"Tae, you good?" Jimin asked as soon as the idol stepped inside the house with a sleeping Hyunmi in his hands.
"Yeah. " Taehyung said and went upstairs to keep the girl on the bed.
When Taehyung came down, he saw Jimin talking to someone on the phone, which he guessed was the company staff, so he silently sat on the sofa, waiting for Jimin to pass him the phone, and listen to the company's scoldings.
But it never came. Instead, Taehyung heard Jimin mumbling 'Thank you' and cut off the call. "What did you say?" Taehyung asked, with a surprised face, when Jimin handed him a cup of strawberry ice cream with some papers.
"After your call, I went to Lia and made some fake hospital reports saying you were in the clinic. " Jimin smirked, throwing himself on the sofa.
"And what about that dispatch news?"
"I had it under control. Since Lia's clinic is closer to the mall, I told them you went there to buy medicines, and that's when they clicked your photos. " Taehyung excitedly pulled him in a hug,
"I don't know what I would do without you, chim. Thank you so much. " Taehyung mumbled, sniffling on his best friend's shoulder, who gently patted his back.
"You know I'm always here to save your ass. Next time, at least give me a thumbs up that you won't come so that I can keep some excuses ready. " Taehyung laughed, nodding his head.
"Anyways, I brought some food to you both, but I don't think you would eat it now, so keep it in the fridge and sleep. You have to leave tomorrow. " Jimin said, standing from the sofa.
"You're going so early, chim. " Taehyung pouted, making the male immediately turn around and cup his cheeks with his tiny fingers.
"I would've definitely stayed, but my kitty is missing me. I promised to come early tonight. " Jimin said.
"I'm joking, Chim. You deserve a break too. As you said, I would probably sleep, and I got Hyunni to cuddle. However, you will stay busy tonight. " Jimin's cheeks heat up hearing his best friend's remark, and immediately he slapped his chest gently.
"Yah! Shut up. " Jimin mumbled, cheeks turning red, almost looking like a tomato.
Taehyung laughed loudly, covering his face, and waved slightly, while the other quickly rushed out of the house, but not before shouting a loud "I hate you" to the idol and shutting the door tight.
With a smile, Taehyung put away the phone and switched off the lights before heading toward his room. After three months, he was sleeping this early. One long night's sleep should be enough for the tiredness of four years.
It even sounds ridiculous, and he knows it, but still, he hopes for it.
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In the morning, Taehyung left a little late. He had to pack his bags to head towards the hotel, and he also packed Hyunmi's bag with him, as she was also spending the night with him.
Jimin, as usual, came to pick the idol, as he was also joining them to their destination. He was driving while the security team's two cars were following them. Jimin was constantly on the phone with the staff or his whining husband, whom he had threatened to come to the concert.
Hyunmi was still sleeping in the backseat of the car, so Taehyung pulled on his earplugs, playing random music from his playlist while admiring the outside scenery.
He could spot some of his banners, posters, and advertisements on the large screens, which were supposed to make him delighted, but somehow, he didn't feel happy. Sure, he loves all the support from his fans, but sometimes he craves a calmer place.
A place where he could go without anyone recognizing him. A place where he doesn't have to hide for the safety of his family and friends.
'If I won't sign that contract, would I be living a peaceful life as a simple artist?' Taehyung thought, but then, he would have never met his ex. As much as he hates to acknowledge him, he never despised having Hyunmi from him.
At first, Taehyung thought of aborting and pretending that nothing ever changed. However, when Jimin scheduled his abortion, he couldn't do it, resulting in him having Hyunmi after seven months.
But, he never regretted his decision to raise a child alone. Yes, there were sometimes when he wondered if Hyunmi felt the need to have another parent, if she wanted more attention, as he can't give her any, but his parents were always there to remind him that as long as he showers her love, she's going to be happy.
Taehyung also had latched to that hope that maybe his baby won't hate him or become rebellious because of not getting attention, and so far, they both have been doing great, even if there were still are sometimes when Hyunmi can be a brat, but it's easy to lure her in.
"We're here. " Jimin announced, gaining Taehyung's attention when he saw the stadium in front of him, and people gathered around with different types of stalls, posters, and banners hanging around.
"You would be performing here tomorrow," Jimin said and drove the car towards the other side, and soon a hotel came into view. "And this is where we are staying for tonight. This hotel has pools, gyms, practice areas, and spacious rooms. It is booked for tonight, so you and your staff will be the only ones here. "
Taehyung absentmindedly nodded, fishing out his phone and texting the location to his parents. They were supposed to pick Hyunmi from here so that he could perform without worrying about his baby.
Once they got out of the car, Taehyung again carried Hyunmi since the child was still very much asleep and didn't look like waking up before lunch. He doesn't have to worry about bathing and feeding her, as he did it early in the morning, which happens to be 5A.M in the morning.
No matter how much the girl whined about sleeping, Taehyung still managed to force down the food, and after that, he let her sleep and carried her around.
"You would be needed in the practice room right now. Change your clothes and come faster and Jimin have to go and check the stage and lightning. Make sure everything stays fine. " They heard their choreographer yell from afar, and as much as Jimin wanted to just go and strangle him, he couldn't.
"Take care of yourself! " Jimin said, patting Taehyung's back encouragingly, and the idol passed him a smile, nodding.
Jimin had hated their choreographer, Lee Seungmin, with passion. That man never misses a chance to throw himself on Taehyung, touch him inappropriately, and never let the idol rest in peace. When Jimin stays inside the practice room, he will point him out every time, and that's why he won't do much, but in his absence, he is always scared about Taehyung's safety.
Their company only cares about money, so they never listen to their pleads of changing staff or giving the idol some rest. Jimin would've left this company a long ago, but he doesn't want his best friend to suffer alone, and that is why they both are still here, hanging in this shit company.
"Don't worry about Hyunmi. Yoongi hyung is coming over to watch on her and stay with me at night. " Jimin whispered in Taehyung's ear secretly.
"You won't let him breathe in peace. " Taehyung chuckled, shaking his head.
"Oh, you don't know him. You'll find him sleeping next to Hyunmi after you would return from practice. " Jimin said.
"I can never doubt that. " The idol chuckled, moving to the room to tuck the girl on the bed.
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"Looks like you're holiday has taken a toll on you. You can't even dance properly. Is this how you're going to dance in front of thousands of people?"
Taehyung sighed, getting up from the floor, wiping his sweaty face, and was about to pick up his water bottle when his choreographer kicked it, hitting Taehyung's palm with his shoe. The idol winced in pain and glared at the man, who just gave him a sly smirk in return.
"Until you do this step right, you're not drinking anything. " Seungmin said and moved to his chair, positioning the backup dancers to come into their positions.
Not only Taehyung and Jimin, even the backup dancers hated that choreographer, but no one said anything because they all were from poor families, and this was the only source of their survival. Taehyung knew it well. So, he always listens to their complaints and transfers his money to their accounts to help them.
He keeps it all secret, and just Jimin knows about this secret, with Yoongi included, because his manager doesn't knows to keep his mouth shut.
Still, the dancers admire Taehyung for working so hard, and when they are free, they all will chat with each other, laughing together. However, in front of the company staff, they always pretend to ignore each other.
"Break time!" Seungmin announced after continuous training for three hours and went out.
As soon as he stepped out, all the dancers fell to the ground, panting hard. The new choreography was hell, and the recent changes made just a day before the concert didn't help.
"I brought lunch and some oxygen sprays!" Jimin announced, entering the room, and looked at the people lying on the floor. "If you don't want to get fatigued, eat faster. " He said, and slowly they started to move towards Jimin, thanking him.
Jimin saw that the idol still didn't move and was busy talking to one of the dancers while lying on the floor and soon spotted a bruised knuckle. He sighed, understanding it's common for the idol to get hurt, so he went towards Taehyung's bag, which had a permanent space for oxygen spray and a first aid kit. Grabbing the items, the manager made his way toward Taehyung, who was now sitting on the floor.
"You should take care of yourself. " Jimin said, passing the lunch box and oxygen sprays to the idol before taking out the bandages and gently dabbing the ointment on the wounds.
"Did Hyunni eat?" Taehyung asked, earning a sigh from the dancers around him and Jimin.
"You better care about yourself. Yoongi hyung is there with her. " Jimin said, poking the idol's forehead with every word, and then resumed his work.
The girl next to Taehyung laughed, and slowly everyone started laughing, making the idol pout. "You all love my misery, no?" Taehyung said, soon joining them.
They all have developed a deep bond till now, that they can freely talk and share things with each other without scaring about hurting anyone's feelings.
It was a 30-minute rest when Seungmin again came inside the room, handing Taehyung the company's phone. "Go and post a selca on Twitter. " He said and sat in front of the idol.
"Isn't this should be something that he should do on his own when he likes?" Jimin said, earning a scoff from the choreographer.
"He is too immature for that. There is always supervision needed, and it's company matters. You don't have to worry about it. "
"In case you're forgetting, I'm his manager, so I have full rights to interfere. " Jimin said, making Taehyung sigh.
"Done. " Taehyung said, throwing away the phone towards the choreographer, who glared at the idol with a clenched jaw, but didn't say anything.
"Let's get back to the practice. " Seungmin announced, and the dancers slowly started returning to their positions. He would scold anyone if they were a bit away from the line when he noticed Jimin smiling while sitting on the chair.
"Don't you have any other preparation to do?" Seungmin asked, raising a brow at him.
"Nope. I completed my work, so I could monitor their dances. " Jimin replied, smirking at the scoffing choreographer.
Taehyung also chuckled with his best friend, as out of all the people in the room, only Seungmin knew that Jimin was also a national dancer before, but he chose to become the manager after his early retirement.
"Whatever. " Seungmin mumbled, turning on the music and positioning everyone to start the practice again.
---------------
Jungkook was ecstatic, to say the least. Tomorrow had been the day he had been dreaming of for so long.
Taehyung's concert day.
It would be his first concert, and his hyungs and friends were joining him. Happily, he started scrolling through Twitter when he saw people had prepared so many special outfits for the concert. All of them looked so attractive, making Jungkook envious of it.
Jungkook wondered if Taehyung noticed them but couldn't notice him if he just wore a simple plain outfit.
Upon reading Yeonjun's texts, Jungkook quickly ran to the closet to get a simple sweatshirt and trousers before running to open the door and see the idol smiling wide.
Indeed he was sitting naked in the room. He had just preferred it this way since the moment he started living alone.
"Why are you smiling- hey!" Jungkook groaned, rubbing his nose, who just got tackled with a bag, inside which there were some clothes.
"Wear this tomorrow. I can bet no one would be able to resist you. " Yeonjun smirked and closed the door behind him, leaving Jungkook a little shocked, but it turned to a smile when he noticed the clothes.
At least they don't look that bad, and maybe he can try these out.