Saudade {Taekook} COMPLETED

◇Prologue◇

Grief lasts longer than the joy brought up by the swirling whirlpools of love- is what he had learnt at the ripe age of his much awaited freedom. At times he would ponder about the thin line between loving and hurting but just as the thoughts would come by,  he would bury them deep inside the trenches of his very own foundation. The weight of someone's head against his shoulder, the feeling of someone's smile against his lips and intertwined hands that never let him stray further away- is all he had ever known.

So why was it that everytime someone asked him about love, his heart hurt a little too much?

"Imagine finding true love though - a once in a blue moon occurrence it must be." The woman in front of him muttered with a hint of sharpness in her tone. Her crimson painted lips held a slight grimace and her long oval earnings gleamed under the sunlight giving her an expensive look.

She reminded Jeongguk of a pricey and expensive dress, made out of fine Mulberry Silk, the kind of dress one would see displayed on a mannequin but as soon as their eyes would fall upon the price tag- they'd turn their head and walk away.

"Pardon me, but I do not follow what you are trying to imply?" he questioned. The sign of boredom was present all over his face. Countless faces and dates arranged by his mother had taken place- yet none of these women ever appealed to him. By the looks of it, it was obvious that the woman ( his newest arranged date) was annoyed by his lack of interest- as it was quite blatant that she was use to having all the spotlight on herself.

She straightened her posture more (if it was even possible) and ran a perfectly manicured hand over her blue dress and looked at him before continuing, "what I'm trying to say is- I do not understand the fascination surrounding love, why would someone stay bonded by the hoax of achieving a perfect love story in a place where there are no real feelings to begin with? I would never understand the concept of finding your other half."

Jeongguk couldn't help but let out a chuckle, "I get what you are trying to say yet I can't help but wonder how much of a blessing it must be to find someone that can be your nepenthe."

The woman pursued her lips into a thin line before taking another sip from the flute of champagne held in her hand. She had a look of genuine curiosity on her face, "well it seems to me that you are speaking from experience."

A wave of nostalgia washed over him, the smell of salty air and wildflowers filled his senses and he peered out of the large windows close to the well furnished table he was sitting on and glanced at the walking pedestrians. Most of them looked like working ants- trying to fit in a little bit of relief within their 9 to 6 jobs. The same old cycle of life kept on repeating itself up to a point where all the sharp colors faded into dull murky grey. The traffic lights on the other side of the road flared red and the traffic stopped- and he wondered if the trickling of those 60 seconds was the only break these working ants would get? He knew life didn't have a lot of pit stops hence, humans had to sit back and relax in only these short intervals.

Because when people become addicted to the process of overworking themselves- the difference between a machine and a breathing being loses it's sense.

Somewhere in the back of his mind Jeongguk was aware that he was trying to dodge the question that was directed to him but his heart didn't let him walk back to the path he had abandoned a long time ago for he knew that a part of him was addicted to the pain that sprung from reopening old wounds.

A deep sigh escaped his mouth and he looked back at her before a subtle smile graced his lips as he reminisced about the long forgotten times. "well, let's just say I was lucky enough to have a taste of young love."

His words brought a look of interest on the woman's face, "do enlighten me." She said before leaning back in her seat.

"it's a bit of a unique story." He mused.

"I'm all ears."