chapter nine.

after both the supposed lovebirds were seated at their seats, they heard long heaves of sighs coming from the crowd before they moved their heads into their drinks. taehyung was as baffled at jimin's move as the crowd were.

"what about the stunt you pulled in front of the crowd? are you perhaps-" taehyung started.

"no homo bro, but i had to do that." jimin interuppted the boy.

"yes, your actions showed how homo you are." taehyung concluded. he paused for a second as he perked his head out into the crowd, searching for the girl before jimin grabbed his wrist to lower his head.

"are you nuts?" jimin shrieked. "i risked my sexuality to get you out of there, now don't dare me to-"

"whatever you're thinking of doing to stop me, don't. your results will be in vain when you find yourself drifting away from your straightness. besides, i don't mind you falling for me-"

"shut your dirty mouth. let's discuss the thing we are here for." jimin muttered as he sipped on his hot chocolate with a groan of satisfaction leaving his lips.

without glancing at his drink, taehyung grabbed a tissue from the tissue holder as he placed it in front of him, tilting it a little to his left before his fingers moved in the air as if searching for something.

he stared at jimin who peacefully drank his hot chocolate with momentary whimpers of relief. the latter noticing the long stares of the boy finally broke his contact from his mug and stared back at him cluelessly with a chocolate moustache. before the chocolate moustached boy could ask, taehyung leaned forward and reached for his shirt's pocket, pulling out a pen.

"hey-" before the boy could protest further, taehyung shut the boy up by wiping his moustache with the tissue he had pulled out earlier with a helpless sigh.

sighing once again, he pulled a new tissue out for himself and tilted it the same way before fiddling with the pen.

jimin carrying a pen everywhere was no surprise as he worked as a tutor who spent half of his day teaching elementary school kids. running tutoring sessions was a side job to make up for the time he spent job hunting for a full-time job.

"jim, what would you write to that girl if you were i?" rose the question from the taller boy.

"oh, must have guessed." jimin deadpanned. he stared at his drink for a moment as if letting himself drown in the drink before he rose his head up to taehyung and quoted, "i'm sorry. i'm stupid. i'll delete everything, forgive me. please."

taehyung ignored the boy as he moved his gaze to the tissue and mouthed the words he wrote, "i hope you see..."

"me in you?" jimin questioned the words that popped up in his mind.

"no." taehyung deadpanned as he scribbled on the tissue, eventually ripping off it with the pen's nib. he tsked before taking a fresh tissue and placed it in front of him, this time trying a different dialogue.

all this while, jimin stared at his friend with his hands resting on the table. taehyung was weird. he barely got to see his friend and sometimes would only meet once a year. it led him to think if taehyung really remembered them when he was away. their contacts were less, nonetheless, they got along just like the olden times when met together. but the doubt always lingered in the atmosphere.

"you know, i'm amused how you still return here- your hometown after having been years of rebelling against everything and starting fresh." jimin remarked after his thoughts subsided.

taehyung appeared as an outcast in the town. though he observed every single person through his bizzare lense, he never engaged himself in one, behaving like a third person in the town.

taehyung stopped his pen before getting his composure back again and answering, "some things never leave you. no matter how hard you try to break free from them."

his answers always remained in puzzle pieces as if he longed to be listened- and understood by the person before him. he wanted them to collect the puzzle pieces and join them into something extraordinary and something unexpected. and in order to achieve that, he had developed a tendency to beat around the bush.

before jimin could ask further, taehyung dropped his pen restlessly on the table as he slumped on the chair before concluding, "i'm done."

taehyung handed jimin the tissue, one where he had placed the first puzzle piece for her in the shape of letters. and there, on the white delicate sheet rested a word with so delicacy that each and every letter was penned in a rounded and loving way, compiling all his eagerness and playfulness concealed within.

'fighting.'

a/n:- yeah so apparently taehyung is a native of this place but had left his hometown for some issues years ago (to be shown later).

and for those who got a little confused about taehyung's letter to hyejin, the word fighting is an exclamation often used by koreans for encouragement and cheering on. sort of like saying "good luck!" but also adding the emphasis of working hard or trying your best [source: urban dictionary]. so he's hinting about trying her best on finding him.

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