Fading Away | Taekook

40 - Payback

Jungkook locked himself in his room, and Taehyung remained motionless in the living room for some time. His phone buzzed with notifications in his pocket, but he was afraid of what it might be. He took the device and placed it far away from him.

Jungkook's words and suspicions hurt him; he questioned his love for him and insinuated that he was interested in his boss when Taehyung only has eyes for Jungkook. But he knows his boyfriend isn't entirely wrong; he needs to own his shit. Bogum didn't bother to be subtle in his flirtations and Taehyung should have been firmer with him.

As the night wore on, Taehyung found himself unable to sleep, his mind consumed by the turmoil of his emotions. With each passing hour, the weight of his guilt and uncertainty about his relationship grew heavier, suffocating him in the lonely living room.

Unable to cope with the overwhelming sense gnawing at his insides, Taehyung turned to the only solace he could find: food. He raided the kitchen, consuming everything in sight recklessly, the taste of each bite offering temporary relief from the ache in his chest.

But as the last crumbs disappeared into his mouth, Taehyung realized that he still felt sad and worried, with the added discomfort of being extremely full and disgusted with himself. His own realization was enough to turn his stomach and he rushed to the bathroom, just in time to vomit all the excess food he had consumed in the past few hours, the acidic bile burning his throat as it spilled into the toilet bowl.

After expelling everything, Taehyung flushed and stayed sit on the floor, feeling too weary to try to get up. Suddenly, the door creaked open, and Jungkook's concerned gaze met Taehyung's teary eyes. Despite the worry etched into his features, Jungkook's voice remained detached as he asked, "Do you need help?"

But Taehyung had already lost his dignity; he decided to use the opportunity to try to get closer to Jungkook, "yeah, can you help me up?" Taehyung gave his hand to his boyfriend pull him up, but Jungkook had other plans; he squatted down and picked Taehyung up bridal style, carrying him as if he weighed nothing. Taehyung's heart skip a beat.

Jungkook put him on the guest room bed and stepped back, "do you need anything else?" There it was, the apathetic tone in his voice again. Taehyung's heart ached. Maybe it is better to leave Jungkook alone after all. "No... thank you for helping me."

Jungkook nodded ready to leave the room, but when he carried Taehyung he could feel his boyfriend's body trembling. He tried to ignore it and go back to his room, but he couldn't. Jungkook approached Taehyung, reaching for his forehead, "you're burning with fever, why didn't you call me in my room?"

Taehyung hadn't realized he had a fever, too immersed in his feelings to notice his body suffering, "it's okay, I just need to rest. I'm just tired."

"Let me help you change your clothes," Taehyung was still wearing the clothes from the premiere and decided to set aside his worries about his body and accept his boyfriend's help. As Jungkook undressed him, he kept his eyes down, avoiding eye contact.

Jungkook discreetly observed him. Taehyung's body seemed normal, with no signs of marks or bruises, which is a relief, but now he still needs an explanation for why his boyfriend is hiding his body from him.

After putting Taehyung in one of his pajamas, Jungkook lay down and hugged him from behind, trying to make him stop shaking. Taehyung held onto Jungkook's hands around his waist, caressing the knuckles. They didn't say anything to each other, just stayed like that until they fell asleep.