A/N

I double updated last week and I don't think there was a notification? Did ya'll get one?

If you haven't read those chapters that means more to read tho💜

Chapter 45

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Another two weeks passed and Jungkook spent way more time than he had intended at the beach. It was just somewhat comforting to sit there and listen to the waves. Once he took Eunji with him, but even though talking to her was quite fun, the company took away some of the relaxing effect, so the next day he went alone again.

He also ran into Minji a lot. After sobering up he had been somewhat glad they had made up, since if they hadn't all the encounters after that would have been even more awkward. But with the way things were now they would chat for a short while, maybe get some drinks with the rest of their friend group, before going on with their days again.

He was doing fine... but only fine. There was just this gap that had been there ever since Minji had left him, and that had been temporarily filled with Taehyung's presence. And Jungkook missed Taehyung. As crazy as it was, he missed his killer siren.

He missed sitting by the bathtub and just talking about whatever came to his mind. He missed the way Taehyung would smile just a little when Jungkook said something that Taehyung deemed funny. The way he usually hid that he was smiling by looking down, but it would still be so obvious. Jungkook missed Taehyung's small gestures that gave away that, to some extent, he cared about Jungkook.

But Jungkook couldn't know when Taehyung would come back. He had been gone for months now and Jungkook hadn't heard from him since Jimin had sent him that message about Taehyung having come to visit them. When Jimin had told him about his relationship with Yoongi he had mentioned having been gone for months at one point because he had gotten a little lost on the way back to Yoongi.

He couldn't know when Taehyung would be back, so he focused on busying himself in the meantime. Which was why, when Eunji told him that she had been invited to a houseparty and was considering going, Jungkook decided to join. He really had to get back to meeting new people.

Maybe he would even end up meeting someone he clicked with that way... and if not someone he clicked with then maybe someone to hook up with. Just because Seohye hadn't been able to give him what he was craving didn't mean no one else could. Even if it didn't fill the part of Jungkook that was craving a relationship, maybe at least it could satisfy his craving for touch.

"You're planning to get someone to hook up with, aren't you?" Eunji asked, scanning up and down his clothes when Jungkook joined her on the playground a few houses down from the place the houseparty was at.

"Where did you get that idea from?" Jungkook teased her, very well aware of the way he looked right now. He had actually bothered to style his grown out hair and swipe it back for today, as well as getting some proper clothes instead of the constant wide hoodies and sweatpants he liked wearing when he went to uni. Jungkook liked his comfort but he also knew that people didn't like the way he looked when he was comfortable as much as they did the way he looked when he was actually styling himself.

"I don't know. Maybe those black earrings, that very open blouse... Like, I can see your chest and almost your tits, and those pants. They don't leave much to imagination either." Eunji shook her head in disapproval. "You're not selling your character. You're selling your looks and dick." She clicked her tongue in disapproval and Jungkook couldn't help grinning.

"Why not use what I have?"

"Because..." Eunji stepped forward and poked his chest. "I already know that some girls will come to me and ask me for your number and I already know that I will not give it to them because you don't like that. And then both I and they will be uncomfortable."

Jungkook laughed, patting her shoulder. "And that's why I love you."

"You can fuck right off." Eunji pushed his hand away. "So you're going to try and get laid... maybe try to at least stay with me for the first half hour till I find someone else to cling onto for dear life because I do not want to be alone in there."

Jungkook nodded, getting up from the swing. "Sure can do. Honestly I'm not even sure if I'm out for a hookup. I'm just craving physical contact."

Eunji got up as well, joining him as they strolled down the street towards the house.

"Missing your roommate...? You never told me. Did you two hook up?" Eunji asked curiously, adjusting her own clothes. She was dressed way simpler than Jungkook. No make up, her shoulder length hair was open unlike usual, she mostly wore it in tiny little buns on each side of her head, and she was wearing what looked to be a dress, but Jungkook wasn't quite sure because she had thrown an oversized pullover over it.

Jungkook snorted at her question. "Nope. We certainly didn't hook up."

He could hear her laugh. "That's genuinely surprising... I was pretty damn sure that you had when you told me that you were getting along better now. No hate sex that made everything alright?" Eunji made a vague movement with her hands that Jungkook really couldn't interpret but he shook his head.

"No hate sex. No sex. We just learned to actually communicate I guess."

Eunji gasped dramatically and Jungkook punched her shoulder softly at her reaction. "How scandalous and shocking. Jungkook and the fuckboy, bonding without sex."

Jungkook didn't even bother trying to explain. He really didn't know how to even make it sound plausible that no, Taehyung wasn't a fuckboy like Eunji had figured based on his rants... he actually was a deep sea siren and very, very monogamous. So nope, no hate sex.

Once again Jungkook ended up wondering what Taehyung was doing at the moment. Was he in some other country right now or was he actually close? Was he at the bottom of the ocean or by the surface? Was he fighting some creatures down there or was he bonding with his pet octopus?

The building that the house party was happening in was quite easy to find. Even down the street Jungkook could already hear the thrumming bass of whatever music they were listening to. He felt bad for all the neighbors that were probably going to want to sleep soon.

"Let's get something to drink first and then look for familiar faces." Eunji suggested and Jungkook nodded, following her inside past all the people sitting on the lawn playing games like it wasn't in the middle of winter.

They ended up drinking some self made punch that tasted surprisingly good but was also way stronger than what Jungkook was used to drinking before joining a few people playing a game of Cards against Humanity on the living room floor. Jungkook had a hard time understanding a single word they were saying because of the loud music and more than once he got almost pushed over by someone who had been dancing behind him and was too drunk to keep his balance, but it was fun enough until Jungkook got bored. He quickly said goodbye to Eunji in case their paths weren't going to cross again before moving through the room.

The music was overwhelmingly loud and part of him just wanted to go home, but he also wanted to see if he could spot anyone who was his type. So he walked through different rooms, sipping on his punch, until he spotted a girl he was pretty sure he had talked to at uni before.

At the time he and Minji had still been dating so he hadn't really noticed her, but he had to admit that she really fit his type. She had long hair, bright eyes as well as quite a sweet smile. She was standing with what seemed to be a little group, but based on her awkward stance Jungkook guessed she wasn't quite familiar with them all that much either.

He really didn't know if she was even going to react well if he approached her, but at the same time he couldn't know if he didn't try. So he squeezed through all the moving bodies in an attempt to get closer to her. When he finally managed he was quite impressed with himself for not spilling his drink along the way.

"Hey." He simply walked right up to her. The typical game of push and pull was fun and all, but Jungkook liked the more direct approach. Made it easier to tell if someone was actually interested in him. "I'm Jungkook. What's your name?"

The girl glanced around, seemingly checking for her friend, before smiling at Jungkook. "Ara."

"Do you maybe want to go dance for a bit, Ara?" Jungkook could hardly hear his own voice over the loud music so he leaned in a little closer. He could tell from the way she first looked at his face then his chest and then back at his face that she was interested. Tits out worked, not just for girls. Jungkook knew his tactics.

"I suck at dancing but if you don't mind your toes being stepped on we can dance." Ara giggled and Jungkook kind of liked the way her nose crinkled up. It reminded him a lot of the way Taehyung smiled when he was trying not to smile.

"I think that's worth it." Jungkook pulled her over into the crowd of people. Dancing with her was fun, especially because she hadn't lied about being bad at dancing but her enthusiasm while trying was kind of cute... and yet Jungkook couldn't quite get into it. The music was too loud and he just didn't really feel the excitement he used to feel when he had done this before. Dancing with a pretty boy or girl before convincing them to come over to his place.

Even when they ended up kissing in the bathroom, Ara sitting on the sink as Jungkook held her by her waist Jungkook couldn't quite get into it. Even when she pulled his body against hers, it didn't really satisfy his craving for contact.

Well aware that this was going nowhere he eventually pulled away. "Hey, sorry... I think I need to go. This was fun, but I feel like I drank a little too much." It wasn't entirely a lie. The punch he had been drinking was hitting a lot harder than he had expected it to.

Ara blinked at him in surprise, but seemed to recover quite quickly. "Should I take you home? Like, to make sure nothing happens?"

She was sweet, but Jungkook shook his head. He didn't want to go home and he also didn't want to share where he lived with her, as harsh as that might sound.

"Uhm okay, then maybe exchange numbers?"

Jungkook shook his head again. "Sorry."

This time she seemed to get the message. "Oh." She pressed her lips together in clear disappointment, but then she nodded. "Alright." She jumped off the sink, walking towards the door. She looked like she wanted to say something else but then decided against it. Jungkook was somewhat relieved she had. He wasn't trying to be mean. He just really wasn't in the mood to continue this.

When he stepped out of the bathroom he was once again greeted by loud music and the overbearing scent of alcohol and sweat. He let out a sigh before wriggling through all the moving bodies once again. He no longer felt like partying. The music was giving him a headache and he really didn't want to chat up anyone else... but he also didn't want to return to Eunji and join her in another game of Cards against Humanity.

So instead he moved down the stairs and towards the entry of the house. He almost tripped over someone's legs and quickly apologized, to which he got a "It's all chill, dude." in reaction, and then he finally made it outside of the building and felt like he could actually breathe again. The sky was covered in bright stars and the air was soothingly cool against his skin.

Behind him he could still hear the thrumming of the bass in the building, but it was no longer as overwhelming as it had been inside. He pulled his phone from his pocket to check the time. It was only eleven... he had spent maybe two hours in there and already felt like leaving.

His apartment was maybe half an hour from where he was, but Jungkook didn't go there. Instead he took a bit of a detour. When he heard the waves crashing against the rocks in the distance he could really feel his tense shoulders relax. Instead of hurrying to get to the beach he actually let himself walk slowly now. Feel the way the wind was blowing over the ocean towards him and just listen to the sound of the waves as he got closer to the spot that he had always waited at for Taehyung.

Like usual he walked over to the rocks - the rocks that Taehyung had pulled him out of the water by – and sat down. After the overwhelming noise of the bass, the quiet and the soft sound of waves hitting the rocks was like music to his ears. Music that seemed to soothe his soul and take away all the anxiety he had been feeling earlier.

It was funny how the spot Taehyung had almost drowned him at had somewhat become Jungkook's safe zone. The one place Jungkook could finally wind down, but also didn't feel lonely. He wasn't sure what it was. Maybe because he felt like he was just waiting for Taehyung when he sat here.

He leaned his head against the rocks behind him, looking up at the stars. They really looked beautiful tonight. The moon was almost non-existent so they seemed to shine even brighter. Tiredly he closed his eyes... he hated how cold it was. He just wanted to rest a bit and sleep here by the beach, but he knew that wasn't possible. He wasn't ready for another cold.

He sat there for a long time. Waiting for Taehyung had gotten him so used to it that, when Jungkook looked at his watch and realized two hours had passed, he had a hard time believing it. It had felt like half an hour at most.

It explained why his limbs were feeling kind of stiff though. He sat up, stretching his arms over his head, before closing his eyes again, just for a bit. He was going to get up soon... he just wanted to continue listening to the sound of the waves and really focus on it for a bit.

He was interrupted when he heard a noise in front of him. If he hadn't been focusing he probably wouldn't have heard it and it would have disappeared in the sound of the waves, but Jungkook was pretty sure that that had not been a wave. It had sounded like something harder dragging over the stone.

Part of him had expected to see Taehyung when he opened his eyes, and yet he found himself startling when it was actually Taehyung sitting on the edge of the rocks in front of him, still in his siren form, staring at Jungkook.

Jungkook realized how desperate he must have looked sitting there when he wasn't even waiting for Taehyung. Like he had actually been sitting here, waiting for Taehyung to come back, for the whole six months he had been gone. "I swear to god, I promise you, I did not spend all my time waiting here for you while you were away. This is a coincidence, I swear."

Jungkook couldn't describe how happy he felt when he heard Taehyung laugh again.

A/N

Tae is back😭💜

I can't wait to finally write them together again😔

Are ya'll ready to see them together again?🥺