Past

31| "Cuddle and punches" 

Taehyung wasn't happy when he opened his eyes in the morning. First, the damn sun rays slammed his eyes because Nina had probably left her window curtains open. There was a scowl melded to his face as he sniffed his t-shirt, inhaling the hint of strawberry incense clinging to him, embedding in every fiber of his being.  

For a brief moment, he snuggled on Nina's bed, fisting her sheet and burying his face in her pillow like an obsessed freak. He enjoyed her stupid strawberry fragrance. . . It was his favorite fruit. Heaving a loud sigh and half-heartedly, he walked to his bedroom.

The memories of last night — him waking up from the nightmare and sneaking into her bedroom— came crashing down to tumble him into the pit of misery. Seeking her warmth and refuge wasn't on Taehyung's to-do list, sleeping in her arms as if he was in a fucking coma wasn't on his to-do list either. Now, she had seen him in his most vulnerable shape; he didn't know how to face her. 

Nina held him the whole night. So softly, so kindly, it ached Taehyung at the depths of his chest for some reason. 

And why did Nina leave him alone on the bed? That was rude of her. They could wake up seeing each other first thing in the morning with tangled limbs and warmth swathing their bodies. Taehyung huffed, splashing water on his face as he glared at his bathroom mirror. The thumping under his chest worsened as he whacked his chest, creating a faint ache around his skin. The mere thought of her was fastening the beat of his heart as if an earthquake had taken over his ribcage. 

"Why did I go to her room? For what? Because I was trembling like a cat, my nightmare got into my head and I was lacking human warmth? Because I was lonely, sad, and terrible at comforting myself? Are you out of your mind Kim Taehyung? Last time I checked she isn't a heater. . . Nina the human heater." He chuckled, amusement slicking his tone as he walked out of his bedroom. When he reached the kitchen, he expected Nina to be there like usual helping others.

"Now, she must be feeling so smug, gosh!" Taehyung groaned, sensing the humiliation running over him like a bulldozer. When he peeked inside the kitchen, she was nowhere to be seen with the other staff. Ruffling his already messy hair, he decided to search all over the mansion. If she was thinking to hide from him— silly of her, Nina was certainly wrong, he was determined to catch her sooner or later. 

Taehyung's feet halted, and his head snapped when the faint melody caught her attention. The music was coming out of the gym, compelling his feet to follow. Soon, he found himself standing at the entrance of the gym. The sight alone banged all the air out of his system. There she was, lost in her world and blurring the reality for Taehyung.

With heat surging through his core, Taehyung's mouth wide open and he watched her twirling on her feet, letting her body move like noiseless water. 

"Wake up boy." Taehyung slapped himself to get out of her trance.

No use, he was too drowned in her salacious movements, the rise and dip of her breasts, the faint flutter of her lashes, the delicate smile on her lips. A thick bead of sweat trailed down the side of her face and fell on her collarbone. Taehyung couldn't snatch his gaze away from her. 

Delicately swaying her hips, she matched the melody filling every crevice of her being. Nina parted her legs, the movement was nearly fragile as gracefully she jumped like a ballerina and landed on her feet. Her peach-colored dress swished, her hair restlessly leafed in the air as the aura she was imitating was so calm, so agile and grounded, Taehyung was damn sure his breaths had been robbed. Her whole existence was a moment, a healer and Taehyung was trapped in her for eternity, torn into intoxicated pieces.

"My girl glows differently when she is happy and seeing her happy makes me hard. It's a healthy sign, right?" Taehyung mumbled, his eyes having a rare flick of delight seeing a wide smile blooming across her face. 

He walked toward her, not being able to stand there and watch her. Taehyung had to touch her, feel her, and hear every delicate sigh abandoning her lips. 

"I didn't know my princess was this flexible." Nina gasped, snapping her eyes open as she found her face awfully close to Taehyung. 

Nina glanced at his t-shirt and there was written, karma will hit my dad.

"And the way you move your hips, it was sexy. I'm truly bewitched." Nina stiffened, finding Taehyung arms casually circling her waist and yanking her closer until her breast bones crushed against his hard chest. 

"What are you doing here?'' Her dry throat flexed for a gulp while she stared at Taehyung with an incurious expression. 

"Absurd question. This is my fucking house, red. Everything here belongs to me, even a particular redhead." Taehyung hissed, loving how she glared at him with steel-like intensity. She was irritated and feisty, what a great morning. Nina was in his arms, ready to claw his eyes out— yup, Taehyung loved every minute of it.

Both fell into an awkward silence, as Taehyung twirled her, and clasped her waist almost possessively as if he was alarmed she would get away from him. Perhaps, that was in her mind already. Nina was fed up and right in the morning, she had no desire to deal with him and his nerve-wracking taunts. They both swayed in the music, quivers scattering across her body whenever her semi-hard nipples grazed his chest, though she didn't let the intensity flash across her face. 

Taehyung was waiting for her to say something, confronting him for reaching her in the middle of the night, for using her small bed and cuddling with her as if it was his favorite thing to do. Taehyung Literally CUDDLED with her. He never cuddled with anyone. He was so mortified…for loving the cuddles, for wanting to cuddle with her again. Fuck cuddles. 

"Last night. . ." Taehyung started with a whisper, getting startled when Nina pushed him away.

"Don't come to my room again, I'm not your nanny so I won't take care of your whiny ass. I only let you in because unlike you I've humanity inside me, I can't see people suffering, even a guy like you." Nina chided out, her eyes had numerous emotions and each of them was blade sharp, gutting Taehyung. 

"What do you mean by a guy like me?" Every tiny lining of Taehyung's face hardened despite his using a calm tone.

"A guy who relishes and takes pleasure in seeing other people in suffering and misery, that makes you rotten from the inside." Nina mocked him. Before she could walk out, Taehyung wrapped his fingers around her wrist, aggressively yanking her body against him.

"Let me go." Nina hissed, twisting her wrist under his punishing clutch. Her efforts to get free were in vain, Taehyung had already tightened his grip to the point where it could leave marks around her skin.

"Do I get bonus points if I obey you?" Taehyung mushed, pretending to think for a second. The devilishness in his eyes prospered. "Nah, I don't think so." 

"I wasted my time assuming that an unapologetic asshole like you would respect my boundaries." Nina braced her free hand on his chest and shoved him with all her strength yet it didn't concern him. Taehyung stood there, unfazed, even relaxed as if he had all the time in the world to deal with her tantrums. 

"Damn, you're bitter because I knocked on your door in the middle of the night?" Taehyung shook his head, the nerve of his to take her words as a joke clearly crept under her skin to fuel her irritation. Nina flickered him a stung eye, not believing this boy's impudence and brashness that came with a wide feline grin— Taehyung was surely enjoying her fits. 

"I'm bitter at your nerves, at your lousy arrogance, at your lack of human decency.

How dare you approach me casually after calling me a slut. Me? a slut? I don't care when the other students call me names, but you shouldn't have named me that. You have controlled my life, you've threatened my mental peace, and you've destroyed the days that should have been the best days of my life. I'm not your slut Taehyung." Nina's finger balled into a tight fist. Her cold voice rose from the pit of her chest and clashed with her gritted teeth as Taehyung's grip loosened around her wrist, and if she wasn't imagining, his malicious eyes softened. 

"Sure, you are not my slut but you are wholly and irrevocably mine." Taehyung confessed, kissing her knuckles with such tenderness, Nina's heart threatened to strike out her chest. How could he manage to construct a whole fucking volcano in her stomach just by being a flirty asshole? But what was she expecting from him? A sorry? An apology? If she wasn't so unnerved she would have laughed at her thoughts. 

The boy who thought everyone was beneath him would swallow the fistful of sand but wouldn't apologise to anyone. Kim Taehyung was a monster and he liked to control Nina and to think he had her under his thumb so he could squeeze her anytime.

"I'm not yours!" Nina exhaled an irritating sigh, controlling the urge to not grab his collar, drag him to the top balcony of the Kim mansion and toss him from there. 

"If repeating this makes you feel good then it's alright. Taehyung shrugged with a cocky gleam prowling his eyes. He intertwined their fingers, liking how perfectly they fit together. Nina's eyes flickered at their entangled fingers and then Taehyung's determined expression that challenged her to go against him.

"I belong to myself, rich guy. I'm not your red or anything, so don't try to claim any type of ownership of me." Lifting her chin. Nina growled at him, literally growled at him. 

"Thanks to you my social life and love life is nonexistent, all because of you. You made me a loner, an outcast, a nobody and I hope you are pleased now, so stop playing dumb and leave me alone. Don't act as if we are friends because we aren't, Taehyung. You can't approach me, you can't tease me, talk to me, you better not look at me the way you were looking at me last night. Forget that you came to my room bothered and terrified and I'll forget that I embraced you. Let's cut it here." Nina snatched her hand away and took her steps back, striding at the door. 

"Dang it, did my princess just roar at me?" Taehyung arched his brows, shamelessly amused as he eyed her steps halting, her shoulders stiffening. "You sound pretty wounded though."

"You are the cause of my wounds." Nina spat, flipping off him as she hectically walked out. 

"Fuck, why do I feel so upset?" Taehyung looked around, rubbing his palms over his face as if all his worries would brush it off. Since the moment he called her slut, there was an eerie gnawing in his guts, painfully wrenching his insides. Even though he tried to avoid it, Taehyung knew his guilt was modifying into something large, little by little crumbling him. 

Perhaps, he had hurt Nina to an extent. . . would an apology work? 

____ 

"You just have to say a fucking sorry, you won't die." Taehyung mumbled to himself, but the specific word 'Sorry' was like paper cuts across his tongue, unfamiliar and bizarre. This wasn't as easy as he thought. In his whole life, he had never apologised for his actions, Taehyung had only taken and taken and never bothered to think about the reactions.

But it was his Nina, his girl, the only alive color in his dull world. So an apology wasn't bigger than her feelings. Anything for her.

Taehyung reached downstairs, and the view was enough to simmer his blood in potent rage. Mr Kim and Nina were engrossed in some conversation that Taehyung didn't give two shits about, all he wanted Hyeon to stay away from her, not look at her, not even breathe around her. Nina's hands were gripping her bag strap and she was nodding her head with a sweet smile. Watching Mr. Kim so naturally frank with Nina formed a hole in Taehyung's stomach. 

Something urgent, something dangerous and inevitable happened to Taehyung. It was severe. He sensed the intense urge to pull Nina away from Mr. Kim stirred within him. Taehyung could see what Nina couldn't see, he could see his father's eyes gleaming with disgusting intents, his leering gaze roaming all over her agile body. His father wanted her and was probably planning to get her since Nina was already 18 now. 

The hole in Taehyung's stomach enlarged, it was the fear and possessiveness that was splintering his self-control. Taehyung desired to let his father know, not only his father but the whole damned world that Nina was his, so everyone should take their eyes off of her, otherwise the consequences would be pretty ugly.

"I'll drop you to your school on my way." Hyeon offered Nina, veiling his depraved intentions with a well-practiced smile that made him appear all kind and classy.

"Mr. Kim actually—"

"No need, she is coming with me." Both looked at Taehyung who was walking toward them with a lazy smirk, his hair tousled on his forehead as he tossed gum in his mouth, knowing how much the obnoxious chewing sound would irritate his supposed father.

"Oh, are you guys friends? I've not seen you both hanging out before." Hyeon's bitter eyes lingered on Taehyung when Taehyung rolled his eyes at his sweet tone, it was all a self-deception to delude people. 

"Not friends but we are close, Daddy dearest." Nina blinked at Taehyung in aghast as Hyeon's eyes narrowed at his son's choice of words. "Close enough to go to school together like normal classmates." Taehyung draped his arm around Nina's shoulders, grinning at his father who said nothing in response. The dark energy and the uncomfortable silence stretched between them.

"I need you to be on your best behavior, son. Remember, I'm watching you." Hyeon fixed his cuffs, staring down his nose at Taehyung in complete disdain. The arrogance, the entire cold ambiance of his, and the treacherous glint in his eyes made it easy for Taehyung to loathe him.

The word 'son' was like shreds of glass penetrating Taehyung's throat and cutting him open, leaving an invisible trail of blood in its wake. Once Taehyung got on his feet, once he gained whatever Hyeon had snatched from him then that day wouldn't be far when Hyeon would be punished for his deeds.

"Take care, Nina." Smiling last time at Nina, Hyeon walked out of the house. 

"Stay away from this man!" Taehyung growled out, and with a menacing expression, he glanced at Nina. 

"Why?" Nina argued, confused at his outburst and sudden change of mood. "That man is your father." She reminded him as if it wasn't engraved in his damn DNA. Nina wasn't blind, she had always felt this cold war between them, it was like they were strangers under the same roof. Curiosity gnawed her veins, however, she couldn't casually ask Taehyung about his personal issues with his father. Maybe they were just like this, many parents and kids don't get along and she shouldn't care. 

"I wish he wasn't." Taehyung spat in utter disgust, his shoulders stiffened as Nina yanked herself away from his arms and tipped her chin at him to stare at his face.

"I don't know what's going on between you and your dad, I don't know why you look at him as if he is your worst enemy, that's your matter and I don't want to meddle in it, but for me, he is a nice man."

"Yeah, why not." Taehyung shut his eyes in irritation, his chest shrinking when he exhaled loudly.

"Mr Kim helped me and my aunt in our miserable times, I can't forget his generosity." Of course, Taehyung couldn't blame her. Nina was blinded by Hyeon's falsy kindness, as expected Hyeon had established his game right. He had set a perfect web of deceit for Nina and it seemed like she was already tangled in it. 

"Remember Red, No one ever does anything to be nice. They always wanna get something out of it." Taehyung took one step toward her, forcing Nina to take a step back. "Not everyone is kind. It's just a mask, some are just too good to wear it. Do you understand me?" There was a weird sort of heat in Taehyung's undertone and just to assure him and end this drivel conversation Nina nodded her head, quickly cutting off eye contact with him.

Without saying another word, Nina strode out of the house, Taehyung following her behind. 

"This girl is going to be the death of me someday." Taehyung whistled, looking at her skirt riding to her thighs with every movement. Taehyung's cheeky grin dropped when he saw Ji-hoon's car standing outside their gate and him leaning in his car hood like one of those guys who wait for their girlfrie— what the hell?

"Ji-hoon, that asshole? Why is he here?!" Taehyung matched Nina's steps, now walking beside her.

"He is here to pick me up for school." Nina said, watching Taehyung's face dimming. Good, it felt so good seeing him tight-lipped and furious. Her blood still rages from the way he called her a slut and expected her to forget everything. She was stupid enough to crave him, to wait for him to be kind to her. Now, he was just her boss's spoiled son. Taehyung was nothing more than an arrogant rich asshole. 

"Oh after school I promised him that I'll spend the whole day with him. So we are going to watch a movie and after that, we will go to this new restaurant for dinner and after that. . ." 

"So you have decided to date that dick? Over my fucking dead body." The darkness was creeping into Taehyung's eyes, and a muscle of his jaw ticked. Nina had never thought seeing him so worked up would be this satisfying. She had seen girls losing their breath over Taehyung as if he had descended from heaven, their sight stinging her when Taehyung flirted back with that ridiculously charming grin.

Nina wanted him to feel the sting too… or maybe, Taehyung would lose interest and leave her alone… in both ways win-win. 

"No silly." Nina chuckled, wickedly. "We'll go to a karaoke bar and after that. . ." She waved at Ji-hoon as Ji-hoon nodded, flickering his eyes at Taehyung who was glaring at him with murderous intents.

"After that what?! What are you guys gonna do?" Taehyung had no idea how easy it was for Nina to read him at the moment. His jealousy was so obvious, so blunt and loud, Nina's heart did a cartwheel under her chest.

"Something that I've never done before." The neat lie breaks out between her ruddy lips. 

Ji-hoon was a great friend and Nina couldn't see him more than that, no matter how much she tried. Why couldn't her heart just beat miserably for Ji-hoon? He was so sweet, so perfect. Why does it have to be the guy with golden eyes?

"You are not fucking him, Nina." Taehyung hissed, the veins around his forehead were throbbing.

"Or what if I do?" Nina challenged him, going eye-to-eye with him. She would never get involved with Ji-hoon, not sexually but again, Taehyung didn't need to know that.

"Nina, is everything alright?" Ji-hoon walked toward them, probably sensing the heated atmosphere. Nina smiled brightly at him, dodging Taehyung's burning stares. 

"Now you are here so I'm fine." Nina chirped, flipping her hair on her shoulder.

"You are making me flustered but seriously, you don't look fine." Ji-hoon grabbed her wrist, the same wrist that Taehyung held earlier, he felt her pulse under his skin and now Ji-hoon was feeling the same pulse. When Ji-hoon intertwined their fingers, Taehyung completely lost it. His restraint was shredded on the floor and the violence had taken over his senses.

He grabbed Ji-hoon by his neck and slammed his fist on his cheekbone, then another punch on his mouth. The punch was so fast and strong, splitting Ji-hoon's lips in the process. Ji-hoon stumbled, cursing under his breath, he spit the blood on the floor. 

"The hell do you think you are doing, Taehyung? Are you crazy?!" Nina clutched his shoulders and stood between them. Her panicked face wasn't enough to soften the brutality rioting inside Taehyung's chest. 

"No, Ji-hoon stop." Nina flickered Ji-hoon a pleading look when he charged toward Taehyung in utter rage. She didn't want to see them fighting each other, she couldn't see them hurting each other. One was her best friend and the other one was her tormentor yet still holding the pieces of her heart.

"He started it, Nini." Ji-hoon husked, flashing a crude glare at Taehyung.

"Nini?!" Taehyung laughed, the sound was far from his easy laughs. "Did he just call you Nini? A fucking Nini!" 

"Taehyung shut up. You are out of your mind!" Nina screamed, pushing him away from Ji-hoon, in case Taehyung again decided to pounce on him. 

Taehyung was breathing harshly as he looked at her face, her eyes were widened and her lashes were so long and lush, Taehyung wanted to graze his fingertips on them. They were beautiful. Nina was beautiful and she belonged to him.

"You think that dating him will stop me from getting you." Taehyung mumbled, his bangs falling over his rage-filled eyes as he chuckled like a maniac, like those movie villains with pretty faces who would fuck you real good before killing you. 

Nina's breaths ripped out of her lungs when Taehyung grabbed her by the back of her neck and kissed her hard, cutting her groans and protests, completely assaulting her mouth with aggressive lapping and biting. 

Taehyung squeezed her neck when she struggled against him, holding her in one place. At the moment, he had no control over his actions, over his senses. All he wanted Nina to know that he was the only one who could touch her, and kiss her with all kinds of passion. She had plagued his dreams, even his reality and now she thought she could just simply walk away with a random guy in front of his eyes? No, not in this life. 

Taehyung side-eyed the panic-stricken Ji-hoon. He could stop Taehyung, he could have interrupted their unexpected make-out but the deadly glint in Taehyung's eyes, the monstrous aura clinging to him dissolved his courage.   

"If his cock goes anywhere near your pretty cunt. I'll make his life a living hell and take pleasure seeing him in pain, that's how rotten I am from inside." He mumbled against Nina's mouth and kissed her again, this time softly. "No one but I will touch you, own you, fucking break you." 

Nina recoiled, taking her steps back with pained eyes, leaving a shred of guilt digging under Taehyung's skin. Not because he thought he did something wrong. Her kisses, her voice, her gaze, everything was his. He felt shitty because again he had hurt her. The more he looked at her, the more he felt suffocation making a home inside him.

Without saying much, Taehyung walked toward his car and drove away. Nina stared at his car becoming small and soon disappearing, but the ache was still there clawing her heart. 

"I'm sorry, Ji-hoon." Nina was startled when Ji-hoon pulled her for a hug. Awkwardly, Nina hugged him back, not finding the calm that she was craving. See, Ji-hoon was so perfect, then why did her screwed-up heart just couldn't accept him? 

"No, it's fine. I'm glad you are here with me." Ji-hoon exhaled her intoxicated scent and a smirk crawled his lips. Selfish and evil. 

"I hate him." Nina mumbled, fisting his shirt.

"As you should. See Nina, no one could take care of you better than me. Taehyung has always humiliated you and hurt you because let's be real, he thinks of you as his personal toy that he can play with and toss out whenever he wants. Trust me, he doesn't deserve you." As Nina shut her eyes, letting his words swirl in his head.

Right, she should never stop hating him.

____ 

Shut up Ji-hoon, you are already friend-zoned.