The next day, Taehyung woke up to his phone blaring some annoyingly loud K-Pop song, startling him out of his sleep.
He groaned and blindly reached for the device, hoping to turn it off without looking. Luck was on his side today, and the music stopped, causing the omega to sigh in relief. He opened his eyes and blinked, accustoming to the rays of sun streaming into the room.
The white curtains were swaying in the light breeze, and only then Taehyung noticed the delicious smell of food. Upon looking to his right, he saw that Yoongi was already awake. He sat up and yawned, stretched, and looked to his left, surprised to see a plate with pancakes on the nightstand.
He took the plate into his hands, surprised to see a small sticky note falling to the floor. He sighed and tried to pick it up without dropping the food or falling off the bed, eventually succeeding. He squinted at the messy handwriting, trying to decipher what it said.
"Here are some pancakes... I had to go to the meeting early. I'll see you after work," he mumbled, melting on the inside. He didn't miss the small heart messily drawn heart behind the last word, either.
A sweet smile tugged at the corner of his mouth as he slowly set the note down and grabbed the cutlery, ready to devour the delicious treat.
His phone began ringing halfway through the second pancake, so he picked it up. He was annoyed, annoyed that his peaceful morning got disturbed.
Upon seeing Soyoung's name on the display, his brows furrowed. He swallowed the last piece of pancake and accepted the call, immediately hearing the telltale sounds of the bakery in the background.
"Soyoung?" he asked, still a bit muffled by one last piece of pancake.
"Taehyung!" her beautiful voice flooded his ears, and she sounded relieved. Why did she sound relieved? Did something happen at work?
"Yeah?" he mumbled while taking a bite of pancake, still surprised he got a call from her. They didn't talk outside of work, so getting a call right after waking up felt strange.
"We were worried about you! You haven't shown up to work today, so—" she explained, but Taehyung started choking on a piece of pancake. He completely forgot he had work today. He frantically looked at the clock; it showed 9:26 am. He was two hours late.
He jumped out of bed with his phone in his hand, still coughing profusely. "Are you okay?!" Soyoung's now worried voice echoed through his speaker again.
"Yeah, I just now realized I overslept! I'll be on my way as fast as possible" he rushed out, opening the closet and frantically throwing random clothes on the bed.
"Okay, I'll keep you covered!" Soyoung giggled, and the line went dead. Taehyung thought this was a fever dream. Yesterday seemed like one big dream; that had to be it. There was no way half of Korea knew his face now.
He sighed and changed into the clothes, rushed to brush his teeth, and grabbed his belongings. He then ran out of the door and into the elevator, the door falling shut behind him.
He nervously tapped his foot against the marble flooring, trying to fix his hair in the big mirror on the wall. Then it hit him. He was at Yoongi's, and he couldn't just walk to the bakery. He would need half an hour from here, despite taking every shortcut he knew. He groaned and rubbed his temple; today was the worst.
The elevator then gave off the telltale sound that he reached the lobby, the doors opening shortly after. He speed walked across the hall, hastily bowing at the male at the reception, who just watched with an amused twinkle in his eyes. "Have a good day, sir!"
Taehyung mumbled out his answer, the words getting lost in the echo of the big hall. He stepped out and got hit by the cold morning air. There was a bus stop down the street, but he would have to change busses twice, and that would take him longer than walking.
He threw his head back and cursed every deity he knew before breaking out into a sprint. Luckily, not many people walked along the streets this early on a weekday.
The harsh wind was biting at his exposed skin, and the dark clouds looming over the city instantly dampened his mood. The air was heavy with the promise of rain, and soon enough, the first drops landed on his jacket. The omega cursed under his breath, sprinting even faster, yearning to see the bakery's familiar green sign.
He rounded a corner and saw it, the green sign, the familiar lettering causing him to smile despite being two hours late. He stopped right beside the window, leaning against the wall to calm his erratic breathing.
He closed his eyes, concentrating on calming his heart down. A sudden tap on his shoulder made him jump, barely containing the scream threatening to leave his mouth. He took a deep breath and faced the stranger, smiling politely. "Oh hey, how can I help you?"
The girl just smiled and giggled, "Are you Kim Taehyung? SUGA's boyfriend?"
He gulped. He didn't see this coming. So yesterday wasn't a dream. His heart stopped for a brief second before continuing to beat fast, all efforts to calm it in vain. "Uh, yeah, I am."
"You're as cute as in all the pictures! And you're so tall," she rambled, her eyes widening with awe. Taehyung felt his cheeks heating up but tried to keep his composure, "Thanks?"
"Can I get a picture with you?" she asked, her phone already in her hand. Taehyung considered it for a moment; he probably looked completely disheveled from running from Gangnam, but who was he to deny her request?
So he gave in and nodded, bending down a little, so the girl had it more comfortable. He smiled his typical rectangular smile, the girl pressing the white button repeatedly. After she was done, he stood up straight again, prepared to enter the bakery before Minhee threw a fit.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, her attentive gaze directly on his eyes. He gulped; he wanted to keep his workplace private. It was his last safe haven.
"Uh... Buying breakfast for Y-SUGA and me," he lied through his teeth, breaking out in cold sweat due to almost exposing his boyfriend's name to the public.
She nodded, her eyes twinkling with admiration. "That's so cute! Have a good day, Taehyung-ssi," she said and bowed, walking away in the opposite direction, looking over her shoulder repeatedly.
He waved and gave her a smile before entering the bakery, finally letting his posture slump a little. "Kim Taehyung!" Minhee's voice echoed through the bakery. Luckily not many people were present at the moment.
He flinched and bit his cheek; he should've denied the girl's request. But he couldn't change it now, so he turned around with a sheepish smile.
And there she stood, her hands on her hips with a raised brow, the emotion of her face not decipherable. "You're late," she stated, and Taehyung just nodded.
"I'm sorry, I overslept," he mumbled, trying his best to withstand her piercing gaze. "Follow me," she said, and Taehyung complied. His co-workers just gave him pitiful smiles before turning back to their work.
They entered the small bureau in the back, and after Minhee closed the door, she turned around to face him.
"Are you alright?" she asked, her eyes now full of worry. Taehyung was speechless. He expected her to lecture him, not to display concern. He just nodded, lost for words.
"I saw you were all over the news yesterday, and I was worried something bad happened. But then I read the headlines, and my dearest congratulations," she smiled, gently ruffling up his hair in her motherly manner.
"Thank you?" he stammered, the statement more akin to a question, too confused to form coherent sentences in his head. "And I remember your boyfriend. He once came here asking about you, accompanied by another handsome alpha. Really nice boys, also very polite," she reminisced, her eyes crinkling in a heartwarming smile.
Taehyung blushed and nodded; he never knew that Yoongi came here to ask about him. The fact that the alpha wanted to find him so bad made his heart pound just a tad faster, and his eyes light up a little more than usual.
"I understand why you overslept. Yesterday must've been stressful for you, and on top of that, you're always on time and often stay after we're closed; it's okay. I'm not mad. But I have to act at least fair towards the others, so please understand my behavior a few minutes ago." Minhee said, gently squeezing his shoulder. "But this is not a permission to make this a regular habit!" she said, lifting her pointer to waggle it at him.
He nodded, unable to keep the smile off his face. "Did he really ask about me?" he inquired, his cheeks tinting a lovely pink. He was embarrassed about his question, but his heart needed to know. Every possible thing he could tease the older about was important information.
Minhee just smirked, squinting her eyes knowingly. "Do you think I'm lying?" she asked, placing her hands on her hips again, her mouth curving into a knowing grin.
"No!" Taehyung frantically scrambled for words, "I'm just curious!"
She laughed and shook her head, her loose ponytail swishing in all directions. "Oh, dear, Taehyung."
"He came in with his friend to ask about you, but I couldn't give out your personal information. So he asked for your next shift, but surprisingly he never showed up. I was waiting to see what happens, but somehow I missed it," she sighed, her wise eyes settling on his face.
Taehyung just grinned, "Oh, he announced a fansign shortly after. Jimin and I got tickets, so he didn't need to show up here. And I'm sorry, maybe I'll bring him to the annual Christmas celebration!"
"That would be lovely," she smiled before looking at the clock behind them. "It's getting late, so go! It would be best if you still baked the brownies; Jimin gave me the recipe yesterday. The poor boy couldn't sit still" Minhee chuckled before gently pushing Taehyung out of the door.
The younger just took a deep breath and went into the changing rooms, silently humming one of his favorite tunes. He opened his locker and took his apron out but struggled to tie it behind his back. He cursed under his breath, desperately trying to fix it somehow, but his arms began to ache.
Suddenly, he was pressed against the cold metal of the locker beside his, two unfamiliar hands engulfing his. His breath hitched, but he couldn't turn his head to see the other.
"Need help with that?" a deep voice purred, and only then he registered the musky scent.
An alpha. And they were alone in the locker rooms. And he was trapped.
Uh oh 👀
Anyway; Merry Christmas everyone! Please take this as a small present from me; I hope you liked it!
And as I said, you better fasten your seatbelts 😎