Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

“Are you sure you want to do this?”

“Yes, I am sure. Come on, I’ve been suffering my whole life because I couldn’t touch anything unless I wanted it to turn to gold. How much can this hurt?”

The bold affirmation causes Jimin to chuckle. It’s been a few weeks since Taehyung came up with the idea of getting a tattoo, but it’s only been a few days since he decided he truly wanted it. They had talked about it months before — about the possibility of getting a tattoo together. They were soulmates, they loved each other and they were sure they would spend their lives together, which meant getting a tattoo wasn’t that big of a deal.

Still.

“It can hurt a lot,” Jimin says, “Like, a lot. Some people go there all excited about getting their first one and leave saying they’re never doing it again.”

“Maybe you’re a bad tattoo artist,” They hear a new voice joining the conversation, coming from the kitchen, and Jimin squints at the sight of Jungkook entering the room with a water bottle in his hands, “Maybe they claim they’ll never get another one, but they get out of there and ask their friends to book another tattoo artist, because their first one sucked.”

Taehyung pouts. He looks so much younger now, if Jimin thinks about it. Like he’s truly a twenty-five year old man, not a very old and very wise man with too much weight on his back. It’s funny, because Jimin suggested dying Taehyung’s hair red a few months ago to give him a fresh look and he said he wouldn’t change something so abruptly — yet, he wants a tattoo. Unfortunately, explaining to him that hair dye will eventually fade while tattoos last forever was pointless from moment one.

“Don’t say my soulmate is a bad tattoo artist,” Taehyung requests, pointing at Jungkook, “He gave you all of those tattoos, didn’t he?”

“Yeah, ‘cause they’re free.”

“Jungkook, you ungrateful brat. I have no idea why I still let you come into my house and insult me.”

Jungkook rolls his eyes, “It’s been a week since you moved out, not six months. Stop acting like I’ve been here plenty of times before.”

Taehyung chuckles, shaking his head as he runs his fingers through his hair — a habit he got from spending too much time with Jimin, “We’ve been living here for a week and you were here for seven days. It’s math.”

“Oh, the descendant of Midas can do math.”

“You know, I think I liked things better when you were scared of me.”

That causes Jungkook to roll his eyes again, laughing a bit this time. He grabs the coat he threw over the couch earlier and pulls on Jimin’s shirt for a moment to place a quick kiss on the top of his head before heading towards the door, not bothering to thank them for lunch or dessert. It’s not something Jimin would like either; that’s his best friend, after all. He would hate it if any of his best friends thought they had to thank him for anything.

“It’s kind of early,” Jimin says as he watches Jungkook opening the door, “Where are you going?”

Jungkook tilts his head, winking at them, “Yugyeom’s.”

“Gross.”

“Look who’s talking,” Jungkook strikes back, waving his head again, “See you guys later.”

“Have fun and don’t do anything I wouldn’t,” Jimin says, raising his arm and chuckling softly when Jungkook closes the door behind him. He looks back at Taehyung’s expectantly eyes and sighs, “You really want this, huh?”

Taehyung smiles, “Don’t you?”

Sighing again, Jimin nods. He’s trying to be as careful as possible due to Taehyung’s inexperience when it comes to tattoos, but he has been thinking about that possibility for a long time. When they decided to move in together a month ago, he was sure tattoos wouldn’t be such a huge step. Besides, it has never been like them to care about “moving too fast”, specially considering the fact that they are each other’s soulmates.

“Yes, I do,” He says, finally. “I’ll have someone set us up for an appointment next week.”

Taehyung’s smile widens and Jimin resists the urge to surge forward and kiss it, “That’s great. Hey, I told you I had a new painting, right? I think I might actually give it a try with this one.”

Jimin beams at him, “Let me see it, let me see it!”

It’s been a week since they moved in together, a few days since Taehyung decided he wanted a tattoo and a whole year since the announcement.

Jimin thinks about it while Taehyung grabs his hand and leads him to the room. They picked a simple, comfortable house to live rather than an apartment, although Jimin hesitated in allowing Taehyung to let go of the mansion. He wanted to sell it and donate the massive amount of money that would get them or simply keep it there and sell the stuff that was in it so they could keep the memories.

However, Yoongi came up with a better idea.

“You want to make money so you can donate? You might get a lot by selling, but I know a way for you to get much, much more,” Yoongi had said, capturing Taehyung and Jimin’s attention effectively.

“What is it?”

Jimin can still remember Yoongi’s cocky smirk when he said “Turn this place into a museum”.

It took lots and lots of planning, but, eventually, they managed to take everything that’s valuable out of the mansion and organize it properly. It’s only been a few months since Jimin held Taehyung’s hand in front of the mansion, sighing at the sight of the word MUSEUM written at the front doors. They also wrote that on the gates and the walls that surrounded the mansion. If Jimin had to be honest, he would say it would take a while for people to warm up to the thought of entering the house of the most dangerous man in the world — somehow, though, after Taehyung’s statement, the hostility towards the descendant of Midas turned smaller and smaller. Of course, they’ve had to protect themselves once in a while when they started going out on the streets, but Jimin has to admit things were nothing like he imagined. That, including the mansion. For a while, Taehyung lived with Jimin and Jungkook at the apartment they shared — then, they decided to move, and here they are.

Surprisingly, there were hundreds of people ready to pay for a visit at the mansion from the first day. Taehyung would only set for a reasonable price, which meant Namjoon himself thought they wouldn’t make money enough to donate anything, but that came off as a surprise too. As soon as they announced the purpose of the money, people started paying more and more. It turned out Taehyung had found the most charitable and correct way to preserve those memories.

Not everything stayed in the mansion, though. Taehyung took Midas’ original “works” along with them and put it in a proper room in their house. He didn’t want those to be away from him, because, according to his thoughts, Midas was still part of his family and he had no right to use those, the things that made Midas suffer so much, for profit.

That made Jimin fall in love with him a bit more — but then again, everything did.

“What are you thinking about?”

Jimin blinks, looking up from the beautiful painting Taehyung was showing him. The thing is, the reason why his thoughts wandered toward the mansion was because that’s Taehyung’s drawing — the mansion. Except that, in his drawing, it isn’t golden. It’s sprawled with tones of red and blue and green and it feels just like something he would know belongs to Taehyung without having to ask. Albeit the last few paintings Taehyung made were good, this one hits particularly close to home; quite literally, too.

“I’m thinking,” Jimin drawls, the corners of his lips curling up, “This is one of the best paintings I’ve ever laid my eyes on.”

“Don’t be silly.”

“I’m being serious,” says Jimin, cupping his cheeks and smiling gently at him, “This is beautiful. Do you want to sell it?”

Taehyung stops, seemingly thinking about it. That was something else that’s been changing — considering he isn’t able to turn things into gold anymore, Taehyung decided he needed to get a job. However, considering the money left from the last twenty-five years, there was plenty of time and he realized he didn’t have to rush. From the first moment, Jimin, Yoongi and Namjoon pushed him into painting. At first, he seemed to think it was a distant dream, but he painted something a few months ago and a man bought it for a scandalous price. Ever since then, Taehyung has been trying to paint the best of the paintings so he can kick it off correctly rather than selling any painting.

Not paying rent definitely makes things easier. Jimin’s boss at the tattoo parlor gave him a raise a while ago and he ended up not having to work two jobs at the same time — which helped him make the decision of studying hard so he can get into college and pursue an actual career, just like his soulmate is trying to do. He was hesitant at first, but Hoseok, Seokjin and Jungkook convinced him easily by having him imagine how brilliant it could be.

“I do,” Taehyung says, shoulders relaxing at the huge smile he gets as a response, “I want to know everybody’s opinions first, too. I need to be sure.”

Jimin can’t help but smile harder. By “everybody”, Taehyung doesn’t only mean Namjoon and Yoongi — no, he’s also talking about Jungkook, Seokjin and Hoseok. Although Jimin thought they were only getting along for association in the beginning, it turned out they all had something in common that was good enough to start a friendship. Hoseok always talked excitedly about everything, and that made Taehyung get fond of him surprisingly quickly. Seokjin had plenty of jokes and funny stories, and Taehyung was the most patient person in the world to sit and listen to them with wide, glistening eyes. Jungkook taught Taehyung how to play games, and there were days when Jimin would get home from work and find his best friend and his soulmate elbowing each other while playing in the living room.

He knows it all felt like a family to Taehyung in the beginning, but, right now, it’s starting to feel like one to him too.

***

They receive an invitation from Namjoon and Yoongi to reunite at their place.

It’s a work day, so Jimin texts Taehyung to let him know he’ll meet him there. The place got more and more crowded as people researched and found out that that’s where the soulmate of the descendant of Midas works, but, in the end, the bodyguard they hired was never necessary. Sometimes, Jimin had to be a little unpleasant and ask people not to get in there only to talk to him, considering he can’t exactly hang out with them while at work, but his newfound fame also got them plenty of new customers.

“Uh, excuse me?”

Jimin blinks, once again snapping out of his thoughts by someone else’s voice — except that, this time, it isn’t his soulmate. It’s a customer. A woman who told him she’d like a tattoo of a golden butterfly on her shoulder. He thinks it might be about the fact that it’s been a year since the announcement, but, apparently, everything that happened last night might keep on coming back to himself thorough the day.

“I’m sorry. I got distracted,” He says, bowing slightly, “Yes, a golden butterfly is absolutely possible. Please, wait here for a moment.”

Unlike months ago, having Jiwoo and only Jiwoo as the recepcionist hasn’t worked anymore in a while. Therefore, they had to hire someone especially to work on the counter — and, when Bogum told Taehyung he didn’t want to be a bodyguard anymore, Jimin stole him from his soulmate.

“How’s everything, Bogum?” Jimin asks, drawing his attention and smiling friendly as he leans over the counter, “Plenty of appointments?”

“Yeah, plenty,” Bogum answers, smiling shortly and handing him a paper sheet, “There’s yours for tomorrow. Jiwoo got hers and left already.”

Jimin nods, “Thanks. I need you to set up an appointment for next week.”

“Oh? You’re finally getting your first tattoo?”

“Yeah,” He replies, shrugging, “One for me and one for Taehyung.”

That gets Bogum to wide his eyes, clearly surprised. Considering he’s been working for Taehyung for years, it’s understandable that he’d be surprised by the thought of the descendant of Midas craving something into his skin like that. Jimin knows that isn’t common for him — the big changes, the big decisions. However, this is something he wants so badly there is no way he could ever be mistaken, which is why Jimin feels so safe about it.

“Not to be too curious—”

“You’re practically his family, Bogum. Spill it.”

“What is it going to be?”

Jimin smiles, tilting his head, “A Red String of Fate around our wrists.”

“Woah. That sounds amazing.”

“Thank you. Taehyung thought it was a great idea and I kind of stole it back from Jungkook. Hey, I have to leave in a bit, but I can give you a brief spoiler. Taehyung has a new painting.”

“Really? Is he selling it?”

“We’re deciding on that.”

“Well, let me know.”

Jimin nods, “Yes, sir. Let me know about the tattoo.”

Bogum chuckles, “I’ll have it scheduled. Jiwoo?”

Jimin smiles, “The one and only.”

***

Taehyung asks for his best friends’ opinions before doing practically anything.

Of course, that only goes for important things, and not literally anything. He does, however, ask Jimin about anything. From how good his hair looks in the morning to how fancy his clothes look when they decide to go out to eat. Jimin thinks it’s adorable — he knows it could’ve become codependency to some level if this was someone else, but Taehyung has always handled everything by himself thorough his life and asking Jimin about basically everything isn’t a way for him to make his decision through Jimin’s eyes, but to know a second opinion from the one person whose opinion is the highest to him.

Therefore, when Jimin arrives at Namjoon and Yoongi’s place in the evening, he has already given Taehyung his opinion on the painting. 

“Where’s your soulmate?”

Jimin shrugs, handing Namjoon the plastic bag filled with snacks, “He’ll be here in a minute. Jungkook said he’d pick him up.”

“Ah, that explains why he’s late,” Namjoon says playfully, closing the door behind Jimin. “Did Jungkook get caught up hanging out with his boyfriend again?”

“Yeah, he said they were doing a school project or something, like we don’t know exactly what kind of project that is,” Jimin says, rolling his eyes with a smirk. Namjoon and Yoongi’s house isn’t as big as his with Taehyung, but it’s definitely not small either. It’s comfortable and welcoming — although that might be the kind of feeling anyone gets by entering the house of their best friends. “Where is your soulmate?”

“He went out to buy a new keyboard. Yes, a new keyboard. I wouldn’t ask if I were you.”

Jimin chuckles, “And you didn’t follow him there?”

“Well, he has the bodyguards,” Namjoon reminds him, and Jimin hums, understanding. One of the most stressful parts about the whole past-Midas thing is the need of bodyguards around them so often. Jimin isn’t bothered by it most of the time, but he still misses going out freely. Still, he wouldn’t change Taehyung’s presence by all the freedom in the world.

He laughs at the memory of his conversation with Jungkook a few days ago, telling Namjoon, “Jungkook ditched his bodyguard last week.”

Namjoon squints, “How come I’m not surprised?”

“You know him well. It turns out we all do.”

“Anyway, what is it that Taehyung wants us to see?”

Jimin shrugs, throwing himself on the couch, “It’s a new painting. He thinks he might sell this one, but he needs to make sure you all think it’s worth it. But don’t worry, your immediate answer is going to be yes.”

“Oh?” Namjoon’s brow quirks up as he finds a seat beside him, tilting his head with curiosity, “What makes you so sure?”

“It brings back everything,” Jimin says, smiling at Namjoon’s slightly confused expression, “The painting. It brings back the last year, everything we went through. I’m sure you must remember it every day, because I surely do. Then, when I looked at the painting, it brought everything back.”

Namjoon blinks, “Is that good?”

“Paintings are supposed to make people feel, Joon-hyung. They’re supposed to make us conflicted, to make us think.”

“I see,” He says, nodding, “Then, it’s marvelous.”

Ever since Taehyung’s golden touch went away, Jimin and Namjoon became closer and closer. It had something to do with the fact that they were the main ones going through some of the worst moments by Taehyung’s side and the fact that they had bonded through those hard times somehow. Jimin knows Namjoon is closer to Jungkook than to him, and Jimin himself ended up texting and calling Yoongi a lot more than Namjoon — he found out that Taehyung’s other best friend isn’t as good as they claimed he was; in fact, he’s much better. However, Jimin and Namjoon are always the one exchanging looks when they talk about last year and laughing at inside jokes Taehyung tells.

It might not feel like being the closest to someone, but it definitely puts Namjoon in position as one of Jimin’s best friends.

Seokjin and Hoseok get there before Jimin’s or Namjoon’s soulmates. They were hanging out earlier and had no problem driving to Namjoon’s place as soon as they were done. Of course, the slightly messy state of Hoseok’s hair and the unnecessary scarf wrapped around Seokjin’s neck tells Jimin they were doing more than simply hanging out.

“I told Taehyung he should sell the last painting he texted me about,” Seokjin tells, reminding Jimin that, yes, Taehyung also grew closer and closer to Seokjin as time went by. “But I guess this one is really special, because he sounded extremely excited on the phone. What is it, Jimin?”

Jimin shakes his head, “Nope, I won’t tell you. There is a reason why Taehyung wants to show.”

“Oh, come on,” Hoseok whines, grabbing Jimin’s arm and shaking him gently, “Does it have to be so mysterious?”

“Yes, it does. Joon-hyung, I’ll go get some water in your kitchen.”

“Don’t break anything.”

“I’m not Hoseok-hyung.”

“Hey, you child!”

Jimin chuckles, feeling weirdly melancholic as he enters Namjoon’s kitchen and reaches for a glass of water. Somehow, the fact that it’s been a year seems to be a weight on his shoulders today — not necessarialy a bad weight, but heavy for sure. He remembers the few times he went to grab his own coffee in the mansion, when Namjoon wasn’t insisting on being the ever-so-efficent butler and doing it for them. He remembers the day Yoongi returned and they talked in that same kitchen. This, though, is a different kitchen, but Jimin gets himself imagining it isn’t.

He shakes the thoughts off, gulping down the water and heading back to the living room. Then, he finds someone else is already in the room, crouncing down in order to place the package in his hands on the floor and gummy-smiling at his soulmate. The last time Jimin saw Yoongi, he had dyed his hair red — more specifically, Jimin had dyed Yoongi’s hair. This time, though, it’s mint. It looks slightly messy and the colors aren’t as even as the time Jimin did it, but it looks good on him.

“Hey, Jimin,” Yoongi greets calmly, throwing himself by Namjoon’s side, “Is Taehyungie not here yet?”

Jimin shakes his head, finding a seat on the couch beside Seokjin and throwing an arm around his friend’s shoulder, “He’s coming with Jungkook, but Jungkook was with Yugyeom earlier, so.”

“Aw, he’s going to be late. I want to see the painting already.”

“Come on, everyone, we’re not always reuniting like this,” Jimin says, “At least eat the snacks I bought.”

Hoseok chuckles, leaning forward to grab one of the bags. “You’re constantly buying things when we reunite, which is why you’re going to be broke eventually.”

“My tattoo parlor is the most famous one in this city. I’m never going to be broke.”

That’s only partially true. Jimin’s tattoo parlor is, indeed, very popular, but he’s aware that most of it it’s only due to the fact that he’s dating the descendant of Midas. It doesn’t bother him — when Taehyung asked about it to make sure it was okay, Jimin laughed it off and said he deserved it for winning over the descendant’s heart all by himself. Although the feeling of having to earn the things he gets is still strong inside Jimin’s heart, he has learned plenty over the last year. Dealing with such important and relevant situations had him realize not everything has to be so amazingly complicated.

“Someone came up to me and talked about Taehyung today,” Yoongi casually lets out, smiling slightly at the immediate way all the eyes fall on him, “It was nothing dangerous nor bothering, don’t worry. It was this girl who wanted to know if I was the descendant of Midas who accompanied him sometimes. When I said yes, she told me to tell Taehyung he’s really brave for everything he’s done and she never thought he was a monster.”

Jimin blinks, face lighting up without his realization of it, “Woah. That’s a really cool thing for someone to say.”

“I know, right? Usually, people stare or bump against us on purpose. I even saw some people asking Taehyungie for autographs once, like he was one of those pop celebrities. This, though. This whole comfort thing the girl said to me was nothing I had ever seen.”

“That might be a good start for people’s acceptance of Taehyung as part of the society,” Seokjin says, drawing the eyes to him this time, “I mean, time heals everything, right? It’s healing people’s opinions on him as well. Of course, there are still the assholes who think he’s planning on eliminating an entire race, but those are becoming less and less influential. If I had to guess it, I’ll guess that girl won’t be the last one to show support directly.’

Jimin tilts his head, thinking about it. It is true that society has been warming up to the thought of Taehyung living among them. His curiosity has always gotten the best of him, and he constantly goes on-line and searches for whatever people are saying about Taehyung. In the beginning, it was a mix of awkwardness and annoyance. Awkwardness, because that was Taehyung’s face everywhere, and people didn’t know what he looked like before. Besides, it was’t only Taehyung — there were pictures of Jimin, Namjoon, Yoongi, Jungkook, Seokjin, Hoseok. Some people even found out about their other friends, like Jiwoo and Yugyeom. It felt like being completely exposed to the world.

The annoyance part was mostly because of the things he read. People urging Taehyung to go back into his mansion and never return, people claiming it was dangerous to allow him to live there. However, Jimin knew better. Not even a president would be brave enough to say to Taehyung’s face that he couldn’t do something, especially not living in his own country anymore. It still didn’t lessen any of the comments, though. Jimin knew anyone could be brave on-line and part of him wished the anonymous option went off for a whole day so he could directly go to each one of those ignorants.

As time went by, though, those comments started to dissipate. They didn’t completely disappear, obviously, but there were already the ones who were brave enough to reply to the mean ones telling them to shut up or mind their own business. Jimin thought it was a good start — but the support Taehyung received through Yoongi right now definitely meant something much bigger.

Jimin finds himself smiling as widely as possible at the thought of that.

Before they can make another comment on it, the door slams open and an excessively excited Jungkook stands before them with his arms open. Jimin can see Taehyung looking at them above Jungkook’s shoulder, looking like he just gave the man a huge pep talk and how the idea of making a big entrance wouldn’t be such a great idea.

“I swear, you’re going to break our door one of these days,” Namjoon hisses, ignoring the smile Jungkook throws him, “And I’ll make your lazy ass fix it for us.”

“Please, do,” Taehyung requests, gently pushing Jungkook’s arm away and walking in, “I can’t stand those entrances anymore.”

“You said it’d be cool this time.”

“No, Jungkook, I said it’d be cool if you didn’t pull one of those this time.”

“Where is the painting?” Seokjin asks as they walk in, and Taehyung replies by reaching for something he left outside the apartment. The painting. It has its back facing them, which is probably only meant to make everyone more anxious.

Hoseok pouts, “Unfair. Jimin and Jungkook got to see it before any of us.”

“Don’t worry, I didn’t let Jungkook see it,” Taehyung tells and Jungkook groans at the affirmation.

“He flicked me twice. I don’t see the big deal.”

“Everyone’s supposed to look at it together.”

“Jimin has seen it.”

Jimin elbows his best friend and offers him a smile, “I’m his boyfriend. You only get to see the painting first when you sleep with the painter on a daily basis.”

“Man, that’s disappointing.”

“If you guys don’t focus on Taehyungie and the painting in one second, I will personally haunt you,” Yoongi threatens, and, Jimin has to admit he’s the most threatening one out of the group when he wants to be. Namjoon is the only one who doesn’t show any traces of hesitance, and that gets his stomach a not-so-friendly meeting with Yoongi’s elbow.

Taehyung clears his throat, smiling gently, “Everyone, this is seriously the first painting I’ve ever thought of having published. I like it and I know Jiminie liked it, but I need to know everyone’s opinions. So, be honest. Even if it means you’re going to hurt my feelings and prevent me from selling my art.”

Hoseok drums his fingers on Seokjin’s thigh and tilts his head, “Sure sounds comforting. Being honest and everything.”

“Hobi.”

Hoseok sighs. Ever since Taehyung got attached to the nickname, it has made him weak. Jimin finds it funny — the way Taehyung’s endearing presence seems to charm everyone around him so easily.

“Go ahead, Taehyung,” Namjoon says, gesturing with an encouraging smile, “Show us.”

Taehyung does.

It’s safe to say everyone in the room seems to have the definition of “breathing” slipping out of their minds.

Jimin can only imagine the thoughts that go through their heads as they admire the colored mansion. He can tell Namjoon must be the one with the most in his mind — the years taking care of Taehyung, making sure he wouldn’t get hurt, missing Yoongi. Yoongi must think about their struggles inside and the incident that happened to him. Jungkook must remember the first day he entered the house, panicking, aware that the whole world would go after him for knowing the descendant of Midas. Seokjin and Hoseok mustn’t have plenty of memories themselves, but Jimin is sure they remember the fear they felt whenever their friend was there, unable to be certain of his own safety.

However, he can tell those sad, unpleasant feelings aren’t the ones filling their chests. Instead, as colors flows through the paper, Namjoon must be thinking about the first time Jimin walked through the door and offered hope of a love Taehyung never thought he could own; he must think about the day Jimin proved he could touch Taehyung and the day Yoongi came back to him. Yoongi must think about the moment he returned and realized his best friend had someone watching out for him. Jungkook must remember the moment he realized he had a friend in Namjoon and how happy he felt due to Jimin’s happiness. Seokjin and Hoseok must think of the way Jimin smiled when he talked about Taehyung and how excited he was when everything worked out in the end.

Slowly, Jimin realizes that, if Taehyung’s painting can make them feel so much, it would be such a waste for him not to show it to rest of the world.

“I think,” Namjoon begins, not quite surprising them by being the first one to talk, “I think that, if you’re going to sell this, you better make sure you know everything about the person who buys it. You better make sure they are very, very worthy of having this, Taehyung. I mean it. Because I have never seen anything like this before.”

Yoongi smiles, softly, gently, and nods as he says, “I think we all know what Namjoon means, Taehyungie. This is beautiful. Absolutely beautiful.”

It becomes a mess of five voices complimenting Taehyung — exclaiming how beautiful, brilliant, extraordinary his painting is — while the man’s cheeks and ears acquire a dark shade of pink. Jimin observes quietly, smiling to himself, thinking about how satisfying it must be for Taehyung to have them all coming so close and never being afraid of hurting them for it. Finally, when he mumbles something about how he couldn’t possibly not sell it after the reactions, they group-hug him, and Jimin joins with a loud laugh.

It’s warm, he realizes. It feels a bit like a blanket of gold.

***

Jimin has a nightmare that night.

Taehyung can turn things into gold again, and there is no longer having it under control. No, this time, it’s as dangerous as the world claims he is. It’s when he walks out of the house and the grass turns and Namjoon watches him from the door, arms folded over his chest as if he didn’t care, that Jimin notices that the mansion is different. It’s just like in Taehyung’s drawing — bright, overflowing with colors. There isn’t a single golden spot there.

The look on Taehyung’s face is empty when he walks back towards the door and closes it, causing Namjoon to disappear. Then, without a single trace of regret, he reaches for the walls, touching them the slightest. It’s enough. Enough for gold to spread through everything, hiding the colors, making the gold last. Last forever, more specifically.

Jimin tries reaching for him. He runs towards Taehyung, stops before him and asks him to stop. He feels scared, which is unusual — he hadn’t felt like that since the first time they met. Taehyung looks down, at the string connecting their wrists. Then, he frowns, shaking his head slightly.

“Let it go.”

Instinctively, Jimin grabs his hand. The last thing he sees before waking up is the way colors spreads throught the walls again, dissipating the gold.

“Jiminie? Jiminie. It’s me, Taehyung. You’re having a nightmare.”

Jimin’s eyes snap open and he moves to a sitting position quickly enough for it to be uncomfortable. He can feel Taehyung’s comforting hand on his back, firm, and the way his soulmate’s concerned eyes follow the up and down movements of his chest. He feels like burying his face in the pillow and hoping for a good dream, but he knows that’s now how it works. Talking it out with Taehyung has always helped when he got nightmares, regardless of how silly they were.

This one, though, was everything but silly.

“Taetae.”

“Yes, baby?”

“Could you get me some water, please?”

“Of course. I’ll be right back.”

Jimin nods, inhaling sharply as he looks around the room. It’s still dark, but Taehyung turns on the corridor light when he goes to get the water and that helps Jimin’s eyes getting used to it. It takes him a few moments to calm down and realize he isn’t at the mansion. He’s at his own place, the place he lives in with Taehyung. There is nothing for him to be scared of while he’s here.

When Taehyung returns and hands him the water carefully, Jimin assures him that he can already feel his heartbeats steadying again. It isn’t the first time he dreams about the mansion, but it does feel like the worst of them all.

“Hey, baby,” Taehyung calls softly.

“Yeah?”

“Do you want to talk to me about it?”

Jimin nods slowly, breathing in and breathing out, “It was a nightmare about you. You and the mansion.”

Taehyung frowns, “The mansion?”

“Yeah. You could turn things into gold again, but—but the mansion wasn’t gold yet. It was colorful, just like in your painting. But then, you walked up to it and turned it, looking—I don’t know, looking like it made you very satisfied. So, I tried running to you, and, when you saw me, all you said was ‘let it go’. But then I touched your hand and the mansion went back to being colorful.”

Patiently, Taehyung listens to him, hand moving comfortingly up and down his back. Jimin knows Taehyung can tell his presence alone makes things better, but, this time, he is the subject of the nightmare. The cause of the distress. Although it could be nothing but a dream, they’ve been through too much to forget about it so easily.

“Tell me it was just a nightmare,” Jimin pleads, watching the frown Taehyung acquires, “It was just a nightmare, right?”

“I can’t turn things into gold anymore, Jiminie. It was just a nightmare.”

“And it means nothing, right?”

“What could it mean?”

Jimin shakes his head, “I don’t know. It was just—just really scary.”

“Hey, baby,” Taehyung speaks softly, placing a gentle hand on Jimin’s cheek and looking into his eyes, “It’s over. It was just a nightmare, and nothing bad is ever going to happen again. You trust me, don’t you?”

Slowly, Jimin nods. If there is one thing he’s absolutely certain of, it’s how much he trusts his soulmate.

Taehyung leans forward, kissing his forehead lovingly and pulling Jimin gently into his arms. He tucks them back into the blankets and Jimin buries his face on the juncture of his neck. He can still feel himself trembling a bit, which means Taehyung must notice it too, but it’s slowly drifting away. His sleepness is also slowly returning to him.

“You can go back to sleep whenever you want,” Taehyung whispers, “I’ll be here.”

Jimin’s lips purse, “You must be tired, Taetae.”

“Haven’t done much all day. You’re a lot more tired than I am. It’s okay, baby.”

For the rest of that night, Jimin doesn’t dream at all, but the warmth of Taehyung’s body next to his is enough to push away the nightmares as well.

***

“Bogum told me you’re going to get matching tattoos with your soulmate. Am I the one doing them?”

Jimin looks up from the drawing he’s been working on for a girl who said she wanted a strange-looking, colorful flower on her left arm the next time she dropped by, and smiles as he sees the well-humored look on Jiwoo’s face. It’s been a while since Jiwoo started insisting on being the one to give him his first tattoo, and he knows she wouldn’t let this go unnoticed now.

“Of course you are,” He says, “I’m getting matching red strings. Which is funny, because I told Jungkook to get that when he found his soulmate, and now I’m stealing the idea back.”

“Oh, please. I bet it was Jungkook himself who gave you back the idea.”

That is correct. When Taehyung first came up with the idea of getting a tattoo, Jungkook told Jimin it would be great for him to get the red strings. Jimin remembers frowning and saying he couldn’t, because that was already a tattoo Jungkook was excited about, but Jungkook simply laughed it off and said he’d come up with something else, something originally his. Besides, he wasn’t that eager to meet his soulmate anymore — not considering his current healthy, happy relationship with Yugyeom.

“So, we’re scheduling the tattoos for two days from now,” Jiwoo says, “That okay with you?”

“Great.”

“I don’t like those bags under your eyes. Did anything happen?”

Jimin sighs, immediately regretting the moment he told himself makeup wouldn’t be necessary at work. He could’ve made some effort and put on concealer, but he was tired after not getting anymore sleep — and simply pretending to be asleep so Taehyung wouldn’t be up all night, worrying about him — and, quite honestly, he had forgotten about how observative Jiwoo is.

“Not quite. I had a nightmare and couldn’t sleep for the rest of the night, that’s all,” He says, “No need to worry.”

“Ah, but I’m a very worried person. Anything you’d like to talk about?”

Jimin smiles gently, shaking his head, “No, but I appreciate the offer.”

Jiwoo returns the smile and ruffles his hair gently, “Anytime, Jimin. By the way, I was thinking of taking a look at the Midas’ museum. It’s incredible that we’ve been friends for a long time and I’m probably the one only who hasn’t been there.”

For a moment, that takes Jimin aback. Not the fact that Jiwoo is going to the Midas’ museum — as his friend, she has already formally met Taehyung and used her own version of the phrase ‘if you hurt him, I’ll make sure you regret it’. The one thing that takes him aback is the realization that all of his friends have already taken a deep look at the Midas’ museum while he has only been there once, right after it was turned into a museum, to reassure the people working there that, if they needed anything, they shouldn’t hesitate to call.

“Huh,” He tilts his head. “You know what, I haven’t been there too much myself.”

Jiwoo frowns, “It was your house.”

“I mean, since it became a museum.”

“Why not? Does it bring sad memories?”

Jimin blinks, “Oh, no. I mean, yeah, sad things happened, but most of it was part of the path that made me become who I am today, right? Which means everything was part of the path of me getting into a relationship with Taehyung and building my life nowadays. I don’t think there are any sad memories that are sad enough to suprass that.”

“Mmhm,” Jiwoo drums her fingers on his shoulder, quirking up an eyebrow, “Why, then?”

Why, then.

“Well, would you look at that,” Jimin mumbles, offering his friend a gaze that must demonstrate how confused he’s gotten in the last few minutes, “I don’t really know the reason, either.”

***

Jimin doesn’t expect to pay Namjoon and Yoongi another visit so soon, but it happens regardless of his expectations.

He knows there is something about how much Namjoon has helped when he needed some rougher advice that leads him to the man’s house without having too much of a plan on what to tell him. The matter raised by Jiwoo — the reason behind his choice to not visit the museum — continued on bugging him for the rest of the afternoon, and, instead of going straight home once his shift was over, he drove himself there. Namjoon’s house.

“Oh,” Yoongi mouths, seemingly surprised as he opens the door and meets Jimin’s eyes. He’s wearing a rainbow sweater and sweatpants, which means it’s either his day off work — the job he got at the one coffee shop in the area that wasn’t too hesitant to hire someone who was close to Taehyung — or an hour past his shift already. “Jimin-ah, what a nice surprise.”

Jimin smiles gently, “I’m sorry for bothering again.”

“Nonsense. We’re always half-expecting one of you two to crash here.”

“I’m not sure that’s a good thing.”

Yoongi laughs softly, stepping aside and allowing Jimin in. It’s warm and comfy in there, as always. He can smell something sweet coming from the kitchen, and Yoongi confirms his slight suspicious by saying, “We’re baking a cake. Jungkook told me you love to do it, so, if I knew you were coming, I’d have you help us with it.”

Jimin nods, “Yeah, I love baking, but I actually came here to talk to Namjoon today.”

“Always rejecting me.”

“Yoongi-hyung, you’re the absolute best. There is no one who could ever compare.”

“Jimin-ah, that works on you, not on me,” Yoongi says, playfully winking at him as he gestures towards the couch, “Namjoon is working on some paperwork. You know how he got the job at that firm downtown? He’s been helping them with stuff all day long. He’s dedicated, but I need to remind him of the perks of being free sometimes.”

Being free. Jimin’s brows furrow at the affirmation as Yoongi leaves to find Namjoon upstairs. Being free is a funny concept, especially considering how trapped they have been for so long due to Taehyung and the golden touch. However, Yoongi is able to say it so casually. Without thinking about everything they went through.

Jimin’s frown hardens.

Three minutes later, Namjoon appears. His hair is more of a mess than Jimin’s has ever been and there is a coffee stain on the collar of his white plain shirt — the kind of piece of clothing that he got used to thanks to Jungkook’s unacceptable fashion choices around his friends. He looks tired, but not exhausted. As the butler of the descendant of Midas, Namjoon must have learned how to make sure his tiredeness wouldn’t become exhaustion and get in the way of his work.

“Look who’s here again,” Namjoon says, no bite to it, throwing himself beside Jimin on the couch, “You didn’t text.”

“I came straight from work.”

“Anything wrong?”

“Actually, that’s what I came here to find out,” Jimin says, not missing the way confusion spreads through Namjoon’s face at that, “Listen. I had a nightmare last night, and Jiwoo said something today that kind of turned my head into a mess, and I want to know if they’re somehow related. I know I should talk to Taehyung about it, and I will once we’re done here, but you’re the most trustworthy person in the world when it comes to giving advice, and I need your wise mind.”

That could easily be mistaken by flattering, but, the truth is, Jimin doesn’t have to flatter Namjoon to get him into giving him advice. All he has to do is be honest about how important Namjoon’s opinion is to him and how much he trusts his advice. That doesn’t count as flattering at all — instead, it counts as demonstrating how much he needs this conversation.

He tells Namjoon about the nightmare first. The details — the things he didn’t quite elaborate to Taehyung. Namjoon listens carefully, but the way his brows furrow doesn’t go unnoticed. Jimin thinks of making it quicker, but he knows he needs to be completely honest if he wants to find out whether this dream means anything or not.

When he’s done, he tells Namjoon about the little moment with Jiwoo earlier. The way his body and mind reacted to the mention of the Midas’ museum, immediately compared to the moments he had when he saw Taehyung’s painting. It takes him a few seconds only, but, to Namjoon, it appears to be much longer than that. He leans back, squinting slightly as he looks at Jimin and sighing after long moments of silence.

“I think I know what’s wrong, Jimin.”

Jimin’s eyes widen, “I had no idea you were this fast.”

The corner of Namjoon’s mouth curls up, “Honestly, I had no idea you were so slow.”

“Okay, ouch.”

“What does ‘let it go’ mean to you, Jimin?” Namjoon asks, “If you say anything about Frozen, I swear I’ll kick you out of this house.”

Jimin chuckles, shaking his head, “Letting go of something means you have to move on from it. Like, when you’re a kid and you let go of a toy, it means you have to accept that toy is no longer part of your life and you’re growing up.”

“Well, the mansion is your toy, Jimin.”

They fall into silence as those simple, short words sink into Jimin’s mind. He can understand metaphors — it became a necessity when he started dating the man whose identity caused the biggest metaphors in history. He can understand that one, simple thing, and, yet, when he looks at Namjoon, his gaze is nothing but confused.

“Think about this,” Namjoon begins, “You left the mansion thinking about everything that happened in there. When Taehyung showed you the painting for the first time, you even had flashbacks. Now, you dream about it? And, when Jiwoo mentions going there, your mind starts running? Tell me, Jimin, how often have you been thinking about last year?”

Jimin hesitates, “I mean, it’s only started lately.”

“But?”

“But, yeah, quite often.”

“I understand that being the closest person on Earth to the one who used to be the descendant of Midas might be stressing,” Namjoon says, reaching for Jimin’s hand quietly, “But he’s not the owner of the golden touch nor the heir of Midas anymore. He’s his descendant, but the one thing he got from Midas is gone. Everything that brough us there today might’ve made us who we are, but it’s past now, Jimin.”

Jimin blinks.

“The mansion is your toy,” Namjoon echoes, this time, much more effectively, “Which means it’s time to grow up.”

***

Jimin finds Hoseok and Seokjin hanging out with Taehyung when he arrives at his place.

“Taetae, I’m home,” He announces, dropping his coat over the counter and heading to the living room. He can hear the sound of laughter and the TV on, but it all ceases when they listen to his voice and Taehyung’s ever-so-happy voice welcomes him back. Jimin smiles slightly at the warmth it always fills him with.

“Hey, baby,” Taehyung greets when Jimin enters the room and leans over the couch, hugging him from behind, hands crossed over his stomach and chin supported on his shoulder, “How was work?”

“Great. How was dealing with the intruders?”

“Hey,” Hoseok calls out, sticking his tongue out at him, “We’ve only been here for ten minutes. Technically, you can only qualify us as intruders after an hour.”

“Literally who came up with that?”

“We did,” Seokjin says, high-fiving his soulmate and sending Jimin a victorious look, “How about that?”

Jimin sighs, letting go of Taehyung gently and sliding to sit by his side, “Remember when that teamwork of yours failed, you had a break, I was the kind soul to put you back together?”

“Yes, thank you, kind soul,” Hoseok laughs, rolling his eyes, “Remember us fixing things on our own because you and Jungkook were too distracted?”

“Honestly. So ungrateful.”

“You’re kind of late,” Seokjin comments, showing the watch around his wrist to prove his point, “Where have you been? We told you not to overwork yourself just because you only have one job right now. You also have to study, remember? Don’t go doing too much, Jimin, or we’ll stop you.”

Jimin chuckles softly at the non-threatening, fully concerned tone of Seokjin’s voice. Ever since he became steady enough to handle one job and study at the same time, his friends have been worrying about the same thing: overworking. They know it could become a problematic habit if he fell into it, but, in the end, Jimin knows better. He knows he won’t become productive if he overworks himself, and he knows that would disappoint people who are worried about him.

“I wasn’t at the tattoo parlor. I mean, yeah, I ended my shift there, but then I went to talk to Namjoon,” Jimin explains, sighing at Taehyung’s quirked up eyebrow, “I was going to talk about this to Taehyung alone, but you guys are here and you’re my best friends. There is no reason for me not to talk to you too.”

“Is anything wrong?”

“Only a little bit.”

It’s easy to talk to them, Jimin thinks, as he talks about the nightmare and the conversation with Jiwoo all over again. This time, though, he adds the conversation he had to Namjoon to the equation, and each one of them listens to him well and quietly. It’s easy to talk to his best friends, his soulmate; the people who care about him so much.

He knows he’s going to have to talk to Jungkook about this later, and tell everything again, and he might even have to tell Yoongi if Namjoon himself doesn’t, but it doesn’t feel like a burden to him. It’s like story-telling, but with a slightly more real subject. He’s only glad that Namjoon figured out his problem before he started making theories about how terrible his nightmare could be as a sign.

“So, basically, you need to let go of the mansion so you can let go of the memories that keep on bothering you?” Hoseok asks, getting a nod as his response, “Well, that should be easy. When can you go there?”

Jimin blinks, “Go there?”

“Well, yeah. What better way to let go of it than to go there and say goodbye properly?”

Taehyung’s gentle, long fingers curl delicately around the soft hair of Jimin’s nape as he looks at him, “We can go whenever you want. If you feel like you have to see the inside of the mansion one last time so those thoughts can stop haunting you, I’m glad to go with you. I really am.”

Jimin’s lips purse and he looks at his friends, “Do you guys have plans for tomorrow?”

“Dinner, but that could easily be rescheduled,” Hoseok offers.

Jimin shakes his head, “You won’t have to. I doubt a visit to the Midas’ museum would last for long enough to have you miss your dinner.”

***

Jimin doesn’t manage to fall asleep that night.

Still, he somehow manages to wake Taehyung up.

“I can feel you rolling from one side to the other. It’s not that big of a bed, baby.”

Jimin groans, muffling the sound on the pillow. He can hear Taehyung’s soft, light laugh, and it reminds him that Taehyung has never gotten upset at Jimin for dealing with an issue by staying up all night or being annoying. By now, he should know there is no use trying to spare Taehyung of his thoughts.

“Do you think I’m still too attached to last year?” Jimin asks, rolling again so he’s facing Taehyung directly. It’s dark in the room, and the faint moonlight coming from the window is the only responsible for painting Taehyung’s cheeks a bright tone of blue. Jimin thinks about how cliché it is that he looks so beautiful under the moon, although he’s not exactly under it.

“I thought that was something you had owned up to already,” Taehyung says, “You know, going to the mansion, saying proper goodbyes.”

“How did you let go?”

Taehyung brings a careful arm up and runs the back of his hand gently over Jimin’s cheek, “I think I’ve always wanted to let go of that, Jiminie. I was born at a hospital, and Namjoon’s parents tried taking me outside a few times when I was a kid, but that was all the contact I had with the outside world. Aside from that, the mansion was everything I knew. I’ve always dreamt of knowing something else other than that.”

Jimin nods, “Well, that must be it. I wasn’t there for most of it, and I guess my memories there weren’t half as bad as yours.”

“You went through so much shit there, though.”

That causes Jimin to chuckle slightly, reaching for Taehyung’s hand and caressing his knuckles, “I also met you there, fell in love with you there, became your boyfriend there.”

“Is that what this is about?” Taehyung asks, “The moments we had together?”

“Uh. Probably.”

“We’re still together here, though.”

“Yeah, I know,” Jimin sighs, “I guess it has a lot more to do with the fact that I was only there for a few months, but it felt like forever. I mean, I’ve been waiting to meet my soulmate since forever, and I always pictured us an ordinary, in love couple. And, don’t get me wrong, Taehyung, what I have with you is everything I could ever ask for, but the mansion and the golden touch—that was nothing like anything I could picture.”

Taehyung nods, expression as calm and comprehensive as always, “I get it. I was the most dangerous man in the world, the descendant of Midas. Even now, the entire world knows who I am. Yet, when we were inside the mansion, that was it, right? You would enter the mansion and our relationship would be perfect, unaffected by the outside world. Now, though, we are in the outside world.”

Jimin’s lips purse, “Maybe I’m scared the one perfect thing in my life is going to come crashing down because we’re not where we used to be anymore. Besides, the nightmare wasn’t the only time I thought about the golden touch reappering. What if anything happens that ruins this for us?”

A kind smile dances on Taehyung’s lips as he shakes his head, “Nothing is going to ruin anything for us, Jiminie. You finally have the ideal job with the ideal income, I finally get to do my paintings, we have a family in our group of friends. I know it sounds too good to be true and that should be a reason for us to be concerned, but you know what the good part of living so many years suffering is?”

Jimin shakes his head negatively.

“The good part is that everything that comes after those years of suffering is supposed to make up for it. So, no, Jiminie, this isn’t going downhill or getting ruined. Not now, not ever. Tomorrow, at the mansion, you’ll realize that.”

As always, Taehyung’s voice is a comfort by itself, but the words slipping out of his tongue are enough to settle a calming sensation in Jimin’s chest. He nods, slowly, and Taehyung beams at the sincere smile he offers.

“Now, while we’re at it,” Taehyung whispers, smirking suggestively as he cups Jimin’s jaw and shifts closer to him, “Let me remind you that nothing has changed here.”

Jimin kisses Taehyung back the second their lips touch, wrapping his fingers carefully around the collar of Taehyung’s loose shirt and urging him closer. When he feels his soulmate smiling against his lips, he decides there isn’t, in fact, anything to worry about when it comes to the two of them.

Only the mansion left now.

***

“Sir, can I see your ticket—oh. Oh.”

Jimin suppresses a smile at the sight of Taehyung’s slightly embarrassed expression due to the sudden attention he received from the man checking the tickets before anyone enters the museum. It was obvious that they would draw attention — when they were halfway there, some people were already pointing at the car and whispering about their presence. It has been a while since the descendant of Midas took a good look at his old house, after all.

“Yes, he’s the descendant of Midas,” Jungkook says, throwing an arm over Taehyung’s shoulder. Jimin smiles, this time, at the way Taehyung sighs. He knews it would be a good idea to bring their friends. “The oh-so-powerful and everything, except he doesn’t have the golden touch anymore, so he’s good for nothing.”

“Thanks, Jungkook-ah.”

“Anytime, hyung.”

“Here are our tickets,” Namjoon hands them to the man, offering him a comprehensive look, “Please, let us in and save us from this misery.”

The way in is less crowded than Jimin pictured it. The organization is as good as expected, though. They enter the mansion with minimum waiting time and everything inside immediately catches his attention at the same time. Jimin can feel the emotions he’s felt inside that mansion rushing back into his heart and decides, yes, this is necessary.

There is a TV right next to the entrance. Jimin’s lips purse as he sees it. They’re displaying the moment Taehyung went public, a moment Jimin has only watched a hundred times up until now. His shaky hands, Taehyung’s uncertain eyes, the silence that follows his words. Jimin remembers thinking that was their end — that very moment. However, someone in the crowd started applauding him, and, just like everything, it spread. Soon enough, there were applauses everywhere.

Jimin can’t remember the last time he sighed with so much relief before that.

There are people admiring the objects around them, swirling spoons between their fingers, running their fingers along the tables Jimin used to consider as another simple part of the house. It’s a place of memories for all of them, but it is only for him, right now, that those memories mean the equivalent as being trapped.

“Let’s go upstairs,” Taehyung suggests, gesturing with his chin towards the stairs. Jimin can see their group of friends going their own ways around the house, searching for their own memories. “If there’s anything you need to let go of, I’m certain we’ll find it in my room.”

Jimin intertwines their fingers and follows Taehyung upstairs. There are plenty of people there as well. They seem to be exploring the rooms, and there is only one closed — the room where Midas’ originals used to be. Jimin is sure Taehyung made a smart decision by not allowing those to sit around. Some memories were supposed to be let go of, but there were memories that were supposed to stay around forever.

“You brought me coffee the first time you came here,” Taehyung says as they slowly enter the room that used to belong to him, “I don’t like Americano, so you gave up on your iced coffee for me. You looked shocked when my lips didn’t turn the straw into gold, too.”

Jimin smiles at that, “If it means anything, I’d give up on a thousand iced coffees for you.”

“Baby, that means a lot.”

It’s odd, Jimin thinks. When he walked into the mansion, there was a certain weight on his shoulders. It felt like pressure, pulling him down, forcing him to look up so he could observe the mansion. It was only a few minutes ago, but, slowly, he feels a gentle hand removing the weight from him. Not quite taking it to itself, but removing it for good.

“Let’s take a look around the entire mansion,” Jimin says, squeezing Taehyung’s hand, “And then we’ll leave.”

They do. Calmly, without rushing anything. Jimin thinks it’s funny, the way he feels lighter and lighter as he looks around and gets quick flashbacks from the things that happened to them. He thinks he might’ve been overthinking the path they took, but, being there, the place where it all happened, he can feel some clarity hitting him.

Lastly, he returns to the garden. His friends are still around, talking, having fun, remembering stuff. Jimin won’t disturb them. Instead, he walks with his soulmate to the garden, toes curling over the green grass — which also used to be gold, thanks to the incident with the public exposure — and lungs filled with pure, fresh air. He turns around, staring up at the mansion as it extends itself before him. It looks like the mansion in his nightmare, right after Taehyung touched it.

This time, though, it doesn’t feel dangerous.

He leans forward and gently supports his free hand against the wall. Then, he looks back at Taehyung and smiles.

“I’m going to miss this place.”

Most people could say there is no need for Jimin to use such words. The mansion is supposed to raise charity funds, which means it is going to be around for a while, but they all know he doesn’t intend to go back to visiting. This time, not because he feels strange or because he thinks it might hit him with some memories. No, this time, he doesn’t mean to visit because this isn’t his house anymore — it isn’t the place where they are supposed to build the rest of their story.

Jimin leans forward, pecking Taehyung’s lips gently, and brings his hand up to wrap his fingers around a blonde—no, a golden hair strand.

“Nothing left to fear, huh?” Jimin sighs happily, “I’ll take your word for it.”

Taehyung smiles. It also feels like good.

***

When the day comes for them to get the matching tattoos, Jimin goes first.

It’s his choice, but the way Taehyung silently agrees to it by nodding gets Jimin wondering whether he should be having second thoughts about this. He wants to have all kinds of connections with his soulmate, but, if Taehyung hesitates the slightest, he should be ready to tell him it’s okay to change his mind.

“You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to, Taetae. Jiwoo wouldn’t be mad if we cancelled.”

“He’s right, I wouldn’t,” Jiwoo states as she walks into the room, gloves on, looking as friendly as ever. Ever since Jimin introduced Taehyung to her, his soulmate decided he liked all of Jimin’s friends. “Only thing I’m mad at is Jimin refusing to let me give him all the tattoos he’s been meaning to get since forever.”

Jimin rolls his eyes dramatically, “Patience, Jiwoo.”

“I want to do this,” Taehyung says, smiling reassuringly, “I really do. About those tattoos, Jiwoo, if this doesn’t hurt as much as my friends have been telling me it’s going to hurt, I’ll have you give me more tattoos instead of Jimin.”

“You’ve got to me kidding me.”

Jiwoo smiles brightly, “Best day of my life.”

“Worst friends ever.”

“Here,” Taehyung speaks softly, reaching for Jimin’s wrist and running his fingers along his skin, “The same Red String of Fate that brought you to me that night is about to become something very much visible, and it’s going to last forever. Are you ready for that, baby?”

Jimin has done lots of thinking. Thinking about how he’d meet his soulmate, about what it’d be like, what kind of life they’d have. Thinking about how to free Taehyung from the golden touch and thinking about how to help him fit into society. Thinking about helping his friends and keeping up with having jobs and being a responsible adult. Thinking and thinking and thinking.

This time, he doesn’t have to think.

“Of course I am, Taetae.”

He feels a tug at his wrist — and, silently, as he finds a seat and prepares himself to get a tattoo, he thanks the Red String of Fate.

It’s not as he’s dreamed. It’s much better.