Stay (BTS x Reader-Polyamorous romance)

Chapter 61

Namjoon POV:

"Just an iced coffee? Can I interest you in any pastries today?" The woman in front of me shook her head, a grimace on her face.

"No thank you. I swear I've gained 15 pounds from eating here." She laughed at her own comment and gave me a smile.

I returned the smile then gave her the total. When she stepped away from the counter, I turned away from the counter to make her drink. I momentarily ignored the bell above the door dinging as someone entered, but I felt my heart flutter when the scent of chocolate covered cherries and peppermint candy canes hit my nose. I knew that could only mean one thing. I turned around, a bright smile on my face to see Jin and Y/N coming into the shop. "Hey! Did you two escape from the sanctuary?"

Y/N shook her head, grinning at my question. "Nah. Not today. Sehun is in surgery so I volunteered to get him coffee and lunch so I could make sure he eats something. Otherwise he will completely blow it off and not eat."

"Of course you did. You always take care of everyone." Taehyung spoke up from my side, the adoration clear in his voice, and I nodded my head in agreement, knowing that this was a step towards repairing the broken friendship with Sehun.

It had been almost a week since the incident with Evie, since she had broken the kind doctor, leaving him alone and devastated. I knew Y/N had been afraid to step in and help him, but her innate desire to take care of people overrode her pride and need for revenge. And right now, things were slowly falling back into place for Sehun, Jin, and Y/N. I know Y/N wanted to keep her distance from Sehun, afraid of what would happen, but she had known him for so long, had developed such a strong relationship with him, that she let her heart guide her instead. I know some people might think she was too forgiving, but it was more than that. I had talked to Y/N about her ability to forgive shortly after the incident with Emery and her explanation had made sense to me.

"We only live one life Joonie. That's it. We never know how long it's going to be or how quickly we could lose someone. I don't ever want to take the risk of losing someone and them not knowing how much I cared about them, how much I loved them. That's why I never go to bed angry. Does it make me weak? Maybe, but I would rather live my life knowing I gave it my all." Y/N's words had been soft, sincere and I knew she believed it with everything in her.

It had been an eye opener for me and, while some may think my mate is weak, I truly believe its part of an inner strength unlike most people in the world. Being angry is easy; being forgiving is hard.

From the day of the fallout, we had been worried that something would come up having to do with Yoongi, but so far there had been no indications that anything was going to happen from the questions that had been asked about him. We were all still feeling on edge and afraid to let our guard down, but that was to be expected. When our mates were at risk, it was hard to assume good intentions. Unfortunately for me, I was a bit of a pessimist about it all and had a feeling it was only a matter of time before shit hit the fan. However, we could only focus on what was happening right now.

"Joon? You good there?"

I had been so lost in my thoughts, I didn't realize I had been staring off into space until Jin's voice broke through the haze, bringing me back into the present. "Um... yeah. Sorry about that. I was just thinking about something."

Taehyung hugged me, his eyes gentle. "It's alright. I'm always lost in my thoughts. Some days I'm lucky that I even remember to put on underwear." We all laughed, knowing he was right, knowing our sweet eagle was easily distracted. And one time, he actually did leave the house without underwear.