Redamancy | BTS

27 - Chance Encounter

"You're here," Yoongi notes as his eyes widen ever-so-slightly in surprise. His tone is nothing beyond a mere whisper, something akin to a breathy exhale. One of his hands is wrapped around the doorknob of the door leading from the garage into the kitchen, while his other hand is pressed flat against the adjacent wall.

Right off the bat, you know that something is aloof. Normally, one of the pack members will, more often than not, greet you at the door when you first arrive. And when they do, they usually do so with open arms - sometimes quite literally. The door is always open wide in an unconscious behavioral act of inviting you into the house without having to say so. Yet, Yoongi's stance today automatically makes you feel shut out, almost as if you shouldn't be here.

"Of course, I'm here," you respond, eyes softening as you meet his gaze. Despite being one of the more stoic members of the pack, Yoongi's eyes express his emotions well enough for you to read on most days. But right now, his irises hold nothing but a clouded look, dampening the unsettling atmosphere that has already managed to envelop the house. "Why wouldn't I be here?"

Your gaze catches on something that moves quickly behind the snow leopard hybrid. Within the small glance that you took, you were able to distinguish a blur of a jet-black tail that belongs to a certain panther hybrid.

"Well, we just thought because of the article-" Jungkook mumbles as he reveals himself, half of his body still hidden behind the older male.

"What about the article?" you counter. There's a bit of heat in your tone, but none of it is directed at the two men standing in front of you. It's more so directed at the mere reminder of the outrageous article that, in your opinion, had no right to be published.

"You haven't read it yet?" Yoongi asks, head tilted to the side as he tries to gauge your reaction.

"I read it," you nod simply. "And I fail to see why it would prevent me from coming to visit you guys."

"To be honest, it's not all of us that are surprised," Jungkook admits with a gentle huff. His identity was rather hard for the media to find compared to some of the members. The youngest of the pack was merely listed as 'unknown' and you have a feeling that he somehow feels guilty that his identity is still somewhat hidden. "It's mainly-"

"Taehyung," you conclude in a much gentler tone.

"Precisely."

"An article isn't going to change how I see you guys. Where is everyone?"

"Upstairs in the family lounge room," the snow leopard hybrid mumbles.

You nod in response before toeing off your shoes and heading into the house. Yoongi lets you in almost automatically and the two feline hybrids follow behind you silently, their feet practically gliding over the hardwood floor as the three of you ascend the staircase.

"Oh, Y/N," Seokjin greets you softly as he's the first one to take notice of your presence. At the mention of your name, the other members turn to find you standing at the staircase landing.

"Hi guys," you murmur softly, unable to bring yourself to offer a comforting smile. As predicted, Taehyung looks almost lost in his own world. He's sitting farthest away from the rest of the pack with only Seokjin by his side. The other three, on the other hand, are huddled together with Jimin in between Namjoon and Hoseok. The fox hybrid in particular looks rather shaken up which makes your heart drop instantly.

"You shouldn't be here, Y/N," Taehyung mutters, his voice much scratchier than usual. Normally, the tiger hybrid's voice is your favorite to listen to. You would never admit this to anyone - especially not the rest of the pack - but you treasure your cuddle sessions with Taehyung the most because you get to listen to the deep resonance of his honey-like voice with your head on his chest. Yet today, there's no sweetness to his baritone timbre. Instead, it's cold and sharp, nipping at you hungrily like how the cold winter air nips at your nose unforgivingly.