After lunch, Taehyung walked towards his locker again and collected all the pieces of paper which had become even more in the last few hours.

He really tried to ignore it, but something inside of him always made him open the letters and send his mood even more down the drain.

'Jungkook deserves better than you, leave him alone! He's 100% straight anyways, he was probably just scared of what you might do him if he didn't pretend to like you! Don't do this to him and do us all a favour, leave him alone!'

And the next one:

'First BamBam and now Jeon? You're really hitting it off with every dude, huh?
When's my turn? I promise I'll be gentle ;)'

He sighed shakily. All of these letters practically said the same things, they just used different words:
You're a slut. You love playing around.

And in real life, no one confronted him or even dared to say anything. They just stared at him, their gazes full of venom and displeasure.

Of course, because anonymously, people said anything they wanted without a single sense of shame but as soon as they stood in front of him, they turned into cowards who didn't dare to say anything.

Taehyung tried not to get affected.
They're just stupid, immature teenagers who judge you without even knowing anything, he tried to tell himself. Don't let it get to you.

But it did get to him.

He felt a pang in his chest, getting harder and deeper at every single word he read. The corners of his mouth dropped, a sad expression spreading over his face.

Just as he was about to fold the letter back together, he felt a tap on his shoulder and turned around abruptly, his eyes casting downwards as he saw who it was.

"Oh, Jungkook. Hi."
Did he know about the rumors? He expected Jungkook to be super awkward about this and avoid him out of embarrassment. Maybe he simply didn't know yet. But sooner or later, he would. Taehyung's mood definetely was at the bottom of the pit by now.

He really didn't want to lose a friend.

"What's wrong? Why do you look so sad?," the ravenette asked, his eyes on the letters that Taehyung's slender fingers were grasping.
"What are those?"

So many damn questions.

The brunette laughed it off. "Oh, this? N-Nothing. And-- well, there are some... rumors, I think? About... me? People are just reacting a bit negatively so they pushed notes into my locker--" He gasped when Jungkook suddenly tore a letter out of his hand and opened it, eyeing Taehyung suspiciously.

He frowned as he saw the contents of the letter, his expression turning into one full of distaste. "What the hell? Who the fuck said this?!" Not even giving the other a chance to respond, he grabbed another letter and opened it aswell, this time, it was the 'First BamBam and now Jeon?'- letter.

His eyes darkened and his knuckles turned white from gripping the paper so harshly.
Okay, JK. Calm down or you'll scare him, he thought to himself. So, he took a deep breath and forced his eyes off the paper and the suggestive words written inside it.

"You need to report this, Tae," he said as softly as he could, despite everything inside him urging him to shout.
"This is not okay. This dude..." He held the last letter in front of Taehyung's eyes, "...was clearly objectifying you."

Taehyung shook his head wildly, not wanting to make a big deal out of this.
"No need. This is just temporary, they will stop as soon as they get tired of it." He tried to get the paper back out of Jungkook's hand but as soon as he reached his hand out, he felt the younger boy grab his wrist before he could even touch the paper.

"No. This is harassment and it's obviously affecting you. We should go to the principal's office." And before the brunette could even comprehend what was actually happening, the raven-haired boy started tearing the letters, ripping them into very small pieces and then just dropping them onto the floor.

"Jungkook!" Taehyung widened his eyes at the tiny little scraps of paper lying all over the floor. The younger just shrugged.
"The caretaker can worry about that." The brunettte sighed.

"Wh-Whatever. Anyways, back to topic. These letters are anonymous, complaining about them won't do shit. So please don't make a big deal out of this, or they'll never stop."
Jungkook, who was about to say something, just opened his mouth and looked down onto the floor.

"It's just not fair. These rumors include me too, and I haven't got one single letter inside my locker, just a few people thinking I'm a cheater and a two-timer because apparently, I flirted with some girl." The ravenette's voice turned as soft as velvet, making Taehyung feel a bit mushy inside.

"Oh. So you do know about the rumors." The older boy's voice was quiet, Jungkook furrowing his eyebrows at his statement.
"Of course I know. I realized something was wrong the moment I entered the classroom and honestly, I don't get how they only nag at you and hardly say anything to me."
Taehyung shrugged.

"I-I mean, you can be really intimidating, I guess. And you're so strong, like, physically? They're probably scared of angering you. And they probably like you because you're handsome. And me... I'm just frail. And weak. And I look like--" Before he could continue, he got cut off by the younger boy.

"Taehyung, do you even have any idea how strong you are? Jesus, remember the first time I talked to you? You completely shut me and my playfully cocky attitude down, which surprised me but holy shit, did it intrigue me.

"That's what makes you so special, you know? You don't listen to other and you do your thing. Don't let these fools tell you otherwise, 'kay?" He lifted the slightly smaller boy's chin softly, feeling big, adorable puppy eyes bore into his own. He could even see a smile on the older's rosy lips which made his heart race at a fast pace.

"Thanks, Jungkook. You're an amazing friend and I'm sorry for the rumors. If I hadn't panicked and called you my boyfriend, you wouldn't be so uncomfortable."
The ravenette's heart clenched slightly at then word 'friend', him biting his lip at the unpleasant feeling.

Hesitantly, he brought a hand towards Taehyung's hair and started patting it softly. "Who said I was uncomfortable, Tae? Honestly, I don't care about the rumors, let people say what they wanna say. But if these bastards send you any more mean notes, you're speaking up, okay? I'll be there for you."

And then Taehyung did something he would never have expected. He hugged him. Just like that.

With the brunette's arms wrapped tightly around his neck and his head nuzzling his shoulder, Jungkook could feel the other's breath hitting his neck repeatedly, which made his heart flutter again. So many emotions at once collided and made him feel like he was drowning and floating at the same time.

But he tried to forget his many thoughts as he put his arms around Taehyung's waist and hugged him back, inhaling the sweet, vanilla-like scent of his hair and almost sighing in contentment.

°○●○●○°

"Jimin? You there?"
A red-haired boy entered the school's bathrooms, walking alongside the stalls. His voice sounded worried and a hint of desperation could be heard.

Out of the last stall walked a silver-haired boy, appearing unfazed and relaxed, even though that was definetely not how he felt right now. Just the very boy the redhead was looking for.

"Hey, Hoseok-Hyung. What's up?" Jimin walked towards the sink, rolling up his sleeves and turning on the old, rusty faucet to wash his hands.
Hoseok looked at him with a frown on his face, lost in thoughts.
"I need to talk to you. And ask you something."

Jimin grew slightly suspicious, but decided not to show it. "Yeah? What is it?," he asked, turning off the faucet and drying his hands with a paper towel and looking at his redhead friend innocently.

"Before I start, I-I don't wanna assume anything, by the way. It's just, I saw something? And I don't know what to think of it? I'm just wondering..."
Jimin raised an eyebrow, throwing the paper towel into the trash.

"Yeah? Get to the point?"
Hoseok sighed, looking at his friend with an examinating gaze.
"Back there... I kinda noticed something? When we were talking to Taehyung and comforting him and hugging? I just accidentally saw the way you were looking at him..."

Getting nervous all of a sudden, the redhead fiddled around with the loops of his waistband.
"Do you... perhaps... have feelings for him? Like, not so friendly ones?"
To that, Jimin stayed silent for a moment, completely freezing in his actions.

After a very brief moment, it was like he regained consciousness, shaking his head and a questioning look on his face. "No, I have no idea what you're talking ahout. He's just my best friend and soulmate. Nothing more. You must've misunderstood something," he lied.

Of course, he knew what Hoseok meant. And in his mind, he was cussing himself out for being so careless. If Hoseok noticed, it was only a matter of time until Taehyung himself did. And he did not want that.

The redhead just nodded, looking kind of convinced. "Yeah, sorry. I must've seen something wrong. I hope you don't feel uncomfortable or anything now."

Jimin grinned slightly. "It's okay, Hyung. I don't feel uncomfortable, just a bit surprised," he lied again.

His insides were going crazy and his hands were shaking crazily. Out of fear, out of anger or out of unrequited and repressed love? He did not know.

He also did not know how long he was going to be able to keep going like this.

☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

(A/N: heyooo,

i already mentioned this in my other book but omggg,,,, this book hit 10k reads too???!! i never expected that but thank you so much uwuwuwu💜

there is so much i need to fix in this book just like in my other one but wow, i'm so glad people actually like my shit or like seem to like it just thank you sm guys be blessed and please take my love 💜💜💘💘💖💕💗💖💘💕❤💕💞💗💖💗💖💕💘💝 ily)