Unique Friend

~6~

~6~

"Wha- woah! Taehyung, what is all this?" Karina splutters in amazement as her eyes roam her apartment, taking in all the new additions. Everything is brand new, modern and sleek, yet it blends in perfectly with the older architecture and her own limited upcycled antique pieces. It's fresh, yet cozy.

"Uh. Furniture?" he says, clearly anxious for her approval. "Do you not like it?"

Karina has finally overcome her initial shock enough to form a coherent thought. "Taehyung, it looks amazing! But, you didn't need to do all this, you're only staying here for six months."

He waves a hand dismissively, "Well, I just want to do my part and be a good roommate. We need furniture to sit on, and I can't do without my games!"

Karina realizes she has misunderstood his gesture. She has spent so much of her life fighting for herself she has learned to second guess every good deed, and cannot stand being offered charity. But she now sees that this is not what Taehyung had intended with his grand surprise at all; he merely fulfilled a need for rather basic necessities, and that is all.

"Well thank you, everything looks great! And I suppose you can just sell it all before you leave anyway," she replies as she strokes the soft leather of the beautiful sofa.

Taehyung cocks his head at her comment. "Sell it? But if I sell it, what will you sit on?"

He truly is so innocent and kind, she thinks to herself. He has no concern for the money spent, and only wants to provide for his friends. Still, that little dark corner of her mind remembers not to become too trusting of his seemingly innocent gifts.

She laughs, "Ok, I guess it stays for now, we can discuss all that when it is actually time for you to leave," she says as she turns to hang her jacket on the hooks by the door and remove her shoes.

When she turns back around, she notices her old TV stand had been moved over beside one of the bay windows overlooking the street below, a new bookshelf added to the top of it, her few books displayed neatly on the shelves. "Oh," she exclaims, "how thoughtful Taehyung! Thank you." She makes her way over to the shelf and notices there are a few new throw pillows added in with her mismatched collection and old favorite blanket, as well as a nice scented candle on the stand.

Taehyung gives a bashful little smile and looks at his feet. "You are welcome, Karina. I noticed your books were stacked on the floor beside the window, so I thought you might like a shelf for them."

"Well I really do, thank you. You are an excellent roommate," she says with a smile, "and an excellent interior designer. Did you plan all of this on your own?" she asks as she takes a closer look at the artwork and other small finishing touches he has put into the space.

"Well, not all by myself. Most of the artwork is mine, and I found some photos of spaces I liked, so I showed the nice ladies at the furniture store and asked them to help. They all said yes," he finishes, almost puzzled that so many people were willing to do so much to help him. Karina is pretty sure it has something to do with his infectious charm and willingness to swipe his credit card, but doesn't say anything in fear of embarrassing him.

"It looks great. And speaking of your artwork, Namjoon tells me the next art event at the Swan is featuring you! How exciting!"

Karina is surprised to see him look shy at this again, thinking it a wonder that someone so handsome and talented can be so shy.

Handsome? Where did that thought come from....

"I only hope it will be good for Namjoon-hyung's cafe," he says with a shrug.

"I'm sure it will be, Taehyung. Ok, I need to wash all this coffee smell off of me before I settle in to read; I'm going to head to the shower, if you don't need in...?" she tails off, somewhat awkwardly again.

Taehyung blushes very hard at her comment, and just shakes his head no, looking down at his feet once again. Karina is getting the impression that he is not accustomed to being around women very much.