When Jungkook woke, he was sure his head was going to split open with the pounding headache he had. This was why he never drank, not even at the fancy corporate parties his mother brought him to.
It took him a second to orient himself. He was lying on his stomach, his cheek pressed against a soft pillow. When he pried his eyes open, he was surprised to see the familiar scene of his old bedroom. His vision was blurry, but he could make out the faint outline of a familiar bulletin board hanging on his gray walls. He'd hung up the board the summer before his first year of high school, with the help of his already graduated hyungs, Namjoon and Hoseok. He made sure to fill his board with the memories he wanted to remember. But after five years, most of the people he had taken pictures with were long gone on their own way. A pang of regret and inferiority flooded him.
Jungkook had never really fit in at school. Part of the problem was that he was almost never in school, thanks to his mother. His mother never seemed to tire of trying to turn him into some kind of mini-me. Even in high school, when he said he'd rather waltz around school naked than torture himself at one of his mother's business parties, his mother did what she'd always done to his protests—she ignored them.
But one morning, when he and his mother were locked in a standoff over some meticulously planned party at a country club, his father intervened. He told his wife that she had tried for over a decade to sway Jungkook over to the corporate life, but it clearly wasn't working. Then, he had advised Jungkook to pack everything he needed for an overnight camping trip with him and his adopted brother Jimin.
Camping hadn't been part of his plans. What he wanted was to have fun with his hyungs, who he rarely saw since they left high school. But Jungkook couldn't say no, and ended up going.
To his surprise, he loved it.
He wasn't sure why. He was never really an outdoorsy person, but he began to cherish the monthly trips with his father and brother. It really brought them together.
This irritated his mother to no end, and in fact, it drove a deeper wedge in their relationship. That wedge became a gulf when Jungkook moved to Seoul for university and following that, a job at a nonprofit organization that helped the needy. At the time, he had only done it as an act of rebellion. While he loved his job though, it cost him his relationship with everyone back at home.
And now, here he was, not knowing the answer to the pressing issue of how he had even got here from the station.
It came back in a rush. Boarding the train. Drinking soju. Stealing Mr. Kim's drink—a big mistake. Blabbering to him about the train attendant and his ex-fiancé.
He squeezed his eyes shut in embarrassment. He'd made an utter fool out of himself.
He sat up. At least he wouldn't see the man again. Why did it matter if he thought Jungkook was crazy? Besides, there were bigger problems at hand.
Shaking his head, he tried to clear it. Instead, it spiked a new wave of pain. He needed to focus so he could figure out what he missed. The last thing he remembered was closing his eyes to sleep. But if he was in his room, his family must have found him somehow.
His mother was going to kill him. It was a wonder she hadn't done so already, especially in this state.
Jungkook glanced around the room and found his old digital clock on the black nightstand. It read 6:08. The sun was streaming through the blinds, but it was summer, so he had no idea if it was morning or evening. He supposed it didn't matter. One way or another, there would be hell to pay.
Sliding off his bed, Jungkook moved to his door and cautiously cracked it open. Voices floated up from downstairs, one of them clearly his mother's. Since his mother never woke up before seven if she could help it, it had to be evening.
He made his way down the stairs, anxiety creeping through his body. He was going to do a ton of explaining, especially since he could've said anything to his mother in his drunken state. But the sounds of other voices in the kitchen gave him a small measure of insurance. This was good news for him. No matter now upset she was, Jeon Ae-ri would never, under any circumstance, murder someone in front of guests.
"... Jungkook never told us anything," his mother was saying as he approached the kitchen.
"I wouldn't want to bore you with the details," a man's voice said. Why did his deep voice sound so familiar?
"There he is!" Ae-ri exclaimed, clasping her hands together in glee. She was in full-on hostess mode, but she seemed more excited than the guest was. "Jungkook! We were just talking about you!"
Had he been teleported to some bizarre world when he was out cold?
Three people sat at the kitchen island, their backs to him, while his mother stood in front of the gas stove, a martini glass in her hand. The people on the barstools turned to face him. His grandmother shot him a wide smile, and his father nodded, a twinkle in his eye. But it was the third person who made his legs weak.
Mr. Kim, the one who had sat next to him on the train, was sitting at her parents' kitchen counter.
It couldn't be true.
He closed his eyes and rubbed them, trying to reboot his brain. But when he opened them, the man was still sitting there, giving him a hesitant smile. There was only one solution.
He turned around and headed back to his room without a word. Maybe if he went back to bed, he could lie down and hit the restart button and wake up in reality.
"Jungkook!" his mother shouted after him. "Where are you going? Come introduce us to your fiancé!"
He was definitely hallucinating. There was no way this was happening.
"Jungkook, come back right now!" His mother's tone bordered on slipping out of character. If he pushed his mother off that edge, the consequences would be worse. Much worse. "You're being incredibly rude. Is that how you do things in Pusan?"
Jungkook cringed. Nope, this was real. Only his mother would still use the old Romanization of Busan.
He turned around and walked back into the kitchen, stopping in the doorway. Mr. Kim studied him with an expressionless face. Why was the man here, and what the hell had he told them?
As if reading Jungkook's mind, he jumped up and walked over to him. "Hey, babe. How are you feeling?"
He looked up at him, dumbfounded. Why was he smiling at him like that? Scratch that, why was he calling him babe? "What the... How did you get here?"
"We picked him up from the station, of course. Taehyung told us what happened," his mother said, voice light and breezy once again. "He told us how the attendant accidently mixed up your orders, and it wasn't your fault at all." Her eyes scrutinized her son for a bit. "You should've seen the way he carried you off the train." She turned to Taehyung and gave a look of approval.
Leave it to his mother to give her elusive stamp of approval to a fake boyfriend.
"Wait, Taehyung...?"
Mr. Kim put an arm around Jungkook's back, hand resting at his hip, warm and surprisingly comforting. "I told your parents that you usually call me Tae, so you probably mispronounced when giving them my whole name."
He shook his head in confusion. "What?" Was this some weird joke?
Tae gave him a boxy smile. "Babe, you must still be out of it. Your parents were filling me out on the wedding plans. I know you wanted it to be a surprise, but it's only a couple of days not. It sounds just as amazing as I knew it'd be."
He was wrong. It wasn't a hallucination. It was a nightmare. Anger blazed in his stomach, spreading upward. He clenched his hands into fists.
"Why didn't you bring this young man home sooner, son?" his father asked. "Even if you're marrying a guy, I can tell that he'll fit right in with our family."
Was that supposed to be a good thing?
"And he's got a cute tush," his grandmother added. "I think you kids call it an ass."
"Gran!" Jungkook protested in shock.
Tae laughed, pulling Jungkook's hands closer. "Funny, Jungkook was saying the same thing today at the station."
Jungkook's jaw dropped in disbelief as he glared at him.
Gran shook her head. "For the life of me, I don't understand why you would call someone's backside an ass. Especially a cute one. Don't you know that an ass is a donkey?"
Jungkook didn't take his gaze off Taehyung for a moment, his temper about to blow. "I don't know what you think you're doing but—"
Before he realized what was happening, Tae cupped his cheek and kissed him, lips soft and somewhat hesitant. Jungkook put his balled hands on his chest, intending to push him off, but his heart began to race in spite of itself. He leaned closer, inexplicably drawn to Tae as his anger bled out and he relaxed his hands. Tae's muscles were firm below his fingertips and his knees began to weaken, but the arm the man had used to loop around his back earlier was there to support Jungkook. If this was a dream, he wasn't ready to wake up.
Taehyung lifted his face, looking slightly dazed for a moment before recovering. It was his first kiss with a guy and it was indescribable. Still holding Jungkook, he turned to his family. "Sorry," he murmured. "I love him so much that I can't stop myself sometimes."
Jungkook gaped at him, having his first kiss was stolen by Tae.
"He doesn't look like a donkey," his grandmother said in a smug tone.
"Aww..." his mother cooed. "That's so precious. Your wedding will be the talk of the summer at the country club."
Jungkook was speechless once again, but for an entirely different reason. What had just happened?
The door to the garage opened, and Jungkook turned to see his older brother in the doorway, a duffel bag in his hands.
"Get a room," he groaned with a grin.
"Jimin-hyung!" He broke free from Tae's hold and ran to his brother, throwing his arms around his brother's shoulders.
"Hey Kookie!" He dropped the bag and attempted to swing Jungkook around like a child, but he couldn't.
Jungkook couldn't help but tease him. "I can see you haven't gotten any taller hyung~"
"Shut up," Jimin said, pouting. He ruffled the younger's hair.
"What are you doing here?" Jungkook asked, surprised by how happy he was to see him.
"Rumor has it that my baby Kookie is getting married. I took leave from the academy so I could come and see you and your fiancé." He narrowed his eyes at Taehyung, his voice taking on a voice of slight authority. "So are you finally going to introduce the man you're marrying in three days?"
Jimin's words sobered him. "Actually..." Jungkook took a breath for strength, his stomach knotting with both nerves and irritation. "There's something I need to tell all of you—"
"Babe," Taehyung interrupted. He glanced at Jimin and then back at Jungkook. "I know you're still irritated with me after our argument at the station in Seoul, but there's no reason to drag your family into it."
Jungkook shot him a glare. Who was this guy, and what the hell was his endgame? One thing was sure—he wasn't going to find out in front of his mother.
Gritting his teeth, he marched toward him and grabbed his wrist, tugging him to the doorway. "He's right. I'm still pissed at him and we need to get this straightened out."
"Jungkook!" his mother shouted after him. "You're being incredibly rude."
But Jungkook ignored her this time as he climbed the stairs and dragged Taehyung into his room. He dropped Tae's wrist like it was fire as soon as he shut the door.
"What the hell is going on?" he demanded. "Is this some kind of sick joke?"
Tae shook his head. "No! It's a huge misunderstanding!"
"Misunderstanding? A misunderstanding is when you order French fries and get onion rings instead. The fact that my parents think you, a stranger, is my fiancé is not a misunderstanding. It's a disaster. How could you let this happen?"
His face froze with fear. "Please tell me you remember sitting next to me on the train."
"I remember that part." Jungkook rubbed his hands over his forehead as if to banish the lingering headache. "You sat down and I accused you of being an alien. Then I made fun of the train attendant and stole your drink." He cringed in embarrassment. "Everything is fuzzy after that."
"You don't remember getting off the train?"
"No."
"The train attendant was gonna call security, so I helped you off. I had to carry you over my shoulder because you couldn't walk, and I got the impression that security wasn't going to help you find your family. The train attendant had it in for you."
Think, Jungkook, think. He scrunched his eyes shut to remember how he got into this situation. "I vaguely remember telling her she couldn't have your babies. Then you dragged me away." He glanced up at Tae. "While I appreciate your help, that doesn't explain how you got here, as my fiancé."
Taehyung raised his arms in surrender, pleading with his eyes. Jungkook's breath caught, and his pulse quickened just at the sight of him. Of course, their recent kiss wasn't helping.
"You couldn't walk by yourself, and you were basically unable to talk, so the only way I knew how to get you and our bags out of there was to carry you over my shoulder. But people thought I was abducting you, so I just told them you were my fiancé." He heaved a sigh of frustration. "Your family heard me and thought I was Taehyeon. And then I got stuck."
Everything made perfect sense, but something about his delivery was off.
Tae narrowed his eyes, and Jungkook could practically feel the judgement rolling off of him in waves. "Have they really never seen him before?"
"No," he said sharply. "Not that that's your business."
"Not even photos?" His brows raised as if coming up with a new idea. "Wait. Does he even exist?"
Jungkook's mouth dropped in shock. "Of course he exists!"
"Then why no photos?"
His back stiffened. "I have photos. Just not a lot. And they're a little blurry."
"You have to admit that's weird, since you guys were supposedly together for two years."
He narrowed his eyes. "Who are you to judge? You've been conscious and coherent all day, yet you were sitting in my mother's kitchen, pretending to be my fiancé." He balled his fists. "Are you some creepy stalker? How did you know I was with Taehyeon for two years?"
"Your mother. She's very chatty when she's in a good mood."
Jungkook covered his face with his hands. "I still don't understand why this happened. Why didn't you just correct them?"
Taehyung quirked his brow and smirked at him. "Says the man who was getting married in three days to a made-up groom."
He stomped his foot. "I did not make him up!"
Tae began to pace at the foot of Jungkook's bed. "Look, in hindsight, it probably wasn't the smartest idea to call you my fiancé, especially when you told me your family was picking you up, but I didn't know what to do. I tried to explain the misunderstanding, but before I knew it, I was riding in your mother's car." He spun around to stare at him. "Your mother is frightening."
"I told you!"
Taehyung grabbed Jungkook, and they both sat down on his bed. "Look, you need someone to stand in for your fake boyfriend—"
"He's not fake!"
"—and your parents think I'm him. We can make this work for you!"
"What are you talking about?" Jungkook asked, trying to ignore the fact that Tae's touch sent flutters through his stomach. He jerked his hand away.
"We'll continue to let them think that, and then I'll act like a jerk and break up with you in front of them. That way, I'll take all the blame, and you get off scot-free. You have to admit, that's the perfect plan. Your mother won't kill you, and you don't even have to return all those toasters."
"I didn't register for toasters. I registered for a bagel oven."
Taehyung looked taken aback. "You seriously registered for your fake wedding? How far were you gonna take this?"
Jungkook gritted his teeth, seething. "I had a fiancé. His name is Kang Taehyeon."
"What do your parents know about me?"
"They don't know anything! I just met you!"
"Not me. Him. Your fake fiancé. The one you made up."
"I didn't make him up!" he shouted.
"Then show me a photo."
Tae smirked in triumph.
Damn him. Why did Jungkook even care what he thought? Yet he found himself scrolling through his phone for a picture. "He's a picture of us at ISAC."
Taehyung took the phone and stared at the screen. "This? The quality is even worse than the blurry selfies I usually take."
He pressed his lips together and nodded before continuing in a calm voice. "So his face isn't too clear. The camera on my phone sucks."
He tossed the phone back at Jungkook. "I'm not convinced, but that's not the point. We have a mission." Tae made sure he had his full attention. "I'll act like an ass and break up with you, saving you from your mother's wrath."
His eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Why would you do this?"
"Because I'm a nice guy." He gave a boxy smile, his whole face lighting up. In that moment, Jungkook could see why the train attendant was so smitten with him. If he hadn't been so suspicious, he'd probably have fallen for that grin too.
"Try again."
Tae shrugged with that smile still on his face. "I have my reasons." When Jungkook started to talk, he cut him off. "Look, I'm here in Busan for family reasons. I'd prefer not to be here at all—no offense—but this gives me a chance to procrastinate and not deal with the drama.
Jungkook of all people could understand avoiding family issues, but wasn't impersonating someone's fiancé a little much? Then again, he'd flown home to his own wedding with no groom, so who was he to judge?
"Fine," He turned to Tae and jabbed a finger into his chest. "But I still don't trust you."
His smile didn't even dim. "And you don't have to. Just let me break up with you, and we'll both get on with our own lives."
"Let's get it over with then."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa," He held his hands up. "We can't do it tonight."
"What? Why not?"
"We can't. How suspicious would it be if we were just super sweet to one another and then I just broke up with you? Your parents might see through it."
Jungkook took a deep breath, ready to vent his frustration. He couldn't think of the last time his blood had boiled this much.
"Fine," he huffed shortly. "Since this is your crazy idea, I take it that you have some kind of plan."
"Tonight, we act like a couple in love. Tomorrow, I'll start acting like an ass."
"You're doing a great job right now," Jungkook said, eyebrows raised. "You take this bossy, condescending show on the road, and we're all good."
Taehyung heaved a breath. "Do you want me to help you or not? I could just call a taxi now and have you explain everything by yourself."
His shoulders tensed. "You wouldn't."
He grinned. "Try me."
"You're an ass."
"You already said that," he laughed. "Oh wait, you said you liked my ass."
"Not likely," Jungkook retorted in a snide tone, but he wasn't sure if it were the truth or not. He couldn't remember saying it, but his gran was right. He did have a nice one. Alcohol had the tendency to make him spew out all kinds of truths, embarrassing or not, so he avoided drinking if he could.
Focus, Jungkook.
He began to pace, thinking. Could Taehyung really be the answer to his problems?
"Did my parents really buy the whole mispronunciation thing?"
"Never questioned it."
A knock on the door and the conversation stopped when Jungkook's mother spoke. "Jungkook? Is everything all right in there?"
The blood rushed from Jungkook's head. How much had his mother heard?
Taehyung stepped toward the door and opened it.
His mother stepped in, looking suspicious. "What are you two up to? Jungkook, did you say you'd had an argument?" Her disapproving tone made it clear who she blamed for it.
Tae snaked his arm around Jungkook's waist and pulled him closer. "Sorry we disappeared like that Mrs. Jeon. We had a small disagreement before, but we've worked everything out. I've been avoiding my little Kookie lately." He tapped Jungkook's nose, giving him another signature box smile. Then he turned back to her. "I've been really busy at work for the past few weeks, trying to clear my plate so I could get away for the wedding and honeymoon so..." He reached for Jungkook's hand, pulling it close to his chest.
"You still didn't explain why you're up here," Jungkook's mother said.
Jungkook was irritated. He was an adult already, and his mother was still trying to control his life.
Taehyung intervened. "Like I said, I've been working a lot... which means I haven't spent much time with Jungkook lately." He dropped his hand and instead, pulled Jungkook to his chest. "I assumed you and Mr. Jeon would want us sleeping in separate rooms until the wedding, so I figured that we could spend a little alone time up here. If you know what I mean." He winked.
His mother's face turned a shade of pink, which had Jungkook looking slightly confused. What had Taehyung meant? Kissing? Surely not...
His mother reached for the diamond pendant at the base of her neck. "Seongjin and I aren't that old fashioned. We understand young love. You're both grown adults, days away from your wedding. We know you... do things... in Seoul. So Taehyung, we put your bag in here with Jungkook's." She gestured at the bag that Jungkook hadn't noticed until now.
Taehyung's arms stiffened around Jungkook. "I wouldn't want to offend—"
She waved him off with one hand. "Don't be silly. Just save the hanky-panky for later and come down to the kitchen. The guests are arriving in twenty."
"Guests?" Jungkook asked.
His mother shook her head. "Really, Jungkook, do you ever listen at all?" She released an exaggerated sigh. "I told you about this months ago."
Jungkook actually hadn't been paying attention. His mother had gone full out on this wedding, managing all the details of the wedding, down to the exact size of the birds she had monogrammed onto a handkerchief. He had tried his best to ignore all the fine details, and now he was regretting it.
"I had a feeling you'd be like this," his mother said. She pointed at the dresser along the far wall. "I made you both an itinerary for the rest of the week so you know where to be and when."
Taehyung glanced at the dresser, but Jungkook kept his attention on his mother. "So we need to be downstairs in twenty minutes?" Obviously, his mother wasn't interested in disclosing what she had planned for the evening. He'd need to read it in whatever booklet—or knowing his mother, tome—was placed on the dresser.
His mother rolled her eyes. "Not quite. The guests arrive in twenty minutes. You need to be downstairs ASAP to help finish setting up." She took a step toward the door. "And Jungkook... you should put on some fresh clothes and redo your makeup. You look like you've been on a drinking binge."
She made and exaggerated grimace, then walked out the door.
"I'm not sure whether to be horrified or amused that your mother called what we did hanky-panky," Tae whispered, shivering like he just narrowly escaped death.
Jungkook ignored him and bolted for the bathroom. Did he really look that bad?
"OHMYGAWD!" he practically screeched in horror. His eyeliner was smudged, making him look like he hadn't slept for two months straight, and his hair stuck up all over the place. He had been in public looking like this. He had a conversation with Taehyung like this. Taehyung had even kissed him when he looked like... this.
"Your mother thinks we're gonna sleep together tonight," Tae said from the bedroom.
"I know. But we aren't going to do the hanky-panky." He opened the linen closet and stuck a wash towel under the sink.
"So what are we gonna do?"
"I don't know. I have bigger issues here."
"Your makeup? I hardly think you look terrible."
"Maybe not for a frigging zombie!" he moaned.
"Why are you so worked up?"
"I looked like this—" he pointed at his reflection in the mirror "—down there." He pointed toward the direction of the stairs.
"So?"
"So?" He shook his head, trying to swallow the burning lump in his throat. "You obviously wouldn't understand."
"Try me."
His teeth clenched. Why on earth did he care what Taehyung thought of him? Soon he'd be gone and Jungkook would never see him again. But he couldn't deny the attraction he felt to the man.
Even if he was mortified that Tae had seen him like this, it wasn't what was really bothering him. How could he explain it? He tried for eighteen years of his life living up to his mother's expectations, and he came up short each and every time. Especially with his sexual preference. It took ages for his mother to finally accept that he liked wearing makeup, and the fact that he liked guys? He had hidden it until the last second. Ultimately, his mother couldn't force him to change, so she accepted it, but Jeon Ae-ri took over everything for the wedding—from the reception to the ceremony. So now, when Jungkook came home without a real boyfriend, he'd have to face the inevitable humiliation that would come when his mother found out the truth.
Tears welled in his eyes.
He could just shove Tae out of the door right now and confess to his family, but he couldn't bear it. What if his mother assumed he just hired this guy, some attractive stranger, to act as his fiancé? Because that was what his mother would definitely conclude. No, the answer was simple.
He and Taehyung needed to stage an epic breakup.
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A/N: this literally took me 3 hours to write I'm ded. and yes, they are inherently speaking in english in korea. it makes a lot of sense.