"What is it?" Taehyung asked, fearing for the worst. "Who's it from? What's it say?"
"My aunt," Hoseok muttered. "I'm inheriting my parent's house."
"That's..." Taehyung trailed off, looking up at the others for confirmation. "That's good, right?"
Hoseok shrugged.
From behind them, Jimin said, "I think it'll go alright. You've got nothing to be scared of."
"And you'll have better housing arrangements," Taehyung said quietly. Only Hoseok heard it. To Taehyung's surprise, Hoseok cracked a smile. It disappeared as quickly as it came, but Taehyung knew he didn't imagine it.
"When are you gonna get the house?" Yoongi asked.
"Saturday."
"That's tomorrow."
Hoseok nodded.
"Can I come with you, hyung?" Taehyung asked. "I mean, only if you're okay with it..."
Hoseok shrugged in a way that said sure, why not? Taehyung's face lit up as Hoseok showed him the address.
"That's not far from my apartment," said Taehyung. "We're gonna be living two blocks away from each other!"
Hoseok and Taehyung exchanged phone numbers in case of an emergency. Taehyung noticed that Hoseok's phone was new, shiny, and expensive, and wondered how he'd gotten it.
Maybe he stole it, Taehyung thought, as Yoongi told the story of how he punched a teacher in the face one time.
Hoseok stayed for about an hour, before waving halfheartedly to Taehyung and slipping out the door.
Taehyung emitted a loud, high pitched sound, causing the others in the room to flinch and cover their ears.
"The hell was that?" Yoongi asked, eyes wide. "Did you just squeal?"
"I don't know!" Taehyung said happily. "I'm just really happy right now!"
"He's doing that thing again," said Jimin, "where he smiles so hard his face looks like it's about to split in half."
"Hoseok hyung smiled. I got him to smile!"
"I saw it," said Jungkook, nodding. "He should do it more often. But what did you say to make him smile?"
"Oh— just a joke," Taehyung lied. "An inside joke."
"You have inside jokes now, huh?" Seokjin asked. Playfully, he said, "maybe you're gonna abandon the rest of us for Hoseok."
Taehyung's smile dropped and he stared seriously at Seokjin. "I would never, Jin hyung. I love you all a lot."
Seokjin shook his head fondly. "I was kidding, Tae."
"Oh. 'course you were, hyung," Taehyung said, heat rushing to his cheeks. "I'm gonna head home, okay? See ya guys later!"
-
As Hoseok walked home, a car drove up to his side. Hoseok stopped, recognizing it, and scowled as the window rolled down to reveal his aunt in the driver's seat.
"What do you want, Jang Mi?" Hoseok asked flatly, dropping the word Aunt. He wasn't close with her. He ran away from her repeatedly because he didn't want anyone replacing his parents. He couldn't betray them like that.
"Hello, Hoseok," she said, not unkindly. "You got my letter?"
"Yes."
"Are you bringing that boy with you?"
Hoseok bit the inside of his cheek, avoiding the question. "Stop watching me. Who I interact with is none of your business."
"So he is coming?" she sighed and shook her head, giving Hoseok the disappointed look she'd give him every time she found him after he ran away. Hoseok despised it. "That's risky, and you know it. What if he were to find out the family curse?"
"He won't," Hoseok growled. "And don't bring up the curse. The sun will rise tomorrow. You can leave now."
"Right, touchy subject," Jang Mi muttered.
Since Hoseok hadn't seen her in years, he stole a quick glance. Jang Mi was his mother's younger sister. She still looked relatively young. There were only a few wrinkles on her face.
"Anything else?" Hoseok asked, itching to get home and away from this conversation.
"Pack anything you need to bring it to the house tomorrow," she suggested. "I won't be there, if you're wondering. You and the boy can explore—"
"He has a name," Hoseok cut her off.
"Oh, sorry. What's his name?"
Hoseok just rolled his eyes and began walking away. He heard Jang Mi yell a "good luck!" before driving off.
Although Hoseok didn't know what the good luck was for, he had a feeling he'd need it.
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jang mi is actually nice hoseok just hates her for some reason
