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jeongguk's mother used to tell him that once he met his soulmate, he wouldn’t be lonely anymore. that he’d have someone who understands him to the deepest parts of his soul, someone who would literally die without him.
he's not sure his mother read the stories right because what are the chances his soulmate couldn’t die?
he used to daydream of the moment he would get to meet his soulmate, the days and years after that moment. the butterflies in his stomach would come alive the more he wondered what his soulmate was like, what their future was like. call him a romantic but the stories he weaved and the fantasies he created were what kept him going every day.
now, his expectations are crushed by reality, one he couldn’t dream of, a nightmare come to life.
jeongguk feels lonelier and his butterflies are replaced with cobwebs. he’s tried for the last two years to get to know his soulmate and yet the other did not budge in his reservations to have jeongguk as far away from him as possible in the large manor. subjecting jeongguk to make a home in the room furthest from his soulmate. still together but so far apart.
the manor belonged to jeongguk’s soulmate and now it was also his.
and he was lonelier than ever in this large manor. he woke up, ate, read a few books from the library that his soulmate never ventured into, ate again, took a stroll for some fresh air (but never further than the garden, his soulmate warned.) and then ate again before bed.
it was the same routine. every day. for two years.
until—- a noise. outside of his door he heard a thump. he rose from his desk and picked up the nearest weapon, an umbrella.
his heart began to race as this was the most exciting moment of his two years here, he honestly didn't care if his life was in danger. he was just excited to break out of the routine from his boring day to day.
he expected to see someone hanging from the window in the hallway when he peeked out from behind his door, maybe someone trying to break in but what he found instead confused him.
a small bag with gold jewelry inside lay next to the windowsill, as if someone had forgotten it. he dug through the bag and realized that the gold jewelry belonged to him, presents from his soulmate to appease him.
this bag that he left in one of the bathrooms down the hall. the one with his favorite large tub.
"hello?" he called out, peering down the hall but neither seeing or hearing anyone. he held the bag to his chest in one hand and the umbrella tightly in his other, he took a few small steps toward the bathroom down the hall.
inside the bathroom on the large counter he watched another one of his bags move around, his mouth parted in shock and confusion at this. what was going on? was this a poltergeist? his soulmate had told him that supernatural creatures existed but was this the work of one and would an umbrella be enough to hold them off?
then jeongguk suddenly thought, what if it's an animal? he needed to trap it and hopefully set it free without harming the creature, or without spooking it.
he set the umbrella down and tip-toed toward the counter, he was going to grab the drawstring on the bag and pull it tight and then let the animal go at the window.
taking a deep breath, he braced himself for it and then pounced on the bag. it took minimal effort to tighten the string as the thing inside the bag seemed to go limp for a second then it began to try to find its way out of the bag.
what stopped jeongguk on the way out of the room was a small voice, "let me out! let me out! please, let me out!"
could animals talk here? he wouldn't doubt it.. but he had to find out now. his curiosity was killing him.
he grabbed a wide vase from his closet and undid the bag before placing it on his desk, flipping the vase upside down and trapping whatever was in the bag.
“hello?” jeongguk called out to it, “i’m not going to hurt you…”
the bag rustled a bit and then a lovely face peaked out. the creature had red hair with gold butterfly clips, pointy ears cuffed with gold earrings on them on either side of his face. its wide gold eyes stared at him, filled with fear and then the little thing shot out of the bag and banged against the side of the vase trying to break its way out.
“let me go! don’t do this! he’ll hurt me if i don’t make it back!” it took jeongguk a minute to realize the little thing was floating, it had the most gorgeous green wings, speckled with golden flecks, fluttering on its back. it wore a green blouse that tied in the center and rose just above its belly button, showing off a gold body necklace along with a beautiful belly button piercing, and loose bottoms that cuffed tighter above the ankles which were adorned with more gold jewelry.
he had to get control of the situation and find out why this thing was in the manor, and why was it stealing his jewelry? “hey, hey, woah. calm down and talk to me and i’ll let you go.” jeongguk got down at eye level with the thing. “i’m jeongguk, technically one of the owners of this manor, and i just want to know what you were doing in my bathroom. also, i meant what i said, i won’t do you any harm.”
the thing huffed, crossing its arms and resigning to its fate or choosing to trust jeongguk, he wasn’t sure. “you don’t need to know my name, human. i’ll answer one question for you if you explain to me what a human is doing in the manor of the elusive min yoongi. last i heard of him from the vampire community he was decaying up here by himself.”
jeongguk’s defenses began to rise. “what do you mean?”
"is that the question i need to answer in order for you to answer mine?" the thing seemed at ease in the vase, as if accustomed to being in situations like this.
"no, i mean, i don't know. give me a moment to think about that." he was lost, he wanted to know everything about yoongi and yet the other didn't even give jeongguk the time of day. choosing instead to stay on his side of the manor and leave when he was getting food or making food for jeongguk to eat, always magically leaving just as jeongguk would come down to grab a bite. as if he could sense his soulmate. yet jeongguk couldn't sense anything from him.
in the first two years he did try to hunt him down and even spent countless days on the other side of the manor just for a run in with his soulmate but the other just moved so quickly with his vampire speed and refused to be near his soulmate, much less look at him.
jeongguk was stubborn, it took him a year and a half to stop trying to get close to the other. his soulmate threatened to chain him up and have someone feed him if he continued to bother him at the door to his room. at least he got to hear some kind of emotion from his soulmate.
"min yoongi is my soulmate." jeongguk said with a tiny frown on his face. feeling like calling the man his soulmate was an inadequate word to describe him, the word room mate or landlord would work better.
the little creature stared at him with an incredulous look, then finally rolled its eyes. “you’re joking right?”
“why would i be joking?” jeongguk tilted his head to the side trying to understand. “i met yoongi when i was sent into the woods to chase after my dog, we ran into each other because i hadn’t realized how far i had already gone. after that chance meeting, we weren’t allowed to part or i’d die.”
golden eyes appraised him, as if looking for a sign that he was lying. then it sighed and continued with a light tone, almost as if speaking to a child. "okay, listen, since you seem to be out of your mind and won't live long, i'll let you know my name. i'm hobi, i'm a fairy, in case the wings weren't a dead giveaway. i am neither he nor she and i work for a goblin king, so i know a lot of things, okay? one thing you learn as a supernatural being is that we do not get soulmates. so whatever you think you have with a vampire is either all in your head or min yoongi’s way of keeping you hostage to use you as a blood bag or something.”
"but-"
"no, there's no buts, human. vampires, fairies, goblins, every supernatural creature out there has extreme power and for gaining something they lose another. in our case it's a soulmate. so while you humans are extremely weak and live short lives, you all get to find your soulmates and live happily ever after." hobi looked dejected as if thinking of someone.
jeongguk shook his head, "i get what you're saying but it happened between yoongi and i. there's a shift, and your mind connects with the other person and you see them and just know. it's a beautiful thing but it’s hard to describe unless it happens to you."
"it's just not possible for us, i don't know what else to tell you. just be glad i’m here and set you free from your delusions. if it were anyone else, they may have played along and let you stay prisoner here.”
although, hobi continued to try to talk jeongguk into believing that yoongi was not his soulmate, they did talk of other things and became friends. hobi owed their life to the goblin king, a creature that saved his whole family from being killed, so hobi worked tirelessly to repay their family’s debt to the king.
jeongguk wondered if this king was actually kind for saving the fairies or cruel for imprisoning one of them and letting the others go. hobi wondered the same thing but did give the goblin some credit, whenever they weren’t working, hobi was taken care of by the goblin. kept in a cage in the king’s room where no one else was allowed to enter.
it was like a sick version of affection, jeongguk thought, then again maybe supernatural creatures didn’t know how to maneuver their way through the emotion called love. many humans didn’t either.
a week passed and jeongguk kept hobi in the same vase, giving them berries as a meal after finding out that hobi did not like the taste of meat.
“you should try it, this beef was made by yoongi himself, it’s so tender and something i would never have gotten to try at home. come on, hobi.” he waved the meat in front of the little fairy but they did not budge, instead they plugged their nose at the smell.
“how are you so sure the vampire made that? doesn’t he have maids and such for that?” hobi inquired, nose scrunching, showing his distaste.
jeongguk plopped the piece of meat in his mouth and shook his head, “there’s no one on the property besides yoongi and i. so, he has to be the one that makes all of this food for me.”
“what?” hobi squeaked, “your master-“
“soulmate.” jeongguk corrected.
waving him away apologetically, hobi continued. “your soulmate makes you food? like he actually cooks for you? with no help or servants to help run the manor?” jeongguk nods at each question, leaving hobi a bit speechless and dumbfounded. “who does the upkeep for the manor then?”
a shrug is all jeongguk can manage because he honestly does not know and that troubles him. jeongguk doesn’t do any cleaning aside from washing his own dishes but even those are gone, cleaned and put away, when he decides to leave them for the following day. he has a feeling that yoongi does it all but he never sees it for himself.
this leads into the topic of hobi’s master, the goblin king.
“he’s kind when he wants to be,” hobi sits criss cross apple sauce on the make shift miniature bed jeongguk made them. he’s still unsure whether hobi would leave but at this point he doesn’t want them to go now that he has found a friend to remedy his silence of two years. “i’ve never seen him be mean with his servants, myself included.” jeongguk wondered aloud why the king kept hobi instead of letting them be with their family. “goblin’s are known for their grand powers, they use them to help others but in return the powers link them to those they help, meaning you can not unbind yourself from a goblin until you have finished out your servitude to one. depending on how much one helped you is how long you must stay, since there are eight members of my family, including me, i owe many years so my family does not have to suffer.”
jeongguk leaned back in his own chair, thinking of his own family. his mother’s guilt for letting him leave with a strange man like yoongi but her relief when she thought jeongguk’s life was finally about to start. oh how wrong she was.
the kitchen is quiet, as it always is, the next morning. jeongguk goes to grab breakfast which is set out for him, he takes some extra fruit for hobi, wanting to make sure his friend was taken care of.
munching on an orange and being careful with the juices spilling down their chin, hobi sighs. “jeongguk, will you ever set me free?”
his fork clatters against his plate at the question, he had forgotten that hobi was not his to keep. “do you want to return to your master? if not, maybe you can stay here...” he suggested.
“it’s not about what i want, it’s something i must do or he’ll go after one of my family members to take my place.” hobi frowns. “he isn’t bad, i promise.”
“he sent you to steal from a vampire.” jeongguk points out.
grimacing, hobi tries to reason. “they’re kind of like rivals, but more one sided. my master doesn’t like yoongi, thinks that he shouldn’t have this manor or his title.”
“title?” this is the first jeongguk’s ever heard of yoongi having some kind of title.
“yoongi is king of the vampires.”
jeongguk took an evening stroll to process that information, he wasn’t sure what to think of the news hobi had given him. here he was, a human out of his depth living with a vampire king. a vampire he would die without. the tricky part was that they really could not be separated so jeongguk couldn’t leave, but he also knew that yoongi couldn’t leave the manor either.
another thought occurred to him, how did yoongi get blood to survive? did he need blood to survive and how often did he need it?
two years after discovering his soulmate and jeongguk knew absolutely nothing about him.
why did he despise jeongguk so much? not even wanting to look at him much less be in the same room.
one thing was for certain, jeongguk deserved answers. he deserved better than being kept in the dark. he was going to demand them or else he would leave. at this point he didn’t care if leaving meant dying because what he was doing here in yoongi’s manor was not living.
with a newfound determination set in him, a flame burst inside of him. he was ready to confront his soulmate, ask him all the questions that have been burning inside of him for two long and lonely years.
mouth set in a frowning pout, he charged through the gardens realizing he carelessly stormed a bit further than the gardens once his eyes took in the looming trees, beyond the edge of the woods. yoongi’s words rang clear in his mind, he had to get back. he made it to the clearing quickly, feeling the hair on the back of his neck stand up.
in his hurried state to get to safety, he tripped over a root in the ground and slammed straight into a tree trunk.
“oh my, are you lost little bunny?” the tree wrapped its branches, like arms, around him, holding him closer until he could feel the bark scratching against his cheek, his clothes tearing at the strength of the branches ready to pierce skin.
he struggled against it, losing air quickly as he gasped against the tight hold. a rumble from the tree erupted almost like a growl, threatening someone nearby, and then the pressure was lifted from around him and he fell into his savior’s arms.
“i’ve got you.” a deep voice comforted. “you’re okay now, try to breathe.”
he fought to take gulps of air as the woods seemed to settle, the man cradled him in his arms, the face above him looking down at him with worry.
jeongguk looked away, looking for the danger and finding them closer to the manor instead. the man must have gotten them away.
“th-thank you.” he stuttered a bit shocked at the previous events, his body felt sore and the tears in his eyes stung as they fell.
the man nodded, “i’m unsure what you were doing alone in the woods so close to night fall but i can guide you back to the village. it isn’t safe here.” when he said the word ‘here’ his eyes skirted to the manor, jeongguk wonders if that was in reference to the vampire living inside or the woods that tried to kill him.
“thank you again, i owe you a great deal. i should be fine, uhm?”
“taehyung.” the man smiled, showing off a gorgeous set of teeth that jeongguk marveled at. “and your name is?”
he squirmed under the intense gaze, his hands finding the thighs under him, making him scramble away when he registered that he was still on the man’s lap. “i’m so sorry. i’m jeongguk, i thank you again for saving me and offer you a place to stay if you’re traveling.”
taehyung chuckled, “jeongguk, no need to thank me. although, i will take up your offer so you don’t feel indebted to me. i do need to take care of business if you don’t mind waiting for me here.”
nodding, jeongguk watched as taehyung got up, dusted himself off and went toward the front of the manor. he followed after the strange man, eyeing him curiously. he wore black slacks with a white button up and a black vest over it. too formal for someone trekking through the woods.
the man banged on the door, a bit more aggressively than jeongguk would expect from someone so kind.
“taehyung, i can-“ the door swung open and jeongguk’s mouth stayed open as he took in the sight of his soulmate, his heart began to race.
yoongi wore all black, down to the cape on his shoulders and perfectly parted hair. his lips were the perfect shade of pink that jeongguk had remembered them to be and his feline eyes were apprehensive when he saw taehyung, they darted over to jeongguk and his mask fell for a few seconds before slipping back on to neutral.
taehyung bowed, “king min, i apologize for any disturbance i may have caused but if i may ask a favor to enter your home and search it for a lost possession of
mine.” the tone in his words had a bite to them although they were spoken respectfully.
yoongi returned his bow, “king kim, i also apologize for any rudeness on my behalf but my manor is not in a state to house any visitors, much less a king. i can not allow you to enter but if i may speak about possessions, it seems as though you are the one that has something of mine.”
jeongguk rolled his eyes at their pettiness and also at the way yoongi called him a possession. the heat in his belly was flaring up. he stepped in front of taehyung, not caring for yoongi’s games. “i’m sorry but it’s rude to turn away one of my guests, dear. you see, i’ve invited taehyung to stay with us for the night. so if you’d move out of my way, this possession of yours wants to go back inside and never see your face for another two years.”
“jeongguk, do you not know who he is?” yoongi’s eyes darted between them in worry. “you do not want to get mixed up with him much less owe him anything or you’ll pay for it with your life!”
jeongguk shoved the door open, meeting little resistance from the vampire. “i’m already paying for something else with my life! i’m stuck in hell with a soulmate out of my nightmares so how much worse can it get?” he tried to storm away but yoongi caught his wrist.
the man at the doorway chuckled darkly, causing them both to turn his way. “oh, this is better than i thought.” his brows were raised, arms crossed over his chest. “it’s too late, king min, this one already owes me. i was going to take a night with him as payment but suddenly i’ve decided that just won’t do. perhaps i’ll make your little soulmate my servant, he would look great in one of those maid outfits i have with a corset to accentuate his waist. i’d watch him all day and get pleasure from knowing i stole him from the likes of a misfit king.”
yoongi pushed jeongguk to stand behind him, “you’ll do no such thing. he is not to part from me or he’ll die.”
“now, min, are you implying that he’s your soulmate?” taehyung’s hand rose to his mouth, covering up his amused smile. “i wasn’t born yesterday, we are not given soulmates.”
“taehyung, it’s true.” jeongguk cut in, peeking over yoongi’s shoulder. “he’s my soulmate.”
the man tilted his head, thinking, assessing the two in front of him. then he spoke, “that explains why my power didn’t bind to him, there’s a deeper and more powerful magic at work. that of a soul bond. interesting.”
“now that you know, you may take your leave.” yoongi didn’t drop his hand from jeongguk’s waist behind him. “your hatred toward me should not extend to him, he did nothing wrong.”
“i’m still in search of my things and i believe it’s in your home, min.” he took a step forward, hands in his pockets and a devilish smile on his lips. “i’ll just take a look around, jeonggukie can accompany me if he’d like.”
before yoongi could speak up, jeongguk stepped around him and went to taehyung. “come with me, i think i know what you’re searching for.”
jeongguk could feel yoongi’s gaze on him, he knew his soulmate was annoyed with him but he didn’t care. why should he when they haven’t spoken in two years? his soulmate didn’t care for his feelings so why should he care for yoongi’s?
he set his shoulders straight and continued to walk off, shaking the feeling of disappointing yoongi off.
taehyung walked next to him, whistling, he seemed to be in a good mood. “so, king min huh?” he asked, amused.
jeongguk stopped at his door, taehyung running into him. “don’t think you’re forgiven for the comment you made earlier, you’re just the lesser of two evils right now.”
“jeongguk, i didn’t mean it.”
“doesn’t matter, don’t talk about anyone like that no matter what point you were trying to prove.” he huffed,
opening up the door to reveal his bedroom. he pointed to his desk, letting taehyung enter to get a look at what he was pointing at, or who he was pointing at.
taehyung ran forward, throwing the vase off and letting it shatter to the floor. “hobi!” he grabbed the fairy and jeongguk watched as they greeted each other.
hobi’s arms were on either side of taehyung’s nose while hobi nuzzled it with their cheek. the reunion seemed too sweet for that of a master and servant but jeongguk did not question them, he only shut the door and let them have some time to reunite.
jeongguk goes downstairs to find yoongi waiting for him, he wonders why the vampire is there and why he didn’t retreat back to his room. he manages to hide his shock well.
“why did you have one of his possessions?” yoongi follows him to the kitchen.
rummaging through the fridge, jeongguk takes his time answering yoongi’s question. he pulls out some eggs and spinach, glancing at the other briefly before starting to make some omelettes. “i caught his fairy stealing from me. we became friends so i kept them.” he tries to keep his voice even.
“and you didn’t think to report this to me?”
“would you have listened?” jeongguk challenged.
yoongi’s face grew darker, “if it jeopardized your safety, of course i would.”
“oh, so you do care about me? here i thought i was just kept around as some kind of prisoner.” jeongguk beat the eggs in the bowl with such intensity that he had to remind himself to calm down. getting angry would only deepen the wedge between them instead of mend it.
“you have to understand, jeongguk, i-“
he lost his patience and maybe a bit of his mind from being locked up, he threw the bowl down and rounded on yoongi. “understand? how can i understand anything when you don’t talk to me. i know nothing about you, much less that you’re some almighty vampire king. and i had to find that out from hobi! so excuse me if i go around doing things you might not like but i’m trying to live with the fact that my soulmate doesn’t want me!”
the room filled with jeongguk’s labored breathing, he gripped onto the edge of the counter, he felt lighter after finally getting to speak his mind.
yoongi looked away from him, hiding his expression like he hides everything from jeongguk. the human’s anger resurfaced again. “see? there you go, hiding away and not talking to me! i’m your soulmate, i’m supposed to be here to understand you more than anyone and yet i feel like you’re a stranger to me. just kick me out and let me die if you don’t want me!”
the room filled with tension as they both stayed quiet, silent tears betrayed jeongguk as they spilled down his cheek. he brushed them away hurriedly.
yoongi looked up and jeongguk saw the pain on his face, he let out a breath and finally filled the silence. “i do want you.”
a startled breath escaped jeongguk, he remembered the day they first met. the sky was so blue, the sun beating down on them and yoongi was so beautiful. jeongguk would have given the vampire his life before they found out they were soulmates. a connection was made between them when jeongguk looked into yoongi’s red eyes, all he could think of was passion. he wanted to follow this man to the ends of the earth but all he saw was a weary frown on his lips. unhappy since that first meeting, the thought made jeongguk’s stomach curl.
so, he is a little confused by yoongi’s sudden confession. his mind is racing just as quickly as his heart. “you have a funny way of proving it.”
“i know. it’s just.”
jeongguk watched as the vampire gathered his thoughts, he studied yoongi’s face, this is the longest he’s ever been in the same room as him so sue him if he wants to memorize it, his button nose and pink lips. the way his brows draw together and create a crease while he searches for his next words. despite the last two years, jeongguk thinks he’d still follow yoongi to the ends of the earth if he asked.
“i never wanted this life. i didn’t ask to become a vampire, i never even wanted to be some king. the things i do want are out of my grasp, constantly taken from me so over the years i taught myself not to want and it was easy, i got so good at pretending that i was okay with the way things were.” yoongi looks at him with a stare so intense it makes jeongguk blush and avert his eyes. “then you came and you have no idea what it did to me to see you in those woods that first time. i thought after years of trying to end my miserable existence and i did try, i’d finally died and made it to some form of heaven, you look so much like him.”
the last part shook jeongguk out of his daze. “like who?”
but before yoongi could answer him, the kitchen door slams open and in waltzes taehyung. “jeongguk, hobi says you make amazing omelettes and if i don’t get to try one before i leave tomorrow, i will come back!” he looks at them and jeongguk tries not to look annoyed since he did invite taehyung to stay, it’s just that this was the one time yoongi willingly began opening up to him. “sorry. am i interrupting something?”
“no, you’re fine.” jeongguk tries to be a gracious host, he ignores yoongi’s eyes on him and continues to make omelettes with a goblin, a vampire and a fairy watching him.
that night they all retire to their separate bedrooms, taehyung and hobi in one of the guest rooms near jeongguk’s.
jeongguk stays up, tossing and turning, thinking about yoongi. was he always so sad? was there ever a time where min yoongi could smile and enjoy his life? what happened to him and the other person he spoke of that apparently reminded him of jeongguk?
he wouldn’t get answers until he demanded them from yoongi. hopefully his soulmate was willing to give more tomorrow when their guests left.
jeongguk dreamt of that first meeting with yoongi, only this time his soulmate welcomed him with open arms and a life that was just out of his reach. filled with love and warmth.
the next morning he awoke to a loud banging on the front door, he shot out of bed wondering who could be knocking so early in the morning.
his soulmate did not have to follow a sleep pattern but he preferred to keep a regular sleep schedule to follow that of a human it seemed because when he got to the door, taehyung was already up and alert but yoongi was not.
“are you expecting company?” taehyung asked through a mouthful of toast.
shaking his head, jeongguk opened the small rectangular peephole, but before he could ask who was there the stranger at the door sighed in relief upon seeing him.
“thank the stars someone is here, you have to help, please, he doesn’t have much time.” the man was carrying another unconscious man in his arms, but whereas he had a tan to his skin and with muscular arms, the passed out man was pale and thin. “he’s going to die, please help him.”
without question, jeongguk hurriedly opened the door. “come inside!” he watched the man set his companion on the nearest couch, “i’m jeongguk, what can i do to help him?” jeongguk inquired.
“namjoon. this is jimin and..” he trailed off after taking a deep breath. “you’re human?” jeongguk nodded. “he needs your blood. he’s close to dying.”
a gust of air whooshed past jeongguk, he didn’t even notice that yoongi had arrived standing next to him, probably listening the whole time. “jeongguk is not giving his blood to a starving vampire, that’s like a death sentence.” yoongi had a pensive look on his face, “i have blood bags, that might work, although since the blood isn’t coming from a live source it may not heal him.”
namjoon shook his head, “we don’t have time to waste.”
“why don’t we both take turns giving him our blood?” jeongguk suggested to namjoon.
“he can’t.” a deep voice joined in, taehyung. “werewolf blood is poisonous to vampires.” he let the fact sink before dusting off his pants. jeongguk admired how put together he looked despite everyone else freaking out. “there is one blood that stands out from the rest and that’s goblin blood. he can take as much as he wants without killing one. now i wonder where you would be able to find one of those?”
“taehyung.” yoongi sighed.
“now, if a certain goblin king was around and did save your friends life, pup, he would owe it to me.” a smirk graced his beautiful face, jeongguk felt sick at the thought that he was cornering them. this man he thought was kind.
“whatever you want, i’ll do it. just save him, please.”
taehyung bowed, “as you wish.”
he took jimin from namjoon’s arms and cradled him in his own, he brought his wrist to his own mouth piercing skin with his sharp fangs before bringing it to jimin’s mouth. “drink, little one, it’s okay.”
they waited a minute, jeongguk grew worried when nothing had happened but then he heard small suckling sounds and jimin began to feed, growing more responsive.
“thank you.” namjoon looked like he was close to tears. “to all of you.” he clasped his hands together, shaking his knees. “jimin is my husband. we grew up together before he was turned, i kept him hidden away. i did a damn good job at it too.” a shaky breath escaped him as he recounted the memories, “something in my genetics was triggered, maybe there was a pack nearby but i turned and my town had me chained up when they discovered i was a werewolf, jimin tried to save me and they chained him up as well. they starved him and tortured him when they realized he could heal instantly.”
jeongguk held a hand to his mouth, horrified by how people could act. yoongi didn’t react, just hovered a hand near jeongguk’s elbow carefully.
“when the next full moon came, they set me free to turn, expecting me to attack jimin but that didn’t go like they planned. i turned on them and protected him instead, i waited for dawn and when i turned back i grabbed him and made a run for it.”
“i’m so sorry, namjoon. that must’ve been horrible for you both. i want to extend an invitation to you two, stay as long as you need.” jeongguk offered.
“that’s sweet of you, jeonggukie but as soon as this little one is good to go, they’ll be leaving with me.” taehyung cut in.
suddenly the air grew colder around them, a chill ran up jeongguk’s spine. he leaned into yoongi subconsciously looking for warmth.
“i thought i smelled something rotten, goblin king.” a new voice entered the fray.
the chill in the air was caused by this mere presence, it scared jeongguk, he leaned even closer to yoongi wanting to hide from whoever, or whatever, this person was.
“jin.” yoongi took note of jeongguk’s stance and stood in front of him, shielding him away like a protective mate would do. forgetting the past two years, jeongguk had hope that maybe they could start fresh. “to what do i owe the pleasure?”
the man was on the second floor but disappeared into thin air just to reappear in front of them with a grimace on his beautifully sculpted face. his face distracted jeongguk from his outfit, a black layered dress with a cape, the neck was ruffled and reached the man’s chin. “such strange company you keep, yoongi.”
yoongi chuckled, “all guests of my soulmate, it’d be rude of me to kick them out.”
“anyway.” jin looked away from them and toward the goblin, “you seem to love getting in the way of the natural order of things, you pest.”
“i just love seeing you riled up.” taehyung smirked.
“those that are on their way to meet death must not stand him up.”
namjoon stood boldly, jeongguk watched in despair to what would happen to him if he stood up to this man with a powerful aura. “as supernatural creatures we evade death every day, why should this time be any different? jimin’s died once already, i’m sure you know that.”
jin disregarded him with a sigh, he turned back toward yoongi and beckoned him to follow. they left the room but not before yoongi squeezed jeongguk’s hip and gave him a tight smile.
he wasn’t sure what he was supposed to do with that but he felt the pressure on his hip like a ghost even when yoongi and the strange man left the room.
the quiet voices of the others snapped jeongguk back into reality, he listened in as taehyung spoke about jin to namjoon, he was still holding jimin but the vampire was no longer latched onto his wrist. jeongguk hoped he would wake soon so his husband could relax from his tense position next to him.
“i stand up to jin because it’s the natural order of how goblins are. we save people, even if jin hates it. there are things worse than death of course and that’s being bound to a goblin. so jin let’s it slide, he of course despises me but he can’t do much about it.” taehyung explains, “but you, pup, just landed yourself an enemy with the biggest and baddest out there.”
namjoon gulped, not saying anything else.
“who is he? what makes him so powerful?” jeongguk questioned.
taehyung has that smirk on his face again, looking at jeongguk like he’s a child. “he was here during the creation of everything, waiting. he’ll be here during the death of everything. he isn’t just some lousy grim reaper, he is death in the flesh.”
that explained why everything felt so cold, like all the warmth in the room had vanished, no light could touch where jin was. he brought darkness with him, a release so bittersweet, he was what awaited everyone in the end.
and he had yoongi alone in the other room.
“i have to warn yoongi!” jeongguk exclaimed, he ran to the room he saw the two enter in and without knocking he burst through the door.
the sight he saw in front of him stopped him in his tracks, he couldn’t really make out or understand what was going on.
“uh, hi?” his soulmate yoongi peered up at him with startled eyes.
“what is he doing to you?”
yoongi grunted when jin tightened his hold. he had the vampire in a headlock. “teaching him a lesson or two, i’ll be quick.” jin answered.
he watched the two struggle for power against the other, unsure if he should try to help or if this was all just play between them.
“sorry.” yoongi muttered once he was free. “jin never knows when to quit.”
jin turns to yoongi with a look of shock painted on his face, “you know exactly what that was for. i can elaborate for your soulmate but i’m not sure you could handle that seeing as you’ve done so poorly over the last two years.”
that might be shade thrown yoongi’s way, jeongguk is unsure because he doesn’t know how close he and jin are. close enough for yoongi to tell him what’s been going on for the past two years? (or more like what hasn’t been going on. he imagines that conversation to be very short.)
so, yoongi tells people about their nonexistent love life. cool. jeongguk can handle that, he’s not freaking out and wondering what that means. especially at the idea of death personified knowing about the past two years of rejection from his soulmate. he’s totally calm about that one.
he rubs his sweaty palms on his sleep pants, wondering if he should just leave. go back to the werewolf, vampire and goblin. they’d be easier to face than his soulmate and death right now.
“sorry for stealing him away, jeongguk. i’ll be taking my leave. it was very nice to meet you.” jin bows and again disappears into thin air.
“so, are you going to tell me what that was about or keep me in the dark again?”
he sees yoongi flinch, a hand at the back of his neck and avoiding his eyes. “i deserve that, i know.” jeongguk wants to take it back and comfort him but another part of him stamps that out and says to be brave, that he deserves answers.
to jeongguk’s shock, yoong says in one breath, “well, i was asking him for advice and he wanted to know if i had done anything to impress you or sweep you off your feet since the day we met.”
“you wanted advice on how to sweep me off my feet?”
yoongi shakes his head. “i wanted advice on how to apologize for not sweeping you off your feet earlier.”
the words confuse jeongguk, the first time he’s heard yoongi speak so openly. he withdraws a little bit, the braveness in him dwindling. he doesn’t know how to handle this. for years he’s been wanting this but now he also feels a bit upset that he had to wait, that it took two years for yoongi to come out with it. he had to know why.
“what changed?” yoongi muttered a ‘what’ in response and jeongguk doesn’t know why he grew a bit impatient at that. “why now? why choose now to do all of this? to leave me sitting in my room for two whole years wondering why i wasn’t good enough, wondering why you didn’t want me. why wait two years of me hoping that you’d come to my door and—“ he stops himself, doesn’t want to go on a huge rant where he’ll end up in tears. “—well, i guess it’s too late for that to happen. so answer me, why choose to do this now?”
sighing, yoongi gestured to the door. “maybe we should make sure our guests are okay first and then i’ll explain it to you.”
“right. our guests.” jeongguk put emphasis on the word our, he internally rolled his eyes. of course yoongi would change the subject, so jeongguk turns to leave, a bit fed up now.
“we’ll talk about it over lunch, how’s that?” yoongi asks his retreating back.
they do get to talk over lunch.
after all their guests had finally been served breakfast.
poor namjoon starving from his mistreatment by the villagers and when jimin woke up he also helped himself to yoongi’s stash of blood.
taehyung and hobi were a bit quieter, hobi munching on their berries sadly, telling jeongguk they would miss him so much. taehyung watched jimin and namjoon the whole time, a sparkle in his eye.
when the four of them left, jeongguk excused himself to get dressed. he wanted to look nice for his first lunch with yoongi, he had to shower and spruce himself up.
he chose white slacks with a white flowy blouse, his blonde shoulder length hair sat in waves and was parted to one side. he applied a tiny amount of gloss on his lips, feeling confident.
okay so maybe he was going overboard but he’s never done this before and his nerves are shot through the roof.
it’s just his soulmate, after all. and a conversation he’s been waiting to have.
he meets yoongi in the kitchen, the vampire signals for him to follow. he’s taken out to the garden where the picnic table there is set up with an array of pastries and snacks for them. there are candles lit and flowers strewn about.
yoongi stands next to a chair awkwardly, “please sit.” he motions, pulling the chair out for jeongguk.
and oh, he’s doing this now.
it’s a small thing but the butterflies that erupt in his stomach are huge.
maybe this is the turning point, the moment jeongguk’s been waiting for all of his life. he’ll finally get his happy ending.
“ypu were right.” yoongi starts once he’s seated across from jeongguk. “i was keeping you prisoner, i wanted to keep you safe from the world.” he lowers his voice, “from me.”
tilting his head to the side, jeongguk counters, “you’d never hurt me.”
“you don’t know that. i don’t know that.”
“okay, so you were doing all of this for two years for my safety but why change that now?”
yoongi shrugs. “i saw you with taehyung and something in my head clicked. you’re my soulmate, you should be allowed to have the freedom to choose what you want ti do with your life. it was unfair of me to keep you away from whatever you want. including me.”
a blush painted across jeongguk’s cheeks. he admitted it earlier but hearing it from yoongi’s mouth was different.
“there’s more.” yoongi twists in his chair, looking out at the garden.
jeongguk studies his profile, watching him go to some distant place in his mind, a memory, or multiple memories.
“in my human life, i had a soulmate.” yoongi doesn’t meet his eyes. “his name was jeongwoo. he was murdered in front of me, which obviously killed me.”
“then how..?”
a humorless chuckle escaped his soulmate, “i woke up to find my soulmate dead and yet the only thing i craved, the one thing i could think of, was blood. after i had drained a whole village dry, i found our killer, the vampire that owned this castle before me, and i tore her head off.”
the turmoil and anger that must have plagued yoongi for him to go to those lengths, jeongguk can’t imagine it. he feels heartbroken for yoongi and for his first soulmate. the love they lost because of an unfortunate incident.
“we met her in the forest, i tried to fight her off and got a bit of her blood on me, perhaps some of it got into my mouth, i’m unsure but i do know that’s what turned me. jeongwoo tried to step in and she killed him, all while laughing.”
“i’m so sorry, yoongi.” jeongguk speaks, reaching a hand out to show his soulmate how sincere he is. “i know those words won’t do anything now but i really am sorry for all you’ve suffered.”
“i find myself missing him more and more everyday.” yoongi mumbles. “which is crazy of me to say especially when you’re right here.”
“it’s not the same, i’m not the same as him, i know.”
yoongi finally looks at him and his expression is hard to read. “you are though, jeongguk. i don’t know how to say this but that day in the forest, i told you i thought i died because i thought you were an angel. you see, i believe you are jeongwoo’s reincarnation or he’s an ancestor of yours. whatever it may be, you look exactly like him.”
jeongguk was stunned at the news. he must kidding, a joke to haze his soulmate, only yoongi isn’t laughing.
so, he’s being serious. how does he react to that?
should he be upset?
“that’s why i kept you at arms length. he died trying to protect me and i don’t want the same to happen to you.”
he didn’t feel upset, just a bit somber. no wonder yoongi didn’t even want to look at him, he was a reminder of the past. of his dead soulmate.
the universe took one away from yoongi and brought him a new one, giving him the chance to be happy again, only to play some kind of sick joke on yoongi and make his new soulmate look exactly like his old one.
an ugly reminder of how he failed the first time.
how could jeongguk help him after knowing all of this? he had to try. his heart hurt for yoongi and he wouldn’t let his soulmate live another day of his eternity lonely or sad again.
“every day that we’re alive is a risk to our lives.” jeongguk starts carefully. “so, i think we should just live to the fullest, despite the danger of what’s out there. otherwise, we’re just wasting time being afraid.” he gives yoongi a small smile, “i understand that you’re scared of what could happen to me but you don’t have to carry that burden alone, yoongi.”
he takes his hand, something like a promise, he squeezes it, something like a declaration.
“i was sent to you for a reason, i am my own person even if i look like him and i think we deserve a chance at something.”
yoongi looks down at their hands, jeongguk hopes he won’t be afraid anymore.
“trust me, yoongi. what is life without the living? let’s live happily together, okay?”
a second passes, then five more. the vampire finally takes a breath. he grabs jeongguk’s hand with both of his own, holding onto him like a lifeline. a man once drowning and his only hope is jeongguk.
“okay.” he looks at jeongguk, amazed. “let’s live happily.”
after that, things became easy. they were awkward at first but they slowly began to fall together.
the melody of them is a tune so unfamiliar that jeongguk has to stop himself, he has to breathe and take in the feelings inside of him.
happiness.
he smiles when yoongi makes him dinner and asks him all kinds of questions about his life, although yoongi has experienced so many lives before jeongguk, he still listens with rapt attention when jeongguk tells him about his old farm life.
the first chord is struck.
he giggles when there’s a lovely suit waiting for him in his room one night along with a note to meet in the garden. once there, he discovers a violinist playing a beautiful song for him, yoongi taps his shoulder and they dance in the moonlight. the song is for them.
something of a song is written in these moments.
yoongi still makes him meals, only this time jeongguk gets to press against his side, watch him cook and talk about everything and anything with him. there are days where yoongi tries to teach him but jeongguk gets so flustered when yoongi places his big hands over his own, front pressed to jeongguk’s back and tries to show him how to chop vegetables. that night ends with jeongguk dreaming of yoongi’s hands all over his own body.
the composition they make up plays on repeat and they never tire of it.
they go out to the town for some shopping, the streets are crowded as vendors try to sell their goods in the street market. yoongi ends up grabbing jeongguk’s hand so they don’t split from each other. jeongguk’s cheeks tint red, he blames it on the sun. yoongi lets him.
maybe the sound of jeongguk’s heart is the drum that keeps yoongi marching on.
there are hard days, days where there is only silence, no music to keep jeongguk’s feet dancing and swaying and twirling and— yoongi doesn’t show up for breakfast. he stays in his room, curled up in a ball. a nightmare of what could be, of history repeating itself, plays in his head,
gluing him down, away from jeongguk where he won’t endanger him.
jeongguk gives him space on those days, to go through the motions, and then he sneaks into his room at night and holds yoongi steady, let’s his heartbeat lull the vampire.
hobi and the others come to visit, jeongguk is elated to see his friends for the first time in a couple of months.
“you look great!” hobi comments, “you’re glowing.” they wink.
jeongguk wonders if hobi can tell he’s glowing because of the thrumming under his skin, the happiness radiating from all parts of his body, starting at his heart.
“so, were you all passing through or did you just want to surprise jeonggukie?” yoongi asks as he places food around the table for their guests to enjoy.
taehyung grimaces. namjoon looks down at his lap and jimin averts his eyes.
hobi rolls their eyes and throws a berry at jimin, earning them an offended “hey!” from the vampire.”
“jimin actually insisted we come.” taehyung grimaces. “he has something to tell you two.”
jimin’s eyes widened, when jeongguk turned to look at him he saw the vampire was playing with the rings on his fingers, a nervous gesture.
“it’s okay, jimin. whatever you have to say, we can handle it.” jeongguk reassured him.
jimin nodded, he looked over to yoongi with a frown. “there’s an uprising starting. rumor has it that the old court has gathered again and they’re getting themselves ready to dethrone you.”
the silence settled into the crack of their conversation, no one spoke, quite unsure what to say.
“they already hated you for what you did to their queen, yoongi. but now, it’s worse. they think you’re less of a vampire since you have a soulmate.”
namjoon clears his throat. “having a human as a soulmate when you’re a supernatural doesn’t bode well for either parties. yoongi, you have to know, if they can’t get to you then they’ll use him against you.”
yoongi makes no sound, doesn’t say a word, he puts down the serving bowl in his hand, takes off his apron and leaves the room.
“yoongi?” jeongguk stands up quickly, he follows yoongi out. “yoongi, what are we going to do? we have to think up a plan, be ready for them.”
yoongi stops and turns around, he lets his eyes rove all over jeongguk’s face for a moment. “we won’t do anything jeongguk. you’re safer here. i’m going to go to them before they can come here and i’ll rip them all apart.”
“i can help!” jeongguk grabs his hands. “i want to help you. we’re in this together.”
“jeongguk…” yoongi sighs, he takes a step forward and slumps against the human, his forehead on jeongguk’s shoulder. “please. just stay here with the others.” yoongi leans back, he gives jeongguk a look filled with vulnerability.
“but-“ he’s cut off by a press of lips on his own. he melts against yoongi’s touch, letting a sigh escape his lips. their first kiss, hopefully one of many, hopefully he gets to feel this in the morning all the way until sleep takes him.
then he snaps back to reality. he begrudgingly pulls away.
“yoongi.”
the vampire shakes his head, his eyes downcast. “i have been waiting for a day where i could have the possibility to meet my end but instead it seems as though something inside me has begun to stir awake. jeon jeongguk, i know what it is to die but for the first time in a while i feel so alive being here with you.”
“why does it feel like you’re saying goodbye?” jeongguk’s brows knit together.
yoongi sighs, it feels heavy against jeongguk’s heart.
“all my life i’ve waited for a fantasy, a romance out of the fairytales but instead what i got was you and it ended up being something more than what i could have imagined, yoongi. i just got you, i don’t want to lose you.”
“you won’t lose me. i’ll be back by morning, okay? i have to make sure your heart doesn’t stop.”
he punctuates the sentence with another lovely kiss. jeongguk grows weak at the knees, his hands fisted at his sides as he tries to hold himself together but he melts melts melts into yoongi.
jeongguk doesn’t say it out loud, but he knows he’ll either die because of the distance from his soulmate or because of the death of his soulmate.
he just hopes neither happen and yoongi makes it back in one piece and in time.
“i want to give you something, just in case.”
“just in case what, yoongi?”
yoongi shakes his head. “like i said, you won’t lose me, jeongguk. we’ll live happily, i promise.”
yoongi brought his own wrist to his mouth, he pierced the skin with his fangs then offered it to jeongguk.
“drink.” although he felt a bit confused and kind of grossed out, jeongguk complied.
yoongi smiled at him, “we’ll meet again. wait for me, okay?”
jeongguk nodded, pulling away from his wrist. “i’ll be here. yoongi, please be safe.”
without another word, yoongi walked away. the others in the house tried to stop him and even wanted to tag along but jeongguk had confidence in yoongi’s words. he would return. he had to trust that.
the group stayed with him for the night, comforting him and waiting with him.
“i know where the courts are. he probably just got there, no need to worry. if i have to, i’ll go back him up, okay?” jimin soothed him.
“yoongi’s stubborn ass will come back, it’s okay, you have to eat, jeongguk.” taehyung pulled him away from the windows where he waited.
jeongguk lived many years without yoongi, even went two years in the same house without speaking to him but this was much worse. knowing yoongi would have to fight, perhaps kill others. it made jeongguk long for him more.
he worried himself sick, hobi had to yell at him to get some rest. reminding jeongguk that the longer yoongi was away, the greater chance he could die.
namjoon was the one that found him that day in the garden.
jeongguk was walking the gardens when he felt it, his heart was being torn to shreds and his insides felt like they were being blended together. all he felt was pain, his heart drumming loudly against his ribcage, he hopes yoongi would hear it so he could come home, and then the world fell away, jeongguk along with it.
jeongguk’s heart stops.
the song ends.
opening his eyes, jeongguk feels everything and nothing at the same time. inside of him, there is nothing but hunger. outside he can sense the light hitting his skin, the temperature of the room, he can hear every little sound in the room and beyond. he hears the tree that once trapped him, snoring away as it sleeps. and even further, he hears a rabbit hopping away.
nearer, he hears his friends. he stands, much too quickly and ends up falling over. it was as if his legs grew springs on them.
he got up slower and walked out of the room carefully.
“guys, it’s jeongguk.” the room went quiet. all of his friends stared at him in a new light.
jimin stepped forward, “how are you feeling?”
“strange.” he looks around, looking for yoongi. “what happened?”
no one says a word, no one wants to answer that.
“we don’t know if it was from the distance or-“ taehyung stops himself, he looks away guiltily.
jeongguk feels like he’s going to snap, like he’s walking on eggshells. “or what?”
“you know what, jeongguk.”
shaking his head in his hands, jeongguk doesn’t want to listen to them. they’re wrong. yoongi can’t be— can he?
“jeongguk, we can still wait for him, if you’d like.” hobi offers.
the newly turned vampire looks at all of them, “how are you all so sure? none of us know what he’s like in battle. maybe he’ll come back. he said he’d come back.” he was on the verge of tears, everything was ten times more overwhelming as a vampire he realized.
“jeongguk.” namjoon placed a steady hand on his shoulder to settle him but this made the distraught vampire angry, he pushed namjoon off of him, not knowing his own strength. namjoon was launched to the ground, grunting in pain.
“joon!” jimin ran after him. “jeongguk, you need to calm down.”
this angered him even more, namjoon knew what it was like to have his partner close to death, why are they treating jeongguk as if he’s in the wrong?
his head began to throb, he wasn’t wrong. yoongi would be here soon and anyone that disagreed had to be killed.
“jeongguk.” a chill ran up his spine, he knew the owner of that voice, his anger melted away and fear replaced it. jin appear before him, a solemn look on his face. “he’s gone.”
then, the one who took him, death himself, disappeared in an instant.
falling to his knees, he lost the fight in him. yoongi was gone, he was all alone.
“jeongguk!” hobi flew over to him. “i’m so sorry.”
his group of friends stayed with him after that. trying their best to console him.
he felt the cobwebs return, he could almost pretend as if yoongi was in the other room. but no meals awaited him, no fancy jewelry left at his door.
two months later his friends finally decided to leave him, they made promises to return.
“what will you do here, all alone?” hobi asked him after they hugged out their goodbyes.
“do what i promised him.” jeongguk smiled. “i’ll wait for him to return.”
and so he waited.
a hundred and two years later, jeongguk heard the villainous tree outside causing a commotion.
“herbert, what did i say about eating humans?” he slashed at the branches with his long nails, watching the poor human in the trees clutches stumble away as they tried to run away.
“you said that arthur, not me!” the tree called back, its roots sprung up grabbing the human by the ankle and trying to pull them back.
jeongguk jumped in and swept the human in. “hey, i got you.” he comforted. once in the safety of his garden, he set the human down, a girl about ten years old. “what are you doing all the way up here, kid? you shouldn’t wander around alone.”
“i’m not alone.” she pouted, crossing her arms, then she looked up at jeongguk shyly. “thank you for saving me.”
“minha!” another voice called out from the forest.
the voice came from the direction they were just in, near herbert. “herbert, stop!” jeongguk shouted, he made a run for it, elbowing quickly through the branches and barreling into the human on the other side.
the two went tumbling down together in a heap.
“ouch.” the man under him grunted.
jeongguk looked down at him just as the man opened his eyes, their hearts instantly connected.
a new song began.