"What are you gonna do now?" asked Jeongguk.

"I have to work. What about you?"

"I'll go to meet my friends. You wanna come?"

Taehyung's brows shot up at the unforeseen invitation. "Um, not really. Meeting your friends feels kind of intimate."

"You've already met them, though."

"I met them because I wanted to question them. It's not the same."

Jeongguk couldn't understand what the big deal was, but with an idle shrug, he tossed it aside. "Okay. You can call me anytime you want," he uttered, voice seductive and chock-full of innuendos, as he edged nearer and curled his fingers around his nape.

An uneasy, forced smile showed up on Taehyung's face as he set a hand on his chest to impede him from getting closer. "Um, we shouldn't let what happened yesterday happen again. And it's not because I suddenly care about rules. I've already broken them, anyway. But I just... I don't want this. This thing that is happening right now." He gestured between himself and Jeongguk.

The younger's addled expression remained unswerving. "You don't want hugs?"

A giggle bubbled at the back of Taehyung's throat, but he suppressed it and released a subdued snort instead. He couldn't deny that the younger was cute at times. "I mean you suddenly appearing here or at my house, hugging me, being intimate like this and stuff." Although he didn't mind any of the things he listed, he knew they would only complicate things if he let them happen. He already ceded to his urges and needs once, so staying away would be easier now, right?

"I won't do any of that if you don't want me to. I can just wait for your call or something."

"No, Jeongguk," he whispered, shaking his head softly. "You shouldn't."

Expression darkening and mouth opening and closing without words coming out at first, Jeongguk's eyes roamed around the room in agitation. "So you don't want to meet at all?" The cause of his ever-growing turmoil was the possibility of Taehyung changing his mind about helping him if they stayed away from each other. That had to be the only reason he didn't like at all what he just said, right?

"We don't really have a reason to meet. If something about your case comes up, I'll get in touch with you of course, but for something other than that..." His voice dropped to a whisper, letting what he wanted to say be implied.

"What about being friends? You already hang out with Seokjin hyung. Why can't we hang out all together?"

Taehyung took a moment to analyze his proposition, and he thought it would be a great opportunity to learn a few more things about him. He still hadn't told him who assaulted the man and what happened afterwards, he didn't know why he hated his parents so much, and he didn't know the origin of his trigger to do illegal things. Even though he wasn't obligated to know all these things, he wanted to dig deeper so he could help him live a decent life.

"I suppose we can try that. But we won't hang out just the two of us, and it would be better if you didn't tell your friends about what happened." He discerned his lips forming into an 'o' shape then as he darted his gaze away from him, and the shame blended with terror that consumed him was like no other. "You already did," he drawled and received an apologetic smile from him. "To all of them!?"

"No, just Yoongi!"

"Oh my God, he'll think I'm a whore." He dipped his face into his hands as his mortification upsurged.

"Hey, don't say that." A scowl of disapproval flashed up onto his face. "You're nothing like that, and you'll never be just because you had sex with me. And besides, you shouldn't care about what others think. It's your life, your choices. No one is allowed to tell you what to do or not."

Taehyung peeped at him through his fingers and then dropped his hands with a frustrated sigh. "I always care about what others say if I know them. Maybe I'm not friends with him, but still."

"Listen, none of my friends is like that, okay? They don't snoop on other people's businesses to belittle them or judge them. They do snoop because they're nosy so I should warn you about that, but they're good guys. Even if they find out, you don't have anything to worry about."

Taehyung stared at him in doubt, but he soon realized he was right. It was his choice to do it, and he shouldn't care about what others had to say. "Fine."

"Good because I'm sure Yoongi has already told everyone by now." His eyes glittered with relief as he cracked a smile, but it dissipated at light speed when Taehyung slapped his shoulder.

"Yah!"

The younger was the first one to burst into laughter as he studied his rather endearing angry face, but Taehyung's features eased as well once he saw his bright grin and heard his enchanting laugh.

"You're an ass."

"You curse a whole lot more than I thought. You know that, right?"

"You deserve it!"

"I know. You're free to do anything you want to me or with me. I won't stop you." A kittenish smirk sprawled on his lips with his loaded declaration.

"Get out of here," Taehyung said through honeyed giggles as he gripped his shoulders and twirled him around, leading him towards the exit.

"So you still don't want to come with me?" He slithered out of his hold before Taehyung could push him past the door.

"No, I really have to get some work done."

"Is it necessary work or you're doing this from the kindness of your heart?"

"Both?" Taehyung said, uncertain, although he didn't really have any necessary work to do.

"You're lying."

"Just leave. I have somewhere else to be later, anyway."

"Where?"

Taehyung cocked a scornful brow at him. "It doesn't concern you. Now leave."

"Friends share things with each other!" Jeongguk exclaimed while he was being shoved once again out of his office.

"That's a very apt comment. I'll let you think about that," he mocked, and before the other could say anything back, he shut the door in his face.

Jeongguk could only chuckle and shake his head at his demeanor. He was indeed a very interesting man, and he couldn't wait to get to know him more. What the fuck, why do you even want to know him more? His face contorted in a frown at his thoughts as he made his way out of the building.

Taehyung withered on his chair after the younger left. His eyes fell on his phone when the screen lit up with another incoming call from his mother, and he couldn't help the groan that spewed out of his mouth. He had been avoiding his family's calls after what happened the last time at the family dinner, and it was getting so annoying to receive these calls every day. He knew he had to face them eventually, and in order to leave him alone even for a while, he had to go there and let them ramble about whatever they wanted.

He sent a text to her saying that he would stop by there later that day and then focused on his work. That wasn't as easy as he thought it would since a certain curly-haired boy was repeatedly invading his mind, even though he endeavored to stay focused. He continued working nonetheless, hoping to finish soon so he could be done with the family gathering as quickly as possible.

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Jeongguk returned to Yoongi's house, still not wanting to deal with Hyekyo, and soon enough, he was being dragged inside by a furious Seokjin.

"Why is everyone pushing me or dragging me today?" he muttered as the older tossed him on the couch.

"You lying asshole!"

Jeongguk flinched at his sudden booming, outraged voice.

"You're so full of shit, playing the good guy in front of me and then doing whatever the hell you want! How could you do this—"

"I'm not gonna get yelled at for something I didn't initiate!" Jeongguk exclaimed, loud and clear. He sat straighter on the couch as the older recoiled and took his seat across him.

"I don't believe that. Taehyung isn't that stupid to give in to your lousy games."

"I wouldn't say he's stupid. I would say he's a person who has needs like all of us." He presented a fake sweet smile to him. "I was offering sex, he denied it, and then he came back asking for it. It was just sex, he did what he wanted to do, and I got what I wanted. The problem is solved, and we don't have to talk about it anymore."

"What do you mean the problem is solved?" Jimin asked with a frown.

"I mean that he wasn't gonna charge me with a lot of money in the first place. And now he's willing to let me pay the money for my trial by installments."

"He would have done that even if you didn't have sex with him!" Seokjin said, frustrated. "He's a good person with a kind heart."

"Maybe you're right, maybe you're not. I don't really care, anyway. Whatever happened, happened, and now all of us will keep our mouth shut about it and will forget it. I don't want any of you mentioning anything to Taehyung about my plan or about us having sex."

Seeing the severe and intense look on his face, the boys nodded. "So now you'll just keep having sex with him?" Jimin asked.

"He didn't seem like he wanted that, but at least he agreed to be friends and hang out all together."

"Do you really want to be his friend, Jeongguk?" Seokjin questioned in dejection, worry engulfing his traits.

"I don't know. Why not?"

"Don't play any more games with him."

"I won't." His eyes drew away from Seokjin's warning glare as he shifted in his seat, uneasy.

They resumed chatting about different things, ordered pizza to eat for lunch, and a few hours later, they decided to bundle off.

Jeongguk finally talked with Hyekyo and explained that the money his lawyer had charged him with wasn't that much, and she seemed relieved since they could afford it. She nagged him about disappearing and not answering his phone, but he dismissed her with a 'don't act like you care' and stormed to his room.

Yuju had also texted him a few hours ago, so he decided to give her a call. After asking her to bring him beers and cigarettes since he was running out, the girl didn't take long to appear outside of his bedroom door. He let her do most of the work as he wasn't turned on that much. For him, the important thing was to find release.

But how he reached his orgasm was something that left a puzzling feeling behind. He told her to suck him off, and as his eyes were closed, he didn't know why the hell flashbacks of how skilfully Taehyung had sucked him off yesterday started slamming into his head.

While imagining that the mouth devouring his erection was Taehyung's and the choked moans that echoed in the room were deeper and huskier, he came hard with a jumble of groans.

Throughout shocked and baffled about why Taehyung crossed his mind at that moment, he sent her off coldly. Settling on the thought that he was just tired from sleeping late yesterday, he grabbed a beer and his cigarettes and went out on the balcony.
  
 

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Thank you so much for 1k+ reads! Borahae💜🌹