❝Oceans Within Us❞ || Taekook

1~

"Hyungie, why are you 7 and I'm still 5?" the little kid with bright doe eyes asked.

Taehyung ruffled his hair. "Because I was born 2 years earlier than you?"

"Th—then please don't celebrate your birthdays yet, hyungie! Wait till I catch up!"

"It doesn't work like that Gukkie, I'll keep aging every year. Every December 30th, one is added to my age. We can't stop it." The older tried to explain.

"Nuuuuu!" Jeongguk shook his head aggressively, eyes widening in alarm, tears gathering up. "I'll be 6 soon, then 7. S-so wait for me hyungie. I want to be seven too…" his lips wobbled and in a matter of seconds, tears started to roll down his face.

Taehyung wiped the wetness with his small hands. "Sshh don't cry, Gukkie. Not having the same age is fine." He wrapped his arms around him, pressing his face into his chest, only to push him a bit back not even ten seconds later to lean down & place a kiss on the younger's cheek.

Kissing is a way of comfort, that's what Taehyung's mother taught him. It's what she'd told him to do whenever his younger cousins cried.

Jeongguk wasn't his cousin, but it's fine. He deserved kisses.

Taehyung remembers all that clearly. He remembers going to their summerhouse in the countryside that year and meeting the new addition to the caretakers of the villa— the Jeon couple. With them was their one and only son, Jeongguk, who was wary of meeting new people.

He remembers the shy little boy who hid behind his mother's skirt when she tried to introduce him to the Kim's, specifically to Taehyung, the only other kid around.

Taehyung’s parents loved people & the family always ate dinner with everyone— the helpers and even some neighbors.

The first two nights, Jeongguk refused to sit with everyone during dinner. He hid under the table instead, as his father lent him small chunks of grilled chicken.

On the third night, he agreed to be seated on his mother's lap but still turned down everyone's attempt to make him open up.

The next morning, Taehyung found him trailing after his father who was tending the horses. When Jeongguk locked eyes with him, Taehyung waved at him enthusiastically but the other turned away bashfully and went to play with some stones by the stable.

The younger started crying, and Taehyung, determined to befriend the timid boy, ran to the kitchen and got not one but two bananas for him. He thought Jeongguk would run away from him or perhaps cry louder, but he accepted the fruits, albeit reluctantly.

His wailing turned to sniffling and then sniffling turned to silence as he wholeheartedly munched the bananas. Taehyung sat on the grass, beside him.

"You're Jeongguk, right?" the boy finally looked at him and gave the tiniest of nods. "I'm Taehyung!"

"T-tae…"

With the boxy smile still on his face, he told him, "you have to call me 'hyung' because I'm older than you!”

After that, they’re inseparable. Jeongguk’s shy disposition turned a complete 180°. The moment he woke up, he’d run from the stone house, which the Kim’s had generously lent to their little family, to the “main” house wherein the owners stayed.

Taehyung’s parents welcomed him to their breakfast table unquestioningly. Dalha, the old woman who was the family’s cook, even started preparing two glasses of milk on the table every morning— one for Taehyung and one for Jeongguk.

Taehyung’s mother was especially fond of Jeongguk. She had always thought that Taehyung is too unchildlike, opting to bury his nose in books all day long instead of playing carelessly under the sun. Kids should be kids, after all. And Jeongguk was his first true playmate.

Over the course of the summer, they ran around the fields, climbed the hills, danced under the rain, got in trouble for freeing the chickens out of their cages, played with mud, got scolded for going at the dinner table with soiled clothes and dirty hands.

Taehyung hadn't lived that long yet but that was the best eight weeks of his life.

Their goodbye was emotional. Jeongguk had to be held by his father as he wailed and kicked and punched the air when Taehyung got in the car. "Nuuuuuuuuuuu! Hyuuuuuuuung!"

Taehyung remembers the younger screaming on top of his lungs, remembers his shrill voice and red face.

He was much calmer, albeit there were tears streaming down his small face. He stuck his head out of the window as the car started moving away.

"J-jeongguk-ah, bye bye!" He shouted. "See you next summer!"

The last thing he saw was Jeongguk rolling on the ground in despair.