The Tomorrow Of Us - Taekook

promise

The woods have an earthy smell to them, calming down his nerves and making it easier to breath somehow. Jungkook can feel Yugyeom's long arm hang around his shoulder while they stare into the fire burning in front of them. The place they have picked for their friend group's finally goodbye to Jung-hyun is a spot outside of the city where they used to come to have a smoke or drink a few beers just for the thrill of it.

"You okay?" Yugyeom asks, squeezing his shoulder gently before letting go of him to throw more wood into the flames.

"I think I am." Jungkook nods, looking up into the round "and you guys?" he lets his gaze wander over his best friends, the ones who have had his back ever since they met.

Eug-wo, Mingo, Hoseok, Yoongi, Yugyeom.... It hurts to know that one person is absent and will never be present again. At least physically.

"Honestly, I feel like shit." Yoongi then blurts out. "I have been thinking a lot the past few weeks, remembering shit where looking back I think I could have known... I should have known..."

"Same here" Hoseok confesses while the group nods in agreement and for a while, nobody speaks a word.

"This sucks" Yugyeom mutters.

"Yeah... my therapist says that grief is the price we pay for love. And while he's right, that doesn't make it any less shitty go through." Everyone chuckles lowly at that and Jungkook is glad to hear the familiar sound.

"Taehyung says that grief never really ends, but it changes. That helped me a lot."

"Look at you" Eug-woo says, nudging him with his shoulder "Having not only a good therapist but also a smart boyfriend... I might get jealous."

Jungkook smiles softly at the thought of Taehyung and what the boy has done to him, making him feel calm and okay while he was in the middle of a storm. Like a gift from above Taehyung came and allowed him to catch his breath and clear his head before heading on the journey he still is on. And as it turns out, this is all he really needed to make the right choice and get himself some help.

"Honestly" he utters lowly, having everybody lean forward to better understand him. "The beginning and the ending of Jung-hyun's suffering, when it all stared and when how it ended, I don't want to remember it exactly." He watches the flames dance around the pieces of wood, smells the smoke in his nostrils. "I want to remember him, as a person, I want to remember his soul... I hope I can let go of the idea of him being a part of me and instead see parts of him in everything around me."

Silence falls upon the group of friends while everyone of them stares into the fire, probably hung up on their own memories of Jung-hyun. To Jungkook it feels like hours have passed before Hoseok raises his beer into the air.

"To Jung-hyun."

"To Jung-hyun." Yugyeom nods in agremment and they all drink to his name, his life, the person he was.

And in this moment, Jungkook feels okay.

* * * * * *

"I'll miss you" Jungkook states honestly, taking Taehyung's hand into his while they stand at the bus stop, waiting. "Whose gonna calm me down when I ramble too much?"

"Oh, you'll be fine" Taehyung rolls his eyes, ruffling the other's hair softly. They had that talk before. Last night before going to sleep, and the night before that and the night before that...And while Taehyung told Jungkook multiple times, that he is exaggerating, that it's only for a month that he'll be out of town, he secretly enjoys every second of the other whining about his absence.

"But what if I can't-"

"You yourself told me that everybody belongs to themselves. So it's their job to take care of themselves."

"Ah stop using my wisdom against me" Jungkook whines while shaking his head. "That way I'll never get to live out my childhood dream of a knight in shining armor saving me." He rolls his eyes dramatically with a pout on his lips, while he turns away. It has Taehyung chuckling again and wrapping his arms around Jungkook figure, clinging to his back.

"I'm glad we weren't each other's saviors." Taehyung whispers into the crotch of Jungkook's neck. He inhales his sent and tries to remember every last note of it for when he lies himself to sleep the next couple of nights until Jungkook comes to visit him in Busan. "We just were by each other's side while we saved ourselves"

"Can we promise to stay in each other's life?" Jungkook lays his hand on top of Taehyungs, which are place around his torso. "Like, promise to be there for each other while we grow on our own?"

Taehyung closes his eyes, his chest stinging a little. What did he do to deserve to have met such a wonderful human in his time here on earth? What he feels when looking at Jungkook is still somewhat overwhelming to him. He tried to put it into words before but like always failed terrible, which is why instead he played for the other last night. This time, the thought of Jungkook not getting the message, didn't even cross his mind while he let the bow glide over the stringes.  This time, Taehyung  realized, he truly trusts him. Trusts him to understand and if not, to alway keep trying to.

"Promise" he whispers, planting a soft kiss on Jungkook's neck and he means it, he really does.

They chuckle softly and shortly after, the bus comes to take Taehyung to the airport, from where he'll be flying to Jesu Island. As Taehyung gets into the vehicle, a soft sting tells him that he sorts of wished for their final kiss to have lasted longer than it did. But at the same time, he is glade it had to happen quick. Just like a band aid that gets ripped off, those things hurt less when he doesn't think about them too much.

He takes a seat at one of the windows and waves Jungkook a kiss as the engine starts. And while the bus drives away, leaving Jungkook to become a small figure at the side of the road, Taehyung can feel the sting in his chest again, paired with a pounding heart and a soft smile on his face. He knows that the only reason this hurts right now, is because this isn't where their story is supposed to end, but rather where it begins.
And at this bittersweet moment, Taehyung can feel it.

Winter is over and spring is finally here.

THE END.

* * * * *

Well, that's it! Hope you enjoyed 💙
Thank you for reading 🦋