language, but it’s somehow easier when your boyfriend is teaching you.
Seokjin learns fast, and he doesn’t even realize it until one cold stormy night when he pads out of his bedroom in his furry slippers and sees the tiger cub looking up at him with mesmerizing blue eyes.
“Name is Taetae,” Taehyung announces. “I am tiger!”
“Yes, I know you’re a tiger,” Seokjin says, scratching him between the ears. And then he pauses and thinks about it.
“Oh my god,” he says, “ I just understood you. Without trying.”
Taehyung paws at the air happily. “You good boy!”
“I am,” Seokjin says agreeably. “So what brings you here upstairs, Taetae?”
“It is stormy,” Taehyung explains. “Joon-hyung afraid. He usually not afraid, but today he is cat, so he afraid.”
Seokjin slaps his forehead for forgetting that it’s been a whole month already and just because he can’t see the full moon today because of the storm it doesn’t mean it isn’t there. “Then why doesn’t he just say so? Tell him to come up and cuddle—oh, he doesn’t want to leave his bed? I’ll go down and cuddle with him on his bed instead, then.”
When Seokjin reaches Namjoon’s room, he thinks he can kind of imagine why he’s afraid. The unfortunate angle of the street lamps outside in combination with the madly swaying plants cast menacing shadows on the window panes, and Namjoon’s room doesn’t have curtains (not that Seokjin didn’t provide them—he’s not that heartless a landlord—but Namjoon took them down himself because Yoongi used them to sharpen his claws). It might not be a scary sight for a human, but perhaps it is for a round, fluffy loaf of cat.
Namjoon is hidden under the blankets, surrounded by a black blob—Yoongi, another black blob—Kookie, and a bushy-tailed Hobi. All three very kindly scoot to the side to make room for Seokjin and Jimin and Taehyung who are trailing behind, grooming each other as they walk. Seokjin lifts a corner of the blanket to see big, yellow eyes and tiny pupils gazing back at him. His heart leaps in fondness.
As a bolt of thunder booms outside the window, Seokjin climbs in, wraps his arms around the big mound of softness. Namjoon squeezes himself closer, kneads Seokjin’s fleecy pajamas, and lets out a content sigh.
Seokjin smiles. The wind is howling outside, but he doesn’t fear the wind.
Tonight, Kim Seokjin has no fears.
~ Fin. ~