Tomorrow│YM

[09] Yours

"Do you identify as male?"

"Hmm?"

They were finally outside, walking to the thrift store after multiple false starts. First, Jimin realized he still hadn't washed his face or brushed his teeth and needed to take a moment to "de-troll-ify" himself. Then, after finally making it out of the building's lobby, Yoongi hissed with pain at the blinding summer light and they had to trek back up the three flights of stairs to find him a hat. Since the hybrid's cat ears didn't fit under a baseball cap, they settled on an old visor Jimin had from back when he played in a college LGBTQ+ softball league.

Once that ordeal was dealt with and they were on their way, Jimin found himself frequently glancing at the rainbow patch that adorned the visor, a pit forming in his stomach. He expelled a drawn out breath knowing it was time for him to face the possibility that he had fucked up.

"I'm sorry, I should have asked sooner. I saw how you reacted to Steve calling you 'she' and I got ahead of myself," the human explained. "If you identify as female or non-binary there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. It was lousy of me to assume anything."

Yoongi didn't reply immediately, instead furrowing his brow as he thought. "I, uh, I've never really thought about it," he said finally. "I don't like wearing skirts, and I don't like him telling me what I am... but there are a lot of things I don't like with him."

Jimin felt his heart clench, knowing that so much was being left unsaid. He could only see the tip of the iceberg. All he knew was that Yoongi was strong as fuck.

"I can't begin to imagine what you've been through, Yoongi." Jimin stopped in his tracks on the sidewalk, feeling the moment was too important to be treated casually. He stuffed his clenched fists into the pouch of his hoodie and waited for the hybrid to catch on.

The cat turned around a few steps later and squinted at the human who was now backlit by the sun, his tail twitching as it swayed.

"You don't have to tell me anything if you don't want to," Jimin continued earnestly. "All I want is for you to know that you have control. I will do everything in my power to keep Steve away from you for good." The blond swallowed, feeling the pit that was in his stomach rise to his throat. "This body is yours and no one else's. You can dress it how you want and you can call it what you want. "

Yoongi looked to the side, jaw clenched. His lips formed a small frown and his Adam's apple bobbed visibly. Eventually he looked back at Jimin with a subtle glimmer in his eye and nodded. "You... you can keep calling me 'he'."

Jimin smiled. "'He' it is," he pronounced and began to walk again. "Me too, by the way. I'm a 'he'."

Yoongi side-eyed the boy, matching his pace and nodded.

They arrived at the thrift shop not too long after. Jimin open the door and waved the hybrid inside. "So. I've got about fifty bucks that I pulled from my emergency funds. I wish I could spare more - sorry - but it should be enough to get you started."

"You say sorry a lot," Yoongi remarked, stepping inside.

"You aren't the first to call me out on that," Jimin chuckled. "Tae always says..." Jimin trailed off, suddenly aware of the stares they were receiving.

And really, who wouldn't stare?

Yoongi was quite possibly the first hybrid to ever grace such an establishment, wearing worn out sweats and a rainbow visor no less. Jimin giggled when he saw Yoongi's cheeks grow pink at the attention.

"Common, mister," he simpered with a wink. "Let's make you less conspicuous."

Boy, did Yoongi ever take Jimin's statement to heart. Every article of clothing he tried on was either black, shapeless or both. Jimin was able to gently nudge him towards a few more fun options to round out his selection; a fitted button-up, some slacks and even a pair of jeans with wide holes at the knees (all admittedly still black), but he couldn't help shaking his head at the final haul as the wide-eyed cashier ran each item through.

It was late afternoon after they got back. Yoongi took the bag containing his new clothes into the storage room and begun unpacking it into a tidy pile. Jimin watched quietly, unsure of how to broach the topic of what the hell happened the night before.

Yoongi sensed his thoughts, though, and broke the silence.

"I'm sorry about last night," he murmured. "I couldn't sleep... I can't exactly explain it, but I got... anxious? This room - it's a similar size to..." his voice trailed off as if having seemingly run out of bandwidth for sharing any more of his trauma.

"Your crate?" Jimin offered hesitantly.

The hybrid's ears lowered and he frowned. After some time he nodded.

"It's okay. The room is yours for as long as you want to use it. We can move some stuff out even-"

"No."

"No?"

The hybrid exited the room and approached the human. "No," he repeated, with hardened eyes. "No more sacrifices for me."

Jimin opened his mouth to argue, but changed his mind and shut it. He felt inexplicably compelled to obey the cat's wishes.

"We should eat," Jimin said instead, "and then I have to get ready for work. Do you want to come to the club with me? Or you can stay, if you want."

Yoongi's gaze softened. "I think I want to stay and nap... I didn't sleep much last night."

Jimin deflated a little and nodded.

"I, uh, promise not to wreck anything while you're gone."

A unexpected giggle bubbled up within the human. "Oh how thoughtful of you," he teased, grinning at the bashful cat. His insides warmed as he saw Yoongi preen at the sound of his laugh.