_______
ーShards of Memoriesー
_______

See me just as I am.
The perfection of an human being
from the surface.

Don't ask me about those bad times
they're a hassle, a burden
a past, I don't want to be confronted with...

_______

He didn't tell her, how his father mistreated him, how he never fit his standards, -never praised him, his one and only son.

Although one could admit that Taehyung's life was financially stable, he wouldn't even need to inherit the company, and there was nothing to worry about, except Happiness and Love which were almost non existent in his life.

His mother disappeared when Taehyung was at a young age. She was gone, and nobody gave that little boy the answer to where she went. All of their house helpers and his family members were hiding the truth from him.

The young master always blamed his own self for being the reason for the whole burden, for not fitting his fathers preferences and being the cause for the chairman's abusive behavior, although that was not the case in the closest.

The inheritor of Gucci thought that his life was almost destroyed, that it wasn't worth living, until in the midst of high school he met Taeri. The cute girl who was kind and humble, who always helped Taehyung out, never wanting to see people being mistreated. Back then she even wanted to become a lawyer and protect those who were accused wrongly.

A hard time did that man had to face during high school. It was the time when his father got into plenty of scandals concerning affairs with different kinds of women.

Taehyung's class mates were disrespecting him, scoffing at him and disregarding his feelings. But he didn't tell his father. He was too scared of what might happen to them. He thought it wouldn't bring him any profit and neither pleasure seeing others drowning by the good will of his father "protecting his own son".

Taeri was like the sun to Taehyung during that troublesome time. Somebody who cared for him, who let his poor soul cry on her shoulder and hear everything out what was troubling that boy. She was his friend, somebody he could rely on, somebody whom he trusted and developed affectionate feelings for. She was his last hope, and a girl who taught him how to smile again. Taeri was the one who motivated him to start designing once again and even became his muse.

But what made her become the way she is now?

The young man gulped the strong wine down making his throat burn nearly unbearably. The pain... he was used to it. He was used to the bruises, the blood, the never healing wounds and the agony.

Never did he wanted to start affairs or break somebody's heart, and neither use a person for his own benefit, unlike his father.

"You want to know more about me, right?"

Louise just kept on staring at him bluntly, sensing him the feeling of agreement. 

"Look, Louise... I want you to see only the best sides of me, the most beautiful parts-"

"But why? Why do you want me only to see the surface of your persona?"

"Believe me, if once you dig deeper, you won't look at me the same ever again. A person only seems from afar, from a distance perfect... If you get to know it closer, you will realize how broken someone might be, what scattered shards it's carrying with him and what ugly scars it has. I beg you to see only the aesthetically pleasing parts of me, Louise, everything else might only be a burden..." He averted his gaze, narrowing his eyes.

"Taehyung, that's completely normal... I mean all of us are carrying a part of broken past with us, we can't be flawless, there is no such person in this world! Don't you think that a story of a perfect person would lack thrills?"

"I won't disagree with you at this point. But for you, I want you to see me as an Aesthete, Louise. As an artist and an perfectionist at it's finest. You have already seen enough of my wounds concerning Taeri..." He said.

"Taehyung..." She said disappointedly.

________

-"Even with your scars
and your scratches...
I still would appreciate you..."-

-She thought-

_______

[ A slow romantic jazz song started to play in the background. ]

"I've got a crush on you."

"Excuse me?!" The lady was shocked at those words causing the man to laugh heartedly.

"By Ella Fitzgerald."
The young man's facial expression was an interesting one. He was being amused by Louise's reactions and wouldn't dare to stop teasing her, otherwise it would only be a loss of entertainment. Just a slight smirk could be seen on his face, but if you would take a look at his inner feelings, boy, you could see him jumping in joy and roll out of laughter.

"May I ask you out for a dance, milady?" Taehyung asked and reached a hand out.

"A pure cockily gentleman, you are... I see." She nodded.

Taehyung adjusted his right hand around her waist, causing her to straighten her back automatically, positioning them to dance a slow waltz.

"Never knew that you could dance and know such an old song..."

"We never danced together, darling. That one is a favorite of mine. Maybe you can't imagine it, but I'm an desperate lover for old music, romance and beautiful, delicate ladies, such as you."

That smooth phrase made Louise meet his gaze.

"How many compliments do I have to make for you to look at me?" He made her swirl and the ruffles of the black dress swung casually.

"You just always catch me off guard, Tae" Louise muttered under her breath shyly

Not knowing how to confront the man, and stay casually with him at the same time, the young lady tried her best at creating a small talk with some taste of the billionaire's character. At the end she wanted to see if their understanding's match or not but also if he would maybe open up just a bit to her.

"Tell me Taehyung... Do you think that romance was much more sincere back then, than it now is?" She kept on dancing to the rhythm of the song, following Taehyung's lead.

"I'm not certain if I can answer you that, Love. For I haven't lived back then although sometimes I get the feeling that I did!" He chuckled. "I just think that people were much more genuine towards each other. The feelings were treasured more, and that's for sure... Don't you think so too, lady Loulou?"

"Oh, dear mister Taehyung, for I believe this place is playing tricks on your mood as well as your behavior!" She laughed, enjoying their flirty change of language and attitude.

"Maybe... " Louise began once again after a pause. "Maybe these were treasured more, since people weren't as free as they are today... You know, the ideals, the understandings were different..."

"And not only that. People had taste!" He pointed out. "Gentlemen were asking ladies out for an dinner, went to theatre, enjoyed opera together or sometimes even a ballet performance to Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake. Men were dressed in chic suits and women in long elegant dresses. I even refuse to come to speak of the way how people spend their dates nowadays, it's grotesque and absurd!"

"The time was different, and with that the love..." Louise added causing the man to become melancholy in his expression.

"You know, Louise..." He carried on with the lead. "She changed. The girl who once was cute, kind and humble turned into a selfish woman who betrays, backstabs and humiliates people. Fame and wealth didn't do any good to that broken soul..." Taehyung let out a sigh.

Louise was lost for a second, unsure of what the young man meant, but understood that he was making a connection to their previous talk. She was glad, that Taehyung decided to open up even a bit to her.

"That did also catch you off-guard, am I right?"

Indeed.

_______

She knew it all.
She was the one whom he trusted...

But she just tore everything apart
by turning her back
on him.

But why?
What made her do so?

_______

"To be honest..." He continued with the slow dance. "I loved her... But... maybe she... Her feelings weren't genuine... I don't know anymore..." He neared his body even closer to Louise sensing the need of an embrace and understanding. His thoughts seemed to be in a mess, his words were muttered silently.

"But it doesn't matter..." Taehyung smiled sadly...

________

Louise knew, that maybe
he still had some feelings
left towards that woman...

But who knows...
Maybe our female protagonist
was also completely wrong?

Maybe he just needed to let
his thoughts out to complete his
past and start something new?

Nothing could be for sure,
but one fact was:

Their relationship bond
just grew stronger.

Finally, the flowers
started to blossom

As Taehyung finally
showed a little peek
of his heavy memories.

_______

"How about a fine drinking game, Loulou?" His eyebrows rose.

"Taehyung, unique at his finest... You, by your own self, seem to be like an abstract piece of art. I can't form a right interpretation of you."

"Hmmmmm I've got a crush on someone. Guess who?"

"Stop with these lyrics already, I won't fall for that one again!" She said and made her way towards the stools, stomping and hiding her blushing face away from Taehyung.

- "Don't you think that I might've meant it this time?" -
Taehyung muttered under his breath.

----------------------------
Taehyung what of an charming man he is~

Love every each person who reads this work through.
You guys make me happy, thank you for keeping up
with this book.

Have a nice day, take care!

Lots of Love
~L