Sooyoung:

“Etiquette is of most importance. When eating, one must go from the outside in, when it comes to silverware.”

She wasn’t sure how many times she nodded a yes to everything told to her. She just kept nodding to the point that she was feeling like a bobble head. The young maids would giggle. She knew they were giggling at her as she was put through different lessons. They were long and tiring. They were pretty boring. She had to learn to act and behave like a lady. It wasn’t that she didn’t have etiquette before. No. That wasn’t it. It was the mere fact that in the underground world, due to the power she was the sole inheritor to, meant she needed to be even more pristine and proper.

For a two week, she was taught how to walk again. Her posture needed to be better. Her shoulders always pulled back, chest out. Yet, her shoulders should not be tense and relaxed away from her ears. They had even dressed her with a corset, to assist the proper stance she should have, even while sitting. She was not a fan of it. Taehyung was, mainly because he walked in when she was being fitted for it, smirking at how it accentuated her figure more than usual. She had sent him a glare, while the housekeeper overseeing things, tried to shoo him away.

“I’m sorry, but you are not allowed in here, young man.”

She could still recall the head housekeeper’s words. She was stern and when Sooyoung walked through the doors of the dining room for dinner, she took to her. She doted on how much she looked like her late mother. She was protective of her and had not been there in the morning when she and Taehyung had arrived at the Park estate with Yoongi and Wendy. She had missed the announcement made by her grandfather to the young maids, butlers, and workers. Taehyung was not a new bodyguard. He was not someone they could even consider flirting with. He was her boyfriend, something more serious than a boyfriend, and a Kim. He was not to have any female worker approach him alone. Same as her, the only males allowed close to her other than Taehyung were Yoongi, Jinyoung, and Jinyoung’s subordinate, Jaebum. Although, she rarely saw him.

So, when the young maids giggled at Taehyung’s antic of not hiding his like at seeing her in a corset and practically in her underwear, the head housekeeper tried to kick him out. (He had eyed her up and down, purposely biting his lip in a seductive manner that had her blushing and shamefully getting by his gesture.) Sooyoung laughed, seeing the confused and surprised look on his face at having been yelled at by the older woman. One of the maids, with her head down and hands clasped in front of her, sauntered to the housekeeper, whispering who Taehyung was and how in a sense, they were the ones invading their privacy. Everyone knew what it meant to have Taehyung there. He was her, their, savior. Their one way not to have the Oh’s take their land.

Immediately, the housekeeper apologized. Taehyung merely smiled, saying it wasn’t that big of a deal and he had just walked in un-announced. They all left the room rather quickly, something she wished they hadn’t. She knew that look in his eyes. It was late afternoon. A horrible time to be left alone with Taehyung, right after dinner, when the corset they had sent to be made had arrived and she was being fitted. Needless to say, he took full advantage of her half- state after having locked the door. The look in his eyes was full of lust, the way he kept biting his lip made chills run down her spine. There had been no way that she could act as if she didn’t know what he wanted. Just one look and she wanted it too. His hand running up her curves only made her anticipate it more. She still felt awkward about being intimate in their now new home. The staff could walk down the hall whenever. They could even listen in, if wanted.

That was not a lie.

The staff knew what it meant to have Kim living with them. They knew they were lovers and they all were made aware of what the will said. Anytime that the two could be alone, it was as if the staff encouraged it. They encouraged them being intimate. Before her welcoming, before the inevitable announcement that she was promised to Oh Sehun, she needed to be with child. Taehyung’s child.

“Now, it is important to eat slowly. At the table, the men will talk. The outside world may be progressing for women, but here a woman must be quiet unless spoken to.”

“I don’t like that.” She muttered with a scowl on her face. The maids giggling even more until she sent them a glare, tired of their giggles at her expense.

“I figured much. We have seen you speak with Master Kim. You are rather frank and outspoken. As refreshing as it is to see and see how he quickly gives in to your words—that will not work with Master Oh. Master Oh only needs your land, your title. He does not care about you or your opinions. It is best to bite your tongue.”

“Or you know she can just speak her mind. There’s no need to please Oh.”

Sooyoung sat up and smiled at hearing Yoongi’s voice. He no longer needed the cane to walk around with. She was so used to hearing that distinct thud; she was not used to him coming in silently. Every time Yoongi would come, it meant she was free from the lessons. There was only so much she could take. Today, they started at seven in the morning. It was now six in the afternoon, an hour before dinner.

“Master Yoongi, you are early.” The housekeeper, Mrs. Hwang spoke.

“Yes, and the lessons started earlier today too.”

“There is much to learn.”

“We don’t want her brain to explode, do we? Her grandfather called for her to tend to Taehyung.”

“Oh, well.” Mrs. Hwang was stern with everyone, even her. The older woman did dote and her, but she took no mercy in telling her where she lacked.

Her ears had perked up at the mention of Taehyung’s name. Her eyebrows furrowed. Without a doubt, every day, Taehyung had a new injury of sorts. That week, as she was put through lessons and told how to act in front of all the families that were anticipating her return, Jinyoung was training Taehyung in combat. Jinyoung was ruthless. They still didn’t get along very well. She could tell, from how Taehyung was left looking.

Even if Mrs. Hwang would have wanted to say no to Yoongi, she couldn’t. Yoongi may be young but her grandfather trusted him. He trusted him even more after everything that happened, knowing all that he knew. Sure, Yoongi had started as an undercover cop, he still showed he was trustworthy and like Namjoon, they were now part of that world. Her grandfather wanted to end things; Yoongi was a way to reassure in the future everything could end. In other words, Yoongi was her grandfather’s right-hand man.

She stood; bowing out, something that still surprised the staff. Her mother apparently used to do it. Outside, she wouldn’t bat an eye to the help. At the estate, she always gave her thanks for what they did. Mrs. Hwang never discouraged her from doing so. It did not matter if the rest were taken aback, it seemed even her grandfather had the same mentality as Taehyung. To keep her kindness no matter what.

She followed Yoongi, anxiously after leaving. She was glad to be done, not glad to hear that Taehyung was hurt again. “How bad is he today?”

Yoongi smiled towards her, shrugging. “Not that bad. We were looking for an excuse to get you out early. Taehyung passed by, icing his knuckles and saw how bored you looked.”

“He’s still hurt though.”

“Eh, Seungwan already tended to his busted lip and put ointment on some of the bruising. He does have a pretty nasty bruise on his ribcage. He got distracted, Jinyoung got him good.”

“Are they getting along?” she wondered, clicking her tongue at knowing Taehyung was in slight pain.

“For the most part. They’re getting there. They still don’t see eye to eye on a lot of things. As you know, Jinyoung wasn’t too keen on training him.”

“I’m not too keen on him training either.”

She really wasn’t, although she understood why he was adamant on doing the training. “Soo, I just want to protect you.”

“If there is any consolation, he is starting firearm training soon. Not just hand-to-hand combat. Less injuries.”

Sooyoung stopped, looking at Yoongi. “Tell me you’re kidding.”

He shrugged. “I’m not. Joy, he needs to know his way around weapons. If he wants to keep you safe and keep himself safe, he has to.”

She didn’t like that. She didn’t like that one bit. She looked away, only nodding and waiting for Yoongi to keep guiding the way. They walked past the kitchen, where she could hear the staff working and saw how Jaebum was hiding behind the corners, trying to scare one of the cooks. He was mischievous, from what she could see of him. Jinyoung was walking down the stairs, sparing her a smile. He wasn’t bad. At least, not with her. He did bud heads with Taehyung, but she knew he meant well. She was warming up to him faster, feeling a sort of affinity to him due to his parents having brought her up.

They went up the stairs; she knew they were headed to Taehyung’s room. His was down the hall, further away from everyone else’s. Hers was in the middle. She preferred his room. It was just as big, his view wasn’t as nice as hers, yet in his room they had more privacy. It was usually where she would go in the afternoons; find him either on the bed tending to his wounds or couch, tired from training. From there, she would cuddle into him, letting her tears fall from feeling overwhelmed.

Hurriedly, she walked down the hall and opened the door to his room. Taehyung was laying on the bed, a bag of ice on his hand. However, Yoongi had lied to her. She sent Yoongi a glare when he walked up behind her. Taehyung also seemed to be sporting a fresh cut above his brow.

“You lied.”

“Yeah, I didn’t want to hear you chew me out. Anyway, I’m off. Dinner will be soon. Enjoy your time.” He saluted, grabbed the door handle, and closed the door as he walked out.

She sighed, turning to see Taehyung with his boyish smile. Automatically, her eyes began to water. She ran to the bed, holding onto his waist, hearing him hiss, and pouted. She didn’t want to cry.

“Was it hard today?” he asked, caressing her hair. She nodded. “I saw how overwhelmed and bored you looked. Mrs. Hwang is going hard on the lessons.”

She nodded again. “I wasn’t happy being awoken at six to have lessons at seven.”

“Glad yesterday wasn’t one of the days I was there. Do you want me to talk to your grandfather, about them not barging in?” Taehyung gentle held her chin, making her look at him as he kissed her forehead.

“I guess,” she sighed, cupping his cheek, “when will you stop hurting yourself?”

“Oh, this cut was an accident, believe or not.” He smirked, and then scowled. “The punch wasn’t, Jinyoung was trying to teach me a lesson. Lesson well learned; do not get cocky. Anyway, his hit made me lose my balance and I hit the edge of the weight rack, hence the cut.”

He said it as if it was nothing, a ghost of a smile on his face. Sooyoung sat up, pouting and squirming before she tried to slouch and then gave her saddest puppy eyes, she could muster to him. Taehyung chuckled, sitting up. He knew she was going to complain and probably ask him to speak with her grandfather again. She was still shy around him. She didn’t know how to approach him. She was trying to warm up. Her grandfather took to Taehyung though, and the two could speak for hours. Every time laughter was heard in his office, she knew Taehyung was the cause of it.

“I don’t like this stupid corset. I know it’s now one of your kinks, but it’s uncomfortable and hard to take off.”

Taehyung smiled. “Want me to tell your grandfather?”

“Could you?”

“Yeah, I mean I like it. You look y but if you’re not comfortable, it doesn’t matter.”

She smiled, pulling him close to chastely kiss him. “I love you. Also, I need help removing it now. It’s like I can’t breathe. I don’t understand women that choose to wear one.”

“Soo, baby, do you know what you’re asking?” he was teasing, teasing because she would need to remove her shirt. Instead of answering, she jabbed him on the side and heard him groan. She guessed correctly, where his injury was. “Damn, a no would have hurt less.”

“Tae, how can you be … like before?”

Taehyung had gestured for her to turn around as she removed her shirt, she did, looking back over her shoulder to see him concentrate on untying the knots. “I’m not. I’m trying though.” He faced up to look at her. “For you. I don’t want to be different, for you. This is hard. We’re living a new life. We haven’t seen the outside of this mansion for two weeks. This is our new normal. I don’t want to make it worse. Seeing you cry almost every night, is hard. I don’t want to be away from you. Not even at night. Not anymore. I hate having these two rooms. I find them pointless.”

She felt the corset loosen, breathing in deeply as she pulled it off, turning around to face Taehyung. She was in her bra, but she didn’t want to wear her dress shirt. She was most likely going to raid his closet and take one of his hoodies. His new hoodies that she found all to be name brand and ridiculous. Mrs. Hwang would give her a disapproving look—she didn’t care.

She felt too comfortable with Taehyung by now. She figured he had seen her enough, that being in a bra was nothing. Seeing how he didn’t bat an eye, she was correct. It didn’t mean that she didn’t affect him. He just knew how to read the mood.

“I take it, you already spoke about this dislike?” he tittered.

“Your grandfather doesn’t care. Do you realize how weird it is, to be encouraged to get your girlfriend pregnant? It’s really weird.”

“I know. It’s weird knowing that every time we are intimate, someone knows and makes me take a pregnancy test. I’ve gotten closer to Wendy due to it. That’s three, pregnancy test in two weeks. I don’t get them.”

Taehyung laughed, making her crack a smile as she wrapped her arms around his torso, pulling them to lay down and just cuddle. She snuggled close to him, thinking back to before. When they first began dating, how those moments were blissful and worry free, living together and just worrying about school. She wanted those moments back. She didn’t want to worry about what the next day would bring. She wanted to worry about waiting to have with Taehyung again. Wondering if he would ever fall out of love with her.

“Tae?”

“Hmmm?”

“We’ll be fine, right?”

“I hope so, Soo. I really do. I love you so much. I don’t like thinking about a possibility of not being here with you.”

“Me too. I love you, too Tae. So, so much.” She didn’t like the somber mood, so she smiled and faced him, seeing how he curiously looked back at her, placing hair behind her ear, tenderly. “Who do you think our child will look like the most? You or me? A mix of both?”

Taehyung held a smile; she knew he liked the idea of imagining their future. It meant their—hopefully—guaranteed child now. His will to hold back his smile failed and soon his boxy smile filled his face as he closed his eyes. He brought his free hand to cover his eyes—finding the thought a happy one. She felt her eyes soften at that. She really was in love him. She could feel it. This moment of his blissful imagination and shyness, proved it even more how in love she was.

“I’ve never thought about it. I don’t even know how you would look like as a boy, but if they are a boy or a girl, as long as they have any of your features, I know they’ll be beautiful.”

He finally replied, having calmed, although she could see the slight pink on his cheeks.

“I want a girl to look like you.”

“What?”

“I think you’d make a pretty girl.”

“I’m confused.” Taehyung’s eyebrows had furrowed, looking at her weirdly as she giggled.

“Jimin, he showed me the picture of you dressed up in a dress back in high school with make-up. You know, when you lost the bet. I thought you’d make a cute girl.”

“Jimin.” Taehyung spoke their friends name with a scowl. “I’m going to make him pay.”

She laughed. Genuinely laughed at his antics. His response was to kiss her. He pulled the back of her head and kissed her. It was moments like these, with Taehyung and just talking as if nothing had changed, why she was able to cope. Without him, she’d crumble.

⇤〜⑉⑅﹎⑅⑉〜⇥

Yoongi:

“How are the kids?”

He had been too busy watching Taehyung and Joy running around the back of the estate, to have noticed Seungwan walk up to him. Taehyung, like always, had asked if they could go outside. They needed fresh air. Joy needed a lot more than just that. Also, like always, Park gave into what Taehyung said. It worried Yoongi.

Park took a strong liking to Taehyung. Very much so, that everything Park knew about Joy came from Taehyung. Taehyung was friendly and loud, even with Park. If Taehyung’s goal had been to win him over, he had accomplished it. Park was smitten by Taehyung. Park wanted no one but Taehyung, for his precious granddaughter. It worked. Considering the two kids in front of him would only ever smile so brightly, in front of each other. Taehyung had always had that ability, to bring out the pure happiness from Joy. Meanwhile, Joy could make everyone else smile brightly. She was pure sunshine like Hoseok. Yet, only Taehyung could be that for her.

He turned to smile as Seungwan sat, her pregnant belly just starting to show. “Well, they seem good.”

Seungwan smiled, letting out a breathy chuckle. “He’s really good at hiding it, isn’t he?”

He nodded.

Taehyung was too good at keeping his feelings to himself. In reality, no one knew what was going through his mind. He didn’t speak about it. He always rather just smiles and laugh. He went out of his way to make things seem normal for Joy. Yoongi could see it. See how much he tried. He could also see how tired he was. Taehyung wouldn’t speak with anyone … anyone but Jimin. He knew that very well. However, Jimin wasn’t there and so Taehyung held everything in. The training, he figured, was another way for Taehyung to release all his frustrations.

“Getting him to speak is like getting Joy to stop being awkward around Park.”

Seungwan closed her eyes, nodding. “She’s taking her time. She seems to gravitate towards Jinyoung though. I think that’s good. She needs someone she can rely on when, you know, she has to go.”

He sighed. One way or another, Joy would have to go with Sehun. It was inevitable. As much as they prolonged her official return, once she is introduced, Sehun would set the wheels in motion. He would find a way to take Joy and keep that promise that was done with coercion. Even in the underground world, deals done back handedly, were looked down. The only thing that he knew was that Jinyoung was assigned to be Joy’s primary bodyguard. It meant, that when Sehun takes her—she can’t go unless Jinyoung is allowed into the Oh’s estate.

“That’s true. I hope Tae doesn’t find out about that until after he’s in better terms with Jinyoung. Jinyoung will be our only connection to her, once Sehun takes her.”

“Do you think they’ll be able to, conceive?” Seungwan asked, looking down to her own abdomen. “We didn’t even try and here we are. I think it’s easier to become pregnant when not planned. Every time you plan it—it’s harder.”

“You’re probably right. I don’t have an answer for you, though. W