Sirens. Blood. Too many people, too many voices. 

Taehyung almost gagged when he saw the pool of blood seeping through the stranger's clothes, body limp on the asphalt. 

There were too many people crowding around the lifeless body, some taking out their phones to take a picture, and there are some, who /surprisingly/ cared enough to call an ambulance. 

Taehyung tried to squeeze himself in to the crowd, murmuring apologies whenever he bumped into someone, but he received no reaction from them. 

He shrugged, still struggling as he found his way closer to the front. The paramedics have arrived; the police were recording some statements from those who have witnessed the accident. 

"He was in a hurry to the point that he didn't see the car approaching. There were some who tried to shout and warn him, but it was all too late. The next thing we knew, he already got hit," one witness said. Taehyung's eyebrows furrowed. He wanted to get a look at the stranger who's now on top of the stretcher. 

When the paramedics managed to get the stranger inside the ambulance, the people around him dispersed one by one, leaving Taehyung alone with the police. He wanted to leave, but he couldn't. His feet were glued to the ground, but then he reminded himself that it was his and Jeongguk's first anniversary as a married couple. They were to have dinner. 

He was about to turn around and leave for real this time, but he was shocked when he saw his husband on the other side of the street. He was still dressed in his work suit, the bouquet of flowers held tightly in his hands were now reduced to nothing but a crumpled mess. 

Jeongguk ran towards him, and Taehyung expected for him to get scolded. However, he got nothing. His husband just passed by him. 'What the fuck just happened?'

He turned around once more, eyes silently following his husband's moves. 

"Where is he?! Where's my husband?!"

'Gukkie, I'm here!' Taehyung wanted to say, but it's as if his voice got stuck in his own throat. Nothing came out when he tried opening his mouth to speak out; not even a squeak. 

"Sir, they are on their way to the hospital. We can give you a ride if youㅡ"

"Please. Please, I have to go see him," Jeongguk begged as if he was about to kneel in front of the officer. Taehyung's heart clenched at the sight. 

He closed his eyes as he allowed himself to feel the pain and the tears he concealed for so long. He breaks.

It was on April 5, 2018, that Kim Taehyung got hit by a car and woke up seeing nothing but darkness. 

ㅡ♡ㅡ

Taehyung wakes up to a jolt, eyes stinging with tears, heart hammering hard as if it's about to escape from his ribcage. He pats the space beside him, only to be met with nothing but emptiness. He bites his bottom lip to stop himself from crying. 

He stands up, saunters towards the door as carefully as he could, feeling everything his hands can get hold of, and tries his best to make it towards their kitchen. He hears the clatter of pans and utensils, and his shoulder sags with relief; assuming that it was Jeongguk preparing their breakfast (which he hasn't done for quite some time now).

But disappointment washes over him when he doesn't smell Jeongguk's scent. It's nothing like Jeongguk's scent. 

"Taehyungie? You're up! I'm sorry I was too busy flipping the pancakes to have noticed you." It was Seokjin, his brother. 

"Where's Jeongguk?" He asks, despite hearing his brother sigh. 

"He has work, baby. He called me before leaving the house. You must be hungry. Come on, let's eat." 

Taehyung doesn't budge from where he was standing. He hears footsteps coming towards him and not a second after, warm hands held his own ones tightly. 

"Come on, honey bear. You have to eat. I made strawberry pancakes."

And who is Taehyung to deny what his brother has made especially for him? He knows, feels that Seokjin has a small smile on his lips, and he doesn't have the heart to wipe it off his face. Not now, not ever.

They eat their breakfast, had a little pep talk here and there, and Taehyung asks Seokjin if he can bring him to his flower shop because he doesn't want to rot inside their house.

"Please, hyung? I won't even be a bother. You'll even forget that I'm there," Taehyung pleads. If only he can see the frown on Seokjin's face.

"Honey bear, you aren't and will never be a bother. You know I can bring you to work anytime, right? All you have to do is ask." Seokjin reaches for his hands to squeeze it in assurance.

"Who will be working with you today then?"

"Yoongi and Hoseok."

Taehyung stays silent for a moment before a smile blooms on his face. "I'm so excited to meet them again."

"Of course you are, honey. They'll be delighted to see you as well." 

Seokjin helps him get ready and once they're good to go, they make sure to lock the house and Seokjin drives them to the shop. 

The moment they step inside, Taehyung is met with a squeal (Hoseok, maybe) and is engulfed into a big, tight hug. 

"Hoseok hyung?" He guesses, getting a giggle in return. 

"How did you know?" Hoseok asks in feign shock. Taehyung just grins, shrugging his shoulder.

"Maybe because Yoongi hyung doesn't jump on anyone's arms to give them hugs?" He hears a scoff from the other side of the room.

"Ah there he is! Yoonie!" Taehyung breaks into laughter, Seokjin and Hoseok laughing along with him. Yoongi doesn't say anything, though.

"You can sit here, Taetae. The store will not be so busy during this time of the day so you can always call us whenever you feel bored. You have your phone with you right? You can listen to some music if you'd like," Seokjin says softly, thumb grazing on the apple of Taehyung's cheek.

"Yes, hyung. Don't worry I'll be fine here. I'm thinking of pestering Yoongi hyung later when I get bored," he says with a chuckle. Seokjin ruffles his hair before tucking a loose one behind his ear.

"Okay, honey bear. Call me if you need anything, yeah?" He can hear the hesitation dripping off his brother's voice. As if he's scared of leaving him alone with nothing to do. 

"Mhm. I'm gonna be fine, hyungie. You worry too much."

"How can't I?" Seokjin mumbles under his breath. 

Taehyung just gives him one, final reassuring smile before pushing him away so that he can focus on his work.

Taehyung busies himself by listening to music and when he finally got bored, he orders Siri to search for podcasts and audiobooks and maybe he chooses a new favorite: the one where they read fairytales, making Taehyung feel like a child once more. 

He gets interrupted, though, when he hears someone drag the chair beside him, the legs screeching on the marbled floor. 

He takes off his earphones, offering that someone a smile so bright it's blinding. He tilts his head to the left, assuming that the person is sitting that way, smile never faltering. 

The person gently holds his left hand, guides it in front of him and then Taehyung felt it. The softness of the petals, the pointy edges of the leaves. He doesn't recognize the flower, but he sure does recognize the owner of the hands that touched his.

He recognizes its roughness, the callous on the tip of his fingers probably because of too much work or too much playing of stringed instruments. 

"What's this?" Taehyung asks, referring to the plant he just touched. 

"Amaryllis." 

"What do they symbolize?" 

"Splendid beauty." And it takes all of Taehyung's willpower not to blush over what has been said. 

When he's done familiarizing the features of the flower, his fingers started dancing along the stem, the pot, until it reaches the person's hand. He started tracing the lines of his palm, drawing small circles, knowing that it doesn't tickle the other no matter how much effort he's gonna put into it. 

He hears a hum, so he stops, the same hands wrapping around his index finger.

"And this?" Taehyung teases. 

"This," Yoongi says, "is my hand." 

Taehyung bursts into tiny fits of giggles and even though he doesn't hear a single reaction from Yoongi, he knows the older has a smile on his face, albeit small, but Taehyung's sure that it's there. 

They talk for a while before Yoongi is called to tend to a new customer. 

The day passes by quickly; they had lunch at the resto near the shop, had Taehyung's favorite dessert (red velvet) and returned to finish the day. 

It was around 4 in the afternoon when the bell rings, indicating that a new customer just stepped inside the shop. 

Taehyung is still sitting at the same spot, left hand resting on top of his lap while his other hand is holding a cup of hot chocolate which Hoseok bought from a cafe two stores down. He hums, not really paying attention to what Seokjin and the new customer was talking about, but then he hears footsteps coming his way. 

"Hi, can I sit here as I wait for my order?" The stranger is soft-spoken, making it hard to say no. 

Now don't get Taehyung wrong. He has always loved making friends, but because of what happened, his insecurities took a toll on him, and he shies away. But he really doesn't have a choice now, does he? 

He doesn't know where to stare, so he just looks straight ahead, trying his best to smile at the stranger. 

And maybe the stranger gets the hint, clearing his throat before saying, "I'm Jimin. But you can call me Jiminnie or Chim, I don't exactly mind."

Jiminnie, Taehyung repeats in his mind. 

"I'm Taehyung. Nice to meet you, Jimin. You can sit in anywhere you'd like," he adds, hands searching the table to take his phone away, making space just in case Jimin has a bag or something. 

"Just leave your phone on top, I don't mind. I actually have nothing with me right now," Jimin says quickly and Taehyung's shoulder relaxes. They went silent for a while but Jimin, thank God, initiated most of the conversations afterwards. 

Jimin told him about his childhood in Busan; told him about his youth, the fight he almost had with his parents when he graduated high school; told him about how he got wasted and puked on his ex-boyfriend's clothes one time they went to a party during college; told him how he was offered a job at a company here in Seoul right after he graduated. 

Taehyung did not talk that much but he loved listening to every bit of his story. Like they were long lost friends. 

Sure, he shared some of his experiences too; almost told Jimin how he lost his eyesight, but realized it was too soon. It's only been 30 minutes since they started talking. 

Seokjin already gave Jimin his order but the latter refused to leave, wanting to talk to Taehyung some more. 

The conversation gradually dies down, but before it completely does, Jimin points out something that had Taehyung blushing like a school girl in love. 

"Wow, I just noticed the ring on your finger. Are you married?" Taehyung bites his lip, trying his best to hide the blush that's starting to spread on his cheeks. Jimin notices how red he has become, cooing at him. 

"Ah, yeah. Been married for almost three years now," Taehyung answers, fingers now playing with the golden band. 

"What're they like?" Jimin presses on. 

"He's… He's perfect. Well to me, that is. He knows me like the back of his hand, treats me well in general even though I've become like… " Taehyung gestures for his eyes, "this. He never left me, stayed strong for me. And even though I couldn't look at his face anymore, I can still feel him, still love him as before."

"Oh, Tae. That's beautiful… I wish I could find a person like that…"

"I know you will, Jiminnie. You're a beautiful person as well. I'm quite surprised when you mentioned that you aren't seeing anyone right now."

"Well, it's uh, kinda complicated actually," Jimin answers in a hushed voice. Taehyung's interest has been piqued. 

"Really? Why?"

"This person has been dropping hints for quite some time now, and God I don't know what to do, Taehyung. I'm scared." 

"Why are you scared, Jimin?"

"The person's married, Taehyung."

"Oh." Taehyung suddenly felt cold. Like someone just splashed a bucket of cold water on him. 

"Yeah, I know. I don't want to be a homewrecker, Tae," Jimin says softly and Taehyung could sense the terror in his voice. 

"Then don't," was what Taehyung said, offering him a tight-lipped smile. 

Jimin realizes that he has overstayed his welcome and has actually somewhere to go to before 7. Good thing there are no more customers so Seokjin also decided to close the shop early. 

They exchanged numbers, and Jimin bids goodbye, but not before promising a cup of tea the next time they meet. 

Everyone said their goodbyes before parting ways; Seokjin drops Taehyung off their house, and Taehyung is greeted by Jeongguk with a gentle kiss on the temple.

They have dinner, courtesy of Jeongguk cooking, and as they eat quietly in the dining room, Taehyung can't help but break the ice.

"I met a new friend today," he says, trying hard not to show Jeongguk how his voice has been trembling.

"Really? That's good, Tae," his husband replies, reaching out to squeeze Taehyung's left hand.

"His name's Jimin." A spoon drops, hitting the plate with a loud clang, and Taehyung was so sure it wasn't his.

"Y-yeah?" Jeongguk's voice wavers. He's not really good at hiding, huh?

"Yeah. He's a good guy. I think we'll get along with each other well, Gukkie."

Dinner ends there, and Jeongguk has become silent for the rest of the evening. He says good night to Taehyung with a kiss on the temple, but then he gets out of the bed again and excuses himself to the bathroom. 

Taehyung just buries his nose on the pillow he's hugging, counting the seconds that started to pass by. Then he hears it. 

It was on the third month of Taehyung being blind that theyㅡ including Seokjin, Hoseok, and Yoongiㅡ decided to make sure they activate the Who's Calling setting on their phones, so that it would announce the caller ID, making it easier for Taehyung. 

Jeongguk must've forgotten, because as Taehyung lays numbly on the bed, tears dripping down the corner of his eyes, he hears,

Jiminnie is calling… Jiminnie is calling…

It might've been his phone, but how can Taehyung forget, when he has heard that name on repeat even before he met the person in Seokjin's flower shop?