My keeper

Chapter 3

3rd POV

"W-what?" Tae asked confused. "I'm your dad now, you'll call me appa from now on" Namjoon said looking straight into the boys eyes. Tae's expression turned dark it was clear he was anything but happy about it. To him he'd been abandoned by the only people he knew as family. Easily thrown away to strange people, who he's still not sure if they want to harm him.

"Let's get you cleaned up" Namjoon said lifting Tae up into his arms and walking toward the bathroom. It happened so fast Tae didn't even have time to protest. Namjoon closed the bathroom door then sat Tae on the toilet while he ran the water. Tae watched his every move with caution, even if the man didn't seem to want to hurt him he couldn't be sure.

"Do you like bubbles?" Namjoon asked Tae. Tae remained silent staring at Namjoon, he wasn't sure what his intentions were. He seemed too nice and Tae didn't like that. "You want them or not" he asked again. "N-never h-had them b-before" Tae stuttered out he thought Namjoon was getting irritated. He watched as a sad expression crossed namjoons face as he started pouring the bubbles in.

"Well maybe you'll like them" he said getting up to throw in bath toys that were in a basket nearby. "K it's ready" he said checking the waters temperature then turning to Tae. "Come now, clothes off" he said moving closer to Tae. Tae panicked lifted his knees to his chest and wrapped his arms around them. "N-no I can do it m-myself" he shouted. "Don't be difficult, come here" Namjoon tried again. "No!" Tae yelled having all the confidence in the world currently backing him up.

"This is not a debate" Namjoon said swiftly grabbing the sides of Tae's shirt and pulling it over his head. Tae started bawling he felt so exposed, he hasn't had to change in front of anyone in a long time. "Stand up for the bottoms" he said giving Tae the 'do it now' face. Tae's cries reduce to sniffles as he met eyes with Namjoon, he knew he wasn't taking no for an answer. He slowly stood up looking everywhere but at Namjoon, too embarrassed.

Namjoon hooked his thumbs on the sides of his pants and underwear then slid them down asking Tae to lift his feet. He didn't waste any time lifting tae into the tub. He didn't want to have to stare at his bruises for too long as they made him sad and quite angry. "Mmhph" Tae grunted as the water came into contact with his wounds. "It's ok you'll feel better soon" Namjoon said softly running his fingers through Tae's hair.

Tae felt confused he didn't want to trust this man but it seemed as though he already had. "He can't hurt you here, you'll be safe with me. Nobody will beat you or lock you in the basement" Namjoon said massaging shampoo into his hair. It took everything Tae had in him not to cry. 'Hurt' yeah that's what he was, everyday of his life even if it wasn't physically the mental strain was enough. Trying to justify their actions and stay as close to sane as possible was hard especially for an eight year old.

They both stayed silent after that, Namjoon rinsed the shampoo from his hair and let him soak in the water. Tae pushed around the toys that were in the water, occasionally shifting nervously under the mans gaze. Namjoon sees this and moved in slowly and placed a kiss on his forehead, smiling gently after. Tae was stunned but oddly touched, he didn't understand why he'd do that. "You kiss those you care about" Namjoon said understanding his puzzled expression.

"You care about me?" Tae asked quietly glancing at Namjoon every now and then. Namjoon smiled softly ruffling his hair playfully "stand up, time to wash" he said reaching for the cloth and soap. Tae wasn't so embarrassed this time still thinking about the actions just before. He stood and let Namjoon wash him swiftly maneuvering however he was asked. Namjoon rinsed him then took a towel and picked him out of the tub.

He placed Tae on his lap and dried him before slipping him on his underwear. Pretty confident he wouldn't run he let Tae walk back into the bedroom, opening the bathroom door for him. He lotions him earning quiet giggles from Tae when he got to his stomach. 'Cute' Namjoon thought as he finished dressing the boy in a striped long sleeve shirt and overalls with a tiger on the front.

Taehyung looked incredibly cute, though most boys his age want to dress a little differently he didn't mind. After all for the first time in his life his clothes weren't someone else's. A snap was heard pulling Tae from his thoughts, he looked up seeing Namjoon holding a camera. "W-why?" He asked "'Cause your cute and I want to remember this" he said walking away to a bookshelf. "I-um mister? Can-" Tae started. "That's not what you call me, baby boy" Namjoon said sternly. Tae shivered back by the mans tone, nervously playing with his hands. "What's my name?" He asked

"A-appa"

K so I have a book currently on hold while I get my story together so I figured I try and update this. It doesn't feel like much happened in this chapter but that's what I wrote sooo😗. Enjoy💕