It hits hard, thinking of Jungkook striving to be some perfect son, a watered down version of the boy Yoongi loves. And he gets it. In its own, awful way, that's love, too. It's the same thing as Yoongi working hard late into the night, studying so he can get good grades in the vain hope that his father will show him a shred of affection. He recognizes the pointlessness of it and still he keeps doing it because he can't help hoping. Jungkook keeps trying because he loves his mother. Yoongi can't fault him for that, but he regrets that it feels necessary to either of them.

And yet that's all the more reason this is special. They don't have to pretend. He can be entirely himself, no matter how awful that sometimes is; Jungkook loves him even when he's clouded over, the color leeched from his world. Loves him exactly as he is. It's the most powerful thing Yoongi's ever known.

"Nothing," he agrees quietly. "And you never have to be anyone else for me. Never." Different and better are two different things, though; he gets that. He wants that himself, wants to be the best possible version of himself for Jungkook. He won't always succeed, but he wants to try. "It's like... sanctuary. From everything and everyone else."