Unfriended | Taekook

15 - Turmoil

Taehyung stood in his room, finishing drying his hair with a towel after a good bath. His muscles throbbed with the ache from his nightly run, part of his hard training for the upcoming university tryouts. He hung the towel aside and reached for the bottle on his desk, popping two muscle relaxants into his mouth. He let out a quiet groan as he felt the adrenaline beginning to subside, leaving only the heavy exhaustion and fatigue in its wake.

And his eyes flicked to the pack of cigarettes on his nightstand.

Fuck, he promised himself he'd cut it, especially with the upcoming trials demanding every ounce of strength and discipline from him. Yet, he had already smoked almost half of it today. Tonight, a burn in his lungs felt like exactly what he needed.

Ignoring the whisper of guilt in his mind, he sealed the edges of his door with towels, pulled back the curtains, and took a cigarette. He was about to light it when he heard his phone vibrating and lighting up with a new notification. A text from Jungkook.

Look outside.

He approached the window with the cigarette hanging loose between his lips. There, in front of his house, stood Jungkook. Dressed in black from head to toe, with a perfectly styled hair framing his sharp features. One hand rested in his pocket, while the other held his phone. But what caught Taehyung's breath was the wide, boyish grin stretching across Jungkook's face as their eyes met.

Jungkook's fingers moved, tapping a message that Taehyung watched form in real-time. His phone buzzed again.

I'm alone at home. Let's hang out.

Taehyung smiled and sent Jungkook a text back: Why don't you come up my window?

Jungkook looked up and arched an eyebrow at him, glancing back at his phone and typing again.

We can talk more comfortably at my place. Hurry.

Taehyung bit his lip as he gave Jungkook one last look and nodded before stepping away from the window. He put the cigarette back in the pack, grabbed a hoodie, and slipped his feet into his slippers, hurrying to climb out the window.

He landed on the ground with a thud; a low, frustrated groan slipping past his lips as the ache in his legs flared up. He muttered a curse under his breath, wincing at the soreness that seemed to pulse through his muscles. Before he could steady himself, Jungkook was already in front of him, eyes wide with concern. "Did you hurt yourself?"

Taehyung shook his head, giving him a reassuring smile. "No, I'm fine. Just trained too hard today. My legs are killing me."

"Come on, let's get you inside." Jungkook guided Taehyung by the arm, leading him toward his house. Once they stepped inside, Jungkook flicked on the light and guided Taehyung over to the couch, pushing him to sit down. "Feet up," he said, nodding toward the coffee table.

Taehyung obeyed, leaning back against the cushions and letting out a deep sigh as he propped his feet up. He looked up at Jungkook, who stood in front of him with a serious expression on his face, arms crossed. "Better?"

"Yeah, much better. Thanks, Kook."

"You know that rest is an important part of heavy training, right? Don't overwork your body, Tae. Especially after the beating I gave you today. Sorry about that, by the way."

Taehyung smiled and bit his lip. Jungkook is so cute. "I won't. And you didn't beat me. I only tapped out because you begged." Now that he was closer and in the light, Taehyung could really see just how good Jungkook looked tonight. "You look great in all black."

The boyish smile returned to Jungkook's face as he did a playful twirl to give Taehyung a 360-degree view. "Like what you see?"

"I do. How was Yugyeom's party?"