The Hunt

36

The sound of birds chirping away happily woke me from my slumber. Without opening my eyes, I could tell I was in the tent in the woods behind the guys' house. Also, I was not alone.

"Taehyung?" I asked. I tried to stretch my arms, but they were pinned to my sides as I was wrapped tightly in a fleece blanket.

"Hey, Waffles. How are you feeling?" Taehyung yawned.

I opened my eyes and turned my head toward him. He was laying on the cot on the opposite side of the tent. I squirmed a little to loosen the blanket burrito I was trapped in, and managed to roll onto my side without opening the blanket. I was acutely aware that I was fully nude under the blanket.

Trying to think back to the night before, I took my time answering. The last thing I remember was chasing Jungkook and Jimin through the trees and have a genuinely good time.

"I have a bit of a headache," I admitted. "Um, Taehyung, what happened? Where are Jimin and Jungkook?"

Taehyung sat up and swung his legs over the edge of the cot. He stretched his arms out straight on either side, then rolled his shoulders and neck. He was stalling.

Shit. Did I hurt them?

Taehyung must have seen the concern on my face. "They're fine. They're just at the house." He flashed me a smile. "You collapsed last night."

"What?" I tried to sit up, but remembered the whole naked thing, and stayed lying down.

"Yeah, Jimin was really worried, he said you hadn't turned in over two years. Is that true?"

I felt my cheeks heat up. "Yes."

"That's probably why you passed out then. That heady, euphoric feeling that you get when you haven't changed in a while was probably too much," Taehyung nodded. "The longest I've gone without changing was two months, and it was almost too much for me."

We remained silent for a bit while I took in this new information. It made sense. I had been feeling a little lightheaded while I was running.

"Do you mind stepping outside so I can get dressed?" I asked and Taehyung jumped up from his cot.

"Oh! Of course!"

Once the tent flaps closed, I wiggled my way to freedom. Whoever had wrapped me in that blanket did not want me to escape. Swaddled. They swaddled me like a baby!

I got dressed a little too quickly and ended up feeling a bit nauseous. I could hear and smell that Taehyung had started a fire. I folded up the blankets on both cots before joining him outside.

"I brought snacks," Taehyung tossed me a granola bar. I sat down across the fire from him.

"So, how did you end up babysitting me?" I asked as I unwrapped and took a bite of the granola bar. "What time is it?"

Taehyung checked his phone. "It's just after 7:00. I'm here because I don't have class until this afternoon. My classes are mostly Tuesday/Thursday."

Something in the air changed. I narrowed my eyes at Taehyung. He wasn't telling me the whole truth. He was sweating and it wasn't just because of the fire.

"Why else? I can smell your lies."

"What?" Taehyung looked up at me, startled. "Really?! That's so cool!"

"Taehyung!"

"Right. Okay, so you know how your senses are heightened now after you changed?" I nodded in confirmation. He smiled and continued, "Well, how do I put this? You also have a very powerful scent."

"Okay?"

"I'm the only one who could handle being around you." Taehyung pulled a water bottle out of a bag that was sitting at his feet. "Water?"

He tossed the bottle over to me.

"Is it bad? Like, do I smell terrible or something?" I questioned, my internal panic spilled out.

He laughed, his head thrown back. "No, you smell really good. That's the problem."

"Huh?" I started peeling the label off the water bottle.

"None of the other guys could handle being around you, so I stayed with you last night." Taehyung took a swig of his own water. "I'm very much in love with my little mongoose, so it wasn't an issue."

"Your girlfriend is a mongoose?"

"Soulmate. Yes."

"So, why couldn't anyone be near me?" I tilted my head to the side, my brain was still fuzzy and my head was starting to throb.

Taehyung sighed. It was clear he didn't really want to explain.

"You smell really good."

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For more on Taehyung and Taelyn's backstory, check out @MinTae_Wolf 's story The Hunt- Tae's Fluff.