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Glimpse of Us Update!! 1/13

So like...chapter 4 is pretty long lol

That means it may take a little longer to edit and revise (there are still gonna be errors as I am human) but I can give you a couple of sneak peek

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Flashbacks :D emphasis on FLASHBACKS

You get to see what happened to them if you know what I mean

The other members have...uh their opinions

Someone is a bit reckless

If you have any questions or comments, feel free to ask me anything! (maybe even more hints but I feel like I said too much)

PLEASE THEY ALWAYS ASK WHAT I READ AND I HAVE TO LIE

"you read a lot, right?"

"yes!"

"what are some books you've read recently?"

"uhh i don't remember"

I’m genuinely surprised at the amount of love and support I’ve been given 🥹 Thank you all. I will try my best creating content and sharing it with you 💘💘

“Oh my god you’re a writer? Can I read your stuff?”

I know many of you are waiting for the next chapter of Glimpse of Us! I’m currently busy with work and (attempt) studying for an exam so I won’t be posting until after this week.

To calm yourselves, here’s a sneak peak—

I won’t give context clues 🧍🏻‍♀️🧍🏻‍♀️

I passed my exam and now I’m unofficially licensed in my profession LOL 😭🥹🎉

That’s why I wasn’t as active in the past weeks because I was studying lol

In other words, I have time to work on the next chapter of glimpse of us and maybe even another fanfic I wanted to do for hobi…

Glimpse of Us | KTH Chapter VI: Why I Love You

Pairing: Problematic Idol Taehyung x Grad Student Reader

Genre: Idol AU, Ex-Childhood Best Friends into—, Angst (Hello, welcome to my angst central), Fluff (mainly in the flashbacks), Slow Burn, Eventual Smut

Summary: BTS’s V has been living a lavished and successful lifestyle, but underneath all of that, Kim Taehyung is far from the perfect image the media and fans made him out to be. All he wants is to relive the feelings of happiness and purpose in his life, but how can he when he left behind those memories years ago? The same memories, he hopes to see a glimpse of.

Warning: Flashback fluffs, kdrama references, talks of plants, idk teenage Tae hit for me in this, but adult Tae rn ????, some swearing here and there, the plot thickens and PAIN

Word Count: 13.8 K

Chapter VI: Why I Love You || Series Masterlist

“You practically live in my room with all the clothes you leave here.” Taehyung entered his bedroom carrying an extra pillow and blanket. He saw you in your daisy pajama set you received on your birthday from his parents. You sat on his full-sized bed on the right side while having his laptop on your lap. “And be careful with that! It cost a whole fortune.”

“Same goes for you. Half of my drawers are your clothes.” You muttered as you typed something on his screen. “I am also careful. I’m just trying to find a movie that we could watch.”

Ever since Taehyung got gifted a laptop for Christmas, it was practically yours as well considering how much time you’ve spent on it. He didn’t mind though, he loved sharing with you, and oftentimes, you needed it for school.

He opened up the blanket before wrapping it around you, then putting the cushion behind your back although you wouldn’t really need it since you always ended up cuddling to his side. “You wanna watch Spirited Away? Or maybe Princess Mononoke?” You asked when he sat beside you on the left and wrapped his arm around your waist.

Pecking your temple, he rested his chin on your shoulder. He tilted his head to the side as he stared in awe at you. But it went unnoticed as you scrolled through the illegal website you found weeks back. “What do you wanna watch, Blue? I’ll watch anything.”

A spark of mischief appeared in your lively irises. “Really?” You said before changing the entire website in light speed before your actual want popped up.

“Really, Boys over Flowers again? This is like the fourth time you’ve watched the entire series when it came out!” Taehyung whined. He only did so because when you’ve watched it four times, he too watched it four times. All the time. He pulled you back to the bed frame while you brought the computer with you. “Why do you love this so much?” Despite all the complaining and nagging, he obliged hopelessly to the viewing of tonight’s entertainment. 

“I read the manga.” You shrugged. “I love the main guy too.” Your heart fluttered envisioning you and Gu Junpyo together.

Taehyung rolled his eyes and suppressed the pinch of jealousy running through his veins. “He’s such a dick to her though. Don’t fall for guys like that.”

“Nuh-uh! He actually cares for her, he just doesn’t know how to express them well…” You defended your celebrity crush as you played an episode. You placed the laptop in between your bodies before snuggling into Taehyung with your leg over him.

“Whatever, if you really do fall in love with some asshole, I will beat him up.” Taehyung scoffed to which you giggled. He hooked under your leg, bringing it closer and in a comfier position. “I never want you to be treated like Jandi. He tormented her!”

“So what guy should I fall for?” You asked nonchalantly. You reached for his hand to intertwine them with yours, laying it on his chest.

“Someone who will give you unconditional love and won’t intentionally hurt you, Blue.” He murmured into your supple hair. While you carelessly played with his hand, he fluttered his kisses into your strands.

The conversation died from there as the both of you watched the episode, but halfway through the show, he heard your soft snoring. The side of your cheek squished up onto his torso. You let go of his hand minutes back so you could wrap an arm over him. You were such a koala, but he loved it. That’s why he grew to love cuddling so much.

Taehyung chuckled at your slumbering form. He closed his laptop and moved it to the bed stand so that you could properly sleep. There he turned the lamp light off, darkness spilled over his room. He shifted you to your side before doing it to himself, separating your bodies.

But you let out a tiny whimper, losing the warmth. Your best friend hushed you as he circled his arms around your waist, pulling you in. The distance between you closed with your fronts touching. You latched a leg in between his and cozied up onto him.

“Night, Hyungie.” You mumbled, air-kissing him when you dozed off again. He laughed quietly at how needy you looked.

He leaned in to peck the tip of your nose, watching you sleep in his arms as always. Though the only light came through the small window, he clearly saw your beautiful resting face. The warmth in you outstretched the vicinity and onto him A true sight for him to see. He never got tired of this view—having you here with him in his arms. Nobody else in the world could break you apart. He wanted to stay like this forever and will make it happen. He was head over heels. He loved you. He loves you.

He truly was in love with you.

-

Taehyung stared exhaustedly at his ceiling. He hadn’t been having intense schedules for a while, yet he was still the same amount of tiredness. But he couldn’t find it in himself to close his eyes and let sleep take over his body. Maybe it was all the thoughts running through his mind, following him from left and right. The gears of his brain worked despite the tranquility of the night and the calmness of the air.

He lay on the right of the bed, craning his neck to the left of him to see his curled-up girlfriend sleeping like a log. She faced her body toward him, staying close as she dreamed away about God knows what. Yet the distance was evident, limbs weren’t sticking together. It felt cold to the touch, but he wasn’t at all fazed. He glanced absently at her snoozing features, holding no impressions.

His eyes shifted back to the unusually fascinating white ceiling as his mind began to think of you. It has been a couple of weeks since Jungkook’s party. The morning after, the guests recovered from the hangover after the headache-infused Jungkook bought everyone piping hot stews. You arrived in the kitchen quietly, back into your previous night’s dress as you went down to the dining room.

You waved shyly before announcing your departure, skipping the free meal. But Jungkook was adamant about letting you take it to go, so you accepted it as you said your goodbyes left. That was the last time Taehyung saw you.

It wasn’t on purpose though, there was an increase in schedules for them, having a few group meetings and conferences to do despite the pause on BTS’s music. In between those times, he had to go to his sessions. He’d text every now and then to check up on you, but you usually replied late since you were busy. But that was okay, you confirmed that you had eaten and slept well.

Tomorrow—well, technically, today—would be his first day off in a while, and messaged you a suggestion earlier at night if you wanted to spend it with him. It was a Sunday, so he knew you were off. You haven’t spent time alone together at all since the reunion, so he assumed this was the perfect opportunity. 

He could have asked Clara, but she had family business so he canceled the offer.

You still haven’t responded, so he was getting frantic if you’d ignore him. Though you reassured him that you wanted him in your life again, Taehyung still had this unconscious belief and fear that you would take it back. He knew that you wouldn’t think that way, but it was the evil side of his mind playing with him.

Maybe he should mention you to his therapist, he somehow managed to talk over or change the subject about any updates. Besides sharing light memories with his friends, he kept any thoughts of you to himself like before. It worked in the past, but look where that led him. Now everything about you ate him alive, yet he couldn’t be more grateful for it.

Damn, he really did need help.

Dr. Im wasn’t going to judge him otherwise that was unprofessional. He still thought about it. Perhaps the idol was scared that his doctor disclosed something in him that he wouldn’t want to hear…or afraid to hear in a sense. There were certain pieces of information no one but he knew about and it stayed that way. However, sooner or later, it had to be revealed but Taehyung didn’t know how to do it.

As his angels answered his prayers, his phone lit up on the bedside drawer. Reaching out to it, his eyes adjusted to the blue light then sparkled in joy when he saw replied. It read—

Sure, I don’t mind. You’re in luck that I’m giving myself a break from studying. 

Senselessly and ignoring the fact that it was one in the morning, his thumbs worked their magic to message you saying to get ready by ten. You texted instantly agreeing with no other questions, making the sides of his lips curl in excitement. He locked his phone and placed it back in its original position.

He dozed off satisfied and thrilled for the morning.

-

Taehyung arrived in the kitchen, fully dressed in his casual attire—a brown suit paired with his black shoes with the backing pushed down. He whistled whimsically as he found Clara also dressed for the day in her black business attire.

“You seem cheery today, baby.” She smiled as she went up to kiss his cheek. The idol paid no attention to her affection and lets it be. But she scuffled his hair to which he screeched as a complaint.

“Don’t mess it up!” Taehyung whined, despite making it messy to give the effortless look. Patting his wild strands down, Clara giggled amusingly as she clutched her handbag on the kitchen counter.

“You’re dressed nicely, do you have another schedule?” She wondered before pulling out a small mirror and her lip tint.

He pulled his phone out of his pocket, seeing another text from you that you were on your way. “No, it’s my day off.”

She lavished the wand on her lips, coating it in a soft pink. “Aww, really? If I had known, I would have taken the day off too.”

“It’s fine. Isn’t it important anyway?” He shrugged as he messaged you to be safe, settling it down on the kitchen island.

The socialite sighed in response, “Yeah, it’s a soft launch of our collaboration with another company. My dad wanted you to come, but I told them you had work.”

“Thanks for taking me out then.” He mentioned with a smirk. “Parties like that are boring.”

“Don’t remind me.” She rolled her eyes. “Love my family but I cannot bear to hear another generic speech from them.” She shoved her items back into her purse and observed her boyfriend, who was in a lighter mood today. “So how come you’re dressed up? And shocking in a good mood.”

The idol rolled his eyes as he eyed her back. “Is it shocking that I’m like this?”

“Yes, because you’re usually sour.”

Taehyung grimaced at her reply, a tad offended. He didn’t want to ruin his attitude because of her. “I’m going out with ___. Haven’t been able to see her since the party.” There was a pinch in Clara’s face when he announced his day. She peered at her boyfriend with narrowed eyes, almost like slits. Taehyung challenged her stare with a rather mundane and relaxed look. He cocked an eyebrow, muttering the word, “What?”

“Just you and her? Is Seojoon Oppa or Wooshik Oppa coming?” She inquired, hands resting on her hips.

“Just us two, like old times.” Taehyung simply answered. “We haven’t hung out in a while.”

“Yes, you have.”

“Besides the party and going to her work isn’t hanging out.” He countered as he grabbed his keys.

“You’re really making an effort to spend time with her.” The socialite pointed out as she went towards the fridge to obtain a water bottle.

“Well, everyone knows, including you, that we had a falling out, so we wanted to catch up.”

“Are you free tonight? Maybe we can have dinner together.” Clara offered. “We’ll even purchase extra sides of japchae for you.”

“I guess so?” The idol was iffy on it. “Depends how long I’ll be out with ___.”

“Wha-where are you even going with her anyway?”

His phone vibrated, with your contact name popping up. You were here and quickly pocketed his phone. “Not sure, but she’s still new to the city. I might take her to the park or a village, she loves gardens too so we’ll see. Maybe even to a cat cafe, she loves animals.”

Taehyung blabbered on, listing some suggestions, while Clara stood there listening to activities she used to ask him to do. “Whatever, you both don’t do, let’s go together.” She insisted with a gentle smile.

The idol blinked at her, forcing the curves of his mouth to go up before nodding. “We can.” Clara couldn’t tell as she clapped enthusiastically, but it was an empty promise. “She’s here, so I’m heading out.” He began walking away.

“Oh, I’ll follow you out. I have to go soon too.” The socialite trailed beside him. “Tannie was also picked up by Hyungsik for a dog date.”

Once the front door opened, a gust of wind splashed the couple’s faces. The early signs of the fall season were showing with the cooling breeze, partly cloudy and sunny skies, and change in color of the once green summer, creating the perfect weather. You waited by the walkway of the porch. You sported a buttoned-down light mocha v-neck dress over a rustic cardigan. You paired on the same pair of heels from the party. Hair was straightened this time with little to no makeup on, maybe curled your lashes and tinted your lips but that was about it.

Taehyung smiled at your presence as he jogged down to your stature. You waved at him before noticing Clara too, so you greeted her as well. “Hi Clara, are you coming too?”

The socialite puts on a smile and shook her head, “No, I have some family business to do.”She noticed the similarities to your wardrobe, but you both didn’t bother to notice. “But I hope you both have fun, okay? Tae, text me anything fun.“

Taehyung looked distracted, not even hearing what his girlfriend said. You nudged him and motioned towards Clara that she spoke to him. He turned back to see her and brainlessly nodded, “Have fun at work!” He grabbed your wrist as he unlocked the car. He basically dragged you into the vehicle as he didn’t want any more interactions happening between you and her.

Clara watched his car take off with you waving back and Taehyung ignoring her entire presence. As the vehicle grew smaller and finally out of sight, the socialite grimaced. Clenching her jaw, she had many thoughts going on and was suspicious of him, especially with you. She doesn’t know if she liked it or not, but one thing was for sure, she reached for her phone and sent a message.

-

“Taehyung, we’ve been driving for over an hour.” Looking through the tinted windows, you watched cars passing by and disrupting your view of the water. This was maybe the third bridge he drove through. But instead of coming out into a city, a small town came into your vision with many small businesses ahead.

“I don’t like being in Seoul as often as you think. There’s a place I know of that you might like. Plus, fewer people recognize me or just leave me alone compared to the city.” You stayed silent and nodded, but he knew you listened carefully. “Hmmm, you don’t like my driving?” He merely questioned as he took a left turn. “I would assume with the excellent music playlist and scenery would have you enjoying the ride.”

“Well, this is the first time I’ve seen you driving, let alone be in a car with just you.” You stated, turning back to see him focus on the road. You noticed how he removed his blazer and rolled up his sleeves. His veins were visibly seen through his honey skin. He only used one hand and held the steering wheel at the very bottom. “I’m not complaining though.”

The idol snuffed, glancing at you quickly before staring forward. “Must be weird then. We would used to walk, take the bus, or the train together.”

“Not weird…just been a while.” Shaking your head, you went back to sightseeing out your passenger window.

Taehyung’s eyes constantly shifted from gawking at you to the highway. Tightening his grip on the wheel, he used his unoccupied hand to listen to an old song that came up into shuffle. At the first beat of the song, your head shot towards the stereo receiver.

You snorted, completely incredulous at the music choice. “Jesus Christ, why do you have this on your playlist?” A smile crept up as the hit of nostalgia washed your face.

His signature boxy grin came up while watching you as he shrugged, “It’s all on shuffle. I’ve never heard it in a while, so I’m surprised as you are.”

“Do you still know the lyrics?”

“Of course, I do. You made me learn it from all the times we’ve heard it.” He scoffed as if the question shouldn’t have been asked in the first place. The traffic light turned red, making the vehicle at a stop.

“Well, let’s put it to the test then!” You challenged before amplifying the volume.

You both then sang the lyrics to the song, “Almost paradise!! A warmer day than the sun, the look in your eyes. It’s like having the whole world!” While at the stoplight, Taehyung finally focused his attention on the passenger’s seat to fully sing to you. “In my life!! Like a light in my weary life, you came to me and gave me love. If only I could keep it forever!”

“You are all of my love!” Taehyung sang or rather shouted.

“You are all of my life!” You continued.

“With my everything, I love you!!!” You sang together right before the light went back to green. While resuming the drive, you fell into a pit of laughter through what was once your favorite drama. You were surprisingly impressed that you remembered it, not seeing the show in ten years. But guess that’s what happens when you watched it eight times.

On the other hand, Taehyung’s body felt lighter after that. A very tiny memory was a core one at that moment, cherishing simpler times. It felt good, felt so right. The only thing he wished for was for the light to stay red a little longer. 

-

“You still love plants, right?” He asked as you both entered the establishment. Eyes sparkled in delight when you scoped the nursery filled with various plants you’ve grown to learn over the years. Ranging from foliage to blooming to only in-season ones. It was getting colder and cloudier in Korea, so there were indoor growing lights built about the jungle of greenery. “Cats too?”

The place he brought you was also part of a cat cafe, so it combined two of your favorite interests into one. Not many individuals were here at the moment as the place opened for the day not too long ago. Scanning below you, you spotted different breeds of cats walking around, playing with scattered toys, napping, and laying down on towers

“Surprise you remembered that.” You mumbled, suppressing the excitement within you when you spotted a black feline strutting up to your form. Without thought, you picked the cat up and it immediately warmed up and trusted you. You cooed at the sight of its eyes slowly closing and melting into your arms.

Taehyung’s eyes shimmered at your interaction once again. He always knew how weak you were for animals. Back in Geochang, you would pet each chicken at his grandmother’s farm and play with other neighbors’ dogs every time you walked home together. You loved them and they loved you back.

“Why would I forget these things about you?” The idol inquired as he followed behind. You were distracted by all the plants and the kitties everywhere. “Plants were your hobby and animals were your interests.”

You turned back to him with an amused grin while he cocked an eyebrow playfully at you. He then stepped forward to reach out a hand toward the black cat. His finger stroked its head, and once he got approval, he ran his hands through the ebony coating.

“You love animals too.” You spoke up as you joined him in caressing the animal in your arms. “We used to be late in elementary school because we played with Banchan along the way.” The familiar mention of the Shiba Inu that used to live in the neighborhood brought many memories between you two. If possible, the same ones replayed in your heads.

On your first day of another school year, while holding hands, you and Taehyung walked a route your grandparents made to ensure safety for a six and seven-year-old. Though you both went to the same elementary school as his younger sister and brother, Taehyung was usually the last one to get out of bed so his siblings never bothered to wait for him and left earlier. But you did, so he’d never be lonely and you loved being with him.

However, it was very dangerous because you two were easily distracted especially regarding your interests. One of them being animals. That’s where Banchan the Shiba Inu came in because you quickly noticed the dog outside, held back by his leash. You ran up to him to give him some love while Taehyung wasn’t too far behind. Once the boy scratched his tummy, Banchan licked his face jubilantly, letting out laughter from the both of you.

Eventually, the owners, who were a sweet fairly young couple, heard your giggles and told you to go to school as it was already late into the schedule but promised that you could play with their dog after school. Though they received pouts and whines, you obliged and left for the school day, then came back once the day was over.

Needless to say, it became an occurring “Banchan morning love” time followed by being late for the past month, getting light scoldings from his parents and your grandparents after getting calls from your school. But the couple was kind enough to both of you by giving every Saturday dedicated to playing with Banchan, in exchange for being punctual. This continued until the couple moved out of Geochang the next year, bidding goodbye to your furry friend.

“He was too fluffy to not pet!” Taehyung still reasoned after all those years passed. His hand dropped to his side when he found an orange feline, cautiously stalking toward him. Watching his every move, the apricot-hued animal eventually slammed its body onto the idol, making him laugh at the aggressive begging to be pet. He carried it into his arms and paced beside you. “You have this Shiba Inu just hanging outside your house. Not expecting little kids to just go and play??”

You chuckled as those words were probably verbatim of our reasonings to his parents. “We still got our way.” Whilst holding the cuddly cat buddy, you roamed around the cafe nursery. The plant selection was gorgeous and difficult to even buy just one. You would buy one, but…now wasn’t a time to be spending willy-nilly.

“Do you still have your plant collection?” Taehyung asked, recollecting the memories of you repotting, watering, and talking to your babies (what you called them).

You sighed as you grazed your thumb over a leaf of a little monstera deliciosa. “No, unfortunately, I donated them away to the children’s center back home before I left. I wasn’t able to bring them all and I knew no one would be caring for them either.”

Taehyung’s mind recaptured memories of you and your grandmother tending toward the little porch garden. He never understood the immense hobby for it, but you enjoyed your plants and with that, he used to help you every now even educating himself. There were instances where he surprised Namjoon with his vast knowledge of certain plants and the caring they needed.

However, knowing that you’ve shared this hobby with your grandmother who passed long ago, it saddened him knowing you weren’t able to continue something you loved anymore, especially when it was with your grandmother. “H-how about your grandfather? He could have taken care of them.”

Something in your eyes peeked through. No spark, no light, it was rather dark, almost solemn but obscure. Taehyung couldn’t fully comprehend what it meant. To the best of his knowledge, the look seemed similar to an occurrence when you were younger but it was hard to tell. He hated not knowing.

Yet he had to remind himself his memories with you weren’t enough to know everything about who you were now and your current situations. How you used to be doesn’t equate to who you are now. But it was hard not to.

“Uh, just too old and such.” You rushed as you paid attention to the section of Devil’s Ivy. “Plus, his focus was on the fruits and vegetables in the land. It would be too much for him to handle on top of that.” You seemed a bit frazzled when you spoke, most likely not wanting to talk anymore about it. So you decided to change the topic, “Are you getting anything?” You moved further into the back of the nursery.

“I’m fine with getting some brunch in the cafe, but did you want anything?” He asked before settling the orange cat down. You did the same to your black one but plastered a kiss on its head before letting it free with its friends. Taehyung took notice of it and a side of his lips curved up.

“Uhh, no. I’m okay.” You shook your head, continuing to stare at the beautiful Peace lily plants. They didn’t have their flowers, but they were beautiful all year round. But Taehyung trailed your line of sight at them and saw a bit of longing and want. “You know Peace lily plants, or as they are scientifically called, Spathiphyllum, are known for their air-purifying abilities, and grow in a bright spot out of direct sunlight. They’re a bringer of peace, especially when they bloom their white flowers.” You rambled on with your in-hand facts as he listened. He never really understood, but somehow absorbed it easily.

Cutting your long speech, he commented, “Weren’t these your first plant?”

Stopping your mouth from moving, you blinked at him dumbstruck at his sharp mind. “How could you ev—I got Penny before I met you!” Yes, you named your Peace lily Penny, an American name but it was so easy to remember. And yes, your Peace lily was also a girl.

“You talked to her every day since we met before we would play. You talked to me about her and how special she was, and how excited you were every time she bloomed flowers.” Taehyung listed it down humorously and you couldn’t help but be stunned that he remembered all of that at the top of his head. “Also how could I forget when you cried when she died and found out they only last three to five years.”

Jesus Christ, you too remembered that day clearly. When you were eight, Penny died on you no matter how much you talked to her and fed water to her and drooping leaves. You wept into your grandmother’s arms and then into Taehyung’s before your grandmother explained that plants like Penny don’t last as long, it was part of their cycle.

Still, you were heartbroken, so to cheer you up, Taehyung gathered his entire household and yours to make a funeral, commemorating Penny, your first plant.

“I didn’t know!” You rolled your eyes, then cringed at the thought of your utter despair for a plant. “Then again, you and I both know death loves to come my way.”

You said it as a joke, but then Taehyung’s pupils dilated even choking on his spit. He tapped on his chest harshly while you rubbed his back as a sign of concern and comfort. Once he settled down into a calmer state, you said, “Guess my dark sense of humor is surprising to you?”

Of course, it was. Death was always a sensitive topic, especially experiencing it at a young age. You whined easily when your parents were mentioned or the words “dead” or “die” came into the conversation. “More so.” Taehyung shrugged worryingly in contrast to your light demeanor.

“It’s easier to cope with it.” You hummed, playing with the Peace lily’s bright green leaves. “Death, life, and especially when the people you love aren’t your life anymore.” You glanced back at his shocked state, observing the sudden pain in his eyes. You didn’t mean to say it like that, but it became a habit that you couldn’t stop yourself to do.

Taehyung said no comment on it, seeing as how casual you looked after you said that. He lets it be and wanted to lighten the mood. He shook himself out of the shock and cleared his throat. “If you want it, I’ll buy it for you.”

“No, I wouldn’t want that.” You scoffed before rolling your eyes.

“But I want to.” He pouted before inspecting the pots of Peace lilies for the perfect one. “Consider it as a gift. I invited you out anyway.”

“Taehyung, no!”

“Why not?!”

“Buying things is too much for me…” You mumbled, now fiddling with your fingers. Hoping he would understand, you also said, “They cost too.”

He hummed in response. “Does it look like I care about the cost? I’m not bragging but I am a world star.” You furrowed your eyebrows at his haughty explanation, it was quite entertaining. He meant well, but the words weren’t supporting him. He too caught on and wanted to mentally punch himself. “No, that’s no—lemme rewind.” You chuckled softly at his tense state as you crossed your arms over yourself. “I have a bit more spending money compared to when we were teens, so I’d like to give you things that you desire and want.”

You squinted at what he said, thinking very wrongly of it. “I’m not saying that it is, but you sounded like a sugar daddy.”

He opened his mouth, but quickly closed it, not knowing how to even respond to that. But he disregarded what you said. “The point is—I want to give things. I don’t mind paying. I love giving gifts. I’m a gift giver, to my friends, and family, and that also includes you, ___.”

Your teeth were in between your lips, still, not all convinced. “I still need to pay you back for the hospital bill.”

“That’s weeks ago and I don’t recall any mentions of you paying me back.” He retorted, completely baffled by your weak reasoning. “I wouldn’t have agreed either, so let that go.”

“Bu—”

“You’ve been eyeing these plants since we came here, I know you want them.” He lifted the perfect pot of Peace lily. The pigment held the summer vibrancy despite the Fall weather coming soon. A ray of leaves fanned out happily and proudly to its blossomed curve. It was still a baby, being held from the bottom of the terracotta pot with a single hand of Taehyung’s. “Even if you say no, I’ll still get them.”

“This one you picked up does have a nice shape to it.” You pointed out, but he knew you were inching to accept his offer.

“You also can start a collection here. I’ll even help you tend to them unless you want me to.”

“You do realize plants and the care are expensive.”

“Then I’ll provide them for you.”

“Okay, that’s too mu—”

“You loved planting, ___, but you had to stop.” He blurted out, zipping up any reasoning from you. “You did it with your grandmother too, it was something you bonded together over. Something you remembered her with.” He saw your eyes move around yet still managed the gaze you gave him. “I don’t want you to lose that.”

The mentioning of your grandmother ached your heart. It has been a while since you spoke about her. The vivid images of her teaching you about all those plants popped to mind, nostalgically and memorially. It was because of her, you found this loving hobby of plant care and it was something you never wanted to let go of, even if you left for Seoul.

Your eyes watered, but not enough for them to spill. You blinked continuously as you controlled your breath. You simply nodded, completely sold on what Taehyung said. “I’ll get him.” You retrieved the pot into your two hands as you scanned your new baby.

A bright smile morphed onto Taehyung’s face as he heard little whispers from you to the Peace lily. “Him now?” You hummed as you grinned happily. “Does he have a name?”

“Don’t know…maybe after you? Tae?” You quipped to which he laughed.

“Me? Why? You never named your plants after any of us?” He chirped as he looked at the plant. “But Tae seems nice for him.”

“They are known to be dramatic.” You informed. “They droop and act like they’re dying if you don’t water them or give attention.”

“Did you just insult me?” He gasped, putting a hand over his chest as if he was offended.

“No, it’s fact.” You snorted as you carried your baby in the cafe’s direction. “I’ve seen those Run BTS episodes.” Taehyung chuckled more as he retrieved more equipment you needed into his hands and arms.

You highlighted once again that you followed the band and its entertainment beyond music. It still stunned him, but only because he didn’t think you’d do so after what happened. He even talked about it briefly before. But you said that despite the ending of your friendship, you were tremendously proud of him and his members’ success. You loved the message they conveyed and all that they’ve done to endure it.

Not enough words or presents would express his gratitude towards you. He felt undeserving of your gentle actions and affable behavior, yet he was very selfish to continue to want it. In his eyes, you were never a pushover or an attached brat. You gave all that you could to those you loved because they were who you had in life, the only ones. They were the only ones who’ve seen the vulnerability and dedication in you and you weren’t willing to spread it as often even if you did. You were needy in the best of ways because it showed you also wanted a shoulder to lean on, especially maturing at a very early age. 

There were so many things about you that screamed perfection, caring, warm-hearted, and resiliency. Just you in general, and Taehyung was eternally grateful to see it through his own very eyes as well as experience the way you gave yourself and spoke to him with so much passion and tenderness. No one was more true than you, his Blue.

In the past, there were so many reasons why Taehyung loved you, and unexpectedly—at least to him—why he hopelessly fell in love with you.

-

Knowing each other since a young age and being best friends, it was obvious how much Taehyung loved you. He always loved you, even telling it to you many times every day. It was so easy to say and he meant it. He would do anything for you. He cared and wanted to protect you. You even said it back, so it was natural to speak about love within your relationship.

However, loving and being in love was not as obvious. There was a fine line between the two that was difficult to pinpoint. It often gets the betterment of people, even when they’re older and wiser. You can bounce from one to the other all you want without realizing it, but you eventually had to choose a side.

In Taehyung’s case, he learned about this decision at the beginning of his teenage years. In his first year of high school and when he first joined his soccer club, his older players would bring up topics about sex and love more than they should. Teammates were split in half, wanting sex and wanting love. He didn’t listen as much, but he did recall somewhere along the lines of having a partner to hold and cherish eternally.

With that, he went to his father regarding the love his teammates were talking about. “Well, the definition of love is very broad and can be interpreted many ways, son.” His father, Jitae, began, cocking his head to the side in thought.

“They talked about having someone to hold and adore eternally,” Taehyung repeated from his memories.

“Hmm, so I guess my example would be me and your mom.” Jitae brought out as he clapped his hands together. “Because I love having her by my side and being by her side. I’m in love with your mom, and that will never change.”

“In love?” He questioned, not getting what that meant. “Don’t you love us? We’re your kids!”

His father laughed endearingly at his son. “Of course, I love you, and Eunjeong, and Sungyeon. I love all of you! You three gave me all the more reasons to love and stay on Earth.” He defended. “However, loving and being in love are different. The love I have for your mom is different from my love for my kids.” 

“What did you mean?”

“I certainly don’t want to go into detail, but I’m head over heels for your mom. I’ve been way before we had you three. You kids gave me a reason to stay on Earth, she gave me a reason to be alive. Every time I look at her, my heart starts racing or skips a beat. I’m deeply committed to her as she does to me. She’s my partner, my wife. She’s my connection, she makes me feel better, do greater, a comfort.” Jitae explained thoroughly. “I would do anything for her.”

While Taehyung processed these thoughts and explanations, he had certain questions. “Will I have that? Do I have that now?”

“I hope that you’ll have that.” Smiling, his father patted down his son’s hair. “And to answer your second question, you’re still young. I found your mom when we were in our 20s, so there’s a lot of time. But there are possibilities.”

“Like?”

“Well, do you have someone who you’re in love with?” Jitae picked out as he stared at Taehyung. “Having a connection, to make you feel better, do greater, your comfort. Heart skips every time. You would do anything for them.”

Taehyung had no answer as he tried his best to think with his developing adolescent brain. Jitae had a specific person in mind but decided not to say anything for his son to figure it out himself.

Time passed, yet his mind stayed stagnant with this idea. It intrigued him to an extent, wondering if he would ever have the experience of feeling how his dad felt toward his mom. He knew that he loved all around, his parents, his siblings, his friends, your grandparents, and of course, you. But the act of being in love?

He thought about what his father had told him, being connected, feeling better, and doing better. A comfort in his life, and would do anything for them. The list was easy to eliminate options. Well, there was nothing to cancel out because all those traits went straight to you. You were the first person that popped into his head.

Strange though…or rather perplexed to say the least. How would it be possible? He loved you, that was a given, but in love? You weren’t a partner or wife, you were his best friend, his Blue! Does that even suffice?  

Suddenly a realization was brought upon him. Heart beating fast, skipping beats? He doesn’t think he has ever gotten that from you. He took you into his arms many times, even intertwining his fingers together with yours. He kissed your temples, head, and cheeks. Yet nothing happened to his heart.

Maybe you weren’t the one he was in love with. His father did say that he was still young and had a lot of years ahead. Why did this even bug his mind anyway? Why was he thinking too much about this? He was a teenager; he needed to think about other things like gaming, friends, and sleep. Anything really besides love.

He did love you though and wouldn’t give up anything in the world to not have that feeling anymore.

However, it took a while for him to see how special you so were to him. And how did he find out?

You had your first crush.

It was some boy named Jinhwan in your class. He was a kind and smart boy from what you told him and even let you borrow his pen when yours ran out of ink. You partnered up with him one day on an assignment and you have gotten to know him better. Days after he kept talking to you during breaks and sometimes bypassing. Each encounter felt more whimsical and fluttering to your heart, and eventually, you realized that you had a crush on him.

However, get this—you didn’t tell Taehyung.

You surprisingly spoke to his sister, which shocked and insulted him. He didn’t understand why because he was your best friend after all. All that information was from Eunjeong who assumed that you told him. New flash, you didn’t and it flabbergasted the boy.

He felt offended that you didn’t tell him and told his sister. His sister?? Last thing he remembered he was your best friend, not her. You told him everything, you even told him when you got your first period before anyone else. Why’d you tell her and not him? 

There was a slight tinge of jealousy coursing through his body. Not sharing was partial towards his emotion, but the primary reason was the very thought of you liking another boy.

It was weird and uncomfortable for him. Like why have a crush on a boy that you met at your school? Gross. QYou practically knew nothing about him except that that Jinhyuk boy was nice, but that wasn’t even a fact and that was based on judgment by the individual. If you had a crush on someone, it should be someone that you knew for a long time, who understood you, who cherished you, who kept you in their arms at all times, and who would give the world to you. Someone like hi—

Yeah, he realized he was in love with you.

But he suppressed them right now to be upset, but not at you though. Only the fact that you didn’t tell him. Whether or not he was in love with you, but he really was, you didn’t inform him of something important that could change your life. He was about to march to your house when Eunjeong stopped him to inform him that you stayed back at school because Jinhwan asked to speak with you. Rumor has it that he was going to confess to you, indicating he too had a crush on you. Mutual pining. And that made Taehyung’s heart sink into an abysmal hole.

Fuck, it was too late.

-

Taehyung waited on the steps of your front porch, staring down at his feet. Hours passed since school ended and there was no sight of you near. He felt worried, upset, sad, and all various kinds of emotions right now, but most importantly, in love. In love with you.

Why didn’t he notice it any sooner? Then again, nothing changed between you two. Yeah, you were getting older, developing maturely and elegantly. But you were you, his Blue. He was him, your Hyungie. There was no difference within your dynamic, other than getting closer to one another as the seconds went on. So if this was true, then was he in love with you this whole time? How would that even be possible? He was a child when he met you. Yet again, he always loved you since the moment he met you.

The sound of shoes dragging along the concrete and sniffles broke his running mind. Once he raised his head, he was met with your puffy eyes and tear-stained cheeks. Mouth quivered loosely with every rapid gasp coming out of you to stop the weeping of your cries. His mind went full alarm as he shot up from the stairs to go up to you.

With every step, he cautiously observed you. You were fighting back the sobs as you tried pursing your lips together. But when he puts you in between his arms with his hands around your back, he asked, “My Blue, what happened? What did he do to you?”

You broke every resistance inside of you and cried like a baby into his chest. The same exact cry when you ran away after Jinhwan stole your first kiss and embarrassed you by laughing at your confession in front of his friends. Little did you know it was all recorded, or when you were crying your poor self out behind a building, so then he proceeded to upload it online for everyone.

So you bawled out even more so until you were tired of crying and mindlessly walked home. But you saw your worried best friend waiting for you, ready to give you the comfort you needed and deserved. Your entire soul collapsed onto him.

“Hy-Hyun-Hyungie!” You keened, slithering your arms over his chest as you gripped onto his uniform shirt that you drenched in your tears. “I-I-I—”

“Shhh, no. It’s okay. You’re safe, Blue.” He shushed you as he had one hand over your head and the other hooked around your waist. Your form bounced as your sobbing overpowered your breathing. “I’m here now. Don’t worry. I’ll always be here.”

-

After hours passed once again, you, fortunately, stopped shedding tears though your emotions were still heightened and intense. You had to lie to your grandparents and say that you were sick to not go to school the following day. They knew you weren’t ill, but they knew something was up since it was uncommon of you. They let you be and hoped it’d make you feel okay.

Taehyung never left your side, having you in his arms or within reach. He even slept over for the night. But once it hit your “bedtime,” your minds were still awake. Your best friend thought it was a good idea for you to escape for the time being, so you both did. And what better way than to sneak out of your window in the dead of night to go to the park and hang out under the blossoming tree? It was your favorite pastime together after discovering that you could do things without your grandparents and his parents knowing.

When the gentle breeze touched your skin, the serenity of the starry sky pricked with specks of stars, and no one else but your best friend was right by your side. You let the setting calm every nerve in you, closing your eyes and taking the deepest breaths.

Taehyung kissed your hair before resting his cheek on the top of your head. His growth spurge over the winter time let him be much bigger than your stature. He hated seeing you like that, heartbroken, undeserving of what happened to you, and crying over some stupid ass boy who doesn’t deserve shit from you or anyone. He wanted to beat this boy up, but you told him no because he wasn’t worth it and you hated violence. He had to oblige, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t call his sister up and tell her to punch him in the throat.

“How are you feeling now, Blue?” He whispered, staring up at the night before you.

“Less crappy, but better now.” You sighed, laying your head on his shoulder and leaning closer toward his form. “I feel like an idiot.”

“No, you’re not. Those boys were dicks and Jinseok guy was a complete asshole.” Taehyung countered, feeling upset that you were talking down upon yourself. “You didn’t deserve anything that was given to you like that.”

“Still, I fell for it.” You frowned as you stared down at your fingers playing with each other. “I should have known. No boy ever liked me because I’m ugl—”

“Don’t you dare finish that sentence.” He interjected sharply, his restrained vocal cords due to puberty somehow helped his voice drop an octave. “Don’t ever succumb your worth with pea-minded small dick boys.”

“Then why aren’t I liked by anyone?” You complained, balling your hands into fists as you tried controlling the tears that threatened to come out again. “So many of my peers got confessions, always overheard boys talk about how pretty my classmates were, or even asked me about Eunjeong because she thought she was cute and I knew her.”

“Blue—”

“And don’t get me started on you.” Your attention went on him and his large irises looking back questionably. “You told me about all the confessions you had from this past year alone and how you rejected them all, but you still keep getting them.”

“___—”

“I mean it’s a given that you’ve always been handsome and always nice and caring to others. I just feel so shitty about myself because I don’t ever feel confident in myself, as a best friend and as a—”

“No!” Taehyung shouted, causing you to flinch and pause your rambling. His mind was all over the place. First, you called him handsome and while you did consistently mention it in the past, this was the first time he noticed how much his heart was racing and how he was getting squirrels in his stomach.

Second, he didn’t like hearing your self-deprecations at all. Did you really think so lowly of yourself? Not once did you show any signs. It wasn’t right and he should have caught on earlier.

“Stop doing that. Stop talking bad about yourself.” He shook his head before reaching out for your hands to hold. “And don’t compare yourself to others, Blue.”

“How can I not? I’m surrounded by it all the time, aka you!”

“I-I’m sorry I made you feel that way.”

“No, no. Not you. I’m sorry. I—” You stopped yourself, trying to collect your thoughts into a reasoning argument. “I just feel like I’m not good enough sometimes. Like I guess, this was more than that stupid prank and lie Jinhwan did or not being liked by anyone. Like, I’m never enough to satisfy or be worth something in someone’s life.”

For some odd reason, he couldn’t help but chuckle. Sure, your words were raw and from the depths of your heart but really? Not enough to be worth something in someone’s life? Seemed a little bit exaggerated.

Hearing his laughter, your eyebrows pinched together and cheeks puffed into anger at his response. But before you could even get a single sound out of you, he commented, “Now that’s an insult to me.”

Now your expression resembled confusion, “What do you m—”

“Why would you even say something like that when you’re literally everything in my life?”

His words punched you in the throat, taking your very breath away. “D-don’t—you don’t mean that! I said something, not—”

“Now why would I lie? I never lie to you! I do mean that, and I said everything because you are everything!” Taehyung retorted. He used one hand to hold your waist, pulling you into his lap. Sitting in between his legs, you laid back onto his chest as his chin stayed on your shoulder. “You mean so much more than you could ever imagine to me. Y-yo-you’re my best friend, Blue. I can’t have you think that you’re any less for others, me, and yourself especially. It breaks my heart knowing that I’m not helping you through that.”

“Don’t carry my burden on you.” You muttered quietly. “My whole self-esteem is just at its low and blowing out of proportion. I just became a teenager. You can’t really help me on this one.”

“I bet I can.” His eyes lit up, making you turn back to see him. Your faces were centimeters away. While you stared casually at his face, he felt his breathing slipping away at the gorgeous sight of you under the fluorescent moon. He managed to catch him without notice and continued. “I—I think you’re the most beautiful girl I’ve seen in my entire life, and I’m blessed that I get to see you every single day. If people don’t see it, they weren’t gifted with seeing the true beauty that you hold.”

You gawked wordlessly, pupils dilating by the second as he spoke with endearment and authenticity. Heartbeat fastened as he spoke on. “___ ___, you’ve been and always will be worth it, in my life, in your grandparents’ life, my family’s, anyone who comes across you. Don’t support that mindset with people of less importance in your life because it doesn’t help you. Focus on who matters, like you.”

“I can help by reminding you to not speak such foulness about yourself, pointing out the way you impact my and your loved ones’ lives, and showing you how beautiful you are because you truly are.” Using his unoccupied hand, he pushed a strand out of your face and tucked it behind your ear. “These little boys must have dead skin cells coming out of their shit-stained mouths if they don’t think you, ___ ___, are beautiful.”

You blinked rapidly and your lower lips pouted out as if it was the only reaction you could give. The little voice in your head begged to differ. But with his piercing coffee-swirled eyes at you, it slowly diminished and lowered its volume. It was hard to tell with your conscious, but you believed him even if it was just a little bit. 

You saw him leaning closer, his eyes shut smoothly. Staying still but eyes widening with every centimeter closer, your mind was on blast, anticipating his next move. However, he did a little turn-up and kissed the tip of your nose lightly.

You shook your head out of surprise. Why did you expect something else? Of course, Taehyung was always affectionate toward you. You couldn’t react any further as he brought you closer to him and peppered kisses onto your shoulder. You blinked away and focused straight into the night, trying to relax.

“The only thing I wish I could do was to stop that kiss from happening.” He spoke again with a huff. “I’m sorry your first kiss was with that fucking jerk. God, are you sure you don’t want me to beat him up?”

There the tenseness you didn’t realize you had in your body blew away and was replaced by laughter. “You shouldn’t resort to violence. He was a dick, but I can’t change the past. I wished too though.”

“Which is why you should always come to me first before you go do something.” Taehyung scolded in a know-it-all way, making you roll your eyes in defense. “I didn’t even know you had a crush until Eunjeong told me and she only did so because she thought I knew already! Why didn’t you tell me, Blue?”

Your form suddenly shrunk and sunk into his body, feeling the hotness steaming up your cheeks. “I know I tell you everything, but this was different…”

“How is it different?”

“I-I-I needed a girl’s opinion.”

“Oh.” Was all he could say. It made sense, you were a girl while he was a boy. There were certain things he may not understand from a guy’s perspective and he couldn’t defend himself.

“Don’t worry. I learned my lesson. If I like someone, I’ll be sure to tell you.” You promised.

But you never did.

“And I will do the same back.” He added, to open your communication together.

“You know I don’t think you ever told me you had a crush on someone.” You mentioned, tilting your head as you gazed into the distance with wonder.

You heard a deep chuckle followed by a vibration on your back. “That’s because back then I don’t think I liked someone enough to consider it a crush.”

“Then surely, you have someone that you like. I mean you’re in high school too with new people.”

“Yes, I’m in high school but that doesn’t mean anything.” He shrugged as he nuzzled into your neck, making you giggle at the ticklishness.

“So you don’t like any girl, or guy, or someone?” You tried your best not to assume anything. Since he didn’t like anyone, you didn’t know what he liked.

He laughed again, throwing his head back. “You’re so silly sometimes.” Exhaling, he smiled warmly while squeezing your hand. You focused on him with your doe eyes, an innocent smile faint on your lips. He looked down for a split second, hoping you didn’t notice. Judging by the continued look on your face, you weren’t seeing anything out of the ordinary. But he could see everything changing in him, in you, and between each other.

He was stuck in this conundrum. It would be selfish of him to tell you how he felt after getting your heart broken by another. You most likely won’t reciprocate back and he doesn’t even know how you think of him beyond being his best friend. He also didn’t want to ruin the friendship, the strong bond you two created for nearly ten years to be destroyed because he caught feelings for you. He loves you. Dear God, he was in love with you and only you.

But he couldn’t do it. And he didn’t know if he will ever.

“I-If-If I like someone, I’ll be sure to tell you, Blue.” He replied carefully as his fingers tapped over the smooth skin on the back of your hands.

But he never did.

“‘Kay!” You didn’t think any more of it. In fact, you felt a whole lot better after talking to Taehyung. He always knew how to reassure you about your insecurities and dilemmas your teenage brain liked to give you and cause harm. Your fingers found their way to intertwine with his. “At least I know I’ll always have one guy in my life that I’ll love.” His eyes widened, lips slightly parting. “I will always love you, Hyungie.” You pressed your lips onto his soft cheek before you laid your head onto the crevice of his shoulder.

He doesn’t know if you felt how hard his heart thumped in his chest. If you did, you don’t bother bringing it up. He doesn’t know this feeling, was it good or bad? But having you in his arms felt so perfect. Yet the fear of you finding out dreaded his entire soul. It would break him if something were to happen between you two. Was this what being in love was like? Why was it scaring him?

“A-and I will always love you, Blue.” He meant it at the bottom of his heart, but he didn’t mean it in the way you did.

And he doesn’t think it would be from here on.

-

You made it through the day with Taehyung. An invisible thin barrier held you back earlier in the day, but it eventually evaporated the more you talked to him, like how you were before. You don’t know how many hours passed in that cafe because together you spent all that time eating and playing with the cats. You opened up a little more to him and told him about your college years and why you chose to move to Seoul.

You explained how stagnant life has been for you for a while and thought you’d lead to nowhere if you continued to stay in the area you lived for your entire life. You managed to get by and thought of suppressing the feeling until your grandfather convinced you. You were very much hesitant, as it was going to be out of your comfort zone, but you and he both knew it was the right decision to make. It was also the only school that accepted you that wasn’t in Geochang, because it was the only one you applied for that wasn’t Geochang.

Taehyung did try to ask a question about your grandfather, but he noticed how brief and vague your answers were. You changed the subject and turned it on him when he did so. Maybe you weren’t ready to talk about it? Or you just didn’t want to tell him. Ever since his family moved as well as the passing of your grandmothers, contact has been lost through the years. Even if Taehyung tried to contact back, he wouldn’t know if you were still in Geochang or not and unfortunately, he did not have the time to check.

Nonetheless, the two of you enjoyed your time together. Of course, while staying hidden for Taehyung’s sake. After the cafe, he drove back into the city where he kinda took you shopping. You say kinda because he attempted to buy things for you and you said no, but he didn’t care so you just walked away from him. He got the message and begged for forgiveness, but it was all fine. You treated him corn dogs as a light snack or at least attempted to because when you pulled out of your wallet, he tapped his card with ease. 

When the sun went down, you assumed the day was over, but not for the idol. He took you to a jazz nightclub he has been dying to go to for ages. Everyone he invited was always busy or tired. He even invited Clara, and they were about to go but she got sick.

The opportunity was right there, so Taehyung insisted. You didn’t mind at all, you were excited about it. By the end of the time there, you loved every second of it, even catching some songs here and there. It surprised him, but he never realized until now that it was you who introduced him to the love of jazz.

Nighttime fell when the both of you got out, and the city lights illuminated the area. For a Sunday night, it was pretty crowded and Taehyung suggested going somewhere quiet. You were about to protest that it was time to go home, but your stomach gargled aloud that the idol wanted to put food in you right away. Knowing he wasn’t taking a no on this one, you gave up.

But you settled for some street food, rice and fish cakes, bibimmyeon, suyuk,and ice cream for dessert. Taehyung knew a nearby park and thought it’d be nice to eat under a tree, getting away from all the people. So here you were—stomachs filled to the brim and enjoying the nice view from where you say while tasting the sweet confection.

Once in a while, Taehyung mentioned memories of him and his members regarding instances perfect for the moment. This one was about the park. “I used to come here a lot with Jimin actually, when we were younger. It was always secluded, so even after debut, no one was around.”

“I wonder why? This place is amazing at night.” Your eyes roamed at the calm scenery. The cooling autumn wind caressed you while the hours of darkness cascaded around. The stars weren’t as prominent, but they were exchanged by the blinking lights of the city buildings and skyscrapers. 

It almost felt like deja vu.

Taehyung looked over towards you and noticed how you stared into the outlook. A tender grin crept on your mouth as you slowly closed your eyes.

“Never bothered to ask that when you finally get privacy.” He muttered as he finished his ice cream and threw it in the trash bag you made. “Been a while since I came here though. I miss it here. Jimin would also like it too.”

A giggle came out of you, “You talk about your members a lot.”

“I-Is-Is that noticeable?” A peak of blush swiped across his cheeks.

“Well, from the whole day, yeah. I practically know everything about them through you.” You snuffed in delight. “It’s nice though. You care about them. I’m sure with the break, you don’t see them as often?”

“Yeah, the last time I saw everyone together was Jungkook’s party. Everyone is doing their own thing.” Taehyung informed with a deep sigh. “I do care about them, and miss them. But lately, it’s a bit of bother sometimes that I’m glad I’m away from them.”

You flung your eyes open in shock before turning to meet his attention. “What do you mean?”

“There’s just a lot going on in my own life, and I feel like they coddle or smother me with things.” He explained, but not enough to give too many details. He has yet to tell you what his current situation was and was a bit insecure about it. He knew you wouldn’t judge, you were the last person he’d ever think to judge, but the timing wasn’t right. He recently got you back into his life, but he thought it would be too much for you to find out what happened to your best friend all these years in between. A bit ashamed, really.

Unlike him, you don’t further speculate. You hummed in response, moving forward from the topic. But you do say, “As you care for them, they care for you even if it’s the type you don’t want.”

He didn’t have any response to that. Instead, he shifted the topic to something lighter to mend his curiosity. “You know how you’ve been following the group and all,” The idol began and you waited for him to continue. “So who’s your favorite in the group?”

With that, a hearty laugh spewed out of your lips with your shoulders shaking. Taehyung’s eyes widened at your giddy expression. This was the first time he heard you laugh so hard since the reunion. If anything, in a while for that matter. He missed that wonderful sound, seeing the happiness and enjoyment shine off of you. It was the best thing he ever experienced with you.

“Why?” You asked as the giggling died down.

“I mean you’ve seen our content and finally met the guys, so I’m sure you would have a favorite.” Taehyung reasoned as he leaned back into the tree trunk. “Despite loving us equally, fans have those bias and bias wreckers, right?”

“They would freak out if they knew that you knew that.” You said before exhaling deeply. “I guess I do have a favorite.”

“Who?” He sounded way too excited there, then realized you probably never chose him so he shrunk into his body.

“Do you think it would have been you?” You inquired humorously.

“A-At first, but then, I forgot we’ve stopped talking and…you hated me.”

You observed his behavior, feeling rather unguarded of himself when he spoke. You sensed the shame seeping out of him. “Yeah, we didn’t talk but I never hated you, Taehyung.” You licked your lips, remembering the earlier times when you did say those hurtful words. “I did say it back then, but as I said, I never meant it.”

“So, does that mean I was your favorite?” His pupils sparkled underneath the moonlight.

“No, it’s Hoseok.” You replied scoffingly. “Even if I didn’t hate you, that didn’t mean I chose you as my favorite. Are you kidding me?” You say as you finished your dessert, and threw it into the bag.

“So why Hoseok Hyung?” The pout on his lips was so evident that he was somewhat offended you didn’t choose him. “What does he have that made you pick him?”

“First off, super talented with his rapping and dancing. I like his style, as an artist and for fashion. He’s practically innocent in all the shit you do with games and jokes, I feel bad sometimes just watching him get punished. Sweet, down to Earth, great smile, handsome, I forgot to sa—”

“Okay, I get it. You like him!” The idol interjected. His tone was infused with green envy as you were able to list down many characteristics about his member without thought.

You grinned at how he was being, but never acknowledged it so he wouldn’t be embarrassed as much. But maybe, just maybe you wanted to point another thing out. “It also sealed the deal when you had to kiss him as a penalty.”

A combination of grimace, scowl, and disgust appeared on his face at the horrible and traumatizing memory. It was a punishment, for something he can’t remember and didn’t want to, but it was still a punishment. It also didn’t help that that was his first kiss. Hoseok hated it, he hated it, and for that, it was lost in the past until you brought it up.

“Please, don’t bring that up.” He wallowed in agony, but you kept smiling. “Before you say anything else, yes, he was my first kiss. It’s one of the most tragic things ever.”

While he covered his face with his palms, he doesn’t notice the smile going flat on you as you watched him. Once he looked back up, you held the curves of the mouth up. “It’s fine. At least we both have shitty first kisses, but you had it with someone you care for.”

Taehyung muttered something you couldn’t quite comprehend before his phone vibrated on the grass. It caught both of your attention and saw that it was Clara messaging him. There were twenty-four messages specifically. He then grabbed his phone to view her texts.

The harsh taps on his screen followed him throwing his phone into his jacket. Frowning as he looked back up into the sky, he blew a sigh through his nostrils. He seemed frustrated, probably from what was said in between texts. You didn’t want to assume thought. You then checked the time and it was close to midnight. Maybe that had to do with it.

“We should go, it’s getting late.” You cleared your throat as you began gathering the trash bags.

His head turned in your direction, “Are you tired?”

“Kinda, I also have school and work tomorrow.” You stated. “You should go home too because Clara might get upset for not coming home early.”

“She’s fine.” He mumbled, waving it off. “I just told her we’re still having our dinner and stuff…”

He wasn’t necessarily lying, but it didn’t sound right either. “Was she okay with it?”

“Yeah, I guess so.” He shrugged before smacking his lips. “So do you wanna go home now? Don’t want you to stay out too late to have fewer hours of sleep. How’s that by the way?”

You rolled your eyes, grinning a little at his concern for your health. “Better, but I still don’t get the ideal eight hours. Grad school is a bit hard and time-consuming, so it’s nice to do things like this.” You gestured around you.

“So I’m assuming you don’t want to go yet?” The idol smirked as he nodded toward the parking lot.

You thought about it for a second. If Clara was fine with him staying out and spending time with you, then you guessed that it wouldn’t hurt to stay a little longer. You were enjoying the view before you when she texted. “Maybe a few more minutes.” You held your thumb and index up, signaling a tiny space between the two as emphasis.

Taehyung chuckled at your demeanor, he saw more of a playful you opening up. He too didn’t want to leave just yet, and certainly not leave because his girlfriend said so. This was his time with you, and he wanted to cherish it.

The both of you continued to sit in silence, gazing into the city night. This place was a perfect spot to see the bridge, the buildings, and the lights, yet remained secluded. It was fascinating to you how different Seoul nights were compared to Geochang. Your hometown wasn’t as crowded and you would always see familiar faces. However, here, every day was different, and areas were swarming. Though the majority of the customers were old, working at the restaurant made you shocked at how late people enjoyed going out. If anything, Geochang had an unofficial curfew at ten at night.

As you were staring, there was a little voice in your head shouting about Clara. After meeting and conversing with her, you saw how genuine and lovely the socialite was. She was invested in the things you spoke about as well as passionate about what she does but remained as humble. Clara would ask questions about how Taehyung was when he was younger and learned more about her boyfriend.

You didn’t hate her, there was no reason to. She was always good to you, but deep down, you felt somewhat uncomfortable being near her. You found yourself comparing her to you, and you didn’t understand why. After all, she was Kim Taehyung’s girlfriend of five years—that was a long time and would probably marry her.

While you were just an estranged friend from his younger years.

“So…” You spoke out, taking his attention away from the scenery. “I didn’t mention it before, but good to see you with someone. You and Clara.”

“Really?” He sounded in disbelief. 

“Yeah,” Your pitch was a little higher than usual, but you were genuine.

The entire time you’ve known him, he never voiced out liking or wanting anyone. It concerned and agitated you at one point, even when he left for training. You really don’t know what happened in that ten-year gap, but he came out with a pretty steady girlfriend who loves him dearly. 

“At least by now, I know you can fall in love or have a crush on someone.” You quipped as you nudged him by the shoulder. He stayed quiet for a bit, processing what you said but you continued with your speech. “I think Clara’s great for you, almost complementing your entire aura. You have an old soul while she’s very refreshing.” While you blabbered away about his girlfriend, Taehyung felt sour and filled with a grimace which he tried his best to cover it up with a deadpan. “On top of it all besides being sweet, Taehyung, she’s so gorgeous. You would pick someone like her. She’s so pr—”

“Excuse me, ___.” He cuts you off with irritation oozing out of his pores. Your eyes stayed on his, wondering what set him off on what you said. You weren’t saying anything negative or ridiculing at all. “You know you’re beautiful too.”

His words threw you off, making you snort in disbelief and shook your head. Why did that even matter right now? You kept a joyous expression in contrast to the seriousness Taehyung held. “I know…ish.”

That was also true. You have grown to accept and love yourself for who you were and what you looked like after many adolescent years of struggle. Your features didn’t exceed the high standards of Clara, but you made it a point and lifestyle in your grown life that before your grandmother died, she always mentioned how uniquely captivating you always were, looking different in the best way possible.

Of course, it was shocking to get compliments from others. As well as your conscious had a habit of making you compare yourself to others, whether it was good or bad. Like for this instance—Clara.

But you wanted to breeze on from his statement. “But that’s beside the point—”

“No, I hear that tone, ___. You’re comparing yourself to her.” Taehyung informed as if it was a fact about you, which it was. Yet you didn’t want him to know that.

You sighed, not understanding the big deal of it all. “I’m not talking down on myself! I swear. I’m just saying…” Your eyes shifted down to the ends of your dress. “Clara is pretty and you really won with her.”

“I don’t care about pretty. I love beautiful.”

That caused you to lift your head and meet his eyes, which you didn’t know pierced at you for who knew how long. You didn’t even realize how near he has gotten to you. The fabric of your clothes touched his pants. Your torsos twisted to continue the eye contact.

The look on him…was a familiar feeling and time. It held something you didn’t want to see or think about after those years of struggle because if you did, another wall buried deep down inside your entity would come crashing down.

“Taehyung, you can’t—”

“I can.” He disagreed, leaning closer. “Because I remembered promising you that I’d show you how beautiful you are, how special you really are, ___.”

“This literally has nothing to do with me!” You refuted, trying to deny any claim he had about you. But you stayed frozen as he slowly inched forth. It wasn’t odd because Taehyung was always known to be affectionate, but it sure was concerning you right now. “Can’t I compliment your gorgeous girlfriend?”

“No, because she already gets that from everyone around her. She doesn’t need any more of that.” He grumbled. His eyes quickly glanced down at your face, enough for you to notice. “But it relates to you because of your eyes. They held insecurity and concern, I remember that look. It was the same look when you got your heartbroken back in middle school by that dumbass boy.”

It surprised you at times, how Taehyung was able to catch on and read you like a book even after years of disappearance. From the first couple of months of renewing the friendship, not a time goes by when he remembered little things about you despite your constant protest of being a changed person. Maybe personality-wise shifted into a cruel sarcastic approach, but the habits were consistent.

Albeit to your annoyance to him on that, you couldn’t help but do the same more often than you should.

“___, when I say this, I mean it and I take it to my grave,” Taehyung announced, irises boring at yours with no play. “Stop comparing yourself to others. I know it’s hard, but it’s harder to live with it. It doesn’t help you or the others around you. I never liked when you do that.”

You bit the inside of your cheek, hearing his objection. You didn’t want what you said to end up like this, but there was no doubt that he interpreted it to a t. You didn’t think he’d still care enough about you like that. What else goes on in his head that you didn’t expect?

Out of nowhere, he held your cheek with his palm, snapping you out of your daze. He was now so close to you that with any movement, something would touch. It was like before when you were younger with him and had the status of a best friend with a purposeful and deeper meaning. “You’re still the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen in my life, ___.” Your pupils dilated at his reveal. Cheeks spreading with flushness and warmth you hated to expect. “Wouldn’t want any better. Any person would be lucky to have you.”

Excuse me? He said that way too personally. Why the fuck would he say that to you? It started to frighten you, furrowing your eyebrows and cocking your head to the side. Yet he focused on your reaction with sincerity, nothing in what he spoke upon held no lie and you knew it.

There was a pause in the air, holding your breaths. The familiar warmth to your irises soothed his body down just by the look. It was as if his vision pulled him back in time where he saw you exactly like this, underneath a tree late at night with sparkles gleaming on you. The swift capture of your thirteen-year-old self before your current self settled before him. He wanted this moment to last for as long as he remembered.

And without thinking, he closed the gap between you two as he shuts his eyes and puckered his lips.

Hoping to find softness and sweetness, but there was no avail on the other side. It was the complete opposite. A harsh reddened ache ran through his cheek before he peeled his eyes open to reveal a raging you fueled with perfidy.

You smacked his face again, but this time harder than the last before you pushed yourself away from him, almost a meter away. Your mouth gaped as you stood up from the grass and patted yourself clean to get the fuck away from him.

Eyes widening as large as a goldfish, Taehyung realized what he tried to do. Scrambling to get up and beg for redemption, he tried to speak but you interrupted him. “Here I thought you wanted to be my friend again, but you deceived me and I don’t want nothing of it!” You snarled before grabbing your bad and shouldering it over.

“Wait, ___. I’m sorry! I don’t know what c—”

“Save it! I don’t wanna hear your bullshit!” There you walked away from the scene angry and disappointed with shame all over you. You needed to get away, you couldn’t stay. But you were pulled back by the wrist and twirled around to see a worried and frightened idol searching for mercy on you.

“___, please. I-I’m sorry, I—”

You snatched your wrist back, breathing through your nostrils in hopes it calmed your wrath. “I don’t care if you’re sorry! Fucking think about your girlfriend! Why would you even fucking dare to do that?”

“I-I wasn’t thi—”

All of sudden, you yanked him by his collar. Pulling him close to see the break of trust in your livid pupils, you seethed, “I will not be some home wrecker.” You pushed him roughly, almost making him imbalance but he stabilized his feet. “You lost my trust. I don’t wanna fucking see you anymore.”

You never looked back and continued your path out of the park. You thought he would have followed you again, but when you heard the cries of your name at a distance, you knew he wasn’t going to try. Maybe you were too rash, or maybe you said things you didn’t mean. It didn’t matter anymore.

But you knew that if you ever saw him again, you would think differently of him.

Tagged: @manuosorioh @kaal-ee @thvxstf @dahliasbouqet @bertqut1 @fuckthinking @taebangtanbabe

Any comments or questions are very much appreciated 🥹🥹 Maybe character asks??? Just trying hard not to spoil the story lol

But for my other stories, GO HARD! They're one-shots and done lol

Glimpse of Us | KTH (Series)

Pairing: Problematic Idol Taehyung x Grad Student Reader

Genre: Idol AU, Ex-Childhood Best Friends into—, Angst (Hello, welcome to my angst central), Fluff (mainly in the flashbacks), Slow Burn, Eventual Smut

Summary: BTS's V has been living a lavished and successful lifestyle, but underneath all of that, Kim Taehyung is far from the perfect image the media and fans made him out to be. All he wants is to relive the feelings of happiness and purpose in his life, but how can he when he left behind those memories years ago? The same memories, he hopes to see a glimpse of.

Warning: TRIGGERS - Mentions of Drugs/Drugs use, alcohol consumption, violence (fighting), toxic relationships, unhealthy coping mechanisms, infidelity, unrequited love?, mentions of depression and anxiety, brief mentions of social anxiety (oc somewhat has it), descriptions of panic attacks, mentions of death/minor character deaths, descriptions of therapy/scenes within therapy sessions, a ton of flashbacks, financial instability, buckets of crying, the slowest fucking burn you'll ever come across, sexual content (but not too sexy bc this isn’t a naughty fic >:-|) poor OC is caught up in a lot of mess and all she wants is to have a better life,  tae is a bit of a dick and a walking red flag but he just wants to be better :--(, they're both sad in their own ways, each chapter will have their own warnings and they will be presented at the beginning of the chapter

Word Count: TBD (21 chapter total)

A/N: A little bit inspired by Glimpse of Us by Joji because I couldn't get the song out of my damn head and it’s my top song of 2022 😭. I made my own spin to it, let’s see how well I execute it lol I’ve been preparing this for a while. This is my biggest project yet! I’ve been planning this since the summer even if I’m not done writing the whole thing I’m kinda nervous about posting this

I’ll also cross-posted this originally on AO3 as well! Enjoy~~~

Chapter List

I. Finding Happiness

II. The Story of You and Me

III. Blue

IV. Everything We Didn't Say

V. Same Old, Different New

VI. Why I Love You

VII. The True Reality (Coming Soon)

All rights reserved for ©️ icedmatchatae 2023 (｡●́‿●̀｡)

I'm sorry if you wanted to be tagged for my story and you didn't get the mention :c For some reason, certain usernames just can't be found when you're trying the @ and they don't pop out ;-; I'm still trying though!

taehyung x elle korea

I’m sorry y’all I sparked and spiraled into making another story 🧍🏻‍♀️🧍🏻‍♀️

WIPs

Hello my matcha memes 🧍🏻‍♀️

I wanted to give another follow up on upcoming fics i have also been planning (that tae one was out of nowhere and I needed release). Though my main focus is on glimpse of us, I wanted to share my other stories that I have planned 🥹 but in mystery because I like doing that. And what better way by just showing the banners with no context LOL

Amnesia | KSJ

Egg in the Microwave | JHS

(Also I just realized that it’s 2seok dhdhdhshsh THE SUN AND MOON WILL BE GONE TOGETHER 😭🧎🏻‍♀️🫡)

Editing and checking if I’ll add anything else!! Depending when I finish, it may come tomorrow night or so…LOL I did say before the end of the month too!! 😇

Glimpse of Us | KTH Chapter VII: The True Reality

Pairing: Problematic Idol Taehyung x Grad Student Reader

Genre: Idol AU, Ex-Childhood Best Friends into—, Angst (Hello, welcome to my angst central), Fluff (mainly in the flashbacks), Slow Burn, Eventual Smut

Summary: BTS’s V has been living a lavished and successful lifestyle, but underneath all of that, Kim Taehyung is far from the perfect image the media and fans made him out to be. All he wants is to relive the feelings of happiness and purpose in his life, but how can he when he left behind those memories years ago? The same memories, he hopes to see a glimpse of.

Warning: This chapter is HEAVY ANGST (basically trauma dumping), unhealthy coping mechanism (alcohol use), descriptions of financial instability, illness (a loved one has it), lying/deception, verbal fighting (manipulation?gaslighting?), unhealthy relationship (both in and out of the flashbacks), implied smut, semi-sexual themes, I kinda just wanna hug both of them, kenji is the real one rn :D, but damnnn just wait for the ending

Word Count: 13.3 K

A/N: tbh writing this chapter was a little hard if I remember lol, only because of how I wanted to structure the timelines and the back and forth. It ended differently and I added to it, but I hope you enjoy it!! Feedback and comments are appreciated ❣️

Chapter VII: The True Reality || Series Masterlist

Sounds of scraping and dragging from your heels crashing alongside the rundown concrete ripped through the cooling midnight. With your phone in one hand and your bag in another, you tried to navigate through the city to make your way back to your apartment.

What was uncalled for was not realizing you were on the other side of the city and away from your destination. Of course, you were. Taehyung took you to an enriched area, safer to say the least. Nevertheless, it took you almost an hour by bus and train to reach where you lived, a more cryptic and hostile part of the city.

Walking up through the entrance, you glanced up at your apartment complex. It stayed on a shallow hill and was constructed with old red and white bricks, probably built over forty years ago. When you first moved in, the majority of your neighbors were the elderly but they yelled behind closed doors and all had petrifying little dogs barking. There were some younger ones, but none below 30. At one point when you left for school, a woman chased her half-naked husband out of their home with a frying pan. Paint peeled off the lobby walls, dirtied floors, and dark markings you didn’t even want to know, rusted mailboxes on one side, some trash left on the other. 

At the very least, this was one of the more secure buildings on this block, having decent front locks, a code entrance, and a visible working elevator. Once you entered inside, you got onto the lift and pressed your floor button twice, because if you didn’t, it wouldn’t have worked properly.

You reached your door and closed it behind you while triple locking it to ensure your own safety. You mundanely scanned the humble abode that was your home. Surprisingly or in this case, an old lady neighbor who snooped at your apartment when you were moving, said you had the better spaces in the building. It used to belong to some guy who had problems, her words not yours. You politely ended that conversation, not wanting to know anything else.

Your apartment was still empty after settling down for months. The only few pieces of furniture besides your bed and dresser were the futon table right in the middle of your living room and the floor lamp. You didn’t even buy it; you found it on the side of the street as it was being thrown away. But it still looked brand new, so you took it in.

You headed towards the kitchen to retrieve a glass of water. Afterward, you sat on the wooden floor, settling down at the table. Exhaling, you slouched onto the cool surface. You stared blankly at the half-filled glass, processing what has happened to you.

Though you calmed yourself down when you rode the bus, you were still upset about what Taehyung almost did. He professed your appearance, didn’t agree to your compliments of his girlfriend, and forgot he even had one for a split second as he tried to kiss you. Just thinking about made you grunt in fury, slamming down a fist onto the table causing the glass and furniture to tremble on the impact.

You thought, you really thought that your friendship was starting to revive and thrive for the better. Now you’re definitely uncertain. It scared you because you don’t think Taehyung was ever like that before. Not once did he try anything. Again, he was a physically affectionate person but you’d think there would be boundaries with it if you had a significant other, right?

You were perplexed, wondering what the fuck is he doing. Maybe this was something new about him, a changed person? But yet, it wasn’t right to do and Taehyung would have known that too. Why was he about to ruin a perfectly stable relationship with Clara? It doesn’t make sense. 

However, as you pondered on it for a while and in the comfort of your home, there were certain speculations that you found that seemed questionable of their relationship. For starters, Taehyung never mentioned anything about a girlfriend until his members brought it up at the restaurant. Even then, he still didn’t talk about her to you, not even her name.

Every time you saw him and Clara together, the proclaimed physically affectionate Taehyung was nowhere to be found. When outside in public was given, but from Jungkook’s party, they linked arms and she’d lean on his shoulder but that was it. Nothing was coming from his end. Before you went out with him earlier today, he didn’t even kiss or hug her goodbye. It confused you because you watched him do that to his members, friends, and even you despite your rough edges of his touching.

Finally, for now, just an hour ago, your eyes focused on his phone when he received messages. It may be due to his idol status and to hide his personal life, but his device held no signs of Clara or being in a relationship with her. No change of her display name, no Lock Screen photo of them together, and certainly constant messaging back and forth on both ends.

Not once did Taehyung take his phone out throughout the day. If he did so, it was to take pictures before putting his device back into his pocket. You wondered what consisted of their relationship, what was really happening between the two, and maybe that was how they worked. He was an idol and she was a socialite after all, both in the world of media, famous for different reasons, yet a closet powerhouse couple. It was practically the perfect relationship everyone wanted.

It was all so unusual because you heard many remarkable things about them together. They were strong, in love as their eyes told it all, they were even living together!

Rumors of them getting married sparked among their close circle.

Your conscious made you feel guilty. Perhaps even thinking about it too much. Why were you putting your nose into something that wasn’t even about you? You were nothing, which should stay that way. You learned that the hard way and it left a pungent taste in your mouth when a gruesome snippet played in your mind. If you were to be something, it would be a nuisance that ruined the perfect relationship of society because of the attempt Taehyung made.

Thinking back, you were mean to him, ending the on/off friendship again of something minuscule from an outsider’s perspective. But you had to give yourself a little bit of credit because what if it happened again? You know, him begging for your forgiveness, you accepting it, and it repeats. Perhaps next time, he would have succeeded. You didn’t want to risk it. It wasn’t right to him, to Clara, and most definitely to you.

The only way to keep it from happening was to remain distant once again. Maybe getting too close was a sign. Rumors would spread and be twisted as the spiderwebs of communication get tangled by misjudgment and severe impressions. You didn’t want anyone else to interpret your relationship with him in such a way.

Then again, no one ever understood your bond with him. Not before, and most likely not now either. 

-

Taehyung slammed his car door shut before hitting the steering wheel out of frustration. Did he really just let you go like that? He didn’t know where you would be, if you got home, if you were okay. All he knew was that he pissed you off and your friendship was probably nonexistent with your words. He was ashamed of himself, why did he do that?

It came out of nowhere, even shocking him at the moment too. He just—when he looked at you, everything felt so right in his shitty life. All his troubles would go away, knowing that you were there. You stared at him like how you did when you were younger, he must have traveled back in time to when his teenage self found out that he was in love with you.

What a simpler yet scary experience that must have been for him. All he worried about was how much he was head over heels for you, but he never confessed. Not even when he left for Seoul and sure as hell, not after all those years. He kept this secret only to himself. No one knew and probably never will.

But he realized he slipped on that one, both parties not expecting that. Where was he going with this? He still wanted your friendship, which mattered to him the most even back then. He never wanted to ruin it, but he probably has now.

Why did he do that? After he ended the friendship on a whim, he constantly thought about you and missed you a lot. Years and years of thinking didn’t vanish even when he started dating Clara. You were literally in his life for more than half of his life.

Maybe it was longing, wanting you back into his life. But he finally got you! Well before he fucked up. So why did he try to kiss you?

Ugh, he wiped the excess distressed tears off his eyes and cheeks. Now he really wished for your forgiveness. He messed up in the past and he managed to have redemption. Perhaps your patience ran thinner, and you “not acknowledging his status of best friend” probably forced him to be kept on his toes. You had to show him that he couldn’t keep fucking up like he used to.

He looked over to the passenger’s seat and spotted your peace lily plant. Oh, how the night changed so fast.

He wanted to make things right, but he couldn’t do it now. He had to keep his distance, so you wouldn’t snap.

Still, he thought about how he let his stupidity get in the way, hating himself. He loathed this feeling, he needed to stop thinking about it because it would only get worse. He needed to get away from everything.

-

“Taehyung?” Seojoon croaked, rubbing his slumbered eyes to take a glimpse of his younger friend. He woke up when the idol called saying he was outside. He was too spaced out to even question, so he padded his way toward the entrance. Taehyung went inside before the actor closed and locked the door. The older man wiped his bare face with his hands, letting out a sigh. “The fuck are you doing here?”

“I need a drink with my Hyung.” Knowing the layout of his friend’s one-story house, he strutted into the kitchen and searched through his cabinets for his alcohol stash. Seojoon was known to have variety in his liquors, which he took pride in, but that also meant free drinks for his friends every time they came over.

He found a half-empty bottle of whiskey in the cupboard. Being the thoughtful friend that he was, he picked it up and twisted the cap off before downing it. The burning sensation dragged inside his throat passed his intestines and reached his stomach acids. He burped heavily after clearing the bottle and settling it on the kitchen island to grab another drink.

“Hey, you know you have your limits here.” Seojoon reminded as he grabbed the unopened whiskey from the idol. Taehyung didn’t even fight back but watched him retrieve two old-fashioned crystal glasses from his cabinets. There he poured the syrup-hued content into the cups, then offered the idol one.

They cheered the drinks together before taking a strong sip. “Why’d you come here? It’s almost two in the morning. You’re lucky I don’t have an early schedule in the morning.”

“Hyung, I fucked up.” Taehyung groaned as he tasted the liquor on his tongue.

Unlike his members and especially Jimin, Taehyung felt very comfortable with his friends to the point where he can really be himself and not have to worry about it and what they say. Think of the members as family. You couldn’t choose your family, but you can choose your friends.

It was easy to tell Seojoon, the eldest and played the role of the father of their group. He was more forgiving than his older Hyungs, still caring, still understanding of Taehyung’s perspective yet stern. But when the idol told him about what recently happened, the actor cocked his eyebrow up with concern.

“Why’d you do that?” Seojoon questioned.

“I don’t know…” Taehyung muttered as he swirled the content of his cup around. “It was all unexpected. But she stopped it.”

“Well, that’s good. Otherwise, you’d be a cheater, Tae, and we wouldn’t want that.” The older man said seriously, yet Taehyung lets out an airy laugh before gulping more alcohol. His reaction made him curious. “Why’d you laugh?”

“Ahhh, nothing. Probably the alcohol getting to me.” Taehyung snickered, brushing it off too quickly for Seojoon’s liking. But the older one decided to let it go for now.

“Would you have wanted her to stop it?”

“Huh, what do you mean?”

“How about this?” Seojoon piped as he squinted his eyes in wonder. “If she didn’t back away, and you two kissed, what do you think it’ll mean? What does this say about your friendship with her now?”

What would have happened if he actually kissed you? “I-I-I don’t know.”

Expecting that answer, the actor sighed. “Then you’re lucky, she slapped the shit out of you.” He grimaced as he stared at the inflamed marking on his swollen cheek.

“Yeah, but Hyung, our friendship is basically destroyed now. Knowing her reaction, don’t you think it’d be a lose-lose situation whether or not it happened?” Taehyung’s thoughts were in shambles with alcohol fluffing up his brain.

“It’s better than not knowing.” Seojoon vaguely explained, but somehow it applied to all contexts. “Look, if anything, it’d be worse on the other end because you’d hurt a lot more people, i.e. you, Clara, and ___. It just sucks for you that ___’s still the one that’ll hurt in either case.”

Taehyung exhaled before chugging down the whiskey. He had a nasty shiver down his spine, while Seojoon observed with a scowl. “Do you think she meant it when our friendship is over? She never smacked me before either.”

“I don’t know. I don’t know her that well.” Seojoon honestly responded, making Taehyung pout. “But judging by the times I met her, I think she was spiteful at the moment. She seems…very forgiving, especially towards you. I mean, technically you are the closest person to her in Seoul besides that coworker. If you say it was an honest mistake, then maybe she’ll understand.”

They were met with silence, basking in the conversation. Taehyung poured himself another drink, as the alcohol rapidly got to him. He hoped Seojoon was right, but he feared otherwise. It was difficult to understand when he doesn’t truly know how you felt about him. You still held this weird distance despite his attempts. He wasn’t able to fully engage himself in the friendship if you didn’t reciprocate back and he wanted you to so badly.

“I don’t suppose you’re leaving anytime soon.” Seojoon huffed. “I refuse for you to drive wasted. God knows what happened the last time, you’re lucky you didn’t get far!”

“Hey, I crashed into your mailbox. It wasn’t that bad!”

“Still! I don’t even know how you stole the keys from me.” Seojoon shook his head in disappointment. “But go to the guest room! Sleep the drunk off and maybe get a cab in the morning.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Taehyung grumbled, finishing up his whiskey. With shaking legs, he stood up and wobbled towards the room. Before he entered, Seojoon called for him.

Grabbing the idol’s attention, Seojoon said, “Just reflect on what you’re doing. I don’t know if you talk about it with your therapist and all, but please do if you aren’t. Maybe he’ll help you with how to approach ___. Also, don’t do anything that would hurt Clara.”

As soon as his back touched the sheets of the full-sized bed, Taehyung sighed. He thought about the last words Seojoon said. Don’t do anything that would hurt Clara. He scoffed at them. 

Yeah, yeah. Everything had to be done to stop her from hurting. Never him.

-

Staring into the bathroom mirror, you stayed restless. You couldn’t sleep at all last night, resulting in the bags and dark circles around your lifeless eyes. The sun wasn’t even out yet and came later in the day due to the changing of the seasons. You wanted to punch yourself for registering for an 8 AM on a Monday, but there was no other choice since it was the only course topic available.

You indeed had a long day ahead of you. Fortunately, you had classes until noon, but that meant you started work afterward. But that was okay, you just hoped Taehyung got the picture of leaving you alone for some time or forever.

You had to at least appear less dead than you actually were. Maybe some nice earrings would help. You usually had on your necklace, but a little more wouldn’t hurt. Walking back to your bedroom, you reached for your jewelry box to grab that was gifted to you from the Kim family for Christmas when you were younger. Though you don’t talk to them anymore, the gift held a special place in your heart and memories.

When you pulled the said jewelry, the velvet cushion tugged out of the box as well. Separating the two with ease, you were about to place it back inside but something caught your eye. You hooked onto it and touched the symbol of your friendship. Worn down and faded tones over time and smaller than it used to look, you found your old friendship bracelet. The charms were still intact, yet you could see the damage made from careless bumps and scraps against surfaces and edges. Your initial charm had a small piece missing from a very heavy and infuriating throw to the wall.

You still remembered that day clearly, weeks after the last call.

You made your attempts to contact Taehyung and also waited for him to call back. But he never did. He blocked your phone and messenger, so during these times, you’ve been taking advantage of his siblings’ cell phones. You didn’t fully explain to the two what happened between you and their brother, only the fact that he wasn’t answering you anymore.

Sungyeon and Eunjeong didn’t know either, but they were willing to help you. They’d take turns giving you the phone. It hurt knowing that it rang while you got the automatic voice, but you felt that there was still hope in your friendship left. Oftentimes, it did go straight to voicemail during the day and he would call back at night when you weren’t with the siblings. You asked them to never mention your name and how you’ve tried reaching out. So all those feeble attempts were assumptions of his siblings missing him.

It was until one day after school that he finally answered your call on Eunjeong’s phone. The simple greeting of his “hello” wanted to make you cry into tears of relief, but you feared everything in between the call. You didn’t know if he needed more time away, but you missed everything about him. It has been a struggle with the distance, as well as the planning for your grandmother’s funeral. You wanted his comfort by any means. If it was through the phone of his sister, then so be it.

There was so much to be said yet no words came out of your mouth. “Hello? Hello, Jeongie? What’s up? I have a break. You good?”

Eunjeong stared widely, waiting for you to respond. She nudged your shoulder and nodded. You parted your mouth shakily before clearing your throat. “H-Hyungie. It’s me, Blue.” Then silence came after, being so loud that a dull white noise interfered. It was quite nerve-racking. You don’t know if he heard you, so you repeated. “Hyungie. It’s me—”

The dial tone met your ear. You looked back at the phone, seeing Eunjeong’s Home Screen. He ended the call before you could finish the sentence.

Your shoulders deflated into your body and you curled forward. Your body trembled as the tears began to fall off your face. Seeing you like this, Eunjeong shook her head in rage at her brother’s behavior. Regardless, she knew you needed some comfort and she was the only one to give it to you.

She looped her arms around you, rubbing your back to soothe your cries. So much has happened in your life, and Taehyung had the audacity to hurt you too? He was never harsh to you so what happened?

Suddenly her phone rang, catching the two of your attention. It was Taehyung again. Eunjeong glanced at you, shaking your head in refusal. You were scared of being rejected again.

She sighed but thought might as well answer his call. She pulled her phone to her ear and said, “What?” You couldn’t hear him very well, but you heard his shouts. “I don’t care about damn honorifics right now. Why are you being rude to ___?” Yelling again. “What? Why should I? I’m not helping you with your mess—” A sigh, then a milder response. “You can’t ju—I don’t wanna say th—” His voice was softer. “This is all on you. I don’t want her to be shunning our family from your shit.”

A quieter conversation happened between the siblings while you watched it unravel before you. You wiped your tears when you heard, “Whatever, fine. Fuck you!” Eunjeong ended the call before she threw her device onto her mattress. “Annoying asshole.” She muttered, not caring if you heard.

You tilted your head questionably as you asked, “What’d he say?”

Her pupils felt twisted as she struggled to approach what her brother wanted her to convey. It was so wrong and wanted to fight him because not once did you do anything wrong. She bit her lips as a debate broke out in her mind. She knew you weren’t going to take it well, but whoever does when your best friend wanted you out of his life.

Yet your eyes encouraged her to speak up. You were afraid, but at least you knew. You would know if he needed more time or tell you to give him more space from your smothering. It would be okay because your friendship remained intact.

But once she revealed his response, every hope, every will, your bond was shattered.

You said nothing while you nodded, feigning that you understood and agreed with the situation. Eunjeong knew that was a lie, especially with the blooming of tears spilling through your eyes. But before she could even let out a sound, you stood up and ran out of their house and to yours, the cold and empty one.

You rammed your bedroom door shut and let every emotion you suppressed consume you. Screaming, weeping, punching pillows, throwing books across the room, anything to let out the hurt within you. As you were jabbing a plush toy, your friendship bracelet grabbed your distraught attention.

It was a simple symbol of your friendship. The love, care, trust, and worth between you and him. The everlasting memories held together through the strings were crumbling down at your fingertips. Conjoined, my ass. Saying that you were stuck with him and never leaving your side. Complete bullshit. He never cared for you, you were worthless to him, with no trust in sight, and most importantly—

He didn’t love you.

You pulled the bracelet off of you and threw it as hard as you could to your white walls. A cracking noise pierced through the air, the bracelet dropped on your wooden floors holding no sentimental value.

You sunk onto your bed and just let the tears fall so painfully.

You didn’t know how it got in here. Maybe your cousin who helped you pack found it and put it in by mistake. Nevertheless, you still had the bracelet with you and in your hands.

You were honest with yourself when you say that it was difficult to throw it away. It felt like a bad omen. You kept it on for so long, it almost seemed like you were going to be buried in it. The bracelet went through so much, that it, unfortunately, held sentimental value because it was with the Taehyung you once knew.

This one you met had a few quirks here and there, but wasn’t your Taehyung, your Hyungie. He may look like him, have the same birthday, parents, siblings, all of the above, but it was still not him.

It didn’t mean you refused to understand and get to know this Taehyung, but your heart was more reluctant, afraid to open up and accept his comfort and warmth. His words weren’t as trusting, but they felt familiar. You saw him through his eyes, but they were buried underneath unspoken territories. Yes, you saw how much he has been hiding things from you and you knew that they weren’t coming out any time soon. 

But you wished for them to. You missed him so much, you wanted to grab that layer of him and run away. But you couldn’t.

If you wanted that layer, you needed to accept all layers, and you weren’t ready for that.

-

Taehyung arrived back home at five in the morning. He sobered up after taking a three-hour nap. He could still feel the alcohol in him but it wasn’t too intense, so he was functional enough to drive. He didn’t say goodbye to Seojoon and left the premises, as the actor was asleep. It happened in the past, and Seojoon knew that Taehyung got home safely with the tightening trust he unfathomably held for the younger.

The idol sneakingly stepped into his living space, hoping Clara wouldn’t notice. He attempted to be quiet as a mouse and he succeeded with the front door and locks. But once he tiptoed through the living room, he was met by surprise with his enraged girlfriend sitting on the sofa holding daggers in her eyes. She had her pink robe on and bathing house slippers on with her arms crossed.

“What the fuck, Taehyung?” She yelled through her lungs. The high-pitch sound irritated his alcohol-infused body. “I’ve been texting and calling you and not once did you fucking answer.”

“I did answer you.” He rolled his eyes, not bothering to be quiet any longer. “You knew I was out.”

“Yeah, you texted once close to fucking midnight saying you were still out!” The socialite scoffed at his weak reply. “Now it’s five in the morning and you just came home!”

“Okay, what’s the big deal? I’m fucking tired!”

“Where the fuck were you? The last time I heard from you, you were still with ___. I swear to God if you tell me—”

“Well, I’m not! I wasn’t with her. She went home on her own after that text if it makes you feel any better.” He snapped back as he threw his keys on the kitchen island. “I was with Seojoon afterward. We drank and knocked out at his place.”

“Taehyung, you drank?” Clara gasped incredulously as she stood up from her seat. God, he rolled his eyes at how dramatic she was being. “Didn’t I say not to drink too much?”

“You say it, but I don’t listen.” He responded truthfully. “What’s the big deal anyway?”

“To prevent any more scandals from happening. You know what happened the last time you got too drunk?” She recapped, the memory back in her mind. “You almost got arrested for beating someone up. You’re lucky my father kept that under the rug or else it would have exposed you.”

His face scrunched up at the horrific experience. He remembered the severe panic attack he got right after, but he didn’t even remember what the guy said, but it was along the lines of bad-mouthing him and the group. But mainly, insulting him like he knew everything about Taehyung, or in that case, V of BTS.

“Well, I was with Seojoon, happy? I was fucking safe, so stop your yelling.” He sighed, feeling the weight of exhaustion on him.

“No, I’m not happy because you were gone the entire day and I was waiting for you, so we could have dinner together.” She pouted as she stepped towards him. He stepped back when she came closer. “Here I was with my cold side order of extra japchae while you’re out and about with some other fucking chick.”

If steam came out of his nostrils, it would have shown. There she went again with her damn accusations. “My God! You even knew and saw us going out! Stop insinuating shit when nothing happens.”

“I’ll fucking stop when you finally fucking have time for me!” Clara shouted back, eyes bloodshot with stress and despair. “You’re not doing anything right for me, and it hurts when I do so much for you.” He heard sniffing coming from her nose once he spotted a stream going down her cheek. “I’ve been patient and respectful with all these interests and bullshit you’re doing, but you never do it back. Don’t you love me, Taehyung?”

His mouth opened but closed back up as he gulped. “I-I-I do.”

She snorted before rolling her eyes, “Oh, yeah? Then why did you spend the whole day with some girl?”

“She’s not some girl. She’s my best friend!”

“And I’m not your fucking girlfriend?!” She protested, grabbing him by the collar and shaking his stature. With shocked eyes, he tried to calm her down, holding her arms away from him. “Why are you doing this to me? Why are you doing other things with her? I know she’s your best friend, but she’s too pretty! I don’t like how much you’re so invested in her. I’m pretty too yet you don’t hang out with me!”

The crocodile tears started forming in her tear ducts, yet her voice was thick with madness. Now she was talking any shit that deemed her as the victim. ”And you have scandals with other idols and actresses. Why does that happen, but we can’t? Fuck, you’re so unfair, Tae! Where’s my loving and sweet boyfriend, huh? One who brings me flowers, takes me out on dates, goes above and be—”

“Stop fucking expecting so much from me!” He interjected, pushing her touch away. He leaned into the counter, creating distance. Raking through his hair, he grunted with annoyance. “You see how much of a fucking train wreck I am! My life is already hard as it is.”

“Yeah, I know how you’re a fucking train wreck and I hate how you’re so adamant about sticking by it!” The socialite sneered, disgusted at how he was acting. “But my life is also hard too! You know how difficult it is to keep this image of us. We,” She pointed at him, then herself. “Are supposed to be perfect, Taehyung.”

“Why do you care so much about how “perfect” we supposedly are?” He hated that that was a concern of hers. He gave no shits about how people thought about their relationship, but he couldn’t speak openly about it because people would get mad at him for disagreeing.

“Because we are their expectation.” She explained like it was obvious. “We’ve been together for five years, Tae! But this is more than just that! We aren’t doing anything like we used to because you’re not making any time. This is your fault! You never make me happy!”

Taehyung squirmed when the blame pointed at him. There it was again too. The guilt ate him for not doing anything right, getting sucked into the realm of ridicule. You can’t do this right, you can’t do that right. This was all his fault.

“I’m sorry.” The only thing he could say in defeat.

“You better be.” Clara wiped her face with the back of her hand. “Maybe I’m overreacting…I don’t want you to stop your friendship, but I’m getting tired of you not having time for me.”

The idol looked down at the floor, refusing to look at her sorrowful state. But he knew she tried making him look at her by grabbing a hold of his hands and gently squeezing them. “I’m s-sorry. T-There’s just been a lot right now with everything.” Her touch burned his skin, the discomfort growing with every second.

“I know, but can you at least try?” She begged, ducking down to see his eyes. “I’m fucking trying!”

Taehyung nodded silently as his teeth sunk into his lower lips. He held back so much and offered so little. Clara was always known to never back down. Her expectations of herself and their relationship were higher than they could be even reached. But knowing if he gave in, then the fighting would stop and maybe she would be satisfied.

He felt her dainty arms encircling his torso as a sign of peace, a thing that couples did after fighting and now making up. Something that worked in the past but now…not so much. With tensed arms, he carefully wrapped around her as well, tightening the hug and hoping it would all go away. 

“I love you, Taehyung.” She spoke softly, pushing her face into his shirt.

Her words contorted his face as he sucked in a sharp breath, but she never noticed. Lifting his hand, he laid it flat at the back of her head, caressing her hair. It took him a second before saying it back, “I-I love you too.” His focus was on her now, lips thinned but curved enough to resemble a shy smile.

Raising her head, Clara gazed into the syrup color that was his eyes. Her teary irises twinkled in awe at the beauty of her boyfriend who she loved with all her heart. Shutting her eyelids, she tiptoed higher to attach to his soft addicting lips. Once they meshed, the electricity of passion coursed through her body. He tasted like alcohol, whiskey to be exact, yet it tasted like his musk and tinge of cinnamon spreading in her mouth. It has been so long since they’d kissed like this and she only wanted more.

She pressed herself onto him, holding onto the collar of his shirt. Caught by surprise, Taehyung took a step back, hitting the edge of the counter and then narrowing his hands onto her hips. Her tongue swiped through his lips, begging him to let her in. Though reluctant, the idol accepted the action and the muscles swirled against one another.

The socialite parted away to whisper, “More, Tae. More.”

He knew this was going to happen at some point, despite his constant avoidance. But after what happened, he couldn’t dodge it any longer. His heart palpitated in agitation as he nodded once again, “I’ll give you what you want.” Then their lips touched before they ran and tangled up in their bed in their apartment.

-

“Taehyung, you’re late again,” Namjoon informed as he checked his watch, then at his heaving younger member before him.

“Sorry, I-I forgot how much time passed.” Taehyung apologized as he stabilized his breathing with his hands on his hips. But the leader held a stern stare with a clenched jaw.

“Let’s not worry about that right now. Bang PD-nim is waiting for us.” Seokjin interjected to ease some tension. “We’re all here, and all good so let’s go.”

After partnering with the Na Group conglomerate, Big Hit hosted their first stakeholder’s event near the company building with the rise of BTS’s popularity nationwide and gaining more international exposure. There have been rumors of them potentially getting invited to the Billboard Music Awards Show next year as well as a nomination, but it was too early to tell.

Being the only active group of the company, BTS was invited—but more like involuntarily told—to come to show their appreciation to the now sponsors of Big Hit. It wasn’t something they preferred since it was meeting new people but had to go to show face at the very least.

An hour into the event, while the older members were socializing with the esteemed guests, the younger ones were a bit bored and sat down at a table in the corner of the banquet. Taehyung, especially, was not only tired but not feeling it. He was the last one to get ready as he was the last one to get up out of bed despite the event being at night. He came home last night close to noon after an NDA encounter, which wasn’t all that new to the idol and the other members. But if anything, he had the most but almost never remembered their faces.

The members haven’t explicitly spoken about it to him but ever since Taehyung became an adult, he hasn’t been…doing so well. The older ones specifically Namjoon and Yoongi assumed that it was just a blue transitional period of his life, but got too excessive with the drinking, one-night stands, and fights. But not with the members, fights with random people, yet still it was difficult to keep that away from the media. If he turned to fighting with members, then that would cause problems, right?

Anyways, he hasn’t been himself and it has been a growing concern. Jimin always worried for his best friend, as Taehyung was the least expectant to take on this spiral. He would usually talk enthusiastically and do things playfully and passionately, especially when they were trainees. Although for a good year after BTS debuted, Taehyung also had a rough time and felt down. None of them knew what happened, apart from the falling out of his childhood friend back home but didn’t think much of it…well, except for Jimin.

Your friendship with Taehyung was always questionable to him. Not in a bad way, it was different, to say the least. He never met you, only heard your voice. But the mannerisms Taehyung gave out were not what a best friend would do. Because what kind of best friend whines about missing your cuddles?

Either way, Taehyung always denied that you were nothing more than a best friend and eventually Jimin gave up. But when his friend continues acting out after being a dumbass and never contacting you again even after almost four years later, the question comes out every so often.

Jimin and Jungkook tried their best into helping their member out, but nothing seemed to work. Seokjin and Hoseok suggested new hobbies…but that, unfortunately, took the wrong track with the NDA collections and drinking. The members faced a wall, unable to come up with a better way to help him.

But then in the corner of his eyes, Jungkook spotted something particular. Or rather felt eyes watching their table. Subtly sensing the direction, the youngest spotted a young lady staring. She was by all means one of the prettiest visuals to see, absolutely breathtaking. Not really the youngest’s type, but nice to look at nonetheless.

However, though he felt her gaze all over, it wasn’t necessarily directed toward him. She was completely oblivious to Jungkook. He followed her eyes, which then landed on the second youngest, Kim Taehyung, himself. But he ignored his setting completely, reading a manga chapter on his phone.

Jungkook’s pupils went back to the girl and she was still keeping them on Taehyung. Jimin kept himself occupied with a flute glass of champagne while people watching at its finest. And at that moment, the youngest had a splendid idea that changed Taehyung’s life completely.

“Taehyungie Hyung,” Jungkook called over while he kept his eyes on her.

“What?” Taehyung muttered as he scrolled through his device.

“Th-There’s a girl staring at you.”

“I’m not in the mood to fuck someone right now. I have a really bad hangover.” The idol bluntly said.

“Tae, you know someone could stare without the idea of sleeping with them.” Jimin joined in the conversation.

“And how was the success rate of that?” Taehyung retorted, ultimately putting his phone down to look at the two. “Probably zero.”

Jimin pursed his lips, accepting the correct answer but he decided to not let it get to him. Instead, he ignored his friend’s reply and turned to Jungkook. “Who’s this chick?”

He tried his best to be undetected, but Jungkook was never good at that. The youngest pointed directly at her, which ultimately caught her attention. All three of them followed his finger, finding the young girl. Within seconds, her eyes bulged out and her lips parted before her back towards them.

“You know you’re a dumbass sometimes, right?” Jimin sighed, shaking his head in disappointment. “And don’t fucking point! It’s rude!” He slapped Jungkook’s shoulder, but it made no effect on him. “Do you also not know who she is?”

“Are we?”

“That’s literally Na Clara! She’s a socialite and the daughter of the Na family!” Jimin answered as if they were supposed to know. “Her dad is part of the reason why we’re here! So she could meet us because she’s a fan.”

“A fan she may be, but her eyes were googly eyes for Hyung over there.” Jungkook nodded over to the mundane Taehyung.

Taehyung rolled his eyes and said, “Whatever, not like it matters.”

Jimin squinted at his best friend, then scanned the room for the lady. Once he found her, her eyes were back on Taehyung. Lifting a brow, an interested smirk crept up onto his lips. “Tae, why don’t you talk to her?”

“No, thanks. Don’t want to get into trouble with daddy’s little girl and her money.” Taehyung barely looked her way, but he knew that he didn’t feel good about her.

“Come on, Hyung! It’s a perfect opportunity.” Jungkook suggested, leaning closer to Jimin who was in the middle of the trio.

“Perfect opportunity for what?” Another voice appeared, it was Yoongi’s. The rest of the members came back and sat, completing the group table.

“Na Clara is looking at Taehyung,” Jimin responded, earning a glare at his same-aged member. “She probably likes him. She’s still staring, you know.”

“Wow, Clara?” Namjoon gasped. “PD-nim said she’s a big fan of ours too!”

“She’s pretty too.” Seokjin acknowledged.

“Taehyung, why don’t you talk to her?” Hoseok too recommended.

“Why are you all so adamant on me talking to her?” Taehyung sighed, feeling somewhat pressured. “I’m not interested in her anyway…”

“Come on, you don’t know that.” Jimin countered, nudging him on his side. ”Maybe it’ll be nice, you know? A good change from your hookups.”

“Excuse me? I ha—”

“Tae,” Jimin lowered his voice. He looked around, observing the rest of the group staring back in a suggestive way. He peered back at his stubborn friend.

Taehyung sighed, trying his best not to blow up at his friend. “Chim, hook up or not. I don’t think it’s a good idea—”

“I just want you to find change. We want you to find good change.” Jimin disclosed, being honest with how the group was respectively feeling for him. “You’re spiraling and it’s not good.” With that, Taehyung stayed quiet and bit his lips nervously. Yes, he was absolutely aware of what he was doing but he never bothered to change. “You’re not doing anything bad! We just…don’t know what would happen in the long run.”

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Taehyung sighed and blinked. “And you think me talking to the socialite would help? Her staring’s not gonna change my life.”

“Okay, I didn’t want to do this,” Jimin muttered before leaning into Taehyung. His lips were near his ear as he whispered, “You haven’t been yourself since you and ___ stopped talking.”

Taehyung swore his heart dropped, skipped a beat, and ached at the mention of your name. It has been so long since your fight and not once did he ever apologize or call back. He didn’t know how you were doing, what has life been like for you, or even if you missed him because he did. He missed you so so so so much.

But wondering if you missed him might be pushing it after what he did, calling you needy and never wanting to talk to you. He still regretted saying that to this day. He knew those words were hurtful and sensitive towards you. Nevertheless, he thought about you almost every day. After almost four years, you graduated high school and probably went to college like you’ve always wanted to. But all he could do is assume and wonder.

He still loves you very much, and hopelessly too. Despite all these one-night stands, he never cuddled, never hugged, never looked their way, nothing but sexual pleasure really and to get his mind off the gutter temporarily. If he did do those things, he dreamt it with only you, his Blue. Recapping all the times he had you in his arms tightly while you slept soundly on his chest, it pained him every day to know you weren’t there anymore. And without you, he vowed never to do it with anyone else.

“What about her?” Taehyung questioned, suppressing the sadness of the loss of you.

“It’s been years, Tae. If you’re not talking to her, then you should move on.” Jimin explained, but Taehyung shook his head. “Maybe this isn’t about her, but still. You should do something.”

He’ll never admit it, but Jimin was right about you and what he was going through. He felt a bit stuck in his past, but it was only because of how happy he was when he was with you. Everything after you seemed boring, stagnant, and numb to his fast-paced lifestyle and career. He didn’t feel like he was growing as a person, just being a human who was being told what to do and say. Kinda like right now.

But Jimin had a point. He has been not feeling much with his life. The NDAs and constant drinking weren’t doing much for him besides a temporary fix. Change may be what he needed.

He glanced to the side and saw Clara, who was surprisingly talking to someone else. She was pretty and fairly approachable. Could this be the change he needed? Someone that wasn’t you? Of course, no one could replace you but still. He hasn’t even thought of talking to anyone else as he did with you. He doesn’t think he could do it. But with this sudden urge from his members to go for it, he seemed to be outnumbered with his choices. His members meant well, so maybe. But none of them ever knew how he truly felt when you were out of his life.

Yet he second-guessed himself. Being encouraged or rather forced by his group members, it seemed that it was inevitable for him to avoid meeting and talking to Clara. Seokjin jokingly suggested settling down with her, which Taehyung found repulsive but laughed it off fake-happily.

Once Taehyung stood up from his seat and walked towards Clara, her sparkling eyes found his nervous yet sad ones. He greeted and introduced himself to her and she did the same back. To his dismay, they had a filling and fruitful conversation for so long that they didn’t realize that the event was about to end. But he couldn’t help but compare her to you. You were different, in appearance and aura. Clara seemed confident in herself but had a people please vibe. She didn’t look all that genuine in his eyes but still seemed nice in a passive-aggressive way. 

She was nice to talk to, but that seemed it for Taehyung. Clara, however, wanted to see him again and asked for his number. Reluctantly, the idol accepted, reminding himself of what the members said. It happened all too fast that he couldn’t remember what they even talked about. But little did he know how important it was for them to be together and the relationship that would flourish for years, to the point where there were talks of marriage. 

Yet the thought of you floated in the back of his mind.

-

A loud bang on the table you sat at interrupted the peaceful break that you used up to take a quick nap. “Howdy, partner!”

Raising your head from your arms used as a cushion, eyes readjusted to the lighting and blinked until the sight was visible to you. It was a weak sight since you only saw Kenji bugging you once again. “Why are you in a bright-ass mood all the time?”

Kenji joined in and sat across. “Well, one of us has to when the bright bubbly worker is a cold stoic fiend right now.” You scowled at your coworker before getting back to sleep in your final minutes. The younger observed you, looking more tired and weak today than before. You’ve gotten better with your habits lately, so it was worrisome to see you like this. He hoped it was only an off day today and that you weren’t back on a self-destructive cycle again. “You good, ___? Never had enough sleep?”

Sighing, you knew you weren’t going back to napping. You pulled your chin up from your sleeping position and rested on the tops of your forearm to look at him. “Yeah, had a little trouble last night so it resulted in this.”

“Family doing okay?” He referred to your circumstances back home.

You sighed, yet felt surprised that was the least of your problems…well, today that is. It was only because you somehow managed to pay the medical bills on time this past Saturday. “Grandpa is…getting by.” You scrunched your nose at the thought of him. He nodded, understanding his condition but couldn’t fathom what you were going through. 

Ever since your grandmother passed away unexpectedly, he has been working harder to provide for both of you. He worked restlessly in the fields from sunrise until sunset while you picked up everything in the household. You’d help him on the weekends but worked at the shop and other menial jobs around the town for some extra earnings after school. Since you were a minor, you weren’t allowed to have a steady job so everything was under the table.

Your family wasn’t as financially stable but kept a roof and food on the table for you. Your grandparents were somewhat retired, yet kept to themselves in their farming. After the passing of your parents, their life insurance money was used to support you and your needs. Of course, the numbers decreased as you got older, and by the time you graduated high school, there was little left to support you through college in Geochang.

You even contemplated not pursuing college and continuing with family farming, but your grandfather convinced you not to as it wasn’t something you loved. He knew you and he would regret it years later, so without talking to you first, he took out loans for you to pay for the rest of your college. But he lied in the beginning and said it was money saved on the side by him and your grandmother for you for emergencies.

You believed him, so you agreed and went to college all without knowing. You even graduated and had a steady job before going back to school, and he still didn’t tell you. However, it was only when you were about to leave for Seoul, he collapsed on the ground during lunch and went unconscious.

You rushed him to the hospital where you found out that not only has he been keeping the loan payments from you but also his health was declining and been growing weaker by the second. That morning was a trigger that caused him to be bedridden in the hospital even after you left.

You were livid with emotions and couldn’t comprehend what was happening as it came all at once. So you straight up broke down and cried in the middle of the hospital room while your grandfather’s nurse, Moobin, tried his best to calm you down. You were upset about everything, even refusing to move now that you found out about the truth. But the main thing that you had to do was help and care for your grandfather regardless of how you felt about your hometown.

You took on so many roles on the farm, at home, and when you visit the hospital. You were on the brink of exhaustion, but all of that was taken away from you by your other family relatives willing to help you both out.

Even without the labor, you had to think about the loans you now had to pay off. Half of your savings wasn’t even enough to cover at least 15% of how much you owed. Don’t forget about the lovely interest! Fortunately, it was on pause when the loaners found out that you were going back to school.

But then there were your grandfather’s medical bills. You had the responsibility of paying them off and helping him as he stayed at the hospital, too weak to be self-sufficient. Though your grandfather always told you not to worry about the money, you still did, even to this day. Both of your grandparents never wanted you to worry about their grown-up problems, to the point where they were always discreet and kept things from you. But you had the habit of overhearing, wanting to take ease and weight off their shoulders for how much they’ve done for you. Again, they reminded you that you were their child and needed to be raised, not raise them, but your need to assist remained. They worked hard for you, so the least you could do the same back.

You had a few family members from another farming providence move to Geochang and were willing to help with the farm, house, and grandfather, which you were grateful for. But you’d never ask for any financial means despite all of them knowing what happened.

Money has always been tight for you, especially living in this city. That’s why you never bought things for yourself unless it’s necessary. Your clothes were either thrifted or gifted to you, school books were rented through the public library, you didn’t have a car—not even having a license, and your laptop which cost a fortune was a present from the elders of your hometown knowing that you’d need it. 

You missed home sometimes, for your grandfather of course. Buildings and skyscrapers were a bit much for you, people were somewhat cold-hearted, and it was harder to haggle here. You wished to visit soon, but with money right now, all you had to focus on was school and work.

“You know we’re here for you, right?” Kenji reminded, leaning into the surface of the table. You smiled at his endearment worrying and constant reassurance that you always liked.

Living here has gotten better though. You weren’t as alone as you were back in Geochang. After your only friend ever dropped you, you didn’t turn to others especially when you had no time to socialize since you were helping your grandfather. When you did accept them, then it only left you disappointed and even more distant. Your social meter was practically non-existent over there.

Though you were usually closed off and wary, you’ve met very nice people here and worked with a good family who truly cared for you. Despite your guilt for leaving behind your ill grandfather who begged to differ, it made your depressing boring life a little happier than previous years as well as warmed you back up.

“Yes, I know. Thank you, child.” You nodded, reaching your hand out to mess his hair up. He grimaced and cursed at you when you treated him like a little kid. “Even Halmeoni and Harabeoji too.”

“You don’t need to do everything on your own, you know. Especially when you always do things for others and yourself. Jesus, when was the last time you even did something for yourself?” He questioned.

You stayed quiet as you scrunched your nose in wonder. But when you don’t answer, Kenji complained, “The fact that you have to think says something.” He earned a glare from you. “You like to give and help, but never want anyone to do the same back.” He mentioned as he scoped the quiet restaurant. There were some tables filled, but every one of them has been served. “Just like serving, it’s nice to have a helping hand.”

“I know…” You rolled your eyes. “It’s just hard to trust people sometimes. I need to be careful.”

“How long does it take for you to trust someone?”

You kept quiet, pondering the question. It took you a while to trust Kenji after months of knowing him, you knew to trust his grandparents as soon as possible, and some college peers never got too close to you since you refused, maybe it just depended on the person.

Then your mind went to Taehyung. You always had one foot in and another out the door, in case he fucked up. You were being more strict with him. But the thing was that Taehyung had his own category for you. He was different because he wasn’t a complete stranger, he was your best friend who you used to trust after breaking it. And yet again, he broke it. Well, not really. You don’t know yet, it has been barely a day yet.

“Depending on the person, I guess.” You shrugged.

“What about Taehyung Hyung?”

“Why must you resort to him?” 

“Because you have history with him.” He smirked, pushing his fists up into his cheeks to squish them. Unfortunately for you, he acted as someone you confided in since he was always nosy yet understanding. It has gotten more and more like that when you first told him about Taehyung, but not all. “Seeing you’ve gotten closer to him after all, do you trust him now?”

You exhaled, leaning back into your chair. “Trick question.”

“It’s not a trick question.” He scoffed. “Or you just don’t want to answer it because you already know and you don’t like the answer?”

“What are you trying to be, my therapist?”

“I can.”

“Look Taehyung and I are not as close as you think. He’s different now, an-and changed, practically a stranger.” You semi-lied, trying not to make it a bigger deal than it actually was. “And we’re also fighting now. He disappointed me.”

“Not as close but fighting, wow. Didn’t know strangers do that.” Kenji replied sarcastically. You eyed him out, wishing to punch his cheeky smile off of him. “If he upsets you that much, then first, he’s not a stranger, second, he’s worthy enough for you to care for him. And third, probably enough to have your forgiveness. Maybe even trust, like do you really wanna give up on him? I feel like you’re the type to not give up easily.”

“You’re such a little shit.” You couldn’t say anything to defend yourself with his statement because deep down you knew it was true. So you resorted to bad-mouthing him, and blushing like an idiot.

“I’m a little shit who’s right.” He hummed lightly, not caring for your anger. “From the past weeks, he’s been here and with you, you’ve gotten better. Happier and healthier in your frozen exterior. You like it but you don’t wanna admit it with the past, and your damn pride.” He explained unapologetically. “New flash, my dear. It’s the past, so move on.” He said it so plainly that it insulted you. But it was the cold hard truth.

A customer called for him to which he stood up and you checked your phone, seeing that your break was over so you stood from your seat. “I know you’re scared, ___. You don’t wanna get hurt, can’t blame you but deep down you still want him there. So be a little bit more forgiving of him. Be okay with trusting him. Hell, maybe lean on his shoulder for support. You’ve seen that guy all without that fame and fortune that probably no one else knows about. Even without that, I’m sure he’s still the same Taehyung.” He grabbed a chair and was about to head to the table, but wanted to say one last thing. “Knowing you, you do things passionately and wholeheartedly. Why not do the same in your friendship with Taehyung instead of being on edge?”

You paused yourself as your heart thumped questionable. Why not do the same in your friendship with Taehyung instead of being on edge? The very question stayed in your mind for the weeks to come.

-

Laying down on his bare back on top of the disorderly dirtied sheets while his legs tousled with his naked partner resting calmly curled up by his side, Taehyung looked up at the ceiling. He didn’t know how long it has been with the blackout curtains covering any light from the outside.

Yet another day restless and upset with himself of two things—you and Clara. But right now, it was all because of her.

The earlier moments recaptured in his brain. The sudden rush of energy, electrifying touch on one’s skin, and immense release was brought upon them for hours as two lovers shared the love they had for one another. Bodies stick and tangled together to further the lasting bond.

If only that were true.

Energy was always being drained out of the life force. When she touched his skin, it felt dreadful and scorching. The connectedness into one was nowhere to be found. In fact, what was left of him in the aftermath was the uncomfortable numbness that he stilled upon himself for years. The use of his body for her own needs while he suffered the consequences of his.

With teary eyes, Taehyung glanced at Clara’s sleeping form. Even in no light, she glowed bright, bright enough to not notice his struggles, his true self. She slept so peacefully, never bothering to care if he was. He went back to the ceiling watching, as his pupils burned with hopelessness.

At the start of their relationship, it seemed so good. He gave her a chance with his heart, eventually making him fall in love and give his all to her. Spending hours together bonding, receiving blessings from family, and the gilded romance of their love was so jubilant that it was all fake.

Because underneath that so-called love was nothing but fights, accusations, gaslighting, and insecurities. It was like water and fire, and one of them would always be extinguished at the end.

Clara was expectantly nice on the outside. Her sweet and kind behavior felt like a ruse the second she stepped into the closed doors and four walls because there, she tricked his whole entity. Discouraging, insulting, playing cheese in the trap, lying, all she did to him. Yet Taehyung was the bad guy making her cry, being unfair, and spending less time with her?

Of course, she covered them all up by helping him on the outside such as begging him for therapy, helping him to reconcile with his members, and especially showing off how fabulous and perfect their relationship was to their circles. Though kept from the general public, as long as she knew she had Taehyung, that was all that mattered.

Nothing Taehyung wanted mattered to her. If it did, it was to help her image. It has gotten worse as time went on, exponentially within months. But sadly, he knew she was his endgame, and that very thought injected poison into his mind. There was nothing that can be done, nothing he could do without consequences.

Disgusted. He felt disgusted with himself. He wanted to shower and wash all the scum off his ruined body and damaged mind. The tears welled up and ran down his face and temples while snot formed up his nostrils with no one else to hear except for himself. He felt like he had no one, no one truly caring for him. No signs of help.

It wasn’t what he wanted. Because if he said what he wanted, everything that was built up to this point would be destroyed. And what he wanted was a dream, a hopeless dream that he so determinably wanted.

It was so close yet far to even reach. 

-

The serene of the nightfall sat the motionless park. The glistening of the moonlight reflected off the clearing river, glowing the scene around. The sounds of gentle winds could only be heard as Taehyung and Clara laughed together, enjoying their time and meal together. 

It has been six months since they first met, and six months since a somewhat blossoming relationship began. The two have gone on countless dates, exchanged gifts, stayed up long nights for video calls, messaging each other, and have already seen each other’s families by now.

Yet, they weren’t entirely “official.”

Of course, BTS was on its way to success as its popularity grew exponentially overseas. Obtaining new and diverse fans, selling sold-out shows, crafting rich and authentic music, and the list goes on. But that also included restrictions for the seven members. 

The life of an idol came with a price, and that included having their private life be limited from hanging out with friends and family, having eyes on you at any time of the day, pretending to not know what sex is, and everyone’s favorite—dating. 

Dating continued to be a controversial topic as it even removed members from the group, led fans into foes of their once favorite artists, and somehow technically ruined their lives. It could be an exaggeration, or not.

But that was more of a reason for idols to not date, or at least be careful about what they were doing and who they were with.

However, it wasn’t as much in Taehyung’s case.

In the eyes of the public, Na Clara was the ultimate dream girl, a down-to-earth socialite who deserved the whole world for everything she did. She was sweet, smart, charming, gorgeous, and an absolute pleaser. And Taehyung did see that in her…but always questioned what was more to it.

Everyone would think that they were becoming the new “it” couple…well in secret. With their looks, their fame, their interests, their connections, it seemed so fitting, even perfect, one might say with this idol-socialite combo to just be together.

The idol grew quite fond of Clara, hence why, he kept her around. He learned much about her—mind, body, questions, responses, even remembering and picking up certain habits that the socialite had like asking what things were in a pout or making a disgruntled face of disinterest when seeing problematic people.

His members and friends saw how Clara made life so easy for Taehyung. She wanted it easy for him. She wanted to take the heavy weight of life off his shoulders. She took him out of that down-spiraling playboy NDA life, told him to do this instead of that if it’s not good for him, and comforted him when times got rough and times were indeed rough…still rough.

It was best to say that Clara was the best thing that ever happened to him.

But why wasn’t their relationship being taken to the next level?

“Oh, Tae! It’s so beautiful here.” Clara gazed into the atmosphere like from a scene from a 2000s indie film. “Thank you for bringing me, and the little picnic dinner. So adorable!”

Taehyung’s vacant expression at the park view was ripped away as he glanced down to the blanket where their dinner rested —take-out pasta and fried chicken with two empty wine glasses that were stained red. The idol hummed and nodded, “I’m glad you enjoyed this.” He was careful with his words.

The socialite turned to face him. His eyes weren’t meeting hers as they stared back into the scenery. There was a physical distance between the two, the picnic basket in the middle of them. Although they had slept with each other countless times and it was obvious what their relationship was by now, Taehyung never showed as much affection to her as hoped.

Clara found out through others that Taehyung was a cuddly person, who loved to touch those he loved and cared about, but she never experienced it herself. They kissed and hugged, but it was almost mechanical. Maybe it was just because they weren’t official, and he didn’t want to scare her off. She didn’t know, she even tried talking to him, but Taehyung continued to be an enigma.

“Come closer, Tae.” She motioned him to be near, which was usually typical as the socialite would be the one to initiate things.

Though he cocked an eyebrow at her, he obliged. Pushing the basket away from their space, Taehyung scooted closer to her until their thighs touched. Clara then rested her head on his shoulder before he hesitantly wrapped an arm around her dainty waist. He pressed his cheek on the tops of her head, slowly getting into a comfortable position.

“Are you okay?” She asked.

There was a slight pause, but it went unnoticed by her. “Yeah, it’s been better.”

“I’m glad for you…” She smiled before furrowing her eyebrows as she did her best to gather her words and confidence. “Tae, there’s something I need to tell you.”

“Oh no, am I in trouble again?”

The socialite giggled at his assumption, shaking her head. He felt her stare “No, babe. I’ve been thinking…about what we are.”

Taehyung grew confused as he looked down at her supple face. “What do you mean?”

“I really really like how things are with us. I enjoy being with you and learning more every day about what’s going on in your head. Just the thought of you makes me get butterflies.” Clara explained the best way she can. “It makes me want to fall harder and harder for you that I want more.”

“M-more, why?” Okay, he knew he sounded stupid and probably shouldn’t have responded that way but it couldn’t be helped. He was taken aback and wasn’t expecting such a serious conversation to a causal date. It wasn’t even as fancy as past dates and dinners.

Clara pouted at his response but tried her best to remain lax. “Well, what do you think about me? Us? Is this us just being like…this enough for you?”

“You know my life is difficu—”

“Yes, I completely understand!” She interrupted before sighing. “I’m also in a similar boat too.”

You will never understand, Taehyung thought but didn’t speak out loud. He always thought a lot of thoughts but never said them.

But the longer Taehyung said nothing, the more anxious Clara was becoming. Maybe she just needed to get the point across, also known as her feelings. As a measure, the socialite then took Taehyung’s unoccupied hand and intertwined it with hers. Her brown almond eyes gleamed at his under the silvery moonlight as she said her four words, “I love you, Taehyung.” So soft and delicate yet enough for the idol to gasp slightly. “I’m in love with you, I’ve been loving you for a while.”

Clara’s heart skipped a beat.

But Taehyung’s didn’t. It was more panicking about how she was acting so forward with this and why she wanted more. He was fine with what they were doing now, and now alone.

“Look, you don’t need to say anything. I know you’re not ready to say it yet and that’s fine, but don’t you want to take our relationship to the next level? Being official. I’m willing to do all it takes to be with you. Please, Tae?” Clara wondered as she tried to find his eyes. They wandered elsewhere, not wanting to face her. The socialite felt herself sinking at his reactions. “Unless…”

That was when Taehyung finally reached her. Her glowing irises layered with a slight gloss while she bit her painted lips. Was she about to cry? Taehyung started to feel guilty. “Unless what?”

Clara composed herself before asking, “Unless there was someone else.”

Unless there was someone else. The words now consumed his brain. There was no one else near him after meeting Nara. The members saw no one too. His playboy days were practically non-existent. There was no one to go to, no one to comfort him, no one to make his day, no one to make him smile, no one to make him happy.

Except.

Then suddenly something—someone appeared before him. Someone who had longed for.

Whatever how Clara looked, her features formed into another. Rosy plump cheeks filled with joy and life, cheekbones shaped into glory, hair shorter but braided down to the chest, perfect cute rounded nose, and those familiar doe eyes.

The ones that would suck him into a trance every single moment and be immersed in the ever-glowing beauty of the kind and altruistic aura he knew. The aura that made him feel like a magnet and gravitate towards. The gravitation that made him realize that no other love would ever compare to this love he had.

The love he had for you.

Taehyung loves you so deeply that it continued to this day. The undying love he never confessed to you, not even when he was with you, not even when he was about to leave, not even through your night calls. Even after the falling, he continued to wish to see you again and tell you his confession that was hidden and buried deep in his heart that he told no one else, not even his members or family. Why? Because it was a confession for you and only you.

He saw you in front of him, smiling your patient smile and laughing with tears in your eyes. He now noticed the flush of your face, the puffiness around your eyes, and the inaudible sniffling you were doing. He realized it was a memory of you, the day he found out that he wanted to love you more than you or he could possibly imagine. The love his father once told him and be forever ingrained into it.

“Hyungie…” Your loving tone was voiced out as the vision of you looked back at him. Even when appearing sad and heartbroken by a dumbass individual, you looked like an angel. You were so beautiful. “I will always love you.”

Immediately, he spoke, “I will always love you too.”

“You do?” Another voice shattered through his consciousness, causing him to snap back into reality.

It wasn’t you. It definitely wasn’t you. You were gone, and you were never coming back even if both parties tried. There was no ___ and Taehyung. No Blue and Hyungie. All trash, absolutely nothing. No future together, whether near or far. The relationship you once had with him has been crumpled up and cast away, burning into the pits of broken memories that hurt him by the slight thought.

You weren’t here anymore. He couldn’t save it. He loves someone who wasn’t here with him anymore. The falling tears he didn’t realize he shed ran down his face. Oh, how he missed you so much. He wanted to do anything and everything in the whole world to get you back and into his arms again.

“Taehyung,” Clara called for him again, but he was unresponsive. He was too busy crying out the overwhelming love he had for you. He chanted faint “I love you” with his eyes closed, thinking of you. 

It was only when Clara cupped his face with her pale hands and moved his head to meet her eyes. Taehyung’s eyes opened up, expecting you but he knew it was too good to be true. It was her, the only person he had.

But not the one he wanted.

“What happened? You started crying.” Her tone was so much different from yours. Yes, sweet, but sickly sweet.

“I-I-I think…I just—got overwhelmed with emotions.” He didn’t want to say what was on his mind. It was an asshole thought for her anyway. Better to keep it hidden.

The socialite nodded, simply taking that because she was more concerned and very much intrigued with what he said back. “You said…” His bloodshot eyes tiredly stared back blankly. “You said you will always love me. Is…that true?”

He blinked. Her hopeful demeanor was seen kilometers away, evident that she needed the reassurance. But Taehyung held back as the voice in his head debated on what to say.

He cried for you. Yet you were gone, and you took his heart with you. He didn’t know what you were doing, probably college, having a fun normal life, getting a boyfri—no. You were doing your own thing for years without trace or contact. The second he fucked up, everything about you was gone in his life. Little by little until his life practically forced you out. But the memories remained.

But was this it for him? To go on with life without you or his heart? To have all of you before but have none of you now? He didn’t know how to go on with life without you. What was he going to do?

Look at him right now.

But Clara was here, she’ll only be here from now on, and that pained Taehyung. No one would ever replace you. He refused to replace you, you were his one and only Blue.

Still, you were out of his life and left him empty but with a purpose. He was an idiot and he should be punished for what he did. 

All he needed to do was survive without you. He had to at least try. He needed to do this. He needed to fall in love with Clara. Do it for him and his state.

“Yeah…I love you…with all my heart.” He was supposed to say this to you, not her.

Clara’s hope glowed bright like the heavens as she threw herself on him, making him stumble back and fall onto the blanket. She straddled his hips, embracing him with all her might. Taehyung didn’t know what to do and laid there before hugging her back to avoid awkwardness.

She lifted her head that rested on his shoulder before giving him a deep kiss which he did back willingly. What felt like passion and an exchange of love from Clara was only messy, wet, and forced to Taehyung. She parted from him with a string of cold saliva stretched, their foreheads resting on one another.

She focused all her attention on the man she loves. The burning devotion flamed her whole body, wanting all of him, wanting all the love he had for her. At last, Na Clara, the socialite, the visual of South Korea, was with the rising idol, Kim Taehyung, V of BTS.

“I love you.” She cooed, pecking his nose.

Yet Taehyung’s eyes grew blurry as he lets go of more tears and pain within him. Through the fuzzy vision, he only thought of you. There wasn’t anyone in the world for him, but you. But he had to remind himself that you weren’t here.

This had to do. This had to work.

“I love you too.” I love you, ___, my Blue. He cried out. Clara giggled, thinking how incredibly sensitive he was being for her. She whispered reassurances and comforted him, saying that it’ll be okay and not to cry. She was here for him, always by his side, wanting to turn his dark days into sunshine and rainbows. It was all perfect. The couple, the love, the bond, all perfect, perfect, perfect.

Yet perfect never meant that this would work.

Tagged: @manuosorioh @kaal-ee @stfxthv @dahliasbouqet @bertqut1 @fuckthinking @taebangtanbabe

Crying 😭 This is probably the fastest of my stories to get 1K notes. ALL BECAUSE YOURE ALL TAEWHOREKNEE THANK YOU 🥰🫡💘

Good for Me | KTH

Pairing: Bad Boy Taehyung x Wholesome Reader

Genre: Fluff, Smut, PWP (porn with plot LMAO),

Summary: You went home for the weekend, leaving a pissed-off and bruised-up Taehyung dry and devastated. So what does he do?—follow you home. Insane? Probs, but you’re always good for him so why not?

Warning: OC’s parents are those strict nosy parents who still tell you what to do even if you’re 50 years+, mentions of Christianity hfrowhouw SUE ME, i have no idea what oc and tae are but you know there’s something, mentions of violence, blood, fighting, sneaky sneaky, dom tae x subby reader but tae is needy and whipped for her, he’s just a little shit, tae has a favorite curse word—it’s fuck, TAEHYUNG IS HUGE AND HUNG, aggressive handling (but oc consented), degradation/praise combo, pet names (because I’m a simp), oral (m. and f. receiving), fingering, spanking, tae enjoys seeing oc cry, licking, i think i have an obsession with orgasm control/denial, multiple orgasms, overstimulation, unprotected sex (don’t be like them), cream pie, cum play, the ending though MWAHAHAHAH

Word Count: 7.8k

A/N: I’m adding on for the taewhores and also wrote one lol BLAME THE FUCKING ELLE COVERS BECAUSE THIS SHOT OUT OF MY BLEEDING VAGINA DJDBDBSB I’M REPENTING AFTER THIS also cross-posted on AO3. Posting this at 2AM because that's when the feral wolf comes out :D

“You know ___, you shouldn’t be going out and partying. What if you do drugs and we don’t know? You know you should focus on yo—”

“Dad, for the last time, I’ve been focusing on my studies.” You rolled your eyes, not wanting a whole ‘nother lecture when you’re here, and you got here today! “I rarely go out too, plus if I do, I know I have to finish my work! You’ve seen my grades!”

“Yes, I know but still. Those worldly activities won’t get you anywhere in life but trouble.” Your dad expressed his continuous concern for you. He can’t help that you were his youngest. “Especially with boys! I mean your sisters have boyfriends but we don’t want that for y—”

“Dad, please. Nothing’s going on with me.” You semi-lied. You pinched the bridge of your nose before you stared exhaustingly at him. “It’s also not fair, but I don’t want to get into that.” You muttered under your breath as your father rested his hands on his hips.

“I’m just worried about you, sweet pea, especially since you’re farther away from us than your sisters were.” He reasoned worryingly. “We rarely hear from you too.”

“Because I’m just tired and I’m usually studying.” You shrugged. “I’m safe, okay? If I’m not, I know to call you or mom.”

“Fine…” He still didn’t look convinced, but it was enough to end it…for today only. “I always pray for your safety regardless. You should get some sleep since we’re waking up early tomorrow for the church fellowship.”

“I still don’t know why you wanted me to come for the weekend.” It was random and unexpected. But your father called you a couple of days back telling you to come back home for the weekend, so as a good and obedient daughter, you did.

“Of course, you needed to come.” He said like it was obvious. “As the pastor of the church and the one who’s hosting it, I’d like all my children to come.”

“But why aren’t the other two here?” You questioned. You haven’t seen your two older sisters yet.

“I mean they live around the area, unlike you since you’re hours away. We figured that they’ll meet us over there.” He responded. 

Great, you were the only one and had to deal with both of your parents for the entire weekend alone. At least your mom was already sleeping, but once she wakes up, it’ll only be twice as worse.

“Alright, well, I’m going to bed. See you in the morning.” You announced before hugging him. “Good night, love you.”

“Love you too, sweet pea, and remember, dear, the Lord is watching.” Your father pointed upwards, indicating the invisible yet existent one. You gulped before nodding obediently and going under your sheets. Before he left your room, he held the doorknob and said, “No boys, and don’t forget to pray!”

“Okay.” You didn’t even bother to look at him as you were situating yourself comfortably in bed. The bedroom lights were clicked off, yet the only light source was your bedside lamp. You heard your door closed shut and the sounds of his heavy footsteps disappeared away from your room before letting out a relieving sigh.

You don’t even know how long you could keep like this. There were many reasons why you wanted to be away for college, and this was one of them. You cheered yourself on right now, knowing that it’s just this weekend and you’ll be back in your freedom in no time.

This was where prayer came in handy, asking for the amount of strength and patience you’ll need with your parents. But it was all interrupted by the blue light and vibrations coming from your phone resting on your nightstand. This sigh you let out was more exasperated than before. You turned your head in that direction. You couldn’t really what was on it at this angle, but you definitely knew who it was.

You snatched your phone to find the 43 messages, 12 missed calls, and 2 voicemails from the one and only Kim Taehyung.

You honestly don’t know how you got into this mess, or how you weren’t able to get him away (probably because you still wanted him to be within reach). But the cycle continued.

It was probably because you were new to that town, having no background about your new hometown, and usually, those who lived there continued to stay there. You were fresh meat. But don’t get it wrong, people were nice and brought you in like you were always part of the community. You found new friends, even living with a girl who treated you so sweetly and caringly. It almost felt like they wanted to protect you from something…or rather someone.

That happened to be Taehyung.

You see here, folks. Kim Taehyung had a…infamous reputation. His name always got a reaction since the day he came into the world. What that meant was people were afraid of him. He grew up as a delinquent, had some family issues, got into loads of trouble, got suspended from school, was shipped to boarding school but got expelled and came back, and even got into countless fights. You recalled someone mentioning he once beaten his teacher up because he got a low grade that he shouldn’t have deserved.

He tended to get what he wanted. It didn’t help the fact that he came from a pretty well-off family, so whatever he did, it didn’t reach the police. Right? Fucking rich people.

Nevertheless, Taehyung’s behavior with or without his familial status was rogue. There have been rumors about him getting into gangs, drugs, you know the typical dark side of society. You couldn’t confirm nor deny it because despite his willingness to tell you, you never wanted to hear anything about it. Ignorance was bliss under this circumstance.

With that being said, when you first came here, you were instantly warned to stay away from him or else…You reasoned with, “or else what?” But then they proceeded to say the same things to you—he was dangerous, he harms others, he doesn’t care about anyone else but himself, if you’re in his way, he’ll wipe your entire existence away, and your life would get fucked up.

You did in fact listen and stayed away. You rarely knew of him or even saw him around, but it was better safe than sorry. Of course, fate begged to differ. 

Oh, that’s right. That’s how you got into this mess. You were partners with him in a general requirement course, and then after briefly talking to him, you realized he wasn’t all that bad.

First off, the dude was immaculate looking, like, who wouldn’t want to stare at his chiseled features? Yeah, he stared intensely almost like he wanted to kill you, but it affected you in other ways. His voice was cavernous and velvet like you wanted him to read the Bible to you.

He looked annoyed, yet he was a chill dude. There you thought—give him a chance and a break.

Oh boy, you thought wrong. So so wrong.

But did you love it? Absolutely.

This was why you needed to repent.

You didn’t even bother reading his texts. You decided to call him and annoyingly sat up from your comfortable position. The call didn’t even ring twice because, after the first one, he answered immediately.

“Petal, where the fuck are you?” He shouted through the phone. You squinted to yourself but weren’t as affected by his tone since you were used to it by now.

“I went home for the weekend.” You simply replied.

“And didn’t fucking bother to tell me?”

“It was a last-minute thing, and it slipped my mind.” You shrugged, then you pulled your blankets off of you to get up and habitually pace around the room while you talked. “Plus, you don’t have any authority to know where I am.”

“I absolutely do have the authority whether you like it or not.”

“Ew, red flag, why?” 

“I need to know if you’re safe.” His voice subsided this time, knowing he was probably pouting yet you couldn’t see it. Okay, this was rather valid since you were associated with the bad boy of the town.

“Well, I am safe. I’m away from school and all of that.” You blushed, feeling the butterflies in your stomach. “I’m with my parents too. My holy parents, might I add.” 

“Right, holy parents and your holy sisters who got married to other holy men.” You could hear the sarcasm leaving his mouth. “Yet there’s nothing holy about their slutty little girl and the man that’s been fucking her to hell.”

“Shhhhh, don’t say stuff like that, Taehyung!” You whisperingly yelled as you stopped your pacing to clench your legs together. You always hated how much of a potty mouth he was. Though you internally loved it. “You know I don’t like that.”

“Come on, Petal. I’m just lightening up my mood, especially since you left me.”

“I won’t be gone for that long. It’s only the weekend, and I’ll be back in no time.” You resumed your pace before standing in front of your window with your back facing it. 

“That’s too long for me to not have you.”

“I’m sorry, there’s nothing I can do!”

“You can come back, Petal.”

“No, I can’t!” You shook your head. “My parents will get mad if I leave, for a boy too.”

“That’s a risk I’m willing to let you take.”

“Taetae, no!” You were trying to stand your ground. You already had four lectures with your parents, you can’t argue with him right now. “I need to sleep, it’s getting late too!”

Though his heart fluttered at the use of the nickname, he was getting pissed off that you weren’t being a good girl for him. “Babydoll, be careful with your words. I’m warning you.” His voice went an octave down, shocking your body especially your cunt. Even hundreds of kilometers away, he had such a powerful effect on you.

“I am being careful! With everything. Now please, I have to get up early tomorrow. Good night, okay Taetae? I’m sorry.” You rushed your words in fear that you were getting too loud that your parents might hear.

“This isn’t ov—” You didn’t let him finish because you decided that this conversation was over. You didn’t want to get into trouble on both ends, but your parents scared you more than him. They’ll probably want to purify you if they found out you were stained by the lustful demon-like Taehyung.

Despite ending the call, here came Taehyung calling you over and over again. You could not be bothered with it, so you settled it back onto your nightstand. You were exhausted, frustrated, and horny, but sleep was above all right now. You had to bite your tongue and go to bed.

You were about to get back into your sheets when suddenly your window from the second level of the house opened, and a gust of wind pushed its way inside. Your head snapped back at the speed of light, then a large palm covered your entire mouth before you could scream your heart out.

Though in low light, your wild widened eyes saw his face.  But what sparked you was his concerning appearance. While disheveled ebony hair was pushed back with little strands falling off his forehead, yet there was a deep cut with dried-up blood around its corners. Hues of purple and yellow covered his rich eyes that gleamed in the night whilst glaring deeply into your soul. The perfect bridge of his curved nose had another pained gash. His ever-so-plumped lips were peeled and split open and the corner of his mouth held bruising. Despite all, he looked so perfect in your dazed eyes.

“Good night, okay Taetae?” At a lower volume, he mimicked your voice at a higher pitch than how you actually sounded. He dropped his hand off of you and started waving both hands around. “Oh, look, I’m ___. I need my rest to go to church with my pastor dad and repent all the nasty shit I do with my Taetae.”

You didn’t even bother to point out how he was inaccurately impersonating you because you were shushing him to shut up. “Taehyung, be quiet. My parents could hear you.” You shook your head, eyes shifting from the closed door to him. Then you realized it wasn’t locked, so you rushed there to lock it immediately. You checked the knob and once it didn’t budge, you peered back at the frustrated man standing tall and intimidating. “How did you even find me?”

“I always find you.” He snorted as his eyes roamed around your childhood bedroom. Very pink with an unhealthy amount of plushies scattered around and you had so many pictures of your family. Not to mention the Bible at your desk. “We also share each other’s location.”

“I don’t even look at yours.”

“That’s your fault.” He retorted back.

“Taetae, you’re all bruised up!” You gasped as you finally saw patches of blood stains on his denim and army fabric jacket. A sleeve was torn and ripped. His knuckles held more bruising cuts and discoloration. You couldn’t even process that he had no shirt underneath because battered markings painted his torso. It wasn’t unusual to see him like this because these things occurred regularly but never made you less at ease. You reached for his hands and inspected for any other cuts and bleeding. “Noo, do you feel like you have a concussion? Is your head also okay? Will you need stitches agai—“

Out of nowhere, his long fingers grasped under your jaw, pulling you closer to his face. His grip tightened, causing you to wince in pain. Dang, he was so furious. Not bothering to answer you, he interrupted your worries. “Now the fuck you were doing, talking back at me and hanging up? You’re not being a good girl right now.”

Though you were in a light panic for him, you didn’t like when he scolded you like that. You frowned profoundly, “I-I’m a good girl, Taetae.” Your cheeks were puffed and squishy, he even struggled to put a hard exterior.

You were always so soft even before him. You didn’t like getting scolded despite hearing numerous lectures from your parents. You always wanted to be obedient to those you loved. 

However, Taehyung’s scoldings hit a little differently.

“Oh yeah, does a good girl leave their man without permission?” Taehyung patronized you, he knew how to get you to fear him. You merely shook your head and apologized, but he wasn’t having it. “Words, Petal. Speak up.”

“No, they don’t. I-I’m sorry, Taehyung.”

He lets out a dark chuckle before he pressed his injured lips to your forehead. They felt soft and warm on your skin. “I don’t think you’re sorry, babydoll. Seems like the bad girl needs to be punished.”

You shook your head, lips pushing out into a pout. “No, please.” You breathed. “My paren—”

Taehyung tutted and rolled his eyes before using the hand that held your face to coerce your head down so you can drop down to your knees. “Kneel before me, slut.”

You whimpered weakly as your knees landed on the ground with a loud thud. Your palmed rested in front of his dirtied boots. Your heart palpitated fast in fear of getting caught, but your mind was preoccupied with the unexpected slap from the man before you.

You bit your lips deeply, trying not to make any more sounds. The tears in your eyes threatened to be released but you also held back by squeezing your eyes shut. More so to not give Taehyung satisfaction. But when you peeled them back open and looked up, it was over for you.

He leered down at you, his stone demeanor expanded by the second. You noticed his naked chest raising harshly from the breaths he took. You immediately felt smaller and smaller the longer you stared at each other in this position.

“Be a good girl and take my cock out”. He commanded as he threaded his fingers through your hair and yanked you closer. “Now.”

You didn’t hesitate any longer. Your trembling hands tugged his belt off. You tried your best to quicken up the pace, but it seemed to hold you back as you struggled with the button pants and zipper. Taehyung noticed too so he fastened his grip on you to tell you to hurry up, making you weep.

“S-sorry.” You apologized quietly but it wasn’t enough for him. Once you pulled his pants down, you were met with a familiar bulge in his underwear. When you freed him, his monstrous dick slapped his toned stomach and bounced before you.

Taehyung never failed to amaze you with how colossal he was. The first time you saw it you wanted to run away, but he caught you and you got hooked. His darkened mushroom head was huge while the base was thick and his curved length was long and veiny. It was the prettiest dick you’ve ever seen and seemed that God blessed him very well. 

Nothing happened between the two of you yet but the slit of his tip pearled fluids. You gawked agape with your mouth parted and tongue swiping your lips. His dick twitched, waiting for you to do something but you were too mesmerized.

Impatiently, using his unoccupied hand, he seized your jaw again, keeping your mouth open. “You’re fucking taking too long.” It didn’t take him long to bring your lips to his cock and push all of him in one motion.

You let out a muffled cry with watery eyes. If the tears fell before, they sure did now.  Your throat muscles throbbed around him from the unexpected slamming.  You gagged painfully, especially since his blunt head hit the back of your throat. Your mouth produced trickling drool all over him and down your chin. You were by no means prepared, but Taehyung didn’t seem bothered as he began his harsh pace.

You held onto his muscular thighs. You were crying so much but your sobs were smothered by the cruel thrusts of his rabid cock. Despite the sting, the actions sent a flood to your thin underwear. The familiar warmth covered your stomach, clenching your thighs together for some pressure on your poor leaking cunt.

“Fuck, Petal. Shit.” He cursed lowly. His cavernous moans echoed through the air. “Look at me.” His order sounded like a threat. He stopped his movements; his cock halfway in your mouth. When you opened your heavy lids, he looked so hot and bothered even in your blurry vision. “My pretty girl.” His thumb wiped off the trail of tears. 

You were always pretty in his eyes, smiling, and laughing, even when you get angry at his annoying ass. But he especially thought you were pretty when he made you cry like this. 

Then he went back to bobbing your head brutally on him. Your nails scratched his thighs, leaving indents on them. You retched again, spit drenching all over him. “Fucking amazing for a slut like you. Is this what you wanted, since you’re a fucking bad girl?”

You wanted to say no, but you couldn’t so you shook your head and whimpered. You weren’t a bad girl. You were good!

You were getting lightheaded, feeling so stuffed to even breathe. Taehyung observed your face getting a little pale. You always forgot to learn how to breathe when giving him a blow job.

He pressed into you once more and a bit longer than usual, so he can imprint the feeling of your mouth again into his spank bank. He ultimately pulled out, leaving a long string of drool from his tip to your crimson lips. His dick covered in your sweet saliva. 

You heaved profoundly and wept here and there. You wanted to tell him off, but you were too scared to say anything. You pushed the tears away with the back of your hand and gulped your words but it pained you to do that.

“God, you’re messy,” He laughed cynically at you. “Aww, you’re upset, babydoll?” He asked condescendingly.

“N-no,” You sniffed, trying your best to be strong. “I’m not.”

“Good, you better not.” He said, letting go of your hair. “Stand up.”

This time you were swift on your feet. Though with painful reddened knees, you stood up wobbly and held Taehyung’s biceps for some support. He hooked an arm around your waist, pulling you to be chest to chest with him. 

Being like this, you saw how he towered over you. The height difference wasn’t compared to a gremlin and the Incredible Hulk but he was still way taller than you. He absorbed your appearance, finally taking in how you wore a cute brown bear pajama shirt and matching shorts. The fresh aroma of roses from your body wash and your natural scent swirling into his nostrils sent his pheromones into a frenzy. He wanted you so badly.

“Are you gonna be a good girl and let me fuck you while your parents are sleeping?” His hot breath splashed your face, fluttering you into submission. You unconsciously nodded excitingly but it caused him to tut at you. “I’m not gonna tell you again. Exact words, babydoll.”

“Yes!” You shouted too quickly that only after you caught yourself, covering your mouth with your palms. He smirked at your reaction—so needy for him. Just the way he loved it. Your hands slowly traveled to his shoulders as you batted your beautiful irises at him. You didn’t like swearing, but it came often when you were with him alone. “Uhh, p-please f-fuck me. I’m your good girl, Taetae.”

The perfect answer.

He bent down to peck the tip of your nose then went further down to lick the trunk of your neck. He picked a spot before suckling around to mark his territory. You mewled at the sensation, slithering your arms around his nape. He began moving towards your bed while you stepped back, following his lead until you fell back onto the sheets of your mattress. Your back rested while your legs hung at the edge of the bed.

Your unapologetic eyes wandered his frame.

He kicked his pants and boots off his ankles, leaving him in only his jacket. But even that, he took off. The faded and lighter scars sprawled his torso, showing evidence of fights and brawls through the years. The fresher wounds battered his rough skin and once you saw gauges wrapped around his right hip with blood patches seeping through, you sat up straight with pupils dilated.

“Taehyung, your—”

“I didn’t tell you to speak,” He growled, and stalked to the bed before pushing your shoulder roughly to lay back down. Your body bounced, trying to process what was happening but he tugged your shorts and panties down and off your skin.

He kneeled in front of you, callous palms spreading your thighs apart to reveal your leaking puffy pussy. He didn’t even touch you and you were this soaked. He inhaled deeply, taking in your sweet essence.

Jesus Christ, you were always embarrassed when he did that. It was like his human nature devolved into animalistic instincts. His mouth had a mind of its own, nibbling your inner thighs and placing even more marks on you like he wanted to claim you. You gasped quietly, jerking a little. So sensitive as always. His thumbs stretched your nether lips apart, revealing more of you to him. The petals of your sex opened for him. Your little hole throbbing around nothing but secreted so much wetness, even spotted your tiny clit inflamed, begging to be touched.

But to your luck, Taehyung wasn’t the type to get on with it right away…well he can, but most of the time, he chose not to. No, sir, he took his time with you, to the point you had to drop your pride and beg. His fingers lightly caressed your sex, enough for you to feel it but do no pleasure.

“Tae,” You whined, hands reaching for him but he swatted them away.

“Don’t touch me, put them on your sides.” He seethed through his teeth.

“But—”

Smack! The slap stung your cunt, making you welp loudly. He does another and your head turned to the side. You cried, pressing your face into your blankets. Taehyung continued hitting your pussy until it was red and sensitive.

“Naughty girl!” He slapped your lips once more, jolting your feeble body. “What’s wrong with you tonight? You think just because you’re with your family that you forgot all the rules we had, hm??”

“N-n-no.” You sobbed, shaking your head cowardly. “I promise I reme—”

A knock came on your bedroom door.

Both of your heads shot toward the direction with wide eyes. Another knock happened again before the person on the other end said, “___?” Another knock. “Sweet pea, I heard noises. Are you good?” Then the fucking knob jiggled, but fortunately, you locked it. “Why’d you lock the door? What are you doing?”

Shoot, it was your dad. Your pastor dad. Now your heart was heavy and dropped down to your uneasy stomach. You needed to say something quickly, but no words came out. You shifted to see Taehyung who shrugged and smirked devilishly, leaving you to fend for yourself. 

It was only until your dad said, “Do I need to use the spare keys to open the door?” That you spoke up.

“No! I’m good, I just…I accidentally dropped my phone on my face.” You lied, praying he’d buy it. 

“You and your dang phone.” He complained through the door. Taehyung’s mouth went wide with silent laughter hearing you get scolded. You pursed your lips, shaking your head. He was no help at all because there was a gleam of mischief and it wasn’t a good sign at all. “You need to get off of that thing, sweet pea. You won’t have enough sleep. Remember you’re joining the praise team in the morning.”

“Yes, dad! I know. I’m sorry to—unghhh.” Your sentence was interrupted by the sudden breach from Taehyung’s two long fingers sliding in so smoothly into your cunt. 

“___? ___, are you okay?” Your dad questioned as he continuously knocked on your door.

It didn’t take long for Taehyung to find your g-spot, curling his fingers to muscle memory. His digits pumped into you, and at times, he thumbed your clit. He had your eyes rolling back and biting your lips to stop your struggling whimpers. “I-I’m f-fine right now. D-d-ahh worry!”

“Are you sure you’re fine? You sound like you’re in pain.”

Taehyung dived into your pussy, taking a long lick before wrapping his lips around your sensitive nub. The tips of his fingers did their magic hitting your insides, playing with the squish of immense ecstasy.

You shrieked involuntarily, fisting the blankets under you as you threw your head back. “Yes, I’m fine!” You groaned distressingly. “I-I’m so…touched by my prayer before sleeping.” You swore faintly when Taehyung suckled and flattened his tongue on your clit.

“Prayer to the Lord is always so emotional, sweet pea.” Your father pointed out, but you really didn’t give a shit. “Alright, don’t want to disturb your time. Hope you get some sleep soon though. Good night.”

His footsteps faded away and you mentally cheered that you didn’t get caught, but you had sudden guilt that you basically spoke to your father with a guy eating you out.

Taehyung released his mouth off you to see how you appeared, crumbling at his touch. Your face wrinkled together with your mouth parted, and you saying his name with your pretty voice had his aching cock twitching. He reached over to the hem of your shirt and pulled it up, revealing your soft bare breasts and hardened nipples. “Such a pretty girl. Touched by the prayer? No, no, I’m the one you should be praying to.”

“D-don’t say that.” You moaned he knew you were very much in tune with your spirituality but he also liked to mess around with you.

“Why, Petal? You don’t like what I say, hmm?” He pouted mockingly, pushing his fingers deeper into you. You gasped, digging your head into the mattress. “I’ll give you everything that you want.” These blankets did no justice, you needed to hold onto him. You put your hand out, silently asking to hold him. Taehyung was mean but he wasn’t that mean…at least not today, so he accepted your request and intertwined his vacant hand with yours.

He felt your cunt getting tighter, understanding what was about to happen. Well, remember how Taehyung wasn’t that mean? That statement was taken back because he said, “Don’t come until I say so.”

You whined, giving your best doe-eyes and pinkest pout. “Please, Taetae. Wanna cum.”

Without removing any touch of you, he stood from his feet before covering your entire body with his large one. His face leaned down until your noses touched. “No.” He simply replied, yet his pace wasn’t slowing down. “Hold it.”

Your eyes twitched, wrestling to keep your orgasm under control. He always loved to play with you like this. You attempted to stabilize your breathing, deep and slow breaths. In…and out. In…and out. Yeah, this wasn’t working when Taehyung’s four-inch fingers were jamming into you. The pressure in your stomach tightened, clenching your abdominals to get your reach. It wasn’t a good girl thing to do, but he was mean!

“Can’t! Please!” You begged once more, knowing it couldn’t be stopped.

“No, be a good girl.”

Sorry, Taehyung but it was too late. Your eyes were already going to the back of your head, and you were prepared for the high of it all. But once you started arching your back, he pulled his fingers and hand away from you. You still had your orgasm but it felt so weak going through it without him helping you come down. Your pussy burned unpleasantly.

He glared at you, watching your lousy orgasm go to waste. All because you didn’t listen to him. But whose fault was that? Taehyung will never take the blame.

Pathetically unsatisfied, you came down and exhaled. It physically and emotionally pained you how shitty that orgasm was. And with a pissed-off Taehyung looming over you, it’ll be torture.

“Bad, bad girl.” Taehyung was disappointed at you, something you grimaced over. “I told you not to but you didn’t it anyway.”

“I couldn’t stop it…” You whispered.

“Couldn’t stop yourself? You really are a fucking slutty bad girl.” Getting slightly self-conscious from his jeering eyes, you closed your legs and covered your chest. Your face flushed with post-orgasm and shame.

Taehyung saw your actions, softening his tough demeanor. He lifted you to the middle of the bed before climbing over your concealed body. At this angle, the moonlight struck his body. Every muscle and indent defined, every wound and bruise visible, every part of him shined so beautifully and perfectly. 

His knees spread your legs open to go in between while carefully pulling your arms off your chest. His face goes down to yours, planting little kisses all over your face in hopes he doesn’t make you feel too bad. “Tell me if I go too far, Petal. Don’t hide from me.”

You shook your head, “You’re not. I’m sorry I didn’t listen. I’ll be good, I promise.”

You were soooo good to him. He smiled tenderly, pecking another on the tip of your nose before the demon smirk came back. “Then you’re still gonna get it. Get on your knees.”

You nodded and were about to twist your body when Taehyung grasped your waist and flipped you over. He pushed down your back, arching your ass up before landing a loud slap to it. You cried into the pillow, hugging it as if it was like your protection. He slapped the other cheek, receiving another reaction from you.

“Since you’re weak at controlling yourself,” He grabbed his thick length. His head played with you, gliding across the slit and collecting your saturation until he aligned it with your hole. He puts a little bit of pressure, enough to make you moan for more but then stopped. “Maybe I should punish you by giving more than what you can handle.”

That was…even worse. But you had to accept it, so you could be the good girl for him. 

Knowing he could maim you, he steadily filled you up. You felt every inch of him getting deeper and deeper inside, the stretch of your pussy left a dull ache. He held your hips as he guided himself in. Once he bottomed out, the both of you let out a sigh of relief. Every time you do this, it always felt like the first time because of how big he was.

“So fucking tight, Petal.” He hissed. The sensation of you pulsating had his head thrown back.

After a while, the two of you knew it was time for him to move. Taehyung pulled himself back, leaving his head and then piercing back in. You jolted forward, but he kept you firmly to continue his aggressive yet even pace. Each penetration to your spot left you wailing into the pillow, gripping its covers. The slapping of your skin resonated in your childhood bedroom, the only sound that could be heard other than Taehyung’s heavy breathing and your keens.

“This is what you wanted, right?” Taehyung asked lowly before speeding up his movements, making you louder in the cushion. When he didn’t get the answer that he wanted, he looped your hair around his hand and hauled your upper body until your back pressed to his sweaty chest. You winced in pain but you hooked an arm around his neck.

“I want—unggh, y-yes.” Tears fell on your cheeks. Your neck extended to the side, giving him full access to licking and sucking your skin. “A-am I being a—your good g-girl?”

“You’re such a fucking good girl, Petal. Fucking good girl.” He praised you, muffling into your neck. His other hand kneaded your boob, massaging your nipple between his appendages. You groaned at the added touch. The twist in your stomach rose, sensing another high coming soon. Taehyung noticed you tightening around his ramming shaft, so he slid his hand down to your clit and made circular motions. “Cream around my cock again. Come on, pray to me. Bless my name with your sweet sounds.”

“Taehyung, please, please, ahh.” You breathed heavily, bringing your head back to rest on his shoulder. His length ravaged your insides and his fingers pinched your sensitivity until the knot released. You splashed with blistering ecstasy, almost about to scream at the top of your lungs but his palm covered your pitched sounds. You stifled chants of his name with your rolling eyes, even lapping your tongue over his callous. His thrusts slowed down this time, easing you down. He showered you with compliments, kissing your jaw and cheek. 

Once you came back, he took himself out of you to lay you down. He needed to see your face clearly at least once. He grabbed himself and plunged in again. You keened in volume, but Taehyung shushed you. “Babydoll, be quiet. Don’t want your dad to exorcise the both of us.”

You nodded pliantly and slapped hands over your lips. He moved at his previous pace, yet your sensitivity increased after your two orgasms. You were overstimulated but pushed through to help him meet his climax. He handled your hips where it would leave bruises days after. He hunched over to your chest, latching onto your nipple and swirling it with his tongue.

His touch was a mixture of all—needy, urgent, warm, cool, rough, and supple. You loved it all, you wanted more of him. You quivered into your palms, muting the uncontrollable noises escaping you.

He popped off your nub. His thrusts jerked faster and sloppier, recognizing how close he was. His resonant whimpers rung through your ears. It was like his thumb was magnetic to your clit because it was on you again and flicking rapidly. You shuttered, shaking your head at the intensity. It was too much. “One more for me, Petal. I wanna feel you, please.”

Darn, he said please. There was no way to deny him. After four more pumps, he buried himself still. He painted your insides white with his cum, whining your name. Meanwhile, you tirelessly came again. Blinding white spots came into your vision, ringing happened in your eardrums. The feeling of scorching euphoria spread all over your body as you curved your spine. Your hands were replaced with Taehyung’s mouth, sluggishly kissing you and keeping you as quiet as possible but let’s be real.

He kissed your lips once more before scooting in between your neck and shoulder to leave more smooches on your perspiring skin. His cum inside electrified you, feeling it flood around. It wasn’t until his softening dick pulled out of you, that the dam of cum seeped out your weeping pussy.

What an immaculate sight that he couldn’t resist.

Your energy-drained body thought it was over. But Taehyung had other plans because once you felt his tongue on your enlarged overloaded clit, you gasped in shock. “Taehyung, can’t anymore!” Your fingers attempted to push him off of you but you were too helpless and fatigued to overpower his strength.

He tasted the concoction of both of your cum, playing with the juice all over you and his mouth. He was addicted to the taste, vibrating another low moan to your clit.

You begged for him to stop, but he wasn’t going to finish until you came one more time. He lets go hastily and said, “Last one. Come on, Petal.”

Then there was your last orgasm. It was weaker than the previous, better than the first, but the most agonizing one. It burned but was so divine. You shoved your face into your cushion, crying away from every sensation and emotion you felt. 

Taehyung was finally off of you and went up your body to kiss you again. But you were so lethargic, you couldn’t keep up and lay there like a Twinkie. You didn’t even comprehend how he walked out of your bedroom to look for the bathroom, knowing damn well your parents could see him.

But he made it back alive and unseen with a damp cloth to clean you up. He wiped you clean as you stared at him with so much endearment and swell to your heart even after pounding you like an animal.

After he was done cleaning, he threw the dirtied rag to the ground before climbing back in bed and putting the covers over your naked bodies. “You did so good, ___. My good girl, my favorite girl.” He pressed a kiss on your temple before you fell into slumber.

-

“___, wake up! We’re gonna be late!” Harsh knocks through your door disrupted your dreams. You groaned loudly, wanting to go back to sleep. “Sweet pea, get dressed!” It was your mom calling for you. You rubbed your eyes sluggishly in your raggedy state and rolled over. With squinting lids, you searched for your phone to check the time.

You overslept, and you panicked a bit. You kept your cool, it was fine. This was a small bump, but you’ll get over it.

Suddenly, something or someone shifted beside you. You turned your head before you were fully awake by your heart dropping down and coming out of your ass. A peaceful hibernating and naked Taehyung was by your side, cuddling your body. No wonder you woke up with furnace-like heat against you.

Immediately, you shot out of your bed to stand up but you completely forgot that after a night with Taehyung, you become temporarily paralyzed from the waist down. So you stood up and your feeble numb legs made you drop to the floor.

“___, are you awake? I heard a noise.” Your mom questioned again.

“Yeah,” you grimaced at how raspy your voice was. “I-I just woke up, I’m sorry.” You crawled towards the other side of the bed where Taehyung was.

“You have 30 minutes! I told you not to stay up late at night! You know…”

You tuned out her lecture because you were trying to wake Taehyung up in fear that you might get caught. “Taetae, wake up.” You were usually so gentle because it took him a while to fully get up but you slapped the shit out of him.

His eyes stammered open in surprise. He bolted awake and in pain. He was about to yell but you covered his mouth as you stared with alarming pupils. “It’s morning, my parents are awake. I need to get ready and you need to leave.”

“___! Are you listening to me? Do I need to open your door to get you ready?” Your mother complained, trying to open your door but it was still locked. “I’m getting the key—”

“No, mommy!” You protested. Both of your heads directed to the door with widened eyes. “I swear I’ll get ready. I promise I’ll be quick.”

“Okay…I’m almost done with breakfast.” She announced.

You breathed out in relief, knowing you were clear for now. But once you looked over to the naked man still in your bed, you had another morning task to do. “You need to leave. If I don’t come out in five minutes to go get my teeth brushed, my parents will come to get me out.”

Usually, Taehyung would play around, but he knew this time meant business. He nodded obediently. You rolled away to give him some space to get out and gather his scattered clothes. As he was getting dressed, you watched him.

The bruises, the cuts, and that deep wound were all still there. It made you upset, frowning at the mere thoughts of what Taehyung dealt with before coming to see you. You never liked what business or situation he was in, you didn’t know fully but again, just by looking at it, it was not good.

Taehyung detected your staring, but he was surprised at your sad state. “What’s wrong, Petal?”

“I know I said I don’t wanna know what you do, but it won’t change the fact that I don’t like seeing you get hurt.” You explained. “I’m seeing all of this and I’m worried sick, Taetae.”

He sighed, putting his jacket back on then walking over to pick you up on your feet. You used him as leverage. You acted like a baby dear standing on its legs for the first time, making him chuckle at your struggling state but it was too adorable. “I’m sorry for worrying you. You probably wanted to know what happened and I’ll tell you more about it later, but let’s just say I’m trying to get out of the things.”

Your eyes sparkled with joy, “You are? You’re not just saying that, are you?”

He smiled and shook his head, “I’m not just saying that. I’m serious. I’ve been…in it for a long time but I’ve been also wanting to stop.” You nodded understandingly. “Wanna do this for myself, but for you. I don’t want any of them or other affiliations to find you and use you against our will. It’s not easy, hence why I arrived like this, but it’ll come to an end.”

“Okay,” You grinned sweetly before puckering your lips and waiting for him to come.

He leaned down and accepted you, He circled his arms around your body as he kissed you tenderly. He parted away, foreheads touching. “I’m gonna miss you, Petal.”

“As I said, it’ll only be this weekend. I’ll be back tomorrow night.” You reassured but it wasn’t enough to prevent the pout on his lips. “Come on.”

The two of you walked over to the window. He opened the pane as he prepared his descent. His legs were out hanging, his arms and torso still inside your room. You went over to give him one last kiss for his travels back.

“I’ll miss you too, Taehyung.” You giggled, captivating his entire heart.

Feeling overwhelmed with the thoughts and emotions of you, he blurted out, “I love you so much, ___.” It was the first time either of you said it, and he just realized what he said when his eyes grew the size of saucers and stared at him like he was insane. You were a fish, opening and closing your mouth with no words coming out. You didn’t know how to react, but you definitely felt your heart palpitating briskly. 

Before you could finally say anything, he abruptly goes, “Okay, well, yeah bye. See you in psychology class.” He descended as fast as he could, trying to get away as possible. You didn’t even watch him out the window, which was a good thing for him as reached the ground. While walking away, he was mentally screaming at himself and fisting the air at what he did.

-

You were finally dressed and appropriate for church. You fixed the clip in your hair before walking out of your room and down the stairs. Yet your thoughts were elsewhere and about the boy who was in your room not too long ago.

He said I love you. The fucking bad boy of the town confessed his love for you. What the fuck? First of all, you weren’t even together. You didn’t know what you were, whatever. The only thing you knew was that Taehyung would beat the shit out of any guy that came your way. Second, it was an odd choice to say a confession after a sneaky night at your lover’s childhood house with their parents sleeping at the end of the hallway.

Thirdly, you knew what your feelings were but the little shit didn’t give you a chance to comprehend and tell your side. Ugh, now you have to deal with him opening up once you were back in town.

You reached the kitchen, greeting your parents. Your mom told you to take a seat as she prepared a plate for you. She glanced at you, then took another look intently yet you didn’t seem to notice.

Once seated, your father scrolled his phone for news and reread his notes for his sermon. He gazed up at you, then did a double take before raising an eyebrow yet you didn’t see his stare as your mom walked towards the table with your breakfast.

You were too busy looking down at the settled breakfast before to spot the questionable looks your parents made. Once you were about to devour your eggs and kimchi, your dad stopped you. “What were you doing last night?”

You blinked, “I was on my phone late at night, and did my emotional prayer, remember?” Your father hummed, nodding eerily calmly.

Then your mother spoke up as blunt and knowledgeable as she was. “Then why do you have hickeys all over your neck?”

A/N: There will NOT be a part two :D

All rights reserved for ©️ icedmatchatae 2023 (｡●́‿●̀｡)

Update: I swear these chapters get even more emotional…it might take a while for me

I’m writing the next chapter of GOU and I’m crying at a scene 😭😭😭

The way I read and finished this during work but I couldn’t get enough of it. 😭 I loved watching When in Rome, so this was such a fantastic spin to it! TAEHYUNG WAS LITERALLY EVERYTHING IN THIS AND I WAS OBSESSED. I also completely get her…not having someone in a long time can just automatically mean afraid and shut down. But the way they made up is so sweet and loving. AHHHHH great plot, fantastic characters, but also…did she and Hobi make up HFILWEFHWEILFH Enjoyed every sentence!! 💝 💝 💝 💝 💝 💝

all in | kth (m)

summary: hopelessly unlucky in love, you thought relationships and true love in general may not be for you. but that was until a spontaneous trip to las vegas for your old college roommate’s wedding changed the game entirely. loosely based on the 2010 rom-com “when in rome”.  pairing: museum curator!taehyung x f reader genre: one shot, strangers to idiots to lovers, fluff, angst, smut rating: 18+  word count: 18.5k warnings: a whole lotta swearing, alcohol consumption, mentions of marijuana and vaping, bestie hobi, crack humor lmao, rom-com cliches, too many poker references, sexual tension, angst!!, making out, dry humping, ass + titty fondling, tae is a simp lol, dirty talk, pet names, consent (v important), explicit smut so oral (f receiving), fingering, handjob, unprotected sex (pls be safe frens), big dick!tae, soft dom!tae, penetrative sex, tae has a pain kink + reader has a praise kink, multiple orgasms, lowkey breeding kink, creampie, aftercare, lotta feels ♡

a/n: ahhh the time has come (here she is) my first fic on tumblr! i really hope you all enjoy reading this as much i enjoyed writing it. i love feedback, so please don’t hesitate to dip into my ask box •ᴗ•

“So let me get this straight,” 

It was a quarter past noon on an overcast Tuesday in Greenwich Village when you joined your colleagues in the break room. Your blue lidded Tupperware container of homemade Greek salad was long forgotten as you showed them the Facebook event invite on your phone.

You were startled, mid zoom meeting, by a notification indicating that you had been invited to an event by your old college roommate. It had been well over a year since you’d last seen Jules, with the both of you living in different cities now for work. 

From what you’d seen on social media, she was thriving in Los Angeles whilst you continued to gradually (but surely) climb the corporate ladder in Manhattan. Evidently she was thriving much more than you had originally anticipated, as the event was to cordially invite you to her wedding.

Meanwhile I’m still single and binge watching the first season of Love Is Blind for the third time.

“You? Getting something straight?” Alyssa snorted, poking a stainless steel fork into her seasonal fruit salad, “that would be a first.” 

Hoseok rolled his eyes instantly, ignoring her little quip as he shifted his gaze back over to you, “as I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted,” it was your turn to snort this time, unable to stop yourself at his exaggeration, “you were invited to a wedding in Las Vegas and you’re thinking of not going? Are you insane?” 

You had explained about twenty minutes prior that you were in two minds about attending the wedding, and for good, solid reasons: 

Firstly, the wedding was in two weeks and there wasn’t a shadow of a doubt in your mind that it would take a hefty amount of overtime, plus excessively ass kissing your impertinent boss in order to receive time off work. 

Secondly, it would be taking place in Sin City! That requires a hotel reservation, return flights, transit money—rather important things that needed more time than roughly seventeen days to arrange. Especially for Las Vegas and their luxurious resorts (which came hand in hand with eye watering prices). 

And thirdly, you wouldn’t know anybody there besides the bride. Insert prolonged awkward silences and social anxiety. 

“No,” you defend yourself, “what’s insane would be to go.” 

Your response had Hoseok blowing out a noise, waving you off like what you said was no big deal. This caused you to raise an eyebrow as you folded your arms over your chest. He was blowing off your reasoning? I’d like to hear his thoughts then! 

“Don’t get your panties in a twist, babe,” Hoseok chuckled, “I just think it would be a missed opportunity not to go.” 

Alyssa hummed in agreement, putting her fork down, “I agree. Y/N, you haven’t had a vacation in, like, forever. Besides that, you were clearly invited for a reason. Your friend wants you there and I really think you should consider going.” 

Uncrossing your arms, you sunk back in your chair and pursed your lips in thought. Your friends weren’t wrong: it had been well and truly over twelve months since you had a vacation. The last time you were able to take time for yourself was before Jules permanently moved to California… Perhaps they had a point. 

Maybe a spontaneous trip to Las Vegas was exactly what you needed. 

“I see those cogs turning in your head; you’re gonna go, aren’t you?” Hoseok grinned wolfishly, his cocoa colored eyes glimmered with anticipation, “and please don’t tell me you’re gonna turn down the possibility of getting a lap dance from an exotic dancer.” 

“Hobi!” You stifled a laugh, shaking your head at his antics. Before you could continue, Alyssa donned a teasing smirk, “something tells me Hoseok wants to go along with you so he can get that lap dance.” 

“Bitch please, I can get one at home any time I want.” 

Both you and Alyssa raised one eyebrow and that saw the man mumbling sheepishly, “okay, well, maybe I have to give Yoongi a little push…” 

All three of you cracked a knowing grin because Yoongi would do absolutely anything for Hoseok. 

“So,” Alyssa cleared her throat, turning the attention back onto your predicament and not the possibility of Hoseok’s boyfriend giving him a lap dance, “are you gonna give it a shot?” 

Truthfully, what did you have to lose? You’d been woefully single for three years now and after many (countless) unsuccessful attempts at dating, you’d completely given up on the idea of ever finding that special somebody. But that shouldn’t mean you miss out on witnessing a good friend get married to her special someone.  Alyssa was right; Jules invited you for a reason and it would be cowardice to turn down the invitation. 

“Yeah, why the hell not?” You caved, sporting a cheerful smile as your friends cheered, completely ignorant to the fact your lunch break ends in mere minutes. 

“Atta girl!” Hoseok gave you a one armed hug while Alyssa began shoveling down her lunch before you were due back to your cubicles. “Now let’s find the hotel with the hottest men! I heard they hire topless waiters!”

“Ladies and gentlemen, this is the Captain, welcome to Las Vegas. Local time is eleven-thirty in the morning with temperatures sitting at a pleasant seventy-five degrees.”

The second the seat belt sign was turned off, you quickly unclasped it and retrieved your handbag from the bottom of your seat. 

Whilst the flight attendant continued with the announcements over the PA system, you slung your bag over your shoulder and hastened to turn your cellular back on. You hoped to be able to reach out to Jules and potentially catch up before the big day (not like there was much time, the wedding was tomorrow for god’s sake). 

“On behalf of myself and the rest of the crew here at American Airlines, we’d like to thank you for joining us on this flight and we hope you have a safe journey.” 

Fifteen minutes later—having successfully deplaned and now off the aircraft—you made your way towards baggage claim. Why did I have to bring a bag? I should’ve sucked it up with carry on, you chastised yourself as you sauntered past the slot machines that occupied the airport terminals. 

You triple checked your messages, wanting to have made sure that you sent a text to Jules, asking if she wanted to get cocktails and hit the day spa at your hotel. The tiny delivered underneath the message bubble relieved you but not entirely. You wanted her to read it so that you wouldn’t be spending your first day in Vegas by yourself. 

“Carousel seven,” you murmured to yourself, glancing up to confirm that you had in fact arrived at the correct baggage claim. The last thing you wanted to do was stumble around Harry Reid International Airport in search of your luggage. 

Passengers huddled around the carousel as bags began to descend. Indistinct chatter could be heard around you, with people most likely planning how to get to the strip from the airport. 

You’d already looked into that and planned on waiting for a Lyft. 

According to threads on Reddit, the wait for ride share apps were on par with taxis, so why subject yourself to creepy cab drivers and ridiculous rates? 

Your suitcase finally appeared. Dark gray, a little scuffed and scratched with a Hello Kitty luggage tag. You walked up to the carousel and bent down to retrieve your suitcase, when your handbag slipped from your clutches and emptied the contents all over the ground.

“Shit!” You cursed. “Fuck me!” Panicking a little as your suitcase was sliding away from you but you also didn’t want anyone snatching up your belongings. 

Scrambled, you knelt down and shoved your things into your handbag haphazardly with your eyes still locked on your suitcase. “Please no! No, no…” You were seconds away from resigning to chasing it down, when you noticed a tall, dark haired man picking it up with ease. 

“I got it,” he said, approaching you with your suitcase upright on its wheels with the handle extended for your ease. He was donning a kind, squarish smile that had your heart skipping a beat. 

Taking the suitcase from his large hands, your cheeks flushed crimson, “oh my god, thank you so much!” 

You took the opportunity to really drink in his appearance. The male was much taller when standing at his full height, with a mop of black curls atop his head. He had the broadest shoulders you’d ever seen and somehow that made him seem even bigger. He had kind onyx eyes that lightened any time he smiled. Holy shit he’s so handsome! 

“No biggie,” your lifesaver shrugged, flashing you another boxy grin, “I saw you picking up your stuff after it dropped so I thought I’d help you out.” And he’s super sweet too! 

“That’s so kind of you, thank you, truly.” You gushed. You felt heat rising to your cheeks again, feeling a little mortified that he’d witnessed you fumble the bag. Literally. 

The raven haired male offered you a bashful smile, “it’s really no problem.” He turned for a quick moment, his back to you as he lifted his black Adidas duffel bag from the carousel and slung it over his shoulder effortlessly, “I’m Taehyung by the way.” He held out his right hand. 

You shook his extended hand, “I’m Y/N.” 

Light touched his eyes then. He opened his mouth to say something else, when the sound of his name was being called from the automatic doors by the exit. It appeared he had somebody to pick him up. 

Taehyung gave you one last smile. “It was really nice to meet you, Y/N. I hope you enjoy Vegas.” 

“You too, Taehyung. Thanks again!” 

He gave you a departing wave before dashing over to the man by the exit. 

You turned your attention back to your own belongings, placing your handbag on top of your suitcase so you wouldn’t have a repeat of the incident earlier. Taking your phone from your pocket, you sighed in relief when you saw a text from Jules: 

[ jules ]

OMG! i’m so down! text me when u check in & i’ll meet u wherever! so happy ur here babes! xx 

Finally, your vacation was about to really begin.

The first half of the wedding had been rather wonderful, despite the cringeworthy Elvis impersonator officiating the ceremony.  

Even though it had been held in one of those corny chapels with outdated decor and a hot pink vintage Cadillac parked out the front; the way Seokjin looked at Jules when she walked down the aisle made everything else seem irrelevant. 

The two of them made a beautiful couple. Not just in looks—because Seokjin was undeniably handsome and Jules practically resembled a Victoria’s Secret model—but personality wise as well. They each had a heart of gold and a gentle soul. It wasn’t hard to understand why they adored one another. 

You wholeheartedly wished them all the happiness in their future together. 

“Y/N!” 

Jules beamed in your direction, immediately prancing over to you in her gorgeous ivory dress with a petite bouquet in hand. 

“Ah! Congratulations Jules!” You embrace her in a hug, being cautious not to squash the flowers or crinkle her dress, “I’m so happy for you.” You really were. Your friend had found her soulmate and was now embarking on the new stage in her life as a married woman. It was nearly impossible not to be joyous for her. 

Squeezing you gently, Jules broke free from the hug and flashed you a bright grin, “thank you babes! I’m so glad you came. It meant a lot to have you here.” 

“I’m so honored to be here, Mrs Kim.” 

“Shit… I really am Mrs Kim now! I can’t believe I’m married!” She peered down at her left hand with fondness in her eyes, absorbing the silver band that had joined her engagement ring, “oh, that reminds me! You need to meet Jin, come!” 

And with that, she grasped your wrist and tugged you towards her husband. Seokjin looked dapper in his three piece navy suit. He was so attractive that he could put the most desired actors and models to shame. With ease. He was surrounded by his groomsmen in black tuxedos and another man in the same colored tuxedo, although without a boutonnière. 

“Jinnie!” Jules called, garnering his attention and peeling him away from his friends, “I wanted to introduce you to my roommate from college, the one I was telling you about. This is Y/N.” 

The warmth that embodied her tone of voice made your heart soar. Knowing she still talked about you after all this time? Jules was a real one. 

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Y/N. I’m Seokjin. Everyone calls me Jin though.” 

You expected a handshake, but Seokjin went right in for a hug. He enveloped you into his arms and gave you a gentle squeeze; one that felt brotherly and comfortable. 

“Likewise, Jin. Thank you for inviting me. It was a gorgeous ceremony.” Your words were spoken with such earnestness, accompanied by a brightened smile. 

“No thank you for coming. I know Jules would’ve been pretty bummed if you couldn’t make it.” 

“He’s right, I would’ve.” Jules nodded in agreement, planting a soft kiss to her husband’s cheek. Cute. Way too fucking cute. “We have a photo-op in like ten, but we’ll see you at the reception?” They both looked at you expectantly, four pairs of eyes full of hope. 

“Wouldn’t miss it for the world.” 

Jules clapped her hands together in delight, “great! The bridal party will be coming with us but Jinnie’s cousin can go with you to the venue, right hon?” 

Seokjin nodded without hesitation. “Oh for sure—Taehyung! Over here!” 

Taehyung? Surely there was no way—

“Hey man, what’s up?” 

Did your eyes deceive you or was the same man who helped you with your baggage yesterday here? It was most definitely him. Despite being dressed up in a tailored suit with his hair swept off his forehead; that familiar box shaped grin was unmistakable. 

“We gotta get our photos taken but I was hoping you could take Y/N here to the venue?” Seokjin gestured towards you and not even a second later, your heart was stammering against your rib cage. Why? Because Taehyung was looking directly at you. And he was beaming. 

“Easy done.” 

“Thanks Tae, you’re a lifesaver man.” 

The bride and groom looked ecstatic. You, on the other hand, were feeling a little bewildered by the fact you’d met Taehyung yesterday out of the blue and now he was here. At the wedding. 

That was one hell of a coincidence. 

“Shall we go then?” He asked. 

You simply nodded, giving a quick wave to Jules before walking alongside Taehyung to the nearest exit. 

It didn’t take long for the two of you to hail down a cab. Taehyung opened the back passenger door for you (like a true gentleman) and then slid in after you had situated yourself. Being within this close proximity of him was nerve wracking. His scent was salivating; an intoxicating mixture of musk wood, oak moss and bergamot. Masculine but with a citrusy freshness. You didn’t miss the impressive rings that adorned his long fingers or the hoops in his ears. His fingernails were painted too—could this guy be any hotter? 

“So when will I get my reward?” His deep timbre broke the silence, a mischievous glint in those ebony eyes. 

“Huh?” 

“I believe I’ve saved your life twice, no? Shouldn’t I be rewarded for my efforts?” He was grinning wolfishly now and you had to stop yourself from flushing at the sight. Taehyung was far too gorgeous for his own good. You couldn’t be this affected by a man you barely knew! 

Humming softly, you pretended to think over his suggestion by rubbing your finger underneath your bottom lip, “hm. How about I owe you a dance?” 

His lips quirked upwards. “Just one dance?” 

“Two then. A dance for each time you saved me from unfortunate circumstances.” 

Taehyung couldn’t say no to that.

The fourth hour of the reception had ticked by and you were feeling a little brave. Liquid courage in the form of sparkling champagne had taken control of your night. 

About an hour ago, Taehyung chased you up on the two dances that you owed him. He had been ridden of his suit jacket by then, donning a crisp white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. You felt your thighs clench together at his appearance. Where your mouth was drier than the Sahara, your panties were wetter than the Nile. It had been a long time since you’d soaked through your lacy underwear in such a way. 

You danced rather innocently, despite your brain urging you to press yourself against him. Taehyung twirled you around a few, his eyes locked on you the entire time. You couldn’t stray away from the intensity of his stare either. It was almost as if the two of you had been put in a trance the second you began dancing. 

Your heart palpitated when he shifted his prolonged gaze to your lips. 

“I’m gonna get another drink,” you murmured a little breathlessly, unlinking your arms from around his neck and putting a step in between your bodies, “I’ll be right back.” 

You excused yourself without another word; desperately needing a moment to catch your breath. You felt his gaze on you as you retreated to the open bar. Was it foolish of you to leave during such a fervid moment? Possibly… But you needed a second to breathe. A minute to clear your head. 

Fetching your phone from your clutch, you tapped on your messages with Hoseok. You needed some advice and you knew he’d be the only one to smack some sense into you. 

[ you ]

help! met a 10/10 at the airport yesterday who’s also @ the wedding. just danced w him & now i’m wet af 

[ hobi ]

why r u texting me for? fuck him bitch! 

[ you ]

i’m scared :( he’s really nice & funny too. you know it’s been a while for me

[ hobi ]

if he’s as nice as u say he is then he will treat u right! u deserve to have fun n be dicked down y/n! don’t overthink it! 

[ you ]

you’re right. i’m gonna go for it! 

[ hobi ]

i’m always right. updates pls omfggggg 

That’s what led you to ordering an entire bottle of cabernet sauvignon. Here you were, bottle and two glasses in hand, ready to invite Taehyung out onto the terrace and then hopefully back to your hotel room. 

Jules and Seokjin had disappeared by the third hour—no doubt hurrying to their honeymoon suite to get down and dirty for the first time as husband and wife—so there was nothing wrong with you pursuing Taehyung. 

Until you saw him with another woman. 

Frozen in your spot, your lips parted in disappointment as Taehyung had a gorgeous young woman draped over him. Her manicured fingers trailed down his chest until she reached his crotch, blissfully ignorant of the fact they were in a public setting. 

Of course he has someone. I’m so stupid. 

Putting the glasses down on one of the tables, you tighten your grip around the neck of the wine bottle and prop your clutch under your arm. It would be a damn shame not to drink the wine (it cost you a pretty penny after all). But you also knew that you couldn’t stay at this reception any longer. Not when Taehyung was busy with someone else. 

So that’s what coaxed you to leave the reception hall. You aimlessly wandered through the casino floor of the hotel until you found a rather quiet bar (well for Las Vegas standards anyhow). 

Hoisting yourself up onto one of the bar stools, you mentally thanked the previous bartender for having popped the cork for you before taking a decent swig of the sweet red wine. 

“Rough night?” A voice from behind the bar startled you, causing you to look up. There stood a male with blonde hair and a friendly smile, drying a beer glass with a microfibre towel. 

“Not really,” you shrugged, taking another gulp from the bottle, “just came from a wedding reception. Without a date, as you can see.” Jeez, talk about souring the mood! 

The bartender nodded knowingly, placing the towel down and leant on the bar top. “Weddings can be like that. It’s why we have that.” He nudged his head to the left. 

You followed his directions curiously, your beady eyes settling on a large glass bowl that resided near the first cash register. It was filled with all kinds of poker chips. 

“You place bets on weddings?” To say you were confused would be an understatement. You took another gulp of the red wine whilst you waited for his response. 

The bartender chuckled and shook his head twice. “Not exactly. The bowl started off as a gimmick but now it’s kinda become a pillar of hope.” 

Okay now you were definitely confused. 

Sensing your puzzlement, the blonde male continued after a beat, “it’s called Single Chance. Single people from all over the strip will toss a poker chip into the bowl in hopes to find their one true love.” 

“For real?” You snorted. 

“You bet. Some people really believe in fate. And I’ve heard from patrons that it really works.” 

He left you alone after that, taking the tray of beer glasses into the back room. In his absence, you chugged down a few gulps of your wine and then glared at the bowl of poker chips. 

“True love? Yeah fucking right.” 

Nose turned up in scrutiny, you brazenly reached over and dipped your hand into the bowl. You plucked five poker chips, all different styles and colors. You stuffed them into your clutch and laughed darkly to yourself. If fate was going to be a bitch to you, then you were going to be a bitch right back. 

Finishing off the rest of the wine, you discarded the empty bottle into the garbage and stumbled your way back through the casino. You desperately desired to get out of these heels and into a steaming hot shower. 

But first, you needed to call Hoseok.

Monday morning at the office was just like every other Monday morning—except for the fact you were feeling a little sluggish from your weekend in Vegas, having landed at LaGuardia around ten the night beforehand. 

Your boss welcomed you back with a stack of emails, all of which were due within the next forty eight hours. The head of your department was ruthless like that; the thrice divorcee always overloading those back from vacation with a mountain of work. You’d been working here for two years and you’d never once seen the woman crack a smile. So it was utterly unsurprising to see your inbox that morning. 

“Look alive, sunshine.” Hoseok said cheerily, entering your cubicle with two venti caramel lattes. You swear you could kiss the man. 

Except you wouldn’t dare. Because Yoongi would be chasing your ass down for touching his man like that. 

“Coffee!” You exhaled in relief, taking the cup from your favorite colleague’s hands and immediately taking a sip of your sweet beverage. “I needed this so bad, thank you Hobi.” 

“You’re welcome. I saw your Instagram story last night. When I saw you didn’t get home ‘til midnight, I knew a coffee was in order.” 

Nodding vigorously, you slurped down the caramel goodness whilst opening another email from your boss. Hoseok occupied the seat beside your desk, enjoying his own beverage as you worked. You’d given up trying to shoo him off to his own desk after five hundred attempts. He would leave when he decided he was bored of your company (or when the monster in charge walked by). 

You were in the process of overviewing a contract on behalf of your boss when your phone vibrated against the desk, indicating that you had a new notification. All employees were required to have their sounds turned off while in the office, so you settled for vibration instead.

“Another text from Dominos with a promo deal?” Hoseok snickered, his lips pulled up into a teasing smirk. 

“Fuck off,” you flipped him the bird, picking up your device and furrowing your brows when you see it’s from an unknown number, “I don’t know who it is.” 

Unlocking your phone, you brought up your message inbox and read the multiple texts that had been sent. 

[ (xxx) xxx-xxxx ]

hey y/n

it’s taehyung. i got your number from jin, i hope that’s ok 

ngl i was pretty bummed to find out we weren’t on the same flight yesterday

i hope you made it home safely 

anyways the real reason i texted you is cuz i wanted to know if you wanted to go out with me sometime? 

i know the reception was kinda overwhelming but i think we hit it off pretty well yeah?

let me know if you’re down

sorry for the spam i’m kinda nervous >.<

“It’s from Taehyung.” You blinked, rereading the thread of text messages over once again to make sure you interpreted his words correctly. 

Hoseok placed his latte down, an eyebrow raised in intrigue, “you mean Taehyung from Vegas? The same guy you caught fondling some hottie at the wedding reception?” 

You scowled. “Yes, that one. Thanks for the reminder Hobi.” 

“What did he want?” 

“He asked me out,” you took a sip of your coffee in hopes to get rid of the bitter taste Hoseok’s reminder left in your mouth, “because we’re both in New York.”

“No shit? Well, are you gonna do it?” 

“I don’t know. I still feel weird about what happened. What if that was his girlfriend or something?” You felt really small at that moment. 

Rolling his eyes, Hoseok reached across the desk and snatched your phone. You uttered out a ‘hey!’ but he blatantly ignored you as his fingers flew across the screen. 

“Hobi give that ba—”

Thrusting your phone into your hands, you noticed that he had texted on your behalf. 

[ you ]

hey taehyung. it’s ok abt the number. hope you made it home safe too 

i dunno about going out. you seemed pretty cozy on the weekend 

“Jung Hoseok! Why would you say that?” 

[ taehyung ]

oh you saw that? i swear it was nothing. she wanted to hook up but i wasn’t down

i looked for you afterwards 

i guess i know why you left. now i def want to take you out 

Mouth agape, you couldn’t believe his response. Actually, you couldn’t believe that Hoseok was the one who prompted his response. Noticing your reaction, the male in question grinned widely. 

“You’re welcome bitch! Now please go out with him. Love you, bye.” He dumped his empty coffee cup in your garbage can, blew you a kiss and sauntered off to his desk across the office floor. 

You shook your head at his antics, but really, you kinda owed him. He’d gotten to the bottom of the thing with Taehyung and now you felt like you might actually have somebody interested in you for the first time in three years. 

[ you ]

okay. one date. no funny business 

[ taehyung ]

one date’s all i need. i’ll make it worth it, promise ^-^ 

can i pick you up on friday at 8? 

[ you ]

sure. i’ll text you my address 

[ taehyung ]

i can’t wait. see you then :)

Locking your phone, you placed the device onto your desk and leaned on your elbow, covering your smile with your hand. Maybe you were looking forward to tomorrow night more than you thought. 

You owed Hoseok a damn coffee.

The day before your date with Taehyung, you were undeniably in good spirits. You’d woken up before your alarm, feeling refreshed and rejuvenated after a pleasant seven hours sleep and instantly dived into your morning routine. You managed to leave your apartment fifteen minutes earlier than usual with a skip in your step. You also planned on swinging by a deli to get a breakfast bagel for yourself and Hoseok. 

Everything was going splendidly. The weather was mild, the sun was shining and your walk to the subway had been smooth sailing. 

Until… 

“Y/N!” An unfamiliar voice called out from behind you. “It’s me, Eric! Your bae!” 

Pausing in your spot and turning around, your eyebrows furrowed when a young man in a letterman jacket waved enthusiastically at you. You’d never seen that guy before in your life. Varsity? How does this college kid even know me? Did he just call himself my bae?

A little unnerved, you proceeded on your walk to work, ignoring the jock behind you. He continued to call out your name. Weird. 

You didn’t think twice to cross the road; wanting to implement a little bit of distance between yourself and the college boy. Puffing out a breath, you moved on from the strange encounter you just had when another man approached you. 

“Y/N, there you are,” the burgundy suit-clad stranger reached for your hand, placing a kiss to the top of it, “I’ve been searching all over this city to find you.” 

What? 

“Uh, do I know you?” You yanked your hand away from him, feeling the same way you did a few minutes ago. 

“Of course you do, you hold the key to my heart.” He handed you a key with the name Daniel engraved. The top of it was stylized into the shape of a heart. 

You could smell marijuana. Albeit, Manhattan always smelled like weed but for your own sake, you presumed this guy was high. 

Hastily shoving the key back into his hand, you scurried off to the nearest subway entrance. You needed to get off that street as there were so many weirdos out this morning. How did they know your name? It wasn’t like you were wearing a name tag or anything. 

A little freaked out, you pushed the two encounters to the back of your mind as you swiped your metro card through the reader and pushed through the turnstile. This subway station wasn’t where you usually got on in the mornings, but anything was better than facing the pedestrians on the street in downtown Manhattan. 

Once at the platform, you looked through your bag for your wireless earphones when you heard the sound of an acoustic guitar. You always loved buskers. 

“Oh Y/N, can’t you see? This cruel world is too big for you and me. So take my hand, let’s go to a far away land…” 

You immediately stiffened. This can’t be happening. The sound of guitar strums drew closer to you and before you could blink, the male musician was right in front of you. Serenading you. Emo fringe and all. 

The subway was your saving grace. You stepped around the guitarist and hopped onto the train before he could get on himself, as the singer was too busy clambering around with his guitar case. 

What the fuck is going on? 

“I know right.” The man beside you said. Shit, you must’ve muttered that aloud. “I didn’t get the Versace gig. Which is crazy! Cause like, look at me, I’m fucking perfect.” 

Glancing over at your seatmate, you forced a friendly smile, despite being unamused by his arrogant attitude. Big mistake. 

“We could be perfect together, Y/N.” The well groomed male purred, reaching out to touch your cheek with his ring clad hands but you jerked away from him. 

“This is my stop!” You rushed out. It wasn’t. “Don’t follow me out, bye!” 

You’d never bolted off the subway so fast in your life. Your heart was thumping wildly in your chest. Putting your hands on your knees, you tried your hardest to catch your breath. Were you dreaming? Is that why your morning has gone from marvelous to disastrous? Pinching yourself, you let out a low hiss—nope, definitely not dreaming. 

You couldn’t wrap your head around what had just happened. Who were those guys and how did they know you? Your mind was spinning so fast you were almost dizzy. 

You had to talk to Hoseok; he would be the only one able to make sense of all this. 

Thirty minutes later, you placed your hands in your lap and chewed on your bottom lip. “Well?” 

“I think it’s fate.” 

“You what?!” 

Placing his hand on yours, Hoseok flashed you a reassuring smile, “think about it. It’s not every day you get approached by four handsome strangers!” 

You looked unconvinced. 

“Listen, everything happens for a reason. You had been so hesitant about going to Vegas because you were shit out of luck with men. Since the trip, you’ve landed a date and now have four men chasing you! That’s fate, sweetheart.” Hoseok chirped, nodding his head at his own explanation.

You didn’t comment after that. He made a bunch of valid points, but you weren’t entirely sure if you liked the idea of being chased by those men. Especially when you had a date tomorrow night with Taehyung that you hoped would go well. 

Clearing your throat, you decided to change the subject: “Let me show you what I’m wearing on the date.” 

“Where are you taking me?” You giggled, walking slowly as Taehyung kept his large hands over your eyes, shielding your vision. “You aren’t some axe murderer, are you?” 

A chesty chuckle came from behind you. “Damn, you figured me out.” He teased you playfully whilst he gently guided you towards your destination. 

All you knew about tonight’s date was that Taehyung had parked his 2014 model Hyundai Elantra in an underground parking lot and had opened a door with a set of keys earlier, when you were requested to keep your eyes firmly shut. He was certainly going out of his way to keep the details a secret and you couldn’t deny that your heart fluttered at his valiant efforts. 

“So where is this murder taking place?” You joked, keeping up the banter that the two of you had going on as Taehyung brought you to a stop. 

“Here,” he spoke against the shell of your ear, removing his hands to reveal the lobby belonging to The Modern Museum of Art. Wow. Your mouth dropped open and your eyes widened as you looked around in unabridged amazement. 

Sure, you’d visited the MoMA museum a couple of times as a Manhattan resident, but the fact you were here without the hustle and bustle of tourists, school groups and staff? You were in awe. 

“I’m a junior curator for the New Photography exhibit,” Taehyung revealed shyly, reaching up to scratch the back of his neck, “I know things got a little backwards in Vegas, but I wanted to show you a piece of who I am.” 

Your heart soared. Reaching out, you took his hand in yours and squeezed gently. “I love it, Taehyung.” The sincerity in your voice had him grinning like a fool; his shoulders losing tension and his hand dropping from his neck. 

“C’mon, let me show you around.” 

Hand-in-hand, Taehyung guided you through the museum. He was so knowledgeable, acting as your own personal tour guide by providing small facts about each major piece and answering any questions that you had. He was attentive the entire time; never losing eye contact and never letting go of your hand. The undivided attention he gave you had your stomach doing backflips. 

His little tour ended with the most famous exhibit in the entire museum: Vincent Van Gogh’s ‘Starry Night’. Taehyung couldn’t control his excitement as he spoke about the piece, his eyes full of passion and admiration. He couldn’t tear away his gaze from the painting and you couldn’t tear away yours from him. You’d never been so emotionally and physically attracted to somebody before. He was ticking all your boxes and even some you didn’t know you had. 

Perhaps Taehyung had a point when he said he would only need one date… 

“What are you thinking about?” He asked, leading you over to one of the benches. Your smaller hand really fit in his so perfectly. 

“Just how much fun I’m having.” You responded with a smile, leaning into him a little bit. “I love it.” His arm instinctively wrapped around your waist as the two of you sat in front of one of the world’s most renowned artworks. 

“I’m really glad,” he said earnestly, “I wanted to make things right… because honestly Y/N, I haven’t stopped thinking about you since we first met.” 

Your cheeks burned. This absolutely wonderful man has been thinking about you all this time? You almost melted into a puddle right then and there. The blush on your cheeks only intensified when Taehyung cupped your face, his eyes imploring into your own. 

“Are you seeing anyone right now?” 

You shook your head without missing a beat. “No.” 

“Neither am I.” he murmured, his eyes flickering down to your lips—the same way that he had done at the wedding reception. Only this time, you weren’t running away. You wanted this. You wanted him. His tongue poked out to wet his lips, “can I kiss you?” 

“Yes please.” You breathed, nodding once.

He gently rubbed his thumb against your cheek before connecting your mouths. His lips were plump and plush, moving with yours in a rhythm that you could only describe as mind-numbing. 

No thoughts, head empty. 

All you could focus on was Taehyung and the way his kiss made you feel. You were floating on cloud nine. With Taheyung, you didn’t want to come back down to earth. You wanted to bask in the moment with him. 

He reluctantly pulled away, his hand still cupping your cheek delicately as his face broke out into a triumphant smile, “I’ve wanted to do that since I saw you at the wedding in that gorgeous dress.” 

You couldn’t help but giggle bashfully, cheeks burning up again. It was like this man’s sole mission was to make you blush! “You can kiss me again if you like.” 

“I promised no funny business,” he reminded you with a laugh, “but I can’t make any guarantees for our next date.” His lips quirked upwards into a half-smile, half-smirk. 

“Oh so there’s going to be a second date?” You just had to tease him. 

“I’m really hoping there will be.” 

You tilted your head and pressed a kiss to his cheek, taking him by surprise. You could have sworn that his cheeks turned a little pink at the action. Cute. “I’d love to.” 

After idly chatting for another twenty minutes or so, Taehyung took your hand in his once again and escorted you towards the exit. He exchanged a polite nod of the head with the night security who had just started their shift, wishing them a good night. 

Taehyung had parked his Hyundai across the street in the underground parking lot you recalled from earlier. So you patiently waited for him to lock up, wrapping your arms around yourself as a cold breeze passed through. 

“Y/N!” That voice didn’t belong to Taehyung… “Wow, you look stunning!” Eric exclaimed, walking right up to you in the same varsity jacket you’d seen him in when he approached you on the street earlier this week. 

Your mind was reeling. Where the hell did he come from? Why was fate being a haughty fucking bitch right now? 

“Y/N?” Taehyung muttered your name from behind you, causing you to turn on your heel almost instantly. He looked confused, eyebrows knitted together as he analyzed Eric. “Who’s this?” 

“Oh I’m Eric, her b—” 

“Best intern!” You interrupted, lying through your teeth, “crazy how we just ran into each other!” You laughed, grabbing Eric by the wrist and tugged him away. 

“Y/N? Where are you going?” Taehyung called out, eyebrows almost touching his hairline in shock. He wanted to chase after you but he wasn’t sure if that’s what you wanted. You were pretty determined to get the hell out of there. 

“Eric wants me to help him with a file! Sorry! I’ll text you!” 

You felt horrible for lying to him but you couldn’t risk Taehyung thinking that this college frat boy was anything of importance to you. You don’t even know how the kid knew your name, for crying out loud! 

You needed to get to the bottom of this.

A noncommittal noise escaped Taehyung’s mouth as he waited for his coffee to be made, standing off to the side of the counter with his best friend (and biggest pain in his ass), Jimin. 

“Dude, what’s that noise mean?” The blonde haired male demanded, arching an eyebrow in his direction. “How could you be totally unfazed? Another dude crashed your date!” 

Blowing out a raspberry this time, Taehyung ran a hand through his curls. His perm was really remaining in shape these days. “He didn’t crash it, we were about to head to my car.” 

“So? You didn’t even get to drive her home!” Jimin clicked his tongue, shaking his head in disbelief as the barista called out their names above the squealing sounds of the steam-wand frothing milk.

Taehyung sighed, approaching the counter and taking both coffees in his hands. He bowed towards the barista to express his gratitude, before turning on his heel and passing his best friend his beverage. 

“It’s really not that big of a deal,” Taehyung shrugged as the two men exited the coffee shop, making their usual trek towards the museum before its opening hours, “she got caught up with work. Shit happens, right?” 

Jimin wasn’t at all convinced. “I think you’re wrong.”

Whipping out his sleek smartphone from the slanted pocket of his trousers, Jimin opened up the Instagram app and typed in your name. Your account was the third option to pop up. 

“This is Y/N, right?” Jimin quizzed his best pal, flashing him the screen that was currently showcasing your social media profile. Taehyung nodded, recognizing your username from when you both swapped usernames a few days ago. 

“Chim, this is ridiculous. She told me she isn’t seeing anybody else—”

“Ah-ha!” The blonde clicked his fingers, pointing towards the comment section of your most current post, “I fucking knew it.” 

Peering down at the screen, Taehyung frowned when he noticed four recent comments: 

@ericzyaboi: beautiful 😍

@daniel.real.estate: key to my heart 🔑❤️

@vernxnmusic: my muse 🎶

@jcksnmodel: a babe just like me 

To make matters worse, these four same usernames had commented similar things on your three most updated posts. He didn’t like the unsettling feeling in his gut right now. 

“I’m sorry bro,” Jimin patted his back, tucking his phone back into his pocket, “I know you liked her but there’s plenty of fish in the sea.” 

Taehyung sipped his coffee, keeping quiet for a moment before coming to a standstill. He turned to Jimin with a determined glint in his eyes, “I need to up my game.” 

“Tae, you can’t be serious?!” His best friend was baffled. “She told you she wasn’t seeing anyone else and yet she has four guys thirsting over her!” 

“She might not be seeing them!” He sounded downright naive to his best friend, but the blonde decided to keep his mouth shut. There was no convincing him otherwise. “But they sure as hell want her… and I can’t let that happen.” 

Taehyung wasn’t going to let you walk away from him the second time. Not when you had an indisputable connection. Not when you clicked with him better than any other woman he’d ever met. 

He needed to up the ante. 

The weird twist fate had thrown your way hadn’t left you damn well alone. In fact, since your little run in with College Boy Eric after your whimsical museum date with Taehyung, things had only gotten worse. 

On Monday, you arrived at the office before you were required to clock in, with a few minutes to spare. Panting heavily, you rushed to your cubicle, only to find a grandiose edible arrangement consisting of cupcakes, candies, brownies, truffles, cookies and cake pops. Attached to the basket of goodies was a note printed onto pastel pink cardstock: Girls love their sweets. But nothing is as sweet as you. Love, Daniel. 

Tuesday, your desk was newly decorated with three framed photographs of the man that sat next to you on the subway. They looked to be modeling headshots, by which he had signed the shirtless one to your name: To my Y/N. May our children be as good looking as the both of us. Yours truly, Jackson. 

Wednesday, you discovered a jewel case CD by your computer monitor. It looked to be homemade, with chicken scratch handwriting scribbled across the front in bolded Sharpie. The disc was labeled When Fates Collide and there was a post-it note attached to the inside: You inspired every lyric. For you, my muse - Vernon. 

Thursday, your cubicle was void of any unprompted gifts. You exhaled in relief and went about your workday. However, as soon as lunchtime rolled around, you were obstructed from taking your break by a delivery man holding an impressively large bouquet of red roses. You took them gingerly once he informed you they were for a Miss Y/N Y/L/N. Of course, there was a note propped inside the center: A red rose for every time I thought of you! From Eric. 

By Friday, you were ultimately fed up. You had become mentally and emotionally exhausted with this whole turn of events and it didn’t help in the slightest that Hoseok was nothing but supportive. 

“You should be enjoying this!” He declared, lifting his arms in the air jovially.  “What’s the harm in living a little? Take the gifts and see where it takes you.” 

Although you knew he had good intentions, you couldn’t quite agree with Hoseok on that one. Fate was messing up your life and you were growing tired of it. You wanted these men to leave you be. Their affections were far too intense, considering you’d never even gone out with either of them! 

The sound of your phone vibrating snapped you out of your reverie and drew your attention to your notifications. You immediately beamed when you saw the contact name. 

[ taehyung ]

i haven’t been able to get you off my mind all week 

[ you ]

that sounds like a you problem hehe 

[ taehyung ]

no it’s a YOU problem :P 

are you busy tonight? 

[ you ]

hm depends 

[ taehyung ]

on what? 

[ you ]

depends if you’re asking me on that second date or not 

You were giggling and kicking your feet like a schoolgirl, swiveling around in your office chair as you awaited his response. Even though it was just a couple of text messages, Taehyung had you feeling giddy for the first time in a long time. You really couldn’t wait to see him again. 

[ taehyung ]

and what if i was? would you be available at 7? 

[ you ]

for you 100% 

[ taehyung ]

perfect :D i’ll pick you up? 

[ you ]

i can’t wait xo

You really couldn’t wait. You’d been impatiently glowering at the clock every twenty minutes or so, wishing with all your might that time would move by faster. 

By the time five rolled around, you hastened to log off your work computer and gathered your belongings. You felt Hoseok’s eyes on you as you scurried out of the building, wishing everyone a great weekend. No doubt he was smirking, since your best friend was far too invested in your love life.

You thought nothing could top the first date you had with Taehyung. A private guided tour of the MoMA museum after hours? That was a once in a lifetime opportunity. But the man took you by complete surprise yet again. 

He’d taken you to a night market in Brooklyn. 

“I come here every time the locals run the event.” He informed you with a genuine smile, his eyes crinkling at the sides. His pure excitement was infectious. 

“Lead the way.” You mirrored his excitement. He took your hand in his then, intertwining your fingers like they were two missing puzzle pieces destined to be conjoined. 

The streets were illuminated with warm honeyed lights strung through trees and along the power lines. Vendors of all sorts had set up along the sidewalks, displaying their signature dish, designs and decor. Everything was handmade and authentic. Just when the vibe couldn’t be more organically wholesome; there were mom and pop food trucks, street performers and even a couple of carnival games for children of all ages. 

This was a core component of who Kim Taehyung was as a person. He was giving you fragments of his life, his personality and his interests through your dates. There was no bullshit, no catch, no fine print. 

Your heart skipped a beat at the realization: you liked Taehyung. A lot. 

“Are you hungry? I was thinking we could do a little smorgasbord?” 

Taehyung never shifted his gaze away from you, his eyes warm and softened. He gestured to the vast variety of food trucks and stands. You were absolutely spoiled with choice, so getting a little bit of everything sounded unequivocally perfect. 

“Absolutely, I would love that.” You enthused with bright eyes, squeezing his hand when he flashed you that infamous boxy grin you’d quickly grown to love so much. 

As the two of you walked along the concrete—stopping by each vendor to weigh up your options for a mid-evening snack—you shivered from the wind chill that had suddenly come out of nowhere. I knew I should’ve worn a coat! You internally criticized yourself for not dressing warmer, despite how cute your leather jacket looked on you. 

“You’re cold?” Taehyung asked, although it sounded more like a statement. He frowned at your quivering form, not wasting a second to shrug off his coat and gently draped the garment over your shoulders. 

“No Tae—” 

“Please, I insist. I don’t want your lips turning blue… I’m kinda hoping I can get another kiss before the night ends.” He admitted with a sheepish expression, adjusting the oversized coat so it covered most of your body. 

You wanted to kiss him right then and there. But the night was still young, so you resorted to a sweet peck on the cheek with a tiny “thank you.” The way he blushed afterwards had your heart pounding. This man was way too good to be true. 

“So how do you feel about churros?” 

Taehyung spoiled you. He purchased a serving of chocolate filled churros with caramel dipping sauce, four mini beef tacos, a pork hot dog with all the fixings and trimmings, plus two cups of steaming hot chocolate to share. He hadn’t been bluffing when he suggested a smorgasbord. You offered to pay him back for half of the cost but he blatantly refused. He wanted to treat you for the night and you couldn’t argue with those big puppy dog eyes. 

You ate happily together, exchanging entertaining stories from your childhoods. Everything felt natural with Taehyung. The minutes ticked by without you even noticing. You were just so comfortable with him. Frankly, you could’ve sat there all night long and swapped anecdotes with him until the sun came up. 

“We should probably head back…” Taehyung murmured, his hands toying with yours as your head rested on his broad shoulders. “But I don’t want this night to end.” 

“I feel the same,” you whispered, slowly lifting your head so that your eyes met, “want to walk across Brooklyn Bridge with me?” You hadn’t intended on suggesting such a thing but you shared his sentiment of not wanting your date to conclude just yet. So you chose an activity that would surely give you another hour in each other’s presence. 

Taehyung’s eyes twinkled, “I would love nothing more.”

You accumulated all the trash and disposed of it in the large garbage can while Taehyung patiently waited for you. He looked adorable in his moss green cardigan. You were pleasantly surprised how well he endured the cold, after declining your offer to return his coat back more than once. 

“Ready?” He asked, taking your hand in his almost immediately. You hoped he would never stop holding your hand. 

You nodded gently and the two of you embarked on your trek across the Brooklyn Bridge. The sky was rather clear, meaning the stars were visible. The moon was in the form of a crescent, shining down on the two of you and the rest of New York City. 

“So you’re in marketing?” Taehyung struck up a new conversation, shifting the topic to your careers this time around. 

“Yeah. A junior position though, like you.” You smiled, bumping his shoulder playfully and evoked an airy laugh to escape his plump lips. 

“Do you enjoy it?” 

“Honestly…? Not all the time. It’s pretty much the same as every corporate job, some days are better than others.” You shrugged, glancing up to see him nodding along in understanding, “it’s really the people I work with that make it enjoyable for me.” 

He began to swing your arms between your bodies. You giggled at his ministrations. Taehyung was a child at heart and it was one of the many things you adored about him. He deserved to be cherished. 

“What do you like to do when you’re not at work?” He enquired. “And please tell me to shut up if I’m being too inquisitive. I just want to know everything about you.” 

You flushed a shade of ruby. “No it’s okay, I like that you’re interest—” 

“Y/N, my darling!” A shirtless Jackson sporting nothing but a fur coat (in this weather?) interrupted you. “What a coincidence we are here at the same time. I’ve been trying to get in touch with you so we can arrange that nude photoshoot.” He flashed you an award winning smile, accompanied by his signature wink. 

You blanched, lips forming into a tight, thin line. “I, uh, think you have the wrong Y/N!” You rumbled out, hastily tugging Taehyung further down the bridge with you. 

“Who was that?” Taehyung sounded breathless, his eyes wide with bewilderment. 

What were you supposed to tell him? That he was some random guy you met on the subway last week and now he won’t stop popping up out of nowhere confessing his affection for you? That made you sound like a lunatic. 

“I don’t—” 

“Sweetheart!” Daniel called, jogging over to you with a blistering grin, “Y/N! I knew I would find you here. I have two tickets to the NBA game tomorrow. The seats are prime real estate—I would know. When can I pick you up?” 

You felt Taehyung’s eyes burning into the side of your skull then, no doubt astonished by the two back-to-back encounters. 

“Never! Sorry!” You pushed past him, still holding onto Taehyung’s hand for dear life. You hoped like hell that he wouldn’t leave. You wished with all your heart that he wouldn’t jump to conclusions and be willing to hear you out. Even though the truth sounded irrationally stupid. 

After having fled further down the bridge, your date stopped and pulled his hand away from yours. The rejection smacked you hard in the face. Taehyung frowned, tonguing his cheek. “What’s going on, Y/N? You told me you weren’t seeing anybody. Who the hell were those guys?” You heard the disappointment and confusion in his voice, making your heart fall to your ass. 

“Tae… I…” You trailed off, unsure of how on earth you were going to explain yourself. Never had you been so mortified. How could fate pull such a rotten stunt on you?

“Just tell me the truth, that’s all I ask.” 

Before you could answer, you felt an arm be slung over your shoulders. “The truth is she’s my muse and she’s gonna come on tour with me and my band.” Fucking Vernon! 

Taehyung stood gobsmacked, reduced to silence. 

“No! Get off me!” You shrieked, shrugging Vernon away from you and shaking your head back and forth vigorously. Your worst nightmare was coming true. “I’m sorry.” You whispered out to Taehyung, eyes welling up with tears as you shrugged off his coat and bolted down the remainder of Brooklyn Bridge. 

You ignored the calls of your name, belonging to five different men as you cried. Tears cascaded down your cheeks in rivers. Your perfect night had been ruined. Your phenomenal date was destroyed. All you wanted to do was go home and bawl your eyes out until there were no more tears left. 

Within forty minutes you were exiting the elevator, eyes swollen and bloodshot from the sheer amount of crying you’d done in the cab. Retrieving your keys from your pocket, you dawdled to your door, only to find Eric sitting there with a box of Krispy Kreme donuts. In that obnoxious jacket. 

“What the fuck are you doing here?” You shouted, eyes now ablaze. You weren’t holding back this time. You were beyond done. 

“I came to surprise my girl with donuts, see!” He chirped, grinning from ear to ear. “Why don’t you look happy?” 

“Because I don’t even fucking know you! I’m not your girl, I’m not your anything! Leave! Go home!” You demanded furiously, shooing him away from your front door so you could unlock it. 

“I don’t wanna go home! You’re my true love!” He whined out childishly, trying to squeeze himself in behind you but you were quick to slam the door in his face. You locked it and tipped the deadlock. He grumbled something incoherently and retreated from your apartment. 

Backing up from the door, you panted heavily with your mind facing a million miles per hour. True love? Where did I hear that recently? 

Then it dawned on you. 

With your face paled, you darted off to your bedroom. Your hands scrambled through your half unpacked suitcase. Blinking back tears, your whole body froze when you found what you were looking for.

You sank back into your heels, hands trembling as you held the Ziplock bag of poker chips in your hand. 

“It’s called Single Chance. Single people from all over the strip will toss a poker chip into the bowl in hopes to find their one true love.” 

“Fuck…” You hissed, glaring at them. There were five poker chips in total: one for Eric, one for Daniel, one for Jackson and one for Vernon. You’d only been pursued by four men the past week—or so you thought. “No!” You croaked out, shoulders slumping defeatedly. 

There had been a fifth. Taehyung. 

Your phone broke the dreadful silence with a text tone. Speak of the devil. 

[ taehyung ]

i was an ass tonight. i’m so sorry 

i bombarded you for answers when i should’ve been making sure if you were ok

i don’t care if you’re dating other guys… we aren’t exclusive. yeah i wish you didn’t lie to me about it but i can understand why you did it. gotta protect your heart. i get it 

can i make it up to you by taking you out to dinner? 

they just opened up this new all you can eat sushi bar and i remember you said you liked doing that with your coworkers 

please let me know. i’m sorry again :( 

Needless to say, the text messages went unanswered and you cried yourself to sleep that night.

You came to the painful conclusion late last night that you needed to return the poker chips back to the guys. You couldn’t have them continuing to chase you against their will. It wasn’t right. It wasn’t moral. 

Also, you couldn’t have this charade go on because you liked Taehyung. You really liked Taehyung. Hell, you were certain that you were falling in love with him. 

It wasn’t fucking fair. 

Wallowing in your self pity for a couple of hours, you resorted to doing the one thing you weren’t all that proud of: binge watching Love Is Blind. You hiked your comforter up to your shoulders and nuzzled yourself (more like buried yourself) in bed, with your laptop propped up on a pillow. 

This wasn’t exactly how you predicted your Saturday to go. 

Amidst the fourth episode, your phone began ringing from your nightstand. Puffing out a breath, you unraveled yourself from your cocoon of blankets and rolled over to the edge of the bed so you could unplug your device from the charger. Glancing at the contact name, you sighed. You knew he would just keep calling if you didn’t answer. 

“Hey Hobi,” you mumbled in a resigned way, rolling back to your previous position underneath the comforters, “what’s up?” 

A sardonic laugh filled your ears. “You’re shitting me right? What’s up? Care to explain why your Bitmoji hasn’t moved from your apartment since last night?” 

“I—” 

“Did you get laid? Bitch, I asked for updates!” 

You sighed defeatedly. Hoseok clearly picked up on your mood because the tsking noises he was making came to a halt. 

“Y/N? What happened with Taehyung? Did your date not go well?” 

That was the moment the dam walls broke. You came clean to Hoseok about what happened last night; from start to finish. Your best friend remained silent throughout your long winded rant, only providing a small hum or “ah” when necessary. 

“He asked me out for dinner and I can’t bring myself to respond. It’s not right, Hobi. Not when this whole thing between us is a farce.” You sniffled, feeling the way your heart cracked at the harsh reality. God, it hurts like a motherfucker. 

“Go on the date, Y/N.” 

Eyes bugging out of your head, you stared down at the phone in disbelief. “Are you crazy? Did you not hear a word I just said?” Was he pretending to listen this entire time? 

“I heard you loud and clear, babe.” He sighed, no doubt running his hand through his hair like he always did before he gave you a piece of advice, “I also know that you deserve to be treated well. You’ve been through so many trashy boyfriends and I’ve been waiting for someone like Taehyung to come along.”

“But it’s all fake.” You hiccuped. 

“How do you know that? This could be the real deal, Y/N.” 

“But there was five—” 

Hoseok cuts you off with a curt mention of your name, “if you’re so sure that he’s under some kind of trance, then why not make this last one count? I think you owe it to yourself to feel happiness for once in your life.” 

His words stunned you to silence. Your lips parted as you contemplated his proposition. A soft hum came from the other line. 

“Text him, babe. Go to dinner with him.” 

“Thanks Hobi. I’ll keep you updated for real this time.” You sniffled down the receiving end, pressing the red button to disconnect the call.

Your best friend was right. Where was the harm in allowing yourself to be happy? Sure, you could risk falling for Taehyung even harder but wasn’t that the whole point of dating? Putting yourself out there and jeopardizing getting hurt or rejected? It was all a gamble after all; a game of chance. 

[ you ] 

sorry i just needed the night to clear my head. you don’t have to apologize. i’m sorry it all got so messy 

i’d love to still go out if you’re still available? 

[ taehyung ] 

for you? always 

so are we on for the same deal this friday? 7pm? i’ll pick you up? :) 

[ you ] 

wouldn’t miss it for the world x 

Putting your phone down, your dreamy smile faded away when your gaze landed on the five poker chips taunting you from across the room. 

“Just one last date… then I’ll give it back.” You said aloud to nobody in particular, but rather to convince yourself that you weren’t making a colossal mistake.

Dinner dates weren’t exactly your favorite. You’d certainly endured your fair share of catastrophic dining dates. Everything from being served shrimp scampi containing three press-on nails and your date making a giant fuss like he was Gordon Ramsey, to your date admitting he asked you out because you looked like a younger version of his mother. 

All in all: you were rather scarred from past experiences. 

But of course, as to be expected, Taehyung pulled out all the stops. He’d taken the liberty of reserving a table in advance, so you didn’t have to wait outside in a queue for the newly opened restaurant. He even went out of his way to inform the staff of your soybean allergy. 

To say you were touched was the understatement of the century. You couldn’t believe he had remembered such a small detail from your last date. 

It’s not real, Y/N! You’d reminded yourself of the harsh reality you hadn’t exactly come to terms with just yet. 

“Goddamn that was good,” Taehyung groaned, leaning back in his seat and placing his palms on the food baby he’d developed, “that shit was some of the best I’ve ever had.” 

Snickering, you finished off your glass of water, “you know that’s quite the innuendo you just made.” Your eyes glimmered with mischief as you teased him. 

He raised an eyebrow at you whilst a smirk crept up on his lips. “Get your mind out of the gutter, Y/N! We’re in a public setting.” 

You had to hand it to him, he knew how to tease you right back. You giggled at his response and in turn, he chuckled along with you.

The both of you continued your flirtatious banter for the next fifteen minutes until the waiter came over with the check. You quickly went to pick it up, but Taehyung was faster. 

“Why won’t you ever let me pay?”

“Because I’m a gentleman,” he grinned, his cheeks lifting up, “and I like treating you. Sue me.” 

It was damn hard to argue with that. 

Once he paid the check, Taehyung reached for your hand and helped you out of your seat. He never failed to leave you breathless at the best of times, taking you by surprise time and time again. He was so chivalrous that it knocked the air right out of your lungs. He couldn’t be more perfect… 

“Would you like me to take you home?” Taehyung asked, escorting you out of the restaurant and towards the all too familiar Hyundai. “Otherwise I have two pints of Häagen-Dazs ice cream back at my place.” 

Deep down, you knew you should go home. Everything would be a lot less complicated if you chose the former, but your heart was urging you to pick the latter. 

“Tempting… what flavor are the pints?” 

Taehyung chuckled. “One’s vanilla bean and the other is mint chocolate chip.” 

“Hm, sold!” 

You arrived at his apartment approximately thirty five minutes later and the ice cream was long forgotten. Somewhere in between parking his car in his reserved spot and withdrawing his keys from the ignition, your mouths had collided in a fervent kiss. You couldn’t exactly pinpoint who made the first move, the moment simply advanced organically. 

The only time the two of you separated was when Taehyung clumsily unlocked his door. The second he got it opened, he tossed his keys and cellphone haphazardly across the room. The sound of the device tumbling to the floorboards almost compelled you to pull away. 

“I’ll pick them up later.” He hushed against your mouth, his foot kicking the door shut behind you both as he led you further into his one bedroom bachelor’s apartment. You giggled at his urgency, causing him to smile toothily into your impassioned kiss. 

Taehyung ushered you over to his leather sofa then. He carefully sat back on the cushions and brought you down with him. Your legs slotted against his thighs, with your hip bones almost grazing. His lips remained attached to yours throughout, only parting briefly so that you both could catch a breath. 

“Baby…” He rasped, the low timbre of his voice sending pleasurable shivers down your spine. His large, ring-clad hands found purchase on the lower half of your waist (nearing dangerously close to the roundness of your derrière). 

“Mmm, Tae.” You whimpered. 

Already your panties were leaking with arousal. The barely-there fabric was clinging to your folds now. You flushed at the thought of Taehyung being able to feel your wetness through your skirt. Flattening your hands against his pectorals, your fingertips brushed over his clothed nipples and that had his pelvis bucking upwards. 

“Shit!” Taehyung groaned unabashedly, his hands maneuvering their way down to the globes of your ass. He squeezed the flesh with fervor, invoking a slew of desperate yelps from your swollen lips. He swallowed every moan with an all-consuming kiss. The man had your mind reeling and you didn’t want it to stop. 

“God… the things you do to me,” he sounded completely out of breath, reluctantly breaking away from your intensive kiss so he could gaze up at you through hooded eyelids, “I’ve never felt this way about anyone.” 

His admission felt like a bucket of icy cold water being dumped over your head. You stiffened and scurried off his lap, staggering to your feet. You hadn’t realized you were crying until you felt a droplet touch your hand. 

“Y/N? Baby?” Taehyung’s eyes widened instantly, concern flickering across his facial features as he sat upright. “Are you okay? Did I do something wrong?” 

You cried harder. “No,” you blubbered, your head shaking back and forth as you reached for your bag, “you did everything right.” 

“I… I don’t understand?” He furrowed his eyebrows, lips curved downwards into a confused frown. He pushed himself off the couch, reaching out to take your hands into his, “were we moving too fast? We don’t have to do anything, I really did bring you here for ice cream.” 

You flinched, tugging your hands free from his grasp, “it’s not that.” 

Hurt flashed across his sable eyes, only for a second or two before he composed himself. “Then what is it? Talk to me baby… Let me in.” 

“I can’t be here anymore. It’s not right, especially when all of this is against your will.” 

Taehyung furrowed his brows together in discombobulation. “What are you talking about?” 

“It’s not fair, Tae! You don’t like me like that!” You sniffled, slinging your handbag over your shoulder as you prepared yourself to leave his apartment. You never should’ve come. Agreeing to this date was nothing but an enormous mistake. 

“Are you kidding me?” Taehyung looked astounded, mouth hung open, “when have I ever given you the indication that I’m anything but super fucking into you? Can’t you see how smitten I am?” 

“But it’s not real! Everything you’re feeling, it’s all fake!” You lamented, shoulders slumping while your lips quivered. “I’m going to fix this. I promise.” 

Taehyung shook his head and tried to reach for you again, but you recoiled. You whispered out an apology and swiftly turned on your heels. You dashed out of his apartment before he could stop you. 

“Y/N! Y/N wait!” Taehyung exclaimed, chasing after you in desperation. He watched on with a forlorn expression as the elevator doors closed, successfully shutting him out. “Fuck!” He hissed in frustration, reaching up to aggressively tug at his raven strands. 

His head was still hazed from your outburst. 

What did you mean by fake? Did you really think his affections were misleading? Taehyung was at a loss. He thought he’d been pretty damn obvious with how he felt about you. Couldn’t you see how much he liked you? 

He returned to his apartment with a heavy heart, closing the door behind him and exhaling dejectedly. 

Taehyung picked up his phone and contemplated sending you a text message. He decided against it. He would give you space for tonight and reach out tomorrow. He was determined now more than ever to prove to you that he wasn’t messing around. Taehyung wasn’t some fuckboy looking for the next notch in his bedpost. He wasn’t playing games. He was serious about this and he was serious about you. 

After tonight, all bets are off.

[ taehyung ] 

y/n baby 

please talk to me 

idk what’s going on in that pretty little head of yours but we can work this out. i know we can 

Your heart was aching. 

The last time you felt heartbreak of this capacity was in high school, when your boyfriend of two years confessed to fucking your neighbor in the back of his daddy’s pick up truck. 

Nothing could’ve prepared you for this, though. 

You’d cried your eyes out until you ran out of tears; soaking your pillow to the point it smelled like salt. Your cheeks were puffy, eyes bloodshot and swollen and hair thrown into a half-assed ponytail that frankly resembled a bird's nest. You looked atrocious and felt a thousand times worse. 

Each text message you received from Taehyung went ignored. You were avoiding him to the best of your ability, as you hadn’t yet conjured up enough courage to block his number. Once you returned one of the poker chips to him, then you would do it. You needed more time before you were able to do that. 

Deja vu hit you around noon. It had come to your attention that you’d spent the entirety of last Saturday doing the exact same thing at present: withering away in isolation, drowning in your own self-pity. 

How pathetic, you thought to yourself glumly. How could you fuck things up this badly? You never should’ve allowed yourself to go out with Taehyung—perhaps you would have spared yourself the heartache. 

You were so entrenched in your loser party of one that you hadn’t heard your front door unlock, nor did you hear it open and close again. 

“So this is what you’ve been doing,” Hoseok commented from your door, leaning against the frame with a tiny front,  “I knew something was up. You didn’t text me.” 

You barely acknowledged his existence. 

It didn’t trouble you that he was here, in your apartment, without a heads up. Hoseok knew where the spare key was and you trusted him more than anyone else on this godforsaken planet. 

“Y/N.” Hoseok tried to garner your attention once again, “I’ve never seen you like this… talk to me. What happened?” 

Peeking your head out from underneath the covers, you were met with his gaze. He looked worrisome. That’s when you knew he was dead serious, because gone was the happy-go-lucky version of Hobi that you knew inside and out. 

“I think I’ve fallen for him.” 

Oh how it burned to confess those words aloud. You felt your throat close up as you forced back tears, being far too exhausted to cry again. 

Hoseok’s eyes softened. “What’s so wrong about that?” 

“Because it’s not real for him, Hobi!” You sniveled, shaking your head sadly. “It’s wrong to string him along any further. I won’t be able to live with myself if I continue to see him like this… it’s against his free will.” 

Hoseok sighed, lifting himself off the doorframe and wandered over to you. He joined you on your bed, sitting on the edge. He looked rather distressed, fiddling with his fingers. 

“Y/N… I need to come clean about something.” 

The way his voice wavered immediately caught your attention. Pushing your body upwards, you situated yourself against your bed head and urged him to continue. 

“I set the whole thing up.” 

“What? I don’t follow…” 

Turning to look at you, Hoseok chewed his bottom lip nervously, “you called me that night—in Vegas. You were drunk out of your mind and jabbered on about how a bartender told you this silly myth about this bowl of poker chips being the key to finding true love. You laughed like a maniac and told me that you stole five of them.” 

You definitely resembled a goldfish by now. 

“But your drunken ass also told me about Taehyung. You raved about this amazing guy you met and when he asked you out the first time, I saw how nervous you were. How quick you were to try and turn him down. I knew I had to do something…”

Hoseok ran a shaky hand through his hair before continuing, “so I hired those guys. They’re all paid actors. I thought if I could play up on the myth, convince you that those strange men were all infatuated with you, maybe you would be more open to giving a genuine guy like Taehyung a chance.” 

Your head was spinning. The giant atomic bomb that Hoseok just dumped on you left you dumbfounded, bewildered and totally overwhelmed. 

“I know I let things get too far and I’m so fucking sorry for that—but Y/N… you need to know that everything you have with Taehyung is real.” 

Squeezing your eyes shut, you wrapped your arms protectively around yourself. There was so much information to absorb all at once and you didn’t know what to do at that moment. 

“This is a lot to take in.” 

Hoseok nodded guilty, “I know. You have full permission to hate my guts for the rest of eternity but please don’t avoid Taehyung. You’re meant to be together!” 

You rubbed your temples profusely, as you could feel a tension headache brewing. “Hobi, I love you, but I’d really like some space for a little while. I just need time to process everything.” 

Your best friend’s face fell, a tiny pout forming on his lips as he nodded sadly. He looked like you’d kicked his puppy and told him that he wasn’t getting any candy for Halloween—but he’d brought it upon himself. 

“I understand. I’m really fucking sorry for all this. Take as long as you need… I’m only a text away.” He offered you a despondent smile before exiting your bedroom without another word. 

A split second after you heard him gently close the front door, you bursted into heavy, shoulder wracking sobs. However, your sobs were lacking tears due to the fact you’d drained your tear ducts earlier that morning. 

You weren’t sure if you were reacting in such a way because of Hoseok’s confession, or, the possibility of having ruined your chance with Taehyung. You’d gone and accused his actions of being fake and under pretense after all. 

God, how you wished you could be angry with Hoseok. The way he convinced you that the likes of Eric, Daniel, Jackson and Vernon, were actually vying for your attention and for your heart. Those men drove you into insanity. They wore you out to the point of emotional exhaustion and even provoked you into ditching Taehyung more than once. 

But on the contrary, the exposure to strange men such as those four, really made you appreciate every moment you spent with Taehyung. You came to realize how different he was from the rest of them. Perhaps that’s what Hoseok meant. In some totally fucked up way, he really had been looking out for you. 

You swung your legs over to the side of your bed and pushed yourself up. You decided right then and there that you needed a stiff drink. Or two. Or three. Trudging out of your bedroom and towards your kitchenette, you went to scour your refrigerator for any kind of booze, when a loud knock sounded at your front door. 

Multiple frantic knocks followed swiftly afterwards, leaving you to believe that Hoseok had returned because he forgot his vape on your coffee table or something (it wouldn’t be the first time, nor would it be the last). 

Having closed the fridge, you shuffled over to your door. There were two more knocks rapped against the wood. Jesus, somebody is impatient! 

You sighed and opened your front door, “Hobi, look, now is really not—” 

“Not a good time?” 

Your eyes immediately lifted from your floorboards at the sound of that familiar baritone. 

There—in all his handsome glory—stood Taehyung. 

You blinked rapidly for a few moments, unable to comprehend that he was here. Standing outside your apartment. Even after the way you had run out on him last night. 

“Taehyung,” you breathed his name, shock plastered across your facial features, “what.. what are you doing here?” 

Hands stuffed into the front pocket of his gunmetal blue denim jeans, Taehyung gave you a small smile, “may I come in?” 

You jerked a nod, stepping to the side so he could enter your apartment. You closed the door behind him, swallowing thickly. Why did he come? Is he going to chew my head off for the way I acted yesterday? 

Taehyung took a brief moment to let his eyes waltz around your tiny one bedroom apartment. His was larger, there was no doubt about it, but you were living in Manhattan so naturally your place was the size of a shoebox. It may be on the smaller side but you made it work for your lifestyle. 

“Very cute.” He tossed you a smile, the corner of his eyes crinkling, “very you.” 

You felt your face heat up at his compliment. 

“I’m sorry for coming over unannounced... is this a bad time?” 

You realized you hadn’t cleared that up earlier when you opened the door. “N-No, it’s fine.” You couldn’t believe you were stammering in his presence! He had you acting like a teenage girl with a giant crush—you really were falling. 

“Okay, that’s good…” He trailed off, bringing one hand from the front pocket of his jeans to scratch the back of his neck, “I didn’t originally intend on coming here, and I know you don’t wanna talk right now but honestly I just found myself driving here.” 

“Tae—” 

“No, please, let me finish. I came up with this whole thing on the drive over.” His rich obsidian eyes pleaded with you, resembling that of a baby bear. He looked extra adorable in the oversized black hoodie he was wearing.

“Okay.” You whispered and gestured for him to continue. 

“I drove through horrendous Manhattan traffic to get here because I don’t want you to think my intentions are fake. I don’t want you to think that I’m just messing around with you or playing my cards right. This isn’t a game to me, Y/N.” Taehyung paused briefly, taking a step closer and timidly reaching for your hands.

You hesitantly allowed him to take them. 

“I know you’re scared. Hell, I don’t blame you for being scared,” he spoke softly, his eyes imploring into yours, “Y/N… I don’t know what shit those other guys were pulling but I’m not bullshitting you. There is no bluff, no secret agenda, no ulterior motive.” Every word was delivered with such conviction. He was so assured, so confident and so real. 

“Tae—”

“I know I acted immaturely before our last date. At first I was pissed off that you lied about not seeing anybody else, but then I realized you don’t owe me anything. We were never exclusive and I was just jealous,” he rubbed his thumbs along your knuckles then and you felt like your heart was going to explode, “I was jealous because I wanted it to be me. I wanted to be the one surprising you with gifts and taking you out and calling you cute little nicknames. I wanted you to be mine.”

“Taehyung—”

“I know it might be too soon or too crazy but I’ve liked you since the day we met. You’ve been all I’ve thought about since the moment you dropped your handbag in Harry Reid International Airport and I—mmph!”

You crashed your mouth onto his before he could say much else. It was your turn to cut him off this time. 

His hands dropped yours in an instant, only to plant them gently on either side of your face. Taehyung kissed you deeply. He moved his mouth with yours in a way that you could only describe as poetic. His lips were making up for the words that he didn’t get to say. 

You kissed him irrevocably, as if he was going to vanish from your life in a split second. You poured every ounce of feeling you had for the man into the kiss, hoping that he would be able to decipher exactly how you felt about him. 

No words were spoken the entire time you kissed and that only further enriched the moment you shared with him. You wanted to stay in that bubble with him forever. 

Breaking apart to catch his breath, Taehyung rested his forehead against yours. He brushed his nose over your own in a sweet, tender motion. You couldn’t help but crack a broadened smile at his affection. 

“Now if you had let me speak,” You began, your tone light and playful, “I would’ve told you that there wasn’t any competition. I wasn’t interested in those guys. I only wanted you. I’m only ever going to want you, Tae.” 

You snagged a glimpse of that breathtakingly gorgeous boxy grin of his before his lips covered your own once again. 

This kiss was different from the one before. Taehyung consumed you with his mouth. One hand circled around your waist, bringing you flush against his hardened torso while the other held the back of your neck. 

“Mm.” A strangled whimper escaped the back of your throat. 

Taehyung used that little slip of yours as a newfound opportunity to glide his tongue into your mouth. You itched to feel his fingers tangled up in your hair. He ached to feel your hands underneath his hoodie. 

“You’re only ever going to want me, hm?” He murmured against your mouth, his lips slowly (and teasingly) now leaving hot kisses along your jawline. “Need to hear you say it, baby.” 

“Yes, Taehyung. I only want you.” You mewled, head tilting to the side to allow him access to the column of your throat. You wanted his kisses on your neck. You wanted him to mark you there with reddish purple splotches. You just wanted him and you had no qualms when it came to professing that desire. 

Detaching his lips from your skin, Taehyung’s eyes found your own, “I love the way you say my name.” You could tell he was beginning to become aroused, given the way his pupils had dilated. He looked effortlessly gorgeous, with his tousled raven curls falling on his forehead, swollen lips and hooded eyes. 

You, on the other hand, looked totally disheveled. The ponytail you had lazily pulled together earlier in the day was on the verge of unraveling and your lips were red, kiss-bitten and puffed up thanks to Tae’s handiwork.

But to Taehyung you were an angel personified. 

“We don’t have to go any further,” he rasped, his fingers gently drawing invisible circles along your shoulder blades, “I’m more than happy to kiss you all day long. I just want to be here with you.” 

His admission had your entire body melting. If you had the ability to dissolve into a puddle on the floor, you absolutely would without question. Every word that left his mouth resulted in your heart skipping a beat and for once you didn’t feel like it was too good to be true. 

“I wanna be with you too.” You assured him with a saccharine smile, eyes glimmering with adoration for him. “But Tae, I’ve wanted you to fuck me since that damn wedding reception so please don’t hold back.” 

Once your vulgar words had settled in his mind, Taehyung’s smile transformed into a devilish smirk. 

“Oh? You’ve wanted me for that long, angel face?” 

You simply nodded, your hands reaching out to fist the soft cotton material of his hoodie. “You had me soaked that night.” 

He hissed out a husky fuck, his eyes darkening with lust. “Hm. Such a filthy girl. Getting wet for a stranger at your friend’s wedding reception.” 

While his words taunted you, his hands began toying with you. He slipped his long fingers underneath the material of your tee, splaying his palms flat against your tummy. 

“Touch me,” you whined. 

“I am, baby.” He chuckled hoarsely, exploring your lower torso with his large hands. He slowly hiked up your tee, exposing your bare breasts. He marveled at the way your nipples peaked as a result of his ministrations. 

“Tae!” You whimpered his name, seemingly growing impatient with his teasing. “Please!” 

“There we go… good girl.” He murmured, ridding you of your t-shirt and immediately cupping your breasts. His lustrous eyes remained fixated on your face, not wanting to miss a single reaction. 

Your back arched up into him the second his calloused fingers made contact with your sensitive nipples. 

“So pretty,” he breathed out, gently twisting and prodding your nipples. He was readying them for his lips. Taehyung had full intentions of getting your tits in his mouth—he’d been dreaming about it since the moment he saw you in that satin slip dress at the wedding. “Feel good, baby? I wanna hear your sweet little noises. Don’t be shy, okay?” 

“Oh..kay...” you stammered, trying your best to nod your head to show him that you understood. Never in your life had you encountered a man encouraging you to be vocal during sex. Hell, this wasn’t even sex! This was the beginnings of foreplay and already Taehyung was making you keen into him

“Good girl,” he praised you gently, pressing a delicate kiss to your collarbones. 

You shivered deliciously at the praise. 

He blindly guided you to your sofa, not wanting to have you standing while he suckled on your tits. Not only was that a safety hazard but he wanted you to be comfortable. Your pleasure was his top priority and he was going to make sure you understood that. Undoubtedly. 

“Comfortable?” He questioned in a gentle-like tone, allowing you to get situated on your couch. 

“I’m perfect, babe.” You assured him dazedly, your eyes hooded as you peered up at him with an eagerness he’d never witnessed before. 

He couldn’t wait to feel you. 

Pecking your lips, Taehyung brought his hands back to your breasts and began to squeeze the soft flesh. He then placed hot, wet open mouthed kisses to your skin as he worked his way down from your mouth to your chest. He was a man on a goddamn mission. To have you writhing beneath him before he even got to explore between your thighs. 

“Oh god, Taehyung!” 

Your head fell back against the cushions the moment his hot mouth encased around your left breast. His hand continued to play with the other while he swirled his tongue around, teasing your areola and flicking your hardened nipple. 

He swapped sides after a few minutes, wanting to make sure that each titty got the attention it deserved. He also loved the way you gasped, heaved and whimpered for him—so he had to string it out for a little while longer. 

“Prettiest fucking tits,” he grunted, lifting off your breast with a lewd, wet pop, “so fucking beautiful, baby.” 

He knew that you got off on praise, so the words of affirmation didn’t stop. He complimented your body as he worked his way down, pressing his lips to every inch of your skin. His onyx colored eyes glanced up to marvel the way your face would contort in pleasure or contentment, after every few kisses. 

When he reached your bike shorts, Taehyung tugged his lower lip between his teeth. “May I?” He referred to taking off your shorts, his fingers hovering at the waistband. 

You nodded eagerly, wetting your lips. “Please.” 

Satisfaction glimmered behind his irises as he hooked both of his index fingers under the waistband of your shorts. Anticipation flooded your body, your skin sizzling at his every movement. 

“Just perfect.” 

Your bike shorts joined your t-shirt in a rumbled heap on the floor, with Taehyung’s next target being your soft black panties. His eyes drank in your appearance, utterly mesmerized by your practically naked form. 

“You’re wearing too many clothes,” you whined, jutting out your bottom lip into the most exaggerated pout, “I wanna see you too.” 

Chuckling, Taehyung couldn’t deny you the simple pleasure of seeing him without clothes. “You’re so cute,” he mused as he reached up behind him, grasping the fabric of his hoodie and shrugging the item off his body. He was thanking his past self for not wearing a plain white tee for once, because the way you gawked at him like you’d won the lottery was such a confidence boost, “Y/N, you’re staring baby.” 

“Because you’re a fucking god, Taehyung. Like, c’mon, who just looks like that?” 

He grinned wolfishly at your compliment. Box-shaped smile on full display. Yeah, he wanted confidence boosts from you all day, every day. 

“I could say the same about you, angel,” he assured you, dropping a playful wink in your direction as he proceeded with dragging your panties down your legs, “now let me see that pretty pussy of yours.” 

The moment you kicked off your underwear, Taehyung expertly spread your legs with his skilful hands. He then pushed your calves gently upwards until your knees were bent, giving him the best view of your sopping pussy.

His mouth popped open, “you’re so fucking wet.” Dragging his predominant pointer finger along your slit, Taehyung couldn’t get over the sight of your glistening cunt. 

“Tae—ah fuck,” you mewled, eyes fluttering closed as the tip of his finger teased your little hole. 

“You’re drenched.” He groaned, using his fingers to spread your pussy lips to expose more of your wetness to him. “Fuck, I’m so hard.” 

You wanted to open your eyes to catch a sneaky peek at his erection but that idea disappeared from your mind the second Taehyung licked a bold stripe up your folds. 

A strangled moan escaped your lips, eyes rolling back into your skull whilst Taehyung dove in for another taste. He absolutely devoured you. His tongue waggled over your folds, lapped at your slit and prodded your entrance with fervor. His nose nudged against your clitoris time and time again, giving you the perfect bounds of stimulation. 

“Taste so fucking sweet,” he rasped against you, tongue circling your clit, “wanna get drunk on this fucking pussy.”

You were practically incoherent at this point. Words were lost on you as he ate you out like a man starved. All you could muster up were broken moans and desperate gasps. At one point, your fingers entangled themselves in Taehyung’s curls and eagerly tugged at his scalp whenever he flicked your clit just right. 

And boy, did he fucking love that. His deep, guttural groans enticed you to keep pulling his hair whilst also turning you on. The noises he made had your pussy throbbing and leaking like a goddamn faucet. You knew that Taehyung loved it because seconds later, lewd sounds filled your apartment as he slurped up your juices. 

“Could eat this sweet little pussy all night long.” He husked, looking up to catch a glimpse of your face. He revered the way your eyebrows knitted together as you chewed on your bottom lip. “So perfect for me baby. You feeling good?”

Opening your eyes lazily, you glanced down to meet his lustrous gaze and nodded dumbly, “so good.” Your words were slurred, totally high on pleasure. He looked so sinful between your legs, his hair matted to his forehead and lips glistening with your slick. 

“Good,” Taehyung grinned broadly in triumph, “are you close? Gonna be a good girl and come for me?” 

His filthy words had your pussy clenching, a desperate sound falling from your lips. “Uh-huh… n-need—” He sensed your urgency and plunged two fingers into your entrance without warning. 

Your jaw hung open and your eyes squeezed shut, your legs beginning to tremble as Taehyung started fucking you with his long fingers. He didn’t need you to verbalize that you were close, he could tell by the way your body shook. You needed to come and he was going to get you there. 

“You’re so tight around my fingers, shit,” he cursed, jack hammering into you and curling his fingers upwards to brush that spot, “can’t wait to feel this tight little cunt around my cock—fuck baby, you just squeezed my hand so much.”

“Ngh Tae!” You whimpered, back arching off your sofa as your climax approached, “I’m s-so close… wanna come!” Your legs began to stiffen and your toes curled into the cushions while that familiar tightening in your stomach grew more intense. 

“I know baby, I know. I got you,” he cooed, pressing the pad of his thumb to your clitoris and harshly rubbing at the sensitive nub, “let go for me angel. Come all over my fingers.”  

That’s all it took for your orgasm to crash over you like a tidal wave. A high pitched scream of his name fell from your lips. Taehyung hadn’t ever witnessed something so breathtakingly sexy in his life. He was absolutely enamored with you and he wasn’t ashamed of it for a second. 

Slowly easing his fingers out, Taehyung waited for you to lazily open your eyes before propping his fingers into his mouth. He moaned at the taste of your release. The sight alone had your pussy clenching around nothing. 

“Like peaches and cream,” he smirked, wiping his fingers off on his jeans and gently reaching out to cup your face with the other hand, “how are you feeling? I wasn’t too much, was I?” 

Your chest heaved as you tried to regain your breathing pattern, eyes drooped from the earth shattering orgasm Taehyung had just given you. “No,” you breathed, shaking your head a little, “I’m feeling like I’m on cloud nine right now.” 

He chuckled, beaming with satisfaction. He didn’t say anything else, instead he pushed himself towards you and gently pressed his lips to his. Although you could taste remnants of your own cum, you weren’t fazed by it at all. Not when you were still riding on your high. 

“I wanna return the favor,” you mumbled  into the kiss, tugging on his bottom lip with your teeth. 

He groaned huskily in your mouth, “you little minx.” He reluctantly pulled away and then pressed a kiss to the swell of your breasts. “Tonight is about you, baby. I just want to make you feel good. You can return the favor another time.” 

You were awestruck by his response. Never in your life had you met a man so selfless when it came to sex but then it occurred to you that Taehyung was truly one in a million. One in a billion, more like it. 

“Besides, I’m so fucking hard right now that if you put those pretty lips on me I might blow my load straight away.” He admitted with an embarrassed laugh. 

That drew your attention to the impressive bulge that was noticeable through his jeans. You could’ve sworn you felt your mouth dry up at the sheer size of it. His hardened cock was straining against his zipper to the point you thought it was going to bust open. 

“If you keep looking at me like that I’m going to take you right here,” Taehyung said in a low voice that sent shivers down your spine. 

“And what’s so wrong with that?” 

His tongue poked out to wet his lips, “I wanted to treat you right. Make love to you in your bed.” 

Your naked body keened into his, brushing his denim clad bulge. 

“Fuck!—Y/N, if you keep that shit up I’m gonna fuck you right here, right now.” 

As much as you wanted Taehyung to make love to you like he’d hoped; you wanted him to fuck you. You were so desperate to feel his well endowed cock deep inside you, that you didn’t want to waste anymore time. Romance could wait for another day. 

So that’s what prompted you to dip your tiny hand beneath the waistband of his jeans and find his rigid cock. He immediately grunted at your touch and that caused you to smile innocently. 

“That’s how you wanna play it?” He growled out, eyes darkening as you took his cock out from its confines and slowly pumped his raging erection. He immediately groaned, his head knocking backwards. 

“You’re so big.” You breathed unevenly. He was so hard. So long. So thick. Your clit pulsated at the thought of him stuffing you full with his cum. You gently swiped the beads of precum from his slit and lathered it over his bulbous head.

Taehyung’s breathing became labored. You were driving him absolutely insane and he wasn’t sure how much longer he could endure your teasing. 

“Baby—ah fuck—stop,” he rasped, reaching out to gently pluck your hand off his throbbing dick, “I need to be inside you. Now.” 

You nodded eagerly, shimmying yourself up on the couch so that Taehyung could shrug off his jeans. He yanked off the denim so aggressively, as if the jeans had personally offended him. Soon enough, his jeans and Tommy Hilfiger boxer briefs joined the rest of your clothes. 

“Are you sure this is okay?” He inquired in a gentle tone, his eyes gazing down into yours. Taehyung didn’t want to pressure you into anything. He wanted your consent before taking anything further and your heart hammered in your chest at his attentiveness. 

“More than okay. I want you Taehyung.” 

“Say that again.” His dick twitched while he hovered over you. 

“I want you Taehyung. Please fuck me.” 

Slamming his lips down onto yours, Taehyung positioned himself between your legs. He hoisted your calves over his hips and gently pushed your thighs towards your chest. The current position had you both panting into each other's mouths and he wasn’t even inside you yet. 

Fisting his cock, Taehyung hissed into your feverish kiss while pumping himself once, twice, three times to get ready for your tight little pussy. Lining his throbbing cock up with your entrance, Taehyung eased himself in slowly. 

You whimpered at the intrusion and clutched at his shoulder blades with frenzied desire. Inch by inch, Taehyung pushed himself inside your tight cunt and you were nothing but a moaning mess below him. 

“Fuck!” He grunted after bottoming out, your pelvises aligned with his throbbing dick now completely sheathed by your warm walls. “You feel so fucking good angel. Squeezing my dick like crazy—uh shit, not gonna last long.” 

“Me neither,” you whined, allowing yourself a few moments to adjust to his impressive girth. 

Taehyung reached down between your bodies and located your clit, rubbing slow circles over the bundle of nerves in order to help you loosen up and accustom to his size. Your comfort and pleasure came before his tenfold.  

“Ungh,” you gurgled, unable to construct sentences, “move. Please move, baby.” 

He kissed you softly then, slowly drawing his hips back and rocking forward to test the waters. Upon hearing your mewls against his lips, Taehyung knew you were feeling good and decided to pick up the pace. He began thrusting up into you with a steady rhythm, kissing your cervix with the head of his cock in a way that had your eyes rolling back into your head each time. 

“Best fucking pussy I’ve ever had,” he panted, slamming his hips against yours and kissing you messily, “so wet and warm.” 

“Tae,” you whimpered in desperation, feeling your second orgasm quickly approaching. You clung to his biceps, digging your nails into his taut muscles, craving him in every way possible. 

“I’m here honey, I’m right here.” He croaked gravelly. “I know what you need. I’m gonna give it to you, ‘kay?” 

“Please.” 

That one word was all it took for Taehyung to pound into you. It was like something inside of him had snapped. He plowed his hips against yours, determined to trigger your second climax of the night. He wanted to feel you come around his cock. He wanted to pump you full of his sticky cum and watch it seep down your thighs. 

The both of you had resorted to moaning messes. All that could be heard through your apartment was the obscene sound of skin slapping skin and the occasional curse word. You wondered if you were going to receive a noise complaint later today. 

“You close angel?” He puffed out through swollen lips. 

You nodded meekly, your thighs trembling against your breasts. Your eyes were welling up with tears from how good he was fucking you. 

“Me too.” Taehyung heaved, his skin starting to glimmer with sweat. He gently grabbed your ankles and hauled your legs over his shoulder—the new position allowing him to hit all the right spots that had you crying out his name. “Come with me baby.” He begged, his thrusts getting sloppier and more erratic as his orgasm loomed on him. 

Noticing the way you arched up off the couch, Taehyung quickly rubbed his fingers over your clit and within seconds, you were climaxing around his cock with a shout of his name. 

Following suit, Taehyung gutturally groaned out your name. He buried his face into the crook of your neck as his dick twitched sporadically and spurted his cum deep within your cunt.

You were utterly spent. 

The two of you stayed there for a couple of minutes, allowing yourselves time to catch your breath and steady your heart rate. 

Taehyung used the time to slowly pull out and paid witness to the way your pussy dribbled with his cum. He then, of course, pushed it back in with a wolfish grin. 

You couldn’t deny that you loved being stuffed. 

About a minute later, Taehyung placed a kiss on your jugular. “You’re so perfect.” 

The unexpected compliment had you blushing. He could tell you’d gotten all shy by the change in your body language, so he reached out and gently squeezed your breast. 

“Tae!” You gasped, lightly slapping his bicep. 

He broke out into a fit of cheeky giggles, lifting his head from the curve between your neck and shoulder. “What? Don’t get  all shy on me now honey. I just pumped you full of my cum after all.” He teased you playfully with a devilish smirk. 

You rolled your eyes and pushed him by the shoulder. He grinned boyishly at your response. 

“I meant it though; you really are perfect,” Taehyung reached out and gently moved your hair from your face, “and I’d love it if we could be exclusive from now on.” 

“Tae…” You were crimson red. He really made your heart race in a way that you couldn’t describe. 

“Not just because we slept together, but because I can’t stand the idea of going another day without being able to call you my girl.” 

You kissed him passionately in lieu of a yes. He happily returned the sentiment. 

Needless to say, you were more than happy to be Kim Taehyung’s girl and not even ten minutes had passed before you were giving him that blowjob he turned down earlier.

Later that evening (after your three rounds of toe-curling sex), Taehyung ordered fried chicken and beer to be delivered for you both to share. 

You were dressed in nothing but a clean pair of panties and Taehyung’s hoodie, which looked adorably oversized on you. Your boyfriend, on the other hand, had opted for his boxer briefs and nothing else. 

Not that you were complaining in the slightest. 

Curled up in his embrace, you were mindlessly watching the new season of Love Is Blind (as it turns out Taehyung also loved watching trashy reality dating shows) when he cleared his throat to grab your attention. 

“Hm?” You turned to look at him with pure adoration in your eyes. 

“Honey, can I tell you something? It's super cheesy and dumb but this show just reminded me of it.” 

Eyebrows raising in intrigue, you nodded and gestured for him to continue. 

Chuckling nervously, Taehyung ran a hand through his messed up curls. “Back in Vegas, I tried to look for you after you left the reception,” he began, making your heart sink to your stomach for a brief moment. 

If you hadn’t jumped to conclusions, then maybe you and Taehyung could’ve gotten together earlier. 

“I was buzzed so of course I had no idea which direction you went. Anyways, I ended up at some random bar by the casino,” he mused, rubbing his index finger along his bottom lip, “the bartender was super chatty and asked me where I had come from, ‘cause I was all dressed up. I told him I was just at a wedding and met this amazing woman that took my breath away, but she’d left.” 

Of course, you blushed at his confession. The fact he told a stranger about you warmed your heart. 

Chuckling, Taehyung reached his hand down and took a hold of his vintage denim. You had no idea what he was doing with his clothes, so eyed him curiously. To your shock, he retrieved a single poker chip from his back pocket. 

You were rendered speechless. It couldn’t be… 

“He told me about this bowl on the bar that had a bunch of poker chips in it. Said that people all over Vegas toss one in for a chance to find their soulmate,” he paused, twiddling the poker chip between his fingers and then gently placing it in your hand, “so I stole one. Because I didn’t need a chance… I’d already met you.” 

Tearing up, you glanced down at the poker chip that rested on your palm. You’d both been there that night. You’d both heard the story and purposely went against the fantasy. 

You’d both created your own fate. 

And that led you to each other. 

“I know it’s corny and lame but I was already falling in love with you. I didn’t need a poker chip to convince me of that.” Taehyung said, his fingers gently tucking your strands of your hair past your ear. 

“It’s not at all,” you whispered, tossing the poker chip onto your coffee table and then wrapping your arms around his neck, “I’m falling in love with you too.” 

His eyes brightened, the elated sparkle that shimmered in them leaving you warm and fuzzy. The way Taehyung looked at you was more than enough proof that he was telling the truth. That everything he had said to you was spoken straight from the heart. 

No games. No bets. No bluff. Cards off the table; he was real. 

You leaned in to kiss him, brushing your nose against his endearingly before whispering: “I hope you know you’re in for one hell of a ride with me, right?” 

“I know, baby.” He crashed his lips onto yours, “and I’m all in.” 

© tattookoo. all rights reserved 2023

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I know this is supposed to be an accomplishment but this is wild 😭 thank you all 💘 will continue my writing 🫡🫡

I’m alive I’m just busy this weekend!! I am still working on the next chapter so don’t you worry 🤗🤗🤗

The way I find out that the GOU word count is over 100k before chapter 10 djdbdjdjdj sorry for the teleserye/telenovela

This is such a spoiler, but once we hit chapter 10 and the second half of the story, there isn’t much flashbacks and the present time will get…intense 🤭 so expect WORDS. AND WILL BE CRYING

The way I find out that the GOU word count is over 100k before chapter 10 djdbdjdjdj sorry for the teleserye/telenovela