— Taehyung waited. But the door didn't open. He checked his phone again—11:07 PM. The screen lit up his face for a second before he dropped it back onto the table with a quiet sigh. The soft tap it made against the wood felt way too loud in the stillness around him.

The apartment was too big at night. Every sound seemed to stretch, echo, linger. Shadows filled the corners like they had lives of their own, and even the soft hum of the city outside made his skin twitch a little. And no—he wasn't waiting out of guilt for what happened earlier.

It wasn't that. He just really didn't like being alone here. The apartment didn't feel like home. The silence felt too loud, and every tick from the wall clock made it feel like time was moving painfully slow. His eyes drifted to his phone again,

fingers hovering over the screen. Should I call him? He hesitated, then shook his head with a small scoff. "No. That'll just make him more full of himself." With a sigh, he pushed himself up and wandered into the living room, arms crossed tightly over his chest even though

the apartment was warm. He dropped onto the couch, trying to focus on anything other than the thoughts spinning in his head. 𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘧 𝘑𝘶𝘯𝘨𝘬𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘵𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵? 𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘢𝘮 𝘐 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘺 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘣𝘺 𝘮𝘺𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧?

He was so lost in his thoughts he didn't even hear the door open. Not until he caught the scent—faint, a little damp like he'd been outside, but completely, unmistakably Jungkook—that he finally looked up. There he was. Jungkook stood in the doorway, still wearing the same

clothes from earlier. His hair was a little messy, his expression hard to read. The light behind him stretched his shadow across the floor, but his eyes were locked on Taehyung. "I thought you'd be asleep by now," Jungkook said quietly. Taehyung blinked.

For a moment, something shifted in his chest. A beat of relief. Subtle, unwelcome, but real. And he hated that he felt it. He was glad he wasn't alone anymore. But he didn't show it. Instead, he raised his chin and said with a scoff, "I thought my sleep would break if you came

back at midnight banging on the door drunk, so I stayed up." Jungkook raised an eyebrow, unmoved. "Are you acting dumb on purpose or…? You know I have apartment keys, right?" On that a flush rose to Taehyung's cheeks. His fingers curled slightly on his lap,

but he didn't back down. "I thought you forgot to take them," he said stubbornly. Jungkook let out a dry, sarcastic laugh as he kicked off his shoes and stepped inside. "Right," he muttered. "You stayed up for that." Taehyung didn't answer. His ears were burning, and the

silence that stretched between them afterward made it worse. It was the kind of silence that carried weight, unspoken thoughts stacked and ready to fall. Then Jungkook asked, "Did you eat lunch? Or is it in the garba—" "I ate," Taehyung cut in quickly, avoiding

eye contact. "I was hungry, so I ate." Jungkook nodded, then asked again, more carefully this time, "And what about dinner?" Taehyung's brows furrowed. His first instinct was defensiveness, mistaking the question. "Why should I make dinner for you?" he snapped, pulling a face.

Jungkook huffed out a dry chuckle, voice dipped with irony. "I have enough self-respect to not expect you to make dinner for me. Not after what you said this afternoon." Taehyung opened his mouth. "Don't be—" But Jungkook kept going. "And I was asking if you had dinner.

Like, did you eat anything? Not if you cooked something for me." Taehyung's cheeks warmed with annoyance, but he held back. "No," he said tightly. "I don't know my way around this kitchen, so I didn't bother. And next time? Don't cut me off when I'm talking.

Jungkook rolled his eyes. "Okay, royal highness. And for the record, I wasn't expecting you to cook. You could've just ordered something, you know." It was Taehyung's turn to roll his eyes now, scoffing under his breath. He had half-expected Jungkook to be cold, distant,

maybe even completely ignoring him after the argument earlier. But instead, the alpha was still being the same—arrogant, annoyingly composed, and as stubborn as ever. "Oh, sorry, Mr. Jeon, but I'm an idiot who didn't think of that. If you would be so kind,

maybe you can teach me how to order online, hmm?" Clearly aware that Taehyung was mocking him, Jungkook muttered something under his breath that Taehyung didn't catch. He turned around, walking toward the front again. Thinking he was about to leave,

Taehyung frowned and asked, "Wait… are you not sleeping here?" Jungkook paused, then turned slightly over his shoulder. "I brought takeout. I'm going to the car to get it." Taehyung stared at him like he was the dumb one now. "Why didn't you bring it in when you came?"

Jungkook squinted at him, voice dripping with sarcasm. "I was just making sure you hadn't already eaten—so you wouldn't bite my head off with something like, '𝘖𝘩 𝘸𝘰𝘸, 𝘸𝘩𝘺 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘶𝘮𝘦 𝘐 𝘥𝘪𝘥𝘯'𝘵 𝘦𝘢𝘵?' You know, classic you."

— After a late dinner, closer to midnight than anyone would call reasonable, Jungkook quietly cleaned up the kitchen while Taehyung slipped into the bedroom. The omega stood there for a moment, his eyes moving around the room as if trying to memorize every little detail—

the furniture, the placement of everything, the unfamiliar textures of a home that still didn't feel like his own. It was quiet. Meanwhile, Jungkook took his time in the bathroom, the events of the whole day still lingering in his mind, but seeing Taehyung finally calm—

no more yelling, no more sharp words—made it feel like he could actually breathe again. He stepped under the shower, letting the hot water run over his sore muscles, soaking through his hair, washing away the tension that had clung to his skin all day.

The warmth melted through his back, his shoulders, dulling the weight of everything. By the time he stepped out, towel hanging low on his hips, he felt a little better—at least physically. Emotionally? Still a mess. And that's when he saw him.

Taehyung was stretched out on the bed, staring blankly at the ceiling like he was deep in thought—or completely spaced out. Jungkook's expression softened. For the first time all day, he really took a moment to look. The slow rise and fall of Taehyung's chest, the way his skin

caught the soft light, the quiet curve of his lashes. Then Taehyung moved. His gaze shifted—right to Jungkook. Their eyes met. Taehyung was no longer staring at the ceiling. He was staring at him. Wide-eyed, gaze flickering down Jungkook's bare chest,

then back up again. Once. Twice. Jungkook blinked, then let out a low, amused, "Oh." Taehyung shot upright like he'd just realized what he was doing. Jungkook raised an eyebrow, lips tugging into a smirk. "You checking me out?" he teased. "Got a thing for my abs?"

Taehyung's eyes somehow got even wider, and his whole face went red. He scrambled up from the bed, nearly tripping over his own feet. "No—I—I mean, I just haven't seen an alpha up close like that before!" he stammered, voice higher than usual and way too fast,

like that somehow made it less embarrassing. Jungkook's smirk only deepened at the confession. He stepped forward slowly, running a hand through his damp hair, water droplets still clinging to his skin. "That's the best thing I've heard all day," he murmured, voice low.

"Knowing my omega has only ever looked at my body… That's a damn good feeling." He stepped closer,and Taehyung immediately backed up, eyes narrowing slightly in warning. "Don't," he said firmly,tone tight. "You're… you're making me uncomfortable." And that made jungkook stop.

The word uncomfortable landed harder than any insult. His face shifted, expression darkening as he dropped his hand and placed both on his hips. He shook his head, letting out a humorless scoff. "You could've just told me to fuck off," he muttered. "But no—you had to say that."

"Because it's true," Taehyung shot back. "You do make me uncomfortable when you do things like this." Jungkook huffed, turning away and heading toward the closet. "Take pity on me, will you?" he muttered. "You wound me with your biting words, omega." The teasing in his tone

was back. Taehyung, relieved to have the alpha put some distance between them, sat back on the edge of the bed, arms loosely around his knees, watching quietly. "You should've thought of that before marrying me," Taehyung said, his voice softer now but no less sharp.

"What did you think was going to happen? That I'd fall into your arms and sweet talk you like old couples do?" Jungkook didn't respond at first. The silence stretched long enough for Taehyung to believe the conversation had ended, but then Jungkook's voice broke through—lower,

quieter, and startlingly honest. "You know, Taehyung… even if we don't get along, and we fight, and you hate me with your whole heart," he said,standing with his back still to him,fingers resting on the closet door. "But even then… I never once thought about not marrying you."

Taehyung's eyes lifted slightly, gaze settling on Jungkook's back, where his shoulder blades shifted faintly as he spoke. The omega looked down again quickly, refusing to let himself get distracted by the way the alpha's muscles flexed with every movement.

"I have hope," Jungkook continued, softer now. "That someday we'll get along. That maybe you won't hate me forever." Taehyung opened his mouth to ask how—how could he be so sure of that? Why did Jungkook believe things would ever change between them? But before he could say

a word, the alpha's tone shifted again, from sincere to teasing. "And I really wouldn't mind if you fell into my arms, by the way," Jungkook added, "Even before we officially mate—we can make some other memories in this bedroom… if you give me permission, of course."

And Taehyung's head snapped up, scandalized. "You are so shameless—!" But his sentence turned into a loud, startled yell. "What the fuck, Jungkook!" Jungkook had turned around mid-sentence, towel in hand and slung low—having pulled it off his hips. Taehyung's heart jumped

before realizing Jungkook wasn't actually naked. "I'm not naked!" Jungkook defended, raising his hands as if proving innocence. "I've got underwear on, look—" "I don't want to look!" Taehyung snapped, eyes squeezing shut, face going bright red. "Just—just wear something, God!"

Jungkook rolled his eyes and turned back to the closet. He grabbed a t-shirt and joggers and put them on slowly, like he wasn't in a hurry at all. It was like he was trying to annoy Taehyung on purpose. When he was finally dressed, he turned around,