Hooked | JJK | Twelve

  Pair: UndergroundFighter!Jungkook x f!reader 

Summary: Walking away from your brother was never what you intended, you just wanted to run from the ghosts of your past. But now you’re back home and ready to pick things up from where you left off. If only things could be that easy, right? 

There’s a new guy living in your house, your brother’s best friend, someone you can’t help but grow close to. And the more you find out about him, the more you learn about yourself. An underground fight club, a newspaper competition, an overprotective brother and secrets you can’t seem to escape from. Did you make the right decision by coming back? Or did you just put yourself and those you love in danger? 

Genre: Series, fluff, smut, angst. All the aus: non-idol, underground fighter, brother’s best friend, roommates, rap-scene, chaebol. 

Chapter warning: What a wild ride of a chapter! Can you pick up all the clues?

WC: 7.6k

 JULY 06TH | 22:49

You wouldn’t say it was easy to fall into a rhythm while working at the Circle, but you were trying your hardest. You survived your first week and a half on the job, so that should count for something. 

Every night before bed you’ve been studying the drinks’ menu and you’ve been trying them out more and more; Chaeyoung always watched over you and gave you tips on how to make them faster and taste better, which you were always thankful for. 

You also didn’t get as lost underground as you thought you might, even if you were mostly accompanied by either Jeongguk or Lisa while venturing backstage. 

This time around, you didn’t need the girls' help getting ready anymore –besides asking for a little hand when tying the back of your floral corset–, and the makeup littered on your vanity table was your own. The lipstick written message for Sooya was long gone and you had a polaroid picture of your friends from NYC stuck in a corner of the mirror now. 

Working at a place like this, you wouldn’t feel comfortable having a picture from your local friends exposed like that, you never knew who could be looking for trouble. These friends were far away enough that their identities would remain a secret, but seeing their smiling faces always brought warmth to your heart. 

“I’m going up to open the bar, are you guys ready?” Lisa announced, always acting like your leader. 

“Are we late? I still have to pee.” Jennie complained, fixing one of her perfect braids for the thousandth time. 

“Go pee, then! You always leave it to the last minute!” Lisa, who tonight was sporting a bright pink wig and burlesque-esque makeup, was waving for her friend to hurry. 

“I’ll come up with you, I’m done here.” Chaeyoung got up after Jennie rushed out the door. “Yn, you good if we go?” 

“Yeah, I just need to touch up, I’ll be there in less than five.” you promised, searching a drawer for the necklace you needed to wear tonight. 

The girls left you alone after that, closing the door behind themselves. You felt a small tug of excitement at the pit of your stomach every night. One that reminded you a lot of the pre-stage jitters that you felt right before the start of one of the few school-plays you were a part of growing up. 

Moonbyul was very particular about how you girls dressed, every piece on your body was supposed to tell a story or send a message. Cheyoung had forgotten to wear a specific earring one night and she got an earful because of that. You couldn’t find the lacy choker that was sent along with your costume for tonight, so you’d rather be late than missing something from the outfit. 

You got up from your vanity to check the clothing rack where Solar placed the clothing and accessories for each girl every night, finding only bare hangers and empty accessory bags. 

In your mind you were already blaming Jennie for your missing necklace, god and the devil knew she didn’t make your life in the Circle any easier. But then you saw a small string of white on the floor, breathing in relief as you recognized it as what you were looking for. 

As you reached out to pick it up, you heard the voice before you heard the door even open:

“That’s a nice ass view.” 

“Jesus!” you jumped, turning around with a hand on your heart. 

“Or should I just say a nice ass?” Jeongguk was grinning from ear to ear, walking into the room he was very much not allowed to be in and closing the door. 

“Oh, you’re really proud of that one, aren’t you?” you sent him squinty eyes as you tried to get your heart under control. “What are you doing here?” 

“I came after my good luck kiss.” 

If the luck was his, you weren’t sure. Not after seeing what he was wearing. 

Jeongguk had been dressed in tight black pants that left nothing to the imagination, black rider boots that went almost all the way to his knees. His torso was only covered by a cropped blazer that only started a couple fingers above his belly button and didn’t cover his chest all the way, allowing you to see the glistening body chain that connected his thich neck to his small waist. 

“I might give you more than a kiss.” you thought out loud, letting him step closer to you. “You think we can ask Moonbyul to keep this chain?” 

“You like it?” he asked with a crooked smile, holding your corseted waist to pull you closer. 

“I do.” you nodded, looking up to watch his face as he was still taller than you, and even more with the heels of his cunty boots. 

While some of the other girls were put in higher heels sometimes, you were kept in kitten-heels or short wedges, all to make you have that innocent look about you. 

“I can try and pull a few strings.” he shrugged nonchalantly. “Won’t be the first time a piece goes missing from the wardrobe room.” 

“Stealing hearts and body chains tonight, huh?” you giggled, lifting off the choker you were still holding onto. “Help me with this? I don’t have much time until I’m actually late.” 

“You’re the main attraction, you’re never late.” Jeongguk buttered you up, but took the lace from your hand. 

You turned away from him to face your vanity mirror and hold your hair up –tonight you had two string bows placed on the back of your head to hold your bangs away from your face– and Jeongguk stood behind you. 

He was looking at your reflection in the mirror as he placed the choker around your neck, holding it against your skin before asking: 

“Is this tight enough, dove?” his breath was kissing your skin, making your eyes flutter. 

“Just a little mo–” you gasped as Jeongguk clasped the choker around your throat tight enough that you would feel it all night. 

It wasn’t cutting your air or the blood flow by any means, but it was deliciously uncomfortable. If anything, you’d be thinking about Jeongguk’s hand around your neck every time you felt the little tug. And that was enough to make your lower belly warm. 

You let go of your hair just so that Jeongguk could push it to the side to press his lips just under your ear and above the choker, peppering kisses before opening his lips to draw a wet circle on the spot with his tongue. 

With wobbling knees, you turned around and wrapped your arms around his shoulders, searching for his mouth. Jeongguk’s lips parted as soon as yours touched and his hands went for your ass and he lifted you up to sit you on top of your vanity, practically kicking the stuffed bench out of the way. 

“Well, well, well.” a third voice filled the room, mortifying you more than Jeongguk’s had a few moments ago. “Why did I know I’d find you here, Gukkah?” 

“Nothing to see here, hyung.” the man replied to Hatter, but you were already moving out of the vanity. 

“On the contrary,” the eccentric man was leaning against the open door, arms crossed. “In fact, I think I could charge more for this than the fights.” 

“Sorry, we were just leaving.” your lie was so obvious it made Hatter laugh. 

“Sure you were, little thing.” he shook his head, but if Jeongguk minded the slight endearment in which he regarded you, he didn’t show. “You should fix your lipstick before doing that.”

You cursed internally and bent to look at your face in the vanity mirror. You weren’t looking so bad, but your gloss was lighter and smeared in a corner. A you searched for the same clear color to touch it up, Jeongguk fixed his clothes and looked at the manager in questioning. 

“Someone’s here for you.” was all Hatter said, which seemed to be enough for Jeongguk to know what it was about. 

“Be right there.” Jeongguk told him, but Hatter didn’t move. With a huff, your man turned to you to say: “I’ll see you after the fight, pretty girl.” 

“Be safe.” you asked, heart on his hands. “I need that face when you’re done.” 

“Where do you need it?” Hatter asked, tonguing the inside of his cheek. 

You rolled your eyes as you pushed past the two men, hearing Hatter’s cackling as you rushed out of the dressing room. He didn’t budge when you told him to ‘not be disgusting’, but his comment didn’t exactly offend you either. 

From everyone you’ve met in the Circle so far, you thought this man would have been the last one you would ever warm up to. Now, not even two full weeks later, you didn’t hate him. At all. Not after seeing first hand how he looked after his fighters, much like Hwasa took care of her girls. 

Knowing he’d been the one to pull Wonho away from Jeongguk, as soon as he saw Guk was hurt, also gave him some extra points in your book. 

By the time you made it up the hidden stairs and out onto the main floor of the Circle, a few regulars were already mingling, some of them with drinks in their hands and others making their way to the betting booth. 

All three girls behind the bar sent you all kinds of looks, but didn’t comment on you being a few minutes late. Seamlessly, you sneaked under the bar door and took your spot next to Lisa. 

The beginning of the night was either nice and calm, or hyper. There was no in between. Tonight it started out slow, as the favorite fighters wouldn’t be on until later in the night. Unfortunately for you and your worried heart, Jeongguk would be fighting tonight. 

He had already told you the name of his opponent, a man stage-called Bambam. Guk also warned you that the guy might be fast and look a little menacing, but it was all for show. They might not be as close as he was to Mingyu, but there was no bad blood between them. 

Sometimes that was all you had to hold onto, when it came to this underground fighting ring. 

“Oh no, here comes your future husband, Jen.” Chaeyoung spoke behind a hand, making all of you lift your eyes from what you were doing to see the older man approaching the bar. 

One second Jennie looked like she was going to throw up, and the next she was greeting her most loyal customer with that pearly white smile and bending over the counter to give him her full attention. 

You might not like her all that much, or nothing at all, but you had to admit it. She was good at separating the job from her personality. And, if you wanted to make it anywhere in this workplace, you had to be a little more like her. 

Since you were the newest girl, compared to the other three, you didn’t have your own regulars yet, but being the ‘new face’ also meant that you awakened the curiosity of men and women who’d been here many times before. 

“Oh, hi!” you had your hands on your back as a suit cladded man approached your area of the bar. You remembered seeing him around, but he usually went for Jennie or Chaeyoung; likely only coming to you because both of them were busy. 

“I don’t think I’ve met you before.” he stated, accent reminding you a little of the south of the country. 

It was also part of the job to entertain a conversation before even getting to offering a drink. “You never spared me a second glance before.” you pushed a pout onto your lips, knowing your makeup made your eyes look rounder. Tilting your head, you asked: “Won’t you ask me my name, oppa?” 

You were aware of Hwasa’s eyes on you just directly from the bar; the woman was always near at the start of the night to make sure everything was running smoothly. After your nerve-filled first night, she had given you some pointers in how to improve your performance. Some of which you were applying right now. 

Play the sweetheart. Bat your eyes. Call them ‘oppa’, they go crazy for it. 

Incredibly, it worked every time. The man laughed and rested both elbows on the bar top. Instead of facing outward, now you had his undivided attention. 

“What might be a fitting name for such a beauty?” he challenged with an arching brow and you took a step closer. 

You hated this part most of all. “I’m Dove.” always following up with: “What can I get you started with?” 

“I’ll take a whisky neat.” the man told you as his eyes stared at the small heart pendant snug against your throat. “Gimme the best of the house, will you, darling?” 

“Would I dare offer you any less, sir?” you batted your eyes before turning around to serve the drink. 

If only Yoongi could see you now, serving a grubby man the alcohol he taught you how to drink when you’d just turned eighteen. He’d surely agree with Namjoon and lock you up for good. 

The patron still stuck around for a few moments after you served his drink, only really exiting the bar when the first fight was announced. Not only did he leave your mason jar with a chunky bill, it also had his business card in between; should you ever want to contact him again. 

It surprised you when it happened the first time, to see these men so openly reveal their names and workplaces just like that. You wondered if they feared one of you might go on their social pages and contact their wives or family members, tell them about what they were doing so late at night before coming home. 

Did they feel untouchable? Like their money automatically bought your silence? Or did they think the four of you were really as harmless as you looked? 

Damn, you wished you had your phone on you to write down notes for your article. 

“So what are we all doing this weekend?” Lisa asked once the attention had turned to the fight happening downstairs. “I was thinking of going shopping. I’m running out of a few makeup things.”

“We should totally go to Myeongdong for a shopping spree, my tips have been raining this week.” Chaeyoung hadn’t turned down a single outing if it involved shopping. Not that you blamed her, she seemed like the favorite amongst your clients, getting more attention than even Jennie.  

“Isn’t there where Kookie works?” Jennie pitched in at the mention of the neighborhood where Bangtan Ink was located. “I’m always up for a shopping day with my girls.”

“What do you think, Dove?” Lisa turned to you, friendly despite Jennie’s twisted nose upon hearing the invitation. “Want to come with us?”

You usually stayed in your corner when the three of them made weekend plans. No one ever went out of their way to include you. So it surprised you to hear Lisa specifically ask you; and you would have said yes, too, if you didn’t already have plans.  

“Sorry, I won’t be around this weekend.” you stopped making the drink you were creating in order to reply. It didn’t belong to any client, but you liked to make a different cocktail everyday, just to train your skills. “I’m going to Jeju with some friends.” 

“Ugh, so jealous!” Chaeyoung entered the conversation. “Is it a romantic getaway?”

“Not quite, my brother will be there.” you smiled when you added: “But Guk is coming too, so I guess?” 

“Is that why he’s been running around so excited then?” Lisa had her hip against the counter and it made you happy how Guk’s sudden happiness and good mood was apparent to everyone.  

“Yeah, but it’s not because of me.” you dismissed it, starting to work on your drink again. “You guys know about J-fest?” 

“Is it that musical festival on the island?” Chaeyoung was nodding. “This girl I dated wanted to go to that one time, but hotels and accommodations were so expensive we gave up.”  

“The very same.” you told her as you plucked a mint leaf from the stem and used it to decorate your creation. “My brother and his friends are headlining, so Guk is doing a special feature.” 

“You’re gonna have so much fun.” Lisa smiled, getting a water bottle to sip. “When we go back to the dressing room, I’ll follow you on instagram. I need to see all of the pics.”

“Sounds good.” you easily agreed, bringing the cocktail to your lips for the first experimental taste. Unfortunately everything about the taste felt wrong. Your whole face was scrunched up as you offered Lisa the cup. “Can you try this? I don’t think this is right.”

She promptly received the drink and took a long sip, and you knew the only reason she didn’t spit it out was because she was a classy lady. “Oh, that’s horrible. What were you trying to make?” 

“A Moscow Mule.” you deflated as you watched Lisa hand the cup over to Chaeyoung. 

“Did you put orange juice instead of lemon juice?” the blonde girl asked you after tasting it herself. 

“Uh, I put coconut water.” 

“That was for the gin, not the moscow.” Chaeyoung told you, but at least she did it kindly. Jennie, on the other hand, let out a mocking snicker.

“Shit. I thought I was getting better.” you looked at your messy workstation, thinking about how much alcohol and ingredients you wasted. 

“You are! You didn’t mess up any of the orders of the patrons!” Lisa encouraged you promptly. 

And then Jennie was adding her own two scents” 

“Maybe playing dumb will get youtvetter tips.” 

Lisa hushed her friend, but there wasn’t much she could do. It wasn't a secret to anyone that the two of you didn’t get along. And you were open to being the bigger woman and let your reservations behind you if it meant you could be civil with each other. 

It was her that made it difficult! 

“Can I walk the floor tonight?” you asked Lisa, offering to do something you rarely ever wanted to do. But you did have ulterior motives tonight. 

“Yeah, I'll go with you.” she agreed in a heartbeat. 

But the whole thing had Jennie whining: “Hey, I'm the one who walks the floor with you!” 

“When you're being nice.” the leader sent her a look that left nothing open to discussion. 

Before anyone could say anything, and before Lisa could change her mind, you slipped out of the bar and fixed your clothes. You had to resist the urge to pick on your tiny black shorts to try and pull them down to cover more of your ass, but it would be useless. 

Lisa went in one direction and you went to the other; both putting on your friendliest faces to make sure the customers were happy and inviting them back to the bar for more drinks. 

At least that’s half of what you were doing. 

You realized on your second day on the job that these people liked to talk. Even if they didn’t know the person watching the fight beside them, patrons still gossiped about their mistresses and jobs and high positions in society. It made you consider ordering a tiny recorder online, one that you could add to your clothes and pick up on the conversations around you. But you didn’t think you were that invested into this article to dive that deep, merely memorizing the most interesting things you heard. 

“Dove?” Hwasa called to you as soon as you finished inviting a beautiful red-head woman back to the bar while the second fight didn’t start. 

“Hi, unnie.” you turned to your boss, stomach doing a little flip as you worried she might have complaints. 

“I’m watching you.” she said, making your blood run cold, like you’ve just been caught. And then she smiled and fixed a strand of your hair. “Keep going, you’re doing great.” 

“Oh, thank you so much.” you replied through a wheeze. 

As you walked away from Hwasa, you had a weirdly proud feeling in your tummy. As if you wanted to do a good job, as if you wanted to do well and belong here. Not in order to keep your undercover safe so you could finish writing the article, but so you could just… Stay. 

Were you not praised enough as a child? Well, coming from a home where ‘exceeding expectations’ equaled ‘you’re not doing more than what’s expected of you’, that was a very high probability. 

“SECOND MATCH: JUNG KOOK versus BAMBAM.” 

As the fight was announced, the slight coldness in your stomach turned into a full on iceberg. Up until that moment you hadn’t made up your mind whether or not you would watch Jeongguk’s fight tonight, but you found yourself moving closer to the railing to find a spot. 

Both men were already taking up their spots in the hay covered circle, Hatter walking off to start the countdown. You had to bite your lip to stop yourself from making noises once both men lunged for each other as soon as the ding! marked the start of the match. 

Jeongukk was considerably more muscular, but similar in height to his opponent. Somehow that made Bambam a little faster on his feet, or Guk was taking way too long to react to the punches aimed his way. 

Everyone felt the same way as you, apparently, as cheers for your man quickly turned into tips on how to move faster, punch harder, or ‘kick his ass’, as if any of the patrons knew what they were talking about. 

You knew that Jeongguk was one of the favorite fighters and it was a full house every time his name was announced in the line up, but none of that calmed your heart any better. Not when–

“Oh, shit!” the man standing next to you cursed before laughing maniacally and clapping when Bambam hit Jeongguk straight in the stomach.  

You felt like you were going to be sick, looking up and away from the fight. 

Maybe it was a mere coincidence, or maybe your eyes and brain looked for something familiar to focus on and shield yourself from watching the man you care about get hurt. But that’s when you saw them; the woman, Mrs. Lee, and the man Cheyoung told you about. Shaking hands and smiling as if closing a deal. 

“MATCH ENDED. BAMBAM WINS!”

Everything around you was passing in a slow-motion blur. Patrons yelling about their losses, others celebrating the surprising turn of events and unexpected results. Girls gushing about cleaning the sweat of both fighters. 

And you. 

Hands stuck to the railing as you gripped the iron bars so strongly that your knuckles were white. Breath coming out of your lungs as if you, too, had gotten punched in the gut. Eyes wide as you looked down in time to see Hatter and Mingyu picking up Jeongguk’s limp body from the floor. 

The sight shocked you with a burst of adrenaline, as if the railings were suddenly filled with electricity and burnt your skin. You didn’t think about warning the girls that you were going somewhere, nor did you care that Hwasa was probably still watching as you ran off, bumping into paying patrons in the process. 

You pushed through the emergency hidden doors that led backstage, ones you had been highly warned that had to remain a secret and weren’t to be used during working hours. You were a woman on a mission as you blindly ran down the stairs and reached for the door with the sign that read: ‘FIGHTER’S DRESSING ROOM’. 

“Wow, calm down, you’re gonna hurt yourself–” Hatter was walking off as you were walking in, holding your arms with a firm grip to stop you from bumping heads. 

“Not now, please, I need to see him!” you rushed, trying to walk past him, but the man wasn’t having it. 

“Hey, hey–” he held you in place, but you could see his face was worried and not annoyed. “He’s okay! Guk’s fine, he’s all good, I promise.”

You didn’t know if you could take his words as gospel truth, but as soon as you calmed down an inch, holding back your own outburst, Hatter stepped out of your line of vision to allow you to see the rest of the changing room. 

That’s when you saw Jeongguk standing up and laughing along with Mingyu, Bambam and the one you remember being called Woozi. The three of them were talking animatedly as if they were just friends catching up, not as if Jeongguk just had to be carried out of the ring. 

“See? Not even a scratch.” Hatter assured you, letting go of your arms and patting your shoulders. “It was all fake.” 

JULY 07TH | 03:06

You hadn’t seen Jeongguk again ever since catching a glimpse of him after the fight. Not by a fault of his own, but you were avoiding him. 

While you were relieved to see him doing well, that he didn’t pass out and that no damage had been done to your lover, you didn’t know how you would react when seeing him again. 

You weren’t mad at him. But you were upset that he left you in the dark, when he knew you would worry for him, when Jeongguk didn’t think about how you would feel when seeing him play dead. 

You were conflicted to say the least, and you didn’t want to talk to him before you figured out your own feelings. Because you didn’t want to fight, but you also didn’t want to swallow said feelings as if everything was pretty and dandy. 

You were the first girl inside the dressing room and the first one out, only changing your costume for your regular clothes and taking off all of the jewelry you needed to give back every night. You didn’t stick around enough to take your makeup off, rushing out of the building and perching your properly-covered-ass on the bus stop bench. 

And then you heard the car approach, not needing to look to know who was behind the wheel. 

“Here you are! I’ve been looking all over for you.” Jeongguk had the driver’s window rolled down, engine roaring on his new car. “Baby?” 

You crossed your arms to hold yourself, to hold your ground, facing the other way and not even looking at the man. The engine sound died and you heard the opening and closing of the car door. 

“Come one, let’s go home.” Jeongguk approached you, but you didn’t turn your face. 

“I’m not getting in on that.” you sounded like a pouty child and you were very aware of that. 

“Why not?”

“Because I know how you got it.” you mumbled. “I’m taking the bus.” 

“Baby, there are no more buses at this hour.” he softened, crouching down in front of you, hands resting on your knees.  

“Oh.”

“How do you think I got this car?” he asked with a squeeze to your knees, encouraging you to open up. 

“You lost the fight on purpose so that guy from last week could bet against you and win all of the money.” you told him quietly, finally giving in and looking at him. 

And Jeongguk was so beautiful, with eyes that reminded you of a deer and that sparkled with everything around them. But you could see a reddened spot on his cheek and it broke your heart all over again.

“Okay, so you do know.” he was surprised.  

“Yeah. And I don’t know how I feel about it, so until I do.” you trailed out, crossing your arms again. 

“You're gonna wait five hours for the bus?” Jeongguk looked endeared of all things,

“I'm gonna walk.” you decided, standing up and marching away from the bus stop.  

Jeongguk stammered not to lose his balance and stood up, following after you with a tiny jog. 

“You’re gonna walk all the way to Hanam?”

“I'll make it there in less than five hours.” your answer made Jeongguk chuckle.  

“Baby, why does it bother you so much?” with legs as long as his, Jeongguk could easily catch up to you, but he chose to keep a slower pace and give you space. “Would you like it better if the fights are real and I’m actually at risk?” 

“No, of course not.” you stopped walking to turn around and face him. 

“Then why are you mad?”

“I'm not mad. I’m confused, okay?” you took a big breath, trying to get your head into place. And then your mouth was doing the talking: “I'm confused because I should hate that place, but I don’t. You kept telling me to be scared, but I'm not. I should hate the fights and be glad some of it is fake but– that’s not ethical. It’s not fair.”  

“You're a good person for thinking that way.” Jeongguk was suddenly towering over you, holding your face with both hands so you wouldn’t run from his eyes this time. “I was too. I didn't agree with it either.”

“Guk, you are still good.” you told him, holding his wrists.  

“Maybe so, but my morals have changed.” he continued, letting go of your face to hold your hands. “I don’t care about manipulating the results if we get something in return, not anymore. And I know that it was that place that changed me. I'm not worried that you're not gonna like the people there because most of them are good people. But I don't want it to change you.”

His words settled within you with heaviness. You were starting to realize that maybe your ideas about the place were filled with prejudice, maybe you understood his worries all wrong. Maybe you were all wrong in coming into this thinking you would unmask a laundering money scheme or something worse. 

“Please, you're cold.” he insisted, wanting to get you away from the street. 

“I’m fine.” you were stubborn, but starting to give up your fight.  

“Dove, please.” 

It didn’t take much more than the batting of his eyes and a tiny pout for you to be convinced that your battle was lost from the start. Your shoulders sagged and you gave him a small nod, letting him lead you back to his new ride. 

The vehicle was a vintage model in bright blue, the collector’s kind that reminded you of Hoseok’s. But it only had two doors and the front was a little more elongated than the back. 

Jeongguk walked with you to the passenger’s side and opened the door for you, waiting for you to sit down before he could walk around it and sit behind the wheel. 

“It is a nice car.” you admitted begrudgingly as you turned around to drop your bag onto the narrow back seat. 

“Thanks, you can name her if you want to.” Jeongguk offered in an attempt to butter you up, but you were already denying it as you put your seatbelt on.

“I want nothing to do with this.” 

Jeongguk shook his head, but he clearly didn’t take offense to your small bursts of attitude, more than used to your feisty nature in situations you weren’t expecting. You guessed he understood that having to fend for yourself from a very early age, where your brother was the only parental figure you had to depend on, made you set in your own ways most of the time. But he still knew your sweet side, saw your vulnerability like few of your friends ever had. 

And you didn’t think it was a bad thing. 

“What else are you thinking about?” he asked to fill the silence as he drove through the empty streets of downtown Seoul. 

“Did you let Doona pimp you out?” your question made him laugh and you didn’t like how it had you fighting to suppress your own. 

“Is that what's really been bothering you, baby?” one of his hands let go of the steering wheel to rest on your thigh.   

“I’m not jealous of her.” you told him quickly, not wanting him to think that’s what this was. “I'm just wondering what other kinds of flavors you've done for her before.”

“This wasn't about doing Mrs. Lee a favor, this was about the car.” he replied, stopping at a red light. 

“Did you want this car that bad?” you looked at him, ready to hear him out. 

“I want your brother’s approval when we tell him.” his fingers flexed on your leg as he started to drive again. “And I didn’t want him to use my ‘dangerous vehicle’ as an excuse to stop me from taking you around.” 

You were rolling your eyes, but it was aimed at your sibling and not at Jeongguk. Namjoon did have the tendency to complain about Guk’s motorbike, complete with numbers and statistics of survival rates when it came to bike accidents. But he couldn’t forbid you from riding with Jeongguk, he hadn’t tried to do so in ages. 

Still, you understood why Guk might want to cover that base before it even became a real issue. 

Instead of going straight ahead on the road that would lead to your shared home, Jeongguk took a turn to go to the park where you used to take Bam for walks. Just like that night at the bottom of the Namsan Tower, the parking lot was empty, but neither of you made a move to step out. 

You could tell this wasn’t meant for a night stroll in the park, but to give you two more time to settle together before going home where you’d be forced to step into your separate bedrooms. 

The car was turned off and Jeongguk took off his seatbelt, and you followed right after, turning slightly so you could face him better. 

“I also want him to know I’m able to provide for you–”

“Guk, I can provide for myself.” you stopped him, but he raised a hand to defend his thinking.  

“I know, I know! I’m not saying that you can’t, and I won’t take away your independence or pay for everything in our future.” he explained and your heart was a little too happy about the mention of ‘our future’.  

“Thank you.” 

“But I’m a guy, too, you know.” he shrugged, puffing his chest, which you found cute. “I know how he thinks. If you were my sister, I would like to know you’re with a good guy who can take care of you.” 

“I am with a good guy who can take care of me.” you smiled, moving just a little closer on the front bench of the car so your knee could touch his. And then you added, abashed: “Don’t tell my feminism, but what you just said was very attractive.” 

Jeongguk laughed, fixing everything that was wrong in the world. 

“What are you going to tell my brother, then? About this car?” you wanted to know.  

“I’ll tell him I bought it.” the boy bit the inside of his lips like he did when he was nervous. “If he asks how I got the money, I’ll say I’m selling my drawings online and people are starting to pay well.” 

“You should do that anyway, your art is great.”

“Thanks, dove.” he smiled, carrying on: “I’ll also tell him I'm saving up to get my own place again.” 

“Are you?” you asked, surprised. Jeongguk nodded and you didn’t know how to feel about it. “Guk, no one is in any rush for you to move out. I know for a fact that Joon loves having you around. I kinda like it, too.” 

“I know.” he smiled at your ‘playing it cool’. “But once we tell him about us, he might become a little more strict.”

You snickered. “More?!” 

“Oh, yeah.” Guk snorted, as if he had a whole theory behind it. “‘Not while you're under my roof’ kind of thing. Which I respect.” 

“Yeah, I wouldn’t like to be living with my brother and his girlfriend either.” you agreed, thinking about it and twisting your nose in the process. “Oh god, imagine getting up in the middle of the night and hearing them going at it?! That’s traumatic shit right there.”

“So if I do get my own place, you can come over as much as you want and we won't have to worry about any of that.” ever the man with a plan, your Jeon Jeongguk. “I've started looking, but all of the spaces I can afford for now won't allow a dog Bam’s size.” 

“He can stay with me, you know? If you find a good place that cant take him.” in fact, you were sad to see both of them go, but Bammie was a dear part of your life now and he felt like your dog too. “I’m quite fond of Bam and I think he should have as much space as he does now.” 

“I know that's an option and I appreciate it.”

As much as you would miss Jeongguk once he moved out, you could see how things might get a little easier for the two of you if he had his own place. 

“I mean, it will be nice to not have to worry about my brother catching us.” you pondered, looking around the car as you realized something. “Mhm.” 

“What is it?” Jeongguk was watching you. 

“Just realized something.” you said, leaning closer to him. “My brother won't catch us now.” 

“Don't play with me.” Guk closed his eyes as he laughed shortly.  

“Who said I'm playing?” in fact, you were very serious about this. “You wanna make out?” 

“Another perk of having a car, I guess.”

“I don't know, you were pretty hot laying me on your bike that other night.”

It was like something had switched between the two of you, a tension that wasn’t there before, but one you could easily fix. Jeongguk moved even closer to you, sitting in the middle of the dark leather bench. His eager hands were reaching for your leg to pull it over his lap. You sat on his legs, straddling him and resting your hands on his chest. 

“Can I ask you for a favor?” you whispered as you faced him, softly touching his cheek.  

“Right now, you can ask me anything.” he didn’t wince as you ran your thumb over the barely there bruise.  

“Next time you fight, tell me if you're going to fake it.” you leaned closer to press a gentle kiss over the red spot. “I was really worried for a moment there.”

“Yeah, I’m sorry about that,” his eyes closed and his hands squeezed your hips. “I should have.” 

“Thank you.”

You studied his face as Jeongguk stayed there with eyes closed, breathing softly, waiting for your next move. It made you smile to have him under you like this, willing to follow your lead when you were so used to having him take charge. It made a whole new excitement pool in your belly. 

You moved your hand from his cheek to the side of his neck and then to his nape. You were close enough to press your lips on the corner of his mouth, pulling back to kiss his jaw, dragging your lips in the direction of his ear, down to his neck. Jeongguk was all but shuddering underneath you, fingers flexing against your skin. 

Your mouth opened slightly for you to drag your tongue on his neck, flicking it against his skin and tasting the saltiness of the remaining sweat from his fight. Images of him getting hurt and laying on the hay floor invaded your mind, making you gasp against his throat and grasp him harder, pushing yourself closer. 

As if to remind yourself that he was fine, he was here. And he was yours. 

Jeongguk was breathing heavily as he held the back of your neck, guiding your face to his, resting his forehead against yours. 

“I like you so much.” you whined quietly, almost like a cry, eyes closed and heart beating against his chest. “So much, Guk.” 

“I know, baby.” he hushed you, knowing all your wordless worries. “I like you just as much. Maybe even more.”

“Don’t start with me now.” you smiled reluctantly, eyes still closed. 

“Or what?” he challenged you, lips dragging on yours. 

“Or I’m gonna have to prove you wrong.” 

Your words were followed by the swivel of your hips, bringing you impossibly closer to him. It wasn’t the best feeling in the world, both of your jeans rubbing together, when you knew how it felt to have nothing at all. But it was exciting and it made you feel young; like you were a teenager again, making out with your crush, hiding from the world. 

Jeongguk’s fingers went into your hair to hold you where he wanted, tilting your head with a little pull so he could finally, properly, kiss you. You opened your mouth with a small breath, allowing him to lick into your mouth and following his lead. His lips were moving slowly and smacking against yours as the kiss grew heated and sloppy. 

The hand that was still on your hips traveled up your spine, bringing shivers all over your body, before coming down to your ass. Jeongguk filled his hand with your jean-clad ass and squeezed it hard enough to have you moaning into his mouth. You pressed your thighs around his, rolling your hips in back and forth movements that didn’t stop. 

“Oh, fuck–” he cursed against your mouth, too distracted to keep up with the kiss. 

You nodded in agreement, taking his bottom lip between yours and giving it a noisy suckle. You whined when you felt the lack of his piercing, missing the way it used to catch between your teeth as you bit down. 

“Would you ever consider getting your tongue pierced?” you asked, following it up with a teasing lick against his lips. 

“You think you’d like that?” he replied with another question and squeeze on your ass. 

“Very much so.” both of your hands were holding onto his neck as you started to move your hips just a little faster. 

Jeongguk was hard in his pants, you could feel the thickness with every drag of your clothed core. You weren’t any better as you felt yourself clench around nothing, pitifully empty as you dry humped. 

“I can’t think of a few places where it would feel nice.” you moaned around the words as the hand that was on your neck traveled to the front of your body to slip under your shirt. 

“Tell me.” 

“I would like to suck on it.” you started off your list, throwing your head back as Jeongguk attacked your neck with his lips and grabbed a fistful of your tits. “To feel it around my nipples, making them hard–” 

“Mhmm, go on.” he challenged, raising his hips to press even harder against you, making you whine. 

“Want it licking down my body,” your eyes were closed as you found the perfect angle that pressed your middle against his erection, your clit feeling swollen and so fucking happy for all the pressure. “Licking my cunt.”

“So fucking dirty.” he praised, moans growing and mixing with yours. 

“Only for you.” you admitted easily. “Only yours.” 

“Mine.” he growled, thumb rolling your nippple over your lacy bra, hand guiding your hips to move faster. “Drives me crazy to know how many people hit on you at the Circle. How many look at you and wish they could bend you over that bar and–” 

Jeongguk stopped talking, groaning as he started to annoy himself with the thought of someone else touching you, claiming you. 

“None of them can.” you shook your head, opening your eyes to find his lowered ones. “Only you can make me feel this good.” 

“Is this nice, baby?” he asked in that low, knowing voice that made you clench. “Are you going to cum for me? Just like this?” 

“Yes, please.” you whined, squirming and riding him faster, losing your control. “Please, I’m so–”

“I know. My desperate dove.” 

Your mind was swimming with emotions, nerve endings heightened by your close proximity. Your heart and mind had been a mess all night, only really quieting down and making sense when Jeongguk was touching you, kissing you. 

His hips were relentlessly working, moans becoming as erratic as the beating of your heart. You knew he was close when he held you just a little tighter, fucking upwards and hugging you into his chest. You were both losing yourselves on each other, making the car bounce and move. 

Tomorrow you might laugh about what this scene must look like from the outside, but right now all you cared about was Guk. How he felt, how he smelled. 

“Fucking hell–” he groaned a little raspier, voice dragging you over the blissful edge. 

You moaned something akin to his name, letting go and allowing your orgasm to overtake you, twitching over his body and pressing your nails into his shoulder. Warmth spread between your legs and you didn’t know if it was coming from you or from Jeongguk as he reached his own end. 

You were both sweaty and breathing hard, not ready to come down, not wanting to separate. 

“You know,” you started, voice shaky and breathy. “Getting this car wasn’t such a bad idea.”