(sorry for no update for twelve years, i was on vacation. but i'm back with an edited chapter, ta-daaa

also, tae's family isn't accurate in this okay, don't hurt me)

✧･ﾟ: * ten *:･ﾟ✧

Madeline and Tae sit on a dock alongside where the two kayaked, drying before they put their clothes back on. Tae got the both of them snow cones, fascinated by the fact that you could get fifteen different flavors, all different colors, some mixed. Madeline almost convinces herself he's really a lost ten year old, were it not for his deep voice, height, and large hands.

Tae is currently in the middle of trying to describe his family to her, which seems to be quite a large one. His dad recently passed, which she already knew, so it's only his mom and two younger siblings at home. Tae, apparently, lives with six of his other brothers, and Madeline can't help the surprise on her face. It's hard to believe he's still in one piece. Madeline is an only child, but she's heard plenty of sibling horror stories—but none of them had eight brothers.

Right in the middle of him explaining all of this, there's suddenly a soft shriek from behind them, like a girl tried to hold it in but failed. "Kim Taehyung," she says, practically in awe, causing Madeline's eyebrows to furrow.

An obsessively stalker-ish ex girlfriend?

"Is it okay to hug you?" she asks, suddenly much closer. She's broken English, undoubtedly local from Venice by her accent. "I loved your character Han Seong! I just finished watching it last night, and—you probably don't understand, my apologies. I never thought I would ever get to meet any of you since you've never toured in Europe. I'm excited for the comeback! And I... sorry, sorry, I should stop rambling, you look frightened."

But Madeline hears Tae laugh kindly, though she questions if he really understood all of what she said. Madeline, however, if more confused than ever after hearing all of this.

"Thank you," is all Tae says, proving he knew a little of her speech.

She asks for a picture, which he agrees to, and then she leaves them be, calling back to him that she's ready to buy "their" new music.

"What the hell just happened?" Madeline murmurs, mostly to herself. She looks in the direction where she feels Tae sitting beside her. "You're an actor? And a singer? No wonder you can afford all of this! Here I thought you got your dad's insurance money or something but... you're famous?" She can't help the disbelieving crack in her voice.

"Uh, Korean drama," Tae says. "And yes, I am singer. In... band. You know BTS?"

"Evidently not," she nearly scoffs, still baffled. "Why didn't you say you were famous?" But she knows that's a dumb question the moment it leaves her lips. The poor guy had probably been thankful she didn't have a clue who he was, nonetheless able to recognize him.

But this is the first girl to come up to him, so how famous is he?

"Can I hear some of your music?"

"Uh, okay, okay. This is my, uh, favorite."

She feels his earbuds being placed in her ears soon after, then the soft sound of music follows. The song flows so nicely, seeming so sweet, though it's in Korean. She feels like she should be waving a lighter back and forth.

"I like this," she tells him honestly. "What's it called?"

"Dul—uh, two-three. It's for... ARMY."

She frowns. "For the army?"

"Yeah, ARMY."

"So... you wrote a song... for the military..."

"Ah, no, no!" He chuckles. "Is fans."

"Okay," she drawls. "So your fans are called ARMY?"

"Yeah, good!"

She smiles at how he praises her simply for repeating what he said. Another song comes on what she presumes is his shuffle, this being only one voice with a more jazzy sound. She unintentionally starts snapping along with it, her foot tapping.

"I really like this one. What is it?"

She hears Tae clear his throat, almost like he's embarrassed. If she knew what he looked like, she's sure she could picture him blushing.

"Tae?"

"It's my song."

Her eyes bulge. "This is you singing?"

"Is bad?" He sounds deflated, like her reaction hurt him.

"No," she says quickly. "No, I—wow, you have a really beautiful voice. That's what I'm trying to say. I was just shocked, especially after hearing your karaoke-catastrophe in the shower the other day. Your voice is so strong..." She realizes she's rambling and cuts herself off, her own humiliation settling in. She could listen to this song on repeat for days.

"Thank you, Maddie. It... me-means a lot."

"You have to sing to me now, just warning you."

He laughs. "Ah, no, no."

"Um, yes, yes. You should be proud of yourself, Tae."

He goes quiet, but she hopes it's because he's genuinely thinking about her words.

Deciding to lighten the mood, she—rather reluctantly—returns his earphones and claps her hands. "Well, mister big-shot famous guy. What's next on your list?"

He's silent, a different kind of way. An I-don't-understand-what-you-just-said-to-me way.

She smirks. "What do you want to do now?"

"Oh! Is, uh, later... There is show. Sym... Sym..."

She racks her brain, trying to figure it out. "Describe it."

"Music. Very pretty and... old. Class... Classic?"

"A symphony?"

"Yes, a symphony later. Is that... okay?"

"Sure. But what about before then?"

She hears Tae humming in thought. "Lunch?"

So Tae is put in charge of finding a place to eat, nothing fancy. However, his map on his phone leads them to a tiny hole-in-the-wall with two things on the menu: hot dogs and giant pretzels. Tae is amazed, practically giddy, and Madeline could honestly care less after hearing how amused he is over something so simple. She hates hot dogs, but she doesn't tell Tae that as the two find a itty-bitty table in a corner with only one chair. Tae gently pushes Madeline into the seat, but she slides over so only half of her butt covers it, patting the small space left. Tae laughs, but sits anyways.

Madeline eats her pretzel while Tae has a hot dog and pretzel. The place is apparently famous for its two delicacies, as said by the tourist behind them. It's actually quite crowded in the area, which isn't hard to do, she supposes, given with how small the area really is.

That's when Madeline's phone rings again.

"My mom?" Madeline asks, certain it's either her or a spam number since Madeline doesn't really have friends anymore.

"No," Tae says. "It says, uh... Rome doc... uh..."

Madeline's eyes widen and she grabs her phone, answering it.

"Hello?"

"Yes, Madeline? You missed your appointment yesterday, so I was calling to make sure you still wanted to try the operation."

"Absolutely. I had some, uh, bumps in the road, but I do still intend on coming. I'm not exactly sure when, though..."

The surgeon clicks his tongue on the other end of the phone. "I'm afraid my only other opening is tonight at seven and that's because I had someone cancel."

Madeline swallows the lump in her throat. She's researched this operation hundreds of times. Even her alcoholic mother had looked into it. Madeline has been serious about it for two years now, and yesterday had been the surgeon's only time for her for another year. He's the only one who can fix her. He's the only reason she dared to travel so far alone.

She could call a taxi to take her to the airport, if she had her money. She could always hail the taxi anyways, then ditch without paying, but that wouldn't get her a flight. However, even if she had the money, a knot in her stomach stops those thoughts from forming.

She feels Tae shift next to her, his hand brushing her knee. She can feel his hair blowing gently across her cheek when he leans out of someone's way, murmuring a soft apology. The two are pressed together from sharing the seat, making half her body feel on fire. She hears a dog panting next to them, followed by Tae's cute giggle after he tells Madeline he pet it.

She's sure Tae would take them both to Rome if she only said the words, but....

This is Tae next to her, the boy more dedicated to learning English because of her. This is Tae, who has his much anticipated symphony at seven tonight, living out his father's dreams.

Madeline inhales a sharp breath just as the surgeon asks if she's still there. "I won't be able to make it. I'm really sorry."

"A pity. We've talked for a while now, so I know how much you were looking forward to it," he says. "I'll call if anything changes with my schedule, deal?"

"Yes, thank you."

When she hangs up, Tae asks, "You're okay?"

She smiles in his direction. "Yeah, I'm okay."

***

After the symphony, the two go back to the hotel where Taehyung fulfils Maddie's request and shows her more of the band's music. He's so ecstatic with how she seems to be genuinely enjoying each song, complimenting and praising every one. She laughs so brightly when he tries to get her to dance to "Butterfly," and the two do a sloppy tango across the main room. Until he receives a complaint that they're being too loud, but that only makes them laugh harder.

When it's well past midnight and Maddie is laying on the couch, half-asleep, he thinks about the phone call she had earlier where she apologized to whoever "Rome doctor" is. Or whatever that is. He hadn't had time to look up the translation. But that isn't what mattered to him; he's just concerned as to why she looked so upset when she hung up.

She had been smiling when she assured him she was okay, but it looked more sad than happy to him.

He doesn't want to be nosy, but he'd be lying if he said it wasn't bothering him. It's not his place to ask, but he does anyways. Besides, she's nearly asleep. She may not respond.

"Maddie?"

She drawls out a "hmm" in reply, her eyes closed.

"At lunch... your phone," he mumbles, frowning as he tries to figure out the correct way to ask. "You were sad."

"Mhmm," she hums again, and he's positive she's barely listening. It makes him feel less guilty for prying.

"Who... was it?"

She stretches, her legs resting across his lap. "A doctor."

"Doctor?"

"Yeah. You know, they fix you. Heal you. Make you feel better when you're sick."

"You are sick?"

"Sort of." She still hasn't opened her eyes. It's confusing him. He can't tell if she's fully conscious for this conversation. "I'm blind."

"But... that is not sick."

She makes another noise, settling into the pillows. "I'm broken, Tae. I am sick. That doctor was going to fix me."

Taehyung frowns. He's never considered Maddie broken. He never thought she needed to be "fixed." But if she was so excited to answer the phone, yet so defeated when she hung up, what happened?

"Why is, uh, not fix you?"

She smiles a little. "Why is he not fixing me?"

Taehyung nods.

"Because I'm with you. You were excited for the symphony, and besides, I couldn't ask you to do that for me anyways. You've done enough."

Taehyung is proud of himself for understanding majority of what she said, only missing a few words. However, his pride is instantly bruised when her words sink in. She didn't go to the doctor because of him?

His eyes widen and he shifts to face her, though she doesn't move and keeps her eyes closed. "Oh, Maddie. I'm sorry. I didn't... know. You could... should say something!"

She sighs, rolling onto her back and opening her eyes, though she can't see him. He likes looking at Maddie's eyes, though. They're a bright brown and always look as if there's stars or little sparkles in them.

"Tae, I wasn't going to do that. This is your trip. Your money. And anyways, I really liked the symphony."

Taehyung pouts. "I feel very bad."

"Don't feel bad," she says quickly. "Honestly, it's okay. Plus, I lost my money so I wouldn't have been able to pay for it. It's okay it didn't work out."

It's not okay with Taehyung, though. He already feels as if he's ruined her trip since she lost her bag when he should've held onto it for her. It's not fair for Maddie to be so reliant on him when she's missing out on everything she had first planned to do.

He'll get Maddie to Rome. He swears he will.