Archive of Our Own ^beta

Yoongi is one of the first humans to participate in the program, although the program has existed for several years now. That’s what he’s told at least. The human race only arrived on planet BT recently, having been rescued by aliens when earth inevitably failed to sustain them any longer. Not everyone made it, the population had already been reduced by climate catastrophes and resource wars but even then not everyone had fit into their rescuer’s spaceship.

Although there’s no real need to worry about the human race. They got what was coming for them, what they themselves caused. Growing up, the world already had been utter chaos for Yoongi. He has barely attended school, has barely had full meals everyday or regular doctor visits. It had all changed since the Great Rescue. The aliens that saved them are almost humanoid in their forms, save for their softly glowing golden skin and the black eyes. Their skills are superior to them by far though, and even the smallest one towers over Yoongi by at least a head.

Their stay on the ship stretched out about a year but now they are on BT, a planet close enough in its characteristics to earth that only a little special treatment and medicine has enabled them to live here freely. But now they have to build a new society, build a new life, adapt to their new reality. They were schooled on the ship, learned about a few different species in space, about basic codes of behaviour on the planets here, in this sun system. They’d all been treated. So well, that the signs of malnutrition disappeared from Yoongis body, that he gathered strength to even run for a little, that his eyes work well again. Their level of medicine is far superior to human ones. He’s seen disabled people getting healed, has seen old people recover their hearing and so on. He’s incredibly thankful to them, they have saved him from a grim and slow death.

But now that they’re recovered, they have to be a part of the world. Sadly, he jokes to a friend of his, the aliens had also discovered capitalism. Which means Yoongi needs a job. And since he never even finished school on earth, that’s a little difficult. Thankfully there are different programs offered by the government of BT. To learn new professions, settle in comfortably, learn how to communicate properly. Yoongi doesn’t want to go back to school once more, he’s already twenty. Instead, he signs up at IRIS, short for Intergalactic Rescue Integration System. The human race is not the first one saved by the golden aliens, and they set it up to help rescued species connect to the world already established. One of the rescued individuals will be learning a profession directly from other aliens. For example one could start working in building accommodations or as some kind of gardener, learning directly from the locals. It teaches the new race what they need to know and connects them automatically to the established society. They were assured the program has only ever had positive outcomes.

Yoongi signs up for the Space Travel Program.

He doesn’t quite know why, just that it feels right. He’s been rescued and brought here, through the stars. The last time he saw earth it was a speck of colour fading into darkness. He doesn’t feel at home on BT yet, there’s nowhere else to go. But he likes the stars. They gave him hope. If traveling through the vast unknown away from all his previous problems is possible, he can also begin to live again. Be happy, maybe. So he applies, gets in, and begins the basic training for new recruits. It’s just safety drills and how to operate and behave in the spaceships. He gets to fly around in a room without gravity, which is fun. They implant some little chip behind his ear so he can understand every language saved on it, which is less fun but he’s unconscious during it and afterwards it enables him to finally talk to everyone. He would never have let any human put something like this in his body, but he somehow trusts the first aliens he’s ever met. Maybe his survival instincts are only partially working.

But after a few weeks he’s done. He is good at floating around, quickly throwing on a safety suit, he knows which buttons do what on basic control panels and he’s got most of the jargon down. What exactly he’ll learn he will choose later, on the ship. He could become a pilot, a mechanic, a simple maintenance guy, a cleaner, a commandeer. Whatever he feels is right later.

He says goodbye to his few friends he’d been living together with and goes to the Space travel station with his bag packed with everything he owns – he hasn’t been told when he’ll get back here. One of the IRIS employees picks him up and accompanies him to his new home, a patrol spaceship. Apparently there are currently no bigger wars in space, but there are pirates and sudden, unnatural occurrences with space matter. Like meteors and space debris. The ship he’ll be on basically patrols certain travel routes and notifies the authorities about any occurrences, sometimes they take care of problems themselves and help other ships. A rather quiet job until there is an emergency, in which Yoongi won’t do anything for now. So it’s perfect for him to actually get taught things.

The IRIS employee says the ship houses a crew of six members currently, two of them had joined through the IRIS program themselves and know the ropes. The captain of the ship is Namjoon, of the same species as the ones who rescued the human race. They seem to be the most common, although Yoongi has learned not to stare at the… different looking ones. The employee doesn’t say much or anything at all about the rest, but she seems to respect Namjoon a lot judging by her tone. The closer they get to their destination, the more excited Yoongi gets. And also the more exhausted. He’d been awake late, they’d celebrated back in the quarters that he’s starting his work and then he couldn’t sleep well because of nerves. While he’s recovered nicely from his years on the battered earth, he’s still not the most fit guy here. Also, humans are apparently a rather small species, and the employee towers him by two heads so he’s kind of speed-walking to keep up. And the space travel port it huge. Incomprehensibly huge.

Finally the employee points out a startling lilac ship right outside the hall. There are figures bustling around, according to the employee readying it for its next voyage. Cargo is brought onboard, fuel loaded, a last few repairs and maintenance checks, Yoongi knows the drill from the training. Amidst the chaos, there is one of the huge golden aliens outside, pointing at things and overseeing it. He seems to be Namjoon, as the employee quickly walks up to him and explains who Yoongi is.

Suddenly he feels shy and anxious. He’s going to live under the command of this man for a long while, and he wants it to be a good time. And he wants to be liked by the crew. Namjoon is even a few centimetres bigger than the employee, glowing skin half-hidden beneath a dark tunic. He looks very handsome, masculine and strong and wise. His eyes are kind, his cheeks dimpled. In his nerves-riddled brain, instead of their actual conversation Yoongi has not heard a word. There’s just white noise in his ear, his blood pumping uncomfortably loud. He takes a deep breath and tries to actually concentrate.

Luckily for him, because in that exact moment the employee steps back, gesturing at Yoongi. “Well, this is him. I’ll leave him in your care.” With a short goodbye to them she leaves, striding purposefully back to where they came from. Yoongi, feeling a little left alone, turns to Namjoon and peeks up at him, unconsciously biting his lips. He does realize he’s doing it. Then Namjoons gaze flicks down to his lips, and suddenly his features turn even warmer, a smile spreading on his face that is much more than the professional one from before.

It makes Yoongi feel better instantly. He smiles back, small but genuine. “Hello, it’s nice to meet you,” he gets out, feeling himself blush about his own jittery voice. He’s not normally so bad in social interactions, but right now his future is on the line and also- Namjoon is just very handsome. Forgetting that it isn’t custom on BT, Yoongi even bows slightly.

Namjoon is grinning even wider when he looks back up. Instead of answering right away, he reaches forward suddenly. But not to shake Yoongis hand. His arm lifts, and suddenly it’s on his head, in his hair. Dumbfounded, Yoongi stands there motionlessly as Namjoon pets him gently, once, twice, a third time. Then he stops. It didn’t feel bad or anything, just unusual. Yoongi doesn’t think anybody has ever really pet his hair. Namjoons hands are very big, but he’d been gentle. Maybe it’s a form of greeting Yoongi is unfamiliar with? Should he do it back? Should he ask about it? Social cues are difficult to pick up on when you’re stranded on a new planet with all these different aliens you don’t know.

The decision is taken away from Yoongi, and he feels relieved about it. Although the mystery of the hair petting won’t be dealt with, he doesn’t mind. Namjoon steps next to him and lays a hand on his back, warm and huge, softly pushing him forward. “Let’s go onboard, little one,” he says, his voice sweeter than with the employee. Blushing at the nickname, Yoongi only nods and together they walk into the spaceship.

The inside looks very modern- for Yoongi, anyway. He still has no real concept of what is modern here. Everything is clean and neat. The hallways are fairly big and it doesn’t have as much cyberpunk-aesthetic as Yoongi expected. Parts are coloured brightly, the purple from outside showing again, golden and green hues in between. Yoongi hasn’t managed to learn how, thinks it’s just the point of different resources, but the paint in space is very vibrant and sometimes almost swirling, as if it’s constantly moving. There are hallways and doors and even stairs they pass, Namjoon always protectively behind him, steering with his hand on Yoongis back. He doesn’t know how he feels about the constant touch by a stranger yet, but it’s not too bad. Not like he’s been getting much physical touch at all. On earth people were busy scavenging for the last scraps of food and not hugging each other. Thinking about it, Yoongi imagines it could be quite nice. If everyone here is this comfortable with touch, he’ll one day be too and then he can just enjoy being close to the crew.

They arrive in something of a common room. The couches on BT are more like chaise lounges or beds, not everyone is exactly humanoid and could comfortably sit on a human one. There are various couches here, one huge without any backrest at all, another one kinda normal, one that could also be some kind of beanbag and one that’s just straight up hilly. Namjoon makes him sit on the normal one wordlessly, and Yoongi lets his bag fall onto the ground next to his feet. He doesn’t know what to expect, if he’ll be put to work right away or if they’ll want him to stay out of it for the start. Namjoon is looking around, shifty eyes and hesitant, looking for-

Someone bursts into the room.

It’s… an alien. Definitely. Not that that’s surprising. Yoongi has never seen one like this before. He seems young, his face humanoid and smoothly pretty. He’s grinning with bunny teeth, first at Namjoon and then at Yoongi when he spots him. The torso is fairly common too, his arms seem kinda longer than normal but it’s difficult to judge because of the lack of legs. He looks half human half octopus, but the tentacles just coming out of his body are dark blue with golden freckles, smooth and high in number. Yoongi tries not to stare and fails.

“This is Yoongi, the IRIS program assigned him to us,” Namjoon rumbles into the stretching silence, pointing at Yoongi. The new one nods happily and draws closer until he’s right in front of Yoongi, who leans back on instinct.

The tentacly man tilts his head, doe eyes raking up and down Yoongis slumped form. “What is he?”

His voice is light and smooth, soothing almost. Yoongi likes it. “They call themselves human,” Namjoon answers, “The last ones of them have recently been rescued. He’s pretty, isn’t he?”

What? Yoongi flinches, blinks and clears his throat when he almost chokes on air. Namjoon and the other turn concerned looks at him, watching as he tries to bring his glowing cheeks under control. Has he really been called pretty just now? By some godlike alien? He must look really startled, because Namjoon is slow and careful when he reaches out for yoongi once again.

“Everything okay? Did Jungkook startle you?”, he asks- the new one’s name must be Jungkook. And once again, he pats Yoongis hair. Maybe it’s not a greeting thing then. Yoongi waits until the hand disappears from his head and shakes it, trying a smile.

“No, sorry. It’s nice to meet you,” Yoongi directs the last part at Jungkook, who weirdly furrows his eyebrows. But after a moment his grin widens once more and he reaches out. Also not to shake Yoongis hand, but to pat his shoulder. Yoongi doesn’t react, becoming slowly used to everyone else just patting him instead of being normal. Maybe it is just a thing on this ship? He’ll have to wait and see, not wanting to disrupt any standing group dynamics.

Namjoon is smiling at them still but turns decisively to Jungkook now. “Did you finish the repairs?”

“Not quite, but Tae can do the rest alone,” Jungkook offers, his voice more businesslike. Yoongi silently sits and watches. Jungkooks tentacles aren’t quite still at any time. Slightly swaying as if there’s a mild breeze, then moving somewhat more decisively until they stop again. He’s just standing on a few of them right now, but the rest is free. Until one slowly pokes into Yoongis direction, until it’s barely meeting his thigh on the couch. Yoongi almost holds his breath, a little curious how it will feel.

While he’s been occupied, Namjoon has made a decision. “Please watch Yoongi then until take-off. I trust you not to overwhelm him,” he adds with a clear nod towards the approaching tentacle. Jungkook pouts and pulls it back, and Yoongi is surprised to feel a well of disappointment inside him. Namjoon hurries out the room with a nod at them, probably going back to overseeing the whole take-off process. Yoongi feels comfortable with Jungkook, but the nerves haven’t left yet and he finds himself too anxious to try and strike up a conversation. Not that Jungkook seems to mind.

He has settled onto the couch next to Yoongi, almost sitting as he leans forward curiously. But he’s holding his tentacles and hands back, only twitching into Yoongis direction without actually coming closer. He’s softly smiling to himself, eyes still examining Yoongi. It’s quiet now, the noises of the bustling outside faint and far in between. Yoongi shyly looks around. Besides the couches there are some kind of cupboards in the walls, glass panels revealing the content. Yoongi doesn’t know what everything is, but one he identifies as a game he played with other trainees recently, and another one kind of looks like a headset. There are some pretty paintings too, blankets and pillows on the couches. If this really is the room they all hang out together, Yoongi would have wished there were some kind of glass panel to look at the stars outside. He always thought them pretty, but now that he’s found a refuge between them, he adores them even more. Sitting around makes Yoongi a little sleepy again, but he fights it to stay awake. Napping the moment he’s come aboard might not make the best first impression.

Waiting for the take-off doesn’t feel as long as Yoongi had thought, luckily. He must have arrived at the end of the preparations. After Namjoon left, about half an hour passes until there’s suddenly more bustling, people calling out and running past the entrance door. Yoongi, overcome by a sleepy haze and nervous jitters likewise, blinks repeatedly. Jungkook had been quietly watching him, sometimes checking his wristphone. The aliens have something similar to mobile phones, just that it works without a physical screen and it’s a simple band around your wrist. Yoongi has sunken into the plush couch, but when people enter the room he sits up straighter, eyes wide as he watches them all. There are five in total, Namjoon backing them up.

Yoongi is a little overwhelmed by the onslaught of new species. One looks kind of like Jungkook, but his tentacles are a forest-green in glittering hues. And he’s not wearing a shirt like Jungkook, so Yoongi comes to realize he doesn’t have any nipples either. But he can cope with that, gotten used to Jungkook. Also, he looks hellishly good.

Another one is tall and lanky, seemingly flittering out of sight and going transparent, then being solid again. Yoongi has heard of those, the humans have dubbed them phantoms. Fairly human overall, but they don’t need food or oxygen or the likes, are able to just fade into nothing at a thought and can cross walls or space as they please. He’d been impressed by their skills then, they must be impossible to catch against their will, able to break into anywhere, to go anywhere. Right now, he’s almost more impressed by how handsome the one in front of him looks. He’s almost a little too pretty.

Another one also looks mostly human, neither weirdly tall nor flickering either. Also very handsome, he smiles at Yoongi softly, his sparkling eyes squeezing shut almost.

The last one Yoongi looks at is fairly humanoid as well, but there’s something wild about his stance – as if he’s just on the verge of charging forward, so balled up with pure energy it’s difficult to contain. His body seems solid but wobbly all the same. As if his form isn’t as permanent as Yoongi.

While he’s just been staring at everyone, they’ve gathered around him in a circle. Namjoon stood next to him, the other tentacle alien is next to Jungkook and a few of their tentacles seem to play-fight with each other, going unacknowledged by the rest of the crew. Namjoon taps his boot on the ground loudly and everyone turns to him with expectant faces, although the phantom flickers out of sight for a while only to appear again, closer to the pretty human one. Unconsciously, Yoongi leans towards Namjoon, feeling small in between them all.

He's never been the tallest or strongest on earth either. When there were food deliveries or sales, he had to fight hard to even get some of the scraps. He’d learned to assess situations quickly, to know when he’d better run, when he could get away with taking something. He’d learned to never speak first in a room of people more powerful than him, learned how to appear harmless. Right now he doesn’t feel as afraid and in danger as back then, but he can’t help adapting his acquired behaviour patterns. It’s obvious how much power they have over him, and he really wants this to be his new chance at a good life.

“We all decided to take in another crew member a while ago. Now IRIS has finally assigned someone to us,” Namjoon begins his little speech and gestures at Yoongi with a smile. Yoongi tries to grin back, blushing under all the attention. “My species has recently rescued a race called humans from a sun system in Section F. They’ve been adapting well and were allowed into the IRIS program. Please welcome our newest crew member, Yoongi.”

Everyone turns to him. And Yoongi has no idea what to do. Namjoon is still grinning proudly, two of Jungkooks tentacles are still having something of an arm-wrestling match with two green tentacles, the phantom flickers and flickers, and all these eyes are on him. His voice is tiny when he gathers the courage to speak, deciding to just go with Korean customs on this one. “Hello, my name is Yoongi. I’m very thankful to be here. Please take care of me.”

It's very quiet for a moment. Then the wobbly one darts forward, much too quickly for Yoongi and reaches out- he flinches backwards into the cushions. Suddenly Jungkooks tentacles are in front of him, but they’re holding the other alien back, who looks about as shocked as Yoongi. Jungkook tuts at him before turning to Yoongi. “Everything is okay, don’t be afraid,” he coos, and slowly reaches out with a hand until he can pet Yoongis hair, “This is Hoseok. He’s just excited, none of us will harm you.”

Since nothing really happened, Yoongi calms down at his words without question. He sits back up from where he let himself fall backwards and nods shortly, throwing glances at Hoseok. His positive reaction seems to delight Hoseok, he grins wide and makes a few chirping sounds which weirdly enough calm down Yoongis heart rate immediately. He’d read somewhere that some species have, to humans, magic-like skills. Maybe that’s one of them.

Hoseok also reaches out for him, slower this time and watching Yoongi like a hawk. He doesn’t avoid the ultimate touch, not even if it’s another weird one. Hoseoks fingers caress his cheeks softly. “Yoongi is so cute,” he says to no one in particular. Unavoidably, Yoongi blushes. Which Hoseok seems to think is fascinating because he delights in it and pinches Yoongis pink cheeks gently, giggling. Yoongi can’t even be upset about it, the sound of his joy is just too infectious.

But then Hoseok steps back, and leaves space for the rest. The one with the green tentacles is Taehyung – he uses one to poke Yoongis side. While he’s gentle, Yoongi is kinda ticklish so he squirms away with a snort, hoping he’s not upsetting Taehyung in the process. The phantom is called Seokjin, he stays solid for just long enough to pat Yoongis hair like Namjoon has been doing, seeming very content with it. Maybe Yoongi should contact the employee from IRIS to ask about that. They’d given him a contact if he ever needs support while on the spaceship.

Lastly, the human one introduces himself as Jimin. His appearance has Yoongi thrown back for a second and he reaches out to shake his hand, like he knows it from earth. Jimin is definitely confused by this. He hesitates long enough for Yoongi to realize his mistake, but before Yoongi can pull back he reaches out. This is how Yoongi ends up getting patted on the arm he held out, like a lazy cat. Slowly, he’s asking himself if this might be his own fault, somehow. Maybe they only think petting others is a thing humans do, and just entertain him. While Yoongi thinks it’s a thing they do, and lets them. Like some weird reverse psychology, they hang in a vicious cycle.

The introductions seem to be concluded with that. Namjoon nods, looking satisfied with the overall outcome. “Everyone, please don’t overwhelm Yoongi with anything. Humans have never before had contact with other species out in space. Help with anything he needs, and for now he shouldn’t wander around alone on the ship so nothing happens.”

Everyone agrees. Yoongi stays silent. But he does ask himself why exactly he can’t go around alone. Is there something dangerous on the ship? Should he be even more careful about touching anything than he planned to be? Is the layout that complicated? Well, he’ll just comply for now and see. Questioning any orders now won’t make him look good.

“We should leave now. Hoseok and Seokjin, with me to the cockpit. Jungkook and Taehyung, go to the engine room. Jimin, you have Yoongi duty.”

Immediately, everyone disperses and suddenly Yoongi is alone with Jimin. Warily, he casts glances at him. It’s the same as with Jungkook earlier, he’d love to get to know him, but is too anxious to actually talk. Luckily, Jimin remains unaffected by such notions. He steps closer once more.

“Do you want to see us launch? I know a good spot.”

That actually sounds cool. Yoongi kind of missed it when they arrived at BT, he was asleep when the planet came into view. So he nods happily. Jimin reaches out for his arm and tugs him up with surprising strength. Although maybe not that surprising. Even though he doesn’t look much stronger than Yoongi, he’s learned that all aliens are somewhat superior to humans. From telepathy to mind control and flying, they have all sorts of skills humans can only dream of.

Jimin is gentle and warm and lets go when Yoongi stands. He hesitantly points at his bag, unsure. “Should I leave my bag here?”

Tilting his head towards the bag, Jimin frowns. “You brought things?”

Fuck. Should he have not? But it’s literally just essentials, and the IRIS employee even told him what to pack? “Ju- just clothes and stuff,” Yoongi tries to defend the bag. He was actually surprised by the aliens ability to immediately mass-produce clothes in the required size, even though cuts and styles are fairly different from earth. The jumpsuit-like garment he’s wearing right now is comfortable and perfectly warm though.

Jimin picks up the bag and looks inside, but he nods slowly, as if in approval. Not having thought there would be a problem with the bag of all things, Yoongi stays wary. But jimin only sets it back down. Then he rolls his neck, grimacing as if he’s having backpain. Yoongi knows a thing or two about that.

“Are you okay?”

“Namjoon told me to not overwhelm you,” Jimin says, as if that got anything to do with it. Yoongi feels his own brows furrow. “My species-“, Jimin starts, then interrupts himself. Suddenly, with a smile, he continues, now his voice much lighter. “We grow and shrink with the available space normally. I’m holding it back for you.”

Grow with the available space? Yoongi has no idea what exactly that looks like, but it can’t be too bad. “You don’t have to,” he assures Jimin therefore. He doesn’t want to make any of them uncomfortable in their own home.

It’s worth it, for the smile on Jimins face. He looks angelic like that. Then he nods and lets out a deep breath. It’s like any tension falls from his body, smooth like water sliding off metal, and then he literally grows. It takes him seconds to tower over Yoongi, to surpass Namjoons height, until he almost hits the ceiling and it stops. Yoongi doesn’t get a sound out, he just gapes open-mouthed at Jimin. He looks the same as before, just… big. Really big. (Luckily his clothes grew with him, not oversized anymore.) It’s not too scary, but the sheer incredibility of it makes Yoongi freeze.

Jimins huge hand suddenly closes in (he could probably crush Yoongis head with that), but this time he has himself under control and doesn’t flinch away like he did with Hoseok. With one of his huge fingers, Jimin pats his head, cooing under his breath. “You’re so brave,” he mumbles at Yoongi. And even though he didn’t really do anything at all, Yoongi can’t help but feel good at the praise.

After that, Jimin ushers him out of the room. He definitely walks slowly extra for Yoongi, leading him through new hallways and taking so many turns, Yoongi quickly loses orientation. Maybe it’s good that everyone will watch out for him. The hallways in itself all look similar, nothing giving off where in the huge ship they are. The most interesting thing is probably jimin. When they pass a door or something where the ceiling is lower, he never ducks. He just continues walking, and his magic makes him smaller for those few seconds it takes to pass.

Finally they arrive, just as the ships stirs to life. You almost can’t notice it, just a subtle hum of the whole environment Yoongi is in. It’s a bridge above the control room, and downstairs he can see Namjoon, Hoseok and Seokjin, controlling the ship. Neither one of them looks up, concentrated on all the panels in front of them. Yoongi can only guess what everything is for exactly. Maybe he’ll learn too, one day. The best part of the cockpit is currently the huge glass panel. Well- not glass, as it was explained to him. It’s some see-through material that’s much better than glass and didn’t exist on earth.

Jimin sits down and immediately gets bigger, since now he has more room to the ceiling. His seriously huge legs bump into Yoongi and embarrassingly enough, he falls upon impact and yelps shortly. He’s immediately caught by Jimin who lowers him onto his thigh. Yoongis feet can’t reach the ground from there. “I’m sorry,” Jimin says, “I should have been more careful. But everything’s fine, right baby? You’re fine.”

As he once again pats Yoongis hair, Yoongi realizes what his tone reminds him off. It’s kind of like how his neighbour spoke to his cat, on earth. That’s what it sounds like. A little cooing, not really expecting an answer. Before he can think further on it, the ship starts to lift off the planet. Silently, they watch as first the whole port appears and afterwards the whole city, then everything gets smaller and smaller until there’s only the planet’s washed out surface, and higher and higher until Yoongi can see the curve of it. He stares out the window, barely noticing Jimins hand cupping his back. It takes a while, but his exhaustion is forgotten as he can finally see BT in its full glory, a planet as golden as the aliens originated from there.

Below them, the other three crew members are calmly talking to each other, overseeing the process. Everything works out fine between the experienced pilots, and eventually they enter the trade route they’ll patrol along. They are in between the stars now, and Yoongi can’t get enough of it. He barely registers time passing until he suddenly slides forward. The exhaustion from earlier had comeback full force and without him noticing, a second of sleep overcame him. Jimin saves him from falling easily, giggling at his bewildered face.

“Let’s go,” Jimin whispers at him. Before Yoongi can attempt to stand up though, he’s picked up and fitted into Jimins arms. There’s no chance to protest or climb down, as Jimin immediately walks off, humming pleasantly as he carries Yoongi through the ship. It’s weird, being so close to a stranger, but Yoongi is tired enough to not mind. He’ll be embarrassed about this tomorrow, but that’s a future-Yoongi problem.

They end up next to the common room. It seems to be the dining space. Seokjin is already there, preparing a few things. The one big difference between earth and here, is the food. Since most aliens are kind of humanoid is well, certain things are the same. The concept of houses and couches, rooms and jobs and organizations, languages, technical devices, cleaning supplies. But food is not one of them. Yoongi knows there were times on earth human dined for fun, made extravagant food in tiny portions, loved to eat because meals were so tasty. A little bit of that culture has still remained up to when he was born, but people like him had to take what they could get.

Aliens have never developed such a dining culture. Phantoms like Seokjin don’t need any food at all. Other aliens function more like plants. Namjoons species has developed a form of nutrition intake where you only eat two little weird pills a day and are fully sustained. They took lots of plants and animals from earth too when saving the humans, but there hasn’t been any development in the food department. Against his expectations, everyone eventually sits around the table in the dining room.

Everyone except Seokjin has eaten something. Yoongi, Namjoon, Jimin and Hoseok all ate the pills, Taehyung and Jungkook something that remined him of dried algae. Jimin had placed Yoongi in between him and Hoseok, having shrunken himself again so he can comfortably fit at the table. Namjoon gives a short status report, just confirming that everything is going fine and there’s nothing unusual going on.

But too quickly, the topic turns to Yoongi once again. Taehyung had been inspecting him the whole time, and eventually turns to Namjoon. “Do humans have any special abilities? Is there like, something hidden? Can he change like Jimin or Hoseok?”

One of his tentacles pokes at Yoongi shoulder. This time, Namjoon isn’t as sure while answering. He hums, and shrugs his shoulders. “I guess no. And they’re not even all as cute as him.”

The others make interested noises, focusing even more attention on Yoongi. After a moment of consideration Namjoon continues. “They are very social, depending on relationships to others. I think they cuddle a lot? But they are very vulnerable, so we have to be careful with him.”

It feels a little weird, how they talk about him while he’s right there. But Yoongi can’t find it in himself to be upset. It’s not like they are gossiping or talking shit about him. Everyone is just curious, which is understandable. And they are complimenting him. Maybe he should say something, but they aren’t asking him personally, and he’s still feeling shy to talk in front of all of them.

He’s embarrassed when he yawns instead, and everyone looks at him confused. Hoseok nudges Namjoon. “What does that mean?”

“It’s called yawning, I’m a little tired,” Yoongi makes himself pipe up. It’s silent for a moment, then jimin suddenly lays an arm around him.

“Of course! We should put you into bed at a reasonable time!”

Namjoon nods in agreement. “I read that humans need like eight hours each day.”

“Whoa, that’s almost as much as Jimin needs,” Seokjin mentions. He doesn’t sleep at all. Yoongi only knows that Namjoon ‘shuts down’ for a few meagre hours a day. Maybe they’ll show him to his room now. He kind of does want to fall in bed and just nod off. Since he doesn’t take in any food waste with the pills, he doesn’t really need things like toilets or teeth brushing anymore, and he can clean himself later.

Luckily for him, nobody objects him going to bed. Jimin squeezes him a little, and he only now realizes he’s still pressed to his side. “He can sleep in my room tonight!”

What? Yoongi jerks towards him sharply. Sleep in Jimins room? Jungkook protests right away, but not for the reasons Yoongi thought he would.

“What! Why your room! You had him all day!”

“And that’s why he’d be most comfortable with me, I already bonded with him.” Self-satisfied at his argument, Jimin smirks.

Yoongi is still gaping at him. Now Taehyung pipes in too. “But we have a bigger room, and more blankets.”

Seokjin snorts. “You two are sleeping in the pond anyway, he can’t breathe underwater. Right?” He turns to Namjoon, who nods.

“Of course we wouldn’t make him sleep in the pond,” Jungkook argues back petulantly. Then he turns to Namjoon, who as a captain seems to get the last word. “Namjoon, tell Jimin he can’t hog the human!”

Namjoon only sighs. “I think it’s better if he stays with Jimin tonight.” Immediately, protests get louder from the two tentacle aliens, but Namjoon just talks over them. “He’s gotten familiar with his presence, it’s probably for the best. And he’ll be here a long while, you can have him tomorrow.”

Have him? Hog the human? Yoongi is still frowning. Is it normal to sleep in one of the crew members rooms? Some kind of bonding thing? But that’s just weird, isn’t it? Maybe he should say something, speak up. He has nothing against not being allowed to walk around alone, he’d literally get lost, but he can definitely sleep alone.

Delighted in his triumph, Jimins smile is bright when he cups Yoongis face, fingers stroking his cheeks. “You can sleep safely with me Yoongi, don’t worry. I’m not letting that evil Jungkook take you away.”

“Yah!”, Jungkook yells, a few of his tentacles hitting Jimins side, “He’ll be so glad to be away from you tomorrow.”

“No, he won’t,” Jimin argues. And turns back to Yoongi, hands insistent on squeezing his face. He smushes up his cheeks and strokes his hair, cooing at him. “You won’t, right? You like me, of course you do! You’re so adorable!”

While Jimin pats and fondles his face, Yoongi notices everyone else watching them with similar expressions. As if they also think he’s ‘so adorable’. He can feel himself flush red with the treatment. Namjoon ends his predicament, luckily. “Okay Jimin. Now get him into bed or I’ll let Jungkook have his will. He’s been yawning.” The unfamiliar word sounds strange from his mouth, curling around the syllables clumsily.

“No! I’m going, already on my way! Come on up Yoongi, let’s sleep.” Jimin springs up from his seat. And he looks so happy at the thought of having a sleepover with Yoongi, that he can’t help it. Before thinking further on it, Yoongi agrees. It’s gonna be fine, Jimin has been nothing but kind all day. He gets pulled off his chair gently and into Jimins arms, then carried straight out the room and past the common room. Yoongi thinks about his bag lying there, but he can’t even voice that he wants it because his sleeping clothes are inside, Jimin is way too quick with his long legs.

They cross the maze of hallways breezily; Yoongi having lost every orientation. The door to Jimins room is at the end of one hallway, opening up to a big and cozy space. It resembles the rooms he’s seen on BT, there’s a bed in the corner, huge and covered in pillows. The colours of the room are more pastel than anything else, there’s a workspace, a closet, some decoration. It’s nice. Maybe Yoongi can decorate his own room with a concept too. He didn’t have much money on earth and wasn’t able to be picky about anything he wanted. Jimin sets him down in the middle of the room on plush carpet, looking him up and down.

“Oh, they probably gave you some sleeping clothes!”, Jimin exclaims. “Well, I’m too lazy now. Lets just get you out of those.”

He’s already halfway through tugging off Yoongis jumpsuit when Yoongi realizes what’s happening and panics, jumping away with a yell. Jimin is much more surprised by this than Yoongi thought - they did not teach anything about such things in the societal lessons in the training centre. “I’ll do it myself,” Yoongi firmly states. Jimin still looks a little apprehensive, but doesn’t try it again.

Luckily in his plight to get away, Yoongi had gotten closer to the bed. Jimin takes off his clothes as well, entirely unperturbed by Yoongis presence. Yoongi doesn’t take his underwear off, hesitating where he stands until Jimin tells him to get into the bed. He joins a few seconds later, having grown again so he’s much bigger than Yoongi. He’d crawled under a blanket to cover up but didn’t fully lie down. Jimin has no problems to make him – first he swaddles the blanket around Yoongi like he’s a burrito, then he tugs him next to his chest, covering them both with another blanket. Yoongi can barely move and is surprised to find he likes it. He’s exhausted and he never really moved while sleeping anyway, so this is fine.

Jimin is lying on his side with one arm heavy on Yoongis waist. He can’t remember ever cuddling someone like this. It feels intimate, like they’re close friends already. Yoongi doesn’t notice he’s staring at Jimin until the other chuckles and boops his nose. “You’re supposed to sleep baby.”

And then he starts humming a lullaby and stroking Yoongis back. Yoongi arches into his touch a little, grins. His eyes fall close seconds later and he yawns a last time, the exhaustion of the day finally getting him. It’s soothing, cuddled into Jimins bed, the warmth of it, the blanket around him and Jimins gentle voice, his touch. Yoongi falls asleep in seconds, and it’s one of the best nights he’s ever had.

He’s well-rested the next day, having slept with Jimin until he woke up. The alien coos at his dishevelled hair and insists on brushing it for Yoongi, who eventually just lets it happen. They go to the kitchen and take their nutrition pills. Jungkook and Taehyung join them seconds later, and they insist that Yoongi spend the day with them. They do get their way, because Namjoon shows up and tells Jimin to share. Yoongi is excited about it all. This is the first real day on the ship, maybe he’ll get taught anything new! From what he’s gathered yesterday, Taehyung and Jungkook are the mechanics here, so they’ll probably to routine checks at the engine and stuff.

Jimin and Namjoon leave them eventually, ruffling Yoongis hair as they pass. It’s only been a day, but he’s already used to it. As he expected, Jungkook and Taehyung first take him down to the engine room. He even walks himself this time, squashed in between them since both insisted on holding his hand to guide him. He’ll have to watch his ego, this much attention would get to anyone’s head. The way isn’t too long, and Yoongi is entertained listening to Jungkook and Taehyung talk.

Upon arrival, Yoongi detaches from them both. The room is as colourful as the rest of the ship and stuffed full. Yoongi tries to inspect everything closer, not quite reaching out to anything. There are so many pipes and buttons and wiring and- a tentacle suddenly winds around his middle and gently pulls him backwards. Confused as to what’s going on, Yoongi looks at Taehyung with what must be pretty round eyes.

“Everything is fine Sweetheart,” Jungkook assures him, two of his own tentacles squeezing Yoongis cheeks until he has to smile. “Don’t wander off in here, it could be dangerous.”

Despite thinking that he’s an adult and can handle himself a few meters away from them, Yoongi nods obediently. He’ll show them that he’s sensible and they don’t need to watch him as closely, and in a few days they’ll trust him. Of course he needs to earn that trust first, they don’t know him at all. And he probably could really mess up shit in here. He wouldn’t, he isn’t dumb. But he gets it. So he accepts the head pats, doesn’t say anything about the tentacle staying curled around his middle, doesn’t try to touch anything at all, and behaves.

Taehyung and Jungkook inspect the whole room, carefully but not overtly angsty. It seems a well-oiled routine. They don’t explain anything to Yoongi at all, only noting things to one another. He’s only allowed to watch for now, but that’s okay. He can really learn everything later. Since the room is quite stuffed full they do take a little while to finish, Yoongi getting pulled with them.

After that they make their way back to the common room, where Seokjin and Hoseok are curling up on a couch and playing a game, laughing at each other. Yoongis bag is nowhere to be seen. He really needs to ask about that, he’ll need new clothes tomorrow. And where is the machine to clean the old ones? The alien washing machines are ahead of the human ones about thousands of years. They clean perfectly, and dry, all in one. Yoongi loves them. His moment of distraction was used to guide him onto another one of the couches as well and it’s just heavenly plush enough that Yoongi curls up there without protest. Taehyung joins Seokjin and Hoseok and weasels his way into their game, while Jungkook curls up half around Yoongi.

Yoongi kind of wants to ask about what they’re all doing. All four of the crew members behave like there’s absolutely no work to be done, and no one has tried to teach him anything yet. It’s just- Yoongi likes it. He likes having nothing to do, no responsibilities, no pressing worries. He knows there will be food and a place to sleep at the end of the day. That’s enough. He’s never had the time to truly relax, and now he kind of doesn’t want to give it up. Maybe it’s selfish of him. But really, the other four aren’t doing much either. Even yesterday, he literally just chilled with Jimin for hours.

Thinking about it, there must not be lots of work here. They only need to steer the ship, but with its automatic flight routes that’s not much work. Maintaining everything also isn’t, aliens really have it all figured out. Cleaning clothes requires close to no work, cleaning the ship doesn’t either (they have robots for that), there’s no food to prepare, no dishes to wash. So it boils down to checking everything regularly, and nothing more. There’s only work if something actually happens on patrol, if another ship needs help or something. Naturally, in the meantime they’re lounging around here.

Suddenly fingers scratch over his back and he flinches sightly, realizing Jungkook is the culprit. He relaxes again, glad his initial reaction didn’t stop Jungkook. The alien begins to massage his back, his strong fingers working out any knots and cricks in his neck. Happily, Yoongi closes his eyes and hums in pleasure. It just feels so nice. He registers Jungkook chuckling a little, another hand joining the first. His movement is slow and soothing. It makes Yoongi almost drowsy, especially when a few tentacles join the whole spectacle. One curls into his hair, winding circles and scratching behind his ear, another curls around his stomach and just holds. After a while, he faintly notices everyone else beginning to talk, but he’s too lazy to listen at all. Hopefully they don’t think he’s rude for it.

The day passes like that, sticky like molten lava. Yoongi does barely move at all. Even when Jungkook and Taehyung change places and they get louder with their games, laughing and screeching, dancing around the room. Yoongi just lies there and lets Taehyung pet him. In the evening it’s like he’s coming out of a haze, led to the dining room where he swallows his pills and lets Jimin dote on him, who claims he’s been too lonely without Yoongi. It’s kind of cute, how he pouts and sulks, claiming Yoongi should spend more time with him. Jungkook and Taehyung try to argue, wanting Yoongi for another day because they’re actually two people and not one, but Namjoon intervenes and shakes his head at them.

Yoongi stays silent throughout the whole dispute. He knows it’s about him, but they don’t really ask for his opinion anyway. And it’s right, isn’t it? They should decide who he’ll shadow the next day, what he’ll learn. Eventually. It’s not like he’ll spend the rest of his time here doing nothing at all. That’s not why IRIS put him here, they wanted him to learn and adjust to the society. Well, he’s being very good at adjusting, if he dares to say so. All six crew members seem to like him, which he counts as a definite win.

Only after Namjoon has given his short status report does he gather the courage to speak up. He asks about his bag and clothes, to which Hoseok says he’s stored them away where they belong, and Yoongi shouldn’t worry about them. He’s about to ask again where they are because he wants to sleep in his pyjamas, when a debate develops about how often humans should change clothes. Namjoon, most knowledgeable, explains things about sweat which causes Seokjin to flicker next to Yoongi and smooth a finger down his arm, claiming there’s no sweat at all. Before he can stop it, Yoongi is laughing at them all. Their bewildered faces only make it funnier and he curls around himself and gasps for breath, giggling away without restrain.

He's only interrupted by Hoseok, who squeals and babbles about how cute Yoongi is. It makes him blush but can’t stop the ongoing laughter. Luckily for him, Namjoon once again comes out on top of the argument. He makes Taehyung bring Yoongi to their bathroom to wash him while Jungkook gets him new clothes. Alien bathrooms are kind of like human ones, just with overall better functionality. Like Jimin, Taehyung tries to help him out of his jumpsuit and Yoongi is quick to step away and do it himself, not as surprised as yesterday though. They all have a weird concept of personal space and touch and nudity. Taehyung doesn’t wear clothes at all apparently, and the others only basic tunic-like garments. Yoongi has no idea if they even have the same concept of shame around nudity and genitalia, he has no idea how reproduction works for any of them either. Not that they know that much more about him. Other than Namjoon, they’re definitely clueless.

In the end he isn’t saved from stripping in front of Taehyung though. He needs to get in the bathwater, and he doesn’t want Taehyung to try and help him, if he looks like he won’t get his underwear off alone. He’s not that self-conscious about his body and used to showering in communal bathrooms as well. So he strips and gets in, Taehyung taking his clothes away quickly. With all his attempts, Yoongi can’t stop Taehyung from helping him wash up though. They also have some kind of soap, that the alien lathers in his hair and over his body, humming a song under his breath.

Jungkook busts into the room unannounced at one point which makes Yoongi feels a little outnumbered, but it’s fine. Neither of them treat him differently naked than they did when clothed, they don’t stare or touch in weird ways. Once he’s done he gets out, enduring Jungkook towelling him dry a little too carefully almost. They must have taken Namjoons warning that he’s fragile to heart. Then Jungkook drapes fabric above his head, light and baby blue, kind of a dress. Or a nightgown? Yoongi is unsure, but it’s very soft against his skin and warm, so he doesn’t ask about the clothes he actually brought himself to wear.

After that he’s led down the hallways to another room. He thinks it’s close to where Jimins room was, but unsure. He just thinks maybe he’ll finally get his room when the door opens. About sixty percent of the room is underwater. There’s a really huge bed with blankets, cupboards and games in the dry zone. When Taehyung comfortably walks in and just flops into the pool, he realizes that must be the pond Seokjin spoke of. And this is their room, not Yoongis. Confused, he stands in the doorway until Jungkook nudges him inside and towards the bed.

He must notice how reluctant Yoongi feels, because he turns him around to face him. Jungkooks expression is sympathetic but sad. “Are you okay? Do you want to go back to Jimin?”, he asks and cups Yoongis face. A thumb smoothes along Yoongis cheek, making him lean into it. And he does want his own room, really. He does – but Jungkook looks really upset. And yesterday Yoongi did sleep in Jimins room, it would be kind of unfair to deny Jungkook and Taehyung. It’s not like he’s on a deadline to get to his room. It smells nice in here, and the quiet splashing of the water is nice.

So he shakes his head and smiles at Jungkook. Who squeals and suddenly Yoongi is picked up by about four tentacles and swung around. He yells, doesn’t even know himself if it’s shock or panic. It’s kind of fun being swung like he’s a kid again and he tries to cling to Jungkooks tentacles, giggling as the room spins around them. He’s set down a few seconds later and brought to bed. Taehyung emerges from the water again and together the aliens swaddle Yoongi in heaps of blankets, not as tight as Jimin but with the additional weight he can’t move anyway.

He snuggles in. There’s a hand in his hair, soothing warmth against his back, a gentle voice babbling at him. Yoongi remembers them saying Jungkook and Taehyung sleep inside the pond, but they stay with him until he falls asleep.

And they are back with him when he wakes up. Probably not needing as much sleep as he and Jimin do, they are wide awake already, cooing at him as he yawns and rubs his eyes clumsily, petting at his hair sticking in every direction. He gets new clothes before breakfast, a jumpsuit in a purple similar to the ship, perfectly snuggly.

He almost expects the discussion this time around. Hoseok wins and whisks Yoongi away happily. He didn’t think about it much, but Hoseok is a very bright person. Easily excitable, he quickly zooms around like when they met the first time, but Yoongi doesn’t panic now. Hoseok laughs and jokes around, his beautiful face etched with a permanent smile. Yoongi likes being next to him as they walk through the hallways. Hoseok is the first one who tries to teach Yoongi anything at all, even though it’s not much. Trying to show Yoongi the way to the escape pods, they walk it a few times before he tests Yoongi and lets him lead. Sadly enough he does get lost the first few tries, embarrassed even when Hoseok isn’t upset about him and just encourages him to try again.

When he finally does get it, it’s definitely worth it. Hoseok mouth is heart-shaped, so wide is his smile and he smothers Yoongi with hugs and pats his hair and pinches his cheeks, praising him profusely. Yoongis chest gets warm, he melts into Hoseoks arms. It feels really good to do something well, feel like he deserves the praise. After that Hoseok shows him around some more but doesn’t attempt to explain anything. Well, knowing the way to escape in an emergency is probably the most important thing, everything else can wait. He gets to see the cockpit, a biodome, some guest rooms. In the afternoon they get near another planet and Hoseok sits with him above the cockpit, letting Yoongi take in the breathtaking view. He did try to set up Yoongi in his lap, which he wiggled out of. Hoseok settled for petting his hair.

In the evening, Yoongi finally learns why Hoseoks sometimes looks so wobbly. Apparently his body in itself doesn’t have a set shape or form. He can look like anything, be anything. Most of the time he’s this human looking Hoseok, but he can suddenly lengthen his arm about two meters to smack Taehyungs head for attempting to sneak up on him. Yoongi squeaks in surprise but they calm him down quickly. When Hoseok changes his form and colour completely to a tiny spaceship and zips around him, he laughs in delight.

That night he sleeps in Hoseoks room. The alien apparently only needs like an hour of sleep, but insists that Yoongi spends the night with him. Even Taehyungs, Jungkooks and Jimins protest don’t help. To Yoongis surprise, Hoseok first brings him into the bathroom again. Apparently Namjoons story about sweat set a lasting impression. It’s easier to strip in front of him and let him wash Yoongi. Maybe they all do this to each other? Like a bonding thing between them, like humans might brush each others hair or give a back massage. They don’t seem to feel any shame around him being naked, or when Taehyung is always naked. In the same nightgown as before, Hoseok brings him to his room. It’s brightly coloured, yellows and oranges prominent.

He does have a bed where he sets Yoongi down. For the first time, he isn’t immediately wrapped in a blanket and in the end does it himself, missing the tight warmth surrounding him. Hoseok lays Yoongis head in his lap, carding his fingers through his hair. He makes a few of those chirping sounds again, the ones from when he met Yoongi. They calm him easily, making him even sleepier. He’s deep into dreamland in mere seconds, not even noticing Hoseok cooing at how susceptible the human is to his skills.

After that, Yoongi spends a day with Seokjin. He gets used to the constant flickering, after a while he can just turn off noticing it. Until then, Seokjin has struck him as a rather calm and mature person, but he’s just as funny and kind as the rest of them. Apparently it wasn’t solely Hoseoks decision to show him the emergency way, because the first thing Seokjin does is test him if he remembers. Yoongi only needs four tries this time to get it right.

When they stand in front of the escape pods, Seokjins grin is wide. He suddenly grabs Yoongi beneath his armpits and lifts him up until he’s just dangling over the ground, mouth open in surprise. “You did so well little one.” And then he pecks Yoongis forehead. It’s like heat explodes from Yoongis cheeks and he squirms in Seokjins arms until he’s let down again, facing the floor. He can’t look Seokjin in the face, but he can hear him chuckle anyway.

After that they go into a room near the cockpit, which seems to be filled with communication systems, radars, screens over screens, signals, live videos. Yoongi can’t stop gaping at everything for minutes. Apparently, since Seokjin never sleeps anyway, he’s mostly on watch duty. Yoongi had learned about that in training at BT. Even with the automated routes, the crew always has to routinely check that the surroundings are stable, that there’s no unexpected space debris or even asteroids, and of course they have to look for ships in need of help.

There’s a very comfortably padded chair where Seokjin sits down first. He beckons Yoongi over after he lets him stare for a while, and Yoongi doesn’t even think about disobeying. But when he’s close enough, Seokjin reaches out to pull him into his lap. As with Hoseok yesterday, Yoongi resists. He can sit on the floor or something. Seokjin doesn’t give up as easily though.

“Why not, little one?”, he asks while pouting, not letting go of Yoongi. “You’re so small, you don’t have to worry about me.”

But it’s not that Yoongi worries about being too heavy for Seokjin. He didn’t even really think about that, and after Seokjin picked him up earlier, it certainly won’t be a worry now. But he doesn’t quite know how to explain himself, opening his mouth without saying anything. Seokjin must see the contemplation on his face and tries again.

“Namjoon said you like cuddling,” he muses, half to himself. “I know you cuddled the others while sleeping too.”

Well, he’s right about that. And Yoongi lets them constantly pet him, and hug him, and tug him around, and now even dress him, and bathe him… He realizes sitting in any of their laps won’t really make a difference. Seokjin uses his moment of no resistance to tug him up onto his thighs, pulling Yoongi snuggly against his chest. Since he’s much taller, he can still comfortably lay his chin onto Yoongis head. It’s nice, all the warmth, the strong arms around his waist holding him, Seokjins definitely too slow heartbeat against his back. He also doesn’t seem to be flickering anymore, or at least Yoongi can’t feel it.

So, it’s quite nice. Maybe Yoongi should just accept this as another form of physical touch he can exchange with them. Back on earth, he hasn’t experienced anything like it. He wasn’t very close to anyone, but when he saw others being so close and happy in each others presence he did wish to have companions like this. Not a romantic partner necessarily. Just someone, or more than one someone, he could trust to completely relax around, that would hug and cuddle him.

The crew could be those people to him. They’ve been so nice and welcoming to him. They let him feel that they want to spend time with him. They aren’t afraid to touch him, be close. They are gentle and soft, even while being so strong. It makes Yoongi feel save, and loved already in a way he never knew. Maybe he should just… let himself experience it, without trying to influence it. If they want him to sleep in their rooms, maybe he just should. Why not, when they ask him to and he’s never slept so well before? If they want to cuddle and hug him, pet his hair and stroke his back, he could just let them. If they tug him into their laps, why not sit there? Why not welcome it, why not enjoy all of it without worry?

It seems like the right thing to decide. Especially when Seokjin sits with him in the room for a few hours watching the screens, stroking Yoongis hair and senselessly mumbling pet names at him. It makes more sense when he continues to sit in his lap during the mock dinner, listening to Namjoons usual report while knowing he doesn’t need to remember it. It feels right when Seokjin takes him to his own room after washing him. There’s no bed, but a very plush and perfect couch where Yoongi can curl up around Seokjin and sleep happily after he gets a goodnight kiss on his forehead.

He does want to spend the next day with Namjoon, but there’s actually some work to do for once. They’ve encountered some weird space debris that they get told to clean up. It’s nothing complicated, so they can spare Taehyung to stay inside with Yoongi. They have a wonderful day cuddling and laughing. Taehyung also tests Yoongi to know the way to the emergency pods, and this time he’s right on the second try, which earns him a peck on his nose and being squeezed by what seems to be all of Taehyung tentacles.

After that, they steer towards a planet to load off the space debris there, but Yoongi is allowed to finally stay with Namjoon. He seems to be the busiest of the crew, checking the current route, communicating with the main quarters on BT, writing the logbook. Still, the glowing alien never forgets about Yoongi. He tugs him into his side and plays with his hair, coos at him when he sneezes, pulls Yoongi into his lap when he reads in the common room.

Yoongi doesn’t even think about his potential own room that evening. When Namjoon directs him to the bathroom, he lets him help with undressing. He’s so gentle, and his presence gives Yoongi a feeling of safety he never experienced before. Namjoons room is the most lived in. There are plants covering a wall under very realistic but fake sunlight, books and materials and screens, making up a very green and homey space. It’s similar to rooms on earth, and Yoongi feels perfectly at home here.

Even though Namjoon needs much less sleep than him, he lies down with Yoongi in his bed and pulls him into his embrace under the blankets. Yoongi nuzzles into his strong chest and breathes in deeply, already sleepy as hell. His mind is at ease here, on the ship. There’s nothing to worry about. He’s not tense and alert all the time. And it’s all thanks to Namjoon, whose ship and crew have welcomed Yoongi.

It’s the first night he doesn’t just sleep through entirely. He wakes up to Namjoon sleeping too, moving around and shoving his body above Yoongis. He’s a very heavy blanket now, but Yoongi just snorts and falls back asleep. He wakes a second time earlier in the morning, to Namjoon lying beneath him and reading again, but is shushed back to sleep, hands petting his hair. Only the third time he’s really awake, and lets Namjoon help him out of bed.

And like that, Yoongi settles in.

Each day he spends with a different crew member, or more of them if there’s nothing else to do. He sleeps in their beds, doesn’t even want to have a room of his own anymore. He dreads the day Namjoon will assign him one, until he realizes that won’t ever happen and forgets about it. Sleeping in their beds is so good it has healing qualities. Perfect warmth, plushness, it’s safe in their arms. Seokjin doesn’t sleep but watches over Yoongi anyway, a perfect gentleman. Namjoon is the only one who wakes him up accidently while moving but is so cute while doing it Yoongi doesn’t mind. Asleep is the only time Namjoon seems to fully lose the responsibility of being the leader and he looks relaxed and young.

During the day, someone always stays with Yoongi. By now he kind of knows the hallways of the ship and wouldn’t get too lost, but he doesn’t mind it. He doesn’t like being alone anyway. It’s not like he can’t be himself around them, he’s entirely comfortable. He can nap whenever he wants, they don’t make him talk or pay attention if he doesn’t want to. There’s no need to think about what clothes to wear all day, what to do with his hair, when to wash up and go to bed. The crew members will take care of it. They pick out clothes for him, they dress him up. They tell him when they’ll go to bed, and before that they’ll wash him gently, towel him dry. Jungkook loves brushing his hair and braiding it when it’s longer. All of them love to help Yoongi with everything he could need.

Almost every day is the same. In the morning one of them will claim it’s their turn with Yoongi the loudest. He’ll accompany them if they have to work, cuddle with them in their rooms, follow them around everywhere. Since they’re all taller than him (usually, Jimin and Hoseok aren’t always the same size), they quite enjoy to pick him up and carry him instead, Yoongi pressed against their chests happily. It goes like that for a few days until Namjoon forbids everyone from constantly carrying him. He’s read up some more on humans and learned they need exercise to stay healthy, need to stretch and work out their limbs. It’s how Yoongi ends up with some kind of Yoga lessons by Jimin, mimicking his poses as best as he can. He gets praised for every pose he gets right, so he does his absolute best. Sometimes he still gets carried here and there, especially right before bedtime when he’s yawning already. Namjoon doesn’t mind it, even does it himself. After he claims that Yoongi will get ill otherwise, they all keep themselves in check about it though.

None of them ever try to teach Yoongi any of their work. Even being with them while they work, and watching them do it, neither of them mentions it. They like having his company during, but it doesn’t extent to teaching. Yoongi watches Jungkook and Taehyung bustle around the engine room, Seokjin checking the screens, the others in the cockpit, all of them cleaning space debris, helping other ships. Maybe he could learn things from that, but it’s just… why? He doesn’t need to, obviously. He doesn’t know why they’ve taken him in if not to further his training, but he doesn’t care much anymore. He just wants to keep being here, with them, letting them care for him.

And he knows they want him here to. They always show him, ready to shower him in affection, babble at him how cute and sweet he is, how well-behaved. Everyone tries to spend as much time with Yoongi as possible, Taehyung even going as far as ‘stealing’ Yoongi from beside Seokjin while cackling. Even though the days are the same, it’s never boring. Yoongi loves to stay in the cockpit to watch planets and stars and galaxies pass by, the view breathtaking any time. But it comes second to spending long evenings with the whole crew in their common room, squished between one or two or three of them as they stroke his hair and pepper him with kisses randomly.

First weeks, then even months pass just like this. Yoongi can’t imagine being anywhere else but with the crew. They are his home, his family, his everything. He loves them, he loves to be loved by them. It feels like losing them would mean to lose his life, worse even than losing his home on earth back then. Not having to keep track of anything, he’s quite surprised when they arrive back on BT.

While the rest starts with loading off some cargo they picked up on other planets, Yoongi stays with Jimin at the big entrance. Namjoon has walked down already, directing the bustling around him. Suddenly another alien like him shows up, in a uniform Yoongi barely remembers. She must work for IRIS.

For a moment, Yoongi is distracted by Jimin, whose fingers have found a certain spot on his back that feels especially good being massaged. He hums in pleasure and arches his back where he lies in Jimins lap, who is a smidgeon bigger than Namjoon currently. Jimin chuckles at him, but they both look up when Namjoon and the IRIS employee come closer, standing right beside the ship to talk without being in the way of the hustle.

“Has Min Yoongi packed his belongings then?”, the employee says then.

For a moment, Yoongi thinks about his stuff. He has some trinkets, things to play with, a pillow, all stored across the others rooms. All are gifts the crew picked up for him on foreign planets. He knows exactly where everything is. But why pack them? Namjoon seems as confused as he is, he tilts his head slowly.

“Why pack?”

Now the employee is clueless too. But she started this, Yoongi thinks, rubbing his cheeks against Jimins knee and his eyes flutter closed. He loves cuddling Jimin. Below them, the employee stutters out her explanation. “Well, we’ve only assigned you Min Yoongi for this flight, under the training program. It was supposed to help him settle here and support him in finding out how he wants to live in this new environment.”

“Are you saying,” Namjoon slowly starts, his voice getting apprehensive, “that you want to take him back now?”

The employee is taken aback. But her surprise is nothing against Yoongis shock. Jimin gasps above him, and suddenly his arms curl around Yoongi, lifting him closer until he’s pressed against Jimins chest. Yoongi doesn’t want to go, they can’t make him. He didn’t think about the program he joined in a while, about the fact that it was only a temporary experience for him.

Before the employee can catch herself and say anything, Namjoon is already taking his stance, rightening himself and putting authority in his voice. “But he belongs with us now.”

“Oh,” she makes, taken aback as she looks between Namjoon and her tablet. She doesn’t sound convinced yet.

Yoongi hadn’t noticed his own shaking until Jimin shushes him and whirls his fingers through his hair, soothingly swaying his body. “Namjoon would never let them take you, don’t worry sweetheart.” At least he sounds sure of it. Yoongi tries to not worry. He trusts Namjoon with his life, with everything. And he knows Namjoon loves him, he won’t be given up easily.

“Am I understanding correctly that you’re planning him to be a permanent crew member?”, the employee asks, “How has he adjusted and how has the training commenced?”

Namjoon tilts his head. “Yes, we want him to stay. Everything went well. He’s very sweet.”

At his words, Yoongi ducks his head with a pleased smile. Already, things seem to be looking up. He can feel Jimin relaxing a little beneath him. The employee isn’t quite done though. “I’d like to confirm that with him please, can he come here?”

“Does she think we lost you or what,” Jimin mumbles above Yoongi, “as if we couldn’t look after one little human.”

Still, he stands up, his hands holding Yoongi so he’s automatically upright as well. Jimin sets him down and takes his hand, leading him down to Namjoon, who is already looking out for them. He shrinks down to Yoongis height on the way, so their walking pace is the same and Yoongi doesn’t need to jog to keep up. The employee smiles at Yoongis appearance, although her eyes flit down to their clasped hands for a long moment. Jimin shuffles Yoongi between himself and Namjoon carefully.

The stranger turns to Yoongi easily, her gaze steady but stern. “Captain Namjoon says you’ll stay on his ship, is that correct?”

Yoongi feels a little weary, talking to a stranger for the first time in months, but he nods and confirms it anyway. “Yes.” Reassuringly, Jimin squeezes his hand. Hoping that he’s done with that, Yoongi pads closer to Jimin, hiding against his side.

The employee opens here mouth as if to ask him more, but Namjoon interrupts her. “Is there a problem?”

“Well…,” she starts, but after a moment of silence she seems to shake off any remaining concerns and smiles. “No, I guess. I’ll register him as a permanent crew member for you then. The management will be pleased about the success of this project.”

With a few words of goodbye from Namjoon she leaves, tablet tucked beneath her arm. Namjoon ruffles Yoongis hair and bends down to kiss his temple, his usual smile returning to his face. “Well done, baby,” he mumbles absentmindedly and Yoongis whole body wants to tilt towards his as if he’s the actual sun, wants to bask in his voice and touch. Namjoon welcomes him, for a moment, caressing him before he turns to Jimin. “You can take him back inside now, thank you.”

Jimin shakes his head and suddenly he’s tall and wide and imposing. “I’ll help with the cargo. You should spend some time with him, you’re always so busy. The little one misses you.”

With that, Jimin strides off, leaving Namjoon and Yoongi behind. With a resigned snort about Jimin, Namjoon bends down and picks up Yoongi, holding him with one arm easily. Contently, Yoongi clings to him and buries his face in Namjoons neck. His most favourite place to be is in one of their arms, this is perfect. Namjoon softly strokes his back. “I’m so happy you’re here. And now you can stay with us forever, little pet.”

Yoongi nuzzles his nose against Namjoons skin. Forever – that sounds amazing. He never ever wants to be anywhere else again.