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Jungkook hadn’t been able to see soulmates before Jimin and Taehyung.
This sounds unrelated to what he was experiencing that day because it didn’t really have anything to do with soulmates. Well, it kind of did. Eventually.
“Babe, stop scratching, you’re gonna make them hurt more.” Tae said, batting Jungkook’s hands away from where he’d been rubbing.
“Ugh they itch.” He whined, not dropping his hands so much as hovering them in the primed position while he squeezed his eyes shut. Tae grabbed his clenched fingers gently, lowering them away from his eyes. Jungkook went grudgingly, blinking from the irritation.
“Are you sure you don’t wanna go to the doctor?” Taehyung said, mouth tilting downward. Jungkook’s bank account made a terrifying rattling noise in his mind’s eye and he shook his head.
“No, I’m sure it’ll go away.” He tilted his head. “I’m not even really sure it’s a physical thing anyway so much as a…”
Tae’s eyebrows rose with understanding, the golden outline of his soul pulsing warmly.
“Ohhh. Hm. Well, anyway, you want summa this pasta before I show you how it’s done in that stupid motorcycle game?” The stupid motorcycle game made Taehyung and Jungkook want to break the PS4.
“Fuck, yeah, sure, and I’ll kick your ass, don’t throw down a gauntlet you can’t hold.” Jungkook scoffed. Tae grinned, boxy and bright.
He pushed the issue to the back of his mind.
◇◇◇
Jimin came home dripping wet and miraculously not sprouting a tail.
“No, no, I swear, this shop appeared out of thin air-”
“Jimin-”
“Jungkookie I was literally thinking ‘oh my god someone I know stole my umbrella I need to get inside now’ and boom there it was.” He pulled off a chelsea boot, dropping two inches in height, shaking water from his hair.
“I meant to put it back.” Jungkook muttered, shuffling.
“Oooo, pretty bracelet Jiminie.” Taehyung said, rounding a corner while shaking leaves from his hair. Jimin deflated, releasing the tirade he’d been about to enter.
Tae scooped up Jimin’s hand, inspecting the new bracelet that was covered in dangling metal and twine and rocks. It honestly looked like something you’d get conned into buying at some tourist shop by a pushy employee except it exuded this, subtle pulsing sensation.
Like the rocks were breathing.
Jungkook tilted his head, squinting at it, at the drop of water rolling down Jimin’s collarbones, zoned out slightly staring, and then looked back to the bracelet.
“Wait, is this, is that why you’re not, you know.” He mimed a fish flapping on the floor gasping. Jimin nodded, fast and excited.
“It really is pretty, right? Thank you, Taetae. And yeah! I walked in there, and there was this, like... I’m pretty sure he’s one of the prettiest people I’ve ever seen- not prettier than you guys of course.” He added quickly, swinging the hand Tae was holding and ruffling Jungkook’s hair. “But like, wow, you know? Aesthetically impossible to ignore.”
“Your constant thirst is valid, Jiminie.” Taehyung said, perking up like a cute dog. Ugh, Jungkook adored them.
“So is yours, thank you Taehyungie.” He paused long enough to kiss Taehyung’s nose. “Anyway, so he’s all ‘no one ever walks in unless they need us’ and, I don’t know some other stuff, and then I got a charm that stops me from transforming when I get wet.”
Jungkook felt like maybe the other stuff was important, but Jimin was so effervescent he didn’t want to interrupt.
“Just like that?” Jungkook said, surprised.
“Well, I mean, I had to pay for it and it wasn’t. Cheap. But I’m, I can go outside like a normal person.” Jimin swallowed, obviously more emotional about this than he was admitting to. Jungkook thought of all the times Jimin had been trapped inside because of the threat of getting wet and felt soft. Taehyung squeezed him close.
“… does this mean we can finally have shower sex.” Taehyung asked after a moment. Jimin squawked, kicking at his ankle.
“Way to ruin the moment, Tae.” Jungkook deadpanned, but a considering sparkle entered his eye. “He’s got a point though-”
Jimin rolled his eyes while fighting a smile.
“I guess we could test it out-“
◇◇◇
Jungkook woke up and his eyes were burning. He sat up with a hiss, sheets pooling in his lap.
“Mm, sw’t’h’rt?” Jimin rasped, blinking awake beside him. Jungkook made a noise in response, intended to be a ‘go back to sleep’ but came out sounding distressed. “ ‘Koo, s’wrong baby?” He mumbled, sitting up and shaking off sleep, flipping on their bedside lamp. He groaned in agony as the light made it worse, covering his face with his hands.
“ ‘s his eyes, they’ve been bothering him.” Tae rumbled from beside him, stirring into lucidity. Jungkook had no idea what time it was, shriveling inward in embarrassment as the other two sat up to snuggle him; Jimin’s small hands rubbed soothingly down his bare spine.
“His eyes? Again?” Jimin murmured, obviously leaned forward to speak to Tae. There was a click, the light flipping back off. Jungkook lifted his hands carefully, blinking. There was a mirrored gasp from the other two.
“Kook, your eyes-”
“Wow, I’ve never seen them that bright.” Jimin said with faint amazement.
Jungkook blinked again, everything a little hazy. His boyfriends, however, gleamed, a coil of light laying across Jungkook’s lap, and disappearing into their chests.
He thought maybe he should back up.
Jungkook could see spirits.
Only sometimes, and only some kinds. Which ones, he wasn’t quite sure, and why, he didn’t know. But he was friends with the ghost of the lady who used to own the mom’n’pop shop near him, and live people had an aura. Some people were warm, happy, while other had a weird, sick energy. He steered clear of those.
He’d spent a lot of time as a child refusing to speak to particular members of his family for seemingly no reason.
Even further back; Jungkook was a stillborn.
For the first ten minutes of his life, doctors were absolutely certain he was dead. He gasped to life thirteen minutes and twenty-eight seconds after leaving the womb.
A miracle.
Jungkook met Jimin and Taehyung in freshman year when they were juniors in a basic required culture credit. His eyes had itched for weeks after meeting them until finally one day he walked in and could see the rope of light that connected them. He thought it was ironic that they were neither strings nor red.
He couldn’t see his own though, Jungkook had no idea what his connection to them looked like, even ater dating and moving in with Jimin and Taehyung. He’d always been curious.
“Come here, you should see this.” Tae said, his tone awed, tugging his arm so they could go to the mirror on the vanity. He stumbled, tangled in their sheets, until they got him in front of the mirror. His eyes gleamed opalescent white, the same color faintly shone in a pattern onhis forehead, down his arms. He didn’t know if Taehyung and Jimin could see those.
“I wonder what it means.” Jimin said, resting his head against Jungkook’s shoulder. The light waned and then winked out in his eyes.
“I don’t know.” He answered, resting his cheek against Jimin’s hair, fingers curled together with Taehyung’s.
◇◇◇
“That shop appeared again.” Jimin said, sweaty from the studio, tugging off his shoes at the door and dumping his smelly bag on the floor, dance slippers flopping against the linoleum. Jungkook leaned around the doorway of the kitchen where he’d been putting together his food for work.
“Really? I thought it only ‘appeared if you needed it’ or whatever.” He said.
“Yeah, the guy looked really surprised to see me again.” Jimin agreed, bending over to uncoil the bandage around his foot, legs flexing. Jungkook swallowed dryly.
“Super hot guy?”
“That’s the one.” Jimin popped back up, shuffling to get his feet in a pair of slippers. “It’s not fair honestly, he was all messy from cooking and he still looked ready to model. But yeah, I ended up getting a coffee just because I felt bad showing up without buying anything.”
“But was the coffee good?” Jungkook asked, smiling at his food.
”The coffee was great.” Jimin said, padding in and shoving his sweaty face against Jungkook’s neck. He yelped and scampered across the floor.
“It’s just a little sweat, Jungkookie.” Jimin flashed a shit-eating grin at him and Jungkook brandished his pasta spoon threateningly.
“I just took a shower, don’t ruin it.” He only returned to stirring pasta when Jimin rolled his eyes but sat on the stool against the wall.
“Anyway, hot guy tells dad jokes, I’m pretty sure that’s the secret ingredient.” Jimin said, giggling musically as he remembered. Jungkook didn’t get it, but he did like seeing Jimin laugh.
“You’ll have to show me sometime.” Jungkook hummed, turning off the stove. Jimin swung his feet, toes dangling a foot above the floor. Jungkook thought it was cute, but if he said that Jimin would tie him up and hang him off the roof, so he kept it to himself for the moment.
“If it ever appears while we’re together, I’ll get right on that.” They trailed off talking about the date they’d planned for that weekend, some art gallery as a surprise for Tae who’d been working his ass off all week. Jungkook had to admit he was excited too, for the art, but also for finding time for all three of them that wasn’t just sleeping.
◇◇◇
The shop had just appeared out of thin air, Jungkook was sure of it.
He’d walked past this particular alleyway on his way home a million times, memorable because of the one person who liked to hang their underwear off the fire escape which was like. Gross. He wondered how it didn’t get stolen. Or maybe it did and they wanted their underwear stolen, Jungkook didn’t know, but either way-
“Oh my god, that’s the shop!” Jimin said, grabbing their hands tightly. They were on their way back from a highly successful date, if Jungkook did say so himself. Tae had gone on a thirty minute excited babble about art while looking absolutely beautiful in a beret which meant they’d picked correctly, and he’d gotten at least five kisses. Which wasn’t enough, but it was a start.
“It’s smaller than I expected.” Tae said, eyebrows jumping.
He was right. It was a little thing, quaint, the front was all panes of glass, and old in a charming way. Plants crept up the molding on the window panes. The wood was painted a deep, clean burgundy. Jimin dragged them across the street and Taehyung stopped to whisper to the flowers, voice full of indecipherable shushing noises. All the leaves perked up, and the flowers bloomed to a brighter color, rustling excitedly.
“C’mon flower boy I need to prove my point about beautiful shop clerk man.” Jimin said, tugging Taehyung’s pinky. Tae went reluctantly, trailing a finger down the leaves before following Jimin through the door.
Jungkook brought up the rear, listening to an invisible bell ring, muted and beautiful, like it was underwater. He looked up at the door, trying to find it as Jimin spoke to the cashier.
“I figured if we were going to keep meeting like this then I should introduce you to my soulmate. And, my soulmate’s boyfriend.” Jungkook tuned back into the conversation, pushing through the door and popping up behind them.
“I’m your boyfriend too, Jimin-ssi.” He prodded light-heartedly, peeping past them. The bell rang again as he laid eyes on the man hovering awkwardly behind the man Jimin was talking to.
He clapped his hands to his eyes, horrible pain lancing through them.
“Jungkook-ah, are you okay?” Jimin yelped as Jungkook dropped. He immediately crouched, cupping Jungkook’s elbows. He groaned in response, digging the heels of his palms into his eye sockets. And then as fast as it came, the pain was gone.
Jimin tugged his hands carefully away and Jungkook blinked away the spots, looking up. His breath caught in his throat. A man leaned over Jimin with a worried look on his face. He was warm-toned and soft, his legs just, so out in a pair of cut off shorts.
“Wow, thighs.” He said blankly as he stared at the coil that connected their chests.
The guy flushed pink, blinking in shock and looked down at his legs.
“See babe, I’m always telling you!” The guy who Jimin had been talking to exclaimed, smacking thigh man’s shoulder. There was no way that wasn’t super hot employee.
“Are you okay, JK?” Tae asked quietly, hand on Jungkook’s knee. Jungkook tore his eyes away to look at Tae’s furrowed eyebrows, the mole under his lip pushed up with Tae’s little frown. He inhaled, seeing the line that attached them.
“Yeah, I’m. I’m fine, I’m great.” He finally gasped out. His soulmates hovered (four of them, wow), helping him up. Jungkook squeezed his boyfriend’s hands tightly, bowing to the other two as they introduced themselves.
At least now he knew why his eyes had been hurting.