fourteen || bitter & sweet

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Taehyun's eyes fluttered open from the sudden bright light that interrupted his beauty sleep, groaning softly he slowly sat up feeling his back sore from sleeping on the couch. He slowly looked around and saw the bright beaming sunshine through the curtains making him frown and lay back down on the couch.

wait...

The male quickly got up and looked down at his spot noticing that he slept on just the cushions and was not woken up to being on Beomgyu's lap still. Slowly standing up he stretched his arms out feeling them crack a little noticing that he was alone in the house, he couldn't help but frown after being left alone with just a blanket.

"That hyung left me after I comforted him," Taehyun grumbled walking over to the window and looking out at the balcony which was still damp and had water puddles all over it. "he should pay me one million dollars for that." He doesn't know why he was so annoyed finding out that Beomgyu wasn't there when he woke up.

Why do I feel annoyed? Maybe it's because I slept on the couch. Taehyun sighed and walked over to the bathroom to get ready, the apartment was surprisingly warm and he had noticed that the fireplace was turned off and that all of the clocks had been set to the correct time. He just wondered how he didn't feel Beomgyu get up and leave when he was asleep, he was a very light sleeper as well so it took him by shock.

It took him about an hour to get all washed and clean, he wasn't thinking about going anywhere. It was the official day that the two-week fall break started for his college and he was beyond excited to finally have a break from all of the stuff that was constantly shoved at him. He was a bit sad that he wouldn't be able to see Yeojin at all though.

Walking to his room he glanced over at Beomgyu's closed-door room and just thought about the events that happened last night. When the elder was in his most vulnerable state he had taken the chance to come out of his bubble world of not wanting to become closer and comfort him. He doesn't know exactly why he did that, it just felt right the moment he made Beomgyu calm down.

Shaking his head he walked over to his room and opened up the closet picking out a few pieces of clothing for the day. Yeah, Taehyun was the type of person that instead of sleeping around in his pajamas all day (even though he kinda prefers doing that) he's the type to get ready and dressed up even if it means he wouldn't go outside. Taking a moment to choose he picked out a nice beige sweater with some light blue jeans which were alright for the cold weather outside.

After he was done dressing he walked over to his backpack and grabbed the spell book before sitting down at his desk opening it up, he skimmed through the pages already familiar with a few of the spells. When he had used that little trick spell on Mr. Liang and Mr. Kyung he didn't even think of a specific spell, he just thought about embarrassing the two so badly they would instantly shut up and it worked!

He picked the book up for a moment before seeing a folded little paper fall out of it making him instantly drop the book with a heavy thud. He doesn't remember there being a folded paper in it at all. With a confused expression, he bent over and picked up the little foldable and unfolded it reading what was written on it.

"What?" He mumbled out in confusion seeing what was on it, it was a bunch of crossed-out words, and the end of the paper was ripped, like somebody had ripped this page out of the spell book and tried erasing everything on this specific page so it'll never be seen again. Laying it down on his desk he read further and flipped to the back which made his heart drop instantly.

"The consequences of Love at First Sight?" He read out loud to himself after seeing what the top of the page was titled. He knew that love at first sight was the specific spell that he had accidentally cast on Beomgyu, he tried reading anything on the paper but all of the sentences were crossed out or badly damaged making it almost unreadable. The only thing he could read was the first sentence.

"The harder the person falls the more...?" He read out before the rest of the words were scribbled out. Taehyun furrowed his eyebrows and looked up wondering why this page was ripped out, he would have to ask his grandmother when he had time.

"Taehyun!"

Taehyun instantly folded the paper back and placed it into one of the little cubbies his desk had, quickly closing the book he stood up and scurried out of his room seeing Beomgyu return home with a few bags in his hand. The moment the two made eye contact he could see a bright pink blush form on Beomgyu's cheeks as his smile increased widely it was almost brighter than the sun.

"I'm so sorry I didn't wake you up this morning, you looked so comfortable I didn't want to disturb you," Beomgyu said walking over to the kitchen and placing the bags down before getting out a few containers as Taehyun stood there watching him. "I went to go get food for us but I didn't know what you liked...So I texted Huening Kai and he gave me a list of your favorite things! It's also a thank-you gift for last night."

"How'd you manage to get Kai's number?" Taehyun asked curiously and tilted his head which made Beomgyu breathe out a small 'aw'. The elder handed him some utensils and sat down on the stool patting the one beside him so they could eat together, which Taehyun didn't mind at all.

"I have my ways, as in I snatched his number from your phone after he called you a bunch of times. How come you don't have his number saved?" Beomgyu asked unwrapping a freshly made tonkatsu sandwich and handing it to Taehyun who gladly took it. "I blocked him for a couple of hours after he was being super annoying...I did unblock him but I guess I forgot to save his number again." Taehyun explained and took a bite of the sandwich.

Beomgyu nodded and grabbed some freshly steamed dumplings taking a small bite out of one. Taehyun watched the elder curiously as Beomgyu looked back at him — the two making eye contact for a split second before Taehyun quickly looked away out of embarrassment for being caught staring. "You have a question, don't you?"

"Uhm..." Taehyun mumbled and took a bigger bite out of his sandwich to avoid the conversation which wasn't easily passed by since it was Beomgyu and the elder had a lot of patience. Taehyun sighed softly after swallowing a huge lump of his food, looking back at his hyung he awkwardly shrugged. "I just...I just uhm,"

"You know you're so rich...I thought you'd be eating some luxurious steak and some very fine wine for breakfast..." Taehyun said and scratched the back of his head. A long annoying loud laugh left Beomgyu's mouth making Taehyun glare at the elder, he could feel the heat rise in his face from the embarrassment he felt.

"Y-You're so funny and adorable, my love!" Beomgyu said as a series of laughs blended in with it as he reached out and patted Taehyun's head which was slapped away in an instant. Beomgyu calmed his laughter down and looked at Taehyun who was as red as a tomato. "I hate you." The younger mumbled taking an angry chomp out of his sandwich.

Beomgyu stared at Taehyun with loving eyes, as if the male in front of him was a beautiful sculpture that won millions of awards. He could feel his heartbeat increase more and more the more he spent time with Taehyun, he loved it and the male so much it felt like his heart was about to explode.

"Oh, Taehyunie!"

"What?" Taehyun questioned as his mouth was stuffed with two dumplings, making him look like an adorable chipmunk it took everything inside of Beomgyu not to just squeeze the male's cheeks. The elder gently placed his chopsticks down and smiled at Taehyun.

"Today I'm going to be busy until evening and I know you're on your fall break for the next two weeks," Beomgyu said making Taehyun's eyes perk up from the sudden mention, how did he even know his schedule? "So..." Beomgyu smiled widely.

"I'm letting you hang out with Yeonjun today!"

Taehyun's eyes widened as his chopsticks slipped out of his grip and onto the floor creating a small dinging sound that echoed out. His face was expressed with fear and shock from what the elder had just said, there was no way that Beomgyu thought that his hanging out with Yeonjun would be a good thing- that fucker hated his guts!

"But h-hyung I can spend time with you in the office instead-" Taehyun tried convincing the elder, he didn't want to hang out with Yeonjun at all and he couldn't even imagine what would happen if he does.

"As much as I would love that, I have important meetings with someone. Don't worry! Yeonjun's my best friend, he's super nice!"

Super petty. Taehyun corrected the elder, forcing back the urge to roll his eyes.

"You'll have fun! Now eat up and then I'll drop you off."

Taehyun groaned loudly and turned back to the food aggressively drinking the sprite he had gotten, he just knew that today...Would be horrible.

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"So...What flavor pasta did you get...?" Taehyun asked awkwardly as he twirled his fork around the pasta noodles. Looking up at Yeonjun he saw the elder glare heavily at him which made him instantly shut up.

It had been two hours ever since Beomgyu had ditched Taehyun and all he has done with Yeonjun was walk around the park in silence for those two hours. Now they were at a local cafe that specializes in pasta (it was heavily recommended by Soobin since he quote on quote said their bread was to die for.) and all he wanted to do was go home and collapse in bed, he didn't even want to hang out with Yeonjun at all.

"Did you do anything last night?" Yeonjun asked after staying silent for a few minutes. Taehyun tilted his head in confusion before he remembered the blackout that happened and instantly sat up nodding. "I turned the fireplace on, Beomgyu hyung was shaken up so he asked me to cuddle with him. We just talked the whole night and fell asleep after he calmed down."

Yeonjun's eyes widened from his explanation, picking at his ears he wanted to make sure he heard everything correctly. "He- He asked you to cuddle with him?" He said in disbelief. The male slowly nodded and took a bite out of the sweet garlic bread that was on the side, he doesn't understand why Yeonjun suddenly made a big deal out of what he said.

"What have you done?!" Yeonjun said loudly and slammed his fork onto the table making other people in the café look at them weirdly. Taehyun flinched and immediately hushed the elder, "Stop it! I didn't do anything. It was Beomgyu hyung who wanted to cuddle not me!"

"That's not the Beomgyu I know!" Yeonjun hissed but toned down his voice. Taehyun groaned softly and stood up packing his things. "Let's talk about this somewhere else. Not here." He said. They didn't have to worry about paying since they paid beforehand and their plate was already empty so they both got up and walked outside down the street to Yeonjun's car.

The moment they got inside Yeonjun locked the doors and looked over at Taehyun with an expression like he was waiting for an answer. "Well?? Did you pay Beomgyu something or did something to make him all- all touchy with you?"

"I don't know why you're so fucking curious. It's getting annoying!" Taehyun said and leaned his head back onto the seat and looked out of the window watching cars pass by. He heard Yeonjun scoff which made him immediately want to punch the elder right in the face.

"Beomgyu is a hardworking man. He had his mind set on never getting in a relationship because it'll interfere with his daily life of managing the company at his very best," Yeonjun spoke out, his tone laced with a strict and soft one as he leaned into his seat as well. Taehyun glanced over at the elder now interested in what he was saying since it was about Beomgyu before the love spell.

"But ever since you appeared in his life he had dedicated everything to you! He would never let some stranger live in his home, he would never let someone cuddle him, and he would've never calmed down so easily in the dark with someone like you. So tell me Taehyun, what did you do?"

Taehyun kept silent for a few minutes, Yeonjun's words were like knives striking him in the gut over and over again. He felt a wave of guilt rush over him, his mind began twisting and turning, this all wouldn't have happened. He wasn't supposed to ever meet Beomgyu, they were supposed to remain strangers for eternity.

With a shaky breath, he slowly looked up with a frown. "I didn't do anything, Beomgyu hyung just..." Taehyun said barely above a whisper before his voice tuned out, he furrowed his eyebrows and looked down trying to find anything for an excuse.

"Had a love spell casted on him."

"Huh?!" Taehyun gasped after hearing what Yeonjun said, he saw the elder giving him a sorrowful look which made him panic even more. "I don't know what you're talking about-"

"Don't act dumb, I saw the spell book on your desk the day you moved in. I know it was you who caused that whole fiasco in the office, I just wanted a direct answer from you." Yeonjun admitted and Taehyun was silent, he felt his heart drop to his knees as fear took control over him. Shakily looking around he nervously played with his thumbs as his secret was revealed.

"As angry as I am that you casted a love spell on Beomgyu..." Yeonjun sighed and glanced away leaning his head onto the cold window. "I can't do anything about it if it's an unbreakable spell, I don't even know how you managed to do it. But I hate sitting back and watching my best friend fall for a stranger, doing things he doesn't realize he's doing."

Taehyun kept silent, he felt like his throat was being closed up little by little and he didn't know what to do. Uneasiness bubbled inside of his stomach as he stared off into space just listening to Yeonjun. He heard a soft sigh as the car started up again.

"I'm sorry for treating you so harshly. I struggled with the new change Beomgyu created. However, I'm still angry that you casted a love spell on my best friend."

"It was an accident," Taehyun spoke up and looked at the elder. "The love spell wasn't meant for him, I had accidentally activated it when running to school and then I bumped into him." He explained, he could see Yeonjun's shoulders relax a bit as the elder looked back at him.

"Though i'm against what you did, I have never once seen Beomgyu look or be this happy. Even if it's just the love spell making him act like this, it just makes me happy he's finally happy and at peace...Even if it has to involve you." Yeonjun said, Taehyun didn't expect this at all. He thought that Yeonjun would start yelling at him or calling him names or even attempting to murder him.

"In twenty days, the love spell will end. Your happy life will go back to normal." Taehyun said and leaned against the car door. He heard Yeonjun chuckle for a second before silence filled the void. "I won't tell him about this, you're not so bad. I just let the anger get the best of me sometimes."

"It's okay," Taehyun said as the car started moving, apparently just a few minutes ago while they were eating Beomgyu had texted the elder to bring Taehyun back but Yeonjun told him to wait until they finish their food first. Yet the male couldn't help but still feel guilty for what he did and his words hit him like a truck.

It's just an act.

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"Welcome back, darling!"

Taehyun looked up and saw Beomgyu immediately rush over to him with a wide happy smile. He suddenly felt a wave of happiness take over him seeing his hyung after a long day, yes he was still bitter that Beomgyu sent him away to hang out with Yeonjun but he couldn't blame Beomgyu, he just wanted his two friends to get closer to each other. He didn't expect that it would take almost all day now, it was nearly 10 pm and all Yeonjun and Taehyun did were go to an arcade and steal some kids' candy before going to eat at a little supermarket.

"Hey, hyung. I got you some fruits." Taehyun said and gave Beomgyu a small plastic bag that had a container of varieties of fruits in it. He could see the visible blush all over Beomgyu's face which made Taehyun slowly back up. Yeonjun's words were echoing so much in his mind he felt so suffocated.

"Thank you," Beomgyu said and looked up at Taehyun seeing the visible uncomfortableness on his face. "Darling, what's wrong?"

Taehyun quickly walked past Beomgyu and into his room, making sure to shut the door. He ignored Beomgyu's worried desperate calls and just shut his door and fell onto his bed, he felt so...So guilty! He couldn't help but just want to curl up and sob in his guilt (maybe perhaps explode).

Hearing his phone buzz he looked at it and saw Yeojin calling him which made his heart skip a beat, right before he was about to accept an answer he heard a soft knock at his door.

"Taehyun-ah, are you okay? Let's talk, please."

Taehyun stared at the door and back at Yeojin's ringing call. Taking a moment to decide he sighed softly and turned off his phone walking over to the door.

Opening it slightly he saw Beomgyu standing there with a worried expression. The elder pushed the door open wider until the two were standing face-to-face with each other. "Hyun, what's wrong?" Beomgyu asked gently and grabbed Taehyun's hand which was quickly taken away.

"Just.."

"Whatever is wrong, let me comfort you. I want to give you the same comfort you gave me when the blackout happened." Beomgyu said and pulled Taehyun closer to him hugging the male. Taehyun weakly attempted to back away from the hug, it didn't feel right. He felt his breathing become heavy as he gently let go and gave up.

"Hyung, I want to clear my mind...Today wasn't fun at all." Taehyun mumbled into the crook of the elder's neck. Beomgyu hummed and gently pulled away from Taehyun with a smile on his face, "Go put something warmer on, okay? Meet me at the car."

Taehyun tilted his head but just shrugged and went back to his room, he walked over to his bed and grabbed his phone seeing two miscalls from Yeojin. He felt bad that he had ignored her calls but he needed a breather, quickly texting his crush that he was busy he went to his closet and grabbed a thicker sweater before rushing out to go get his shoes.

Just what was Beomgyu planning?

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"Hyung what are we doing at the beach?! It's dark out here! Let's go back home." Taehyun said and grabbed the elder once they got out of the car. The sounds of the loud crashing waves echoed out in the night as the cold air wailed out causing an ear-shattering sound to be heard.

Beomgyu gently grabbed Taehyun's hands and looked at him with the little light that they had. The ombré head could feel Beomgyu shaking, he doesn't know if it was because of the cold or if it was because he was scared. He could see the fondness in Beomgyu's eyes from the glowing moon that kissed down on the elder's face perfectly.

"When I'm with you, i'm less scared."

Taehyun stayed silent and shrugged off what Beomgyu had just said, he could feel himself being dragged somewhere by the elder and all he could do was follow him.

The walk was silent as the sound of faint waves crashing against each other was in the background. With Beomgyu's hand wrapped around Taehyun's wrist, they walked along the little pathway before heading onto the sand. "Here." He heard Beomgyu say.

The two slowly sat down on the cold sand as Taehyun stared off at the ocean. The water was twinkling under the moonlight as if a billion stars were dancing and swimming in it. He felt Beomgyu pull him closer making him instantly look up at him, "Are you cold?" He heard the elder ask as the wind swayed their hair to the side.

Taehyun smiled softly and shook his head, he felt comfortable and his mind was already at ease. He was kinda happy that Beomgyu had a little walk to help clear his mind, all of the stress he felt from earlier was pushed away and he just felt at ease.

"Taehyun, doesn't the moon look beautiful tonight?" Beomgyu asked and stared at the male with warmth in his eyes as he rubbed Taehyun's arm to just warm him up a bit.

Taehyun looked up at the moon which was angled up perfectly to where he could see it without breaking his neck. He thought about it for a minute before shrugging. "I don't know it looks the same every time."

He heard Beomgyu chuckle softly making him look over to him, tilting his head to the side the elder shook his head disregarding what Taehyun had just said. "I would always come here with Yeonjun when I felt stressed, we would come here when the sun was setting though. However, the stars and moon are more visible when we come at night. So I was hoping this would ease whatever was bothering you."

Taehyun felt Beomgyu lean against him more to the point where the elder had rested his head on his. Feeling his once cold feeling being washed away by the faint warm embrace from Beomgyu, Taehyun eased up his tensed bones and stared up at the sky. He wouldn't lie at all, he felt happy that Beomgyu had brought him here.

"Why were you stressed out?"

Taehyun sighed softly and looked down playing with the edge of his sweater. "If I'm being honest...It was hanging out with Yeonjun hyung. I felt stressed because...Maybe because it looked like he didn't like me at all. I just wanted to spend the day at home..." with you.

Beomgyu stayed silent for a few minutes after listening to him which made Taehyun nervous. What if the elder was now upset with him because he didn't really like hanging out with Yeonjun? What if he was about to yell at him? what if-

"That's okay, I'm sorry."

Taehyun's running thoughts halted as he shakily breathed out upon hearing that. "I should've asked you first if you wanted to go out and hang out with him. I just wanted you to have fun while I was gone and I felt bad...And I kinda wanted you guys to get closer." Beomgyu explained which made Taehyun understand his side better.

"It's okay hyung, I forgive you. I feel much better now. Thank you for bringing me here, but it's getting kinda cold...Can we go home now?" Taehyun said and smiled cheekily. Beomgyu pinched Taehyun's cheek and nodded. "How could I ever say no to you?"

The two got up and dusted off the sand that stuck to their clothes and looked at each other for a few seconds before Taehyun felt Beomgyu's hand slowly wrap around his. "Please, just this once?"

Taehyun thought about it for a minute and nodded making Beomgyu smile widely, he knew that the elder might've been scared right now. Scared of the darkness that surrounded them.

Slowly walking to the car hand in hand they were prepared to go home with better feelings of understanding each other.

୨♡୧

"Goodnight hyung," Taehyun said after the last episode of a show they were watching ended. Beomgyu stared at Taehyun for a few seconds and nodded wishing him goodnight as well.

"Taehyun would you like to go somewhere tomorrow?" He heard Beomgyu ask before he could go to his room. The male thought about it for a minute and smiled nodding his head since he knew he wouldn't be that busy tomorrow. "Sure hyung."

Beomgyu gave him a small thumbs up and he could see the visible happiness on his face, shaking his head the male walked to his room and gently shut the door before looking at his bed, he had forgotten that he had left his phone there. If he was honest he hadn't had a single thought about any text messages from Yeojin or anybody else while he was out with Beomgyu.

Walking over to his bed he plopped down and grabbed his phone looking at the thousands of messages from Huening Kai, Yuri, Soobin, and Yeojin.

Turning his phone off he tossed it to the side and rolled over onto his side not wanting to answer any questions or messages at the moment from how exhausted he was. Even though those words Yeonjun said to him made him feel so guilty and bothered he was glad Beomgyu had somehow managed to get those thoughts away, usually he would have to spend hours playing guitar, doing homework, or just napping to get his mind off of everything.

Feeling that tingly pain on his wrist he looked at it and watched one of the hearts fade away.

"Nineteen days..." He breathed out.

Why did he feel so...uncomfortable?

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