"Thank you for the treat," Taehyung licked his remaining ice cream while holding the plastic bag full of ingredients for their barbeque. They were put at the back of the car and he drove them back to the campsite.
"The weather seems cloudy, right? Is it possible to have our barbeque tonight?" Chaeyoung looked outside of the window, observing the sky which could pour its content at any time.
"Yeah it is. But let's hope it will not rain. But if it rains, then let's hope it will not last long," Taehyung reassured her as his view stuck at the front, wanting to make a turn.
Suddenly, tiny droplets of water fell, steady and soft, falling from the greyish sky quenching the dry soil and puddles of water gradually formed.
"Yahh, it's raining," Chaeyoung pouted, "how can we make barbeque if it's raining?"
"Haha, let it be. It will stop soon, I know." Taehyung smiled upon seeing the faces she made throughout the ride.
"Okay, I believe in you. Because your words always become true," she giggled.
Out of the blue, Taehyung stopped his car at a park and he got off, walking in the rain. He stood in the middle of the park and spread both of his arms while facing up. He closed his eyes, letting the droplets of rain washed his face as if carrying his emotion away with each drop. That act made Chaeyoung grew panic as she took an umbrella from the back seat and quickly got off from the car, approaching him who seemed to be lost in his own world.
"Yah Tae, you gonna get sick!" She said with higher octave to fight with the sound of rain gushing onto the earth.
Taehyung opened his eyes and gave her a faint smile, "I won't."
In no time, she stood in front of him, protecting him from the rain with the umbrella she held, getting closer to him to avoid the rain. In this close proximity, both of their eyes seemed to gravitate towards each other, letting the unspoken words to be conveyed. Taehyung held the umbrella engulfing her small hand in his, sending sparks in both of their bodies. He took the umbrella and put it aside, causing Chaeyoung to yelp and widened her eyes at him.
"What are you doing? We can get sick," she tried to cover both of them with her hands and that action made him laugh seeing how cute she was.
"It's only for a while. Don't worry much about it," Taehyung took both of her hands and held them closer to his chest. A faint blush slowly made it way towards her cheeks. Taehyung looked different, their situation made it sensational as the rain drenched them up making their dry hair to be wet and as their clothes stuck to their bodies, sending different messages to her heart.
"Come here," he made her took a step to the front, clasping her left hand with his right one, twirling her around.
"What are you doing, Tae?" She let out a chuckle but followed his action nevertheless.
"Dancing," he replied shortly.
"Really? In the rain?" She let out a small laugh.
"Mhmm, indeed," he carried her across the park, so they continued to dance and spin.
"Without music?" She continued to ask.
"Can't you hear that? There is music," he laughed softly, the deep voice rang in her ears.
Surprisingly, he started humming a song, a song they were both familiar of, The Way You Look at Me.
She remembered it, the song when they danced together for the first time during high school. The first time she looked at him differently. It was not merely as a friend but it was more than that. Her heartbeats grew steadily as the dance became more intimate. Both of them seemed to be lost in their own world, spinning and laughing in the midst of the rain until Taehyung pulled her closer by the waist. Chaeyoung locked her eyes into his own, finding only sincerity being portrayed by both of his beautiful pairs of iris.
"Chaeng, you know you're an important person in my life, right?" He said with a soft tune, making her heart thumped faster.
She replied with a nod, "I know."
"What if I say I want to be more than just a friend to you," he stared into her eyes and those eyes spoke nothing unless the truth.
"Tae, it's not the time to joke around," she said in rather an anxious tone.
"I'm being serious here," he spoke in lower voice sending shivers down her spine.
"Tae, I-I don't know what to say," before she could ever finish her words, he cut her down, putting his forefinger on her plump lips.
"Shhh...you don't have to answer now. I'll wait for you, I'll always do," he answered with a small smile but that smile never reached his eyes. He was disappointed, she knew. But she was too confused by her own heart. What was her true feeling towards Taehyung? She looked into his eyes, trying to discover what she felt towards the man in front of her. He undeniably was an important person in her life and she never denied the attraction she felt towards him.
Seeing her looking at him with those mesmerizing brown orbs made Taehyung's heart raced harder than it was. As if the weather understood him well, the rain poured harder clouding his own vision of her beautiful face. He swept her hair to one side, cupping her face with his hands and caressed her cheekbones. He lowered his face to leveled her and stared intently into her eyes. Chaeyoung hearts fluttered as she saw him getting closer and his hot breath fanned her face making her whole fibres tingled in perturbation. She shut her eyes as he got closer, thinking he would kiss her but he did none. In spite, he warmed her with a forehead kiss and she swore she felt his smile against her skin.
"Come let's go, it's raining harder and I don't want you to get sick," he pulled her hand towards the car and the ride was silence leaving Chaeyoung overwhelmed with mixed feelings.
At one side, Jungkook was waiting inside the tent with Joon Hyung as he was already sleeping due to tiredness. The students were given a rest before their next activity which was the barbeque at night. He caressed his child's hair and tuck him with a blanket as it was getting colder due to the rain. Thankfully, the rain had gradually stopped leaving only tiny bits of droplets and he was worried because both Chaeyoung and Taehyung were nowhere to be found.
"Where are they?" He muttered, feeling sudden tight knots in his stomach.
As the rain stopped, he went out of the tent and there he noticed they came back with bags of ingredients for tonight event. Something seemed off between the two of them because Chaeyoung seemed to avoid eye contact with Taehyung. Both of them were caught in the rain, seeing how their clothes drenched.
Did something happen?
He went there to give a hand and Chaeyoung instantly smiled with his presence, "Thank God you're here. Can you help Tae to carry these things? I want to change my clothes."
"No problem. Leave it to me and clean yourself, I don't want you get sick," he sincerely offered.
"Thank you," she quickly went to the campsite, leaving both of the men to manage the task. Jungkook furrowed his brows, perceiving Taehyung's eyes were following her with a glint of worriness and was it love that he saw? He wanted to ask why they were so awkward with each other but he kept it to himself, realizing it was not his right to know what had happened between them.
"Taehyung, you should change yourself too. You're soaked with rain," he commented.
"Is it okay to leave all of these to you?" He asked worriedly.
"Nahh, it's fine."
"Okay, thanks a lot Jungkook. I owe you," Taehyung replied with a boxy grin.
"Welcome."
With that, Taehyung left him and went to his car to grab his backpacks. Jungkook continued his work with load of questions inside his head, heaving out a sigh.
It was nearly dusk when the rain had fully stopped leaving the campsite surrounded with cold steam and breezy wind. The soil was still wet and some puddles were formed on the pedestrian. The grass and trees glistened with dews of rain with the smell of fresh rain whiffed through the air. The barbeque was held in an open space opposite to the campsite and it was well iluminated as there were strings of light being hung on the nearest tents and the poles near the barbeque area. The lamp posts around the area were also helpful in igniting the whole scene. The giggling of children who were actively running back and forth cheering up the scene as the adults were busily preparing for the grill. The charcoal and grilling were managed by the male teachers and male parents while most of the finest slabs of BBQ meats as well as side meals were prepared by the female teachers and female parents.
"You guys are Chaeyoung friends, aren't you?" One of the male teachers initiated the conversation while Taehyung was piling up the charcoal and Jungkook was cleaning the barbeque equipment.
"Yes, we are, I'm Jungkook and this is Taehyung," Jungkook replied with a smile.
"Nice to meet you," Taehyung added.
"Nice to meet you too, you can call me Jaehyun and this is Taeyong," the male teacher replied and continued, "that one is Chanyeol," Jaehyun pointed at another male teacher who seemed so focus on setting up the grill.
"How long have you been teaching in the school?" Taehyung asked.
"Not that long, for I've been here for three and a half years," Jaehyun said.
"I've been working here for the pass two years and this year will be my third year," Taeyong interjected with enthusiasm.
"That's awesome. You must love teaching a lot," Jungkook said with a hint of admiration.
"It's nothing but as you've said, I really love teaching because it has always been my dream since I was young. Being able to share knowledge with these children was truly a blessing," Jaehyun said with a chuckle.
"What are you guys talking about? How could you bond without me?" Chanyeol suddenly appeared with a dissatisfied look.
"Oh come on, we're just introducing ourselves," Taeyong said with a frustrated tone.
"Oh yeah? Hi guys, my name is Chanyeol. Nice to meet you," Chanyeol greeted both of them politely.
"Nice to meet you too. I'm Jungkook," Jungkook replied with a sincere smile.
"I'm Taehyung. Pleasure to meet you," Taehyung flashed his smile.
"Okay done with the introduction. We should start grilling the meats now," Jaehyun clapped his hands, ushering all of them to start their tasks.
At the other side, the female teachers and some parents were ecstatically chatting while they were preparing the meals. "Chaeyoung, are you okay? You seemed so distracted since evening," Chaeyoung was snapped out of her thought when Jihyo, one of her colleagues called her.
"Ahh nothing..I've just thought of something," she gave a small smile.
"Really? If you want to share something with me, just tell me okay?" Jihyo squeezed her arms softly, giving her a sincere look.
"I will. Thanks Jihyo," she replied. Having concerned colleagues in the school somehow made her feel eternally grateful. They were like family, always giving help whenever one of them fell sick or having hard times. It was one of the reasons why she loves the school so much.
"And by the way, can you give this to the men there, they seem ready to grill a lot tonight," Jihyo gave her plates of meat and occupied both of her hands.
"O-okay," she agreed half heartedly as she really wanted to avoid Taehyung for the meantime. She hated feeling like this, she felt awkward with him but she did not know how to overcome that. She wanted Taehyung to feel comfortable with her but avoiding him would only make it worse. But she did, she avoided him and she knew he felt hurt to see her became distant.
Chaeyoung went to the grilling area, being extra careful not to drop all the precious meats on her hands. She tried to avoid the children who were playing happily around the area, nearly cursed when one of them bumped into her but she kept walking vigilantly until she reached the males.
"Umm guys..these are the meats so I'll leave them here for you guys to grill them," she said as she looked at them but lingered her eyes on Taehyung when she finally excused herself.
Taehyung saw her eyes and he gave her a smile, feeling relieved as she replied with a small smile.
Maybe she's fine.
Just as Chaeyoung turned her body around, one of the students bumped into her rather in harsher manner, causing her to lose balance and she nearly hit the grill steel but Taehyung foreseen it when he pulled her away causing his hand to accidentally touch the hot grill steel.
"Are you okay?" He let out a heavy breath as he wanted to ensure her to be fine.
"I'm fine, thank you Tae. Oh my God, your hand!" Chaeyoung started to panic when she saw his hand was injured due to the effect of holding the steel. His skin burnt and it inflamed.
"Man, you're injured!" Jaehyun said in alarmed.
"Is there any first aid kit here?" Jungkook asked, trying to calm down the panicked crowd.
"We do have one," Taeyong replied and due to all the commotions, all the teachers as well as parents gathered at the scene.
"I'll go get it," Jihyo ran quickly to find the kit.
"Okay, I need all of you to give some space and please be careful," Chanyeol instructed upon seeing the scene gradually got crowded.
Jungkook helped Taehyung to get up as Chaeyoung wrapped his arm around her shoulder and they found an empty spot to treat his wound. Taehyung was frowning, clearly was trying to supress his pain. His palms and forehead were sweating, his lips as well as his face had turned pale.
"Tae, just hold it for a while," Chaeyoung said with a sniffle and that caused Jungkook to turn his head to her. She was crying.
"Here's the kit," Jihyo came panting as she carried the white box.
"Thank you Jihyo. Jungkook, can you please get me a bowl of cool water?" Chaeyoung turned her head towards Jungkook with her teary eyes.
"Alright, wait for a sec," Jungkook eyes softened upon seeing her state.
"Okay this may be a little bit painful Tae but I want you to hold it for a while," Chaeyoung continued, trying to suppress her sob.
Chaeyoung instantly rolled up his sleeve to expose the burned skin. Taehyung winced in pain as his wound being exposed to the cold air. The pain throbbed and he unconsciously bit his lower lips to suppress the pain. At that moment, Jungkook came with a bowl of water and gave it to Chaeyoung earning a small thank from her.
"How could you injure yourself because of me," Chaeyoung stated as she immersed Taehyung's hand in the cool water.
"I rather be the one in pain than seeing you hurt," Taehyung said as he looked at her with soft gaze.
"You know the last thing I've ever wanted to see is you being hurt," she told him, looking directly into his eyes. "Never hurt yourself because of me again," she firmly said.
"I'm sorry for making you worried, but I can't promise" Taehyung replied with a small chuckle. Chaeyoung rolled her eyes before applying aloe vera gel and antibiotic ointment to soothe the burn. Then, she covered the wound with sterile, non-adhesive bandage.
"You've eaten a little right?" Chaeyoung asked him earning a nod from him. "Here..eat this, it's pain reliever," she gave him acetaminophen with a bottle of mineral water.
"Thank you, Chae," Taehyung thanked her as she packed the medical equipment.
"I'm the one who should thank you," Chaeyoung said as she helped Taehyung to get up. "Now you should rest, come I'll accompany you to the tent," she continued.
Jungkook and Jihyo followed from behind as both of them walked in front but Jihyo excused herself on the middle as she wanted to keep the first aid kit as well as to make sure the barbeque still progressed. Jungkook followed them from behind as he looked Chaeyoung wrapped her hands in Taehyung's arm. He followed them until they reached the tent and decided to wait outside in case Chaeyoung needed help. He hates this feeling, he felt like a third wheeler. He did not like to see Chaeyoung being so close with another guy rather than him. Was he being selfish?
It was a moment later when Chaeyoung went out from the tent and seeing Jungkook was waiting for her made her heart warm.
"Were you waiting for me? I'm sorry if it took long," she tried to force a smile although Jungkook could see right through her.
"Are you okay, Chae?" He asked softly.
"I'm fine......actually I'm not okay," her lips quivered. "I hate it when people got hurt because of me," she started to sniffle.
"Hey, don't say that," Jungkook cupped her face to face him.
"It was an accident, Chae. He's fine, right?" Jungkook ensured her as he wiped her tears that fell on her beautiful face.
"But still, he was hurt because of me," she pouted which caused him to smile seeing how cute she was with her flushed face.
"If I were him, I would do the same thing. You're worth to be hurt for," Jungkook said with a firm tone that made the fluttering feeling surged.
"I don't want you to get hurt because of me too," Chaeyoung stared into his eyes, confessing her own feelings. "Promise me you won't," she continued.
Jungkook engulfed her into a tight embrace, "I'll try," he whispered as Chaeyoung tightened her arms around him.
Jungkook knew being deeply in love with someone might hurt and he was willing to risk everything for Chaeyoung.
Even if it hurt.
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A/n: Hello readers! Sorry for the late update. I've been struggling with my slow internet connection here😅 How do you guys think? You're willing to risk everything for someone that you love? Although it might hurt? Can you guys guess what would happen next? Feel free to comment below💜