CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Pity & Trust
CHOI JISOO
I was finally discharged from the hospital once my temperature had become stable.
Three days had gone by so fast, but at the same time it felt painfully slow. A contradiction that would never be explainable.
Most of those three days went by with me sleeping and throwing up food. A simple headache snowballed into a high fever that required me to be admitted to a hospital... sometimes things do escalate quickly, huh?
Speaking of escalation, what was up with Taehyung? I couldn't figure out that man. Just a few days ago, he was shouting at me till the roof could blow up, and now? He was being the most awkward, yet kind person, helping me with normal tasks such as walking and feeding me as well?
Was this the same Taehyung? Or was my fate playing a cruel joke by making me see Tae in him? Was that all it needed - a high fever - to make the humanity in him surface again?
Or was this much more deeper...?
"Aaaa~" Jungkook sang as he brought a slice of toast closer to my mouth. I was getting baby-sitted by the baby himself...
However, I opened my mouth and crunched on the toast. I wasn't allowed to have home cooked food yet, hence the boring toast.
We were seated at the dining table in Taehyung's flat, for obvious reasons of me not being able to travel from here to Jungkook's flat - even though it was just a floor apart.
"I'm done." I sighed, with bread still on either sides of my cheeks. I didn't have the energy to chew, and the blandness wasn't helping either.
"Dr Kim said you need to eat well." Jungkook tutted and nudged the bread forward. I shook my head firmly and moved away. Jungkook let out a deep breath and placed the bread back onto the plate, "Okay, fine... I won't feed you anymore."
Jungkook looked down at his watch and hummed, "Hyung will be home soon. He texted me that the meeting finished, a while ago."
"Hey, Jungkook..." I gulped when the young male blinked at me, "Is Taehyung... okay?"
"Uh... yeah. What makes you think he isn't?" He scratched his head.
"He's just been behaving... differently?"
"Different?" He frowned, "How so?"
"He's been caring? And always checks up on me." I twiddled my index fingers.
"Oh, that!" Jungkook was playing with the bread crumbs in the plate, "He knows about the canc- shit!"
He cut himself off and looked at me with wide eyes.
"What?"
It didn't take a genius to figure out was he was going to say. I looked at him with disbelief.
Just then, the door opened, revealing a disheveled Taehyung who was dragging his foot into the house. He stopped in the middle of the flat and looked at Jungkook and I. Maybe he felt the sudden tension because his face was now featuring a frown.
"Hyung! You're home!" Jungkook quickly stood up, "Great, I just remembered I didn't turn off the gas! See ya!"
He quickly ran out before either of us could say anything and slammed the front door shut, leaving just Taehyung and I.
"What's up with him? He doesn't even have a gas stove." Taehyung looked back and forth between the door and my face. I didn't know what I was feeling at that moment. But maybe I mostly felt betrayed because the fact that these two knew, was hidden from me. And the reason why Taehyung was being so kind to me was because...
"You knew..."
Taehyung's brows knitted together, "What?"
"You knew about my condition all this time." I clenched my jaw, "Is that why you were being so nice to me? Because you pitied me?"
"What?" I could see Taehyung's jaw tick, "Where's all this coming from?"
There was silence.
Fire was burning in each of our eyes and neither of us were ready to back down. At least, not me.
He placed his coat on the sofa and walked towards me. He pulled out a chair and sat before me, "I wasn't being nice to you out of pity or sympathy, Jisoo."
I let out a small gasp, that was the first time in a long time to hear my name through that baritone voice. It reminded me of Tae.
"I'm sorry that I was such a jerk to you."
Another gasp left my lips. Was he really apologising or was I dreaming?
"I didn't trust you, I thought you were here to have a free ride of my money and popularity. But now I know that wasn't the case. I was wrong to think of you that way before getting to know you." Taehyung sighed, closing his eyes briefly, "I'm trying to fix our misunderstandings, mostly mine, by being nice. Not because of your condition or not because I pity you."
I lost myself in his coffee irises when it met mine. My chest felt heavy because those eyes were the same ones I used to look at, back in my world. So much love. So much adoration.
"Why didn't you tell me about it before? I would've helpe-"
I scoffed.
"Helped?" I pursed my lips, "Just a few days ago, you thought I was here for your money. Would you have changed your mind if I told you about the cancer?"
Guilt glazed over his warm brown eyes and he looked away, biting his lower lip. I felt a sting in my heart and let out a deep breath.
"So you'd rather die than tell us."
It wasn't a question.
"This isn't my world, Taehyung. I have nothing to live for over here. I have no family. I have no one to love. I'm alone and I have no purpose. So yes, I'd rather end this life than live as a dead weight in this world. I have just three months with you in this flat. And then what? You'll go back to being the eligible bachelor, actor Kim Taehyung. What about me?" I hadn't realised how miserable my life was until I put it into words. All this time I wanted to believe things were going to get better, but deep down I knew I said that to myself only because I didn't have the courage to face my reality, "I don't want this l-life, Tae..."
I squeezed my eyelids shut when I felt the back of my eyes sting. Tears blurred my vision and my chest grew heavier. I didn't want to live this miserable life. I had nothing and no one to live for... not even myself because ever since I stepped into this world, I lost what I once called my own - my identity.
"Don't say that..." Taehyung muttered, gently cupping the side of my face, "Don't ever say that again."
I hated this, but I broke down when Taehyung gently pulled me into his chest. I sniffed into his chest, wetting his shirt with tear stains. My fingers weakly curled into his shirt, on either sides of his torso, as muffled sobs left my lips.
Oh, how I wished for him to be my Tae...
Ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh..... thoughts?😅