this is the last one ~song of the chapter: mt. by local natives. i'd suggest putting it on repeat.
~
The orange sun rays falling into the room feel warm on Taehyung's skin. He blinks at the sun; it's already setting despite it only being late afternoon. Summer is coming to an end.
"Hyung," Jeongguk calls from the bedroom, "Are you done?"
"One second, just gotta finish this mail!"
He hears Jeongguk sigh; he smiles to himself and types the last few words before proofreading the text.
The past few weeks were beyond stressful; today is one of the first relaxing days off for both Jeongguk and Taehyung.
"Hyung, we're gonna be super late!"
"Yeah, 'm coming," Taehyung mumbles and finally closes the laptop. When he walks over into the bedroom, he sees Jeongguk stand in front of the mirror, fixing his hair.
"You look good, don't worry about it," Taehyung tells him with a smile and wraps his arms around Jeongguk's waist, his chin resting on his shoulder.
"You good to go?" Jeongguk asks. Taehyung hums.
"Just one second." He closes his eyes. Jeongguk stills and leans against him.
They stand like that for a while, just enjoying each other's presence. It's calming. Taehyung hides his face against Jeongguk's neck and holds him a bit tighter.
His boyfriend chuckles. "Clingy."
"You love it."
Jeongguk turns around in his hold and fixes his collar. He grew his hair out over the past few months. Now, it almost reaches his jaw. Today, he is wearing it up in a ponytail. The black turtleneck he has on makes his shoulders seem so much broader.
He has matured a lot. Even his face looks a little different now.
The only thing that hasn't changed is the way he looks a Taehyung, a soft sparkling in his eyes and a gentle smile on his lips.
Jeongguk kisses him swiftly.
"You good?"
Taehyung nods. "Yeah. You?"
"Peachy."
Taehyung smiles and kisses Jeongguk again.
A lot has changed. But Taehyung is sure that he and Jeongguk have never been as close as they are now.
"What's my favorite color?" Jeongguk mumbles against his lips.
"Red. What's my favorite season?"
"Winter."
Taehyung pulls away with a smile. "We're good to go."
They take the metro into the city and get off the train a few blocks away from the restaurant they are headed to, then they walk the rest of the way, hand in hand; the sun warms their necks.
Right before the restaurant, Jeongguk stops Taehyung.
"Hey," he quietly says, looking a bit thoughtful, "Tell me if this gets too much, yeah? We'll leave right away."
Taehyung gives a reassuring nod. "Sure. You too."
Jeongguk kisses him, holding his cheek. "I love you," he whispers, making sure to look right into his eyes. Taehyung smiles.
"Love you more."
They enter the restaurant and tell the waitress that they booked a private room. She leads them to the back.
"Here you go." She bows her head once, then she leaves. The first thing Taehyung sees upon entering the room is a widely smiling Jimin jumping up.
"There you are!" He hugs Taehyung tightly, then Jeongguk. "You're late."
"And that's coming from Jimin," Namjoon says, "The embodiment of late."
Jimin glares at him before returning to his seat next to Yoongi. Taehyung and Jeongguk greet everyone, then they sit down, too.
"It's my fault," Taehyung admits, a shy blush on his face, "I still had to go through some mails."
"Yeah yeah, whatever, mister New York Times bestselling author."
"I'm not—"
"You'll be, one day," Hoseok teases. Taehyung just rolls his eyes with a smile.
They order their food and drinks and fall into an easy conversation, then. It's been a while since they've all come together, and today, they want to celebrate. There is a lot to catch up on.
"Oh, by the way," Hoseok suddenly remembers, "I applied for a new job a month ago. At an orphanage." He smiles. "Yesterday, they called me back. I got the job."
Loud gasps and congratulations erupt and fill the room. Hoseok grins brightly; there is a soft blush on his cheeks.
"You worked hard for it, too," Namjoon mentions, "You deserve it."
"So many things to celebrate," Jimin says, "We should be proud of ourselves!"
"What, were you promoted from your secretary position?" Hoseok asks. Jimin sticks his tongue out.
"No, I wasn't. Thank you very much." Then, he turns to Yoongi, and encouraging smile on his lips.
"Uh," Yoongi says, keeping his head low, "I found a job."
Taehyung's eyebrows shoot up in surprise. Just three months ago, Yoongi started therapy again; apparently, he has been making great progress.
"My therapist says it's what's best right now. To get out, do something. It's just a part-time job in a warehouse, but it's something."
There is a shy blush on his cheeks when everyone starts to congratulate him. Jimin cards his fingers through his hair and he leans into his touch.
When the waitress brings their drinks and their food, everyone raises their champagne glasses for a toast.
"So, as you all know, we're here today because our dear Taehyungie sent the manuscript of his book to a publisher and they accepted it!" Jimin says; his eyes sparkle with joy and pride.
"Here's to Taehyung!"
"To all of us," Taehyung is quick to correct right before they clink their glasses. When he leans back again and takes a sip of his champagne, he feels Jeongguk wrap an arm around his waist and kiss his cheek.
"I'm proud of you," he whispers against his skin, "So, so proud."
Taehyung is filled with warmth. He feels like he could fly.
He turns his head and kisses Jeongguk on the lips. "Thank you, baby."
Everything that happened in spring feels like an awful fever dream. Sometimes, Taehyung finds himself desperately searching his brain for everything that happened; other days, when he awakes at night from a nightmare, he wishes he would have forgotten everything already.
Now, it's made permanent in his book.
The first couple of weeks were tough. He hardly slept; he knows Jeongguk didn't sleep either, and sometimes, in the middle of the night, he heard the younger cry beside him. He would always do it in secret until one day, he broke down right in front of Taehyung with a full on panic attack.
From then on, Taehyung and Jeongguk have made sure to talk about what happened and what is going on in their heads every day.
Sometimes, Taehyung feels himself struggling with what is real and what isn't. Then, Jeongguk is there to remind him.
Taehyung knows that Jeongguk is real. He always is.
A while after their food came, Jeongguk is deeply immersed in a conversation with Namjoon and Hoseok; Taehyung is talking to Yoongi and Jimin next to him. Then, when Jimin excuses himself to go to the bathroom, he is alone with Yoongi.
"I'm proud of you for taking care of yourself, hyung," Taehyung says. Yoongi shrugs.
"I don't think I could do it without Jimin. He helped me look for the right therapist and went to the first few sessions with me." He halts, staring down at his food as a soft smile curls up his lips. "He truly is an angel."
"How are you two holding up?"
"Oh, it's going good. Well, after everything that happened in spring, he decided he needed some time away and went to stay with his parents in Busan for a while. Physical and emotional healing, you know. I think that was very good for the both of us." His cheeks turn the lightest shade of red. "Made me get back in touch with my own family."
Taehyung smiles warmly. "That's very good."
"Yeah. And, well, now Jimin and I have been official for three months, so..." He shrugs again as a grin grows on his face. "Can't really complain."
"I heard about that," Taehyung says, "I'm so happy for you."
"Thank you." Yoongi shoots him a glance. "Well, I mean that. Thank you. For everything."
Taehyung feels his chest warm up.
"If it wasn't for your help, I don't know where I'd be. Where we'd all be, really."
"We all did this. It wasn't just me."
"I know. But I just... wanted to say thank you anyway," Yoongi says and lowers his head, "I feel like you were the missing puzzle piece. You made it happen. I think we'd be nowhere near where we are now if it weren't for you."
Taehyung stares at Yoongi, so long that it almost gets uncomfortable. He feels his heavy heartbeat in his chest; it makes his whole body tremble.
"Thank you," he whispers, "I made mistakes, too... there is a lot I should have done differently."
"You tried your best, though. And at least you tried. I'll forever be grateful for that."
Taehyung bites down on his bottom lip. "Thank you so much, hyung. That means a lot."
Yoongi gives a quick, crocked smile, then the door opens and Jimin returns. Taehyung doesn't miss the way Yoongi's entire face lights up when Jimin leans in to press a quick kiss to his temple.
It's later, way past sunset, when Jeongguk and Taehyung walk back to the metro. They had a couple of glasses of champagne and wine and they are both in a good mood.
Taehyung runs down the sidewalk, giggling gleefully, and Jeongguk follows him. Of course, the younger is faster; he catches up quickly, his fingers attacking Taehyung's sides and tickling him. Taehyung shrieks.
"Jeonggukie! No!"
Jeongguk's hot breath hits his neck as he chuckles. Taehyung manages to turn around in his hold, wraps his arms around his neck and kisses him.
Afterwards, they continue their walk hand in hand, a lot more peaceful.
"I talked with Namjoon hyung and Hoseok hyung," Jeongguk says after a while of silence. Taehyung hums.
"And?" he asks. Jeongguk doesn't immediately respond. He stares at their feet, thoughtful.
"Namjoonie hyung is a doctor and Hoseok hyung works at an orphanage now. They help people," he says. Taehyung hums again to show him that he is listening.
"I've thought about it a lot, you know. What I wanna do with my future. I don't want to work shitty, underpaid jobs that I'm not passionate about for the rest of my life," Jeongguk continues and raises his head. Now he looks determined.
"So?" Taehyung says and gives his hand a reassuring squeeze, "What conclusion did you come to?"
Jeongguk stops walking; so does Taehyung.
"I want to go back to university," Jeongguk says as he looks right into Taehyung's eyes, "I want to study psychology."
Taehyung raises his eyebrows. "Psychology?"
Jeongguk nods. "As I said, I've been thinking about it for a while. I want to learn and understand. And I want to help. Talking to Namjoon and Hoseok just made it a lot clearer to me."
For a few moments, Taehyung is quiet as he watches Jeongguk's face. The younger swallows harshly, shifting from one foot to the other.
"I want to try," he adds, "I want to—"
"Okay," Taehyung interrupts him, smiling softly. Jeongguk splutters.
"Okay?"
"Yeah. If that's what you want, then do that. I won't stop you."
Jeongguk nods slowly, his eyes never leaving Taehyung's.
"You should do what makes you happy. If going back to university makes you happy, then I'm supportive of that," Taehyung continues, stepping closer to Jeongguk, "You helped me achieve my dream, now I'm going to help you achieve yours. That's how it works."
Jeongguk wordlessly stares at him for a few moments. His eyes glisten beautifully in the pale light of the streetlamp next to them.
"I love you," he eventually mumbles and pulls Taehyung closer.
"I love you more."
"That's impossible," Jeongguk whispers right before their lips touch.
The night is calm. Above them, the dark night sky stretches, and behind the city lights, the stars hide.
For the first time, Taehyung is at ease. For the first time, when he says that everything is going to be okay, he believes himself.
Because it's true.