XXIII. WE KEEP THIS LOVE IN A PHOTOGRAPH

"Taehyung."

He hummed in response.

"Not that I don't appreciate your company or anything, but..."

"But what?"

She sighed, planting her foot on the ground to stop herself from swinging. Taehyung turned to her curiously. Reading her expression, it must not be that serious.

"You said before that we were taking Yeontan to Seoul and I've yet to see him."

Taehyung laughed, "He was in Geochang with my cousins for the week. I'm sure that he's already home by now."

"Thank god, I thought you were hiding him from me or something."

"Why would I hide him from you?"

"Because I might steal him from you?"

He narrowed his eyes at her, "Now I'm really considering hiding him away from you."

Gyeoul smiled, pushing her heels against the ground. "Do you remember after our fight, our parents forced us to meet? I gave you choco pies while you gave me white carnations."

Laughing, he tilted his head at her, "It's a wonder how we can remember everything except each other's name." He shook his head, "I still can't believe you figured it out just by the switched bracelet. I never would have figured it out on my own."

"You underestimate how genius you are, Kim Tae," she smiled, making her swings more powerful. "I can't count the number of times you amazed me with that brain of yours."

"I would have thought my bead turned brown because the color was fading or something."

She laughed, tilting her head back as she did so. Feeling the way she moved through the air while she was on that swing made her feel like a child again. She smiled, opening her eyes and just now realizing how dark it was.

"Do you remember how we used to panic whenever we were still outside and it was getting dark?"

He hummed, "We rivaled Quicksilver at how fast we ran back home."

"Even Quicksilver didn't catch the bullets and died. No matter how fast we ran to make it home, we'd always be there just in time to face our mothers' wrath." She slowed her swinging, leaning forward. "Which reminds me, we should get home before dinner."

"You just want to see Yeontan sooner."

Gyeoul smiled innocently, "Is that such a crime?"

Taehyung stood up, holding his hand out for Gyeoul. She smiled, smacking it and standing up on her own. They linked arms and walked back home.

Conversations filled with 'do you remember when...?' and 'there was once that time when we...' filled the air all the way to Taehyung's house, performing autopsies on the senseless dialogue and merry memories that happened years ago. They talked about those things like an old home — all the places their hearts have touched in the past that built the foundation of the character they were at that very moment.

"They're back!"

She chuckled, pulling away from Taehyung as they neared the gate of the house. "I love your family." They stopped at their front door, hearing Taeri and Taejun yelling at each other while high-pitched barks only amplified the chaos that must be happening inside.

"Obviously, my family loves you too," Taehyung said, motioning his hand at the ruckus they could hear inside. She smiled humorously while putting her hand on the doorknob to open it. "But just so you know—" she tentatively twisted the doorknob, waiting for him to continue. "—you're part of the family now too. There's no escaping it."

"I'm sure mine could say the same thing about you."

"Why are they not coming inside?"

"Oh my god, do you think they're kissing?"

"Taejun, Taeri! Give them some privacy, will you? Go help your father with the side dishes!"

Taehyung sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. Gyeoul laughed at his reaction and opened the door, finally giving her friend's younger siblings some satisfaction. As the door opened, they were immediately greeted by a small dog, barking happily at the sight of his owner with his tail wagging at an impressive speed.

Gyeoul could pass out at how adorable Yeontan was.

"Hello, Tannie!" Taehyung gasped dramatically as he picked up the pomeranian and smothered him with kisses. "Did you miss me? I missed you! Yes, you! I missed this baby so much."

The dancer watched them with fond eyes as she took off her shoes and wore her designated slippers.

Although she was excited to smother Yeontan with all the love she can muster, she was still a bit wary. She's more used to bigger dogs because they were the ones with the most friendly hearts. Small dogs were soul-snatchers with angelic facades. It would probably take a lot for Yeontan to warm up to her so she didn't want to force things.

"Gyeoul, dear!" Ryuwon called with an excited smile on her face. She waved her over to the living room where she was surrounded by boxes upon boxes. "Come! How was your day?"

With one last look at the duo who was now wiggling on the floor together, the dancer went to the messy living room.

She sat down across from the mother on the floor. "It was great, we enjoyed today." Motioning her hand to the dusty boxes, she asked, "But may I ask what all these are?"

"These—" she started, pulling a photograph from one of the smaller boxes and handing it to her. Gyeoul scanned it and realized that it was a picture of her and Taehyung holding hands while wearing dinosaur onesies with whiskers drawn on their faces. "—are memories. All of the boxes around you contain a bunch of your memories from the past. It was the two younger siblings that found them in the basement while you two were gone."

Gyeoul gaped at her, looking around to get a full look at the living room. There were around six boxes there.

"This one was taken in December 2000, right? For a recital at school." Taehyung stood over Gyeoul and snatched the photograph from her hands. She scowled at him. "I've never seen dinosaurs with whiskers. This was your doing, right, pengweng?"

"I thought we were wearing bunny onesies—"

Her words got cut off as the awaited four-legged creature appeared before her knees. Yeontan sniffed the floor near her and her jeans, trying to identify the unfamiliar person. Gyeoul lost her focus on her friend, smiling widely as soon as her eyes settled on the dog. She outstretched her hand, allowing his wet nose to graze over her fingers and praying that he will allow her to pet him.

Yeontan pulled away slightly, giving Gyeoul the 'go' signal. The dancer beamed at the dog and showered him with love.

"Look, more of our old school pictures!" Taehyung pointed out, showing the bundle of pictures in her direction. His words turned out to be white noise to her as she continued to pet and coo at the dog. "Gyeoul." He tried again. Appalled, he turned to his mother with knitted eyebrows. "Did I die and become a ghost? Am I invisible?"

"Aww, looks like Yeontan finally found his mommy!"

Gyeoul froze with her hand left mid-air, looking at her with wide eyes. The dog eyed the hand, waiting for it to continue petting him. Upon realizing that the woman made no motion to continue, he barked until he got her attention.

"I don't think that's what Yeontan thinks," Gyeoul chuckled awkwardly, picking the dog up in her arms and finally giving her friend some attention. "What did you want to show me? Something about school pictures?"

His mother cut in, showing her another picture, "Look at this one, dear. This was taken at a wedding."

Taehyung took the picture from his mother's fingers and showed it to Gyeoul, seeing as she couldn't do it herself since there was a dog in her arms that would whine if she failed to give him attention.

It was a picture of them dancing in the middle of the dance floor with elderly couples surrounding them. The picture showed that they were fighting about something, probably about who should lead the dancer.

"We were playing prince and princess that day," Gyeoul recalled, putting Yeontan down and standing up. "You were such a terrible dancer back then, kept stepping on my toes and blaming me for counting wrong."

He pursed his lips into a sarcastic smile. "Come on, princess, let's freshen up before dinner."

"You can use Taeri's bathroom!" Sangkyu called from the kitchen.

Taehyung furrowed his eyebrows, "Why couldn't she use my bathroom?"

The dancer smiled cheekily, "You don't expect us to use your shower at the same time, do you?" Taehyung gave her an unimpressed look. She smiled with her eyes, gesturing to the stairs, "Lead the way, peasant."

❆

"I have this feeling that you're getting sick of me, teach."

Gyeoul was diligently setting up the design of their bed. The house had one guest room, but apparently, that guest room was used mostly for storage over the past few months so the parents suggested that they slept in Taehyung's room. Neither of them wanted the other to sacrifice the full comforts of sleep by letting the other volunteer sleep on the floor.

"I heard that you cuddle in your sleep," Gyeoul smiled, placing the last pillow on their pillow wall. The pillow wall was just two pillows piled on top of each other in the middle of the bed. "You stay on your side and I stay on my side."

"What if I do end up hugging you in my sleep?"

"Then my instincts would kick in and I'd push you back to your side."

He pouted, "You hold hands in your sleep, what if you end up doing that?"

"Then you have my permission to kick me off the bed."

Gyeoul plopped herself on the bed like a starfish. Taehyung grinned and jumped over to her, curling himself smaller and wrapping his arms around her torso. He made sure to wiggle his fingers at her sides. Laughing, the dancer held back a surprised snort. She tried to push him off, but that only encouraged him more. Playful vengeance surged through her and she tickled him back by his armpits, rolling on top of him.

Like a lame loser, Taehyung immediately cowered away, curling more into himself to avoid her attacks.

"If you stop—" he tried to negotiate but was cut off by Gyeoul now tickling his sides. "If you stop then we can watch the stars on the roof!"

She stopped, her chest heaving up and down as tired laughs escaped her.

Taehyung propped himself by his elbows upon noticing that she was straddling him. He grinned, trailing his knuckles down her arm. Gyeoul narrowed her eyes at the odd action, clearly confused. "So, you won't cuddle me but you're so willing to be on top—"

A pillow suddenly smothered him.

Gyeoul laughed evilly and rolled off of him. "Let's go see the stars." She took their jackets and gave his to him.

If there was anything they were glad that never changed, it was their childish charm. Sure, they matured, but their hearts were still the same as it was before.

The house didn't have a rooftop, but it did have a roof that wasn't too inclined. The two childhood friends climbed out of a window and up on the roof. Gyeoul, who had an easier time balancing herself due to her dance background, held Taehyung's hand all throughout as he tried to stabilize himself on the roof. He wasn't very fond of heights, even though the height from the roof wasn't deathly lethal. She waited until he finally settled down.

"It's like we're in a coming-of-age movie," Taehyung pointed out as Gyeoul sat down.

She chuckled, "Except we're past the coming-of-age stage."

"A scene from a romantic movie then?"

Poking his arm, she grinned, "Very romantic of you, xiaolongbao."

"Romantic enough to be promoted as your prince?"

"I wouldn't count on it, peasant."

Taehyung scrunched his face and looked away, dramatically smacking a hand over his chest as he was the personification of 'shot through the heart and you're to blame, darling, you give love a bad name.'

She bit back a goofy smile, looking up at the sky. "Looking at the sky always makes me dream."

Gyeoul breathed out a heavy sigh. The stars weren't as visible that night due to the light pollution, but they can see some bright ones peeking through. Other than that, there was a full moon in the middle of the beauty of it all. It was brighter than it usually was. She looked to her side, drinking in the image of him under the pale moonlight. She could get drunk in it. The beauty of the lune is rendered incomparable to how annihilating the divinity of the person next to her had.

"You know," Taehyung started, looking up at the sky in awe. "People say that the full moon is the perfect time to make a wish."

She tore her gaze away from him. "There we are again with the wishes," Gyeoul hummed. She pointed at the sky, "We already wished upon the stars and the universe. Now we're wishing on the moon. Next thing you know, we're wishing on every coin we see on the ground."

"It doesn't hurt to make wishes." He paused, looking at her. "What would you wish for?"

Gyeoul didn't hesitate, "World peace."

"That's a nice wish, but I meant for you. Think selfishly and think of something that you want. A wish that you so badly want to be granted."

For selfish motives, there were so many things that she wanted. She wanted to take a look into the future and see if her future self was any bit closer to being one of the most renowned choreographers worldwide. She wanted to wish for universal credit cards with no limits so she could buy everything she wanted in the world without worrying if it was too expensive or not. She wanted to buy a nice penthouse apartment somewhere on the Upper East Side of New York and live out her days partying and shopping like a certified material girl.

But as her ears picked up the way her breath synched up with the one beside her — her wish became clear in her mind.

"I have nothing left to wish for."

"Really? You spent some time thinking about it, though."

Her breath hitched, the words almost dying pitifully in her throat.

"Being here beside you doing even the most mundane things and still having the time of my life. That's enough of a wish granted for me."

Taehyung blinked, taking a second to realize what she just said. Her words can mean any other way than the one he wished for them to mean. But it affected him the same way anyway. His heart started to murmur things that made his mind go haywire and his soul burst into a melodious tune composed especially for his moments with her.

Before he could even think about what he was going to do next, he was pushing back a stray lock of hair behind her ear.

Gyeoul's eyes widened by a small fraction. She drew out a shaky breath and turned to him. Over the time they were friends, they became more frequent with casual physical contact, whether it be quick hugs or linking arms. She shouldn't be so affected by something so simple as tucking hair behind her ear. But it did.

And it didn't help that his hand lingered by her face, barely hovering over the burning skin of her cheeks.

Even though she was a bit startled, she smiled.

That was all it took to make him crumble.

Brushing his thumb lightly over her cheek, he leaned in and pressed his lips on her forehead.

Natural was something that would describe the way his gentle kiss felt on her skin. Gyeoul closed her eyes as he lingered there. Call it crazy, but them being in such a sweet position felt like the universe fated for it to happen. It felt right.

But it still felt wrong.

His dream, his selfish wish.

One that wouldn't come true.

He pulled away, witnessing the ease on her face. Her eyes fluttered open, looking back at him.

"You never told me."

Did she figure me out already? Taehyung asked himself. "I — what did I never tell you?"

"What your wish is."

Fixing his position beside her, he faced forward to avoid her eyes. "It wouldn't come true anyway." He can't risk allowing it to come true.

"You never know, maybe it might." Gyeoul decided not to pry until he was ready to tell her. She cleared her throat, ridding herself of the replays of that forehead kiss.

"What are your plans when we go back home?"

She hummed, "I was put in charge of Black Swan for your MMA performance in December, so I'd probably spend the day mapping out the choreography. And I have that class in 1MILLION after."

"The orchestral version?"

"Yeah, I've been daydreaming about doing something related to a big performance of that version ever since I heard it with Jimin. My seniors noticed and gave me a bigger role."

Taehyung nodded, he turned and stared at her side profile. "It's fitting. You're something of a swan princess yourself." He smiled, "I remember when I was watching you dance contemporary live for the first time, my heart was dancing with you on the dance floor."

A swan princess, Gyeoul thought, her stomach fluttering at his new description. She laid down on her back to get a better view of the night sky. There were so many things running through her mind at that moment. Most of them were of the idol beside her. Turning her head, she stared at the back of his head and wondered if she was plaguing his thoughts as much as he plagued hers.

"We should get some sleep if we want to wake up early tomorrow to go through the boxes," Taehyung proposed, getting up on the roof on all fours, fear evident in his features. "Help me please?"

Get some sleep even though you gave me a reason for sleepless nights? Damn you for kissing my forehead.

Gyeoul pressed her lips together to keep herself from laughing. She, just like when they climbed up, held Taehyung's hand all the way back to the window.

"Good night!" the dancer announced, immediately snuggling herself under the covers as they got to the room.

"You say that, but I bet you'll be on your phone for the next hour."

She rolled over, revealing her phone that already displayed the Netflix application. "You know me so well."

He plopped himself to her side of the bed, "What're you going to watch?"

Pushing him over to his side of the bed, she answered, "Just the first episode of It's Okay To Not Be Okay. Have you watched it already?" Before he could answer, she quickly added, "And if you already did, then I suggest you go to sleep because I can't risk you spoiling everything."

"It's the new drama with Kim Soohyun and Seo Yeaji, right?" Taehyung asked. Gyeoul nodded, still glaring warningly at him. "Then no, I haven't.

That made her loosen up, "Good." She scooted closer to their pillow wall and played the first episode of the drama.

"You know, there's a fully functional TV right in front of us."

Would he mind if I told him I just wanted to get close to him? she thought. "There's also a fully functional phone right in front of your face. It's perfect for watching only one episode."

Taehyung accepted her reason without question and scooted closer. "I'll hold it for you."

Gyeoul let him take the phone and comfortably positioned herself beside him, still aware of the barrier between them. Beside her, her friend did the same. Once they were settled, Taehyung rewound the episode and watched silently, just like he should have last night in his apartment.

"The plot is coming around nicely, I like it," she commented, a half-smile on her face.

The plot, or Kim Soohyun's character, rather, was notified about a patient. Gyeoul pursed her lips at the sight of the moving scene, watching as his character strode through the halls and ripped the plastic that contained a syringe with his teeth. Heart eyes. Very unsanitary, the syringe was probably already contaminated, but his execution was absolutely fiery and attractive.

Noticing the way she was watching the devilishly handsome actor too closely, Taehyung inched the phone slowly away from her and closer to himself.

"What are you doing?" Gyeoul murmured, leaning closer to Taehyung so she could get a better view of the phone.

"Appreciating Kim Soohyun's beauty."

"Can you share? I want to appreciate his beauty too."

"I don't like sharing."

Gyeoul chuckled, gently wrapping her fingers around his wrist and positioning it to the way it was before. He gulped, hoping that his pulse wouldn't reflect the way his heart started to skip. Letting him go, she took her phone from him to let him rest his arm more comfortably.

As the end of the episode started to near, neither of them noticed how their eyes were slowly drooping, how the phone was starting to lower, how sleep was slowly enveloping them like a warm blanket on that chilling autumn night, how their heads bumped slightly to each other...

How they were slowly magnetizing to each other the more they welcomed the peaceful slumber.

❆

Gyeoul squinted her eyes, trying to keep herself awake as she found herself in a bit of a predicament.

Their pillow wall now ceased to exist and she had her arms wrapped around Taehyung from behind. And she was pretty sure that they were holding hands too. To think, she was the one who threatened to push him off if he would cuddle her.

Obviously, she never had enough sleepovers with him to know whether or not he was a deep sleeper. Sighing inwardly, the dancer slowly detangled her fingers from Taehyung's and pulled that arm away.

Suddenly he shifted, making her freeze. Fortunately, he didn't wake up. Gyeoul would probably pat herself on the back for accomplishing the task if she wasn't so drunk in sleep.

For the final step, she only had to slip her arm from under him and go back to her side of the bed.

One, two, three... she pushed her arm down against the mattress and slipped away. Gyeoul smiled slightly and faced the other side, scooting a few inches before letting herself fall asleep.

Before she could fall into slumber's clutches, she felt the mattress dip and heard Taehyung shifting around. Suddenly, an arm draped around her middle and he pulled himself closer to her. Gyeoul knew that she should have probably wrestled him back to his side of the bed, but the way his body molded into hers was inviting and she was simply too sleepy to summon the energy to move him. She pushed herself further into him and held his hand, feeling her friend pull her closer.

Hours later, Taejun was called upon by his mother to wake the childhood friends up for breakfast. Sleep was still heavy in his system and he couldn't count how many times he bumped his hip into furniture on the way to Taehyung's bedroom.

Without even thinking of knocking, he peeked inside the bedroom, ready to groan out the passed command.

But the sight in front of him made his eyes bulge out of their sockets, leaving no trace of sleep in his system. He rubbed his eyes and blinked rapidly to make sure that his eyes weren't deceiving him.

Gyeoul and Taehyung were cuddling.

Facing each other.

Our parents would love this, he thought. He pulled out his phone and snapped a quick picture before going back outside. Spotting Yeontan by one of the couches downstairs, he picked him up and brought the dog into his brother's room.

He gently placed Yeontan on the foot of the bed and watched as the small dog go in between the two. Deciding to be annoying, he bellowed, "Rise and shine!" He walked up to the side of the room and drew the curtains, allowing the bright sunlight to blind the two close friends awake. "Good morning, dear brother! Good morning, dear sister-in-law! Wake up and start the day! Make haste, people!"

The dancer hummed, pulling herself closer to the thing she was hugging. Except it didn't feel like a thing. It felt familiar, like the figure of someone she hugged regularly—

Gyeoul opened her eyes as it dawned on her. Her friend's breath fanned her face, making her more aware of everything. No, wasn't the morning breath that made her react as such. It was how close their faces were. Their noses were touching and their lips were only one move away from touching. Goosebumps traveled all over her body as she realized how attached they were to each other.

A few short seconds later, Taehyung's eyes fluttered open, meeting Gyeoul's bewildered ones.

Bark!

The two of them jumped at the sudden shrilling sound, their lips almost touching if not for Gyeoul who took quick action by pulling away.

She sighed, sitting up and rubbing her eyes — trying to ignore the situation they put themselves in not a minute ago. "Good morning, Taejun." The dancer then turned to the dog who was wagging his tail excitedly at her. She scrunched her nose and picked him up, "Good morning, baby."

Taehyung remained lying on the bed, his hand placed over his heart as he tried to sink in what just happened.

"Tannie, it seems that our work here is done," Taejun grinned, clapping his hands and beckoning the small dog to come to him. "Breakfast is ready downstairs."

"Thank you," she smiled tiredly, running a hand through her hair.

Once the boy walked out of the room with Yeontan, Gyeoul laid back down. She groaned, throwing the blanket over her head and curling slightly into herself. Taehyung grinned and moved to sprawl himself across her middle. She scrunched her nose, pushing him off.

"You push me away as if we weren't cuddling less than two minutes ago," he laughed, combing his hands through Gyeoul's unruly hair. "I'm willing to bet that you cuddled me first."

She bit the inside of her cheek, swatting his hands away. "You have something on your face."

"What?"

He was met with a pillow to the face.

"Good morning, Kim Tae." She patted his stomach, smiling brightly up at him before getting up to freshen up in his bathroom.

Taehyung sighed dreamily, recalling the small moments they shared in such a short amount of time. He could still remember the chills that ran down his spine as he found himself staring back at her first thing in the morning. A goofy grin spread across his lips, drawing permanent smile lines on his face.

He pressed the pillow Gyeoul used to smack him down on his face, trying his best not to melt into a pile of mush. God, he could only imagine waking up to her every day.

"Good morning, indeed."

Minutes later, the pair was already downstairs, avoiding eye contact with Taejun as much as possible while they were having breakfast altogether and hoping that he'd forget what he saw earlier.

To their surprise (not), Taejun told everyone exactly that and even had a photo as proof.

"Gyeoul always hated sharing a bed with you when you were younger," Sangkyu reminisced, smiling fondly as the two worked together on the dishes. "She kept saying that Taehyung kept using her as a teddy bear. I'm surprised to see that your mind changed."

"Trust me, it hasn't," Taehyung scoffed, taking off his pink rubber gloves. He grinned at his friend, "Our lovely Gyeoul hates me enough to threaten me not to cross the boundary."

"I like my space."

"I like hugging in my sleep."

Taeri smiled, "And now you compromised and probably cuddled in the middle!"

The mother chuckled, "If you're done with the dishes, you can start with the boxes."

Gyeoul was more than willing to oblige. She went to the living room, her friend's small dog following her all the way. Endeared, Gyeoul sat down on the floor and put him on her lap as she pulled the closest box in her direction, pulling out the first thing she could reach. A digital camera.

"You're stealing him from me," Taehyung commented with a pout, looking at Yeontan with betrayal in his eyes. "I'm replaced already. Are you willing to adopt him?"

"I think he's the one adopting me." She scanned the old digital camera, trying to see if it'd still work.

Sangkyu noticed what she was holding, "That's your father's old camera. You can take it home with the others if you'd like."

The dancer bowed her head in gratitude and moved on to other things. She pulled out another stack of pictures and placed it on the center table in front of her. Taking half of the stack, she slid the rest of the pictures over to Taehyung.

The first picture in her set was of one of her first competitions. They were wrestling each other to the ground, the award and bouquet left on the ground of the sidewalk. She only won second place, but she could remember being happier than the winner because her childhood friend was cheering her obnoxiously in the audience without any regard for the other competitors. Her first fan.

Flicking through the numerous photographs, she lingered on one of them in particular. It was a tiny one. She couldn't remember exactly how the picture was taken but it showed the two of them, probably in the first week they became friends, posing by a heart-shaped walkway with forced smiles. Gyeoul pulled her phone out of her pocket and took the clear case off, positioning the aging photo inside.

Taehyung smiled upon seeing her actions. He picked one up from the many pictures. A small solo picture of a five-year-old Gyeoul, smiling at the camera with pigtails and with missing front teeth. He pulled out his wallet from his pocket and slipped the photo inside.

He showed it to her, his eyes shining.

Gyeoul turned to him, suddenly feeling the burn of the kiss he placed on her forehead the night before. Everything pointed at her that there was a chance he would return her affections. She became hopeful.

How foolish of her.

NOTE

i'm sorry for not updating this week :(( the next update will be around next week due to time constraints.

song(s) mentioned in this chapter — shot through the heart by bon jovi | black swan by bts