When The Tiger Lilies Bloom | Taekook

21. Serendipity

Taehyung was still busy with the heavy art piece he had in his hand and trying to hang it on the wall. He planned to finish the work fast to ramble to Jimin and eat something delicious from the cafe, but unfortunately, the sorting order Namjoon gave him was messed up and Taehyung had to do it all by himself from the start.

He turned towards his best friend who was holding the chair for him, grinning wide at him but that's not what caught Taehyung's breath.

"Jungkook?"

It was hard for Jungkook to take his eyes away from the painting in Taehyung's hand and meet his eyes with Taehyung. It's been weeks since they met each other but the faded image of Taehyung in his head still looks flawless just like the man standing in front of him, on a busy afternoon, burdened with work.

He didn't think Jimin would drag him to the art gallery when he asked about Taehyung to witness that sight. It was so awkward to stand there, watching the best friends talking and he felt like an intruder to their privacy. Jungkook was about to take a step back and leave when Taehyung called out his name, bringing him back to reality. Jimin turned to look at him with a soft smile which did nothing to ease his awkwardness while standing there.

"H-hi, Tae-Taehyung..."

Flustered with the way Jungkook said his name, Taehyung smiled at the younger, avoiding Jimin's scrutinizing eyes on him.

"How come you're here...?"

"I-- was..."

"I dragged him with me"

Jimin muttered while staring at the painting Taehyung was about to hang on the wall. He winced at the abstract art, loving the way the colors blended with the canvas creating a beautiful yet messy masterpiece. Taehyung had made him fond of art and appreciate every little effort of an artist and Jimin was beyond thankful to his best friend for that.

"He was asking about you. So..."

Taehyung couldn't take his eyes off of Jungkook. Jimin had looked away from them but he was still cautious about his best friend and didn't want to drag Jungkook into any mess because of him. Taehyung scanned the facial expression of Jungkook which held so many emotions that he felt lost while trying to decipher them. Once he noticed that Jimin was at the opposite corner, Taehyung whispered in his low voice, holding the painting tight in his hands.

"You... You were asking about... me?"

"Ugh... Yeah. Since you vanished after that night..."

"Oh..."

Taehyung turned to hang the painting on the wall, carefully while leaning and feeling a little embarrassed because of Jungkook who was still standing behind him. If it was anyone else, Taehyung would effortlessly flaunt himself in front of them but it was Jungkook. And that's why he had to keep it to himself and show off his best version to the man even though Jungkook didn't ask for it.

"I was busy with council work. I mean, I'm... anyway--"

"--How are you?"

The question took him off guard, Taehyung stopped suddenly but his balance was lost as he tried his best to finally hang the painting on the wall, trying to not break it. He stumbled on the stool he was standing on, felt himself falling back, and couldn't control himself. No sound came out of his mouth and only a gasp left when he felt a strong grip on his waist.

Taehyung released his hold on the painting as he hung it on the wall, but the grip tightened around his waist, hands digging into his skin as he lost his right mind each second. Jungkook turned him to the front effortlessly, confronting Taehyung's big wide eyes on him.

Their eyes met in an abyss, faces inches apart, and heartbeats in sync. The elder held his shoulder tightly, lips trembling to whisper something but they both couldn't think of anything at the moment.

"I'm... fine..."

"Huh?"

"I'm good"

"Taehyung?"

"Jungkook"

"Your lips..."

Jungkook whispered softly, to which Taehyung didn't know how to react. He nodded slowly, puppy eyes going wide.

"yeah, what?"

"Your lips are so close and I can't see your face."

Oh.

Taehyung was blooming like a wildflower, cheeks rising at the comment and his eyes lowering at Jungkook's lips. Oh, yes. They were so close that he could feel Jungkook's breath.

"Uh, you want to see my face?"

He asked, hesitance in his voice and the question caught Jungkook off-guard. He stuttered before answering Taehyung.

"Yeah, I mean... We can't talk like... this, right?"

"Oh, well. You can't. 'Cause, that's a position where the heroine falls in love with the anti-hero in K-dramas and then he conquers the world to have her so that he can be her hero and then they go on honeymoon---"

"--Okay, Park Jimin. We get it."

Taehyung screamed at his best friend for ruining his moment and aggressively glared at the man to which Jimin replied with a scoff. He found Jungkook stepping away as he jumped down from the stool and fixed his shirt, not meeting Jungkook's eyes. He heard Jungkook mumbling sorry but Taehyung shook his head.

"Are you guys even planning to eat something or just stand there almost kis--"

"---Complete that sentence, Park. I dare you." Taehyung threatened his best friend, but Jimin passed a notorious smirk at him.

"What will you do, Kim?"

"Best friend, let's fill something to your tummy and call it a day, shall we?"

Taehyung was about to drag Jimin out of the gallery when he felt a light tug on his sleeve. He turned to the man as Jungkook held his elbow gently. Once their eyes met, it felt like time paused for them. Call Taehyung delusional, but he oh so badly wanted to stop the time at that moment as he and Jungkook looked into each other's eyes and read the untold stories in them. But, reality hurts.

"Taehyung..."

"Hmmhmm?"

"Will we meet again?"

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Short fluff after a long time feels good...

Stay tuned, and see you soon...

~AnecdotesOfABroken