Chapter 33

●●●

If anyone had told Jungkook that he was going to be enjoying himself at an amusement park with Taehyung he really wouldn't have believed them. But here he was, laughing at the way Taehyung grimaced at his fingers sticking together because of his cotton candy while still being invested enough in the taste to keep grabbing more. They ended up avoiding any further roller coasters. Jungkook really didn't want to put Taehyung in that spot again... and secondly, he really didn't want to ruin all the equipment there. That metal bar Taehyung had been clinging to for dear life had not looked good at all.

Once again Jungkook found himself marveling at Taehyung's strength. He wondered just how much power he was actually packing in that innocent looking body of his.Taehyung was clearly muscular, but more so in a lean way, and overall his body looked so... thin. Especially when his clothes hid that his figure was crafted so beautifully. The muscles just didn't show through the layers, but the few times Jungkook had seen Taehyung display his strength he'd been baffled.

The time Jungkook had almost drowned him Taehyung had coiled around him like a snake... he'd felt some of his strength back then and Jungkook was pretty damn sure Taehyung could have squeezed him to death then. Didn't even need the drowning... his strength was more than enough.

"Is there anything you see you want to try?" Jungkook asked, pulling his hand out of Taehyung's to vaguely make a gesture to include the area. Taehyung had been holding his hand for at least twenty minutes now. Even when Jungkook pulled away, the second he'd drop it loosely, Taehyung would be holding onto it again. He was pretty sure it was because of the amount of people. Taehyung seemed a little anxious to lose Jungkook in the crowd, which made sense. If they were to lose each other it would actually be quite shitty for Taehyung.

He didn't know the area and neither did he know if the ocean was nearby, it wasn't, so yes, Jungkook got Taehyung's nervousness. Actually he couldn't help but find it a little cute. It awoke some protective senses in him that he hadn't felt in a while and that were very... useless in Taehyung's case. It wasn't like the siren needed a meek human to protect him. But Jungkook had a habit of being protective of his friends and his brain was having more than just a hard time categorizing whatever Taehyung meant to him. Was he a friend? Was he family? Was he something like a roommate? Jungkook knew none of these actually described his reality but that didn't change the fact that his brain was registering Taehyung as a friend with how much time they had been spending with each other already.

Jungkook's logical side really wasn't sure what Taehyung was. He felt a bit like a friend, but friends usually didn't have a preexisting history of drowning each other. So he honestly was at a loss, but nevertheless he tried to make Taehyung smile. Whether they were friends or not, giving Taehyung a fun time here probably couldn't hurt his odds of survival.

"What is that?" Taehyung asked, pointing at a nearby attraction that Jungkook didn't know the name of. He'd never tried it himself but from what he knew you got into a mini car with a lot of cushions around it and the whole point was to bump into other cars.

"We can try if you want. It's like a mini car. Actually, driving a car is quite human, huh? Wanna try?"

Slowly Taehyung nodded before focusing back on the attraction. He seemed to be taking in the way people were ramming their cars into others, laughing and yelling loudly as they did. It was quite hectic, but at least the cars were big enough for people not to really get too close.

"Come on then?" Jungkook tugged Taehyung towards the ticket booth. At least there were a little less people queuing compared to before, but Jungkook and Taehyung had enough time to finish their cotton candy. Jungkook was... really relaxed actually. It felt good standing here in the sun, sharing cotton candy with Taehyung.

He'd missed hanging out with people, but now spending time with Taehyung almost felt the same. Maybe aside from how little Taehyung still spoke. When he did it were full sentences, but he mostly still kept his mouth shut and mainly communicated through gestures. Taehyung certainly wasn't a casual talker.

"When are you going to leave? Jimin said you need to go back to the ocean soon... do you have any idea when?" Jungkook asked, throwing the little wooden stick away after having the last bit of his cotton candy.

"A few days?" That was sooner than Jungkook had expected. It had felt like at least another two weeks... a few days certainly sounded a lot more sudden. And part of Jungkook was almost sad that Taehyung was going to leave soon.

Maybe he had grown a little attached to the dangerous creature. Jungkook was less surprised about that than he probably should have been.

"So soon..." Jungkook moved to the ticket booth when the people in front of them were finished. He quickly paid before passing through the entry gate. "Not gonna lie, I might even miss your scary presence," he joked, leading Taehyung over to the parked bumper car. Maybe he was just imagining things but he was pretty sure he saw Taehyung smile a little at that.

"Here, sit down there. I think we'll share one car, since I need to show you how it works." Jungkook waited for Taehyung to climb into the car before sitting down next to him. The space was relatively small so they were pressed right against each other, but now that Jungkook was sure that Taehyung wouldn't claw his eyes out he really didn't mind touching him like that.

"Okay so... driving a car like this is way easier than a big one. You can turn the steering wheel to change the direction you're going. When you put your foot on the pedal down there you can speed up and the one next to it slows-" Jungkook was interrupted when a child bumped into them, pushing them even farther into the parking spot. He could feel Taehyung tense up next to him.

"Oh, and the whole point is bumping into other people like that girl just did." Jungkook explained, patting Taehyung's leg. "Wanna try now? Once you get out there people will be bumping into you a lot."

Taehyung nodded slowly, focusing on the wheel.

"The right pedal makes the car drive." He startled when the car made a sudden jerk forward. Taehyung seemed just as surprised, quickly releasing the pedal again. Jungkook couldn't help laughing. "Okay, and you don't have to press all the way down at once.That way it will speed up slowly." Jungkook added and Taehyung sent him a slightly annoyed glance.

Why was he happy about that? He really wasn't sure.

"Try again."

Taehyung did, this time seemingly a little more careful as he pressed down on the pedal, and the car slowly rolled forward.

"Same thing with the steering wheel. Turn it slowly like you saw me doing it when I drive my car." There was no denying that Taehyung was intelligent. He learned quickly, slowly turning the steering wheel as he got out of the parking spot. It took him seemingly about two seconds to figure out both the steering and the speed as he drove among the other cars.

Jungkook grinned proudly. "Just like this. Well done!"

A car rammed theirs before Taehyung had the chance to react to what Jungkook had said. The boy who had rammed them laughed loudly before continuing on his way.

"Okay, and now you can drive into people, which is pretty much the only thing this is here for... that's something you can't do with real cars though." Jungkook chuckled before pointing at the people around them, who were driving around wildly, pushing anyone around that came into their way.

"That's useless." Taehyung looked at Jungkook and for a second... just for a moment this really felt like it was a moment between friends. Not one between predator and prey. Jungkook wasn't thinking about who Taehyung was when he laughed a little.

"It really is."

A/N

I genuinely just love this story a whole lot😔💜

Life has been quite shitty and I mental health hasn't been the best but predator is like a little puppy that annoyingly licks my face when I'm half asleep... so...

Predator is pup jk?

Where the hell is this going😂💜