-

It's weird eating lunch at Kyungsoo's house with his mum there. She still looks a little bit shaky, and keeps looking at Kyungsoo with what Jongin can only interpret as discomfort. Maybe fear. He's glad he's sat between them.

After he'd been roused from unconsciousness by a fully dressed Kyungsoo, they'd all headed inside to help with dinner or in Jongin's mum's case, sit on the sofa and look shell-shocked. Nobody is talking, apart from things like 'please pass this' or 'do you want something to drink?'

It's so awkward, and even Kyungsoo is feeling it, as usually he'd have his hand resting on his thigh under the table, or be holding his hand or something. It feels a little lonely without him touching him anywhere. But on the other hand he can see why he doesn't want to initiate anything with both parents in the room. Especially as one of them has only just found out about his secret, and isn’t exactly responding well to it.

He can barely taste the food in front of him- it's an omelette. Kyungsoo has a sandwich with ham and cheese inside. His mother has a salad and Kyungsoo's mum has soup. Diverse, but easy to prepare meals.

After everyone has finished eating, they begin to clear up in near slinece, the only noises are the clinking of the cutlery against the china. Just as Jongin is about to leave with Kyungsoo and go up to their room, and maybe go on facebook, catch up with everyone he hasn't spoken to properly in nearly a month, his mother reaches out a hand and snags his sleeve,

“Wait, I want to speak to you,”

“Um,” he looks between her and Kyungsoo, who draws close to his ear and says, “I'll still be there when you're done, 'k?” squeezes his hand then leaves. This isn't going to be easy, considering Kyungsoo will undoubtedly be able to hear everything they say if he's quiet in his room.

His mum beckons to the sofa in the living room, where they had they little confrontation earlier. They both sit in tense silence. Jongin doesn't like it; the way everything's falling apart between them. They used to be really close, Jongin would tell her almost anything, but now it's like they're strangers. He hates it.

It's unfair to blame Kyungsoo, but he was probably the catalyst for this. Though it's his fault really, for drifting away from her after they started going out. Neither of them ever imagined anything like this.

“How long had you known?” Jongin wants to play innocent, and ask, 'known what?' but he can't. They both know he knows what she means.

“Almost right from the start. He told me, I think, the same day we got together. Wait. No. yeah, yeah, he told me then we started dating. That night,” she frowns, thinking back,

“I remember. That long?” she rubs her temples, “I still really don't like this, especially after...” she points to Jongin's lack of hand. She hates it more than Jongin. It almost seems like she's scared of it.

“That wasn't Kyungsoo's fault,” he defends Kyungsoo, and moves his hand so it's behind his back. His mother's shoulders slump in what seems to be defeat,

“Did Kyungsoo tell you what happened to the boy whose fault it is?” she quirks an eyebrow, but not in challenge. Jongin shrugs,

“He said he'd been punished,” Jongin had assumed that meant kicked out of the pack or something, as he hadn't seen him around, but then he hasn't seen any of the others either. They could just be keeping him locked up somewhere,

“They killed him, Jongin. For hurting you, they killed him,” Jongin blinks twice, slowly, before responding incoherently; “what?”

Jongin neither understands why she seems to be defending him- and thus making it seem as though it wasn't Canlie's own fault since he broke the rules- nor why she thinks this is a problem at all. While he's not happy exactly that Canlie was killed because of him, he's also not particularly angry or upset.

He's surprised at himself, he never thought himself to be this dispassionate. He's fairly non-plussed at Canlie's death, though he wonders what they told his family and friends. He hopes there won't be bad feelings between them. It's not impossible, considering this thing the wolves have about rules and honour, and defending one’s own family.

“They killed him Jongin. They could so easily hurt you too,” her face twists grotesquely, distraught, and Jongin finally gets it. But how does he make her understand that Kyungsoo would never hurt him, no in a million years? He has trusted with his life so many times already, sometimes without even realising it at the time.

“Kyungsoo wouldn't hurt me, never. We're-” he chokes, unable to say the words 'imprinted' or the even worse, and undeniably more clichéd 'meant for each other'.

“It's not Kyungsoo I'm worried about. Haejin said there are more of them, what if there are more like Canlie?” she says his name with a disgusted curl of her lip, “Or wo- people worse than him?” Jongin doesn't disagree, “Kyungsoo can't protect you from everything, can he?”

“I can damn well try,” Kyungsoo intones from the doorway, apparently fed up of waiting in his room while he's being talked about down here. He looks positively ferocious-in a good way, because for once it's not directed at him. At first glance you don't see all the strength the guy has built up, you just assume he's weak because he's short. But underneath the clothes he’s about as toned as you can get without muscle training; he has the appearance of a runner, lithe yet powerful.

Actually, with Kyungsoo not looking at him, he takes a moment to just appreciate the way his posture makes muscles stand out more than usual, and he's taken off his hoody so he's only wearing a skin tight t-shirt-

“Jongin,” he snaps, and he focused again, biting his cheek and mentally apologising, that was so inappropriate.

He still looks great, even if he's not facing him. In fact, this view might even be better. His eyes drift lower down his back, unintentionally.

Deciding to continue talking to his mother, despite Jongin's blatant (to him anyway) inattention,  Kyungsoo says, “I know I can't protect him from everything, but between my mum, dad, the rest of the pack and me, I'm confident we can put up a good fight against anything that comes for him. I also know that that might mean quite a lot of things, since we're a prominent pack with lots of competition, but if you can't trust us to take care of him, I-I,” he doesn't finish, faltering, his fierce façade falling to pieces in front of him, pieces he can’t put back together in time.

“Losing Canlie is a shock to all of us as well. We trusted him. We trusted him to take care of Jongin,” Jongin can see Blaidd stirring, just under the surface. His tells are so prominent, the nails digging into his palm, and the veins bulging in his neck.

He's willing to bet that Blaidd is more than just shocked. Probably closer to furious on the scale of reactions to catastrophe.

“I don't know if I'm willing to trust the others anymore, which is a shame because I'm one of the better fighters, and usually needed on the field.,” he sounds very humble, not arrogant at all.

His mother considers this, visibly conceding before their eyes. But then her eyes flash,

“The only condition under which I would accept this,” she points to them both, quickly flicking her finger between them, “is if Jongin comes home. I'm not having you two – living together; you’re too young,” Jongin raises his eyebrows. He's pretty damn sure she only just stopped herself from saying sleeping. As much as he wants to do that kind of thing, they’re not ready just yet.

“Only if you actually let me into your house,” Kyungsoo interjects, that canine ferocity seeping into his posture, and no doubt face again. Jongin knows how scary that is first hand, still not having forgotten when they first met, and the seeing him fighting, so he's very impressed with how she answers,

“Not after eleven. You have to be out by then, also no t-transforming in my house,”

“Of course,” Kyungsoo nods, relaxing slightly; that's a given, he wouldn't do that anyway for safety and privacy reasons. She nods back, perhaps the wind has been taken from her sails at his fast acquiescence.

She glares specifically at Jongin now, and he recoils slightly. Whatever is coming next can't be good, “you have to keep the door open at all times-”

“What!” he protests, suddenly feeling like a normal teenager again, like none of this ever happened, “That's not fair or relevant!”

“I don't care, if you want your boyfriend over, those are the rules,” she states primly, forcing Jongin to clench is jaw to stop himself from yelling at her. This is all totally uncalled for and she's never enforced this rule before. Kyungsoo smirks, not unhappy with this arrangement, but pleased with Jongin's stroppy reaction. Such a baby sometimes.

“Jongin, would you rather I wasn't allowed at all?” Kyungsoo asks innocently, perching on the sofa next to him and resting his hand on his arm, all the while observing his mother’s reaction. She doesn't show any visible signs of disgust, or disapproval.

Does this mean the problem is solved? It can't have been that easy, can it?

-

AYYYyyyy look who's back finally (shut up its barely been a week)

so yes this fic is going to be over 40 chapters; im writing 39 rn hopefully people stick around that long

dorkiness will ensue (shh) oh and comment please ^-^ i have an exam tmrw and im likely going to fail *walks off cliff*