Run

34. A Dire Situation

3rd person's pov

Hyunjin seemed to stay on edge as they hiked up the snowy path, by now it was just starting to hit mid afternoon and they hadn't run into any other hybrids. They had taken small breaks in between their trekk to make sure that Seo-jae was alright. Jin had taken that time to make sure that Hyunjin's wounds didn't open or become infected. Taehyung kept to himself as the group walked, Namjoon and Yoongi taking the lead as Jin carried Seo-Jae. He was giving Jimin a break, though, Jimin didn't mind carrying Jae. Since the temperature had dropped once again, Jin thought it was best if everyone other than Jungkook and Hoseok wore another layer of clothing. At the moment, the tension was way too thick so Jungkook shifted and dug himself into the snow. To ease the tension Jungkook was feeling, Hoseok had shifted as well and fooled around. The group had been walking for more than a few hours and despite the sun being out and shining down on the group, Jae was still struggling to stay warm. Luckily, Jin was radiating a lot of body heat which was effectively keeping her warm enough. "I'm curious about something, Hyunjin..." Jimin spoke up, his eyes landing on Hyunjin. "Curious about what, Hyung?" Hyunjin took his eyes off the treeline to their right and looked over at Jimin. "How did you end up with those boys? The last time we were together, they weren't the ones keeping us locked up." Hyunjin sighed heavily, he knew that he was eventually going to be asked this question. Jin was also curious about Hyunjin's answer, he knew that he must have had a rough time while in the custody of those young men. From the way that they were described by Namjoon, those men weren't exactly the nicest people.

"The person who had us locked up gave me up after I helped you and Jungkook escape. He got so fed up with me that he simply just didn't want me anymore. So he sold me off to the first person who would take me in and it happened to be the father of those two assholes." Hyunjin explained, "So that bastard just gave you up just like that? What was the point of him holding us all that time?" Jimin's fist clenched, anger washing through his veins.

"I don't know, hyung. I really didn't understand his intentions at the time. I'm just glad that I got you and Jungkook out before I was sold to those bastards. Who knows what they would have done to you both had you been in their custody." Hyunjin said.

Yoongi had mostly tuned out of the conversation as he looked down at the map, making sure that they were heading the right way. They had another several hours before they could reach a nearby hotel where they could get a room for the night, Yoongi knew the weather wasn't exactly ideal for any of them to be sleeping out in the open. Especially since they had Jae with them, her body was struggling to bounce back from the cold and the sprained ankle. Jimin had taken note that the weather was indicating that a storm might be headed their way. Snow had been falling for a good hour, which only seemed to deepen the snow they had to trek through. A delectable scent made it's way towards the front of the group, coming from behind them. Both Namjoon and Yoongi immediately recognized it, "Hyung..." Namjoon started, "I know.." Yoongi answered, they both looked back at Taehyung who had been staring off into the distance as he walked. Hyunjin smelled something sweet hit his nose, the hairs on the back of his neck stood up and he suddenly became a lot more alert. He looked around the group to see where it was coming from, his eyes landing on Taehyung. His eyes slightly widened when he realized why he was suddenly smelling this sweet scent, Taehyung was starting his rut and although it was early, he could tell that it wouldn't be long before Taehyung became extremely territorial over Seo-Jae and his mates.

"Guys.. Listen up," Jungkook and Hoseok looked up from one another, their eyes shifting to Namjoon. Jin knew immediately that Taehyung was starting his rut, "We're gonna have a problem on our hands. Tae is just starting his rut. I'm not sure how we're going to handle keeping him from marking Seo-Jae since we have nowhere to sleep as of right now. We all need to keep an eye on him for the time being but don't let him know that we're onto him." Namjoon explained, "Shit... I didn't think his rut would come this early." Hoseok cursed, his eyes shifting to the tiger still walking ahead of him and Jungkook. "Is there a hotel nearby we can possibly stay at?" Jin questioned, his eyes flitted to Yoongi, who was looking at the map. Yoongi's eyes lit up when he found a hotel nearby for a few nights which put a wrench in their plan to get to Suho's place in les than a week's time but it had to happen. They couldn't be out in the open with Taehyung fresh in his rut, there was no way to keep him from injuring Hyunjin and him possibly harming Seo-jae. "There's a hotel not too far from here. It's an hour walk at best, probably two if we take another break." Yoongi informed.

"Then we'll head there. We need to Taehyung away from Jae."

"Should we let Hyunjin know?" Jungkook asked, "He already knows, Kook. He can smell Taehyung's scent." Jimin answered.

"Hyung... Is Taehyung..?" Hyunjin walked closer to Jimin, whispering lowly so Taehyung couldn't hear them. "Yes, we can't startle him right now. We're heading to a hotel to spend the night. Probably more. Taehyung's rut is usually long. And the weather is indicating a storm might be on its way." Jimin explained.

"Jinnie?" Seo-Jae whispered, Jin's ears perked up as he heard the nickname. "Yes, Jae?" He answered, "Is something wrong?" She asked, "Why do you ask?" He furrowed his eyebrows, ".. You all look like you're worried about something.. And I can tell that you guys are communicating amongst each other." She replied, "No... There's nothing wrong, sweetheart. We're just deciding on where to sleep for night since the weather is starting to pick up." Jin explained, he didn't want to worry Seo-Jae with Taehyung's rut. They were still getting used to the dynamics of the pack with a new addition, not to mention, there hadn't been much intimacy between Seo-jae and the group since they just started navigating the bond. Despite the reassurance from Jin, Seo-Jae could still sense that something was off. That's when Taehyung's sweet scent hit her, he smelled of freshly baked frosted cinnamon rolls with just a dash of nutmeg. The scent was mouthwatering and easily tempting, Jae's mind started to become fuzzy. She wanted nothing more than to jump Taehyung and make out with him, but that basically impossible with both her injury and the fact that she was on Jin's back. And the more she smelled his scent, the more pulled in she became. His scent was intoxicating and Jae found herself just wanting to drown in it. Her body temperature shot up, warmth spreading all through her veins as she started to become slightly aroused at the thought of making out with Taehyung. She wanted to know what he tasted like, how his big hands would feel as they roamed her body, how he would kiss her with soft pink lips of his. A new scent hit Jin's nose, one that was even more mouthwatering then Taehyung's. It was the same scent that Yoongi had smelled the day they met Seo-jae, only this scent was way stronger smelling of vanilla with a hint of strawberries. That's when it hit Jin where the scent was coming from, "Guys we have a major problem!" Jin panicked, Taehyung sniffed the air and caught onto Jae's scent.

By now, everyone was now aware of Jae's scent wafting through the air, Hyunjin took one smell and instantly found himself wanting to drown in her scent. "Shit... Shit.. Shit.." Hoseok panicked as he saw Taehyung look over to Jae, his tail swung slowly behind him.

"Jae's reacting to Tae's scent.. Shit. If we're not careful, she could be driven to making him mark her." Namjoon said. At this point, both Hoseok and Jungkook had shifted back into their hybrid forms while Jimin had moved to walk next to Jin with Hyunjin behind him. Taehyung let out a low and deep growl, giving Hyunjin a warning to stay away from Seo-Jae. "Hyunjin..." Jimin started, "Yeah..." Hyunjin looked over to Jimin, "Step back.. Slowly.." Taehyung took a step forward, his growl growing louder. "He's not in the right headspace right now.. I need you to back up so he doesn't attack you for being next to his unmarked mate." Jimin explained. Hyunjin took a step back, hoping that Taehyung would take it as a sign of him backing off but it didn't work. His growls only got louder and deeper, his pupils dilating as his tail swayed behind him.

"Jungkook.." Namjoon looked over his shoulder at the snow leopard, "Yeah, I got him." He nodded.

"Taehyung.. Listen to me.." Yoongi started, he handed the map to Namjoon and stepped in front of Jin and Jae.

"Give her to me." Taehyung growled.

"No can do, bud. You're not in the right headspace and you could hurt her. And we both know that's the last thing you want to happen." He said.

This only seemed to agitate Taehyung, who turned his focus back onto Jin and Seo-jae. Without another word, Taehyung rushed towards them causing Jungkook to tackle him. "Let me go!!" Taehyung shouted, "No can do, hyung!"

"This is just what we need..." Namjoon sighed.