Chapter Text
“The beauty of marriage is not always seen from the very beginning- but rather as love grows and develops over time.” -Fawn Weaver
What a load of bullshit. This Weaver person must have been on something when they said that, because it couldn’t be any farther from the truth… when arranged marriages are concerned at least. Jimin’s been doing this whole marriage thing for almost four months now, and he hasn’t felt any of this “beauty of marriage” bullshit being spoken about much less any love. He and his husband can’t stand to be in the same room with each other for over ten minutes, and he doesn’t see that changing any time in the near future.
The door to their shared top-floor, penthouse suite swings shut behind him as Jimin makes his way to the kitchen with his arms full of bags of groceries. He sets them down on available counter space with a relieved sigh, stretching out the soreness in his muscles from carrying everything up from the apartment complex’s garage parking lot and waiting through a ten-minute elevator ride. The rest of the apartment is quiet as the omega goes about the process of unpacking and putting everything away. His estranged, asshole husband must be out of the house, probably and more than likely still at work. It’s been at least two days since he’d actually seen the alpha. Thank fucking God. If there was some magical way for him to never have to see Jungkook again, you bet your ass the omega would take it in a heartbeat. Just seeing his face brings back memories that the omega would pay to forget.
When he was much younger, and much more naive, Jimin had always been under the impression he would marry for love. He’d believed he would meet the alpha of his dreams and eventually settle down, maybe even with a few potential pups in the picture. All the fairytale ending love stories that you hear so often about in works of fiction… that was everything Jimin had ever hoped and dreamed for. Blame it on all the many works of fiction his parents had given him to occupy his free time instead of themselves actually being there as a stable factor in his childhood. The omega had so many hopes of some magical meeting between him and his soulmate, all based around the romance tales he’d read when he was little. He should’ve known better than to ever hope for any of that to come true. His parents have been immersed in the business world since before he was even born, barely even around to call themselves his parents. As the eldest son, who just so conveniently happens to also be an omega, he should’ve known he’d be forced into some bullshit arranged marriage. It should have been crystal fucking clear from the very beginning. If you were an alpha, you’d take over the company at some point in your future. If you were an omega, you were destined to be used as a bargaining pawn to competing companies. Such goes life in the business world.
*****
“Jimin-ah, can you come here for a second?” His mother’s sweet, melodic voice called from somewhere in the house the second the omega shut the front door behind him. “In the dining room.” He’d just gotten home from work, wanting nothing more than to lock the door to his room and collapse into bed in pure exhaustion. When it came to his parents though, if he didn’t come see what she needed immediately, there’d undoubtedly be consequences.
The omega rounded a few corners before he finally reached the kitchen. He found both of his parents seated at the dining table with Jihyun across from them. Jimin squeezed past him to get to his own seat, noting the way his younger brother refuses to even look at him.
“Son,” His father began, just as Jimin sat down. “We have a very important matter we need to discuss with you.”
“...okay?” Jimin kept his amounting confusion to himself. He’d never been the one his parents have had to have serious discussions with. Despite being his parents’ eldest, Jihyun, his younger brother by two years, was the eldest alpha son. Since he himself was an omega, their parents have always been much more lenient with him. The expectations for him were never quite the same as what was expected of his younger brother as the future heir to the family company. What could they possibly need to talk to HIM about?
“Jimin-ah,” His mother says with a tiny sigh, fiddling with the front locks of her hair. “I know we’ve never asked anything of you, but…” She trailed off, avoiding eye contact with her elder son as much as possible. Her eyes fall to her hands clasped tightly together in her lap, unable to continue. “Darling, I can’t do it.” She said, looking over pleadingly at her husband and mate. “I’m so sorry, but I can’t tell him. I just can’t do it.”
His father looked Jimin in the eye the second he began speaking, always one for his personal policy of getting straight to the point. In all honesty, it was surprising that he’d entrusted his wife with the job of telling their son whatever it was they called him in here for. “Jimin, son, we’ve been having some meetings with several potential suitors over the past couple of months.”
“Suitors?” Suitors for who? Jihyun? His younger brother is much too young to marry, much less mate. They have to be talking about him though. As the heir to the company, his mate is incredibly important to the future of the company.
His father nods, “Yes, future alpha heirs of several different companies have been coming to the office to meet with Jihyun and I to discuss the potential of marriage with you.”
Whoa, whoa, hold the fucking phone… what?? The omega felt his jaw drop, staring at his entire family with wide and confused eyes. It’s almost as if he was the only one unaware of what’s going on, the odd one out in a sense. For something that involves the course of his life from this point forward, you would think this wouldn’t be the first he’s ever hearing of this. They’re talking about the potential of Jimin permanently bonding himself to someone, and he’d had absolutely no idea before today any of this was even happening. “M… marriage?”
“Park Technological Industries has always been one of Seoul’s biggest companies in the technology world. You know that, right, son?” Jimin’s father asked, speaking at a mile a minute and not even bothering to pause to see if the omega did so much as give a nod in reply. “Well, over the past three years, a newer company has popped up out of nowhere and made a name for themselves insanely fast. Jeon Enterprises is our biggest competition, and, luckily, we managed to talk it out with their CEO, Mr. Jeon. You’ll be marrying his son, Jimin-ah. His name is Jeon Jungkook. From what I understand, he’s two years younger than you.”
For the first time in years, Jimin found himself completely shocked, having absolutely no idea how to respond. What even could he say? In the span of a less than five-minute conversation, his entire life had been flipped upside down. All of his goals, aspirations, and dreams were just basically tarnished. He had never even met this Jeon Jungkook person, never spoken to them, never even seen so much as a picture or them… and now he had to marry them? What??
At only twenty-two years old and fresh out of university, Jimin and one of his very good friends Jung Hoseok owned and taught at their J & J Dance Academy and Studio. Ever since he’d turned fourteen and fell in love with dance, the omega had known he wanted to be a dance teacher. It was his life goal, and he’d finally achieved it. There was nothing better in the world than seeing the look of happiness on his students’ faces when they achieve something they’ve been working so incredibly hard for. Did he have to give that all up now? Was he going to be forced to fulfill the typical role of a household omega? Was that even physically possible for him? Had his mother tried to instill some of the values of a traditional omega into him? Of course, but since she wasn’t around much during any part of his childhood, it never really stuck.
Ever since he turned thirteen years old and presented as an omega, Jimin had always been left out of the world of business that his parents and brother excel in. He’d been initially raised to inherit his father’s place as CEO of their family company, but that all went out the window the second he presented. Ever since then, he hadn’t the slightest idea of what was going on with the company. He’d been kept at his family’s second house, more like mansion, in the heart of Busan. Not necessarily out of shame for the family’s first-born being an omega, but more so because he apparently had no business in their world. He’d never had to sit in on hours upon hours of meetings and whatever the hell his father meant by “training”. Once he presented, he barely saw the rest of his family as they spent most of their time in Seoul. He’d been left to fend, and raise, himself with nothing but the hired servants who ran the Busan house. After he’d graduated high school, he was given free reign of doing whatever he wanted with his life. He would go months without seeing any of his family until he’d moved in here at the main house since he’d decided on attending school in Seoul. It was definitely strange to go for lengthy spans of time without so much as an acknowledgement of existence from the people who are supposed to care about you to living in the same household as all of them. Honestly, he wished he could move out on his own to escape the sudden onslaught of over the top table manners as well as other things, but his parents were heavily against an unmated omega moving out from the family house.
“Jungkook-ssi and his father will be coming over for dinner tomorrow night. You’ll be able to meet him then, and we’ll probably start discussing wedding plans too.”
“Mrs. Jeon and I were talking, “ His mother said with a smile, probably in an attempt to make the situation seem much better than it actually was. “We were thinking about some time around May. The weather should be quite nice by then.”
Jimin sunk downwards into his seat, curling in on himself in self-pity. On any other day, his mother would get onto him for showcasing such bad table manners and to fix his posture. Instead, his parents are locked into a conversation about his future wedding, which Jimin effectively tunes out for the sake of his own sanity. His eyes met Jihyun’s as the omega forces his gaze away from his parents, and his younger brother stared back at him in sadness… and maybe even guilt.
The omega forced himself to look away, curling in on himself even more. Hopes, dreams, the chance of ever finding true and real love? All shattered in one quick and simple conversation. His entire life as he’s known it was about to change, and there was absolutely nothing that he could do to stop it.
*****
With their penthouse suite being fucking massive from the moment you step through the front door, it’s very secluded and big enough that if Jungkook was ever home, chances are Jimin wouldn’t see him. In a way, his life wasn’t as bad now as he’d originally imagined it would be. For the most part, Jungkook was out of the house at work, and, whenever he was home, he mostly left Jimin to his own devices due to fear of causing an argument. The key word being mostly. Any time he and Jimin did end up interacting… let’s just say it didn’t usually end very well.
The omega brings his small Bluetooth speaker that he usually uses for work and sets it up on the kitchen counter, having it play his usual playlist while he goes through their assortment of pots and pans as he pulls them out of the cabinets. He goes over a list of everything he’d bought in his head, trying to decide on what to make for dinner. Technically, he can make whatever he wants since he’s only cooking for himself, but with the amount of food he just bought, the options are endless. Jungkook will probably come home late like usual, probably ordering himself something to eat at the company like usual. Not that Jimin would ever purposely make food for that asshole because fuck him. Bibimmyeon sounds good right now, and it’s easy to make too. Jimin had initially left the apartment for his grocery trip craving dumplings, so he’d made sure to pick up the ingredients necessary for them. It’s not even that late in the day, but he’s already feeling the effects of teaching two classes back to back today. Tiredness slips into his bones almost like an old friend. Dumplings take a lot longer to make, so they’ve effectively been ruled out. He’ll probably just have dinner and then slip quietly into bed. Because of his steadily growing fatigue, the omega decides on making himself something small. He’s got work early in the morning again anyways, so the sooner he turns in for the night the better.
Jimin sets the stove to boil the water for his noodles while he crashes on the couch with his phone to wait. He has several missed texts since he’d gotten home. He answers the ones from Hoseok asking him about how his classes today went, but he stops cold when he sees the several texts from Jihyun. Ever since he’d gotten married, hell back when he was actually first told of his engagement to the Jeon heir, the omega hasn’t spoken much to his younger brother… not for lack of trying. For some odd reason, he and Jihyun haven’t been talking nearly as often as they had been. Although, they had never been the closest growing up since their parents had done almost everything in their power to keep them apart. Despite the distance, Jimin had tried to always be there for his brother. He opens his brother’s messages, sighing to himself when he sees it involves Jungkook. Their families’ companies hadn’t blended together as part of their deal, having each kept their separate buildings, but surely Jihyun could find some way to contact Jungkook. Right? It isn’t actually up to Jimin to deal with it… please. He shoots his brother a quick text back telling him he’ll see what he can do, but the dread of actually having to see that promise through hits him like a truck.
The omega leaves his phone on the couch, heading back into the kitchen to drop his noodles in the now boiling water. All he’d wanted was a nice, quiet night in to himself, but of course he’s not allowed to have nice things. He decides on talking to Jungkook in the morning since that’s when he’s the most likely to see him as they usually run into each other in the mornings on their way to work. At least that way, he can give himself time to prepare to talk to the alpha, and he can continue on with his initial plan for the night. It’s a win-win situation… sort of. This means he has to actually work up the courage to talk to him, instead of Jimin’s usual routine of making his breakfast and morning coffee and booking it the hell out of there.
Honestly, one would think the two arranged marriage victims would be much more civil with each other. They’d been thrown into the deep end of the exact same shitty situation together, with no one to rely on but themselves. If only. Jimin had gone into this with the complete and honest intent to attempt to have a decent relationship with his husband, one that was at least friendly at least… maybe even just simply tolerating each other if friendship wasn’t possible. Unfortunately, either of those options were quickly proven to be infeasible. The reasoning behind that is… honestly awful. It’s not something that Jimin would like to remember, something that haunts him almost on the daily actually. In fact, he tries his damndest to forget what happened, but simply seeing his estranged husband’s face is enough to remind him. Hands and clothes flying in a heated frenzy. He doesn’t remember all too much of what happened in the haze of hormones, but there’s one thing that he remembers for certain. Fuck Jeon Jungkook, seriosuly.
*****
A quiet knock on the glass of his office door jars Jungkook from the plethora of emails he’d been attempting to answer since he’d come into work this morning. “Sajang-nim, I have your schedule for tomorrow ready. Want me to go over it with you?” Kim Seokjin, his secretary and personal savior peeks into his office with a cheery smile gracing his face. Seokjin has been Jungkook’s assistant since the younger had first started working for his father’s company. If there was anyone that was vitally integral to Jungkook maintaining his sanity, it was Seokjin. If it weren’t for his hyung, he probably would’ve quit the company and be living in a cardboard box under a bridge somewhere.
“I think I can handle figuring it out myself, hyung. Can you leave a copy of it here for me though?”
“No, Kook-ah. I totally spent the last half hour organizing everything into a table for you so I could come in here and wave it in your face.”
The thing is… Jungkook wouldn’t put it past Seokjin to do exactly that. The alpha rolls his eyes. “Very funny, hyung. You’re hilarious.”
Seokjin sweeps into the room with a grace that somehow only he possesses, leaving behind the sweet yet spicy scent of cinnamon in his wake. “I wasn’t awarded the funniest employee in the company title for nothing.”
Jungkook sighs at his hyung’s ridiculous antics. “Hyung, you know just as well as I do that you made and printed out the certificate for that yourself. Who the hell awarded it to you?”
“Me, the only one who matters.” The omega stops right beside Jungkook’s desk, setting a simple sheet of paper in front of him. “I even made it nice and pretty for you with color coded highlighters.”
It’s a detail that the alpha doesn’t see as entirely necessary, but he appreciates the effort all the same. If anything, he knows that Seokjin usually spends most of the time behind his desk on the phone dealing with all the assholes in other departments who need him for something and attempting to work out Jungkook’s insane schedule. Taking the time to color code his boss’s spreadsheet of activities for tomorrow was probably the stress relief Seokjin desperately needed.
“Thanks, hyung. I’ll look over it after lunch.” Today was one of the few days out of the week where the alpha had it easy, spending almost the entire day in his office responding to emails and going through other important company files. Tomorrow is going to be one of many shitty days, full of ridiculously long hours of meetings and fuckloads of paperwork. He isn’t even the CEO yet, since his father has yet to step down, so it’s almost pointless for him to sit in on the majority of the discussions he’s required to attend. If anything, he usually just zones out five minutes into every meeting, hoping and praying that he never gets called on.
“Just promise me you won’t stay here too late again.” The omega says, staring his boss dead in the eye with no fear whatsoever. “Otherwise, I’ll have to send Namjoonie after you.”
For some reason, at the mention of his hyung’s mate, the slightest hint of pine hits Jungkook’s nose. “Namjoonie-hyung is too soft for me. He won’t do shit.”
“Yeah, yeah, I know. That’s what you get for being the baby of the family.” Seokjin sighs. “I’m being serious though, Jungkook-ah. Don’t stay here for too long. Today’s supposed to be one of your easy days.”
The alpha takes one quick glance at the massive number of emails he has to reply to before he can leave for the night. “Yeah um… I’ll try, but I really don’t think I’m in the position to be making any promises.”
“Alright then, I’ll just set a reminder to come back at seven, and, if you’re still here, unplug your computer.”
Jungkook raises an eyebrow in question. “I still have my laptop at home that I could use?”
“Anything that gets you out of this damn office is a win for me.” The elder says with a shrug. “You practically live here these days, Jungkook-ah. It’s not healthy.”
Given the extra hours he’s been putting in the past few weeks, it’s understandable that Seokjin is concerned. In all honesty though, the real reason he hasn’t been going home on time is that he doesn’t exactly like being at home. Being at home means he has the potential to interact with his uh… mate, if that’s what you could even call him. That part’s a long story though.
Jungkook doesn’t hate Jimin, and he definitely doesn’t consider the omega to be his enemy. To say so would be huge overstatement. The two of them are just victims of their parents’ fucked up business strategies. Jungkook’s known that from the very beginning, but it doesn’t seem like the other feels the same. Needless to say, Jimin isn’t the most… easy person to get along with. If you asked literally anyone else, they would tell you that Jimin was the epitome of an angel. Sweet, caring, attentive, and everything else one could possibly want in a mate. Yeah, uh… not to Jungkook. The omega hates his guts, curses the ground he walks on even. When they’d first out the two of them were betrothed, their relationship with each other was much more civil. They could actually hold a conversation without dissolving into a quarrel. Impressive, right? Shit happened though and that changed rather quickly. Unfortunately, it’s not either of their faults… although Jimin clearly believes otherwise
“I’ll go home tonight, hyung. I promise.” Jungkook sighs, knowing he can’t avoid his problems forever. “You don’t have to send the calvary out after me.”
Seokjin squints at him, staring at the young alpha almost as if he’s trying to see straight through to his soul. “Right… Well, anyway, I think Namjoonie might still be coming by a little later with something that your dad wants.”
At the mere mention of his father, Jungkook wants nothing more than to smash his head down against his desk as hard as possible repeatedly. Jesus fucking Christ. “Seriously? My dad can’t just come down the three floors from his office to tell me himself?”
“Of course not. That’s way too much effort for him, so he’d rather send his slave down here to do it instead.”
The alpha stares at Seokjin in confusion. “Slave? That’s your mate you’re talking about.”
Seokjin groans, “Look, I know Namjoon gets paid for working for that asshole, but no amount of money is reasonable payment for putting up with that fuckface. We all know that.”
Honestly, there’s a good reason why Jungkook had requested to have an office on a different floor from his father’s. Has it fucked him over in terms of communication because his dad apparently can’t just email him? Yes, one hundred percent. To be fair, with the amount of emails the alpha gets, he inevitably takes a while to answer any of them. Any email he saw from his dad he would probably actually ignore for as long as reasonably possible… for reasons. His father is notoriously hard to deal with, only Namjoon has been able to put up with him the longest. He’s very detail and business-oriented, putting everything else in the world below the growth and survival of Jeon Enterprises. He’s a great CEO but a horrible father, almost everything the alpha knew about life had come from his older brother. Jungkook’s always known that he was born as a possibility to inherit the company in the future, not because either of his parents actually wanted children.
“I know. I know. Namjoonie-hyung has worked his ass off to get to the position he has now though. He deserves it, even if it means he has to put up with my asshole dad more than anyone else in the company.”
“Sometimes I really don’t understand why your dad even has an advisor since he never fucking listens to him, but whatever I guess.” Seokjin glances down at his watch, frowning when he sees the time. “Damn it, I have to go. I’ve got a phone call appointment in fifteen minutes.” The omega points a threatening finger at Jungkook. “Make sure you don’t stay too late. I’ll come back by later to make sure you don’t.” The omega waves goodbye, leaving to go back to his own work.
Funnily enough, other employees at the company had always thought Jungkook would mate Seokjin when he was of age. The omega was beautiful, with chestnut brown hair, warm brown eyes, and naturally pouting lips. His body proportions were incredible too with insanely broad shoulders complemented with a tiny waist. Any alpha would be lucky to have him as a mate, and apparently everyone thought that alpha should be Jungkook. It was probably just because the two of them have been working together ever since the alpha took up a position at the company. Having an omega as his personal secretary probably seemed suspicious to others, but there was never any hidden intentions behind it. Jungkook trusted his hyung with his life, and there is no one else he’d rather have as his secretary. Besides, Seokjin wasn’t of the same economic status as Jungkook, Jimin, and their families. No matter how good of a person Seokjin is, his parents would never approve of him as a partner. If only everyone else at the company could see that. Namjoon and Seokjin were incredible together anyway, the definition of a perfect picture couple. They’ve been mated for two years now, completing each other perfectly with the added benefit of looking adorable together. Their relationship was everything Jungkook could ever hope for.
It’s been a few hours of more mindless email replying before there’s another knock at Jungkook’s office door. “Come in.” He calls.
“I’m here with a message from Satan himself.” Namjoon says the second he walks through the door. With him, he brings a massively thick file folder filled with papers. “This is everything Mr. Park sent over from his end about the collaboration project. Your father wants you to go through all of it.”
If Jungkook was close to bashing his head in against his desk earlier, lord help him now. “I have to go through that entire folder… by myself?”
Namjoon nods at him, eyes alight with sympathy. “Unfortunately, yeah. I did some reorganizing to make it a little easier on you, but there’s a fuckload of stuff to go through.”
The younger alpha groans, resting his head in his hands on his desktop. “Goddamnit. I already have so much shit to do before the meeting with the stockholders tomorrow, and now I have to do that too? Fuck my life.”
“If you want, I can stay here for a few minutes and help as much as I can. I don’t think I’m needed back upstairs for a little while.”
Kim Namjoon had been Jungkook’s mentor since he’d started at his family’s company. He’d taken him under his wing and taught him almost everything Jungkook currently knows about how running a business works. If anything, Namjoon should be the CEO and not him, not that the elder would ever genuinely take over the company. The younger alpha had offered numerous times to sign the company over to him once his father stepped down. Would his family be insanely pissed? Yes, but Jungkook never wanted to become the head of the company in the first place. He’s been working at this job for long enough now to know this world isn’t for him. Namjoon excelled at anything and everything asked of him. He was everything Jungkook’s father was actually looking for in a son… and his dad had even gone as far as to tell him that straight to his face.
As much as he’d like to agree, Jungkook shakes his head. “I appreciate it, but you know how my dad is, hyung. It’s probably safer if you go ahead and head back.”
Namjoon looks skeptical. “Are you sure? I really don’t mind.”
“I’ll live… hopefully. Seokjin-hyung was just in here scolding me for staying late and making me promise to go home early not too long ago. I might have to let him down now.”
The elder gives him a sad smile. “I’m sure he’ll understand. I’ll save you if he comes to murder you.”
“Thanks, hyung.” Jungkook says, lifting his head from his desk finally. “I owe you my life.”
“Good luck, Jungkook-ah. Let me know if you need anything.” Namjoon waves a polite goodbye leaving the younger alone with his newfound corporate headache.
Jungkook turns to the ridiculously thick file folder just dropped on him. There’s no way in hell he’s going to be able to get through everything in the two hours he has before he’s supposed to be going home. He probably won’t even be able to make a dent in the crazy amount of paperwork in front of him. He’s already resigned himself to coming into the office an hour earlier than usual to get ready for the stockholder’s meeting tomorrow morning. Technically, he doesn’t have to go see his father until after his lunch break so… he could get as much done as possible before going home and put the rest off until then. He’s been working so much overtime for the past few weeks that the idea of going home on time for once sounds undeniably appealing… even if it means leaving work unfinished for himself to deal with later. The alpha takes a quick glance at his watch, just a little under two hours left. Might as well get as far as possible between now and then.
*****
With a bowl of steaming bibimmyeon resting on the coffee table in front of him, Jimin scrolls through Netflix to find something interesting to watch. He has to force himself to go past all of the k-dramas he’d usually watch because he’d sworn to Taehyung that he wouldn’t go any farther in the show they’d been watching together. To be quite honest, Jimin likes being alive. His recently watched seems kind of messed up, but it’s probably his own fault for logging into his account on a TV that both he and Jungkook share. As much as he hates the alpha, he’s not an asshole… all of the time at least.
For some reason, Jimin’s been feeling off today. He felt completely fine this morning when he got up. As the day went on though, he’d started to feel sick, especially after he’d taught his first class for some reason. He’d started getting random heat flashes followed by chills, alternating between the two repeatedly.. He doesn’t get sick very often, so it’s definitely odd. He’d almost asked Hoseok to cover his second class of the day so he could take a nap to recharge after a huge wave of fatigue hit him out of nowhere in the middle of the day. Maybe he’s just coming down with something. Now of all times too, right before the studio’s biggest competitions. Jimin isn’t even performing this time around, but a good number of his students are. Him being sick is the last thing they need right now.
The alarm system beeps that the front door has opened, making the omega freeze in his seat, his chopsticks halfway to his mouth with noodles. Fuck, Jungkook must be home early for once. What the hell? Maybe if Jimin does his best attempt at becoming one with the couch, the alpha won’t see him. He sinks down into the couch cushions as much possible, staring straight forward at the TV screen without moving a muscle.
“What are you doing?” Jungkook’s voice comes from right behind him.
Jimin sucks in a deep breath before he looks back over his shoulder to see his mate standing behind the couch looking down at him. “Watching a show. What’s it look like?”
The omega does everything in his power to avoid looking at Jungkook again, just a second was enough. The younger is just… entirely too handsome, not that Jimin would ever admit to that out loud. He may not like the other, but he sure as hell isn’t blind. Jungkook has the warmest, prettiest brown eyes that shine like they hold the whole world inside them. He’s grown his dark brown hair out these past few months, so it frames his face nicely, stopping just an inch or two below his eyes. He’s so fucking beautiful it’s almost painful.
For some reason, the alpha looks like he’s desperately trying to suppress a laugh. “Jimin-ssi, the show’s been paused.”
The omega glances back at the screen in front of him to find that Jungkook’s telling the truth. He must’ve accidentally stopped it when he’d jumped at the sound of the door opening earlier. “Right, well, I was watching it… and then you showed up.”
Jungkook rolls his eyes, “And then I showed up?”
“Yes.”
“You know, sometimes I really don’t understand why you have to be such an asshole to me. You move into my apartment, rent fucking free, and this is seriously how you treat me?”
The blonde stares at the alpha straight in the eye, not afraid. “You say that like I wanted to move in with you. You know just as much as I do that it wasn’t my goddamn choice.”
“Yeah, whatever, but you know what, Jimin? We’re both stuck in the same fucking shitty situation.” Jungkook breathes in deeply in a desperate attempt to calm himself down, clenching his hand in fists down by his sides. “The least you could do is at least attempt to be nice to me. You’re literally an asshole to me for no fucking reason.”
“For no reason??” Jimin asks, sitting up and leaning against the back of the couch right below the alpha. “You know damn well why I hate you. There’s this magical thing called consent. All you alphas are the damn same and have no idea what the hell it is.”
Honest to God, Jimin doesn’t know why the hell the two of them even try. Almost every conversation between the two of them ends exactly like this. Jungkook always comes in asking that Jimin be nicer to him, but why the fuck should he? How many times does he have to explain his feelings to that dense ass motherfucker? The omega had been forced to marry him, uproot his entire life and move in here, and he has to attempt to coexist with this asshat.
“Maybe if you actually listened to me when I tried to talk to you about that, you’d actually understand what the fuck happened.”
“Sure, Jungkook-ah. I’ll listen to you. I’ll be sure to pay expert attention while you give me the exact same fucking excuses as always.” Jimin turns back to the TV, already knowing exactly how this argument is going to end.
“I’m not doing this right now.” The alpha says. “Have a good rest of your night, Jimin-ssi.”
The elder hears the door to Jungkook’s bedroom close and sighs. Back when his parents had first told him of their arranged marriage, Jimin had no idea their relationship would deteriorate so quickly and so badly. Had he gone into this thinking that he and Jungkook would actually end up in love? No, not by a long shot. He’d thought they’d be able to be at least civil with each other, maybe even friends. With how bad things have gotten over the span of a few months, the omega doesn’t see even that happening any time soon.
It’s been about four months since their wedding, and Jimin’s life hasn’t changed nearly as much as he’d initially expected it to. Maybe he should at least be thankful that Jungkook wasn’t the stereotypical dominating and controlling alpha. He hadn’t asked anything of Jimin actually. It was their parents that demanded they move in together. The omega was still capable of doing everything he had been able to before. He just had to put up with Jungkook now. Honestly, arguing with him every time the two of them are at home is exhausting. They never get anywhere, always ending right back at the same place.
You would think that, after this long of being forced to put up with each other, Jimin and Jungkook would have at least figured out something. Surely they would have at least come up with a way to borderline tolerate each other. You’d be wrong though. Every conversation always ends in yelling, traded angry stares, and slammed doors. The mating bond they share has been almost completely destroyed. Usually, mates can feel each other’s emotions and have an unbreakable connection to the other. After months upon months of denying their wolves what they yearned for, their bond is practically nonexistent. Is it even worth trying to fix everything? Is their bond even fixable?
It’s almost half an hour later before Jimin leaves his seat on the living room couch. His show ended maybe ten minutes after Jungkook left, but his attention was clearly elsewhere. He makes his movements throughout the kitchen as quiet as possible, unsure if the alpha had actually gone to sleep or if he was just hiding out in his bedroom. The omega glances at the leftover bibimmyeon in the bowl in his hands. He stands there for a few seconds, honestly debating whether or not he should just throw it out. There’s enough left that it could count as a decent portion for a meal. In the end, he packs the leftovers into a tupperware container, leaving it out on the kitchen counter in case the alpha comes out and is hungry. The omega goes to bed, curling up in his sheets as flashes of heat start to wrack his body again.