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Taehyung skipped down the hall and into his classroom, aware that he was almost twenty minutes early. He’d been at school for almost an hour now, tinkering around in the potions lab. He liked it best there in the mornings, when the school was nearly empty, the soft daylight beginning to stream through the windows. It was easier to concentrate that way. And today, Taehyung had been particularly inspired.
He sat down giddily at his desk, thermos full of his latest concoction in hand. The classroom was still generally empty, two students finishing homework in the front row. His friends occupied the back corner of the room, but they wouldn’t be arriving for at least another fifteen minutes. Maybe ten if he was lucky. He really wanted to talk about his creation.
He set the thermos at the edge of his desk and pillowed his head in his arms, content to look out the window for now. He hummed lowly, eyes fluttering as they followed a couple of bird prancing around the tall tree outside their class. They were at perfect branch-level on the third floor and he often found himself immersed in the critters that would scurry along the thick branches. He was so caught up with bird watching that he completely missed Yoongi trudging into class until the boy plopped into the desk a few seats away from him.
“Good morning Yoongi!” He chirped out, at full attention now. The older boy just groaned, as he so often did in the morning hours.
“I’ll never stop being amazed by your boundless energy.” Yoongi grumbled, turning in his desk to look at the boy. He eyed the thermos on the boy’s desk blankly for a few seconds before getting up again. He swiftly picked up the container and sniffed it, looking back down at Taehyung curiously.
“Since when did you start drinking coffee? Is this how you stay so active?” Yoongi asked, and before he could respond, he screwed the top off and began to drink it at an alarming rate.
He gawked at the older boy, who seemed to enjoy the liquid as if it were really coffee. He couldn’t remember making it coffee flavored. Personally, it had smelled like strawberries to Taehyung. Maybe it shifted smell and flavor for each person? Interesting. Okay wait, but now was not the time to be taking notes. Taehyung watched in mild horror as Yoongi downed the last of the liquid and returned to his desk, promptly laying down for a nap before class.
Alright. Yoongi just drank his potion. He didn’t immediately keel over, that was a good sign. He wasn’t changing colors or morphing; Yoongi would never let him live down that one potion that made his hair fluctuate colors for a week. Although Taehyung would claim that potion a success, since Yoongi had ended up keeping the pink hair after it stopped shifting. But this wasn’t some mood-hair potion, or some energy boosting potion; this was a rather serious, rather experimental potion and even if it worked, he was going to be so dead.
Taehyung was so busy observing his sleeping friend and imagining the many ways he would die that he didn’t even notice two more people joining the group. He looked up after a hand waved in front of his face, staring dazedly at Hoseok and Jungkook.
“Taehyung what did you do?” Hoseok asked cautiously as he took a seat next to him.
“What? How did you know? It wasn’t my fault I swear.” Taehyung spat out quickly, looking nervously between Yoongi and his other friends.
“You look like you just accidentally set a pet shop on fire.” Jungkook snorted, sitting in front of him. Taehyung whimpered.
“Calm down Tae, what happened?” Hoseok asked, rubbing soothing circles on the boy’s back. The action calmed him just slightly, enough for him to sigh and brace himself.
“I gave Yoongi a love potion.” He whispered in barely contained horror.
“You what?” Jungkook snapped back, putting his phone down to focus.
“Okay it was an accident.” His eyes darted anxiously between the two shocked faces.
“Explain.” Hoseok looked over at Yoongi’s sleeping form warily.
“I was practicing potions early in the lab this morning. Yes I had permission from Ms. Song, don’t give me that look Jungkook. I had this idea for a type of love potion and I brought it with me in a thermos. Then Yoongi came up and thought it must’ve been coffee and just drank the whole thing then went to sleep.” He gushed out hurriedly, taking a deep breath at the end.
“Why did you have it with you?” Jungkook asked after a minute of silence.
“I was going to show you guys and drink it to see if it worked!”
“Tae, love potions are kind of-” Hoseok began, lips pulling into a frown. Taehyung jumped in quickly.
“Okay maybe love potion is the wrong word. It’s like...more like affection? It’s just supposed to amplify existing emotions of affection. And it can be platonic too! It just makes you more honest in affection...I think...if it works that is.” He mumbled, looking down bashfully.
The trio sat in silence for a while longer, discreetly observing Yoongi’s sleeping figure.
“Maybe...maybe this could be a good thing.” Hoseok murmured, still staring at Yoongi in front of him.
“What do you mean?” Taehyung asked, glancing back at him.
“Well, you’re already pretty affectionate. I don’t know how that potion would really work on you.” Hoseok started, kicking Jungkook to get his attention.
“Hm, true. Go on.” He muttered distractedly, still staring at Yoongi.
“Yoongi is shit at being affectionate. I mean, we all know he likes us, but he’s an ass. Maybe this could be interesting.” He continued, smiling slyly.
“If it works.” Taehyung murmured.
“What?” That made Jungkook look back around, face scrunched in confusion.
Taehyung was good at potions. It was his best subject. He always came up with crazy, useless potions and they always worked. But this wasn’t a hair color potion or sleep aid, this was about emotions. Emotions were tricky things, and Taehyung was far from mastering those spells.
“I’ve never tried this potion before and I kind of...made it up...let’s hope it doesn’t do something horrible.” Taehyung chuckled humorlessly.
“What else could it possibly do…” Hoseok trailed off, almost afraid to ask.
“Well, it’s either going to work. Or it’s going to make him extremely horny. Emotion potions are tricky like that.” Taehyung stated factually; at this point, he was dead inside.
“Oh my God.” Jungkook groaned.
“We need to check. We need to check right now so we can get him out of class if we need to.” Hoseok decided quickly, nodding to himself.
“Jungkook, go wake him up.” Taehyung urged, nudging the younger boy.
“I’m not touching him!” He shrieked; nobody in class paid them any mind, they were always this loud.
“Tae, this was your potion, shouldn’t you be the one to wake him? Evaluate the effects yourself?” Hoseok reasoned, smiling solemnly.
“I’m pretty sure out of all of us, he likes me the least. Jungkook is his favorite.” Taehyung countered, tugging on the boy’s uniform again.
“I’m his brother, I better be his favorite. I also don’t want him catching a boner because of me.” Jungkook shivered in disgust at the thought.
“Oh please, don’t flatter yourself-”
“Just go wake him up Taehyung.” Hoseok sighed and that was the end of the discussion.
Taehyung slowly sat up and made his way over two spots to Yoongi’s desk. He hovered there for a moment, staring at the top of Yoongi’s pink hair. He noticed the roots were starting to grow out. Maybe he could make him another hair potion as an apology. ‘Or maybe my potion will actually work and he won’t kill me because he loves me.’ Taehyung thought to himself. He took a shuddered breath and started shaking the boy awake. He tried to smile as the other lifted his head groggily, groaning in exasperation.
“Hey Yoongi, what’s up? Are you feeling okay?” Taehyung bounced nervously as he talked.
“Yes? I think so.” Yoongi yawned and put his head back down but then paused, frowning. “Actually, now that you mention it, I feel a little off.” Yoongi sat up, waking up as he blinked at Taehyung curiously.
“O-oh yeah? How so?” Please don’t get the hots for me.
“I don’t know.” Yoongi squinted up at Taehyung and his face softened. “I feel like...very warm...have I ever told you how nice your smile is? It makes me happy.”
“Hey...Yoongi,” Taehyung smiled slowly, “can I give you a hug?”
Without any more prompting, Yoongi sat up from his seat and moved to throw his arms around Taehyung. The taller boy stiffened for a split second before returning the hug with enthusiasm, sending a toothy grin to the other two boys watching from their desks. He regretfully broke the embrace after a moment and lead him over to the others to see what would happen.
They watched in barely contained amusement as Yoongi fawned over Jungkook, telling him how proud he was and smothering him with hugs. He turned his sights to Hoseok after that and like with Taehyung, started complimenting his smile and happiness, all the while holding the other boy’s hand. This should have been mildly embarrassing and a little uncomfortable, but it was so refreshing to hear Yoongi’s actual thoughts instead of his usual callous remarks.
After a while, Jimin and Namjoon walked into class, faces a mix of shock and panic as they were assaulted by Yoongi’s affection. Taehyung did the honor of whispering to them what had transpired this morning. They grinned mischievously after that and quickly joined in the party, drowning in the rare affection while it lasted. Taehyung actually wasn’t all that sure how long it would last. It could be an hour, a day, maybe even a week. He made a mental note to himself to talk to Yoongi about it at the end of the day, whether it had worn off or not, so he could make actual observations. This potion was a success.
“Good morning. Everyone seems chipper today.”
All eyes turned to see Seokjin walk up, glancing around his group of friends curiously. They had all been so busy fussing over Yoongi that they hadn’t even noticed the oldest boy walk in. How could they have forgotten about Seokjin? Everyone whipped around to watch Yoongi closely, almost holding their breath in anticipation. Even on normal days, they could tell the boy had a soft spot for Seokjin. They could see it in his smiles, his mannerisms, and the subtle skinship he did when he thought no one was looking.
Yoongi stared at Seokjin now, blinking rapidly. Just then the bell rang and everyone scrambled to their seats. Their runes teacher walked in and everyone pulled out their assignments, not wanting to get on Ms. Jung’s bad side so early in the morning. However, nobody missed the way Yoongi stared at Seokjin the entire class period, sitting rigidly in his seat. Taehyung frowned as he watched Yoongi stiffen when Seokjin leaned over to ask him something.
This was interesting. Had Yoongi figured out he’d been love poisoned? That would seem the case. He was going to be so dead after class.
---
As soon as the bell rang dismissing first period, Yoongi shot up and bolted straight out of the classroom. Once in the hallway he took a deep breath and composed himself. He pulled out his phone as he walked, texting Hoseok to meet him on the roof and to bring Taehyung. He was going to kill him, but not before he figured something out.
Yoongi wasn’t stupid. In fact, Yoongi was the opposite of stupid. The minute he started drinking the contents of that thermos, he could feel the magic in it. But he drank it anyways, since it really did taste like coffee and he knew Taehyung wouldn’t bring any fatal potions to class like that. When he was so rudely awakened minutes later, he knew exactly what that potion was for.
At first, it was kind of nice. Yoongi wasn’t very good at expressing his feelings, but now it was so easy. And under the guise of a potion, Yoongi indulged the others in their antics, happy to pretend to be oblivious to the situation. But then Seokjin walked in and every nerve in his body began to scream and it was all he could do to remain rigid in his desk the entire class, fighting the magic in his body.
He cleared his head with another deep breath, the early spring air still crisp. Not long passed before the door to the roof opened again, a solemn Hoseok dragging a terrified Taehyung towards him. He sighed as they approached, feeling that tingle of magic buzzing under his skin again. The tingle that made him want to pet the younger’s hair and soothe his fears. That was not the tingle he got when Seokjin was around. There could be a few reasons for that, and he needed to find out what Taehyung had put in that potion. It also meant he would have to come clean to the younger boy, something he had been hoping to do on better terms.
“I-I’m so sorry Yoongi. You know it was an accident, I didn’t mean to and it was, I mean-” Taehyung stammered out.
“Taehyung, shush. It’s fine, it was my own fault. I indulge you too much.” Yoongi sighed, unable to keep up his rage.
“Is it...did the potion wear off?” Hoseok asked carefully and Yoongi shook his head.
“No, it’s still working.” The younger two exchanged a look at this.
“Did, did you know the whole time?” The youngest asked, brows scrunched in confusion.
“Taehyung, did you forget who I am? I may not have the best grades, but you all know I’m one of the best warlocks in this damn school. I knew it was a potion the minute it touched my tongue.” Just because he liked sleeping through class didn’t mean he wasn’t a good warlock.
“Then why did you drink it?” He asked, clearly baffled.
“Like I said, I indulge you too much.” Yoongi sighed again, moving to pet Taehyung’s hair.
He liked the younger boy a lot, almost like a second brother. When Taehyung had discovered his talent for mixing potions, Yoongi was quick to encourage him quietly. This meant listening to him ramble about herbs, agreeing with his outlandish ideas, and as of late, showing up to class early to serve as a guinea pig for whatever Taehyung had cooked up.
“Anyways, what exactly was your potion supposed to do? Make me a clingy fucker?” Yoongi asked curiously, finding he was latching onto Hoseok’s arm again. The two boys laughed.
“Well, if it’s working then it’s supposed to just amplify any existing affection you have. Platonic, romantic, whatever. It’s supposed to make you honest in your emotions. It’s not going to create new emotions.” Taehyung explained happily and Yoongi nodded along.
“You didn’t feel like hugging any random people in the hallway right?” Hoseok asked.
“No, I didn’t. Okay that makes sense. So then, what does it do if I’m attracted to someone? Does it amplify that too?” Yoongi asked warily, finally getting around to what he dreaded most.
“Um, it might. I put minimal amounts of aphrodisiac in it.” Taehyung admitted bashfully.
“Tae...” Hoseok groaned.
“It was supposed to be for me! You know I’m not attracted to people like that.” He exclaimed, face still red.
“Alright, how long is this supposed to last?” Yoongi sighed, trying his best to not panic. Aphrodisiac? Really?
“Um, actually I don’t know…” Taehyung scuffed his shoes, avoiding eye contact.
“You don’t know.” Yoongi repeated hollowly.
“That’s the main reason I test potions. You know they usually work, but I’m never sure for how long. My guess is anywhere between a day and a week.” He mumbled.
“A week. A whole fucking week.” Yoongi leaned against the railing, his knees weak.
“Come on Yoongi, it can’t be that bad. We liked your attention this morning.” Hoseok tried to cheer him up, snuggling up to the shorter man.
He just grumbled but didn’t shove him away. It wasn’t his friends he was disgruntled about. Oh no, this morning had been fine, absolutely fine, until Seokjin had walked in. He sighed deeply and knew he had to come clean; at least Hoseok already sort of knew.
“I’m going to be very upfront and tell you I don’t have platonic feelings for Seokjin.” Yoongi waited for a reaction but was met with indifference before continuing, “In fact, we’ve been, um, actually dating for a few weeks now.”
“I mean, we kind of all guessed that. Maybe not the dating part, but definitely the feelings.” Hoseok supplied after a moment.
“Yeah, you both practically act like you’re married half the time.” Taehyung laughed and Yoongi scowled.
“It’s cute.” Hoseok cooed, and Yoongi swore on his life that when this potion faded, he was gonna thoroughly kick their asses.
“Okay, you know what’s not cute though? I’m already affectionate enough with Seokjin. This potion is literally compelling me to shove my tongue down his throat in class.” Yoongi felt a sick satisfaction in watching the other boys cringe in disgust.
“Gross! TMI! Didn’t need to know!” Taehyung yelled, covering his ears.
“Taehyung, how much aphrodisia did you put in this potion? Like measurement wise.” Hoseok asked, still somewhat scarred from the mental image Yoongi had given him.
“Let me see…” Taehyung closed his eyes, reviewing his notes in his head, “A tablespoon?”
“Taehyung.” Hoseok gasped, in admonishment and shock.
“What? I always put that much in mine. It’s never done anything.” He stared between the two confusedly.
“Taehyung you’re asexual, of course it wouldn’t do anything.” Yoongi deadpanned.
“Why do you even put it in your stuff?” Hoseok continued, still mildly shocked.
“It makes things taste like strawberries.” Taehyung mumbled.
“Alright, make note of this Taehyung. Your potion is a smashing success. Except next time, do not put copious amounts of aphrodisiac in it. Just add artificial sweetener or something.” Yoongi patted the boy’s shoulders and made his way to the stairwell, leaving the pair on the roof.
“Is a tablespoon really a lot?” He looked up sheepishly.
“Let’s just say I wouldn’t be surprised if Yoongi is headed to the bathroom to jack off right now.”
“Hoseok! Gross!”
---
Seokjin had watched, mildly startled, when Yoongi had all but ran away after class ended. He sighed and slumped in his seat, worrying his lip in thought. It was only a minute later that Hoseok got a text and then he and Taehyung were leaving as well. Taehyung. That could only mean one thing.
“Alright, what did Yoongi drink this time?” Seokjin asked, spinning around to stare at his remaining friends.
“A kind of love potion, right?” Jimin answered nervously under Seokjin’s heavy gaze.
“No, like. The way Tae explained it, it’s just supposed to amplify existing emotions of affection and stuff.” Jungkook added before a misunderstanding occurred.
“Wouldn’t that make it more of a truth serum then?” Namjoon asked curiously.
“Maybe, except it only works on emotions of love. But I guess Yoongi figured it out by the time you walked in Seokjin.” Jungkook shrugged, almost an apology.
“Oh please, he knew before that.” Seokjin scoffed, fighting back a smile.
“What? But he was totally acting all sappy with us.” Jimin muttered in confusion.
“That’s because he’s a total softy when it comes to Tae. He’ll drink just about anything to make the kid happy.” Seokjin smiled again; Yoongi had literally drank a potion that turned him into a frog once, just so Taehyung could see if a kiss would change him back. It didn’t, but it was still awfully cute.
“Then why did he stop the minute you joined us?” Namjoon asked, equally confused.
“Oh, I have a few guesses.” Seokjin smiled lightly and locked eyes with Jungkook, “Can I talk to you outside real quick?”
He got up and left the room swiftly, knowing the younger boy would follow him shortly. He was maybe the only member of their friend group he could be open with this about, since Yoongi wanted to keep their relationship private for the time being. Seokjin huffed and waited in the hallway, where Jungkook soon joined him, looking wary yet curious. He smiled slightly before speaking.
“Kookie, you know I’m dating your brother right?” He asked and the other boy scoffed good-naturedly.
“Well yeah, it’s kinda hard to miss. But Yoongi told me to keep quiet about it.” He smiled wryly, remembering the countless dates Yoongi snuck out to, telling him to never speak of them.
“Of course he did, he’s so shy about these things. Listen, did Taehyung specifically make that potion for Yoongi?” Seokjin rolled his eyes and got to the point.
“No, he made it for himself. Yoongi drank it on accident.” Jungkook explained, a silent question of why in his eyes.
“What did the potion smell like?” He asked slowly, somehow already anticipating the answer.
“Well...Yoongi totally thought it was coffee. Taehyung said it was strawberries. When I sniffed the thermos it smelled more like vanilla.” He answered after a while, shrugging.
“I see. Alright thank you Kookie. You can go now.” Seokjin sighed, leaning against the wall.
“Alright…” Jungkook hesitated before moving to head back inside.
“Oh, and don’t tell anyone else what you know, okay?” Seokjin reminded, not really needing to, but still taking the precaution.
“Yeah I know.” Jungkook smiled and rolled his eyes.
Seokjin fondly watched the boy walk away before sighing in the empty hallway. If the potion had been for Taehyung then he just knew the boy probably added way too much aphrodisiac and that was the main reason Yoongi had bolted. He briefly wondered if Yoongi had went home, just avoiding the entire day in general; then he remembered that he’d left all his stuff in the room and decided he was probably on the roof or something.
Maybe if he played this right, it could work out in their favor. When they’d finally confessed their feelings to each other (which was more of Yoongi stuttering and Seokjin watching him meltdown with amusement), he’d thought they would finally stop tip-toeing around each other. But then Yoongi had asked if they could keep things private, to not tell their friends for a little while. Seokjin knew it was because the other boy was incredibly shy about these sort of things, a sort of soft-side he didn’t like to display. He’d reluctantly agreed, letting him take his time, but it had almost been a month and Seokjin was getting tired of it.
But now, Yoongi had a potion coursing through him, one that made him a little too honest with his emotions. Maybe this was the push he finally needed to admit their relationship to the others. Plus, it wasn’t like they were fooling anyone. Seokjin was sure that maybe, probably, at least three of the five boys already knew, if not at least suspected something. He just shook his head and turned to walk towards the stairwell, determined to find Yoongi and work something out.
“Jin.” A voice croaked out and Seokjin looked up to see Yoongi frozen at the end of the hall.
Seokjin tried his best to hold back a laugh, but it was pretty difficult; Yoongi looked absolutely wrecked. From the looks of it, he’d just finished talking to Taehyung and probably knew exactly how screwed he was. He took a frantic look around to confirm the hall was empty before striding to Seokjin and pulling him into a searing kiss.
Seokjin let himself be pushed back into a wall, stunned by his quick movements, and still trying not to laugh. He felt himself melt into the kiss before long, finally moving to place his hand on the other’s hips. It only lasted a few more moments before Yoongi was breaking away, breathing heavily and leaning his head against Seokjin’s shoulder.
“A tablespoon. Taehyung put a whole tablespoon in that potion.” Yoongi whimpered and Seokjin actually did laugh this time.
“Honestly, I’m impressed you stopped.” The older commented, smoothing down his boyfriend’s pink locks.
“I’m just full of surprises.” Yoongi remarked sarcastically and Seokjin hummed.
“Well, so am I.” He smiled slyly when Yoongi looked up at that and started to tug him down the hallway.
“Jin, why are we walking towards a supply closet.” Yoongi commented dazedly, letting himself get dragged along.
Seokjin looked back and lifted an eyebrow, silently asking is that a problem?
And right now, no, it very much wasn’t. Who cares about dignity anyways?
---
The week passed by tamely after that first day. Everyone got used to Yoongi’s affections, which dwindled as the week wore on. However, everyone got a good laugh whenever Seokjin actively provoked Yoongi, reducing him to a red, grumbling mess.
They were caught making out in the stairwell quite a few times by nearly every member of their group, and once almost caught in the janitor’s closet by Jungkook; they tried to forget that moment all together. When they were finally cornered by their friends and collectively asked if they were actually a thing, Yoongi grumbled reluctantly while Seokjin smiled victoriously.
“We knew you guys had the hots for each other, but we didn’t know ya’ll were actually...like, for real dating.” Namjoon commented, an amused smile playing on his lips.
“We thought we’d have to perform an intervention to get you two to admit your feelings.” Jimin added, laughing at the way Yoongi continued to sulk.
“Jungkook, why didn’t you tell us you knew?!” Hoseok screeched playfully.
“Hey, I have some loyalty as a brother!” Jungkook countered, clutching his heart in mock insult, before murmuring, “Also, Yoongi inscribed a secrecy rune on me while I slept so I literally couldn’t.”
Everyone dissolved into fits of laughter at that and Yoongi slumped further in his seat. But it was hard to be mad when Seokjin reached over and gave his cheek a quick kiss and a smile that said ‘thank you’. It was hard to be mad when all his friends were nothing but supportive if a little embarrassing. Yoongi supposed he was happy, no longer carrying a secret out of pure stubbornness, and he glanced over at Taehyung where he sat perched on Jimin’s lap. Maybe one day he’d thank him, but for now he just started sketching out a rune in his book for future revenge.
----
Taehyung leaned against the railings on the roof, watching the sunset with a serene expression. Jimin stood next to him, watching the other boy more than the splash of colors on the horizon. His gaze flickered down to the boy’s wrists, where the outline of a fading rune was still present. Yoongi had taken revenge not long ago, inscribing a spell that turned Taehyung into his personal errand boy. It was a small mercy that it had only lasted three days, a sign that Yoongi wasn’t actually mad at the younger, rather just slightly disgruntled.
“I’m so glad that potion finally wore off. If I had to catch Yoongi with his tongue down Seokjin’s throat one more time…” Taehyung shuddered at the thought and Jimin laughed, snapping out of his reverie.
But that brought another question to his mind, and he mulled it over before deciding to ask.
“Tae, why do you put so much aphrodisiac in your potions anyways?” He asked quietly, watching him intently.
“I, uh, like I said. It tastes like strawberries.” Taehyung muttered, glancing around nervously.
“Yeah but so does adding julepleaf extract. And without the side effects on other people.” Jimin countered, expecting the worn-out excuse.
“Yeah I know.” Taehyung sighed, still avoiding eye contact.
“So?” He egged on, knowing the response but still hoping against it.
“I keep thinking that maybe if I drink enough, I’ll be able to feel...normal.” Taehyung looked up at this, hints of shame and embarrassment evident in his eyes.
“Taehyung.” Jimin frowned, hesitating a bit before reaching out for the other.
“I know, I know it’s stupid and everyone says there’s nothing wrong with me, but still Jimin, I just-” Taehyung stuttered nervously, cutting off when Jimin wrapped his arms around him.
“No. No buts Tae. I love you just the way you are. You don’t have to change anything for me.” He said softly, pulling back so he could look him in the eye. Taehyung didn’t flinch away this time, just stared at him in surprise and just a bit of doubt. Jimin detached himself but laced their fingers together.
“Just this, right here. This is enough for me.” He declared, lifting their joined hands up, pressing a feather-light kiss to his boyfriend’s knuckles.
“Forever?” Taehyung whispered, biting his lip to hold back tears. Jimin smiled and didn’t hesitate.
“Forever and ever.”