Destination Wedding

18

Taehyung managed to roust his bestie and drag him to breakfast. A freshly showered and damp-haired Jeongguk was already waiting for them at the hostess stand, and Taehyung's jaw dropped at the sight of him.

"Close your mouth before you start catching flies, Taetae," Jimin teased.

Jeongguk smirked. "Hi hyungs. Table's ready."

The three browsed the buffet and settled at a table on the bright patio. Little red birds danced around their table and periodically threatened to peck at their breakfast, but they were too cute to shoo away. Jimin wasted no time in starting his morning interrogation. "You two looked awfully cozy all snuggled up last night."

Taehyung scoffed. "Oh, don't you start. I was just providing Jeongukkie with a place to rest after he was exiled from his bungalow! Care to speak to that, Jimin-ah?"

"Ah. Sorry about that, Jeongukkie. Nothing too exciting. Just wanted to share some of my oral motor skills with Yoongi-hyung."

Jimin suddenly felt a presence behind him. "He's right behind me, isn't he?"

"Well hello, Yoongi-hyung! Sleep well? Join us!" Jeongguk laid on the enthusiasm.

"I did, thanks. And I'm just grabbing a few things. I fully intend to return to hibernation until it's time to hike." He then squeezed Jimin's shoulder and brought his mouth to Jimin's ear. "Enjoy your breakfast." He squeezed again and took his leave, not looking back to spare the stunned boy a glance.

"And I'm hard."

"Fucks sake, Jimin! Not at breakfast!" Taehyung whined. The three laughed and gobbled up their food with the excuse of building their energy stores for the hike they were due to embark on.

Later on, the wedding party plus Hoseok found themselves trudging up the final ascent of their hike which promised priceless views.

"I am one-hundred percent regretting this item on my agenda. Why did we think this was a good idea?!" Jin huffed.

"Mmmph, it'll be worth it baby. You got this," Namjoon all but grunted out.

"Let's just stop here," Yoongi pleaded.

"C'mon hyungs! We're nearly there!" Jeongguk sped ahead and looked back. "See? Look!"

"No, I do not see," Jin seethed. "Has he even broken a sweat yet?"

"I think he's saving the sweating for later with Taehyungie," Jimin retorted, out of earshot from most of the group. This did bring a smile and an eyebrow wiggle to Jin's face though, who was fully in support of the teasing.

"Jimin, for the love of Taeyang, lower... your... voice!" Taehyung finally stepped up to the flat threshold and breathed deeply, mopping his sweaty face with a headband before pushing it back up to his forehead.

Jimin cooed at his too-easily embarrassed best friend. "Fine. Only for Taeyang."

The boys dropped to the ground one by one while Namjoon and Jeongguk explored the various views. Diamond Head was undeniably beautiful. Hoseok, being one of the few still-energized boys took it upon himself to lay out their picnic. Sounds of munching quickly took over as the boys scarfed fresh fruit and pork bánh mì. "The Vietnamese have sandwiches figured out," commented Yoongi.

The boys all nodded but Taehyung continued laying with his arm shielding his eyes, too comfortable in the heat of the high sun to bother eating. Jeongguk approached him and Taehyung felt a shadow cast over his face. "Aren't you going to eat, hyungie?"

Taehyung reached an arm up to him and without opening his eyes, said "feed me."

Jin and Jimin laughed out loud at the resurfacing of Taehyung's little baby behaviors. Jumping at the opportunity to take care of his hyung, Jeongguk plopped down, pulled Taehyung up to sit beside him, stabbed a chunk of pineapple with a chopstick and presented it to his mouth. Taehyung flashed a blinding, boxy smile at the gesture. He caged the entire large chunk of pineapple with his teeth and pulled it off the stick.

"Stop trying to show off how much you can fit in your mouth!" Chastised Jimin, poking his tongue into his cheek too obviously. This earned him a punch to the arm and a sharp look from Taehyung who then looked back at Jeongguk. He was grinning at his hyung expectantly.

Taehyung met his gaze, unbothered. "What? More." He looked at the chopstick, and then the bowl of pineapple and then back at Jeongguk. The group busted up laughing at Taehyung's cuteness and duality. Jeongguk rocked back and forth in a fit of giggles while Taehyung looked at him expectantly. So, he stabbed another pineapple chunk and fed it to his hyung. I'll do whatever you want, the younger thought.

Taehyung chewed and swallowed with a cute little sigh of satisfaction.

"What a baby," laughed Jimin, more relieved than ever to see the carefree Taehyung he knew rising to the surface. He felt affirmed in deleting Bogum's text messages off Taehyung's phone last night, because Taehyung deserved this and didn't need Jimin's unthinking brother to ruin his progress. Jimin resolved that he would do it again if given the chance, knowing that his brother probably wasn't through pursuing Taehyung on this trip.

While the group made their descending hike, Bogum sat grumpily in the main hotel lobby, scrolling through his phone. He heard the clicking of heels approaching and looked up to find a brightly and beautifully dressed Mrs. Kim.

"Park Bogum. Why are you sitting here looking so sullen?"

He stood up to kiss Mrs. Kim's cheek. "It's your son, ma'am. He isn't responding to my messages and my brother and his friends are guarding him like a monument. They won't let him near me."

"Perhaps you need to lure him out then."

"Ma'am?" Bogum was a perplexed. He was honestly still surprised that Mrs. Kim was giving him the time of day after he cheated on her son. He chalked it up to the notion that Mrs. Kim accepted that people made mistakes. That she believed Bogum was the best partner for her son.

Bogum wasn't wrong. Mrs. Kim did feel that way. Unfortunately, she believed that the ideal partner for Taehyung was someone who "looked the part" (read: wealthy) and could provide financial stability. She was underwhelmed with Taehyung's career pursuits, deeming photography as something that couldn't be profitable to the scale she was accustomed to, and Bogum could secure all of their futures. Not that they needed securing. The Kim's had money for generations to come, but the more she had, the more at ease she felt.

"Are you still dating... what's his name?"

"Seojoon. Yes. Technically."

"Perhaps you ought to invite him here and show Taehyungie what he's missing."

Bogum laughed, concluding that she had to be joking. Even he knew that the proposal was pretty fucked up. But he looked at her serious expression and raised, flawless eyebrows and realized she was dead serious.

"I don't know, Mrs. Kim. He seems to be spending a lot of time with Namjoon's best man."

"Who? Do you mean Jeongguk? Pfft. That boy looks like a biker bar regular. I seriously doubt he has anything serious in mind for my son. Just think about it."

Bogum bowed to her as she took her leave. Her husband awaited her at the concierge desk with a look of suspicion and concern in his eyes. He made eye contact with Bogum who instantly looked at his shoes. Bogum decided to give Taehyung another chance to meet him before taking such drastic measures, but he was not above Mrs. Kim's proposition. No shocker there.