"Your eyes whispered, "Have we met?"
'Cross the room your silhouette
Starts to make its way to me
The playful conversation starts
Counter all your quick remarks
Like passing notes in secrecy"
❀
- V -
Taehyung lay in bed looking up at the ceiling.
He had no idea how he reached here. It all still felt like a dream. It felt like yesterday he had been joking around with his friend at the hagwon, and now suddenly he had been catapulted into a world he had only heard about.
It wasn't like he planned to do this. He had gone to support a friend for an audition where he himself was suddenly asked to audition, which he did, because what could've gone wrong in a audition? It's not like they were going to select him out of so many talented people.
Except, they did.
They selected, much to the surprise of his own self, only him.
After training in the local centre for six months, he was now in Gangnam, Seoul.
Seoul, Gangnam-gu, Dosandaero 16-gil! 13-20, was where he had been dropped off by his father. Sejin, their manager had explained the scenario, the rules, and the selection process. He would be housing with the other trainees in one of the dorms and through the year he would be judged and scored on the basis of his performance and effort. If he managed to do well, he would be selected to debut under the company, if not, then it was a long way home. Taehyung's emotions were in a slight disarray with the amount of information that had been dumped on him. He did not know whether to be lost in the city lights, Gangnam's opulence, or feel the sorrow in being wrenched away from his home and his family.
He was just sixteen after all. Well, about to be, in three months.
Sejin had brought him to the apartment he was supposed to be living in from now on. He met the the other members, Namjoon, Hoseok, and Yoongi, and Taehyung was blown away with how cool they were. They were already writing songs, working on cyphers, producing beats. It seemed like they were part of a different group, and he was just here to live with them.
Before the fourth guy had come, the other three had slipped into easy conversation with him. They had asked about his hometown, his family, and in return provided them with their's.
The cat-like hyung was from Daegu, same as Taehyung. The bright smile one who was from Gwangju, immediately becoming Taehyung's favourite, and the leader looked tough, but Taehyung could see how much of a mush Kim Namjoon was on the inside.
They had informed him that there was one more member, Jeon Jeongguk, the youngest who was yet to come from practice and had also slipped in that he was quite reserved and liked to keep to himself.
Taehyung, being the extraordinary extrovert that he was, was still excited to meet him.
When Taehyung had laid eyes on him, a young boy, who was almost his height, with short raven bowl-cut hair and very inquisitive onyx eyes staring at him, he had gone up and introduced himself but soon realised that the youngest hardly ever spoke, if at all. It wasn't like he was not interested in the conversation. His eyes were full of attention whenever somebody spoke but he rarely put in his opinions into the conversation. He only answered when someone asked him directly.
It seemed strange. Taehyung had never faced such a problem. He could easily talk to someone for hours, and while some of his classmates did joke around that all he talked was nonsense, he still tried his best to make others around him comfortable.
In bed that night, he turned to his side, resting his hand beneath his pillow.
The large window in the room was slightly cranked open letting the fresh air in.
Jeongguk lay on the bunk next to him. He was facing the wall.
To Taehyung, the younger seemed like a lanky little fawn, with a round face and dark eyes, looking around at the new world.
He would try to talk to him tomorrow.
Tonight he had dreams to dream.
After what felt like an hour or three, Taehyung sensed a movement in the room and his eyes fluttered open groggily. Trying to focus his eyes in the dark, he squinted and saw someone's silhouette picking up a pile of clothes and walking into the shower.
Thoughts still muddled with slumber, Taehyung propped himself up on his elbow and cocked his head to the side to hear better. He picked up his phone to check the time. It was three am.
He lay back down a little confused. Having a bath before bed was not unusual, Taehyung did so too when he felt too sweaty and grimy from the day, but having a bath after waking up in the middle of night was strange.
He decided to see who it was when they came out but his exhaustion caught up to him and the next time he woke, it was daylight.
The morning scenario, could only be described as chaotic at best. Jeongguk was being shaken awake by Hoseok. Namjoon was out of shower, coming out the bathroom door while skipping on one leg and pulling his pants up the other.
When Jeongguk finally sat up and slithered down the bunk, Hoseok rushed to pick out his clothes from the laundry. He was next in line.
So Taehyung moved to the kitchen to finish the other task, that was breakfast.
Yoongi offered him coffee which he politely denied and Yoongi looked at him like he was mad. Taehyung quickly stuffed the boiled eggs and toast into his mouth and rushed into the shower when Hoseok came out. He had no time for a relaxing bath, and came out wearing only his boxers. He found the maknae standing near the bunk.
"Oh Jeonggukshi," Taehyung pulled up his pants and looked up. "You can use the shower next-"
In the slanting light of the sun filtering through the curtains, Taehyung could see the faint crimson adorning the younger's ears.
"Aniya-" Jeongguk mumbled, eyes glued to the floor. "I already took a shower." He turned around and scurried out of the door.
Taehyung pursed his lips in thought.
He woke up after me.
When did he take a shower?
Having no time to dwell on other people's hygiene, he shrugged it off and put his hands through his sweatshirt.
They were out of the dorm in the next ten minutes. Hoseok had rushed off to catch the train to their school, meanwhile Yoongi and Namjoon who were apparently skipping it today in favour of a sudden spark of odeas they had for a rap, walked ahead of him. This was the first time he was walking to the company building. He took in the sights around, memorising the streets and turns as he followed his hyungs.
Jeongguk walked alone, slightly behind him and Taehyung slowed his pace to get next to him.
"Jeonggukshi," Taehyung smiled. "You didn't go to school today?"
Jeogguk glanced at him from the corner of his eyes, hands in his his pockets. "Obviously."
Taehyung sensed a tone of sarcasm but decided to let it go.
"You're from Busan, right?"
Jeongguk sighed and pulled out one side of his earphones. "Yeah, I am."
"That's great, I've never been to Busan- on second thoughts, I haven't been anywhere really- except my grandma's house, in Geochang."
Jeongguk nodded, looking down at his feet.
"You're in middle school?" Taehyung asks again.
"Yes."
"Okay."
Taehyung drew his lips in a thin line. The hyungs had told him the boy was shy but it seemed like he simply had no voice at all. What was he doing in the training centre? Weren't they all required to be sort of extroverts?
An hour later he figured out what was Jeongguk doing in the training centre. Jeongguk stood inside the recording room, headset over his ears and singing into the mic and Taehyung was in complete awe.
He sat on the bench behind the vocal coach, the lyrics in his hand, and listened wide-eyed, stupid, yet surprised by his voice in the dim light. If chocolate was a sound, it would've been Jeongguk's voice, singing and if singing was a color, it would've been the color of that chocolate.
Suddenly Taehyung felt a little out of depth. He already knew the three hyungs that lived with him were a class apart. He had seen the blogs and videos of their raps. They were on a pedestal, Taehyung did not even consider comparing himself to, but this boy, who was two years younger to him, as Hoseok had informed him, whom Taehyung looked forward to befriend thinking they might be in the same situation, had the most beautiful voice Taehyung had ever heard, and now it was foolish, if not hilarious, to think Jeongguk would be in the same boat as him.
Jeongguk was exceptionally good at singing.
When his turn came, Taehyung's heart raced. There was no way he would be able to match up to that. Granted, that he had been training at his local hagwon, but it didn't feel like enough. Jeongguk exited the recording room and walked over Taehyung.
"You sing beautifully, Jeonggukshi," Taehyung straightened up.
Jeongguk looked at him like Taehyung was a mosquito buzzing in his ear while he was peacefully trying to sleep at night.
"I mean-" Taehyung shifted from one foot to another. "Maybe you can help me with-"
"I have to go for practice."
Taehyung faltered. That felt a little rude, but Taehyung wasn't entirely sure if it the younger was having a bad day or that was just his personality.
Man, that guy was a brick wall.
He watched Jeongguk's retreating back before he paused at the door. "It's Jin hyung's turn next, he can help you, he has more experience."
Taehyung nodded before the vocal coach called him in.
Almost two hours later, Taehyung found himself standing on the steps of the building. He did meet Seokjin, or as Jeongguk called him, 'Jin hyung' after his lesson. Seokjin seemed like a stand up guy. He was elder to him, but did not have the unnecessary airs that seniors tend to usually have. He had given some great pointers to Taehyung after practice and even shared some jjigae with him during lunch, for which Taehyung saw a flicker of annoyance on Jeongguk's face but it disappeared as quickly as it came.
Taehyung reached the bottom of stairs and tried to remember the way his hyungs had taken.
He was about to go left from the exit when a voice stopped him.
"Where are you going?"
It was Jeongguk.
Taehyung looked at him quizzically.
He was going back.
Obviously.
Taehyung chose the higher road. "Back to the apartment."
Jeongguk pulled his hood up and pointed his head to the other side. "That is a shorter route."
"Oh, but in the morning-"
"In the mornings, it is crowded. At night, it is empty."
Taehyung nodded before stepping over to join the younger.
"The hyungs are really cool, aren't they?" Taehyung took a sip of leftover juice, offering some to Jeongguk who denied.
"Yeah, they are."
"So-" Taehyung put his hands inside his pockets, wracking his brain for questions. "How is school?"
"Good."
"Friends?"
"Some."
"Any girlfriends?" Taehyung chuckled before his smile dropped with the glare Jeongguk was giving him.
None, then.
Taehyung rolled his eyes and took a deep breath, as they walked in silence.
Back at the dorm, he ate a bowl of fried rice and washed up after himself. Once into bed, Taehyung turned to his side to face Jeongguk who as usual, faced the opposite side. He took the maknae's dark silhouette, illuminated by the faint lights of the streets outside before sleep overtook him.
A week passed, uneventfully. Taehyung had been transferred to the local high school and had learned to adjust to his new life pretty quickly. He woke up with chaos unfurling around him, got dressed for school and rushed out, once it was was over he reached the company building, slogged off for six hours or so, ate whenever he got time, trudged back home, and passed out dreamlessly before the alarm rang again.
Such was the life of a trainee, they said.
Having slept well the previous night, Taehyung was up and about early. He sat near the kitchen counter with Namjoon, eating breakfast when Hoseok came out of the room heaving an exasperated sigh.
"Ya! I've been trying to wake Jeongguka for the past twenty minutes but he sleeps like a log of wood. All my efforts have been a waste!"
Namjoon snickered, "He must have been very tired from yesterday."
"This is not a one time thing," Hoseok rolled his eyes then turned to Taehyung. "Taehyunga, do me a favour and try waking him up, beginner's luck might help," Hoseok pleaded.
Taehyung nodded, taking the last bite out of his sandwich and got up, opening the door to the bedroom. Yoongi was inside the shower, he could hear the water splashing.
The maknae's thin frame came into view, sprawled on the bed like a starfish, sleeping without a care in the world. He stood beside his bunk and looked at the younger. He slept on his stomach, half of his face squished by the pillow, his tiny snores sounding in Taehyung's ear.
"Jeonggukshi," Taehyung whispered, poking his shoulder lightly. "Hey, wake up-"
Jeongguk did not even stir.
Taehyung got closer to him until he was right next to his face. "Ya Jeongguka- Wake up," he called again, pushing hard against his shoulder.
Jeongguk's eyes opened halfway when Taehyung heard a whispered "beautiful" from the younger's mouth.
Taehyung's eyes turned into crescents and a laugh bubbled out of his throat. "Ah, kure?"
Seconds later, the younger shot up in bed almost hitting Taehyung squarely in the jaw and sprang back to the wall increasing the distance between them.
Taehyung lifted his hands in apology, "I didn't mean to startle you, I just came to wake you up," he reached forward to pat Jeongguk's leg but Jeongguk immediately drew back his leg, tucking it beneath him.
Taehyung noticed Jeongguk's ears turning pink.
Taehyung laughed sheepishly, hand on his nape, and backing away, having no idea what just happened. "I just came to wake you, we have to go to school."
He saw Jeongguk opening his mouth but before his words came out, the door swung open.
"Woah! Jeongguka is awake!" Hoseok exclaimed. "Please teach me your ways sensei, how did you move this log of wood?"" He joined his hands in mock reverence.
"Jeongguka, get ready, you have to leave for school." Yoongi said, stepping out of the shower, a towel around his waist.
Jeongguk slid off the bed, side eyeing Taehyung and rushed towards the washroom.
Taehyung stood there looking at the empty bunk. He turned to look at Yoongi who was drying his hair.
Did no one find this even a little weird?
Apparently not.
Shrugging, he walked out.
Once he stepped out of the apartment, Taehyung was not entirely sure how the day ended. He saw the hours pass, but it felt like minutes.
Taking a huge gulp of water he stood outside, the company building, seeing off Seokjin. Namjoon and Yoongi were still in the studio, and Hoseok was already at the dorm and Jeongguk pretended he didn't exist so that was that.
It was almost 1 am.
Turning to the left, he started walking down the familiar path. Minutes later, he felt a rustle behind him as footsteps approached him. The person behind kept walking silently.
Taehyung slanted his head slightly, trying to look at the person behind. He seemed to wearing a black hoodie, his face was covered.
It could just be a passeby or another trainee.
Feeling a little wary, he picked up the pace, the person did too. Taehyung's heart skipped a beat.
Was he going to get mugged?
Maybe he could make a run for it. The apartment was just ten minutes away.
He slowed down to test a theory, the person following him did too.
Okay, that was it.
Not wasting another second, he bolted. He turned left instead of right, running towards a convenience store. It seemed like the better choice between another dark alleyway. The person was still running behind him.
Fuck, he was going to catch him.
He was almost at the door of the convenience store when a hand grabbed his sweatshirt and pulled him.
Taehyung let out a shriek before he stumbled. Scurrying to get his feet, he got on all fours before he felt a hand on his shoulder.
"Hyungnim! Are you okay?"
Hyungnim??
Taehyung turned to sit back and saw the pale face of his dorm-mate.
"Jeongguka?" Taehyung let out incredulously, taking deep breaths of air. "What are you doing??"
"What am I doing??" Jeongguk widened his eyes. "What are you doing? Why the hell were you running?" He asked, panting.
"You were chasing me!" Taehyung shot to his feet, pointing an accusatory finger at him. "I thought you were a thief!"
"I was going home with you, and then you suddenly started running so I thought something was wrong."
"You were going home with me?" Taehyung furrowed his eyebrows.
"Obviously, I was walking with you."
"With me?" Taehyung sputtered. "You were stalking me!"
They stared at each other for what seemed like minutes before Jeongguk broke into a fit of laughter.
He looked beautiful when he laughed.
"You idiot-" Taehyung pushed his shoulder. "You almost gave me a heart attack-"
Jeongguk almost doubled over. "You should've seen your face, hyung."
Taehyung ran a hand through his hair. "I was really scared, why didn't you say anything?"
Jeongguk cleared his throat, lips still twitching before he straightened up. "I was thinking about what to say."
He was being honest, Taehyung could tell.
"You are not much of talker are you?" Taehyung asked.
Jeongguk shook his head, lips drawing into a thin line.
Taehyung sighed. "Very well, now that we're already here, would like to have an ice cream? My treat."
Jeongguk's eyes lit up and Taehyung felt his stomach do a thing.
A little flippy thing.
Getting out of the convinced store, they walk back, now side by side, ice cream in hand.
"Do you want to exchange?" Taehyung asked, when they were half way through like he used to do with his friends.
Jeongguk looked at him skeptically. There seemed to be a doubt on the younger's face and Taehyung was about to take back his question when Jeongguk held out his cup.
Taehyung grinned and made the exchange.
"Whenever I am having ice cream with my friends we always exchange it when we're halfway through, it's like having two ice creams for the price of one," Taehyung explained.
"Oh, that's nice," Jeongguk mumbled.
"What do you do when you go out?"
The question remains unanswered. "I mean, you like going to the movies? Or karaoke or something?"
"I haven't," Jeongguk paused. "I don't go out much."
"You don't go out to meet your friends? From school?" Taehyung was bewildered.
Jeongguk looked ahead thoughtfully. "No, not really," he said.
He pictures the doe-eyed boy, sitting alone in the cramped dorm when everyone was out.
For some reason, Taehyung found it unacceptable.
"You can come with me," Taehyung suggested.
"To meet your friends?" Jeongguk asked.
"No, you and me," Taehyung grinned. "We can go somewhere."
"Where?" Jeongguk looked at him.
"Anywhere you want."
"Anywhere?" Taehyung could see the light in the maknae's eyes.
He laughed softly. "Yes."
Jeongguk took a minute to take it in before he nodded. "That'll be nice."
They walked in silence the rest of the way.
But Jeongguk seemed a little different. A little at ease, as Taehyung would've called it. At dinner he offered to get Taehyung cola from the fridge without Taehyung asking him for it.
It was a win.
A teeny tiny win.
In bed, Taehyung's mind ran down a long list of places they could go to, the two of them, some place fun, yet not too loud. Jeongguk did not seem like the person who like loud, crowded spaces.
He turned to his side, keeping both hands folded beneath his pillow and stared at the maknae's silhouette in the dark. It had become a habit of sorts, turning to face him just before he fell asleep. It gave the impression Jeongguk was next to him, within an arm's reach if Taehyung ever woke up in cold sweat. Though, with the size of the bedroom he was actually within arm's reach but Taehyung didn't tend to dwell on technicalities like that.
Taehyung's eyes got heavy and Jeongguk's wide smile came into view, the sound of his laughter tinkling in his ears. Taehyung realises he really wants to see the maknae laugh more, openly, fully, without the shyness that usually overtakes him, before he drifted off.
He woke up to rain.
Except it was not rain.
It was the shower.
Bleary eyed, he looked around, fumbling for his phone. It was two am.
Determined this time, he sat up and looked down, Hoseok was passed out in the bunk below him, Namjoon on the single bed, next to Hoseok, Yoongi's bunk was empty.
Could it be Yoongi? He seemed mysterious enough. He glanced at bunk beside him. It was empty as well.
That left two options.
The shower door opened and Taehyung lay back down, pretending to asleep. Moments later, the stair of the other bunk creaks, and he hears Jeongguk's sheets rustle.
Taehyung fluttered his eye open and turned his to find the younger getting into bed, turning to face the wall like he usually does, and pulling the covers over him.
Minutes passed, and he could hear Jeongguk's soft snores but Taehyung couldn't fall asleep.
If the silence of youngest member felt unsual, this secret bath plan seemed almost diabolical.
He had no idea what to think.
His mind made up reasons, but then countered them the next second.
This was ridiculous.
And Taehyung was clueless with what to do about it except flop back into his pillow and fall back asleep.