Smoke particles scattered lightly across the wind, stemming from the tip of Taehyung's cigarette. His dark pupils rested firmly over Jeongguk's. Ever so slowly, the man's lips parted.

And Jeongguk returned eye contact. Like a champ, he held his ground against the viciously strong gaze that he was convinced sought to devour him. But today, he wouldn't waver. That's what he had thought. That is, until the words he'd just uttered had finally registered into his head, and suddenly the boy was a flustered mess.

"I think I'm in love with you."

What?

What did he just say to him?

Did he really say such a thing? Had he really just confessed his feelings?

He hoped that maybe he misheard his own confession, and the words that left his lips in that moment were ones he quickly came to regret. Yes, he couldn't hold it back any longer. Yes, he needed Taehyung to understand his feelings for him.

But was he ready to hear the man's response to such a thing?

Jeongguk's heart felt weak. He could barely even feel it beating inside his chest, the alarming thoughts in his head taking over every inch of him, and he began to regret ever opening his mouth.

But after a short silence fell over the two, Jeongguk heard the man's deep voice speak up abruptly.

"Yes, my sweet Apollo."

The boy blinked twice, watched Taehyung while he placed his cigarette to his lips momentarily to allow an excess of smoke into the air. He could feel the pulses in his veins, a dash of confusion rushing him at the older's unexpected reply.

Taehyung continued, "Love is but a figment of romanticism us measly humans have devised, lest we feed ourselves with fantasies of a joyous happily-ever-after; as though tales from occurrences that have never verily taken place heretofore."

The corner of Jeongguk's lips twitched into a smile as he held back a laugh. Even in this moment he'd found the rather old fashioned, fancy way of words the older had used to be quite endearing. Because, in that moment, he realized that Taehyung had misunderstood his confession for that of something relating to the lovers within their English project. Thought that maybe Jeongguk had been teasing him by saying such a thing, perhaps due to the open book of speech notes seated firmly on his lap.

The older's dim eyes were settled over Jeongguk's again, and he spoke his next words with a hint of a grin on his perfect lips. "Certainly one as godly as thou, may come to realize the concept of love, as derived from humanity, as one rather foolish. For that, my darling, I wouldn't quite condemn you so."

Jeongguk opened his mouth, not offering himself a second thought to play along with the older's mischievous remarks. "Then, I'll..." he breathed out, "I'll m-make you believe of it, my sweet Hyacinth.."

Taehyung's grin only widened. "Of love, sweet Apollo?"

Jeongguk gave a shy nod of his head, bottom lip tucked between his teeth. "Of love. Of my love... for you."

"Must a God love a Human?" Taehyung's gaze was now over the vast sky above them, thighs spread out, a lazy demeanor to his posture.

Jeongguk stole a glance at him, pen tapping over paper. "Love knows no limits. No bounds. Love is... kind. I can be good to you, and you'll realize true love."

Taehyung turned his head; Jeongguk lifted his. Their eyes met. The man, as always, could see the stars in the younger's eyes. Yet the boy could see much of nothing in his. But the intensity of his stare was something Jeongguk couldn't quite withstand much longer, his cheeks growing hot from the inspection.

"I-I mean, I..." He quickly looked away as an attempt to hide his rosy face, hands clamming over his pen while he struggled to grip the reality he'd just created for himself with the sudden words. "I d-don't really know, I mean... W-What's love anyway? I sure wouldn't know b-because whatever I had experienced before clearly wasn't love.." he rambled on, feeling the man's intense eyes on him; and he was struggling not to crack under the pressure.

Except, he realized perhaps he had given himself away. A thought that had only proved to be true when Taehyung murmured something in a quiet voice.

"Experienced before...?"

Jeongguk turned his head further away, letting his bangs fall above his eyes and wishing they would hide him from his embarrassment. At the action, Taehyung only leaned forward, closer, trying to catch a glimpse of what he could only imagine was the most adorable look on the younger's face.

But more importantly, Taehyung came to realize that the boy wasn't speaking to him as the greek god Apollo this time. In fact, he suspected Jeongguk never even meant to refer to their measly English assignment.

It was a bit of a stretch, but he spoke up loud and clear, letting the question lingering his head roll from his tongue seamlessly.

"Oh. You... weren't joking, were you?"

Jeongguk gulped, eyes settled down over the book on his lap, fingers tracing over the corners of the pages. When he didn't give a reply, Taehyung continued.

"You're in love with me?"

His deep, raspy voice shuddered over the younger's veins, holding him hostage once again to his every word.

"You mean it?"

"I—!" Jeongguk suddenly spoke up, lifting his head in one swift movement to look the older in the eyes. His lip trembled, a quietly flustered squeal leaving him when he saw the handsome eyes of the man beside him. "Yes, I-I meant it, f-for real!"

Taehyung's solemnly curious lips cracked a fond smile at the boy's red face.

"Yeah?" he chuckled softly.

Jeongguk felt heavy flutters in his heart. "Y-Yes.."

"Mm'Awh.." Taehyung cooed, reached his thumb to place it over Jeongguk's chin. There was a silent pause, their eyes locked together firmly, and then Taehyung spoke again. "You really really mean it?"

Jeongguk leaned into his touch, eyes glazed bashfully while he forced himself not to shy away from the man's gaze. "I really really mean it..." he uttered quietly, his hand placing itself to hold Taehyung's arm gently. "But you... y-you don't have to give me a reply yet, it's-... I know it's all so sudden, and... and you may not know how you feel, so... So it's alright. I'll wait for you to feel r-ready."

Taehyung caressed the finger on Jeongguk's skin lightly. "Mm.." he hummed. Jeongguk watched the faint smile that remained yet on his lips. "You're so adorable."

Jeongguk inhaled a deep breath, opened his mouth to potentially embarrass himself further, but before he could do so a sudden voice in the distance had disrupted the little bubble they had built for themselves.

"Jeongguk!!"

The two leaned away from each other and turned to the source of the voice, only to see a blond boy waving his hand vigorously into the air, over the distance.

Jeongguk's eyes enlarged. "Jimin..?"

He had forgotten just how close the park they sat in was to school grounds. For all he knew, there may have been people from their school roaming around the area without them even knowing.

"Gguk, I'm here!" Jimin called out in the distance, jogging up closer to the two, his eyes squinting when they settled over the man beside his best friend; and it didn't take long for him to realize who it was Jeongguk was hanging around.

Taehyung glanced between the two and watched as Jeongguk shut his notebook and began to pack his things into his bag. "Hyung, I'm... sorry, I told Jimin I'd work with him at the library once we were done with things here."

The older blinked up at him and shook his head. "It's alright, Jeon. We can finish up our project some other time."

Jeongguk gave a sheepish smile and nodded, stood from the bench and propped his bag over his shoulder. "Y-Yeah.. Um, a-and.. Well, uh-..."

Taehyung cut in. "Give me time," he said simply. "I'll think on what you said, and... Give you my reply. Okay...?"

The boy's face quickly turned red again. He gave another quick nod before suddenly dashing out to catch up to where Jimin now stood. He placed a hand over one ear, hoping it wasn't flushed a crimson color, and then forced a casual smile once he finally reached his best friend.

"U-Uh, hey.. You're early."

Jimin exhaled a breath, emitting a frosty puff into the cold air. "Yeah, um... I didn't know you were with Kim Taehyung."

"We were working on our project.." The boy mumbled, and watched as the blond stole glances between him and Taehyung over at the distance.

He was silent for a moment before gripping his bag strap tightly. "Is it... Uh, is it okay if I go ask him a question real quick?"

Jeongguk's brow perked up. "Ask Taehyung a question?"

"Yeah... About, um... About Yoongi. You know... because-... Yeah.."

The younger's lips parted, as if to finally understand what his friend had meant. "Ah, sure.. Um, yeah, go figure things out! I'll go on ahead to the library and wait for you there."

"Okay..." Jimin whispered, then watched the boy slowly begin to walk ahead of him. The blond turned to eye Taehyung, who remained seated on the park bench in a manspreading position, cigarette placed upon his lips, watching them.

He gulped quietly.

What he had told Jeongguk was a lie.

He didn't have any intention of asking Kim Taehyung for advice over Min Yoongi. Sure, Jimin was still unsure what he felt for the man, but that was something he figured he'd navigate on his own.

That's right. His true intentions were to give Taehyung a piece of his mind. He'd been meaning to tell him off for all the ways the man had hurt his best friend, but wasn't quite sure on how to approach the very intimidating gang captain.

Still, he was determined to do it in defense of his friend.

"Park," Taehyung commented upon seeing the blond march up to where he was seated. "Hello. Long time no see."

Jimin rolled his eyes. "We see each other in class all the time."

Taehyung blinked. "Ah. Right." He held up his cigarette. "Would you like a smoke?"

"I don't smoke," Jimin huffed. "That shit can kill you."

Taehyung lowered the blunt and propped one arm across the bench top. "Right. You like sweets?"

"Sure."

"That shit can kill you too. Any drug, any person, any object, any food... Have too much of something and it can kill you. Human life is so... brittle." His dark gaze watched the boy firmly. "So tell me... what's really the difference?"

Jimin kept quiet, eyes narrowed at the older.

"Well, to what do I owe this pleasure?"

Jimin grunted quietly, crossing his arms as he gazed down at the man who sat much too comfortably.

"I need to talk to you."

"About?"

"Jeongguk."

Taehyung held his cigarette between his fingers. "Yeah?"

"Stay the fuck away from him." Jimin squeezed his hands into fists beside him. "You've hurt him enough, and... we all know you're going to keep hurting him. I don't want him to make the same mistake, going after a man who couldn't give two fucks about his feelings."

Taehyung's faint grin fell, face becoming stagnant while he kept quiet, allowing the boy to continue. But when Jimin made no more effort to keep talking, he slowly sat up on the bench and placed his blunt to his lips, taking a drag of the cigarette.

"How can I stay away... when Jeongguk just told me he's in love with me?"

Jimin froze. "He-... He did...? When...?"

"Just now." Smoke emerged from the man's breath, and Jimin felt a moment of hesitation the longer he looked into those dark eyes.

But he couldn't back down now.

"What'd you tell him?"

"That I'll think about it."

"Then don't." He opened up his fists, the palm of his hands meeting the cool breeze. "Break his heart this one last time, and then he'll never hurt because of you. Ever again."

Taehyung's brow rose. "You sure about that?"

Jimin flashed a look of confusion, to which the older merely chuckled.

"Don't tell me what to do, Park."

The blond flared his nostrils, a look of tamed rage in his eyes as he came to  realize that what he'd set out to do hasn't yet been achieved.

Even so he was determined, more than anything, to protect his best friend from any further antics this man can involve him in.

※ ※

Jimin stood beside the arts department building, gazing up at the glowing moon surrounded by a dark sky; a heavy scarf over his neck and a warm knit hat adorning his head. It was much colder at night lately, and had it not been for his urgency to leave school grounds, he would be warming up inside somewhere.

His eyes lowered towards the screen, where he read the text message that was just sent to him. The boy's teeth caught his bottom lip between them, grip tightening on the device with great strength.

"That asshole..." he muttered under his breath, fingers moving quickly to pull up the first chat on his messages which was, of course, his best friend. And after a while of fingers tapping over his screen, Jimin watched as an incoming call suddenly popped up from the boy.

"Jimin! Will you be alright?"

The blond gave out a frustrated breath while pinching his nose, a means he hoped would calm him down a little. "Gguk, aren't you supposed to be in class?"

He heard the boy's voice come to a whisper on the other end. "Yeah, but... I asked to go to the bathroom just to call and check up on you."

"You idiot, I'm fine.. There's no need to do that."

Jeongguk was silent for a moment, and then there was a soft sigh. "You're not fine—you must be freaking out right now! Don't you have anyone else who can drive you to the venue? I can't believe that guy... Cancelling on you last minute when he promised he'd do you the favor."

Jimin bit his lip, pondered on the question. Eventually he came up with nothing, so his only reply was a devastated sigh. "I can just... Try to catch the next train or something..."

"What? But at this rate you'll definitely miss your performance by the time you get there!"

Jimin huffed. "Well what else can I do?!" He glanced at his watch to check the time and then looked out at the streets outside their campus. "I'll call you later, Gguk, I have to figure this out."

Jeongguk audibly gulped, and Jimin could almost imagine the worried look the boy must have on right now. "Alright... Keep me updated, Minnie."

"Sure thing."

With that, Jimin hung up and quickly began to google the nearest times for train tickets.

The blond had a moment of panic, feet pacing back and forth from where he now stood at the center of campus, bag over his shoulder, ready for a long train ride. That is, if he could even find one on time.

His rapid steps then came to a halt when he scrolled down to a certain contact name displayed over the screen, reading; Jung Hoseokie.

And, truthfully, he did think about it. For a second, he really thought about dialing the number.

But, no. He knew Hoseok had mentioned being busy with something. He couldn't go and bother the older man with his problems now.

Or rather, he couldn't keep relying on him to do him such favors.

He just couldn't.

"—Jimin?"

The blond swiveled his head to the side, watching as a shadow approached him. A shadow that belonged to none other than Min Yoongi himself.

"Oh.. hyung.." Jimin let out in a whisper, lowering his phone to the side and gazing back at the man. "I'm just-... Well, I was waiting for someone. But now-..."

Yoongi merely gave a nod of his head and chuckled softly. "What's wrong?"

"H-Huh?"

"You were pacing all around the place with a look on your face as though someone died. So, something must be wrong, no?"

Jimin's face flushed a light red, his plump lips puckering to a cute pout. "W-Well that's... I mean.." The boy cleared his throat and adjusted the strap over his shoulder. "I have a show... It's in Daejeon so, I need a ride there. A friend of mine promised to take me, but... he suddenly got called in to work and everyone else I know is just as busy tonight."

Yoongi hummed quietly, gazing off at the darkened sky as though to process the male's words. He leisurely dug his hands into his pockets and gave a click of his tongue.

"Well.. Not everyone," he spoke plainly, his tender gaze settling over the younger. "Why don't I take you?"

Jimin's eyes widened. "Wait, are... Are you serious?"

Yoongi shrugged. "I've got nothing else to do, and it sounds like it's an emergency, so... That means you're coming with me, right?"

Jimin's lips parted while he gazed at the man in utter awe.

A part of him felt the need to decline—to not bother the man with such a tiring task. But when the two's eyes met Jimin could see the fire in Yoongi's eyes.

Ones that told him, he wasn't about to back down from this.

※ ※

"So what kind of show is it?"

"Oh, um... A dance show."

Yoongi glanced at him with a perked brow. "You dance?"

"Yeah... Contemporary. Ever since I was five."

"Wow..." the man trailed off, hands gripping the car wheel while the two cruised the highway in Yoongi's own car. "Can't wait to watch you."

Jimin kept his eyes on the road, hands secured tightly over his lap, unsure why he suddenly felt the need to act proper around the older. "What-... Watch me?"

"If I'm driving you all the way to this show, that means I at least get an entry ticket, no?"

"Well of course, you're a big help, but.." Jimin scratched the side of his head. "I didn't think you'd be interested in such things."

Yoongi kept silent for a brief moment before speaking again. "I'll admit I don't quite know much about dance, but... Where there's dance there's usually music, right? And I know all about that."

Jimin snorted, an amused grin forming onto his lips. "You're a musician?"

"Used to be. Not much time to practice anymore, what, with school and the gang, but..." He finished his sentence with a light shrug.

The blond's eyes formed a crescent shape with his widening smile.

"You mean to tell me you gave up on your dreams to be a delinquent?"

A smirk appeared on the older's face. "It's a little more complicated than that, but I guess I won't argue with that logic."

The two continued their teaseful chatter, bouncing off each other's words in sly responses and quiet chuckles. Truthfully, if Jimin were to be honest, the entire ride didn't feel like even two hours. It felt like mere seconds to him, with how time seemed to fly by when he hadn't been paying mind to it.

But eventually they arrived in Daejeon with time to spare, even. Jimin profusely thanked the older and ran out ahead to the performance hall where he'd be dancing.

Yoongi, on the other hand, was delayed by about ten minutes while he found a spot to park his car and walked all the way back to the entrance, where a very stern looking security guard awaited him.

"Ticket?" The bulky man uttered.

Yoongi pulled his phone and showed a screenshot Jimin had sent him with ticket information, as well as his I.D, to which the guard responded with a grunt and opened the door for him.

"Nice talk," Yoongi grinned, and strode inside the fancy building with his hands dipped casually inside his pockets. He glanced at the venue in awe, admiring the tall ceiling, a sort of fresh hotel-like scent in the air, the pumping of music and chatter coming from the proceeding large doors in front of him.

He made his way inside the spacious concert hall, watching as the abundance of seats had already been taken up by an anticipating audience. Yoongi glanced at his phone for a seat number and finally managed to squeeze between rows before settling to his seat.

Soon enough, the lights dimmed.

Orchestral music began to play, and Yoongi lifted his head in curiosity, watching as dancers of all shapes and sizes began to sprawl across the stage floor. His eyes scanned over their faces, sight longing to see the face of a particularly cute boy with pink, plump lips.

And then, he found him.

That golden hair, that lifted into the air with his every movement, defined muscles complimented his slim body, gracefully moving across the stage, seamless, as though he'd done it about a thousand times now. A gentle expression on his face as his limbs swayed with the airy chords struck from an oversized harp, a group of violinists, a woman settled over a grand piano. Yoongi could hear bell chimes, although he wasn't too sure if there was really such a thing in the room. He couldn't bother to check. His gaze was focused on Jimin, and Jimin only.

At one point, the choir began to sing. The instruments picked up their pace, a heart pumping rhythm kicked in. The dancers sped their choreography, yet their movements remained elegant, precise. In Yoongi's eyes, the blond boy began to glow. In his head, he performed those angelic steps and spins in floating, white clouds. To him, the spotlight was on Jimin. He really couldn't see anyone else. Nothing else existed, nothing else even mattered.

And when Jimin's eyes lifted towards the crowd, his gaze immediately found Yoongi's.

Out of a crowd of what he thought must have been thousands, it had taken him half a second to spot him. And once their eyes had come into contact, they couldn't dare look anywhere else.

The violin struck, piano keys twirled, the choir harmonized in a pitch two times higher than a few seconds ago. And with that came the finale, where Jimin finally broke eye contact to settle on his knees and finish the precise choreography that had landed the dancers into a bowed head position over the floor.

There was a gentle silence. And the crowd erupted into loud applause.

But Yoongi sat there in utter awe. His jaw dropped, eyes wide, hands numb over his lap.

He couldn't believe what he'd seen—the transcending experience Jimin's show had put him under.

He knew it was too late.

Park Jimin had him absolutely hooked.

※ ※

"More water for you, sir?" A tall man reached his long arms over Namjoon's shoulders and poured more of the cold, clear liquid into a slim cup.

"Thank you," Namjoon responded firmly. The kind waiter nodded and cleared himself from view, leaving the table of three to themselves. The gang leader looked up from his plate and watched as Yerin slurped noodles from her bowl rather loudly. A quiet laugh left his lips. "Is it that good?"

"Mhm~mn." The girl replied with a mouthful, reaching her left hand to show him a thumbs up. Namjoon chuckled again, then his gaze flickered towards Taehyung, who sat to his right.

"How's the sushi, Tae?"

The man looked up with hazed eyes, chopsticks idle beside his plate, wrist planted upon the table. "Hm?"

"Your food. You try it yet?"

Taehyung looked back down at his plate and then up at Namjoon. "Yeah. Delicious."

The oldest showed a furrowed brow. "Didn't sound so convincing, but I'll take it."

A short laugh. "What? You expected me to say some shit like... it's life-changing?"

Namjoon grinned, spoon digging into the side of a spot of curry. "You're starting to sound like V, you know."

Taehyung carefully picked out a sushi piece with his chopsticks and stuffed it into his mouth. "And how are you so sure it's not V talking to you right now?"

Yerin gave a snort from her side of the table. "C'mon now. If anyone can tell who's fronting at any given moment with little context, it's Namjoonie. We all know he's the all-things-Taehyung pro after all these years of putting up with you. He's practically your father."

Taehyung scrunched up his nose. "Yoongi said, that if Namjoon's my dad then you're my aunt," he swallowed.

"Oh. Ew."

"Weird."

"Mhm. Gross. So let's maybe not use that analogy?"

"Agreed."

"Yeah."

A short silence.

"So, can you please pass me the soy sauce, my darling nephew?" Yerin wiggled her brows, a teasing grin on her face while she looked directly at Taehyung, who slowly lifted his head to glare at her.

"Now, what did we.." his mouth parted in disbelief, "just agree on.."

"C'mon~ I said please!" She made grabby hands motion towards him, which only made Taehyung look over at Namjoon for some aid, eyes pleading the man to make her stop.

But much to Taehyung's dismay, Namjoon looked him dead in the eyes and spoke with a grin.

"You heard her, son. Pass her the soy sauce."

Taehyung gritted his teeth together and continued to give the two step-siblings his killer gaze while reaching for the slim soy bottle and handing it over to smaller hands.

"Good boy!" Namjoon reached to ruffle Taehyung's hair, to which the man quickly slapped his hand away. The older retreated his wrist with a pout. "Hmph. Dotie would've let me pet him..."

"Too fucking bad." Taehyung repeated his previous motions for grabbing a sushi piece and chewing it down, his movements a bit more aggressive after having been ganged up on. "Why'd you even call us both out here, anyway?"

Namjoon blinked at the man, then turned his head to look around the cozy restaurant establishment they were seated on. The interior was very much red-themed; ruby colored lanterns hung over the ceiling and warm, dim lighting setting a calming atmosphere for the customers. The table the three were occupying were ones near the very back, where a set of wide shoji paper panels with bamboo decor gave them a sense of privacy while they chatted and enjoyed their meal.

"What, I can't invite my family out for a nice dinner before things get really hectic with Bangtan and Acre?"

Taehyung bit down on his lip. "So you admit Acre's going to give us a hard time?"

"Those guys are a fairly new gang, you know?" Namjoon hummed, casually leaning down to grab another bite of his food. "I know how fresh blood get when they first start out. They start thinking they can run things their way, even against veteran groups like us. For a while they might think up on dirty tricks to use against us."

"I don't know, man," Yerin chewed carelessly, "I haven't heard them do much besides pick measly little fights with some of our men."

"And you should know by now that's always how it starts," Namjoon pointed out while glancing at the woman for a brief moment before his gaze was back on Taehyung. "I've been meaning to ask, though. Would you feel more at ease if we issued protection services for Jeongguk?"

Yerin perked up at the sound of her friend's name. "Ggukie?" She cleared her throat. "If anyone's protecting that little baby, it should definitely be me. That boy's practically my little bro."

Namjoon gave a cunning chuckle. "Does that make him Taehyung's uncle, then?"

Yerin gave a loud giggle and reached up to high five the man, the two roaring up laughter while Taehyung watched with twitching eyes.

"No." He slammed a hand down firmly on the table, the utensils clattering beside him. "If Bangtan's doing protection services for him, I should be the one to do it."

Namjoon and Yerin both quieted down their giggles and looked at the other male with pondering gazes. They then glanced at each other, and Namjoon gave a quiet sigh. "Tae... You know that Yoongi's already taken up the job for Misun, and you can't really... I mean, you've never done a protection service before. It's not of your concern as a captain. Yerin's... technically a captain, I suppose, but Hoseok's the one officially filling that role for her, so... She'd be the most viable option here."

Taehyung went quiet. For a while he only stared ahead. At nothing in particular, really. His squirming lips showed he was processing the words spoken to him, though his stagnant eyes said otherwise.

After a long few seconds, he clacked his chopsticks together and both Namjoon and Yerin watched as a boxy grin slowly spread over his face.

And then, he burst into sudden loud laughter.

The siblings once again glanced at each other every so often, and watched patiently as Taehyung gave light slams over the edge of the table, practically keeling over with his lively cackling.

"What's so funny?" Namjoon finally spoke up, a brow perked up while he lowered his spoon to his plate.

"Pfff, ha!" Taehyung threw his head back and leaned against his chair, feet skidding on the floor beneath him. He gazed at the ceiling for a short while, eyes scanning the gentle glow of the pretty lanterns above them. "Speaking of Jeon Jeongguk..." he snickered softly, "The poor boy said he's in love with us."

Silence fell. Namjoon and Yerin were both too busy staring at the other male, processing the words he'd just said to them.

"Wha... What...?" Yerin finally let out, after having had some time to confirm if what she'd just heard was correct. "Ggukie said that to you..? That he's in love with you?"

Taehyung perked up in his seat and nodded, a wide smile still planted on his face. "Can you believe that shit?"

Namjoon blinked in silence before straightening his shoulders. "He said that to you? Or to Taehyung?"

"Taehyung," the man answered simply.

"And what did Taehyung say back?"

Another chuckle, back leaning against the chair once again. "I don't remember. Or... I stopped paying attention after a while. Anyways, we can't do protection services. We're too busy for that."

"I know," Namjoon replied simply. "That's what I was trying to tell Tae."

"Good. Keep telling him," Taehyung reached again towards the plate of sushi, this time grabbing one with his bare hands, chopsticks left unattended to beside the plate.

Yerin continued to stare at him with a worried look on her face, the bowl of tasty noodles in front of her suddenly the least bit of her concern. "Hey, Vante.." she said softly.

Taehyung looked at her. "Hmn?"

"Did V hear...? About Jeongguk's feelings?"

The male shrugged his shoulders and slumped. "I dunno. Probably."

"Did he react?"

"Don't think so," Taehyung gulped down his chewed food. "Don't think he even cares, honestly."

Yerin frowned and gave a light click of her tongue. "Sounds like him, alright."

"Yes." Taehyung reached for his glass of water and began to chug half of the liquid into his system, then broke away with a sigh of satisfaction. "Either way, I'm kind of glad for Taehyung."

The two looked at him with curious eyes.

"It's what he wanted, after all," Taehyung grinned, "For someone to love him. For who he truly he is."

✱