[PREVIEW] +6.8K words completed for: “BT21 Attack!!” -- Chapter 4
“Uggghhhhhhhhhh,” Taehyung wheezes. “Well, uh. That. That went better than I thought.”
He pulls himself upright with a wince, and RJ reaches to boop his nose cheerily. He sits astride the human’s chest as he eats. Taehyung smiles at him, uses his big hands to cover RJ from the rain however in vain, and RJ hums and pats his chest to show his appreciation. Crumbs stick to his red neckerchief; the baguette’s already half-finished. Although Seokjin may be the one he makes heart eyes at, RJ has to admit he’s rather fond of this one, too.
“Heya, RJ,” says Taehyung, eyes scrunching up. “We were all worried about you, silly ‘paca.”
“Beh!”
“Tata, ta… (Help, please).”
Surprised, RJ and Taehyung look down to find Tata poking out from under the latter’s hip. His polka-dot legs are pinned underneath Taehyung’s butt, albeit totally unharmed, elastic as they are. Even so RJ chirps in shock, shoves the half-eaten bread into his mouth and jumps to help while Taehyung sputters.
“Sorry, sorry, Tata!”
He scrambles off and stares with furrowed eyebrows as Tata retracts his legs, and RJ lifts him to his feet. When normal-sized (that is, unstretched), Tata proves much smaller than he seemed earlier. This becomes especially apparent when the alien plants himself between RJ and Taehyung, puffing himself up (literally) to look big and brave despite obvious fright. Taehyung seems to realize this, his face falling into an adoring “O” as he peers down and down and down at the heart-headed alien. RJ can’t blame him. Tata is the adorablest.
“Hi,” Taehyung greets in the gentlest tone. Moving slow and careful, he kneels so that he and the alien are eye level, whereupon he tries a shy smile. “You’re Tata, right? I’m Taehyung, you can call me Taetae. Hey, hey, don’t be scared. I’m not gonna hurt you guys. I actually wanna be your friend, if that’s okay?”
“Ta-tta (No),” is Tata’s only-a-little-tremulous response. But RJ can tell the human sees straight through the bravado. Tata shakes like a leaf, and he shrinks back against RJ’s cotton chest when Taehyung rocks forward. But the human just shifts around until he ends up cross-legged on the drenched sidewalk. RJ lifts his eyebrows. Very smart: he’ll look safer that way — less likely to pounce and attack, the way Tata fears. Cautiously, Taehyung then holds out his hands, fingers open and palm up, non-threatening.
“I’m serious. You don’t have to be afraid of me,” he says, quiet. “I promise that me and my friends only want to help, and we’d never hurt your family either. But there’s— We need your help, too. Chimmy’s here now, too! He appeared like you and RJ, but he slipped and fell into the storm grate. My best friend Jimin’s with him now — and I’d vouch my life that Chimmy’s safe with him, cross my heart — but we need you to help us get him out, if you’d let us. We’re your friends, Tata, I mean it. But you need to trust us, all right?” He hesitates. Draws a shaky breath. “Please? Trust me, Tata?”
