(let's just assume that from here on out all these chapters are *unedited* so don't yell at me for mistakes please. hopefully there aren't many. enjoy xx)

✧･ﾟ: * fourteen *:･ﾟ✧

His phone ringing is what wakes him up the next day. He grunts in his sleep, frowning in discontent. He doesn't want to get up just yet. He goes to roll over but realizes he can't, something blocking his way. That's when he notices the weight on his chest, strands of hair tickling his cheeks from the ceiling phone tussling them. His eyes snap open when it dawns on him that said weight is Maddie's head, along with her hair being the culprit.

He looks around the bedroom, his phone still going off. It takes him a minute to remember how he got here. He had urged Maddie to sleep in the bed since she's been falling asleep on the couch the past couple of nights, even at their other hotel. She was ready to go to sleep yet so the two started talking. He must've been the one to fall asleep in the wrong spot this time.

His phone stops, but right when Taehyung is going to see who called, it's starts ringing again. Maddie stirs, her fingers curling into Taehyung's shirt. He answers it quickly this time, not wanting to wake her.

"Hello?" he says in English, simply by habit at this point. He's so used to speaking around Maddie.

"Taehyung?" It's Namjoon, sounding partially amused yet a bit concerned. Then Namjoon decides to tease him, speaking English as well. "Are you going strictly to English now?"

Taehyung purses his lips. He doesn't know what "strictly" means. "Eh?"

"I'll take that as a no," Namjoon says with a laugh, switching to Korean. "Wait, are you still in bed? Shouldn't it be afternoon in Italy since it's evening for us?"

Taehyung glances at the alarm clock. "It's almost eleven in the morning, not too late. It's been nice to sleep in."

"I'm sure it has been. That's why I called, though. To make sure you remember that you have to be back in three days."

Taehyung's heart falters, a sadness suddenly spreading through him. Not because he's sad to go back to doing what he loves, but... He looks down at Maddie. "Yeah," he murmurs. "I know."

"Are you okay? You sound upset."

"I'm fine, hyung. Just tired still."

"All right. You have to tell us all about your fancy break when you get back."

Taehyung smiles, a bit sadly. "Don't worry, I will."

He wonders how each of them will react when he tells them about Maddie. If he tells them about Maddie. Their group isn't exactly permitted to dating, or if they were to, Taehyung doesn't know if the company would accept a girl that isn't an idol. Or Korean, for that matter.

Part of him almost wants to tell Namjoon now, but something keeps him from doing so.

"Well, enjoy the time while you can. You deserve it," his friend interrupts his thoughts, kindly.

After hanging up, Taehyung bites his lip, glancing back down at Maddie. He really needs a shower but he doesn't want to wake her up. And, if he's being honest with himself, he quite likes the feeling of laying her with her. Like yesterday morning on the couch, he was awake before her but he hadn't wanted to move. When she freaked out, he took it as a bad sign but after her kiss last night...

Taehyung's cheeks flush. He still doesn't really believe it actually happened. Maybe it didn't.

He starts to slide out from under her, but she scoots closer, nuzzling her cheek further into his chest. He grins for some reason. It's oddly adorable. Gently, he grabs her wrist, carefully removing her arm from off his torso, setting it at her side. She sighs in her sleep, curling into a ball instead right up against him.

She's like a cat. He has to cover his mouth to keep himself from laughing.

He shifts into an upright position, gingerly moving her head onto the pillow rather than him. Luckily, she rolls over and cuddles into the extra pillows on the bed. He lets out a breath of relief, then goes to gather his clothes for his shower.

When he steps out of the bathroom some time later, Maddie is sitting up in the bed, tossing her phone back and forth between her hands. There's a strange look on her face. He can't tell if it's frustration or sadness. She hears him step further into the room and she looks his way, instantly letting the phone fall onto the bed. She smiles, but anyone could see through it.

"What's wrong?" he asks, sitting on the edge of the bed. He doesn't want to be nosy, but he can't help his eyes from darting to her phone screen. It's already locked, though.

"Nothing. I just woke up and was checking my messages."

He purses his lips. "Messages?"

"Yeah, like from a missed phone call. A voicemail."

He understands. A little. "Your eomma?" he guesses, then realizes his mistake and clicks his tongue in annoyance at himself.

She chuckles, though. "That sounds like 'momma' so I'm going to assume you mean my mom."

He nods, realizes his mistake again, then says, "Yes, your mom."

"Uh, no, actually. She, um... she stopped calling after the other day."

Taehyung blushes when he remembers what "fiancé" means."

But Maddie must have received a message from someone with the forlorn look on her face. Taehyung doesn't know if he's pushing his boundaries at this point, but he tries one last time to get her to open up. "The doctor?"

She chews on her bottom lip, falling silent. She picks up the phone again, running her finger along the screen. "Yeah," she finally whispers. Almost as quickly as the sadness engulfed her, she plants on another smile. "So, what's the plans for today?"

Taehyung thinks for a moment. He has three days left of his break. Three days left with Maddie. His actually schedule is to be in Venice one more day for an art museum tour, then the last two days would be spent in Greece. He's really interested in the history of art styles there, and how it's modernized since ancient times.

He looks up to Maddie, who's eyes focus in the closest spot where she hears sound. Who's eyes have missed so much the past week, so much the past couple of years. Eyes that can be fixed. Eyes that can see again.

He swallows the lump in his throat, guilt from lying. "On train," he says.

"Oh? Where to?"

"To..." He tries to picture Italy, tries to think of somewhere nearby where a train could go. "Milan," he decides randomly, cringing to himself. Although, Milan is still on his bucket list for their infamous fashion week.

Maddie's eyes widen. "Wow, cool. I'll probably look homeless walking through those streets, but at least I'll be in Milan."

Taehyung grasps majority of what she said and only feels more guilty. He pushes the feeling away. He can't change his mind now. "You have everything?"

"Yeah, yeah. Actually, I'm going to take a shower before we go to look at least half alive."

When she gathers her things and enters the bathroom, Taehyung falls back on the bed with a deep sigh, rubbing his face. This trip hasn't gone exactly how he planned, but if he's being truthful, it's been better than he expected. Solely because he hasn't been alone through it all. Maddie has kept him distracted from thinking about his father, and if getting her sight back is the way to repay her then so be it. She deserves it so much.

He sits up for his phone, searching for train tickets to Rome. She was so adamant on getting there before; he knows how much this operation thing actually means to her despite her trying to play it off casually.

He orders the tickets and keeps the receipt on his phone with the barcode, then goes around and makes sure he has all of his stuff as well. He hasn't been unpacking anything since they're only there a couple of days each place, but stuff can still get strung out without it being intentional. A few months ago on tour, he left behind a Gucci scarf in his hotel room and it was one of the saddest days of his life.

When Maddie is finished, he suggests getting breakfast before they depart, so the two walk down the street a little ways until they find a sweet shoppe. Breakfast is a bit difficult in Venice with pastries here and there, but neither of them complain as they eat.

He hails a cab next to take them to the train station. It's then in the backseat when Maddie asks, "So what are you going to do in Milan? Did you know they have a fashion museum?"

Taehyung stifles his guilt some more. "Yes. We will do the fashion museum." He says "museum" very slowly, since the last time he pronounced it very wrong. He must of done well this time because Maddie doesn't correct him.

He starts thinking about the consequences this scenario could have. She might get mad that he lied to her. She might get mad that he's taking her to Rome regardless of her refusals to go. She might hate him. She might never want to see him again.

And after these three days, she might not.

***

It's very difficult to keep his secret for long. When they checked in for their train tickets, the staff member reassured Rome was their destination. Maddie had been sitting in the waiting area, though, so she luckily missed that. Then when they actually boarded the plane, the conductor went over the speakers to confirm each of their stops, and Milan was not one of them.

Taehyung had started talking a bit loudly, and very much spewing nonsense just so she wouldn't hear. She kept giving him funny looks, asking if something was wrong. He had to practically shove her into the seat to disregard her concern. He set their little bit of luggage in the overhead cubby, then sat beside her.

"Tae, why are you acting so weird?" she asks as soon as she feels him sit next to her.

"Weird?"

"We've been over what weird means. You know what I'm talking about," she accuses, glancing in his direction. She knows him too well already.

"I'm nervous." Not a complete lie. He's nervous about how Maddie will react when she inevitably realizes they aren't going to Milan.

"About what?"

"The train."

"You've never been on a train?"

He has, but he tells her he hasn't.

She laughs. "If you can handle flying, I'm pretty sure a train will be easy for you."

He settles back into his seat, trying to calm himself down. He is acting a bit ridiculous.

Three people sit across from them on the other side of the table. The rows are three seats, but no one shows up to claim the one beside Taehyung. There's two boys and a girl smiling in a friendly manner at him, which he nods to politely in acknowledgement. Maddie seems to be staring directly at the girl, and she waves a bit awkwardly, what seems like fear on her face.

Almost like an instinct, Taehyung pats her knee under the table. Somehow that became a code of theirs whenever people are near and she's staring. He did it at a restaurant the two visited once, and miraculously it stuck.

She clears her throat and looks down. "Sorry," she murmurs.

The girl leans over the table a little. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Maddie answers. "I'm just, uh... I'm blind, so."

All three of the people's eyes widen. "Oh," the girl whispers. "I'm... sorry."

There's an awkward silence that falls over the five of them throughout the initial thirty minutes to the first stop. When the train halts and some of the passengers leave, suddenly the announcer comes over the speaker again. Taehyung isn't expecting it this time, though, and he misses his chance to cover it.

"To anyone boarding here in Bologna, this train will make five stops to Genoa, Florence, Ancona, Perugia, and Rome. Please enjoy the ride."

The message is then repeated in various languages, but Maddie has already turned to him.

Her voice is accusatory when she exclaims, "Did he just say Rome?"