Adjustment (taejoon & yoonmin/jikook)

Chapter 9 (Unedited)

A quiet yet threatening growl made Taehyung snap his head towards the entrance of the den, watching a particular grey wolf standing tall, its sharp set of teeth on display. The sight alone caused a shiver to run down Taehyung's spine while he shot an anxious look at Jimin, who was sitting on the other side of the den, shifting tensely.

The other boy's head was already hanging shamefully, his fingers playing with the hem of his sweater nervously. Watching the other human tremble in pure fear made Taehyung sick to his stomach and there was nothing he'd rather do than run up to Jimin and embrace him in a protective manner. Not that he'd ever do that – it'd be suicidal, especially considering the murderous flash in Yoongi's eyes.

Since Taehyung had "joined" the pack a few months back, there was no other wolf that'd rubbed Taehyung the wrong way like Yoongi did; he honestly didn't know what the hell the grey wolf's problem was, but Taehyung firmly believed that it definitely shouldn't affect Jimin whatsoever – after all, just like Taehyung, Jimin didn't ask for any of this.

At this moment, Namjoon was already lying wedged against Taehyung when Yoongi entered the den with a few other wolves hot on his tracks. The brown Alpha's head was lying in the human's lap, an affectionate purring sound thrumming from its throat as it was snuggling against him.

When the grey wolf slowly made its way towards Jimin, Taehyung clenched his fists as anger and sympathy for his friend flourished in his heart painfully. The way Jimin's bottom lip slightly quivered when the wolf hovered over him made Taehyung want to scream and pull his hair in frustration, even though Jimin's words still lingered in his mind.

If anything happens tonight with me – don't interrupt in any way, okay?

Honestly speaking, Taehyung was conflicted; he wanted to interrupt and try to make Yoongi back off, however, the two humans' fight in the afternoon had ended with them not speaking together the whole day. And the thought alone of fighting with Jimin, the only human within the pack beside himself, his only friend, only ally, made him hesitate.

Yes, Taehyung disagreed with Jimin's mindset and his self-destructive mentality, who wouldn't? Anyone who had a somewhat healthy psyche could see how fucked up Jimin had turned out, how manipulated and broken he was. For fucks sake, who would call for a "fair punishment" on one's own accord? A person who was trapped in a toxic environment, that's who. That was the only rational answer Taehyung could come up with.

Taehyung regarded Jimin quietly as the other human stood up, putting on his winter coat, boots, scarf, and beanie before following the grey wolf outside, his head still lowered in shame. Looking around in a state of panic, Taehyung regarded the remaining wolves in pure disbelief as no one even glanced at the couple leaving the den – this was apparently expected.

"No!" Taehyung yelled impulsively as he watched Jimin's back disappear into the dark night. He tried to stand up, but his rushed movements led to an irritated Alpha waking up, who growled in warning. Its paws pressed down at Taehyung's lap, clearly signalling him to stay down so the wolf could continue snuggling against its mate. However, if Taehyung noticed the Alpha's indirect order, he was completely oblivious since Taehyung continued getting on his feet.

The Alpha was quick to shift into his human form, however, not quick enough as Taehyung was already halfway through the den, running towards the den and his fellow human friend.

"Taehyung!" Namjoon growled harshly, clearly visibly unimpressed with Taehyung's disobedience as he gripped Taehyung's bicep before almost violently throwing him backwards. Moving quickly, Namjoon pressed Taehyung's back against his chest, his arms embracing Taehyung from behind to keep him trapped against him.