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“Come on, don’t be shy now~” Taehyung called to you, holding out an arm for you to take. He was dressed in a sleek suit, black with white lace patterns. He was extremely handsome when he wasn't dressed like a slob.

You took Taehyung’s arm and he led you into the gardens of the mansion, where your friends and brother were standing. They were clearing the way for you, along a white ribbon trail with rose petals sprinkled on top. At the end of the lane stood Namjoon and his brothers, all dressed in attire that suited their personalities.

“You look incredibly beautiful,” Taehyung commented. “Don’t you wish that you could stay like this forever? Stay with us forever?”

As you approached the end of the ribbon, Namjoon turned around to see you, his mouth agape with awe. You had never felt more loved in your life. The feeling lasted until the scenery around you disappeared, leaving you in a free fall through a black void.

~

“(Y/N), wake up!” You heard a familiar voice calling. Opening your eyes, you saw the blur of Nikkie sitting on the side of your bed, holding a cold cloth to your cheek.

“Nikkie?” You ask, your voice hoarse. You recoiled from the touch until the blur of your vision cleared. Nikkie looked so much like your father.

“Yeah, it's me, don't worry. Dad really did a number on you this time.” He pressed the cloth against you gently once more.

You winced. “Did he hurt you?”

“No, I stayed quiet like you asked.”

“Good.” You turned your head to your bedroom’s window.

“Rhiannon and Ravi are on their way over now. Dad went to the bar after he knocked you out and he won't be back tonight, so I told them what happened,” Nikkie informed.

“I'm glad you're my brother,” you comment. “You're the only reason I'm still here.”

“Don't talk like that, (Y/N). You've got Rhiannon, Ravi and Leo too. You have more than just me.”

You grasped at Nikkie’s hand, and you could feel tears building up. “I love you, Nik.”

“I love you too, (N/N).”

“(Y/N)!” You heard Ravi shout from the bottom floor as he bolted up the stairs. He nearly pushed Nikkie off your bed as he scrambled to get a look at you. “Are you alright?”

“I'll be okay, Rav, I promise.” You winced at the pain in your right elbow when you reached to dry your face of tears.

“That's what you say every time. Why won't you let us help?” Ravi asked, taking the cold cloth from Nikkie and gently dabbing it against the cut that rested over your bruise.

“Because I don't want you guys getting hit too, or worse!” You exclaim. “I would only feel guilty.”
Ravi took in a deep breath in an attempt to calm rising fury. “One day, I'm going to kill him.”

“I don't want you to risk yourself for me,” you turned to look at Ravi. He was angry, you could tell, but he tried to hide it with a thin smile. You reached up with your left hand to cup his cheek, and Ravi leant into your touch until you all heard more footsteps approaching the room.

“I don't get why we need your permission,” Rhiannon complained as she walked in and sat beside Nikkie on his bed. “We want to protect you.”

“I want to do that more for you all than anything. The way it is now is better. Dad contains his anger and he won't hurt anyone else. Besides, revenge is wrong.”

Rhiannon and Ravi stayed for as long as they could, but everyone has a curfew. They both had reason to be angry, but you would only blame yourself if they got hurt. It was an intense few hours of you trying to calm your best friends down while Nikkie could only look on with guilt.

“You don't have to do everything on your own, (Y/N),” Rhiannon said as she and Ravi got up to leave. “We love you.”

You and Nikkie stayed up longer than you should have, and it took much longer than usual until he was snoring. You had made up your mind at church that you needed to go back. You didn't care that your elbow was sprained and your left eye was bruised. You needed to get out, even if it was just for a little while.

You slipped off your covers and got dressed as quietly as you could. Grabbing your backpack, you realised it was a little heavy. Peeking inside, you remembered the snack that Jin had wrapped up for you. You quickly grabbed a butter tart to eat, deciding to temporarily hide the container under your bed.

You tiptoed quietly through the house, hoping that neither your mother or Nikkie would wake up. On your way out the back door, you slipped open the floorboards and grabbed a book from the box you and Nikkie kept hidden from your parents. You felt more and more at ease the farther away you walked from your house. You hated leaving Nikkie, but you wouldn't be gone forever. Perhaps sometime in the future, you would tell him about the angels, but he has had enough evangelism for one day.

Without hesitation this time, you pushed open the black gates at the top of the hill and made your way through the front gardens, sighing in relief that you were so far away from your father that he couldn't hurt you. You looked back on the little town, observing the few street lights that were still on. It looked peaceful from up here, but you knew better.
When you approached the door, you nearly forgot to knock. You smiled to yourself, reaching for the gold plated knocker. That was when two hands came from behind you and covered your vision.
“Guess who~” the voice playfully sang.

“Taehyung?” You guessed. “You’re allowed outside?” Your vision quickly returned, Taehyung stepped around you to face you.

“Of course we are. As long as we don't pass the boundaries, we can go wherever we want. Just not during the day so those lunatics down there don't see us.” He pointed toward the town. “Want to come inside?”

“That would be nice. Thank you, Taehyung,” You followed Taehyung inside, the new familiarity of the statues in the foyer further bringing up your mood. It was warmer inside, and much brighter. Taehyung was wearing a black suit, the jacket decorated with dark gold Celtic patterns, and around his neck was a black scarf-like choker. He looked as if he actually cared about his appearance, unlike the night before. Taehyung smiled mischievously at you until he got a better look at your face in the light of the room. He squinted, reaching up to touch your bruised cheek until you recoiled from him.

“What happened?” His voice immediately became more serious.

You avoided eye contact with him. “It's nothing.”

“You know, you're a really bad liar.” Taehyung accused.

“Are you actually saying that I am or can you guys tell when people are lying?” You ask. Taehyung smiled for only a moment. If you blinked, you would have missed it.

“Both,” he replied. “Tell the truth. What happened?” He moved to take your left hand. He was leading you farther into the house, but still intently listening.

“It's okay, I'm used to it. I get hit a lot.”

“No, it’s not okay. Nobody should hit anyone,” Taehyung started to sound a lot like Ravi did earlier. You stayed silent.

Shortly later, you both arrived at the large archway into the purplish-black room where you had seen the piano. It was moved off to the side, in the middle of the room sat all six of the angels in a wonky circle.

“She’s here,” Taehyung called. Immediately both Namjoon and Hoseok stood. Taehyung must have predicted that Hoseok would run to you, so he stood in front of you to stop his brother. “Be careful, she’s hurt.”

All of the other boys stood, turning their full attention to you and Taehyung. Namjoon approached you, smoothly dodging Taehyung. He observed you, and you stepped backwards in shame of how your face looked. Taehyung was keeping the others from approaching you, but he wasn't doing a very good job of it.

“Who did this to you?” Namjoon asked, concerned.

You stepped back and held onto your wrist tightly. You were reluctant to tell them. “It was… my father. I told Taehyung that it’s okay. I'm used to it.”

“No, it’s not okay. Come here, sit down. We can take care of you.” Namjoon gently wrapped an arm around you and led you further into the room, letting you sit down on the floor. Soon enough, all seven brothers were surrounding you, with varying degrees of anger and grief on their faces. There were three of them that you didn't recognise, the ones you hadn't met yet.

One of them had a round face like Namjoon, pitch black hair and eyes shaped like raindrops. His contacts were such a dark grey that his eyes looked also nearly black. He was wearing a light cream coloured suit jacket, decorated with deep blue flower patterns, and the trim was black with small white dots on the fabric. You guessed that he was the one you saw playing the piano the night before.

Another looked slightly younger than the rest. He had a thinner face like Jin, with a small mole under his bottom lip. He had red-brown hair and his contacts were a deep blue. Both his suit overcoat and undershirt were a dark purple, and the undershirt was decorated with white moons and stars.

The final brother looked sad at your plight rather than angry. He had a square face, bright silver hair and silver contacts to match. He was wearing a navy blue suit decorated with silver petal patterns, and you noticed that the collar of his undershirt was the only one out of all the boys that were fully buttoned up.

You recoiled again when Namjoon touched your cheek. “It’s alright,” he assured you. “Most of us are Seraphim. We can heal you, except for Jimin, Yoongi and Hoseok.”

“I… I don't know. If I go back and all my injuries are gone, people are going to think I'm a cultist,” you start. “Wait. I thought all angels could heal people?”

The one with silver hair shook his head. “There are many different kinds of angels. Most of them can heal except for reapers, cherubs, also known as cupids, and avengers.”

Namjoon pointed to the boy with silver hair, then to the boy with black hair, and lastly to Hoseok. “Jimin there is an avenger, Yoongi is a reaper, and Hoseok is a cherub.”

Hoseok pretended to fire a mini arrow at you. “Pew!” He chimed with a bright smile. That made you giggle. “Ah! Progress!” His charming smile alone made you feel better.

“Are cherubs responsible for soulmates?” You ask curiously as Jin also reached out to touch your bruise. You avoided the contact warily.

“We sure are!” Hoseok replied cheerfully. “None of us lost our powers when we fell, so I could still match people up if I wanted to.”

“Although,” the boy with red-brown hair commented, “you might not want to see him do it.”

“Jungkook,” Hoseok whined. “That's so mean!” Jungkook only ignored Hoseok and smiled your way.

“Could we at least take away the sprain in your arm?” Namjoon asked sweetly, causing you to look back at him.

You nodded shyly. “Only the arm, okay?” You held out your arm toward Namjoon. “Thank you.” You watched in amazement as you felt Namjoon gently touch the bruise that was surrounding your sprain. A delicate white light appeared from the palm of his hand, and from that light came a warm, tingly sensation that made all your pain disappear in an instant.

“There, it should be all better now.”

You were speechless, utterly impressed.

“Are you sure that we can’t heal the bruise on your face? It looks like it hurts,” Taehyung commented. That snapped you out of thought.

“Thank you, but really… I would only risk you all. Even more, than I am right now,” you reply with a shake of your head.

“How are you risking us?” Jungkook asked.

“If my brother wakes up and sees that my bed is empty he’ll know I came here. Nikkie wouldn’t do anything to hurt you, far from it, but he’s not very good at being inconspicuous. He would wake up the whole town trying to get up here.”

“We know how you feel,” the black haired boy, Yoongi, said. He stood up and moved to sit on the bench in front of the piano. “If he weren’t facing becoming a demon, Taehyung would have started messing with all of you humans a loong time ago.” Taehyung stuck his tongue out at Yoongi for his remark.

You smiled at them. “So, um, what were you all doing before I got here?” You ask curiously.
“We were going to dance, although, none of us knows why Namjoon is here,” Hoseok called out teasingly. You raised your eyebrows at him.

Taehyung was laughing. “No matter how much he tries, he can’t dance on his own. He needs a strict routine and time to practice before he gets anything right.”

“That’s not fair,” Namjoon pouted. “Don’t throw me into oblivion.”

“Too late for that,” Jimin chimed in sarcastically.

“You all dance?” You wonder aloud.

“Of course, it’s all we can really do other than play music and read all day,” Hoseok replied. “I find it relaxing, it takes my mind off everything.” You had to agree with that statement. You loved to dance, although, you never felt confident doing it outside your room after everything your father has done.

“Do you dance?” Hoseok’s question caught you off guard. All the boys were looking intently at you, even Yoongi, who sat little ways away from the group.

“I.. I um… know how to waltz, but it’s been so long since I’ve done it.” You smiled sheepishly. It was the only dance you knew how to do with other people.

You and Ravi were part of a dance studio from the 2nd to 10th grade and won a prestigious contest in the next town over during the summer between 10th and 11th grade. The performance was highly praised by your mother but was considered too sexual by your father, who proceeded to break your right foot and ankle. Bye bye went your dream of professional dancing and your promise to Ravi that the two of you would never dance with someone else.

Hoseok’s face lit up with excitement. “We love the waltz!”

“If you don't mind me asking, do you all dance both roles?”

“We all do, except for Namjoon,” Jimin answered. Namjoon frowned.

“Don’t worry, I haven’t danced well since I broke my foot. I still feel bad for leaving Ravi behind to get a new dance partner... we were six when we started dancing together, and it all had to stop when we were sixteen.” You offered a consoling smile to Namjoon.

“Can you still do it?” Hoseok asked.

“Um, I think so.”

“Show us! Show us!” Jungkook sprang up with excitement.

“I don’t have proper shoes, though.”

“It’s alright, just take your shoes off,” Namjoon offered. He stood again and offered a hand to help you get back on your feet. You slipped off your shoes as the boys moved to stand by the piano. Jungkook grabbed your shoes and backpack, taking them with him so you wouldn’t trip over them when you were dancing.

Namjoon stayed in the centre of the room with you, and you smiled shyly at him as you both moved into a starting position. Yoongi began to play the piano, and as soon as the tune reached your ears, you started. It wasn’t something you recognised, but you fell into step with Namjoon as if you hadn’t ever stopped dancing. You felt his grip on your waist and you closed your eyes.

It was such a fleeting feeling. Dancing had been such a large part of your life for so long, and tears gathered in your eyes as Namjoon lowered you into a short dip. A life you had to abruptly leave behind because your foot never healed properly. Because of the constant abuse by your father, you couldn’t return to attend the championship competition even when your cast was taken off; people would talk about all your bruises, or the slightest cramp would ruin Ravi’s steps and cause you both to fall. You stiffened at the thought and a wave of pain surged through your foot.

“Hey, are you alright?” Namjoon whispered.

“No,” you admitted. “My foot hurts.” This moment of joy was all going to end too quickly.

Namjoon’s hold on your waist pulled you towards him. “Step on my feet, then,” he offered, and he seamlessly kept dancing as you climbed onto him. Your waltz turned to more of a slow dance as Namjoon now had to do most of the work. He was gentle and reassuring as you cried into his chest.

When the song was over, you could barely hear everyone cheering you on. It was such a strange feeling to you. The last time more than one person praised your dancing was during your last competition. Ever since then, things had been utterly quiet. Ravi continued to support you, but you knew that he was just as destroyed as you were when you couldn’t dance together anymore.

Namjoon only hugged you. It wasn’t long until all the boys joined you, and you were stuck in the largest pile of warmth and affection you had ever experienced. That made you smile and forget your pain, at least for a little while. The night had been too short, and when you gifted the boys your copy of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, their excitement made you even more reluctant to leave than before.

~

The next months progressed and you continued to sneak out every night. The boys would heal any injuries that would have otherwise been hidden by your clothes, you would dance with Hoseok and Jimin until your foot cramped up. You would bring Nikkie’s portable DVD player and show all of them movies, grinning at their shock over moving pictures. You would bake and cook treats with Jin, play pranks with Taehyung and Jungkook, sit and read or sew with Namjoon. It was rare, but sometimes Yoongi would give you lessons on his piano.

You lived for the night. Namjoon and his brothers brought you up, making you feel happy and confident, as you had been before the abuse started. You started to feel whole. Like something had been missing your entire life and you hadn’t realised that until you met them.

You debated yourself over telling your friends about your angels. You knew that you could trust Rhiannon, Ravi and Leo, but Jacob, Jessica and Mary were more or less loose cannons. If any rumour broke the surface of the town, you knew that only something disastrous would happen. So, you kept it a secret.

For as long as you could, anyway.