HERMAPHRODITE

▪️▪️▪️CH. 7▪️▪️▪️

Taehyung awoke the next morning and immediately missed the warmth of his partner's body. He reached out a hand, patting over the mattress, trying to locate Jungkook's presence, but there was no sign of him. Confused, he rolled over.

No Jungkook.

Tae sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. He was about to call out for his lover when his ears alerted him to sounds coming from the bathroom. He strained to hear more clearly and wished he hadn't, as the sounds of vomiting assaulted his sense of hearing.

With a concerned sigh he tossed the blankets back and swung his legs to the side, rising and stretching before padding out of the bedroom and heading for the bathroom. He paused at the door; Jungkook was once again leaning over the toilet, the sounds of dry retching piercing the still, morning air. He walked up behind the younger man and placed a soothing hand upon his shoulder. "You okay?"

Jungkook gave another heave and then nodded. He leaned back on his heels a little, as his stomach settled. Taehyung handed him a wet cloth and he gratefully took it, wiping his mouth and face. He closed his eyes momentarily, blinking them open again as he heard the flush.

"Here." Tae handed him a glass of water, a hand slipping under an arm and assisting his boyfriend to his feet. Jungkook took the water and allowed himself to be eased up. He swirled his mouth out, spitting the water down the sink. "Bunny, I really think you should see Jimin.There has to be something wrong, you don't just start throwing up for no apparent reason."

Jungkook shook his head. "No, hyung, I'll be fine."

"Jungkook... You are not fine."

"Taehyung, this assignment, I have an important meeting to attend today with them. If I don't show up then they're gonna get suspicious. Besides, I don't feel sick, just a bit of nausea, but it will pass. It's vital to the mission that I keep going. The nausea yesterday was gone by mid morning and you saw how much I ate last night; and I wasn't sick at all then, or during the day."

Taehyung had to concede that point. "I don't know, Kookie, why do you feel nauseous and yet say there's nothing wrong?"

"I dunno, hyungie. It's kinda hard to explain." Jungkook looked at his concerned lover. "I guess, well... I just kinda feel sick and then once I've thrown up, I feel okay. The rest of me feels fine, I mean, I don't feel washed out or have a headache or anything like you normally have when you contract a virus or something. Maybe it's these iron tablets that Jimin hyung prescribed. I've been on them for a while and I know he's lowered the dose rate again so maybe it's just my body's reaction to the medication. It could be that my body is getting enough of the iron without needing the supplements anymore and this is its way of getting rid of the excess. Or maybe I'm nervous of being caught as an undercover agent again, like I was at my first mission, especially as we are so close."

Tae sighed, accepting the excuses, as they were plausible, though he still couldn't help but worry, "Are you sure I can't convince you to see Jimin today?"

"Hyungie, I promise I'll see Jimin after the assignment if the problem is still there."

Taehyung enveloped his partner in a warm hug, softly stroking one hand through his soft hair. "I'm sorry if I'm nagging you about this, Bunny, but please... try to see it from my side. I'm just worried, and I know you'd behave the same if our roles were reversed."

Jungkook placed a kiss on Tae's neck,"I know Bear."

Taehyung lifted Jungkook's chin and pressed his lips to his lover's, kissing him deeply. "Please, be careful and look after yourself... for me."