'Til We Meet Again | Taekook AU

Chapter 21

[Unedited]

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The dinner had started with light banter, mostly Jungkook teasing Jimin and the later trying to get back at him.

Taehyung ate in silence, only occasionally nodding at something Jungkook threw at him. The younger tried to keep him in their talks, but Taehyung wasn't having it.

It was awkward...everything about this dinner was awkward and Taehyung knew why.

This was the most human interaction Taehyung had had, over the past three years, and he was still not used to it.

Speaking with someone while having dinner – it had been non-existing in his life, until now.

At times, Taehyung found himself slipping into a rose-tinted version of the past and present, both overlapping in front of his eyes.

He couldn't help but compare the past Jimin and Jungkook with this one.

Of course, there were some minute differences between the two. The current Jimin liked mangoes, enjoyed walks in nature and dancing was secondary to him as of now. Whereas Jungkook had friends, unlike his previous lonely self, who had difficulty making friends outside of Jimin's group. He loved green more than purple in the current timeline. Jungkook also didn't do well with horror movies, while the previous version of him was more a fanatic when it came to horror movie marathons. Yet, the essence of their souls, the actions that made them Jimin and Jungkook, his best friend and his lover, from the first time he led eyes on them – it was still there.

Even though it hadn't been set into motion, Taehyung knew over time Jimin would become friendly with him, and so will Jungkook. He didn't know how long it would take, but it will happen eventually, just like all the other times.

"Taehyung?" Jimin called him.

"Huh?"

"Did you hear what I said?"

"Uh...I'm sorry I didn't hear you." Taehyung felt his ears burn, and avoided making eye contact.

"You have been spacing out for quite some time." Jungkook muttered, low enough for only him to here, and Taehyung gave him a sheepish look. What was he supposed to do? It wasn't like he was best friends with the two...yet.

"I asked, what do you want to eat?"

Taehyung hadn't read the menu. He said the first thing that came to his mind. "Uh...hamburger? Do they have it?"

"Sure." Jimin gave him a small smile and turned to the waiter hovering over his shoulder, repeating the order to him. The guy took down the names of the dishes on his notepad and disappeared into the crowd, heading for the kitchen.

Jungkook and Jimin fell back into a light conversation, and this time Taehyung kept one ear on the talk. He didn't want to embarrass himself any further. Snippet of their recent tour and the someone named Adora was mentioned by Jimin. Who was she? Taehyung wondered. When he had followed Jimin around, there hadn't been any girl in the picture. Was she a new addition to the idols under Jimin's management?

No, he would have known if that was the case...right? Taehyung felt his confidence waver. He had been so focused on Jimin, he hadn't put much though on people surrounding him. What if someone from his team, some new recruit was one of those crazed fans who had illegally found their way into his life? The thought made his blood run cold under his skin.

Taehyung shook his head and focus on the plate in front of him. Maybe he was thinking too much about his...maybe he was going the wrong way about his. He still hadn't found out how the fans knew about Jimin's whereabouts. There had to have been a leak somewhere – either from Jimin's side or his fans were way too inclined to become detectives when it came to finding Jimin's location. Whichever the case, Taehyung planned to follow up over the incident. He needed to know both, Jimin and Jungkook would be safe till they reach back to Seoul.