Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

Friday

Chilly air pinched Jungkook’s skin when he exited the store, a grocery bag filled with nothing but snacks, kombucha and lots and lots of banana milk in his hand. Jungkook grabbed one of the milks with his other hand, using his teeth to free the straw from the plastic wrapper. “Fuck yeah,” he cheered through his teeth as he successfully teared it off.

Jungkook looked from left to right, spitting out the plastic in his mouth right on the sidewalk and proceeding to walk back to his car. He plucked off the straw from between his fingers, shaking off the remaining wrapper and then stabbing it into the little bottle. He hummed appreciatively as he finally took a sip, doubting that he could ever get bored of the taste. He adjusted the bag in the meantime, sliding it all the way to dang from his elbow so he could dig into his pocket and fish out the car keys.

He passed by a cafe at the same time, involuntarily turning his head towards it.

Everyone seemed to be hunched over a radio, listening to whatever was being said—Jungkook couldn’t bother to listen, not caring at all. That did make him remember, though. It also explained why the streets were practically empty, except for a few people walking with purpose. There was no one idling around. No kids laughing and running. No one was chatting and doing something fun. Aside from the distinct sound of the radio, it was eerily quiet. And it was all because of a prince.

A prince who had escaped last night, leaving the whole country in disarray.

Jungkook thought it was stupid.

He didn’t linger, picking up the pace and slipping inside his car after dumping the grocery bag on the back seat. He purposefully didn’t turn on the radio, opting for silence instead. He finished his milk and after dropping the empty bottle to sit inside the cup holder, he checked that there were no other cars coming and hit the road, driving back home.

As far as he recalled, at the big age of twenty nine, the Prince was old enough to do whatever he wanted. In fact, it was about time that he did. Everyone treated him like a child, fussing over him and practically never letting him leave the palace as far as Jungkook was aware. He didn’t keep up much with the royal family’s private affairs, but even he could see how blatantly different the Prince was from him. Always abiding by the rules, smiling and mingling with people. He never complained, doing whatever his parents and everyone else expected of him. Jungkook could only imagine how tiring that had to be.

The light turned red at the intersection and Jungkook stopped, tapping his fingers on the steering wheel, his eyes lazily taking in the scenery in front of him. It hadn’t snowed in the town yet, but winter was fully here. The temperature dropped below zero, but it didn’t bother him much. Jungkook had left the house wearing nothing but a pair of shorts and a T-shirt.

Being a fire dragon had its perks.

Being a dragon was simply superior, and him making that claim had nothing to do with how severely Jungkook despised humans. Weak, puny humans, who were absolutely nothing without their advanced technology and weapons, and didn’t stand a chance against them. Dragons were the strongest creatures in the whole world.

Jungkook was proud to be one, even though his kind had chosen to coexist with humans in peace, bow down to them rather than the other way around. Not that either was necessary. They used to be fine on their own.

It disgusted him that now they had to cohabit with each other.

It disgusted him so much that he made sure to stay away, living deep in the mountains where no one could find him. The only time he left it was to replenish his supplies and he tried to limit those visits as much as he could. He hunted often, too, but he couldn’t deny that going to the grocery store was much more convenient, even though not as thrilling.

As soon as the light was back to being green, Jungkook shifted, about to start driving. But just then, the door from the passenger seat’s side opened and someone jumped inside. There was a brief moment where Jungkook was too stunned to do anything, but that didn’t last long. He didn’t care that he was blocking other cars. He shut down the engine, turning to face the person who dared to break into his car with a perfectly raised eyebrow.

Only, the stranger didn’t even acknowledge him, holding onto the door handle as if to make sure that the door was closed, his breathing ragged and pink hair in absolute disarray. His eyes were wandering outside the window, but when a loud sound of someone honking at them broke through the silence, he startled, realizing that the car wasn’t moving.

It was at that moment that the man looked at him, his lips parted. Jungkook wanted to tell him to get out, but the words got stuck in his throat when their eyes met. Something akin to an electric current rushed through his veins, making his skin tingle.

He wasn’t quite certain whether it was because he recognized the person sitting in front of him or something else. It mattered not, though. Jungkook wasn’t going to entangle himself in matters that had nothing to do with him.

As neither of them said anything and the honking behind them was only getting louder—some cars overtaking him and chasing through the intersection before they’d be met with another red light—Jungkook leaned across, gripping onto the door handle.

“Get out,” he said belatedly, having every intention of pushing the door open and if necessary, kicking out the stowaway as well without any hesitation.

A hand rushed to cover his, placed on top and gripping onto his fingers. Jungkook had a knee jerk reaction, drawing his hand back almost immediately. Jungkook’s body was running extremely hot, but the cold from that single touch penetrated his skin, making him shiver. Naturally, Jungkook knew that the other was a dragon.

An ice dragon, to be specific.

He’d never met one in person, but it made perfect sense for his skin to be freezing. However, there was something odd about the picture he was seeing. Ice dragons loved the cold. Meanwhile, the ice dragon sitting next to him was shaking. His teeth were chattering, something that Jungkook just noticed, his pale skin was dusted pink, and his lips… They were blue.

It was bizarre, even though not enough to make Jungkook change his mind.

“Get out,” he repeated himself, back to sitting properly on his seat and keeping his hands to himself. The chill was still there, now spreading and sticking to his bones. Jungkook hadn’t been this uncomfortable in a while. He really wanted to go home.

Jungkook barely managed to blink when the other dragon was all up in his space, his fingers digging into his thigh as he propped himself to get even closer. His face was so close that Jungkook could feel his cold breath on his skin, the burning flames inside him doing nothing to keep him warm.

“Please,” he begged. “Please let me come with you. I’ll do anything—”

“Your prince charm might work on others, but not me,” Jungkook said, gently putting his hand on his chest and giving him a shove. As determined as the Dragon Prince was, he did move back, giving him his personal space back. “Get out. I won’t say it again.”

“I’ll pay you.”

Jungkook scoffed, pointedly looking around his expensive sport car.

“Do I look like I need money?”

“I didn’t say anything about money,” he pointed out, his blue eyes pleading. “I’ll do whatever you want. Anything. You can name your price. Just please, give me a ride. Please.”

“Anything I want?” Jungkook asked, getting annoyed, not only because of the Prince, but the fact that he’d missed yet another green light. “Okay, then get out.”

“Please,” he said in a way that weirdly resembled a sob. “I don’t want to go back.”

Jungkook’s eyes had been stuck on the traffic around him, one that he had caused, but upon hearing that plea, he couldn’t help but look at the Prince in question. He didn’t elaborate. Jungkook didn’t expect him to. Then again, just that was enough to send a message. Perhaps the picture-perfect royal family wasn’t so perfect, after all.

Jungkook was freezing, probably for the first time in his whole life, and he should’ve been already home. There was nothing stopping him from dragging the Prince out of his car, with the use of force if necessary, and yet…

Something in that request had moved him.

Jungkook restarted the car.

“I’m taking you a few blocks and then you leave,” he grumbled, flipping off the car directly behind him and then starting to drive again at last, leaving this damn place.

The Prince sagged against the seat, letting out a deep breath of relief.

“Thank you.”

Normally Jungkook would curse the person out, but, well, currently he wasn’t dealing with a human. The Prince was a dragon. Not that Jungkook had any warm feelings towards most dragons. Still, he convinced himself to just stay quiet and get it over with as fast as possible. He didn’t need company.

He hated to have company.

This was going to give him a headache.

While not saying anything, Jungkook couldn’t stop eyeing the Prince. He was dressed in a baby blue sweater, one that was bringing out his pink hair. He was wearing a thin shirt underneath, and if he wasn’t an ice dragon, Jungkook would question his choice of attire in this weather. Then again, the Prince was definitely cold if him wrapping his arms around himself was anything to by. Pissed off even more, Jungkook turned on the heating.

“Breaking into random citizen’s cars, that’s not very prince-like of you,” Jungkook heard himself saying, having the urge to punch himself in the face afterwards.

Jungkook could feel the Prince’s eyes on him, but he didn’t look. He held onto the steering wheel instead, being sure that there was a deep frown sitting on his face.

“You’re not really a citizen, are you?”

Jungkook hadn’t been paying attention before, but now had to admit that his voice was quite… soft. There was a stutter to it, most likely from the cold. Yet that didn’t make it any less rich and songlike.

Then, the Prince’s words processed in Jungkook’s head.

“Wait a fucking second. You’ve been looking for me?”

Jungkook did look this time, and it was just in time to see the Prince hung his head in shame.

“I figured you were probably the only person in this city—even the whole country—that wouldn’t bring me back to the Palace against my will,” he confessed quietly.

He was right about that. Jungkook wouldn’t. Why would he? Again, the Prince was an adult. Sure, he must’ve had his responsibilities, but taking a few days off shouldn’t be such a big deal. And in a way, he felt flattered—regardless of the Prince’s intentions, Jungkook took it as a compliment—although that didn’t make him hate this situation any less.

“That’t because I don’t pretend. I’m neither good nor bad. I live my life according to my own rules, not sticking my nose where it’s not wanted, staying out of everyone’s business as long as they stay out of mine,” Jungkook said, even though not a single question had been asked. He didn’t have to explain himself, yet something had compelled him to do it anyway.

“If you were hurt, I’d call an ambulance for you. If I caught you in the act of committing a crime, as annoying as that would be, I’d call the police. Maybe even stop you myself if you were hurting someone and they didn’t deserve it. But why would I take you to the Palace when it’s clearly the place you’re escaping from? I’m not a monster.

“I don’t give a fuck, either. We all should be able to live our lives the way we want. Decide ourselves whether something is right for us or not. Clearly, being in the Palace is not for you,” he summed it up, “and it should be your and only your call. Not someone who wants to do right by the King and the Prince Consort, and only get into their good graces.”

The Prince hummed, huddled up in his seat, bringing his knees to his chest and covering himself with his sweater. Despite the heating, he must’ve still been cold. Jungkook almost asked him what was the problem with him, but held himself back.

It was, after all, none of his business.

“That must be nice,” he said, a bit more confident now that he was more or less sure that Jungkook wasn’t mad at him for seeking him out. “To not try to constantly fit yourself into all those boxes. All those expectations everyone around you have for you.”

Jungkook snorted.

“People put me into them anyway. You did, too. It’s precisely the reason why you’re here,” Jungkook pointed out. There was no malice in it, just facts. He expected the Prince to withdraw, but that didn’t happen. Perhaps as he was finally getting warmer, even if only slightly, the Prince’s tongue started unwinding.

“That’s only partly true. I ran out of options. There was no one I could turn to who would understand. No one to talk to. And just as I was helplessly going to accept my fate, I thought to myself… What if you would? What if you could understand?”

When Jungkook’s eyes flitted away from the road and to the Prince, he was sitting sideways on the seat, resting his head, his cheek smushed and pastel pink hair falling over his eyes. He was looking straight at him, and for some reason, it prompted Jungkook to turn away.

“Sit up straight and fasten your seatbelt,” he grumbled, not having to repeat himself twice. The Prince sat properly, and he picked up where the Prince had left off, “So you’re saying you heard about a big, bad dragon living in a cave and not giving a fuck about anything and decided to get a taste of the rebel life? No offense, but I don’t think it’s for you.”

“No,” the Prince disagreed with him, and Jungkook could almost feel the smile in his voice. When he checked, the Prince was, indeed, smiling to himself softly. “That’s because you’re not a big, bad dragon living in a cave and not giving a fuck.”

The profanity coming out of the Prince’s lips sounded straight up scandalous. Jungkook liked it, in turn unable to stop himself from smirking a little, almost proudly.

“It’s just how you said. You don’t pretend. You’re just so perfectly yourself, doing whatever you want whenever you want. And I… I could never do that. I guess I just envy you a little. It also made me regret, not to say my life, but definitely some of the choices I’ve made.

“Being a prince… It’s, well, it’s nice. You have the ability to meet so many people. Some wonderful, others not really, but you eventually learn how to see them apart and protect yourself from those who wish you harm. It allowed me to help so many more, and I loved doing that. I never wanted anything in return, and I still wouldn’t accept anything. But between all of my duties as a prince, being the perfect son that my parents needed, I… I’ve never got to be myself.

“I’ve never had the time to do things that I wanted. Every instrument I learned. Every language. Everything. The list goes on and on. Those were the things my parents wanted for me. No one has ever looked at me and asked, ‘hey, Jimin, what do you want? Is being a prince something you want?’. I just wish they have.”

That was not the kind of heavy stuff Jungkook expected to hear on a random Friday, let alone from the Prince himself, but unsurprisingly so, he did understand where he was coming from.

“That’s the thing, isn’t it? Whatever you do, however many good deeds you perform, it doesn’t matter in the end. When the time comes, we’re all gonna die anyway. And death, well, it’s always ugly. So if you think about it, sacrificing your whole life for others seems like a bit of a waste. It might be fulfilling to a certain degree, but sometimes… Sometimes you just gotta think only about yourself and no one else, and do whatever you want. I don’t even think it’s selfish.”

“You’re right.”

“I am…?”

Jungkook knew he was. He just found it odd how well their conversation was flowing, with the Prince—Jimin, Jungkook now recalled his name, having forgotten it before—so easily seeing eye to eye with him.

Jimin laughed quietly.

“I mean, if a good deed could save a life, then I wouldn’t be dying, right?”

They’d been driving for way longer than a few blocks, and Jungkook hit the brakes, pulling over. Jimin gasped from the shock of it all, clutching at his chest and looking at him in question. They were nowhere near the road that was leading back to his home. In fact, Jungkook had no idea where the hell they were and momentarily he didn’t care.

“What did you just say?” he asked, unsure why he was reacting so strongly to something that shouldn’t be of any importance to him at all. So the Prince was dying. So what?

“Oh, sorry,” Jimin apologized, a bit bashful. “I forgot that no one knows.”

“What do you mean you’re dying?” Jungkook grilled him, not satisfied with that answer. An answer that wasn’t an answer at all. He was going against all his principles, but he felt like he needed to know. Or maybe he just wanted to know.

He had no right to, but he wanted to.

And Jimin indulged him.

“Not everyone was thrilled when my human father mated with my dad, an omega dragon. That brought both humans and dragons closer, uniting us and our nations together, and as a result expanding our territories and our position globally. Many were against it, but it was witches who actually decided to do something about it.

“Witches are basically humans who are capable of using magic. So to punish my father for betraying them in a way, they cursed his firstborn child. And since I’m that child I’m expected to die in seven days. Well, it’s getting late, so I guess only six now. That’s why I ran. And I just… For the first time in my life, I wanted to do what I want, you know?”

There was a lot for Jungkook to unpack here.

Now, no one would better quote him on this as his knowledge about the royal family’s family tree was quite limited, but he could swear that Jimin was the younger one of the two princes. How come he claimed that he was the firstborn child that had gotten cursed? Did… did his parents lie about it?

But why would they?

Jungkook could quite relate to the issue the witches had with the merging of their nations. He might’ve looked young, but that was because dragons aged much slower than humans. He wasn’t immortal. He was going to die eventually.

And he was there when Jimin’s dad—the Prince Consort, an ice dragon—married the King, and at the age of thirteen at the time, had voiced his strong disapproval just as many other dragons did. Not that it’d made any difference.

Many dragons had changed their mind since then, and when Jungkook said many, he actually most of them. There was just him, living with this weird itch under his skin, being deadly sure that this was something that was going to bite him and all of them in the ass one day. However it was inconveniencing him, though, it was an issue he had with the Prince Consort. Not the King. Not Jimin. Not even his sibling. Just the Prince Consort.

Punishing someone that was innocent stood pretty low in his eyes.

“Hey, Jimin,” he said, bringing the engine back to life, “what do you want?”

He didn’t dare to look at Jimin, afraid that the tiny dragon would be able to tell how embarrassed he was. He was thirteen years older than him. He should have his shit together and yet this was a new experience for him. He was an outcast for a reason. He didn’t get much social interaction, not since a long time ago. But Jimin had six days left to live.

What was there for him to lose?

“What?” Jimin asked, quite flabbergasted judging by the tone of his voice.

“What do you want to do?” Jungkook specified, keeping the car at the ready. “You said you ran so you can do whatever you want. What is it? What is it that you want?”

“Oh,” Jimin gasped, and the chill that had corrupted Jungkook’s body, it started slowly melting away. “I… I’d like to go to an amusement park. I’ve never been to one. And maybe go to a cinema and eat as much popcorn as I can without getting sick. It’s also been years since I’ve been to the beach… I wasn’t allowed to go after we moved here.”

Jungkook wordlessly started driving.

“You don’t have to do this, you know…” Jimin said once the car moved, breaking off his excitement and introducing a note of reality into his words.

Jungkook wasn’t particularly interested.

Reality was overrated.

“You found me, because you believed that I’d understand. I guess I do.”

That silenced Jimin. Whether it was in a bad way or not, Jungkook didn’t know. Jimin didn’t ask where they were going, either. For some reason, Jimin trusted him. Or perhaps he just decided that he didn’t have anything to lose as well.

He was dying, after all.

“By the way, do you mind if I…” he trailed off, and when he didn’t add anything, Jungkook was forced to look at him. Jimin was pointing vaguely at his neck.

Jungkook was none the wiser at first, but since he had permission to do so, he focused his eyes on Jimin’s neck, after a few seconds noticing that there was a very hard to miss patch covering one of his scent glands. That was the moment when it hit Jungkook that he couldn’t smell Jimin’s scent at all. He was relying on his other senses all this time, his alpha staying quiet and not being alarmed by another dragon’s presence in the slightest.

Whatever this patch was, it wasn’t a normal scent-neutralizing patch for sure.

“Not at all. Go for it.”

Way back then, before Jungkook was born, dragons used to mostly spend their lives in their dragon form. It was safer that way, making it easier for them to hunt for food as well. Besides, humans feared them, and that was a reason enough for them to stay that way. Every time someone described their scents, it was only their elements they could smell as nothing else came through their thick skins.

Dragons were solitary beings, rarely bonding for life. They only mated to reproduce and it was only during the mating season, which was twice a year, and if the child-bearing dragon allowed for it to happen. What they now called omega dragons—terminology that has been thought of by humans—were the most feral and dangerous during their heat, and unless invited or having a death wish, no one in their right mind dared to approach them.

Dragons were curious beings, though. And as human civilizations were becoming more and more advanced, they’d started shifting more often, venturing into the cities, walking among humans without being feared, their identities remaining unknown. They’d liked it enough that some of them had stayed, and then many more had followed until a kingdom of their own had become established, with their own royalty and a completely new way of living.

They were still able to choose whether to remain in their dragon form or not. Many dragons switched often. Jungkook’s parents were a bit more traditional, and Jungkook had spent most of his childhood as a dragon, not a shifter.

He preferred it that way, too.

But then, their King, now the Prince Consort, had announced his marriage and the pregnancy, for the first time ever in their history deciding to carry his child in his womb instead of laying an egg, fully aware that he wouldn’t be able to go back to his original form for the next nine months.

Everyone claimed that it was the beginning of a new era, but for Jungkook, it was the end of one. That was when they fell, forgoing who they were, getting rid of their own identities and ending up living in the humans’ shadows.

Surprisingly, they didn’t stop evolving.

With some time and practice, they’d taught themselves how to use their magic in their human form, including their flames. Now it was up for discussion whether it was part of it or simply due to their armors of thick skin not being in the way anymore, but their scents…

They’d changed, too.

They’d become those beacons of light in the dark tunnel, calling out to them, but not all of them. They were like mating calls. That was the closest thing Jungkook could compare them to. Ignored by most, but tasting like the sweetest of aphrodisiacs to those who were chosen. The dragons who found each other’s scents the most compatible, the most alluring… not only mated with each other when the time came, but bonded as well, becoming a family.

Jungkook had never experienced it before. He’d never felt such an attraction to someone. This overwhelming need to claim them as his equal and connect with them until death did them apart. Never.

Until now.

Jimin barely teared off the patch and Jungkook’s dragon was wide awake, roaring with the most primal instinct, the intensity of it making his head spin as he was breathing in the sweet scent, reminding him of the last day of winter and cherry blossoms beginning to bloom, chilly yet warm. Aside from the fact that Jimin might’ve as well proposed to him right now, Jungkook realized two very important things.

To his great shock, Jimin was an omega.

And he’d lied to him.

Jungkook stopped the car once more, flooring the brakes. The Prince lurched in his seat, but he was wearing the seatbelt so Jungkook knew that he was safe, if only being startled a bit.

“Put that shit back on,” Jungkook said, turning sideways to snatch the patch from him.

Jimin figured it out, and before Jungkook could even lean into his space, he lowered the window and threw it out. Jungkook watched as it was blown away by the wind. His mind stuttered, coming to a sudden halt.

“I don’t want anything from you, I swear,” Jimin rushed to say, sounding desperate. “I just… I—I wanted to see what it’s like. I promise I’ll leave before my time is up, but please. Please, Jungkook. Let me stay with you.”

Jungkook wasn’t even sure whether he believed all that schmuck, the idea of a perfect mate or whatever, until a few minutes ago. There were moments when he wished he could be with someone, but realistically speaking, he knew that no one would like to live off the grid with him. He’d never even attempted to meet anyone, doubting that he could find someone who shared his beliefs as well. Now he was not only faced with Jimin—Jimin who was making his dragon lose his freaking mind—but also the truth that he was dying.

Right.

Jimin was dying.

Wasn’t this a really fucked up joke?

Not that less than a week was enough for someone like Jungkook to get attached.

Wait.

A week? Was Jungkook really going to give Jimin a week of his life?

His alpha growled.

Well, apparently yes.

Jungkook used the buttons on the wheel to close the window, then looked the Prince in the eyes. Jimin visibly swallowed, his eyes turning more and more glossy with every second. Jungkook sighed at the sight.

“I’m gonna drive us to the nearest cinema right now. You have about ten minutes to tell me everything or you get the fuck out.”

Jimin nodded, and they were on the move again.

“If my scent bothers you—” Jungkook tried to say, only to be cut off by Jimin vehemently disagreeing, “It doesn’t bother me.”

Alpha’ scents could be quite intense to omegas, but if the Prince didn’t mind it, then Jungkook wasn’t going to argue.

“We like it.”

Not just Jimin, but his dragon, too.

Great.

“I think I fell in love with it the very first time I caught a whiff of it,” Jimin confessed.

It left Jungkook speechless and his alpha… purring. It made it abundantly clear that Jungkook could absolutely never shift in Jimin’s presence.

Thankfully it wasn’t going to be a problem.

“A few months ago I started helping my parents answer and sort through all the letters they’re receiving. There were a few recurrent senders, and you were one of them. Every time they came up with a new law, you wrote to them, voicing out your disapproval and explaining to them why it wasn’t going to work. I didn’t know it at the time, but I searched for your other letters afterwards. They still smelled like you,” he said, his voice quieter as he was facing the window.

“I didn’t tell anyone, but I knew. I knew right away what it meant. And I was so happy. I kept daydreaming about you, thinking of the best way to approach you. My parents weren’t going to approve, but I knew that you wouldn’t care. That just like in those letters, you’d tell them to leave us alone and you’d take me somewhere far away. I was taking my time with it, because that’s the thing… I thought that I had time.”

Before the silence got too heavy, maybe even awkward, Jimin cleared his throat.

“They told me yesterday,” he revealed. “I’ve always thought that I had loving parents. I’ve never seen them treat me and my brother differently. But when they told me, it all made sense. Hiding that I was an omega. Acting like my brother, who’s an alpha, was their first child. Never letting me do anything. Not allowing me to put down roots. It was because they knew that I was going to die. That I’d never take over the throne. That I’d never find love. Have my own kids. Because at the age of twenty nine—the age my father married my dad—I was going to be dead.

“They’d the audacity to excuse themselves. Tell me that they hid it from me for so long to protect me. To make it as painless as possible. So I could go peacefully to bed, only to never wake up,” he scoffed, even now taken aback at the lies his parents had tried to feed him. “As they kept going, all I could think about was that I no longer recognized them. From those loving parents, they became monsters. That’s why I ran without looking back once.”

And based on how cold he was, Jimin must’ve been looking for him since yesterday. It was a good thing that he didn’t venture out into the forest, climbing those treacherous mountains. If he did, Jungkook had no doubt that he’d be already dead.

“That’s the whole story,” the Prince said, opting for a more light-hearted tone. “But like I said, I don’t expect anything from you. Just… being in your presence, it’s enough…”

“We’re here,” Jungkook announced, not acknowledging anything that Jimin had just said. He turned off the engine instead, not looking at Jimin, either, doing his best not to pay attention to his scent, even though it was making his alpha furious. “Let’s go over some rules. I’ll do the talking. You put your hoodie up and keep a low profile. Okay?

It was quiet, but Jungkook heard it.

“Okay.”

“Great. Let’s go watch a movie then.”

Saturday

By the time they finished watching the movie—as well as the credits since Jimin insisted that they stayed—and made it back to the car, it was already midnight.

Without the patch that had a bunch of side effects like reducing Jimin’s dragon powers and in his case, turning them against him, too, Jimin’s body temperature regulated and he was no longer as cold as before. Although he still wasn’t a fan of the now freezing temperature outside, leaving Jungkook with no other choice than to turn on the heating again.

Feeling too hot in his skin, Jungkook quite hated it, but it was better than the alternative, which was admitting that they were bouncing off of each other, their dragons working hard to sync them up. They had a goal in mind and it was to balance out their powers so they’d be neither too hot nor too cold. And since they were both a fire and ice dragon respectively, it was more than possible. Jungkook hated that, too. The reminder that they were special.

That they were fated to be or whatever.

“What do you want to do next?” Jungkook asked, already pulling away and starting to aimlessly drive. “It’s too late to go to the beach. The amusement parks are closed, too.”

Jimin rushed to fasten his seatbelt, and without even looking at him, Jungkook could read him like an open book. There was a question hanging in the air as Jimin was wondering why Jungkook was still entertaining him, but as if knowing better, Jimin remained quiet on that subject. If Jungkook didn’t want to do something, he wouldn’t, after all.

“How about a club?”

Jungkook frowned. “A club?”

“I’ve never been to one,” he said, his scent turning much sweeter. Shy. “I wasn’t allowed to. I mean, going to a club… That’s not very prince-like. But I’ve always wanted to.”

“A club it is then.”

Jungkook knew just the perfect place, too. He didn’t go clubbing often, and when he did, it was to drink himself stupid and find someone to hook up with. Jungkook stayed clear of social interactions, but every other mating season, even he craved sex sometimes. Alpha dragons didn’t have a heat equivalent, in other words a rut. But it’d had been written into their DNA to mate, and he wasn’t an exception, even though producing an offspring was the last thing he wanted.

They didn’t talk on the way, and frankly, Jungkook didn’t know what to say. He didn’t share the same sentiment. Actually, he didn’t know what to think. Jungkook didn’t trust easily and he didn’t know Jimin. He was a stranger. Jungkook didn’t do well with strangers. He didn’t do well with anyone, especially not someone who was dying.

What could he even say?

He wasn’t that big of an asshole, and this sucked. It really fucking sucked. He couldn’t even imagine how it must’ve felt like to know you were chosen to die as a cruel lesson to your parents. A lesson that wasn’t going to teach them anything at all.

There were no words of reassurance that Jungkook could offer that would make the Prince feel better. He couldn’t pretend that he cared about their dragons liking each other, either. That wouldn’t be fair. It wasn’t the quality Jimin respected him for.

Jungkook didn’t lie.

“I don’t think anyone’s gonna pay enough attention to figure out that you’re the Prince,” Jungkook said as soon as he parked. “You can leave your sweater here. It’ll be hot inside anyway. Just, again, try not to talk to anyone. The second you’re found out, you’re on your own. I’m not taking on the Royal Guards for you,” he warned, meaning every word.

Jungkook had a lot to say in terms of politics, sending letters just like Jimin had mentioned, but otherwise he never voiced his disagreements in person. Despite this feeling that was lodged deep in his gut that mixing up their nations was a big mistake, he wanted to live a peaceful life and that wouldn’t be possible with the Royal Guards breathing down his neck.

“One more thing. I’m gonna scent you. Give me your wrist.”

Jungkook believed the neck would be better, but he couldn’t just ask Jimin, the freaking Prince, to let him do it. It was far more intimate and it’d be extremely violating of him.

“Huh?”

All Jimin could do was gape at him. Jungkook rolled his eyes.

“Don’t get any ideas. It’s so other dragons don’t bother you,” he explained. “You’re there to have fun, not to have some sleazy and sweaty dragons flirt with you, right?”

That seemed to clarify his intentions as Jimin’s expression morphed from something much less stunned and more willing to go with it. So willing that instead of extending his hand to him, Jimin lowered his sweater, turned his head to the side and exposed his neck for him.

“Go ahead.”

Jimin sounded way more vulnerable than he should have, and it introduced a new fear to Jungkook. It could be that he’d gotten too ahead of himself. That he’d made a mistake. Jungkook was ignoring him, but his dragon was very clear about where he stood in regard to Jimin. He couldn’t be any louder about it. That led Jungkook to thinking that scenting the Prince could be a bad idea.

It was too late to back out, though.

Jungkook unbuckled his seatbelt, internally cursing the small space he had to work with. He raised a little on his seat, pushing himself towards Jimin and reaching with one arm across him to hold onto the arm rest. He lowered himself down then, hoping to be done with it as quickly as possible. It turned out to be harder than he thought.

He didn’t even touch Jimin yet, but as he inhaled his scent, and in combination with the close proximity between them, his head began to swim. Jungkook didn’t like it. He didn’t like it at all, being reduced to nothing but his instincts. He was in his human form for a reason. As a shifter, he was supposed to be in full control of himself and his dragon.

And yet…

He’d be lying if he said that Jimin’s scent didn’t act like a honey trap to him.

Omega dragons were in no way fragile just like some humans liked to portray them and romanticize the idea that they were in this deep need of being protected and doted on.

They were nasty.

They didn’t play fair.

They took full advantage of their bodies being smaller and more agile when in their dragon form. They weren’t the most powerful, but ending up in a fight with one was dangerous. Even more so when they were guarding their eggs or protecting their little ones.

And yet, their scents were as delicate as flowers. Pleasant to breathe in. Somehow, Jimin’s scent was even sweeter, which Jungkook didn’t think was possible. It made it very easy for him to lean in at last, brush his nose against Jimin’s neck and guide it lower to his scent gland.

At that moment, breathing in Jimin’s scent, Jungkook wondered.

As dragons, they could easily distinguish each other, but that ability had been lost on them when they shifted into humans for the first time. Their magic mimicked their appearance and all body functions, and while their sense of smell was still far greater, it deprived them of their ability to be able to tell which one of them were the alpha dragons and which ones were the omega ones. So they evolved. Just why did it feel like such a disadvantage to Jungkook rather than anything else?

He’d rather not know.

He’d rather not feel the things Jimin’s scent was making him feel. That was why he scented Jimin quickly and backed away, leaving the car entirely to take a gulp of fresh air and cool his head a little before they’d walk into the club. Jimin was quite dumbfounded, if not hurt judging by his scent, but he followed him shortly after.

Jungkook had parked a safe distance away, refusing to get his car anywhere near a bunch of drunk people milling about, but they could still hear all the clubgoers chatting animatedly outside, as well as the cheap music playing inside and assaulting their eardrums. Sometimes their exquisite sense of hearing could be a nuisance, but after decades of practice, Jungkook could easily tune out all the unnecessary sounds. He did that now, turning to Jimin.

“You ready?”

Unsure at first, Jimin smiled, his hand coming up to rub at his neck, his scent gland included. Jungkook zeroed in on the action, unable to stop himself from digging his eyes into that tempting spot. Sensing Jimin’s eyes on him, he looked up, only to find him grinning.

“Yeah. Let’s go.”

Jungkook led Jimin to the entrance, cutting the line despite Jimin being quite mortified by it and almost going out of his way to apologize to everyone. Jungkook was quick to grab him by his elbow and drag him away, hushedly reminding him to try not to stand out too much.

Stopped by the bouncer, Jungkook pulled out some cash and thrusted it into his hand, being instantly let inside. As soon as they were in, the stench of sweaty bodies punched him in the nose, making him miss Jimin’s scent even more, his alpha huffing and growling, wanting nothing more than for him to turn around and get them out of here as fast as possible.

Jungkook wasn’t here for pleasure tonight and everything seemed to be grating on his nerves. If it wasn’t for Jimin, he’d have already left. Since Jimin appeared to be enjoying himself so far, Jungkook told his alpha to shut the fuck up and guided them through the crowd to the bar.

“What do you want to drink?” he asked before he’d fetch the bartender.

Jimin leaned against the bar, and somehow, it was the first time Jungkook actually acknowledged his body physique. The loose long-sleeved T-shirt Jimin was wearing was now tucked into his skinny jeans and that… Well, that did do wonders.

Jungkook’s eyes dipped lower, taking notice of Jimin’s plump ass, and his long and sculpted legs. If he saw him from afar, he wouldn’t be able to tell that Jimin was shorter than him. Not with those legs for days, no. He was wearing a pair of heeled boots as well, and he… He looked nice. Even with cotton pink hair. In this setting, he no longer looked as innocent as before.

Then again, who was Jungkook to say that Jimin was innocent?

Just because his parents were controlling assholes, it didn’t mean that—

“I’ve never had alcohol before.”

Jungkook could only gape at Jimin in a deadpan manner. It was hard to believe that someone his age didn’t have a single drop of alcohol yet, but what he’d learned about Jimin so far was that there was nothing impossible about him. And that he was kind. Kind enough not to call out Jungkook for undressing him with his eyes.

At least Jungkook had the decency to feel embarrassed about it. Jimin, on the other hand, seemed to be flattered. That made Jungkook feel even more stupid and not just for being caught, but for doing that in the first place. He had eyes, he could tell that Jimin was hot. He could also swear that it was his alpha who was responsible for his indecent behavior.

That pathetic motherfucker was drawn to Jimin like a moth to light.

“I’m getting you one beer then, so you don’t get a hangover,” he said, signaling the bartender.

In the meantime, Jimin scooted closer to him, leaning his head against his shoulder as he looked up at him, a slight pout on his lips. His very plump and pink lips. Perhaps Jungkook was a pathetic motherfucker, too.

It was a new low for him as well.

He’d have never expected himself to have the urge to fuck someone who was dying so badly. To fuck anyone so badly. That was too much power that Jungkook wasn’t going to let anyone have over him. Yet here was Jimin, having already won his alpha over, and without his support… Jungkook was sort of screwed. Fighting his own instincts, it was hard.

“What if I want to have a hangover?”

Jungkook placed his hand on top of Jimin’s head, gently pushing him away.

“Trust me, you don’t,” he said, turning his attention to the bartender afterwards and ordering himself a drink and a single beer with the lowest ABV they had for Jimin. “Just… pace yourself, okay?” he added once they got their order and moved away from the bar.

Jimin’s eyes were curiously stuck on the bottle of beer he was holding, and when their eyes met, something akin to mischief flashed in his. Before Jungkook could tell him that he was being dumb and was going to instantly regret it, Jimin brought the bottle to his lips and tipped it back, pouring the beer down his throat. Not for long, though. As the taste registered in his mouth, he pulled the bottle away, doing his absolute best to actually swallow and not spit everything on the floor.

“I don’t think I’ve missed anything by not trying this earlier,” he said, a bitter smile on his lips. “It’s a, uh… An acquired taste for sure. Is what you’re drinking any better?”

“Well, I like it. And no, you can’t have a taste,” he said before Jimin could even ask, not fazed in the slightest by yet another pout that Jimin aimed at him. “It’s too strong for a lightweight like you. Based on your reaction, you wouldn’t get up from bed tomorrow.”

“You don’t know that,” he whined, bumping into Jungkook first and when they both stopped, letting his head fall against Jungkook’s chest and rubbing his face all over his T-shirt.

Jungkook opened his mouth, quite weirded out and struggling to breathe with Jimin’s scent gland being within his reach, but then a thought crossed his mind. Using his free hand, he gripped onto Jimin’s arm and tugged him backwards. He was instantaneously awarded with yet another whine as Jimin struggled in his hold, wanting to snuggle into him again.

“Wait, are you tipsy already?”

Jimin didn’t even acknowledge him, still throwing his little tantrum. A few people threw them some glances over their shoulders, and to avoid any unnecessary interaction, Jungkook grabbed Jimin by his elbow and pulled him away from the crowd and towards the wall.

Drawn to him, Jimin successfully sneaked into Jungkook’s space again, this time having an ulterior motive. He was rising on his tiptoes, aiming for Jungkook’s neck, and Jungkook was forced to react quickly by putting his hands on his shoulders and pushing him down, while also juggling his drink and doing his best not to spill it all over Jimin.

It’d appear that after getting a taste of alcohol, Jimin’s dragon had lost all his inhibitions, being very eager and determined to get as close to him as possible. It was quite bothersome.

“Hey—” Jungkook caught his attention by moving his drink in front of his eyes and sloshing the liquid inside “—you can have one sip. One sip. That’s it or we’re leaving.”

Happy that he got what he wanted, Jimin smiled sweetly.

He didn’t take the glass from him, parting his lips and waiting. Jungkook had the urge to smash the glass into his face, not liking to be ordered around. He did bring the glass to Jimin’s lips anyway, if only to avoid him acting like a big baby, and tipped it slightly.

For someone who had never done this before, Jimin knew what he was doing when his eyelids dropped and he looked at Jungkook with his hooded eyes, licking his lips seductively once Jungkook took the glass away, and then finishing it off with a kitten lick as a drop of the burning liquid attempted to escape and roll down his chin.

Jungkook felt as though he was hypnotized, but the spell broke when Jimin made a face, pressing his lips closed, while his cheeks inflated in a way that a hamster looked like when it stored food inside its mouth. The next thing Jungkook knew, Jimin dropped the beer and barely managed to turn towards the wall when his mouth opened and he…

Barfed all over it.

Jungkook wasn’t surprised at all when they got kicked out of the club shortly after and asked to never come again. Jungkook liked to keep his options open at all times, so he was quick to make the whole accident go away by writing them a check under the table. He dragged Jimin back to the car nonetheless, making the decision to call it a night and go back home.

Jimin was out of it, giggling all the way to the car and when Jungkook wrangled him to put his sweater back on him. Jungkook couldn’t tell whether the freaking Prince was, indeed, drunk, his alcohol tolerance being non-existent or the exhaustion was finally catching up to him. He did say that he ran away yesterday, after all. That reminded him…

“Where did you spend last night?” he asked once they were in the car.

The heating was running just in case, though Jungkook didn’t think it was necessary. Jimin’s cheeks were as pink as his hair and he was warm to the touch when Jungkook helped him get dressed. But if he was, indeed, drunk, his core temperature was going to drop, so perhaps it was better for him to play it safe.

Jimin brushed his fingers against his lips, giggling to himself and even kicking his feet.

“It was almost like an indirect kiss,” Jungkook heard him say.

“Don’t make me pour acid down your throat,” Jungkook growled in frustration, fastening the seat belt for Jimin and then starting the car. “We’re going to my place—”

Jungkook abruptly cut himself off. He hadn’t even thought about it, it’d just slipped out. And now that Jimin had shut up at last and was watching him in wonder, with his cheeks flushed for an entirely different reason, it was too late to take it back and act like it hadn’t happened to begin with. Was Jungkook really going to do this?

Was he going to invite someone to his house?

This had never happened before.

Even when Jungkook would hook up with someone, they’d either get it on wherever they were or they’d go to where the other person lived. Jungkook’s home, even his car. It was all off limits. Jungkook didn’t like strangers and he wasn’t going to taint his own space with a scent that didn’t belong there. That wasn’t welcomed there at all.

Jimin had already spent the whole day in his car, though. He didn’t have anywhere else to go, either, and he must’ve spent the whole night outside, which, combined with the fucking patch on his neck, could explain why he was freezing when he found Jungkook. It’d be cruel to tell him to leave. The words wouldn’t leave his mouth either way.

His dragon would rather eat rat poison than turn away their… mate? Was the beast considering Jimin their mate? A potential candidate, at the very least. Perhaps Jungkook should consider eating rat poison himself.

Jungkook cleared his throat.

“I know you wanted to do a bunch of other things, but it’s late. You’re drunk and tired. So I’m taking you to my place now where you can rest a bit. Okay?”

Jimin could say ‘no’, but just like every other time, he whispered, “Okay.”

That left Jungkook with no other choice than to drive back home.

He was quite proud of it and how well hidden it was. Unless someone knew the direct route to it, they were never going to find it. It was mostly because it was impossible to get there by car.

Jimin was dozing off every once in a while and struggling to stay awake, but as they stopped at the foot of one of the mountains, he stirred awake. Just then, the door opened as Jungkook had pressed a button on the tiny remote he always carried on himself, revealing an enormous hangar within. It was filled with a bunch of things, but mostly cars.

Jungkook drove inside, not even bothering to park the car in its usual spot and just leaving it close to the entrance. The hangar belonged to him and he was the only person having access to it, so he didn’t have to worry about blocking anyone or anything like that. Jimin was looking around with wide eyes, clearly impressed by the size of it, even though he wasn’t quite the fan of the bright lights above them as he was constantly squinting his eyes.

That urged Jungkook to get a move on and leave the car. He grabbed the grocery bag from the back seat, and when Jimin still didn’t get out, he rounded the car, opening the door for him.

“Come on. Let’s go,” he hurried him up, keeping his hands on both sides of Jimin without actually touching him as he finally got up and swayed on his feet, being ready to catch him once he slowly exited the car.

“Is this where you live?” Jimin asked, tipping his head back and truly taking in the size of the whole place. “I didn’t even know that such a place existed. Let alone inside of a mountain!”

“That was the point,” Jungkook huffed under his nose, shutting the door.

Jimin twirled around out of his reach, scanning everything around them with his curious eyes.

“This is not where I live. It’s where I store my stuff. We’ll be shifting now and flying to my house.”

All at once, Jimin ceased all movement, facing him with an indistinguishable expression. He looked pretty much sober now, even though Jungkook didn’t think that anything he’d said warranted such a reaction. He lived deep in the mountains. Was it really so shocking that the only way to get there was by flying? Jungkook didn’t think so.

“What?” Jungkook asked anyway, leading them outside.

“I…” Jimin hesitated, his scent spiking with something akin to embarrassment, watching as the hangar’s door was slowly closing and taking all its light with it. “It might be a problem, considering that I, uh… I’ve never…” he groaned, hiding his face in his hands. He mumbled something, too, but Jungkook couldn’t quite make out what it was.

“What was that? Speak clearly.”

Jimin dramatically lowered his hands with a loud exhale as though he’d been holding his breath, and looked straight into his eyes, not hiding how panicked he was.

“Jungkook, I’ve never shifted before!”

Jungkook blinked.

“What.”

Jimin threw his arms up in the air.

“I’ve never shifted before! My parents have never taught me how!”

Not to be insensitive and curse his parents out, Jungkook chose not to say anything about it. Instead, he thrusted the bag into Jimin’s hands.

“It’s fine, I guess. I’ll just take you there then. As long as you hold on tight, you’ll be all right. My body is much hotter when I’m in the dragon form, so you won’t be cold, either.”

“Please tell me you’re joking,” Jimin said, pale in the face.

Unimpressed, Jungkook simply went ahead and shifted.

A shocked gasp left Jimin’s lips and he was quick to cover up his eyes. Was he afraid of seeing something brutal? Traumatizing even? Humans had a flair for exaggerating their shifting process in movies and books, making it look excruciating. In reality, their bones didn’t break and change shape. They were magic creatures, after all.

In one second, Jungkook was a human. In the next one, he was a dragon.

It was that simple.

Before Jimin could even open his eyes and appraise his form, something that his dragon was waiting for—Fuck.

He’d completely forgotten about it and now it was too late. Instead of snatching Jimin from the ground and tossing him on his back, he moved incredibly fast, chasing Jimin’s scent and bringing his face as close to him as he could without hurting him.

He practically nuzzled against him, surprising not only Jimin but himself, straight up dying out of embarrassment inside and yet being so pleasantly enamored by everything that was Jimin.

“Oh. Aren’t you sweet in your dragon form?” Jimin giggled, dropping Jungkook’s snacks on the ground and bringing his tiny hands to Jungkook’s snout. “Your scales are so dark. But there’s a blue hue to them. Or is it the moon? Either way, it’s so pretty. You’re so pretty, Jungkook,” Jimin praised him, trailing his fingers over his scales.

And Jungkook loved it.

Fuck, he loved every second of it.

Then, Jimin sighed, having made peace with something.

“I’m terrified out of my mind, but I trust you. We should probably get going, no?”

It was enough to wake Jungkook up out of the trance he’d gotten himself caught in, and following up on his earlier intention, he no longer hesitated in grabbing Jimin and placing him on his back like a doll. Jimin’s scream got lost on him as he picked up the grocery bag as well, throwing it over his shoulder and being glad when Jimin managed to catch it.

“Hold on tight,” Jungkook reminded him quietly, his ability to speak now being restored.

Jimin must’ve not expected him to be able to speak, or he’d forgotten that he could, but before he could question him about it, Jungkook kicked off the ground and flew up into the sky.

Jungkook tried not to think about anything else other than what he was doing. He’d taken this route many times and could find his way back home even with his eyes closed. He could see perfectly well in the dark unlike in his human form where he was stuck having very poor eyesight. But he was too restless to focus, being way too aware of Jimin being tucked in between his shoulder blades and his wings, clinging onto him and soaking up his warmth.

Jungkook knew he had to get a grip on himself. Find the right balance and dim his instincts. Make his dragon understand that any kind of relationship with Jimin was something that would never lead to anything. Regardless of whether Jimin was dying or not. Even if he wasn’t, he was part of the royal family. Jungkook was not.

They existed in two vastly different worlds.

Besides, they didn’t even know each other. This was stupid. This was all so fucking stupid…

“The moon! The stars! It’s so pretty! It’s all so pretty!” Jimin yelled out of nowhere, louder than Jungkook’s thoughts, making him realize that he was standing on his back.

“Sit your fucking ass down,” Jungkook growled, slowing down a little. He was confident that he’d be able to catch Jimin even if he fell off, but it’d be great if they could avoid it.

“But it’s so pretty up here!” Jimin shouted in awe, yet did what Jungkook had asked him to.

Jungkook exhaled in relief, continuing on ahead. He thought that it was the end of it, but then he heard Jimin whisper into the night thanks to his exquisite hearing, “I knew I’d be having plenty of regrets, but now getting a taste of it and experiencing things I didn’t get to do my whole life… I think accepting my fate is gonna be much harder than I thought…”

Jungkook felt a heavy weight on his chest throughout the rest of the flight. He could feel himself brooding and it was all of Jimin’s fault for dumping all that heavy stuff on him. For forcing their meeting and allowing his dragon to get attached to him.

At the same time, he couldn’t really blame him. As a prince of their country, his existence came with many privileges that the rest of them could only dream of. Privileges that his parents had taken advantage of.

Jimin couldn’t have possibly known that it was nothing but a smokescreen used by his parents to keep him distracted and away from reality long enough for his life to hit an expiration date so they could discard him. He was their firstborn child—a miracle born from the love between an omega dragon and a human—and the way they’d tricked him was something that Jungkook wouldn’t wish upon his worst enemy. If only Jimin had more time to absorb the news, maybe it’d be different.

But they’d given him a week.

A week to tie up all his affairs and say goodbye to his existence.

It was nowhere near enough time to do anything, let alone catch up on twenty nine years of being stuck in a castle and abiding to his parents’ will. It was no wonder that Jimin was mourning his life and what it could’ve been.

Jungkook couldn’t help but wonder, though.

If Jimin had known since the very beginning, would he have lived his life to the fullest… or given in to despair much sooner? Either way, he didn’t think it was an easy thing to live with.

They all were going to die one day, but to know when exactly and how…

Jungkook supposed there could be some comfort in that. They tended to fear the unknown, and there would be nothing to fear if they had knowledge as such, other than the death itself. They could plan ahead and use their lives to the fullest.

However, death was ugly.

It’d be ideal if one could peacefully pass away in their sleep, but what if that wasn’t the case? What if their passing was much more tragic like murder? Would they then spend all their days trying to figure out whether they could trick the Grim Reaper and somehow survive? Change their fate? Just imagining the what if’s, the anxiety that would come with it sounded exhausting.

Perhaps it was much better not to know then.

Only, Jimin did want to know and his parents had no right to deny him this knowledge. It was making Jungkook angry, the injustice of it all. This country. The King and the Prince Consort. 

Jungkook had been saying this for ages. The Prince Consort was a selfish and spoiled brat, having this weird fascination with the humans, verging on being a fetish, and together with the King, they focused only on themselves and no one else.

No one else mattered, even if they pretended that they did.

They ruled this country together, silencing anyone who stepped up against them. Just like they did Jungkook, ridiculing him and making him out to be a social recluse. A weirdo whose opinion on any matter was nothing but ridiculous and shouldn’t be taken under consideration at all. Jungkook wasn’t the only one, although he was one of the few.

He supposed no one else dared to say anything.

What was actually ridiculous was that Jungkook wasn’t even the bad guy. If it was under different circumstances and for a reason other than the Prince Consort being thirsty for a human dick, Jungkook wouldn’t have minded the dragons and humans living in harmony. But the way it all had happened was for all the wrong reasons and he just couldn’t accept it. Not when day by day dragons were being more and more expected to embrace their lives as humans and forget about their actual origin.

Their real identities.

So while Jungkook couldn’t relate to Jimin, he, once again, understood.

“We’re here,” Jungkook announced, flapping his wings and diving towards the opening in the mountain ahead of them. The cave was large enough to fit all of him, and Jungkook slowed down significantly before landing inside. “I’m gonna help you down now.”

Getting Jimin off him was as easy as putting him there, and once he was standing steadily on the ground, Jungkook didn’t wait a second longer, shifting back into his human form. Instantly, he could feel his thoughts becoming much clearer and less muddled, Jimin’s scent being enticing nonetheless, however not as potent as before.

“Don’t tell me you really do live in a cave.”

Deciding to just show him, Jungkook pointed at the elevator. It blended in so well into the rock wall that it was hard to notice unless you knew beforehand where to look. Although not as energetic as before, Jimin smiled and skipped towards it, pressing the button. The door opened almost right away and Jungkook followed Jimin inside.

The ride upstairs was short and Jungkook welcomed Jimin into his home shortly after, even though Jimin didn’t quite hear him. He let go of Jungkook’s snacks once again, his mouth hanging open as he fixated his eyes on the glass wall across the room.

It was hard to see with the lights being on, but during the day Jungkook liked to watch snowy mountains stretching in front of it, as well as admire the sun rising and setting everyday. His bedroom was elevated on a floor above, and Jungkook loved to wake up to such a view. To give the Prince a little taste of it, Jungkook clapped his hands and the lights turned off.

Jimin didn’t hesitate then, running up to the wall before Jungkook could stop him.

“Hey! Take off your shoes first!”

Jimin did listen to him, giving him an apologetic smile and retreating back to the elevator. He removed his shoes and placed them neatly on a doormat, but once that was out of the way, he rushed back, plastering himself to the window and gasping in pure amazement.

“I understand now why you chose to live here,” Jimin said when Jungkook joined him. “It’s so beautiful up here. So quiet. So serene. I’m a little envious to be honest.”

Jungkook did consider himself lucky for being able to live here.

“Though if I had to choose… I think there’s nothing that beats waking up to the sound of waves,” he said dreamily. “The seagulls mewing. The taste of the salt in the air…”

Jungkook glanced at Jimin, his alpha demanding him to listen to him and fulfil every wish he had. Jimin must’ve been really missing the beach, but it was quite a distance away. Jungkook hated himself a little for actually thinking of taking Jimin there anyway.

Jungkook clapped his hands again, turning around. He gave his loft a quick appraisal as if searching for some inspiration, even though there was only one way they could go about their sleeping arrangements. Jimin had had it rough last night. He deserved a good night’s sleep.

“There’s only one bed. You can sleep there. Bathroom’s over there—” Jungkook pointed at one of the three doors that were located on their left and behind the stairs leading to the bedroom. “If you want to change, just grab some clothes from the closet upstairs.”

The rest was pretty self-explanatory.

Under the floor that was Jungkook’s bedroom was his library. There were bookshelves adorning every wall and there was a desk placed against the glass wall. Right next to it, there was a living room and close to the elevator, there was a kitchen. Then, there was also a storage and a gym room behind the other two closed doors.

It wasn’t a huge space by any means, but it was enough for him.

“Where are you going to sleep?” Jimin asked with a yawn, too tired to even hide his mouth behind his hand, all his manners that must’ve been beaten into him since the youngest age forgotten. Jungkook didn’t care. Now that adrenaline wasn’t pumping in his veins anymore, Jimin’s energy was depleting quickly. Jungkook was surprised he could still stand upright.

“I’ll take the couch.”

Jimin’s eyes opened wide. He shook his head, not agreeing with that solution at all.

“But… The bed’s big enough. And if that’s too much, then I should be the one sleeping on the couch. I’m your guest, after all. It’d be rude of me to kick you out of your own bed.”

His dragon, naturally, liked the idea of sleeping together very much. If it didn’t mean that he’d have to hit himself, Jungkook would love to smack that jerk right on his stupid head. Jimin was obviously not thinking clearly, and Jungkook was a gentleman enough not to take advantage of him.

“Don’t piss me off,” Jungkook warned him, leaving Jimin and going up the stairs. “You can go refresh yourself in the bathroom if you want. I’ll change the bedsheets in the meantime.”

Jimin apparently had no intention of doing that, running after him, his scent turning pitiful. If Jungkook had to guess it had something to do with his decision to change the sheets that were infused with his own scent, but that only gave him all the more reason to do it. It’d be too weird to let Jimin sleep like that. It was already too much that his clothes smelled like him. Unfortunately there was nothing Jungkook could do about the latter.

“I don’t really want to go to sleep yet…”

“We both know that it’s not true. Go change. I’ll get the bed ready.”

Again, though, Jimin didn’t listen to him. Not quite. He did grab some clothes from his closet, but as Jungkook was working on the bed, he noticed a reflection in the window, one that without a doubt was of Jimin standing at the foot of the bed and undressing himself.

It was definitely done on purpose, but Jungkook didn’t see a point in arguing. He wanted to go to sleep as well, and that was why he simply looked away, keeping a straight face and not reacting to Jimin at all. His dragon put up a bit of a fight, but Jungkook didn’t let himself be swayed, getting everything done in no time and marching downstairs.

“Goodnight,” was all Jungkook said before throwing himself on the couch, not even taking off his clothes or changing into his pajamas, and closing his eyes.

Jimin was the one to clap his hands this time to shut off the lights once he was in bed.

“Goodnight,” Jungkook still heard Jimin whisper before the events of today eventually caught up to him, too, knocking him out fast asleep.

He didn’t think so at the time, but when he woke up, it was already way into the afternoon, making him realize that he must’ve been truly exhausted. Not necessarily physically, but mentally for sure. He slept well, though, even though his waking moment was far from being uneventful as there was Jimin, curled up on top of him and being sound asleep. His dragon wasn’t alarmed at all, which must've been why he hadn’t woken up when Jimin decided to join him. Still, it was quite inconvenient.

Based on the feeling alone, Jungkook was positive that Jimin was shirtless, and as if to prove that, the universe made him notice his hoodie being discarded on the floor. There was a blanket covering them both, one that Jimin must’ve brought from Jungkook’s bedroom, and sandwiched like this, it was way too warm. Jimin’s cheeks were flushed, and Jungkook could feel sweat forming on his body.

It was the perfect time to get up, workout first, then take a shower and eat breakfast. In order to do that, Jungkook would have to wake Jimin up and he wasn’t sure he wanted to do that. But he couldn’t just lay here and do nothing.

The close proximity—the fact that he could hear Jimin softly breathing, his breath tickling his skin every time he exhaled—was weirding him out. It was a new sensation, waking up in the presence of someone else.

Jungkook wouldn’t say he outright hated it, but he didn’t enjoy it, either. It was conflicting. Jungkook should be one with his dragon counterpart, always in tune with his instincts, but it just… Sleeping with the Prince like this, it felt wrong.

Outside of the mating season and omegas seeking alphas to help them with their heat, and if they were looking for a simple hookup, there were special customs that dragons abided by. They didn’t just randomly start dating each other like humans did. Some of them, maybe, but it wasn’t the case for the rest of them. And when they began bonding with each other, expressing the wish to start an actual family, it was left up to the alphas to make it happen.

The omegas were picky, always playing hard to get, and to even be considered as a potential mate, alphas were challenged to court them. It happened regardless of whether they were obsessed with each other’s scents or not as it was a way for them to prove their worth.

All omegas wanted different things and they looked for those most desired qualities in their suitors, accepting their gifts and if they were on board, agreeing to form a bond. It usually happened by having sex, often not during the mating season as not everyone nowadays wanted to have babies. The point was that it was always alphas putting in the work.

Jimin being this willing and so clingy was contradicting everything Jungkook knew and throwing his world upside down, especially that sex wasn’t what Jimin wanted. The freaking Prince was bold enough to want it all, and he expected absolutely nothing in return.

Perhaps it was what was pissing Jungkook off.

Jimin deserved better than that. Jungkook was an outcast, but his parents had raised him well. If he was ever going to be with someone, he was going to do it the right way. Jimin wasn’t and couldn’t be that someone for him.

He was an omega, and omegas could usually take care of themselves, but he was vulnerable right now. Jungkook didn’t know whether it was because being a human had rubbed off on him, or it was because it was only natural to protect those who were in need of being protected, but he supposed he was going to take care of Jimin. That was the least he could do.

He was very careful when he started lifting himself off the couch, maneuvering Jimin around and holding him in his arms. Luckily, Jimin didn’t wake up, and Jungkook carried him back to bed, tucking him in. He didn’t linger, knowing that Jimin was safe, his alpha feeling reassured. He skipped the workout today, going straight to the bathroom to take a shower. 

By the time he was done and was getting started on breakfast, Jimin woke up. He moved quietly around the loft, neither of them acknowledging each other just yet. Their dragons did, naturally, but the two of them stayed quiet. Jungkook couldn’t help himself but throw a few curious glances towards Jimin, sort of fascinated by seeing another person walking all over his place. He focused on preparing the food when Jimin disappeared into the bathroom.

Jungkook waited until Jimin joined him before he started eating, becoming more aware of the internal turmoil Jimin was facing as they sat across each other at the table.

“It’s fine,” Jungkook said, not needing Jimin to apologize for coming to sleep with him. “Eat now. You didn’t have anything except for popcorn and booze, did you?”

Not addressing the matter didn’t sit well with Jimin, but he didn’t push.

“Not since I found out about everything, but I’m not really hungry… I feel kinda sick. I really shouldn’t have drunk anything last night,” he admitted with a blush sitting atop his cheeks.

“All the more reason for you to eat something.”

Jungkook pushed the plate with all sorts of cuts of meat towards him. He wasn’t a barbarian, so it was all well prepared, diligently grilled and seasoned. Dragons’ diet consisted mostly of meat, but Jungkook liked to snack on other things as well, so there were other things that he’d brought to the table like vegetables, some fresh and some fried or cooked, and fruit.

There was enough variety for Jimin to choose something he liked, even though the meal wasn’t as refined as it must’ve been at the palace. It was going to fill him up anyway.

“I’m a bit of a disaster, aren’t I?” Jimin chuckled after having some of the food. “I was supposed to go on this big, also my very first and last, adventure, try everything I haven’t ever tried before. Instead, I wasted half a day sleeping off a hangover.”

Jungkook considered Jimin in silence. He was eating much faster and he was already done, popping a piece of fruit into his mouth every now and then.

“Have you ever stayed unproductive for a day? Just lazed around, not doing anything?”

Jimin hadn’t and so that was what they did for the remainder of the Saturday.

After cleaning up after breakfast, they moved to the couch, bringing some snacks and drinks with them. They let themselves relax, Jimin reading some books, while Jungkook napped. They played some games afterwards, with Jimin being discouraged and whining about constantly losing, and Jungkook teaching him how to play and ultimately letting him win once. When the night approached, Jungkook asked him if he wanted to watch a movie.

It was a romcom, so Jungkook was paying more attention to the snacks he was eating rather than whatever that was happening on the screen. He did not miss Jimin scooting closer to him and leaning his head against his shoulder. They’d been keeping to themselves since they’d woken up, and Jungkook froze, having no idea how to react now that Jimin was awake.

“Thank you,” Jimin said when the movie ended, turning a bit sideways, his nose catching on Jungkook’s T-shirt. Jimin didn’t even hide inhaling his scent, although he did move away right after and looked Jungkook in his eyes. “I would’ve never done this if it wasn’t for you.”

What Jimin had said, his rigid posture, shaky eyes… If Jungkook didn’t know better, he’d think that Jimin was psyching himself up to get up and leave. Why would he? Jungkook wasn’t kicking him out. Did Jimin think that he was overstaying his welcome? Taking advantage of his kindness? There was no way. Jimin knew the kind of person Jungkook was.

And if Jungkook got committed to doing something, he was going to see it through.

“It’s late. Let’s try to sleep now so we can both be rested tomorrow,” he decided, getting up and leaving everything where it was, only turning off the TV. “I’ll teach you how to fly.”

Despite his earlier intention, Jimin didn’t even move. He stared at Jungkook, being so awfully conflicted, drowning in guilt and the longing, struggling to decide whether to follow what his heart yearned for or do the right thing and leave.

“Being selfish.”

“Huh?”

Jungkook smiled, agreeing with his alpha this time around and backing him up in this fight to convince Jimin to follow his instincts and ignore everything else.

“You should try it, too.”

Jungkook didn’t know right away what giving Jimin such an advice would entail, but he found out rather quickly when he found himself in bed, lying with Jimin side by side. This quite comfortable space between them didn’t last long, either, as the next thing he knew, Jimin moved under his arm, flinging his leg over his waist and resting his head on his chest.

“Are you sure you can handle me being selfish…?” he asked, his nose pressed against Jungkook’s tank top, rubbing over the fabric, both breathing him in and scenting him.

Jungkook had made his bed and he was going to sleep in it.

“Do your worst.”

Sunday

Waking up today, it was different. When Jungkook opened his eyes, Jimin was no longer sleeping but watching him instead. He was lying on his chest again, his weight on top of him not bothering Jungkook in the slightest.

There was no telling how long Jimin had been already awake, staring at him like a creep. Jungkook wasn’t going to ask. He should probably look away, too, in fear of straining his eyes, but wouldn’t that make him a coward?

He refused to lose to Jimin, let alone give in to his dragon who didn’t consider this a competition at all. He’d be making heart eyes at Jimin if he could. Fuck. Jungkook wasn’t, right? Panicked, Jungkook looked away anyway, hiding his pathetic defeat behind a yawn.

Jimin giggled, and from a lying position, pushed himself to sit down, straddling Jungkook’s hips and placing his hands on his chest. His eyes were stuck on the window this time, making Jungkook glance towards it as well.

“It started snowing while we were asleep,” he said, giddy as all hell.

“That’s a normal occurrence at this time of the year, especially so deep in the mountains,” Jungkook said, not hating it, but not having any special feelings towards snow or winter, either. He was a fire dragon. He preferred warmer weather, although his human form struggled immensely in summer.

When Jimin didn’t answer, his eyes transfixed on the falling snow, Jungkook propped himself on his elbows, the change in position urging Jimin to look at him. He was a prince. The royal family claimed that they didn’t stand above anyone else, but their eyes—the way they looked at everyone—told a whole different story. But not Jimin.

Jimin’s eyes were exceptionally kind.

“Do you want to go outside?”

Jimin’s eyes brightened up even more and he did a happy dance, wiggling a little and twisting his fingers into the fabric of Jungkook’s tank top.

“Can we?” he asked to make sure. “Is there a trail we can take to walk around?”

Jungkook gave him a weird look.

They were too deep in the mountains for anyone to find them, unless they knew where and were specifically looking for them, so there was nothing they had to worry about. But there were no trails. It wasn’t even what Jungkook had meant.

“Have you forgotten already?” Jungkook tapped Jimin’s thigh, and taking the hint, Jimin got off of him. “I promised to teach you how to fly,” he reminded him as he got up from bed, stretching his arms.

“I... Uh, Jungkook. I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

“Why?”

Absent-mindedly, Jungkook discarded his tank top, snatching a hoodie from his closet and putting it on. When he faced Jimin again, his enthusiasm was gone.

“It’s not like you’ve got anything to lose,” Jungkook joked, immediately feeling the weight of his words, wishing that he could take them back, his dragon not even hiding his disappointment with him.

“I’ve got four and a half days left. It’d be pretty lame if I died before my actual time is up,” he tried to sound nonchalant, forcing a smile, but his scent was bitter, revealing his true emotions, making Jungkook feel even worse.

But this wasn’t about him.

“Jimin, you’re a dragon,” Jungkook said, his tone much more serious. “Flying is like breathing to us. And I won’t leave your side, not even for a second. I promise.”

Despite his reassurances, Jimin didn’t look convinced. He was smiling, but it was awkward as he seemed to be too intimidated to outwardly tell him ‘no’.

“You’ve never lived as a dragon. You deserve to have a hands-on experience, at least this once,” Jungkook tried one last time. “And not to brag—” he took a step towards Jimin, outstretching his hand “—but I’m pretty good at this dragon thing and I can show you everything. You couldn’t wish for a better teacher.”

Jimin’s eyes flitted between Jungkook’s hand and the window. When a flash of determination went off in his eyes and he finally accepted his hand, their eyes met. Jungkook tugged Jimin, helping him stand and then get off the bed. Jimin was shirtless again, and they stood so close that their bare feet were touching, leaving Jungkook with a tickling sensation.

“You won’t let me fall to my death?”

“I might,” Jungkook said, reaching behind and grabbing another hoodie, yet never letting go of Jimin’s hand. When Jimin made a face at him, he added, “But I’ll catch you right after.”

That satisfied Jimin and they went downstairs to eat breakfast. Jimin sat at the table, while Jungkook whipped up something, keeping it light after their heavy dinner last night.

“So it’s not only when you’re a dragon.”

“Huh?” Jungkook hummed in question, placing everything on the table and sitting opposite of Jimin who didn’t even wait for him, already stuffing a piece of meat into his mouth.

“You can be quite sweet now if you want, too.”

At the reminder of what Jungkook considered his moment of weakness, he could feel his cheeks warm up in sheer embarrassment. At the same time, Jungkook had a feeling that given a chance, his dragon would wag his tail at the compliment from the Prince.

“Don’t push it,” he grumbled, focusing on food and ignoring Jimin’s giggles.

They spent the rest of the breakfast in silence, but it wasn’t awkward. Jungkook actually quite enjoyed it, not being annoyed by Jimin smiling or giggling to himself every now and then, either. With the falling snow outside and the calm all around them, it was nice. Really nice. It wasn’t really all that different from when he was alone, and if it was Jimin… Jungkook could even get used to it.

Which was stupid to even think about.

They made it to the cave when they were ready. Jimin looked a bit unsure, but other than that, he seemed to be fine. The cold didn’t bother him anymore. His cheeks were colored pink, and Jungkook was beginning to think that it was a default feature of his. Unless it was Jungkook’s body heat rubbing off of him and his body didn’t know how to deal with it yet.

“We’ll start from you shifting,” Jungkook said, disregarding the way Jimin froze and the slight shiver to his top lip as he parted his lips. “It’s very easy. You just have to think of it as something you want to do, reach inside yourself and—” Jungkook shifted without breaking a sweat, demonstrating to Jimin what he meant “—your dragon will do the rest.”

“That’s the thing,” Jimin complained, stretching his neck to be able to look at Jungkook in all his dragon glory. “I wanted to shift so many times and it never worked. If it’s so easy, then I should’ve been able to at least once, no? Maybe… I mean, my father is a human. It could be that my genes were distributed unevenly and I simply can’t shift at all.”

Jungkook didn’t believe that at all.

“Or the patch you’ve been forced to wear stopped you from reaching your full potential,” Jungkook suggested, being very careful and lowering his head a little to get closer to Jimin. He was calm so far, not getting overwhelmed by Jimin’s scent, and while he found it suspicious, he was here to help Jimin and didn’t have time to dwell on it.

“Removing the patch has already made a huge difference. What hurts you to try shifting again? This one last time?” Jungkook encouraged him, staying patient. It wasn’t his usual setting. Jungkook could barely recognize himself, but he didn’t feel irritated at the moment. He didn’t particularly feel like rushing Jimin nor that it’d help them accomplish anything.

Huffing out a soft breath and in a way, holding his breath, Jungkook dropped even lower to the ground and nudged Jimin with his snout. Having not envisioned that, Jimin took a step back before bracing himself, stiff as a ramrod as Jungkook nuzzled against his shoulder.

“Close your eyes.”

From this up close, Jungkook could hear Jimin swallow hard, but when he chanced a glance at him, his eyes were closed. His chest was steadily rising and falling, the beating of Jimin’s heart lulling Jungkook into an even deeper state of calm. The trust they had in each other made no sense at all. Jungkook could rip Jimin’s head off and swallow him whole right now, yet Jimin didn’t think of even moving away, opening himself to new possibilities under Jungkook’s touch.

“Now focus. Use your imagination. Think of yourself shifting.”

Jungkook wasn’t sure why he started whispering, especially when Jimin shuddered and it wasn’t from the cold. It felt like the wrong move to appease Jimin and let their dragons even further familiarize with themselves. Even when he tried, Jungkook couldn’t bring himself to pull away. What they were doing, though, was harmless. At least that was what he thought.

Everything happened in a blink of an eye afterwards.

Jimin did, indeed, shift.

He shifted and, like a vicious beast, threw himself at him. A flurry of white was all Jungkook saw before he was being knocked over to his back. A loud and possessive growl rang in Jungkook’s ears as they tossed all over the cave, Jungkook struggling immensely against a dragon that was pretty much feral in all his intensity.

“Jimin! Fuck. Pull yourself together!”

Jimin just wouldn’t listen. He seemed to be so starved, having already admitted to being infatuated with Jungkook’s scent, and now not getting enough of it. The way Jimin was acting, it was as though he wanted the two of them to merge together and become one person. He was running his snot up and down Jungkook’s neck, scenting him all over.

Jungkook could handle that, and after a moment, he decided to just stop resisting. He hoped that it’d help Jimin to get back to his senses. He’d never, not even in his wildest dreams, imagine that it’d have the opposite effect. That Jimin would take it as a sign of submission and permission to continue. 

They were in their dragon form, after all.

Before they even started shifting into humans, they didn’t talk. All they could do was express everything through their body language, the sounds they made and their actions. And by Jungkook lying still, Jimin believed that Jungkook wanted this. Fuck, he did. It was hard to deny the mutual attraction and the pull towards each other between them.

It was hard to fight it, too.

But Jimin wasn’t in the right mind and this had to stop.

“Jimin—”

Jungkook saw it before he felt it.

His mouth fell shut as Jimin’s pearly white teeth caught a bit of light and glistened in the dimmed cave light just moments before he sank them into Jungkook’s neck. They were so sharp that they pierced through Jungkook’s skin almost immediately, and seconds later, just as Jimin tasted blood, Jungkook was quick to shift back. If he didn't, Jimin, who had shifted moments before him, would’ve dropped down to the ground. Fortunately Jungkook caught him just in time. This way, Jungkook was still lying on the ground, but at least Jimin was on top of him, unharmed and safe, if only a bit shaken up and feeling awfully guilty.

“Jungkook, I’m so sorry. I—Fuck, I don’t know what’s gotten into me—”

Jungkook helped them both sit down, letting Jimin stay in his lap. He cleared his throat, doing his best not to wince when he turned his head and felt a sharp pang of pain in his neck. Jimin hovered with his hands on both of his sides, not knowing what to do.

“Fuck, you’re bledding. You’re—”

“Fine.”

“You can’t keep saying that! I fucked up!”

“And I’m still fine,” Jungkook said stubbornly, scoffing under his nose. “Don’t fret, there won’t be even a scar left. It’s just a little blood. It’ll heal soon.”

Jungkook brought his hand to his neck, keeping it there for a moment and then flicking away all the blood that gathered on his fingers. He then proceeded to wipe his hand against his sweatpants, not missing the look of disgust on Jimin’s face. He laughed at that, using the sleeve of his hoodie to wipe Jimin’s mouth and making him instantly feel shy.

“We all lose control sometimes,” Jungkook reassured him. “It’s not a big deal.”

“I didn’t just lose control and we both know it,” Jimin said quietly, locking his eyes with his. “I did successfully shift, though, so I guess it is a call for a celebration.”

Jungkook raised his eyebrows, getting up himself and simultaneously picking Jimin up as well. He brushed off his clothes when they were both standing, catching himself in the act as he brushed away a few locks of hair from Jimin’s face. He snatched his hand back right after, acting like that did not just happen.

“What, you think we’re done? I said I’d teach you to fly. You gotta shift again and we’ll go over the basics in the cave first. Once you get the hang of it, we’ll go outside.”

“I think that’s enough excitement for me for the day,” Jimin chuckled softly. “I really do appreciate you wanting to teach me, but—”

“It’s not gonna be as intense the second time,” Jungkook said, knowing it from experience. “Now that I know in advance that it might happen, I’m more prepared, too. So just go for it. Shift and let’s go play in the snow.”

Jimin could see the snow perfectly from where they were now, being warm and dry, but there had to be something enticing about Jungkook’s words because he nodded and shifted in the end. Jungkook followed in his steps, creating some distance between them just to be safe. Jimin didn’t tackle him down this time, which was a good sign.

“Better?”

“I can think more clearly, yeah. It’s still a constant fight between me and my dragon, which is odd because we’re supposed to be one, after all. But yeah, I’m fine.”

“Well, great. So now—”

“How do I look?” Jimin asked and twirled around, showing himself off.

Jungkook stared, unblinking.

“What.”

Jimin stomped the ground.

“I can’t look in the mirror, now can I? So? How do I look? Describe it to me!”

To no one’s surprise, that was a first for Jungkook, too. He was almost forty five and no one had ever asked him to do that. There wasn’t anything special nor hard about it, but what did Jimin want to hear? The truth? Should he lie to make Jimin feel good about himself? But what would he even lie about?

Jimin was a normal dragon.

Jungkook took a closer look at him, starting from the top of his head.

Jimin’s scales were as white as snow resting on the mountains right now, but Jungkook could spot a faint shimmer of pink in the middle of his long neck. As he trailed his eyes lower, the pink was spreading, becoming more and more visible and vibrant. It was like a gradient, painting Jimin’s tail the color of his hair. Just like his scent, Jimin looked like cherry blossoms and winter combined together and made into something incredibly beautiful.

That was what Jungkook told him, except for the latter part, keeping it to himself.

“That description… it makes me feel pretty.”

“You are,” Jungkook answered without thinking, having the urge to throw himself out of the cave and plummet to his death right after.

“Thank you,” Jimin said with a giggle. He was careful, extremely so, but he sidestepped next to Jungkook, bumping into him gently. “So what now? What’s the next step?”

Jungkook tried his best not to mind Jimin’s scales moving against his nor his scent entering his lungs every time he inhaled. Jimin was in control of himself, and Jungkook should lead an example and stay the same.

He shouldn’t be letting himself get distracted.

“You’ll get on my back. I’ll fly us out of here somewhere where there’s less mountain tops and more space for us to move. Then, you’ll flap your wings and try to fly up in the air.”

Jungkook walked swiftly to the cave exit while Jimin trotted behind him.

“I—What? What if I fall?”

Jungkook looked back, lowering himself to make it easier for Jimin to get on his back.

“You’ll just fall straight on my back. My dad taught me to fly the same way. You’ll be fine,” Jungkook said, looking pointedly at his back. “Now hop on.”

Like with everything else, Jimin wasn’t looking forward to it, but with his trust unwavering, he complied with Jungkook’s request. He climbed on Jungkook’s back, making sure to stay away from Jungkook’s wings, not wishing to hinder his ability to fly as any mistake could, in Jimin’s mind, lead to their very traumatizing and brutal demise. 

Jungkook wasn’t really concerned. He flapped his wings once, and when he was sure that everything was okay, he pushed himself off the edge, laughing when Jimin screamed as they soared high up in the sky.

It wasn’t snowing heavily, and even though there were snowflakes getting into Jungkook’s eyes every now and then, Jungkook had no trouble seeing everything and navigating his way forward. He was taking them to a valley where he’d have enough space to maneuver them around and catch Jimin without any problems if he did actually fall down.

Jimin was quiet, clinging even more desperately to him when they arrived at their destination. Jimin knew they did when Jungkook started slowing down, beginning to flap his wings consistently but otherwise staying still without moving too much. He didn’t prompt Jimin to do anything, giving him as much time as he needed to calm himself down and prepare himself mentally.

“I’m ready,” Jimin said eventually, receiving a sharp nod from Jungkook in return.

“You know what to do.”

“Do I?” he laughed weakly, but judging by the shift in the air, he did start flapping his wings, even though it was nowhere near strong enough. Jimin was aware of it and readjusted quickly, putting more strength into it. “Wow, this sure is tiring,” he panted a little. “If I was in my human form, I’d be sweating buckets for sure. Do you really not mind the extra weight? I must be heavy.”

Jungkook snorted.

“Heavy is the opposite of the word I’d use.”

“You know,” Jimin said after a meaningful pause, “you should stop being so nice to me.” He was going to ask ‘or what?’, but that was when Jimin told him as though he was reading his mind, “If you don’t, I might just fall in love with you, Jungkook.”

Jimin couldn’t be any more straightforward about it since the beginning, and yet Jungkook found himself all choked up, his wings stuttering briefly before he found the right rhythm again. Jimin didn’t even notice anything, at least Jungkook didn’t think so. Jimin’s confession shouldn’t make him feel the way it did, but the sinking feeling in his stomach didn’t go away, lingering behind like a sour aftertaste after eating something that had already gone bad.

“You should raise your standards,” Jungkook ended up saying.

“Why?” Jimin inquired, always so curious. He was keeping the conversation light, not really prying into something he shouldn’t. “You’re not a good lover? You wouldn’t treat me right?”

Jungkook made the choice to stay quiet. He’d never dated before, so he couldn’t answer. He was somewhat experienced when it came to sex, but that was as far as it went. He’d never gotten romantically involved with anyone.

As much as falling in love and dating had become much more common, his parents being the proof of that, he wasn’t interested. He was an individual whose dragon instincts were very strong and he didn’t care about making any connections. He loved his parents, but other than that, he didn’t have any friends growing up, either.

“I think whoever is gonna end up being loved by you is gonna be incredibly lucky,” Jimin added, keeping his voice a whisper as if it was a secret he was sharing with him.

Jungkook opened his mouth, not even sure what he was going to say, but before he could make a single sound, Jimin screamed, “Jungkook, I did it! I did it! I’m flying!”

A second later, not giving Jungkook a chance to congratulate him, Jimin dropped back on his back, the impact making them sway a little. Jungkook rolled his eyes.

“Oops. I lost focus for a second,” Jimin laughed, but he didn’t give up, right away trying again and again until he could get it right. “Look! Look! Jungkook!”

Jungkook did look, taking notice of Jimin keeping himself in the air all on his own. He looked a bit clumsy, but he got the spirit. He succeeded and it was all that mattered.

His enthusiasm was contagious, and Jungkook wouldn’t openly admit it, but it did make him a bit giddy, too. This joy that Jimin was feeling. It was just so pure it was making him smile.

Their eyes met and Jungkook felt something warm, warmer than his own body, expand in his chest. It both hurt and felt wonderful at the same time. Jungkook didn’t know what to make of it, but the longer he gazed into Jimin’s eyes, seeing through the veil and drowning in his sadness, the more suffocating it was, leaving him breathless.

Jungkook looked away.

“Should I move out of the way now?”

“Don’t you dare!”

Jungkook laughed, but he remained in his position, being quite impressed that Jimin kept the momentum going and didn’t fall this time. They continued it for a while, trying to spice things up after some time like both of them actually flying forward at the same time with Jungkook staying under Jimin, although dropping a few meters down and keeping some distance between them. Jimin staggered a few times, but not even once had asked for them to stop, just continuing straight ahead.

Once Jimin got even more confident, they stopped, Jimin planting his feet one last time on Jungkook’s back. They exchanged a meaningful look while Jimin was catching his breath.

“Ready?”

Jimin shook his head with a laugh.

“Not at all, no. But let’s do it.”

Jungkook waited for Jimin to get up in the air, and once he did, he dashed away, leaving him with lots of space to move around. Jimin cursed, and instead of stretching his wings and flying around, Jungkook was quick to check whether he was okay, only to see Jimin happily frolicking. At first, he must’ve felt a bit intimidated without Jungkook being right there with him, but that didn’t hold him back for long. He was enjoying himself, ascending and descending, making loops in the air and a bunch of other acrobatic moves.

“Holy shit!” Jimin screamed at the top of his lungs. “This is so fun!”

Jungkook lost track of how long they stayed here, chasing each other and playing around as he’d joined Jimin in on the fun. When they eventually headed back home, Jimin was back on his back, having completely run out of energy and being barely able to move. That was why after they shifted back, Jungkook carried him all the way up to his loft, too.

“I don’t think I’ve ever been this tired,” Jimin said with a yawn, already stretched on the couch, his cheeks still flushed from the cold. “Can we do nothing again?”

“Will you help with dinner first?”

Jungkook wasn’t even fast enough to roll up his sleeves and get to work before Jimin skipped up next to him, bumping into his side with his hip, being ever so eager to help.

“Sure!”

They worked in tandem, bringing their food over to the couch once they were done. They didn’t watch much of the movie, though, as Jimin was very chatty tonight, clearly being in a much better mood after a good workout.

He asked Jungkook a bunch of questions like where he worked—nowhere; the wealth he possessed was generational, passed between his family members and acquired during the days when dragons stole all that was valuable and shiny from humans and didn’t have to give it back—and what was his favorite color—black.

Jungkook was a closed book to anyone who met him, but despite Jimin reassuring him that he didn’t have to tell him anything, Jungkook… was okay with answering all of his questions, some of them utterly random like Jimin inquiring about his preferences regarding eating cereal. Did he pour milk before or after adding cereal? He was disappointed to find out that Jungkook didn’t eat cereal at all and actually had never had it before.

Jungkook made a mental note to buy some tomorrow so they could eat it together.

They talked well into the night until Jimin’s battery fully ran out and he dozed off, half a chip sticking out of his hand. Jungkook removed it, tossing it back into the bowl on the table. Jimin didn’t even stir when Jungkook got up, placing one of his hands behind Jimin’s back and the other one under his knees before picking him up from the couch.

Jungkook carried Jimin to bed, placing him gently on the mattress. Jimin had chosen the right side of the bed, but Jungkook had switched it up now, knowing that Jimin was going to seek him and his scent anyway and the spot where he’d been sleeping the previous night smelled the strongest of him. Jungkook could fight it, but it was easier to just go with the flow without overthinking it.

While Jungkook was often confused, his dragon appreciated it a lot, happily purring whenever Jungkook was taking care of Jimin, only to start grumbling angrily whenever he wasn’t doing enough.

It was tiring, and Jungkook gave up on cleaning up downstairs, kicking off his sweatpants and taking off his hoodie. He always slept in his underwear only, but he did throw a T-shirt on just to look decent. Jimin probably wouldn’t have minded to see him almost naked, but that was all the more reason for him to put it on.

A satisfied groan left Jungkook’s lips when he finally climbed on the bed, sinking into the mattress. His eyes already closing, he clapped his hands loud enough to trigger the lights and make them turn off, but quiet enough not to wake Jimin up.

Jungkook stretched his legs, groaning again just from how comfortable he was. It was a crazy few days and it was definitely catching up to him. But his state of relaxation was short-lived. The mattress next to him dipped and Jungkook sensed Jimin turning around and searching for him in his sleep. He could push him away, but he guided Jimin to his chest, letting him hug him, and that was precisely when the reminder of what day it was already crashed into him.

Jungkook didn’t forget, but with Jimin being so lively, it was hard to accept that in just four days… He’d be gone. He wasn’t sick or anything like that. He was just dying.

Jungkook turned sideways as well, pulling Jimin closer to him, hugging him tight and breathing him in. Jimin fitted perfectly into his arms, and slotted like this, Jungkook allowed himself to drift off. Whatever it meant, he didn’t care. He didn’t want to think about it.

He didn’t want to think about anything.

He just wanted to sleep.

With Jimin in his arms.