;;

they arrived back
home in the early hours
of the evening.

twilight spilled across
the blooming roses in his friend's
front garden, their leaves
glistening with a sheen of
pinkish dust from the crouching
sun's rays, pouring whatever
warmth it possessed within
it's grasp down onto the pitch
earth before crumbling away
past the horizon and letting the
inky sky engulf the world
in a tender darkness.

jeongguk was tired,
taehyung knew this from his
heavy, half-hooded eyes and
his short one-worded replies
that he'd given him on the bus
journey home.

hoseok and yoongi had already
left, he'd told taehyung to heat
up the pasta he'd made for him
that afternoon, a tiny note on the
fridge with a small squiggle of a
smiley face that made the younger
man smile.

taehyung had told jeongguk to take a
shower whilst he put the dish in
the oven, gazing out of the
kitchen window at the moonlit
grass and the immaculate flowerbeds
and the small amateur nursery
where hobi grew his herbs and
beans. it was wholesome to say
the least.

he didn't want this
to end. he wanted this eternal
joy he felt raging in his heart
to burn forever, he needed the
warmth, craved it.

god, this
had to stop.

this guilt that
flickered in his head.

it was
irritation, he knew he shouldn't
be dismissing so easily but
he couldn't help it.

it was the pure moments
he spent with jeongguk that
let his toxic thoughts fade.

moments he spent with him
that felt like utter bliss at his
fingertips. he could sit with
him and talk to him and gaze
at him for an eternity.

he had
infinity at hands reach because
time had no known meaning
when he was in the boy's
presence.

it was all too perfect to
be true.

"smells good," the small
boy said, swinging his arms
at his side as he awkwardly
took his seat at the dining
table.

taehyung tired not to
smile at the sight of
his fluffy pink pajamas.

"thanks to chef hoseok,
yes." taehyung mused.
"i can't cook for shit."

"language, taehyung."
jeongguk teased, kicking
his leg back and forth.
he looked at him with an
innocent glint in his eye,
head resting in his palms
as he watched the older
wander about the kitchen.

god, where did he find
this boy?

"alright, i'm a hypocrite,
nothing new there."
taking the piping
hot dish out of the
oven and placing it carefully
on the cooling wrack on the
table, he hoped jeongguk
wouldn't dwell on that
sentence longer than
necessary. jeongguk dug
in pretty quickly, spooning
the pasta onto his plate.

the cheese looked a bit
burnt at the side but he
made no complaint, he
was thankful for that.

they were quiet for the
most of it. jeongguk wouldn't
look at him, his gaze lay
transfixed as he shoved food
inside his mouth.

taehyung could practically
hear him thinking.

the teen's phone rang
a few times in his pocket,
first it was a call, next a few
pings till things went silent
and then another chorus of
more frequent pings echoed
across the room, jeongguk
awkwardly switching it
on silent and placing it
flat down on the table.

"it's just jimin."

taehyung didn't know
why he felt obligated to
tell him but he hummed
nonetheless. jimin was...
an eager kid. if that was
a word to describe him.

"you two seem close."
he asked, taking a sip
from his glass.

"jimin and i?" jeongguk's
eyes widened with disbelief.

taehyung nodded.

"not really, well,
he would like to think we're
close but then that'd be a
fragment of his imagination.
he's nice, don't get me wrong,
i'm just not really the people
type." the small boy admitted.

taehyung knew.

he was always
so reserved in class, never spoke
to anyone, kept to himself in the
corridors and cafeteria.
if it weren't for jimin permanently
stuck to the boys side, he'd have
said he was lonely.

"sometimes the greatest friends
are right before our very eyes...
we just fail to see, or choose to
ignore."

jeongguk stopped chewing
and looked at him dead in the
eye.

"he is sweet i suppose." jeongguk
mumbled gingerly.
"as annoying as he is."

"he might be annoying but
he also might be your shoulder
to cry on when you need him
the most, ggukie. remember that."

jeongguk paused in contemplation,
fork scraping across his plate as
his gaze lay distant, far off, thinking
about their friendship, presumably.

"he's a bit dim." jeongguk smiled.

"so is hobi, still stuck with
him for life, didn't i?"

"i like hoseok though, he's really
nice." the younger giggled.

"he certainly is."

jeongguk cleared his
throat, a small mischievous
smile on his thin, pretty red lips.

"jimin's annoyed." jeongguk
bit his lip. "that's why he
keeps calling me."

"why so?"

"he's annoyed because he's
not here with me. he's really
jealous actually." jeongguk
really couldn't keep the smile
off his face. "he really wanted
to be here."

"why's that... does he like
the portrait too?"

"what?" jeongguk laughed
quietly.

"no... he likes you."

a subtle grin spread across
the man's face.

"me?" he shook his head
in disbelief.

"yeah, he's basically head
over heels for you." the boy smirked.

"find that very hard to believe,
sweetheart."

"you better believe it, because
it's the truth."

taehyung leaned back in his
seat, eyes wandering over the
faint blush on jeongguk's cheeks.

"he likes me." he deadpanned.

jeongguk nodded, chewing
his pasta.

"that's a bit embarrassing."

jeongguk choked on his pasta.

"h-hugh yeah- embarrassing,
totally, embarrassing, how
embarrassing, you'd have to
be a total dimwit to catch feelings
for your teacher, i mean that's just
ludicrous, like aha- what even-"
jeongguk gasped, exasperated.

"sweetheart."
taehyung chuckled softly,
placing his fork down carefully
and staring at the flustered
boy before him. a tell tale sheen
of sweat clung to his pale forehead,
cheeks as rosy as ever, even deeper
now that he'd just admitted
something majorly awkward
about his friend. and perhaps
himself too.

"we meet anne on wednesday."
taehyung quickly diverted the topic
before things got too much to handle.

"can't wait." jeongguk laughed
quietly, mind evidently elsewhere.
"can i..."

"can you...?"

"can i show you..." he hesitated.
"can i show you my sketchbook
tomorrow?"

a small smile danced on taehyung's
lips.

"why are you asking me, sweet.
it's your own choice."

jeongguk looked up at him with
his cute eyes and nodded nervously.

"i want to show you."

taehyung reached over the
table and placed a hand on
the teen's own, giving him the
softest smile he could.

"of course, love."

_______

lmao kook's so petty