Waking up in a place where it felt so foreign to him that all Taehyung wanted was to run away as soon as he walked out of the room. A cold shower relieved the slight headache he was feeling, and the rush of emotions was sorted out when he changed to a new pair of jeans and a grey sweater neatly folded inside the wardrobe. He combed his hair with his fingers as he strolled through the hallway that led to the kitchen.
He glanced at the doors next to his room, one was Jooan's and the other room belonged to Jeongguk. His steps stuttered at the closed door, staring a little bit, he walked again.
The flashbacks of the morning, what happened just hours ago faded in front of his eyes, and the sorrow in the chocolate orbs of Jooan had him weak on his knees.
Taehyung had cleared his mind and the dizzy thoughts, deciding to move on forward with what he got. Because it felt hard to be stuck in a place like that where he doesn't believe he belongs. The hallway was silent, shady yet elegantly decorated with the chosen art pieces on the wall, fresh flowers on the antique pots on corners.
A smile plastered his lips when he found Jooan's crayon scribbling framed on the wall along with the other arts. They sure treat her like their princess. The thought made his heart fall into bliss.
The kitchen was glorious, with white walls, a luxurious countertop, aesthetic glass jars and other utensils, and a majestic stack of silver wares and indoor plants in the corners. It gave off an expensive vibe at the first sight and Taehyung felt so out of place.
Though he hoped to not see anyone in the kitchen, to his shock, he met with a short male cooking something, his back turned to Taehyung, humming a low tone while stirring the hot pot. His first instinct was to walk away and hide in the room. But he was thirsty, and the grumbling in his stomach was saying otherwise.
Before he could think straight, the man turned to pick vegetables from the basket, eyes landing on Taehyung's figure. They both stiffened the very instant, the younger didn't know if he should walk out or help himself with a glass of tea.
Yet he stood there, without making a move. Once the other took a good minute to scrutinize Taehyung from head to toe, he walked forward, mustering up the courage to face anything, because, damn, he was there.
After everything, both Namjoon and Jooan wanted him. Taehyung never wanted to be there, yet he was there, doing a little help, for the sake of the pleading eyes he witnessed before.
And that's what led him forward, he took a bottle of water from the refrigerator since a cup of tea felt luxurious. He decided to not give the other man a chance to say anything to hurt his equilibrium while creating any mess. He wished.
"Never thought you wouldn't have a little bit of shame to walk back to this house. You really are a filthy bi*ch, aren't you? Look at yourself, you..."
The words reached Taehyung's ears and he stilled on the spot, gripping the bottle in his hand as if it was the only thing to hold on to. He felt so drained out already, with all those words from the very start even now, Taehyung told himself that he didn't deserve it.
The high-pitched voice only triggered what Taehyung shut for some time, the roller coaster of emotions shaking him like another thunderstorm, drenching him from top to bottom. He wanted to hide, disappear and find a shelter, maybe. But not now.
"I didn't want it either. If I had a chance, I would never come here. But..."
Taehyung said, taking sharp inhales and keeping his eyes steady on the man. He opened the lid of the bottle, and gulped down the cold water, feeling an itch building up in his throat.
He chose to avoid it because looking at the man in front of him makes Taehyung explode into flames, especially when he doesn't deserve the accusation at all.
"But what? You had Gguk insane for you, and now who? You want Namjoon hyung for your little games, bloody who--"
Taehyung had enough. To be honest, Taehyung had a fair share of sh*ts the so-called universe decided to dump on him at the last minute, but he can't take a little ounce more.
When you finally get a chance to rise from the ashes, you shouldn't check whether the fire will catch again and burn you to nothing.
Once you learn how to survive, you've already won the battle. Taehyung is one of the damaged people who learned to survive, and he won't let himself down again for anyone.
"You're lucky, you're cute, Park Jimin..."
With a loud thud, the spatula in Jimin's hand fell to the floor when Taehyung caged him between his arms. Jimin was leaning back on the counter, eyes wide and his face looked pale, with all the colors and gloss dried out.
Park Jimin felt his breath stuttering when Kim Taehyung confronted him, long mint green eyes staying on his face, the tall lean figure towering over him, hands on either side of Jimin's short form as he leaned back to the counter, caging him in a thick scent of lavender and April cotton.
"I saved you from the worst, Jimin-ah. Don't you remember?"
No. Jimin doesn't. He could never recall meeting Taehyung like this, as fierce as ever. Because it never happened in the first place. Jimin doesn't remember any of the man's words because he never took the other as a person worth his time and attention. But, Taehyung is a changed man.
"What the hell do you think you're doing, huh? are you trying to threaten---"
"Nope, Not at all, Jimin. I could never..."
Even though Taehyung sounded as calm as a soft breeze caressing the garden of lilies, Jimin felt like losing his temper. Something doesn't seem right and the thought settled inside him.
Yet he looked up at the man who had an innocent glint in his eyes, confusing Jimin to the core because he never thought Taehyung had a voice to speak for himself after all those times. The new revelation makes him scratch all over his body as if it's itching. Jimin wanted to move away.
"I could never even stand against you. You're the family here and I'm just a mere..."
Taehyung paused a second, tilting his head and Jimin read between the lines.
"An outsider...?"
"What the hell do you want? Why are you even here in the first place?"
Jimin clenched his jaw, teeth-gritting, hands balled into a fist, his chest tight as if he's nowhere near intimidated by the way Taehyung talked.
Sure, he was surprised a little, but Taehyung can never take anything from him without his permission. The other was way too far from owning let alone having what Jimin has and that made his chest swell with pride.
"What I want... hmm..."
Taehyung placed a finger under his chin, tilting his head to a corner as if he was thinking. For a moment Jimin forgot that it was the same Taehyung who had him trapped, like a cat in hot water because Taehyung looked so innocent when he was thinking nothing. He seems like a pure creature with his delicate features and naive expression, but Jimin was snapped back to reality when Taehyung replied.
"I want...
You to be gone out of my life"
Jimin burns. His whole body felt like he was burned to the bone, he could feel the seething pain rushing through his numb nerves, and he could sense the wave of fear taking over him. Taehyung's voice fell deeper like velvet against silk as if he was saying something sweet as if he was singing a lullaby.
Jimin could only stare at the man who had the same long mint green eyes set on him, he would still admit there was celibacy in those orbs. Taehyung stayed like that, unwavering, fierce, and delicate.
"What? What did you just say?"
"What? You were being cruel to me, you hurt me, you even kidnap---"
"No! I didn't"
"Really, Jiminie? Are you scared?
Now that I know your little secret, do you think it will be safe to have me around? Do you feel worried?"
Taehyung asked, lips jutting into a pout, hands crossed against his chest. There was a little distance between them when Taehyung moved away a little. He stared at Taehyung in bewilderment.
It was definitely not a dream, because the goosebumps Taehyung gave him could never go fake. It was all real, right in front of his eyes, in reach of his touch.
"Goddamn, what the hell are you saying?"
"I want you to be gone because I don't trust you with my life."
Taehyung whispered, eyes glistening with tears, fingers fidgeting, his face showed the loneliness that suddenly made Jimin stuck somewhere between his thoughts.
"I don't feel safe around you because you showed me the extreme you can go to hurt me.
I want you to be gone because you will do that again to me, and I have no one here to save me from you..."
"Then just leave! Don't stay because I can't tolerate you, I can't sleep knowing that you killed---"
"NO!"
Shivers ran through both of their bodies when Taehyung screamed out of his lungs, the overwhelmed feelings made a teardrop slip from his eyes. Jimin looked at Taehyung who was standing stunned, and the horror was written all over his face.
"No. Just stop, okay? You are all punishing me for something I never did. Hell, I don't know anymore... Why are you so mean to me for something I never committed?
And, you think you're the only one who had a loss? The only one who tasted pain? Then damn, no!"
Taehyung couldn't control it anymore. The anger, the frustration, the hurt everything was at the edge and it only made him explode like that, burning everything around him. He would never want to recall the moments, yet Jimin left no other choice for him. Taehyung let his tears fall.
"I lost my brother. My only one in the world. I lost the only person who would welcome me into our home, and without him, I'm nothing.
If you think you're the only one hurting here, then please... you'll never understand what I'm going through. I lost my Hyung..."
Moving a little away from Jimin and the thick scent covering him, Taehyung clutched the kitchen counter, because he was tired. He had enough. It was not fair, whatever happened to him was not fair, and from that day, Taehyung was only suffering.
Maybe he hid the pain from everyone, but that doesn't mean he had recovered from the loss. Damaged people have their own ways of life.
"Aren't you scared?"
Wiping his cheeks, Taehyung asked Jimin who stared at him, the evident hate brimming up in his eyes. And he chose to ignore it.
"Huh?"
"Is that why you want me gone from your life? Are you scared that I will break your image in front of your family?"
Taehyung whispered out, noticing how Jimin stiffened at the spot.
"Have you ever thought what your Namjoon hyung would do if he got to know what you did to me? Are you worried that I will---"
"No. You won't. You won't tell anyone what happened between us."
Jimin replied sternly, confronting Taehyung with his stoic expression. The aura the short male had always amused Taehyung, and the hate his words carried made him stand still like a frozen stone.
"You think I will trust you? After you tried to kill me?"
"Listen here, Kim fvcking Taehyung. If you don't obey what I'm saying then I will make your life a living hell, unlike the last time, easily sending you off. You'll see the worst while---"
"Why Jimin-ah? Do you think Gguk will be happy if he knows about your truth?"
"Don't take his name, you filth."
A humorless chuckle left Taehyung's mouth, he stood without budging and read Jimin's face thoroughly.
"You were ready to fight for him and put your life on the edge. That makes me wonder...
Do you love Gguk that much?"
Jimin sees karma. He could see how everything around him caught fire, the screams could be heard from afar, the flames so high in the air, and he saw himself in a corner, abandoned and helpless. He could see the same flames in Taehyung's eyes.
"Stop. You have no right to talk about Gguk and---"
"You're not denying it, Oh..."
He waited for Jimin to make a move, push him away, and make him suffer but nothing happened. Taehyung was not intending to trigger Jimin but he expected a tiny reaction from the other. Then when Taehyung was about to turn around, Jimin clutched the collar of his shirt, brought his face so close, and whispered out darkly.
"You think I would let you fvck around here and steal everything from me? You think I'll let you do that to us again?"
Taehyung stared at him, eyes weak yet dark, a stoic expression staying on his face as if Jimin's words didn't affect him as much as the other thought.
Taehyung was about to wriggle away from the hurting hold of Jimin, but before he could make a move, they heard a voice calling out behind them and they both stilled on the spot.
"Tae...?"
It was like a smooth winter breeze after a hot day in the sun, so soft and caressing him as if that's what he wanted to hear all this long. When Taehyung heard his name in that soft and small voice, he could only close his eyes, the feeling of newly founded ecstasy filling in the voids, replenishing him with admiration towards the one who just saved him.
When he turned to look behind, his breath hitched at the same time, he felt everything back at peace. There stood Jeon Jooan, holding a book in her hand, eyes wide and scanning the position both Jimin and Taehyung were in and the elders moved away faster.
She was wearing a white tee tucked in a pastel blue skirt, hair tied up in a bun. Like always, she looked like the soft diva on earth. Jimin passed a grin at her, for which she cocked an eyebrow, and then glanced at Taehyung.
"Umm, Do you know how to paint the sky, Tae?"
Hesitantly, Jooan broke the awkward silence. Before Taehyung could reply, Jimin butted in, making Taehyung suppress a groan in the back of his throat.
"Baby, why do you need Tae?"
He glared at the man while saying. "I will help---"
"No. I asked Tae first, and if he doesn't want then I'll just get Joonie... Besides, you look like you're in an emergency to do something, Jiminie..."
Taehyung felt like he was at a funeral where he wasn't supposed to laugh, and tried his best to not let out a joyous voice. He walked slowly towards Jooan, he could hear Jimin protest from behind but chose to ignore it.
"Princess, I can help you with that..."
"I mean if you don't mind. And if you don't have something else to do..."
"I would love to paint with you, princess."
Jooan nodded, glancing at Jimin and then Taehyung.
"Oh, since you're cooking, send us some of your infamous chocolate chip waffles with honey butter and... strawberries?"
Jooan tilted her head, stealing a glance at Taehyung, and then completed.
"To the backyard, Jiminie..."
She passed a toothy grin at Jimin who smiled back at her, slowly ruffling her messy hair. Jooan let Taehyung hold her hands and take the book from her. Then she passed a tight lip smile, and Taehyung reciprocated the same and chimed with excitement.
"Let's go paint..."
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Vmin, my love... That's so heartbreaking, I know...
Hey there...
Whoever reading this, I wish you a good day/night, keep going!
Thoughts? Comments? Votes?🥺
See ya...
~AnecdotesOfABroken