unafraid [bts x you]

xiii. locked

I was on lockdown again. Or, at least that's what it felt like, with Tae-hyung leaning against the door, and me on the bed, unable to leave the room. For the last fifteen minutes, Tae had stayed silent, every so often checking his phone and encouraging me to read a book Jimin had gotten me. The book was almost a kind gesture, but Jimin made it very clear that it was just junk he found when he was making inventory in the less important storage garages. He also made sure to mention that nobody else wanted it and I was the last choice.

Tossing the book across the bed, I sighed and crossed my arms, unable to hold back a pout.

"How much longer till I can go back to my usuals, Tae?" I asked. He didn't react to my question and I was met with silence. I shuffled to the edge of the bed and tried again.

"Tae?"

He kept scrolling through his phone, every once in a while typing something out. I frowned and stood up.

"Tae."

By now I was standing right in front of him, and normally being this close to Tae meant I wasn't scared to get a black eye, but I was really beginning to wonder why the whole issue at the warehouse earlier had been such a big deal.

"Tae-hyung!" I exclaimed, stamping my foot down. Finally, he chose to glance up.

"Princess, if you don't shut up, I'll break your jaw," he said calmly, patting the part of my face that was now in danger. I chose to take a step back and continue with my pushing. Even his wide shoulders didn't scare me into shutting up that easily.

"What was the big deal anyways?" I tried again, "Yoon-gi made me drop the papers, and that guy was just helping me out."

He chuckled as if the answer was obvious, finally putting his phone away and looking at me directly. I suddenly wished he wasn't. It was the same look he'd give me when I first got here— hungry and ready to hit whatever was closest to him. Usually, it was me. I had bruises on my arms that were trying to heal, all stacked on top of one another, to prove it.

"You don't get help, and he stepped out of line," he responded, slamming his hand on my desk, "How hard is that to understand?"

I held back a frown and stepped back to flop down on the bed. Of course, this was my fault. Somehow, at least half of it. It didn't make much sense but I guessed if I thought of it from their point of view, I could see why they had gotten mad. I don't get to ask for much favors or get to boss anyone around, so getting help from the workers was clearly off limits.

"Yeah, okay, I see it," I sighed, rubbing my thighs, "I'm sorry."

Tae-hyung lifted his hand off the desk and, oddly enough, walked over to sit beside me on the bed. I looked at him and he shrugged.

"I don't know if you've been noticing lately, Princess, but you've been the center of attention for the newest members coming in, and the last thing we need is you in their line of sight."

I nodded. I didn't want to be a problem now that I was becoming an asset, if anything. I was trying to earn my stripes so I could go back out, without having to worry about a target on my back.

"I just want to go do something, it's still morning," I explained. He gave me another shrug. I hid my smirk. The way he lacked conversation gave it away. Tae was a talker, but if he couldn't tell me something, if I was supposed to be kept in the dark about something, then him staying quiet was his best way of making sure I stayed clueless. It seemed to me like he was under orders to keep me away from what we'd originally been tasked with, so I tried a different approach to getting out of my bedroom.

"Have you guys eaten breakfast?"

This caught his attention; by the way his eyes looked at me and how his body peeled up at the mention of food, I knew I had my way out.