The Wrong Soulmate (BTS OT7)

Chapter 1.7-Yoongi

When I reached out to touch Yoona's hand I could immediately feel that she was in excruciating pain. I had no idea why she hadn't mentioned it. This felt like it was getting to be ridiculous. She was avoiding us, and the few moments she'd spent with others they described as awkward at best. This wasn't how soulmates were supposed to interact and couldn't continue on.

The guys had different ideas about what to do. Some wanted to give her lots of space and time, others wanted to press her to open up thinking if we spent more time together she would become more comfortable. We rarely disagreed but on this point we could not see eye to eye, and it was becoming increasingly distressing in the bond. So I was going to use this opportunity to take matters into my own hands.

The doctor told me that we could come immediately and he'd make time to see us as soon as we arrived. So I went upstairs and knocked on Yoona's door, calling out to her that we'd leave in 15 minutes. I heard a quiet murmured acknowledgement so I went to confirm with our driver to make sure we would be ready to go.

A short while later I was holding the door open for Yoona to get into the backseat of the car. Reaching over I helped her buckle in, knowing that with her injured hand it might be hard to manage the seatbelt. After we were both settled in and on our way I reached over to grab her uninjured hand, which was on the seat in between us. At first she flinched away, but I held on tight. I knew she was in pain and needed comfort, and that is what a soulmate is for.

In just her few interactions, I knew that Yoona understood that you could feel your soulmate's emotions. But what she was about to discover was that your soulmate could influence your own emotions and feelings if you were physically touching. It was kind of a strange thing. Normally each of you had your own emotions and they would meet in the middle of the bond. As they met, you could feel your soulmate's emotions and they could feel yours. But if you leaned in hard enough with your emotions and really pushed, you could almost overwhelm their emotions with yours. It took a lot of concentration and practice, and generally it wasn't something you did without permission. But in most soul groups like theirs, they trusted each other enough to know this would only be used for the good of everyone in the group.

When Yoongi first started bumping against Yoona's emotions he was overwhelmed by the pain and fright. But he gently started pushing against it with calm and warmth, beginning to push her feelings back and fill her with his own. He could feel it working through the bond, but could also see her begin to physically relax. He started slowly, not wanting to overwhelm her, but could tell when she started to freeze up and her anxiety began to push back. She was starting to understand that something unusual was happening. Her first response was to pull her hand away but he didn't let go.

"What is happening?"

"I'm sending you calming emotions because I think it will help with the pain. It's something we can do through our soul bond." I gave her a soft smile, hoping to calm her before she tried to pull away again.

It was funny because I could feel the emotion of her response before she responded with words. Curiosity.

"Really, how does that work?"

So I explained it to her the best I could. I let her know that she could do the same to me, although it would be harder since she was so new to the soul bonding experience. She looked away out the window and I felt the tiniest nudge back against our bond. As soft as a kitten bumping his head against your leg.

I turned to smile at Yoona and to my shock she was smiling back. Not much, but it was the first time I'd really seen her willingly engage. And it was wonderful. At the same time I could feel through our bond that I didn't need to lean as hard into her emotions to push them back. Her strongest emotions were beginning to even out and she was beginning to calm.

We spent the rest of the drive to the doctor gently bumping our emotions against each other. Yoona was enjoying experimenting, and I was happy to see her exploring our bond further. Things were starting to show promise.

______________

I had to let go of her hand to get out of the car, but the minute we both were out of the car I was quick to grab her hand again. I could tell that even in those few moments her nervousness and anxiety had begun to claw their way back, but I quickly pushed them away. I knew I was going to be totally exhausted from both of our emotions by the end of the day, but this was worth it.

I held her hand the entire appointment. The doctor assured us that she just had a bad sprain, bandaging it heavily and encouraging her to keep it elevated, ice regularly, and avoid overuse. When I could feel the pain start to press through I pressed back harder, filling Yoona with feelings of comfort and calm.

By the time we got back into the car I could tell Yoona had become much more comfortable with me. "After I had to go to the doctor as a kid my mom always used to take me out for a treat. Should we get some ice cream on the way home?"

Yoona gave me a small smile and shook her head yes.

When we got to the ice cream shop I could see Yoona's eyes go wide and her confusion through the bond. "There are this many flavors of ice cream?"

"Yes of course!" I gave her hand a squeeze. "Have you never gone out for ice cream before?"

"Well, no. All of our food was delivered or made by the chefs. So we just ate what they made. I don't think I've ever seen any kind except vanilla. What are these other flavors like?"

I could feel my own irritation coming back as I remembered her previous so-called soulmate and how she had grown up, so sheltered from the world and reality. But I quickly shoved it down, knowing she could feel my emotions through the bond just as well as I could feel hers.

"They are all delicious, but my favorite is strawberry. Let's get a few flavors and we can try them all. What looks best to you?"

It took Yoona a long time to decide, which she immediately apologized for. After assuring her it was just fine we took our ice cream over to an adjacent table. When Yoona went to pull her hand from mine so she could pick up the spoon, I held it more tightly. "Let me just feed you. Soulmates like to stay touching whenever they can. I'd like to hold hands as we eat."

After lightly nodding her head in agreement we relaxed into the seat, trying the different flavors of ice cream and sharing our thoughts on each combination. While I sensed that Yoona was relatively new to this type of experience, to me it felt just like a normal soulmate date. And I was overjoyed that we were able to start to experience something so normal together.