"Oh."

Taehyung leaned out the window further, cocking his head to the side.

"Tell me, Jeongguk. Are you scared of all the attention from the girls because you're afraid ignoring them will accidentally out you?"

The brunette nodded shyly, looking down at the shingles of the roof below his window. He looked nervous, and something about his big sad doe eyes made Taehyung really want to hug him.

"You know, you don't have to if you don't want, but if we're going to talk, you should come over here."

"You mean like- in your room?"

"Yeah, unless you don't want to, or you'd rather be in your room."

"No, no, just- gimme a second to get over there."

Taehyung nodded and moved away from the window, allowing Jeongguk to climb through. Once there, the boy sat down on the fluffy comforter draped over Taehyung's bed. Rolling the fabric between his fingers, he looked up.

"Back at my old school, it was a lot easier to stay in the closet. I was out to my close circle of friends, but nobody else knew. I still got picked on for being too feminine, but for the most part nobody bothered me. Now that all these girls are around, I feel like ignoring them all will make people ask questions. Maybe it's just me being paranoid, I dunno..."

Taehyung looked the boy over thoughtfully, zoning out to think. When he had come to a solution, he laid his hand on Jeongguk's shoulder, turning the boy to face him.

"Nobody is going to find out, but you need to be super careful. Do not, under any circumstances, come up to me at school. People will immediately assume you're gay if you're friendly with me. Do your best to just deal with the girls for as long as you can, and I'm here when you come home if you need me."

The boy nodded, finally taking a moment and looking around Taehyung's room. Up on his walls were painting and various pencil sketches, a few framed art pieces sat on his dresser. His desk was a mess of paper, brushes, pencils, and fountain pens.

"You drew all these?"

"Yeah. I wanna go to art school when I graduate."

"I like them."

He smiled, watching Jeongguk admire each art piece.

"I love it because every piece means something different to everyone, every piece speaks differently. And I can see myself in every one, all the things I've been through. I look back and I think at the time it was rough, but it's just beautiful now."

"How does everything you say sound so poetic?"

Taehyung laughed, toying with the cuff of his jeans.

"I like to look for the beauty in things."

>>>

I'v never had a diary before, so I guess I'll just start mine like everyone else.
Dear diary,
Today I met a boy. He just moved here from New York, and I guess he's still getting used to the small town feel. He's really sweet, and I hope I can be friends with him and still keep him safe. I just want him to be happy, even if it means I can't see him at school. I made him promise not to talk to me. I didn't want to, but I think it's better this way. Even so, that doesn't stop me from thinking about how it could be. Anyways, it's past midnight. I should go.
-TK

>>>

In the days following their first encounter, they continued to meet up every night. Jeongguk hung all the drawings Taehyung showed him up on his bulletin board at home. He started sending paper airplanes back over to Taehyung, asking him how his day was. Taehyung would poke his head out the window and welcome Jeongguk into his room, just to talk.

They discussed homework and friends at school. Taehyung promised he'd introduce the boy to Seokjin, and that the older would definitely love him.

"He'll want to adopt you by end of the day I bet."

At this, Jeongguk just laughed. Seokjin seemed like a nice guy, and fun to hang out with. And if it meant he got to know more people like him, he would certainly go for that. That wasn't something he got to experience much at his other school.

At the end of the night, Taehyung would reluctantly wave goodbye to Jeongguk as he climbed back into his window. Every day he looked forward to seeing his face, and after he left he couldn't help but start to wish he could see him at school too. But it was better this way. If they ever tried to hang out at school, Jeongguk was going to get hurt.

More than anything, he wanted him to be safe. And if safe was away from Taehyung, that was where he would stay. Even if he didn't like it.

>>>

"Tae, how come you didn't just stay in the closet if everyone here is so conservative?"

The older sighed, shaking his head.

"I wanted to stay in the closet. I did everything, I was so careful, never went on dates in town, hid all the photos and such, but someone outed me. I got caught on a date, just outside of town. Word got out so quickly it was hard to deny it, so I stopped trying."

"Oh my god."

Jeongguk's eyes were sympathetic, mixed with a hint of fear. He scooted closer to Taehyung, looking him in the eyes.

"How- how do I know they won't do the same thing to me?"

"Because you'll be extra careful. Stay away from Seokjin and I and you'll stay under the radar. Even if it means you have to hide yourself, I want you to promise me you'll keep it a secret. I don't want you getting hurt. It's not forever."

The older gripped one of his hands firmly, wanting  assurance that the other boy would be safe. The brunette looked down at his own hand, warm in Taehyung's grasp.

"I promise I'll be careful."