Empress Handbook

Taehyung Ending | Two Halves of a Circle

Yeoreum wakes up with a cracked sigh. She swings her leg over the other side of the bed but doesn't fall into the embrace she was anticipating.

"Taehyung."

Yeoreum's eyes snap wide open at the sound of her voice. Her lips part and rise to pronounce Taehyung's name without any prior hesitations crossing her mind, just as if calling for him is already programmed into her subconscious. The shock that slowly seeps through her drowsy mind draws her to jerk up from her pillow.

The sun leaks through the narrow crack between the curtains. Yeoreum releases the pent-up breath in her throat, itching to murmur Taehyung's name again, and reaches for the phone on her bedside table. It's only seven a.m., but she knows Yoongi must be up already.

Do you have time to talk? Yeoreum finishes typing and checks for any typos before she sends it.

Knowing Yoongi's busyness, Yeoreum doesn't wait by her phone for a response. She wanders to the bathroom to brush her teeth and wash her face during the wait time she knows she'll have to endure. She glances over her phone, empty of Yoongi's response, but the usual disillusionment fails to find her today.

Yeoreum makes her bed and cooks herself a simple strawberry and cream oatmeal for breakfast from a recipe Taehyung has recommended. Soon, she looks at her phone again.

There is a notification.

Sorry. Today's packed with meetings for me.

Yeoreum hesitates for a while before she responds. May I call you?

Yes, in five minutes.

All right.

Yeoreum pours the oatmeal down her throat like she is quaffing an alcohol shot. The last sludge of the creamy mix crosses to the corner of her lips, leaving a sticky sensation. She props the windows open to let a gush of fresh air into the apartment that has grown too warm from the heater.

Yeoreum watches the clock tick past five short dashes before she picks up her phone. She presses her finger against the blue phone icon below Yoongi's name, meticulously ensuring that no second is wasted to maximise the amount of time she can talk to him. Yoongi's time limits are not lenient, not even for her.

The call connects instantly.

"Hello, Yeoreum. Is there something wrong?" Yoongi says, sounding slightly concerned.

"I wanted to talk about this face to face, but I guess you don't have the time. I have thought about a lot of things during my time hiding away from the world, and I think I've found answers to the questions I previously wasn't prepared to face," Yeoreum says. "Yoongi, I want to accept Taehyung."

A hefty silence falls between the call, severing away the last flutters they felt for each other. Yeoreum's feelings for Yoongi blossomed against the red walls of the Imperial Castle and survived through the crashing currents. Still, it fails to pull through the chasms of distrust and uncertainty their imaginations forged between them.

A sharp inhale whistles through Yoongi's lips. "Do you love Kim Taehyung?"

"Yes," Yeoreum utters.

"I understand." Yoongi gulps. "I wish the best for you two."

"And I wish the same for you."

"Call me if Kim Taehyung does anything bad to you again. I can beat him up."

Yeoreum laughs. "Okay, I'll keep that in mind," she says. "Also, Yoongi, don't forget we will always be friends. We're good?"

Yoongi takes a long breath. "We're good."