A/N: This story is really fun to write, and I love writing it cause Taehyung is just... *chefs kiss*. However, due to some personal and health issues that have come up recently, focusing on more than one story when I have 5+ ongoing stories right now is too much. I will update this story when I can, but until I finish Heartless (which will hopefully be soon as there's only 7 chapters left), it may take a bit for more chapters to come out. I swear I didn't drop this story randomly, I'm going to finish it and hopefully give it consistent updates, but it may take some time until I finish my other big story. Thank you for your patience, and I hope the next update doesn't take nearly as long as this one did.

CHAPTER 9 - LOVELY

The beach was lonely.

It felt as though she was getting her heart trampled on over and over again as she stared out at the beach ahead of her. There were waves crashing against the sand, blowing grains of it toward her. It got between her toes, which made her cringe and wish to pop a gasket. Or two. Or three. One thing she despised was the feeling of dirt, grime, or sand getting between her fingers and toes. That was what she dealt with since the crash.

Taehyung had been gone long enough that she got to deal with isolation. This was what it'd be like if she didn't have Taehyung with her, and it was appalling. Her left alone with her thoughts made her mind go insane. All she saw were flashes of her father's face, and she heard his laugh, but it wasn't the laugh one would think it'd be. It was like he was laughing at her. She wasn't sure why, but it felt real. It had her itching her skin, flakes of it piling up by her side.

Her anxious side was kicking in. Where had Tae gone that he had disappeared for a lengthy amount of time? Or maybe the time was exaggerated since the solitude was getting to her head. That was a real possibility. She was already pulling at the sand and grass, attempting to distract herself from the reality she was faced with.

There were birds chirping in the distance, and that was enough to have her feeling more at peace. Less alone. If she was forced to stay alone like this, she was sure she'd turn into a violent psychopath. Wasn't that what isolation did to people? Made them lose their minds and lash out?

However, her thoughts shattered away when she heard the crack of a twig. It caused the birds to flutter away. More solitude. The solitude didn't last, and she heard rushed breathing next. It was like an asthma attack was occurring behind her, and she whipped her head around in time to see the man she had learned to adore. He was beelining for their HQ, and she found herself gasping at the way he was carrying himself, wobbling back and forth.

When Taehyung came fully into her view, she wasn't expecting him to have tears streaming down his face. Right away, she ran to him, halting only a few feet away. Then, the rotten aroma hit her nostrils, and she understood what happened long before she saw the corpses he was carrying.

"Oh Tae," she said in a mutter, rushing up to hug him.

He hugged back with one arm, his other carrying the animals. She felt him bury his head against her shoulder, him sniffling and threatening to cry. "I'm sorry," he murmured. "I hesitated and lost a bunch of them, I only got 2."

"Hey, shh shh, all that matters is that you're alive and we have food. You did so good, Tae. We're going to eat well." She pulled back and placed her hands on his face without her brain telling her to do so. It was an instinct, and one she didn't regret. "I'm so sorry you had to do that. Necessary or not, I can't imagine how that felt. Thank you for doing that for me."

Their eye contact continued, and it brought her heart to a halt. The pain behind Taehyung's irises created a swarm of sorrow that swam deep inside the pits of her stomach, circling until the swarm captured her brain and held her captive. Her vision blurred. Next, it did a spin, and she wasn't sure if that was a result of the eye contact, or the emotions that were overflowing within her.

Before she could go deeper inside herself, Tae slowly grinned, tears still trickling down his face. "You're welcome," he said, his voice hitching inside his throat.

She kept wiping his tears away, making sure not one hit the ground. He was sniffling and trying not to cry harder, but he couldn't stop himself, and she couldn't blame him. Her heart called to hug him, to cradle him like a baby and tell him everything would be okay. It would be a lie, but a pleasant one. Like she was singing him into a sleep that would last forever. It may be peaceful, but he'd never wake up. That was what this felt like.

It was ironic how fast the night changed. One minute, she was scoffing at the idea of helping Tae, and the next, she was standing in front of his broken form as his only available rock. The only one who could hold him. The only one who could console his shattering voice and broken soul.

"Come on, let's sit down, okay?" she asked, him dipping his head in an action that resembled a nod.

He followed her words, plopping on the ground with the meat in his hands. She eyed the corpses, her nostrils grimacing from the scent that whacked her face. "I'm sorry I took so long. There's a river over there, fresh water, too. Our water problem is solved." Although her body lurched at the idea of fresh water, she forced herself not to jump for joy just yet, not when they had more problems. Like the prospect of getting rescued. That was a conversation they'd have to have at some point.

"We should explore more then, try and find what else is here. Maybe there's other survivors from the crash that made it out and we didn't see. Maybe they're living near that river since it's freshwater," she said, Taehyung not bothering to agree or disagree, but she could tell he was still distant. Distant enough that her heart begged to make it right. So that was exactly what she did.

Y/n got closer to him, him peeping up at her when she stopped mere inches away from him. She placed a hand on his cheek, ignoring his curious eyes burning through her skin. The proximity had her blushing. Literally blushing. Y/n L/n. Blushing. Turning a deep shade of scarlet mixed with a hot pink. How? That wasn't something that ever happened. She couldn't remember the last time she fully blushed, especially because of a man. The last time was probably in a business meeting, one of her first. She used to have minor stage fright, often turning red because of presentations. Since then she overcame that, becoming a feared businesswoman in an industry that needed more like her. Ruthless but sensible. That was why she was good: she had a reason behind everything she did, a valid reason.

So why did she not have a reason to be close to Tae?

Taehyung kept his eyes trailed on her, his hands on her hips and swaying them gently. She placed a hand on his cheek, their eyes locking. "I need to know you'll be okay," she said in a hush, rubbing her thumb across him. He leaned into it, letting out a soft breath. What surprised her most was when he rested his hand over hers, kissing the back of hers as softly as possible. Another blush. What the hell was wrong with her?

The gentleness he gave her reminded her too much of the old days. The days when she wasn't as uptight, and she let loose and had fun. In a strange, and almost confusing way, his touch reminded her of home. The safety he offered her was similar to that of her old home's. She didn't mean the house she lived in, she meant the abode her family stayed. The abode she wished she could return to, but after her shift in character, she never bothered returning. It could've been out of fear. Could've been.

"I don't know if I will," he replied, the sincerity dripping into his tone making her shiver. "But I'll try to be."

She gave him a firm nod, about to pull away when he kept her there. The two went back to staring at each other, admiration flying into her eyes. "Have you ever heard of personal space, Mr. Kim?" she asked, him breaking out into a boxy smile and chuckling.

"Have you?" Y/n rolled her eyes, him laughing at the sight. "That's not a yes. I'm starting to think you don't know personal boundaries, Miss L/n," he said, and she was grateful his tone was amused instead of the depressed it had been mere moments prior.

"You're being oddly flirty considering everything happening."

He sighed, placing his forehead on hers. The move had her halting, every cell in her body jumping at the sudden contact. Close contact. He was inches away. As were his lips. Those soft, gorgeous lips she found herself wanting to touch. How? How did she feel so strongly for someone she barely knew? It was as captivating as it was frightening, her instincts telling her to pull away. She didn't.

"I don't know what I'm doing," he whispered, his breath hitting her lips. "All I know is that I want to do it with you."

"We're flirting now, are we Mr. Kim? One hug was all it took?" she said, parroting the words she had said before.

He came a bit closer, if that was even possible, his nose skimming by hers. That action brought her figure a wave of bliss that caused her legs to tremble. She was amazed he didn't notice. Or maybe he did, but he didn't have the heart to admit that to her. 

Every muscle inside her was jumping for joy, but her eyes stayed still, her gaze locking on the one ahead of her. Inches ahead of her. Maybe even centimeters. She wasn't sure how to react to such proximity. All she knew was that she enjoyed it. Part of her wondered if she loved it.

"I'd consider this bonding, not flirting. Unless you're taking this the wrong way. Is that the case, Miss L/n?" he asked.

"Based on the statistics, no."

"What statistics?"

"I don't fucking know, you always make fun of me for being a businesswoman, so I'm making fun of myself. Happy?" she asked, using the humor as a way to get out of the situation. To her surprise, it worked.

He snickered, pulling away. Despite it being her plan, she shivered at the lack of warmth. "Very. Now come on, we have to figure out how we're gonna cook some food."

She agreed, the two sorting the corpses out with grimaces on their faces. She was surprised Taehyung didn't cry again, but there were moments where it looked like they both would. Tae kept his eyes on the animals and gathered stones for a fire, her scooting a bit closer to eye him. The bloody knife was in his hands, him glancing at their future meal with hesitance in his posture. 

"What is it?" she asked, taking the knife from him. "Do you want me to skin it?"

"Do you know how?"

"No, but I doubt you do either." Him tilting his head confirmed that, Y/n taking the animal and placing it in her lap. "I'm proud of you." She paused, meeting his gaze. "I know it's a strange thing to be proud of, but I am proud of you for having the courage to do this. It really means a lot that you were willing to do this for me."

"You deserve it, you're going through enough. You've done so much, and I'm sorry I've ever taken you for granted. That was unfair," he replied.

"Maybe it was, but I'm also an asshole, so don't give me too much of a free pass." She began with the creature, wincing each cut she made. Taehyung gathered more berries, grabbing their empty water bottles and offering to fill all of them. Y/n didn't stop him, so he left, leaving her alone on the beach.

She was sure he left on purpose. Not to leave her, but to get away from the act she was committing. The more she cut, the more she felt like a criminal. Although this was far from a crime back in America, and in most countries she knew of, it seemed like she should get handcuffs and turn herself in. If she had an opportunity to do that, she pondered if she actually would. She didn't get an answer, so she went back to focusing on her environment in case she got attacked by wildlife.

It was a gorgeous beach, all things considered. But she didn't like being alone. There was a comfort to Taehyung being with her. And she knew deep down it wasn't just because she didn't want to be alone. Although that was a factor too. Not wanting to be alone, she meant. Taehyung was starting to grow on her. Just starting to. Totally not already completely grown on her or anything. Nooo, who would think that?

The antagonizing time it took Tae to come back had Y/n in her thoughts for a little too long. Back when she was in high school, she was an overthinker. Sometimes, she still had that tendency. So when Taehyung didn't come back in a timely manner, she began to panic and contemplated throwing shit around (as if that would solve anything). When she panicked, she panicked hard. Luckily, she didn't panic often. But as she mentioned prior, when she did, it was bad.

Fortunately, Tae did come back with full water bottles. However, his smile was gone, replaced with furrowed brows and pursed lips that had her standing to meet him. "What is it? What's going on?" she asked, snatching the bottles from him and setting them down.

His mouth bobbed open and closed, him shaking his head before taking a few steps back. "Y/n, we need to get out of here and we need to do it now."

"Tae, I'm not sure how we can do that, but why?"

Taehyung pretended he wasn't about to cry and ran a hand through his hair. The sight of him on the verge of tears both perplexed and depressed her. However, she could tell they were tears of rage. Maybe even of terror. 

"I-I don't know what you want me to say to that, Y/n. You won't believe me if I tell you," he said, his voice scratching against his tongue as it flew by his parted lips.

She took both his hands and made him sit, the two of them calming their nerves together. It didn't work for over a minute, Taehyung pretending he wasn't hyperventilating and quivering. The two hands she held were clamming up and leaving a trail of moisture on her skin, but she didn't bother trying to wipe it off. The poor boy was a wreck of emotions, his body cold and his eyes twitching as if he saw a ghost. 

"Did something attack you? Are there more dangerous animals on this island?" she asked.

"No and yes."

"No and yes?" She reached forward and stroked his cheek, the man leaning into her touch. He came closer, curling up against her like he was a child. It broke her heart to see Taehyung like that. No one deserved to be that scared, let alone Kim Taehyung. Someone who had kindness in his heart despite his flaws and a slightly closed mind. This person was changing her, whether she wanted to admit it or not.

"I don't know how to say it without freaking you out," he said in a quiet tone, the words feeling like he was confessing to a sin.

"Don't worry about freaking me out." She did her best to comfort him, massaging his cheek as well as reaching her free hand up to touch his hair. "Taehyung, we're in this together. You know that, right?" For a moment, just a brief, fleeting moment, she thought he wanted to kiss her. His eyes shifted down to her lips, then to her gaze again. It was like a fairytale. Y/n wasn't totally familiar with the concepts of a 'fairytale' life, but when Taehyung gave her that look of desire and admiration, she suddenly craved it. Like it was a new idea that she needed in her life. "I know you don't trust me, and you have every reason not to, but we solve problems together now. Not apart."

The two seconds it took Taehyung to reply had her mind frenzying and tearing itself to shreds. When his deep voice came back, any panic she had soothed. "What if I want to trust you?"

She gave both his hands a squeeze, almost bouncing her nose off of his from how close they got. "Then tell me everything," she whispered, and that finally brought him to his senses.

"Can you promise you won't scream or freak out? Cause I really need you to be quiet when I tell you this. We could be in danger if you make any loud noises."

"If I freak out, I won't say anything. I'll just keep it in my mind instead, okay? Does that help?"

He let out a soft breath that hit her flesh and formed goosebumps as a result, his shoulders easing and releasing the tension that was there. "That helps a lot. Honestly, I'm still not sure what the fuck to say and how the fuck I'm supposed to react to it."

"Start small. Tell me the beginning."

"I went back to the river, and there was n-nothing really special, but then I saw something move in the bushes." She nodded, absorbing each word. She hoped her attentive nature brought him a sense of consolation. Based on the way his hands stopped shaking, she guessed it did. "And then I saw another animal..."

"What type?"

"A familiar one."

She knit her brows together and shook her head, Taehyung sighing and peering at the dirt. "Tae, tell me. What was it?" His hands squeezed around hers again, his eyes going shut.

"People, Y/n. I saw people."