¤ Wonderwall (Acoustic Stripped)
J2, Miranda Dianne ↲

And all the roads we have to walk are winding
And all the lights that lead us there are blinding
There are many things that I
Would like to say to you but I don't know how
Because maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me
And after all, you're my wonderwall

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"Come on, Kookie. Time for our field trip."

Jungkook eyed the cooler in the backseat of Taehyung's car, which was packed between bags of snacks and beverages. He still had no idea where they were going, and despite asking for clues over the last several days, the elder remained silent.

"Are you sure we're going on a field trip and you're not kidnapping me?" He said as Taehyung opened the passenger door for him. 

"If I was trying to kidnap you," Taehyung began, stepping up to Jungkook and hooking his arms around his waist, "I'd put you in the trunk and not the front seat."

A breeze ruffled the elder's hair, pushing it in front of his eyes, so Jungkook reached up to brush away the slightly curly strands. "That's a little morbid, Taehyung. You shouldn't joke about these things."

Taehyung's eyes widened as an incredulous laugh escaped his throat. "You literally just -" 

Jungkook swallowed the remainder of his argument with his lips, catching Taehyung off guard and kissing him. His arms wrapped around his boyfriend's neck, pulling him deeper into his body. Over the last few days - ever since Jungkook and his family learned just how sick Juyeon was - he craved constant affection from Taehyung. The need to hold and be held overpowered him; his body yearned for the comfort only Taehyung could provide.

They spent the last three nights together, Jungkook needing Taehyung now more than ever. Everything was happening so quickly, so many decisions were being made at once, and he feared the stress of it all would crush him. And he couldn't let that happen. He needed to be strong for his sister.

So Taehyung remained by his side, helping him navigate his new reality. When Jungkook needed to talk, the elder always listened. And, on the flip side, when Jungkook needed to be distracted, Taehyung found ways to put a smile on his face. The endless love and support Taehyung showered upon him made these hectic days that much more manageable.

The morning after the news broke, Juyeon was brought back to Doctor Cho for additional testing. Very quickly, a plan was put into place to improve Juyeon's health: modified diets, more medication, and dialysis. Due to the severity of her condition, the doctors said she needed to receive dialysis in-office three times a week for four hours at a time. Everyone was a bit startled to hear that piece of information, since that would require a lot of travel and time away from home. 

Luckily, however, Juyeon qualified to receive in-home dialysis, meaning she could have her treatments in the comfort of her own house. Jiho had already been trained on how to administer dialysis safely and how to handle any problems that could potentially arise, which enabled Juyeon to start everything at home right away. These things were small wins, but the whole Jeon family was grateful for anything that made Juyeon's experience better.

Jaewoo still had to head back to work in a couple of more days, though he spent a lot of time desperately searching for a local job. Their father wanted to be home now more than ever and was doing everything he could to make it happen. And while there were a few promising leads, nothing moved fast enough - Jaewoo would leave his family without anything concrete lined up.

Taehyung privately offered any financial assistance necessary, though Jungkook let him know he only wanted his love. He knew his boyfriend had the best intentions - and he greatly appreciated the offer - but he didn't want to take money from his parents. Not like this.

So now, just a couple days after everything came to light, Taehyung had convinced Jungkook to accompany him on a field trip. Jungkook was a little apprehensive to leave his sister at first, but that changed once Juyeon practically pushed him out of the house. She said she didn't want him hovering over her and asking how she felt every two seconds.

And honestly, he needed this. Jungkook needed to get away, even if it was just for a few hours. Taehyung reminded him that it was okay to still take care of himself and to have fun - he didn't need to be sad all the time. It was okay for him to live his life, too.

Taehyung gripped his waist tighter, kissing him back with an equal amount of force. His lips were insistent, opening Jungkook's lustfully so he could feel him more, taste him more. A content hum left his mouth and fell into Jungkook's, the sound warming Jungkook from the inside out. Their field trip was the farthest thing from his mind right now, and all he wanted to do was go inside and make love to the elder. 

Though, with his whole family in the house, that wasn't something he felt comfortable doing at the moment. If only they could find a little alone time . . . 

"Oh my god," Jungkook said, breaking away with a gasp. "Are you taking me to go have sex in your car? Is that what we're going to do?"

"Why would I have you pack a book if that's what I had in mind?" Taehyung asked with a laugh, dark eyes appearing even darker than normal with his blown out pupils. 

Jungkook pouted, fingers playing with the hair at the nape of the elder's neck. "I don't know, but can we go do that instead? Doesn't that sound like a good idea?"

Taehyung lightly started pushing Jungkook into the passenger seat. "We're not having sex in a car at ten in the morning. And anyway, we have to get going so we're not late for our appointment."

"Appointment?" He asked, ducking his head into the car. He waited until Taehyung hopped into the driver's seat. "What appointment?"

The engine started with a gentle roar, low music creating a comfortable ambience. Taehyung entered an address into his navigation app, then set his phone up on his dashboard. Jungkook tried to see where they were going, though the maps didn't give anything away.

"You'll have to just wait and see," the elder replied, pulling out of Jungkook's driveway and starting on the route. "Gotta be patient, Kook."

"Oh my god, you're making me dye my hair blue. Aren't you?" He asked, eyes wide as he ran a hand through his black hair.

Taehyung looked his way, rolling his eyes. "You need to stop with these crazy theories of yours."

"And you need to keep your eyes on the road," Jungkook retorted, gently pushing his cheek until Taehyung turned back to the road. "Do you want me to drive?"

"I'll let you drive on our way back."

For the next hour, the two talked about small things and big things, important things and stupid things. It felt so good to have someone who could handle the serious parts of life but also have fun as well. Jungkook never really envisioned what he wanted in a long term partner, though after experiencing all he had with Taehyung, he knew the elder was it. There'd never be anyone else for him.

Jungkook tried a few more times to get Taehyung to reveal their destination, though the elder remained quiet. It was funny - he knew exactly where they were, having come out this way multiple times over the last few years. But he was unable to think of anything to do this far out that Taehyung would bring him to. The only place around here that he knew of was not a place he particularly wanted to go at the moment.

But as they continued along, it became more and more evident where they were going. And when they pulled into a very familiar parking lot, it was confirmed.

"Tae, what the hell are we doing here?" Jungkook asked, undoing his seatbelt and looking at his boyfriend.

Taehyung was busy gathering supplies from the backseat, preparing a small bag to take inside. He placed Jungkook's book in it as well, along with drinks and snacks. 

"We got here with plenty of time to spare," Taehyung said to himself, sounding impressed. "I was worried we'd hit traffic."

"Tae, stop! What's going on?"

"I'm getting tested," he responded, meeting Jungkook's gaze directly. "I'm getting tested to see if my kidney is a match for Juyeon."

Silence. 

There was only silence as the two stared at each other. Jungkook's mind was whirring with the information, trying to process the words his boyfriend just spoke. Tested. He was getting tested.

No.

"I never asked you to do this," he said at last, trying to control his breathing. "I don't want you to do this for me."

"I'm not doing this for you, Kook. I'm doing this for Juyeon. If there is any chance I'm a match and can help her, of course I'm going to take it," Taehyung explained, shifting in his seat so he could properly face Jungkook.

But Jungkook was shaking his head. All he could imagine was Taehyung going into surgery, being cut into, and having a part of himself removed. These surgeries weren't typically dangerous for the donor, though that didn't mean he wanted Taehyung to risk it. He didn't want Taehyung to take any risks at all.

"Do you know how small the chances are of you being a match?" Jungkook voiced, hands gripping his pants tightly. "You probably won't be one. So why bother going through all these tests if it won't work out?"

Taehyung's eyebrows furrowed as he studied Jungkook, clearly confused over his reaction. "Why are you acting like this? I thought you'd be happy."

Happy. Jungkook supposed he should be pretty fucking grateful that his boyfriend was willing to do this for his little sister. People like this didn't exactly come along that often, and here was the love of his life offering his kidney up on a golden platter. And fuck, it really did mean everything to him. But he couldn't stop picturing Taehyung with tubes in his arms, going under anesthesia and getting a red scar of his own. 

He couldn't bear to see Taehyung sliced into and hurt and scarred. 

"Don't do it," he begged, probably making no sense at all to the elder. "Let's just go home, okay?"

"I'm not going home, Kook. I'm getting these tests done whether you like it or not."

"I don't like it!" Jungkook exclaimed, an increasing amount of panic clouding his good senses. "You don't need to do this for me or for any of us. She's not your sister. You don't have to give her your kidney or your money or anything." 

Taehyung just gaped at him, looking like he didn't know who the hell Jungkook was right now. And Jungkook really couldn't blame him - he didn't know what he was doing. He couldn't think straight. All he wanted to do was get Taehyung as far away from here as possible, away from any chance of harm.

"I love that little girl," Taehyung told him, voice unnaturally even and calm. "And she may not be my sister by blood, but I love her as if she were. I may not have any rights when it comes to making decisions for her, but I have every right to do what I can to help. So if I can get tested, if I can give her my kidney so she can live fully, I'm going to do it. You're not going to prevent me from doing that, Kook."

The opening of the door startled Jungkook and he watched as the elder gracefully slid from the seat. He took out a water bottle from his bag, but otherwise left everything else on the driver's seat. It was becoming painfully clear that Taehyung had wanted him to sit in the waiting room, keeping him company in between the tests. That's why he packed all these snacks and why he told Jungkook to bring a book. Taehyung wanted Jungkook there with him during the entire process.

"It's going to be a couple of hours to get through everything," Taehyung said to him, leaving his keys behind on the seat. He seemed to think Jungkook wasn't going to come inside with him. 

For a moment, they just looked at each other and waited to see what the other would do. But then Taehyung was sighing, nodding to himself and biting down on his lip.

"Tae -"

"I'll see you soon," he interrupted. "I love you."

Taehyung shut his door and headed for the entrance of the building, leaving Jungkook all alone. 

"Fuck!" Jungkook cursed himself, slamming his fist down on the center console, pain immediately throbbing through his hand. 

What the fuck was he doing? Why did he act this way, ruining Taehyung's selfless and beautiful gesture that he clearly wanted to involve Jungkook in? He should be on his fucking knees thanking the elder, but instead he what? Made him feel terrible?

He wasn't mad at Taehyung at all, but his heightened emotions from the last several days misguided him completely. He needed to make sure Taehyung knew how much he appreciated this, how thankful he truly was. Jungkook needed to apologize to Taehyung before the elder spent the next couple of hours dwelling over this.

After grabbing the car keys, he ran into the building to search for Taehyung. It had been about five or so minutes since the elder headed inside, and now he was nowhere to be found. And, since he didn't ask for any details whatsoever from the elder, Jungkook had no idea where to find him.

Knowing where the pediatric wing was, he figured he could at least start there. It took him a few minutes to navigate the mess of hallways, though once he got there, his eyes immediately started scanning the waiting room for Taehyung. He was nowhere to be found. 

Jungkook met a receptionist's gaze and approached him somewhat awkwardly. "Hi. Can you tell me if Kim Taehyung has an appointment here today?"

"Are you a relative?" The receptionist asked, his expression giving nothing away. 

"No," Jungkook answered honestly, "but I'm his -"

"I'm sorry," the receptionist interrupted, a slight frown pulling down his lips. "But I can't give away any patient information unless you are related."

Jungkook fought to remain calm. After all, his anger was directed at himself and shouldn't be taken out on anyone else today. "Can you give me any information regarding testing for organ transplants? My boyfriend is getting tested to see if he's a match for my little sister. Her name is Jeon Juyeon and she's a patient of Doctor Cho's."

The receptionist sighed, seeming a little more sympathetic than earlier. "Organ testing is tough to say. Most likely, it would fall outside of this department, though I can't quite say which. Adult medicine, general surgery . . . I'm not entirely sure, to be honest."

With a dejected nod, Jungkook thanked the man and headed back to the car. He could spend hours running around trying to find Taehyung, though that probably wouldn't do him any good. No one would confirm where Taehyung was since they weren't relatives, and he didn't have enough guts to lie about his relationship to the elder.

So he proceeded to spend the next couple of hours in Taehyung's car, mentally kicking himself over and over again. He wished they could go back to earlier in the morning, that way he could show how appreciative he was instead of reacting so poorly. But all he could do was wait now.

Wait, as well as send Taehyung a countless number of texts, hoping the elder would see them in between his tests.

They started off short and simple: I'm so sorry, I love you so much, and Thank you for everything you do.

No responses to those messages came in, but Jungkook didn't let himself be defeated. Instead, he wrote more texts detailing out his apologies and even sent out a stream of goofy selfies. He knew those messages wouldn't erase how he behaved, though he hoped they would at least let Taehyung know how much he was thinking of him. 

Once it neared the end of two hours, Jungkook kept his eyes trained on the building's entrance. It took thirty minutes of staring at the doors until he finally caught a glimpse of Taehyung. And as soon as the elder walked further into the parking lot, Jungkook fled from the car.

"Tae!" He called out as soon as he was within hearing distance. "Tae, I'm so sorry."

He didn't exactly know what he expected Taehyung to do, but he didn't quite expect him to open his arms wide.

"Come here," the elder said softly, waiting for Jungkook to fall into his embrace.

And Jungkook did; he melted into Taehyung's arms and buried his head into the elder's neck. Taehyung held him tightly, one hand running up and down Jungkook's back while the other knotted into his hair. They stood like that for a while, right in the middle of the parking lot.

"I was being stupid," Jungkook admitted, lips against the elder's skin. "I got so scared imagining you in the hospital and undergoing surgery. I know that's really silly, but I just have so many bad feelings associated with these places. And I'm just so stressed and I got so worried -"

"Sh, it's okay, love," Taehyung soothed him, attempting to pull back but was locked in place by Jungkook's arms. "You have every right to be stressed. I don't blame you for that."

"Thank you. Thank you for doing that, Tae. I wish I said it before and I wish I could've been there with you. I tried to find you in there but they wouldn't tell me where you were. I just . . . I'm so sorry. I wish you didn't have to see me like this."

"You know I love you, right?" Taehyung asked, hand still running up and down Jungkook's spine.

He loosened his arms so he could look at Taehyung. "Yeah. Of course."

"So know that when I tell you I love you, I mean so much more," the elder started, his eyes warm with a tenderness he only showed Jungkook. "Because when I say I love you, I'm also saying that I'll be here for you. I'm saying that your happiness is mine and that your pain is mine. I'm saying that I will take on all of your sorrows, just like you have taken on mine. I'm saying you're not alone in this, that I'll be with you during the good days and the bad. So seeing you like this, Kook . . . it doesn't frighten me or make me angry. I just want to be here for you through it all."

"I don't know what I did to deserve you," Jungkook said openly, his eyes watering and clouding his vision. "I love you so much, Tae. More than I can even make sense of. You are my everything."

"And you're mine," Taehyung responded, pecking Jungkook on his cheek. "You will always be. So let's put aside our sadness for today, okay? I want to bring you to one more place."

Jungkook let himself be pulled towards the car, but before Taehyung could go to the driver's side, he cut him off. "I'll drive. Just direct me wherever you want to go."

With an eye roll, Taehyung settled into the passenger seat and pulled out his phone. But it wasn't before long that the elder started laughing beside him.

"What?" He asked, looking over to see the elder giggling over something on his phone.

"You sent me like . . . fifty three texts!"

A sheepish grin spread on Jungkook's face as he ran a hand through his hair. "I wanted to make it up to you. Didn't you see those earlier?"

"I didn't have any breaks between testing," Taehyung said, a trace of humor still coating his voice. "But come here, baby boy. Come make it up to me."

Jungkook was tempted to make a sarcastic comment - referencing their first intimate experience in this car, no less - though he had a greater urge to kiss Taehyung. He spent the next several minutes pouring all of his remorse, gratitude, and love into the kiss, leaning over the center console to grip onto the elder tightly. And Taehyung kissed him back with forgiveness, understanding, and even more love.

It astounded Jungkook how mature his boyfriend was - anyone else probably would've sulked the remainder of the day. But that wasn't Taehyung. Taehyung wasn't the type to stay mad at him; he was the type to talk it out. It was so refreshing to be with someone like this and it inspired Jungkook to be more mature and communicative as well.

A few minutes later, they were back on the road and heading to their next destination. Taehyung refused to give any clues about this second outing, though he promised it wasn't anything as serious as the morning. He brought them back near Jungkook's house, though in a more open part of the city that had gorgeous rolling hills. When they rounded a corner, they came upon multiple large white tents set atop one of those green hills. Taehyung pointed to a parking lot and they pulled in.

"Where are we?" Jungkook asked, looking all around him to see their surroundings.

Taehyung hopped out of the car, coming around to the driver's side to open Jungkook's door. "We haven't gotten out just the two of us in a while, so we're going on a date. Strawberry picking."

Jungkook smiled wide, taking hold of Taehyung's hand as they walked to the main tent. It was pretty quiet, with only a few families milling about and keeping to themselves. Taehyung paid and retrieved containers for them to use, tossing one over to Jungkook as they headed to one of the tents. 

They spent a while going through the rows of strawberry bushes, trying to find the most red and ripe berries possible. It was such a relaxing and easygoing activity, one which Jungkook found surprisingly fun. Everything about this experience put a smile on his face and he found himself laughing almost constantly. Taehyung also took it upon himself to document their date together, and took multiple pictures of both Jungkook and their surrounding scenery.

In the midst of all his sadness and stress, Taehyung found a way to make Jungkook's life bright again.

A short while later, they were sitting on the hood of the car, eating some of their berries and soaking up the afternoon sun. The rest of their day was so peaceful and Jungkook wanted to do anything to make their time alone last.

"It'll probably be a couple of weeks until I find out if I'm a match," Taehyung said suddenly, eyes still turned towards the strawberry fields. "I . . . I don't want to tell your family until we get the results, okay? I don't want to get their hopes up."

Jungkook slung his arm over Taehyung's shoulder, tilting his head to rest against the elder's. "Of course, Tae. Whatever you want."

"Good," Taehyung murmured, content with his answer. "Do you need to start heading home soon?"

"Let's stay here for a little while longer. I just want to be with you," Jungkook replied as he nuzzled into Taehyung further. "Unless you've changed your mind about the whole having sex in your car thing. Then we can go somewhere else."

Taehyung scoffed, a hand coming up to rest on Jungkook's thigh. "We're not having sex in my car, Kook. At least not during daylight."

"You're trying to kill me." A groan ripped out of his throat as his traitorous mind envisioned having hot, steamy sex in the backseat of Taehyung's car. Or in the front seat . . . hell, he didn't care where.

"Maybe if you behave yourself," Taehyung added, squeezing Jungkook's thigh purposely, "we can do it in the car for your birthday."

His heart leapt with joy and excitement, until he remembered one crucial fact. "But my birthday isn't for months."

"Exactly."

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》 V A L E N W R I T I N G 《

When you have a loved one, I never think it's easy to see them undergo surgery - even if it's elective and with relatively low risks. After everything JK has been through with Juyeon, it made sense for him to get overwhelmed with Tae's decision. Even if it meant good news for his sister, that doesn't change that he still doesn't want Tae to be hurt or take unnecessary risks.

Also, I 100% had to incorporate that strawberry picking photo in some way, not sorry about it haha. And then the selca and live . . . My HEART you guys 😭❤

Love you all so much!!