Chapter Text
Your expectations came to differ severely upon finally meeting Seven in person. You admired his sense of justice for trying to assure your safety, although he made it very clear he had no intentions of ever pursuing a personal relationship with you.
Seven was surprised his warnings didn't seem to break your spirit; if he wanted you to keep your distance, then it was fine. That still didn't change the way you felt towards him, nor did it stop you from trying to understand his troubled mind.
I was born like a stickleback. I'm someone who hurts people who come closer to me. So, please deal with your useless feelings towards me. I'm not a good man. Good people like you shouldn't be with me. . . I'm sorry I have to say this. You deserve someone better.
With every venomous word that left his mouth, that caring about him was a waste or when he continuously persisted in saying he didn't care about your feelings, you could see the struggle he seemed to have in his mind. You saw the hurtful looks he gave you, the regret he must've felt of ever trying to push you away.
All of your attempts at trying to grasp at his heart, to try to reassure him he would not be forgotten by any of the RFA members; for all the shouting and racing hearts, they did not go unnoticed by him. And honestly? You were making this whole situation difficult for him.
Seven was the cheerful persona you came to fall for, not Saeyoung Choi. And he kept trying to convince himself of that. But he could notice the way you looked at him; even with all the harsh words he yelled to make you back off, you'd still greet him with the warmest smiles. And it drove him insane.
You knew how much of a mess he must've been feeling like, considering this whole situation with Saeran. Surely, people cope with their issues differently, but he was shattering to pieces. All you wanted to do was try to help him, but your advances were awfully denied.
Even so, your morale grew to a point, until Saeyoung hit his breaking point. He wanted to make you happy, but he simply couldn't. He didn't want you to spend your days after someone who could just as easily put you in danger, so he stopped. It was useless.
No matter how much he persisted in trying to push you away, your feelings for him did not falter. Saeyoung felt awful at his poor choice of actions all this time, but he tried. He tried to lead you into a better life, one where you wouldn't be hurt if your significant other ever came to disappear and be forgotten throughout the years. . .
Seven was a persona. Nothing but a fake identity, which could just easily be erased by the agency he worked for, and it would go unnoticed by many. And he was fine with it. He had signed up to that kind of treatment.
What he didn't expect, though, was that someone would come to care so deeply about him. Someone who wanted to spend the rest of their days by his side. Nonsense. But what else could he do? He had so recklessly fallen for you.
Even after all this time trying to play with your feelings, all his failed attempts in trying to make you hate him, Saeyoung figured he'd give himself a chance to be stupid. His job was dangerous, yes, but he swore to himself he'd give his own life to protect you.
And when you said the famous three words, he knew he wasn't wrong for trying to accept his feelings. Once the conflict with Mint Eye ever came to an end, he promised you he would try his best to make you happy.
Even with his Midas touch, he knew he didn't have to try so hard to do so; you loved him and he loved you, too.