"Oh my god, Taehyung are you alright?"
Taehyung startles out of his depressing thoughts and glances over at the approaching blond-haired boy. Jimin had only seen a glimpse of what occurred through the massive crowd, but after recognising the familiar face, the blond had rushed to the aid of his friend.
Taehyung forces out a weak smile, "m'fine."
Jimin frowns while running his eyes down Taehyung's small frame. "Are you hurt?"
Taehyung lies, shaking his head no, despite the obvious pain raging through his body.
Jimin looks over at the boy sympathetically. "Come on, Tae, let's go grab a bite. Since you're new, I reckon there are a few things I should tell you 'bout this place."
~
The cafeteria, just like the rest of the school, is magnified out of proportion. The space is monstrously large, definitely capable of fitting way more than the entirety of the school. Taehyung tries not to gape as Jimin drags him to a nearby table.
It's only when Taehyung arrives at the table that he notices the unfamiliar faces sitting casually on the seats. Jimin smiles at the group of boys before pointing to Taehyung. "Guy's, this is Taehyung, he's new. Taehyung, meet Seokjin, Namjoon and Hoseok."
Jimin points to a brunette, then a boy with silver hair and sophisticated glasses and then finally a boy with blond highlights and a beaming smile. Taehyung waves at them shyly, causing them to smile warmly at him.
Taehyung turns to Hoseok, nervously fiddling with his finger before asking, "U-um I was just wondering but, did you recently change your timetable?"
Hoseok stares at the boy with wide eyes, "yes, how-how did you know that?"
"You were supposed to be my partner for this bible studies assignment, but apparently you switched timetables so I went with someone else."
Hoseok smiles brightly, "ohh, is that right."
Chatter starts flowing between the boys effortlessly and Taehyung decides that he like these boys. Not once did they call him gay or say anything homophobic. They seem fun.
Suddenly Jimin spins around on his chair and directly faces Taehyung, startling the boy. "Oh, yeah, by the way, Tae, watch out for those boy's earlier. You don't want to mess with them."
Taehyung shifts uncomfortably at the mention of that group.
"They are known to pick on people, and if you are one of their poor victims, then it's game over for you." Jimin continues with a serious expression. "They are brutal, don't try to get their attention, Tae."
Taehyung nods slowly, acknowledging Jimin's words which don't serve as reassurance but instead just plays with his bottling anxiety. Try get their attention? Well, it seems like I already have it.
"And..." Jimin speaks in a lower tone this time, something about his ominous voice sends chills down Taehyung's back.
"Never, ever, mess with Jeon Jungkook. The rest are bad, but Jungkook? He's the spawn of satan."
Taehyung shivers, "w-why, what did he do?"
"He's horrible Taehyung, you gotta understand. Once, he locked this boy in a bathroom and put up a sign saying the bathroom was out of order. The boy managed to get out four days later because some teacher heard his screams. The boy had to go to the hospital and to this day, he still goes to therapy sessions because of the trauma from that event."
Taehyung stares in bewilderment," why d-did Jungkook bully him?"
Jimin shrugs, "m'not sure but rumours had it that it was because he was gay. And everyone knows how much Jungkook hates those gay people."
Taehyung freezes, feeling his blood run cold. Was this his fate? Will he too be locked up in a bathroom for four days? And what's worse is that Jungkook's his roommate. Oh god, Taehyung is fucked. Why does everyone here have to be so homophobic!?
Taehyung ponders for a second before looking up at Jimin.
"Jimin?" he asks, grabbing the blondes attention. "Do you hate gay people as well?"
Jimin smiles gently, "Taehyung, homosexuality is a disgrace to god's words, so of course I hate gay people."
Taehyung's heart drops. Well, there goes his so-called hope.
~
Taehyung walks through the halls with a dull feeling in his chest. His gloomy mood seems to replicate the weather outside; dark and stormy. Taehyung should be happy right? He just made some new friends. Well, the only problem is that they're all homophobic as well. It just seems that no matter what, no one in this school will truly expect him for who he is. But what can Taehyung do?
Thunder roars through the skies, rain pelting down at tremendous speeds as the storm finally releases it pent up energy.
Taehyung is to act straight, that's what he is to do.
The blue-head shakes off his depressing thoughts as he opens his dorm door. The boy is once again met with an empty room, which right now, he doesn't mind. Taehyung feels like he's had enough of dealing with homophobic people right now. He just wants to be alone.
Taehyung is about to release a deep breath and sit on his bed when a frantic Jungkook bursts into the room. The ravenette looks dishevelled and jittery as he paces the room back and forth.
Taehyung stares at the boy with a frightened expression.
Jungkook pulls a hand through his hair before seating on his bed. His leg bounces up and down as he closes his eyes and takes a few deep breaths.
Thunder once again booms through the atmosphere and Taehyung can't help but notice the way the ravenette flinches at the sound as he cowers into himself.
Jungkook tilts his head back in distress before abruptly looking over at Taehyung. The smaller boy startles, feeling petrified as he meets the stare of the ravenette.
Jungkook ponders for a mere second before asking, "don't happen to have a cig, now do you?"
Taehyung takes a moment to process the question before slowly shaking his head 'no'.
Jungkook groans before returning into his anxious state.
Taehyung fiddles with his fingers as he thinks. He looks over at his bedside drawer with hesitance before opening it and grabbing a small lollipop that sat inside it.
"B-but I d-do have this," he whispers quietly, almost too afraid to speak.
Jungkook frowns at the item in the boy's hand, causing Taehyung's blood to run cold.
He's going to kill me, Taehyung thinks to himself. But much to his surprise, Jungkook gestures for him to throw it at him. Taehyung chucks the candy over and Jungkook hastily opens it and shoves it in his mouth.
Minutes pass, the only sound in the awfully silent room is the occasional strike of thunder and the subtle 'pop' of the lollipop each time Jungkook pulls it out his mouth. Taehyung notices Jungkook's calming demeanour as he sucks away on the lollipop.
Taehyung anxiously fiddles with his delicate fingers, debating whether he should break the awkward silence or not. He rakes his mind for possible conversation starters, dismissing everything that comes his way until he finally manages to mumble something out.
"You don't seem like a fan of storms?" Taehyung immediately regrets asking the question. He feels as though he can no longer breath when Jungkook slowly lifts his dark threatening gaze towards him.
Taehyung cowers under his stare, feeling weaker than ever.
He's going to hit me. He's going to hit me. He's going to hit me.
But to his utter surprise, Jungkook doesn't hit him. Instead, the ravenette merely shrugs before saying. "Yeah, I guess you could say that."
Taehyung looks at Jungkook, surprise written all over his face. Jungkook eyes the boy's expression before chuckling, the sound deep and rich, sending shivers down Taehyung's spine.
"What's wrong, Bambi?"
Taehyung startles at the nickname. "B-Bambi?"
Jungkook shrugs at the blue-head. "You look like a deer caught in the headlights. Like Bambi."
Taehyung meekly nods, casting his eyes down. "N-nothing is wrong."
There's a pause to the conversation, filling the air with silence once again before Jungkook breaks it.
"Then why are you stuttering?" He asks with a smirk.
-
Here is Taehyung's group of friends:
Jung Hoseok
Kim Seokjin
Kim Namjoon
Park Jimin
Hope you guys liked this chapter!! Thank you for reading!!!