The next day was the 1000 meters event. Taehyung had been focusing on the 500 meters race for his training and the mid and long distances were only afterthoughts. Without both experience and capability, he still put up quite a formidable fight in the first half of the competition. However, in the second half, he became tired and feeble like a man unable to last even a minute.
Thus, his journey stopped at the quarterfinals.
Jimin was extremely capable and clinched the gold for the 1000 meters event as well. After claiming his prize and wrapping up his interview, Jimin rushed to find Taehyung. He finally said to Taehyung what he had been holding in for a long time.
"Since you didn't manage to come in first, shouldn't you be barking like a dog?" After saying this, he happened to glance at Jungkook unintentionally.
Jungkook was beside Taehyung. At his words, Jeon instantly perked up and looked at Taehyung with a raised brow.
Brimming with ease and confidence, Taehyung put one hand on his waist and brushed his head with the other. He said, "What's so difficult about this? Woof."
Jimin did not expect Taehyung to simply bark out like that and was momentarily at a loss for words.
Taehyung, "Woof woof woof, woof woof woof, woof woof woof woof woof..." He even managed to bark out a tune. He bent one of his legs and tapping lightly against the ground, began to tap out the beat for himself.
Jimin originally wanted to make Taehyung eat his words. However, he was once again defeated by Taehyung's shamelessness. His face darkened. "You lunatic."
At the side, Jungkook burst into laughter.
Jimin looked over.
His healthy, light red lips were raised into a beautiful curve. His good-looking eyes held ripples of amusement as they lingered on the top of Taehyung's head.
"You're right," Jungkook said, "He's a lunatic."
Jimin's face reddened at once. He lowered his head, turned, and left without saying another word.
Just a moment ago, that fellow was still strutting about like a proud rooster. The way he suddenly turned into a humble flower made Taehyung very puzzled. Stretching out his neck to look at Jimin's leaving figure, Taehyung discovered that the back of Jimin's neck was a little red.
"That's odd," Taehyung mumbled to himself.
Jungkook rubbed Taehyung's head and ruffled his hair into a mess. Then, he said, "You've scared him off."
Taehyung dodged Jeon's hand, held his head, and glared at him. "Is this king's head up to you to touch as you please?"
"You can also touch mine, provided that you can reach."
Taehyung was speechless. "How can you bully someone like this..."
Jungkook's lips curved and he laughed with a lowered gaze. He thought of something and asked, "When are you heading home?"
"The 28th of the twelfth lunar month. What about you?"
"So late for the speed skating team?"
"Mm." Taehyung nodded. "Winter training. It's voluntary but everyone in the speed skating team has signed up... You?"
"Around the same for me. Ice hockey training. We have competition after the New Year." Jungkook then asked for the details of Taehyung's ticket home.
——
In the afternoon, Taehyung bumped into Jimin in the changing room. Jimin had just finished changing his clothes. Here, he twisted off the cap of the water bottle tucked under his arm singlehandedly, appearing especially formidable.
Taehyung thought of Jimin's abnormalities the past two days and walked over to call him. "chick."
Jimin replied in annoyance. "What?"
After measuring him for some time, Taehyung suddenly asked, "Are you secretly in love with me?"
Jimin almost smashed the water bottle onto Taehyung's face.
"You lunatic," Jimin said.
Taehyung felt that Jimin was a very poor thing. He did not know how to scold people and could only recycle the same few phrases again and again.
It was not clear what Jimin was thinking about but his eyes reflected a trace of guilt. Holding his bottle, he left hurriedly. Taehyung stood where he was and declared to the leaving figure, "I'm straight, as straight as a ruler!"
Somewhere from the corridor came Jimin's enraged roar. "Go to hell!"
Taehyung shrugged and sat on the bench to browse his phone after changing. He discovered a new message.
Yukhei:
Congratulations.
Thanks. I haven't congratulated you on your outstanding results in your competition yet... When are you coming back?
I've entered the national team. Won't be going back for now.
Oh. Congratulations.
......
There seemed to be a barrier between the two of them. Polite and restrained, they were careful in their exchange. Taehyung felt a little unaccustomed to this. They had only been separated for a short while... Taehyung clutched his phone and gave a faint sigh.
Here was another person wandering away from him.
Taehyung suddenly thought of Jungkook. So what was he? Someone who wandered off? Someone who wandered off for a long time but returned?
Eh...
——
After the Ascendance Cup, Taehyung and the rest transitioned rapidly into training mode. Most students had already begun winter vacation and the entire campus was like a ghost town. Going out at night came with a special kind of atmosphere—the kind of atmosphere found in horror movies.
Eunwoo and Nayeon had both returned home and Yukhei was not around as well. Within a short frame of time, Taehyung was left all by his lonesome self. This was especially apparent at night when he was alone in his dorm. He kept feeling that there was something behind him and would jump from fright at every slight noise.
The first night, he did not dare to turn off the lights. He lay in bed till 11 pm but was still unable to fall asleep. Finally, he browsed through his contact list and tried to find someone to chat with.
Eunwoo was afraid of ghosts, Nayeon was afraid of ghosts, his dad and mom... Forget it, best to not let them worry...
He scrolled and scrolled, and the most suitable person turned out to be Jungkook.
Taehyung was still quite hesitant. Eventually, between the decision of "saving his face" and "saving his life", he decided to press the call invitation button.
"Hello?"
"Mm, Jungkook..."
"Yes, it's me. What's wrong?"
"Cough," Taehyung was a little embarrassed and said in a small voice, "I think your Yang energy should be quite strong, right?"
Jungkook replied, "What do you mean? Are you trying to... replenish Yang with Yin?"
"Ah? Cough, cough, cough..." Taehyung was overwhelmed by a wave of embarrassment. "No, I'm just asking casually."
Unexpectedly, Jungkook started chuckling. His low and pleasant laughter was carried over the phone into Kim's ears. The room was very quiet, so quiet that it was only filled with his laughter.
Jungkook remembered when they were young, there was once when their classmates discussed a horror movie that was popular at that time. Taehyung claimed to have watched it but when others began discussing the ghosts in the movie, Taehyung's expression was braced as if he was about to face a great enemy.
Heh, so this brat was scared of ghosts...
Taehyung could sense from Jungkook's laughter that he had been seen through. His face heated up uncontrollably and he tugged his blanket up over his head, trying to pretend that nothing was wrong.
Jungkook was finally done with laughing but he did not expose him. He only asked, "How was today's training?"
"Eh, still alright. These few days were focused on training and I've learned numerous new techniques that I need to digest." After reporting everything in detail, he began rambling about mundane matters, the bulk of which was his scoffing about Jimin. He even swore very seriously that Jimin was secretly in love with him.
Jungkook felt that this world cannot be bleaker.
After finishing his story, Taehyung asked Jungkook about his day. Jungkook's train of thoughts had been disrupted by Jimin and he merely gave a half-hearted reply. This made Taehyung feel that Jungkook did not want to entertain him. He said, "That's about it. You can head to bed if you want."
Jungkook said, "Let me tell you a bedtime story."
"Oh?"
Jungkook turned on his laptop and searched for a bedtime story. He selected one casually and began reading it out loud to Taehyung.
It was a fairytale starring a little pig and a little frog and was suitable for children aged three to six. After listening to it for a while, Taehyung griped, "Jungkook, are you taking me for a retard?"
Jungkook grinned. "Stop interrupting."
Fine, retard it shall be.
Jungkook continued narrating the story of the little pig and the little frog. His voice was low and unhurried and sounded so gentle and exquisite that it was about to melt into the endless night. With it by his ears, Taehyung's body began to relax slowly. He felt that voice drift further and further away...
The moment right before he fell asleep, there was only one thought left in his head: He has a really pleasant voice...