Jeongguk went home after he finished his classes to sleep a few more hours since he didn't sleep that much last night. When he woke up, he saw a series of texts from Yuju once again. He seized upon her desperation, and wanting to prove to himself that he didn't need Taehyung to feel good and hadn't fallen for him, he told her to come to his house later that day.

To be honest, he wasn't excited at all. Every time he met Taehyung, he couldn't control his eagerness, but now he felt nothing.

When she finally came, she started kissing him instantly as it had been a while since the last time they met. She took his shirt off and trailed kisses down his body. After sucking him off for a while and with Jeongguk still not fully hard as he usually was with Taehyung in just a few seconds, she pulled him on top of her and smashed their lips together.

Three knocks on the door had his insides twisting with fury. "Go away," he growled and claimed Yuju's lips, but the knocking continued. "I said go the fuck away."

With the next string of knocks, Jeongguk groaned, frustrated, and surged towards the door, ready to yell at Hyekyo for disturbing him when he repeatedly told her not to. But every muscle in his body glaciated, freezing his blood, as he saw Taehyung at the other end.

He discerned the sadness that swept across his face as he looked back and forth at Yuju and him and then met his gaze.

"You were caught on camera."

Jeongguk was still dazed to the bone by his sudden appearance, and seeing him so hurt and devastated brought a profound feeling of remorse and sorrow in his gut. But he refused to let it overcome him. He hadn't fallen for him.

He spectated as Taehyung looked upwards to prevent his tears from falling and sniffled, licking his lips. "That changes everything." He slammed the USB against his chest, causing him to stumble back.

Panic sizzled his chest once he comprehended that he was about to leave. Although he knew he had lied to him, he didn't want him to leave like this. You haven't fallen for him. He espied his eyes brimming with hope — round and tearful — when he grasped his hand, something that terrified him.

You haven't fallen for him.

With that encouraging reminder once again, he tilted his head to the side and narrowed his eyes on him contemptuously. "You have no right to look so hurt, pup."

His heart ached with remorse the moment he spilled those words. And the look of devastation on Taehyung's face only amplified his regret. But that pained expression switched to a frosty one, eyes becoming harsher, ruthless, and he wrenched his hand away, startling him.

"You might have fucked me up, even literally, but you certainly don't have the right to tell me how to look or what to feel. And I'm not your fucking pup. Not anymore at least."

He remained frozen solid as Taehyung spun around and bolted out of the house. What actually happened sank in little by little, and he planted his fist on the wall with a furious grunt.

His mind hazed over, and he wore his shirt and shoes in haste, told Yuju to get the fuck out of his room, and ran after him. Ignoring Hyekyo who called his name, he rammed the door open and sighed in relief when he spotted Taehyung's car still parked there. He drew nearer with frantic steps, already knowing he was crying and feeling like a complete asshole about it, because this time, he caused it.

And exactly as he thought, Taehyung was sitting in his car with his forehead pressed against the wheel and his shoulders shaking with his sobs. Seeing him like this, so devastated and hurt was too much for him, and he couldn't help the realization that thundered down on him a moment later.

You have fallen for him.

He knocked on the window softly, not wanting to scare him, but Taehyung flinched and fumbled to start the engine. Before he could, Jeongguk yanked the door open, fretful. "Taehyung, please don't leave. Let's talk for a moment, hmm?" He crouched down and reached out to hold his hand, but the older slapped it away.

"We don't have anything to say. Please fuck off and let me leave."

"I won't let you leave." He attempted again to grab his hand — to simply touch him — and Taehyung just lost it.

He shoved him with all his strength, almost making him fall, but Jeongguk managed to stabilize himself and stand straighter. He got out of the car, tears coursing down his face as he banged the door. "Why? What e-else do you w-want from me? To humiliate me s-some more? To m-mock me? What t-the hell d-do you want from me?"

"Tae, you knew we—"

"Don't fucking call me that!" He delivered another harsh push on his shoulder.

"Fine, okay. You knew we weren't exclusive. You said a million times that we're just having sex and nothing more. You can't be mad at me for that."

"I'm not talking about that!" he bellowed, a sob escaping his mouth.

"Okay, can you please calm down and stop crying? I can't—It's too much for me." Jeongguk raised his hands to wipe his wet cheeks, but Taehyung swatted them away once again.

"Stop with the fucking act already! You don't give two shits about me. You never did."

Jeongguk stilled, eyes narrowing on him and heartbeat rising. "What?"

"I know everything." Unlike before, his voice came out in a whisper, and he dropped his head with a shaky breath. "Seokjin told me everything."

"Told you what?"

"How you played me from the start! He told me about your petty plan. Congrats, you got me. I was stupid enough to get involved with you. I brought this to myself."

Jeongguk gaped at him, unable to believe he knew everything. "That fucker," he breathed out in a daze.

"The only fucker here is you!" Taehyung punched his chest as he scowled at him. "You're really an awful person," he muttered and swiveled to open the car door.

"Can you just listen to me first?" Jeongguk seized his wrist, stopping him.

"And say what?" He released himself with a ferocious yank of his arm. "That it started as a game but then you started to really care about me? I won't believe that bullshit."

"What if it's true, huh? What if that really happened?" There was something desperate in his voice and gaze, which Taehyung ignored.

"I told you, I won't believe that bullshit."

"You should, Taehyung. I didn't want it to happen, but it did. I care about you. I really—"

"Stop! Stop with the fucking lies!" he roared at him, hands clenching into fists and more tears gushing out of his burning eyes.

"Just fucking listen for a moment!" Jeongguk yelled back at him, frustrated, but he regretted it right away when Taehyung cowered. A trembling sigh seeped through his lips as sorrow and remorse engulfed his whole being.

"I'm sorry for yelling. But just listen to me, okay? It's not just a game anymore. It stopped being a game since that day we had sex in your office and I tried to kiss you out of the blue, remember? That's why I freaked out so much that day. Because even if I didn't want to admit it, I really cared about you and I still do."

Taehyung shook his head, the movement weak and slow but continuous. "I—I can't b-believe you."

"You have to, Taehyung. You really have to."

"What if you're lying r-right now, huh? Just because y-you want to make sure I'll help you financially?"

"I don't give a fuck about that, seriously. You can even quit being my lawyer right now. I won't give a fuck about that. It's not about being on your good side anymore. It's not about you helping me, about the fucking trial, about if I'll go to jail or not. It's not about getting what I want anymore. Please understand that."

Taehyung's tears paused as Jeongguk talked, and he patted his eyes with his sleeves to wipe any remains. "It's not?"

"No, Tae. It's not," he admitted, voice quiet and breathy, as he took a tiny step closer to him.

"Then w-what is this about?"

"It's about you. It's all about you and how amazing you are. Can I please come to your house so we can sit and talk for a while?"

"I-I have a trial tomorrow. I have to leave now and sleep early tonight."

"Okay, can you just give me fifteen minutes? We can sit in your car and talk. Please?"

Although unsure and still torn apart by everything, Taehyung gave two faint nods. "Okay."

And that was what they did. Taehyung turned on the car heater to keep them warm, as Jeongguk sat sideways in his seat, facing him.

"It was true that the kitchen in Hyekyo's and Joongki's restaurant needed to be renovated and they couldn't pay you anymore. And I was scared that I would end up in jail without a good lawyer to represent me. I was hopeless, Taehyung. And I thought that maybe if I flirted with you and made you care about me, you would help me." He kept his gaze on his lap as his guilt was so immense he couldn't even glace at him.

"You didn't give in, though. Remember that day in your office? I tried to kiss you and you asked, 'What the fuck are you doing?' Then I asked you, 'Isn't it clear enough?' And you said, 'It's pathetic.' It hit me a little, honestly. I was indeed pathetic, and maybe I still am. Then I told you all those things just because I didn't get what I wanted. Whatever I said that day wasn't true.

"I would back off as you had asked me. I wouldn't go through with the plan and that's why I sent you that text saying you're fired. But you came to find me. And when we went to your house, you touched me, and I couldn't control myself. After that, I just thought being your friend or something would still make you help me.

"I wanted to have sex with you again, but didn't try anything because I didn't want to anger you. When you said you wanted to have sex again, I was so excited and eager. Sex with you was and is the best I ever had, and as cheesy as it sounds, it's completely true. Then we had sex again in your office, and I tried to kiss you because you were just sitting there, looking like an angel and telling me that you liked how rough I was.

"Since that day, I didn't think about the plan again because I didn't care about it anymore. We had sex again in your car, remember? After that, you said you're a failure to your parents and mediocre in everything you do and that your life is pathetic and miserable. I was really shocked to hear all this because you're really nothing like that.

"Every word I said to you that day was true. Everything I did since that day I did it because I wanted to. I wanted to be gentle with you. I wanted to carry you to the bathroom. I wanted to take baths with you. I wanted to cuddle you, I wanted to kiss you. I wanted to sleep with you and wake up with you.

"It wasn't real from the start, and I'm so sorry about that. I'm so sorry I played you, Taehyung. I'm so sorry I was fake at first. Seeing you so hurt because of me really affected me and it still does." He drew in a deep breath as he ventured to extend his hand and swipe his thumb over his cheeks, collecting a few tears that slid down his cheeks. "I don't know if you believe a word I just said, but it was all true. And I really don't want us to stop seeing each other."

Taehyung didn't know how he felt about all this. He didn't know what to believe, he didn't know what to think. Everything was such a mess and all out addled in his mind. He rubbed his eyes to obstruct more tears from falling and breathed out shakily as he tore his gaze away from him. "I have to tell the police what I found. If they find out that I knew the truth and didn't say anything, they will take my license away."

A frown of utter confusion sprawled on his traits. "What about everything I just said? Why are you talking about that? I don't care about that." His heart pranced in fear as he thought that Taehyung wouldn't forgive him.

"You should. Once I tell them what I know, they will arrest you, and your trial date will be announced soon."

"Isn't there any law that prevents you to do that?"

"No. I found out about the CCTV by myself. You didn't tell me about it. I can't lie under oath. I can go to jail if I do that."

"So I won't be able to see you anymore?" Desperation mixed with hurt gleamed in Jeongguk's eyes as he aimed them at him.

"You will be in jail until your trial, and you're thinking if you'll be able to see me or not?"

"Yes."

"For fuck's sake, get it together, Jeongguk! You'll be in jail until your trial. I'm not important!"

"You're wrong," Jeongguk uttered in the softest way possible. "You're the most important."

"Everything you say sounds like a lie, so please just... please stop." A pent-up sigh flew off Taehyung's mouth as he hung his head. "I'll give you tomorrow and the weekend to say goodbye to your friends and do whatever you want. On Monday morning, we'll go to the police station together."

"Will you let me say goodbye to you as well?"

Taehyung raised his strained, sorrowful eyes and laid them on him. "You don't have a reason to say goodbye to me because there wasn't anything between us."

"Don't—Don't say that, Tae. Please, don't—" He tried to cup his face, but the older feebly pushed his hand away.

"If it wasn't just a game, it was just sex, right?" He begged him internally to say no, to say that it wasn't just sex, but Jeongguk just stayed mute. He allowed a smile to stretch over his lips, small and bitter, as he tossed his head down.

Jeongguk dried up throughout. The words simply stuck in his throat, and as much as he wanted to say that it wasn't just sex, he couldn't do it. The sudden tornado of fear that spiraled through his insides impeded him from doing it. That fear of rejection he didn't even know he had.

"We will meet to talk about your trial when the date is announced. Please don't come to my house and don't get in touch with me on the weekend. I need time to process everything."

"I'm sorry, Tae. I'm so sorry for everything. You're my happy place and I mean it. Please don't hate me too much."

"Please leave."

These two words pierced through his heart like a thousand knives. He swallowed back the lump that bubbled in his throat and left Taehyung alone, as he wanted him to.

He thought even if he tried to convince him that he was telling the truth, Taehyung wouldn't believe a word from him. At least not at that moment. And so he returned to his room, flung himself into the bed, and strove to contain the tears that desperately wanted to escape his eyes.

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Hope you have a great weekend💜