Waiting For You | Taegyu ✓

24 - Remember

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The moment the concert is over, Taehyun feels the anxiousness grabbing his guts. He has prepared himself for this moment, but he is nervous nevertheless. All the preparation in the world would not be enough for the talk they are going to have.

Taehyun just knows that he has to believe in himself and in Beomgyu now. It is up to him to tell the truth now and then there will be nothing but waiting left. Waiting for Beomgyu's reply.

Their eyes meet for a short moment, words getting exchanged silently. They walk out of the concert hall and Taehyun takes Beomgyu's hand once they are outside. "Let's go somewhere quieter."

Beomgyu doesn't protest and lets Taehyun lead him away. He probably knows that they won't be able to have a decent conversation with all these people around them, all hyper from the concert.

Taehyun has a destination in mind already. It is the only place that he could think of. It's the place which has connected both of their lives together for a long time; a place that kept standing, even when their lives crumbled down.

"Are you not going to tell me where we're going?" Beomgyu asks as they keep walking. "It's gotten pretty quiet already."

He looks back at the older man and gives him a smile. "Just a few more minutes. Are you scared I'm going to drag you into some dark alley and murder you?"

"We're going to the café I work at, aren't we? You do know it's closed at this time." Beomgyu replies, ignoring his question. Taehyun takes his reply as a 'no' and it makes him relieved. He knows he should not doubt the other man, but he's still anxious if Beomgyu will trust him again or not.

He manages a shaky smile. "I know. You noticed?"

Beomgyu chuckles. "It would be weird if I didn't recognize my way to work."

"Right..."

"Did you buy new clothes? I don't recognize a brand."

Taehyun shrugs. "It's no brand. I sold my old stuff, everything."

Beomgyu's eyes widen. "You did? Can I ask why?"

"I just noticed I don't need them anymore. There is only one person I want to impress right now and he doesn't give a shit about brands. Might as well use the money for something better."

The black-haired man averts his gaze, probably out of shyness. "I see. I wonder if he is going to be impressed by that alone."

Taehyun pulls him a little closer to himself. "There is more I want to show him."

"Like what?"

"Everything." Beomgyu hums in reply and then falls silent. Taehyun just squeezes his hand and continues leading the way to the café.

+×+

Minutes later, they stop at a lamppost. The café is on the other side of the street. All the windows are dark, of course, since it's in the middle of the night. No Huening to interrupt them. Beomgyu looks at him. "So? What now?"

Taehyun licks his lips nervously. "I will tell you a story. It's called 'The true story of Kang Taehyun'."

"What a simple title." Beomgyu jokes and he gives the older man a slight shove. "Hey! I apologize, okay?"

The smile drops from Taehyun's lips. "The story starts during middle school, because, honestly, the rest of his life before that is even more boring than what's to come."

Beomgyu smiles and it encourages him to continue. "A little background info might still be needed. Well, his household was not exactly the best. He always wondered why his father wasn't working. The old man simply stayed at home all day, drinking beer and watching television. He was not violent or abusive. His father was just sitting around, looking half-dead and already done with the world. He never gave Taehyun his attention, not even when he brought good grades home or when he won the national math contest. He just stared into the television blankly - eyes dead and body unmoving. Taehyun's mother told him that he's very sick, but she never explained it any further."

Taehyun makes a short pause and Beomgyu reaches out to squeeze his hand. "What about his mother?"

"They got along quite well until his dad's sickness got worse. She decided Taehyun should take a break from school, because they needed the money. He fought a lot with his mother after that. He said things that could not be taken back easily. When Taehyun was faced with leaving school for a year, he didn't want to accept it. You might find it selfish, but there was this guy going to his school, on which he had a huge crush, and he was going to graduate soon. Taehyun didn't want to lose the little time that was left for them, even if they had never spoken a word with each other. His crush probably didn't know of his existence."

"A broken heart...it must have been hard for him. Why did he never try to talk to his crush?"

Taehyun shrugs and smiles weakly. "He was a shy and introverted boy, and his crush was one of the rich kids at school, while Taehyun was just...Taehyun. A poor kid with good grades."

He notices Beomgyu frowning slightly and Taehyun hurries to tell the rest, because the older man already seems to be drawing a line between their pasts.

"He did talk to him once. Taehyun wrote a confession letter, because he thought 'Might as well try it if I have to leave'. So he wrote him a letter and waited for him at the school gate. His crush accepted his letter-" Taehyun laughs shortly. "-more like, he shoved it into his hands and ran away without giving him the chance to reject it. And they promised to meet-"

"-at a café." Beomgyu interrupts him and Taehyun averts his gaze. "This café? Taehyun...which school did you really go to?"

He swallows. "The same as you."

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Well, yep I published all the parts bcz I am getting impatient :)