Red Revenge ✓ tk

Nobody But Me

"How is she?"

The nurse looked at the familiar boy with sympathy in her eyes. He had shown up four times in the same week, asking about his mother's health and if she was willing to see him. The answer was always the same; she didn't want to see him, never again, and it made the boy's expression sadden so much it pained the nurse.

"She's having some anger issues and she doesn't want to take any medication for the withdrawal symptoms." The nurse sighed, leaning onto the reception counter. Jeongguk nodded, his heart heavy as he stood at the entrance of the rehabilitation center. "So the same as always then?"

The nurse chuckled at that. "You could say that."

"So." Jeongguk rubbed his foot against the floor, eyes cast down with a sort of timidity the nurse recognized. "Has she said anything?"

"I'm sorry Jeongguk, but I think it will take her a while to realize you had the best intentions on getting her here." The nurse admitted, knowing the boy was looking for this answer.

"She still sees me as a traitor?" He mumbled, his heart dejected but it was to be expected. His mother still didn't see how this was best for her. Her own son had gotten her locked up, she must have thought he's terrible.

"It's normal for family members to be unaccepting of help from others, especially closely related people", she explained, "I promise you once she's been here for some time, she'll see the truth."

"Could you uh- could you tell her I was here?" Jeongguk asked her, just like all the other days he had come into town to try and see his mother.

"I'll tell her." The nurse nodded, a faint smile appearing on her lips. "We'll call you once anything changes."

"Thank you." Jeongguk ducked his head and took his leave, wondering how long it'd take for him to be able to see his mother without her having the urge to choke him until he was gone.

"How did it go, darling?" Taehyung asked him as soon as he stepped into the bedroom. Taehyung was already tucked into bed with a thick book in his hands and his round-framed glasses on the top of his nose making him so unbelievably cute that Jeongguk couldn't help but crawl over just to kiss his nose.

"The same as always." Jeongguk sighed after getting a kiss from the other. He dropped himself down, his face buried in the man's stomach. "She detests me."

"Now, now, little one, let's think positively." Taehyung mused and he let his fingers run through the boy's locks. Jeongguk's hair had gotten surprisingly long as it reached far below his ears, curling at the ends. He ran through the knots and curled the boy's hair around his finger, marveling at the way it stayed curled once he pulled his fingers back.

"What's to be positive about?" Jeongguk groaned. He shuffled closer to the other, now reaching his chest. On an impulse, he opened his mouth and started nibbling onto one of the man's pajamas buttons as Taehyung's large hand ran down his back.

Jeongguk shuddered at the sensation and felt his eyes droop at the comfort it brought him to have Taehyung's hands on his body, running up and down his tense muscles. "She's getting help. She's safe. You're safe."

"I've always been safe." Jeongguk sluggishly protested but he knew what the man was talking about. All the times one of his mom's one night stands, lovers or new boyfriends would get their hands on Jeongguk to get out their anger. They were drug abusers as well, much like his mother, but they didn't care for the woman's son and so Jeongguk often found himself beaten up by them.

It started two years before Taehyung came into his life and it ended one month after that.

"I'm lucky I found you," Jeongguk mumbled, the memories of his dark past now overshadowed by the warm fuzzy memories of him sharing his life with Taehyung for the past years.

"I could say the same darling." Taehyung dipped down to press a kiss onto the boy's head. He picked up his book again and let one hand run up and down the boy's back, feeling Jeongguk's head get heavier.

Soon the boy had drifted off to a peaceful sleep.

»»————-　♡　————-««

"Taehyung?"

The man hummed as he sipped his coffee. It was early in the morning. Taehyung was sat at the coffee table, dressed in his usual sweats while Jeongguk had taken a shower, wanting to rid himself of any trace of whatever he and Taehyung did as soon as they had woken up.

Jeongguk was clad in only sweatpants and has a towel wrapped around his shoulders to dry his hair that had gotten so long he could now tie it into a bun. He stepped into the kitchen with bare feet and walked over to where Taehyung was seated. The older man scooted backward to make room for his boyfriend to sit on his lap and was surprised to find the other placing down a laptop on the kitchen table instead – though Jeongguk did make himself comfortable on the man's legs after setting it down.

"What's this?" Taehyung asked him before guessing. "Did you find our sex boring and do you want to show me a video of some new kink you discovered? Because last time we acted a video out, I got a sprain."

"Yeah, yeah and your back hurt. You're an old man already, you know that?" Jeongguk teased but he jumped when the man squeezed his bum. "Okay, but seriously, I need you to be serious when I tell you this serious thing alright?"

"I'll be very serious." Taehyung nodded, with the straightest face he could muster as a gay man, and puffed out his chest. "What's so serious?"

Jeongguk clicked on the opened tabs and showed Taehyung what he had been researching for the past weeks. Taehyung's eyes studied the screen with great interest while Jeongguk sat on his lap, feeling the nerves swirl around in his tummy.

"I want to go to college and become a teacher", Jeongguk blurted out because he couldn't stand waiting for Taehyung to react. The man sat back, pondered for a moment until enveloping Jeongguk in a tight hug that left the younger boy breathless.

He felt his whole body being squeezed and he giggled into the man's neck when he felt fingers dance on his waist and stomach. "Taehyungie." He squirmed in joy but the man didn't let go.

"I'm so happy," Taehyung mumbled, his chin resting on top of the boy's fluffy hair. "I'm really happy for you Jeongguk."

"You are?" Jeongguk smiled. "I have only researched some things though, I haven't actually applied yet."

"That's not quite what it's about darling. I'm happy you have found something you like. After all these years of you telling me you don't like anything in particular and don't know what to do with your life, I'm glad you found something you'd want to do in the future." Taehyung pushed the other away so he could look into the boy's eyes. "But I also want you to know that if you decide that this is not something you want to do, you can also tell me. You are the one in control over your own life and I'll be proud of you no matter what."

Jeongguk smiled. "You sound very daddy at the moment." He watched the other crinkle his nose and laughed. "But thank you, I only dared to tell you now after I did enough research. I didn't want to disappoint you. Also, can I tell you something but you have to promise not to get mad?"

"Do I have to go back to serious now?" Taehyung questioned but he shut up by the other's look. "Alright, I promise my little one."

"I actually went to this college to check out the classes and speak to the professors that day you thought I was at Hoseok's."

Taehyung gasped and clapped his hands together, the cogs in his head turning. "That's why he was acting so strange and why you were so late! I was already confused how you could have forgotten your phone at Hoseok's when you're practically married to it."

"I'm not married to that phone." Jeongguk protested but Taehyung only shook his head.

"You love that thing more than me."

The boy whined. "That's not true!", he told the other, "I love McDonald's more than you but that's beside the point."

"You're a real brat." Taehyung nagged, though the adoration in his eyes when he looked Jeongguk said otherwise.

"You love it though."

Taehyung chuckled. "I love your ass more."

Chapter forty we have reached chapter forty. I kinda wanna do a live on Instagram but at the same time I'm socially awkward haha