𝐃𝐎𝐋𝐋 | 𝘺𝘰𝘰𝘯𝘮𝘪𝘯

▍ELEVEN ⚠️

mentions of attempted suicide.

yoongi was at work with his face deep in paperwork. this case had so many elements and there were a few things he didn't want to do. one of them including bringing in his best friend for questioning. he knew namjoon was innocent, a little "head" strong but reliable, so having to treat him like a possible suspect was going to be difficult. but he wasn't worried about him per se, he was more worried about jimin.

every second of the day he was nervous about how he was doing, how he was feeling, if something would happen to him, all of that wonderful stuff. just thinking about it again made him worried so he tapped his bracelet and in almost a split second he got a vibration back. that calmed his nerves a little. so he decided on his break he'd call him to make sure he truly was okay. it wasn't like he didn't trust jimin or anything, he was just starting to become paranoid.

he didn't fully understand why he cared so much for the man. he didn't know the first thing about him—not the sex worker he was, but the man he is. he wanted to know jimin better but the younger man's walls were too strong, and yoongi was okay with it. he didn't want to push jimin too hard or make him uncomfortable. yoongi understood how fragile and scared jimin was, so he did what he could to keep his space while also providing as much care as he could. he knew he had to work slow with him, and he would go as slow as he needed to keep him safe.

so when his break finally came he rushed out the door and called his house, where jimin picked up in an instant. "hey," yoongi said with a smile.

"hi," jimin replied, voice small. "what are you doing?"

"curious? i'm on break but i was working on your case." he heard a quiet 'oh' from the other side and after that three vibrations were sent to his bracelet. "what's wrong?"

a short pause filled yoongi's ears before jimin's voice came, surprisingly clear: "i'm scared about what will happen. not only to me but to you as well."

yoongi blinked a few times before replying. "why are you scared for me? i do this kind of stuff all the time, i'll be okay."

"i want to be honest with you."

"go right ahead, i'm listening."

jimin on the other end sent three more vibrations before he spilled his thoughts to yoongi. his voice was shaky but confident at the same time, and his voice sounded like what he was saying was the most important thing in the world. yoongi believed it, too. he could already tell how hard this was for jimin to come clean.

"the truth is... in all honesty, i don't know if you can protect me like you say. it's all just empty promises at this point, don't you think? my boss is insane. i'm afraid that you won't be able to hold your own against him and his posse. and i don't mean to doubt you but you're still a stranger to me. it's hard to trust you, and i want to trust you, believe me. i'm just afraid that i'm going to die before i can even live. while at lover's paradise, i always thought to myself that i would be fine with dying if it meant it was a way out. i even attempted to die by my own hands before. but... and i'm being extremely honest here... when i met you, i was given a reason to live."

yoongi was speechless. jimin was beginning to open up to him and explain his thoughts and that put so much ease on yoongi's heart. this was what he was waiting for, so he could keep doing the best he could to keep him safe.

so yoongi cleared his throat and put the softest smile on his face and responded.

"jimin, i'm going to be honest with you. i don't know if i can protect you. but, what i do know is that i'm going to try my damned hardest to do whatever i can to keep you safe. i'm not going to just let anything happen to you without a fight. i don't know what your boss is capable of and i don't know what kind of situation this can turn into. it's very unpredictable and i can't tell you that you'll be one hundred percent protected. but trust me when i tell you that anyone who lays a finger on you in any way will feel my cold and deadly wrath. i know we hardly know each other so why don't we spend some time to do so? maybe then i can help you trust me better. and if we're being completely honest... i'm glad i was able to give you reason to live, and i hope to god if he's listening that i can continue to give you the best life you deserve."

silence engulfed the two, both of them just letting their words swallow each other whole until they both could understand and feel comfortable.

jimin was the one who broke the silence. he sent a vibration to yoongi's bracelet and said, "yeah... i'd like that."

so once yoongi got off break he rushed through all of his paperwork he could get done with and left early, going home to be with jimin. he wanted to see his face and hear whatever he was willing to share with him. and when he got home, jimin was waiting on the couch for him. he patted the cushion next to him and yoongi sat down. that night they stayed up late just sharing facts, fears, memories with each other until they were both comfortable. they talked for ages, slowly and surely becoming more sure about who they were not only to themselves, but to each other.

the surprises didn't end there; when yoongi went to tuck jimin in to bed (he started to do that so jimin could feel safe and be able to see his face before he slept), jimin stopped him from leaving. "i don't think it's right to take over your bed and let you sleep on the couch, so it's okay if you use it, too."

yoongi was baffled. jimin was changing into a person who was getting comfortable and that almost made him tear up. so with a cheerful expression on his face he climbed into the bed and smiled before turning away. but then he felt a tap on his shoulder and jimin's voice.

"i'm sorry for bothering you, but... do you mind if i..?" and yoongi turned around right as jimin shifted over to be in his arms. yoongi was silent as his mouth hung open, the words he searched for weren't there. it was like his mind went vacant for a minute. "i'm sorry if this is too weird but i've actually been having trouble sleeping on my own. i should've told you the first time."

and yoongi shook his head and tightened his hold on the man. "no, it's okay. i understand why you wouldn't. just try and rest easy now, knowing i'm here."

jimin nodded. "goodnight."

and yoongi couldn't help the quickening pace of his heart, because at that moment he finally understood what he had been feeling this whole time, why he was so attached to this man and why he wanted to protect him so badly.

but yoongi would keep it to himself, to ensure that his feelings didn't mix in with his work and influence him. he had to for the sake of everyone.

—
oooh a little longer update this time. i wanted to push the story forwards and pick it up, but i couldn't do that if the pair's relationship remained stagnant. so i hope this was a good enough filler to show their relationship is improving, and it'll help w any decisions and events that happen later.

i hope you guys aren't getting bored bc i know it's sort of been the same shit but they needed to have grounds kept before i can fuck shit up :)

thank you all for still enjoying this story 🥺💕 it truly means a lot to me.