Chapter Text
[Tiffy] duuuuude
[Tiffy] are you okay?!?!?
[Tiffy] I just saw the announcement
[Tiffy] please reply with something so I know you’re alive
[Y/N] something
[Tiffy] omggggg
[Tiffy] here I was leaving you alone because I thought you were having sexy times in quarantine
You squint at your messages and groan.
[Y/N] I’m not dead, just feels like the flu
[Y/N] I’ll catch you up later friend, gonna go back to sleep now
You feel the phone slip out of your hand and hear the thump as it hits the floor as you turn over to go back to sleep. You feel a cool washcloth press against your forehead and smile knowing Yoongi is there, taking care of you.
~
You are wearing a thick black winter coat that goes down to your knees, a grey, fuzzy beanie, matching mittens, black pants, and boots. You remember East Coast winters from your childhood, but it’s been so long living in Southern California that the chill almost catches you by surprise. It’s 2022 when you are both finally well again and able to leave quarantine with all the winter holidays passing in a haze of illness, recovery, and then just appreciating one another. You grip the metal rail of the bridge you are standing on and stare at the very cold looking Han River.
Seoul is beautiful. You have already caught yourself several times just stopping in place and staring at the beauty around you. You do not regret your decision to relocate here. You feel peaceful in a way that you never did in LA. You are pretty sure that you would have felt this way even without the whole “Yoongi factor,” but that is definitely a bonus.
Your phone rings and you fumble to press your earbud to answer it. Not knowing you might even be calling you, you say, “Hello?”
You can see your breath as it dissipates in front of you, blending in with the grey of the river.
“Ah, good, you answered!” your jovial brother practically shouts into your ear.
“Jack, hello,” you say with a grimace.
“I was on Twitter tonight and couldn’t sleep,” he says.
You glance up at the light grey sky. You wonder if it’s going to snow. It almost feels like snow is coming.
You say, “I think that’s your punishment for going on Twitter.”
“Well, I saw your beau was sick and then I realized I hadn’t heard from you since you landed, so naturally I started freaking out and assuming the worst,” he replies. You note that he doesn’t sound worried at all.
You breathe out. You don’t think you’ll ever get used to people having second-hand information about you from social media and the news. You mostly don’t care, but there are times when you are reminded just how very public parts of Yoongi’s life are.
“Jack,” you say, exasperated, “stop getting all your news about me from Twitter. I’m literally not on social media for a reason. We are both fine now. Everything is fine.”
“Well, that’s good,” Jack says, sounding chipper. He called to tease you, you realize.
“I think it’s going to snow,” you say wistfully, hoping to change the subject.
“Ah, snow! Remember when we used to play out in the yard with those neighbor kids. Ugh, what were their names?” Jack says, taking the bait. “You know! The ones that turned into total assholes in high school.”
“That describes like eighty percent of the kids we went to school with, Jack,” you say with a chuckle.
“Well, anyway, Send me some pics. You been keeping yourself busy aside from being sick?”
You laugh and say, “Yeah, I’ve been writing. Yoongi has more or less gone back to work full time even though he’s technically still on vacation.”
“Wow, you two are meant for each other,” your brother deadpans.
“Right?” you say with another laugh. “Well, I am out for a walk along the river and I should probably try to find my way back before it starts snowing. You should go to sleep.”
You say your goodbyes and hang up. You carefully make your way across the rest of the bridge and head towards the bus stop that will take you home.
~
“Wait like Psy, as in,” you pause to put one hand over the other like you’re riding a horse from the Gangnam Style dance, looking at Yoongi with wide eyes.
“Yah,” Yoongi laughs as he tries to sound offended. “You know the dance to Gangnam Style?”
“Just that part, it’s famous,” you say with a grin. “But seriously?”
Yoongi nods, still laughing. “I just sent over a draft of a song we’ve been chatting about. Just producing for him.”
“Oh, I see, just , producing for him,” you say sarcastically. You step forward and cup your hands around his face, pulling his lips down to yours. When you pull back, you say, “That’s really exciting. I can’t wait to hear it.”
Yoongi leans down again and smiles through another kiss to your lips.
~
“I miss you,” Tiffy says with a pout on your screen.
You laugh. “I think we see each other more now that we are doing this regular video calls than we did when I lived in the same city as you!”
“What, does that mean I can’t miss you? Maybe I missed you even when we were in the same city?” Tiffy retorts.
“Well, you should come visit then,” you say.
Tiffy huffs. “I will, I will. I think I can take an extra long vacation in the summer, if I play my cards right and bank my hours.”
“Oh, really?” you exclaim and clap your hands.
“Yeah, so, start planning the ultimate tourist experience for me, since you’ll be a proper Seoullite by then.”
“I can’t wait,” you say. “And I might be coming back to the States at some point. Nothing is definite yet, but I think we might be planning a couple trips.”
Tiffy lets out a whoop and pumps her fist into the air, which has you laughing and clutching your sides.
“So, what have you been doing with yourself? How was your week?” Tiffy asks after giving you a moment to calm down.
“The usual, I guess. I’ve been writing most mornings and then spending the afternoons exploring different neighborhoods. I finally got to see Yoongi’s studio when I went over for lunch,” you say.
“Wow,” Tiffy says. “Way to make me jealous all over again. You’re the worst.”
You laugh at this.
“I’m glad you’re not just hiding out at home all the time though and you’re getting out to see the city,” Tiffy continues.
You nod. You say, “You know me, I love to travel to new places. The transit and food is both so cheap here, it’s easy to get by during the week on my own. And, at this rate, I’ll have a whole draft of my book for the publisher in the next couple of months. I thought it would take me a lot longer, but I guess getting into a routine has been good.”
“Yes, look at you, kicking ass like I knew you would,” Tiffy says.
~
You walk shoulder to shoulder slowly down the lane. The dusk light is losing its orange glow.
“Oh, are we going to a bookstore?” you ask, pointing to the store’s sign in front of you.
Yoongi stops dead in his tracks, mouth hanging open.
“What?” you ask in alarm. You look around thinking maybe you weren’t as alone as you thought.
“You-“ he starts, wide eyes looking at you. “When- You- I thought you couldn’t speak Korean?”
“Oh,” you utter quietly. Whoops. The sign was not written in English.
“I, uh, I’ve been taking lessons? And practicing with a study group online? And watched probably hundreds of hours of dramas since we landed?” you say weakly, looking down at your toes. “I was going to tell you.”
“Why didn’t you?” he whispers.
“Ah, it’s embarrassing, I don’t know,” you whine. “I’m really bad.”
Yoongi clicks his tongue. “Aish.”
You look up at him and feel your breath catch with the face of someone completely endeared. Your cheeks heat up in response.
“Ah, I want to hug you now,” he says under his breath. He pivots on his heel, as if to head back the other way, saying, “I want to just turn around and go back home.”
“No,” you say quickly. “Let’s just visit the bookstore like you planned, then we can go home and you can hug me all you want.”
“Aish,” is all Yoongi says before he’s trudging towards the bookstore.
You find yourself giggling as you follow him.
~
“What movie do you want to watch?” Yoongi asks you slowly in Korean.
You bite your lip in concentration as you decipher his sentence.
“We should play games instead,” Jungkook says in English.
“Oh, games, that sounds fun,” Jin chimes in from the dining room.
Everyone is over for dinner. From what you understand, everyone has been slowly coming back from their vacations and have begun working on a new album. There are also new concerts coming up. You marvel at how busy their jobs keep them, especially when you’re just sitting in front of a computer all day writing.
“Y/N-ah?” Yoongi says.
“Oh, sorry,” you say slowly in Korean. You decide to compromise and speak in Korean for the sentence you’re fairly confident you’re not totally butchering, especially when the entire band is here.
Jimin giggles. You look from Jimin to Yoongi, before you say in English, “Did I mess that up? I was feeling confident about that one.”
“You just don’t need to use such formal language with me. It’s okay, you’re still learning. It’s hard,” Yoongi says with a smile.
“Yeah, I’m terrible at it too,” Jungkook says.
You glance at him and give him a reassuring smile. You say, “I think you’re better than me.”
Jungkook, Jimin, and Yoongi look at you expectantly.
“I don’t mind watching that Mario race game again,” you say.
Jungkook and Jin, from the dining room, give whoops of joy simultaneously, running over to the TV to set up the console.
Namjoon comes in and sits down on the couch with you and Yoongi.
“I have a couple chapters to send you,” you say to Namjoon. “That is, if you’re still interested in reading my drafts.”
His eyes light up in excitement. “Really? That’s great. Yeah, send them, I’ll read them when I’m on break at the set.”
You feel yourself blushing a bit at the thought. You mumble, “I hope you’re not getting your expectations too high.”
“Don’t worry, I’m sure it’s great,” Namjoon says.
Hobi plops himself down between you and Namjoon, taking the last free spot on the couch. “What are we talking about?”
“Just my writing, nothing much,” you say.
You hear Yoongi click his tongue and say “aish” under his breath. Hobi laughs with a shrug and gives you a smile.
“Hyung,” Jimin turns his head towards the group on the couch. “Tell Taehyung that it’s my turn to play Peach.”
Both Namjoon and Hobi turn to look at Yoongi, apparently deciding that Jimin’s “hyung” was referring to the eldest of the guys sitting on the couch. Yoongi blinks at everyone.
“Don’t fight, Jimin-ah, just take turns,” Yoongi says, cheeks pinkening.
“Hyung,” Jimin whines. “You said I was your favorite.”
“What? When did he say that?” Taehyung cries out.
“He said it when I first met noona,” Jimin says with a pout.
Taehyung continues to wail dramatically, “I can’t believe this betrayal.”
“I don’t really remember saying that,” Yoongi says with a frown on his face, his brows furrowed with trying to remember.
“That’s because Jimin said you were his favorite brother, not the other way around,” you chime in helpfully.
Jimin’s mouth falls open as he looks at you in shock. “Noona, how could you?”
“I don’t remember any of this,” Yoongi says, brow still furrowed.
You laugh and smile, tipping over into Yoongi’s shoulder. Once there you decide to stay as Yoongi wraps a warm arm around behind you, pulling you snug against his side. Jimin turns back to the TV without further conversation, clearly realizing he was getting no help from his elders, and continues his bickering with the other maknaes.
“This is nice,” you murmur.
“Yeah,” Yoongi agrees.
~
Yoongi sits contentedly in the makeshift bed Y/N and he made earlier in the evening so that they could watch the fireplace. He looks down at the woman in his arms, shifting to hold her a little bit tighter in his embrace. He bends over and presses a light kiss into her hair. The fire emits a dim orange glow that casts the room in shadows. In other circumstances, perhaps, it would be spooky. But to Yoongi, in this moment, it feels magical. Like he’s in his own magical realm where nothing matters but the two people, snug in each other’s hold, in this room.
Y/N stirs, waking up, and tilts her head up to look at Yoongi. Seeing he’s still awake, she pulls herself up further so she is face to face with him. Beautiful, Yoongi thinks.
He leans forward and kisses her softly. She leans into him and he feels impossibly warmer. The moment is tender, but not fragile. Yoongi feels he can burst with the weight of his feelings.
He pulls back and looks at the woman in front of him. With his hand cupping her cheek, he says, “You make me feel so ordinary.”
There is a flash of surprise on Y/N’s face before it dissolves into a brilliant smile. “And you make me feel extraordinary.”
Yoongi nods and feels his face light up into a full, gums-on-display smile. Tears prick behind his eyelids.
He leans forward and kisses her again. And again. And again.
~
Yoongi came back earlier in the evening from a couple days of being away for work. You are both now sitting tangled up together on the couch with a Lo-Fi hip hop video playing on the TV. Both of you are in cozy sweats, under a soft blanket, a little cocoon of happiness. Yoongi has his hair pulled back in a bun, his hair getting to a length that you really appreciate.
Your eyes wander the apartment, just recognizing how much better the place feels when Yoongi is home. He brings a quiet comfort with him, wherever he goes. You wonder briefly if he’s like that for everyone or if it’s something special just for you. Your eyes light on the small shelf by the TV where Yoongi has put some of his little treasures and trinkets collected on his travels. There is also a framed photo of the two of you with the desert sunset behind you. You smile at the memory. You then see a small stone carving of a cat. It’s the one you had given to him in Las Vegas.
“Hey, Yoongi,” you say, still smiling.
Yoongi hums in response, fingers playing with yours. You watch your fingers tangle together, feel the warmth from his skin, and think if you left this world with only one memory, you’d like it to be this one. You smile thinking about all the memories that are still to come.
Yoongi lifts his head to look at you expectantly, waiting for whatever it is you are going to say, soft smile on his lips. You bring your eyes up to his face, soaking in every detail. Your smile blossoms across your face to match the feelings swirling around inside you, with no other way to get out.
“How do you feel about getting a cat?”