Chapter Text
“What’s wrong, Jimin?” Jin—a beta with beauty, humor, and a penchant for cooking to go with the pride of being the eldest of the group—finally joined the table of boys, bringing with him with the last of the side dishes. “You’ve been silent since we got back. What’s up?”
“I dunno… I just… That wasn’t what I expected,” Jimin confessed.
The group of aspiring idols sat at the low, crowded table in their shared studio dorm after a long contract briefing. Jimin—the smallest but arguably liveliest of the newly formed boy band—had been filled with all the excitement and confidence of a young pup eager to bond with a new pack. He had worked hard to be chosen out of all the other trainees. Although it was a unique way to join a pack, Jimin loved the stories about K-pop groups having exceptional pack bonds due to sharing musical passions, experiencing struggles together, and supporting one another through their shared lives and careers as celebrity idols.
“No?” Namjoon, the only presented alpha and soon to be band and pack leader, asked as he topped his rice with his regular favorites.
“No. I…" Jimin sighed, putting down his chopsticks. “This sucks! I mean, I thought we were going to be a real pack!”
Jimin looked around as everyone seemed to pause.
Jimin blanched. “Or… maybe I was the only one who thought that?” Jimin trailed off into silence, suddenly wondering if he was the only one foolish enough to have bought into the bonded band-pack illusion.
Jimin really liked all of the boys from the start and in his mind had invested into this idea that they were forming a pack—a joyful family that fought together for success while bonding as life partners. It was different than his traditional upbringing, but his parents hadn’t discouraged him since he started dreaming about it a few years ago.
During the contract meeting, however, Jimin learned that it was only a part of idol optics to present a group which appeared to be a real pack. That way, they could win fans over by implying that their skinships and flirtations were real and reflected true affection. It came as a shock and grave disappointment to Jimin to learn that idol groups often did not bond with their band-pack members at all.
The contract they were to sign did not include anything about pack regulations, subgender declaration requirements, presentation notifications, dating restrictions, or anything that would seem to restrict their freedom and rights as individuals. Bang PD, the founder and head of the company, was passionate about changing the idol industry in South Korea. These personal matters were not regulated by BigHit like they were in other entertainment companies. Here, they were invited to keep it separate, though discreet, from the business matters of their career.
Jin pushed his food away a bit and breathed in deeply. “I’m a little disappointed, too, actually. I thought there would at least be more discussion about it, if I’m honest. Sure, we get that they're respecting our personal choices, but are we just going to be like all the other groups and fake bonds we don’t actually have?”
No one was eating at this point, hands frozen while holding utensils. A couple heads shook and Namjoon looked around. “I guess we were really all on different pages weren’t we?”
More heads nodded and chopsticks were laid to rest, food forgotten, as Namjoon led on.
“I guess I wasn't surprised because I’ve had these conversations before,” the alpha explained, “but I only spoke with Yoongi-hyung and Hoseok about it a while ago.”
Namjoon looked at his band mates, all looking to him as if he had the answers. The alpha seemed to sit up taller under the pressure.
“Okay,” Namjoon began, “So what does everyone want? I think we’re seeing this contract as limiting us, when it actually gives us freedom to decide what we want on our own terms. We can do anything. We just have to be aware of our public images as an idol group and not let anything we do in our personal bonding and mating lives affect that. Jimin, you said you wanted to be a real pack. What do you mean by that?”
Jimin nodded, “Well, I thought… I believed that I was joining a real pack. I thought we were going to become bonded for life.”
Jimin looked around and saw some smiles. But he couldn’t tell if they were smiles of agreement or pity.
“Does anyone else also want this?” Namjoon asked the group.
Everyone was silent for a while, the tension palpable as it appeared everyone was too nervous to speak. Jimin suddenly dreaded that he was going to be the pitiable one who they all remembered wanting too much too soon.
But then Taehyung cleared his throat. “It does sound hard to be a fake pack for so many years if we’re successful,” he spoke softly.
“I'm open to considering it,” Hoseok spoke up next, Jin and Jungkook nodding their heads and mumbling their agreement.
Eyes gravitated to Yoongi, who shifted uncomfortably. “I have to think about it. When Namjoon, Hoseok, and I spoke a while ago about it, I was under the assumption that everyone would be bonding with packs after we disband.”
Jimin frowned at Yoongi’s comment.
“Disband?” Jimin scoffed, “We haven’t even begun, hyung! I thought you three were determined to see us succeed. What kind of success are you aiming for if you’re imagining our impending doom?”
Yoongi stared at Jimin and Namjoon breathed in deep.
“We’re not imagining that,” Namjoon began.
“You are if you don’t want to commit to our pack,” Jimin stated.
Our pack. It rang through the air like a bell. Namjoon shifted in his seat, his scent defending the small challenge as if the pup before him was becoming an alpha he had to keep in place.
“I guess that’s what we all need to decide then, isn’t it,” Namjoon stated. “We ARE a band-pack. But we don't know if we will be a committed pack that fully bonds. It comes down to what you want. The reality we have to consider is that if we all bond, what happens when BTS is done? What if things go south and one, two, or more of us decide to leave the pack? That means a lot of heartbreak for all of us. And that’s not a choice I can ask any of you to make in a day. Tomorrow we sign the contracts with our parents and current pack alphas, but that does not make the final decision about if this pack will bond or how committed we will become to each other. We have plenty of time to figure that out. We’re really just getting to know each other. The contract leaves it up to us.”
Namjoon paused for a moment as if welcoming input. When no one spoke, he continued, “How do we feel about taking our time? How about we begin as team members of a band-pack and see where that naturally leads for us?”
Slowly, all the boys’ heads nodded as some voiced their agreement. Jimin still felt disappointed. He clearly wanted to bond more than the others. Did they not like him enough?
“Ok,” Namjoon concluded, clapping, “so the option is open and we’re moving forward. Now let’s not let this dinner go to waste. Eat up so we can rest and get going tomorrow.”
Namjoon and Jin fell into easy conversation about tomorrow’s schedule and Jungkook and Taehyung began fighting over the remains of a side dish. Everyone was eating comfortably and Jimin joined in to ease his anxiety. This was all going to be much different than he had imagined.