Guide Me Through The Dark

Posted originally on the Archive of Our Own at http://archiveofourown.org/works/24421816.

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply
Category: M/M
Fandom: 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Relationship: Jeon Jungkook/Kim Taehyung | V
Character: Jeon Jungkook, Kim Taehyung | V, Park Jimin (BTS), Min Yoongi |
Suga, Jeon Jungkook's Parents
Additional Tags: Blind Character, Blind Jeon Jungkook, Jeon Jungkook is Bad at
Feelings, Jeon Jungkook is a Little Shit, Kim Taehyung | V & Park Jimin
are Best Friends, Kim Taehyung | V is a Sweetheart, Kim Taehyung | V
is Whipped, Jeon Jungkook is Whipped, Tattoo Artist Kim Taehyung |
V, Light Angst, Brief NSFW, Fluff and Crack, Crack, Fluff, Top Jeon
Jungkook, Bottom Kim Taehyung | V, Sub Jeon Jungkook, Dom Kim
Taehyung | V, Light Dom/sub, Loss of Virginity, Idiots in Love, Age
Difference, Kim Taehyung | V Is Older, Sassy Jeon Jungkook
Language: English
Stats: Published: 2020-05-28 Completed: 2022-11-16 Words: 63,899
Chapters: 3/3

Guide Me Through The Dark

by vantaegukk

Summary

After an accident takes away his sight, Jungkook learns that it’s easier to push people away
than dealing with the pain of being pitied, or having them leave him. However, Taehyung
is stubborn, attentive, and he wants nothing but to tear down the walls that Jungkook spent
years building, guiding him through the dark.
 ◄│ 1 │►
Chapter Notes

This was so fun to write but tough given sight is something so major... but I think it
ended up coming through well! Hope you like it.

See the end of the chapter for more notes

“…but I asked him out, and he said ‘perhaps’. What the actual fuck does perhaps mean? Why can’t
he just give me a yes or a no?” Jimin complains, putting his mug down with a frown. “I only get
interested in idiots who don’t have the balls to make a move. I always have to be the one going for
it, and I still get fucking rejected, this is beyond humiliating.”

“Yoongi’s not an idiot, he’s a really nice guy.” Taehyung defends. “He just… He likes to play hard
to get when he’s into someone. According to him, that’s his biggest tactic and, apparently, it works
out pretty well. And I’d agree that it does, given that all that you talk about lately is him and him
only.”

“Okay, for starters, that’s not even true, I don’t—” he stops to look at something behind Taehyung,
his expression morphing into one of worry and sympathy. Taehyung raises an eyebrow, curious,
turning around to check what it is without being too obvious.

There’s a young man with a pair of sunglasses and a cane pulling at a chair to sit down, but the
chair’s leg is stuck between another chair and the table itself, making it hard to get it out without
being able to see what’s happening.

Everyone seems to be staring, and Taehyung tries not to glare at everyone for that.

He reaches out, the table being right behind him. “Would you like some help—”

“I got it.” the young man says, tone snappy and unwelcoming.

Taehyung watches as he pulls on the chair a little harder, finally managing to free it and sit down,
frustrated and embarrassed. His hands shake as he folds his cane, only for it to fall when he startles
himself by accidentally hitting the table with it.

He’s truly a disaster when he gets embarrassed in public.

Taehyung picks it up for him right away. “There you go.” he hands it over.

“I could find it myself.” the stranger takes the can from him rather harshly. It’s rudely said, and
Taehyung’s a little taken aback by it, though he understands.

He knows that it’s hard to accept help, and some people really do hate being helped at all,
especially by strangers, so he doesn’t take the bad-tempered tone too seriously; he simply shakes
his head slowly with a quiet chuckle. “I don’t doubt that you could, I was simply saving you the
hassle of having to look for it yourself.” he explains.

“Just leave me alone.” the young man sounds just as cold and irritated by him, so Taehyung finally
gives up on attempting whatever conversation that could possibly come out of there, and faces his
best friend again instead of answering.

“Damn…”

“What?”

“The guy. He’s kind of rude.” Jimin whispers for only him to hear.

“Some people don’t want help. They find it rude and disrespectful that you assume that they can’t
do their things by themselves, that they need our help, so just… don’t comment on it, let him be.”
Taehyung whispers back afore clearing his throat. “Continue what you were saying, I was very
invested.” he gestures for him to go on, taking another sip from his coffee.

“I was just telling you about Yoongi being a menace.” Jimin slumps on his chair again. “Do you
have any idea of how long it has been since I first started trying to get his attention? It’s
embarrassing to even say aloud. He keeps giving me hope, and then rejects me, and it’s been so
motherfucking long since I’ve put this plan in motion, and—”

“Jimin, it’s been two weeks.” Taehyung sighs.

“Two weeks is already way too damn long for me.” Jimin immediately says, defensive. “I’m not
used to this kind of situation. I usually score the dates that I want… I don’t understand why he
doesn’t just say yes. Or no, you know. One of the two, at least, not fucking ‘perhaps’.”

“Maybe he just needs a period of adaptation and processing. He’s seen you as a younger brother for
years now, and you suddenly realized that he’s attractive and that you want to go out with him, I
reckon that it’s normal that it’d take him a bit to see you in that light.” he theorizes, gesturing
mindlessly with his hands. Jimin huffs, unimpressed. “You know that Yoongi and I don’t sit
around having crush talks or whatever, I have no fucking clue whether he’s interested in you or not.
You’re on your own on this one, buddy, I can’t help you.”

“Don’t you dare ‘buddy’ me.” Jimin points his spoon at him, insanely threatening. “Are you going
to your shop after we’re done here? Maybe I can go with you to see my future boyfriend…” he
smiles, pairing it with his best puppy eyes. Taehyung rolls his eyes, but he’s rather entertained.

“I have two large tattoos scheduled for this afternoon so, yeah, I’m going there after we’re done.”
Jimin hums, downing his coffee in one go, and urging him to do the same so that they can leave
quickly. “You’re seriously unbelievable.” he chuckles, taking another sip — taking his sweet time
with it, too.

His best friend’s eyes dart to the young man on the table behind him again when a waitress
approaches, handing out a takeout cup. Taehyung wants to turn around to look, but he holds back,
as he doesn’t want to be as disrespectful as everyone that unabashedly turns to stare.

He hears the chair moving, and the cane tapping the floor. “Is he already leaving?” he asks in a
quiet and discrete whisper.

“Mhm… I think that he was just waiting.” Jimin whispers back. “This kind of situation always
makes me feel really bad, imagine not being able to just— fucking see. And the people staring has
got to be the worst feeling ever… they don’t even try not to. I can’t even imagine being deprived of
something as important as sight.”

“That’s why I always try to help.” Taehyung sighs.

“I’m, very unfortunately, included in the group of people that get way too awkward to actually help
them. I don’t know how to do it, or how they’d take it.” he scratches the back of his neck. “You
just heard the way that he talked to you, he was rude as hell, and you were just offering some hel—
Oh, fuck, he left his keys.”

“What?” Taehyung furrows his eyebrows, turning around and towards the table. The keychain that
Jimin points at, forgotten on the clean surface. “Oh. I’ll give it to the waitresses; he may come
back looking for the keys.”

“No, just go hand them to him. Poor thing, imagine if they’re his house keys, he’d have to come all
the way back here to get them…” Taehyung’s left unsure. The stranger has made it very clear that
he doesn’t want any sort of interaction. “You’re way more social than I am, I won’t know how to
approach him, like, do I grab his arm…? Do I just call after him? I don’t even know his name,
what do I address him as—?”

“Jesus, ok.” Taehyung gets up, grabbing the keychain before he rushes out of the small coffee
shop. He quickly scans the streets around him, and he’s lucky to spot the young man nearing a
crosswalk — he starts jogging then, wanting to catch up.

The light is green and the other seems aware of that, given that he starts crossing the road.

What he doesn’t seem to be aware of, though, is the car rapidly approaching.

Taehyung positively sprints to get close enough to grab him by the forearm and pull him back.

The man lets out a startled scream, pushing him away with both hands. The car has stopped where
it should, it wouldn’t hit him, but Taehyung couldn’t have been sure of that, and he’d never forgive
himself if the stranger had gotten ran over. The car was coming too fast, and he simply took a
preventive action.

“What the fuck?!” Taehyung flinches at the sudden yell and the elbow that hits his ribs, just luckily
not hitting him straight on. “I can fucking hear, I can cross the damn road by myself.” he says as
he, rather aggressively, removes the hand that was still on his forearm.

Taehyung takes a second to even process the movement. “I’m sorry, but the car was coming really
fast and you were crossing the street, so I thought that you were going to get hit.” he explains in a
hurry. “I didn’t mean to scare you or anything, I should’ve said something instead of just grabbing
your arm… but I must admit that I panicked. I’m so—”

“Stop fucking bothering me, stop meddling. I told you already, I don’t need or want your help,
leave me alone.” he’s a little surprised to realize that he’s been recognized solely from his voice; at
least he thinks that that’s what gave it away.

He quickly steps back when the young man gives him a weak push for him to keep his distance.

This stranger is rather rude.

This truly wasn’t the reaction that he’d expect after helping someone.

He can’t say that he’s angry, though. If anything, he’s intrigued.

Taehyung only realizes that he’s been standing there, staring at the other’s back, when the stranger
has safely made it to the other side of the road. He’s totally forgotten about the keychain, too.
Maybe he’ll find him again, hopefully so, as he wants to be the one handing over the keys.

If he doesn’t see him within the next week, he’ll just leave them with one of the waitresses.
│►

Taehyung lights up his cigarette as he listens to the story that his friend is telling him, only to laugh
at how exaggerated Yoongi can be sometimes. “Did you get to finish the tattoo, though?” he asks,
entertained. “Or did she just not stop kicking you the whole time?”

“I don’t think that you’ve heard me when I said that she kicked me on the ribs. Of course I
stopped, no way I’d continue the damn tattoo like that. I told her to go home and come back some
other time for us to discuss when to continue it. I may suggest using some numbing cream, she
definitely cannot handle the pain.” Yoongi sighs, putting out his cigarette. “I’ll head back inside,
are you coming?”

Taehyung just lifts his hand up to show how his own cigarette is still too intact for him to put out,
and Yoongi nods as he taps his shoulder and goes back inside the busy shop. He looks around,
watching the cars and the people; some individuals greet him, either customers or just friends —
the word loosely used — and he greets them back with lazy smiles.

That, until he catches a familiar figure coming into sight.

It’s the same young man from the coffee shop, he recognizes him right away. Taehyung has never
seen him around before, but blames it on never having paid enough attention. He will never
understand, and will never fail to find so impressive how visually impaired people can locate
themselves, visit places by themselves; he’s reminded of that as he watches the stranger.

He can see perfectly and still gets lost almost daily.

He’d never be capable of such a thing.

Another drag from his cigarette that he blows away slowly, his eyes following the young man
attentively. He’s most likely acting like a creep, he knows, but he pushes that thought to the very
far back of his head as he’d rather call himself curious, and say that he’s simply interested to watch.

Taehyung feels his stomach sink when the stranger trips on the curb, just barely managing to catch
himself on his hands and knees in time. He wonders if he should do something to help, or just let
him get back up on his own. It doesn’t take long for him to decide that it’s best to keep his
distance, unwilling to get another elbow to his ribs.

However, when two boys laugh, he loses his cool.

He throws his half-smoked cigarette to the floor, jogging to the other side of the street.
Unfortunately, not before one of the boys kicks the stranger’s cane farther away from him. The
only reason why Taehyung holds back from slapping the absolute living hell out of the back of
their heads, is the fact that they both have school bags on, and he doesn’t want to hit kids.

“Fucking back off!” he orders, voice strong and demanding; intimidating. They quicken their steps,
still giggling to each other. “Fucking dumbass kids…” he mumbles to himself, looking back down
at the man who’s still facing the floor, in the same position, embarrassment making him freeze.

Embarrassment and confusion, given that he recognizes Taehyung’s voice.

Taehyung rushes to grab the cane and lift him up by a firm grip under his arms, but he’s shrugged
and pushed away as the can is snatched from his hand. “I’m fine.” the other says, voice a little
shaky yet still cold; despite trying to seem alright, he sounds on the verge of tears.

He rubs his stinging palm, trying to hide it with his sleeve when he feels the scratches and a liquid
substance that he can only assume is blood. Taehyung catches it, nonetheless. “You’re hurt.” he
states. “I have a first-aid kit, do you want t—”

“You’re that guy from the coffee shop. Are you following me?” the stranger asks, alarmed, as he
takes a step back. Taehyung’s eyes widen, lifting his hands in surrender — which he soon beats
himself up for, remembering that his movements can’t be seen. “Are you?! Are you fucking
following me?”

“I’m not! I’m not following you.” Taehyung rushes to say. “I work in the tattoo parlor right across
the street and I saw you walking by. I truly wasn’t going to bother you until I saw those two
fuckers.” he explains. “Can you, please, let me clean your hand up? You’re bleeding, and I have a
first-aid kit in the shop. We should clean those wounds… We don’t want them to get infected.”

“Is it— Is it actually your house and you’re planning to, I don’t know, fucking kill me?”

“If I wanted to kill you, I would’ve pushed you towards the car instead of running to keep you from
crossing the road.” Taehyung says as a matter-of-factly. “If it helps you relax, we can just walk
close enough to the shop until you hear the tattoo guns. You’ll know that I’m serious.”

The young man seems to consider it for a few seconds, but gives him a little nod, only to then feel
a careful hand on his forearm that goes away almost instantly — he assumes that it was a mere
encouragement for him to start walking. He’s thankful for the silence, too, because he relies on the
sounds of the footsteps to know when to stop and when to cross the road.

Once they do come to a stop, he pays extra attention: he can hear the buzzing of the machines and
some rock music that isn’t too loud, alongside people chatting. The parlor seems full.

“I can assure you that I’m not going to kill you. Actually, I can just go get the kit, and we can sit
right here, if you’d prefer that. I don’t mind either way.” Taehyung offers with an audible smile.
“Whatever makes you comfortable.” he adds. “Just let me know.”

“Sit down right here…?” the other asks.

“If you want to, yes.”

“On… On the floor?” he tilts his head.

“Mhm.” Taehyung agrees with a chuckle.

The young man worries at his bottom lip, remaining quiet for a while as he takes in all the sounds
around them. He can hear people talking, cars that keep driving by; he can hear all sorts of
movement, and he doesn’t like the fact that they’d all know that he’s hurt.

They’d silently pity the blind man, as they always do.

He hates it too much to let it happen.

“I’d be more comfortable if we uhm, if we did that inside.” he whispers at last. “I hate being
watched.”

Taehyung nods. “Come on in, then.” he takes the initiative, making his way towards the entrance
of the parlor, but stops as he processes what he has just done. He turns back, confirming that the
other male is still in the exact same position. “I’m sorry.” he says, carefully and hesitantly reaching
for his hand to hold.
The stranger doesn’t pull away or jab him with his elbow, so he takes that as a good sign, and
continues guiding him carefully by the hand into his shop. “Watch your st— Oh, you’ve got it.”

“I know that there’s a step.” the other mumbles.

Taehyung does his best not to sigh. “Right, of course you do, I’m sorry.” he gestures with his free
hand for none of his employees to say a single word, and they all nod, respecting it. The artist is
able to then lead the man into his private room, closing the door behind themselves, and he can
almost feel his nerves. It’s too quiet, he thinks.

He doesn’t want the young man to be so anxious. “There’s a chair right behind you, to your right.
You can sit, if you’d like.” Taehyung suggests, watching as he quietly feels around for the chair
and sits down, his leg bouncing up and down.

“It’s— It’s really quiet in here.” he says in such a quiet tone that almost goes unheard. He’s
nervous, perhaps even a little scared. He can still faintly hear the rock music coming from the other
shared tattooing rooms, but Taehyung’s is quiet. “I still really have the feeling that I’m about to get
fucking slaughtered, and I don’t like this one bit.”

Taehyung grabs the first-aid kit before dragging his wheeled stool to be able to sit right in front of
him, and he feels almost stupid when he holds a pinky out for him to take. He can’t see it. The
stranger is then understandably startled when a finger suddenly intertwines with his pinky, and it
takes him a few seconds to understand what’s happening.

“I promise that I’m not going to kill you.” Taehyung reassures, releasing his pinky. “Now, please
give me your hand, will you?” the other pouts, which Taehyung doubts is intentional, as he holds
his hand out, the hurt palm facing up. “Did you hurt your wrist too, or is it just your palm?” he asks
whilst gathering some gauze to coat with rubbing alcohol.

“It’s just my palm.” he informs, and Taehyung just nods as he doesn’t want to speak much. The
young man before him has already made it pretty clear that he doesn’t enjoy the conversations or
Taehyung’s help, so he decides that taking care of his hand in the comfortable silence is the safest,
rightest way to go about it. For that reason, he stays quiet.

The stranger hisses every now and then, and Taehyung makes sure to softly blow onto his palm in
an attempt to soothe the sting away and make it easier. He cleans the blood thoroughly, doesn’t
leave a single smudge behind, and makes sure that each and every scratch is clean before putting a
band-aid on them.

It’ll come off, he knows, given the movements of the hand, but it’s better than nothing; it’s better
than leaving it so exposed to bacteria and everything else.

Once it’s done, he leans in to press a quick, innocent kiss over the hurt spot. He’s always done that
to his younger siblings and it’d usually help, even if not much. The hand closes in a tight fist at the
sudden action, and Taehyung worries that he might have overstepped again.

However, “Your lips are soft.” the stranger says in a shy voice, and Taehyung smiles at how he
seems to regret his words right away; clearly didn’t think before speaking, and that’s endearing.

“So I’ve been told.” it’s meant to be a joke, but he can tell how poorly executed it actually is, and
it’s rather obvious that the other doesn’t take it well, either, since he pulls his arm back and clears
his throat.

“I should go.” he says, grabbing his cane as he stands up from his chair, set on leaving the tattoo
studio. “I’ll leave now.”

Taehyung gets up, too. “Do you need help getting back—”

“Absolutely not. Thank you for the hand, but that’s all that I needed from you.” the tattoo artist
stops before he can hold the other’s forearm to guide him out of the parlor. He’s not really
surprised with the rejection; the stranger seems to hate him, and his help even more.

“Do you need me to take you somewhere?” Taehyung still offers.

“I’m blind, not stupid.” the remark is as snappy as every other word that has ever been directed at
him, and Taehyung decides that it’s time to give up. There’s a long beat of silence, neither uttering
another word, and the atmosphere is heavy, uncomfortable.

Taehyung doesn’t know whether to speak and get a cold response, or just remain quiet, let the other
leave. He goes with the latter, taking a step back to gather the used gauzes.

There’s a sigh, and he can see the stranger’s shoulders sag with some sort of guilt. “I’ve lived here
for years, I know where I am, okay? Thank you for worrying, but don’t.” even if softer this time,
his voice still sounds distant, clearly trying to keep his image and dignity.

“Okay.” Taehyung nods. “I just wanted to help.”

“I don’t need your, or anyone’s help. Thank you for the hand, still, that was uhm, nice of you.
Bye.” he says as he waves from the door, already turning on his heels to leave the room, and
Taehyung watches with an amused smile and an eyebrow raised.

“Bye.” he manages to say just as the other steps out of the room, and finds himself chuckling
quietly to himself. Only then, when he’s been left alone to clean up the used items, does he
remember the keychain. He’s forgotten again.

Next time, he thinks.

He’ll give it back next time.

│►

A week goes by.

Taehyung takes almost double the time that he usually would when enjoying his cigarettes by the
parlor’s door, wanting to see the same closed-off and timid stranger whose keychain is still in his
pocket in hopes to be handed to its owner.

His eyes almost jump out of their sockets when, after over seven days of waiting, he spots him on
the other side of the road. Taehyung quickly throws his cigarette to the floor before running across
the street to get to him — he almost gets run over, but that doesn’t slow him down.

“Hi!” Taehyung greets, perhaps a little too enthusiastically, and the other jumps in place, startled.

A second of silence goes by. “You again?” he deadpans.

“You’re walking by my shop, maybe I should be the one asking that.” Taehyung tries to joke, but
clears his throat when the other’s lips press into a straight, unimpressed line. “You left something
behind in the coffee shop… you know, that other day. I’ve been meaning to give it back to you, but
I always forget it. Here you go.”
The stranger holds his hand out, palm open and facing up, waiting.

Taehyung carefully places the keys there, watching as he feels it up with his fingers to try and
identify the object. Then, he gasps in surprise once he touches over the little dog tag hanging on
the keychain. “What… What did you say that your name was?”

“It’s Taehyung.” he smiles. “What’s yours?”

“Why does it matter? I only asked to be able to thank you properly.” the artist’s eyes widen, taken
aback. “Thank you so much for keeping this, and giving it back to me, Taehyung.” he says and,
right after, he turns towards the direction that he was headed to previously, and walks away from
him without even waiting for an answer.

And Taehyung can’t even find it in himself to say anything, be it calling him or just saying a brief
goodbye; he simply chuckles, amused, and somehow even more intrigued.

There’s something about that snappy tone that just works as a pull instead of a push.

│►

As he enters the homey and welcoming coffee shop, Taehyung instantly feels his stress slowly
fading away. It smells like fresh pastries and grinded coffee, and it’s the coziest aroma, exactly
what he needs during a break from work.

He halts when his eyes fall on the familiar figure at the register, making his order.

Taehyung rushes to get there, already getting his wallet from his pocket.

“Is that all?” the barista asks, and the young man nods, muttering a quiet ‘yes’ that Taehyung
barely hears. “That would be two-fifty, sir.” she informs.

“Here.” Taehyung speaks up, handing over his card before the stranger can get his money out.
“Make it two of whatever he ordered, actually, if you don’t mind.” she nods, adding his order to
the machine before taking the card from his hand.

The man in front of him tilts his neck just enough to sniff quietly, taking in Taehyung’s strong
cologne. He recognizes him, though he had already recognized that deep, soothing voice. “I’m
starting to believe that you’re actually following me.” he says, accusingly.

“I come here a lot, it’s near the shop, I’m not stalking you.” Taehyung assures with a light chuckle,
and the stranger just hums, stepping away. “Do you want to sit down with me while we drink the
coffee?” he offers, albeit braced for rejection, as he puts in his code to finish the payment.

“I— Okay…” Taehyung’s beyond surprised by the quick acceptance, and he considers helping him
get to the table, but he has already reached the conclusion that the other doesn’t like being helped
in any way, so he simply follows him to whatever table that he decides to sit at.

They both remain quiet after picking their chairs: Taehyung sits across from him, aware that the
other man probably wouldn’t be that content if he sat right next to him instead. He keeps a
comfortable distance.

Taehyung worries at his bottom lip, unsure of how to start a conversation. It’s hard to come up
with something, to think of a good topic, when all of the replies that he’s gotten were so cold and
sharp. He doesn’t know what is ok for him to say, or what topics the other is comfortable with, so
he stays quiet.
Just the fact that they’re sitting there, is surprising.

Taehyung then hears a sigh, and watches as he straightens up. “Hey, listen…” he calls.

“I’m listening.” the artist reassures, aware that the stranger can’t see him to know whether he’s
paying attention or not.

“I wanted to apologize uhm, for being so cold towards you during our former interactions. I uhm,
I’ve just learned to be this way to keep the human species very fucking far away from me. I don’t
trust anyone for shit, I hate people, and I don’t want anyone to interact with me.” Taehyung’s eyes
widen; what a good way to start. “I do also appreciate the fact that you’ve helped with my hand,
and that you’ve kept my keychain to give it back to me… You also just paid for my coffee, and
kind of defended me from those fuckers the other day, so— yeah, thanks. I have a hard time
expressing myself, but thank you, and I’m sorry.”

“You don’t have to thank me—” Taehyung stops to frown upon the realization that he doesn’t even
know how to address him. “I still don’t know your name.” he points.

“Uhm… It’s uh, Jungkook…?”

“Alright, Jungkook, how old are you?” the silence drags out for a few seconds and Jungkook, as he
now knows, pushes his sunglasses further up the bridge of his nose, confused.

“Why…?” he asks, instead of answering.

“Because I’m pretty sure that this is how people start friendships; they ask basic, random questions
as a starter. I asked your name, pretty basic, now I do believe that your age should be the next
information that I get from you.” Taehyung explains with a little chuckle.

The waitress walks up to them, putting their coffee mugs on the table. “There you go, I hope that
it’s up to your taste.” she smiles at them, bowing.

“Thank you.” Taehyung smiles back.

Jungkook just sits up straighter, his hands searching for the mug to locate it before he grabs the
little pack of sugar. “But I don’t want to be your friend.” ultimately, Taehyung should’ve seen that
coming, but it still doesn’t feel great. Jungkook seems to catch up to how his answer sounded, and
he visibly startles. “It’s not you, you seem nice. Nice enough, I guess. I just— I’m not a… friends,
person.”

“We really don’t have to talk at all if you don’t want to. You just seem really nice, and like you try
to put up a front and, I don’t know, that’s interesting, because I’d like to know what you’re
genuinely like behind those witty and rude remarks. If you want me to go, though, I will. I’ll leave
you alone. At the end of the day, we don’t know each other, so you can just send me away with no
remorse.” he explains with a little shrug, hoping to get his point across.

Jungkook chuckles humorlessly. “You don’t have to try to befriend a blind guy to make yourself
feel like a better person or ask nosy questions. Just ask whatever you want to know, and leave me
alone, because I’m not going to feed into a hero complex that you may have.”

Taehyung wants to sigh, but holds back. “It’s not that. I just want to be your friend. I have no
second intentions.” Jungkook is still holding the sugar packet, and he finally opens it quietly, free
hand locating the mug again so that he can add it in. Taehyung observes his every move with
curiosity, before having to break the silence again. “I like making friends. Besides, knowing that
you don’t have any just makes me want to be your friend even more.”
“I know that you must have tons of questions as everyone else does, so just get on with them, don’t
wait around to ask. They get tiring, and I don’t want to hear them five minutes from now after
you’ve pretended to be my new best friend.” he says, as defensive as one can be.

Taehyung tilts his head. “I do have a question. How old are you?”

Jungkook fidgets with his spoon. “I’m twenty-one…” the other chokes and he immediately lifts his
head up, trying to understand what’s going on. Abrupt doings, loud noises and just commotion in
general tend to send his brain into a slight panic over not being able to know and see what’s
happening around him. “What— What’s wrong?” he worries.

“I just—” Taehyung coughs again. “I just wasn’t expecting you to be twenty-one, is all.”

His shoulders relax. “How old are you, then?”

Taehyung scratches the back of his neck. “I uh, just turned thirty last month.”

Jungkook pauses. “You’re old, Taehyung.”

Perhaps it’s the innocent tone that he speaks with, or the little giggle that follows, but Taehyung
can’t even begin to feel insulted by the observation. Instead, he tries to fight a smile so that it
doesn’t come through in his voice. “Excuse you?” he says, playfully.

Jungkook giggles again but, this time, a little louder. “I meant older than what I thought you’d be!”
he rushes to correct himself, figure growing less and less rigid. “I just thought that you’d be… less
than thirty.” he shrugs, still lazily stirring his coffee.

“So, you just have a problem with being thirty?”

“No—” Jungkook huffs, a little frustrated, and Taehyung can’t help but to find it the cutest thing
ever. “I just thought that you’d be, I don’t know, twenty-something. Judging from what I’ve
gathered from you so far.” he tries to explain, and deems it as enough.

“Alright, I’ll take it as a compliment.” Taehyung shrugs.

“It wasn’t meant to be one.” the other is quick to say.

“You’re just the rudest person, aren’t you?” Jungkook laughs at the question, and Taehyung has to
bite a smile away; he can’t let him know just how entertaining he is, not so soon.

“I like to think that I’m just funny and honest.” he shrugs, taking the coffee mug to his lips, careful
not to spill. Taehyung does the same, both falling into a silence that, this time, is comfortable
instead of awkward, and the ambient music played in the coffee shop only helps with that.

“Do you come here often?” Taehyung asks, trying to get their conversation flowing again.

Jungkook deadpans. “It’s one of the only places that I know how to get to.” the silence that follows
is everything but comfortable, and Taehyung is unsure of how to answer in a way that won’t be
neither rude nor dismissive. Jungkook sighs. “See, this is why I hate talking to people, you all get
so fucking awkward with everything that I say, like I’m supposed to have no goddamn sense of
humor just because I’m crippled.”

“Don’t say that, I just don’t know you yet, I don’t know what kind of humor you have, and you
can’t expect me to know that you’re joking when this is our first conversation.” Taehyung
explains, tone still calm, and Jungkook hates how nice he sounds.
This is not how these conversations usually go.

People usually just walk away, tired.

“Where else do you usually go?” Taehyung asks, trying to lighten up the air around them.
Jungkook’s frowning and he doesn’t like it; he doesn’t like seeing anyone upset.

“Uhm…” he tilts his head, a little surprised by the question. “I can go to the grocery store that is
near my house, and uhm, I remember how to go to school, but I haven’t been there in a while…
here and the park and— I guess that that’s it.” he lists off on his fingers.

Taehyung takes a second to think. “Have you ever been to the beach?”

“Not on my own, no. And also, not in a long, long time.” Jungkook answers, albeit confused. “Why
do you ask?”

“Can I take you to the beach?” Taehyung is as direct as he can, going straight to the point.

“You’re the type of person that parents warn their kids not to be friends with.” Jungkook starts,
taking another sip from his coffee before continuing. “You work at a tattoo shop, appeared out of
nowhere three times — for now — so, as far as I’m concerned, you might really be a stalker, and
you’re way older than me. I can’t just say yes right away and go to the beach with you, I don’t
want to wake up in a tub with ice and a missing kidney.” he elaborates, serious.

That really does make the tattooist laugh, shoulders shaking as Jungkook smiles, shy. He likes
making people laugh, but usually everyone gets awkward and uncomfortable with his jokes. That’s
partially the reason why he hates the thought of having friends. They don’t get it.

“Well, you can get my number, then, and we’ll talk for a bit first— I mean, I don’t know if you can
uhm, t-text, but— but if you can, then my offer stands.” Jungkook tries not to make yet another
joke or comment on the sudden stutter.

“If you promise me that you won’t laugh at the voice-automated texts that I send, then I may
consider this proposition.” he says, pointing an accusing finger. “My parents say that my texts
always have dumb mistakes or words that I didn’t even intend to send… The stupid phone doesn’t
understand me.”

“I won’t laugh, but you can just send voice notes instead, it’s probably easier for you.” Taehyung
shrugs. “I reckon that it’s less work than replying in actual text.”

“It is way easier…” he mumbles.

“Then you can just send me voice messages, and I’ll send them back instead of breaking my
promise by making fun of your texts.” Taehyung jokes, and his smile widens at the fake gasp that
he’s granted.

He tuts. “Now, this is already a terrible start for you.”

│►

Taehyung only tries to text Jungkook three days after the fact.

He didn’t want to be too overwhelming, and three days felt like a good time period; it’s neither too
long, nor too short. Deciding what to send, however, is another problem in itself. He thinks about
only sending a simple ‘hey’, as that’s what he’d do with anyone else, but this is a bit different: he’ll
be sending a voice message, not a text, and an ‘hey’ would be less than a second.

Jungkook is a tricky individual, it’s hard to know how to approach him when he’s so defensive
when it comes to… literally everything. He must have his reasons, Taehyung is sure of that, even if
he doesn’t know what those reasons are, but still. It’s a challenge.

The artist breathes in and out, and clears his throat, before pressing on the small button to record
the voice message. “Hey… It’s Taehyung. From the coffee shop.” he looks down at his phone,
trying to think of what else to add to it, but decides that this should be enough.

He presses send and hopes for the best.

Not even ten full seconds pass before the ‘delivered’ changes into ‘read’, and he’s not embarrassed
to say that he keeps staring at his screen until a message comes through. It’s a voice message as
well, just as they agreed to do, and he quickly presses play.

“Hey, Taehyung from the coffee shop… that’s a long name.” is what he hears, and he doesn’t have
the time to reply before another voice note comes in. The first three seconds are just filled with a
dry, almost inaudible laugh.

It makes him cackle too, despite being ready to make fun of the younger man for the horrible joke.

“That was a great fucking joke, don’t you dare say otherwise, but yeah, I didn’t think that you were
going to text.” Jungkook adds once he stops laughing, voice so naturally deadpan that it doesn’t
sound like he was laughing just one literal second prior.

“Why did you think that I wasn’t going to text?” he sends back.

His eyes follow the movement as the three dots appear on the screen, only to then be replaced by
yet another note. “Who the fuck takes three days to text someone? I thought that you had just asked
for my number to be nice.”

And, alright, Taehyung can recognize that, maybe, three days is kind of too long to text someone.

“I didn’t want to be too pushy… But thank you for admitting that you wanted to talk to me.” as
soon as he hits send, he regrets it. Jungkook’s already made it very clear that he doesn’t like to get
out of his comfort zone, and they’re still pretty much strangers, so the joke can only land poorly.
He’s not even expecting an answer after it.

However, much to his surprise, his phone does ping again. “You’re lucky that I don’t know how to
block someone and it takes me too long to Google shit. You’re on thin ice, Taehyung from the
coffee shop.” despite the warning, his smile is almost audible, and it makes Taehyung smile too.

“Well, that wasn’t a no.” Taehyung teases, putting the phone down as he grabs his digital pen
again, set on continuing his new design.

When another notification comes, not even a minute later, he surprises himself with how quickly he
stops to check the text. “You’re making me wish that I had gotten run over that day.” Jungkook
jokes, and tries not to snort. Another voice note. “Anyway… What are you doing?”

“First of all, don’t joke about that, I almost had a heart attack because of the car. Secondly, I’m just
drawing… What about you?”

“Do you want to call instead? I mean, if you’re drawing…” Jungkook offers, and Taehyung can
hear a hint of hesitation, or maybe it’s just nerves. He did say that he doesn’t really have friends, so
it doesn’t come off as a surprise, but Taehyung still doesn’t like it. He doesn’t want to make him
nervous.

He presses the button, “Only if you’re comfortable with that.”

A couple of seconds go by before Jungkook’s name fills the screen as the call ringtone interrupts
his music, and he quickly takes it, putting the phone back down. “What are you drawing?” the
young man asks, first and foremost, and Taehyung smiles, focusing back on the drawing.

“This dude showed up the other day, and he just wanted what every male that has no fucking taste
asks for… I’ll send you twenty bucks right now if you can guess what it is.”

“A lion and a rose? Or a lion and a clock. Oh— A lion, a rose, and a clock?!” Jungkook tries, his
tone failing to hide how enthusiastic he is. “Wait, I want to change my answer, do I get another
chance?” Taehyung hums, encouraging. “A lion with a crown.”

“You were almost there. It’s a lion with a crown and a rose. I’m sick and tired of drawing these.”

“I got half of it. You owe me ten bucks.” he reminds.

“That wasn’t the deal.”

“I’m going to hang up.”

Taehyung snorts. “You’re a thief.”

Jungkook makes an affronted sound, and Taehyung can’t believe how easy it is to talk to him. This
is not how he imagined it to be. He thought that it’d be awkward, at least at the start, given how
defensive Jungkook is in person, but he’s happy to be proven wrong.

He can only hope not to mess it up somehow.

│►

Jimin groans as he reaches for Taehyung’s earbuds, pulling the cord to snatch them from his ears.
“I’m sick and tired of you smiling like that to your phone, but not telling me whom you’re talking
to. Did you get a boyfriend or a girlfriend? As your best friend, I deserve to know. Start spilling
right now, I’m not joking.”

“Do you remember that guy from the coffee shop? The one that left his keychain behind, and I had
to chase him to give it back, but then forgot…?” he starts, putting his phone down.

“Oh, the blind one, yeah, I remember.”

“The one that forgot his keychain.” Taehyung corrects, though he knows that Jimin meant no
harm. “We’ve met a few times after that. They were all coincidental, we didn’t plan any of them,
but we did end up exchanging phone numbers, and we’ve been texting for about… two weeks now,
I’d say. It’s kind of upsetting that I haven’t seen him walk by ever since, I haven’t had the
opportunity to see him since we got each other’s number.”

“Wait, you… text?” Jimin asks, tilting his head. “Oh, is it like, speech automated texts?”

“No, we just exchange voice messages since it’s easier for him. We also call sometimes, I often
draw while we talk, and it’s pretty fun. He’s really adorable.” they both look down when
Taehyung’s phone alerts them to another notification, but Jimin grabs it first. “What are y—”
“Jungkook.” he reads. “Is that him? Is that his name?”

“Yeah, that’s him.”

“Can I listen?” Jimin asks, curious, and Taehyung just gives him a nod as he unplugs his earbuds
from the phone so that his best friend can hear it too. Jimin presses play on the voice note.

“I’m such an idiot.” they hear, followed by a fit of giggles. “I accidentally dropped my cane down
the stairs, so I just— I had to sit down and butt-slide until I got downstairs, because the last time
that this happened, I tripped and fell on my face.” Jungkook explains with yet another bubbly
laugh. “My butt hurts now… I went too fast.”

“His laugh is so cute.” Taehyung comments.

Jimin refrains from pointing out the heart-eyes.

“You know, we called on the first day that we texted, but then he barely replied to me on the
following days. He didn’t trust me for shit, and he just wasn’t having it. Hearing him laugh and
making jokes now, makes me feel really accomplished.” he shares.

His friend rests back on his chair with a large smile, watching as he records a quick answer, grin
never once leaving his face. “Can you pay attention to me now? I didn’t come all the way here for
this.” Jimin asks once he puts his phone down again.

Taehyung tilts his head. “Huh?”

“You haven’t given me any attention ever since I got here— Actually, scratch that, it’s been a few
days since you’re not here present when we hang out… you’re always on your phone. You only
care about this Jungkook guy now, you’ve forgotten about me…!” he dramatizes.

“That’s absolute nonsense. He’s my friend, don’t make it weird.” Taehyung waves a dismissive
hand, eyebrows furrowing in distaste when Jimin shows him a little smirk. “You’re actually
horrible for that. He’s barely legal, he’s just twenty-one, don’t even joke about it… Do you want to
see my ass in jail because of your bottomless jokes?”

Jimin snorts. “You wouldn’t go to jail, he’s legal.” Jimin chuckles. “He’s younger than us, yes, but
he’s not a minor.”

“Either way, he’s just a friend, I don’t like him like that.” Taehyung shrugs it off. “We’re getting to
know each other with friendly motives, and nothing more than that.” he explains, and his friend is
interrupted as he opens his mouth when the phone pings with yet another text.

Taehyung opens it, pressing play on the voice message right away. “I was thinking…” Jungkook
sing-songs. “I’m really bored here by myself at home… Is that beach offer still open?” he asks.

The artist smiles. “Cancel our plans, Jiminie…”

Jimin gasps. “I can’t believe that I’m being replaced like this.”

“Shush, I see you every day.” Taehyung rolls his eyes playfully, and Jimin presses his lips into an
unimpressed line. “Are you incapable of seeing and living a perfectly normal life? Are you alone
all the time with no friends to keep you entertained? Hm? Hm—? I didn’t think so, either.” he goes
with the emotional approach, trying not to break character.

“You shouldn’t pity him… I’m sure that he’d hate it.”
“I’m not pitying him, I just—” Taehyung stops, thinking his words through beforehand. “He’s
really funny and genuinely adorable, and I hate that he doesn’t talk to people, that he doesn’t let
himself make friends. I want to be there for him, since he’s given me the chance to start getting
through the immensity of walls that he’s built around himself.” he explains. “We’ve been talking
basically nonstop for these past two weeks, and he’s just really cute, he has this sort of innocence
to him, and that’s really fresh.” he concludes with a sigh.

Jimin just stares, lips pulled into a pout.

“Stop looking at me like that.”

“Just… be careful, okay? Both with him and with yourself. You don’t know him well, nor do you
know how he is in the long-run, so don’t get too attached too quickly. I know you, Tae.”

“It’s kind of late for that, to be honest.” Jimin furrows his brows, worried. “Hey, don’t stress
yourself over this, I’m thirty-years-old, I know how to take care of myself. He’s a great friend but,
if something happens, or if he decides that he doesn’t want to talk to me anymore, even if it’ll hurt,
I’ll deal with that.”

Jimin sighs. “Alright… I’ll go visit Yoongi since you’re going to the beach with him, then.”

Taehyung smiles. “Good luck with that.”

│►

Jungkook feels around for his house keys before placing them in his front pocket, proud of himself
for hanging the keychain the previous day so that, this time, it didn’t take him two minutes to find
it.

He turns to where he knows that the living room is, making sure to take a few steps inside so that
he’s visible to his parents. They’re both chatting about whatever television show that they’re
watching, and Jungkook clears his throat to get their attention.

“Hey, son. Is everything alright?”

“Yeah, I’m good, dad.” he smiles. “I’m going out.”

There’s a pregnant pause. “It’s almost nighttime, sweetheart…” his mother points out, worried.
“It’s late for you to wander around by yourself. Please, stay home.”

“I’m not going by myself… I’m going with a friend.” Jungkook admits, fidgeting with his
sunglasses before putting them on. “He’s already waiting outside, so I should uhm, I should get
going.” he gestures behind himself, only hoping to actually be pointing to the door.

“Oh.” they say in unison, surprised.

“Is it the same friend whom you’ve been exchanging those voice messages with?” she asks, and he
gives her a quick, shy nod of the head. “Alright, have fun, then. Don’t come home late, and be
careful.” his mother advises.

“Don’t forget your keys.” the man adds as he looks back ahead to the television.

Jungkook smiles, turning around on his heels to head to the front door. “I already have them…
Bye!” he tells them as he opens the door, holding the right key so that locking it is easier.
“Hey.” Jungkook’s positively startled when he’s greeted right away, and it makes him jump in
place, the keychain almost falling from his hand. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you.” the elder
quickly apologizes with a chuckle. “I just thought that I should… uhm, help you get to the car.” he
says, bottom lip catching between his teeth.

He knows that Jungkook doesn’t like getting help, and he doesn’t want to mess up their hangout
before they can even get to the beach.

“Oh, thank you.” Jungkook says, contrary to his expectations. “It’d be hard to find the car by
myself, so thank you for that.” he smiles, sincere, as his hand reaches for Taehyung’s forearm to
hold onto.

“You don’t have to thank me.” Taehyung assures, guiding him ever so slowly, making sure to be
even more careful on the steps. He opens the door for him, and even helps him get to the passenger
seat — he’d put his seatbelt on for him, but Jungkook could get offended.

And Jungkook can already feel his hand shaking. He’s nervous, his heart is beating like crazy, but
he’s doing a great job at hiding it. Still, he checks his seatbelt exactly three times during the time
that it takes Taehyung to get to the other side of the car and get to the driver’s seat.

The car is turned on right away, and Jungkook’s ears physically perk up. “Do you— Do you have
your seatbelt on? I didn’t hear it click, so please put it on.” Jungkook instructs, almost frantic.

Taehyung blinks, puzzled. Jungkook sounds worried, but he doesn’t think that commenting on that
would be a good idea; which is why he decides against it. “I was about to put it on, I always start
the car first. Here, listen.” he encourages as he reaches for the seatbelt.

Jungkook’s shoulders visibly relax once it clicks.

The artist is tempted to ask, but he doesn’t.

Instead, he starts driving.

The sun is almost setting, the streets are quiet and, even if the silence between them is rather
comfortable, he still takes his hand to the radio to turn it on. “C-Can you turn it down a bit?” the
younger man whispers, almost embarrassed.

“Of course.” Taehyung nods, immediately doing as asked. He then takes the time to eye the man
sitting by his side: Jungkook’s tightly holding onto his seatbelt, clearly afraid or extremely anxious,
and Taehyung isn’t quite sure of what’s bothering him, but he can’t ignore it this time. “Are you
alright?” he asks. “I can just turn the radio off, if you’d like.”

“No, no, it’s uh...” Jungkook hesitates. “Can you just slow down a bit? You’re driving… really
fast.” he whispers, gulps, and Taehyung has to do a double-take when he glances down at the
speed — he’s not driving fast at all.

“Sure.” Taehyung decides, again, not to comment, and simply slows down.

Jungkook doesn’t trust or like cars. He only trusts them when his father is the one behind the
wheel, but that’s about it. On top of that, he doesn’t really trust Taehyung’s driving skills. At least
not yet, he hasn’t seen nearly enough to feel safe in a car with him.

“You seem to hate cars…” he points. “We could’ve walked there. I wouldn’t have minded that if
you had asked.” Taehyung says, turning to him just in time to see him pout.
“Just drive, please…” he doesn’t want to talk about it.

The artist nods. “As you wish.”

│►

“Careful there…” Taehyung says, guiding him by the hand.

Jungkook’s cane was left in the car, a last-second decision that he’s not that confident in — and, as
much as he’s trying to relax and just trust Taehyung to be careful enough to lead him to a nice spot
on the sand for them to sit without letting him fall face-first, part of him is still terrified.

He doesn’t trust anyone to guide him anywhere.

He doesn’t walk around without his cane unless he’s at home.

So, yes, he’s nervously holding onto Taehyung’s hand for dear life.

His heart only stops hammering in his chest when he feels his feet start sinking on the sand, and he
wishes that he could be barefoot. They only walk for roughly another minute before they come to a
stop, and Taehyung lets go of his hand. “You can sit.” he instructs.

Jungkook does as told, carefully lowering himself until he’s comfortably sat on the sand; he dusts
his hands, worrying at his bottom lip. They’ve been talking for a little while now, but talking
through texts and in person is very different. Will it be just as easy? Will they have anything to talk
about? Is he meant to start a conversation? Is h—

“The sky looks really colorful… I’d explain it to you, but— I don’t know if that’s really insensitive
or not.” Taehyung says, and Jungkook can hear the hesitation in his voice. “I also don’t know how
to explain it in a way that you’d uhm, understand.”

“I miss seeing the sunset…” Jungkook whispers, and he can almost physically feel the shift in the
air, can almost hear the hanging questions. He giggles. “You can ask.” he allows as he fiddles with
the little strings on the rips of his jeans.

“You could see?!” Taehyung lets out, shocked and confused; surprised, too.

Jungkook nods. “I wasn’t born blind, I wasn’t— I was able to see. That’s why I’m such a bitch, I
know how people change, how everyone leaves and just… starts pitying you. That’s why I fucking
hate everyone.” he shrugs.

“You certainly can’t hate everyone.” Taehyung tries to lighten the mood.

“You’re right, I don’t hate my parents.” the artist clears his throat, waiting for another kind of
answer. “Do you have something in your throat?” Jungkook asks, forging concern; he knows what
the elder is trying to get from him, and he’s not going to give him what he wants.

“I don’t know whether I should be offended or not, but I am.”

Jungkook laughs; bright and bubbly. “Fine, I don’t hate you. I don’t particularly like you, but I
don’t hate you.” he shrugs. “You’re alright, but also kind of not, I suppose.”

Taehyung gapes. “I breathed—”

“You breathed wrongly. Which leads me to say: you should work on correcting that. I can hear it,
it’s so irregular, you might want to get it checked.” Jungkook points as he sits up straight. “It’s
probably because of all of those damn cigarettes that you eat every day.” he accuses.

“How do you know that I smoke?” Taehyung chuckles.

“Because I’m blind, which means that I can’t see, but it doesn’t stop me from being able to smell.
Actually, my sense of smell has gotten even better since I lost my sight.” he explains the obvious.
“You smell really good— I mean, it’s acceptable, but there’s still a lingering nicotine smell.
Especially on your hands, which means that it’s because you hold the cigarettes, and not because
other people smoke around you. What I mean by this is, get ready for lung cancer in the
foreseeable future.”

“So, you’re saying that I smell really good?” is all that Taehyung picks up, and he doesn’t hesitate
to turn it against the young man.

“I— Shut up.” Jungkook turns his head away from him to hide his blushing cheeks, and Taehyung
chuckles before they fall into a comfortable silence. While the artist stares ahead at the ocean,
Jungkook settles for hearing it, smelling it; he missed the beach.

The waves are loud in his ears, and part of him wants to go in, dip his feet in the cold water, but he
doesn’t trust himself not to fall or get hurt on something, and he doesn’t want to ask for Taehyung’s
help — asking for help is always far too awkward.

It takes him a minute to get fed up with the silence that, albeit comfortable, isn’t for him. “Can I
say something?” he prefaces.

Taehyung hums. “Of course.”

“You’re the first person since the accident that actually cares about me, that didn’t give up on me
after one or two rude remarks. I’m… I’m truly thankful for this friendship that we have. I know
that I can be mean, and— I know that I’m very hard to deal with, at least at the start, but…”
Jungkook stops himself, sighs. “I’ve always been a bit snappy, but it got way worse after everyone
that I considered my friend turned their backs on me. Thank you for putting up with my
insufferable ass so far.” he whispers, fidgeting with his jeans, still.

Taehyung doesn’t even know how to answer that. “I’m sorry that people changed towards you, you
deserve so much better than that. I wish that I could’ve been there for you sooner.”

“No…” Jungkook shakes his head. “You appeared just at the right time.”

“How so?”

“Because— No, I don’t want to make the mood even worse…” he says, his smile a little awkward
and embarrassed.

“I don’t mind, you can tell me.” Taehyung reassures, trying to examine Jungkook’s expression; his
dark sunglasses make it a difficult task, and he wonders whether he’d be able to see any emotion in
his eyes if they were visible. He has no idea of how Jungkook looks without them on.

“My guide dog passed away a couple of months ago, and I’ve been on a really bad low ever since.
Maybe that’s why I was such an asshole to you at the coffee shop the first time that we met… I’m
still not that used to going places without him. He was with me since my accident, and he got
suddenly sick, so it was… unexpected. He was so young, no one saw it coming…”

Taehyung’s heart aches hearing such a thing, but he doesn’t like the pout on Jungkook’s lips, so he
thinks of how to lighten the mood again. “I’m really sorry to hear that… But I must say that you’re
still rude towards me now.”

Jungkook giggles. “You’re just sensitive.”

“I’m going to ignore you for the rest of the night.” he jokes.

“The keychain has his tag on, I cried the whole night when I realized that I had lost it…” the
younger says, but he doesn’t look as sad now. “I was really happy when you gave it back that day. I
had to do my best not to show it, but I was so fucking glad to have it with me again.”

“I wanted to give it back to you the very same day that you lost it, but the way that you acted when
I pulled you from the road threw me off, I didn’t know how to act, so I totally forgot to give it to
you.” Taehyung admits.

“I’m sorry for being a bitch when you pulled me.” he mumbles.

“You’re always a bitch, at this point it has become acceptable.”

Jungkook laughs, relieved, and Taehyung follows.

Silence settles again, both listening to the ocean for a few minutes.

But, Jungkook isn’t a big fan of silence, so he’s the one to break it again. “Hey, Tae, can I ask you
something that you can totally say no to?” he puckers his lips. “I’m really curious, but I totally
understand if you say no to this, because it’s uncomfortable and— yeah. You can say no.”

“What is it?” Taehyung asks, curious.

“Can I… Can I feel your face?” he requests. “I just— I just want to see you. I mean, see you with
my fingers. They help me understand a bit…”

“Of course, yes.” Taehyung sits up straighter, reaching for Jungkook’s hand so that he can
carefully place it on his own jaw. Jungkook moves his fingers for just a second before he pulls his
hand away, chewing on the inside of his cheek. “It’s okay.” he assures.

“I’m sorry, this is so awkward for people, I’m so sorry.” Jungkook frowns. “Even my parents hate
this, it’s— awkward as shit.”

“I promise you that I don’t mind it. Take your time.” Taehyung encourages, watching as
Jungkook’s lips pull into a pout before he lifts his hand again, placing it back on his jaw. He
scrambles to get on his knees, finding a better position that allows him to use both hands, and starts
by feeling everything around his jaw, his chin, his neck.

He takes his sweet, sweet time.

“Kook, can I take your glasses off?” Taehyung asks, as softly as he can, so to not overwhelm him
with the question. Jungkook’s hands halt where they’re just starting to feel up Taehyung’s cheeks,
and he takes a moment to even process such an unexpected request.

“No… My uhm, my eyes shake… a lot.” Jungkook explains, but there’s a hand nearing his face the
very same second. He can feel Taehyung lightly pinching the frame of his glasses, but he doesn’t
pull them out, simply waits for confirmation. Jungkook gulps.

Taehyung wouldn’t judge him. Would he?

Taehyung wouldn’t make fun of him… would he?

He doesn’t know for su—

“I’m not going to mock you or anything, Kook, you know that.” Taehyung reassures, as if able to
read his mind.

“Just go for it…” he whispers. Taehyung takes that as a green light to slowly slide the glasses
down the bridge of his nose, but he does it as slowly as he can, so that Jungkook has more than
enough time to tell him to stop, in case he changes his mind.

Jungkook’s eyes are closed tight, and he doesn’t open them; not even when the glasses are fully
off, and resting on Taehyung’s lap. “Open them? Please?” Taehyung whispers. “I’m not looking at
them, I’m looking at you.” Jungkook gulps, eyebrows scrunched anxiously. “It’s okay.”

Jungkook nods.

It’s ok. It’ll be ok.

He opens them, slowly and shyly.

Taehyung studies him for a moment and, yes, his eyeballs do shake from side to side, but he can’t
even focus on that — not when Jungkook’s eyes are so big, so round, and so cute. He looks ten
times more adorable without his glasses on, and there’s some sort of innocence to them.

The artist gasps when their eyes meet as Jungkook blindly looks around, and the sound startles
him. He closes his eyes right away, embarrassed. “I told you, they’re really weird. I shouldn’t have
taken my glasses off— Where are they…?”

“Jungkook, your eyes are so fucking pretty.” Taehyung compliments, honest. “Can I see them
again? Can you open your eyes for me?” he can see the other’s cheeks turn a bright shade of pink
almost instantly, but he does as told. “You have the cutest fucking eyes I’ve ever seen.”

“They’re stupid, they don’t even— fucking work.” he mumbles.

“Can I ask you something?” Jungkook just hums, his hands back on Taehyung’s jaw; his fingers
move delicately, as if afraid of hurting him, or crossing a line. “I thought that when people go
blind, their eyes kind of uh, close…? You don’t — and this is probably rude to say — but you
don’t look blind. I mean, the shakiness gives it away, but I mean… just a few seconds ago, it
seemed as though you were really staring at me. Besides, you blink them just like everyone else
does, so I’m just… curious, really.” he elaborates. “Please, tell me if this is insanely rude of me.”

“It’s not rude, don’t worry.” Jungkook sighs. “There are… many different conditions. Mine is just
— I don’t know, it’s fucking weird. My eyes aren’t closed, I can move them and blink, but they
don’t stop shaking, and I can’t see shit.”

“Can you see anything, though? Like shapes, or shadows? I know that some people can see
shadows and stuff.”

Jungkook’s lips pull into a small pout. “I used to be able to see shapes a little bit, in the right
lighting, but now it’s just void, just dark. I don’t see anything.” his hands stop on Taehyung’s
cheeks, and the latter just observes him for a few seconds; he looks deep in his thoughts

“Are you okay?” he asks.

“I just miss being… normal.” Jungkook admits.

“But you are normal, you’re you.” Taehyung frowns. He doesn’t like seeing anyone upset, and
Jungkook being upset over his condition makes him feel even worse. He doesn’t like it at all.

“Thank you…” the younger whispers, his hands picking up a good pace again, and Taehyung
decides not to speak when he feels two fingers touching over his lips. Jungkook halts. “You’ve
never told me that you have piercings.” he points, almost offended, as he twirls with the ring
around Taehyung’s bottom lip, on the left side.

“You never asked.” Taehyung says with a little smile.

“You’re horrible for keeping this information from me.” he still mumbles.

Jungkook traces his lips for roughly another minute, before moving to his nose, and Taehyung
chuckles when he stops again at the nose ring on his right nostril. He twirls it as well, slowly
sliding his pointer finger up the bridge of his nose.

“You have the straightest nose ever.” Jungkook voices his thoughts. “It’s literally perfectly
shaped.” he mumbles, feeling everything more eagerly, in awe. Taehyung’s eyelids, Taehyung’s
lashes; his strong eyebrows. He goes back to his lips, to his jaw, to his ears, fiddling with the
multiple piercings — and he giggles as he sticks his fingers through the gauges on his stretched
ears.

All the while, Taehyung just quietly watches, letting him take his time. He doesn’t want to bother
or interrupt, so he remains quiet. Jungkook goes over everything on his face a few times before he
deems it as enough, and pulls his hand away.

“I’m done…” he announces, hands shyly on his lap.

“Am I how you imagined?” Taehyung asks.

“No, you’re prettier than I thought you’d be.”

“Are you saying that I have an ugly personality?” he raises an eyebrow.

Jungkook snorts. “No, you’re just really handsome, and I wasn’t expecting that. That’s all.” he
compliments, worrying at his bottom lip.

Taehyung can feel himself blush, so he’s partially thankful for the fact that Jungkook can’t see it.
“Well, thank you.” he looks away at the ocean, clearing his throat. He wants to ask something that
will make Jungkook share a bit more, as they’ve never talked about his condition before. “What
uhm, what do you miss seeing the most?” he settles.

Jungkook pouts. “I’d say faces… I don’t remember what my parents look like and, even if I did,
they’re older now, so they don’t look the same as before… So, yeah, faces. And colors. Colors and
faces.” and so Taehyung regrets his question, because how can he possibly answer that?

He has no idea of how it must feel, he has no idea of how horrible it must be to have your sight
taken away, and so he doesn’t know what to say — he doesn’t want to say anything rude, but also
doesn’t know how to smoothly change the topic so suddenly.

Jungkook seems to sense just how tense he’s become, given that he clears his throat and puts on a
smile. “What does your hair look like? What color is it?” he asks as he taps the sand, looking for
his sunglasses. Taehyung hands them over, and he feels rather proud of himself when the younger
just puts them on top of his head, and not back on.
He makes Jungkook feel comfortable enough.

“My hair?” Jungkook nods. “Take a guess.” the other hums, accepting the challenge. He raises a
curious eyebrow when a hand threads through his hair, feeling it. “I don’t think that touching my
hair will help you guess its color.”

“It’s either dyed a really bright color, or you’ve dyed it many times.”

Taehyung gapes. “How do you know?”

“It’s dead.” he deadpans. “Your hair is dead, Tae.” the elder makes an affronted sound. “It’s soft,
don’t get me wrong, but it’s still dead… Is it a natural color, like brown or black?”

“Nope.”

“Hm… Red?” Taehyung denies again. “Is it… green? Orange?”

“Try again.” Jungkook huffs. “It’s a light color.”

“Uh… light… Oh— Light blue?” he asks, perking up. “Please, if it’s blue, I’ll probably cry for not
being able to see it. Light blue is my favorite color.” Taehyung considers lying, but he was never a
good liar, so he decides against it.

“Don’t cry, but yeah, it’s blue. Bright blue.”

The younger deflates, lips pouting. “I hate my eyes.”

Taehyung tsks. “They’re beautiful.”

If Jungkook blushes — which he does — they don’t comment on it.

│►

“Here.” Taehyung says as he places their coffees on the table, and Jungkook quickly reaches for
his mug, blindly searching for where to put the sugar. The artist cringes when he starts stirring it
with a satisfied grin. “I asked for caramel syrup as you asked, and you’re still adding sugar to
what’s already so sweet? You’re going to get diabetes, Jungkook.”

“I like sweet things… Besides, I’m already blind, what else can diabetes take from me?”

“I don’t know, your foot—?” Jungkook tilts his head. “I’m pretty sure that it’s a thing.”

“I’m not a doctor, man.” he says with a shrug before taking a sip, and Taehyung can feel his face
scrunching in distaste as he imagines the taste. “Thank you for ordering for me, by the way. I hate
interacting with the waiters, and I really hate paying. It’s a whole process.”

“No need to thank me.” Taehyung smiles. “Do you have anything planned for this afternoon?”

“Oh, yeah my schedule is packed with absolutely nothing.” Jungkook says as he places his chin on
his palm. “I’ll head home once I’m done here, and I’m just going to take a nap… Then, wake up
for dinner and go to bed, and call it a day.” he explains.

“That sounds exhausting.” Taehyung teases.

Jungkook huffs. “You’re telling me.” he takes another sip from his coffee. “What about you? Do
you have anything to do?” Taehyung watches as he fiddles with the mug for a second, his head
hanging low. He never knows where to face when talking to someone in order not to make them
uncomfortable, and Taehyung has noticed that a couple of times already.

He keeps his head down while talking.

“I do. I have two clients for this afternoon, two long sessions ahead. One of them will be there in
about five minutes, so I should really get going. I was just going to grab a take-out coffee, but then
I saw you coming in, and I had to sit down for a bit.”

“What— Five minutes? Leave, then, you— you’re going to be late!” Jungkook frowns. “You’re
both the owner andthe artist, you can’t be late, just go.” he gestures towards where he knows the
door is, and Taehyung nods, drinking his coffee in one go — it burns a bit, but it tastes good.

“I’ll text you once I’m done, okay?” Taehyung says, and Jungkook smiles with a little nod. “Be
careful on your way back home… Call me if you need anything, I’ll leave and drive you home.” he
offers and Jungkook pouts when he feels a pair of lips on his forehead. “Bye, Kook.”

“Bye, Tae…” Jungkook can hear the older man walking away, and he lets out a content sigh. He
never thought that he’d be befriending anyone ever again, not after everyone abandoned him when
he needed them the most. However, surprisingly, Taehyung doesn’t make him want to get as far
away as possible.

He doesn’t feel like running from it, doesn’t feel like ghosting Taehyung.

Taehyung actually seems to care for him, to respect him; it seems as though he sees right past
Jungkook’s condition, like it doesn’t matter or affect their friendship, and that’s something that he
hasn’t experienced ever since his accident.

Taehyung is like a fresh wave, a new feeling. A new chapter, it almost feels like; one where he’s
not alone, one where he has someone who clearly cares for him, and it’s a great feeling.

And he cares for Taehyung, too. No matter how much he may tease the artist, how mean he may
get sometimes — which might be a bit too often — he doesn’t do it with malice. He doesn’t want
to hurt him, nor to see him upset. Hopefully, Taehyung is aware of that.

He wouldn’t want to hang out with him if he took his insulting jokes to heart.

Which is even better. Jungkook’s really lucked out; he managed to find a friend that doesn’t hate
his humor, that doesn’t see him for his condition, and respects him and his boundaries. Taehyung’s
great, he’s coming to realize more and more.

Jungkook’s glad that he didn’t push him away.

│►

Taehyung plops down on the floor right on the padded mat, his back against the two corner walls
as he waits for the younger man to decide which book they’ll be going through. Jungkook blindly
passes his fingers through the books — children’s books, to be more precise. Everything around
them is decorated for kids as they picked the children part of the library so that they’re able to
speak as much as they wish, and they can’t help but to think that it’s far more comfortable like this.

“Where— Where are you?” Jungkook asks as he turns his head around, trying to locate himself.
He’s already picked one of the books, and he’s ready to start going through it.

“I’m right here, to your left.” he informs, watching with some amusement as the younger man
makes his way towards him, only to plop himself between Taehyung’s open legs, his back against
the latter’s strong and welcoming chest. Taehyung’s arms circle around his waist to be able to hold
the book, and he chuckles once he reads over the title. “I hate you for this, you really had to grab
Bear Hunt, huh?”

Jungkook laughs. “Is it really? That’s beautiful, please read it.”

Taehyung clears his throat to ready himself. “We’re going on a bear hunt, we’re going to catch a
big one… what a beautiful day, I’m not scared.” Jungkook giggles; he’s heard this song a lot when
he was a kid, sometimes his parents would sing it to him while they played with his toys, so he
can’t wait to see how Taehyung does the sounds. “Uh-oh! Grass! Long, wavy grass…We can’t go
over it, we can’t go under it… Oh, no! We’ve got to go through it!”

“You have to read the next part with emotion and determination.” Jungkook commands as he taps
his thigh encouragingly.

“Dude, this is humiliating—”

“You said that you’d read for me…” he pouts, knowing that Taehyung’s too weak to resist that.

“Okay, okay, don’t pout.” Taehyung sighs, mentally preparing himself for such a thing. “I don’t
even know how to read this shit— Okay, uh, swishy, swashy. Swishy, swashy. Swishy, swashy.”
Jungkook laughs, his whole body rocking against Taehyung’s as easy giggles spill from his lips.

“We’re going on a bear hunt…” Jungkook repeats the next chorus with him, way too entertained.

And Taehyung goes on; he makes all of the terrible, embarrassing sounds that get Jungkook to
laugh every single time, and he loves it. Jungkook has a beautiful laugh — quite funny, too, he
must admit — and though he can’t see it, he can only guess how happy he looks as well.

“…Uh-oh! A snowstorm… We can’t go over it, we can’t go under it… Oh, no! We’ve got to go
through it!” Taehyung reads, Jungkook lowly singing along to it. He’s surprised when he feels a
soft blow on his ear instead of Taehyung making the horrendous sound that the book has written.

Jungkook’s breath hitches, the little hairs on the back of his neck rising as goosebumps wreck
through his whole body. Taehyung just places his chin on his shoulder, reading the rest of the book
in a quieter tone of voice, right by his ear. Jungkook just enjoys it; Taehyung’s voice is calming.

It’s over too soon, and he surely wishes that the book was a little longer. “I’m so glad that this is
over.” the elder says, contradicting his own opinion. “This was the most humiliating experience in
my life, and I cried getting my dick pierced, which I didn’t think could ever be topped.” Jungkook
gasps, loud and shocked, as he pulls away from him. “What’s up with that face?”

“Do you really have a piercing on your—” Taehyung shushes him before he can finish his
sentence, well aware of the children in the room while Jungkook can’t really see them to know just
how close they are. “Tae, you’re absolute bat-shit crazy. That must’ve hurt so much, what the
fucking hell!” he comments. “Where even is it? Is it like, on the tip?” Taehyung laughs quietly,
amused by his curiosity, “I’m serious.”

“It’s under the head, yeah. On top.” Jungkook’s entire body cringes. “It’s good during sex, it drags
on the right spots.” he argues.

“I don’t care, I’d never in my life put myself through such a thing. Just thinking about it bothers
me— A needle going through my dick—?! Absolutely not. I’m going to grab another book, this is
making me nauseous.” Taehyung watches him crawl until his head hits the shelf, and Jungkook just
giggles, reaching for the first book that his fingers touch.

Then, he crawls back. “To your left.” Taehyung aids.

“Thanks…” he smiles, sitting himself right back between his legs. “What is this one about?” he
asks, lifting his arms so that Taehyung can sneak his around him again to hold the book.

“Let’s see… It’s an alternative book about farms. It says that it has patches where you can feel
things, and buttons with sounds.” Taehyung explains as Jungkook adjusts himself into an even
more comfortable position. “Shall I start?” the younger nods, so he opens the book. “This is where
all of our horsies— Seriously? Horsies? This is so fucking stupid.”

“Oh, my God, that’s beautiful, go on.” Jungkook taps his thigh again

Taehyung sighs. “This is where all of our horsies feed and play with each other— Give me your
hand, please.” he gently grabs it, placing it on the fake hay attached to a certain spot on the page of
the book. “Can you guess what it is?”

Jungkook feels it for a few seconds. “Is this your hair?” he asks, innocent.

“You’re the meanest person that I’ve ever met.”

Jungkook laughs. “At least my hair is alive.”

“At least I can see the b— Oh, my God, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to say that. I’m so fucking
sorry, Jungkook.” Taehyung immediately panics when Jungkook covers his face with both of his
hands, shoulders shaking as he sniffs. Taehyung wants to perish. “Oh, no— I’m so sorry, please.”

Taehyung pulls his head to his chest, kissing his hair multiple times.

He can already feel tears welling up in his own eyes, and he knows that he won’t be able to hold
himself from crying if Jungkook continues shaking in his arms. How could he say such a horrible
thing? That was the most insensitive thing that he could’ve ever said, the worst joke that he
could’ve ever come up with. He made Jungkook cry, he—

Jungkook snorts. “Dumbass.”

“What— You’re— Are you laughing?” his voice cracks, and Jungkook laughs even harder. He
can’t stop wheezing, but he finds the silence a little too heavy and too long, so he searches for
Taehyung’s face to detect what expression he has — whether he’s angry or not — and he’s
surprised to feel two tears, one on each cheek.

It makes him laugh more. He can’t believe it. He finds it cute, adorable, even, that Taehyung cares
for his feelings so much, but he can’t help but to frown once it really sinks in. Someone cares for
him that much. No one’s ever cared for him like this, no one’s ever considered his emotions like
this.

It makes his eyes well up, too.

“I’m so sorry.” Taehyung repeats for the twentieth time.

“I’m not mad at all, Tae. It was funny, don’t cry. I don’t like crying.” he says with a pout, wiping
away Taehyung’s tears before dropping his hands on his lap. “If I can make fun of everything
about you, then you can make fun of me, too. It’s only fair, and I don’t mind.”
“No. No, that wasn’t something to be making fun of. I’m really fucking sorry, I didn’t mean to say
that, Jungkook.” he feels the need to assure, heart heavy. Jungkook’s still surprised to hear it,
because Taehyung respects him so much that he feels cherished, appreciated.

Jungkook feels up to Taehyung’s cheek again, leaning in to press a sweet kiss to it. He pulls back
right after, startled. “Oh— I— Uh, just— Continue reading, please.” he requests, cheeks flaring
red, accommodating himself against Taehyung’s chest once again.

“Just, please, promise me that you’re not mad… I don’t want you to resent me and then never want
to hang out like this again.” Taehyung says with a frown of his own.

“You— You want to do this again?” it’s almost a whisper, a shy one at that.

“Even if you’re a menace, I like hanging out with you… So, if you want to, we can go wherever
we feel like, and do whatever we feel like.” Jungkook looks down, worrying at his bottom lip as he
thinks it through. “You don’t want to…?” Taehyung asks when he gets nothing but silence.

“I do!” he rushes. “I do, I just— No one has done shit for me after the accident, no one cared to try
to understand why I’m a menace… It’s weird how you uhm, want me around…” he sighs.

“I’m here now, and I want to make you happy.” Taehyung states, combing Jungkook’s bangs away
from his forehead though if he can’t properly see him. “Even if it means humiliating myself in a
public library just to make you laugh.” he adds, voice so honest that it makes Jungkook’s head
spin.

“Right, ok, stop with this sappy ass conversation, and tell me about the horses.”

Taehyung cackles. “You’re cute.” he whispers behind his ear.

“Speak closer, why don’t you.”

“Like this?” Taehyung’s voice sounds ten times deeper, and Jungkook can’t even ignore the
goosebumps that rise yet again, or his neck unconsciously tilting to the side as Taehyung’s lips
graze over his ear. “Anyway, the next bit says that you can hear the sounds that pigs make. Have
you ever heard a pig before?”

Jungkook blinks a few times to collect himself. “Yes.”

“You’re supposed to say no.”

“Oh, ask again.”

“Have you ever heard a pig before?” Taehyung repeats.

“No, I have not.” he chuckles.

“Prepare yourself to be amazed, then.” Jungkook giggles, allowing Taehyung to guide his hand to
the button on the book. “Press it…”

│►

Taehyung lets go of Jungkook’s hand — used to help guiding him — once they reach the front of
the latter’s house but, instead of stepping back to open the door, the younger turns to him, reaching
to hold his hand again. “Do you need help getting in?” he asks, confused.

“No, no, I was just wondering… Do you want to come in…?” Jungkook asks.
“Oh.” Taehyung can’t say that he’s not surprised, but he’s very much content with the invite.
“Yeah, I can g—”

“Wait, uhm, don’t take my words poorly, I don’t— I mean, I didn’t mean that in any way other
than wanting to hang out with a friend.” Jungkook rushes to say, his cheeks flaring red as he
unconsciously removes his hand from Taehyung’s hold.

The artist smiles, soft. “I didn’t even think of anything other than that.” he assures. “Why did you
think of that? Or, well, why did you assume that I would?”

“Because someone once assumed that much, and it wasn’t what I had meant then, either. When I
rejected them, they left me without thinking twice. That was the last friend that I had after the
accident… I just don’t want the same thing to happen with you, that’s why I’m making sure that
we’re on the same page.” Jungkook explains, head tilting down to face the floor.

“Give me names.” Taehyung points, and Jungkook smiles. “You’re my friend, who I really
appreciate and cherish. I wouldn’t even think of such a thing with you. Don’t worry.”

Jungkook isn’t so sure of why that statement doesn’t sit that well at the pit of his stomach, nor why
it makes his smile slowly slip away.

“Well, come on in.” he shakes it away, inviting him as he opens the door. “Leave your shoes here,
or my mom will kill the both of us if you’re still here when she arrives. I may not see footstep
marks on the carpet, but she never misses those.”

“Oh, sure.” Taehyung does just as asked, watching with amusement as Jungkook aligns his shoes
almost perfectly on the shelf. He finds it really amazing how aware the younger manages to be of
everything — or almost everything — even though he can’t visualize it.

He’s guided upstairs, and Jungkook seems to know exactly where his bedroom door is. He’s
allowed inside first, the young man following after him and closing the door behind himself.

They both sit on the bed, the cane dropped carelessly on the floor near it, and Taehyung looks
around, curiously and thoroughly inspecting his bedroom. It’s simple, the decoration isn’t very
over-the-top, but it’s extremely well put together.

There’s an accent wall, the one behind the bed, painted in black as all of the others are a clean,
white color. Everything else in the bedroom consists of those two same monochrome colors and,
judging by the way that Jungkook dresses, it was his own personal decision to keep his bedroom
decorated in all blacks, greys and whites.

One of the walls is what really gets Taehyung’s full attention: it mainly only has a desk and a few
shelves with books and plants, even some small action figures, but what catches his eye are the old
vinyl records scattered all over the wall. He can’t see the bands from afar, but the overall look is a
great touch, a great addition to the room.

“Those albums look really fucking cool.” he compliments, honest.

“Oh, do you think so?” Jungkook smiles, as if proud. “I hung them a few years ago… To be
completely honest with you, there are some bands in there that I don’t even know or ever heard of,
but I wanted the wall to look cool. They were my dad’s way back then, and I totally stole them.” he
explains with a little shrug. “I don’t know what kind of music you typically enjoy, but judging from
what I heard at your parlor, you probably would like some of those bands.”

“I like anything that has good drums, nice and powerful electric guitar solos… I’m very much a
metal fan, for most of it. I can listen to anything, though, as long as it’s good.”

“Highschooler Jungkook going through his emo phase would be drooling right now.” Jungkook
jokes, and he smiles when he gets to hear Taehyung’s laugh. “Anyway… Shall we watch some
television? Maybe a movie?”

“Sounds great, where’s the remote?” he asks.

“Did you really just ask me to locate something?” Jungkook asks back as he takes off his
sunglasses to leave them on the bedside table — it makes Taehyung warm inside, happy that he’s
able to make Jungkook feel comfortable enough to just be without his glasses now.

“No, I asked because you could have a specific spot to keep it.”

“I lose it every time, I never know where it is.” Jungkook giggles.

“We can just look for it— Wait, do you even enjoy watching television, or did you pick that just
because it’d be entertaining for me?” Taehyung suddenly recalls. “We can do something else, since
you… you know, you can’t actually watch what we will be watching…” he elaborates, though
cautious of the topic; he doesn’t want to say something wrong, or be hurtful.

“I have ears.”

“You do, yes.”

“I can, therefore, hear.”

Taehyung blinks. “I would hope so, yes.”

“What I’m trying to say is, I’m a creative young man who can picture stuff in my head solely based
on what I hear. Granted, I may sometimes imagine stuff that isn’t happening, but that’s where
you’re useful.” Jungkook explains with a shrug. “Just look for the remote.” he instructs as he starts
patting the mattress, set on finding said object.

Taehyung gets up to look around the bed, as it might have just fallen during the night or something,
but he soon looks back up in alarm when he hears a loud thumping sound and a yelp.

“Oh, shit, are you okay?!” he asks, rushing around the bed to find Jungkook unceremoniously
folded on the floor, one of his legs still on the mattress. “Are you hurt? Do you—” his worry slips
away when he hears Jungkook’s laugh, said male turning over to lay on his back instead.

“This happens a lot.” Jungkook manages to say between giggles.

Taehyung smiles, endeared. “C’mon, I’ll help you up.” he bends down, taking his hands to pull
him up. “Just sit tight, I’ll look for the remote… I don’t want to have to drive you to the hospital
with a cut on your forehead.”

“I’ve grown thicker skin all over from falling so much, this doesn’t hurt anymore.” Jungkook
admits. “And I’ve just found the remote.” he informs with a bright smile, his hand reappearing
from under the covers, holding it. “Here, you look for a movie.”

“Alright.” Taehyung sits back down, both resting against the headboard of the bed. “Can I pick any
genre?”

“Yep.” Jungkook nods. “And you should totally order us a pizza.”

Taehyung hums. “Do you want one?”

“Yep.”

“I can do that.”

Jungkook smiles. “You’re the best.”

│►

“Here, I’m here.” Taehyung uses his voice to guide him to the front of the car, and Jungkook’s a
little surprised when two firm, yet gentle, hands grab him by the waist to help him sit on the hood
of the car. He’s handed a box of what he already knows to be the pizza that they purchased earlier,
and he’s quick to get himself a slice.

“Can you explain what you’re seeing?” he requests.

“Uhm…” Taehyung looks ahead, sitting himself next to him. “It’s almost nighttime, and we’re at
the top of a hill… There are some trees around us, and we can see the whole city from here, but it’s
quiet, so it feels like we’re in a completely different place than them down there. The sky is a bit
orange and red right now as the sun is starting to set, and it’s really pretty.” he does his best to
explain what he’s seeing, taking his time to even decide what to point out.

“Hm.” Jungkook nods, swallowing the pizza in his mouth. “On a scale from zero to you, how
beautiful do you consider the view?” he asks with newfound confidence, unsure of where it even
came from, but feels proud of himself for not stuttering.

Taehyung’s positively surprised by the question, caught off guard, even, and shily nudges him with
his elbow. “The wind that you’re able to feel makes a few leaves fly from the trees and just… drag
on the floor, and it looks quite lovely. You’d love to see it.” he turns back to the younger man,
whose smile still hasn’t faltered, not even a little. It’s not a huge smile, but it’s definitely there, and
it’s honest. “Why are you smiling to yourself like that?”

“I uh— I like hearing you talk. I like your voice…” he whispers.

“Oh. Thank you… but it’s just a voice.” Taehyung looks away, feeling his cheeks heating up a
little. Jungkook’s never complimented him before; not like that, at least, so confidently and
forward.

“That’s genuinely offensive, and I’m offended by that.” Jungkook frowns. “It’s really deep and
calming and… soothing.” he explains as he turns towards the elder, bravely reaching for his throat
to feel his Adam’s apple. “Hm, I’m surprised. I thought that it would be way more prominent, it
doesn’t quite match your voice.”

Taehyung’s breath hitches when Jungkook accidentally presses on the sides of his throat.

“Don’t do that.” he warns, gently prying Jungkook’s hand away.

“What— Why? Oh, fuck, did I hurt you? I’m sorry.”

“No, you didn’t, it just… Turns me on, is all.”

It takes Jungkook a second too long to understand what Taehyung means by that and, when it does
click in his mind, his cheeks turn a deep shade of red. “I’m sorry.” he repeats. “That’s kinky as shit,
though… But I’ll refrain from mocking you.”
“Oh, so we’re kink shaming now?”

Jungkook tsks, grabbing another slice. “Nah, I just can’t let pass on an opportunity to make fun of
you, as you can imagine. Being nice literally deteriorates my health.” he jokes.

Taehyung laughs. “You’re honestly unbelievable.”

“Thanks.”

“It wasn’t a compliment.”

“And I didn’t ask.” Jungkook shrugs. Taehyung rolls his eyes, entertained, as he opens himself one
of the cans of Sprite. “Can you continue describing the view? I was thoroughly enjoying the details
that you were providing.”

“Were you enjoying the details or my voice?” the artist teases.

“I knew that you’d use that against me. I’ll literally never compliment you again, and this is a
promise.” Jungkook points an accusing finger, and Taehyung finds it strangely endearing how he’s
not pointing at him properly, but to his right; he doesn’t have the heart to point that out.

“Fine by me, but I’ll remember this gem forever.” he flicks Jungkook’s chin.

“You’re a traitor.”

│►

It’s only around a week from that day that Jungkook visits Taehyung’s apartment for the first time,
having been invited after complaining about how bored he was at home. He’s not surprised when
he smells Taehyung’s cologne everywhere in the apartment, and he’d be lying if he said that it’s
not one of the most comforting scents.

“Taehyungie…?” Jungkook calls as he plops himself on the bed, searching for something in his
backpack. “I got a letter today, but my mom was in a hurry to go to work, so she couldn’t read it for
me… I brought it, I thought that maybe you’d read it. If you don’t mind.” he asks with a little
persuasive pout, holding the letter.

“You want me to read it for you?” Taehyung asks, taking it.

“Well, yeah, I’m Jared.”

“Who the fuck is Jared?”

Jungkook gasps. “Gosh, the generation gap just slapped me across the face. I can’t believe that you
don’t fucking know memes. Jared is a guy who’s nineteen and can’t read.” he explains the
obvious. “Can you read it or not?” he pouts.

“Hm, if you ask very nicely, I’ll consider.”

“I want to hit you.” it’s an information more than it is a threat, and Taehyung laughs.

“Keep the damn cane on the floor or I won’t read shit.” he threatens back, though it’s an obvious
joke. “You’re so mean to me. I should just let you read it yourself somehow.”

Jungkook snatches the envelope from his hand, opening it as though he really can just read it
himself. “Ah, yes, yes, Taehyung’s the meanest person ever, he deserves to get punched
repeatedly, mhm, this letter is absolutely correct. Whoever took the time to write this truly knows
their stuff.” he puts the letter down, getting up from the bed to walk away. “I’m leav—”

“Holy shit—” Taehyung rushes to get up, trying to act before it’s too late, but the pained sound that
Jungkook lets out is enough for him to know that he should’ve been faster; Jungkook’s just really
walked face-first into the nearest wall. “Gosh, are you hurt?”

“My nose…!” Jungkook whines, followed by a little laugh that sounds rather shy, possibly
embarrassed, and Taehyung carefully pries his hands away from his nose. He’s beyond relieved
when he doesn’t see any blood. “Is it broken? Fuck, is it like, totally crooked now?”

“No, you’re not bleeding, and it looks right.” Taehyung assures.

“Why the fuck is there a wall?!” he complains in yet another whine, his cheeks heating up
impossibly more when he feels Taehyung press multiple little kisses to the bridge of his nose.

“The wall has always been there.” Taehyung laughs, allowing Jungkook to tuck himself into his
chest, and he takes a hand to the back of his head to thread through the black hair. “I’m only happy
to see that you didn’t damage my wall, which is the most important part.”

Jungkook pulls away to slap his arm. Hard.

“My nose is way more—” he yelps when he feels himself fall backwards, and it’s the most
terrifying sensation ever, even if he knows that Taehyung is literally falling with him and knows
that they’re just going to hit the mattress. “Dude, don’t fucking do that to me, I thought that I was
dying for a second.” he scolds.

“Hey, don’t worry, I got you.” Taehyung reassures, and he pouts. “Let’s see what this letter is
about, come here.” he instructs, guiding Jungkook until he’s sitting between his legs.

“I’m curious as to what it says, I rarely ever receive letters…” Jungkook comments as he makes
himself comfortable, his back resting against Taehyung’s strong chest.

“It says that your… bank is changing its policy on—”

“Oh, I don’t care.” Jungkook interrupts. “They’re always changing some bullshit, we don’t even
read their letters anymore. It’s really not important.” he explains as he gets the letter from
Taehyung’s hands, only to fold it neatly and put it away on the nightstand.

“Are you sure?” Taehyung questions.

“Yeah.” he nods. “So… How was your day?”

“My day?” Jungkook hums, melting even more against Taehyung’s chest. “I had a few tattoo
appointments, and this one girl cried the whole time, but wouldn’t accept defeat. Truth is, she
pulled through, and walked out with a badass tattoo on her hip… I drew a bit, and I’m just kind of
exhausted today, so I didn’t feel like staying in the studio for longer.”

“You’re tired?”

“Yeah.”

“Why’d you let me come here, then?” he frowns.

Taehyung shrugs. “I enjoy your company… and I know that we might just end up taking a nap,
anyway, so it all works in favor of me unwinding after a long day.” he explains. “What about you?
How was your day?”

“Well… I did nothing, then I decided to be a bit more proactive and did absolutely nothing. My
mom told me that I should go to the gym to pass the time and, after contemplating that, I settled for
just doing nothing instead. I wasn’t satisfied with the amount of nothing that I had done, though, so
I proceeded to do a bit more nothing, until I came here.” Jungkook lists off on his fingers, and
Taehyung can’t help but to laugh. “Why are you laughing? Are you mocking me?”

“No, you’re just really entertaining.” Taehyung chuckles right behind his ear.

“You should start paying me for this, I’m like your personal joker.” he can just hear the smile in
his voice. “Shall we watch a movie or something? It’s a good excuse for us to end up falling asleep
without me feeling like a retired man.”

“Aren’t you a retired man?”

Jungkook takes a moment. “I hate you, I fear.”

Taehyung snorts. “Just lay down.”

“I will, but not because you’re telling me to.”

The artist nods, lying down as Jungkook does the same. “Sure.”

│►

Jungkook taps his thigh, bored out of his mind.

He was watching a show on the television, but it has long stopped being entertaining, and he’s just
fighting sleep at this point. He doesn’t want to fall asleep on Taehyung’s couch, though, so he
continues letting his foot tap the couch almost rhythmically.

Taehyung looks up from the tattoo design that he’s currently working on, startled when his eyes
meet Jungkook’s. “Stop looking at me like that.” he says without even thinking. “Wait—”

“I wasn’t— Tae.” Jungkook laughs, blindly searching for the nearest pillow to lay on, finally
giving up on trying to stay awake. “I can’t look at you in any way.”

“I forget sometimes, I’m sorry.”

“How can you forget that I’m blind as a bat?” he asks, voice a little lazy.

“Because you’re way more than just that, and the fact that your eyes look so — I’m going to say
normal, but you know what I mean — makes me feel like you’re watching me sometimes.” the
artist explains, focusing back on his drawing. “You look cute when you’re spacing out, too.”

Jungkook can feel his cheeks heating up, something that has been happening a little too often when
Taehyung’s involved, but he makes sure to push that thought to the very far back of his mind. He
clears his throat. “Does it bother you? When I’m uh, not looking but looking at you like that? I
don’t know when I’m doing it, I’m literally not looking anywhere, so I’m unsure of how I’d be
able to stop, but still…”

“No, no, don’t worry about it. It doesn’t bother me at all, it just makes me a bit… shy sometimes, I
guess.” Taehyung admits, only looking up when Jungkook giggles mischievously. He can see the
younger man randomly running his eyes, trying to find him again, and he really does feel his heart
skip a beat when their eyes meet again. “Stop—!”

Jungkook cackles, clapping for himself.

He feels proud, for some reason.

He likes the idea of making Taehyung shy.

The idea of Taehyung alone; Taehyung makes him feel free, and happy.

Jungkook yelps, a little surprised, when he feels a sudden weight being dropped on top of his body.
His heart hammers in his chest upon the realization that it’s Taehyung, now finding a better
position to rest his head on Jungkook’s strong chest.

“Are you bored?” Taehyung asks, finally settling. “What are you watching?”

“I-I was watching a crime show, but I started losing focus and now I have no idea of what’s
happening in the episode…” he explains, gulping. “You’re— You’re currently on top of me.”

“I’m aware. You’re comfortable… Do you want me to leave?” Jungkook takes a brief second to
consider that. It’s not a hard decision, really. Taehyung isn’t that heavy, and he’s warm, so it’d be
silly to ask him to get up.

Besides, Taehyung’s undivided attention is on him now, and that’s exactly what he was looking
for. So, “No, don’t move.” he decides, shoulders relaxing. “I don’t mind, you’re not heavy.”

“Would you like to put on another movie or a show? Since you lost track of this one.”

“Uhm… Yeah, we can watch something.”

Taehyung hums. “Why the hesitation?”

“I was a second away from falling asleep. I feel like I’ll just pass out halfway if we watch
something… But if you go back to drawing if I say no, then yes.” Jungkook admits, his lips pulled
into a little pout as he speaks.

“Do you like my attention that much?” the artist teases.

“You know what, just go—”

“Shush.” Taehyung tsks. “You can take a nap, I’ll wake you up after the movie ends so that we can
order some food…” he instructs, and Jungkook relaxes further on the couch, hesitantly placing his
hand on Taehyung’s back. “Sounds good?”

“Y-Yes.” Jungkook clears his throat. “I mean, yes, it sounds great.”

“Great.”

│►

Taehyung’s eyes slowly flutter open, the faint light coming from the open bedroom door making
him close his lids once again. He groans, stretching his limbs as he turns over to lay on his side to
check on the younger man.

Jungkook’s hair is sticking in every single direction, mouth open with little snores coming out. He
looks adorable, Taehyung thinks.

The artist raises a hand to carefully touch the round tip of Jungkook’s nose, and it makes him lean
away with a sleepy hum; his nose scrunches, his unfocused eyes open. Taehyung could never have
enough of looking at them. Jungkook’s eyes are big, round, and they always look so innocently
wide that juxtapose just how unfiltered and sarcastic and witty Jungkook is.

“Awake?” Taehyung asks in a soft whisper.

“Morning…” Jungkook stretches. “What time is it?”

Taehyung turns over to check his bedside table before facing him again. “Just a little past eight, it’s
still early.” he informs. “You look like a mess in the morning.”

The young man tsks. “I know that I must look really fucking cute right now, so your lies shall not
affect me this early in the morning.” he rolls onto his back, closing his eyes again. “I wish— I wish
that I could see your morning face…” it’s a whisper so soft that it almost goes unheard. “How did
we even end up sleeping? I don’t remember. How did you lure me into your bed, mister?”

Taehyung chuckles, rolling his eyes. “Remember when I left to pee? I came back and you were
passed out, drooling on my damn pillow. I didn’t have the heart to wake you up, so I just tucked
you in and let you sleep, since you were already in sweatpants.” he explains. “I texted your mom,
though, so don’t worry about not having warned them.”

“Oh, okay.” he nods, surprising the elder when he drags himself closer until he’s hiding against
Taehyung’s strong chest. Jungkook lets out a content sigh as he’s held closely, Taehyung catching
onto his cuddling intentions. They allow the silence to settle between them again, Jungkook almost
purring at the hand that twirls with his black hair.

“Don’t be upset.” Taehyung says after a few minutes.

“Hm?”

“That you can’t see my morning face, I mean. I look terrible after waking up, you don’t have to feel
sad for not being able to see it.”

“I don’t believe you.” Jungkook shakes his head.

“Still, don’t be sad about it. You should never be upset over anything.” Taehyung says in a
whisper, his deeper morning voice sounding like nothing but music to Jungkook’s ears; so husky
and comforting.

“It’s not that I’m upset, I’ve accepted this dull reality by now. It’s just… not fucking fun. It is what
it is, and I can’t do shit to change it, but I wish that I could see you, your blue hair and your eyes
and— and your cool piercings and that straight ass nose that you have.” Jungkook sighs.

Taehyung doesn’t know what to say to that.

He’s afraid of sounding either wrong, insensitive, or maybe even invalidating.

It’s hard to choose the right words to use when he has no idea of how it is like to be in Jungkook’s
shoes. He doesn’t want him to be upset, he just wants to help, but sometimes words only make it all
worse, and he doesn’t want to hurt Jungkook in any way.

Jungkook can sense his hesitation, and he knows exactly why that is, so he pulls back with a little
smile. “Can I make breakfast?”

“With all due respect, you’re going to set fire to my kitchen.”

“No, I won’t.”

“You most definitely will.”

“I just want to feel helpful for once…” Jungkook says with a pout. “I haven’t been able to do
anything for years, my parents barely even allow me to use a knife when we’re having meat, I feel
fucking useless sometimes. I just want to do something. Please…? Let me make us some breakfast
today.” he almost begs, and Taehyung nods, though he can’t see.

“Okay.” he gives in. “I’ll supervise you, still.”

Jungkook smiles, getting up from the bed in a split second. “C’mon.” he instructs, blindly reaching
for Taehyung’s hands to get him to do the same. “Get up, c’mon, let’s go.”

“You have way too much energy in the morning.” Taehyung notes; it’s the first time that they
spend the night together, so it comes off as a surprise to see Jungkook so active right after waking
up; Taehyung can barely think before his morning coffee.

“I’ve always been a morning person. My energy and patience just kind of dies down during the
day, but I’m usually nice when I wake up.” Jungkook explains with a giggle, letting himself be
guided by the hand to the kitchen, which doesn’t make him nearly as scared as it used to at the start
— he knows that Taehyung would never let him trip or walk into something.

“You being nice is definitely the most shocking part.”

“Hater.”

“May be.” Taehyung chuckles, stretching his back before clapping once. “Alright, what do we need
first?” he asks, ready to start preparing their food.

“Milk.” Jungkook points. “You know, for coffee.” Taehyung hums, opening the fridge to get the
milk and place it on the counter. He has to helplessly watch as Jungkook smacks it with his hand
when he tries to reach for it. “Oh, my—!” he lets out, startled, the plastic jug of milk now on the
floor. “I’m so sorry, Tae, I didn’t—”

“It’s ok, don’t apologize.” Taehyung is quick to stop him before he can feel bad over it. “I’ll take
care of the coffees, what else would you like to prepare?” he asks as he picks up the milk from the
floor; at least it’s plastic.

“Uhm… I used to make really good scrambled eggs. And, not that I’m bragging or anything, but I
have really good arms to mix up the eggs.” Jungkook comments with the largest grin, flexing one
of his arms. “Just give me a bowl and eggs, and I’ll take care of it.”

He’s way too adorable for Taehyung’s sanity.

It’s getting harder to handle the pull that Jungkook has on him.

“Here you go.” Taehyung places a plastic bowl in front of him, lest it have the same fate as the
milk, and a box of eggs. Jungkook hums a song to himself as he feels up the counter to locate the
eggs, and confidently gets one.
The elder keeps an eye on him while filling up the mugs with the right amount of milk, and he
hums in appreciation when Jungkook successfully cracks the egg on the edge of the counter. He
has to suppress his laugh, however, when Jungkook tries opening the egg.

“What— Why are you snorting? What did I do?” he asks, clueless.

“You completely missed the bowl, Kook.” Jungkook furrows his eyebrows, hand searching the
counter for the bowl, only to be met with the splashed egg. His shoulders sag, and Taehyung can’t
possibly let him want to give up. “How about I just help you? It’s early, we’re all clumsy in the
morning.” he tries.

“You were right, I’ll just burn your kitchen down or s—”

“I was joking, you know that.” Taehyung stores the milk back in the fridge before making his way
to stand behind the younger man. “I’ll help you… I’ll be your eyes, I’ll guide you.” Jungkook
gasps softly when he feels Taehyung’s chest pressed against his back, and two hands over his own.

He worries at his bottom lip, breathing in. “O-Ok.” he curses himself for stuttering, almost
elbowing Taehyung on the ribs for chuckling and pinching his cheek. “What are you laughing at?
I’ll fight you, seriously.” Jungkook threatens, albeit empty.

Taehyung only chuckles. “You’re adorable.”

Jungkook groans. “Shut up…!” he half-whines, blindly searching for the eggs again. Taehyung
steps even closer, if possible, to be able to peek over the younger’s shoulder to see, and he lets him
crack the egg on the edge of the counter by himself.

Then, he gently places his hands over Jungkook’s again to aid him on how to open the egg into the
bowl. “There, you did it.” Taehyung informs right below his ear, and he can tell how the younger
sucks in a harsh breath. “We only need to repeat that successfully three or four more times, hm?”
he teases.

“And I will.” Jungkook says with certainty, reaching for another egg. He bites down on his bottom
lip when he feels Taehyung’s hands resting on his hips, only to stay there even when he aims for
the bowl. “Am I— Is it here?”

“You’re doing great.” Taehyung encourages.

Jungkook nods, focusing on his task instead of the deep voice by his ear, the breathing right on his
neck, the thumbs caressing his hips — it’s all a little too distracting, and he can only hope that
Taehyung won’t be able to tell that his hands are shaking.

“Tae?” he whispers.

“Hm?”

“Y-You’re distracting me.”

Taehyung chuckles, entertained, but takes a step to the side. “Apologies. Go on, I’m watching
you.” he reassures, one of his hands now on Jungkook’s small waist. “You’re doing well.”

Jungkook nods, grabbing another egg. He feels like he can breathe now, though he enjoyed having
Taehyung as close as he was previously. For his own sanity, a little space is entirely necessary, and
he still has to ignore the hand on his waist so that, hopefully, his hands will stop shaking so
dumbly. He blames on how sleepy he partly is.
He just woke up, after all.

That’s definitely it.

“You’re going to love my eggs.”

Taehyung hums. “I’m sure that I will.”

│►

“The lasagna is finally in the oven… obviously not thanks to you.” Taehyung informs as he returns
to the living room, and Jungkook giggles to himself before eating another chip.

“I didn’t even do anything wrong.” he defends.

“You ate the entire package of shredded cheese while I built the lasagna. We were lucky that I
have nice neighbors, otherwise I’d have to run to the store to buy more.” the artist tsks. “I still can’t
understand how you ate that shit in two seconds.”

“In my defense, I can’t see.” Jungkook tries. “I couldn’t see the bag, you know, emptying.”

“You’re full of shit.”

“Shut up.” he throws a chip at Taehyung, missing by a big margin. “Please, tell me that I totally hit
you in the face with that.”

“The face of the ghost sitting next to me, maybe.” Taehyung teases, watching as Jungkook
crumbles the empty bag of chips. “Have you finished those already— You eat like a vacuum
cleaner.”

“I went to the gym today, I need to eat well.” Jungkook mumbles, folding his legs on the couch to
get more comfortable. “Can we pick the movie right now? With how indecisive you are, if we wait
for the food, it’ll run cold as we pick what to watch.”

“You’re going to regret that, because I’ve just now decided that we’ll be watching the first movie
that comes up.” Taehyung says, as a matter-of-factly, and Jungkook only gives him a thumbs up
with a nod. “And… it’s chosen, if it sucks, it’ll be your fault alone. It’s horror, by the way.”

“Fine by me.” Jungkook shrugs.

“Do you even fully enjoy horror movies?” Taehyung asks, turning to him with the television
paused on the first frame of the movie. “I mean, horror is interesting because of the jump scares,
and you can’t see them…” he elaborates.

“Horror is fun. I get just as startled by the sounds that they add.” Jungkook explains. “Though, I
admit, sometimes I get kind of lost because some horror movies don’t have a lot of dialogue, so I
end up unable to follow up with what’s happening and — give me your hand, please — that aspect
sucks, but I still enjoy it.”

Taehyung gives him his hand, a little puzzled, but quickly understands that Jungkook only wanted
something to fiddle with; in this case, his long fingers.

“That makes sense… You can ask, by the way. If you get lost, you can always ask me what’s
going on. I don’t mind explaining the whole thing to you.”

Jungkook coos. “Thank you.” he smiles, running his fingers over Taehyung’s. “Hey, why do your
fingers feel like they have some bumpy lines? I’ve noticed this before, but never got around to
ask… Are they scars or something?” he asks with curiosity as he tries to follow one of the lines
with the soft pad of his finger.

“Some tattoos heal differently than—”

“You have tattoos?!” Jungkook interrupts, obviously offended. “And you didn’t fucking tell me
about them? Why would you hide such crucial information? I feel lied to, betrayed, bamboozled,
kept in the dark—”

“—dramatic.” Taehyung adds for him, and Jungkook motions as though he’d break one of his
fingers, but Taehyung knows him better than that. “I didn’t want you to be upset over not being
able to see them. Besides, you know that I’m a tattoo artist, I thought that it’d be rather obvious
that I also have tattoos… I thought that you’d assume so.”

“You could be a tattoo artist and still have no tattoos. I hate you, really, what do you have tattooed?
What spots? Did you tattoo them? Are they in color or black and grey? Do—”

“Hey, one question at a time, please.” Taehyung laughs quietly, making him frown. “They’re all
black and grey, as much as I enjoy tattooing in color. I did some myself, but they were mainly all
done by other artists, especially the ones working in my shop.”

“What spots do you have tattooed?”

“I have both sleeves done, my hands, uhm… I have a few on my chest and torso, and a few on my
legs, but I haven’t gotten around to get my back started.” he shares. “Oh, and one on the side of my
neck, but it doesn’t come too far up.”

“Holy shit, that’s so fucking cool.” Jungkook’s eyes widen in interest. “I want to see them, show
me some of them, please.”

Taehyung tilts his head, a little confused, but then it clicks. “With your fingers?” Jungkook nods
twice. “Alright, come here.” the younger scoots closer, holding one of his arms up with his fingers
stretched; ready. Taehyung gently grabs his index finger, running it over the design on the back of
his hand, following the outline. “Can you guess what it is?”

“Uhm…” Jungkook pouts, a crease forming between his eyebrows as he focuses. “Is it— Is it an
animal, of some sort?” Taehyung only hums. “I got that from the ears but… Go again, start over
again, I’ll get it.” and the artist simply does as requested. “Is it a wolf?”

“Nope.” he shakes his head, and Jungkook whines. “It’s a lion, so you’re not that far off. Would
you like to try a word instead?”

“Yes.” Jungkook nods again, shifting his position to somehow focus a little better. Taehyung
switches to his other hand, closing it in a tight fist to go over the tattoos on his knuckles. He slowly
drags Jungkook’s finger over each letter, looking at him once he’s done.

“Did you get it?” he asks.

“Did that say ‘hell’?”

“Mhm.”

“You basic bitch.” Taehyung laughs at that, bending over and, therefore, missing the smile that
Jungkook tries so hard to keep away. “You really have that tattooed on your hand— I fear that we
can no longer be friends.”

“Shut the fuck up, yeah. I was fourteen and going through my rebellious phase, it was cool back
then, ok?” the artist justifies himself as well as he can, his voice still caught up between his
laughter. “You’re so mean to me.”

“I’m not mean, I’m honest. The line between the two is incredibly thin, but it’s there.” Jungkook
points out with an innocent shrug of the shoulders. “Does it look cool, at least?”

“I make it look cool.”

Jungkook forces a gagging sound.

“Alright, I’m done with you.”

“No…” he whines. “I want to see more, please. Show me more. I like tattoos…” it takes one single
look at Jungkook’s pout for Taehyung to relent with a defeated grunt.

“Fine.”

│►

Taehyung closes his eyes, bored out of his mind as he rests back against the wall. He keeps
mindlessly toying with the rings on his fingers, waiting for Jungkook to call him from the changing
room right in front of him. It’s already been a few minutes, and his phone died before they even got
to the mall, so he doesn’t have anything to distract himself with.

“Tae…?” he opens his eyes to see Jungkook peeking his head out of the fitting room, pushing the
curtain only a little to the side so that he doesn’t expose himself. “I don’t think that these pants are
my size.” Jungkook pouts. “I never shop without my parents, so I don’t even know my size
anymore… They uhm, they don’t pass my thighs… I even tried jumping.”

“I’ll grab you a size up.” Taehyung stands up.

“I’m sorry for bothering you…”

“It’s not a bother at all. Which pair were you trying on?”

“The black ones with the rips…” Jungkook informs, smiling when Taehyung ruffles his hair before
walking away. He goes back inside, taking off the jeans that were still pulled up to his knees, and
sits down so that he can wait.

It was Taehyung’s idea to go shopping together, and he offered to pick Jungkook’s clothes himself,
which Jungkook trusted him with, given that they have very similar styles. The only difference is
that whereas Jungkook only wears black, Taehyung has a few colored pieces here and there —
though Jungkook assures him that he has two white shirts.

Two white shirts that Taehyung has never once seen.

“Kook?” he hears.

“Hey.”

“Here.” Taehyung says, and he has to blindly search for the arm that the elder is sticking through
the little space between the curtain and the wall, not wanting to walk in as he doesn’t know
whether Jungkook is dressed or not.
“Thank you.” Jungkook says once he’s able to get the pants, and he quickly puts them on so that he
can show the outfit. Taehyung looks up from his lap when he hears the curtain being pulled all the
way to the side, an easy smile spreading his lips.

Jungkook’s wearing a long-sleeved turtle neck with a pair of black ripped jeans, and the boots that
he already had on, but the laces aren’t tied. Taehyung doesn’t fail to notice how big the younger
man looks with a shirt that isn’t as baggy as the ones that he usually wears, and he can tell just how
much Jungkook enjoys the gym.

Juxtaposing his bulging muscles, Jungkook has the prettiest smile on his face, and a hand on his
hip as he waits for some sort of reaction.

“You’re standing like a pregnant lady.” Taehyung teases.

Jungkook giggles, standing up straighter as he shows him his middle finger. “Shut it, just tell me if
this looks good or not.” he gestures towards himself, and Taehyung doesn’t even try to be subtle in
the way that he checks him out, aware that Jungkook has no way of knowing that. He makes full
use of that privilege, appreciating the way that the jeans hug Jungkook’s thighs.

“You forgot the belt.” he points. “Did it not fit?”

“I wanted to put it on, but belts are really fucking tricky when you can’t see shit.” Jungkook admits
with a frown. He hears Taehyung tsk before he feels him oh so close to him, which makes him
hyperaware of everything.

Taehyung slips the belt through every single hoop, having to step even closer as he gets to the ones
on the back. Jungkook has to bite down on his bottom lip when he’s able to feel the warm breath
on the side of his neck. He goes as far as buckling the belt for him, giving it a little tug once done
to make sure that it’s secure.

Jungkook jolts at the sudden movement, holding onto Taehyung’s forearms for some sort of
anchoring — and Taehyung’s not dumb. He can see the blush on the younger’s cheek, can see the
way that he’s biting on his lip. Jungkook’s easy to read, and so are his reactions.

“All done.” he breaks the silence.

“H-How does it look now…?” Jungkook whispers.

“You look great. Really pretty.” Taehyung praises. “Everything suits you really well.”

“Really…?”

“On a waist like yours? I promise you that everything fits you perfectly.” Jungkook’s head tips
down as though he could see what Taehyung’s referring to, but he has no idea of what he meant by
it. He’s grown a lot, he’s changed, especially with how much he works out, so he doesn’t know
how he looks like now. It’s been a few years since he’s lost his vision, and a few years since he’s
last seen himself; he doesn’t even remember it that well.

On top of that, the insecure part of him that always tends to win, doesn’t let him want to feel
himself to see anything. He’d rather not know, now that he can’t see.

“What does my waist look like?” he finds himself whispering.

Taehyung’s lips tug on a little smile, turning Jungkook towards the mirror while standing behind
him; he wants to properly see Jungkook’s reactions. He reaches for his wrists, placing his hands
over Jungkook’s so that he can guide them. Then, he slowly slides them down Jungkook’s sides.

Jungkook blushes, it’s inevitable, biting on the inside of his cheek.

“Did you feel that?” Taehyung whispers by his ear, and Jungkook can only dumbly nod. The truth
is that he did feel it, the curve of his waist that is much more prominent and snatched now than
how he remembered it to be. “You have no idea of just how sexy you look.”

The young man gapes, unsure of how to answer that without embarrassing himself further, and he
doesn’t trust his voice not to fail him. So, he clears his throat, turning back to Taehyung to gently
push him away. “Right, leave, go away, shoo.” he instructs, successfully kicking him out of the
fitting room.

Taehyung chuckles, amused, going back to where he was sitting previously.

The second outfit is an easy approval, but Jungkook gets just as shy at the compliments that
Taehyung showers him with. After being teased and compared to a tomato, he ends up closing the
curtain with his cheeks impossibly hotter.

And Taehyung simply waits again, distracting himself by counting the tiles until Jungkook’s ready
again. “How do I look?” Jungkook asks, getting his attention, and gives him a little twirl to show
off the outfit properly. Taehyung wants to crush him between his palms; Jungkook’s adorable.

He’s dressed in a satin button-up shirt, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, combined with another
pair of jeans that, this time, has no rips on. The choker that he picked up himself is in his hand, and
he holds it up as if on cue.

“I couldn’t figure out how to put this on.”

“Let me see that.” Taehyung takes it from his hand, standing up behind him. “I’ve never seen you
wearing chokers, but I’m sure that it’ll look great on you. A good choker always complements a
good outfit.”

“Do you wear chokers often?” Jungkook asks, curious, as he lifts his chin up to grant Taehyung
easier and better access to secure the accessory around his neck.

“I own a few of them, but I never wear them outside.” Taehyung shares with a smirk, and Jungkook
swears that his soul leaves his body right then and there at the implications. He gasps when he
opens his mouth to speak just as Taehyung fastens the choker a little too much, which he assumes
that might have just been on purpose. “Too tight?”

“Y-Yeah.” Jungkook gulps, feeling the heat creeping up to the tips of his ears. Taehyung just
hums, fixing it until it’s just right. Jungkook takes a hand to his neck once it’s done, facing the
elder who, once again, isn’t shy on the way that he observes him.

He wants to touch, his fingers itch to touch, but he doesn’t.

He can’t.

“How does it look?” Jungkook whispers.

“So pretty.” Taehyung comments. “You look really good, Jungkook.”

“Thank you…”
“Did you like them? All three?”

“Mhm… They made me feel pretty, for some reason.” and that isn’t something that he’s been able
to feel ever since his accident. He can’t see it, so it’s hard to feel it. Maybe it was the compliments
that made him feel like this; pretty, confident. He’s never really had anyone praising him so
openly, so honestly, and it’ll most definitely linger in his mind for a few days.

“That’s good. You should feel pretty when you look this gorgeous.” Taehyung kisses his forehead,
but Jungkook doesn’t even have the time to process the words before he hears the elder stepping
away and opening the curtain to leave. “I’ll let you change back to your clothes. I’m right here
waiting.”

Jungkook needs a moment to collect himself, his entire body feeling as though it might combust if
he even dares think about what just happened, and quickly changes back into his own clothes, only
opening the curtain when he starts putting on his boots.

He doesn’t even notice Taehyung walking closer to grab all of the clothes that they picked.

The boots take a long time to tie up, which is why he didn’t even attempt to tie them up every time
he changed into a new outfit, but it makes it easier for Taehyung to go pay for everything without
Jungkook calling after him.

By the time that he returns, Jungkook’s just finishing up the second shoe.

“Where’s my wallet? We should go pay.” he says, patting himself.

“I’ve already paid, let’s just go.” Taehyung informs. “We should grab some Mc—”

“You paid? Why?”

“C’mon, let’s get going.” Taehyung hands him one of the bags, leading him by his lower back
once he finishes unfolding his cane. “Before you start complaining, consider it a gift, okay? I
invited you, so I felt like paying.”

Jungkook pouts. “Well, okay… Thank you…” he holds onto all of his bravery, leaning in to kiss
Taehyung’s cheek. “I also agree that we should grab some McDonald’s, I want ice cream… and
chicken nuggets… and onion rings. Maybe a BigMac too, actually. With large fries—”

“I genuinely don’t understand where you put all of the food that you eat.” Taehyung comments
with a quiet chuckle. “We can get all of that, though. I’m quite hungry as well.”

“You’re the best.” he beams. “I also want an apple pie…”

“I’m making a mental list.”

“Good.”

│►

Jungkook washes his hands after a quick trip to the bathroom, blindly searching for the hand soap.
He lets out a little sound when he accidentally hits something in the process, hurriedly reaching for
it with both hands to make sure that it doesn’t fall.

He feels the object, trying to identify it; it’s a perfume bottle, he finds.

The young man takes it to his nose, sniffing the comforting smell. It’s the cologne that Taehyung
uses every day, and it makes his shoulders relax. Without even thinking, he sprays it on himself,
and he freezes once he realizes his action.

Why did he do that?

Sure, Taehyung smells really nice, but why?

He puts the bottle down, taking a few steps back until he hits the wall. He’s not dumb, and it’s not
had to understand why he did it; he wants to feel Taehyung’s presence, wants to feel him there even
when he’s not home. That’s why he sprayed himself with his cologne.

Why would he do that? Taehyung’s his friend.

The answer is painfully obvious, and he doesn’t know how to feel about that.

He likes how he feels when he’s with Taehyung, he likes being around Taehyung, which is exactly
why he tries to hang out every day, despite how he used to hate leaving his house. He loves
cuddling now, loves Taehyung’s compliments; loves it when Taehyung kisses his forehead, when
Taehyung makes him laugh.

He feels good when he’s with him.

More than that, he feels understood and respected. Taehyung has never once allowed his disability
to come between them, their fun; he goes out of his way to make sure that that never happens,
even. Jungkook used to hate being helped, but he thoroughly enjoys it when Taehyung guides him
through things that he struggles to do by himself.

He loves being in Taehyung’s arms.

Loves spending the night, falling asleep to a hand playing with his hair.

What happened in the changing room about a week ago makes sense, all of a sudden. Now he
understands why he reacted that way every time that Taehyung complimented him, why his heart
sped up at the feeling of Taehyung’s hands on him, at being called pretty.

He felt pretty because of Taehyung.

Taehyung makes him feel things; things that are so new to him.

“Oh, my God…” he whispers to himself, letting his body slide down the wall until he’s sitting on
the floor, hands holding onto his head as if painfully. He likes Taehyung. It feels insanely obvious
now, but it hurts to acknowledge. He likes Taehyung.

He was weak and dumb enough to let himself fall for someone so wholesome, with a heart so big,
and he knows that he’s not supposed to feel like this. He could never be good enough for someone
like Taehyung, so it’s selfish of him to even harbor such feelings.

His disability makes him a complete burden, and he knows that Taehyung would never put up with
that willingly, he’s just a good friend. Being there as a friend is very different than being there as
something else, something greater.

He knows that Taehyung doesn’t feel the same way about him.

How could he? Why would he?

There are no advantages, no positive points in dating someone like him.

He’s crying before he knows it, forehead against his bent knees.

Jungkook fails to hear the front door opening as Taehyung arrives from work at last, just as he
promised earlier in their phone call. He sees Jungkook’s spare keys on the small table in the entry
hall, so he knows that the younger man must be somewhere in his apartment, which automatically
puts a smile on his face. He loves Jungkook’s company.

He looks for him in the kitchen, in the bathroom, but finds both empty.

Taehyung’s entering his bedroom when he hears what sounds like little faint cries, and he rushes to
his attached bathroom to follow the sounds. “Jungkook—?” he lets out, startled, when he sees the
young man sitting on the floor with his head on his knees, hugging them. “Shit, what happened?
Are you hurt?!” he asks as he kneels down next to him.

“I-I’m not— It’s nothing.” Jungkook lies, allowing Taehyung to remove his sunglasses to be able
to wipe his tears for him, and he knows that Taehyung can tell that he’s not being honest.

Jungkook’s eyes never lie. Even if not as much as a common person’s, they still show his emotions
very well, and Taehyung has learned how to read them. “There’s clearly something going on for
you to be crying like this.” Taehyung points, sitting down. “Please, tell me.”

“You’re… You’re going to kick me out if I tell you.” Jungkook coughs when a sob makes him
choke on his tears. “I don’t want you to kick me out.” he doesn’t want to lie, either. Confessing
sounds terrifying, but lying about it and keeping it to himself sounds suffocating.

“I’d never kick you out, Kook, I promise.” Taehyung furrows his eyebrows, confused. “Did… Did
you break something? Did something fall and break? Was it something like that? If it was, then
there’s no reason for you to be like this. Whatever it was, we can just replace it, and there’s—”

“I like you.” Jungkook interrupts, covering his face with his hands as he lays against his knees once
again. Taehyung’s so surprised that he can’t even say anything, can’t react. “I know that it’s so
stupid and selfish of me, I know that you’d never feel the same way for— obvious fucking
reasons. I’m literally useless, there’s almost nothing that I can successfully do by myself, and I
know that no one is ever going to like me in that way, let alone you. Someone who’s fucking
perfect, and way too out of my league, to begin with.” he babbles, words a little slurred as he gets
choked up by his tears.

Taehyung’s still in shock, but he slowly shakes himself out of it. He had his suspicions, he was
able to pick up on the small hints; the way that Jungkook has been reacting to him as of lately
made it all a bit too obvious, but knowing that he’s crying so hard just because of it, makes him
unsure of how to answer to his confession.

Is it a bad thing? Should he apologize?

What does he even have to apologize for?

“A-And now that you’re going to be weirded out over this, I’m going to lose the only real friend
that I have. I don’t want to lose you, you mean s-so much to me. Not even just romantically,
you’ve been the reason why I’m happy lately. Why the fuck did I allow myself to let this happen, I
don’t— I don’t understand why I didn’t figure it out sooner. I probably would’ve been able to put a
stop to it.” Jungkook continues, tugging at his hair. “I knew that I’d end up fucking this up
somehow, I just didn’t know that it was going to be because of something like th—”

“Jungkook.” Taehyung finally calls, making him stop. Jungkook just sniffs. “You can’t see me
approaching, so I’m going to ask you first: is it ok if I kiss you right now?”

Jungkook chokes. “W-What?!” he stammers. Taehyung cups his cheek, and he smiles when
Jungkook places a hand over his own. “W-Why would you want to? I’m useless to you, Tae. Not
only useless, I’m also a burden… Even as a friend, so why would you want to kiss me…?” he has
to ask, partly afraid that it might just be out of pity, which would hurt too much.

Way more than rejection.

“Why would I want to kiss you?” Taehyung repeats the question with a little smile taking over his
lips. “Well, maybe it’s because you’re the funniest guy that I’ve ever met. You’re really fucking
mean sometimes, but I know that it always comes from a light place, I know that you only say
certain things to protect yourself because, deep down, you’re a sweet and fragile young man that
has a pure heart, and pure intentions. You’re adorable, and you’re great to hang out with, I don’t
care about what you say, you don’t get to disagree with these facts. I always have a good time with
you, and don’t ever say that you’re useless or a burden. You’re everything but.”

“I am, though…”

“No, you’re not. You have your limitations, sure, but that doesn’t stop you from smiling, and it
doesn’t stop you from making me smile, making me laugh all the damn time. You’re… a fucking
gift, really. You’re a gift.” Jungkook sniffs, shaking his head; he finds that a little too hard to
believe. “And, amongst all of those reasons and many more, you’re also so damn beautiful. I can
never have enough of looking at you, Jungkook.”

Jungkook physically flinches. “I’m what—?”

“No one has ever told you how you look like now…?”

He shakes his head. “I didn’t want to know. My fingers tell me that I look weird now that a long
time has passed. I uhm, my nose is too big, my lips are small and— and my eyes are weird.”

“You’re—” Taehyung chuckles, unbelieving. “You’re so wrong. It’s a shame that you can’t see
yourself, because you’re seriously so, so beautiful. So pretty. You have the cutest, biggest eyes that
shine so much—”

“They shake a lot—”

“That doesn’t matter.” the artist interrupts him. “They’re so cute… and your nose isn’t too big, as
you said, it’s a nose. It’s round, it’s adorable, and it fits your face perfectly. Your lips are perfect,
your jaw is perfect, you’re beautiful, Jungkook, and I really mean this. I’m not saying this just to
make you feel better.”

Jungkook gulps. “I haven’t felt pretty since… since the accident…”

“You should feel pretty every day, because you always look pretty. The prettiest.” Taehyung
reassures, cupping his cheek to turn Jungkook’s face towards him. He bites down on his bottom
lip, unsure of what to expect, but he leans into the warmth of Taehyung’s palm.

“Are you going to kiss me now?” Jungkook whispers.

“If you promise not to elbow me on the ribs, yes, I will.” Taehyung jokes, smile widening when
he’s gifted with Jungkook’s laugh. He looks much more adorable when he’s laughing.

“I can’t promise anything.” Jungkook jokes back, and Taehyung merely hums before leaning in
until their noses rub playfully. They both tilt their heads in opposite directions, ready, but neither
leans in to end the small space between them. “I don’t have uhm, much kissing experience.”

“That’s okay.” Taehyung whispers against his lips. “I’ll gladly be your mentor.”

Jungkook chuckles, boldly reaching behind his head to pull him in, effectively ending the space at
last. They both hum into the kiss, pleased. Jungkook’s lips are eager in the way that they press into
Taehyung’s, and the latter allows the hand on his chest to slowly push him backwards until he’s
lying on the fluffy rug with Jungkook towering over him.

Taehyung smiles at the eagerness, but doesn’t do anything to stop the kiss.

On the other hand, Jungkook seems to snap out of it, realizing what he’s just done. “Oh, I’m sorry,
I’m so sorry, I-I don’t know what got into me.” he apologizes, sitting back and helping the elder to
sit up as well. “I’m sorry, I don’t even know if you wanted uhm, that.”

“I did, otherwise I would’ve pushed you away.” Jungkook fiddles with his fingers, shy. “I’ve been
wanting to do that for a while now, to be honest. I was just waiting for you to make the first move,
I didn’t want to… I don’t know, scare you or something. Besides, I wasn’t too sure that you liked
me, I could’ve read the signs wrong…”

“Wait, does this mean that you like me, too?”

“Yeah, I do.”

“Oh.” Jungkook’s eyes widen. “Shit, you like me?!”

Taehyung laughs. “Very much so.”

“Holy fuck, okay, so can we kiss again?” Jungkook asks, reaching for Taehyung’s shirt to tug him
closer once again. “Now that I had a taste, I want more… Please.”

“We can kiss whenever you’d like.” Taehyung informs. “But—! But I believe that we’d both be
more comfortable on the couch. Or the bed, really. Just somewhere else other than cold tiles.”

“Hm, I can see your point.” Jungkook nods, standing up to his feet and offering a hand to help him
do the same. “Pun intended.” he adds, giggling at his own joke. “Get it?”

“You should be a comedian.” Taehyung teases, guiding him to the bedroom.

“Nah, people don’t understand my humor.” he says with a little shrug, relying on the hands that
hold his waist to get on the bed. “I get enough gratification by taking the piss out of you.”

“So, I am a victim.”

“Hm, yeah.” Jungkook nods, confidently pushing Taehyung back on the mattress to tower over him
once again. “I wish I could see you from this angle…” he sighs, cupping Taehyung’s jaw. “I bet
that you look so fucking— good.”

“Hey.” Taehyung tsks. “None of that. I don’t want you to be upset.”

“I’m not, I’m just—” he stops, worrying at his bottom lip.

Taehyung smiles, tugging on his lip to free it with his thumb. “Kiss me, Kook.”

Jungkook visibly perks up. “I can do that.”

“You’re so cute, fuck.”

│►

Jungkook groans as he wakes up, rolling in bed to cuddle into the older man once again, but frowns
when he feels the bed empty. “Tae…?” he mumbles, only to be greeted by silence. He stretches his
limbs before sitting up, hand rubbing his eyes.

He hasn’t slept at home ever since he confessed over a week ago, and he’s grown used to waking
up in Taehyung’s arms; not to an empty bed and a silent apartment.

The young man gets up from the bed in nothing but one of Taehyung’s button-up shirts and his
underwear, sure that his hair is sticking up in every single possible direction, but he’s stopped
caring about that after the second night spent there. He doesn’t mind how he looks in the morning,
because he knows that Taehyung won’t think that he looks ugly.

“Tae…?” he calls again, using his arms to brace himself and feel around for the walls, unwilling to
hit his nose and end up with some sort of bleed. “Taehyungie…?”

“In the kitchen!” Jungkook smiles once he hears that, and his steps grow a little faster, more
confident now that he knows where to go. “Good m—” Taehyung stops once he turns back, eyes
falling towards Jungkook’s long, toned legs. “—morning.” he blinks. “Didn’t you go to bed with
sweatpants on?” he asks, not shy in the way that he’s looking.

“I did, but it was so hot in the middle of the night that I just kicked them off.” Jungkook shrugs,
feeling around the counter to make sure that it’s available for him to sit, feet dangling in the air. “It
was really hot. It’s still really hot, to be honest.” he adds. “Is that bacon that I’m smelling?”

“Mhm.” Taehyung confirms, standing right next to him by the stove. “I’m preparing us some
breakfast.” his free hand rests on Jungkook’s thigh as the other continues flipping the bacon so that
it doesn’t get burnt. “Do you want your coffee iced or hot?”

“Iced, please.”

“As you wish.” Taehyung nods, handing him a slice of crunchy bacon, and Jungkook is quick to
take a first bite. “How’s the bacon?” he asks as he walks away to the fridge.

“Bacon is always great.” Jungkook hums, appreciative, his body rocking from side to side just
slightly, visibly content with his food. He’s startled by something cold on his neck, and he goes to
flinch away, but a hand holding his cheek keeps him in place.

He soon realizes that Taehyung has an ice cube between his lips as he kisses down his neck, so he
tilts his head to the side to give him better access, eyes closing shut. His best guess is that
Taehyung’s doing it because he complained about being too hot, but he wasn’t expecting this.

“W-What’s gotten into you?” Jungkook whispers, the hand that isn’t holding the bacon slice now
gripping Taehyung’s shirt to make sure that he doesn’t step away. “It’s entirely too early for
kissing…” the elder just hums, dragging the ice cube lower until it reaches Jungkook’s protuberant
collarbones, his hand skillfully opening the first two buttons of his shirt.

He’s heard and read about people who enjoy the feeling of ice on their skin, just like this, he just
never knew that he could be one of them. Truth is, he’s very much enjoying the contrast between
Taehyung’s warm hands and lips, and the coldness of the ice cube that slowly melts where it’s
dragged across his skin.
When the cube touches the little dip under his Adam’s apple, Jungkook’s mouth slacks with a faint
gasp, almost whining when Taehyung’s lips disappear.

Much to his surprise, they return but, this time around, they’re on his thigh. His legs close
instinctively, and Taehyung just gently pushes them apart, rubbing reassuring circles to his knee
and calf. Jungkook chews on the inside of his cheek, torn, and unsure of what to do.

On one hand, he’s enjoying Taehyung’s lips and the new sensations of trying something that he’s
only ever heard of but, on the other hand, he’s too nervous to let him continue. He doesn’t even
know what would happen if they did continue, doesn’t know where they’d go.

They haven’t had that conversation yet.

They’ve never even talked about such a topic before.

So, he tugs on the other’s hair once the ice cube starts going up his thigh.

And Taehyung understands what that tug means, so he pulls back, kissing him on the lips and
pushing the ice cube into his mouth. It’s melted into a tiny piece now, but he still bites on it,
accepting the coldness willingly. There’s a following kiss to his forehead soon after, and he pouts.

“Don’t worry.” Taehyung reassures. “I got you.”

Jungkook pulls Taehyung closer by his shirt, nuzzling his nose into his neck.

“What do you want your bacon with?” he asks as he pulls away completely to get whatever the
younger man wishes to eat as the coffee brews on the side.

“Ice.” Jungkook blurts out without even realizing it.

“Ice?” Taehyung chuckles, knowingly.

“I-I meant ice cream.” he hears a tsk before the freezer door opens. “Stop, I know that you’re
judging my food combinations. We’re not doing that again.” Jungkook is quick to defend himself,
blindly searching for the plate with bacon to get another slice.

“You have the worst fucking food combinations, though.” Jungkook rolls his eyes, only opening
his mouth when there’s the light tap of a spoon against his lips. He accepts it right away, rather
surprised to taste his favorite flavor: mint chocolate.

“I thought that you hated mint chocolate.” he points.

“I do, but you like it, so I bought some to have for you.” Taehyung admits, a little shy. “Even if it’s
the worst thing that someone has ever created, you said that you really like it, so— Shut up, I don’t
have to explain anything, just eat it up.” Jungkook almost chokes when a new spoonful is shoved
into his mouth without warning.

He feels like crying, though.

Taehyung’s always so thoughtful and sweet with him.

He’s been making him feel too much lately.

“Can you feed me the rest of my breakfast…?” he asks with a little pout when the spoon is handed
to him for him to eat. “Feed me the ice cream, please.”
“You’re getting really spoiled.” Taehyung teases, and Jungkook smiles, sitting prettily once the
elder retrieves the spoon again. The elder does feed him the ice cream, along with the bacon and
eggs in between — which is a crime in his eyes — while eating some, too.

They fill up the silence by talking about everything and nothing, as they always do, Taehyung
standing between Jungkook’s open legs. They never run out of topics, which is relaxing. It’s easy
to talk, it’s easy to fall into a different conversation whenever one ends. It’s just easy.

Jungkook leans in for a little kiss, and frowns when Taehyung gags.

“That was so fucking insulting.” Jungkook complains.

“It’s the fucking ice cream. How do you fucking eat that shit?”

“My taste buds are stronger than yours, nothing phases me anymore.” Jungkook explains as he
happily takes another spoonful of ice cream, his legs dangling from the edge of the counter.

“They can’t be strong enough to endure that atrocity.”

“I can taste the air, Tae.”

Taehyung takes a second. “That’s impossible.”

“I didn’t ask.” Jungkook smiles, an annoyingly bright smile, legs closing behind Taehyung in order
to pull him in. “Don’t question the blind man, where are your manners?” he says, holding a finger
up as though he’s just sharing a life lesson.

“You need to stop using that against me.” Taehyung tries not to laugh.

“We use what we can, Taehyungie. You’ve lived way longer than I have, you should know about
this already…” he says rather innocently, running his hand across Taehyung’s strong chest.

“Did— Did you just call me old?”

“Taehyungie, it’s not a lie…” Jungkook smiles again.

“Stop calling me ‘Taehyungie’ to make your words seem better.” he scolds, flicking his chin with
one finger. “Do you want to feed yourself?”

“No, Taehyungie. Keep feeding me, please, I can’t see the food.” Jungkook says with such a sad
expression that it almost makes Taehyung feel guilty, but he knows way too well that Jungkook is
just saying whatever. Jungkook enjoys making people feel awkward, taken aback.

“When has that ever stopped you from eating?”

“Oh, you did it, you’re going to make the blind man cr—”

“Literally shut up” Taehyung covers his mouth, receiving a weak slap on his arm.

“Tae, I can’t see. Imagine if I didn’t at least have good humor about it… I’d be a bitch.” he
explains after prying away the hand that was keeping his mouth shut. “I’m a really nice guy
precisely because I’m able to keep my amazing sense of humor.”

“I’m sorry, you’re what? A nice guy?” Taehyung snorts. “You’re either shitting me right now, or
you’re very delusional.” Jungkook laughs. “You almost punched me for trying to help you on the
day that we met. I only wanted to give you your damn keys back, and almost got assaulted.”
“Well, you needed to learn that you can’t just walk up to everyone like that. Even the disabled, you
know. I could’ve stolen your wallet.” Jungkook argues. “I was simply teaching you a lesson.”

“You can’t even see my wallet.” Taehyung teases.

The younger man tuts. “Then how did I know that it was in your back pocket?”

“Hm, so you just walk around stealing wallets?”

“Nah, I’m just kidding. However, someone who isn’t kidding would’ve just— Why did you stop
feeding me? I’m not done with my ice cream, Taehyungie.” he puts emphasis on the last word,
trying to be persuasive, and Taehyung quickly gives him another spoonful.

“I’m feeding a criminal.”

Jungkook snorts. “I’ll repay you with endless kisses.” he negotiates.

“Honestly, it’s not worth it.” Taehyung puts the offer down.

“You know what—”

│►

Jungkook hums the melody of a random song to himself before entering the tattoo parlor, and he
sends a smile to where he knows the front desk is located; there’s always someone there, so he
hopes not to be smiling at the wall this time around.

“Hey, Jungkook…!” he’s greeted by a voice that has become familiar now.

“Hey, Yoongi…!” he answers in the same tone. “How are you?”

“I’m doing great, what about you?”

“Same, same.” Jungkook shrugs. “I’m just heading to Tae’s room.”

“I know, go on.” Yoongi chuckles, watching him approach Taehyung’s personal tattooing room
without having to be guided anymore, but quickly goes back to his laptop to look through his
schedule to try and fit an appointment.

Jungkook stops by the door when he hears a voice that he’s unfamiliar with, and he’s taken aback.
He’s visiting because Taehyung said that a client missed their appointment, so he thought that the
artist would be by himself. Maybe the client was able to make it, after all.

He takes a step back, hoping to be able to leave afore being noticed, but Taehyung sees him before
he succeeds. “Baby, don’t just stand there, come here, come in.” he encourages.

“Oh, I— I should go… You’re busy, and I’ll just come by later.” he’s extremely uncomfortable
with strangers, and he’s surely not looking forward to meeting anyone right then and there. He
hears a laugh, and it makes him shrink into himself, unsure of the reason behind the giggles.

Are they laughing at him?

Next thing that he knows, there’s a sweet pair of lips against his forehead and a hand on his lower
back, carefully leading him inside the room. The laughter hasn’t stopped and he really wants to run
out of there or just cuss them out with every bad word that he knows.
“Jimin, stop watching that for a minute.” Taehyung says.

“But, Tae, this is so fucking funny— Oh, my God, that’s Jungkook.” the laughter dies down right
away, and he feels a little lighter. Jimin, as he now knows, wasn’t laughing at him, but at whatever
it is that he was watching.

That’s a relief.

Jungkook soon feels a hand reaching for his own to shake. “Hello! I’ve heard so much about you!”
Jimin says, a little too loud, too happy, still shaking his hand; he doesn’t like shaking hands.

“You did?” he asks, much quieter.

Jimin is still shaking his hand.

“Yes! He’s always saying ‘Jungkook this’ and ‘Jungkook that’ nowadays.” he giggles, enthusiastic,
and Jungkook’s beyond uncomfortable. He did not prepare himself to meet someone, and there’s
too much happening; too much noise, a new person, the hand still shaking his, and Jimin’s friendly
yet too loud voice.

He doesn’t even notice it when he starts leaning closer to Taehyung, seeking his comforting
presence, maybe even his arms.

“Tae, I don’t think that he likes me…” Jimin whispers.

“Slow down a bit…” Taehyung suggests, separating their hands. “Baby, it’s just Jimin. My best
friend, remember? I’ve told you about him before. There’s no reason to be nervous, he’s
harmless.” it finally clicks for Jimin, and he gasps, guiltily looking between the two.

“Shit, I’m so sorry. Tae told me that your senses are more sensitive, but that totally went over my
head right now… I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to overwhelm you.” Jimin rushes to say, and it’s the
actual regret and sorry in his voice that gets Jungkook to start to relax a little.

“Park Jimin? With— With the orange hair?”

“Yep, exactly, that’s me!” Jimin smiles when he sees Jungkook do the same; he’s heard great
things about Jimin. “I’m happy to finally meet you, I’ve been wanting to for a while now.” he
admits as he pats Jungkook’s shoulder, but removes his hand right away.

“I’m happy, too.” Jungkook says, and Taehyung smiles, sharing a relieved look with his friend.

Jimin gives Jungkook a once-over, thinking of what to point out, something to make conversation,
before clearing his throat. “I like your shoes.” he compliments, genuine.

“I don’t know what they look like.” the silence that follows is thick, and Taehyung has to hold back
a snort; he’s more than used to Jungkook’s humor by now, but Jimin looks like he’s just seen a
ghost. Jungkook chuckles. “They’re cool, I know. Thanks.”

“You dress really well, actually.” Jimin praises again. “How do you…?”

“Don’t question the blind man.” Jungkook says with such a serious expression that it makes Jimin
let out a little sound, startled and regretful, already thinking of how to apologize for his insensitive
and invasive question.

“He’s just messing with you.” Taehyung has to intervene before Jimin combusts. “He does this all
the time, it’s on purpose to make you uncomfortable.” he explains. It used to make him all
awkward, too, at the start, often leaving him looking for words, but he’s grown used to it.

He’s used to Jungkook’s humor, and his sarcastic comments.

They’re funny now.

Jungkook giggles. “I do enjoy making people get awkward.”

Jimin looks between them. “Why?”

“Because I don’t really care for anyone. I don’t like people, and I don’t give a shit whether people
feel awkward about my condition or not. I have to live with it, I’m not going to coddle them when
they ask out-of-pocket questions. Not that yours was, but you get the point.” Jungkook explains
with a little shrug, feeling way more comfortable. “And… And it’s just funny to me.”

“Yeah, I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this before but, besides being really cute and funny, he’s
also a menace who thrives on making people uncomfortable with blind humor.” Taehyung adds.

“That’s true.” Jungkook nods. “Jimin, are you okay? I can’t hear you breathing.”

“I’m trying to assimilate all of this. I had a whole plan for when I got to meet you, and this isn’t
going like that, at all. I thought that you’d be really… quiet and, like, I don’t know. I thought that
I’d have to be careful not to even mention the fact that you can’t— well, see, but you’re so openly
making jokes about it, which is amazing, but I’m just surprised!” Jimin explains in a single breath,
sitting down. “I feel like I just need to get used to it, it feels so rude to mention, let alone make
jokes about it… And this is a compliment, by the way.”

“Well, thanks.” Jungkook shrugs as Taehyung sits down, pulling him by the hand to sit down on
his thigh, sideways, one arm thrown around the artist’s shoulder. “I don’t mind jokes if they come
from people that I associate with. You’re Tae’s friend, so I know that you’re a good person…
therefore, I don’t mind questions or jokes. That’s all.”

Jimin smiles, nodding. “That’s honestly quite impressive.”

“Yeah, his humor is amazing.” Taehyung agrees.

“That too, but I mean his openness to the topic…”

“Treating it like a taboo won’t give me my vision back.” Jungkook shrugs. “Anyway, let’s change
the topic before Jimin has an aneurysm or something.” he teases.

“I have a great question.” Jimin starts. “Are you two dating?”

“No.” Taehyung immediately denies. “We’re friends.”

“With… benefits?” he squints.

Jungkook shakes his head as he accommodates himself better on Taehyung’s lap so that they can
be a little closer. “No, we’re just friends.” he says.

“Huh.” Jimin puckers his lips. “I see.”

“I don’t.”

“Babe—” Taehyung covers his mouth, snorting. “Stop it.”

“I’m sorry.” Jungkook tries to say, though his words come out muffled into Taehyung’s palm; he
pulls the hand away. “I’ll stop… for now. Tell me about yourself, Jimin. A friend of Tae’s is—
hm, not my friend, but I’m open to a conversation.”

“Why can’t we be friends?” Jimin raises an eyebrow.

“Because I don’t know you.”

“Yet.” he quickly adds. “Let’s change that.”

Taehyung smiles. “Yeah, let’s work on that.”

│►

Taehyung huffs when Jungkook completely drops his weight on top of him, head comfortably
finding its place on his chest. “You smell good…” Jungkook mumbles, sniffing his neck. “I’m
very comfortable here.”

“Hm, I can see that.” Taehyung runs his fingers through Jungkook’s hair, letting them run down
his temple, his cheek. There’s a little scar on his cheek, and he can only guess that it’s a mark from
the accident. He’s noticed it before, often kisses it, but he’s decided that it’s finally time to ask.
“Did you get this from the accident?”

Jungkook tenses a little. “Yeah… I did.”

“Do you… remember anything?”

“Not that much…” the younger sighs; it’s time that he opens up about it. “I know what they told
me that happened, pretty much. I remember parts of it, but it’s kind of a huge blur. I was in the
front seat of a car with some friends — the ones that left me after the accident — and the driver
started speeding up a bit. He had just gotten his license, and we were all kind of tipsy, and listening
to some music, and… I wasn’t wearing my seatbelt, which was so, sofucking irresponsible. The
whole thing was a combination of a lot of irresponsible decisions…” Jungkook shares. “He lost
control of the car, and he wasn’t experienced enough to do anything to salvage the situation. The
impact itself, I have no recollection of, which the doctors say that it’s due to brain trauma…
According to them, I was found many meters away from the car.”

“How so?”

“I flew through the windshield.”

Taehyung gapes. “Gosh, that sounds fucking horrifying…”

“I know.” Jungkook puckers his lips, taking a moment. “They told me that it was really bad, I lost a
lot of blood and needed like, two transfusions… I broke my arm, sprained my foot, I had bruises all
over my body for a few weeks, too. Oh, and the obvious. I went blind due to the brain trauma that I
suffered since I hit my head many times in the process. I also managed to pierce myself with the
windshield glass, which is what caused the blood loss and almost killed me.”

“Pierce yourself?”

“Mhm, I got a big chunk of glass stuck to my— Uh, here…” he points to his lower abdomen. “It
was really messy, and I have a gross scar, but at least I can walk, so it’s not all bad… They could
save everything except for my vision.”
Taehyung hates the frown that Jungkook has; he should never frown, he should never be upset
over anything. “You should be happy to be here right now. You’re so strong for pulling through all
of that, and you should be grateful that— that you made it…”

Jungkook sighs. “I know that. I am thankful, but I’m also not.” he sits up. “What really is the point
of living if you can’t see, Tae? I can’t see any of the seven wonders of the world, I won’t be able to
see anything beautiful ever again, I can’t read normal books, I can’t see anyone. I can’t fucking see
you, of all people. I’m happy, in my own way, and I’ve learned to live with this and accept this
reality, but this… this isn’t living. At least not in the way that I used to dream of.”

Taehyung sits up, too. “I get it, I do. I understand how hard it must be, but you’re here. You’re
here, and you’re beautiful and amazing and, ok, you’re rude, but also so sweet and funny, and a
great company, Jungkook.” he cups his cheek, caressing his chin with his thumb. “You lost
something major in that accident, but you can still be happy without it. Now that I’m here, I will
make sure that you’re happy, I can’t— I can’t let you be sad ever again.”

The younger man pouts. “You make me happy…”

“You deserve to be. Really. You deserve happiness.” Taehyung leans in to kiss his forehead, taking
a second too long; it makes Jungkook smile. “There are other ways to see beautiful things, too, and
I’ll show them to you. Seeing isn’t feeling, and I can also just describe every beautiful thing that I
see from today and on. I promise you this much.”

Jungkook holds his pinky up, and Taehyung quickly links his own with it.

They both kiss their hands.

“I’m thankful for you, even if I don’t say it much.” Jungkook whispers.

“I know.” the artist assures. “Can I… see your scar?”

“Huh?” he can see how taken aback Jungkook is.

“The scar on your abdomen. I don’t like how you spoke about it, I’m sure that it’s not nearly as bad
as you claim it to be… So, please, can I see it?” Taehyung elaborates. He wants to be able to
reassure Jungkook that the scar isn’t bad but, for that, he has to see it.

“It’s really ugly, Tae…” Jungkook mumbles.

“it’s just a scar, baby.” he says. “They make us who we are. Besides, you’re beautiful, so a little
scar won’t change that. I don’t have to see it right now, if you’re not comfortable with the idea, but
I hope that one day you’ll be able to show it without a problem. It’s not a flaw, it’s part of your
story, Kook, and I’m sure that it’s not ugly. Between the two of us, scars are kind of cool.”

Jungkook’s lips tug into a little pout as he thinks it through.

It’s Taehyung.

It’s just Taehyung.

Taehyung would never judge him.

“You… You can see it…” he decides, straddling Taehyung’s lap, one leg on each side of his hips,
and lifts up his shirt until it’s tucked under his chin to keep it from falling. Taehyung doesn’t even
try not to stare; he knows that Jungkook goes to the gym very often with his assigned nurse, but he
didn’t know just how much working out paid off for him. Jungkook’s abdomen is far more defined
than he thought, the lines of his muscles evident and deep.

Then, he sees the scar. It’s not as harsh as he had imagined, but it’s very much there. It starts just
under Jungkook’s last rib, and it disappears into the waistline of his jeans, so it’s long and the skin
is a little paler, but it’s nowhere ugly or even weird.

He’s surprised when Jungkook starts unbuckling his belt, but lets him go on, proud of him for
wanting to show the whole thing. The young man pulls his jeans and underwear down just enough
to show the rest of the scar, and he can only hope to be showing it all.

“It’s… horrible, isn’t it?”

“Not at all.” Taehyung quickly says. “I believe that your fingers trick you into thinking that it’s
harsher than it looks. It’s not ugly, it’s just a scar.” he says as he places a hand on Jungkook’s hip,
his thumb running over the little pale mark. What he doesn’t expect is for Jungkook to jolt, the
shirt falling from under his chin, and hand immediately grabbing Taehyung’s. “Are you ok—?”

“It’s embarrassing.”

“What is?”

Jungkook’s cheeks flush an adorable shade of red, the blush creeping all the way down to his neck
and to the tips of his ears. “When I touch the scar, I kind of feel it… somewhere else.”

Taehyung raises an eyebrow. “Somewhere else?”

“You know where.” he mumbles.

The artist smirks. “That’s amazing to know…” he says as his thumb runs over the scar again, a
little harder this time. Jungkook grabs his wrist, prying his hand away.

“Do I have to pin your hands down?” Jungkook threatens.

“Apologies.” Taehyung chuckles, freeing his hand so that he can circle Jungkook’s waist with his
arms. Jungkook accepts the hug more than willingly, tucking himself into the crook of Taehyung’s
neck before leaving a little kiss there. “Thank you for trusting me with this.”

“Thank you for making me comfortable to share it.” Jungkook sighs, content. “Do you want to
know something that the doctors told me back then?” Taehyung just hums. “Every time that we
move our eyes fast, we go temporarily blind. It’s just for a split second, so fast that our brains just
make us forget it and it’s imperceptible. Kind of the same as blinking, you don’t necessarily see it
because your brain is so used to it.” he explains. “If you look at one thing and then move to another
very suddenly, your eyes don’t focus properly. I’m— I’m blind because my eyes don’t stop
fucking shaking. That temporary blindness caused by movement is just… always there.”

“Oh.” Taehyung takes a moment to process all of that. “Does it hurt to feel them moving all the
time…?” he asks, hands sliding down until they lazily fit inside the pack pockets of Jungkook’s
jeans. “I’m probably more interested than I should be, but I like your eyes a lot.” and it’s true.

Jungkook’s eyes are the prettiest that he’s ever seen.

Shaking or not, they are.

“Uhm… It was weird in the beginning. It didn’t hurt, but it was a weird feeling. I don’t feel it
anymore, though, so it doesn’t bother me.” he shrugs.

“Would you be able to see it if they stopped shaking?”

Jungkook giggles. “Well, yeah, I would. I can’t control it, so it’s permanent.”

“What if I put my finger in your eye? You know, as if to stop a ball from moving.” Jungkook tries
to scoot away, but Taehyung holds him in place. “I’m kidding, I’m kidding, stay.” he laughs at the
wary expression on the other’s face. “I swear that I won’t shove my finger in your eye.”

“I’m watching you.”

“No, you’re not.”

“Shut up.” Jungkook tsks, closing his jeans again.

“Do you remember things?” Taehyung asks.

“It’s been… a long time, so most things have turned into a blur of what they used to be. I try to
think of important things before I sleep, like my parents’ faces, but I barely remember them. I know
that they must look very different.” he sighs. “So, no, I don’t really remember anything with
clarity.”

“I’m sorry.”

Jungkook tries to smile. “It’s okay.”

“I have another question. I’m sorry if they’re annoying, and tell me if you’d like me to just shut up,
but… you’ve never talked about your condition and your accident this openly, and I’m curious, and
I like to know new things about you…” Taehyung puckers his lips.

“You can ask, I don’t mind.” he assures. “It’s you, I don’t mind.”

Taehyung promptly gives him a little kiss on the forehead. “Can you dream? I mean, do you see in
your dreams, or—?”

“Sometimes, yes, but nowadays it’s becoming a different experience. I’m slowly forgetting how
stuff look like, so I just have blind dreams now.” Taehyung makes a little confused sound. “You
know how my other senses are stronger? They come through in my dreams. I dream of sounds
and… textures, and tastes and— and touches. Not so much images anymore.”

“That’s kind of interesting.”

Jungkook hums. “I guess.” he fiddles with the hem of Taehyung’s shirt. “It took me a long time to
sit in a car again, and even now… I still don’t trust anyone but my parents to drive me. It’s
terrifying, I hate cars. I just can’t be comfortable in a car.”

Taehyung’s eyes widen with realization, piecing two and two together. “Oh, my God, that’s why
you were acting so weird when I first drove you. To the beach, remember? You were all freaked
out, and scared, and now I understand why.”

“Yeah, I was terrified.” Jungkook pouts.

“I promise to be even more careful now.” Taehyung assures, leaning closer to kiss the little pout
away. “I’ll be extra conscious when driving with you, I swear.”
“You’re a good driver. I don’t really feel scared when I’m in a car with you… I just get a little
nervous at times since I can’t see the road or take a peek at the speed that we’re going. To me, it
always feels like we’re going way faster than we really are, so it bothers me a lot.”

“Thank you for telling me. I’ll make sure to drive slower for you.” the elder guarantees as he takes
his hands to Jungkook’s belt to buckle it for him, even fixing his shirt back. “Shall we watch a
movie? I’m lazy, I don’t feel like doing anything.”

“Can I just say something first? Since we’re on this topic, I’ll bravely share everything now.” he
urges, and Taehyung hums encouragingly. “I miss… I miss watching porn.” Jungkook admits with
a guilty giggle. “Don’t tease me for this, please, I’m being very vulnerable.”

“I won’t tease you. You can always just… imagine it while listening…?”

“Yeah… It’s not the same thing.” Jungkook frowns. “Taking porn away from a single young man
is just cruel. I was sixteen when I had my accident, it’s been five years since then. I haven’t seen a
dick in five years, how fucking sad is that?”

Taehyung laughs. “Very, actually.” he has to agree.

“This has to be the most embarrassing thing that I’ve ever told you.”

“Hey, it’s not embarrassing. We’re two grown adults.” Taehyung tsks, combing Jungkook’s bangs
away from his eyes. “Can I take the opportunity to ask you about your experiences? I mean, what
did you do before the accident? You were so young, so did you even…?”

“Uh… If you’re asking me whether I’m a virgin or not, the answer is yes. I got like, two or three
handjobs, and I got sucked off once behind the bleachers in high school, but that’s it.” Jungkook
shares, toying with Taehyung’s fingers. “The guy that I was seeing at the time was most likely
going to end up losing his shit with me, but he was the first one to fucking run away when he heard
the news. I hated him so much for that, especially because he had told me that he loved me.”

“I’m so sorry, Jungkook. You didn’t deserve that.” Taehyung has lost count of how many times he
has apologized by now, but he’s just sorry. He can’t wrap his head around everything that the
young man went through; all the pain and heartbreak.

Jungkook sighs. “It’s fine. I didn’t say that I loved him back, so I still kept some dignity. I don’t
think that I loved him, either way. I’ve never loved anyone… Have you? Have you ever been in
love?” he asks, eyes big with curiosity. “We’ve never talked about your previous relationships.”

“I’ve dated a good amount of people before, and I loved all of them in a certain way, but I’ve only
been in love with Jimin.”

Jungkook gasps so hard that he chokes. “You two dated?!”

“Yeah, we dated for a while. We eventually realized that we were better off as friends, though, so
we ended up breaking up… As you can tell, we couldn’t just let go of each other, and we couldn’t
stop being friends. He’ll probably always be my best friend, so I hope that it doesn’t bother you.”

“It doesn’t bother me… Your friendship is adorable.”

Taehyung smiles. “Anyway… He was the only person that I’ve ever been in love with. So far.”

“So far.” Jungkook parrots.

“Mhm.” the younger man smiles at the silent implication, pulling Taehyung closer by the collar of
his shirt to initiate another kiss, this time a little deeper and with more intent; fierce, and warm.
Their tongues meet, already growing familiar with each other, and they both hum into the kiss,
satisfied.

Jungkook pulls back with little additional pecks, a murky smirk stretching on his lips. “I know what
genre of movies that we can watch today.” he whispers against Taehyung’s lips, before kissing
them again. “Porn.”

“That’s the worst fucking idea that I’ve ever heard.” Taehyung is quick to say.

“Oh, how come? We’re just two bros on a Thursday afternoon… watching porn together in their
room.” Jungkook says ever so casually, creating a path of kisses down Taehyung’s neck. “I don’t
see how that can be a bad idea, Taehyungie.”

“For obvious, physical reasons.” he says with a chuckle.

“Do you mean… because we’d get hard?” Jungkook pulls back with a pout that only juxtaposes
the suggestion that he’s making with such a straight face.

“Yeah.”

“Again, I don’t see how that’s a bad idea.” the artist has to hold back a joke about how Jungkook
just can’t seeanything, as he’s a little too stunned by what the younger is hinting on. “Ever since
that ice incident that I— I don’t know. I’m always s o comfortable with you, and I’d like to be
comfortable with you in that aspect, as well… This is simply my way of trying to let you know that
I want to get rid of your pants so that I can suck you off.” he admits, fiddling with the waistband of
the elder’s black jeans.

Taehyung chuckles, a little darker, and Jungkook would give everything to see the look in his eyes
during such a conversation; he can never see Taehyung’s reactions, and he hates that.

“Is that what you want, sweetheart?”

“For the sake of my well-being, I’ll ignore the gross pet name, and say that yes, that’s what I
want.” Taehyung rolls his eyes, a second away from hitting Jungkook across the head with the
pillow. He’s just amazing at ruining any sort of romantic moment — which is, in the end, funny.

But Taehyung will never tell him that much.

“You’re being rude, so I might just not let you.”

“Oh, a thousand apologies, truthfully mean them.” Jungkook teases, his pout even bigger now, as
his hand slowly crawls under Taehyung’s shirt. “I suck your dick, you suck mine… It’s a nice trade
and a very well spent afternoon, I’d say so myself.” he nods, agreeing with himself.

“It’s a two-way agreement, I see.” Taehyung raises an eyebrow.

“I mean, if you want to, I’m most certainly not going to stop you.” Jungkook’s fingers halt before
he can start to, bravely, unbuckle Taehyung’s jeans. “I mean that, actually. I-It’s only if you want
to… I want to take this step, but— but you don’t have to do anything back if you don’t—”

“Baby, I only asked to know how far you’re comfortable pushing.”

“Oh.” his expression lightens. “I’m very comfortable with this.”

They haven’t done anything other than kissing, so Taehyung can’t help but to be a little surprised
by the suddenness of it all, but he’s also, strangely, rather proud of Jungkook for being comfortable
like this. He remembers a time when even trying to hold Jungkook’s hand would grant him a
physical threat — or an actual smack, it depended.

“Are you?” Jungkook asks, whispery. “Comfortable, I mean.”

Taehyung smiles, tucking Jungkook’s hair behind his ear. “I’m always comfortable with you.”

“Right, right.” the younger blushes, trying not to smile as he opens Taehyung’s zipper, at last. “I
don’t think— I’ve only done this once, so pardon me if it’s horrible… but you’re going to have to
pretend to enjoy it.” he prefaces. “I can’t accept rejection right now.”

The artist cackles. “It’ll be good.” he assures. “I can direct you, too.”

Jungkook nods. “I’d like that.”

│►

Jungkook takes his phone from his pocket when it starts ringing, and he already knows who it is
because of the ringtone — that’s Taehyung’s ringtone, and the only reason why he even accepts
the call, in the first place. “Hi, Tae…” he greets with a little smile; he can’t not smile when he’s
with or talking to Taehyung. It’s embarrassing, he knows. “What’s up?”

“Hey, baby.” Jungkook’s smile widens at the pet name, unable to ignore the butterflies in his
stomach. “Where are you?” the elder asks.

“My parents are dropping me off at the gym. My nurse is waiting for me there… Why?”

“Hm, my little gym rat.”

“I’m not a rat.” he quickly defends.

“I’m surprised that that’s what bothered you, and not me calling you mine.” Jungkook stammers a
couple of incoherent noises, unsure of how to even answer that, and it only makes Taehyung laugh
once again. “Anyhow, I only called because I have an open spot that I saved for Jimin but he can’t
make it, so I’m very free… I was thinking about visiting.”

“I mean… You can come with me and— watch.” the younger man offers, leaning his head against
the car’s window. “I have no idea if I look very ugly and sweaty after a workout, but you can go, in
hopes that I look really good and attractive.” he jokes.

“I’m sure that you look amazing, as always.” Taehyung praises, and he can feel his cheeks
warming up. “I’ll meet you there, just send me the address…”

“Of course, I’ll text you the address.” he informs, and they bid their short goodbyes before ending
the call with the promise of getting there soon. Jungkook can’t contain his smile, a little too excited
with the idea of hanging out with Taehyung on a day that he didn’t think would let that happen. He
always has a great time with the elder.

Jungkook arrives to the gym not even ten full minutes after the call, and he’d be lying if he said
that he was able to focus properly on the exercises given by his nurse; all that he can think of is
Taehyung’s arrival, and he knows how whipped that makes him seem.

It takes Taehyung twenty minutes more to get there, and he finds Jungkook rather easily,
accompanied by a woman that he has never met, but has heard of many times. “Hey.” he greets
them, and he thoroughly enjoys the smile that stretches on Jungkook’s lips.

“Hey, Taehyungie…!” Jungkook greets, his run on the treadmill coming to a stop. He’s positively
surprised when he feels a gentle hand on his chin, that he already knows that precedes a kiss —
he’s sweaty, and they’re in public, so he wasn’t expecting it. He’s not complaining, though.

“Good afternoon.” the nurse — personal trainer? — bows.

Taehyung bows back, polite. “I’ll just take a seat.” he informs as he drags a chair to be near the
next machine that Jungkook’s led to by the nurse; one where the younger sits and parts his legs,
placing them on two cushioned parts that he must open and close with his legs alone.

And the artist isn’t shy in the way that he watches the workout attentively.

Judging by the persistent blush high on Jungkook’s cheeks, he can feel it.

He’s dressed in a pair of sweat shorts and a tee-shirt, both black, but his shirt is sticking to his skin
from sweating, and Taehyung can make out the dips of muscle on his abdomen.

Whilst it i s entertaining to watch the way that his thighs flex whenever he moves them, it isn’t
entertaining to watch the sneaky hands that touch him. He tries to ignore it, convince himself that
it’s just an unknown jealous side of himself seeing things, but he’s sure not to be making it all up.
All of those touches are not necessary for the sake of the exercises.

The hands are subtle, but not subtle enough for his hawk eyes.

They touch Jungkook a little too much, be it his thighs or his chest; Taehyung swears that they
even squeeze his bicep at some point, which is absolutely not necessary when Jungkook’s working
out on his legs — there’s no reason to feel up his arms.

He pulls out his phone, focusing his attention on replying to all of his messages, be it friends,
family, and people scheduling tattoos or asking questions in relation to his work. It’s a good
distraction, and he’s able to stay quiet instead of saying something about the way that she’s
behaving, because he doesn’t want to be overbearing, or maybe comment on something that is
normal; he doesn’t work out, so he wouldn’t really know.

It takes a bit too long.

Two hours, he believes.

Jungkook’s red in the face, sweating so much that his hair is sticking to his forehead, and the artist
is a bit bored, now that he’s stopped himself from looking at Jungkook in order to stay quiet.

“We’re done.” Taehyung hears, and he feels his ears turn in interest. Jungkook lets out a tired but
satisfied groan, and his nurse hands over his bottle of cold water, from which he takes a big sip.
“Shall we head to the shower now?” she asks, a hand already reaching for Jungkook’s wrist.

“There’s no need for you to accompany him to his shower, I’m here. I’ll help him out.” Taehyung
interrupts, and the discontentment is evident in his voice.

“Ah, yes.” the lady nods. “I’ll see you in a few days, Jungkook.” the latter gives her a little smile
and a bow, and she only looks at Taehyung once before leaving with her hoodie under her arm.

“You sounded snappy.” Jungkook comments once he senses that they’re alone, blindly searching
for Taehyung’s forearm to hold onto. “Are you in a bad mood? You seemed ok earlier…”

“I don’t like her.” Taehyung states. “She touches you too much.” he elaborates on his statement as
he starts to walk so that he can guide Jungkook, and the younger man doesn’t even know how to
answer that. Taehyung sounds actually upset, and that’s something that he hasn’t dealt with before;
he doesn’t know how to deal with an annoyed or angry Taehyung.

To make it worse, there’s no reassurance that Taehyung’s not angry at him, too. He might be, if his
silence is anything to go by. They’re both quiet as they walk to the locker room, and remain quiet
as they sort Jungkook’s things for him to hop into the shower cubicle.

Jungkook frowns to himself.

He doesn’t like this, he realizes.

“Why are you so quiet?” Jungkook finally asks, a little more courageous now that Taehyung can’t
see him.

“I don’t like her.” Taehyung repeats.

“She’s been my assigned nurse for years…” Jungkook explains as he scrubs his own scalp with a
great amount of shampoo. “Ever since the accident, really.”

“Hm.” another frown.

“Tae, she’s like, thirty something—”

“I’m thirty.” Jungkook freezes for a second, processing it, before giggling. Taehyung sighs. “I’m
not mad at you, if that’s what you’re thinking. I’m just… mad.” his shoulders do relax at that. He
didn’t do anything wrong, so he’d be very confused if he was the reason behind the change in the
elder’s humor.

“Alright…” he nods. “Do you look hot when you’re mad?” he decides to joke to ease the mood,
and he knows Taehyung well enough to know that he must’ve, at least, smiled.

“Just take your shower.”

“But that doesn’t answer my—”

“Babe.” Jungkook giggles again.

“Okay, give me ten minutes…”

│►

Jungkook trails after Taehyung, relying on the sounds of his footsteps to keep up with him to his
apartment. He’s fairly entertained by how annoyed the elder seems to be, all because of unfounded
jealousy — Jungkook doesn’t care, in the slightest, about anyone else.

“Are you still upset…?” he sing-songs.

“Yes.” Taehyung doesn’t even try to deny it. Jungkook puckers his lips to stop himself from
snorting, which he recognizes that would do nothing but make everything even worse. He walks
into Taehyung’s apartment, hearing the door close behind them.

“Come here.” Jungkook whispers, stepping closer as he blindly searches for Taehyung’s face to
feel it up, try to decipher what expression he’s holding. “Your eyebrows are furrowed, you have…
a bit of a frown… I think that you probably look really hot when angry.” he feels the frown soften
beneath his fingertips, and that makes him smile.

“I’m angry, don’t make me feel soft.”

“Why are you even angry, to begin with? I didn’t do anything.” Jungkook whines, nudging his
chest with little to no strength. “Don’t be mad at me.”

“I’m not mad at you, you dungus.” he sighs. “I’m mad at her, your nurse. I know that she was just
doing her job, but she was touching you way too much, way more than necessary. She had no
reason to be feeling up your arms and chest while you were working out your legs, she did it
because she wanted to touch you.”

The younger man groans. “I’m literally gay, why are you jealous?”

“Is that what you think that this is?”

“Duh, yes, and it’s kind of obvious. It’s kind of flattering, also kind of attractive — which might
mean that I have some issues if I find your anger attractive — but you have no reason to be jealous
of her. Or anyone, for that matter.”

“Yeah, you do have issues, and this is not the only one.” Jungkook makes an affronted sound, but
doesn’t even get to contest. “I have to burst your bubble, though. I’m not jealous, at all. I’m just
angry that she thinks that she can do what she did just because you can’t see the way that she was
checking you out, or see the expression that she has on her face when she touches you
inappropriately.” Jungkook feels his heart swell at that. “I’m not mad at you, I promise.”

“Don’t promise, prove it, instead.”

“How so?”

“Kiss me.” Taehyung chuckles, pulling him closer by his collar. Their lips have already grown
used and comfortable with each other’s, so it’s easy to get lost in the kiss. Jungkook’s hands find
their place on the elder’s hips, gently pushing him back until he’s stopped by the wall. “Hm…”

“On another note…” the blue-haired starts, stealing another peck before he goes on. “You looked
really hot working out, all sweaty and what not. Had she not behaved in such a gross and ill way, I
would’ve enjoyed the show a great amount.” he praises.

“The show?” Taehyung simply hums against his lips, allowing Jungkook’s tongue to meet his once
again. “I can give you another show, if you’d like…” Jungkook whispers, aware of how promising
his offer sounds. “Any kind of show, too. A show that only you get to see, no one else.”

The artist chuckles. “Is that so?” Jungkook nods as he tries to remove Taehyung’s shirt, but the
latter holds his hands before he can. “Come with me.” he says, deciding that they should be in the
bedroom in case anything happens. It’s Jungkook’s first time and he will make it good.

Jungkook still manages to get rid of their shirts on the way.

He yelps when he’s pushed by his shoulders, but he’s not scared of falling now; he knows that
Taehyung’s there, and he’d never let him get hurt. He’s proven right when he simply hits the
bouncy mattress, and feels Taehyung crawling on top of him. His hands quickly settle on the soft
curve of the elder’s waist, sliding down until they grab a nice hold of his thighs.
Jungkook tilts his head up and to the side as the kisses start right behind his ear, and going lower;
down to his chest — giving special attention to his sensitive nipples — and further to his toned
abdomen. They only stop at the waistband of his jeans, but Taehyung quickly opens them.

The younger cooperates to have them taken off, his underwear following suit, leaving him
completely bare. Taehyung has seen him naked a few times before, but each time feels like the
first; he feels shy, and he feels like covering himself, but he doesn’t. He doesn’t have to.

Taehyung thinks that he’s gorgeous, he’s said it before.

There’s no reason for him to cover up.

“You’re so fucking hot— You’re so pretty.” he says, feeding into his momentary confidence.

“Don’t compliment me like that, or I’ll feel like shit for not being able to do the same…” he
frowns, hand reaching lower to lazily stroke himself. Taehyung lets him, scooting away from him
to crawl lower on the bed. “You should just keep your eyes closed during this. For the sake of
fairness, and all.” Taehyung rolls his eyes, licking over the scar on his hip.

The reaction is immediate: Jungkook’s hips buck up into his fist, followed by a whine.

“That’s unfair.”

“Hm, I don’t seem to agree.” he teases, kissing the same spot again, only to be tugged up by the
hair, and pulled into a kiss that extends for over a minute. “Do you—” another peck. “Do you have
any preferences? I’m cool with anything… I’m only asking because we’ve never talked about that
aspect of this.” Taehyung asks, to be sure before doing anything.

Jungkook sighs. “I do… I think. I’m well aware that my preferences can’t be taken into
consideration, though, given that I can’t really see what I’m doing. Don’t worry, you can just do
whatever that you prefer.” he smiles, but Taehyung knows that frowny smile too well.

“Tell me, baby.” the artist encourages. “What’s your preference?”

“I’d be very content if I could— you know.”

“Top?”

“Mhm.” Jungkook pouts. “I know that it’s stupid, but—” Taehyung interrupts him by straddling his
lap, effectively ending his train of thoughts. “I-It’s also my first time so… I uhm, you know. I’m
nervous, I think. Not a bad nervous, just like— nervous.” he rambles.

“I know that, baby.” Taehyung whispers, pecking his lips. “Everyone’s nervous for their first
time… You have nothing to be anxious about, though. I got you. You can top, if that’s what you
want, I don’t mind it at all. I’d actually really enjoy riding you.”

Jungkook has never hated his lack of sight as much as now.

“I can’t believe that I’m not getting to see that.” he whines.

“You’ll feel it instead, Kook.” it’s not the same, Jungkook wants to say, but holds back. He knows
that Taehyung understands that it’s not the same thing, it’s nowhere near the same, but neither will
allow that to ruin the moment, or make it less special.

So, he nods. “I’ll be happy to feel it.” he whispers.

Taehyung smiles. “Good.” a kiss. “I just need you to give me, like, five minutes.”

“For what?” Jungkook pouts, holding his thighs a little tighter, unwilling to let him go anywhere
when they haven’t even started. “Where could you possibly want to go right now?”

“Don’t ask a bottom for their secrets.” Taehyung whispers by his ear before prying his hands away
to be able to get up, and Jungkook’s left a little stunned, trying to process the information.

Then, he makes a sound of acknowledgement. “Okay, I shall wait here.” he shifts on the bed to get
comfortable, head now on the fluffy pillow; one of his legs bends, hand once again being used for
him to pleasure himself — slow, lazy, but it’s good nonetheless.

Taehyung could stand there for hours just watching him.

Jungkook is so, so gorgeous.

“Don’t fucking finish before I come back.” he half-threatens, having to force his own eyes to leave
Jungkook’s perfectly sculptured body, otherwise he’ll never manage to move from that spot. He
hears Jungkook’s bubbly laugh as he enters the bathroom, and it makes him smile.

“I’m not promising anything…!” Jungkook tells him, letting his eyes close.

The bed is comfortable, and any sort of awkwardness has already vanished, so now he really just
needs Taehyung to hurry up and return as he can’t stop picturing having a lap full of the older man.
That’s all that he wants and needs at the moment.

He tips his head to the side, breathing in Taehyung’s cologne that he can smell all over the pillow,
all over the bed, and he just knows that he’s going to be left with the scent all over himself until he
showers, and he likes it a little too much. He loves smelling like Taehyung’s strong cologne.

With his free hand, he searches for his pants to get his phone, and takes his time to put on one of
his playlists; not only does it help setting the mood, but it also fills up the silence while he’s alone,
and doesn’t let him feel awkward in any way.

Jungkook lets out a soft gasp when he feels a hand on his cheek, informing him of Taehyung’s
return, but he doesn’t have time to say anything before having a mouth against his own. He sits up
to be able to pull the elder down to the bed, pleased when his hands come in direct contact with his
bare skin. He’s not the only one fully naked anymore.

“Tae?” he calls, lips barely separating.

“Hm?”

“Will you guide me?” Jungkook asks, resting their foreheads together.

“I’ll guide you through everything and anything, Jungkook.” Taehyung assures, kissing him once
again. “What do you want to do? I’ll let you do anything that you feel like doing.”

“There’s way too much that I want to do to you.” he admits, hands fitting on Taehyung’s waist to
pull him even closer. “However, I really just want you to sit on me right now, before I fucking
combust or some shit. I’m as on edge as a twelve-year-old boy who’s masturbating for the first
time.” Taehyung laughs, pushing the younger man back down to lay him on the pillow.

“You can’t be serious to save your life, can you?”

“Thankfully, no.” Jungkook makes sure to feel up every movement of Taehyung’s body as he
moves, and he can sense the elder hovering over him. He hears a drawer opening and, soon
enough, there’s some sort of foil touching his bottom lip.

He bites it.

Taehyung tears the small pack with Jungkook’s aid, and the aforementioned almost sees stars
when his own hand is swatted away so that Taehyung can roll the condom on him. “You’re taking
too long.” he complains, simply because he has to.

“You’re too impatient.” Taehyung tsks.

“I believe that it’s understandable to be impatient in this situation.” Jungkook argues, and
Taehyung doesn’t even answer him, simply throws one of his legs across his lap, and sits on the
younger man’s thighs. Jungkook puckers his lips in a forced pout. “A little higher, pl—”

“Shut up.” there’s a hand on his jaw before he can speak again, but he welcomes it just as much as
he welcomes the mouth that fits against his own in a hurried, too wet kiss. There’s too much
tongue, too much saliva, too much of everything, but he likes it — perhaps more than he should.

Jungkook’s hands are greedy in the way that they feel the curve of Taehyung’s back, down to his
thighs, and back up to his stomach, only to repeat the process many times again. He can’t stop
touching, and he wonders how Taehyung’s soft skin looks; wonders how much it glows, how tan it
is, or how pale it could be.

He doesn’t allow himself to fall into that spiral, because he’ll ruin the mood for both of them, and
focuses instead on appreciating the man sitting on his lap.

Taehyung uses the hand on Jungkook’s jaw to tilt his head up, leaning in to kiss his neck.
Jungkook can tell that it’s going to leave a mark and, again, he wishes that he could see it. He
wishes that he could stare at the mirror the next morning, and be reminded of everything just from
seeing a simple hickey on his neck.

“What’s wrong?” Taehyung asks, kissing behind his ear. “I can tell that you’re spacing out. Am I
that bad?” it’s a joke, Jungkook knows, but he can detect a little hint of uneasiness.

“Fuck, no. I just wish that I could see you right now.” he admits, gulping. “I bet that you look so
fucking good, and— and edible. I can just imagine how attractive you are, and I can’t see it when
you’re literally naked on top of me. I hate it, and I hate that I won’t be able to see the stupid hickey
that you just left on my neck… which felt really good, by the way.”

Taehyung smiles, sympathetic, before kissing his chest. “Being blindfolded is a kink for a lot of
people. When you can’t see, you feel with more intensity, which you already know. Instead of
getting lost in your thoughts, wishing to be able to see, try to focus on how you feel precisely
because you’re not being able to see.” Jungkook pouts. “Yeah?”

“Yeah.” he nods. “I hadn’t thought about that… Go on, I’ll focus on how I feel, instead.”

“Good.” Taehyung whispers by his ear again, guiding Jungkook’s hands to his own hips,
encouraging him to use them to do and feel as much as he pleases. Jungkook doesn’t hesitate then;
he feels and does as much as he wants to.

Their mouths stay occupied with each other’s tongues, as their hands grow more familiar with their
bodies. While they’ve seen each other naked a couple of times, it was never like this. Never to this
extent, and they were never touching everywhere possible.
In a wave of courage, Jungkook lifts Taehyung up by the hips, his message clear though silent.

Jungkook stops being able to kiss back when Taehyung slowly but steadily lowers himself onto his
lap once again, and he doesn’t even notice the way that he starts sinking his nails into the elder’s
thighs with how hard he grips them — only does he notice it when his hands are pinned by his
head so that he stops.

“I’m sorry.” he manages to say, breath uneven.

“Don’t be.” Taehyung reprehends, leaning back down for a kiss that Jungkook struggles to
reciprocate, but does his absolute best to. He moans into Taehyung’s mouth unashamedly,
eyebrows scrunched in an expression of pure bliss.

The fact that he can’t touch, grab, feel anymore is rather torturous, and he tries to pull his hands
free, but to no avail. He mewls when the kisses move to his neck, sucking his skin in a way that he
just knows that will leave a mark, and he loves it.

He loves hickeys.

He used to love looking at them in the mirror whenever someone got a little braver back in his
high-school days, even if he had to learn how to hide them with a good amount of concealer so that
his parents wouldn’t see the marks.

There’s something insanely possessive and attractive about hickeys to him; about looking at
himself in the mirror and immediately have his mind filled with memories of just how exactly
those purple marks were left there.

Jungkook can feel a slight pang in his chest as he thinks about that, because he won’t be able to
appreciate the art that Taehyung’s creating on his skin. “Stop thinking.” the elder whispers by his
ear, before biting on his lobe. “I can hear you thinking. What’s wrong?”

“I want to see you… and those hickeys.”

Taehyung’s eyebrows furrow, movements slowing down just the slightest. “See me, then.” he
encourages, letting one of his hands free. Jungkook smiles, because he truly appreciates Taehyung
trying, instead of either ignoring or invalidating how he feels, especially during such a moment that
they’re sharing.

He does as told.

He feels.

Although he wishes that he could actually see everything, see whether Taehyung looks as gone as
he himself feels, see if his kisses have left any marks on the elder’s skin, too, he tries to use his
imagination as well as possible to picture what he feels under his fingertips.

He makes it his mission to touch everywhere that he can reach, and Taehyung just lets him,
intertwining his fingers with the one hand that he still has pinned by Jungkook’s head. The way
that the younger man squeezes his hand and, simultaneously, gives his thigh a little slap, only
compels him to start picking up his rhythm again.

Taehyung changes his position a bit, not only to make it easier, but to also make it feel better for
both of them, and focuses back on the bruising kisses that he was leaving all over Jungkook’s neck
and chest. His free hand busies itself trying to find new sensitive spots in the younger’s body, and
he smiles upon the realization that his nipples are, rather surprisingly, very sensitive.
Jungkook moans with his head thrown back into his pillow, hands trying to become free so that he
can pry Taehyung’s fingers away from pinching his nipple — even if he likes it a little too much.
His hips thrust up to meet Taehyung’s movements, but they shudder when there’s a bite on one of
his nipples, and a pinch on the other.

“Tae— Holy fuck, stop, stop.” he urges.

Taehyung stops, resting by fully sitting on Jungkook’s lap. “What’s wrong?”

“I— Shit, I was about to give you something to be cocky about, and to rub in my face forever.”

“Were you going to finish? Already? It’s been, like, four minutes.” Taehyung teases, tugging on
his nipple again; Jungkook’s hips buck up. “Adorable, really, you’re so c—” he yelps, surprised,
when he’s flipped over so that Jungkook’s lying between his now parted legs.

Jungkook starts moving.

It’s a little uncoordinated at first, a little messy, but he’s a fast learner, and he learns through the
sounds that Taehyung makes; he learns how to move, how hard to go. It’s his first time, he’s never
been in such a position, but he does his best.

He’s too competitive not to.

One of his hands reaches to hold Taehyung’s thigh as he scrambles back for a kiss. “A-Am I doing
good?” he asks against his lips, voice airy and showing his struggle to even speak.

“Always fishing for— Hm— Compliments, aren’t you?” Taehyung teases, smirking when the
younger man whines into his mouth. “You’re doing good, especially for a first time. Just continue,
baby, you’re doing good.” he encourages, only to throw his head back when Jungkook adjusts his
position. “Fuck, right there, Kook, right there.”

Jungkook feels proud of himself for getting those words.

He’s not proud, however, of how embarrassingly close he is, just barely hanging on the very edge,
trying his hardest to hold back. If he gets Taehyung just as close, he thinks, then maybe the elder
will be able to enjoy it just as much, even if it’s a short experience.

One gets better with time, right?

His mind runs through every single sex-related conversation that they’ve ever had, trying to think
of anything that Taehyung might have said that would get him close to the edge, too, and he smiles
when he finds his answer.

Jungkook trails his hand up Taehyung’s body until it stops by his neck, fingers digging on the
sides; he squeezes just enough, unsure of where to even apply the pressure. Judging by the way
that Taehyung tightens around him, he guesses that he’s not doing a horrible job.

And Taehyung is beyond surprised that Jungkook even remembers such a fact about him.

Once the surprise washes off, he places a hand over Jungkook’s to guide it to the right spot around
his neck, encouraging him to squeeze a little harder. Jungkook obeys, all the while quickening his
pace significantly, movements almost desperate and clearly seeking his release.

Taehyung just lets him, aware of how hard it is to hold back on a first time.
Jungkook’s done a great job, nonetheless.

Good things don’t last, though, so he has to tap Jungkook’s wrist for him to let go of his throat, and
he immediately loosens his grip — Taehyung inhales sharply for air, and Jungkook’s now free
hand grips the sheets so hard that his knuckles hurt.

“Tae, I’m going to— I’m sorry, I—” he stammers.

“Don’t worry, baby, go on, go on.” Taehyung encourages, watching his face as he gets lost in the
feeling. He watches until Jungkook reaches his limit with a long, broken, and dragged-out moan of
his name, movements then slowing down into a stop.

Jungkook falls over him, breathing a little erratic. Taehyung plays with his hair with a love-sick
smile, positively enjoying Jungkook’s blissful expression as he rests his head on Taehyung’s strong
chest.

It takes him a few seconds to collect himself, and he tries to hold himself up to continue, but he
hisses when he does so. His body feels sensitive all over, and it makes him have to pull out.

“Hyungie…” he mumbles, the pout on his lips giving away how upset he really is, though the
gentle hand that caresses up and down Taehyung’s side makes his intentions clear.

“Sensitive?” Taehyung asks. He nods. “That’s ok, baby.”

“No, it’s not.” he quickly says. “I want to make you feel good, too.”

“You were making me feel very good, I promise. No one lasts long on their first time, it’s
unrealistic to think that you would.” Taehyung sits up to kiss his cheek. “Besides—”

“No, shut it, I’m sucking you off. Lay back down.” Jungkook pushes him by the shoulders, quick
to scoot down on the bed to do as said; he doesn’t even give a warning before taking him almost
whole. Taehyung groans, his hand disappearing in the messy black hair to push him a little deeper
each time that he goes down.

“I wish that you could see yourself like this, you look so fucking pretty.” Taehyung compliments,
loving the way that Jungkook’s cheeks redden upon hearing his words, and he lets out a soft whine
around him. “I didn’t think that you’d get off to compliments… though I should’ve guessed so.
You act tough, try to make people believe that you don’t— Fuck— That you don’t care for
anything, but you’re just a needy little—”

Taehyung’s surprised by two fingers being shoved into his mouth to shut him up after Jungkook
feels his face to properly locate him. The latter pulls back, swallowing the spit almost overflowing
out of his mouth, a small thread of saliva still connecting his bottom lip to Taehyung’s body.

“Don’t be bratty, Taehyungie.” Jungkook warns, trying to go back to his task, but he gets held in
place by the now meaner grip on his hair. His makes him hiss, eyes closing.

“What did you just call me?”

He gapes. “I-I’m sorry, hyung.” he squeezes the hand that is still holding Taehyung, only to try and
give back some pain similar to the one on his scalp — that he likes, but no one needs to mention it.
Maybe he’s the brat, inflicting pain just to have some sort of reaction.

“You’re lucky that it’s your first time, otherwise it’d be teaching you a lesson.”
“Then I’m not fucking lucky.” Jungkook mumbles.

“Hm?”

“Y-You can do it. Do it.” the younger man encourages, taking his hand to Taehyung’s mouth
again, blindly shoving two fingers past his lips. He thrusts them in and out once, twice, before
pulling them out. “Do whatever. I’m cool with it. I want it.”

“Are you sure…? Shouldn’t your first time be, I don’t know, special and shit?”

“It’s— It’s with you, so it’s already special…” Jungkook whispers, shy, hiding his face against
Taehyung’s stomach. “Don’t make fun of me.” he requests with a whiny voice.

Taehyung smiles, caressing his head. “Are you sure?” he repeats.

“Yes, absolutely.”

“Alright.” Taehyung’s voice sounds stern again, and Jungkook bites down on his bottom lip,
waiting for whatever it is that he’ll be told to do. “Go back to fucking me.”

“What— No, I’m still really sensitive, I can’t—”

“Do I really have to ask again?” Jungkook’s eyes widen for a moment, surprised, but quickly shifts
his position to hover over the elder once again. “Continue. Sensitive or not.”

“Holy fuck, okay.”

│►

Jungkook scoots closer to Taehyung’s chest when they both finish, breathing out of control, and
wraps his arms around the elder’s torso as tightly as possible. He’s never felt this good, this safe,
this euphoric. Taehyung smiles, playing with his hair.

The younger man lets out a content sigh, relaxing.

He feels happy. Genuinely happy.

Whenever he’s with Taehyung, he’s always happy, but even more as of lately. Ever since their
relationship evolved into… whatever it is that they have going on that he’s exceptionally happy.

After his accident, he thought that no one would ever want him like this, no one would want to date
him, no one would ever like him in such a way. Maybe that’s why he finds it so hard to believe that
Taehyung reciprocates his feelings, even though he knows that he does.

He knows it, because he feels it. He feels it in the kisses, in the hugs, in every word exchanged.

Even if they’re not dating, he’s the happiest that he’s ever been.

“Are you okay?” Taehyung asks after a few minutes spent in a comfortable silence, just savoring
the moment and letting their heartbeats and breathing rate calm down.

“Mhm, I’m great…” Jungkook nods, placing a kiss on Taehyung’s naked, sweaty chest. “How’s
your throat?” he asks, a little worried. It was his first time experimenting with such a thing, his first
time in general, and he might’ve done something wrong, might’ve hurt him on accident.

“I’m great, too, don’t worry.” he ruffles his already messy hair. “I’ll get you some water, baby.”
“Oh, thank you…” Jungkook sits up as he waits, replaying the past events in his mind. He loved
every single second of it: the rough handling yet soft kisses, the hair pulling yet reassuring words
by his ear. He loved it, and it loved even more that it was with Taehyung.

It doesn’t take long for him to hear steps.

“There you go, baby.” Taehyung says as he walks closer, and Jungkook feels a cold glass touch his
hand, followed by a small package on the other. “That’s a protein bar. You left some here the other
day, so you should eat it now.” he instructs.

Jungkook pouts, heart feeling full. He’s never been this well taken care of. “Thank you,
hyungie…” he crosses his legs, the sheets up to his hips as he opens the package after managing to
balance the glass of water perfectly on the bed against his leg — any brusque movement, and their
bed will be ruined for the night. “Did you… Did you enjoy it?” he asks, a little hesitant.

He can hear Taehyung opening a package, too, so he guesses that he also has a protein bar to eat. “I
did, baby.” the artist reassures as he tucks a strand of Jungkook’s fluffy hair behind his pierced ear.
“Did you?” he turns the question around.

Jungkook nods multiple times. “I did. I enjoyed it a whole lot.” he smiles. “I do apologize if it
wasn’t what you expected, or if it was a bit underwhelming… You’re old and experienced, and it
was, you know, my first time.” he points. “I reckon that if we practice a lot, I’ll—”

“You’re one smart little fucker.” Taehyung interrupts him with a laugh. “On a serious note, don’t
worry your pretty head. No one’s good on their first time, and you already did well, so you have
nothing to worry about. I enjoyed it, and so did you, and that’s all that matters. There’s room for
improvement, and we’ll just work on it.”

“You’re too nice…”

“I’m just honest.”

Jungkook bites down on his bottom lip to keep himself from smiling, fiddling with the protein bar.
“I’d also like to thank you for— uhm, for taking my preferences into consideration. Sight is kind of
really important during sex so, really, thank you for still allowing me to be in such a position
despite not having it.” he speaks with a quieter tone, and Taehyung’s eyebrows furrow.

“I don’t like it when you sound like this.” Taehyung flicks his chin, which grants him an
immediate and easy smile. “As I’ve told you countless times before, you’re way more than your
disability, so I’ll never, ever, let it get in between us. We’ll find a way around everything that you
do, and I’ll guide you through all of it, if needed. I’ll be your eyes.”

“Will you guide me through the— the dark that I see?”

“I’ll guide you through everything and anything.”

Jungkook wants to cry. “Can you kiss me?”

“You don’t have to ask.” Taehyung leans in, pecking him.

“Another one.” he immediately requests.

“Shush, no more kisses until you’re done eating.” Taehyung denies, trying not to laugh at how
upset Jungkook looks upon hearing that. “We need a shower. Especially me, I’m all sticky.” he
complains, looking down at his stomach and the inside of his thighs; it makes him cringe.
“Hm, can we shower together? I’ll wash you.” Jungkook offers.

“You can’t see what’s there to wash.”

“Wow. What a great way to break a man’s heart, I am appalled.” he puts his glass away, lying
down on the bed with the sheets still only up to his waist. “I shall cry now.”

Taehyung cackles. “Sit up.”

“No, I’m deeply hurt, I can’t even look at you right now.”

“Damn right you can’t.” Taehyung smiles, proud of his joke.

There’s a second of silence before Jungkook snorts, the sound turning into a full laugh as his chest
vibrates, eyes disappearing within the apples of his cheeks. “Oh, fuck, that was good. Your humor
about this is getting good, I’m happy that you don’t walk around it anymore.”

“If you feel better by making fun of it, then I’ll do my best to cooperate.” Taehyung shrugs,
tapping his abdomen. “Sit up, c’mon. We can shower together once you drink your water, and I’ll
let you wash me, too.” he instructs, laughing when Jungkook starts gulping down the content of his
glass. “Are you that eager?”

“Yes, I am.” Jungkook admits, unashamedly. “If that shower turns into a round two, I promise that
it is not on purpose.”

“Hm, sure.” Taehyung nods. “Let’s just go, I feel gross.”

“Are you saying that my cum is g—”

“Yes, I am.” he doesn’t even let him finish. “Now, get up already.”

“Yes, sir…” Jungkook puckers his lips, getting up from the bed.

He walks with a skip in his step.

He’s really happy.

│►

“Do we need anything else?” Taehyung asks, eyeing the shopping cart.

“Didn’t you say that you wanted a candle?” Jungkook reminds.

“Oh, right, shit, the candles.” he reaches for Jungkook’s hand, tugging on it to get him to start
walking. “I completely forgot about the candles.”

“Hm, your old age is showing…” Jungkook teases. “What are they for, anyway?”

“For my studio… I like to have candles with calming scents.” Taehyung explains, humming to
himself as he spots the aisle with candles. “Since I’m here, I may grab some for my apartment,
too.” he decides. “Your nose is better than mine, pick whatever you like.”

Jungkook perks up in interest, already blindly reaching for the small glass candles. He sniffs them
carefully, wanting to choose a scent that will fit Taehyung’s studio the best. He’d never change the
scent that surrounds him whenever he’s in the elder’s apartment: his cologne and coffee; a mixture
so addictive that he can’t even think about getting a candle that doesn’t smell like coffee for the
apartment.

In fact, if he could turn Taehyung’s cologne and coffee into a singular scent and make a candle out
of it, he’d fill up his room with that comforting smell. Creepy? Perhaps a little.

He places a few coffee-scented candles in the cart.

Now, for the studio, he tries to diligently smell every candle that he can get his hands on. “I like
this cinnamon one.” Taehyung says after a while, and Jungkook only holds his hand out as a silent
request to be passed the object; the candle is soon placed on his open palm.

He takes a good sniff. “Cinnamon is smokier than this, this is poor. Put it back.” Jungkook tsks,
handing him the candle back. Taehyung is left confused, as he himself can’t really tell the
difference between the candle’s smell and real cinnamon, but he trusts Jungkook’s nose, which is
far more accurate than his own.

“Have you smelled any that you like?” he asks.

“I like this one that I was just sniffing…” Jungkook holds it between both of his hands. “It— It
smells like your hair… and I really like it.” he admits, cheeks dusted with a faint pink color that
only makes Taehyung smile brightly.

“Alright, baby, we’ll take this one.” Taehyung agrees, heart doing somersaults at the way that
Jungkook smiles upon hearing that. “Are you absolutely certain of your pick? Shall I take four?”

“I’m very sure, yeah.” Jungkook nods, handing over the candle and motioning for the elder to take
more. “Can we get a plant before we go?”

Taehyung tilts his head. “A plant?”

“Yeah, I want a little green friend…” Jungkook puckers his lips, twirling one of the strings of his
hoodie. “My mom told me that taking care of plants can be therapeutic, so I’d like to try that, I’d
like to have one. Unless you’re in a rush to leave, that’s ok…”

“I’m in no rush, we can get you a nice plant. C’mon.” Taehyung reaches for his hand, gently
tugging on it to guide him through the isles until they get to the plants. “Do you have any
preference, hm?”

“I just know that I want a nice-looking one. You better have good taste.”

“My taste is impeccable, and you should’ve known that already.” Taehyung tsks, letting go of his
hand. “You have a bunch of plants to your right, you can sniff them as much as you’d like so that
you can decide on which one to take.” he informs, and Jungkook immediately reaches forward to
sniff the first vase that he can get his hands on.

Taehyung leans against the shopping cart, letting him do his thing.

“Oh, this one smells so good.” Jungkook hums to himself, holding the vase out and towards the
elder for him to smell. There’s a loud sneeze not even five full seconds after, and he steps back,
startled. “Was that you, or is there anyone else in the aisle with us?” he asks in a quiet whisper.

“Get that thing away from me, please.” Taehyung sniffs. “I don’t get along well with plants… my
nose doesn’t like them.” he explains, feeling almost guilty for saying so; he doesn’t want the
younger man to suddenly decide that he doesn’t want to buy one anymore just because he’s
struggling, already sniffing a little too much.
“We should go.” Jungkook suggests, just as he predicted.

“What about your plant?” Taehyung asks, despite already knowing why Jungkook wants to go.

“It’s getting late and you know how I take a long time to make decisions, so we should… just go,
yeah.” he smiles, aware of how much of a terrible liar he is.

Taehyung smiles. “We have time.” he contradicts.

Jungkook sighs, as if it pains him to show just how much he actually cares, which is yet another
trait that Taehyung surely shouldn’t find as adorable as he does. “You have allergies, and you’re
the only flower that I need.” the artist blinks. “Anyway, I don’t want you to sneeze on me again
like you did just now, so let’s leave.” he tries to cover it up, coughing.

“I did not sneeze on you.” Taehyung defends.

“I felt it on me.”

“That’s impossible.”

“Let’s just go.” Jungkook gestures. “You have allergies.”

“I want to get you the goddamn plant, just pick one!” Taehyung stresses.

“Well, now I don’t want it.” he crosses his arms, bratty.

“Fine, then, I’ll just pick one myself.” Jungkook furrows his eyebrows, alarmed, when he hears the
other pushing a few vases aside to choose one, and he knows that Taehyung will decide on a
random one.

“Not that one.” he quickly says.

“You don’t even know which one I p—”

“I don’t trust your taste. You literally befriended my arrogant ass willingly, and then proceeded to
like me even further. I don’t trust your taste at all. I know that it’s ugly without even seeing it, so
put it back on the shelf.” he points to the shelf as he orders, and Taehyung has to keep his laugh
inside given that he’s not pointing in the right direction.

“What kind of plant do you want?”

“None, I want you to—”

“Jungkook.”

Jungkook puckers his lips, giving it a thought. And then, a great idea. “Your allergies probably
wouldn’t act up with a cactus. I want one, a nice cactus.” he smiles, suddenly excited again. “It has
to be pretty, just like you.”

“Baby, those have pricks that you can’t see. You’d hurt yourself…”

“But I want a little, pretty cactus…” he pouts. “You’re supposed to name them, so it’d be our little
baby… Besides, I know that I’d probably forget to water it, and a cactus doesn’t need regular
water. The chances of me killing it are very slim like this.”

“Hold on, since when are we supposed to name plants?”

“Since you lose all of your friends and can no longer see anyone that you care about.”

Taehyung is silent for a few seconds, before nodding and facing the shelves. “I’ll get you a pretty
cactus.” he informs, and Jungkook smiles. “You always use your tragedies on me, isn’t that what
one would call manipulation at its finest?” Taehyung asks, light-hearted, as he doesn’t mean it.

Jungkook tsks. “You know that I just enjoy messing with you. Pick the damn cactus.”

“Say please, first.”

“Pretty please, baby.” he says, and Taehyung just knows that he’s working his best puppy eyes
behind his dark glasses. Jungkook always uses his puppy eyes, they’re effective.

He proceeds to pat Jungkook’s head. “Good boy.” he teases.

“Get your ugly hand away from me before I bite it.” Jungkook threatens, but he doesn’t even move
to get him to stop playing with his hair, which juxtaposes his words. “I will bite.”

“You can’t bite me if I move.” Taehyung sing-songs, stepping away to pick the plant.

“You use my blindness against me, who’s the bad guy now?” Jungkook turns the question around
but is met with nothing but silence. “Tae?” he calls, confused. “Tae…?” nothing. “Did you
seriously leave me here alone?” he focuses as hard as he can on his listening, and it’s not that hard
for him to hear the other breathing not that far from him. Then, he fakes a sigh. “Finally got rid of
him.” he speaks to himself.

“Excuse me—?” Taehyung scoffs.

Jungkook laughs. “Next time that you want to hide from someone who’s blind, make sure that your
lungs aren’t running on fucking fumes.” he smiles, bright. “So much nicotine is really getting to
you, man.”

“My lungs are fine.” Taehyung tries not to laugh.

“Hm, I bet that you can’t run a mile without wheezing… You need to stop smoking. Actually,
forget a mile, you couldn’t run down this isle without panting at the end.” he teases.

“I don’t even smoke that much anymore.” Taehyung defends.

Jungkook hums. “Sure. Did you pick my cactus yet?”

“Not quite, no.” he quickly faces the plants again. All of the cacti look the same, and he’s not sure
of what to pick that will be enough for Jungkook. Realistically thinking, he could choose the
ugliest of the plants and Jungkook would have no idea, but he can’t do that. He has to choose
something decent, at the very least.

“Gosh, if the nicotine doesn’t kill you, the allergies will.”

“I really don’t smoke as much nowadays. I don’t like smoking when I’m around you, and we’re
together most of the time…” Jungkook’s a little surprised by the confession.

“That’s… strangely sweet. Oh, modern romance.” he says, a little dramatic, and Taehyung simply
rolls his eyes with a lazy smile as he finally settles for one of the vases. It stands out the most in his
eyes, and he knows that Jungkook would like it, too.

“I’ve made my decision.” Jungkook holds his hands out, and Taehyung hands it over. “Be careful,
baby, don’t touch it or you’ll make yourself bleed…” he warns.

“He looks beautiful… He looks like a Jake to me, don’t you think?”

“Why an American name?”

“Because I said so.”

Taehyung hums. “Fair enough… How can you tell that he looks like a Jake, though? He could be a
Mark.” he takes the vase from Jungkook’s hand to place it in their shopping cart.

“Because I can see with my soul.” Jungkook says, a hand over his chest.

“That rotten thing?” Taehyung points as he flicks Jungkook’s chin.

“It’s still not as rotten as those lungs that you have.” Jungkook is quick with his jabs, and it makes
the elder laugh. “The single reason why I love the smell of your hair is because it distracts me
from the nicotine stench in all of your clothes.” he goes on, trying not to laugh at his own words.

“Hm… Weren’t you sniffing my neck two nights ago before sleep? I’d swear that you said, on that
same moment, that I smell so good that you wish you could smell me all the time.” he accuses,
placing a hand on the cart to help Jungkook pushing it as he has to be the one actually directing it,
given that the younger can’t tell where they’re going.

“That wasn’t me.”

“Are you sure?”

“I don’t remember that happening. Not me.” he tries.

“Well, it might have been one of my other boys.” Jungkook knows that it’s a joke: it’s said in a
joking tone, and Taehyung wouldn’t just say that if it wasn’t a joke, but the mere thought of
Taehyung with someone else makes his face close off and his heart feels funny.

He doesn’t like it one bit.

“That was probably it.” Jungkook says with a clipped tone that Taehyung doesn’t miss. “I bet that
you look super ugly sleeping, anyway. Poor boys, actually having to see that.” he mumbles, the
shopping cart almost dragging him as he stops pushing it as eagerly as he was seconds prior.

“Just so that you know, I look really handsome while I sleep. It’s totally your loss.” Taehyung
tickles his side, not a fan of the frown adorning the other’s features. It works, Jungkook giggling
while flinching away from his hand.

“Judging by your snores, you’re lying. You probably drool.”

“That’s it, I’m done with you.”

“As if. You can’t have enough of me.” Jungkook smiles, clinging onto Taehyung’s arm lest he try
to walk away from him. Taehyung notices, and it makes him coo; he fits himself behind Jungkook,
still pushing the cart with him, keeping him close.

Jungkook can feel his cheeks blushing.

They’re always hugging, it’s not something new, but they’re in public this time. Taehyung’s chest
is pressed against his back as they both push the shopping cart, as if there’s no one else in the
market, but Jungkook can hear the commotion around them. He can hear a lot of people.

“What are you doing?” he asks, shy.

“Hugging you.” Taehyung shrugs, looking at the shelves as he tries to think of anything that they
might have planned on getting.

“In public…?”

“Would you like me to stop?” Taehyung asks. “If you’re uncomfortable, I can just step back. I
won’t be upset if that’s the case. Do you want me to step away?”

Jungkook puckers his lips, giving it a thought. Why would he willingly ask Taehyung to stop
holding him? He’d have to be crazy for that. “No, not really.” he decides. “Do we need anything
else? Where are we heading now?”

“We’re headed to the cashier. We’re going to pay.”

“Are you paying?” Taehyung hums. “Then let’s get ice cream.”

“If you pay for it.”

“I didn’t bring my wallet.”

“Then no ice cream.” he jokes.

“Oh, c’mon, now. What do I need a man with his own business and shit for if he’s not going to pay
for my ice cream?” Jungkook asks rhetorically, poking Taehyung’s hand.

“Would you rather have McDonald’s on the way?”

“Oh, yes!” he nods enthusiastically.

“Then it’s settled.” Taehyung kisses his cheek, stepping away to place their items on the conveyor
belt. “It’s our turn in line. Here, baby, hold the bill. You can be the one paying so that I can put our
stuff in the bag.” Jungkook takes it from his hand with a little smile, waiting patiently until he hears
the cashier telling him the total.

He can hear the rustling of a plastic bag, and he knows that it’s Taehyung storing everything that
they’re getting: dinner, the candles, and his new friend.

“Thank you, sir. Have a nice d—”

“Hold up.” Taehyung interrupts, reaching for Jungkook’s hand to gently open it. “You were
supposed to give him a ten, not a five.”

Jungkook blinks, confused. “What…?” he whispers.

“Don’t worry, baby.” Taehyung reassures as he places a hand on his lower back. “Give him the
correct amount. Don’t think that I wasn’t watching.”

“I’m so sorry. I didn’t realize.” but Taehyung knows better, and he could see how she was trying to
be sneaky about it; he could see how she handed over the incorrect amount on purpose.

“I’m sure that you didn’t.” Taehyung smiles, but he’s glaring at her every movement as she places
the correct bill in Jungkook’s hand. “C’mon.” he instructs, and Jungkook follows after him, still
confused, and relying solely on the hand on his waist to walk.

Once outside, he unfolds his cane as he’s handed over his cactus.

“Are you ok?” Taehyung asks.

“I legit don’t even know what the fuck just happened.”

“The fucking— She gave you less money than what she was supposed to. This— I can’t believe
that someone would ever—”

“Hey, calm down, Tae… It has happened before, it’s fine…”

“It’s not fucking fine, though. Why would someone do that shit?” he’s sheeting, hand gesturing
around a little too much. How can someone consciously do that to someone so vulnerable and
pure? Jungkook was simply paying for some candles, a stupid cactus and dinner, how could she
ever do him so wrong on purpose? He can’t understand it. He really can’t.

Jungkook searches for his face, leaning in for a kiss that Taehyung is far too angry to even try to
reciprocate. “Tae…” he calls, whiny. “C’mon.”

“I’m pissed.” is all that he says.

“Can we get a McFlurry?” Jungkook whispers against his lips, pecking them again. “Oreo
flavored, just as you like it.” another peck. “C’mon.” another one. “I don’t want you to be upset
over something that I’ve long accepted. People are fucked up, and there’s nothing that we can do to
change it… Please, Tae, don’t be mad.”

Taehyung sighs, defeated. “Let’s just go.” Jungkook smiles, which makes him smile almost
automatically, too. “Oreo with extra cookies for you?”

“You know me so well…”

│►

Jungkook hums happily as he shoves a spoonful of ice cream into his mouth, almost moaning at
the taste. “This is so fucking good. The chocolate, the Oreos, the damn ice cream itself… This is
the best thing that McDonald’s has to offer, and I literally don’t accept opinions on this. I could
actually go on and on about their ice cream, don’t get me fucking started.”

“I’m not even—”

“Shut up, you’re supposed to let me go on.”

“You’re going to drive me insane.” he comments, shaking his head.

“That’s my job, Tae. Full-time job.”

“And I’m a tattoo artist, not a babysitter.”

Jungkook gasps. “I’m not a ba—” Taehyung hits the brakes abruptly, making him choke around his
spoon. “Tae! What the fuck?!” the elder laughs as he coughs. “Are you trying to kill me?!”

“I’m sorry, my intrusive thoughts won.” he apologizes, leaning in to kiss the top of his head
lovingly. “Would you like me to drop you off at your place or are you coming to my apartment?”
“I want to go to yours… even if you’re trying to kill me.”

“Should we go leave the cactus at your house, though?”

“Jake is staying in your apartment.” Jungkook informs.

Taehyung looks at him briefly. “I can’t look after plants, baby. It should be with you, in your
house… To make sure that it doesn’t die. I don’t trust myself to keep it alive.”

“I’ll be taking care of my plant. In your apartment.” Jungkook fills up his mouth with more ice
cream, trying to play it off without blushing too much.

Taehyung connects the dots. “Are you slowly trying to move in?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” he mumbles.

“You can just do it in one go.” Taehyung teases, giving his thigh a little squeeze. “You don’t have
to be so shy about it. I wouldn’t mind having you around.”

“Woah, there, man… We’re not even dating and you want me to move in with you already? Talk
about being obsessed with me. I know that I’m fucking great, but—”

“You know what fuck off.” he cuts him off.

“Don’t fight in front of the kid!” Jungkook scolds.

“It’s a plant!”

“Jake, don’t listen, your dad doesn’t know what he’s saying…”

“Jesus Christ… You age me.” Taehyung rubs his eyes.

Jungkook snorts. “Oh, this is so fucking fun.”

│►

Taehyung looks up from his sketchbook when he hears a knock on his door, and soon Jungkook’s
head is peeking in. “Taehyungie? Are you there?” he asks, almost shyly, as if afraid of the
possibility of talking to the walls.

“I’m here.” he informs, his own smile widening when he sees Jungkook’s light up his whole face
just from hearing his voice. “You didn’t tell me that you’d be visiting.” Taehyung gets up, reaching
for Jungkook’s hand to guide him to the nearest chair, and the latter promptly sits on his lap.
Jungkook places a hand on his cheek, kissing him gently.

“You told me that someone cancelled, so I wanted to keep you company… and maybe surprise you
with my great presence.” Jungkook whispers against his lips, pecking them three more times.
“How long do you have available…?”

“I cleared up four hours for this tattoo, so we have about… three and a half hours to spare, still.”

“Hm… Okay…”

“Why?” he chuckles.

“Oh, nothing… No reason.” he pecks Taehyung’s lips once more before pulling back, hand
massaging the back of Taehyung’s neck as the aforementioned caresses his thigh across his own
legs. “So… tattoos, huh?”

The artist raises an eyebrow. “Tattoos? What about them?”

“I want to get one…” Jungkook admits with a little smile. “I’ve always liked tattoos, and I’d love it
if you’d be the one to do it… My own artist, you know? It’d be cute, and I trust your skills even if
I’ve never seen them. I just know that you must be good… And I Googled your name.”

Taehyung takes a moment to process the request, a little smile blooming on his face as he combs
the bangs away from Jungkook’s eyes to remove his sunglasses. “Alright, baby, what were you
thinking of getting? Any ideas?”

“Uhm… You’re the artist, so you can pick. You know me well enough to know what I would or
would not like.” Jungkook shrugs, hand still feeling up Taehyung’s neck. “I want to get whatever it
is that you think is fitting for me…”

“Alright… For a first tattoo… Let me think of something small for your first tattoo. It can maybe
be something on your wrist, or on your calf… What do you think?” he asks as he reaches for his
sketchbook once again, careful not to knock Jungkook off of his lap. “Any placement ideas?”

“Can… Can you cover up my scar…?” he whispers.

“For multiple reasons: no. One, tattooing over scars is extra painful. Two, you can’t just cover up a
part of yourself like that, especially when it’s such a pretty part of you. You shouldn’t place a big
tattoo there just to cover something that isn’t even that noticeable. I’ve told you: what you feel with
your fingers isn’t what we see with our eyes.” Taehyung explains, kissing his cheek. “I can give
you the third and last reason: I don’t want to, and I refuse to tattoo such a sensitive spot to cover up
something that shouldn’t be covered.”

“But… What if you get tired of me and the next person thinks that it’s ugly as fuck?”

“Then you know to leave them.” Jungkook pouts. “Baby, I promise you that it’s really not ugly, nor
is it a big thing. It’s a scar, sure, but we have to look to see it, otherwise it’s… barely there. You’re
far too fucking hot for it to take the attention from you.” he reassures.

“Really…?”

“Really.”

“Alright… Well, I still want a big tattoo, if the artist is willing to do that.” Jungkook brightens up
again. “I don’t want a small wrist tattoo, I’m too bold for that.”

“Babe, it’s your first tattoo, you should start simple and small…”

“Go big or go home.” he shrugs.

“If you say so, okay.” Taehyung gives in. “Let me go through my finished designs to see if I have
anything that would look nice on you…” he informs, starting to examine page after page of his
sketchbook until he spots a nice wolf drawing that he worked on a couple of weeks prior.

He came up with it with Jungkook on his mind, and he doesn’t think that he’ll ever find anything
more fitting than this one. It’s too special to be left behind.

“Baby, do you like wolves?” he asks, first and foremost.

“They’re one of my favorite pets, yes.” Jungkook nods.

“Wolves aren’t pets.”

“I don’t care. It’s the same shit as dildos: everything can be a dildo if you’re brave enough… That
can be applied to pets. If I want to own a fucking wolf, I will and no one can stop me.” he says, as a
matter-of-factly, and Taehyung has long given up on even trying to go against him.

“Right, okay.” is what he says with a defeated nod. “So, you like them, is what I heard.” Jungkook
nods yet again. “You know that I’m specialized in old school, and all of my own tattoos are in that
same style… but I have a talented bone for realism, even if I don’t like doing it much.”

“Yes, I am aware of that. You’re really good at it, too… Again, I looked for the reviews.” he
reminds, patting Taehyung’s chest. “My talented artist.” Jungkook praises.

“Shush, don’t distract me.” Taehyung tsks, prying his hand away. “I drew two wolves a couple of
weeks ago, one that is realistic, and one in old school style. They were meant to be used in
whatever client that wanted one, but they were both uhm, inspired by you.”

“Huh? By me?” he lights up again. “How come?”

“Do you know how they say that the lone wolf always dies even if the pack survives and moves on
without him? You’re like— the opposite. You don’t need anyone, you’re so fucking independent…
You quite literally hate people, and that’s the sole reason why I was even interested in you, to
begin with. You have your limitations, and we can’t deny them, but they don’t make you depend
on anyone. It’s fucking impressive and… inspiring.” Jungkook listens, attentive, his heart almost
wanting to beat its way out of his chest. “So, I drew these wolves thinking about you, and they’ve
been safely kept here since then.”

“Are you trying to make me cry?”

“No, baby, no tears are allowed.” Taehyung tenderly kisses his jaw. “No tears.”

“I’d love to get one of them tattooed, especially if you drew them thinking about me…” Jungkook
pokes Taehyung’s chest. “I’ll take the realistic one… Maybe you can save the old school one for
yourself, if you ever feel like it… I’d— It would be cute if you got it. Maybe one day, you know?”

Taehyung smiles. “I’ll save it for myself, then. I won’t put it on anyone’s body.” he assures. “I do
have to warn you, though, the realistic one is kind of big, and I can’t go much smaller or it’ll lose
detail and it’ll look like shit once it heals.” the artist warns. “I can only fit it nicely on your thigh or
bicep… Your ribs or back would work, too, but ribs hurt like a bitch and I won’t let you start with
your back. It’s your decision: thigh or bicep?”

“Hum…” he drags. “What would hurt less? Thigh or bicep?”

“I’d say thigh. It does hurt less, but everywhere starts hurting after you’ve been there for over three
hours.” Taehyung chuckles. “Will you go with your thigh?”

“Yes.” Jungkook decides, firm of his answer.

“Alright, take your pants off as I take care of the stencil.” he instructs as he steps away, and
Jungkook nods to himself with a smile, carefully getting rid of his pants — pants that he folds
neatly and leaves on the nearest surface after a few seconds of feeling around.

Jungkook focuses on the ambient music as he waits, legs dangling from the long, comfortable
tattoo table. He can hear the artist humming to the song and rustling every so often, but it doesn’t
take long for Taehyung to be softly touching his thigh to announce his presence.

“Are you starting already?” he asks, and it must be audible how nervous he is, because Taehyung
chuckles and gives his thigh a reassuring squeeze.

“No, I’ll just put the stencil on your leg and get the machine ready as it dries.” Jungkook pouts
when he feels a little kiss on his cheeks. “Relax, baby…” it’s said with a rather teasing tone that the
younger man can’t even entertain when he feels a cold liquid being spread on his thigh.

The process of putting on the stencil takes longer than expected and, if he could see the exit door,
he would’ve run right out of it after the third time that he reconsidered.

Then, he hears the machine buzz. “Fuck.”

“Hm?” Taehyung asks, absentminded.

“I truly don’t want to be that annoying client and, punch me in my crotch if I am that annoying
person, but uhm… If it hurts a lot and I ask you to stop for a second, will you want to elbow me on
the nose?” Taehyung laughs, but Jungkook blindly reaches for his collar to tug on it, make sure
that he’s listening. “My senses are stronger; I don’t know if it’ll hurt like a motherfucker because
of that…”

“When someone keeps asking me to stop, yes, it does make me want to elbow them on the nose…
But they’re not you. Don’t worry.” he reassures. “We’ll stop whenever you need to take a breather,
okay?” Jungkook only hums, but Taehyung can see that nervous crease between his eyebrows.
“I’m going to draw a line first. Tell me if it’s manageable or if it hurts too much, okay?”

“If I say yes, do I walk out with just a line?”

Taehyung takes a second.

“No one has ever said yes, so don’t ask me that… I’ve never been put in that situation, so I have no
idea.” Jungkook puckers his lips, resting back on his arms. “Stay still now… I’ll do the first line.”
he informs and — said and done. Jungkook sits as still as stone, hands by his sides, as a first line is
tattooed onto his skin. “Is this ok?”

“I thought that it’d be worse… You can go on.”

“Alright. Let me know whenever you need to pause.” Jungkook nods, motioning for Taehyung to
go on — and he does. Taehyung tries his best to be as gentle with his hand as he can, all the while
still making sure to make the outline as crisp and perfect as possible.

He can’t, by any means, give Jungkook a mediocre tattoo.

Jungkook hisses from time to time, certain moments where either the needle goes a little deeper or
drags over a spot where he’s a bit more sensitive, but Taehyung doesn’t even question him; he
simply stops for a moment, lets him take a breather, before going back in with a quiet reassurance
that he’s doing great.

Taehyung knows very well how his senses are stronger, knows how Jungkook is more responsive
when it comes to touches in general, and he’d never even dare judge him for being uncomfortable
under the persistent pain of getting a tattoo.

The younger man isn’t very sure of how long passes, of how long he’s able to endure it without
complaining but, if he were to guess, then he’d say around forty minutes, to an hour — which is a
win, at least in his book.

Good things don’t last, however, and he’s close to having had enough.

He’s not a quitter, but he just might have to.

When the needle runs to his inner thigh, the pain is too striking.

“Wait, wait, wait.” he stresses, and the pain is gone in the same second. “I-It’s starting to hurt more
than anticipated… It was— It was ok at the start, but it’s hurting a lot now…”

“Would you like me to get you some water?” Taehyung asks, looking up at him to check his
reaction and, as if he’d know that Taehyung’s looking, Jungkook only nods. “I’ll be right back,
baby, just you wait here…” he informs as he discards his gloves, and Jungkook smiles at the little
kiss pressed to his forehead before he hears the elder walk out of the room.

Yoongi’s chatting away with their cashier and the receptionist, and the three of them give him a
smile once they see him walk up to the front counter. “Get me a bottle of water, please.” he asks
his employee and the young man quickly gets up on his feet to go to the minibar.

“I saw Jungkook coming in not too long ago, but I was discussing a design with a client, so I
couldn’t chat with him…” Yoongi shares. “How’s he doing?”

“Oh, he’s doing great. He’s actually getting a tattoo right now… I’m getting him some water,
because it’s hurting quite a bit. It’s his first one, and his senses are a bit stronger than ours, and
he’s quite suffering, I believe.”

“I’ve heard about that… Stronger senses must suck when getting a tattoo. I hope that he manages
to sit through it.”

“He’s strong, he’ll manage.” Taehyung smiles, bowing when he’s handed the cold bottle of water.
“Thanks. I’ll go back now. I’ll see you in a bit.” he says as he turns around on his heels.

“Good luck for the rest of the tattoo.” they wish.

“Thanks, man.” is the last thing that he says before opening the door, and Jungkook lifts his head
up. “It’s me.” he informs, as he always does, watching as the other’s shoulders relax instantly.

“Hi, you.” he smiles.

Taehyung stops in front of him, opening the cap. “Here, careful…” he touches Jungkook’s bottom
lip with the bottle — it’s no surprise when Jungkook simply tips his head back, allowing him to
hold the bottle until he taps his wrist twice. “Enough?”

“Mhm.” Taehyung carefully removes the bottle from his mouth, closing it again. “Are you ready to
resume, baby? We can take a longer break, if you’d like. I don’t mind.”

“I want to continue, but it’s hurting a lot… I feel bad for making you stop every two minutes, but I
know that the shading hurts more, so that’ll probably happen…” Jungkook drags with a
characteristic pout. “What shall I do?” he asks, searching for Taehyung’s hand as the latter sits
back down in front of him. “Can you knock me out and tattoo the rest while I sleep?”

Taehyung laughs. “That’s illegal, actually.” he has to say. “What if we get the outline done today,
and then we’ll go by sessions to do the shading? I hate using numbing cream, but I’ll use some
while we work on the shading and the coloring. How’s that?” Taehyung offers.

“Can we do that…?”

“Of course, we can. Many people prefer to get their tattoos done in sessions, rather than in one go.
The outline is almost done, I’ll only need around ten or fifteen minutes, then we can stop and
resume whenever you feel like showing up to keep me company again. Sounds good?”

“Yeah. Thank you so much.” instead of an answer, he feels a little kiss on his knee, and he can hear
Taehyung putting on another pair of gloves before getting his tattoo gun back. “Would you like to
know something that I realized while you were getting the water?”

“What is it?”

“I don’t know if I have the money to pay for this, Taehyungie.” Jungkook admits with an
embarrassed giggle. “If adding more lines right now makes it more expensive, then you’d better
stop before all that I have to offer as payment is either a blowjob or my dick.”

Taehyung rolls his eyes. “You’re not paying for this, you idiot.” Jungkook can hear the buzzing of
the machine again as Taehyung collects the ink. “Stay still now.” he commands.

“I have to pay you, this is your job…”

“You’re my personal canvas now.” Taehyung offers. “Deal?”

Jungkook gasps. “Oh, God, do I get free tattoos now?!”

“Whenever you want one.” he smiles, dipping the needle into the ink once again before going back
to the other’s thigh. Maybe the light conversation will be a good distraction, make the pain a bit
more bearable. He doesn’t like the thought that he’s hurting Jungkook.

“This friendship is finally showing its perks.”

“You’re so irritating.”

“No, I mean it.”

“I hold a lot of power right now. I’d be nice to me, if I were you.” Taehyung warns. “I can just
tattoo a dick on your leg, and you wouldn’t even know.”

“Wow, such a low blow… Using my blindness against me…” Jungkook sighs, as if upset, and it
makes Taehyung snort. “And you’re laughing, to make it all even better. I can’t believe it.”

“Shut up, let me concentrate.”

Jungkook cracks a smile at last, resting back on his arms. “Fine, I’ll be quiet.”

│►

Taehyung parks the car in front of Jungkook’s house, looking over at the sleeping young man with
fondness in his eyes. He remembers how, a few months prior, Jungkook was terrified to even sit in
the car, and wouldn’t go anywhere without gripping the seatbelt throughout the whole drive for
some kind of grounding. Now, on the other hand, he’s fast asleep against the window, mouth
parted just the slightest and light snores coming out.

“Jungkook.” he calls in a soft whisper that goes unheard. “Baby, hey, c’mon, wake up.” he
instructs, nudging his thigh before squeezing it. Jungkook wakes up with a jump, visibly startled,
and immediately pats himself down to make sure that he’s ok.

He relaxes once he realizes that he’s intact. “The last time that I woke up after getting into a car, I
was blind. I thought that I’d be missing a limb this time around.” he half-jokes, rubbing his eyes. “I
can’t believe that I’ve managed to fall asleep in a damn car…”

Taehyung smiles, rather proud of them both: Jungkook, for overcoming his fears, and himself, for
making him feel comfortable enough to overcome said fears.

“Did you sleep well?” Taehyung asks, giving his thigh another light squeeze.

“Mhm… I did…”

“Good.” Jungkook smiles, a lazy and sleepy smile. “C’mon, I’ll walk you to your door.” he
informs, and the younger man can hear the seatbelt unbuckling, so he quickly mirrors the action so
that he can follow suit.

“Will you come in?”

“I have a client in… fifteen or twenty minutes, so I really can’t stay today.” the artist says with an
apologetic tone, but Jungkook leans in to kiss his cheek to reassure him that it’s ok.

“I’ll live.” he dramatizes.

“Oh, surely.” Taehyung smiles, flicking his chin. Jungkook opens his door when he hears the other
doing the same, and Taehyung rushes around the car to help him out. They walk to the front door
with their fingers intertwined, and Taehyung even opens the door for him so that he doesn’t have to
fiddle with the keys.

Jungkook’s lips twitch into a little smile when he feels a hand cupping his cheek, and he already
knows what follows — a nice kiss.

He’s proven right.

“Go, you’ll be late.” Jungkook says as he pulls back, his hand resting on Taehyung’s bent elbow as
he’s still cupping his cheek. “Don’t leave your client waiting.”

“You’re right.” Taehyung drops his hand. “Don’t forget to remove the—”

“Yeah, yeah, remove the wrapper in an hour and wash it, I know.”

“That’s right. Don’t forget to apply the cream after you wash it, too.” he still reminds, pecking his
lips once again. “If you want or need directions to do it, just facetime me, and I’ll guide you
through it, okay?” he offers.

“I’ll call you nonetheless, it’ll be easier with your help.” Jungkook smiles, hands falling to
Taehyung’s waist instead, thumbs rubbing little circles as they share yet another long kiss.

As addictive as Jungkook’s tongue and lips are, Taehyung has to break the kiss when he hears
footsteps approaching. He’s not ready to be introduced to Jungkook’s parents, so he must go before
someone appears. “Call me in an hour, and I’ll take a smoke break to help you.” he kisses his jaw,
followed by his forehead.

“Okay.” Jungkook nods. “Bye, Tae.” he waves his fingers, failing to see the way that Taehyung
almost jogs to his car to avoid that first meeting. His mother, on the other hand, does see him
driving away and she’s not blind to the rosy tone on Jungkook’s cheeks.

“Was that Taehyung?” she asks.

Jungkook smiles, closing the door. “Yes, that was him. Hear this, though… I slept on the way here,
isn’t that crazy? I fell asleep in a car!” he beams, and the information does shock her. “I feel so
comfortable with him, that I really just freaking passed out in his car while he was driving me
here…”

“That’s great, honey, that makes me happy to hear.” she says, honest, reaching for his hand to
guide him to the living room. He’s limping a little, the jeans rubbing over the sore skin of his
thigh, which bothers him even over the protective film.

“Why are you limping? Did you hurt yourself?” his father asks.

“No, I uh, I… I got a tattoo…?” he tries.

“I’m sorry, you did what?” the man asks him once again, and Jungkook scratches the back of his
neck. He’s grown enough to do whatever he wants to do with his body, but he knows how
protective of him they are, how conservative they can be sometimes.

“Well… Tae’s a tattoo artist, and you guys knows how I’ve always been in love with tattoos, so he
tattooed me today. I asked him to, and he didn’t even charge me for it.” Jungkook shares with a
nervous smile. “Isn’t that really nice? F-Free tattoo, hm?”

“That’s it, we want to meet him.” his mother informs, tone final.

“What— No. I mean, not now, I don’t—”

“Is he not someone to show to your parents?” Jungkook frowns at the question, wishing that he
could glare at his father for even saying such a thing. “So?”

“He is, of course he is. We’ve just never… We’ve never talked about it. I don’t know if he wants
to get to that level of— of meeting parents. I uh, we’ve never talked about it, is all.” he fiddles with
his fingers. “That topic never came up before, is all…”

“Aren’t you guys dating?”

“No, we’re not.”

“You’re not?” his parents ask in unison.

“Okay, we kiss and we—” Jungkook huffs, covering his face with his hands. “We do behave a
certain way, but we’re not official. We’re just enjoying whatever this is that we have going on.”

“Have you considered the possibility of him not wanting anything serious with you? You’ll end up
hurt, and heartbroken. You’re always smiling so big when you talk about him, and we don’t want
some… guy to hurt our son.” his father defends, and he sighs. He understands their worry, and he
understands what they’re thinking, but it feels wrong to say such things about Taehyung.

“Dad, I feel as safe with him as I feel with you guys. Maybe… Maybe even more nowadays.” he
clears his throat. “He’s different, ok? He actually cares, and his heart is the size of the freaking
planet. We may not be dating, but I really, really like him, and he means a lot to me…”
“Alright.” he hears his mother say. “Invite him over for dinner sometime this week, then. We want
to meet him. If not as boyfriend, then just as someone who means a lot to you.”

“Okay, I’ll talk to him about that later.”

“And go take your pants off, we want to see that tattoo. It better be something small, or you’ll start
giving me heart problems.” that makes him laugh, recognizing the joking tone in the man’s voice.
“We’re rather curious.”

“I’ll go put some shorts on, I’ll be back.”

│►

It’s precisely an hour later that Jungkook’s sitting on his bed with nothing but his underwear on,
tube of tattoo cream in one hand and phone in the other. He’s listening to the beeps of his call
getting through to Taehyung, and it doesn’t take long for him to take it.

“Hey, baby.” Taehyung greets.

“Hey, Tae.” Jungkook smiles, holding the ointment up. “I managed to wash it myself, I just need
your assistance to put on the cream.” he informs, and he can hear the click of a lighter. “Stop that.”

“It’s my first one of the day, I’m smoking less. I can’t just quit, I have to do it slowly…” the elder
excuses with a rather apologetic tone, and Jungkook forces a sigh. “Now, let me see that tattoo so
that I can see whether you cleaned it well or not.”

“Yeah, change the topic.” Jungkook still complains as he moves his phone. “Am I showing it?”

“Yep, you are.” Taehyung takes another drag from his cigarette, examining the screen. “Well done,
you can just put on the cream now. Can you do it with one hand?”

“I think so.” Jungkook puckers his lips, and Taehyung watches him struggle to squirt some
ointment onto his finger without having to put the phone down, and it’s truly entertaining. “Do I
just spread it? It hurt quite a bit to clean it, I don’t even want to touch this shit.”

“Lightly tap it instead of spreading.” the elder instructs. “It’ll be sore tomorrow, so be more careful
cleaning it tomorrow morning, because it will hurt more than it did today.”

“How can I go back in time?”

“Hm, as if you’re not already thinking about what to get after finishing that one.” Taehyung
challenges, watching him do as told.

Jungkook smiles. “You know me so well.” they fall silent after a quiet laugh, and he can hear the
background music coming from the parlor. He chews on the inside of his cheek for a second as he
contemplates what to say next, using the call as an opportunity to just get it over with. “Hey, can I
ask you something?”

“Of course. What’s up?”

“Would you like to come over for dinner sometime this week…?” he starts, but he can tell how that
doesn’t disclose what it should. “I mean, my parents want to meet you. I told them that you may
not want to, so you can say no, and it’s ok. I just— I don’t know. Do you want to? I mean, do we
want to get there?”
Taehyung’s shoulders soften, the smile on his face widening even more. God, Jungkook’s so
endearing. “Do you want me to go?” he turns it around to know where he’s threading.

“I wouldn’t mind that…”

“Then I’ll go.”

“Really?”

“Mhm.” Jungkook smiles, and Taehyung wishes that he could kiss him through the phone
somehow. “Just let me know when, and I’ll be there.”

“Okay.” he breathes out a relieved sigh, continuing his task. “Do you want to go somewhere today?
We could go get ice cream by the beach, or just drink a beer at—”

“Missing me already?” Taehyung teases.

“Well, there’s that, I don’t even want to see you in the next month or so.”

“Good thing that you can’t see me, then.”

Jungkook’s jaw slacks, before he laughs — loud, and entertained. “That was a good one, really,
I’m fucking impressed. You’re getting better than me at these.”

“Learning from the best…”

│►

Two days later, Jungkook rushes out of his house once he hears a car stop, not even taking his cane
with him — he’s too frantic. “Tae?” he calls out, just to make sure, holding his hand out in hopes to
feel another, bigger one. He smiles when he feels it. “Hey.”

“Hi.” Taehyung greets back, and Jungkook can hear the uneasiness in his voice. “I fucking hate
this, I’m really nervous.” he finally admits, even if Jungkook had already suspected of that.

“Why are you nervous…?” Jungkook pouts. “If you didn’t want to come, you could’ve said no,
and I wouldn’t have been upset.” he assures, blindly searching for Taehyung’s cheeks; the elder
can already recognize his gestures, so he gently grabs his wrists to guide Jungkook’s palms to his
own face. “We can still run away.” he offers, jokingly.

“I don’t want to run off, I’ve just never met parents like this… The only encounters with parents
that I had were only in times that we briefly crossed paths, and they rarely liked me due to the
contexts, so I’m nervous that yours will hate me, too.”

“Except, you’re not meeting my parents as you leave my house after fucking me, are you?”

“No, but—”

“No buts.” Jungkook tsks. “They can be a bit conversative… like, a lot, sometimes, but they’re
nice. I’m sure that they’ll like you, especially considering how happier I’ve been lately, yeah?”

“Yeah, okay…” Taehyung sighs, taking a good look at him. “Are you wearing lip gloss?”

“Oh? You noticed!” Jungkook smiles, puckering his lips. “I am, I added some. Which, I have to
inform you, means no kisses for you. Please do not shed tears over that. I know that my lips must
look extremely irresistible right now, but you can’t taste them. A shame.”
“I won’t shed tears, because I have other places to kiss.” the younger yelps when he feels a hand
gently wrap around the back of his neck and pulling him closer, followed by teasing kisses being
spread all over his cheek, down to his neck.

“Stop, stop, this isn’t fair…!” he whines.

Taehyung smiles against his skin, before pulling away. “You look beautiful.” he compliments.

“Thank you… How do you look? I want to picture it.” Jungkook requests. “It’ll also help me try to
figure out what reaction my parents may have, so describe it. I’m picturing it, go on.”

“I thought about dressing up, but decided that I should dress as much as myself as possible. I didn’t
want to give them an image of me that isn’t actually me…” Taehyung starts by explaining, and
Jungkook scratches the back of his neck. “I have black eyeshadow as I always do, and I’m wearing
a bandana… I’m in a black tee-shirt, so my tattoos are visible…”

“Okay, uhm, well, that sounds very sexy to me, but my parents won’t think the same, I fear. This
can go poorly, but let’s hope that it doesn’t.” Jungkook smiles, nervous. “Ripped jeans?”

“Yeah, and boots.”

“We dress similarly, it’s kind of cool.” he comments, lips puckered. “Fuck, but you’re covered in
tattoos, and they can be judgmental, they’re going to think that you’re in a fucking gang or some
bullshit like that.” he starts to stress, his hands pulling at his hair.

Taehyung grabs his wrists to stop him from accidentally hurting himself. “Why do you think that I
don’t fucking meet parents?!”

Jungkook huffs. “You should’ve come in a suit.”

“Fuck, no.”

“Yeah, keep the suit for the wedding.” Jungkook hums to himself, not even giving Taehyung the
time to answer such statement. “Well, we can only hope that they’ll like you after tonight. Let’s get
going.” he cocks his head to the side, intertwining their hands in a silent request for the elder to
lead him; Taehyung knows him well enough, so he doesn’t hesitate before doing so. “If my parents
don’t like you, I promise to escape through the window every night to see you.”

“Dude, you’d fucking die.”

“Isn’t that romantic?”

“Do you even know where the window is?”

Jungkook fakes a gasp. “I can’t believe that I’m willing to risk my life for you, yet you treat me so
poorly.” Taehyung rolls his eyes. “I hope that my dog pisses on you.”

“You don’t have a dog.”

“Is that your way of asking me to piss on—”

“Shut up, seriously, shut the fuck up.” Taehyung quickly interrupts. “Watch your step, babe.”

“Oh, thank you.” Jungkook worries at his bottom lip, concluding that they’re already entering his
house. “They’re waiting for us in the living room…” he whispers as he closes the door, and the
elder has to gulp his nerves away. He lets go of Jungkook’s hand, only to place his own on his
lower back instead.

“Hello.” Taehyung greets, the other two already walking towards him — they’re not shy as they
look him up and down, analyzing everything that they can. From the tattoos to the piercings, to the
hair color and the harsh makeup around his eyes. “I’m Taehyung, as you already know…” he
bows, and he’s relieved to see them do the same.

“It’s nice finally meeting you, Taehyung.” the man says. His face looks rather serious, but his tone
is warm, so Taehyung tries not to think too much of it. Instead, he moves to offer the woman a
polite smile, waiting for whatever it is that she might have to say.

“You know, he talks about you every single day, so it’s great being able to finally put a face to the
name.” she shares with a smile of her own, not even thinking about how embarrassing it might be
for Jungkook to be exposed like that.

“Mom…!” Jungkook drags. “Can we just sit down and stop embarrassing me?”

“Sure, let’s sit down.” his father instructs, and Jungkook relies on the hand on his lower back to
know where the couch is, and he sits as close to Taehyung as possible, though without making it
weird. His parents sit on the other sofa, looking at them.

“So, tell us a little bit about yourself.” Jungkook’s mother requests, and Taehyung hates that
question; no one ever knows how to answer it. Especially in a way that will please the listener.

“My name’s Taehyung, and I’m a tattoo artist, as you can see…” he looks down at his hands and
arms, and the other two follow his movements. “I’m thirty-years old, and—”

“What?!” he’s interrupted by the older woman quickly enough.

“You’re nearly a decade older than our Jungkookie?!” it’s the father’s turn to ask, and Taehyung
can only gape. He wasn’t aware that they didn’t know about their age gap. “You— You were
leaving elementary school when he was born?!”

“Uhm—”

“Dad, I don’t see how age is that big of a deal. How about we don’t focus on that?” Jungkook
speaks before Taehyung can, his hand instinctively holding Taehyung’s between his own.

“It’s— It’s a big difference…” Taehyung looks over at the lady in the room, and she looks
horrified to hear about this new information; her hand on her chest. “Ten years is quite the age
gap.”

“Nine, actually.” Jungkook corrects. “And some months.”

“I only have good intentions, I’m serious.” the artist tries to reassure but, when she opens her
mouth to answer, a faint alarm comes from the kitchen.

“The meat is ready, I’ll just… set up the table…” the woman stands up from the couch, still just as
shocked, and Taehyung sees that as an opportunity to be helpful, in some way.

“I can— I can help…?” Taehyung offers, and she just gives him a tight smile and a nod. Jungkook
then feels a little tap on his thigh before the body next to him disappears, and the elder just trails
off after the woman into the kitchen.

She hands him over the plates and the pairs of chopsticks, and he starts carefully placing
everything on the table. It’s incredibly silent, and he feels the horrid tension in the room that only
makes him feel worse; he hasn’t won them over in the slightest.

He’d even dare say that they don’t like him.

“I promise that I’m not taking advantage of your son.”

“Then what are you trying to do with him?” she asks, defensive, and Taehyung puts the last plate
down before facing her with a rather offended expression.

“That’s quite rude and accusing of you, ma’am. You don’t know me in the slightest, so I don’t
blame you for reacting like this, but my age and his age— the age difference doesn’t change or
affect anything between us. I care a lot for him, more than you can imagine. I’d never do anything
harmful to him, or let him be unhappy. I just want him happy, smiling, living his best life. That’s
literally why I even started hanging out with him… to be his friend, and entertain him, keep him
company. Feelings came uninvited, but they were welcomed.” he smiles. “I care a whole freaking
lot about him, truly, and me being twenty or thirty doesn’t change my feelings for him.”

Taehyung watches as her shoulders sag, and she takes a moment to process his words. “I’m sorry,
Taehyung… He’s been hurt before, and if I can prevent it from happening again, I will. I don’t care
that he’s twenty-one, he’s still my baby, and I’ll protect him from anything.”

“That’s something that we can agree on. Don’t apologize for being protective, I’d be worried if
you weren’t…”

“I’m glad to hear that, but I’ll still let you know that you don’t suddenly have my or our trust just
because you have a nice smile and know what to say to relax a mother’s heart. I know what young
men want, and you must prove that your intentions really are good.”

“That’s fair.” Taehyung nods. “I’ll do my best.”

She nods. “Go call them for dinner, please.” Taehyung bows to her, leaving the kitchen to go back
to the living room. Jungkook’s sitting with a pout and his arms crossed, and Taehyung knows him
well enough to be able to guess that his father must’ve said something that he wasn’t happy with.

“Dinner’s ready.” Taehyung informs, and they both get up. Jungkook reaches for him right away,
and his father can only watch the way that Taehyung leads him to the kitchen, raising one eyebrow
when the elder pulls Jungkook’s chair back for him to sit.

“Why do you always— I can pull my own chair…”

“I know that you can, but it doesn’t mean that I won’t do it for you.” Taehyung grins as he takes
the spot next to him. The older couple sits across from them, and Jungkook’s mother starts serving
all of them with the food. Taehyung fills up Jungkook’s glass with water.

“So… You’re a tattoo artist.” Jungkook’s father starts, eyeing him. “It’s not something that we
expected from you, so we’re uhm, curious. What got you to choose such a profession?”

“I’ve always loved drawing and creating my own designs, and luckily, my parents always
supported it fully, so I was able to focus on art from a young age. I ended up graduating in art in
college. I’ve also always wanted to get tattoos, so I combined the two passions, and I’d say that it
worked out pretty well.” Taehyung explains, trying to sound as polite as possible.

“Hm, I see. You’re thirty, do you live with your parents?”

Jungkook facepalms. “Jesus…”

“No, I do not. I run my own tattoo parlor, and it’s very successful. I’ve run it for the past five years
with a friend of mine, and we’re even thinking about opening a second one. I live in an apartment
near the coffee shop where I first met Jungkook, and I’ve lived on my own for about eight years
now.” he shares, not at all bothered by the question.

“Oh.” the woman nods, impressed. “It must be fun to have your own business.”

“It is, yes.” Taehyung smiles.

“Jungkookie actually wanted to graduate art school, too. He used to gift us paintings all the time…
He truly had a talent for it.” Jungkook freezes with the chopsticks in the air, halfway to his mouth,
and he can physically feel Taehyung looking at him. And he is. Taehyung’s looking at him,
surprised and confused.

“Did he now?” he asks, but the question is more directed at Jungkook than anything.

Still, Jungkook doesn’t say anything, simply shoves the food in his mouth.

“They took him off the course because they didn’t believe that his disability made him eligible…”

“They didn’t—”

“Can we not talk about this, please?” he does speak up then, and Taehyung can hear the slight
irritation in his voice; he’s not happy with them sharing such a thing.

“Oh, sure, sure. Let’s just… mention how happy we are to meet the one who he’s been hanging
out with every day, basically. You don’t even sleep at home anymore, it feels like you’ve moved
out.” she comments with a giggle, and Jungkook feels himself pouting. She’s right, in a way.

“Taehyung, I have to say, you look like the epitome of—”

“Dad.” Jungkook warns.

“I was just going to say that this isn’t exactly the person that someone pictures their kids w—”

“Can you knock it off?!” he demands, louder.

Taehyung reaches for his thigh. “It’s fine, babe.” he whispers.

“No, it’s not fine.” Jungkook puts his chopsticks down, fed up. “You’ve been taking care of me
ever since we met, even when I was so rude to you. I hate that you’re being talked to like this when
you haven’t done a single thing wrong. What you look like doesn’t matter, your age doesn’t matter,
your personality does, and you’re fuck— freaking amazing. So, yes, I’m mad that you’re being
disrespected by my own parents.” he rants, sending the table into absolute silence.

“Honey, we just want to make sure that you’re ok…”

“I am. I am ok, and I’m happy. For the first time since the accident, I’m actually happy, so can you
two please see past someone’s looks and at least try to be nice to Taehyung?”

“Sure, honey, we’re sorry.” she apologizes, and she sounds sincere.

“Can we start this over? Please?” Jungkook requests.

Taehyung’s the one to break the newfound silence. “I’m Taehyung. I’m a tattoo artist, and I’m
thirty-years old.” he tries with a smile, and he’s relieved to see Jungkook’s mother mirroring it.

“Hello, Taehyung. It’s nice meeting you.” she plays along.

“So… Jungkook told me that you’re a nurse—?”

“Oh, yes. I’m actually a home nurse, which means that…”

│►

Jungkook opens his mouth again to accept the new spoonful of ice cream that touches his bottom
lip when Taehyung feeds it to him, and Jungkook’s parents are still engaged in some conversation
that the younger two aren’t paying any attention to.

Still, despite being focused in the conversation, Jungkook’s father hasn’t stopped looking at them
and observing how Taehyung’s heart-eyes grow whenever his son munches on the ice cream in a
way that makes those two dimples appear in the corners of his mouth.

Taehyung’s tattooed arm is wrapped around Jungkook’s chair, the other occupied by the spoon and
a napkin that he uses to wipe the younger’s lips whenever he smudges the dessert.

Jungkook opens his mouth again, but nothing comes. “It’s finished, baby.” Taehyung informs, only
to chuckle at the frown that immediately appears on his face. “It was already your second serve,
you’ll get a stomach ache if you go for another one.”

“I’ll go to the bathroom, then.” he pats his own thighs, getting up.

Taehyung fiddles with his glass, eyes on the table once Jungkook’s gone, and everyone’s silent
until the older man clears his throat. “I’d like to apologize for the way that we reacted. I didn’t
exactly mean to be rude to you, it’s just that I wasn’t expecting someone this… different.” he
waves a hand, gesturing to him.

“Honey…”

“No, it’s fine.” Taehyung assures. “Different is good, in my eyes.”

“You look, uhm, radical, I’d say, and you’re not who I expected our son to end up with after
everything that he’s been through. Besides, your image is exactly what us, parents, associate with
someone rude and careless, but you don’t come off that way. You seem nice and responsible, and
Jungkookie clearly likes you a lot. So, we apologize.” the man says, sincerely.

“You’re the only person that he’s ever opened up to after the accident… He was very depressed for
a long while after what happened and then he closed off to everyone. You’re the first one to get to
him, the first one to get him opening up again… We’re very thankful for that, which is why we
even wanted to meet you. We know that you’ve introduced him to your friends, and he’s slowly
building himself a friend circle again after being so— lonely and depressed.”

“Yeah… After knowing about the eye surgery, he really reached a low that was—”

“Huh? What surgery?” Taehyung interrupts.

“He didn’t tell you?” he just shakes his head. “There’s a surgery that can cure his problem, but it’s
insanely expensive and we just… we can’t afford it. It broke him to know that there’s a solution
that we simply can’t reach for him…”
“It took him a long time to be ok after that. We’ve been secretly saving up money since then, but
we can’t put that much aside so there’s still a long way to go…”

“Hold on, a surgery? It would fix it? He’d be able to see again?” Taehyung asks, having some
trouble wrapping his head around it. “Please, tell me everything that you know about it. I didn’t
know about this possible solution, he didn’t tell me about it.”

“He got blinded by brain trauma, and there’s a procedure that I’d love to tell you the name of, but
it’s been so long that I don’t remember how to pronounce it. We have all the files and the reports,
news articles and stuff that we’ve printed about it, and we can show it to you some other day that
Jungkookie isn’t present…” she offers. “It fixes the problem, and it’s said to repair his vision
completely. He’d have perfect vision again, or so they say.”

“The surgery sounds really painful, but he was so eager to get it.”

“He was heartbroken…”

“Wow, he didn’t tell me about this, I had no idea…”

“Then, please, don’t bring it up. It might break him again.”

“I won’t. I don’t want to hurt him.” Taehyung reassures, still overwhelmed by the new information.
He had no idea that there’s an effective solution to Jungkook’s condition.

“Good, because if you do hurt him, I’ll make sure t—”

“Dad, I left for three minutes, c’mon.” Jungkook interrupts, reaching for Taehyung’s chair before
sitting on his lap, one arm around the elder’s shoulders. A statement.

“Honey, we believe that there’s an available chair for you.” his mother suggests with a smile.

“I don’t see one.” they fall silent, and Taehyung has to hold back his laughter. Jungkook making
people uncomfortable with his humor never fails to get to him. “Can you get me my glass…?” he
requests, his hand gently touching Taehyung’s on his thigh.

“Of course.” Taehyung leans closer to the table, one arm secure on Jungkook’s waist to make sure
that he doesn’t fall. “Here, careful.”

“So, what were you telling him?” Jungkook asks as he takes a first sip.

“That if he hurts you—”

“He won’t.” Jungkook interrupts.

“But, if he does—”

“He won’t.”

Taehyung nods. “I won’t.”

“Dad, I’m really sorry but, if you don’t like the idea of having Taehyung around like this, then
you’re going to find a way to start liking it, because I’m not going to stop seeing him.” the younger
man says, more seriously then.

“I also apologized.”
“Oh, that’s marvelous. You can repeat that part, I’d like to hear it.” Jungkook smiles so big that it
has his father giving in. He hasn’t seen his son as humorous and smiley in many years, and it’s a
relief to witness it again. “Go on.”

“I was apologizing for judging Taehyung based on what he looks like. You yourself have always
liked tattoos a lot, and you even have one now… and it didn’t change who you are. I can’t think
that tattoos change people, when I can see how they don’t. Taehyung seems to take care of you
well, and you two clearly like each other a lot, so… You have our blessing, date all you want.”

“Oh, we’re not dating.” Jungkook says.

“Are you sure…?” his mother asks.

“Yeah, we’re not dating.” Taehyung confirms, looking back at Jungkook when he holds the glass
back, and he takes it to place it on the table. He then fixes the hair falling over Jungkook’s eye,
tucking it behind his ear, before looking back at his parents.

“So… What are you?”

“Friends.” Jungkook shrugs.

“Mhm.” Taehyung nods.

“Right.” the woman blinks. “Let me just say that we know how cold he can be since the accident,
so thank you for seeing through his walls, and seeing him for who he really is.”

“He’s not cold… He’s just the rudest person that I’ve ever met.” Taehyung jokes.

“Excuse you—?” Jungkook turns to him, hand reaching for Taehyung’s face to know where to
angle his eyes at in a failed attempt to glare at him. “You think that I’m rude?”

“Absolutely not, baby, you’re an angel.”

“That’s what I thought.” Jungkook turns back to the front with a smile.

Taehyung rolls his eyes playfully.

At least Jungkook’s parents seem to be easing with him.

│►

Jungkook pulls at the grass in his backyard with Taehyung sitting in silence next to him. They’re
quiet, and they’ve been like so for the past ten minutes. Jungkook isn’t sure whether he should
break the silence or just enjoy it, given that it’s a comfortable one.

Taehyung is the one to do it. “Why didn’t you tell me about art school?”

“Never came up.”

“Kook.”

Jungkook sighs. “I couldn’t tell you.”

“Why not? I thought that we could trust each other…?”

“I do trust you…”
“Then why didn’t you tell me?” Taehyung whispers, lifting Jungkook’s chin. “We’ve talked about
drawing so many times, we’ve talked about me graduating in art, we’ve talked about all of that so
many times… Why haven’t you ever mentioned it?”

“Because it’s embarrassing.” he pulls away.

“How is it embarrassing?” Taehyung frowns; Jungkook looks sad.

“Because it’s the only thing that I’ve always wanted to do: drawing, creating my own art for a
living… and I can’t fucking see. How embarrassing is that? It’s the same as wanting to be a singer
and being mute, or wanting to run the marathon and being paralyzed.” Jungkook says, tone
stressed, no longer picking at the grass. “I was embarrassed.”

“You don’t have to see to create art, Kook.”

Jungkook chuckles bitterly. “Tell that to the art industry.”

“I will, because they taught me that art is how it makes you feel, not how it looks.” Taehyung
defends, placing one of his hands on Jungkook’s thigh, and Jungkook immediately holds onto it for
some reassurance that he feels right away.

“I just thought that uhm, I may be blind, but I can still picture things a-and remember things, and I
remember colors, so I thought that I could learn again how to paint… I could paint what I’m
feeling and thinking rather than what I’m seeing, but they told me that I couldn’t be added to the
course to do my disability, and I’ve never picked up an art supply since then.”

“I had no idea, baby…” Taehyung whispers.

Jungkook sighs. “This is why I was lowkey excited when you told me that you’re a tattoo artist. I
wanted to be one, too. You guys get paid to create your own art in many forms, and people really
pay you to get it inked on their bodies… It’s beyond me, and it’s so fucking dope. It’s a dream that
I’ll never be able to reach now…”

Taehyung gapes. “You wanted to be a tattoo artist?”

“Yeah. It was my dream.”

“Baby…”

“My parents wouldn’t have let me, anyway, so it’s whatever.” he mumbles.

“Hold on, so you like painting?”

“It used to be my favorite thing to do, yeah. Why?”

“Okay.” Taehyung smiles.

“Huh?”

“Oh, nothing.” Jungkook tilts his head, but he doesn’t have the time to question it as he feels the
other shift, only to comfortably rest his head on his meaty thighs. “Shall we change the topic now?
You’re looking really sad, and I hate it when you’re sad.”

Jungkook pouts, but gives him a nod. “Dinner went better than expected, don’t you think? They
were rude as fuck at the start, especially my dad, but it went well towards the end.” is what he goes
with. “I’m sorry, by the way, that they were so judgmental. You don’t deserve it.”
“It’s fine, don’t worry.” he reaches up to bop Jungkook’s nose. “I’ll just win them over.”

“So…!” Jungkook smiles, perking up. “When am I meeting your parents?”

“Uhm… Whenever you decide to sit in my car for three hours so that we can get to my
hometown.” Jungkook cups Taehyung’s cheek, mindlessly caressing it with his thumb. “It’s a long
drive, so I know that there’s the chance of you not wanting to go all the way there.”

“Driving for so long sounds scary.” he whispers. “I think that the meeting can wait for a bit
longer…” Taehyung sits up, brushing Jungkook’s bangs away. “I’d love to meet them, but I don’t
think that I’d be comfortable in a car for so long. We’re working on that, but…”

“Don’t worry, Kook.” the elder leans in, pecking his lips. “We’ll go whenever you’re ready.”

“Alright.” Jungkook smiles, placing his hand on the other’s cheek again to start yet another small
kiss. “Would you like to know a really fun fact?” Taehyung hums. “My parents have always been
the ‘wait for marriage’ type, and it’s the funniest shit. Now, imagine how my dad must’ve felt
when he saw you walking in.”

“Are they aware that you’re not waiting for any wedding?”

“You’re sex on legs, I’m sure that they know.” Jungkook shrugs. “They’ve also stopped saying
stuff about it when I was in high school and came out to them… They gave up on trying to dictate
how my love life would be when they found that out. They wanted me to have a nice wife.” he
shares as he lays down on the grass, and Taehyung follows, looking up at the sky.

“I’d do a lot for you, but getting into a wedding dress will not be one of them.” Jungkook laughs,
turning to his side to hug him. “I didn’t think that they were that conservative… I assumed that you
were exaggerating as per usual.”

“They’ve gotten way better after getting to know about my sexuality and, if they end up accepting
you, then there’s no way that they still think the way that they used to.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Taehyung raises an eyebrow.

“Oh, nothing, honey.” Jungkook giggles, reaching higher to press a kiss to the other’s lips, but he
ends up missing by a few centimeters — he tries again until he gets to the right spot. “You’re just a
really hot, tattooed, older man and not an innocent… same-aged girl.”

“Have you stopped to consider that, maybe, I’m not as hot as you imagine me to be?” Taehyung
asks with an interrupted chuckle given that Jungkook kisses him out of nowhere again.

“I just know that you’re really attractive… And, if you’re not, fuck it. It’s your inside that
counts…”

“And you can’t see.”

“Thank you. I was trying not to say that, but that’s exactly the point. It’s not like I can see, so it
really doesn’t matter.” Taehyung laughs, lightly elbowing him. “I said that it doesn’t matter!”

“I hate this so fucking much.”

“No, you love me…!”

“I don’t. Get away.” Jungkook wheezes, climbing on top of him to hug him close, cuddling on the
cold grass. “This is unfair, you know that you’re heavy as fuck.”

“We use what we can, Taehyungie.” he sing-songs. “You called me an angel when you were back
there with my parents, so you c—”

“I was obviously lying.”

Jungkook gasps. “I can’t believe this.”

│►

“Baby?” Taehyung calls from the bedroom door, only to find a pouting Jungkook lying on the bed
in some sort of starfish position. “Are you awake?” he asks, just to be sure.

“Oh, so now you remember that I exist?”

The elder cackles. “I left for ten minutes, stop that.” he walks closer, nudging his hip. “Come with
me, I have something for you.” but Jungkook doesn’t move. “Are you sulking, hm?”

“Yes. I came all the way here to hang out with you, and you abandoned me here in this bedroom
for two hours—”

“Ten minutes.” Taehyung corrects.

“—so, yes, I am sulking.” he informs, crossing his arms.

“You’re so fucking dramatic.” the artist complains, albeit entertained. “Come with me already, I
was preparing something for you. I didn’t want you to catch up to what I was doing.” Jungkook
pouts once again. “I apologize sincerely for leaving you here.”

“That doesn’t sound sincere.”

“Because it’s not.” Taehyung teases, and he can see the way that Jungkook’s struggling not to
smile. He knows that the younger man is just joking, so he doesn’t dwell on it. “Get your ass up
from this damn bed before I drag you to the kitchen by your feet.”

“A man can’t even dramatize for a second, damn.” Jungkook mumbles, sitting up. “What do you
have for me, hm? I’m suddenly curious now.” he perks up, accepting Taehyung’s hand when he
reaches for his own to help him up from the bed.

“You’ll see.”

Jungkook tries not to laugh. “Nice word choice. Truly poetic.”

Taehyung snorts. “You know what I meant.”

“Yeah, yeah…” he allows the elder to take him to the kitchen, only stopping when he’s led to sit
on one of the stools. “What are we doing?” he has to ask, positively clueless.

“Give me your hand.” Taehyung requests, and he holds his hand up for him to take but, instead of
holding it, the artist slips something between his fingers. “That’s a brush, a rather thin one.”

“A… A brush…?” Jungkook closes his hand, feeling the handle of the object, and it feels almost
foreign now; he hasn’t picked up an art supply since his accident. Taehyung simply hums behind
him. “Why are you giving me a brush?”
“You have paint in front of you, and don’t worry about spilling anything. There’s a sketchbook, a
canvas — I didn’t know what you prefer working on — and some markers, coloring pencils… I got
you multiple materials, but I think that you’d prefer painting.”

“Tae, I—” he stops, putting the brush down. “I quit art long ago.”

A gentle hand cups his cheek, turning his head for a small peck. “It’s never too late to pick it back
up.” Taehyung whispers against his lips before kissing them again, and Jungkook’s hand is guided
to the brush to pick it back up. “It’ll be fun.”

“I’m rusty… and I can’t see what I’m doing. This will be terrible…”

“I’ll lie and say that it’s beautiful.” that does make Jungkook smile again. “I’m kidding, I’m a very
honest man. I’ll help you, I’ll be your eyes, hm? Besides, even if it’s not that good, I’m still going
to hang the canvas in my living room. I don’t want you to give up on your passion for art, so I’ll do
what I can to support your artistic side, yeah?”

“You’re so annoying.” Jungkook pouts, leaning back against him. “You make me too happy, it’s
gross. Please, kiss me.” Taehyung laughs, brushing Jungkook’s bangs away from his eyes, before
kissing him. “Thank you.” he whispers against his lips.

“Don’t thank me, baby.” Taehyung tsks. “Now, what do you feel like painting?”

Jungkook perks up, holding the brush properly. “Uhm, maybe the sky. I used to love painting
skies, so my muscle memory may help it not be entirely shit.” he shrugs.

“Sounds good. Night sky?”

“Late afternoon… sunset. Oranges and reds and— and yellows… some light blue.”

“Alright, this will be fun.”

│►

Taehyung wakes up with his throat running dry, so he carefully pushes Jungkook away to be able
to get up from the bed without waking him up. He opens the latter’s wardrobe, looking for a single
pair of grey sweatpants so that he can go downstairs to get something to drink, and leaves the room
without even fastening the strings; the hem of his underwear is showing, and he doesn’t have
anything else on.

He’s still rubbing his sleepy eyes when he enters the kitchen, only for his feet to come to an abrupt
stop once he realizes that the room isn’t empty. “You slept over?” Jungkook’s mother asks as she
stirs the scrambled eggs on the pan, and Taehyung’s more than confused as to why they’re already
preparing breakfast when it’s not even seven in the morning yet.

“It was really late and raining when I drove him back, so he asked me to say. He didn’t want me to
drive in that weather.” Taehyung explains, using his arms in a futile attempt to cover his torso a
little. Not that he’s embarrassed, but some of the tattoos on his torso aren’t necessarily family
friendly, and he’d rather not have Jungkook’s parents spotting them.

“Oh, alright.” the man nods. “We’re just getting ready to leave for work… Why are you up so
early? Are you leaving already?”

“No, I’m not. I woke up with my throat dry as hell, I just came here to get some water.” Taehyung
regrets ever getting out of the bedroom altogether.
“I’ll get you a bottle.” Jungkook’s mother smiles, heading to the fridge.

“Thank you so much.”

“Why are you shirtless?” he prides on the fact that he doesn’t often get left not knowing what to
say, but Jungkook’s father truly has a gift for asking the right — read, wrong — things.

“I get very warm when sleeping, and Jungkook’s always cold, so I just sleep naked so that he can
keep the covers up. I mean— Only with some underwear on, not naked.” he quickly corrects,
clearing his throat.

“Hm, I see. Did you two have a good time last night? He briefly told us something about a date, but
didn’t tell us anything about it.” he turns back to Jungkook’s father, and the man looks genuinely
interested, less skeptical as he’d always be around him at the start.

“We sure did. He laughed a lot last night, and it’s very rewarding for me to see him like that. I like
it when he’s happy.” Taehyung shares with an enamored smile, stepping closer to take the offered
water bottle, and the couple shares a knowing look. “Have a good day at work, I’ll go back before
he wakes up. Thank you, again, for the water bottle.” he bows.

“Oh, it’s nothing.” the woman waves a dismissive hand.

“Sleep well, Tae.” his eyes widen, surprised.

“Thank you, sir, I most certainly will.” Taehyung bows politely once more, before turning around
on his heels to leave. He opens the bottle on his way up the stairs, taking a few sips afore reaching
the bedroom. Jungkook has moved in bed, now hugging Taehyung’s abandoned pillow, and he lifts
his head when he hears the door open and close.

“Tae?” he checks.

“It’s me.” Jungkook smiles, lying back down.

“Where did you go…?” he asks, sleepy.

“I just left to get some water… Your parents were downstairs and I’m shirtless, so I feel like your
dad just judged my whole existence. He was staring for a good minute.” Jungkook quietly laughs,
rolling onto his back so that Taehyung can return to his spot in bed.

“Was he mad?”

“No, I don’t think so. He called me Tae, actually… That was fucking shocking.” he chuckles. “I
think that they’re starting to accept me a lot more, they’re nicer nowadays.”

“They like you now. They’re just… wary.” Jungkook stretches his limbs, making an adorable little
sound. “My mom says that you’re, like, insanely handsome. I can’t believe that you’ve been hiding
that from me.” he teases.

“Hm, I don’t think that I’m insanely handsome, but I’m ok.”

“I don’t believe you. She has good taste.” the younger man shrugs.

“Alright.” Taehyung simply accepts it. “Their kindness this morning did prove that they ended up
not hearing the bed hitting the wall last night. I don’t think that they would’ve been that nice to me
if they had.” he notes, putting the bottle down on the nightstand before scooting lower to properly
lie next to Jungkook’s curled up body.

“I don’t think that they’d comment it with you… Oh, how fucking funny would that be? My
parents scolding a thirty-year-old man for having sex. That’s actually hilarious.” Jungkook
imagines, wheezing quietly. “Not so fun to think that they’d scold me next, but still…”

“I did tell you to slow down so, if we had been caught, the fault would be yours and yours alone,
I’d totally throw you under the bus.” he jokes, getting a scoff from the other.

“I could not slow down at that moment, it’s simply the truth. You teased and edged me the whole
night, like the whole menace that you are. Fucking you at the end of the date was like finding
fucking water in the desert.” Jungkook dramatizes, recalling the teasing touches, innuendos and not
so subtle ways that Taehyung kept him on his toes for hours. “Then you order me around and you
know how much that shit turns me on.”

“How do you look so cute while saying shit like that?”

“Because I’m fucking adorable… duh.”

“I think that you’d look the most adorable when…” Taehyung stops to lean closer, and Jungkook
feels his lips softly touch the shell of his ear before he whispers, “…I’m the one fucking you into
the sheets.” the voice is low, seductive, and addictive.

Jungkook feels his entire body blush, goosebumps spreading across his skin. “I’d like to try that
out, but uhm, but then you’d be in complete control, and how is that fair…?” he asks with a pout,
trying not to admit how much that idea sparks his interest. He does like it when Taehyung’s
rougher, when he’s a little meaner.

Taehyung smiles. “Don’t talk like I’m not already completely in control, love.” he teases.

Love? “Ew, my heart did a fucking thing there.”

“Did it, love?” he teases.

“The fuck— Stop.” Jungkook physically cringes, but Taehyung knows better than to believe his
act. He can see his blushing cheeks, and the way that he tries not to smile.

“You’re so fucking cute.” Taehyung pulls him closer, joining their lips for the first time that
morning. Jungkook places a hand on his waist, not settling until they’re completely pressed against
each other. The kisses are lazy, slow, and their hands take their sweet time feeling the other up.
Exploring the curves that they’re already familiar with.

It takes them a few minutes to finally pull back, and Jungkook reaches for Taehyung’s arm to
manhandle it into a position where he can use the elder’s bicep as a pillow. “I want to get a tattoo.”
he informs, all too suddenly, but in a soft tone so to not disturb the silence.

“A tattoo?” Taehyung inquires.

“With you…” Jungkook adds, biting down on his bottom lip.

Taehyung looks at him in a puzzled silence for a couple of seconds, trying to properly process his
words. “With me?” he still checks; maybe he misheard or something.

“Mhm.”
“Isn’t it a bit too… say, early for that?” the artist asks, and Jungkook’s lips pull into a little sulky
pout. “What’s your idea, hm? What were you thinking about us getting?”

“I’d like to get a line around my finger.” he motions, dragging a fingertip where the tattoo would
be. Taehyung just hums for him to go on. “Then you’d get a line around your own.”

“So, you want us to get matching rings?”

“Yes, but rings are lame and tattoos are cool…!” Jungkook smiles, putting his hands back under
the covers; it’s no surprise for Taehyung when they end up resting on his warm abdomen.

“Rings can also just be removed, but tattoos can’t.” Taehyung tries to rationalize, be the voice of
reason. “You can’t take them off as if they’re actual rings, you know?”

“You can just say no if you don’t want to get it… or think that it’s a stupid idea. I want it, because
our friendship means a lot — I mean it, a lot — to me and… and I’d love to have something as
unique with you. If you don’t want to, then it’s ok. I won’t be upset. I’m grown enough to take a
no, yeah?” he assures, but Taehyung can hear the faint disappointment in his tone.

“I know that, I’m just trying to make sure that you actually want it. You can’t just cover up a finger
tattoo, especially not a band around it like that.” Taehyung leans in to kiss his forehead twice.
“Don’t sulk, hm, I’m just thinking about you. It’s not that I don’t want to get it.”

“I’m aware of all of that. I know that they can’t come off, and I can imagine how impossible a
finger cover-up is, but… Even if, for some reason, we stop talking, if something makes us go our
separate ways, I know that I’ll never regret sharing these months with you. I wouldn’t regret the
tattoo, because I wouldn’t regret this; you. Being friends with you has been the greatest thing that
has ever happened to me… after and before the accident.” Jungkook admits.

Taehyung smiles, pecking his lips. “Then we can get it.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I am. I’d be ok with having lame rings with you, too. I’d put myself through that. I’m
content with going for a tattoo, though… I think that it’s a fucking cool concept. We can get them
whenever you want. Just let me know, and I’ll get Yoongi to join us so that he can do mine.”

“I want you to do mine. I want all of my future tattoos to be your art, too.”

“I shall do yours, don’t worry.”

Jungkook’s lips stretch into a big grin. “Having a man that does tattoos is starting to pay off.”

Taehyung chuckles. “Go back to sleep.”

“No, I want a kiss.” he swiftly straddles Taehyung’s lap, blindly searching for the elder’s lips to
initiate a new kiss. Taehyung chuckles into his mouth, his hands very lazily drawing small patterns
over Jungkook’s pajama pants.

“You’re impossible.” Taehyung whispers, teasing.

“You can’t have enough of it, though.” Jungkook whispers back, kissing him again, and Taehyung
can only hum as there’s nothing that he can say against that — it’s very true. The kiss only lasts a
couple of seconds before Jungkook’s sitting up. “My dad will kill me for getting a tattoo on my
hand, I feel like.” he giggles, mischievous.
“Your dad will kill me for tattooing your hand.” Taehyung corrects. “We’re not doing a very good
job at trying to get them to like me…”

“They do like you, they’re just worried about me… I’m their only kid.” Jungkook pouts. “How
would you feel if your only son suddenly brought home someone ten years older, heavily tattooed
and looking like bad news? They’re just trying to be sure that you’re as good as I claim, and I think
that they’re getting there, because there’s nothing to dislike about you.”

Taehyung smiles, his hands caressing Jungkook’s thick thighs. “I—”

“Ok, I’ll correct that: my dad did complain about the pair of tits that you have tattooed.”

“Huh? Pair of what?” Taehyung blinks, only to laugh as he realizes what he’s talking about. “I kind
of do have that. It’s a woman, though, her tits are just there, I don’t just have a pair of boobs
tattooed, if that’s what you imagined.” he clarifies, twisting his arm to see the piece that Yoongi
worked so many hours on. “How the fuck did he see that? It’s not that big of a tattoo, and it’s
surrounded by so much shit. How did he point that out?”

“I don’t know, man. He’s straight, so I’m not surprised that he spotted the boobs.” Jungkook
shrugs. “You’ve once told me what you have tattooed, but you didn’t mention that…” he says
through a thick pout, smacking Taehyung’s chest. “How come? Are you keeping secrets from me
now? I thought that I could trust you…” he dramatizes.

“I only told you about some of them, not all. I didn’t think that you’d be so eager to know about the
boobs.” Taehyung teases.

“It’s not the boobs, you idiot.” Jungkook quickly defends, arms crossed.

“Then?”

The younger deflates, almost shy. “I… I just like to know how to imagine you… I want to know
them all, I want to know how you are, I—” he sighs. “I wish that I could see you, but I can’t, so I’d
like my imagination to be a little close, at least.”

Taehyung gets it, then. “Get comfortable. I’ll tell you about every single one.” Jungkook perks up,
smile stretching on his lips. “There are actually two pairs of boobs, but I’ll tell you about the other
one in a bit.”

“You have two pairs of boobs? You’re too straight for me, I fear…”

The artist laughs. “How can I be gayer for you, baby?”

“You could get my dick tattooed.”

“No.”

“Fair enough.” Jungkook nods.

“I don’t like to get small tattoos.” Taehyung adds, a huge grin on his face as he waits for the joke
to properly dawn on Jungkook and, when it does, the younger gasps, offended.

“My dick is not—”

│►

Jungkook continues to change the channel, trying to find any cartoons to watch and pass the time
while waiting for Taehyung to come back from work, and he perks up when he hears the front door
opening. He gets bored easily when he’s alone.

“Hi, Tae.” he greets.

“Hey, baby.” there’s a little kiss on the top of his head, and he puckers his lips for another kiss that
never comes; Taehyung’s too busy removing his jacket without letting his hands be seen to notice
the expectant pout. “I have a gift for you.” he announces.

Jungkook raises an eyebrow. “A gift?”

“Mhm.”

“What is it?” he asks, audibly excited.

Taehyung pulls it from behind his back, holding the gift out. “So?” he asks after a few seconds in
silence, Jungkook showing no reaction to the present. “What do you think?”

Jungkook takes a moment. “Yes, it’s beautiful. I love it, thank you.” his words are laced with
sarcasm, and it finally hits Taehyung just why the younger didn’t have any reaction.

“I’m sorry.” the artist cackles, rushing to sit down next to him, handing over the gift instead. He
watches as Jungkook picks it up, feeling it with his hands with a concentration pout. “Can you tell
what that is?” he asks.

“It feels like a big-ass fucking jar.” Jungkook guesses.

“It is.”

“Does it have anything inside, or…?” he tilts his head, positively confused.

“Not now, but it will.” Taehyung starts, his hand brushing Jungkook’s bangs away from his
forehead. “Forty percent of what I receive from each tattoo, be it a big one or a small one, will be
going into this jar from now on.” he explains, but he can tell that it only confuses Jungkook even
more — it still doesn’t make any sense.

“Alright… For what?” he asks.

“For your surgery.” Taehyung reveals, and he has to bite down on his bottom lip, unsure of what
reaction to expect. Jungkook could react in multiple different ways, and he doesn’t want to start a
fight or anything of the sort. He doesn’t like upset Jungkook.

Jungkook gapes. “W-What?” he whispers.

“Your parents told me about the surgery, how there’s a chance for you to see again… I know that
it’s pricy, and as much as I’d love to take your hand and drive you to the hospital to get it done
immediately, I’m not that wealthy to just spend that amount in one go. I don’t even have that much.
I’ll save up, though, and I’ll make it happen. I tattoo a lot every day, and your parents told me that
they’ve been saving up little by little, too, without you knowing, so we’ll get there sooner than
later. Hopefully, very soon…” he finishes his explanation, waiting.

“Tae, you can’t— No, I can’t possibly let you do that.” Jungkook says, getting a little choked up
with his words. “It’s too much, I can’t accept that.” he shakes his head, putting the jar down on the
floor. “It’s a really fucking sweet a-and amazing idea, and you’re such a good person to even think
of that, but I can’t. I can’t let you put your money aside from your work. I can’t.”
“Yes, you can—”

“No, Tae, I can’t. You already do too much for me, and I can’t take that much money from you
just like that. I’d rather be blind than— than fucking doing that to you. It’s money that you earn
with your craft, your work, your hours. It’s too much.” Jungkook searches for Taehyung’s hands,
taking them to his lips to press a kiss to his knuckles. “I can’t take it.” his voice breaks painfully.

“Baby, listen to me.” Taehyung leans closer. “You’re the best friend that I’ve ever had, and you
mean so, so much to me. Your happiness means the world to me. If I can give you this, if I’m able
to make this happen, then you better be sure that I fucking will.” he says, completely certain of his
words. “I will do it. I want you to be able to fucking see again. If there’s that option, of course I
will work for that. Baby, I want you to see… colors, to see the view around you, to see your own
amazing art. I want you to see your parents, to see how beautiful you are, to see… me.”

Jungkook lets out a quiet sob as the first tear rolls down his cheek, and Taehyung is quick to wipe
it away with his thumb. He sniffs, wrapping his arms so tightly around the older man that
Taehyung feels like he can’t breathe for a good minute.

“Please, accept it, Kook.” he whispers.

“You’re fucking crazy for this.” Jungkook breathes in. “Are you sure of this?”

“I’m more than sure.” Taehyung assures. “It doesn’t matter how long it takes us to get there, it
doesn’t matter if we even— I don’t fucking know, drift apart in the meantime. I’ll still work on
getting this done for you. If I can do anything about it, you will see again.”

“W-What if we drift apart after the surgery…? Will you shove a fork in my eyes?” Taehyung
laughs, his chest shaking against Jungkook’s. “It’s an actual question, answer it.”

“I won’t do that, I promise.” he pats Jungkook’s butt twice. “I’m pretty positive that we won’t drift
apart, though.” Jungkook can feel his cheeks blush at the thought that Taehyung sees a future with
him, just as much as he does see a future with the tattooist.

Instead of answering that, he simply presses a kiss to Taehyung’s plump lips. “What if the surgery
doesn’t work?” he whispers against his mouth. “What if— I don’t know, what if my eyes are
broken for good? It will be money wasted for… nothing.” he worries. “Tae, I-I don’t know if I can
let you do this. It’s way too much, too much money, too much everything.”

“If it doesn’t work, at least we tried.” Taehyung pulls him back down for a kiss. “We have to be
hopeful, okay?” Jungkook nods, albeit unsure, two new tears rolling down his cheeks. “Are these
happy tears? They better be.” he asks afore kissing them away.

“They’re… happy, and scared, and— and I like you so fucking much.” Jungkook breathes the last
words out, arms circling Taehyung’s shoulders. “You mean so fucking much to me. I don’t think
that you fully realize what me being able to see again means… It would allow me to get so much
back, Tae, I— I can’t thank you enough for even wanting to do this for me.”

“You don’t have to thank me at all, you just have to promise me that you’ll still keep up with me if
I end up being ugly.” Taehyung tries to joke, tries to lighten the mood, his fingers going up and
down Jungkook’s back soothingly.

“I’m not promising anything.” Jungkook jokes back.

“Then I shall shove a fork up your eye if you reject me.”

“Do I get to keep the other eye?” he giggles against Taehyung’s neck.

“Hm, that sounds fair, yes. You get to keep one of them.”

“Alright, that’s the deal. If you’re ugly, you get to blind me again in one eye.” there’s a pause that
drags on for a few seconds, before they both snort. “Now seriously… Thank you so much for this.
No one else would just— do this shit.” he worries at his bottom lip, reaching for the other’s hand to
intertwine their fingers. “Thank you.”

“You don’t have to thank me, I mean it. Your wellbeing is now a priority to me, so you can bet
your fucking ass that you’ll get that surgery as fast as I possibly can make it happen.” Jungkook
pulls away to kiss him; deep. “We’ll get there. I promise you.”

“You’re the first thing that I want to see.” he whispers. “You, and your perfect nose, and your blue
hair, and— and your tattoos… and your massive fucking butt.” Taehyung snorts, not at all
expecting the last item on the list. “Listen, don’t laugh, I’m dead-serious. At this point, I want to
see your ass more than I want to see my mom’s face.”

“Oh, my fucking God, that’s so mean, don’t say that.” Taehyung reprehends, though with another
laugh. “You’re insane, truly.”

“I’m joking.” he giggles. “Well, partially. I do want to see it, but it can wait, you know?”

“Hm, surely.”

“Your face is still the first thing that I want to see.”

“It will probably be a doctor—”

“I refuse. Taehyungie or nothing.” he says, expression serious and voice certain.

“You’re seriously impossible.” but Taehyung wouldn’t have it any other way. “Whatever you see
first, it means that the surgery worked, so we’ll just hope that that’s what happens, okay?” he
kisses Jungkook’s cheek yet again, accepting him with open arms when he leans in to rest his head
on chest; he breathes in Taehyung’s cologne, so comforting and good.

They’re silent for way over a minute, Jungkook fidgeting with Taehyung’s shirt as the latter simply
caresses his back, and they’re just both letting everything sink in. Jungkook can’t wrap his head
around the fact that someone wants to go to such lengths for him, for his happiness.

Being able to see again is a dream that he always thought was unreachable.

He feels so much that it doesn’t even fit in his chest, so it pours out of his eyes.

“I want to say a big word.” Jungkook whispers.

“Don’t.” Taehyung whispers back.

“Okay.”

“But I feel that too.”

“Oh. Okay.” Jungkook chews on the inside of his cheek, eyes watering even more. “It’s really hard
to say it, but— but it’s there.” he chuckles, a little embarrassed.

“I know. I know.” Taehyung reassures, kissing the top of his head. “Should we order food?”
 Jungkook grins, wiping away his tears with the sleeves of his sweater. “That was a nice change of
topic, man.” he praises.

“Thanks.” Taehyung smiles, too. “But shall we?”

“Make it pizza.”

“Pizza it is.” Jungkook moves away to let the older man get up from the couch, probably to go get
his phone, and he holds his knee to his chest, resting his chin there as he goes over everything that
happened. He doesn’t think that he could feel more for someone.

“Hey, Tae?” he calls. “You’re the fucking best, dude.”

Taehyung smiles, holding the phone to his ear. “You’re the best, too, dude.”

│►

Follow me on twitter guys, @vantaegukk, also you can share your thoughts in the comments or
privately through my curious cat if you feel more comfortable that way!

Chapter End Notes

There will be a second part

 ◄│ 2 │►
Chapter Notes

This second chapter is just a little extra as everyone wanted to see him after the
surgery. It's very short but I hope you enjoy it!

Jungkook frowns as he, once again, acknowledges how hard his foot is kicking under the blankets,
and he’s tried to stop it countless times already, only to realize that he goes back to it without even
realizing. He lightly squeezes the hand that is holding onto his, trying to check whether Taehyung
is still awake or has fallen asleep already.

“Yeah? Do you need something?” Taehyung asks.

Jungkook’s beyond relieved to hear his voice. “I’m scared.” he whispers.

“Scared? Of what?”

“What if the surgery doesn’t fucking work?” Jungkook voices his concerns, eyebrows furrowed in
an upset frown. “You and my parents are putting so much money down for this, especially you,
and— and it may not even work. What if my eyes are broken for good? I’m scared.”

“Baby, you heard the doctors. They’re confident that you’ll get your full vision back, so we have to
trust them and think positively. Even if there’s the small chance of it not working, don’t you think
that it’s worth the try? Worth the shot?” Jungkook pouts, slowly nodding his head in silent
agreement. Taehyung kisses his forehead. “I’ll be here, no matter the outcome. You should sleep
now, the doctors told you not to stress yourself tonight… You have to be at your best shape
tomorrow morning for the surgery, yeah?”

“Okay…” Jungkook nods again, taking Taehyung’s hand to his lips to press gentle kisses to each
and every knuckle. “You’ll be by my side when I wake up, right?”

“Yes, of course. Your parents will, too. They’ll be here early in the morning so that they can wish
you good luck before you go in… We’ll be right here with you.” Taehyung guarantees, hand
caressing his cheek. “You’ll be holding a hand when you wake up, and just know that it’s mine.”

“Thank you.” he whispers. “Can you hold me for the night?”

“I don’t think that I can sleep on the bed…” Taehyung has to deny, looking around. They’re in a
room by themselves, but he’s still pretty positive that the bed is meant for the patient and the
patient alone. He can’t just make himself comfortable like that.

“Who the fuck cares about what’s supposed to be done or not? I have surgery in the morning, I’m
in a very sensitive headspace right now, so just fucking cuddle me.” Jungkook demands with a
thick pout, hand tugging on Taehyung’s. “Come here.” he pats the bed for added effect, and only
smiles when the elder gives in and climbs on it to join him.

They fidget until they find a position that is comfortable enough to sleep in, and they find that it’s
not much different from how they sleep back at home, just even closer. The lesser the space, the
better, and the single bed provides just that.
Taehyung has an arm around Jungkook’s shoulders, the latter’s head resting comfortably on his
chest. They both fall silent, breathing in each other’s colognes that always helps them fall asleep
faster but, tonight, Jungkook can’t seem to close his eyes.

His mind is racing.

“Taehyungie?” he whispers after a minute or two.

“Hm?”

“I’m scared because— because of something else…”

“Do you want to talk about it?” Taehyung offers.

“I’ve grown used to this. This is who I am. I’m blind, this is my fucked reality, it’s who I thought
that I’d be until my last day on this Earth… What if— I don’t know. I’m overthinking everything,
and I’m pretty terrified of every aspect of what life will be if it goes well, but I’m also panicking
over every aspect that may go wrong. I feel s-stupid for being so worried, because I know that I’m
going to start sounding like I don’t want this to happen when being able to see again is the biggest
dream ever…” he rambles. “I don’t want you to think that I’m, I don’t know, ungrateful for saying
this. I’m happy and really fucking excited, but I’m terrified.”

“I can understand that it’s scary for you. You’ve lived like this for a few years now, and you’re
going to change your reality drastically yet again, so don’t worry… I understand. I know how
thankful you are, and how much you want this. I’m not taking you for ungrateful, nor do I think
that you’re coming off as… not wanting this.” Taehyung assures. “Don’t stress your pretty little
head with this, okay? I’m confident when I say that it will be fine. I’m here to support you through
this entire process, I’ll be here to help you recover afterwards, I’m here.”

“Thank you… Honestly, just thank you.”

“Don’t thank me. Close your eyes now, you should sleep. Tomorrow will be a big day.”

“Only if you sleep, too.” Jungkook negotiates, fixing their position.

“Let me just say something first.” the artist starts, and he simply hums, encouraging him to go on.
“If, for some reason, they remove the gauzes tomorrow after the surgery and you— you still see
nothing but void, I don’t want you to feel like you’ve failed something, or that it’s your fault,
because it’s really not. There’s nothing wrong with you. If this shit doesn’t work, then—”

“If this damn surgery doesn’t work, then I might as well not wake up from it, because it’ll shatter
me into pieces. Please, be the positive one, and tell me that I will wake up and see your pretty
face.” Jungkook requests, voice serious. “Be positive. Please.”

“I am, Kook. I am positive. I’m just saying, i f something goes wrong, which I’m sure won’t
happen, you can’t blame yourself. I don’t know, imagine that they don’t both work, or don’t fully
work, it won’t be your fault.” Taehyung kisses the top of his head. “But enough of this. You’re
going to wake up to good news, and you’ll see your mom, your dad, the doctors… You’ll see the
sky outside of this window, you’ll see the sun, you’ll see everything.” he speaks by his ear.

“Oh, fuck, I can’t wait.” Jungkook beams. “I want to see again so fucking bad, I want to be able to
work on my art again and— Dude, I want to kiss you without taking ten seconds to even find your
lips. I want to be normal so bad.”

“You’re normal, Jungkook.” Taehyung quickly interrupts.

“You know what I mean.” Jungkook sighs, pulling Taehyung closer to him by a firm fist on his
shirt. “Promise me that you’ll be right there when I wake up. The first thing that I see when I open
my eyes. I need you to promise me that. Pinky promise.” he holds his hand up with his pinky
sticking out, and Taehyung is quick to link it with his own. “Okay…”

“Okay.” Taehyung kisses his temple yet again, tucking him closer. “Rest now, close your pretty
eyes.” he encourages, and Jungkook’s lips stretch into a lazy smile as he finally settles, set on
sleeping for the night because, the faster he falls asleep, the faster the morning will come. “I’ll be
right here in the morning… Sleep well, baby.”

“Sleep well, too…” Jungkook whispers, kissing the nearest spot — that being Taehyung’s chest
right over his shirt. “Thank you so much. For all of this.” he whispers yet again, but Taehyung
doesn’t think that they should be up any longer, as Jungkook needs to rest, so he doesn’t answer.

After that, it doesn’t take long for them to fall asleep.

│►

The surgery is a success, the doctors tell them as soon as it’s over.

It doesn’t last over three hours, but it feels like an eternity.

To make it worse, Jungkook doesn’t wake up until two hours after he’s taken to the recovery room,
his parents and Taehyung all sitting around waiting for him to finally show signs of having
regained his consciousness.

It comes in the form of a squeeze to the hand holding his, as promised, and a very whispery call
after Taehyung’s name that they almost miss. He’s close to freaking out about not being able to see
anything, but quickly realizes that he has something wrapped around his eyes.

Taehyung praises him for doing good as they wait for the doctors, but he can feel Jungkook’s hand
shaking in his, and knows him well enough to be able to tell just how nervous he is. Once the
bandages holding his eyes shut come off, either the news are very good or very bad.

“Are you ready?” the doctor asks, standing by his side.

“Uh, yeah.” Jungkook gulps, positively not ready. “W-Wait, will it hurt?”

“You’re on medication, so you won’t feel a thing. The lights may bother you on the first few days,
given that you’re not used to them, but we’ve dimmed every light possible in this room, even the
curtains are closed so that the sunlight isn’t as strong to your eyes right now.” the man reassures,
and Jungkook can only nod, squeezing Taehyung’s hand again. “Can I remove the gauzes now?
Are you ready?” he repeats the previous question.

“Yeah.” the young man whispers, and he can feel the hands on the back of his head, slowly and
gently removing the gauzes. He’s too scared to open his eyes, though, so he keeps them closed
tight, his frowns almost painful. He doesn’t want to be met with darkness.

“You can open your eyes now, Jungkook.” the doctor instructs.

“I know, I’m just scared.” he admits, shaking his head.

“The surgery was an absolute success. We’re positive about the outcome, so you can just open
them slowly so that you can get used to everything again.” Jungkook inhales deeply before he
begins opening his eyes carefully, slowly, and hesitantly. The room is out of focus for a few
seconds, but he blinks repeatedly, everything becoming clearer as he does so.

And oh.

He can see.

His eyes work.

He can see again.

Jungkook lets go of Taehyung’s hand without even realizing, looking down at his own as if to
check whether he’s making it all up, or if it’s true. He lets out a shaky breath when he sees his
fingers moving, noticing how bigger and thicker they look now.

And, God, he wants to cry his eyes out.

He can see his hands, can see his fingers.

He can see.

There’s a hand holding his chin up before he can even try to look anywhere else. “I need to briefly
check your eyes, please don’t be frightened.” the doctor informs, pointing a small lantern into his
right eye. He hums to himself, moving to the other one, and nodding.

“Is everything ok?” he hears his mother ask.

“His pupils are responding well to the light, and that’s a good sign. We will still do a few exams
later, but we’ll let you settle for now. You must be very curious to see your parents, and all.” the
man explains with a smile, and Jungkook simply nods, overwhelmed. “You may be seeing spots
right now, but it’s due to the light. They’ll go away, so don’t worry about them unless they stay.”

“Okay.” Jungkook whispers.

The room falls silent once again as he starts scanning it with his eyes; he starts on the window, the
walls, the medical equipment, only for his breath to get caught in his throat when he finally spots
his parents. They’re holding each other close, a few feet away from the bed, and his mother is
crying — of happiness, he knows.

They look older than what he remembers.

“Baby…” he hears, and he freezes.

Taehyung was the first thing that he wanted to see, but now he doesn’t think that he can look at
him. “I don’t want to look.” he whispers, eyes still glued to his mother’s.

“Why n—”

“Oh, my God, I can’t.” Jungkook stressed, closing his eyes again. He hears Taehyung chuckle, low
and amused, before his slender fingers grab ahold of Jungkook’s chin to turn his head to the side.
“I can’t fucking open my eyes.” he whispers for only him to hear. “I can’t.”

“Yes, you can.” Taehyung encourages, though a little afraid that Jungkook might actually find him
ugly or realize that Taehyung’s not his type at all. Jungkook breathes in and out to gather his
courage, and only then does he open his eyes — his focus on the wall. “Look at me.”

“Right, right.” Jungkook nods, counting to three before moving his eyes to the man standing on his
right, and oh. “Oh.” he lets out. “Oh— Oh.” is all that he can say, his hand reaching for the elder’s
cheek as if to check whether he’s real or not, because he’s too perfect to be real.

Taehyung’s very different from what he had imagined: his eyes are sharper, his nose even
straighter than what his fingers told him, his lips more appetizing. His jaw is cutting, his beauty
unmatched. He’s perfect in every sense of the word.

“Oh.” he parrots.

He hears a few chuckles in the room, and he feels dumb for not being able to say anything else.

Just oh, because there Taehyung is.

Taehyung and his perfect nose, his handsome face, and his cool blue hair. God, the hair, don’t get
Jungkook started on it — blue locks that don’t look nearly as fried as what he had anticipated, held
back by a black bandana around his forehead. The piercing on his eyebrow doesn’t look as childish
and teen-like as Jungkook made fun of him for. It fits him, and it fits him perfectly.

Just like the ring on his lip, the ring on his nose. There’s so much to look at, and he can’t look
away from him. “You’re—” he tries, but the words die in his throat as he runs his finger down the
bridge of Taehyung’s nose, uncaring for the other people in the room. “Oh.”

Taehyung chuckles, and Jungkook wants to write poetry about his smile.

“I’m ‘oh’?” he mocks.

“Yeah.” he nods without missing a beat, eyes still scanning every inch of the other’s face.

“What’s that supposed to mean, hm?” Taehyung asks, and he’s visibly very amused.

Bastard, Jungkook insults him in his mind. Handsome, handsome bastard.

“It means shut up.” he mumbles through a pout. “You’re way different than what I thought.”

“Is that a good thing?” Taehyung asks, gently combing Jungkook’s hair away from his eyes and
tucking it behind his ear. “Or am I uglier than what you imagined?”

“Are you crazy?” Jungkook’s baffled. “I thought that you were handsome, but holy fuck.” he
mouths the last word, unwilling to let his parents hear it. “You’re way beyond what I had in mind,
seriously. I could stare at you for hours. I will stare.”

Taehyung smiles again, a charming smile, before leaning closer to kiss his forehead multiple times.
Jungkook closes his eyes with a smile, eagerly accepting the little pecks. He knows that he’s going
to cry until he can no longer produce tears once everything sinks in, once it dawns on him that he
really can see again but, for now, he just wants to look.

See everything.

Stare at Taehyung, too. Definitely stare at Taehyung.

He circles Taehyung’s shoulders with his arms, pulling him down for a hug. “Thank you so
fucking much.” he whispers by his ear. “I can’t thank you enough for this. I’m so thankful,
seriously.”

“Don’t stress yourself, Kook, and don’t thank me.” Taehyung whispers back, pulling away and
thus breaking the hug. They have had their moment, and he knows that he must let him enjoy it
with his parents as well, so he stays back for now, gesturing for them to have at it.

The couple immediately steps closer to the bed, his mother breaking into a new fit of tears. “Oh,
mom, please, don’t cry. I don’t want tears, this is a happy moment.” he says with an emotional
chuckle, accepting her hug; his father joins in, squeezing them. “You guys should be as happy as I
am… I only want smiles today, I don’t want to cry.”

“We’re so happy, we’re crying because we’re happy.” his mother sniffs. Taehyung bows for the
doctor when the man gestures towards the door, and he leaves without disturbing their moment.
“You can see again, Jungkookie, and that makes us so happy.”

“The dreams for your future that you had before the accident are back to being possible, and we’ll
be the happiest to see what you do now. We’re so excited for you to reach your goals…”

Taehyung smiles at them, sitting down.

He’s never seen Jungkook this happy, and it makes him feel euphoric.

He might just cry, too.

│►

“Are you sure that you don’t mind staying?” Jungkook’s father asks for the umpteenth time, just to
be sure. “We’ll understand if you’d rather go sleep at home, than staying here.”

“No, I don’t mind one bit. You guys go home and rest, you wake up early for work. Don’t worry
about me, or him. I’ll keep him company.” Taehyung reassures, bowing to them. “Have something
to eat, too, you’ve barely eaten anything the whole day.”

“We will, yes. You two should get some food, too.” they both hug him before parting ways, and
Taehyung simply heads back to the room where he left Jungkook with his phone. Last time that he
checked, the younger man was on YouTube watching videos to see what he’s been missing.

Jungkook looks up when he enters, and puts the phone away to pat the bed, inviting him. He sits
down on the mattress right by his side. “How are you feeling?” Taehyung asks, his hand resting on
Jungkook’s thigh.

“I feel like crying…” he admits.

“Why? Are you in pain? Shall I call the doctor back in?” Jungkook shakes his head, reaching for
the artist’s hands before he can press the button to call the nurse. “What’s wrong, baby?”

“I’m just really happy…” he pouts. “I still can’t believe just how beautiful you are, gosh, I can
fucking see you. How crazy is that? You’re so fucking handsome, Tae, holy fuck. I can’t stop
looking at you, I physically can’t make myself stop staring. You’re so— Why are you so hot?”

Taehyung laughs, quiet but fully, and Jungkook just wants to see his smile forever. “You’ll be able
to see me every day now, you’ll grow used to it.” he teases. “Besides, I’m not that hot.”

“Are you blind, too, or just stupid?”

“Thanks.”

“Oh, you’re absolutely welcome.” Jungkook shows him his tongue. “You’re that hot, dude, I’m not
joking right now. I just want to look at you for a full hour, without looking away. Your hair is so
beautiful, too, and it fits you so well and— You’re so handsome and pretty at the same time, which
should be fucking illegal. You’re so much better and beyond what I thought. I don’t even know
how to put in words how fucking into you I am now. I already was, but holy shit.”

“Thank yo—”

“Can you take off your shirt?” Jungkook interrupts with a smile.

“Come again?”

“You had the audacity to come in here wearing long sleeves when you knew damn well that I’d
want to see your tattoos. Show yourself. I want to see everything, I want to see them all.” he tugs on
the hem of Taehyung’s shirt, ready to pull it up, but the elder stops him.

“I’m not getting naked for you right now.” he tuts.

“I want to see your tattoos.”

“I’m not taking my shirt off.” Taehyung crosses his arms.

Jungkook frowns. “C’mon…!” he drags.

“Absolutely not.” the younger man frowns even harder, dragging his finger from Taehyung’s chest
down to his abdomen, the tip of his index going under the waistband of the black jeans before his
hand gets swatted away. “Not happening.”

“You’re so mean to me. I just want to see your tattoos and—”

Taehyung leans in for a kiss that effectively shuts him up. “How about I show you all of them
when we get home, where some nurse can’t come in and find me without a shirt and with you
ogling me? Where you can touch them, and everything.” he suggests.

“Hm, I like where that’s headed.” Jungkook smirks. “Will you show me your dick, too?”

The artist can’t help but to snort. “Really? I mean, yes, but really?”

“Because of the piercing! Don’t be nasty.” he tuts, but his smile slowly falls, and Taehyung’s
positively confused to see his expression becoming sadder and sadder. “Show me now…”

“No— Why?”

“What if I open my eyes in the morning and— and don’t see anything?”

“That’s not going to happen, Kook. You can’t think like this, it’s going to mess up your head, and
you’re going to sleep like shit.” Taehyung lifts his hand to cup Jungkook’s cheek, gently thumbing
at the soft skin. “Look, I want to show you something that might lift up your mood.”

Jungkook’s eyes light up at the mention, and Taehyung doesn’t fail to notice how they light up a
lot more now; how they look so much more alive now.

“What is it?” Jungkook asks, eager to know, to see. The artist offers him a knowing smile before
getting up from the bed, and Jungkook watches him rummage through his things, only to pull out a
sketchbook. “Oh, what’s that?”

“Open it.” Taehyung hands it over, and Jungkook doesn’t waste a second. “These are the drawings
that you’ve done. We might have worked on them together, but they’re yours. I’ll be happy to show
you the paintings, too, but those are back at my place.” he explains with a little smile, loving how
excited Jungkook looks.

“They’re not as horrible as I had anticipated… but I really promise that I’m a better artist than this,
you’ll see.” Jungkook comments, fingers dragging across the pages as he flips them, slowly, one at
a time. His eyes scan every detail, every design, and he only stops to examine one of them for
longer. “I really like this one. Did I really do this? It looks so fucking cool.”

“Interesting that you say that…” Taehyung offers him a highly suspicious smile, turning around
and away from him. Jungkook’s confused when he sees him make a grab for the hem of his shirt,
but it all makes sense once he’s able to see Taehyung’s now bare back — more precisely, his
shoulder blade. It makes him gasp, surprised.

It’s the only design now inked on Taehyung’s back, quite a mess of colors and lines that only looks
like something in concrete if the viewer stops to stare, wonder, and piece it together. It’s a cool
concept, Jungkook believes, but he doesn’t even know how to feel about the gesture.

Taehyung got his messy design tattooed.

That’s how much he appreciates Jungkook’s art.

It fills up his heart, his chest. It makes him want to cry, hug Taehyung for hours.

He feels way too much, just because of a tattoo.

Jungkook runs his fingers over the tattoo, lips tugging down in a little frown. It looks beautiful, and
it draws the attention — especially since it’s the only one on Taehyung’s back. “So, you stole my
art?” is what he asks when he gets his voice back, deciding to joke so that it’s easier to cope with
the multiple emotions that he can’t even put into words.

Taehyung chuckles. “You can tattoo your signature, if you’d like.”

“That’s as territorial as me pissing on you like a dog.”

“That one I’d have to give a deeper thought.” Taehyung says.

Jungkook tilts his head. “You’d even consider it?”

“For you, I’d at least think about it.” that shouldn’t tug at his heart the way that it does. They’re
discussing the idea of Jungkook urinating on him, it’s not something to find romantic, and yet,
Jungkook’s stomach decides to release all kinds of butterflies right then and there. “The answer
would be no, I’ll let you know, but I’d still think for a second, just for you.”

“That’s so romantic.” Jungkook teases, running his fingers over the tattoo again, letting them linger
for a moment longer. “You’re fucking crazy for this, Tae.”

“I’ve been dying to tell you. It’s been there for two or three months now, I really loved the design
when you made it and— and I just had to get it, you know? I didn’t tell you because I wanted you
to see it and not just… know about it.” Taehyung explains. “Do you like it?”

Jungkook kisses the tan skin. “I love it. I love it so much. Was it Yoongi?” Taehyung just hums in
confirmation. “He did a great job.” he kisses it again, letting his hands wander on Taehyung’s
waist. “Now, can I see all the other ones? I want to see your front, and your arms.”

“No.” Taehyung steps away, pulling the shirt back down before sitting down on the bed once again
and linking their hands. His action, instead of punching a frown out of Jungkook as he expected,
only makes him smile at their hands. “Why are you smiling like a creep?”

“First of all, rude.” Jungkook tsks. “Second, I’m just smiling at your tattoo… You really got it, is
what I was just now noticing.” he says, pointing towards the black band around Taehyung’s finger
that mirrors the one that he has on his own.

“Did you think that I was lying about having tattooed it?” Taehyung raises an eyebrow, letting the
younger man move his hand as much as he wants to so that he can examine their matching tattoos.
“Why wouldn’t I get it, if I said that I would?” he asks, puzzled.

“Because this is pretty permanent, dude.” Jungkook rationalizes.

“Hopefully, we’re pretty permanent, too.” Taehyung smiles, and Jungkook immediately leans in
for a kiss at his words, a hand holding Taehyung’s sharp jaw in place. Their eyes are closed, and
the kiss is slow, followed by a few lingering pecks. “You’ll be able to work on your drawings
again, and I’ll be here to support you through art school. If your art is even better with your
regained vision, then I’ll dedicate my back only for them.”

Jungkook’s eyes disappear within the apples of his cheeks when he smiles. “That’s kind of
romantic.” he pokes Taehyung’s chest. “I’m so fucking excited to go through college and, uhm,
you said that you’d hire me, so that offer better still be up, because I’m taking it.”

“I will most definitely hire you. I’ll take you as my apprentice, and teach you everything that I
know.” Taehyung says, kissing the bridge of his nose. “Once you’ve learned, I’ll hire you.”

“Dude…”

“Hm?”

“We’ll be sexy tattooists together.” Taehyung laughs. “Will you be my master?”

Taehyung’s face is back to its seriousness in a second. “Go to sleep.”

“No, we still have to eat some dinner.” he pots. “Master.”

“I swear to f—”

│►

Taehyung finishes putting away the McDonald’s bags from their dinner, side-eyeing the small
mirror by the bed. He picks it up before joining Jungkook again, and hands the object over with an
encouraging smile. Much to his surprise, the younger man puts the mirror down without even
looking at the reflection. “I don’t want to see myself.”

“Why not?” Taehyung asks, puzzled.

“Because now that I see you, how fucking flawless you are… I can’t understand what you’re doing
with me. From what I remember, I’m fucking— ugly. You’re perfect, while I’m a raw potato, at
best.” he explains with a sad frown. “I don’t want to see myself. I refuse.”

Taehyung has to hold in his laugh. “I love you for more than your looks, but you’re still really
fucking beautiful. You’re the prettiest, the cutest, and you need to see that. However, the fuck your
teenage-version looked, you’ve grown into the most beautiful thing.”
Jungkook smiles as he processes the words, before promptly choking on his own spit. “What?!”

“I think that you should see yourself.”

“No, what did you say just now?”

“I told you to look at yourself in the mirror.”

“Taehyung.” Jungkook calls, holding his hand. “What did you just say?”

The artist sighs, realizing that there’s no way around it now. “I said that I love you. Now, please
look in the mirror.” Jungkook pouts, but allows the elder to hold it before him. “C’mon, baby.”

“Okay.” he whispers with a weak nod, trying to muster his courage to finally look at his own
reflection. His skin is a little pale, he looks almost sick, but he knows that it’s due to the hospital
air — or so he hopes. His lips look chapped, his eyes a little swollen and hair a mess. “Wow.”

Taehyung smiles. “I told y—”

“Why the fuck are you with me?!” Jungkook asks, voice almost a cry. “I’m so ugly compared to
you, dude, run the fuck away from me while you can.” he dramatizes, swatting Taehyung’s hand
for him to put the mirror down.

“Don’t say that. You’re so beautiful, Kook. Inside and out.”

“I’m not.” Jungkook shakes his head, facing away. Taehyung raises an eyebrow afore reaching for
his phone, and Jungkook’s attention is brought back to him when he hears the familiar sound of the
mobile unlocking. “What are you doing…?” he inquires.

“Here.” Taehyung hands it over, the word ‘baby’ titling the picture album, and he holds the phone
with curiosity. The album is filled with pictures, pictures that Taehyung has taken of him without
him knowing — sleeping, eating, just existing. There are a few where he’s lying on a couch that
he’s never seen before but, judging by how he’s dressed, then he can tell that it’s the living room in
Taehyung’s apartment.

He's smiling in some of them, and he looks so genuinely happy that it brings a smile to his face just
looking at it. He looks comfortable, relaxed, and content.

“This is how I see you.” Taehyung breaks the silence.

“I do look better here…” he comments, still scrolling through the pictures, and his fingers halt
when he reaches a photo that he does remember taking. They’re both in the frame, and he still
remembers the way that his stomach hurt from laughing too much at how hard it was for him to
end up looking at the camera even with Taehyung’s guidance.

Taehyung’s smile is blinding in the picture.

So is his own.

They look happy together.

“You always look good, baby. You’re adorable, and so fucking attractive, and I can’t let you say
otherwise. You’re gorgeous. All of you.” Taehyung reassures. “You look a little beaten-up, but you
had surgery just a few hours ago, and you’ve gone through a shit-ton of exams. Besides, this place
isn’t exactly comfortable… You’ll look better once you properly rest and take a shower and have a
good night of sleep. To me, though, you’re beautiful even like this.”

“Thank you…” Jungkook whispers, eyes closing when Taehyung leans down to kiss the top of his
head. “I look happy in these.” he observes. “As happy as I feel.”

Taehyung smiles. “I do love you, you know?”

Jungkook pulls back to look at him, his eyes welling up. He can’t believe that someone feels this
way towards him and, now that he’s seen Taehyung, it’s even harder to believe. That man loves
him. Taehyung’s the most amazing person that he’s ever met, and now he can see how he’s also
the epitome of physical perfection. How is it possible? How can he love him?

His mouth parts, ready to say the words back with no hesitation, but a long, tattooed finger gently
presses on his lips to keep him quiet. “Don’t.” Taehyung smiles. “Not while you’re on a shit-ton of
painkillers, I won’t think that you meant it. Wait until the emotions and medication wear out and
you’re… out of here, okay? If you still feel like saying it, then you shall. Not here.”

“But I—”

“I know.” he pouts. “I saw it in your eyes when you looked at me the first time. I can… I can see it
now, still. Besides, I could tell from the way that you behave with me. I know, baby. I know.”

Jungkook tilts his head up, lips still pouted, and it’s a clear request that Taehyung doesn’t think
twice before fulfilling. The kiss is short, unfortunately, and Jungkook’s lips tingle, longing for
more that he will get later. If not today, then definitely tomorrow.

He won’t be able to have enough of Taehyung.

“Go to sleep, okay? I’ll be right here. I can see that you’re tired.”

“Will you hold my hand?” he mumbles.

“Of course. Close your eyes, baby.” Taehyung offers his hand, and Jungkook’s eyes scan every
inch of his face before closing. A part of him is still scared that he might wake up to emptiness, to
darkness and nothingness, and he wants to be sure that he’ll remember every detail on the elder’s
face. He’d hate himself if he forgot something as small as the tiny mole on his lip.

“Good night, Tae…” he whispers.

Taehyung smiles. “Good night.”

│►

Taehyung grabs another pencil, a smaller one this time, still focused on his drawing. He’s sitting by
Jungkook’s bed, notepad on his lap as he works on another design, and the hand that isn’t working
on the shading, is holding Jungkook’s.

He doesn’t notice when Jungkook starts waking up, eyes slowly opening.

A lazy smile takes over his lips as soon as he’s able to see Taehyung, sitting by his side looking as
gorgeous as he remembers from the day before. “You’re so pretty.” he voices, groggy from being
asleep for so many hours.

“Oh, you’re awake.” Taehyung meets his eyes.

“I wasn’t dreaming about you… You’re as handsome as yesterday.” he lets go of Taehyung’s long,
tattooed hand so that he can cup his sharp jaw. Touching his face is starting to become a habit that
he doesn’t think that he’ll lose any time soon.

“Thank you, Kook.” Taehyung chuckles. “Did you sleep well?” Jungkook dumbly nods, eyes
trailing down to the notepad — he points at it in silence, content when it’s handed to him with no
hesitation. Taehyung lets him look through every page that has any drawing on, eyes big and little
sounds of amazement and approval.

Just when he thinks that Taehyung can’t be more impressive, he gets positively surprised.

His fingers halt on a design that has some of his own features. He can recognize his eyes, and his
nose. “Is there some dude walking around with my face on his arm?” he asks

“Nah, you’re too pretty to be put on someone else. I draw with your face for inspiration, but I
change the features whenever I actually use the designs. You’re my muse, but for my eyes only.”

Jungkook has to ignore the three consecutive beats that his heart fails at beating, for the sake of
answering. “You should tattoo me on your own arm.” he decides to tease him, because he doesn’t
trust his voice not to fail him, or his brain not to make him say something embarrassing.

“There’s no room on my arms.” Taehyung shrugs, but that gets the younger man’s attention on him
in a split second. Jungkook’s eyes study the expanse of his clothed arms, only to then reach for
them to try to lift up his sweater, but he’s able to step away. “Nuh-uh.”

Jungkook frowns.

He really wants to see Taehyung’s tattoos.

He wants to see everything. Every inch. Inked or not.

“Why didn’t you think of this beforehand? You should’ve left some space.”

“I’ve had my arms tattooed for years.”

“I don’t care.”

Taehyung sighs. “You’re so irritating.”

Jungkook tuts. “You’re just old and with no patience.”

“I can’t believe that I’ve dedicated my entire year to you and you alone, but you’re still upset that I
didn’t think to leave space on my arms to fit a tattoo of you.”

“If we stop seeing each other, you’ll forget me. I don’t want that to happen, so I’m trying to mark
territory… like a dog.” Jungkook explains the obvious, and Taehyung does his best not to laugh.

“Why are you even thinking about that?”

“Because things will be different now.” he looks away. “We can’t know for sure that you’ll want to
stay after such a big change in our… dynamic, or whatever that you’d like to call it.”

Taehyung tilts his head, taking the notepad from Jungkook’s hands to put it away and make sure
that he has all of his attention. “Do you think that I’d stop liking you because you’re able to see
now?” he asks, confused and a little upset to even hear such a thing.

“Change is inevitable. Everything will change now.” Jungkook states. “People knew me before the
accident, and left because they didn’t like the change. You knew me without my sight… and now
you may hate the change, too.” he mumbles the last words, almost embarrassed.

“Jungkook, do you really think that I’d leave just like that?”

Jungkook’s lips tug down at the tone in Taehyung’s voice; he sounds betrayed. “Don’t be mad at
me, please. I’m just fucking scared, ok? This is terrifying. I fucking hate change, and it’s the
second time that my life does a full turn. I had life-long friends turning their back on me like I
meant nothing, so how can I expect you, who’s fucking— perfect, to want to stay?”

“You can, because we’re not just friends, Kook.”

“That won’t make a difference if it’s all too much for you.”

“Baby, I’m sorry, but where is this coming from? Have you been torturing yourself with these
thoughts?” Taehyung asks, lifting his head up by a gentle finger under his chin. “Since when have
you been thinking about this?”

“Since we scheduled the surgery.” Jungkook admits, still not meeting his eyes. “You liked me the
way that I was… So, uhm, what if this new reality isn’t something that you want to deal with?”

“If anything, you being able to see is going to make everything even better. I didn’t want to say
this, because I don’t want you to think that I didn’t enjoy being with you before, because I did
enjoy every second that I’ve spent with you so far. I didn’t want you to think otherwise.”

Jungkook pouts. “What do you mean by that, then…?”

“I can see how your eyes light up a lot more than they did before when you look at something that
sparks your interest… I can see how you feel through them, rather than just trying to read your
expression, and it’s fucking beautiful. Besides that, we’ll be able to do so much more together from
now on… and you’ll be able to do whatever the hell that you want to do, all by yourself. You’ll be
happier, and you being happy makes me happy. I won’t leave. I’ve never wanted to stay anywhere
this fucking badly.” Taehyung assures.

Jungkook holds his pinky up. “Promise?”

“Look at me.” and he does immediately. “I promise.” the elder says as he links his own tattooed
finger with Jungkook’s one, sealing the promise. “I’m here for you.”

Jungkook smiles, pulling him by the back of his head for a kiss that doesn’t last nearly as long as
they’d like it to. Then, he giggles. “No more slapping you trying to find your lips, huh?”

Taehyung cackles against his lips. “I love you. You’re an idiot.” and Jungkook has to press their
lips together again not to say it back. If Taehyung doesn’t want to hear it under such circumstances,
then he’ll wait and say those words back in a better context.

“I’m so thankful for everything that you’ve done for me…”

“I’m thankful for you.” Taehyung teases, which makes Jungkook’s entire body flush. Instead of
saying anything, he simply pulls the elder by the arm until he’s lying right by his side on the
cramped hospital bed. He rests his head on Taehyung’s shoulder, comfortable. “What do you want
to see first, baby?” Taehyung asks.

“Are you asking me on a date?” Jungkook looks up at him.

“Mhm.” Taehyung nods.

“Oh.” he blinks. “The beach.”

“Alright, that’s a good pick.”

“I have a question, though.” Taehyung hums for him to go on. “Are you going to finally ask me to
be your boyfriend on that date, or are you going to keep this ‘we’re friends’ bullshit up for another
year? Huh?” he inquires, tone quite accusing.

“In my defense, you call me your friend, too.”

“I didn’t want to show a weak side by asking first.” Jungkook tsks. “If you’re not going to ask me
to be your boyfriend, then I don’t even want to go on that damn date, I’ll have you know.”

“Hm, I’ll think about it.” Taehyung teases.

Jungkook rolls his eyes. “I hate you.”

“Then why do you want me to ask—”

“Don’t break the blind man’s heart—” Jungkook stops, gasps. “Holy fuck.”

“You’re not blind anymore.” Taehyung points.

“My career as a comedian is over.” Jungkook forces a sigh, looking down.

“You can just embrace your clown career now, then.”

“Just take me to the damn beach.”

Taehyung kisses his forehead. “The beach it is.”

│►

Taehyung stops his car in front of Jungkook’s house, pressing the button to unlock the doors so
that everyone can get out. They figured that it was best for Jungkook to stay with his parents for
the first few days, so Taehyung’s just dropping them home.

“You’re not parking?” Jungkook asks as his mother gets out of the car.

“Am I supposed to?” Taehyung asks back, puzzled.

“I thought that you were staying for the night…”

“I, too, thought that you were staying.” Jungkook’s father comments, afore getting out as well and
closing the door once out of the vehicle.

“I can stay, I just assumed that you wanted to rest well.” the artist explains, skillfully parking the
car on the first empty spot that he finds. “I’ll join you.” he turns off the engine, pulling the keys
from the ignition with a warm smile.

“Do you mind?”

“Not at all.”

“Good, because I want proper cuddles.” Jungkook says through a pout, already opening the door to
get out. He waits for the elder to join him, their hands linked on the way to the house. They know
that they’ll be scolded if they even think about going straight upstairs, so they stop by the kitchen
first and foremost.

“Don’t forget to take these before you go to bed.” his mother reminds, pointing at the little box
with the sorted medicine. “It’s best if you just take it now, since you two will probably fall asleep
soon, you look tired…”

“Alright, I’ll do that.” Jungkook has to, very reluctantly, let go of Taehyung’s hand to step closer to
the counter, and he swallows the pills one by one. He was never good with pills, and the simple
thought of swallowing all five at the same time makes him want to gag. “All done.”

“That’s good.”

“We’ll go to my room now.” he informs. “Good night, you two.”

“Good night, sleep well.” his parents say in unison, Taehyung simply offering them a little wave
by the door. His hand finds the small of Jungkook’s back to guide him up the stairs, and all the
way to his bedroom.

“I’m sleepy…” Jungkook says through a yawn, having to swat away Taehyung’s hand when he
tries to push a finger into his mouth. “Jesus, a man can’t even yawn in peace these days…”

“You can’t do anything in peace around me, darling.” Taehyung smiles, throwing his jacket to the
chair in the corner that already has one too many used sweaters. “We can sleep, if you’d like. I’m
quite tired, too, but I’ll take a shower first.”

“Oh? You’ll shower now?”

“Yeah, I didn’t get to shower today since I was at the hospital…” he shrugs. “You’ve showered
there, but I didn’t, and so I’ll just take one. You can head to bed, I’ll be fast.”

“No, I’ll join you. Can I?” Jungkook asks, even if he doesn’t even have to anymore; he usually
joins the elder whenever he’s over at Taehyung’s apartment, and the aforementioned is free to do
the same, which he takes full advantage of. Saving water, and all, they say.

“Sure, of course.” Taehyung nods, turning on his heels to head to the bathroom, and Jungkook
follows him closely. “Is this your master plan to get rid of my shirt? I might just shower with my
clothes on, if that’s the same.”

“Shut up, actually. I’m sleepy as fuck, but there’s no way that I’ll let the opportunity pass. That’s
exactly the reason why I want to join you tonight, instead of waiting in bed.” Jungkook confesses,
locking the door behind himself. Taehyung laughs. “I’m serious.”

“I know, that’s why it’s funny.” he flicks Jungkook’s chin, not even trying to stop him when he
inches closer to grab the hem of his shirt. Jungkook, ever so confidently, tugs it up and over
Taehyung’s head, getting rid of it as quickly as he can — the shirt thrown to the floor.

Jungkook’s eyes widen comically.

There’s so much ink, so many tattoos, so many different drawings.

So much art.

There’s so much to look at, that he doesn’t even know where to start.
He’s already seen and analyzed Taehyung’s hands, so he grabs the first arm so that he can examine
every single inch, every design, every little detail. “Woah…” he whispers, running his finger over
some of the lines. Taehyung soon loses count of how many times he hears the younger man make
that same sound, which is both endearing and amusing.

Jungkook’s fingers drag over Taehyung’s arms, his chest, his stomach without holding back. He
wants to trace all of his tattoos to the finest detail, but doesn’t have the time to do so, so he has to
settle for tracing the major parts, and fantasize about the rest for another day.

“So, what do you think, hm?” Taehyung asks, more to break Jungkook out of his trance than
anything. It’s obvious that the latter loves what he sees, and he doesn’t need to ask to know it.

“They’re all so fucking hot, God, you’re so hot.” Jungkook comments, eyes still finding something
else to look at, to ogle. “You know, there’s something else for me to see, still.” his voice drops a
little, looking up at the elder through his lashes.

“And what is that?”

“The piercing.” once again, Taehyung laughs, only to abruptly stop when Jungkook reaches to hold
his jaw, making his lips pucker out; he blinks. “I’ve been only feeling it for almost a year now, it’s
time that I finally see it. I’ll even ask nicely, if your weirdo-ass wants me to.”

“Hm, I’m the weirdo, but yet you’re the one offering to beg to see a piercing.”

Jungkook squints, letting go of his jaw. “You got me there, dude.” he admits defeat as his hands
wander to Taehyung’s belt to start opening it — his movements are slow, and he looks at
Taehyung’s equally sleepy eyes to check for any sign that he should stop what he’s doing, but he
doesn’t find any. They’ve been in similar scenarios so many times now that he knows that they’re
allowed to just go for it, but one can never be too sure.

And now that he can see Taehyung’s eyes, the lust behind them, he’ll be sure to look at him as
many times as possible in every single situation that they see themselves in. No matter the context,
he just wants to look at him.

Taehyung removes Jungkook’s shirt while the latter is busy opening his pants, and allows him to
pull said pants down once the zipper is fully open. His boxers fall to his feet seconds after, and he
kicks them away alongside the pants.

Jungkook isn’t shy in the way that he stares.

There it is. The piercing.

He’s felt it before: with his hands, in his mouth, even inside of himself, but seeing it is a big
difference. “Firstly, you’re fucking crazy, because that’s making my own dick want to hide inside
my body just imagining a needle going through it.” Jungkook comments, eyes still fixated on the
two little silver balls. “Secondly… my mouth is watering.”

Taehyung snorts. “Are you hungry, hm?

“Oh, I’m very hungry right now.” Jungkook nods, licking his lips.

“Let’s get in the shower first, I need to wash the hospital air out of me.” Taehyung gestures to the
bathtub right next to them, and Jungkook hurriedly fumbles with his own belt to get rid of his
remaining clothes. “Eager much?”
“I’ll be finally able to see your face while you order me around.” Jungkook states the obvious,
climbing into the tub with the elder. “I’m the definition of eager right now, yes.”

“I might have to cover your eyes through this…”

“I’ll break your damn hand if you try.” he threatens without missing a second.

“Jesus, okay.”

Jungkook smiles. “I’m intimidating, right?”

“No, you’re just crazy enough for it to be believable.”

“You’re a hater.”

│►

“I’m tired.” Taehyung complains.

“I’m aware.”

“I’m really fucking tired.”

“Dude, you’ve said that about forty times now, all in the past five minutes. I know that you’re
tired.” Jungkook nudges him with his elbow, seemingly still full of energy. “C’mon.”

“No, actually, I’m dying here. I can’t walk any longer.” he stops, hands on his hips as he tries to
regulate his breathing again. Jungkook has to bite his tongue not to make one or two jokes
involving Taehyung’s old smoker habits given that he hasn’t seen Taehyung smoke not even once.
He considers that a personal success.

“We’re almost there, stop being old and grumpy.”

“I’m not old and grumpy, I’m old and tired.” the artist corrects, which makes him snort.

“We’re almost there.” Jungkook chuckles, stopping, too.

“Why couldn’t we just get to the top of the mountain by car? Actually, why couldn’t we just go to
the beach, as you wanted at first?” he asks, his attempt at starting a conversation being a simple yet
easy way to stall the younger man, and catch a break.

“Hiking is cool, and I missed it. We’ve been to the beach multiple times together, and I wanted to
breathe in the mountain air a little.” Jungkook pouts. “I can wait a little longer to see the ocean…
C’mon, just jump on my back.”

“No way.”

“Do it.” he instructs with a laugh, bending down in front of Taehyung, and he can only huff before
jumping to get on Jungkook’s back. “You’re not heavy, this is fine. Besides, we’re almost there
already.” Taehyung hums, chin prompted on Jungkook’s head as the latter resumes walking.

“I am heavy, you’re just strong.” Taehyung argues.

“Maybe, yeah. I bench-press more than you weigh.”

“That’s hot.”
Jungkook chuckles. “I know, right?” he jumps a little, hoisting Taehyung higher to make it easier
for him to walk, and they fall silent again. The top of the mountain is two mere minutes away, so
the silence is comfortably filled with the sound of their steps and the brief comments here and there
about the view that they’re expecting to see.

Taehyung’s gently placed on the floor once they reach their destination, and he guides Jungkook
by his lower back — an habit that he probably will never lose — to the edge of the mountain where
the fences hold them in safety.

“Woah…” Jungkook lets out, eyes a little bigger as he takes in the view.

“The view is great.” Taehyung has to agree, already thinking about the immensity of pictures that
he’s going to take there; of the scenery and of Jungkook.

“I love the view…” he whispers. “I do love you more, though.”

Taehyung’s smile falls.

Jungkook turns to him, expectant.

“That was cheesy as fuck.” Taehyung says.

Jungkook presses his lips together in a thin line. “I just said that I love you.”

“Yeah, and it was awful. Do it again.”

“I love you, Taehyungie, the one and only.” Jungkook says, a hand over his chest as he pronounces
every word with the more serious tone of voice that he can muster. “Was that any better?” he
breaks the act, hand falling back down.

“Yeah, that was acceptable.” Taehyung chuckles, sitting down on a bench.

Jungkook wastes no time, quick to sit sideways on one of Taehyung’s inviting thighs. “I want to
thank you.” he whispers, cupping the elder’s cheek to properly look into his eyes. “Thank you for
everything, dude. For my eyes, the moments that we’ve shared so far, for taking care of me from
the very start… For everything, really. I feel very thankful whenever we have moments like this
one today, and I’m deciding to speak up on it. Finally. I don’t— I don’t want you to think that I
don’t fucking appreciate everything that you do for me. For— For us.”

Taehyung smiles, his hand grabbing a nice handful of Jungkook’s hair on the back of his head to
lead him for a kiss that lasts exactly as long as they want to; that being until they can’t breathe
anymore and have to pull away to get some oxygen.

“Don’t thank me.” Taehyung whispers against his lips, pecking him. “I have something to ask.”

“What is it?” Jungkook mirrors his tone, unwilling to disturb the quietness of the moment, his
thumb still caressing Taehyung’s cheek as he rests their foreheads together.

“After almost a year of this, will you agree to be my boyfriend?”

“Jesus fucking Christ, man, I thought that you’d never fucking ask.” Jungkook stresses, pulling
back without getting up from his lap. “You should’ve asked this months ago, dude. Months.”

“Is this a yes?”

“It’s a fucking finally.” he frowns, tilting his head. “Actually, since you took so long, you need to
do better than that. That wasn’t sweet or romantic enough, ask me again. Do better. More.”

Taehyung clears his throat. “Alright, alright… Jungkookie, my beautiful, sweet— No, forget that
part, you’re not sweet and I should be honest…” he halts. “Jungkookie, my beautiful, rude—”

“That sounds more like me, yes.”

“—baby, who I do love so much…” Taehyung can’t help but to smile when he sees Jungkook do
the same. “Will you do me the honors of being able to call you, my boyfriend?” he asks, his
fingers still scraping and caressing Jungkook’s scalp.

“Hm, I’ll think about it, and I’ll let you know.” Jungkook shrugs.

“You know what, I take it back.”

“You can’t do that. You want to date me too much.”

“No, I don’t. Not anymore.”

“Liar, liar, pants on fire…” Jungkook sing-songs. “I know that you want to date me as much as I
want to date you, because I hear the grossly lovely things that you tell me when you think that I’m
asleep.” he confesses with the largest grin ever, and Taehyung gasps.

“You’ve heard that shit?!”

“Indeed.” he nods. “Busted, huh?”

“I’ve got nothing to hide.” Taehyung surrenders. “Besides, it’s not like we haven’t been dating for
the past year, so I’m free to confess to your sleepy body.” he adds.

“Technically, we haven’t.”

“I don’t give a f—” he’s interrupted by another kiss being pressed right on his lips, Jungkook
holding him by both of his cheeks to keep him as close as possible.

“My answer is, quite obviously, yes. I want to be your boyfriend.” Jungkook whispers, resting their
foreheads together. “I love you.” he says once again. “Fuck, it’s so freeing and weird to say this. I
love you, I love y—” he only stops when a large hand covers his mouth.

Jungkook does what any mature person does: he licks the palm of Taehyung’s hand to make him
let go. “You’re gross.” Taehyung cringes, wiping his hand on Jungkook’s hoodie. “Seriously.”

“You kiss me daily, we exchange spit.” Jungkook rolls his eyes.

“Thanks for making me think of it like that, we’ll never kiss again.”

“Fuck off, we’re dating now, you can’t deny me of kisses.”

“Oh, really? Watch me, dude.”

“Bro—”

│►
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 Physical Book

Hi, loves

I’m in the progress of turning 4 of my aus into physical books (this is the 2nd one) and I’m posting
this here to let you know that this au is now available to be printed/purchased.

I’m not selling it, as I’m making no money from it, but I’ll explain it better to anyone who might be
interested in getting it. You can dm me on Twitter for more information, and I’ll explain
everything!

Here’s what it looks like:

Please drop by the archive and comment to let the author know if you enjoyed their work!