arrows and aces (a taegyu text ff cause uh yeah)

ch. 36

taehyun sat in the living room, the air heavy around him as his parents settled down across from him. their smiles were warm, inviting—perfect masks that hid so much beneath the surface. his mother's eyes were curious, and his father's posture was relaxed but alert, as though he was preparing for something bigger. they both looked at taehyun with the same expectation, the same pressure, as though everything he was about to say would carry the weight of their future.

he tried to smile back. his lips stretched into a polite curve, but it didn't reach his eyes. he had rehearsed this moment in his head over and over, had felt the words burning in his chest, desperate to spill out. but now, as he sat in front of them, the reality of the moment started to crush him. could he really do this? could he really tell them everything?

he inhaled deeply through his nose, trying to steady the pounding in his chest. his hands clenched the fabric of the couch as he glanced down at the floor.

"i need to talk to you," he started, his voice steady despite the raging storm inside him. "there's something I need to tell you."

his parents exchanged glances, both leaning in slightly as though they could already feel the weight of what he was about to say.

"what is it, taehyun?" his father asked, his voice gentle, but carrying the same undertone of expectation as always.

taehyun swallowed hard, his throat constricting. his heart raced faster than his thoughts, and suddenly it felt like the room was too small.

he looked up, forcing himself to meet their gazes. "i'm...i'm not who you think i am," he said quietly, the words trembling as they left his mouth. "i'm not straight."

there. the first crack in the mask.

his father blinked, confused. his mother's smile faltered just slightly.

"i'm not interested in girls," taehyun added quickly, the words spilling out now, faster, louder, as though he was ripping off a bandage. "i don't want to date shin yuna, or any girl for that matter. i never have, and i never will."

his mother shifted uncomfortably, her smile fading completely now. his father's confusion turned into something else—something harder to read.

"and..." taehyun hesitated, knowing this next part would be the hardest. "i've been living with my best friend beomgyu and some others. not just because they're my friends...but because i love them. because they make me feel like i can be myself. beomgyu especially, he's my bestest friend...ever, and i love him."

he felt the weight of his father's stare, saw the sharpness in his mother's gaze. his hands trembled in his lap, but he pressed on.

"i know this isn't what you expected from me. i know you wanted me to be different, to be someone else. but i can't keep pretending. I'm tired of hiding who i am."

there was a deafening silence. his father's jaw clenched, while his mother's smile dropped instantly. her eyes darkened, and something feral surfaced. "what?" she spat. "so, you've been living with those boys? in that house?"

"they're my friends," taehyun said firmly.

"friends? boys? you think that's appropriate? living with them, god knows doing what—" she paused, eyes flashing with anger. "that house deserves to burn, for all i fucking care, along with those boys in it."

taehyun's chest tightened, but he swallowed his panic."i won't tell you where they live, even if you ask me a million times. i won't let you hurt them the way you hurt me."

"what?" she snarled, leaning forward. "give me the address. now."

"no," taehyun repeated. his voice remained calm, but he felt the old panic creep into him.

"i said, give me the address!" she demanded again, her voice rising in pitch, nails digging into the armrest.

"no," taehyun said once more, his voice unwavering.

he denied her again, and again, until her rage flared, animalistic and uncontrolled. but taehyun stayed numb, stayed steady, knowing he had the strength now. numbness, whether good or bad, had given him an edge, and he used it.

he had accepted it. accepted that he might be stuck here forever, isolated from the people who meant everything to him. that maybe he'd never see them again, never feel free again. he'd rather live a life of truth than hold the pain of a lifetime of lies.

and then the doorbell rang.