Guardian

10

WARNING FOR THE NEXT TWO CHAPTERS: JEOHOON IS AN ABUSIVE ASSHOLE. BOUNDARY VIOLATION AND SOME NUDITY, ASIDE FROM VERBAL ABUSE. IF YOU'RE NOT ABLE TO HANDLE THAT PLEASE WAIT FOR THE NEXT UPDATE, I'M WORKING ON SOME FLUFF RN

I'm tired, so this is the extent of what you'll hear from me before next update. I had food and water today, promise. :) I purple you! 

It had to be Namjoon's Jeohoon.

Namjoon hissed, backing up and slamming into the couch. Jeohoon sighed, rolling his eyes, and turned his gaze back to Jimin.

Don't you dare-- Namjoon thought.

Jeohoon's lips quirked in a knowing smirk. "He never did like me," he said, chuckling.

"He used to live in your neighborhood?" Jimin asked, gently picking Namjoon up and tilting the cone to get a look at his face. Namjoon craned his neck obediently, glaring at him, but it was Jeohoon who laughed.

"Oh, we've known each other since grade school," he said.

"Huh?" Jimin said, plainly confused. Namjoon jerked at the cone, but Jimin didn't let go, too busy frowning at Jeohoon to notice Namjoon.

Stop it, Namjoon thought. This is totally unnecessary. Give me three seconds and I'll be out of your hair--

"Yeah, since before we manifested," Jeohoon said.

Namjoon's stomach sank.

Namjoon? Taehyung's voice asked in his head.

Tell Jimin to take the fucking cone off, Namjoon thought. More coherent thoughts were not forthcoming. He couldn't even look Jeohoon in the eye, stuck staring at Jimin's face as the confusion worsened.

"You never told me about a cat..."

"That's cause he hated me," Jeohoon said. "Besides, he wasn't on about going feral all the damn time back then. He was still cute, and shy, and--"

Namjoon meowed angrily, jerking in Jimin's grip, and Jimin let go, startled. Namjoon whipped his head forward, dead set on giving Jeohoon a good swipe to the leg, but the cone kept going, thrown forward by his momentum, and he tumbled to the ground, landing on his back with a frustrated cry.

Namjoon, tell me what's going on, Taehyung said. I'll--

"What are you talking about?" Jimin asked, a dangerous edge entering his voice. Namjoon rolled over, hacking, and Jimin reached forward, tugging him back against his chest. "I told you not to come to my house while you're high, you fucking idiot--"

"Oh, I'm not high," Jeohoon laughed. "I told you, I'm off that shit. Namjoon never told you he wasn't a cat?"

Silence.

Fuck you, Namjoon thought. Fuck you. Fuck you. Fuck you!

Namjoon, Taehyung started, but Namjoon had had enough. He squirmed out of Jimin's arms and walked over to the sliding door, sitting down and meowing. He wanted out. He wanted away from Jeohoon and his fucking obsession with putting him down. Cute? Shy? Namjoon may never have known how to address other human beings as equals, but he was neither of those things. Jeohoon was a fucking idiot, and if Namjoon couldn't have the cone off, he was going to get out of the house.

"Explain," Jimin snapped.

Namjoon sighed and sat down, flinching when Taehyung knelt next to him and ran a hand through his fur.

I told you, he said softly.

Take this fucking cone off and let me out, Namjoon thought.

You need to stay here. If you'd just transform--

Taehyung, Namjoon thought. Just take it off.

Taehyung's hand faltered, and he sighed, reaching to undo the cone. Namjoon pulled his head out of it and sat waiting while Taehyung stood, reaching for the door.

"Is it true?" Jimin asked. "Tae?"

Taehyung froze. Namjoon sighed, tail flicking. Let out another quiet meow. Taehyung looked down at him, conflicting emotions clashing on his face.

"Yeah," he sighed, pulling the door open. "It's true."

Namjoon didn't hesitate. He raced out the door, leapt onto the fence, and jumped down, streaking off down the street. As he ran, he imagined doing one terrible thing after another to Jeohoon, but he knew he never would. Jeohoon never needed a reason to hurt Namjoon. He just thought it was funny, that it was some kind of joke. Enjoyed the attention he got for holding Namjoon's secrets over his head.

Namjoon was stupid, but he wasn't stupid enough to attack him.

He slowed to a walk, then stopped, looking around. There was still plenty of light, and his ear didn't itch, but the realization of what had happened was just beginning to crash down on him, his thoughts spiraling as he thought of the open void in front of him.

He had stayed with Jimin for so long.

Where could he go now?

He wandered the streets quietly for a long time. It got darker and darker, but Namjoon didn't mind. No one bothered him. Every so often another animal would skitter across his path and he would stop, watching it go, but there was nothing for him to do except curl up in a quiet corner and wait for the night to be over.

He should have remembered his habitual hiding places.

"I knew I'd find you here," Jeohoon said, singsong, crouching in front of Namjoon. "You like this spot, don't you, kitty?"

The nickname, so kind and gentle from Jimin's lips, grated against Namjoon's ears like nails on a chalkboard. He hissed, backing away, but Jeohoon just sat down, chuckling.

"Jimin's furious," he said. "You know how to make them mad, don't you?"
Namjoon pressed himself against the wall, eyes wide. You--

"Told them the truth, of course," Jeohoon said. "I even showed them your old pictures. They shouldn't have looked so surprised, it was too funny."

There was no reason, Namjoon said, watching him laugh with growing anger. Why would you put him through that? We were just fine--"

"Why the hell do I need a reason to tell people the truth?" Jeohoon asked, resting his face in one hand. "Poor shy, stuttering Namjoon decided he never wanted to talk to anyone again, so he pretended to be a cat. That doesn't strike you as disgusting? Maybe worthy of a psychiatrist?"

I'm perfectly sane--

"That's not what your parents thought."

Namjoon flinched, bowing his head. That's not--

"What? Everyone knew they were just humoring you. Didn't think you'd run off to be a stray once you got out of school." Jeohoon sighed, running a hand through his hair. "My mum still goes over to their house sometimes. They try to act like they never had a son."
Stop, Namjoon thought. Fucking stop. You're a liar, I know you are--

"Are you kidding me? The only reason I have pictures of you is because we had to save them when your mom when nuts and tried to burn them all." Jeohoon examined his nails. "Face it, Joon. It's not a sustainable lifestyle. You keep losing people."

Only because you keep fucking telling them!

Jeohoon snorted. "Me? Please. If you'd tell them in the first place they wouldn't be so surprised when I mentioned it. It's your own fault you never learned how to talk to people."

You're an asshole, Namjoon thought, but he no longer had the energy to put any force into it. Jeohoon was right. He ran away from home, from people, from kind person after kind person... for what? Because he couldn't face them as a human. Because they couldn't let him live as a cat.

He was disgusting.

And he would be fine with it, normally, but the anger in Jimin's voice still rang in his ears, and he knew what Jeohoon wanted, what he wouldn't leave until he got. Namjoon took a deep breath and reached into his powers, into the knot of energy he hadn't untied in years, and let it slip free.