Age is Just a Number (BTS) - 18+

Chapter 21 - It hurt

Jess opened the door with a peanut butter spoon in her mouth after checking through the peep hole who it was, having decided a midnight snack was on the cards.

"Is your mum home," Yoongi asked, knowing his locator app showed her at this address but wanting to check first in case she'd gone out and left her phone behind.

"Ah yeah, she hasn't really come out since she got home, I think she's reading," Jess said, oblivious to what was going on between them but noticing he looked quite serious and he nodded as he kicked off his shoes and strode towards the bedroom.

"Please don't let them have super loud sex, that would be mortifying," Jess muttered under her breath, opting to scurry back to her room and stick headphones in her ears on the off chance that was why he had come over so late and was looking so intense.

As Yoongi arrived in front of the bedroom door, noting it was closed, he paused wondering if he should knock or just go in. She'd walked away from him needing space and he was aware he was intruding but he needed to talk to her, didn't want her to wait and think about what she'd heard without him coming to explain. Deciding to lightly knock in case she was sleeping, he gently rapped his knuckles on the door and slipped inside the darkened room. She glanced up when she saw the door opening, eyes growing wide when it was Yoongi rather than one of her daughters who appeared.

"Hey," Yoongi said, pausing then stepping inside and closing the door quietly behind himself. "I couldn't not come and see you." He stood at the door, looking at the raw, red eyes and he knew she had been crying, not sure whether to get closer or if she even wanted him there but taking a step closer anyway as she sat up a little in the bed, quickly wiping at her face.

"Is everything OK," she asked tentatively, unsure why he'd appeared after she'd said she needed time.

"I could ask you the same thing Kat, clearly it's not given our fight earlier but now I think I know more of why it happened in the first place. Jimin said he saw you at the company today," he said, walking slowly over and standing next to the bed.

"Yes," she said, one word spoken quietly and his heart dropped even though he knew it wasn't something Jimin would lie about. She had been there and had almost definitely heard what was said given the look on her face now.

"And you heard what Hyunjae said?"

"If he was the one talking about how I was not a viable option for you and fully replaceable with a younger and better model, then yes," she said, not sounding angry, just defeated, speaking the words directly, sounding a little broken. Yoongi's heart dropped even more, wanting to stretch out his hand and touch her to connect and show her he wasn't going anywhere but still worried after their argument earlier and hesitant, rocking on his feet instead, at a loss of what to do with his hands. These days if there were close to each other, they'd usually be touching in some way.

"I'm sorry you heard that conversation," he said and she nodded, looking down at the bedding, playing with the covers. She couldn't look at him now, she'd seen in his eyes that he was upset but she was too lost in the way the words had hurt to try and balance his feelings at the same time as her own. All she knew was that his friends thought she wasn't good enough and it had hurt her more than she thought it would. "I don't think you heard it all though."

"I think I heard enough," she said and he shook his head, stepping even closer, legs resting against the bed. She was within touching distance but still he didn't, it needed to be on her terms.

"I told him to shut up, he crossed too many lines by what he said."

"It was true though and we both know it."