taehyung attempted to count the tiles of the meeting room. they laid in rows of twelve which made for easy multiplication but that would be cause his little distraction to move too quickly.
he instead, counted each individually, whispering out loud every time he got through five more which he could tell was leaving his two guests, less than amused.
"are you even paying attention?" namjoon flicked the thin skin on his hand, causing his reflexes to kick in and tug his hand away.
"what was that for?" he rubbed the spot gingerly.
"pay attention!" his father demanded attention and he always received it, "now taehyung, at the next board meeting we'll announce your position as vice president of finance and namjoon will remain as the chief financial officer. he will oversee you and i will oversee you both!"
"who is catering the meeting?"
"is that really what's on your mind?" it was evident that his brother was annoyed, the sharp tone and the tossing of the pen onto his legal pad making it overly apparent.
"it was just a question!" taehyung defended, his own arms crossed over his chest.
"that place who makes the charcuterie boards you like!" his father mediated the situation with ease, "now, moving onto the next order of business..."
taehyung knew what was being said was important. he also knew that namjoon was writing down every word that was being spoken and would surely send over the meeting minutes as he always did.
his almond orbs scanned down to his phone. ever since breakfast him and jungkook had been texting most of their days away, only pausing for clients and sleep. it was interesting getting to know somebody in such an organic way, somebody who didn't know of his past or where he came from-
he liked being able to share new information with jungkook who seemed genuinely intrigued by it all. not many people would give him that time or that effort, to see through the outward facade that he kept displayed.
it was refreshing.
he felt himself clicking a quick message about how boring this meeting is. how he didn't want the title, didn't care about the constant side eye that namjoon was giving him, how he wanted to hop on a flight tonight and just go anywhere but here. he was feeling stir crazy, choked by a tie and an overpriced suit. smothered by the stale air of old coffee.
that had been almost an hour ago and he hadn't seen a response. he assumed that jungkook was with a client, living his passion out in real time. what a treat! what a thrill! to do what you love day in and day out and get paid for it. and on your own time? sure he had a business to keep afloat but if he wanted to take a week off, he was able to just leave his schedule open or turn the keys over to yoongi.
taehyung tried to bring his mind back to the conversation in front of him. something about the stock market and what type of salad they should order for lunch. he was grateful when his father's assistant poked her head in, "taehyung, somebody is at the front desk for you."
he wondered if it was jimin. sure he had a fob and a key but he loved a dramatic entrance and also tended to lose those types of items more frequently than a normal person. he cleared his throat, "who is it? blonde?"
the woman shook her head, "tall, dark hair..." her voice dropped to a whisper, "gorgeous."
it couldn't be- jungkook?
taehyung blushed just thinking about it, "okay, i'll go down and-,"
"send him up! you should send him up." namjoon intercepted, "whoever it is, i'd like to meet and i'm sure dad would too."
"joon, it isn't like that! if it's who i think it is, he's just a friend. i only have friends!"
"either way, we'd like to see who you skip out on work to be with." namjoon pursed his lips in distaste, visibly annoyed that the middle of his day had been interrupted.
"alright, fine." taehyung poked his tongue in his cheek, annoyed, "send him up!"
"wasn't aware you were seeing anybody new?" as they waited, namjoon couldn't help but stir the pot just a tad more. him and his brother had always had a sort of rivalry, one that hadn't faded with age.
"i told you, i'm not seeing anybody!" his eyes rolled back, ears on alert as the click of the elevator opened and the sound of shoes against tile alerted him of a visitor.
"knock, knock!" that perfectly melodic voice bounced across the space.
taehyung turned to see the man he'd been dreaming about except... something was different. a lot of things actually.
his usually messy hair was combed off to the side revealing his forehead, a direct line to those brunette eyes that taehyung could get lost in. he smiled as they stared at one another, his usually black, leather, distressed, and crazy clothing swapped out for a button up that covered almost every tattoo, accompanied by a pair of tapered slacks. he looked insanely dapper and professional.
in his hands were three cups of coffee, two hot and fresh, the other iced and blended- just like taehyung liked it. clearly, he'd been paying attention.
"so, you're the friend?" namjoon helped grab the drinks, ushering jungkook into the newly free chair, "how long have you known our tae bear?"
the brunette growled at his brother for calling him that.
"tae bear?" jungkook chuckled lowly, "cute." his eyes flickered wondering how much he should really say about the two of them, "we've just been getting to know each other. his friend jimin is good friends with my friend yoongi and so, it seemed only fitting that we always try to get along!"
"for the sake of jimin and yoongi of course." taehyung added jokingly, something that jungkook just rolled his eyes and playfully smirked at.
"but, tae had told me he'd text me on lunch and it just seemed like it was going to be a long day so i thought i'd drop some drinks downstairs but they insisted i come upstairs."
"thank you!" tae's father finally spoke up, eyes wide with delight as the drink his his tongue, "that was very thoughtful of you. did taehyung tell you what the meeting was about?"
"i'm sure he'll catch me up later." jungkook stood, not wanting to intercept anything further, "i promise i didn't want to keep you any longer than i already have."
"you should come to the family home for dinner sometime jungkook; it would be nice to get to know you further!" namjoon piped up once more, ignoring the pleas of his brother for him to shut the fuck up.
"we'll set up a time, okay?" taehyung narrowed his eyes at the annoying family members who were basking in their attempts at ambushing what could have been painless, "i'm going to walk jungkook out and then we can continue this."
"nice meeting you!" his father called out the door.
"i'm sorry they're so embarrassing." taehyung crossed his arms nervously, rocking back and forth on his heel, "i'm surprised to see you dressed like that."
they climbed into the elevator together, jungkook making the bold move of pressing every other floor to prolong their trip as much as possible, "do you like it?"
taehyung urged him to do a full spin so he could see every inch, "i like the pants, they're a good length and they sit really nicely on your waist but the shirt, very frat boy circa ten years ago?"
"wow! harsh!" jungkook covered his arms in a huff, "i thought it was better than walking in with my arms on full display, muscles, tattoos, could have shoved my old eyebrow piercing in even!"
"an eyebrow piercing!" taehyung tried to hold a laugh, "who are you jeon jungkook?"
"i'm kind of super cool, if you didn't know." jungkook winked.
"well someday i demand to see pictures of this because it sounds..." he dared to find a word that didn't completely break the illusion that he was beyond attracted to jungkook.
"sexy?" the younger could sense the hesitation, the gulping and the little beads of sweat forming on tae's palm. it was evident they were attracted to one another; anyone could see it.
"i wasn't going to say that." taehyung's voice hushed to a whisper, the noted thickening tension leaving the jerking elevator far more heated than when they had entered.
"of course not." jungkook hoped he wasn't reading the signals wrong, their time together nearing an end as the final button lit up, "good luck with your meeting, okay?" his hand brushed the other's before walking back into the main entrance of the office.
"thanks.." taehyung bit his bottom lip, eyes fixated on the dark-haired male walking away from him. he hated how far away he got so quickly, his strides long just like his legs. he wished he would taken a moment longer to bask in their alone time.
tae dejectedly pressed the button to go back up to his silly little office, where the silly little meeting was still going on. at least he had an iced coffee and the picture of jungkook in business casual apparel to keep him occupied for the remaining few hours.