His Bodyguard || K.TH.

18. Open Up

The pair of you end up huddled outside the store, on plastic chairs by a plastic table, near his bike that's locked up. 

Taehyung scoots closer, across from you and visibly embarrassed. He's unable to look into your eyes, instead concentrating on cooking the ramen in front of him and waiting for the boiled water to soften his noodles enough. "I promise. I'll pay you back."

You scoff without any malice, smiling. "Forget it. Just treat me out to something else next time. Like ice-cream or fast food."

Taehyung lifts his chin, brown irises sparkling in the sun beginning to fall over the horizon. His mouth parts in awe. "You want to go eat with me?"

"I mean when you go on one of your midnight snacking trips, buy me something." It's going to happen eventually considering his snacking adventures are frequent and not far in between you're not inviting him out like he thinks you're doing.

"Oh." Taehyung pouts. "Okay then. Sorry."

"It's fine. As long as you left your wallet at your apartment, I'm happy. It's better than leaving it somewhere on campus. We'd have to go looking for it."

"I don't know how I forgot." He exhales in exhaustion and your vision suddenly diverts as someone walks past. Your eyes pin on them, but they don't look at you, continuing on their way. Just to be safe, you turn to your left, finding empty tables and the vicinity clear. 

"No one's going to attack us." Taehyung opens the plastic cover to swirl his noodles and puts it back when it's not ready.

"I thought that last time."

"No one's going to come out if you're sitting right here. You'd attack them without blinking, okay? So calm down." He can't hide his disappointment. 

Taehyung thought you would be relaxed by now, but it's evident you haven't let your guard down in the least bit. Though he understands and chooses to shift the conversation when you don't respond. "Can I ask you something, dumbo?"

Taehyung opens up a bag of gummies to chew on.

"You already are," you quip while he passes the bag and you grab one to throw inside your cheek, chewing mindlessly.

"I want you to be honest."

"Aren't I always?" You swallow and your teeth aches with how sweet the candy is. You look down at the label, wondering why you liked them so much as a kid or if you're just used to not indulging in things like sweets as an adult. 

"Yeah, I guess. But I want to know why you came back."

"I told you, I missed it."

"That's it?" Taehyung's brows lift, doubt seeping into his voice, seeing right through you.

"Why?" You put down the plastic package, appetite suddenly gone. His question is evaded for now. "I don't seem like the sentimental type?"

"No. I think you are. All of us are and there's nothing wrong with being sentimental. I just think, that's not all there is to it. You didn't have a job here, no friends or any relationship, no place to stay." 

He ignores your scoff, continuing, "You obviously didn't come back for me. So why? You could've gone anywhere you wanted. It's not like that for me since I'm trying to maintain the small things I do have." Taehyung presses on, stating facts you can't refute. "So why come back here?"

The air becomes tinged with tension and you consider that his perception is sharper than you initially thought. His curiosity and drive to know the details is a lot too, almost more than you can handle.