Fateful Alliance ∞

Ⅹ

The evening ended with laughter. Dinner had been a delightful mess of chatter, teasing, and gentle arguments between family members over who had the funniest story to tell. By the time Jungkook and Taehyung excused themselves, the warm echoes of voices trailed after them like a blessing.

They ascended the staircase together, side by side, the chandeliers scattering golden light across their faces. Jungkook's soft laugh lingered in the hallway, while Taehyung carried the weight of a quiet thought in his chest, one that had pressed against his ribs ever since Ji-eun had uttered that name earlier in the café: BamBam.

When they entered the bedroom, the lamps cast their gentle glow, painting the room in shades of amber and ivory. The curtains swayed faintly with the night breeze filtering through a small gap in the window. It was quiet here—intimate, cocooned.

Jungkook walked over to the window, parting the curtains to reveal the moonlit sky. The stars scattered like diamonds across the dark canvas, and below, the city blinked with its own restless lights. For a while, they stood side by side in silence, breathing in the stillness, as though both knew something important was about to unfold.

Taehyung's voice finally broke through, low and contemplative.
"Today was... wonderful," he said softly. "I feel like I got to know you better, Jungkook."

Jungkook turned, his lips curving into that gentle smile that always seemed to soften the sharp edges of Taehyung's heart. "I'm glad. I enjoyed it too. It's nice to... share stories and moments with you."

But Taehyung's chest tightened. That name. BamBam. His mind had clung to it all evening, twisting it into knots. He swallowed, his throat suddenly dry, and before he could stop himself, the question tumbled out.

"Can I ask you something?"

Jungkook tilted his head, eyes curious. "Of course. What's on your mind?"

Taehyung hesitated, unsure if his words would fracture the fragile peace they had begun to build. But he needed to know. He couldn't move forward without knowing.
"When Ji-eun mentioned BamBam earlier... your expression changed. Who is he? Was he... someone important to you?"

The smile faded from Jungkook's lips. His gaze dropped to the floor, lashes trembling as though shielding him from the weight of memory. He exhaled slowly, and when he looked up again, his eyes were solemn.
"BamBam is... my ex-boyfriend," Jungkook admitted quietly. "We broke up before this marriage."

A flicker of pain crossed Taehyung's face, sharp and immediate. "Were you forced to break up with him because of this?" His voice shook with a mix of dread and hope. "Jungkook, please... be frank with me. Do you still love him? Because if you do... I don't want you to force yourself into this. I don't want a marriage that has no meaning for you. You have to be happy, or else nothing we build will matter."

For a moment, the room held its breath. Then Jungkook stepped forward, gently taking Taehyung's hands into his own. His palms were warm, trembling only slightly. His eyes locked onto Taehyung's, unwavering, as though he wanted every word to anchor deeply.
"Listen to me. I'm going to tell you the full truth. No secrets. No holding back."

Taehyung nodded, though his heart beat fast enough to echo in his ears.

Jungkook inhaled, steadying himself, before letting his memories spill free.
"I started dating him two years ago. He was... kind. We had a good relationship, and for a while, I was happy. Then, a few days before the wedding, my father dropped the bomb. he told me I was to marry Kim Taehyung, the richest and coldest CEO."

The words burned, but Taehyung remained silent, gripping Jungkook's hands as though to remind him he was listening.

"I was furious," Jungkook continued, his voice cracking with remembered anger. "I didn't want to marry a stranger, especially one I assumed would be arrogant, entitled. I argued with my father, but it was useless. Afterwards, I ran straight to BamBam. I told him everything. I begged him, pleaded for us to face my father together, to fight for what we had. I even got on my knees."

The tremor in Jungkook's voice made Taehyung's chest ache. He could see the image too clearly: Jungkook, desperate and broken, pleading for love to fight for him.

"But he said he couldn't. That my father was too powerful. That he was scared. He promised he'd figure something out, but when the wedding came... he didn't. I sent him a letter, poured my heart into it, and begged him to come to me while I was getting ready. I told him we could elope, that no one would ever know who I ran away with. And still..." Jungkook swallowed hard, eyes shimmering. "He never came. All I got was a text. One word. Sorry."

The silence that followed was deafening.

Jungkook's voice grew quieter, rawer. "That day, I felt... destroyed. My mother had already warned me that once I was married, I was expected to obey. Clean if you asked me to clean, cook if you asked me to cook. And if you wanted to take me to bed..." His throat tightened. "I thought I'd have no choice but to let you. I told myself I would do everything demanded of me but never look at you, never speak to you. My heart would be full of nothing but hatred."

Taehyung flinched at the confession, a sharp sting cutting through his chest. The thought of Jungkook enduring such pain, of bracing himself for such cruelty—it shattered something deep inside him.

But then Jungkook's tone softened, fragile yet luminous.
"And then... you kissed my forehead instead of my lips." His eyes shimmered with something close to awe. "You told me no one, not even my husband, could touch me without my permission. For the first time in my life, I felt... safe. Not even BamBam ever made me feel that way. And later, you noticed I hadn't eaten and cooked for me. No one had ever seen me like that before. Not my family, not my ex. No one."

Taehyung's throat tightened. He could only stare at Jungkook, heart aching at the weight of his confession.

"It was those little things," Jungkook whispered. "Those small, quiet gestures that no one else saw. And they started breaking down the walls I had built. I wanted to hate you, Taehyung, but I couldn't. Not when you were giving me something I had never been given before. care. Effort."

Jungkook's gaze lifted, steady and brave. "Last night, when you were in the kitchen, I thought about it all. And I realized... why was I settling for someone like BamBam? I've written countless books filled with men like Damon Sokolov, my dream hero, so why was I settling for less? Why was I begging for someone who couldn't even fight for me, when you-" His voice broke. "When you were already giving me more than he ever did?"

The words hung between them, heavy with truth, trembling with hope.

"I decided then," Jungkook finished, his eyes glistening, "that I would give this marriage a real chance. That maybe I deserve better. And maybe... that better could be you."

Taehyung's breath caught. He had been holding himself still, so afraid of the answer, and now—now he felt tears burning in his eyes. He blinked rapidly, but one slipped free anyway, trailing down his cheek.

"Thank you," he whispered, his voice hoarse.

Jungkook blinked, startled. "For what?"

"For giving me a chance. For being honest." Taehyung's lips trembled into the faintest of smiles. "I don't know if I can ever be Damon Sokolov, but I promise you... I'll try. I'll try harder than anyone else ever has."

Jungkook's lips curved into a teary smile. "Trying is enough for me. Effort... means everything."

Taehyung swallowed, vulnerable and open in a way he rarely allowed himself to be. "Are you sure, Jungkook? If you don't want this, if it's too much, I would understand- "

"I'm sure," Jungkook interrupted firmly, his voice steady with conviction. His tears glimmered in the lamplight, but his smile held no hesitation. "All relationships depend on effort. Friends, family, lovers. And you've already shown me effort when you didn't have to. You listened to me ramble about my book for half an hour with a smile. You tried to read after fifteen years, just for me. Even BamBam never did that. You've already done more than he ever did. So yes... I'm sure. I want this. I want you."

The words settled into the quiet of the room like a vow, binding them more tightly than any ceremony ever could.

And in that moment, as the moonlight spilled across the floor and their hands clasped between them, Taehyung and Jungkook stood not as strangers bound by duty, but as two souls daring to hope, daring to begin again.